Chapter 41

Chapter 41

◎Blood-Stained Clothes◎

The enthusiastic cheers nearly lifted the roof of the venue. A show-off from the winning team ran around the court, blowing kisses, which immediately drew laughter from the crowd.

Xiao Ye came down from the court, keeping a few steps away from his sweet-smelling deskmate to avoid the stench of sweat. However, seeing Ji Nanxing's low spirits, he couldn't help but approach: "What's wrong? You were smiling at me earlier. Bored from sitting and waiting?"

Although his deskmate rarely showed much expression, Xiao Ye felt he had a natural radar for his emotions. Even with a blank face, he could intuitively sense whether the other was in a good or bad mood.

Ji Nanxing shook his head at him: "It's nothing. Are you done playing?"

Xiao Ye hummed in response, hanging the towel around his neck: "I'll grab a quick shower, then we can head out."

Worried his deskmate might get antsy, Xiao Ye hurriedly grabbed his bag and rushed to the shower room in the gym.

The guys Xiao Ye played with planned to play another game later, so they didn't shower. Seeing Ji Nanxing sitting alone, they gathered around to strike up a conversation.

Through their casual conversation, Ji Nanxing learned a lot about Xiao Ye.

Xiao Ye had been part of this amateur team since junior high. Back then, they were all just starting college. Xiao Ye had always been tall and well-built. Though his face was boyish, his demeanor was mature and steady, so no one realized he was just a junior high student.

Xiao Ye was good at basketball and had a great personality, quickly blending in with the group. It wasn't until they got to know him better that they realized he was still in junior high.

The show-off laughed at the memory: "You won't believe this. After a game, we went out to eat, and he whipped out his junior high textbooks and homework right in front of us. We were all stunned. We thought he was a college student like us."

Ji Nanxing smiled: "So you guys started hanging out a lot after that?"

The show-off said: "We used to hang out a lot. Before junior year, we could always make time. But now that we're seniors, we're focused on internships, so we probably won't have as much free time. It's just as well, since Xiao Ye is in high school now and should focus on his studies."

In under five minutes, Xiao Ye was back, drying his hair as he jogged over: "What are you guys saying about me behind my back?"

The show-off chuckled: "We're talking about how a junior high kid managed to infiltrate our college group!"

Xiao Ye flexed his muscles: "What's wrong with being a junior high kid? Now you're all shorter than me."

You can't beat genetics—handsome and tall, isn't that just maddening?

Xiao Ye didn't continue the banter. After packing up, he took Ji Nanxing with him: "Let's grab a bite next time."

"Sure, I'll send the prize money straight to you."

Xiao Ye waved without looking back. Once they left the gym, he stretched and turned to his deskmate: "You must be starving. Let's grab something good to eat."

Ji Nanxing handed him the headphones and hat, casually ruffling his hair: "Where to?"

Xiao Ye: "The super spicy chicken wings. I mentioned taking you to try them before."

Ji Nanxing didn't expect Xiao Ye to remember that casual remark.

The super spicy chicken wings were at the food street in Yunsheng Plaza, just a short walk from the gym. Seeing the dense crowd, Xiao Ye, worried about losing his companion, slung an arm over Ji Nanxing's shoulder, practically glued to him as they walked.

Xiao Ye: "It's so crowded. There seems to be a comic convention today. Everyone's dressed in these anime costumes. Want to check it out?"

Ji Nanxing knew about comic conventions but had never been to one. He saw many people in cosplay costumes either taking photos in front of backdrops or selling things at stalls. Intrigued, he walked over.

For anime enthusiasts, the most irresistible presence is probably handsome guys and beautiful girls. Seeing them, their minds immediately conjure up how much they could break the dimensional barrier if they wore cosplay outfits.

They were so excited, their eyes shining, unable to look away from the two faces.

Ji Nanxing picked up what looked like a knitted Pikachu and asked, "How much is this?"

The vendor answered, "The small one is 58, the slightly larger one is 78, and the biggest one is 128. They're all hand-knitted."

Ji Nanxing took one of each size—small, medium, and large. "Could you pack these up for me? Thanks."

Before he could take out his phone, Xiao Ye, standing beside him, had already scanned the code to pay. He added with some curiosity, "You like these? I have quite a few collectibles at home that friends gave me. I'll sort them out one day and give them all to you."

Ji Nanxing shook his head, "I'm giving them to someone else."

Xiao Ye let out an "oh" and, after holding back for a moment, couldn't help but ask tentatively, "Who are you giving them to? An old classmate of yours?"

Ji Nanxing replied, "A five-year-old."

When he heard it wasn't an old classmate, the slight sourness in Xiao Ye's heart inexplicably dissipated. "How little is this kid?"

Ji Nanxing thought for a moment, "A five-year-old."

If the Ghost Baby had been born and survived, it would probably be around five or six years old by now.

Hearing that the kid was only five, Xiao Ye felt even less threatened. He quickly switched from being a follower to acting as a guide. "A five-year-old boy would probably prefer playing with guns and cars. Over there, they have Gundam robots. Let's check them out. There are also Transformers, and they're quite well-made. Look at this Lego set—it's big enough to keep him entertained for a long time. At five years old, he probably won't swallow things randomly, right?"

Ji Nanxing wasn't sure if a typical five-year-old would swallow things, but if it were the Ghost Baby, swallowing something probably wouldn't matter—it wouldn't choke to death anyway.

The scale of the comic convention was quite large, and they had only explored half of it before their hands were full of bags. Ji Nanxing wasn't particularly interested in the remaining stalls, as the items on display were pretty much the same. "Let's head out, we've got enough."

Xiao Ye, carrying several bags in one hand and using the other to shield Ji Nanxing from the bustling crowd, said, "Alright, do you still want to eat the spicy chicken wings? The food street is just next door."

Ji Nanxing checked the time—it was still early. "Might as well, since we're here."

Xiao Ye grinned, full of energy. "Alright, let's go! Just a heads-up, don't underestimate the power of the extreme spicy wings. Just take a small bite. If it's too spicy, don't force yourself. Eating something too spicy can really upset your stomach."

As they were talking, two girls in cosplay outfits excitedly rushed over.

Xiao Ye quickly wrapped his arms around Ji Nanxing, shielding him with his back from the two girls. He frowned and asked sternly, "What's going on?!"

The two girls, overly excited to see Ji Nanxing, quickly apologized, "Sorry, sorry, we didn't mean any harm. Um, do you remember us, bro? That day at the intersection, you said the clothes had a bloody smell! Do you remember?"

Ji Nanxing pushed Xiao Ye aside and nodded at the girls. "I remember."

The girls sighed in relief but looked a bit sheepish. "Our bad. Ying Youyou didn't return the clothes."

Ji Nanxing asked, "Has something happened?"

The two girls exchanged glances, their expressions conflicted, and then nodded at Ji Nanxing. "Probably, but we're not sure."

The crowded comic convention wasn't the best place for this kind of talk. Fortunately, there was a food street nearby, so they grabbed a seat at a milk tea shop.

The girl in the lolita dress took off her long white wig that reached her calves and spoke first. "I'm Chen Zhi, and this is Wang Yiye. Our friend is Ying Youyou. She's the one who bought the clothes."

Wang Yiye added, "After you pointed out the bloody smell that day, we felt a bit uneasy, but we also thought it was just something you said casually and couldn't be taken seriously. Later, we checked the clothes ourselves—they were clean. We even sent them to the dry cleaners to be washed again."

As she spoke, Wang Yiye lowered her head slightly, as if feeling that they had ignored the warning and now deserved what happened.

Chen Zhi, clearly more impatient than Wang Yiye, asked directly, "That day, you could smell the bloody scent on the clothes and warned us. We're just wondering, did you notice something or know something? Is there any way to fix this?"

Xiao Ye, sitting beside them, tapped the table. "Why don't you start from the top and fill us in? This is all so vague and hard to follow."

Chen Zhi glanced at Ji Nanxing, then at Xiao Ye, and reluctantly began to explain. "The outfit is from a game, officially licensed, and a limited edition. My friend managed to snag them at a good price, so that day, the three of us went to pick them up. At the intersection, we ran into your friend—this big brother here."

Xiao Ye grunted, "And then?"

Chen Zhi replied, "After he helped us pick up the clothes, he told us to return them, saying they were dirty and had a bloody smell. We were skeptical at first, but we couldn't bear to part with them, so we kept them."

Xiao Ye glanced at Ji Nanxing, wondering if his classmate had such a keen sense of smell.

Chen Zhi continued, "Last week, we had another comic con. Ying Youyou wore that outfit, and at first, everything seemed normal, but gradually, things started to get a bit strange."

Xiao Ye asked, "How strange?"

Chen Zhi took a deep breath, holding onto Wang Yiye's hand before speaking, "It was as if she had become a different person. You know how it feels when your close friend suddenly changes, their personality and habits completely different overnight, like someone else took over their body?"

Living in the same dorm, seeing your friend change so drastically overnight—it was terrifying.

Xiao Ye frowned slightly, "Are you saying that wearing that outfit made your friend's personality change as if she became a different person?"

Both girls nodded vigorously. It sounded unbelievable, but it was true.

Ji Nanxing asked, "Can you give some examples of what made you feel this way?"

Wang Yiye said, "Youyou is a very lively person, the life of our dorm. She's easily amused and would laugh out loud every day while watching variety shows. But after returning from the comic con that day, she stopped talking. She would sit silently in her chair every day, staring at the mirror with a creepy expression. Youyou used to walk cheerfully, enjoying walking on flower beds and stepping on patterns—she was full of energy. But now, she walks quietly and stiffly."

Chen Zhi added, "Youyou is naturally thin and never talked about dieting or losing weight. She had the most snacks in our dorm and would constantly munch while watching dramas. But after that day, she stopped eating her snacks altogether. When we asked her why she wasn't eating, she claimed she wanted to lose weight."

Xiao Ye said, "A girl suddenly wanting to lose weight could be normal, right? Maybe she's in a relationship?"

Both girls shook their heads simultaneously. Chen Zhi looked at Xiao Ye and said, "You're good friends, right? If one day he suddenly started overeating, or one day stopped eating and said he wanted to lose weight, wouldn't you think something was wrong?"

If Ji Nanxing ever said he wasn't eating to lose weight, Xiao Ye would definitely think something was wrong.

Ji Nanxing asked, "Are there any other strange things?"

Chen Zhi said, "These changes are already weird enough. At first, we thought she might just be going through something, but then it got worse. She stopped eating altogether, and then she would suddenly binge-eat at night, finishing all her snacks and then making herself throw up. She would also wear that outfit in the middle of the night, tightening the strings as much as she could. The outfit was already as tight as it could go, but Youyou kept saying it wouldn't close, that she was too fat and needed to lose weight. She repeated this over and over, as if she were possessed."

The two girls were clearly still rattled by the incident. Having a roommate act like she was possessed in the middle of the night was terrifying.

Hearing this, Xiao Ye couldn't say their friend was fine, but this wasn't something his classmate could help with. "Have you contacted her parents? Could it be a mental health issue? Have you tried taking her to see a doctor? Coming to my friend for this—he's not a doctor. He just has a keen sense of smell and noticed the bloody scent. He might not be able to help you solve this."

Xiao Ye suggested, "Why don't you turn the clothes over to the authorities?"

The two girls looked puzzled, "Turn them over?"

Xiao Ye nodded, "Even if the clothes have been cleaned, if there was once blood on them, there are ways to detect it now. If there really is blood, then it's a matter for the police. If there's no blood, then it proves your friend has a mental health issue. Don't jump to supernatural explanations at the first sign of trouble and scare yourselves."

Ji Nanxing glanced at Xiao Ye. No wonder he was so full of yang energy—a staunch atheist. As long as you don't believe, those things can't exist.

Ji Nanxing took a sip of milk tea and looked at Xiao Ye, "Didn't you say you were going to buy chicken wings?"

Xiao Ye looked at the two girls, then at Ji Nanxing, realizing he was being deliberately sent away. He snorted and stood up, "Alright, I'll go buy you some chicken wings."

Although it was somewhat inappropriate, given that their friend might still be in a dire situation, the doting tone was oddly endearing.

After Xiao Ye left, Ji Nanxing said, "Your friend might be in one of two situations. The first, and better, scenario is that she's simply influenced by the lingering resentment of the deceased, repeating some of their behaviors and personality traits. If that's the case, as long as we know the identity of the deceased, we can buy some offerings, burn them at her grave, and get a protective talisman for your friend. That should resolve the issue."

Chen Zhi thought they had indeed found the right person. No wonder this young man had immediately noticed something wrong with the clothes that day. She quickly asked, "What's the other scenario?"

Ji Nanxing said, "The other scenario is that the vengeful spirit hasn't moved on, and your friend has been possessed by the deceased's ghost."

The two girls felt goosebumps all over their bodies. They had never encountered anything like this in their lives.

Wang Yiye asked cautiously, "What should we do if it's a case of possession?"

Ji Nanxing replied, "Just perform an exorcism; it's not a big deal."

His calm attitude helped ease the girls' worries a bit. At least there was a solution, better than being completely lost.

Chen Zhi asked, "Can you take care of this? And about the fee, will it cost a lot?"

As students, they wouldn't tell their families unless they had to. If it was a few thousand yuan, they could scrape together the money, but if it were tens of thousands or more, they would have to turn to their families.

Ji Nanxing said, "It won't cost much, definitely less than that dress you bought."

The two girls breathed a sigh of relief, "So, little brother, should we head back together now?"

Ji Nanxing shook his head, casually pulling out two talismans from his pocket, folding them into triangles, and handing them over, "Keep these on you. If your friend isn't harming herself or trying to kill herself, just leave her be for today. Try to find out who owned the dress before. If you can identify her, it will be easier to resolve. I'll give you my number, and we'll touch base tomorrow."

The girls took the talismans, saved his number, thanked him, and left.

When Xiao Ye came back with two boxes of chicken wings and saw they were gone, he sat down opposite Ji Nanxing, opened the fragrant box, and pushed it towards him, "Where are those two girls?"

Ji Nanxing said, "I told them to take the dress to the nearest police station."

Xiao Ye smiled and asked, "Really?"

Ji Nanxing picked up a chicken wing covered in red chili, glanced up, "What do you think?"

Xiao Ye didn't press further, watching him take a bite of the chicken wing tip, "How is it? Spicy? Don't push yourself if you can't handle it."

Ji Nanxing felt it and honestly said, "A little spicy, but I can handle it."

Xiao Ye started eating his own, but after a couple of bites, he was already sipping iced milk tea to cool down. The extreme spice was as strong as ever.

Xiao Ye insisted Ji Nanxing come over for dinner. After bugging him for days, Ji Nanxing knew he couldn't get out of it and didn't refuse, even preparing a gift in advance.

Xiao Ye's brother, Xiao Song, was at home today. Knowing his troublesome brother was bringing Xingxing over for dinner, he specifically contacted Ji Yunting to ask what his brother liked to eat. When he heard his brother loved meat, Xiao Song smiled at his wife, "I didn't know Xingxing, skinny as he is, loved meat so much. I thought he was a picky eater."

Fang Li pinched the fat on her waist and sighed, "A metabolism that keeps you thin. I wonder when I'll be lucky enough to have that."

Xiao Song wrapped his arms around his wife's waist, kissed her cheek, "You're not fat. Being too thin isn't good. You're perfect as you are, maybe even better with a little more weight."

Fang Li snorted, hearing noises at the door, quickly pushed Xiao Song away, "They're probably back."

She washed her hands and walked out of the kitchen, "Nanxing is here, come in."

Ji Nanxing greeted with a smile, "Hello, brother, hello, sister-in-law."

Xiao Song came out with a teacup, "Make yourself comfortable. I used to carry you over to play when you were little, but you were too young to remember."

Ji Nanxing took out a palm-sized wooden box from his backpack, "This is tea made by my master, good for beauty and calming the nerves."

Xiao Song smiled and ruffled Ji Nanxing's head, "You didn't have to bring anything. We'll accept it this time, but no next time."

Xiao Ye rescued Ji Nanxing from his brother's grasp, "I'll take him to my room to hang out for a bit. Call us when dinner's ready."

Fang Li called after them, "Wait, take some fruits upstairs. They were just delivered from the garden today, the strawberries are very sweet."

Xiao Ye ran into the kitchen, grabbed a basket of washed strawberries, and pulled Ji Nanxing upstairs.

As Ji Nanxing was being pulled upstairs, passing through the second-floor corridor, he could see many photos—Xiao Ye's grandparents, his parents, and Xiao Ye as a child, dressed in military uniform, holding a gun.

Xiao Ye noticed him looking at the photos and introduced, "This old man is my grandfather, and this photo was taken when my grandmother was still alive. She passed away a couple of years ago, and since then, my grandfather has been quite lonely. He often goes out to meet his old comrades because he can't stay at home."

"These are my parents. They are part of a research team at a classified government research facility. If we're lucky, we see them once a year; otherwise, it might be one or two years before we see them again. Once, when they came back, they saw me at home and even asked whose child I was."

Ji Nanxing couldn't help but laugh.

Xiao Ye grumbled, "When they left, I was only up to their calves. By the time they came back, I was up to their chests. Of course, they didn't recognize me."

"You know my brother and sister-in-law. My brother is in the armed police force, and my sister-in-law is a military doctor. They met at the military hospital. One of my brother's colleagues got injured, and my brother helped take care of him. The attending doctor was my sister-in-law. After that, my brother started bringing soup to his colleague every day. Everyone thought he was just being a great coworker, but actually, he had fallen for my sister-in-law at first sight and was pursuing her."

Ji Nanxing said, "That's great, getting what you wish for and having your desires come true."

Xiao Ye whispered in Ji Nanxing's ear, "My brother is terrible at pursuing people. He's not sweet-talking and doesn't say much. Every time my sister-in-law did her rounds, my brother would just stand there with a stern face, looking like he was there to pick a fight. My sister-in-law said that if my brother weren't so handsome, she wouldn't have been interested in him."

Listening to Xiao Ye talk about his family and seeing the strong yang energy around Xiao Ye, Ji Nanxing thought to himself that it was no wonder Xiao Ye had such strong yang energy. Born into such a family, with such a strong and morally upright background, his natural aura was bound to be stronger than most people's. Combined with his exceptionally yang destiny, it would be strange if his yang energy weren't strong.

However, Ji Nanxing still had some lingering doubts. Associating with such a family would be beneficial for both him and the Ji family, so why did his master ask them to move away back then?

But this question would have to wait until his master returned to be answered.