"Alright, there's still something to do. It's not okay for his merits to keep leaking out like this," Ning Yitao turned back to look at Duan Qinghuai. "I can't always be by your side. The reason your merits are leaking is that someone secretly cast a spell on you. To solve your problem, we have to find out who cast this spell."
"Think carefully. Have you ever offended anyone?"
Duan Qinghuai pondered for a moment and then firmly shook his head.
"Since childhood, the number of people around me can be counted on one hand. There shouldn't be anyone who hates me enough to cast a spell on me."
"I'm a chosen one. You can't calculate my fate." Ning Yitao also got caught in a bind. Suddenly, a light bulb went off in her head. In Lu Anguo's memories, she had seen that ungrateful kid who had always led the isolation of Duan Qinghuai behind his back, making him fall into self - doubt and taking pleasure in bullying him. "Do you still remember that boy named Xu Guang? Do you think it could be him?"
Duan Qinghuai frowned slightly upon hearing this name and recalled something. "During the time when Uncle Lu passed away, he suddenly came to me and asked me for money right away, saying that I owed him. He said that otherwise, he wouldn't have ended up like this. I had nothing to say to this kind of person, so I just flatly refused him."
"I've learned some self - defense skills, and he couldn't beat me. After failing to get the better of me when he came to cause trouble, he never came again."
"Could it be that he got evil thoughts after you refused him?" Zhaocai guessed.
"Maybe. I saw in Lu Anguo's memories that he went to Xu Guang's parents to seek an explanation for you. He wanted them to discipline their child well, but every time he went to their house, he was turned away." Ning Yitao suddenly stood up, stretched her muscles, and the topic veered off.
"I'm hungry. Let's go eat." She led the way out of the room. Duan Qinghuai was taken aback and only then realized it was already noon.
Following Ning Yitao, they came to a small Sichuan cuisine restaurant at the hospital entrance.
"Maybe we should look for another place?" Duan Qinghuai thought Ning Yitao's looks suggested that she had a weak stomach. She was too thin, and there were whip marks on her arms. He naturally felt pity for her. Ning Yitao ignored him and just walked in.
Instead, Zhaocai on his hand spoke up. "Don't worry. She has her own reasons for doing things. Don't worry about her."
This restaurant was really strange. There was a sign saying "Open" hanging on the door, and the lights inside were on, but there was no one in sight. Ning Yitao didn't seem to intend to sit down either. She just kept walking inside.
Duan Qinghuai was puzzled but still accompanied her. Following her, they somehow walked out and came to an old alley.
In City A, many winding alleys and houses with iconic styles were preserved to protect cultural heritage. Walking among these buildings was like traveling back in time.
It was noon, but the wind carried a coolness. Yellowed leaves were fluttering down from the century - old trees on the side of the road. The gaps in the old brick walls were overgrown with moss. Children were playing under the trees, adding a bit of vitality to the old trees. The wind blew the withered leaves through Ning Yitao's hair.
Duan Qinghuai suddenly had the feeling that she didn't belong to this world. She seemed more suitable for this scenery, as if only in such a setting could she truly be alive.
She had suddenly barged into his life, like a dream. For the first time in a real sense, he had a friend.
Ning Yitao wasn't the least bit confused by all these forks in the road. She had no idea what was going on in Duan Qinghuai's mind behind her. Without a moment's hesitation, she led them to a door. Just as she knocked on it for the first time,
Suddenly, there came the sound of porcelain smashing against the door, accompanied by a roar. "Get out! All of you get out! I've said I have no money, so just leave me alone!"
Duan Qinghuai recognized the voice as Xu Guang's, the one who had come to him last time.
Ning Yitao ignored it and stubbornly continued knocking on the door. Naturally, there was another round of clattering sounds of things being thrown at the door. Just then, the door next door opened.
An old woman with a worried face whispered to them. "Kids, you'd better leave quickly. After getting hurt by him, those girls quietly had abortions on their own. He's not a good man to rely on for life. Don't anger him."
The old woman shrank her head and neck as if she was afraid of being heard by Xu Guang next door.
The old woman gave an example in an attempt to persuade the kids in front of her not to provoke Xu Guang. "He's such a scoundrel. He gambled and owes a huge debt. He's emptied his family's savings. Last night, when his parents really couldn't come up with any more money, he even beat his own parents until they were bleeding profusely. They're still in the hospital."
Ning Yitao frowned. No wonder she smelled such a strong smell of blood. She turned to comfort the old woman. "Don't worry, Granny. We know what we're doing. But Granny, what did you mean by 'abortion' just now?"
The old woman was taken aback and said in surprise. "Sorry, kids. I thought you were just like those other girls who came to ask him to take responsibility.
All the girls who came to his door before were here to ask him to take responsibility. Every time he got his girlfriends pregnant, as long as the girls came to ask him for money and for him to take responsibility, he would sell them to brothels, where they would be defiled and have abortions. He's really not human. None of the girls sold to Fanghua Night City could ever get out."
Ning Yitao's eyes instantly turned cold, and her eyebrows were filled with disgust. This kind of person didn't deserve to live.
They knew the old woman was worried about them, two students. Duan Qinghuai said, "Don't worry, Granny. I'll protect her well. We're just here to ask him some questions."
The old woman still worriedly exhorted them. "If there's danger, run away quickly. If you can't run, call the police. I'll call the police for you right away."
In the old woman's mind, Xu Guang was a devil who did all kinds of evil and was capable of anything.
After the old woman closed the door, Ning Yitao stopped knocking on the door. She reached out to Duan Qinghuai and took Zhaocai, then placed it on the doorknob and tilted her head to signal Zhaocai.
The next second, the door lock fell off. Just as Ning Yitao was about to put her hand on the door, Duan Qinghuai stopped her and whispered, "Let me go in first." Ning Yitao absent - mindedly stepped aside. She was still thinking about what the old woman had said and always felt something was off.
As soon as Duan Qinghuai opened the door, the room was pitch - black, and an extremely strong and putrid smell of blood hit them. As the door opened wider, sunlight slowly crept into the living room and illuminated Xu Guang lying in a pool of his parents' blood.
Duan Qinghuai suddenly stopped in front of the door and blocked it tightly. It was only when Ning Yitao came back to her senses that she noticed Duan Qinghuai's strange behavior. She puzzledly reached out and patted him. "Why aren't you going in?"
Duan Qinghuai's face turned solemn. After a long pause, he said, "Maybe you should go downstairs first. I'll ask him."
"Get out of the way," Ning Yitao said coldly.
Duan Qinghuai hesitantly stepped aside.
The scene in the room came into full view. The furniture in the house was scattered everywhere, as if it had been ransacked. There was a blood - stained kitchen knife casually discarded on the ground. All that met the eye... was blood, just blood.
The fresh blood in the room hadn't dried yet and was still flowing. This pervert had actually collected it and poured it on himself. He was kneeling on the ground, licking the blood on the floor, with a sickly and obsessed look on his face that made people shiver.
And there were many infant spirits around him, lying on him in all kinds of strange postures, imitating him and showing the same expressions as they devoured his essence.
The gloomy and cold air permeated the surroundings. Ning Yitao's face was dark and she said nothing. The atmosphere around was so oppressive that it was suffocating.