Chapter 124

Chapter 124

◎After the Spell Failed◎

Zhou Na ran away, but Feng Ziyu didn’t care. Girls, after being rejected too often, are bound to get emotional, but it’s okay. It won’t be long before Zhou Na comes back, fawning over him even harder.

However, Feng Ziyu decided to keep Zhou Na hanging for a few more days before accepting her. He didn’t want to accept her too quickly because that would make him look desperate.

Standing a bit further away, Xu Yan also felt a sudden dizziness. After closing her eyes and calming down, she felt like her whole body had lightened up, and the heavy, muddled feeling instantly disappeared. Seeing Feng Ziyu walking towards her, Xu Yan felt an inexplicable irritation.

But she wasn’t good at saying no, and she didn’t have many friends in class. Looking around, she saw her neighbor Jiang Tangtang and, without thinking, ran over to her with her backpack.

Jiang Tangtang looked at Xu Yan standing outside their picnic mat, feeling a bit puzzled: "Are you looking for me?"

Xu Yan bit her lip slightly. She didn’t know what was wrong with her, but she didn’t want to go back to Class Five or see Feng Ziyu, so she nodded.

Jiang Tangtang figured she had something to say, so she put down the skewer she was holding and walked over: "What’s up?"

Xu Yan whispered, "Can I join you? I’ll just sit here."

Jiang Tangtang looked at Lin Yi and Xiao Xiao, and seeing they had no objections, she nodded: "Alright, come sit here."

Their class’s gossip king, Guo Can, glanced at Xu Yan who had just arrived and then at Zhou Na who was with a group of girls on the other side. He couldn’t help but say to Chen Shiyi beside him: "What’s up with the people from Class Five? They’re so weird."

They were just fighting over him, and now they’ve all run off. It’s so strange.

Xiao Ye, who also noticed this, nudged Ji Nanxing with his elbow: "Because of the talisman?"

Ji Nanxing nodded.

Xiao Ye clicked his tongue: "Dark magic. But how long will this dispelling last? Is the thing on Feng Ziyu easy to deal with?"

Ji Nanxing: "It will last until he casts another spell. The thing on him isn’t hard to deal with. It seems more like a household deity."

Fox spirits and household deities aren’t the same. One is a demon, the other a god. The former easily makes people harbor evil thoughts, while the latter is worshipped to protect the household.

Feng Ziyu has something demonic about him but no evil aura. It seems more like a household deity that’s gone rogue, messing with people’s minds.

Xiao Ye was surprised: "Aren’t household deities a northern thing? The southern and northern sects don’t mix. We’re in the south."

Ji Nanxing: "So what’s following him is a dead fox spirit, with a ghostly aura. He made a wish to the fox spirit, trading his own lifespan and Yang Energy."

Xiao Ye: "Should we go after that fox spirit?"

Ji Nanxing shook his head: "That fox spirit isn’t always following him, so it’s not easy to capture. At the first sign of trouble, it’ll probably bolt, and once it’s gone, it will be hard to find again. So let’s wait and see. Now that those two girls are awake, he will definitely make a move. We’ll just wait for him to walk into the trap."

They planned to wait and see, letting him fall into the trap, but Zhou Na was not calm.

She was freaking out, even feeling like she was tainted. She grabbed her best friend’s hand, on the verge of tears: "Why didn’t you stop me sooner! That kind of person, someone like him, I wouldn’t even look at him if I were blind! And I chased him for so long, even bullied others for him? Oh my God! I want to die!"

Zhou Na’s best friend, Mu Qing, rolled her eyes at the sky: "Didn’t I try to stop you? I even tried to wash your brain out in the bathtub, but you were willing to cut ties with me just to fawn over him, saying I didn’t understand you. I understand you, you idiot! How could you even fall for that kind of creep? I tried so hard to make you see, but you wouldn’t listen. What could I do?"

Zhou Na recalled her actions over the past period and couldn’t help but gag several times, scaring Mu Qing into patting her back: "What on earth happened?"

Zhou Na looked like she didn’t want to live: "I don’t know. I don’t even know how I could have liked him. I’m dirty, Qingqing, I’m dirty, wuwuwu."

Seeing Zhou Na like this, Mu Qing couldn’t help but laugh, and Zhou Na pinched her: "You’re still laughing! How can you still laugh?!"

Mu Qing wiped her tears: "So you’ve finally seen his true colors and come to your senses?"

Zhou Na: "I'm completely clear-headed! No, Qingqing, I really feel there's something wrong. Think about it, how could I ever be into someone like him? Even if I were desperate, I wouldn't stoop that low, right?"

Mu Qing instinctively glanced towards Feng Ziyu, who was playing cards with a group of boys, sitting cross-legged with a hunched back. Probably holding a good hand, he excitedly slammed his cards on the ground, shouting loudly, giving off a sleazy vibe.

Not far from Feng Ziyu was the seventh-grade class, where Ji Nanxing, the top student in the grade, leaned against a tree, his head slightly tilted as he watched a boy from their class drawing on an electronic drawing board, his gentle smile radiating warmth.

Xiao Ye, known for his fighting skills, stood in front of the grill grilling skewers, tall with long legs, broad shoulders, and a narrow waist, his arm muscles taut and well-defined as he flipped the skewers.

Not to mention the second and third years, with these two exceptional individuals in the first year, how on earth did her best friend fall for that loser?

However, upon closer inspection, Mu Qing sensed something was wrong. She tugged at Zhou Na and said, "Look, Xu Yan is over there."

Just hearing Xu Yan's name made Zhou Na cringe, as she had once cornered Xu Yan in the bathroom, warning her to stay away from Feng Ziyu.

She had actually turned into a bully over such a loser. Zhou Na couldn't help but pinch the bridge of her nose, feeling utterly mortified.

Mu Qing pulled Zhou Na, who was pinching the bridge of her nose, and said, "Before, when you were always glued to Feng Ziyu, Xu Yan would have definitely approached him. But look now, she's gone to the seventh-grade class, with her back to the fifth-grade class, and you've suddenly come to your senses."

Zhou Na looked at Mu Qing, and they exchanged glances, feeling a strange chill. A gust of wind blew by, making the hairs on their bodies stand on end.

Mu Qing patted Zhou Na and said, "Hold on a sec."

After saying this, Mu Qing walked towards the seventh-grade class and stood in front of Xu Yan: "We need to ask you something, can you come with me for a moment?"

Jiang Tangtang, who was playing a board game, immediately stood up: "What are you doing? What do you want?"

Mu Qing smiled at her: "Relax, we're not going to do anything in public. Just a few questions, not far, just over there."

Jiang Tangtang said to Xu Yan: "If they mess with you, just yell."

Xu Yan nodded at her, smiled gratefully, and followed Mu Qing.

Seeing Zhou Na waiting there, Xu Yan hesitated. To be honest, Zhou Na hadn't really done much to her, although she had cornered her in the bathroom and warned her, she hadn't actually done anything physical. But for someone like Zhou Na, Xu Yan knew better than to provoke her, so she instinctively felt afraid.

Someone noticed the commotion and nudged Feng Ziyu: "Hey, look, aren't they fighting over you again?"

Feng Ziyu glanced over and laughed: "Not my problem."

Someone nearby teased: "Tsk tsk tsk, even the class beauty throwing herself your way, and you don't want her, impressive."

Feng Ziyu enjoyed the teasing and admiration from the crowd, feeling even more smug.

Xu Yan looked at Zhou Na and spoke first: "I haven't been clinging to Feng Ziyu, and I won't cling to him in the future, I promise."

Mu Qing and Zhou Na exchanged glances, and Zhou Na said: "What made you change your mind?"

Xu Yan didn't answer, because she didn't know why either. It was just that the intense desire to possess him had suddenly disappeared, and she even felt a bit of aversion towards Feng Ziyu.

Zhou Na said: "When did you change your mind, was it just now?"

Xu Yan looked up at Zhou Na, not quite understanding what she meant.

Zhou Na said: "With my standards, do you think I would fall for someone like Feng Ziyu?"

Xu Yan looked puzzled. Previously, she had pursued him so passionately and boldly, even alarming her parents, and now she was saying this. What did it mean?

Mu Qing, standing beside her, said: "Just now, Na-na suddenly seemed to wake up, no longer liking Feng Ziyu. Don't you think that's strange? You also suddenly woke up and stopped clinging to him."

Xu Yan's eyes widened in shock, her mind spinning: "What... do you mean?"

Zhou Na grabbed Xu Yan's hand: "It means we must be cursed!"

Xu Yan returned to Class Seven looking dazed. Jiang Tangtang poked her: "What happened? Did that girl from your class warn you to stay away from Feng Ziyu again?"

Xu Yan whispered to Jiang Tangtang: "No, she said that both of us were cursed to like Feng Ziyu. Tangtang, do you believe me if I say I don’t like Feng Ziyu at all now?"

Jiang Tangtang was stunned for a moment, then her eyes lit up instantly: "Wait a second!"

After saying that, she almost pounced on Ji Nanxing: "Hey, genius! Can you check Xu Yan and see if you notice anything?"

Ji Nanxing glanced sideways and said, "I see she’s clear-headed now that the curse is broken. Isn’t it that she’s suddenly over him?"

Jiang Tangtang was shocked, covering her mouth in disbelief: "No way, really? So her previous love-struck behavior was actually because of a curse? OMG! No way!"

What kind of crazy world is this? It felt like after visiting the City God once, the supernatural events around her had increased.

After recovering from her shock, Jiang Tangtang quickly asked, "What should we do about her situation now? She’s clear-headed now, but will she become love-struck again later?"

Ji Nanxing: "She should get a protective charm to wear. It can ward off some of it."

Jiang Tangtang pulled Xu Yan over. Xu Yan was half-convinced about the curse, mainly because her infatuation with Feng Ziyu had indeed been inexplicable. She had suddenly become obsessed with him, saving money to buy him expensive shoes, and acting like a total fool, completely discarding her self-respect.

This was not something she would normally do.

Looking at Zhou Na, a dance student, the class hottie, who was pretty and came from a good family, even cornering someone in the bathroom to threaten them—something Zhou Na, who had always been lively and graceful since the start of the semester, would never normally do.

Given their weird behavior, Xu Yan decided to believe what Ji Nanxing said: "Where do I get this charm? Is it pricey?"

Ji Nanxing: "It’s a bit steep. Five hundred for a protective charm. If you want it, Jiang Tangtang can bring it to you on Monday."

Five hundred was indeed a bit expensive, but she had the cash because next month was Feng Ziyu’s birthday, and she had been saving up to buy him a gift.

But now she didn’t want to buy Feng Ziyu a gift at all. In fact, she regretted buying him those expensive shoes. So she nodded reluctantly: "Okay, I’ll get it. I don’t have the money on me now, but I’ll bring it on Monday."

Xu Yan then added, "Wait, I’ll ask Zhou Na if she wants one too."

After saying that, she ran over to Zhou Na. Zhou Na’s family was well-off, and she had a generous allowance. Although she didn’t quite believe in the charms sold by classmates, it couldn’t hurt to have one, even if it’s just for peace of mind. So she nodded and even gave Xu Yan the money right away: "I’ll take one too. Thank you, and sorry about earlier."

Xu Yan shook her head at her. Although Zhou Na’s actions had caused many girls in the class to stop hanging out with her—after all, Zhou Na had much better social connections—if it was all because of a curse, then the blame should fall on Feng Ziyu.

After Xu Yan ran back to Class Seven, Zhou Na looked at Mu Qing and pinched her again: "You didn’t stop me from crushing on that loser, and you didn’t stop me from cornering someone in the bathroom to threaten them. You even helped me!"

Mu Qing: "I told you I couldn’t stop you. What else could I do? Should I have taken Xu Yan’s side and ditched you?"

Zhou Na hugged Mu Qing: "If I ever kill someone, will you help me hide the body?"

Mu Qing pushed her away: "Get lost, stay away from me. Just thinking about how you were into that creep makes me cringe."

Zhou Na tearfully pounced on her best friend: "Babe, even if I’m messed up, you can’t leave me."

It wasn’t until noon that Feng Ziyu, after finishing a card game, noticed Zhou Na was nowhere to be seen, and Xu Yan was over in Class Seven, already hanging out with the girls there.

He thought for a moment and sent Xu Yan a WeChat message: "Got anything good to eat? I’m a bit hungry."

In the past, Xu Yan would have eagerly brought him food upon seeing this message, but now, just seeing his message made her feel physically uncomfortable. She quickly blocked and deleted him in one swift move.

After completely removing him from her phone, Xu Yan finally felt like her phone was clean again.

Jiang Tangtang handed her a skewer of grilled meat: "Quick, the skewers you grilled are so good, crispy and fragrant. I want more!"

Xu Yan smiled and agreed, feeling much more at ease with her friends.

After waiting for a while and noticing that Xu Yan hadn’t replied to his message, and even handed out the freshly grilled food to others, not bothering to bring any over, Feng Ziyu got angry and sent another message, only to see a big red exclamation mark appear on the screen.

His heart skipped a beat, and a wave of panic washed over him.

At that moment, Zhou Na, Mu Qing, and a few other girls walked over with a basket of washed fruits in their arms. Feng Ziyu glanced at Xu Yan with a dark look in his eyes, then turned and walked towards Zhou Na: "Na Na."

Zhou Na frowned in disgust: "Why are you calling me that? Who said you could be so familiar? Get lost. Don’t stand there annoying me."

Feng Ziyu was stunned on the spot. The other girls, clueless about the situation, looked at Zhou Na in surprise. After all, everyone knew how obsessed Zhou Na had been with Feng Ziyu before. Though they didn’t get it, they respected her and wished her the best. How come Zhou Na suddenly came to her senses?

Mu Qing shoved Feng Ziyu aside unceremoniously: "A toad shouldn’t dream of a swan. Who knows what shady tricks you used? Some things might fool people for a while, but not forever. Take a good look in the mirror, and step aside, thanks."

Zhou Na hooked her arm with Mu Qing's: "Let's go, let's go. Just looking at him makes my eyes burn."

One of the girls beside them asked curiously: "Zhou Na, why did you suddenly stop liking him? Didn’t you like him a lot before?"

Zhou Na rolled her eyes: "Maybe I was under a spell or something. This is a black mark on my life, so don’t ever bring it up again!"

The girls laughed and chatted about how they never understood it before, and even as they walked away, their laughter could still be heard.

Feng Ziyu stood there, frozen, panic coursing through him. Why did it stop working all of a sudden?

But he kept reassuring himself, it’s fine, he’d just ask the fox spirit when he got back. If he could make them fall for him once, he could do it again.

But this time, he didn’t plan to waste the charm on Xu Yan. He had used it on Xu Yan before because she was his deskmate at the time, and he didn’t know the effect, so he just chose a random girl.

Now that he had seen the effect, he naturally wanted to focus all his efforts on Zhou Na. Someone as beautiful and rich as her was the only one worthy of him.

All afternoon, Feng Ziyu didn’t dare go near Zhou Na, but in his heart, he was seething with resentment. Once he cast the peach blossom charm on Zhou Na again, he would definitely make her his and get her pregnant so she would drop out of high school.

Break her wings—what’s the point of being a swan if she can’t fly!

The dark aura and blatant malice around him made his presence even more menacing. Although no one knew what he was thinking, Ji Nanxing could clearly see the change in his aura. Without a second thought, Ji Nanxing knew why Feng Ziyu was brimming with malice.

Seeing Feng Ziyu heading towards the sink, Ji Nanxing thought for a moment and followed him. When Feng Ziyu reached out to turn on the faucet, Ji Nanxing blocked his hand and said rudely: "Excuse me, move aside."

Feng Ziyu was not a good-tempered person to begin with. The failure of the charm had already made him irritable all afternoon. Now, when he came to wash his hands, someone cut in front of him. He directly reached out to push Ji Nanxing away: "Don’t you know the concept of first come, first served? Being the top of the class doesn’t make you special!"

Before Feng Ziyu could push him, Ji Nanxing grabbed his hand and looked at him expressionlessly: "Being the top of the class does make me special. If you have the ability, get the top score yourself. Now, I’m going to use it first. You, go to the back."

Feng Ziyu was so angry at his domineering attitude that he reached out to grab Ji Nanxing’s clothes to teach him a lesson.

But the next second, his own clothes were grabbed, and in a blur, he was lifted and thrown backward.

Only after he fell to the ground did Feng Ziyu see who had thrown him.

Xiao Ye held Ji Nanxing’s hand and carefully checked it: "Did he touch you? Did he hurt you? I think this guy is looking for death!"

Xiao Ye stepped forward, wanting to pick up the person on the ground and beat him up again, but Ji Nanxing stopped him: "Don’t make a scene, let’s wash our hands."

With that, he pulled Xiao Ye’s hand. Xiao Ye thought Ji Nanxing didn’t want him to cause trouble, so he gave Feng Ziyu a fierce warning look: "Still not leaving? Want to get beaten up?"

The difference in strength was too great. Feng Ziyu didn’t have the guts to confront him directly. Seeing Xiao Ye’s unfriendly expression, he ran away with his tail between his legs.

Xiao Ye looked Ji Nanxing up and down again: "Where did he touch you? Are you hurt? Did he threaten you?"

Ji Nanxing turned on the faucet and washed his hands: "I came here on purpose to mess with him, just to see him get what’s coming."

The more malice someone has, the worse their luck will be when affected by his Yin Energy.

Xiao Ye saw him washing his hands twice and was about to turn off the faucet, so he grabbed his hand and washed it thoroughly again. After touching that gross thing, you’ve gotta wash up good.

"Why go through all this hassle? If I don’t like him, I’ll just punch him."

Ji Nanxing let him scrub: "Punching someone isn’t as fun as watching them screw themselves over."

Xiao Ye: "But didn’t you say my Yang Energy can suppress the Yin Energy on you? After being around me, touching him wouldn’t do anything, right?"

Ji Nanxing: "I can control my own Yin Energy. It’s hard to hold it back, but letting it out is easy."

Xiao Ye didn’t have any paper, and seeing Ji Nanxing shaking the water droplets off his hands, for some reason, he pulled up his shirt and wrapped it around Ji Nanxing’s hands to dry them, saying: "Our Naonao’s awesome—whoever you want to mess with is gonna get it!"

Ji Nanxing looked at the large wet spot on his shirt: "It’s not that simple. If someone’s got strong positive energy, they won’t be affected by my Yin Energy. But if they’re already unlucky or full of bad intentions, the effect gets worse. Isn’t it gross to use your shirt to wipe?"

Xiao Ye: "I wash my clothes every day, what’s the big deal?"

Ji Nanxing looked at his hands, then at Xiao Ye’s shirt, really wanting to go back and wash them again, but Xiao Ye didn’t give him the chance, directly pulling him away.

Feng Ziyu, who’d been messed with for no reason, was pissed. Back in class, he cursed out Ji Nanxing and Xiao Ye nonstop. Seeing him so mad his face twisted, the classmates nearby pretended not to hear, and no one backed him up.

Many exchanged glances, all seeing the unspoken understanding in each other’s eyes.

To them, Feng Ziyu was just like an electronic pet in their group. Hearing him claim Ji Nanxing and Xiao Ye were jealous and picking on him, some made mocking faces behind his back.

Feng Ziyu cursed for a while before realizing that no one was responding to him. He didn’t think there was anything wrong with himself, only assuming they were afraid of Xiao Ye. After all, Xiao Ye had already made a notorious name for himself in the school, even beating up a senior athlete, so their fear was normal.

While harboring hatred in his heart, Feng Ziyu thought of a way to deal with Xiao Ye. Who said the Peach Blossom Curse could only be cast on women? If he cast the Peach Blossom Curse on Xiao Ye, the school bully becoming his lapdog would surely be a sight to behold.

Feng Ziyu became more and more pleased with the thought, even imagining how Xiao Ye would grovel and fawn over him. This kind of payback would hurt more than killing him.

Author's note:

Xiao Ye: I'm not clean anymore.