After ending the call, Zhou Yu could not fall asleep again. He took out the switchblade from under the pillow and poked at the ashes in the bowl next to him. It took until five o'clock in the afternoon like this before he walked out of the room and looked for the red leaves in the living room.
As expected, Hongye was still extremely upright, lying on the sofa and sleeping like a corpse. When Zhou Yu came within ten steps of her, she opened her eyes and sat up straight.
"Zhou Yu, what's wrong with you?" She asked in surprise, "What happened?"
For some reason, Zhou Yu always felt that this scene seemed familiar. He replied in a calm tone: "It's okay. I just killed someone."
Hongye looked at him in astonishment: "You have clearly never been out, how can you kill someone?"
"Well, I killed it in my heart."
Although he said this in a joking tone, Hongye still frowned seriously, as if he was thinking about the feasibility of killing people with his mind.
"...Hongye, you know I'm just joking, right?"
"That's natural. But Zhou Yu, do you often have evil thoughts in your heart recently?"
"It depends if any annoying guy calls."
Hongye still looked a little confused. She sat upright, brushed the hair from her forehead and said, "Zhou Yu, although the dreamless incense I gave you will not be harmful to your body, after all, dreams are sent by people's thoughts. You may not be able to dream for a long time. Maybe It may cause some mental stress. I can't detect this in advance. If you think there is something wrong, you must explain it to me as soon as possible."
"I understand. But I don't think there's anything wrong now. The problem lies with other people."
If anything, Zhou Yu not only doesn't think he has any evil thoughts recently, but is actually in a better state than he was a year ago. The urge to kill something no longer appears so frequently. Only when facing Hongye's sword will he regain the desire to kill.
No, strictly speaking, it’s not just Momiji’s sword. He had a similar feeling the night he saw Ferris. The strange thing is that he is full of instinctive hostility towards Motian, but he does not have the same feeling when facing Ausier.
After dinner, the two went downstairs again. Before leaving, Hongye seemed to suddenly remember something and asked him: "Zhou Yu, do you plan to always control this body?"
Zhou Yu was stunned for a moment and said, "No, it's just a temporary situation now."
Because of the scent of red leaves, he has maintained control of his body these past few days. But that was to solve Zhang Mumu's matter. When the trouble was over, he would naturally return the daily life to Zhou Yu.
Although at that time, he had not yet thought about how to explain the continuous amnesia in the past few days, and he had not even started to forge the diary. There are too many contradictory parts that need to be covered up. He still hasn't figured out how to write it, so he can only deal with it later.
"Actually, it would be better if you tell the original owner of your existence." Hong Ye suddenly said this when starting the motorcycle.
"Too much trouble."
"Isn't it more inconvenient than before? The fact that you came here in this way must be related to the original owner. Then she should also accept your existence."
"...Let's wait until the current matter is resolved."
Although Hongye's words were reasonable, Zhou Yu still didn't want to continue the discussion. Of course it was just an excuse to find it troublesome. The real reason was that he didn't want Zhou Yu to know this. First of all, he didn't want Zhou Yu to be involved in anything unusual; secondly, whether it was intentional or not, it was impossible not to feel disgusted if his body was used by another consciousness for no reason.
Probably sensing his reluctance, Hongye did not continue the topic. The motorcycle roared towards Crescent Road.
During last night's operation, although they met the old scavenger, they did not find the Sanglian that Hong Ye mentioned. Hearing the answer "Home is down there", Zhou Yu's first reaction was to doubt the purpose of the old man scavenging. However, after several trials, he soon felt that the other party's behavior was not like he was pretending to be crazy or acting stupid.
Judging from his words and deeds, the old man may be a mild dementia patient. Although he could still recognize other people's questions, he was confused when answering them. Ask him what he means by "down there," and he'll just repeat it cheerfully. After trying in vain for more than twenty minutes, Zhou Yu could only give up communicating with the other party.
Originally, he considered taking the other party back for detailed questioning, but that might constitute illegal detention, and Hongye obviously did not agree with this idea. She knelt down and looked directly at the old man for a while, and then asserted to Zhou Yu: "This old man didn't lie."
"Were you observing the dilation of his pupils just now? Let me first say that this method is inaccurate and can only prove emotional changes."
"No, I'm trying to identify his 'qi'. This old man is not hostile to us, and I don't think he would deliberately lie to us."
Zhou Yu had nothing to say when he heard Hongye say such a mysterious and mysterious word as "qi". For the remaining hours, they could only wander around like headless flies, looking for potential clues.
From common sense, what the old man said should be underground spaces such as basements and sewers. However, after experiencing so much, even Zhou Yu has become accustomed to accepting abnormalities. He confirmed to Hongye: "The Sanglian you know shouldn't be able to fly into the sky or escape from the earth, right?"
"I don't think there will be such a thing because this is not his jurisdiction."
Even though he said that, Hongye's tone seemed uncertain.
Until early in the morning, they did not find anything like a hole in the ground. Although most of the abandoned houses are locked up, their internal structures are similar. They are all simple square boxes that look like remnants of the last century. Excavating a basement where there is no cavity in the foundation is probably not something that one person can do in a hurry.
The one remaining possibility is sewerage. However, they could not find even a manhole cover entrance in the nearby neighborhood. In desperation, the plan to check the sewer had to be postponed to the next night.
Because he really didn't want to experience that dirty environment, Zhou Yu suggested after arriving at Crescent Road: "Hongye, let's use the previous method again."
Hongye did not react immediately and asked subconsciously: "What method?"
"The one you put your finger on my head. Maybe we can find him again tonight."
Hongye showed a clear expression.
"It's useless, Zhou Yu. What you feel is the 'damage' of this world. So far, the most serious is this area. Even if Sang Lian does the same thing elsewhere, as long as the damage does not exceed this area, you will You can’t feel it. Besides, being constantly connected to the city is harmful to you, so don’t rely too much on that state.”
"...It doesn't matter if you try one more time."
"It's not too late to search this place first and try again. Sang Lian's actions are not like Ausir's. Even if it is delayed for a few days, no one will be harmed."
Despite her assurance, Zhou Yu remained sullen. Hongye stared at him in confusion for a few seconds, and gradually understood.
"Zhou Yu. If you don't want to go into the sewer, is it because you think it's dirty?"
"No." Zhou Yu replied quickly.
"When you wash dishes, you have to wash your hands and towels three times every time, right? This is not the habit of normal people."
"This is normal."
"No, it's beyond the level of ordinary people... In your words, this is called mysophobia, right?"
Zhou Yu kept a straight face and stopped talking.
Hongye simply turned around and started laughing behind his back.
"Sorry...if it doesn't work, just wait up there. I'll just go down and look for you."
"No, I'll go down too."
Zhou Yu gritted his teeth and said this. Seeing his expression, Hongye stopped saying any offensive words. She inserted the green sword into the edge of the manhole cover and made a circle, then easily lifted the iron manhole cover.
A thick, strong putrid odor like vomit wafted from the depths of the dark well.
"Go down and have a look."
Without even frowning, Hongye turned on the flashlight he had prepared in advance and took the lead in jumping down the shaft.
