3: Chapter 3 Brother Hero 3: Chapter 3 Brother Hero Half an hour later.
Zhang Xiaoman stretched lazily, resignedly shutting down a bunch of web pages he had just opened.
In that short period, he had already found over twenty games or movies with similar items.
The settings regarding Holy Water were diverse and baffling, making his eyes swim.
Just as he was growing frustrated, because he had been staring for so long, the attribute of Holy Water emerged in his field of view:
Zhang Xiaoman slapped his forehead, “That’s it!
He quickly reopened the browser and rapidly typed the clue provided by the system into the search engine —— Liquid Gold.
Sure enough, the next second, as a series of search results appeared, his eyes immediately lit up.
He scrolled the mouse and clicked on one of the links.
“Liquid Gold — Born in Western mythology, often refers to Holy Water blessed by the divine…”
Zhang Xiaoman stared unblinkingly at the article on the screen, murmuring softly.
“A bottle of true Holy Water must be drawn from the clearest high mountain springs and brought back to the Holy Land by the most pure and devout, and finally, after thousands of days of praying, it can gain Divine Power…”
He paused, looking in surprise at the unremarkable little bottle beside him.
“Holy Water not only brings blessings to people but can also be used to combat demons.
All evil spirits that come into contact with Holy Water will instantly dissolve into nothingness…”
“The production of Holy Water is extremely difficult, and given its special ability, it is incredibly precious and was thus called ‘Liquid Gold’ at the time.”
Afterward, Zhang Xiaoman browsed many other web pages and found similar explanations.
This time, he felt fairly confident about it.
Setting down the mouse, he picked up the small bottle containing Holy Water again.
“Can disperse evil spirits?
He couldn’t help recalling the terrifying and strange encounters he had faced before.
Having dealt with this obsession, a wave of sleepiness suddenly hit him, but before going to bed, there was one more thing he needed to take care of.
Picking up his phone, Zhang Xiaoman quickly dialed a number.
The phone hadn’t rung a few times before it was answered on the other end.
Why are you calling me at this hour?”
A man’s voice came from the other side.
Zhang Xiaoman hadn’t expected the call to be answered so quickly and hurriedly said,
Luckily you’re not asleep.
Listen to me, do not go to the office tomorrow!”
“There’s a demon in the office!”
Zhang Xiaoman actually intended to say there was a monster at first, but suddenly felt that might seem less credible, so he spontaneously changed it to a term the other person would understand more easily.
The man on the other end was stunned upon hearing this.
He pulled the phone away to check the number displayed, confirmed it was Zhang Xiaoman, then put it back to his ear.
are you specifically calling me in the middle of the night to tell me a ghost story…?”
Zhang Xiaoman immediately replied,
“Tell a damn ghost story, this is real!
I just got off my evening shift, and since the elevator was broken, I took the stairs…
And then I freaking encountered that thing!
If I hadn’t run fast, I probably would have been done for!”
“Did you get a good look at what it was?”
Zhang Xiaoman paused; he actually hadn’t seen what the monster looked like because he absolutely didn’t dare turn back then.
However, he reconsidered and felt that directly saying it, the other party certainly wouldn’t believe him.
Just as he was about to make something up, the person on the other end of the phone suddenly spoke up.
“There you go, you definitely didn’t see it, right?
Hehe, don’t even think about it anymore.
I’m telling you, actually, there’s a company on the fifth floor where a young girl always brings her little dog to accompany her during night shifts.”
“So, what you encountered today was a dog chasing you!
Zhang Xiaoman scratched his head, feeling that the more they talked the more confused the situation became.
He was very sure, it definitely wasn’t a dog!
The palpitations and horror he experienced when encountering the monster and the sounds that came from behind him were definitely not something a dog could do!
However, he thought about it and realized, indeed.
If it had been before, he also would have definitely not believed that such things existed in the world.
At that moment, an idea struck him, and he at once changed his explanation:
Could you please take a day off tomorrow?
Come to my place, I need a little help with something…”
Who knew that Brother Hero would suddenly burst into laughter:
“Hahaha, Zhang Xiaoman, who are we kidding?
You’re still trying to trick me, I’m telling you, you’re really overthinking it—there are no such things as ghosts in this world.”
While speaking, his tone shifted:
“Actually, if it were on another day, I’d just take the day off.
We’re brothers after all, consider it a favor.
But I can’t tomorrow!
Tomorrow is the promotion assessment at our company, and I’ve been waiting over a year for this team leader position, do you think I could miss it?”
Zhang Xiaoman was silent, he knew Brother Hero was speaking the truth.
Ever since he had his son, the guy had stopped playing games and was working hard at his job with outstanding performance.
He had been eyeing that team leader position for a long time, and his chances of success were strong.
“I think, once I become the team leader, you should just join our company too, since it’s in the same building anyway…”
On the other end of the phone, Brother Hero was still envisioning the splendid future.
Zhang Xiaoman felt helpless, knowing this was a deadlock.
Brother Hero could not possibly believe his stories about ghosts and gods, nor would he give up his hard-earned opportunity for such a reason.
“Ha~ Never mind, never mind, I’m too tired, going to sleep…”
Zhang Xiaoman suddenly spoke up, his tone extremely serious.
“Brother Hero, listen to me, when you go to work tomorrow, make sure you don’t walk the stairway alone, alright?”
Alright, alright, I promise you, okay…”
He shook his head as the person on the other side hung up, then he put down his phone.
He didn’t know if Brother Hero had truly taken his words to heart, but he had said all he could.
If it had been someone else, he wouldn’t have bothered to say as much.
Brother Hero was someone Zhang Xiaoman had grown up with from childhood.
He had a rather rare four-character name.
Since his father’s surname was Lu and his mother’s surname was Lin, and they gave him the name Haohan, this guy hadn’t escaped being teased for it throughout his life—his name was Lu Lin Haohan.
“Brother Hero” was his nickname.
The two shared a deep friendship, but unlike the always carefree Zhang Xiaoman who played games all day, Brother Hero had settled down early with a marriage and two sons.
Zhang Xiaoman knew his friend’s situation and how tough it was.
Besides work, he also had to do part-time jobs delivering food after work.
Even so, he never complained and often used the little bit of money he saved from quitting smoking to treat him to barbecue.
Regarding such a brother, he naturally couldn’t just watch him walk into a trap, hence the scene earlier.
Patted the pillow and just about to go to sleep, Zhang Xiaoman thought again and picked up his phone to send a message in the company group chat.
“I encountered something filthy in the stairwell after work yesterday!
The building where our company is located is unclean!
Never walk through the stairwell alone!”
“Ah, I’ve said what I needed to say, I hope you all take it to heart…”
Zhang Xiaoman then sent a resignation text to his boss and promptly put down his phone to crawl under his covers and fell asleep.