Just as Lin Yu had speculated, the interior of this carriage was plastered with talismans.

Dense yellow papers covered the inner walls of the carriage, like solidified oil seals on the surface of a rich broth.

From the gaps between the yellow papers, which were fully inscribed with cinnabar-drawn talisman symbols, chains resembling neuronal synapses extended out, entwining around a "human left arm" suspended in the very center of the carriage.

Rather than a single "left arm," it was more accurate to call it a piece of mutilated remains attached to a left arm.

It was a torso with the entire left shoulder, most of the chest, and half of the abdomen. Judging by the muscle tissue and bone structure, it seemed to have once belonged to a robust, muscular adult male.

There were two distinct fracture lines on the remains: one extended between the abdominal cavity and the ribs, while the other slanted down from the shoulder, cleanly shearing off the parts connected to the right chest and neck.

It looked as if someone had cleanly executed a perfect diagonal slash with a pair of swords.

Moreover, the skin of these remains was a bluish-gray color, appearing to have a texture even resembling stone sculpture.

Looking at the cross-section of the cuts, the internal organs, bones, and blood vessels inside were all a grayish-white, lifeless color.

But judging by Li Nian's "ability," or from the perspective of the 『Death Game』... this thing really was indeed alive.

Lin Yu trusted the judgment of the 『Death Game』.

So the question arose...

"How on earth is this thing alive?"

Lin Yu murmured.

Li Nian also felt the same confusion as Lin Yu for this reason.

"So... could it be that this thing looks like a small portion of a human corpse but is actually some special type of demon or a rare life form in the Prison Mountain Realm, like a dead leaf butterfly or a stick insect?"

"It just looks like the 'dead' or 'withered' form of another life, but in essence, it's a disguise, and inside it's a completely different life form?"

Li Nian's analysis had some merit.

But unfortunately, this analysis didn't hold up in Lin Yu's view—his perspective allowed him to see more and in greater detail than Li Nian could.

Because from the perception of spiritual power and the perspective of the 【Mind-Peeping Eyepiece】, this thing definitely had no capacity for thought or emotion; there wasn't a trace of spiritual or emotional fluctuation on it.

Old Zheng also believed the same: "I can't feel any soul or spirit residing in this thing at all..."

This ruled out the possibility that the other party's spiritual power was too strong for Lin Yu, a beginner, to perceive.

Because Lin Yu might misjudge, but Old Zheng would not!

So...

"This thing is a living being without a soul or spirit? How is that possible!"

Lin Yu felt even more puzzled.

Because precisely according to the general judgment criteria of the 『Death Game』, only something possessing both a soul and vitality is considered a "living being."

Otherwise, those living corpses Old Zheng manipulated back at the Misty Islands mental hospital would also count as living things!

At that moment, Lin Yu suddenly sensed an abnormal emotion coming through his connection with the Mountain Demon Leader "Sanyang."

Sanyang seemed to feel some irresistible temptation, displaying signs of restlessness and anxiety even without the influence of the 【Rage Spray】.

Even the hands Sanyang was using to hold Lin Yu up trembled slightly.

While it was far from "losing control" or breaking free from Lin Yu's command, still...

This agitation was abnormal enough.

"Really strange enough."

Lin Yu muttered, then smiled with relief.

Right, after all, it was a 【dungeon】 he was participating in. If there weren't any peculiarities, it would actually make Lin Yu uneasy—because that would mean something big was waiting for him.

Like a surprise 『Diviner』 suddenly popping out.

"Close the carriage door and right the vehicle."

Lin Yu ordered, jumping down from Sanyang's hands.

After Li Nian also left the carriage, Sanyang righted the large cart it had overturned and stuffed the half-broken door back into place.

After Sanyang retreated, several dart masters, gathering their courage, stepped forward and re-tethered the carriage's reins to the towering beast of burden standing nearby.

This long-haired, hump-backed, four-hoofed creature, which looked like a cross between a horse, a camel, and a yak, was surprisingly emotionally stable—when Sanyang overturned the dart cart earlier, it was also knocked to the ground, but it just broke free of the reins, rolled over, got up, and stood still. It didn't panic and run, nor did it even let out a loud cry.

After the carriage door was opened, the aura that so strongly attracted and agitated Sanyang didn't cause the slightest stir in this beast of burden either.

Furthermore, if one considers that beasts lack qi sense perception, then thinking along these lines, the human dart masters around, who are all martial artists, also didn't seem to feel anything.

This difference also struck Lin Yu as quite noteworthy, and he silently committed it to memory.

"Only demons are attracted to this thing..." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Meanwhile, Li Nian looked at the righted dart cart and then at Lin Yu beside her: "So... do you have any ideas?"

"Not for now, but I have plenty of questions."

Lin Yu said calmly.

"And you just closed the door like that, not going in for a detailed inspection?" Li Nian teased, "Besides, there are two more carriages. Aren't you going to open them and take a look too?"

Out of the three dart carts, they had only used the "accident" to inspect one.

Lin Yu shook his head: "The other two are probably just decoys, a smokescreen to cover this one. What truly caught Sanyang's attention is this piece of mutilated remains."

"Studying this thing isn't urgent right now. There are more important matters at hand."

Li Nian raised an eyebrow: "What's more important than this?"

Lin Yu wiped the sweat from his temple and pointed at the increasingly scorching, dazzling light in the sky.

"Don't you think the weather is getting hotter and hotter? Dart Head Yue reminded us earlier that it's best to reach a place where we can rest and escape the heat before noon."

"Don't forget, we're in the 'Fire Hell'—and even if we can still tough it out, and you don't plan to consider whether these dart masters might suffer heatstroke, since a while ago, our employer has been so hot he can't even utter a word."

Li Nian turned around and saw 『Flying Knife』 squatting in the shadow beneath a horse, drenched in sweat, fanning himself with his hand, looking utterly wilted and limp from the heat, and she understood.

Because Lin Yu's constitution was robust enough to withstand this level of heat, and Li Nian herself clearly had some heat-resistant **item** enhancement, but 『Flying Knife』 really was about at his limit.

While he probably wouldn't die from the heat, he was on the verge of heatstroke and fainting—in this perilous wilderness, being in a worse condition naturally lowers the survival rate when encountering sudden incidents like demon attacks.

"Damn, we really should prioritize the employer..."

"Let's go, let's go, Dart Head Yue. The sky's getting hotter. Let's hurry and find some shade to rest."