Chapter 66: Valley Sheath

As it approached midnight, that slightly pungent fragrance finally dissipated. Even though nothing was left in the air, a suffocating silence lingered, filled with unease.

Chu Susu gazed out the pitch-black window. The moon was slowly being obscured by darkness, its shape gradually shifting toward a waxing crescent. In just a few more minutes, it would become half-full, half-waning.

Yet there wasn’t a single star in the sky. The moon hung high alone, eerie and bewitching.

She was usually bold and never scared watching ghost movies, but right now, she couldn’t help pulling the curtains shut. She turned on all the lights in the living room and bedroom to maximum brightness, making the whole house brightly lit.

Just a few minutes ago, Han Xuan had fallen unconscious. It was unclear if it was due to this moment’s arrival or the pain.

Chu Susu had added more hot water for her, hoping it would make Han Xuan feel a bit better.

Pipi had also intuitively stopped its howling. It should have been asleep at this hour, but now it stayed wide awake by her side, not going anywhere.

“Good boy.” Chu Susu stroked its head. “Sorry I didn’t have time to walk you today.”

Pipi seemed to understand, obediently shaking its head as if to say “It’s fine.”

The WeChat call ringtone suddenly blared, startling her. She checked her phone—it was Fang Chen.

Chu Susu answered, unsure why he was calling so late.

“Hello, bro? What’s up?”

Fang Chen’s voice was as usual: “Susu, you asleep yet? I’m coming over to drop something off for you.”

“Huh?” Chu Susu frowned, hesitating. “So late? Forget it, we can do it later. You’d be driving back in the early hours, and you have work tomorrow.”

Fang Chen: “No worries, no worries. I have a 4 a.m. flight for a business trip tomorrow, so I won’t get much sleep anyway. There’s a box of stuff I forgot to give you earlier. Might as well swing by—it’s on the way to the airport.”

“…What stuff?”

“Fresh goods from someone else.”

As her cousin, Fang Chen had always been close to her and taken good care of her, often dropping by with things unannounced.

His job did involve frequent business trips, and stopping by on the way to the airport… it didn’t seem off.

“Fresh goods? What kind?”

Fang Chen: “All sorts, a whole box. Wait till I get there and open it for you.”

Chu Susu hesitated: “Forget it, bro. It’s not urgent. You can give it to me later…”

But Fang Chen hung up before she could finish.

Chu Susu felt something inexplicably off.

Han Xuan had just warned her not to believe anything she heard—everything was fake.

But that call was from Fang Chen’s real WeChat account. The voice, tone, wording, and excuse all sounded exactly like him. Chu Susu couldn’t detect anything wrong.

She walked to the bathroom door, wanting to tell Han Xuan about it, only to see her lying calmly in the hot water, completely unconscious.

Only her furrowed brows revealed the pain she was enduring.

Chu Susu returned to the living room, feeling a bit lost. She pulled up her cousin-in-law’s WeChat—Fang Chen’s wife—and sent a message.

“Jing-jie, did my bro head out driving to find me right now?”

No reply.

Fang Chen’s place wasn’t far, and he’d clearly set off when he called. Less than twenty minutes later, the doorbell rang from downstairs.

A familiar face appeared on the monitor screen. Fang Chen was dressed casually, holding a box, waiting for her to buzz him in.

Chu Susu hit the intercom button.

“Susu.” Fang Chen’s voice came through muffled as he leaned toward the camera.

Chu Susu didn’t speak, just quietly watching his reaction.

Seeing her silent, Fang Chen asked strangely, “Open up.”

Pipi at her feet suddenly barked “Woof!” involuntarily, like it had spotted an enemy, growling fiercely to warn it away.

Chu Susu had changed into pajamas earlier. Pipi bit her pant leg, shaking its little head rapidly.

Even it sensed something was wrong.

Chu Susu thought for a moment and finally figured out what was off.

Her cousin-in-law Jing-jie hadn’t replied because she must be asleep.

Jing-jie was super health-conscious. With Fang Chen’s busy job, she always fretted over him staying up late and ruining his health. And didn’t she know his personality? He was totally henpecked. Normally, his wife would have dragged him to bed by now.

Even for a business trip, Jing-jie would never let him pull an all-nighter. How could he possibly have time to come over at midnight? She’d have killed him.

Plus, coming over so late was disruptive, no matter how close they were. He wouldn’t be this casual.

The “Fang Chen” in front of her looked exactly like the real one—too realistic, leaving Chu Susu momentarily dazed.

Now that she thought about it, since Han Xuan had special abilities, those “Hunters” probably did too. They must have disguised themselves as Fang Chen somehow.

“Susu?” The Fang Chen downstairs called again. “Open up. What are you spacing out for?”

Having figured it out, she stared at the person on the screen without responding, then directly cut the call.

On WeChat, Fang Chen’s call popped up immediately, followed by a barrage of messages: “Susu, why’d you hang up on me? Open up quick.”

“It’s the middle of the night, super cold out here. What’s wrong with you?”

No matter what he said, Chu Susu ignored him. About five minutes later, the WeChat finally went quiet.

He must have left, right?

Frowning, she hugged Pipi tighter, still a bit nervous. To be safe, she sent a quick message to Chu Qingyang, summarizing the incident briefly.

Of course, she didn’t mention Han Xuan—just half-truthfully said Fang Chen had messaged at this hour saying he was coming over, but the voice and tone didn’t sound like him.

A good while passed with no further word from Fang Chen, and no reply from Chu Qingyang.

Just as Chu Susu thought it was over, the doorbell rang again.

“Ding-dong.”

The crisp chime sounded piercingly harsh at that moment.

“Chu Susu.”

From the other side of the door came a familiar woman’s voice, steady and reassuring: “Open up.”

Chu Susu shot up from the sofa, hugging Pipi as she hurried to the door.

“Sis?” she asked uncertainly.

It was unmistakably Chu Qingyang’s voice.

“I was on duty nearby and saw your message, so I came over,” the person outside said. “I’ve already had colleagues check for suspicious people around. Didn’t want you to be scared alone, so I’m here to keep you company.”

“Oh… you’re on duty tonight?”

“Yeah. You gonna make me stand out here forever?”

Compared to Fang Chen, Chu Qingyang was someone Chu Susu trusted even more.

Plus, she’d messaged Chu Qingyang first. This time, it should be real…

The voice outside seemed to have some magical pull, making Chu Susu feel dazed and thoughtless.

Unknowingly, her hand was almost on the doorknob when the little dog in her arms bit her arm.

“Woof!” Pipi barked loudly and viciously.

Chu Susu snapped awake, realizing something was wrong. She’d been like her soul had left her body, not knowing what she was doing—nearly opening the door.

The person outside definitely wasn’t Chu Qingyang.

She was a criminal police officer, not some beat cop. How could she just casually bring colleagues on patrol?

That was ridiculous.

“You’re not my sis,” Chu Susu said coldly. “I’m not opening.”

The person outside paused, seemingly surprised: “What nonsense are you talking?”

The tone and inflection were identical.

Han Xuan had told her before: as long as she didn’t open the door, no one could come in. Hunters couldn’t harm ordinary people.

With that in mind, Chu Susu steadied herself.

She lowered her voice, making it sound fierce and heartless: “Scram.”

“Chu Susu…”

“I said scram!”

Realizing she wouldn’t open no matter what, the other side gave up after a moment. It no longer used Chu Qingyang’s voice to deceive but slowly shifted back.

As expected, it was a stranger’s voice, genderless, carrying an eerie, metallic tone.

“You’re just an ordinary person—no need to get involved in our affairs. If you open up, we can give you plenty of benefits. Like money. You work pretty hard, don’t you? Don’t you want to relax?”

Failed to trick, now trying bribery.

Chu Susu said flatly: “Not opening. Besides, I don’t need money. Whatever you offer probably isn’t even as much as my pocket money.”

Chu Zhen did business with tens of millions in turnover routinely. Though it wasn’t hers, she’d grown up around it—who would be swayed by money?

“…”

She was like a rock, unmoved no matter what.

The person outside didn’t give up, saying slowly: “No worries. I get it. You’re just being fooled by Han Xuan.”

Bribery failed, now sowing discord.

The androgynous voice shifted to a gentle approach, softening patiently:

“Did she tell you that if you open the door, we Hunters will hurt her? That’s not true.”

“You probably don’t know this, but beneath Han Xuan’s seemingly innocent exterior hides a heart that’s rotten to the core.”

“She’s young, yet the evil deeds she’s committed are far too many, her sins heaped to the heavens. Her hands are stained with the blood of countless people.”

“The Hunter wants to find her—not for personal gain, but to rein her in and stop her from harming more innocents.”

“Today is the waxing gibbous moon, when Han Xuan is at her weakest. Only at such times does the Hunter have a chance to get close to her.”

“You’re blinded by lies right now, foolishly protecting her. But do you know? One day in the future, you’ll regret it. By then, you’ll end up torn to shreds just like the countless souls who fell to her hand.”

“After all, her ability is gained and strengthened at the cost of human lives.”

“You’ve never heard any of this before, have you? Of course not—she still needs to use you, so why would she ever tell you?”

Even though Chu Susu knew that person had definitely used some extraordinary ability, she quickly covered her ears. Yet those words still flowed straight into her ears, not missing a single one.

Like spinning a tale, those few sparse phrases shook her state of mind ever so slightly.

But Chu Susu spoke clearly, her words crude yet direct.

Only three words.

“You’re full of shit.”