Chapter 11: Exorcist

Grilled skewers are high in calories, heavy in oil and salt, unhealthy—but delicious.

Exorcism

As Xie Qiaoqiao ate her skewers, Zhang Xueji sat beside her, chattering away about the news he’d just gotten from Yuezhang Yan.

Zhang Xueji said, “Although Yuezhang Yan said that Senior apparently didn’t end up dying and got a recommendation for grad school, he’s not sure himself, since that was almost ten years ago.”

Xie Qiaoqiao swallowed her skewer and replied, “That’s not important.”

Zhang Xueji said, “If we could get our hands on the Clinical Department’s List of Former Students… huh? Not important? How could it not be important?!”

“Aren’t we supposed to figure out the Ghost’s identity?”

Xie Qiaoqiao found it inexplicable. “Why do we need to investigate the Ghost’s identity?”

Zhang Xueji stared wide-eyed. “That’s how it always goes in Ghost Films!”

Xie Qiaoqiao: “Watch fewer Ghost Films.”

The barbecue was finished, and so was the rice. Xie Qiaoqiao pulled out a Wet Wipe to clean her hands while Zhang Xueji started tidying the table. He didn’t even know why he suddenly started doing chores—by the time he realized, he’d already finished washing the Rice Pot.

Zhang Xueji rubbed the back of his head, then his back, but didn’t feel any Talisman Paper or anything like that.

He walked out of the kitchen and saw Xie Qiaoqiao sitting on a short stool by the door, changing her shoes. On her back was a Black Sword Bag, and she’d changed into a short-sleeved shirt and loose shorts for easier movement, a Light Canvas Bag slung crosswise over her shoulder.

After putting on her shoes, Xie Qiaoqiao stood up and tapped her toe on the floor—a habit to check for stability. As she did, her long legs tensed, slender muscles standing out beneath her thin frame.

Zhang Xueji suddenly felt a subtle sense of embarrassment and shifted his gaze away from the girl’s legs.

Xie Qiaoqiao: “You finished washing the dishes?”

Zhang Xueji nodded.

Xie Qiaoqiao said calmly, “Let’s go, then.”

The two went out together, took the elevator, and watched as the floor number dropped from ‘27’ downward. Xie Qiaoqiao took out a Red String threaded with Square-Hole Copper Coins from her crossbody bag and tied it around her wrist.

The Red String was bright and vivid, circling her wrist four times before it was snug, binding her prominent wrist bones and pale skin. The six dangling Square-Hole Copper Coins exuded a mysterious aura.

Zhang Xueji wasn’t great at history—he could tell they were copper coins, but not which era. He asked curiously, “What’s that? Is it for warding off Ghosts?”

Xie Qiaoqiao: “For Ghost Summoning.”

Zhang Xueji’s eyes went wide. “Why are you wearing that?!”

Xie Qiaoqiao: “I’m going to the place where you had your Ghost Encounter yesterday.”

At that moment, the elevator reached the first floor. The doors opened with a ‘ding’, and a gust of wind blew in from outside. Zhang Xueji, feeling a bit superstitious, thought even the wind felt chilly.

He unconsciously moved closer to Xie Qiaoqiao and followed her out of the elevator.

With a miserable face, both scared and timid, Zhang Xueji said, “Do we really have to go? That Ghost is really scary—she’ll keep forcing you to study Clinical Medicine, and your body will swell and rot…”

Xie Qiaoqiao: “She’s already remembered your scent. If we don’t deal with her, she’ll come looking for you sooner or later.”

“But if—” Xie Qiaoqiao stopped, both hands in her shorts pockets, her tone as calm as ever. “If you really don’t want to go, we can just go back now.”

Zhang Xueji:

The memory of being chased up ten floors by the Ghost suddenly flooded back. Zhang Xueji wiped his tears and gripped Xie Qiaoqiao’s arm with resolve. “I can’t eat or sleep in peace until this evil Ghost is exorcised. Master, please lead the way!”

Xie Qiaoqiao pulled her arm free from his grasp and kept walking.

As she withdrew her arm, her bare skin, exposed by the short sleeves, slid across Zhang Xueji’s palm like smooth silk. Finally, the Red String with Square-Hole Copper Coins on her wrist brushed lightly against his hand.

Zhang Xueji retracted his hand, looked down at his palm, and felt something subtle. Before he could figure out what it was, he looked up to see Xie Qiaoqiao already two meters ahead. He immediately forgot about that faint, warm ambiguity and hurried after her.

Yesterday, the teaching building was called Minsi Building, located in a relatively secluded part of campus. To get there, they had to pass by the Convenience Store—last night, Xie Qiaoqiao had bought Zhang Xueji a Baseball Cap from this very store.

Zhang Xueji glanced at the Convenience Store sign and asked, “Want to get something to drink?”

Having just finished barbecue, Xie Qiaoqiao was indeed a bit thirsty. She nodded and followed Zhang Xueji inside, where she grabbed a bottle of Grape Soda from the fridge.

Zhang Xueji took both drinks to the register. After paying, he twisted open the cap of the Grape Soda and handed it to Xie Qiaoqiao.

Xie Qiaoqiao lifted the cap and glanced inside, surprised. “Win Another Bottle.”

Zhang Xueji leaned in to look—sure enough, inside the cap were the words ‘Win Another Bottle’ and a ring of Five-Pointed Stars.

Xie Qiaoqiao flipped the cap and slipped it into his pants pocket. “Hold on to it.”

Zhang Xueji was confused. “Why don’t you just use it next time yourself?”

Xie Qiaoqiao: “Your aura is too chaotic. You need a bit of good luck.”

At her words, Zhang Xueji immediately took out the cap and put it in a zippered pocket, not doubting her for a second.

By the time they reached Minsi Building, the sky was fully dark. The orange-yellow glow of the streetlights illuminated the newly renovated walls, turning the tiles orange as well.

Some windows on the walls were dark, others lit—sparse points of light scattered in the night, looking a little eerie.

Zhang Xueji stared at the lit windows and suddenly remembered something terrifying. He hugged his goosebump-covered arms and muttered, “When I was being chased by the Ghost yesterday, didn’t I panic and run into the Dissection Room where the Cadaver Teachers are kept?”

Xie Qiaoqiao: “Mm.”

Zhang Xueji drooped his brows and lowered his voice. “But I just remembered—the Dissection Room on the third floor of Minsi Building is for dissecting lab animals. The Cadaver Teacher classroom is on the basement level.”

“So what did I run into yesterday—?”

The more he thought about it, the more scared he felt, and he moved even closer to Xie Qiaoqiao.

Xie Qiaoqiao puffed her cheeks and finished the rest of her Grape Soda in one go. With her hands now free, she reached out and took Zhang Xueji’s hand. Her hand was a bit damp and icy from the soda bottle, and Zhang Xueji couldn’t help but grip her hand tighter. Only after tightening his hold did he realize what he’d done, and his gaze darted away.

That subtle, forgotten ambiguity began to spread again between their clasped hands.

Trying to sound casual, Zhang Xueji asked, “When you exorcised Ghosts before, did you also hold other people’s hands like this?”

Xie Qiaoqiao was watching the road and answered without looking back, “I always did exorcisms alone before.”

Zhang Xueji suddenly felt a pang of sadness and stared at her back. “It was always just you?”

Xie Qiaoqiao thought the question was odd. “One person is enough. Why would exorcisms need so many people?”

Zhang Xueji: “Then from now on, when you exorcise Ghosts, call me along! I can be your assistant!”

Xie Qiaoqiao rejected him immediately. “No. I’m going to exorcise Ghosts, not to feed them. Why would I bring them a snack?”

Zhang Xueji:

That ambiguous feeling was killed in an instant. Zhang Xueji realized that Xie Qiaoqiao was never lonely or pitiable.

She didn’t do exorcisms alone because she couldn’t find company—she just didn’t want anyone slowing her down.

His gloomy mood only lasted two or three seconds before it took a sudden turn: Qiaoqiao didn’t like being held back, but she still brought him to Minsi Building.

What did that mean?!

He perked up at once, so much that he didn’t even realize when Xie Qiaoqiao pulled him into the freight elevator. By the time Zhang Xueji came back to his senses, the elevator had already descended to the basement.

The old elevator creaked softly as the doors opened.

The corridor lights on the basement level were even worse than those on the third floor, and they weren’t voice-activated—these were supposed to be always-on, but some were bright, some dim, and a few were out completely.

Zhang Xueji muttered, “Can’t the school save the money they spend on Stones and fix these broken lights? Even without Ghosts, it’s as creepy as a Ghost Film set.”

Xie Qiaoqiao led him out of the elevator and down the corridor. The air was a bit colder, tinged with a faint scent of Formalin, a heavy, glue-like chemical smell that lingered oppressively.

She walked a bit ahead, feeling Zhang Xueji’s grip on her hand tighten. Xie Qiaoqiao glanced back at him.

Xie Qiaoqiao: “Scared?”

Zhang Xueji mustered his courage. “I’m okay. I’m adjusting.”

Xie Qiaoqiao hummed in response, then said, “Loosen your grip a bit, you’re squeezing me.”

Zhang Xueji: …Sorry.

He deliberately relaxed his fingers and looked down at their clasped hands, wanting to see if he’d left any marks on her. But the corridor was too dark—he could only make out the vague outline of her arm, not any details.

Suddenly, a crash of Thunder exploded outside. The loud noise made Xie Qiaoqiao’s eyes widen—not out of fear, just a reflex to the sudden sound. Zhang Xueji’s reaction was much bigger.

He yelped, jumped up and landed, and with his free hand, grabbed Xie Qiaoqiao’s arm tightly.

But Zhang Xueji was so tall and strong that when he flung himself at her, Xie Qiaoqiao lost her balance and stumbled sideways, bumping into a nearby classroom door.

The door creaked open, and to their surprise, the lights inside were on—bright, almost blinding!

The light illuminated every Cadaver Teacher in the classroom in stark detail. A girl with long black hair, wearing a printed short-sleeve shirt, was pacing between the operating tables, muttering, “First smell, second look, third eye movement,” and so on.

She suddenly stopped, turning her head slowly—her pale face almost overexposed in the harsh light, staring unblinkingly at the intruding pair.

The Red String and Square-Hole Copper Coins masked Xie Qiaoqiao’s aura, so the girl didn’t recognize her as the one who’d scared her off last night. Her gaze passed right over Xie Qiaoqiao and fixed intently on Zhang Xueji, step by step approaching him.

“Ah, you’re back again—did you change your mind and decide to study Clinical Medicine?”