Hearing a disturbance from Zhou Huan’s room and then seeing his car speed away, the village head immediately rushed into Zhou Huan’s quarters. A pane of glass was shattered, Zhang Hong lay motionless on the heated brick bed, foaming at the mouth, while Dongzi sat cross-legged on the kang. The village head panicked, utterly bewildered by the scene, until after a moment of observation he roared, “Good! Zhou Huan, you eat my food and dare to flee, even daring to stick up some kind of talisman! Do you think I’m afraid of you just because you put up a charm?”

Turning back, the village head immediately summoned two burly brutes. In less than ten minutes, he had gathered a dozen or so men who looked like thugs from the village, tightly surrounding the house from all sides. Following this, the fellow actually placed a call to Mr. Wang.

Dongzi was obedient, paying no mind to the man’s ranting. Even his own attendant ignored the village head, sitting beside Dongzi and chanting the Jingxin Zhou (Heart-Calming Mantra). Zhang Hong, still lying down, was reduced to an inhuman state by that ghost, yet he too stubbornly recited the Jingxin Zhou.

The village head had finally managed to call Mr. Wang. Mr. Wang was old, and the village head hated constantly dragging the elderly man out, but without Mr. Wang, the village head would truly remain completely clueless, ignorant of even the most basic matters concerning ghosts and spirits.

“What’s the situation, Little Wuzi?” Mr. Wang asked immediately upon arriving, addressing the village head.

The village head was actually named Little Wuzi, but this moniker was likely only used by Mr. Wang and Little Wuzi’s mother; anyone else using it risked a beating.

“Brother Wang, look, your friend, Zhou Huan, was here just now. He gambled for a while, and I saw him lose all the money beside him. I was going to lend him some, but he actually jumped out the window and ran.”

“Just that?” Mr. Wang’s expression was grave. He continued, “Little Wuzi, I’m not scolding you, but I told you to turn over a new leaf long ago. You’ve earned quite a bit of money; how are you still engaging in these petty tricks? Besides, you say Zhou Huan came here to gamble? I don’t know if anyone else believes you, but I certainly don’t!”

“Oh, Brother Wang, this is true! Otherwise, I’ll take you to see; one of his subordinates is still sitting right there.” Saying this, the village head moved to lead Mr. Wang toward Zhou Huan’s room.

Mr. Wang glared fiercely at Little Wuzi: “Zhou Huan comes here to gamble? He came here to catch ghosts, didn't he? You’re probably nearing your coffin, and someone comes to save you, yet you speak ill of him?”

“Not at all! He came with Zhang Hong, who you know is a notorious gambler. Please come with me, and you’ll see for yourself.”

After the village head insisted, Mr. Wang felt it would be unreasonable not to look. Although he trusted Zhou Huan implicitly, if Zhou Huan had come for entirely different reasons, insisting he hadn't been there would seem unduly obstinate. Thus, he followed Little Wuzi into Room Number One of the Heaven Suite. Upon entering, Mr. Wang’s eyes widened, and his brow furrowed deeply.

Mr. Wang roared at the village head, “Little Wuzi, you bastard! Look around carefully and tell me what is going on in this room!”

“Well, Zhou Huan already ran off, who knows what they were doing here? If it weren’t for respecting your status, Mr. Wang, I would have already sent men to capture Zhou Huan. You know the consequences if I brought him back!” Little Wuzi was clearly trying to maneuver Mr. Wang, attempting to provoke him into impulsively settling Zhou Huan’s supposed debt so that Little Wuzi could sleep soundly.

Little did he expect Mr. Wang to retaliate with a sharp slap across Little Wuzi’s face, followed by an angry tirade: “Look at your pathetic group! Can your bunch of weaklings stand up to Zhou Huan? It’s a good thing you didn't provoke Zhou Huan. If you really had, forget Zhou Huan himself; the Dongzi sitting on that kang alone would be enough trouble for you all.”

Little Wuzi never imagined Mr. Wang would strike him. The blow unsettled him deeply, making him fidget and jump, yet he dared not strike back at Mr. Wang. He regained some composure and roared, “Fine! Mr. Wang, you actually side with them to beat me! Today I want to see what these few people are capable of!” Little Wuzi then called the thugs surrounding the house inside, handing each a machete. “Go in, chop that kid called Dongzi—the simple-minded one sitting over there—into mincemeat. I will take full responsibility for whatever happens.”

“You dare?” Mr. Wang immediately flared with anger, casually drawing a handgun from his waist. “Let’s see who dares step forward! I’ll shoot anyone who enters!”

The thugs instantly froze upon seeing the gun. Mr. Wang then turned back to Little Wuzi: “You truly are an ungrateful fool. I’m telling you, I am staying right here tonight. If anyone dares touch a single hair on the heads of the people inside, watch out for my bullets flying wildly. Whoever gets hit, I won’t be responsible!”

With Mr. Wang handling things this way, Little Wuzi was completely stuck. He sat off to the side, silently smoking a heavy cigarette. Soon, a youth with the look of a low-level hoodlum rushed in from outside, whispered a few words into the village head’s ear, then fiercely dropped his cigarette butt, shot a look at Mr. Wang, and rushed back out with the boy, snatching up a long machete on his way out.

The situation was this: when Zhou Huan drove away, someone had already been tailing him. The person who just returned to tell Little Wuzi the news was the one who had followed Zhou Huan. What he whispered into the village head’s ear was: Zhou Huan is back!

At this, Little Wuzi hustled everyone from the gambling den outside, leaving only three of the toughs to guard the room, effectively tying up Mr. Wang. He feared that if Mr. Wang interfered, he wouldn't be able to employ violent methods to capture Zhou Huan, as he still dreaded Mr. Wang’s influence.

Zhou Huan’s car slowly drove into the village. Before it could even reach its parking spot, the vehicle was entirely surrounded by a throng of people, leaving no room for even a fly to pass through.

“Zhou Huan, get out of the car for me.”

Zhou Huan recognized the voice as likely belonging to the village head. How had the situation escalated so drastically? It was just one broken pane of glass; was it worth this much fuss?

“Zhou Huan, I originally respected you, bringing you food and serving you comfortably. Look at your shabby appearance! You ran out of money and tried to bolt, leaving your brother behind! What were you thinking?” Little Wuzi rambled incoherently until Zhou Huan felt dizzy. After regaining his senses, Zhou Huan realized the man had completely misunderstood him.

Zhou Huan chuckled, “Did you guys misunderstand me? Didn't I just kick through one of your panes of glass? Why are you now describing me as if I’m not even human?”

“Stop the nonsense! Pin him down first, and then we’ll make his foolish brother come back with money to ransom him. Trying to eat here for free? Don't even think about it! What, did you think throwing a kang full of joss paper money was enough to settle things?” Little Wuzi was primarily concerned about his lost money.

Zhou Huan threw his head back and laughed loudly, “Look at your limited ambition. Your brother Huan doesn’t care about those few bills. Boy, if you want to use force, then your brother is happy to oblige.” Zhou Huan deliberately removed his Tiancan Shou Tao (Heavenly Silkworm Gloves) as he spoke, as wearing those gloves made it too easy to accidentally kill someone, which he still sought to avoid.

Initially, two men behind Zhou Huan moved to restrain him, but Zhou Huan gave them no chance. He struck back with a punch from each hand. The two men, whose frames were easily twice the size of Zhou Huan’s, were instantly floored, clutching their stomachs and screaming in pain.

This sight thoroughly shocked the remaining men, who all staggered several steps back until Little Wuzi spoke again: “What are you retreating for? Attack all at once!” With that, the dozen or so men charged forward together.

The sudden silence was the precursor to an explosion. The dozen men surrounded Zhou Huan and paused for a few seconds. Then, they were seen clutching their feet, mouths wide open in agony, collapsing onto the ground, completely still.

Zhou Huan remained standing in place, seemingly unconcerned, a faint smile playing on his lips as he looked at Little Wuzi.

At that very moment, Little Wuzi’s eyes suddenly rolled back, and he collapsed onto the ground, breathing rapidly, his limbs convulsing uncontrollably. His pained expression and numb features indicated he would never recover consciousness.