Second Evil Night

After He Qiong left.

Wen Chao sighed. Fang Zhi frowned without speaking. Shi Ji and Yue Mei looked as if they wanted to say something, but neither spoke. No one felt like discussing things anymore, and they all dispersed.

Qi Zhiyong's behavior today had made everyone wary of him. On the surface, they still treated him as their leader, but in truth, they had all begun to turn against him.

If he treated Wu Xian like that today, would he do the same to them after Wu Xian died?

Qi Zhiyong sat alone downstairs. After a while, he sighed.

"Looks like Jing Ke was right. I really am not suited to leading others. I'd have a better future as a lone wolf."

"So be it."

Qi Zhiyong had never cared about having authority.

"Fine. I'll trust Xiner."

Seeing his teacher get angry, Fang Zhi hesitated.

The man's body was still hanging across from him, his eyes staring straight at Wu Xian. But Wu Xian didn't care. It wasn't as if the man could move.

He found some plastic bags and wrapped them around his face, leaving only small holes for his eyes and nose. Then he stood by the door with a spray bottle of alcohol, waiting.

But Qi Zhiyong thought, if someone was going to die no matter what, why not let the more valuable people live and the less valuable ones die?

Even if someone like Wu Xian survived, he'd just be one more survivor.

As Fang Zhi approached her chest with a stethoscope made from a cup, Yu Yinghua finally couldn't take it anymore and let out a piercing scream.

Creak!

"Bu—"

Time passed little by little.

"Just as I thought, time in the blessed land is erratic. I hope it's more stable at night."

The scream stabbed at Fang Zhi's eardrums. Taking advantage of his distraction, Yu Yinghua scrambled away on all fours, her body twisting into a grotesque shape.

But if Wen Chao survived and got the chance to spread the knowledge in his head, he could make the world a better place.

"This makes it the second night. What's going to happen tonight?"

Fang Zhi stopped at his door, his palm trembling slightly.

The woman stood at the entrance for a while, then smiled.

One by one, everyone returned to their rooms.

Fang Zhi's expression twisted. He stubbornly shook his head. "Professor, you know I've never believed in this kind of superstition. I believe in science!"

Taking advantage of the fact that night had just fallen and the evil spirits hadn't come out yet, Wu Xian took the remaining piece of pig intestines from his lunchbox, greasy with fat, and carefully smeared it on the hinges of his door.

Fang Zhi's door opened. He stared straight at Yu Yinghua.

Fang Zhi waved impatiently.

Fang Zhi had never really believed in science. He believed in a religion called science, one he had built around his own understanding. He refused to accept anything that fell outside it.

A woman with a gentle, slightly chubby face gripped her son's arm. "A Zhi, maybe we shouldn't buy this place. I heard from the neighbors that it's haunted."

Watching Fang Zhi bustle about, the evil spirit Yu Yinghua felt an unfamiliar flicker of unease.

But at that moment, she was a little bewildered.

Once night fell, everyone would lock their doors and windows. No matter what happened outside, no one would risk going out.

"You can be afraid of anyone else, but not me!"

Warm sunlight fell over the scene. A family of three stood beneath the apartment building, there to look at a home they wanted to buy.

Most people who entered a blessed land died. Even the most exceptional among them could only save themselves.

Since he hadn't died in that instant, he was going to live a little more elegantly from now on.

"Don't go! Don't avoid treatment!"

"Think carefully. No one knows whether that mark is targeting a person or a room. If the two of you share a room, you might die together."

Fang Zhi jolted awake from a nightmare. He clutched a bottle of liquor, his face pale and sweat pouring down him. He was nothing like the tough guy he'd been earlier.

Sss!

Even with the facts right in front of him.

So the father and son entered the building and went to the agent to sign the purchase agreement.

Just then, Qi Zhiyong came upstairs and tossed out a casual remark.

"You..."

Their son had gotten into a prestigious university, so they'd decided to buy a home in this city and settle down here.

But when they reached the doorway, they hesitated.

"But what? If you don't believe me, why did you send me to school?"

The middle-aged woman outside was covered in mud, her face smeared with blood and her mouth full of dirt. She looked terrifying. She had come here to hurt someone.

The woman still seemed hesitant.

"Don't believe her!"

Wu Xian carried his lunchbox back to his room and stood at the window, gazing into the distance.

Wen Chao wanted to argue with Qi Zhiyong, but Qi Zhiyong had already slipped into his room and shut the door.

"Hello? Is anyone there? Can you let me in so I can take shelter? I'm Yu Yinghua, the innkeeper. My husband's gone mad—he's trying to kill me!"

Wen Chao noticed something was wrong with him too, and his expression changed.

Before returning to his room, he'd discovered a muddy handprint on his door!

Fang Zhi finally heard a knock.

But after hearing Qi Zhiyong's words, Fang Zhi made up his mind. He stepped back and closed the door, leaving Wen Chao outside. No matter how Wen Chao called to him, he refused to open it.

"Ah!"

After sitting there dazed for a while, he took several long swigs of liquor, slapped himself twice, and growled viciously.

Luckily, the time displayed on his phone had fallen into the same orderly chaos. Otherwise, it would have been impossible to tell what time it was.

"Don't be afraid. I'm not a doctor, but I'll help you."

"What ghosts? You're just scaring yourselves. The cupboard doors keep opening on their own? The cabinet must have been poorly designed. Besides, this house is for me anyway. Just listen to me. You have to believe in science."

Before Yu Yinghua could figure out what was going on, Fang Zhi sprayed disinfectant all over her. Then he grabbed her arm, pulled her into his room, and made her sit down.

The middle-aged man with graying hair smiled. "Of course I do. If we don't believe in our high-achieving son, who else could we believe in?"

"You can't believe her, no matter who else you believe. There are no ghosts or evil spirits in this world!"

Fang Zhi hurried out after her, but Yu Yinghua had already vanished.

But what if everything everyone had said was true? Wouldn't that make him the next victim?

Wen Chao had brought him along because he wanted to change his mistaken beliefs. He hadn't even had the chance to teach him by word and example before they were trapped in the blessed land.

The chandelier swayed in the corridor, its dim yellow light shifting back and forth and creating an unsettling atmosphere. Just standing there sent a chill through him.

Before he realized it, he'd carefully washed himself, shaved his stubble, trimmed his hair, and washed his hair, face, feet, socks, and underwear until he was neat and clean from head to toe.

"You're staying with me tonight. Don't go back."

"You must've caught some kind of virus, right?"

Wen Chao stamped his feet in anger and slapped him. "Science is meant to explain reality. If you have to twist the facts to believe in something, that isn't science."

"Let me examine you first. There's no equipment here, but I can at least do an initial—"

"This place is in a great location, close to the school and with convenient transport. Getting a house like this for that price is a steal."

What he cared about was value.

A man should treat himself well.

The couple weren't well-educated, and their son was one of the few high achievers in their family. They were relying on him for their later years, and from now on, he'd make all the important decisions for the family.

Something wasn't right!

When Wu Xian had returned to his room, the sun had still been some distance above the horizon. Now it had already sunk halfway below it, and the numbers on his phone were racing wildly.

Wen Chao stood by the door for a long time. At last, he shook his head helplessly and returned to his room.

Who would open the door so readily? Wasn't he at all worried it might be a trap? And when he opened the door, he didn't even flinch at her appearance. Instead, his gaze was so unnerving.

The man had a plastic bag over his head. Could he be an evil spirit who'd suffocated to death?

Fang Zhi leaned against the wall and looked up at the light, smiling strangely.

"Ha, haha..."