INHA Chapter 78

Tian Ze was the first to prepare to walk inside, but the old officer inside quickly shouted a warning, “Don’t come in! There’s a ghost near the glass door.”

Tian Ze immediately stopped and carefully examined the glass door where the old officer had pointed. He soon noticed the water stains on it, which increasingly resembled the shape of a hand.

The old officer urgently reminded him again not to imagine anything related to the ghost, or else he would see it.

Tian Ze gave the old officer a surprised glance, suppressing his curiosity and astonishment. He nodded to show that he understood.

This was the first time he had seen ordinary people figure out so much information after encountering a supernatural event.

Before arriving, he had already analyzed the situation based on the information from the police report, initially concluding that it was likely a water ghost looking for a substitute to die in its place. But now, he wasn’t so sure.

He turned to glance at Xu Dongyou. “Li Dong, take a look.”

Xu Dongyou nodded and heightened his senses. Instantly, he saw that there was indeed a shadowy figure at the glass door.

However, this figure appeared in a very gray, hazy form, without any distinct features, exactly like the evil ghosts he had seen before.

With that, Xu Dongyou could confirm that this wasn’t a case of a water ghost seeking a substitute but rather an evil ghost incident.

This was the first time he had seen an evil ghost associated with water. Narrowing his eyes, Xu Dongyou scrutinized it more closely, being careful not to let his thoughts conjure up any images of evil ghosts.

Sure enough, he could see faint water stains on the evil ghost, which explained why it had been mistaken for a water ghost.

In addition to this, there were traces of what looked like dripping water on the ground—remnants left behind by the ghost. These could potentially lead them to the source of the evil energy.

Xu Dongyou immediately relayed his findings to Tian Ze. Without hesitation, Tian Ze instructed the old officer and the others to stay where they were and not move. He then turned to Xu Dongyou and said, “I’ll go with you to find the source of the evil energy.”

Xu Dongyou hesitated for a moment and replied, “Captain, maybe you should stay here. I can handle this on my own.”

After all, leaving these people behind did pose a certain level of danger.

At present, they still don’t fully understand the rules governing this evil ghost’s killing pattern. Leaving one of the handlers behind might be a better idea.

Tian Ze thought for a moment and agreed, then handed the keys to Xu Dongyou. “Be careful.”

Xu Dongyou nodded, got into the old van, and quickly drove away. Meanwhile, Tian Ze walked in again, nonchalant despite the old officer’s repeated warnings, which seemed to have no effect on him.

Everyone held their breath until they saw Tian Ze enter safely without provoking any reaction from the evil ghost. Before the old officer could speak, Tian Ze casually found a place to sit down. Noticing the tense and fearful expressions on everyone’s faces, he offered some reassurance, “No need to be so tense. Come on, tell me the details.”

The others were still too afraid to move, but the old officer took the lead, sitting down with a bitter smile. He felt like he had become the suspect confessing the details of the incident. He described what had happened.

When he finished, Tian Ze had already sized up the old officer and commented, “You’re quite impressive, figuring out so much useful information so quickly.”

It was a pity that the old officer clearly didn’t have any spiritual abilities. Otherwise, he would’ve made a great asset.

After considering the information the old officer provided, Tian Ze addressed everyone, “As long as you don’t start imagining that it will come in and kill you, it won’t attack you. Don’t worry, once my team member finds the object tied to the evil ghost, you’ll be safe.”

Hearing this, the old officer became even more tense. “So it really is an evil ghost?”

His face grew pale, but after thinking it through, he realized that as long as they controlled their imaginations, they would be safe. In a way, it seemed less dangerous than a true evil ghost.

He had faith that everyone in the department, including the most timid officer, could control their thoughts. However, he was worried about the two who clearly had weaker mental fortitude—Xiao Shan and Sun Tian. The old officer asked them, “Did you understand? As long as you don’t imagine anything, you’ll be safe.”

Xiao Shan and Sun Tian trembled but refrained from shouting, perhaps because of the presence of so many officers and the intimidating appearance of Tian Ze. They quickly nodded to show they understood.

However, as time passed, Sun Tian couldn’t help but glance at the ghost. The more she looked, the more it resembled Zhao Mingming, and then it seemed to morph into Ah Tao.

Those two were clearly already killed by this water ghost.

And next, it would definitely be her turn—

Sun Tian dug her nails into her skin, desperately trying to keep herself from imagining the worst, even though she had heard the others say that as long as she didn’t let her mind run wild, she would be fine. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t control her thoughts. Instead, she started wondering if Ah Tao might be drowned alive by the ghost in the sea.

And if she would meet the same fate…

The ghost that had been lying against the glass door seemed to move, its hand slowly sliding down from the glass to the door handle, as if preparing to open the door.

All the police officers immediately tensed up, a wave of nervous energy running through them. They quickly forced themselves to calm down, turning their gazes toward Sun Tian and Xiao Shan.

Xiao Shan hurriedly said, “I wasn’t thinking anything bad! I was just singing in my head the whole time!”

So, the reason the evil ghost was acting this way was most likely connected to Sun Tian. The officer beside her quickly grabbed her and shook her hard, “Stop thinking about it!”

Sun Tian snapped back to reality and screamed, the others rushing to help keep her under control, trying to stop her from thinking any further.

But the ghost continued to slowly inch its way inside, and water began to seep in at the doorway, rising quickly to ankle height.

If this continued, the water would soon rise further, eventually drowning everyone in the room.

Tian Ze suddenly stood up, quickly walked over, and slapped a calming talisman onto Sun Tian. Instantly, her mind cleared. She trembled, her face pale, and stammered, “I didn’t know why I couldn’t stop thinking about it…”

Tian Ze’s expression grew serious as he nodded, “I know. This must be related to the ghost’s abilities. It’s gradually affecting your thoughts.”

This meant that the ghost was far more dangerous than he had initially imagined.

Once Sun Tian stopped her frantic thinking, the ghost ceased its movement as well, maintaining its position halfway into the doorway. The water began to recede, leaving only damp stains on the floor, proving to the officers that what had happened was not an illusion.

They were almost all drowned.

The old officer quickly walked over, looking worried, “What if the ghost tries to affect Sun Tian’s thoughts again?”

Tian Ze thought for a moment and then decisively said, “That’s easy. Does the station have a network signal? How about playing a catchy, brainwashing dance song?”

The police officers were taken aback. They could do that?

One of the junior officers immediately took out his phone, only to see his expression change slightly as he said, “There’s no signal. Even data usage is impossible.”

Other officers checked their phones, all of which had no signal, and some even had water stains appearing on their screens.

Sun Tian stammered, “My phone was the same before. It couldn’t be used and water would appear on the screen.”

Clearly, this was the ghost’s doing.

Not just the phones, but even the computers in the station were unusable. After trying to use them for several seconds, the screens would also show water stains.

“What do we do now?” The officers were starting to panic.

Tian Ze quickly raised his hand, remaining calm, “Don’t panic! There’s still a way.”

He rolled up his sleeves and used his spiritual energy watch to search for some catchy, brainwashing songs to play.

“On the vast horizon, my love is…”

The familiar song immediately started playing, and everyone couldn’t help but start singing along in their minds.

Tian Ze was the first to start dancing the square dance, loudly shouting, “What are you all standing around for? Get moving!”

The officers exchanged glances, feeling somewhat awkward about joining in, but realizing that if only Sun Tian danced while they did nothing, she would likely feel embarrassed, making it hard for her to fully participate, which could lead to everyone’s doom.

Realizing this, they all began to move, and Sun Tian was reluctantly pulled into the dance. Tian Ze led the way, singing along, and Sun Tian’s voice blended in, becoming less noticeable. This helped her gradually relax and join in more freely.

The spirit remained motionless, still halfway through the door.

The atmosphere in the police station grew livelier, and Sun Tian was no longer fearful, immersing herself completely in the square dance.

Meanwhile, Xu Dongyou drove forward, following the water stains on the ground. He soon arrived at a villa, where the water stains were more apparent and larger, indicating that he was getting closer to the source.

He got out of the car and started walking forward. He quickly reached the seaside. Despite the darkness swallowing the sea, making it hard to see clearly, the intense, nauseating feeling was very strong.

Xu Dongyou looked at the pitch-black sea, shivering involuntarily. It was summer, yet there was an unusually cold feeling here. Moreover, birds were not good at seeing objects in the dark.

To find the spirit’s item, he had to rely on his senses.

Although he was not as afraid of spirits and evil ghosts now, the dark sea still made him feel uneasy.

Xu Dongyou stood there, trying to bolster his courage, then took a deep breath and used his demon energy to manipulate the water, slowly entering the sea. The seawater seemed to avoid his body consciously, and his clothes remained dry.

The waves crashed rhythmically. Xu Dongyou turned on the flashlight function of his phone, searching the sea with his senses for the place that felt the most nauseating.

The night was deep. Xu Dongyou felt increasingly uneasy, but he gritted his teeth and continued searching. Soon, he felt an intense discomfort from the ghost, and his gaze fell upon a grayish object.

He found it!

Xu Dongyou quickened his pace, swimming forward and shining his flashlight on the object, momentarily stunned.

It turned out to be a wig, which at first glance looked somewhat like water plants.

Xu Dongyou shook himself back to reality, quickly rubbing away the goosebumps. He pulled out a sealing box from his backpack and placed the wig inside, sealing it tightly.

Meanwhile, the officers noticed that the ghost’s figure seemed to have faded significantly and eventually disappeared completely.

“It’s gone!”

“Really, I don’t see it anymore. Did it leave?”

The officers wiped the sweat that had formed from the square dancing and began asking Tian Ze.

Without hearing an answer from Tian Ze, they couldn’t fully relax, worried that the ghost might still be there, just hidden from their sight.

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