Chapter 47: The Golden Beetle

"No matter who you are, please, I'm begging you, save me!"
"I still have children to care for, I don't want to die!"
"I don't want to die!"
...
The woman, as if possessed, rushed toward the window, but the opening was far too small.
Soon, the only window through which she could glimpse the light was sealed shut.
With it, her hope for survival closed as well.
"What is going on here?" Ning Xiu asked in a low voice; aside from the woman, several mangled corpses lay in the room.
"These women are gold prospectors from our guild; the strange disease first appeared among them," Doctor Wang replied.
"When was it discovered?"
"The day after Fengshui Creek was declared forbidden," Doctor Wang raised his head, glanced at Ning Xiu, and spoke cautiously.
"And what about the brothers in the main hall?"
If Doctor Wang spoke the truth, then the group of Bamboo Grove disciples sitting in the medical hall were likely doomed as well.
"In my ten years of practice, I've never seen or heard of such a disease; all we can do now is isolate the afflicted," Doctor Wang said.
Gold prospecting, gold sand, Fengshui Creek...
Ning Xiu was certain the origin of all this was tied to Fengshui Creek.
"Yuan Hao, were the brothers who contracted this strange illness usually responsible for handling and transporting the gold sand?" Ning Xiu suddenly asked.
Yuan Hao pondered, and it seemed he was right.
"Elder Ning, are you saying this strange disease is related to...?"
"Take me to the treasury at once," Ning Xiu said gravely.
The screams from the wooden hut behind them continued.
It wasn’t that Ning Xiu didn’t want to help, but the woman’s life had already ended; her organs were entirely rotten, her body barely clinging to life by a single breath. Even with Ning Xiu’s skills, there was nothing he could do.
The treasury was located in the deepest part of the branch, heavily guarded.
The key was kept by Yuan Hao himself.
"Open it," Ning Xiu ordered.

Yuan Hao swallowed hard, took out the key, and carefully opened the treasury door. The gold that once seemed so friendly and inviting now appeared monstrous and menacing in his eyes.
Most human fear stems from ignorance and uncertainty; the more uncertain a thing is, the more terrifying it becomes.
Inside the small treasury were several treasure chests; only three contained the gold sand.
Ning Xiu raised his knife and gently pried open a chest. The dazzling golden light nearly blinded him.
No wonder they say wealth is bewitching.
"Bring me a torch."
Yuan Hao hesitated for a moment, then quickly replied, "Yes."
He hurried out and soon returned, handing the torch to Ning Xiu.
"Elder Ning, we've had these gold sands tested—they're pure gold," Yuan Hao said, thinking Ning Xiu intended to verify their authenticity by fire.
True gold hardly oxidizes with air; it only grows brighter when burned. Low-quality or counterfeit gold turns black under fire.
Ning Xiu glanced at Yuan Hao, then tossed the torch into the chest.
Just as Yuan Hao said, the gold sand did not change color; it only shone brighter as it burned.
But Ning Xiu's expression grew more and more grave.
"Bring a piece of fresh pork with blood."
"Pork?"
Though puzzled, Yuan Hao didn’t dare ask further and ordered his men to fetch it from the kitchen.
"Elder Ning."
Suppressing his curiosity, Yuan Hao handed the pork over, but Ning Xiu did not reach for it.
"Toss it in."
"Ah, yes." Yuan Hao took the pork and threw it into the chest.
At this point, his curiosity reached its peak, and he couldn't help but ask, "Elder Ning, what are you doing?"
Ning Xiu did not reply, but gestured for Yuan Hao to look for himself.
Yuan Hao followed Ning Xiu’s gaze, and his expression froze.
"What... what is happening?"

The surface of the pork began to sprout dense black dots; if one looked closely, the whole piece of meat was dissolving at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Ning Xiu flicked his knife, sending the meat flying out of the chest and onto the ground.
In less than half a stick of incense, the entire chunk of pork had been devoured, leaving only a pile of "gold sand" on the floor.
"Elder Ning, what is this? These gold sands are cursed, aren’t they? Is it some vengeful spirit?" Remembering the night when the sky was ablaze, Yuan Hao spoke in terror.
"It's not a curse. The problem lies in the gold sand itself," Ning Xiu replied.
"Do you mean these are not real gold?"
Ning Xiu nodded. "If my guess is correct, this so-called gold sand is actually a kind of insect."
He paused, then continued, "A terrifying species, one I've never seen or heard of."
"Fire-resistant, fond of devouring flesh and blood. If I'm right, the gold prospectors and our brothers turned into that state because of these creatures."
"They probably inhaled these gold sand particles by accident, or had wounds on their skin, giving the insects an opportunity. The itching was caused by these insects crawling and burrowing inside their bodies."
"What should we do now?" Yuan Hao asked.
"Tell Doctor Wang—he'll know how to handle it. As for the three chests of gold sand, seal them up and lock them away. Any gold sand hoarded by prospectors or guild members must be recovered," Ning Xiu said, turning to leave.
The gold sand was mined from Fengshui Creek, meaning a large quantity of these dreadful insects still lurked at the creek’s bottom.
Luckily, the insects showed no active aggression.
Without contact with flesh and blood, they were indistinguishable from true gold sand.
Even so, they were terrifying enough. If they were actively aggressive, the entire Jade Phoenix Town would soon become a ghost town.
The day’s events made Ning Xiu even more cautious.
Who knew what other horrors the river might conceal?
Fortunately, his fears did not come true. By the seventh day, even the dried corpses had disappeared.
Fengshui Creek returned to its former peace.
Though Ning Xiu had promptly found the "cause," most of those infected died; a few survived, but only at a terrible price—missing limbs, broken bodies. Simply staying alive was a stroke of luck.
Thankfully, due to the ongoing standoff between the Bamboo Grove and Iron Sword factions, neither side had mined much gold sand, nor had they transported it to their headquarters.
Otherwise, the consequences would have been far more dire.