Chapter 17: Humans and Demons Travel Different Paths

I woke up in a hospital bed, with Peng Fei, the school leaders, and that police officer from last time watching over me.

Aside from a few minor scrapes on my face, I was physically fine. The fainting was just due to emotional excitement and excessive shock.

I cooperated in making a statement. The police officer asked if I had seen what attacked Lin Miao, and I shook my head, saying that I had already fainted at that time and didn’t see it.

I realized I had lied, but the words were already out.

“Little sister, take care of yourself when you go out in the future. Different criminals have targeted you twice in a week. That’s a pretty high frequency,” the police officer said with a sigh, shaking his head.

“You can’t blame my friend for that! They were the ones with bad intentions! Just because she’s pretty, she deserves to be insulted? They kidnapped Xiaomai directly from the bathroom! Shouldn’t you be managing the social atmosphere and campus chaos? Instead, you’re blaming my friend!” Peng Fei defended me, her voice choked with emotion.

“If it had been any later, any later…”

Thinking about it, I was also afraid.

The police officer comforted, “We will severely punish the criminals, but you must also pay attention to safety, especially girls. It’s inevitable that there will be people with malicious intentions.”

“Usually, try not to get into arguments or disputes with people, because you never know who will stab you in the back. You’re too young, and you haven’t experienced enough or seen enough people. Even if the world is at peace, criminal events will still happen. Don’t overestimate human nature. Human hearts are the most dangerous…”

After the police officer’s speech, Peng Fei had no temper. We both nodded and said we understood.

The school leaders told me to rest well and said that the Wang-gou and Lin Miao incidents had hit me hard. The school was willing to offer 20,000 yuan as compensation for my mental distress.

I knew they were afraid that I would say something that would damage the school’s reputation. Although taking this money felt unlucky, I had over 10,000 yuan in student loans to repay, so I thought about it and didn’t refuse.

I can disagree with anyone, but I can’t disagree with money.

Because we had already graduated, and this incident happened off-campus, the school couldn’t deal with Lin Miao and could only leave it to the law.

Peng Fei cursed her, saying that she deserved it: “People like her only know how to take shortcuts, they have crooked minds, they flatter the powerful and despise the weak. They should be given a lesson!”

But this lesson was too big…

Lin Miao damaged her vocal cords, and she was disfigured. Adding the kidnapping charge, it’s estimated that it will be difficult for her to have a successful life.

The next day, everyone moved out of the dormitory one after another. After paying off my student loans, I had more than 4,000 yuan left in my hand, so I didn’t plan to look for a job. Instead, I went straight back to my great-grandmother’s and inherited her traditional Chinese medicine shop.

After packing all my luggage and sending it back, I planned to thank that stinky fox before leaving.

I was indeed very afraid of Wen Ye, but he had saved me twice, so I still had to say thank you. What’s more, I hadn’t returned the access card and keys.

I searched online for things that foxes like to eat, so I bought a lot of fruit and yogurt, and also brought a bouquet of flowers.

After ringing the doorbell for a minute and no one answered, I hesitated and entered the electronic lock password.

The living room was sunny and empty.

“Wen Ye…” I came in cautiously, put the things on the island counter, and knocked on the door of my former room.

Seeing that there was no movement inside, I opened my mouth softly: “It’s Le Xiaomai, Wen Ye, I’m coming in.”

After opening the door, there was no sign of Wen Ye, except for the messy bed.

The bed seemed to still have the marks of where I had slept before. Could it be that he hadn’t come back since then?

Just as I was wondering, an impatient voice sounded behind me: “What are you here for?”

“Ah!”

I was frightened and jumped, turning around abruptly—

Wen Ye, with his ears and tail gone, wearing an ill-fitting white short-sleeved shirt and house shorts, was barefoot, with his hands in his pockets, frowning at me.

Seeing me turn around, he turned his face, his gaze cast towards the direction of the bedside table, not making eye contact with me.

Aloof and cold, with a bad face, but it couldn’t stop him from being so good-looking.

His fox-like appearance of biting people quickly flashed through my mind. I took a few deep breaths to calm my mind.

“I, I came to say thank you and… to say goodbye.” I looked at his profile, not being deceived by his appearance, and said calmly, “I’ve graduated and will be leaving Xicheng soon.”

“I brought you some fruit and flowers. I don’t know if you like them.” I forced a smile. “If you don’t like them, just throw them away.”

“Thank you for saving me. Thank you.” I bowed to him.

After a long silence, he snorted coldly, “Are you done? If you’re done, get out.”

I breathed a sigh of relief, persuading myself not to be angry. This was my life-saver!

I kept smiling and put the access card on the island counter. “Then I’m leaving…”

He was unmoved. I felt like a big stone was blocking my chest. I whispered goodbye and backed out.

Different paths for humans and demons, goodbye and we’ll each be fine, no more disturbing each other.

Yeah, that’s good.

But why did I feel so lost and sad…

I looked at myself in the elevator mirror, forcing a pale wry smile: You really can’t keep a pet, even if it’s just for a day. Your heart will be softened and you will not want to part.

In a daze, I vaguely felt that the mirror was a bit strange. The originally clear mirror image became more and more blurred, and there seemed to be a hazy shadow inside.

The temperature of the entire elevator dropped sharply, making me shiver involuntarily.

A black hole slowly appeared in the mirror in front of me, and countless complaints whispered in my ears.

There were men and women, fast and slow, laughing and crying, high-pitched and sharp, all drilling into my head.

Why did I hear these sounds again!

My eardrums were about to explode, the veins on my temples bulged, and my head hurt so much!

A pair of black, smoky hands stretched out from the black hole, the hands were skinny and bony, with large joints, like hands that had done farm work.

The hands opened towards me, getting closer and closer, as if they were going to pull me in.

“He found you so quickly… Hehe… She hid you so well… Hehe…” A hoarse laugh came from the hole.

Who? Found who?

I was breathing fast, covering my head and backing away, not understanding what was going on!

But the elevator was full of mirrors. I watched as I was enveloped in a black mist.

“Old thing, you’re finally willing to show your face in person…”

I didn’t know when Wen Ye had entered the elevator. He stood in front of me, holding a dagger in his hand, blocking the black mist with a horizontal sweep.

The black hole slowly shrank, the big hand was scattered, and the moment the arm stretched back, I saw a bracelet hanging on his arm that was all too familiar to me.

It was a pair with the one in my bag!

“Hehe… It’s coming soon, it’s coming soon…” A hoarse laugh came from the black hole again. Finally, the black hole closed, and the voices in my head disappeared with it.

Ding—the elevator door opened, and everything returned to normal.

I struggled to get out of the elevator, leaned against the wall, and covered my head, closing my eyes.

“Hey, are you okay?” Wen Ye asked, with his hands in his pockets, his tone alienated and impatient.

I slowly opened my eyes. What I saw was the floor tiles of the hall and his bare feet.

Didn’t this guy know how to wear shoes?

“What was going on just now?” I gradually regained my senses and looked up at Wen Ye.

How could the person in the black hole have the same bracelet as me?

Wen Ye looked at me indifferently. “I’ve already told you, you’re a descendant of witches, and the bracelet is a token. Just now, the old thing used the mirror to tear open space.”

“Was that person also from the Wu Clan?” I asked.

Wen Ye nodded. “Le Xiaomai, your mother has been protecting you, but in the year you turned sixteen, you were still discovered by this old thing.”

“You’ve been targeted by him for a long time…”