"Are all girls this competitive with each other?"
Su Jie, who had just enjoyed a grand palace-intrigue drama, finally spoke.
"No, it's not like that. I just couldn't stand watching that woman Zhao Xuanmiao act so affected and coy."
Liu Yingying felt a little embarrassed under Su Jie's gaze.
She knew a few tricks of tea artistry herself, but she believed her level and moral standards were far higher than Zhao Xuanmiao's. At least she would never keep such a huge pond of fish.
"Su Jie, you don't think I'm a terrible person, do you? I-I may be a little fond of money, but I don't look down on others, and I've never toyed with anyone's feelings."
"At least you're honest."
Su Jie stroked Liu Yingying's flushed cheek and said, "Stay here tonight."
Liu Yingying's face reddened even more. She lowered her head and toyed with her fingers, giving a soft hum of agreement.
With a smile on his face, Su Jie raised his wineglass and glanced around. "Everyone, eat and drink your fill. I'm feeling a little unwell, so I'll go upstairs and rest first."
With that, Su Jie put his arm around Liu Yingying and left the lawn, entering the villa.
Many people present understood perfectly well what had happened, secretly sighing that Liu Yingying had latched onto a powerful backer.
After another high-pitched cry ended, utterly exhausted, Liu Yingying fell into a deep sleep.
Su Jie lit a black candle. This was Soul-Soothing Incense. It could aid soul cultivation, while ordinary people who inhaled it would enter a deep sleep and wake the next day refreshed and clear-headed.
After finishing everything, Su Jie dressed himself and left the villa alone under the cover of night, arriving at the dock in the rear courtyard.
Splash, splash!
The waters of the Qingshui River, which connected to the rear courtyard, churned and surged as the Thousand-Hand Centipede surfaced.
"Let's go. We'll find some people to play with."
Su Jie patted the Thousand-Hand Centipede's head, then stepped onto its back and let it carry him toward the eastern district of Linping City.
In an abandoned unfinished building on the eastern side of Linping City, several heavy trucks were parked in this desolate place.
The abandoned buildings should have been cold and deserted, but one of them rang with raucous noise. Amid shouts and drinking games, a group of tattooed men were drinking merrily.
"Brother Hu, when can we go back? Drinking without any girls isn't fun!"
"Exactly, exactly! We pulled off such a huge job. We deserve some kind of reward."
The alcohol quickly went to their heads, and they immediately revealed their true nature, eager to find some entertainment.
The man everyone called Brother Hu was a bald, muscular man nearly two meters tall. Hearing this, he laughed and cursed irritably, "Once the heat dies down, I'll take you all to nightclubs for a whole month if you want. For now, stay put and wait for the boss's arrangements."
"Isn't that being too cautious? We handled everything so cleanly. What problems could there be?"
"Hmph. Our rivals probably have overseas connections. There's no harm in being careful."
Brother Hu pointed at the man who had spoken earlier and ordered, "Lei Zi, stop keeping your mind in your pants all day. Once this shipment is delivered safely to the boss, you'll have enough to live it up for several years. When the time comes, what woman won't you have? Just endure it for a few days."
"Fine, fine. Brother Hu, I can't argue with you. If you say so, then so be it."
Lei Zi scratched at his crotch, set down his wine bottle, and said, "I'm going out to take a leak."
"Lei Zi, kid, don't tell me you can't get it up anymore."
"Exactly. How many bottles of horse piss did you drink? You already want to escape by pissing?"
"Shove that crap! I'm not a coward. Just wait for me to come back and deal with all of you."
Cursing as he went, Lei Zi staggered out of the room with a swaggering, utterly unrestrained gait.
He did not go far. After all, this was an unfinished building, with bare concrete everywhere. He simply found a corner, unzipped his pants, and started relieving himself.
Rustle, rustle!
Suddenly, Lei Zi heard a strange, faint sound beside his ear.
It sounded as though something was crawling. In the darkness, human eyes could not see, while hearing became sharper instead, so Lei Zi heard it very clearly.
"What's that sound?"
His body jolted. Lei Zi pulled up his pants and took a lighter from his pocket.
Using the flame to illuminate the surroundings, he looked toward where the sound had come from.
A huge black shadow suddenly scurried across the ceiling. Its sinister black-and-purple insect armor gleamed, while pale arms twisted and crawled beneath its abdomen.
The terrifying and bizarre sight left Lei Zi frozen as though under a binding spell. His mouth hung open, but terror sealed his throat, and not a sound came out.
Click, click!
Suddenly, the terrifying figure on the ceiling stopped moving and lowered half its body.
Like an eagle snatching up a chick, it dragged Lei Zi to the ceiling in a single bite. All that remained was the sound of bones breaking, after which there was no movement at all.
Inside the room, as the group drank, someone suddenly said, "Why has Lei Zi been gone so long?"
"Maybe he fell asleep outside. Someone go take a look."
"Haha, then I have to go take a few embarrassing photos and laugh at him to death later."
Two tattooed men rose with their arms around each other's shoulders and ran outside to check.
Another ten minutes passed before someone said, "Where are Broken-Tooth Feng and Monkey? They've been gone so long looking for Lei Zi. Don't tell me all three of them got drunk and passed out outside."
Brother Hu, who had been playing cards, frowned and said, "Something's wrong! Call them."
Clack!
Just then, all the candles burning in the room went out, plunging everything into pitch darkness.
Before the group drinking and carousing could react, several screams rang out from all around them.
"Get the flashlights! Turn on your phone lights!"
Brother Hu's expression changed drastically. He roared at everyone to turn on their phones, then hurriedly switched on the flashlight he had prepared.
Once the light illuminated the surroundings again, a scene that shocked everyone present appeared.
The group, which had originally numbered more than a dozen, was now missing five people. Including Brother Hu, only seven remained.
"Big Black Fool, A Yun, Chen Mule, Brother Bing, and A Gu are all gone."
Someone counted the people, his voice trembling violently.
Five people had vanished in just over ten seconds, on top of the three who had disappeared earlier with Lei Zi.
Eight people had vanished without a trace, neither living nor dead.
"Ghosts! Could they be ghosts? Workers died here during the original construction of this unfinished building. Did we... did we provoke something unclean?"
One superstitious man was already almost scared to piss himself. Once he said this, everyone grew even more tense, shrinking into a nervous huddle like a flock of quails.
Brother Hu's skin prickled with gooseflesh. Though he had never believed in ghosts or monsters, he cursed loudly, drew a machete, and glared into the darkness beyond the flashlight's reach. "Who is it? Who's playing at this ghostly nonsense? If you've got the guts, get out here! Let's see if I don't hack you to death! You think this can scare me? If I so much as flinch, I'll take your surname!"
There was no response. In the darkness, only the cold night wind poured through the unsealed windows.
Before you continue