With that, Old Li shook his head, letting out a wry, bitter smile. According to Old Li's account, a rift had formed among them: whether they should simply lie low in the house for a few days before reporting back, or dispatch a team to search for the Japanese contingent—after all, diplomatic ties were involved, and success in locating them could mean accolades and a rare chance for some to finally turn their fortunes around.

Eventually, after a heated argument, they reached a decision: the group was split in two—three would venture out to search, while the remaining three, who preferred to stay put, would remain within the cabin. At this juncture, I naturally surmised that Old Li was one of those who stayed behind.

As his story deepened, Old Li’s expression grew heavier, and I could vaguely anticipate the horrors that followed, though I couldn't fathom what exactly those men encountered to become faceless specters. The next step involved Old Li and the others who remained preparing the cabin according to wilderness camping standards, even taking the precaution of heavily reinforcing all the windows to guard against predators like black bears.

It was fortunate they possessed that level of foresight; otherwise, Old Li might truly have perished that night, and certainly wouldn't be alive to recount this tale to me now—though that’s a matter for later, not for this moment. Having completed their preparations for the night, Old Li and his companions didn't expect that just as darkness fell, precisely when everyone was anticipating a good night's sleep, they were jolted by screams of sheer terror echoing from outside.

Old Li cracked the door open just a sliver and saw the men who had left earlier scrambling back in a state of absolute panic, tumbling and crawling, barely able to articulate words, reduced to guttural cries. Old Li rushed to open the door and let them in.

The three men burst in, gasping for air, their faces utterly drained of color, incapable of uttering a single coherent sentence. Initially, Old Li suspected they had been attacked by wolves, given that these men were agile, armed, and accustomed to handling ordinary beasts.

Furthermore, one of the returnees was severely wounded, and the nature of his injury suggested savage tearing, consistent with a wild animal attack. However, there were never any reports of wolf packs plaguing the Nyingchi region, and Old Li couldn't fathom what terrible misfortune had befallen them to run into such an ordeal.

After catching their breath, the trio delivered a bone-chilling report: their attackers were not wolves at all, but those supposed "Japanese friends"! As Old Li began detailing the man-eating acts of those Japanese individuals, I had already formed a rough picture, and his revelation only solidified my existing suspicions.

Yet, I still could not guess how the Master Banqin Old Li mentioned became entangled in this sinister affair. Old Li’s voice dropped lower and lower, and the more I listened, the more terrifying the narrative became.

The men who had gone out searching returned riddled with wounds; the most grievously injured nearly had his abdomen ripped open. Even though Old Li’s group swiftly barricaded the door, they were petrified by the monstrous pounding from outside.

Old Li could not bear it any longer, disregarding all pleasantries toward their "friends," and fired his weapon, wounding one of the assailants. Old Li had only intended to frighten them off, but the moment the shot rang out, the wounded one began bleeding profusely.

Upon seeing the blood, the remaining attackers immediately turned savage, lunging upon their injured comrade, brutally disemboweling and devouring him. Old Li and the others watched in stunned horror, completely silenced.

Afterward, the impulsive Old Li was slapped by the squad leader. The reason given was that no one would ever believe the story of the Japanese eating people, whereas Old Li firing his weapon was an undeniable fact, making punishment inevitable!

"That's reality," I sighed, looking at Old Li with sympathy. He appeared somewhat resigned now, but whether he was truly at peace, even I, the listener, felt a lingering injustice on his behalf.

My sympathy for Old Li was complicated by his initial evasiveness toward me. Despite knowing we were now in the same predicament, a seed of doubt remained; I felt Old Li was still withholding something.

They faced the dilemma of firing or not firing; if they didn't shoot, they weren't certain they could subdue those fiends. Some, leaning toward superstition, were utterly terrified, simply trembling and muttering frantic prayers to every deity imaginable.

After the monsters finished partitioning the corpse, they became somewhat quiescent—I speculated it was due to satiation. My classmates recently obsessed over a game called Resident Evil; in truth, the men Old Li described resembled the infected zombies from that game.

The difference was, Resident Evil didn't feature zombies whose faces simply vanished! And I remained intensely curious: How exactly did Master Banqin manage to rescue Old Li and the others?

Moreover, judging by Old Li’s tone, those faceless entities were eventually brought back too. A person without a face was already unimaginable; recovering a face that was gone seemed impossible!

With this thought, the initial chill of fear in my heart began to recede, replaced instead by a sharp curiosity about these events. After a pause, as if struck by a sudden idea, Old Li abruptly asked me, "Technician Luo, do you believe in ghosts?" He seemed to have posed this question before, but how was I supposed to answer?

While I had begun to question the existence of spirits, it was merely suspicion; one cannot form a firm opinion based solely on doubt. He finished his query, not waiting for my response, and muttered to himself, "I didn't believe before, but now, I do." I preferred not to debate this subject with him, and he seemed to understand, offering a faint, knowing smile.

Old Li reached into his rucksack and placed a package on the ground before us. By this time, the light had faded, and I could only vaguely discern several smaller packets still inside his bag.

As for their contents, I truly lacked the energy to ponder them further. After all, I had walked for the better part of the day to reach this location.

Though my foundational fitness was decent, being near the snow line, such a trek had pushed me close to my absolute limit. Simply managing to listen to Old Li’s long narration was an accomplishment in itself.

Old Li finished sorting his items, then suddenly seemed to remember something urgent. He hastily packed away what he held and bolted toward the back of the cabin.

Though I was already drowsy, seeing Old Li's sudden frantic motion instantly put me on high alert. I scrambled up and followed closely behind him.

Old Li ran into a small room at the rear, which appeared to have been the original kitchen. In the center of this space rested a stone entirely out of place.

Seeing me follow, he called out for me to help him move it. Witnessing his growing anxiety, I gritted my teeth and together we strained to shift the rock, which must have weighed nearly three hundred pounds.

The instant the stone moved, a cacophony of noise exploded in my mind, for emanating from beneath the stone was an overpowering stench of blood! As soon as the rock was cleared, a wave of metallic blood-scent washed over me, accompanied by an immediate sense of danger.

Old Li’s expression turned grim. With such a potent aroma, what on earth was hidden beneath this stone?

My thoughts were a jumble; I could only watch as Old Li directed his flashlight beam into the cavity beneath. Under the cold white light, thin wisps of vapor rose from the opening.

After a brief moment, as the mist slightly dissipated, I too saw what lay inside. If my mind had been chaotic before, now it was reduced to a single, overwhelming hum—all thoughts, all ideas, vanishing instantly!

"What... what is this?" I asked Old Li, my voice laced with confusion, "Is this blood?" Old Li shook his head.

After a long silence, he finally spoke, "I don't know. But Master Banqin once said that this connects directly to the Blood Pool of Hell.

If this place turns red, every living creature near this pool is doomed." My heart sank. If Old Li wasn't lying, we were likely facing an unimaginable crisis before the night was over!

In the span of a shared glance, Old Li and I reached an unspoken agreement. Simultaneously, we heaved the stone back into place, sealing the opening.

Once the seal was set, Old Li immediately went outside to prepare his rifle, and I quickly readied my pistol. Facing the crisis that could erupt at any moment, we began arming ourselves without a word, and I inwardly swore then and there: no matter what came next, if those faceless horrors appeared, I would shoot every single one of them down!

For some unknown reason, Chief Wang and the others had also woken up, but thankfully, apart from appearing listless, they had not yet devolved into that terrifying state of opaque, colorless eyes. Old Li readied his rifle, then pulled out another packet and tossed it to me.

Opening it, I found it contained a packet of sulfur powder. After handing me the sulfur, he passed me another bag containing an unknown herbal powder, then looked at me seriously and said, "Technician Luo, if things go south, you need to run." His meaning was clear: if genuine danger arose, I was to abandon him and Chief Wang’s group and flee alone.

But could I ever do such a thing? I, Luo, might just be an ordinary person incapable of earth-shattering feats, but deserting my post at the critical moment was utterly impossible!

I am a man, after all! "What do you mean!

I won't leave a single one of you behind!" Although my own mind was reeling with uncertainty, my resolve not to run only hardened. That’s just how I am: normally lethargic, but once my fighting spirit is roused, I possess a stubborn defiance bordering on recklessness.

Seemingly noticing my firm stance, Old Li shook his head, hoisting his rifle onto his back and chambering a round. Lion had slipped out the door at some unknown point.

I stared fixedly at Old Li, adopting a posture of meeting death head-on. Even though my legs felt weak with terror, I mustered every ounce of courage a man possessed.