The second watch

The bright sunlight suddenly disappeared.

A dark curtain of sky stretched from south to north and from west to east, instantly covering the entire Guan Village.

The stacks of firewood piled high around the fire tower at the village entrance were lit early on.

Now, in this night, the flames burn even brighter, illuminating the oily faces of every tower guard in front of the fire tower.

The ghosts of Guan Village need to maintain their human skin with fat and oil.

Skin that has been soaked in oil for a long time is easily scorched by a spark.

When the skin is burned through, the demon inside will be revealed.

Zhou Yang looked at the Guan Village around him and felt a little nervous.

These ghosts wear human skin, so the living still have some chance to deal with them.

However, once their human skin is damaged, the ghosts reveal their true forms, and the living person will be driven into a desperate situation in an instant, with no chance of fighting back against the ghosts.

After nightfall, people stopped talking and gathered in twos and threes around the fire tower, mostly staring blankly at the roaring fire.

Zhou Yang and the Baigou found a place to sit, and Xiao Fei followed them over.

"For the first hour, just get the fire going; it doesn't need to get very big." The Baigou rarely spoke, explaining to Zhou Yang what the tower keepers were supposed to do now. "In the second hour, everyone can't stop. They have to line up in front of the woodpile and throw firewood into the fire tower one after another."

"At that time, it was even darker, and the fire could only illuminate a small area."

"Be careful, don't step into any dark places not illuminated by the fire, or you'll be dragged away by a ghost."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yang looked around and saw that he was sitting in the firelight.

But the dense darkness was only a few feet away from him.

There seemed to be nothing in that darkness.

But as long as Zhou Yang stared into that darkness, he felt that it was already teeming with evil spirits.

If I'm not careful and fall into darkness, I'm afraid I'll only face death!

It was getting darker and darker.

"The further time goes on, the less area the fire tower can illuminate."

"In the end, everyone could only huddle together next to the fire tower, and even with their hair singed, they could only grit their teeth and endure it." - Xiao

Fei looked up with his oily face, staring at the firelight that resembled a tall tree canopy on the fire tower, and said in a low voice.

The firelight spread its heat over the people around them.

Zhou Yang smelled the strong, pungent aroma of grease being roasted over a fire in the air.

The scent was particularly strong on the Baigou and Xiao Fei, who were closer to him.

Just as the Guan Nu had said in his last words, everyone in front of the fire tower was safe and sound during the first hour of guarding the fire tower.

It wasn't until an hour and a half later that the area illuminated by the fire tower suddenly shrank.

Without anyone giving any instructions, everyone huddled into the area illuminated by the fire tower, forming a long line by the nearby woodpile. One by one, they picked up bundles of firewood from the woodpile and threw them onto the blazing fire tower.

In the darkness, the fire tower looked like a giant candle.

Bundles of firewood were thrown into the fire, making the only lamp in the night shine even brighter, and even causing a pillar of fire to erupt several meters high!

The intense flames made the smell of grease on the people huddled at the foot of the tower grow stronger.

After smelling it for a while, Zhou Yang even felt a sense of nausea and disgust.

Even so, he would not voluntarily leave the crowd.

The fire tower was burning so brightly, and everyone was putting in so much firewood that the pile was shrinking at a visible rate, but the area illuminated by the firelight was also shrinking more and more!

At first, everyone was scattered around the fire tower for a few feet, each gathering in a group to talk.

Later, they gathered around the fire tower, at a distance of one zhang, nine chi, and seven chi. Now, the crowd is almost touching the blazing fire tower!

Darkness is still advancing!

The thick darkness surged past Zhou Yang's nose almost touching it.

Zhou Yang heard the "chirp chirp chirp" laughter coming from the darkness again.

The reddish rope swayed like blood vessels in the darkness, and below it hung a shadowy green figure!

A suffocating, Ghost Rhyme, as if one were being strangled by a rope, mingled with the darkness and spread out just inches from Zhou Yang.

At that moment, Zhou Yang heard a sizzling sound, like cold oil suddenly hitting a hot pan. "Sizzle!"

After that first sound, many similar sounds began to ring out continuously around him!

"Hiss!"

Puffs of white smoke, mixed with the smell of fish and oil, spread around the area along with the firelight!

The white smoke was mixed with all sorts of Ghost Rhyme!

Zhou Yang suddenly looked up and looked around. He saw that Xiao Fei, a few steps away, had several bright red holes on his face!

It's like a cigarette butt burning a hole in white paper!

The red scalded from the holes was gradually turning black, and wisps of white smoke, mixed with an eerie, Ghost Rhyme, were rising from those holes!

At this moment, Xiao Fei seemed to notice Zhou Yang's gaze.

Its head, which had been facing Zhou Yang sideways, suddenly twisted more than ninety degrees, the skin on its neck folded up in layers, and its eyes, which were now only white, stared straight at Zhou Yang!

"A-Yang, A-Yang's voice, which sounded like a man and a woman, like a scream and a growl, came from Xiao Fei's mouth."

It stretched out one arm and reached for Zhou Yang's neck!

"Roll!"

Another violent and fierce voice echoed around Zhou Yang!

Zhou Yang turned his head and saw the Baigou reach over him and slap Xiao Fei across the face, making Xiao Fei spin around several times and twist his neck into a pretzel!

The Baigou then turned around, its bloodshot eyes staring at Zhou Yang, its dark purple lips revealing a mouthful of canine teeth.

Rotten saliva dripped from its mouth.

It stared at Zhou Yang, and for a moment, it seemed as if it could no longer recognize Zhou Yang.

Holes scorched by the fire also appeared on its body.

Strip away the human skin, and it will be nothing but a ghost, no longer Zhou Baigou!

Right now, all around the fire tower, it's like this: human skin has been burned through, and ghosts are on the verge of losing their human form!

The second hour was far more dangerous than described in the Guan Nu's last words!

Zhou Yang didn't know how to mend the holes in Zhou Baigou's human skin, so all he could do was shout loudly as the dog stared at him and approached step by step, "I am Zhou Yang! I am Zhou Yang! Big brother, I am Zhou Yang!"

"You are Zhou Yang ----"

Zhou Baigou stared at Zhou Yang, the fierce light in his eyes darkening. "Zhou Yang is my brother."

"Mother told me to protect my third brother----"

"My third brother can't eat this—family members can't eat this—"

It murmured over and over again.

Zhou Yang chimed in, "That's right! We're family!"

"You have to help me, brother, get me through this night!"

"Yes, yes----" Zhou Baigou nodded, and the human skin on its body began to wriggle. The skin, which had become loose under the scorching fire, gradually tightened up as if it were an inflating balloon.

The holes created by the sparks on the skin gradually shrink as the skin tightens and is squeezed.

A ghost was wrapped in human skin.

Zhou Baigou is back.

It shielded Zhou Yang behind it, warily watching the "fellow villagers" gathering around.

Don't force me to take action!

The Baigou growled at the people around it.

The gathered Human-Skin Ghost were stunned by its demonstrative growl and stood still, staring at Zhou Yang behind it, not making a move for a moment.

This aligns with the dying words of the Guan Nu.

The Guan Nu survived the second hour unscathed thanks to the protection of the Second Brother of the Cui Family.

At that moment, not far from Zhou Yang, a sharp and terrified cry rang out, "Father, I am your fourth son!"

"I am Wang Si'er, I am Wang Si'er!"

"Mother said you would protect me, what are you doing, Father!"

The Human-Skin Ghost that had gathered in front of Zhou Baigou then all moved towards the source of the sound.

Zhou Yang turned his head to look in that direction and saw Wang Guiren pressing down on his son Wang Si'er's shoulders with both hands like iron clamps, making the bones in Wang Si'er's legs crack and pop, as if his father was about to break his legs!

Wang Si'er's face was filled with undisguised fear, her cheeks flushed a deep purple!

He screamed, trying to call back his father, Wang Guiren!

Wang Guiren listened to his words and nodded blankly. "Yes, you are Wang Si'er, Wang Si'er is my son------"

"Right----"

Seeing that his words seemed to have an effect, Wang Si'er pressed on and immediately said, "Yes, Father, you said that if I come with you to guard the fire tower, I'll be fine. Father, you can't forget that I'm your son. I am Wang Si'er. "Wang Guiren nodded vigorously upon hearing this.

The two hands that were pressing on Wang Si'er's shoulders suddenly loosened and hung limply at his sides.

The next instant, just as Wang Si'er breathed a sigh of relief and glanced at Zhou Yang, Wang Guiren's right hand, which had been hanging limply at his side, suddenly rose up and ripped open Wang Si'er's intestines in one swift motion!

Blood, bubbling with pink foam, flowed continuously from the hand that Wang Guiren had pierced into Wang Si'er's chest.

The stagnant air suddenly turned frenzied due to the overwhelming smell of blood!

Wang Si'er stared in disbelief at the smiling Wang Guiren.

He couldn't understand why Zhou Yang, whom he had witnessed firsthand, had responded so effectively, saying exactly the same things as the other person.

Why should he still have to die?

You are not Wang Si'er ----

Wang Guiren's hand was still inserted inside Wang Si'er's stomach, but the skin on its neck was stretching longer and longer, growing to over two feet. On the stretched neck, its head opened its mouth, sticking out an even longer tongue, frantically licking the blood splattered on its hand, while muttering incoherently, "My son Wang Si'er wouldn't talk like you—"

"You're an imposter, you're not Wang Si'er, you're not my son—"

The surrounding ghosts swarmed forward!

A crimson flower of blood burst open in the crowd!

Zhou Yang felt a chill run down his spine as he listened to Wang Guiren's last words.

Wang Si'er Wang Si'er to play his role well and maintain his persona.

So it died.

After it died, a dark shadow scurried under Zhou Yang's feet.

"Don't go, bro!"

Zhou Baigou, who was blocking Zhou Yang's way, was also attracted by the strong smell of blood. It tried to break away from Zhou Yang and squeeze into the crowd to devour Wang Si'er's flesh and blood—if it got its hands on Wang Si'er's blood, it would be all over!

Zhou Yang's situation will inevitably become even more difficult!

So Zhou Yang grabbed it, pulled out a pigskin bag from his body, and started stuffing the entrails and offal from the bag into Zhou Baigou's mouth!

He had anticipated this!

So he took the leftover entrails and offal from before, sewed them into a pigskin bag, and kept it specifically for tonight to gag Zhou Baigou!

"Waaaaah----"

Zhou Baigou's mouth was stuffed full of pig intestines, and he was so focused on chewing that he didn't move away from Zhou Yang.

By the time it finished eating, the ghosts over there had already finished sharing the food.