Chapter 116: 116

116 "It's not a ghost at all!"

As evening approached, Xie Shiyu took Tushan Jiu to ride the Ferris wheel.

The night view of Nan Cheng was very beautiful.

Directly opposite the Ferris wheel was the light show of the landmark building.

Tushan Jiu had wanted to come and take a ride for a while.

She took many photos, and she also took two pictures together with Xie Shiyu.

Xie Shiyu asked her to send them to him.

He immediately set them as his wallpaper and screensaver.

One round on the Ferris wheel takes twenty minutes.

When they got off, Xie Shiyu still felt a bit unsatisfied.

As for why he felt unsatisfied.

It wasn't because, while they were waiting in line, a young couple behind them mentioned the legend about kissing on the Ferris wheel.

Xie Shiyu also childishly went along with it once.

Tushan Jiu said he was just making an excuse for himself.

Xie Shiyu smiled, curling his lips, and said nothing.

The two walked while discussing what to eat later.

Unexpectedly, they saw Fang Qingyi and Xie Jingting ahead.

But it was Tushan Jiu and Xie Shiyu who saw them.

However, Xie Jingting and Fang Qingyi didn't see them.

Tushan Jiu also didn't act as a third wheel and didn't call out to them.

But she keenly noticed that Xie Jingting wanted to hold Fang Qingyi's hand, hesitating there, reaching out then pulling back, and even after getting on the Ferris wheel he still hadn't succeeded in holding her hand.

She raised her eyebrows and muttered, "Third brother is a bit timid, hesitating to hold a hand—does the girl have to make the first move?"

Tushan Jiu then turned to look at Xie Shiyu, sized him up, shook her head, and said, "Your two brothers aren't as capable as you."

Xie Shiyu: "......"

I really don't know if she's praising him or praising him.

His being so capable isn't because she's too straightforward; she doesn't understand indirect hints, so of course he can only be direct.

However, he thought she was also right—having a mouth is definitely better than not having one.

They were heading in the opposite direction from them, and Tushan Jiu wanted to go eat Korean food.

In the city center there is a highly rated authentic Korean restaurant.

After showing Xie Shiyu the location, he navigated and drove to that restaurant.

On the way, Tushan Jiu finally received a call back from Lin Xiu'er.

She told her what Jiang Zhiyi had said about the situation.

On the other end, Lin Xiu'er's voice sounded a bit tired as she said she understood and would inform the relevant departments to investigate and handle the matter.

Tushan Jiu sensed that Lin Xiu'er's state was off, so she asked concernedly, "What happened? Are you busy today?"

Lin Xiu'er's personality is also to speak her mind, so she directly said something about the "shadow ghost" eating people.

"A shadow ghost?" Tushan Jiu frowned.

"What kind of ghost is that? Have I just been ignorant?"

"In the metaphysical world, there's no ghost associated with shadows."

Lin Xiu'er and her team were also worried about this.

She said, "Yeah, it's because we don't know what it is, so we don't know where to catch it."

The park area still had no surveillance, and those few elderly witnesses said that at the time they saw a man who had just risen in the sun, walking ahead of them, twisting his body back and forth as he exercised.

Suddenly they smelled a foul, pungent odor, were looking for its source, and then saw the man walking ahead; his shadow leapt up, bit his neck, and then the shadow ate him bite by bite.

This aroused Tushan Jiu's curiosity.

In this shadow-eating-people paranormal incident, what exactly is it?

Her mind raced as she muttered to herself.

"It can possess a person's shadow."

"It can eat people raw, and before appearing there is a stench."

"Shadow... darkness... possessing darkness, or only able to attach to darkness, or——"

"It's not a ghost at all!"

"It's not a ghost at all!"

Tushan Jiu and Lin Xiu'er said this guess in unison.

Lin Xiu'er had also pondered this all day.

Just now, following Tushan Jiu's train of thought, she suddenly thought of this possibility as well.

So the question arises: if it's not a ghost, what could it be?

Tushan Jiu, however, thought of a possibility.

She had once heard her grandfather mention a kind of evil thing called a Black Calamity (sheng, third tone).

It arises from the vapor of dead water.

Dead water gathers yin energy, and over time it naturally produces some bad things.

Such an evil entity forms from concentrated strong yin energy; it has no consciousness, only mercilessly devours, then refines the victims with yin energy, finally converting them into its own energy.

And the "eating people" that those old ladies saw was probably not actually the man being eaten, but rather the man being consumed by that Black Calamity.

But if it really is this black calamity, then it would be a bit troublesome.

Such things are extremely rare; at the very least, they require the yin energy of a dead water pool that has existed for several decades or more to coalesce into one.

They move in strange ways, making them hard to catch.

Especially at night, they rule supreme.

Because as long as an object is black, they can attach to it, shift position at will, and then attack or flee.

Moreover, they belong to the water element among the Five Phases, their true form is watery mist, and blades and spears cannot pierce them.

If it really is a black calamity, then it's somewhat troublesome.

Tushan Jiu told Lin Xiu'er about the black calamity, this evil entity.

Lin Xiu'er froze instantly.

She had also heard of the black calamity before.

However, the conditions for its formation are very harsh, making it truly rare; even if it does appear, it usually won't show up in urban areas, but only in villages with abundant lakes, reservoirs, and similar places.

Because cities generally have very few dead water pools with such heavy yin energy.

Lin Xiu'er fell silent, her heart giving a jolt, for the more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed to be the black calamity.

She said to Tushan Jiu, "Xiao Jiu, let's not talk about it now; I'll go find Old Xu and his team to study how to deal with this black calamity, and we'll chat again when we have time."

Tushan Jiu replied with an affirmative: "Okay, stay safe, bye-bye."

After hanging up, Tushan Jiu gazed out the window.

Today, clouds covered the moon.

The city center was brightly lit.

Yet it was still shrouded by night.

That thing cannot stray too far from that dead water.

It is estimated that after it finishes digesting the man it swallowed today, it will emerge again to cause trouble.

I just don't know who the next unlucky victim will be.

After all, it has no consciousness; it merely seizes victims at random.

Xie Shiyu, who was driving, listened to the whole process; he held the steering wheel with one hand and, with the other, grasped her hand, saying, "Don't think about it; as you said, everything has its fate—when that thing is destined to appear, it will naturally appear."

Tushan Jiu responded with an affirmative, thinking that after she finished her meal and returned to the old family home, she would do a bit of divination later.

The future harm posed by that thing is simply too great; it cannot be left alone.

Otherwise, it would claim another life.

But Tushan Jiu, after thinking it over and over, never expected that the next unlucky victim would actually be herself.