The Night Watchman

Liu Haoyu observed the house carefully.

Judging by its appearance alone, this residential building was incredibly eerie.

Few people would decorate the exterior walls of their house with red; at least, normal people wouldn't choose that color.

What was even more bizarre was that the main entrance of this residential building didn't face a road, but rather a barren mountain.

This orientation was like inviting stray ghosts to "come play at my house."

Coupled with the house's bright and ominous red, Liu Haoyu felt that Zhu Xingxue must have had an incredibly strong fate to have lived this long.

It was likely his ancestors had done a lot of networking in the underworld.

But regrettably, one can't walk by a river without getting their feet wet.

This man had ultimately died at the hands of the Fierce Ghost a few days prior.

Now, this red house was accumulating a vast amount of resentment. Anyone normal would feel uncomfortable seeing it and instinctively want to stay away.

But it was clear that Liu Haoyu was not a normal person.

He shone his flashlight as he approached the house, but Liu Haoyu didn't rush inside.

Instead, he circled the house twice, setting down a few things.

At the same time, he noticed that the firewood was currently lit.

This meant there was a ghost nearby...

"Qin Liu, get inside the Red Jade."

"Okay."

Qin Liu, who had been curiously observing the house, tactfully entered the Red Jade.

Yet, even with that, the light from the firewood only dimmed slightly.

It seemed there was something very malevolent in the vicinity.

Liu Haoyu observed the outer wall behind the house.

There were quite a few drawings on it, resembling children's graffiti.

To an adult, the house was somewhat unlucky.

But children didn't care about such things; for them, the empty grassland behind the house was their favorite little playground.

Liu Haoyu walked up to the wall and carefully examined the messy graffiti.

The drawings were very disorganized, with various handwriting styles, indicating that Zhu Xingxue hadn't stopped the children from playing.

However, amidst the graffiti, Liu Haoyu discovered a few particularly jarring phrases.

"Where did sister go?"

"Sister is gone."

"I will find sister."

These short sentences made one's imagination run wild with dread.

Liu Haoyu didn't know who had left these words, but judging by the handwriting, which resembled chicken claws, it was likely an immature elementary school student.

Afterward, Liu Haoyu found more of this child's writing on the wall.

"Daddy is so bad, he always hits Mommy."

"Why can't Mommy's eyes see?"

"When I grow up, I will definitely protect Mommy..."

Perhaps due to a lack of education, the child's words felt a bit awkward to read.

Looking at the handwriting, Liu Haoyu felt a lot of confusion, but it also reminded him of certain things.

From what he knew, Zhu Xingxue's wife was disabled.

She was blind and had her left foot amputated.

Furthermore, this wasn't a normal marriage; Zhu Xingxue had bought his wife in the 1990s.

Back in that era, especially in this poor and backward village, such things were not uncommon.

This also suggested that Zhu Xingxue's family life wasn't all that pleasant. The writing on the wall was likely from Zhu Xingxue's son.

But... Liu Haoyu remembered that Zhu Xingxue's household registration only listed one son, not a daughter. What was going on?

At this moment, Liu Haoyu was filled with questions, but just then, an old man carrying a lantern spotted him.

"Hey! What are you doing here?"

Hearing the old man's reprimand, Liu Haoyu noticed the firewood in his hand burning even brighter.

"Just passing by, looking for a place to set up camp and rest."

"Another one? Go back, go back!"

The old man said impatiently.

"Does this place look like a good spot for camping!?"

Even though Liu Haoyu said that, the old man saw him as just another young thrill-seeker drawn by ghost stories.

"Elder, may I ask, didn't this house belong to a family of four? Why is no one living here now?"

Liu Haoyu specifically mentioned the family of four, hoping to pry out some useful information.

But upon hearing this, the old man's expression froze. He then noticed the graffiti on the wall and, for some reason, became even angrier as he spoke.

"Dead, dead! All dead! Leave quickly!"

Seeing the old man's anger, Liu Haoyu took a stack of bills from his pocket and placed it in front of him.

However, the money was from the "Heaven and Earth Bank."

It was hell money.

Instead of getting angry, the night watchman's eyes fixed directly on Liu Haoyu's hand upon seeing the stack of hell money.

"Tell me about it."

"……"

After a moment of silence, the old man finally spoke.

"It was indeed a family of four, a couple with a son and a daughter. But about a year ago, their daughter fell ill with some strange sickness, and we haven't seen them since."

"Thanks, I'll set up camp here."

Money makes the world go round, and that's no joke.

The old man took the hell money, and his previously furious expression softened considerably. He even kindly warned him.

"Young man, this place is extremely haunted. Two young people went in yesterday and still haven't come out. If you really want to camp for the night, the village square not far from here would be a better choice."

"Hahaha, no need to trouble you. I still need to start a fire to cook something, and I'm afraid of disturbing you all. This spot is remote and quiet, which is perfect."

Seeing that Liu Haoyu wouldn't be dissuaded, the old man, holding his lantern, could only sigh.

It was as if he was lamenting, "Good advice is wasted on deaf ears."

Watching the old man's retreating back, Liu Haoyu squinted and put the Thunder Shock Talisman back.

This was just a harmless guardian spirit, similar to a local deity.

"It really was a family of four…"

Liu Haoyu muttered, pulling out his climbing rope and tossing it up. Once he confirmed it was hooked, he skillfully climbed to the top floor.

The roof was covered with a layer of rice stalks, but due to the rain, many of them had already sprouted.

It looked like it had been abandoned for quite some time.

Liu Haoyu took out a crowbar from his backpack and pried open the door to the top floor.

As soon as the door opened, a foul, putrid smell wafted out.

It was like stepping into a slaughterhouse.

With all the windows locked from the inside, the odor had fermented into something truly nauseating.

Liu Haoyu rummaged through his backpack for a gas mask and put it on, feeling a bit more comfortable.

However, when traveling, besides the threat of ghosts, one also had to be wary of people.

You never know what goes on in someone's mind. It was just like the situation Deng Xiaolin encountered at the reservoir.

If she hadn't run fast enough back then, something terrible might have happened.

Although Liu Haoyu seemed carefree, he was actually much more cautious than Deng Xiaolin.

Furthermore, judging by what the old man said, there were still two other people in the house.

So, to preempt any danger, Liu Haoyu held the Fire Axe from his backpack.

As a ghost exorcist, carrying an axe was perfectly reasonable, right?