The night deepens.
The entire Phoenix City becomes brilliantly illuminated.
Jamie cooked three bowls of black pepper beef spaghetti and placed them on the table, shouting towards the living room: "Mr. Jackson, time for dinner."
"Don't hit me yet, I'm low on health, let me be. I can't execute this combo with this character. Come on! Why are you bullying a newbie?"
"In my hometown, there's a saying: 'Victory and defeat are common in warfare,' kid, you're too inexperienced, you need more practice."
Sitting in front of the TV, Sun Yan put down the controller and waggled his finger at Elise, with a very smug expression.
Elise, unwilling to accept defeat, punched his shoulder: "You just started playing earlier than me, give me some time to get familiar and we'll see who's better. When I get back, I'm buying a PS5, and then I'll definitely crush you."
"Don't let games destroy your ambition."
Sun Yan stood up and walked to the dining table, picked up a bowl of spaghetti, and stuffed it into his mouth.
He preferred rice with every meal, but both white and black Americans don't enjoy rice as a staple food; bread and hamburgers are their favorites.
Hence, Sun Yan hardly ever ate out, but today, due to work, he had no choice but to tolerate it.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
At this moment, someone suddenly knocked on the door.
Jamie, who had just sat down, was startled by the sound, clearly feeling overshadowed by the endlessly resurrecting landlady.
"I'll go have a look."
Sun Yan took the initiative to go to the door, looked through the peephole, and saw a white man in a suit standing outside, with no apparent issue.
Only then did he open the door and asked, "Excuse me, who are you?"
"Hello, is this Mr. James' residence? I'm Janice's son. I truly appreciate Mr. James' timely discovery of my mother's passing and informing the police; only then could I learn of my mother's condition. Tonight, I've returned especially from afar to express my gratitude."
The white man nodded politely: "May I please see Mr. James?"
"I'm here."
Upon hearing the conversation, Jamie immediately walked over; since the person outside wasn't the landlady, there was nothing to be afraid of.
"Pleasure to meet you, Mr. James."
The white man revealed a joyful smile, but in the next moment, the expressions on Sun Yan's and Jamie's faces changed instantly.
The white man, grinning wider and wider, allowed Sun Yan a glimpse into his mouth.
Inside was not the typical muscle tissue of a human, but a dry and hard wooden structure.
The entire mouth of this person had transformed into wood.
A large number of tree branches emerged from the depths of the white man's throat, aggressively enveloping Jamie's head.
Sun Yan quickly reached out and pushed Jamie aside, then turned to run to the sofa and fetched the Golden Halberd from his backpack.
"Elise, stop eating."
With a reminder to Elise, who was still eating noodles, Sun Yan immediately turned his gaze to the white man who had already entered the room.
At this moment, his head had completely metamorphosed, with numerous branches sprouting from his flesh and skin, transforming him into an eerie Tree-Man.
Jamie, frightened and scrambling, retreated to the kitchen and grabbed a knife, preparing to battle the monster.
"How did trouble with monsters start?" Sun Yan frowned impatiently.
The creature before them, resembling a demon, directly elevated the level of difficulty of this exorcism.
"Jamie, hand over what you stole, it doesn't belong to you!"
From the Tree-Man's mouth came a hoarse roar as he swung his bark-covered arm and struck at Jamie.
Despite having previously killed numerous landlords, Jamie didn't panic now; instead, he fiercely chopped with the knife in hand.
As the blade collided with the Tree-Man's hand, it was instantly deflected, embedding in the wall nearby.
Jamie paled with fright, realizing that the Tree-Man was impervious to blades and bullets; fighting was futile.
He watched as the Tree-Man reached out and grabbed Jamie by the neck, effortlessly lifting him off the ground.
Sun Yan seized the opportunity to approach, swinging the Golden Halberd and chopping into the Tree-Man's back.
Instantly, copious amounts of green sap spurted from his body, splattering all over the living room floor.
"Argh!!!"
The Tree-Man let out a scream of pain, turned his head to look at Sun Yan, and flung out his arm, making Sun Yan feel an overwhelming force.
It felt as though he was hit head-on by a truck, sending him flying through the air. The Golden Halberd slipped from his grip, clattering to the floor as he nearly lost his breath.
Fortunately, the Golden Halberd had inflicted a significant wound on the Tree-Man, with a spring-like flux continuously squirting out.
Branches rapidly grew from the Tree-Man's body, binding Jamie tightly, wrapping him up like a cocoon.
"I didn't want to harm you, but now you know too much."
The Tree-Man gazed at Sun Yan lying on the ground, lifted his foot, and was about to stomp on his chest.
Just then, a nimble figure suddenly approached from the side, swiftly picking up the fallen Golden Halberd and slicing the Tree-Man's neck.
The Tree-Man clutched his throat in agony, swaying left and right; the Golden Halberd had severed half of his neck, and such a wound, even for the undying, was heavy.
After struggling for a while, the Tree-Man, neck gushing with green blood, still couldn't sustain himself and fell to the ground, his head drooping lifelessly.