Guan Village's Web of Relationships

Another evening at dusk, at the Zhou Family's gate.

The Baigou stood in front of the door with its paws dangling, its face expressionless.

Zhou Yang followed behind him.

Huang Shaozi held Zhou Yang's hand and said worriedly, "If you encounter a situation you can't handle at the fire tower tonight, just come home."

"Then you and your brother will go home together."

"Your mother will leave a way out for you."

Zhou Yang smiled upon hearing this.

Guan Village at night presents a completely different scene.

How could he be sure that the house he found was truly the Zhou Family's house?

And, does that mean there are definitely Zhou Family Zhou Family Huang Shaozi and Zhou Heigou? Probably not.

The images collected from around the Fire Tower previously indicated that even if danger was encountered at night, one must never go home.

Parents at home are more terrifying than evil spirits outside.

"Okay, Mother, if we really encounter any danger, I'll definitely come home," Zhou Yang said. "But this time I'm going with my older brother; he'll take care of me, so everything will be alright."

As he spoke, Zhou Yang glanced at Zhou Baigou in front of him.

The Baigou had its eyes downcast and its face expressionless, just like Zhou Laogou.

Even after hearing Zhou Yang's words, he didn't react at all.

"Baigou, you'd better take good care of your younger brother."

"Don't forget what Mother told you!" Huang Shaozi took Baigou's hand again and said solemnly.

Upon hearing her words, Zhou Baigou finally looked up at Zhou Yang and nodded.

Whether Zhou Yang will have an easier time guarding the fire tower during the first three hours after nightfall depends on whether his elder brother can hold on.

Just like the deceased Guan Nu, the Third Cui, he only survived the most difficult third hour by having his own second brother possess him.

At that time, Zhou Yang might have to rely on Zhou Baigou to hold off the Patrol Team and those outsiders.

"Big Brother." Zhou Yang met the Baigou's gaze and called out eagerly.

The Baigou grunted in response, turned its head back, and said slowly, "Shouldn't we go now?"

Both he and the Laogou were so unyielding that Zhou Yang was at a loss for what to do.

I don't know how to get closer to them.

"Be careful on the road. You must stay safe tonight. Don't wander off. Stay around the fire tower!"

At this moment, the Heigou, who had been standing silently behind the Huang Shaozi, suddenly spoke.

A look of deep concern appeared on his face.

If Zhou Yang hadn't known his true nature, he might have mistakenly believed that the Heigou genuinely cared about him.

Huang Shaozi turned his head and stared at Heigou for a moment, then turned back to Zhou Yang and said, "Your second brother has changed for the better."

"Thank you, brother."

My mother's expression was still a bit stiff.

The previous conflicts with Zhou Laogou and Heigou had taken root in her heart.

But it can't be completely eliminated just by a few nice words from the Heigou.

"Thank you, Second Brother!"

Zhou Yang then obeyed his mother and thanked the Heigou again.

"You absolutely must come back, Third Brother!"

Zhou Heigou's smile grew even wider, and the look in his eyes as he looked at Zhou Yang was clearly amusement.

Zhou Yang looked at him, his eyes seeming to dodge and show fear.

In the shadows, he recalled the scene of Zhou Heigou feeding Zhou Laogou in the fields.

That stomach, capable of producing internal organs, must be some kind of strange object—was it naturally grown on Zhou Heigou's body, or did Zhou Heigou acquire it and integrate it with himself?

Is a stomach pouch a ghost?

But can it be used to one's own advantage?

The water in Guan Village was too deep, and Zhou Yang had no means to see what was underwater.

The method of "Grooming Before the Mirror to see the true form of a ghost," used by the opera troupe of Daliang Village, would be like an old man eating poison and courting death if Zhou Yang were to use it in Guan Village.

Grooming Before the Mirror, one can certainly see the true form of a ghost.

Even the ghost in the mirror wants to see the true face of the person dressing up!

Moreover, this method is most likely only useful for seeing ghosts. If used to observe Zhou Heigou, who possesses some kind of strange entity, it probably wouldn't reveal anything.

I still know too little about Zhou Heigou.

"I wonder if he has any other connections in Guan Village, or if he, like me, often schemes in the shadows?"

I still need to use this opportunity to get to know him better.

Zhou Yang thought to himself, but said weakly to Zhou Heigou, "Then... Second Brother, I'll be leaving now?"

"Let's go!" Zhou Heigou waved his hand.

"Mother, my eldest brother and I are leaving."

Be careful on the road!

Thus, Zhou Yang followed Zhou Baigou, with his mother watching him all the way, out of the small path in front of the house and onto the main road in the village.

During this time, Zhou Yang also tried his best to strike up a conversation with Zhou Baigou.

Zhou Baigou simply nodded or shook his head in response, leaving Zhou Yang speechless for a moment.

Before long, the two arrived at the fire tower at the entrance of the village.

There were already six or seven people standing under the fire tower. When the Zhou Family brothers approached, everyone below turned their gazes toward them.

Facing the gazes of the crowd, Zhou Baigou's expression remained unchanged as he said in a low voice, "I am Zhou Baigou, the eldest son of the Zhou Family."

"These are my three brothers, Zhou Yang."

As soon as he spoke, everyone around him burst into smiles.

Like a rehearsed play, the people around introduced themselves one by one.

The man with thick eyebrows, a long face, and long arms and legs said, "I am Wang Jiaguiren, and this is my son, Wang Si'er."

Wang Guiren stepped aside and introduced the young man behind him Wang Si'er, to the crowd.

Wang Si'er forced a smile and nodded repeatedly to everyone.

His face was pale as he looked at the people surrounding him, his eyes filled with undisguised fear.

Zhou Yang hid in the crowd and glanced at Wang Si'er.

Even without any probing, he could see through Wang Si'er's true nature at a glance.

This person must be alive.

And they will most likely be among the first to die tonight.

He shifted his gaze to the next villager who was introducing himself as he guarded the tower.

The man had a blank face, showing no expression, yet he possessed a certain air of someone from Guan Village: "I'm from the Cui Family. My home is the courtyard in front of the apricot grove to the south. My name is Cui Zhu, and this is my third brother, Cui He."

People from the Cui Family?

Was it the Cui Family, where the deceased Guan Nu had previously lived?

Upon hearing the person's self-introduction, Zhou Yang turned his gaze to them.

Despite being watched by so many people, Cui Zhu remained expressionless.

But the blank expression on his face, if maintained for too long, became slightly stiff.

Zhou Yang sighed.

This Cui Zhu is also a living person.

Although he imitated some of the demeanor of the Guan Village, it was merely a superficial imitation, and under the scrutinizing gazes of the crowd, he immediately gave himself away.

However, it was Cui Zhu's third younger brother Cui He.

Zhou Yang looked at the other person, only to meet their grinning gaze as they suddenly looked at him.

Their eyes met, then abruptly looked away.

Is this person a human or a ghost?

Zhou Yang was somewhat undecided, so he quietly used the ability of Ghost Head Averting God.

At this point, everyone introduced themselves and quickly became acquainted.

Uncle Guiren!

"I used to herd sheep for you, and you even said that when your sheep Da Le, you would kill one for me to eat. When can I come to your house?" Someone immediately struck up a conversation with Wang Guiren, talking about old times.

Wang Guiren looked at the man, showing no surprise whatsoever, and nodded repeatedly. He said to the villager, "There's no time like the present, let's guard the fire tower this time."

"After you finish work, come to my house, I'll slaughter a sheep for you to eat!"

"Okay, okay, okay!" The villager beamed and nodded repeatedly.

Judging from the way they were chatting, they were clearly two very good friends in the village.

Before either of them introduced themselves, the two met and acted as if they were complete strangers.

Even if we met, we wouldn't recognize each other!

Such strange occurrences happened constantly around the fire tower.

Xiao Fei, the only son of the Xiao Family, also found Zhou Baigou Zhou Baigou made an appointment with him to go fishing at the river again the next day.

According to Xiao Fei, he and Zhou Baigou had caught a lot of fish in the river that day and brought them home.

Zhou Baigou nodded in agreement with Xiao Fei's statement.

But Zhou Yang was at home, and he knew even better that the Zhou Baigou had stayed home all day and hadn't gone anywhere!

Where did the Baigou find the time to go fishing with Xiao Fei at the river today?

They agreed to go to the river again tomorrow. "Tomorrow"—could it really be tomorrow?

Zhou Yang was still pondering when he suddenly saw Cui He, the Third Cui, rushing towards him and wrapping his arms around his neck!

Cui He grinned, a smile that was almost sinister, "Third son of the Zhou Family, you still remember me, Cui He? Ha?!"

"Didn't you say before that you were waiting for me at that dilapidated house left behind by ' Old Zhang the Bachelor' yesterday? Shall we settle things properly?"

"Why didn't you show up when I went yesterday?!"

His words, combined with his expression, made Zhou Yang realize that his identity as the villager Cui He Zhou Yang must have some grudge against Cui He, the Third Cui!

The two agreed to fight in a dilapidated house!

But when the time came, "villager Zhou Yang" didn't show up!

Just as they were guarding the fire tower, Cui He came knocking on their door!

It was Cui He's sudden action that made Zhou Yang realize that the people of Guan Village were not strangers to each other!

In reality, the Guan Village are all interconnected and have various interactions.

This network of relationships always exists.

But now, all these people in Guan Village are nothing but ghosts in human skin!

They may still appear to be Wang Guiren, Cui He, and Zhou Baigou, but their inner selves are completely different from before!

The ghosts have no emotions or intelligence, and they have no concept of interpersonal communication.

As a result, the Zhou Family, Cui Family, and other families in Guan Village now live independently with little interaction between them.

The names that each of these evil spirits bears will still become the keys to unlocking this network of relationships!

Once the two parties have introduced themselves, they immediately reconnect with their social networks and return to the state of their previous conflicts!

However, within this network of relationships, the villagers' past disputes and interactions have become stagnant.

The villagers who made plans to eat mutton at Wang Guiren's house will never actually get to go there.

The Zhou Baigou and Xiao Fei of the past will never again have a "tomorrow" to go fishing together.

Every human skin in Guan Village carries its own story, already settled in time!

But Zhou Yang is a living person, and he won't repeat himself in a cycle forever!

He wondered if he could influence this established network of relationships and bring about some changes.

Just like what I did at the Zhou Family?

"I had something to do yesterday and couldn't go. What are you going to do about it?" Zhou Yang turned around and was about to grab Cui He's neck.

His expression darkened. "So, you want us to do some calculations right here?"

"My brother is still here!"

As he spoke, Zhou Yang called out to Zhou Baigou, "Big Brother! Big Brother!"

The usually taciturn Zhou Baigou was now chatting happily with Xiao Fei, and he was even talking more than usual.

When fishing or catching fish is mentioned, the Baigou's black eyes seem to light up.

Hearing Zhou Yang's shouts, he impatiently turned his head to look at Zhou Yang.

They found Zhou Yang and Cui He entangled together.

The Baigou's color changed instantly, its entire face went numb, but its black eyes were fixed on Cui He —though no terrifying expression could be seen on his face, just looking at his face made him seem exceptionally ferocious at that moment. "What are you doing!"

"Let go, release my three brothers!"

As he spoke, the Baigou came running towards them!

Seeing this, Xiao Fei squinted and silently followed behind the Baigou, walking quickly towards them.

In the blink of an eye, Cui He was trapped between two men who were a few years older than him.

The ferocity in Cui He's eyes vanished instantly.

He released his grip on Zhou Yang's neck, pointed at Zhou Yang, and said, "Just you wait!"

Zhou Yang opened his mouth, and seeing that Cui He was about to leave dejectedly, he suddenly said, "Go to Old Zhang's dilapidated house again tomorrow, do you dare?"

"What's there to be afraid of!"

Cui He scoffed and turned to leave.

Meanwhile, his elder brother, Cui Zhu, stood not far away, watching his brother fight with someone. He was clearly at a disadvantage, but he still kept a straight face, seemingly too lazy to care about his brother's trivial matters. In reality, he was completely at a loss, maintaining a superficial appearance, and had not fully grasped the persona he was playing.

Zhou Yang took a few breaths.

He suddenly felt a sense of anticipation for tomorrow.

I wonder if Cui He will arrive as promised?

Where exactly is Old Zhang's dilapidated house? It's not easy to find out—luckily, the Ghost Head Averting God has already gathered the life force from Cui He.

Cui He is a living person.

Zhou Yang then scanned the four sides of the fire tower and found the few living people hidden in the pile of ghosts one by one using the methods of Ghost Head Averting God.

"Don't fight with them!"

The Baigou scolded Zhou Yang, then went to the side to talk to Xiao Fei.

Looking at his older brother, Zhou Yang clicked his tongue.

Perhaps fishing would be a good way to improve the relationship between the Baigou and myself?