Yi Miao woke up, looked at me, and blurted out, “Are you human or a ghost?”
I laughed and said, “Do ghosts have shadows?”
Yi Miao lowered his head and only then noticed my shadow.
“Is he shi—ed?” Yi Miao pointed at Ji Ruyue in front of me. When he pronounced “dead,” his tongue curled up. I couldn’t tell if he was trying to be funny—maybe he was just too nervous, and his tongue twisted.
I nodded and said, “Of course he’s dead. After you killed him, those two venomous snakes went up and gave him a couple more bites. Now what? A man’s dead.”
Yi Miao stepped forward for a closer look and said, “No, he wasn’t killed by a person. He was killed by the snakes.”
Yi Miao probably wasn’t telling the truth, but I didn’t press further. Experts who play the fool to hide their strength don’t like others knowing their true capabilities.
I understood that. In the martial world, it’s called “hiding one’s merits and fame.”
Besides, Ji Ruyue had no fatal wounds—just the two snake bites.
“So what do we do with the body? Let it rot here?” I asked.
Yi Miao waved his hand. “No rush. Let’s see first.” As he spoke, a flicker of surprise flashed in his eyes.
“No rush…?” I exclaimed in shock.
Suddenly, Ji Ruyue, who had been lying motionless on the ground, sat up without a sound. The corners of his mouth twitched upward as if trying to smile but failing. His eyes were wide open, unblinking. His hands mechanically picked up the two snakes on his legs and stuffed them into his mouth, crunching down with a sickening *crack-crack-crack*.
Snake blood splattered everywhere.
I nearly choked—Ji Ruyue had been faking his death.
Two minutes later, it was clear that Ji Ruyue was truly dead. It seemed the remaining starving ghosts had possessed him, turning him into a mindless monster.
Yi Miao nodded. “I have an idea.” He went to the kitchen, found two leather shoes, and lured Ji Ruyue away.
“Don’t tell anyone what happened today. It’s enough that legends of me exist in the martial world.” Yi Miao shook his head, tucked his horsetail whisk into his belt, and led Ji Ruyue away with the shoe soles.
Watching Ji Ruyue disappear into the distance, the wooden figurine Mo Bai suddenly sighed. “What a shame. Such a fine body. And that thing wasn’t small either.”
I picked up everything Ji Ruyue had left behind and took it all with me, along with my own belongings.
Taking advantage of the remaining darkness before dawn, I left Room 502.
On the third floor, I instinctively glanced at Room 302. I had a feeling there were still secrets in this old building—at the very least, I’d have to come back one more time.
By the time I returned to my apartment—Unit 4, Floor 4, Room 4—dawn was approaching.
Xie Lingyu still wasn’t home when I got back.
The jade corpse had somehow found alcohol, drank herself into a stupor, and was now snoring away.
I put away the jade ruler, compass, and wooden figurine, bandaged Xiao Jian, took a shower, grabbed two tomatoes from the kitchen, and collapsed onto the bed.
When I woke up, it was already 1 PM. Opening my eyes, I saw Xie Lingyu in front of me and immediately hugged her, crying out, “You’re finally back! Let’s not fight anymore!”
*Wuwuwu…*
I quickly let go—it wasn’t Xie Lingyu. It was the jade corpse.
She glared at me angrily. I quickly soothed her, “I’ve always just called you ‘jade corpse’—you don’t even have a name. From now on, I’ll call you Xie Xiaoyu.”
The jade corpse seemed to understand and nodded, no longer upset.
Xiao Jian had woken up after a night’s rest. Since he’d lost blood, he needed to recover. I figured he might need some nourishment, so I made him brown sugar water with what was left of the sugar.
Xiao Jian ignored it—probably because it wasn’t a “manly” drink.
I burst out laughing.
After charging my phone, I saw several missed calls from Xu Jun.
I called him back to let him know I was fine. Xu Jun said Xu Xiaokang seemed much better now, his appetite back to normal.
I reminded him that since Xiaokang had been binge-eating for so long, his stomach might be damaged—he should take care of it. Xu Jun asked for my bank details, saying he’d send me payment.
Since I needed the money, I gave him the info. Half an hour later, a bank notification popped up—200,000 yuan. That seemed… excessive.
Looking back on yesterday, it felt like a nightmare.
How exactly had the flying centipede died? Next time I saw Yi Miao, I’d have to ask him.
Xiao Jian started whining again. I changed clothes and went out to buy some ribs. Since the sun wasn’t too strong, I took an umbrella and brought Xie Xiaoyu along—she’d been cooped up all day, so she deserved some fresh air.
Xie Xiaoyu held my arm as we left the neighborhood. The cool afternoon breeze brushed past us, the streets quiet and peaceful.
I couldn’t help but wonder—
Where had Xie Lingyu gone?
Why wasn’t I looking for her?
I knew there was still a knot in my heart—that knot was Ji Qianqian.
As for her… maybe she’d already learned from the pig-eared ghost where the white spider lilies were. Maybe she’d even found them by now.
…
I bought two ribs from the supermarket. Passing by a women’s clothing store, I took Xie Xiaoyu inside and picked out two autumn outfits. She had sharp taste—she only went for the expensive ones.
Gritting my teeth, I bought them—one blue, one white, both simple and elegant, just her style.
Autumn was serene, leaves fluttering in the breeze, leaving only a beauty wandering the ends of the earth.
On the way back, Xie Xiaoyu took down a purse-snatcher with a single flying kick, sending him tumbling into a flower bed, his mouth full of mud.
The thief scrambled up, snarling, “I’ll ruin your face!”
Xie Xiaoyu kicked him again, knocking him out cold. Du Xuan, a nearby patrolling officer, rushed over, his jaw nearly hitting the ground.
“How’s business, sis?” I asked.
Du Xuan grinned. “Not bad. As long as people in Jiangcheng love hot dry noodles, we’ll keep selling them.”
I said, “I’ll drop by next time—extra dried tofu for me.”
Still grinning, Du Xuan said, “You haven’t been around in a while. Sis misses you. Bring your girlfriend along.”
Xie Xiaoyu held my arm, her little umbrella shielding us as we merged into the crowd.
Back home, I stewed the ribs for Xiao Jian to help him recover.
My phone buzzed incessantly. Jie Se texted: *Go online. There’s a photo.*
I turned on my computer but couldn’t find the photo he mentioned.
Finally, Jie Se sent another message, dripping with disdain: *Everyone’s on Weibo now. Sign up and follow me—my handle is ‘TheHandsomeAndDashingMonk.’*
After fumbling around, I registered an account. I got stuck on the username—I always struggled with naming things. Eventually, I settled on *XiaoJianLovesKittens*. Then I realized I needed a profile picture. I called Xiao Jian over, snapped a photo of his bandaged head, and uploaded it.
Searching for Jie Se, I found *TheHandsomeAndDashingMonk* and saw the photo he’d shared—
Someone had posted a picture of Xie Xiaoyu kicking the thief, dubbing her *Jiangcheng’s Most Beautiful Vigilante*.
Of course, I shared it immediately.
Soon, *TheHandsomeAndDashingMonk* followed me and commented: *This is the boyfriend of the most beautiful vigilante.*
I asked Jie Se how to gain more followers.
He said, *You gotta post interesting stuff.*
I figured I’d take some photos of Xie Xiaoyu in her new outfits. After uploading them, I was about to shut down when I spotted a trending post:
*Our city’s psychiatric hospital admitted a strange patient—insatiable appetite, zero IQ, wearing a Taoist robe, and laughing randomly.*
A closer look revealed it was Ji Ruyue.
I burst out laughing—for a solid ten minutes.
Riding my motorcycle back to the old school building, I took a dozen photos. On the way, I grabbed a few instant noodle cups before heading home to compile the photos into a Weibo post.
After logging in, I saw my follower count had shot up after posting Xie Xiaoyu’s pictures. I got flooded with DMs—some even sent inappropriate photos.
Once I uploaded the old building photos, I added a caption:
*This is an old building I came across. Some weird things happened here. Anyone know more about it?*
I was hoping someone might have additional information. The more eyes, the better.
That night, I made instant noodles with the leftover rib broth.
Soon, comments rolled in.
One user, *TheCuteAndFragrantQiaoQiao*, wrote: *When I was little, my mom would hurry me past this place. Said it was full of creepy old folks. Some even claimed to hear Teresa Teng’s songs playing at night. Can’t believe it’s still standing. I remember two peach trees planted at the entrance—like a gate. No idea about the rest, but everyone moved out. Why hasn’t the school torn it down yet?*
Another, *ZuoErJinXia*, sent me a DM: *My dad once mentioned this place. It used to house many brilliant scholars until… you-know-what happened. There was a female professor—wore a loose black coat and a red scarf. Tragically, her whole aura mixed the sorrow of an educated youth with the nobility of an Anna Karenina. I think her surname was Ye.*
Most comments were useless—ghost stories, rants about why China doesn’t demolish old buildings like the West, conspiracy theories about embezzled funds.
After hours of searching, I found nothing substantial. I regretted not getting Yi Miao’s number.
By midnight, I reheated the last of the broth for more noodles—delicious in the moment, nauseating afterward.
Then a DM from *NotZhouLiangLiangAnywhere* nearly made my jaw drop:
*I saw an eye inside.*
Someone else had seen the eye! I replied instantly, but there was no response.
Was it just a random comment? But who randomly says they saw an eye?
I left my phone number, hoping for more clues.
Xie Xiaoyu tugged my hand, pointing at the rare moonlight outside.
I shut down the computer, pocketed my phone, and took her out for some moonlight. Xiao Jian, head still bandaged, trotted alongside us—refusing to stay home alone, drowning in loneliness.
After all, he’d lost He Qingling. For a dog, that kind of pain was unbearable.
I understood that all too well.
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