Strange Fish

"The Blood Beetles placed around Wang Yizhi showed no reaction. It seems there's no major issue. Besides, one person's ability to control others is limited, so I don't think anything too serious will happen."

Zhang Chen moved through the woods, and upon careful consideration, realized he might have been too nervous. However, just in case, he continued towards the villa at full speed. Traveling alone, he had no reservations, leaping between trees. It only took him six minutes to reach the villa.

He pushed open the door. Gong Yuanwu, who had been in the corner of the living room, was gone. Zhang Chen's brow furrowed. He quickly crossed the hall and went to the lakeside in the backyard.

To Zhang Chen's relief, Wang Yizhi was still there, fishing with Dai Xu and Tan Fei.

He walked up and patted Wang Yizhi's shoulder.

"You're so patient, still fishing here. Did anything happen?"

"You rascal, where did you go? You startled me by patting my shoulder right off the bat. If there were fish down there, you would have scared them away," Wang Yizhi said.

"I just went to see how Er Wa's hunting went. Turns out they didn't catch anything, so the problem of improving our meal depends on you guys now. So, any luck?" Zhang Chen asked with a grin.

"Not a damn bit. We've been sitting here for an hour, let alone getting a bite, we haven't even seen a shadow of a fish. Ugh, it's no fun at all."

"Other people fish for a whole morning or afternoon. You've only been here an hour and you're already complaining. Keep at it! I'm going to see what the others are up to."

"Fine, go ahead. I'm not playing with you anymore. Dai Xu is the best."

Zhang Chen looked at Dai Xu, who was covering his mouth and smiling, and could only shake his head helplessly. What else could he do when he had such a girlfriend?

Returning to the living room, he first looked at the portraits hanging on the wall. As expected, he found the painter and the chef he had dreamed about yesterday. The first painting depicted a painter with a tall hat and a curly mustache, named Louis Moore.

Another painting showed a white-bearded old chef holding a cleaver and cutting meat, named Victor Manuel.

On another wall, he also found the old man who had sat behind him in his car in the dream. Judging by his name, he should be the villa owner's father, named Affonso Rodin.

"Everything that happened in the dream was in the past, but I don't know if I'll have enough time to figure everything out. Thinking about it, I still feel like I should find that suspicious guy from the middle school first."

In the dance studio, the same three girls from the middle school were there. They smiled when Zhang Chen entered, especially Shen Qiutian. Perhaps it was because Zhang Chen had helped the injured Jia Xin back on the first day in the woods.

He asked the three about Gong Yuanwu's whereabouts, but they all shook their heads, saying they didn't know.

Just as Zhang Chen walked out of the dance studio, he heard the sound of splashing water.

"Hmm? Could he be in the swimming pool?"

He quickly walked to the left side of the hall and pushed open the swimming pool door. Sure enough, Gong Yuanwu was swimming alone inside. Last night, when they were eating and drinking together, Gong Yuanwu seemed like a very sociable person who liked to act together. He shouldn't be acting alone.

"Gong Yuanwu, your classmates ran into some trouble while hunting. Do you want to come with me?" Zhang Chen called out to Gong Yuanwu in the pool.

But the man seemed not to hear Zhang Chen's shouts, continuing to swim back and forth in the pool.

"His behavior changed so much after being controlled. Is he trying to let everyone know he's problematic? Or does this kind of personality change happen after being controlled? I'll ask Jia Xin about it later."

Zhang Chen didn't bother wasting more words. Seeing that the man wasn't doing anything, he strode away.

Sitting on the circular sofa in the living room, Zhang Chen frowned as he recalled Er Wa's description of their hunting experience.

"It seems that Jiaoping Village outside really has problems. If we want to execute our escape plan, we'll have to get through three checkpoints. The first is this house, the second is the large forest outside the house, and the third is the even larger Jiaoping Village. If it were just Jia Xin and me, it would be fine, but we also need to bring our classmates, especially five girls."

Zhang Chen shook his head at this thought.

"I'll just listen to Jia Xin. If we can resolve this, let's resolve it. After all, we were schemed against by the mastermind from the very beginning. If we try to escape, it's unlikely to succeed. It's better to go with the flow and catch them off guard."

At that moment, Jia Xin returned with Er Wa and Hong Yi. Zhang Chen found it strange. Why were these two looking so dejected and troubled earlier because they had killed someone, but now they were back to normal? Did Jia Xin do something?

"Er Wa, what's with you guys?"

"Brother Chen, I knew you were different when we used to hang out at the internet cafe. My judgment seems to be pretty good."

Zhang Chen guessed what had happened and asked Jia Xin, "Did you tell them everything?"

"Do you think there's any other way to solve the problem besides this? Besides, everyone in our class knows I'm a Taoist priest. We just need to reveal your identity. This will not only stabilize everyone's emotions but also allow us to control the situation."

"Oh, Brother Chen, don't worry, I won't tell anyone. Even if Tan Fei asks, I won't say anything. You can rest assured. So, I actually have a talent for being a Taoist priest. This is the first time I've encountered a ghost, and I've already dealt with it."

Zhang Chen was speechless. It seemed Er Wa had truly been deceived by Jia Xin. If ghosts were that easy to deal with, things would be much simpler.

"Alright, alright, let's not talk about it for now. Let's prepare lunch. It's almost 11 o'clock. Let's see if Wang Yizhi and the others caught any fish. If they did, we can have meat. After lunch this afternoon, Er Wa, you can ask me again."

Er Wa and the others nodded and headed towards the kitchen.

"Jia Xin, what do you think about that strong guy from your class?" Zhang Chen recounted the incident of him swimming alone.

To his surprise, Jia Xin seemed indifferent.

"As long as he didn't do anything bad, there's no need to worry about it. Let's eat first. We'll take it one step at a time."

Zhang Chen couldn't manage much more, so he walked directly to the backyard and looked at the small wooden bucket next to Wang Yizhi and the others. To his surprise, there were indeed two fish, not too big and not too small, inside.

However, it was a bit strange that there was no water in the bucket, yet the two fish weren't struggling for air or jumping around. Moreover, the two fish were not dead, and their gills were still moving constantly.

"Tan Fei, you guys caught fish but didn't give them any water. They'll die soon, and then we'll only have dead fish to eat."

"I was too excited just now and forgot. I'll get water right away."

Tan Fei directly brought over another wooden bucket, filled it with water, and poured it into the first bucket. The two fish immediately started swimming in the water, becoming like ordinary fish. Zhang Chen didn't pay much attention to it anymore.

The three of them stopped fishing, reeled in their rods, and stretched their arms. Wang Yizhi pointed to the slightly larger fish and said that she had caught it, looking very cute.

"By the way, Brother Chen, how are Er Wa and the others doing?"

"It seems like there are no living creatures in the woods. They didn't even see a shadow all morning and came back empty-handed."

"Oh yeah, Er Wa even bet me that whoever couldn't get meat would have to buy the other a top-up card. Hehe, 30 yuan in my pocket!"

Tan Fei directly picked up the wooden bucket from the ground and strode into the villa, seemingly eager to show Er Wa.

After everyone arrived in the kitchen, they debated who would cook the two fish. Ultimately, the short-haired girl from the first high school, Xiao Lan, was chosen to steam the fish alive.

Zhang Chen was responsible for the other side dishes.

Eleven people squeezed into the kitchen. After the previous night's adjustments, their teamwork had leveled up, significantly increasing their efficiency. In less than 40 minutes, the table was almost full of dishes. Only Xiao Lan's steamed fish was left.

Everyone except Zhang Chen and Xiao Lan was ready in the kitchen.

Zhang Chen stood in the kitchen, assisting Xiao Lan. Finally, as the lid was lifted, a fishy aroma wafted out.

"Your cooking is pretty good. My mouth is watering just smelling it," Zhang Chen said.

"Hehe, I'll taste it first to see if the flavor is right, so no one can say I didn't make it well," Xiao Lan smiled slightly, picked up a small piece of fish with her chopsticks, and put it in her mouth.

"Cough, cough, cough!" After chewing the fish, Xiao Lan immediately coughed it out.

"Why is this fish bitter? I've cooked it several times at home, and it was always fine. Sob sob."

Seeing that she had messed up everyone's only meat dish, Xiao Lan actually burst into tears.

"Don't cry. Maybe there's something wrong with the fish itself. How can cooking make a fish taste bitter?" Zhang Chen quickly tried to comfort her.

Zhang Chen suddenly remembered the fish's abnormality. He picked up the cleaver, walked over to the fish, and gently cut open its belly. However, the fish, which had been steaming in the pot for half an hour, actually gushed blood.

Zhang Chen quickly shifted his body to block Xiao Lan's view. Then, he used his hand to hold open the part he had just cut.

"Is... is this a fish?" Zhang Chen was shocked to see the fish's opened belly.

The internal structure of this fish was almost identical to a human's, even having lungs. This explained why it could breathe without water earlier. Zhang Chen felt a bit disgusted.

Just then, the kitchen door opened, and everyone, having heard Xiao Lan's crying, walked in.

"What's going on, Zhang Chen?" Jia Xin asked first.

"There's something wrong with this fish. It seems to have parasites and is infected, so it's inedible," Zhang Chen said calmly.

"Let me see." Tan Fei, unwilling to let the fish he caught go to waste, still wanted to take a look.

"It's fine, don't look. It's disgusting, and you won't be able to eat later."

Zhang Chen waved his hand, signaling Tan Fei not to come closer. He then casually dumped both fish into the nearby trash bag and carried it towards the main door.

Back in the dining room, everyone was a bit hungry. Despite it being a vegetarian meal, everyone ate happily. Xiao Lan was also cheered up by everyone. Zhang Chen observed that the girl seemed fine, which put his mind at ease.

After lunch was everyone's rest time. Er Wa, however, kept pestering Zhang Chen, coming to his dorm and asking him to tell him stories about ghosts. Helpless, Zhang Chen had to adapt a few stories from movies he'd seen and tell Er Wa. To his surprise, Er Wa was very attentive, asking for details about every aspect. As for Zhang Chen, he really hated Jia Xin for this.

While everyone was taking their afternoon nap, Xiao Lan happily returned to her bedroom. Just as she was about to sleep, she felt an itch on her waist. Lifting her clothes, she saw a small, shimmering scale had grown on her right waist.

At first, Xiao Lan thought it was a fish scale from handling the fish in the kitchen. To her surprise, when she tried to pull it off, the scale seemed to have grown from her body, causing her immense pain.

With no other option, Xiao Lan went to the bathroom, closed the door, turned on the light, and picked up her eyebrow trimming knife. She began to slowly cut off the scale on her body.

"Ah!" Cries echoed intermittently. After five minutes, the scale was finally removed. Xiao Lan's right waist was bleeding profusely, as if a layer of skin had been peeled off. However, with the scale gone, Xiao Lan felt much better. She prepared to stand up, deal with the wound, and then take her nap.

However, as Xiao Lan stood up, she faced the large mirror in the bathroom and suddenly laughed eerily. Because in the mirror, her face had five scales of the same size as before, shimmering under the light...

ps: My right hand has recovered quite a bit today, so I went to a major hospital, which took a lot of time, hence the late second update. Please collect and recommend, thank you for your support!!