Chapter 35: Spirit-Hunting Livestream

Zhao Kai’s features were actually quite decent; he was just a couch potato who hated exercise, which had made him a bit chubby. While he was usually a shameless flirt, acting like a seasoned playboy in front of other female students, he turned into a shy, awkward recruit whenever he was around Senior Sister Xia Li.

The two of them dithered for quite a while before finally reaching the T4 girls' dormitory.

"Brother Yun, why don’t you... you come with me?"

"I’ve already walked you all the way here, where else do you want me to go? Hurry up and send the message saying you’re here, otherwise the dorms will be locked soon."

"Then... I’ll think about it a bit more."

"Think your head."

A strategist, of course, had to see the job through. Seeing Zhao Kai still hesitating, Ji Yun simply sent the private message for him. He then left the fatty at the foot of the dormitory building and retreated a good distance away.

Since it was Friday night, the dormitory curfew was a bit later, and everywhere one looked, there were male students dropping off their girlfriends. The air was thick with the restless scent of hormones. Watching the couples whispering and cuddling at the base of the building, Ji Yun felt a bit out of place, so he wandered off to a more secluded spot. From far away, he kept an eye on the fatty, who was standing there looking flustered and jittery. He absolutely could not let this guy chicken out now.

***

The T4 dormitory was an "I"-shaped building in the Soviet style. Years ago, when the school built new dormitories, the southern half was abandoned and converted into a warehouse and activity rooms, turning it into a "T" shape. When Ji Yun had been looking through archives at the school library, he’d read that this was the site of an old hospital built with Soviet aid in the mid-century. To protect against bombing during wartime, the construction was exceptionally sturdy, which was why Jianghua University had repurposed the old inpatient wing as a dormitory during a later expansion.

As Ji Yun looked at the building, his mind drifted to the detective’s file he’d seen earlier. The records stated that in recent years, at least five or six female students had jumped to their deaths from this building. The reasons remained unknown.

As he pondered, he walked toward the south side. The dormitory entrance was on the north, so few people came here. Ji Yun had seen the photographs in the file; the corner of this very path was where the body of Lin Kexin had been found after her fall.

Seeing the scene of the incident, Ji Yun muttered, "No wonder it didn't spread far; it’s truly quite secluded here at night. Even if someone fell at midnight, it would be hard to discover."

There weren't many couples around, but as Ji Yun scanned the area, he noticed a hunched figure squatting under a tree not far off... burning paper?

"Why would someone be burning paper in a school?"

Ji Yun felt a strange sensation at first. It was true that some old-fashioned people had the habit of burning paper in the city, but it wasn't a traditional holiday. Burning paper like this could only mean paying respects to the deceased. And the location was so coincidental—it was exactly where the body had been discovered!

A sudden realization struck Ji Yun. He checked the time on his phone, then widened his eyes as he stared at the figure burning the paper. He realized the person was burning offerings for Lin Kexin. His third uncle had enlightened him about "pure Yin" fates recently, and he remembered Lin Kexin’s birthday very clearly.

It was past ten in the evening—the Hour of the Pig. *Yi-You, Xin-Si, Gui-Wei, Gui-Hai*—a pure Yin horoscope. Today was Lin Kexin’s birthday!

Ji Yun realized who the man was, and a complex look crossed his eyes. "So this is the client, Lin Yuanchao?"

According to the file, Lin Kexin’s family was not well-off. Her grandfather had sold his property in a desperate attempt to find the truth, but the result was that he had found nothing. If the "Fox Hunter Detective Agency" hadn't been silenced, Ji Yun might have believed the falling death was just an accident caused by sleepwalking. But now, it was 100% certain there was something wrong. The entire case exuded a suffocating sense of helplessness. The methods of the "cleaners" were so ruthless and their work so thorough that it left ordinary people in despair.

Ji Yun didn't think there was anything he could do, so he could only watch in silence. At the same time, a question he hadn't been able to figure out surfaced in his mind: "What kind of 'irresistible reason' did the client give to make the detective, Old Xiao, continue the investigation even when he knew the danger?"

Just as he was watching, presumably after someone reported it, a campus patrol car sped over. Several security guards jumped out and extinguished the fire with a few stomps. Then, they grabbed the old man, intending to drag him off campus. Open flames were forbidden on campus, and the guards weren't necessarily wrong, just a bit heartless.

During the scuffle, one of the guards knocked off the old man's hat. Only then, from a distance, did Ji Yun see that the old man was wearing a faded, washed-out military uniform, his face covered in hideous burn scars. It was truly chilling to see at night.

The strange behavior of the terrifying old man quickly drew a crowd of curious students. To avoid further escalation, the guards had no choice but to lift the old man into the car, which soon disappeared at the end of the tree-lined path. Ji Yun frowned slightly as he watched.

***

Turning back, Ji Yun caught a glimpse of his good buddy not far away. Senior Sister Xia Li had come out of the dorm and was talking to Zhao Kai in a secluded corner. It seemed they were chatting quite well. At the very least, upon seeing that the "handsome dude" was actually the fatty, Senior Sister Xia Li hadn't turned and walked away; instead, she had a sweet smile on her face.

Watching this from afar, Ji Yun gave a self-deprecating smile. It was slightly different from what he had expected, but that was just as well. It counted as giving his good friend a nudge. He didn't bother to be curious about what the fatty was saying, and took out his phone to kill some time.

Just as he brought it out, he saw a shadow flash before his eyes. He looked up and saw a small figure dart out from the trees. The figure ran to the spot where the old man had been burning paper, squatted down, and happily picked up a few apples that had been left as offerings.

It was a child, wearing a dirty short-sleeved shirt and barefoot, looking to be only four or five years old. Under the moonlight, his skin was unnaturally pale.

"Where did that kid come from?" Ji Yun felt instinctively that something was wrong. In this day and age, where would you find a stray child in the city? Especially inside a school.

The doubt flashed through Ji Yun's mind, and with another blink, the child had hugged the offerings and vanished into the woods.

"A ghost?"

Ji Yun thought of something. The incense and offerings had been burned by the old man for his granddaughter, Lin Kexin. According to folklore, if the offerings aren't claimed, wandering spirits nearby will scramble to eat them. When ghosts consume offerings, they are at their most visible to the naked eye. Many schools were built on old burial grounds, and with the recent resurgence of supernatural phenomena, seeing a ghost or two wasn't entirely strange.

Just as Ji Yun was thinking this, his phone rang—it was the fatty. After hanging up, Ji Yun glanced one last time at the place where the paper had been burned, then turned and walked away without lingering.

***

Not far off, Zhao Kai saw Ji Yun and rushed over, overjoyed. "Hahaha, Brother Yun, you were right! I should have revealed my identity to Senior Sister Xia Li sooner!"

The fatty was very excited, rambling on, "Ah... she is truly so understanding. After I told her I was a fan of her livestream, not only was she not surprised, but she even said I should have told her earlier. She also said that now we’ll have a chance to grab meals together on campus."

His tone was so excited that it was as if he could already see the sweet scenes of them being a couple in the future.

Ji Yun raised an eyebrow and replied, "Oh, is that so?"

The result was a bit unexpected. There were only two possibilities: either Senior Sister Xia Li was truly kind-hearted, or she was a high-level player. Ji Yun didn't want to say too much. At the very least, they were acquainted now, which was a good thing. Zhao Kai was his good friend, and he preferred to hope for the former. That way, even if the fatty spent all his money and didn't end up with her, at least he would have gained a kind friend.

The two walked back toward the boys' dormitory. The smile on Zhao Kai’s face never faded; he was still savoring his conversation with the senior sister. Ji Yun didn't have much to say about it. As for romance, no one could predict the outcome. A "simp" isn't guaranteed to fail, especially when there's "money power" involved.

It was then that the fatty suddenly brought up a topic that piqued Ji Yun’s interest.

"Hahaha, you wouldn't believe it. Once she knew I was a member of the Supernatural Club and also a fan, she even specially invited me to join her outdoor stream tomorrow!"

As he spoke, Zhao Kai hooked his arm around Ji Yun’s shoulder. "I told her about you too, so we’re both going!" He was still a bit stage-frightened on his own, so he had roped in his strategist.

"Outdoor stream?" Ji Yun didn't follow Senior Sister Xia Li’s channel, so he didn't know the situation.

Zhao Kai, of course, was well-informed. "Yeah! She said this time she’s found an 'urban supernatural legend' that no one has ever explored before, and it’s a place with a real history of hauntings. Plus, she said she’s going to demonstrate some real folk magic during the program!"

She was even going to demonstrate magic? Could she really be a transcendent? Ji Yun was finally interested. "Where are you streaming?"

Zhao Kai had the expression of someone who was incredibly happy to be invited. "She said it’s a secret for now. We’ll meet up at school tomorrow night and go together."

"Oh." Ji Yun didn't say anything more. Wherever it was, as long as it was haunted, he was genuinely interested in taking a look.