Chapter 56: Liu Sui’s Secret—The Watchman

I stood aside, watching in a daze, as Liu Sui took out a small knife and slit all the way down the child's arm.

With a ripping sound, reminiscent of a cloth being torn apart, the skin on the child's arm was sliced open completely.

As the skin parted, I shuddered with horror. Beneath the skin, there was not a single trace of flesh and blood—it was entirely stuffed with withered, dried grass.

Liu Sui did not stop. After finishing the child's arm, he cut open the skin on his face and chest. Once the skin was sliced away, the child's entire body was revealed to be thoroughly packed with grass.

When Liu Sui finally stopped, the corpse of the child before me looked precisely like a scarecrow wrapped in human skin. Liu Sui lowered his head and asked softly, "Did you see that clearly?"

I gave an involuntary shiver and replied, "I saw it clearly."

"This is called puppet sorcery. This grass was planted inside the child by someone practicing the craft. Once planted, the grass grows wildly, feeding on human flesh and blood as nourishment. Within less than a day, all the flesh and blood of a living person will be completely sucked dry. By then, not even immortals could save him."

A chill ran down my spine. This puppet sorcery was excessively wicked—three degrees more vicious than the corpse-control arts of the Ghost Maiden. Hearing this, I thought of Jin Yuan and quickly asked, "Could Jin Yuan also be afflicted with puppet sorcery?"

Liu Sui replied, "I suspect the practitioner chose a child because children are easier targets, but we cannot rule out the possibility that adults are also vulnerable. If Jin Yuan has fallen into his hands, I am afraid he might already..."

Liu Sui left the rest unsaid, but I understood his meaning. After a brief silence, Liu Sui continued, "There is no other way now. I have a feeling that the practitioner will return here. We will wait for him right here."

I nodded in silent agreement.

Leaving the kindergarten's small assembly hall, we exchanged a few words with the female teacher who had tried to stop us earlier and walked out of the kindergarten.

Opposite the kindergarten, there was a small restaurant. Liu Sui and I hurried inside, ordered a hot pot, and began to eat while waiting for the puppet practitioner to appear.

Time slowly drifted by; we spent a full three hours at the table. Yet neither of us had any appetite, our minds completely fixed on the kindergarten entrance across the street. Gradually, the sky began to darken, and the students inside the kindergarten were nearing dismissal time.

Right at that moment, a familiar figure appeared at the kindergarten gate. The person wore long black clothes that reached down to his knees, resembling a black dress. On his feet, he wore tall cloth shoes, much like the boots worn by men of ancient times. He appeared abruptly, materializing out of nowhere at the entrance.

Coincidentally, two children were walking out of the kindergarten. The figure in the black dress intercepted them. Because of the distance, we could not hear what he was saying. We only saw him reach out and demand something from the children. The children fumbled in their pockets and handed the items over to the black-clad figure.

Perhaps because my mind was entirely preoccupied with Jin Yuan, seeing this scene unfold left me momentarily stunned.

Just then, Liu Sui let out a loud shout beside me, "That's him! Catch him!"

Before the words faded, Liu Sui had already dashed out of the restaurant. I scrambled to my feet and ran forward with all my might. As I ran, I recognized him clearly. The person in the black dress was indeed someone I knew—someone I had crossed paths with before.

At the time, hoping to befriend the old man who drowned himself, I happened to spot the black-dressed figure tailing the old man by the reservoir and gave chase. When the old man was getting the worst of it in a fight with the figure, I happened to play the doggy tune my father had taught me when I was a child.

In the end, the old man and I joined forces and drove the figure away.

The figure now standing at the kindergarten gate was none other than the one we had driven off back then.

This fellow had claimed he would come back for revenge. I never expected him to actually show up.

Liu Sui was extremely fast, and as we ran, I gradually fell behind. Yet, frantic with anxiety and terrified that the target might escape, I tapped into a hidden potential, sprinting faster than my previous hundred-meter dash records.

Liu Sui and I rushed across the street in one breath, rapidly closing the distance. However, the man in black was no ordinary person. When we were still a dozen meters away, he sensed us. He jerked his head around sharply, and the moment he spotted Liu Sui and me, he turned and bolted.

His speed was extraordinary, matching Liu Sui stride for stride. I screamed at the top of my lungs, "Catch him! He's the one killing people!"

It was the peak hour for people leaving work and school, and the street was crowded. Hearing my shouts, many pedestrians turned their heads. When they spotted the fleeing figure in black ahead, many caught on immediately.

Thus, the herd effect took hold instantly. Most of the pedestrians on this street were locals. In a small town like this, news spread like wildfire, and everyone was already aware of the children dying in the kindergarten.

In a flash, the crowd surged. Many people began echoing my cries: "Catch that man in black! Catch the murderer!"

The street instantly boiled over with commotion.

Vroom, vroom, vroom—

Several young men grabbed sticks, leaped onto their motorcycles, and accelerated in pursuit of the figure.

At this point, even if the man in black had grown eight legs, escape was utterly impossible. Yet he showed no intention of yielding, continuing his frantic sprint.

Just then, a motorcycle roared forward. The rider swung a heavy club, striking the man in black squarely on the head. Without even a groan, the man collapsed to the ground and lay motionless.

Seeing him fall, the crowd swarmed forward, surrounding him tightly. It took a tremendous effort for Liu Sui and me to finally push our way through.

Seeing that the suspect had been captured, I let out a sigh of relief. By now, the crowd was burning with intense rage.

"This murderer is utterly devoid of conscience! How could anyone lay a hand on four- or five-year-old kids?"

With a loud crack, an enraged bystander grabbed a beer bottle and smashed it ruthlessly against the head of the fallen man in black.

Seeing this, the others surged forward again, unleashing a flurry of kicks and punches upon him.

I quickly intervened to stop them, "Everyone, please calm down! This man committed murder, and the state will deal with him accordingly. If you beat him to death now, it will be hard to explain. Please disperse and let us handle this."

Someone pointed at me and roared, "Who the hell are you? Why should we believe you?"

Hearing this, I nearly started cursing back at him. At that moment, Liu Sui gently tapped my shoulder and said, "Tell them you are the Night Watcher. Quick."

I stared blankly at Liu Sui for a moment before turning to the crowd. "I am the Night Watcher."

As soon as those words left my mouth, an uproar swept through the crowd, which was immediately followed by a dead silence. Not a single person spoke another word. I felt even more baffled. The Night Watcher?

"Is he really the Night Watcher?" a dubious voice whispered from the crowd, though very softly. Then someone called out loudly, "Since he's the Night Watcher, I guess we can all rest easy and scatter."

With those words, that person turned and left first. The rest of the crowd glanced at me and drifted away one by one. As for me, I stood there completely bewildered.

Before long, everyone had cleared out. I couldn't help asking Liu Sui, "Who is the Night Watcher?"

Liu Sui turned his gaze toward the figure on the ground and replied, "An alias I use when traveling around these parts."

"You?" I asked, pointing a bewildered finger at him.

Ignoring me, Liu Sui crouched down to turn the fallen figure over. Soon, he rolled the person face-up.

And when I saw the face of the man in black, my mind went entirely blank once more.

For the figure Liu Sui had just turned over was none other than Jin Yuan.