Translator: CinderTL
Watching Luo He being escorted away by a crowd, still shackled in prisoner's iron handcuffs that clinked with each step, Pi Ruan couldn't help but feel a wave of sorrow wash over him.
"Why are you making that face?" Fu Fu frowned. "He was just taken away, not killed."
"Even if you died, he wouldn't." Still seemingly unsatisfied, Fu Fu stood with her hands on her hips, huffing angrily.
Pi Ruan, uncharacteristically, didn't argue with Fu Fu's attitude. He watched Luo He's figure disappear around the corridor's corner before finally turning away.
A few minutes later, footsteps echoed from outside the door. The person seemed to be trying to be cautious, but their hurried pace betrayed their inner tension.
A face flashed in the doorway. "I knew you'd be here!" Zhao Xingguo said, his expression betraying no surprise.
After all, he had just witnessed Luo He being taken away by the police, handcuffed and loaded into a prisoner transport van.
"Why are you here?" Huai Yi habitually glanced behind Zhao Xingguo, but it seemed he had come alone.
In response, Zhao Xingguo explained, "We were nearby and saw such a commotion, so we came to investigate. Brother Jiang said the police were after you, and it turned out he was right."
"Where are they now?" Lin Wan'er asked.
Zhao Xingguo felt intimidated by the beautiful woman. Meeting her gaze was overwhelming, so he averted his eyes and replied, "Brother Jiang and the other one are downstairs. We were hiding at the mouth of the alley earlier."
The situation was now clear: Jiang Cheng, worried about Lin Wan'er's safety, had sent Zhao Xingguo to scout ahead and assess the situation. He and Fatty were hiding in a safe place, ready to flee if things turned sour.
"This isn't the place to talk. Let's leave first," Lin Wan'er said.
With Zhao Xingguo leading the way, they quickly found the alleyway where they had been hiding earlier. The entrance was well-concealed, easily overlooked if one wasn't paying attention.
To Zhao Xingguo's surprise, when he entered the alley, there was no sign of Jiang Cheng or Fatty. "Where did they go?" he asked, scanning the surroundings. They had agreed to meet here.
"Hey," Zhao Xingguo called out to a beggar squatting in a corner. "Did you see where those two guys went? They were just here a moment ago."
To Zhao Xingguo's surprise, the beggar simply rolled his eyes and ignored him.
Pi Ruan, ever the sensible one, fished out some change from his pocket and tossed it with a clink into the beggar's chipped bowl.
This time, before they could even speak, the beggar shot Zhao Xingguo a contemptuous glance. "They left long ago. The moment you turned your back, they were gone."
Zhao Xingguo: "???"
Lin Wan'er, however, couldn't help but curl her lips, as if she had realized something.
The sun was blazing. Squinting against the glare, she scanned the surroundings until she found the most blinding angle. There, vaguely visible, stood an old-fashioned stilt house.
The building was three stories high and looked ancient, covered in lush green ivy. At a third-story window, she spotted a familiar figure.
Behind the window, Jiang Cheng turned to the Fatty beside him and said, "Looks like everyone except Luo He is safe for now."
Fatty swallowed hard. He was sitting at a table, as Jiang Cheng had forbidden him from approaching the window, saying his large frame would make them too conspicuous.
Ten minutes later, the group reconvened at the foot of the stilt house. Zhao Xingguo's expression was grim, and his gaze at Jiang Cheng was tinged with suspicion.
Jiang Cheng didn't bother to explain. He saw no need.
In a mission, ensuring one's own safety was paramount. If something went wrong inside the building, there was no guarantee Zhao Xingguo wouldn't betray them.
"Luo He was taken by them," Chen Qiang said, looking at Jiang Cheng.
Jiang Cheng already knew this. What interested him more was why.
Chen Qiang recounted their ordeal in meticulous detail, with Huai Yi adding supplementary information.
"This was likely the work of a Ghost," Jiang Cheng concluded quickly. "The person who reported Luo He is suspicious. The murder of the photography studio owner was also part of the plan."
"Do you have any leads?" Fu Fu asked, her eyes narrowed. It seemed Luo He's abduction didn't faze her.
Whether this was due to her distant relationship with her teammates or her unwavering confidence in Luo He, no one could say.
As agreed, Jiang Cheng's group went to investigate Yangzi.
Everyone felt a strange anticipation about this woman. She seemed like an NPC who might reveal a crucial clue at any moment.
The scarecrow, the nursery rhyme, and the Shinto shrine—so many clues intertwined, and Yangzi was the nexus where they converged.
"Do you remember what that woman said?" Jiang Cheng asked, prompting them. "The steamed bun shop that almost came to blows with us?"
Huai Yi was quick to react, immediately understanding Jiang Cheng's meaning. "She said someone besides us was secretly giving Yangzi and the others food—someone from the Feng Manor!"
"It was Crippled Liu," Jiang Cheng suddenly declared.
"Him?!"
The revelation wasn't entirely unexpected. They had all sensed something unusual about Crippled Liu from the moment they first saw him. Yet how could a gatekeeper from the Feng Manor possibly be connected to a street-dwelling Japanese woman?
Recalling Crippled Liu's wretched appearance, Zhao Xingguo's gaze faltered. He looked up, his lips trembling as if he wanted to say something.
But before he could speak, Fu Fu fixed him with a stare and asked, "Do you think his condition is the result of being corrupted by the Gate?"
"You think so too?" Zhao Xingguo asked, surprised.
Jiang Cheng's eyes shifted upon hearing this. He knew that excessive use of the Power of the Door could lead to the Curse behind the Gate eroding a Disciple's consciousness.
But he hadn't considered that their bodies would also undergo such drastic changes.
At the same time, he immediately recalled a recent event.
Pi Ruan.
The child had mentioned that Pi Ruan's face had rotted and fallen to the ground.
At the time, Jiang Cheng had suspected that a Ghost had killed Pi Ruan and taken his place. But now, another possibility emerged.
Pi Ruan was also a Disciple of the Door, and judging by his condition, he had been severely corrupted by the Gate within him, to the point where he could no longer maintain his appearance.
This chilling realization sent a shiver down his spine.
He had known Pi Ruan for quite some time, yet he had never noticed anything amiss.
Long ago, he had sensed a pair of eyes watching him from the shadows. His first suspect had been the Fatty who appeared alongside the Nightmare.
But now, he realized that Pi Ruan had also exhibited suspicious behavior. However, their long acquaintance and the fact that the Nightmare hadn't yet emerged had caused him to deliberately overlook these details.
If Pi Ruan truly was a Disciple of the Door, then the plot against him must have been set in motion long ago. The scale of the conspiracy, its intricate planning, and its subtle execution were truly terrifying.
And among the people he knew, the only ones capable of such a feat were the Crimson fanatics.
(End of the Chapter)
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