Chapter Twenty-Two: This Woman Is a Lunatic

Once everything was ready, he grabbed a simple dinner at a small restaurant, then hopped on a shared bike. Navigating as he went, asking for directions along the way, it took him nearly two hours before he finally reached his destination after ten o’clock at night.

“Why on earth would anyone build an apartment complex in such a remote place?”

A muddy dirt road twisted deep into the woods, with not a single streetlight in sight. Only by using a powerful flashlight could he make out a dark structure in the distance.

This place was situated on the far western edge of Donghai City’s suburbs. A few kilometers further lay the military restricted zone shrouded in white mist, and thus the navigation app no longer displayed his location.

He pedaled onwards, asking people for directions, but almost no one had heard of the Luen Apartments, and the address at 976 Jiangbei Road meant nothing to them.

Repeated setbacks made Shang Yi wonder whether the locals truly didn’t know the place, or if they were deliberately hiding something.

With no other options, he resorted to his Grimace skill, making himself appear as pitiable and sincere as possible.

At last, his efforts persuaded an elderly woman in her seventies. She pointed him in the right direction, urging him to be careful, warning him that people often disappeared near those apartments and that few locals ever ventured there.

Reflecting on it, Shang Yi conceded that if not for the task forcing his hand, he would never have come to this dark, deserted, and infamous place at such an hour.

The winding dirt path led him deeper into the woods, until he finally stood before the apartment’s main gate.

Spotting the sign for “976 Jiangbei Road,” he knew he was at the right place.

The entire complex was encircled by high, grey-black walls. He didn’t go in immediately, but made a circuit around the outside to survey the terrain, confirming three things:

First, there was only one entrance or exit—the main gate he now faced.

Second, he could easily scale the outer wall using his military-grade climbing hook.

Third, if he needed to escape from inside, the area around the complex was thick with shrubbery; without a machete or some tool, it would be difficult to traverse, and hiding would be nearly impossible.

He pushed the gate and found it locked from the inside.

He took out his demon-slaying blade and multi-tool, putting them in his left and right jacket pockets respectively.

He connected his phone to a pinhole camera and began recording.

Once everything was set, he knocked hard on the gate, calling out, “Is anyone there?”

After a moment, he heard footsteps from within, followed by the sound of a metal rod sliding.

With a creak, the door opened a crack, a heavy chain still hanging across the gap.

In the darkness, a terrifying black mask appeared behind the opening.

“Who are you looking for?” came a middle-aged man’s voice from behind the mask.

“Sorry to disturb you so late. I’m a hiker, traveling nearby today, but it got a bit late.”

“I couldn’t find any place to stay around here, and there are no taxis now. Would you mind letting me spend the night? I can pay for the room.”

The masked man sized him up—he looked simple and honest, with a friendly smile and plain clothes, carrying nothing suspicious, indeed resembling the wandering traveler he claimed to be.

“We’re not open for guests right now, but you do look rather pitiful. I’ll make an exception for you.”

“Room’s eight hundred a night. If that’s fine, I’ll let you in.”

Shang Yi cursed inwardly: “Damn, what an ‘exception’—this is daylight robbery.”

“Eight hundred for a dump like this? You think you’re a five-star hotel?”

He considered using his Grimace again to appear even more pitiable and bargain the price down, but to his shock, the skill wouldn’t activate.

A chill went through him—what was happening? How could his skill fail?

He had several abilities; aside from Grimace, there was Left Eye.

He closed his right eye and used his Left Eye to scan the man, only to discover that the usual faint red glow at the edge of his vision, marking the skill’s activation, was gone.

Concerned, he quickly checked his portable storage space, which still functioned normally. That was at least some relief.

“Sorry, I didn’t bring a big bank card, I can only pay two hundred now.”

“I still need cash for a ride tomorrow, could you let me off for one-fifty? Please, be kind.”

Unable to use his skill, he tried to look as pitiful as possible, putting his hands together and bowing repeatedly.

“One-fifty? Do you think this is a vegetable market? Haggling here?” The masked man’s tone turned harsh. “Eight hundred, not a cent less. If you don’t have it, get lost!”

As the man moved to close the door, Shang Yi quickly blocked it with his hand. “Fine, eight hundred it is. I’ll pay two hundred now, have my family transfer the remaining six hundred in the morning, and pay you before I leave. Is that alright?”

“That’ll work, but I keep your ID until you pay in full.”

“No problem.”

With a clatter, the masked man removed the chain, pushed open the door, and let Shang Yi in before locking the gate securely behind them.

Shang Yi glanced back to see a shiny new padlock hanging on the rusted iron gate.

Inside the walls stood three buildings—one-story structures on either side that looked like warehouses, and a four-story main building that resembled a wealthy person’s villa more than a typical apartment complex.

The main building’s exterior was peeling, suggesting at least twenty or thirty years of age. Despite the aging façade, the yard was fairly clean—no trash, and only sparse weeds.

Shang Yi scrutinized the masked man: buzz cut, sturdy build, dressed in a black suit, the terrifying mask fitted tightly to his face.

On high alert, Shang Yi followed him into the main building’s first-floor living room.

Scanning the layout, it became even clearer this wasn’t a regular apartment for rent, but rather a private mansion.

The decor was outdated, but had once been lavish.

At that moment, a middle-aged woman in a bright red dress emerged from the bedroom, her expression haggard. She was thin, with long hair draped over her shoulders, pale face, and eyes filled with a deep sorrow.

“I told you not to come out. You never listen. If you keep wandering around, I’ll have Mr. Fang lock you up!” the masked man snapped at her.

The woman walked up to Shang Yi, staring at him with her dark eyes for several seconds, then spoke in a low, magnetic voice: “Hanged Man, didn’t you say you wouldn’t take any more guests this month?”

The man called Hanged Man stormed over and interposed his hand between her and Shang Yi. “Are you going or not?”

Without a word, the woman glanced at Hanged Man, then swiftly turned and left. She moved with uncanny speed—her legs seemed hardly to move, yet in seconds she had vanished back into her room.

“Don’t mind her, she’s mad,” the masked man said impatiently. “Give me your ID and the money, then I’ll show you to your room.”

“Mad?” Shang Yi wondered as he handed over his ID, recalling the woman’s behavior.

“The task is to uncover the secret of this place, but there’s no hint as to what kind of secret—no clues at all. I’ll just have to observe and remember everything everyone says, and analyze it slowly.”

“In Hanged Man’s words, he mentioned someone called Mr. Fang.”

“From the tone, Mr. Fang has the authority to lock the woman up. That means he must hold a high position here. So, at minimum, there are three people living in this apartment.”

As he analyzed the situation in his mind, he continued observing Hanged Man.

Hanged Man looked at his ID. “You live in Dreamland Park. What do you do for work?”

Shang Yi thought quickly. “I’m a sophomore in game design at Donghai University.”

“A student, traveling way out here?” Hanged Man’s voice was skeptical as he took out his phone and tapped at it.

“It’s not really tourism. I like exploring unfamiliar places around the city, taking photos and so on. I’d never been out this way, so I decided to have a look,” Shang Yi explained calmly, seeing the man’s doubt.

“Alright. I’ll keep your ID. Pay me the money, and I’ll show you your room.” Hanged Man held out his phone, displaying a payment code.

Shang Yi transferred two hundred as agreed, then followed Hanged Man up to the second floor.

Compared to the first floor, the second was dark, damp, and narrow, with numerous scratches on the walls—as if someone had deliberately slashed them with a knife.

They walked down a corridor and stopped at a room. Hanged Man handed him a key. “This is your room. The toilet and bath are on this floor. I’m on the fourth floor. Prepare the six hundred—you’ll pay me in the morning.”

Shang Yi opened the door and was met with a faint musty smell. He switched on the light. The room was spacious, with red carpeting. The furniture and bed were thick with dust—clearly it hadn’t been used in a long time.

He closed the door, took out his multi-tool, and searched the room, tapping and inspecting every corner. Occasionally, he used the magnifier attachment to examine things closely, but found nothing out of the ordinary.

It was just a large, outdated bedroom—nothing suspicious aside from its age.

He was considering his next move when suddenly, there was a knock at the door.