Chapter 15 : Spicy Maru !!!

The overpass after midnight still clung to the lingering summer heat of the day.
Xu Zhi leaned against the rusty railings, and the car lights below merged into a golden river.

The half-corpse of that Skin-Painter had been handed over to the Records Bureau hours ago.
Its demonic energy was confirmed to have dissipated, and it was declared dead.
The case was technically considered closed.

On the bustling overpass, Xu Zhi sighed.
He couldn’t shake the unpleasant feeling in his heart.

He unconsciously caressed the crack on the jade pendant, the rough edge scraping a small red mark on the web of his thumb, like being gently scratched by a cat’s paw.

For some reason, a voice in his heart kept telling him that Bai Ling was fine, that he was alive and well, and that the snake demon was lying to him.

Xu Zhi didn’t know where this feeling came from.
He only knew that he had always trusted his intuition.

A fortune teller had set up a stall on the overpass, and copper coins clinked on a red cloth.

The fortune teller had the air of an immortal.
Sunglasses perched on his nose hid his pupils.
His black hair was streaked with a few strands of white, and his goatee was long enough to touch his throat.
At a glance, he was either a charlatan or someone with real skills—if you could ignore the cup of milk tea in his hand, of course.

The fortune teller took a long slurp of his milk tea.
The anime character keychain tied to the handle of his horsetail whisk swayed with the movement.
The air of an immortal and the smoke of the mortal world blended together in an absurd fusion.

“Hey! Young man, I see you have an ominous shadow on your face. I fear a bloody disaster is in your near future. How about this? Come to me, and I’ll change your fate for you, guaranteed to help you avoid it… Hey, hey! Don’t go! I’ll give you a 20% discount! 20% off!“

But no one in the bustling crowd on the overpass was interested in a fortune teller who opened his mouth by telling people they were about to have a bloody disaster.
It was a wonder he hadn’t been beaten up on the spot.

Xu Zhi sighed and slowly walked over to the fortune teller.

The fortune teller’s sunglasses slid down his nose, revealing his eyes peeking at his phone screen.

“Master, cultivators shouldn’t indulge in worldly pleasures.“

Xu Zhi slowly squatted down and gestured with his chin towards the cup of milk tea in the fortune teller’s hand.

“What do you know? I call this nurturing ancient arts with the energy of the mortal world. Less sugar and no ice is also a form of cultivation.“

The fortune teller tapped the cover of the “I Ching” with the handle of his whisk, making the copper bells on the side of his stall jingle.

“Speak, you brat. What do you need my help with?“

The fortune teller’s nose twitched, as if he had smelled something familiar.
“You haven’t even washed off the demonic energy on you. Did you get beaten up?“

“No, I just came to ask you, Master, to do a reading for me.“

Xu Zhi also patted his butt and sat cross-legged on a plastic stool with peeling paint.

“You’re not asking that kid from Dragon Tiger Mountain on your team, but me?“

The fortune teller finally finished the last sip of his milk tea and casually tossed the cup onto the cover of the “I Ching.”
It accidentally scraped open the pages, revealing the phone inside, which was still on the food delivery order screen.

“Fortune telling is eight thousand, fate changing is twenty thousand, no credit. I, Xiao Mochen, always keep clear accounts, even with my own brothers.“

“It’s a private matter. It’s not convenient to ask him.“

Xu Zhi pulled a bank card from his pocket and slapped it in the center of the red cloth.
“This is my salary from last month, twenty-six thousand. If it’s not enough, I’ll give you more when I get paid this month.“

“Ho!“

The wide sleeves of Xiao Mochen’s Daoist robe fluttered like a crane’s wings, and the bank card had already slid into his inner pocket.

He pressed the bulge of the cloth bag on his chest, the gold chain of his sunglasses trembling with his smug chuckle.
“Asking about your future? Your love life?“

“The owner of this jade pendant. I want to know where he is and if he’s safe.“

“Easy!“
Xiao Mochen placed the jade pendant on the cracked “Qian” hexagram pattern and threw a few copper coins.
He then pinched his fingers and calculated for a while, then his nostrils flared, his goatee trembling with his breath, as if he were sniffing something.

“He’s very safe!“
Xiao Mochen suddenly burst out laughing, as if he had figured something out.
“A master is protecting him, much more reliable than a hot-headed brat like you.“

“As for the location…“

He twitched his nostrils and took a deep breath, his fingertip drawing a circle.
“I can’t figure it out!“

“Then give me my money back. I still want to buy some skins.“

Xu Zhi suddenly reached for the other’s chest.

“You’re rebelling!“
Xiao Mochen slapped Xu Zhi’s hand away with lightning speed.
“What kind of man takes back money he’s already given?“

“Then help me find him.“

“No!“
Xiao Mochen clutched his chest with one hand and kicked out with the other, his Daoist boot leaving several afterimages.
“I’m your master! How can you order your master around like a subordinate?“

“What kind of master charges his disciple for a divination!“

Xu Zhi raised his forearm to block his master’s shadowless kicks while still trying to snatch his salary back from him.

“Think about it carefully…“
Xiao Mochen suddenly retracted his leg and sat up straight.
A notification sound of a successful transfer popped up on his phone.
“The one you’re looking for might have already brushed past you.“

He swept his whisk over Xu Zhi’s collar, hooking out half a cyan feather.
“Like that girl cosplaying a snake demon the other day?“

“Master, I haven’t met any girls cosplaying a snake demon recently…“
Seeing this, Xu Zhi also brushed off the feather and stood up.
“Forget it. It’s good enough to know he’s safe.“

“Get lost, get lost! I get annoyed just seeing you, you brat!“

The morning mist, carrying the aroma from the cafeteria’s steamers, wafted into the dormitory building.
Sparrows flapped among the camphor tree leaves, shaking off a few drops of last night’s rain.

Bai Ling tiptoed along the base of the wall.
The creak of the dorm door startled her, making the hairs on her neck stand on end, and her heart almost skipped a beat.

‘Wait! The three of them shouldn’t be in the dorm right now!’

She chuckled at the air, patting her chest to calm her startled heart.

‘After what happened last night, the three of them are probably still at the police station or the Demon Suppression Division.’

‘What are you afraid of, you silly goose?’

Her movements instantly became bold and confident.

‘I should hurry and pack my things while they’re not here. From now on, we’ll never see each other again.’

‘It’s just a shame about my university life. It’s over before it even began.’

The morning exercise music suddenly blared from the broadcast outside the window, startling her and causing her to knock over the iron clothes rack.

“Hiss…“

Before the sound of the iron rack falling had faded, a shock of orange-streaked short hair, like a bird’s nest, exploded from under the blue plaid quilt.

Chengzi propped herself up, her eyelids swollen, her hungover breath reeking of alcohol.
“Who’s doing renovations this early in the morning…“

As she scratched her neck, a silver chain clinked.
The dreamcatcher on the pendant was tangled in the charging cable by her bed.

“Hungover… My head hurts so much…“

Bai Ling stood frozen in the shadow of the doorframe.
The morning light just happened to graze the railing of the iron-frame bed.

Amber light traced tear-like patterns on the peeling paint, and the resulting light spot happened to shine on her fair calf.

I’M SO SCREWED!!!!!!