Chapter 268 - 267: 3603

Chapter 268: Chapter 267: 3603

Leaving the Heavenly Master Association, Gu Qingyin had been about to hail a cab home when, after just a few steps, she saw a familiar car.

The car door opened, and Huo Xingchen jumped out, shouting "Mama!" as he ran over, his short legs moving surprisingly fast.

Gu Qingyin stood waiting with a smile, her arms outstretched. She caught the little cannonball as he flew into her embrace, planting a kiss on his soft cheek. In that moment, she felt all her fatigue wash away.

"Did you have fun?"

Hearing this, Huo Xingchen’s eyes reddened, his lower lip began to quiver, and he nearly burst into tears.

Gu Qingyin jumped. "What’s wrong? Did something happen?" She looked to Huo Yunjing. "Did it not go well?"

Huo Yunjing looked equally exasperated. "It went fine, but it wasn’t something a child should see."

Huo Xingchen wiped his tears away, saying stubbornly, "I’m not a kid. I just can’t control my tears."

The family of three got into the car. Huo Yunjing concisely explained the situation at the Ghost Land, with Huo Xingchen adding a few words here and there.

From their bits and pieces, Gu Qingyin managed to get the gist of the story.

Unlike the abandoned Ghost Building from before, this Ghost Land was in a mid-to-high-end residential complex. The specific location was apartment 3603 on the top floor of one building, a unit where a murder had taken place and was now completely sealed off.

The one who died in that apartment was an ordinary and pitiable woman.

Her husband was busy with work and treated their home like a hotel. He only came back to sleep and would leave upon waking; staying out all night was a regular occurrence. The woman was left to handle everything concerning the home and their child.

This was bearable for a short time, but as time went on, the woman’s temper grew worse and worse. She completely snapped after discovering her husband was cheating on her.

One day, while helping her child with homework, the child, being more interested in playing, whined that he didn’t have hands to write with. She then went to the kitchen, grabbed a cleaver, and actually chopped off the child’s hands.

By the time she came to her senses, the child had already bled to death.

Her husband happened to come home at that moment and witnessed the scene. He flew into a rage, cursing the woman hysterically and threatening to call the police.

The provocation sent the woman back into a frenzy. She killed her husband and then took her own life.

When the police arrived on the scene, they had to mentally brace themselves before going inside, because the stench was unbearable.

After the case was closed, no one would take the apartment, so it sat empty. The three neighboring tenants, considering it bad luck, all moved away. The security guards were too frightened to patrol that area.

The entire top floor, devoid of human presence year-round, became more and more unsettling.

A year later, for reasons unknown, a little girl took the elevator up to the top floor. Her parents reported her missing, and a review of the security footage revealed that the girl had somehow entered 3603.

But the door to that apartment was supposed to be locked!

The girl’s parents were scared to death. After they called, the police once again mustered their courage and entered the apartment. A few minutes later, they emerged without incident.

But the girl’s hands were gone. After she was rushed to the hospital for an examination, doctors determined they had been severed by a sharp weapon.

The girl’s parents were horrified. They didn’t dare go back to look for the hands and moved away before their daughter was even discharged from the hospital.

Similar incidents occurred a few more times in the following years, and the story of 3603 became an open secret in the complex.

The property management had also hired masters to take a look, but it was useless. They couldn’t even find the ghost.

This time, upon seeing Huo Yunjing arrive with a child, the property management staff, though outwardly enthusiastic, were inwardly dismissive. They looked like they were just there to fill a quota; they’d probably be screaming for help and running for their lives in no time.

The property manager didn’t dare to go up. He escorted the father and son to the elevator and left them to it, saying with a smile, "I won’t disturb you two. I’ll be waiting downstairs. If you need any help, just come down and find me."

Huo Yunjing gave a deadpan nod, but Huo Xingchen smiled at the man. "Thank you, Mister."

The man’s heart melted at the boy’s cuteness, and a burst of goodwill made him ramble on for a moment. "Apartment 3603 is especially malicious toward children, so you be careful."

’It would be a real shame for such a cute kid to have his hands cut off.’

The warning struck a chord with Huo Xingchen. He nodded obediently. "I’ll protect myself."

The elevator doors closed. Huo Xingchen asked thoughtfully, "Dad, is there more than one ghost in 3603?"

"It sounds that way, but we’ll have to go up and see for ourselves to know for sure." Huo Yunjing rested a large hand on his son’s head. "Remember, take what others say with a grain of salt. It’s more important to see things for yourself—to look closely."

Huo Xingchen nodded in acknowledgement, feeling a little awkward.

’Come to think of it,’ he realized, ’this is probably the first time Dad has ever taught me a real life lesson.’

It was late, and no one else boarded the elevator. The father and son reached the 36th floor without interruption. The moment the doors slid open, a blast of cold, sinister air rushed out to meet them.

Huo Xingchen’s expression grew a little more solemn. He then activated his Yin Yang Eye.

To his surprise, the hallway was completely clean. There wasn’t a trace of Yin Qi to be found.

But being *too* clean was a problem in and of itself.

Huo Yunjing walked to the corner and touched the wall. A damp, frigid chill immediately tried to seep through his fingertips and into his body.

Huo Yunjing pulled his hand back and rubbed his fingertips together. The feeling vanished.

The Yin Qi wasn’t gone; it was just hidden.

"Dad!" Huo Xingchen called out from down the hall. "3603 is over here."

Huo Yunjing walked over but didn’t rush inside. First, using his finger as a brush, he drew a few strokes on the back of Huo Xingchen’s neck. Only then did he whisper, "Let the paper man out."

Huo Xingchen resisted the urge to touch the back of his neck and took out the paper man.

Huo Yunjing picked up the paper man, drew a talisman on its body as well, and then let it go.

The instant the paper man hit the floor, it made a metallic "CLANG."

Huo Xingchen’s eyes widened. He stepped forward and knocked on the paper man. Sure enough, it had become incredibly hard, just like metal.

"Protect Xingchen," Huo Yunjing ordered the paper man.

The paper man seemed surprised by its own transformation, patting itself down curiously as it nodded.

"Let’s go." Huo Yunjing led the way to the door of 3603. He pressed down on the handle, and the door swung open with ease.

A damp, foul stench drifted out.

Huo Yunjing frowned, pushing the door all the way open to air the place out.

Huo Xingchen smelled it too. He reacted instantly, pulling a mask from his storage bag and putting it on. After a moment’s hesitation, he held up another one. "Dad, do you want one?"

Huo Yunjing glanced down at the child-sized mask in his son’s hand and pressed his lips together. "No need. Let’s go in."

Huo Xingchen hummed in acknowledgment and slipped the spare mask over his own. ’Two layers should work better,’ he figured.

Once the masks were secure, he hurried forward, trying to catch up to Huo Yunjing, who was already inside the apartment.

But the moment he crossed the threshold, the scene before his eyes transformed.

The darkness gave way to a room bathed in sunlight. The foul stench was replaced by the aroma of a home-cooked meal. From somewhere inside the clean, tidy apartment, a woman’s soft voice could be heard. Was she explaining a homework problem?

Huo Xingchen blinked. ’Is this a Ghost Realm?’ He looked all around, but his dad and the paper man were gone.

’Now, I’m on my own.’

He took a deep breath. Just as he took a single step forward, footsteps sounded from within the apartment. A woman with a delicate face, her brow deeply furrowed with worry lines, appeared before him.

Huo Xingchen’s gaze froze, fixating on the dark red stains on the woman’s clothes. ’If I’m not seeing things,’ he thought, ’is that dried blood?’