Chapter 28: The Terrifying Legend of the Girls' Dormitory

Inside the Ling City Bureau of Paranormal Investigation, Su Chen’s words—uttered carelessly as an excuse to stay in Tenjing City—were taken entirely seriously by Fu Zhang. Once again, Fu Zhang produced the small black bottle. The tiny figure within looked up at him. “How much credence do you give the martial artist’s story?” it asked.

“At least seventy percent,” Fu Zhang replied. In truth, he didn’t know Su Chen all that well, but the man struck him as someone single-mindedly devoted to strength, stubborn to a fault—the sort who wouldn’t bother with lies.

The shadowy figure in the bottle seemed to fall into a long silence, finally murmuring, “If that’s the case, let him remain in Tenjing City.”

Fu Zhang nodded obediently, showing not a hint of dissent. He seemed to follow the commands of the little figure in the bottle without question.

…

At Ling City No. 2 High School, a group of girls had gathered to discuss the latest rumors—stories of the porcelain doll, the little girl, and the teddy bear.

“I heard someone from a dorm ran into those three things on her way to the bathroom one night and fainted dead away from fright.”

“Seriously? That scary?”

“That’s nothing. Remember the girl in our class? She used to see a face grinning at her through the window at night in the dorm. Guess what happened?”

“What?”

“She crept over and lifted the window, but there was nothing there. When she turned around, somehow that porcelain doll was standing right behind her, grinning!”

The mere retelling made everyone’s skin crawl. It was terrifying just to imagine—who could measure the psychological trauma inflicted on that poor girl?

“All this talk won’t help us. Isn’t Wang Hui coming to the girls’ dorm tonight to exorcise the place? He always acts all mysterious—let’s see if he can back it up with real skill.”

Wang Hui was a senior at their school, rumored to have apprenticed at a nearby Daoist temple. He liked to fancy himself a Daoist priest, and upon hearing of the hauntings in the girls’ dorm, he’d readily volunteered to rid them of evil spirits.

“We’ll just have to take it one step at a time. If things get any worse, the only option is to transfer out.”

Indeed, ever since Feng Tianlin’s arrival, many had already transferred, a testament to his notoriety.

That evening, a boy in casual attire with an insufferably smug grin appeared outside the girls’ dormitory, surrounded by a flock of anxious girls.

He sniffed the air. “Ah, there’s definitely a trace of paranormal entities here—but nothing powerful.”

“Paranormal entities? What’s that supposed to mean?” asked one of the girls.

“Oh, just what you’d call evil spirits. Don’t worry, with Wang the Celestial Master here, a few E-class entities will be wiped out in no time.”

Wang Hui had barely needed to concentrate to sense the presence of Feng Tianlin and the others—their auras unmasked and obvious. As an innate Daoist prodigy, his cultivation had soared since the resurgence of the supernatural. He was only eighteen but had already reached D-rank. Though just over the threshold, he felt confident that a handful of E-rank entities would pose no challenge.

The girls exchanged exasperated looks but had little choice—Wang Hui was their last hope. As they entered the dormitory, the housemistress had tactfully excused herself, having been forewarned and terrified by the tales herself.

On the first floor, Wang Hui suddenly sensed something amiss. The three supernatural presences from earlier had dwindled to only two.

“What’s going on? Did I sense wrong?” He frowned, pondering.

“What did you say?” a girl asked, catching his mutter.

“Oh, nothing. Just amazed these little things could scare you all so badly.” He scratched his head, feigning nonchalance.

Clearly, he enjoyed showing off, especially before an audience of girls. Who could blame him? It was a man’s instinct.

He swaggered up the stairs, utterly at ease, while the girls clung together, visibly unnerved.

“Come on, is it that bad? If you’re really scared, you can hold on to me.” Wang Hui flashed a roguish grin.

“Get lost!” the girls chorused, and whatever charm he’d managed to muster vanished in an instant.

Just then, the lights abruptly went out, plunging the hallway into darkness.

“Aaah!” The girls screamed, two fleeing in terror while the remaining three clung tightly to Wang Hui.

“Heh heh heh.” Wang Hui’s smug laugh echoed in the blackness.

Before the three girls could respond, the lights snapped back on. Only then did they see Wang Hui standing at the switch, grinning from ear to ear.

“Wang Hui! I knew you were up to no good! If you’re not going to help, just get out!” snapped Hu Haiyan, the best friend of the girl who’d fainted in the bathroom.

She was genuinely angry—this situation was frightening enough without Wang Hui’s antics.

Wang Hui laughed heartily, about to make another joke, when the lights went out again.

“Wang Hui! What are you doing?” The girls immediately blamed him, growing even more incensed.

“It’s not me, I swear! How would I know what’s happening?” Wang Hui protested, wounded.

“Who is it then?” Hu Haiyan muttered suspiciously. She turned on her phone’s flashlight and aimed it at the switch—there was no one there.

Whatever was causing the blackout, it wasn’t Wang Hui. Hu Haiyan felt her way over and pressed the switch repeatedly, but the lights stayed off.

“I told you, this time it’s not me!” Wang Hui insisted, more aggrieved than ever.

“That’s odd. Maybe there’s a power outage?” Hu Haiyan wondered aloud. Just then, she felt a hand brush her waist. “Wang Hui! Behave yourself!”

She naturally assumed the only boy present was taking advantage, and spun around to confront him.

Wang Hui looked baffled, both hands raised high. “No, listen—I didn’t do anything!”

But as she saw his hands in the air and still felt the touch at her waist, a chill crept down her spine. With robotic movements, she angled her flashlight downward, only to see a little girl in a red dress grinning up at her.

“Aaaah! There it is!”

Everyone saw the child and shrieked, scrambling to huddle around Wang Hui.

He scrutinized the little girl, then burst out laughing. “Come on, it’s just an ordinary child, probably lost.”

He strode confidently toward her. “Little one, tell big brother—where do you live?”

He sensed not the faintest trace of a supernatural aura from this child; despite her eerie yet endearing appearance, he took her for a lost little girl.

The girl let out a chilling giggle. Her lips never moved, but the sound filled the hallway. “Oh? I’m just an ordinary little girl? Big brother, why don’t you take a closer look?”