A bone-chilling cold spread down her back, and Ji He froze. Then the eyeballs disappeared, leaving only a small hole poked in the paper window, through which the wind could still be seen.

"What's wrong, Ms. Ji He?"

Just then, Ruan Qing'an's voice suddenly came from behind Ji He, carrying a hint of doubt and inquiry. Ji He then turned around abruptly, snapping out of her daze.

She turned around and saw Ruan Qing'an spreading out bedding beside her.

Although there was only one small courtyard for the four of them to live in, there was still a distinction between men and women. Therefore, Jiang Shihe and Xia Changhong separated the two rooms by a sheet, which they tied together with a rope and hung up. The two boys stayed in the room near the door, which served as a guard post to prevent any accidents from happening.

The area by the window is where Ruan Qing'an and Ji He, the two girls, sleep; it's a protected spot inside.

Seeing Ruan Qing'an's questioning gaze, Ji He's mind raced.

As she turned her hands behind her back, she subtly tore open the hole in the paper window slightly, blurring the obvious mark of a finger poking through it.

Ji He then said somewhat embarrassedly to Ruan Qing'an, "Um, could I switch seats with you, Miss Ruan..."

She spoke very softly, as if she were a little embarrassed.

Before Ruan Qing'an could ask, Ji He had already moved over and whispered to her, "I'm so sorry, Miss Ruan, I'm about to get my period and I can't stand the wind, but you see that window over there, so can I switch with you?"

Upon hearing this, Ruan Qing'an looked over and was shocked to see a hole about the size of a palm in the corner of the window paper.

037: [Hey, how come I didn't see that earlier?]

"It's simple, Ji He tore it, she's probably in trouble."

Meanwhile, Ji He continued to persuade, "I'm so sorry, Miss Ruan, could we please change it?"

"Sure, we're all girls, I understand."

Ruan Qing'an readily agreed, chuckling as she took Ji He's hand, her face full of concern: "Don't catch a cold, otherwise it will be bad for your health in the future. You should have said so earlier. I'll switch with you."

Ji He said gratefully, "Thank you so much, Miss Ruan."

The two quickly switched places, and after a lot of fuss, they finally tidied up the bedding. The small courtyard became quiet, and Ruan Qing'an lay down, leaning against the window, closing her eyes for a nap. The tear was right next to her.

Even 037 couldn't help but tremble, but Ruan Qing'an was very calm, with his eyes closed, as relaxed as if he were on a hotel bed.

037: [Oh no, aren't you scared at all?]

Ruan Qing'an placed his hands flat and closed his eyes to rest: "I'm not afraid, it's just that a ghost might suddenly jump out."

037: ? ? ?

"It's no big deal, just watch."

After blowing out the oil lamp placed on the table, the room was plunged into complete darkness, with only the ground outside the small courtyard covered in silver frost.

Ji He huddled under the covers, cautiously glancing in Ruan Qing'an's direction, subtly observing the movements in the night—the eyeballs from earlier probably meant someone was observing the house from outside, without triggering any ghostly activity.

Most importantly, in a globally thrilling scenario, every anomaly represents a potential clue or reward, especially in side quests where such opportunities are never missed.

But doing so often does indeed lead to quicker leads, but it also means quicker deaths, one after another.

Ji He didn't want to take this risk for nothing.

Finally, time passed slowly, and just as Ji He was about to fall asleep, footsteps came from outside the window. Not only that, but there was also a screeching sound like metal scraping against the ground.

Through the dim moonlight outside the paper window, a figure appeared silently, and Ji He immediately hid.

NPCs certainly won't make things difficult for each other. Good luck to Nguyen Thanh An.

037 was also terrified: [Ancestors...ancestors!]

Ruan Qing'an's face was serene and unconcerned. She even turned over with her eyes closed, facing the window paper. The cold, yin energy kept coming in, but she just lazily yawned.

Then, the strange footsteps and rubbing sounds stopped abruptly.

Everything around him seemed to fall silent in an instant; even the breathing inside the room could not be heard. Ruan Qing'an finally opened his eyes, his leaden eyes filled with a stern expression.

At the gaping hole, a pair of dark, malevolent eyes stared at Ruan Qing'an, their lust blatant. Moonlight streamed through the windowpane, casting a shadowy figure outside—or rather, it was no longer a figure…

It was a emaciated, hunched, short figure, clearly extremely thin, but on its back, there seemed to be bulging lumps, making it look incredibly eerie.

037 had already hidden in her mind and dared not speak.

But Ruan Qing'an became even calmer, pulling up a corner of the window paper: "If nothing unexpected happens, this is also a trap in the dungeon. As long as the window paper is torn, vengeful ghosts will come knocking. We have to block it."

037: [Then, then, then—then we'll block it—]

Before 037 could finish speaking, Ruan Qingan decisively tore the window paper to shreds, leaving only the bare window frame!

Fearful 037: ...

The vengeful ghost outside the window: ...

Ji He, watching the play: ...

Now, they could finally see the ghost's face clearly. Its wrinkled face was exactly the same as Uncle Zhang's kind yet eerie smile. However, it looked as if it had been drained of its life force, and there were black, carbonized marks on its body.

As for Uncle Zhang's back, it wasn't just any bumps, but rather something like tumors, with blood vessels bulging and congested, making it look quite grotesque.

The interwoven meridians vaguely resembled a human face, constantly shifting and seemingly roaring and laughing.

"Leave...leave, the window...is open..."

It spoke haltingly, and only after the moonlight reflected off its body could one finally see what it was holding in its hand—a bloodstained axe, which was now dragging on the ground.

Not far away, where it came from, there was a trail of blood, a veritable murder scene!

Ruan Qing'an paused: "Is there something you need?"

Uncle Zhang seemed surprised that someone could be so calm, but once it realized what was happening, the entire ghost climbed onto the window frame, chuckling. In the space covered by its ghostly aura, the originally old interior furnishings turned into a bright red, festive to the point of being eerie.

The two women, who were forced into the ghost realm, were bound with red threads. Ji He was alright, only suffering from the aftermath, and quickly tore off the red threads.

However, Ruan Qing'an, who was the first to be affected, was unlucky. Entangled in the red thread, it seemed as if she was being turned into a marionette.

Uncle Zhang moved very slowly, climbing up the window frame. His face, covered in yellow teeth and wrinkled with a grimace, was etched with deep lines. "Wife... come and get... my wife..."

"Are you looking for your wife?"

Ruan Qing'an fiddled with the red thread on his body and said casually.

Her gaze lightly fell on Ji He, who was trying to slip out of the ghost realm. Then—she pulled her over, pulled on her red thread, and, ignoring Ji He's struggles and resistance, bound her tightly like a rice dumpling.

The next moment, he pushed it towards Uncle Zhang.

"Here you go, the wife you chose at the beginning."

\u0007\u0007\u0007\u0007\u0007\u0007\u0007