Jiang Xiuxiu slept in the room of the long-haired female player this time.
When the white ghost appeared, she didn't pretend to be asleep and was directly mesmerized by the ghost, staggering into the courtyard.
Not long after, like Zhang Wei and others the previous night, she tripped over the bushes in the courtyard.
After falling, she quickly woke up but pretended she was still in a trance and continued following the white ghost.
Now that Jiang Xiuxiu had come this far, she was determined to go all out.
Unlike the first level, this time Xu Bai wasn't as wary of her, but he also wasn't giving her repeated information like he did in Cihe Academy to use her.
She no longer had the blood jade to protect her and could only fight alone.
This trip was do-or-die, if she failed, it would be irreversible.
Jiang Xiuxiu thought she would be anxious and fearful, but once she stood in the courtyard, her heart was unusually calm.
Any opportunity comes with risk, nothing in this world is foolproof.
Given the current situation, she couldn't delay and had to face the challenges head-on.
Xu Bai likely wouldn't expect her to be brave enough to walk into the trap, and the time when Xu Bai was absent would be her opportunity.
Since she had come this far, all she could do was give her best effort.
Following the white ghost, Jiang Xiuxiu soon reached the basement entrance.
The white ghost grabbed her, and in a flash, she felt an overwhelming dizziness, as if everything before her was spinning.
In the next second, she found herself in a bright space.
Jiang Xiuxiu swayed a bit and realized she had been taken to the basement.
No, not the basement.
Upon closer inspection, she noticed an additional staircase on the right-hand wall, and the original wall leading to the basement was now completely blocked.
So, beneath the basement, there was another basement.
It turned out the courtyard basement was double layered.
Jiang Xiuxiu was momentarily stunned but quickly adjusted her breathing and began to rapidly take in the surroundings of the second basement.
Compared to the first basement, this one was smaller but much more filled with items.
There were numerous candles, talismans pasted everywhere, and a simple wooden altar.
Here, she saw a bizarre statue almost as tall as the ceiling, with piles of white bones emitting a strong stench of decay in front of it.
Just one glance told Jiang Xiuxiu that this statue was likely the evil god the couple worshipped.
Indeed, no matter what god is worshipped, a statue is usually set up.
Her grandparents' home was like that, always with a Buddha statue and fresh food and fruits on festive occasions.
Previously, her attention was all on investigating Xu Bai, so she had missed this crucial point about the basement.
This deeper, hidden basement was where the couple conducted their real rituals.
Thinking of this, Jiang Xiuxiu calmed her mind and looked carefully at the evil god statue before her.
The statue was wooden and finely crafted.
It was covered with many talismans arranged in a strange pattern, forming a circle around the room.
Unlike typical fierce and terrifying evil god statues, this one appeared rather benevolent and kind, much like Xu Bai, who always pretended to be gentle and innocent but was ruthlessly cold-hearted underneath.
Maybe it was psychological, but in the red candlelight, the kind-looking evil god statue seemed to be tinged with a layer of ominous red.
"Sister."
As Jiang Xiuxiu was about to look away, she suddenly heard a faint greeting.
Sister?
Someone was calling her.
Since she entered, the white ghost had disappeared, so there shouldn't be anyone else here.
Curious, Jiang Xiuxiu looked towards the source of the voice and saw a thin white figure suddenly appear behind the evil god statue.
She was slightly taken aback.
It was a seven or eight-year-old girl.
Jiang Xiuxiu remembered her; she was the child of the couple in the old mansion.
When she first came to the basement, the little boy had held the little girl's hand, so they had met once.
"Sister."
Seeing Jiang Xiuxiu look over, the little girl smiled at her.
Unlike the little boy, she was just an ordinary soul, and now her figure was becoming increasingly transparent, indicating she was about to dissipate.
Why was she calling out to her?
Jiang Xiuxiu couldn't understand but had a vague guess.
Sure enough, the little girl pointed at the evil god statue beside her.
Perhaps too weak to speak, her actions and expression were very clear.
The evil god statue held a secret.
Jiang Xiuxiu was startled.
The little girl's soul was so thin that after pointing, she wavered and vanished into the air.
At the same time, a faint voice came from behind Jiang Xiuxiu.
"It's you."
Xu Bai had arrived.
Jiang Xiuxiu was startled and quickly turned around, only to see Xu Bai standing behind her, though she hadn't noticed when he had arrived.
In the dim light, he tilted his head slightly, his eyes looking at Jiang Xiuxiu with an inscrutable expression.
"I wasn't paying attention, and you managed to find this place."
His expression was very gentle, with a hint of mild surprise.
However, beneath his calm tone, Jiang Xiuxiu could sense an intermittent killing intent.
Seeing this, alarm bells went off in Jiang Xiuxiu's mind.
She hadn't expected Xu Bai to react so quickly, and she hadn't had time to do anything.
But her intuition told her that if she dared to move towards the evil god statue, death would certainly await her.
She couldn't fight Xu Bai, but the evil god statue was definitely the key, she had to reach it.
What should she do?
In a moment of desperation, Jiang Xiuxiu's gaze shifted slightly, and she noticed the candles beside Xu Bai out of the corner of her eye.
Unlike the dusty upper basement, this lower basement was filled with numerous candles.
At this moment, Xu Bai had lit them all.
The flickering orange-red flames illuminated the entire basement clearly.
"What are you thinking?"
As Jiang Xiuxiu's thoughts were in turmoil, Xu Bai, who was watching her, blinked and asked.
Jiang Xiuxiu was already feeling uneasy under his gaze, and when Xu Bai asked this, she quickly shook her head. "No, I was just thinking..."
Halfway through her sentence, Jiang Xiuxiu suddenly recalled that Ye Ming seemed to have been burned to death with her maid outfit in the first basement.
When she came back to look, she couldn't find the maid outfit.
Since no one else had been in the basement, the whereabouts of the maid outfit remained a mystery.
It had been too dark before, and Jiang Xiuxiu hadn't realized that the basement was two layers.
Seeing the lower basement now, her mind began to race.
Could Xu Bai have the maid outfit?
Maybe, just like in Cihe Academy, where he found the cat ears interesting, Xu Bai might also find the maid outfit amusing?
"I just wanted to see you."
Jiang Xiuxiu found herself saying this, though it was a roundabout way of expressing her true intention. After all, she had come for Xu Bai.
"See me?"
Xu Bai chuckled lightly and asked in return.
He seemed surprised by her response, his dark eyes filled with curiosity as well as scrutiny.
"Yes," Jiang Xiuxiu nodded quickly, "if not to see you, why would I come here?"
After saying this, to lower Xu Bai's guard, she even took a couple of steps closer to him, deliberately moving away from the evil god statue.
Xu Bai narrowed his eyes and scrutinized Jiang Xiuxiu thoughtfully.
Although Jiang Xiuxiu was just an ordinary girl, she had picked up a few things from her interactions with Xu Bai.
Like now, she put on a very pure and harmless smile, looking clean and innocent, making it hard for anyone to see through her lie.
After a moment, Xu Bai's killing intent diminished slightly.
"That's an interesting thought," he said slowly.
"Of course," Jiang Xiuxiu said with a smile.
She took a few more steps towards Xu Bai, closing the distance between them.
Jiang Xiuxiu knew very well that this explanation alone wouldn't be enough to dispel Xu Bai's suspicions.
Other matters aside, if he found out she was after the evil god statue, she would be dead for sure.
Therefore, she needed a more convincing distraction to buy time.
And "looking for the maid outfit" seemed like a perfect cover.
Without hesitation, as she got closer to Xu Bai, she suddenly made a move.
Timing it perfectly, she reached into Xu Bai's coat pockets with both hands.
But her fingers grasped at nothing.
Jiang Xiuxiu was puzzled.
Why was there nothing in Xu Bai's pockets?
Could the maid outfit not be with him after all?
"What are you doing?"
Xu Bai, with Jiang Xiuxiu pressed close against him, narrowed his eyes and stared at her stiffened form.
His expression remained innocent, but his tone became extremely low, carrying a hint of coldness. "Are you trying to take something from me?"
"No, of course not," Jiang Xiuxiu immediately denied.
She moved her arms, wrapping them tightly around Xu Bai's waist.
Ignoring Xu Bai's dangerous gaze, Jiang Xiuxiu remained calm. "I just wanted to give you a hug."
Xu Bai: "..."
Jiang Xiuxiu spoke earnestly, "Hatred only brings pain. Learning to forgive can help let go of obsessions. Giving you a hug, let's bury the hatchet."
Xu Bai: "..."
As Jiang Xiuxiu finished speaking, the room fell into a deep silence.
The atmosphere became incredibly awkward, and even the nearby flames seemed to stop flickering.
Jiang Xiuxiu: "..."
Jiang Xiuxiu: "Haha, that's about it..."
Only after speaking did she realize how suffocatingly awkward her actions were.
But since things had come to this, her chance had arrived.
Without hesitation, she seized the moment when Xu Bai was slightly distracted, releasing her hold and stepping back.
In the next second, she secretly mustered her strength and swept her leg, kicking over the candles nearby.
With a thud, a row of candles fell, igniting the talismans around them.
In an instant, a fire erupted in the basement.
The flames quickly spread along the talismans, soon reaching the evil god statue.