Chapter Forty-Two: The Traitor Within

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"Xiao Wu?"

I stared fixedly at the very center of the living room wall, uttering the name in astonished disbelief.

There was Xiao Wu, naked, his throat impaled by a coffin nail, hanging securely on the wall. His arms were spread wide in a crucifixion pose, reminiscent of Christ on the cross. From his throat down past his abdomen, an expertly executed incision split his flesh open; several thin threads pulled the flayed skin aside, exposing his ribcage and internal organs. Blood and subcutaneous fat dripped steadily onto the floor. Most disturbingly, there was no trace of pain on Xiao Wu’s face—on the contrary, a wild, ecstatic smile stretched across his lips, as if he had been liberated. Yet in such a setting, that smile was grotesque and horrifying.

I was utterly stunned by the scene before me, my mind blank. It took a long moment before I regained my senses.

“Could it be the men in black from the Seventh Investigation Division, silencing loose ends?” I wondered. “But then, why didn’t they kill me too?”

Baffled, I glanced around and saw that my phone and other belongings were placed beside Xiao Hong’s corpse. I walked over, retrieved my phone, wiped off the blood, and powered it on. It had barely started up before it began to ring.

“Where are you?” Mengya’s frantic voice came through.

I took a deep breath, steadying myself before replying, “Come to Xiao Wu’s place, quickly. He kidnapped me—I was lucky to make it out alive.”

Not long after, Mengya and the others arrived at the door. I let them in.

“Damn, what’s that smell in here?” Xiao Shao wrinkled his nose. The moment he stepped inside and saw the scene, he let out a cry and collapsed onto the floor, staring at me wide-eyed and stammering, “Y-y-you did this?”

I shook my head and recounted the harrowing events, along with my suspicion that the Seventh Investigation Division had committed murder to cover their tracks.

Yu Xianzhi quickly waved her hand. “Let’s not talk about that. We need to call the police, now.”

Before long, the police arrived, visibly shaken by the grisly scene. Only after regaining their composure did they recognize that the man hanging on the wall was the wanted criminal known as “The Artist.”

We were taken to the police station, gave brief statements, and were released.

After leaving the station, Mengya supported me as we returned to the hotel. It was already five in the afternoon. The shock of what I had witnessed had taken a visible toll—lying in bed, I couldn’t sleep, yet felt utterly exhausted.

“If only I’d gone downstairs with you, none of this would have happened,” Mengya said, her voice breaking into sobs. “If anything happened to you, what would I do? We promised, remember? Never to leave each other again.”

I let out a heavy sigh, torn by conflicting feelings. I couldn’t quite bring myself to distrust Mengya—she seemed incapable of harming me. But then, with so many strange events, I couldn’t fully convince myself to trust her, either.

Tap, tap, tap.

Just as I was struggling with how to answer Mengya, someone knocked at the door.

“I’ll get it,” Mengya said, standing up. She opened the door, and I saw it was Yu Xianzhi.

I was about to rise, but Yu Xianzhi waved her hand. “No need for formalities. Stay in bed.”

I nodded. “Daoist Yu, what brings you here?”

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Yu Xianzhi glanced at Mengya. “Miss Mengya, could you step outside for a moment? I’d like to speak with Mr. Qiu in private.”

Mengya hesitated. “But…”

I nodded. “It’s fine. Daoist Yu isn’t a stranger.”

Reluctantly, Mengya stepped out, shutting the door behind her—though I noticed her ear was pressed tightly to the door.

Yu Xianzhi, seeing she had left, cast the same “silent barrier” spell she’d used that morning.

She looked at me and said, “Master Qiu, there’s something I don’t understand, and I’d like your insight.”

I smiled. “Please, speak freely.”

Yu Xianzhi nodded. “Then I’ll be blunt. Who exactly is this Mengya, your employee?”

“Uh… she was a classmate of mine in middle school. Couldn’t find a job, so I hired her.”

Yu Xianzhi nodded, pondering for a moment. “I suspect there’s a traitor among us.”

“What?” I feigned surprise. “You think Mengya is the mole? That’s impossible.”

Yu Xianzhi smiled. “It’s obvious there’s a second party meddling in this affair. Surely you’ve noticed?”

I continued to look at her in confusion.

“Clearly, there’s a secret in that haunted building that someone wants to keep hidden.”

I nodded. “I know there’s another force involved, but as they say, ‘the open blade is easy to dodge, the hidden arrow hard to guard against.’ There’s nothing we can do for now.”

Yu Xianzhi gave a cold laugh. “I know you’ve started to suspect your employee, so don’t play dumb with me.”

I was genuinely startled. “How could you tell?”

“She’s supposed to be the one you trust most, and among us, she’s the fastest. So why did you send Xiao Shao to the takeout shop instead?”

“Then what do you suggest we do now?”

Yu Xianzhi sighed. “We’ll meet whatever comes our way. As you said, the enemy hides in the shadows. In my opinion, we should check out the haunted building tonight. After what happened to ‘The Artist’ Xiao Wu, the opposition surely won’t expect us to act so soon. Go to bed early tonight, get your employee to sleep, then sneak out and call us. We’ll meet downstairs.”

I nodded. “Who’s going?”

“You, me, Xiao Xue, and Xiao Shao.”

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When I heard her say Xiao Xue would join, I quickly protested, “No, no, Xiao Xue shouldn’t go. She should stay here.”

Yu Xianzhi sighed. “I said the same, but she insisted. Says she wants some excitement. I can’t stop her.”

I considered for a moment. With Yu Xianzhi there, it should be fine. I reluctantly nodded. “Alright.”

Yu Xianzhi nodded, lifted the barrier, walked to the door, glanced at Mengya with a teasing smile, and returned to her room.

Mengya came back in and looked at me. “What did she want?”

“Nothing much, just checking in on the patient.”

Mengya hesitated, eyeing me. “Why did it take so long?” She stroked my head. “Don’t you dare keep anything from me, or you’ll regret it.”

I grinned mischievously and grabbed her hand. “So, you’re giving me another chance, huh?”

She laughed, spat playfully, and pulled her hand away.

We had dinner downstairs, then returned to our room. I drank some water, faked a yawn, stretched, and said, “Let’s sleep. I’m exhausted.”

Mengya nodded. “Yeah, I’m tired too. Today felt like a war.” She undressed and climbed into bed.

I closed my eyes, listening to Mengya’s breathing. I counted the minutes—after about half an hour, I quietly opened my eyes, carefully slipped out of bed, dressed, and gently unlocked and shut the door behind me. I dashed to the elevator and took out my phone.

“Daoist Yu, I’ve slipped out. Where are you?”

“We’re waiting for you at the café across from the hotel.”

I hung up and entered the elevator. The doors closed slowly.

“First floor. Please watch your step.”

The elevator doors opened. Standing just outside was a figure in white, staring at me with a dark expression.

My mind buzzed with fear. Looking closely, it was Mengya.

“Where are you going?” she asked coldly.

I was speechless, staring back at her, as a chilling, uncanny smile slowly spread across her face.