Distinct footsteps echoed from outside the body bag.
They started from afar and gradually approached where Yang Jian lay.
After spending a long time in this eerie calm, Yang Jian knew all too well what the sudden appearance of footsteps meant.
Although he wanted to go out and see, to verify which ghost was outside,
the risk was too high, and it kept Yang Jian from acting rashly.
He wasn't afraid of the Headless Ghost Shadow, nor was he scared of the mysterious and sinister Sick Ghost in the village, but what he truly dreaded was the Vicious Ghost capable of easily killing a ghost hunter. The existence of that ghost was always a mystery; no one had seen it because those who had likely died.
No one had encountered it either.
Because those who encountered it also died.
The only way to understand that ghost was by inferring from the deaths of three ghost hunters.
"I am alone now, practically isolated," Yang Jian thought. "Based on previous conjectures, the balance within the village has been disrupted by my actions. That Vicious Ghost should now be hunting down ghost hunters... If I'm found, no one can survive."
"Is the ghost outside searching for someone with those footsteps?"
Yang Jian's heart tightened, and he inevitably grew anxious.
The body bag in which he lay was placed in a desolate area overgrown with weeds.
If not searched for carefully, it wouldn't be easy to find in such an environment.
But a ghost's search for people might not depend on sight but on some kind of perception, or possibly specific conditions.
Yang Jian couldn't be sure he wouldn't be found by the Vicious Ghost. Lying here was a gamble in itself, and his life was the stake.
The footsteps drew closer again.
He could even gauge that the ghost was now less than three meters away from him.
Almost right beside him.
"These footsteps are not accompanied by coughing... It's not the Sick Ghost. That leaves either that Vicious Ghost or the Headless Ghost Shadow I released. But I feel the chances it's the Vicious Ghost are slightly higher," Yang Jian thought to himself, making not a single sound, while preparing to use the Ghost Domain at any moment.
This was not the time to worry about a fierce ghost's revival.
The footsteps passed by his side and then stopped in the direction his head was facing.
That direction was the opening of the body bag.
For the sake of breathing, Yang Jian had left a small gap for air circulation.
"Could I have been discovered?"
Yang Jian's palms sweated, and he nearly held his breath.
If discovered at this moment, the likelihood of dying here was not just ninety percent but at least eighty percent.
No matter if facing that Vicious Ghost or using the Ghost Domain in a fight, the outcome would be much the same; he certainly didn't have the means to detain a ghost of such caliber.
One minute, two minutes, three minutes...
Yang Jian knew some time had passed, but he didn't know exactly how long. At such times he dared not even make the noise of turning on his phone, for who knew if such a minor action would instantly reveal his whereabouts.
Finally, after a full fifteen minutes,
Yang Jian suddenly heard those footsteps beginning to move away from inside the body bag.
Yes, the footsteps started up again and then gradually moved towards the direction of the village,
The ghost was leaving.
Hearing the footsteps fading further and further away, Yang Jian finally exhaled in relief.
"I've succeeded in hiding, and from this I can almost deduce that as long as I stay inside this body bag, the ghost is unlikely to find me, and I will remain safe," he thought.
This was a considerable relief.
If even hiding inside a body bag wasn't safe, then no place was safe here.
Yet Yang Jian didn't allow himself to feel too joyous because the crisis had only been temporarily alleviated. If he didn't think of a solution, he would still be sitting ducks.
Upon reflection, he realized there were essentially just two paths before him.
The first was to wait for the Headless Ghost's havoc to see if it could restore the village to its former state.
The second was to take the offensive...
"Let's wait a bit longer," Yang Jian curbed his impulsive desire, deciding to give it a day to see if any changes occurred.
If the Headless Ghost's wandering around the village made a difference, one day should be enough to see results. Otherwise, it meant the Headless Ghost's actions had failed, disappearing mysteriously like the other ghost hunters.
The waiting was long, but time also passed swiftly.
Without realizing it,
Yang Jian had already spent a day inside the body bag.
That's what his phone displayed.
Since that one instance of footsteps, there had been no other disturbances, but he felt an anomaly in his body; a ghost eye that no matter what, he couldn't close... It was beyond his control now.
Was the revival of a fierce ghost intensifying? Or was it an unseen threat that made the ghost eye open involuntarily, just like when he had encountered that passing ghost in Jiang Yan's apartment room?
Regardless, he could no longer continue this waiting.
The stalemate had to be broken.
Yang Jian cautiously opened the body bag and stole a glance outside.
I couldn't see clearly at all.
The terror continued to loom over the village.
"Use the Ghost Eye." Yang Jian took a deep breath and extended his palm.
On the back of his hand was a crimson eye.
He surveyed his surroundings through the Ghost Eye.
The view transmitted by the eye was a world enveloped in red light.
But it wasn't hard to see that the village still existed.
Only the hall where coffins had been placed had vanished.
At the entrance of other houses, Yang Jian saw villagers standing numbly and motionlessly, like statues... just like corpses.
However, in the next moment.
These villagers, who had stood motionless in front of their houses, suddenly turned their heads in unison to look at the hand outside of the body bag.
Every pair of eyes was hollow, devoid of eyeballs, as if filled with darkness, instilling a chilling fear.
Yang Jian couldn't help but curse and hastily retracted his hand into the body bag.
Curiosity killed the cat.
This village was indeed terrifying; he was certain that if he went outside, he would be surrounded and killed by these ghosts, with no chance to escape.
The villagers had been normal before.
Ever since some sort of balance had been broken, the village had become even more frightening.
Struggling to survive was not a solution.
In this desperate situation, he had to rely on the last resort.
Yang Jian reached into his pocket and touched the human skin paper, which he was most reluctant to use, and took it out.
Then he turned on his phone screen to light it up.
The human skin paper displayed a line of text.
"Having been in Huanggang Village for only three days, I'm already at a dead end. With no other choice, I took out the human skin paper again, hoping it might reveal the answer to my current crisis."
"But to my disappointment, I did not find what I wanted."
"Perhaps I will die here."
"It's too terrifying..."
Yang Jian's gaze sharpened: "If I survive I will trade one ghost with you."
The human skin paper changed again.
The previous text disappeared, and new text emerged.
"Deciding to be cautious, I resolved to complete that unfinished transaction with the human skin paper. In return, I might be able to control a second ghost... There could be a turning point in the Huanggang Village incident."
"Control a second ghost? Wait, this information differs from the previous message. The previous information only indicated that I would learn how to control a second ghost, but this implies direct control over the second ghost." Yang Jian's eyes narrowed.
This Ghost Domain thing had an ace up its sleeve.
It could help me control a second ghost?
Damn it, why didn't it say so earlier? If it had, how could I have come here?
No, that's not right.
Yang Jian recalled the last part of the message: "It's too terrifying..."
"It" referred to the ghost of Huanggang Village.
Was this describing my own feelings, or revealing the human skin paper's fear of that ghost?
If the latter were true,
The human skin paper was afraid~!
"So you also won't shed a tear until you see the coffin. I need to control the second ghost to leave here. You know that the power of the Ghost Eye is insufficient to confront the ghosts here." Yang Jian's expression changed.
As expected, my earlier speculation was correct.
This level of ghost exceeded what I could handle.
No wonder every Ghost Controller who came here died.
To survive, the bare minimum requirement was to control the second ghost.
In plain terms, I was just too weak.
So now the human skin paper was compromising. Before it told me the method to control, now it directly wants to help me control the second ghost?
But what is the cost? What will be the consequences of giving a ghost to this human skin paper?
Or will I be releasing something even more terrifying?
"It doesn't matter anymore, there's no room for concern at this point. Even if it means making a deal with an Evil Ghost, I must get out of here." Yang Jian gritted his teeth; "Alright, I agree, let the trade begin."
The text on the human skin paper began to fade once again.
Finally, a few large characters emerged: "The trade with the human skin paper has begun..."