Chapter Eighteen: Early Signs Revealed (Part Two)

“Hey, kid, did you get this wrong?” Hu Hai was stunned for a moment before bursting out laughing. “Everyone in here is crazy; of course their brainwaves are different from normal people. You’re not mistaking them for ghosts, are you?”

But Motuo was a bit confused. “Crazy? What kind of cultivators are those? Are they powerful?”

“Cultivators? Oh, you don’t understand. The so-called crazies are just mentally ill people—most of them have either congenital issues or suffered some major trauma that caused their minds to become disordered and their behavior odd. They’re definitely not cultivators.” Shi Jun, knowing Motuo was born in the Demon Realm and probably unfamiliar with the concept of mental illness, patiently explained.

“They’re not cultivators? But I’m certain I sensed an unusual surge of spiritual energy here, and within it, I could sense a water element power from the Underworld. I can’t be mistaken!” Now Motuo, after hearing the two of them, wasn’t so sure anymore, and he murmured in confusion, his expression perplexed.

“Maybe when hundreds of people’s brainwaves combine, it seems…” Hu Hai thought for a long time but couldn’t find the right words. “Anyway, I think you’re mistaken.”

“Even if you are, it doesn’t matter,” Shi Jun quickly comforted Motuo when he saw his troubled face. “If there really were that many ghosts, that’d be a disaster, wouldn’t it? Hundreds! Right now, Hu Hai and I don’t have any real power to use, and you, a new generation from the Demon Realm, wouldn’t be able to handle it alone!”

“That’s true.” Both Motuo and Hu Hai nodded in agreement—if there actually were hundreds of ghosts, the three of them would indeed be powerless to deal with it.

After all that fuss, they saw it was nearly two o’clock. Hu Hai quickly said, “No use worrying, let’s just head back for now. I’ve got Professor Guang Linzi’s class this afternoon!”

They were just about to turn and leave when, out of the corner of his eye, Shi Jun suddenly spotted a familiar figure, and couldn’t help but feel both surprised and delighted.

* * *

He saw someone he never expected to encounter in a place like this—Lu Qing.

“Lu Qing! Sister Lu!” Without thinking, Shi Jun shouted out.

Hearing Shi Jun call out Lu Qing’s name, Hu Hai didn’t react at first but instinctively followed Shi Jun’s gaze. He saw nothing. Yet Shi Jun hurried forward a few steps and began talking to thin air, leaving Hu Hai baffled. He tugged at Motuo’s sleeve. “Hey, what’s he doing?”

“You can’t see her? Oh, I forgot.” Motuo was craning his neck, listening intently, but suddenly remembered Hu Hai hadn’t officially started cultivating yet and lacked the ability to see spirits. He quickly pressed two fingers to Hu Hai’s forehead and chanted sharply, “Open!”

“Open your head! What are you doing? You almost poked my eye out!” Hu Hai shrank back and rubbed his eyes. “I still can’t see a thing.”

“Huh?” Motuo tilted his head, thought for a moment, then scratched his head. “Oops, I missed a line in the incantation, heh.” He performed the spell again and repeated, “Open!”

A flash of white light flickered before Hu Hai’s eyes, and when he blinked, he finally saw—standing face to face with Shi Jun was a woman of about thirty, of ordinary appearance. He suddenly recalled what Shi Jun had told him about Lu Qing and said to Motuo, “I get it now. She’s the first ghost Shi Jun ever met—so, was it her spiritual energy you sensed?”

Motuo frowned and shook his head. “It’s obvious she doesn’t have any cultivation; you can’t even call that spiritual energy.” He pointed toward the mental hospital’s entrance. “The real surge is in there. I just sensed it up close again—it’s different. Part of the energy field is chaotic and not of the Underworld, but there’s still a definite Underworld energy present.”

Hu Hai, half-convinced, saw that Shi Jun and Lu Qing were deep in conversation and decided not to interrupt. He and Motuo wandered slowly along the hospital’s outer wall.

* * *

“How come you’re here? I’ve been looking for you,” Shi Jun said, overjoyed to see Lu Qing. Ever since becoming a Warden of the Underworld, finding Lu Qing and helping her return to the Underworld had weighed on his heart—but in a world so vast, with ghosts so elusive, he hadn’t known where to begin. Now, meeting her by chance, he was understandably excited.

Lu Qing floated out of the mental hospital, her feet barely touching the ground. Hearing someone call her name, she was surprised, but when she saw Shi Jun, she was glad as well. “You’ve been looking for me?”

“Yes, I think I can help you return to the Underworld.” Shi Jun quickly explained how he’d become a Warden after meeting her. He expected Lu Qing to be overjoyed, but to his surprise, she responded indifferently with a simple, “Oh? Really?” There was no trace of happiness in her eyes. He couldn’t help but ask, “Don’t you want to return?”

“Let’s talk about it later.” Lu Qing forced a smile, her mind clearly elsewhere. “I still have unresolved wishes here… I can’t go just yet.”

“Why?” Shi Jun was puzzled.

Lu Qing looked around. Though the hospital was in a remote area, from time to time a few people passed by. Shi Jun, standing alone on the roadside talking to himself, looked rather conspicuous. She said, “This isn’t the best place to talk. How about I come find you at your place tonight?”

“Alright, but I might be staying at a friend’s place these days,” Shi Jun replied, noticing a couple of passersby giving him strange looks. He thought to himself: it really isn’t wise to stand here in broad daylight chatting with a ghost—if someone from the hospital comes out and drags me inside, that would be a real injustice! He gave Lu Qing Hu Hai’s address as well, and they agreed on a time to meet.

Just as he was about to call Hu Hai and Motuo to leave, Lu Qing hesitantly asked, “Now that you’re an official of the Underworld, have you noticed that there’s something odd about this hospital?”

“Something odd?” Shi Jun paused. “Sister Lu, do you think there’s something strange here?”

Lu Qing nodded, her face troubled. “...I used to know this place well. I still come back every few days to check on things, but when I went in just now, everything was—how do I put it—completely out of order...” She suddenly stopped.

Shi Jun was about to ask what had happened inside the mental hospital when he noticed Lu Qing abruptly fall silent, her gaze fixed on the hospital’s entrance, her expression turning strange. He followed her eyes.

* * *

At the tree-shaded entrance, two young men in white coats—clearly hospital staff—came running out, one behind the other, elated and shouting as if they’d just won the lottery. They danced and gestured wildly in delight.

The two young men skipped out of the hospital, completely ignoring Shi Jun and the others, brushing right past them. An overwhelming, sour stench of sweat filled Shi Jun’s nostrils, and he saw both men’s foreheads and necks glistening with sweat, as if they’d just finished some strenuous exercise and hadn’t bathed in days. He frowned and watched them closely, curious to see what they would do next.

To his astonishment, these two strapping men, both in their early twenties, began playing a game of “Eagle Catches the Chick” around a street tree. One seemed determined to catch the other, who dodged with all his might, giggling uncontrollably like a child.

In no time, the shorter of the two was a fraction too slow and was caught and pulled to the ground by the taller, heavier one, who burst into gleeful laughter. The smaller man, however, lay on the ground, kicking and wailing as if inconsolable—he looked as grief-stricken as if he’d just lost his parents.

The sight left not only Shi Jun and Lu Qing stunned, but Hu Hai and Motuo as well when they hurried over. No one could make sense of what they’d just witnessed.

As they exchanged bewildered glances, a sudden rush of footsteps sounded. Four men in patient gowns hurried out from the hospital.

The four, all male but varying in age—one looked about fifty, another just seventeen or eighteen—were disheveled, their hair wild, clothes askew, but all wore serious expressions, brows furrowed as if facing a great adversary. As soon as they emerged, they split into two pairs, each grabbing one of the young men in white coats, ignoring their cries and protests, and dragged them forcefully back into the hospital. Moments later, there was a loud clang as the heavy iron gates slammed shut.

Throughout, none of the six so much as glanced at Shi Jun and the others. Their behavior was so bizarre it defied explanation.