Living Person Apartment was also the name of the Jialan Society's group owner.
I hadn't expected this ghostly place to actually exist.
So, could I dig up the Jialan Society group owner's real name from this apartment, or even learn more about these Ghost Hunters' lives before they died?
The strong Lolita girl, Shata, spoke slowly:
"It's a little different from the horror novels you've read. Living Person Apartment is relatively humane in some ways. Every time you complete a mission here, you receive a Supernatural Item as a reward.
"Theoretically, if you complete ten missions, you can leave the apartment for good. But since I came here, I've never heard of anyone meeting that condition—not even coming close.
"So far, the three of us have the best records. I've completed five missions, Squinty Jiangyang has completed five, and this bald monk, Yusheng, has completed six."
After being called bald twice in a row, even the young Grey Monk, mild-tempered as he was, couldn't hold back any longer. He let out a long sigh of "Amitabha" to remind Shata to show some consideration.
Shata pretended not to hear him.
"The vending machine in the apartment's First Floor Hall automatically restocks with new food and water every morning at midnight. If there's something you want to eat, you can also slip a note into the slot underneath. Everything is completely free.
"The first three floors of Living Person Apartment are for the living. No Vengeful Ghost can enter.
"In other words, once you're inside the apartment, you're absolutely safe, no matter what you've gotten yourself into outside."
There were no such rules on the Fourth Floor or above.
Gao Tian asked, "What's on the Fourth Floor and above?"
Jiangyang glanced at Gao Tian. "Sister Ta and I were on the first floor when we saw you stride in so confidently. We thought you knew what was on the Fourth Floor."
Shata ignored Jiangyang's interruption and continued patiently explaining to Gao Tian:
"Ghosts live up there.
"No one knows how those ghosts came to live there.
"I once found the previous building owner's journal in my room. She speculated that, at first, every floor of the apartment had been for the living. But after mission after mission failed, too many residents died. Some of them died outside and returned to the apartment with deep hatred. Over time, the floors above were gradually tainted.
"Of course, the previous building owner also said that this was just her theory. She hadn't even begun investigating the mystery of the Fourth Floor when she died during a mission."
"Even so, every year a very small number of people choose to explore the floors above the Third Floor."
Gao Tian asked in surprise, "Why would anyone go to a place where ghosts live? Are they stupid?"
He didn't realize he'd just insulted himself, too.
Shata looked at him. "Well, if you go to the Fourth Floor or above and enter one of the rooms, the apartment rewards you with a Black Card.
"At the time, I thought you'd gone in so boldly right in front of the three of us either for that Black Card or to show off your strength."
So this topic really was never going to end.
"The Black Card is probably the most important Supernatural Item in the early stages of living in Living Person Apartment. Each card can only be used once, and only by its original owner. It can't be transferred.
"If you use a Black Card outside Living Person Apartment, you'll be instantly transported to the First Floor Hall, no matter where you are.
"That's the most popular effect among the apartment's residents. Nothing else comes close."
The apartment itself was absolutely safe, too.
That meant that with a Black Card, there was no need to worry about any Vengeful Ghost you provoked outside. It was like having an extra life.
Gao Tian hadn't expected a trip to the Fourth Floor to pay off so well.
Not only had he used Shattered Face's ability to steal the Memory Ghost's ability, he'd also gotten a reward from Living Person Apartment.
Shata's gemlike eyes studied Gao Tian from head to toe.
"Normally, you can move around freely outside, but you have to spend at least one night here each month. When a Green Text Mission is issued, you must return immediately, no matter where you are.
"Do you have any other questions? You can ask now."
Gao Tian asked, "Have any of the previous residents of Living Person Apartment ever told stories about someone completing ten missions and leaving?"
But even before he asked, Gao Tian already had a vague idea of the answer.
The Jialan Society's group owner, the mysterious person whose ID was "Living Person Apartment."
If his theory was right, every member's name in the Jialan Society referred to a Supernatural Event they'd dealt with while alive. The group owner had named himself Living Person Apartment, which meant he really had completed ten Green Text Missions and left.
If such a legendary figure existed, stories about him would surely have been passed down among the generations of residents.
Shata confirmed Gao Tian's suspicions.
"According to the journal I found in my room, the previous building owner said that every generation of residents had passed down the name Xu Yuan. Ten years ago, that resident completed ten Green Text Missions and left Living Person Apartment.
"It's also said that before leaving, he swore to all the residents that he'd come back. He would find a way to free everyone else and put an end to all the residents' nightmares..."
At this point, Shata sounded a little dejected.
"There are two versions of what happened afterward.
"One says that after Xu Yuan left Living Person Apartment, he returned to normal life. He forgot everything he'd experienced here and never came back.
"The second version is that Xu Yuan simply didn't want to return to Living Person Apartment. After all the terrifying things he'd been through here, who would want to come back after finally escaping?
"But afterward, Xu Yuan died in another Supernatural Event. It was caused by a Vengeful Ghost completely unrelated to Living Person Apartment.
"In short, the outcome is the same either way."
Shata didn't know which version was true. Neither had the old building owner who'd left that journal behind.
After all, in the twenty-odd years since then, the residents of Living Person Apartment had changed countless times. When each generation died, the notes and traces they left behind were usually cleaned away by the apartment. Only a very few happened to survive.
As a result, many past events had become badly distorted. The truth was always shrouded in mist.
Gao Tian asked his second question.
"Have any of the previous residents moved in as a family of four or three, with a little girl who had a round face?"
When Shattered Face's body burned up, it had left behind half of a damaged photograph. The words "Living Person Apartment" were written on the back.
At the time, Gao Tian had looked into the eyes of the Little Girl in the surviving photograph. She had actually smiled at him.
Now that he thought about it, his memories had been altered from that moment on. The truth had been blocked out, and he'd mistaken Living Person Apartment for his home, then made his way to the Fourth Floor step by step.
Shata furrowed her brows.
"There have been far too many families like that. In a big city, families looking to rent an entire apartment despite being short on money can easily be lured here by a cheap-rent ad posted outside, then become new residents.
"Do you have any more clues?"
Gao Tian reached into his pocket—and pulled out half a photograph. He'd never burned it in the first place.
Even the memory of "Gao Tian burning the photograph" was fake, implanted in his mind by a ghost without him knowing.
He held it out to Shata, Jiangyang, and the others.
"I got this photograph while dealing with another Supernatural Event.
"That was probably ten years ago. The girl in the photo has become a ghost."
Of course, Gao Tian wasn't worried about the girl in the photograph causing trouble here. The first three floors of Living Person Apartment were a forbidden zone for ghosts. Once brought here, the photograph was just an ordinary photograph. No matter what kind of ghost entered the apartment, it had to behave itself.
Shata studied the photograph for a long time. When she saw the Little Girl's face, she showed little emotion.
"Sorry. I only became the building owner three years ago, so I never saw her.
"But I can ask the other residents at tonight's welcome party. Some of them have been here longer than I have, so they might remember something."
For the time being, the photograph stayed with Shata. But she couldn't take it out of Living Person Apartment; otherwise, the Little Girl in the photograph would definitely come to life.
Just then, Yusheng, the monk who'd been silent the whole time, suddenly spoke.
"I know this Little Girl.
"Her family was killed during a Green Text Mission long ago. The Little Girl was the only one left. She couldn't bear the loss and started having hallucinations. She said she often heard her family calling her name from above the Fourth Floor, asking her to go up and reunite with them.
"Unfortunately, most of the residents didn't take what she said seriously back then. They just comforted her briefly. Everyone was focused on how to survive the next Green Text Mission. One night, while the other residents weren't paying attention, the Little Girl quietly opened the door and went up toward the Fourth Floor. No one ever saw her again. No one knew whether she was alive or dead.
"This happened about five years ago."
He walked up to the photograph and pressed his palms together toward the Little Girl again.
"Little one, may you soon be free of your suffering and reincarnate. May you find closure with everything in this life."
The Little Girl in the photograph didn't move at all. Yusheng's prayers had no effect on her.
Gao Tian couldn't help asking, "How do you know all this?"
Yusheng shook his head.
"I have connections with some people in the apartment.
"A new resident has arrived downstairs. I'll take my leave."
Watching him speak in riddles before abruptly taking his leave, Gao Tian had to struggle to suppress the urge to use Shattered Face to read his memories directly.
Shata shrugged helplessly at Gao Tian.
"That's just how Yusheng is. He knows a lot, but he just won't talk.
"If you press him, he'll say the time isn't right, then disappear for days at a time.
"All we can do now is wait for him to tell us of his own accord."
Inside Living Person Apartment, the abilities of all ghosts were suppressed. Gao Tian couldn't use Shattered Face or the Memory Ghost either.
Once he left the apartment, he could find a chance to use Shattered Face to take all the monk's memories. Gao Tian had to restrain such a dark thought.
He was a person, not a Vengeful Ghost. He couldn't just take another resident's life at will. If he used Shattered Face on the monk, the other man would surely die.
But that all depended on whether Gao Tian was in danger.
If one day the residents of Living Person Apartment were driven into a desperate situation, and the monk knew something but still kept acting mysterious and speaking in riddles, then Gao Tian shouldn't be blamed for breaking through this moral boundary and forcing the secrets out of his mind.
Before you continue