Lin Tianming stepped back in shock, several paces before he could even speak. Before he could react, Liu Minmin, who had just entered behind him, screamed first.
“Q-Qin Shou!” she pointed toward the roof, her words failing her from terror.
Where her finger pointed was Qin Shou’s corpse.
The Mountain Village houses were old mud huts, with horizontal beams supporting the roof.
Qin Shou’s body hung from one of these beams. His head was crushed and deformed, his eyes bulging out, blood slowly dripping down.
It was unclear how his body maintained balance, head downward, staring fixedly at Lin Tianming, without falling.
Standing close, Lin Tianming looked up into Qin Shou’s lifeless eyes and shivered.
Frozen in disbelief, he tried to react and flee, but the young girl on the bed grabbed his arm and giggled, “Why are you running?”
Cold sweat immediately poured down Lin Tianming’s back. Just minutes ago, he had felt pity for the girl, living alone without parents and tormented by a beast like Qin Shou.
Now, seeing Qin Shou’s corpse, he realized how naive he had been.
Perhaps the villagers had seemed normal during the day, giving him no reason to guard himself. But in this bizarre village, anything could happen.
Lin Tianming tried but could not free his hand from the young girl’s grip.
Despair crept in. Was this truly the place he would meet his end?
The girl held him tightly. Her delicate features began to distort: her fair skin turned a terrifying bluish-purple, her small cherry lips stretched into a long tongue, and a gruesome mark appeared on her neck.
It was clear she had been strangled to death and had become a vengeful spirit.
The female ghost giggled as she reached for Lin Tianming’s head. “Men are all no good,” she said.
“You were clearly watching outside, why didn’t you come in?”
“You just want to deceive me, coming in late at night pretending to be good so I’ll obediently follow you!”
Her fury escalated as she yanked Lin Tianming’s head toward the headboard.
At that moment, her eyes caught a shadow, and she froze.
Lin Tianming saw Huo Fu enter the doorway and felt a surge of hope, shouting, “Brother Huo, save me!”
Huo Fu glanced lightly at the female ghost, and she immediately froze.
Demon Huo Fu was displeased; he had restrained himself from harming Lin Tianming, so how could he allow this ghost to kill him?
His bad mood made the female ghost tremble even more.
After a few moments, she released Lin Tianming and stammered, “I won’t kill him.”
Outside, she had sensed the presence of one man and two women, and had not expected Huo Fu to be here as well.
Demon Huo Fu glanced at Qin Shou hanging from the beam with mild disgust.
The female ghost clenched her teeth and explained, “This person deserved to die.”
Even if Huo Fu had caused her destruction due to this person’s death, she would not regret it.
The demon paid no attention to Qin Shou’s death or who the female ghost targeted. He only knew that the daytime Huo Fu needed Lin Tianming alive, so he intervened.
The female ghost, seeing the demon indifferent, was pleased. She had no desire to be destroyed and had only killed those who deserved it.
Lin Tianming, having narrowly escaped, quickly covered his head and ran behind Huo Fu, fearing the ghost might change her mind.
It seemed the immediate danger was over; the female ghost had only killed Qin Shou, whose previous behavior proved he was not innocent.
Seeing her fear of Huo Fu, the others were likely safe.
Zuo Zhu glanced outside and nudged Demon Huo Fu. “Zhao Siyu has come running.”
Looking out, they saw Zhao Siyu had somehow freed herself from control and rushed inside.
She moved quickly, seemingly afraid they would harm her boyfriend.
Zuo Zhu realized Zhao Siyu probably noticed everyone had entered the courtyard after breaking free, and had discovered what her boyfriend had done.
If the female ghost had not been involved, Qin Shou might have been forced to turn himself in.
Zhao Siyu charged into the room, her eyes immediately catching the corpse hanging from the beam, unleashing a heart-wrenching scream.
“How did he die? Did you kill him?”
Usually quiet and reserved, she now looked like a trapped beast, her eyes bloodshot as she glared at the remaining people.
She had not expected Lin Tianming and the others to be so ruthless, believing that a minor misstep by Qin Shou warranted such an end.
Rushing in, she saw only Qin Shou’s corpse and the group around it, unaware of the female ghost by the bed.
Liu Minmin, enraged, shouted, “Zhao Siyu, open your eyes! The one who killed your boyfriend is the ghost behind you, not us!”
Zhao Siyu froze and turned to see the female ghost.
The terrifying face was instantly familiar, and Zhao Siyu screamed. She hadn’t expected the young girl who followed Qin Shou a few days ago to appear like this today.
But anything could happen in this village. She assumed Qin Shou had accidentally killed the girl, turning her into a ghost.
“Get away! Qin Shou killed her, not me! Get away!”
Even Liu Minmin was bewildered. “What is she saying? Qin Shou killed the female ghost? Then why is Qin Shou dead now?”
Zuo Zhu explained, “She probably confused cause and effect.”
She sneered. “This village is strange. Qin Shou saw so many people disappear yet remained lustful, sneaking out at night to harass a lone girl. Zhao Siyu was guarding the courtyard for him. Do you think she didn’t know what he was doing?”
After Zuo Zhu’s explanation, the female ghost laughed, surveying the confused expressions around her. A wave of vengeance surged in her heart.
She hesitated, glanced at Demon Huo Fu, then gritted her teeth and summoned a mist, engulfing everyone except him.
Zuo Zhu and the others felt as if their consciousness had been pulled away, frozen like wooden dolls within the mist.
The female ghost said to Huo Fu, “I won’t kill them, but they must experience all the pain I went through.”
At this moment, she no longer feared Demon Huo Fu, only felt the satisfaction of revenge.
The demon’s attitude toward her was slightly more tolerant than toward other ghosts, only by a fraction, and he didn’t mind the illusion since it was harmless.
Tilting his head, he pointed at Zuo Zhu. “She’s mine. If you ruin the taste, it won’t be good.”