Chapter 144: The Situation is Serious

The Yuan Estate, Garden.

Not only were Ma Chulong and the others present, but even the police had rushed over.

In the very center of the crowd lay a dried corpse, its manner of death identical to that of Yuan Jing's three wives.

The face of the dried corpse could no longer be identified, but the sheepskin vest it wore sent a chill through everyone present.

It was none other than Li Zhou, whom they had all been searching for!

Yuan Jing's expression was as dark as water.

This time, the person who died was not his wife, but someone completely unrelated.

If things continued to develop this way, the next to die could be anyone here!

The entire Yuan household was shrouded in an aura of terror.

The police in charge of the case looked even more grim, especially after learning Li Zhou's identity.

The homicides occurring at the Yuan family could no longer be reasoned through with normal logic.

However, the only certainty was that the situation was becoming increasingly serious.

Although they did not believe in ghosts or gods, this man had been personally invited by Yuan Jing, and they hadn't expected him to meet his end as well.

After a round of questioning, there were still no clues, so Li Zhou's body could only be temporarily laid to rest.

"Mr. Yuan, you must be extremely careful when going in and out in the coming days. In particular, it is best to avoid being alone at night," the police officer instructed solemnly before the team withdrew and departed.

"Mr. Yuan, forgive my incompetence. I may not be able to share your burdens."

Someone in the crowd spoke up stiffly.

Among the nine people, Li Zhou was certainly not weak, yet he had died so silently. This naturally served as a warning bell for everyone.

Gold is good, but one must be alive to spend it.

Yuan Jing's cold gaze fell upon the speaker. "Fine. If anyone else wishes to leave, feel free to speak up. Before you go, you may collect your travel expenses from the accounting room."

There was no point in keeping people who were useless; they would only waste time.

"Then we shall take our leave as well."

Sure enough, more people immediately stepped forward with hesitation.

By the end, only the Ma siblings, Cao Meng, and Wang Hui remained in the garden.

Wang Hui didn't possess great skill, but rather, he had incurred a massive debt outside and could only stay here to place a final, desperate bet.

According to Yuan Jing's way of doing things, even if he wasn't the one to ultimately solve the problem, as long as he stayed to help, Yuan Jing would certainly not mistreat him.

Yuan Jing looked at the four of them with a gaze of desperate resolve. "Master Cao, Brother Ma, Brother Wang, do you have any insights?"

Wang Hui instinctively looked toward Cao Meng.

After a moment of silence, Cao Meng said, "At least we can confirm now that the thing causing harm is within the residence. In that case, I will try to lure it out from outside tonight."

Yuan Jing knew this might be the only way.

"Then we shall rely on Master Cao."

"Don't worry, Mr. Yuan. When the time comes, Brother Ma and I will set everything up. With the strength of the four of us, if that thing dares to come out, we will definitely make it vanish into thin air!" Wang Hui spoke with full confidence, as if saying so would make the task twice as easy.

Ma Chulong nodded in agreement.

The situation was grave; the most important thing was to eliminate the thing causing harm, and cooperation was acceptable.

Yuan Jing's expression finally brightened slightly. After a few simple instructions, he left the garden.

Cao Meng, Wang Hui, Ma Chulong, and Ma Chulan looked at Li Zhou's corpse once more.

"We can roughly deduce the time Li Zhou was killed. I just don't know if he did something unusual before his death that provoked that thing," Cao Meng's voice was incredibly low. To be safe, they had to make thorough preparations before nightfall.

He looked at Wang Hui; after all, Wang Hui had been with Li Zhou right before the incident.

"Tell us everything you did last night, one by one."

Wang Hui nodded like a chick pecking at grain, not daring to omit a single detail.

An hour later.

After greeting the Yuan family, Ma Chulong led Ma Chulan away from the Yuan estate.

"Brother, do you think the thing that sucked Li Zhou dry was an evil spirit?"

Ma Chulan's state was visibly much more tense than Ma Chulong's.

Yuan Jing's three wives were one thing, but Li Zhou was no ordinary person. To die so silently without even managing to cry out for help—just how powerful must that thing be?!

Furthermore, usually, when evil spirits harm people, they either haunt them to death or possess them. They had never encountered something that directly sucked a person dry into a mummy like this.

"It's hard to say." As expected, even Ma Chulong could not give a definitive answer.

Ma Chulan's face was tight as she continued to ask, "Then, will our plan tonight succeed?"

"What, are you scared?" Ma Chulong knew her; she was clearly nervous.

Ma Chulan did not deny it. "Death... I'm not afraid of death. But to die so hideously..."

She didn't finish her sentence.

Whether it was Li Zhou or Yuan Jing's three wives, their skin had been sucked dry, leaving them as nothing more than purple-blue skeletons. She truly did not want to end up looking like that.

Ma Chulong gently rubbed her hair. "Brother will protect you."

Ma Chulan nodded vigorously, her smile returning to her face.

"Brother, where are we going now?"

"To find someone."

Ma Chulong's answer left Ma Chulan looking puzzled.

They didn't know any friends here, did they?

"Who are we looking for?"

Ma Chulong didn't speak, because he wasn't sure if they could find them immediately.

***

The Inn.

*Knock, knock, knock.*

Hearing the knocking, Su Yan rose from her chair and walked straight to the door.

When the door opened, the Ma siblings appeared in her sight.

Ma Chulong visibly breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing her.

"Miss Su, hello. My sister and I have come specifically to visit you."

Su Yan was not surprised in the least; she gestured for them to enter the room.

"Since you two aren't solving the problem at Mr. Yuan's house, why do you have the leisure to come seeking me?" Su Yan asked, knowing full well the answer.

Ma Chulong went straight to the point. "Li Zhou is dead."

"Li Zhou?"

"The bearded man wearing the sheepskin vest." Ma Chulan described him while gesturing with her hands toward Su Yan.

Su Yan realized who he was, then her expression turned surprised. "I thought that man was quite capable. How did he just die like that?"

He was incredibly malicious; if she hadn't been by Sun Mang's side yesterday, Sun Mang probably wouldn't have been able to walk out of the house today.

A person like that truly did not deserve to live in this world.

Ma Chulong and Ma Chulan exchanged a glance, both sensing the sarcasm in her words.

"Miss Su, did you have a grievance with Li Zhou?"

The siblings had arrived late and were not quite clear on the previous circumstances.

Su Yan smiled faintly. "A grievance is a bit much, but he thought I was a blind person who wasn't worthy of staying there, that's all."

Only Su Yan could speak so unreservedly about a grievance with someone who had just died a violent death.

The atmosphere became somewhat awkward.

However, Ma Chulong fully believed that Li Zhou's death had nothing to do with Su Yan.

"That Li Zhou really was looking down on people. He finally got his retribution," Ma Chulan blurted out bluntly.

The smile at the corners of Su Yan's mouth slowly widened; she suddenly found herself liking this young girl in front of her.

(End of Chapter)