Survival in an apartment, starting with a stroke of luck on a plane

The old woman shook her head: "I don't know, I really don't know. When he came to see me... he was wrapped up tightly from head to toe, his face was covered with a black cloth, his hat was pulled low... even his fingers were hidden in his gloves..."

Her voice sounded like she had sand stuck in her throat; it was completely unrecognizable...

Lin Yu wasn't surprised by this answer; after all, concealing one's identity when committing crimes is basic knowledge. He continued to press, "Why did he choose Liu Xiangxiang? Why did he choose Liu Yue'er?"

The old lady hesitated slightly this time, her eyes flickering. Under Lin Yu's icy gaze, she finally stammered, "He didn't say why."

Seeing Lin Yu's dissatisfied look, the old lady quickly continued, "But when I was young... I learned a little bit of the art of observing qi from an old sorceress who had fled famine."

Besides, after so many years of contact, I've become quite perceptive. That Liu Xiangxiang... she really is a bit different...

The old woman tried hard to recall, her cloudy eyes filled with a hint of bewilderment: "There always seemed to be some unseen yin energy surrounding her."

That wasn't ordinary yin energy; it was... a 'yin evil' that could attract ghosts. It was innate, rooted in her very bones. If an ordinary person got even a little bit of this... they would either fall seriously ill or die.

But she's alive and well, just incredibly unlucky... prone to misfortune... This kind of constitution... I've lived this long and I've only ever heard of it... never actually seen it.

That person must have come for this too! He...he wants Liu Xiangxiang...to die with overwhelming resentment...to become the fiercest and most vengeful ghost! That must be it!

It turned out to be the case.

Lin Yu's mind suddenly cleared when he realized that his previous bold and almost absurd guess had been largely confirmed. He had a constitution that naturally attracted Yin energy, and he died by self-immolation in extreme resentment.

That mysterious Taoist priest, or rather, the mastermind behind this scheme, is actually the same person.

When these pieces of information were put together, Lin Yu felt more and more uneasy. The mastermind had just turned Liu Xiangxiang into a demon, and just when the landlord was in the most despair, a Taoist priest claiming to be from Longhu Mountain came to the door.

Something just didn't seem right. Coupled with the series of events that followed, and the fact that the Taoist priest in the previous intelligence didn't seem to be a righteous person, Lin Yu felt that this Taoist priest should be the mastermind behind everything.

He wasn't doing it to "exorcise demons and uphold justice"; he was "raising ghosts."

And that so-called "divine sword" was probably just an object he used to "raise ghosts".

"How much do you know about that Taoist priest who took the initiative to come to your door and deal with the evil spirit?" Lin Yu quickly connected the clues.

The old woman tried hard to recall: "That monk? When he came, I was so scared by those evil spirits that I didn't dare to leave the house."

So I only caught a glimpse through the crack in the window... They were dressed quite well, but... something felt off! Very off!

A thought began to cross her face: "It's not the upright and honorable aura of a decent person. He... his aura is sinister... like... like he crawled out of a graveyard... just looking at him makes my heart race!"

This confirms Lin Yu's previous guess—that the "Taoist priest" and the mastermind behind the scenes are very likely the same person.

Lin Yu stared at the old woman: "Think again carefully. Besides being bundled up tightly and having a strange voice, what other characteristics did that person who came looking for you have? Any details!"

The old woman frowned, her withered fingers pressing hard on her temples, her cloudy eyes desperately trying to recall that nightmarish scene from more than twenty years ago.

Time passed second by second, and only her heavy breathing remained in the hallway.

"Scent...scent!" The old lady suddenly raised her head, a hint of uncertainty flashing in her eyes: "Yes, it's a scent! It's very faint, but you can smell it when you get close. He...has a very faint...strange scent."

"A scent?" Lin Yu pressed, "What kind of scent? Floral? Herbal? Or something else?"

The old woman shook her head blankly: "I can't remember, it's been too long, but the smell was... a little... a little dizzying... I can't quite put my finger on it..."

She lowered her head dejectedly: "This old woman... that's all I remember..."

The clues seem to have become blurred again.

Lin Yu pondered for a moment, knowing that he wouldn't be able to extract any more information by pressing him further.

"I've told you everything I needed to say, I haven't dared to hide a single word..." The old woman collapsed to the ground, as if all her strength had been drained away, pleadingly looking at Lin Yu: "Sir, please... please have mercy on my son and grandson, they really don't know anything..."

He looked at the old woman lying on the ground like mud, and then thought of her identity as mentioned earlier. His eyes flickered, and he suddenly changed the subject: "Old lady, since you were a well-known sorceress in the village back then, you must have some secret 'tools', right?"

Talismans? Ritual implements? Protective items? Now that you're not in this business anymore, why not sell these things to me? Price is negotiable.

He pulled out a few banknotes and waved them around.

Upon hearing this, the old woman instinctively shrank back, then a bitter smile, more painful than crying, appeared on her face, her cloudy eyes filled with deep helplessness: "Young man, it's not that this old woman is unwilling."

"It's really all gone... All the pitiful possessions I accumulated back then, those old things, were stolen and sold to the gambling dens in the city by my good-for-nothing son. He used the money to gamble. Now, I'm truly destitute. There aren't even a few decent rice bowls left in the house..."

"A casino?" Lin Yu caught the key information: "Who exactly did he sell it to?"

The old woman gritted her teeth, each word seemingly squeezed out from between her teeth: "Li Miao, the gang leader who runs the underground gambling den on the third floor of the walled city."

My son... he sold off the last vestiges of his parents' legacy to that vampire for a pittance!

She then gave Lin Yu a specific address and location.

Lin Yu nodded, put the money back in his pocket, and stopped looking at the old woman on the ground: "You can go now. Remember, keep what happened today to yourself."

The old woman felt as if she had been granted a pardon. She scrambled to her feet, ignoring the blood still flowing from her forehead. She picked up her fallen cane and staggered downstairs without looking back, as if a demon was chasing her.

Lin Yu kept his word, and there was no need for him to kill her to silence her.

After all, in this eerie and dangerous city, who would believe the words of a crazy old woman who talks nonsense?

Moreover, even if they believed it, so what? Lin Yu's fierce image of "killing ghosts" in public last night, and the two guns at his waist at this moment, are the best deterrent.

……

On the third floor, at the entrance of a "card room".

Lin Yu didn't search for too long; that guy was quite famous in the city, and he quickly found his house.

It was less a card room and more a cramped, dark shack partitioned off with wooden planks.

A dirty wooden sign with the character "牌" (sign) hung crookedly by the door. The air was thick with the mixed smells of cheap tobacco, sweat, and spoiled leftover food.

Lin Yu knocked on the door, quite forcefully.

The door creaked open a crack, revealing the face of a middle-aged woman, her face covered in oil and sweat, and radiating impatience: "What are you knocking for! No business today! Bad luck."

He was about to close the door when he said that.

Lin Yu moved even faster, and a brand-new 100-yuan bill appeared in his hand, which he waved in front of the woman.