Chapter 13: Dried, Dark Stains

Before coming to the hospital, Xu Huai had considered letting Xie Jing stay in the villa, giving him some antipyretics, and just letting him spend the night.

The invasion of Yin energy wouldn’t simply heal so easily; the illness would repeatedly worsen, continuously affecting bodily functions, and sometimes even leave lasting aftereffects.

But if it was just a fever, taking medicine and not going to the hospital, staying at home for one night wouldn’t kill him.

Xu Huai’s initial plan was for Xie Jing to stay in the room to lure out the ghost pestering him, and he would find a way to deal with it.

However, this idea was not implemented.

First, since the ghost could hide so well, it meant it had some real ability and wouldn’t be so impatient as to rush out and pester Xie Jing as soon as night fell. He probably wouldn’t be able to catch it even if he waited all night.

Second, Xu Huai did consider the remaining tens of thousands of yuan, almost the down payment for an apartment, reminding himself to provide good service.

He also considered it rare to encounter such a considerate, emotionally stable, and good-looking employer; it would be a shame if he caught a fever and became irrational.

Third, he was indeed a bit tired after searching the villa for so long. Xu Huai’s “mana bar” was critically low, and he didn’t have the energy to stay up all night catching ghosts. In poor condition, even if he waited, he might not be able to catch it.

He might even annoy the thing, and in its anger, it might do something even more dangerous to Xie Jing or him.

As a precaution, Xu Huai ultimately implemented plan B, sending Xie Jing to the hospital.

Sending the employer to the hospital demonstrated a good service attitude, valuing the employer’s health, and allowed him to replenish his “mana bar” at the hospital.

Xu Huai felt like a genius for sending Xie Jing to the hospital.

But he didn’t expect that thing to follow them to the hospital, hiding somewhere and moving freely in the ward, which was decorated with talismans meant to ward off evil and dispel it.

And that child ghost from before also entered the ward inexplicably, despite the Ghost-Dispelling Talisman.

Anything capable of that level of action usually wouldn’t be a simple little ghost.

If his previous missions and past experiences hadn’t proven that the talismans he drew were indeed effective against ghosts, Xu Huai would have started to doubt himself.

Thinking of this, Xu Huai’s fingers rested on the window edge, pausing when his fingertip touched the glass.

That’s not right…

The talisman he drew on the window was gone.

It had been wiped clean.

Who wiped it off?!

The bathroom door behind him clicked open, and Xu Huai turned to look at Xie Jing, who had just come out, and asked:

“After I fell asleep and during the time you went out to buy food, did anyone else come into this ward?”

Xie Jing was stunned by the question, and even his eyes showed the confusion caused by the sudden inquiry. He thought for a moment and said, “Yes.”

“While I was still on the IV drip, a nurse came in to change the solution.”

Xu Huai: “What about others? Did the nurse wipe the glass or anything?”

Xie Jing shook his head: “She left after changing the solution. You were sleeping at the time, and I asked her to be quiet so as not to disturb you.”

Having just taken a shower, his hair wasn’t dry yet. Transparent water droplets rolled from Xie Jing’s soft hair to his cheeks.

“After that, no one else came into the ward. It was just me.”

Xu Huai stared fixedly at Xie Jing.

Xie Jing didn’t seem to understand the scrutiny in Xu Huai’s eyes and looked back at him frankly.

Anyone with eyes could tell that what he drew on the window was a talisman. A normal person wouldn’t wipe that thing off. But based on what he heard, the only person who could have wiped the glass was Xie Jing.

Xie Jing was the one being haunted by a ghost. Why would Xie Jing wipe it off?

…Unless.

Xie Jing took a few steps forward, walking to the bedside: “Why are you asking this? I didn’t leave the ward, and I wasn’t asleep. I couldn’t have misremembered.”

The area around the bed was previously covered in spilled medicine. Now, Xie Jing was standing on top of the dried, dark stain.

Xu Huai: “…”

Xu Huai was thinking.

There’s an invisible person who sneaked into the room, took nothing, did nothing, and wiped the glass because they didn’t like the look of the window.

Someone with a heartbeat, who can move normally, and even has completely normal hospital checkups, is a ghost standing on a talisman powerful enough to obliterate evil spirits.

Which of these two possibilities is more likely?

After seriously considering it for half a minute, Xu Huai…

Started to think that the problem was more likely with him.

Could it be that he made a mistake when drawing the talisman, and it didn’t work at all?

That shouldn’t be the case. When he took out the talisman under the bridge that day, it scared away several ghosts.

Xu Huai: “…No, it’s nothing.”

Xu Huai looked away from Xie Jing, “I just noticed that the talisman I drew on the window is gone.”

Xie Jing said hesitantly, “The talisman… on the window?”

Xu Huai’s eyelid twitched.

Why did Xie Jing say it like that?

In the afternoon, he used rainwater to draw a talisman on the window. Although it was translucent, the lines were still visible from a certain angle, and Xie Jing had watched him create it.

Xu Huai pointed to the window, looking in the direction of his finger: “Yes, it was raining outside at the time, and a little bird landed there. You said it came in to take shelter from the rain.”

Unexpectedly, after saying this, he received no response.

Xu Huai belatedly turned his head.

Then he immediately understood why it was so silent.

There was no one behind him.

The ward was so quiet that he could only hear his breathing.

Realizing something, Xu Huai looked up at the bed and found that the person lying on the bed wasn’t Xie Jing, but the little boy he had seen before.

And Xie Jing had disappeared.

This isn’t good.

Xu Huai was slightly startled.

His employer was gone.

The little boy was leaning against the headboard, hugging a white pillow. His face was pale, and he looked very weak, as if he had a serious illness.

The medicine stains on the floor next to the bed had been cleaned up at some point, leaving only the smooth floor, which reflected the light from the fluorescent lights on the ceiling.

The sound of dripping water came from the bathroom in the single ward, becoming the only accompaniment in the entire room.

Xie Jing was in the bathroom before.

Xu Huai ignored the ghost on the bed and walked straight to the bathroom in the ward.

The bathroom door wasn’t closed, and he could see everything inside as soon as he got close. The floor and walls were covered in “people,” the brownish-red liquid exploding like fireworks, scattered throughout the entire bathroom.

After just one glance, Xu Huai turned his head and walked towards the ward door with a cold face.

“Swish—” The ward door was opened.

In the bright corridor, the child who had been lying on the bed a moment ago appeared in front of Xu Huai again. His small body blocked Xu Huai’s path.

The child only reached Xu Huai’s waist. Xu Huai looked left and right in the corridor, confirming that Xie Jing wasn’t there. Seeing that the child still wouldn’t let him pass, he turned his gaze to the child.

His tone and eyes were equally cold: “What do you want?”

The child said somewhat aggrievedly: “I’m a little bored. I want to play with big brother.”

Xu Huai was about to say: If you’re bored, find your dad. I’m not responsible for taking care of kids.

The words turned on his tongue and became: “You want to play with me?”

The child looked up, his big eyes staring straight at Xu Huai, filled with expectation.

Then Xu Huai would disappoint the other party’s “expectations.”

Xu Huai: “But I only want to play with the big brother in the ward who doesn’t take medicine. What should I do?”

The child seemed startled by this statement, his mouth open, unable to speak for a moment.

Before the child could speak, Xu Huai said again: “Either you help me find that big brother and let that big brother play with you.”

“Or you can play by yourself.”

In short, don’t bother him.

The child’s hand holding the pillow tightened, and the entire ghost stiffened imperceptibly.

Soon, tears began to well up in his eyes: “But I don’t want to play with that big brother. I only want to play with you.”

If you don’t want to play, then forget it.

Xu Huai nodded: “You don’t want to play with him, so you hid him, right?”

The child’s hands were about to dig into the pillow. He didn’t know how to refute, and even his thoughts began to follow Xu Huai’s words:

“…No, I didn’t. I didn’t hide big brother.”

Xu Huai pondered for a while.

Xu Huai: “So that big brother who doesn’t take medicine hid himself?”

The child looked up, his eyes somewhat dull.

No.

Wouldn’t one think he was lying in this situation? How did he conclude that the person hid himself? Is this normal thinking?!

Xu Huai: “That’s perfect.”

Child: “Huh?”

Wh… what’s perfect?

What’s perfect? How is it perfect?!

Xu Huai: “That big brother is hiding and playing hide-and-seek with you. You and I looking for him also counts as playing with you.”

Child: “…”

What kind of heaven-defying statement is this? Is anyone going to manage this?!

The child finally couldn’t hold back his tears and burst into loud sobs, his voice so loud that Xu Huai didn’t even hear a faint chuckle not far away.

Ghosts, like people, possess their own unique strengths.

The unique quality of certain ghosts is to “bewitch” people, creating illusory and hard-to-distinguish experiences that lead individuals into confusion and impair their judgment.

It’s indeed tough to notice when things around you are being changed quietly. “Bewitchment” is like poison gas; you don’t realize when you’ve inhaled it and have been poisoned.

If there had been no accidents, he would now be trapped in “bewitchment.”

Xu Huai lowered his eyes and pinched his fingertip.

Sure enough, there was no pain.

Being trapped in “bewitchment” is like being pulled into a self-controlled dream, where you can’t feel pain.

He didn’t know when he started to fall into “bewitchment.” He hadn’t felt anything unusual before.

That’s not right.

It seemed like some feelings that didn’t quite conform to common sense… including wanting to get close to Xie Jing, Xie Jing smelling very fragrant, and feeling very comfortable when touching Xie Jing, all seemed to have happened after being licked by that black flame?

So it was at that time?

Xu Huai asked the sobbing child again: “Do you not know where that big brother went?”

The child didn’t answer.

Xu Huai sighed.

You have to wake up quickly after falling into “bewitchment.” If you can’t wake up, you’ll become a vegetable.

There are two ways to escape from “bewitchment.” One is to solve the ghost that created the “bewitchment,” and the other is to solve the most worrying thing in your heart.

The thing Xu Huai was most worried about, of course, was the safety of his employer and the tens of thousands of yuan in remaining payment. If there were no accidents, he would be able to wake up after finding “Xie Jing” within the “bewitchment.”

But “bewitchment” is controlled by the ghost, and that ghost can hide “Xie Jing” anywhere and try to prevent people from finding him.

The difficulty was too high, and Xu Huai didn’t consider this option.

He had just repeatedly asked this broken child ghost about Xie Jing’s location, but the child didn’t want to say anything, which meant he didn’t want to let him out easily.

Xu Huai thought, “Too bad; then he could only resort to violence.”