It was certain there was a ghost in the villa area.
Jiang Jiuguo didn't enter immediately; instead, he returned to the car and took out a large black bag from the back seat.
This was the only item he had brought back from the underground facility, specifically intended for use when encountering a ghost.
"I didn't expect it to come in handy so soon."
After speaking, Jiang Jiuguo pulled the metal zipper on the large black bag.
Despite his internal anxiety for his sister Jiang Xinyue's safety,
he understood that this wasn't a matter that could be solved by simply rushing in. Doing so would likely cost him his life, so he had to make some preparations before entering.
Quickly,
the zipper of the large black bag was pulled open, and a paper man was the first thing to emerge from inside.
The paper man was life-sized, crafted in Jiang Jiuguo's likeness, with his face and clothing painted on. At first glance, it bore a striking resemblance to the current, ghost-transformed Jiang Jiuguo.
There was only one difference.
Those eyes were blank, having not yet been dotted with pupils.
The scene was simply eerie.
Who would carry several funeral paper men around? And even if they did, why would they carry paper men that looked exactly like themselves?
Without the slightest hesitation,
he took a paper man out of the large black bag and placed it on the ground.
Jiang Jiuguo then checked the surroundings. After confirming no one was around, he returned to the driver's seat and closed his eyes.
The next second,
it was truly bizarre.
The paper man placed on the ground moved. It rose upright on its own without any wind, light as a feather. As those blank, un-dotted eyes slowly rotated, the paper man began to expand from its limbs to its entire body, as if being inflated.
In less than two seconds,
the paper man on the ground became identical to the Jiang Jiuguo currently lying in the driver's seat.
The paper man 'Jiang Jiuguo' had come to life, replacing Jiang Jiuguo.
He briefly moved his limbs.
Jiang Jiuguo glanced at his other self lying peacefully in the driver's seat with closed eyes, then locked the car doors to prevent his 'home' from being raided by others or wild animals while he went to save his sister.
After all,
this was near the mountains, where there were snakes, insects, rats, ants, and stray dogs.
Taking two steps at a time, Jiang Jiuguo quickly arranged everything and sped into the villa area.
Since he had asked for the specific location of the villa when he drove Jiang Xinyue here, he saved the time it would have taken to find the one they were in.
Before long,
he arrived at the villa's Entrance.
He didn't need to go inside. Jiang Jiuguo stood at the Entrance, his blank paper eyes shifting to the open villa door. Inside the living room, several students lay motionless on the floor.
One of the fallen students was facing the door, and it was clearly visible that their eyes had rolled back, showing only the whites.
Meanwhile,
cries and screams echoed from within the villa. It was impossible to imagine what tragic events were unfolding inside.
But despite those tragic screams,
not a single person ran out of the open villa door. The scene was steeped in eeriness.
Jiang Jiuguo, however, was not surprised.
It was impossible for ordinary people to escape when they encountered a ghost; the appearance of a ghost was often accompanied by a supernatural phenomenon—the Ghost Wall.
As long as the ghost did not leave this place, the Ghost Wall would persist. Unless one was a Sequencer, ordinary people could not get out. Even if they didn't use the main door and tried to smash through the walls, they still wouldn't escape.
In other words,
if the ghost didn't leave, there was only one end for an ordinary person who encountered it: death. There was no second possibility; no matter how they tried to flee, it was useless.
He still remembered,
back when Professor No. 47 taught this information, Jiang Jiuguo and the others had experienced a sort of Stockholm Syndrome, feeling fortunate that they had been captured and turned into ghosts.
Jiang Jiuguo cautiously stepped into the villa.
The villa wasn't particularly large, but it wasn't small either. Excluding the courtyard, it was over 300 square meters and stood three stories high.
Based on his last phone call with Jiang Xinyue,
Jiang Jiuguo skipped the search of the first floor and headed toward the stairs to the second floor.
He tried to stay as close to the wall as possible, not daring to make a sound, while mentally planning where to hide if he encountered the ghost.
His entire train of thought lacked any intention of getting into a conflict with the ghost.
Because,
clashing with a ghost offered him no benefit whatsoever.
Even though he had become a Sequencer and a ghost himself, there was still a world of difference between him and a true ghost.
Just as he neared the stairs to the second floor,
Jiang Jiuguo's figure suddenly froze. He looked back toward the basement Entrance in the living room, his paper eyebrows furrowing as a human-like solemnity appeared on his paper face.
Now that he had transformed into a ghost,
his hearing had improved by a level.
There was movement.
The sound was faint, but he had still captured it.
Jiang Jiuguo stopped moving and stared intently at the basement. The pitch-black Entrance couldn't help but make one nervous at this moment.
After a slight hesitation,
he abandoned the idea of going to the second floor and moved toward the basement.
Just as he reached the basement Entrance,
and was about to enter, someone else stealthily emerged from the Entrance first.
Their eyes met.
The lights in the living room had long been out, but the large floor-to-ceiling windows allowed the moonlight to shine in, keeping the room dimly lit so it wasn't pitch black.
At that moment,
Chen Chen was scared out of his wits.
The thought 'I'm finished' was written all over his face.
He stood at the basement Entrance, and on the only way out stood an eerie figure silhouetted against the moonlight.
Through the moonlight, he saw the newcomer clearly.
The figure wasn't the Dried Corpse he had encountered in the basement, but it wasn't much better either.
It was a moving paper man.
The paper man looked lifelike, essentially no different from a living person. If not for the deathly pale, paper-like skin and those eyes that hadn't been dotted with pupils, Chen Chen would have almost thought it was a living human.
"Ah?!"
Chen Chen was so terrified that his mouth opened for a scream.
Jiang Jiuguo was quick. Without worrying about comforting the other's emotions, he covered Chen Chen's mouth with one hand and made a shushing gesture with the other.
"Don't make a sound."
Jiang Jiuguo held Chen Chen firmly to prevent him from making a noise. He moved half his body into the basement, using the darkness to conceal his form, showing only a part of himself.
He didn't dare expose himself too much in the open living room.
"I am a person, not a ghost. Don't be afraid. Whether you believe it or not, I am Jiang Xinyue's brother, Jiang Jiuguo."
Who are you trying to fool?
Does any human look like you?
With his mouth covered, Chen Chen felt the texture of the paper skin on Jiang Jiuguo's fingers against his face, further confirming the difference between this being and a living person.
"Rest assured, I won't hurt you. If I were really a ghost, you'd be deader than dead by now, wouldn't you? You should have witnessed how terrifying the ghost is."
Jiang Jiuguo spoke again.
The shaken Chen Chen froze upon hearing this, a hint of surprise appearing in his eyes.
That seemed true... if the paper man were with that ghost, he wouldn't have a chance of survival.
"I'm going to let go now. Don't think about shouting; it'll easily attract that ghost," Jiang Jiuguo said. "I know I don't look human right now. It's a long story, and I can't explain it to you in a short time."
"The only quick explanation I can give is that I'm here to find my sister, Jiang Xinyue."
Saying this, Jiang Jiuguo slowly released his hand.
Throughout, his gaze was fixed on Chen Chen. He had explained what needed to be explained. If Chen Chen still made a sound at this point, he would have no choice but to apologize and strangle him to death.
Screams were the easiest way to attract ghosts.
He didn't want his own safety or his search for his sister to be affected by a stranger.
Fortunately, Chen Chen had some brains.
Seeing that Jiang Jiuguo had no intent to harm him and was being polite, there was no reason for a ghost to toy with him to this extent.
He whispered, "Are you really Xinyue's brother?"
"Yes," Jiang Jiuguo didn't waste time. "Have you seen my sister?"
"I haven't seen Jiang Xinyue. After I saw the ghost, I just huddled on the stairs and didn't dare move. Jiang Xinyue didn't come down to the basement. I don't know where she is."
Chen Chen said this while pointing at Jiang Jiuguo's hand.
"Brother Jiang, can you let me go so I can leave this place? I... I don't want to stay here. There's a ghost, there's really a ghost. That ghost killed all our classmates."
"I can let you leave."
Jiang Jiuguo cautiously peeked his head out.
Chen Chen followed his gaze and saw the open villa door. His face immediately lit up with joy, but Jiang Jiuguo's next words instantly extinguished his hope.
"But you won't be able to get out. If you don't believe me, go ahead and try running out yourself. This place is already caught in a Ghost Wall. Without me to lead the way, an ordinary person can't get out."
Jiang Jiuguo said this as he released Chen Chen.
He didn't intend to restrain the other's actions.
Firstly, it was hard to persuade a ghost-bound fool.
Secondly, if Chen Chen really did try to run out the door, he might help him discover the ghost. Once a Ghost Wall was triggered, it was very easy to attract the ghost's attention.
The ghost hadn't appeared yet.
If Chen Chen could draw the ghost out, it would be a huge help to Jiang Jiuguo. He could quickly determine the ghost's location and even identify which Ghost Sequence number and type it belonged to...