Last night, he wrapped himself up so thoroughly that only his eyes were exposed.
Yet, Li Zhuyuan could still remember those eyes.
Just now, Li Zhuyuan saw him.
He was leaning against Tan Wenbin, sharing a water faucet, soaping up his body while calling him “Big Brother.”
After confirming his gaze, Li Zhuyuan chose not to look at his calf, completely uninterested in whether there were any gunshot scars or if he had tried to cover them up.
He was already certain, and there was no need for the boy to seek further evidence.
Doing so would not only be unnecessary but could also raise suspicion from the other party, as the other party had seen him before.
However, the other party likely did not know that he had also recognized him.
So, while the other was still acting, likely smiling foolishly as he called out “Big Brother,” deep down, there was probably a sense of self-satisfaction blooming.
Li Zhuyuan hoped he would continue this act.
The more he wished to play a role, the more it meant he wanted to avoid tearing off the façade of his identity, thus ensuring his own safety at the moment.
There was no helping it; Lin Shuyou's skills were quite scary.
If he truly got serious, the security of the copper mirror door and the high heels in his hands might not be able to stop him.
However, he could now be fairly certain that Lin Shuyou was not the true culprit of the incident from seven years ago.
One's face could reveal layers like the rings of a tree, and Li Zhuyuan was sure he was about the same age as Tan Wenbin, meaning he would have still been in fifth grade when that incident occurred.
Aunt Liu said he was an official's son, and usually, such individuals were like the actors of Guan Yu at fairs in other provinces, embodying righteousness.
But things are never absolute; Li Zhuyuan could also argue that grave robbers generally have a compassionate disposition.
Yet that does not prevent individuals like the Mao family from being part of those ranks.
Jobs can be good, but people are not necessarily so.
Therefore, Li Zhuyuan decided to take action quickly, as long as the other party still had their craving for drama, he would eliminate this ticking bomb.
This had nothing to do with whether the other had been in that teaching building last night, but simply the thought of having such a person residing so close to his dorm made the boy unable to sleep peacefully.
With a tiger lying beside him, how could he allow a companion to snore?
Tan Wenbin returned after showering, humming a tune.
Once he closed the door, he plopped down on his bed. “Yuanzi, I was going to invite Lin Shuyou to go for grilled fish at Old Sichuan tonight, but he said he wanted to enjoy the atmosphere at the school library instead.”
What puzzled Tan Wenbin was the change in the behavior of this new friend who had initially been very obedient but suddenly seemed to have his own ideas.
Of course, that wasn't wrong and was quite normal, but it was clearly inconsistent with the persona he had shown when they first met.
Especially at the start of term, everyone still had distinct social needs and goals; otherwise, it would be quite embarrassing to have no one to go to class with or grab meals with.
Receiving this information, Li Zhuyuan understood well: It seemed that Classmate Lin Shuyou also found it hard to sleep at night.
...
The dormitory building, bustling during the first half of the night, fell silent afterward.
The exertion from military training left these university students, who should have been bursting with energy, unable to hold up a complete nightlife rhythm for now.
Li Zhuyuan and Tan Wenbin were both fast asleep on their beds.
Under the night, a shadow slowly moved down to the window, upside down.
The summer was stifling, and the dorm windows were open.
Just as he was about to enter, the pair of high heels on the windowsill suddenly flew up, aiming straight at the shadow.
The shadow deftly flipped one arm, the black cloth on his sleeve wrapped around the high heels, catching them.
Though the shoes continued to struggle, they made not a single sound.
Then, the shadow entered the balcony, stepped inside, and stood beside the boy’s bed.
Just as he reached out to grab the boy's neck, his gaze suddenly locked, and he swiftly retreated.
A shovel strike came sweeping from below.
If the shadow had not evaded in time, he might have lost a foot.
Runsheng pushed off with one foot, sliding out from under the bed, executing another rapid strike with the Yellow River shovel, aiming at his opponent.
In Runsheng's eyes, since they had already infiltrated this place with the intent to harm Xiaoyuan, they deserved to die.
The shadow moved agilely, firmly grasping the bed’s railing, flipping over to avoid the attack.
At that moment, Tan Wenbin lifted the thin blanket, snatched the seven-star hook hidden underneath, and lunged it toward the shadow.
The shadow brought his feet together, clamping the seven-star hook, and with a quick flick, he threw Tan Wenbin off balance while kicking back with one leg. “Bang!” Tan Wenbin was struck on the shoulder and tumbled back onto the bed.
Runsheng had now risen, swinging the Yellow River shovel again, a sharp whooshing sound filling the air.
The shadow clearly did not dare to engage Runsheng directly, with his left hand slamming against the upper railing of the bed, he flew out like a swallow, dodging the attack and landing back on the balcony.
Immediately, the shadow’s gaze swept back to the boy’s bed, noticing the boy had also sat up, staring coldly at him.
Realizing the other was on guard, the shadow hesitated not, leveraging his legs to leap into the air while tucking in his limbs as if jumping into the water backwards, he leaped off the balcony.
Li Zhuyuan got out of bed and walked behind Runsheng, placing a hand on his right shoulder.
Runsheng took a step, lifting his foot to the side, and then together with the boy, they jumped off the balcony.
Tan Wenbin followed closely, gripping the seven-star hook in his right hand and covering his shoulder with his left.
He quickened his pace, reached the window, then slowed down before turning around and opening the dormitory door to head down the stairs.
The shadow was just about to land when a whip came slicing at him, as Yin Meng, who was lying in wait, made her move.
With a burst of strength from his waist, the shadow somersaulted in mid-air, narrowly avoiding that whip.
Yin Meng’s expression gravely shifted; she now believed that this individual could indeed dodge bullets.
Yet, she was aware of her duty, and after a failed attack, she dashed in, swirling her whip, constricting it around her fist before striking toward the shadow.
For a brief moment, both sides exchanged rapid punches, and almost simultaneously, they both kicked.
“Bang.” Yin Meng was kicked backward, instinctively clutching her abdomen.
The shadow stood still, as when Yin Meng kicked, he had shifted his body, dampening most of her force.
Yin Meng suffered, but her objective was achieved; Runsheng had landed safely with Xiaoyuan.
The shadow truly felt wary of Runsheng; seeing him charge at him yet again, it had no intention of facing him as before.
Without hesitation, it turned and ran.
Runsheng, with Li Zhuyuan on his back, began pursuing, jumping over the dormitory building's wall, through a flower bed, and finally entering the empty playground.
Due to carrying a person, Runsheng couldn’t fully unleash his speed, gradually losing ground to the shadow.
However, at that moment, Li Zhuyuan on Runsheng’s back snapped his fingers.
“Clap!”
The seal attached to those high heels was released by Li Zhuyuan.
The shadow, which had been moving swiftly ahead, abruptly slowed and threw the high heels off of him.
This delay resulted in a completely different situation; not only did Runsheng catch up to him, but also Yin Meng and even Zhuang Zhuang soon followed.
The three surrounded the shadow in a triangular formation.
The shadow made no effort to conceal its intentions, turning to glance where Tan Wenbin stood.
Clearly, he sensed that was the weakest link.
Tan Wenbin couldn’t help but laugh: “Could you be any more obvious?”
Then, with that, he tossed the seven-star hook aside, pulling out a net.
The message was simple; he wouldn’t fight, meaning the shadow could easily break through to confront him, but he would do everything he could to ensnare himself with the shadow.
As the weakest link in the team, Zhuang Zhuang could only toughen himself up as best as he could.
Li Zhuyuan slid off Runsheng's back, standing aside, watching the shadow, and spoke: “Let’s talk.”
Only in moments of advantage did Li Zhuyuan wish to converse with the other party, to reveal identities mutually.
Just as Li Zhuyuan was about to initiate the traditional greeting, he furrowed his brow, halting his actions.
The wind had picked up.
The shadow made a theatrical drawl with a long tail: “A ghost-raising scoundrel like you thinks you can talk to me~”
As soon as the words fell, the shadow pointed at his own forehead, and his pupils suddenly transformed into slits.
The high heels that had just been thrown to the ground and was struggling to demonstrate its existence and purpose before Li Zhuyuan grew completely silent.
When the slitted eyes surveyed everyone, they all felt a weight of pressure.
Tan Wenbin looked down at his legs, finding them trembling uncontrollably.
He shouted, “What’s happening?”
Li Zhuyuan replied, “It’s a spirit medium's trance.”
“Crash!” The black cloak over the shadow ruptured, revealing his true form under the moonlight.
He was dressed in colorful garments, with an upright shoulder, straw sandals on his feet, a crane crown on his head, and white painted fish patterns on his tail.
He clapped his hands.
Though unarmed, an imposing presence came forth. “Evil spirits shall only be killed and not saved!”
Lin Shuyou, who had previously been avoiding direct confrontation with Runsheng, now walked straight toward him.
He took alternating steps of two illusions and one solid, walking in a manner reminiscent of a three-step salute.
In this state of spirit possession, he was now a vessel for the divine presence.
Li Zhuyuan knew that at this point, Lin Shuyou was no longer himself, he was now the White Crane Boy.
The opponent was beyond communication.
“Hold him off; buy me some time,” Li Zhuyuan began to retreat while Runsheng moved forward.
After retreating a safe distance, Li Zhuyuan closed his eyes and began reciting the “Kṣitigarbha Sutra.”
The White Crane Boy approached Runsheng.
With a request from Xiaoyuan in mind, Runsheng held his ground with the shovel, unwilling to initiate an attack.
He trusted his own strength, but he believed in Xiaoyuan’s judgment even more.
However, as the White Crane Boy's claw-like hands launched toward him, Runsheng raised the Yellow River shovel to block.
Just this simple encounter made him realize he had underestimated the adversary.
The shovel in his hands was no longer fully under his control; in this tug-of-war of absolute power, Runsheng found himself at a disadvantage, his stance unsteady.
This scene startled both Tan Wenbin and Yin Meng—Runsheng, who they knew to have considerable strength, was now being so easily dominated by this spirit?
Without hesitation, Yin Meng and Tan Wenbin attacked the White Crane Boy from the sides simultaneously.
The White Crane Boy snapped his head, and a ghostly light flickered in his slitted pupils.
As his strength surged, he swung his arms, lifting the Yellow River shovel entirely.
Runsheng had also gripped the Yellow River shovel, and now, he was hoisted off his feet, spinning in the air before crashing down.
As he fell, he attempted to gain leverage, but saw the White Crane Boy yanking back his arms and kicking him square in the chest.
Runsheng was sent crashing to the ground, the Yellow River shovel completely in the hands of the White Crane Boy.
“Whoosh...” The Yellow River shovel came crashing down toward Runsheng.
Runsheng pressed his palms against the floor, pushing himself away quickly to dodge.
“Crash!” The cement basketball court was smashed into a large crater, the ground splitting into a spiderweb of cracks around it.
Yin Meng unleashed her whip, directing it at the shadow's face, only to have the White Crane Boy lift his left hand and precisely grasp the whip.
Then, an immense force traveled up the whip, and Yin Meng was pulled off the ground, floating like a kite.
Next, with a downward tug, the White Crane Boy brought Yin Meng crashing back to the ground.
Tan Wenbin threw the return home net, ensnaring the White Crane Boy like a fisherman.
According to the return home net’s properties, when an evil entity was wrapped in it, it would commonly distort their perception of their surroundings.
However, the White Crane Boy turned his head, his slitted pupils focusing right on Tan Wenbin.
Feeling the intensity of that stare made Tan Wenbin's back crawl, and awkwardly, he raised his hands. “Good evening.”
“Crash!” The Yellow River shovel swung, snapping the return home net to pieces.
The White Crane Boy stepped toward Tan Wenbin.
Tan Wenbin kept retreating, but despite the shadows’ seemingly slow three-step salute, his form flickered like an apparition, swiftly closing the distance to Tan Wenbin.
In the face of such pressure, Tan Wenbin fell backward to the ground.
By this time, Runsheng had gotten back up.
He grabbed a piece of net rope from the ground and flung it at the White Crane Boy.
The rope wrapped around the shadow's ankle as Runsheng began pulling.
The White Crane Boy turned to look at Runsheng, his raised Yellow River shovel still swinging down at Tan Wenbin.
“Bang!” Tan Wenbin positioned his legs apart as the ground beneath him was smashed into a pit.
Just a bit more, and Officer Tan would have lost his serene retirement years watching over his grandchildren.
The White Crane Boy ignored Tan Wenbin entirely, turning to face Runsheng.
He lifted his foot and stomped down again.
Runsheng felt the force of that kick and lost his balance again, stumbling forward.
The White Crane Boy advanced on him, and at the moment they converged, he threw a punch toward Runsheng's chest.
In response, Runsheng sidestepped, dodging the punch and bashing his shoulder hard into the White Crane Boy's chest.
That collision was solid; even a dead person would be tossed back from that impact, but the White Crane Boy stood firm.
On top of this, he seized Runsheng by the waist and lifted him one-handed.
Tan Wenbin could only witness a scene of absurdity; heavens, Runsheng was actually being lifted like that!
“Boom!”
Lifted high, Runsheng was smashed back to the ground.
The White Crane Boy raised his foot, aiming to stomp on Runsheng's face.
Runsheng crossed his arms in a protective stance, blocking the impending foot, yet the strain made the veins in his face bulge as he exerted all his strength.
At this standstill, he heard movement behind him.
The White Crane Boy turned his gaze to see Yin Meng kicking towards him, but he ducked and evaded the strike, leaving Yin Meng to constrict his neck with her legs, hanging off him completely.
To an ordinary person, such a choke would be fatal, but perhaps due to the divine strength, the White Crane Boy stood unmoved.
Tan Wenbin, spurred into action, rose to his feet, rummaging his pockets for various powders, but realizing that the return home net was ineffective, indicating that this group was not evil spirits, left him at a loss.
In the end, he seized the seven-star hook again, brandishing it like a spear as he shouted towards the White Crane Boy.
The White Crane Boy’s hand shot out, catching the seven-star hook and halting Tan Wenbin’s charge.
In that moment, he was now standing upon Runsheng, controlling Tan Wenbin with one hand and restraining Yin Meng with the other shoulder.
Facing three opponents alone, he was calm and unyielding.
Runsheng shouted, “Hold him! He can’t sustain this state for long!”
Yin Meng and Tan Wenbin gritted their teeth, pushing with all their might.
The White Crane Boy’s slitted pupils focused on the young man who had been standing at a distance since the fight began.
He was the ghost-raiser, and he represented the greatest threat here.
The White Crane Boy changed his foot placement to a kick, sending Runsheng flying backward, dragging his back across the ground.
But during this forceful kick, Runsheng was able to quickly free his hands, launching powerful punches in retaliation against the White Crane Boy's calf.
The White Crane Boy's upper body twisted fiercely, causing Yin Meng to be hurled away, crashing heavily to the ground.
Finally, the White Crane Boy turned his gaze back at Tan Wenbin, who was still grappling with the seven-star hook.
Taking a step back, he released his hold.
Tan Wenbin surged forward with the seven-star hook, only to fall to the ground by himself.
The White Crane Boy looked back at Li Zhuyuan.
As he lifted his foot, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his calf, causing him to spasm in place.
The slitted pupils in his eyes dimmed as well.
Lin Shuyou had suffered an injury to his calf, having just been attacked by Runsheng.
Runsheng rose from the ground.
In his mind, the memory of Li Zhuyuan’s words from their lunch echoed: “This guy’s methods are complex and difficult to deal with.”
He now truly felt that the opponent’s previous state was far from human.
Fortunately, his time was running out.
However, after the initial spasm, the White Crane Boy reached into the sides of his draping shoulders, retrieving two incense sticks and placing them atop his crane crown.
“Guide the path, drive away the evil!”
The incense lit spontaneously, releasing an unusual fragrance, and the White Crane Boy’s aura surged back, his once-dim vision sharpening back to the deep slits of his pupils.
“Oh no, cut him off!”
Runsheng barked out.
Like a wild bull, he attempted to charge through again, only to quickly halt.
He saw Li Zhuyuan had opened his eyes, raising his left hand at him, signaling that they did not need assistance.
Runsheng let out a deep sigh in his heart; he felt useless and realized he still had to rely on Li Zhuyuan in the end.
In truth, Runsheng had underestimated himself; even as an ordinary person, he was already remarkably impressive for being able to confront a spirit-possessed White Crane Boy.
Runsheng’s physical abilities surpassed what ordinary people could imagine, but ultimately, those wild skills could not compete with the traditional abilities the other held.
Fortunately, all of this would change due to Li Zhuyuan’s entrance, and soon real members of the Qin family would come to teach him.
With the incense burning on the White Crane Boy, he directly walked towards Li Zhuyuan.
Li Zhuyuan did not dodge but instead stepped forward, pressing ink on his hand and painting it across his face.
The White Crane Boy approached Li Zhuyuan, raising his fist, ready to slay the ghost-raising scoundrel, but at that moment, Li Zhuyuan's eyes lost their whiteness, turning entirely pitch black.
He looked up at the White Crane Boy.
The White Crane Boy stopped his fist, gazing in bewilderment at the boy before him, sensing something familiar from him.
It was as if he had a same-class acquaintance, the one with the worst temper.
The official son was most famous for increasing and diminishing the two generals.
Originally, both generals were danger-harbingers, only to be subdued by the Earth Store King Bodhisattva, becoming guardians of the Earth Store King’s seat.
Among them, the increasing general manifested into two, thus the familiar phrase, “Increase and Decrease One,” actually refers to three individuals.
The White Crane Boy was also called the Guiding Boy, often leading the procession in temple fairs, typically followed closely by the two generals who raise and lower.
Li Zhuyuan simply locked eyes with the White Crane Boy.
The White Crane Boy kept tilting his face in confusion; he couldn’t understand why the scoundrel he sought to kill suddenly resembled one of his own companions.
When Li Zhuyuan arrived at the university, he had selected three sets of books from his great-grandfather’s place to bring with him, among them was the “Earth Store Bodhisattva Sutra.”
Though the university life kept him busy, he would often take time to read, and the first book he delved into was the “Earth Store Bodhisattva Sutra.” Just this noon, while Tan Wenbin had been studying, Li Zhuyuan was still reading it.
It was like before an exam, casually flipping a page to stare at, and when he got into the exam room, lo and behold, he had landed squarely on a major question.
Time slipped away just like that.
The incense above the White Crane Boy burned quickly, and finally extinguished.
The medium session ended; the divine presence dissipated.
“Thud...”
Lin Shuyou collapsed to his knees, spitting a mouthful of blood, utterly weak and feeble.
Clearly, despite the fact that Runsheng had been thoroughly beaten back by the White Crane Boy, his earlier attacks still left marks on the opponent; it was just that under the state of possession, it had been momentarily suppressed.
“Snap!”
Li Zhuyuan snapped his fingers, the darkened pits in his eyes fading, returning to normal.
Lin Shuyou struggled to raise his head, looking at the boy, who was using his sleeve to wipe the red marks off his face.
“Why... why are you possessed?”
Not only was the previously divine White Crane Boy puzzled, but Lin Shuyou was also filled with confusion.
What he did not know was that earlier that morning, an old lady with the surname Liu was even more bewildered.
Li Zhuyuan said, “Why did we come to university?”
“To... study, right?”
“Exactly! I just read a bit more.”
(End of Chapter)