Mysterious Revival

"How did you manage to escape that nightmare last night?"

Amid the quarrel outside, Yang Jian found his cousin Xiao Yuan and asked her very seriously about her experience in the nightmare because he remembered that the ghost did not go after Xiao Yuan but chose to attack him instead.

Of course, it didn't exclude the possibility that Xiao Yuan was still dreaming after he had woken up.

Xiao Yuan's eyes were slightly open, as if she had lost her spirit, and she didn't listen to anyone else beside her. Her body and hands were still stained with blood as if she was the one who had done what happened before, while she herself seemed unable to recover from the recent events.

"There are things you don't want to talk about, but you have to. If we can't completely resolve this nightmare, incidents like today's will happen again. It's not just Lin Xiaoxi who died today; someday, your parents could die, everyone in the village could die, and I could die."

Yang Jian was still inquiring; he wanted to figure out the root of this nightmare.

Now many clues were cut off; the only lead was Xiao Yuan.

"Xiao Yuan, are you listening to me?" Yang Jian continued to ask, waving his hand in front of her.

"I don't know, I got separated from Xiao Xi, and then she died... I shouldn't have left her, if I hadn't, she wouldn't have died, I would have protected her."

Xiao Yuan suddenly burst into tears as she spoke, blaming herself for leaving at that time.

Yang Jian frowned and felt something strange.

You should know that in the dream at that time, it was Lin Xiaoxi who was first attacked and abducted by the ghost, and then Xiao Yuan went after the ghost, leaving only himself alone. How come it turned into her separating from the girl called Lin Xiaoxi here?

Was there a problem with her memory?

Or was it interfered with by the dream so that things were a bit unclear?

"How is she now?" Jiang Yan asked from the side.

"Not sure, she has some issues of her own, there are things I can't explain." Yang Jian said.

"What's happening outside, why is it so noisy?"

At that moment, he heard a group of people arguing and shouting outside, as though there was about to be a fight, with some trying to break it up and others crying out.

"I'll go check it out." Jiang Yan also heard the commotion outside and hurriedly went to see what was happening.

But before she could step out, the door was pushed open, and a crowd of people barged in.

"Where is the murderer? Hand over the murderer! Are you trying to shield a killer? I'm telling you, this won't end today, an eye for an eye, a debt must be paid; it's only right..." An angry voice rose, belonging to a man in his thirties filled with rage.

The people trying to calm the man couldn't stop him as he charged into the house, and upon seeing Xiao Yuan sitting there with blood on her, his eyes immediately turned red.

Without a word, the man charged over and picked up a small wooden stool from the ground, swinging it viciously towards Xiao Yuan's head.

If the hardwood stool had made contact, it would surely have been fatal.

"Stop it, what are you doing?"

"Please, don't, Lin Hui calm down."

People cried out, trying to hold the man, named Lin Hui, back, but in his blind rage, he paid them no mind.

Jiang Yan was taken aback, not understanding what was happening when she saw someone with red eyes charging forward, but when she realized the target was not herself, but her cousin Xiao Yuan behind her.

Facing the attack, Xiao Yuan still stood there dazed, lifting her head slightly to look at the angry Lin Hui without fear or any attempt to dodge.

However, the solid wooden stool stopped ten centimeters in front of Xiao Yuan's head.

A pale hand firmly caught the stool.

Boss Yang stood beside her, staring indifferently at the man named Lin Hui, "Calm down, though it is tragic that someone in your family died, it doesn't give you the right to harm others indiscriminately."

"Get out of my way," Lin Hui shouted, still irrationally angry, swinging his other fist straight toward Boss Yang's face.

But before it could reach him, Lin Hui froze in place.

A slightly blackened hand gripped his wrist.

This hand did not seem like that of a living person's, stiff and unnaturally cold, without an issue, and the most eerie part was that just being grasped by it made Lin Hui feel like he had lost control of his body, it had been stripped of all control, forcing him to stand rigidly on the spot, unable to move like the sleep paralysis experienced during a night's sleep.

Despite being conscious, his body could not move.

"Can you calm down now?" Boss Yang's gaze was fixed on him.

Those were eyes devoid of any emotional fluctuations, harboring an inexplicable weirdness and danger, as if they were looking at a dead person, a corpse.

"If you keep acting impulsively, I won't hold back next time, and something might happen that you will regret." Boss Yang continued.

Faced with this inexplicable phenomenon and the terrifying gaze of the man in front of him.

Lin Hui felt a chill invading his body, and his rage instantly disappeared, replaced by an inexplicable fear.

He didn't know this Boss Yang, but instinctively felt a lethal danger.

"This man has killed someone." Lin Hui suddenly thought, as though only a killer could emit such a dangerous aura.

"What, what do you want to do?" He stammered as he spoke.

Yang Jian slowly lowered his hand, his expression still cold and detached, "Although my actions might seem a bit like bullying, it seems that this is the only way to calm you down. You might have a bad temper, but mine is worse, so don't casually lay a hand on me—I've been restraining myself considerably."

He was a ghost controller.

As a ghost controller, he was bound to be somewhat unconventional.

Yang Jian too had unconventional methods. He wasn't a complete person, so he himself was a bit worried that he might lose control and use the power of malevolent spirits to kill this man.

"I've looked at the situation upstairs. The person named Lin Xiaoxi is indeed dead, and her death is somewhat inexplicable. What is your relationship to her?"

"I am her brother," Lin Hui said, "Murder demands a life in return, that's only fair and just."

"I know, but the person wasn't murdered by my cousin. It's a special case, and even when the investigators arrive, they will tell you the same. So no matter what you are thinking, today you only have one choice, and that is to talk privately with me,"

Yang Jian said calmly.

"I don't want this to turn the village sour. Although you might feel that I am somewhat humiliating, I still have to say this—name your price, take the body back and bury her. The officers who come to investigate will close the case for you. There's no murderer here, no killer."

"Name your price, my ass... I want her to pay with her life."

Lin Hui's anger flared up again, but this time he didn't attack Yang Jian, instead pointing at him and shouting, "Get lost! This has nothing to do with you. Every debt has its debtor, my quarrel is with her."

As he said this, he glared at Xiao Yuan, agitated and itching to make a move.

"Two million," Yang Jian stated flatly.

"Didn't you hear me? Get lost! Today, I only want to settle the score with her," Lin Hui said.

Yang Jian continued, "Five million. I've said it, the person wasn't killed by my cousin, that is an unchangeable fact. No matter how angry you are, it's useless."

The others were shocked when they heard Yang Jian offer to compensate five million.

That was a significant sum of money. Whether or not Xiao Yuan was the murderer, the mere amount was very tempting. Slightly greedier individuals might already be contemplating a private resolution. After all, the dead can't come back to life, the living still need to make a living, don't they?

Besides, anyone who could casually offer five million was determined to protect Xiao Yuan, making it very difficult to do anything to her.

"Just because you say she didn't do it means she didn't do it? Who do you think you are?" Lin Hui barked in rage.

However, at this moment, his fury had diminished substantially, whether because of the money or because Yang Jian made him feel fear. Either way, he no longer behaved like someone on the verge of murder.

"Yang Jian is in charge of Dachang City. Within the city, he can handle almost anything, including today's unusual event. His word is evidence, and it does not require your agreement," Jiang Yan said earnestly as she steadied her nerves and approached.

Yang Jian waved his hand, signaling Jiang Yan to stop talking.

The role of being in charge was too remote for the villagers; they were unaware of paranormal events, let alone the significance of the title "in charge."

"Wait for the investigators to arrive. You will see that I haven't spoken incorrectly, but for now, you need to wait here patiently," Yang Jian said.

"Fine, I'll wait a bit and see what you have to say then. If she really is the murderer, I won't let you off," Lin Hui said.

"When that time comes, do as you wish," Yang Jian nodded.

The scene was brought under control, and many breathed a sigh of relief.

After a short wait, two investigators arrived, quickly examined the situation, and assessed the body. Usually, they would detain the suspect and proceed with investigations, gather evidence, and file the case. However, this type of incident was not an isolated one recently, and if they followed through the entire procedure, many things would not get accomplished.

Thus, one of the investigators quickly informed both parties of their preliminary findings: "We initially determine this to be a suicide. No murderer is involved, but we do need to wait for the autopsy report for a final decision."

After delivering this information, the two investigators began recording statements on the scene, preparing to file the case.

Both of them were very clear that this was yet another bizarre death.

A similar incident had occurred in another village not long before, with the victim dying in much the same way, apparently by their own hand.

These incidents were to be reported up the chain; they were not something for them to handle.

"Did you hear that? Although it's not confirmed, it's almost certain. This type of incident in your family isn't unique; there have been more than just Lin Xiaoxi who died mysteriously lately," Yang Jian directed his words at Lin Hui.

At that moment, Lin Hui fell silent, no longer impulsive. He felt Yang Jian was right, for indeed there had been a number of mysterious nocturnal deaths in neighboring villages recently.

"Let's settle this privately. The incident happened here; you can't escape responsibility no matter what," he said after a while.

"You sure change your tune quickly," Jiang Yan scoffed, her contempt for the man clear in her heart.

If he had been steadfast in demanding a life for a life, it might have been one thing, but seeing no advantage to be gained, he immediately changed his mind, showing no sign of sorrow or grief, making it clear that he did not take Lin Xiaoxi's death seriously at all.

Yang Jian said, "If you want to settle this privately, that's fine. I'm a man of my word, five million, and we'll treat this as if it never happened. Don't hassle my cousin any longer."

"That's too much. That was before the case was filed. Now, I can negotiate for you, maybe save you a few hundred thousand," Jiang Yan came over and whispered.

Yang Jian glanced at her, "Do you think I'll have the chance to enjoy my money? Do as I say, give his family a sufficient settlement to avoid future trouble."

"Okay," Jiang Yan didn't press further and immediately started discussing the matter with Lin Hui.

Soon, the disturbance was over.

Lin Hui, as Lin Xiaoxi's family member, took the five million given by Jiang Yan and left without a word, disappearing quickly.

And Yang Jian earned a new nickname in the village, Boss Yang.

As for whether anyone behind his back was calling him a fool with more money than sense, that was something Yang Jian would never know.