The Martial Artist Turned Movie Mogul
Chapter 997 - 996. Will it drive us away? (Five updates)

Chapter 997: 996. Will it drive us away? (Five updates)

But if a distance of one meter is isolated inside a room to create a tiny passageway, the result is completely different. Given the thickness of the walls, it’s hard for anyone to notice the discrepancy in distance between the interior and exterior.

"I’ll go in, you stay here to keep watch."

When they learned via their communications that the other two had also found passageways through variations in the walls, they were nearly certain that most of the houses had them.

"Wait, take this with you."

Tang Shu, a little uneasy, took out a porcelain vase from her pocket, poured out a pill, and stuffed it into Wen Nuan’s mouth. "There are too many venomous insects and toxic mists here. God knows where the passage leads. I’m not worried about your skills, but these... it’s impossible to guard against them fully."

It was the first time she truly hated the existence of toxins.

Clearly, when she had encountered them before, she found them thrilling, yet applying this iron rule to their enemies was an entirely different matter.

Wen Nuan swallowed the pill, gave her a smile, and disappeared into the room.

An hour later, she returned with a grim expression. By the time the two moved stealthily back into their lodging, Tang Shu could faintly see her face had turned noticeably pale.

The two other team members across the room looked even paler, seemingly on the verge of vomiting.

What on earth did they see? Tang Shu was curious.

Within the next half hour, she would personally witness exactly what had drained all the color from their faces.

"They’re actually researching this?!"

Tang Shu stared in shock at the small phone screen. Wen Nuan had brought back video footage that detailed everything happening inside the passage, which was now playing scenes from her exploration.

What was hardest to stomach was the integration of Gu Insects with highly potent drugs brought over from Yun Province. The combination created a synergistic effect beyond imagination, and what the video captured was entirely out of their realm of understanding.

"I remember you were targeting a group of profiteers from Yun Province?"

Yun Province—what a loaded phrase; even thinking about it brought discomfort.

Tang Shu had never seen an experiment blending these two elements. Modern humans certainly had an innovative flair, she thought.

"Yes, but it’s clear they’re researching something new."

Wen Nuan’s gaze carried an unspoken viciousness, radiating killing intent. "They’re attempting to combine the creations from Yun Province with Gu Insects, aiming to achieve their goals through this approach."

"For example?"

Tang Shu could hardly fathom the need to pair these two methods to control people. After all, each on its own was already terrifying enough—and even executing either was an extraordinarily difficult endeavor.

"For instance, targeting key individuals... Since they’ve combined both elements, it must have specific therapeutic or manipulative effects. We’ll need you to uncover the answers for us."

Wen Nuan could only guess their intentions, but as for the execution, she wasn’t a specialist.

Tang Shu thought for a moment. "I need samples of these materials—both of them."

Wen Nuan opened several small cloth pouches she had taken earlier. "These are what I managed to snag; I hope they’re helpful."

The next moments stretched into hours as Tang Shu dedicated nearly the entire second half of the night to analyzing the contents of those pouches. Meanwhile, Wen Nuan led the other two members out again, aiming to uncover all the hidden passages. By dawn, the group had solidified an action plan with Captain Song.

No one slept that night.

The next day, Tang Shu was rubbing her temples, feeling as though her mind and senses had undergone an unprecedented shock.

To put it bluntly, her worldview had shattered—broken into pieces so thoroughly that picking them up seemed impossible.

Even in a place like Damo, hatred for someone might at most result in stabbing, some torture, or perhaps an intense poison that inflicted unbearable pain. But this kind of thing...

"I feel like I’ve truly seen it all now."

"So, you’ve come to a conclusion?"

Wen Nuan climbed through the window, bringing with her a biting chill. The aura of lethal menace still clung to her, making her seem like a drawn blade ready to strike.

Tang Shu felt herself snap fully awake. "I’ve got some leads."

"Let’s hear them."

"This is indeed... an innovation, in some sense."

Tang Shu paused for a few moments, seemingly searching for the right phrasing. "Those controlled by Gu Insects can be categorized into two types: one succumbs to fear of pain or death, a submissive surrender to the Gu Master. The other type is more terrifying—they have their mind altered, allowing the Gu Master direct manipulation in a literal sense, including thoughts and actions."

Wen Nuan remained silent, quietly absorbing her explanation.

"What you brought back last night seems to fall between these two types: more potent than the first but not as refined as the second. Perhaps that’s because the Gu Master lacks the capacity to achieve full intellectual control with the second type."

"I see. So, the reason they’re merging Gu poison with these substances is to amplify their ability to control others’ minds, using the drugs to enhance the effects of the Gu poison. Correct?"

"Smart guess. That’s probably the initial intent."

"’Initial’?"

"Yes, initial. I believe that the combination of these two elements hasn’t succeeded in achieving the second level of control, but instead intensifies physical suffering. Moreover... once this poison is injected, the Gu Insect can never be expelled from the host’s body."

Tang Shu met her gaze. "In other words, they’ll never escape the control of the Gu Master. If the Gu Master dies, the host dies instantly as well."

Even if someone could tolerate the unbearable pain caused by the Gu Insect in their body, they could never free themselves from its control. The choices remain submission or mutual destruction.

As Tang Shu’s words ended, the other three in the room shivered in unison. Even though they considered themselves worldly and experienced, this method’s cruelty struck them deeply.

"Christ, what kind of devil—"

"We have to eliminate this! How could something like this even exist?"

"’Losing their humanity’ doesn’t even begin to describe this—"

Wen Nuan, who had been silent all this time, remained expressionless, but her killing intent grew heavier with every moment. Tang Shu, standing closest to her, could clearly feel the intensifying danger emanating from her presence.

"Get everything ready. When the village chief arrives, we follow the plan to leave this village."

"Do you think they’ll let us leave so easily?"

Shang Xiaoyan had given up hope in the humanity of these people.

"... Good question."

Tang Shu turned to Wen Nuan. "How did you manage to leave the village last time?"

"Back then, we didn’t know there were Gu Insects in the village, only that drugs were hidden here. We simply lured three individuals out and, perhaps because of their presence, exiting the village went smoothly."

In hindsight, many details from that encounter deserved further scrutiny.

After double-checking their plan, the group began packing up. When that grim-faced village chief reappeared, the five university students were gazing in awe at the breathtaking mountain scenery of the early morning.

At that moment, Tang Shu felt her acting skills really weren’t convincing at all.