Translator: CinderTL
The expected scene of a green-faced, fanged demon didn't materialize.
But just because he couldn't see it didn't mean it wasn't there. The acrid, burnt smell in his nostrils repeatedly assaulted his senses, making it clear that the creature was nearby.
Even...
Suddenly, the row of books shielding Shen Mengyun's face wobbled. Jiang Cheng's brow twitched, and with lightning-fast reflexes, he grabbed her head and pressed it down.
The next second, several books in the middle of the row were violently yanked out, crashing to the floor with a loud clatter.
Shen Mengyun's face drained white at the sight.
Jiang Cheng's right hand remained pressed against her head as she crouched beside him, her body trembling uncontrollably.
After the books fell, a large gap opened in the bookshelf, offering a direct view of what lay behind it.
At the same moment, the wind suddenly intensified.
It swept through the gap, carrying an overwhelming stench of burnt flesh.
The situation was now painfully clear: the invisible Burnt Ghost was standing right in front of the bookshelf, less than a meter away from them.
The only barrier between them was a bookshelf.
Jiang Cheng pulled out the books to confirm whether someone was hiding behind it.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that the space revealed was empty, with nothing there.
But both Jiang Cheng and Shen Mengyun knew that the Burnt Ghost was likely pressing its face against the gap, its charred eye sockets fixed on them.
This image materialized in Shen Mengyun's mind, sending a chill down her spine.
If Jiang Cheng had hesitated even a second longer to grab her hand, or if he had abandoned her to buy himself time to escape, she would have been face-to-face with the Ghost Face. The consequences were unimaginable.
Without realizing it, this man had saved her twice already.
Jiang Cheng didn't have time to dwell on Shen Mengyun's thoughts. His mind raced, and he noticed an anomaly in the Ghost's behavior.
The fact that the Burnt Ghost had created a gap to peer behind the bookshelf suggested it had sensed someone nearby, likely hiding in the space between the bookshelf and the wall.
If so, why didn't it simply remove more books or even knock the bookshelf over?
It would have been effortless for the Ghost.
If that were true, at least one of them—Jiang Cheng and Shen Mengyun—should have been caught.
But it didn't happen.
Instead, the Ghost chose a method that Jiang Cheng found both laborious and foolish: it carved a hole through a row of books.
Considering the Burnt Ghost had followed Gao Yan's footprints to sneak over and observe, this Ghost couldn't be that stupid.
That left only one explanation: this was a restriction imposed on the Ghost by the mission.
Before actually seeing a person, the Ghost couldn't take overly violent actions. All its actions were ultimately tentative, giving off a cautious vibe.
Following this line of reasoning, Jiang Cheng tentatively concluded that the Ghost's condition for killing was seeing the person in person, at close range.
Otherwise, Shen Mengyun and Gao Yan wouldn't have survived to reach this place earlier.
The Ghost must have noticed or spotted them.
They were being pursued.
Could it be, Jiang Cheng frowned slightly, that the Ghost's conditions for killing are even more stringent? Does it need to catch or touch the person to kill them?
Since no victims have emerged yet, the conditions for the Ghost's killings remain purely speculative.
Screech—
Jiang Cheng's ears twitched. A faint sound drifted from afar, as if a heavy table had been moved, its leg scraping against the floor.
Immediately after, the wind that had been blowing through the gap abruptly ceased.
The acrid stench of burning flesh gradually faded as well.
It seemed the Ghost had been drawn away from the bookshelf by the noise.
Only after the stench had completely dissipated did Jiang Cheng finally exhale deeply, realizing his forehead was slick with cold sweat.
Indeed, the psychological pressure of facing such a Ghost, separated only by a bookshelf, was something few could endure.
Shen Mengyun's legs had gone weak. Jiang Cheng had to turn sideways to support her and help her stand.
"Thank you, Mr. Jiang," Shen Mengyun said, looking at him. She suddenly realized that this man wasn't the unreliable person she had initially thought.
In truth, he was remarkably sincere.
"How are you feeling?" Jiang Cheng asked after catching his breath.
"I'm fine now. If it weren't for you just now, I..." Recalling the scene, Shen Mengyun's face paled slightly.
The empty space on the bookshelf and the scattered books on the floor constantly reminded her how close she had come to death.
After a moment of thought, Jiang Cheng decided not to rush out. "I only saw you and Gao Yan running over just now. Where's Wang Qi?"
When they had first separated to find hiding places, Jiang Cheng remembered Wang Qi being ahead of them. He should have encountered the Ghost earlier.
"Wang Qi..." Shen Mengyun frowned. "I didn't see him. He separated from us after running for a while, but he should be fine."
It seemed Wang Qi had managed to evade the Ghost's search.
"How were you discovered?" Jiang Cheng nodded and continued his questioning.
At the mention of this, Shen Mengyun's expression darkened, her full chest heaving violently. They were standing very close, and Jiang Cheng, being taller, couldn't help but glance down at her from time to time.
"I wasn't discovered by the Ghost. It was Gao Yan who was found. I was hiding perfectly well when he ran over, drawing the Ghost's attention to me as well," Shen Mengyun said quickly.
"Do you know how the Ghost found him?" Jiang Cheng asked curiously.
After catching her breath, Shen Mengyun slowly calmed down and nodded. "Yes. I was hiding under a table not far from him. He was hiding between two bookshelves, and from where I was, I had a clear view of him."
"At first, everything was fine. But after a while, he reached out and grabbed something from the bookshelf. It was too dark to see what it was."
"It was probably... maybe less than ten seconds later that the Ghost appeared. No, it was more like it just suddenly materialized. The smell hit me instantly—it was overpowering." As if reliving the moment, Shen Mengyun clenched her fists, her voice tense.
"An hourglass," Jiang Cheng said after a moment's thought.
"Yes, I think so too," Shen Mengyun whispered. "But I didn't think much about it at the time. When I saw Gao Yan running toward me, I panicked and ran with him. I didn't realize I'd twist my ankle halfway through."
She looked up. "If I hadn't met you, Mr. Jiang, I probably..."
Jiang Cheng ignored the rest of her sentence. It seemed their exposure was entirely due to Gao Yan's unauthorized handling of an hourglass.
Hourglasses were common in the library. There was one sitting right on the bookshelf in front of them.
At first, they'd assumed the hourglasses only served to trigger missions and mark time. Now, it was clear they had a far more sinister purpose.
(End of the Chapter)
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