Chapter 44

Yang Jian looked at the body that had disappeared, his expression gradually becoming serious.

This time, these people had really gone too far.

The ghost that had been lurking in the mall might have truly appeared.

But... where could that ghost be now?

The surroundings were dim, not completely dark, but only the outlines of people could be seen, not their faces.

At this moment, Boss Tang, Manager Li, and the group of people led by Master Luo were not concerned about why the lights had gone out. After seeing the body disappear, they all began to feel panic, instinctively sensing that something was wrong.

Is it haunted?

The two candles on the altar from the earlier ritual were still burning, the orange flames flickering in the dim light.

However, the mall was so large that the two candles were not enough to fully illuminate the area, only barely lighting up the surroundings. With people blocking the light and shadows moving around, it added to the eerie atmosphere.

"Quick, quick, leave here. The ritual earlier didn't succeed, and that evil thing has been provoked. If we don't leave, something terrible will happen for sure," Master Luo shouted.

Encountering such a bizarre event, it was most likely that they had really encountered a ghost. He didn't dare to stay here any longer.

As soon as he said this, a female employee screamed in fear and began to flee.

Suddenly, they all scattered like headless flies.

But then they discovered a serious problem.

The entire mall was locked, including the main entrance and the emergency exits.

This was something Master Luo had instructed during the ritual.

"Keys, where are the keys? Security, open the door quickly," Boss Tang tried to open the main door, but seeing it was locked, he urgently called out.

"Earlier, I said that locking the doors during the ritual was unnecessary. If the ghost was to be trapped inside, we would be trapped too. Now we're in trouble, right?" Yang Jian shone a flashlight at them.

"Boy, where are the keys to the main door? Quick, open the door," Boss Tang said, somewhat panicked.

Yang Jian shook his head and said, "I don't have the keys. I'm new here, it's only my second day. The keys are managed by Sister Li. I can only lock the doors, not open them. And isn't Master Luo here to perform the ritual and catch the ghost? Why don't you show us your skills and catch the ghost, so we can be safe?"

As he spoke, he looked at Master Luo, who was drenched in cold sweat.

"You boy, you dare to say that. It's all because you disrupted the ritual that I couldn't complete it. Otherwise, this wouldn't have happened. Now that thing is provoked, and it's not easy to deal with," Master Luo angrily pointed at Yang Jian.

"You're an adult, yet you're irresponsibly blaming me. Don't you have any sense of your own abilities? Look at how scared you are, and you still dare to say that? With your cowardice, if the ghost really comes, you'll definitely die," Yang Jian said with a hint of mockery.

Master Luo scolded, "Don't talk nonsense. Although I can't deal with this thing, as long as I'm here, it won't be able to harm anyone."

"Boss Tang, don't worry. I guarantee your safety, nothing will happen to you."

Boss Tang believed him and said, "Everything is up to Master Luo."

"No problem," Master Luo confidently said, displaying his charlatan skills.

Yang Jian shook his head. To be able to deceive Boss Tang like this, Master Luo indeed had some skills.

Suddenly, he seemed to hear something rolling over. He moved the flashlight and shone it on the ground.

In the light, a head with a deathly gray face rolled toward them.

The head had neatly combed hair, belonging to a female employee, seemingly the cashier who had screamed when the body disappeared... Wei Xiaohong.

"My God."

Master Luo was so scared that his legs gave out, and he fell backward, leaning against the wall and sitting on the ground.

He wet his pants.

He was scared to death.

Boss Tang and Manager Li also opened their eyes wide, their faces full of fear.

Earlier, only the body had disappeared, and they weren't that scared. But seeing an employee who was alive just moments ago now reduced to a rolling head...

Everyone realized that this was not just a simple case of encountering a ghost.

"That ghost... has started killing people?"

Yang Jian frowned deeply. He didn't use his Ghost Eye power, as he wouldn't resort to the power of a vengeful ghost unless absolutely necessary, especially when there was no benefit to be gained.

However, out of curiosity, he walked over and shone the flashlight on Wei Xiaohong's head.

"There's no blood at the neck."

He squatted down and examined the head, gently pinching it. A piece of flesh tore off, and a nauseating smell of decay filled the air.

"And it doesn't seem to have just died... it looks like it's been dead for several days. But why is the head still so well-preserved after several days?"

"This is impossible. She was alive just moments ago, how could she have started decaying in the blink of an eye? The ghost hasn't used its domain, so it shouldn't be able to make the body decay so quickly."

Yang Jian fell into deep thought.

What kind of ghost is lurking in the mall?

Without enough information, he hadn't even seen the ghost.

He couldn't figure out the ghost's abilities or its patterns of action.

And without a proper agreement, he didn't want to waste his own abilities.

He stood up and turned around, saying, "Indeed, something terrible has happened. There is a ghost in the mall. I suggest you leave and escape now."

"The doors are all locked. How can we leave? What about Sister Li? She has the keys. Can you help us find her and get her to open the doors?" Manager Li asked.

Yang Jian looked at him and said, "This mall is so large, who knows where Sister Li has run off to in fear. I'm not going to look for her. If you want to go, you go. But out of kindness, I can give you a tip. The first floor is locked, but the emergency exit on the fifth floor is not. You can go to the fifth floor platform and find a way down from there."

"Right, right, right. How could I not think of that? Thank you, young man, thank you." Manager Li was overjoyed and immediately ran off.

"Are you going to leave too?" Yang Jian asked Master Luo and Boss Tang.

Reminded of this, the others quickly reacted.

Several employees immediately followed Manager Li, fleeing up the stairs.

"Thank you for the tip, I'm very grateful."

Boss Tang grabbed his hand, excitedly saying.

"Don't be so close. I just gave you a tip. Whether you can safely leave is another question. Act quickly, don't waste time," Yang Jian said calmly. He wanted to see if the ghost would be lured out when these people fled.

Of course... he really needed to use the bathroom.

Boss Tang said, "Aren't you going with us?"

"No, I want to use the bathroom first. You go ahead," Yang Jian said.

Boss Tang was taken aback. At a time like this, he was still thinking about using the bathroom?

On the fifth floor of the mall.

When Yan Li reached the fifth floor, he clearly saw the figure by the railing.

He was stunned. What he saw was not a person but a plastic mannequin, identical in shape to a human, standing in the dim light, making it impossible to distinguish from a real person.

But this mannequin, like the decaying body he had found earlier, had no head.

"The ghost isn't on the fifth floor..."

Yan Li suddenly realized something and looked down.

At that moment, a thud was heard, and the entire mall went dark. In the dim light, only two candles were still burning, but then a woman's scream came from downstairs, followed by panic and people scattering.

"Diversionary tactic?"

For some reason, this idiom popped into Yan Li's mind.

But, could a ghost be that smart?

"Damn."

He bit his lip and decided to head to the first floor immediately.

However, at that moment, a glance from the corner of his eye made him break out in a cold sweat.

The headless plastic mannequin that had been standing by the railing was gone.

He looked around but couldn't find the mannequin anywhere.

It seemed to have vanished into thin air.

"Tap, tap." Then a faint sound of footsteps came from behind.

"Something's wrong." Yan Li turned around sharply.

A headless plastic mannequin was standing behind him, its arms raised as if trying to reach out to him.

"Looking for death."

Yan Li roared and immediately grabbed the mannequin's outstretched arms.

His palms turned crimson, emitting a strong smell of blood. Streams of blood oozed from his fingers, dripping to the ground.

The mannequin's arms, now drenched in the thick blood, fell to the ground with a thud, its limbs and body disintegrating.

The surroundings immediately returned to silence.

"Is this the ghost?"

Yan Li, with a serious expression, examined the scattered pieces of the mannequin on the ground.

There was nothing unusual.

The blood from his hands had no effect on the mannequin.

It was just an ordinary mannequin.

"The thing here is not easy to deal with." Yan Li frowned deeply.

The blood on the ground slowly began to move, as if alive, creeping up his hand and gradually disappearing into it.