《Ghost Breath》


 C1

    When I was a kid, my uncle worked in a movie theater and told me one thing. He said that one night a man in a movie theater suddenly died.


    What was shown was not a horror movie, and the man''s body had always been normal before he died.


    I asked why.


    Uncle said he didn''t know, and even the police couldn''t find out why.


    Then he told me not to go back to the cinema and he quit himself.


    He said it wasn''t clean.


    I was too young to understand.


    Then my uncle said something that impressed me: Don''t look at the movie theater.


    That is the truth.


    Regardless of whether there were ghosts or not, in reality, strange things would happen in some lively places.


    Fear pervaded every corner of life.


    The first story was about the cinema.


    cinemas


    Bai Tong Jie, fifty-one years old, Southerner. In the late 1990s, a small movie theater was opened in a county town called "Tong Jie Film City".


    It was located next to a teahouse, in a total of five movie halls.


    In those days, all the movies were the same. There was a movie theater in a small place, which was quite strange. As a result, in the first few years, the cinema business was quite good.


    Bai Dianjie also once became a famous figure in the county, calling him Boss Bai.


    Unfortunately, the good times did not last long. Within a few years, two large cinemas were opened, and the equipment and technology were all in the lead. The once glorious Tong Jie Cinema soon became unpopular.


    When the business was in a mess, Boss Bai even went to the ticket office and took charge of cleaning and maintenance of the lights, doing a few jobs on his own.


    Later, when he saw that business was too poor, he had to change his mind and give up his prime time. He would just do the midnight scene and the cinema would open from midnight until the early hours of the morning. What movies? They were basically horror movies, or small movies where large cinemas didn''t come out, and they played all sorts of dribbles.


    As a result, cinemas save costs and attract an audience that can barely make a living.


    This kind of life continued all the way until one day, Boss Bai met a strange woman.


    It was raining heavily that night, so the business was extremely quiet. Just as he was dozing off, he saw a woman in a raincoat outside the window. She handed him the money and said she wanted to buy a ticket.


    Because he was wearing a hat, Boss Bai couldn''t see the other party''s face clearly. He could just ask which scene to watch, and the other party would be able to answer any question.


    Thus, Boss Bai picked out an old movie and let the projector start up.


    As it turned out, there was no one else on the scene this time, and the woman became the chartered one.


    The movie was relatively short. When it was almost over, Boss Bai went to the movie hall to turn on the lights and clean up.


    He was a man of great care, and would have treated him the same way even if he had been a spectator.


    At the door of the theater, where the film was still ending, he stood and waited, as he always did.


    He glanced casually, but there was no sign of the woman. Generally speaking, the audience would prefer the middle seats, especially the seats reserved for one person. It was even more impossible for them to choose a corner seat.


    Boss Bai touched his head, guessing that the woman might have left early, but he felt that something was wrong. Just as he was wondering, he saw a shadow on the last row of seats. It was the woman!


    It was not surprising that someone liked the last row of seats, but Boss Bai was still very surprised because the woman was sitting cross-legged with her back to the screen, facing the back wall of the theater.


    She was still wearing her raincoat, which was still wet.


    He didn''t understand, how could there be someone who would turn around to watch a movie? Could it be that he had eyes on the back of his head?


    When the movie ended and the woman stood up to leave, Boss Bai was still stunned on the spot.


    After that, the woman would come every few days, always around midnight, wearing a raincoat and sitting in the last row with her back to the screen. Over time, Boss Bai got used to it and decided that there was something wrong with that woman''s mind.


    However, during this period, Boss Bai had never really observed that woman''s face, only noticing her expression. In the dark environment, she would smile from time to time, then seriously, while her body movements would always be stiff.


    Finally, one day, when Boss Bai couldn''t resist his curiosity, he decided to take a good look at what the woman was looking at on the back wall.


    That night, including the woman, there were a total of five people in the Shadow Hall. Boss Bai purposely arrived fifteen minutes earlier and sat on the side of the last row.


    The woman remained in her usual position, her back to the screen.


    As for the other four audiences, they were all sitting in the middle of the theater and no one paid attention to Boss Bai or that woman.


    After five minutes of brewing, Boss Bai slowly walked behind the woman. He had already thought of the wording.


    "What''s the matter, sister?"


    At the same time, he looked at the back wall. It was pitch black and there was nothing on it.


    The woman did not look back.


    Only when Boss Bai reached out to put a hand on her shoulder did she slowly turn around and take off her rain hat.


    Boss Bai was frightened and took a step back because what he saw was a lifeless face!


    The woman''s eyes were bulging, her head was distorted, and her face looked as if it had been pieced together with pieces.


    Only then did Boss Bai recall that not long ago, a car accident occurred in the vicinity of the cinema. A woman had her head crushed by a truck tire and died on the spot.


    Afterwards, Boss Bai specifically asked a distant relative who was proficient in feng shui for advice. That relative told him that even though the movie theater was bustling with activity, in reality, it was filled with a rather sinister atmosphere. When ghosts go to the cinema, they usually sit on their backs, because the screen they watch is the back wall, which is the opposite of the living. From the back wall, the ghosts could see their own experiences.


    After listening to the conversation, Boss Bai was frightened. Soon, he fell ill and died very soon after.


    As for Tong Jie Film City, it was later taken over by a boss, but under this name, it continued to run midnight movies.


    On the other hand, although the cinema rumored to be haunted, the business was not affected. Instead, it became a hot topic of discussion and increased the visibility of the people. However, when people go in and out of the cinema, they pay more attention to the weird behavior of the audience, especially those who sit on their backs and watch movies.


    There are always exceptions, but that''s the next story.


    Ghost Night Field


    Many years ago, Songhua County was still very backward, with a low level of consumption and difficult business. At first glance, there were old houses all over the place.


    At that time, taxis were not common in the county, so it was one of the most popular businesses.


    Among Mo''s drivers was a man named Yang Jun, in his thirties and unmarried. He had worked in this line of work for nearly ten years. His temperament and character were more in line with those of his profession, honest, honest, extravagant, and extravagant with money.


    That night, he was quite lucky. After running a few errands and earning some money, his heart began to itch again. So he went to barbecue at night and asked a few brothers of Mo''s to treat him to a meal.


    He ate and drank until around two in the morning, when he drove home drunk on his motorcycle.


    As he passed a dark old street, he saw a bright spot at the end of it.


    It was a run-down place, littered with junk, and there were four curved neon signs above a large iron gate: Tong Jie Film City.


    He was extremely familiar with Pine Flower County, so he naturally knew that this was an old movie theater.


    If it was before, he definitely wouldn''t even have bothered to take a look. It was only because his brothers had told him that the movie theater over here was showing adult films in the middle of the night that they piqued his interest.


    He had a drink now, just in time, and parked the car and pushed the door open.


    After he bought his ticket, he realized that he had probably drunk too much and hadn''t asked what the movie was about. Looking at the ticket in his hand, it only said ''Hall 2''. He didn''t even write down the seat number.


    Yes, he thought, how many people could come to this crappy cinema. The seats must be empty.


    Sure enough, he saw that he was the only one in the entire movie hall.


    Except for a woman in white sitting in the middle of the last row.


    The woman had a slender figure and a upright posture.


    Although he couldn''t even see the other party''s face clearly, Yang Jun still felt a stir in his heart and thought of three words: Unexpected harvest!


    He couldn''t imagine a woman watching a movie in the middle of the night, so he decided to get close to her anyway. If he successfully picked up a beauty tonight, he would have the ability to boast to his brothers tomorrow.


    Unknowingly, the movie began.


    Yang Jun was still secretly rejoicing and looking back at the woman from time to time. Surprisingly, he felt that she was also looking at him.


    More and more, he felt the thrill of being alone in a room, especially watching adult movies together, but unfortunately couldn''t sit together.


    He had already mapped out the image of her in his mind. She was a young woman of the prime of her life who couldn''t endure the hunger. She couldn''t help but be lonely in the middle of the night, seeking to vent her feelings. Based on his experience, it was as easy as flipping his palm to catch a woman like her.


    Yang Jun was thinking of all sorts of things, so much so that after nearly 30 minutes of the movie, he gradually realized that this was not an adult movie. None of the scenes he was expecting appeared.


    On the other hand, the film was dark and oppressive. Accompanying it were scenes of fear and trepidation. He became more and more suspicious that this was not some adult movie, but more of a horror movie!


    Only now did he vaguely remember that when his brothers had introduced him to Tong Jie, they had said that there were only two kinds of movies in the movie city: one was an adult film, and the other was a horror film.


    Clearly, he had forgotten this matter and picked the wrong match.


    Yang Jun sighed in his heart. In this way, the ambiguous atmosphere was ruined. However, thinking about it, there was another benefit to it. It was a horror movie, so there would be some scary scenes that could be used to sit next to the woman.


    Yang Jun was very satisfied with this routine, and then he began to seriously watch the movie.


    After about twenty minutes, he discovered that there was nothing special about the story. It was about a woman who loved beauty so much, who was very dissatisfied with her average looks, and then, by injecting her face with hyaluronic acid again and again, who knew that her face would get worse and worse. When she was completely out of money, she started buying black market silicone, even getting all sorts of oily substances, and injecting them all into her face, causing her face to look horrible, like a monster. After that, the woman became hysterical. On a stormy night, she cut off her face with her knife until she completely cut off her face. She then looked at herself in the mirror and said, "At least I don''t have that ugly face anymore. Am I beautiful now?" Following that, it was a common scene in a horror movie where a woman turned into a vengeful spirit after death and started harming others everywhere.


    In addition, from the moment the woman committed suicide, a bloody ghost face would appear on the screen and disappear in an instant.


    Yang snorted disdainfully at the terrifying atmosphere created by this bridge. He thought to himself: What era is it? Why are you still playing tricks in Hong Kong''s ghost movies? Why are you so scared?


    He was a little disappointed that the film was not frightening.


    After a while, because Yang Jun drank too much earlier, he wanted to go to the toilet.


    As he walked out of the theater, he glanced at the woman. She was still as still as if she were asleep.


    After the convenience was over, Yang Jun wondered if it was time to act. When he stepped into the movie hall, he found that the woman had already disappeared, leaving the entire room empty.


    Yang Jun''s first reaction was that the woman also went to the toilet.


    Helplessly, he could only return to his original position. Who knew that the moment he sat down, he felt an indescribable aura behind him. He turned quickly and saw that the woman was sitting behind him. The woman put her hands on her knees, her bangs almost covering her entire face. People couldn''t help but wonder how she was able to see clearly, was she able to see through the gaps in her hair?


    Yang Jun was very surprised, how did a woman appear without a sound. He was sure the woman was not in the hall when he returned from the toilet.


    In addition, he was also puzzled as to why this woman would want to approach him.


    He felt a chill on his back.


    "Is the movie good?" Yang Jun tried his best not to think about strange things, and pretended as if nothing had happened, as he casually asked.


    The woman didn''t respond.


    Yang Jun''s heart sank again.


    Soon, the movie ended. The female ghost in the movie did not disappear, but instead, killed the psychic who came to capture her, and wandered the world.


    At this time, Yang Jun once again felt a strange aura coming from behind him, and it was even heavier than before.


    He slowly turned around, and the result was that he nearly jumped out of his skin. He saw that the woman had leaned forward and was only a centimeter away from him, her face almost touching his!


    The woman immediately pushed her bangs to the side.


    What appeared in front of Yang Jun was a bloody face with barely distinguishable facial features. It was completely red, as if someone had cut off the skin on his face.


    It was the same grimace that flashed from time to time in the movies.


    She was the girl in the play!


    Yang Jun was so scared that he didn''t even have the strength to shout. He could not have imagined that the plot of the movie was actually the real story, the story of the woman in front of him.


    The woman''s hoarse voice immediately sounded:


    "Am I beautiful now?"


    Oh no!

 C2

    New Year''s Eve, on the Yangzhou section of 328 National Road, a black SUV was steadily driving.


    The car departed from a place called Zhai Jiu Village and headed for Yangzhou.


    Inside the car sat a man and a woman, both in their thirties. The man was driving, but the woman in the passenger seat was shouting.


    "My dad and my aunt only said a few words to you. Is there really a need to keep arguing with them? Don''t you know how to respect your elders?"


    The man remained silent while the woman continued:


    "What''s more, when did they say you, Gan Pei, were wrong? Every time I came to my house, my face was always tense and my work had not improved. In front of so many people, how could they not be angry when you were angry with me about the little matter of where your children would go to school in the future? In the end, it was the new year and you turned around to leave, not putting my family in your eyes at all, right? "


    The man called Gan Pei finally could not hold it in and said with a cold smile:


    "Yeah, you''re right. Who do you think your family is? It''s their turn to point fingers at me? I''m in a good mood to respond to them a few words, not in a good mood to get out of the way. And you, Chen Shan Shan, before you met me, you were just a village girl.


    "Heh ¡­" You city people are really amazing! It''s a pity you''re a loser, you know that? I bought your car for you. I paid for the gas. I even bought a house for my family. How about you? How much money do you make a month? All the villagers that you look down on, all of them are more capable than trash like you! "


    With a squeak, the car suddenly came to a stop. Chen Shan Shan was shocked.


    "What?" Do you want to die? If you want to die, then die. Chen Shan roared again, but when she looked at Gan Pei, she realised that his face was extremely ugly, as though he was about to eat someone.


    "Say that again?" Gan Pei stopped his car by the side of the road and turned to look at Chen Shan Shan.


    "If you can talk about me, can''t I talk about you?" Seeing Gan Pei''s expression, Chen Shan Shan was slightly afraid, her tone immediately becoming softer.


    He knew that Gan Pei was very impulsive and would often do unreasonable things.


    Looking out the window again, she noticed that the houses on both sides of the road were sparse. Apart from the open space, most of the buildings were constructed.


    It was nearly ten o''clock in the evening, and there was no one on the highway. Even the cars were few, so it was gloomy.


    "Alright, alright. Let''s go. Stop talking." Chen Shan''s face showed impatience, and urged Gan Pei to leave.


    However, Gan Pei pointed ahead and said, "There''s a cat."


    Chen Shan was surprised for a moment. She looked in the direction of the car and saw a black cat lying prone on the road under the lights.


    The cat looked lazy, either sick or something.


    Gan Pei pressed his horn a few times. The cat moved slightly but it did not leave.


    "This damn cat!"


    Gan Pei was already angry, but now that he was unhappy with the cat, a ball of anger shot straight to his chest. Thus, he slammed on the accelerator and charged straight at the cat.


    Although the cat was agile, the car was too fast. With a low, muffled sound, the cat was immediately knocked away.


    "Are you crazy?!" Chen Shan scolded, and even threw a punch at Gan Pei''s arm.


    Gan Pei quickly stopped the car and looked in the rearview mirror again. He saw that the cat had its stomach turned towards the sky, its body turned over, and it looked to be on the verge of death.


    Right, I''m crazy! I''m a fucking lunatic! "


    Gan Pei was furious, he decided to vent his anger on the cat. Then he backed the car up, stepped on the gas, and the thick tires ran over the cat.


    When the car stopped, he would run straight ahead. He only stopped after he had repeatedly crushed the cat more than a dozen times until it was badly mutilated and its bones completely shattered.


    The first few times, the cat struggled to make strange sounds like bones rubbing against each other, but after that, no matter how tenacious its life force was, it could not withstand the weight of the car.


    After Gan Pei finished venting, he had finally calmed down. Chen Shan however, had a face full of fear, she did not dare look at the cat, afraid that Gan Pei would use the same cruel method against her.


    After that, Gan Pei started the car and continued on his way. The two of them did not speak another word.


    As for the miserable black cat, it was like a pile of mud, remaining where it was.


    After returning to Yangzhou, Gan Pei and his wife continued to argue. It was only a few months before they were divorced.


    Gan Pei didn''t feel any regret or sadness in the slightest. Instead, he felt that it was a kind of relief that allowed him to live a life without restraints.


    Time quickly passed, and three years had passed. Gan Pei had not remarried, and changing jobs during this period of time, he was even busier than before.


    One day in February, just after Spring Festival, Gan Pei had to go on a business trip to Nanjing for work. He then set off from the Jiangyang West Road, following the 328 national road all the way forward.


    On that day, it rained continuously and it even encountered a long traffic jam. As a result, when Gan Pei left Yangzhou, it was already near evening.


    After driving for almost an hour, Gan Pei suddenly felt hungry. Coincidentally, he saw a fast food restaurant on the roadside, parked his car, and went in to order a hamburger.


    After finishing his hamburger, he walked out of the restaurant. He immediately felt that the scene nearby was somewhat familiar. Wasn''t this the same place where he and Chen Shanshan had stopped and quarreled three years ago on New Year''s Eve? He remembered crushing a cat to death to vent his anger. Now that he thought about it, it was quite fun.


    Compared to three years ago, this place hadn''t changed much. There were only a few new stores.


    Just as Gan Pei was about to get on the carriage, he suddenly saw a three-storey building in front of him. It was obviously a massage parlor.


    Gan Pei thought: Anyway, driving is tiring, I should go in and massage them to relax.


    Thus, he walked into the shop. The front desk was that of a middle-aged woman. After asking about the items and price, he chose Chinese style massage and was then brought into the room.


    "Is the massage in your shop proper?" Gan Pei giggled, he did not forget to tease his.


    "Don''t worry, our methods are all authentic." The middle-aged woman replied.


    "Sure, then call someone with a strong hand strength for me. I have to exert a lot of force."


    "Alright. You can lie down first, I''ll arrange something for you. "


    After about two minutes, the door opened and a short girl in a black uniform came in.


    "Hello." The girl was the first to greet him.


    Gan Pei took a glance and realised that the technician was young. Other than his skin being too dark, he looked pretty good. There were even two bows tied to his head, making him look both special and adorable.


    After Gan Pei laid down, the girl massaged his head. As expected, just by pressing her a few times, he was able to tell that this girl''s strength wasn''t weak.


    After a while, he rolled over again and the girl began to press the back of her neck. During this time, Gan Pei felt bored and kept trying to find the girl to talk, but the girl always replied him with a simple "En" and "Oh".


    Gan Pei brought ridicule upon himself, and stopped talking and started to nap.


    After a short while, Gan Pei was awoken by a wave of pain. He realized that the girl was riding on his waist, pressing his back.


    "Does it hurt?" the girl asked.


    "Yes, you can be a bit more gentle."


    The girl did not utter a word and continued pressing the button.


    Who knew that after Gan Pei made his suggestion, the girl would still land heavily on his hands, and even become stronger. Gan Pei felt even more pain than before, and almost cried out.


    Gan Pei was angry again.


    "Can you understand me if I ask you to be a little softer?"


    The girl''s hand was resting on the two shoulder blades on his back. She did not let go at all, but moved closer to Gan Pei''s ear and asked once more:


    "Does it hurt?"


    It sounded cold, like a girl''s hands. Gan Pei suddenly had some doubts. The girl had already pressed down until now.


    "Alright, you know I''m in pain, but you''re still pressing down on it. Which technician are you?"


    Gan Pei decided to lodge a complaint.


    "Number 328."


    "What?"


    Gan Pei couldn''t react in time. Then, he thought about it and felt that something was wrong. Wasn''t 328 the national path outside?


    Although he didn''t understand the meaning behind the girl''s words, an unexplainable fear rose in his heart.


    Suddenly, the girl spread open her five fingers, and the power became stronger and stronger. When Gan Pei shouted like a pig getting slaughtered, her fingers had already pierced into Gan Pei''s two shoulder blades!


    Under the pain, Gan Pei tried his best to get up, but the girl was as heavy as a rock, pressing down on him until he couldn''t move. Amidst the chaos, he heard the girl ask in his ear:


    "Does it hurt?"


    He turned his head to the side, just in time to face the girl. At this moment, the girl''s face became hazy, distorted and blurry. Soon after, a cat face appeared!


    That cat!


    The cat that he repeatedly crushed to death!


    Gan Pei screamed crazily in his heart.


    However, it was already too late. Starting from her shoulder blade, the girl had shattered all the bones in Gan Pei''s body one by one, all the way until her neck.


    Just like what Gan Pei did to her that day.


    The girl kept making weird sounds that sounded like her bones were rubbing against each other.


    "Cluck, cluck, cluck ¡­" "Cluck, cluck, cluck ¡­"


    Oh no!

 C3

    "Last night you were like this again right? Do you really have a brain?"


    Ever since Du Mei had left for work, she kept arguing with her, getting angrier and angrier each time. The reason was because Du Mei had secretly brought a man back while Zhang Ting was on the night shift.


    Zhang Ting and Du Mei grew up together, and were neighbors in the village. More than a year ago, the two of them left their hometown together to work in a big city. They worked in a factory. At first they lived in the staff quarters, which was a bit rough, but then they were given money at home, so they rented out. Unfortunately, not long after, Du Mei felt that the factory was working too hard and quit work.


    Originally, she had given up on her work and could still look for more. Unexpectedly, Du Mei became addicted to mahjong and bakery, and didn''t even want to go to work anymore. Therefore, she played mahjong during the day, and stayed in a bar at night. Her lifestyle was a mess, and when she ran out of money, she even asked Zhang Ting to borrow money. In the end, Zhang Ting didn''t have any money to borrow, so she relied on the men at the bar to borrow money. From that time onwards, Du Mei had repeatedly brought back men during Zhang Ting''s night shift. After being noticed by Zhang Ting, the two of them finally started an endless stream of arguments, and their relationship rapidly worsened.


    "None of your business." Du Mei coldly replied as she applied sunscreen.


    For the first time in three days, they spoke to each other.


    "Xiaomei, is this interesting? We came out to work, did you forget what you told me? Make a good profit and buy a house at home. And the result? Have you been to one day''s work these past few months? I still help you pay back the money that you owe me with your credit card every month.


    "Did I ask you to help me pay back my credit card? I''ll give it to you later. " Du Mei was excited too.


    "Heh ¡­" You want to calculate money with me, do you? Since we got here, which month''s rent have I not paid? Which month''s meal was not my decision? When you are so poor that you can''t even afford underwear and socks, who gave you money to spend it? Du Mei, you need to touch your conscience! "


    "Sure you can. Now you want to settle old scores with me, right? "Alright, since I have a husband outside, I''ll return the money to you. I won''t owe anyone anything!"


    "Can you not talk about your husbands?" Zhang Ting looked like she didn''t know whether to laugh or cry, "What do you think they think they think you are? Frankly speaking, in their eyes, you are only worth the same as a nightclub miss!"


    "Aiyo, don''t be jealous. No one wants your ugly appearance, and you''re jealous of me, right?"


    "Du Mei!" Zhang Ting was so angry that she jumped up, "If you want to continue like this, then scram, scram!"


    "If you want to leave, then leave. If I leave you, Zhang Ting, I won''t starve to death. Get out of my way!" Du Mei also stood up, she immediately rushed into her room to clean up her clothes, took out her phone and made a call, only saying one thing: Come pick me up from my house downstairs.


    This time, both of their anger reached its peak, and Zhang Ting could not help but cry, but she kept facing away from Du Mei, so she did not notice.


    Very quickly, Du Mei prepared to leave with the case in her hands. Zhang Ting felt unresigned in her heart, but she roared: "If you have the ability, don''t come back!"


    "Don''t worry, if I ever come back to find you, Zhang Ting, I''ll cut my head off!" After she finished speaking, Du Mei closed the door heavily.


    When Du Mei went downstairs, Zhang Ting went to the window, wanting to see who picked him up. That day was scorching hot, the sunlight was intense, and in front of the door, there was a white van, with a man wearing green camouflage pants standing beside the van. It was too bad that he could not see his face, Zhang Ting guessed that this man was one of the men that Du Mei knew. Sure enough, Du Mei directly got on the white van.


    After that, the two of them did not contact each other anymore. Zhang Ting wanted to call Du Mei''s parents several times, but she held herself back. Because she had always thought that the two would definitely come back when Du Mei calmed down due to their anger.


    Unfortunately, even after an entire week had passed, Du Mei still had not made the slightest of movements. Zhang Ting''s heart gradually softened, she was afraid that Du Mei would starve or be bullied, so she took the initiative to call Du Mei on her own.


    "Sorry, the number you have dialed is turned off ¡­"


    From that day onwards, Zhang Ting frequently had a dream. In her dreams, Du Mei was either in the water or on a slope, and then, with the help of the dim light, he moved further and further away from her. She softly said, Tingting, I want to come back, I really want to come back!


    Zhang Ting was getting more and more worried.


    Ten days had passed since Du Mei left for work. Zhang Ting was still working absent-mindedly. One day, she went downstairs to buy a midnight snack and had just gotten into the elevator when she felt a little strange.


    It turned out that above the back of her head, there was a slight gust of cold air blowing straight towards her neck.


    The elevator wasn''t air-conditioned, she knew that. Moreover, the continuous high temperature these days was really unfathomable.


    She looked up and saw that there was nothing unusual about the top of the elevator. There was a lampshade, a white light, and two vents on either side of the lampshade.


    The air should have come out of the vent.


    She thought about it for a moment. It didn''t seem to have anything to do with her, and she didn''t bother to tell anyone about it.


    Therefore, when she stepped into the house, she had almost forgotten about it.


    At night, she still had the strange dream of Du Mei calling her, and her voice became louder and louder.


    "Tingting, I want to come back, I really want to come back!"


    Zhang Ting suddenly felt that her body was extremely cold, to the point that she shivered.


    She woke with a start to find herself standing in a dark, empty place, still in her underwear and boxer shorts.


    This sudden change caught her completely off guard.


    She was sure that she was not dreaming, but what had really happened.


    Sleepwalking!


    She had never thought that she would actually be able to sleepwalk. It felt very absurd.


    After calming down, she began to look around. Using the distant street lamps, she saw steel bars, cement, yellow sand, and other materials nearby. In front of them was a three-story flat roof. It was obviously a construction site.


    She believed that the construction site was close to where she was renting a house, because she immediately turned around and saw her own apartment building. They were just one street apart.


    She hadn''t brought her watch, but she vaguely remembered that the construction site had been busy until about twelve o''clock every night, that is to say, after twelve o''clock.


    The thought of him coming here alone in the middle of the night sent a shiver down her spine.


    Just as she was about to leave, she suddenly saw a person standing at the door of the house in front of her.


    Zhang Ting almost cried out in shock, because the man''s body was almost exactly the same as Du Mei''s.


    "Xiaomei, is that you?" Zhang Ting trembled as she asked. She walked slowly forward, trying to get a better look.


    The man turned into the house and ran up the stairs.


    Zhang Ting did not hesitate and followed him into the house.


    When she reached the stairs, she realized that the interior of the house was different from the outside. It was frighteningly dark, and hot and damp at the same time. If it wasn''t to look for Du Mei, she wouldn''t have imagined that she would be so daring.


    Even so, as she walked up to the third floor in the dark, her heart began to pound, because she could no longer hear anything. She even suspected that she had been mistaken.


    Or perhaps, that person was not Du Mei at all!


    He gingerly made his way up to the third floor, and as expected, there was no trace of him. The third floor was very small, and was very rough, so unless the person jumped down from the third floor, there was no reason for him to disappear.


    Zhang Ting panicked, and did not dare to call Du Mei by name anymore.


    She also felt that something was watching behind her, so she walked around the room and carefully checked every corner.


    She noticed that, due to the rain of the previous days, the third floor was filled with water, especially the big puddle in front of her. Under the moonlight, it looked like a mirror.


    Besides, there was a pile of stuff in one corner, which she guessed must have been put there by construction workers.


    Just as she was about to leave, she heard a light sound behind her, as if someone was approaching her step by step.


    The sound was getting closer.


    Zhang Ting''s body stiffened, she didn''t dare turn her head back.


    She felt that if it was a person, they would already be standing behind her.


    Then, she subconsciously glanced at the puddle of water in front of her. Through the reflection of the water, she suddenly saw a headless figure standing behind her without moving at all.


    Her legs went limp with fright, as if she had stepped into a swamp.


    In a few moments, with some unknown source of courage, Zhang Ting didn''t even turn around as she swiftly rushed down to the third floor.


    She was breathing heavily, as if someone had choked her.


    As she fled the construction site, she was panic-stricken. From time to time, she would look behind her to see if there were any shadows chasing after her.


    When she got home, she was very glad that the door was not closed. Otherwise, she would be locked out for the night. Then she turned on all the lights quickly and drank water so hard that she choked and spat on the ground.


    She racked her brains, but still couldn''t figure out what had happened to the headless figure. She could only feel her mind going into chaos.


    However, what she wished for the most right now was for the sun to rise.


    In the next two days, Zhang Ting still had some lingering fear, and regardless of whether Du Mei was at the construction site or not, she had a faint feeling that something had happened to Du Mei that night.


    Everything was as Zhang Ting had expected. As expected, bad news came on the third day.


    That morning, Zhang Ting saw a lot of police officers appearing in the small district, but she did not care about them until the afternoon when her door was knocked.


    "What is it?" After Zhang Ting opened the door, he saw two policemen with serious expressions.


    "Have you seen this bag before?" one of the policemen asked directly, holding up a black Dales handbag.


    Zhang Ting was stunned, she was too familiar with this bag, it was something Du Mei bought when she first arrived.


    "Have you seen it?" another policeman urged.


    "I''ve seen him before. He belongs to my friend. What''s wrong?"


    "Alright, then come with us. Something happened to your friend." The policeman then said into the walkie-talkie, "The person has been found. Stop working."


    Along the way, Zhang Ting stared intently at Du Mei and asked him what had happened. The police only said that they would explain in detail after they had finished recording. Zhang Ting was helpless, she would let the police first tell her if Du Mei was dead or alive.


    Zhang Ting felt like she had been struck by lightning, and tears immediately began to slowly flow down her face.


    After arriving at the police station, Zhang Ting''s expression was stiff, as she sunk into deep grief. A policeman told her to calm down, fill out forms, and answer questions.


    Zhang Ting recounted the basic situation between her and Du Mei and highlighted the events that occurred on the day of Du Mei''s disappearance.


    After asking, the police took out a few items: a wallet, a bunch of keys, and a white underwear stained with blood.


    Zhang Ting covered her mouth as she cried bitterly. Without a doubt, all of these belonged to Du Mei.


    An old policeman said it was lucky that the key was labeled "Feng Yu District" that allowed them to master the living quarters of the deceased, going from house to house in search of him, or else they wouldn''t even know what he looked like.


    Zhang Ting felt it was strange. Since she had found the body, how could she not know what it looked like?


    Just as she was puzzled, the police officer who had made the statement told her to go to the office and explain to her in detail what had happened.


    Zhang Ting did as she was told. Upon entering the office, a tanned police officer was sitting down and reading Zhang Ting''s statement. Seeing that Zhang Ting had arrived, she went straight to the point.


    "Zhang Ting, right? Sit down. You said that Du Mei and you quarreled that day, and then saw her walk away with a man in camouflage pants, and that man and his van, how much do you remember now? "


    "That''s all I remember."


    "What about the license number? "Do you have any idea?"


    "Nope."


    Officer Zhao covered his chin with his hand and stopped talking.


    "Can you tell me what happened to my sister and where her corpse is?" Zhang Ting finally could not resist asking.


    "Killed, and miserable."


    "To what extent? Can I see it? " After saying that, Zhang Ting once again used a tissue to wipe her tears.


    "I don''t think it''s necessary. You can''t accept this kind of thing either. "Ugh ¡­" "How about this, I originally wanted you to inform her family, so I might as well tell you now. Wait until her family''s mood has calmed down before telling them." Officer Zhao showed an awkward expression.


    "Mm, go ahead." Zhang Ting sat up straight.


    "We''ve already examined the body, so we can vaguely guess that the time of death was two or three days ago. However, while she was still alive, she had already been abused continuously for a few days. Also... This body is badly damaged, so we can''t find any useful evidence. It''s bad for the killer. "


    "What do you mean by badly damaged?" Zhang Ting asked anxiously.


    "It means ¡­" Officer Zhao paused for a moment, then said, "This girl was cut by someone, do you understand?" It was a fragmented corpse. The whole body had been cut into dozens of pieces and cooked to perfection. We found the bodies in three places the day before yesterday morning. One was the entrance to the East Bridge Station, one was Garden Square, and the other was the third floor of the house on the construction site near your apartment building. "


    Officer Zhao took a sip of water and continued:


    "The killer took three bags for the corpse, one of them was the girl''s own bag, and inside the bag were her keys, underwear, and the like. It means the killer isn''t afraid of us finding out the identity of the dead person, it''s a bit provocative for the police ¡­"


    "Another thing. Until now, we haven''t found the corpse''s head, so you didn''t show us the photo. We still don''t know what she looks like ¡­"


    "To be honest, this little girl is pretty miserable. She must have met with some mental illness ¡­"


    The more Zhang Ting heard about it, the more she crumbled, and even had the urge to vomit.


    In a trance, she suddenly remembered something. It was the mysterious figure on the night of her sleepwalking, at this moment, she was sure that it was Du Mei! Coincidentally, the murderer placed a portion of the body pieces on the third floor of the construction site. At that time, there was a bag in the corner, so it was obviously the corpse pieces!


    She faintly felt that Du Mei must have wanted to see her that night, which was why she allowed her to sleepwalk to the construction site.


    It was as if Du Mei''s call from his dream rang in her ears once again: Tingting, I want to come back, I really want to come back!


    Before leaving the police station, Officer Zhao told Zhang Ting that these kinds of cases were usually hard to solve. The murderer was cruel and calm, and had dealt with the matter cleanly without leaving a trace.


    On the way back, Zhang Ting''s mind was full of the scene of Du Mei being mistreated and her corpse being torn into pieces. She hated herself and Du Mei for quarreling that day, and forced Du Mei to run away.


    After walking all the way to the elevator in the apartment, the cold air blew continuously towards Zhang Ting''s neck.


    During this period, Zhang Ting had been feeling the cold air in the elevator everyday, but today, the cold air was especially strong, causing her to feel a chill all over her body, and added to her sadness.


    She decided that, at least until her mood gradually calmed down, she would tell the whole thing to the Du Mei family. For the time being, she didn''t know what to say.


    Most importantly, Du Mei''s head was still missing. After all, in theory, since the corpses were all cooked and could not be taken as evidence, the reason the police decided Du Mei as the victim was only because the bag containing the corpse pieces belonged to Du Mei, as well as because they found her key and underwear. If the murderer used Du Mei''s item, it would also make sense for him to hide the corpse of another person.


    In short, Zhang Ting was hoping for a miracle to happen.


    The next day, Zhang Ting took a leave of absence and laid on the bed for an entire day.


    It wasn''t until the evening, when the windows were yellow as dead leaves, that she realized she hadn''t eaten for a long time, and she slowly got out of bed, ready to go downstairs and buy herself something to eat.


    As she walked toward the elevator, she saw on the screen that the door was locked and the word "Maintenance." The elevator was temporarily out of service, so he had to take the stairs.


    Zhang Ting thought, so today was the elevator''s maintenance day. If she had known earlier, he would have asked them about the cold air at the top of the elevator.


    However, she was in no mood for it at the moment, so the thought passed in an instant.


    After packing a dumpling, the sky gradually darkened as she returned home. Even with the stuffy air and gloomy mood, Zhang Ting still did not have the slightest bit of appetite as she just sat there in a daze.


    At this moment, there was a sudden movement outside the door, as if something had come to her door.


    Zhang Ting stared blankly for a moment, before standing up as well.


    In the next moment, a voice sounded from outside the door, and it seemed as if all the blood in Zhang Ting''s body had been frozen solid.


    "Tingting, Tingting ¡­"


    Du Mei''s voice! It was Du Mei''s voice!


    Zhang Ting was about to go crazy, the miracle she had been hoping for had finally happened, Du Mei did not die! It was someone else who had been dismembered!


    But just as she was about to open the door, she felt that something was wrong. Although it was indeed Du Mei''s voice outside, it sounded a little strange, as if it was even more hoarse and muffled than before.


    Zhang Ting hesitated as she stood in front of the door. With trembling hands, she opened the small window on the door.


    Through the small window, she looked out.


    The result was Du Mei''s highly rotten, swollen and swollen face!


    Du Mei''s eyeballs protruded out, and her lips started to expand. It was obvious that her head had been cooked before. What was even more surprising was that the head was actually floating in mid air, looking at Zhang Ting!


    Their faces faced each other, separated only by a small window.


    From Du Mei''s nose, she gently exhaled a breath of air, it was precisely the cold air that was repeatedly exhaled towards Zhang Ting. Zhang Ting would never have thought that Du Mei''s head was actually hidden in the lampshade. She had to take advantage of the day when the elevator was taking care of him and removed from the lampshade to clean himself, only then could she escape.


    Zhang Ting could no longer hold on and fainted.


    At the same time, Du Mei''s floating head slowly opened her mouth, while spitting out maggots, and calling out softly:


    "Tingting, I want to come back!" I really want to come back! "


    Oh no!

 C4

    The following story, which I have heard from a friend, cannot be proved. Today, friends are no longer connected, but the story is still very impressive, I have adapted and shared with you.


    It was a place called Jia Village, located in the outskirts of Wenzhou. There was a small restaurant at the entrance of the village called Xiaobei Pu Zi, and the owner was a local with the surname Hu, who was known as the Mr.Hu.


    Outsiders would definitely find it strange. A good restaurant had bricks and tiles, so why did it have to be called a shop? In fact, the hotel may have been older than the village. In the late Qing Dynasty, there was an ancestor in the Mr.Hu who sold buns. His name was Hu Xiaobei, and he opened a bun house.


    When Mr.Hu had just taken over Xiao Bei''s shop, he was only slightly over twenty years old. That year, there was a fair market at the entrance of the village three miles away. Over time, he accumulated money, married his wife, and had a daughter in less than two years.


    The Mr.Hu had a bad habit, like to gamble, and it was probably a common disease of the people of Wenzhou. At that time, he was a frequent customer of Jia Village''s underground gambling den. When people made a bet, they would usually do other things without the mood to, and it was also from then on, when the restaurant''s business was not as good as before, and when Mr.Hu and his wife quarrelled every night, and in the end, there was no divorce, so his wife directly carried her daughter and left.


    During this time, Mr.Hu should have had a son, but he died of a severe illness right after being born. This was also the reason why he made up his mind to let his wife leave.


    Ever since his wife and daughter left, Mr.Hu had completely stopped gambling. However, misfortune came one after another, and every time he rode a bicycle at night, he would fall into the ditch and lose a leg. From that point on, he was leaning on his walking stick, and he also became a lot older.


    Fortunately, there was a big road in front of them, and truck drivers would occasionally come to eat their meals, which allowed Mr.Hu to barely survive.


    Mr.Hu often said that he was suffering.


    The really weird part of the story began one winter night in 2008.


    It was mid-December, close to the winter solstice. The weather was cold and the wind was howling. The sound of the bucket filled with water was heard.


    As usual, when Mr.Hu saw that it was almost 9, he packed and prepared to close the door. At this time, the chef and the little girl had already gone home, leaving only the Mr.Hu himself.


    Suddenly, a tall, thin man dressed in a rustic black cotton jacket appeared from the outside. After entering the shop, he asked to see the menu.


    "Close down, stop doing business." The Mr.Hu said bluntly.


    The man seemed to turn a deaf ear and continued to sit down:


    "The dishes should be fresh, the food should be hot, and the chopsticks and bowls should be washed clean."


    Mr.Hu thought, could it be that this person''s ears were not good, he even said that it was closed?


    "Go to another house." Mr.Hu opened the door for him.


    The man remained motionless.


    "It''s too late today. I don''t cook midnight snacks."


    Mr.Hu was speaking the truth. Normally, the restaurant would not have business since after seven, and Mr.Hu would not have waited until now because of staying in the shop.


    "This big deal of mine is enough for you to earn." The man replied coldly.


    Mr.Hu didn''t know whether to laugh or cry. He thought to himself, you''re the only one, how much can you eat, and how much can you eat?


    "How about I get you a bowl of Egg-Fried Rice?" Mr.Hu remembered that there was half a bowl of leftovers in the kitchen. Originally, he wanted to treat it as a midnight snack, but he had no other choice.


    Just as Mr.Hu was about to enter the kitchen with a crutch, he said, "Egg-Fried Rice is no good, let''s eat something decent. Let me see the menu!"


    Seeing that it was inconvenient for Mr.Hu to move his legs, the man picked up the menu, used his brush to tick it for a long time, and handed it over to Mr.Hu.


    "Stir-fried leek, pickled cucumber, phoenix claw, steamed fish, sweet and sour pork, spicy tofu, fried meat with wooden ears ¡­" Seeing so many dishes on the menu, Mr.Hu was stunned. How could this be a person''s share? This was a table full of dishes!


    "Wait, I have people coming. For these dishes, cook two tables for me, heat up a few jugs of rice wine and serve some rice."


    Mr.Hu finally understood that this group of people was here to eat and drink. The entire two tables of food was indeed simple, even though it was worth it.


    "Oh, how many people are there?" Mr.Hu was immediately alert.


    "A dozen."


    "Alright, I understand. You stay here for now."


    Mr.Hu turned and entered the kitchen, secretly delighted in his heart. After all, it was unknown how many years it had been since he had seen such an extravagant guest. Perhaps in the future, he might be able to return as a guest.


    Ever since he broke his leg, Mr.Hu had rarely gone to the kitchen to cook, but he had still accumulated some culinary skills. Not long after, the two tables were set up with hot dishes and two big bowls of rice.


    After that, the Mr.Hu saw that the man just sat there and waited, not saying a word.


    When Mr.Hu opened the door, he saw another person wearing black cotton clothes. He was also tall and thin, and at first glance, he thought the two were twins.


    "It''s snowing outside and it''s very cold. A total of seventeen, all here. "


    Hearing that, Mr.Hu estimated that two big bowls of rice were not enough to eat, so he went into the kitchen to cook some more noodles for them.


    But when Mr.Hu came out with a large bowl of noodles, the most surprising scene he saw in his life instantly stunned him.


    Aside from the two who were sitting and drinking, all the other dishes on the two tables were swept clean! Why did Mr.Hu know at a glance that it was food? Because all the yellow fish, ribs, and duck legs are just bones!


    The problem was that there were only two people in front of him, and the others hadn''t arrived yet. In the time it took for a bowl of noodles to be cooked, he actually managed to eat all of the food. How was this possible?


    "Boss, settle the bill, calculate how much it will cost me." The first person stood up and prepared to leave.


    "Also... Over a dozen people, have they arrived yet? " After a long while, the Mr.Hu finally said this.


    "Aren''t you sitting there? You can''t see it, right?"


    A bowl of noodles fell onto the ground in Mr.Hu''s hands. He was too frightened to move.


    "It''s alright, a bunch of hungry ghosts, let them eat their fill and set off on their journey."


    These were the words that Mr.Hu remembered the most.


    After that, the Mr.Hu was busy asking around and found out that the two were a yin servant and were rushing to the underworld with a group of hungry ghosts.


    Originally, the Mr.Hu did not really care much about this matter after it had passed. However, not long after, the restaurant often had an inexplicable shortage of food.


    It was as if someone was secretly living in Xiao Bei Pu Zi''s shop.


    Over time, rumors spread that this restaurant was haunted, and Mr.Hu''s business plummeted.


    After a while, even the chef and the little girl who helped to carry the dishes left, leaving Mr.Hu alone. He knew that something was wrong with the hotel, and that it was probably related to the two perverts. But other than this place, he had nowhere else to go, and was reluctant to leave it.


    After being in a muddle for a few years, Mr.Hu had gradually gotten used to it. It was just that his days were a bit bitter, so it was impossible for the restaurant to return to its former prosperity.


    He had a vague feeling that when the two Yin Guards took away the group of hungry ghosts, a hungry ghost had secretly stayed in the store and had stayed there all those years. Right now, his mind was very calm. One night when he had drank too much, he would shout at Xuanlian, "You sure are happy. If you keep eating and drinking for free, I will become a pauper myself!"


    A sigh immediately rang out from the hanging beam.


    The reason why Mr.Hu complained so bitterly was because his wife came over three days ago. However, he did not change his mind, but wanted to get a divorce from Mr.Hu and split his assets with her. He also said that his daughter had fallen for someone, that they were about to get married, and that they might go abroad in the future. No matter what, Mr.Hu had to take out a sum of money.


    At the beginning, Mr.Hu did not want to, but his wife moved out of the legal system to deceive him, intimidating him would definitely cause him to lose the restaurant. With no other choice, Mr.Hu could only take out his old money and borrow some money from the old brothers in Jia Village. He gathered a hundred thousand and gave it to his wife, signing the divorce agreement.


    Before his wife left, Mr.Hu made a last request, which was to see her daughter. He even asked her if he could attend the wedding, but his wife only replied with two words, "We''ll talk about it later."


    In the end, Mr.Hu did not meet his daughter even once, even after stepping into the coffin.


    It had been about two years, but Mr.Hu looked as if it had been ten years.


    Suddenly, one day, a friend from the Mr.Hu from Jia Village came over and said that he could find a person for the Mr.Hu and maybe help him.


    The person they were looking for was a Taoist, it was said that he had the ability to exorcise ghosts. Coincidentally, when he was passing by Jia Village, he was met by a friend from the Mr.Hu.


    Mr.Hu''s friends had always been thinking about the Mr.Hu, and they knew that Mr.Hu was tired of being disturbed by the hungry ghost, so this was a good chance to subdue the hungry ghost.


    When the Mr.Hu heard this, he thought that his idea was not bad, so he sent a red packet to his friend, asking him to send it to the Daoist Priest.


    The Mr.Hu recounted the entire situation in the shop to the Daoist Priest, especially the matter of the two Yin Ghosts leading the hungry ghosts to eat. In the end, the Daoist Priest didn''t wait for the Mr.Hu to finish and pointed to the beam, telling him with certainty that there was indeed a hungry ghost left behind on that day.


    The Daoist Priest asked Mr.Hu if he should chase the hungry ghost away or subdue him.


    Mr.Hu thought, although this hungry ghost had affected his restaurant''s business, but in the end, he had only eaten some leftovers, he had never hurt anyone, he did not need to kill them all.


    The next day, he sent a painting to the Mr.Hu. The painting was of the Three Purities Portrait, shining with a golden light, making it look very special.


    He told Mr.Hu that this hungry ghost didn''t have much ability. As long as he hung the portrait on the wall in the middle of the store, within three days, the hungry ghost would definitely be unable to endure it and would leave.


    Mr.Hu did as he was told.


    That night, he heard a great deal of noise from the suspended beam and guessed that the hungry ghost was probably struggling at the very end.


    When dawn arrived, a few more sighs came from the hanging beams, and then nothing could be heard anymore.


    Mr.Hu thought that the portrait should have had its effect, the hungry ghost had already left. Then he planned to clean up the hotel and resume business. The first thing to do was to clean it up. After all, that place had the most foul air.


    When Mr.Hu brought the ladder over and climbed up the hanging beam, he saw that there was a thick layer of dust on top of the suspended beam.


    Seeing these words, Mr.Hu was filled with emotion. He thought that the hungry ghost was about to tell him that he had suffered the same fate as the hungry ghost, for his entire life.


    At the same time, there was another sigh.


    Only now did Mr.Hu know that the hungry ghost had not left.


    He thought about how he had lived most of his life, and how he had spent most of his life. Not to mention his family, there wasn''t even anyone who could talk to him, yet he had accompanied this hungry ghost for so many years.


    Tears welled up in his eyes.


    Then, without a word, he went down the ladder and tore up the picture.


    Later on, passersby would often see a white-haired old man sitting in front of the restaurant''s entrance, Xiao Bei Pu Zi. He held a pot of tea in his hands as he chattered with someone.


    Unfortunately, in just a few years, Mr.Hu had passed away, and Xiao Bei Pu Zi had also closed down.


    When Mr.Hu had just passed away, people would still occasionally hear some sounds coming from this haunted restaurant, but very quickly, nothing happened.


    Oh no!

 C5

    My name is Xia Mimin. When I was sixteen, I came out to work, and now I''m partnered with a sister to open a clothing store.


    In these ten years, I have lived a very ordinary life. There is only one thing that has left a deep impression on me.


    That was the most horrible experience of my life.


    I used to be a fruit girl and especially an orange, but because of this, I didn''t touch any more fruit, or even see any more fruit, it made me want to vomit.


    Yes, it had something to do with fruit.


    About eight or nine years ago, the factory I worked for went out of business and I had to look for another job. Because it was too hot, one day when I went under a stone bridge to enjoy the cool, I saw the recruitment message posted in front of the store.


    In retrospect, if he hadn''t seen the hiring information and walked into the store, nothing would have happened.


    It was a fruit shop.


    At first I wondered why a fruit shop would open under a bridge. Was there really a business there? But soon I was paralyzed by the Lady Boss''s warm smile. The next day, I became the only salesperson in the shop.


    At the beginning, I was naturally kept in the dark. I didn''t know the secret behind the fruit shop and only felt that the business was very cold. However, the Lady Boss didn''t seem to care at all. Logically speaking, the place I worked at was a backward city, and this area was also quite remote. Other than a hospital on the other side of the river, the rest of the area was basically factories, and the Lady Boss even opened a fruit shop under the bridge.


    However, I soon understood the real intention of the Lady Boss.


    So how long have I been aware that something is wrong? He remembered that about half a month later, a forty-year-old woman from Shenzhen met with the Lady Boss.


    He still remembered that day, the Lady Boss dressed up beautifully in bright clothes. When the woman saw her, she immediately called her Elder Sister Wu. It was only then that I learned that the Lady Boss''s surname was Wu.


    The landlady was just as polite, and called her sister affectionately.


    Different from the other guests, after the woman entered, she did not even look at the fruits but followed the Elder Sister Wu into the inner room. The inner room was curtained off. I had never stepped into the room that I thought was the Elder Sister Wu''s room.


    "Did Mrs Ma introduce you?"


    "Yes."


    When we went into the inner room, I heard a conversation and couldn''t hear anything else.


    When the woman came out, she held a transparent bag in her hand with a round wooden box inside. Elder Sister Wu laughed and said, "Take this Fruit Jelly back and tell your mother to eat it quickly, don''t put it away for too long."


    I thought it sounded weird. Why was the fruit shop selling jelly?


    After the woman left, the Elder Sister Wu saw my doubt and finally explained it to me. It turned out that although this store sold fruits in name, they were actually selling a type of medicine to treat various kinds of eye diseases, and the price was extremely expensive. There was once a 54 year old cataract patient who didn''t even have surgery on it. As a result, he took her medicine seven or eight times for three years before regaining his sight. When the news spread, many people came to ask for medicine. Elder Sister Wu felt that the sales market was not bad, so she started to do this business, and the fruit shop was only there to deceive people. Elder Sister Wu even gave the medicine a sweet name called "Honey Fruit Jelly".


    The Elder Sister Wu continued to say that although the Nectar Fruit Jelly was bought by other people, she did not want to show off too much for fear of accidents. The woman from before was a friend of an old customer who had treated her old mother for her cataract.


    After listening, I finally understood. No wonder the store was located under a secluded bridge. Ever since that day, I have had one more thing to do, which was to help Elder Sister Wu record and ask the customer who bought the honey Jelly. Through the phone, I asked them about the efficacy of the medicine but there weren''t many people, with an average of two or three a month, so it was relatively easy. However, even though I have become the Elder Sister Wu''s assistant, I still do not know what the Honey Fruit Jelly is until a Miss Fang Fang arrives.


    That winter, early in the morning, we saw a woman in her twenties scurry into the shop. She wore a down jacket, her hair dyed yellow, her slender legs covered with black silk exposed to the wind, and there was a hole in the black silk. Her name was Fang Fang, and she was a bar hostess. She heard that we were selling eye medicine, so she came over.


    Elder Sister Wu was curious about who she heard it from, because according to the past rules, honey jelly could only be sold to regular customers or friends. Fang Fang said that a customer at a bar told her that the customer was a former customer of the Elder Sister Wu, so she could be considered to have just introduced her.


    Elder Sister Wu thought Fang Fang Fang''s words were reasonable. Seeing her anxious look, she agreed. Then she asked her who the medicine was for.


    "Who can I give it to, me!" Fang Fang Fang pushed her eyelids open, her eyes bloodshot.


    "What''s going on?" Elder Sister Wu asked.


    "I don''t know ¡­" In any case, my eyes had been sore for a while, and I often saw things blurry. At first I suspected it was the drinking, but then it got worse and worse. When I woke up in the morning, my eyes were red. "I''m really afraid that one day I will be blind. What should I do?"


    "Don''t worry, no matter what illness your eyes are, my medicine will cure it." "But I don''t have any stock today, so you won''t be able to get the medicine."


    "Ah?" How could that be okay?! I took a taxi all night! Just to buy medicine here. "Big sister, please help me. I live far away, it''s inconvenient for me to come over ¡­"


    Fang Fang was anxious and shamelessly begged. In the end, the Elder Sister Wu had no other choice but to cook a serving for her, but she had to wait for a few hours.


    "It''s fine. You take your time. I''ll take care of it in the evening." Fang Fang finally smiled.


    The Elder Sister Wu did not waste any time, she held my hand and lifted the curtain. It was the first time I had ever been inside. To be honest, the inner room was more ordinary than I''d expected. There was only a bed, a cabinet, and a mini-refrigerator. The room felt crowded.


    Elder Sister Wu told me that the customer came suddenly today and she really didn''t prepare any goods, so I had to help her get the ingredients while she entertained the guest. When I asked where I could get the ingredients, she told me to look for Huang Feng, a junior high school friend of hers, at the hospital across the river.


    I set off immediately.


    Arriving at the hospital, I met up with Chairman Huang without a hitch. After explaining the purpose of my visit, Director Huang became a little nervous and hurriedly pulled me out of the office to talk to me in the corridor.


    With this situation, I immediately understood that her business deal with the Elder Sister Wu should have been done privately, bypassing the hospital.


    Afterwards, Chairman Huang told me to go to the toilet on the first level of the basement to wait. She would bring the things that Elder Sister Wu needed later.


    In the end, I waited for more than 40 minutes before she returned with a wet bag containing a metal box.


    "Tell Mr. Wu that there aren''t many goods these few days. Only one serving, but I guarantee it will be fresh." Director Huang said as he handed me the bag.


    "Go on, try not to let anyone see you." she finally said.


    On the way back to the shop, I was particularly curious about the metal box and wondered if I should open it.


    In particular, when Director Huang mentioned "fresh", I wondered what the hospital had that could be described in these three words.


    In the end, I couldn''t resist the temptation to step into the shadows and carefully open the lid of the metal box.


    The next moment, I was completely stunned. I felt nauseous, and the metal box in my hand almost fell out of my hand.


    Because I saw a pair of round eyeballs inside the metal box! And apparently from the hole of the human eye, the hand is very fine. More than half of the eyeball was immersed in the liquid, making it look like two swelled tadpoles. For some reason, the eyeballs looked dirty and shrivelled, different from the ones on the living.


    It was a long time before I recovered. Overcoming my sense of disgust, I observed at close range that the eyeballs were a little strange. Inside the eyeballs, there were a lot of black spots like sesame seeds, which seemed to be slightly trembling.


    Worms!


    I don''t know how to describe how it felt, but I wandered back into the shop.


    After passing the metal box to Elder Sister Wu, I told her what Chairman Huang had said before lowering my head and standing to the side, as if my mind was preoccupied with something. Elder Sister Wu was shrewd and experienced, she saw through it with a glance and asked:


    "You opened the box, didn''t you?"


    I nodded.


    "Don''t spout nonsense, do you hear me?"


    I nodded again.


    "The eyeball is the most important component of the jelly, and our ancestors believed that eating human eyeballs to treat eye diseases was more or less a form of supplement. So don''t make such a fuss about it, just work seriously for Elder Sister Wu, understand? "


    Listening to Elder Sister Wu ''Kopp'', while imagining the Honey Fruit Jelly, I suddenly felt that those eyeballs really resembled Jelly. They looked like they were soft and tender, with water dripping from them.


    But when he thought of eating it in one bite, he felt like he was about to vomit.


    Then, the Elder Sister Wu began to prepare other ingredients, such as fruits, milk, sweeteners, and fishmeal. Just as the Elder Sister Wu was about to pour out his eyeballs and was about to mash them, I reminded him that there were bugs in his eyeballs.


    Elder Sister Wu took a closer look and was so close that she wanted to lick that eyeball, so she said to me, "This corpse''s eyes must be sick before it died. Forget it, it''s just a few bugs, let it go."


    I nervously stared at the Elder Sister Wu as she worked. When she mixed her eyeballs that were like dregs with other materials into the wooden box and placed it inside the refrigerator, I finally relaxed.


    "An hour." Elder Sister Wu looked at her watch.


    While we were waiting, Elder Sister Wu told me that the hospital''s Director Huang was most likely her current partner. She was responsible for dealing with the morgue staff, gouging out the dead''s eyeballs and providing them to her as ingredients for the jelly. The two of them split the loot according to the ratio.


    Elder Sister Wu also said that the honey Jelly had a very sweet taste. It was basically the taste of the Jelly, with only a hint of fishy taste, ordinary people would not be able to taste it.


    The more I listened, the more I panicked.


    An hour later, the honey jelly was ready. Fang Fang took it impatiently and paid for it. She hurriedly opened the lid to take a sniff and said, "It''s quite fragrant. I like dessert the most."


    Indeed, no one, no matter how they looked or how they tasted it, would ever think of the horrible ingredients of the jelly.


    "That''s right, the illness of the eyes isn''t something that can be done in a day or two. If someone takes my medicine, they will only recover after two or three years. Your condition, at least you have to make another trip, or it could be next month''s today. " Elder Sister Wu didn''t forget to tell him.


    "Alright, big sister, I''ll listen to you."


    Who knew that every three days, Fang Fang would come. In a fit of rage, she would curse at Elder Sister Wu.


    "You damned woman, what did you give me that day?!" Look at my eyes! Look at my eyes! Damn it, I got screwed! What rubbish are you trying to sell me! "


    Fang Fang was so angry she leaned forward and pushed her bangs away so we could see her eyes. Sure enough, we were all startled. Her eyes were wide open, like balloons about to burst, and what was even more frightening was that her eyes were filled with black bugs. If we looked closely, we would have thought her eyes were smeared black.


    The Elder Sister Wu tried her best to stay calm as she replied Fang Fang, "Little girl, keep it clean in your mouth. I have so many people eating my medicine every year, how did something happen to you? Let me tell you, you had an eye problem before, but it''s only getting worse now. "


    In fact, Elder Sister Wu and I knew very well what was going on with the bugs in Fang Fang''s eyes. We just did not expect that there would be even more of them than the bugs in her eyes at that time.


    "Bullshit!" So many bugs, they came from eating your jelly, and you say it has nothing to do with you? "I don''t care. Just come with me to the police station and give me an explanation!"


    Upon hearing about the police station, Elder Sister Wu panicked. Fang Fang Fang''s face was flushed red, her eyeballs expanded even further. When she reached out to pull Elder Sister Wu, Elder Sister Wu suddenly pushed her away, causing her to lose her balance and fall to the ground.


    A loud scream rang out!


    Elder Sister Wu and I saw that after Fang Fang''s head was struck, her eyes were like broken bags of water, constantly leaking blood. There were also countless black bugs crawling out of her eyes densely and spreading out along her body.


    Not long later, it was filled with bugs!


    Elder Sister Wu and I were stunned.


    Along with Fang Fang''s shouts, the crowd finally gathered, but at this time, all the bugs had crawled away. After Fang Fang was sent to the hospital, the police also arrived. Elder Sister Wu only said that it was a problem with the girl''s eyes, and even brought a box of uninterested honey jelly to the police for test. Elder Sister Wu and I were naturally angered. No matter what, we could not reveal what had happened to our eyes.


    In the end, Fang Fang was blind, but the police could not find any clues, and only complained that Elder Sister Wu was not doing business. The shop immediately closed.


    Not long after, I left the city and went to Tianjin to open a clothing store with my little sister, all the way until now.


    As for Elder Sister Wu, I stopped contacting him the same day I left, but I heard from my friends in that place three years ago that Elder Sister Wu seemed to have opened a new store and was still selling eye medicine.


    It seemed that even after the incident with Fang Fang, Elder Sister Wu still believed that her medicine was effective. Maybe she just wanted to make money, but she didn''t care about the drug at all.


    In short, I did not inquire about anything related to the Elder Sister Wu.


    He didn''t know if there was a second Fang Fang.


    Oh no!

 C6

    Since it was rare for her to visit Shanghai, Ye Qing was very excited. He wandered around here and there, buying and selling things.


    Sang Qing had just graduated from university. This was her first time traveling alone. She had come all the way from Sichuan because she loved the city of Shanghai.


    Especially on the night in Shanghai, the lights were brilliant, the crowd was lively and filled with a sense of fashion, which made her intoxicated.


    This was an atmosphere that her hometown did not have.


    Even after ten in the evening, Sang didn''t want to go back to the hotel. She had bought a pile of things and carried them in her hands, but she did not feel tired. She still wanted to hang out.


    However, most of the stores were closed.


    It was at this moment that a clothing store near the mouth of a catwalk on Key Bridge caught her attention.


    The shop was beautifully decorated with crystal clear glass, layered windows, red, green and yellow floors, and the ceiling was hung with wind chimes.


    When she walked into the store, a fat saleswoman smiled at her and asked what she wanted.


    Ye Qing found that the costumes here were very popular, but nothing she particularly wanted.


    The saleswoman also said that they had a very delicate exhibition hall, inside the clothing personality, you can see.


    "Alright, let me take a look."


    The female shop assistant opened the door and the two of them walked into the exhibition hall. When Ye Qing saw the scene in front of her, she was stunned.


    There was only one word that could describe this less than twenty square meters exhibition hall: red!


    Red cabinets, red coffee tables, red models, red wallpaper, red floors, and various types of red clothing.


    Except for the windows, everything in the hall was red.


    "How is it? Creative enough?" the saleswoman asked with a smile.


    Ye Qing acknowledged and thought, "Indeed, although this room is scary at first glance, but if you look carefully, it''s quite artistic."


    "Why is it decorated like that?" Ye Qing asked.


    "Oh, it''s because of our Lady Boss. She really likes red. In order to remember her, the boss used red to decorate her room and the exhibition hall. "


    "Remembering her? "Your Lady Boss ¡­"


    "Well, she died the year before last."


    Ye Qing nodded. She finally understood the whole story, so she didn''t ask too much.


    Then, she started to look at the clothes, and realized that although they were all red, the quality of the various clothes inside were much better than the ones outside, especially the row of scarves hanging on the shelf.


    "I''ll take this one." Finally, Ye Qing chose a light red scarf. There was only this scarf. The red one wasn''t that deep yet, and its design was long and slim. Its lines were simple and smooth, just right for her to like.


    "Oh, this color is very light." The female shop assistant reminded him.


    "Yes, it''s too red. I''m afraid of being suppressed." Ye Qing smiled.


    Exiting the shop, Sang Qing immediately put on the scarf she had just bought and strolled along the winter streets of Shanghai, feeling as if she had been reborn.


    She really liked this scarf.


    Back at the hotel, she even wanted to sleep with it.


    Unfortunately, the next day, she felt some discomfort in her neck.


    She didn''t know why, but when she was wandering around outside, the wind made her neck tingle, as if there was a wound on it.


    He wouldn''t be tied up with a scarf, right?


    Even Ye Qing herself found this conjecture hilarious.


    At night, when she took off her scarf and looked in the mirror, she found a faint mark on her neck.


    She did not understand why.


    In addition, she also had a strange feeling that the color of the scarf had turned even redder.


    The next day, Ye Qing went to a lot of places, such as the Bund, the city temple, the New World, Shanghai Museum, they were all famous attractions in Shanghai, until her legs were sore to the point that she could barely walk, only then did she return to the hotel.


    After showering, she lay down and slept. She was so tired that she forgot to look in the mirror and did not realize that the marks on her neck were even more pronounced than yesterday.


    That night, Ye Qing had a dream. In her dream, there was a long and thin serpent coiled around her neck, making her unable to breathe. It made her constantly suck blood from her neck.


    Early in the morning, when the sky was still dark, Ye Qing was awoken by the nightmare. She instantly sat up and relaxed. When she realized that it was a dream, she finally let out a sigh of relief.


    At this moment, she noticed something. The light red scarf was hanging around her neck.


    Only now did she show the slightest bit of resistance towards the scarf. She hurriedly flung it away and even threw it far away.


    She stared at the scarf for a long time, then guessed that she must have been sleeping at night, unconsciously putting the scarf on her neck, which was why she had had such a nightmare.


    But then again, she wasn''t sure if she''d left her scarf by the bed.


    If not, could it be that the scarf had grown legs and climbed onto the bed by itself?


    For this scarf, Sang Qing''s resistance turned into fear.


    Moreover, she clearly felt that her scarf had become a little redder, even redder than yesterday.


    There must be something strange about this scarf!


    With this thought in mind, she immediately returned to the clothing store, wanting to take back her scarf.


    "Is there a problem with the scarf?" The one receiving her was still that fat female shop assistant.


    "I don''t have a problem with that. Since I don''t want it anymore, can I back out now?" Before she came, Ye Qing had already made up her mind. If she couldn''t retreat, then she might as well throw the scarf away.


    After all, it''s not a question of quality, it''s not that easy to return the goods.


    It was hard for her to describe to the salesgirl how strange she felt about the scarf.


    "Sure, it''s fine." Who would have thought that the female shop assistant would agree so readily. She still had a smiling expression on her face.


    At this moment, an old man with sparse hair walked out from the inner room and looked at Ye Qing.


    "What is it?" he asked the girl.


    "This young miss wants to return the goods."


    "Mm, let''s go. However, there are some things that are not easy to return for. " With that, the old man went back inside.


    "Who is he and what does he mean?" Ye Qing was confused.


    "Oh, he''s our boss. Ignore him, I''ll return the goods to you."


    After the return was successful, Ye Qing finally let out a sigh of relief.


    The scarf cast some shadow over her, and she decided never to wear it again.


    When she got back to the hotel, she was immediately filled with joy at the fading marks on her neck.


    She was flying home tomorrow. It was her last night in Shanghai.


    At night, she slept soundly and soundly. He thought that he would sleep until daybreak, but who knew that he would be suddenly awoken by some activity.


    She suddenly sat up and subconsciously looked at the time. It was only 3 in the morning.


    Cold sweat broke out on her forehead. She didn''t know why, but she felt that there was something in the room.


    In an instant, she saw a flash of red at the foot of the bed.


    A snake!


    It felt like a snake, long and thin.


    Coincidentally, she also had a snake in her dream last night.


    Sou sou sou ¡­ "Sou, sou, sou, sou ¡­"


    Slowly, sounds started coming out from the room. Ye Qing was even more scared now. Her scalp was numb, and she didn''t even dare to move.


    She could already see a dark figure hiding by the bed, waiting for an opportunity to act.


    Sure enough, a suffocating feeling immediately came over her. Her neck was pulled by the force, and her upper body quickly fell backwards.


    The unknown object on her neck immediately tightened, causing her face to turn completely red.


    She tried to scream, but no sound came out.


    Tears kept pouring out.


    She could already see the mirror in the cupboard in front of her. In the mirror, a blood-colored scarf was wrapped around her neck.


    It was like a snake, twisting and swaying.


    Very quickly, Ye Qing''s body turned stiff, and her face became devoid of any color.


    The next day, the scarf was once again hung in the small hall of the clothing store.


    The boss was stroking it.


    Now it was completely red.


    Oh no!

 C7

    On the night of the Qingming Festival, the streets were quiet. In an unremarkable alley, there was a person walking slowly.


    This man''s name was Zhou Lin. He used to be a chef at a nearby soup restaurant.


    Now he had no job.


    It was cold tonight, and the wind was howling like February or March.


    As Zhou Lin was walking away, someone suddenly patted his shoulder.


    He turned around and saw a man in a brown jacket.


    "Bro, can you do me a favor?" The man rubbed his hands together.


    "What is it?"


    "How about this, look over there ¡­" The man pointed to a hairdresser deep in the alley. "See that? Over there. That little house."


    Zhou Lin looked over and saw that the hair salon was dimly lit, and there were two women dressed in revealing clothing sitting in front of the door. In this sort of place, men basically understood what kind of business it was to be engaged in.


    "I see. What do you need my help with?" Zhou Lin nodded and asked.


    "Hehehe ¡­" Just a brother of mine, he called me and said he was drunk and he went to the hairdresser to look for Miss, and when he was done, he fucking found out he didn''t have a wallet, and now they''ve got him, and he wants me to send him the money. "The question is, I''m a shameless person, so I''m not too embarrassed to go in. Can you help me out here?"


    "You want me to send money over for you?"


    "Yes, yes, yes, that''s it. I''ll give you the money."


    "I don''t think you''re a thick-skinned person." Zhou Lin smiled.


    "Aiya, that''s what I''m saying, but I really don''t want to get too close to such a filthy place."


    "You don''t want to get close, do you want me to get closer?"


    "I didn''t mean that ¡­ "Alright, brother, I get it. Otherwise, I''ll give you 300 yuan, 100 yuan, and 200 yuan to pay for my brother. How about it?"


    Zhou Lin pretended to ponder for a moment, then replied, "Alright, give me the money."


    The man in the jacket handed Zhou Lin the money and watched him walk to the hairdresser.


    The hairdresser''s name was Wenwen''s Beauty Hair. For a shop like this, the name wasn''t really important, and no one would care about it.


    Stepping into the shop, Zhou Lin noticed that there were two ladies inside, their faces covered in a thick layer of powder. The two ladies were rather old and ugly.


    "Handsome, do you want a massage?" The uglier of the two young ladies stood up first.


    "No, no, no. I''m here to help a friend of mine pay. I heard that he didn''t bring any money and was detained by you guys."


    As he spoke, Zhou Lin took out 200 yuan.


    That young miss first took the money, but unexpectedly said: "What friend, our store doesn''t have any customers right now."


    Zhou Lin was stunned.


    "That''s not right, my friend said it''s here."


    "Who''s there? If you don''t believe me, go upstairs and take a look."


    Zhou Lin ignored her. Instead, he turned around and opened the door. When he looked outside, he immediately discovered that the man in jacket was no longer there.


    Suddenly, the young lady who had stood up exclaimed and retreated in fright.


    She threw the two hundred dollars on the ground and shouted, "This money..." "This money ¡­"


    "What''s wrong?!" The other lady drew closer and cried out in alarm as well.


    It turned out to be two hundred yuan on the ground. At first glance, it looks very much like the renminbi.


    Not only that, the two bills were also stained with mud, making them look dirty.


    The three were all stunned into silence.


    After a moment, one of the young ladies finally exploded.


    "What do you mean by that?" Come here and make trouble on the day of the Clear Day, right? Do you think you lack morals? Do we still need to do business in the future?! "


    Another lady followed and shouted upstairs:


    "Boss!" Boss! Take a look! "


    Very quickly, a fierce-looking man with a square face came down from upstairs. When he saw Zhou Lin, he asked, "What happened?"


    Zhou Lin stared at the boss in silence.


    The two ladies quickly picked up the bills and explained the situation.


    Hearing this, the boss became extremely angry, charging straight at Zhou Lin as he scolded,


    "Little rascal, you''re good!" You want to fuck me? What do you think we should do about this matter today? "


    Seeing the boss''s aggressive attitude, Zhou Lin actually maintained his composure and asked,


    "Then what do you think we should do?"


    "Simple. You brought the money from the dead today and filled it with dirty air for laozi. You can''t just leave like that. "How about our little sister? She''ll accompany you to ring the bell, but you have to give me this number." The owner held up two fingers.


    "2000?"


    "Yes!"


    Zhou Lin once again fell silent.


    "Zhu Zhu, accompany him upstairs." the boss ordered the uglier lady.


    "Tsk, I''m still accompanying you to do this sort of thing. It can be considered as a bargain, okay?" Miss Zhu Zhu was still muttering as she went upstairs.


    Before heading upstairs, Zhou Lin finally asked his boss,


    "If I told you that the money isn''t mine but was given to me by someone else, would you believe me?"


    "No matter who gives you those trashy words, you should be the one to bring them in anyway!" "Let me tell you, if you don''t give 2000, don''t even think about leaving!" The boss roared again.


    Thus, Zhou Lin was dragged upstairs by the pearl.


    Hearing the sound of the door closing, another lady downstairs finally burst out laughing and said to the boss:


    "You''re a fool, boss. You''ve definitely struck it rich again."


    The owner also had a cigarette in his mouth and had a leisurely look on his face.


    At the same time, the door opened, and the man in the jacket stuck his head in.


    "Where is he?" he asked.


    "No problem, I''m going upstairs. Okay, Du Ge, you''re third today, right? " said the lady, smiling.


    Obviously, everything was planned by the hairdresser.


    The trick was simple. They first used this man called Du Ge to find an excuse to give the money to others. The alley was completely dark, and under normal circumstances, it was impossible to tell that Du Ge was actually giving the money that was similar to RMB.


    Unexpectedly, something unexpected happened this time.


    Du Ge said anxiously:


    "Oh, I was wrong! "How did you fool him into going upstairs?"


    "Isn''t it the same as before? If you give him the money, will we be making a scene?" Miss handed out the two bills to Du Ge.


    "The problem is, I just didn''t give him any money! I thought it was dead people''s money, but I accidentally gave it to him. Look, I still have three dead people''s money. "


    As he spoke, Du Ge took out three more bills.


    At this point, the boss, the Miss, and Brother Du were all stupefied. They looked at each other in dismay.


    After a long while, the young lady finally asked in a soft voice:


    "Who is that person upstairs?"


    "If you ask me, how would I know?" Doug''s eyes widened and he spread his hands.


    "It can''t be that strange today, can it?" The young mistress grew more and more afraid.


    "Don''t worry, Pearl is with him right now, how about we go upstairs and take a look?" the boss suggested.


    Thus, the three of them lined up in a row. The boss stood in front and the young miss stood at the back, ready to go upstairs.


    At that moment, Doug noticed that there was some muddy water on the stairs, as if it was caused by human footprints.


    The moment she saw the muddy water, the young lady seemed to have thought of something and she suddenly stopped moving.


    "What are you standing there for? Why aren''t you leaving?" Du Ge turned his head to look, and hurriedly asked.


    "Boss, do you think that man looks like the same guy from last month?" the lady asked the boss as she walked around him.


    "Which one?"


    "Do you remember, one night last month, a man on a bicycle fell in front of our store and drowned. At that time, you, I, and the pearl were all there! "


    "Drown? There is no river in front of this door, so why are you drowning! " Doug couldn''t help but interrupt.


    "Brother Du, you''ve only come this month, so you don''t know." It was raining heavily that day, and we had a muddy road in front of the shop, so it was all puddles. Then the guy, he drank a lot, got drunk and rode a bike. "He fell in front of our store and fell into the mud, and I heard he drowned." said the lady.


    "Ah?" Is there such a thing? You guys didn''t do anything to help, just watched him die? "


    "Tsk, what does it have to do with us?" Miss rolled her eyes at Du Ge.


    "That''s right, that''s right. When you said that, I really felt that man from before looked a little familiar." The boss slapped his head.


    "Yeah, I think so too. Will you... He came to take our lives? " asked the young lady, trembling.


    "What does this have to do with us!?" He fell to his death! "


    "But you guys ¡­" "Seems like I won''t save him even if I see him die ¡­" Doug said too.


    As they were talking, a shout suddenly came from upstairs.


    "Beads!"


    The three of them hurried upstairs.


    When they opened the door, they found that the hallway was dark. The young lady''s hands were shaking with fear, and it took her a long time to reach for the light switch.


    When the lights came on, they saw that the hallway was wet. The floor, walls, and ceiling were all covered in a large amount of muddy water.


    The air was still thick with moisture, as if it had just rained.


    "Beads... "Beads..."


    The young lady''s voice was so soft that it could barely be heard.


    Seeing that every door was closed, they hesitated for a long time, not knowing which one to push.


    Suddenly, they heard a faint sound, as if something was rubbing against something.


    "Sou, sou, sou, sou, sou ¡­"


    Miss pushed open the door, and when the light came on, there was nothing inside.


    She pushed open a second and a third.


    Just as she was about to open the door to the fourth room, a puddle of muddy water suddenly seeped out from under the crack in the door, along with the smell of blood.


    "Should... So that''s it? "


    The Miss was so scared that her legs turned to jelly, and she quickly hid behind Du Ge.


    "What''s there to be afraid of? So what if the three of us are ghosts?"


    Doug braced himself, then pushed the door open.


    "Zhu Zhu Zhu, are you there?" The boss immediately called out.


    But it was pitch black in front of them. Doug pressed the light switch, but nothing happened.


    "The light''s out." the boss whispered.


    They were aware that there was a strong smell of soil mixed with water as they entered the room. Clearly, there was a large amount of mud here.


    There was also the strange "sou sou sou" sound that filled the entire room.


    Vaguely, they saw a person lying on a small bed inside the room.


    The man lay very still.


    "Zhu Zhu Zhu, is it you?"


    The three trembled as they inched closer to look. Another wave of earthy smell blew over them.


    "Who brought the phone? Let''s take a look under the light of the phone." The boss said.


    Miss obediently took out her phone and used the flashlight function to light up most of the room.


    However, what appeared on the bed in front of him was a straight and stiff bead with a naked body. Her eye sockets, her nostrils, her mouth, her ears, as well as the wounds all over her body were completely filled with mud. What was even more frightening was that these mud were all squirming and making strange sounds.


    "Ouch!" The young lady was so shocked that she lost her balance and almost slipped. Du Ge and the boss also quickly retreated.


    In the midst of the chaos, there was water dripping down from above. Doug touched it with his finger and realized it was muddy water.


    They all looked up at the same time and saw an extremely shocking scene.


    It turned out that there was a thick layer of mud on the roof as well as water dripping off the mud. In the middle of the mud was an upside-down head. It was as if that man was staring straight at them!


    Following that, large clumps of mud suddenly descended, covering their entire bodies.


    Struggling was useless.


    He couldn''t move.


    At first they gave a few exclamations, but soon they were quiet.


    At noon the next day, several officers of the homicide squad arrived at the scene of the crime. The reason was that they received an alarm from a courier saying that several corpses had been found inside the hairdresser''s salon. The scene was too horrible to look at.


    Wang Zili was thirty-one years old, and as the leader of the National Serious Crimes Team, he had a lot of experience in solving cases. He had seen many cruel and abnormal situations, but this was the first time he had ever encountered such a strange case.


    The deceased was two men and two women, all of whom looked like people from the hair salon. Every corpse had eyes, ears, nose, and various wounds all over their body. They were all stuffed with mud.


    In addition, almost the entire house was covered in mud, as if it had been soaked in mud.


    There was also a female corpse lying on the bed, holding two bills in its hands.


    Wang Zili couldn''t imagine what kind of murderer he would need to do to kill the four men and women, and also, how he did it.


    "Let''s call it a day!"


    With a sigh, he could only return to the police station to slowly analyze the gathered traces.


    He had a premonition that this case would never come to light.


    He did not know that in the fourth room upstairs, the pile of mud was still slowly squirming.

 C8

    My name is Zhang Nan, and I''m a psychic. Friends often call me Da Nan, Nan.


    I don''t have a proper career. I only occasionally help people look at feng shui and get away with it. Most of the time, I loiter around, sightseeing, and survive on a fund.


    I don''t like to talk much, and I have little interest. Besides, I rarely lie, except in one particular case.


    Almost all the year round, I wear a black suit and black sunglasses.


    My sunglasses are custom-made because my eyes are defective and I can''t see anything in the world. But the most important thing is that my eyes can''t see the light.


    In this world, there are many psychic who have Yin Yang Eyes, and I am just a Yin Eye. I could see the ghosts from hundreds of meters away, but I couldn''t see the people in front of me.


    So I can''t leave my sunglasses.


    My suit was also specially made. There was a layer of powder on top of it to weaken the ghost''s yin aura.


    At the moment, I was walking in a wet alley because I received a call from my university classmate yesterday.


    "Nan, it''s really hard for me on a case, find some time to help me take a look, it''s really strange ¡­"


    After listening to his story, I finally realized that it was a small hair salon that was involved in illegal activities. Four corpses had been created overnight and their bodies were filled with mud. The Yin Qi at the scene was quite dense, and they had even found some underworld money.


    As for the murderer, for the time being, he did not have any clues, nor did he find any important clues.


    Energetic. Just like before, if it wasn''t an incident caused by someone, I wouldn''t have notified you.


    "At least give me a conclusion!"


    "We''ll see."


    In this world, I''m afraid the only person who understands me is Wang Zili. We were close friends for many years, and both of us helped each other in some way.


    Under my eyes, I stood in front of the hair salon called "Wenwen". The shop''s door was locked, but Wang Zili had already given me the key.


    As I stepped into the shop, I could smell a thick smell of damp earth, accompanied by a cold wind, coming from the corridor.


    It was dark inside.


    As I went upstairs, I heard a slight noise.


    Sure enough, just as Wang Zili had described, the second floor was filled with mud, and mud continued to seep out from the gaps of the doors.


    I slowly pushed open the fourth door.


    The room was extremely dark and gloomy. The mud on my feet was slowly rippling.


    I was sure that there were some faint soul sounds, mixed with the sound of insects, interweaving into a noise.


    There was also a mysterious aura lingering behind me.


    At this moment, I touched something on my shoulder. I touched it with my hand. It was actually mud.


    Mud fell from the top.


    More clumps of mud came crashing down, followed by muddy water, and the whole room began to rain.


    Instead of dodging, I looked up.


    I saw a male ghost lying on the roof. His body had already merged with the mud and was trembling.


    "Your name is Zhou Lin, right?" I asked.


    He was too stunned to think that I would have investigated this place beforehand.


    "Did you kill those four people?" To tell the truth, I don''t quite believe that a guy who was good enough to be a chef when he was alive would have such a cruel temperament.


    But he didn''t want to confront me at all. He came down screaming, like a thin sheet of paper, his hands and feet blurry and shapeless.


    As he approached me, he let out a whimper. I know he can''t break the gold powder I have on my suit.


    Then I grabbed with my right hand, and he was caught in the air by me, unable to free himself.


    "Let go! "Let go!" he shouted.


    I ignored him and turned away.


    Because I already discovered that there was another one behind me!


    I made a grabbing motion with my left hand and a gust of cold wind blew towards me. I was able to control something invisible and intangible. Ordinary people wouldn''t be able to see what was in front of them, but I could clearly see that it was a female ghost that had just died.


    There was a high chance that four people in the store had died in the hands of this man and woman pair.


    "Xiaomei, this person is not someone to be trifled with, can you leave now?!" Zhou Lin shouted.


    "No, bro, I can''t move!" The female ghost called Xiaomei responded.


    "Sir, please let us go." Zhou Lin began to beg me.


    I sighed, thinking: Did you plan to let those four people go when you killed them?


    However, I had a feeling that the idea of killing someone came from this ghost girl. Her resentment was even greater.


    So I decided to interrogate them.


    After what they said, I soon figured out the whole story. So it turned out that this ghost girl called Xiaomei was a waitress who stayed at the same restaurant as Zhou Lin when she was still alive. After hearing that Zhou Lin had died, Xiaomei was momentarily in a daze, and had actually committed suicide after him. That night, the two ghosts walked in the alley, but Xiaomei was unable to appear, so the only person that could be seen was Zhou Lin. Just as I guessed, all four of them died to Xiaomei. Xiaomei grew up with a single parent family, so she might be a little stubborn in nature.


    After explaining, I decided to let them go. They were ghosts, after all, and not subject to rules such as the law of the earth. But they promised me they wouldn''t hurt anyone again.


    I believe them.


    I didn''t return the force and instead left for the next area.


    There''s something else I have to deal with.


    Soon, I arrived at my destination.


    This was a hospital.


    Previously, the client had contacted me through a letter. Yes, writing letters is both troublesome and inefficient for a modern society where communications are so well-developed. However, I feel that this is the easiest way to reveal my identity and whereabouts.


    The other party was called Lee Jie and was a nurse in the hospital.


    When I saw her, I realized that she was younger than I had expected. She must have just graduated from college. We made a brief greeting and then went to a nearby restaurant to talk.


    Actually, the reason why I accepted her request was mainly because this matter was a little special. Unlike my past experience of exorcising ghosts to ward off evil spirits, this was an exchange with a patient who had suffered a severe car accident and had already suffered brain death in order to obtain some information.


    In medicine, brain death is tantamount to death, and it doesn''t take long and depends on the life-support system.


    Now that I am dead, I can communicate. During this time, the soul of such a person would often not be able to leave the physical body and would only be able to live within the body.


    "Tell me about him." I asked Lee Jie straightforwardly. Currently, I already knew that the patient was male and was her university classmate.


    Okay. My classmate is Chen Rui. He had lost both his parents at a young age and was brought up by his big sister. Like me, he is also an intern at a company. Two days ago, he was on his way to buy a magazine when he was hit by a truck. It was a crossroads, but he didn''t have a camera. "That night, he was identified as brain-dead.


    "Get to the point. I don''t care how he died, what do you want me to do? " I interrupted.


    "Oh, oh, sorry. "Hmm ¡­" The specific point is, I heard someone mention that you have the ability to communicate with spirits, so ¡­ He wanted to ask about Chen Rui''s situation at that time, at least capture the culprit. After all ¡­ He died a pitiful death ¡­ His sister is getting married next month... "


    Lee Jie immediately took out a tissue to wipe the tears at the corner of her eyes. I could tell she was upset.


    "That''s easy."


    "Then I''ll be troubling you. Are we going now?"


    "No, we have to wait until the evening, preferably in the middle of the night. Can you arrange it when no one is around?"


    "Sure, I understand."


    "How much longer does he have?"


    "What do you mean?"


    "He should be supporting his life on equipment, right? How long will it take for the hospital to remove the ventilator? "


    "The hospital has promised to keep it for a week or two, depending on the circumstances."


    "Do you know that even if he dies, I can still find him?"


    "I know." But... I want to look at him a few more times, I always feel... He''s still alive. "


    Lee Jie''s nose was red, I will not speak for now.


    "You just said that he was raised by his elder sister, is that his elder sister? Why isn''t his sister here? "


    "Yes, not only did he kiss her, he and his sister had a good relationship. His sister was like half a mother to him. I was in the same class as him in junior high school, and I remember him very clearly. Every lunch he had was prepared and delivered by his sister, and his living expenses and tuition fees were all taken care of by her sister. Later, in order to allow him to finish university successfully, his sister decided to go out to work. Not only did she provide him with an expensive tuition fee, but she also saved money for his future marriage. Probably last year. His sister knew a man who was pretty good and was preparing to get married this year. Who knew ¡­ This sort of thing happened. "


    "What''s his sister''s name?" My expression was still stiff.


    "Chen Rui."


    Yes, the names of the two siblings sounded nearly the same.


    "Are you afraid to inform his sister?" I asked curiously.


    "I don''t know how to begin, I''m still hesitating. Mr. Zhang, why don''t you teach me? "


    "I don''t know either."


    At this time, I stood up, bid farewell to Lee Jie, and said that I would come back in the evening.


    I have a basic understanding of the situation.


    After midnight, Lee Jie was punctually waiting for them in the ward. This was an underground ward with dim lights. No one could be seen outside the door. I don''t know how Lee Jie persuaded the hospital to provide her with such convenience, and also promised to maintain Chen Rui''s life for at least a week. Maybe she had some deep background.


    I indicated for Lee Jie to turn off the light first, and then light the candles I brought with me, placing them in a circle around the sickbed.


    I observed Chen Rui again, and realised that he had delicate features, his complexion looked good, and that it was truly a pity for him to leave the mortal world at such a young age.


    Because I was originally a special person, I didn''t need to borrow any props. I just lightly sat beside Chen Rui, lowered my head, and chanted a few words that others couldn''t understand. The world might call it a spell.


    Lee Jie watched on nervously.


    Faintly, he saw Chen Rui''s body move, and then, Chen Rui opened his eyes and asked me who I was.


    However, all of this, Lee Jie did not know. In front of her, Chen Rui''s body was still unmoving.


    About half an hour later, I stretched out my hand to gently stroke Chen Rui''s face a few times, then raised my head.


    Lee Jie stared at me, not daring to speak.


    She couldn''t imagine that I had already reached an agreement with Chen Rui and understood everything about the accident.


    "He said he was walking very fast, but he did not violate the traffic rules. The driver of the car may have been confused and hit him head-on on the sidewalk. " "No," I said.


    "He is just like that. He is in a hurry to do anything. He is not careful at all. Did he tell the driver anything? " Lee Jie looked very sad again.


    "All he could remember was that the driver was driving a blue truck that seemed to have been driven from a breeding ground with a cage on it. I think we should be able to identify the driver based on this information. "


    "Yes." Lee Jie nodded and said comfortingly, "I''ll tell the police tomorrow."


    "If there''s nothing else, I''ll be going." I stood up.


    "Mr. Zhang, can you come again tomorrow? I still have something I want to say to Chen Rui."


    "Sure."

 C9

    I walked straight to the door, and Lee Jie was still looking at me, seemingly wanting to say something but hesitating. In the end, she couldn''t help but ask me:


    "What else did he tell you other than the accident?"


    "He said it''s his birthday tomorrow, but unfortunately he can''t spend it with you, so he thanked you for the gift."


    I glanced at the man''s watch quietly placed beside Chen Rui''s bed and walked out of the room.


    I can imagine that Lee Jie is crying again.


    The next night, I arrived a little earlier. When I met Lee Jie, she excitedly told me that the culprit had been found, and that it really was the driver of the breeding ground. He then thanked me profusely for my help, saying that it was just a small matter.


    "What do you want me to do today?" I asked her.


    "I want to talk to Chen Rui again."


    My face didn''t look good, and I thought she was using me as a microphone.


    Unexpectedly, Lee Jie reached into her pocket and took out an opened letter and gave it to me.


    "Whose?" I asked.


    In this era, there are actually people like me who use letters?


    "It''s a letter his sister wrote. It was just sent yesterday. Mr. Zhang, can you read it to him?"


    I understand now, no wonder Lee Jie asked me to come again today.


    "Do the siblings usually rely on letters to communicate with each other?" I asked again.


    "Yeah, his sister works in Beijing and hasn''t been home for more than a year. In the past, they had a habit of writing letters regularly and exchanging information, about once a few months. However, Chen Rui and his sister just did not like this method, and thought that the communication between people was too casual and direct, while the letters seemed to be more tactful, and could write things that could not be said in person or on the phone. "


    I nodded my head, feeling that Lee Jie''s words made sense, although the reason why I used the letter was different from theirs.


    I also started to understand Lee Jie''s meaning.


    "You want to hide it from his sister for the time being and let him write back as he always does?"


    "Yes."


    "How should we solve the problem with the handwriting? His sister would definitely recognize his handwriting."


    "There''s no need to worry, because he emails every time and his sister can see it when she opens her cell phone. I know his password, too, so I can do it for him. "


    I understood and didn''t ask any further questions. I skimmed through the contents of the letter.


    Ray: How''s it going? Are the scientific journals still collecting?" Sister has been busy and tired, but last weekend with your future brother-in-law around Beijing City, or ride ah! Try it on another day. It''s very interesting to take some time out for a walk. Don''t be bored at home. By the way, sister may get busier and busier in the future, and may not even return for the new year. If you need anything, just write a letter to sister, and she will send you a sum of money every three months. Also, you are not young anymore, it''s time to find a girlfriend. You are going to have a good relationship with Lee Jie, aren''t you getting closer with her? Alright, alright, I won''t say anymore. You must hate your sister for being so long-winded, right? "Then let''s talk about it next time ~ Chen Rui.


    The contents of the letter were quite common, but through these brief remarks I had a preliminary impression of the brother and sister''s natures: the older sister was more cheerful and the younger brother more introverted.


    I read it to Chen Rui word for word.


    He was obviously very excited, and had the same thoughts as Lee Jie. He planned to keep it a secret from her elder sister, at least until her elder sister successfully gets married next month.


    I reminded him that he must be present at my sister''s wedding.


    He said he had a way.


    Thus, Lee Jie sat at the side and recorded everything down with a pen. I will be responsible for passing the information down, and immediately reply to his sister with a letter.


    The letter was very short. First, Chen Rui made up a story and said that he had found an ideal job, but before he could officially enter the job, he had to go through a week of closed training. It happened to conflict with his sister''s wedding time, so he couldn''t go.


    "Will that work? Will his sister see through it?" Lee Jie worriedly asked after sending the email.


    "I don''t know. Are they really not going to make a phone call? After all, a phone call like this was already exposed."


    "Yeah, they really don''t have the habit of talking on the phone. His sister is a frugal person, so she said long distance calls are expensive unless something unexpected happens."


    "Isn''t it an emergency that a dependent brother doesn''t attend the wedding?"


    "If his sister really calls, then I''ll take care of it. There was such a thing in the past, because Chen Rui''s hearing wasn''t very good, and she often spoke in a voice that I couldn''t hear clearly. At that time, I''ll make up a reason."


    I sighed, feeling tired just listening to these things.


    And now, the most ridiculous thing was that even I was involved.


    Unexpectedly, not even two days had passed before Chen Rui replied. In the letter, she expressed his support for Chen Rui''s decision, his reaction was unexpectedly dull and indifferent to Chen Rui''s new job. The previous letter''s tone was very different, giving people the feeling that he was in a hurry to take care of it.


    Lee Jie rejoiced, but I was a little doubtful.


    "When was the last time they communicated?"


    Lee Jie was a little surprised that I asked him this question for no reason.


    "Last time ¡­" It should have been a few days before the incident with Chen Rui that he asked Chen Rui about the wedding ceremony next month. Last time, it was months ago. I remember his sister saying that she was too busy at work to go home for the new year. "


    "Show me the letter he wrote before the accident."


    Lee Jie did as instructed and opened her phone.


    I read through the contents of the letter and realized that just as Lee Jie said, Chen Rui was mainly asking him about his sister''s wedding, jokingly saying that he just got his driver''s license, and didn''t want him to help drive the car. In addition, he told his sister to take more care to rest and not work too hard.


    At first glance, this letter seemed ordinary, but after combining it with two letters from his sister, it made me feel suspicious.


    I thought for a moment and quickly asked Lee Jie:


    "I heard you said that his elder sister was working outside very early on, and she didn''t even study for a few years, yet she wrote a lot of good words? Did his sister write her own letter? "


    The handwriting of Chen Rui''s letter was dignified and generous, and the writing was beautiful, which was obvious.


    "Mr. Zhang, your eyes are really amazing! His sister''s letter had indeed been written by her husband. However, in the early days, his sister had personally written letters. To be honest, the words were not very nice to read, and many of them could not be written. So, after knowing his brother-in-law, I let his brother-in-law write everything. "


    After learning all this, I felt more and more that there was a hidden catch.


    There were too many contradictions in these letters.


    Firstly, he started from the first letter Chen Rui wrote before the incident. In the letter, he mainly asked about Chen Rui''s wedding, and following that, Chen Rui replied him. In addition, Chen Rui had also written a letter asking her sister to "pay more attention to rest and not work too hard", but Chen Rui had replied saying that she had worked hard. Under normal circumstances, Chen Rui would avoid worrying her brother, so it was unlikely for her to complain about it, especially when Chen Rui had just reminded her not too long ago.


    Also, Chen Rui did not express anything on Chen Rui''s birthday. According to the deep feelings between the two, as a sister, she would never forget such an important day.


    In the end, Chen Rui had already left his hometown for too long, and according to the letter, he might not return this New Year''s Eve. What kind of work was it, to be busy for two years without going home?


    With these doubts in mind, I made a phone call on my way back to the hotel.


    It was my police officer, Wang Zili, who was living in Beijing.


    But before I could say anything, he started yelling at me.


    "Brat, what are you doing? Why aren''t you replying!?" "Did you get the job I asked you to do?"


    "It''s done, stop bullshitting. "Help me find someone tomorrow."


    "Who is it?"


    "A woman who works in Beijing."


    After which, I explained Chen Rui''s situation to Big Stamina, using great effort to quickly record it down with a pen.


    Before I hung up, I remembered something and asked:


    "Mighty, how was the weather last weekend over there?"


    "Ah?" Why do you care about the weather in Beijing? Not to mention the weekend, the weather hasn''t been good recently. It rained continuously for a few days, and I remember it was even more raining during the weekend. "


    "Alright, give me your answer tomorrow as soon as possible."


    I took a deep breath, remembering what Chen Rui had said in his letter that she had gone out for a ride last weekend. However, how could one ride in this sort of weather?


    It was obviously a lie.


    I can trust him to be efficient, especially what I told him. At noon the next day he gave me all the information I wanted.


    "Chen Rui''s boyfriend, the one who''s about to get married, do you have any information about him?" I asked Energetic again.


    "Of course, that man is 33 years old and his name is Zheng Chen. He works in a state-owned enterprise and has no bad record. He was the one who wrote the letter for that woman, right?"


    "Probably. I''ll hang up first."


    I walked slowly back to the hospital, thinking about something.


    Lee Jie is still guarding beside Chen Rui''s bed. I heard that in less than three days, the academy will conveniently remove Chen Rui''s breathing machine.


    Chen Rui was about to become a real corpse.


    Seeing me coming over, Lee Jie was very surprised, because I never appeared in the hospital during the day.


    I let Lee Jie go out for a walk. Not long later, the two of us would walk on a piece of green lush grass in the courtyard.


    Winter afternoons were sometimes just like mornings, especially today, when the sun was obscured by dark clouds.


    We saw a family of three, the child was only about three years old, holding by the father, happy to leave the hospital, this scene is both harmonious and warm.


    I realised that Lee Jie was a very emotional person, when I saw the family of three, I seemed to think of Chen Rui, and my feelings became worse.


    "Mr. Zhang, why are you always wearing a suit? Isn''t it cold in winter?" Lee Jie might be trying to distract her, and since I didn''t say anything, she took the initiative to start a conversation.


    "I''m used to it." I was thinking about what to say.


    "Oh." Lee Jie nodded, she really didn''t know how to respond to my attitude.


    "Let me tell you something." I looked at Lee Jie.


    "Go ahead."


    "Chen Rui''s sister has died."


    Lee Jie suddenly stopped in her tracks, as if she was shocked.


    I paused, then went on:


    "She died more than a year ago. Lung cancer."


    "What ¡­" "It''s like this?" Lee Jie''s tears slowly fell.


    "Based on what I know and what I think, before Big Sister Chen Rui passed away, he had always been thinking about Chen Rui. Just like what Chen Rui did, she also chose to hide the matter of her death, wrote a bunch of letters in advance, and also saved up some money from her years of hard work, which Zheng Chen sent to Chen Rui regularly. Therefore, the first letter a few days ago was prepared before she passed away. The following reply was from Zheng Chen according to the circumstances. "


    It could be seen that Lee Jie''s heart was filled with sorrow.


    And because I was wearing sunglasses, it was hard for others to see my emotions through my eyes.


    Now, a question lay in front of Lee Jie: Should I tell Chen Rui about this?


    I asked her how she could choose, and she said she had to think about it.


    Very quickly, Lee Jie told me what she did. She wanted Chen Rui to leave in peace, she would rather let this brother and sister remain in the dark forever, otherwise it would be too cruel.


    I left in silence.


    I once told Lee Jie that even if a person completely dies, I still have a way to find him.


    I''ve also mentioned that I rarely lie, except in one particular case.


    This time, both things happened.


    On a night three days later, I came to Chen Rui''s room alone while Lee Jie was not around.


    I know, in the early hours of tomorrow morning, Chen Rui will have his ventilator pulled out.


    There was a figure behind me. Although she was not a living person, she still looked dignified and beautiful, gentle and generous.


    Pushing the door open, we tiptoed into the room.


    Seeing the scene of Chen Rui in front of her, she could no longer hold back, and used a voice that seemed to come from the depths of her soul to call out:


    "Rui Rui, big sister is back."


    Oh no!

 C10

    As soon as they got off the bus, Su Hong took his two daughters and walked down a village road.


    "What kind of broken road is this, it''s the same as before!" The eldest daughter, Su Qin, was complaining impatiently.


    Su Qin was fifteen this year, and would soon graduate from junior high.


    Su Miao, the youngest daughter, followed obediently behind and used a branch to brush the weeds on both sides of the cliff.


    She was eight years old, much younger than her sister, but the two sisters were very compatible.


    This was the only path to the Flower Snake Village. The grass and trees were lush, and there was even a certain slope, so it was not easy to take.


    While walking, Su Qin saw a few ginkgo trees in front of him and asked Su Hong:


    "Dad, look at those big trees, they should be arriving soon, right?"


    Ginkgo biloba was a large symbol of Flower Snake Village and was planted in and around the entire village. Especially the few stalks of ancient ginkgo in the village, whose trunk was big and thick.


    "Mm, soon." Su Hong replied.


    Flower Snake Village was the home of Su Hong''s wife, Zheng Huiling. It was also the place where Zheng Huiling had grown up in.


    Su Hong still remembered that when they went back to the village, Zheng Huiling was still alive. The family of four happily returned back to the village.


    But who knew that only one year had passed since Zheng Huiling''s death?


    Until now, Su Hong still felt that this matter had happened extremely suddenly. That day, Zheng Huiling said that he wanted to go home and do some work, then he went by train by himself. In the end, not many days later, his father-in-law told him over the phone that Zheng Huiling had died from misfortune and his corpse had already been cremated. When Su Hong hurried over, he did not even see Zheng Huiling''s body, and only picked up her ashes.


    After that, Su Hong and his two daughters had lived under the shadow of Zheng Huiling''s death for a long time, so the burden on Su Hong had become heavy. Fortunately, after a few years, everything had slowly gotten used to it.


    Just like last time, it was still New Year''s Eve. Su Hong reckoned that it had been a long time since they last returned to the village, and the two elders in the village probably missed their children, so he brought his two daughters back to their hometown for a New Year.


    Very quickly, the three of them successfully arrived at the Flower Snake Village. The moment Su Miao arrived, he exclaimed: "Those trees are so tall!"


    Indeed, there were many ginkgo trees planted in the Flower Snake Village. Su Hong had heard Zheng Huiling mentioning that the locals had a special belief in ginkgo.


    Another characteristic of Flower Snake Village was that every house''s roof was made of tiles that were as black as ink. Once it became night time, it would become especially dark.


    The three of them walked around the village together. Su Hong was looking for the old house based on his impression of the village.


    After all, he hadn''t been here for a long time, and he wouldn''t be able to stay for much longer in the past, so he and Su Hong were very unfamiliar with each other.


    "Dad, what are they looking at?" Su Qin asked.


    "Don''t worry about it."


    Just then, they passed a shop that had its walls painted black. The shop was filled with various kinds of birthday clothes, when Su Hong casually glanced inside, he felt that it was strange, why did the birthday suit look like it was so small, as if it was for a child?


    Could it be that the birthday suit for the adult body was hidden inside?


    This doubt flashed across Su Hong''s mind. He didn''t think too much about it.


    At last, they arrived at their destination. Grandfather and Grandmother were already waiting outside the door, beaming with happiness. Grandfather Zheng Wangde had been shouting from afar, "Why did you only just arrive?"


    Grandmother Zhu Qimei also said, "The food is getting cold!"


    "Aiyo, we waited for the bus for over an hour and then we still couldn''t find it. That... Qin Qin, Miao, quickly call me grandfather and grandmother. " Su Hong immediately greeted.


    Local customs, whether it is grandparents or grandparents, the general name of grandparents.


    "Grandpa, grandma!" Su Qin and Su Miao shouted at the same time.


    After a short exchange of pleasantries, everyone stepped into the room.


    It was a typical old country house. The paint on the walls was broken and the furniture was old. There was not even a toilet. One had to go inside the shed beside the gate to make it convenient. People who lived in the city all year round would definitely not be used to living in this kind of house.


    "Little thing, it''s so big now!" First Uncle Zheng Gaang saw that they had arrived and hugged Su Miao, causing him to quickly struggle free.


    Eldest Aunt Wu Fang was beaming as she carried out the hot dishes.


    When Su Hong saw the dishes on the table, he realized that the number of people was not right.


    "Mom and Dad, where are Second Brother and Lili?"


    Second brother was Zheng Huiling''s second brother, Su Qin and Su Miao''s second uncle was called Zheng Xiong. Lili was Zheng Huiling''s younger sister and her aunt, Zheng Huili and Su Miao, named Zheng Huili.


    "Oh, those two. One says that they are busy with business, while the other says that they are busy with work. They won''t be coming back this year." Zhu Qimei said as she wiped the table, looking a little unhappy.


    Su Hong nodded.


    "Look, dad, this is mom!" Suddenly, Su Miao pulled Su Hong and pointed to a picture of Zheng Huiling on the wall.


    "Well, yes, Mama. You''ll have to kowtow and give mom incense later, you know? " Su Hong patted Su Miao''s head.


    "I know, I know!"


    This image of Zheng Huiling, smiled slightly. Su Hong felt sad at the bottom of his heart.


    "Start the meal!" At the command of Zheng Wangde, everyone took their seats.


    When the lights were on and they could be seen clearly, Su Hong realized that the people from Zheng Huiling''s hometown had become thinner, and looked sickly. Especially Zheng Wentai and Zhu Qimei, they felt that they had aged more than ten years.


    The possibility of the loss of their daughter was also a great blow to them.


    Another strange thing was that the whole village seemed to be surrounded by a foul stench, like the smell of rotting dead fish.


    However, in rural areas, the requirements could not be too high. Su Hong thought.


    After the meal, Zhu Qimei took out a wooden box and took out two scarves.


    "Qin Qin, Miao. Everyone put them on." Zhu Qimei laughed.


    "Mom, what is this?" Su Hong saw that the two scarves seemed to be the same, both were black with a flowery snake tattoo on them.


    "This is called a flower snake scarf, all the girls here have it, and it must be made by their own mother. When Hui Ling came back that year, he did two things for Xin Xin and Miao. " Zhu Qimei explained as she helped the two girls put them on.


    Originally, Su Qin was somewhat resistant to this strange scarf, but when she heard that it was something his mother had left to them, she immediately became more amiable and obediently let his grandmother wear it.


    "Sure, isn''t this pretty?" Zheng Gaang drank his wine and praised loudly.


    Su Hong had heard Zheng Huiling mention that there were about half of the members from the Flower Snake Village minority groups, which was why this custom was born.


    Although the New Year''s Eve meal was small in number, it was still rather lively. Su Hong also planned to let his two daughters live until the fifth day of the new year before they left so that they could experience more of the life that Zheng Huiling had as children.


    It was a pity that at night, Su Miao was sick and had a high fever.


    Zhu Qimei asked the person at the side for a thermometer, 38 degrees and 4.


    "I''ve got a cold, it''s fine, I''ll be fine after a nap." Su Hong said to Zhu Qimei.


    But on the second day, Su Miao''s fever still did not decline.


    In the rural areas, the conditions were limited. Su Hong could only let Su Miao lie on the bed to rest and not go anywhere else.


    Su Qin was in charge of taking care of her sister.


    Night time, just as the sun had set and Su Hong was drinking with Zheng Gaang, a rude woman''s voice sounded out:


    "Old Mrs. Zhu, Old Mrs. Zhu, quickly! Jiang Youcai''s family begins! "


    Zhu Qimei hurriedly put down the bowl and replied:


    "Alright!"


    Immediately after, Zheng Weide and Zheng Gaang put down their wine cups at the same time. Zheng Gaang asked: "Why are you so early today?"


    Seeing that everyone was in a hurry, Su Hong was startled.


    "Mom, what''s the matter?"


    "Jiang Youcai''s family, tonight we will immerse his daughter-in-law''s corpse!" Zhu Qimei turned around and said, "Ah, yes, you''re also one of us, we want to go too!"


    "Oh ¡­" "Well, what do you mean, soaked?" Su Hong was suspicious.


    "Little Hui never told you this before?"


    "There really isn''t any."


    "Alright, alright, I''ll tell you as I walk, or it''ll be too late." Zheng Gaang pulled Su Hong along, and the four of them walked out of the door.


    "This... Doesn''t Qin Qin and Miao need to go? " Su Hong asked.


    "Kids don''t use it." Zheng Wangde replied.


    On the way, Zheng Gaang explained to Su Hong clearly how to immerse the body.


    So it turned out that there had always been a rule in Flower Snake Village, which was that when a member of a clan died, they would use some sort of medicinal liquid to soak in and decompose their corpse, thus reducing their body''s size. It was said that the ancestors of Flower Snake Village were a group of deserters in the ancient times. Until now, when they were being chased by the enemy, they had to rely on a few luxuriant ginkgo trees to conceal themselves in order to be lucky enough to escape death. Therefore, they believed that ginkgo was the protection of the gods and was the symbol of god. After living here, they let their descendants grow more ginkgo, and almost the entire village was covered with it. In the recent days, Flower Snake Village had even created a set of Soul Sacrifice Trees, which meant that the corpse would be stuffed into the trunk of a Ginkgo tree, sealed away, and then asked to be reincarnated with the blessings of a god. But there are many people in the village, the ginkgo tree after all is limited, how to do? He then invented a method to take the nearby river water and mix it into a kind of medicine, to shrink the human body and turn it into a cadaver, so that more bodies could be hidden in the tree. As for the formula, only a few people in the village knew it.


    Over time, the burial ceremony became the most important tradition of the Flower Snake Village. It was held within seven days after the death of a person, and all the adults in the village were required to attend.


    After Su Hong heard it, he immediately felt that this place''s customs sounded a little creepy. If it was in a city, it should be considered as insulting the corpse, right?


    However, no one cared about this remote and remote village.


    It was only now that he understood why the shroud was made so small. It was because every corpse had been ''reduced''.


    There was quite a distance from Zheng Wang De''s home to Jiang Youcai''s house. After walking around two small hills, the group of four finally arrived at an open space in front of Jiang Youcai''s house.


    At this time, Su Hong saw that a large group of people was gathered around two large torches. In the middle of the torches, Jiang Youcai''s wife''s body was covered with a white cloth. The people at the table were all crying, but no one could tell if they were crying or not. There were also two old men who were whispering on the side.

 C11

    In addition, there was a dark green water tank not too far away, which could fit three to four people at a glance.


    Just now, Zhu Qimei had told Su Hong that this wife of Jiang Youcai had fainted while he was being fed with pigs in the pig shed, then rolled his eyes and died. The state of death was quite tragic, to be bitten by a few pigs of his own family. If not for the fact that they found out earlier, the entire corpse would have been eaten by the pigs.


    Su Hong felt that it was strange. How could she die just because she fainted? What was the cause of death?


    After walking into the crowd, Zheng Weide quietly said to Su Hong, this Jiang Youcai could be considered to have some relationship with him a few years ago, and would not be going out with him in the recent years, as his family had a lot of weird things to do, and was extremely eccentric.


    Actually, it was not only Jiang Youcai''s family, but the other people in the village also felt that there was something strange about them. None of them seemed very happy, and they were all in low spirits. One face after another appeared sickly, especially for the elderly, who were basically as thin as a twig, ready to fall at any moment.


    Su Hong had also observed some of the small details. It was just that a lot of people in the village seemed to have problems with their fingernails, always picking at something, even using their nails to scratch the trees or walls. Just listening to this sound made them feel uncomfortable.


    Including Zhu Qimei, she would often scratch her skin with the fingers of her hands as if scratching an itch, maybe she didn''t even realize it herself.


    Besides, the village stinks worse than it did yesterday. Su Hong was sure that this corpse had nothing to do with it.


    When everyone had arrived, the burial ceremony officially began.


    First of all, all of Jiang Youcai''s family members were kneeling on the ground. A person was crying, and the leader cried for around 15 minutes. Immediately after, an old man went over to the corpse''s side and used a dialect to talk. Su Hong did not understand, but he knew that this kind of words did not have much content. At the same time, another old man ordered someone to clean the water tank.


    Not long after, all the preparations were completed. Everyone in the family bade farewell to Jiang Youcai''s wife, crying their hearts out.


    Then, the two strong men lifted up the corpses and slowly put them into the water vat. The two old men each took a bag of solution and slowly poured it into the vat. Su Hong could see clearly that the potion was of a deep red color. He was curious about the composition of the potion, how could the potion shrink a person''s body through dissolution or corruption.


    At this moment, the crowd surged, but they didn''t leave the stage. Zheng Gaang told Su Hong that it would take around an hour before the corpse would be soaked, so he did not run away anymore.


    Su Hong obediently sat on the rock to rest.


    An hour later, the two old men looked into the vat, nodded to each other, and had the vat rinsed with clear water. Only when all the water was gone did they allow the body to be carried.


    Su Hong instantly saw a pitch black charcoal-like corpse being carried out of the water vat. Its size was indeed much smaller than before, becoming a cadaver with a body like a child. The corpse was still dripping either oil or water, but it was quickly filled with a white bag.


    This scene made Su Hong feel a wave of disgust.


    Zheng Gaang patted Su Hong''s shoulder, and laughed: "How is it, you''re not used to it?"


    Su Hong nodded.


    Immediately, Su Hong remembered something. It was about Zheng Huiling. She was confused. Zheng Huiling was considered an upright and upright person in the village. She also died in the village, but why did she get cremated and not get her corpse soaked?


    He decided to find an opportunity to ask.


    The next ceremony was to seal the cadaver into a tree trunk.


    At this moment, almost everyone''s gaze turned towards a large ginkgo tree not far away. Su Hong finally noticed that there was a black cloth stuck to the trunk of the tree.


    He saw that someone had lifted the black cloth and revealed a round hole in the tree trunk. It seemed as if it had been cut open. Afterwards, another person swiftly placed the cadaver into the hole in the tree, filling it up with straw.


    In the end, that person used a nail to nail down the four corners of the black cloth. The entire ceremony had been completed.


    Su Hong took a deep breath.


    At the same time, Su Miao''s condition at Zheng Wang De''s house became more and more serious, her fever approaching 40 degrees.


    "Miao, don''t you feel uncomfortable?" Su Qin asked with concern.


    Su Miao nodded.


    Su Qin realized that Su Miao''s mental state was really bad, and his father was not by his side. She began to be afraid.


    If something were to happen to Su Miao, how would she explain this to her father and her dead mother?


    After thinking about it, she decided to bring Su Miao to find her father, her maternal grandfather and the others.


    There must be a doctor in the village, but she didn''t know him.


    Therefore, Su Qin put on a big cotton-padded jacket for Su Miao, carried her on her back, and pushed the door open.


    It was frighteningly dark outside, especially since the roofs of every house in the village were made of black tiles. Su Qin had never experienced such a scene before, and her heart couldn''t help but pound.


    The problem now was that she only knew what ritual her father was going to attend with her grandparents, but she didn''t know where it was, so she had to look around the village.


    Su Miao, who was carried on her back, had already fallen asleep.


    After searching for a while, she discovered something. Why was the village so empty? Everyone had disappeared. Could it be that everyone had gone to attend some sort of ceremony?


    She guessed that was right.


    Su Miao wasn''t young after all, and had a little weight. Therefore, not long after she walked, Su Qin was already extremely exhausted, and there weren''t any people around who could ask questions. At this moment, she discovered that there seemed to be a stone bridge in front of them.


    Why did it seem so? It was because the fog tonight was so thick that it was difficult to see clearly. The stone bridge was just barely visible in the fog. Not only that, there were also sounds coming from the bridge. It sounded like footsteps.


    Su Qin thought that there might be people, but for some reason, she felt afraid and retracted her foot.


    The footsteps grew further and further away.


    She gathered up her courage and slowly approached the bridge.


    Finally, she clearly saw that it was a stone bridge, and there were people on it, more than one. In front of her was a row of children walking in a neat line towards the other end of the stone bridge, led by a disheveled adult with a peculiar posture.


    However, what surprised Su Qin the most was that all of these children were wearing birthday clothes. She could tell that the birthday clothes belonged to that shop, and they were the exact same size as the children''s clothes.


    She also saw a river under the bridge, part of it frozen. On the other side of the river, there was an even thicker fog, as well as numerous towering trees.


    The scene of the night mist, the stone bridge, the river, and the strange people walking in a row was extremely strange.


    Su Qin even had an association with them, as if the strange person and the children in front of him were not living people, but corpses that were rushing to the underworld without even looking back.


    Su Qin watched as they walked to the other side of the river, not even daring to breathe.


    Her mind was blank.


    When she could no longer see the backs of those people, she heaved a sigh of relief. She subconsciously turned her head to look at Su Miao and discovered that she was still sleeping.


    Whether those people were human or ghosts, she decided, she didn''t want to think too much about it.


    She carried Su Miao on her back and set off once again.


    After circling around a pitch-black hillside, she finally saw a few people up ahead, whispering to each other. This scene made her feel a lot more at ease because it was obvious that those people were all alive.


    After some questioning, she found out what kind of burial ceremony was going on in the village. She didn''t know what was going on, so she immediately ran towards the location.


    After successfully arriving at Jiang Youcai''s house, Su Miao just happened to be awake, and said that she wanted to walk by herself, but she had already dispersed, other than the light of Jiang Youcai''s house, who was not far away.


    Su Miao didn''t know what had happened, and asked his sister what she was doing. Su Qin replied and said that she was going to look for her father.


    Su Qin casually touched Su Miao''s forehead and felt that it was still very hot.


    While still in a daze, Su Qin heard some strange noises behind her. The sounds were light, if not for the fact that this place was terrifyingly quiet, she would never have heard it.


    She turned her head slowly.


    The experience just now had made her a little tense.


    "Elder sister, what are you looking at?" Su Miao did not understand and turned her head together with Su Qin.


    The two of them saw a large ginkgo tree behind them.


    The tree was about the height of a ginkgo tree, but there was a square piece of black cloth pinned to the trunk.


    Su Qin had a rather shallow understanding of Flower Snake Village, so she naturally did not know that all the ginkgo trees in the village that were nailed to black cloth were all package cadaver s.


    Su Miao excitedly went in front of the tree and touched the black cloth. Because of the height of the black cloth, Su Miao was able to reach it by tiptoeing.


    "Miao, don''t touch it carelessly." Su Qin quickly pulled Su Miao''s hand away, although she did not know what this black cloth was used for.


    She always felt that this tree was a little strange, different from the other ginkgo trees.


    "Sis, let''s play after taking off the cloth?" Su Miao suggested.


    "No, this could be done on purpose. Look, there are still nails on top."


    "Why up?"


    "I don''t know."


    Just as Su Qin was about to leave, suddenly, she heard the strange sound again. She heard it very clearly this time, because the strange sound was coming from inside the gingko tree!


    "Crack crack crack ¡­" "Crack, crack, crack ¡­"


    The sound was especially soft.


    Su Qin held Su Miao tightly. After listening to it for a while, she felt that someone was using their nails to scratch the tree trunk.


    "What is that sound?" Su Miao asked her sister softly.


    Su Qin shook her head.


    The sound soon stopped.


    After a while, the sound came again.


    Su Qin realized that the sounds were intermittent. She was more and more sure that the source of the sounds was from inside the tree trunk, so she guessed that it was probably from some small animals.


    There was a trace of fear, but she wanted to find out what was going on, so she went back to the tree and tried to fiddle with the black cloth.


    Su Miao stood to the side and watched quietly.


    Su Qin lifted the black cloth slightly and touched a ball of straw with her fingers.


    So it was a ball of straw. she thought.


    However, the problem was, how could there be a sound coming from a pile of straw?


    She did not think too much and directly stuck two fingers into the straw, trying to find out what was inside the tree trunk.


    In the end, even after half a day, it was still just a bunch of straw.


    She decided to go deeper.


    She put her whole hand in the straw and fiddled with it.

 C12

    Not long later, she touched a soft, wet object. At the same time, ''ka ka ka'' sounds rang out again, giving her quite a fright.


    She felt that something was wrong, so she quickly retracted her hand. But who knew that in the next moment, her finger came across a sudden force. It was as if there was a pair of hands in the straw that was tugging at her!


    Su Qin exclaimed, and tried to struggle free with all her might.


    Su Miao was also extremely frightened, as she continuously shouted out, "Sis and Sis!"


    Su Qin''s face flushed red, she used all her strength, adding the strength of one of her legs, she finally managed to struggle free and retreated a few steps.


    Her left hand gripped the aching fingers of her right hand, her eyes fixed on the black cloth.


    Hands! There were hands inside the tree! she cried in her heart.


    In the midst of her panic, Su Qin saw two small, black hands slowly reaching out from the cracks of the black cloth.


    Su Qin was stunned.


    The fingernails were long and sharp, and were similarly deep black. Su Qin immediately thought of the strange noise that came from the tree trunk just now.


    She pulled Su Miao back, retreating step by step.


    That was because those two black hands were slowly moving and increasing in number. The scene in front of him was as though there was something trying to climb out from the tree trunk.


    An object the size of a human head was already protruding from the black cloth.


    Su Qin was about to collapse.


    At this moment, a familiar voice sounded from behind her ears.


    "Qin Qin, what are you standing there for?"


    It''s father, Su Hong!


    Su Qin turned her head back, her tears almost falling down.


    Other than Su Hong, there was also Zheng Wangde, Zhu Qimei, Zheng Gaang, all of them were here. On the way back home, Su Hong coincidentally bumped into a few villagers who Su Qin asked about, and knew that his two daughters were looking for him, so they returned to Jiang Youcai''s home.


    Su Hong saw that Su Qin''s face was pale and knew something was wrong.


    "What''s wrong?" he asked urgently.


    Su Qin hurriedly pointed at the ginkgo tree, her throat so dry that she could not make a sound.


    "Dad ¡­" The tree... There are hands emerging from the trees! "


    Su Hong was shocked. But when he looked over, everything was normal.


    Su Qin also realized that the black hands had actually disappeared.


    He disappeared so quickly!


    It was as if this strange thing had sensed that someone was coming and had deliberately shrunk back.


    "Qin Qin, she''s done with her business. You can''t speak carelessly!" Zhu Qimei waved her hand and reminded Su Qin.


    Su Qin was sure that she was not hallucinating, she only trusted her father, so she told Su Hong everything that happened once.


    Hearing that Su Qin was becoming more and more outrageous, Zheng Wang De and Zhu Qimei repeatedly indicated for Su Qin to stop.


    After all, there were many rules and regulations in the village and many taboos were taboo. If someone accidentally overheard it in front of someone else''s house, it would not be good.


    Only Su Hong listened attentively, looking at the gingko tree from time to time.


    He was very clear of Su Qin''s personality and she knew that her daughter would usually not speak carelessly.


    Moreover, he also felt that there was something wrong with the village.


    "Miao, did you see anything?" Su Hong asked Su Miao again.


    Su Miao shook her head. She had a high fever and her body was still weak.


    Zheng Gaang also touched Su Miao''s forehead, and said: "Aiyo, look, Miao is really having a fever, hurry up and stop talking about this matter. Ah Hong, I''ll accompany you to get the medicine for Miao!"


    Su Hong and Su Qin could tell that Zheng Weide, Zhu Qimei and Zheng Gaang obviously did not believe what Su Qin had said at all.


    However, Su Miao''s sickness was indeed urgent.


    When Su Hong and Zheng Gaang were about to go get the medicine, Su Qin quietly said to Su Hong: "Father, when you get home, I still have something to tell you."


    She planned to tell Su Hong what had happened at the small stone bridge.


    Su Hong understood and nodded, then left.


    Su Qin and her maternal grandfather went home and waited together.


    After everyone had left, a strange "ka ka ka" sound could be heard from within the ginkgo tree again.


    The place Zheng Gaang brought Su Hong to was the only doctor in the village, Gu Lang Zhong''s home.


    Along the way, when no one was around, Su Hong coincidentally asked Zheng Gaang about Zheng Huiling''s death that year.


    Zheng Gaang was a straightforward person, he would naturally speak everything he knew.


    "That... I heard that it was requested by my sister, and I think that she has been married for a long time. She could be considered to be from the village, but she isn''t completely.


    "You heard of it too?"


    "Right, right. At that time, I was still working in the city, so I came back a day earlier than you."


    "Even you aren''t here, how did Mom and Dad take care of him?"


    "Don''t we still have Lili?!"


    Su Hong understood. Back then, it was Zheng Huiling''s sister, Zheng Huili who had arranged all these.


    It was a pity that Zheng Huili did not come back. Su Hong thought.


    When Su Hong and Zheng Gaang arrived at Gu Lang''s house, he explained the situation to them and gave them a box of antipyretic medicine.


    Su Hong understood that there were a lot of sick people in the village recently, and Gu Lang''s small clinic was full of people every day.


    Su Hong was a little worried about what kind of infection it was.


    They did not linger and immediately returned home. Su Miao was already resting on the bed with a wet towel placed on her forehead.


    After feeding Su Miao the antipyretic medicine, Zheng Wangde and Zhu Qimei chatted with Su Hong for a while longer about family matters, then left the room, finally leaving Su Hong and her daughter behind.


    Su Qin had already asked Grandfather and Grandmother about the matter of soaking the body, and recalling the scene in front of Jiang Youcai''s house, she felt a lingering fear.


    Afterwards, she told Su Hong about all the strange things that happened between her and Su Miao when they went out.


    "Is that true?"


    "Dad, why don''t you believe me? You''re even asking Miao!"


    Su Hong looked at his daughter, and realised that Su Miao was not sleeping, and was listening to her father and sister.


    Su Miao nodded obediently.


    "Dad, I saw it too. There are a lot of kids walking on the bridge."


    Su Hong had no doubts anymore and could not help but ponder.


    "Dad, I feel that everyone in the village is very strange when they come back this time, even grandpa and grandma." Su Qin said again.


    Su Hong never thought that his daughter would feel the same way.


    "Dad, I want to go home." Su Miao said pitifully.


    Su Hong thought that it was true. This village was weird and had an unpleasant odor. Miao was still sick, so it would be better for him to return earlier.


    However, he also wanted to figure out what was going on.


    Just as she was hesitating, Su Qin asked him:


    "What''s on the other side of the bridge?"


    "I don''t know. I''m not very familiar with this place either."


    "Then should we inform grandpa and grandma? "Because there are a lot of kids ¡­"


    Su Qin''s words reminded Su Hong, and if what Qin Qin Qin said was true, he had to inform the villagers as soon as possible. If a group of children were taken to the other side of the river in the middle of the night, what would happen?


    While they were discussing, Su Hong heard someone shouting downstairs.


    The sound was loud, as if someone had entered from the outside.


    Su Hong let Su Qin take care of Su Miao as he walked downstairs.


    Halfway up the stairs, he saw two peasant women shouting,


    "Aiyo ¡­" He lost his life ¡­ "Where can you go now?"


    "Is there really going to be a problem?" What about your child? "


    The two peasant women looked anxious. One of them was on the verge of crying.


    "My family''s Miao is sleeping upstairs. How many places have you found?" Zhu Qimei replied.


    "More than an hour! Let me tell you, not only our two families, Da Gang and the Mr. Wu''s children have also run away. They have also brought their people to find the outskirts of the village! "


    "Where can a group of children go when the sky is so dark?"


    Su Hong immediately understood, it seemed like Su Qin was not wrong, the village had lost a child, the matter had already blown up.


    The two old women stomped their feet, following Zhu Qimei who planned to accompany them to search.


    "Mom, what''s the matter?" Su Hong intentionally asked when he was downstairs.


    "Aiyo, something big has happened!" Just did that ceremony for Jiang Youcai''s wife. Many of the children disappeared, and now the whole village is looking for them. Your father and brother also went. It''s great that you''re here, Hong. Come with us quickly. "


    Su Hong naturally agreed without hesitation.


    He immediately put on his jacket and followed the two old women and Zhu Qimei out.


    At this time, it was already around ten at night. Normally, people with Flower Snake Village would already have gone to sleep, it definitely wouldn''t be as lively as it was tonight.


    Su Hong saw that almost everyone in the village was out in full strength, and there were people everywhere looking for children with flashlights.


    "Hey, Dazong, did you find the child?"


    At this time, a couple came over. Zhu Qimei immediately asked the man.


    Mr. Wu and the rest are dying of anxiety! I was just about to talk about whether or not I should call the police.


    "Did your girl lose it?"


    "Of course, my family''s young lady is already over ten years old and is not considered a child. She is currently searching with others!"


    "Alright, we plan to go to the northern fields to take a look. Sigh, how many children have we lost?"


    "Anyways, Mr. Wu just told me that all the children under the age of 10 in the village have disappeared! They think someone stole the children from the village while the ceremony was going on! "


    "Aiyo ¡­" "Who is so wicked ¡­"


    Hearing these words, Su Hong''s heart trembled, and thought that perhaps it was because of Miao''s fever that he was able to avoid such a calamity by carrying Miao on his back and coming out to find him.


    However, with Su Qin accompanying Su Miao, Su Hong was not that worried. He had always trusted Su Qin.


    During the search, Su Hong had wanted to tell Zhu Qimei about what he saw on the bridge several times, but Zhu Qimei and the other old women blabbered on and on, not giving him the chance to speak.


    Later, Su Hong thought about it and felt that it would be better if he did not say it out loud, but rather, he just wanted to clarify things first.


    After all, he couldn''t afford such a huge matter.


    Still, he thought he would have to look for it on the other side of the river.


    Therefore, when they neared the river, Su Hong suggested:


    "Shall we look across the river? Has anyone been there yet? "


    Unexpectedly, after hearing what Su Hong said, Zhu Qimei and the two old women were stunned.


    Under the dim light, Su Hong realized that the expressions of the three old women were a little strange.


    "What''s wrong? The bridge is over there. Should we go to the other side and take a look?" Su Hong added.


    In the night mist, Su Hong could already vaguely see the stone bridge.


    "Hong, stop talking nonsense, you can''t go there!" Zhu Qimei coldly replied.


    The two old women nodded.


    "Why?"


    "Why didn''t you ask? You can''t go, so don''t ask!" Zhu Qimei was even a little unhappy.


    Su Hong looked at the two old women.


    "It''s bad luck over there. No one goes to our village." An old woman answered.


    "What if the child is taken there?"


    "It can''t be, it can''t be!"


    Su Hong realized that he couldn''t explain it clearly to the three old women.


    He had no choice but to follow the three of them and go to other places to search. Before he left, he carefully observed the stone bridge through the night mist. Below the bridge was a river, and on the other side of the river grew several towering trees.


    In the end, after searching for an entire night, the villagers did not find even a single hair on those children''s bodies.


    Early in the morning, a group of people from the village gathered in front of the village committee and discussed amongst themselves.


    Zheng Wangde and Zhu Qimei had already returned home, leaving Su Hong and Zheng Gaang there.


    The village chief was called Liang Dashi. He looked to be about 60 years old and was wearing an old army jacket.


    Liang Dashi announced that there were a total of eight children last night, the oldest being no more than ten years old.


    While Liang Dashi was still talking, there were people starting to mutter to themselves. Especially those who lost their children, they started to point their fingers at Jiang Youcai at the same time.


    "It was because of his family''s ceremony that caused this big event."


    "You''re right, what ceremony? If I knew, I wouldn''t have gone."


    "The death of one of our family members should alert the entire village. That''s not right!"


    "Sigh ¡­" What''s the use of saying some bullshit now? "


    "Pitiful yo ¡­"


    Jiang Youcai and his son were present too. Although they were angry, they did not dare to make a sound.


    At this moment, a dark-skinned, round-headed elderly man led a group of people and started swearing as soon as he arrived.


    "Those bastards, what can they do?"


    "What''s the situation, Mr. Wu?"


    Only now did Su Hong know, so this person was Mr. Wu, who looked to be about the same age as Liang Dashi. Last night, he heard from Zheng Gaang that Mr. Wu had a wide network of people, was extremely capable, and was considered a spiritual leader in Flower Snake Village.


    Mr. Wu''s face was filled with anger. He took a gulp of water and immediately explained the whole situation.


    It turned out that he had taken someone to the county police station early last night. Who knew that the police officer on duty would tell them that it would take at least 24 hours before a case of disappearance could be filed? Mr. Wu was a man of law, hearing this, of course he wouldn''t be willing, so he directly started an argument with a few policemen. In the end, they failed to report the crime and were locked up for two hours, so he was full of fire right now.


    "Forget it, forget it. Don''t beg them, we''ll have to do this ourselves." Liang Dashi said.


    "How?" a man in the crowd asked.


    "It''s dark at night, so it''s not convenient to look for it. It might not be possible to find it during the day. Let''s not rest and continue searching! He still had to expand the scope! I will bring a team, Mr. Wu will bring a team, and Zheng Gaang will bring a team to search for the place. The rest of the people will continue to look at the village and the edge of the village. "


    After he gave the order, Su Hong sat on Zheng Gaang''s motorcycle, and three other people left the village to search along a large road.


    During this time, Su Hong also mentioned to him that he should go to the other side of the river to take a look, but he did not expect Zheng Gaang''s reaction to be equally intense.


    "No way, no way! Hong, don''t come up with any rotten ideas, you can''t go there, the roads are all blocked. "


    "The roads are blocked?"


    "Yes, there are a lot of rocks piled up on the other side of the bridge. They''re just afraid of people passing by."


    "If that person really wants to go, he should be able to climb over, right?"


    "Sigh ¡­" It won''t happen anyway, so don''t ask! "


    Su Hong could tell that everyone in the village was a little stubborn.


    Of course, there might be some sort of secret behind it. He decided to find a chance to find out.


    He did not know why, but Su Hong had a premonition that even if he expanded his search range to search for them, it would still be in vain.


    Just as Su Hong had expected, all three groups of people, Liang Dashi, Mr. Wu and Zheng Gaang, returned at the same time.


    The family members who lost their children were so anxious that they pounded their chests. One of the women even sat on the ground and cried.


    Su Hong himself also had two children, so he didn''t feel good about it.


    Liang Dashi and the seniors of the Mr. Wu could only keep comforting his. They didn''t have any other choice for the time being.


    Not long after, a skinny old man walked out from the crowd and said to Liang Dashi:


    "Old Liang, there''s something that I don''t know if I should tell you. I only found out at noon."


    "Say it."


    "Then ¡­" I shouldn''t have gone back to the store today to look for people with you guys, but I left a pair of pants in the shop last night, so I still went back at noon. In the end, you can guess what it was.


    Su Hong could tell, this person should be the birthday suit shop''s owner. He immediately remembered what Su Qin told him, that the children on the bridge were all wearing birthday clothes.


    He noticed that the matter was moving closer to what Su Qin had said.


    "What does the theft of your birthday suit have to do with those children?" Mr. Wu was puzzled.


    "How would I know? This is just a discussion, so I''ll let you all hear it."


    "How many were stolen?" Liang Dashi asked.


    "About a dozen."


    "That number doesn''t match up. There are only eight children left."


    "Yes, but ¡­"


    One woman burst into tears, saying that the birthday suit must have been given to the child thief to use. The others, believing the words to be true, also began to curse, saying that the child thief had no conscience and would die a horrible death.


    After a moment of chaos, the lady who was previously sitting on the ground suddenly stood up, Su Hong saw that her face was covered in tears and mucus, and actually pointed at Liang Dashi and scolded him:


    "Just what kind of notorious service did you do? You even made the entire village stand to the side to watch. Otherwise, the child would have been stolen?"


    "What''s wrong, Gu Hongmei, you lost your child, did you blame it on me?" Liang Dashi was not to be outdone, and immediately replied.


    "Isn''t it? Everyone, let''s be reasonable. Am I wrong? A dead person in the family was a matter of the family, what need did he have for the other people in the village to come and join in the excitement? Didn''t you decide on this crappy rule? "


    "Don''t be so polite, don''t be so shameless. This is the rule before I become the village chief!" Which turtle bastard dares to say that there wasn''t such a rule in the village before, this daddy will immediately smack his mouth! "


    "Yes, the rules are not set by you. Can you cripple it?" After every family member died, their corpses would be soaked like that.


    "What do you mean by not lacking morals, the rules of the ancestors!" Furthermore, Gu Hongmei, why are you being so wicked? "


    Liang Dashi and Gu Hongmei started arguing with each other in front of everyone. Gu Hongmei''s husband was also by the side. Seeing that the situation was bad, he immediately advised Gu Hongmei:


    "Can we talk a little less?"


    "Why aren''t you saying it? There are just too many trash like you in the village. They all feel disgusted about the ceremony, but they don''t dare to say it!" To bubble a person into such a ghastly state is to create retribution! "


    The more Gu Hongmei spoke, the more excited she became, causing him to be unable to speak in anger, but Gu Hongmei had indeed exposed the worries of a large portion of the villagers, so there were basically no one who replied him.


    Only one woman, who looked a little older than Gu Hongmei. When she stood up, she also pointed at Gu Hongmei and shouted:


    "Gu Hongmei, your mouth is a bit clearer, and you are even scolding us trash. Only you, Gu Hongmei, have the ability, and only you, Gu Hongmei, have the conscience. How did your child get stolen?"

 C13

    Hearing that the woman was hurt, Gu Hongmei could no longer hold back and rushed forward to slap her.


    The woman''s name was Zhao Zhaoping and she also had a fiery temper. How could she bear to be slapped in public like this, thus she grabbed onto Gu Hongmei''s hair and immediately slapped him twice.


    In an instant, the two ladies clashed into each other and gnashed their teeth in anger as though they were enemies. The others were unable to persuade them, and after much difficulty, they were finally separated. In the end, the two of them had actually used their nails to viciously scratch each other''s face until it was covered in blood.


    Seeing this, Su Hong was extremely shocked, he thought: Crazy, everyone in the village is crazy!


    "What the hell are you all doing? Stop!" Mr. Wu could not watch any longer and shouted. Both husbands tried their best to pull their women apart and only then did they stop fighting.


    "What are you doing? Before the child could be found, their own people had already started fighting. How could you say such outrageous words? Damn it! " Mr. Wu rarely scolded people, but he always scolded them harshly.


    There was an accountant on the village committee, who was also an old woman, known as Sister Qin. Seeing that the Mr. Wu had stunned the crowd, she came out to say:


    "Old Liang, Hongmei, Ah Ping, stop quarreling. Let me say a few words of fairness. I feel that although Hongmei is a bit overbearing, her words make sense. I''ve never heard of anyone using medicine to soak a dead person. What if ¡­ In case ¡­ The people who were scammed went to the underground to be unhappy, but they came here to settle their scores, what should we do? Don''t you think so? "


    Sister-in-law Qin''s words actually struck a deep chord in many people''s hearts. Everyone fell silent.


    "But this isn''t a rule set by us. What does it have to do with us?" Besides, soaking in a corpse isn''t the first or second time. It''s been so long, and there''s nothing wrong with it. " A village woman retorted.


    "Nothing really happened in the past, but now something might have happened!" Sister Qin replied.


    "Wait a minute. Listening to what sister-in-law Qin said, I really feel that last night was a bit strange." At this moment, another woman, about thirty years old, with a long ponytail, stepped out of the crowd.


    The woman''s name was Wang Yan, and everyone in the village called her Yan Zi.


    "What''s the problem?" "Swallow, tell me!" The Mr. Wu was also curious.


    "Last night, around 12 PM, I was looking for someone. I was passing by, didn''t Old Jiang''s daughter-in-law just buried in a tree? Then I heard something from the tree that scared me so much that I ran away!"


    "Bullshit!" The moment Wang Yan''s words fell, Jiang Youcai scolded, "My daughter-in-law just died, and you say she was a ghost? "What do you mean?"


    "Old Jiang, don''t be impatient with me. I''m only seeking truth from facts." If I lie, let me have five thunder strikes! "


    "Don''t interrupt, Swallow. Tell me clearly!" Liang Dashi ordered.


    Everyone in the village looked at Wang Yan, their faces filled with surprise.


    Su Hong recalled from last night, when he also said that there was a sound from the tree, and that two hands had grabbed onto her.


    Right now, they were standing in front of Jiang Youcai''s home''s open space, with the gingko tree not too far away.


    "There''s nothing here. I only heard a weird sound coming from the tree, and then I ran away."


    "How so?" Mr. Wu asked.


    "This sound, it sounds like you''re grinding your teeth, but it also feels like you''re using your nails to buckle something. I''m not too sure."


    Everyone fell silent as they tried to imagine the voice.


    Su Hong also completely believed that what Su Qin said was true.


    "Retribution! It''s definitely going to be a retribution! " After a long while, Gu Hongmei broke the deadlock and let out a series of wild laughter.


    "Gu Hongmei, what are you doing?! If you don''t want to find your daughter, then scram!" Mr. Wu scolded.


    The reason why Mr. Wu was so anxious was because his grandson was also one of the missing children.


    "Ah! A cadaver must have jumped out of that tree and took the child away! It can''t be found back! It can''t be found back! "Hahaha ¡­"


    Gu Hongmei looked like she had gone mad, laughing while crying.


    With Gu Hongmei''s words, the scene became even more eerie.


    Many people were even suspicious: What if what Gu Hongmei said was true?


    After a short period of silence, the people started to whisper to each other. Some people followed Gu Hongmei''s words to intimidate him, while others expressed that Gu Hongmei''s words were too excessive.


    "What are you doing? "What are you doing?" Liang Dashi said, "A dead person jumped out from a tree, and then took the child away? Are all of you going crazy with Gu Hongmei? "


    "But Swallow also said that there was movement in the tree. Old Liang, how do you explain this?" a woman asked.


    At this time, someone from the crowd said, "It''s easy, just take Jiang Youcai''s daughter-in-law out for a look!"


    The moment he said that, the entire audience went silent.


    Everyone''s eyes turned to that ginkgo tree at the same time.


    There were indeed a portion of people who had the same thoughts as the person who spoke just now. They wanted to simply carry the cadaver out and check it out, and everything would become clear.


    However, this method ruined the traditional Flower Snake Village, because after the ceremony, the rules stated that the cadaver could not be taken out of the tree, and could not even meet face to face with one.


    Moreover, Flower Snake Village people viewed gingko as a god, and if they did this, it would be considered a blasphemy.


    Obviously, no one in the village would want to get into trouble like this.


    Under the tranquility, Jiang Youcai''s son, Jiang Xiaoming, exploded:


    "What kind of peace do you all have? If your own children are lost, you can just cut off my wife, right? Old Liang, Mr. Wu, you guys decide, can you agree to this matter? "


    Liang Dashi and Mr. Wu looked at Jiang Xiaoming, but did not reply.


    That meaning was very clear, and they were also a little shaken.


    Jiang Xiaoming cursed again, but no one cared.


    After a while, Sister Qin took the lead.


    "I agree, what''s wrong with bringing the cadaver out for a look? It was just buried yesterday anyway, so there''s no need to be weird about it. Everyone''s here, let''s be witnesses! "


    "I also think it can be done, but we need to find a capable person." Zheng Gaang agreed. But there was another meaning to his words: You have to find someone else to do this, and I''m sure I won''t do it anyway.


    Everyone was talking about it, and in the end, most of them felt that they should take a look at the cadaver, but no one was willing to do it.


    Liang Dashi added on at the end, "It''s not like this isn''t a good time, then who will be the one to go?"


    The remaining people who were indecisive and indecisive, upon hearing the village chief''s words, no longer had any doubts. Other than Jiang Youcai''s family, everyone at the scene was inclined to pull the cadaver out from the trees.


    After a while, Jiang Youcai also compromised, he nodded, and pretended to spit out a few words:


    "Sure, do whatever you want."


    With a unified opinion, the question was before him: who would do this?


    There were three people in the village who took care of the corpses before, including the cadaver that was soaked in water and placed it in the trunk. However, the three of them were determined not to do it now.


    The others also understood. After all, this was a taboo, and it was normal for them not to agree.


    "What should I do?" Liang Dashi requested for help from the Mr. Wu.


    "Looks like I need to find an outsider." The Mr. Wu said.


    Liang Dashi thought that it was true, only the people from outside the village did not have such concerns.


    "Isn''t there one!?" He did not know who it was, but he pointed at Su Hong and shouted loudly.


    Everyone looked at Su Hong, who suddenly became nervous.


    "That''s right, Zheng Gaang, who is your clan''s outsider?" Mr. Wu asked.


    "Oh, he, my brother-in-law, just came from the city." Zheng Gaang laughed awkwardly.


    "Not here?"


    "No no, I''ve never been here a few times before."


    Su Hong already knew that they wanted him to do it, so he hurriedly shook his head:


    "No, no, I ¡­ You can''t do this. "


    "Why?" Mr. Wu frowned, the situation was overbearing.


    "I won''t."


    "What the heck is this? Isn''t it just lifting that thing out of the tree?"


    Su Hong''s face reddened, and thought, oh no, this is not a good excuse, I didn''t find a good one.


    "Big Bro, do me a favor!"


    "As an outsider, you''re fine."


    "It''ll be fine after a while. We''re just watching. What''s there to be afraid of?"


    For a moment, all the villagers were trying to agitate Su Hong.


    Su Hong was truly in a difficult position. On one hand, he didn''t want to embarrass the Zheng Wang De family, on the other hand, he felt disgusted and scared. When he thought of the black, charred cadaver, he felt something rush up his throat.


    "Hong, how about..." Could you do me a favor? " Zheng Gaang advised.


    After all, Su Hong was his brother-in-law, if Su Hong managed to settle this issue, he would also have some face.


    Su Hong knew that although these villagers were afraid of trouble, the reason for him to do it was still reasonable.


    Even so, he was still scared. He didn''t dare to even think about it.


    "Help, help, save my child." Even Gu Hongmei calmed down immediately and begged Su Hong.


    Su Hong looked at Gu Hongmei''s red and swollen eyes, her heart feeling sad, and then thinking about how Gu Hongmei had lost her daughter, feeling the same way, she finally clenched her teeth and agreed.


    After that, Liang Dashi sent someone to first take down the black cloth from the tree, then carried a basket over.


    "Put my wife in this? Do you think she''s a pig? " Jiang Xiaoming was still unhappy and was purposely looking for trouble with Liang Dashi.


    "Isn''t the size perfect? What''s more, is your family''s pigwear basket? " Liang Dashi immediately retorted.


    "Tsk, a short guy like you is perfect too. Why didn''t you put yourself in then?"


    "Stop arguing, shut up!" Jiang Youcai quickly advised his son.


    After a short interlude, it was finally Su Hong''s turn to use it.


    The villagers had already formed a large circle, with Su Hong and the gingko tree being the only ones left in the middle.


    Su Hong''s heart was thumping hard, feeling extremely hot.


    No one in the village had done this before, and the onlookers were equally perturbed.


    Jiang Youcai''s family members stood far away, unable to bear to watch.


    "I say, can''t you hurry up?" a man urged.


    "Why are you so anxious? Why don''t you try?" Zheng Gaang replied in Su Hong''s stead, causing the man to be speechless.


    Su Hong steadied his mind, put on a pair of leather gloves he had prepared beforehand, and walked in front of the tree.


    He shakily pushed the straw aside and slowly put his hands into it.


    He bit his lip and ran his hand through the trunk, but couldn''t find anything.


    The onlookers from the village were anxious as well. They stretched their necks to look, and the whole place was incredibly quiet.


    Su Hong was already perspiring profusely, but when he tried to go deeper, his fingers finally touched a soft object.


    It should be the cadaver! he thought.


    "Why is it so tiring, did you manage to get it?" Sister Qin urged.


    "Quick... "Too fast ¡­" Su Hong replied with difficulty. He gritted his teeth and gently grabbed the cadaver.


    Although it was separated by the leather gloves, Su Hong still felt that this corpse was sticky, dripping wet, and seemed to have life force.


    He knew that he would only be in pain if he continued struggling, so he pulled the cadaver out of the tree trunk in one go.


    As a result, when he used his full strength, he lost his balance and fell to the ground. When he fell on his back, the cadaver was lying on top of him, its two faces pressed together.


    Su Hong shouted crazily, the disgusting and terrified feeling almost made him collapse. He hurriedly pushed away the cadaver, and like him, the cadaver fell backwards onto the ground.


    The villagers were also panicking. They covered their mouths with their hands and glared at Chu Feng. However, no one dared to step forward.


    Su Hong quickly got up and saw that the cadaver was more or less the same as the one he saw last night, like a monkey that had been roasted with carbon.


    The next moment, someone cried out: "Hey ¡­ ¡­" See... "Look!"


    Su Hong turned his head and saw that it was Wang Yan. Wang Yan was pointing at the cadaver, her face completely pale.


    "Yan Zi, why are you shouting so much?"


    "What happened?"


    "Swallow!" Swallow! Are you stupid? "


    Many people could not tell what was wrong and anxiously asked Wang Yan.


    including Su Hong, he didn''t know what Wang Yan was called either.


    Only a small number of people had similar expressions to Wang Yan, and their reactions were even more intense than Wang Yan''s.


    "You all ¡­ Are all of them blind? Look at its fingernails! " Wang Yan shouted.


    Everyone looked over at the same time, only to realize that the cadaver''s fingernails were long and thin, like pitch black spikes.


    "No ¡­" It can''t be! What''s going on? " Jiang Youcai''s wife was the first to speak. After all, after his daughter-in-law died, she had personally cut his nails. A dead man never grows a nail. Even if a living person''s fingernails had just been cut off, they still wouldn''t be able to grow so fast. Even if they really did grow so fast, they still wouldn''t be able to grow to such a state.


    Before the burial ceremony, the body had to be dealt with, including the fingernails. This was something that everyone in Flower Snake Village knew.


    However, the bloody reality in front of his eyes was that the dead man had grown a fingernail!


    Liang Dashi and Mr. Wu looked at each other.


    Jiang Youcai''s family members were shocked speechless.


    The others were also stunned.


    After half a day, a stout man stepped forward.


    Su Hong remembered that this person was called Da Yong. He had met Da Yong last night.


    "Don''t panic, let me see what happens." Braveshell said calmly.


    In terms of courage, the village could only be considered brave. At this critical moment, he could only bravely step forward.


    He came to the front of the cadaver and squatted down. After inspecting it carefully for a long time, he used his hands to poke at the fingernails.


    "Is that true?" someone asked.


    "Say what? Nail? Of course it''s true! " Braveshell replied.


    Su Hong''s first reaction was the same as the person who asked the question, he suspected that someone was playing a prank on him.


    However, there was no doubt that the fingernails had grown out.


    Da Yong scratched the back of his head and looked closer. Suddenly, the cadaver''s hand moved first, and then it sat up straight. It grabbed half of Da Yong''s face, and jabbed its fingernails into Da Yong''s eyes.


    No one could react to this sudden development.


    With a loud roar, the cadaver''s two thumbnails pierced into his eyes, filling his entire face with blood. At the same time, the other fingers of the cadaver firmly held onto his head, preventing him from breaking free.


    The villagers were all terrified. The men immediately took action, trying to separate Da Yong and the cadaver. Su Hong was the closest to the group, so he naturally joined the queue. There were two other people who used their legs to kick the cadaver.


    Jiang Youcai''s family members were stunned on the spot, looking like they had gone dumb.


    With great effort, Su Hong and the rest finally managed to pull Da Yong away from the control of the cadaver. However, Da Yong''s face was covered in blood, as he continuously cried out.


    Taking a closer look, Da Yong''s eyeballs were actually forced out of their sockets by the cadaver, hanging right on its sharp and long nails.


    The scene was appalling.


    No matter how strong Braveshell was, he could not bear the pain.


    No one would have thought that a burly man like Da Yong, who was as strong as an ox, would be subdued by this cadaver that was the size of a monkey.


    However, the most unbelievable thing was that the cadaver was full of vigor, and even struggled to get up.


    Several people couldn''t handle it.


    At this time, someone took out a lit torch and fiercely pressed it onto the cadaver''s head.


    The cadaver''s entire body was immediately set on fire, and very quickly, it struggled to roll around in the fire, and when the fire failed, it finally shakily fell to the ground and did not move anymore.


    When the people of Jiang Youcai''s family saw this scene, their faces became gloomy, and they could not figure out what kind of feeling was in their hearts.


    The rest of the people in the village finally breathed a sigh of relief, as if they had just finished a war.


    However, the worst case scenario was that Da Yong had become cannon fodder.


    Of course, no one could have predicted what had just happened. The corpse had actually become alive!


    Liang Dashi quickly sent people to send Da Yong to the hospital, then he ordered some people to carefully clean up the remnants of the cadaver.

 C14

    On the other side, Su Hong suddenly felt a little pain in his right hand. He guessed that when he helped pull Braveshell back then, he was scratched by the cadaver''s sharp nails.


    Fortunately, the wound was not big, so he did not prepare to bandage it.


    "What''s going on? Have you seen everything this time?" Wang Yan began to speak, "Something big has really happened to our village!


    Gu Hongmei then said to Liang Dashi:


    "Old Liang, if this isn''t retribution, then what is? If you''re going to be fierce towards me again, why aren''t you being fierce anymore? "


    Liang Dashi was immediately angered and looked pitifully at Mr. Wu.


    "Enough, what are you stepping on each other for? Now we have to figure out why the corpses buried in the trees are alive and where those kids went. " The Mr. Wu concluded.


    "Where else can we go? We were taken away by the cadaver!" Wang Yan immediately replied.


    Honestly speaking, it was hard for him to imagine that scene.


    The others whispered to each other and had no more ideas.


    Su Hong thought that it was time to tell them everything.


    "Everyone, listen to my words ¡­"


    After what happened, everyone in the village knew Su Hong, there was no need for him to introduce them anymore. Thus, he narrated everything that Su Qin saw and heard last night.


    At this time, the villagers could only choose to believe him, and Su Hong''s words were also matched with many other phenomena.


    "Tell me, did your family''s girl see those kids wearing birthday suits? Could it be that they were stolen from my shop?" The birthday shop owner asked first.


    "Probably." Su Hong answered him.


    "Your daughter... Did you really see them go to the other side of the river? " Mr. Wu asked.


    "Yes, that''s right."


    "Hong, you have to think about it carefully. Don''t speak carelessly." Zheng Gaang was a timid person, he did not forget to remind Su Hong.


    "Brother, don''t worry. Qin Qin won''t speak carelessly."


    Hearing Su Hong''s words, the villagers were skeptical. It was obvious that the place on the other side of the river was indeed a taboo. Su Hong understood that if it wasn''t for the incident of the cadaver reviving, no one would have believed what he had said.


    After a moment of silence, suddenly, a voice came from not too far away. Su Hong immediately recognized the voice, it was his daughter, Su Qin.


    Seeing Su Qin running towards him, out of breath, her eyes red, as if she had just cried.


    "Dad ¡­" Dad... Something has happened! " Su Qin pressed a hand on her chest, gasping for breath.


    "What''s wrong? Where''s Miao? " Su Hong asked while supporting Su Qin.


    "It''s Miao! Miao... She''s gone! "


    Ah!" Su Hong and Zheng Gaang cried out in alarm at the same time.


    "Don''t be in such a hurry, tell us what happened." Zheng Gaang said.


    "Just now, I had first coaxed Miao to sleep. After coaxing her, I also lied down on the table and fell asleep, but the moment I woke up, I realized that Miao had disappeared! And then the window was open, and Dad... I suspect... Someone came in from outside the window and carried Miao away! Su Qin cried until tears flowed from her eyes.


    "Is there such a thing?" Su Hong replied weakly, he felt like he was about to collapse.


    "After that, I searched everywhere with my grandparents, but there was no other way, so I had to come here. Father, it''s my fault, I''m useless, even Miao couldn''t stand it, and lost her! " Su Qin blamed herself, and she was miserable at the same time.


    "Don''t cry, it has nothing to do with you." Zheng Gaang consoled.


    Su Hong thought that Su Miao''s sleeping place was the second floor, and right next to the second floor was the kitchen. That person should have climbed to the roof of the kitchen and carried Su Miao out.


    "It must be the one who stole the child! He''s not far away right now, so let''s split up and look for him! " Wang Yan immediately called out.


    Everyone felt that Wang Yan''s words were reasonable, now was the best time to strike. Thus, the villagers began to move again.


    Su Hong, Su Qin, Mr. Wu and a few other men walked along the river bank.


    At this moment, Su Hong''s state of mind was very different from during the day. He had also become one of the victims and he had begun to understand why Gu Hongmei had gone crazy.


    Unfortunately, after more than two hours, there was nothing.


    Su Hong could not hold it in any longer. He believed that Su Miao, like the other children, was brought to the other side of the river.


    "Qin Qin, let''s go, we''ll search on the other side of the river!" Su Hong no longer cared about what taboo the village had, even to the extent that he had the urge to slap someone if they dared to stop him.


    He did not want to ask for other people''s help either, including Zheng Gaang. This was because he knew that some of the stubborn thoughts in the villagers'' heads were deeply rooted.


    "Are you crazy? What are you doing over there?" Zheng Gaang immediately advised.


    "I really don''t want to talk about it right now. Anyway, I must go over there." Su Hong''s attitude was firm.


    "It''s not a question you want to ask. Have you been there? Do you know what''s over there? "


    Su Hong sighed, thinking that Zheng Gaang was too funny, even if the other side of the river was dangerous, he still had to go to the other side to find his daughter.


    "There are only two of you, and you don''t have a boat. What can you do?" Liang Dashi asked.


    Su Hong was startled, but he thought that there was a bridge, what was the point of having a boat?


    "I''ll go with you!" After hesitating for a while, Gu Hongmei walked over to Su Hong''s side and said: "Don''t talk rubbish with them, those people are all cowards, no one dares go, if they lose their life, I, Gu Hongmei, am not afraid! "My big sister has a boat, I''ll borrow one later!"


    Gu Hongmei''s current situation was similar to how the villagers had offended her.


    "Gu Hongmei, why are you making trouble again? Did I say I wouldn''t go? " Mr. Wu spoke up.


    "Have you thought it through clearly? If you really believe them, where are you going?" Liang Dashi asked the Mr. Wu.


    "We have to go." Mr. Wu lowered his head, "Isn''t there really no other way?"


    Mr. Wu''s expression was sour, his forehead was filled with wrinkles. Liang Dashi understood his situation and knew that he had always been alone. A while ago, when his son''s daughter-in-law finally brought him over from the city, she stayed in the village to accompany him for New Year''s, but in the end, he lost his son. So if something happened to the child, he wouldn''t be able to explain it to his son and daughter-in-law in the city.


    Su Hong was the same, if anything happened to Su Miao, he would not be able to explain himself to the Zheng Huiling underground.


    "If Mr. Wu is going, then we will also go!" Another couple replied.


    "Me too!"


    "I''ll go too!"


    "Who the f * ck cares? With so many people going together, what other dangers can there be?"


    After all, the Mr. Wu was a rallying force, and in a short period of time, more than a dozen people responded to him.


    "Count me in too!" Wang Yan also stood up, "If I don''t find those kids from our village, I won''t be able to sleep at night."


    "What does it have to do with you? You have no children." Liang Dashi mocked her.


    "What?" Can''t you find a child without a child? That''s what I said. "


    Everyone in the village knew that Wang Yan had an open mind, and was quite warmhearted, so they didn''t find it strange.


    Seeing that the situation had turned out like this, Liang Dashi and Zheng Gaang could only compromise and join in. In the end, the group consisted of Liang Dashi, Mr. Wu, Zheng Gaang, Su Hong, Su Qin, Wang Yan, Wang Yan and a dozen other people.


    Before they left, Liang Dashi asked someone to borrow a boat, and asked Zheng Gaang to borrow two people to row the boat over.


    Even now, Su Hong still did not understand the use of this boat, so he could only ask Mr. Wu.


    Mr. Wu finally told him that on the other side of the river, there was a lake, and on the lake there was an island. The local people called it Small Snake Island, and in the distance, there was even a large snake island. That area had always been an unlucky place. In the past, as long as someone went to the other side of the river, there was almost no one who could return. As time passed, the villagers'' taboos became heavier and heavier. They simply sealed off the road at the other end of the stone bridge, afraid that the children would randomly go there to play.


    Su Hong finally understood that the reason he was using the boat was because he was using the water route.


    Mr. Wu also said that this river was connected to the lake, otherwise, it would be difficult for the boat to cross.


    "Do we get to the Small Snake Island first?" Su Hong asked again.


    "Yes!" The Great Snake Island was too far away. They would probably need to drive for a few hours. Before, everyone in our village went to Small Snake Island and didn''t come back. " The Mr. Wu was serious, answering any questions he wanted to ask.


    "Is there really no one that has returned?"


    "That''s not true. There are people who came back. However, they didn''t die very soon due to strange diseases, but rather they went crazy and died."


    "They''re crazy enough to die?" This was the first time Su Hong had heard of such a way of dying.


    "I remember one thing. Old Miao''s son went to visit Small Snake Island that night, but she came back so early in the morning and she became insane. She cried non-stop while hugging his cow, and no one could persuade him otherwise. Then she didn''t eat nor drink nor sleep at all. In the middle of the night, she was actually drowned to death by the cow in the well water.


    "Is there such a thing? That''s ridiculous. But his family''s own cattle, how could they just bump into him like that? "


    "You made that cow so angry!"


    "What do you mean?"


    "I heard of it. I only heard that his cow was found full of wounds the next day, as if he had made it with something."


    Su Hong''s heart trembled, and something suddenly appeared in his mind: Fingernails!


    Why was it nails again?


    The villagers fought with their nails, the cadaver grew their nails, and now there were many madmen who were strong enough to cut a cow with their nails when they were crazy.


    Su Hong immediately thought of the virus, feeling like the problem with his fingernail was spreading like a virus, slowly seeping into the village.


    asked Mr. Wu again. Mr. Wu said that he did not know where the stench came from, and it was only recently.


    Su Hong''s heart became heavy.


    Because these strange phenomena were now linked to his daughter''s fate.


    Unknowingly, Su Hong and his group reached the stone bridge.


    At the same time, on the other side, Zheng Wangde and Zhu Qimei, the two old men, were walking around the house anxiously. After all, Su Miao had not reached their location yet, so they heard that Zheng Gaang and Su Hong had prepared to bring people to the other side of the river to search for him.


    Zhu Qimei really had no choice and decided to call her daughter, Zheng Huili.


    In actuality, Zheng Huili was still hundreds of kilometers away from the provincial capital, and could not be saved by the water from far away. However, with Zhu Qimei''s temper, she would look for her young daughter whenever there was a problem, and she trusted Zheng Huili the most in her family.


    "Lili, let me tell you, something big happened at home." Zheng Huili had just finished her bath and when she picked up the phone, she heard Zhu Qimei''s tearful voice.


    "Mom, don''t be in such a hurry. Slow down."


    Therefore, Zhu Qimei pieced together a bunch of things. Her expression was limited, and adding on her anxious heart, it was a good thing that there was Zheng Weide to add on. Zheng Huili was confused at first, but after hearing it, she finally understood, she really did not expect that her family would cause such a commotion.


    "Now, where did brother and brother-in-law go to find Miao? If it doesn''t work out, I''ll take a taxi back home tomorrow! " Zheng Huili was anxious.


    "I heard from someone ¡­" They are going to go up the Small Snake Island to look for someone. "


    "Ah?" Am I hearing things? "


    "There''s nothing we can do, even Old Liang and the Mr. Wu went there."


    "No way, no way. Mom, hurry and call them back. You can''t go over there!"


    "How can they be called back? They should be on the boat now."


    "It''s over ¡­" "We''re finished ¡­" Zheng Huili''s face was gloomy, as she weakly sat on the sofa.


    "What do we do, Lili, come back quickly. This village is very strange these days. "


    "I know, I know. "Mom, tell me again, how many people did they go to?"


    "About a dozen or so people went with Gangzi, your brother-in-law, and Qin Qin."


    "Brother-in-law and Xin Xin ¡­" Zheng Huili paused for a moment, "They probably don''t know where Big Sis went to back then, right?"


    The sister that Zheng Huili was referring to was naturally Zheng Huiling.


    "I don''t know, I haven''t told your brother-in-law yet." Zhu Qimei wanted to cry, but no tears came out.


    "You guys wait for me to come back." With that, Zheng Huili hung up the phone.


    Indeed, just as Zhu Qimei had guessed, when she and Zheng Huili had talked on the phone, Su Hong and the others had just gotten on the ship.


    Su Hong also realized that the situation on the other side of the river was just as Mr. Wu had said. First, it was a pile of stones blocking the road, and when they had passed the pile of stones, they saw a few towering trees, and then they quickly arrived at the lakeside.


    After a short while, Zheng Gaang arrived on the boat. Because the lake was too cold, Mr. Wu had someone prepare many large cotton-padded jackets in advance. Otherwise, the journey would have been extremely cold. Su Hong was secretly impressed by Mr. Wu''s consideration for him, his way of handling matters was much more meticulous than others.


    As he sat on the boat, Su Hong realized that the lake surface was colder than he had expected. Moreover, he did not know why, but he could smell the stench of the lake water. Although he could not see clearly, he was certain that the lake water was rather dirty.


    The boat was made of wood and had no engines. It was manually drawn. Plus, it could not fit so many people, so it moved very slowly. Su Hong and Su Qin sat side by side, patiently waiting.


    No one on the boat spoke. It was very quiet. Su Hong could tell that everyone was feeling very heavy hearted.


    After about half an hour, the boat was already far away from the shore. At this moment, they were surrounded by fog, and their vision was blurry. The light from the flashlight was like a cup of water, giving them a sense of pressure.


    "Dad, how much longer?" Su Qin asked. She was cold and afraid.


    "It will take at least two hours to get to the Small Snake Island." Zheng Gaang replaced the answer.


    "Gangzi, how do you know that you''ve been there?" Wang Yan asked curiously.


    "When I was young, I came to the lake to catch fish. I saw that island, so I didn''t go there."


    "Hehe, that''s true. If you had gone, you would have braided them long ago."


    Wang Yan immediately stopped smiling as she said that. Because not only was this sentence not funny, it was also very unlucky.


    "Pah! Swallow, you jinx, don''t worry, we will definitely be fine. Maybe we''ll be able to bring the child home tomorrow morning, don''t you think?" A middle-aged woman said loudly.


    "Hopefully." Mr. Wu sighed.

 C15

    There was another silence.


    "I''m thinking ¡­" After a long while, Liang Dashi finally spoke, "Gangzi, if your brother-in-law is not wrong, the person who crossed the bridge with the child was really the same as us, rowing a boat and going to the Small Snake Island?"


    "Where else can we go? Seriously!" Su Hong didn''t say anything, but Wang Yan actually answered, "Old Liang, think about it, the bridge over there is only a little bigger than a chicken feather. Other than sitting on the boat on the Small Snake Island, I really can''t think of anywhere else to go. After all, they wouldn''t go to the Great Snake Island, would they? That''s too far, it definitely won''t happen! "


    Wang Yan asked and answered his own question, but it was similar to what she said, which made a lot of people feel that it was reasonable.


    "Who is that person ¡­" Liang Dashi began to guess.


    "F * ck, no matter who, as long as I catch him, I''ll kill him!" a man said angrily.


    "Let''s take advantage of this opportunity. Should we analyze it?" Who do you think this person is? " Liang Dashi ignored the man and asked.


    "That''s right, Old Liang. I heard you say that we were confused earlier and didn''t try to guess who it was." The Mr. Wu replied.


    "Guess what? Isn''t that obvious? That person is definitely from our village!" Wang Yan hurriedly said.


    "How can you be so sure?" Mr. Wu asked.


    "Think about it, if it wasn''t someone from our village, he would understand so well. He knows how many children there are in the village, which family has a child? I say, not only is this person from our village, he''s also very familiar with our village! "


    Who knew that Wang Yan''s words would wake everyone up. Su Hong could also tell, that although this woman chattered nonstop, there were times when he could actually hit the nail on the head.


    "Why don''t you say so? Yan Zi''s words make sense!" Liang Dashi sighed.


    Su Hong thought: The villagers are confused, why is it that even he himself is confused as well? As a matter of fact, as long as he followed the rule of exclusion and determined who was absent from the village in the last few days, he might be able to find out who the culprit was.


    "Wait! I thought of someone! " At this time, someone raised his finger and shouted.


    Su Hong looked and saw that it was the birthday shop owner. He did not understand why this man followed along, he probably wanted to look for the few pieces of birthday clothes that had been stolen.


    "Who is it?" Wang Yan asked.


    "Do you remember our old goose eggs?"


    "Goose egg?" Was it that idiot Sun Erke? Didn''t he disappear three or four years ago? "


    "That''s right! He was missing, but no one said he was dead, right? You want to... "What if he comes back and steals the child away ¡­"


    "No, no!" Before the birthday shop owner could finish his words, Liang Dashi interrupted him and said, "Goose egg is a fool, how could he be so clever? He knows that we should steal the children while they are participating in the ceremony."


    "What''s smart about it? Goose eggs grew up in the village, right? Although he is foolish, he still understands some of the rules of the village. Furthermore, he is running around everywhere and knows every family, so how could you forget that he especially likes to play with children.


    Su Hong did not understand, and asked Zheng Gaang: "Who is it?"


    "Oh, in the past, there used to be a fool in the village named Sun Erke who wore a goose-hat all day, so people in the village called him Goose Egg. Humans aren''t bad, they are just mischievous. Three years ago, when they were f * cking killed, they disappeared. "


    "Where did he go?"


    "Who knows!"


    "Oh right, I just remembered something else ¡­" The longevity shop owner was very excited as he continued, "That goose egg was wearing a longevity jacket since young. I don''t know who told him that he believed it when he wore it to avoid evil! "From what I see, he''s probably the one who stole my birthday suit!"


    "I remember!" Someone immediately answered.


    "I also remember!" "His corpse clothes have been ruined by him. If that''s the case, then my family will beg for rice dumplings to eat ¡­"


    "And his bird nest hair, it looks like it hasn''t been washed for hundreds of years. It''s filthy!"


    Hearing the two words "bird''s nest", Su Qin, who had been silent all this time, suddenly thought of the scene on the bridge last night.


    "With such an analysis, he might really be that fool ¡­" The Mr. Wu said.


    "Oh yeah, I agree with Boss Zhou!" There have been a lot of adults in our village lately, so the goose egg must be up to something! " Wang Yan replied.


    "Aiyo, that''s bad. The goose egg is silly. Where can he take the child ¡­" Gu Hongmei said anxiously.


    As Su Hong listened, he also felt that this explanation was more reliable. However, he also thought about it, why did that fool not even let Miao go?


    "Let me guess. He stole Boss Zhou''s birthday suit, then stole the kids'' clothes and put them on. What''s he planning?" Wang Yan asked.


    "Who knows, a fool." someone replied.


    "If it''s really like this, then why are we going to the Small Snake Island? Or do you think that fool took his child to the island? " Wang Yan continued to ask.


    There was a moment of silence as no one knew how to answer.


    "That''s right, why are we going to the island ¡­" Mr. Wu sighed deeply.


    After that, everyone kept talking about it, and basically reached a consensus on how Sun Erke stole the child. As for whether or not he brought it back to Small Snake Island, they were all filled with suspicions.


    While they were chatting, a black mass appeared in the thick fog in front of them. When they saw that place, they immediately stopped talking.


    "We''re here." Liang Dashi declared softly.


    The people on the boat instantly tensed up. Even the two people in charge of rowing the boat slowed down a lot.


    "Really?" They were almost on the island, and someone wanted to retreat.


    "Go on, what''s there to be afraid of!" The Mr. Wu boldly said.


    Actually, everyone was very uneasy, but in order to find a child, they had no choice but to brace themselves. Slowly, the boat docked.


    Su Hong realized, even though they were not far from each other, their Small Snake Island s were two completely different places. The Flower Snake Village s were lush with leaves, the ground was flat, and the Small Snake Island s were completely bare.


    Moreover, the stench here was even worse, and it was extremely unpleasant to smell.


    After the group went ashore one after another, Mr. Wu thought about it and said to the two boatmen: "Ol ''Three, Mr.Zhao, why don''t you two stay here and watch the boat?"


    Mr. Wu''s worries were reasonable. After all, they were the only ones who could return on this ship, if there was any accident and the ship was stolen, it would be a huge problem.


    Besides, the ship had no anchor and was usually tied up with rope. Since there was no place to tie the rope, it was inconvenient for her to park.


    "Alright, then you guys should hurry back." The Mr.Zhao said.


    Thus, the two of them watched the boat while the rest of the people set off for the island.


    While walking, Su Hong realized that this island was not very big. There were a lot of gravel on the ground.


    The fog on the island was also very thick, and as they gradually distanced themselves from the shore, they felt that it was getting darker and darker, as if they had arrived in the underworld.


    It was hard for them to imagine that there would be people on this island, let alone children.


    Su Qin silently followed Su Hong, walking carefully. When they first got on the boat, she had put on the floral scarf that her mother had left for her. She and Su Miao had always kept their floral scarves on themselves. At the moment, she only hoped that her mother would help her find her sister as soon as possible and then return home successfully.


    The group of people walked away with trembling steps, they did not say a word to each other, and it was once again Wang Yan who broke the silence.


    "What are you doing? Everyone is dejected. Are we not here to look for children? "Why are you so scared that you don''t even dare to call out the child''s name?"


    "That''s right, if we keep searching like this, who knows when we''ll find them. Let''s just cry out and cry out." Someone replied.


    Then, the group of people called out their children''s names. Su Hong and Su Qin were no exception.


    In the end, half an hour had passed and many people had turned hoarse from all the shouting. However, not a single trace of the children could be found.


    Mr. Wu was even angrier and scolded:


    "Screw that goose egg, once I catch you, I''ll break your dog legs."


    "Not only did you break his dog legs, you even skinned him alive!" Liang Dashi also chimed in.


    However, when everyone stopped, they did not know who it was. They pointed to the front and said:


    "Look, why is there an island over there?"


    "What nonsense are you talking about? Aren''t we on the island?" Zheng Gaang said.


    "No, there really is an island there." Even Su Hong said that.


    It was only now that everyone could see clearly that there was indeed an island in front of them. It was surrounded by dark green lake water. It was a rare island phenomenon.


    There were no trees on the island. There were only rocks of various sizes. The feeling of being built from rubble was even more intense.


    "This is f * cking interesting. There''s an island on this island." Zheng Gaang laughed.


    Su Hong, however, could not laugh at all. This was because he could clearly feel the unusual aura and the even more revolting stench on the island. It simply made him so disgusted that he wanted to puke.


    Seeing that the others were in the same state, the ladies hurriedly covered their noses and mouths with their hands.


    "It smells so bad!" Su Qin complained.


    "Yeah, why is it so smelly?"


    "Could it be that the stench in our village came from here?"


    Su Hong thought: It is possible, but what is the reason for the stench?


    He kind of wanted to go up and take a look.


    Liang Dashi and Mr. Wu were of the same opinion as Su Hong.


    At this time, a group of people heard the sound of water and after a while, a boat appeared on the lake. It was the third brother who was in charge of watching the boat and the Mr.Zhao.


    "Why are you two here?" Mr. Wu asked loudly.


    After the boat docked, Mr.Zhao came up first and said:


    We were just waiting at the shore when we found out that the wind was too cold there. It just so happened that Ol ''Three saw an opening, and the water from the lake entered the island, and we thought that we could either paddle the boat in and hide from the wind. Who knew that it was the same as our village?


    "We just arrived too. Did you see that? There''s an island over there."


    "I saw it earlier!"


    "How is it? Why don''t you go up and take a look? " Mr. Wu turned around and asked.


    "Alright, let''s go take a look." Liang Dashi agreed.


    After all, the boat was here, and it was quite convenient.


    Thus, the group of people ferried to the other side of the island and stepped onto the island. After a discussion, they decided to split up and search.


    Unexpectedly, not long after they separated, Su Hong heard someone shouting, "Come over! Hurry and come over! "


    Everyone immediately gathered over. As the flashlight shone down, they saw that there was a cave in front of the person.


    Mr. Wu and the rest looked around from the entrance of the cave, only to realize that the cave was slanted and it seemed to be quite deep.


    "There''s a hole, what do we do?" Liang Dashi asked Mr. Wu, meaning that he should go in to take a look.


    The Mr. Wu began to think.


    Logically speaking, this kind of place couldn''t be forgiven in order to find children, but at the same time, almost everyone could feel the strange aura on the island.


    "Do you think the child will be hidden in a hole?" the suspender shop owner asked.


    "I see ¡­" "It''s unlikely." Zheng Gaang shook his head.


    "What do you think? What makes you think that? Just based on your bullshit eyes? " Mr. Wu scolded Zheng Gaang.


    "Yeah, no one will know if we don''t go in and take a look." Wang Yan also said.


    Zheng Gaang laughed awkwardly and did not speak anymore.


    Although they were all from the village and wanted to find a child, some of them did not share the same thoughts as the majority of the people. For example, the birthday shop owner and Zheng Gaang, they were naturally timid and naturally, the child they lost was not their own.


    However, this hole indeed gave off a ghastly and terrifying feeling.


    "Go!" Even if none of you are going, I will take a look inside the cave! " Gu Hongmei said loudly.


    Compared to the birthday shop owner and Zheng Gaang, Gu Hongmei, who only had children in her head, had much more guts.


    "We''ll definitely go, but let me shout a few times first." The Mr. Wu said.


    Then he stuck his head into the hole and asked loudly:


    "Is there anyone here? Is there anyone in the cave? "


    Su Hong heard the sound coming from the cave and knew that the cave must be very deep.


    Moments later, Mr. Wu ruthlessly added:


    "Goose egg you bastard, if laozi finds out you''re inside, laozi will smash you with a brick so hard that even your mother won''t recognize you. Get the hell out here!"


    After the scolding, Mr. Wu waited at the entrance of the cave for a long time, but nothing happened.


    The night wind was getting stronger and stronger, merging with the stench and making everyone''s head hurt.


    "There''s nothing we can do. We can only go in and take a look." The Mr. Wu sighed and said.


    When he was young, he had been a soldier near the Yunnan border and knew that in the wilderness, the most dangerous things to explore were the various kinds of caves, which were even scarier than mountains and forests.


    Especially since it was the middle of the night and they didn''t have any tools at their disposal, the atmosphere on the island was rather strange. They were really giving it their all just to find a child.


    Su Hong didn''t have Mr. Wu''s experience, but he roughly understood this principle, so he was also considering whether or not it was worth taking the risk.


    Because his intuition told him that the chances of Su Miao being in the cave was very small.


    "How about this, Mr. Wu, let''s go in and take a look."


    The one who spoke was a bald old man, known as Old Bai. Beside him stood his son, known as Xiao Wu. Xiao Wu''s son was also one of the missing children, so they were both burning with anxiety, one seeking for his grandson and the other for his son.


    "Why?" Mr. Wu asked.


    "Don''t you know ¡­" My son and I used to work in the fields. It was just a small hole. It would be a mess if you guys were to go. It''s fine, we''ll go take a look first.


    Mr. Wu did indeed know that this father and son pair lived their lives hunting alone. After so many years, the experience they had accumulated far surpassed theirs.


    "Yes, yes, yes. Let Old Bai go first." The suspender shop owner hurriedly replied. He wished that he had nothing to do.


    He finally decided that Old Bai and his son would go into the cave first while the others would wait by the cave entrance.


    Since the tunnel was sloped, the rest of the group could see some light from the flashlight just as the old man and his son entered the cave, but it was soon dark again.


    "Ol ''White, you two are just snacks, come out right now if you need anything!" Liang Dashi shouted from the cave entrance.


    There was no response.


    The wind was still strong, shaking the wooden boat on the lake. The third brother and the Mr.Zhao were guarding the shore while the rest of the group waited at the entrance. No one spoke. The silence was terrible.


    After an unknown amount of time, Mr. Wu finally could not hold it in anymore and rushed into the cave shouting out Old Bai and Little Wu''s names.


    Unfortunately, there was still no response.


    Everyone''s mood immediately turned heavy. No one knew what the situation inside the cave looked like.


    Many people began to worry, and some were even more afraid.


    "What''s going on?" Wang Yan asked with her trembling voice.


    Mr. Wu shook his head, frowning.


    "Dad, what should we do?" Su Qin asked Su Hong.


    "Maybe it''s too far away for me to hear."


    "No way!" Who would have thought that Mr. Wu would hear the conversation between Su Hong and his daughter, and immediately rejected the idea. "This kind of cave is not shallow, nor deep.


    Mr. Wu''s tone was resolute and decisive, it was unquestionable.


    Su Hong had done this to comfort Su Qin, so he too felt that something had probably happened to Old White and his son.


    As for what the situation was, he couldn''t imagine it at all.


    At this moment, everyone was stuck in a dilemma. On one hand, they were guessing that Old Bai and his son might have met with an accident and should have entered the cave to take a look. On the other hand, they were afraid that the old man and his son might end up in some kind of life-threatening trouble.


    After all, selfishness was human nature, and no one could avoid it.


    Just as everyone was hesitating, Old Third and Mr.Zhao, who were guarding the side of the boat, suddenly let out a scream and ran away from the side of the boat.


    "What is it?" Mr. Wu asked hurriedly.


    "Yes ¡­" Eyes... There are eyes in the water! " Mr.Zhao pointed at the lake water, scared out of his wits.


    Everyone was shocked.


    "What the hell are you talking about?" Liang Dashi asked.


    "It''s true!" It''s true! There are eyes in the water, so many eyes! " Ol ''Three called out as well.


    Liang Dashi asked again: "What''s an eye? Speak clearly! "


    "Eyes!" Who the hell knows what kind of damned thing it is, go take a look yourself if you don''t believe me! " The Mr.Zhao replied. As they spoke, the two of them rushed to the side of the crowd.


    "Alright, I''ll go take a look." Liang Dashi said. Then, just as he was about to move away, he turned around and asked, "Who''s going with me?"


    Thus, Liang Dashi, Mr. Wu, Su Hong, Wang Yan and the other two men slowly walked towards the shore.


    When they reached the shore, Su Hong looked at the green lake water. Under the moonlight, it looked like a layer of oil had been poured on the lake''s surface.


    "Nothing at all!" Wang Yan stretched her neck and observed carefully.

 C16

    "Huh?" Mr.Zhao and Ol ''Three were stunned.


    "You two are really bored, aren''t you? You''re just making fun of us, aren''t you? "There''s still time for that ¡­"


    Who knew that before Liang Dashi could finish his sentence, a few eyes appeared on the surface of the lake. They were all round and round, larger than an ordinary person''s eyes.


    "Ouch!" Wang Yan screamed in shock and retreated quickly.


    Liang Dashi and the other two couldn''t take it anymore and followed suit. Only Su Hong and the Mr. Wu were still able to hold on in their terror as they stared at the eyes in the water.


    Su Hong tried his best to calm himself down and understand what was going on. Then, he realized that these things called them eyes. In reality, they were more suitable to be called eyes. Moreover, they were like fish that could move in the water.


    Unknowingly, more and more eyeballs appeared on the water surface, as though there was no end to it. Mr. Wu was afraid that something might happen to him, so he pulled Su Hong away.


    The six of them slowly retreated back into the crowd.


    "What the heck? What the heck is this?" Liang Dashi roared.


    "Tch!" It''s really strange! " The Mr. Wu also sighed.


    Everyone''s face was very gloomy. Everyone looked at each other.


    No matter how calm Su Hong was, he was about to go crazy at this moment.


    "How about... Shall we go back? This place is so demonic! " Zheng Gaang trembled.


    "What are you replying to? The child hasn''t been found. What''s more, Old Man Bai and his son are still in the cave, do you not care about them anymore?" Gu Hongmei said.


    "This guy just spouted a bunch of bullshit all day!" Mr. Wu scolded on Gu Hongmei''s behalf.


    Zheng Gaang was silent again.


    "What should we do? Let''s keep waiting?" Wang Yan asked the Mr. Wu.


    "We can only wait!" We don''t care what the hell is in the lake, just don''t go near the water. "


    Mr. Wu''s declaration immediately brought about a period of silence.


    At that moment, there were already many people who harbored the same thoughts as Zheng Gaang, especially those who hadn''t lost their children. They couldn''t wait to return to the village. Even if they lost their child, they had a faint feeling that their child shouldn''t be on the island. They might even be wasting time here, and the villagers might already be looking for their child. As for the safety of Old Bai and his son, only Mr. Wu and Su Hong, those who were more responsible, cared about them.


    Sure enough, while everyone was lost in thought, a person hastily ran towards the wooden boat and jumped onto it.


    Everyone was taken aback. They looked over and realized it was the boss of the birthday shop.


    "What are you doing?" Mr. Wu asked loudly.


    "Damn it, all of you are cowards. You all don''t want to live anymore. I''m here to find some clothes, I don''t have time to go crazy with you all!"


    As he spoke, the boss started to paddle, obviously intending to slip away.


    "That turtle bastard! F * cking bastard, hurry up and come back here!" Liang Dashi scolded as he chased after her, but he didn''t dare get too close to the lake.


    The rest of the people started cursing as well. Some of them even threw rocks over.


    The longevity shop owner ignored them, ducking his head and rowing like a son of a bitch.


    Soon, he was out of sight of the crowd, disappearing into the night mist.


    With that, everyone''s only means of escape was gone. They were all shocked and angry.


    Liang Dashi was even more furious, he kicked a rock with all his might.


    Unlike the Mr. Wu, Liang Dashi did not hesitate to pay any price to find his grandson. He had to take care of all of his family members, both old and young. The reason why he was willing to risk his life with everyone was at most because he was carrying out his duties as the village chief; it didn''t really have much to do with him. Thus, he watched as the situation gradually worsened. He felt both fear and grievance.


    "Dad, what should we do?" Su Qin asked Su Hong softly.


    Su Hong saw that Su Qin''s chin was trembling, and her heart ached even more. He especially hated herself now, letting her two daughters fall into such a predicament.


    Wang Yan was also stamping her feet in anxiety, her mouth was cursing nonstop, almost to the point of cursing all eighteen generations of the birthday shop''s owner''s ancestors.


    If they had been able to maintain their rationality just now, they would have been completely thrown into a panic by now.


    "What do we do? Hurry up and come up with a plan!" After Liang Dashi finished venting, he looked at Mr. Wu.


    The Mr. Wu shook his head and sighed, saying, "What plan can we make? The boat is gone, and the people from the village are not even aware of our situation, Old Bai and Xiao Wu are still in the cave. This crappy place, if we keep it, we''ll either starve to death or freeze to death!"


    "You said that the turtle bastard who stole our boat will tell the villagers?" The turtle Wang Yan was referring to was naturally the birthday suit shop owner.


    "How is that possible!?" That bastard did such a wicked thing, he didn''t even have time to run away, why would he still help us call for help? If that''s the case, everyone in the village will drown him with a single spit! " a man said.


    Su Hong thought that he was right. At this point in time, he could not count on anyone to save him, he could only rely on himself.


    "Eh? "Do you think it would be possible for one of us to swim to the other side of the river and call a boat over at daybreak?" Wang Yan suddenly had an idea and asked.


    "Feel free my ass!" Liang Dashi said, "Do you know how far it is from here to our village? Moreover, it was f * cking winter. What''s more ¡­ "There''s that damned thing in the water ¡­"


    When he talked about the damned thing in the water, Liang Dashi could not continue. It was obvious that he was extremely afraid.


    After that, there was another round of chattering and endless discussion. No matter who it was, all of it were just as unrealistic as Wang Yan''s idea.


    Suddenly, a muffled sound came from the cave.


    This sound was like an earthquake, striking right at everyone''s hearts.


    Everyone instantly quieted down as they looked at the entrance of the cave.


    "What the heck is this?" Gu Hongmei asked.


    No one paid any attention to her. Everyone tensed up.


    "Old Bai, Little Wu, is it the two of you?" Mr. Wu asked loudly.


    Still no one answered.


    The wind blew fiercely, causing the lake to ripple. Not a single star could be seen in the night sky, and the surroundings were terrifyingly dark.


    "How about... Shall we go into the cave and have a look? " Finally, the Mr. Wu spoke out.


    "Who is it? Who wants to go?" Liang Dashi asked.


    "We might as well go together!" Wang Yan replied.


    Liang Dashi was silent, as though he was thinking about something.


    The Mr. Wu understood his concerns, so he patted his shoulder and said: "It''s fine, go in and take a look. We have a lot of people here, what can I do for you? If you stay outside, the cold will kill you. "


    "Mr. Wu, I really can''t let anything happen to me. I still have Hui Fang and my son at home. My son is probably going to get married in a few years, I''m still waiting to carry my grandson ¡­" Liang Dashi''s tears almost fell.


    "Only your family has a wife and children, does anyone else? I''m really f * cking courting death, why would I accompany you all here?! " Zheng Gaang''s eyes turned red, it was rare for him to retort at all.


    "Stop arguing, what are you shouting for?" Mr. Wu said, "Those who want to go into the cave, follow me. If there''s nothing else, at least the cave will be warmer, and I don''t want to be a frozen ghost!"


    When the Mr. Wu said this, there were people who expressed that they were willing to follow.


    Su Hong saw that there were still a few people hesitating, including Zheng Gaang. He thought that at a time like this, unity was the most important, so he stood up and said:


    "Everyone, listen to me. The Mr. Wu is right, in the current situation, the outside of the cave might not be safer than inside. At the very least, we can stay inside the cave until tomorrow morning before thinking of a way out. Besides, it would be better to keep them moving together and not separate. "


    After hearing Su Hong''s words, a few more people decided to enter the cave. In the end, only Zheng Gaang remained.


    "Sure, you can do that. A city person is a city person. Their words are much more refined and effective than me." At this critical moment, the Mr. Wu was still in the mood to smile at Su Hong.


    Su Hong suddenly felt that the Mr. Wu''s mentality was not bad.


    After making up their minds, they prepared to enter the cave together.


    When Mr. Wu stepped into the cave, the rest of the Mr. Wu followed suit.


    Very quickly, they formed a line with Mr. Wu and Su Hong leading the way. Su Qin insisted on following beside Su Hong, so she was very close to the front, followed by Liang Dashi and the others, Zheng Gaang and the few girls standing at the back.


    The cave was narrow and extremely damp, and the stench was getting worse and worse.


    Mr. Wu was still paying attention to the lack of oxygen, so the moment they entered the cave, he reminded the others to retreat if they felt unwell.


    Everyone understood and carefully moved forward. They slowly came to a corner in the cave.


    From where Mr. Wu and Su Hong were standing, the cave entrance could no longer be seen. At this moment, they heard some faint sounds of running water and a light, light sound like the rustling of a reptile passing by.


    However, at this time, there was another muffled sound. This time around, they heard it loud and clear from the cave, and it felt as if the whole cave was about to collapse.


    Following that, a wave of feminine hatred, which contained a strong wave of resentment, swept over from the depths of the cave like an avalanche.


    In Su Hong''s eyes, this feeling was extremely wonderful. It felt like reality, but also like a dream.


    However, they all knew that there was no turning back now. They could only continue forward.


    They went around the corner.


    After turning a corner, they could clearly see a spot of light. When Mr. Wu and the others shined their flashlights at that place, they discovered that it was actually a vertical hole.


    Looking at it from afar, this cave entrance was much larger than the one outside, so using the words'' pit ''to describe it might be more appropriate.


    After pausing for a moment, they continued onward.


    Mr. Wu called out for Old Bai a few more times, but still did not get any response.


    As they got closer and closer to the pit, they could smell the stench. It was so strong that even their breath was foul.


    Moreover, a strong wind came from nowhere, as if it wanted to suck them all in.


    They wandered to a platform, which was so spacious that they were able to stand side by side.


    In front of him was the huge pit.


    The pit was at the end of the cave.


    The answer was simple. Old Bai and Little Wu must have fallen into that huge pit.


    Mr. Wu took a deep breath and decided to take a look at the giant hole. Although Zheng Gaang was scared to the point that his legs turned soft, he still managed to follow the crowd.


    When they slowly arrived in front of the crater, they shone their flashlights downwards. The sudden appearance of the scene immediately caused their hair to stand on end.


    The pit was filled with stinky green water, but compared to the lake water outside, the water inside was much greener and deeper. But the most important thing was that there was actually a corpse that was as tall as two or three people in the water. The corpse''s eyes were sunken, and the skin on its face had a brownish green color. The torso and arms and legs of the corpse were covered with iron armor, giving it the appearance of an ancient general.


    In addition, the reason why this rotting corpse could float on the surface of the water was because there was a round stone underneath it, supporting its huge body on the surface of the water.


    Seeing this, the terror of the villagers became obvious. They never would have thought that in a small cave, there would be a giant rotting corpse. Judging by the armor on the rotting corpse, this person must have died long ago.


    In other words, it was an ancient corpse.


    Su Hong thought about it more than anyone else. Firstly, he was puzzled as to why an Ancient Corpse could last till today, and secondly, why the Ancient Corpse was so huge.


    However, at the same time, he understood one thing. The source of the stench! It was obvious that the stench in the vicinity originated from this rotting corpse. Because the pool water inside the cave was connected to the outside lake water and also because the lake water was connected to the river of Flower Snake Village, the rotting corpse''s Small Snake Island served as the center and transmitted the stench outwards through the water current, gradually spreading to the Flower Snake Village. This was also why the closer they got to the Small Snake Island, the thicker the stench became.


    When he thought about how, for a long time, the people of Flower Snake Village only drank the decayed water that was soaked by their corpses, and about how much decaying substance was mixed in the water, even the animals and plants were all nourished out of the decaying water. Including these two or three days, what he drank himself was also the same kind of decaying water, Su Hong felt a strong sense of disgust and fear, and couldn''t wait to spit it all out.


    It should be said that the entire Flower Snake Village had been severely corroded!


    No wonder the villagers were so sick and ill-tempered, scratching things with their nails. The reason the cadaver that was buried in the tree had revived and even grew sharp claws to harm people was because it had been corroded!


    Others may not have as many things as Su Hong thought, but they also felt that something was wrong. Furthermore, the scene in front of them was simply too terrifying.


    At this moment, the surface of the water slightly trembled, and two heads popped out of the water. Mr. Wu, Su Hong and the other men could see clearly that it was Old Bai and Xiao Wu father and son in the water!


    Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Old Bai and Little Wu had completely lost their vigor. They were like two zombies, rolling their eyes and floating in the green water.


    However, before they could even cry out in alarm, a strong gust of wind blew over, sucking all the torches into the water and causing the cave to turn pitch black.


    Su Hong saw that something was amiss, he anxiously pulled Su Qin and immediately rushed towards the cave entrance.


    The others reacted one after another as they turned to retreat.


    But because they lost their flashlights, some of them were unable to find their bearings and crashed into the stone walls on both sides.


    For a moment, cries of alarm and shouting were all in disarray.


    Humans were basically no different from animals when they were in their most frenzied moments. Although these people were usually very well-behaved and familiar with each other, they could only save their lives and no longer care about anything else. In just a short moment, several of them were knocked down and stepped on by others.


    Su Hong did not care about anyone else and only brought Su Qin to rush out of the cave. As they were fleeing, he felt that it was strange and raised his head suddenly, he discovered that the top of the cave was actually filled with eyeballs, and they were densely packed together, even more than when he was running in the lake.


    "Dad, what are you looking at?" Su Qin asked Su Hong.


    "It''s nothing, it''s nothing. Don''t look." Su Hong immediately stopped Su Qin.


    But when Su Qin raised her head to look, he was shocked.


    Su Hong and his father continued to rush forward, just as they were about to reach the corner of the cave, a strong gust of wind started to blow again, it was so strong that it was out of the ordinary! From behind the two of them, exclamations came one after another, followed by the sound of people falling into the water.


    Su Hong turned his head to look, only to see that the others had all been sucked into the strong wind, leaving only the father and daughter, but the strong wind was already approaching and he would not be able to escape.

 C17

    In that critical moment, Su Hong pushed Su Qin forcefully and shouted: "Qin Qin, go! Don''t look back! "


    Su Qin staggered and almost fell. But in the next moment, she saw Su Hong being sucked back by the strong wind, but she was still shouting at her, "Let''s go! "Let''s go!"


    Su Qin steeled her heart, she immediately grabbed onto the stone wall and went around the corner.


    At the same time, the strong gale also appeared right behind her.


    After she rounded the corner and avoided the strong wind, Su Qin finally escaped from the danger zone. She sat down on the ground weakly, feeling both sadness and fear.


    "Dad!"


    "Dad!"


    "Can you hear me?"


    "Dad, answer me!"


    Su Qin cried as she made her last attempt. Unfortunately, the response she got was dead silence.


    She wanted to rush back into the pit, but her reason pulled her back.


    She knew very well that if even she got into an accident, then no one would be able to find Su Miao.


    She felt she had to pull herself together, and that must be her father''s wish.


    In other words, her life was something that Su Hong had to cherish no matter what.


    Because there was no turning back the situation.


    Even though she understood, she cried for a long time. When she cried until she was exhausted, she realized that she was still in the cave.


    Being alone was very different from being alone with a lot of people, especially since the cave was so dark and she didn''t have a flashlight. Strange eyeballs appeared above her from time to time.


    Su Qin decided to leave the cave first.


    She would not be able to stay in this terrifying cave for a single moment longer.


    Thus, she touched the stone wall and walked out of the cave step by step. Although he could not see his own fingers in front of him, there was no forked path.


    A while later, she successfully reached the entrance of the cave.


    Before entering the cave, she had felt that the atmosphere on the island was very gloomy, but now, compared to inside, the environment outside the cave was much better. At least, it was spacious enough to be able to see things clearly.


    At this time, the night wind on the island became even colder, and the temperature felt much colder. Su Qin suspected that she would not be able to endure until morning.


    She folded her arms across her chest and stared into the cave, remembering how they had been a crowd just before they entered the cave, and how she was the only one left.


    After crying for an unknown period of time, when Su Qin felt that all the tears on her face had frozen dry, she finally started to slowly walk along the river bank.


    After walking aimlessly for a while, she found the ground full of gravel. She almost fell several times.


    After a slight pause, she shouted loudly, "Is there anyone here? Is there anyone here? "


    As she expected, no one answered.


    She felt that she was wasting her time. It was ridiculous to think that there would be someone here.


    Still, she called out a few times.


    Who knew that after she finished her last shout, a voice actually came out of the pitch-black darkness, "Yes!"


    Su Qin almost jumped out of shock. She was not sure if it was out of excitement or fear, but she immediately replied him: "Who is it? "Who''s there?"


    The man stopped talking, but Su Qin slowly heard the sound of water flowing, as though something was approaching.


    Sure enough, a boat appeared on the river. On the boat, there was only one person holding a pair of oars, rowing skillfully. Su Qin could immediately tell that this was definitely not the boat they were on previously, because this ship was even larger and had exquisite decorations. There was even a tent on board.


    When the boat approached the shore, Su Qin could faintly see the person standing at the bow of the boat. She saw that the man''s skin was especially dark, his hair was disheveled, and he wore a blue robe. On the outside of the robe, there was also a tattered vest, and a pair of cotton shoes.


    Su Qin was immediately enlightened. She thought that this person was the one that Su Miao and him had seen together, the eccentric person who led a group of children over the stone bridge!


    When she first got on the boat, she was also seriously listening to Mr. Wu''s analysis. She knew that the person who stole the child was a fool called Goose Egg from the village, could it be the person in front of her?


    She realised that after he stopped the boat, he did not get off as he just stood there foolishly at the bow of the boat, looking at Su Qin.


    Su Qin was not afraid. She went straight forward and leapt onto the bow of the ship.


    Only now did she see clearly that this person''s description was exactly the same as the Mr. Wu and the rest. Moreover, this person was indeed wearing a longevity jacket, and his eyes looked lifeless as he emitted a foolish aura.


    "Are you called Goose Egg?" Su Qin asked softly.


    The other party rolled his eyes, thought for a while, then answered: "Yes, goose egg, Sun Erke!"


    After confirming her identity, Su Qin continued to ask: "How are you here? And the children you took with you? "


    "I''ve been here all along, watching you enter the cave!" Sun Erke said bluntly.


    "Then... What about the child you took with you? And my sister, where did you let them go? " Su Qin''s heart started to beat rapidly.


    Sun Erke suddenly pointed to the awning and said, "It''s here!"


    "Here?"


    Before Su Qin could react, a head popped out from inside the awning. That person was exactly the same as him, with a flower snakeskin on her head, without a doubt, it was Su Miao!


    "Elder sister!" Su Miao ran out and grabbed Su Qin.


    Su Qin looked like she was dreaming, and was in a daze. She looked at Su Miao, then at Sun Erke, and realised that Sun Erke''s face had a smile that was not a smile, but Su Miao seemed to be normal.


    "What''s going on, Miao, what were you doing just now?" Su Qin asked with tears in her eyes.


    "I sleep in the boat."


    "Sleep?"


    "Yeah, I let my sister rest in the boat and then brought her to find Big Sis and Daddy. But Daddy is no longer here, only Big Sis is here." Sun Erke said.


    "Yes, big brother is a good person. Elder sister, don''t blame him." Su Miao said.


    This time, Su Qin was even more confused, and immediately asked: "Where are the other children? Where are they? "


    "They are all in the room. Big sister, don''t worry. Big brother already gave them food to eat."


    "Yeah, there''s peanut, cucumber, steamed bun ¡­" Sun Erke muttered.


    "Right, where''s father?" Su Miao suddenly remembered to ask.


    Su Qin took a deep breath and said sorrowfully, "Father ¡­ "He''s gone ¡­"


    Therefore, Su Qin continued to cry as she explained to Su Miao about him, only she did not recount the details to him. After that, Sun Erke let the two sisters sit in the boat awning. Su Qin slowly listened to Su Miao, and finally understood what had happened.


    So it was as she had guessed, Su Miao was indeed stolen by Sun Erke at home, and the other children were the same. Sun Erke then hid them inside a hidden thatched hut opposite to the stone bridge, saying that he needed to protect them and even put on their birthday clothes. Later, when Sun Erke was on his patrol, he secretly saw Mr. Wu and the others riding on the boat to the Small Snake Island. Coincidentally, Su Miao also saw this scene, and shouted that she wanted to go find her father and sister.


    Su Miao had also told Su Qin that the other children''s relationship with him was very good, it was neither noisy nor boisterous. The reason was because Sun Erke had often brought them to play in the past, and even in the years that Sun Erke had disappeared, he would occasionally appear in front of them to give them delicious foods.


    Su Qin finally understood why Su Miao was the only one making noise, it was because Su Miao was not familiar with him.


    Su Qin also realized that Sun Erke was actually not that bad of a person. On the contrary, he might be a good person, but his way of doing things was a little strange.


    His real purpose in stealing the children was also to protect them.


    But why would he steal the child at this time? Did he foresee danger?


    Su Qin really wanted to ask about it, but she was afraid that it would be difficult to communicate with Sun Erke.


    Just like this, the ship successfully left the Small Snake Island, and returned to Flower Snake Village. Because it was warmer inside the awning, when Su Qin and Su Miao leaned on each other, they unknowingly fell asleep.


    When Su Qin woke up, she heard Sun Erke shouting something outside.


    "It''s over ¡­" It''s over ¡­ The village is finished... "Everyone''s done for ¡­"


    Su Qin thought it was strange. She opened the curtain and saw Sun Erke standing at the bow of the ship like a madman.


    "Goose egg, what do you mean by that?" Su Qin could not help but ask.


    Sun Erke turned around, looked at Su Qin, then turned back and continued to shout: "It''s over... It''s over ¡­ "The village is finished ¡­"


    Su Qin kept having the feeling that Sun Erke seemed to know something, but she was unable to get a clear answer out of his.


    Furthermore, what Sun Erke said was not wrong, the current miserable state of Flower Snake Village could indeed be described as finished.


    Slowly, the boat docked. The first thing that Su Qin thought about when she stepped onto the land was how she would explain it to her grandparents.


    On this trip, his father and uncle met with an accident, which dealt a heavy blow to the elderly.


    Before they parted, Su Qin said their thanks to Sun Erke, but Sun Erke was still muttering something. Su Qin didn''t care about him, and directly brought Su Miao away.


    The two of them went over the pile of rocks, passed the stone bridge, and returned to the Flower Snake Village. In that moment, Su Qin felt that the entire village had become unusually quiet.


    Besides, Su Qin also felt a strange aura lingering around the village. She was sure that some parts of the village had changed.


    She decided to go back to her grandfather''s house before she made any plans.


    Along the way, the two sisters were on edge, and not a single passerby could be seen. The lights in every house were off, not a sound could be heard.


    When they successfully reached home, she pushed open the door and saw that it was brightly lit, her grandparents were also there. Only then did Su Qin heave a sigh of relief, afraid that even the other family members would meet with accidents.


    "Grandpa, grandma ¡­" Su Qin''s face was full of grief. Just as she wanted to mention what happened at the Small Snake Island to Zheng Wangde and Zhu Qimei, she realized that the two elders didn''t even look at her. They were only staring at each other, their expressions sinister.


    "You, let them go home. Did you see what happened? Miao is gone! They went to the island, too, and will be gone soon! " Zheng Wang De pointed at Zhu Qimei''s forehead, and spoke with a coarse voice.


    "Hey, blame me. What''s the use of an old guy like you? If you''re capable, go find someone!" Zhu Qimei replied.


    Both of their expressions were fiendish, as if they wanted to devour each other.


    Su Qin was stupefied for a moment, and said: "Grandfather ¡­ Grandmother ¡­ Didn''t Su Miao come back? "


    Su Miao also added, "That''s right, Miao is here.


    However, the words of the two sisters were like the air. Zheng Wang De and Zhu Qimei didn''t even look at them and continued to argue.


    "You dare to scold me? "You crazy woman, do you believe that I won''t kill you?!"


    "Come on, old man, if you dare touch me, I''ll dare touch you!"


    "Fine, go ahead. I''ll see what the f * * k you can do!"


    "Hehe, I can do it!"


    Su Qin realized that the two old men were arguing more and more excessively, the way they were speaking was extremely weird, the way they were speaking was also not like how they normally talked. Su Qin knew that her Grandfather and Grandmother''s relationship had always been good, and she really couldn''t understand why they were quarreling like this.


    Zheng Wang De and Zhu Qimei continued to argue ferociously, completely disregarding the Su Qin sisters at the side. As if they were possessed, they immediately took action.


    Su Qin felt that something was amiss, she quickly pulled Su Miao and retreated. Su Miao was so scared that she was about to cry.


    After cursing a few more times for being hard to listen to, Zhu Qimei finally made the first move and grabbed Zheng Wentai''s face. Zheng Wangde was not one to be outdone, and also grabbed onto Zhu Qimei''s hair.


    The two of them immediately started fighting.


    Su Qin covered her mouth as she dared not imagine it. But what frightened her the most was not the fight between Zheng Wentai and Zhu Qimei, but the two old men''s fingernails that had become completely long and sharp, and were clawing and stabbing at each other''s face.


    Instantly, Zheng Wangde and Zhu Qimei''s faces were covered in blood.


    Su Qin and Su Miao were so scared that they did not even dare to make a sound.


    Su Qin remembered that when they were on the boat, Su Hong had told her about what had happened in front of Jiang Youcai''s home. Not only did the cadaver in the tree branch come to life, they had also grown sharp fingernails.


    Water! Water! The rotten water! The village was being corroded. Everyone was being corroded!


    The answer in Su Qin''s heart was already close to Su Hong, and in his extreme terror, Sun Erke''s words once again echoed in her ears.


    "It''s over ¡­" It''s over ¡­ The village is finished... "Everyone''s done for ¡­"


    Su Qin suddenly felt that Sun Erke had probably foreseen this disaster and passed it on to her.


    At this time, other than the sounds of Zheng Wangde and Zhu Qimei fighting and cursing, Su Qin heard some other sounds that seemed to come from the room.


    Sure enough, the door opened and a woman''s head slowly peeked out.


    "Aunt?" Su Qin and Su Miao recognised each other. That person was her first aunt, Zheng Gaang''s wife.


    Just as Su Qin was thinking that she could finally find a normal person, she realized that his aunt had a weird expression. As she stared at the two sisters, she unexpectedly broke into a wide grin, and drool started dripping down her face.


    "Come, Qin Qin, Miao. Auntie''s nails are scratching."


    As she spoke, Aunt Su Qin stretched out her long and pointed black fingernails and drew with her brush. Her eyes were sinister and strange, completely different from before.


    Su Qin and Su Miao felt their hairs stand on end. Su Qin immediately picked up Su Miao and ran out the door.


    Su Qin could also tell that his Grandfather, Grandmother, and Aunt had all been corroded by the corpse inside the cave. Right now, they were like monsters that had lost all humanity.


    Once we were outside, Su Qin held Su Miao''s hands and said: "Miao, you have to run with big sister. Let''s leave this place!"


    Su Miao nodded heavily.


    Su Qin decided that even if the sky was still dark, she would still take her sister and leave. She could no longer stay here, absolutely not. This was because she could foresee that the other villagers would become the same as her grandparents.


    Thus, the two sisters quickly ran away from the Flower Snake Village.


    Now, his father and uncle were no longer around. His grandparents and aunts had all been corroded. It was as if they were the only ones left in this world. As he thought about it, Su Qin''s tears fell again.


    Just like this, the two sisters travelled back and forth within the Flower Snake Village. The entire village was still terrifyingly quiet, but Su Qin could faintly hear some sound, as if something in her surroundings had moved.


    Suddenly, the rain began to fall from the sky. The wind became stronger and stronger, accompanied by the rumbling of thunder. Soon, it began to rain.


    Su Qin and Su Miao ran until they were out of breath and arrived at the foot of a mountain. It was at this time that Su Qin finally saw the villagers.


    They were all standing on the hillside, hunched over in the rain. Their eyes were lifeless, and they were using their long, pointed black nails to continuously stroke the branches.


    Yes, just as she had expected, they were corroded.


    Su Qin''s last sliver of hope was instantly extinguished.


    This scene further confirmed her thoughts of leaving the Flower Snake Village.


    Then, she pulled Su Miao and continued to rush towards the entrance of the village.


    "Sister, I''m so tired!" Su Miao was already exhausted.


    Without saying a word, Su Qin carried Su Miao on her back.


    The sound of wind and rain was like the wailing of ghosts and the howling of wolves.


    Those ginkgo trees'' leaves swayed and rustled, as if the earth itself was trembling.


    When they were almost to the village entrance, Su Qin saw an even more terrifying scene and was so shocked that she almost fell down.


    It turned out that the ginkgo trees that were nailed with black cloth and the cadaver s that were to be buried had actually all opened up a small hole. cadaver s that were shiny black were climbing out of the tree trunk one by one.


    The cadaver were all alive!


    Su Qin felt like she was in a nightmare, an endless nightmare.


    At this moment, behind her body, on both sides of her body, cadaver were crawling on the ground incessantly. They were even entangled with the villagers.


    Su Miao began to cry loudly.


    Su Qin also wanted to cry, but she had no choice. She had to bring Su Miao far, far away from this corroded Flower Snake Village!


    In the end, when the Su Qin sisters successfully arrived at the village entrance, they did not stop.


    On the other side, inside a thatched cottage by the lake, Sun Erke was standing in front of a stove.


    "Shh ¡­" Keep quiet, keep quiet... Don''t let them find out... Big brother will protect you, and will always protect you! "


    Oh no!

 C18

    At the end of the summer, at a place called the Flying Plaza. Although it was close to one in the morning, there were still quite a few people wandering about.


    Du Lee really drank too much tonight, it was red wine, and also foreign wine. After getting out from the KTV, she rushed towards the fountain and spat all over.


    Now that everyone else had gone home, there were only and Yang Lan, her best friends left, to accompany her.


    Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun were both classmates in Du Lee''s university, so they could not be more familiar with each other.


    "How is it, are you feeling better? They are truly afraid that they will not be able to kill you by drinking it with their lives. " Yang Lan wiped Du Lee''s mouth and complained.


    "Aiya, it''s my birthday. I''m very happy." Chen Zhijun laughed.


    "Happy my ass, you also want to blindly stir up trouble? What if you get drunk and send it to the hospital, you''ll be responsible for it!" Yang Lan choked Chen Zhijun.


    "It''s fine. It''ll be fine after a while." Du Lee waved her hand, signalling for them to stop. She also had a headache.


    "Where''s your car? Where did you park it?" Yang Lan asked Du Lee.


    Du Lee drove her father''s car here, and Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun drove the other car. Seeing that Du Lee had drank so much, Yang Lan could only let him drive Du Lee home first, and then the two would take a taxi back and get their own cars.


    But when Yang Lan said this, Du Lee felt that it was troublesome.


    "Why don''t you all accompany me for a walk? If I were to blow the wind outside, the wine would wake up a bit faster. It would be quite troublesome if you all ran around here and there. Wait for me to go back by myself." Du Lee said.


    Yang Lan thought that this would work, since she didn''t need to go to work on Sunday tomorrow anyway.


    Therefore, the three of them decided to stroll around the streets. Chen Zhijun became even more excited, and said that he wanted to find a stall to eat supper.


    They continued to chat, and before they knew it, they had arrived at a relatively secluded path.


    On both sides of the road were many parasol trees and old houses. They were all local people, and they recognized that the road used to be an old street. Now that all the merchants had moved away, it was basically deserted.


    At this time, Du Lee felt a strong urge to pee. She had drank too much alcohol, she had to find a bathroom.


    "Are there any toilets nearby?" Du Lee asked.


    "I don''t know. Is there?" Yang Lan asked Chen Zhijun.


    "Let''s go ahead and take a look. I''m not sure either."


    They moved on.


    Du Lee could not hold it in anymore and looked around with a frown.


    "Why don''t we go back to the square? There must be something in the plaza. " Chen Zhijun suggested.


    "Are you crazy? To walk from the square to here for at least half an hour, you have to suffocate her to death!" Yang Lan scolded.


    "Take a taxi!"


    "No, there isn''t even a ghost here. Where did this taxi come from!"


    Just as he was at his wit''s end, Chen Zhijun suddenly called out, as if he had discovered a new continent.


    "Look, look! It''s a bar!"


    Du Lee and Yang Lan looked over at the same time, seeing a three-storey building in front of them, a sign on the third floor said: Fei Chang Bar.


    "What happened to the bar?" Yang Lan asked.


    "Idiot, do you have any more experience? If it''s a bar, then there must be a toilet." Chen Zhijun said proudly.


    "Tsk, you''re experienced. You must be satisfied that you have been flirting with girls in bars all day, right?"


    "Haha, how would I dare!"


    The two of them were teasing each other, when Du Lee said: "The bar shouldn''t be open, right? "The lights are not on."


    It was only then that Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun noticed that the windows on the third floor were indeed pitch black.


    "That''s impossible, isn''t this the most lively time of the bar?" Yang Lan asked.


    "Aiyo, it doesn''t matter whether you open it or not, as long as there''s a toilet, it''s fine." Chen Zhijun said impatiently.


    "Right, then come with me." Du Lee said while grinning.


    "No problem." Yang Lan dragged her words and replied. She knew that Du Lee was timid, but this house seemed a little eerie.


    They successfully found the passageway to the stairs. Du Lee was already feeling really bad, so even though the corridor was dark, she walked very fast. As a result, they found an iron gate at the entrance of the building.


    As they passed the street lamps outside, they saw a piece of paper affixed beside the iron gate. On the piece of paper, it read: "Due to an accident, this bar is temporarily closed. Please inform each other!"


    "No wonder. So it was closed." Chen Zhijun said.


    "Then why is there no time to reopen the store?" Yang Lan was suspicious.


    "Hey, big brother, big sister, please take care of me first, I''m almost suffocating!" Du Lee immediately said.


    Du Lee did not wait for the two to reply and directly pushed open the door and entered.


    The hallway on the third floor was extremely narrow, but there were a few windows that were relatively bright. There was a large door in the middle with a red curtain hanging on it. It was obviously the entrance to a bar.


    When they opened the curtain and walked a few steps, they came to the bar, which was dark and very hot because the lights were not on.


    Du Lee glanced at the bathroom''s logo and signaled to Yang Lan with her eyes. Yang Lan turned and said to Chen Zhijun: "Wait here."


    "Alright, you guys hurry up."


    Accompanied by Yang Lan, Du Lee went to the toilet. Luckily, there was still light inside the toilet. Du Lee did not hesitate and immediately squatted down to solve her problem. Yang Lan stood outside the door and waited.


    After finishing everything, Du Lee returned to Yang Lan''s side. She was already sweating profusely from the heat, but she still showed a relaxed expression.


    "Is this great?" Yang Lan laughed.


    "Of course, but it''s so hot." Du Lee used a tissue to wipe the sweat off her forehead.


    When they were walking out, Du Lee''s mood gradually calmed down. She couldn''t help but to notice her surroundings and suddenly felt that even though the bar was buzzing and noisy, the moment the lights were turned off, it would also look very eerie. She thought again that if she was alone, she wouldn''t have the guts to come here.


    Besides, she found it excruciatingly hot and smelly.


    Du Lee and Yang Lan rushed to the door, but they did not find Chen Zhijun. Just as Yang Lan was about to call out for her, the circular dance floor''s moving colored light suddenly lit up.


    "How is it? Am I smart?" Near the DJ Stage, Chen Zhijun''s voice came.


    "What are you doing?" Yang Lan asked.


    Chen Zhijun straightened his body with a silly smile on his face. He was actually standing in front of the DJ Stage with all kinds of switches on his body.


    "Did you turn on this light?" "Sure you can." Du Lee laughed.


    "It''s nothing."


    Yang Lan looked around the DJ Stage and snorted: "Isn''t it just those few switches, I''m so proud of you."


    At this time, Chen Zhijun pressed something again and the colorful lights started to sway. The dance floor instantly became dazzling, especially in the dark environment, it was even more dazzling.


    She started to walk around casually, observing her surroundings. Gradually, she discovered that this bar seemed to have been around for a long time, the walls, sofas, floors, all of them were broken through, and every corner of the bar was pitch black, as though it had been roasted.


    Du Lee still remembered the notice from the iron gate that an accident had happened at the bar, but she did not specify what happened.


    While Du Lee was deep in thought, Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun had already woken up on the dance floor. The music was played using their phones, and with the cool light shining down, it really did feel like they were celebrating in a bar.


    "Lili, come on, jump with us!" Yang Lan greeted Du Lee.


    "No, no, you guys go ahead and play. I''m too hot, let''s have a rest." Du Lee said as she found the closest sofa and sat down.


    "Tsk, boring!" Yang Lan retorted, then continued to twist her butt with Chen Zhijun.


    What Du Lee said was the truth, she was really too hot, from the moment she entered, she was extremely hot, as if her entire body was about to burn up.


    After sitting for a while, she saw that Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun were having fun, so she took a recording of the event. She even took a photo of herself and sent it to her WeChat Moments, with a message accompanying: "Everyone, guess where I am?" What an unforgettable birthday, haha!


    Then she put the phone away and went to bed.


    However, when she completely calmed down, she suddenly felt a strange feeling, causing her to feel a chill from head to toe.


    She looked around and saw nothing out of the ordinary.


    However, this strange feeling continued to expand, assaulting her heart.


    Sometimes, the senses of a human can catch onto a subtle phenomenon more easily than a rational person. This was how Du Lee was now.


    Slowly, she heard deep, light sounds, sounds she was sure she hadn''t heard before.


    It gave her the feeling that something was walking back and forth beside her.


    In other words, there was something extra in this lobby.


    For some reason, a mysterious aura came from behind her. She suddenly turned around, but did not discover anything out of the ordinary.


    Behind her, there was a long sofa, some broken tables and chairs. Other than that, there were only black walls.


    She sat back, but her heart began to beat faster.


    She saw that Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun were still shaking their heads on the dance floor, as if they hadn''t noticed anything abnormal at all.


    She wanted to shout loudly, then immediately bring Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun out of the bar, but she couldn''t muster up any energy.


    And because of the tension, she felt hotter and hotter, as if she were sitting in a fire.


    Just when she couldn''t take it anymore and was about to rush to the dance floor, she saw it. She saw it very clearly, on the dance floor, other than Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun, there were also many other legs that were playing with the two on the dance floor. There were too many people to squeeze through.


    Du Lee was shocked, his heart felt like it was suffering from a heavy blow.


    The key thing was that Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun were still jumping there, not even glancing at Du Lee. If not, Du Lee could have just gestured at them.


    Du Lee really did not dare to say yes, she was afraid that she would alarm the ''people'' dancing with Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun.


    She had a feeling that Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun would never be able to return.


    Therefore, she decided to leave, leaving by herself.


    Then, without another word, she stood up and rushed out of the bar.


    During the time that she was downstairs, Du Lee''s mind was completely blank. She sprinted back to the street outside at a top speed that could only be used to run and dance.


    Finally, she took another look at the bar and without stopping, she ran straight to the Plaza and got into her own Toyota sedan.


    At the moment, Du Lee was extremely tired. She panted loudly and drank as much water as she could, gulping down the entire bottle of mineral water in one go.


    Then she started the car and headed home.


    On the road, Du Lee pulled the car to a speed of 120 yards per hour. She was in too much of a panic to even remember her way home. Besides, even with all the windows open, she still felt hot and dry, as she had when she was sitting in the bar, as if she had a fire under her ass.


    She was sweating profusely, and her clothes and pants, including the seat, were all wet. In this state, she was home.


    When she got home, she didn''t greet her parents. Instead, she locked herself in her room and sat on the bed with her hands on her knees, staring blankly into space.


    Even now, she still hadn''t recovered. She was still scared and trembling all over.


    Especially when she recalled the strange postures of those shadows on the dance floor, it made her hair stand on end.


    When she was still a student, she had read many supernatural novels. She guessed that Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun must have been bewitched by those shadows, and the problem must have been within the bar.


    She regretted that she had to go to the bar to use the toilet. If she didn''t go, nothing would happen.


    It was at this moment that a voice came from outside the door: "Lili, you''re back?"


    Du Lee jumped in fright, only after recovering from her shock did she realize that her mother was asking her.


    "Yes." "No," she replied.


    "How are you today?"


    "It''s alright ¡­" Mom, I''m going to sleep. "


    "Oh, oh, okay."


    Du Lee''s mother consciously went back to her room, and was unable to see her daughter in a daze.


    In the end, Du Lee did not sleep at all. Sometimes she looked at his phone, and sometimes she looked out the window. She was afraid that her phone would ring and it would be Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun calling her.


    In the morning, Du Lee''s phone did not ring either. However, she was still very hot. Even though the air conditioner had been adjusted to its lowest temperature, it was still very unbearably hot and kept sweating.


    She suspected she was sick.


    For the rest of the day, Du Lee kept herself in her room, not eating nor drinking. She began to feel guilty, thinking that if she left like that yesterday, Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun would definitely blame her.


    She didn''t dare imagine how she would deal with Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun if they came to find her. Right now, she was even doubtful as to whether they were still alive.


    In the evening, Du Lee went to the kitchen to get some food and drink, then returned to her room to rest.


    It was also because Du Lee''s parents were busy with work and worked overtime, so they did not notice anything abnormal about their daughter.


    After another night, Du Lee''s mood had gradually improved, but she still felt that her body was very hot. She continuously wiped her sweat with a tissue, and found that the trash can was filled to the brim with paper towels.


    In the morning, she took a few days off from the company. She really didn''t want to go back to work.


    While she was at home, she felt that one thing she could do was find out more about the bar, especially about the accident at the bar.


    Actually, Du Lee had been thinking about this since last night, but she was afraid at night.


    She planned to start by checking the internet.


    Du Lee was very familiar with the internet search function. Very quickly, she found the registration information about this bar on a website.


    There wasn''t much information, it was all basic.


    "Establishment year 2003, address: XX Road XX, phone XXXXXXXX ¡­"


    Du Lee muttered. She realized that besides the bar being opened early, there was nothing special about it.


    She then went to various news websites to check on the incident at the bar.


    However, after searching for a long time, he came up empty-handed.


    Du Lee felt that because the accident was not that big and it was a small place, it did not attract too much attention.


    This would be more troublesome because she didn''t know how to check the local news, newspapers, and the like. It was too unusual for her.


    Suddenly, a person appeared in her mind. It was her university classmate, Wang Ming. He was currently employed by the Information Department of the Public Security Bureau. His birthday had also arrived the day before yesterday.


    She thought that since it was the Public Security Bureau, they should be well-informed about the incident, so without hesitation, she dialed Wang Ming''s number.


    "Hello, Li-jie."


    When they were studying, Wang Ming liked to call Du Lee that, and the two of them had a pretty good relationship.


    "Is it convenient? "Help me investigate something."


    Du Lee went straight to the point.


    Therefore, she told Wang Ming the name and relevant information about the bar, and told him to check out the incident where the bar had been used.


    "Wait a moment, I''ll go and ask. I''ll give you a call later."


    Wang Ming died.


    Du Lee then waited quietly on her phone.


    After about an hour, Du Lee''s phone rang.


    "How is it? Did you manage to find out?"


    "What a joke, can I not investigate the things that Sister Li asked me to do?"


    "Then speak!"


    "It''s a fire."


    "Fire? A fire? "


    "Yeah, I heard that one night, the bar was set on fire on purpose and the iron door was locked. The hall was set ablaze and about 20 people died in the end. However, this matter gave the higher ups a lot of pressure, preventing them from reporting it. They said that it had a bad effect. "Oh yeah, don''t speak nonsense outside as well. Otherwise, I''ll be in trouble."


    "Fire ¡­" Who did? " Du Lee''s heartbeat started to accelerate.


    "We still haven''t caught the culprit. Our internal analysis was done by the same team, but we were just a bit ruthless with our actions."


    Du Lee suddenly thought back to that day in the bar, and indeed, she saw burn marks at the corner of the wall.


    "However, the owner of that bar has a mechanism. After the incident occurs, he should close down immediately and fix it, clean up the traces of the fire and move away the things that were burned down. He probably wants to do business in the future ¡­" Wang Ming continued.


    Du Lee already felt that she was close to suffocating.


    "I''ve told you everything I know. What else do you want to ask?" Wang Ming said at last.


    "No, that''s enough."


    "Did you go to this bar often before? "Why did you suddenly think of asking me about this?"


    "No, I asked for a friend, so I hung up first."


    Du Lee did not wait for a reply and directly hung up.


    After understanding all these, Du Lee vaguely understood what they met that night at the bar, and why it was so hot.


    Burn more than 20 people!


    These words kept repeating themselves in her mind.


    That night, Du Lee was still sitting on the bed, lost in thought.


    She felt as if she was cut off from the world. She didn''t go out, she didn''t interact with anyone. Her parents had come home very late these few days, so they were basically unable to speak.


    Suddenly, her cell phone rang.


    The caller displayed two words: Yang Lan!


    Du Lee felt the sky spin and the earth spin, as if she was in a dream.


    Yang Lan is calling! Yang Lan is calling!


    Previously, she had suspected that Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun had died, or had been possessed by some strange thing. She was just glad that the two of them didn''t come back to look for her.


    She was hesitating whether to answer the call or not.


    However, when her phone rang a second time, she answered with a trembling voice.


    "Hey ¡­" Du Lee''s voice was so soft that she could barely hear herself.


    "Hello ¡­" Is it Lili? " The voice that came from the other end of the phone was also very soft.


    Du Lee was very sure that it was Yang Lan''s voice.


    "Yeah." Du Lee replied.


    "Oh ¡­" Lili, are you still here? "


    Yang Lan was baffled by this question.


    "What do you mean? I''m fine, but you ¡­" Is everything all right? " Du Lee asked.


    "I''m fine too, I''m resting at home."


    Hearing that Yang Lan''s tone was more normal, Du Lee also gradually became bolder.


    "That night ¡­" After we went to the bar to look for the toilet, I left by myself. You guys didn''t blame me, right? "


    "It''s fine. We left later on as well."


    "Gone?"


    "Yeah."


    "Yang Lan, don''t scare me like that, didn''t you notice anything strange?"


    "Yes!" Of course! That bar is not clean, we''re scared to death! "


    Hearing up to here, Du Lee had already confirmed that Yang Lan was normal. She heaved a sigh of relief, thinking that Yang Lan and Chen Zhijun was out of danger like her.


    "Ai ¡­" Me too! Haunted, that bar must be haunted! And, you may not know, there was a fire in that bar not long ago, and more than twenty people died! " Du Lee began to speak to Yang Lan using a normal tone.


    "I know, I''ve checked as well."


    "You checked as well?"


    "Hmm, Chen Zhijun let one of his uncles investigate, and he investigated very carefully. It was early in the morning, and the bar had been set on fire near the end of the day. The walls on one side of the hall had all been set ablaze, so the people who died were the most miserable ones who were burned alive. Then there were also people who died in other parts of the hall, including the toilets. "Only those who squeezed in the corridor on the third floor managed to survive."


    "Oh ¡­" So it was like that. That... "You didn''t notice when you were dancing ¡­"


    "Some of the shadows are dancing with us, aren''t they?"


    "So you know everything!" "Seriously, you didn''t call me for the next two days. I was worried to death about you, so I thought you ¡­"


    "No, I''m fine. Actually... Lili... I won''t call you because... I''m scared too. "


    "What are you afraid of?"


    "Afraid of you."


    Du Lee''s heart suddenly sank.


    "Afraid of me ¡­ "What?" Du Lee asked again with that cautious tone.


    "Lili, do you really not know anything?"


    "What do I know?"


    "Aren''t you hot?"


    Hearing that, Du Lee''s heart was shaken.


    "That night ¡­" "When we dance ¡­" Yang Lan continued, "Actually, Chen Zhijun and I have been looking at you this whole time, but ¡­ Those shadows beside us, tell us not to stop, let alone go to your side. Just dance with them for a while and then let us go safely. Results... We left the moment we saw you, but you didn''t notice anything following you? "


    Du Lee''s heart skipped a beat, she was silent for a moment, then asked: "What is it?"


    "You sat on the sofa that night and took a picture of yourself. You even sent it to your circle of friends, didn''t you? Now look at the picture... "


    Du Lee immediately opened WeChat and looked at the photo.


    When he saw that photo, Du Lee''s heart almost stopped beating. In the photo, her left and right sides were all filled with people, only showing her head. As for those people, they were all pitch-black, and their appearances were appalling. There were all kinds of burn marks on their skin, and sparks were emitting from their bodies. Obviously, it was the people who were burned alive!


    Looking at the messages under the photo, Du Lee found that her friends were all teasing her, praising her for the excellent quality of the PS photos. Only Wang Ming sent a message just now and cautiously asked: "No way, Sister Li, what''s the situation?"


    "You must have seen it? "Back then, you were sitting in the disaster area, those people were burned alive, so they were the ones with the heaviest grievances. The shadows beside us also told us not to provoke those people ¡­" Yang Lan continued to speak.


    Du Lee was so scared that her face turned pale and he could not say a word.


    "Lili, are you still listening? Lili... " Yang Lan asked anxiously.


    Du Lee ignored Yang Lan, and slowly picked up her phone. She pointed the phone lens at herself, and took another picture.


    At this moment, she thought of something even more terrifying.


    She knew she had been hot for days, hotter even than she had been in the bar, but why?


    The photo quickly gave her an answer.


    Because in the photo she could see clearly that the charred, charred people were still close to her, filling the room.


    Oh no!

 C19

    "Sister, I want to eat cake."


    Every evening, Jiayi would drag Xiao Ze downstairs to take a walk. On the way, they would hide things from their parents and go to the convenience store to buy some delicious snacks, such as cakes, ice cream, chocolate, potato chips and more. Whatever his brother wanted to eat, his sister usually agreed.


    This was also the happiest time of the day for Xiao Ze. Because he didn''t have a mother to control him, he could only protect his sister, so he was able to eat and drink to his heart''s content.


    The reason her elder sister doted on her little brother so much was because his elder sister Yang Jiayi was ten years older than his younger brother, Yang Jiaze. The other reason was that Xiao Ze was truly adorable and mischievous, liking almost everyone around him.


    The autumn day had already been shortened, and once dusk came, it was almost no different from night. pulled Xiao Ze and slowly walked towards the convenience store.


    In the recent few days, because her father was away on business and his mother was on duty every night, Jiayi had to take care of her brother and take care of the breakfast and the kindergartens. However, since their parents were not around, the siblings were unscrupulous. They could stay up late and even bring home those snacks that their mother hated the most.


    After buying a piece of cake for Xiao Ze, Jiayi led Xiao Ze out of the residential area. As they were walking past the entrance, a middle-aged security guard surnamed Wang habitually carried Xiao Ze up from the guard room. Xiao Ze just indifferently nibbled on the cake.


    The security guard''s name was Wang Feng, and he was on good terms with the siblings.


    "Oh right, Jiayi, recently, try your best not to bring your brother out for a stroll tonight." After putting Xiao Ze down, Wang Feng spoke with a serious expression.


    Jiayi was a little not used to Wang Feng''s expression. After all, he would usually laugh when he saw him.


    "Why?"


    "Don''t ask, just listen to me."


    "What? What''s the matter?"


    Jiayi was a person who would not let things go, she would clarify everything that happened to him.


    "Didn''t you hear about the incident a few days ago?" Wang Feng asked.


    Jiayi shook her head.


    "Last night, at the small park, didn''t you also see a lot of people there? Don''t you know what they were talking about?"


    "I don''t know." Those are all old aunties, usually the most gossipy ones. Who cares about them. " Jiayi was straightforward, she was not afraid of offending anyone.


    "Heh ¡­" "That makes sense." Wang Feng was amused by Jiayi, and immediately stopped smiling, "Let me tell you, in these few days, the two children in the neighborhood have all been lost."


    "Lost two children?" Jiayi was startled.


    "Right, two!" Wang Feng nodded.


    Xiao Ze stopped eating cake and seemed to have nothing to do, so he started to urge his sister to leave quickly.


    "Okay, okay, Xiao Ze, wait a minute ¡­" "Hey, Uncle Wang, how did this child get lost? Did you find him?"


    "Where can I find one!?" The two lost boys are as old as your Xiao Ze. Where do you think a child of his age would go? They all disappeared on the slide in the little park. Someone must have carried them away. "


    "Ah?" Did you call the police? "


    "It''s already been reported to the police. The police have come a few times already! Right now, both families had gone mad with anxiety. It was said that they had all happened while the elderly were taking care of their children. Sigh ¡­ "That''s why I told you to be careful in the near future. Don''t go out when you have nothing else to do."


    "Oh, it''s like this ¡­" Jiayi frowned, holding tightly onto Xiao Ze''s hand. Xiao Ze was no longer noisy and was listening attentively, as he vaguely understood what was going on.


    "Oh right, there''s one more thing. I heard those women talking yesterday, they said someone saw the person who carried the child away." Wang Feng suddenly lowered his voice and said.


    "Who is it?"


    "It seems to be an old woman, not someone from here. What did she say ¡­" She was wearing a fur coat, and the man saw her sneaking around in the little park.


    "It''s really scary." Although she was still young and had not yet attended high school, but she had heard quite a lot about stealing from other people. She was also one of the more widespread problems in society today, and knew that it was usually traffickers who threw away boys, and it was said that it was very difficult to find them again, because these children would usually be sold to the more remote parts of the village, places where ideas were lacking. Some of the children could not be born, and some families that did not have boys would simply buy one.


    If Xiao Ze was also kidnapped by a trafficker, it would be unimaginable for them since their parents would definitely go crazy. Thus, when he heard Wang Feng out of it, Jiayi didn''t hesitate to pull Xiao Ze up and leave.


    "Elder sister, where are we going?"


    Xiao Ze must have felt it was strange that he would not normally return home so early.


    "I''m not playing today. Didn''t you hear what Uncle Wang said? With an old lady wearing a big leather jacket, who specially came to catch children as big as Xiao Ze, would Xiao Ze be afraid? "


    "I''m afraid." Xiao Ze blurted out as he stared at his.


    "That''s why we have to go home. It''s fine as long as we stay at home."


    "Oh, but... "There''s still big brother and big sister playing over there." Through the forest, following the direction that Xiao Ze pointed, Jiayi saw that there was a man and a woman playing on the swing at the skating ladder in the small park. The two children looked slightly older than Xiao Ze, and they both wore yellow hats.


    "They''re all going back to eat, too." Jiayi casually made up a lie, but in her heart she thought: I really hope that I don''t hear about these two losing them in a few days.


    The two of them returned home smoothly. Jiayi still had lingering fear in her heart, so she called his mother, who was a little nervous when she heard the news. Naturally, she told Xiao Ze not to go out, and would personally take care of Xiao Ze''s kindergarten.


    Several days passed and the two siblings did not go out for a walk in the evening. Their father was still away on business and their mother was still busy. There were no more news of their child being taken away from the district, but it seemed that the two missing children could no longer be found.


    Today was Saturday, so they didn''t have to go to school. Mom was in the hospital all day, at least until midnight. Jiayi casually brought Xiao Ze something to eat. Seeing that his brother was bored to death, Jiayi brought him to the center of the city square to take a walk. She thought that as long as they went to a lively place, they would be safe.


    In the evening, the two returned home in high spirits. Jiayi suddenly remembered that there would be a reunion tonight, the birthday of a classmate of her who was also her best friend. She had to go, and coincidentally, her parents were not home, so Jiayi had wanted to take this opportunity to have a good time.


    Normally speaking, leaving Xiao Ze alone at home would not be a big deal, but because of the recent special circumstances, not only was Xiao Ze worried, he was also worried that he would feel scared.


    "Xiao Ze, sister has something to discuss with you." After hesitating for a long time, Jiayi decided to participate in the gathering.


    Jiayi believed that as long as they were at home, Xiao Ze would not be in danger.


    "What?" Xiao Ze played with the wooden block as he replied absent-mindedly.


    "Sister is going out to eat dinner tonight, I''ve made an appointment with a classmate. I''ll make Xiao Ze''s favorite sandwich and put in a cartoon for him. Once it''s 9, Xiao Ze will go to bed on his own, is that okay?"


    Xiao Ze slowly raised his head and looked at Jiayi with an innocent gaze.


    "When is elder sister coming back?"


    "As soon as possible, maybe Xiao Ze still hasn''t fallen asleep, but Big Sis is already back."


    "Alright!" Although he was unwilling, Xiao Ze still agreed.


    "So obedient, there''s more. Just like last time, you''re not allowed to tell Mommy about Big Sister going out." Jiayi laughed slyly.


    "En!"


    Jiayi was overjoyed, she immediately made a sandwich for Xiao Ze, then opened the children''s channel''s program on TV. After everything was arranged, she changed her clothes and prepared to leave.


    The moment he stepped out of his house, he saw Xiao Ze staring at him anxiously. Jiayi was still a little worried, and could only remind him:


    "Oh yes, if there are any strangers knocking on the door, Xiao Ze must not open the door, remember?"


    Xiao Ze nodded his head heavily.


    When his sister closed the door, Xiao Ze immediately felt a sense of loneliness. He stood there for more than ten seconds before slowly returning to the living room.


    After a pause, he got up and went to the kitchen to get his sister''s sandwich.


    At this moment, he noticed that the light in the kitchen was not turned on. It was pitch black and looked somewhat eerie.


    Xiao Ze unconsciously slowed his pace. The distance from the living room to the kitchen was very short, but he felt that it was incredibly long.


    Finally, he found the light switch for the kitchen. After turning it on, the kitchen was instantly bright. After thinking for a moment, he turned on the bedroom, the bathroom, and the corridor lights.


    Xiao Ze was finally relieved. He held the warm sandwich in his hand and sat on the sofa to eat it quietly.


    It was different from normal times. When eating the sandwich, Xiao Ze did not dare to make too much noise, as if he was afraid that someone or something would hear him.


    But he clearly knew that he was the only one left in the family.


    While eating, Xiao Ze suddenly had the urge to cry. He was five years old, and logically speaking, he should have been a big child, but he was rarely left alone at home like tonight. Moreover, the recent events in the neighborhood had touched on some of his weak nerves, especially the name: leather-clad mother-in-law!


    According to my sister, that mother-in-law will carry the child away. Will she come and carry me away?


    This was a terrifying guess that had currently stopped in Xiao Ze''s mind.


    At this moment, he had a nagging feeling that something was wrong at home. Moreover, it was strangely quiet. The place that he should have been most familiar with, however, was a place that he was extremely unfamiliar with.


    After sitting in a daze for a long time, he began to watch the children''s program. However, he was still a bit absent-minded, and would look towards the door from time to time.


    He wished so much for his mother, sister, and father to come back together now, to talk and laugh as they usually did.


    When the clock struck eight, it was already eight in the evening. Xiao Ze just sat there, numb in his seat.


    Just as he was looking around, suddenly, a light noise came from outside the door. Xiao Ze''s ears were perked up and his nerves were sensitive to the noise, causing him to instantly sit up straight.


    The sound of the television was very soft, so Xiao Ze was able to quickly distinguish that it was the sound of a person''s footsteps.


    However, Xiao Ze''s house was on the sixth floor, and it was already the highest floor of the building. Most importantly, his neighbor had moved out half a year ago, so Xiao Ze knew that there was only Xiao Ze''s house on the sixth floor.


    In other words, the people who were going up to the sixth floor were definitely going towards Xiao Ze''s family.


    Furthermore, Xiao Ze felt that it was strange that the person outside should have gone up the stairs instead of using an elevator. Otherwise, he would have been able to hear the sound of the elevator door opening and closing.


    At this moment, the footsteps stopped. From the looks of it, the person was standing outside the door.


    It was absolutely impossible for this person to be his parents or sister. If it were them, they would have opened the door and come in a long time ago.


    The more Xiao Ze thought about it, the more afraid he became.


    After a long while, this mysterious guest did not knock on the door, nor did he go downstairs. Xiao Ze did not know what this person wanted to do.


    Another minute passed, Xiao Ze was still staring at the door, it was dead silent.


    He decided to gather his courage and go to the gate to take a look.


    He slowly moved his feet, moved a stool over, placed it in front of the door, stuck it close to the door and carefully stood up. Xiao Ze was not tall, this was the only way he could clearly see the situation outside through the small window above the door.


    Xiao Ze held his breath, his small hands gently opened the window, he was hesitating, afraid that he would see something he shouldn''t have.


    Outside, it was dark and still, the sound control light off.


    Xiao Ze glanced at the door. Because it was too dark, he couldn''t see anything at first.


    But in the next instant, in the darkness, an old woman''s face, coarse and ugly, appeared. It was a face, but it seemed more like a piece of rotten meat that emitted a fishy stench. There were scars all over her face, like countless earthworms wriggling. There was also her black, asymmetrical leather dress!


    Xiao Ze was so shocked that he almost fell off the chair.


    At the same time, a voice sounded in his mind: "Grandma Pi Yi!"


    As expected, the leather-clothed old lady came to capture him! While his mother and sister weren''t home!


    Xiao Ze had completely lost his square inch. The scene just now had caused his weak and young heart to be branded with a terrifying imprint that would never be erased.


    After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Ze looked out of the window once again, he realised that the leather-robed granny had disappeared. While he was pondering, that rotten flesh-like face suddenly appeared from the darkness, and it was even closer to Xiao Ze this time.


    Just at this time, he heard two soft knocking sounds coming from the door. Xiao Ze thought in his heart: There''s a knock on the door, Grandma Pi Yi is knocking, she''s going to take Xiao Ze away. Father, Mother, come back!


    The knocking stopped after a while. Although it was impossible for Xiao Ze to open the door, he was afraid that Grandma Pi Yi would pry open the door and rush in. His mind was filled with the scene of her carrying him away from home.


    Finally, Xiao Ze thought of an idea. It was the method his mother had taught him before to deal with strangers who came with ill intentions.


    Xiao Ze immediately turned around and shouted towards the door: "Mom, Mom, don''t sleep!"


    After a short pause, he added, "There seems to be someone outside."


    After he finished speaking, Xiao Ze watched the door silently and waited quietly.


    These two sentences had almost exhausted his last bit of strength.


    One second, two seconds, one minute, two minutes ¡­ Time passed slowly.


    Xiao Ze''s method of pretending that his mother was home seemed to be very effective, as the knocking on the door never sounded again.


    "..."


    When Jiayi returned home, she saw Xiao Ze standing stiffly in front of the sofa, his eyes red and his expression nervous.


    She felt that something was wrong and quickly asked:


    "Xiao Ze, it''s already so late, why aren''t you sleeping? What happened? "


    Xiao Ze pursed his lips, at the moment, fear was mixed with grievance, he could not help but cry.


    "Elder sister, I''m scared!"


    After that, Xiao Ze told Jiayi everything that had happened. When Jiayi heard this, her entire body shivered, and she regretted leaving Xiao Ze alone at home.


    Jiayi comforted Xiao Ze while thinking: Xiao Ze definitely wouldn''t lie, it seems like there really is an old lady wearing a big leather jacket, the two children I lost earlier were most likely related to her, it''s also true. If I stay at home and capture that old lady, I will have hope of finding those two children.


    Due to being frightened, Jiayi coaxed Xiao Ze to sleep for a long time. For selfish reasons, Jiayi didn''t allow her to tell his mother about the Leather Nanny''s visit. After all, if his mother knew that Jiayi had let go of her brother and went to play, she would definitely be angry.


    On the second Sunday, Jiayi decided to stay at home to accompany Xiao Ze.


    Even after he had slept for a while, Xiao Ze was still nervous. From time to time, he would ask Jiayi if the Leather Nanny would come back again, and Jiayi would always try to distract him and make him happy.


    In the afternoon, Jiayi still decided to make a trip to the security room to inform Wang Feng of what had happened last night.


    "Xiao Ze, let''s go to Uncle Wang''s place together. Can you tell Uncle Wang about what happened last night again?"


    "Yes, yes." Xiao Ze nodded obediently.


    After the siblings went downstairs, they immediately realized that the rain outside was heavier than they had expected. The sky was still overcast. It was only around three in the afternoon, but it seemed even darker than it usually was at six. It was simply depressing.


    Jiayi held onto an umbrella with one hand and Xiao Ze with the other as she walked slowly towards the security room.


    Suddenly, Xiao Ze released an "ah" sound of shock, and tightly grabbed onto Jiayi''s hand, and shouted: "Big sister, big sister, look! Look! "


    Jiayi was also startled by Xiao Ze''s shout. She immediately looked towards the direction where Xiao Ze was pointing towards and saw a hunchbacked old woman who was wearing a dome hat and a black leather jacket walking in front of a building. Her posture was extremely strange, but he was unable to tell what was wrong.


    Because it was raining heavily, Jiayi could not see the other party''s appearance clearly. However, looking at Xiao Ze''s panicked expression, he guessed that it must be the leather-clothed granny.


    Grandma Pi, who was also aware that she had been discovered, hastened her steps and ran towards a corner.


    "Xiao Ze, this person is Grandma Piaomiao, right?" Jiayi confirmed.


    Xiao Ze nodded with all his might.


    "Alright, quickly go to Uncle Wang and call him over!"


    Jiayi thought: This is such a good opportunity, I''ll see where you can escape to now.


    Jiayi firmly believed that Grandma Piaomiao was related to the two missing children. If not because she was guilty, she would definitely not run away when she saw others.


    Therefore, Jiayi threw the umbrella to Xiao Ze and chased after him. By this time, the leather-robed lady had already went around the corner.


    Xiao Ze watched as his sister chased her all the way before turning a corner. Only until his sister disappeared from his sight did he slowly walk towards the security room.


    As he walked, he would occasionally look around the corner to see if his sister had already caught hold of the leather-clothed old lady.


    Unfortunately, Jiayi did not come back immediately.


    Just then, Xiao Ze passed by the small park. The usually bustling and lively inside the small park, had become quiet and empty due to the heavy rain.


    There was not a single person around. Rain was pouring down, washing away all the greenery.


    Slowly, Xiao Ze heard footsteps behind him, as if someone was approaching him.


    He stood still, and his whole body began to tremble uncontrollably.


    Suddenly, Xiao Ze felt a strong power restraining her. A thick arm grabbed onto his waist and another hand quickly covered his mouth as they moved in one go.


    Xiao Ze''s eyes were filled with tears, he did not even have the chance to shout.


    He saw two people in front of him, both of whom looked familiar. They were the boys and girls that he saw last time he walked with his sister in the park.


    They were both wearing yellow hats, as at that time, and the woman was wearing a flowery dress.


    He clearly remembered that when his sister came home, she had said that she hoped that the two children wouldn''t be carried away by her.


    But at such a close distance, Xiao Ze realised that the two in front of him were not children, but two ugly adult Dwarves that were only as short as children!


    This was especially true for the female Dwarf. Her face was riddled with scars and she looked like countless worms crawling around. Xiao Ze recognized her at a glance.


    Xiao Ze naturally did not know how these two traffickers had cleverly used their physique to disguise themselves as two children to scout the situation in the small district.


    During the operation, the female Dwarf was mounted on the male Dwarf''s shoulder and wore a large black leather jacket. The two of them combined to form a leather-clothed mother-in-law.


    Xiao Ze was their target that they had been eyeing for a long time.


    Never would Jiayi have thought that after she was lured past a corner by two people, she would be swiftly abandoned due to the big leather jacket. What she saw were another two children, and Jiayi chose to continue chasing.


    At this moment, the female Dwarf opened her big leather clothes and wrapped Xiao Ze up in one go.


    "Alright, the third one!"


    Oh no!

 C20

    With everything arranged, Zhu Mingyi''s family could be considered to have officially moved into this house.


    Although it was just an old apartment, the rent was not cheap. Zhu Mingyi also knew that the price in the provincial capital was not like in the small towns that he used to live in, especially the houses.


    Zhu Mingyi received the notification of his assignment two months ago. At first, he lived in the employee dormitory, but when he went home during the weekend, he realized that it was really not convenient for him to do so. Thus, he let his wife, Yang Faang, quit work and brought his 6 year old daughter, Zhu Yang, over to the capital to rent a room.


    Although the rent was a new burden, Zhu Mingyi''s income had risen a lot. Considering that he could still go to school in the city, the education environment would definitely be better than the suburbs.


    So when Yang Faang found a job and the two of them had a stable job, Zhu Mingyi planned to borrow money to buy a house in the city.


    As for the rented house, Zhu Mingyi was basically satisfied with it, except for the soundproofing. At night, when he slept, he could hear a few tiny noises. There was the sound of a car honking, insects chirping, voices talking, and occasionally the crying and running sounds of children.


    Usually, this building would only have five floors and very few residents, so there wouldn''t be so much noise. However, after several nights passed, Zhu Mingyi''s family was unable to sleep soundly, making them extremely depressed.


    Especially in the upstairs family, often in the middle of the night came the sound of children playing and running, and sometimes especially loud, as if it were right beside their ears.


    One night, when Zhu Mingyi saw that Zhu Yang was tossing and turning unable to sleep, he finally reached his limit of patience. He simply opened the window and shouted towards the floor above: "Fourth floor, can you lower your voice? Others don''t need to sleep at night?! "


    It was unknown if he really intimidated the other party, but in short, after Zhu Mingyi shouted for a while, the upstairs became quiet. He turned his head and laughed, and then said to Yang Faang: "See, is it useful? "That scumbag."


    At first, Zhu Mingyi thought that things could be settled easily, but after a short while, another sound came from upstairs. This time, it was a woman crying, light and leisurely, as if it contained a long-accumulated grief.


    "Don''t tell me you scared them to tears?" Yang Faang asked worriedly.


    "They can cry just by saying a few words. What kind of joke is this!" Zhu Mingyi opened the window again and looked up.


    He noticed that the fourth floor was dark and the lights were off.


    "Strange." He closed the window again.


    "What''s strange?"


    "Why did they turn off the lights when they were so lively just a moment ago?"


    "He''s going to sleep too."


    Just as Zhu Mingyi and Yang Faang were discussing, the woman''s wail rang out again. It sounded even more sorrowful than before.


    After a moment of silence, Zhu Mingyi asked:


    "What the hell is she crying about?"


    Yang Faang wanted to reply, but a few more "peng!" sounds came from above. Bang! "Bam!" The sound was similar to the sound of a ball hitting the ground, followed by the sound of children laughing. It was in stark contrast to the sound of a woman crying.


    "Is the family sick?" Zhu Mingyi became angry again.


    Yang Faang was a timid person, she did not want to quarrel with others the moment she moved here, so she told Zhu Mingyi:


    "Never mind, go to sleep, stop tormenting yourself."


    Zhu Mingyi knew that there was nothing he could do, it was the middle of the night, if he really wanted to solve the problem, he would have to do it tomorrow.


    After that, the sound continued to be intermittent for a while and then quickly stopped.


    The next day, coincidentally, was Saturday. Zhu Mingyi''s family slept for a long time, and only woke up at noon. When he was washing up, Zhu Mingyi was once again reminded of what happened last night.


    "It seems like this family is just a night owl. It''s so noisy in the middle of the night, and there''s not a sound of fart in the morning, especially that kid. I''ll go upstairs and talk to them later."


    Yang Faang looked in the mirror and replied leisurely:


    "You should also be a bit polite. Maybe he really does have something on his mind."


    Obviously, Yang Faang was still thinking about the woman''s crying last night, making her feel very uncomfortable.


    Not long later, Zhu Mingyi pulled Zhu Yang along and they rode in the elevator to the door of room 402 on the fourth floor.


    "Press the doorbell. Be good."


    Hearing his father''s instructions, Zhu Yang happily tiptoed and strongly pressed the doorbell.


    The doorbell rang. Zhu Mingyi took a peek at the peephole and discovered that it was very dim inside.


    A dozen seconds passed and no one opened the door.


    "Press again. Hurry."


    Zhu Yang pressed down heavily twice more, and then stood back up expectantly.


    He waited for about half a minute, but nothing happened.


    "Dad, no one is opening it." Zhu Yang pretended to sigh.


    Zhu Mingyi pressed on it a few more times, thinking: This family is so energetic, and left early in the morning?


    "Is anyone there?" Zhu Mingyi knocked on the door as he shouted loudly, "Is there anyone here?"


    "Dad, let''s go." Zhu Yang did not have patience, he pulled Zhu Mingyi and wanted to leave.


    "Yeah, he shouldn''t be here." Zhu Mingyi nodded, but when he moved, he suddenly saw something strange on the left wall of the door.


    "Wait!"


    The two of them moved closer to the door and found that there were two handprints on the wall, about half the height of the door. They were slightly raised, as if they were purposely placed there.


    Judging by their size, it was easy to tell that these two imprints were copied from the palm of a child.


    "What is it?"


    Zhu Mingyi touched the wall lightly with his hands. He was not surprised that there were two weird and weird handprints on the wall, but rather wondered how the handprints could be printed on it.


    He guessed that it must be the kid''s doing. Others wouldn''t be so bored.


    "Dad, look, there''s more over here!" When Zhu Mingyi was in a daze, he let out a cry. Zhu Mingyi immediately looked at the direction where Zhu Yang''s finger was pointing, and discovered that above the two palm prints, there were two other palm prints, or rather, another set of palm prints.


    Compared to the first set of palm prints, this set could tell at a glance that it was an adult''s palm. The rest were exactly the same.


    Zhu Yang was extremely excited, as if he had discovered a new continent. He tiptoed to go and touch it, but who knew he would be pulled back by Zhu Mingyi.


    "Don''t touch!"


    Zhu Mingyi suddenly felt a sense of disgust towards these two sets of handprints. It looked like a child''s prank, but he felt that something was off.


    Zhu Yang realized that his father''s tone was strict and did not dare to speak anymore.


    "Let''s go home." Zhu Mingyi didn''t plan to investigate further, and thought that it had nothing to do with them. Therefore, he pulled Zhu Yang''s small hand and went straight down the fourth floor.


    "How is it? What did he say?" Yang Faang asked as soon as the father and daughter pair entered the room.


    "No, he''s not here. I''ll go up later."


    Yang Faang replied and did not mind.


    Zhu Mingyi and Zhu Yang did not mention the matter of the two sets of handprints, and had completely forgotten about it.


    In the afternoon, the family of three happily strolled around the shopping mall and bought some clothes for Zhu Yang. When they reached home at night, Zhu Yang said that he wanted to go downstairs to jump rope.


    "Go." It was not even eight o''clock yet, and Yang Faang had already agreed to it. She was the one who advocated a little exercise after dinner.


    Zhu Yang took a piece of rope and excitedly went downstairs, Zhu Mingyi and Yang Faang were also busy with their own things. The matter of him going to Room 402 to communicate later had long been forgotten by Zhu Mingyi.


    After a while, Yang Faang heard the sound of rain outside the window, and knew that Zhu Yang was still skipping rope downstairs. She said to Zhu Mingyi: "It''s raining, tell Yang Yang to come up earlier."


    Zhu Mingyi agreed and put down the newspaper. Then he opened the door and went downstairs.


    Reaching the ground floor, Zhu Mingyi realized that the rain was heavier than he had imagined. Zhu Yang was not at the empty space in front of the building where he would usually jump rope. It was not until he heard the noise that Zhu Mingyi finally found him.


    The stairs were very dark and the lights were broken. Normally, people would use the elevator, but no one would use the stairs, so Zhu Mingyi did not expect Zhu Yang to come over. Obviously because of the rain, Zhu Yang jumped rope and moved it indoors.


    "Daddy, little big brother dances better than me." In the elevator, Zhu Yang spoke out.


    "Whose little brother?"


    "He''s the one who jumped rope with me."


    Zhu Mingyi thought: There''s a child from another clan? Why didn''t I see it?


    "What about little big brother?"


    "Let''s go."


    While they were talking, Zhu Mingyi had already opened the door. Yang Faang also heard their conversation and asked Zhu Mingyi what it was about.


    "Oh, it seems like there was a little boy playing with Yang Yang just now."


    "Whose family is it?" Yang Faang was more vigilant than Zhu Mingyi, especially when she heard that it was a boy.


    "Little big brother!" Zhu Yang blurted out.


    Yang Faang once again looked up at Zhu Mingyi, and suddenly pointed upstairs.


    "Probably." Zhu Mingyi also thought of 402''s family members. There was indeed a mischievous boy.


    "Looks like their family is back, huh? Didn''t you say to go up later? "


    "Forget it. I''m tired today. Tomorrow is fine." Zhu Mingyi was also extremely lazy, he just lied on the sofa and didn''t want to move.


    "Yang Yang, what does that boy look like?" Yang Faang curiously asked.


    "I don''t know!" Zhu Yang acted like he did not care and skipped into the room.


    "What do you mean you don''t know?" Yang Faang complained. Actually, she had the same thoughts as Zhu Mingyi right now. If it really was the child on the fourth floor, they wouldn''t want Zhu Yang and the child to get close, even though they couldn''t explain it.


    Sure enough, when it was midnight, there was a ruckus upstairs again. The sound of children''s laughter came intermittently, and occasionally there were applause and running sounds. It was endless.


    Zhu Mingyi regretted not going to look for them to argue with him tonight. He decided that he would settle this matter no matter what tomorrow.


    In the morning, as the sky slowly brightened, Zhu Mingyi arrived in front of Room 402.


    This time he did not ring the bell, but simply pounded on the door, thinking that I, too, would make you feel the same way.


    After a while, no one opened the door.


    He kicked a few more times, but nothing happened.


    Zhu Mingyi thought that since he had knocked on the door causing such a commotion, if there was anyone at home, they would probably wake up no matter what.


    Not home?


    Just as he was pondering, Zhu Mingyi suddenly felt that something was amiss. His brain seemed to flash like an electric current as he looked towards his left.


    He was stunned, because he noticed that the two sets of palm prints from yesterday had disappeared!


    He stared dumbly at the now blank and smooth wall. He really couldn''t understand why, let alone who would spend so much time and effort dealing with this kind of thing, it was even possible to make a large chunk of the wall disappear in one night?


    Zhu Mingyi repeatedly observed and touched the wall where the original handprint was, and discovered that there wasn''t even a single trace of it. If not for the fact that Zhu Yang was there yesterday, he would have suspected that he was hallucinating.


    When the elevator opened, he saw an old woman in her sixties, wearing a pair of thick framed glasses. He recognized her as a resident of the fifth floor.


    "Auntie, I''m sorry, I wanted to ask you something ¡­" Zhu Mingyi was just in a bit of a daze, he might as well ask for a clear answer, "Do you know the person living here at Room 402?"


    Zhu Mingyi pressed on the elevator and pointed.


    The other party stuck out his head, looked at him carefully, then quickly shook his head and said:


    "No one lives on the fourth floor."


    "Ah?" Is there no one inside? "


    "No, 401 has always been empty. If it''s 402, then a few months ago, there was a family member living here. But now ¡­" "He''s gone too."


    "Really?" How is that possible? " Zhu Mingyi''s face changed, his voice was so soft that it was almost impossible to hear himself.


    "You must have made a mistake somewhere. This way, the fourth floor isn''t easy to sell because there are a lot of old people who don''t like the fourth floor ¡­"


    Zhu Mingyi didn''t really hear the rest of his words, he just returned home in a daze.


    He saw that Zhu Yang was still sleeping, and Yang Faang was also confused, and asked him what the result was. Zhu Mingyi only said that the family was still not there, but Yang Faang acted as if she did not care, and continued to sleep.


    Zhu Mingyi stood at the window and looked towards the balcony on the fourth floor. Although it was daytime, he felt a chill on his back, not to mention the two sets of handprints that suddenly disappeared, how was he supposed to explain the commotion upstairs every night?


    They were a family, but they could clearly hear the voices of women and children upstairs, and they often appeared. The fifth floor auntie said 402 had moved away early, so it didn''t make sense at all!


    Zhu Mingyi calmly analyzed the situation and felt that there were a few possibilities. Firstly, they had all heard wrongly, the voices did not come from the fourth floor but from other places and they mistakenly thought of them as residents of the fourth floor. Zhu Mingyi had read a book before, saying that humans were not very sensitive to hearing. Sometimes, they would be disturbed by the communication from their brains, making wrong judgments. Second, it was 402. The family had moved away and come back, but he hadn''t seen them yet, on the fifth floor. Third, there was someone else living inside, perhaps a homeless person or something. If they forced their way in, that would explain why the other party didn''t dare to open the door.


    After thinking about it, Zhu Mingyi''s heart finally felt a little better. Even if these three answers all seemed weird, and he started to recite another thing that made him worried, and that was, who exactly was the little boy that jumped rope with Zhu Yang last night?


    On this day, Zhu Mingyi appeared to be weighed down with matters. It was only when night fell that he decided to tell Yang Faang everything.


    Zhu Mingyi had never believed in ghosts or gods. However, Yang Faang was a little superstitious, so when Yang Faang found out about it, her reaction was much stronger than Zhu Mingyi''s.


    "Why didn''t you tell me earlier!" Yang Faang weakly sat on the sofa, her face gloomy.


    "I only found out this morning. Also, keep your voice down, don''t let Yang Yang hear it."


    The two of them were conversing in secret in the room while Zhu Yang ate alone in the kitchen.


    "So strange!" "I don''t feel comfortable living in this place, how did you find me a place to rent?" Yang Faang asked in a strange tone.


    "A colleague of the unit introduced us. He said that it''s quiet here and the rent isn''t too expensive."


    "Heh ¡­" It''s quiet now, isn''t it? "


    "You can''t blame me!"


    The atmosphere instantly turned stiff, and both of them stopped talking for a while.


    "Mom and Dad, I''m going downstairs to skip the rope!" After Zhu Yang finished his meal, a voice came out.


    Zhu Mingyi and Yang Faang looked at each other, then suddenly remembered something.


    "No way, no way! I can''t go today! " Yang Faang stood up and opened the door.


    "Right, right, you''re not allowed to go!" Zhu Mingyi also said.


    "Why?" Zhu Yang held onto the rope, frozen in place. One must know that her parents had always supported her the most in jumping rope.


    "There''s no reason why I can''t go now. And Yang Yang, remember, in the future when you go downstairs, you must go with Mom and Dad, do you understand? " Yang Faang said cautiously.


    Zhu Yang looked at Yang Faang, and then at Zhu Mingyi.


    "Daddy said before that little kids shouldn''t ask all sorts of questions. Just be obedient." Zhu Mingyi was still smiling as he patted Zhu Yang''s head. He felt that he should not throw the pressure on Zhu Yang right now.


    Seeing that his parents were acting in such a manner, Zhu Yang could only obediently return to his room to watch television. Zhu Mingyi took the opportunity to share his speculations with Yang Faang, trying his best to not let her think about it, but Yang Faang did not really hear about it.


    That night, Zhu Yang fell asleep while Zhu Mingyi and Yang Faang were still lying on the bed with their eyes wide open. It wasn''t until one o''clock in the morning that the familiar sound started again.


    Zhu Mingyi sat up straight and listened carefully, while Yang Faang curled up under the blanket, not even daring to breathe loudly.


    There were two different sounds, one of which was the sound of a woman crying that he had heard before. When Yang Faang heard it now, she felt her scalp go numb. The other was the child''s clapping, which they often heard.


    Suddenly, Zhu Mingyi mustered his courage and sat up.


    "I''ll go up and take a look."


    Yang Faang''s eyes were wide open, she could not believe it.


    "You want to die?! It''s almost midnight, what are you going to do! "


    "Let me tell you, I really don''t believe in things like ghosts. There''s been a commotion right now anyways, so they must be here. I''ll go talk to them about it." Otherwise maybe we''re just scaring ourselves off and nothing''s really going on. "


    Yang Faang was at a loss for words. Although she was afraid, she thought that Zhu Mingyi''s words made sense.


    "Just bring Yang Yang to sleep, I''ll be right back." As he said that, Zhu Mingyi put on his clothes, and before he left, he looked up from the window, and saw that the fourth floor was still completely dark.


    In the middle of the night, as if ice water had seeped in, Zhu Mingyi took a deep breath of cold air the moment he stepped out of his room.


    When he got into the elevator, he thought the door was too loud. Maybe it was too quiet. Inadvertently, he glanced behind him, as if worried that something was behind him.


    Soon, he arrived at the fourth floor. He felt that the atmosphere was completely different from the day. Perhaps other elusive elements had changed besides the night.


    Once again standing in front of No. 402 door, Zhu Mingyi pressed the doorbell.


    Then he glanced to his left and, in the dim light, saw that the two sets of strange handprints were still missing. He prayed that he would never see that again.


    Moreover, he felt that it was strange. Why did the house that had just been overheard by the other side of the building, at this moment, could not hear a single sound while standing in front of the other side''s door?


    He convinced himself that he didn''t have to worry about so much. As long as someone opened the door, all mysteries would be revealed.


    Unfortunately, it was not what he wanted, and no one responded for a long time.


    While he was anxiously waiting, he knocked several times on the door.


    "That... "I''m downstairs at 302. I have something to talk to you guys about. Can you open the door if it''s convenient?" Zhu Mingyi asked with his voice trembling.


    Dead silence.


    Zhu Mingyi sighed deeply, he did not know what to do, could it be that he had failed again?

 C21

    Slowly, some sounds entered his ears, as if something was moving. Its speed was extremely slow, and he was unable to determine its direction.


    He looked at the wall to the left of the door and suddenly had an illusion. It was as if a snake was swimming inside the wall and gradually approaching him.


    Suddenly, something appeared on the wall. When Zhu Mingyi saw this thing, he was so shocked that he almost cried out!


    A set of strange hand seals!


    Zhu Mingyi recognized it with a glance. It was a set of hand seals the size of a child''s palm!


    It was different from what he had seen during the day. The hand seals were moving slowly, looking vivid and lifelike. Zhu Mingyi was shocked, he did not think that the handprint was not made by someone, but was something that was hidden inside the wall.


    This thing seemed to have a life force of its own!


    Zhu Mingyi panicked to the extreme, and at the same time, an alarmed cry came from downstairs.


    It was Yang Faang''s voice.


    "Something has happened!" Zhu Mingyi did not care about the strange handprints anymore, and immediately ran to the elevator and used his fingers to push the buttons.


    As soon as he arrived at the door, Zhu Mingyi heard Zhu Yang crying. He quickly opened the door and rushed in.


    Yang Faang hugged Zhu Yang as the two of them curled up into a ball. Although he knew that something must have happened, but seeing that they were safe and sound, Zhu Mingyi still heaved a sigh of relief.


    "What is it?" Zhu Mingyi slowed down and asked.


    "Dad, there! There! " Zhu Yang''s face was covered in tears as he pointed to the ceiling.


    Zhu Mingyi looked up and realized that there was nothing at all.


    "Just now ¡­ There was a woman''s face on it just now! " Yang Faang pointed to the ceiling and said weakly.


    "Woman''s face?!"


    "Yeah, Dad!"


    "That ¡­" Yang Faang swallowed her saliva, "After you left, Yang Yang and I heard a sound coming from the ceiling, and then we turned on the lights to look, and discovered that there was a woman''s face above, emerging from the side of the chandelier, staring at us! Not until you came into the room. What are you doing on the fourth floor? What exactly is going on?! "


    Zhu Mingyi could tell that both Yang Faang and Zhu Yang were frightened, but he already had an idea what was going on. That woman''s face must have been the ''item'' inside the wall. Perhaps it was because he had alarmed his when he went upstairs that he had responded.


    The structure of this apartment building was very simple. Every household''s roof, floor, and load-bearing walls were connected up and down like a track that connected all directions. Zhu Mingyi thought that it was probably because of this that the "thing" could come over.


    But what exactly this "thing" was, Zhu Mingyi was evidently completely confused.


    Even though the sunlight outside the window was glaring, Zhu Mingyi and Yang Faang was still awake.


    Other than Zhu Yang falling asleep while lying on his mother''s body, Zhu Mingyi and his wife did not sleep for the entire night. Zhu Mingyi spent an entire night to comfort Yang Faang and explain to him, but Yang Faang was still afraid of what happened last night. She blamed Zhu Mingyi for letting his whole family move into a haunted apartment.


    Yang Faang only had one wish, and that was to leave this place as soon as possible.


    Zhu Mingyi naturally agreed, but before he left, he still wanted to clarify a few things.


    "Great sir, are you busy? We talked. " Zhu Mingyi knocked on the window of the guard room. An old guard sat inside and dozed off. Yang Faang and Zhu Yang also came together, for the time being, Zhu Mingyi did not dare to separate from them.


    Zhu Mingyi planned to ask the old gatekeeper about this clearly.


    "What is it?" When Zhu Mingyi first arrived, he immediately asked him about the traffic situation in the area. Zhu Mingyi also knew that the old man had been working in the residential complex for more than ten years, and the guard room was the closest to Zhu Mingyi''s apartment, so Zhu Mingyi guessed that he should be more familiar with this building.


    Zhu Mingyi pushed open the door, and the moment he entered the guard room, he could smell a terrible stench, and the air inside was not flowing either.


    Uncle, I have something to ask you." "Is 402 in our No.10 building occupied or not?" Zhu Mingyi asked.


    Old Man Han was startled for a moment, then took off half of his glasses and looked at Zhu Mingyi and his wife who was behind him.


    Yang Faang felt a little uncomfortable. She thought that this old man must have felt it was strange, why did the whole family come over to find out about it?


    "No, no one has been staying for a long time." Old Man Han put on his glasses again.


    "Was there a family living there that moved away?"


    "Actually, it''s not moving away. That family member, something happened."


    "Huh?"


    "Just over there for a while. Our side of the news is going to be very lively." "He used to be a family of three, but his wife and children were suddenly lost. That man''s mind seems to be in trouble again. I heard he was sent to a mental hospital."


    "What ¡­" Zhu Mingyi frowned, he was confused by what he heard, "You mean to say, the family''s wife and children are missing?"


    "Yeah, you haven''t heard?"


    "Oh, I just got here, not local. Then what was going on? Didn''t the Public Security Bureau send anyone to look for him? "


    "What''s the use of searching the Public Security Bureau, looking for relatives and friends, and even finding nearby people? If it''s gone, it''s gone! " Old man Han said as he spread them out.


    "Also ¡­" What was the man doing in a mental hospital? " This time, it was Yang Faang who asked.


    "That man... It looked normal, except for the beard. But there''s something wrong with the mind. I hear them shouting here a lot, mostly because the man is mad at his wife and son. His wife and son were unlucky enough to have been beaten and scolded by him, especially his wife, who was beaten black and blue several times in the middle of the night. I remember the police coming twice in the middle of the night. Then, the day his wife and son went missing, he went crazy and shouted around the neighborhood at night. He kept saying that his wife and son had gone missing and had someone help him find them, but how could he not see them? Not long after, because he''s getting more and more sick, his brother sent him to a mental hospital. "


    "Oh ¡­" "Then is there really no news about his wife and son?" Zhu Mingyi asked.


    "Sigh ¡­" It was obvious that they couldn''t stand him. They took their son and ran away. How could they find him again? "To be honest, if I were to meet such a man, I would have to run away too."


    "Yeah, that''s true." Zhu Mingyi nodded his head, an idea suddenly appearing in his mind.


    "Why are you asking so much?" Old man Han found it strange.


    "Nothing important. Recently, a colleague was looking for a place to rent. I noticed that 402 seemed to be empty, and it was also upstairs, so I decided to ask about it. " Zhu Mingyi lied.


    "Alright, find the right person!" Old man Han''s face was full of excitement. "After that man was sent away, his brother took care of their house. He even hung up an intermediary in preparation to rent it. Now I have the key. "


    "Is that so? How about... Why don''t you take a look at the room first? I''ll take some pictures and let him look at them. "


    "Sure, but you have to wait for me to get off duty. I have no time during the day." Seven o''clock tonight, come over. "


    When she came out from the guard room, Yang Faang looked at Zhu Mingyi in shock.


    "Are you crazy!?" Why don''t we just move away? "What are you doing in that house? Don''t you know that the house is haunted?"


    In the face of Yang Faang''s scolding, Zhu Mingyi didn''t want to explain too much either. He only said he was curious and went to Room 402 to take a look before leaving.


    In fact, through chatting with Old Man Han, Zhu Mingyi had a vague answer in his heart, but it still needed further confirmation.


    As night fell, Zhu Mingyi''s family arrived at the appointed time. Old Man Han was already waiting outside the door with an impatient expression.


    Old man Han was used to bored as a gatekeeper, so he finally found something to do, looking especially excited.


    On the way up, Zhu Mingyi saw the entrance that Zhu Yang had mentioned two days ago, and thought of the little big brother that Zhu Yang had mentioned.


    "Old Han, are there any boys upstairs?" Zhu Mingyi casually asked.


    "Not now. There used to be a boy, about your daughter''s age. "


    Hearing Old Man Han''s words, Zhu Mingyi and Yang Faang''s heart skipped a beat.


    Soon, they arrived at the 402 door.


    Zhu Mingyi took a deep breath, appearing relatively calm. But when Yang Faang first came back to this place, his mind was filled with those voices he heard in the middle of the night. Especially that terrifying woman''s face that appeared on the ceiling last night, it had left a deep impression on her. For a moment she felt his legs go limp.


    Old man Han took out his key and opened the door.


    After the lights went on, Zhu Mingyi saw that it was just an ordinary two room one hall. The furniture had all been moved, the floor was covered in dust, and there was a pile of junk placed at the corner of the hall.


    "Is the house still being renovated?" After walking around for a bit, Zhu Mingyi felt that it was strange. The bathroom''s tile floor was half paved and the balcony was also smashed.


    "Oh yeah, at that time, they were just renovating the house. Who knew that something would happen and they would stop halfway through. The result was that the house was like this, so it wasn''t easy to rent. Your colleagues probably don''t think much of it either. "


    "The renovations team you invited didn''t finish?" Zhu Mingyi asked again.


    "Where did they get the money to invite the refurbishment team!?" That man is a builder himself, so he knows quite a lot. He also specializes in buying materials, so he got them all by himself. "


    Zhu Mingyi nodded.


    "Is their child naughty?" Yang Faang asked.


    "Oh, the boy? "Yeah, he''s pretty naughty. He''s always running around like he''s crazy and laughing out loud. He feels just like his dad, it''s not normal here." Old man Han said as he pointed at his forehead.


    Just then, Zhu Mingyi walked to one of the doors and touched the wall.


    "Are these new walls?"


    "Yes yes yes, I forgot to tell you. Originally 402 was a room, but later on they were afraid that the children would grow up and sleep together inconveniently, so they planned to go out and build a wall. The paint on the walls is different from the other walls. "


    Zhu Mingyi naturally noticed that the paint on the wall was new and the wall was very thick.


    "Is it a concrete wall?"


    Old Man Han thought for a moment before replying with a tone of affirmation, "Yes! I see the man carried the concrete. "


    Zhu Mingyi was a little doubtful. Generally speaking, only load-bearing walls would use concrete, so they rarely used structural walls. But the man did. Moreover, the other parts of the interior were all done in a sloppy manner. Only this wall was a complete mess. His hands trembled as he touched the wall, and the terrible conjecture in his mind was further confirmed and magnified.


    "Old Han..." I thought you said that the man had been abusing his wife and son? "


    "That''s right!" That man is mentally ill. Otherwise, why would his wife and son run away? "


    "There''s only one entrance to the sector, if his wife and son ran out, how come you guys in the guard room can''t see them?"


    "I know what you mean. Logically speaking, if his wife and son were to leave, they would definitely pass through the main gate, but since I was on duty that night, I really didn''t see them. I told the police about it, and they fucking blame me for missing it. "It''s not like they''re going to install a camera, otherwise they''ll know when they check it out!"


    "Will he ¡­" Zhu Mingyi realized that he couldn''t say it out loud, but his heart was filled with these words: That mother and son pair, did they really not go out at all?


    "Could it be what?"


    Zhu Mingyi was completely terrified. He forced himself to think positively. Maybe Old Han had really misjudged the situation, or the mother and son had gotten into someone''s car and left the house. But the more he avoided these thoughts, the more they gathered together. Every night there were movements of women and children upstairs, two sets of strange handprints, a woman''s face on the ceiling, the little brother Yang spoke of, a man who was good at decorating and abusing his wife and children for a long time, a new concrete wall, all of it an answer: The mother and the child''s body was inside the wall!


    At the same time, an image appeared in Zhu Mingyi''s mind: a bearded man who committed domestic violence, a twisted personality, and a deranged mentality. In the end, he broke down and murdered his wife and children, and then used the opportunity to fix up the house to hide the two corpses and put them into the wall, pouring them all over with concrete. More likely, his wife and son were dead before he could lie to get sympathy. After that, the two spirits travelled back and forth throughout the entire apartment building, unable to calm down their anger and resentment.


    "Where''s Yang Yang?" Where did you run off to?! "


    Just as Zhu Mingyi was deep in thought, he suddenly heard Yang Faang call out to him.


    Yang Faang''s face suddenly changed, she went all the way to the door.


    "Was she just behind you?" Zhu Mingyi also rushed out of the door.


    "I don''t know! I just reached out my hand and found that it was empty, and then I realized that she was gone. "


    "Kids are all like that. They like to run around." Old man Han smiled. He didn''t understand why the two of them were so nervous.


    Zhu Mingyi and Yang Faang were extremely anxious, and did not have time to bother with Old Han. Seeing that Zhu Yang was not on the fourth floor, he decided to split up and search. Yang Faang would be in charge of the upper floors while Zhu Mingyi would be in charge of the lower floors.


    Because Zhu Yang did not bring a key with him, he could first rule out the possibility of her returning home on her own accord.


    Therefore, Zhu Mingyi started walking up and down the third floor, walking layer after layer, but Zhu Yang still did not appear. He was outside again, scanning the night, and there was no one there but an old man walking.


    When he was about to go upstairs and meet up with Yang Faang, he suddenly thought of a place, which was the lower floor entrance where Zhu Yang had skipped rope two nights ago.


    Zhu Mingyi anxiously headed to the entrance of the pavilion. The corridor was still frighteningly dark, but Zhu Yang was not there.


    Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly heard some faint sounds, as if they were caused by the friction of his shoes on the ground. He looked for the sound and walked slowly to the bottom of the stairs. He discovered a small hole in the wall that had been smashed open by someone. Zhu Yang hugged his knees, and sat upright in the cave.


    "Yang Yang, what are you doing here?" Zhu Mingyi asked softly.


    "Little Big Brother is looking for me to play." Zhu Yang replied.


    "There''s no little big bro here, hurry up and come out!" Without waiting for Zhu Yang''s response, Zhu Mingyi pulled Zhu Yang out of the corner of the wall and patted on the dust on his pants. At this moment, Zhu Mingyi felt something unusual going on behind him.


    He jerked his head back and saw two figures, silhouetted against the wall, or rather, covered in plastic bags.


    Compared to the strange hand seals from before, this time, both of them were complete. A woman, a boy, stood hand in hand. There was no doubt that it was the mother and her son.


    Time seemed to stand still as both sides stared at each other.


    "Little big brother!" Zhu Yang pointed with his finger and grinned. Because she was still young, she hadn''t realized what was wrong with the situation in front of her.


    The boy returned the smile, but it was a strange one. They even clapped.


    His mother looked at Zhu Mingyi deeply.


    Zhu Mingyi felt that he was about to suffocate, he had no time to think further, he quickly carried Zhu Yang and rushed out.


    However, when he took a few steps, his remaining rationality caused him to suddenly stop. He tried his best to calm his mind, took a deep breath and turned around.


    What Zhu Mingyi saw were two miserable souls.


    After a moment of silence, he finally said:


    "I will have someone smash that wall and rescue your remains!"


    The woman''s sorrowful wail came from the corridor once again.


    After meeting up with Yang Faang, Zhu Mingyi didn''t have much time to explain. He only said that they had to leave quickly and that they couldn''t stay here anymore.


    They hastily packed up some toiletries and clothes, and Zhu Mingyi booked a hotel.


    In the taxi, Zhu Mingyi still had some lingering fear towards the scene that just happened, so he did not say anything.


    As for the future, he decided that no matter how the situation developed, he definitely could not live in that building any longer. Therefore, he must pack up all his luggage tomorrow and temporarily stay at the hotel. In addition, he had to fulfill his promise to the deceased, inform the police, and smash the wall. The mother and child, he was sure, must have been built into the wall. It was a great sorrow for the mother and son to meet a psychopathic man.


    After getting off the car, Zhu Mingyi carried Zhu Yang, who took his luggage and walked towards the hotel.


    At this moment, Zhu Mingyi sincerely rejoiced that he and his family were still alive.


    Oh no!

 C22

    Every summer, Xu Mei''s two grandsons would come over from the city to visit, and Xu Mei would lead them around.


    The two children were twins, one was called Wang Jun, the other was called Wang He. Both of them were in the first grade of primary school, and because they were going to vacation, their parents didn''t have time to take care of them at work, so they were sent to live at Xu Mei''s maternal grandma''s house. Xu Mei naturally did not find it troublesome, and liked it quite a lot. After all, the old people usually liked to cause a stir, especially when their wife, Xu Mei, passed away a long time ago.


    The place they visited most often was the river, and because there was no river in the city, the two children found it very strange.


    However, the rivers in this area were very dirty, there was no other way around it. It was not realistic to clean the river right next to the industrial area. Every time the two children tried to move the algae on the water''s surface with their branches, Xu Mei would always stop them.


    Not only that, but there were also a lot of miscellaneous items along the river, such as thick ropes, baskets, broken shoes, used shampoo bottles, cigarette boxes and so on.


    Xu Mei had always hated these things of unknown origins, and it could also be due to the shadow of her childhood.


    Occasionally, when the two children wanted to pick up the things on the ground to play with, Xu Mei would say, "Don''t randomly pick up the things on the ground, hurry up and throw it away!"


    That day, after dinner, Xu Mei took the two children for a walk as usual and once again came to this road.


    After walking a few steps, they saw a dark blue schoolbag on the ground.


    Xu Mei guessed that it should be a child from someone else who accidentally left it here.


    Xu Mei instinctively wanted to go around the bag, but unexpectedly, when the two grandsons saw this bag, they were overjoyed. Wang Jun immediately picked up the bag and carried it on his back.


    "Let me try, let me try as well." His younger brother, Wang He, was envious of his big brother and wanted to take responsibility for the ruckus.


    Although the bag was worn out, it was indeed quite exquisite, and was the kind of style that primary school students loved the most.


    But Xu Mei really did not like the things that were picked up from the ground, so she shouted to stop them, "Hey hey hey, the two of you are not obedient anymore, throwing it away, quickly throw it away!"


    "Grandma, just let us play for a while, okay?" Wang He pleaded.


    "No!" You can''t touch other people''s things. Have you forgotten what your grandma usually tells you? "


    "But others don''t want this. If someone comes looking for a bag, can we give it back to him?"


    "That won''t do, hurry up and throw it away, hurry up!" Xu Mei already had no patience. Even though she was old, her temper was still very bad.


    "Hmph, grandmother is unreasonable." Wang He had finally managed to snatch the schoolbag from his brother. This time, he wanted to throw it away, and was unwilling to do so. However, he was afraid that his grandma would really be angry, so he could only pucker his mouth and prepare to put the schoolbag down.


    At this moment, Wang Jun, who was standing behind Wang He, seemed to have noticed something as he shouted, "Look, Grandma! Look! There''s a hole in the bag!"


    After Xu Mei arrived behind Wang He, she saw that there was indeed a hole on the outer pocket of the bag. She thought that it was no wonder that no one wanted this bag.


    Wang Jun was also curious. He reached his hand into the hole and fiddled around in his bag for a long time.


    Seeing this scene, Xu Mei was suddenly stunned. She remembered something from the past, a fear that had been buried deep in her heart for a long time.


    "Throw it away! "Throw it away!"


    Xu Mei uncharacteristically snatched the bag from Wang He''s hands and threw it far away.


    Wang Jun and Wang He were both stupefied. They had never seen their grandma lose her temper like this before. In the past, no matter how mischievous they were or how much they angered their grandma, she would never be like this.


    Xu Mei panted heavily. After pausing for a long time, she realized that her two grandsons were staring at her in a daze.


    "Grandma, did we do something wrong again?" Wang Jun eagerly asked.


    "No, it''s just that my grandma was scared, my grandma was scared." Xu Mei waved her hand.


    "Why?" Wang Jun asked with a smile. Upon hearing that it had nothing to do with them, the two brothers instantly felt relieved.


    Xu Mei looked at the blue bag that she threw far away again and was quietly sitting next to a pile of yellow sand. She said thoughtfully: "In this world, there are many strange things that you have never seen before. If something strange pops out of the bag, aren''t you guys scared? "


    "But grandma, there''s nothing in the school bag!" Wang Jun said with certainty.


    "What if there really is one?"


    "What should I do?" Wang Jun repeated Xu Mei''s question dumbly.


    "Grandma, what do you mean by strange thing?" Wang He could not help but ask.


    "Grandma will tell you a story, okay?" It was back when my grandma was a little kid. " Xu Mei said.


    "Good!" "Alright!" Hearing that their grandma was going to tell a story, the two children became excited.


    "At that time, Grandma was the same age as you guys, and she was in primary school as well ¡­"


    Xu Mei said as she reminisced about the past.


    Just as Xu Mei had told the two children, she was still young and lived in the rural areas instead of the town. Because it was only the 1950s, the conditions were quite harsh and the family had many children. They often fought over food. The rare good thing was that there were many children in the countryside during that time, and they all liked to run outside. The whole village was filled with children, and it was very lively.


    On Xu Mei''s way to and from school, the students would flock away every evening. There were those who went to the roadside stall to buy candy, those who went to catch fish, those who hopped off ropes, those who played marbles, and, of course, those who were naughty and fought.


    Xu Mei''s popularity in the class could be considered good, because she had a good relationship with a few of her classmates. Because their families were close, they often traveled together from school to school.


    That day, Xu Mei returned home from school with three other classmates. Two of them were female, one was called Zhou Yan, the other was called Gu Wenfang, and the other was a male.


    After turning off the road into the lane, they passed a long alley. On both sides of the alley were a few dilapidated bungalows. As a result of the infrastructure, the residents had all moved to the town.


    The alleyway was very quiet and completely different from the roads outside. There were very few people here, especially at night. It was dark and gloomy, so no one dared to come in.


    Xu Mei had walked this path countless of times. She knew that every winter, because the sky was getting dark quickly, it would be very dark when she passed through the alley after school. That was why she arranged to go home with her classmates.


    But today, as she passed through the alley, she saw a strange figure walking towards her.


    When she got closer, she found that he was an old man, stooping over a walking stick, walking slowly like a snail. The old man''s face could be described as deathly pale. It was rather gloomy, and he didn''t have any expression on his face. Under the pile of wrinkles, his eyes were almost narrowed into slits, causing people to wonder how the old man was able to see clearly.


    "Where did this old man come from? I''ve never seen him before." Zhou Yan whispered to Xu Mei.


    Xu Mei shook her head, she was also observing.


    When the three children stopped, the hunchbacked old man walked slowly past them.


    Xu Jing was an exceptionally mischievous child. He saw that the hunchbacked old man looked weird and he had never seen a hunchbacked old man before. He curiously asked the hunchbacked old man: "Hey, where are you from?"


    The hunchbacked old man didn''t answer and continued to advance.


    "Is he from our village?" Xu Jing asked again, and he even took the opportunity to rub the hunchbacked old man''s bent back, then grinned at Xu Mei and the others.


    But the hunchbacked old man remained silent, as if he could not hear him.


    Xu Jing was unhappy, he stood in front of the hunchbacked old man, baring his fangs and brandishing his claws, he even spoke loudly, but the hunchbacked old man still ignored him and walked forward step by step.


    This time, Xu Jing got anxious and tried to snatch the old hunchback''s walking stick.


    Xu Mei and the others felt that what Xu Jing was doing was not good, and quickly gestured for him to leave. However, Xu Jing did not listen to their advice, and already extended her hand out to grab the walking stick.


    Just as he was giggling and was about to pull the hunchback old man''s walking stick away, the hunchbacked old man suddenly raised his walking stick and suddenly stabbed at Xu Jing''s leg.


    Seeing that Xu Jing had been beaten up by the old hunchback, Xu Mei and the others panicked and immediately supported him. Xu Jing held onto his thigh and stared at the old man.


    The hunchbacked old man was still expressionless as he continued to walk forward.


    Xu Jing was finally afraid, and he retreated a few steps, but with every step he took, he felt a pain in his leg, which showed that his injuries were not light.


    He couldn''t imagine how this old man could still muster up so much strength when he looked like he was about to sink into the ground.


    "Why did you hit him, it''s true!" Gu Wen Fang said to the hunchbacked old man on Xu Jing''s behalf.


    The hunchbacked old man walked around the corner and disappeared from their sight as the students pointed at him.


    From start to finish, the hunchbacked old man did not say a single word, nor did he even bat an eyelid.


    From that day onwards, Xu Mei found out that Xu Jing''s calf bone was fractured, and had to recuperate at home for a few days. And every time they returned home from school, they would see the hunchbacked old man in the alley. The hunchbacked old man continued to ignore them, walking so slowly that it made people worry.


    Not long after, Xu Jing returned from recuperating, and on the same day, he was in high spirits as he told Xu Mei and the others that he must take revenge for the old hunchback injuring him, and let Xu Mei and the others watch.


    Xu Mei also knew that Xu Jing was petty, especially bearing grudges, and would definitely not tolerate this kind of thing. However, she still advised Xu Jing not to offend the hunchbacked old man again. She didn''t know the reason why, but she just felt that the old man was weird.


    "Pui!" Breaking my legs, I let him go? That stinking old man, I want revenge! " As Xu Mei had expected, Xu Jing basically could not hear it.


    That day, after school was dismissed, Xu Jing did not leave with Xu Mei and the others. Instead, he brought along a few boys from other classes and rushed to an alley ahead of time.


    Xu Mei and the others were worried that Xu Jing would go overboard and hurriedly rushed towards the alley.


    When the three girls arrived at the alley, Xu Jing and the other boys had already surrounded the hunchbacked old man.


    "Smelly old man, you like beating people, right? Keep hitting them!" From afar, Xu Mei could hear Xu Jing cursing.


    "You''re bullying us because we''re young, aren''t you?" another boy said.


    "Your walking stick is quite powerful. Do you want to compete with me!?" Another boy held a bamboo pole and waved it at the hunchbacked old man.


    Who knew that the hunchbacked old man had no reaction at all? It was as if he couldn''t hear or see, and he continued to walk step by step.


    Xu Mei and the rest happened to be in the crowd, and completely surrounded the hunchbacked old man.


    The male student who helped Xu Jing earlier pushed a bicycle over and stopped the hunchbacked old man in his tracks.


    The hunchbacked old man slammed into the bike, but he still managed to ride it, trying to move forward.


    They found it strange and wondered if the hunchbacked old man was a fool. Only Xu Jing did not think too much about it. After snatching the bamboo pole from another guy, he decided to give it a try as well.


    Just as Xu Mei wanted to advise him against it, Xu Jing had already swung out her bamboo pole, aimed at the old man''s leg, and heavily hit him.


    The hunchbacked old man staggered and barely stood still. Xu Jing was not angry to begin with, and then again, but at the same time, the hunchbacked old man swung his cane at Xu Jing. Xu Jing was caught off guard, and was hit on the back, almost falling down.


    Xu Jing flew into a rage, his eyes looking as if he was about to eat the hunchbacked old man. He immediately turned around and raised the bamboo pole behind the hunchbacked old man, and just as Xu Mei and the others cried out in shock, he suddenly stabbed it towards the hunchbacked old man''s back.


    With this stab, the hunchbacked old man finally let out a low groan. However, it didn''t sound like a sound that came from the throat. The next moment, the back of the hunchbacked old man started to crack as black blood started to gush out of his wound and onto the ground.


    Xu Jing''s bamboo stick tumbled to the ground and instantly stunned everyone.


    Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, an even more bizarre scene appeared. They saw a black mass slowly squirming on the old hunchback''s back, trying its best to get out.


    Very quickly, the thing had separated itself from its back and slowly crawled to the ground. Xu Mei and the others saw clearly that the thing that came out from the hunchbacked old man''s body was actually a human head, and it was even more so like a centipede that had many legs!


    The face of the head was almost identical to that of the hunchbacked old man. However, it was darker and the hair longer. Furthermore, compared to its centipede-like body and slender legs, the head was much larger. The proportions were very inconsistent.


    At the same time, the hunchbacked old man weakly fell onto the ground, as if his life force was all on the head of the monster. At the same time, the hunchbacked old man weakly fell to the ground, as if his life force was all on the head of the monster.


    The children were so scared that they didn''t dare to make a sound until the monster climbed up the wall and entered a window of the bungalow.


    No one dared to chase him, not even a question.


    Later, this incident caused a commotion in the local area, and the police had investigated it. However, because it was too bizarre and they could not determine the actual situation, they had to leave it at that.


    But up until now, dozens of years had passed, and Xu Mei still kept this matter in her heart. The old hunchback''s dark face, left a deep impression on her.


    Perhaps, in this world, there really were some bizarre creatures that were hard to explain and had yet to enter the human eye''s field of vision. Xu Mei always thought so.


    After listening to his grandmother''s story, because they were young, the two children did not feel that it was scary. They were just curious, so they stared at Xu Mei and asked a question.


    However, they vaguely understood why their grandma reacted so excessively to the backpack. It was because the backpack also had a hole in its back that made her grandma think of that hunchbacked old man.


    "Time to go home." Seeing that it was already late, Xu Mei put her hand on her two grandsons'' shoulders and prepared to leave the riverside.


    At this moment, she saw a brown beetle crawling slowly on the ground. In an instant, her vision blurred, as if the hunchbacked old man had appeared before her again.


    Oh no!

 C23

    Zhou Huan gently turned on the tap and dripped the water on his hands. Then, he smelled the fragrance on his fingers.


    He had moved here for the past three days, but he still felt that there was something wrong with the water, a fishy stench.


    This rented room was less than 30 square meters. It was at the end of the second floor. There was no balcony and the windows faced the corridor. The room was made of wood.


    Due to the cheap rent and the fact that he only stayed for a month, Zhou Huan had to endure all of this. But the key problem was that due to the humidity, many of the furniture had already become moldy.


    Zhou Huan was a journalist who had come all the way here to investigate a water conservancy accident. He had been reporting continuously for around a month, running around the site during the day and writing his report at night.


    However, there was nothing he could do about it. This place belonged to a poor area, and there was only one rented room. If he lived in the county, then he would be too far away to do anything.


    Previously, when he had asked the intermediary, he found out that this town was close to the river and had a small population. The agent kept boasting that the river air was good and the environment was good, but the result was quite different. This rented room was located in a dark and humid alley. There were a total of twenty or so families in the alley. Including him, there were six families living in this two story building.


    In the next few days, Zhou Huan continued to endure the harsh environment. He drank as much mineral water as he could, and went to the scene of the accident five kilometers away on foot early in the morning.


    That night, he busied himself until midnight. He was so tired that he fell asleep on the table. Who knew that when she woke up, the ground was covered with water!


    He hurriedly asked his neighbor to borrow a mop and suck up all the water. After he was done, he carefully checked where the water was leaking, but he couldn''t find the source of the problem.


    He thought it was strange that everything in the house was fine. Even if it was the rainy season, there shouldn''t be so much water seeping out.


    With this, the air in the room was extremely humid. He had no choice but to open the window to take a breather.


    That night, he was suffering greatly.


    In the morning, after he went downstairs, Zhou Huan went to the store at the mouth of the alley to buy breakfast.


    Zhou Huan decided to ask him for more information.


    Zhou Huan bought two steamed buns first, and then, without leaving, he stood next to the store and asked when no one was around:


    "Boss, is it raining often?"


    Ah Feng didn''t even look at Zhou Huan, and directly replied him: "Of course, there''s more rain."


    "Oh, I just moved in. I''m renting a house here. "But you said it hasn''t rained recently, why is it that my room was filled with water last night?" Zhou Huan asked again.


    "Sigh, there''s nothing I can do about it. There''s something wrong with the drainage system here. Every house is the same." Ah Feng raised his head and looked at Zhou Huan.


    "Sleeping in the middle of the night and then filling the whole floor with water?"


    Yes, this is a run-down place. It''s been raining for a long time, and there''s a problem with the drainage system. It''s pretty wet all year round, otherwise why would this alley be called a wet alley?" Especially when the tide rises in April of each year.


    Listening to Ah Feng''s complaints and explanations, Zhou Huan finally understood. It seemed that the drainage system was indeed not perfect, or there was some problem with it, which caused the river to flow into the alley. He had also gone to the riverside to observe and discovered that the construction of the river dam was not very reasonable. Under the dam was another sloping plot of land, where many people grew vegetables. If the river crossed the dam, it could easily flow diagonally into the alley.


    "What are you doing?" Just as Zhou Huan was in a daze, Ah Feng suddenly asked.


    "Oh, my reporter."


    "So it''s a reporter!" I can''t tell, but I definitely came to work, right? "


    Zhou Huan smiled and nodded.


    "Mm, not bad, not bad at all ¡­"


    Zhou Huan was not interested in idle chatter, so he casually greeted them and turned to leave for the construction site.


    Along the way, he muttered the word wet alley in his mind. He felt that the way he addressed the alley was a bit unusual, and it made him feel uncomfortable.


    When Zhou Huan returned in the evening, he saw that a house on the ground floor was open. An old lady was wiping the floor with a mop, while complaining, "Aiyo ¡­ It''s all water, and my shoes are wet. I''ll have to dry them for a few days. "


    Zhou Huan thought, looks like he was not the only one who was in trouble, the others were also in trouble. According to the owner, April was the worst month, and now, it was almost April.


    Facing this kind of environment, Zhou Huan felt somewhat helpless.


    At night, he still worked, but he was more upset. When he had first entered the house, he had soaked himself in the water with a rag, but now the room seemed to be once again heavy with moisture, and he was sure that there was more water seeping from some corner of the room.


    After he finished his work and laid down on the bed, he was disturbed by the damp air and couldn''t sleep for a long time. However, at this time, he heard some slight sounds.


    The sound was very soft, and if he didn''t listen carefully, he definitely wouldn''t be able to hear it clearly. Because it was currently quiet, he could barely hear it. It sounded like a wind pipe, but it also sounded like someone was snoring. Anyway, he thought it was a little strange.


    Moreover, it was very difficult for him to tell if the sound came from outside or inside the room. It felt very ethereal.


    It was as if the voice wanted to rush into his mind.


    Zhou Huan could not help but sit up and turn on the light. He looked around the room and saw nothing amiss.


    Because this house used a very old yellow light, the lighting was very bad. Zhou Huan had no choice but to crawl out of bed and examine the house carefully, especially in the dark corners.


    In the end, after searching for a long time, he still couldn''t find anything.


    His voice was still sounding off and on.


    Zhou Huan even opened his door to go to the corridor outside. At this time, the corridor was completely dark and the families were all asleep. A cold wind that came from nowhere blew across his face, causing him to feel a chill.


    It was clearly inside the house. Why was there wind? Zhou Huan thought.


    Zhou Huan felt that this place was very strange. If he didn''t figure out the origin of the strange sound, then he probably wouldn''t be able to sleep tonight.


    Just as he was about to return to his room, something flashed behind him.


    Zhou Huan stood very straight, all the hair on his body stood up, and because he was reflected on the wall, he could roughly see that thing.


    It was a figure!


    The figure was much shorter than he was, like a child.


    Zhou Huan slowly turned his head, but it was completely empty behind him, with no one around.


    He looked at his door again, thinking that if anyone passed behind him, they would have to go to his house. After all, he was the only one at the end of the second floor.


    With a nervous heart, he returned to his room. The moment he closed the door, he once again felt that there was someone behind him.


    He was certain that whoever it was, it had crept into his room, and he could imagine it cowering in a corner somewhere, watching him.


    He felt a surge of fear and found himself looking for the "person."


    There was something else that made him uneasy. The strange noise from before sounded even more distinct. It was as if he had accompanied the figure to his house.


    As a journalist, Zhou Huan had seen many scenes that frightened him. In the past, when he was stationed at the public security department to do a documentary on a major murder case, he had always been very confident in his own courage and felt that there was nothing to be afraid of. However, at this moment, he gradually experienced what fear was.


    There''s something wrong with this house!


    When Zhou Huan went back to bed, he came to this conclusion.


    With regards to the words of the Ghost God, Zhou Huan neither rejected nor rejected them. However, he thought that as long as he didn''t do anything evil, there shouldn''t be any trouble bothering him.


    He decided to find out about it tomorrow.


    As a result, at dawn, Zhou Huan dialed a number. It was the number given to him by his landlord after the realtor had completed the rental procedures.


    "Hey ¡­" The voice on the other end of the phone was very lazy. It sounded like it was still sleeping.


    Previously, Zhou Huan had met the landlord once, so he knew that the landlord was a fat middle-aged man with a good temper. Then he greeted the other and went straight to the point, saying that there seemed to be something wrong with the house.


    "What''s not good?" The landlord, who was almost awake, asked Zhou Huan.


    "That''s right ¡­" "It''s a bit strange. Was there anything wrong with this house before?"


    "What do you mean something is wrong? Speak clearly!"


    Zhou Huan knew in his heart that although he was unable to put it into words, it was still too difficult for him to say.


    After all, this kind of thing always sounded like a groundless rumor. Especially in someone else''s house, it was hard to just randomly talk about it.


    "Honestly, I don''t know how to describe it either." Zhou Huan laughed awkwardly.


    "It''s fine. Just tell me, if there really is a problem with the house, I''ll help you solve it, right?"


    "Yes yes yes, I understand."


    "So ¡­"


    "So what?"


    "What, brother, you have to tell me, tell me!"


    Zhou Huan''s face reddened, he realized that he was already incoherent, but the landlord''s patience was beyond her expectations.


    "Owner, let me ask you this, haven''t the tenants in front of me responded to any questions?" Zhou Huan organized his thoughts and asked again.


    "Nope."


    "Not a single one?"


    "No, this place has just been rented out. You''re the first one."


    "Oh, so it''s like that. Then who lived there before?"


    "Ugh ¡­" I... A relative. "


    "Then where did your relative go?"


    "They... They''re gone. "


    Gone? What does'' no ''mean? Zhou Huan was suspicious.


    "Did you move it?"


    "What?"


    "I ask, did your relative move away?"


    When Zhou Huan asked this question, the landlord was silent for a while.


    After a long while, the landlord didn''t reply, Zhou Huan even suspected that the landlord had hung up. When he was about to ask again, the landlord finally replied softly, "No no no, my body isn''t well, I''m back home."


    Zhou Huan felt that it was strange. Since they were going back to their home, then wouldn''t it be similar to moving somewhere else?


    Following that, Zhou Huan asked a few more questions, and realized that the landlord was always hesitating and hesitating when answering some questions. He even intentionally changed the topic, as if he was hiding something.


    Until the end of the call, Zhou Huan still did not manage to get the answer he needed.


    He had a knot in his heart and was prepared to ask around from someone else in a nearby alley.


    The first person he thought of was naturally the Ah Feng who sold breakfast.


    Zhou Huan immediately went out, and in five minutes, he was in front of Ah Feng''s store.


    Seeing that Ah Feng''s business was a little deserted today, he thought to himself that this was the chance to ask about things.


    Zhou Huan bought two steamed buns as usual, then exchanged a few words and quickly got to the main topic.


    "You mean, that house, who used to live in it?" Ah Feng asked Zhou Huan.


    "Right, right." Zhou Huan smiled and nodded.


    "Oh, it should be Xiao Fei''s house right? Actually, I haven''t been here for more than a year, and I''ve been focusing on doing business every day. There are some things that I''m not clear about. " After replying, Ah Feng looked towards a shop that sold cigarettes. There was an old man sitting there, and Ah Feng seemed to be seeking the old man''s confirmation.


    "Yes, it''s Xiao Fei''s house." The old man nodded and said with certainty.


    "If Lao Zhou says yes, then it must be!" Ah Feng laughed.


    Seeing that the Lao Zhou was probably a local person, he was sure that they knew about what was happening here. Thus, he went around Ah Feng and directly asked the Lao Zhou: "Who is it, is it a child?"


    "How do you know?" The Lao Zhou asked.


    Zhou Huan was guessing randomly, but he immediately thought of the figure behind him last night.


    "I was just guessing, where is the child now?"


    "Ai ¡­" It''s gone! "


    He''s gone again? Zhou Huan immediately realized that the words the Lao Zhou used were the same as the landlord''s.


    "What does'' no longer ''mean?" Zhou Huan asked the same question.


    "A few months ago, something happened!" The Lao Zhou answered straightforwardly.


    "He died?"


    "Hmm, didn''t they tell you when you rented the house?"


    Zhou Huan shook his head, his expression becoming gloomy.


    "That would be dishonest, but this kind of thing... People usually don''t know how to rent out a house, right? " Lao Zhou looked at Ah Feng with a face full of schadenfreude.


    Zhou Huan finally understood why the landlord stuttered at him. It was a house that had just died, no wonder the rent was cheap.


    Afterwards, Zhou Huan continued to ask the Lao Zhou for information and found out that there was a mother and son who lived in the house previously. The child was called Xiao Fei, and was born with mental retardation. Every morning, the mother would ride her bicycle, and Xiao Fei would sit in the back seat with her mother to the place where they worked. The people in the alley had a deep impression of him and his mother.


    After that, Xiao Fei''s mother unluckily fell off the bicycle and broke a leg. From then on, Xiao Fei''s mother laid on the bed and died because of illness, Xiao Fei became left without anyone to take care of him and his relatives refused to take care of him. In the end, a few days later, Xiao Fei actually climbed onto the dam and chose to jump into the river to commit suicide.


    After hearing this story, Zhou Huan''s heart felt a little uncomfortable.


    "How long ago was that?" Zhou Huan continued to ask.


    "That foolish child committed suicide a few months ago. I remember it was winter. The riverside is especially cold. Did his mother break her leg ¡­" It should have been two years ago. " The Lao Zhou said.


    "What have they been doing these past two years?"


    "I suppose so. Sometimes, their relatives would also send them some stuff, but it''s very little."


    "The house is still theirs, isn''t it?"


    "Yes, but they are all dead. The house can only be kept by their relatives, I heard that it''s that foolish child''s second uncle. He should be the landlord that you contacted, right? I reckon the house will belong to him in the future too. "


    Zhou Huan thought that the mother and son pair''s relatives did not treat them very well when they were alive, but in the end, they were able to obtain the benefits of a house.


    Zhou Huan suddenly pitied the mother and her son.


    "Why would that child commit suicide? Isn''t he a retarded child? " Zhou Huan wanted to know more.


    "We can''t go on any further!" If his mother died and no one raised him, how would he live his life? However ¡­ "Speaking of which, when that child died, it was quite strange."


    "The devil?"


    "Yeah, almost everyone here knows about it."


    "According to what the Lao Zhou said, what evil techniques are there? It is just a group of people making wild guesses." Ah Feng said from the side.


    "It''s fine, it''s fine. Tell me about it." Zhou Huan really wanted to know.


    "Oh, yeah. I heard you''re a reporter, right? "I understand, I understand. No wonder it was so exciting." Lao Zhou laughed.


    Actually, when Zhou Huan asked about this matter, he did not think about it at all. It was purely out of curiosity.


    "So, what do you want to know? I''ll tell you. Help us advertise this place in the newspapers and take care of our business!" Lao Zhou laughed.


    Zhou Huan thought for a while before replying, "Alright, it''s a small matter."


    Of course, he was just being perfunctory and wouldn''t do it.


    "That day, early in the morning, Xiao Fei went to the river bank. The people in the alley haven''t even woken up yet ¡­" The Lao Zhou started to narrate, "On the other hand, a fisherman and his wife who were sleeping on the boat woke up early again, and coincidentally saw Xiao Fei."


    "Then watch him jump into the river?"


    "That''s right, but jumping off the river isn''t that surprising. In my impression, there are at least a dozen people who died in the river nearby. So it''s another thing, a little strange! "


    "Hurry up and tell me." Zhou Huan urged Lao Zhou, he realized that this man liked to keep people in suspense.


    Lao Zhou deliberately lowered his voice, and said softly: "When that child died, he wore no other clothes, only a red apron, it was his mother''s dowry when she married!"


    Zhou Huan found it strange as expected, and asked: "Red bellyband? Are you not wearing any other clothes? Include... Pants? "


    Zhou Huan also knew that these kinds of clothes were not common anymore. Only the rural areas would occasionally have one, but taking into account that it was his mother''s dowry when she married, he had to push it forward for many years.


    "That''s right!" Lao Zhou answered with wide eyes, "My whole body... Wearing only a single undergarment, it''s winter, it''s a few degrees below zero! "


    "Will you... "Because that child is retarded ¡­"


    "No!" "Impossible!" Before Zhou Huan finished speaking, the Lao Zhou interrupted him, "Although there is something wrong with that child''s brain, he shouldn''t be so foolish. It is normal for him to wear clothes and eat food, and every winter, his mother would wrap him up completely.


    Zhou Huan thought that this made sense. Ordinary mentally retarded people were adept at following fixed patterns and would find it hard to change. From this point of view, many normal people were not as good as them.


    "Did you discuss it afterwards?" Zhou Huan asked again.

 C24

    "Yes, of course! "Listen to me finish ¡­" "I remember that when Xiao Fei died that day, all the people in our alleyway gathered together and made guesses. In the end, all of them had the same opinion, saying that it was the child''s mother, but seeing that he was pitiful and had no one to take care of, they simply attached themselves to him and took him down with them!"


    "Oh? Is that true? " Zhou Huan was a little scared when he heard it, but he felt that it was really true.


    "Yeah, that''s the way it is! Otherwise, what other possibility is there? Why don''t you tell me? " Lao Zhou asked provocatively.


    "That makes sense. Then about this child ¡­ "How about other areas, such as normal times, are there any special actions?"


    Zhou Huan''s focus was still on the child called Xiao Fei. He had a nagging feeling that the figure he saw last night was related to Xiao Fei.


    "Normally..." He didn''t do anything, just play with the rope. After it rains, he likes to shake the tree and shake off all the raindrops on it. Oh right, he kept repeating the words, call ¡­ Call... "Gulp!"


    "Slurp?" "What do you mean?"


    "It''s his catchphrase, right? He often says'' huff ''in his mouth! "Huu!", she is actually quite a cute child, not bad at heart. " Ah Feng added.


    "Oh ¡­" Zhou Huan nodded his head. Suddenly, he remembered the strange snoring sound that he heard last night, and his back started to feel cold.


    Gulp! Gulp!


    He silently uttered these two words in his heart.


    "Lao Zhou, I remember that time, there was something rather strange." After pausing for a moment, Ah Feng began to speak again.


    "What?" Zhou Huan asked.


    "If it''s raining, then do you remember after Xiao Fei committed suicide? After it rained for many days, the alley was filled with water, and we walked in the water. From that time on, the alley was always filled with water for no reason, and it was even worse than before. He slept well in the middle of the night and found that the floor was completely filled with water. There''s more ¡­ Xiao Fei''s body did not seem to have been fished out from the river in the end. "


    "Yes yes yes, what you just said, I remember now, it''s indeed strange, if we can''t find Xiao Fei''s corpse, let''s talk about it being washed away by the river, but although this alleyway used to have problems with the drainage, it''s not that bad, but now, every few days or so we hear someone''s home getting flooded, and furthermore, the tide is about to rise, who knows what will happen?"


    The more Zhou Huan listened, the weirder he felt it to be. He even had a premonition that when the tide really came, something big would happen.


    "Sigh ¡­" His father left when he was born and he found out he was a fool. His mother brought him up all by herself, and we all took it to heart, but then again, there''s not a single family that''s particularly well off, so it''s not really helpful. Then, his mom was pushed off her bike and her leg was broken. It was quite tragic. "


    "Pushed?" Zhou Huan suddenly heard a crucial point.


    "Right, didn''t I just say that?"


    "No. Who pushed him? "


    "In a household on the other side of the alley, there are two children there too. They are a pair of siblings, brother is called Army, sister is called Xiaomei, she is slightly older than Xiao Fei. If we are to say that our only family in this area is a little better off, it might be their family. "


    "Xiao Fei''s mother was pushed off the bicycle by the two children?"


    "Mn, you don''t know, the two children were different from Xiao Fei, they were especially mischievous, and liked to bully Xiao Fei since young. When they were older, they even bully Xiao Fei''s mother, and the parents of the two children also opened and closed their eyes, to put it bluntly, they did not put the mother and son in their eyes."


    "In other words, because those two kids were so mischievous, they pushed Xiao Fei''s mother off the bicycle and broke his leg?"


    "More or less. Those two children are crazy, darting around like a gust of wind. I''m quite annoyed by them."


    Zhou Huan understood what the Lao Zhou felt, and he did not like that kind of devilish brat.


    Following that, Zhou Heng became silent. After organizing his thoughts, he realized that this matter should have started from the moment the two children pushed Xiao Fei''s mother off the bike and broke his leg, and following Xiao Fei''s mother''s obedient and obedient personality, she chose not to make a scene, and did not argue with the family. In the end, it was only a few days later that Xiao Fei fell into the river and committed suicide.


    Zhou Huan realized that if it wasn''t for the strange experience they had last night, this incident wouldn''t have been so special to begin with.


    For the time being, he did not plan to reveal it, lest the people in the alley become more suspicious.


    As a journalist, he decided to investigate this matter personally.


    Just as Zhou Huan was about to leave, he heard the continuous sound of a bicycle bell behind him, followed by the laughter of the two children. A boy of about ten years old rode a bicycle that was ridden by an adult, and on the back seat, a girl who was slightly younger than the boy flew past him like the wind.


    "Just those two, the army and Xiaomei." The Lao Zhou said.


    Zhou Huan answered. Even though he had only taken a glance, he had already realised that not only were these two siblings mischievous, they also looked quite ugly. They belonged to the category that would make people hate them if they saw them.


    Zhou Huan felt that even if it was the parents of those two children, they shouldn''t have liked them that much.


    In the evening, when Zhou Huan returned from work, the first thing he did was take a bath after entering his house.


    However, while he was showering, he heard the strange "huff huff" sound again.


    He instantly thought of Xiao Fei''s usual voice: HU HU! Gulp!


    He didn''t know why, although his understanding of the retarded child was entirely based on Lao Zhou and Ah Feng''s descriptions, but at this moment, his impression of the child was extremely deep, as if he had seen it with his own eyes. He almost saw Xiao Fei standing right in front of him. His fat body, thick and sturdy arms, round head, and a face full of pockmarks, especially that red undergarment, which was tensed up on Xiao Fei''s body. It was bright red, as if it was blood flowing out from Xiao Fei''s body.


    As he thought about it, a chill rose up Zhou Huan''s back again.


    In the face of this situation, if it was anyone else, they would most likely choose to move, but Zhou Huan was still unwilling to retreat. One reason was because of his professional instincts as a reporter. The other reason was that he had a tough temper since he was young and did not like to give in. It was not his style to retreat in the face of trouble.


    So he decided to follow it up.


    The next day was Saturday. Zhou Huan decided to rest for the day and replenish his sleep.


    As a result, he was woken up early in the morning by the sound of the aunts downstairs, saying that the tide would start to rise today.


    Zhou Huan thought, wasn''t it not even April yet?


    Then he went downstairs to inquire. He was told that the tide had indeed come earlier this year than usual, and that it felt very unusual.


    Moreover, not only was the tide rising today, it was also raining heavily, causing the entire alley to become even more sticky. Zhou Huan could imagine that a lot of water must have come out of every house''s house again.


    Although the weather was bad, Zhou Huan wanted to take a walk around the river to see what the high tide looked like.


    Thus, he held up an umbrella, and under the heavy wind and rain, he slowly walked towards the river bank.


    The journey from the alley to the river was short, and there were only a few houses. Not long after, Zhou Huan stood in front of the dam, and saw the river water violently churning, the level of the water evidently rising, in addition, he realized that the color of the river water was very similar to the color of the sky, it was both grey and misty.


    Zhou Huan carefully climbed up the dam to get a better look.


    Standing on the dam, Zhou Huan suddenly thought of the retarded child called Xiao Fei. A few months ago, the child jumped off from this dam and committed suicide.


    Looking at the churning waves on the surface of the river, Zhou Huan felt that it was difficult for him to understand Xiao Fei''s feelings at that time.


    While he was lost in thought, a huge wave suddenly came from in front of him. He was caught off guard and almost fell off the dam. He even accidentally drank a large mouthful of water and choked for a long time.


    Zhou Huan realized that this wave came in an unfathomable manner, without any warning. At this moment, he felt extremely uncomfortable, to the point that he had the urge to vomit.


    At this moment, he saw an extremely shocking scene. A head actually appeared on the dark gray surface of the river, as if a person was emerging from the river. On a closer look, this person''s face was round and full of pockmarks, and he was still smiling at him.


    A voice came out in Zhou Huan''s mind: Xiao Fei!


    He blinked with all his might. Finally, the river surface returned to normal again, and Xiao Fei disappeared.


    Zhou Huan slowly climbed down from the dam, as if he was extremely worried about something. After pausing for a moment, he returned back to the wet alley. Along the way, he did not hold any more umbrellas, allowing the rain to violently beat down on him.


    The tide had been rising for about three days. During this time, a lot of water seeped out of every household in the alley. The water in the alley was almost as high as his knees.


    Overall, this year''s tide had come early and gone fast, which was very strange.


    Everyone in the alley started guessing. This strange sign seemed to indicate that something was about to happen.


    Everyone knew that a few months ago, Xiao Fei committed suicide and died in this very river. Xiao Fei loved to play with water when he was still alive, and it was also because after he died, there was more and more water in the alley.


    Sure enough, the day after the tide went out, something really happened.


    That morning, everyone was standing around on a patch of mud below the dam, including Zhou Huan. If the tide did not ebb, this piece of flat land would have been flooded by the river and wouldn''t be able to stand.


    At this moment, everyone''s face was extremely gloomy, several women even covered their mouths.


    This was because they had all seen a scene that caused their hearts to tremble.


    In the middle of the crowd, the upper half of a corpse was stuck upside down in the dirt. Its legs were bent, and its posture was very strange.


    Due to the approach of the police station, the police quickly arrived. When the two police officers pulled the corpses out of the soil, everyone could clearly see the faces of the dead, and they couldn''t help but exclaim in surprise.


    What shocked them was not the identity of the deceased but the fact that even through the lower half of their body they could tell that the deceased was the child''s army. What really scared them was that the army''s face had suddenly become covered in pockmarks, as dense as if they had been stung by countless bees!


    When the military''s parents arrived at the scene and saw their son''s corpse, they were naturally crying their hearts out. However, a thought quickly emerged in the other spectators'' minds:


    Xiao Fei is back for revenge!


    That face full of pockmarks was Xiao Fei''s specialty. Xiao Fei wanted to tell you all that he''s back! He came back during the high tide!


    After the army''s parents had cried for a while, the police asked them when the child had disappeared and whether any suspicious figures had appeared recently.


    The soldiers'' parents were also trying their best to adjust their emotions and replied without hesitation, telling the police that the army had disappeared early yesterday, so it must have happened yesterday, and there hadn''t been any suspicious people around recently. The reason their parents were cooperating with the police like this was because other than the army, their daughter, Xiaomei, was also missing.


    "How evil, the two children are gone, do you think that Xiao Fei''s ghost has come back to take revenge?" Amongst the crowd, Ah Feng asked Lao Zhou who was beside him.


    "Of course!" Who told their child to do wrong before? To put it bluntly, Xiao Fei and his son were harmed by those two children, so these words are not excessive at all. " Lao Zhou replied softly.


    Hearing their conversation, Zhou Huan also asked, "Based on what you guys said, that girl should be in trouble now, right?"


    "I guess so. However, it was impossible for him to die like that. The river only had this piece of flat land, otherwise ¡­ was thrown into the water directly? " Lao Zhou guessed.


    "Shh ¡­" Don''t spout nonsense, my parents are still here. " Ah Feng quietly reminded her.


    "Did the two children go missing together?" Zhou Huan asked again.


    "I heard that the army did not see them in the morning, and Xiaomei was seen at night." The Lao Zhou said.


    "Where can I go?"


    "Who knows!"


    Zhou Huan nodded and did not speak further.


    Just at this time, the army''s corpse had already been loaded onto a corpse carriage. The army''s mother followed along with them as their father continued to search for Xiaomei with the other police officers.


    Because the situation was urgent, the search and rescue team gradually grew bigger and stronger. In the end, almost everyone was involved in the search, and Zhou Huan was no exception.


    Late in the afternoon, the police gave the order to expand the area and try to find the child tonight.


    Zhou Huan was originally in the same group as Ah Feng and the three people from Lao Zhou. After that, Lao Zhou said that he had matters at home and went home first, leaving behind Zhou Huan and Ah Feng. Ah Feng was still ridiculing Lao Zhou behind his back, "Look, people here only think about themselves.


    Zhou Huan nodded affirmatively.


    Due to the expansion of the scope, Zhou Huan and Ah Feng searched the entire town thoroughly, and gradually, Zhou Huan discovered that the number of people participating in the search was decreasing. It was just as Ah Feng had said, the people here only cared about themselves, and they were all very indifferent. Relatively speaking, Ah Feng was more enthusiastic.


    "How about we take a walk around the edge of town?" Seeing that his search in the town was fruitless, Ah Feng suggested.


    "Sure, what if we can''t find it again?" Zhou Huan asked.


    "Then let''s go back. After searching for so long, my legs are aching from the journey. Isn''t this a bit too much for their family?" Look at those people, didn''t they all go home to sleep? " Ah Feng mocked again.


    Zhou Huan only smiled and did not say anymore.


    Thus, the two of them left the small town, planning to walk around it in search of a way out.


    The surrounding area of the town was relatively barren, filled with weeds. There were barely any short houses or farmlands.


    The two found themselves in the middle of the fields. The road was very hard to walk on, the ground was muddy from the heavy rain. At this time, Ah Feng saw a straw hut in front of them. There seemed to be movement inside.


    At this moment, the sun had not completely set and the light was not too dim. Otherwise, if the thatched cottage was under a few big trees, it would have been easily overlooked.


    "Go take a look?" Ah Feng looked at Zhou Huan.


    "Yes." Zhou Huan also saw it, a shadow flashed inside the thatched cottage.


    The two of them did not hesitate and walked towards the thatched cottage. They pushed open the half-opened door and a dusty smell drifted over. It seemed as if the house had been lived here for a long time.


    The furnishings inside the house were rather simple and crude. Other than some weeds on the floor, there was also a stove that looked like it hadn''t been used in hundreds of years. It was covered with dust.


    The two of them simultaneously looked at the only room in the room, and saw that the door had been opened. The figure from earlier should be in the room.


    Ah Feng took the lead, Zhou Huan followed behind, the two of them slowly walked into the room. Indeed, just as they had guessed, there was a person inside.


    Since the room was very small and there was nowhere to hide, the person just hugged his knees and curled up in a corner, appearing extremely terrified.


    "Xiaomei?" Ah Feng recognized it immediately.


    This man was the missing Xiaomei.


    "So scared ¡­" "So scared ¡­" Xiaomei looked at the two of them and said with a trembling voice.


    "Why did you come here alone?" Your parents are looking for you! " Ah Feng sized Xiaomei up from top to bottom. Realizing that there were no major problems, he was elated in his heart, thinking that at the critical moment, he was the one who found Xiaomei, which could be considered a great merit, and felt very proud.


    Xiaomei shook her head, still very nervous.


    "Didn''t you stay with your brother yesterday? Did you see your brother taken away? " Ah Feng suddenly asked.


    "My brother ¡­" was taken away by Xiao Fei! "


    "Xiao Fei?" Ah Feng frowned, "Are you sure? Did you see that? "


    "En!" Xiaomei lowered his head, "I saw it! My brother was taken away by Xiao Fei! Xiao Fei is really scary! "


    "And then? You came here alone, just to avoid Xiao Fei? "


    "That''s right!" I was afraid that Xiao Fei would come to find me too, and take me away! "


    Hearing Xiaomei''s words, Ah Feng took a deep breath, he turned and looked at Zhou Huan, and asked: "What do we do?"


    "Don''t worry about that. Let''s take her away first. We can talk about other things later."


    "That''s true, then Xiaomei, come with uncle ¡­"


    Who knew that before Ah Feng could finish his sentence, Xiaomei anxiously shouted out, "Don''t! No! I''m not leaving! "


    "What are you doing? With uncle here, why would you be afraid? "


    "I won''t leave! Not leaving! Xiao Fei is outside! "


    As Xiaomei was yelling, Ah Feng suddenly felt a bit of red on her knees. She immediately asked: "Xiaomei, did you wrestle with your knees?"


    Xiaomei immediately quietened down, and stopped making noise. She moved away from Xiaomei''s hands and found that there was indeed a small wound on Xiaomei''s right knee. No wonder she sat on the ground, and didn''t stand up even after seeing someone.


    "Uncle, my legs are hurting. I can''t walk. I just tried to walk a few steps, and it hurt so much!" Xiaomei shouted again.


    "When did it fall?" Ah Feng asked.


    "When we came here."


    Ah Feng thought that was right, just now, Xiaomei was trying to walk, so she coincidentally saw it with Zhou Huan''s eyes. However, since it was inconvenient for Xiaomei to walk, it would be more troublesome.


    "Go get her parents. You''d better bring another stretcher. I''ll be waiting here." Zhou Huan suggested.


    Ah Feng thought for a bit, and felt that Zhou Huan''s idea was feasible, and said: "Alright, then you must work hard, I will return quickly, this girl is very stubborn, probably only her parents can take her away, you better not let her run again!"


    "How could that be? Look at her legs, even if she wanted to run, she wouldn''t be able to." Zhou Huan said.


    "That''s right, I''m really stupid." Ah Feng laughed awkwardly.


    Ah Feng did not dawdle and immediately left. Zhou Huan stood quietly in front of the door and watched him leave.


    After a while, Zhou Huan returned to the house. He looked at Xiaomei silently for a long time. Xiaomei also looked at him, blinking.


    Behind Xiaomei''s body, there was a broken makeup cabinet, and a round mirror on top of it. Zhou Huan stood straight, and raised his head just in time to see himself in the mirror.


    Suddenly, Zhou Huan revealed a strange smile.


    Then, he slowly took off his shirt. His face changed at the same time, and a lot of black spots appeared on it.


    Inside the circular lens, Zhou Huan seemed to have become another person. His skin had gone dark, his face was pockmarked, and he wore a tight red apron.


    Under Xiaomei''s extreme fear, Zhou Huan began to mutter softly:


    "Slurp ¡­" "Gulp ¡­"


    Oh no!

 C25

    Xu Yawen liked to eat kebabs, but Jiang Xiaomei did not really like them. Ever since she moved to her new home, she saw a whole street of barbecue grills in front of the entrance of the small district, so Xu Yawen frequently asked his friends to eat kebabs. Jiang Xiaomei could not bear to watch, and said that these things were neither nutritious nor dirty, so she advised Xu Yawen to eat less.


    Xu Yawen and Jiang Xiaomei had been married for three years and still had no children, but their relationship had always been good, and they only occasionally argued over some small matters.


    Xu Yawen''s character was easy going, so she had a good relationship with many people and had a lot of friends. Coincidentally, all of these friends liked to eat kebabs, which made Jiang Xiaomei seem even more out of place.


    On this day, Xu Yawen''s best friend, Wang Shan, was having his birthday, and a group of people wanted to find a barbecue shop to celebrate. Xu Yawen asked Jiang Xiaomei to go with them, but Jiang Xiaomei was unwilling.


    "Rarely do you think so? The eel is on its 30th birthday today. He had lunch with his family before, but tonight he thought of us bros. If you didn''t go, would it make sense?" Xu Yawen advised Jiang Xiaomei.


    Furthermore, the Yellow Eel was Wang Shan''s nickname, that was what Xu Yawen had always called him.


    "I know, but I really don''t like barbecue. Didn''t you watch the news? It''s been said that the meat has been left for a long time. Jiang Xiaomei said.


    "How can it be that exaggerated? It''s fine even if I eat until now, right?" "What''s more, that store is newly opened today, and the environment is not bad. I''ve eaten with the Yellow Eel and the others a few times, and the taste is too good!"


    "I''m not really interested. If I really want to go, then I''ll just eat a little."


    "Alright, alright, let''s go."


    Seeing that he had finally managed to convince Jiang Xiaomei, Xu Yawen''s mood was high. He immediately got Jiang Xiaomei to change clothes, and the two of them went out.


    This eatery was called "Purple Flame Barbecue" and was located at the end of a street of barbecues. It was indeed newly opened, and the owner was a northerner.


    When Xu Yawen and Jiang Xiaomei arrived, Jiang Xiaomei discovered that the barbecue shop was bustling with business. Not only were the seats filled, there were even a few tables outside the shop. If not for Wang Shan''s early arrival, they would have probably waited for at least half an hour.


    "Aiyo ¡­" "What a rare guest, Big Sister Xiaomei is finally here!" Wang Shan and Jiang Xiaomei were very familiar with each other, teasing each other as soon as they met.


    Other than Xu Yawen and his wife, Wang Shan and his wife, there were a total of six other people.


    After Jiang Xiaomei sat down, she realized that the big table was already filled with all kinds of skewers: mutton, beef, streaky pork, kidney, chicken heart, chicken wings, lamb chops, etc. However, when Jiang Xiaomei saw all these, she did not have the slightest bit of appetite. Furthermore, the restaurant was noisy and chaotic.


    Xu Yawen was the first to start, so in order to take care of Xu Yawen''s face, he could only eat a few skewers. He did not know if it was because it had been a long time since he had eaten barbecue skewers, but Jiang Xiaomei felt that this meat tasted strange, and had a rotten taste.


    Therefore, Jiang Xiaomei did not eat much and just wiped her mouth, smiled at Wang Shan and said: "You guys eat."


    Actually, Wang Shan was a generous person, he understood Jiang Xiaomei''s temperament very well, so he did not mind at all.


    After that, Xu Yawen, Wang Shan and a group of people continued to grill beer, but Jiang Xiaomei was the only one eating Soup Dumplings. While chatting, Jiang Xiaomei saw that a shop assistant was busily eating, with a face covered in sweat, and after watching for a while, she became a little doubtful and asked Xu Yawen: "The business of this shop is so good, is there only one shop assistant?


    Hearing Jiang Xiaomei''s question, Xu Yawen also looked at the owner at the cashier counter and the shop assistant who was running around, and replied: "I think so."


    "Yes, just that one. So every time I come here, I see him busy as if he were something. " Wang Shan interrupted.


    "That''s hard work." Jiang Xiaomei replied indifferently.


    While talking, the shop assistant just happened to pass by Jiang Xiaomei''s side, Jiang Xiaomei saw that he was skinny and had dark circles under his eyes, and was completely listless, as if he was still dreaming. On the other hand, the boss was fat and fat, with an oily look on his face as he sat down on a stool. What a stark contrast.


    Just as the waiter was about to deliver the kebabs to the table, due to his haste, his feet tripped on something. As a result, he stumbled and scattered the kebabs all over the plate.


    When the shop owner saw this, he immediately stood up and shouted at the shop assistant,


    "Do you know how to carry a plate? "I won''t carry you home!"


    The store instantly became silent. Everyone looked at the waiter who was squatting down to pick up the kebabs.


    When he was done, the waiter stood up silently and went back into the kitchen to change the kebabs. During the process, the boss was still cursing and swearing, using words that insulted the owner''s character.


    "If it was me who was scolded like this by my boss in public, I would definitely not be able to stand it and leave." Xu Yawen laughed.


    "Do you think they are all like you? It''s not easy for people to work here." Wang Shan''s wife replied to him.


    "To be honest, I think that kid has been scolded by his boss a lot. Is he used to it?" Wang Shan added.


    Wang Shan''s birthday barbecue lasted for more than three hours. After coming out of the eatery, Xu Yawen walked home with Jiang Xiaomei with her stomach full. On the way, he told Jiang Xiaomei that this eatery''s specialty was actually to roast lamb, but they had to book it in advance, and they might not even have it. Jiang Xiaomei was not interested at all, and advised Xu Yawen not to come to this kind of place again.


    There was nothing much to do that night, so when night fell and Jiang Xiaomei was about to go to bed, her stomach suddenly hurt.


    "Aiyo ¡­" My stomach, it hurts like hell. " Jiang Xiaomei held his stomach, and continued to complain. Since then, she had been to the toilet three times and it had not worked.


    Xu Yawen kept pouring water for Jiang Xiaomei and was getting anxious.


    "If you let me eat that broken kebab, I''m sure I''ll have a bad stomach!" Jiang Xiaomei began to blame Xu Yawen.


    "That''s hard to say. You only ate a few skewers, I ate a lot more than you, so it''s fine."


    "Nonsense, you often eat those random things, and your stomach is already immune to poisons. How can I be like you!"


    Xu Yawen saw that Jiang Xiaomei was making trouble for no reason, but seeing that she was in a difficult situation, he did not want to argue further.


    Jiang Xiaomei drank a few more mouthfuls of hot water before lying on her back. Unexpectedly, the moment she laid down, another wave of nausea struck her and she almost jumped up to rush to the toilet, spitting everything out by the toilet.


    After spitting it out, Jiang Xiaomei''s face was flushed red as she said to Xu Yawen: "The meat from that shop ¡­ ¡­ There''s definitely a problem. Tomorrow, I will go and find them to argue with. "


    That night, Jiang Xiaomei went to the hospital. The result of the examination was gastroenteritis, and after hanging up, she returned home, it was already close to midnight.


    The next day, Jiang Xiaomei went to work as usual, but she didn''t feel well for the entire day. Xu Yawen knew that his wife''s mood and body weren''t very good, so she obediently picked her up in the car the moment they got off work, not letting her squeeze in on the bus. On the way home, Jiang Xiaomei was still worried about the barbecue shop.


    "The owner of that shop looks like a pig. He definitely isn''t a good person." Jiang Xiaomei said angrily.


    "Ai ¡­" "You can''t say that about me either." Xu Yawen was helpless.


    "I can wager with you that the meat from yesterday is definitely not fresh!"


    "Surely not? That barbecue shop''s business is so good, there''s no need to use some bad meat. Furthermore, there were so many people yesterday, only you had a bad stomach. " Xu Yawen''s voice got softer and softer, afraid that he would add fuel to the fire.


    "What does this mean?" Maybe the dead meat is just for me to eat? "


    Seeing that Jiang Xiaomei was being overbearing, Xu Yawen could only sigh and say no more.


    Just then, the car drove down the carriage, and they were already not far from home. Jiang Xiaomei was looking out the window when she suddenly patted Xu Yawen''s shoulder as if she had discovered something: "Wait, drive slower."


    "What?" Xu Yawen asked.


    "Look." Jiang Xiaomei pointed outside the window.


    Xu Yawen looked towards the direction Jiang Xiaomei was pointing and saw a place that looked like a factory outside the window.


    "I didn''t think that there would be a crematorium nearby, did I?" Jiang Xiaomei said.


    "Yeah, I don''t know. That real estate agent is also very smart. He didn''t even mention a word to us. No wonder his house is cheaper than other places."


    "That''s not what I want to say!" Jiang Xiaomei said with a stern expression.


    "Then what do you want to say? Don''t you blame me for not finding out when I bought a new house? "


    "No!"


    "Huh?"


    "That barbecue shop is also in front of our house. It''s even closer to the crematorium than our house, isn''t it?"


    "Right, what''s wrong?" Xu Yawen was a little nervous.


    "In case ¡­ Say, just in case ¡­ "What kind of a black transaction did the barbecue shop have with the crematorium? Send the cremated corpse to them ¡­"


    "Stop, stop, stop!" Don''t say anymore! " Xu Yawen already knew what Jiang Xiaomei was going to say, and immediately felt disgusted.


    "Just listen to me!" Jiang Xiaomei pressed down the hand Xu Yawen held out, "You want to ¡­ It''s not like the dead bodies aren''t worth much money, and cutting a few pieces off won''t have any effect. If I take some meat from those cremated corpses and sell it to a barbecue shop, wouldn''t that be a win-win situation for the crematorium and the barbecue shop? "


    "Aiyo ¡­" "Xiaomei, I just realized that you have a lot of imagination!" Xu Yawen didn''t know whether to laugh or cry.


    "Don''t be in a hurry to deny it. There are so many strange things in China, so it''s not too much to have one more."


    "Alright, alright, alright. Then what should we do next? Should we report them?"


    "Stop the car. As I said yesterday, I have to reason with that store today."


    "Really?"


    "Nonsense!"


    Xu Yawen was unable to refuse Jiang Xiaomei, so they could only follow her instructions. Not long later, the two of them stepped into the Purple Flame Grill once again.


    Because it was Monday, the business was not as good as yesterday. There were clearly fewer customers. Jiang Xiaomei saw the shop assistant, but the owner was not there.


    The shop assistant was still busy, in addition to receiving the money, he had a worried expression on his face.


    "Where''s your boss?" Jiang Xiaomei asked directly.


    "The boss went out." The clerk stood and answered.


    "Get him here!"


    "He''s going out for a few days."


    "Is there such a thing?" Jiang Xiaomei frowned, "Then if I eat something bad, who should I report it to?"


    "It''s broken ¡­" What is that thing? " The shop assistant was stunned for a moment.


    "Just the meat in your shop. "Yesterday, I ate the barbecue meat from your store. As a result, I threw up when I got home. I went to the hospital and hung an all-night drop. What kind of meat did you sell? Is it dead meat? Stinky meat?"


    A flame ignited in Jiang Xiaomei''s heart, and she released her voice, attracting countless gazes.


    "Miss, what you''re saying is not right. The meat in our restaurant has always been good." the man replied.

 C26

    "How could I eat so much that I have a stomachache? Can I show you my blood test from the hospital last night? "Forget it, I don''t think a person like you would be able to understand it. Anyway, you have to give me an explanation!"


    "I''m not the boss, what kind of explanation can I give you?" The shop assistant had an innocent look on his face.


    "You''re not the boss, so you should look for the boss. Aren''t you good at errands?"


    The more Jiang Xiaomei talked, the angrier she got, louder she got, and even Xu Yawen could not stand it anymore, so he advised him: "Why are you getting angry at me for working so hard, wait till the boss comes back, then we can talk about it again."


    "Don''t talk!" Jiang Xiaomei forcefully flung her hand away.


    At this moment, the shop assistant''s face was ashen. He stood there like a wooden stake, not moving at all.


    Jiang Xiaomei pointed at the fellow''s nose and complained, then suddenly said: "I think your shop is selling dead meat, right? The crematorium is nearby, isn''t it? "


    When Jiang Xiaomei''s words came out, the entire audience went into an uproar. Xu Yawen had also realized that these words were way too outrageous, and immediately advised Jiang Xiaomei to stop speaking.


    "Miss, you have to take responsibility for your words. We still need to do business in the future!" The shop assistant''s voice was also filled with anger.


    "Sure, I''m responsible. How about this ¡­" Jiang Xiaomei said as she looked at the plate of roasted meat in the shop assistant''s hands, "This plate of meat, you want me to take it to the food supervision organization to test it, do you dare? If there are any problems with the test, I, Jiang Xiaomei, will immediately apologize to you! "


    "Sure, take it." The shop assistant was very straightforward, and handed the plate over to Jiang Xiaomei.


    Jiang Xiaomei did not expect the other party to be so straightforward. When she received the plate, she asked again: What''s your name?


    "Xiao Dong, winter."


    "Mm, I''ll give you this plate of meat to calculate the price."


    "I won''t take your money!" With that, Xiao Dong turned and left.


    Jiang Xiaomei was startled, but at the same time, she felt awkward. Xu Yawen indicated for her to quickly leave, and the two of them immediately went out of the eatery.


    Along the way, Jiang Xiaomei was carrying a bowl of roasted meat. Xu Yawen sighed repeatedly. Sometimes, he really couldn''t stand Jiang Xiaomei''s temper, it was fine if she wasn''t angry, but when she is angry, it was as if she was a different person.


    It was only at home that Xu Yawen started to criticize Jiang Xiaomei:


    "Do you think it''s necessary? "You made him sound like that, he''s a labourer. If there''s really anything, go talk to his boss about it!"


    Actually, Jiang Xiaomei had calmed down and also realized that she was being a bit excessive just now, but she was unwilling to admit it on the surface.


    "What? I said something, what''s wrong? What''s more, I''ll take this plate of meat and test it tomorrow. There''s no problem with the test, I''ll personally apologize."


    "Really?"


    "Of course, you think I''m joking?"


    "Ai ¡­" I can''t stand you. "


    "Even if you can''t take it, you have to."


    The next day, Jiang Xiaomei woke up early in the morning, took the roasted meat out of the refrigerator that was already in a bag, and got Xu Yawen to drive her to the food supervision organization.


    There was nothing Xu Yawen could do. He first called the local food supervision and administration bureau, and found out that the food and medicine laboratory was at a laboratory in the suburbs. Thus, the two of them took an early morning off and went to the suburbs.


    Before leaving, Jiang Xiaomei gave her his phone number, telling her to contact him whenever there was any results.


    In the afternoon of the second day, the person called and directly told Jiang Xiaomei that the ingredient in the bag of meat was lamb, everything was normal.


    "How is it? There''s nothing more to say, right? " Once Xu Yawen returned home, he asked Jiang Xiaomei proudly.


    "Tsk, even if there''s nothing wrong with their meat, my stomach is still the truth." Jiang Xiaomei still wanted to die.


    "You''re just being stubborn. "What do you mean, are you going to apologize?" Xu Yawen asked with a half smile.


    "We''ll see." Jiang Xiaomei was still not convinced.


    For the next few days, everything was calm and peaceful. The two of them did not mention anything about the eatery anymore.


    Until Friday. Because Jiang Xiaomei returned home late and did not cook, Xu Yawen once again thought about that eatery, as if the hot, spicy smell of meat had already entered his nose.


    And what was unusual today was that Jiang Xiaomei actually agreed to accompany him.


    However, Jiang Xiaomei still maintained her usual attitude and said: "I''ll go with you, I won''t eat."


    Because of the meat inspection, Jiang Xiaomei had basically eliminated the ill feelings in her heart, and was no longer that disgusted with the barbecue shop.


    Therefore, Xu Yawen pulled Jiang Xiaomei along and excitedly went to the eatery.


    Tonight, the barbeque shop''s business was very quiet, with not many tables full of customers. Xu Yawen looked at the time, it was not even eight o''clock.


    Furthermore, the shop assistant, Xiao Dong, was still in the shop, but the owner was not there.


    Xiao Dong instantly recognized Xu Yawen and Jiang Xiaomei and couldn''t help but sneer, while casually pointing at an empty seat. Jiang Xiaomei was the most sensitive to these kinds of things, upon seeing Xiao Dong''s attitude, about to flare up, Xu Yawen quickly stopped him.


    "Why do you think he is so virtuous? "Therefore, this kind of person is only fit to work hard. He deserves to be scolded!"


    Seeing that Jiang Xiaomei was angry again, Xu Yawen also felt tired. Actually, he had only come here today to eat kebabs, so she didn''t want to cause any more trouble.


    "You''re asking me to apologize? Why apologize to such a person?" Jiang Xiaomei finally lowered her voice.


    "Fine, we won''t apologize. Let''s not talk about him anymore, okay?" Xu Yawen was already impatient.


    After calming down, Xu Yawen waved at Xiao Dong and ordered some kebabs.


    Very quickly, all the skewers had been served. Xu Yawen continued to eat, while Jiang Xiaomei glanced at him frequently, as if a lump of anger was still burning in his heart.


    At this moment, there were fewer and fewer customers in the eatery. The two chefs in charge of the barbeque had already finished their work. Xiao Dong sat at the cashier''s counter and counted. As he counted, he looked at Xu Yawen and smiled.


    "Did you take the test for the meat last time?"


    Hearing Xiao Dong''s direct question, Xu Yawen appeared to be slightly embarrassed, and hurriedly replied, "No ¡­ "If it doesn''t, then my wife will just be joking with you. Don''t take it to heart, brother!"


    Jiang Xiaomei did not speak, and imitated Xiao Dong''s sneer from the beginning.


    "Oh." Xiao Dong nodded and continued to count the money.


    Xu Yawen wanted to ease the atmosphere, so he intentionally changed the topic and asked Xiao Dong: "Hey, brother, how many people are currently ordering the roast lamb? I remember that''s the shop''s signboard, why haven''t I seen anyone eat it? "


    "The roast lamb is gone."


    "Gone?"


    "Yes, it''s not easy to get the entire lamb now, especially with the boss not around recently. I''m the only one in the restaurant, and the two chefs just go straight into the kitchen every day. I don''t care about anything else." Xiao Dong laughed bitterly again.


    "That''s true." Xu Yawen thought: This Xiao Dong is indeed hardworking. Not only is the labour force being squeezed by the boss, he is also often scolded by the boss and the customers. No wonder he only had a bitter smile on his face all day, he doesn''t even have a good smile.


    After a while, Xu Yawen had almost finished eating and was preparing to tell Xiao Dong to pay the bill, but he realized that Xiao Dong was no longer at the cashier. Just as he was thinking about where Xiao Dong had gone to, Xiao Dong suddenly came in from the back door with a plate of meat in hand.


    At this time, only Xu Yawen and Jiang Xiaomei were left at the table of customers. Xiao Dong''s meat was naturally for them.


    "I don''t seem to have ordered this meat." Xu Yawen said.


    "This is what I''m treating you to. It''s the freshly roasted streaky pork. That pig was just butchered today and the taste is the best. "You guys can try it. If you don''t want money, you can come visit more in the future." With that, Xiao Dong brought the plate in front of Xu Yawen and Jiang Xiaomei.


    "Oh, so there are benefits!" Xu Yawen laughed and picked up the chopsticks to eat one piece.


    Jiang Xiaomei looked at the streaky pork meat and thought: If it''s really the meat I just sliced off the pig''s body, then I can taste it.


    She had been waiting for Xu Yawen until now, and she was indeed a little hungry.


    Then, just like Xu Yawen, she picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks and put it into his mouth.


    After eating a few pieces, Jiang Xiaomei felt that the Wu Hua meat was indeed different from the others. It was soft and tender, fat but not greasy.


    Jiang Xiaomei simply let go of the topic and finished the entire plate of meat.


    "The taste isn''t bad, right?" Xiao Dong intentionally looked at Jiang Xiaomei.


    "Mm, not bad." Jiang Xiaomei wiped her mouth and said perfunctorily.


    After that, Xu Yawen paid the bill and left the eatery with Jiang Xiaomei.


    Xu Yawen rubbed his stomach, appearing to be satisfied, he said to Jiang Xiaomei: "This piece of pork meat later on is really not bad, next time I should be a bit late, maybe I can still eat it."


    Jiang Xiaomei acknowledged, and did not say much.


    The two of them strolled along the street, preparing to return home. But just as they walked a few steps, they heard someone call out from behind them, "Xu Yawen?"


    Xu Yawen turned his head to see a man wearing glasses. Beside him was a woman, who looked to be a couple.


    After looking for a long time, Xu Yawen finally remembered as he shouted: "Guo Peng?"


    So this man called Guo Peng was Xu Yawen''s high school friend, and it had been more than ten years since they last met.


    The two chatted happily for a while before Guo Peng finally asked, "You live here?"


    "Right, you guys too?"


    "Alright then, I''ll often do it in the future." How about this, you go to our house tonight and stay nearby, we haven''t seen each other in many years, how about we get a few bottles of wine later and chat? "


    Xu Yawen thought that since he had nothing to do at night, it was fine, so he went to Guo Peng''s home with Jiang Xiaomei.


    When he arrived at Guo Peng''s house, Guo Peng was quite cordial as he opened two bottles of red wine. Xu Yawen also knew that Guo Peng liked to drink wine, and since he could take a few drinks himself, the two of them started drinking to his heart''s content. Jiang Xiaomei, on the other hand, was chatting with Guo Peng''s wife on the side.


    Unknowingly, it was already eleven o''clock. Xu Yawen and his wife prepared to leave, but Guo Peng politely escorted them downstairs, saying that he would come to Xu Yawen''s house to drink next time.


    After leaving Guo Peng''s district, just as the two were about to turn a corner and return home through Barbecue Street, they suddenly saw a light burning behind the restaurant that sold barbeque meat. Moreover, it was still smoking.


    "Eh? Is that store still doing business? "


    Then, Xu Yawen took a closer look and realised that all the lights in the barbecue shop had been turned off, and it should not be open for business. But it was already so late, what was that shop still doing, what was with the cigarettes?


    "Will there be a fire?" Jiang Xiaomei asked.


    "Let''s go take a look." Xu Yawen drank quite a lot and was very excited, so he was very excited.


    After a few steps, they came to a dark courtyard with a barbecue shop at one end and a connected kitchen at the other. At the other end was a small, lighted, smoking house about a dozen paces apart.


    Xu Yawen looked around and determined that the small house was a spare room to store some junk. The smoke was coming from the half-open window.


    Xu Yawen came to the door and used his hands to lightly push on it. He realized that the door was closed, and then turned the handle, and the door actually opened in one go.


    "Is anyone there?" Xu Yawen asked as he walked in. Jiang Xiaomei followed behind him but saw that the room was filled with thick smoke. They could barely keep their eyes open.


    In the midst of the smoke, they finally noticed a person sitting on the ground, fanning something with a large fan.


    That person was Xiao Dong.


    Just as Xu Yawen was about to ask, Jiang Xiaomei suddenly exclaimed.


    Because the door had been opened, and the thick smoke had been dispersed, Xu Yawen could clearly see that in front of Xiao Dong, a large fire was burning. And above the fire, there was a fat corpse that was connected to a special iron rack that was placed on top of the fire.


    The two legs of the corpse were arranged in an "X" shape. The two iron rods first pierced through the junction of the legs, then stabbed into the left and right sides of the anus, and finally pierced through the neck of the corpse. That was how a fat body could rise into the air and be roasted over a fire.


    The way the corpses were roasted was almost the same as the skewers, but bigger and fatter.


    Seeing that, Xu Yawen threw up on the spot and threw up all the beer in his stomach onto the ground. Jiang Xiaomei was so scared that she leaned against the wall, her face pale white.


    Xu Ya and Jiang Xiaomei both recognized the corpse in front of them. It was the owner of the eatery whom they hadn''t seen for a long time. They never would have thought that Xiao Dong would be so venomous. Not only did he kill the boss who often cursed at him, he even took off all of the boss''s corpse and barbequed it on the fire, using the cruelest way to humiliate the corpse.


    In addition, they discovered that a large chunk of fat had been cut off from the fat belly of the corpse.


    At the same time, Xu Yawen and Jiang Xiaomei remembered that Xiao Dong had given them some fresh pork last night. He also mentioned that the pig had been butchered today, so the meat was still fresh.


    Thinking of this, the two of them felt as if their stomachs had turned upside down, causing them to feel a wave of pain.


    Human flesh! Fresh human meat!


    The two of them were about to go crazy.


    In order to vent his hatred, Xiao Dong had tied up the shop owner and tortured him in every possible way. He even took charge of the eatery, preventing the chef in the shop from approaching the house. One day, he was insulted in front of everyone by Jiang Xiaomei, and even said that the shop was selling human flesh, so he secretly held a grudge and thought about how to take revenge. Xu Yawen and Jiang Xiaomei came to the store again. When they saw Jiang Xiaomei, their hearts were filled with anger, which made him suddenly think of this abnormal method. Therefore, he first killed the boss, then used two iron rods to string together and barbeque on the charcoal. After that, she cut off a piece of meat from Jiang Xiaomei''s abdomen, letting him taste the real human meat. He was even hysterical, thinking of sending the rest of the body over the next few days to customers who had previously cursed him.


    At this time, Xiao Dong was still sitting on the ground, his eyes were dark, facing Xu Yawen and his wife with an indifferent expression.


    His hand was trying to turn the iron rod as hard as a kebab.


    In the midst of the gazes, Xiao Dong asked Xu Yawen and his wife:


    "The roast lamb is gone, but the whole person has finally eaten it, right?"


    After saying this sentence, Xiao Dong finally smiled, truly laughing.


    Oh no!

 C27

    The summer seemed to have ended early, especially at night, when the temperature dropped abruptly.


    This was a seaside city with a five-kilometer-long seaside beach. Due to the free opening of beach and some recreational leisure projects, it can attract a lot of tourists.


    It was late in the night and the people on the beach had gradually thinned out. The remaining people were all rushing to leave, but there were still three figures slowly walking along the beach.


    Of the three, two were male and one was female. Of the two men, one was called Lee Xu, the other was called Xiao Yi, the woman was called Chen Jie.


    Lee Xu looked very common. His skin was dark and a little fat. Xiao Yi was upright and upright, and looked quite refined with his glasses on. Chen Jie, on the other hand, looked a bit more outstanding than the two men. Her eyes were bright, her cheeks were rosy, her legs were long, and she had a refined aristocratic air about her.


    The three of them had been classmates in university and had a deep friendship with each other. Xiao Yi and Chen Jie had just gotten married.


    Today, when Lee Xu returned to his hometown, he immediately thought of Xiao Yi and Chen Jie, his two best friends, so he invited them to a restaurant by the sea.


    After the meal, Lee Xu and Xiao Yi drank too much, so they decided to take a walk by the seaside to cool the ocean.


    "You too, you actually didn''t even come when we got married, I really admire you." From eating until now, Chen Jie had always been making fun of Lee Xu.


    "Didn''t I say it already? I''ve been too busy doing business over the past few years, running all over the country. Otherwise, how would I dare to miss out on your wedding?" And I admit that I was wrong, so I''ll treat you guys to a meal as soon as I get off the plane.


    "I don''t believe it." Chen Jie laughed.


    The sea breeze was so strong that it created ripples and they were walking along the shore, so they were occasionally hit by the water droplets.


    "When I thought back to when we went to university, there were quite a few good classmates. In the end, only the three of us were still in contact with each other. Sigh ¡­" Lee Xu suddenly felt deeply moved.


    "Yeah, I wonder what the others are doing, and how they are doing." Being reminded of the past, Chen Jie was also somewhat sad.


    "Chen Jie, don''t you remember? I chased you first then. Xiao Yi helped me out, but in the end, Xiao Yi caught up with me instead. I was so angry at the time, I almost lost all friendship with Xiao Yi. " Lee Xu said.


    "There''s no other way. Some things are destined to happen." Chen Jie said.


    "Then are you still angry at me?" Xiao Yi asked Lee Xu jokingly.


    "What''s there to be angry about? It happened so many years ago! I only think that you got lucky and stepped on some dog shit luck! "


    As they spoke, the three of them laughed.


    After pausing for a moment, Lee Xu asked Chen Jie, "Speaking of which, Chen Jie, if... I mean, if there wasn''t Xiao Yi at that time, would you be with me? "


    Chen Jie blushed and replied: "You drank too much, what nonsense are you spouting?"


    "I''m not spouting nonsense, I''m seriously asking you."


    "I don''t want to answer." Chen Jie pretended to be angry and turned her head away.


    Lee Xu laughed and waved his hands, signalling to them to stop this awkward conversation.


    After chatting for a bit, Chen Jie saw that there was a convenience store not far away. She was thirsty, so she went to buy mineral water.


    Taking the chance while Chen Jie was walking away, Xiao Yi suddenly asked Lee Xu: "You''re purposely not coming to my wedding, right?"


    "What do you mean?" Lee Xu was startled.


    "Alright, I understand. It''s been so many years, and you still haven''t put Chen Jie down at all. "


    Lee Xu''s heart was broken. He could only smile and shake his head, and did not reply.


    "Let''s not talk about this anymore. "How is it? I heard that you''ve finished your business outside, and will be staying in the country peacefully, right?" Xiao Yi changed the topic.


    "Yes, that''s why we can come out often and drink and chat. It''s not bad too."


    "That''s true. However, you should quickly find a girlfriend and solve your own problems first. "


    "Alright!" One day, ask Chen Jie to introduce her to me. "


    While chatting, Chen Jie returned and asked the two of them what they were laughing about. Xiao Yi said that she was talking about Lee Xu''s life.


    The sky was getting darker, and there was almost no one on the beach. The three of them were finally ready to leave.


    Just as they were making their way back, they suddenly realized that there was a sandpit under their feet, causing Lee Xu to almost fall inside.


    If they looked closely, they would see that the sandpit was in the shape of a human being, a full-grown man.


    They suspected that someone who had come to the beach today had left them here on purpose.


    There were many situations like this on the beach. Many people liked to bury themselves in the sand, or draw pictures, or even write a few words. Imprinting human shapes and such wasn''t that rare.


    However, the problem was that the human shaped sand pit was very neat and deep, unlike the simple outline of a person lying in the sand.


    Xiao Yi also noticed this, so he asked with furrowed brows, "It''s so difficult to create this humanoid sandpit, how did he do it?"


    "Yes, the sandpit is very deep. I feel that we can at least let two people down. If he were to dig a hole first and have someone lie down inside, it would be difficult for him to do so. The wind by the sea was especially strong, yet the pit was not disturbed by the wind, and its contours were especially neat. "It really is difficult ¡­" Lee Xu also didn''t understand.


    Xiao Yi squatted down and touched the edge of the human shaped sandpit with his hands.


    What made him even more confused was that the edges of the sandpit were unusually smooth, and did not seem to be man-made at all.


    "Let''s go, let''s not study anymore." Chen Jie looked at her watch and urged the two on.


    Xiao Yi nodded, but just as he was about to stand up, a suction force from the sandpit suddenly sucked Xiao Yi in.


    Before Xiao Yi could react, he fell into the sandpit with his face towards the sandpit and his back facing Chen Jie. He screamed in shock and struggled desperately. However, sand continued to flow into the sandpit at an unbelievable speed!


    Chen Jie and Lee Xu were dumbstruck, and did not react for a long time. When they wanted to extend their hands to pull Xiao Yi away, Xiao Yi was already completely submerged by the sand.


    Chen Jie kept on shouting out Xiao Yi''s name, and together with Lee Xu, they dug into the sand, but miraculously, Xiao Yi had disappeared without a trace. In the end, they dug a sand pit that was even larger than before. Chen Jie even dug until her fingernails were broken, but she was still unable to find Xiao Yi.


    Xiao Yi was engulfed by the sandpit and disappeared without a trace!


    Chen Jie panicked to the extreme. She couldn''t believe it, but she also couldn''t accept it.


    She kept on crying and dug more than ten sand pits on and on, but Xiao Yi had really gone missing, as if he would never be able to come back.


    Lee Xu was more calm, he immediately called the police, they came quickly, but when the police heard about the strange happenings, they were all confused and did not know what to do.


    In the end, because there was no evidence, the police did not agree with Chen Jie''s description of the incident, and could only leave it at that.


    Chen Jie and Lee Xu also understood that no one would believe in this matter, and even if they did, they did not know how to resolve it.


    But Chen Jie did not give up, and after three times of urging her to go home first, Chen Jie still called upon everyone who was willing to help, including her and Xiao Yi''s family. Thus, they continued to search the entire beach, even searching the surrounding area.


    After two days and two nights of struggling, Chen Jie and the others had already searched through the entire area, but still could not find anything. Xiao Yi disappeared as if she had turned into air.


    When Chen Jie fainted due to overwork, the search also came to an end.


    For a period of time after that, Chen Jie''s life became dark without any daylight, and she remained muddleheaded throughout the day. Her family and friends often comforted her in various ways, but there were still no clues regarding Xiao Yi''s whereabouts.


    Until one day, she received a call from Lee Xu.


    "Chen Jie, have you paid attention to the latest news?" Lee Xu asked over the phone.


    "What is it?"


    "Did you know, other than Xiao Yi, there were two other people who went missing on the beach?"


    "Huh?" Chen Jie''s heart trembled.


    "That''s it. I think there''s something wrong with the beach. "


    "But what''s wrong with the beach?"


    "Sigh ¡­" "I don''t know, but I have a friend at the newspaper office. I''ll have him try to report this matter to see if he can attract more attention. Maybe someone will find a way. After all, it''s more people''s strength after all, don''t you think?"


    "Alright." Chen Jie replied indifferently.


    She was very clear that it had been more than two weeks since the day Xiao Yi went missing. Even if she really found Xiao Yi, it would not be easy.


    "Don''t give up, we will definitely still have a chance!" Lee Xu said at the end.


    Lee Xu''s communication with his newspaper friends was very smooth, the newspaper immediately reported the incident where they went missing on the beach in the local evening newspaper, but only placed it in a small corner of the evening paper, which did not garner too much attention, nor did it involve more people as Lee Xu had expected.


    The result was that during the following period of time, cases of people disappearing from the beach occurred frequently. The police often received various phone calls about people being devoured by the sandpit, people suddenly disappearing after being buried in the sand, and people talking about humanoid sandpits appearing on the beach.


    As people continued to disappear, the beach incident finally broke out. The news media reported it almost daily, and the police did their best to investigate it. However, the person who disappeared was like Xiao Yi, who seemed to have disappeared from the world, leaving nothing behind.


    Three months after Xiao Yi went missing, the police did an estimate and that was that there were more than a hundred people who had disappeared from the beach.


    The beach was immediately sealed off. Everyone was terrified of the beach.


    Soon, there was another photo that caused a sensation. It was a full view of the beach from above. The shocking thing was that the outline of the beach was actually humanoid, almost the same as the human shape of the sandpit!


    Since the photo was revealed, the beach has been called a "humanoid beach" or simply a "cannibal beach" and no one has dared to approach it.


    Chen Jie had also been paying attention to the follow-up to the incident on the beach. She understood that just like the others who had disappeared, Xiao Yi had been devoured by this human-shaped beach.


    After the beach incident had been fermenting vigorously for a while, it had started to quiet down. Who knew that there would suddenly be new developments. It was in a seaside amusement park near the human-shaped beach, also called "Coastal Paradise". One afternoon, when a few middle school students were playing around in the park, they suddenly heard someone talking in the air. Because the waterfront park was close to the beach, sand was often blown into the garden by the sea breeze. According to several middle school students, they were standing in the middle of the sandstorm, and the voices seemed to come from the sand.


    When the news spread, the families who had been killed went to the beach park, hoping to find some new clues.


    Finally, one of the fathers first heard his daughter crying in the drifting sand. His daughter had been swallowed up by the human-shaped beach not long ago.


    Soon after, others also said that the sound of the sand was that of their loved ones or friends who had been killed. At that moment, the crowd came to a logical conclusion. The victims that had been devoured by the humanoid beach had all turned into grains of sand and were drifting along the shore. But because the beach was sealed off, they had to meet the victims at the Coastal Paradise.


    Soon, Binhai Paradise became a place of fashion. The families and friends of the victims came here in droves just to listen to the voices of the victims, and even some unrelated people came to join in on the fun. For a time, Binhai Paradise was packed with people, causing a severe traffic jam.


    Chen Jie was naturally one of them, but she didn''t hear Xiao Yi''s voice three times before she came here. It was only on the fourth time, when someone told her that there was an abandoned amusement park''s metal frame that had been built very high up, originally to build a Ferris Wheel. Afterwards, she somehow gave up on this project. Now, as long as she climbed up the metal frame, she would be able to easily hear the human voices in the sand.


    Chen Jie decided to try it out.


    Because it was very high, she was able to find the iron frame without any problems. However, when she stood before the iron frame, she still sucked in a breath of cold air. It was obvious that this iron frame wasn''t designed for humans to climb up. If they forced their way up, there would be a certain degree of danger.


    But at this moment, Chen Jie only wanted to hear Xiao Yi''s voice, and did not care about all this.


    Thus, she raised her sleeve and climbed up the metal frame bit by bit. During this period of time, she was surrounded by many people, some of whom even advised her to get down. Chen Jie looked down from time to time, and realized that she was getting further and further away from the ground.


    Gritting her teeth and hardening her conviction, she continued to crawl. When her hands were so tired that she felt like she was about to dislocate them, she finally climbed to the top.


    Although there were people who would occasionally climb here like her, the top of the iron frame was empty and rather deserted.


    Chen Jie tried her best to hold onto a metal pole, and stood still in the wind. Countless grains of sand fluttered in the wind, and landed on her face.


    After she calmed down for a moment, Chen Jie started to listen intently. Indeed, the voices in the sand were clearer than the voices below, as if there was a large group of people surrounding her who were whispering to each other.


    Suddenly, a voice rang in her ears, causing all the blood in her body to freeze.


    "Chen Jie... Chen Jie... "


    The voice was light and trembling.


    Chen Jie was so excited that she almost couldn''t speak. After a long while, she finally squeezed out a sound from her throat.


    "Is it Xiao Yi?"


    The voice did not reply, it only repeated Chen Jie''s name, as if it was a patient that was slowly recovering from a heavy injury.


    Chen Jie finally could not hold it in anymore and asked loudly: "Xiao Yi, where are you? "Hurry up and tell me."


    In the end, the voice still gently repeated the two words Chen Jie, mixing together with the other people''s voices and the wind. And sometimes far, sometimes close, truly like a grain of sand floating in the air.


    Chen Jie could no longer suppress the grief in her heart, and instantly, hot tears filled her eyes. When she heard Xiao Yi repeating her name, she couldn''t help but think of the time they had spent together.


    After crying for a while, when Chen Jie saw that the sky had darkened and was about to leave, she said softly, "Xiao Yi, I''m going now. I''ll come see you again next time."


    Xiao Yi, who had turned into sand, became silent. After a long while, he finally said to Chen Jie who was climbing down the metal frame:


    "Chen Jie, I''m sorry ¡­ Chen Jie, I''m sorry ¡­ "


    From then on, Chen Jie would come to Binhai Paradise from time to time just like the other families of the victims.


    At first, Chen Jie would only hear Xiao Yi''s voice after climbing onto the metal rack every time he got used to the environment. However, once Xiao Yi got used to it, he would be able to transmit his voice to the ground and he would no longer have to climb on the metal rack.


    The two of them seemed to have a tacit understanding to hold "meetings" at a fixed time and place, although most of the time, Chen Jie would only hear Xiao Yi repeating her name.


    In the blink of an eye, eight years passed. For the past eight years, Chen Jie had lived alone and she had not remarried.


    Coastal Paradise was still there, but the number of people going was getting fewer and fewer. As time passed, the pain of the families of the victims had gradually been wiped away, and they accepted the fact that their loved ones had left as well. Most of the families had set up tombstones for the victims.


    As a result of poor management, Binhai Park decided to demolish the land and sell it to a real estate agent as a backup for the development of the coastal area.


    In other words, that particular way of communicating with the victims of the human-shaped beach may be at an end.


    Perhaps it was time for them to truly bid each other farewell.


    Another late summer evening, Chen Jie arrived at the Coastal Paradise by herself. She sat on a bench and looked at the sky.


    At first glance, the park was completely empty. Even if it was the daytime, there wouldn''t be many people who would come here.


    Suddenly, Chen Jie heard someone calling her name from behind.


    She turned around and realized it was the Lee Xu she hadn''t seen for a long time.


    Lee Xu was not the only person there, there was also Lee Xu''s wife and child who had just turned three.


    In these eight years, Lee Xu''s career had been successful and his family had been complete.


    Lee Xu and his wife naturally knew about Chen Jie.


    Chen Jie was surprised that Lee Xu would appear here, because it had been a long time since Lee Xu last came to "visit" Xiao Yi.


    "What a coincidence!" Chen Jie called out.


    "Yeah, I heard this park is about to be demolished. I want to come take a look." Lee Xu said with a smile.


    "Then why did you come at this time?" Chen Jie was suspicious.


    "I know you come by this time of week, so I came to see you."


    "Yes, it''s been a while."


    At this time, Lee Xu''s child, seeing that Lee Xu had sat down, started to argue with him to pull his father away. Lee Xu''s wife, upon seeing this, quickly carried his child away, allowing Lee Xu and Chen Jie to chat quietly.


    After a moment of silence, Lee Xu asked Chen Jie:


    "Can''t let it go?"


    Chen Jie shook her head and did not answer.


    The two of them chatted for a while. Seeing that it was getting late, Lee Xu was ready to go home. He asked Chen Jie if he wanted to go together, and Chen Jie said that she would sit for a while.


    After Lee Xu left, Chen Jie quietly sat on the bench and looked up at the sky.


    A strong wind was blowing, sending sand flying everywhere.


    Chen Jie closed her eyes and allowed the strong wind to blow against her face. In the midst of the sand, she once again heard that familiar and familiar voice:


    "Chen Jie, you can go. Chen Jie, you can go, don''t come back anymore ¡­ "


    Oh no!

 C28

    In the gloomy room, through the light shining through the window, one could barely make out the sharp chin of the woman. She kept smoking, and the ashtray on the table was almost full of cigarette butts.


    The woman wore a navy round hat, long hair, and a grey plaid shirt. She looked a little rustic.


    From the moment she entered the room until now, she had been fiddling with the ring on her finger, looking very anxious.


    Opposite her sat another man.


    Compared to the women, the men were dressed very elegantly. They wore a black suit and a pair of black sunglasses.


    The woman''s name was Chai Hong, 34 years old, local.


    "Do you live in this kind of house?" Chai Hong asked.


    "What kind of house is this?" the man asked.


    "It''s pitch black. There are no lanterns."


    "Yes."


    "Always?"


    "Every once in a while. Besides, the house is rented."


    "Oh, why not light it?"


    "I don''t like places that are too bright."


    Chai Hong went silent and puffed out a mouthful of smoke. She did not understand how the person in front of her could have such a hobby.


    "It was your friend who introduced me. What''s your name?" Chai Hong asked again.


    "Zhang Nan, Zhang Gong, to the south, you can just call me Nan."


    "It''s a very special name."


    "It''s quite common."


    "You seem to like black. Black room, black suit, black sunglasses. "


    "Indeed."


    "You''re not asking me why I''m looking for you?"


    "You just said that my friend brought you here."


    "But you don''t know what made him introduce me to you."


    "Go ahead."


    Chai Hong nodded, stubbed out her cigarette and cleared her throat.


    Zhang Nan carefully observed Chai Hong. As a psychic who spent all her time dealing with darkness, he was able to see through even the darkest of environments, especially when it came to capturing ghosts.


    He discovered that the woman in front of him should have a certain level of culture and should be very shrewd and cautious.


    "The cause of this matter is my husband." Chai Hong began to talk business.


    "What happened to your husband?"


    "My husband disappeared, just over two weeks ago."


    "It sounds like my friend is the one who should help you with this. I don''t need to help you."


    "It''s not that simple." Chai Hong shook her head, looking very dispirited.


    "Then tell me, how did your husband disappear?"


    "The reason is very complicated, and I guessed it, so I asked for your help. But my husband''s disappearance is a fact. "


    Zhang Nan knocked on the table, meaning to let Chai Hong continue.


    "Hmm, just listen to me slowly." "My husband didn''t treat me well in the past, he would sometimes scold me and even beat me up. However, there is a saying in China, if one wants to marry a chicken, then it''s a chicken. If one wants to marry a dog, it''s a dog.


    "Do you have children?" Zhang Nan interrupted.


    "No, I was found out before we were married. I was born with a defect in my womb, so I won''t get pregnant."


    "Understood, continue."


    "In those years with my husband, I didn''t feel very happy, but I slowly got used to it. Then my husband is an insurance salesman, he doesn''t make much money and is often out of the house. "


    "What was the cause of the matter?" Zhang Nan realized that Chai Hong had been talking about irrelevant things the entire time, and didn''t get to the main topic at hand.


    "I wanted you to know more about my situation and my experiences, so I said too much. I''m sorry. I think it happened three months ago. "


    "Why do you think?"


    "I just said that everything was speculated by me. You can help me judge after I finish speaking."


    "Fine."


    "At that time, I met a man."


    "How?"


    "One night, my husband and I quarreled so fiercely that I went to a bar to drink when I was angry. It''s funny, I loved going to bars before I was married, and going there every now and then. Who knows, I didn''t go there even once before the night of the wedding. I really missed the bars so much that I drank a lot that night and got to know a man. "


    "And then? A relationship has occurred? "


    "Well, I haven''t been home all night, and I''m completely smitten with him."


    "Tell me about that man."


    "He was handsome and manly, although he had very little hair and was a little balding. He used to wear a red jacket, the most coquettish kind. At first, he impressed me so well, gentle and caring, that we met almost every day. But I never knew his name. "


    "To conclude, you cheated." Zhang Nan said casually.


    "Yes, but it was an accident."


    "Indeed." Zhang Nan thought at the same time: Drunk is the best excuse to make a mistake.


    "At first, it was really good to be together, but then more and more I realized that something was wrong with him."


    "What''s wrong?"


    "First of all, it''s his habits. He came out almost at night, and we never saw each other during the day, as if we were afraid of being seen. Then he didn''t like to talk much. He always had a weird look on his face. And the way he looks at people, will make them feel very uncomfortable. "


    "That doesn''t mean anything." Zhang Nan shook his head.


    "I know, the important thing is at the back. One night, I followed him out of the hotel, and when we passed an alley, I saw it. I finally saw it! " Chai Hong suddenly looked very excited.


    "See what?"


    "His teeth! I noticed that his teeth were very sharp and had a tinge of blood in them. like the vampires in American movies. "


    "How did you react?"


    "I was scared, but I forced myself not to say it, and his face suddenly changed into that fierce expression. There were a lot of wrinkles on his face, and he was not the same person from before!"


    "How did you get out?"


    "I can''t remember. It should be an excuse to slip away."


    "Did you even meet him afterwards?"


    "Of course not! How would I dare to? That man, it should be said, was not a human at all! And I was horrified at the thought of being with him for so long. I must have run into something evil, to have come across something that is neither a human nor a ghost! "


    "Are you sure what you saw that night wasn''t an illusion?"


    "It''s very certain, because this is not the end of it! "I remember that night, I stayed at home every day, scared to death. He called to find me, but I didn''t dare to pick up. One day, I realized that something was wrong, so I went to the hospital ¡­" Chai Hong paused for a moment and took a deep breath on her cigarette, her face turning gloomy, "The hospital''s examination result is, I''m pregnant!"


    "You just said ¡­" Zhang Nanxin''s head throbbed, "You are born with a flaw in your womb, you cannot become pregnant."


    "Yes, my husband and I haven''t gotten pregnant in so many years, but when I met this man, I got pregnant instead."


    "The child belongs to that man?"


    "Definitely."


    "Then do you think ¡­" Zhang Nan paused, "What are you carrying?"


    "I don''t know! At that time, I only felt my scalp tingle. Think about it, that man is a human? Was it a ghost? Was it a monster? I feel so bad that I can''t wait to die. "


    "I guess you didn''t hesitate to give birth."


    "Yes, I don''t care what''s in my stomach. I immediately went to the hospital and did some work. It went smoothly. But from that day onwards, I discovered that the man had actually appeared near my home. I never told him where my home was, but he was able to find me! I''m going to break down! At night, the man loitered near my house, sometimes standing downstairs, sometimes hiding behind a telephone pole, sometimes sitting in the little garden in front of my house. Can you imagine that? "


    "Yes."


    "My house just happens to have a small telescope, once when I looked at him with the telescope, he also looked at me! Still smiling at me, that face, I guess I''ll never forget it for the rest of my life! The wrinkles on his face, the blood-red fangs, the wide and tall forehead, and his eyes. At that time, his eyeballs were completely yellow and bulged out exaggeratedly, like a balloon that was about to explode. "His face changed completely from the first time we met at the bar."


    "What do you think he should be?"


    Hearing Zhang Nan''s question, Chai Hong was suddenly stunned. She waited for a few breaths of time before replying: "Demon! I think he''s a demon! "


    "This description of a demon is too westernized."


    "I don''t know how to describe it, but it''s probably something similar to a zombie."


    "Go on, did he go upstairs to look for you?" And he comes every night? "


    "No, he never went upstairs. He just watched me from below. At first, he came every night, which made me afraid to go out at night. I thought he was going to let me go, but who knew he was waiting for his revenge in the dark! He was angry at me for not seeing him, angry at me for abandoning him, that must be it! And not long after that, something even more horrifying happened. "


    Zhang Nan did not speak, he only stared at Chai Hong.


    "I''m pregnant again!" Chai Hong was extremely excited, she felt that her Qi was flowing extremely fast.


    "Whose is it this time?"


    "Let me tell you, after the first pregnancy, I didn''t have any relationship with anyone, and the operation was very successful, but I got pregnant again! There''s no way to explain it! "


    "Did you go to the hospital to investigate?"


    "Yes, it''s confirmed that she is pregnant. Moreover, the possibility that the previous crowd was not clean was also excluded."


    "That''s strange." Zhang Nan also admitted that, as a psychic, he had experienced many strange things, but this was his first time hearing of such a thing that violated physical laws. Especially since Chai Hong almost never left her house, she was basically isolated from the outside world.


    "I am so scared that every day I live a life worse than death. I guess the demonic man left it in my body, but the little thing was also a demon. After doing so many things, it actually grew back on its own! It was like a tumor. Perhaps he had planned it from the beginning! I don''t know what kind of thing I''ll be born with, or whether I''ll be responsible for it or not! " Chai Hong was already incoherent.


    Zhang Nan took out a bottle of mineral water and gave it to Chai Hong, allowing her to drink.


    Chai Hong finished drinking the entire bottle of water in one go, and then continued: "At that time, I was too pressured, and I didn''t want to stay at home anymore. So I simply went out every night. And then every night I was exercising and running in the gym, and I even had the idea to strangle the fetus in my stomach to make it disappear! "


    "Well, what happened next?"


    "Later on... And then ¡­ And then my husband went missing, and I guess that man must have done something to catch my husband while I wasn''t home, to take revenge on me! Revenge on me! He wants me to live a life worse than death! It is better to die than to live! "


    The more Chai Hong spoke, the more agitated she became, and only then did Zhang Nan realize that Chai Hong''s eyes were bloodshot.


    Zhang Nan tapped on the table with his finger, waiting for Chai Hong to adjust her emotions.


    "So the conclusion is ¡­" After a moment of silence, Zhang Nan spoke up first, "That man kidnapped your husband, but you don''t even know where he is. "Right, your stomach is ¡­"


    "It''s still there!" Chai Hong suddenly slammed the table and roared hysterically, "Yes, it''s still in my stomach! I want to take a knife and cut open my stomach to see what the hell is inside! "


    "Calm down." Zhang Nan made a gesture.


    Then the door opened and a tall man came in, dressed in police uniform.


    "What''s wrong? What happened?" The policeman was flustered.


    "It''s fine. She was just a bit excited." Zhang Nan said.


    "Oh, don''t be so excited. Take your time." The police said to Chai Hong.


    "Mm, I''m sorry." Chai Hong took a deep breath, trying her best to maintain her composure, she raised her head and looked at the police, "Thank you, Officer Wang, for helping me."


    The police officer''s name was Wang Zili, and was a leader of a department called the National Serious Crimes Unit. He was also Zhang Nan''s good friend for many years.


    Chai Hong had been introduced to Zhang Nan by him, and because the situation was strange, she wanted Zhang Nan to help him resolve it.


    "How was your conversation?" Wang Zili looked at Zhang Nan.


    "I know most of what happened, but I can''t come to a conclusion yet." Zhang Nan said.


    "Why?" Wang Zili asked.


    "Miss Chai, it''s like this." Zhang Nan ignored Wang Zili and directly said to Chai Hong, "Give me two days, we will discuss this again. I will give you an answer in two days."


    "Should we wait two days? "Then what do I need to do in the next two days?"


    "There''s no need to do anything. Just wait for my news."


    "Fine." Chai Hong sighed.


    After that, Chai Hong went home. Zhang Nan and Wang Zili escorted her to the taxi. After looking at it for a while, Wang Zili could not wait and asked: What''s the situation?


    "Let me ask you first, your felony squad has such a broad range of operations, you even want to manage such a trivial matter like a disappearance case?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "No no no, this woman was introduced to me by a former colleague of mine, Old Gu. I happened to be working at the station that day, and Old Gu just told me that this woman is a thorn, she often comes to report in, and now her husband has mysteriously disappeared, and asked if I dare to accept her case. I said Old Gu, what the hell are you doing here, aren''t you provoking me, there are cases in this world that I, Wang Zili, don''t dare to accept? So I immediately took over her case, and when I heard what she said, it was too outrageous. You just so happened to be in Shanghai, so I brought her here to find you. " had never avoided speaking with Zhang Nan.


    "Hmm, you''re a pushover. I knew you weren''t interested in these kinds of cases."


    While they were talking, the two of them slowly walked forward and arrived at a bridge.


    Zhang Nan stared at the Huangpu river water beneath the bridge, and once again, filtered the important parts of what Chai Hong had told him just now in his mind.


    "What do you think of the woman?" Wang Zili also took out a cigarette and held it to his mouth.


    "More emotional, more emotional, a little neurotic. "Oh right, don''t smoke anymore, my head is full of the smell of smoke right now." With that, Zhang Nan pulled the cigarette hanging from Wang Zili''s mouth and threw it onto the bridge.


    "Yes, she''s a bit nervous, and I think this woman is not simple." Wang Zili said with a profound tone.


    "What makes you say that?"


    "Based on my feelings." Do you know, we generally divide prisoners into three categories when we interrogate them? The first kind of prisoners were the type that acted carelessly and foolishly, often committing crimes on impulse. They were the easiest to deal with. They would scare him, coax him, and confess to everything. The second kind, more shrewd, more shrewd, he will play tricks with you, we call them scheming criminals, they are more difficult to deal with than the first kind of prisoners, but it is also easy to understand the pattern. As for the third kind of prisoners, they appeared simple, but were actually very meticulous and thoughtful. These prisoners were the hardest to deal with because they were at a higher level and knew how to hide themselves. They knew more about the human heart than the first two types of prisoners. That woman called Chai Hong, I feel like she''s in the third category. "


    "You''re funny too, comparing that woman to a criminal." Zhang Nan ridiculed, as he had obviously agreed with Wang Zili''s analysis.


    "It doesn''t have to be a criminal. Everyone can basically be divided like this."


    "I agree with you. Let''s not talk about the role that this woman plays. I always feel that she is hiding something from us. There must be something that she has not told us."


    "You saw it too?" Wang Zili laughed, "Otherwise, do you think I would be bored enough to accept such a case?"


    "Oh right, you said that woman is a thorn in the head and often goes to report. What kind of case did she report?" Zhang Nan asked doubtfully.


    "I''m not sure. I heard that it''s just a small matter. Maybe the husband and wife are arguing."


    "We need to get to the bottom of this, right? You can ask him out tomorrow and we''ll talk. "


    "Well, what else?"


    "What else?"


    "What do you want me to do!"


    "It''s temporarily gone, but I just noticed a detail and wanted to use you to confirm my guess. Think about it carefully."


    "Memories?"


    "Hmm, didn''t that woman tell you the whole story before she saw me? When she said she met that devilish man, listen carefully, did she still tell you about her husband after meeting that devilish man?"


    Seeing Zhang Nan being so cautious, Wang Zili suddenly became nervous, the two looked at each other for a long time, then Wang Zili asked: "What do you mean?"

 C29

    Zhang Nan shook his head, crestfallen, and said: "I mean, after she started to tell you the story of the Demon Man, did I still not tell you about her husband, do you really understand? And the head of the homicide squad, what''s in your head? "


    "Nonsense, who can understand your elementary school student''s ability to express himself!" Wang Zili said stubbornly, and then slowly recalled. After a moment of silence, he said, "No, not a word. I remember it very clearly. But what does this mean? Why are you mentioning her husband?"


    "Are you sure?"


    "Of course I''m sure. Fuck, will laozi''s memory be that bad?"


    "Well, it''s the same thing she told me. Ever since that man appeared in her story, she stopped mentioning her husband."


    "Quick, give me a conclusion!" Wang Zili urged.


    "I feel like when she met that man, her husband disappeared."


    "Disappeared? Do you mean that her husband didn''t disappear more than two weeks ago? But don''t you think that''s not convincing enough? "


    "Indeed, that''s why I''m only speculating now. Let''s talk about it after meeting Old Gu tomorrow."


    Wang Zili nodded, and the two of them slowly walked down the bridge.


    In the afternoon of the next day, Wang Zili brought Zhang Nan to the police station. Old Gu was already waiting in his office.


    Old Gu was very curious when he heard that Wang Zili, whose reputation had resounded throughout the police force, had a mysterious friend backing him. Therefore, the moment Zhang Nan entered the door, he sized him up from head to toe.


    Zhang Nan was still dressed in his signature suit and sunglasses. After taking a glance at Old Gu, he sat down with Wang Zili.


    "Old Gu, show him that." Wang Zili instructed.


    Then, Old Gu brought over a laptop and turned the screen towards Zhang Nan. He thought to himself, So I could see things, I thought he was blind.


    "What are you looking at?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "The previous few times when that woman came to report the case, I had Old Gu copy a video. Quickly go in and see if there''s anything out of the ordinary."


    "Alright." Zhang Nanxin thought: Energetic or capable, I thought very carefully.


    Zhang Nan went closer to the computer and used the played software to quickly browse the video. Old Gu added:


    "That woman, I think she came to our police station about seven or eight times. Every time she came because her husband beat her up, she called the police. But there were times when it was really serious. Her husband beat her black and blue, as if she had been in the hospital. "


    "Domestic violence, right? "And the reason?" Wang Zili asked.


    "There are all kinds of things, but most of them are because her husband suspects that she''s looking for a man. The most outrageous thing is that her alarm clock was switched on early and her husband fell asleep, so she was hit."


    "What shift does she work for?"


    "He''s from a cosmetics company, but he seems to have resigned."


    "Is this her husband?" As Wang Zili and Old Gu were talking, Zhang Nan suddenly asked as he pointed to the computer screen.


    In the video, a man appeared in the surveillance camera, pulling and tugging at Chai Hong. He even slapped Chai Hong, but was finally persuaded away by a few policemen.


    "Yes, that was also the case the other day. The woman came to call the police first, and then the man chased her to the police station. The two of them were actually making a ruckus in our police station."


    Zhang Nan listened to Old Gu''s explanation as he watched the video carefully again. Soon after, he nodded his head as if he had found some clues.


    "Well, what''s the problem?" Wang Zili asked.


    "Her husband is tall and strong, and he has a good figure." Zhang Nan said casually.


    "You motherf * cking gay, going back just to look at her husband''s figure?" Wang Zili retorted.


    "No, I mean that woman''s body is too thin compared to her husband''s."


    "Oh, it''s like this ¡­" Wang Zili nodded, after thinking for a while, he quickly shouted again: "Wait! I still don''t get what you''re talking about. What''s this got to do with the case? "


    "Old Gu, this should be the latest video, right?" Zhang Nan ignored Wang Zili and asked Old Gu.


    "Yes!"


    "Where does the woman live?" Zhang Nan continued to ask.


    "Putuo District, near the inner ring. Wait, I have her address." With that, Old Gu opened his notebook, took out a note, and wrote down the address for Zhang Nan.


    Zhang Nan put the note back in his pocket and said to Wang Zili: "That''s enough, let''s go."


    "Where to?" Wang Zili followed behind Zhang Nan and asked.


    Zhang Nan did not answer. When they were out of the police station, he said to Wang Zili: "I''m hungry, let''s go eat first."


    Thus, the two randomly found a fast food restaurant, ordered a good meal, and chose a corner where there were few people to sit down.


    "Kid, you like pretending with me. You must have found out about it right?" The moment he sat down, Wang Zili pointed at Zhang Nan and said with a smile.


    "It''s still some speculation. There''s no actual evidence. Do you want to hear it?"


    "Nonsense, quickly tell us." Wang Zili did not even eat his food, and directly looked at Zhang Nan.


    "First of all, I''d like to define that woman. She''s very smart and she does things very carefully, but right now, her mental condition isn''t very normal. Do you agree?"


    "Yes, indeed." Wang Zili nodded.


    "As for how abnormal it is, I feel that she has some illusions."


    "Fantasy?"


    "I don''t believe her story about that devil man. What about you?"


    "Hey, big brother, you are psychic and I am a police officer. Normally, you would believe this kind of story even more than I do, but why are you acting like an atheist now?"


    "I''m just talking about the matter. Of course, I have a little logical reasoning in there as well."


    "Tell me about it."


    "Sometimes, if there is a loophole in the whole thing, one should question its authenticity. Do you remember that I told you yesterday that her husband seemed to have disappeared after that devil man appeared out of that woman''s story? "


    "I remember, but your so-called disappearance was in that woman''s story. Actually, it doesn''t mean anything, it could be that the woman felt there was no need to mention her husband, or that she hated him to the bone and didn''t want to mention him anymore."


    "Well said, hate to the bones." Zhang Nan nodded his head, and habitually rapped the table with his fingers, "Do you know, almost all of the problems are caused by this deep hatred?"


    "You have a damn bad habit of not wanting to finish the whole thing in one go." Wang Zili was very anxious.


    "Let me ask you, when that woman told you her story, did she complain about her husband, and tell you how he treated her so viciously?"


    Wang Zili thought for a moment, then replied, "I don''t have any impression of him. I only remember her saying that their relationship was not good. "


    Same here." Zhang Nan drank a mouthful of water to moisten his throat, "That woman only said that her husband was not very good to her, and she lacked happiness. However, he lightly mentioned the matter of her husband beating her up, and even said that marrying a chicken will always follow a chicken, and dogs will always follow a dog.


    "What''s the problem?"


    "Don''t you find it strange? "A woman who was repeatedly abused by her husband to go to the police station and call the police, in the end, when she told us about it, she didn''t complain much about her husband and was instead worried about his disappearance, is that not unreasonable?"


    "Mm ¡­" Wang Zili finally understood the meaning behind his words.


    "Just like you said, she hates her husband to the bone and has cheated on him. But from her words, I don''t feel much hatred towards her husband."


    "Neither did I."


    "Thus, I feel that her words are false. She is lying. As for which words are true and which ones are false, we need to further consider them."


    "Psychologically speaking, lying is a mechanism of self-preservation. "As for criminals, there are three main reasons for lying: disguise, concealment, and disguise." Wang Zili said.


    "I just said, I don''t believe her story about that devil man, especially when that devil man appeared. Her husband seemed to have disappeared, and I have a wild guess about that."


    "What?"


    "Her husband might very well be that devil."


    "Ah?" How could this be? " Wang Zili frowned, he was in disbelief.


    "Think about it, after that devil man appeared, her husband had disappeared. At this time, her mental state has already reached a critical point and illusions started appearing. Starting from the good impression she had of her husband when she first met him, his image in her heart slowly became worse and worse, more and more terrifying, until he became a demon. The whole story is about her husband''s transformation in her heart. "


    Wang Zili nodded his head lightly, and said: "Then why does she have to spend so much effort to make up such a story, and tell us directly how evil her husband is to her, is it not simpler for him?"


    "I don''t think she made it up on purpose, but she thinks so herself. I told you before, there was something wrong with the woman''s mental condition. She must have suffered too much stimulation, which caused her to drift from fantasy to reality for a long time. That''s why she thought of her husband as a demon. "


    "Makes sense. Then according to what you''re saying, her husband disappeared a long time ago?"


    "I think so, and it should have been in the story she told, when the demon man appeared."


    "In other words, three months ago?" Wang Zili blinked his eyes hard.


    "Right, I also paid special attention to the last recorded surveillance video. It''s been about four months since today. They didn''t come to the police station for more than three months until she reported her husband missing. "


    "Then why did she wait so long to report it?"


    "I don''t know. I guess it had something to do with what she was trying to hide. And I''ll tell you the details. I don''t know if you noticed. It was she who mentioned that after her second magical pregnancy, she would go to the gym every night to relieve her stress and try to miscarry. However, if her husband was still around, with his temper, would he allow her to go out every night? Don''t forget, the main reason why her husband mistreated her was because he was worried that she would be fooling around with other men. "


    "Mm ¡­" Old Gu also told me last time that her husband often locked her in her house to prevent her from going out. There did seem to be a problem. "But how do you know it''s true? What if she made it up?"


    "One reason is intuition. She was very specific when she told me about the gym, and she didn''t feel a bit out of place when she described the demon man. For another reason, I noticed that her calf muscles were more developed, and it looked like she had been exercising at the gym. "


    "Oh ¡­" Wang Zili nodded his head, secretly impressed by Zhang Nanxin.


    "I''m not sure I can tell if she''s pregnant or not, do you think?"


    "That''s right. If the story of the demonic man is fake, then her pregnancy is no longer valid. Otherwise, whose baby would she be carrying?"


    "In theory, yes, but... I just don''t think it''s that simple. "


    "That''s easy to do. She said that she''s at a hospital near her home that tests the flow of people and pregnancy. I''m familiar with the hospital''s president, so I made a phone call and asked him to help me check it out." Wang Zili then quickly made a call, and explained everything over quickly. The Principal was also willing to cooperate, and immediately called him back when he found out.


    "So the only question left is, where is her husband? I think we need to go to her house. When do you think it''s appropriate? "


    "Now, what are we waiting for?" With that, Wang Zili stood up.


    "You don''t need to prepare?"


    "What the heck are you preparing? Let''s go! Hurry up!"


    Zhang Nan had to follow along.


    Actually, Zhang Nan understood Wang Zili quite well, and knew that this was his usual style. In terms of shrewdness, there were plenty of people in the police force who were smarter than Wang Zili, but Wang Zili was able to climb to this position because of his swift and fierce handling of cases and his passionate working attitude.


    After exiting the subway, the two of them were close to Chai Hong''s home. Zhang Nan then took out the note Old Gu had left for him to confirm once more, before reciting the name of the area where Chai Hong lived: "Honolulu Garden."


    "I know that place. I''ve been there before. Just follow me." Wang Zili said.


    Not long after, the two of them turned into a small road from the noisy road. The road was filled with traffic and there were very few pedestrians.


    "Nan, you said that we analyzed the whole thing thoroughly, and the result is only speculation. Is that true?" Wang Zili suddenly asked.


    "I know, you want some dry goods, or you won''t feel well. But gathering evidence is what you cops do. "


    "I''m not insisting on having the evidence, but I still feel that there''s something wrong with it. Don''t you think so?"


    Zhang Nan laughed and said, "I have something to tell you. It should be able to get rid of that lump. "


    Wang Zili suddenly stopped in his tracks, and scolded loudly. "Your mother, there''s actually something you''re hiding from me, quickly tell me!"


    "I found an inconclusive piece of evidence in that woman."


    "Evidence that is not evidence?" What the hell is that? "


    "It means evidence to me, not to you cops, because legal persuasion isn''t enough."


    "Cut the crap!"


    "Did you notice ¡­" Zhang Nan leaned in and said, "That woman is wearing a wedding ring."


    Wang Zili was startled, he was silent for a long time, then erupted again: "Are you speaking human language ah?, I don''t fucking understand you! They''re married, isn''t it normal to wear a wedding ring? Besides, it''s got nothing to do with whether you wear a ring or not! "


    "Your observation was not accurate." Zhang Nan said straightforwardly, "When that woman came to find us, she was wearing a wedding ring. But the problem is, in the surveillance footage Old Gu showed us, that woman didn''t wear a ring at all, which means she doesn''t have the habit of wearing one at all.


    Wang Zili was silent again, but then he suddenly realised: "I understand, I understand, she wants to create an illusion for us and tell us that her relationship with her husband is not bad, not that bad."


    "Yes, and I noticed that when she talked to me, she often used her hand to get the ring, which meant that she had just put it on and was not used to it. She was smart enough to think that she could use such a small trick to confuse our vision, but she didn''t expect us to watch the surveillance footage and find out what was going on, which would show that she was guilty. "


    "Yes, yes, yes. This woman really has a heart full of schemes. Her husband most likely died in her hands."


    "I think so too. Do you remember when I reread the last part of the surveillance camera, I said she was too thin compared to her husband. "


    "Yeah, what does that mean?"


    "I was wondering what she was going to do with her husband''s body. Because with her figure, dealing with a body that is so much heavier than hers is very difficult, and adding to that the fact that she lives downtown is even more difficult. "


    "Maybe she took care of her husband outside?"


    "I know you would say that, but in fact, living in a big city like this, it''s not really practical to try to do anything outside of the city, and they already have a rule of life, so the chances of it happening are very small. "No, no, no, if I were her, I would definitely choose to make my move at home. There really is no place more convenient than home, and there are even more opportunities. With her shrewdness, it''s impossible for her to not think of this."


    "Mm ¡­" "It looks like we''ll have to be careful when we confront her later."


    "Indeed, observation first."


    While they were conversing, the two of them had already walked into the sandalwood garden area and quickly found the building that Chai Hong lived in.


    Before going up the stairs, Wang Zili suddenly smiled and said to Zhang Nan: "I was thinking that when I asked you to help me solve this case, it was because there was something special about it. In the end, it turned out to be a man-made incident, and you actually gave me a proper analysis as well.


    Regarding Wang Zili''s teasing, Zhang Nan did not even look at him, and only replied indifferently: Let''s not talk too early, how do you know there''s nothing strange about this matter?

 C30

    "Eh? Didn''t we already analyze all those strange links? "


    "No, there''s one other thing we don''t know. It''s about the woman''s two pregnancies."


    "You even believe that? I think it''s bullshit! " Wang Zili flatly denied.


    "I don''t think so, but I don''t know why. I always felt that the matter of the pregnancy was real, probably my intuition."


    "You really have a lot of f * cking intuition. Cut the crap. Everything will be clear once we meet." With that, Wang Zili opened the door and prepared to go upstairs.


    Just then, Wang Zili''s phone rang, he stood still, and picked up the call.


    "Hello, who is it? "Oh, oh. Dean Hu, how is it?"


    Zhang Nan heard it, it should be because of the matter that Wang Zili asked the Principal to investigate.


    "Is that so ¡­" Oh... "Alright, alright, I understand. Alright, thanks for the trouble, I''ll treat you to a meal next time." In the process of replying, Wang Zili''s face gradually changed.


    "What did you find?" Zhang Nan could not help but ask.


    "You guessed right." Wang Zili said in a serious tone, "The matter of that woman doing human flow and investigating her pregnancy are both true. Moreover, she is under the responsibility of the same doctor. Because that woman used to have a lot of gynecological illnesses, she basically went to that doctor every time, so that doctor had a very deep impression of her. "


    Zhang Nan nodded and thought for a moment. Then, he gave Wang Zili a look and the two of them entered the building.


    When the light from the elevator reached the 12th floor, the two of them came out. Zhang Nan saw that there was a window beside the elevator, walked over and looked down, and said: "With your experience as a crime expert, how hard do you think it is for us to transport a corpse out of here?"


    Wang Zili glanced at it a few times before replying Zhang Nan, "If it was me, it would be very easy. But for ordinary people, especially that girl who''s as thin as a rib, it would probably be very difficult for me ¡­"


    "That''s right, let''s go!"


    The two of them left the window and headed straight for Chai Hong''s house. In the process, Zhang Nan looked at Wang Zili and asked: "Dazhi, you didn''t bring your fellow, right?"


    "Isn''t it just dealing with a little girl? Who do you want to take? It''s been too long since you''ve worked with me, and you''ve forgotten all about what I''m good at, haven''t you?" Wang Zili pretended to be angry and said.


    Zhang Nanxin thought that was true, this was Wang Zili after all. Wang Zili had always loved two things ever since he was young. He had won a national martial arts competition in Henan Province during his teens, and had even learnt kickboxing and Taekwondo, as well as Thai boxing and Japanese knife skills. He could be said to be proficient in hand-to-hand equipment, and his shooting skills at the police academy were top-notch. It should be said that in terms of hardware indicators, not many people in the police force could match him.


    Unknowingly, the two of them had already reached Chai Hong''s home. Just as Wang Zili was about to press the doorbell, he discovered that the door was actually left ajar after entering.


    Wang Zili pushed open the door and the two of them slowly entered the room. An ordinary living room appeared in front of them. Marble floor, brown leather sofa, round glass table, 30-40 inch LCD TV, a dark yellow chandelier hanging from the ceiling, it looked quite old.


    The living room was dark because the balcony curtains were drawn and the curtains were darker.


    Generally speaking, other than the fact that the decorative style of Chai Hong''s house was dark, there was nothing special about it.


    On the other hand, when Zhang Nan entered the door, he smelt a strange odor, which looked like the stench of dead fish. He believed that Wang Zili smelt it too.


    "Is anyone here?" Wang Zili''s loud and coarse voice came out.


    Wang Zili asked three times in a row, but no one answered.


    At this time, Zhang Nan saw a wooden staircase in the corner of the living room.


    He just remembered that Chai Hong''s house was on the twelfth floor, which was the highest floor of this building. Some apartments really had an additional floor.


    Wang Zili also saw it, and looked at Zhang Nan, as if he was waiting for his instructions.


    Zhang Nan made a gesture with his hand and the two of them slowly walked to the front of the wooden stairs.


    "There''s a problem." Wang Zili whispered to Zhang Nan.


    Zhang Nan stepped onto the wooden stairs and walked up slowly. He raised his right hand and without turning his head, he said to Wang Zili: "Don''t be afraid, I''ll walk in front."


    Wang Zili immediately roared at Zhang Nan: "What am I afraid of! Do you take me for one of your clients? Laozi has never followed the logic of someone''s ass in a case, so scram, and let me walk in front! "


    Wang Zili said as he rushed in front of Zhang Nan. He almost pushed Zhang Nan down the wooden stairs.


    When the two of them reached the pavilion, Zhang Nan said: "This way of handling cases, it''s really easy to alert the enemy."


    Wang Zili replied: "Bullshit, you''re the one being blamed. Of my subordinates, who would dare walk in front of me?"


    After a brief exchange of insults, the two of them noticed that a person was quietly listening to their conversation in the dark depths of the pavilion.


    "Chai Hong?" Zhang Nan recognized him first.


    "Yes." Chai Hong replied as she slowly pulled open the curtains a crack.


    The pavilion became bright all of a sudden, and both of them saw at the same time that Chai Hong was wearing a striped pajamas. Her hair was messy, and there was even a layer of film on her face.


    Chai Hong removed the film covering her face, rubbed her cheeks and finally said with a smile: "You guys are here? I''m sorry, but I''m applying a facial mask, so it''s not convenient for me to speak. "


    "Oh, we couldn''t find you, so we came here. "What are you doing in the attic, why are you closing all the curtains?" Wang Zili asked with a questioning tone.


    When Wang Zili spoke, Zhang Nan took a sniff. He realized that the fishy stench was especially strong in the pavilion.


    "I like to be in the attic, no reason. Officer Wang, how''s the investigation going? "" I''m not sure, but I''m afraid that the man will come and find me.


    "Let''s go down first!" Seeing that the loft was too crowded, Wang Zili decided to take a good look at Chai Hong in the living room.


    Back in the living room, Chai Hong made tea for Wang Zili and Zhang Nan and made them both sit down to talk. During this time, Wang Zili kept looking at Chai Hong and thought that there was something wrong with Chai Hong''s mind.


    "You look very haggard." Wang Zili said.


    "Yeah, these two days I''ve been feeling especially uncomfortable, especially today. I''ve been feeling nauseous and sick all this time."


    "You were just pregnant and you had such a big reaction?"


    "That might not be the case. Besides, it''s hard to say what exactly is that thing I''m carrying." Chai Hong laughed bitterly.


    Wang Zili drank his saliva and did not reply. After putting down the teacup, he continued to ask, "Do you have anything to add to what you told us yesterday?"


    Zhang Nan could hear that Wang Zili was trying to interrogate him. In this aspect, Wang Zili was proficient at it, so he decided to not interrupt him and leave everything to Wang Zili.


    "No, what''s wrong?" Chai Hong asked.


    "Oh, I''m just asking, how was your sleep last night?"


    "I haven''t slept for almost a night. I''m telling you, I''m in too much pain. At the worst, I have to run to the toilet and vomit once every few minutes."


    "Did you cut your nails?" Wang Zili did not respond to Chai Hong''s words, and continued to dominate the conversation.


    "Yes, nails are too long."


    "Is it convenient to move things after cutting them?"


    "What?" "What do you mean?" Chai Hong instantly revealed a strange expression.


    "Oh, I mean, if I cut my nails, it should be more convenient."


    "That... "That''s about right." Chai Hong was a little careless.


    "How about this, let''s sort out what you told us yesterday." Wang Zili sat up, "First of all, you said that your husband disappeared more than two weeks ago, and then you met that man at ¡­ Was it three months ago? "


    "Right."


    "So your husband was there from the time you met him until your husband disappeared, wasn''t he?"


    "Yeah." Chai Hong''s face slowly turned strange.


    "What does he do every day?"


    "Sleep, watch TV. I don''t know. I don''t care about him."


    "Not going out?"


    "Well, he always likes to be at home, and so do I." Chai Hong''s tone was evidently not firm.


    "That''s not right!" From the time you found out there was something wrong with the man to the time your husband disappeared, you said you went to the gym every night? " Wang Zili continued to ask aggressively.


    "Mm ¡­" "What''s wrong?" Chai Hong''s face started to turn red.


    "We know something about your husband. How could a hysterical man like him agree and believe that you go to the gym every night?"


    "He ¡­ Maybe he saw that I was tired when I came home every day, so he didn''t suspect anything. "


    Zhang Nanxin, who was sitting at the side, thought: What kind of explanation is this, it seems like this woman is already in a mess.


    "Tired?" Wang Zili laughed out loud, "Doing a lot of things will make you look very tired, such as... Forget it. "According to what you said, your husband is a reasonable person. He didn''t notice that you were cheating and even allowed you to go out every night. This is different from what you described previously."


    "Is that so ¡­" Probably... You guys know a little differently from me, right? " Chai Hong replied half-heartedly.


    "Alright, turn the page. Let''s talk about other things." Wang Zili laughed, as if victory was within his grasp.


    "Alright, let''s talk about other things." Chai Hong took the cup and drank some water. Zhang Nan and Wang Zili noticed at the same time that his hands were trembling.


    "Where''s the ring on your finger?" Wang Zili pointed and asked.


    "Hmm? "Ring?" Chai Hong couldn''t react in time. Her fingers were empty now, and she wore no ornaments.


    "Let me remind you, when you came to see us yesterday, you had a wedding ring on your finger."


    "Oh ¡­" Oh... "Well, I don''t usually wear a ring at home."


    "Do you usually wear it when you go out?"


    "Yeah."


    "Isn''t it troublesome to always wear it and take it off?"


    "Not bad."


    When she replied to Wang Zili, Chai Hong kept her head down and spoke softly.


    "Just put your left hand on the tea table." Wang Zili said.


    Chai Hong hesitated first, but in the end, she could only do as she was told.


    Wang Zili moved closer to Chai Hong''s left hand, which was placed on the tea table, and said immediately: "Your finger is very clean, it doesn''t look like it''s been wearing a ring for a long time, there aren''t even any marks on the ring."


    Chai Hong quickly retracted her hand and said anxiously: "My ring is rather loose, so ¡­ "There were no traces left behind."


    "That''s not right." Zhang Nan finally interrupted, "Ms. Chai, I remember very clearly that your ring is very tight, so tight that you even feel uncomfortable, and always need to be touched with your hands."


    "Ah?" Are you sure? "


    "Let''s not talk about anything else. I have quite a bit of confidence in my memory. Besides, it was only yesterday." Zhang Nan sat steadily and said.


    Chai Hong was speechless, she looked at Wang Zili, then at Zhang Nan, not daring to speak for a moment.


    Wang Zili snorted, letting out a heavy snort, before he stood up and slowly walked to the window.


    He pulled open the curtains, looked down and asked Chai Hong, "I remember you telling me that you would often see that man waiting for you down there. Sometimes he would hide behind a telegraph pole, sometimes he would hide in the woods, but your house is such a high building, and at night, how good would your eyesight be to be able to see that man?"


    As Wang Zili spoke, he turned his head back and a sharp gaze shot towards Chai Hong. Chai Hong''s eyes widened, and his face flushed red, as he gasped for breath.


    She did not dare explain, nor did she know how.


    "Speak, where is your husband''s corpse?" Wang Zili finally revealed his cards.


    "What?" My husband is missing, and I didn''t kill him! " Chai Hong covered her stomach, looking quite uncomfortable.


    "I don''t have the patience to listen to your bullshit. If you don''t say it, then just come back to the police station with me and talk slowly!"


    "I really don''t have it. Officer Wang, believe me." Chai Hong''s expression was in extreme pain.


    "You woman, your mouth is full of lies, and you even sued the wicked first, reporting your husband''s disappearance. You just want to clear your suspicions, so I''m afraid that your husband won''t appear for a long time, so others might suspect you, right? " Wang Zili asked as he pointed at Chai Hong.


    Seeing that Chai Hong was about to collapse, Zhang Nan thought to himself: This woman is undoubtedly the murderer, but if she came to find me, she must really have a request from me, if not she would not have taken this risk. Although she was a little delirious and imagined her husband as a demon, pregnancy and miscarriage were proven to be true. What exactly was she carrying?


    While feeling suspicious, Zhang Nan looked at the pavilion, and suddenly thought of a question: Why does she like to stay in the pavilion?


    "I want to see it again." Zhang Nan suddenly said to Wang Zili.


    "Alright, let''s go together." Wang Zili indicated for Chai Hong to come along as well.


    Then, the three of them went back to the pavilion, but Chai Hong had a pained expression on her face, she was in a daze and was retching nonstop.


    Zhang Nan concentrated and tried his best not to be disturbed by Chai Hong, as he carefully examined the pavilion that was less than five square metres.


    The smell of the attic was worse than the living room, which was the most obvious difference.


    This meant that the source of the stench was most likely in the attic.


    Zhang Nan finally noticed the wooden board at the top of the pavilion that could be opened at the very center.


    He and Wang Zili were both more than 1.8 meters tall, so they could reach the small ceiling of the pavilion with a stretch of their hands.


    Zhang Nan smoothly found the wooden handle and pulled it open. An even more pungent smell wafted into his nose.


    Wang Zili had a keen sense of smell, he quickly went closer to the small window and took a sniff, then resolutely said: "Corpse stench!"


    He turned around to ask Chai Hong, but realized that Chai Hong had already propped herself up with her hands and was spitting out white foam and saliva nonstop. Her eyes were blood-red, and the expression on her face could be described as sinister.


    Seeing that, Wang Zili did not ask anymore, and directly moved a stool from the side, and extended his head into the pavilion, enduring the stench, inspecting the small space, and sure enough, he found the source of the stench, it was a pile of bloody human bones!


    Relying on his rich experience in handling cases and his strong mental fortitude, Wang Zili did not feel any panic, but instead, leaned even closer to the pile of human bones. Upon closer inspection, he discovered that the human bones were not cut out using some sort of professional method, because the meat on the bones was not cleanly picked out, and there were even many pieces of meat stuck to them.


    "What''s going on?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "Go take a look yourself." Wang Zili pointed.


    Seeing the pile of bones, Zhang Nan was not surprised at all. With just a glance, he came down.


    "Those bones are your husband''s, right?" Wang Zili asked Chai Hong.


    Chai Hong let out painful groans as her mental state collapsed to the extreme, so she did not take Wang Zili''s words to heart.


    "No doubt." Zhang Nan replied.


    "Where did the rest of the body go? Why is there a pile of bones? How did she do it?" Wang Zili turned and asked Zhang Nan.


    Zhang Nan was silent for a few breaths of time, as if he was thinking about something, then replied: "She ate her husband."


    "Oh?" Wang Zili was startled, "ate it? "How can you tell?"


    "Relying on the broken pieces of flesh on my bones. Have you forgotten how much better my eyesight is in the dark? I could clearly see that the flesh was covered with bite marks. She must have been eating for a long time, so that''s all her husband has left. "


    "En, I will get someone to bring these corpses back for the forensic doctor to appraise later." Wang Zili said.


    "Why do you think she ate her husband?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "Maybe she can''t find a good way to deal with the corpse, so she used such a bloody and perverted method?"


    "It''s not that simple. I''ve told you before, most of the problems come from the words you''ve told this woman: hate her to the bones."


    "I understand. On one hand, she wants to use this method to exterminate the body. On the other hand, she''s venting her hatred to the point that she wants to bite off the flesh of her husband with every bite?"


    "Something like that. "So I just wondered why she likes to stay in the attic. Now I understand, she''s savoring the smell of the corpse and continuing to vent her accumulated resentment towards her husband over the years."


    "In that case... "She got pregnant twice, and for some reason, the second time, she got pregnant. Don''t tell me ¡­" A terrifying guess rose in Wang Zili''s mind.


    "Yeah." Zhang Nan looked at Wang Zili, his expression heavy, "Isn''t it just because of her husband ¡­ It was eaten by her, is it in her body? "


    When Zhang Nan said these words, Chai Hong could no longer hold back and roared loudly. Her face slowly started to swell, the veins on her neck started to bulge, and her body started to tremble uncontrollably.


    In the next moment, some of Chai Hong''s hair actually drilled out from her ears, ears, and nose. Soon after, she vomited blood and flesh, and her body began to swell and tear. There were even pieces of flesh that desperately squeezed out from the cracks in her body.


    Zhang Nan and Wang Zili watched on quietly, then Wang Zili shouted: "Change! Change your father, I want to see what you can become! "


    "I think she''s finished." Zhang Nan said.


    Indeed, balls of minced meat were falling out of Chai Hong''s body, with blood all over the floor.


    After a while, Zhang Nan asked Wang Zili: "Aren''t you going to save her?"


    Wang Zili poked his chin and said: "Look at her, how can I save her?"


    In front of the two of them, Chai Hong had already turned into a pool of indistinct flesh, including her internal organs and bones. Only one head was left on the floor.


    At this time, a portion of the meat that had been squeezed out of Chai Hong''s body started to wiggle and combine into something.


    "You know what''s in her belly now?" Wang Zili pointed, and said to Zhang Nan.


    "Yes, her devil."


    He only saw that in front of Chai Hong''s head, another male head that was badly mutilated appeared. The male head was close to her, and they looked at each other face to face. That was the face that Chai Hong hated and hated the most when she was alive.


    Suddenly, a light sound came out from the floor, it was Chai Hong''s bloodstained pajamas. A ring fell out of her pocket, it was Chai Hong''s wedding ring.


    The ring had coincidentally landed between Chai Hong and her husband''s heads, shining brightly in the pool of blood.


    Oh no!

 C31

    Guo Yi stepped onto the soft soil, only to see a group of lush green mountain forests, and a clear stream in the middle. Under the shine of the sun, the scenery was extremely beautiful.


    "Dad, which way should we go?" Guo Yi turned around and asked his father, Guo Yong, who was behind him.


    Guo Yong stretched out his neck to take a look, and said: "I think it''s on the left side. It feels like there aren''t many trees there, so it should be easy to get there."


    Guo Yi replied and prepared to go up the mountain.


    Guo Yong and Guo Yi were both members of the Wild Explosion Club named "Qin Mu", and Guo Yong was the core elder of the club. He had always been interested in wilderness exploration, and under his nurturing, his son Guo Yi, who was now seventeen years old, was also obsessed with wilderness exploration.


    Today, they had arrived at a place called the Long Hate Island. Due to its remote location and inconvenient transportation, the island had been abandoned for a long time and was uninhabited. However, more than two years ago, the local government had prepared to develop and build a bridge from the land to Long Hate Island. This had made it easier to transport and attracted a group of tourists. However, the good news didn''t last long. Soon, there were rumors of ghosts on the island, and they even came up with a story about an ancient woman who was brutally murdered by her husband and dumped in this area. She was extremely resentful, so there was often a female ghost''s cry in the middle of the night.


    Even so, Guo Yong did not take these rumors to heart. Ever since he had started exploring, he had been to many dangerous and strange places. His rich experience and exceptional courage made him extremely confident.


    But the difference from the past was that today, he and his son Guo Yi had come on an adventure, and no other member of the club participated. It was said that the two of them going to such a place would face certain dangers. Fortunately, they only planned to step on the ground today and not explore further, Guo Yong decided to gather some information and do his homework. He would scout the island again in the future.


    Therefore, when they had stepped into the forest, Guo Yong had warned Guo Yi that it was only a preliminary exploration today and they had to return home before nightfall.


    They did not bring any equipment like rations or first aid kit. The father and son duo only brought a bottle of water and a survival knife each. Guo Yong even brought a flint.


    The mountain forest was very humid, it was just like last night when it rained. Occasionally, there would be the buzzing of insects, and Guo Yi would unconsciously pat his arms.


    Guo Yi was only wearing his short sleeves, and he walked in a rush, almost falling down.


    "Little Yi, don''t be too anxious. I''ve said it many times already. Adventure is different from climbing a mountain. You have to be a bit more stable." Guo Yong said loudly to Guo Yi.


    "What''s there to be afraid of? There are trees here, and I can''t fall down." Guo Yi turned his head and said with a smile.


    Guo Yong shook his head and sighed. He realized that Guo Yi''s personality was truly different from his own, he could be because he was still too young, had not suffered too much, and did things steadily and restlessly, easily getting excited.


    Excessive excitement was a taboo when it came to wilderness exploration, as it usually affected objective and calm judgement.


    "You really should wear a coat. This is common knowledge. Remember this in the future." Guo Yong said again.


    "Aiyo, I know, dad why are you so long-winded like mom. Didn''t you say you were going to step on the stage today? Anyway, what are you afraid of, coming back home before nightfall?"


    "That''s what you say, but what if something happens and we can''t go back?" Guo Yong asked.


    Guo Yi was stunned at first, then smiled and said, "How is that possible!?"


    "That may not be true. In an adventure in the wild, anything could happen. It''s impossible to predict. So you better be careful, and look at your feet more when you''re walking. "


    "Alright, I''ll listen to you."


    When Guo Yong said this, it also started to have some effect. Finally, Guo Yi slowed down his footsteps and walked shoulder to shoulder with Guo Yong.


    It was also because Guo Yi was young, and afraid of death, after all.


    "Dad, what did you say the name of this island is?" While walking, Guo Yi asked Guo Yong.


    "Eternal Hate Island."


    "I heard it''s a bit unlucky, right?"


    "Yeah, the rumors say that there are ghosts, and the people who came are unable to return."


    "Is it that scary?"


    "I guess it''s just a rumor. There were some superstitious places in the past, but they were very strange. In the end, we ran over to investigate and found nothing out of the ordinary." "But then again, you still have to be careful. There are some things that might not be spread accurately, but since it could be spread out, there must be a reason behind it."


    Guo Yi secretly remembered.


    Both of them climbed up a platform as they talked. The ground was wide and there were countless cracks in the ground. The structure was very strange.


    "The scenery here is pretty good. It''s a pity that we didn''t bring a camera." Guo Yi sighed.


    "I heard from someone that there are a lot of caves here, and there are even stalactite caves that no one has explored before. If we do find them, then we''ll go back and tell them that they''re interested."


    "Since we found out, why didn''t we go in and scout?" Guo Yi asked curiously.


    Guo Yong hesitated for a moment, then replied: "That''s different. We didn''t make any preparations today, and didn''t bring everything along.


    "It''s fine, dad you have a lot of experience, it won''t be difficult for you. Furthermore, if we were to explore this new cave first, we would definitely feel a great sense of accomplishment. "


    What Guo Yi said was the truth. Towards people who loved to explore the wilderness, if they were the first to achieve a certain achievement, then there would be a strong sense of conquest and satisfaction.


    The reason why Guo Yong hesitated just now was precisely because of this point in his mind.


    As an experienced explorer, Guo Yong''s desire to explore was boundless. He started to suspect if he could really control it when it came to that moment.


    After walking along the mountain platform for a long distance, the father and son finally climbed down the platform and returned to the lush forest. At this moment, they had already circled to the other side of the mountain, it was not very high, but it was getting further and further away from the mountaintop.


    Through the trees, Guo Yi saw the lake water at the foot of the mountain. From this angle, the lake water looked lush green, like a large field.


    The entire island was surrounded by the lake.


    "Dad, what kind of lake is this?" Guo Yi asked curiously.


    "I don''t know. It''s probably a lake without a name."


    "Oh, it feels dirty in the lake."


    After calming down, father and son continued their journey.


    After walking a few steps, Guo Yong suddenly stopped and looked to the left. His senses were extremely sensitive. When he pushed aside a pile of leaves, a cave that was neither big nor small appeared in front of him.


    Just as he expected, there was a cave in this mountain range, and no one had explored this cave before.


    A new cave!


    Guo Yong''s mind rippled, his instincts told him that there was air flowing through the hole, maybe the cave was very big, if it was really a big hole, then as the first person to conquer, his sense of accomplishment was obvious.


    "There''s a hole here!" Guo Yi also noticed it.


    "Yes, this hole is quite deep. I feel like there''s something here." Guo Yong casually said.


    "Then what are we waiting for? Shall we go in?" Guo Yi was eager to give it a try.


    "No way!" Guo Yong rejected with one word.


    "Why?"


    "We haven''t brought everything with us, and today we''ve said that we''re going to step on them, so we can''t go too deep."


    "But the entrance to this cave is made of tree leaves. I don''t feel like anyone has entered before. Dad, aren''t you tempted by this new cave?"


    Guo Yi had guessed what he was thinking, and at that moment, Guo Yong''s heart was itching, he was trying his best to resist the temptation of the cave.


    Guo Yong had been exploring for a long time, and although his experiences were colorful, he had always been travelling together with his other experienced companions, and had never used his own strength to conquer a place before. And now, there was such an opportunity. The father and son pair might very well become the first group to conquer this cave.


    This was the case in the field of exploration. The first person who completed it had the most profound meaning. Even if the latter had completed it brilliantly, they would only be repeating the footsteps of others.


    On the other hand, Guo Yong knew that cave exploration was a high-risk activity in the wild. It was hard to guard against all kinds of accidents, not to mention that the island itself was too deserted and unprepared.


    While he was hesitating, Guo Yong looked at Guo Yi, he calmly thought about it, and felt that it would not work, so he tried his best to suppress his desire and said: "Next time then."


    "Next time? What if someone else finds out? That would be too bad, we found this cave first! " Guo Yi said impatiently.


    Guo Yong admitted that his son''s words made sense. This kind of situation had definitely happened before. As the saying goes, you can''t miss the opportunity. If you don''t come back now, some things might end up missing out on for the rest of your life.


    "Come on, Dad, what are you worried about? Didn''t you often tell me that if a man doesn''t have guts, he''s just a sissy? " Guo Yi was still fanning the flames.


    It was also because this cave was too enticing to him. He thought that he was fifty-one this year, and if he grew older, his stamina would slowly decrease, and he might not be able to explore for long. This was truly a good opportunity to prove himself. Moreover, as a veteran explorer fan, his desire for the cave itself was boundless. If he were to go home now, he felt that he would not be able to sleep for a few days.


    He looked at his watch. It was 3: 43 P.M.


    It was getting late, he thought, if he didn''t go into the cave and look around, he would get out as soon as possible.


    "Listen, after we reach the cave, follow behind me. Don''t run around, we''ll be right out." Guo Yong finally compromise and instructed Guo Yi.


    "Alright, alright. Got it. Let''s go." Guo Yi said impatiently. He felt that Guo Yong was making a big fuss over nothing.


    Just as he was about to enter the cave, Guo Yong saw that Guo Yi was smiling mischievously, as if he did not take the matter seriously.


    If he was alone today, then he would have entered the cave without a second thought. The problem was that he still had a reckless son with him that didn''t have much exploration experience. If something really happened to the father and son pair, he didn''t dare imagine how his wife would be able to live on by herself.


    At this time, he thought of something and spoke to Guo Yi:


    "Xiao Yi, call mom and let her know that we''re here. Tell her that we''ll be home a bit later. Don''t wait for us to eat."


    As he went out in a hurry in the morning, he did not tell his wife about their destination in detail. He forgot to put his phone back on the car, but luckily Guo Yi brought his phone and told Chen Hui the relevant information.


    "Oh, okay." Guo Yi also felt that Guo Yong''s words were reasonable, he immediately took out his phone and looked at the screen, then frowned, "No, there''s no signal here."


    "No signal?"


    "Yeah, this place might be too desolate, or it might have been disturbed."


    "Then what should we do?" Guo Yong wavered again.


    "Aiyo ¡­" "There''s nothing to be afraid of. Let''s go!" Guo Yi urged his desperately.


    Guo Yong sighed, after all he had already promised Guo Yi, so it was not appropriate to go back on his words, thus he nodded his head and entered the cave together with his father.


    After entering the cave, Guo Yong first told Guo Yi to turn on the illumination on his phone, and used it as a flashlight. Then, he made Guo Yi follow closely behind him, he could not get too far away from him.


    As Guo Yong had expected, the cave was especially deep, and it was more than two meters tall. The walls on both sides and top of the cave were extremely wet, as if there had just been rain in the cave. Guo Yong could not figure out where the water came from.


    Guo Yong gradually realised that the cave had a certain slope, which was why it was more tiring than walking on flat land.


    After walking forward for a while, they felt that the cave became more and more spacious. All sorts of strange looking rocks were piled up together, even Guo Yi couldn''t help but feel excited, and actually started to yell.


    Following Guo Yi''s shouts, Guo Yong slowly heard a few soft dripping sounds. He suddenly had a thought: there should be a water source inside the cave.


    As they gradually went deeper into the cave, the temperature became colder and colder. Guo Yong took out his phone and shone it on the cave roof, seeing that the cave roof was at least five meters away from them, he also realized that the cave roof''s shape and color were extremely strange, like green skeletons hanging upside down, looking at them sinisterly.


    It was unknown if it was because he was nervous or because the temperature was too low, but Guo Yong suddenly felt that the chill in his body had become heavier, and had a bad premonition.


    He decided to take a few more steps and look back.


    After all, he had specially come here to visit. If he went back just like that, it would ruin the mood.


    He held Guo Yi''s phone in his hand and observed his surroundings carefully.


    Soon after, he felt that the slope grew bigger and bigger, and it became harder and harder to walk. Moreover, the rock walls on both sides of the road were basically green, and some green water seemed to be clinging onto the rock walls.


    Guo Yong suddenly remembered that patch of green he saw on the lake just now. Could it be that it wasn''t the light coming from their eyes, but the water source here?


    "Dad, the ground is covered in green water." Guo Yi reminded.


    Guo Yong looked down and confirmed that there was a lot of green water, which was the same color as the rocks.


    "This cave, it''s so green, so strange!" Guo Yi sighed, he was quieter than when he first entered the cave.


    "There''s something wrong with the water. It''s best not to touch it." Guo Yong reminded her.


    "Yes, I know." Guo Yi turned his head and smiled at Guo Yong. Unknowingly, he once again walked in front of Guo Yong.


    Just as Guo Yi turned around and was about to continue walking forward, all of a sudden, he felt nothing beneath his feet, and then he leaned forward, losing his center of gravity. He never thought that the place he would be standing would be the highest point on the slope inside the cave, and then, it was a slope downwards. To talk to Guo Yong, he did not notice the change in terrain, so he was caught off guard and fell down the slope.

 C32

    Seeing Guo Yi suddenly fall while screaming, Guo Yong immediately realized that something was wrong and quickly reached out to pull. Unexpectedly, he stepped on a slippery rock and fell down together with Guo Yi. The father and son pair continued to slide down the slope one after another.


    In the midst of the chaos, Guo Yong grabbed Guo Yi with one hand and desperately supported the side of the cliff with the other. Just as he was about to stabilize his center of gravity, a big hole suddenly appeared.


    In the midst of their despair, the father and son fell out of the cave without any resistance. They were then struck by leaves and rock walls, and finally landed in a small corner.


    After he recovered, Guo Yong held onto the wall and slowly stood up. He saw that Guo Yi was not far from him and was a few steps away. He was worried that Guo Yi would be injured so he asked: "Xiao Yi, how was it?


    "It''s just a bit of skin. It''s nothing serious. Dad, what about you?" Just like Guo Yong, Guo Yi supported himself on the wall with both hands and slowly stood up.


    "I''m fine too."


    After confirming the situation, Guo Yong started to observe the terrain. He discovered that they were currently in a large, smooth crevice in the rock wall. The passageway within the crevice was filled with dried twigs and broken leaves, and it was extremely narrow. It was impossible for them to even stretch out their hands. If you looked up, you could see the sky, but it was just like the sky.


    Guo Yong also saw that the cave entrance was just right above them, located in a nook in the left wall. They fell down from there, about five or six meters away. If it wasn''t for the branches that obstructed his vision and the soft soil that covered the cracks, he would have sustained serious injuries at this height.


    Guo Yong was secretly glad that he and his son were both uninjured, but now he had a huge question: How do I get out?


    He first tried to see if he could climb back up to the top of the cave, but he gave up after just one try. The reason was because the two giant walls were too smooth, as if they had been artificially grinded, and there wasn''t much point of force inside. In addition, even though the crevice was very narrow, it wasn''t enough to use hands and feet to slowly climb up the two sides of the wall.


    In other words, they were currently in an awkward situation, as if they were trapped in a crevice in the rock wall and didn''t have many tools to use.


    "Dad, how do we get out?" Guo Yi asked, trembling.


    "We can''t go this way anymore, let''s go and take a look." Guo Yong didn''t want to give his son a blow, so he decided to check the end of the passage. But there was no wind in the passage, so Guo Yong had already sensed that there were two dead ends at the end of it.


    The front and back sides of the cave were indeed bare walls, and neither of them could climb. Actually, even if they could climb up, there was still one more thing that made Guo Yong''s heart palpitate, and that was that the walls on both sides of the cave were covered with green water, exactly the same as the water inside the cave just now.


    The father and son pair returned to their original places, feeling a sense of despair.


    I can''t get out, I''m trapped here!


    These words suddenly came to Guo Yong''s mind.


    At the moment, Guo Yong was regretting that he did not use a survival knife to mark the way here. Normally speaking, it was a good habit to mark the way back, as marking the journey home could be used as a sign, but on the other hand, if an accident happened, it would make it easier for others to rescue him. However, Guo Yong was always worried about Guo Yi''s safety, and had forgotten about all of these.


    Guo Yong looked at Guo Yi, and realised that he was trying to contact him using his phone.


    "Is there a signal?" Guo Yong asked anxiously.


    After all, this was their only way to ask for help.


    Guo Yi did not answer, he tried using his phone to try, and even tried to restart it a few times. Finally, he said with a frown, "No, there''s no signal at all."


    Guo Yong had expected this and once again fell into despair.


    "What should we do?" Guo Yi asked.


    Hearing his son''s question, Guo Yong tried to calm himself down. He felt that he had to think of a good method, and if he was really trapped here, they wouldn''t be able to hold on for long.


    At the moment, the only thing worth celebrating was that Guo Yi''s backpack still had two bottles of water, two survival blades and a flint.


    Guo Yi anxiously broke into cold sweat and took out a bottle of water to drink in big gulps. Seeing that, Guo Yong hurriedly advised him: "Wait, drink water slowly, don''t drink all of it in one go."


    Guo Yi stared at Guo Yong, he did not understand what was going on, because there was only half of the bottle left, and at the moment, Guo Yi was both nervous and thirsty, and felt that drinking half of it would not quench his thirst.


    "Dad told you, we''re trapped here now. We don''t know when we''ll be able to go out. We don''t have anything to eat, and there''s only two bottles of water, so we have to save some water, do you understand?"


    Guo Yi lowered his head.


    "When you can''t hold it in, just take a sip and pour as much as you can." Guo Yong continued.


    "Got it." Guo Yi replied.


    Following that, Guo Yong took out a survival blade and poked at the walls on both sides of the mountain. He realized that the rock walls were sturdy and that they had accumulated for a long time.


    He looked again at the line of sky. It was late afternoon, and the sky was darkening, and the walls pressed against each other gave him a heavy feeling of oppression and suffocation that made it difficult to breathe.


    Guo Yong was very clear that no one knew they were here, and it was so strange that he couldn''t even call them for help, so no one would come to save them, and they could only rely on themselves.


    Just then, Guo Yi called out to Guo Yong as if he had found something, and Guo Yong saw that he was running in front alone.


    Guo Yong quickly came to Guo Yi''s back and saw that he was lying on the ground, looking at the stone pit between the stone wall and the ground. The stone pit was very small, barely enough for one person to climb in. There were a lot of moss at the mouth of the pit, and inside the pit was a pool of green water.


    It was this green water again. Guo Yong thought.


    "Dad, do you think this is a hole that we can climb out of?" Guo Yi imagined.


    "Don''t touch the water, I''ll try." Guo Yong said as he found a long branch from the ground and inserted it into the water. He tested the depth of the water and made a few more moves.


    "No." Guo Yong shook his head and retracted the branch, "It''s stagnant water, it''s very shallow. There are stones below, it''s impossible to get out."


    "How unlucky." Guo Yi complained.


    When Guo Yong threw away the branch, he suddenly felt that the part of the branch that was previously stuck in the water had started to shrink, as if it was being corroded.


    Guo Yong then looked at the green water in the pit, and burst out: "There''s really something wrong with this water, it''s toxic water."


    Other than the green water in the pit, the walls on both sides of the hole were almost completely covered with green water. Guo Yong warned Guo Yi in a serious tone.


    After a while, the sky slowly darkened. Guo Yong picked up some branches and used some flint to create a ball of fire.


    When it was night, both father and son were filled with hunger that night, and the temperature had suddenly dropped. Guo Yi had only worn a short sleeve, and was currently trembling with cold, so Guo Yong could only take off his jacket and put it on Guo Yi. The two of them finally decided to take turns wearing a coat.


    Guo Yi had a habit of wanting to drink water whenever he was nervous, so even though Guo Yong had warned him before, he still finished the bottle of water very quickly. On the contrary, Guo Yong resisted his thirst with great difficulty, and still hadn''t opened his own bottle of water even now.


    Late at night, father and son stood guard in front of the fire, enduring darkness and hunger in the cold crevices. Guo Yong could imagine that his wife, Chen Hui, must be burning with anxiety right now. He had joined forces with a group of members of the Qin Mu Club to search every single place that the father and son pair frequent, but no matter what, it was impossible to find such an isolated place.


    It was quiet and lifeless in the crevice. Although Guo Yi was hungry and cold, he still couldn''t endure the sleepiness.


    "Sleep for a while, I''m watching." Guo Yong said as he put on the jacket over Guo Yi.


    "Mm, wait for me to switch with you." Guo Yi said.


    Guo Yi laid on the ground and quickly started snoring.


    Unexpectedly, after a short period of time, Guo Yong heard a faint voice sounding from above the crevice, sounding intermittent and unreal.


    After listening to it for a while, Guo Yong finally recognized that it was a woman crying.


    It was as if there was a mysterious woman wandering over the crevices, floating and staring at them.


    The woman''s cries, which were especially soft, gradually became clearer. She was crying extremely miserably, and from her cries, one could sense the hatred and extreme hatred that she had accumulated for a long time.


    For some reason, Guo Yong felt that the temperature in the crevice was much colder than before, he guessed that it had something to do with the woman''s wails.


    Guo Yi also noticed the strange phenomenon as he slowly got up and asked softly, "Dad, did you hear that?"


    In the firelight, he could only see Guo Yong''s taut face nodding.


    As he was terrified, Guo Yong suddenly remembered the rumors of the female ghost in the mountain. The things that happened seemed to fit the rumors perfectly.


    It was said that there was a woman in ancient times who had been brutally murdered by her husband and thrown into the wilderness. That was why there were occasional cries from female ghosts in the middle of the night.


    Guo Yong had always been an atheist, and disdained all kinds of superstitious things, but at this moment, he felt a strong fear.


    Actually, the most important thing was that they had nowhere to hide. If there really was a female ghost that opened her mouth wide and pounced towards them, they could only allow themselves to be slaughtered.


    Suddenly, they simultaneously heard strange sounds coming from the walls on both sides as if something was rapidly squirming.


    Guo Yong immediately held up a burning branch to illuminate the wall. Only then did he realize that there was a lot of green water leaking out from the wall, and the green water was flowing slowly along the wall, as though the wounds on his body had been cut open, and was bleeding.


    This scene lasted for more than ten minutes. When the woman''s wailing finally died down, the green water on the wall also stopped.


    Guo Yong didn''t understand what this meant in the slightest.


    After that, Guo Yong and his son did not close their eyes for the entire night.


    After the sun rose, Guo Yong made a brief inspection over the place and realized that everything that happened last night was real. The rock walls on both sides inexplicably leaked out large amounts of green toxic water s.


    Guo Yong understood that if the toxic water on the cliff grew at this pace every night, within three nights, they would definitely come in contact with the toxic water.


    Facing this strange phenomenon, Guo Yong suddenly felt that the common knowledge he had during his previous exploration was completely useless. He didn''t know how to explain it. At this moment, he only felt that he was abnormally small, and that the things he could do were too limited.


    The sunlight today was especially warm. By noon, Guo Yong and his son had almost finished drinking the last bottle of water, but because they had not eaten anything for such a long time, they were a little dizzy.


    Guo Yong was very clear that if this continued, they would be either poisoned by toxic water or starved to death by thirst and starvation. However, even if he racked his brains, he couldn''t think of any way to escape.


    They had searched the entire crevice several times, but still hadn''t found any flaws. He still could not use his phone, nor could he climb the walls. He had to be on guard against toxic water s that could be seen everywhere. The difficulties in front of them had forced them to a dead end.


    At night, after Guo Yi finished his last mouthful of water, he looked at Guo Yong in dismay and asked: "Dad, will we die here?"


    Tears welled up in Guo Yong''s eyes, not because he was facing death, but because his son''s life was about to come to an end at such a young age, and the huge pain Chen Hui was going to suffer.


    In the middle of the night, the father and son were in a daze as they heard a woman crying again.


    Then, just like last night, strange sounds came from the walls of the cave as a large number of toxic water began to seep out from the walls.


    Seeing all of this, the father and son became even more desperate. They knew that right now, it was equivalent to waiting for their deaths, even if they barely made it through tonight, the entire corridor would probably be drowned in toxic water s tomorrow night.


    Guo Yong had only slept for a short while, but when he woke up, he was shocked because Guo Yi was gone!


    "Xiaoyi! "Little Yi!" Guo Yong stood up in a hurry, trying his best to avoid the toxic water s beneath him as he shouted loudly.


    When he got close to the toxic water''s stone pit, with the help of the weak light, he finally saw Guo Yi lying in front of the stone pit, seemingly wanting to drink the toxic water in the pit.


    "What are you doing?!" Guo Yong pulled Guo Yi away from the stone pit and asked angrily.


    "Dad, let me drink some water, I''m dying of thirst, we won''t be able to get out anyway." Guo Yi''s face was extremely ugly as he pleaded.


    "I can''t drink it!" Didn''t you see the branches? This is the toxic water, it wants to kill! "


    "What does it matter? You should recognize the reality, we won''t be able to get out. " Guo Yi said as he laid on his back and covered half of his face with his hands. Two streams of tears rolled down from the corners of his eyes.


    Guo Yong could tell that Guo Yi had already given up. Forget about Guo Yi, he himself was also about to give up, too.


    In a small gap in the wilderness, even if someone didn''t know where they were, the rescue team would still need to spend some time to rescue them. It was not that simple.


    Guo Yong patted Guo Yi''s shoulder, wanting to comfort his son a little more, but right at this moment, he saw the toxic water in the pit slightly moved, some bubbles appearing from the water surface.


    He wondered if his eyes were playing tricks on him, and then he dropped down in front of the pit and looked at it closely.


    This time, he could clearly see that although the movement was very small, the toxic water in the pit was indeed showing their potential. If one did not look carefully, it would be impossible to discover.


    If the water was flowing, then there was only one possibility. The water in the pit was not stagnant, and this was not a dead pit.


    Guo Yong immediately found a long and hard tree branch and stabbed it back into the water. He touched the shallow bottom of the water that was full of broken stones.


    Previously, Guo Yong thought that the stone pit was only this big, so he gave up.


    Guo Yi saw that Guo Yong was trying to probe the pit again. Seeing that he seemed to have discovered something, he immediately crawled to Guo Yong''s side and asked: "Is there anything wrong?"

 C33

    Guo Yong pursed his lips but did not say a word, he faced the tree branch straight into the water, and forcefully poked it a few times.


    It was as expected, the shattered rocks were not the true bottom of the pit, but were instead blocked at the entrance of a cross point within the pit. Now that Guo Yong had pierced through it, all the shattered rocks flowed into the cross point, and the speed of the water flow also increased drastically.


    Guo Yong was both surprised and happy. Using the branches to probe, he discovered that the entrance to the cave could be entered. Furthermore, judging from the flow of the water, the cave should be very deep. If this point led to the outside of the mountain, he should be able to swim to the outer lake near the island by following the flow of the water.


    However, when Guo Yong took out the withering branch and looked at it, he realized that it was not as simple as he thought it to be. Even if it was as he had guessed, the Hengjin Cavern was still a underground water that led directly to the outer lake, but this was still a toxic water! Initially, he didn''t even dare to touch it, let alone dive inside. Just thinking about it sent chills down his spine.


    Guo Yong''s knowledge on chemistry was scarce, he did not know to what extent toxic water could be corroded.


    "There''s a hole in there." Guo Yong pointed.


    "Can you swim out?" Guo Yi immediately became spirited.


    "The pit is filled with living water, and we aren''t too far away from the foot of the mountain. There should be a chance for us. I''m guessing if this water is headed towards the outer lake."


    "Is that so? "But this water ¡­" Guo Yi also thought about the difficulties they would face.


    "Yes, this water is poisonous, I''m sure of it." Guo Yong sighed.


    Guo Yong and Guo Yi were both good at swimming, and had even researched diving to a certain degree. Originally, if it was a normal underground river, they would have had a good chance of leaving this crack.


    But the problem lay squarely in front of them. This water is poisonous, do you dare to take the risk?


    Guo Yong suddenly felt that the heavens were playing a joke on them. First it was to give them hope, and then it cruelly took it away.


    But then again, if they let go of this opportunity, it would be hard for them to hold on for too long. They could only wait quietly for death in the crevice.


    Guo Yong thought that, rather than dying, it would be better to just fight for it. At least there would be a chance, it would be better than staying here and doing nothing.


    Guo Yong looked at his son who was by his side, who was staring at the stone pit with a pitiful expression. Suddenly, a thought surfaced in his mind.


    "Xiaoyi, come over here. Dad will tell you." Guo Yong waved his hand towards Guo Yi, telling him to stay as far away from the toxic water as possible.


    Guo Yi moved closer to Guo Yong and sat on the ground.


    "Wait a minute, I''m going to explore this underwater cave. If there really is an exit, send me outside, I''ll immediately call someone to save you. What do you think? Can you hold on?"


    Guo Yi''s mind was in a mess, after staring blankly for a long time, he finally understood the meaning of Guo Yong''s words. Guo Yong obviously wanted to take over the risk alone and give him a chance for survival.


    "That won''t do! Dad, what are you doing? This is the toxic water, do you want to die? " Guo Yi shouted.


    "If we continue to stay here, we''ll die as well." Guo Yong said.


    "Then I''ll go with you!"


    "What are you talking about?" Guo Yong''s tone became stern, "Are you the same as me? I''m fifty-one years old. How old are you? If we all die, who will take care of your mother in the future? Could she accept such a thing? You think about it. Besides, how did you know something would happen to me? If something did happen to me in the cave, it would be the same for us, father and son. "


    In fact, Guo Yong''s thoughts were very simple. He knew that the consequences of covering his entire body with toxic water s would be severe, but he was not sure how severe it would be, or whether he would die. Under the condition that this point could lead to the outer lake, if the toxic water only corroded his body and managed to preserve his life, he could immediately notify the rescue team. In other words, even if he died due to being infected by the toxic water, as long as he managed to gain a certain amount of time and didn''t die immediately, he would still be able to notify the rescue team to save Guo Yi.


    Therefore, doing this was the safest and most likely chance for Guo Yi to be safe and sound.


    "But if you were to be bathed in this water, even if you didn''t die, it would still be enough." Guo Yi shouted.


    "Don''t worry about that so much, just stay here and be honest. I''ll inform someone to save you immediately after I go out. I remember the location of the hole on the mountain, it won''t be hard to find it. As long as you have the tools, it''ll be very easy to save you."


    Guo Yong''s words were like an order, they were unquestionable. Guo Yi wanted to cry, but no tears came out.


    Guo Yong immediately returned to the edge of the pit and touched the toxic water in the pit with his finger.


    After making up his mind, he turned around and reminded Guo Yi, "Remember this, no matter how thirsty you are, you can''t drink the water here.


    Guo Yi nodded stiffly.


    Guo Yong looked up and realized that the sky was about to brighten. Guo Yi should not be in any danger for now, so he decided to take the chance and leave.


    He supported himself on the ground with his hands and assumed a posture. Finally, he looked at Guo Yi and said, "Then Dad will be leaving first."


    In the next moment, Guo Yong took a deep breath, aimed at the Sky Crossing Acupuncture Point and threw himself into the water. When he neared the entrance of the Sky Crossing Acupuncture Point, he suddenly felt a suction force from the hole, allowing him to enter effortlessly.


    After digging his acupoint, Guo Yong immediately discovered that the water was flowing extremely fast, and it seemed to be flowing downwards. All of this was in accordance with his expectations, because if the water in the cave was going down, then it meant that the cave was sloping downwards, most likely leading to the outer lake. Furthermore, he could move along the current, which would save a lot of effort.


    However, the cave was pitch black, he could not see anything. There were several times when Guo Yong bumped into rocks, causing him to feel pain.


    He wasn''t sure if he could swim outside, or if he didn''t find an exit, or if the exit was blocked, or if he couldn''t hold his breath, he would die miserably in this cave.


    Thus, rather than taking risks, it would be more accurate to say that they were resigned to fate.


    Unexpectedly, after swimming for a short while, Guo Yong''s body felt heavy, and he found it harder and harder to endure. He did not know if it was because he had not eaten for too long or because of the toxic water''s problem, but in short, his diving state was much worse than before.


    Just as he was about to give up and get dejected, a light flashed in the deep darkness.


    Exit!


    Guo Yong shouted crazily from the bottom of his heart.


    Therefore, he kicked with all his might, not caring about the pain at all. He used his hands to grab at the walls of the cave, hoping to swim out faster.


    Finally, a miracle happened. Following a two to three meter tall waterfall, Guo Yong fell into the water from the cave entrance. He used all his might to step on the water and stuck his head out of the water.


    The moment he breathed in the oxygen and saw the vast mountain forest, he felt as if he had been reborn. The joy, the surprise, they were all unprecedented.


    At this moment, he hated the fact that he had managed to escape from the crevice in the lake near the island. It was unbelievable that he had made the right gamble. The transverse cavity was indeed connected to the outer lake.


    But when Guo Yong looked at the mountain range above him, he gradually calmed down, thinking to himself, now was not the time to relax, his son was still trapped in the mountain, he had to arrange for help as soon as possible.


    Then, he dove back into the water, swimming towards the shore as if he were fighting for every second. At that moment, he felt something at the bottom of the water.


    Curious, Guo Yong dove into the water. In the end, amidst a field of messy aquatic plants, he saw an incomparably large female corpse. The female corpse''s face was swollen like a balloon, her long hair was as light as seaweed, and she wore a tattered set of clothes. Most importantly, the skin of the female corpse''s entire body had already become seriously necrotic, and was still emitting a kind of green gas.


    Guo Yong was so scared that his legs became weak. He choked on a lot of saliva, and without looking back, he swam towards the water, afraid that the female corpse would suddenly stretch her hands out and grab his legs.


    However, he finally understood why toxic water would appear in the mountains and why the water was green. It turned out that the source of everything was this gigantic female corpse that laid at the bottom of the water!


    After unleashing his full strength, Guo Yong quickly swam to the shore. When he reached the shore, he felt exhausted, and thinking back to what happened just now, he felt like a nightmare.


    He laid down on the grass to rest for a while, then immediately stood up. At this time, he felt all his skin itch, he knew that it was definitely because he was infected by the toxic water.


    Guo Yong thought that he had no time to care about all this right now, so he sprinted forward and stopped in the direction of the car, leaving his phone on top of the cart.


    He felt in his pocket again. Fortunately, the car keys were still in place, so he should be able to call for help in time.


    Although he was hungry, tired, and exhausted, Guo Yong still ran out of the forest at an extremely fast speed. But in the process, he felt that his body was getting more and more out of control.


    Subconsciously, he looked at his two arms. He noticed that the muscles on his arms were acting strangely, and there were even some green spots on them.


    Even so, he did not panic too much. From the moment he entered the toxic water, he was already prepared to sacrifice his son''s life, and in fact, the result was much better than he had expected. It was just that something was wrong with his skin, and his internal organs were all normal.


    However, when he left the forest and smoothly searched for the car parked by the lake, he felt an even more intense pain on his skin. What was different was that the pain had already invaded his body. He knew that the consequences of being infected with toxic water were more serious than he had imagined, so he was lucky to be able to immediately call for help.


    Guo Yong smoothly opened the car door with his key and flipped to his phone. When he saw that his phone had both electricity and signal, he couldn''t help but feel relieved. But just as he was about to dial a number, he saw his own face in the rearview mirror.


    It was a green, monstrous face. The flesh on his face had all decayed and toxic water were seeping out of it.


    Following that, there was a burst of heart-wrenching pain that caused Guo Yong to immediately jump out of the car and roll onto the ground.


    He quickly took off his shirt and climbed to the edge of the lake. In the reflection of the lake water, he saw a green and rotten monster. Every part of its body was completely deformed.


    Guo Yong screamed miserably, almost fainting.


    It was unknown how much time had passed before Guo Yong finally regained his composure. No matter how much pain he suffered, as long as he was alive, he had to save his son. His son was still deep in the mountains. Therefore, he used his last bit of strength to make a call ¡­


    "..."


    Four days later, Guo Yong''s funeral was held at the funeral parlor.


    The funeral was very peaceful, and not many people came. Other than Guo Yong and Chen Hui''s family, only a group of core members of the Qin Mu Adventure Club, who belonged to Guo Yong, came to offer their condolences.


    Chen Hui seemed calmer, as if he already had a premonition of this day.


    But during the entire funeral, Guo Yi, as the son, did not appear.


    On the day that Guo Yong escaped from the crevice and unfortunately died, the rescue team managed to rescue Guo Yi from the crevice according to the position that Guo Yong provided. However, when Guo Yi returned home, he did not appear in front of the public anymore. The news media that went to interview him were also rejected by Chen Hui.


    On the way out of the funeral home, Jomu''s mood was heavy.


    He walked slowly, thinking about something.


    Ever since he and his master, Old Qin, had founded the Qin Mu club together, although they had experienced many hardships, the death of their members had never happened. Furthermore, the one sacrificed was the core elder of the club, which was a huge loss to the club.


    Old Qin was now in a state of retirement. As the president of the Qin Mu Club, all the burdens were placed on him.


    At this moment, a Honda SUV pulled up to the side of the road and stuck its head out of the window.


    "No car?" the man in the car asked.


    His name was Zhou Yang, and he was the vice president of Qin Mu Club. He had just attended Guo Yong''s funeral together with Qiao Mu. Zhou Yang looked gentle and refined, his skin was slightly dark, and he looked a lot younger and more cheerful than the mature and mature, forty-one year old Qiao Mu.


    "The car was driven away by my wife today. I took a taxi here." Qiao Mu replied.


    "Come, get in the car. I''ll walk you out."


    Qiao Mu did not hold back and directly sat in Zhou Yang''s car.


    "You look a little down." Zhou Yang stepped on the accelerator and the car started to move.


    "Will my mood be good when the Mr.Guo dies?" Qiao Mu smiled bitterly.


    "Yeah, the two girls from our club were crying. To tell you the truth, I''m upset too, but I don''t want to show it. "


    What Zhou Yang said was the truth, and the entire club knew that his relationship with Qiao Mu and Guo Yong was the deepest, and also the Golden Triangle of his early exploration.


    "I never thought that something would happen to one of you." Qiao Mu sighed.


    "It''s not as good as being in the heavens. Ah, right, did you see Mr.Guo''s corpse? I heard it was ruined, what was the cause of death? Were you really poisoned by the toxic water inside the mountain? "


    "The hospital''s analysis shows that the cause of death was indeed caused by the organs within Mr.Guo''s body rotting. As for the corpse ¡­ "I met Chen Hui yesterday. I can only say that it''s too horrible!"


    "To what extent?"


    "The flesh on its body is all rotten, and it is even emitting green colored toxic water, it is even worse than being splashed with sulfuric acid. "Just a glance and my whole body will be shaking. Chen Hui fainted on the spot."


    "I really don''t understand, how could there be such a toxic water in the mountains. Oh, that''s right, there''s still Xiaoyi. Why haven''t I seen him today, could it be that he is also infected with toxic water? "


    It was not only Zhou Yang, but all of the members of the Qin Mu Club who were present were also surprised that Guo Yi did not appear.


    "Xiaoyi shouldn''t have gotten infected with the toxic water. Mr.Guo risked his life to run out and ask for help just to protect him. But it''s really strange that he didn''t show up today. He might still be feeling unwell. I''ll go see him another day. "


    "Mm, that''s fine too." Zhou Yang nodded.


    "Are you leaving tomorrow?" Qiao Mu suddenly recalled that Zhou Yang and a few other members of the club were going to have an adventure that they had planned for a long time.


    "Yeah."


    "Why are you leaving tomorrow? Mr.Guo just passed away. "


    "We have prepared almost a month for this expedition. We set a date early in the morning. I know you are worried that something might happen to us like Mr.Guo, but don''t worry, Mr.Guo didn''t bring any equipment to investigate, we are different. " Zhou Yang said.


    "Yes, you must not make the mistake that Mr.Guo did. You must be careful."


    "It seems that at this age, there is still some influence on people. Even the former captain of our death squadron has become timid now." Zhou Yang patted Qiao Mu''s shoulder and joked. Actually, he also knew that Guo Yong''s death had too much impact on Qiao Mu.


    "Stop bullshitting, hurry up and tell me what kind of village your expedition destination is?"


    "Flower Snake Village."


    "Oh, I remember now. That place has been pretty popular recently. Some news websites even mentioned that all the villagers disappeared overnight. The number one ghost village, that one, right?"


    "It''s that." But I do not believe in ghosts or gods, so we are prepared to eliminate the feudal superstition this time, and find the reason for the disappearance of the case. At the same time, we are also planning to tell the world that Flower Snake Village is not that strange, and that it could be considered an adventure for the public. "


    "I remember the police were involved in that case. There was no clue."


    "Let me tell you, when the police are dealing with a case, they tend to be careless and can''t solve the problem. We''re not the same. This time we''re going to stay there for at least two or three days and rummage through the village. I don''t believe we can''t find any clues. We''ve also been advertising online recently and many people are waiting for our results. If we can still be considered as successful, it would be a huge boost to our club''s reputation. "


    "Mm, I''ve always been at ease with you doing things. However, the ones we used to explore are all those desolate mountains and mountains. Going to such a strange and mysterious place wouldn''t give us much experience after all. "


    "Take it slowly. We have to try." Zhou Yang laughed.


    "That''s true. A new domain, a new vitality." Qiao Mu also revealed a smile.


    "Speaking of Flower Snake Village, do you know that the island that Mr.Guo and Xiao Yi went to this time is not far from the Flower Snake Village? According to our knowledge, that island was not called Everlasting Island before, and it has another name."


    "What name?" He sat up straight.


    "It''s like this, what about near the Flower Snake Village? There is a Small Snake Island, and then there is a large snake island some distance away. We''ve searched for information about it, that Long Hate Island was previously called the Great Snake Island!"


    "Oh?" Qiao Mu frowned. He didn''t know why, but when he heard the news, his heart sank.


    "What a coincidence!" Zhou Yang asked with a smile.


    "That''s right, how could there be such a coincidence?" he said thoughtfully.


    A lot of thoughts suddenly appeared in his mind, but he was unable to link the two things together. However, he had a faint feeling that it was not a simple coincidence.


    After pausing for a moment, Qiao Mu said to Zhou Yang: "In short, all of you must be careful."


    Early the next morning, Zhou Yang led a group of six people to explore the Sacred Grounds as he majestically drove towards the Flower Snake Village. Before he left, Qiao Mu repeatedly reminded him to immediately contact if anything happened.


    Watching Zhou Yang and the others leave, Qiao Mu suddenly had a feeling that these people would never come back.


    On the other hand, Guo Yi stayed at home every day, locking his door.


    Chen Hui had always thought that Guo Yi had escaped from death, adding that Guo Yong had died, his heart was filled with grief and depression, and did not want to see anyone. Actually, it wasn''t that Guo Yi didn''t want to see it, it was that he couldn''t.


    This was because from the night he left the crack in the rock, cracks had gradually appeared on his body and face, while toxic water began to seep out of them.


    At this time, Guo Yi sat in front of the mirror and said dejectedly:


    "Dad, I''m sorry. After you left, I really couldn''t hold back and drank the toxic water in the pit."


    In the mirror, Guo Yi''s face was completely disfigured. Like a pomegranate, the meat was sliced into many pieces.


    Guo Yi tried to fiddle around with it, and unexpectedly, he managed to peel off a piece of carrion from his face.


    Guo Yi was filled with grief and indignation, and suddenly smashed apart the mirror.


    That day, while Chen Hui was not at home, Guo Yi took the chance to leave a note and immediately left. The slip of paper read:


    Mom, I''m out for a few days, take care!

 C34

    Eight years ago, a tea shop called Qin Mu opened for business. The owner was a Sichuan citizen, known as Old Qin.


    Although he was the owner of the teahouse, Old Qin stayed out all year round and rarely took care of the teahouse. The reason was that Old Qin loved to explore the wilderness and always traveled through mountains and rivers to dangerous places. Over time, Old Qin''s reputation spread, and he even used the tea house''s precious land to get to know and take in trees as a disciple. After the two explored together a few times, Old Qin soon gave up on the tea shop business and established the current Qin Mu Adventure Club with Qiao Mu. They rented an office space and successfully registered as a company.


    In the following years, the Qin Mu Club began to attract a group of Wilderness adventurers and began to recruit students. Business also gradually flourished. Until last year when Old Qin decided to go behind the scenes and leave the club to Qiao Mu.


    In these past eight years, Qin Mu Club had accumulated quite a bit of reputation in both reality and the internet, and no accidents had ever happened. It could really be said that everything went smoothly for them.


    At almost the same time, Zhou Yang and the rest of the six members of the expedition team advanced to what was now known as China''s number one ghost village, making Qiao Mu feel apprehensive. Qiao Mu knew in his heart that if another accident were to occur, the impact that it would have on the entire club would be self-evident.


    At this moment, Qiao Mu was sitting in his office chair, quietly thinking about something.


    At this moment, his cell phone rang.


    The caller had indicated that Yang Jie was Qiao Mu''s wife who was working at the television station.


    "Hello, brother, are you busy?" Yang Jie''s clear voice came out.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie had been married for almost ten years, but Yang Jie liked to call Qiao Mu "brother".


    "I''m not busy. Tell me, what''s the matter?" Qiao Mu replied.


    "Last night, I heard you say that this morning, Zhou Yang and the others are going to the Flower Snake Village, right?"


    "Yes."


    "Oh, I''m here. I just received a piece of news and it was yesterday. I wanted to let you know."


    As a reporter from a television station, Yang Jie would often gather all sorts of information and help Qiao Mu.


    "What news?" Qiao Mu asked.


    Just yesterday morning, a large bus with around twenty people on it turned over on the mountain road near Flower Snake Village. After the accident, the police and rescue team immediately set off, and about the time when it was about to get dark, they found the bus at the foot of the mountain.


    "Missing?" Qiao Mu frowned.


    "Yes, he''s missing!" Not even a corpse! Then, why would I need to tell you about this matter? It''s because the place where the bus flipped over is just right within the boundaries of the Flower Snake Village. "


    "Is that so ¡­" Qiao Mu''s heart sank. "That bus is still there?"


    "He''s still here, but his car is already destroyed and the roads around are not good enough for him to drag the bus out of there. And the key point was that those people had disappeared! The car didn''t matter. The most important thing was the lives. "Oh yeah, bro, I have a few photos of the scene in my phone. I''ll send them to you later."


    "Alright. Has the accident been identified? Was it natural or artificial? "


    "I''m not sure. The driver can''t even find him now, so how can we appraise him?" So when I heard this news, when I remembered that Zhou Yang and the others were going to the Flower Snake Village s today, I wanted to inform you first. Oh, by the way, are you really not going with them this time? "


    "I can''t go. Zhou Yang is leading the expedition, Brother Xiong and Xiao Wang are working abroad, only Miao Yue and I are currently left in the club, once I leave, no one will be guarding the house. "


    "That''s right, then should we inform Zhou Yang and the others about this?"


    "I have to tell them, call Zhou Yang later, tell them to be careful and come back early."


    "Alright, I''ll hang up first."


    Just as Yang Jie hung up, a few pictures from her phone were uploaded to Qiao Mu''s phone, showing the scene of the bus accident. She glanced through it and saw that the bus wasn''t as badly damaged as he''d expected. The overall frame was still intact, but the car definitely couldn''t be used again.


    "He''s gone missing ¡­" He wondered about this strange accident.


    What does disappearance mean? If someone had died in the car, the body would have been found at the scene of the accident, and if all of them had been lucky enough to survive, they would have stayed where they were or called for help as soon as possible, but they had all disappeared. Someone else must have taken control of them or disposed of their bodies.


    Qiao Mu quickly came to a conclusion because he could not think of any other possibilities.


    Just as Qiao Mu was worrying and was about to call Zhou Yang personally, a knock came from the office door, and was then gently pushed open.


    It was an old man in his sixties, wearing a hat and a black jacket.


    "Yo, Master, why are you here?" Seeing that person, Qiao Mu hurriedly stood up with a face full of joy.


    The old man was Qiao Mu''s master, one of the founders of the Qin Mu Club, Old Qin.


    Ever since he had left, although Old Qin often invited Qiao Mu out for a chat and tea, he rarely came to the office to ask about the club''s situation. Thus, the moment Qiao Mu saw Old Qin, he knew that something must have happened to him today.


    Qiao Mu respectfully invited Old Qin to sit down and soaked him in Old Qin''s favorite drink. After exchanging a few pleasantries, the two of them got down to business.


    "Ah Mu, do you know why I''m not going to Mr.Guo''s funeral?" Old Qin said.


    "I think it''s because I''m afraid it''ll be too painful. Actually, it''s the same for me." Qiao Mu sighed.


    "That''s right. I''ve been a brother for so many years. I''ve lost them all just like that. I''m getting old and I''m much more fragile than before. My heart is truly in pain now!" Old Qin patted his chest.


    Qiao Mu nodded. He knew that although he and Old Qin had known each other the earliest, they still had a master-disciple relationship, and there was some enmity between them. Unlike Old Qin and Guo Yong, he was close in age and had a common topic. The phone call Guo Yong made right before he died was to Old Qin.


    "These few days, my mind is filled with the matter of Mr.Guo telling me on the phone before he died. I can''t eat much, and I can''t sleep well, so I came over specially today to talk to you about it."


    "Sure, I only have a rough understanding of the Mr.Guo. Originally, when you didn''t come, I planned to ask you clearly."


    "The entire process of the Mr.Guo is quite simple. I told it to the police once, and you know it as well. It was him and his son, Xiao Yi, who went to the mountain forest on the island to step on the ground. It was him and his son, Xiao Yi, who went to the mountain forest on the island to step on the mountain forest. After about two nights, Mr.Guo found a hole in the water and drilled out. However, because he was infected by the toxic water in the mountain, his heart was attacked by the toxic water and he quickly died. Actually, what Mr.Guo told me was not only these, I never told anyone else. At that time, the more I thought about it, the more Mr.Guo made me think that what he said was probably true. "


    "Oh? What else did the Mr.Guo say? " Qiao Mu was instantly alert.


    "He said that when he and his son were trapped in the mountains, they could hear the female ghosts calling out to them every night, and then the toxic water would come out from the crevices in the rocks. And when he dived into the bottom of the lake, he saw a huge female corpse spreading poison gas. "


    "Is there really such a thing?" Qiao Mu had heard stories about the ghost girls of the island, but he had never believed them.


    "Ah Mu, I understand your thoughts. If it was before, I wouldn''t have believed it either. But, Mr.Guo''s death this time is too strange, don''t you think so? Up till now, no one had any idea what was going on with the toxic water. That island was also related to the Flower Snake Village that had been recently spread to the masses. And the green lake there, it looks like it''s been contaminated. I''ve never seen a lake of that color. "


    "You''re right ¡­" Qiao Mu nodded in agreement. "I searched for pictures of that lake on the internet. The color seems to be problematic. "There really is a female corpse at the bottom of the lake ¡­"


    Qiao Mu did not continue speaking. This kind of illogical speculation was truly hard for him to accept.


    "Where''s Zhou Yang, busy?" Old Qin suddenly realized that Zhou Yang was not around.


    "Yes, I just left this morning."


    "Oh, how long?"


    "Probably... Two or three days. "


    Old Qin was not aware that Zhou Yang was going to explore the Flower Snake Village, and Qiao Mu was not prepared to tell him, so as to prevent him from being worried.


    "How about this, when Zhou Yang comes back, I''ll accompany you guys and go explore the island, along with some things that happened in Mr.Guo." Old Qin suggested.


    Actually, Qiao Mu had the same idea. If a female corpse was lying at the bottom of the lake, spreading poison gas and polluting a large portion of the water, then it would be considered a shocking discovery.


    However, opportunities usually coexisted with risk, and Qiao Mu was a little worried. After all, the terrifying death of Guo Yong was still fresh in his mind.


    "Oh right, the son of Mr.Guo, Xiao Yi, where did he run off to? I heard that the Mr.Guo''s funeral wasn''t even here, what''s going on? You should have asked him about the situation. Old Qin suddenly thought.


    "Yes, I''m thinking about it too. How about this, I''ll call Chen Hui right now."


    Qiao Mu immediately dialed Chen Hui''s number. A haggard voice quickly came from the other side of the phone.


    "Sister Chen, it''s me. Qiao Mu, are you alright?" Qiao Mu asked with concern when he heard Chen Hui''s voice.


    "No ¡­." "It''s fine."


    "Oh, by the way, is Xiao Yi home? I want to talk to him. If it''s convenient, I can come over. Old Qin is with me right now." Arbor said straight to the point.


    "Xiaoyi is not at home."


    "Ah?" Where did he go? "Are you coming back today?"


    "He shouldn''t be coming back."


    The more Qiao Mu heard, the weirder he felt it was. He then asked calmly: "Sister Chen, if you have something to say tell me, Old Qin and I are very concerned about you. After all, we are brothers with Mr.Guo for so many years."


    "I really don''t know. Xiaoyi just left a note saying that he had to go out for a few days and didn''t explain clearly to me. He called but didn''t answer it. Sigh ¡­" Chen Hui sighed.


    "So it''s like that ¡­" Qiao Mu finally understood that Chen Hui was not in the right mood, so he thought for a moment and said, "It''s fine, Sister Chen. Xiao Yi must be trying to get some fresh air, but he doesn''t want to be disturbed. After all, this incident was a huge blow to him. It''s also good to let him relax. He''ll be back in a few days, don''t worry. "


    "En, I think so too. But no matter what, you have to tell me. That child ¡­"


    Qiao Mu carelessly comforted her a bit more. However, when he hung up the phone, he fell into deep thought.


    "Where did Little Yi go?" Old Qin asked.


    "I don''t know. I left a note for his mom saying that she was going out for a few days. Then she disappeared."


    "If you didn''t say where you were going, why aren''t you answering the phone?"


    "Yes."


    The two of them did not speak for a while, but exchanged a moment of silence.


    "That little thing..." Where can I go? " After a long while, Old Qin asked to himself.


    "..."


    The Qin Mu Club was not too far away from the Flower Snake Village. In merely two hours, Zhou Yang and the rest had already arrived at the ancient village which the Flower Snake Village belonged to. However, to enter this village, they would have to go through a winding mountain road.


    On this trip, other than Zhou Yang, the other members were Chen Ya, Lili, Fann Wenqiang, Sun Miao, Faang Zexi and Faang Zexi. Chen Ya was the only female member of the club, with a head full of short hair. Lili was Zhou Yang''s female student and the one who advocated the expedition. Fann Wenqiang and Sun Miao were both veterans of the club, he was forty-five years old, was four years older than Qiao Mu, had a steady and experienced personality, was relatively young, was only thirty-three years old, and was the member with the highest education in the whole club. The last one, Faang Zexi, was Fann Wenqiang''s student. He was a 1.9m tall boy who loved to exercise very much.


    They were well-prepared for the expedition. In addition to a large backpack, they had a first-aid kit and a toolbox. All sorts of equipment, tools, food, medicine, drinking water, and tents were available. Even if one was caught in a critical situation, it would still barely last half a month.


    Zhou Yang parked his car in the ancient city and the six of them went to find a restaurant to eat, then proceeded to walk up the mountain.


    The reason he didn''t drive the car was because Zhou Yang had just received a call from Yang Jie and knew about the bus overturning.


    Before going up the mountain, Chen Ya asked a few locals about it and determined that it would take them about two hours to go from Ancient Tower Town to Flower Snake Village.


    "How is it, are you scared? so that you don''t have to do much exercise. " Faang Zexi was extremely excited, he knew he had to climb the mountain, and using his good physique, he teased the others.


    "Tsk, don''t look at how this young mistress doesn''t usually go to the gym. If she really runs a step, she might even be better than you!" Chen Ya retorted.


    "Is that so? Sister Chen Ya, how about we try running all the way there? " Faang Zexi laughed.


    "Sure! "You''re still carrying a big bag, if I still can''t outrun you, that would really be too embarrassing."


    Indeed, Faang Zexi was in charge of the big backpack. It was also because he was young, had a strong body, and could take on a lot of hard work, that Zhou Yang considered letting him go.


    The Qin Mu Club was roughly divided into a member and a student''s aptitude. It was similar to the relationship between teacher and student. All the members were experienced Wilderness enthusiasts, and their overall ability was much higher than that of the students. Usually, the students would not have the chance to explore the dangerous areas like the members, but this time Zhou Yang brought two students, one was Lili and the other was Faang Zexi. Lili had proposed this expedition because she was also known as the one who had visited her relatives in Flower Snake Village. With a certain understanding of Flower Snake Village, it was natural for her to bring him along. Faang Zexi took the role of a hard worker, taking care of all the dirty work.


    "Stop joking around. Be a bit more serious. You should act like you''re exploring." Seeing that Chen Ya and Faang Zexi started to get used to making trouble, Fann Wenqiang spoke in a coarse voice.

 C35

    "Look, my teacher is already angry. Stop messing around!" Faang Zexi told Chen Ya while secretly making a weird sound.


    "That''s right, Mr.Guo''s matter just happened to be right in front of us, so we should still be a bit more cautious." Zhou Yang also said.


    When the topic of Mr.Guo was brought up, the hearts of everyone suddenly sunk, and Faang Zexi no longer made any weird moves.


    "Yeah, did you see that? When Chen Ya asked those few people in the town about it, when she mentioned Flower Snake Village, those people''s faces turned green with fright, as they might not dare to believe that we were going to explore the Flower Snake Village." Sun Miao who was at the back said.


    "We can''t blame them. That village sounds quite strange. In one night, all the villagers had disappeared. The police had searched for a long time, but they could not find any clues. I also heard that someone passed by the village at night and saw the shadows of the trees walking about in the distance. There was also a strange sound. " Chen Ya said with a serious face.


    "Sis Chen, how could you believe something like that that''s spread around?" Faang Zexi retorted.


    "Xiao Fang, there are some things that you have to believe in." Lili who had been silent all this time suddenly said this.


    Lili''s appearance could be considered gentle and sweet, and she looked a few years younger than her actual age of thirty.


    "Ah, that''s right. Do you know of the island that Mr.Guo and Little Yi went to? There were also rumors of ghosts there, but in the end ¡­ Mr.Guo has really met with an accident. " Chen Ya said.


    "Didn''t Mr.Guo die because of the toxic water in the mountains?" Fann Wenqiang asked.


    "Who knows? I''ve been exploring for so long, but I''ve never seen a mountain that could produce toxic water." Chen Ya replied.


    "Well, that''s it. Furthermore, there is something you might not have expected, that Mr.Guo and that island that Little Yi went to was not far away, and that there was some connection with Flower Snake Village. It was said that the contours of the two islands were similar to that of a snake, and were extremely close to each other, which was why there were these two names. But the most important thing is that these two islands are on the same lake. " Sun Miao pushed her glasses up and added.


    "I''ve heard about this before, but I don''t understand. Isn''t it good to call that island the Great Snake Island? Why change its name?" Zhou Yang asked.


    "It was because a certain story had spread that a woman from ancient times had been mercilessly killed by her husband in that place because she had seduced another man. She had even been cut into countless chunks of meat. "Later on, someone gave that island a new name, the Eternal Hate Island." Sun Miao replied.


    "There''s also another set of Small Snake Island. Lili, is there really that island next to the Flower Snake Village?" Zhou Yang asked Lili again.


    "Yes." Lili nodded.


    At this moment, they were already far away from Ancient Tower Town, walking on the desolate mountain road. On both sides were dried up branches and broken leaves, and with Sun Miao''s information, it was as if a ball of Yin Qi was shrouding them.


    Only after around an hour did they return back to the ground from the mountain path. According to Lili''s explanation, continuing along the current path was their destination: the Flower Snake Village.


    Chen Ya looked at her watch and asked: "Zhou Yang, it''s almost 3 in the afternoon, are we going back to town tonight?"


    Zhou Yang stopped, thought for a while and said: "No need, I''ll stay at the Flower Snake Village tonight. I brought a tent with me anyway."


    Hearing that they had to spend the night in Flower Snake Village, everyone''s heart couldn''t help but sink.


    "Sleep in that place?" Faang Zexi was worried.


    "What''s wrong? Scared? You haven''t experienced it, right?" Chen Ya teased.


    "What''s there to be afraid of? I''m not used to sleeping in the wild." Faang Zexi explained.


    "This is called investigating deeply!" Fann Wenqiang turned his head and said.


    "Teacher Fan is right. In the past, the police always went during the day, so they couldn''t find any clues. Night may not be the time." Zhou Yang said.


    "Did you hear that? You cowardly person, hurry up and go home! " Chen Ya took the opportunity to mock Faang Zexi.


    "Honestly, if we were to reap some rewards from this expedition, finding the whereabouts of the missing villagers would greatly improve the reputation of our club." Sun Miao said with a smile.


    "That''s right. In the future, the scale of our company will only get bigger and bigger. Maybe we''ll even be able to list it on the stock market?" Chen Ya said while laughing.


    Everyone chatted casually, and the atmosphere became more cheerful at the moment, until Lili stood unmoving, and pointed to a village road to the right, saying: "We''re there, inside is the Flower Snake Village."


    They saw that the village road was not only narrow but also filled with weeds. If not for Lili''s reminder, they might have missed this road.


    Everyone''s mood immediately became heavy. The lively atmosphere from before vanished like smoke in thin air. From here, they discovered that the village road was eerie and discordant.


    Zhou Yang thought that perhaps it was a psychological effect, and immediately said: "Let''s go, don''t delay any longer."


    The group of people lined up in a row and slowly walked into the village.


    After walking for a while, everyone saw two tall and thick ginkgo trees in front of them. When they got closer to the village, there were a few more ginkgo trees. Chen Ya thought it was strange and asked: "Why are there so many ginkgo trees planted in the village?"


    Just as Lili was about to explain, Sun Miao interrupted first: "I heard that ginkgo is a symbol of Flower Snake Village, it seems to be a rule left behind by their ancestors."


    "This rule is quite strange. Can''t you plant some flowers? You have to plant some big and ugly ginkgo trees." Chen Ya said.


    "Eh? Why is there a hole in this tree? " Faang Zexi seemed to have discovered something as he pointed to a ginkgo tree and asked.


    The others surrounded it and saw that there was indeed a small round hole on the trunk of the ginkgo tree.


    "This hole was probably cut open by someone?" Zhou Yang touched the hole.


    "There''s some straw in it." Fann Wenqiang said while holding onto a straw in his hand.


    "Why?" Sun Miao asked curiously.


    "It''s a feint." Lili suddenly said.


    Hearing that the cave was for feigning death, Faang Zexi immediately retracted his hand and asked loudly: "Pretending to be dead? Don''t fool me! How can you insert such a small hole into it? "


    Xiao Fang, you don''t understand this village." Lili patiently explained, "There is a custom in Flower Snake Village called tree burial. It is to soak a person who had just passed away in a type of medicinal liquid until their body shrank in size, and then stuff them into the ginkgo tree trunk and seal them away. Furthermore, when soaking the corpse, there would be a special ceremony called ¡­ "Dip the body.


    "Ugh ¡­" That sounds so disgusting! " Faang Zexi shook his head pretentiously.


    "What potion did you use?" Sun Miao asked.


    "Then I don''t know." Lili laughed as she shook her head.


    "If there''s a chance, let me see." When Sun Miao was in university, she had come into contact with a lot of chemical agents, but she had never heard of any that had the ability to reduce corpses.


    "Lili, do you know anything about Flower Snake Village?" Fann Wenqiang said.


    "It''s alright. After all, I''ve been here before." Lili replied.


    The crowd continued forward.


    A few minutes later, they officially stepped into the Flower Snake Village.


    The first thing that caught their attention was the roof of every house in the village, which was made of dark tiles. Next were the sudden ginkgo trees, and most of the trees had a round hole in them.


    "Lili, I have a question." Zhou Yang stood in front of a ginkgo tree and asked.


    "What is it?" Lili leaned over.


    "Did you just say that these trees are meant to be deadly?"


    "Well, yes."


    "But why is it empty now?"


    Lili was stunned, she had also realized this problem.


    "Where are the bodies?" Zhou Yang continued to ask.


    "That''s right, not only are the people still alive, even the dead people have disappeared?" Chen Ya interrupted the conversation between the two.


    "I really don''t know." Lili shook her head.


    "It''s all suspicious points." Fann Wenqiang said.


    After a while, the six of them started to wander around the village.


    Along the way, they found a few ginkgo trees with holes dug into them. Some of the branches even had a piece of black cloth hung on them, but none of them hid their corpses. Faang Zexi even joked: "It can''t be that the corpses are like humans, they came out by themselves, right?"


    But under the situation, no one felt Faang Zexi''s words to be funny.


    Other than the empty ginkgo trees, the entire village was deserted. There was only a dead silence, and the black tiled houses made people feel even more depressed.


    "I think there are quite a few houses in this village. There should be quite a few people living here in the past." Chen Ya said.


    "Yeah, but where are they?" Sun Miao asked.


    Because he was tired from walking, Lili sat on the stairs in front of a house to rest, and said: "If all the villagers are still here, this place will be the most lively."


    "Is that so ¡­" With Lili''s reminder, Zhou Yang started to observe carefully. He saw that the houses were all around him. There was an empty space in the middle with a dried up well beside it. The place looked like a small square.


    "It''s not good for us to wander around all the time. Why don''t we take a look at these houses?" Chen Ya suggested.


    As a result, the group selectively entered some of the houses to observe. To their surprise, most of the doors were unlocked, allowing them to freely enter and exit. From the various indications in the house, it was true that no one had lived there for a long time.


    Until they walked into a slightly old and worn-out house, Lili was suddenly agitated and her face was filled with sadness.


    "Is this your relative, Lili?" Zhou Yang saw through it.


    Lili nodded her head heavily, feeling so sad that she couldn''t speak for a while.


    After going up to the second floor, Lili pointed to one of the rooms and told the others, "In the past, whenever I went back to the Flower Snake Village, I always slept in this room."


    Zhou Yang pushed open the door and looked inside, only to realize that the bed and sheets in the room were arranged neatly, it was obvious that no one had slept in before.


    "Alright then, you can continue sleeping here tonight." Faang Zexi joked.


    Chen Ya knew that she should not say such words, and hurriedly pushed Faang Zexi.


    Afterwards, they left the old house and continued to wander.


    When Chen Ya pushed open the door of an old house and rushed in, she exclaimed.


    "What''s wrong?" Fann Wenqiang asked anxiously. He quickly followed the others into the old house.


    Chen Ya then pointed to a photo on the wall, and said while trembling: "This family, why did they have a photo of someone dying hung beside their door, they scared me!"


    The others looked and saw that there was a black and white photo on the wall. Inside the photo was an old couple of about seventy or eighty years old.


    "This is not a photo. There are two old men with the surname Pang and two women with the surname Sun. They are our neighbors and they did not die." It''s just that there''s a rule in Flower Snake Village: photos of the walls must be in black and white, and should not appear too beautiful, for fear of attracting unclean items. " Lili explained.


    "There are so many rules in this village." Faang Zexi retorted again.


    After leaving the house, everyone didn''t want to check on the house anymore. Instead, they prepared to go to the Flower Snake Village s to walk around.


    Unknowingly, they came to a river. Not far away, they saw a stone bridge, and on the other side of the river, there was a large forest.


    "There''s a bridge over there. Where does it lead to?" Chen Ya asked Lili.


    "Other than the trees on the other side, there''s nothing else on the other side. The lake is just ahead of us. If we take a boat across the lake, we can reach the Small Snake Island." Lili replied.


    "Oh? Where is this river? "


    "This river is a tributary of that lake, one by one."


    "Is that so ¡­ "According to what you said ¡­" Sun Miao squatted by the river side and observed carefully.


    Zhou Yang and Fann Wenqiang both noticed that if what Lili said was true, then this river belongs to the Lake Branch, and is connected to the lake that was near the great snake island that was destroyed by Guo Yong, because Small Snake Island and the great snake island share the same lake.


    "No wonder. I saw that the color of the water is a bit strange." Zhou Yang said.


    "Ah?" Is that so? However, before this, the villagers would always think that the color of the water was like this. What the villagers drank was also the water from the river. Include Me... Drink it too... "Not much though ¡­" Lili''s voice was so soft that even she herself could barely hear him clearly.


    Only Zhou Yang heard Lili''s last sentence. He quietly noted it down and did not say anything more.


    "Hey, did you guys notice something? There''s a weird smell in this village. It smells so bad!" Chen Ya suddenly said.


    "I noticed it a long time ago, especially by the river. The stench is even worse!" Faang Zexi also said.


    Everyone could smell the stench, Lili naturally understood what was going on.


    If the Ginkgo tree was considered the number one symbol of Flower Snake Village, then its fish-like stench could be considered the second symbol of Flower Snake Village.


    "Do you want to take a look at the other side of the river?" Fann Wenqiang suggested.


    Before Zhou Yang could answer, Lili quickly said: "No need, other than trees, there''s nothing else over there."


    "Is it okay to just take a casual look?"


    "I feel like... Forget it. "


    Lili appeared to be extremely nervous, causing everyone to feel that it was strange.


    "Lili, what''s wrong with you? What''s there that you can''t go over there?" Zhou Yang asked.


    Lili pursed her lips to think before replying, "The words right now ¡­ It''s not impossible to go, but if it was before, the land on the other side of the river was a taboo place in the village. Basically, no one dared to go, and a few people didn''t come back. "


    "Why didn''t you come back? "Has he gone missing?" Sun Miao asked curiously.


    "Yes." Lili replied.


    "But it seems like that place isn''t that big either. They went missing, aren''t you villagers going to look for them?"


    "It''s not easy to find, because those people went to that place by boat to Small Snake Island. Once they reach there, they would be considered finished."


    "Just like that large snake island, does Small Snake Island make a ghost?"


    "I don''t know if there are any ghosts or not. In short, I heard that a lot of people in the village went missing after that. I don''t know why."


    Sun Miao casually asked a few questions, but she realised that the more she asked, the more confused she got.

 C36

    "Lili, since you said it like that, we should go over and take a look. Also, that Small Snake Island, the reason we are here, isn''t it precisely to expose the feudal superstition, to look for the reason behind all these strange happenings." Chen Ya said.


    "I understand, I understand, but I think that since the Flower Snake Village is so large, there are still many places that we have yet to investigate. We don''t need to go to dangerous places first, right? Besides, we don''t have a boat. "


    "Lili is right." Zhou Yang said, "Stepping by step, is the main theme of the exploration. We should indeed search through the Flower Snake Village for clues, but as for that island, we definitely need to go there. It''s late today. Tomorrow morning, we''ll go back to town and ask the locals if they have a way to get a boat here. How about it? "


    "Sure, it''s settled then." Fann Wenqiang said.


    In the end, after Lili''s persuasion, they still did not cross the stone bridge.


    In fact, Zhou Yang understood that girls like Lili, who had grown up in the countryside, were very sensitive to local superstitions, so his actions now had the intention of taking care of Lili''s emotions.


    The six of them walked along the river bank for a while as the sky gradually darkened.


    When humans look at all things in the world, the feelings they feel day and night are completely different. The dark night was equivalent to a pressure. At this moment, the six people who were persevering within the Flower Snake Village were currently enveloped by this pressure.


    Following the arrival of the night, the wind blowing from the Flower Snake Village became stronger. Trees and branches lightly swayed, and occasionally, a few black tiles were blown down from the roof.


    The six of them walked all the way to the edge of the Flower Snake Village area. Seeing how sparse the houses were, when they went over a small hill, Sun Miao suddenly realized that there was something wrong with the picture in front of them.


    "Hey, look, that bus!"


    Indeed, not far from them was the bus that had overturned the mountain road and lost more than twenty people.


    Now that the incident had been reported repeatedly on the news and had been investigated, there was still no clue to the disappearance of the passengers and the driver.


    Zhou Yang received Yang Jie''s call long ago to know about this matter, and then he used his phone to search for the relevant news.


    The six of them slowly approached the bus. Zhou Yang raised his head and looked up. He could vaguely see a mountain road and a large amount of trees that extended from the mountain road to the foot of the mountain. Zhou Yang thought that it was probably because of this that the bus did not suffer as much damage.


    In addition, Zhou Yang noticed that the bus was standing right there. It did not flip or flip, but because the left front wheel had fallen off, the bus was tilting towards the left front. He guessed it was the rescue team.


    "Have you guys seen the news? The people on this dead bus are all missing." Chen Ya said as she crossed her arms in front of her chest, chilled by the wind.


    "Look, there''s a total of twenty-something people including the driver. If you say there''s nothing, then there''s nothing." Faang Zexi was also carefully sizing him up.


    "In this respect, it''s quite strange." Sun Miao said.


    "Aiya, this village is too strange. People often go missing." Faang Zexi said again.


    Zhou Yang did not say anything, but instead, he circled the bus, and suddenly, his heart skipped a beat.


    "Something''s not right!" Zhou Yang returned to his original position and frowned.


    "What''s wrong?" Chen Ya asked anxiously.


    "I don''t know. When I first saw the car, I felt something was wrong. Something must be wrong!" While talking, Zhou Yang thought hard.


    "There''s nothing wrong ¡­" Faang Zexi imitated Zhou Yang''s actions and said slowly.


    "No, no, there''s definitely something wrong with it. My intuition can''t be wrong!" Zhou Yang said firmly.


    Suddenly, an image appeared in his mind. It was the scene of the accident that Yang Jie had previously sent him.


    He quickly took out his phone from the side pocket of the big backpack that Faang Zexi was carrying, and looked for the photo. For ease of movement, therefore, everyone''s cell phone is kept in the outside pocket of the large backpack.


    When he saw the photo again, Zhou Yang''s expression was extremely strange, as if he had been possessed. He switched on the wireless network on his cell phone and looked at the pictures on the news.


    "This doesn''t make sense ¡­" Zhou Yang muttered to himself.


    "What is it? Tell me quickly!" Chen Ya urged.


    The others looked at Zhou Yang cautiously.


    Zhou Yang directly handed the phone to Chen Ya, and said: "Take a look at the live picture of the news, see how different it is from here."


    After that, Zhou Yang went back to circling around the bus, while the others gathered behind Chen Ya.


    After looking for a bit, Sun Miao noticed that something was amiss and asked loudly: "Eh? The scene of the accident in the photo, why is it different from here? "


    "What do you mean?" Faang Zexi was slow to react, he did not understand yet.


    "Look at the series of pictures of the scene of the accident on the news. The bus is right next to the foot of the mountain and there''s a lot of trees nearby. But now, the bus we saw was on a flat, empty piece of land. There was nothing around us, and it was quite a distance away from the foot of the mountain. "


    "In other words, this car has been moved somewhere?"


    "Yes!"


    "No wonder. I was wondering how a car that was flipped over from the mountain could land in such a place." Fann Wenqiang also said.


    "Is it possible that the rescue team pushed the car over here before they left?" Chen Ya asked.


    "Impossible!" Zhou Yang turned around and directly denied it.


    "Why?" Chen Ya looked at Zhou Yang.


    "Squat down and take a look, one of the front wheels of this bus is missing. I think it was hit and the tire and wheel hub flew out together. In this situation where there were only so many wheels, it was impossible to push a bus by relying on manpower! Besides, there were no traces of it being carried out on the ground. The only way was with the help of a large trailer, but the news said that because of the narrow mountain road, the trailer would not come in. If they did send a trailer, they could just directly drag the car away. "What''s the point of dragging it here?"


    The others were silent for a moment, thinking that Zhou Yang''s words were reasonable. Zhou Yang looked at the foot of the mountain and noticed that a large part of the ground had caved in, he pointed and said: It should be the original location of the bus.


    "Yeah, I saw it too. They are only dozens of meters apart, is there a need to move the car here?" I even thought it would be better to park at the foot of the mountain. " Sun Miao also said.


    "According to your analysis ¡­" Chen Ya placed her hand on her waist, looking very tired, "The rescue team wouldn''t move the carriage here, who moved it?"


    "That''s right ¡­" Who would have the idea to move a bus? " Sun Miao was also at a loss.


    Zhou Yang thought for a moment, then said: "The crucial question is, how did you do it?"


    "If it were me, I would definitely be unable to find a solution no matter how hard I try." Fann Wenqiang said as he kicked the bus.


    "This kind of bus must weigh at least seven tons, and if we add on the missing front wheel, it would definitely be unrealistic to rely on manpower to push the bus over, unless we use tools." Sun Miao said.


    "Then why are there no marks on the ground?" Lili asked.


    "There is only one possibility." Zhou Yang concluded, "There''s someone ¡­ or many people used some sort of method to carry this bus here. "


    "My God! Was there a need to carry it? How much manpower would that require? " Chen Ya did not dare believe it.


    "It sounds incredible, but it''s the answer to the current situation." Sun Miao said.


    "But... What''s the good of it? " Even Faang Zexi had a serious expression on his face as he covered his chin.


    Everyone was stunned for a moment. Suddenly, they felt a strong gust of wind that gave them goosebumps. It was also because of the open area that there was no shelter from the wind or rain.


    "How about we... Shall we go somewhere else? " Lili said with an almost pleading tone. She really didn''t want to be here anymore.


    "Fine, whatever happens to this car, it''s none of our business." Chen Ya said.


    After making up their minds, they left the side of the bus and walked towards a patch of forest. Zhou Yang was not willing to give up and turned to look at the bus again. He realized that the bus was shrouded in darkness, almost like a coffin.


    When they entered the forest, Chen Ya looked at the time, which was six in the afternoon. It was almost dark, and there was only a faint light.


    When they reached the forest, they were surrounded by true darkness. Zhou Yang took the lead, while the others followed closely behind him.


    "Speak... What are we doing here? " Chen Ya asked.


    "Yeah, it''s already dark now. Boss, let''s hurry up and find a place to set up our tent." Faang Zexi said to Zhou Yang.


    "Do you know the essence of exploring? Don''t let go of any corner." Zhou Yang joked.


    After walking for a while, Zhou Yang felt that they had reached the depths of the forest, so he led the way and stopped, looking around.


    Although the sky was completely dark, Zhou Yang could still see that there were a lot of different types of trees in the forest. Beside them, there were a few big ginkgo trees.


    Just as Fann Wenqiang was about to make a torch on the spot, he heard Faang Zexi shouting, "Aiyo, Sister Chen, stop messing around, I''m very tired!"


    Fann Wenqiang was startled, he approached Xiao Fang and asked: "Xiao Fang, what did you say?"


    "I say, Sis Chen, she''s making a ruckus with me again. She''s poking me in the back with a branch."


    Fann Wenqiang looked at the thing beside him and felt a chill in his heart. He realised that Chen Ya was standing beside him, and was looking at him in shock.


    "Xiao Fang, I''m not behind you ¡­" Chen Ya tremblingly said to the Faang Zexi who was in the darkness.


    Faang Zexi''s back instantly felt a chill, and he slowly turned around. Behind him, there was actually a large ginkgo tree. Just like the ginkgo tree he had seen before, there was also a piece of black cloth pinned to the trunk of the ginkgo tree.


    He thought back to what Lili had said before, that the gingko that was nailed to the black cloth was used to bury corpses.


    At this time, sounds of straw echoed from the trunk of the ginkgo tree. Apparently there was something moving inside the tree.


    Faang Zexi was about to shout, but who knew that his two calves were suddenly bound by some kind of force. He looked down at the tree trunk and saw that there was another tree hole at the bottom.


    In truth, Faang Zexi was not that brave, so he nearly fainted from the fright. As he shouted, he struggled to free himself, but luckily he had enough strength and was able to shake off the black thing.


    "Xiao Fang, what''s going on? Were you bitten by a snake?" Zhou Yang asked.


    "No!" No! There is something that is like a human being! " Faang Zexi held onto his leg, and retreated quickly.


    "Like a human?" Chen Ya supported Faang Zexi and asked nervously.


    "En!" Faang Zexi nodded his head heavily, and swallowed his saliva, "It''s only that tree that came out from the tree, don''t get any closer to it!"


    "Over there!" Sun Miao suddenly found her target and pointed.


    Because it was too dark in the forest, the crowd could not see clearly. They could only see something especially dark, constantly crawling and moving on the ground.


    "It''s the cadaver! The cadaver! " Lili shouted.


    "What''s a cadaver?" Zhou Yang asked loudly.


    And at the same time, Zhou Yang asked this question, the several ginkgo trees closest to him all started to move. At last they could see that black, clawed creatures with hands and feet were coming out of the trunk.


    In an instant, accompanied by a soft rustling sound, several cadaver crawled on the ground.


    Faang Zexi was so scared that his face turned pale white, and he froze on the spot.


    "Let''s go!" Don''t be in a daze! " Seeing that the situation wasn''t good, Zhou Yang ordered loudly.


    Therefore, Zhou Yang took the lead and escaped, returning the way he came. Chen Ya and Lili supported Faang Zexi together, while Fann Wenqiang and Sun Miao were in charge of the rear.


    The group of people ran in the forest, all of them panicking, until the sound of the cadaver s crawling completely disappeared, only then did they relax. At this time, Zhou Yang saw that it was a little light in front of him, and thought that it should be the exit of the forest.


    "Let''s get out of this forest, fast! Quick, catch up one by one! " Zhou Yang turned his head and said loudly.


    Just as the others were about to respond to Zhou Yang, suddenly, Sun Miao, who was at the very back of the group, let out a blood-curdling screech. A large tree behind Sun Miao shook violently, and a few cadaver fell down from the tree like monkeys, while grabbing onto Sun Miao''s head and neck.


    The most tragic scene immediately occurred. One of the cadaver firmly grabbed Sun Miao''s hair with one hand while the other used its sharp and long fingernails to instantly pierce through Sun Miao''s throat. Blood surged and dyed Sun Miao''s entire body red. At the same time, the other cadaver extended its fingernails into Sun Miao''s mouth, fiercely grabbing onto Sun Miao''s tongue and forcefully pulling him out.


    Facing such a terrifying situation, even the female warrior, Chen Ya, let out a heart-tearing and lung-splitting cry. Lili was so scared that not even a sound came out from her throat, it was as if her legs were stepping on cotton. Faang Zexi acted like she had gone mad and screamed in shock. Zhou Yang and Fann Wenqiang were also trembling in fear.


    The cadaver almost killed Sun Miao with its fastest speed, leaving them with no time to react. Very quickly, there were three other cadaver crawling towards Zhou Yang and the others, waiting for the right opportunity to make a move.


    Zhou Yang was the fastest to recover his rationality. He clearly understood that this was not the time to be sad, Sun Miao was already dead, but the threat had not been removed, so he had to make a prompt decision!


    "Let''s go!" Sun Miao won''t be able to save it! " Zhou Yang roared. At the same time, he grabbed onto Lili with one hand and Chen Ya with the other as he retreated quickly.


    The cadaver also noticed that Zhou Yang and the rest were trying to escape, so after making it difficult for it to watch, it quickly crawled towards them.


    Fann Wenqiang picked up a few stones and threw it at the cadaver, stalling for time for the others to retreat.


    Luckily, they were close to the exit of the forest, so they were not lost. Zhou Yang and the others successfully returned to the flat area, but Faang Zexi''s calves were really in great pain. There was a slope in front of him, so it would be difficult to climb up.


    "Xiao Fang, give me your bag." Zhou Yang noticed that Faang Zexi was still carrying his big backpack, so he acted in an even more inconvenient manner. Thus, he helped Faang Zexi take off his backpack and helped him climb the slope, but just at this critical moment, a cadaver that was sticking out of the ground suddenly shot towards Zhou Yang and Faang Zexi. The two of them panicked, and the big backpack actually got snatched away by the cadaver.

 C37

    "Forget the bag for now, let''s go!" Chen Ya stood on the slope and shouted to the two of them. It was because she saw the cadaver chasing after them from the forest.


    Since the situation was critical, Zhou Yang knew that he would not be able to snatch the bag back. After that, he dragged Faang Zexi and ran up the slope with all his might.


    Just then, Fann Wenqiang saw the bus that was not far away. Without thinking too much, he shouted loudly: "Go to the bus!"


    The group then went down the hill and rushed towards the bus. As the speed down the hill was obviously faster, they left the cadaver some distance behind.


    When they arrived at the front of the bus, Fann Wenqiang opened the door first and allowed the others to get on one by one. Waiting until inside the carriage, Fann Wenqiang hurriedly locked the machinery lock on the inside of the carriage, and even pressed his back against the door, afraid that the cadaver s would break in.


    It was dark inside the bus. Everyone was panicking.


    Zhou Yang supported Faang Zexi and sat down, then checked the window. He noticed that several of the windows had shattered, but from this height, the cadaver should not have been able to jump into the car from the window.


    Very quickly, sounds came from the outside of the bus, Zhou Yang carefully stuck his head out of the window, only to see a few cadaver s lying down, trying to climb up the window. The other two cadaver s used their long and sharp nails to scratch the door of the carriage, causing an ear-piercing sound.


    "It''s fine, they can''t come in." Fann Wenqiang was finally relieved and left the carriage.


    "Hmm, these monsters don''t seem to have much strength. They can only crawl around and randomly scratch around with their nails." Zhou Yang agreed.


    Lili and Chen Ya stuck close together. Lili''s face was ghastly pale and she stared blankly. She was still thinking about the scene of Sun Miao''s tragic death just now, and the psychological impact it had on her was just too great.


    Faang Zexi held onto his leg, the pain was unbearable. Zhou Yang and the others all noticed that Faang Zexi''s injured leg was obviously swollen, and some pitch black blood was seeping out.


    Chen Ya quickly took out a pack of paper towels and wiped the wound on Faang Zexi''s body again and again.


    Hearing the sounds coming from outside the carriage, Zhou Yang realized that although they were safe inside, it would not be easy for them to leave since the monsters had already set their eyes on them. In other words, they were trapped.


    It was not even 7 in the evening yet and daybreak was still a long way away. Zhou Yang was worried that these monsters would have to suffer for the entire night if they did not leave and that even if they left by dawn, it was unknown whether they would leave or not.


    Moreover, Faang Zexi was injured on top of that.


    Looking at his companions, Zhou Yang suddenly realised that this was the most difficult test of his life.


    "Oh right, Chen Ya, are all our things inside that bag?" Fann Wenqiang asked.


    "Yeah, including our cell phones." Chen Ya said dejectedly.


    "What did you say? None of your phones are on you?" Zhou Yang was stunned.


    "Hmm, isn''t this all handed over to Xiao Fang?" It was originally placed in the outer pocket of the backpack, so it''s easy to pick it up. " Fann Wenqiang said.


    "Blame me! Blame me! I didn''t manage that bag properly!" Faang Zexi blamed himself beyond belief.


    "Then what should we do?" It was stolen by the cadaver! " Lili said in grief.


    "That''s right, he couldn''t even make a phone call." Fann Wenqiang also complained.


    "Wait, Lili." This was the second time Zhou Yang had mentioned the two words "cadaver", "The cadaver you mentioned, are it those monsters?"


    "Yes, that''s right." Therefore, Lili told them that the cadaver s were the corpses that their Flower Snake Village had always been buried in trees. It was because before burial, there was an immersion ceremony to shrink their bodies so that they could be stuffed into the ginkgo tree, which was why the pitch black cadaver s were so small.


    "You mean, those monsters outside were all dead in your village?" Chen Ya asked.


    "Yeah, originally, they were buried in trees, but for some reason, they are alive now. Many of them even dug holes in the trees to crawl out. Their nails are sharp, long and poisonous, so don''t let them get caught." Lili replied.


    "Lili, you should have known a long time ago that there was such a thing in Flower Snake Village, right?" Zhou Yang realized that Lili had a lot more information than them.


    Lili lowered her head and did not answer.


    Zhou Yang could tell that Lili was hiding something, but he immediately felt that there was something wrong with the whole thing.


    "My Leg... It should be because of their fingernails, right? " Hearing Lili''s words, Faang Zexi became even more worried.


    "It''s possible." Lili stared at Faang Zexi''s calves that were swelling gradually, and said unwillingly.


    "I think the biggest problem right now is not that we''re stuck in a car, but that our backpack is missing. Almost everything we eat, everything we use, is in that bag. " Fann Wenqiang concluded.


    "Yea, this time I''m really unlucky!" Chen Ya complained.


    "Do you think that if we wait until tomorrow, someone will come and save us?" Faang Zexi asked.


    "Not necessarily." Zhou Yang shook his head, "For the time being, no one knows that we are trapped here. Only Qiao Mu and the others and some of the fans in our club know that we are here for Flower Snake Village exploration, but they might not take the initiative to contact us. Only after a few days, when they see we''re not back yet, when they call us, do they realize that something has happened to us. So most of us can only hope that the rescue team will take a look at where they''re going. "


    "If we wait for daybreak, the things outside ¡­" Will you go away? I also haven''t heard of any journalists or rescue teams discovering anything at Flower Snake Village. " Chen Ya asked Lili.


    "I don''t know about that." Lili replied.


    "Sigh ¡­" But can we make it? " Chen Ya glanced at Faang Zexi''s lower leg again, and said in a discouraged tone.


    In fact, Qiao Mu had been worried about the safety of their trip from the start, so at the same time, Qiao Mu who had just arrived at home was dialing Zhou Yang''s cell phone.


    Just as he was about to hang up, Zhou Yang''s phone suddenly connected. Qiao Mu quickly asked: Hey, what are you doing? You haven''t answered the phone in so long. "


    There was a silence on the other end of the phone.


    "Why aren''t you talking?"


    There was still no answer, but the call was not cut.


    Qiao Mu''s heart skipped a beat and he held his phone close to his ear. At this moment, he heard some noise. After a while, he heard the sound of wind and leaves.


    Qiao Mu would never have thought that the one holding the phone and answering his call was a cadaver that was as black as coal!


    "What is it?" Yang Jie saw that Qiao Mu was sitting on the sofa and did not speak so she asked hurriedly.


    Qiao Mu hung up the phone and called back. This time, he was not answered.


    "To Zhou Yang?" Seeing Qiao Mu put down the phone with a serious expression, Yang Jie sat down beside him.


    "It''s really strange. Someone picked up the phone but didn''t say anything." said.


    "Maybe the signal is bad, or the phone is broken. Try calling someone else."


    Qiao Mu did as Yang Jie instructed and continuously called Fann Wenqiang. Sun Miao.


    "Old Fan and the others aren''t answering the phone?" Yang Jie asked.


    "Yes." Arbor felt more and more uneasy.


    "What about the other two students who went with them?"


    "I don''t have their number, but I''m guessing ¡­"


    "Stop estimating, I''ll call Miao Yue."


    Therefore, Yang Jie contacted the person in charge of the Qin Mu Club, the young girl Miao Yue, and asked for Faang Zexi and Lili''s cell phone numbers. She called her again, but no one answered.


    "Let''s analyze this... Their cell phone''s signal is normal, just that Zhou Yang''s call was connected, what''s going on? Why would they not pick up the phone, and not talk to me even after receiving the call? " Qiao Mu asked Yang Jie.


    "This is rather strange. Could it be ¡­ Did they lose their cell phones, or were they stolen? " Yang Jie speculated.


    Qiao Mu thought about it and replied, "For the time being, I can only explain it this way."


    "But... Zhou Yang, Old Fan and the others should not have encountered such a thing. " Yang Jie felt that it was strange.


    "Forget it, let''s not discuss it anymore." Qiao Mu stood up. "We''ll try contacting them tomorrow. If it''s still not possible, I might as well go to Flower Snake Village. Think about it, the Mr.Guo was somewhere that we don''t know about. There''s nothing we can do about it if something happened, but I know the general location that Zhou Yang and the others are at. If something happened to them, I would definitely be responsible! "


    Yang Jie was clear that Guo Yong''s matter had touched Qiao Mu, so she only lowered her head and did not think of stopping him.


    The night was getting deeper and deeper.


    Zhou Yang and the others had already stayed in the bus for more than three hours. Besides thirst and hunger, they also felt extremely cold as the temperature dropped. But the most important thing was that the movement outside the carriage did not stop. Apparently, the cadaver had not left yet.


    In addition, Faang Zexi''s injured leg had become swollen, some green spots had even begun to appear.


    Zhou Yang was depressed. He thought that as the vice president of the Qin Mu Club, the leader of this expedition team had actually caused this team to fall into such a predicament. If the remaining players were unlucky enough to die, the result would be a huge blow to Qiao Mu and the entire club.


    He suddenly felt that he had let down the trust Qiao Mu and Old Qin had for him and angrily punched the window next to him.


    Instantly, he saw that outside the window, there was an extremely ugly face that looked like it was made of moldy bread staring at him through the glass and a layer of night mist.


    Zhou Yang shouted in shock, he jumped up like a spring, and as the others saw the situation, they immediately asked what had happened.


    "Someone is standing outside the window!" Zhou Yang pointed. But that big ugly face was gone again.


    "Someone''s here? Is it the rescue team? " Chen Ya was filled with anticipation.


    "No, no, definitely not!" Zhou Yang quickly shook his head.


    Just then, Lili, who was sitting on the window seat, let out a scream as well, and left the window in a hurry.


    "There are two shadows ¡­" Two shadows passed by the window! " Lili was so anxious that she almost choked on her saliva.


    "Who''s outside?" Fann Wenqiang asked loudly.


    Chen Ya and Faang Zexi also sat on the carriage window and watched from the sidelines.


    "You guys be careful, those outside might not be people!" Zhou Yang reminded. Because he really couldn''t relate the face he had just seen to a normal human being.


    Just as they were hesitating, that extremely ugly face that Zhou Yang saw appeared outside the car window once again. It stuck closely to the window, as if it couldn''t feel the window''s glass, and desperately struggled to get in.


    At this point, everyone could clearly see what was going on. They were all dumbstruck.


    The face was not only fat and large, but also full of knobbly pustules, puffy cheeks, and jowls. The neck was completely invisible, and the eyes were strangely hollow.


    Fann Wenqiang tried his best to stay calm, and just as he was about to go closer to ask, the other windows suddenly revealed strange people. Some of them even had their hands on the windows. What made them alarmed was that the hands of this kind of weirdo were also fat and full of pustules. They even had sharp and long black nails like cadaver s.


    Seeing this bizarre scene, the five of them were shocked speechless. They quickly pulled away from the window and gathered in the middle of the car. Fann Wenqiang did not dare to ask, because the answer was obvious.


    These ugly freaks were definitely not humans!


    In the next moment, they felt the body of the bus gently sway. It turned out that the strange people outside the car were working together to push the bus forward.


    "What should we do?" Chen Ya asked nervously.


    "Don''t worry, they''re trying to force us to get off! As long as you stay in the car, you''ll be fine! " Zhou Yang said.


    "What if they break down the windows and come in?" Faang Zexi asked.


    Zhou Yang looked at the broken window on two sides that were no longer strong and was at a loss for words.


    "I don''t know, just leave it to fate!" Fann Wenqiang sighed.


    After the shaking continued for a while, the body of the car slowly came to a stop. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the weirdos should be the same as the cadaver, they shouldn''t have climbed in through the window.


    But now, other than the cadaver, they had another group of enemies.


    "Look!" Chen Ya suddenly pointed to the side of the window and said, "Do you guys feel that ¡­ "Do these two look like the old couple we saw in the picture of the old house?"


    Lili hurriedly looked over. As expected, there was a male and a female who were both old and eccentric. They had their hands out of the window and their eyeballs were rolling around without focus. She was stunned for a long time before she finally said, "Yes, my two neighbors, old man Pang and old lady Sun, sigh ¡­ "They ¡­"


    "Didn''t you say they didn''t die?" Faang Zexi asked.


    "That''s right!"


    "But they look like this. Could they be alive?"


    Not just Faang Zexi, even the others were puzzled. An answer appeared clearly in everyone''s minds.


    "From what I see, this villager is not missing, but mutated!" Chen Ya said.


    "I actually feel that... Corrosion is more appropriate to describe it as corrosive. " Zhou Yang suddenly thought of Flower Snake Village, which had a strange color, reeked of a stench, and was connected to the waters of the Great Serpent Island. It was possible that the villagers had been drinking the river water for a long time, which was the reason for this sudden change.


    The Great Snake Island was where Guo Yong''s highly rotten toxic water was, and the people of the village came over to see the mutated river near Small Snake Island. The two places weren''t too far apart, yet they were both rumored to be haunted and full of unknown mysteries. Just what kind of connection did they have?


    However at this critical moment, Zhou Yang had no time to think about it carefully, he only felt that if he was lucky enough to leave the Flower Snake Village, he would have to investigate a lot of things.


    Just as he was about to ask Lili if he had seen any other familiar faces, he saw that Lili was holding onto the car window with both of his hands, and was crying bitterly.


    Outside the window, there were two weirdos. They seemed to be an old couple like the other weirdos, with their bodies leaning on the window as their eyes rolled around.


    Lili was extremely hurt, she even started to cry, and for a moment, she forgot to be afraid.


    "Lili, what are you doing? Get away from the window!" Chen Ya anxiously reminded.


    "This is ¡­" My Dad... "My mom ¡­" Lili finally spoke the truth.

 C38

    The others were stunned.


    "You are not... Was saying that coming to the Flower Snake Village was merely a visit? Why are your parents here too? I thought... Some other relative. " Chen Ya was also very sad.


    "You must be from the village, right?" Fann Wenqiang asked.


    At this moment, Lili no longer wanted to hide it, so she nodded heavily and replied: "Yes, I have been living in the Flower Snake Village until I became an adult before I went out to work. If I continue to stay in Flower Snake Village, today ¡­ "


    In fact, Lili wanted to say that she would be like these strange people, but before she could finish, she started crying again.


    "That''s why you asked me to carry out this expedition mission. You also provided us with information and gave us a guide so that we could help you find your family, right?" Zhou Yang asked.


    Lili nodded heavily again.


    Then there was silence.


    Although Lili''s actions were reasonable, as for the other people''s positions, they had all been lured over to the Flower Snake Village by a Club member who harbored a special motive and pretended to be exploring. Furthermore, Lili had already known beforehand that there was a crisis that the Flower Snake Village was hiding, so Zhou Yang and the others were not very comfortable. Zhou Yang even thought that if it wasn''t for Lili''s repeated suggestions for him to organize groups to explore the Flower Snake Village, and if they were to be the first to discover the secret of the disappearance of the Flower Snake Village''s population, their reputation would have been greatly raised. With his own habits, he wouldn''t have taken such dangerous actions so easily.


    Of course, on the other hand, Zhou Yang was blaming himself for being too shortsighted and did not take Qiao Mu''s words to heart.


    "In other words, you''ve dragged us here to cover your backs!" Faang Zexi said in an obvious tone.


    "Forget it, forget it. Let''s think of a way to get out of here." Chen Ya advised.


    Zhou Yang felt that Chen Ya''s attitude was right, and now that she couldn''t even blame herself for it, it was more important for them to work together to get out of this predicament.


    "Do you know, I was thinking about two questions ¡­" After being silent for a while, Fann Wenqiang spoke first.


    Zhou Yang, Lili, Chen Ya all looked at Fann Wenqiang, other than Faang Zexi, his lower leg was hurting, his heart was also feeling depressed.


    "One problem is that these weirdos come out at night, but where are they hiding in the daytime? There is another problem. It is my guess that this bus has been moved to a different location. It is very possible that it was done by those weirdos. " Fann Wenqiang said.


    "How funny, who knows where they''re hiding, what does it have to do with us!" Faang Zexi who was seated furthest shouted loudly.


    Chen Ya ignored Faang Zexi and said: "Let''s not talk about where they are hiding, I have the same thoughts as Old Fan, this bus should have been carried here by them. Think about it, how many people would have a total Flower Snake Village? Furthermore, their strength is probably much greater than that of normal people. "


    "I agree." Zhou Yang expressed his opinion, "But I still don''t understand, what are their intentions for bringing this carriage here?"


    Everyone was at a loss again.


    Until late at night, the strange person outside the bus, the cadaver, had not left. Both sides remained in a stalemate.


    At this time, everyone was seated in their seats, quietly thinking and not speaking. Only Lili would occasionally look at her parents outside the window.


    Chen Ya looked at the time and realized that it was already two in the morning.


    At this time, Zhou Yang noticed the strange person that appeared from time to time outside the car window.


    He stood up and said, "I''ve found something."


    "What is it?" Fann Wenqiang and Chen Ya asked at the same time.


    Look ¡­" "The weirdos who hang around the outside of the car, they always show up and disappear. Why?


    "What''s so strange about that? They don''t lie on the window forever. They walk as well." Chen Ya replied.


    "It disappeared too often. Only when they were far away or hiding in the back of the car, we couldn''t see them. There were windows in all the other directions, weren''t there? "One more thing, I just noticed that their disappearance made me feel like they had suddenly drilled down." Zhou Yang said.


    "He went down?" Fann Wenqiang did not understand.


    "They lowered their bodies. By right, as long as they stood, we would be able to see them from the car window. This bus is not tall, and the body of the bus is still tilted."


    Zhou Yang''s analysis also made the others notice this strange phenomenon.


    "That''s right, why?" Faang Zexi''s mood had basically calmed down.


    Zhou Yang did not say anything further. He found a window with broken glass and carefully stuck his head out.


    Because he had been in the darkness for a long time, Zhou Yang''s eyes were well-suited. Thus, when he saw the scene outside, not only was he shocked, there were more weirdos around the bus than he had expected. Only, most of them were crawling on the ground like cadaver s, moving silently.


    This kind of crawling posture made it hard for people to imagine that they had once been humans.


    Zhou Yang immediately understood why these strange people would disappear. It was because crawling on the ground was their normal form.


    Just as Zhou Yang was in a daze, an ugly face suddenly appeared from the darkness. He extended his hands out to grab at him, but luckily Zhou Yang''s reaction was extremely fast, and he quickly dodged to the side, dodging the attack. At the same time, Zhou Yang vaguely saw something familiar on the ground not far away.


    "That bag..." Our big backpacks! " Zhou Yang shouted loudly while using his fingers.


    Soon after, everyone realized that right in front of the bus, the backpack that Faang Zexi was responsible for, which was carelessly lost by the cadaver attack, had once again appeared and was lying on the ground.


    The backpack wasn''t too far away from the bus, and because the cadaver and weirdos were all gathered near the bus, it made the area around the backpack seem relatively safe.


    "What do you mean?" Chen Ya asked.


    "What do you mean?" Fann Wenqiang asked.


    "Our bags are over there!" Chen Ya was very anxious.


    "I know, but what else can you do? Do you want to rush out and get it?" Fann Wenqiang asked.


    "But this is really a chance!" Chen Ya sat down, extremely conflicted.


    Just like Chen Ya, Zhou Yang was not willing to give up on this opportunity. He knew very well that if the bag returned to their hands, he would have everything he had including food, drinks, first aid kits, mini toolkits, and so on. He would also be able to communicate with the outside world, which greatly increased his chances of escaping.


    However, with so many cadaver and weirdos gathering outside the carriage, it would be life-threatening if they were to rush out.


    "Whatever, let''s go get it!" Faang Zexi said loudly.


    Amongst everyone present, Faang Zexi was the most anxious, because the injuries on his lower leg were growing more and more severe.


    "Do you want to die? "There are so many messy things out there!" Fann Wenqiang said in a stern voice.


    "That''s right ¡­" "I think we should wait until morning?" Lili suggested.


    "Sigh, you guys are so unlucky. Why don''t I go!" With that, Faang Zexi stood up.


    "Are you crazy?" Chen Ya reprimanded.


    "What are you going to say to an injured person? If you really want to go, then it has to be me." Zhou Yang said.


    "You went crazy with him?" Fann Wenqiang turned and asked Zhou Yang.


    "No, I think we can try." Zhou Yang said.


    "Yeah, I''m not crazy either!" Faang Zexi tried to defend himself, "To be honest, my calf pain right now is much better than before, it basically won''t affect my movements, then I''ll run faster than you guys, my body is better than yours. You guys help me lure those monsters away first, Teacher Fan, help me open the door.


    "Ah?" Am I hearing things? " Chen Ya looked at Faang Zexi''s lower leg.


    "Why would I lie to you? "What time is it? I still have the time to joke with you!" After Faang Zexi finished speaking, he jumped twice in place, proving that his injuries really did not affect his movements, and then added: "My leg is painful, but it''s just a surface injury, and it did not affect my muscles and bones, do you understand?"


    Zhou Yang thought for a moment and suddenly felt that this method was feasible.


    "Let''s help him seduce those monsters and let him run off to get his bag. Old Fan, stand guard at the door. What do you say?" Chen Ya asked.


    Lili wavered and said: "How about we try?"


    Fann Wenqiang nodded, he walked to the door and waited.


    "Lili, Chen Ya, let''s go to the back of the carriage to lure them over." Zhou Yang said.


    Lili and Chen Ya followed behind Zhou Yang and slowly moved towards the back of the carriage. Lili even turned to look at Faang Zexi and said: "Little brat, be careful.


    "Alright, it''s long-winded. It happened in the blink of an eye." Faang Zexi was ready to make a move, he was obviously full of confidence.


    Zhou Yang chose the last seat to the right of the row and directed Lili and to sit on the other side. Because the body of the car was tilted forward, the rear part of the car was the safest, thus Zhou Yang had seen through this point.


    "Okay, I''ll say one, two, three, then we''ll bang on the window and attract them over. By the way, don''t sit by the window and pat it, but keep a distance from the window and pat it and move your hands away. Am I clear enough? " Zhou Yang reminded his.


    Lili and Chen Ya nodded, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.


    Faang Zexi was already waiting by the side of the car door, as he prepared to unlock the door.


    "One, two, three, begin!"


    Zhou Yang was the first to slam the window of the carriage. He immediately retracted his body, and Lili and Chen Ya followed suit. Sure enough, the strange people outside the car were attracted by the commotion and came over.


    Zhou Yang and the other two slapped their hands a few more times. When it was time to attract more weirdos, Faang Zexi took a deep breath and said: "Help me open the door!"


    Fann Wenqiang unlocked the door, immediately rushing out to grab the bag.


    Fann Wenqiang closed the door again. Zhou Yang and the rest were watching Faang Zexi closely and patting the window hard. Lili and Chen Ya were so anxious that their hearts were about to jump out.


    Although Faang Zexi was not as quick as he said he was to be, and could obviously tell from the way he ran that his leg injury was going to affect him, he still smoothly grabbed his bag, put it back and rushed back.


    When he was almost close to the bus, and he was about to succeed, Fann Wenqiang had already opened the door, but unexpectedly, with a sudden movement of his backpack, a cadaver jumped out from it, and thrusted towards the back of Faang Zexi''s neck with both of his hands.


    Faang Zexi''s expression was strange as his eyes widened. After staggering a few steps, he weakly lied on the window as his throat was pierced by the cadaver''s nails. Just like Sun Miao, a large amount of blood gushed out.


    The scene was extremely shocking, the others were completely terrified, Lili even covered her eyes and did not dare to look again. Fann Wenqiang was still hoping to save Faang Zexi, but when he just got out of the car, he saw several strange people crawling to Faang Zexi''s side, firmly pulling at his legs, making him unable to move.


    Fann Wenqiang hesitated, then another cadaver jumped out from the door of the car. Fortunately, he was prepared, so he kicked the cadaver in front of it, sending it flying far away.


    "Old Fan, close the door!" Zhou Yang roared.


    Fann Wenqiang''s expression was painful, he could not bear to close the car door and lock it again.


    Immediately, the interior and exterior of the carriage became tranquil, only a few rustling sounds could be heard. Zhou Yang saw that Faang Zexi''s body was being dragged away by two strange people, he did not know where to go.


    Lili was already crying quietly, staring at the window in a daze.


    Zhou Yang, Fann Wenqiang, Chen Ya''s emotions were also extremely painful, especially Fann Wenqiang, for some reason, he had the urge to go out and fight to the death with those strange cadaver s.


    After a long period of silence, Chen Ya slowly said, "Two people are dead."


    When Chen Ya spoke, she looked at Zhou Yang. Zhou Yang could feel that Chen Ya''s words contained a tinge of reproach.


    "The reason they left their backpacks there was to lure us over and then ambush us." Zhou Yang finally thought of this.


    "Very smart, smarter than us." Lili said in a daze.


    "What should we do next?" Chen Ya asked.


    "The bags are definitely gone, and I suspect they''ve been emptied." Fann Wenqiang said.


    Zhou Yang was beyond angry, and kicked hard at the seat.


    "Let''s wait for daybreak and see if they leave after daybreak." Chen Ya sighed.


    After a while, the sky finally brightened.


    Although Zhou Yang and the other three were hungry and thirsty, they did not feel sleepy at all. Sun Miao''s and Faang Zexi''s death was like a nightmare to them.


    They were all slumped in their seats, unaware that it was already dawn. It was only until Zhou Yang reacted and said, "Ai, it''s morning. Hurry and take a look."


    The other three simultaneously stood up, went close to the window, and looked around.


    Outside, there was a thick white fog and the scent of early autumn. Because their line of sight was limited, they could not see very clearly. All they knew was that there was no sound.


    "It seems to be gone." Chen Ya said.


    "Hmm, no sound." Lili was listening carefully.


    Fann Wenqiang lightly tapped on the car window a few times, waited for a moment, and still did not make any sound.


    Zhou Yang thought: Maybe the chance has come.


    Think about it, in the past there had been many people who came to Flower Snake Village during the day, including police, journalists, rescue teams, and other adventurers. They never found anything, which meant that those strange people and cadaver were only moving at night.


    With this thought in mind, Zhou Yang asked: "How about we try it?"


    "Well, I think they''re gone." Chen Ya nodded.


    Thus, the four of them gathered at the entrance of the car, and Fann Wenqiang prepared to open the door.


    "After we leave, we won''t be in a hurry to run away. We can''t be in a mess, we have to walk together, do you understand?" Zhou Yang warned his one last time.


    "Yeah, what if they cause too much of a commotion and attract them over? That would be the end." Lili said.


    "Alright, we understand. Let''s go." Chen Ya said.


    Fann Wenqiang gently opened the door and took the lead to get off the bus, observing the surroundings. After confirming that there were no problems, he turned around and waved his hand.


    Chen Ya, Zhou Yang, and Lili followed closely behind. The four of them walked forward quietly, like thieves, and didn''t even dare to breathe loudly.

 C39

    As the mist was so thick today that it was difficult to determine directions, Zhou Yang vaguely remembered that the Flower Snake Village entrance should be behind them. He pointed with his finger, indicating them to go around the bus.


    Just as they were about to adjust their position, a pair of thick and fat hands suddenly stretched out from the mud ahead. Then, an extremely ugly male weirdo slowly emerged from the fog.


    Because the sky was already bright, and they were standing in front of Zhou Yang and the others, they could finally see clearly that these strange people had fat limbs, sharp fingernails, and their bodies were as round as their chins, giving off a feeling that they would break upon contact, and that they were covered from head to toe with disgusting pustules.


    He saw the strange man crawling towards them. His bulging belly was making a slight rustling sound as it rubbed against the ground. It was as if he was a toad.


    Zhou Yang and the rest were not only alarmed, they also had the urge to vomit. They stood in their original position, at a loss of what to do. Suddenly, a few more strange people climbed out of the fog. Some of them were wearing tattered clothes. It seemed like they had been waiting for a long time.


    "Let''s go, let''s go!" When the toad-like weirdos jumped up from the ground like springs and pounced towards them, Zhou Yang roared out, and grabbed Lili who was closest to him and anxiously ran back to the bus.


    Suddenly, some strange person suddenly grabbed Lili''s shoulders from an unknown place and spat out a long and thin black tongue, aiming straight at her neck. Fortunately, Zhou Yang''s reaction speed was fast, he kicked the weirdo''s stomach, forcing him back. Only then, did Lili manage to escape.


    But on the other side, Chen Ya let out a pitiful cry. The strange person''s tongue was wrapped around her neck, and then the strange person picked him up again and ran into the fog.


    "Chen Ya!" Seeing that Chen Ya was being carried away, Fann Wenqiang immediately chased after him. Zhou Yang took Lili and moved a few steps forward, only to see that Chen Ya''s neck was tightly locked by the two strange toads'' tongues, and her face, had been clawed into a bloody mess by them!


    Fann Wenqiang staggered, and was thoroughly shocked. At the same time, a strange person also stood up in front of him.


    Fann Wenqiang struggled as much as he could, throwing a heavy punch towards the strange person''s head. To his surprise, the strange person''s head was also soft, as if there was no skull in it.


    Although the strange person was forced back a few steps by Fann Wenqiang, three more strange people appeared. They first surrounded Fann Wenqiang, and then pounced on him together.


    Facing the four weirdos, Fann Wenqiang only lasted for a moment before he was subdued.


    Lili screamed repeatedly, she was panicking extremely, and just as she was about to go over, her remaining rationality pulled him back. He stopped and said shakily, "Back to the car, we can''t do anything about it!"


    With that, he did not wait for Lili''s reply and immediately pulled Lili to the bus. In the process, the two of them were almost caught by the strange person, but they were able to safely return to the bus.


    After locking the car door, Zhou Yang and Lili sat paralyzed on the chair, Zhou Yang''s face was gloomy, and Lili had completely broken down.


    In less than a day, they had witnessed the tragic deaths of four of their teammates. Now, only the two of them were left, and they were still in danger. It seemed that even during the day, the weirdos were still lurking somewhere beside the bus.


    In other words, they were now like prey in the enemy''s hands.


    "I would never have thought that this would happen to us." Zhou Yang shook his head and said.


    "Yes, like a nightmare." Lili was stunned.


    Zhou Yang thought of Guo Yong, he guessed that the current situation was probably similar to the situation he was in with Mr.Guo and Xiao Yi in the mountains.


    "Lili, what do you think? "What do those strange people look like?" After being silent for a while, Zhou Yang asked.


    "Like a toad." Lili blurted out.


    "Indeed." Zhou Yang thought, it was obvious, anyone who saw this strange person would think of them as toads.


    The toad, also known as the toad, spent most of its time crawling on all fours. Its eyes were large and swollen, and its surface was gnarled and gnarled.


    "But why? Why did the villagers become toads?" Lili asked urgently.


    Zhou Yang shook his head again.


    He knew that there were too many secrets waiting to be unearthed in the village, but he felt that his chances of survival were getting smaller and smaller.


    On the other hand, Qiao Mu had arrived at the office early in the morning and called Zhou Yang and the others, but no one answered.


    He was feeling even more fidgety, and faintly felt that, including Guo Yong and Xiao Yi, the entire matter was being led around by the nose. He was sure that he had missed a few points.


    "Zhou Yang and the others... Why would they go to the Flower Snake Village? " Qiao Mu stood by the window and mumbled.


    He understood Zhou Yang and Fann Wenqiang very well. The two of them liked to explore the wilderness purely, and not the type of place like Flower Snake Village.


    He remembered that Zhou Yang had mentioned to him that one of his students advocated this event.


    Qiao Mu opened the door and walked out of the office. He then walked to the personnel department, where there was a desk. A young girl was clearing the table.


    The girl was called Miao Yue, and was in charge of Qin Mu Club''s internal affairs, including personnel management, paperwork planning, and website maintenance.


    "Miao Yue, I want to ask you something. Whose idea was it first for Zhou Yang and the others to explore Flower Snake Village?"


    Miao Yue stopped what she was doing, and after thinking for a while, she said, "Mn ¡­ It''s Lili, right? "


    "I am not very familiar with this Lili. What is her name?"


    "I''m not sure."


    "You don''t have any registrations on your computer?"


    "Since she''s registered, she told us that her name was Lili. Zhou Yang didn''t mind if she said her name then, so I''ll just fill in Lili''s form."


    "This is against the rules. Have you seen her ID?"


    Miao Yue shook her head and said: "She just joined the club and is also a student. So this does not count as a job, and her identity card has never been used."


    "Oh ¡­" Can you find anything? "


    "Investigate what?"


    "Find out her real name."


    "This ¡­" I have to ask, not necessarily. " Miao Yue started to wonder why Qiao Mu suddenly started to care about Lili.


    "Well, after you''ve checked, tell me. It would be best if you had all the information on her. "Oh right, there''s one more thing ¡­" Qiao Mu paused, "Have you organized any background information regarding Flower Snake Village?"


    "Yes, but it''s not much. Old Fan said that Lili is quite knowledgeable about Flower Snake Village, so she didn''t need me to provide him with too much information."


    "Lili understands Flower Snake Village quite well ¡­" Qiao Mu repeated this sentence and secretly noted it down. Then, he asked: "Who discovered the disappearance of Flower Snake Village first?"


    "The news said that a local woman went to report the case. The police went to take a look and found that all the villagers had disappeared."


    "Isn''t that woman suspicious?"


    "It shouldn''t be. What ability does a woman have to make the entire village disappear?"


    Qiao Mu nodded and said: "True." Then he walked out of the personnel department.


    Returning to his office, Qiao Mu called his wife, Yang Jie''s cell phone.


    "Big brother, what''s the matter?" Yang Jie asked playfully.


    "There''s something I need your help with." I want to know where the Flower Snake Village that Zhou Yang and the others ran off to is managed by the police station. After you find out about it, contact the person in charge of that place and ask about the situation regarding the disappearance of the Flower Snake Village at that time. "


    "Sounds a bit troublesome ¡­" Alright, I''ll get my leader to help. It shouldn''t be a problem. Is Zhou Yang''s phone still not working? "


    "Well, I think something might have happened. "Right ¡­" When he replied, a guess gushed out from Qiao Mu''s heart. "Wait!"


    He immediately ran out of the office, came to the Personnel Department, and asked Miao Yue: "Do you have a picture of Lili?"


    "That''s true. In my computer, do you want to see it?" Miao Yue quickly blinked her eyes.


    "Find a way to send it to Yang Jie''s phone." With that, Qiao Mu returned to the office and said to Yang Jie: "Miao Yue will send you a picture later. It''s of the student called Lili who went with Zhou Yang this time, and if you show the picture to the local police station again, it must be the person in charge of the disappearance case at that time, understand?"


    "Oh ¡­" You sure have a lot of tricks up your sleeves, then what about Lili? "


    "Let''s talk about it when we get home. I''m hanging up now."


    Qiao Mu put down his cell phone. In his heart, he was mumbling one thing: Lili initiated this event on Flower Snake Village. Then what about Mr.Guo and Xiaoyi? If they went to Long Hate Island, would it also have something to do with Lili?


    Thinking of this, Qiao Mu once again thought of Xiaoyi, so he immediately dialed Chen Hui''s number.


    "Hey, Sis Chen, let me ask you, did Xiaoyi come back last night?" he asked bluntly.


    "Nope." On the other end of the phone, Chen Hui''s voice was icy cold.


    "Huh?"


    "He said that he would be gone for a few days. He might not be back for the next two days."


    "Okay, when he comes back, can you let him contact me?"


    "I know."


    After hanging up the phone, Qiao Mu and Old Qin were both worried for Guo Yi''s safety.


    He thought to himself: That kid... He didn''t know where he had run off to, and he didn''t care whether his mother was worried or not.


    Qiao Mu decided that when Guo Yi returned, he would discipline him properly on behalf of Guo Yong and share some of the burden on Chen Hui''s behalf.


    It was almost noon, just as Qiao Mu was about to eat the fast food that Miao Yue had ordered for him, Yang Jie called.


    "Have you found anything?" he asked impatiently.


    "Yes, there are some important findings!"


    "Hurry up and tell me."


    "I just got in touch with the Deputy Chief of the Ancient Tower Town Police Station through my leadership. At that time, he was still working on the case and he was responsible for Flower Snake Village''s disappearance. He told me that it was a woman who first went to their office to report the incident. She said that something had happened to the Flower Snake Village and that everyone was going crazy, telling him to go take a look. After that, probably a few days later, the woman came again. She said that there was some kind of zombie at Flower Snake Village, and even said that a portion of the people had gone missing. After hearing all that, he started to suspect that the woman was mentally ill, and still ignored him. After that, the woman seemed to have come a few more times, but was stopped outside the police station. When the news of the Flower Snake Village causing ghosts spread, there was also a rumor that all of the people in the Flower Snake Village had been taken care of, and it had been a long time since someone had last appeared, who usually came to the town from the Flower Snake Village, and only at that time did the local police feel that something was amiss. That''s why the deputy director took the initiative to contact the woman who reported the crime at the beginning, then brought a group of people to go with her ¡­ "


    "What''s the deputy director''s name?" Qiao Mu interrupted.


    "Surname Song, name Song Zhengming."


    "Alright, you can continue. What happened to them after that?"


    "Later on, when they arrived at Flower Snake Village, they discovered that all the people there had disappeared, even the corpses. Superintendent Song immediately reported it to his superior, expanding the scope of the search. But you should know that up until today, there had not been a single person from Flower Snake Village. The police and rescue team had also gone over there many times. In the end, because of the lack of evidence, they characterized the matter as a collective migration, with the reason that the water source in Flower Snake Village had been contaminated. Then, Bro, the important thing I want to say is, do you know who the woman who reported that year was? "


    "With your tone, you don''t even need to guess that it''s that Lili. Did you send the photo to Superintendent Song to see?"


    "That''s right! I showed it to him and he immediately recognized it. He also said that the woman was also from Flower Snake Village, but she worked in the provinces and didn''t return home for a long time. "


    "Did you ask the woman''s name?"


    "Yes, her original name was Zheng Huili, and she was indeed known as Lili."


    Qiao Mu was silent for a moment and then organized his thoughts.


    "I understand, that woman called Zheng Huili probably thought that finding the police would be useless, so she found us and helped her find her family. Do you think that''s what she was thinking?"


    "Therefore, in order to conceal her identity and protect it, she didn''t use her real name." Yang Jie also agreed with Qiao Mu''s guess.


    "That''s right, you''re very scheming huh ¡­" No wonder he always felt like he was being led by the nose.


    "What are you going to do?" Yang Jie asked.


    "Where is the police station? Ancient Town?" Is Ancient Tower Town close to the Flower Snake Village? "


    "Yes, Flower Snake Village belongs to Ancient Tower Town''s jurisdiction, do you want to go?"


    "I have to go, Zhou Yang and the others might be in trouble. "However, I want to meet Superintendent Song first and ask him in person. Help me contact him, I should be able to get there in the afternoon."


    "Alone?"


    "What?"


    "I ask, are you going to go to the Flower Snake Village alone?"


    "Yes, there''s only Miao Yue and I in the club now. There''s no one else."


    "Oh ¡­"


    "No need to say anymore, I''m leaving. Hurry up and contact me."


    After ending the call with Yang Jie, Qiao Mu took out the car keys and took out his multi-functional backpack from the safe. But just as he walked out of the office, she thought for a moment and then went back to open the bottom drawer of her desk. Inside was a folding military knife about 30 cm long, completely black.


    Qiao Mu carelessly gave it a try, then put the sabre into his backpack and walked out of the office.


    According to the address that Yang Jie provided, it was almost 3 in the afternoon. Qiao Mu arrived at the Ancient Tower''s police station and Song Zhengming was already waiting for him in his office.


    Qiao Mu saw that Song Zhengming was about 40 years old, with a square face and tall stature, it was obvious that he was a relatively capable person.


    After the two exchanged greetings, Song Zhengming asked directly, "I heard from Little Yang that you have clues regarding the disappearance of Flower Snake Village, right?"


    Qiao Mu knew that Song Zhengming was the person in charge of this case all those years ago. Thus, he told Song Zhengming everything about this time around, including the matter of Guo Yong.


    "I heard about your Mr.Guo being on the island. How many people are you going to go to the Flower Snake Village with, and how long is it before you can contact them?" Song Zhengming asked.

 C40

    "Right."


    "I can''t contact him, but it doesn''t mean he''s missing." Song Zhengming said as he smoked a cigarette. Qiao Mu waved his hand to indicate that he would not smoke.


    "I was just speculating, so I decided to go over and take a look."


    "Did Zheng Huili take you guys there?" Song Zhengming smiled and asked.


    "Yeah, I didn''t know at the beginning either. She probably joined our club to ask some experienced people to help her find her family in Flower Snake Village."


    "That woman ¡­" "I really ¡­" Song Zhengming showed an expression of not knowing whether to laugh or cry, "However, it''s because she no longer has any confidence in us, there were a few times in the past where he was directly kicked out of the main door by us."


    "She''s from the Flower Snake Village?"


    "Yes, her parents and big brother all live in the Flower Snake Village. I heard that there''s even a big sister. She died a few years ago."


    "Then she is the only survivor of Flower Snake Village?"


    "It should be... But you can''t say that they were survivors, and that group of villagers did not confirm their deaths. They might have really gone to other places, that much is unclear, and after Zheng Huili matured, he did not stay in the Flower Snake Village, but went out to work. "


    "Oh, does she have any other relatives?"


    "It seems that there are still two nieces that belong to her sister''s family. I don''t know where they live, and they aren''t in Flower Snake Village anyway."


    "Alright, then that''s about all I need to know. Sorry for troubling Superintendent Song. I need to go to the Flower Snake Village as soon as possible, your side ¡­ You can''t provide any help yet, can you? " As he spoke, Qiao Mu stood up.


    "Yeah, you have to make sure they''re missing before you can report them. What if they''re fine and can''t be reached, don''t you think? And they usually don''t have enough time to file a case unless there''s a special situation. "


    "Mm, alright. I''ll be leaving first. I''ll contact you again if there''s anything else." Qiao Mu knew that the police always followed the rules and regulations, so speaking any further would be useless.


    However, just as Qiao Mu moved, Song Zhengming said: "Wait ¡­. "How about this, I''ll accompany you."


    Qiao Mu was stunned and said: "Oh, alright."


    "After all, I was in charge of the previous case. It''s good for me to understand and understand." Song Zhengming said as he stood up.


    Qiao Mu nodded. He looked calm on the surface, but his heart was actually filled with gratitude.


    Just when the two of them went downstairs, Song Zhengming said: "Wait a moment, drive my car, you''re not familiar with the mountain roads here."


    Very quickly, Song Zhengming drove the police car over. Just as Qiao Mu was about to get on the car, someone patted his shoulder. He turned around and saw that it was Yang Jie.


    Yang Jie wore pink casual clothes and jeans and smiled at him.


    "Why are you here?" Qiao Mu was shocked.


    "I''m here to go with you. See, I''ve changed into my work clothes." Yang Jie said.


    "Did you come by taxi?"


    "No, I got our television station''s driver to help deliver it. He''s back now."


    Song Zhengming rolled down the window and asked: "Who is it?"


    "Oh, my wife was the one who contacted you from the beginning, Little Yang." Qiao Mu said awkwardly.


    "That''s right. Hello, Superintendent Song. Would you mind bringing me along?" Yang Jie laughed.


    Song Zhengming nodded his head, then replied: "Then get on, quickly."


    When the two of them got on the car, Yang Jie had even secretly made a face at Qiao Mu. "Qiao Mu was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. He knew that although Yang Jie was a lot younger than him, she wasn''t considered young either. However, sometimes she behaved like a child.


    However, he also understood that Yang Jie was worried, especially since she had learned from Guo Yong''s mistakes. Yang Jie always said that for someone like him, it was fortunate that he had her as her wife. Otherwise, she really wouldn''t know how she would live her life, it was actually the same for Yang Jie, the two of them couldn''t live without each other. Thinking of this, Qiao Mu''s heart felt warm.


    The police car drove on the winding mountain road. Qiao Mu found that the road in this area was indeed not easy to drive. No wonder the bus would overturn.


    "Did you find the person on the bus?" Qiao Mu suddenly remembered and asked.


    "No, the rescue team has been searching continuously for three days already, there isn''t even a shadow left." Song Zhengming replied. Of course he knew about the local accident.


    "Three days? Didn''t something happen the day before yesterday morning? " Yang Jie who was seated in the back row asked.


    "How could that be? The news was released the day before yesterday. Actually, it happened more than a week ago. At that time, the higher-ups pressured us, saying that we can temporarily put this matter under control."


    "Really? Then where did all the rescue teams go?" Yang Jie asked again.


    "Near the Flower Snake Village. Most of them are also from the countryside, so they are, after all, a little afraid of the village and do not want to be contaminated with bad luck. So when they come to the Flower Snake Village, they will only do a symbolic search, basically searching the area outside the village, and will definitely stop before it gets dark. "


    "Are they still looking for me today?" Yang Jie asked.


    "You can''t find it right? What are you looking for?"


    "What about the other 20 people?"


    "What can we do? Let''s deal with it as a missing person." "Sigh, if you want to open up, that''s how our country does things." Song Zhengming said as he frowned.


    Qiao Mu listened and thought: This Song Zhengming person is not bad, he will tell them everything.


    "At that time, when you were dealing with the Flower Snake Village case, was it the same?" Yang Jie asked curiously.


    "Not really, Flower Snake Village was a big case at that time, after all, there were at least a hundred people who went missing. "After we officially set up the case, we immediately reported it to the County Bureau. The County Bureau then reported it to the City Bureau, and in the end, the City Bureau sent people down to cooperate with us and investigate."


    The police car was already on a flat road, Song Zhengming suddenly interrupted their conversation and pointed ahead: "We''re almost there, in front."


    Qiao Mu stuck his head out of the window and looked around. Feeling that it was a little strange, he asked Song Zhengming: "Can the carriage go in?"


    "No way!" Song Zhengming shook his head, "Look at these small paths, there''s no way to open them."


    Qiao Mu then turned to ask Yang Jie: "If we can''t drive in, then where are Zhou Yang and the others'' cars?"


    "Yeah." Yang Jie was also aware of this problem.


    Just as he was pondering, Song Zhengming stopped the car by the side of the road and said: "We''re here."


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie immediately got off the car and observed their surroundings. They discovered that there were a lot of gravel on this area. There was a road filled with weeds next to the car, which should be the road to the Flower Snake Village.


    "This road is... "Eh, who was that person?" Song Zhengming slowly got off the carriage. Just as he was about to point the way, he realized that there was a shadow in the road ahead.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie had also noticed that there was a person walking towards them.


    When they got closer, they realized it was a 15-16 year old girl with short hair. She was wearing a black sportswear, clean white sneakers and a backpack. Judging by her clothing and temperament, she didn''t look like a local.


    The young girl silently came in front of them and stood there without moving. She first looked at them a few times, then also noticed the small road to Flower Snake Village. Neither of them spoke, and Qiao Mu suddenly felt very awkward.


    "Little girl, what are you doing here?" Song Zhengming asked first.


    "I''m looking for someone." The young girl replied.


    "Who are you looking for?"


    "It''s for my aunt."


    "Why is your aunt here? Do you know where we are?"


    "I know, this road leads to Flower Snake Village."


    "Are you going to go to the Flower Snake Village?" Yang Jie interrupted and asked.


    "Yes." The girl nodded.


    "Wait, what''s your aunt''s name?" For a moment, he felt strange.


    "Her name is ¡­" Zheng Huili. " The young girl seemed very unwilling to say it out loud.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie looked at each other, even Song Zhengming was stunned.


    "You are Zheng Huili''s ¡­" Song Zhengming now that she thought about it, Zheng Huili did indeed have two niece.


    "Yes, I''m related to her."


    "What''s your name?" Song Zhengming asked.


    "My name is Su Qin."


    "Su Qin..." Song Zhengming said this silently in his heart. Feeling that this name was unfamiliar, he asked again, "Where did you come from? How did you know your aunt went to the Flower Snake Village? "


    "She told me. She told me more than two weeks ago, and then I came in from Qingdao by train yesterday. I didn''t tell her at first, and when I got here I tried to call her, but she wouldn''t answer my phone. Later on, the elder sister who rented a house with my aunt told me that she and the people from the Adventure Club went to Flower Snake Village, and that''s why I came to find her today. "


    "That... Didn''t your aunt tell you about the Flower Snake Village? " Yang Jie asked.


    "Do you think a little girl like you should be here?" Song Zhengming also said.


    "I know." Su Qin said with certainty.


    "Know what?" Qiao Mu asked.


    "I already know about the Flower Snake Village ¡­" Su Qin said thoughtfully, and slowly, she said another sentence: "That night, I was the one who carried my sister and escaped from Flower Snake Village."


    Hearing that, Song Zhengming and the other two were extremely shocked, Song Zhengming immediately asked: "What, tell me clearly!"


    Following that, the three of them surrounded Su Qin.


    Thus, Su Qin briefly narrated her soul-stirring experience from over a year ago. At that time, she, her father, Su Hong and her sister Su Miao went back to visit the New Year in order to pay homage to their mother who had passed away and to visit Grandfather and Grandmother. In the end, they found out about the ceremony of soaking the corpse and the burial on the tree. Afterwards, the village chief led a large group of people, including her, his father Su Hong and her first uncle Zheng Gaang, to the Small Snake Island to look for the child. In the end, they found a huge rotten corpse that looked like an ancient general inside a cave. After the two sisters were sent back to the Flower Snake Village by the village by the fool Sun Erke, she discovered that all of the villagers had already started to mutate and there were even cadaver crawling all over the ground. She was extremely panicked, and could only leave the Flower Snake Village through the night with her sister on her back. After that, Zheng Huili immediately reported this to the police, but it was not accepted. In desperation, Zheng Huili first sent the two sisters to Qing Dao, where her grandparents took care of them, but concealed the incident that had befallen Su Hong at Flower Snake Village, saying that he had to travel for two years because of his work. After settling them down, Zheng Huili returned by herself and continued to think of ways to settle the matter of Flower Snake Village. After two months, Zheng Huili called and told her that everyone in the village had disappeared, and that the police couldn''t do anything about it. However, she noticed that there was a club that specialized in exploring the wilderness, and had already applied to become its student. Until recently, Zheng Huili had also called her to inform her that he was preparing to go to the Flower Snake Village for an adventure, and this time, she had to investigate until the truth was revealed. She wanted to go with him, but Zheng Huili didn''t allow her to, so she had sneakily come over.


    Hearing the entire story, Qiao Mu, Yang Jie, and Song Zhengming could hardly believe it. However, they could see that Su Qin''s tone and attitude was extremely sincere, not like she was lying.


    "Then your aunt ¡­" You came to report it at the time, why didn''t you inform us clearly? " Song Zhengming asked.


    "She told me she was afraid you wouldn''t believe her. And she did give you some information, but you still don''t believe her. "


    Song Zhengming scratched the tip of his nose and said, "At that time, your aunt was extremely nervous. I think no one would believe her if they saw her."


    Yang Jie still had a doubt in her heart, so she asked. "According to what you said, your father''s accident occurred at Small Snake Island, did your aunt bring people to Small Snake Island to look for him?"


    "Nope." Su Qin shook her head lightly, "Aunt said that you must never go to that island."


    "Superintendent Song, what about you guys? Have you investigated that island?" Yang Jie turned to look at Song Zhengming.


    "That island can''t be considered close to the Flower Snake Village. It still needs to be taken by boat. Zheng Huili didn''t even mention a single word of this to us, so how could we possibly think of going?" Song Zhengming said.


    "That''s true too." Yang Jie nodded.


    "Don''t say anymore. In that case, let''s enter the village together." he said anxiously. He believed in Su Qin''s words, so he guessed that Zhou Yang and the others were definitely in danger.


    "You really want to come with us?" Song Zhengming asked Su Qin at the end.


    "Yes, I''m going. I''ve made up my mind. You also need me to guide you. " Su Qin''s attitude was very resolute.


    Thus, these four people became another group that was rushing towards the Flower Snake Village, slowly advancing forward along a small path filled with wild flowers.


    When he got closer to the Flower Snake Village and saw those lifeless black tiled houses, Su Qin''s memories also exploded out like a flood. She remembered that night when she was carrying her sister Su Miao and attacked from the Flower Snake Village in a panic. She wanted to escape from the Flower Snake Village so badly. The night wind howled like a ghost, accompanied by the rumbling of thunder. It even started to rain heavily, and the ground was covered with crawling cadaver s, as well as a lot of mutated villagers. On the way out of the village, she accidentally fell and broke her forehead. This terrifying experience, was just like what happened yesterday. She couldn''t imagine how she actually had the courage to bring her little sister all the way out of the Flower Snake Village at that time.


    Along the way, Qiao Mu and Yang Jie finally saw those gingko trees that Su Qin mentioned. When they thought about how the villagers used medicine to soak their corpses, reduce their size, and then bury them in tree trunks, they felt a chill down their spines.


    "The first time I came here, I found this tree hole. I thought the mice were nibbling on it." Song Zhengming teased.


    When they stepped into the Flower Snake Village, Su Qin led them to the old room that her grandparents used to live in. Currently, there was no one in the room, which made Su Qin sigh with emotion.


    Outside the old house, Qiao Mu and Yang Jie started to shout out the names of Zhou Yang and the rest. They even searched through a few houses consecutively, but to no avail. Su Qin took them to the river bank to look for it, and explained the reason behind the stench in the village. Qiao Mu was extremely vigilant. She retrieved a blade from her backpack and held it in her hand. Song Zhengming saw it and said: "This is a Control Tool." Qiao Mu only smiled and did not answer.


    It was almost evening and the sky was about to turn dark. Qiao Mu did not know where Zhou Yang and the rest were, and neither did Zhou Yang and Zheng Huili know that Qiao Mu and the others had arrived at Flower Snake Village.

 C41

    Zhou Yang and Zheng Huili were still desperately guarding the inside of the bus, not moving an inch away. Both of them had yet to drink a single drop of water and had not eaten a single mouthful. The weather had been especially dry recently. Their lips were split, and they lacked water from their stomachs. Their condition was much worse than yesterday. They didn''t even have the strength to talk and could only sit there weakly in a daze.


    Faang Zexi, Chen Ya, Fann Wenqiang''s bodies were all gone, Zhou Yang guessed that they must have been dragged somewhere by the Toad Man.


    After their tragic deaths, Zheng Huili had told Zhou Yang about her identity and the reason why she joined the Qin Mu Club. She had also apologized deeply, although she understood that at this point, apologizing was completely useless, as her selfish methods had led to the sacrifice of several members of the club.


    Zhou Yang listened silently, he was not particularly surprised, and he did not blame Zheng Huili either. He only felt that the current situation was completely meaningless to discuss about this, and how to escape this predicament was the most important thing.


    Zheng Huili had also told him that when she heard from Su Qin that Flower Snake Village''s family had met with a calamity, her entire person was in complete chaos. When she sent the Su Qin sisters back to Qingdao, she received a call to know that her second brother, who was working outside, had suddenly died from a heart attack.


    After gradually calming down, she understood that she had to shoulder everything, but she needed help. She desperately wanted someone to help her, so she decided to join the Qin Mu Club.


    After hearing all these, Zhou Yang could not help but reveal a trace of sympathy to Zheng Huili, thinking that it was indeed not easy for her, and that it was not her fault that the current situation had occurred, nor was it what she had hoped for.


    The sky gradually darkened, and the two of them seemed to be shrouded in a layer of thick shadows. This was because, once the sky darkened, their vision and movements would be affected, causing them to be more vulnerable to mishaps. Furthermore, there were intermittent sounds of movement coming from outside the carriage. The two of them knew very well that the Toad Man and the cadaver had moved again.


    Looking through the carriage window, Zhou Yang realized that more and more Toad Man were gathering outside. They were all crawling on the ground. It seemed that tonight would be a lot harder than last night.


    When he felt helpless, he stepped on a looser floor, a spot at the back of the bus. He stopped and looked down. He pushed with his toes a few times. It was very loose. It must have been the wound caused when the bus came down the mountain.


    Previously, because they rarely came to the back of the car, they were basically sitting next to the middle seat, so they didn''t notice this place.


    "Lili, come take a look." Zhou Yang called out.


    When Zheng Huili walked closer, Zhou Yang heavily stomped his foot a few times. With a "ka" sound, a hole appeared in the ground, and with a pull of Zhou Yang''s hand, the hole grew larger, seemingly big enough for a person to crawl out.


    Zhou Yang stared at the hole as his brain continued to think. He felt that this was their chance to escape.


    However, the problem now was that there were enemies everywhere. If he went out recklessly, it would be no different from suicide.


    Moreover, the hole had already been opened. If the Toad Man was aware of it, it was very likely that they would enter through the hole.


    On the surface, it looked like he could neither advance nor retreat, but Zhou Yang had a feeling that there was a way.


    Thus, he stood up and looked around. At this time, he discovered a strange phenomenon, which was that all the Toad Man s were gathered at the right side of the bus.


    Zhou Yang immediately understood that Toad Man must have realized that the door was the only way for them to escape the bus, and not the windows. So he simply chose to block the door, and let his guard down on the other side.


    He looked more closely and saw that on the other side the ground was flat, the trees were sparse, there was nothing hidden, which meant that they could no longer be ambushed. In other words, as long as he sneaked out of this hole, he would have a good chance to get out of this predicament.


    Zhou Yang immediately said to Zheng Huili: "Lili, take a deep breath, let''s make a bet."


    "What''s wrong?" Zheng Huili still had not reacted.


    "Listen to me ¡­"


    Zhou Yang immediately explained his thoughts and strategy to Zheng Huili, and let him prepare himself mentally.


    Zheng Huili agreed with Zhou Yang''s analysis of the situation: "Alright, I''ll listen to you."


    Then, Zhou Yang carefully pulled open the hole on the floor and slowly peeked out to check the situation on the bus floor.


    While the sky was not completely dark, and there was still some light, Zhou Yang saw that the Toad Man s were all quite a distance away from the opening, and were only crawling near the door. There was a bunch of weeds right below the opening, so it shouldn''t cause too much commotion. No matter how you looked at it, this was a godsend opportunity.


    Zhou Yang turned around and said to Zheng Huili, "I''ll go down first, hurry up and get down."


    Zheng Huili nodded nervously.


    Zhou Yang did not hesitate, with one hand he opened the wound, with the other hand he supported himself on the floor, his legs went through the hole first, and then slowly dropped to the ground. When he was steady on the ground, he waved at Zheng Huili and moved an empty seat away.


    Zheng Huili did as she was told, and with Zhou Yang''s help, she successfully landed on the ground.


    The two of them were currently laying on top of a pile of weeds. Zhou Yang indicated them with his hand, and the two of them slowly crawled forward.


    They were about to leave the bottom of the bus, but when they reached a pile of weeds, they suddenly felt empty beneath them and fell to the ground. There was a hole in the ground beneath the car. However, the hole was covered by a pile of weeds!


    Accompanied by a wave of pain, the two of them fell into a hole in the ground. Fortunately, the soil inside the hole was very soft and moist, otherwise, the consequences would have been even worse.


    The cave was pitch black, and the faint light from the ceiling could be ignored.


    Zhou Yang didn''t have enough time to think, he held his chest tightly, because he was on his back with his breastbone injured. At this moment, he felt as if his chest was split open. On the other hand, Zheng Huili was fine, she slowly got up, and then went to support Zhou Yang.


    When Zhou Yang stood still and looked around, the two of them immediately realised that the cave seemed to be unusually wide, the hole above their heads was only about two meters away, but in this short two meters, they did not know how to go out.


    Zhou Yang randomly grabbed around and confirmed that this cave was very big and empty. Despair rose in his heart and Zheng Huili felt like dying even more.


    This was the feeling of going from heaven to hell.


    "What should we do?" Zheng Huili asked with her trembling voice.


    "It''s over ¡­" "We''re finished ¡­" Zhou Yang was not a person who would easily give up, but at the moment, he was truly helpless to do anything.


    Zheng Huili began to cry again, crying extremely sorrowfully.


    Zhou Yang made Zheng Huili sit on the ground with him, trying his best not to wander around. After all, the entrance of the cave was above them, at least there was a sign.


    Zhou Yang told himself that if he wanted to live, he had to remain calm, calm down and think of a way to do so.


    First of all, there was something wrong with this cave, it was definitely not dug by the villagers for no reason. Then he thought of the bus above the cave, he vaguely felt that the bus was moved to the entrance of the cave because of this cave. As for the ones carrying the buses, it was most likely those Toad Man s.


    "Lili, tell me ¡­ Where are the Toad Man s usually located at? " An idea suddenly popped up in Zhou Yang''s mind as he asked Zheng Huili urgently.


    Zheng Huili did not understand what Zhou Yang was thinking, and only said: "Where? I don''t know. "


    "Who could have dug this underground cave?"


    Zheng Huili was startled, and slowly realized the crux of the problem.


    Zhou Yang could imagine that near the Flower Snake Village, there must be many other caves like this, the lair that the Toad Man had dug and used to hide. No wonder all the villagers disappeared in such a short period of time. They actually dug holes in the ground and hid in them!


    But why have these burrows never been discovered? A new question surfaced in Zhou Yang''s mind.


    Zhou Yang looked up and saw the bus and a bunch of weeds. That''s right, the answer was obvious. Not only did the Toad Man dig a hole in the ground, he also found various ways to cover up the hole, protecting himself in all aspects. The bus had purposely shifted its position to hide the entrance to the hole that appeared so out of place in the grass.


    Zhou Yang immediately told Zheng Huili his conjecture, causing Zheng Huili to be extremely surprised.


    "Yeah, the Toad Man can crawl out of the cave, but we can''t." Zheng Huili said helplessly.


    Zheng Huili''s words reminded Zhou Yang, causing him to feel even more despair.


    Zhou Yang thought, before, when they were hiding in the bus, at least they had some hope, but now that they had reached the Toad Man''s lair, it was impossible for them to leave, and they had lost all their protection. On the contrary, Toad Man was free to enter and leave. The moment they discover that they were in the cave, they would die without a doubt.


    "You''re right, we have nothing else to do but wait for our deaths." Zhou Yang laughed bitterly.


    Just like that, the two of them sat side by side in the darkness, accepting their fate.


    After an unknown amount of time, the sky outside had already turned completely dark, and Zhou Yang gradually felt that something wasn''t right.


    At this moment, Zheng Huili was in a daze, her head resting on Zhou Yang''s shoulder.


    "Lili, wake up. Listen to me."


    Hearing Zhou Yang talking to her again, Zheng Huili slowly opened her eyes.


    "What?" Zheng Huili asked weakly.


    "Why didn''t any of the Toad Man come back?"


    "I don''t know." Maybe they don''t live in holes in the ground at night. "


    "It probably isn''t that simple."


    With that, Zhou Yang stood up again. Facing the pitch black darkness of the cave, he thought to himself: Since death is at hand, why not inspect this cave thoroughly?


    He vaguely felt that there seemed to be some kind of power preventing the Toad Man from entering the cave.


    He told Zheng Huili that Zheng Huili was willing to follow him.


    "Alright, follow behind me. We''ll take a look around." Zhou Yang said.


    After taking a few steps forward, Zhou Yang realized that the underground cave was even wider than he had imagined, and he even had a strange feeling that a lot of eyes were watching them from the darkness.


    The two of them were like blind people as they slowly walked forward. Because it was too dark, they could not tell the way back. All they knew was that they seemed to have walked into a long passageway that seemed endless, allowing them to walk forever.


    Zhou Yang''s strange feeling became more intense, and some light sounds were even entering his ears. He was sure that there was something strange inside the cave, not the Toad Man nor the cadaver.


    The two of them walked for a while. First, they smelt a terrible stench, and then, Zhou Yang''s knee bumped lightly into a soft spot. He made Zheng Huili stop, and after touching it for a moment, he suddenly took a few steps back in fear.


    "What is it?" Zheng Huili asked.


    "Don''t... "Don''t move ¡­" Zhou Yang steadied Zheng Huili, gathered his courage, and once again stretched out his hand, probing forward. This time, he forcefully endured his fear, and finally found the answer.


    "A corpse!" Zhou Yang said loudly, "There is a dead body in front of us, I can feel his face, wait... "No, no, no. There are quite a few corpses!"


    In the darkness, Zhou Yang touched many other faces, including his hands, clothes, shoes, bags, jewelry and other items. He felt that there were a lot of bodies, and that they should be stacked together.


    Zheng Huili touched all the corpses, and was so scared that her whole body started to tremble.


    Just then, Zhou Yang found something in a dead body''s pocket. He immediately took it out and realised it was a lighter.


    The long awaited fire ignited in Zhou Yang''s hands, but at the moment Zhou Yang ignited the lighter, the corpses also appeared in front of them. There were at least 10 of them, all of them laid out in a mess, each of their corpses had already seriously rotted away, and the state of their deaths was a sight to behold.


    However, the most unusual thing about these corpses was that they were covered with needle-like wounds. Every corpse was present, and there were countless of them.


    Zheng Huili felt a strong wave of disgust, and retched a few times. If she did not have an empty stomach, she could spit out everything she ate that day.


    Zhou Yang tried his best to stay calm, finding a few branches from the place and tearing some clothes from the corpse to wrap them up, preparing to make a fire. After the torch was made, the originally dark area instantly became bright. Zhou Yang then saw that they were in a circular stone room, with stone walls on both sides. The corpse in front of them was piled up like a mountain, and many corpses were piled up high. As for the strange needle-like wound on the corpse, he had no idea what kind of weapon it was made of.


    He looked at the pile of corpses and suddenly thought of the bus above, and an answer came to him.


    "Lili, do you think these people are the passengers of the bus?"


    Zheng Huili thought for a few seconds, then nodded and said: "It''s possible, definitely possible!"


    "Yeah, there are a total of 20 people missing from the bus. I think the number of people here is pretty close." Zhou Yang said.


    "Un, but why are they here? Furthermore, based on their degree of decay, they should have been dead for a long time, right? Who do you think did it? "


    "I guess it''s those Toad Man s outside, or maybe... "Something else."


    When Zhou Yang mentioned something else, Zheng Huili was not only stunned, she was just about to ask, but Zhou Yang turned and said: "Let''s go, they temporarily have nothing to do with us, now that we have the torch, we can think of a way to get out of here."


    He followed the two as they walked out of the stone room. It was also because of the torch, that Zhou Yang felt that the route inside the cave was not complicated, there was only a wide path, and should be leading directly to the cave entrance.


    Just as they were about to approach the cave entrance and saw the glimmer of light, Zhou Yang was extremely uneasy in his heart. He was certain that something was moving above their heads, and he had also heard some noise.


    "What is that sound?" Zheng Huili also sensed it and stopped in her tracks.


    Zhou Yang hurriedly used the torch to shine on them, but this light caused their hair to stand on end. Countless eyes appeared above the ceiling of the cave, staring at them menacingly. In an instant, the crowd of eyes began to move and blocked their path.


    Zhou Yang quickly saw through them and realised that they were not some eyes but many round, bulbous-looking, strange insects. Furthermore, on each of these strange insects, there was a thin black thorn, which looked like a sharp blade. Zhou Yang immediately thought of the corpses that were covered with pinhole like wounds, and there was no doubt that the wounds were caused by these strange insects!


    The two of them stood in their original positions in panic, while the Eyeball Monster took the chance to slowly surround them. Zhou Yang immediately felt that something was wrong and quickly pulled on Zheng Huili''s hand and shouted, "Let''s go!"

 C42

    The two of them quickly retreated, turned around, and ran towards the stone room. Almost at the same time, the strange insects stirred, and if the two of them were to hesitate any longer, they would be completely surrounded.


    However, the stone room in front of them was also a dead end, and no matter what, they would not be able to escape from this hole. Zhou Yang felt that they were currently in a life or death struggle. After a while, they returned to the pile of corpses. Behind them, the weirdos were still chasing them, looking like countless stars in the night sky.


    Zhou Yang then shone his torch everywhere again, confirming that this was a dead end, they were forced to the edge of the cliff. Looking at the strange insects that were chasing him, Zhou Yang clenched his teeth and pulled Zheng Huili along to the corpses. Zhou Yang did not know why he did this, maybe it was some kind of subconscious action.


    When the two of them stood on top of the carrion-like pile of corpses, the strange insects just happened to be in front of them. Zhou Yang was already prepared to give up, but he pointed at a certain spot on the pile of corpses and said, "Look ¡­ "Look ¡­" Zhou Yang looked over quickly and saw that there was a gap between the corpses. It could even be considered a "corpse pit".


    Zhou Yang did not have time to think about it, and immediately pulled Zheng Huili along with him and jumped into the corpse pit, and threw the torch towards the strange insects.


    Zhou Yang''s method was very effective, because no matter how many strange insects there were, they would not be able to break through the two corpses.


    The two of them hid inside the corpse pit, closely following the rotting corpses that were riddled with holes. They were so nervous that they didn''t even dare to breathe. They could feel the movement above them, like slithering snakes that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.


    Both of them knew that even though they had escaped this calamity, the situation was still not good. The corpse pit only delayed them for a little while, and in the end, it was impossible to hide forever. Besides, the inside of the pit was small, hot, humid, and surrounded by various rotten corpses. Just the smell of the corpses'' stench was enough to make one wish they were dead.


    Zhou Yang guessed that those eyes were probably the result of the Flower Snake Village being corroded, but it seemed like they could not move the corpses, as it was obvious that the Toad Man had piled up the corpses. The more likely scenario was that Toad Man had built this underground cave, and even brought in a large amount of corpses, but they were all taken over by the Eyeball Monster Worms. As a result, Toad Man was afraid of the underground cave, and did not dare enter the cave, thus this cave became the nest of the Eyeball Monster Worms.


    Zhou Yang sighed in his heart, he was truly unable to judge how many corrosive monsters were still roaming around outside. In a daze, he remembered Qiao Mu, and if they were unable to contact him, Qiao Mu would definitely rush over to the Flower Snake Village personally. What was waiting for Qiao Mu for?


    On the other hand, after Qiao Mu, Yang Jie, Song Zhengming, and Su Qin searched by the river, they returned to the center of the Flower Snake Village. In this period of time, they had seen the stone bridge that led to the lakeside. Qiao Mu thought that the most important task now was to find Zhou Yang and the others, and then think of a way to go to Small Snake Island.


    At this time of the night, Qiao Mu took out two powerful light hand torches from his backpack. He and Song Zhengming each held one of them in charge of lighting up.


    Unknowingly, they arrived in front of a house whose walls had been painted black. The house seemed especially depressing. When they looked through the window, they could see several blood-red pieces of clothing.


    "Some of them are hanging in here... Is it a shroud? " Yang Jie looked around and asked.


    "Yes, it''s a birthday shop." Su Qin remembered, this was the longevity clothing store that Sun Erke had stolen from back then. The birthday shop owner was very cunning and wretched. It was him who had rowed away the wooden boat on his own accord at Small Snake Island.


    "Let''s go in and take a look." Song Zhengming suggested.


    Thus, the four of them entered the birthday shop.


    In fact, it was Su Qin''s first time coming here. She realized that the interior of the shop was very crowded and there was even a large table.


    Song Zhengming walked in front of the row of birthday clothes and casually shone his light on it. He shook his head and said: "Nothing special.


    "No, after the boss ran away, I never saw him again." Su Qin said.


    "Oh ¡­" And that fool, he stole the birthday suit just for a few children to wear? "


    "That''s right. He''s called Egg. He''s a good person. My sister and I were saved by him." What Su Qin said was sincere, she had indeed always been very grateful to Sun Erke, and wanted to see him again. However, the sudden change in Flower Snake Village made it difficult for her to figure out Sun Erke''s fate.


    What was the goose egg doing now? Is he all right? Su Qin thought.


    "Let''s go." Song Zhengming moved his feet and was about to leave, but suddenly, Su Qin saw the blood colored longevity cloth behind Song Zhengming move slightly, she suspected that she was seeing things, and took a few steps forward, only to realize that there was a white cloth covering the head of the red longevity cloth, and something seemed to be trembling behind the white cloth.


    "What are you looking at?" Song Zhengming thought that Su Qin was looking at him and had a face full of astonishment.


    "Behind you ¡­" Su Qin pointed with her finger, but before she could finish speaking, the white cloth was suddenly lifted, revealing a huge, extremely ugly, fat, and strange face full of pimples. On the head of the strange face, was a dark gray Duke Ji hat.


    Just as Su Qin wanted to shout out, she saw the strange person take a step forward. Song Zhengming, as well as Qiao Mu and Yang Jie, who were standing in front of the door, felt something strange. Song Zhengming immediately turned his head, only to see that the strange person had grabbed her neck, and a thin and long black tongue was spitting out from the strange person''s mouth.


    Yang Jie''s face changed, she was so shocked that she started shouting, but Su Qin had already prepared herself mentally. She saw that Song Zhengming was being controlled by the strange person, so she grabbed a teapot and threw it towards the strange person''s head.


    At the same time, Song Zhengming struggled desperately. When the strange person''s head was hit by the teapot, the strange person relaxed a little and retracted his tongue. Song Zhengming found an opening and turned his head to kick at the weirdo''s stomach. Unexpectedly, the weirdo''s stomach was as flexible as a balloon, and Song Zhengming himself bumped into the table.


    The weirdo adjusted his posture, baring his fangs and brandishing his claws at him again, but the target this time was Su Qin. Su Qin retreated in fright, and just as the strange person leaped up, stabbed his wooden sword towards the back of the strange person''s neck, and a ball of black and green blood spurted out like a spring, almost splashing onto his face.


    After a few breaths of time, the four looked at the strange man and saw that he had collapsed on the ground, on the verge of death.


    "What is this?" Song Zhengming gasped for breath and asked.


    Yang Jie noticed that there was a wound near Song Zhengming''s collarbone. It should have been torn when he was fighting with the strange person earlier.


    "I''m not too sure either. This monster looks like a toad. Little sister, have you seen it before?" Qiao Mu asked Su Qin.


    Su Qin shook her head. She indeed did not know about the people who had mutated into Toad Man, but the dark gray Chieftain hat on Toad Man''s head looked a little familiar to her.


    "It''s the suspender shop owner!"


    Su Qin finally remembered that the longevity clothing store owner who was afraid of death was wearing this hat.


    "The suspense shop owner ¡­" Is that all? " Yang Jie pointed to Toad Man on the ground and asked in disbelief.


    "No!" At that time, he was still a very skinny old man, but now ¡­ Changed. I also guessed by his hat and his shroud. " Su Qin replied.


    Su Qin thought again: It looks like what this old man is concerned about is his birthday suit, she already turned into a monster and is still wearing it.


    The four of them came out of the suspense shop, still fearful of what had just happened. At this time, the wound on Song Zhengming''s collarbone was slowly bleeding. Su Qin took out a sterile towel and helped him wipe it again and again.


    "Looks like there''s a big problem with this village." Song Zhengming sighed.


    Yang Jie stood in front of the door and took a few pictures of the Toad Man with his phone, then turned his head and said: "I think... The villagers should have all mutated after this sister left. "Oh yeah, little sister, didn''t you say that when you escaped, the villagers were already acting a little strange?"


    "Hm!" They like to scratch around with their fingernails, and they all turn into... "Yes, just like this frog monster!" Su Qin said.


    "Was it because of the corrosion from the general''s corpse on the Small Snake Island?" Qiao Mu asked.


    "I guess so." Su Qin said.


    "No matter what, this is bound to be explosive news." Yang Jie muttered to herself.


    Qiao Mu was increasingly worried about the safety of Zhou Yang and the rest. He felt that Zhou Yang and the rest might have met with something even more serious than what he had imagined.


    "Let''s go, we have to find Zhou Yang and the others quickly." Qiao Mu moved, ready to leave.


    However, at this time, sounds of movement suddenly came from all around them. Following that, under the light of the electric light, several Toad Man appeared from the darkness and crawled towards them.


    The four men''s faces changed as they retreated. Qiao Mu held his sabre as he stood at the very front. When the Toad Man s gradually approached, Qiao Mu turned around and saw a house. In front of the house was a vegetable patch separated by a fence, and in the middle was a very narrow stone path that led directly to the door. There was another door at the back of the house. If he could escape into the house and escape through the back door, he should be able to escape Toad Man.


    Having made up his mind, Qiao Mu looked at the house and said softly, "You two, run with me. Don''t look back."


    Without waiting for the other three to respond, Qiao Mu immediately shouted "Run!" and ran towards the small path in front of the house. The other three understood what he meant and followed closely behind him. Toad Man was immediately agitated, trying his best to crawl and catch up, but he was blocked by a fence. After struggling for a long time, he finally managed to push down the fence.


    After getting rid of the Toad Man, they rushed all the way to the river side. Qiao Mu thought that the Toad Man would no longer chase them, so he signalled for them to stop and said: "It seems that night comes and all kinds of monsters will come out. Superintendent Song, how about we request for help? Something must have happened to some of us, and you''re hurt. "


    Qiao Mu''s words reminded Song Zhengming, who quickly took out his phone and made a call to the police station.


    "Hello, is this Little Zhou? I, Deputy Director Song! " Song Zhengming''s tone was extremely urgent.


    "Oh, Superintendent Song, what''s the matter?" The officer called Little Zhou replied.


    I''m in the Flower Snake Village right now, and I''m with a few friends. We''re in big trouble right now, so bring a group of people over right now, the more the better. Also, go to the gun room, and bring those guys along!


    "What are you doing, Superintendent Song? Are you going to fight? Is it that serious? " Little Zhou asked, puzzled.


    "It''s more serious than you think! Oh yeah, other than bringing some people over, you can contact Superintendent Zhang next, and have him inform our superiors that we are in danger at Flower Snake Village, and ask for more people to support us.


    "Understood, understood. What exactly is going on? "


    "You''ll know once you come over. I can''t explain it to you on the phone, hurry!"


    After he finished speaking, Song Zhengming hung up the phone and then asked Qiao Mu: "What do we do now, should we wait for them or move first?"


    "Let''s wait for someone. It''s night time now, and those strange toads seem to have all moved out again. We can''t do anything about them." "What do you think, brother?" Yang Jie answered for Qiao Mu.


    Qiao Mu did not speak and seemed to hesitate.


    "How long until your men arrive?" Qiao Mu asked Song Zhengming.


    "They should be fast. They are familiar with the roads here."


    "Alright, then we''ll try our best to wait."


    Thus, they found a relatively empty place by the river. Qiao Mu and Su Qin took some food and water from their bags, turned off the light, and sat down to rest.


    Just when everything was at peace, Su Qin heard a sound coming from the river, and then, the other three also noticed it. Qiao Mu stood up and turned on the powerful light flashlight.


    Accompanying the burst of water, Qiao Mu''s flashlight suddenly shone upon two huge lumps of fat. After a careful look, it turned out to be two Toad Man s that were slowly climbing out of the water!


    The Toad Man can swim? This question surfaced in everyone''s minds.


    "Let''s go, let''s run!" Seeing the two Toad Man s crawling over like devils and demons, Qiao Mu made a prompt decision and quickly escaped.


    "This way!" Song Zhengming felt that it was safer by the river, so he pointed ahead.


    Toad Man''s crawling speed was not as fast as a normal person''s running speed in the end, so in just a short moment, they had left Toad Man far behind.


    But now, Song Zhengming''s wounds were continuously bleeding, and because of the constant running, he was extremely tired. After running for a distance, Song Zhengming was out of breath, his hand covering his wound, and he sat down on the ground.


    "Ai ¡­" After sitting in the office for so long, his body ¡­ "I can''t do it anymore!" Song Zhengming''s face was pale as he ridiculed himself.


    Qiao Mu saw that there was something wrong with Song Zhengming, he guessed that there was a high chance that the wound had broken out, but there were too many bushes and weeds around, furthermore, it was too dangerous to even jump out of the river.


    "Why don''t we let Superintendent Song rest for a bit, then we can leave the village and meet up with our comrades at the police station. What do you say?" Yang Jie anxiously asked Qiao Mu.


    Qiao Mu nodded and said: "Alright, let''s do it."


    "I''m so sorry, I''ve implicated you in the search. Your friends are definitely in danger. When our people arrive, we''ll have a fight with those monsters tonight!" Song Zhengming said apologetically.


    "Uncle Song, stop talking. The moment you speak, even more blood appears to flow out of your wounds. Let me wipe it away for you ¡­"


    Who knew that right after Su Qin took out a new disinfectant towel, and was about to wipe her wounds, a small black thing suddenly jumped out from the bushes at the side, and firmly grabbed onto Song Zhengming''s collar.


    Yang Jie was shocked. She thought it was some kind of small animal but when she focused her eyes, she saw that it was a humanoid monster that was as thin as firewood.


    In an instant, the little monster''s two small hands fiercely stabbed into Song Zhengming''s throat. Song Zhengming immediately let out a sorrowful cry, causing Qiao Mu, Yang Jie, and Su Qin to be completely stunned.


    The little monster was still making strange noises, Song Zhengming fell to the ground, with blood all over the place.


    Su Qin had already recognized that this was a cadaver. She would never forget the scene of the cadaver crawling all over the ground that night. Seeing Song Zhengming''s throat being pierced, he was sure that he would not live.


    "It''s the cadaver!" Su Qin shouted loudly.


    After the cadaver finished off Song Zhengming, it immediately pointed its spear at the other three. When the cadaver crawled towards them, Qiao Mu aimed at the target, raised his blade, and in the blink of an eye, chopped the cadaver into two. Yang Jie was still worried and smashed the rock a few times.

 C43

    Although they had settled the cadaver, Song Zhengming''s death was extremely tragic, and the three of them could not bear to watch. Just as he was unsure of what to do, a noise came from the nearby trees. In succession, a few more cadaver crawled out from various places.


    They fled immediately. Before escaping, Su Qin picked up the powerful light flashlight that she had previously used. In the end, under the combined efforts of the Toad Man and the cadaver, they were forced to come to the stone bridge. This time, Qiao Mu no longer hesitated and brought Yang Jie over the broken rocks at the side of the stone bridge, heading towards the lakeside.


    By the time they reached the lake, they were exhausted and had to slow down. Qiao Mu discovered that the trees at the lakeside were rather lush. There were even a few towering trees that made one''s heart palpitate. If the cadaver were to ambush here, it would be impossible to guard against them.


    In addition, the stench coming from the lakeside was even stronger than that of Flower Snake Village. It was this rotten green lake that changed everything in the Flower Snake Village.


    At this time, the three of them astonishingly saw a shabby thatched cottage in the depths of the forest.


    Behind the thatched hut, there were a few paddy fields, and a medium-sized orchard with several orange trees growing in it. A corner of the garden was separated by a small wooden fence. Five chickens were quietly pecking at the food, giving off a lively feeling.


    Apparently, someone lived in this thatched cottage. Unlike the other houses in the village, the roof of this thatched cottage was not made of black bricks, giving off a fresh and refined feeling.


    The three of them had a very good impression of this thatched cottage. When they saw that the door was ajar, they walked in.


    The furnishings inside the room were relatively simple. Other than the bedding, a small square table, two wooden stools and a stove in the corner, there was no other furniture. A fire had been lit on the ground in the middle, indicating that the owner of the thatched cottage might have been there just now.


    "Does anyone live in this house?" Yang Jie asked curiously.


    "Definitely." said Arbor, observing.


    "Little sister, didn''t you say that the villagers all avoid the people on the other side of the river?" Little sister, didn''t you say that the villagers all avoid the people on the other side? Yang Jie asked Su Qin.


    "I don''t know. That''s what my family said." Su Qin replied.


    "Have you been here before?" Yang Jie asked again.


    "Nope." Su Qin shook her head.


    After a while, Qiao Mu sat down and said: "Let''s rest for a while and not go anywhere. Let''s wait and see if anyone comes back."


    Yang Jie and Su Qin agreed. The three surrounded the fire and sat on a bench. They all had their own thoughts, but no one said anything.


    After a moment of silence, Qiao Mu raised his head and asked Su Qin: "Little sister, do you still have anything else to say?"


    Su Qin could not help but be startled, and looked at Qiao Mu.


    "Yeah, you really have nothing else to say to us?" Yang Jie asked Su Qin.


    Actually, Qiao Mu and Yang Jie both had a faint feeling that Su Qin was hiding something, and that it was something extremely important.


    Su Qin appeared to be panicking, her expression had already explained the situation.


    "Can you talk about it now? For example, when your mother died, I already felt that something was amiss. Why didn''t she become a cadaver like the other villagers? And Small Snake Island, what happened to your father and those people after that? " he asked cautiously.


    Su Qin hesitated for a while, before she slowly said, "Mm, you guessed right. Before this trip, my aunt did indeed tell me some things, about my parents."


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie sat up at the same time.


    "My aunt told me that the reason why mother didn''t follow the village rules and soak in the water to become a cadaver was because when mother died, she was not at Flower Snake Village at all." Su Qin said.


    "Oh? "Then where is she?" Yang Jie asked.


    "Small Snake Island!"


    "Huh?" Yang Jie could not help but be shocked, "Your mother also went to the Small Snake Island?"


    "Mn, my aunt also told me that long ago, mother already had a premonition that these things would happen today. She even knew that the source of the evil was from the Small Snake Island, so after she explained the situation to my aunt, she went to the Small Snake Island alone ¡­"


    "Wait! Why am I a little confused listening to this! " "How did your mother know?"


    "At the beginning, my father and I were also kept in the dark. It was my aunt who told me about it. It was about my mother''s life."


    "Your mother''s birth? "What is her background?" Yang Jie asked doubtfully.


    "My aunt said that my mother had been a life form master since she was young, and that she had the ability to foresee the future and see the past. When she was eight years old, she had already foreseen this disaster, but she only told my aunt that she wanted her aunt to keep it a secret. Later, when she married my father and gave birth to my sister and me, my aunt told me that my mother had foreseen all this long ago.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie would never have thought that Zheng Huili''s elder sister, Zheng Huiling, was actually a super power user with the ability of prediction. In the past, Qiao Mu always scoffed at these so-called superpowers, not caring at all. On the contrary, it was Yang Jie who had done some reports that were related to the supernatural.


    "What you said ¡­" "Is it reliable?" Qiao Mu asked doubtfully.


    "My aunt told me all of this before she went to the Flower Snake Village. She had originally planned to never tell me, she was afraid that I would live in the shadows for a long time, but this time she''s worried that she won''t be able to come back, so she definitely won''t lie to me."


    "Alright, we trust you. Why would your mother want to go to the Small Snake Island?" Yang Jie could not help but ask.


    "Why? "Because ¡­" At this point, Su Qin suddenly became sad, "Mom wants to make a deal with the Great Demon King."


    "A deal?" Yang Jie was shocked.


    "Yes, my mother knows very well that our entire family, including my father, me, and my sister, have all drank the same type of water that other villagers have. They have already been infected by the poison, but on the other hand, my mother also knows that the corpses are willing ¡­"


    "Wait!" "What is the will of the Corrupt Corpse?" Qiao Mu asked anxiously.


    "Before my mother died, she told my aunt that the general like rotting corpse was about to awaken, and that its intention was to find a person who could inherit his will. This person ¡­ It''s my father! " Su Qin''s expression was painful.


    Facing Su Qin''s unexpected answers, Qiao Mu and Yang Jie looked at each other.


    "Your father? Why? Then... "That transaction ¡­" Yang Jie seemed to have realized something.


    "My aunt said that when my mother first saw the rotting corpse, she had already seen through its strong desire. It wanted to find a calm and collected person with the temperament of a leader, but the people in Flower Snake Village were all ordinary villagers who couldn''t meet its requirements. So... My mom''s deal with the Corrupt Corpse... is for my father to go to Small Snake Island and inherit the will of the rotting corpse, in exchange for this, the rotting corpse will spare my sister and me. That is to say, my father''s life, in exchange for our sisters'' lives! "


    The enormous amount of information revealed by Su Qin had simply caught Qiao Mu, Yang Jie, off guard.


    "I understand. According to what you said, your sister and your father went back to the village at that time, and then went to the Small Snake Island by boat. Was it something your mother planned?" Yang Jie asked.


    Su Qin thought for a while and said, "Maybe you can say that. Before mother went to Small Snake Island, she had indeed instructed aunt to think of a way to arrange for my father''s return to Flower Snake Village a few years later on New Year''s Eve. At that time, my aunt joined up with my grandparents and called us to come back to the village for the new year. Only then did we consider coming back. But my aunt also said that my grandparents didn''t know the inside story, and she only did what my mother told her to do. It was obvious that my mother had anticipated what would happen next. She knew that the village would lose children, she knew that Miao would be taken away, she knew that Father and I would go to Small Snake Island, of course ¡­ She also knew that Miao and I would be able to escape the Flower Snake Village ¡­ But now that I think about it, the reason why Miao and I were able to leave the village so smoothly and remain safe and sound, was all in exchange for my father''s life! "


    The more Su Qin spoke, the more excited she became, and the more tears flowed from her eyes.


    "Why did your mother insist that your aunt inform your father of his return to the village that year?" Qiao Mu asked.


    "It was because the corpse''s consciousness was almost awake that year, and the village also started to change at that time. But I don''t know why all the villagers became toads, and I''m guessing that aunt doesn''t know either."


    "Since your mother has extraordinary ability, why didn''t you try to stop her?" Yang Jie asked.


    "My aunt has asked my mother many times, but every time she told her mother, it was all fate. There is no way to avoid it, nor can it be changed. She knew her mother well and trusted her, so she would listen to her mother. She knew that there must be a good reason for her mother to do so. Just like how your mother didn''t allow her to go to the Small Snake Island, you can''t go no matter what happens, and even said that there will be a day when the problem will be solved. "


    Qiao Mu thought to himself: No wonder Zheng Huili didn''t mention the matter of Small Snake Island to Song Zhengming.


    Yang Jie nodded his head, and asked a moment later: "Do you think your mother is still alive?"


    "My aunt said that my mother had most likely passed away. After she communicated with the rotting corpse, she chose to end her life. I asked my aunt why she did it. My aunt guessed that it was because my mother knew that I was infected with the poison and foresaw the terrifying consequences of waking up a rotting corpse. Thus, she decided to stay out of this, at least ¡­ She won''t become one of those toad monsters outside ¡­ " Su Qin lowered his head and said.


    "Out of the picture?" "Did your aunt say this word, or was it organized by you?"


    "Oh, my aunt said so."


    He put his hand to his chin, collected his thoughts, and thought: That''s right, stay out of this. Although Zheng Huiling was a mysterious esper, she was unable to resist the poison in her body. In other words, if she did not end her life early, she would mutate like the other villagers, and maybe her soul would be contaminated, or maybe ¡­ Those villagers who became toads were not even considered dead. They were just mutants? In short, Zheng Huiling must have foreseen this, so she had decided to kill herself at Small Snake Island. Firstly, he would avoid being turned into a cadaver, and secondly, he would not become a mutated frog monster. But why did she put so much effort into this?


    Qiao Mu faintly felt that Zheng Huiling''s physical body should have already died out, but she must have survived in some form. She still had unfinished business.


    "According to what you said just now, your father seems to be your mother''s chess piece. Don''t you think that your mother''s way of doing things is a little extreme? As a woman, I don''t quite understand why your mother pushed your father into the volcano without first asking for his opinion. " Yang Jie asked.


    Su Qin pondered for a moment, then asked: "Big sister Yang, do you have children?"


    Yang Jie was stunned and was unable to answer for a long time.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie had been married for close to ten years, but because they followed freedom and because of their working relationship, they had not had any children for a long time and did not plan to have any children in the future.


    "Nope." Qiao Mu answered for Yang Jie.


    "I''ve asked my aunt this question a few times. My aunt has always said that my mother is actually feeling rather guilty about her actions, but my mother has always emphasized that everything is fate and fate is irresistible. She also said that she knew her father very well and that she knew how important we sisters were to him, and that if she begged him to sacrifice himself for her daughter, he would not hesitate. " Su Qin became sad again as she said this.


    Yang Jie handed over a tissue to Su Qin, and waited for Su Qin to adjust her mood, then asked: "Your father, was it also what your mother predicted?"


    Su Qin did not understand what Yang Jie meant, and only after thinking for a moment did she react.


    "No, I remember my aunt mentioning that my mother had an extraordinary ability, but she wasn''t able to foresee everything. For example, from meeting my father to falling in love to getting married. Mommy didn''t know about it at the beginning, but after she went to the Small Snake Island, she found it. "


    "I understand. First, turn over this page, and then I will ask, has your mother not allowed you guys to go to Small Snake Island?" Qiao Mu asked.


    "Yes, my aunt said that my mother always told her ¡­ No, that''s not right. My mother never allowed my aunt to go to Small Snake Island. She didn''t mention Miao and I. " Su Qin said as though she was thinking about something.


    "Yes, you and your sister both went to the Small Snake Island, which was also foreseen by your mother. Before the Corrupt Corpse truly woke up, she had already had a soul conversation with it, and made a contract with it to ensure that nothing would happen between you and your sister ¡­ Or rather, you and your sister are the only two people who can safely enter and exit Small Snake Island and not be affected by the rotting poison. " Yang Jie said.


    Yang Jie''s words suddenly reminded Qiao Mu. She quickly added: "That''s right, in the entire matter, you and your little sister are the most special. Especially you, since you already have a certain amount of capacity ¡­"


    "Brother, what do you want to say?" Yang Jie asked anxiously.


    "You mentioned that your mother told your aunt that everything would be resolved, didn''t you?" Qiao Mu continued to ask Su Qin.


    "Yes."


    "How can your mother be sure? What makes her think that everything will be settled? "


    Qiao Mu''s overbearing attitude caused Su Qin to be terrified.


    Yang Jie also noticed the inkling and asked, "That''s right, little sister, what confidence does your mother have?"


    "I don''t know... Little Aunt didn''t say. " Su Qin was at a loss for a moment.


    "Think back carefully to what your aunt said, then are you sure she has already conveyed everything your mother asked her to you?" Yang Jie asked.


    Su Qin tried her best to think back, and then said: "My aunt has indeed told me everything mother told me. I believe my aunt will not lie to me!"


    Su Qin''s attitude was resolute and decisive, and Qiao Mu and Yang Jie were no longer suspicious.


    "There are some things that even your aunt doesn''t know about." Qiao Mu speculated.


    From Qiao Mu''s point of view, the Su Qin sisters were the only ones who had obtained the "privilege" to be able to enter and exit the Small Snake Island. But Su Miao was still too young, so she didn''t think twice before placing the emphasis on Su Qin. Zheng Huiling swore that things would eventually be settled, and that it was not because of a wish. She must have done something, or left something behind.


    Qiao Mu explained his suspicions to Su Qin in detail, causing Su Qin to immediately fall into deep thought.


    "What Mom did... I really can''t guess right now, about what Mom left behind... Except... "Except..."


    "Except what?" Qiao Mu asked anxiously.

 C44

    "Oh, it''s the two pieces of bandages that mother gave Miao and I."


    "Turban? What kind of headscarf? " Qiao Mu was surprised.


    "That scarf is called the Flower Serpent Scarf, it can be considered a tradition of the Flower Snake Village. All the girls in the village have it, and it must have been personally made by mother. The last time we went back to the village with Father, Grandma gave it to us." Su Qin replied truthfully.


    "Only two scarves?" Yang Jie asked.


    "That''s right, but it has nothing to do with this."


    "Is there any connection for me to judge? Where are the two turbans now?" Qiao Mu asked.


    "It''s on me." With that, Su Qin opened her backpack and took out two pieces of pitch black headscarves. Before this departure, she had intentionally brought out the two floral scarves that she and Su Miao had given her in order to pray for her mother to protect her.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie looked and saw that these two flower serpents looked very normal. However, they were of a black background and had a symbol of a flower serpent on it.


    Maybe the only thing that felt strange was that these two turbans were thicker. When Yang Jie tried it on her head, it felt very heavy and not comfortable enough.


    "Did your mother make this herself?" Yang Jie was still fiddling with the Flower Serpent Scarf.


    "Yes, as I said before." Su Qin replied.


    Qiao Mu''s expression suddenly became surprised and asked: "That time before your mother went back to the Flower Snake Village, she should have stayed with you all the time, right? Why didn''t she just give it to you in the morning and wait until you returned to the village on New Year''s Eve before asking your grandmother to give it to you? Are there any special rules? "


    "There aren''t any special rules, right? Even grandma and aunt didn''t say anything!" Su Qin replied.


    "When did your mother make the garland scarf?" Yang Jie interrupted and asked.


    "I remember... Grandma mentioned it before, but it seems like it was the year my mother returned to the village ¡­ "In other words ¡­"


    "It''s before your mother went to the Small Snake Island, right?" Qiao Mu''s face was serious.


    "Yes, it should be." Su Qin looked at Qiao Mu, she knew that Qiao Mu must have found something.


    "That''s strange ¡­" "Since there is no symbolic meaning, why didn''t your mother do it earlier or later, but instead left it for you at that critical time?"


    When she asked Su Qin, Qiao Mu had another answer in her heart. He felt that these two scarves were unlike Zheng Huiling''s gift to her daughter and were instead like specially made relics, because not long after, Zheng Huiling went to the Small Snake Island alone, signed a contract with a demon, and ended her life.


    Being questioned by Qiao Mu, Su Qin was unable to answer. At the moment, outside the house, the wind was howling and the few large trees were swaying like ghosts. The atmosphere was getting heavier and heavier.


    In this stalemate, Yang Jie held onto two pieces of floral scarves as she said, "Look, these two scarves are two-layered. No wonder it''s so thick."


    Arbor, who knew nothing about accessories, asked directly: "Double deck means it has two sides?"


    "Yeah, it''s just sewn together, but it''s not sewn tight enough. It can be separated with scissors."


    Yang Jie''s meaning was obvious, she was extremely interested in the inner layer of the turban. If she wanted to open it and take a look, she would need Su Qin''s consent.


    Yang Jie glanced at Su Qin. Qiao Mu understood and understood what Yang Jie meant.


    "Sister, I know this isn''t good. The two turbans were left behind by your mother and should be respected. But the problem is that we feel that these two turbans are not normal. Maybe your mother has hidden some secrets inside. Do you mind if we open them?" he asked calmly.


    Su Qin took the two floral scarves that Yang Jie had given her. She was hesitant in her heart, and she knew that Qiao Mu and her wife''s request was reasonable, but she wasn''t willing to destroy her mother''s remnants.


    "Alright, you guys can start with my first one." In the end, Su Qin''s rationality still prevailed over his feelings. She first gave her big flower serpent towel to Yang Jie, so as to not be able to keep her secret from being discovered.


    It felt like a crime. At this time, Su Qin took the initiative to slip a pair of small scissors into Yang Jie''s hands, saying, "These are scissors I brought with me, Big sister, you cut them, right?"


    Yang Jie nodded her head slightly, praising Su Qin for being so sensible, she then slowly used a pair of scissors to cut off the cloth on both sides.


    These words were written in pencil, so the handwriting was very light, but they were clearly contrasted against the white cloth on the inside.


    The contents of the words were: Northern Song Year, Tai Yuan Prefecture, border general, Zhao Zhiyou.


    "There''s really something!" Seeing these words, Yang Jie sighed.


    "Is that your mother''s handwriting?" Qiao Mu confirmed first.


    Su Qin nodded.


    "But what do these words mean?" Yang Jie asked doubtfully.


    Qiao Mu thought for a moment and said: "From the literal meaning, it''s not difficult to understand. It''s simple information about some ancient person. Little sister, didn''t you say that the Corrupt Corpse was wearing iron armor? "


    "Yeah, I have a very deep impression of him!" Su Qin replied.


    "That must be it, but a few words aren''t enough. What exactly is your mother trying to reveal?" Yang Jie asked anxiously.


    "I have seen enough. The meaning of these words is: In the Northern Song Dynasty, there was a general called Zhao Zhiyou who guarded the borders of the Tai Yuan Palace. "We just need to follow this lead and we should be able to find out the relevant information regarding the life of the Corrupt Corpse."


    Yang Jie and Su Qin nodded their heads, then Yang Jie said to Su Qin: "Your mother is really amazing, how does she know all this, does she also rely on her superpowers?"


    Before Su Qin replied, Qiao Mu said: "She must have used her super power, didn''t her mother see through people''s past? I think in a sense, that rotten corpse couldn''t be considered dead, it just mutated like the villagers. I think that maybe there is some special substance in the lake, which caused the change after being merged with the corpse, and also the female corpse that I saw at the bottom of the lake before the Mr.Guo died on Chang Hen Island, it could also be like that."


    "That''s reasonable, precisely because that rotten corpse isn''t completely dead yet, that''s why Zheng Huiling found out about a portion of its past and found out about its ancestry. Zheng Huiling had left behind clues on the identity of the rotting corpse, so that others could investigate. Yang Jie said.


    "Don''t we still have another headscarf? Let''s cut it off and take a look." Qiao Mu pointed.


    Su Qin suddenly admired Qiao Mu and Yang Jie. She felt that this couple''s thinking was both sensitive and meticulous. After their analysis, the matter seemed to become clearer and clearer. Thus, without thinking, she quickly passed Su Miao''s small floral snake towel to him.


    Yang Jie cut it open and saw that there were a few pencil words written on the inside of the Flower Serpent Wipe. The words were: Black House full of leaves, Green Fire, Sky Eye opened, everything is over.


    "What does that mean?" Yang Jie was confused.


    Qiao Mu read it over and over again with a confused face. He murmured: "It feels like a poem, but the reading is not smooth and the content is very abstract. Little sister, have you ever seen your mother write or recite this sentence?"


    "Mom is indeed interested in classical poetry, but I don''t think I''ve ever seen such words before. I really can''t remember." Su Qin said.


    Yang Jie pondered for a moment, then said: "It''s not a hidden poem, nor is it a hidden tail poem.


    "It''s not clear yet, but there must be a reason for it." said.


    "Brother, I found it very strange, since Zheng Huiling wanted to leave some clues for her daughter, why not use some direct method, such as a letter or last words, and instead secretly write them in two scarves? Alright, just write it. Why are you writing it so cryptically? " Yang Jie complained.


    Qiao Mu thought for a moment and said: "I think, Zheng Huiling should have been able to predict that her two flower snake scarves would be opened by someone in the end and that the message she left behind would also be read by someone. The reason why she used such a concealed method is probably because she was afraid of being discovered."


    "Who is that person, that rotting corpse?" Yang Jie asked.


    Qiao Mu nodded.


    It''s about the identity of that rotten corpse. Oh yeah, I remember that Miao Yue''s former university teacher, a History department teacher, seemed to have a good relationship with her, isn''t she currently working as a librarian in a library, should I let Miao Yue ask him about it? Let him look up General Zhao''s information, what do you think? Yang Jie suddenly thought of this.


    "Good idea." Qiao Mu also felt that this method was not bad.


    then took out his phone and called Miao Yue. After he roughly explained the situation, Miao Yue became extremely anxious, when the matter of looking up information was brought up, Miao Yue was naturally duty-bound. She agreed to look for her university teacher right now and give her a reply as soon as possible. During this time, Qiao Mu only warned once: "If you find that ancient person, pay attention to his life story. Don''t let even a small thing slip by."


    When Yang Jie hung up, she suddenly said: "I want to go to Small Snake Island."


    Yang Jie was startled, and said: "Ah? How can that be, you don''t want to live! "


    "No, I keep having the feeling that my father isn''t dead yet, especially when my aunt told me that the Corrupt Corpse wanted my father to inherit some kind of will."


    Only now did Yang Jie remember what Su Qin had mentioned earlier, and she instantly fell silent.


    "I agree, we''ll go with you." Qiao Mu also said.


    "Ah?" Are you crazy? " Yang Jie glanced at Qiao Mu.


    "To be honest, I really want to see that weird island. There must be a lot of secrets hidden on that island. As we''ve analyzed before, my sister''s situation is the most special one, and I feel like the whole thing is going around her, so I think she should go and see the island, and like she said, her father might not be dead yet. " said.


    Yang Jie understood Qiao Mu''s intention and finally said: "Then let''s go with her."


    "In that case, thank you so much!" Su Qin was indescribably grateful.


    "Well, now we have to find a boat." With that, Yang Jie stood up and walked to the window.


    The night wind was getting stronger and stronger, like a demon howling. Yang Jie even suspected that there would be a typhoon tonight. She stared at the nearby lake. While she was in a daze, a figure suddenly appeared outside the window. With an extremely strange posture, the figure pressed its face against the window and observed the interior of the house.


    Yang Jie was shocked, she immediately left the window, but when she looked carefully, she felt that the person outside was familiar.


    "Sun Miao?" Yang Jie blurted out.


    "Who did you say?" Qiao Mu quickly stood up, but this time, the person outside the window was nowhere to be seen.


    "Brother, I just saw Sun Miao standing outside the window!" Yang Jie was extremely excited.


    "Is that so?" Qiao Mu was elated. He thought that if it was Sun Miao, then most likely Zhou Yang and the rest were nearby as well. Perhaps they were the only ones who could make a fire on the ground.


    Yang Jie hurriedly opened the door, and Qiao Mu followed. After the door was opened, a person stood upright in front of them. There was a strange expression on his face. His eyes were unfocused and lifeless. His eyeballs were rolling in his eye sockets. His entire body was swollen, and there were wrinkles and lumps on his skin. Besides, there was a wound in his throat, and green blood near the wound.


    This person was without a doubt Sun Miao, even Qiao Mu and Yang Jie were too familiar with him.


    But when Sun Miao just stepped into the house, Qiao Mu kicked him in the stomach, causing Sun Miao to retreat several steps.


    Qiao Mu closed the door again and asked Yang Jie: "Do you know what I want to say?"


    "I know, I can see it too." Yang Jie felt cold sweat dripping down her back.


    "They''re in trouble!" Qiao Mu said angrily.


    "Sun Miao was attacked and then poisoned as well." Yang Jie agreed.


    "What does it mean?"


    "It means that the corruption will spread, and those who should have died could be revived."


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie understood each other, and Su Qin also became more afraid the more she listened.


    While he was hesitating, there were a few more sounds coming from outside the door, followed by a series of strange sounds.


    "More than one." Qiao Mu said softly.


    Yang Jie trembled as she looked outside the window. She immediately realized that there were several Toad Man on the ground, along with Sun Miao who was slowly turning into a Toad Man, wandering around the entrance of the thatched cottage.


    Just as Yang Jie wanted to ask what she was going to do, she heard a burst of noise, as if someone was knocking on a house.


    Su Qin looked out of the other window and suddenly saw a few short figures holding tree branches, rocks, shovels, wooden sticks and all sorts of tools, constantly knocking on the door, one of them even had a torch.


    Su Qin realized that these people had strange expressions on their faces and their bodies were bloated, they were about the same size as Sun Miao. Moreover, there were two people wearing tattered longevity gowns.


    While Su Qin was in a daze, the strange people who were knocking on the door noticed that there was someone at the window, and gathered over. When she saw them clearly, Su Qin''s heart sank, their faces had already started to rot and become pimples, they were actually children!


    One of the children burst out laughing and hurled a spade at the window, but the glass was hard enough and the other was not strong enough to break it.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie came to Su Qin''s side. When they saw the children, they knew that there was a problem. Qiao Mu had the same thoughts as Su Qin.


    "Actually, I''ve never seen them before, but I guess so." Su Qin said.


    Looking closely at the children, he saw that their chins and bellies were slightly puffed, a clear precursor to mutation.


    Yang Jie also noticed the difference and asked Qiao Mu: "Brother, why do you think they are different from those Toad Man s?"


    "I guess it''s not too deep." Qiao Mu speculated, "These village children do not consume as much time as the other adults, so they are considered to have just begun to mutate. Look, their black nails have only just grown out."


    Su Qin agreed with Qiao Mu''s analysis and thought that back then when Sun Erke was taking care of these children, they should have been fine.


    "However... Their behavior and habits seem quite normal, but they have lost all sense of reason ¡­ " Qiao Mu muttered again.


    "What are you trying to say?" Yang Jie asked.


    "I want to say that... They may be even more troublesome than the Toad Man. "


    As soon as Qiao Mu''s voice faded away, one of the children came to the window with a smile. His mouth was still dripping with saliva as he stopped and threw the torch onto the roof. The roof was filled with straw.


    This caught Qiao Mu and the others off guard. Soon, the top of the roof was covered in flames and sparks flew all around the house. The children looked at the fire, grinning from ear to ear and dancing with joy.


    Seeing the wooden beams from the roof falling and the fire growing stronger, they knew that they could not hold on for long and had to rush out. However, the door was blocked by Toad Man and the children, and they were stuck in a dilemma.


    In the blink of an eye, the gates were also on fire. Now, it was even more difficult to escape.


    At this moment, they heard the sound of a key in the lock, and the door was kicked open. A man with a disheveled appearance and wearing a shroud appeared in front of them.


    The man was holding a bucket and a bamboo pole in one hand. He used the water in the bucket to quickly extinguish the fire in front of the door.


    "Goose egg!" Su Qin shouted excitedly. She immediately recognized this person, it was the goose egg Sun Erke who had saved her before.


    Sun Erke looked at Su Qin stupidly, as if he recognized him, but at the same time, he didn''t. When a few children rushed towards Sun Erke, Sun Erke ferociously swung his bamboo pole, chasing away all the children.


    The thatched cottage was about to collapse, Sun Erke shouted loudly: "Quick! Fast! Come out! "Come out!"


    Su Qin took the initiative to hold Qiao Mu and Yang Jie''s hands and said: "Don''t worry, he''s a good person!" The three of them immediately rushed out of the thatched hut, and during this time, a few more Toad Man crawled over, which were dealt with by Qiao Mu and Sun Erke.


    After escaping from the danger, the four of them stood in front of the thatched cottage that was slowly being engulfed in raging flames, unable to say a word for a while.


    After a long while, Su Qin introduced Sun Erke to Qiao Mu Yang Jie, and Qiao Mu Yang Jie also heard Su Qin mention a few things about Sun Erke, so she knew that although he was silly, he had a kind heart. However, Sun Erke just stared at the burning grass hut and ignored them.


    At this point, Qiao Mu and the other two could naturally tell that the owner of the thatched hut was Sun Erke.


    "Goose, I''m sorry!" Su Qin said softly.


    Sun Erke looked at Su Qin and muttered: "The village... It''s over! Room... It''s over! Everyone... It''s over! Consecutive... Consecutive... "Children ¡­"


    Sun Erke felt as if he had died, and could not continue on.


    Qiao Mu and the others now understood that Sun Erke must have been taking care of those children all along. It was just that in the end, there were still mutations, so Sun Erke had no choice but to abandon them. Although those children were lawless and were wreaking havoc everywhere, at least their relationship was still the same. Therefore, Sun Erke did not kill them earlier and only chased them away.


    "Toad Man... Toad Man usually does not come, you guys ¡­ You''ve attracted them! " After a long while, Sun Erke said again.


    Qiao Mu thought to himself: Indeed, the Toad Man here doesn''t seem to be very frequent, our sin is really quite heinous.


    "I''m sorry ¡­" Yang Jie also said that she wanted to ask Sun Erke if he wanted to pay for the loss of the house, but she felt that this question was a little inappropriate.


    Sun Erke suddenly turned around and said, "I''ll take you guys to the Small Snake Island!"


    Sun Erke did not wait for them to reply, he directly walked towards the lakeside and waved them over.


    Qiao Mu asked in surprise: "How did he know we are going to the Small Snake Island?"


    Yang Jie and Su Qin were also at a loss.


    After following Sun Erke to the lake, they saw a boat docked near the shore. Su Qin remembered this boat, because it was this boat that saved her from the Small Snake Island.


    As they walked onto the boat, Qiao Mu couldn''t help but ask Sun Erke: "Brother, can you tell me, how did you know we were going to Small Snake Island?"


    Sun Erke looked at Qiao Mu in a daze and replied: "Sister told me!"


    "Elder sister?" Qiao Mu was stunned. "Who is big sister?"


    "Big sister is big sister!"


    "What''s elder sister''s name?"


    "Big sister is big sister!"


    After that, no matter how Qiao Mu asked, Sun Erke would always answer like this.


    Sun Erke swiftly withdrew his anchor and started paddling. Qiao Mu turned around and asked Yang Jie and Yang Jie: "It seems that someone told him to wait for us here in advance. Who do you think it is?"


    "I don''t know." Su Qin shook her head.


    "I feel like ¡­" Yang Jie looked at Su Qin, and hesitated: "Could it be Zheng Huiling?"


    Hearing Yang Jie''s guess, Qiao Mu''s expression was very calm, which showed that he also had the same idea. On the contrary, it was Su Qin who asked in shock, "How could it be my mother?"


    "My instincts tell me." Yang Jie replied.


    "Because only your mother has this kind of foresight, and your mother is a very important part of the whole thing." Qiao Mu helped Yang Jie explain.


    "But my mother... "Didn''t she already ¡­"


    "Yeah, who can explain that clearly? But I still think that your mother is no longer alive and must have used some special method. " said.


    "If only he could communicate normally." Yang Jie indicated with her mouth towards Sun Erke.


    Only after the boat had left the shore did they truly feel the fierce night wind on the lake and the strong stench of dead fish. Sun Erke did not communicate with them at all, only saying the word "finished" while rowing the boat. Seeing the boat''s bumpy body and the strong wind, Qiao Mu made Yang Jie and Su Qin hide in the awning. Just as Yang Jie was about to move his body, the three of them suddenly saw something floating on the surface of the lake.


    Sun Erke also noticed those things, and immediately cried out, and quickly rowed away.


    When they got closer, they saw that there were several corpses floating on the lake. Because it wasn''t far from the shore, the corpses were stuck in a pile of rocks, allowing them to float.


    Sun Erke anchored the boat next to a big boulder, then with a flash of his torch, he saw a total of five corpses, each of them with scars on their faces. It seemed like they had just died, the other corpses were all wearing uniform.

 C45

    Qiao Mu immediately understood and said to Yang Jie: "Superintendent Song called the police."


    Yang Jie''s face was in pain, she did not dare look anymore.


    "If there were only five corpses here, they would most likely be wiped out." Qiao Mu guessed.


    In Qiao Mu''s mind, a scene instantly appeared: a group of police officers from the police station recklessly broke into the Flower Snake Village without being on guard. As a result, they were ambushed by Toad Man and cadaver, resulting in heavy casualties.


    In the end, Qiao Mu sighed and said: "Forget it, forget them and go to Small Snake Island first."


    Sun Erke understood Qiao Mu''s meaning and continued to row.


    When Qiao Mu and the rest left on the boat towards the Small Snake Island, Zhou Yang and Zheng Huili was still trapped in the pit with the corpses.


    With the passage of time, the inside of the pit became stuffy and hot, the environment full of corpses and stench became unbearable for Zhou Yang and Zheng Huili. Furthermore, they did not eat any water for a long time, so the two of them almost fainted.


    In fact, from the start, the movements outside the corpse pit had disappeared, but they were not sure if the strange eyeball worms were still there, but if they continued to stay inside the corpse pit, it would be equivalent to waiting for death, so Zhou Yang decided to give it a shot.


    "Let''s go out and take a look. Follow me." Zhou Yang whispered.


    Zheng Huili had the same thought, and agreed lightly.


    Zhou Yang then used his hands to hold onto the two corpses, he moved the corpses away and slowly peeked his head out, immediately feeling a refreshing feeling. Although the air in the burrow was dirty and humid, and it was still near the corpses, compared to the inside of the burrow, it was like a paradise.


    In the darkness, Zhou Yang and Zheng Huili climbed out of the corpse pit. The surroundings were completely silent, they guessed that the strange worms had already left.


    After walking down the pile of corpses, Zhou Yang successfully touched the torch that he had hidden away, and lit it with the lighter once again. The moment the flame was ignited, Zhou Yang suddenly realised that many eyes were staring at him from all directions.


    The two of them were so scared that their faces drained of blood, and Zhou Yang even subconsciously retreated back to the pile of corpses. At this time, he saw that behind the corpse pile, there was a relatively deep hole filled with dried branches and leaves.


    Just as the monster bugs were gathering towards Zhou Yang, a strange idea popped into his mind like lightning. Therefore, he quickly passed the torch to Zheng Huili and shouted: "Take it, quick!"


    Zheng Huili received the torch in a daze, and immediately turned and jumped into the pit. The Eyeball Beetles crawled into the pit then used their sharp black thorns to pierce through Zhou Yang''s skin and cover his entire body.


    Zheng Huili rushed up to the pile of corpses, seeing Zhou Yang''s terrible appearance, she panicked and screamed again and again, but Zhou Yang shouted with all his might: "Throw the torches into the pit, burn them, hurry!"


    It was only then that Zheng Huili understood that Zhou Yang wanted to die together with the eyed monster bugs!


    "Quickly! At least you still have a chance to escape, otherwise, both of us will die! " Zhou Yang shouted crazily.


    Zheng Huili cried bitterly as she shook her head, her heart was in turmoil, but in the end, she still threw the torch into the pit.


    The flames instantly ignited, and very quickly, burned all of the Eyeball Monster Worms, and also burnt Zheng Huili''s heart ¡­


    Sun Erke was extremely familiar with rowing, and before long, Qiao Mu could already vaguely see the shadow of the Small Snake Island.


    They were almost at the Small Snake Island.


    Qiao Mu and the other two could not help but become nervous. After all, once they stepped onto the Small Snake Island, it was unknown whether they would be able to leave or not.


    At this moment, the surface of the lake was calm. It was unknown if the wind had stopped blowing or if there was no wind.


    Su Qin was sitting at the stern of the boat and chatting with Sun Erke. Qiao Mu and Yang Jie, on the other hand, were standing at the bow of the ship, listening to the gurgling water, each of them thinking about something.


    Suddenly, Yang Jie asked Qiao Mu softly, "Brother, I have a question. Why do you think of the reason why Sun Erke is the only one in the village with so many people?"


    "I''ve thought about it, too, don''t you?" Qiao Mu asked Yang Jie.


    "If Zheng Huiling let us wait here, would it be that Zheng Huiling protected him?"


    "No, Zheng Huiling still isn''t that capable. Otherwise, there''s no need to use her husband, Su Hong, to exchange for the lives of two of her daughters."


    "Then what happened?"


    "I actually feel that... It should be because of Sun Erke himself. " Qiao Mu looked at Sun Erke who was smiling mischievously at him.


    "What''s the reason?"


    "You see, he is a fool, to put it more scientifically, there is something wrong with his intellect. However, the poison of decay first has to be in control of one''s consciousness, but his consciousness is extremely chaotic and uncontrollable. Perhaps because of this, he became an exception. For example, he was like a fish out of a net, escaping from under the eyes of a rotting corpse. "


    "Yeah." Yang Jie thought about it and felt that Qiao Mu''s deduction was reasonable. "Then ¡­ Sister Su Qin is not the only one with an exception.


    "Yes, indeed."


    When he answered, Qiao Mu had a premonition that these two special characters would be the key to resolving this matter.


    Just as they were discussing, Qiao Mu''s phone suddenly rang.


    The caller indicated that it was Miao Yue.


    "Hey, Miao Yue, have you found anything?" Qiao Mu asked.


    "Yes, I''ve found all the information!" Miao Yue''s voice that was on the phone was excited and anxious.


    "Tell me, what happened to General Zhao?"


    "Alright, don''t be in such a hurry. Listen to me slowly tell you!" In fact, Miao Yue was just about to leave her teacher''s house and take a taxi home, but in order to discuss something with Qiao Mu, she decided not to take the taxi and directly walked home. This way, they could talk while they walked.


    Miao Yue cleared her throat and said: "Just now, I specifically went to my teacher''s house to search for this information. In the beginning, I couldn''t find anything, but I almost gave up trying to call you. In the end, my teacher found some historical records in a book and finally found out about General Zhao''s background.


    "Mm, continue." Qiao Mu said unhurriedly.


    "Alright, let me introduce General Zhao. His full name was Zhao Zhiyou, he was a commander stationed at the borders of Taiyuan Palace during the Song Xia war, similar to a military camp''s commander, who was around a thousand years old. General Zhao had done a lot of meritorious military service while he was still alive, and he was fighting valiantly, but his end was very miserable. So it turned out that his Deputy Commander, who was also his subordinate, Yang Xin, had betrayed him. "That Yang Xin first joined the Western Xia Army, and then led the Western Xia Army into the army camp, torturing General Zhao to death ¡­" Miao Yue said as he paused and swallowed his saliva.


    "Then, where was the Taiyuan Palace today? Have you checked the map?" Qiao Mu asked.


    "Of course, it''s around the location of Flower Snake Village. According to the records, General Zhao was executed by Yang Xin near the military camp, and before the execution, Yang Xin tortured him for three days and three nights. He even sent two old women with long fingernails to dig out a pair of his eyeballs. In the end, when he was on the verge of death, Yang Xin threw him into a lake called Bamboo Lake. "


    After listening to Miao Yue''s narration, Qiao Mu''s heart trembled because he realized that in two crucial places, one was the eyeball that the old lady had dug out with her long fingernail before she died, and the other was the bamboo lake.


    Qiao Mu thought: The Bamboo Lake was probably an ancient name. Since it was called the Bamboo Lake, it was possible that the lake water was originally green. It seems like there is a high chance that the lake water was connected to the Great Snake Island through Flower Snake Village.


    "Uncle Qiao, are you listening?" Qiao Mu''s absent-mindedness made Miao Yue a little anxious.


    "Yes, yes, please continue." He stopped thinking.


    "Yes, the historical information I just told you was written by a civil official in the imperial court. There is also a portion of historical data, and it was spread among the common people. It belongs to the wild history of the common people, and can explain why Yang Xin betrayed him. Do you want to hear it?"


    "Of course. Tell me everything."


    "So, the reason why Yang Xin betrayed him was because of a woman."


    "Women?"


    "Yes, this story is quite complicated. It was General Zhao. He had once kidnapped a commoner girl to be his concubine. His name was Tian Yu''e. It was said that Tian Yu''e was as beautiful as a flower and was loved by General Zhao. He even had to bring her along to war. At that time, Tian Yu''e was also living in the army camp. On the other side, Yang Xin had an illegitimate child in the army. He was a coachman and had a very handsome appearance. As time passed, the coachman and Tian Yu E actually looked at each other, it would be said that one of them was handsome, the other was beautiful, it would be no wonder that he liked the other, it would be a pity that Tian Yu Er was Zhao Zhiyou''s concubine, under normal circumstances they would not have been able to obtain any results, thus after a very unlucky incident, the two of them ran away! "


    Miao Yue paused for a moment, walked across a street, and continued:


    "What a pity, their elopement did not succeed and was quickly discovered by General Zhao. Quickly, ride the horse and capture them alive." Naturally, General Zhao was extremely furious. He burned the coachman alive and tortured Tian Yu''er. Then, he twisted her body into a bloody mess with his dagger and threw her into the bamboo lake. "


    Bamboo Lake again, he thought. Was it a coincidence that she was the same as Zhao Zhiyou?


    In addition, the four words "flesh and blood" made Qiao Mu think of something.


    The news of General Zhao disposing of the coachman and Tian Yu E immediately spread out. Yang Xin knew that his son was killed and was both grieving and angry, but General Zhao did not know anything about the relationship between Yang Xin and the coachman. Later on, in order to avenge his son, Yang Xin immediately conspired against him. Not only did he destroy all the defenses of the military camp, he even led the Western Xia Army to sneak attack the military camp. "Then it was what I told you before. General Zhao was tortured by Yang Xin and was thrown into the bamboo lake ¡­"


    "I threw it into the bamboo lake ¡­" Qiao Mu mumbled again.


    "What''s wrong? Is there a problem?"


    "No, no problem. Is that all? "


    "Mm ¡­" "Yeah, that''s about all the information I can find."


    "There won''t be any mistakes, right?"


    "That shouldn''t be the case. My teacher said that the credibility of the information is rather high. The person who recorded it did not add in his subjective opinion and detailed description, and his conclusion is basically supported by the evidence."


    "Alright then, Miao Yue, thank you for your trouble, help me thank your teacher, if there''s anything else, we can contact you again."


    "You''re not in any danger, are you?" Miao Yue asked, still worried.


    "Probably." Qiao Mu smiled bitterly.


    After hanging up, Qiao Mu started to ponder, summing up the information Miao Yue had given him.


    From the looks of the current situation, the rotting corpse on the Small Snake Island should be General Zhao from the Northern Song Dynasty, and the green bamboo lake that was thrown away should have been hiding some kind of special substance. After it fused with his resentful corpse, it would mutate, causing his will to remain and begin to corrode everything around him. Therefore, rather than calling it a poison, it would be more accurate to say that it was the accumulated anger and resentment over the years. In addition, before he died, two old women used their nails to gouge out his eyeballs. As a result, he was especially sensitive to fingernails.


    The other point related to Tian Yu''er, his concubine whom he had killed. Tian Yu''er had been buried in Bamboo Lake just like him. Before she died, she had been stabbed by a dagger and her body was badly mutilated. Was it tantamount to rotting?


    In Qiao Mu''s mind, the miserable state Guo Yong was in before he died suddenly surfaced. Before Guo Yong died, he saw a female corpse at the bottom of the lake, whose entire body was emitting poison gas ¡­ Thinking about this, Qiao Mu was extremely sure that the female corpse that Guo Yong had seen was Zhao Zhiyou''s concubine, Tian Yuer. The reason why Guo Yong''s entire body had such a "blood and flesh" rotting was probably because the "flesh and blood" type of rotting was similar to the "flesh and blood" type of rotting on Zhao Zhiyou''s fingernails, it had already become the symbol and symbol of Tian Yu E''s rotting poison. Qiao Mu even suspected that Guo Yong and Guo Yi, father and son, exploring the Great Snake Island, was actually out of their own intentions.


    Why did the Mr.Guo and Xiao Yi go there? Qiao Mu fell into deep thought.


    But now, one of them was dead and one was missing. It was unknown who Qiao Mu was asking from.


    Qiao Mu faintly felt that there might be a connection between the Great Snake Island and the Small Snake Island.


    "Brother, quickly tell me, what is it?" Seeing that Qiao Mu was thinking about something after he received the call, Yang Jie urged him on.


    Qiao Mu glanced over and saw that Su Qin was also standing beside him. The two of them could not wait any longer.


    Thus, Qiao Mu told Yang Jie and Su Qin the information that Miao Yue had just provided and his speculations. The two of them were greatly shocked.


    "Brother ¡­" After hearing that, Yang Jie began to express her opinion, "According to what you said, Zhao Zhiyou and Tian Yu E''s corpses are on two islands, but the information that Miao Yue found out didn''t seem to be true."


    "I think there may have been some changes in the earth''s crust. Perhaps there was an earthquake or something like that. Two small islands were separated from the former continent. After all, it has been a thousand years since that incident."


    "Oh, that''s possible."


    "In short, the key is for the two corpses to lie in the same lake. We need to figure out the connection between them as well as figure out Zheng Huiling''s last words."


    "That''s right ¡­" As she said that, Yang Jie recited Zheng Huiling''s mysterious last words on the Flower Serpent Wipe once again: Black House full of leaves, green fire burning, Heaven''s Eye burning, everything will be extinguished.


    At this time, Sun Erke let out a shout, and saw that the many black boulders in front of the bow of the ship, had unknowingly arrived at the Small Snake Island.


    "Get ashore!" Sun Erke steadied the boat and gestured.


    Qiao Mu and the others did not say much and slowly walked to the shore.


    At this time, the three of them felt extremely uneasy, especially Su Qin.


    "Brother, aren''t you coming with us?" Qiao Mu suddenly realized that Sun Erke was standing at the bow of the ship and had no intention to leave.


    "I''m not going! Sister even told me to wait for someone! " Sun Erke said loudly.


    "Who are you waiting for?" Yang Jie asked.


    Sun Erke laughed and said, "I don''t know!"


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie looked at each other; they really did not understand what Sun Erke was thinking.


    Then, Sun Erke held onto the liquid, the wooden boat slowly left the shore, and said: I''ll come here to pick you guys up later!


    Under the watch of the three, Sun Erke headed towards the east.


    "Where is he going?" Yang Jie asked.


    Qiao Mu shook his head and said: "It''s not going back to the Flower Snake Village anyways, the direction is wrong."


    "Forget about him. Let''s go." Yang Jie sighed.


    The three of them slowly climbed onto the shore along the pile of rocks. They arrived at an extremely spacious and barren flat land covered with broken rocks.


    There were cracks on the ground and the inside of the crack was completely dark. Qiao Mu casually threw a few stones down but he couldn''t hear a sound.


    "From these cracks, there should have been an earthquake, and usually the tearing movement of the earth''s crust would have cut out such islands. The most typical Hawaiian archipelago is formed in this way. " Arbor''s field exploration experience is self-evident, and he also has certain research on geology.


    This was the second time Su Qin had come to the Small Snake Island, and it was still very panicky. However, this time on the island, she felt different.


    She didn''t know why, but she kept feeling that something wasn''t right.


    Walking behind Qiao Mu and Yang Jie, Su Qin gradually understood where the problem was. It turned out that the island''s environment had changed a little, but the most obvious change was that there were not as many broken rocks, and some of the trees seemed to have been cut down by people. Most importantly, there was a small path under their feet.


    The road was long and thin, very neat and clean, and unlikely to be naturally formed.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie also felt that it was a little strange, so they didn''t put it into their hearts.


    Just as they were walking, Qiao Mu suddenly stopped and realized something.


    He crouched down and pointed to the mud a step away. "Look."


    Under the illumination of the electric light, Yang Jie and Su Qin saw a blurry footprint.


    "The ground on the island is very wet," he asserted. "It must have been raining not long ago, and even the footprints were disturbed by the rain, which means they are new."


    Qiao Mu stood up again and shone his flashlight into the distance. He found that there were still a few footprints, appearing extremely messy.


    There are people on the island!


    That was their first thought.


    Yang Jie also looked around, and said: "Brother, we seem to be in a basin, look near a hill."


    "Yeah." Qiao Mu replied.


    "Sister, do you remember where the cave you went to was?" Yang Jie turned and asked Su Qin.


    "I don''t remember. It was on an island, anyway."


    "Zhongdao?" Qiao Mu was stunned.


    "Yes, there is an island on the island."


    "Let''s go then. This geological appearance is mostly located in the middle of the island." said.


    The three of them gave up their coastal search and headed for the center of the island.


    After about ten minutes or so, they reached a green lake. There was an island in the middle of the lake.


    When the beam from the flashlight shone on the island, the trees were nowhere to be seen. The island seemed to be made of stone, and there was not a single tree to be seen. The island was surrounded by murky green water, as if ¡­ A rotting island!


    "What should we do... Eh? Brother, look! There''s a way! " Yang Jie suddenly pointed.


    Qiao Mu and Su Qin both saw that right in front of them, there was a small path that was made of rubble, leading straight to the small island.


    Su Qin was extremely shocked, and said: "That''s not right, the last time we came, we didn''t see this road! We came by boat! "


    Qiao Mu nodded and said: "No doubt about it. There must be someone living on the island. Let''s go take a look. You guys follow me, don''t touch the water."


    The three of them stepped on the rocks and carefully made their way to the island. As he passed by the green lake, he suddenly had a strange feeling. When he safely arrived at the other side, he looked at the lake and asked: "Do you feel anything in the water?"


    "Yes, I don''t know if it''s just an illusion, but I feel like there are a lot of eyes looking at me." Yang Jie also said.


    Yang Jie''s words reminded Su Qin. Su Qin immediately remembered that when they were on the island, they had indeed seen a lot of strange things that looked like eyeballs. She quickly told Qiao Mu and Yang Jie to pull the two of them away from the lake.


    "At this point, I''m not surprised that anything has happened." said.


    They continued forward, searching for the cave.

 C46

    However, after walking a few steps, they saw an even more shocking scene. Not far away, in the center of the island, there were countless stones piled up in a big circle. The walls were also filled with all sorts of sharp branches, as if to prevent people from climbing over the wall.


    This spectacular scene completely stupefied them.


    Suddenly, they heard some rustling sounds again. Qiao Mu gestured for Su Qin to lean down and put out the electric light together with him. Fortunately, the sky was already starting to brighten up, and things could basically be seen clearly.


    After a while, Qiao Mu led Yang Jie and slowly crawled towards the location of the sound.


    Very soon, they saw a gap in the stone wall in front of them that looked like a huge door. Beside the door, there were two Toad Man s slowly climbing.


    Qiao Mu laughed and asked Yang Jie: "What do you think this looks like?"


    Yang Jie also laughed and said: "Do you still need to ask, the army camp!"


    "Yes." "A military camp, with walls, guards, and even a commander. It seems that Zhao Zhiyou has a deep history regarding the war. "


    Qiao Mu looked around again and realized that there were two big wooden boats parked on the green lake. He guessed that Toad Man must have gotten them from the Flower Snake Village, no wonder he didn''t find any boats at the Flower Snake Village.


    "Brother, have you ever seen a toad sailing?" Yang Jie joked.


    If he was not in this tense situation, Qiao Mu would have been amused by Yang Jie''s words.


    "What do you mean? If we want to find that cave, we have to go through this stone wall. " Qiao Mu said to the two of them.


    Yang Jie and Su Qin nodded, the two of them had already made their decision.


    He began to think about how to get through the stone wall.


    Qiao Mu suddenly felt that the main problem wasn''t the stone wall because with just the two Toad Man s at the entrance, he could easily solve it with the military blade in his hand. But the key was, they didn''t know what was going on inside the wall.


    "You guys wait for me for a while, don''t run around." Qiao Mu decided to investigate. Fortunately, the so-called stone walls were made of crushed stone, and were not airtight, so there were gaps.


    He quickly found a gap between the broken rocks. Through the gap, he could see that there were quite a few Toad Man s inside the wall, almost all surrounding a pile of broken stones. There were also two or three Toad Man s moving the broken stones and continuing to build the stone wall. Aside from that, there were also tools such as shovels, shovels, wooden sticks, hoes, etc., which seemed to have been taken from the Flower Snake Village.


    Just as Qiao Mu was about to leave, he suddenly heard some movement not too far away. He felt that it was strange, so he crawled over, and saw three Toad Man s staggering about, each holding onto a wooden stick.


    Upon closer inspection, it turned out that there was a small cave there. However, the ground around the cave entrance was uneven, and it was also a slope, so it was not easy to be discovered.


    How come there''s a hole?


    He turned back and asked Su Qin.


    "At that time... I did find a hole! The hole is quite big. " Su Qin replied.


    "The hole you are talking about should be inside the stone wall. The hole I saw outside was quite narrow, I think because it was a slope and the terrain was poor, it wasn''t surrounded by stone walls. After all, we are going to reach the lake." Qiao Mu analyzed.


    "In other words, the cave is by the lake?" Yang Jie asked.


    "Yeah, right next to the lake." said.


    Su Qin''s eyes widened, but she suddenly thought of something and said: "Uncle Qiao, I just remembered that when we entered the cave, there was indeed a fork in the road, but we did not take the other road, could it be... Is that the entrance to the cave outside? "


    "That''s possible! It''s very possible! " On second thought, Qiao Mu realized that the opportunity was right in front of them.


    "That''s easy..." If we want to go to the cave, we don''t even need to go through the stone walls. "Right?" Yang Jie said.


    Qiao Mu thought the same as Yang Jie and said: "That''s what I meant too, let''s go."


    "However, you said there were three Toad Man s at the cave entrance." Yang Jie was worried again.


    "It''s fine, leave it to me." He waved the sword in his hand.


    Thus, the three of them came to the place where Qiao Mu was previously hiding. With a single glance, they could clearly see the entrance to the cave and the three Toad Man s.


    Qiao Mu paid attention to the terrain and planned his course of action.


    Just as Qiao Mu was about to move, Yang Jie pulled him back and said: "Be careful, those Toad Man s seem to like attacking people''s throats. They are very smart!"


    Qiao Mu patted Yang Jie''s shoulder and replied: "I know, I knew it since the beginning. You guys wait here for me."


    Qiao Mu then used a few rocks as a cover and held the blade tightly in his right hand. He squatted the entire time and when he was close to one of the Toad Man s, Qiao Mu fiercely rushed out and stabbed towards Toad Man''s chest.


    With this cut, green blood spurted out from Toad Man''s chest and he let out a few cries. Qiao Mu was afraid that Toad Man''s life vein wasn''t in his heart, so he chopped at Toad Man''s head a few times. Then, the other two Toad Man s rushed towards Qiao Mu.


    After killing the Toad Man, Qiao Mu immediately fell into a struggle with the other two Toad Man s. Very quickly, one of the Toad Man s was stabbed in the stomach by Qiao Mu, but Qiao Mu was also hit in the shoulder by the Toad Man and almost fell down from the pain.


    At this time, the Toad Man who had his abdomen pierced by Qiao Mu rushed towards Qiao Mu like crazy. Qiao Mu''s hand raised and his blade descended, the sword directly stabbing into Toad Man''s head, but just happened to be the other Toad Man who pounced on him from the side.


    At that crucial moment, Su Qin and Yang Jie rushed over. One of them held onto a wooden stick that they picked up from the ground, the other held onto a stone, and used their lives to smash towards Toad Man''s head. Toad Man was instantly knocked down and Qiao Mu was able to breathe. He pulled out his blade and added a few more cuts to Toad Man''s head before he was finally able to finish the job.


    After a fierce battle, Qiao Mu panted heavily. He understood that if it wasn''t for Yang Jie and Su Qin''s help just now, he would not have been able to survive.


    Qiao Mu didn''t say much as the three of them walked into the cave.


    When they entered the cave, they discovered that the passage was even narrower than the cave entrance and slightly tilted. Su Qin remembered that the cave at the other end of the cave had similarly slanted its way in, but it was a little wider than this path.


    Of course, Qiao Mu was the first to walk. He turned on the flashlight and shone it everywhere. He could see traces of water everywhere in the cave. It was extremely humid. It should be connected to the nearby lake.


    Because it was the source of the stench, the stench that filled the cave was so strong that it made them feel as if they couldn''t breathe.


    As they gradually went deeper in, the three of them became more and more nervous. In truth, even now, Qiao Mu still could not understand why they came to this cave, could it be just to help Su Qin find the unknown Su Hong? Or was she subtly obeying Zheng Huiling''s orders? It was hard to tell.


    They slowly walked to the three-way exit and the most painful memory of their lives instantly surfaced in Su Qin''s mind. Because at that time, Su Hong had been sucked away by a strong gust of wind and this place became the last place where they were going to separate.


    Suddenly, an earthquake like sound came from the depths of the cave, followed by heavy breathing. It was obvious that the huge rotting corpse, namely Zhao Zhiyou and General Zhao, was still inside the cave.


    Seemingly at the same time, Qiao Mu saw a ball of light in front of him, and a gentle breeze blow directly towards him. In the wind, however, it seemed to contain boundless hatred and rage, and Qiao Mu understood that Zhao Zhiyou''s resentment had already been accumulated for a thousand years.


    "Forward?" Qiao Mu stopped and confirmed.


    The three of them were well aware that they were hovering near the entrance to hell, and every step they took seemed to bring them closer to it.


    "Let''s go." Yang Jie held Qiao Mu''s hand, she knew that there was no turning back now.


    Su Qin walked in front of Qiao Mu and Yang Jie and said, "Let me take the lead. With mother''s protection, I should be fine."


    Qiao Mu permitted Su Qin to do so.


    The three of them proceeded forward slowly, and soon, they arrived at a large pit filled with green water. At the same time, the three of them felt that something was crawling over the top of the cave. When the light shot out, the worms immediately dispersed. Qiao Mu guessed that these things were probably afraid of the light.


    "What are they?" Yang Jie asked while trembling in fear.


    "It looks like an insect." said.


    "Then why does it look like this?"


    "Should... is another great symbol of Zhao Zhiyou. "


    "Another great symbol?"


    "Have you forgotten? When Zhao Zhiyou was alive, his eyeballs were dug out by the two old women, weren''t those bugs similar to eyeballs? I suspect that those worms were just ordinary underground worms in the past, and have mutated to this state. "


    Yang Jie nodded, thinking that not only could Zhao Zhiyou''s poison infect humans, it could even change insects.


    As Qiao Mu and Yang Jie were discussing, they suddenly saw Su Qin suddenly stop and tremble all over.


    It was only then that Yang Jie and Qiao Mu saw that there was actually a person standing in front of them. It was a giant who was tall and big with goosebumps all over his body, and his skin was completely festering. The giant stood at the edge of the pit, a steel knife in his hand, his back to them, wearing only a pair of tattered trousers. There was a bonfire beside the giant, and the fire was burning bright red in the cave.


    The fire had clearly just been lit, otherwise they would have noticed it long ago. There was no doubt that the giants had discovered the three intruders.


    In addition, in the big pit, Zhao Zhiyou was still holding onto a round rock that was lying on the surface of the water, and he didn''t know if it was an illusion, but Su Qin felt that he had opened his eyes a little.


    Under the suffocating silence, the giant slowly turned around. When he saw the giant''s extremely small head, all of the blood in Su Qin''s body seemed to have frozen. That face was extremely familiar and intimate to her, as if she was her father, Su Hong!


    Everything was as she expected, her father Su Hong had truly inherited Zhao Zhiyou''s will and became the guard by Zhao Zhiyou''s side. It was just that she never thought that he would appear in such a manner.


    Seeing Su Hong''s decayed body, gloomy face, and empty eyes, Su Qin''s tears started to fall unwittingly. Qiao Mu and Yang Jie immediately understood that the giant in front of them was Su Hong.


    Su Hong breathed heavily, he glanced at the three people in front of him and immediately revealed a twisted expression, with his face full of wrinkles.


    "Dad, do you still recognize me?" Su Qin asked, trembling.


    Su Hong groaned, placed the steel blade on his shoulder, and slowly walked towards Su Qin.


    Just as Su Qin was prepared to walk over, she was stopped by Qiao Mu.


    "What are you doing? Your father doesn''t know you!"


    "Yeah, he''s under control now!" Yang Jie also pulled Su Qin''s arm.


    Su Qin cried. She was in extreme pain and she felt like she was about to collapse.


    Suddenly, Su Hong raised his steel blade high and roared. Qiao Mu saw that something was wrong and quickly followed Yang Jie to drag Su Qin away, running out of the cave.


    Seeing that they were trying to escape, Su Hong immediately raised his blade and chased after them. His huge body moved, creating a loud sound. When they could not catch up, Su Hong once again let out a wild roar, and the eyes that were crawling on the ceiling of the cave seemed to have received an order, as they instantly swarmed towards Qiao Mu and the others, filling the cave with soft rustling sounds.


    In such a critical situation, Qiao Mu had Yang Jie take the lead and rush straight to the cave entrance. He was in charge of the rear. Fortunately, he had both a flashlight and a military knife. As soon as the strange worms approached him, he would kill them with one slash. After taking care of more than a dozen of eye worms, they finally escaped from the cave.


    When they arrived outside the cave, Qiao Mu and the other two almost collapsed. They felt as if they had just returned from hell and fortunately, Su Hong and the Eyeball Monster Worm did not continue to pursue them. Qiao Mu guessed that they were probably only in charge of protecting Zhao Zhiyou and did not dare to casually leave the cave.


    "Are you okay?" Yang Jie asked Qiao Mu with concern.


    Qiao Mu checked and found that there was really no wound.


    Su Qin sat on the ground in depression. She had never thought that her father had already become a rotten corpse.


    "Did you know, when I saw Su Hong just now, I was thinking about a question." Qiao Mu said to Yang Jie.


    "What problem?"


    "It has to do with Zhao Zhiyou''s grievance. We have already hypothesized before, that Zhao Zhiyou and Tian Yu''er had a strong grudge before they died, and then fused with some special substance in the lake water, resulting in the rotting poison. It should all be because of her hatred towards Zhao Zhiyou. After all, Zhao Zhiyou had burned his lover to death, tortured her to death, and completely torn apart her originally beautiful and free life. But Zhao Zhiyou, what is his grievance for? "


    "The same principle!" Yang Jie bluntly replied, "Before Zhao Zhiyou died, he was also tortured, and his eyeballs were gouged out by others, they would definitely be filled with grievances!"


    "Yes, your thoughts were the same as mine from the beginning, but when I realized that Su Hong had already become Zhao Zhiyou''s puppet, I felt that it wasn''t so."


    "Then what happened?"


    "Think about it, who was Zhao Zhiyou when he was alive? He was a general that had experienced many battles and had seen many bloody scenes. How could he be afraid of this? Or perhaps, did he not have the awareness of the cruel torture he would suffer if he was captured by the enemy one day? I think that in the eyes of a general who marches and fights all year round, this is a matter that should be said for nothing. In fact, as long as death is worth it, they might feel honored instead.


    "Oh ¡­" That makes sense, but that''s not it. What is it? "


    "I didn''t understand it at the beginning, until I saw Su Hong. Then, I remembered that Zhao Zhiyou tried to find a leader who could inherit his will, and Su Hong was once again the person he picked ¡­"


    "What does that mean?" Yang Jie was still confused.


    "Description... What Zhao Zhiyou truly hated was the betrayal of his subordinate, Yang Xin! Think about it, because Yang Xin betrayed him and caused his carefully planned military camp to be breached from the inside, his resentment would naturally skyrocket and his anger would be hard to quell. Then, after about a thousand years, he gradually understood the unfathomable nature of human beings. He had to rely on a more stable and direct way to control his subordinates, so he decided to use the corruption poison to control everything, including people, insects, and even corpses. He had even re-established an army camp on the Small Snake Island to satisfy his twisted resentment and had Su Hong act as the vice-commander like Yang Xin. More... I feel that even now, he still hasn''t completely awoken, the entire process will probably take several years or more, but he is definitely very satisfied. After all, he believes that using the poison to control his own body is the most reliable method, and there won''t be any traitors like Yang Xin. "


    Yang Jie tried her best to digest it after listening for a long time.


    "In other words, Zhao Zhiyou''s grudges are even scarier than Tian Yu''e." Yang Jie said.


    "Yes, Tian Yu''er''s hatred was nothing more than pure hatred towards Zhao Zhiyou, but Zhao Zhiyou was a type of ambition. An intention, I simply do not dare to imagine what would really happen when Zhao Zhiyou wakes up." said.


    "Then... Su Hong, he''s... What kind of person is he? " Yang Jie couldn''t help but ask on behalf of Su Qin.


    "Essentially, Su Hong should be no different from those Toad Man, they have all disappeared, and are just Zhao Zhiyou''s puppets." Qiao Mu said with some regret.


    "I don''t agree!" Su Qin suddenly stood up.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie were stunned at the same time. Qiao Mu asked: "What do you disagree about?"


    "I don''t agree with my father being like those Toad Man. I keep having the feeling that ¡­ "He hasn''t lost consciousness yet. He may be temporarily controlled by that monster, but he definitely knows me and ¡­" Su Qin said excitedly.


    "Little sister, listen to me, I understand your feelings very well, but your father is indeed under Zhao Zhiyou''s control now, and has become Zhao Zhiyou''s number one puppet. Honestly speaking, we do not wish for that either." Yang Jie said.


    "What makes you think so?" Qiao Mu asked Su Qin.


    "Intuition, Uncle Qiao. Don''t you always believe in intuition?" I could tell from the way Dad looked at me that he knew me. "


    Qiao Mu was silent.


    "Uncle Qiao, Sister Yang, can you trust me this once?" Su Qin asked with a pleading tone.


    "What do you want to do?" Qiao Mu asked.


    "I want to go into the cave again, find my dad, and try... Wake him up in front of him. " Su Qin''s voice was soft but filled with determination.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie did not dare believe it, especially Yang Jie, she anxiously replied. "No way, how can we do that!"


    "Let me try. You guys wait here for me. If I''m not out for a long time, you guys might as well leave." Su Qin continued.

 C47

    "You have to calm down. We just escaped with great difficulty!" Yang Jie advised.


    "I''m very calm right now, so don''t worry, sister." Su Qin then placed her hand on Yang Jie''s.


    Qiao Mu was moved by this scene. He then thought: If... This girl is right, but we are wrong?


    Qiao Mu then thought that Su Qin was the core figure in the entire matter that he had determined. Zheng Huiling had already predicted that Su Qin would come back to the Small Snake Island and that the two flower serpentine scarves would also fall into Su Qin''s hands. Furthermore, Zheng Huiling had promised that all of the problems would be solved.


    Qiao Mu began to waver until he said, "Okay, I will accompany you into the cave."


    Yang Jie looked at Qiao Mu, her expression slowly changed from surprise to relief, and after a while, she said: "Then I will also come along, don''t plan on leaving me here alone."


    Su Qin nodded her head heavily, her heart was filled with gratitude.


    Yang Jie and Su Qin quietly picked up two of the Toad Man''s wooden sticks from the ground, and then followed Qiao Mu back into the cave.


    Qiao Mu understood that this was perhaps the most risky gamble in his life. His chances of escaping alive were extremely small, but seeing Su Qin''s determination and courage, he felt a fiery energy pushing him forward.


    After entering the cave, they were quickly attacked by the Eyeball Monster. Luckily, they were well-prepared, Qiao Mu took the lead, wielding a blade in his hand, he cut down a large number of Eyeball Monster Worms, while Yang Jie and Su Qin used a wooden stick to assist from the side. By the time they reached the fork in the road, the worms had realized that the enemy was not easy to deal with and retreated back to the top of the cave.


    After getting rid of the monster bugs, they did not stop and continued to move forward. As they expected, Su Hong was still standing at his original position, and when he saw that they had returned, he revealed a sinister and terrifying expression.


    Su Qin once again faced Su Hong. This time, her expression was calm, and she slowly walked forward.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie looked at each other. They knew that the most crucial moment had arrived, and that they could only leave it to fate.


    "Dad."


    Su Qin stood in front of Su Hong, creating a huge difference in height between the two of them.


    The father and daughter pair looked at each other, and the air seemed to freeze.


    "Dad, I''m Su Qin. You recognize me, right?"


    Su Hong''s body slightly trembled, and his eyes instantly filled with tears.


    After a long while, Su Hong''s face suddenly twisted, he gritted his teeth and raised his steel blade, aiming straight at his neck.


    Su Qin had no intention to dodge. Her heart was as calm as still water as she quietly closed her eyes and called out softly, "Father ¡­ "Father ¡­"


    Su Hong had already placed the steel blade on Su Qin''s neck, causing him to feel a bone-piercing coldness.


    The most fearsome scene was about to unfold. Yang Jie laid on Qiao Mu''s chest, unable to bear to watch.


    Although it was just a short moment, a lot of things suddenly flashed through Su Qin''s mind. She remembered the times when she was young when her father took her out to the beach to play, how her father often made her sit on her knees to play, how her father told her stories before she went to bed, how her father carried her to the hospital when she was sick, how he took her to school no matter what weather or rain, how he accompanied her to school on her bike for the first time, how they took pictures together, how her father always gave her various birthday presents. In the end, she also thought of something that she had often said when her sister Su Miao was just born:


    "Father, mother, Su Qin, Su Miao, we are a family."


    At that moment, Su Qin just blurted out these words, and just as Su Hong was about to make his move,


    Immediately after, Su Hong''s entire body violently trembled as she continuously roared. After a series of explosions, he once again looked at Su Qin, her eyes becoming extremely blurry. He then slowly squatted down, with an extremely pained expression, he finally spat out two words.


    "Su ¡­" "Xin ¡­"


    In the next moment, an earth-shattering sound came from inside the cave. The green water inside the pit slowly fluctuated, and soon formed a whirlpool. After that, rocks and stones continued to fall down from the ceiling. Strong gales were howling inside the cave, and not only the cave, even the entire Small Snake Island was shaking violently.


    "It''s an earthquake!" Yang Jie shouted in panic.


    Qiao Mu held Yang Jie tightly. In the chaos, he took a glance at the crater and noticed that Zhao Zhiyou''s eyes were slowly opening. The armor on his body gradually cracked, revealing pieces of rotten green muscles.


    Qiao Mu looked at Su Hong, then looked at Zhao Zhiyou, and finally understood.


    Zhao Zhiyou was angry! He was truly angered, and when the scene of Su Hong regaining consciousness and stopping his attacks on Su Qin appeared, he was once again betrayed, completely betrayed!


    Zhao Zhiyou released loud sounds again and again, the cave rumbled and shook continuously. Qiao Mu even felt that the cave was about to collapse. In a moment of desperation, he quickly pulled Yang Jie and Su Qin up and retreated to a corner. On the other side, all the Toad Man outside the cave rushed into the cave after being summoned by Zhao Zhiyou, surrounding Su Hong completely.


    Su Hong used his sturdy physique and the steel blade in his hand to quickly kill off a few Toad Man s. However, the Toad Man had the advantage in numbers and he was sick of using shovels and wooden sticks in his hands. Su Hong was also suddenly beaten up by the Toad Man who was besieging him until his entire body was covered with wounds.


    Seeing Su Hong in a difficult situation, Su Qin almost lost his mind and wanted to rush over to help, but he was pulled back by Qiao Mu.


    After both sides fought for a while, it was Su Hong who finally became the victor. He killed all of the Toad Man and also paid a painful price with green blood and wounds all over his body. Just as Su Hong was about to collapse, the strange worms in the ceiling suddenly shot out like lightning and instantly covered his entire body. One after another, black thorns deeply stabbed into his skin and flesh, causing Su Hong to immediately let out a sorrowful cry. In the midst of his pain, he saw the bonfire on the ground at a glance, and then he jumped into the fire ¡­


    At the same time, Zheng Huili, who was lying lifelessly in the deep hole in the Flower Snake Village, heard the heaven-shaking earth-shaking rumbling sounds accompanied by countless of broken stones falling down. She knew that the cave was about to collapse and that everything might end soon.


    She seemed indifferent, and only held onto Zhou Yang''s body that was just dragged out of the stone pit tightly. As if she was waiting for fate to arrange things, she closed her eyes ¡­


    On the other side, Su Hong had jumped into the flames. Su Hong rolled on the ground in pain. When the flames extinguished, he was also at his last gasp.


    , Qiao Mu, Yang Jie walked over to Su Hong''s side. Su Qin was in extreme pain and his face was covered in tears. She gently touched Su Hong''s burnt face and heard the sound that Su Hong was trying to squeeze out.


    "Xin ¡­" Xin... You... Come... "It''s done ¡­"


    Su Qin could no longer endure it and began to cry while leaning on Su Hong''s chest that was full of green blood and rotten flesh. Only Qiao Mu suddenly noticed a bizarre scene.


    As he approached the pit, he saw that the green water had completely disappeared. It was obvious that the green water had flowed elsewhere due to the earthquake, so he was able to see the environment at the bottom of the pit clearly. At the bottom of the pit, however, there were all sorts of strange green plants, which were like tentacles, emitting a faint green light. Qiao Mu looked down and was suddenly enlightened. He thought to himself, "Isn''t this the origin of everything?" The special substance in the lake water was mostly these rare plants that had fused with Zhao Zhiyou''s and Tian Yu''er''s resentful corpses. Not only did they turn these two into Giant Corrupt Corpses, they even released a poison that contained special powers ¡­


    Atop the round stone in the hole, Zhao Zhiyou''s Giant Corpse was slightly moved, following that, the upper half of its body slowly sat up, and when it sat upright, it slowly opened its eyes.


    Qiao Mu, Yang Jie, and Su Qin were so frightened that their faces turned pale while Qiao Mu retreated. Just then, Zhao Zhiyou turned his neck and faced them, revealing an evil and strange smile.


    "It''s awake! It''s completely awake!" Yang Jie shouted in panic.


    Qiao Mu protected Yang Jie but Su Qin still could not let go of him. The cave was gloomy, as if a catastrophe was coming.


    Unknowingly, Qiao Mu caught a glimpse of the bonfire on the ground. Because of the large amount of green blood mixed within Su Hong''s body, the fire had turned green and a ball of faint, burning green fire was burning.


    Qiao Mu''s heart skipped a beat as if he had realized something. He looked around and found that the cave was covered with branches and leaves. There were some strange cave plants in the corner of the cave. Most of these plants had branches and leaves, and after the strong wind just now, the branches and leaves had all been blown away.


    Seeing this, Qiao Mu suddenly thought of what Zheng Huiling had said to the other Flower Serpent Wipe: The Black House is full of leaves, green fire burns, Heaven''s Eyes open, and everything is over.


    Qiao Mu had never expected that Zheng Huiling''s words would actually be a prophecy.


    "I understand the meaning of the other sentence!" Qiao Mu quickly said to Yang Jie.


    Yang Jie and Su Qin were stunned as they looked at Qiao Mu at the same time.


    "The dark room is full of leaves, the green flames are burning, the Heaven''s Eye is open, everything is extinguished ¡­" Qiao Mu mumbled and repeated, then explained, "Black House obviously refers to this cave. Right now, the cave is filled with leaves and branches, which is also consistent with Black House''s description of a full leaf. Secondly, ''Green Fire'' is burning, look at that pile of fire, isn''t it already turning into a ball of green fire? I still do not understand the meaning of "Heaven''s Eyes" at the moment, but Zheng Huiling must be trying to tell us a way to resolve this! "


    "I understand too, Zheng Huiling means that everything will end if we satisfy those three conditions!" Yang Jie said loudly.


    "Yes yes yes, but what does'' Heaven''s Eye ''refer to? Where is the Heaven''s Eye? " Qiao Mu looked around and asked anxiously.


    Zhao Zhiyou let out another low and deep sound, and at the moment, the rotten meat on its body was boiling as it stirred, supporting itself on the ground with both of its hands, ready to stand up.


    Qiao Mu looked at Zhao Zhiyou and understood that they were running out of time, they had to quickly figure out the meaning of "Heaven''s Eyes"!


    "Heaven''s Eye, Heaven''s Eye ¡­" While searching, he gritted his teeth and repeated.


    "Uncle, look!" Just as Qiao Mu and Yang Jie were at their wit''s end, Su Qin suddenly pointed at the top of the cave.


    Qiao Mu and Yang Jie suddenly raised their heads and saw a ray of light shoot into the cave from the highest point. The trees assumed that the sky outside was already bright, and the rocks on the roof had cracked open due to the earthquake, which was why light was coming in from outside the cave.


    But this gap was still too small, it was not enough to become a Heaven''s Eye!


    Thinking of this, Qiao Mu had an idea. He immediately picked up a stick from the ground and smashed it into the crack. With a "Bang!" sound, a pile of rubble rapidly fell from the gap and a small hole was formed!


    "Sky Eye!" It must be the Heaven''s Eyes! " Yang Jie shouted.


    Through the so called "Heaven''s Eye," Qiao Mu saw the gloomy horizon outside the cave, and then looked at the rotting corpse, Zhao Zhiyou. He immediately realized that the Heaven''s Eye was actually aimed at the round rock below.


    The Heaven''s Eyes was looking straight at Zhao Zhiyou, what did that mean? Qiao Mu''s mind raced.


    In the blink of an eye, a figure appeared at the entrance of the cave like a ghost.


    Qiao Mu, Yang Jie, Su Qin, rotting corpse Zhao Zhiyou, and even Su Hong who had one breath left, all looked at that figure. The man wore a gray overcoat and a peaked cap. His face was covered with bandages, revealing only his eyes.


    Then the man slowly took off his coat. It turned out that his entire body was covered with bandages.


    Yang Jie sized him up for a moment, then finally recognized him and shouted: "Xiao Yi!"


    The one who came over was the Guo Yi who had been missing for a few days!


    "Is it Xiaoyi? Why are you here? " Yang Jie hurriedly asked.


    Who knew that Guo Yi would ignore them, and not even look at them. His eyes stared straight at Zhao Zhiyou.


    In an instant, Qiao Mu understood!


    "He''s not Guo Yi." Qiao Mu said calmly.


    "Then who is he?" Yang Jie asked anxiously.


    "Tian Yu Er."


    Qiao Mu thought to himself: Yes, this was the chance Tian Yu''e had been waiting for for a thousand years. From the moment Mr.Guo and Xiao Yi fell into that crack in the rocks, Tian Yu''er had already started his revenge. Xiao Yi must have been infected with the poison, and came to the Small Snake Island with the poison, or perhaps with Tian Yu''e''s will.


    had obviously foreseen all of this, so she asked Sun Erke to be in charge of bringing Little Yi Island. The person Sun Erke had said he would wait for, was none other than Guo Yi.


    "Tian Yu ¡­" Just as Yang Jie was about to ask another question, she saw Guo Yi at the entrance of the cave slowly ripping off the bandages on his body. A strange face that looked like a pomegranate formed from countless pieces of flesh suddenly appeared. Guo Yi continued to stare at Zhao Zhiyou, staring hard at him ¡­


    In the next moment, Guo Yi''s rotten flesh started to crumble, and started to fall from his body, transforming into an endless hatred, all of it rushing towards the huge pit.


    This hatred had been stored for a thousand years, buried for a thousand years. Accompanied by Tian Yu''er''s painful screams, it fell onto Zhao Zhiyou''s entire body!


    When Guo Yi completely disintegrated and the pieces of flesh clashed with the rotting corpse of Zhao Zhiyou, it immediately turned into water with a strong corrosive property that contained a strong power. Zhao Zhiyou found it hard to endure as its body started to crack, and pieces of flesh flew everywhere ¡­ A dull rumble resounded again. Mixed with Tian Yu''s shrill cries, the two souls, including their ruined bodies, were destroyed at the same time ¡­


    Soon after, the earth rumbled, and leaves floated in the air. Qiao Mu, Yang Jie, Su Qin and Su Hong all embraced each other ¡­


    After an unknown amount of time, he finally regained his calm. Guo Yi and Zhao Zhiyou had both disappeared, and there was only a puddle of green decayed water on the round boulder.


    "Who would have thought that a thousand year old rotten corpse, thinking to control everything through the corruption poison, would actually die from corrosion in the end? How ironic!"


    "En, I was punished by an even stronger corrosive force." Yang Jie agreed.


    At this time, they saw several toads that came from nowhere jump onto the round rock. They stuck out their tongues to lick the rotten water on the round rock, as if they were trying to suck it into their bodies. These toads were clearly infected by the poison as well. They were much larger than normal toads and were even emitting a faint green glow.


    "Right now, we should know why people from Flower Snake Village have become Toad Man." said.


    "It seems like Zhao Zhiyou hopes that the person he controls can be like this toad and spread the poison via his body." Yang Jie said.


    On the other side, Su Qin chose to accompany Su Hong who was about to die, and watched her father''s final journey.


    Slowly, a woman''s face appeared on the wall beside them. The woman''s face was dignified and elegant, faint and faint, like a thin layer of gauze.


    She looked at Su Qin and Su Hong, and the two of them looked at the lady too.


    "Mom ¡­" Su Qin''s eyes were filled with tears.


    "I''m thinking ¡­" Qiao Mu had been staring fixedly at that round stone the entire time. His face was filled with vicissitudes, and he seemed to have aged quite a bit all of a sudden. "How can a person''s hatred last for so long? A thousand years!"


    "Yeah, but..." Some emotions, can pierce through obstacles, and can even transcend life and death. " Yang Jie looked at Su Qin and said.


    Su Qin was currently caressing the soul of Zheng Huiling who was lying on the rock wall with his hand, while her other hand was holding tightly onto Su Hong''s big hand.


    "Dad, mom, our family is reunited again."


    Su Qin''s face finally brimmed with a smile.


    Oh no!

 C48

    Mr.Zhao was forty-eight years old this year, but his face was filled with wrinkles, making him look like he was in his sixties.


    This year was his twelfth year in the black car. He would go out every night and return home at dawn to spend the days and nights reversed.


    Although he was driving a black car, the paint on the car of the Mr.Zhao was snow-white, the reason being that he had been accused since he was young, and was easy to attract ghosts, in the past, the Mr.Zhao did not think much of it, but now that he was old, he was less bold, and was afraid of it, so he decided to drive a white car, it was brighter, and even had a protective talisman on him to avoid the Evil Qi.


    Tonight, Mr.Zhao went out after dinner as usual. He was lucky, as soon as he got out of the car.


    The round trip from the provincial capital to the suburbs took around four hours. The long trip list was the most cost-effective time to travel. There wasn''t any delay for them to have a midnight snack on their way back.


    The Mr.Zhao successfully delivered the guests to their destination. Then, he did not linger and directly returned.


    However, when he arrived at the bridge, which he had to cross, he discovered that it had been blocked. It turned out that there had been a serious accident on the bridge and the two container trucks had collided, so he had to seal the bridge.


    Mr.Zhao blamed himself for being unlucky. Since there was nothing he could do, he could only change the route.


    He turned the car around and soon was on a deserted path.


    Mr.Zhao was familiar with this path, but it was something that happened seven or eight years ago. At that time, he did not have a way out, so he could only take this path.


    The Mr.Zhao was also clear about that rumor. They said that five years ago, there was a fire at a funeral home located on the small path. After that, the funeral home became an abandoned place, and there were many ghosts nearby, saying that if a car passed by the funeral home, there would be ghosts coming to pick it up, so you must not stop.


    During the journey, the Mr.Zhao would naturally think of that rumor. Furthermore, the road was currently pitch black, there wasn''t even a single street light on, which made him even more flustered.


    After a while, Mr.Zhao yawned twice and pinched his neck, feeling a little tired. At this time, he realised that the road ahead was getting narrower and blacker, and there was even a red car stopping to block his way.


    Because the road was too narrow and only one car was allowed to pass, Mr.Zhao was forced to stop the car. He glared at the back of the red car and thought angrily: Who is so wicked to park in a place like this?


    In the dark, the red sedan looked cold, with no lights.


    Mr.Zhao pressed his horn a few times, but the other party did not react at all.


    Mr.Zhao always felt that there should be someone in the carriage. A normal person would never be able to stop their car on the road, so he decided to take a look.


    When Mr.Zhao just got out of the car, he discovered that the red car was starting to reverse slowly. It was moving very slowly, but it was definitely moving.


    Mr.Zhao felt a chill down his spine. From his experience, he knew that the carriage was not on fire and the road was flat. Unless there was a cart, the carriage would not move on its own.


    The red carriage slowly approached, causing Mr.Zhao to stand there in a daze.


    The Mr.Zhao looked around and spotted a large metal gate to his left. Inside the gate, there was a pile of ruins, and beside the door, there was a sign with black and white characters written on it. It read: Peach Blossom Funeral Home.


    Mr.Zhao''s heart sank. He felt like his feet were stepping on cotton. He was really unlucky today, to be able to come to this place.


    Mr.Zhao was very clear about the funeral home''s incident, there must be a problem with this red car! Mr.Zhao turned around and left, but at this time, he saw a woman wearing bright red clothes with hair down to her waist standing beside the back door. The woman had a red hand that knocked on the window, looking similar to the people who would normally request to get on the carriage.


    Dong! Dong! Dong!


    Muffled sounds came from the window, causing Mr.Zhao''s scalp to go numb. Ignoring the woman in red, he summoned up his courage and quickly returned to the car. He backed it up, turned around, and left the funeral parlor at a speed of 120 yards.


    Along the way, the Mr.Zhao kept looking at the mirror, afraid that the ghost girl would catch up.


    When he got home the next day, Mr.Zhao had a high fever and rested in bed for a few days. However, he did not dare to mention to his family that he had met a female ghost. It was not until two weeks later, when he was drinking with some of his brothers who were driving the black car, that he finally spoke of it.


    A slightly knowledgeable brother told him that the red sedan that night was just a smokescreen, but that the ghost girl had wanted to take his car and had deliberately hallucinated to stop him.


    The brother also said that once a person was tired, he would easily hallucinate and be possessed by a ghost. It was because Mr.Zhao was tired from driving that night that he was tricked by the ghost lady.


    In the following month, Mr.Zhao did not have much business to do.


    One day, because it was raining heavily, Mr.Zhao got out of the car at noon. The reason why he was so early was because it was difficult to find out about the dark car in the rain. The other reason was that he was going to the county city to attend his old brother''s son''s wedding tonight.


    Who knew that after an entire afternoon, Mr.Zhao would only receive one business deal, and it was still a short trip. With a bad mood, Mr.Zhao saw that it was getting late, so he simply stopped his work and rushed to the county city.


    On his way to the county town, he had to pass the River Crossing Bridge, but when he drove to the River Crossing Bridge, he was dumbfounded. It turned out that the bridge had been sealed off again because of the construction of the bridge. Mr.Zhao was furious, he thought to himself, this was too unlucky.


    He had to change routes, but the problem was that the only route left was the small road in front of the funeral home. When Mr.Zhao thought about the small road, his heart trembled.


    After hesitating for a while, Mr.Zhao still decided to take the risk. Fortunately, it was only dusk and the situation was very different from that night.


    After around thirty minutes, Mr.Zhao once again travelled to the small road. On the road, it was raining cats and dogs and the sky was dark.


    It was not a disaster, it was a disaster that couldn''t be avoided. With that in mind, the Mr.Zhao finally pulled into the alleyway. Like that night, the alleyway became narrower and narrower, and he knew that the abandoned funeral home was not far away.


    Very quickly, Mr.Zhao arrived at the section of the road in front of the funeral home, the place where the ghost was killed that night. However, the situation today was very different from that night.


    They were clearly "living cars", the people sitting inside the carriage, Mr.Zhao, could see them clearly. Some of the drivers held an umbrella above their heads and were muttering something as they got off the carriage.


    Unconsciously, Mr.Zhao heard a few drivers talking, and realised that the first car had broken down and blocked off the road, causing the cars behind to be forced to stop. The drivers could not hold it in and were preparing to help repair the car.


    Seeing that there were more people around, Mr.Zhao was relieved, but when he got out of the car to join the crowd, he saw a blurry shadow standing next to every car. The shadows seemed as if they had never been drenched by the rain, and a drizzle of rain even passed through their bodies, creating a strange scene. They were all doing the same thing: slowly tapping the window!


    Mr.Zhao was so scared that he quickly closed the door of the car, then he looked at the sign that read "Peach Blossom Funeral Home", and instantly understood.


    These ghosts wanted to hitchhike, but they had targeted every single one of their cars!


    The Mr.Zhao didn''t have time to think about it too much and immediately retreated. Like that night, he desperately turned back the car and left the funeral parlor.


    He was scared, really scared. His brother''s son''s wedding would not be successful, and he swore that he would never come back on this path even if he was beaten to death.


    The sky was already dark, the rain was still pouring down crazily, the wipers were swinging quickly, and the Mr.Zhao was gradually calming down. Just then, he thought of a question.


    Why were there ghosts next to those cars just now, except for my car?


    Mr.Zhao was puzzled.


    He turned around, wanting to take another look at the situation behind him, but at that moment, he suddenly saw a woman in red with long hair and a blurry face sitting in the back seat of his car. It was the ghost of a woman he met that night!


    Only then did Mr.Zhao understand that those ghosts did not come to take his carriage because he already had one.


    From that night on, the ghost girl got into his car and sat in it. It was no wonder that business was so poor this past month. Occasionally, a passenger would sit in the front seat.


    Mr.Zhao remembered something his drinking buddies had told him. They told him that the hitchhikers in front of the funeral home only wanted to go to the place where they were before their deaths. If they didn''t reach their destination, they would never get out of the car, forever ¡­


    Oh no!

 C49

    When my grandmother was alive, she loved to nibble on her chicken feet. Earlier on, she sent someone to the town to buy chicken feet, but later on, she found it troublesome and decided to do it herself. She first washed all the chicken feet clean, then enlarged the pot and boiled it with water. Finally, she added in various seasonings and stirred it. When the fragrance of the bowl of chicken feet was out of the oven, she took it in her hands and ate it with relish.


    Gritting the chicken feet was probably the most interesting thing that Grandma had ever done in her life.


    Even though she had broken her leg more than a year ago and could not get out of bed all day, she was still thinking about chicken feet and occasionally had someone buy her some. Even the night before her death, she had gnawed at several chicken feet.


    When Grandma died, there was really no sign at all. She could eat and speak clearly, but that morning, while my aunt was feeding her porridge, she suddenly couldn''t catch it in one breath and left the world in a hurry.


    I still don''t understand what the cause of my grandmother''s death is, so old age is a bit of a drag, but my family lives in the countryside, and I have a big family, my first uncle, first aunt, second uncle, second aunt, my aunt, my cousin, and my cousin. Other than me, who was in elementary school in the town for a few years, no one else knows Chinese, so my mind is especially pedantic, and I always think it''s natural for people to die of old age, regardless of the cause of death.


    After all, after Grandma broke her leg, she was always in bed and needed someone to take care of her. At the beginning, it wasn''t a big deal, but as time went by, the rest of the family would more or less complain, and my uncle and aunt would often say bad things to Grandma. I can''t say for sure that my uncle and aunt would have wanted my grandmother to die soon, but it''s funny, because at all the rituals that my grandmother died, my aunt was the one who cried the most, why did she say "like," because I knew she was acting, and of course it wasn''t just my aunt who was acting.


    After Grandma left, everything went well, and I even thought everyone was having a happier time. His grandfather had died early on, and now that his grandmother was dead, there was no longer any need for him to take care of this old man.


    Not long after, something strange happened at home.


    My granddaughter was the first to notice the strangeness.


    The situation that night was like this: I had to urinate in the middle of the night and go out to the hut to relieve myself. I could vaguely see a figure in the kitchen, sitting on a wooden stool, bowing and repeating a small movement. After looking at it for a while, I found that it looked a bit familiar. It was exactly the way my grandma looked when she was gnawing on the chicken feet!


    Because aside from his grandma, his first and second aunt occasionally nibbled on chicken feet as well. This time, his second aunt made a basin and put it in the kitchen. He didn''t expect to attract his grandma, who liked nibbling on chicken feet, over there.


    I was so scared that I accidentally peed on my pants, and then I ran back to my room. The next day, a few chicken feet were missing from the kitchen, and I knew ¡ª Grandma was back!


    But I didn''t dare tell this to my family, so when my second aunt asked why the chicken feet were missing, I could only admit that I had bitten them.


    After this incident, I often saw my grandmother in the middle of the night, hiding in the kitchen and nibbling on her chicken feet. After a while, I realized that I couldn''t hide it any longer, so I finally told her the truth. From that day on, his second aunt did not dare to make chicken feet anymore, and his grandma also did not appear.


    Unfortunately, the good times didn''t last long. Soon, something even stranger happened at home.


    First uncle and first aunt were the problems. One morning, my aunt was shouting like a madman. She woke up to find her and my uncle''s hands were long and thin, and covered with wrinkles like pimples!


    In my opinion, the way their hands look, it''s like... Chicken claws!


    A few days later, Second Uncle, Second Aunt, and Cousin''s hands also began to change into chicken claws.


    The village suddenly burst into discussion. Many people said that our family was not filial when we were alive, and all of us hoped that the old lady would die early. After that, she would not even cook chicken feet. First aunt is a typical rural shrew, do not listen to these gossip, so all day long and the village people quarrelled, endlessly. Until one night, when she was sound asleep, something bit off two of her fingers and she fainted on the spot.


    After the incident, we sent First Aunt to the hospital together, all the way to the house, Aunt was screaming like a pig, the rest of the family didn''t dare to talk, no one talked about what bit off Auntie''s finger, and no one talked about where her finger had fallen, because the answer was obvious, Granny was trying to get back at her by treating Aunt''s finger like a chicken''s paw!


    The doctor was startled when he saw our family''s claw-like hands, but the small local hospital didn''t want to care too much and could only say that they didn''t know what was going on. When we were done with the bandages, First Aunt''s expression was bleak. She finally told us that Granny''s death was indeed related to her. It turned out that that morning, First Aunt had cooked the porridge for Grandma as usual, but who knew that because of her defeat at the mahjong field, she had been angered, and because she found it hard to serve her, she had deliberately placed a few big red dates in the porridge. Grandma didn''t wear a set of false teeth, so she could only swallow a few big red dates.


    To be honest, I wasn''t that surprised when I heard about it, and the rest of us looked like me, too, considering that we''d all been at her bedside the day Grandma died, but no one was going to take her to the hospital. So it seemed that Grandma was angry with us for taking revenge on us, especially since we didn''t even cook her favorite chicken feet. She wanted to get even worse, so she just bit off the finger of the main culprit. And I don''t think she''ll stop, because the other family members have turned their hands into chicken feet, and I expect her to bite them off one by one.


    The next day, I moved to town, and since my parents had been doing business there for a long time, they rented a house there.


    But when I went, my parents happened to be out, and I was alone at night.


    At night, as I sat on my bed against the wall, I was still afraid, because I remembered something.


    The hard red dates my aunt fed my grandmother were the ones I bought in town.


    It was clear that Eldest Aunt''s intention of harming Granny had already been revealed.


    I also know that red dates were eaten by my grandmother, but I still don''t mind.


    In fact, when I saw two red dates left in my grandmother''s porridge, I could guess what had happened to her.


    But I remained indifferent.


    At this moment, I couldn''t help but shiver as I stood in the small room. Unknowingly, the sound of light footsteps came from outside the door. Immediately after, an old and frail figure unexpectedly passed through the door and appeared beside my bed.


    Only then did I notice that my hands had also become chicken feet.


    Oh no!

 C50

    My name is Li Mo, people familiar with me call me Little Mo, this year I''m 15 years old. In the entire village, Big Bear and Ah Feng and I had the best relationship, we were good brothers who grew up together.


    The big bear is three years older than I am, and he is as big and thick as his name suggests. Because his family was poor, he did not go to school for a long time.


    Ah Feng is the same age as me, he has a similar personality, and is also a neighbor of mine.


    We were together almost every day, doing good or bad, and of course we did bad things more often.


    Let''s not talk about it first. We have done countless bad things, such as stealing chickens and ducks from people''s homes, picking fruits and vegetables from their plants, trampling over other people''s fields, smashing glass with rocks, and setting fire to straw. All of these things are common to us.


    In addition to good and bad things, we also do some strange things, and one of the strangest things is called plundering graves.


    Why plagiarize graves? It was actually a test game, invented by a bear with a belly full of bad ideas. It could be done with only three pieces of paper and three pens. All three of them took a piece of paper and a pen and stepped into the cemetery at the same time. They then wrote down the names of the dead on each tombstone, and in the end, the more tombstones someone memorized, the winner would win. The winner would receive the appropriate rewards, for example, the two other losers would be responsible for buying food.


    The game seemed boring, but it was actually a test of courage. The cemetery behind the mountain was huge, so I couldn''t hold on in the beginning. The winner was usually the big bear.


    In the past, we would always play grave raiding once a year. Because our village has a lot of people, especially the elderly, there are always new tombstones in the back of the mountain.


    The winter this year was exceptionally short. Just past the middle of February, Big Bear and Ah Feng impatiently ran over to my house, saying that there were a few old men in the village who weren''t able to make it through the winter. They also erected a few tombstones at the back of the mountain.


    Amongst the three of them, my personality was the most passive. Normally, they would just say whatever they wanted to say.


    The bet on the grave raiding was that everyone would take some New Year''s gifts from their homes and give them all to the winners.


    For me, this year''s stock will not be preserved. After all, I''m not likely to win.


    Thus, late into the night, we brought along pen and paper, and followed the old method, sneaking out of our homes and rushing to the back of the mountain to meet up with them.


    Along the way, the wind was blowing and the air was chilly. Although the winter was almost over, it was still very cold in the middle of the night.


    When I got to the grave, I was shivering with cold. I didn''t know if I was scared or cold, but I kept feeling that something was wrong with me tonight. Big Bear looked at me and laughed. "Are you afraid?"


    I nodded.


    "What''s there to be afraid of? It''s not like I''ve never played before." Ah Feng also laughed.


    "That''s right, it''s more fun to be afraid. If something really happens, we''ll just keep it under wraps. Good brother!"


    I know that Big Bear is a loyal person. He always keeps the word "good brother" in his mouth. However, his words gave me a lot of courage.


    We chose a reasonable place to pluck the grave.


    The big bear counted one, two, three, and then looked at his watch to check the time. He and Ah Feng were the first to go.


    Because the grave is now much larger than before and the fog this night is heavier, I could only tremble as I copied three tombstones. Then, I would no longer be able to see Da Xiong and Ah Feng.


    I whispered their names, but they didn''t answer.


    Fortunately, the moon was bright in the back of the mountain, so at least I wouldn''t get lost in the graveyard.


    I lowered my head and continued copying the words on the tombstone.


    Strange to say, after I copied a few pieces, my courage gradually grew. Perhaps it was because I was numb. In short, I copied everything along the way. I even felt like I might get first place this time.


    At this moment, I saw an extremely brand-new tombstone at the end of the tombstone. I didn''t know if it was my imagination, but I felt that the tombstone was slightly shining.


    I thought: isn''t that Big Bear''s name, Wu Xiong Xiong?


    I looked at the date of birth and death on the side of the ranking board, and found that the date of birth completely matched the date of birth of the big bear, but the date of death was more than a month later!


    I took a deep breath and felt a stir in my heart.


    Big Bear is obviously with me, how could something happen to him? It had to be someone''s prank!


    At the same time, I heard the big bear behind me shout, "Time''s up!"


    It turned out that Big Bear and Ah Feng were already behind me.


    When I saw the big bear appear in front of me, I was not only relieved, but also relieved. I wasn''t going to tell him about the discovery of the Great Bear, for fear he''d be unlucky, so I missed a tombstone.


    Who knew that just because I lacked the big bear''s portion, I would lose to another big bear. Originally, if I were to include this piece, I would have achieved my first ever victory.


    The next day, Ah Feng and I brought the New Year stuff, which was used as a wager, to Big Bear''s house. Big Bear''s mother even invited us for a meal, but she didn''t know that we were interrogating Big Bear''s grave, and even more so didn''t know that I found Big Bear''s tombstone at the graveyard.


    In a few days, I will be going to the city to attend high school. In the future, I won''t be able to spend all day with Big Bear Ah Feng. Before I left, I kind of wanted to tell Big Bear about the tombstone and tell him to tear down the grave, but I was naturally timid, so I didn''t say it.


    The days of school in the city were so boring that I couldn''t run around like I did in the countryside. I was living with relatives, relatives I didn''t know very well, and felt even more uncomfortable. I was preparing to go back and reunite with Big Bear Ah Feng, so I called Ah Feng''s home in advance. Unexpectedly, when Ah Feng heard that I was coming back, he seemed cold and confused, and when I asked him if anything had happened to him, he told me bitterly that Big Bear had left.


    "He left? Where did he go? " I asked.


    "The meaning behind his departure ¡­" He died. "


    I was stunned for a moment, as if struck by lightning.


    I choked with sobs and asked, "Why ¡­" Dead? When did this happen!? "


    "Not long after you left, he fell ill. The doctor said that he didn''t look well, and that he would die within a few days." Ah Feng''s voice was filled with grief.


    My heart lurched, and then I remembered something: the Great Bear Tombstone I had run into that night!


    Maybe it was a coincidence, maybe it wasn''t. Anyway, I found the big bear tombstone first, and the big bear died very quickly, and the date of death matched the date of death on the tombstone. I had a vague feeling that the tombstone was a kind of prophecy.


    No, I have to go back to the village.


    The next day, I requested for two days of sick leave from the school and hastily returned to the village. Ah Feng immediately brought me to the cemetery in the rear mountains, when I saw the big bear tombstone, I confirmed that this tombstone had predicted the time of Big Bear''s death. The location of the tombstone and the information it contained were exactly the same as that night.


    I asked Ah Feng who built the tombstone, and Ah Feng said it was Big Bear''s mother.


    I cried at the tomb of the great bear. I even had the urge to dig up the carcass of the bear and check it out.


    When I went down the mountain with Ah Feng, I was thinking about one thing: If I told Big Bear about the tombstone earlier, what would happen? Would the big bear still die?


    That night, Ah Feng accompanied me to pay respects to Big Bear''s mother. Big Bear''s mother seemed to have aged ten years due to her excessive sadness.


    Since I had only taken two days off, I had to leave the next day. Before leaving, I ran alone to the cemetery in the back of the mountain to kowtow a few more times to the bear.


    "We''re good brothers!"


    Along the way, the words of the bear seemed to echo in my ears.


    After stepping into the cemetery and kowtowing to the bear, I was about to leave when, in the instant I turned around, I felt as if an electric current had passed through my entire body. I felt a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu.


    I jerked my head to one side and stared at another tombstone at the far end. Like the one I''d seen at the time, the tombstone looked new and glimmering.


    When I got closer, my face turned pale. The words on the tombstone read: Wang Feng''s Tomb!


    Ah Feng''s grave, Ah Feng''s grave had also appeared!


    Again, I was both frightened and anxious. The tombstone seemed to have predicted death, and the date of Ah Feng''s death was just around the corner.


    Only this time, I''m not going to run away. After that, I ran like the wind towards Ah Feng''s home and told him everything, including the matter of the Big Bear Tombstone. But when we rushed back to the back mountain together, Ah Feng''s grave was already gone.


    Ah Feng knew that I wouldn''t lie, so he trusted my words, and I believed that I wasn''t mistaken. I told Ah Feng to be more careful, and to talk to me over the phone.


    In the evening, I took a bus back to town and went back to school. Afterwards, Ah Feng called me from time to time. We had a lot of secrets to discuss, so he often used the village''s public phone.


    In this year, Ah Feng is safe and sound and has been in contact with me all this time. He even said that he likes a girl, that she''s called Sighty One, spending all day with me and I say, you brat, you are so shameless. Just because you look like a monkey that you haven''t matured yet, what right do I have to fall for you? Ah Feng also said that he would definitely get together when I return home for the new year.


    Hearing Ah Feng talk about Big Bear, I felt a bit sad. I understood the meaning behind Ah Feng''s words. Even though we are separated from Big Bear by Yin and Yang, we can''t forget our good brothers from before.


    Currently, I am filled with guilt towards the big bear. It was only because the big bear encountered the same fate as Ah Feng, but the result was different. The difference is that Ah Feng received the "Death Proclamation" from the tombstone in advance, whereas the big bear didn''t. The responsibility for this was naturally mine. If I told the bear about the tombstone as soon as possible, I might be able to save the bear from death.


    On the first day of our school''s winter vacation, I rode back to the village early in the morning. I thought that I would soon meet Ah Feng and take the opportunity to take a look at his little girlfriend.


    In the afternoon when we arrived at the village, I didn''t even return home, but directly ran towards Ah Feng''s house. But when I pushed open the door to Ah Feng''s house, I was stunned. At that moment, it was as if my soul had left the world.


    Ah Feng''s portrait was hanging on the wall, facing the entrance of their house. Ah Feng''s mother was also hurt when she saw me.


    My heart crazily screamed: Ah Feng is dead! How could this be? How could this be? We just talked on the phone yesterday, Ah Feng is still fine!


    I pretended to be calm and asked Ah Feng about Ah Feng. As a result, I received extremely shocking news. So it turns out that Ah Feng had fallen into the river and drowned half a year ago. His mother and his family didn''t dare to tell me because they were worried that I would be too sad and miss out on my studies.


    Ah Feng''s death date was exactly the same as the date of death on his tombstone!


    This message, like a bomb, caught me off guard. Not only am I suspicious, if Ah Feng had passed away, who was the one who had been contacting me all this while?


    I immediately ran to the public phone booth that Ah Feng used to call me from, but found that the phone booth had already been torn down. I asked the villagers nearby, and they told me that the phone booth had already been torn down a long time ago.


    I was terrified, no matter how I thought about it, I could not understand why Ah Feng would end up like a big bear. In the end, he could only conclude that the tombstone that announced his death would not change because the person concerned did not know about it!


    Whether it was Big Bear or Ah Feng, both were destined to die the moment their tombstones appeared.


    I never thought that the person who had been maintaining communication with me for so long would actually be Ah Feng''s ghost.


    I felt that I had to go to the back of the mountain and check, so I slowly walked up the back of the mountain and stepped into the cemetery. After finding Ah Feng''s grave, I couldn''t suppress the grief in my heart and started crying loudly.


    Ah Feng''s grave is right beside the big bear''s grave, and it''s exactly the same as the one I saw the other day. I also noticed that on the other side of Ah Feng''s grave, there was a tombstone with the name of the deceased person as Hu Yang. He was one year younger than Ah Feng and had died about three months ago.


    I remembered the little girlfriend that Ah Feng mentioned. It was about three months ago, that Ah Feng mentioned this girl to me and said that he was with her all day. Ah Feng was right, their tombstone was very close. They were indeed "together" all day.


    Just then, I noticed that behind Ah Feng''s tombstone, there was another new tombstone. Under the dusk, it was shining with a faint light, and I wondered if I was seeing things, so I walked in and saw clearly written on the tombstone: Li Mo''s Tomb.


    Li Mo! That''s my name.


    My eyes widened as I retreated step by step, looking at my own tombstone in disbelief. A thought filled my mind: First it''s the big bear, then it''s Ah Feng, now it''s my turn, none of us can escape misfortune! Why? Because we come every year to plagiarize the grave and treat the most important memento of the dead as a child''s play, we suffer retribution?


    Suddenly, I heard someone call out my name from behind me. Turning my head around, what I saw were Big Bear and Ah Feng''s figures.


    At the same time, they smiled at me and said, "Good brother, we will always be together."


    Oh no!

 C51

    In the afternoon, Zhang Nan was seated leisurely in a caf¨¦. While sipping his coffee, he observed the bustling crowd of people outside the glass wall, and stared blankly.


    Ever since the incident with the Demon Man, Zhang Nan had been idling away, shuttling back and forth on the crowded streets like a ghost.


    Suddenly, someone knocked on the table in front of him and said to Zhang Nan: "Hey, hey, hey, you intentionally called me out to drink coffee with you, and in the end, you fucking stayed silent for an hour and played with me, right?"


    The person who shouted was Wang Zili. Like Zhang Nan, he had also been in Shanghai for the past few days.


    "Oh, I was so lost in thought that I forgot you were sitting across from me. And you spit in my coffee. " Zhang Nan slowly said.


    "You really are a talent!" Wang Zili laughed bitterly.


    "Mr.Jia, give me another cup of coffee." Zhang Nan greeted a 60 + year old man at the counter. At the same time, he moved the half-empty cup of coffee to the side.


    Zhang Nan looked at Wang Zili''s empty cup, and added: "Give him another."


    The owner of the coffee shop called Mr.Jia personally brought over two cups of fragrant mocha, smiling at Wang Zili as he nodded his head.


    "This coffee tastes good. How much for a cup?" Wang Zili casually asked.


    "It''s fine. Drink as much as you want. I don''t want money." The Mr.Jia laughed.


    "No money?" Wang Zili was startled.


    You are Nan''s friend, how can I ask you for money? Without waiting for Wang Zili''s response, Mr.Jia turned and left.


    Wang Zili asked Zhang Nan: "I thought you came here many times before to get to know the boss. You knew each other a long time ago?"


    Wang Zili understood Zhang Nan very well. If he was just an ordinary friend, it would be impossible for him to know Zhang Nan''s name.


    "Right." Zhang Nan continued to look casually at the street, "Mr.Jia was a gangster before, I helped him once, he was very grateful to me. Then he opened the caf¨¦ and it was my idea. He wanted to open the bar. "


    "Why did you ask him to open a caf¨¦?"


    "Because I like coffee."


    Wang Zili shook his head, he was speechless for a moment.


    He then glanced at the Mr.Jia, and realised that the Mr.Jia seemed to be the same as Zhang Nan, silent and quiet. He did not intend to ask Zhang Nan how he had helped Mr.Jia, and he reckoned that even if he asked, Zhang Nan would not tell him either.


    After a moment of silence, Zhang Nan''s phone rang.


    "Hello, is this teacher?" A crisp female voice entered Zhang Nan''s ears.


    "Go ahead." Just from the voice, Zhang Nan knew who the other party was.


    "I have a favor to ask. And your friend the police officer."


    "He''s with me."


    "Okay, here''s the thing ¡­"


    Zhang Nan remained calm and collected as he listened to the girl on the phone finish. He replied her simply: "En, see you later."


    After hanging up the phone, Zhang Nan stood up and said to Wang Zili: "Let''s go."


    "Where to?"


    "Hi there."


    "Bar?"


    "Did you drive here?"


    "Yes, why are we going to that bar?"


    "I''ll tell you on the way."


    Wang Zili''s car was a grey SUV. When the two got in, Zhang Nan told Wang Zili the address of the bar and then drove there. Wang Zili repeatedly asked why he was going to the bar in the middle of the day before Zhang Nan explained to him. The woman who had just called him was called Cheng Siqi, and was also his acquaintance.


    "What''s the big deal?" Why don''t you just f * * king explain it clearly! " Wang Zili frowned and asked.


    "I didn''t ask. She said she''ll tell us in person later."


    "Oh ¡­" "So it''s like that ¡­" Wang Zili''s tone softened. He knew that he had misunderstood Zhang Nan this time, "Oh right, who is she? Who are you? Why is it that with just a phone call, you''ve been lured away like a dog? "


    Zhang Nan had always been immune to Wang Zili''s obscenities, so he calmly replied: "It''s one of my students."


    "Students?" Wang Zili felt that this phrase was new.


    "Have you forgotten? I was an amateur psychological counselor for two years, when Cheng Siqi was still in college, she became depressed and came to find me. After I treated him for a while, she had already called me teacher."


    "Is she beautiful?"


    "Not bad."


    "Heh ¡­" Have you developed a relationship with his in depth? " Wang Zili revealed an evil smile as he spoke.


    "I was in no mood. Later on, I went out to study fortune-telling."


    "Sigh ¡­" I say, you are really something. You have already been single for so many years, shouldn''t you consider it? Otherwise, we''d be together a lot, as if we were gay. "


    "What do you say, and what about yourself? Weren''t they chasing a young teacher a while ago? No more results? "


    "There''s no helping it, they don''t like me."


    "A policeman at your level actually dares to look down on him?"


    What level am I at?" Although our national felony squad has a large background, we are actually part of a special operations team managed by a special agency. Generally, we cannot reveal our identity to the public, and we don''t even have a proper certificate for the job. "In the eyes of ordinary people, we are no different from the jobless.


    While chatting, Wang Zili''s car turned into an alley. Inside the alley was a street of bars, and the first house at the intersection was a restaurant.


    As soon as they got out of the car, they saw two women in their twenties sitting on chairs in front of the bar. The door to the bar was locked, and it was dark inside. It was obviously not open yet.


    Seeing Zhang Nan, one of the more cultured looking women quickly went to greet him. Zhang Nan introduced her to Wang Zili, saying that she was Cheng Siqi.


    Wang Zili took the chance to size Cheng Siqi up, and realised that she was wearing a beige jacket, matching jeans, and a pair of glasses. She looked calm and fresh, and her beauty was indeed not bad.


    Wang Zili put on the airs of a leader, and greeted Cheng Siqi coldly. Unexpectedly, Cheng Siqi still responded enthusiastically: "Hello, Officer Wang, Teacher often talks about you."


    "Is that so?" Wang Zili looked at Zhang Nan, guessing how Zhang Nan would describe him.


    After talking for a while, Cheng Siqi pointed to another girl who was still seated on a chair and said: "She is my cousin, her name is Cheng Qiuna, she is the singer from this bar."


    Zhang Nan and Wang Zili looked over at the same time, and realized that compared to Cheng Siqi, Cheng Qiuna seemed to be a person from another world. She had long fashionable curly hair and wore earrings. She wore black leather pants and leopard-print high heels. Underneath her leather jacket was a flowery low-cut blouse that revealed her belly, which had tattoos on it and her chest. Other than that, from the moment Wang Zili and Zhang Nan got off the car, Cheng Qiuna had been talking on the phone the entire time, she did not even look at the two of them.


    It was somewhat similar to Cheng Siqi; even though Cheng Qiuna had a fresh and beautiful temperament, what gave others a different feeling was that ¡­


    Furthermore, Wang Zili and Zhang Nan could tell at a glance that Cheng Qiuna''s face had been cut before, at least her nose and eyes.


    "Your sister is very busy." When Cheng Siqi introduced them, she simply waved her hands and continued to make calls.


    "I''m sorry, she''s just like that." Cheng Siqi said apologetically.


    "It''s alright, what do you want us to help you with?" Zhang Nan didn''t care.


    "Mm ¡­" Sit down and we''ll talk. " Cheng Siqi pointed to a chair.


    The three of them sat down in a circle.


    "It happened in the bar where my sister sang." Cheng Siqi looked at the door and said, "Officer Wang, you are a police officer, you should have heard about the murder case a while ago, right?"


    "No. I don''t usually have to deal with murder cases. " Wang Zili replied.


    "The murder had something to do with your sister?" Zhang Nan was suspicious, thinking that if Cheng Qiuna had provoked this murder case, how could she sit here?


    No, it''s a waitress at the bar. She''s a colleague of my sister''s. She''s a quiet little girl and has a good relationship with my sister." "It''s like this. Around the middle of last month, two men suddenly died in a hotel near a bar ¡­


    "A hotel near a bar? What''s that got to do with the bar? " Wang Zili interrupted.


    "Because at that time, these two men first drank in this bar, then took a girl from the bar to get a room, and only then did the murder happen. The girl who was brought out was the little girl at the counter, her name was Xu Juan.


    "How did you get them out?" Wang Zili asked.


    "It was those two men that cheated, drugging Xu Juan''s wine!" A voice came from the side, it turned out to be Cheng Qiuna who had just finished her call.


    Cheng Qiuna moved a chair over and sat beside Zhang Nan. She then realised that Zhang Nan was wearing a black suit and pants, with black socks and Dark Skin shoes. He was also wearing black sunglasses, from head to toe.


    "Aiyo, scared me." Cheng Qiuna said softly.


    Wang Zili found it funny, but Zhang Nan remained expressionless.


    "What did you just say, drugged?" Wang Zili turned to Cheng Qiuna.


    Yeah, why would Xu Juan go with them, Xu Juan is very obedient. Cheng Qiuna said.


    That night, the two men sat at the bar counter. However, they were very generous and ordered a few bottles of wine for Xu Juan to drink. Xu Juan seemed to not have a lot of alcohol in him, and very quickly she got drunk. She never thought that one of the cups of wine was secretly drugged by two men, making him even more dazed after drinking it, and thus went to get a room with them. " Cheng Siqi added.


    "Those two men are frequent customers in bars, I have seen them many times, they definitely had their eyes on Xu Juan long ago." Cheng Qiuna said again.


    "When Xu Juan was brought out by them, no one noticed him?" Wang Zili asked.


    "Oh my, our bar is in a mess. It was a weekend, and there were so many people that no one noticed her." Cheng Qiuna said.


    "Tell me what happened afterwards. How did the two men die?" Zhang Nan said.


    "I don''t know, the police haven''t come to a conclusion, but they were definitely not killed by Xu Juan." Cheng Qiuna replied.


    Zhang Nan looked at Cheng Siqi, and Cheng Siqi hurriedly explained: "Oh, what happened was rather strange. That night, after they brought Xu Juan out of the pub, they went straight to the guesthouse near the pub. Two men took a bartender and got a room. Needless to say, they knew what they were up to. And then, in that room, they suddenly died! The next morning, their bodies were found. "


    "According to the general conjecture, Xu Juan is definitely the most suspicious one." Wang Zili said.


    "But Xu Juan was unconscious all the way until the next morning! Then the police concluded that the two men had died in the middle of the night. " Cheng Qiuna''s tone was very anxious.


    "Who can prove that the girl has been unconscious all this time?" Wang Zili asked.


    "Police, they said that they inspected the sedative inside Xu Juan''s body and it proved that she couldn''t kill anyone. Furthermore, a little girl who took sedatives, how could she have the strength to kill two men?" Cheng Qiuna said.


    "In that case, the young lady has been found innocent?" Wang Zili asked.


    "That''s right! However, she hasn''t been working recently, so she''s been hiding in the dorm. "


    "Then what did you call us here for?" Wang Zili felt that it was strange. He thought that Xu Juan had gotten into trouble, hence Cheng Qiuna got her sister to ask for Zhang Nan''s help to clear the accusation on his behalf and so on.


    "It''s not me, I don''t care. It''s because my sister said that this matter is very strange, so she thought of you all. " Cheng Qiuna pointed to Cheng Siqi.


    "No matter how strange it is, it has to be handed over to the police officer in charge of handling the case." Wang Zili said.


    "I know, but the whole thing is really weird. The hotel where the accident happened is also near the bar. If I don''t solve it by hook or by crook ¡­" Cheng Siqi wanted to say something but hesitated.


    Zhang Nan could tell that Cheng Siqi was still mainly worried about her sister''s safety. After all, her sister was a resident singer in the bar, and the murder case was happening near the bar.


    "Have a casual chat. How did the two men die? What was the cause of death?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "Let me tell you, the two men didn''t have any injuries. They were scared to death!"


    "Scared to death?" Cheng Qiuna''s words piqued Zhang Nan''s interest, "How do you scare me to death?"


    "I don''t know, neither does Xu Juan. She said that she never woke up, and when she woke up, she saw two men''s corpses lying on the bed. Their eyes were wide open, looking as if they had seen a ghost. Cause of death... Right, it''s sudden death! "


    "Yes, the forensic expert said that both men died of acute cardiac insufficiency." Cheng Siqi added.


    "Acute cardiac insufficiency ¡­" Wang Zili recited it once and thought: If that''s the case, then basically, he is excluded.


    "Are their expressions that terrified?" Zhang Nan was more concerned about this.


    "Right, that''s why I came to trouble you, teacher. Say ¡­" "Could it be that kind of thing ¡­"


    "It''s hard to say." Although Zhang Nan was often in contact with mystical events, his rationality told him that he couldn''t be prejudiced against any question that was on his mind.


    "I was frightened before I died, the cause of death was sudden death, the time of death was in the middle of the night, little miss has been unconscious ¡­" Wang Zili was still summing up his thoughts when he suddenly thought of another question, "Wait, did the little girl suffer any violations?"


    Zhang Nan also realized that this was a rather crucial point.


    "No!" Absolutely not! " Cheng Qiuna said.


    "Do you think they didn''t, or did the police find out after they examined them?" Wang Zili didn''t want to hear Cheng Qiuna''s own conclusion.


    "Did the police appraise it? Xu Juan also said that she didn''t have it." Cheng Siqi answered for her sister.


    "That''s pretty much certain. As soon as the two men entered the room, something happened." Wang Zili said.


    Zhang Nan nodded his head, agreeing with Wang Zili''s suggestion. According to common sense, the two men must have wanted to make a move when they dragged Xu Juan into the hotel. Since they didn''t even succeed in making a move, it meant that they had just entered the hotel.


    Zhang Nan was immediately confused. What was the situation that caused them to stop? What did they see before they died that made them so terrified?


    "Aiyo, those two men were just taking drugs. I don''t know what kind of drugs they took, but they were actually poisoned to death. They looked like they were scared to death!" Cheng Qiuna said casually.


    "If he died from drugs, the autopsy will definitely find him out." Zhang Nan replied calmly.


    "Or do you drink too much and scare yourself to death?"


    "That wouldn''t have happened until both of them died." Zhang Nan realized that Cheng Qiuna''s words were getting more and more outrageous.


    "Ai ¡­" I think it''s because Xu Juan''s life is too evil, and she forced them to their deaths. "


    Cheng Qiuna fiddled with her nails and suddenly said something which surprised Zhang Nan and Wang Zili.


    "Destiny is too evil? "What do you mean?" Cheng Siqi also did not know the meaning behind Cheng Qiuna''s words.


    "Why are you guys looking at me? Xu Juan said it herself. " It was rare for Cheng Qiuna to feel uncomfortable.


    "What did she say?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "She kept telling us at the bar that she was born with a life of evil and death. Not just her, but all the girls in their town would die without a chance of living past the age of twenty."


    "You actually believe this kind of nonsense?" How old is she this year? " Wang Zili thought that it was really funny.


    "Nineteen. But soon the twentieth birthday. According to her, she died on her birthday. "


    "Why is it a birthday, is it so accurate? Must he die on his twentieth birthday? " Zhang Nan also asked.


    "Yeah, she said it herself. So, recently she didn''t go to work because of that incident. It''s just that she felt that her death wasn''t too far off, so it wasn''t very interesting for her to go to work either. "


    "I think that little girl must have some mental issues, or else she was hurt by the superstitious thoughts of the countryside." Wang Zili didn''t know whether to laugh or cry.


    "Not necessarily." Cheng Qiuna said.


    "What''s not certain?" Cheng Siqi asked.


    "Xu Juan was indeed born in the countryside, and has always lived in the suburbs.


    "Then I have to ask you, you said that none of the girls in their place will live past twenty years, which means that all of the girls in their place that are twenty years old and above are men? Do you think that''s possible? " Wang Zili was already laughing out loud.


    "I don''t know about others ¡­" "In any case, Xu Juan''s elder sister is Xu Wei, who brought Xu Juan out to the bar to work. Two years ago, she killed herself on the day of her birthday."


    Hearing this, Wang Zili instantly became silent, and sat up straighter.


    "Xu Juan has a sister? She killed herself? Why didn''t Old Du tell me about this? " Cheng Siqi asked. Because Cheng Siqi often came to the bar to take a seat for Cheng Qiuna, she was very familiar with the people there.


    "Hey, Old Du originally didn''t want us to say it, but if we say it out loud we will be fined. Think about it, it''s not a glorious thing. " Cheng Qiuna said to Cheng Siqi.


    "That Xu Wei, is she big sister Xu Juan? "Kiss him?" Cheng Siqi continued to ask. She knew that the girl who came out to work liked to call this sister of hers so much that no one could tell her apart.


    "Of course, I live in one place. At that time, Xu Wei was also working at the bar as a waitress. I remember her greeting Old Du first, saying that her family''s little sister wanted to go out with her to work at a bar, so she was pretty honest. Later on, Old Du said that she wanted to take a look, but after seeing that Xu Juan was not bad, she agreed.


    "How did Xu Wei commit suicide?" Zhang Nan could not help but ask.


    "Take rat poison in the middle of the night after our bar closes. Before she committed suicide, we had dinner with her at the bar. It was her birthday, so we celebrated it a little. "


    "A man who wants to commit suicide and celebrate his birthday before he dies?"


    "Yeah, I also think Xu Wei can''t commit suicide!" If you were to say that Xu Juan committed suicide, I would still believe a little, but Xu Wei is an easy going person. She usually likes to chat and laugh, her job is not stressful, and she doesn''t have a boyfriend.


    "Will you... After drinking too much that night, did you suddenly commit suicide? " Cheng Siqi guessed.


    "Generally speaking, those who take rat poison and commit suicide are in a lot of pain before they die. Since she bought the rat poison, it means that she didn''t commit suicide on the spur of the moment. She should have considered it. " Wang Zili said.


    "What does Xu Juan think?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "Xu Juan insists, her sister is as dead as her, she will definitely die on her twentieth birthday." Cheng Qiuna replied.


    "Where is Xu Juan now?" Zhang Nan vaguely felt that this matter was a little unusual.


    "It''s in our company''s dorm. It''s very close by. Do you want me to take you there?"


    "Let''s go and see her."


    The group of four then stood up and walked towards Xu Juan''s dormitory on foot.


    After about five minutes, Zhang Nan saw a Lenton Hotel on the left side. The floors of the hotel were very high and there was an alley beside it.


    "No, how could she afford to stay in this hotel? It''s the house behind the hotel."


    As he walked along the alley, he saw a row of two-story houses. The houses were similar in style to the workers'' dormitory.


    After walking up the metal stairs, Cheng Qiuna knocked on the first door and asked loudly: "Xu Juan, are you home?"


    The door opened very quickly and a short girl with a bit of a rural air stood in front of the door. When she saw Cheng Qiuna, she asked: "Na Na, Sister Cheng, why are you here?"


    When she saw the two men standing behind Cheng Siqi again, she started to feel uneasy.


    "They''re our friends. They''re here to help you. Shall we go in and talk?" Cheng Siqi said.


    Xu Juan nodded and led them into the room.


    Although it was a single room that was less than 20 square metres and the furniture were old, Xu Juan had cleaned it quite a bit. Zhang Nan and Wang Zili sat on the side of the bed. And from the moment she entered, Zhang Nan''s line of sight had never left Xu Juan.


    Cheng Siqi introduced Zhang Nan and Wang Zili, saying that one of them was a policeman, and the other one was his friend. Xu Juan looked like she did not care at all, and gave a simple account of what had happened, which was about the same as what Zhang Nan and Wang Zili had heard.


    Zhang Nan directly asked Xu Juan: "Do you think that the deaths of these two men have anything to do with you?"


    "Yes, it was caused by me."


    "Why?"


    "All the girls in our town are like this, they are evil in their lives and they are dead, so they won''t live past the age of twenty. All the men connected to us are dead. "


    "Now that we are close to you, will we die?" Wang Zili could not help but ask.


    "No, I''m talking about proximity, you know... "Did Nana tell you about my sister Xu Wei?"


    "Yes." Zhang Nan replied.


    "My sister talked about a boyfriend back then, and he was killed by her as well."


    Zhang Nan and Wang Zili were startled at the same time, and Zhang Nan asked: "How did you get rid of him?"


    "Sick and dead. Afterwards, my sister stopped talking about boyfriends, and even told me not to touch men, and not to harm anyone. "


    Zhang Nan paused for a moment, then asked: "Are the other girls in your town the same as you?"


    "Yes, but the older ones, the women of my mother''s generation are all right, only the younger ones like us are guilty of evil."


    "So it''s not just you and your sister. There are other girls in the town who died at the age of twenty?"


    "Yeah, I know two more. They died on their twentieth birthday. But I came out with my sister when I was thirteen, and didn''t come home after I came out. "


    "Thirteen years old? Xu Juan, didn''t you just come to the bar two years ago? " Cheng Qiuna could not help but ask.


    "Yeah, but I already stayed over at my sister''s place. It''s just that I didn''t come to the bar in the beginning, and my sister only let me come to the bar when I was about to mature."


    Zhang Nan thought: If that''s the case, then she can''t say that she has complete understanding of their town''s matters.


    "You feel... You won''t live past your birthday this year? " Wang Zili asked.


    "Yes." Xu Juan responded as she slowly lowered her head.


    From Xu Juan''s expression, Wang Zili could feel that she was truly afraid.


    "You don''t want to die, do you?" Zhang Nan asked seriously.


    Xu Juan shook her head and replied Zhang Nan: "What I can''t do is my life."


    "Your family must know these things too, right?"


    "Everyone knows, they are probably preparing for my back." Xu Juan laughed bitterly.


    Zhang Nan suddenly stood up, walked to the Xu Juan who was leaning against the corner and asked: "Do you want me to help you?"


    Zhang Nan''s actions not only stunned Wang Zili and his master.


    "You ¡­" Xu Juan slowly looked at Zhang Nan. She noticed that the man in front of his was very special. He had a serious expression on his face, always wearing the same kind of expression. He was dressed completely in black, and was wearing an inexplicable pair of dark glasses, but he didn''t know why, but she felt that this man had a sense of security.


    "Yes, my name is Zhang Nan."


    "You have a way to keep me from dying?"


    "Yes, but you have to cooperate with me."


    Xu Juan opened her eyes wide.


    "Really?"


    "Really."


    Xu Juan looked at Wang Zili, then at Cheng Qiuna, and finally when her gaze landed on Cheng Siqi''s face, Cheng Siqi nodded.


    "Then how can I cooperate with you? What are you doing? " Xu Juan asked Zhang Nan again.


    "It won''t be hard. I just need to make sure that when I ask you anything, you tell me the truth."


    "Sure."


    "What''s your birthday?"


    "Next month''s second."


    Zhang Nan silently recited: November 2nd, nearing.


    "Other than what I just said, what other special things did you not tell me?"


    "Something special?" Xu Juan pursed her lips, thought for a while, and replied, "Basically there are no more, but there is one thing, I don''t know if it counts or not, maybe I made a mistake."


    "It''s fine, go ahead."


    "I seem to be being watched."


    "Being watched?"


    "I can''t explain it, but I have a feeling that ever since I was old enough to understand things, a pair of eyes had been looking at me from the shadows. It''s very strange. My sister feels the same way. "


    "I understand. Is there anything else? "


    "Something else... "Nope."


    Zhang Nan took a deep breath and fell into deep thought.


    "You still haven''t told me what you''re doing." Xu Juan asked.


    "Oh, just take it as my fortune-telling."


    "A fortune-teller?"


    "Yes, do you believe that I can help you?" Zhang Nan gave a rare smile.


    Xu Juan lowered her head in silence for a long time before finally replying:


    "I believe you."


    After exiting Xu Juan''s house, Wang Zili and Cheng Siqi looked at Zhang Nan in puzzlement. In reality, until now, Wang Zili and Cheng Siqi did not really believe Xu Juan''s words.


    But from the moment Zhang Nan saw Xu Juan, his expression had been very serious.


    "Teacher, are you going to help her?" Cheng Siqi asked.


    "Depends." Zhang Nan replied indifferently.


    "Then what should we do next?"


    "Let me think first and also calm her down. She''s a bit nervous right now."


    "Nonsense, she thinks she''s about to die, how can she not be nervous?" Cheng Qiuna interrupted.


    and Wang Zili bade farewell to the Cheng Siqi sisters. Before they left, Cheng Siqi gave her phone number to Zhang Nan, telling him to look for Cheng Qiuna whenever she has something.


    When only Zhang Nan and Wang Zili were left, Wang Zili asked: "What exactly is the situation?"


    "What the young lady said should be true."


    "Really?" Wang Zili was surprised, "Where did you see that?"


    "There are some blurry black spots between her eyebrows."


    "What does it mean?"


    "This shows that she does have an evil aura on her. If it''s not something she was born with, it''s something she was planted with. Besides, it''s unlikely to be a coincidence that at least three girls died on their twentieth birthday. So I believe her, she''s really dying. "


    Seeing Zhang Nan''s serious expression, Wang Zili was actually unable to say a word.


    Zhang Nan slowly said, "Now is close to the end of October, 2 November ¡­ "I don''t know if I''ll make it in time ¡­"


    After returning to his residence, Zhang Nan thought about it carefully. He believed that in order to save Xu Juan, he had to first investigate from the start at Xu Juan''s hometown. He planned to leave first thing in the morning, but there were some things he had to ask before he left.


    That night, Zhang Nan made a call to Cheng Qiuna, who was working in the bar. Zhang Nan directly said: "I would like to know more about Xu Juan."


    "Then wait for me to come find me after work."


    It was around 1am in the morning when Zhang Nan was guarding the door of the Hai Pao Bar. In the end, after waiting for more than an hour, Cheng Qiuna finally drove a pink car out of the bar''s parking lot, and when he saw Zhang Nan, he lowered his car window and said: "Go eat supper, I''m hungry."


    "Okay, where?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "It''s just up ahead. Walk over there. My car is full of stuff, so it''s not easy to sit in." With that, Cheng Qiuna drove over to a pharmacy that was 200 to 300 metres away. Beside the pharmacy was a hotpot restaurant.


    Zhang Nan walked to the front of the pharmacy and thought: As expected of a street near a bar, even the pharmacy is open in the middle of the night.


    Cheng Qiuna got off the carriage, and looked at Cheng Qiuna, only to realize that Cheng Qiuna was dressed even more extravagantly than she did in the daytime, with heavy makeup and the smell of alcohol on her body. Also, the color of Cheng Qiuna''s face was purple, which was quite strange.


    "What happened to your face?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "Aiyo ¡­" "I just had an injection on my face, and the swelling hasn''t subsided yet. Do you have any money? Lend me two hundred yuan. I''ll go to the pharmacy to buy some medicine." Cheng Qiuna said while covering his face.


    Zhang Nan took out two hundred yuan and handed it over to Cheng Qiuna.


    "Oh, thank you. I''ll return it to you when I have time in the future." Cheng Qiuna took the money and ran into the pharmacy.


    Zhang Nanxin felt it was funny, this was the first time he heard of returning money back to him when he was free.


    Zhang Nan did not know what kind of medicine Cheng Qiuna bought, but in short, after Cheng Qiuna came out from the pharmacy, the two of them went up to the hotpot store together. The restaurant''s business was not bad, Cheng Qiuna''s resonant voice sounded out: "Thank you, both of you!"


    As the two of them sat down, Zhang Nan teased: "As expected of a bar singer, your throat is so loud."


    "Is that my Wuhan''s, even Wuhan''s speak that way."


    "Wuhan?" Zhang Nan thought again, he really did not know where Cheng Siqi came from.


    "Yeah, didn''t my sister tell you?"


    Zhang Nan shook his head. More and more, he felt that Cheng Qiuna and Cheng Siqi had two different personalities. Cheng Siqi was very sensitive and cared a lot about other people''s gazes and feelings.


    After chatting for a while, the hotpot also went up, and Zhang Nan went straight to the point.


    "Xu Juan''s hometown is in a small town, right? What''s the name of that small town?"


    "That little town ¡­" Cheng Qiuna said as she gulped down his food, "What''s your name ¡­ Zhangze Town. "Aiyah, I''m really hungry."


    "Zhangze Town ¡­" Zhang Nan nodded, "Do you have her address?"


    "What are you doing? Do you want to go?"


    "I''ll go tomorrow."


    "I don''t, but I can ask for you, do you?"


    "Yes."


    "Then wait a moment." Cheng Qiuna took out her phone from her bag. With one hand holding her chopsticks, she sent a message to Xu Juan.


    Xu Juan replied quickly, and then passed the message to Zhang Nan.


    "It''s so late, is she still awake?" Zhang Nan asked after receiving the message.


    "That''s right, she works in a bar, of course. We reverse the situation day and night. Besides, you should know how she''s feeling right now ¡­"


    "True." Zhang Nan said perfunctorily.


    After that, Zhang Nan asked about a lot of trivial things related to Xu Juan''s life and work. Cheng Qiuna answered truthfully, but when Zhang Nan mentioned Xu Juan''s sister Xu Wei, Cheng Qiuna said that she had just arrived at the bar two years ago.


    Walking out of the hotpot restaurant, Zhang Nan called Wang Zili and woke him up. Zhang Nan did not care that Wang Zili was complaining to him, he said straightforwardly: "Lend me your car tomorrow morning, I want to go to Zhangze Town."


    After putting down the phone, Zhang Nan thought: Wait until Zhangze Town, the first thing I need to do is to find out what exactly is going on with Xu Juan''s "Death" body, and where its origin is.


    Zhang Nan once again thought of Xu Juan''s birthday, at the beginning of next month: November 2nd. This day had been deeply engraved in his mind.


    Time was short, and he hoped that he could make it in time.


    Zhang Nan thought.

 C52

    On the morning of the next day, Zhang Nan drove Wang Zili''s car and arrived at Zhangze Town alone.


    The Zhangze Town was located in the suburbs, and the development and construction of the house were quite backward. Zhang Nan who was used to living in big cities had his eyes on the old houses on the ground, and the feeling of it returned to thirty years ago. He casually found an empty seat, parked his car, and followed Cheng Qiuna''s instructions to go to Xu Juan''s home.


    Along the way, people passing by would occasionally pay attention to Zhang Nan. One of them looked unfamiliar, while the other looked out of place in his black suit and sunglasses.


    Zhang Nan understood, the people who lived in the villages all year round were usually stubborn and conservative, thus he came to Zhangze Town for investigation, and did not plan to bring Wang Zili along.


    After walking for a while, Zhang Nan saw a bus stop not far away. There was an alley opposite the bus stop, and inside the alley was a light blue, three-story building.


    It was Xu Juan''s house.


    Zhang Nan realized that compared to the other houses in the town, the decorations on the small building in Xu Juan''s house were much more exquisite. Xu Juan''s family could be considered to be relatively wealthy here.


    Approaching Xu Juan''s home, Zhang Nan saw that the door was wide open and there was a table placed in the middle of the hall. There were fruits and tea on the table, and a group of people sat around it.


    Other than that, when Zhang Nan saw the few women bustling about, he thought that they might be cooking.


    Just as Zhang Nan wanted to enter, an old lady pushed him on the shoulder and asked: "Who are you?"


    Zhang Nan paused before replying, "I am Xu Juan''s friend."


    "A friend from Juan?" The old lady was surprised, she then turned around and shouted at a middle-aged lady: "Chen Sang! Chen Sang! They are looking for Juan! "


    Very quickly, the middle-aged woman called Chen Sang came over. He sized Zhang Nan up and asked the same question: Who are you?


    "I am Xu Juan''s friend." Zhang Nan replied once again.


    "Xu Juan is not here."


    "I know she''s not here."


    "Then what did you come here for?"


    "I''m here to take a look."


    "Come take a look?" What are you looking at? " Chen Sang looked at the large group of people behind him and asked puzzledly.


    Zhang Nan could tell that the lady was a little lacking in willpower, he decided to not waste time, and asked: "Who are you to Xu Juan?"


    The old lady who was listening at the side answered, "She is Juan''s mother, and I am Juan''s aunt."


    Zhang Nan nodded, thinking: So it''s Xu Juan''s mother, I found the right person.


    Just then, Zhang Nan saw that among the group of people that were discussing, there was a round-faced old man in his seventies who was shouting loudly: "No matter what, that girl must come back, this matter must be done!"


    "What do I need to do? That stubborn temper of his, he''s been out for a few years already. Have you ever seen him come back?" Another middle-aged man with sparse hair answered loudly, as if he was arguing with someone.


    Zhang Nan could hear the discussion about Xu Juan and immediately asked Chen Sang, "What are they talking about?"


    "Aiyo, you didn''t even explain what you were doing!" Xu Juan''s aunt pushed Zhang Nan''s shoulders again.


    Zhang Nan thought that this old lady was really rude, just as he was about to reply, he saw Chen Sang calling for the middle aged man who had thinning hair. The middle aged man was followed by a few other people.


    "Who is this person?" The middle aged man looked at Zhang Nan and asked.


    "She said that she''s a friend of the Juan, I wonder what is she doing here." Chen Sang said.


    "Well, she''s the father of the Juan, tell him what you want to do." Xu Juan''s aunt explained on the side.


    Zhang Nanxin thought: I might as well explain everything to them.


    "I am Xu Juan''s friend, and I know that her deadline is approaching, so I came here to look for a way." Zhang Nan said.


    Hearing Zhang Nan say that, especially the words "the time limit is almost up", everyone was startled. Xu Juan''s father immediately asked: "Xu Juan made you come, right?"


    Zhang Nan hesitated and immediately replied: "Yes."


    He knew that he was lying, and did not tell Xu Juan about him coming to Zhangze Town.


    "Call me and ask." Xu Juan''s father said to Xu Juan''s mother, Chen Sang.


    Chen Sang immediately ran into the building, and could not help but feel a bit nervous.


    "What are you doing, how did you get to know Xu Juan?" Taking this opportunity, Xu Juan''s father continued to ask. He naturally felt that the man in front of him was eccentric, and her age was also much older than Xu Juan.


    "My fortune telling."


    Actually, Zhang Nan wanted to explain his real identity as a psychic, but he was afraid that the people in front of him would find it hard to understand.


    "fortune-teller!" Xu Juan''s aunt could not help but laugh out loud, "Juan''s life is worth it, we all know what her next life is."


    Other than Xu Juan''s father who still had a stiff expression, the few people spectating at the side were also making fun of Zhang Nan.


    After a while, Chen Sang came back and said to Xu Juan''s father: "Juan told him to come here, and she even asked us to take care of him."


    Zhang Nan heaved a sigh of relief, secretly grateful for Cheng Qiuna''s help, as he had already notified Xu Juan beforehand.


    Father Xu Juan snorted, then turned and left, muttering as she left, "If you are not coming back, just letting others come over, you might as well die outside!"


    Zhang Nan was not concerned about his father''s attitude at all. He only wanted to know what the Xu Juan family was discussing.


    "We''re cooking. You''ll have it together later!" After confirming that Zhang Nan was his friend, Aunt Xu Juan''s attitude became a lot more amiable. With that, she went back to the kitchen.


    "Aiyo, Juan is really something. I asked her why didn''t she come back herself. She said that she''s busy with work, but I don''t know when she''s working!" Chen Sang complained to Zhang Nan.


    "Auntie, can I ask what your family is discussing?" Zhang Nan ignored Chen Sang''s complaints and directly asked.


    "Not only our family, even several families have come. Isn''t it just a matter of the Juan? "You also know that her fate is not good. That day is almost here ¡­" Chen Sang became sad as she spoke.


    "What are you going to do?" Zhang Nan asked in a different way.


    "We didn''t think we could do anything in the past, but a while ago, Juan''s Ah Ge was our family''s son, her name was Xu Yao. When he was working outside, he found out that there was a Mage who was especially capable, able to exorcise ghosts and deal with things. After that, he asked someone to look for him, stuffed the red packet, and treated him to a meal. Only then did the mage come over. That''s why we wanted that mage to be unable to save Juan. After all, Juan is still young, only twenty years old! " The more Chen Sang spoke, the more excited she became.


    Zhang Nan felt a little suspicious. He thought, if they felt that Xu Juan was an Innate Ranker who was desperate, why did they need to invite a mage that knew how to drive ghosts?


    "So that''s how it is. Where is the Mage?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "Xu Yao went to pick him up early in the morning, but he hasn''t arrived yet. We''ll set up a table for you and treat you guys to a good meal first. "


    "That''s true." Zhang Nan replied indifferently.


    "Let''s not talk about that anymore. I''m going to the kitchen now. Find a place to sit and we''ll call for you when dinner is ready." Chen Sang slowly walked forward.


    "Go ahead." Zhang Nan forced a smile.


    Since he understood the situation, Zhang Nan decided to wait and see.


    Not long later, a white truck stopped in front of Xu Juan''s home. A young man in his twenties came down from the truck and quickly ran to the front door and opened it, shouting: "She''s here, she''s here!"


    Then, a bunch of people who were originally sitting inside the building drinking tea came running out like a swarm of bees. Zhang Nanxin thought: This guy must be Xu Juan''s brother, Xu Yao.


    He saw a man in his forties or fifties slowly alighting from the passenger seat. He had a shaved head, wore glasses, and was wearing a dark yellow Taoist suit. In his hand he held a long object wrapped in red cloth. Zhang Nan could tell at a glance that it was a peach wood sword. It was used by Mages to guard their homes against evil.


    A group of people gathered around the shaman, giving way to him, and almost all of them had looks of surprise on their faces. Then, with Xu Yao''s support, the mage walked into the building.


    "Quick, quick, quick, bring the dishes over!" Seeing that the main guest had arrived, the group of women in the kitchen were especially agitated. Chen Sang ordered loudly.


    Zhang Nan slowly followed behind the group. The hall was extremely crowded, and many people who were not already present ran over to watch the commotion. The mage slowly sat at the head of the large table. A peach wood sword was lifted off the red cloth and placed on the table.


    The mage looked around for a moment and then said, "I think that your living quarters are rather weak. In addition, the hall''s wide and narrow doors are also tailing less rooms at the end of the alleyway. It''s easy to use evil techniques, but unlucky!"


    "Yes, yes, yes, we don''t know anything about this. Master, please take a look for us." Xu Juan''s father''s attitude changed drastically. Not only was she smiling, she even politely lit a cigarette for the mage. However, the mage simply waved his hand, indicating that he didn''t want to smoke.


    "What''s the mage''s surname?" Zhang Nan saw that the round faced old man who was arguing with Xu Juan''s father had also came over to ask.


    "My name is Ouyang." The mage replied coldly.


    "Oh, oh. Master Ouyang, look at my granddaughter. Is she still alive?"


    Zhang Nan could tell that this old man was actually Xu Juan''s grandfather.


    "Not necessarily. It depends on the situation." Master Ouyang remained cold.


    "I say, Grandpa, don''t be anxious. I came all the way here by car and started asking questions the moment I arrived. I have to make him eat a good meal before we can talk, right?" Xu Yao could not help but say to Xu Juan''s grandfather.


    "Right, right, right! Bring the dishes here and eat first!" Xu Juan''s father shouted.


    Actually, those women were already standing at the door with food in their hands, but they didn''t dare to come in. Hearing Xu Juan''s father''s call, they all started to move.


    Not long later, a table was filled with dishes and wine. There was pork, beef, chicken soup, steamed fish, all kinds of vegetables, all kinds of everything. Zhang Nan thought that the Xu Juan family had invested a lot this time.


    When Zhang Nan sat down, Xu Yao noticed this stranger dressed in strange attire, and asked: "Who is this?"


    Chen Sang, who was pouring wine for Master Ouyang, replied, "Oh, a friend that I invited here, a fortune-teller."


    "What did the fortune-teller come to our house for?" Xu Yao asked bluntly.


    "Xu Juan asked me to help." Zhang Nan replied.


    "Help? For what? We invited them ourselves, so there''s no need. " Xu Yao sneered.


    "No matter what, I am still a friend. My attitude should be better." Chen Sang advised her son, Xu Yao.


    "What''s your name?" Xu Yao asked Zhang Nan at the end.


    "Zhang Nan."


    When everyone was seated, the feast started immediately. Master Ouyang first explained some feng shui theories to everyone, as well as his rich experience. During this time, everyone also rushed to toast to Master Ouyang, their faces were filled with admiration. Zhang Nan just sat down and continued eating. He did not drink a single drop, but of course, no one poured him a cup.


    Halfway through the feast, Xu Juan''s father finally spoke of proper business, and asked: "Mage, you say our house is heavy with Evil Qi, then is it related to the evil fate of our young lady?"


    "I was on my way here when Little Xu told me about the situation here ¡­" Master Ouyang''s face was flushed red as he replied indifferently, "Normally speaking, this place would not only be an accident for your family''s young lady, but all the other young ladies in the town would also be in trouble. I think... If the problem is your town, that black fish probably won''t be able to hold it down ¡­ "


    Zhang Nan was startled when he heard it, and thought: Hei Yu? What is a black fish?


    "That''s right, otherwise the girls on our side wouldn''t have died one after another. But it''s not a solution to this if we keep on doing this!" An old woman complained.


    "Teacher Ouyang, do you have any ideas?" Xu Yao asked.


    "There must be a way. Why did you call me here?" Master Ouyang glared, obviously unhappy.


    "Yes, yes, yes. Our son doesn''t know how to speak. Master, don''t be angry." Chen Sang quickly comforted the Master Ouyang.


    "I''m finishing my meal later ¡­" The Master Ouyang continued, "I will first take a look around, especially going up the mountain ¡­"


    "Alright, I''ll lead the way." Xu Yao said.


    Zhang Nan thought again: There''s a mountain here?


    "And then... Right now, there are two girls here. One is from your family, while the other is from another family. Master Ouyang asked.


    "Yes, the other one is our Qianqian. He was born two days earlier than Juan." A middle-aged woman dressed in rustic clothing said.


    It was only then that Zhang Nan found out that not only Xu Juan, there was also another girl in the town who was about to die.


    "Then when the time comes, I will help this Qianqian out, and see if I can expel the Evil Qi from her body." The Master Ouyang said.


    "Right, right, right. We have to do what we have to do." The middle-aged woman revealed a happy expression.


    "Where are the girls now?" Master Ouyang asked.


    "Oh, one just stays at home, the other ¡­ Still outside. " Xu Juan''s father found it difficult to speak.


    "What''s going on? Why are you still outside?" Let her come back! " The Master Ouyang ordered.


    "Yeah, we''ll wait and call." Xu Juan''s father''s expression instantly turned ugly.


    At this time, a lady in her thirties asked Master Ouyang, "Mage, then do you plan on doing it tonight?"


    "It depends. Tonight or tomorrow night."


    "Do you need anything?"


    "No need. The method is my problem. You guys don''t understand it, so don''t ask too much. "


    "But this matter concerns our Juan, why can''t we ask about it?"


    Hearing that someone had actually contradicted him, Master Ouyang frowned, and scolded: "Eh? What''s the matter with you? "


    The others also hurriedly advised the woman who was in her thirties. Chen Sang said helplessly: "Aiyo, Ah Jing, stop asking questions, the mage must have a way."


    "I know he has a way, but I just want to know. Is that too much?" The woman called Jing still resisted.


    "What''s your name? Who is it?" the Master Ouyang asked sternly.


    "My name is Chen Jing, I am Xu Juan''s and Xu Yao''s cousin."


    "Oh, let me tell you. If I didn''t have the ability, I wouldn''t have come here, would you understand?" Master Ouyang showed an overbearing attitude.


    "Alright, alright, Sis, stop it!" Xu Yao could not help but advise.


    Seeing that it had become everyone''s target, Chen Jing could only sit down gloomily and say: "Alright, it''s up to you guys."


    Zhang Nanxin laughed in his heart. He could tell that Chen Sang, Xu Yao and the rest were truly worried about taking this Master Ouyang away. After all, the Master Ouyang was their only hope of survival. However, Xu Juan''s cousin Chen Jing had left a deep impression on him, as he realized that of everyone present, Chen Jing had the most ability to think.


    After the Master Ouyang had eaten his fill, Xu Yao led the way, Zhang Nan felt that he should find someone to guide the way like Xu Yao, and he wanted to find out more about the things that happened, Chen Jing was without a doubt, the most suitable person for the job.


    During the banquet, Zhang Nan went to find Chen Jing and asked: "Hello, can I ask you something?"


    Chen Jing looked at Zhang Nan, she knew that Zhang Nan was a friend that Xu Juan had invited him over, and said: "Sure, I also have something to talk to you about."


    Chen Jing''s answer and attitude made Zhang Nan a little surprised. He did not expect that the Xu Juan family would still pay attention to him.


    But when he thought about it again, he understood that it was definitely because of his identity as Xu Juan''s friend. He guessed that in the eyes of Xu Juan and her family, he was probably a spy sent by Xu Juan to gather information.


    "Let''s walk around and chat." Zhang Nan suggested.


    The two slowly left Xu Juan''s house and strolled on a tree-lined road.


    Sure enough, Chen Jing immediately started talking about Xu Juan. "Is my cousin still working in a bar?"


    "Yes." Zhang Nan was prepared to let Chen Jing ask him more than he needed.


    "Ai ¡­" I haven''t been home for a few years, and no one is going to advise me to listen. "


    "She has a bad temper." Zhang Nan casually made up a story, but his understanding of Xu Juan was very limited.


    "Yeah, I wouldn''t want to come back when I was out in college, but there''s no other way. Home is home after all."


    Zhang Nan thought: So this Xu Juan''s cousin had actually gone to university before. No wonder she looks like she''s not on the same level as the others in the family.


    "Mr. Zhang, your relationship with my cousin is not bad, right?" Chen Jing asked again.


    "It can only be considered normal, I have a friend who is singing in a bar, I only got to know Xu Juan through that friend."


    "Oh ¡­" "This way ¡­" Chen Jing suddenly felt that it was strange, she could not understand why the Juan would let him come here.


    "Xu Juan said she doesn''t want to die." Zhang Nan suddenly said.


    "Really?" Chen Jing asked with her eyes wide open.


    "Absolutely."


    "Then Mr. Zhang, just let her come back. With her temper, he won''t listen to anyone in the family. Maybe you and your friends can persuade her to listen, okay?" Chen Jing pleaded.


    "I''ll try." Zhang Nan nodded and paused for a moment. Then he asked, "Is it to get the mages that you invited to help her with this?"


    "Yeah, Xu Yao specially spent a large amount of money to invite his, even though I think that it was ¡­ Not necessarily. "


    "Why?"


    "It''s not that no one in our town has tried to hire a mage, but the damnable girl is still dead. Let''s talk about it ¡­" That Master Ouyang, I don''t think he''s reliable. "


    Zhang Nan laughed, and did not reply.


    Zhang Nan then asked: "Where''s Xu Wei? Did Xu Wei invite a mage back then? "


    "Little Wei ¡­" Sigh ¡­ At that time, Xiao Wei didn''t invite mages, and everyone in her family resigned themselves to their fate. They made her wait for her death for nothing ¡­ So, if something were to happen to Juan again, my aunt and uncle definitely wouldn''t be able to take it. "


    "Have the families of the girls in the past accepted their fate?"


    "Yeah, what else can we do? Other than someone surnamed Zhu who invited mages like us, the other families let their daughters wait at home to die." If not for the fact that we invited a Master Ouyang, who is reputed to be from the heavens, we would probably have already started preparing for the future of the Juan ¡­ "


    The more Chen Jing spoke, the more sorrowful she felt. Zhang Nan, who was also listening, felt a chill in his heart.


    "By the way, how many girls are there in total?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "Nine, an entire nine!" They all died on their twentieth birthday. "


    Zhang Nan suddenly looked at Chen Jing, her heart filled with suspicions.


    "I know what you want to ask." Chen Jing smiled and said, "I am thirty-four years old this year. This law of death started at the age of twenty-two, so I escaped death once."


    Zhang Nan thought: So that''s how it is, no wonder the older women in the town were fine, but what about the law of death?


    "What about now ¡­?" "We only have two girls left in our town who are younger than twenty ¡­" Chen Jing continued, "One is called Hu Qian and the other is my family''s Juan, both of them coincidentally meet their twentieth birthday dates."


    "Yeah, originally it was my 20th birthday, but now I''m going to die. How ironic." Zhang Nan sighed.


    "Ironic? The most ironic thing is that there''s nothing we can do. " Chen Jing said.


    "Is that Hu Qian''s birthday coming up?"


    "Yes, she was two days earlier than Juan."


    Zhang Nan thought: Then the deadline for settling this matter will have to be advanced by two days.


    "Can you introduce your family to me? "I think there were a lot of people eating just now. I can''t tell who is who."


    Chen Jing felt that it was strange that the man in front of her should know about all this. However, this man was already weird, but she did not hate him.


    Chen Jing first told Zhang Nan that her name was Chen Jing and he was the daughter of Xu Juan''s first uncle, Chen Hong. Other than Chen Hong, Xu Juan''s grandfather, Chen Guofu, and her grandmother Li Fengying''s children included Xu Juan''s aunt, Chen Feng, second uncle Chen Tao, and Xu Juan''s mother, Chen Sang. Also, there was Xu Juan''s father, Xu Dajie, and her older brother, Xu Yao. The rest of the juniors that didn''t have much of a say were also people of the younger generation. During lunch time, the families who had good relations with the Chen family were present, including Hu Qian''s mother, Wang Mei.


    Chen Jing had also told Zhang Nan that Hu Qian and her mother were the only ones in the Hu Qian family that lived together and had no other family members. Furthermore, Hu Qian had fallen when she was twelve years old and accidentally smashed her brains.


    Zhang Nan secretly memorized what Chen Jing said and asked again, "You just mentioned that when you were twenty-two, it was twelve years ago. What exactly happened that year?"


    "Something did happen, but... People in our town shouldn''t casually talk about this. Even Xiao Wei and Juan don''t know about it. "


    "Oh?" Zhang Nan was startled.


    "Juan only told you that she is a demon, right?"


    "Right."


    "That''s because we''ve told her that since we were young, and it''s the same for Little Wei." Chen Jing lowered her head.


    "The truth?" In fact, Zhang Nan had been suspicious of this statement since a long time ago.


    "I''ve just explained the truth. We can''t just casually say it for fear of attracting trouble. Unless... Unless you tell me what you''re doing here. Don''t tell me you''re just a friend of the Juan. "


    Zhang Nan took a deep breath, he realized that Chen Jing''s thoughts were meticulous, her insight was strong, and she was not simple.


    After a long while, Zhang Nan then said: "I am a psychic."


    "psychic?" Chen Jing was not surprised, "Is it the same as the Master Ouyang?"


    "It should be different."


    "Oh, Juan invited you here?"


    "To be precise, I took the initiative to help her. I also only got to know Xu Juan recently. "


    "Not for money?"


    "No charge." Zhang Nan laughed.


    "Juan also knew that you came here, and she even asked us to treat you well. This means that she believes that you can save her." Chen Jing said calmly.


    "I also believe that I can save her."


    At this moment, the two of them were strolling on a piece of abandoned field. The long grass swayed in the wind and the frogs'' cries could be heard incessantly in the pond. In the distance, there was a small hill.


    Zhang Nan suddenly remembered that when he was eating, Master Ouyang mentioned that there was a mountain here. It should be the mountain in front of him.


    "Sis Chen, does the whole thing have anything to do with this mountain?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "There is a connection. Now, I am considering telling you the whole story, because compared to that Master Ouyang, I trust you more, just like that Juan. " Chen Jing said sincerely.


    "Thank you for your trust."


    The origin of this matter is related to a rumor that has been circulating for a long time ¡­" Chen Jing began to narrate seriously, "They say that a big black fish was trapped in this place for a few thousand years. Beneath the Zhangze Town was the black fish''s tail. In front of the mountain was the black fish''s body and head. On top of the mountain was a mountain temple. However ¡­ I remember a night twelve years ago when the temple was struck by lightning.


    "Why?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "At that time, there was a God Rod in our town called Sun Tiangui. He often took a life for someone, passed away or something like that, and was also more skilled in things like yin and yang, wind and water. As a result, that night, he ran around the town like a madman, shouting that the temple had been struck by lightning. He said that the heavens knew that the black fish could not be suppressed, so he kept the mountain god, and he also warned the families of the town that the black fish would need several decades or even a hundred years to revive, and that it would take them a while to replenish their energy by devouring the girl''s yin energy. We didn''t believe it at first, but the next day we went to the top of the mountain to see. It was just as Master Sun had said, the mountain temple was already destroyed. During that time, Master Sun went insane for a few days consecutively. After he went missing for around a week, his corpse was found in front of the mountain temple with a magical equipment stuck in his throat.


    "What was the cause of death for the master?"


    "I don''t know. The police didn''t say. However, the people of this town speculate that Black Fish was retaliating because the Master Sun leaked too much. The magical artifact stuck in his throat is shaped like a fish. "


    "And then one after another, you girls in your town?"


    "Yes, after that happened, all the girls under the age of twenty in the town died on their twentieth birthday. They died in all kinds of ways, including those who committed suicide like our family''s Xiaowei, those who died from illness, and those who were hit by cars. Now, the only girls left were Hu Qian and Juan. "I don''t understand either. If Hei Yu wanted to devour a girl''s elemental energy, why did he have to be 20 years old?" Chen Jing''s face was very sad.


    "Because from the perspective of yin and yang, a woman at the age of twenty has the most elemental energy. A man at the age of twenty-five." Zhang Nan explained.


    "If even you say that, then it must be true." Chen Jing nodded.


    "I have a question. According to what you said, all of the girls who met with mishaps were from the town. It means that the girls outside the Zhangze Town will be fine. Since they knew their daughter was about to die, why didn''t the families in the town use their Zhangze Town? Even if they do not believe the Master Sun''s words, after seeing the things that happened to the previous few girls, they should believe it as well, right? "


    "Actually, some people realized this problem from the very beginning, and some families did. But... "What will happen to them ¡­" Chen Jing could not bear to say it out loud.


    "What happened to them?"


    "The surname of that family is Wang, a total of five people, and they have a daughter. When their daughter was about fifteen, they moved out of town. But who would have known that on their daughter''s twentieth birthday, a fire had broken out in their home and their entire family had been burnt alive ¡­ Thus, to put it bluntly, that girl was still unable to escape death at the age of twenty, no matter how far she ran. Afterwards, people in our town thought that as long as a girl was targeted by a big black fish, no one would be able to escape. If anyone dares to run out of the Zhangze Town, their entire family will suffer, and they will die an even worse death. "


    Zhang Nan took a deep breath and said, "I understand. "No wonder none of you left."

 C53

    Zhang Nan suddenly remembered that there was a black dot on the center of Xu Juan''s brows. That was the characteristic of being tainted by Evil Qi, so he asked: "Back then, did anything else happen? For example ¡­ It''s especially strange. "


    Zhang Nan didn''t know how to describe it, but he silently comprehended for a long time.


    Oh, yes, a strange thing happened. Just a few days after Master Sun died ¡­" "I remember it was a heavy rain that day, especially gloomy. Then, at noon, a mass of black smoke mysteriously appeared in the air above our Zhangze Town, and then immediately diffused into the air, spreading out to who knows where. Later on, we guessed that this was a sign of the black fish''s recovery, the black smoke must be evil! "Even the girls in our town were pestered by the evil aura!


    When Zhang Nan heard it, he felt that everything that Chen Jing had said went according to plan, but there was always a strange feeling.


    "Let''s talk about that Sun Tiangui again. What kind of person is he?" Zhang Nan continued to ask.


    "Look at the Master Sun, although he is a godly person, he isn''t like that Master Ouyang. He is pretty good, especially when it comes to playing with children, and has good relations with the families that live in our town. Every time a child was born in our town, he would go over and kill the child and tell the child what was taboo in life and what was to be done in the future. "They will even give their children a bowl of Longevity Soup for free."


    "Longevity Soup? Can children drink God''s rod? "


    said that his kind of divine soup''s secret formula was something that he learned from a Longevity Village back in Yunnan.


    Zhang Nan shook his head, he did not believe the so-called divine object that the God Stick mentioned, as he felt that there was a high chance that it was something that was used to deceive money. Even if Sun Tiangui was a good person, he could not avoid doing bad things with good intentions.


    "Oh right, how did Sun Tiangui know about Hei Yu''s revival?"


    "Master Sun has always believed in the legend of the big black fish, and often went to the mountain top to worship at the temple. He is a god stick, and these gods and ghosts are much more knowledgeable than us."


    "You just said ¡­" When Sun Tiangui''s body was found, there was even a magic tool stuck in his throat.


    "Nope." Chen Jing shook her head, "We all believe that the big black fish executed the Master Sun, so we never thought about who killed them."


    "Is there an autopsy on Sun Tiangui? The time of his death..."


    "Yes, the police told us later that he had been dead for almost a week when his body was found." Chen Jing could not wait to answer.


    "What are your reactions?"


    "On the one hand, I''m afraid. On the other, I feel that it''s a pity. As Master Sun has always been a good person, we have a good relationship with him. I remember that when he first went missing, almost everyone in the town went to look for him. After all, before he went missing, he was crazy and kept on telling us that Black Fish had woken up.


    "Where did you find them?"


    "We were looking for him everywhere, in the town, on the mountain, in the nearby countryside, including the Master Sun''s house, but we couldn''t find him no matter what. In fact, we had also searched for him at the top of the mountain, but the Master Sun''s corpse wasn''t there at the time."


    "From the moment Sun Tiangui disappeared, it had been about a week before you found his corpse?"


    "Yes."


    Zhang Nan thought that this was more important, since Sun Tiangui had been missing for a week, and the autopsy had proved that he was dead for a week. From this, it could be inferred that Sun Tiangui had died right after being found, but the first corpse did not appear in the Mountain Godly Temple, which meant that the Mountain Goddess Temple was not the scene of the crime, and was moved there afterwards. As for why he moved Sun Tiangui''s corpse to the Mountain Godly Temple, it was very possible that the murderer had used the fish-shaped magical artifact to insert into Sun Tiangui''s throat for the same reason.


    Zhang Nan faintly felt that Sun Tiangui''s death must have been the key to this entire incident. Normally speaking, it should have been Sun Tiangui who knew some secrets, causing him to be silenced, thus finding the culprit behind this murder case twelve years ago was extremely important.


    "Sun Tiangui''s family also lives in the Zhangze Town?" After thinking for a moment, Zhang Nan asked.


    "No, at the back of the mountain."


    "Take me to see it, and the mountain temple."


    "Sure, it''s not far from here. Let''s go to the top of the mountain first."


    Soon, they arrived at the foot of the mountain. They followed a small path up the mountain.


    Zhang Nan realised that this mountain was very desolate. Moreover, the road was rugged, so it would not be convenient to live on the mountain.


    Along the way, Zhang Nan asked Chen Jing: "In the past twelve years, other than the continuous deaths of twenty year old girls, has there been any other strange happening in the town?"


    Chen Jing bluntly replied, "No, it''s pretty normal."


    Zhang Nan nodded and did not speak further.


    When he was near the top of the mountain, Zhang Nan thought of Sun Tiangui and asked: "Does Sun Tiangui have family?"


    "Only one." Chen Jing replied very straightforwardly. She had always been very confident in her memory, "She''s also a daughter, and her name is Sun Yumei. But she left the Zhangze Town a long time ago. We used to play together when we were kids. She was a year older than me, so she wasn''t affected by the law of death. "


    "Oh, why did you leave the Zhangze Town?"


    "Because... That girl was born deaf and dumb, quite pitiful. I remember she was eight years old when the Master Sun sent her to a deaf and mute school, and we never saw each other again. "


    While they were talking, the two of them had already reached the top of the mountain. As the cool autumn wind blew past, the two of them felt their bodies heat up, feeling relaxed and happy.


    A few more steps, and a ruined little temple appeared before his eyes. He saw that the small temple was about the height of a person and had a large hole smashed into the top. There were crushed rocks and weeds everywhere in front of the temple and there was even a large censer filled with mud.


    Zhang Nan still wanted to get closer to see, but Chen Jing stopped him and said, "Don''t get too close."


    Zhang Nanxin thought that this was true, the people of this town would definitely be afraid of this mountain temple that was struck by lightning.


    "At that time, Master Sun''s body was leaning against the censer, sitting up straight with a magic tool stuck in her throat ¡­" When Chen Jing thought back to that scene from back then, she felt goosebumps all over his body.


    After listening to Chen Jing''s narration and walking around the mountain temple, Zhang Nan said, "Let''s go to Sun Tiangui''s home."


    Very quickly, they passed through a bamboo forest. Zhang Nan saw that there was a house, it was one of the more simple old houses, the door of the house was to the left, the window was to the right, and there was a well in front of the door.


    Zhang Nan looked into the well and realized that the water was already dry. He then went to the window and coincidentally saw that the window was open, allowing him to look inside the house. There was very little furniture, but it was very clean, as if it had not been lived in for a long time.


    "How did the window open?" Zhang Nan asked as he rolled the window with his hand and turned his head.


    "When the Master Sun went missing, we came over to look at the window. Until now, we still haven''t closed it, and there''s not only the window, the other things are also basically the same as back then. We did our best to remain untouched, other than his door."


    "Door?"


    "Well, the door was locked. There was a latch on the inside. We were looking for someone, so we climbed in through the window and opened the door."


    "So you''re saying that we can open the door now ¡­" Zhang Nan said as he opened the door and stepped into the house.


    Chen Jing followed closely behind Zhang Nan, but appeared to be afraid and afraid. Zhang Nan understood Chen Jing''s feelings. This room should be an unknown place in the town, under normal circumstances, no one would dare come here.


    However, this way it would be more convenient for Zhang Nan, as he could preserve the original appearance of the event to the greatest extent.


    Zhang Nan inspected the house, including the bedroom and the kitchen. He discovered that although this entire house looked normal, there was a mysterious aura that lingered around it, making his heartbeat speed up a little.


    Returning back to the hall, Zhang Nan saw a flat wooden box. The inside of the box was empty, placed on a chest of drawers against the wall.


    "What was in this box?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "Oh, it''s some ancient copper coins. Master Sun has a hobby and is especially interested in ancient coins, so he only has a variety of copper coins in his box. But when he disappeared, all the coins in the box were stolen. "


    "Stolen? Is there such a thing? " Zhang Nan looked surprised, "Who did it?"


    "I don''t know. Back then, it was a mess, so it was normal for some people to fish in troubled waters."


    Zhang Nan nodded and did not ask anymore.


    At this time, Zhang Nan noticed that there was a row of things hanging on the wall. Actually, he had already noticed this row of things the moment he entered the room.


    There were a total of ten strings. Each string was made up of eight round pieces of jade. They were neatly arranged in a red string.


    Zhang Nan touched it and felt that the quality of the jade was not bad, it should be some kind of precious ancient jade. Suddenly, he had a question. Why was it that the person who stole the copper coin from the wooden box didn''t take the strings with him? Did he not recognize the treasure, or had he missed it?


    When he thought about it carefully, he felt that neither of them was possible.


    While he was in doubt, Zhang Nan heard footsteps outside the house, Chen Jing also heard it, and looked outside the door. After a while, two men arrived at the door, it was actually Xu Yao who brought Master Ouyang here.


    Seeing that it was Chen Jing and Zhang Nan, Xu Yao could not help but be startled. When he was in front of Chen Jing, he immediately asked, "Sis, why are you here?"


    Chen Jing looked at Zhang Nan, and was at a loss of what to say. Zhang Nan also remained silent, as if everything had nothing to do with him.


    "Did you bring him?" Xu Yao asked Chen Jing as he pointed to Zhang Nan.


    Chen Jing nodded and said: "En, I''m here to take a look."


    "What are you looking at? Teacher Ouyang said that we can''t casually enter this place now." After Xu Yao finished speaking, he then asked Zhang Nan. "You are that Juan''s friend, the fortune-teller right?"


    "Right." Zhang Nan answered bluntly.


    "What does she want you to do?"


    "It''s the same as asking for help from this mage."


    "Tch, you know who this mage is? You are a fortune-teller, do you understand these things? "


    "A little."


    Chen Jing was worried for Zhang Nan, but Zhang Nan''s expression remained calm.


    Master Ouyang was looking around the house, but when he heard Zhang Nan''s words and saw how Zhang Nan was dressed, he muttered with a disdainful tone: "What are you pretending for ¡­"


    Xu Yao also said: "My sister is just a little girl, she doesn''t know anything and even came up with ideas.


    The meaning of Xu Yao''s words was very clear, that it was a waste of effort for Xu Juan to ask Zhang Nan for help.


    "How about this, Little Xu. Tell those who are not related to you to leave first, I need to check this house thoroughly." The more Master Ouyang looked at Zhang Nan, the more he disliked him and he was directly chased away by Xu Yao.


    "Sis, why don''t you all go out first?" Xu Yao immediately said to Chen Jing.


    Chen Jing looked at Zhang Nan again, it was extremely awkward, but she nodded her head and took the lead to walk out of the house.


    "Sorry." Arriving outside the house, Chen Jing immediately apologized to Zhang Nan.


    "It''s alright, I saw enough." Zhang Nan said.


    "Shall we go?" Chen Jing realized that both Xu Yao and the Master Ouyang were targeting Zhang Nan, but she couldn''t explain why either. Maybe Zhang Nan''s attitude towards Zhang Nan was more mysterious and cold, and he would probably be hated by people sooner or later. Thus, in order to prevent Zhang Nan from feeling annoyed again, she advised him to leave quickly.


    But who knew that Zhang Nan said: "No, wait for them to come together, maybe they found something?"


    Chen Jing had no choice but to accompany Zhang Nan and wait outside. In her spare time, Chen Jing asked: "Mr. Zhang, what about you? What did you find out yourself? "


    "For the time being, I haven''t made any major discoveries, and can just barely figure out some of the problems."


    Not long after, Xu Yao and Master Ouyang came out from the Sun Tiangui''s home. Master Ouyang held onto the 10 strings of ancient jade, looking relaxed.


    "Yao Yao, why did you guys take the items from the Master Sun?" Chen Jing asked.


    "Oh, Master Ouyang said that these ancient jades are definitely a type of magical equipment. He needs to take them back to study them."


    "Is that so?" Zhang Nan asked with a smile.


    "Yeah, what''s wrong? This magic tool is very rare, it must be a very powerful one. Master Sun is also a master of magic like me, so I have to carefully ponder over it. Once I completely understand it, dealing with the evil aura of the big black fish should be a piece of cake. " The Master Ouyang said.


    "Let''s go." Zhang Nan no longer responded, and went down the mountain with Chen Jing first.


    In the evening, Zhang Nan quickly ate a meal, and under Chen Jing''s arrangements, he stayed in a room to rest. Master Ouyang was drunk with Xu Yao and the others, he kept beating his chest and guaranteed that he would take care of Xu Juan.


    The next day, Zhang Nan woke up early in the morning and prepared to buy breakfast. Seeing Hu Qian''s mother, Wang Mei, pulling her hand as they pleaded for something, Zhang Nan decided to hide at the side to eavesdrop. Originally, Wang Mei was worried that she wouldn''t be able to give Master Ouyang a red packet or do her best to help him. However, Wang Mei''s family''s financial situation was extremely difficult, the remaining money was basically all for Hu Qian to buy medicine, so he couldn''t gather much money. On the other hand, Chen Sang advised Wang Mei that he had already given him enough money. At that time, Master Ouyang agreed to help the two girls remove the Evil Qi, which Hu Qian naturally included, so Wang Mei did not need to worry.


    Zhang Nan sighed inwardly. On one hand, he was lamenting how the two families had entrusted their lives to someone who did not belong to the line. On the other hand, he was lamenting that Wang Mei''s attitude of wanting to save her daughter even more than the rest of the Xu Juan family.


    When noon arrived, Zhang Nan suddenly had nothing to do, he ran off to who knows where, while the rest of the Xu Juan family treated him as air and surrounded him. Master Ouyang was still busy "receiving" all the people from the Zhangze Town, and had forgotten about the matter of researching the ten strings of Ancient Jade.


    In his free time, Zhang Nan passed by his father, Xu Dajie, and heard him angrily talking to someone on the phone. After listening to a little, Zhang Nan realised that the person on the phone was Xu Juan, and it was more or less because Xu Dajie told Xu Juan to hurry back home.


    Finally, Xu Juan suddenly hung up the phone, causing Xu Dajie to stop his shouting, only then did Xu Dajie noticed that Zhang Nan was right beside him, and took the opportunity to release his Qi towards Zhang Nan:


    "Let me tell you, you think of a way to get her back! "Don''t wait for me to rush into her bar and pull her out. It''ll make everyone look bad!"


    Big Brother Xu was used to spitting saliva when talking. Zhang Nan hurriedly retreated, thinking: Why do I have to be like that with Wang Zili.


    "Listen to me, I have an idea ¡­" Waiting for Xu Dajie to calm down a little, Zhang Nan said, "It''s not a solution for Xu Juan and you to make a ruckus like this, it''s just going to get harder and harder to discuss it. But I feel that you two could just wait a bit longer and not rush for Xu Juan to come back ¡­ "


    "What is it? We spent so much money on her this time just to save her life. Oh, she''s not coming back, are she? Big Brother Xu interrupted.


    "Don''t worry, let me finish. I mean. If Hu Qian managed to escape this calamity, it means that Xu Juan can also be saved. When that time comes, she would be more than willing to agree to let Xu Juan go home and tell her about Hu Qian, and if not, you guys can bring the Mage to find her. Anyways, you guys can do whatever you want, right? If she doesn''t believe it anymore, you guys can just bring Hu Qian along to meet her. "


    Hearing Zhang Nan''s call, Big Brother Xu was silent for a moment, then he snorted, did not reply, and turned to leave.


    Zhang Nanxin was satisfied, he knew that big friend Xu had taken his words to heart.


    In the evening, after Zhang Nan finished his dinner, he thought about going up the mountain alone to look around. However, Chen Jing suddenly caught up to him from behind and told him that the Master Ouyang was giving him advice tonight, and asked him if he wanted to go.


    "Of course!" Zhang Nan did not hesitate and immediately followed Chen Jing home.


    When they arrived at Xu Juan''s house, they realized that none of her family members were present. Chen Jing guessed that all of them had already gone to Hu Qian''s house. Along the way, they realised that the people in the town were all rushing towards Hu Qian''s home. Seems like helping Hu Qian to expel the Evil Spirit Qi was indeed the most important matter now.


    Hu Qian''s family lived by the river, and couldn''t be compared with Xu Juan''s family''s three story house. Hu Qian''s family was just an ordinary one-story house, they weren''t even comparable to Sun Tiangui''s house. The side of the house was overgrown with weeds. Behind the house was a forest, and beside the river, so there were a lot of mosquitoes in the summer. In terms of geographical location, it was the worst town.


    When they arrived at Hu Qian''s home, they saw that everyone was gathered in front of Hu Qian''s house. A long table was placed on the ground, and Master Ouyang was wiping his peach wood sword on it. A short, ugly girl stood beside Master Ouyang. She was obviously Hu Qian.


    In addition, the floor near the long table was filled with candles, forming a circle. It could also be considered a dividing line. Outside the circle were the spectators, and inside the circle were Master Ouyang and Hu Qian.


    Amidst the dense black mass of people, Chen Jing had to look for his family members for a long time. They were all staring at Master Ouyang and did not notice Chen Jing and Zhang Nan at all.


    Outside the circle of candles, Hu Qian''s mother Wang Mei was the closest, her face full of worry.


    Zhang Nan slowly walked closer to take a look. He realized that Hu Qian''s expression was blank and her eyes were blurred, she was indeed a fool, but the most important thing was that he could see a black dot on Hu Qian''s forehead that was similar to Xu Juan. That was the characteristic of entering the Evil Realm!


    Zhang Nan suddenly had a bad premonition, as if a deep black hand was strangling his neck.


    At this time, Xu Yao ran over, out of breath. He held two things in his hands, a white ceramic bowl and a square piece of red cloth, and gave them to Master Ouyang.


    "Go, fill me with water." Master Ouyang ordered as he returned the bowl to Xu Yao.


    "Ah, water. Alright, alright. Auntie Wang, do you have water?" Xu Yao turned and asked Wang Mei.


    "No!" The water in the river, the water in the house is too mixed, not pure, not good practice. " The Master Ouyang said again.


    Only then did Zhang Nan see that this bowl of water was used for cooking.


    Xu Yao did as Master Ouyang was told, he squatted down by the river and scooped up a bowl of water, his butt sticking out.


    After everything was used, Master Ouyang made Hu Qian lie down on the long table. At first, Hu Qian was not willing to, but she still wanted to struggle free.


    At this time, the sky was already dark, especially since there were not many lights around Hu Qian''s house. In addition, there was a circle of candles on the ground, and a piece of red cloth that looked like blood was lying on the table.


    Although there were many people in the crowd, there were also people who were afraid. One of them suggested, "Do you want to bring a light? Isn''t it too dark? "


    "No!" Who said that? " Master Ouyang immediately shouted.


    That person was at a loss for words. Master Ouyang then said, "The most taboo method is to surround yourself with something too powerful. Do you understand?"


    "Yes, yes, yes, stop worrying about it!" Xu Yao also said that person.


    After saying a few words, the Master Ouyang returned to the main topic at hand. He first told Hu Qian to lie still, then whispered a few more things into Hu Qian''s ear before Hu Qian closed her eyes. He then covered Hu Qian''s forehead with the red cloth and placed the bowl of water on top of the red cloth.


    Hu Qian was nervous throughout so she could feel her trembling.


    Master Ouyang raised his peach wood sword and said loudly to the group: "I''m telling you, my way of doing things, cannot be done by the side, must be quiet. Since you guys are here, then shut up, do not speak, and do not make any sound, understand?"


    There were people in the crowd who responded immediately, especially the people from Xu Juan''s family.


    "After all, the prestige he has built up is different. Otherwise, how could our town''s people be so obedient?"


    Chen Jing secretly told Zhang Nan, making him laugh.


    The operation officially began.


    In fact, from Zhang Nan''s perspective, he did not doubt the identity of the Master Ouyang and his views and practices were correct. He only distrusted the abilities of the Master Ouyang and he could faintly sense that the Evil Qi in both Hu Qian and Hu Qian''s bodies was unfathomably deep and it was even quite dangerous.


    The Master Ouyang calmly walked to the long table, nestled close to Hu Qian''s head. His footwork was a little strange, and Zhang Nan could tell that he was walking in a certain direction based on gossip.


    After that, Master Ouyang raised his sword above his head and closed his eyes. He chanted an incantation softly, and the spectators all held their breaths as they watched.


    Chen Jing could not help but ask: "Mr. Zhang, why would he cover Hu Qian''s forehead with a red cloth?"


    "The forehead of humans is known as the Gate of Heaven, it is the soul heart, and is also the place where the soul is most easily touched by the person who practices it. I think he wants to absorb the Evil Qi in Hu Qian''s body onto the red cloth, but... "


    "But what?"


    "Can he control that evil energy?"


    As time passed, the Master Ouyang''s chanting speed gradually increased. Hu Qian clenched her fists, he was extremely nervous.


    The Xu Juan family and Wang Mei all stretched their necks to look, and did not even dare to make a sound.


    Through the red cloth, Zhang Nan could see that the black dot on Hu Qian''s forehead was constantly changing. One moment it was blurry, and the next it was clear.


    At this moment, even though there was not a single breath of wind, the flame of every candle on the ground flickered crazily. After a moment, all the candles were extinguished together, and the scene instantly sank into darkness!


    Some of them even let out heart-wrenching screams, and Chen Jing could not help but to grab Zhang Nan. Zhang Nan did not move, because he could still see everything clearly in the darkness. His gaze remained fixed on Hu Qian as a wisp of black smoke slowly rose from his forehead.


    Unexpectedly, the candle on the ground lit up again. Everyone could see that there was black smoke above Hu Qian''s head, and the black smoke seemed to be unable to dissipate, gradually condensing into a strange shape, like a demon baring its fangs and brandishing its claws.


    On the other side, Master Ouyang was sweating profusely as his whole body was trembling.


    At this moment, he was the closest to the Master Ouyang and Hu Qian, and even breathing was difficult.


    Slowly, Hu Qian began to twitch, her hands and feet kept slapping and kicking, and soon after, it turned into a complete spasm, causing the long table to sway uncontrollably.


    Hu Qian quickly lost control of his body, and couldn''t help but twitch intensely. The bowl and red cloth on her forehead fell to the ground. The black smoke quickly wrapped around her body, and the candle flames flickered crazily.


    "Qianqian, Qianqian!" Wang Mei sensed that something was wrong and immediately rushed towards Hu Qian. However, she was blocked outside the circle of candles by the invisible force. Chen Jing, Xu Yao, Xu Dajie, Chen Sang and the rest were all dumbstruck.


    With a "Oh no!", Master Ouyang was sent flying and fell into the river.


    This way, the situation became even more out of control. Crying and shouting could be heard frequently, but other than Wang Mei, no one dared to get close to him. Hu Qian was convulsing until her abdomen was bent, he stretched her legs with all her might and grabbed her own neck with both of her hands!


    Zhang Nan could no longer sit still, he knew that if this continued, Hu Qian was definitely going to die. Thus, he immediately charged into the circle of candles, grabbed the black smoke off Hu Qian''s body and pressed her forehead with her other hand. Finally, Hu Qian''s convulsions became smaller and smaller, and her body relaxed.


    On the other hand, the black smoke that was being grabbed by Zhang Nan was warping and emitting strange cries that sounded like it came from hell. However, there was a layer of Golden Spirit Repellent Powder protecting Zhang Nan''s body on his clothes, so the black smoke couldn''t succeed at all.


    Everyone was stunned by this scene, including Master Ouyang who fell into the river.


    In the stalemate of a moment, the black smoke could only return to Hu Qian''s body. Hu Qian''s body slowly recovered as she threw herself onto Hu Qian''s body and cried. Zhang Nan continued to caress Hu Qian''s forehead, allowing her to come back to his senses. Hu Qian stared at Zhang Nan with his pair of big eyes, showing a sense of gratitude that was hard to describe.


    "How is Mr. Zhang?" Chen Jing had always believed that Zhang Nan was more capable than the Master Ouyang, so she wasn''t too surprised.


    "Just now when Master Ouyang was helping this lady, she suffered a backlash from the Evil Qi in her body, and he was unable to suppress the Evil Qi, causing her to almost lose her life."


    When Zhang Nan said that, almost everyone turned to look at Master Ouyang, he had just crawled out of the river, his entire body was drenched, his expression stunned, he did not know what to say.


    "Did you expel the evil energy?" Chen Jing asked again.


    "No, it''s still inside her. Actually, it is not difficult to forcefully expel the Evil Qi, but I am afraid that this young lady will not be able to take it, so for the time being, let this matter rest. "


    "Hello, thank you!" "But my lady''s life ¡­" Wang Mei knew that it was Zhang Nan who saved Hu Qian, and her eyes were filled with gratitude.


    "Auntie, don''t be in such a hurry ¡­" Zhang Nan held onto the hand Wang Mei reached out, "I definitely have a way."


    Wang Mei nodded strongly.


    "Yes, yes, yes. There''s also my Juan!" Chen Sang and Xu Dajie also came over. At this moment, the two of them did not even bother to look at Master Ouyang, as their attention were completely focused on Zhang Nan.


    As for the other people outside the two families, they were whispering about Zhang Nan''s identity.


    After everything was over, Wang Mei supported Hu Qian into the house, and they all left the stage one after another. Zhang Nan walked together with the Xu Juan family, but Master Ouyang quickly rushed over. He held onto the jade strings that he had taken from the Sun Tiangui''s home and said to the Xu Juan family members in particular: "Sigh ¡­ I was a bit anxious this time and blamed myself for it. I didn''t expect that evil creature to have some ability. Once I thoroughly studied this magic tool chain, dealing with it would definitely be easy. It''s a pity that the Master Sun died, if he was here, then we could have done it together! "


    "Well said, master. However, magic tools are tools in the end. It depends on who uses them. If the user''s ability is insufficient, then it will still be impossible. " Zhang Nan replied.


    Just as Master Ouyang was about to retort, Zhang Nan turned around and said, "Oh yes, there is one more point. Master, the jade string in your hand is actually a jade coin from the Shunzhi Era, called Shunzhi Tongbao. So to put it bluntly, those are just money. Don''t waste your time researching it with your magic tools. "


    After Zhang Nan finished speaking, he left with the Xu Juan family, leaving behind the Master Ouyang who stood there foolishly.

 C54

    After the incident, Zhang Nan had completely gained the trust of the people in the town, and the attitude the Xu Juan family had towards Zhang Nan changed greatly. It was only now that Chen Jing revealed his identity as the psychic, and decided to come here to save Xu Juan.


    As for the Master Ouyang, he left the same night as when Hu Qian failed in her methods, so no one was concerned about him. The people of the world were all realistic, and had long placed their hopes on Zhang Nan.


    The morning of the second day, Wang Mei brought Hu Qian to the Xu Family residence. She even brought a basket of eggs with him, and was both respectful and polite to Zhang Nan.


    On one hand, Wang Mei had come to pay Zhang Nan a visit, and on the other hand, it was naturally because of Hu Qian. Everyone knew that the day before Hu Qian''s death was going to happen, was October 31, the day after tomorrow.


    Zhang Nan understood Wang Mei''s feelings, he knew that there was not much time, he had to move immediately, but he did not have a clear understanding of the situation, and was feeling troubled.


    Fortunately, he had established his prestige and was much more convenient to gather information on than before. In the process of understanding, he discovered another rule. It turned out that each girl''s twentieth birthday was a night close to midnight.


    Chen Jing asked why it was like that, and explained: "Because Zi Zui is the time furthest away from noon, and also the time when the Yin Pass is opened, so the Yin Qi is the strongest.


    Chen Jing asked again, "What should we do next?"


    "I still need to figure out the truth. I''m always brooding over a single person." Zhang Nan said.


    "Who?"


    "The person who stole the copper coins from the Sun Tiangui''s home wooden box."


    Chen Jing felt suspicious, and asked: "It''s just a thief, is it really that important?"


    "My instincts tell me this man is the key. That''s right, when Sun Tiangui went missing, you said that most of the people in the town were involved in the search, and some of the main figures amongst them, can you help me contact them? I have something I want to ask them. "


    "Sure, I''ll do it right away."


    Chen Jing followed Zhang Nan''s orders, and helped him along with Xu Yao and the others. Just as noon arrived, a group of people sat around the Xu household. The table was filled with tea, waiting for Zhang Nan to ask a question.


    Zhang Nan said a few simple greetings, and said: "Today, I invited everyone here because I wanted to learn more about the matter of Master Sun''s disappearance twelve years ago. From my standpoint, I think that this matter is filled with contradictions and doubts. Time is of the essence, do you have anyone to describe the situation to me first? "


    At this time, the crowd started talking, everything was about the same as what Chen Jing said, and''s impression of them became even deeper.


    Zhang Nan asked again: "Does anyone know about the matter of Master Sun''s family stealing the copper coin? Do you have any suspects in mind? Who''s most likely to steal the copper coins, and who''s the most convenient person to steal the copper coins? "


    Zhang Nan tried his best to look for opportunities from all angles.


    There was someone called Old Song in the crowd. Back then, his relationship with Sun Tiangui was pretty good and he was also interested in antiques and cultural relics. When Zhang Nan asked this question, there were quite a few people looking at him.


    Old Song could only say, "I also thought it was strange at the time. I remember a few days before Old Sun disappeared, I took a few coins from the Tang and Song dynasties to his house and asked him if he wanted them, but he said no, because he only liked the money from the Ming and Qing dynasties and was not interested in the other dynasties. I didn''t say much, and before I left, I even looked at the copper coins in his wooden box.


    "Understood." Zhang Nan secretly remembered what Old Song said, and asked again, "When Master Sun went missing, who was the first to find him?"


    "First... "Find his home ¡­" Old Song was stunned, he could not recall where he was for a long time.


    "Isn''t it just Hu and Zi Xiong?" The old man next to Old Song gave him a nudge and reminded him.


    "That''s right, that''s right. It''s those two brats. I also remember now." another said.


    "I also heard from Zi Xiong that he and Hu arrived here first." Xu Yao said while standing.


    "Who are they? Is it here? " Zhang Nan asked.


    "Hu''s name is Wang Hu. He went out to work a long time ago, and has not been back for a long time. Zi Xiong''s name is Qian Zixiong, and he still lives in the town, but he''s not in right now. " Xu Yao replied.


    "They are about the same age as Xu Yao, and often played together when they were young." Chen Jing added.


    "Look, Zi Xiong''s father isn''t like that, let your son come!" Xu Juan''s aunt Chen Feng said as she pushed another man''s shoulders.


    Qian Zixiong''s father, Qian Ming stood up and said, "Alright, alright, alright, alright. I''ll call him over, he''s at home."


    With that, Qian Ming left the room.


    While waiting for Qian Zixiong to arrive, Zhang Nan asked again: "Since Wang Hu is about the same age as Xu Yao, then they should have been teenagers right?"


    "Yes, he was still young then. Later on, when I remembered that Hu''s grandmother died, he went out to work." There was a traditional Chinese medicine sitting in the town called Gu Lang Zhong, as he replied Zhang Nan.


    "Why did his grandma go out to work after she died?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "When Hu was young, his parents divorced him, and then his parents threw him to his grandma. They went to their families, so he was raised by his grandma, and only his grandma lived in his family.


    Zhang Nan nodded, and continued to ask: "How old is he, to work?"


    "Probably... Around eighteen. " Gu Lang said as he looked at Xu Yao.


    "Yes, when I was eighteen." Xu Yao said with certainty.


    "How old was he when he followed Qian Zixiong to Sun Tiangui''s home to look for Sun Tiangui?"


    "That''s too early ¡­" About fourteen or fifteen years old. " Xu Yao replied.


    Not long after, Qian Ming returned, followed by a tanned young man who looked to be in his twenties. He was his son, Qian Zixiong.


    Zi Xiong is here, quickly sit down, I have something to ask you. Chen Feng was extremely excited and helped Qian Zixiong move the chair.


    Zhang Nan didn''t waste time speaking and directly asked: "When Sun Tiangui went missing, were you and Wang Hu the first to go to his house?"


    Qian Zixiong nodded his head slightly, looking a little shy.


    Zhang Nan guessed that his attire and way of questioning had given Qian Zixiong a lot of pressure, so he tried to ease his attitude as much as possible and said, "Why don''t you describe the situation to everyone again in as much detail as possible."


    "I''ve told you before, no... "There''s nothing going on." Qian Zixiong rolled his eyes.


    "Tell me again."


    Qian Zixiong complained, "Aiyo... That day, and I went to Master Sun''s house first. We climbed through the window and entered, only to discover that Master Sun was not here, so we left! "


    "Think back carefully about what you saw at Master Sun''s house."


    "What ¡­" What can I see... Isn''t that all? " Qian Zixiong answered in a knobbly manner.


    "For example, is there anything special that''s different from normal?"


    "Something particularly strange ¡­" Qian Zixiong revealed a thinking look, and then replied: "I don''t think so ¡­ "I can''t remember ¡­"


    "Did you notice that wooden box?"


    "Oh, the one you said was the one with gold coins in Master Sun?"


    "Yes."


    "That... That... It''s empty inside, someone must have definitely stolen it! "


    Zhang Nan was startled and asked: "How did you know that someone stole it?"


    "Mm ¡­" "Where else did you go?"


    "Why didn''t Master Sun take the money away?"


    "Huh?" Qian Zixiong was a little nervous, "What do you mean?"


    "I mean, theoretically speaking, it''s possible that Sun Tiangui took the copper coin away himself, but you didn''t seem to consider that possibility.


    Qian Zixiong was so confused that he could not answer, and could only look at Qian Ming.


    The others, including Chen Jing, could not understand why Zhang Nan was so fixated on the copper coin that had been stolen.


    "I... "I don''t know ¡­" Qian Zixiong replied after a long time.


    Zhang Nan realized that Qian Zixiong was stuttering more and more. He already had a rough idea.


    "The copper was stolen by you and Wang Hu, right?"


    When Zhang Nan''s words came out, the entire audience was in an uproar.


    Qian Zixiong''s expression was dull, but he was not in a hurry to explain.


    From Qian Zixiong''s reaction, Zhang Nan knew that his guess was right.


    "Is that so, Zi Xiong, you tell me!"


    "It can''t be, you and Hu stole it?"


    "Do you or do you not have it?"


    "Zi Xiong, don''t just stand there. Speak!"


    "¡­"


    Everyone immediately became excited, and Zhang Nan added: "From a time line point of view, this is more of a possibility."


    "Aiyo, it''s been so long. Have you taken it or not? Tell me clearly now!" Qian Ming couldn''t help but speak of his son.


    "Your father was right ¡­" Zhang Nan said to Qian Zixiong calmly, "The main topic of our discussion today is not who stole the copper coin, nor is it to denounce us for our crimes. I just want to know more about the theft of money. I need to know exactly what happened.


    Yes, it''s already been 12 years, who would bother with you. Now that we''re here to save Juan and Qianqian, you better explain it clearly. Chen Jing also said on behalf of Zhang Nan.


    Qian Zixiong understood the seriousness of the situation and finally admitted, "Yes, those copper coins were only Hu''s idea, I was the one who got them from him."


    "Then where did the money go? Did you sell it?" Old Song asked.


    "Yes, Hu will be selling it soon, and he even gave me a few hundred yuan."


    "Only a few hundred dollars?" Old Song retorted. He knew that the copper coins in the wooden box were worth more than that.


    Zhang Nan did not care about how they split the debt, and said: "Tell me again what happened at that time from the beginning to the end, you definitely cannot lie anymore."


    "Zi Xiong, what Mr. Zhang said was correct." Wang Mei said impatiently.


    "Right, right, the Master Sun is a good person. If he died in unknown circumstances, we will definitely investigate him thoroughly!" Another woman from town said.


    "That day, around noon, Wang Hu came to my house to find me ¡­" Qian Zixiong began to speak, "He told me that he had something good to do and asked me if I wanted to do it. I asked him what it was, and then he said that he would only know after going with him to the Master Sun. Afterwards, the two of us went up the mountain and when we arrived at Master Sun''s house, he told me that there was no one there. The window was open, and there was a lot of ancient coins in the box, and it was estimated that it was worth a lot of money. Not just the coins in the box, he also found a box in Master Sun''s kitchen, and inside the box there were not only copper coins, there were also antiques, but he couldn''t move the box by himself, so he asked me to help him out. Qian Zixiong said as he took a sip of water, "I didn''t want to do it in the beginning either, I felt that it would be very troublesome if I was discovered, but now that I think about it, Hu is trying to advise me again, so I agreed."


    "So you went into the house and helped Wang Hu carry out the boxes?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "No, the box was brought out by Hu. I saw that he spent a lot of effort and I was only in charge of keeping watch. Afterwards, we moved the box over to Hu''s house together. Because Hu''s house was very close to Master Sun''s and also lived on the mountain, and his granny wasn''t at home when she went out to visit her relatives, we discussed and decided to leave the box at his house first. He said that he planned to sell it in batches, and also give me a portion of the money. "


    "Is that box really big?"


    "Yes, it''s very big, and very heavy. Hu really couldn''t carry it all by himself, so he put all the copper coins in the wooden box into the chest as well."


    Zhang Nan thought that it was no wonder that they did not take the wooden box with them when they stole the copper coin. He then asked, "Have you opened that box?"


    Then, the copper coin and the antique were covered with a layer of black cloth. Hu said that there was an inner box under the black cloth, and the inner box was filled with copper coins. "" Ah!


    Zhang Nan thought for a moment, then asked: "What did you do with the box afterwards?"


    "I don''t know, anyway, it was handled by Hu."


    "How strange ¡­" Old Song scratched the back of his head and said, "This Old Sun''s house still has a big box of copper coins, he didn''t even tell me ¡­"


    Zhang Nan looked at Old Song and did not say a word.


    Just then, a woman stepped into the room and anxiously said to Wang Mei: "Wang Mei, I can''t control your Qianqian. She has been hiding in bed all this time, trembling as if she''s scared to death.


    The lady was surnamed Li, she was entrusted by Wang Mei to take care of Hu Qian.


    "Oh, oh. I''ll go back and take a look." Wang Mei immediately stood up.


    The others followed Wang Mei out, including him. Seeing this scene, Zhang Nan suddenly remembered something Xu Juan had said before:


    "I seem to be being watched."


    Will you... Hu Qian had the same feeling, but was unable to express it?


    A question surfaced in Zhang Nan''s heart.


    That day, Zhang Nan learned many things about Sun Tiangui''s past, as well as the families of the people on the Zhangze Town. At first, Hu Qian refused to listen to anyone and only wrapped herself in her blanket. It was only when Zhang Nan appeared that Hu Qian looked less scared. After all, what happened last night had left a deep impression on Hu Qian. He could faintly feel that Zhang Nan might be able to save her.


    At night, Zhang Nan returned to his room and calmly pondered for a long time. There really wasn''t much time left to him, he planned to go to the Sun Tiangui''s home tomorrow and bring Qian Zixiong and the others along as well.


    On the next day, under the Xu family''s summons, many people from the Zhangze Town followed Zhang Nan up the mountain, and among them were naturally, Old Song, and other key figures.


    A group of people majestically arrived in front of the Sun Tiangui''s home door. Zhang Nan just happened to think of something and asked: "Oh right, when Sun Tiangui went missing, how often did you discover that something was wrong before you went to look for him?"


    "Mm ¡­" About two or three days later, we realized that the Master Sun had gone missing. It should have been about two or three days. In fact, the Master Sun used to go missing quite a few times and he even occasionally went far away. If it wasn''t for him going crazy before he went missing that time, we wouldn''t have cared at all. " Chen Jing replied.


    "Three days! I remember clearly, it was from the night when Master Sun went crazy on the streets all the way until midnight. Then, on the afternoon of the third day, many families said that they had not seen Master Sun for three consecutive days. Should they go over to his place to take a look? Chen Sang also said.


    Zhang Nan nodded.


    When he pushed the door open and entered the room, Zhang Nan asked again, "Master Sun''s daughter must have been sent to a deaf and dumb school, right? Do you know which school it is? "


    "Yumei! This... "I don''t know ¡­" Chen Sang who was behind Zhang Nan said.


    The others were also like Chen Sang, they only knew that Sun Yumei had been sent to a deaf and dumb school.


    Originally, Zhang Nan had wanted to let Wang Zili check the situation of a certain school when he found out. Now, he could only give up on this line of communication.


    Then, Zhang Nan walked into the house. As there were too many people here, only a few people followed behind. Of course, most of them still avoided Sun Tiangui''s house.


    Zhang Nan searched around again, and very quickly that strange, weird feeling surfaced in his mind once again. That mysterious feeling, it still lingered in this grey room.


    Zhang Nan once again took a glance at the jade strings hung on the wall. After Zhang Nan had exposed that the jade strings were only jade coins of the Qing Dynasty, he gave the jade strings back to Xu Yao, who placed them back where he originally stood.


    At this time, Zhang Nan stared at the Jade String of Fate in a daze, and a new question arose. Sun Tiangui was such a person who valued Ancient Coins, and his Imperial Jade Plate was much more precious, why did he have to erase the words on it? What was the point of stringing it up and hanging it on the wall?


    Zhang Nan touched the empty wooden box again. He realised that the entire matter was filled with contradictions, but he did not understand one important point, once he did, all the problems could easily be solved.


    Walking out of the house, an old lady went up to Zhang Nan and asked, "Mr. Zhang, do you think this is some kind of trick on the big black fish? Master Sun was killed by Hei Yu right? "


    "Not necessarily." In fact, Zhang Nan wanted to answer no, but before he had sufficient evidence, he decided to keep a low profile.


    "We always thought it was the big black fish that couldn''t be suppressed!"


    "That''s right ¡­" Gu Lang also said, "That year, we saw a mass of black smoke in the sky. Wasn''t it the big black fish that was doing this?"


    Zhang Nan shook his head, he did not know how to answer.


    Then, Zhang Nan said to Qian Zixiong: "Qian Zixiong, I want to ask you something else."


    Qian Zixiong seemed to be trembling in fear.


    "When Wang Hu brought out the big box from the house, did he mention about the jade strings on the wall?"


    "Ah?" Jade string? "


    "What are you pretending to be stunned for!" Don''t you know about the things on the walls of Master Sun''s house? " Qian Ming couldn''t help but ask.


    "Oh, Wang Hu didn''t mention anything to me."


    "Why don''t you ask him why don''t you take those jade skewers with you? Even if you don''t understand, you should be able to tell that those jade strings can be sold for a bit. " Zhang Nan asked.


    "I don''t know ¡­" I really don''t know, but maybe Wang Hu was too nervous to see through it, so I didn''t enter the house. "


    "Old Song ¡­" Zhang Nan turned to Old Song again, "Help me recall, when did you hang the jade strings for Sun Tiangui''s home?"


    "Ugh ¡­" That ¡­ I don''t remember very well. It seemed a year or two before he disappeared. "


    Zhang Nan sighed, he was not very satisfied with the two''s reply.


    "Qian Zixiong, and everyone else, try to stand at the location where you saw this room for the first time all those years ago, and try to recall how it looks like compared to back then." Zhang Nan said.


    The few of them followed Zhang Nan''s instructions, and the rest moved away, but in the end everyone''s reply was basically the same: Other than seeing that the house was older, there was no difference.


    After digging for a long time and being unable to find any new clues, Zhang Nan suddenly became distressed.


    Everyone stared at Zhang Nan. The entire place was silent and the atmosphere was tense.


    Many people were still thinking in their hearts that the entire matter was obviously because of the big black fish. They wanted to revive after absorbing the young girl''s vitality, and didn''t know why the psychic was so focused on investigating Sun Tiangui.


    "Actually ¡­" After a while, Zhang Nan said, "Amongst all of you, Wang Hu is the most important, because he was the first one who arrived at the scene and entered the house, but you guys do not have his method of communication."


    "Yes, Hu has been gone for many years, and I heard that he changed his cell phone number the moment he got there." Xu Yao said.


    "Where did he go?"


    "Dalian, work in a factory."


    "Dalian is just a small place. We might as well find a way to ask around and check, maybe we can find him?" Big Brother Xu suggested.


    Zhang Nanxin thought that it made sense, as the communication system was very developed now, it was still possible to find people in a small area, but he had to leave this matter to Wang Zili.


    Tomorrow is Qianqian ¡­ It''s Qianqian''s birthday! " Chen Feng looked at Wang Mei as she spoke.


    Wang Mei wanted to cry, but no tears came out.


    "Ugh ¡­" "That ¡­" In the end, in the midst of silence, Qian Zixiong took the initiative to speak. Hu could not be counted as the first person to arrive here... "


    "Huh?" Many people asked.


    "Explain what''s going on!" Qian Ming urged.


    "Right, at this juncture, you''re still hesitating!" Chen Feng then habitually pushed on Qian Zixiong''s shoulder, causing him to almost fall into the well.


    "You said that Wang Hu is not the first person to come here? "Then who was the first person to come here?" Zhang Nan asked anxiously.


    "It''s me." Qian Zixiong lowered his head and replied.


    "Why is it you? You''re talking nonsense again, aren''t you? " Qian Ming asked angrily.


    "Dad, did you forget? The day before Master Sun went missing, didn''t you take me to the back mountain to catch wild chickens and wild rabbits? "That year, I rarely came to the mountain, and ended up getting lost. I only found you afterwards?"


    Qian Ming thought for a moment and then replied, "Yes! I remember! "


    "Actually, when I got lost, I walked to the front door of Master Sun''s house. So, if you count me as the first person to enter Master Sun''s home, I should be the one. "


    "Was there anyone with Sun Tiangui''s home at that time?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "No one is here. The door is locked."


    "How can you be sure the door is locked?"


    I don''t know why, but I probably want to see if Master Sun is home. He treats our town''s children pretty well, and used to buy food for us to eat.


    "You gluttonous person, you''re asking for food, right?" Chen Feng said.


    "In other words, the first time you went to the Sun Tiangui''s home, it was the same as the time you and Wang Hu went to steal the copper coins?" Zhang Nan continued to ask.


    "Right, it''s basically the same. Only that ¡­"


    "Only what?"


    "Aiyo, some small places that don''t really matter."


    "It doesn''t matter whether you do or not. Tell me and let me judge."


    "Oh, I remember the first time I came here, Master Sun''s window was closed.


    "The window is closed?" Zhang Nan''s mind felt as if an electric current had passed by, "So what you''re saying is that it''s locked?"


    "Yeah!"


    "The window is locked ¡­" Zhang Nan muttered to himself, he could not help but look at the window that was still open, and his expression became gloomy.


    He went up to the window again and examined it carefully. He found that there was indeed a latch in the window, but it was locked inside.


    "That''s why you were sure the window was locked, right?"


    Qian Zixiong nodded unwillingly. He still remembered that he had the thought of crawling into the house to steal food.


    Zhang Nan''s expression quickly changed from serious to terrified. He stared at the window, deep in thought.


    The crowd did not understand why Zhang Nan would have such a huge reaction. Everyone was thinking, why was it just a single window?


    "Do you know ¡­" After a long time had passed, Zhang Nan finally said, "That year, when you found the Sun Tiangui''s home and found the window open, you naturally thought that the window had been open since the day he disappeared. After that, Chen Jing passed on this message to me, causing me to think the same as you all, not knowing that the window had actually been locked previously, thus ignoring an extremely important fact!"


    "Windows... If the lock isn''t locked, what does it matter? " Someone muttered.


    "I can imagine ¡­" Zhang Nan continued to speak, "If it wasn''t for the fact that Qian Zixiong came to the Sun Tiangui''s home that day and discovered this point, even if I were to die, I might not have understood the whole thing."


    "I say, why are you struggling with a window? Whose window is it that''s not locked?" Big Brother Xu shouted.


    Zhang Nan ignored Xu Dai You''s question and directly ran into the house. He looked at the wooden box, then turned to Old Song and asked, "Old Song, I''ll confirm it again with you. Sun Tiangui is only interested in two generations of coins, right?"


    "Yes, I''m sure!" Old Song answered.


    "What kind of coins does he like to collect?"


    "I don''t think there''s anything I particularly like ¡­" I saw all sorts of things in his box. "


    Zhang Nan suddenly realised, he understood that he was getting closer and closer to the truth.


    In the eyes of others, Zhang Nan was completely baffled by these questions. It didn''t seem to have anything to do with the evil matter of Zhangze Town, even Chen Jing was completely confused by it.


    Zhang Nan walked out of the house and said: "I''ll ask you guys one last thing. During the few days that Sun Tiangui was missing, other than him, who else saw Wang Hu? "


    Everyone looked at each other and shook their heads.


    The answer was obvious. Other than Qian Zixiong who was helping Wang Hu carry the box, no one else had seen Wang Hu.


    "It''s not strange, Hu was already that rascal, to the point of being extremely mischievous. Moreover, his grandmother was not home for a few days, who knows where she went." Xu Yao said.


    "Right, he probably stole some copper coins and is in a hurry to sell it somewhere else." Another person guessed.


    Zhang Nan nodded, and replied in a low voice: "It is indeed possible."


    Chen Jing leaned towards Zhang Nan and asked: "Did you find any clues? Why don''t you tell us?"


    "No rush, let''s go down the mountain first. I still have some ideas that I haven''t figured out, and then I still have some things to do. "Wait until the evening, when you invite them to the Xu family. I promise I''ll explain everything to you guys clearly."


    "Alright, let''s do it."


    On the way down the mountain, Zhang Nan intentionally walked together with Xu Yao and whispered to him: "Xu Yao, you said earlier that Wang Hu went to a factory in Dalian to work.


    "I don''t remember what it''s called exactly. I only know it''s in a Dalian economic development zone. It looks like a beer factory."


    "Thank you." Zhang Nan did not speak anymore, and quickly went down the mountain.


    In the evening, under Zhang Nan''s orders, all the people who followed him up the mountain in the day came to the Xu family to listen to his explanation.


    "Mr. Zhang, what do you want to tell us? How did the Master Sun die?" Gu Lang Zhong couldn''t wait to ask.


    Zhang Nan laughed and replied, "That''s not all."


    Then what, hurry up and help Qianqian and the Juan remove the Evil Qi on them, back and forth, time is running out! An old woman complained.


    "I understand. Don''t be impatient yet ¡­" Zhang Nan said in a calm tone, "I have promised to be responsible for the whole Hu Qian affair, but now we have to discuss it and find the truth, especially the culprit that killed so many girls. So if you two don''t have any problems, I''ll be preparing to tell you."


    "Yes, Mother Wu, don''t rush me. Let Mr. Zhang explain." Chen Jing chimed in.


    "According to you, the death of the girl in town has nothing to do with the big black fish?" Big Brother Xu asked.


    "It doesn''t matter at all. In fact, from the moment I heard the rumor about the big black fish, I had already assumed that it was a lie.


    "Then tell me." Big Brother Xu tried his best to stay calm.


    Under everyone''s attentive gaze, Zhang Nan''s expression instantly turned serious, and he said: "Let me first give everyone a conclusion, the one who killed Sun Tiangui is Wang Hu ¡­."


    When Zhang Nan said this, the entire audience went into an uproar, as everyone started discussing.


    "How is that possible?"


    "Is there a mistake?"


    "You have to be responsible when you speak, you can''t speak nonsense like that!"


    "Hu killed Master Sun? "No way, impossible!"


    "¡­"


    "Wait, I didn''t finish ¡­" Faced with such overwhelming doubt, Zhang Nan calmly said, "The one who killed Sun Tiangui is indeed Wang Hu, but it''s not Wang Hu."


    "Huh?"


    "What is this? I don''t understand it!"


    "What do you mean Wang Hu?" What do you mean Wang Hu?


    "..."


    Yet another wave of questioning like wave sounded, but Zhang Nan still appeared to be very confident.


    "Mr. Zhang, I admit that you are capable, but you said that Hu killed Master Sun. I am the first one to disagree, and in our town, Zi Xiong and I have the best relationship, we know who Hu is better than you, so you can ask Zi Xiong, will Hu kill anyone?" Xu Yao stood up excitedly and said.


    "No, definitely not! I wouldn''t believe it even if I was beaten to death, and although we stole items from the Master Sun''s family before, we still worshiped the Master Sun, especially Hu, he has a very good relationship with the Master Sun, why do you think he has to kill the Master Sun? " Qian Zixiong suddenly spoke with confidence.


    "You''re all right, and reasonable." Zhang Nan said slowly, "But I believe more in the facts that I see. Speaking of which, the most important clue to let me understand the truth was actually told to me by you, Qian Zixiong. "


    "What did I tell you?" Qian Zixiong was a little unconvinced.


    "Tell me about the Sun Tiangui''s home window. You should remember that on the mountain, I said that when I first went to the Sun Tiangui''s home, like all of you, I was deceived by one thing: the open window of the Sun Tiangui''s home. It was precisely because when you found the Sun Tiangui''s home that the window was open that year, you naturally assumed that Sun Tiangui''s window had always been open since he went missing. If the window was always open, then anyone could enter and exit the Sun Tiangui''s home. Wang Hu and Qian Zixiong are no exception ¡­ "

 C55

    "Right, isn''t this very normal? I don''t see anything wrong with a window anyway. " Big Brother Xu said.


    "It''s not a problem with the windows, it''s a problem with the people ¡­" Zhang Nan answered and then explained patiently, "I just said, the reason why we thought like that was mainly because we didn''t know that the window was originally locked. It was only when Qian Zixiong told us that the day before you all mobilized to look for Sun Tiangui, and because he was lost and accidentally discovered that the window was locked did I realize that the whole thing was filled with an unimaginable contradiction, which also allowed me to grasp the most important part."


    "To be honest, we still don''t understand. Explain yourself." Chen Jing said.


    "Alright. You are all aware of one thing, the Sun Tiangui''s home''s door was originally closed, and it was opened by you all after entering through the window. If the window was always open, then it doesn''t matter whether the door was closed or not. However, we now know that the window was actually locked the day before you all went to his place. Since the door was closed and the window was locked, it means that after he disappeared, the Sun Tiangui''s home was actually sealed tight, making it impossible for outsiders to enter.


    Qian Zixiong and Xu Yao were both stunned, and couldn''t speak for a long time.


    The other people in the town also gradually understood the contradiction between them and Zhang Nan.


    "Yeah, how did that brat get in?" Qian Ming asked while rubbing the back of his head.


    "Wang Hu said that he first went to Sun Tiangui''s home, and then asked Qian Zixiong to help him carry the boxes. When Qian Zixiong rushed to Sun Tiangui''s home, the windows had already been opened. And when Qian Zixiong got lost on the first time and moved the boxes on the second, none of you people have ever gone to the Sun Tiangui''s home before, so the only one who magically broke into the Sun Tiangui''s home and opened the windows could only be Wang Hu. This is a fact that we were forced to accept. Of course, all of my deductions were based on Qian Zixiong telling the truth. If he was lying to us intentionally, everything would be in chaos. But from what I know of Qian Zixiong, he is not good at lying, and he doesn''t have a good heart. After considering the other relevant circumstances, I believe in his words. "


    Qian Zixiong lowered his head, the others also admired Zhang Nan''s way of looking at others.


    Zhang Nan continued to speak, "Now we know that Wang Hu had entered Sun Tiangui''s home, opened the window and moved the box. However, the two entrances into and out of the Sun Tiangui''s home, the door and the window, were all closed.


    "Aiyo, don''t keep us in suspense. Speak!" Chen Sang urged.


    "This is the strangest place in the whole thing. From the surface, when Wang Hu stole the Sun Tiangui''s home box, he had already been dead for two to three days, so it was not Sun Tiangui who opened the window, so the doubt landed on Wang Hu alone. The answer is no! Usually, when we are unable to rationally explain certain phenomena, we will try to think from a different angle. Since it is impossible for Wang Hu to go through the doors and windows and enter the house, then, there can only be one conclusion: Wang Hu was originally inside the house! "


    Another commotion broke out. Almost all of them had a surprised look on their faces as they whispered to each other.


    "That little bastard, why is he hiding in the house? When did you hide in there? " Qian Ming asked.


    "Obviously, the moment Sun Tiangui disappeared, Wang Hu was already in the Sun Tiangui''s home. From the way you all said that other than Qian Zixiong, no one else could see his figure, which also confirmed this conjecture. Furthermore, Grandma Wang Hu wasn''t home, so no one would pay any attention to Wang Hu''s whereabouts. As for what Wang Hu is doing hiding in the Sun Tiangui''s home, I will explain it later. "


    "Then what is the meaning of Hu having Zi Xiong help him carry the boxes?" Wang Mei asked.


    "Don''t worry, I was just about to talk about the box. The entire process of inference was not strict enough. If the window was initially opened when Sun Tiangui disappeared, but was then locked by someone when he opened the window before Wang Hu arrived, then Wang Hu would instead become the one who was wronged, or if Wang Hu had stolen the key to Sun Tiangui''s home and entered the house ¡­ However, if it was combined with the matter of the box, Wang Hu''s conjecture would definitely be correct. Here, I have to make a conclusion: asked Qian Zixiong to help him carry the chest, and the corpse of Sun Tiangui is hidden inside. "


    Everyone became terrified when they heard that, causing Qian Zixiong to feel cold. He stuttered: "Hu ¡­ Let me move it... Master Sun''s corpse? "


    "Where did you see it?" Xu Yao also asked.


    "Very simple. I''ll follow Qian Zixiong''s description. He said he only saw a portion of the copper coins, which should have been in the wooden box, and that there was a black cloth under the coin, and a second inner box under the black cloth. Don''t you think it would be both troublesome and strange to use this kind of construction for carrying some copper coins? Furthermore, both of us are Ancient Coin lovers, so our relationship with Sun Tiangui is not bad. Old Song actually doesn''t know anything about the chests, this point is a little unreasonable. "


    The crowd was silent, after which quite a few of them nodded their heads.


    "Also, regarding the box, I want to analyze it from a psychological perspective ¡­" Zhang Nan continued, "Let me ask you two, if you two were Sun Tiangui, and there was a box at home, would you two separate the coins in the box and box?"


    "What''s impossible about that?" Xu Yao asked doubtfully.


    "That''s right, I have something at home, can''t I just put it away?" Gu Lang Zhong also said.


    "I might as well ask another question. For example, if you put a stack of money in a drawer at home, and there is clearly enough space in the drawer, would you take out a portion of the money and put it in another place? " Zhang Nan asked again.


    "Ugh ¡­" I don''t think so. " Gu Lang Zhong said.


    "Why would I leave them somewhere else if I could have left them alone? They''re just looking for trouble!" A middle-aged woman with an ear-piercing voice replied.


    "Yes!" This big sis has described it well, and is causing trouble! " Zhang Nan revealed a slight smile, "Sun Tiangui''s box is like this, if his box really has ancient coins, why would he give a portion of it to the wooden box, wouldn''t that be an extra move?"


    "That may not be true. Maybe the Master Sun would like to put some special items or something more valuable in another place?" a man in his thirties asked.


    "Good question. But I have repeatedly confirmed to Old Song that in Sun Tiangui''s wooden box, there were various types of ancient coins for Ming and Qing dynasties, and he was not interested in the other dynasties, so there were no categorization methods. "


    "What if there''s no room in the box?"


    "There''s no way it can''t be placed inside the chest. Otherwise, how would Wang Hu pour the copper coins inside the wooden box into the chest? Qian Zixiong saw it all with his own eyes. "


    "That''s right, the box is actually quite large. After putting the copper coins in, there will still be a lot of room." Qian Zixiong said.


    "Facts have proven that Sun Tiangui''s method of splitting the ancient coin into two is not logical ¡­" Zhang Nan said confidently, "Thus, without question, that box was prepared beforehand to carry Sun Tiangui''s corpse. As it is inconvenient for one person to carry the box up the slope, Wang Hu found an excuse to have Qian Zixiong help. After that, Wang Hu temporarily stored the corpse at home, and then dragged the body back to the Mountain Godly Temple by himself. However, the most important thing is that his house is closer to the top of the mountain, and the road there is easier. Therefore, he didn''t need to use too much effort when moving Sun Tiangui''s corpse from his own house to the mountain temple, and Qian Zixiong''s help was no longer needed. "


    "Mr. Zhang, how do you know all this?" Chen Jing asked curiously.


    "In the afternoon, I made another trip to the mountain to observe the terrain." Zhang Nan replied.


    "Then tell me, why did Hu want to move the Master Sun''s corpse to the Mountain Godly Temple?" Xu Yao asked.


    "In order to make use of the big black fish''s rumor as a cover, let Sun Tiangui feel as if he has met with the big black fish''s revenge." Zhang Nan answered bluntly.


    After a long while, Old Song asked: "Mr. Zhang, you are very smart and have explained it clearly, but I don''t understand. Why is Hu doing all these things? What does it have to do with the girls in our town dying one by one?


    "That''s the whole point..." Zhang Nan''s face suddenly became serious, "It''s Wang Hu''s motive!"


    "Yes, what is his motive? What does Hu want to do?" Chen Jing asked.


    "He doesn''t want to do anything. In other words, he has no motive." Zhang Nan replied.


    "Then what happened?"


    "From Wang Hu''s perspective, there is no reason for him to kill Sun Tiangui, nor do he want to kill those girls. When I connected every part of it together and carefully thought about it, I finally saw through the essence of these things, and it''s also the most shocking aspect of it! "


    Everyone held their breath, listening intently to what Zhang Nan was saying.


    "About seven or eight years ago, I was in Fujian, where I had a few friends and they were family members. They told me that in the Ming and Qing dynasties, there was an evil art passed down, created by a family member. This evil technique is not as famous as Descending Head and Gu techniques, but it is also extremely dangerous and evil, and is called ''Life Exchange''! "


    "Exchanging lives?" Everyone was startled.


    "Yes, I don''t know if you remember, but I had originally said something before: The one who killed Sun Tiangui was Wang Hu, but it wasn''t Wang Hu, so you should be able to guess it now. In fact, Wang Hu was also a victim, and the most tragic one as well. Zhang Nan''s expression was a little pained.


    "Huh?" Everyone''s faces were filled with fear and disbelief.


    "If I hadn''t heard of this technique by chance and combined with the series of events that occurred after Sun Tiangui''s death, it would have been impossible for me to discover that Sun Tiangui had actually switched bodies with Wang Hu. He tricked Wang Hu into his house, closed the doors and windows tightly, used a life changing technique to exchange with Wang Hu, he became Wang Hu, Wang Hu became him, and in the end he even killed Wang Hu, and even inserted a magic tool into Wang Hu''s throat, causing people to feel that Sun Tiangui was the one dying. Just like that, Wang Hu became a scapegoat, and got taken away by that sinister looking Divine Rod! "


    The more Zhang Nan talked, the more excited he became, and the more everyone listened, the more afraid they were. Qian Zixiong''s chin was trembling, he asked Zhang Nan, "Press ¡­ As you say... "I helped move them back then ¡­"


    "Yes, what you are carrying is Sun Tiangui''s corpse, but the one who really died was Wang Hu. Instead, the Wang Hu that made you help to move the corpse, is actually Sun Tiangui!"


    Qian Zixiong''s face turned pale as he asked in disbelief, "Um ¡­ That person is Master Sun? "


    "I don''t know what method Sun Tiangui used to trick Wang Hu to go to his house, but with his scheming mind, dealing with a teenager is too easy. In short, when Sun Tiangui went missing, he and Wang Hu were already at home. I don''t know how to cast the Life Transforming Technique, but for an evil technique of this level, it would definitely take some time to succeed. Furthermore, the process of using it would probably be more fragile and would not be disturbed. When everything was complete, he wanted Qian Zixiong to help him move Sun Tiangui''s original body to the mountain temple, so that he could create the illusion that the big black fish was taking revenge on him.


    With Zhang Nan''s words, the crowd''s understanding of him changed. After all, before this, Sun Tiangui''s image had always been more positive, but now, he had become a scheming, evil warlock!


    Many people found it hard to accept this fact and asked Zhang Nan: "Mr. Zhang, how did you figure out about this matter?"


    "Signs and evidence. I''ve heard my friends from the guest family mention that it takes a long time for someone who has used a life-changing technique to get used to their new body. In addition, they also need to replenish their vitality. As for why she died at the age of twenty, it was because the girls were at the age of twenty, where their vitality was at its peak and their virgins were at their peak, so not only would they die, even the men who are close to them might not be able to live. "


    Zhang Nan said, and immediately thought of Xu Wei''s dead boyfriend and the two men who mysteriously died while taking Xu Juan to a room.


    "A family member in our town who went away before, how did he die as well?" Chen Sang asked anxiously.


    "I have thought about this matter and the answer is obvious. The children of the few families in your town should have already been cursed by Sun Tiangui when he was preparing this plan. Xu Juan and Hu Qian, I can see some blurry black spots between their brows. That is proof that they have been possessed. It is precisely because of the Evil Curse that they were unable to escape Sun Tiangui''s control. " Zhang Nan replied.


    "How did you get cursed? Do we have it on our bodies?" Wang Mei asked worriedly.


    "None of you. As for how to be cursed, Chen Jing had told me one thing before, that your Master Sun was extremely kind, that when each child was born, you would always go to the other party''s house to tell their fortune, and even give them a bowl of longevity soup to drink, right? Think back carefully, have all the dead girls, including Hu Qian and Xu Juan, eaten this Longevity Soup before? "


    Everyone started to discuss immediately. Wang Mei was the first to answer: "Yes ¡­ Yes! That year, when my family''s Qianqian was just three days old, Master Sun came to my house and gave him a divination, before sending me a bowl of divine soup. They even said that Qianqian''s fate was good, and that she would marry a good husband in the future ¡­ "Who knows ¡­"


    "Yes, yes, yes. My Little Wei and Juan also drank the Longevity Soup ¡­" Chen Sang said, and then she blinked quickly, her expression was filled with regret and fear.


    Because, no one would have thought that Sun Tiangui''s evil curse would be placed into that bowl of divine soup. It could be seen that Sun Tiangui''s life exchange plan had been carried out since a long time ago.


    "Are there only girls in this town who drank Sun Tiangui''s divine soup when they were born? Why didn''t you drink it? " Zhang Nan asked.


    "I have to start from when Sun Tiangui went to Yunnan to talk about this ¡­" Old Song replied Zhang Nan, "I remember about 20 to 30 years ago, when Sun Tiangui went to Yunnan province, his wife seemed to have already left, and his daughter was taken care of by a distant relative. He said that he knew that there was a Longevity Village in Yunnan, and that all the old people in the village lived long lives, he wanted to go there to get some knowledge, learn some secret formulas, and also give us a longevity town. After that, Sun Tiangui returned after a long time, and told us that he had learnt how to make the Longevity Soup, but as for the divine soup, only babies can use it after drinking it, and adults have no use for it, so we basically did not drink it in the end. Only a few people drank it, because we believed in his evil! "


    "Right, I''ve already drunk it before. Will there be any problems?" a middle-aged man asked.


    Qian Zixiong nervously asked, "Both Xu Yao and I drank it when we were young, were we cursed?"


    Zhang Nan immediately understood that Sun Tiangui must have had some sort of choice in casting the curse, because these people who had also drank the divine soup did not have any signs of being possessed.


    "No, everything is normal. Sun Tiangui should only place a curse on the baby girl."


    Only after hearing Zhang Nan''s explanation did Qian Zixiong and the others relax.


    "No matter what, Sun Tiangui has been meticulously planning for a long time, making the girls in the town his target as well as his target, Wang Hu. I believe that in the Yunnan Longevity Village, he must have met someone or something. He even learned his life changing technique there, but we have no way to know the specifics for now. However, his intention is still quite clear. It is the same as that of many people who have pursued the path of longevity from ancient times until now. It is even a higher goal: immortality! "


    Everyone stared at Zhang Nan, terrified by his words.


    "Because as long as you master this evil technique, you can use your body as a shell and realize the transfer of souls. It will completely break the most fundamental law of human development. When Sun Tiangui changed his life, he was already middle-aged, but Wang Hu was a teenager. In the end, not only did he obtain Wang Hu''s body, but he also stabbed a magical tool into the throat of his original body, using the cruelest way, and destroyed Wang Hu''s soul, leaving not a single trace behind. This Sun Tiangui''s viciousness is simply outrageous! "


    "What did you say?" Even Hu''s soul was destroyed by him? " Xu Yao asked in shock.


    Sun Tiangui''s cultivation is not shallow, and his scheming is also profound, so he did this deliberately. On one hand, he wanted to destroy Wang Hu''s soul, and on the other hand, he wanted to create the false image of the big black fish taking revenge on him, it just so happens that he killed two birds with one stone. "


    Xu Yao looked lifeless, and felt pain for Wang Hu.


    "If you say it like that, then I really feel like that brat Hu became different after he disappeared from Master Sun." Qian Ming said with a frown.


    "Right, right, I think so too! In the past, Hu liked eating salted duck eggs the most. He kept coming to our house to beg for salty duck eggs, but one time, when I went up the mountain and happened to pick up some salted duck eggs, he asked me if I wanted to eat them. In the end, he said no, and that expression of his at the time ¡­ It felt a little strange. However, not long after that, he went out to work, so we don''t care about him anymore. " Chen Feng said.


    "Yes, after Master Sun went missing, Hu didn''t go out anymore. In the past, he always liked to bring me and Xu Yao to wander around." Qian Zixiong also said.


    "Ai ¡­" Who would have thought that Hu would actually become the Master Sun. " Xu Juan''s second uncle Chen Tao said.


    "The description is inaccurate. It should be Wang Hu''s body that was snatched away by Sun Tiangui." Zhang Nan pointed out.


    "Then I don''t understand, since Hu is Sun Tiangui, why would he want to work in Dalian?" Gu Lang Zhong asked.


    "The reason is very simple. To avoid detection." Zhang Nan answered bluntly, "Think about it, after he exchanged lives with Wang Hu, all of you sensed that something was wrong with him. How could he not understand? He knows that if his schemes were seen through by others, it would not be a good thing for him, so he might as well find an excuse to work and leave your line of sight. "


    "Did he really go to Dalian?" Old Song asked.


    "Nope." Zhang Nan replied.


    "How do you know?"


    "In the afternoon, I already asked an omnipotent police friend of mine to look up the information Xu Yao provided. In any of the beer factories in Da Lian, there was no one named Wang Hu. This meant that he was not working in Da Lian at all. In fact, if we think about it carefully, how could he possibly go to work? Zhang Nan said.


    "Then where is he?" Chen Jing asked.


    "That is exactly what I wanted to say. Although the life-changing technique was mystical, it was still very difficult to execute. Absorbing origin energy was the greatest problem. Don''t you think it''s strange that Sun Tiangui only wants the Zhangze Town''s lady''s yin essence? "


    "Why?" Chen Jing asked.


    "Because if you want to keep a person''s vitality for your own use, you must know the person''s birth date and also know the person''s approximate life history. If he wanted to satisfy these two conditions, he would undoubtedly be the most suitable person to live in the same place as him. So the conclusion is that not only did Sun Tiangui not go to Dalian, he was even nearby and had been secretly observing you two, especially the movements of Xu Juan and Hu Qian. "


    Zhang Nan already understood that the reason why Xu Juan felt watched and why she was so afraid was because of this. Furthermore, his Sun Tiangui''s home was cleaner than she had imagined. It was very likely that Sun Tiangui still stayed in that house occasionally, so the key to the house should always be in his hands.


    Hearing that Sun Tiangui was still around, Wang Mei became even more worried and asked, "Then what do we do, Mr. Zhang? Think of something! My family''s Qianqian... Tomorrow is my birthday! "


    Zhang Nan already had an idea, and said: "I''ll go back tonight, and come back tomorrow. Don''t worry, I will definitely save Hu Qian and her life. "


    Hearing that Zhang Nan was about to leave, many people started to worry. After all, Zhang Nan was their only hope.


    "What are you going back for?" Chen Jing asked.


    "Get something." With that, Zhang Nan stood up and prepared to set off.


    Everyone watched Zhang Nan reluctantly walk out of the Xu family''s gate, their faces filled with worry.


    "Mr. Zhang, you have to come back!" Chen Sang said loudly.


    "Of course!" Zhang Nan made a gesture of farewell.


    Back to the city, Zhang Nan would first use Cheng Qiuna to find Xu Juan and tell him everything. Before she left, Zhang Nan guaranteed that he would save Xu Juan''s life, and let Xu Juan wait for news.


    The next day, returned to the Zhangze Town as promised noon. He was still the only person who did not come, and this time, he brought something with him.


    It had four rings and was divided into four layers. The bottom layer was the largest, and the top layer was the smallest. In the middle was a cylindrical object with some carvings on it. Zhang Nan introduced them to the people from the Zhangze Town that they were the magic tools he used to repel evil spirits, their names were "Gold, Silver, Copper and Iron". Just as the name implied, the four rings from top to bottom were made of gold, silver, copper and iron.


    Zhang Nan explained, evil beings, they were most afraid of metal objects, Sun Tiangui was now an evil spirit, so he had to seal his life and destroy his soul. Gold, silver, copper, iron and iron were equipped with the ability to remove evil spirits, if Sun Tiangui was not an Evil Soul, but an ordinary person''s soul, then Gold, silver, copper and iron would not have any effect.


    However, there was a prerequisite to doing this, which was similar to how Sun Tiangui absorbed Yin Yuan. He had to know more or less about the details of the other party''s life, especially someone like Sun Tiangui who was proficient in evil techniques.


    Fortunately, Old Song and Sun Tiangui had a good relationship, and he knew the date of Sun Tiangui''s birth. Zhang Nan asked Old Song to tell him everything about Sun Tiangui, even if it was just some trivial matters, to deepen his understanding of Sun Tiangui.


    During this time, Chen Jing could not help but ask Zhang Nan: "Mr. Zhang, did you plan on doing this for Qianqian tonight?"


    Zhang Nan glanced at the worried Wang Mei and replied: "No, tonight I am going to deal with Sun Tiangui. In this world, once the person who cast the evil technique dies, the evil technique will naturally be dispelled. The soul of the person who cast the evil technique will be destroyed. If I am successful, Xu Juan and Hu Qian can be saved. "


    "Right, that kind of person''s soul should be destroyed!" It would be better if it was wiped clean! " Chen Feng said angrily.


    In a short period of time, Sun Tiangui had gone from being a respected Master Sun to a hateful criminal that everyone hated.


    In the end, Zhang Nan decided to set the location at 8 PM on the riverside in front of Wang Mei''s home.


    Soon, night fell. The people in the town hurried to the river after dinner. To be more conservative, Zhang Nan made the crowd stand far away, keeping a distance from him. He knew clearly in his heart that Sun Tiangui was an expert in evil arts, and was not an ordinary character.


    But for the time being, Sun Tiangui was in the shadows, and this was his greatest advantage.


    Everyone understood what Zhang Nan meant, so they stood far away, with many people standing on the other side of the river to watch.


    After each of them took their positions, Zhang Nan took out a stack of yellow paper that he had prepared beforehand. On both sides of each yellow paper, he saw a small, short stick rolled up to facilitate the positioning, this was the item that Zhang Nan had prepared overnight. At this moment, all of the yellow papers had Sun Tiangui''s name written on them in red ink. Zhang Nan placed the papers according to the direction of the gossip into the mud.


    When the yellow paper was finished, Zhang Nan sat in front of the magic tool, Gold, Silver, Copper and Iron. A pile of yellow paper surrounded him and the magic tool, the outside of the yellow paper was filled with candles.


    Everyone stared at Zhang Nan. They knew clearly in their hearts that this would be the moment that would truly decide the fate of Xu Juan and Xu Juan.


    After eight o''clock, Zhang Nan took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

 C56

    His voice was so soft that he could barely hear himself, let alone the others in the distance.


    Unknowingly, the river began to wind, waves of cool autumn wind blew, causing the grass to sway with the wind. The yellow paper on the ground was also swaying in the wind, combining with the flickering of the candles to form a strange and mysterious picture.


    Just as Zhang Nan had said, this set of ceremony, props, tools, could only be used on sinister beings. If it was an ordinary person''s soul, it would not have any effect. The process of using this method was similar to summoning a mortal''s soul. However, it ended with the demise of an evil and yin object.


    Zhang Nan sat cross-legged on the ground and started chanting without moving, like a black statue. Everyone waited anxiously, feeling that time was passing by very slowly.


    Chen Jing was the closest to Zhang Nan. She realized that the yellow paper was shaking even more than before.


    After a while, the yellow paper started to shake violently. Zhang Nan''s expression became serious, and the speed at which he chanted the incantations became faster and faster. This time, not only Chen Jing, everyone noticed the abnormality.


    Wang Mei held Hu Qian, and stood behind him. Her heart was already in her throat.


    The others were also very nervous, the terrifying atmosphere of that night was even more intense than the night that the Master Ouyang did things.


    The yellow paper was still wildly swaying about. Gold, silver, copper, iron, and iron slowly emitted "dang dang dang" sounds as the four rings rapidly trembled.


    After a moment, the trembling of the gold, silver, copper, and iron became even more violent and loud. The candles on the ground were all extinguished in an instant.


    When everyone''s hearts were in their mouths, Zhang Nan shouted loudly: "Sun Tiangui!"


    Wisps of black smoke seeped out from each of the yellow papers and slowly rose into the air, quickly condensing into a ball, right above the piece of gold, silver, copper, iron, and iron.


    Zhang Nan looked at the black smoke in the air and continued to chant without stopping.


    Everyone understood, this was Sun Tiangui''s evil spirit that was summoned by Zhang Nan!


    Under Zhang Nan''s constant chants, the gathered black smoke started to distort and shatter. It even produced a low and deep sound that tore at one''s lungs, making one''s hair stand on end.


    This situation continued for a long time, and the people from Zhangze Town were already on the verge of suffocating. Finally, after the mass of black smoke frantically twisted and distorted, it actually turned into a human face ¡ª a painful and ugly one ¡ª and loudly asked, "Who is it?"


    This voice, the people of Zhangze Town were very familiar with it, all of the remaining suspicions on their minds were dispelled, as the black smoke that was being emitted, was definitely Sun Tiangui''s voice!


    Zhang Nan only replied: "You deserve to die!"


    Then, Sun Tiangui''s evil spirit became extremely sinister, accompanied by many muffled sounds, it opened its mouth wide, as though it wanted to swallow Zhang Nan whole!


    However, underneath Sun Tiangui''s evil spirit was gold, silver, copper and iron. At the moment, the sound of gold, silver, copper and iron were extremely ear-piercing, completely overpowering the sound, and there was even a suction force that wanted to suck Sun Tiangui''s evil spirit into the gold, silver, copper and iron.


    Sun Tiangui''s evil spirit saw that the situation was not good, and started to twist even more, the pressure made Zhang Nan feel like he was suffocating. Zhang Nan tried his best to calm his mind and continuously chanted incantations. He knew that he was only one step away from success and he definitely could not slack off.


    They were stuck in a stalemate for a long time, when suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew and Sun Tiangui''s evil spirit could breathe. He actually aimed at Wang Mei and Hu Qian who were at the side, baring her fangs and brandishing her claws, rushing over.


    At this time, Zhang Nan took off his sunglasses. In the chaos, only Chen Jing noticed Zhang Nan''s actions. In that moment, a muslin like light shot out from Zhang Nan''s eyes and shone onto Sun Tiangui''s evil spirit.''s evil spirit released a wail, and then stopped in mid air, the result was that under the force of the gold, silver, and bronze, it started to fall quickly. Finally, Zhang Nan shouted: "Sun Tiangui, go!


    Sun Tiangui''s evil spirit transformed into a thin strand of black smoke, coiled around the Gold Silver Copper Coin, and then the four layers of the gold, silver, copper, and iron rings started to revolve at the same time, releasing waves of mournful, furious roars. The gold, silver, copper, and iron started to tear the evil spirit up and scatter, surging in all directions, releasing a wave of energy that even sent Zhang Nan flying far away.


    After a while, everything returned to tranquility, the black smoke disappeared and the gold, silver, copper and iron were no longer moving. Zhang Nan picked up his sunglasses, put them on again, then stood up and looked at the crowd.


    From Zhang Nan''s expression, everyone understood that he had succeeded, Sun Tiangui''s Evil Soul was completely destroyed. So far, Sun Tiangui had lost his soul.


    Although they had eliminated Sun Tiangui, in order to be conservative, Zhang Nan and the others were still with Wang Mei and her daughter until their son''s time. After Wang Mei''s family''s bell consecutively rang for twelve times, seeing that Hu Qian had safely passed her twentieth birthday, Wang Mei''s tense heart finally relaxed. She excitedly said to Zhang Nan: "Mr. Zhang, thank you for saving my family''s miss!"


    Afterwards, Zhang Nan told Chen Jing that he had a pair of red eyes since she was young. They were a type of Spirit Communication Eyes that was even rarer than Yin Yang Eyes, so he had to hide it with his sunglasses. Moreover, his sunglasses were specially made, otherwise he wouldn''t be able to see clearly in the mortal world.


    Chen Jing then asked Sun Tiangui if the Evil Soul had been completely destroyed, which Zhang Nan confirmed with his answer. Furthermore, the disappearance of the black dot on Hu Qian''s forehead confirmed this point, which meant that the curse Sun Tiangui placed on Hu Qian had been removed, allowing Hu Qian to be saved.


    Other than Wang Mei, the people of the Xu Family all thanked Zhang Nan for saving Xu Juan. On the other hand, Xu Yao mentioned a question.


    "The body of a human is like a shell. When the soul is no longer there, the body is useless. So Wang Hu is now like a person who just passed away, I just don''t know where he is. " Zhang Nan replied.


    Since the matters had been resolved, Zhang Nan prepared to take his leave tonight. Chen Jing had also said that she would be going to the city district in a while and that he would treat Zhang Nan to a meal then.


    One night, in another coffee shop opened by the Mr.Jia, Wang Zili stirred a cup of coffee and said to Zhang Nan with a smile: "Not bad, not bad, without my help, you could have settled such a big issue. Un, you''re better than before."


    Zhang Nan was in a very good mood right now, and joked: "It''s better to have you help, but it''s better for Sun Tiangui."


    "Damn you. I was kind enough to lend you my car, that''s what you call me."


    As the two of them were talking, Mr.Jia brought Zhang Nan''s coffee, and asked: "Is it done?"


    Zhang Nan nodded and replied: "I think so."


    After the Mr.Jia left, Wang Zili said: "What do you mean you should be answering with such an unpleasant tone, it''s not your style."


    "What do you think I should say?"


    "Alright, alright, stop being long-winded and don''t play word games with me. Tell me about it, do you know anything else about this whole situation?"


    "I was just thinking ¡­" Zhang Nan''s expression became serious again, "How did Sun Tiangui absorb the girls'' Yin Qi? Do you know, because I am not clear about Sun Tiangui''s methods, I am unable to solve any problems on Xu Juan and Hu Qian''s bodies, and can only rely on destroying Sun Tiangui''s Evil Soul to achieve my goal. "


    "Who cares what method he uses, he cultivates an evil technique, you don''t know anything about this thing." "Just like when we police handle a case, the primary objective is to capture the culprit. Everything else is secondary, do you understand?"


    "Well, that''s what I say, but there''s always a knot in my heart."


    "Aiyo, stop it! Come, come, let me toast you with a cup of coffee!" Wang Zili acted as if he knew what Zhang Nan was going to say and touched the cup with it.


    "Moreover ¡­" Zhang Nan was still lost in thought, "Why are all girls so punctual when they die? All near midnight. "


    Wang Zili quickly blinked his eyes, and said: "Probably Sun Tiangui has obsessive-compulsive disorder, and likes to cause trouble at that time, right?"


    Zhang Nan shook his head and replied: "Your logical reasoning is so strict that it''s invulnerable."


    "You''re too kind." Wang Zili laughed.


    Zhang Nan took a sip of his coffee and continued, "There''s one other thing that I care about the most."


    "What is it?"


    "Those ancient jades."


    Oh, you mean the thing that Sun Tiangui hung on the wall?


    "Yeah, I keep having the feeling that there''s something wrong with those ancient jades, as if they have some sort of use. Normally, Sun Tiangui loved to collect ancient coins. Then, why did he take out the jade coins used to make treasures and hang them on the wall? Didn''t he put them in his wooden box like the other ancient coins? Furthermore, the strangest thing is that he has already erased the words'' governing the path to treasure ''. What is the meaning behind his actions? "


    Wang Zili pondered for a moment, then said: "Nan, do you know that your greatest strength and weakness are actually all the same? It''s just that your considerations are too complicated. There are times when it''s good to look at something from a complicated perspective, but other times when you may be thinking about something simple. "


    Zhang Nan admitted that what Wang Zili said was reasonable, and replied: "Based on what you said, I was overthinking it?"


    "I''m not sure. But I just feel that for a godly person like Sun Tiangui, you can''t use normal people''s thoughts to judge him. Who knows what he''s planning to do with the ancient jade on the wall, it might be an unexpected reason that has nothing to do with the whole thing, don''t you think? "


    Zhang Nan nodded, after Wang Zili''s analysis, he finally felt a lot more relieved. Trying to guess at the thoughts of a God Stick was not a rational thing to do.


    Just then, Zhang Nan''s phone rang, he did not look at the caller ID, and immediately picked up.


    A gentle voice came out of the phone, "Mr. Zhang ¡­"


    The person who spoke looked sickly, Zhang Nan was unable to tell who he was.


    "Who is it?" Zhang Nan asked.


    "Mr. Zhang, you said that you would save me."


    Hearing that, Zhang Nan shivered, and then he heard some wind sounds, as well as a faint, gloomy sound.


    "Who are you?" Zhang Nan repeated.


    "Xu Juan."


    "Xu Juan?"


    Zhang Nan''s heartbeat unconsciously accelerated. He asked himself: I already talked to Xu Juan on the phone yesterday, why is she still calling me?


    "Mr. Zhang, you said that you would save me, yet you lied to me!"


    Zhang Nan suddenly stood up. This was the first time in his life that he had felt fear.


    "Xu Juan, speak properly ¡­ What happened? " Zhang Nan forced out these words.


    "I''m dying."


    Zhang Nan felt a chill down his spine. He slowly stared at Wang Zili and asked: "What day is today?"


    "November 2nd." Wang Zili answered seriously.


    Zhang Nan''s mind was in a mess, he didn''t understand what this date meant at all. He then glanced at the coffee shop''s clock, which was 11.43 p.m.


    The strange sound from the phone became clearer, as though Xu Juan was being surrounded by an unknown force and was slowly losing control.


    "Mr. Zhang, save me! I don''t want to die! I don''t want to die! "


    This was the last sentence Zhang Nan heard from Xu Juan, but even if Xu Juan did not speak, Zhang Nan still placed the phone by her ear, and did not move it away, because there was still a light breathing coming from the phone, it was definitely not human breathing. Accompanied by the strange breathing, Zhang Nan''s heart was beating erratically.


    When the call ended, Zhang Nan understood that although he had saved Hu Qian, he had not escaped from bad luck. Under the current circumstances, Xu Juan might very well be dead.


    Zhang Nan''s expression was in pain, his entire body was weak, he was so angry that he slammed the table, both Wang Zili and Mr.Jia had never seen Zhang Nan''s reaction before, and could not help but be dumbstruck.


    "What''s the matter? Who''s the caller?" Wang Zili asked.


    "The girl at the bar." Zhang Nan replied in a daze.


    "What happened to her?"


    "He should be dead."


    "Huh?" Wang Zili was also extremely shocked, "Aren''t you... Did you say that that matter was resolved? "


    "Yes, I thought it was settled, but it wasn''t."


    "What''s going on?"


    "I don''t know!"


    Zhang Nan was suddenly at a loss on what to do.


    "Calm down. Think carefully about which segment has gone wrong!" Wang Zili said loudly.


    Wang Zili''s words finally brought Zhang Nan back to reality. Zhang Nan told himself: The strong and the weak are right, I need to be calm! Think about it. This matter had not been resolved yet, but Xu Juan''s death laws still continued. This meant that the culprit might not be Sun Tiangui, or maybe Sun Tiangui had some tricks up his sleeves!


    Thinking of this, Zhang Nan hurriedly said to Wang Zili: "Let''s go! Let''s go find Xu Juan. Even if she dies, I have to find her! "


    "Right, no matter what, let''s first confirm that she is truly dead!" Wang Zili agreed.


    They rushed out of the caf¨¦. Mr.Jia did not speak and did not ask any further.


    "Where are we going?" Sitting in the car, Zhang Nan asked.


    "Of course we have to go to that girl''s place first!"


    "Should I give Cheng Siqi or Cheng Qiuna a call?"


    "Let''s not fight first. Let''s go over and take a look first!"


    Wang Zili shot a glance at Zhang Nan, but he realized that Zhang Nan was panicking.


    From the time he had met Zhang Nan until now, he had never seen such a reaction from Zhang Nan. Zhang Nan, who was once full of confidence and sharp thinking, had now become somewhat slow.


    "Energetic, do you think ghosts can breathe?" Zhang Nan asked casually.


    "What are you talking about? How the hell are you breathing?"


    "I just heard, lastly, that Xu Juan''s phone is still breathing."


    "Breathing?"


    "Yeah, but it doesn''t seem to come from a human."


    "Why? "How can you be sure?"


    "Sigh ¡­" Zhang Nan sighed and did not speak further.


    After half an hour or so, the two of them arrived at a street in the bar area. Just as they were about to stop the car, they saw a large group of people gathered in front of the Lenton Hotel near Xu Juan''s rented apartment.


    Wang Zili looked at Zhang Nan, and Zhang Nan said expressionlessly: "Go and take a look."


    Stepping out of the car, Wang Zili grabbed a small policeman and asked. The police officer was about to flare up, but Wang Zili took out a special police official badge and asked: "What''s going on ahead, are there so many people?"


    The policewoman was stunned for a long time, and finally saw through Wang Zili''s origins. She hurriedly replied, "Oh, a woman committed suicide by jumping off the roof of the hotel."


    Thus, under the lead of the little policeman, Wang Zili and Zhang Nan slowly squeezed through the crowd. When they saw the face of the female corpse that was wrapped in a corpse bag on the ground, Zhang Nan''s face changed, because that was Xu Juan!


    In the past thirty odd years, Zhang Nan had never felt as defeated and ashamed as he did today. He did not dare to say that he had perfectly handled everything that his client had entrusted him with in the past, at least without making a mistake. But this time, it was as if he had been played around by someone else.


    Zhang Nan tremblingly touched Xu Juan''s forehead which was still warm from the heat. He knew that those who were devoured by the Qi would have their souls dried up, like Sun Tiangui, who had lost all their souls. Therefore, he could not summon Xu Juan''s soul. Realizing this, he felt even more pained.


    The cop in charge was also surnamed Wang and knew Wang Zili. He told Wang Zili that they came here immediately after receiving the call from the customers in the bar, saying that a girl had jumped off the building. From the looks of it, it seemed that he was already eliminated.


    Wang Zili nodded his head, without explaining anything, he returned to the car with Zhang Nan and said: Let''s go to Zhangze Town!


    Wang Zili started the car and asked: "What are you going to do?"


    "I need to go to the Sun Tiangui''s home to take a look."


    Taking advantage of the lack of carriages in the middle of the night, the two of them quickly arrived at Zhangze Town. Zhang Nan did not go to the Xu Family and directly rushed up the mountain.


    The wind was especially cold tonight. It was winter, and the trees on the mountain were sparse, like human bones.


    The two of them successfully found Sun Tiangui''s house. Once they stepped into the house, Zhang Nan immediately used the flashlight that Wang Zili had brought to rummage around.


    It was Wang Zili''s first time coming here, and he only felt that Sun Tiangui''s house was normal, he did not understand what Zhang Nan was looking for.


    However, Zhang Nan believed that he had missed some important clues, he believed that there was still something that he did not discover in the Sun Tiangui''s home.


    "Help me find it!" Zhang Nan said.


    "Looking for what?" Wang Zili was puzzled.


    "I don''t know either. Whatever. With your police sense of smell, find out what''s wrong with it."


    "Is it going to work?"


    "I said I don''t know! I think Sun Tiangui would leave something behind, this room is not that simple. "


    Seeing Zhang Nan being so anxious, Wang Zili did not refute him and searched in silence.


    Amidst the silence, Wang Zili suddenly asked. "I remember you saying that the Divine Staff was lived alone, right?"


    "Yes." Zhang Nan looked at Wang Zili. Wang Zili held onto two sets of tableware, which he had just brought out from the kitchen.


    "Is he very hospitable?" Wang Zili asked again.


    "No, Old Song told me, that Sun Tiangui is actually quite an eccentric person, and that very few people would go up onto the Sun Tiangui''s home."


    "Then it''s even more unlikely that someone will come here to eat. Don''t you find it strange that his family has two bowls and chopsticks?"


    Zhang Nan was startled, he felt that after hearing the news of Xu Juan''s death, her mind had become extremely slow.


    "Find it again!" Wang Zili entered the kitchen once again, searching the entire floor. Criminal investigation was one of Wang Zili''s strong points, and in this aspect, it undoubtedly surpassed Zhang Nan.


    Zhang Nan followed closely behind Wang Zili, and the two searched together. Very quickly, Wang Zili discovered that he had pulled out a loose brick from the corner of the stove room. Inside the brick room, there was actually quite a bit of space, and inside the room, there was a pair of red cloth shoes. The two carefully examined the shoes and found that they had butterflies and flowers engraved on them. It was obvious that they were embroidered shoes worn by women.


    "These shoes ¡­" Zhang Nan stared at the embroidered shoes for a long time.


    "Nan, you didn''t inspect me carefully before, but when I came, you immediately found so many clues." Wang Zili said.


    "Yes, on this matter, I have made many mistakes. I am too arrogant and too self-confident. Even if you were to scold me, it would not be excessive."


    "Let''s get down to business. Who do you think wear these women''s shoes? Does Sun Tiangui''s home have a woman? "


    "I heard from Old Song that Sun Tiangui''s wife had left him a long time ago and never lived in this house. The only woman was his daughter, Sun Yumei.


    "You mean that pair of shoes was worn by his daughter?"


    "It can''t be any other woman."


    "That''s strange. These shoes don''t look like they were worn by an eight year old child. They are obviously a pair of adult shoes."


    Zhang Nanxin''s head shook. He could vaguely sense some clues, but he was still unable to fathom it.


    "Will he ¡­" Wang Zili continued, "Sun Tiangui lied to the people in the town saying that he sent his daughter to a deaf and dumb school, but in reality, he did not do so.


    "At home?" Zhang Nan felt that Wang Zili''s guess was very bold, "Why did he do that?"


    "Maybe Sun Tiangui thought that his daughter was deaf and dumb, gave him some face, so she came up with an excuse and imprisoned his daughter. Or perhaps, when his daughter knows of his secrets, Sun Tiangui had no choice but to imprison her in order to prevent them from leaking out? "


    Zhang Nan thought that Wang Zili''s deduction was reasonable, but there seemed to be something missing. The crux of the issue was, no one knew if Sun Yumei was still alive, so if she was still alive, then where was she?


    And just at this moment, Wang Zili accidentally stepped on a wooden board, and almost fell. The wooden board made a very special noise, and attracted their attention.


    Wang Zili crouched down and carefully examined the wooden board until he found a small handle that lifted the entire wooden board up.


    Beneath the plank was a dark and deep cellar, connected by a small iron ladder.


    Zhang Nan and Wang Zili looked at each other in dismay. Naturally, a thought surfaced in their minds: The place that imprisoned Sun Yumei!


    When Zhang Nan got close to the cellar''s entrance, he instantly smelt a terrible stench, as if it had not been smell for hundreds of years. Then, he slowly climbed down the cellar, with Wang Zili following closely behind.


    The cellar was extremely humid, and everything seemed to be moldy. Wang Zili casually shone his light into the room and saw a wooden chair, a large rice jar, an old and tattered bedding, and a straw mat that was spread out on the ground. In addition to these utensils, there was an incense burner placed around each corner of the mat, which was also the cellar. Around each incense burner was a large amount of buddhist incense, many of which had been used before.


    Looking at the four censers, Zhang Nan''s face paled. With a trembling voice, he said, "I thought that this ancient evil technique was already extinct. I never thought it would still exist in this world."


    After a pause, Zhang Nan added, "I understand! I understand it all! "


    Wang Zili immediately shouted: "I understand! I still don''t understand!"


    "The positions of these four censers and the distance between them and the mat in the middle are actually a method of refining baleful qi." Compared to the other evil techniques that Sun Tiangui knew of, this method was more cruel and inhumane. This was because if one wanted to refine baleful qi, one must use their own blood relatives or else they would not be able to control it. Afterwards, he would continuously smoke, chant, and drink rune water in order to achieve his goal. The whole process is very slow, and usually lasts for dozens or even hundreds of days. Before becoming a devil, the other party would rather die from the pain than to die! "


    "Then, isn''t Sun Tiangui''s Refinement Art just ¡­"


    Yes, his daughter Sun Yumei! Zhang Nan answered straightforwardly, "Only now do I know why the time of death of every girl is so fixed. It turned out that the one who absorbed the girl''s Yin Qi was not Sun Tiangui himself, but his daughter. He was completely inhumane, she refined his own daughter into a Yin Sha, and absorbed Yin Qi for herself, I even suspected that the black smoke above the Zhangze Town back then was Sun Yumei who was refined into a Yin Sha! No wonder the death laws of Xu Juan continued, even if Sun Tiangui''s soul was subdued by me, the Yin Sha was still wandering around, and Sun Tiangui was also completely dead, it didn''t need to help Sun Tiangui anymore, and could absorb the Yin energy for its own use ¡­ "


    After saying that, Zhang Nan suddenly came to his senses. He suddenly remembered that Xu Juan''s breathing on the phone, was like that of a ghost''s breathing.


    "Take it for your own use, and then what?" Wang Zili asked anxiously.


    "Then... That yin fiend would become extremely strong, and it could even possess a physical entity ¡­ Honestly, Big Power, I can''t imagine what it will become. One day, even if it stands in front of me, I won''t be able to recognize it. " Zhang Nan was slightly depressed.


    When the two of them came out of the cellar, Wang Zili reminded Zhang Nan: "There''s one thing you must be confused about."


    "What?"


    "You said that Xu Juan was killed by that Yin Sha, and because the law of death has not been removed, then what about Hu Qian, why is Hu Qian still alive?"


    In fact, Zhang Nan had already thought of this problem, but he just could not figure it out.


    At this time, Zhang Nan saw those jade strings on the wall. He approached the wall and held the jade strings in his hands, and in an instant, a thunderclap sounded out in his mind. He carefully counted the jade strings, there were a total of ten.


    "Mighty, look. Count them. Do you think there are ten of them?"


    Wang Zili casually counted and said: "Right, there are a total of ten strings, what about it?"


    Including Xu Juan, there are a total of ten girls who have died so far, what does that mean? Zhang Nan asked anxiously.


    With Zhang Nan''s reminder, Wang Zili was startled, and said slowly: "That''s right. "How could it be so coincidental, or even ¡­"


    "Symbolic!" Zhang Nan raised the jade bracelet and said excitedly, "Previously, I couldn''t understand why Sun Tiangui wanted to erase the words on the Shunzhi treasure. It turned out that he wanted to use these ancient coins as a symbol to kill the ten girls who were trying to absorb the Yin energy. Therefore, to Sun Tiangui, these ancient coins had already lost their original meaning, and were given a new meaning. Right now, including Xu Juan, the ten victims were perfectly fine ¡­ Hu Qian was not saved by me, she was not my target in the first place ¡­ "


    "But Hu Qian''s conditions are completely the same, why is she excluded?" Wang Zili asked.


    "I think it might have something to do with Hu Qian''s brain injury. I heard from the people in the town that Hu Qian wasn''t born with a foolish expression, but that she had lost her brain when she was a teenager. Therefore, since Hu Qian''s Yin Qi is impure, Sun Tiangui might as well abandon this goal. "


    "Makes sense." Wang Zili agreed with Zhang Nan''s analysis, "But I don''t understand anymore. From Sun Tiangui''s perspective, why would he hang the jade string on the wall? Especially since he kept it until now, wouldn''t it expose his intentions? "


    "You know, like many artistic crimes, Sun Tiangui also have this kind of thought. On the one hand, he wanted to achieve his goal of changing his life, and on the other hand, he wanted his carefully crafted plan to be praised, even provocative. That was why he intentionally left a trace. Perhaps ¡­ He had expected that someone would finally see through his scheme. "


    After leaving the Sun Tiangui''s home, Zhang Nan welcomed the night wind and suddenly felt very cold.


    "Are you planning to go to the Xu family and tell them everything?" Wang Zili asked.


    "No, I don''t have the face to see them again on this matter. I would rather choose to escape."


    Wang Zili smiled and said no more.


    Just as the two were about to go down the mountain, Zhang Nan''s phone rang again.


    Zhang Nan looked at the caller ID, and saw that the caller ID indicated that he had saved a name: Xu Juan!


    Zhang Nan took a deep breath, Wang Zili also saw the two words "Xu Juan", and both of them suddenly thought of the same name: Sun Yumei!


    Only now did Zhang Nan understand why his phone was not found at the scene of Xu Juan''s death.


    After the call connected, Zhang Nan did not speak, and the other party also did not speak. Zhang Nan only felt a strange sound from the phone, as well as the sound of breathing.


    He knew that thing had learned to pick up his phone and make calls.


    He had even learned how to transmit threats and fear.


    The phone automatically hung up.


    "What did it say?" Wang Zili asked.


    "He didn''t say anything, but I think he did."


    "Logically speaking, Xu Juan is its last goal, and it has already achieved its goal. Will it still harm people again? "


    "I''m not sure." Zhang Nan shook his head, "I only know that this matter will not end so easily. Absolutely not!"


    Oh no!

 C57

    Ever since I was a kid, I''ve slept in the same room with my brother, who was three and I was eight.


    In addition to me and my brother, there were my mother and my grandmother. Mom and Dad were divorced, and Grandpa died a long time ago.


    Because most of the families are women, only my brother is male, so I feel that my brother is a little out of place, even hate his existence. As my brother grew older, my dislike of him turned to hatred. I hated him for fighting over food with me, hated him for messing up my things, hated him for his habitual shouting, hated him for making my mother happy, but what I hated most was the sound of him grinding his teeth in his sleep.


    I don''t know what caused the molars, but he started grinding his teeth around the time my brother was five, and they often upset my sleep. The sound of his teeth, dry and harsh, made my scalp tingle, and I woke up in my sleep many times because of the sound of his teeth. Until one day, when I couldn''t stand it any longer, I jumped out of bed, went to his bed, grabbed his hair, and shook it. At that moment, I felt so good. The hatred that I had been suppressing for so long had finally been vented.


    The next day, I was scolded by my mother about it, but I didn''t care. After all, I had achieved my goal.


    Since then, I have bullied my brother and vented my displeasure with him. I grabbed his hair, I pulled his face, I slapped his head, I kicked his ass, I stole his things, and I warned him not to tell Mom or Grandma, or I''d bully him worse. My brother was almost scared by me, and he would occasionally report to my mother, who would scold me, and then I would take revenge on my brother.


    Generally speaking, our relationship with each other was extremely bad. It was all because of the sound of his gritting his teeth that I couldn''t stand it. As he grew older, the sound of grinding his teeth became louder. Many times I had suggested to my mother that we change rooms, but my mother had always said that my grandmother''s health was poor and that she needed someone to take care of her. I could only continue sleeping in the same room as my brother.


    Until my brother turned thirteen, when he was in middle school, and I was almost at work, we were still sleeping together. Not to mention how inconvenient it was for me, just the sound of his grinding teeth made me wish I was dead.


    "Squeak, squeak, squeak ¡­"


    I couldn''t make out the sound, but it was as if an electric drill was drilling its way into my ear every night.


    Finally, at the end of that year, something big happened at home. His brother was hit by a truck because he was careless while crossing the road. My mother and grandmother were heartbroken, but my thoughts were complicated. I felt a little guilty, a little sorry, but I was more grateful.


    I know it''s cold-blooded, but I just can''t help it. At my brother''s funeral, I cried like my mother and grandmother. In fact, no one could guess what I was thinking.


    Today, three months after my brother''s death, I slept comfortably every night until dawn. I could no longer hear the sound of grinding teeth that bothered me, and I had to admit that my brother''s departure was a good thing for me.


    It''s been raining hard these few days, and my grandma''s old illness is acting up again, so she stays in the hospital, and my mom stays with me every night at the hospital. I''m the only one left at home.


    I am a timid person. In the past, when mother and grandmother weren''t at home, at least I had a younger brother. Then I would use all kinds of methods to bully him. I wasn''t bored at all. But now the house was deserted and empty, and it was raining and thunder outside again, which made me flustered. Only then did I feel that my brother was actually of some use.


    When I turned off the TV and got ready to go to bed, it was still raining heavily outside the window. I couldn''t sleep, and I couldn''t help but look at my brother''s bed, which was now empty and neatly folded, as it had been on the day of his accident. I don''t understand why my mother didn''t take care of my brother''s things. Maybe she wanted to remember him for a while.


    I stared at my brother''s bed, my heart beating faster and faster, as if he were sleeping on it again. "Sis," I asked cautiously, "am I making a fuss about you?"


    Outside the window, wind and rain were blowing, thunder rumbled and lightning flashed, lighting up his brother''s bed from time to time.


    I don''t know why. I had never felt such a sensation before.


    I even began to think that my brother was lying in bed. I had no choice but to roll over, pull the covers over my head, and close my eyes.


    But the more I tried to avoid the thought, the more it came to mind. And because my back was to my brother''s bed, I had a feeling that a crisis was brewing behind me.


    My eyes flew open and I jerked my head back to make sure my brother''s bed was still the same.


    I was disgusted by my nervous reaction, but I couldn''t help it. I broke out in a cold sweat, thinking how nice it would be if my mother and grandmother were home.


    In my nervousness, I suddenly felt like peeing, but I didn''t dare move, as if I were afraid of attracting attention.


    After hesitating for a long time, I finally got up from the bed. When I stepped out of the room, my gaze never left my brother''s bed.


    I tiptoed into the living room. There was no one in the house, but I was surprisingly cautious. As I was about to go into the bathroom, I heard a noise outside the front door.


    My bathroom was close to the front door, and there was a hallway two or three paces away, shaded by a brown carpet.


    I stood in front of the bathroom door and listened. I felt the sound was strange, like someone was touching my door.


    The fear in my heart grew, and I was horrified by my own guesses. Anyhow, it''s the middle of the night and I can''t open the door no matter who it is.


    Fortunately, the sound only lasted for a short while before it disappeared. My anxious heart finally settled down and I entered the bathroom.


    Because I was so nervous, I couldn''t get it out when I sat down on the toilet. I tried to relax, but I couldn''t concentrate. My mind was filled with images of my brother.


    I remember the look on his face when I last saw him at the funeral home. It was a look that reminded me of the rage he used to have when he was a kid, when he tried to steal from me. That''s what''s going on in my head right now.


    After sitting on the toilet for an unknown period of time, I finally managed to get rid of my urge to pee. The moment I lifted my pajamas, I could vaguely hear sounds coming from the entrance.


    The sound this time was very simple and very straightforward, as if someone was quickly opening and closing the door.


    I was so quiet I could almost hear my own heart pounding.


    Then I told myself over and over that the sound was a hallucination caused by my nervousness, and it didn''t exist at all.


    After comforting myself, I slowly opened the bathroom door. The light in the living room was dim, and at first I didn''t see anything, but when I took a few steps I saw that the carpet in the hallway was damp.


    Water?


    I was extremely curious. It was clearly normal a moment ago, but why would there be water in the passageway?


    And today is the weekend. I''ve been home all day and haven''t stepped out of the house. Where did the water come from?


    It did rain all day...


    Suddenly, an idea popped into my mind: Someone has entered my house!


    I went limp with fear and stared at the door. Then I checked the floor and found traces of water.


    I pushed open Mom and Grandma''s room and turned on the light. Everything was normal. When he returned to his room, he didn''t find anything different. So what the hell had come into my house?


    I blame it all on the leaking house.


    That''s right, because of the continuous heavy rain, some parts of the house had water leaking. This was not a surprising matter. However, I don''t have the heart to confirm it right now.


    So I lay back down on the bed and pulled the covers back over my head, and as I tried to close my eyes and get ready to go to sleep, I heard a voice I knew so well, but hated so much.


    "Squeak, squeak, squeak ¡­"


    The sound of grinding teeth! The sound of his brother grinding his teeth!


    My head swelled with the sound, and every hair on my body stood on end. This voice was very real. It was exactly the same as before!


    I turned around to see what was going on, but then I felt a shadow pass by my bed. A cold chill filled the room.


    I sat up abruptly and looked at my brother''s bed. For some reason, my brother''s bed had become very blurry, and I wondered if I was seeing things.


    I had to get out of bed and approach slowly. As I approached my brother''s bed, I asked, "Who is it?"


    My voice was trembling all over, and it was easy to imagine how scared I was.


    Unconsciously, the harsh grinding of teeth sounded again, and I felt as if my heart was about to stop.


    Step by step, my legs seemed to be stuck in a quagmire as I inched closer to my brother''s bed. I immediately noticed that the quilt on my brother''s bed had been spread out, but it had clearly been folded. At this moment, the blanket was not only spread out, it was even slightly puffed up, as if there was something hiding within it.


    My breathing was extremely difficult, and with the terrifying grinding of my teeth, my brother''s quilt grew bigger and bigger. Right under the quilt, in the darkness, I saw a pair of eyes, shining eyes!


    Finally, I broke down. I ran out of the room and out of the house. I didn''t care about the rain or the wind outside. I didn''t dare to stay home anymore!


    After that, I told my mother about it. At first, my mother didn''t really believe me, but when she saw that I wouldn''t go home, she reluctantly believed me.


    A few days later, we moved into Grandmother''s old house to sell it.


    A few years later, my grandmother died, my mother made a small fortune on the stock, and I started working, so we borrowed money to buy a new house in the provincial capital. This way, they could be considered to have completely parted ways with their past lives.


    The new room had three rooms, and it was very large. Mom and I slept in three each. I am also satisfied with the other facilities and environments.


    Only at night when I was sleeping, I could still hear the voice that had been with me for so many years:


    "Squeak squeak squeak ¡­" "Squeak squeak squeak ¡­"


    I knew that my brother had come with us to the new house, and that the sound of his teeth would torment me forever.


    Oh no!

 C58

    I have been a therapist for many years, but it''s the first time that I''ve met a child with personality disorder like Lee Xiaojun''s son, Lee Shijie.


    Ever since that father and son pair first entered my private psychological clinic to look for me, I had noticed Lee Shijie''s abnormality.


    I remember it was raining and it was dark and I was sleeping on the couch in the morning and I heard the door being knocked. When I opened the door, I saw a freckled and unlovable child standing there.


    His expression was dull, his eyes unfocused, and he didn''t mind the rain at all.


    Behind him stood a man in his forties with a face full of stubble. When the man saw me, he asked me if I was Dr. Hu, and I said yes.


    After that, I invited them into the room. The man immediately told me that his name was Lee Xiaojun, and that he was a massage artist with Chinese medicine. Like me, he opened a private training room, and beside him was his son,, who was eight years old. He said they desperately needed a psychiatrist, and after a brief observation, I knew it was his son who had a mental problem.


    The truth was as I expected. According to Lee Xiaojun''s description, I understood that Li Shi was quiet, not good at communicating with others, and was easily irritable. The most important thing was that he enjoyed the pain of being tortured, and was used to torturing all kinds of small animals and toys. Therefore, Lee Xiaojun''s family never kept pets, but bought a lot of toys.


    When I asked Lee Xiaojun what kind of toy Lee Shijie liked, Lee Xiaojun said that he liked to play with a lot in the past. Now, he basically only likes one kind of toy - the giraffe!


    I was a little curious and asked Lee Shijie why he liked giraffe toys so much. In the end, Lee Shijie scrunched up his face and became especially wary of me. In the end, it was his father, Lee Xiaojun, who told me that it was because giraffes neck was long enough to twist.


    So it turned out that Lee Shijie''s so-called playing with toys was just a way for him to vent his feelings, which was satisfied with his cruel treatment.


    As a professional therapist, I have interacted with all kinds of mental patients, but this is the first time that someone like Lee Shijie has met me, not to mention, he''s only eight years old.


    I told Lee Xiaojun straightforwardly that his son should have a serious personality disorder, a typical anti-social personality disorder that could cause harm to others. However, most of these people were already in their early years, and most of them were caused by some dark experiences from their childhood. Although there were very few children, if they really displayed a certain antisocial personality in their childhood, it meant that their innate genes or brains were defective and very difficult to treat.


    Listening to my description, Lee Xiaojun panicked and asked me to help his son. Honestly speaking, I am not particularly confident, but I am still willing to try. Lee Xiaojun was finally able to heave a sigh of relief.


    I''ll remind Lee Xiaojun, according to his situation, he would probably need a long period of treatment, so the expenses won''t be low either. Lee Xiaojun doesn''t care about the money, he only has one son, as long as he can help Lee Shijie improve his mental state, he''s willing to go bankrupt.


    Since everything has been finalized, I should first let Lee Xiaojun make a brief introduction of his family''s situation. Originally, Lee Xiaojun''s wife died of an illness when he gave birth to Lee Shijie. Lee Xiaojun took care of the big child by himself and even maintained the business of the massage parlor. It was only when Lee Shijie was around five years old or so that Lee Xiaojun noticed that his son was weird and angry. It was only then that he found out that something was wrong with Lee Shijie. So he brought Lee Shijie to search for a cure, but nothing came of it. Eventually, Lee Shijie''s condition got worse, and he started to break the necks of all kinds of giraffes, seeking to vent.


    After roughly understanding the situation, I asked Lee Shijie a few questions that basically had nothing to do with the illness, but Lee Shijie''s reply was rather stiff. I felt that he was completely enclosed in his own world. It was hard to communicate with others.


    After that, every Friday, Lee Xiaojun would bring Lee Shijie to my clinic on time. I would just repeat the conversation I had with Lee Shijie, continuously comfort him, encourage him, and instigate him to live a beautiful life so that he would understand more about human nature. Children of this age group were not suitable for other methods.


    Unfortunately, after a few tries, Lee Shijie''s condition hasn''t improved at all. Actually, this was entirely within my expectations. From the beginning, I was pessimistic about Lee Shijie''s treatment. Because of a congenital defect, no matter what, it was difficult to treat.


    One time when Lee Xiaojun brought Lee Shijie here, he said that he broke another neck of a few giraffe toys. I suddenly got curious about what kind of toy Lee Shijie''s favorite giraffe toy was, and how to break it?


    I told Lee Xiaojun to bring a few giraffe toys for me to see next time, Lee Xiaojun agreed immediately.


    It contained all kinds of giraffe toys, but most of them were sold cheaply. After all, the reason Lee Xiaojun bought the toys for Lee Shijie was not for fun, but for special purposes.


    Flipping through it, I saw a giraffe toy with a split neck. It was made of plastic and could easily be broken. Obviously this was Lee Shijie''s masterpiece.


    When I stared at this giraffe toy, Lee Shijie was also staring at me. I asked Lee Shijie, why did you do this? Lee Shijie replied and thought that it was really fun. Immediately after, Lee Shijie let out a mad laugh, it wasn''t like the laughter a kid his age could produce, I felt a little scared in my heart.


    I asked Lee Xiaojun how long it usually take for him to break a giraffe toy. Lee Xiaojun said that it might not be true, but recently, he had done it more often than before, sometimes breaking several giraffe toys'' necks in a row. So he bought a whole bag of giraffe toys.


    Lee Xiaojun also told me that if Lee Shijie wants to break the giraffe''s neck, but cannot find the giraffe, he would go crazy, and become uncontrollable.


    I understand Lee Xiaojun''s meaning. He''s telling me that Lee Shijie''s condition is getting worse and worse, and if I don''t control him now, the consequences would be unimaginable.


    I can understand Lee Xiaojun''s pain, but it can solve Lee Shijie''s problem, and it might not be something within the limits of human ability for now.


    Anyway, I did my best.


    Until today, Lee Xiaojun and his son had probably come to my place dozens of times. During this time, I also advised Lee Xiaojun to look for another famous doctor, but Lee Xiaojun insisted on bringing Lee Shijie to my place. He said that Lee Shijie liked me a lot now and was willing to talk to me. I was elated, because it was very important for people with mental disorders to have some kind of good impression of doctors, especially Lee Shijie who had an anti-social personality.


    After two days, it was Friday again. As usual, Lee Xiaojun brought Lee Shijie to my clinic, but this time, I noticed that his face was not well.


    I asked Lee Xiaojun: "What''s wrong? You''re not in a good mood today."


    Lee Xiaojun sighed and looked at Lee Shijie as he said, "Shi Jie doesn''t seem to like giraffes anymore."


    Not only was I stunned, I asked, "Why? Isn''t the giraffe his favorite toy?"


    "It used to be, but now he rarely plays."


    "Oh?"


    "I don''t know. I don''t understand him."


    I thought, this is definitely a danger signal, because in the past, breaking the neck of the giraffe toy was Lee Shijie''s outlet. Before he can solve this problem, he needs to maintain this balance in his desire. Once he slowly closed the vent window and couldn''t find a new one, the consequences would be severe. In the end, he would either destroy himself or destroy others.


    When Lee Xiaojun was with the Lee Xiaojun father and son, I advised Lee Xiaojun to pay close attention to Lee Shijie''s movements, and to take Lee Shijie out for fun, if there was anything special, immediately inform me.


    Lee Xiaojun frowned and answered sullenly.


    After they left, my lover, Chen Lan, coincidentally, came to deliver me lunch. Of course she knew about Lee Shijie''s situation, and also asked about the situation, I wasn''t very optimistic, I felt that Lee Shijie had come to my side purely to waste time, and should have chosen to give up. But Lee Xiaojun still brought Lee Shijie here, I don''t know why.


    "Lee Shijie seems to like you a lot." Chen Feng said.


    Surprised, I asked, "Even you say that?"


    "What''s wrong, did Lee Xiaojun say that too?"


    "Yeah."


    "That''s it. This might be your only bargaining chip."


    Chen Lan was right, this is my only bargaining chip, my only advantage.


    Unexpectedly, Lee Xiaojun and his son did not come on the following Friday. I thought to myself: Did he give up?


    No matter whether Lee Xiaojun gives up or not, I still understand and respect his way of doing things. From an objective and rational point of view, a congenital defect of the personality could not be treated. All medical treatment could only be temporarily suppressed, or it could even be said to have been concealed to a point where it could not even be alleviated. Maybe separating Lee Shijie from the crowd was the right decision.


    After all, these antisocial psychopaths were a threat to society.


    Unknowingly, a month had passed and Lee Shijie didn''t come back. There were still a few more patients in my mental clinic, so I had pretty much forgotten about Lee Shijie.


    One afternoon, I gave myself a break and accompanied Chen Lan to buy clothes on the streets. When we strolled into a shopping mall, I saw Lee Shijie, who was standing in front of a window, not moving at all.


    Without thinking, I walked over with Chen Lan, because I have indeed not seen Lee Shijie for a long time. When we arrived behind Lee Shijie, we lightly patted his shoulder. Unexpectedly, as if he had been electrocuted, his entire body seemed to jump up and down. He hurriedly turned around and stared at me viciously.


    I will probably never forget his eyes for the rest of my life.


    It was like a vicious dog in the dark.


    After realising that it was me, Lee Shijie slowly relaxed and greeted me: "Doctor Hu, it''s you!"


    We weren''t surprised at Lee Shijie''s performance just now, because we were all clear about his problem. With a face full of smiles, I replied, "I''m sorry, but shouldn''t I scare you? I said I''m sorry, can you accept it? "


    This is our usual way of talking.


    Lee Shijie shook his head.


    I don''t know if he shook his head, or if he didn''t want to accept it, or if he didn''t want to say it.


    "Where''s your father?" I turned the page.


    "He went to buy me something to eat." Lee Shijie replied indifferently, his eyes looking at another place.


    I looked towards the direction where Lee Shijie was looking. It was actually that window, and there were many types of toys in it.


    There was his favorite giraffe.


    Lee Xiaojun came back with a bottle of cola and fries. When he saw that it was us, he had a complicated expression on his face.


    After we greeted each other, Lee Xiaojun gave Lee Shijie the cola and chips to eat. Unexpectedly, when Lee Shijie finished all of the cola and chips, it spilled all over the ground and said loudly, "I won''t eat it!"


    We were stunned, we did not know that Lee Shijie would suddenly flare up. Especially me, it''s my first time seeing Lee Shijie''s true violent appearance, after all, he''s usually quite obedient coming to my side.


    I started to understand the meaning behind Lee Xiaojun''s words: Lee Shijie''s illness is getting worse.


    Lee Xiaojun had obviously gotten used to Lee Shijie''s condition. Like a conditioned reflex, he crouched down and picked up all the fries before wiping them clean with a tissue.


    Lee Shijie stared at the window without showing a single ripple.


    I walked into the toy store and bought a giraffe toy that was covered in yellow spots and made very lifelike. I passed it to Lee Shijie and said, "This is a gift from uncle, let''s play with it."


    Lee Shijie looked at me for a moment, then took the toy from my hands and opened the box. However, the moment he took out the toy, he broke the giraffe''s neck and threw it onto the ground. His technique was exceptionally straightforward and practiced.


    Lee Xiaojun immediately brought Lee Shijie away.


    Lee Xiaojun didn''t symbolically apologize to me. I can understand Lee Xiaojun''s state of mind. After a long period of mental torment, he has become somewhat numb.


    In the following month, I did not see Lee Xiaojun and his son again.


    One day, it was Chen Lan who brought me food again. She asked me where Lee Xiaojun lived, and I replied her that I did not know the exact address, only that it was in an alley in the Pear District.


    I remember Lee Xiaojun telling me before that he and Lee Shijie would live in the pavilion together for convenience''s sake.


    After I answered, Chen Lan nodded and asked, "Have you seen the news recently?"


    "No, what''s wrong?"


    "There are quite a few missing people in the Pear District, so far we haven''t been able to find them."


    "Ah?" Who are the people who went missing? "


    "I heard it''s some adults. Do you want to be concerned about Lee Xiaojun and his son? What if there was a pervert or something near their house... Should we make them be more careful? "


    I thought what Chen Lan said made sense, and it was only right to remind them with good intentions. Besides, I hadn''t seen them for a long time.


    I sincerely hope that both of them will be safe.


    I immediately called Lee Xiaojun, and when I heard his gentle voice, I heaved a sigh of relief. I told Lee Xiaojun what Chen Lan said, and Lee Xiaojun said that he also knew of the situation. As such, he did not allow Lee Shijie to go out, so he was always on guard, and he even said that he hoped that the missing person would be caught as soon as possible.


    I then asked Lee Shijie what kind of strange behavior he had now. Lee Xiaojun said it was the same as before, but he no longer had any interest in the giraffe toy and would often mention my name, saying, "Father, we haven''t seen Doctor Hu in a long time."


    "Doctor Hu, when we have free time, can we come and see you again?" Lee Xiaojun said.


    Actually, I have been rather free recently, so I said to Lee Xiaojun: "Why don''t I go over to your place? It''s not appropriate for you guys to always come over."


    To be honest, I feel guilty towards Lee Shijie. After all, I can''t give him any substantial help, so I should show this little bit of sincerity.


    "Look at what you''re saying, it''s not suitable at all. You used to help Shi Jie look after his illness before." "How about this, it''s fine for you to try as well. I will give you a push so that you can try out my forging technique for you!"


    "Sure, that''s settled then!"


    After we made the agreement, Lee Xiaojun told me the exact address of his massage parlor, so I planned to go there during the weekend.


    At the end of the week, I got on the bus. About thirty minutes later, I got off at Pear and walked into an alley.


    The alley was very narrow, only a little wider than my shoulder. Almost at the end of the alley, I saw a small shop with the name "Xiao-jun Chinese Traditional Medicine Tuina" written on it.


    I walked into the shop without thinking. Lee Xiaojun seemed to have just finished washing his hands, and bumped into me, and said happily: "Aiyo, Doctor Hu, you''re here!"


    Lee Xiaojun was especially passionate, which was a bit out of my expectations.


    "Yeah, where''s Shijie?" I asked.


    "They''re playing upstairs. Come, come, sit in the room."


    Lee Xiaojun picked a room for me to rest in. The room was cleaned up, and I could tell that it was prepared beforehand.


    Following that, Lee Xiaojun brought over a cup of tea and some fruits and said, "Let me give you a massage? "Relaxing your muscles and bones, my technique is top-notch here. I''ll make it comfortable for you."


    In fact, my interest in massage wasn''t very great, it was mainly here to visit Lee Shijie today. However, seeing Lee Xiaojun''s warm and enthusiastic attitude, I felt that it would be embarrassing to reject him.


    "Then give it a try. What''s the price for your shop''s massage?" I asked.


    "How could I ask you for money? It''s free!"


    "Sigh, how can this be? Money has to be clearly calculated."


    After arguing for a long time, Lee Xiaojun finally decided to give me a discount, giving me half of the money.


    After finishing our discussion and chatting for a while, Lee Xiaojun told me to take off my shirt and lie down on the bed.


    Due to our work relationship, I need to sit for a long time, so my cervical spine isn''t too good. If Lee Xiaojun''s technique is really good, then it can be considered a once to enjoy.


    I took off my shirt according to Lee Xiaojun''s instructions and laid on the bed. Lee Xiaojun massaged my head first. I feel that Lee Xiaojun''s hands are thick, with moderate strength, and really good at massaging.


    After pressing his head a few times, Lee Xiaojun made me turn my body again and used his hand that was smeared with the essential oil to massage my back. The process was also quite comfortable, and I began to admire his craftsmanship more and more.


    After doing all of these, Lee Xiaojun suggested, "Anyways, it''s still early, so I''ll help you pull out a fire jar. With your blood and bones, it''ll be good for your body."


    I thought anyway the massage has been pressed, experience the cupping can also have no problem, so I agreed.


    Very quickly, Lee Xiaojun brought over a fire jar. Using its skillful techniques, he left many fire jar marks on my upper body, covering almost every inch of my body.


    After finishing, Lee Xiaojun laughed and said: "Calm down first, I''ll get you a cup of hot water to warm your intestines and stomach."


    "You''ve worked hard." "No," I said.


    Lee Xiaojun walked out of the room.


    I sat quietly on the cot and waited. In the end, Lee Xiaojun didn''t return for a long time. I was wondering if something had happened to Lee Xiaojun when I suddenly heard a soft cry.


    The sound made me flustered, and I wasn''t sure which direction it came from.


    The sound continued, and I grew more and more uneasy, so I decided to go outside and take a look.


    Without bothering to get dressed, I walked out of the room half-naked. Although he clearly knew that it was daytime, but the light inside Lee Xiaojun''s massage parlor was dim, as if it was night.


    But at last I heard the shouting coming from inside.


    The so-called inner part was the deeper parts of the tunnel. I remember Lee Xiaojun introducing him to me before, saying that his massage parlor had a total of six rooms connected by a passageway.


    Obviously, it was made by one of the two innermost rooms.


    I walked slowly. Although trespassing was immoral, I couldn''t control my growing curiosity at the moment.


    At the end of the passage, I was able to pinpoint the direction of the sound. The shout definitely came from the room to my left.


    Perhaps sensing me, the shouting stopped at once.


    I hesitated but still chose to open the door. But when I opened the door, I was dumbfounded.


    In front of me, naked as I was, covered with the marks of a fire can, was a man kneeling on a high stool, his hands and feet securely bound, his waist secured to the stool. There was also a thick rope tied around his neck. The rope wrapped around the clothes rack on the ceiling and tied the knot, lifting his neck high up into the air.


    This person''s spirit was extremely weak, as if he was on the verge of death. There was a bunch of loose towels on the ground. It seemed to be used to gag this person. Unexpectedly, he spat them out and tried his best to shout.


    In addition to this person, I saw two corpses in the corner. They were both men. The necks of the two corpses were very strange. They must have been broken.


    Accompanying my incomparable fear, I suddenly realised something. The culprit behind the recent disappearance was right in front of me, it was Lee Xiaojun!


    I walked into a murderer''s house and found the scene of the murder...


    I looked at the figure of the man in front of me. His neck was stretched by the rope, and his body was covered with the imprint of a fire can. He looked like a giraffe.


    I understand, I understand in an instant!


    When Lee Xiaojun realized that his son Lee Shijie was no longer able to seek pleasure from breaking the giraffe''s neck, he finally adopted an exceptionally tragic method. It was to make use of the convenience of his profession to turn a living person into a giraffe, and also break his neck for his son to enjoy and vent.


    I took a deep breath. Lee Xiaojun''s perverted behavior, shocked me!


    Just as I was about to escape, I heard footsteps coming from behind me. It''s actually Lee Xiaojun and his son!


    Lee Xiaojun looked at me, and said to Lee Shijie with a gloomy face: "Shijie, look, daddy has brought you another giraffe."


    I realized that, like the man in front of me, I was now naked and marked with the speckled imprint of a giraffe.


    My neck is also longer.


    No wonder Lee Shijie likes me ¡­


    So it turned out that in Lee Shijie''s heart, I had already become his giraffe.


    Oh no!