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The moment that old voice came, the red filter that filled her vision vanished in an instant. Zhao Mingyue knew that as soon as she stepped onto the thirteenth step, she had entered another world. The ghosts and flames she saw were all due to the influence of the female ghost’s spirit and resentment.

Under the influence of the female ghost, the real world and the world of resentment intertwined, visible only to them. The arrival of this person from the outside broke the female ghost’s influence, thus returning to reality.

It was also possible that the female ghost, fearing the person outside, deliberately withdrew her power.

However, these were not the key points. The key was who the person outside was and what could cause such a reaction from the female ghost.

Zhao Mingyue believed that an ordinary person going directly to the fifth floor would definitely not have such an effect. Even she herself would be in danger, let alone affecting the female ghost.

“It’s the landlord…” Zhao Mingyue turned her head.

She recognized that voice; it was definitely the landlord from downstairs!

Actually, she wasn’t surprised by this. Only the landlord had the key to the fifth floor, and only he could go upstairs quietly. The white putty in the corridors of the fourth and fifth floors was also painted by the landlord.

But she didn’t understand why the landlord would do these things.

The female ghost had been dead for so many years, yet her body was not only unburied but also imprisoned here. If her body could be buried, then even if her resentful soul remained here, the resentment would be somewhat lessened.

Anyone would have a lot of resentment if they couldn’t rest in peace after death, their bones hung by chains, sealed with mud, and separated from their two children.

Many people have died in this building. The faces on the walls outside, each one represents a life. Those who died unjustly here were also unable to find release.

Their deaths are definitely related to the landlord!

The landlord must know that the woman’s resentful spirit has not left and that the female ghost is extremely dangerous. Yet, he still rents out the rooms on the fourth and fifth floors. To say he is an accomplice is not an exaggeration.

Holding Miss Rabbit in one arm and the magic staff in the other, Zhao Mingyue pulled open the bathroom door.

She didn’t even know what she was feeling at the moment. Perhaps fear, because of the landlord whose face she knew but not his heart. Or perhaps anger, for the countless people who have died unjustly in this building. Also confusion, she really couldn’t understand what benefit these actions brought to the landlord.

What she wanted to do most now was to confront him and get to the bottom of things.

Zhao Mingyue walked out from the darkness, and the flashlight in the living room shone on her. The other party seemed surprised, “Xiao Zhao, why is it you?”

The landlord was quite old, over seventy years old, with graying hair. He had a limp in one leg and was quite thin, but he seemed to be in good spirits, standing straight with bright eyes. However, his face did not have the kindness of an old man, but rather a fierce look.

Wearing a gray buttoned shirt and leaning on a cane, he held a flashlight. Under the influence of the light, the landlord’s face was not very clear, but this gave people a sense of horror, a completely different kind of horror from the female ghost.

This feeling was like being at a murder scene, knowing who the murderer was, and then turning around to see the murderer staring at you from the darkness.

“It’s me, are you surprised?”

“How did you get in? Who is this person?” The old landlord frowned, the wrinkles on his face seeming to twist together, making him look even more frightening.

“I’m already in this room. Do you still want to deceive me?” Zhao Mingyue saw that he was still pretending at this time and felt inexplicably angry.

As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere began to freeze slightly. The old landlord leaned on his cane for a while without speaking, just staring at Zhao Mingyue.

“You know everything?”

In TV dramas, whenever the villain says this line, it means he is ready to silence someone. Zhao Mingyue clenched the magic staff tightly and subconsciously took a step back.

“Yes, I know everything. You imprisoned that ghost to harm people!”

While saying this, her heart was calling out Bai Yu’s name.

Although the other party was over seventy years old, Zhao Mingyue still felt uneasy. Indeed, it was more reliable to call for Bai Yu.

Bai Yu did not speak, but instead, the old landlord walked over. He casually turned on the lights in the room. Electricity had been restored at some point, and the room suddenly brightened, but the light was not from energy-saving bulbs but old-fashioned ones.

The dim yellow light illuminated the room, yet not bringing much warmth.

The burnt smell in the air disappeared, replaced by a stronger smell of disinfectant. This smell of disinfectant seemed to permeate the walls and was more pronounced on the old landlord.

“If I said I didn’t mean to harm you, would you believe me? It’s true that I buried Xiao Lian’s body here, but I never intended for her to kill anyone.”

“I’ve investigated this place. The people who have committed suicide at Sunshine Apartments over the years, you dare to say it has nothing to do with you?”

More than ten people have committed suicide in this building. Zhao Mingyue did not believe it was just a coincidence that these people all came here to die. Ninety-nine percent of it was related to the female ghost. Just this morning, the female ghost had set up a ghost wall for her.

“They… are related to Xiao Lian.” The landlord sighed, “I won’t deny that. I’ve done my best to help them. From the moment they stepped into this building, their fate was no longer something I could decide.”

“Xiao Zhao, what you see may not be what you think. Listen to me, and you’ll understand.”

“Since you’ve investigated, let me tell you more about it. Xiao Lian, the ghost you mentioned, is actually my daughter. Because of an incident when she was a child, her spirit was damaged, and she was always in a daze, feeling insecure about everything around her and often hurting people.”

“She was like this even in school, often injuring classmates, so no school would accept her. Since junior high, she has stayed at home. Her mother passed away early, so I was the only one taking care of her.”

“Time passed quickly, and Xiao Lian grew up. However, her condition only improved slightly. At that time, I thought that one day I would grow old, and when I had no strength left, who could take care of her?”

“So when she was twenty-five, I found a man to marry her, named Lin Gui. He was also a tenant here. I saw that he was kind-hearted and honest, so I created opportunities for him to meet Xiao Lian. The two young people got along quite well.”

“After a few months, I talked to Lin Gui about this matter. His parents had also passed away early, so he agreed. The third year, their children were born, a pair of twins, a boy and a girl. It was also this year that Xiao Lian’s condition began to deteriorate after giving birth.”

“I didn’t understand why. Her condition had been under control, so why did it worsen? I went to many hospitals, but none were effective.”

“Later, when Xiao Lian’s condition worsened, she would smash furniture, and when it was severe, she would lock herself in the closet, saying that ‘they’ were coming for her and she had to hide.”

“One time, Xiao Lian locked the two children in the closet and locked the door from the outside. Lin Gui and I had to break the door to rescue the children. They had been without food or drink for a whole day.”

“Similar incidents happened frequently, so we didn’t dare to keep larger furniture at home during that time, and all mirrors were removed.”

“That year, the children were already five years old. Xiao Lian hadn’t had an episode for a year, but suddenly one day, she tied up the children and set a fire, trying to burn them alive. She said those things had hidden inside the children’s bodies, and only by doing this could she drive them out.”

Zhao Mingyue couldn’t help but ask, “Then why not separate the children from their mother?”

“Separating them, of course, we tried, but Xiao Lian’s condition would worsen significantly whenever she was apart from the children.”

“Back to the story, because of that incident, Lin Gui couldn’t take it anymore and discussed with me about sending Xiao Lian to a mental hospital. I was also afraid she would hurt the children, so I agreed.”

“After sending Xiao Lian away, I also left this place and moved to the outskirts of the city. Staying here was too painful for me. After all, Xiao Lian is my own daughter.”

“Then a few years later, Lin Gui suddenly told me he had brought Xiao Lian back. He didn’t tell me the reason, just that Xiao Lian would no longer hurt the children.”

“After Xiao Lian came back, he locked her on the fifth floor with the two children.”

“At that time, I thought that Xiao Lian’s condition had improved, so I told Lin Gui that the children were growing up and should be sent to school. Children can’t not go to school.”

“It was after the children went to school that problems arose.”

“Xiao Lian initially agreed to this, but when she learned that the children were enrolled at Dongcheng No. 13 Middle School, she went crazy and insisted on bringing the children back home.”

“One night, she somehow escaped and went to No. 13 Middle School, perhaps to pick up the children after school. However, that was the day a fire broke out at the school, and an entire class of students were burned to death inside.”

Zhao Mingyue’s eyes widened, “The children…”

“Yes, the children were in that class.” The landlord sighed deeply.

“After returning that day, Xiao Lian set fire to the fifth floor and burned herself alive.”

“After her death, her ghost wandered the fifth floor, killing several people. I had no choice but to seek a master’s help. The master instructed me to bring Xiao Lian’s body back, hang her with chains, and bury her body with soil from under the roots of a locust tree. Then, every so often, I was to take soil from her grave and spread it on the walls. This would suppress her spirit, confining her to wander forever between the fourth and fifth floors, never able to leave.”