Chapter 9

Facing Xia Zhiming’s words, Qi Xu instinctively shook her head. “No, you look especially pretty, especially, especially pretty!”

Never mind any M tendencies, Qi Xu genuinely thought Xia Zhiming was beautiful. She just felt that there couldn’t be such a beautiful person in the world, someone who matched her aesthetic so perfectly. Especially in that instant when she took off the Fox Mask, it made Qi Xu’s heart race nonstop.

In that moment, her eyes held only Xia Zhiming.

She sat on the edge of her hospital bed, raised both hands—one in front holding the Fox Mask, the other reaching behind her head to untie the strap woven into her hair. Once the strap was untied, the mask dropped instantly. A few strands of her jet-black long hair also swayed forward. When she removed the mask and turned her head to look at Qi Xu, in that instant, everything in the world lost its color.

Her black hair floated, and her fair face was otherworldly. Qi Xu had already praised her eyes and lips; paired with her high nose bridge and full cheeks, she was a great beauty.

What caught Qi Xu’s attention most was actually a small mole under the corner of her left eye. Its position was perfect—the legendary beauty mark.

Though Qi Xu’s description was a bit flowery, she really thought Xia Zhiming was stunningly beautiful! What was called “one glance for ten thousand years”? This was it.

Hearing Qi Xu say this, the sullen-faced Xia Zhiming finally softened her expression a bit.

However, beautiful as Xia Zhiming was, and heartstruck as Qi Xu was, she still wouldn’t follow her home. “But that said, we’re both girls, so I can’t repay you with my body. If you agree, from now on, I’ll give you all my living expenses. I’ll also get a part-time job to repay your life-saving grace.”

“Who cares about your measly stinking money.”

Xia Zhiming crossed her arms, looking a bit sulky. But moments later, she chuckled. “I’m fine either way, but you need to think it through.” She shifted her seat—perhaps finding the bed edge uncomfortable—and sat back in the chair.

She crossed her legs, and under that pink daoist robe was a pair of long pants.

Hearing her words, Qi Xu instinctively sensed something wrong. Her voice even trembled. “Wh-what do I need to think through?”

The Fox Mask lay on the bed, its eyes curved up in a smile just like Xia Zhiming’s—equally wicked and teasing. “You don’t think that after being a ghost for so long and using so much power, you’ll just go back into your body and be a living person again, do you?”

Qi Xu already sensed trouble. She couldn’t help swallowing. “Huh? Th-then what?”

Xia Zhiming told her directly. “Right now,” her eyes scanned Qi Xu up and down, “tsk tsk,” before continuing, “you’re just a half-human half-ghost. You have more yin energy than yang energy on you. Who knows when you’ll kick the bucket and turn fully into a ghost.”

The more Xia Zhiming said, the paler Qi Xu’s face grew. Her “I’ve seen a ghost” expression delighted Xia Zhiming. “Haha, but if you’re with me, I can channel yang energy to you and keep you balanced in the half-human half-ghost stage.”

At this point, Qi Xu’s eyes lit up. “Then how can I turn back into a living person?”

Xia Zhiming didn’t answer. Instead, she propped her chin and pondered for a while. Qi Xu waited patiently. But after thinking, Xia Zhiming said, “I don’t know. We’ll figure it out slowly. We’ll find a way eventually.”

“…You were actually thinking seriously just now, right?”

Qi Xu always felt Xia Zhiming was unreliable. She actually didn’t want to ask this, but she sensed Xia Zhiming was hiding something. Xia Zhiming just shrugged. “Believe it or not.”

She asked again, “Thought it over? Coming with me or not?”

With Xia Zhiming putting it like this—and it concerning whether Qi Xu could stay alive—she could only nod. “I-I’ll go with you.”

With the matter settled, Xia Zhiming had no objections. She sat in the chair, waiting for her to change clothes and pack. At this time, Qi Xu’s mind started turning too, thinking about many things. By the time she finished thinking, she had also finished packing.

Qi Xu wasn’t in a hurry to leave. Instead, she sat on the bed.

One sat on the bed, the other in the chair, creating a height difference. Though Qi Xu was the one looking down, her momentum inexplicably shrank before Xia Zhiming. “My friends… they’re all okay, right?”

“They’re not dead. They’re in the next room over, woke up earlier than you, came to see you, and even got discharged. Check your phone, and you might still see the messages they sent.”

“Oh… oh, where’s my phone?!” When Xia Zhiming mentioned the phone, Qi Xu remembered. She frantically searched, even checking the pockets of her hospital gown, but found nothing. After Qi Xu searched everywhere, Xia Zhiming smiled and pulled it from her own pocket. “Here.”

Qi Xu hurriedly snatched it and pressed the button. It didn’t light up.

“Battery’s dead. Yesterday plus today, it’s long run out.”

What she said made perfect sense.

Qi Xu calmed down, pocketed the phone, and continued asking, “We went through something like this. Shouldn’t we report it to the police uncle?”

Xia Zhiming was even more indifferent. She rummaged in her pocket again, pulled out some credentials, and handed them to Qi Xu. “It’s fine. I’m official personnel. I just need to write a report afterward.” When she mentioned the report, her face showed clear annoyance—she clearly hated writing reports.

Immediately after, Xia Zhiming’s gaze fell on Qi Xu. Mischief gleamed in her eyes. Qi Xu, who was examining the credentials, suddenly shivered.

She always felt Xia Zhiming had more tricks up her sleeve.

But the credentials she showed were genuine. As long as Xia Zhiming wasn’t some shady character, its authenticity was convincing. It had an official steel stamp and looked very formal. Aside from the department name Qi Xu had never heard of, everything else checked out.

On the left was Xia Zhiming’s ID photo, still wearing that pink daoist robe. Below was the branch name.

—Xintan City Spiritual Countermeasures Bureau Third Branch.

On the right were Xia Zhiming’s basic details. At the top: Staff Investigator Qualification Certificate. Below: name, age, blood type. Xia Zhiming was 25 years old, blood type AB, with birth date but only year and month, no day.

Further down:

Position: Third Branch Second Brigade Third Squad Captain. Rank: First-Class Investigator. At the bottom was the validity period.

It was really quite official.

Seeing that Xia Zhiming had official credentials from a national agency, Qi Xu’s trust in her instantly maxed out. She shifted from “somewhat dubious wandering Daoist” to “reliable official personnel.”

She also remembered what Xia Zhiming had said before. “The internship proof you mentioned earlier—is that to take me to this countermeasures bureau?” Her excited look was as if she already saw her internship report approved.

“Yeah, yeah, that’s right.”

And so, in a daze, Qi Xu was taken home by Xia Zhiming. Contrary to Qi Xu’s expectations, Xia Zhiming neither lived in a Daoist temple nor in some ordinary residence, but in a one-bedroom loft apartment.

Entering the apartment, Qi Xu felt a bit emotional.

This was the kind of apartment for single women she had always idealized. When scrolling videos, she often saw what 95s single girls’ homes looked like and fantasized about finding such a place after graduation, decorating it beautifully for herself.

When Xia Zhiming handed Qi Xu slippers, she instinctively said “thanks.” Looking up again, she saw Xia Zhiming taking off her pink daoist robe and stuffing it straight into the washing machine.

Qi Xu followed the casually dressed Xia Zhiming into the living room. As she took in the layout—thinking the decor really had that vlog style—Xia Zhiming suddenly pushed her onto the sofa.

Qi Xu froze, not yet reacting to what happened, when she saw Xia Zhiming sit right on top of her. And they were very close.

Qi Xu’s face instantly flushed red. She wasn’t used to being too intimate with people—physical contact was killer. She could accept girls holding hands or linking arms, but someone sitting directly on her hips like this was truly embarrassing.

“Y-you! What are you doing?”

The pure college girl still didn’t know what Xia Zhiming intended at this point. The latter produced a hair tie from somewhere, kept sitting astride her hips, and tied her hair into a ponytail. Only then did she look down at Qi Xu.

“What can I do? Channel yang energy to you. It’s been a whole day, and you haven’t absorbed any yang energy. It’s almost evening; soon you’ll turn into a ghost.”

Qi Xu certainly didn’t want to become a ghost. She could only force herself to stay calm and nod. “Okay, go ahead!”

At this moment, she thought Xia Zhiming was straddling her hips to restrain her, in case she squirmed during the yang energy transfer and caused it to fail. But she didn’t expect Xia Zhiming to reach out, first cupping her chin with her palm, and then… Xia Zhiming leaned down and kissed her.

She really kissed her!

Xia Zhiming’s sudden move startled Qi Xu. She instinctively wanted to resist. But as soon as she raised her hands, something from who-knows-where grabbed them, immobilizing her. Plus, with Xia Zhiming pinning her hips, she truly couldn’t muster any strength.

Xia Zhiming also held her chin, preventing her from even closing her mouth.

In terms of strength, she was no match for Xia Zhiming.

“Mmph!”

And so, Qi Xu watched wide-eyed as Xia Zhiming’s lips pressed onto hers.