Song Qian, her face pale and sallow, didn’t dare venture outside. Fortunately, there weren’t many major classes this semester, and she hadn’t been attending school much anyway. She holed up alone at home, cycling endlessly between eating and sleeping in a desperate bid to restore her energy.
Sadly, it didn’t do much good. Her complexion would improve slightly each night, only to leave her drained again by morning.
Having just turned down Yuan Yuan’s invitation for dinner, Song Qian prepared to shower and retire to her bedroom. She had gathered her clean pajamas and was heading into the bathroom when someone began pounding on the front door without pause.
After all the bizarre incidents she’d endured, Song Qian had grown wary. Who on earth knocked like that?
She clutched the talisman paper the expert had given her, holding it up before her face as she flicked on every light in the living room.
“Who’s there!?”
The pounding ceased, and a gravelly voice filtered through the door, reverberating inside the apartment. Song Qian felt as if it surrounded her—or as though the person outside had somehow planted speakers in her home.
“Is Miss Song Qian home?”
Song Qian didn’t dare reply. She clapped her hands over her ears. “Who are you!?”
Silence fell from beyond the door, broken only by heavy, labored breathing and the scrape of coarse fabric against the floor.
Song Qian’s eyes widened. She backed away on instinct. No human could produce breathing like that—the deep, rumbling huffs of a massive beast.
The room’s lights flickered. Song Qian swallowed hard, her fingers slick with cold sweat of fear, nearly shredding the soft talisman paper in her grip.
In that instant, the first thought in her mind was that headstrong ghost.
“Ji Wuxin.”
She didn’t notice how, right after murmuring the name, the dull jade pendant at her neck flared briefly with light before fading back into silence.
Song Qian switched off the lights and crouched behind the sofa, her gaze locked on the door.
Thump… thump…
In the stifling quiet, even her heartbeat grated on her nerves. She pressed a hand to her left chest, willing it to still.
But the moment her palm made contact, the throbbing paused—then erupted harder than before.
In that very instant, two figures materialized in her living room. Or rather, one person and one enormous black bear.
The heavy panting at the door? It had come from the bear!
“How’d you just barge right in? It’s rude to enter someone’s home without knocking,” the black bear said. It reared up on its hind legs, lifting a paw to cover most of its face while peeking out with a single eye, warily scanning the room.
The figure beside it tsked in irritation. “You knocked forever and no one answered.”
“Where is she? We can’t go back empty-handed to the group leader.”
Big Black dropped its paw and craned its neck, sniffing the air. Its muzzle swung toward Song Qian’s hiding spot.
Song Qian’s eyes bulged in horror as she scrambled backward. Her face burned red. Already wedged in the corner, she had nowhere left to flee.
“Right here…” Big Black bared its teeth in a grin.
Song Qian stared at the talisman in her hand, squeezed her eyes shut, gritted her teeth, and slapped it forward with her palm.
“ROARRRR!!!!”
A thunderous bellow shook the room. Convinced the talisman had activated, Song Qian yanked the rest from her pocket and slapped them across her body and head. Surely now the bear wouldn’t devour her.
“Big Black!!!”
The living room lights blazed on. They all stared at one another, wide-eyed. The bear—tall as two people—sat on the floor, clutching its snout and bawling like a child. A teenage girl of seventeen or eighteen clung to it, shooting daggers at Song Qian, who bristled with talismans in the corner.
“You guys… what the hell?” Lin Qing hovered in the doorway, caught between entering and retreating.
“She hit Big Black!” The girl jabbed a finger at Song Qian, lodging her complaint with Lin Qing.
Spotting Lin Qing—and realizing he knew the bear—eased the terror churning in Song Qian’s gut. She peeled off the talismans one by one, explaining as she went. “She drags a monster bear into my apartment without a heads-up. I’m amazed I didn’t pass out on the spot.”
Lin Qing strode forward, brow furrowed. “You’re no better. Bursting into someone’s home without a word? Rude!”
The girl’s eyes brimmed with tears at the rebuke. Her lip quivered on the verge of sobs.
Lin Qing shot her a look and clapped a hand over her face. “Cut the act.”
Big Black, still on the floor, took umbrage. It yanked its paws away, sniffling, two bloody droplets dangling from its nostrils. “I did knock.”
To bloody a bear’s nose…
Lin Qing gave Song Qian an appraising glance. Looks could be deceiving, indeed.
“You’re over these things already? Facing down a black bear without batting an eye?”
Song Qian’s hand, hanging at her side, twisted fiercely into her pant leg. Beneath the baggy fabric, her legs quaked without cease.
“It’s… manageable.”
Lin Qing nodded. “Impressive adaptability.”
“Allow me to introduce my colleagues: Big Black and Little Pepper.” He tugged the girl in front of him, pinning her shoulders to keep her in check. “They came tonight to escort you to the Special Investigation Group. It’s her first assignment, so things got a little rough. My apologies on her behalf.”
Lin Qing nudged her shoulder. She pouted, reluctance oozing from every pore. “Sorry.”
“But she hurt Big Black! She owes it an apology too!”
Song Qian eyed the weeping bear. Its paws and the fur around its eyes gleamed wetly—tears, no doubt.
Lin Qing glanced her way, embarrassment flickering. Song Qian wasn’t one to hold petty grudges. She apologized heartily to the hulking beast and fetched a pack of candy from the table to offer it.
Big Black snuffled, eyed her, then lumbered forward to claim the candy from her hand.
“Thanks.”
What manners on a bear.
En route to the Special Investigation Group, Song Qian perched atop Big Black’s back, the girl dubbed Little Pepper curled asleep in her lap.
“She isn’t mad at you for real. She adores pretty big sisters like you. That growl earlier was just because you made Big Black cry.” Lin Qing filled her in from nearby.
“Roo!” Big Black bucked in protest. Lin Qing swayed atop it, steadying with a chuckle. “Fine, fine. No crying.”
“Hmph!”
“This world holds far more wonders than I ever dreamed,” Song Qian murmured, stroking the coarse, living fur beneath her palms.
“I used to dismiss tales of ghosts and monsters as utter nonsense. Now I realize how narrow my worldview was. All I’ve witnessed is merely the tip of the iceberg…”
“It’s way more than a tip for you,” Lin Qing cut in. He sprawled back on the bear’s broad back, arms outstretched as if to pluck stars from the sky. “Ordinary folks see less in a lifetime than you’ve glimpsed in months—and I’ve got years on you there.”
“I was skeptical at first too. Exposure breeds habit. You learn everything exists for a reason. Fear fades in time.”
“Is everyone in the Special Investigation Group like you?” Song Qian ventured, curiosity piqued.
“The Special Investigation Group? Think of it as a loose network. Members everywhere. Folks in the know can affiliate. Tough nuts to crack? Call for backup.”
“Ah.” Song Qian nodded, dimly grasping it. “What about spirits?”
Lin Qing propped himself up, met her gaze, then quirked a faint smile. “Asking about Ji Wuxin?”
“The group leader will fill you in once we’re there.”
Song Qian had pictured the Special Investigation Group as a formidable bastion of authority, like the Public Security Bureau. Instead…
A battered wooden door hung half-ajar, propped by a weathered plank scrawled crookedly with “Special Investigation Group”—the word “Group” missing half its strokes.
“This…?”
“Here we are! Come on in!” Big Black bounded to the threshold, beckoning wildly before twisting its rear to squeeze through the narrow gap.
Song Qian half-expected the door to crumble under the strain.
“Forgive the humble digs,” Lin Qing muttered, scratching his head sheepishly.
Song Qian slipped inside gingerly, wary of nudging the teetering portal. Bracing for a weed-choked yard, she found instead a long corridor floored in smooth, pea-sized pebbles—comfortable underfoot. Exquisite paper lanterns lined the walls, their soft glow weaving an aura of mystery.
A hidden gem behind a shabby facade.
The corridor opened into a spacious lobby reminiscent of a hotel reception desk. There stood a lithe beauty with long legs and perky rabbit ears atop her head.
She swept forward with bubbly warmth, draping an arm over Song Qian’s shoulder while her eyes lit up at the sight of Lin Qing.
“Lin Qing, handsome, long time no see! Want a drink?”
Lin Qing pulled her hand off Song Qian. “Don’t mess around. This is the person the group leader wants to see.”
At the mention of the group leader, Miss Rabbit’s ears instantly drooped, hanging limply and softly over her shoulders. Then she wilted and slunk back to her original spot.
Song Qian watched Miss Rabbit’s transformation and couldn’t help worrying for herself. “Your group leader… is pretty scary?”
Lin Qing paused for a moment, then let out a forced “haha” laugh. His eyes darted unnaturally left and right, as if he were afraid of getting caught. “How could that be? Our group leader is the gentlest person around.”
“Go to the end of this hallway, turn left, and the first room is the group leader’s office.”
Once Lin Qing had given her the directions, he hurried off.
Song Qian stood there at a bit of a loss. The entire lobby was now just her and Miss Rabbit. She glanced at Miss Rabbit, who seemed to have been watching her the whole time. The moment their eyes met, Miss Rabbit’s gaze immediately flickered away.
“…” Is it really that scary?
Song Qian followed Lin Qing’s directions to the end of the hallway. The room on the left was pitch black, without a trace of light, while the one on the right was brightly lit.
Did Lin Qing mix up the directions?
Subconsciously, Song Qian turned toward the right.
Click—
The door behind her suddenly swung open, kicking up a gust of cold wind that gave Song Qian goosebumps all over.
“This way.”
