I wandered through a pitch-black space, surrounded by Jason Zheng's memories. Yet, part of those memories was shrouded in darkness, completely unreadable. I tried to probe that shadowy part with the Specter Web, intending to inspect it, but discovered that section seemed not to exist at all.
After Jason Zheng returned home that day, he immediately packed up and went to a finance company run by their boss, took over a million yuan in cash, and came here. The owner of this Major Landfill Plant was his maternal uncle, whom he had contacted in advance—so as soon as something happened, he came straight over.
After arriving, Jason Zheng gave his uncle two hundred thousand yuan and settled in here, apparently intending to stay long-term.
I quietly observed that patch of shadowy memory, releasing the Specter Web to float in the realm of memory. Then I crouched, silently feeling it out.
"Instinct, coexistence..."
However, after quite a while, there was no response at all. I couldn't sense anything from that blacked-out memory—this was a first.
Helpless, I could only exit Jason Zheng's body. He had already fallen into a deep sleep. I grabbed him with one hand, left the room, spread my wings, and with a whoosh, flew toward a tall building beside the landfill. After landing on the rooftop, I looked around, found a rope, tied up Jason Zheng, and hung him outside the edge of the rooftop.
Jason Zheng's memories weren't fragmented, but rather complete and coherent, like a film reel playing—each memory strung together. That blacked-out section was one of them.
I waited quietly. This high-rise had no residents; its exterior walls were still under renovation. It was past 3 a.m.—several hours until dawn.
"Ah, this is... ah... help..."
Jason Zheng finally woke up. He seemed to realize he was hanging on the edge of the rooftop and screamed in terror.
"Stop yelling, Jason Zheng," I said.
"Ah, sir, please pull me up first. I won't do it again—I don't even know how I offended you."
I turned on my phone. In the faint light, Jason Zheng saw my face clearly—I had him facing the rooftop, with his hands and body tied, hanging from the railing at the edge.
"Ethan Zhang, what are you doing?"
When Jason Zheng saw me, he shouted. I held a piece of glass in one hand and pressed it against the rope tied to the railing, giving it a cut.
"No, don't—Ethan Zhang, let's talk this out! Aren't we classmates?"
"Tell me everything you know—if you don't want to die."
Jason Zheng looked at me, bewildered, then started to speak, his voice trembling with tears.
"I really don't know, I swear—I already told you everything I could that day."
I sighed.
"There's nothing more I can do. If you won't talk, then go down to the Underworld and explain yourself to the King of Hell."
As I spoke, I slashed the rope with a sudden motion. Jason Zheng screamed as he fell, but with a snap, I transformed into black mist, instantly appearing beside him as he plummeted downward.
Just as Jason Zheng was about to hit his head on the ground, I caught him—in midair, about four or five meters above the ground. Apparently terrified, Jason Zheng began foaming at the mouth, his eyes vacant.
"Damn it."
I said, immediately lifting Jason Zheng and carrying him back to the rooftop.
"A ghost!"
Jason Zheng shouted. I threw him to the ground—his pants were soaked.
"If you scream again, I'll kill you right now."
I glared at Jason Zheng. At that moment, he could only see my head—everything below was ghostly, invisible to him. Gradually, I returned to my human form.
"Speak. Tell me everything you know. That was just a warning—next time, I won't be so kind as to catch you."
Jason Zheng looked at me in fear, then started to spill everything all at once.
What he said before: That night, he and his friend Simon Lin lost money—money they had pooled together and secretly taken, over a hundred thousand yuan. In a few days, someone would come to collect, and if they couldn't pay, they'd be in serious trouble.
So the two went to a bar to drown their sorrows, even discussing robbing a bank. But neither dared, so they started talking about robbery or kidnapping instead.
"Get to the point, damn it."
I couldn't help but curse. Sure enough, Jason Zheng always liked to talk about irrelevant things.
"No, listen—this is related to what happened next."
Then Jason Zheng and Simon Lin discussed running away. Jason Zheng mentioned his uncle could hide them. He called his uncle, but after hearing the situation, his uncle said only Jason could come hide, not both of them.
After Jason Zheng told Simon Lin, the two were left helpless. The next day, Jason Zheng called his uncle again—this time, his uncle said he could help his friend hide too, but it would cost two hundred thousand yuan.
The two originally wanted to flee to another city, but due to some unexpected events, they ended up back at the company. After a nerve-wracking day, they still wanted to run, but had no money—and couldn't find a target for a big cash robbery.
At that point, Jason Zheng had a wicked thought—he planned to pin everything on his friend. But before he could act, Simon Lin caught on.
On the final night of the deadline, the two were at that bar. Jason Zheng intended to drug his friend and take him to Wen Temple Village, where there were many empty houses.
But Simon Lin realized it. In the bar's restroom, after Simon Lin confronted him, the two fought—and in the struggle, Jason Zheng accidentally killed Simon Lin.
"I didn't mean to! I just wanted to get him to Wen Temple Village, buy some time, figure out a way to get the money, and then explain things to the boss."
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As Jason Zheng spoke, he began to cry. I walked over and punched him in the face.
"And then?"
Jason Zheng continued. At the time, he was terrified, alone in the restroom, not knowing what to do—he was finished, everything was over. He had killed someone. Just then, someone entered the restroom. Jason thought it was all over, but the newcomer wore a Black Mask.
Hearing this, I immediately knew—it was someone from the Immortality Society.
The Immortality Society member came in, saw Jason Zheng had killed someone, and said he would call the police—he even pulled out his phone. Jason panicked, drew a knife, and tried to kill the masked man. The masked man was stabbed and collapsed, so Jason decided to run.
But to his shock, the man in the Black Mask who'd been stabbed stood up, clapped, and said, "Congratulations, Jason Zheng. You've been chosen."
"What happened? Speak up!"
I shouted harshly. Jason Zheng looked at me and continued.
"He asked if I wanted wealth and power. Of course I did. He even said he could help cover up the murder. He handed me a pill and told me to feed it to Simon Lin. You know what? Later, I saw Simon Lin get up like nothing had happened—like a zombie, he just walked out."
Jason Zheng said this, then looked around and stood up.
"Ethan Zhang, now that I've told you everything, will you let me go?"
I looked at Jason Zheng and shook my head.
"You killed someone. How could I let you go?"
"Please, Ethan Zhang, I have a younger sister and a grandmother at home. They both depend on my monthly money to survive. Please, let me go, okay?"
I hesitated. When it came to Jason Zheng, I really didn't know what to do. But in the end, I nodded.
"I can let you go, but you have to find a way to contact that man and get him here. You should have a way to reach him, right?"
Jason Zheng nodded immediately.
Later, that man helped Jason Zheng get to Wen Temple Village, bringing Simon Lin's corpse and placing it in one of the houses. He then took out a red pill and told Jason Zheng to swallow it.
Jason Zheng didn't hesitate and swallowed it. He didn't feel any different. Then the man taught Jason Zheng to pin all the blame on Simon Lin. A few months later, when he brought his boss to find Simon Lin, having seen the man bring Simon Lin back to life, Jason Zheng didn't doubt him.
The man instructed Jason Zheng to get the company safe's password and lure those people over. He also told Jason Zheng that Simon Lin would help him kill those people, and when he got the money, he could run away. This was his trial, and Jason Zheng agreed.
Everything that happened next was just as the man had said. After Jason Zheng got the money, he received notice from the man, telling him to wait at his uncle's place for further instructions.
"I've told you everything I know, Ethan Zhang. Can I go now?"
I glared fiercely at Jason Zheng and shook my head.
"I'll go back with you. Once that man shows up and things are settled, I'll let you go. But first, you'll have to spend some time with the Ghost Burial Squad."
I said, grabbing Jason Zheng by the collar, my body radiating Deathbane Aura, and dragged him toward the garbage processing plant.
When we reached Jason Zheng's room, I released Tong Ghost with a whoosh. Jason Zheng jumped in fright.
"Go to sleep. Don't even think about running. If you try, Tong Ghost will eat you alive."
As soon as I finished speaking, Tong Ghost's mouth opened wide, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth. Jason Zheng nodded in terror.