The group had indeed been drawn here by Jennifer's beauty.
And with the police department reporting that the Ghostface Killer had struck, they got the idea to fish in troubled waters.
As they sneaked over the wall,
the three of them were already burning with excitement. They thought of Jennifer's hot, beautiful, sexy body, as well as the wealth possessed by the villa's owner.
They figured it would be enough for them to live it up for several months.
But before they could sneak into the inner courtyard, Chopper, one of the two Black men among the three, heard a harsh sound of breathing.
It sounded like a rumbling engine.
Chopper could even feel the hot breath behind him. Gathering his courage, he called out, "Hey, bro?"
There was still no response, only that violent breathing behind him.
Chopper grew more and more terrified. He glanced at the lights inside the house, then slowly turned around and widened his eyes.
Holy shit.
A monster with bluish-green skin, covered in blood and nearly as tall as the second floor, was staring at him while chewing food in its mouth.
That food looked like the lower half of his good friend's body. The heavy breathing, like a car engine, had clearly come from this monster.
Chopper tried his best to stay calm. Rather than scream and provoke the monster, he pointed inside. "Hey, bro, there's better food in there. I haven't bathed in a month—you can smell it. Or how about I become your servant?"
Watching the Black man attempt to communicate with the Evil Spirit Wendigo, Li Dan had to admire his nerve.
He actually wanted to offer up the Evil Spirit Wendigo, then shift the disaster elsewhere.
That only made him more deserving of death. Why couldn't these dishonest Blacks just stay obediently in Africa or Black neighborhoods?
Still, he looked like a decent choice of food for a contained entity.
Li Dan stepped out of the shadows. Under Chopper's stunned gaze, the Evil Spirit Wendigo slowly lowered his head, offering his loyalty and submitting to the man.
Chopper immediately dropped to his knees and begged for forgiveness.
"I was wrong, please..."
Li Dan snapped his fingers, unwilling to waste another word on the little blackie.
Before Chopper could scream, the Evil Spirit Wendigo opened its bloody maw and bit down. Only half of Chopper's body remained. Then it bit him again, tossed him into the air, and swallowed him whole, clothes and shoes included.
That was the good thing about the Evil Spirit Wendigo: its digestion was powerful, and it wasn't a picky eater.
In a small two-story house near the villa,
Emma witnessed the entire process. When the Evil Spirit Wendigo appeared, she had indeed been startled badly.
But when she saw all three men torn apart and swallowed, excitement inevitably appeared in her eyes.
That excitement peaked when the Evil Spirit Wendigo lowered its head and submitted to Li Dan. This was the kind of person she wanted by her side.
An ordinary little girl would have been scared to tears upon seeing the Evil Spirit Wendigo, then run home crying to her parents.
But Emma was a born Bad Seed.
Watching the Evil Spirit Wendigo kill people only made her curious and excited.
It was far more thrilling than standing by and watching small animals die.
So,
early the next morning,
Emma got up early and rang Li Dan's doorbell.
When Li Dan opened the door and found the little girl Emma there, he was still half-asleep and asked in confusion,
"Emma, what do you need?"
"Can I come play at your house, big brother?"
Emma revealed a sweet smile. She wanted to see the scene where last night's monster had eaten.
Children here matured early. Emma was only around ten years old, but she looked twelve or thirteen.
"No. I'm not awake yet. Come back at noon." Li Dan had no interest in this little girl right now. He only wanted to sleep in.
Emma had been turned away.
But she did not lose heart.
Emma believed that sooner or later, she would see that huge monster. She even felt that if she became someone by Li Dan's side, she would gain the power to decide other people's lives and deaths at will.
Deciding whether a life ended held an immense attraction for her.
She even felt that as long as she could stay by Li Dan's side, it would be worth trading her father's life for it.
That thought was rather outrageously unfilial.
But that was the manifestation of an antisocial personality.
Deception, aggression, irresponsibility, and lack of remorse.
Emma could be said to possess all four traits.
But she was exceptionally smart. Unlike ordinary people with antisocial personalities, she disguised herself so well that no one had noticed it so far.
Halloween officially arrived.
On Halloween Eve, most people wandered around outside. But when the actual day came, the vast majority chose to gather with their families.
That brought up the most common food at gatherings here: turkey.
In the past, movies often showed families reuniting for the holidays, preparing roast turkey, and taking a freshly roasted bird from the oven. It looked and smelled perfect enough to make anyone drool.
But roast turkey did not actually taste very good.
Li Dan had eaten it several times, so he had the right to say so. He felt the meat was not even as delicious as simple poached chicken.
No amount of seasoning could save it.
As for why turkey was so popular in North America, he guessed people were either used to it or had no better options.
Jennifer went out around noon.
He heard she was preparing to separate from her parents and reclaim her own guardianship rights.
Li Dan had specifically arranged for the butler and a lawyer to accompany Jennifer, in case an argument broke out and she was mistreated.
She was his woman, after all. He could bully her, but no one else could—not even her parents.
Jennifer was so moved that she said once Li Dan came back and held her coming-of-age ceremony, she would give him several little babies.
Li Dan naturally refused. What a joke—he was only eighteen himself. How could he possibly want children? Besides, there were all kinds of immortal evil spirits, demons, and Immortal Bodies. In a sense, having children might turn them into burdens and weaknesses.
Adopting was better.
Emma, Yurenka, a Nurturing System.
Li Dan was fully capable of it. Even the Deformed Person he had first contained could handle it easily.
He did not need children, but Li Dan was more than happy to experience the process of raising them together with Jennifer.
After Halloween,
Li Dan drove to California and booked Professor Goodman's public lecture along the way.
Someone had uploaded Professor Goodman's lessons to the Horror Forum, but how could online classes compare to attending in person? Not to mention that he could ask questions.
He heard that this time, the famous Warrens from the church had also been invited to answer certain questions.
Li Dan had to come and see it no matter what. Even if it was only for The Conjuring's reputation, he had to come watch the excitement.
Besides, the Horror Forum had many like-minded users from different states and countries who had reportedly planned to attend the lecture as well.
Among them, he saw many familiar faces.
Most were experts at courting death, and some had even come across borders to California University to explore and conduct research.
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