Realm of the Night God

Chapter 27: Cause and Effect

The reason Yang Haoran brought up the Death God pendant at this moment was because he had some unresolved questions.

From Decaying Corpse Granny's fear of the Death God pendant last night, it was evident that the pendant had a certain restraining effect on her. Otherwise, Decaying Corpse Granny wouldn't have shown such fear towards the Death God pendant.

Jiang Zhenzhen also had a Death God pendant in her possession, borrowed from Yang Haoran. This particular Death God pendant had also been consecrated by a temple priest. When Yang Haoran lent it to Jiang Zhenzhen, he had repeatedly instructed her to always carry the pendant with her. So why was Decaying Corpse Granny still able to approach her?

In theory, with the Death God pendant on her person, Decaying Corpse Granny should have been deterred from getting close. Just like when Yang Haoran had the Death God pendant, Decaying Corpse Granny was very wary and kept her distance. If it hadn't been for Decaying Corpse Granny suddenly appearing in front of him, startling him and causing the pendant to be flung away, he might have successfully left with Jiang Zhenzhen and the middle-aged man.

Could it be that the Death God pendant he lent to Jiang Zhenzhen was a counterfeit, lacking the ability to instill fear in Decaying Corpse Granny?

When Yang Haoran inquired about the Death God pendant, Jiang Zhenzhen's pale face unexpectedly blushed slightly. She hesitantly explained, "I... I lost it. I remember wearing it around my neck, but when I got home last night, I couldn't find it. It might have been because I drank too much last night and accidentally lost it on my way home."

"Lost it?" Yang Haoran's expression shifted slightly, his voice raising noticeably, drawing attention from other patients or onlookers with varying expressions.

Realizing his outburst, Yang Haoran quickly smiled apologetically at the others in the ward, who then averted their gazes.

Meanwhile, Jiang Zhenzhen's face grew even redder at this point. She didn't deny losing the pendant and apologized to Yang Haoran for losing his precious possession. She offered to compensate him monetarily for her mistake.

Yang Haoran waved off Jiang Zhenzhen's attempts to apologize further and clarified that he wasn't upset about it.

At this moment, Yang Haoran began to speculate about why Decaying Corpse Granny hadn't bothered Jiang Zhenzhen the previous night but had returned even more aggressively now. The missing Death God pendant seemed to hold the key to these events.

Before meeting Yang Haoran, Decaying Corpse Granny had been harassing Jiang Zhenzhen. After lending her the Death God pendant, she was left undisturbed that night. However, Decaying Corpse Granny reappeared with a vengeance after the pendant went missing.

The timing of Decaying Corpse Granny's reappearance after Jiang Zhenzhen lost the Death God pendant raised questions for Yang Haoran. He pondered whether it was the consecrated nature of the pendant or simply its reputation that made spirits like Decaying Corpse Granny wary.

Unable to find immediate answers due to his limited knowledge at present, Yang Haoran decided not to dwell further on these thoughts.

Returning his attention to Jiang Zhenzhen's embarrassed state, he reassured her that as long as she was safe, losing the Death God pendant was inconsequential in comparison.

Jiang Zhenzhen remained silent for a moment before expressing her gratitude sheepishly. Despite Yang Haoran's understanding response regarding the lost pendant, she still felt conflicted internally.

Yang Haoran seemed to sense Jiang Zhenzhen's lingering guilt and shifted the conversation away from the pendant incident. He inquired about why she hadn't clearly explained over the phone that there was a supernatural occurrence last night and why her phone had suddenly died after encountering Decaying Corpse Granny.

Jiang Zhenzhen proceeded to explain each detail one by one: she had been frightened by Decaying Corpse Granny's appearance and hadn't managed to clarify before her phone died due to low battery.

When the situation was critical, Jiang Zhenzhen put her mobile phone in her pocket and was about to rush out of the room when Decaying Corpse Granny intervened, preventing her from escaping. Instead, Decaying Corpse Granny used a startling method to keep Jiang Zhenzhen trapped in the room until Yang Haoran arrived.

As for Jiang Zhenzhen's mobile phone having power, it was because she had borrowed a charger from another patient in the hospital to charge it after waking up.

After hearing Jiang Zhenzhen's account, Yang Haoran nodded in understanding, grasping the whole sequence of events.

Recalling the events of the previous night, Jiang Zhenzhen was still visibly nervous, and Yang Haoran could sense that it was not the right time to ask further questions about Decaying Corpse Granny. Instead, he shifted the conversation to other topics that were less pressing. An hour later, Jiang Zhenzhen's complexion had improved significantly, and she no longer appeared as pale as before. She was also smiling occasionally, indicating that Yang Haoran had successfully diverted her attention away from the previous night's events and Decaying Corpse Granny.

Seeing that the situation was under control, Yang Haoran decided to leave, so he stood up and said to Jiang Zhenzhen, "I came here to check on you, and since you're fine, I'm relieved. I have other important matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving now. If you have any issues, just call me."

Jiang Zhenzhen and Yang Haoran chatted amicably, and she seemed reluctant to let him go, but she couldn't think of a valid reason to keep him. She could only nod and say thank you.

As Yang Haoran was about to leave, the door to the room was suddenly pushed open with great force.

"Bang!"

The door slammed into the wall, making a loud thud, and the sudden turn of events caught the attention of not only Yang Haoran and Jiang Zhenzhen but also the other patients and their relatives in the room.

The room was designed for patients to rest, so the atmosphere was supposed to be quiet and conducive to rest. As a result, anyone entering the room was expected to be considerate and mindful of the patients' need for rest.

However, there were always those who didn't understand the rules, people who acted solely based on their own desires, without considering the feelings of others. At that moment, the person who pushed the door open was one such individual.

In that instant, everyone's attention turned to the large, imposing figure standing at the door. The atmosphere was tense, and the expressions of the onlookers were not particularly pleasant.

At that moment, standing at the door was a middle-aged woman, who appeared to be in her late forties or early fifties. She was overweight, with a face covered in folds of skin, and a gold chain around her neck. She had a bag in her hand, and her demeanor suggested that she was a woman of means.

The woman's expression was unpleasant, and her disposition was even worse than the expressions of the onlookers. She ignored the disapproving looks of the onlookers and scanned the room, eventually fixing her gaze on Jiang Zhenzhen.

Jiang Zhenzhen saw the woman and immediately felt nervous. The woman noticed Jiang Zhenzhen and, without further ado, stormed towards Jiang Zhenzhen's bed.

At first, the other patients in the room were displeased with the woman's intrusion, but when they saw her aggressive demeanor, no one dared to intervene or confront her. Instead, they continued to watch her actions, waiting to see what she would do.

Yang Haoran furrowed his brow, realizing that the woman had come for Jiang Zhenzhen.

Looking at the aggressive middle-aged woman and the nervous Jiang Zhenzhen, Yang Haoran decided not to say anything rash, as he had not yet figured out the relationship between the two.

However, he did not sit back down; instead, he moved to Jiang Zhenzhen's bedside and sat down next to her, leaning against the bed.

Jiang Zhenzhen, who had been feeling anxious, felt a sense of relief when Yang Haoran sat down next to her. She unconsciously reached out and grabbed Yang Haoran's clothing, and Yang Haoran noticed but did not say anything, allowing Jiang Zhenzhen to hold on to his clothing.

At this point, the middle-aged woman had reached Jiang Zhenzhen's bedside, her eyes glaring at Jiang Zhenzhen, her breath heavy with anger, not knowing whether it was due to exhaustion or anger.

"Aunt?" Jiang Zhenzhen forced a smile and addressed the woman.

When the woman heard Jiang Zhenzhen call her "aunt," her anger intensified even further.

"Aunt? You're kidding, young lady. Don't you dare call me aunt. I'm not your aunt, and you think that by calling me aunt, I'll let you off the hook? You're dreaming!"