Chapter 25

Chapter 25

◎Jumping off a building hurts for a second, but living hurts forever◎

The fuel tank burst open, spilling gasoline that soaked the road. The wreckage of the car was strewn across the ground. Some passing cars sped off, while others pulled over to the side, unsure if they were there to gawk or lend a hand.

Someone quickly dialed for an ambulance and alerted the police, but they all kept their distance, too afraid to get near the wreck. The car was leaking fuel, and if it exploded, being too close would mean no chance of escape.

From his car in the distance, Ji Nanxing observed the crash scene. Seeing the crowd of onlookers growing, he finally stepped out of the car.

The ambulance was en route, and warning signs had already been put up. There were still people trapped in the car, but no one around knew how to rescue them, so no one dared to make a move.

In a spot unseen by the crowd, a girl perched on the roof of the wrecked car. Her long, jet-black hair, beneath the stark light of the streetlamp, made her deathly pale face seem even more eerie.

The girl dangled her legs, her pitch-black eyes fixed expressionlessly on the car. If you listened closely, you could even hear her humming a tune.

It wasn't until she felt the Taoist's power drawing near that the girl's eyes scanned the crowd and finally locked onto Ji Nanxing, or rather, on his school uniform and the badge pinned to his chest.

Ji Nanxing raised his hand, jingling the bead bracelet on his wrist.

Without channeling his spiritual energy, the bell beneath the beads remained silent. But whether it was the golden bell or the bead bracelet, even in the mystical realm, they were rare and powerful artifacts, naturally possessing a restraining force against these dark entities.

Thus, Ji Nanxing's gesture was a warning to the female ghost, giving her the choice to surrender willingly or wait for him to take action.

The female ghost floated down from the car roof and landed beside Ji Nanxing, her eyes filled with curiosity: "Are you a ghost catcher? Was that talisman you threw earlier? So there really are people who specialize in catching ghosts. I've been dead for so many years, but this is the first time I've seen one."

After speaking, the female ghost turned to Ji Nanxing and asked, "So, are you going to catch me now? Are you going to make my soul scatter, or will you perform a ritual to send me to the afterlife?"

Ji Nanxing looked down at her: "Do you want your soul to scatter, or do you want to be sent to the afterlife?"

The female ghost widened her eyes slightly: "I can choose?"

Ji Nanxing glanced at the car accident: "If they die, your soul will scatter. If you stop now, I will send you to the afterlife."

The female ghost tried to bargain: "Do you really have to take me away? I've been a ghost for several years, and no one has bothered me."

Ji Nanxing: "If you hadn't harmed anyone today, I wouldn't have bothered you either."

The female ghost tilted her head, her long black hair sliding off her shoulder with the movement: "So you ghost catchers only deal with ghosts? How do you know I'm harming people and not seeking revenge?"

Ji Nanxing didn't answer her question but instead asked, "So, do you really want to kill them?"

The girl gave a ghostly smile: "What if I say yes?"

Ji Nanxing also smiled: "Go ahead."

The female ghost was taken aback and widened her eyes again: "Aren't you supposed to catch ghosts and save people?!"

Ji Nanxing: "Aren't you seeking revenge?"

The female ghost looked at the scene over there. The ambulance and firefighters had arrived and were trying to pry open the deformed car door to rescue those inside. The driver's side was more severely damaged, and the door was hard to open. The woman in the passenger seat had already been dragged out and sent to the ambulance.

A lot of blood had already pooled on the ground, and the flashing red and blue lights from the police car reflected on the road, which was either covered in blood or gasoline. The onlookers were kept behind the protective line, watching the spectacle with indifference.

The female ghost looked at Ji Nanxing, who seemed genuinely prepared to stand by and do nothing, and fell silent for a while. After a long pause, she extended her hands to Ji Nanxing: "Take me away. I'm tired of being a ghost anyway."

Ji Nanxing took out a red string and tied it around her wrist.

The female ghost looked at the disappearing red string but felt a clear sense of restraint on her body. She was slightly surprised: "Handcuffs from the underworld?"

Ji Nanxing turned and walked toward where his car was parked: "Let's go."

The female ghost followed reluctantly. She had no choice but to follow, as even though the red string on her wrist had disappeared, she could feel that if she tried to run, this guy could easily catch her with a wave of his hand.

The female ghost floated into the car, ready to completely give up, when she heard Ji Nanxing say to the driver: "Follow the ambulance to the hospital."

The female ghost quickly looked at him: "Why are we going to the hospital?"

Ji Nanxing: "To see if they're dead, so we can determine your crime."

The male assistant glanced at the rearview mirror and tentatively asked, "Young master?"

Ji Nanxing hummed in acknowledgment: "There's one, but it's fine. Just focus on driving."

The female ghost, seeing that the driver couldn't see her but the ghost catcher didn't hide her existence from the driver, chuckled: "Do you think he'd be scared if he saw something suddenly floating?"

Ji Nanxing: "You can try."

The female ghost reached out, tempted, but instead of grabbing something in the car, she reached toward the male assistant's face.

Just as she was about to touch the male assistant's face, Ji Nanxing spoke up: "He has a thunder talisman on him. You can try the taste of being struck by it."

The Ji family's life assistant wasn't just anyone. Given Ji Nanxing's special existence, the people who frequently interacted with him naturally couldn't be ordinary.

As mentioned before, some people with extremely yang destinies may have strong health and vitality, but that doesn't necessarily mean they have good fortunes. The life assistant the Ji family found was such a person.

An extremely yang destiny, but with a bad fortune.

Born into a poor family, one misfortune after another befell him. First, his father lost both legs in a car accident, then his mother was diagnosed with cancer. He also had a younger sister who, one night on her way home, was robbed and pushed to the ground, hitting her head.

At that time, the male assistant sold everything he could and even considered dropping out of school to work and support his family. Even though it was a drop in the bucket, they were his family, and he couldn't give up on them.

Later, the Ji family found him, sponsored him, trained him, and gave him a high-paying job far beyond what others could offer. Of course, some things were explained to him beforehand.

So the male assistant knew that the two young masters of the Ji family were from the mystical world and was aware of the young master's special constitution. Therefore, many matters were directly handled by him, as prolonged contact with the young master would inevitably have some effect on others.

This was also why the young master lived alone without someone to take care of his meals, and why housekeeping was handled by rotating hourly workers. Why he either took random taxis or public transportation when going out, without a dedicated driver, because occasional contact with some people was fine, but long-term accumulation would be problematic.

Thus, even he carried some talismans to ward off yin or thunder talismans as a form of protection.

The female ghost quickly retracted her hand. Just the word "thunder" was enough to scare a ghost. Every time there was a thunderstorm, she felt like she was about to be struck and scattered into nothingness.

The male assistant, who was driving, knew that the young master was probably talking to a ghost, but it wasn't hard to tell from the young master's attitude that the ghost was likely a harmless one. Otherwise, the young master wouldn't be so amiable.

Hospitals are always crowded, day or night, especially after a car accident. Ji Nanxing's car arrived almost simultaneously with the ambulance, so they didn't need to search for the victims. They simply followed the frantic rescue team.

When they reached the emergency room entrance, the female ghost tugged at Ji Nanxing's clothes: "Are there a lot of ghosts in the hospital?"

Ji Nanxing looked at her: "What, do you want to make friends with them?"

The female ghost waved her hand: "No, no, I'm scared of ghosts."

Ji Nanxing: "..." It was the first time he'd heard a ghost say it was scared of other ghosts.

Since the family involved in the car accident was already in the hospital and none of them had regained consciousness, the police couldn't find any other family or friends in such a short time and could only assign someone to wait outside.

Ji Nanxing found a chair not too far away and sat down. As soon as he sat, his phone rang. He took it out and saw it was Xiao Ye.

Ji Nanxing answered the call, but before he could speak, the other end bombarded him with questions: "Are you okay? Where are you now? Are you alone or with your family? Do you want me to come and keep you company?"

You could tell from his voice that Xiao Ye sounded a bit anxious, with the sound of wind in the background, like he was walking quickly. Ji Nanxing pressed his lips together lightly and said, "I'm fine."

The hospital's background noise was unmistakable, with electronic announcements and people calling for nurses. Xiao Ye cut in right away, "You're at the hospital? What did the doctor say? Is your chest still hurting?"

Ji Nanxing: "I'm really okay. I'll head home soon. See you at school tomorrow."

Xiao Ye's footsteps slowed a little, and he responded with an "Oh": "Maybe you should take a couple more days off. Tomorrow is Friday, and after the parent-teacher meeting in the afternoon, school will be out. With the weekend, you’ll have a solid three days to rest. Take care of yourself, don’t overdo it."

Ji Nanxing: "Mm, got it. I’ll let you go. Head home early."

After hanging up, the female ghost sidled up to him, grinning: "Who was that? So worried about you, even asking if your chest still hurts. You’re still in your school uniform, and it’s supposed to be evening study hall. So, you faked being sick to sneak out and hunt ghosts!"

Ji Nanxing didn’t bother responding to the female ghost. Even with his earphones in, no one would think he was talking to himself, but this ghost was way too chatty. If he responded, she’d probably never shut up.

After waiting who knows how long outside the emergency room, the doctors finally came out. The police stepped forward to inquire about the situation, and Ji Nanxing, who had been sitting not far away with his eyes closed, opened his eyes.

All three family members were still alive, but the man was badly hurt and would probably need multiple surgeries. At best, he might end up partially paralyzed.

The woman in the passenger seat wasn’t as badly hurt and was the first to be brought to the hospital for treatment. Although she had some internal bleeding and multiple fractures, compared to the man, her injuries were pretty minor.

The boy in the back seat, who hadn’t buckled up, was thrown forward during the crash and currently seemed to be more severely injured than the man. Although he didn’t die on the spot, he had serious brain damage, and it was unclear if he’d ever wake up.

Ji Nanxing looked at the quiet female ghost beside him: "Let's go."

The female ghost stood up and followed, staying quiet for a while before grinning again: "Where are we going? They’d probably be better off dead. I did this—are you going to destroy my soul? If so, do it quickly, don't make me suffer too much. I'm really scared of pain."

Ji Nanxing, who had been walking out, stopped and looked down at her, asking: "If you're scared of pain, why did you jump off a building to commit suicide?"

The female ghost's smile froze for a few seconds, then she turned to look at the people being wheeled out of the emergency room and chuckled softly: "Because... jumping only hurts for a second, but living... hurts forever."

Author's note:

Three-sentence ghost story.

Knock knock knock.

Someone is knocking on your window.

And you live on the eighteenth floor.