Chapter 1678: Take Some Heart

"I'll give you a warning: stop plotting against the people here. They aren't as easy to bully as they used to be. If you cause trouble here and get taken away by their security bureau, no one will be able to save you."

"Besides, that Mr. Chen really doesn't want to see you here. You had best take this to heart; otherwise, you might implicate all of us."

"Understood, I understand. Don't worry, I absolutely won't appear here again." The fat woman nodded incessantly.

Watching the money arrive in her account, Xin'er felt very happy.

She had encountered no small number of problems while running her shop here; once, more than half the store's goods were destroyed, and she didn't even receive a single cent in compensation.

To be able to get all the money back this time, with even a surplus left over—the feeling of having someone protecting you is truly good.

"Thank you, Brother Chen. If it weren't for you, I'm afraid I would have been bullied for no reason again today," Xin'er said happily.

"Can such a small matter make you this happy?" Chen Yu smiled slightly and said, "It seems your standards are truly not high."

"I... I don't dare to have high standards. As long as someone cares about me and protects me, that is enough," Xin'er said, lowering her head shyly.

"Alright, it's not busy now, so tell me about your situation." Chen Yu nodded, his expression becoming serious.

"My situation?" Xin'er was slightly stunned; for a moment, she was at a loss.

Just then, a blonde, blue-eyed woman walked over; she was Honghou, who had been missing for many days.

"I have been observing you for a long time," Honghou said, looking at Xin'er. "You may not be aware of what is happening to you, but there are indeed some problems."

Xin'er remained in Silence. A moment later, as if she had made up her mind, she said, "Come in."

Chen Yu and Honghou walked in. Xin'er turned to close the shop door, then led the two up to the small attic on the second floor.

Once on the second floor, she slowly unfastened her clothes, then turned around, took off all the clothing on her body, and stood with her back to Chen Yu and Honghou.

They saw that on her entire smooth back, there was a huge Talisman. This Talisman covered almost her entire back.

Moreover, there was a faint black Qi surging on the Talisman, like slowly flowing liquid; it looked extremely terrifying.

"Is this the Dark Mark?" Honghou was startled.

"What is the Dark Mark?" Chen Yu also recovered from his shock, looking at Honghou with some confusion.

"A mark belonging to the Fusang God. Of course, what they call a god is actually a Demon," Honghou said. "And her possessing this mark means she is someone chosen by the god. If the god she serves has any demands, she must go and execute them."

"Understood," Chen Yu nodded slightly. "So, the source of the heart-eaters is this thing on her body?"

"Yes. When necessary, this thing can control her mind, making her do things against her own will. No wonder I felt she was strange, yet felt she was a normal person. It turns out she is indeed a normal person, but under the influence of this Talisman, she loses her mind and does things against her own will."

"Alright, I understand," Chen Yu said, somewhat puzzled. "But there is one question: how much does she actually know about the problem existing on her body?"

"She is in a very clear state when she drives the heart-eating ghosts, but because of the effect of the Dark Mark, she has no way to control her own behavior," Honghou mused for a moment. "So she can only watch helplessly as she does inexplicable things, but she cannot control it."

"I discovered this mark over a month ago. I was terrified at the time," Xin'er's tears fell. "Later, I discovered that in the dead of night, my will was no longer under my own control, and I would go out every night to deal with some monsters."

"Good, I know your situation now. Put your clothes on," Chen Yu nodded.

Xin'er slowly put her clothes back on. "I once thought about dying, about jumping off a building, but no matter how high the building I jumped from, I would automatically recover. The thing inside my body does not allow me to die."

"I even thought about committing suicide by swallowing a gun, but it would forcibly spit the bullet out. I didn't dare tell anyone because I knew there were relevant organizations here. If I were the least bit careless, I would very likely be caught and sliced up for research."

"Now that you've told us, aren't you afraid we'll send you away?" Honghou said with a smile. "You surely understand the principle that human hearts are sinister, right? Do you trust us that much?"

"I... I trust you, I trust Brother Chen." Xin'er hesitated for a moment, then nodded heavily. "I believe Brother Chen will definitely help me solve the problem."

"Alright, stop scaring her," Chen Yu looked at Honghou speechlessly. "Look at how frightened she's been made."

"Alright, I won't scare you anymore," Honghou smiled slightly. "A young girl's courage is still not very big, heh heh."

"Brother Chen, who is this... sister?" Xin'er looked at Honghou with some hesitation; she clearly felt a cold, chilling sensation coming from Honghou.

"Calling her 'sister' makes her sound too young; she is already several hundred years old. Alright, stop dwelling on that. Now, tell me about your situation. Is it true that you lose control every night?" Chen Yu asked.

"Yes. Every night after midnight, my body no longer belongs to me. The Talisman on my back seems to have some kind of magic, dragging my body to walk outside."

The expression on Xin'er's face was somewhat painful. "And then it's as if I'm imprisoned inside my own body; my body is not under my own command."

"Does this happen every night?" Chen Yu asked.

"Not necessarily. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't," Xin'er thought for a moment and said. "But the vast majority of the time, I wake up from my sleep."

"Then have you tried not letting yourself fall asleep?" Honghou asked.

"I've tried, but it feels like it has no effect," Xin'er shook her head. "Every time it reaches a specific time, there is a voice in the dark summoning me. Every time this happens, I can no longer open my eyelids."

"The Dark Mark on your back is an existence you cannot refuse, so stop struggling. Sleep when it's time to sleep," Chen Yu said. "These powers are far from what you can contend with."

"I know," Xin'er nodded slightly. She sighed and said, "Actually, after such a long time, I've tried to accept these things. I really have no other way; even death is something I cannot achieve."