Chapter Seventeen

Zhan Hongye didn't leave right away. He stood quietly outside, with only a door between him and Zhan Ni.

Just then, a phone rang.

Zhan Hongye took out his phone, glanced at the screen, and answered. "Mr. Ning..."

As his footsteps receded, his voice grew fainter and fainter.

At half past nine, Zhan Hongye came out of the study, carefully cradling a gray jar in his arms.

Before long, the villa's front door opened and shut, and his car drove away.

The gray jar sat securely in a soft cloth bag on the passenger seat.

Zhan Hongye rarely went out alone at night. Tonight was a special case: he had an appointment with Mr. Ning, and no outsiders could be present.

For Qingcheng, this far south, it was still early.

Neon lights flashed along the roads, and traffic streamed past. The busy district was even livelier than it had been during the day.

Zhan Hongye didn't notice that two cars had been following him ever since he left the villa complex and joined the main road.

He drove into Nancheng District and gradually slowed down.

Nancheng District was Qingcheng's Old Town. It had once been part of the city center, but after the city's relocation, it was no longer as lively as it used to be. Low, dilapidated buildings filled the view, and cars were parked haphazardly along the roadsides. The place seemed left behind by the times, forgotten by everyone.

It was only ten at night, yet just a few supermarkets along the road still had their lights on. Some residential complexes didn't even have streetlights, making the area feel all the quieter.

After some trouble, Zhan Hongye found a parking spot and pulled over. All the nearby cars were modest brands; only one BMW looked halfway decent.

He glanced casually at the car, took out his phone to confirm the address Mr. Ning had sent him, then followed the navigation and walked a hundred meters ahead.

While Zhan Hongye was still looking down at the navigation, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him.

He turned around instinctively, but before he could make out who was there, a dark figure lunged at him. He was knocked to the ground and then pummeled with fists and kicks.

His attackers showed no mercy. Amid the flurry of blows, he vaguely felt that his ribs might be broken. He had bitten through his tongue, and the taste of rust filled his mouth.

He didn't know how long they beat him. When the blows began to weaken, someone grabbed him by the hair and hauled him up, then punched him hard in the eye and slapped him viciously several times.

Zhan Hongye's vision went black, and his head rang. He didn't know how much time had passed before he finally came around enough to realize that his attackers had left as silently as they'd arrived.

He lay crumpled on the ground, blood filling his nose and mouth. His whole body throbbed with pain, and his vision was only just beginning to clear.

He saw someone emerge from an alley by the roadside and struggled to call out, "H-help..."

The person hurried toward him. Before he could make out their face, he lost consciousness.

Zhan Ni hadn't dared close her eyes all night. Near dawn, she finally couldn't fight sleep anymore, but she had a nightmare that Zhan Huitian drained every drop of blood from her body. The terror jolted her awake.

She stumbled out of her room, still dazed, to find her big brother already sitting at the dining table downstairs, eating breakfast.

The master bedroom door remained shut. She didn't know whether Dad had come home last night, but she didn't want to run into him now.

Zhan Huitian wore a sleeveless workout shirt. He'd bought breakfast for two after his morning exercise.

When he saw Zhan Ni, he said without expression, "Come eat."

Zhan Ni sat beside him and mechanically picked up a fried dough stick, chewing it without thinking.

"What's wrong? Didn't sleep well last night?"

"I had a nightmare," Zhan Ni said. After a pause, she added, "I dreamed Dad... didn't want me anymore."

Zhan Huitian looked up at her, his gaze strange.

Zhan Ni didn't notice. She swallowed the piece of fried dough in her mouth, her thoughts still a muddle, and blurted out, "Brother, has Dad treated you well all these years?"

The moment she asked, she felt the question was rather ridiculous.

Of course Dad had treated her big brother well. When their parents divorced, he'd taken only her brother with him. She and Mom had lived ordinary lives, while Dad and her big brother had moved among banquets and glittering parties.

She'd had to get good grades just to ask Mom for a bicycle, while her brother's garage had been lined with expensive luxury cars.

Was Dad treating her this way because he'd never cared about her?

Zhan Ni was lost in her own thoughts and didn't realize that Zhan Huitian remained silent, not answering her question.

After breakfast, Zhan Huitian went upstairs to change, then grabbed his car keys and prepared to leave.

Zhan Ni followed behind him, watching as he drove a car out of the garage. Its emblem was a horse, unlike the blue-and-white emblem on yesterday's car.

"Why are you standing there?" Zhan Huitian asked, pulling up beside her.

"I made plans to meet a classmate. Could you drop me off on your way?" Zhan Ni asked cautiously.

"Get in," Zhan Huitian agreed readily.

He dropped Zhan Ni off at the breakfast shop where they'd met the day before, then turned the car around and left.

Zhan Ni had messaged Liu Mumu as soon as she woke up, but she'd been waiting for a reply ever since. She didn't dare stay at home, so she had no choice but to wait for her at the breakfast shop.

It wasn't until after eight that Liu Mumu finally replied. To Zhan Ni's disappointment, she refused to meet up.

Zhan Ni could only send Liu Mumu a written account of what had happened the previous night.

Now, she only trusted what Liu Mumu said.

At that moment, Liu Mumu was looking at her phone in her room, looking rather miserable. The previous night, she'd hit her head on the bathtub while showering and fallen into it, nearly drowning.

She'd barely managed to save herself, and the bump on her forehead still hadn't gone down.

Several layers of gauze were wrapped around her wrist, where she'd cut herself on a kitchen knife the day before.

Probably no one but Liu Mumu knew why a knife that had been sitting safely in its place had suddenly fallen and cut her wrist.

She really wanted to go see Zhan Ni, but for the sake of her own life, she'd better wait until tomorrow.

Seeing Zhan Ni's string of messages lifted Liu Mumu's spirits a little. Zhan Ni had believed her, so at least the misfortunes she'd suffered over the past two days hadn't been for nothing.

Zhan Ni: Yesterday, I saw Dad smearing blood on a jar. It must have been the blood they drew when I had my checkup. What is he trying to do?

Zhan Ni: Mumu, what should I do?

Liu Mumu: Using human blood to coat a vessel is probably part of some kind of sacrificial ritual. These rituals take time, and you won't be harmed immediately if it isn't completed, so don't worry too much.

The hand holding Zhan Ni's phone trembled slightly. She quickly typed out a message and sent it.

Zhan Ni: Are those marks that suddenly appeared on my body connected to this ritual? Did my mom die because of it too? He used our blood to do something evil and killed my mom, right?

Liu Mumu: That's just a guess, but... I don't think the truth is far off.

After a few minutes' pause, Zhan Ni sent another message.

Zhan Ni: Then what should I do?

Liu Mumu: Stay away from him, as far as possible. Don't let him get your blood. Your birth date and time could also become a means for him to harm you, so be careful. The simplest thing to do now is destroy the jar.

Who knew where Zhan Hongye had gotten such an evil object? If Zhan Ni was brave enough, destroying it was undoubtedly the best option.

Zhan Ni: But he keeps the jar in his study, and he always locks the study when he's not home. If I destroy it, he'll know I did it.

Liu Mumu: As long as the jar is destroyed, its owner will suffer backlash. He won't be able to stop you from leaving.

Even though Zhan Ni was a girl without much strength, this shouldn't be too difficult for her.

Zhan Ni: No, I can't leave that house. Can't you read my fortune again? Tell me how I can get the jar without him finding out.

Liu Mumu was speechless for a long moment. She couldn't understand why Zhan Ni insisted on staying with a father who wanted to harm her.

Still, she answered.

Liu Mumu: I can't read someone's fortune twice in a short period of time. Sorry.

Zhan Ni: I can pay you. Is fifty thousand enough?

Zhan Hongye had deposited at least two hundred thousand in the bank card he'd given her. He hadn't been stingy with Zhan Ni when it came to money.

Liu Mumu: I'm afraid not.

After she replied, Zhan Ni didn't send another message.

After waiting a while with no new messages, Liu Mumu sighed and sat up in bed. Other people paid to have their fortunes read; reading fortunes cost her her life!

As she got out of bed, her foot suddenly slipped, and she fell hard to the floor with a dull thud.

Liu Mumu sat on the hardwood floor for a while. Once the pain passed, she slowly braced herself against the bed and stood up.

She'd been planning to go get breakfast, but now that she thought about it, she might choke to death if she ate. Better not risk it.

The Special Case Investigation Section of the Qingcheng City Bureau.

In the office, team leader Fang Chuan handed the information they'd gathered to their section's specially appointed consultant, Yan Xiu.

Yan Xiu lowered his head to look through the files. A lock of hair fell over his forehead as his long, slender fingers turned the pages with a faint rustle.

"The only blood relatives of Zhan Hongye's who are still alive are his son and daughter. His other relatives died one after another over the past few years. Oh, and his ex-wife died not long ago too," Fang Chuan said.

Yan Xiu turned to a page in the file and studied the records. His voice was low. "He took care of his uncle and two aunts until they died?"

"Yes. Our people went to his hometown to investigate. Zhan Hongye had an excellent reputation there. His uncle was in poor health, and his two aunts had no pensions. He bought them a new house, hired people to care for the elderly, provided them with food and clothing, gave them spending money, and took them for checkups twice every year."

"Do we know how they died?" Yan Xiu asked.

Fang Chuan shook his head. "No. They were sent straight to be cremated after they died."

"Oh, and there's something strange about the cause of his ex-wife's death." Fang Chuan took out a stack of medical reports and several photographs.

He placed a few bloodied, gruesome photos in front of Yan Xiu. Yan Xiu took them calmly and studied them for a while before asking, "What was the hospital's diagnosis?"

"The hospital didn't give a specific diagnosis. They suspected some undiscovered disease. In the later stages, her skin ulcerated and she bled nonstop."

"Bleeding nonstop..." Yan Xiu took the remaining photos and examined them one by one.

The hospital had taken high-resolution photos and kept them on file, from the time Zhang Xueli was admitted right through to the later stages of her condition.

After Yan Xiu finished looking through them, Fang Chuan asked, "Well? Did you find anything?"

Yan Xiu set the photos aside, then stood and said to Fang Chuan, who was watching him expectantly, "I found plenty. There's no need to investigate further. We can arrest him now."

"Tell me what you found." Fang Chuan gave his subordinates orders to arrest Zhan Hongye, then followed Yan Xiu closely, waiting for an explanation.

"That wasn't her condition worsening. It was the slow death of a sacrificial offering after the ritual was completed. In the past, the shamans around Shanchuan offered cattle, sheep, and other blood sacrifices to their ritual implements. Once the implements were sated, they could be controlled to harm people."

"You mean Zhan Hongye used people as offerings?" A chill rose in Fang Chuan's heart. Remembering that Yan Xiu had specifically asked about his relatives, he understood at once. "Then his relatives...?"

"Most likely, he sacrificed them all. The ritual implements of the past had limited power, so they weren't easy to use for killing. The one he has is more powerful, and it's probably been modified. Sacrificing blood relatives would make it more effective."

"What about his ex-wife? She wasn't his blood relative, was she?" Fang Chuan asked, confused.

Yan Xiu gave a derisive laugh. "Didn't you say he only has a son and daughter left? Of course he had to use his offerings sparingly."

Ordinary people were always drawn to mysterious powers, never realizing that these things grew more and more greedy. At first, they only needed one offering. Eventually, they demanded more and more, until they devoured everything their owners had.

Zhan Hongye had sacrificed his relatives to a ritual implement and used it to kill people. It was a cycle of death that couldn't be stopped.