Chapter 57:

“Where did this guy suddenly appear from?”

Inside the villa, the people were still excited about their imminent rescue. For Joyce, the sudden appearance of his cousin Wilcox had greatly eased his mind.

The others, despite their mutual distrust, realized that the arrival of outsiders in significant numbers shattered the ‘isolated murder mystery in snowstorm villa’ scenario where trust breaks down among a small, closed group.

With that assurance, Joyce focused entirely on being rescued. He didn’t even process Wilcox’s offhand remark about the world knowing their disappearance.

However, Professor Jones, who maintained his composure, paused before asking through the wall, “What do you mean by saying the whole world knows we’re missing? If that’s the case, why haven’t the police arrived?”

“Well, the police would need to be able to get in first!” Wilcox replied while wrestling with the vines.

Joyce called out nervously, “Cousin?”

Wilcox chuckled. “Relax. You wouldn’t believe what the outside of this villa looks like.”

“You could send him a picture via Bluetooth,” Jing Qizhen chimed in.

Predictably, the erosion area lacked internet. But Jing Qizhen’s team carried full communication and recording equipment, although there was no need to share that with the people inside.

Wilcox slapped his forehead and exclaimed in Sichuan-accented Mandarin, “You’re right! I’ll send it to my poor little cousin right now!”

“Cousin?” Joyce, clueless about Mandarin, asked in confusion.

Wilcox stopped his vine-clearing efforts, took out his phone, and asked Joyce to turn on Bluetooth so he could send some files.

After stepping back to take a few photos of the vine-entangled villa, Wilcox sent them over. He even joked, “I also sent Tang Song’s survival tips for erosion areas to my cousin!”

“It’s fine. If it was classified, the higher-ups wouldn’t have shared it with you,” Lu Lingxi reassured him.

Wilcox laughed. “True!”

Meanwhile, Jing Qizhen added, “Send it. As Tang Song said, their families already paid a hefty sum, so it’s fair.”

Jin Guijuan and Old Xiao exchanged glances, recalling their now-rich bank accounts. Jin Guijuan whispered, “I feel like offering them full VIP treatment at this rate.”

“Same here.” Old Xiao nodded. “Getting paid this much makes me feel obligated to go the extra mile.”

Yan Hong was still inspecting the vines and suggested, “This isn’t efficient. We need another method.”

“Why not just remove the door or window? We don’t need to clear all the vines—just enough to create an exit,” Jing Qizhen proposed.

Manman agreed. “Yes, we only need one exit. The main concern is preventing the vines from sealing it up again.”

Inside the villa, Joyce anxiously watched the progress bar on the Bluetooth file transfer.

Despite their previous distrust, the other survivors crowded around to see the photos. The sight of the villa completely wrapped in vines, through which the gaps revealed planks nailed to the exterior, left them speechless.

With the discovery, they realized that even if they had used an ax to chop down the door panels, which would have been hard to achieve in the first place, the nailed planks and the thick layers of vines beyond the door would render their effort futile.

“Oh my God!” the housemaid exclaimed, covering her mouth in disbelief.

Professor Jones was equally stunned. “How is this even possible?”

Joyce pounded on the wall, shouting, “Cousin! Wilcox, what’s happening outside? Why are there so many damn vines?”

“How should I know?” Wilcox, equally clueless, speculated, “Maybe the villa’s owner read ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ and planted some magic beans that went wild. Or it could be a ‘Sleeping Beauty’ castle covered in thorns!”

Meanwhile, Manman and Si Jiayang returned from a nearby villa with a sturdy axe and even a chainsaw.

“Good choices!” Jing Qizhen laughed.

Yan Hong instructed, “Focus on cutting the vines along the doorframe.”

Wilcox warned the people inside, “We’re clearing the vines at the entrance. Step back a little!”

Joyce took the lead and the five of them immediately ran far away from the wall.

Si Jiayang signaled Manman and the others near him to step back as well. Then he activated the electric saw. Amid the buzzing sound, he carefully cut a straight line through the vines on the door frame, moving steadily and slowly from top to bottom.

The vines were wound so tightly that even after cutting a gap, they remained firmly blocking the door.

Si Jiayang quickly moved to the other side of the door frame and severed the vines there as well.

He promptly turned off the saw.

Lu Lingxi and Gu Leshan stepped forward almost immediately to remove the section of severed vines from the door.

After throwing the vine-covered panel into the yard, Lu Lingxi couldn’t help but mutter, “These vines are way too tightly wrapped!”

Jing Qizhen walked over, carefully cut a segment of the vines with leaves, placed it into a sealed container, and tucked it into his bag.

Gu Leshan was confused. “Huh?”

“It’s a sample for Grandma Fang.” Jing Qizhen explained,

Gu Leshan nodded. “Oh, I see! By the way, should we just burn this entire section of vines? To prevent them from growing back in the yard.”

As he spoke, Gu Leshan gestured toward the vine-covered villa in front of them. “If this grew in such a short time, it means the vines have an extremely fast growth rate.”

“…I’m not sure if burning them would release toxins.” Jing Qizhen hesitated.

Gu Leshan instantly realized, “Ah! Got it!”

Manman also approached and added, “Figuring out how to deal with these vines is definitely a problem.”

“Yes, for now, we’ll leave them here and observe. Hopefully, the cut vines will wither and die.” Jing Qizhen nodded.

At that moment, Yan Hong had already picked up an axe and was chopping away at the wooden planks nailed over the door.

As the planks were smashed apart, the previously locked door could finally be pushed open.

Joyce was the first to rush out from inside. His face no longer showed its usual gloom or sarcasm. Instead, he was visibly agitated as he exclaimed, “Wilcox! Cousin!”

Wilcox glanced briefly at his unlucky younger cousin before his gaze fell on the apron of the housemaid, where there was a large dried black bloodstain.

Wilcox’s expression turned grim. “Just the five of you?” He knew there were nine people missing from the Boston villa party.

Joyce nodded, his face somber. “The other four are dead.”

Upon hearing this, Jin Guijuan gasped sharply.

Although it was her third time entering an erosion area, the bloodiest scene she’d ever witnessed was regarding Miss Li, the female ghost who tore apart a monster. Even with her bias toward the manager, recalling that moment always made her uncomfortable.

Now, upon suddenly learning that four people had died in the villa, she was struck by a new realization. The dangers in an erosion area extend far beyond the area itself.

The remaining people in the house quickly ran out through the villa’s entrance.

Once in the yard, McCain, with his red hair, swept his gaze over the cold and eerily quiet street outside, momentarily puzzled.

The housemaid nervously followed a short distance behind Caroline but didn’t dare get too close.

Caroline, who was equally excited, glanced at Wilcox, then at Jing Qizhen and the others, who all had distinctly Eastern Asian appearances. Aside from Lu Lingxi and Gu Leshan, fully armed and dressed in tactical uniforms, the rest looked so out of place that their presence felt downright strange.

Professor Jones broke the awkward silence by directly asking, “Who are you people?”

“Well, that’s a long story,” Wilcox responded.

Jing Qizhen interjected, “It’s actually not hard to explain.”

He promptly pulled a document from his bag and handed it decisively to Professor Jones. Following Tang Song’s instructions, Jing Qizhen concisely explained in English, “We are rescue personnel hired by your family. Please do not act independently. Any casualties will not be our responsibility.”

Professor Jones hurriedly opened the stack of documents and the others leaned in to read as well.

Joyce stayed put, clearly trusting his cousin Wilcox more than anyone else.

“You even brought the contract in here?” Lu Lingxi asked in surprise.

Jing Qizhen blinked. “Actually, the contract copies were originally carried by your leader.”

Tang Song feared that he might not make it in, so he handed the documents to Jing Qizhen beforehand. As it turned out, Tang Song’s concern was well-founded.

“…Got it.” Lu Lingxi nodded.

After skimming the employment contract, which notably lacked detailed protection clauses for the trapped individuals, Caroline, McCain, and Professor Jones couldn’t believe it was real. If not for recognizing the signatures of their elders, they might have assumed the document was a forgery.

The housemaid wisely stayed quiet and chose not to comment given her lack of understanding of the situation.

Caroline raised her gaze from the document to the deserted street and the thick mist in the distance. Her expression was a mix of gloom, doubt, and unease and it gradually shifted to disbelief.

“You’re saying we’re in some kind of special space?”

Jing Qizhen nodded. “Yes, in an erosion area. Here, we may encounter ghosts, spirits, or any number of strange phenomena.”

“This is simply unbelievable!” Professor Jones muttered repeatedly.

Suddenly, a shadow moved from a nearby villa. With his sharp eyes, Lu Lingxi immediately looked up. “Who’s there!?”

At the same time, Gu Leshan swiftly aimed his rifle’s scope at the figure.

The group turned their attention toward the disturbance.

The person Lu Lingxi spotted had a stern expression and looked confused as he returned their gaze. He held a rock-hard, stale loaf of bread in his hands. It was clearly several days old.

The moment their eyes met, Jing Qizhen, Manman, Si Jiayang, Jin Guijuan, Old Xiao, and Yan Hong, the survivors of the Yunhai Wancheng Department Store disappearance incident, exclaimed in unison, “Yun Shuanghua?!”

Lu Lingxi and Gu Leshan quickly realized the situation but kept their fingers firmly on their triggers.

Having seen the video footage Jing Qizhen’s group had brought out, they naturally recognized Yun Shuanghua, who was believed to have ‘heroically sacrificed’ in the Yunhai Wancheng Department Store erosion area.

“What the hell!?”

“Where did this guy suddenly come from? Something’s not right!”