Chapter 66: Fickle in Love

Night had deepened.

At the same moment Lin Yanqiu was leaving the police station, Hua Qi’an was also getting ready for bed.

Everything in the new dormitory still carried the scent of unfamiliarity.

Clean and tidy, yet so quiet it almost felt excessive.

Lying on her bed, Hua Qi’an found it hard to fall asleep after everything that had happened in the past two days.

It could be said that ever since she returned from that haunted house, in less than a week, so many things had happened…

Her once peaceful life had been completely shattered.

She could hardly say whether her life now was better or worse compared to before… Though there was no doubt that getting away from her “original dormitory” was a good thing…

But Hua Qi’an hadn’t forgotten what Liu Ran had said to her.

Her wrist felt empty.

She had already put away the broken string of prayer beads.

When the time came, she’d see if she could return it to Liu Ran and ask her for help with another solution.

The only thing left on her was the thunderstruck wood amulet hanging from her neck, still emitting a faint, almost undetectable warmth.

As if it could disappear at any moment.

Perhaps she should ask the company for another one.

But wouldn’t she be requesting them too frequently?

Hua Qi’an’s thoughts began to drift.

Losing the protection of the prayer beads, a vague uneasiness crept over her heart like a silent vine.

Time ticked by, minute after minute.

Perhaps the exhaustion of the day finally overcame her chaotic thoughts.

Unknowingly, Hua Qi’an’s consciousness gradually sank into darkness.

…

“Mm…”

A familiar feeling of suffocation.

Stronger and more forceful than ever before.

Hua Qi’an tried desperately to open her eyes.

But her eyelids felt heavy as lead, and her limbs were as if filled with cement, unable to move.

Without the protection of the prayer beads, she once again fell into that terrifying state known as “sleep paralysis.”

Clearly, the amulet’s protection had reached its limit.

But this time, it was different from the earlier probing and entanglement.

[Unfaithful.]

That voice, as if it came from the depths of a dark abyss, carried endless resentment and grievance.

It was no longer a vague mumble…

But clear and distinct, each word pounding against her eardrums.

Immediately, a cold, damp face pressed down without warning.

Even without opening her eyes, Hua Qi’an could feel the heavy dampness.

“Mm…!”

Hua Qi’an’s whole body shuddered violently.

Suddenly, the sound of water echoed in the dormitory.

Hua Qi’an’s mind went blank.

She struggled desperately, wanting to turn her head away, wanting to push off this presumptuous “person” on top of her.

But her body seemed nailed to the bed.

Hua Qi’an remembered she’d been pinned down in the dorm before.

That time, the entity had kept muttering about her forgetting her… At the time, she’d just thought the ghost was fixated on her forgetting.

But now, why call her unfaithful?

What had she done to provoke her?… And to be so rough-handed.

(Even though we made a promise… why are you still seducing others–)The resentful whisper, mixed with urgent breaths, spilled hotly into her ear.

Hua Qi’an felt an indescribable shame and a flare of anger.

What is she even talking about?!

Who’s seducing anyone?!

Just when she thought this “nightmare” would soon end, something even more terrifying happened.

Several cold, slippery things, thick with the scent of river water, emerged from nowhere.

Like living snakes, they began to coil around her wrists and ankles.

…

They were water plants.

Those water plants that had entangled her both in dreams and in reality—this time, they were no longer dry and brittle as in reality.

But full of vitality and strength, wrapping around her limbs again and again, binding her tightly to the four corners of the bed.

Forcing her into a humiliating and inescapable posture.

What was this for?

A jolt of shock flashed through Hua Qi’an’s nearly frozen mind, quickly replaced by a deeper fear and helplessness.

She was like a sacrificial offering, laid bare under the other’s gaze.

All her resistance became useless.

[Now, you can’t run away—]

The chilling voice whispered, tinged with a sick obsession.

[Qi’an, you can only belong to me.]

The cold kiss fell again.

This time, there was a trace of gentle consolation, as if savoring some unparalleled delicacy.

But this gentleness made Hua Qi’an shudder even more than the previous roughness.

Her consciousness drifted between endless darkness and chilling touches.

A burning sense of shame finally overcame the bone-deep fear.

No.

She couldn’t let this continue.

She couldn’t let this “female ghost,” whoever she was, have her way any longer.

Whether for self-preservation or for something else…

She had to find out who this female ghost was, the one so desperately fixated on her…

That thought, like a stubborn spark in the darkness, instantly illuminated her muddled mind.

She had to investigate, had to find out the truth right away.

As soon as she woke up from this dream, she’d set out immediately—she had to uncover everything behind this…

It was no longer just about finishing her job, no longer just for that generous reward…

Now, it was mainly for herself.

To take back her own peace, and her chastity—“Ah!”

As soon as her resolve firmed, Hua Qi’an was jolted by that cold touch, her whole body shivering.

The water plants on her limbs tightened suddenly, cutting off her blood flow, bringing a chill and numbness.

[Are you trying to leave me again…]

The damp, mournful voice now carried a hint of pitiable sadness.

But for some reason, when Hua Qi’an heard these words, some fragments seemed to flash in her mind…

As if someone had once said something like that to her… If she just tried a little harder, she should be able to remember… But right now, Hua Qi’an clearly didn’t have the energy.

She felt even more pitiful herself.

[Like this… you can’t run away…]

Chilly trails of moisture began to spread from her chest, but Hua Qi’an could only uselessly clench and open her hands.

Other than that, she couldn’t move.

She wanted to wake up immediately…

But how could she wake up now?

Until her consciousness faded, and, exhausted, she once again slipped into confusion.