Xue Ji wasn’t doubting Song Liangpeng’s mental state—perhaps he really had seen things that recording equipment couldn’t capture. The most straightforward example was the flames ignited by spiritual energy, which also didn’t appear on phone cameras.
This made it difficult to distinguish between real and fake videos of Awakened ones on social media platforms; they looked like superhero movies without special effects.
‘Conventional technology is already falling behind. When will the upgrade begin?’ Xue Ji was curious. It had been almost a month since the announcement of the spiritual energy revival and the pilot Awakening program. What would the next step be?
Song Liangpeng continued, “As for the dead cats on campus, I really don’t know what’s going on. It wasn’t me.” He looked nervous, clearly affected by the rumors spreading about him.
After hearing his account, Xue Ji asked, “Were there always this many cats at our school?” She lifted the calico cat by the scruff of its neck, patted its round belly, and set it down from her lap.
The little thing seemed reluctant to leave, turning back to look at Xue Ji after taking a few steps.
“Not really. There were only one or two before,” Song Liangpeng replied, rubbing his tired eyes. He looked visibly exhausted.
Xue Ji handed him a peachwood cross with fresh carvings, as if it had been whittled recently.
Song Liangpeng stared at this East-meets-West anti-evil object, which even had a carving of a garlic from Plants vs. Zombies, and couldn’t help but twitch the corner of his mouth.
This looks completely unreliable!
Noticing his reaction, Xue Ji glared at him. ‘Why so ungrateful?’
“Take it. It could save your life at a critical moment,” she said in a tone that brooked no argument.
Under her insistence, Song Liangpeng reluctantly accepted the peachwood cross.
Before leaving, Xue Ji asked one final question: “Why did you come to me instead of reporting this to the instructors?”
Song Liangpeng opened his mouth to answer but found himself unable to utter a single word about the lady pastor. It was as if an invisible force was preventing him from revealing the secret—an unseen hand choking him, leaving him speechless.
Xue Ji frowned, watching him struggle to speak.
Finally, Song Liangpeng changed his approach.
“The instructors just told me not to worry and to focus on school.”
“But I couldn’t calm down, and I remembered how you saved us in the forest.”
“So I placed my hopes on you.”
‘That’s a lie.’ Xue Ji glanced at him but said nothing.
They exchanged contact information and went their separate ways.
……
That evening, Xue Ji treated Zhao Cheng and Shen Dai to McDonald’s. After finishing their meal, the two decided to go out for a stroll, while Xue Ji took a family bucket home.
Returning to class after so long felt strangely refreshing. Her years in another world had changed her perspective on many things. And her entanglement with Ling Xiaoxiao made her cherish this rare peaceful life even more.
Xue Ji opened her apartment door with a smile and called out, “Shaya, look what I brought back!”
But her expression quickly froze. The sofa in the living room had been clawed apart, with foam exposed and feathers scattered everywhere.
“Shaya!!! What did you do?!” Xue Ji nearly fainted at the sight. She had just tidied up the place that morning, and now it looked like a tornado had hit.
Lilith chimed in with a teasing tone, “Sis, she’s still playing on your computer, you know~” She sounded gleeful, clearly enjoying the situation.
“No!!!” Xue Ji’s scalp tingled with dread. Thinking of her precious battle partner suffering such a fate, she wished she could toss Shaya back into the ancient forest secret realm right then and there.
She put down the family bucket, sprinted to her room, and kicked the door open. Inside, she found her computer monitor shattered by Shaya’s punch, and Shaya herself curled up under the blankets, her tail sticking out.
“You… you damn fool! (in the tone of a sword demon)”
As soon as Xue Ji pulled back the blanket, Shaya tearfully pounced on her.
“Wuwuwu, Xue Ji, you’re finally back! Today, a vengeful ghost invaded. It was so scary!” Shaya clung to Xue Ji, her tears dampening Xue Ji’s chest, and her nose running.
“Eww, watch the snot! Careful! Don’t come any closer!” Xue Ji pushed Shaya’s face away with one hand.
“Xue Ji, I was so scared, wuwuwu. Take me with you tomorrow. I don’t want to stay home alone, wuwuwu.” Shaya pressed against Xue Ji’s hand, her voice muffled and pitiful.
Seeing her on the verge of falling apart—ears drooping, face flushed, sniffling desperately—Xue Ji’s heart melted. With those puppy-dog eyes, the heartfelt sobbing, and the tight embrace, how could anyone stay angry?
Xue Ji’s rising anger dissipated at the sight of Shaya’s tears. Her raised hand, poised to strike, ultimately relaxed.
“Don’t cry, don’t cry. I’m here,” Xue Ji said softly, ruffling Shaya’s hair and gently patting her back to calm her down.
“How did you go from the Wolf King to a scaredy-cat in just half a day?” Xue Ji teased, unable to resist poking fun at her pitiful state.
Shaya, who had finally started to calm down, pouted at this, her tail swishing and tears welling up again.
“You’re making fun of me—” Shaya wrapped her legs around Xue Ji’s waist, freed her hands, and started lightly pounding Xue Ji’s chest, which only made Xue Ji laugh harder.
The two drew closer, their heads almost touching.
Thump!
Suddenly, a collision sound came from outside the window, as if something had hit it.
“Huh?” Xue Ji sensed something unusual and looked toward the window. Shaya immediately let go of Xue Ji and hid under the blanket again, sitting on the floor and wrapping herself into a ball, leaving only her furry head exposed as she cautiously watched the window.
‘If Xue Ji gets attacked by the vengeful ghost, I’ll pull her in immediately.’ Even in this “critical moment,” she was still worried about Xue Ji’s safety, slowly inching forward to stay close to her.
Xue Ji opened the window but saw nothing except a bird flying away.
She turned back and said, “Relax, it was just a clumsy bird hitting the window. Don’t be scared.”
As soon as she said this, the bird that had just flown away wobbled mid-air, almost falling from the sky.
Later, Xue Ji bought a new monitor through the Pioneer app store. After setting it up, she finally discovered what had caused the “vengeful ghost invasion.”
“Oh, it’s just Kayako! That’s fake—it’s all acted,” Xue Ji patiently explained to Shaya for an hour about movies, horror films, Kayako’s tragic story…
Finally, with the help of the fried chicken, Shaya overcame her fear.
“So delicious!” Shaya’s eyes lit up as she took a bite of the fried chicken, her ears and tail perking up with joy. Though it wasn’t as crispy as when freshly fried, the distinct aroma of fried food still brought a satisfied smile to her face.
Lilith, seeing Shaya’s delight, felt tempted but was too proud to admit it. She hesitated before saying, “Hmph, it’s not that good.”
Noticing this, Xue Ji asked, “Do you want some?”
“N-no, I don’t.”
Then, within their mental space, Xue Ji recreated a copy of the fried chicken they had eaten that day. Lilith instinctively reached out to grab it.
But the fried chicken moved just out of her reach.
Xue Ji asked again, “Do you want some?” Her mental form took a deliberate bite in front of Lilith, the crunch echoing loudly.
Lilith swallowed hard, stubbornly insisting, “Well, since you’re offering, I suppose I could reluctantly try a piece.”
“Never mind, then.” The fried chicken in Xue Ji’s hand vanished, and she prepared to leave the mental space.
“Wait! I want it! Give it to me!” Panicked, Lilith rushed over and clung to Xue Ji’s leg, refusing to let her go.
And so, another person was conquered by fried chicken.
……
Late at night, in a residential area near the Third Middle School, Ling Xiaoxiao stood with a dark expression, crushing a dozen vampire barons under her feet.
“What Wolf King? She’s just a little vixen!” The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She stomped hard on a vampire who had tried to ambush her.
“Argh! This is so infuriating!” She punched another vampire, sending it crashing into a wall.
“Damn it all!” With a swing of her sword, all the vampires in the vicinity turned to ash.
A bespectacled girl accompanying her watched with burning curiosity.
“Senior, are you having relationship troubles? Tell me about it. Maybe I can help you come up with a plan.” She was the same girl who had spoken to Xue Ji earlier when Xue Ji went to find Song Liangpeng.