"How was I supposed to know that bastard was lying?"
Zhou Yue's face was as pale as a sheet, looking as though his soul had left his body. Originally, he had thought that if everyone worked together, they would achieve something. But because of his eagerness for quick success and his petty scheming, he had indirectly caused Chen Lan's death.
Liang Fei wore a grim expression. The thick stench of blood lingering around his nostrils made him too afraid to take another look at Chen Lan's corpse. He patted Lu Ming on the shoulder and said, "Lu Ming, calm down."
Lu Ming froze, then glared fiercely at Zhou Yue. Zhou Yue's petty scheming ran too deep; he needed to give the man a warning. Otherwise, during the upcoming Mission, there was no telling what kind of dirty tricks this bastard might pull.
"You found Huangmao?" Lu Ming looked at Liang Fei with a complex gaze.
As for Qin Kai, he had been frightened into fainting. Han Cheng, submerged in grief and despair, was in a dazed state. She nervously edged closer to Liang Fei, her lips trembling and tears streaming down her face continuously.
"What are we going to do next? What are we going to do tomorrow?" Her complexion was terrible. Heaven only knew if she would be able to make it back alive.
Liang Fei was silent for a long moment before answering, "I found him, but... he isn't the killer."
Even though they had been somewhat prepared, the three of them still wanted to know why. Although Liang Fei had not completely recovered from the terror himself, he kept his patience and said, "Let's tidy things up first and carry Qin Kai to the bed."
Once everyone's emotions had settled slightly, Liang Fei forced down his inner discomfort, stared at them, and delivered words they found impossible to accept, one by one: "I found Huangmao and a few of his companions at the tail end of the village. When I asked them what they were doing on the night of the crime, Huangmao started stuttering and stammering."
"Guilty conscience?" Zhou Yue couldn't help asking.
Lu Ming glared at him. "What's your rush? Let the bro finish talking."
"They're just local middle schoolers. That day... they were in the village just to fight."
A fight? The scene of middle schoolers arranging a brawl instantly echoed in everyone's minds...
Seeming to realize that this excuse sounded somewhat far-fetched, Liang Fei continued, "I didn't believe that explanation either, which is why I spent some time checking it out. As it turns out... they all have alibis."
"In other words, they simply didn't have the time to commit the crime."
When Liang Fei said this, Zhou Yue and the others found it completely unacceptable. Huang Xu had clearly stated that he saw Huangmao and the others commit the crime, so how could the result be so vastly different? Where on earth had things gone wrong?
"How could this happen? Could we really have been lied to by that little bastard?" Zhou Yue couldn't help cursing angrily.
Fear still filled the depths of Han Cheng's eyes as she asked tremblingly, "The victims were his own parents. Why would he lie?"
Liang Fei shook his head. "I don't know why he would lie, or maybe he wasn't lying."
"What do you mean?" Lu Ming looked at him strangely.
"No matter the situation, we still need to keep questioning him for clues, but..." Liang Fei paused. "No matter what he says, we have to verify it first before jumping to conclusions."
After experiencing such a terrifying ordeal, everyone was panicked to the core. Only Liang Fei remained relatively composed. Since he said it this way, everyone had no choice but to do the same.
Before long, rain began to drift outside the window. As soon as Qin Kai regained consciousness, Liang Fei and the others went together to Huang Xu's room.
After a day of rest, Huang Xu's complexion was slightly better. Upon seeing Liang Fei and the others, he was visibly agitated. "Did you find the killer?"
He still believed that Huangmao was the murderer. But just moments ago, with such a huge commotion happening in the next room, could he really have known nothing at all?
Liang Fei and the others exchanged glances. Zhou Yue clenched his fist, wishing he could deal a heavy blow right to Huang Xu's head.
Liang Fei took a deep breath, sat down beside Huang Xu, and asked, "Xiaoxu, apart from seeing Huangmao and his partners that night, did you see anyone else?"
Huang Xu started, looking somewhat agitated, prompting Liang Fei to immediately say, "Don't rush. I just want to understand the situation better so we can track down Huangmao and the others."
Hearing this, Huang Xu's expression softened. He frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "That night, lying in bed, I not only saw that yellow-haired person, but I also saw car headlights outside the window."
Car headlights? How did car headlights suddenly enter the picture? Could someone have driven a car to the village on the night of the crime?
"Anything else?" Liang Fei asked again.
Huang Xu was silent for a long moment, then shook his head.
When they walked out of the room, Lu Ming no longer believed Huang Xu's words. "His story changes all the time. I suspect he was sent by the Mission just to confuse us."
"This kid must be a habitual liar. A dog can't change its habit of eating shit," Zhou Yue added bitterly.
On the contrary, Liang Fei shook his head. "Not necessarily. We shouldn't believe everything he says, but we shouldn't completely dismiss it either. There must be something amiss here that we haven't figured out yet. Right now, we need to provide three clues. The slightest misstep, and that ghost 'thing' will beat us to death... and eat us."
Hearing Liang Fei's words, everyone's expressions turned ugly once more. Qin Kai, in particular, began to retch the moment he heard mention of the ghost 'thing'.
"Liang Fei, what should we do now?" Han Cheng couldn't help shivering, her misty eyes turning toward Liang Fei.
Liang Fei didn't know how to comfort her. After thinking for a moment, he said, "You and Qin Kai should keep taking care of Huang Xu. You can chat with him appropriately. If he remembers anything else, let us know immediately."
"I..."
"I really don't want to see him..."
"None of us can be sure we'll survive this Mission." Liang Fei looked seriously at Han Cheng and Qin Kai. "Right now we have no other choice, but the rules of the Mission dictate that we must take care of him. Nothing can happen to him... You..."
"I understand," Han Cheng said feebly, and Qin Kai nodded dazedly.
Stepping out of Huang Xu's room, Liang Fei's mind raced, but it was too late now, and there was only so much they could do.
"Zhou Yue, tomorrow... see if you can find a motorcycle in the village."
Zhou Yue didn't ask any questions; he simply nodded.
Lu Ming waited for a moment. Seeing that Liang Fei remained silent, he asked with some puzzlement, "Then what about us?"
Liang Fei carefully walked into the master bedroom. Chen Lan's corpse had vanished. His entire body instantly stiffened, and his voice trembled as he said, "I suddenly thought of something we've been ignoring all along. The killer might be related to them."