Chapter 72

“Wait, wait, wait—!” Meng Xi’s voice was incredibly urgent. “You two, don’t move. Just stay right there, whatever you do, don’t move.”

Shen You’an had just stepped out of the elevator with Su Wu when she was stopped. She was completely bewildered and confused, while Su Wu remained perfectly calm.

Meng Xi: “Master! Master! Quick, quick, quick, our friends are back!”

While shouting urgently, Meng Xi kept waving her hand toward the unit Shen Huaijin had recently bought—the one directly across from Su Wu’s.

A lean, white-haired old man walked out. “Is it them?”

Meng Xi nodded vigorously. “Yes, yes, yes.”

Shen You’an: “Sister Meng Xi… this is…”

Meng Xi: “Shh!”

Meng Xi: “Xiao An, don’t talk. The Master is sensing things.”

Su Wu: “Sensing what?”

Meng Xi: “That thing!”

Shen You’an: “…??”

Which thing!?

While she was still confused, the “Master” suddenly began to twitch all over. His body twisted and turned, his head tilted to the side, and he let out a shriek: “There’s a monster!”

Shen You’an’s heart tightened.

Su Wu reached out and squeezed her palm. Shen You’an felt a jolt in her heart and turned to look at Su Wu. Su Wu bailiantales.com gave her a faint smile and signaled with her eyes for You’an to look back at the Master.

The Master’s body began to shake even more violently, his screams non-stop, until finally—under Meng Xi’s terrified gaze—he began to foam at the mouth. His head dropped as if it had been severed, and a few sparse white hairs on top of his head fluttered.

After a few seconds of silence, the Master spoke: “You… you have unclean things on you…”

Meng Xi: “Master! You’re right! They did encounter some unclean things recently!”

Master: “You’ve been haunted!”

Meng Xi: “Ahhh! Master! Do something! Help them! Save them!”

The Master spoke cryptically: “Debts from a past life are being repaid in this one. You two subjects both suffer from an excess of Yin energy. You need to supplement the Yin with Yang, harmonize the circulation, only then can you suppress the ominous things!”

Master: “I have here a thousand-year-old deer penis…”

Shen You’an burst out laughing.

Master: “…”

The old man turned to look at the girl who had laughed, his eyes haunting. “Little girl, to disrespect the ghosts and gods is to invite great disaster!”

Meng Xi explained in a panic: “Master! Xiao An didn’t mean it like that! She’s just young! Please don’t be angry!”

Master: “Her actions have already angered them! If I do not perform a ritual immediately, supplemented by the thousand-year-old spirit medicine, I fear…”

Meng Xi: “Perform it! Perform it now!”

Meng Xi lowered her head and took out her phone, ready to scan a code and pay.

Shen You’an looked at Su Wu, who smiled and mouthed ‘It’s okay’ to her.

In the next second, behind Meng Xi’s back, the innocent little girl suddenly opened her ​bailiantales.com​mouth. Sharp fangs snapped out, and a black shadow emerged behind her like some ominous creature from a horror movie. It slithered along the corner of the wall, climbing upward until it covered the entire ceiling.

The phone the Master was holding to receive payment smashed onto the ground, the screen shattering into pieces. He didn’t even bother to pick it up; he didn’t even dare go toward the elevator. He let out a scream, turned, and bolted into the emergency stairwell.

“There’s a ghost!” he yelled. “A ghost!”

Meng Xi: “…?”

Meng Xi, who had failed even in her attempt to spend money, turned around. The black shadow had already vanished instantly. Shen You’an was smiling at her sweetly and called out: “Sister Meng Xi.”

Meng Xi panicked: “Why did he run away?”

After saying this, Meng Xi also felt her skin crawl. The more she thought about it, the more terrified she became. She immediately looked around.

Meng Xi: “My god! It can’t be real… holy crap, did he see something!”

Su Wu: “Alright, stop overthinking. Things aren’t the way you think they are.”

Having seen enough of the show, Su Wu finally spoke to Meng Xi.

Meng Xi: “Then what way are they?!”

Su Wu pulled out the red string tucked in Shen You’an’s pocket. “Xiao An just went to the temple to get this. It’s been blessed and will keep you safe. It’s definitely more reliable than the ‘Master’ you found.”

Meng Xi took the red string and examined it repeatedly, but couldn’t see anything special about it. However, ever since returning from Tian’ai Hospital, she had adopted a “try anything” mentality. Anything would do, as long as it kept her from dreaming.

Heaven knows that after she left Tian’ai that day, her mind was filled with images of the zombies lunging at her and Shen Huaijin, the blood-stained floors, and the breathing ventilation ducts. She couldn’t sleep—she simply couldn’t sleep. Meng Xi was even afraid to close her eyes! She feared that if she lay down and closed her eyes, she would wake up back at the hospital.

This situation got to the point where she didn’t even dare go home; she insisted on sleeping at Shen Huaijin’s place just to feel at ease. Her reasoning: If I dream again and really end up back at the hospital, at least Shen Huaijin can help me run away.

Shen Huaijin was likely shaken herself, so for once she didn’t kick her out. The two of them, each with their own quilt, had been sleeping on the 1.8-meter-wide bed for a few days.

During these days, Meng Xi had been staying at Shen Huaijin’s house. Whether it was her imagination or not, Meng [stolen content]Xi felt that after putting on the red string, her terrified and uneasy heart felt much more comfortable. She reached out and touched the slightly rough weave of the red string: “Xiao An, thank you. You’re so thoughtful.”

Shen You’an shook her head: “Sister Meng Xi, it’s the least I could do.”

Shen You’an: “Where’s my sister? Is she not home?”

Meng Xi’s expression changed: “Aiyah, it’s a long story.”

She had been too obsessed with all kinds of Eastern and Western metaphysics and occultism lately—from magic rituals to setting up altars. Meng Xi had tried everything. It was as if only through these things could she feel at peace. Today’s “Master” was also someone she had asked her parents about; he was supposedly an expert in this field with quite a bit of skill.

Nowadays, everyone dabbles in metaphysics; even AI can tell fortunes. Meng Xi’s parents were the elite among such enthusiasts. Being in the jewelry industry and doing business, they dealt with constant change. Every year, the parents would hire someone to do a reading for the house to attract luck and avoid misfortune.

Dealing with ghosts was something they hadn’t encountered before. Her parents had spent a lot of effort to contact this person. But looking at him today, the little old man’s level seemed to be mediocre at best. Or rather, did he actually see a ghost…? Is that why he was scared out of his wits and didn’t even take his phone?

Meng Xi hurriedly bent down to pick up the Master’s phone. A WeChat conversation popped up on the screen, making her brow furrow.

[Uncle Master, ​read the original at bailiantales.com​what job are we taking today? Is it that ‘cash cow’ who says she ran into a ghost?]

Fine. It was a scammer, case closed. Meng Xi indignantly threw the phone into the trash can.

Meng Xi: “Your sister… your sister doesn’t really like these kinds of occasions. She went out for a bit. I’ll contact her right now and tell her you’re back!”

Meng Xi spoke very tactfully. She didn’t mention at all that Shen Huaijin thought she had gone a bit “obsessed” lately. To put it simply, she was acting crazy.

Upon receiving Meng Xi’s message, Shen Huaijin returned quickly. While Shen You’an was sitting in Su Wu’s house, the sound of Shen Huaijin hurriedly knocking and entering was unmistakably clear.

“Where’s my sister? My sister is back?”

Shen You’an turned to look and greeted her with a smile. Just as she called out “Sister,” Shen Huaijin pulled her into a hug. It was a very tight hug; Shen Huaijin was very strong, as expected of a woman who spent her years climbing mountains and diving into seas.

Her voice carried the relief of a survivor: “Xiao An, I’m just glad you’re okay. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

Shen You’an froze for a moment before awkwardly hugging her sister back, gently patting her on the back. Seeing Shen Huaijin so worried about her made her feel an unspeakable sense of guilt and self-blame. If it weren’t for her, Shen Huaijin, her mother, Meng Xi… and Su Wu—none of them would have had to go through this. Her mother wouldn’t have to live in a lie, Shen Huaijin Read on BaiLianTaleswouldn’t be so frantic, and Meng Xi wouldn’t be so scared that she’d turn to scammers in desperation.

And A-jie. A-jie wouldn’t have shown those eyes that were so full of pain yet never expressed.

“Sister, I’m fine. A-jie has been taking care of me the whole time.” Shen You’an smiled. “You really don’t need to worry about me.”

When Shen Huaijin let her go, she stood up and did a little spin in front of her. “Look, I’m perfectly fine. Nothing’s wrong anywhere.”

Shen Huaijin examined her repeatedly. Seeing that her complexion was ruddy and glowing—looking even more energetic than before, as if she had plenty of “vital energy”—she felt relieved. She didn’t know what Shen You’an had actually gone through these past few days; did Su Wu feed her supplements?!

Shen Huaijin’s hanging heart lowered slightly. She said directly: “It’s good you’re okay, it’s good you’re okay.” Her gaze landed on Shen You’an’s scarf. “But the heater is on in the house, and you’re still wearing a scarf. Aren’t you hot?”

Shen You’an’s face turned bright red, but she said calmly: “Not at all, not at all.”

Shen Huaijin: “Old Su, you too. Why are you wearing a scarf as well?”

Shen You’an’s heart tightened, and she hurriedly turned to look at Su Wu.

Su Wu: “To ward off evil.”

Shen Huaijin: “…?”

Meng Xi suddenly slapped her thigh: “Then I’m wearing one too!”

Without another word, she ran across the hall, grabbed two of her own scarves, and—under Shen Huaijin’s extremely resistant gaze—wrapped one around her friend before winding the wool scarf around her own neck.

The temperature shot up instantly. Meng Xi was hot enough to start sweating: “I get it. The principle of warding off evil must be to sweat and remove dampness, so that Yin energy doesn’t enter the body, right?”

Su Wu smiled without saying a word. Watching from the side, Shen You’an felt that A-jie’s mood seemed quite good today; the way she teased Sister Meng Xi was like a noble fox.

Shen Huaijin slapped Meng Xi on the back: “Enough, stop being crazy.”

Shen Huaijin: “Didn’t I tell you? This is absolutely not about being possessed. It’s read the original at bailiantales.comdefinitely the work of the person who harassed my mother, set the fire on the ship, and is causing trouble behind Shen Run! It’s broad daylight, where would you run into a ghost!”

Shen Huaijin sighed deeply: “I just don’t know who that person is.”

Shen Huaijin: “I’ve been testing and observing Shen Run these past few days, but he seems to be completely unaware of everything that’s happened to us. However, when I mentioned Tian’ai Hospital, he did look a bit flustered. I’m afraid that every time my mother went there in the past, there was a hidden motive.”

Shen You’an hesitated for a moment and then spoke: “Actually…”

Su Wu’s hand rested on her shoulder like a stabilizing force, giving her the courage to continue: “Actually, that day, we saw someone in the consultation room.”

Shen Huaijin: “Who?”

Shen You’an: “Si Qi.”

Shen You’an: “Do you have any memory of this person?”