The sky brightened, yet it was still very dark. The sky was overcast, and light rain was falling. Huo Jianguo pushed open the door and walked into the yard. The banana trees in the yard stood still, while the wooden horse and swing swayed slightly, as if greeting Huo Jianguo. An old jeep was parked on the east side of the yard, its windows wet, and there seemed to be a shadow of a person sitting upright in the passenger seat. Huo Jianguo stared at the blurry shadow for a moment, then stepped outside. By the time Huo Jianguo finished lunch and arrived at Little Lion Community, it was already four-thirty in the afternoon, half an hour away from the agreed time. He took out the photo again and glanced at the address on the back: Unit 404, Building 4, Little Lion Community, Tuen Mun, New Territories, with a line of small print below: Name, Qu Si, Age, 30 years old. Huo Jianguo stuffed the photo back into his pocket and walked into the community. As he walked, he glanced at the blue watch on his left wrist; it was a multifunctional watch that could tell time and sense magnetic fields, and he was currently heading northeast. Then he looked again at the black watch on his right wrist; it was a breath locator, and the display showed the number: 1. This indicated that within a two-meter radius, he was the only one breathing. He walked around the community twice. The environment and buildings in the community were quite ordinary, no different from an average community, which left Huo Jianguo somewhat disappointed. Noticing that it was almost time, he arrived at Building 4, Unit 4, took the elevator to the fourth floor. Room 404 was at the end of the corridor, with a dark passageway at the entrance. Huo Jianguo couldn't wait to step into that shadow, quietly standing in the shadow before the door, listening attentively to the sounds around him. There was no sound coming from inside, and the shadow was devoid of anything. The door was bright red, with a peephole in the middle, above which were three numbers: 404. He glanced down at his watch; it was 4:58. He needed to wait another two minutes. He never arrives late, nor does he come early; being on time is the only way to ensure success. Suddenly, he noticed the number on the breath locator on his right wrist had somehow changed to: 2. He slightly took two steps back, and the number remained 2. He kept his eyes fixed on the door; he knew that at this moment, there was a pair of eyes peering at him from behind that door. At this time, the hour had arrived; he didn't think much longer, stepped forward, and knocked on the door. The number on the breath locator quickly turned to 1. Soon after, rhythmic footsteps could be heard from inside, seemingly running. The number on the breath locator immediately changed back to 2. At that moment, a childish voice came from inside: "Who is it?" Huo Jianguo replied, "I'm Huo Jianguo, referred by Ye Qian." "Are you the new psychologist?" The voice inside sounded very alert. "Sort of." "What do you mean sort of? If you are, say you are; if you're not, say you're not. Put your business card on the peephole, let me see." The voice inside was tinged with a sudden anger. Huo Jianguo took out a business card from his pocket and placed it against the peephole. A few seconds later, the childish voice came again: "You're a soul scientist?" "Yes." "Where's your ID? Show it." Huo Jianguo took out his wallet, pulled out his ID, and pressed it against the peephole. Seconds later, with a "click!" the door lock seemed to open, followed by a clattering sound of chains intertwining. Then, the door opened a crack, and a chill rushed in. Huo Jianguo couldn’t help but take a step back. A pale little girl stood on the threshold, looking up with her bright, large eyes at Huo Jiangu, her voice tender and youthful: "Uncle Huo, I'm sorry for what I did earlier; I was also afraid of bad people coming in." Huo Jiangu smiled down, "I can understand. Who are you?" The little girl asked back, "Who are you looking for?" "Qu Si." "She’s my mom; you can call me Douya." The little girl opened the door a bit more, making space, and said, "Come in." Huo Jiangu stepped inside, and he caught sight of a deep scar on the little girl’s left wrist. Douya secured the door with a thick iron chain and locked it, then walked ahead with her two pigtails swaying. After a couple of steps, she turned her head back, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up!" Huo Jiangu smiled and walked in. Upon entering a home, he first looked at the family’s shoes; this was his habit. Shoes can reveal a lot of information, many hidden and secret details. He saw many shoes by the balcony, but they were all women’s, including a very small pair of tiger-head shoes meant for a one or two-year-old child, alongside a pair of worn-out earthy shoes from the old society. Douya opened the glass door and waved to Huo Jiangu. He stepped inside. As soon as he entered the living room, he was hit by a strong smell of smoke. The entire living room was shrouded in a smoky haze, as if a thick fog had arisen. The ashtray on the coffee table only contained ashes, with no cigarette butts. On the sofa lay a lone gray-white long gown draped in a human shape, exuding a hint of eeriness. In front of the wall opposite the sofa stood a high table covered with a black cloth, the surface underneath uneven. The television was on, displaying a snowy screen. The air conditioning was running, displaying a temperature of 18 degrees; it was a bit cold inside. This was a duplex; downstairs were the living room, kitchen, and bathroom, while upstairs were three bedrooms in a row. Although the room was filled with smoke, it still couldn’t hide a chilling dampness in the air, a feeling that was far more than just coming from the air conditioning. Judging from the walls and furniture, the place seemed a bit old. Old houses always carried some old things. With many old items, strange things tend to happen. Suddenly, a hard object jabbed at Huo Jiangu’s waist, startling him. He quickly turned around and saw Douya standing right behind him, her finger raised in the air. He had no idea when she had come up behind him. At that moment, Huo Jiangu noticed that she wasn't wearing shoes, her small feet bare. Douya looked up at Huo Jiangu with her bright eyes: "Let’s go upstairs; my mom is upstairs." After saying this, she ran ahead, making a 'frame! frame! frame!' sound as she went up the stairs. Huo Jiangu suddenly felt a pair of eyes watching him from above; he looked up sharply just in time to see a hunched figure flash by the stair railing. When he looked closely, there was nothing there. He glanced at the breathing locator, which showed the number 1. He took a light breath and stepped up the stairs. "Creak! Creak!" The stairs made old sounds. Huo Jiangu held onto the railing and felt something sticky on the surface above, quickly letting go. He ascended the stairs. There were three rooms upstairs, one master bedroom and two smaller bedrooms. The doors to the master bedroom and one of the smaller bedrooms were tightly shut, while the other smaller bedroom stood open, revealing a sandbox toy on the floor, likely belonging to Douya. At this moment, Douya was standing in front of the master bedroom door, softly saying, "My mom is inside."Huo Jiangui looked around, still searching for the pair of eyes that had been staring at him earlier, as well as the figure with the hunched back.
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He did not find them.
Huo Jiangui glanced at the breath locator, which showed the number 2.
He nodded at Douya.
Douya suddenly became a little nervous, biting her lip, her eyes filled with panic.
After a long while, Douya gently knocked on the door.
There was no response inside.
Douya knocked again: "Mom."
Her voice trembled.
Still no response from inside.
Douya knocked twice more: "Mom, the psychologist... the soul scientist is here, do you want to meet him?"
Silence spread throughout the entire house, unbearable.
"Screech!"
A strange sound suddenly came from inside the door.
Douya quickly took two steps back and stood against the wall.
"Screech!"
The sound occurred again.
Huo Jiangui raised his right hand, staring intently at the breath locator.
The number displayed was: 2.
Suddenly, the number changed to: 3.
"Screech!"
Another sound, close to his ear.
Suddenly, the number jumped again, becoming: 4.
Huo Jiangui clenched his teeth.
Just then, there was a creaking sound.
The door opened.
Huo Jiangui quickly glanced inside; there was no one in the room.
Suddenly, he felt as if something was moving in the ceiling.
He looked up and instinctively took a sharp breath.
On the ceiling of the room, a person was crouching.
A woman, her limbs stuck to the ceiling, her hair hanging down like a waterfall.
The woman's head slowly emerged from the long hair, and a creaking sound came from her neck.