That Wasn't My Offering?

Seeing how readily Qin Liu agreed, Liu Haoyu almost laughed out loud.

Putting everything else aside, she was truly the easiest Fierce Ghost he had dealt with in all his years on the job.

No, in terms of the threat she posed to humans now, she could practically sit at the same table as a ghost.

She excelled at frightening people without killing them.

If only all the Fierce Ghosts in the world were as easy to deal with as Qin Liu.

Unfortunately, that was only wishful thinking.

Most Fierce Ghosts were monsters that had lost their minds, or retained only a small part of their sanity.

They thirsted for slaughter, yearned for revenge, and eagerly dragged every innocent person they encountered into hell.

"However, I also need your help with something." Qin Liu had not forgotten about her younger sister in Jiangquan City, so she said, "Later, I'll need you to take me to Jiangquan City."

"Jiangquan City? I was rather curious about that before. Do you have some kind of fixation that's driving you to go there?"

A fixation could also turn into resentment, so Liu Haoyu had to get to the bottom of it.

However, Qin Liu merely shook her head and said,

"It can't really be called a fixation, but I have to keep this matter secret from everyone."

"...Fine."

Since Qin Liu did not want to talk about it, there was no need for Liu Haoyu to keep asking.

Even if this really was her fixation, once he took her to Jiangquan City, it should disappear.

So there was no need to keep digging. Liu Haoyu understood that it was important to leave others some personal space.

"Tonight, I plan to go into the city. Someone had their chest torn open by a Fierce Ghost, and their heart and lungs were eaten completely, so I need to investigate this matter thoroughly. According to the Black Book, this incident may also be related to the resentment in the haunted house."

"Can this somehow be connected to my home?"

Qin Liu muttered, then said,

"If that's the case, I'll go with you to take a look."

Seeing that Qin Liu had agreed, Liu Haoyu continued,

"So we're partners now, right? As fellow partners, shouldn't you show yourself too?"

"Actually, I've been in the bedroom this whole time."

When Liu Haoyu offered up the sacrifice, Qin Liu had already returned to the bedroom and had been speaking to him face-to-face.

"Can't you see me?"

"...No."

Liu Haoyu looked around the room again, but he truly could not sense any ghostly presence.

If the candle by the head of the bed had not lit up, Liu Haoyu would have suspected that Qin Liu was just fooling him.

"Then there's nothing I can do."

Qin Liu spread her hands. She was sitting right in front of him, and he still could not see her. Whose fault could that be?

Just think about that girl Deng Xiaolin. How could she see her?

He needed to reflect on that.

"Looks like I'll still have to find a way to get a silver mirror."

Liu Haoyu felt a little troubled. Although he was an exorcist, his spiritual sight was not particularly strong.

At least, it was nowhere near as strong as Deng Xiaolin's.

However, compared with Deng Xiaolin, he had a much keener perception of killing intent.

When he had first entered the haunted house, if Qin Liu had shown any killing intent, Liu Haoyu naturally would not have spoken to her so amicably.

They might even have started fighting long ago.

"Once you buy that silver mirror, I'll never appear in front of you again, even if it kills me."

In just a few short days, Qin Liu had gained a slight understanding of Liu Haoyu. This man was somewhat of a creep.

So it was best not to reveal what she looked like.

"Hmm... Come to think of it, what are you eating?"

For some reason, while they had been talking just now, Qin Liu had noticed Liu Haoyu chewing on something the whole time.

It was making a crisp crunching sound. She guessed it was probably potato chips.

"Potato chips, obviously."

But Qin Liu had clearly seen earlier that there was nothing left in Liu Haoyu's backpack.

Just as Qin Liu was feeling puzzled, Liu Haoyu picked up a bottle of Sprite and took a gulp.

Looking at the snacks in his hand, Qin Liu thought that Liu Haoyu still had some supplies left. Feeling a little tempted, she asked,

"Do you have anything else to eat?"

"No, I gave you all the snacks."

Liu Haoyu had not bought many snacks in the first place, and he had given the rest to Qin Liu as well.

"You gave them all to me... Where did the things in your hands come from?"

Qin Liu's little face was full of confusion. If Liu Haoyu had given all the snacks to her, then where had the Sprite and potato chips in his hands come from?

And they were exactly the same flavors as the ones in her hands.

After Liu Haoyu had eaten and drunk his fill, the young man extended his hand and pointed toward a corner of the room.

Qin Liu followed his gaze. The potato chips and Sprite that had been placed on the altar had long since vanished without a trace.

Her little face immediately flushed bright red. No one could tell whether the ghost was angry or embarrassed.

"Weren't those my offerings!?"

Night fell. Liu Haoyu brought his work equipment and arrived outside the haunted house.

Because some poor ghost's offerings had been stolen, she did not want to talk to Liu Haoyu now.

Liu Haoyu, for his part, did not think much of it. He got on his motorcycle and gently twisted the throttle, sending it roaring onto the road.

It was the fifteenth day of the lunar month, when the moon was full and yin energy gathered.

All things beneath heaven would be covered in the full moon's silver light, and the solitary ghosts and wild spirits hiding in the darkness would take the opportunity to show themselves.

Just as people liked basking in the sun, ghosts preferred basking in the moonlight.

So going out during a full moon was the easiest way to run into something unclean.

But Liu Haoyu had nothing to fear.

He rode the motorcycle at full speed, the roar of its engine echoing through the silent night.

If there really were a ghost, then as long as it was not a Fierce Ghost on Liu Xiaoxiao's level, he could basically ram it away head-on.

By the time Liu Haoyu arrived at the home of the third murderer, it was already eleven at night.

"What a remote location."

The third murderer of Liu Xiaoxiao was originally named Li Qing. He later changed his name to Zhu Xingxue. He had been an ordinary farmer from a village near the reservoir.

He had been friends with the other two murderers. When the two of them were night fishing, he had gone over to deliver something and happened to run into them abducting Liu Xiaoxiao. He had then joined their criminal group as well.

He had not managed to commit the rape, but he had committed the more serious crime of murder. Before the law could judge him, an unknown Fierce Ghost had slaughtered his entire family.

It could truly be called retribution.

The countryside at night was nothing like a major city. Once it reached nine or ten in the evening, basically no one went outside anymore.

The houses along the roadside had almost all turned off their lights, with only two or three still lit.

But soon, the last two or three houses turned off their lights as well.

At that point, the village fell completely silent.

Liu Haoyu slowed the motorcycle and quietly entered the village.

Following the Black Book's instructions, he soon found a residence.

Unlike the other houses, this one was entirely red.

From a distance, the solitary house seemed to lie there in silence like a gigantic coffin.