The demon huntress's "death sentence" for the strange basement had shifted from "immediate execution" to "postpone execution."

This turn of events allowed me to breathe a small sigh of relief.

Since the destruction of the basement had been postponed until tomorrow, I could take the opportunity to explore it again today.

However, how much I could uncover in such a limited timeframe remained uncertain. The most critical issue was that I didn’t understand the basement’s pattern of appearance and disappearance.

Why did the basement appear when Chang'an was alone the night before, and again when the two of us were present, only to vanish after Agent Kong arrived? The answer undoubtedly lay somewhere in these occurrences.

As I continued monitoring the conversation between Agent Kong and the demon huntress, I reflected on the terms they had mentioned earlier.

The "Fallen Demon Hunter" they mentioned was undoubtedly the serial killer. Whether it specifically referred to Ma Zao was still uncertain, but just from the name alone, it was clear that the so-called "Demon Hunters" were people who hunted entities related to demons or the supernatural. The definition of "demons" likely wasn't limited to strange phenomena like the basement but also encompassed the Fallen Demon Hunter.

As for the term "fallen," it might refer to certain demon hunters whose targets had shifted from "demons" to "humans." This hypothesis aligns with the recent criminal behavior of the serial killer.

The demon huntress's tone carried a sense of duty toward eradicating supernatural phenomena, and she had also mentioned that Mount Luo should strengthen its cooperation with the public security departments. I surmised that Mount Luo was likely an anonymous supernatural organization officially recognized by the authorities—or perhaps even a secret official organization operating in a different system than the public security departments.

An organization dedicated to handling supernatural events really does exist!

This filled me with an inexpressible excitement, as if I were witnessing wild flights of fantasy gradually stepping into reality.

After that, the demon huntress seemed to have nothing more to discuss with Agent Kong. He quickly ended the call, then turned and headed back to the residential complex, stopping in front of that room.

He took out a key, unlocked the door, and entered the room, inspecting everything thoroughly.

His main focus was the ritual formation on the floor. He didn’t recklessly step into the formation but instead circled around it, observing its state from various angles. He even took out his phone and captured multiple photos of the formation.

To avoid being spotted should he suddenly turn around, I maneuvered the "firefly" to simply attach itself to his back.

"It shouldn't be possible," he muttered to himself. "Why could such an incomplete formation activate? There clearly aren’t any conditions nearby sufficient to compensate for its flaws..."

He circled around a few more times before finally giving up. Then, he casually pulled the black plush rug lying nearby back over the formation and turned to leave the room.

---

While continuing to monitor Agent Kong, I wasn’t idle myself.

Maintaining the surveillance, I moved to a nearby electronics market to purchase equipment I’d need for exploring the basement.

After Agent Kong left, I didn’t rush back to the house. Instead, I released more "fireflies" throughout the neighborhood, both inside and around the complex, to check for any suspicious individuals.

Even Agent Kong and the Demon Huntress were uncertain why the Fallen Demon Hunter had set up the ritual formation in that room. So, I had to consider the possibility that the basement’s appearance aligned with the Fallen Demon Hunter’s expectations, potentially being a deliberate result of their actions.

Was the Fallen Demon Hunter keeping a close eye on the activity in the fifteenth-floor room? While it’s unlikely they would’ve monitored it continuously for eight months, it’s entirely possible they paid close attention during periods when the room was occupied.

I definitely didn’t want any unknown, potentially dangerous individual lurking in the shadows, watching my every move while I explored the basement.

Perhaps the landlord should be added to the list of suspects. Someone in that position would know when the room is occupied and would have a reasonable excuse to keep tabs on any changes to it.

Stolen story; please report.

At the moment, I was simultaneously monitoring four different areas: Ma Zao’s location, Chang’an’s location, Agent Kong’s activities, and the interior and exterior of the residential complex where the fifteenth-floor room was located. In other words, all of these scenarios were unfolding in my mind at the same time, with the last one being the most significant. The experience felt akin to solving several unrelated, high-intensity problems simultaneously. Even though I allocated most of my focus to the last location, my concentration was being rapidly drained.

Every now and then, I would pause to rest, letting my mind relax by looking at the distant scenery before resuming my checks. Yet, even after searching thoroughly throughout the day until evening, I couldn’t find anyone within or outside the complex who matched the “suspicious behavior” label.

Is it that there’s really no one here, or did I just fail to find them? I can’t afford to spend too much time on this matter; I still need to explore the basement later.

It seems unlikely that I’ll be able to go home tonight, so I need to let Ma Zao know in advance. Unfortunately, I don’t have a landline at home, and Ma Zao doesn’t have a mobile phone either (at least, I didn’t find one on her last night). Looks like I’ll have to take a quick trip home to inform her in person.

Coincidentally, there are also some questions I need to ask her face-to-face.

I’m feeling hungry too, so going home will give me a chance to eat as well.

…Come to think of it, I feel like I might be forgetting something.

---

I quickly returned to my apartment door.

Through the “firefly” in the room, I saw Ma Zao even before opening the door. She was sitting on the sofa in the living room, curled up with her knees hugged to her chest. Her rolled-up sleeves and pant legs overlapped messily, and her loose, oversized clothes made her look even smaller.

She hadn’t turned on the lights or the TV. She just sat there in silence, gazing out of the floor-to-ceiling window at the view, reminiscent of a small household appliance entering standby mode to save energy.

Outside the window, the sky was transitioning between a deep blue and a soft yellow, the hues of dusk, accentuating the faint sense of melancholy in her small figure.

I inserted the key into the lock, and the faint sound instantly triggered her, as if an invisible switch had been flipped. Her head turned sharply toward the entrance with heightened alertness.

As I opened the door, she had already leaped off the sofa with surprising agility—only to lose her balance and take a tumble.

“…What are you doing?” I asked, dumbfounded.

She propped herself up using the nearby coffee table, her face stiffening as if trying to mask her embarrassment.

Then, she slowly walked up to me, circling around twice, her gaze scanning me from head to toe. Leaning in closer, she began an even more meticulous examination, as if trying to uncover some clue hidden in the seams of my clothes. Occasionally, she even sniffed at me, as though attempting to catch some trace of a particular scent.

I was puzzled by her actions, raising my arms to cooperate with her observations and asking again, "What are you doing?"

She glanced up at me, then took two steps back.

"…You’re really late," she said, as though probing something, or perhaps hiding a hint of dissatisfaction.

I had told her before I left that I was just stepping out for a bit, but I ended up spending most of the day outside, which was indeed my fault. That being said, I couldn’t exactly tell her the truth, so I just gave a vague answer: "I had some things to take care of with a friend."

"Did something happen while you were out?" she asked, frowning.

"Something happened—what do you mean?" I asked, feigning ignorance.

She began listing things one by one: "For example, did you run into someone who should’ve been dead, suddenly showing up alive in front of you? Or did you find a road where it shouldn’t be? Or perhaps something strange, like suddenly growing limbs or organs that humans shouldn’t have…?"

The last thing she mentioned—was she really including bizarre occurrences like mutations in the human body among the disasters she might attract? I couldn't help but internally scoff, but I answered without changing my expression, "No."

She looked at me uneasily and asked, "Really? Nothing happened?"

"Really nothing," I lied with my eyes wide open, though the "basement" definitely fit the second example she listed.

"That's good," she seemed relieved, as if she thought I had no reason or courage to lie about something like this.

Then, she hesitated for a moment, glancing at the door behind me. "But I guess I should leave after all. If I stay here for too long..."

"No!" I reflexively shouted.

"Huh?" She jumped in surprise.

"How could I possibly let you, a girl who can't protect herself, wander around outside on your own?" I quickly lowered my voice, trying to sound as reliable as possible. "Don't worry, I won't let anything happen, and I'll do my best to protect you during this time."

"Uh, th-thank you?" She looked at me with a confused expression.

I also felt that my reaction was a bit over the top, but I couldn’t help it. I genuinely didn’t want to let her go. Not only because I still hadn’t uncovered the secrets about her, but also because I realized that the strange events I was experiencing for the first time in years might be thanks to her "Harbinger of Misfortune." I almost wanted to buy a baby carrier online and strap her to me like an infant, keeping her close to me 24/7, always shadowing me.

I admit that having such thoughts about a girl a few years younger in her adolescence is hard to defend, and even if I did have the chance, I probably wouldn’t actually do it. Saying it like this was just a way to express my state of mind.

Speaking of Ma Zao's disaster-attracting constitution, there's something I need to ask.

Although this might make her doubt my previous situation, I must confirm it as soon as possible out of responsibility.

I placed my backpack by the shoe rack, switched on the living room lights, and then looked at her.

"Ma Zao, I want to ask you a question, is that okay?"

"You can ask," Ma Zao said cautiously. "As for whether I'll answer, that depends on your question."

"You said before that the people around you are affected by your special constitution and become more prone to encountering strange phenomena, right?"

"Yes."

"Is this phenomenon limited only to the people around you?" I asked. "Or does it extend further, affecting even the people close to them, causing them to encounter strange and dangerous occurrences as well?"