Hailing deserted city

Chapter 27

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Ling Li hurriedly stopped to pry Tao Rujiu's hand, but he did not notice at all that the underground water flow behind him had already stood up like a cobra!

The Qi Mao Xian's white fur was stained with dark red spots, and it could feel the dampness of Tao Rujiu's blood in its paws. It knew that if it continued to stalemate like this, it would only hurt Tao Rujiu. It released its paws and jumped off Tao Rujiu. At the same time, the cold underground water flow slammed into its sharp back.

The malevolent aura in the groundwater had no effect on Ling Li, but the spraying water mist blurred the man's vision.

Under the cover of the mist, the vengeful spirit quickly rose, grabbed the coffin lid beside it, and slammed it down!

Ling Li couldn't dodge in time and was struck in the back by the coffin lid. It was the smallest pink coffin lid, yet it was still more powerful than an ordinary wooden stick. The sound of it hitting the man was terrifying, and the plank snapped in two. Ling Li fell to the ground. But the vengeful spirit seemed unsatisfied, continuing to beat the now almost powerless man with the broken plank.

Seeing that Ling Li was gradually becoming still, Qi Mao Xian pounced on him without hesitation, but was easily thrown away by the vengeful ghost.

A sharp, pungent smell of blood quickly filled the air. The vengeful spirit finally stopped, chuckling as it crouched down and began to fidget with the motionless man.

"Dead? So useless..."

The vengeful ghost gently patted his sharp cheek with its cold fingers. It then looked at his limbs and body, and suddenly nodded with a strange laugh.

"I was going to dismember you, but now that this body seems pretty good, I'll just let you die completely and then move into your body!"

As he spoke, he pressed one hand against Ling Li's chest and raised the broken wood with the other, intending to stab it into Ling Li's chest!

The Qi Mao Xian, thrown aside, realized the situation was dire and hurriedly cast a powerful incantation of the Five Thunderbolts to force out the vengeful ghost's soul. At that moment, Ling Li suddenly opened his eyes, grabbed the ghost's right hand, and simultaneously dodged the falling broken wood, pressing Tao Rujiu's body tightly beneath him. The vengeful ghost, now subdued, tried to gouge out Ling Li's eyes with its overgrown fingernails, but accidentally touched a drop of blood dripping from the man's forehead.

"Uh... Ah!"

After a strange scream, it withdrew its hand, as if in fear of something. Taking advantage of the situation, Ling Li grabbed Tao Rujiu's wrist and pressed his knee against his lower abdomen. During this time, more of his blood dripped onto Tao Rujiu's body, and the vengeful ghost inside the body writhed in agony as if scalded by boiling oil.

Qi Mao Xian suddenly realized what was happening, quickly put away the talisman, and shouted to Ling Li, "Your blood is extremely yang. Smear it on Tao Rujiu's body, and that vengeful ghost will be driven out!"

Upon hearing the cat fairy's words, Ling Li immediately smeared his own blood on Tao Rujiu's head. The vengeful ghost then leaped and struggled violently, several times more so than before. Although the ghostly energy and yin qi had no effect on Ling Li, he could still defeat the man who had already been beaten bloody with his fists and feet.

With his hands restrained, it raised its foot and kicked twice in the man's groin. The man groaned softly, but still insisted on smearing his blood on the controlled body.

Tao Rujiu heard the shrill screams of the vengeful ghost, and gradually regained some sensation in his hands and feet, like the relaxation after a long period of numbness, with a slight stinging pain. Although his body still moved according to the will of the vengeful ghost, he could now feel external sensations, pain and dampness.

Tao Rujiu could even feel the heat of the sharp palm, thick with blood, sliding across his body.

After a while, the sensation in his hands and feet became more and more acute, and he could even smell a faint scent of blood. Tao Rujiu tried to move his hands and feet and forcefully pulled back the kick that the vengeful ghost had kicked out.

"It worked!" Qi Maoxian shouted from the side, "Tao Tao, just like that, slowly pull your body back in!"

Ling Li seemed to have noticed the change in the person beneath him. He paused slightly, withdrew his knee from Tao Rujiu's lower abdomen, and became more gentle in his movements.

At this moment, the voice of the vengeful spirit rang loudly in Tao Rujiu's ears:

"...Don't even think about getting rid of me...If I leave, I'll take you with me...I'll make you taste the bitterness of resentment, and make you my slave forever..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the young man felt short of breath and a sudden, sharp pain shot through his left shoulder, as if five hooks were piercing his collarbone and pulling him out of his body.

He suddenly wondered if a vengeful spirit was pulling his soul away from his body. In a daze, he suddenly remembered the talisman the cat fairy had written in his palm.

Tao Rujiu raised his hand with difficulty.

Although still struggling, the numbness had completely disappeared. Ling Li remained kneeling on him, the posture now appearing strangely eerie. The young man saw blood streaming down Ling Li's forehead, a frightening amount. Perhaps if they continued this stalemate any longer, the man would truly faint from blood loss, or even die.

He didn't want to be stained with indelible bloodshed. He didn't want to think carefully about the impact a brutal death would have on him. At this moment, Tao Rujiu seemed to have considered many things, yet also seemed completely unconcerned. He gritted his teeth and forcefully raised his hand towards the top of his head…

Qi Maoxian noticed his actions and was genuinely startled. She immediately shouted, "Stop!"

Ling Li was also startled by the roar and immediately reached out to grab Tao Rujiu's hand.

Unfortunately, they were all too late!

Tao Rujiu felt the pain in his right shoulder suddenly disappear, and his limbs lost all feeling again. His whole body felt light as cotton—he had returned to a soul-like state, forced out of his physical body by a powerful force!

Before he could even cry for help, everything went dark.

The raised hand fell limply to the ground, and the body that had been struggling just moments before turned into a corpse. Ling Li hurriedly tried to check Tao Rujiu's breath, but could no longer feel anything!

"Swift! Quickly!" Qi Mao Xian swiftly set up a magic array around Tao Rujiu, "Hold Tao Rujiu tight, don't let his soul scatter!"

As the vengeful ghost's soul left its body, the surrounding groundwater splashed up. Ling Li held Tao Rujiu's body tightly, and in the white mist, his vision slowly darkened until he could see nothing at all.

Ling Li opened his eyes and found himself surrounded by pure white. White walls, white bed, white sofa, with only a vase of red flowers on the bedside table. A nurse, also dressed in white, approached and softly greeted him, "Mr. Ling, you're awake?"

Ling Li frowned; there was a faint, unpleasant smell of disinfectant in the air. He raised his hand and found an IV tube attached to the back of his hand, and several places on his body were tightly bound by bandages.

"What happened to me?" he asked, and was told that he had lost too much blood, had multiple bruises, subcutaneous bleeding, and a hole in his forehead, but fortunately there was nothing wrong with his bones.

The secretary said, "Mr. Ling, you have been unconscious for two days."

"Is that so?" Ling Li rubbed his hair with his free right hand, slowly recalling everything that had happened. "Does the old man already know?"

Han Fei nodded. "I reported this the day after I arrived in Xiyao, saying that your injury was a minor accident during your trip and there was nothing to worry about."

"Okay." Ling Li nodded, but his fingers twitched involuntarily; his craving for a cigarette was kicking in. He then tried to change the subject: "Who brought me to the hospital?"

Han Fei replied, "It's Sun Zhendao. Master Lü from the opera troupe had a check-up yesterday, and since there were no problems, he was discharged from the hospital. The old man guarding the underground palace suddenly suffered a coronary heart disease while arguing with someone yesterday, and he was also hospitalized."

He paused, then magically produced a file.

"That old man's relative was one of the three who died in the underground palace accident. He was given the sinecure of guarding the gate as compensation."

Ling Li nodded sharply, paused for a moment, and then asked, "Where is Tao Rujiu?"

Han Fei paused for a moment, then realized what he meant, but deliberately didn't answer directly: "There's a 'little kid' waiting for you at the door. Would you like me to bring him in?"

Ling Li hesitated for a moment, then suddenly sat up and pulled out the needle from his arm before the nurse could stop him, and struggled to get out of bed.

"No, I'll go out to see him."

After saying that, she didn't need anyone's help and slowly walked to the entrance hall, pushed open the door and went out.

The corridor of the VIP ward was almost deserted, with rows of white benches standing along the corner of the wall. The "little kid" Han Fei mentioned was sitting at one end of the bench.

Even from nearly ten meters away, Ling Li could still clearly see that the person was Qin Huakai. The boy was curled up in the corner like a cat, looking melancholy.

"Flowers bloom?" Ling Li called out softly, but a vague sense of disappointment lingered in his heart.

The boy looked up, and a fleeting look of joy crossed his eyes when he saw the man, but it quickly faded, like a small animal that had done something wrong. He slowly stood up and walked over.

(Mr. Ling...) he said in sign language, (Is your injury alright?)

Ling Li shook his head. "It's fine. I think I can be discharged now."

The man asked again, "Did you come alone?"

The flowers nod in agreement.

(I came with Secretary Han.)

Ling Li nodded as well, then unconsciously glanced around a few times. The real question was on the tip of his tongue, but he didn't know how to express it. However, after hesitating for a while, he finally spoke.

"...Tao Rujiu, is he alright?"

The boy paused for a moment, then suddenly lowered his head and began to use sign language.

(Actually... I want to explain to you first what happened during this time.)

The two sat down on the bench.

...Half an hour later.

Ling Li read Qin Huakai's sign language, his face gradually darkening. The truth was too bizarre, yet upon closer examination, it made perfect sense. The young man had no reason to lie, and the deep affection he had shown Dongli Bupo the day before was the strongest evidence.

He said weakly, "You mean... Tao Rujiu was just possessed by Dongli Bupo... just like he was in the underground palace the day before yesterday?"

Hua Kai nodded, but shame and self-reproach made him bury his face even lower.

(This matter should have been clarified by Dongli Bupo, but he had his own plans, and everything he did was for me... I have no right to blame him, but I must tell the truth...)

"I understand." Ling Li took a deep breath, a dull pain shooting through his chest, which triggered a reaction from all the wounds on his body.

He asked in a low voice, "Where is Tao Rujiu now?"

Hua Kai suddenly looked up, and tears finally streamed down her face.

(...They said...Tao Tao isn't breathing.)

Upon hearing this, Ling Li jolted awake, his expression stiffening as if he couldn't comprehend the meaning of "no breathing."

"Dead...? Tao Rujiu...is dead?"

The flowers nodded, and tears flowed again.

"How could this be!"

The man leaned slowly against the wall, desperately trying to recall every detail of that night in the woods. Tao Rujiu fell into his arms, and he held him tightly. The Qi Mao Xian said that as long as he did this, Tao Rujiu's soul wouldn't dissipate, but what was the truth?

He stopped breathing in his own arms!

I had wronged him; he had inflicted such severe physical and emotional humiliation. I hadn't even had a chance to apologize, nor had I thought of any way to make amends. And he... just left like that?

Ling Li couldn't believe it. He murmured, "Dead...where is he? Is he also in this hospital?"

The thought of Tao Rujiu's body lying in the cold morgue in the hospital basement made his heart clench violently; he couldn't tell if it was regret or heartache. As if all his strength had been drained, he dazedly started to walk towards the elevator.

Seeing this, Hua Kai quickly stopped him.

(He's still in Hailing... They said they're afraid of causing trouble and need to contact his relatives first.)

The man listened in a daze, and it took him a long time to come to his senses. His face was deathly pale as he returned to the ward and ordered Han Fei, "Send me back to Hailing immediately!"

This request was not approved by the attending physician, but Ling Li immediately became agitated and refused to accept any further treatment. Even after Sun Zhendao called to explain that Tao Rujiu would be transferred to the hospital morgue the next day, the man still insisted on returning to the city. Only after being forcibly injected with a sedative did he finally fall into a deep sleep.

When he opened his eyes again, it was already midnight.

Han Fei had already taken Hua Kai back to the city, and no one was there to keep her company in the hospital room. The streetlights in the garden downstairs shone white light, casting a deep blue hue on the room's furnishings through the white curtains.

Ling Li swayed as he sat up, and after a moment of clarity, he remembered Tao Rujiu's matter.

He had calmed down somewhat, but a tightness still lingered in his chest. He thought about all the harsh things he had done to Tao Rujiu in the past, and regretted not believing the young man's explanation. A pain welled up in his heart again without him realizing it.

He got out of bed and walked around the ward, then peeked through the curtains. The inpatient department gate was tightly closed, but the guard post next to it was lit up. It wouldn't be easy to sneak out.

Ling Li sighed and sat back on the bed.

It was very quiet around. This was the VIP floor of the Xiyao Hospital inpatient building, and most of the wards were empty. During the day, nurses pushed instruments, leaving long echoes in the spacious corridors. The hospital's specimen room happened to be upstairs, and hospitals were inherently places with heavy yin energy. If it were a female patient, she might not dare to stay in the room alone overnight.

Ling Li sat on the edge of the bed when he suddenly heard the elevator not far away open with a "ding".

He naturally assumed it was the doctor making rounds and hurriedly lay back down on the bed.

In the dead silence, he heard heavy footsteps coming out of the elevator, slow and dragging, not like those of a doctor.

He frowned, noticing that the footsteps weren't heading straight for his ward, but rather in the completely opposite direction.

The VIP floor has a ring-shaped structure with an elevator shaft in the center, and the wards on all four sides forming a U-shape. The footsteps were heading west, and the imposing wards were left behind.