Thriller Zone: From the Mental Hospital to the Ghostly World

early morning.

The village chief's house, the Zhou residence.

Chang Hao was catching up on sleep on the kang (a heated brick bed), while Chen Ji and the other two from the Li residence had already been "sent" over by Li Fengxiu.

"The killing of the gray goats indirectly confirms that Li Fengxiu was indeed hostile to the black goats."

Du Tingfeng said softly.

"However, there's one question I've never understood."

"The Black Goat is her enemy, so why didn't he go to the wife to find her?"

"You don't want to, or you can't?"

The three of them discussed it briefly and concluded that to solve this problem, they needed to figure out why the black goat patrolled the house every night.

Another point is that we need to wait for Wu Gong and the other two from the Zheng residence to arrive to confirm whether Black Goat has gone to the Zheng family.

Chang Hao had already told them before catching up on sleep that Black Goat hadn't entered the Zhou residence at all last night.

Therefore, the information on his side cannot be used as a reference.

After a while.

Two figures appeared.

When Yin Ziqin entered the room, her face was extremely ugly. She said in a deep voice, "Last night, Black Goat came to our room and wanted to take Jiang Zhong away."

Chang Hao opened his eyes abruptly upon hearing this.

Chen Ji and the other two didn't react much. Du Tingfeng asked, "So, was he taken away?"

Yin Ziqin shook her head and slowly said, "Jiang Zhong used a strange object."

She then described the scene in detail.

The situation was critical, and the black goat had a clear objective: it grabbed Jiang Zhong and took him away.

However, not long after, a small snake with a black body and a green head emerged from the crack in the ground, with only its upper body remaining.

“The snake turned into Jiang Zhong,” Yin Ziqin said. “Not long after he recovered, he turned into a statue due to the side effects and has not recovered to this day.”

Chen Ji roughly understood that the snake-like creature's function was to split into two parts; the upper part of the snake was its true form, which could easily escape; the lower part would become a humanoid puppet, which could temporarily deceive ghosts.

This is a life-saving monster; its function, simply put, is to help one escape unscathed.

“I hid him under the bed,” Yin Ziqin said with a complicated expression. “He probably won’t be able to come this morning.”

"I understand." Chen Ji nodded and asked another question: "Did Jiang Zhong show any unusual behavior last night? Did he smell like rotten grass?"

Chang Hao looked at him with some suspicion.

Yin Ziqin shook her head: "I slept on the floor, so I didn't smell anything, and besides, in our room..."

She didn't say it, but everyone could smell the cow dung on Wu Gong.

"Okay." Chen Ji changed the subject: "There's one more thing."

"Did the black goat enter the main room of the Zheng residence last night?"

Wu Gong, who was leaning against the door, finally spoke up: "No."

"However, it might want to go."

"I heard it linger in the yard for a while after it took Jiang Zhong away, and the sound of its hooves was very chaotic."

Chen Ji and the other two people from the Li residence exchanged a glance.

Therefore, not entering the main wife's household is not a situation unique to the Li family.

The Black Goat can find those who enter the domain, but cannot enter the main chamber.

The main wife is the true master of Miyake.

Old Mrs. Zheng, Old Mr. Zheng, Old Mr. Zhou, Li Fengxiu...

None of the three told anyone about repairing the sheepfold.

Because it's pointless, Ah Jian will tell us anyway when he gets there, and their guesses from last night can only be confirmed by actually going to the sheepfold.

There was no breakfast this morning.

A moment later... Ah Jian appeared. Without saying much, he simply informed them of the change in today's plans and then led them to the three locust trees they had visited yesterday.

We're going to cut down the second tree today.

Ah Jian didn't ask why Jiang Zhong wasn't there. For some reason, Chen Ji felt that this person was very suitable to go to the Three Wise Monkeys' domain...

He perfectly embodied the principles of not listening, not looking, and not speaking; he never meddled in matters that were not his concern.

Even after seeing Tan Xiangsong's body, they never questioned it.

With two fewer people, the logging process was less efficient this time.

The second locust tree was also hit by the thunderstorm yesterday afternoon, emitting a burnt smell.

Everyone felt a heavy weight in their hearts...

The one who bled while cutting wood this time was Chen Ji.

However, he wasn't the only one experiencing something amiss.

The instant the tree was completely cut down, everyone present suddenly felt a chill and goosebumps rose uncontrollably on their arms!

The second ghost has been released!

This ghost is clearly different from the one from yesterday. The most crucial difference is that it did not touch the visitors!

But it just won't leave...

On either side of the tree trunk, six people stood in a row, silently finishing up the remaining work...

Chang Hao's movements revealed a subtle stiffness.

The ghost... was right in front of him!

A series of heavy, murky breaths reached Chang Hao's ears. Even though he couldn't see the ghost's form, he could tell from the breaths that the ghost was ecstatic!

The feeling it gives people...

It's like when you're incredibly hungry, six exquisitely delicious dishes suddenly appear in front of you.

So much so that you can't even choose which plate to eat?

The sound of panting could be heard in everyone's ears.

But... this is the third time the ghost has come to Chang Hao's side.

.....

Noon.

On the road transporting timber.

"That ghost kept circling around me."

Chu Jing suddenly spoke very softly, so that only Chen Ji and Du Tingfeng beside her could hear her.

"At least three times."

A hint of despair flickered in her eyes.

Aside from receiving special attention, Chu Jing has not shown any other abnormalities so far.

Of course... that's not the case around her.

The sound of splashing water echoed behind Chu Jing from time to time, and each time the water was stirred, Chu Jing trembled slightly.

Because behind them....

There was nobody there.

It's that ghost, it's been following us the whole time!

"You don't smell of fresh grass on you yet," Chen Ji murmured.

Unintentionally, he emphasized the last three words.

“That is death… no, the omen of being chosen.”

However, not only Chu Jing, but no one else has the scent of grass on them now, which proves that the ghost has not yet made its final choice.

“From now on, you must stay by our side at all times.” Chen Ji’s tone was serious: “Do you have any strange creatures?”

Chu Jing shook her head in bewilderment.

She once had it, but she used up all her usage attempts during the last domain.

This is the root cause of her fear after being haunted by a ghost.

The group had different expressions and their own thoughts; soon, they arrived at the Zhou residence.

There were several large flatbreads in the house for lunch.

After a while...

Xiao Yan appeared.

They came to pick up the two from the Zheng family and take them back to their residence.

Her voice remained gentle and kind, but when she glanced at the wife unintentionally, a hint of worry appeared in her expression.

Chen Ji quickly followed her gaze and glanced over. If he remembered correctly, that alleyway behind led to the servants' quarters...

really.

A figure was hiding by the wall of the main room, gazing in their direction.

It's Ah Jian.

Chen Ji had already seen it yesterday, on that red handkerchief...

It is embroidered with a flying swallow.

------

Jiang Zhong, a warehouse management employee, is about to be promoted to deputy supervisor.

[Mysterious Creature: Bashe]

[Grade B]

[Ability: A snake with two ends, capable of splitting freely, but when combined, it becomes greedy]

1: Separate

Abilities: (Description by Yin Ziqin)

Side effects: Transforms into a "mausoleum," rendering the user immobile for 3 hours, while simultaneously making their body as hard as a rock.

2: Combination (Direct Use)

Ability: Attack; spits out a skeleton to shield himself from demons; strength depends on recent food intake.

Side effects: Prolonged hunger can affect mood, and the side effects will last until the next use of Bashe Split (it can continue into the next domain; if used in combination, the hunger level will increase dramatically).

The interval between each use is 48-72 hours (depending on the intensity of use and different capabilities).

The next chapter will be released at the party.