Starting with the frog, he has ruled for eternity.

Chapter 58 Caw caw caw? Change

Hidden Sun City, east of the city.

Two city guards in uniform carried lanterns as they walked along the uneven cobblestone path.

The candlelight inside the lantern flickered in the night breeze, casting the shadows of the two people, sometimes long, sometimes short, like ghosts crawling on the ground.

This is the old town area, which is usually deserted. Ever since that strange incident, even the night watchmen don't want to come here anymore.

After all, even someone as famous as Director Chen could mysteriously disappear here...

Besides these guards, who else would dare to come?

Don't you die?

"Old Zhang, can we walk a little faster?"

The young guard behind shrank back, his hand unconsciously resting on the hilt of his sword at his waist, his eyes constantly glancing at the ruins on both sides.

"What are you afraid of? We're wearing official robes and carrying an aura of malevolence; ordinary ghosts and spirits dare not approach us."

Old Zhang, who was walking in front, was a seasoned veteran. He had a straw he had picked up somewhere dangling from his mouth. Although he said he wasn't afraid, he couldn't help but quicken his pace. "Besides," he said, "the city lord has given a strict order to increase patrols in this area. If we slack off, we'll be in trouble later."

"No... I heard..."

The young guard quickened his pace, moved closer to Old Zhang, and lowered his voice, "Did a group of people die here during the day?"

Old Zhang paused, turned around, and glared at him: "Don't ask around. The higher-ups said it's a rumor. I've already asked around, and there's no such thing as guards disappearing."

"How can it be a rumor?" The young guard was getting anxious, gesturing wildly. "My cousin works in the yamen, and he saw with his own eyes that guy... that martial arts school owner, disappear right here!"

"But he's the only one who disappeared. The rest of the rumors are just that. The patrol teams are all fine. I went up there myself to confirm. Otherwise, why would I dare to come?"

Old Zhang glanced at him disdainfully, stopped, and raised the lantern higher, illuminating the empty ruins ahead.

There were ruins and overgrown weeds there, but no sign of human habitation, and certainly no restaurants.

This made him slightly serious.

There was no Drunken Immortal Pavilion here, but when he inquired and gathered information, everyone remembered that they had seen Director Chen disappear inside the Drunken Immortal Pavilion.

"How...did it just disappear...?"

Old Zhang frowned, spat out the straw in his mouth, and sighed.

"These days, why are there so many strange things happening?" Old Zhang complained.

The young guard looked left and right, but still couldn't figure it out. The more he looked, the more timid he became.

He couldn't help but speak up to find topics to talk about.

"That leader of the museum owners..."

The young guard scratched his head, his brows furrowing as if recalling something. "What was his name again? He was a big shot in our Hidden Sun City, said to be invulnerable to swords and spears due to his superb martial arts skills."

"You don't even know him?" Old Zhang scoffed, a hint of boastfulness in his voice. "He's the head of the Hanshan Martial Arts School, a former military instructor, and one of Lord Zhang's old subordinates. His fists could kill a bull with one punch! His name is..."

Old Zhang's mouth dropped open.

The sound got stuck in my throat.

The word "Chen" was clearly on his lips, like a stone hanging on the edge of a cliff, ready to roll down with the slightest push.

but……

What is that word?

What is that name?

Old Zhang's eyes became somewhat dazed. He tried hard to search his mind for that name that was so familiar, the name that he could casually call out even when he was drunk.

The image of that burly man with a fierce face, a bad temper, and a fierce protectiveness of his own was still clear in his mind.

But what's his name?

"His name is..." Old Zhang's mouth gaped open, like a fish out of water, opening and closing in vain, "His name is... Tie... Tie something..."

"Tieshan?" the young guard asked tentatively. "Is that his name?"

"Yes, yes, yes! It's Tieshan!" Old Zhang's eyes lit up, as if he had grasped a lifeline. "It seems to be his surname... his surname..."

He got stuck again.

That newly overwhelming sense of familiarity was like sand in your hand; the tighter you grasp it, the faster it slips away.

That surname, the surname that had echoed in his ears countless times, was now peeling away, fading, and disappearing from his memory at an alarming speed.

"What was your last name again?"

The young guard was also stunned. He frowned, racking his brains, "I remember it was a common surname... Li? Wang? Zhao? No... I remember it very clearly, how come the words just won't come out..."

Their faces gradually turned deathly pale.

A cold wind blew from the depths of the ruins, swirling up the withered leaves on the ground and making a rustling sound.

The candlelight inside the lantern flickered a few times and turned a ghastly green.

"Old Zhang..." the young guard's voice trembled with tears, "Are we...are we possessed?"

Old Zhang didn't say anything.

He stared intently at the darkness ahead.

In that instant, he not only forgot the name of the curator, but even what the curator looked like, whether he was tall or short, fat or thin, was rapidly becoming blurry.

That person's presence is being forcibly erased from this world by some invisible force.

It's like using an eraser to erase a pencil drawing.

"Walk."

Old Zhang turned around abruptly, his voice dry and hoarse like a rusty iron door hinge, "Go. Don't think about it. If you can't remember, then don't think about it."

"But……"

"No buts!" Old Zhang growled, grabbing the young guard's arm and pulling him back. "Get out of here! This place..."

But the next moment, their anxiety and impatience vanished.

Old Zhang looked at his hand with a somewhat confused expression... Why was he holding onto the guard?

What am I here for?

……

Prison.

A nauseating musty smell permeated the deathly still air.

Little White huddled in the corner of the cage, curled up into a tiny ball. His clothes were tattered and stained, and his hair was a mess, like a bird's nest.

Only his eyes were slightly narrowed into slits. He was secretly watching.

He didn't sleep.

In such a place, sleeping is a luxury and a dangerous thing.

Especially when there's a toad living next door.

Xiao Bai's breathing was adjusted to be extremely slow and light, and the rise and fall of her chest was almost imperceptible.

It looks like she's asleep.

This is a skill he honed through years of struggling in this godforsaken place.

Those ghost soldiers didn't care whether he was alive or not, but when it came to taking people away, they would always prioritize taking away those who were lively and energetic.

Guys like him who pretend to be asleep all the time tend to live longer.

He squinted his eyes into a tiny slit, peering through the gap in his eyelashes to secretly observe the activity in the cage next door.

The giant, dark green frog was squatting in the center of the cage.

Just now, Xiaobai saw with his own eyes that the toad was trembling all over, convulsing like it was having an epileptic seizure, and emanating a chilling, withered aura.

At that time, Xiaobai even thought that the toad was going to die, or that it was going to turn into one of those stupid monsters that could only drool.

But suddenly.

The toad stopped shaking, and a strange aura emanated from it.

This might sound strange—how could a toad have an air of elegance? But considering that a toad could be caught in this godforsaken place, it doesn't seem so surprising that a toad could have an air of elegance.

What is that aura...?

Xiaobai couldn't describe it.

In short, it just feels very strange.

"Quack."

A deep croaking sound rang out.

Xiao Bai's heart skipped a beat. He saw the toad slowly open its eyes.

Those eyes...so bright...

It looks a bit like a luminous pearl; it must be worth a lot of money!

Immediately afterwards, he heard a loud "gurgling" sound.

The toad was hungry.

Xiao Bai subconsciously shrank back and hugged the small cloth bag containing the food in her arms even tighter.

He had a very bad feeling.

The toad's neck stiffly turned, and then its rectangular pupils, glowing with a faint green light, locked onto him.

Even through two layers of iron cages, Xiaobai could feel that gaze was tangible, like two hooks that directly hooked into his heart.

My gaze pierced through his feigned sleeping posture, through his filthy clothes, and landed directly on the small cloth bag in his arms.

It saw it.

It knows I have something.

How does it know it's not asleep?

The thought flashed through Xiaobai's mind, and cold sweat broke out on his brow.

What should I do?

Should we give it to him?