Chapter 105: The Disappeared Person – The Demon Banner

Sang Chu let out a sigh of relief. “It was everyone who saved you. I couldn’t have done it alone!”

After glancing around the area bathed in light, she took a deep breath, scooped up the little rabbit that had run off, and placed it into her jade storage pouch. Then she stood up and patted the dust off her clothes.

“I’m going down the mountain?”

The child nodded. “The village is still there. Grandma and Aunt Mei are all inside.”

Sang Chu asked, “How did you survive?”

The child lowered his head and looked at his hands. “I was lucky to hide in the basement. There’s a huge waterbed down there, and lying on it is a terrifying monster. The people in the village were all eaten by it, and even the old man was eaten.”

“What?!”

Sang Chu cried out in shock. She had thought the crisis was over, but hadn’t expected there was still a monster lurking.

“What should we do?”

“I have to find a way to get to the basement. The Demon Banner was always kept there, but now it’s nowhere to be found. Aunt Mei and Grandma searched for a long time but couldn’t find it. The cloth of the Demon Banner is special—even if I could find it now, I’m afraid it wouldn’t work anymore. So, I need to find the Demon Banner, piece it back together, and then use the right method to restore its power.”

Sang Chu asked, “Should I go now?”

The child shook his head. As they walked along the path toward the village, they found it overgrown and desolate, with weeds almost as tall as a person.

When they passed by his own house, the child said, “I once thought my family could live happily ever after, but I never imagined…”

Sang Chu, seeing the child’s gloomy expression, said softly, “That’s why, at the very least, I want to hold on tightly to what I have left.”

“Thank you. I used to be like everyone else, hiding in a corner, waiting for the end to come.”

Sang Chu suddenly looked at him. “You’re the one who posted the mission, aren’t you?”

The child nodded. “Yes, I used that man’s body to post the mission. He wanted to find the missing children, but accidentally got trapped in the basement and died there. The later missions were all posted by me. That’s why, even though the game listed the mission, he didn’t know about it, so most people who took the mission ended up searching in vain.”

After saying this, he lowered his head, his voice full of disappointment. “Even though there are so many people in this place, maybe because it’s too hard or there’s no reward, no one really tried to save us. They just waited for the end to come.”

His words were filled with a deep sense of hopelessness, probably from hoping again and again that someone would save them, only to be disappointed every time.

Sang Chu said, “I don’t know if I can really change anything, but as long as there’s a chance, let’s try together.”

“Mm.”

As they walked toward the basement again, the child suddenly sensed something and his face changed. “That monster knows! We have to hurry!”

He rushed toward the basement, and soon all sorts of strange little creatures appeared—each only about the size of a palm, but extremely fast.

The child grabbed Sang Chu and pulled her toward the basement. “These things are all people who were eaten and turned into monsters. Their bite is deadly—if you get bitten, you’ll become one of them.”

Sang Chu asked, “Is that how you became like this too?”

“Luckily, Grandma threw me out just in time, so I didn’t become one of them and ended up here.”

There was nowhere to hide in the open. Sang Chu’s eyes flashed, and in an instant, she summoned a flaming long whip.

“There’s no way to escape them all. You go find the Demon Banner—leave these monsters to me!”

The child looked at Sang Chu in surprise. “They’re not easy to deal with…”

“I know. That’s why I have to survive. My brother and grandma are waiting for me at home, and I have many friends. I can’t die.”

The child looked at Sang Chu and nodded fiercely. “I know. Then I’ll do my best!”

“You have me!”

Suddenly, a gentle voice sounded from somewhere, and an old woman suddenly appeared beside the child. “You have me too!”

Sang Chu looked at her in surprise, not understanding how she had appeared so suddenly.

The old woman “looked” at Sang Chu and said, “I’ve been waiting here all along. Thank you for your help. Leave the Demon Banner to me!”

The child’s eyes filled with tears as he looked at the people around him. “Grandma, Aunt Mei, Aunt Liu, Aunt Ping, you’re all here…”

Aunt Mei said, “I’ve always been guarding this place. All the aunties are here. Don’t worry, this time, we’ll definitely chase those monsters away. Your efforts won’t be in vain!”

Aunt Ping said, “Don’t worry, little girl. Leave those little monsters to us. I’ve already found the Demon Banner. Once we restore it, everything will be fine.”

Sang Chu said, “Alright. With me here, I won’t let anything happen.”

At this point, Sang Chu had already reached the formation and used up all her crystal cores and spirit stones, hoping to activate it as quickly as possible.

With Aunt Mei’s guidance, the child found the Demon Banner.

“The monster was afraid someone would find the Demon Banner, so it controlled those ghosts to dig out their own organs and stuff the pieces inside. Your grandma found them!”

Aunt Mei spoke with a hint of pride, as if finding the Demon Banner pieces was her greatest achievement.

The child clung to his grandma’s hand. “Grandma, you’re amazing!”

The old woman patted his head. “It’s not me who’s amazing, it’s you. Only you can piece the Demon Banner back together.”

The Demon Banner had been torn to shreds, making it almost impossible to restore. But after all these years, the child had memorized every rune on the banner. No matter how broken, he could piece it together.

But as he worked, he felt something was missing.

“Oh no, these runes aren’t complete. The most important part of the banner is missing!”

Aunt Mei said, “That’s impossible! I searched every body, and this is all I found!”

The old woman frowned. “It’s not in the basement?”

Aunt Liu said, “It’s possible. I didn’t dare go into the basement.”

Aunt Ping said, “What do we do now? Those monsters are blocking the entrance. Even if we go now, it’ll be too dangerous.”

The child, holding a pile of pieced-together banner fragments, ran outside and shouted up at the roof, “The Demon Banner is missing some crucial runes—they must be in the basement! What do we do now?”

Sang Chu dodged aside, barely avoiding being bitten by a monster. She quickly formed a blade of light and threw it, instantly cutting the monster in half.

“You focus on fixing what you have. I’ll go down and find the missing pieces!”"