"It's very comfortable, it makes me feel at ease, and I feel like there's no danger here."

Shi Jin grinded the incense ash in his hands, lost in thought.

Shekh is half-human, half-snake, and he seems to enjoy drinking his own blood. His blood allows Shekh to evolve, so this...

Was her strange behavior last night part of her evolution?

She hasn't molted or lost any teeth; I don't see any evolution in her.

He looked very carefully at Shekh’s face, trying to find something different.

Shekh stared at the incense ash, feeling an urge to lick it. The scent of burning incense mixed with the aroma of Shi Jinzhe's blood was no less potent than a hallucinogen.

The temptation was too great, especially since Shi Jinzhe's fingers were still constantly grinding incense ash.

The fine powder imprinted on her fingerprints, pressed and accumulated by the capillaries separated only by a thin layer of skin. The two were pulled and merged in her olfactory system, stimulating every nerve ending.

Suddenly, an even stronger smell of incense ash filled Sheh's nostrils, and she vaguely heard someone speaking in her ear.

The voice was muttering incantations, but she couldn't make out what it was saying no matter what she tried.

Her limbs and bones seemed to be numbed by the mixed smell, and a barely perceptible power was flowing through her body.

Shekh's mind was in complete disarray, and she had no idea that her appearance was also changing.

Faint, scaly marks appeared beneath the corners of her eyes, which were concealed by ribbons, and shimmering, tiny specks of light spread down to her neck.

The out-of-focus pupil automatically locks onto the nearest energy source.

Instinct screamed, and her sluggish mind told Shekh that she needed energy, and there just happened to be some right next to her mouth.

Shi Jinzhe realized that something was wrong with Shehe as soon as the scaly patterns appeared on her face.

He supported Shekh and gently touched the lines on her face. As soon as he touched her, his fingertip stung and bled. The next second, his hand suddenly throbbed with pain.

Two sharp, long teeth pierced his palm, and blood gushed from his broken hand.

His fingers twitched twice from the pain, blood was rapidly drawn away, and his entire arm was too weak to lift.

Meng Chengxi and Xiao Fang, who were behind him, wanted to come over and help him, but he shook his head and stopped them.

Blood dripped onto the ground, splattering into radial circular spots. When a small patch of red accumulated on the ground, Shi Jinzhe was suddenly pushed away by Shekh.

Sheh took a deep breath, the lines on her face faded, and before her reason returned, Lu Xiaohui's voice appeared in her mind.

She said devoutly, "Please bless the safety of everyone in the hotel."

The three large red incense sticks burned down at a visible speed, their smoke descending rapidly.

The scent of incense dissipated, leaving only the aroma of blood.

Shekh suppressed the restless energy within him and stood up, leaning against the wall.

Her gaze swept over the bloodstains on the ground, and she took two steps forward, standing in front of Shi Jinzhe.

Sheikh: "Are you alright?"

Shi Jinzhe: "Is there something you need?"

Shi Jinzhe paused for a moment, then laughed, "I'm fine."

“I’m fine too.” Shekh reached out and pulled him up from the ground. “Don’t worry, I’ve made a new discovery.”

Seeing that she was clear-headed and her face had returned to normal, without any abnormalities, Shi Jinzhe then patted the dust off his clothes.

"What discovery?"

“Like Xiao Fang, Lu Xiaohui believes in snakes.” Sheh tapped his ear. “I heard it, not in the way of my five senses, but her voice appeared in my mind.”

Xiao Fang exclaimed excitedly, "You really are..."

“I’m not.” Shekh ruthlessly shattered his illusion. “Lu Xiaohui’s incense was burning very brightly; I just managed to get some.”

"But there must be a reason why you can hear it. The more people who believe in a deity, the stronger their power. The fact that you can be influenced means that you can also be worshipped!"

The more Xiao Fang listened, the more he realized how reasonable it made sense. The woman standing in front of him was like a fairy goddess. Once he cleared the level, he would go out and burn incense!

Sheh gestured for her to stop. The fragrance was pleasant, but it blocked out some of her senses, which she didn't need.

Shech clenched her fist and walked upstairs. The cool, gentle air soothed her discomfort.

Shi Jinzhe's face turned pale; he could no longer suck blood. He would have to make do with this for now.

“We’ll talk when we get back.” Shekh walked upstairs, his steps steady and noticeably stronger than before.

She pushed open the fire escape door on the fourth floor, walked past the second corner, and the door to room 409 was opened from the inside.

Liu Run was pushed out by Cheng Youan and almost bumped into Shi Jinzhe.

Shekh stepped back in time, causing Liu Run to miss his target.

Liu Run's chin hit the floor, and he almost bit off his tongue.

When Cheng Youan saw Shi Jinzhe, his face darkened even more, but when he saw the blood on his body, he secretly felt a sense of schadenfreude.

That face gave Shekh, who was bottling up his frustrations, an outlet, and he kicked Liu Run, who was on the ground, back into room 409.

She turned and told Meng Chengxi and Xiao Fang to leave first to look for other clues, while she pulled Shi Jinzhe into room 409 and slammed the door shut.

Cheng Youan was knocked to the ground by Liu Run, his calf hitting the corner of the bed, and he cried out in pain.

Shi Jinzhe shoved something into Shehe's hand, told her to wait two minutes, and then called to Liu Run, "What did you find in the control room last night?"

There was nothing there, just white cloth and white sheets.

Liu Run stood up from the ground. "But the door was locked from the outside, and I didn't go out all night."

Why did you tell them?!

Cheng Youan yelled at him, "You went to look for clues without telling me! Don't you know this house was haunted last night?! Haunted! If something happens to me, can you take responsibility?!"

Shi Jinzhe: "Ghost? What ghost?"

"Heh, what kind of ghost could it be? A female ghost, of course."

"Cheng Youan!"

Liu Run was too late to stop him and cursed him under his breath as an idiot.

This is the clue that Shi Jinzhe sent, the copy of the name "deceased wife," which is what they are looking for—the female ghost!

He mixed up true and false information, thinking he could get away with it as long as there was no conflict, but the guy still went out of his way to give it to him.

Liu Run was frustrated. Taking Cheng You'an to her mother's place confirmed the old saying.

Money is hard to earn, and life is tough!

Cheng Youan, unaware of the problem, deliberately tried to deflect the issue: "She was standing in your spot last night, right there by the mirror."

Shi Jinzhe reads in a flat, monotonous tone: "That's really scary."

The perfunctory tone made Cheng Youan's jaw clench.

He sneered. Of course, what's there to be afraid of in broad daylight? It's just an act, anyone can do that.

"I hope you never have the experience of waking up in the middle of the night and seeing a female ghost with her back to you in the mirror."

Mirror?

Shi Jinzhe's gaze shifted from the mirror to the bed that had clearly been used.

The bedding on the bed by the window was arranged very neatly. Liu Run didn't come back yesterday, so Cheng You'an slept on the bed against the wall.

He asked Cheng Youan, "The bed you slept in against the wall yesterday?"

“Yeah,” Cheng Youan replied irritably.

Shi Jinzhe scoffed, pulled Shehe over, and made her stand in her place, adjusting her position with her back to the dressing mirror.

"Look, is this how it is?"

Cheng Youan looked towards the entrance hall, where the mirror reflected Sher's waterfall-like black curly hair and her back view.

His gaze shifted, and he noticed that Sheikh, who had his back to the mirror, was facing the bed, his face directly opposite the spot where he had lain the night before.