"What's she carrying?" Cherry Cupcake asked in a whisper.
John didn't answer.
Black Rose walked straight to the door of room 304 and knocked.
The door was opened by a hunched old lady, clutching a small ghost with ashen skin.
"Mrs. Mildred, I've found the toys your grandson lost," Black Rose said, her cold demeanor instantly replaced with a sweet smile, like a friendly girl-next-door.
"Thank you so much, dear. It's rare to find such a kind-hearted girl these days."
"Oliver, say thank you."
Clutching his beloved toys, Oliver danced with joy: "Thank you, you're so nice."
"Be good, and don't be so naughty, losing things again, okay?"
After the door closed, Black Rose's smile vanished as quickly as it had appeared, her face returning to its icy composure, like a swift change of masks.
John glanced at Cherry Cupcake: "Learn from her; that's how you complete a mission."
Cherry Cupcake pouted but said nothing.
Black Rose approached, sizing up John: "I heard you completed a task for the apartment owner?"
John checked the time: "Working on the second one now."
"How about a deal? You win another game for the apartment owner, retrieve something for me, and name your price," Black Rose suggested, clearly having gotten information from Cobra, crossing her arms and thrusting out her chest confidently.
"I'm not interested, I don't care about money."
John shook his head without hesitation.
"Think about it, if not, how about I come to your room tonight, and we can discuss it properly?" Black Rose suddenly flashed a seductive smile, full of allure.
One had to admit, this woman was indeed very changeable.
"What for, to mooch a meal? I'm broke," John said, spreading his hands.
Black Rose paused, then smiled indifferently: "If that's not what you're into, forget it. I don't have much interest either."
With that, she turned and left.
Cherry Cupcake stuck out her tongue and muttered, "What a flirtatious woman."
...
"Damn it! Lost everything again, such damn bad luck!"
"That cursed woman, she must have hidden the money. If I find it, I'm going to break her legs!"
The cursing and swearing echoed through the hallway as the jerk from 403 returned, radiating malice, his mood looking extremely volatile.
Black Rose glanced at him.
He also noticed Black Rose, his gaze lingering on her sensual figure, a lecherous grin spreading across his menacing face: "You're pretty hot, just my type. Which room are you staying in?"
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Black Rose's eyes flashed coldly, her expression one of disgust, and without a word, she walked away.
The ghosts in the apartment were key to completing tasks, and participants had to try to avoid provoking them as much as possible. So Black Rose chose to leave directly, instead of confronting this ghost.
Cherry Cupcake clutched her snacks, hiding fearfully behind John.
The jerk ghost eyed Black Rose's backside, licked his lips with a heinous chuckle, and as he turned to go upstairs, he noticed a pair of eyes fixed on him.
The jerk ghost glared viciously at John: "Kid, take one more look, and I'll gouge your eyeballs out!"
John remained silent, and as the ghost turned his head, John's right hand revealed a bloodshot eye, with a mass of corpse spots emerging on his arm.
Then, he reached straight for the back of the jerk ghost's head!
The jerk ghost had just sensed something when his head was forcefully slammed to the ground.
The floor cracked, the jerk ghost howled, struggling wildly.
With a flick of his arm, John tossed the jerk ghost into the hallway, pulled out two Human Bone Nails, and without waiting for the ghost to get up, he slammed the nails into the jerk ghost's skull with his palm.
Instantly, the jerk ghost screamed miserably, his body twitching with eyes rolling back, collapsing to the floor.
All this happened in a matter of seconds, leaving Black Rose and Cherry Cupcake dumbfounded.
What was this guy doing?
This was a resident of the apartment, was he really going to kill him just because of a curse?
While Black Rose was stunned, she also noticed John's arm and was shocked: "You're a Half-ghost!"
Wasn't this his first time participating in Thriller World? When did he merge with a ghost?
Ignoring the stunned looks from the two women, John grabbed the severely injured jerk ghost and dragged him towards room 301.
But soon, John noticed something was off.
As he got closer to 301, the jerk ghost became increasingly heavy, and a massive amount of ghost aura began to seep out of his eyes and nostrils.
Eventually, the floor was gouged with a deep crack! John couldn't move forward another step, the jerk ghost in his hands now as heavy as a meteorite!
"What's going on?" John, sweating profusely, looked at the jerk ghost in astonishment.
"I told you it wouldn't work," said the Blood-Eye Ghost indifferently.
The two Human Bone Nails that had been driven into the jerk ghost's head were squeezed out of his body and fell to the floor!
The jerk ghost, who had been unconscious, suddenly opened his eyes and erupted with terrifying strength, breaking free from John's grasp and returning to the hallway.
The jerk ghost glared at John, but wary of something, he turned and ran.
The ghost aura in the hallway dissipated.
Black Rose and Cherry Cupcake looked at John, too shocked to know what to say.
"It's just a little personal matter between us," John said dismissively to the two women before walking away.
Returning to the fourth floor, the door to room 404 was busted open, and inside, the place was a mess, with many things smashed to pieces. The female owner of the room came out, covered in blood, and it was unclear whether it was hers or her husband's.
She looked at John and asked, "How did it go?"
"It's a bit tricky. I'll have to think of another way," John said, noticing the knife in the woman's hand, realizing she must have dismembered her husband again.
But clearly, it was all in vain.
Back in his room, after a busy day, John decided to take a shower first.
After washing his face, John finally asked, "What happened just now?"
"That was a ghost with a strong attachment," explained the Blood-Eye Ghost. "The harder you try, the less likely you are to succeed."
"What's an attachment ghost?" John inquired.
"When he died, he developed a tremendous fear of room 301, and after death, he became a resentful ghost. That fear became his attachment."
"Room 301 is his attachment's forbidden zone. Forcing it will only make his resistance stronger. Unless you can make him enter room 301 on his own!"
John fell into deep thought.
"You can't handle this task, just give up," said the Blood-Eye Ghost.
"Not necessarily."
John responded as such, but indeed, it was quite a headache.
After the shower, coming out of the room, John leaned back in his chair, continuing to ponder.
A moment later, as if struck by an idea, John opened the system's toolbar.
Then, his eyes suddenly lit up with a strategy, he stood up, got dressed, and prepared to leave.
"Where to?" asked the Blood-Eye Ghost.
"Of course, to continue the mission."
"Just to be clear, if you need my help again, it's going to cost you extra," said the Blood-Eye Ghost, licking its lips.
"I won't need you. Tonight, you're just on watch duty."
John gave a slight smile, then left the room.
After leaving room 405, what John didn't notice was that the door next door also opened, and a pair of eyes, heavy with resentment, watched the direction John was heading...