Realm of the Night God

Chapter 652: The Kneeling Youth

The Zhang family resided on a hill outside Ancheng City, which was named Zhang Family Hill. The hill got its name because the Zhang family had purchased it a long time ago, and thus it was named after them.

Since moving to Zhang Family Hill, the Zhang family had lived there without ever leaving, and even now, the Zhang family members still resided on the hill.

The Zhang family chose to settle on the hill because it was quiet and far from the city's noise, and also because they had been researching ghosts for a long time. Living in a bustling city would be extremely inconvenient, and if something unexpected happened, it could even bring disaster to ordinary people.

Therefore, to avoid unnecessary trouble, the Zhang family chose to live on Zhang Family Hill, which was similar to the Ma Family in this regard.

As one of the two major exorcist families in Ancheng, the Zhang family's residence naturally had a restriction barrier for protection. In this chaotic world where demons and ghosts roamed free, a strong restriction barrier was even more essential.

Although Yang Haoran's power had increased significantly, it was still unrealistic for him to directly tear through space and enter the barrier. Even a weak restriction barrier might be possible, but the one used by the Zhang family to protect Zhang Family Hill was beyond his capability to breach.

This was not an estimate, but a conclusion drawn from practice. He had just tried to enter the barrier directly, but he couldn't even tear open a crack in space, and had no choice but to land outside the barrier.

At this moment, Yang Haoran was at the edge of the restriction barrier, which was below Zhang Family Hill.

The Zhang family's mountain-protecting array, although invisible to the naked eye, was sensed by Yang Haoran when he tore through space. The restriction barrier released by the array was like a lid, covering the entire Zhang Family Hill, and Yang Haoran could have torn through space anywhere around the barrier, but he chose to land at this specific location, which was also for a reason.

Because there was someone kneeling at the spot where he landed.He didn't know why someone would be kneeling here, but he was very curious.

After all, this was the Ma Family's private territory, and an ordinary person shouldn't be kneeling here. Since someone was kneeling here, there must be a special reason.

With curiosity in his heart, Yang Haoran chose to land here, thinking that he might be able to gather some information from this person.

Yang Haoran's appearance startled the person, who turned around with a cautious expression, and their eyes met. Both of them were taken aback for a moment.

The person kneeling was a youth, with dark skin and an ordinary face, similar to Yang Haoran in that he was the type of person who would blend into a crowd.

However, Yang Haoran was startled not because of the youth's ordinary face, but because the youth gave him a sense of déjà vu. He seemed to have seen the youth somewhere before, but couldn't quite remember, perhaps because the youth's face was too ordinary, making it difficult to recall.

At this moment, the youth's thoughts were similar to Yang Haoran's, as Yang Haoran also gave him a sense of déjà vu. However, the youth soon remembered who Yang Haoran was and where he had seen him before.

"It's you!" the youth exclaimed, his tone filled with incredulity.

Although the youth remembered Yang Haoran, Yang Haoran still couldn't recall who the youth was.

There were many awkward situations in human interactions, and one of them was when the other person remembered who you were, but you couldn't remember who they were.

However, Yang Haoran's skin was quite thick, and it was hard to tell whether the other person was a friend or foe. He certainly wouldn't be embarrassed by such a small matter.

"Heh heh, long time no see." Yang Haoran smiled, greeting the young man with a chuckle.

Judging by his appearance, it seemed like he had remembered who the young man was, but in reality, the situation was quite the opposite.

He had no recollection of who the young man was, but the other person had recognized him. Asking who he was would be somewhat inappropriate, so he simply ignored the question and greeted the young man instead.

The young man didn't seem to notice anything off about Yang Haoran, and he remained kneeling on the ground, looking at Yang Haoran with a complex expression.

"It's been a while since we parted ways at the construction site. I never thought I'd run into you again today."

The young man's words reminded Yang Haoran of who he was. Back at a construction site in Ancheng, a young girl's vengeful spirit had been seeking revenge. Yang Haoran, who had been prepared to exorcise the ghost, had instead chosen not to help after learning about the girl's tragic death through his ghost eye. Instead, he had let the girl's spirit seek revenge on her own.

The young man had also been present at the time, but he had arrived later, with the intention of stopping the ghost from harming people and eliminating it. However, due to Yang Haoran's involvement, he had not only failed to achieve his goal but had also been taught a lesson by Yang Haoran. In the end, the woman who had killed the girl had been impaled by a steel bar and lost her life.

After the killer's death, Yang Haoran had left with the young girl, leaving the young man alone in the darkness. Since then, he had not seen the young man again, as he was not from Ancheng and rarely visited the city. The chances of running into the young man were naturally very low.

What surprised him, however, was that they were now meeting again in this way.

"Heh heh, I'm also surprised. I'm sure you've already noticed," Yang Haoran said with a smile.

"Back then, I still think your method was wrong. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, is the natural order of things. But you're not a law enforcer, so you shouldn't have killed her."

The young man's expression turned serious, and he spoke in a low tone. After finishing, he withdrew his gaze from Yang Haoran and looked back at the Zhang family slope.

Although the young man was not old, he gave off an air of maturity.

Yang Haoran's smile remained unchanged, but he understood the young man's words.

"Heh heh, you're still quite persistent. But I told you back then, I didn't kill anyone."

The young man didn't turn around, his gaze still fixed on the Zhang family slope ahead. He responded calmly, "You and I are not ordinary people, so there's no need to deceive each other. Whether or not you killed someone, we both know the truth in our hearts. Why bother pretending?"

Yang Haoran's smile on his face became slightly strange after hearing the young man's words.

"You're just a kid, but you give off an air of maturity. You lack the innocence and simplicity that children should have. Don't your family worry about your current state?"

The young man didn't respond, as if he hadn't heard Yang Haoran's words.

Yang Haoran was even more curious about the young man now. He didn't know what kind of experiences had led the young man to become like this, giving off an air of maturity beyond his years.

Moreover, why was the young man kneeling outside the Zhang family slope's barrier? This also piqued his interest.

What had the young man experienced? Yang Haoran didn't ask, as this might be a sensitive topic for the other person. Asking without a good reason could easily lead to dissatisfaction.

However, why was the young man here, and why was he kneeling in this way? This was a question that could be asked in a more tactful manner, and might even yield some useful information.

"May I ask, what are you doing here?" Yang Haoran asked with a smile, trying to make his tone as gentle as possible.

"Am I not allowed to kneel here and enjoy the scenery?"