To be honest, it was quite strange to see an enthusiastic village elder in such a desolate and isolated place. However, it was much more comfortable to have someone to talk to than to be surrounded by a group of silent villagers. As soon as Hao Ren activated the translation plug-in, he immediately greeted the old man enthusiastically. First, he said that he was an international traveler who passed by this place on his way. Then, he began to inquire about the local customs.
The old man was the village elder. According to his introduction, the village was called Narim, a small village with a population of a few hundred and rarely communicated with the outside world. During the conversation, Hao Ren found that the isolation of this village was beyond imagination. The old village elder did not even know what era it was outside. Whenever he mentioned something about the outside world, the old village elder would vaguely brush it off. The most common sentence he said was, "Ah, living in such a peaceful place, why do we need to worry about the outside world?"
After a brief conversation, Hao Ren mentioned that they were looking for someone.
"We're here to look for a person. His name should be Fernand," Hao Ren said according to the information provided by Hesperides. "He's a tall and strong man, almost seven feet tall, with a scar around his eye … Ah, maybe he's called by another name, I can't remember. He's an old friend of my uncle."
The old village elder frowned and looked like he was recalling something. Finally, he slowly shook his head. "I don't remember. We've never seen such a person in our village, and we've never had such a guest. Such a tall man should be very eye-catching. I can't forget him once I've seen him. "
Hao Ren and Hesperides looked at each other. Such a situation was not too surprising, but to be honest, it was quite regrettable.
"He may have moved away," Hesperides whispered. "It's common for people to change their hiding place."
"Dear guests, it's getting late. Why don't you stay here for the night?" The old village head spoke again. "It'll be better to set out tomorrow to look for them. It's not safe to walk in the forest at night."
"Oh, don't mention it." Lily waved her hand. "We have a place to stay, and it's easy to walk."
"Why don't you stay here?" The old village elder still insisted on inviting them. He was unusually enthusiastic. "Visitors from afar are a big deal here. It's not honorable for us to let our guests leave in the evening. You can try our muffins made with tree fruit. You can't find them anywhere else. "
Hao Ren looked at the sky. The old village elder's words were not wrong. There was no doubt that he could feel an unnatural atmosphere in the village. As the night fell, the old village elder continued to invite them, and the unnatural atmosphere became more and more intense. Just as he was thinking of a reason to leave, the village chief's words made him change his mind. "Ah, speaking of which, the few guests who passed by here two days ago haven't left yet. If you stay here today, you might be able to leave together tomorrow."
Someone else had also found this place?
Hao Ren and his team suddenly became suspicious. The village was not marked on any map. Hesperides thought that the village was almost extinct three centuries ago, and the village was surrounded by an undeveloped forest. Under such circumstances, who would come to visit the village except for them?
Could it be someone else who wanted to inquire about Hercules' whereabouts?
They exchanged opinions and decided to stay in this place tonight. They wanted to see if there was anything strange about the village and meet the mysterious visitors.
There was no hotel in the small village, but there was a large house dedicated to receiving guests. It was a two-story wooden longhouse, old and dilapidated like the other buildings, but sturdy and clean. The old village elder took Hao Ren and his team to the longhouse and left. Before leaving, he mentioned that he would meet them at dinner, and the mysterious visitors he mentioned would also show up at that time.
After the old village elder and the villagers left, Vivian stretched her back and said, "It's so mysterious."
"I always feel that the atmosphere here is strange." Lily nodded. Although she was a little dumb, her beast instinct was really strong. "Whether it is the village elder or the villagers, everyone has a very strange aura … oppressive, fake."
"Who else would come to this place besides us?" Hao Ren looked at Hesperides. "Does anyone else know that Hercules is living in seclusion here? Is there anyone else interested? "
"Only the demon hunters would investigate this matter. But now that the hunt is over, they have no reason to intervene," Hesperides slowly shook her head. "Maybe they are just ordinary people who strayed into this place. After all, although this village is isolated and strange, it is still physically connected to the outside world. People who get lost may also wander in."
Vivian nodded. "Let's wait for the 'visitors' to appear and observe them carefully. Maybe they are trapped here. I don't have a good impression of this village. Although everyone here is alive, the village gives me the feeling of walking into a tomb. "
"Hiss —" A small sound came from the backpack on Hao Ren's back, which was a necessary disguise.
Probably only this little one knew nothing about the atmosphere now.
There was still some time before nightfall. Lily began to wander around the longhouse. After two laps, she seemed to find something and ran back to Hao Ren. "Mr. Landlord! Mr. Landlord! There is no electricity in this place! "
Vivian casually replied, "Nonsense, no country can cover such a desolate place."
"No, I mean there is not even a wire or a light bulb here!" Lily said with her arms akimbo. "No matter how remote this place is, it would not be a problem to get a small diesel generator or a hydroelectric generator. But it seems that there is no such thing as' electricity 'in this place. Look at the oil lamps hanging on the wall."
Hao Ren was stunned for a moment. Although he felt that what Lily said seemed to make sense, he subconsciously muttered, "In fact, many villages in the ravines and particularly backward places are really like this …"
"The oil lamps are the style of three centuries ago, and so are the furniture." Hesperides stood up and looked around. "There is no trace of modernization or modernization. In fact, the most obvious is the houses outside. They were standing here when I came here 300 years ago, and they are still the same now. Even if the houses have been renovated and rebuilt, this will not happen. "
The situation was getting stranger, but there was not much tension on Hao Ren's face. He just looked at the old lamps hanging on the wall with interest and whistled. "Whoosh — a place where time stands still."
After more than three years of work experience, Hao Ren could finally say with his chest puffed out, "I've been through a lot of battles, and I've blown up all kinds of mysterious realms. A mere time stagnation is nothing to me!"
"If time in this village is stagnant, then the villagers here …" Vivian frowned. She thought more. "Are they the same people 300 years ago?"
Hesperides immediately shook her head. "Obviously not, I am sure."
Hao Ren was not surprised. "The village was still normal when you came here, so it must have changed after that. It is normal that you do not know the people here."
Vivian also agreed with Hao Ren. "Well, it should be so. In any case, this village has probably been distorted in time and space, and the reason for the distortion is mostly related to Hercules, who lived here in seclusion. We … "
Lily's ears twitched. "Shh, someone is coming."
Everyone immediately stopped talking, and soon they heard voices coming from outside the longhouse. A moment later, the old village head and a few villagers appeared in front of Hao Ren.
"Sorry to keep you waiting for so long," the old village head said with a friendly smile. "It is time for dinner. According to our custom here, guests from afar are a good omen for the village. Please come with me, I will take you to the place where everyone gathers for dinner. "
Hao Ren exchanged glances with the others and decided to follow the rhythm of these strange villagers and see how things would develop.
"You said that there are a few guests from outside besides us. Are they all here?" Vivian asked casually.
"Of course," a villager said in a gruff voice. "You will see them."
With the village head leading the way, Hao Ren and his team left the longhouse and came to a large open space in the middle of the village.
Preparations had already been made for the gathering. Long, heavy wooden tables had already been laid out, and a bonfire was burning for illumination. The aroma of food wafted through the open space. The villagers seemed to have gathered in this place. It was very noisy, and the atmosphere was very lively.
Although the overall atmosphere of the village was still strange, it seemed that there was a little more people here at the moment.
At a glance, Hao Ren saw the most eye-catching and conspicuous outsiders among the group of locals.
The old village head was not lying. There were visitors other than Hao Ren and his team.
Vivian had a strange expression on her face when she saw the outsiders. She then looked at one of them and muttered, "Hey, Hao Ren, don't you think that person looks a little familiar?"
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