Less than half an hour remains for decision-making, and Yang Jian’s decision at this moment involves the life and death of many people, even extending to his own family’s life and death.

There are only two choices before him now.

Either confront the ghost, detain it, and completely resolve the supernatural incident caused by the Wishing Ghost.

Or do nothing, let the Wishing Ghost complete its transaction with him.

The former is high-risk; if successful, everyone affected by the ghost can survive unharmed. But if it fails, undoubtedly, many people will die today.

The latter is low-risk; Yang Jian needs to do nothing to ensure everyone survives, but this survival bears significant hidden danger as their lives remain under the ghost’s control.

“Detention is necessary; compromise is not an option. If the Wishing Ghost shakes off the constraints of rules, the consequences are unimaginable. Like Wang Shanshan, I don’t believe that after midnight, the ghost would let everyone go. If it continues to kill, I won’t be able to stop it; when the initiative is out of my hands, things will be harder to deal with.”

Yang Jian has already made up his mind.

Compromise leads to a worse defeat; only a struggle can win this game.

But how can he ensure the successful detainment of the Wishing Ghost? It’s a ghost whose mere outline appears in the five-layer Ghost Domain, hidden deeply, and the Wishing Ghost itself is terrifying.

“The Wishing Ghost’s absence proves my trap is effective. If I stay here without moving, the Wishing Ghost will certainly enter here before midnight, fall into the trap, and be detained, but before this result arrives, many people will definitely die.”

“The method to achieve both detaining the ghost and minimizing death is singular: remove the trap, make the ghost believe I will trade with it, and detain it at that moment.”

“The challenge now lies in deceiving the ghost while ensuring the detention without error.”

Yang Jian falls into silence, pondering the difficulty.

Detention with the Coffin Nail is undoubtedly effective, but he knows it’s difficult for the ghost to show itself while the Coffin Nail is in hand.

Thus, he must abandon supernatural weapons, leaving himself completely unguarded against the Wishing Ghost.

“Yang Jian, there’s not much time left to think; the commotion outside has ceased, seems something’s off.” Liu Qi speaks quietly.

Earlier, the black-clothed operatives pushed all those influenced by the supernatural out from the hall. Though both sides were clashing, people from the Peace Hotel suddenly ceased action, standing motionless without further confrontations.

“This means the ghost abandoned its plan of breaking the trap with numbers to easily pass tonight. If the ghost doesn’t intend to confront Yang Jian head-on, it indicates its plan is underway. Now, our relatives face the danger of being attacked by the ghost.” Wang Shanshan says.

Before she finishes, someone’s phone rings abruptly.

“My phone,” Zhang Wei hurriedly answers.

A voice filled with panic reaches him; it’s his father, Zhang Xiangu, seeking help: “Ah Wei, quickly, notify Brother Tui. It seems haunted here, something is following me, and I’m terrified.”

“Dad, it’s fine, that’s just a ghost. It won’t kill you now; I haven’t received my final egg fried rice yet. Be brave, go and slap it; I assure you it won’t hit back. Besides, Brother Tui will handle this, trust us, okay, I’ll hang up now as I’m busy here.”

“Ah Wei, don’t hang up, I’m not joking, it’s real beside me.” Zhang Xiangu’s voice reveals fear.

Zhang Wei replies, “Dad, act like a man, we’ve weathered big storms. Sorta scares you, stay happy, eat and drink, maintain a smile. If anything truly goes wrong, we’re all here for you, what is there to fear.”

After a couple of comforting words, Zhang Wei hangs up immediately, cursing: “Damn it, this is bad, the ghost’s targeted my dad.”

“Clearly, it plans to kill your father first, then others… to force Yang Jian to concede by murder. With midnight approaching, the ghost will surely become more frenzied.” Wang Shanshan speaks coldly.

Miao Xiaoshan suggests, “How about having everyone hide in the safe house? I recall Yang Jian built several safe houses in Dachang City.”

“No chance, the ghost is watching closely; if it decides to kill, it’ll act before ordinary people reach the safe house. With a regular person’s ability, there’s no way to resist or survive the journey to the safe house.” Liu Qi shakes his head.

“Enough discussion, I already have the answer in my mind.” Yang Jian ends his contemplation, speaking.

Immediately.

Everyone falls silent, gazing at Yang Jian, awaiting the final result.

Time is pressing, and Yang Jian doesn’t mince words; he says, “Ah Wei, extinguish your oil lamp.”

“What?” Zhang Wei is momentarily stunned.

“Put out the oil lamp; there’s no need to keep it burning anymore. With it lit, the ghost won’t dare show itself.” Yang Jian extinguishes his own oil lamp as he speaks.

Wang Shanshan’s expression changes: “Is this a compromise with the ghost? It’s a wrong decision; despite understanding your concern for everyone’s lives, ghosts can’t be trusted, they lack integrity. Rules are the only constraint on them, thus detention is essential.”

“I know, but no one here can bear the cost. Each of us will lose a family member before detaining the ghost, that’s just the beginning. Twenty-five minutes remain; during this time, the ghost could keep killing, and deaths may exceed what we imagined.” Yang Jian walks to the table, snuffing out Ghost Incense and Ghost Candle.

Without Ghost Incense, Ghost Candle, and Corpse Oil Lamp, the trap is completely dismantled.

Despite unwillingness, Zhang Wei promptly extinguishes his oil lamp.

All preparations for ghost detention are rolled back.

Moreover, Yang Jian raises his hand; the cracked spear in hand pierces the window, thrown hundreds of meters away, its final destination unknown.

“Are you… even discarding weapons? That had a Coffin Nail; you’re abandoning all detention means. You’re taking a huge risk—if things go awry, there won’t be a counter.” Liu Qi hesitates, deciphering Yang Jian’s strategy.

“I understand.”

Not satisfied after completing all this, Yang Jian commands the nearby black-clad people: “Withdraw, stop blocking those outside.”

Not only traps were abolished, supernatural weapons discarded, even the black-clad order maintainers are recalled.

Every measure against the ghost abandoned.

Upon hearing the command, black-clad individuals unhesitatingly retreat, leaving paths clear, not blocking those affected by supernatural forces.

Witnessing all, others don’t challenge Yang Jian’s decision.

Perhaps, in Yang Jian’s view, this is the best choice.

With no blockade from black-clad individuals, those outside begin moving again, orderly flooding the hall. Soon the spacious hall fills with people, leaving only a small space around the table Yang Jian and others are at.

“Damn it, showing sincerity, yet the ghost manipulates these people still.” Liu Qi expresses indignation.

“It’s to ensure we don’t suddenly regret reigniting Ghost Incense and Ghost Candle. Even if lit amidst so many people now, it’s futile.”

Yang Jian remarks, scanning the crowd: “My sincerity is clear; now I demand the ghost’s sincerity too, or all bets are off.”

Following his words.

Soon.

The densely packed crowd parts, revealing a few cold individuals appearing abruptly among them. Each holds something—a bowl of egg fried rice, an article of clothing, a pearl necklace… These seemingly ordinary items symbolize a transaction.

The presence of the wish fulfillment items indicates the ghost’s actions have ceased.

Zhang Wei’s phone rang at this moment, and the call was from his father, Zhang Xiangu: “Ah Wei, it seems like the ghost is gone. Ask Brother Tui if it’s safe now?”

“Dad, stop being so scared of dying, okay? I told you there won’t be any problem, and I’m very busy right now. Stop calling me every day; you’re embarrassing me in front of my friends, don’t you know? Also, I’m not coming home tonight. Just go to bed early. Fine, that’s it.”

After saying that, Zhang Wei hung up the phone again.

“The ghost’s sincerity came pretty fast. It seems like it really wants to resolve this matter in this way. The more it does so, the more it’s at a disadvantage. This means it knows that facing us head-on is a sure loss,” Wang Shanshan said.

Yang Jian said, “At least things are moving in a good direction, and everyone’s family members are currently safe.”

“What do we do next?” Liu Qi asked. Content originally comes from novel⁂fire.net

“Do nothing, wait for the ghost to show up in front of me. You guys don’t have to be nervous either, just sit down and rest. There’s still twenty minutes left; the ghost probably won’t appear so soon. It will most likely show up in the last few minutes.” Yang Jian sat down again, taking no further action.

Seeing this, the others also had no choice but to sit down.

But as everyone took their seats, the crowd around them moved a few steps forward again, compressing the space even more. The people at the front were almost touching them, and just a slight lean back could make contact.

These people sealed off the space like walls and did nothing more.

But the light overhead that had just turned on was now flickering again with a buzzing sound.

The light flickered on and off, gradually revealing a chill in the surrounding air.

This chill touched people’s skin, making their hairs stand on end, as if something was blowing cold air around.

“The ghost should already be in the hall, definitely among the crowd.”

Liu Qi’s gaze shifted from side to side, trying to find any clues, but unfortunately, there was nothing to see through the thick wall of people, and everyone around seemed as still as wooden statues.

“Ignore it, there’s nothing we can do now.” Yang Jian didn’t even open his ghost eye, seemingly dropping all his defenses.

At this moment, the scene was silent, and the air felt particularly oppressive, almost suffocating.

However, this state didn’t last long, and the flickering lights in the hall suddenly went out completely.

The lights went out from afar, moving closer and closer to the table where Yang Jian and the others were.

The time came to 11:50 PM.

Only ten minutes left.

At this moment, all the lights went out, except for an inconspicuous little bulb over Yang Jian’s head still stubbornly shining, but it was very dim and unsteady, only barely illuminating the table.

Outside the table was pitch black, all the light consumed, and visibility was next to nothing.

People surrounding the table could only see the vague shapes of those behind them, unable to discern who was who, or even if what stood behind them was a person or a ghost.

The five of them were staring at each other, some nervous, some uneasy, others calm.

“This isn’t a normal blackout; it’s the supernatural impacting the entire hall, forming a considerable strength Ghost Domain. The ghost seems like it will appear in front of us in the last ten minutes,” Liu Qi sensed the surrounding darkness.

At this moment, he felt that the darkness was boundless, as if he had fallen into a Supernatural Space, no longer inside the Peace Hotel.

Then, Liu Qi’s scarlet lips moved slightly, though no sound was made, but the voice echoed in Yang Jian’s mind: “Yang Jian, can you tell me the truth? Do you want to trick that ghost out, or are you really planning to compromise? If it’s the former, I can cooperate with your actions.”

Liu Qi stopped pretending and sought clarity on Yang Jian’s true intentions.

He didn’t believe that Yang Jian’s character would compromise with a fierce ghost, inclined to think it was a trap set up by Yang Jian.

By dismantling the visible trap, a real trap could be set up to lure the fierce ghost.

Yang Jian didn’t speak, only glanced at Liu Qi and slightly shook his head.

Liu Qi’s lips moved slightly again: “Got it.”

The time came to 11:55 PM.

In these final five minutes.

A distinct footstep suddenly sounded in the dark.

The direction from which this footstep came was clear, right in front of Yang Jian, just behind Zhang Wei.

“Damn, that thing is here.” Zhang Wei was startled and turned to look, but was blocked by the person standing in the dark, seeing nothing.

Wang Shanshan and Miao Xiaoshan remained silent, their mouths shut, knowing that staying quiet was the best course of action at this time so as not to add trouble for Yang Jian.

The footsteps did not pause, proceeding forward, and the sound came gradually closer.

“Zhang Wei, don’t move. Just sit there, don’t turn around.” Yang Jian said.

“Okay, okay, I won’t move.” Zhang Wei sat up straight immediately, not moving, but his eyes were darting around.

Soon.

A person behind Zhang Wei made space, and the footsteps stopped abruptly behind him.

However, in their sight, the spot behind Zhang Wei was empty; there was no ghost nor anything unusual, only darkness.

But as everyone stared.

A human-shaped silhouette gradually emerged from the darkness in that spot.

It seemed the real fierce ghost was about to appear.

Yang Jian’s expression was calm, remaining still, his ghost eye unopened, so even he couldn’t see what exactly was behind Zhang Wei.

Zhang Wei’s body was tense; he wanted to turn around and see for himself but restrained the urge under Yang Jian’s indication, not turning back.

But he could feel, there was indeed someone standing behind him.

Even with his bold nature, cold sweat started to form on his forehead at this moment.

Soon.

The outline in the darkness became clearer, and that figure gradually bent over, leaning forward, revealing an extremely unfamiliar face under the weak light above them.

The ghost was now keeping its promise to meet with Yang Jian.

But it hid behind Zhang Wei, seemingly fearing Yang Jian’s sudden move.

Yang Jian watched the unfamiliar face appearing behind Zhang Wei, maintaining his calm demeanor.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by novlove.com

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