Chapter 304: Hidden Mission Completed
Zhou Ning walked up to the door of the house on the right and instantly felt a chill creep over him. According to the nameplate hanging at the entrance, the owner of this estate bore the surname Fisher—a name common among the Falric people.
As he drew closer, he realized that under his deep-blue spirit vision, the place was crawling with the dead. The sheer number of them was staggering, and the way they had died was gruesome—missing limbs, torn flesh—enough to drive anyone without strong nerves to madness.
The name Fisher was unfamiliar, but the mutilated bodies around him brought another name to mind: Jeremy Wayne Aiden—the serial killer Sherlock had once mentioned. According to Sherlock, Jeremy had murdered over thirty-five people in a particularly cruel manner, and the condition of these corpses matched his methods perfectly.
Zhou Ning placed his left hand on a railing for support and, like a black bat, leaped lightly into the Fisher Estate. The grounds were empty—deathly silent—save for the mangled undead wandering aimlessly through the yard.
A negative effect quietly appeared over his body.
Resentment of the Dead: Luck -25% (Duration: 3 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes)
So that's why Ian and John had such terrible luck—they'd been infected by this debuff. As a transcendent being, Zhou Ning no longer felt fear toward such scenes, though the atmosphere still filled him with instinctive unease.
Keeping cautious, he moved among the torn and bloodied spirits. Like John's grandfather's soul, they acted purely on instinct and didn't attack intruders. Most wore ragged peasant clothes and looked young, their faces filled with numbness or grief. From time to time, they wept or sighed—a sound that chilled the spine.
"I wonder if I can use my necro-communication ability to talk to them?"
He tried communicating with more than ten undead in a row, but all he received were meaningless notes, wails, or sobs. Zhou Ning shook his head helplessly.
"I can basically conclude these spirits have no self-awareness. I'll have to find another target." He straightened the collar of his coat and continued deeper into the estate.
The deeper he went, the colder and darker it became. At least seventy to eighty people had been killed here—it was a slaughterhouse. Some had evolved into wraiths with hostile intent, circling Zhou Ning and waiting for a chance to strike.
Zhou Ning exhaled a frosty breath. Golden ripples ignited in his right palm, and with a single punch, he burned several of the circling wraiths to ash.
[You have slain a Wraith (Lv45). You gained 1,200 EXP. (XP reduced by 65% due to low monster level.)]
Low level, but still decent experience.
After taking down seven or eight attacking wraiths, Zhou Ning noticed something unusual—a young man in ornate clothes was quietly slipping away from the group that had just tried to attack him.
Found him!
A gleam of excitement flashed in Zhou Ning's eyes. Without hesitation, he rushed toward the young undead, intercepting him in an instant.
The young man looked about twenty, dressed in a white shirt embroidered with intricate patterns, his expression twisted in pain. If not for his clear self-awareness, Zhou Ning might have mistaken him for an ordinary undead.
At the same time, the progress bar for [Mansion Mystery] jumped to 35%.
Zhou Ning's hunch had been right—he was thrilled.
"D-Don't hurt me!" The young spirit shrank back in terror, clearly traumatized by Zhou Ning's earlier destruction of the wraiths.
"Relax. I just want to ask you a few questions. Of course, if you don't cooperate… I don't mind using force," Zhou Ning said with a mild smile.
"W-What… what do you want to know?" the young undead stammered.
"I want to know—who killed you, and why?"
The young man lowered his head. After a long silence, he finally whispered, "It was Jeremy Wayne Aiden. He killed me with a bone spear… because I discovered one of his secrets."
"What secret?" Zhou Ning pressed.
"He pretends to be a successful businessman, but in truth, he works for Count Robbins. His work involves kidnapping and murder. I don't know the full purpose, but it's connected to some religious cause. I was his only son and took part in many of his dealings, but I died after accidentally witnessing a meeting between him and the Count. They were performing a ritual—a black altar, a statue, and a pentagram drawn on the floor. I didn't get a clear look at it." The young undead spoke with visible anguish.
Zhou Ning's heart skipped a beat. From that description, it sounded like a ritual to offer resentment to an Elder God. Picking up a twig, he sketched a rough drawing of a bull-headed figure resembling Nyastora on the ground. "Was it this statue?" he asked.
"It… looks like it," the young undead said uncertainly, glancing at the drawing.
"Any other secrets?" By now, the mission progress had jumped to 85%, and Zhou Ning continued questioning.
"That's all… Oh, wait—does Jeremy Wayne Aiden's alias count? I once saw another nameplate of his—'Chris Fisher.' He's the director of an orphanage in Darkland. I don't know if he's still there. Heh… funny, isn't it? A murderous devil playing the role of a kind-hearted director." The young undead gave a bitter laugh.
No sooner had he finished speaking than a system notification popped up:
[B-Rank Hidden Mission: Undead's Trail – Part III, "The Haunted Manor Mystery" completed. You gained 226,000 EXP.]
[Total Missions Completed: 1/4. You may settle at any time. The system will grant bonus rewards based on evaluation.]
"Chris Fisher…" Zhou Ning murmured. That name was worth remembering. From experience, any detail highlighted as a key mission clue was never without value.
He committed the name to memory, then looked coldly at the young undead. "I've asked what I needed to. Do you have any last wishes? I'll do my best to fulfill them."
This young man had clearly participated in many of Jeremy Aiden's brutal murders. Even in death, Zhou Ning had no intention of sparing him.
Realizing what was about to happen, the young undead's face went pale. After a long pause, he said dejectedly, "I understand. Could you… go to Saint Raymond's Cathedral and ask the Sun Goddess for forgiveness on my behalf? I helped my father do many terrible things."
"Alright." Zhou Ning nodded calmly and turned to leave. Behind him, a golden flame quietly ignited on the young spirit's body, consuming him to ash within moments.
Still alert, Zhou Ning retraced his steps and vaulted lightly over the fence, leaving the Fisher Estate behind with a quicker pace—pleased to have completed another hidden mission.
As for John's grandfather's soul, he decided to speak with John first before taking action.
He glanced at the streetlights on both sides of the road, then slipped into the shadow of one. From his inventory, he took out Damian's Ordinary Mirror. Guided by intuition, he gently rubbed the mirror's surface, connecting with the imprint on the other side. Before long, his figure melded into the mirror itself. Beyond a faint membrane lay the full-length mirror in his inn's room.
Mirror transference successful!
Zhou Ning's figure appeared inside the inn room. The window was still half-open, the bed slightly messy—exactly as he'd left it.
He couldn't help but marvel—this new mirror ability was far more useful than he had imagined.