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Chapter 96 - CHAPTER 96

Ghost Hunter Julie

Xu Mo stepped back a few paces, retreating outside the building.

Jason, puzzled, followed him out.

"How did you—" he began, but his words cut off as his expression twisted in shock.

The bright sunshine that had been outside only moments ago was gone. In its place was a thick, suffocating fog. Buildings loomed as dark silhouettes, shrouded in haze. From above, flakes drifted down—not snow, but ashes, like the remnants of something long burned.

Jason reached out, caught a piece, and stared at it in disbelief.

"It was just sunny… No, this has to be a dream. I didn't sleep well last night, I must be hallucinating!"

He muttered to himself, then turned and marched back into the building. He shut his eyes, stepped outside again, and reopened them.

But the fog remained. Visibility was less than ten meters.

Xu Mo watched Jason's denial with quiet amusement and patted him on the shoulder before returning indoors.

Truthfully, Xu Mo had considered warning them not to come to Silent Hill. But he knew better. Before seeing the truth for themselves, they wouldn't have believed him. Instead, they'd have resented his interference. So why bother? Everyone had to meet their own fate.

Inside, Julie and Carl were staring in shock at the fog creeping through the room. Jason stumbled back in right after, pale and unsettled.

"Can anyone tell me what's happening?" he demanded.

Carl and Julie both frowned in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Jason explained what he'd seen. When they heard his words, their expressions shifted. All of them rushed outside.

Karl, Lina, and Jason wore the same look of disbelief at the foggy scene. Only Julie's face darkened with recognition.

"Oh no," she muttered.

Karl turned to her sharply. "Julie—you know something, don't you?"

But she didn't answer. Instead, she said firmly, "We need to leave. Now."

She ran toward the parked cars.

Before they could follow, the sound of heavy footsteps and guttural roars rose from the mist. Three figures slowly emerged from the fog, shambling unnaturally.

When their forms came into view, everyone but Xu Mo and Julie screamed in terror.

The creatures' bodies were warped, faceless, armless, wrapped in grotesque film-like skin. Their twisted frames jerked with each step.

"Run!" Julie shouted, yanking a shotgun from her backpack.

The others bolted in panic. But before Julie could fire, Xu Mo calmly drew his Glock 17 from his pack.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Three crisp shots rang out. Each bullet struck true, dropping the monsters instantly. Green blood spurted from their ruptured bodies. Xu Mo, already anticipating the spray, sidestepped with practiced ease.

The others froze mid-run and turned back. To their astonishment, the creatures lay dead at Xu Mo's feet.

Julie stared hard at him. In school, she had barely noticed him. Yet here, in the face of horror, he was steady, fast, and fearless—faster than her.

"Could he… be in the same line of work as me?" she wondered.

The others gawked.

"Xu, when did you get so… brave?" Jason stammered. He still remembered their trip to a haunted house, when Xu Mo had been the timid one.

"People change," Xu Mo replied evenly.

Lina, eyes sparkling, rushed up and hugged him like an overexcited fangirl. Xu Mo barely reacted beneath his heavy coat.

"Follow me," he said calmly, and strode toward the church at the center of town.

Jason and Lina followed at once. Julie hesitated, but seeing his composure, she bit her lip and joined them. Carl, not wanting to be left behind, trailed after.

"Do you know what's happening?" Julie asked Xu Mo quietly.

He glanced at her. "Before you ask me anything, shouldn't you introduce yourself first?"

From his earlier observations, it was clear Julie had known something was coming. She hadn't brought holy water for nothing.

Julie hesitated, then asked, "Are you… a ghost hunter too?"

Xu Mo raised a brow. "Ghost hunter? What's that supposed to mean?"

She froze. "…You're not?"

After a pause, she sighed and began to explain.

Supernatural incidents were no longer rare in their world. At first, the government created a covert division to deal with them. But as events multiplied, even that effort proved insufficient.

So another organization was formed—one that released missions as public bounties. The commissions were high, but so were the risks. From this system emerged a new profession: ghost hunters. Specialists who took on the deadliest supernatural cases.

Julie was one of them. Two months ago, she had accepted the Silent Hill mission—a job ranked among the most lucrative and dangerous on the list. For weeks, she had investigated, but with little progress.

When Carl learned she was interested in the town, he insisted on coming, despite her subtle warnings. To keep him from dragging others to their deaths, she had reluctantly joined him, hoping her presence would at least give them some protection.

As she finished her story, Carl stood rooted in place, pale and speechless.

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