Sudden Wound

In the afternoon, Yang Jian spent most of his time wandering around the city. After all, Operation Ghost Painting had already begun, and it wouldn't be right for him to stay in the hotel and sleep at this point. So, in order to cooperate with the operation, he decided to take a walk around.

The result is obvious.

After walking through several snack streets and food streets, everything felt normal except for being a little full.

Sure enough, they were kicked out by Xiong Wenwen's parents at noon and ended up not getting enough to eat.

"It's almost time to go home." Yang Jian checked the time; it was almost six o'clock.

He decided to go back to the Ping An Hotel after work and continue today.

If nothing unexpected happens in the next two days, he should be able to return to Dachang City smoothly. Although he encountered many dangers and experienced several supernatural events during this business trip, he still gained something and accomplished his main objective.

He made the trip to address his deteriorating health and the resurgence of the vengeful spirit.

Now he has mastered the three ghosts and achieved a very good balance. He also killed Gao Zhiqiang and took the ghost from his body. That ghost can restore his body to a healthy state, and the effect is better than expected.

In addition, there is the acquisition of supernatural objects and the increase in the number of ghost candles in one's possession.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, Yang Jian should be able to survive for a considerable period of time.

During this time, he wants to do some things he wants to do.

As he pondered this, he walked alone toward the hotel.

However, at this moment...

An undetected but deadly crisis has quietly begun.

Inside an office in Ping An Building.

Fang Shiming stared motionlessly at the clock on his desk, sitting there like a statue for hours.

He has never lacked patience; he could easily sit here all day.

After all, he's not an ordinary person.

The winter sun sets earlier than in other seasons.

The once bright office was now dimly lit. He didn't get up to turn on the lights, and no company employees came in to disturb him. The surroundings were unusually quiet.

I don't know how long I've been sitting in this dimly lit office.

Fang Shiming didn't move until the clock on the table struck 5:55.

He slowly reached into his clothes and took out a box.

The box isn't large, just a bit bigger than a regular phone, and it's a striking gold color because it's made of gold.

Only gold can ward off all supernatural phenomena; this is common knowledge in the paranormal community.

The box was welded shut, leaving not a single gap.

Fang Shiming took out a small knife and made a cut around the edge of the box, finally opening the long-sealed golden box.

Upon opening.

The dimly lit office immediately became somewhat cold and gloomy, with a faint stench of decay permeating the air, as if something had rotted away.

Inside the box was a pair of scissors.

The scissors have an old-fashioned style, not modern, but like those from the Republican Era. I wonder if they've been buried in mud for a long time, because the black stains on them are hard to remove; I can't tell if they're rust or something else that shouldn't be there.

The most bizarre thing was the handle of the scissors, which was wrapped with dense coils of black hair, some of which were even connected to the scalp at the roots.

The stench of decay seemed to be emanating from here.

Ghost Scissors!

Fang Shiming called this thing that way, a simple yet apt description, because he obtained it from a ghost during a certain supernatural event.

"I really don't want to touch this thing."

He frowned, as if there was some taboo surrounding the use of this strange pair of scissors, preventing him from using it casually and forcing him to keep it locked in a golden box and carry it with him at all times.

But

Looking at the photo of Yang Jian on the table.

Fang Shiming knew that this Ghost Eye Yang Jian was not easy to kill. If he were to confront him head-on, he might be able to win, but Yang Jian would definitely be dragged down to the point where the vengeful ghost would revive, and there was a high probability that they would die together in the end.

But Yang Jian has no choice but to kill him.

It's not just that he poses a threat; he also knows about the existence of the Ghost Scissors and even uses this as leverage to demand them from Jiang Shangbai.

This touched Fang Shiming's bottom line, so his attitude was very firm and there was no possibility of wavering. Even though Cao Yanhua had been pressuring him all afternoon, he was determined to kill Yang Jian today.

"It's a pity I can't get that coffin nail, otherwise the two items would counteract each other, which would be more advantageous to me." Fang Shiming's gaze shifted slightly.

The time has come to 5:59.

It will be six o'clock in one minute.

Fang Shiming didn't touch the scissors. Instead, he picked up a pen and wrote two words on Yang Jian's full-body photo: Yang Jian.

Real names and full-body photos are the methods to trigger the Ghost Scissors murder pattern.

At least that's how Fang Shiming figured it out.

Therefore, the threat posed by this thing in human hands is far greater than the threat posed by it in the hands of a ghost.

Otherwise, Fang Shiming wouldn't have been able to obtain this supernatural item from the ghost in the first place.

"It's time to send you on your way, Yang Jian." Fang Shiming saw that it was six o'clock.

Without any hesitation, he took off his gloves, revealing a pair of terrifying hands. These hands looked like those of a mummified corpse, with dark brown skin clinging tightly to the bones, all the flesh and blood gone, making them exceptionally gruesome to look at.

Even though my hands have become like this, it doesn't affect their use; they can still move around.

Fang Shiming reached out and grabbed the Ghost Scissors.

Immediately.

The surrounding darkness deepened suddenly, shrouding the entire office in darkness.

Tick-tock, tick-tock!

The sound of dripping water echoed around, and the stench of decay in the air grew stronger, accompanied by a rich smell of blood.

Most eerily, in this deepening darkness, several shadowy figures swayed and gradually took shape, becoming the outlines of corpses. These corpses were incomplete; some were missing arms, some were missing heads, and some were missing legs.

Despite this, these eerie, incomplete black shadows continued to move closer to Fang Shiming.

Fang Shiming held the Ghost Scissors in one hand and picked up Yang Jian's photo in the other.

But when he picked up the photo, the back was covered in thick blood. His eyes flickered slightly, and at such close range, he saw a pale human head that had somehow ended up on the desk, blood flowing from below the neck, gradually covering the entire surface.

Moreover, when he moved his feet slightly, it seemed as if he stepped on something.

It was cold and soft, like stepping on a corpse.

"The curse of the Ghost Scissors has deepened."

Despite the strange events in the office, Fang Shiming remained calm and unmoved, continuing to do his work methodically.

This level of curse isn't enough to get rid of him.

The scissors landed on the photo with Yang Jian's name on it. The once vibrant photo suddenly looked old, with a layer of black shadow covering it, and the bright colors seemed to be fading rapidly.

As the photograph was cut apart piece by piece, a strange curse began to spread.

At this very moment.

Walking on the streets of the city, Yang Jian was on the phone with Cao Yanhua.

"Yang Jian, I've already put pressure on the people in your social circle. They rejected your request and won't agree to hand over that item, but you can name any other conditions you want: gold, assets, companies. If it's money, you can boldly name an amount, and they'll try their best to meet it."

"This is just a perfunctory response. I know the people in my social circle are all very wealthy, a group of top-tier conglomerates and capitalists are investing heavily behind the scenes. Money is simply not important to them," Yang Jian said. "I said I needed an answer by six o'clock, but this answer is clearly not satisfactory."

"Yang Jian, calm down first. This is at least a good start. Negotiations never reach an agreement overnight," Cao Yanhua continued to persuade. "If you trust me, I can continue to negotiate and exert pressure on you, but only if you don't do anything reckless. At this critical juncture, Headquarters doesn't want you to get into a fight with your friends."

"We don't have the capacity to deal with the ghost paintings and your affairs at the same time."

"This isn't my fault, it's their fault. I shouldn't bear the responsibility," Yang Jian. "Besides, your approach doesn't work on people in my WeChat Moments. If it were effective, you wouldn't be taking so long to give me a reply. This is just stalling. I have a feeling that people in my WeChat Moments won't stop here. They're planning to retaliate against me."

"You're delusional. They absolutely wouldn't dare to make a move. I can assure you that," Cao Yanhua said righteously.

It's true that having a powerful network of friends is advantageous, but the greater the influence, the more cautious one becomes. On the contrary, individuals like Yang Jian, who act alone, are the most dangerous, as they act without considering the consequences.

"Is that so? Unfortunately, I dare not gamble my life with you," Yang Jian.

Cao Yanhua hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "Go back to the hotel and rest tonight. Don't go fighting again. Give me some time, and I'll make sure they agree to your request by tomorrow morning."

"You can't guarantee that, but..." Yang Jian hadn't finished speaking when he suddenly stopped.

I don't know why, but at this moment I suddenly have a strong sense of crisis.

It felt as if a ghost was right beside me.

Yang Jian looked around warily, observing every passerby. His whole body was tense to the extreme, and even his Ghost Eye had secretly opened.

However, nothing was found.

"Is it just my imagination? Or am I being too sensitive?" He frowned deeply.

However, out of caution, he still felt he should leave the area first, in case he got unwittingly caught up in the Ghost Painting Incident, which would be disastrous.

But just as he was about to take a step...

Suddenly, a strange gash appeared on his neck.

The gash was large and deep, almost tearing his entire spine apart. In an instant, blood gushed out, splattering onto several pedestrians around him. His head, having lost its support, drooped limply.

"Giggle, giggle."

Blood rushed back, choking Yang Jian. He staggered and fell to the ground, his brain instantly spinning.

All of this happened too fast, without any warning. It was as if Yang Jian had unintentionally triggered some ghost's killing pattern, and it attacked him in an incomprehensible way.

But at this moment, Yang Jian didn't have time to think about these things. If only his neck was split in half, he could still retain consciousness and react.

Moment.

The skin on its body kept cracking open, and eerie eyes opened, instantly enveloping the entire street in a layer of red light.

Moreover, the intensity of the red light increased instantly.

In that instant, Yang Jian activated the fourth layer of the Ghost Domain, pulling the entire Ghost Domain into his Ghost Domain.

He no longer has time to select people and things, nor can he care whether it affects reality.

The moment the Ghost Domain was activated, the black shadow behind him where he was lying moved.

The black shadow stretched out a hand and covered Yang Jian's split neck, seemingly trying to close the wound.

The ghost has the ability to piece together corpses; it can even piece together the bodies of ghosts, let alone human bodies.

The icy aura seemed to invade his brain, instantly invigorating Yang Jian. The dizziness and lack of oxygen he had just experienced immediately subsided. If it were only a wound of this severity, he wouldn't have died.

His ability to survive Ghost Tamer was fully demonstrated.

However, the chilling sense of crisis had not yet dissipated.

Taking advantage of those few seconds of lucidity, he immediately pulled out a red ghost candle.

He didn't care about the situation anymore. As long as the ghost candle was lit, he would be safe until it burned out. Even if it was S-class vengeful ghost, he could survive for a while.

But he had only just taken out the ghost candle, and hadn't even had time to light it.

Click!

The strange crack reappeared, and Yang Jian's entire neck was completely severed.

The attempt to piece together the headless ghost figure failed; its neck separated from its body, and its head rolled forward a short distance.

"How is this possible?" Yang Jian stared at his headless body, blood gushing out. His eyes narrowed slightly, and an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.

Four layers of Ghost Domain, plus ghostly shadows, couldn't stop this bizarre attack?

Now.

Inside the offices of Ping An Building.

Fang Shiming looked at the photo in his hand, which he had cut open with scissors. The tear in the photo corresponded exactly to Yang Jian's neck, but the photo, which had already faded, had turned completely red, as if it had been soaked in paint. This color made Yang Jian in the photo look very unreal, and he was gradually blurring, as if he was about to disappear from the photo.

"Still not dead? In that case, let's try again."

He picked up the scissors again.

According to Fang Shiming's experience, cutting off the neck is the most effective way to kill someone, because no one can survive after losing their head, not even 99% of Ghost Tamer.

In addition, the neck occupies the least space in the photo, so cutting the neck consumes the least amount of energy and is less likely to intensify the curse of the Ghost Scissors.

"This time, cut open their heads."

Fang Shiming pondered for a moment. Since he had already decided to use the second cut, he should be thorough and cut off all possibilities for Yang Jian.

Today's chapter is 4,000 words long; I'll make up for it tomorrow.