Noon.
After they parted, Jennifer, still caught up in her emotions, did not really want to go out. She did not even want to go home and suggested moving in together.
There was a high chance the demon would follow her. Li Dan slapped Jennifer to make her behave, telling her they would check out her house first before considering any other requests.
So the two of them headed out beneath the blazing sun.
Warm sunlight could still give people a strong sense of security.
The moment Li Dan and Jennifer stepped onto the street, they froze for a moment, but quickly got used to it. An alligator was leisurely crawling along the path next door.
It was probably someone's pet, or it had crawled up from a nearby lake.
Nearby, a streetwear king wearing who knew how many pairs of pants walked past the alligator. After getting knocked down by a tail swipe, he quickly got back up and pointed at the alligator's nose, launching into a rap.
The alligator did not understand rap. It bit down on the streetwear king's pants and performed a death roll. The good news was that they were not in the water, and because the man was wearing so many pants, the alligator stopped moving halfway through the roll.
An Asian man was running from a nearby store after grabbing goods for free, shouting, "Baka yarou!" as he ran, with two police officers chasing after him.
The white neighbor next door was doing push-ups in a pair of shorts by the public pool. Sheriff Joe had come too, but unfortunately, someone had stolen the manhole cover, and he had fallen into the sewer and was calling for help.
There was also a Black man in a white T-shirt marching in place. Standing beside him felt just like being next to an NPC in Grand Theft Auto.
Anyone unfamiliar with the place might have thought they had run into a ghostly maze.
People from other countries might find all of this shocking.
But this was the remarkable Florida, and Round Clam Town had always carried the fine reputation of Birth Town.
So nothing that happened here was strange. Li Dan might have been a little dumbfounded when he first arrived, but by now, he had more or less gotten used to it.
Round Clam Town was neither particularly large nor particularly small.
It was a typical old-fashioned town. Its houses and facilities all had the feel of a European town from the last century.
Li Dan's home was only a few minutes from the school, while Jennifer's house was out in the suburbs.
On the way, Jennifer was still somewhat reluctant to bring Li Dan to her home. Compared to that little villa, her own place was clearly just a small country house.
Li Dan did not have much to say about it. He had never cared much about such things.
Following Jennifer to the small house in the suburbs, Li Dan found the area far less populated than the town center. There were only a few neighboring households, all occupied by elderly people.
A small tree grew in the yard.
Inside, the living room had beige fabric sofas paired with dark wooden furniture. A decorative clock hung on the wall, while the bedroom and sitting areas used old furniture and artistic tapestries. The kitchen was furnished mostly with off-white cabinets and a wooden island.
It was a very common arrangement in small towns across the United States.
After looking around and sitting down, Li Dan asked Jennifer what he wanted to drink.
"Tea is fine." Li Dan was not picky. While Jennifer went to pour the tea, a Ghost Card appeared in his hand. Demons could not be seen with the naked eye, and they often took a long time to reveal themselves.
"Traces of the contained demon detected." "True name unknown."
Demons usually had a true name. Once someone learned it, they could generally drive the demon back to hell.
The Ghost Card had only detected traces of a demon here, which Li Dan fully understood. He inspected the house but found no unusual signs.
That left only one possibility: Jennifer had only just been targeted, and this was merely a precursor to an invasion.
That made things difficult.
Every demon was different. Some demons liked targeting people who were alone.
Other demons would still come after you even if you gathered a whole crowd around yourself.
That was where The Conjuring Series had to be mentioned.
So having more people did not necessarily mean safety.
And ordinary people could not detect anything in the early stages. Even if they noticed something unusual, they would only deceive themselves.
By the time the real invasion began, unless a priest or exorcist was present, they could only wait obediently for death.
But was there really no way to spot something wrong in the early stages?
There was. The simplest method was to keep a dog.
Animals were highly sensitive to things like demons and evil spirits.
This had been proven in The Conjuring.
Roger and Caroline bought a house in Rhode Island. Their pet dog refused to enter the house because it had sensed traces of a demon's presence.
It even barked wildly to warn its owners, but Roger and Caroline were ordinary people and did not understand what the dog meant.
The next day, the dog died in its own yard.
Li Dan had also considered getting a dog. Dogs were the most loyal animals to humans, and they could make life less boring.
But dogs were too fragile when facing demons. Once they encountered one, they would basically only die.
Li Dan did not like the thought of raising a dog he loved, only for it to be killed one day because it got dragged into his troubles. He was not a cold-blooded and heartless person; it would still affect him.
It would be great if contained objects could fuse with animals.
Unfortunately, they could not.
"Dear, do you want to watch TV or play some video games?" Jennifer asked as she carried over the tea and sat beside Li Dan.
Li Dan nodded. "Sure. Let's watch TV for a while."
They could not just sit around like idiots and wait for the demon to come knocking.
The two curled up on the couch and watched Tom and Jerry together. Well, it was a show Li Dan liked.
The sky gradually darkened.
As dusk fell, the house slowly grew colder.
The two had spent the whole day together and had not seen anything unusual.
Maybe this demon liked people who were alone?
Eight o'clock.
Jennifer kissed Li Dan and said, "I'm going upstairs to take a shower. I'll come down right away to keep you company."
Li Dan gave a casual sound of acknowledgment and continued watching TV. Some of the programs were pretty interesting. Although it was a variety show, it was far more daring than most domestic ones.
It was a show that tested couples and married partners. Every guest who appeared on it played wilder than the last.
"Ah!"
A scream rang out upstairs.
Li Dan fused with the Evil Spirit Wendigo almost instantly and leaped to the second floor. Jennifer, wearing a thin nightgown, rushed over and hugged Li Dan, pointing toward the bathroom.
"I just saw that door open by itself. All the windows were shut, so there couldn't have been any wind. When I came out just now, it looked like someone was hiding behind the curtain."
Jennifer finally understood fear. She had watched the curtains billow up, and when they fell, they outlined the shape of a person. It frightened her into screaming, but the figure vanished in the blink of an eye.
Now, she somewhat believed in the kind of thing Li Dan had spoken of.
It was a fear of the unknown.
Li Dan checked the bedroom and bathroom, but found nothing. So this demon might really prefer people who were alone?
"It should already be gone."
"Why don't we stay at the nearest hotel tonight? Or go to your place?" Jennifer clung to Li Dan's arm and did not dare let go for even a step. What had happened had already left her traumatized.
"It's fine. We'll call more people over for a party later. You can invite your girlfriends, and I'll call a few friends too."
How could Li Dan possibly leave? Jennifer was the one being targeted, so changing locations would not help. They could only try another method—call more people over to share the risk, preferably enough to provoke the demon.
When Li Dan first detected traces of the Ghost Nun through the Ghost Card, he had held parties at home every day or gone to the busiest bar in Round Clam Town, gathering a whole crowd together.
There was more than a little truth to the saying that safety came from numbers.
The demon could not keep chasing one person forever just to kill them, could it?
Jennifer's emotions finally calmed down at those words. If they called people over for a party and the house was full, she would not be so afraid.
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