Chapter 29: The Arrival of the Vengeful Spirit (Part One)

Qin Ye was sitting at the head of the bed, rubbing his eyes in bewilderment. “I—I came to deliver textbooks to a classmate, but I was late and didn’t go back…”

“Why didn’t you go back?” Chang Fengzi stepped forward, fixing Qin Ye with a piercing gaze, as if the slightest slip would lead to immediate capture.

Qin Ye scratched his hair, looking somewhat irritable. “I wanted to go back… but when I delivered the books, it was already six o’clock…”

The supernatural broadcast…

Chang Fengzi closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.

He couldn’t quite place his feelings—it was like chasing the moon, so close and yet, like water poured into a bamboo basket, it slipped away. At this moment, he loathed the supernatural broadcast; without it, Qin Ye’s presence here would be impossible to explain. But now… his appearance here was perfectly justified.

It could be called a coincidence, but only that—a coincidence. Even worse… their surveillance equipment was designed to monitor the supernatural, not to keep a camera on the door twenty-four hours a day. The county hospital certainly wouldn’t have such a thing.

When he spoke again, his voice was much gentler. “So, did you notice anything… unusual just now?”

“What?” The two blinked, utterly confused.

Chang Fengzi stared into their eyes for several seconds, then suddenly crouched down.

The space beneath the bed was empty.

Not here?

Was it just his own unwillingness to let go?

He sighed softly and stood up, but in that instant, the dust whisk hidden in his sleeve shot out like lightning, sweeping under the bed.

Still nothing.

“Heh…” Shaking his head, he was about to leave when he narrowed his eyes and walked to the window. “If I recall… didn’t the nurse say you shouldn’t be exposed to the wind?”

“Did she?” Wang Chenghao replied awkwardly, “It was a bit stuffy. The air conditioning was on too long, so I opened it.”

“You’re sure you opened it? Think carefully.”

Wang Chenghao frowned. “Of course. What’s going on?”

Silence.

After several seconds, Chang Fengzi turned and left. “Get some rest.”

Tap… As the door closed, Qin Ye finally exhaled deeply, looking up at the ceiling.

“Beautifully done.” This time, Arthas’s voice carried a genuine note of admiration. “First, you used the lingering Yin energy from that night of romance to cover your aura as a ghost messenger. But even though you’ve evaded this round, with the county-wide investigation and your absence from the memorial, plus your previous suspicion, you’ve practically drawn the government’s eye right onto you.”

“But in the end, you pulled off a deception worthy of legends, boldly appearing right in front of them. They had no idea it was you. Not only did you escape the final scrutiny, you’ve got the perfect alibi… These decades have not been wasted.”

Qin Ye sat at the head of the bed, drained of strength.

Tonight, this salted fish had struggled time and again, and at last, managed to turn over.

This was truly snatching chestnuts from the fire.

Just then, a glass of water was placed beside him. Looking up, he met Wang Chenghao’s earnest gaze.

“We’re… friends now, aren’t we?” After a few seconds, Wang Chenghao spoke softly and uncertainly. “You just said… I help you, and you’ll tell me everything I want to know…”

“…I suppose.” Qin Ye took the glass and sipped, the warm water easing his frantic heartbeat.

“Then…”

“Don’t rush.” Qin Ye closed his eyes to rest. “Being my friend is no easy task.”

“I’m not afraid!”

Qin Ye opened his eyes and looked at him suspiciously. “Let me give you an example… Suppose a classmate your age, after you’ve grown old and wrinkled, suddenly becomes young again, bouncing in front of you with a face full of pimples. What would you do?”

“A thousand cuts!” Wang Chenghao’s murderous intent was unmistakable.

“Sorry… I’ll take my leave.” Qin Ye stood to go.

“Hey… don’t go! Did I say something wrong? Aren’t we buddies…”

………………………………

“Oolala oolala oolala…” Just as Chang Fengzi had left the hospital, in the Xiajiang City Police Bureau, the detectives of the major crimes unit were already assembled. Before them stood Deputy Chief Lin Chaosheng, who had crawled out of bed in the middle of the night, sidearm strapped at his waist.

“Everyone.” His eyes swept sternly across their faces. “Seeing everyone called up at midnight, and only excitement—not fatigue—on your faces, I know I, Lin Chaosheng, have not raised cowards.”

“Chief Lin, is something big happening?” a young officer asked, barely able to contain his excitement. “It’s been so quiet lately! Three homicides in Xiajiang City, and we haven’t been allowed to intervene!”

“Exactly,” added a middle-aged man with a sallow complexion but piercing eyes. “Why? That so-called Special Investigation Division parachuted in and took over. Do they have our experience?”

“Enough, stop it.” Lin Chaosheng laughed and scolded, then grew serious. “You’re all elite. I’ve just received urgent orders: all cases in Xiajiang City are to be suspended. We’re to head immediately to Qingxi County.”

“Something happened in Qingxi County?” the sallow-faced man asked gravely.

Lin Chaosheng frowned, his tone severe. “Don’t ask what you shouldn’t. Have you forgotten? Get in the cars! We’re leaving for Qingxi County tonight! Move!”

The officers moved quickly, all the more excited because, this time, they were permitted to carry live ammunition—a sign that they might actually get to fire their weapons.

The chance to shoot was less important than the possibility that this was a genuine major case—bigger than any murder in Xiajiang City!

“Honestly, I respect Deputy Lin!” In the car, a young officer with a cigarette grinned at his colleague. “Amazing, not a single clue in those big cases! He’s forty-five, more energetic than I am, with a stellar record. If he’s not the next captain, I’m out!”

“Yeah, he’s really something.” His partner started the police car. “Remember those old cases—no one expected the culprit to be her, but Deputy Lin caught her. Full confession. Incredible.”

In Lin Chaosheng’s car, another young officer looked miserable. “Chief… can I ask you to drive today? I—I might catch a chill tonight…”

“Are you alright?” Lin Chaosheng rummaged in the car and tossed over some cold medicine. “If you’re not up to it, skip it. Health is the foundation.”

“No, I’m fine! Chief, please take me!”

“Only you can pull this off.” Lin Chaosheng smiled and started driving.

The convoy moved silently onto the highway, with no sirens blazing.

Lin Chaosheng, cigarette in mouth, followed at the rear, as was his duty.

His cap sat on the dashboard, the national emblem facing him. He suddenly felt a wave of irony.

Lately, things at the top had changed. Orders from above were vague, but a department called the Special Investigation Division had taken over all “difficult cases” nationwide, barring the major crimes unit from involvement. Xiajiang City, straddling two provinces, had considerable authority, and now it felt like their food had been snatched away. Many were disgruntled.

But complaints aside, a soldier’s duty is obedience.

So he said nothing.

“Just a few more years before the captain’s seat opens up, right?” The highway was quiet at night; he scanned the surroundings calmly. His own car was ahead; he just needed to keep pace.

“I’ve done well enough—by seniority and skill, it should be my turn.”

He smiled, thinking of his wife and daughter at home, feeling a pang of guilt.

Just then, he heard a faint “tap tap” sound.

What was that?

He looked around—nothing.

Never mind, he kept driving. But the tapping grew clearer, more frequent! Eventually, it sounded as if it was right by his ear!

A pitch-black night, a pitch-black road, a pitch-black car.

Suddenly, the tapping echoed, like a death knell… knocking on his car!

Tap tap… He counted the intervals—every five seconds, always from his left. On the fourth beat, he whipped his head around and, with a startled cry, the car spun wildly on the highway!

Screeching tires!

“Heh…heh!!” The car stopped by the roadside, sweat soaking his forehead, his heart nearly bursting.

Just now… at that moment, he had seen—a figure in a black trench coat, black hat, mask, and sunglasses—knocking on his window at over a hundred kilometers per hour!

Impossible!

Tap tap… Suddenly, the knocking resumed, and this time he froze.

This time… it was inside the car.

Click… The interior lights flickered out.

Thump thump thump… Even Lin Chaosheng, bold as he was, trembled uncontrollably as icy terror spread from his tailbone to the crown of his head.

Shaking, he turned on his phone and used its faint glow to peer into the rearview mirror.

“Ahhhhhhhhh!!!”

A piercing scream filled the car.

In the mirror, the young officer was bleeding from every orifice, his eyes bloodshot, skin deathly pale. His mouth, filled with ghastly white teeth, was stretched into a grin, staring straight ahead!

It was unmistakably a corpse.

He had been driving with this corpse for dozens of minutes.

And the corpse… was gently tapping the window every five seconds.

“Do you know… why vengeful ghosts don’t target soldiers or police?” A hoarse voice echoed from the young officer’s body, though his mouth did not move. His throat stayed still, but as he spoke, his blood-filled eyes bulged as if they might fall out.

“What… what are you?” Lin Chaosheng’s heart felt as if it had stopped. Suddenly, he grabbed his cap.

“Don’t come any closer… I have a gun… this is the national emblem…”

He’d heard somewhere that evil spirits could never approach the national emblem. Ghosts never haunted barracks or police stations!

The young officer smiled.

He placed his hands neatly on his knees, body upright, mouth curving into a chilling arc.

“Because the strongest Yang energy is right here.”

“And you… Lin Chaosheng… Seven years ago, the dismemberment case in Makou District made you famous. You coerced the widow Zhang’s mentally disabled son to force her confession, got her life imprisonment, and promised to care for her son. That idiot starved to death in the streets three years later…”

Lin Chaosheng’s throat trembled; he couldn’t utter a word.

“Four years ago… your rise in the serial murder case… Tasting blood, you repeated your tactics, made a sixty-year-old man confess, got him life imprisonment, promised to care for his seven-year-old grandchildren, then a year later sold them to traffickers… Ten thousand apiece, wasn’t it?”

“I wouldn’t dare enter the rest of the convoy… Only your car seemed to call me in… Tell me, how could the national emblem protect scum like you?”

Lin Chaosheng’s hand shook as he cocked the trigger, aiming at the back seat. “Who… who are you!!”

“I’m a doctor…” The corpse smiled silently. “A doctor for the living…”

“Perfect… I’d like to visit Qingxi County. Your ugly flesh will make the ideal vessel…”

“Splurt!” Blood sprayed, mingled with Lin Chaosheng’s scream, splattering across the window of the last car in the convoy.