Free Web NovelChapter 257: Chapter 218: Supernatural Explorer Blogger
It was 11:45 PM... Yang Xiao couldn’t figure it out—since it was an urgent request for service, why not come earlier? Why did it have to be the dead of night?
Moreover, this specific time felt quite odd; after all, it was only 15 minutes shy of midnight, which left one feeling distinctly uneasy.
The other tasks also shared a similar pattern, nearly all clustered after 11 PM—a bad omen indeed.
"This task is not like the others; it’s very dangerous. The veterans should go first, set an example for the new guys, and at the same time, scout ahead," Fu Changxue said with the air of a leader, no nonsense about him. He directly tore off a task, "I’ll go first."
Fu Changxue chose the task of fixing the toilet in Old Man Lü’s home in apartment 3001, at 11 PM.
Fu Changxue’s action instantly garnered him a wave of popularity. Newcomers like Xu Xinyi and Cheng Ya couldn’t help but look at him with admiration, but Li Qingxuan just seemed stunned, nearly unresponsive.
However, to an old hand like Yang Xiao, Fu Changxue’s act was futile. Fu Changxue was cunning; he knew that someone had already died today and since it was the first day, the safety coefficient of the task would be relatively high.
"Brothers, let me be blunt—here, everyone is equal. I’m going today, but next time I won’t. Let’s establish a rule; we all take turns," Fu Changxue spoke up. "Meaning that today if two people take on tasks, another two will be on patrol. Tomorrow, our four won’t participate, and we’ll choose from the remaining five. Everyone follows the order; no objections, right?"
"None." It sounded fair at first listen. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
Then Yang Xiao also made his move, choosing the task for room 6037, Ms. Wu’s house call, because she was immobile and needed a doctor.
Not for any other reason but because Li Qingxuan’s room was on the 6th floor, and he was thinking about whether he could find an opportunity to test the waters; after all, the kid was always peeping at him.
If he found an issue, he would use him as a shield in the future.
Just now, the guy was peeping again, sending Yang Xiao into a panic, wondering if the fellow might have other intentions toward him.
It couldn’t be, could it?
"Alright, Chu Xi and I will scout the way for everyone tonight, and we still need night security. Who’s in?" Fu Changxue said, acting like a leader.
"I am," Tong Han was the first to step forward.
"And me." Wang Longhui also stepped up.
"Good, that’s settled then. With the four of us tonight, everyone else should rest up in your rooms, remember that. Don’t go wandering aimlessly at night, and if someone knocks, make sure to verify who it is before opening the door—even if it’s our voices, don’t open the door readily."
After hearing what Fu Changxue said, the delicate Xu Xinyi couldn’t help but ask quietly, "Fu... Big Brother Fu, why shouldn’t we open the door even for you guys?"
"Because there might be a ghost outside." Yang Xiao suddenly appeared beside Xu Xinyi and whispered eerily into her ear.
Xu Xinyi was thoroughly frightened.
Now that everyone had their tasks, they left the security room. There was still time, as the wall clock showed it was only 7 PM sharp.
"What should we do with this shoe?" Mo Daidai was holding the high-heeled shoe left behind by a woman, black, with the sole worn down considerably.
In the end, everyone decided to leave the shoe outside the security room, and Yang Xiao wrote a lost and found notice, which was then posted on the wall where tasks were assigned.
After all this, riding on the safety of numbers, the group crowded into the elevator—the very one the woman with the child had taken.
Because the apartment was large and the number of rooms numerous, there were a total of four elevators inside the building; two of them tucked away in a corner near the security room on the first floor, and the other two on the opposite side down the hallway.
Yang Xiao’s room was 4004, and since his floor was lower, he was one of the first to exit the elevator, sparing him the misfortune of riding alone.
After stepping out, he looked left and right. The corridor was quite clean and filled with signs of domestic life—some doors even had bags of trash outside. He sniffed, catching whiffs of delicious food.
"Tomatoes with scrambled eggs, hmm... and seems like there’s fried shredded potato with a hint of vinegar. Who’s making dumplings?" Yang Xiao sniffed again, picking out the scent.
No matter what, the familiar scent of life always provides a long-missed sense of security, Yang Xiao thought back to his childhood.
Oh, but thinking is pointless, he’s an orphan.
Along the corridor ceiling, a row of lights cast their illumination down, and he quickly found his own room on one side of the hallway. Outside his room door, there was an old-fashioned red pottery flowerpot.
The flowerpot contained a plant that had long since dried up to the point where even its species was indistinguishable.
Yang Xiao looked around and, seeing no one, crouched down, moved the flowerpot, and, sure enough, found a copper key beneath it.
This was mentioned in the letter inside the script box, and it seemed correct—this would be his residence for the time being.
Having secured the key, Yang Xiao deftly unlocked the door and stepped back sharply as he pushed it open.
Thankfully, there was no damn booby trap. Directly ahead was a living room, modest in size but exuding a rare sense of coziness beneath its vintage decor.
Old-style fabric sofas, wooden tables and chairs, and a glass coffee table covered in cloth, on which sat an old-fashioned red telephone with a white dust cover on top.
Moving further inside, behind the deep blue curtains was a small, square window that provided a view of the night outside.
To Yang Xiao’s surprise, in a corner of the living room against the wall, there was even a red-cased television set.
Based on Yang Xiao’s understanding of the era, not many families had the luxury of owning a TV—it was an item that couldn’t be bought with money alone, but required connections and special vouchers.
As an experienced supernatural scriptwriter, Yang Xiao was particularly sensitive to TV sets, especially red ones. His first reaction was to remove the cloth from the coffee table and cover the television screen, then he proceeded to inspect the whole room, especially the restroom.
The restroom was pathetically small, with a black cement floor that looked filthy, and a rough, sharply edged simple mirror hung over the sink.
Yang Xiao first tried to see if he could remove the mirror, but it was no use; it was glued to the wall. With no other option, he went to the bedroom, stripped the bedsheet, and tightly covered the mirror.
Next, he checked the faucets, restroom drains, wardrobe, under the bed, whether there was a space between the ceiling, and if the electrical switches were functioning...
Having completed all this, he leaned back on the sofa, letting out a long sigh of relief, feeling much safer now.
Sleeping was out of the question. He sat patiently, the neighboring rooms all quiet, likely unoccupied, with no rubbish seen outside the doors.
"Tick-tock."
"Tick-tock."
A copper pendulum clock hung on the living room wall, clearly even older than most of the decorative items in the room, possibly having hung there for several decades.
Normally, Yang Xiao would make sure to silence any ticking clocks, especially such an historical old pendulum clock, but this time was different—he needed to keep track of time.
In the waiting time, Yang Xiao closed his eyes, scenes from before flashing through his mind, including clues from the script box and his teammates’ actions. But in the end, it was Li Qingxuan’s face that lingered in his thoughts.
Just who was this Li Qingxuan, and why was he fixating on him? There was definitely something wrong with this person. Even if he wasn’t an Evil Cultivator, he was no newbie.
Yang Xiao wasn’t afraid of those who pretended to be weak, but he did fear encountering those strange and unusual characters. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
If there was a chance tonight, he was determined to test Li Qingxuan—if a soft approach didn’t work, he’d have to play hard. Li Qingxuan gave Yang Xiao a very strange feeling, not like an enemy, but calling him a friend felt wrong too, as Yang Xiao didn’t know him.
Before arriving, he had checked the Qingfeng Patrol Bureau’s personnel list, memorizing every face. Li Qingxuan wasn’t on it, and there were no Qingfeng Patrol Bureau members among those who had arrived.
This mission was tricky; at least one Evil Cultivator was hidden among them, yet he couldn’t just go on a killing spree. The most troublesome part was coming across such a strange person.
"Supernatural Explorer Blogger..."
