Luo Yingbai made the best choice, sacrificing only himself so that others could live well. But how well could life be without Luo Yingbai? It was like those blurry dreams he had, ultimately never meeting face to face until death. “I failed to notice everything in time,” he said softly, “Shixiong, I deeply, deeply regret this now.”
Xia Xianning’s tone and expression had become calm. He had only shed that one tear, which made a light “pa” sound, shattering into countless fragments and quickly drying up, vanishing without a trace. But it seemed like something scorching, branded on Luo Yingbai’s hand, the burning sensation lingering, as if the tears had penetrated his skin, seeped into his blood, and been carried to his heart through his blood vessels.
Luo Yingbai said, “You haven’t told me how you found out.” Xia Xianning tapped the faded peach blossom spell with his knuckles and said, “Because of this.” Luo Yingbai then remembered how their conversation had started: “Oh right, where did this thing come from?” Xia Xianning said, “You were right that day.”
Even if I had a bit to drink and my emotions were chaotic, I shouldn’t have been so confused, not like that… to you.” He indeed liked Luo Yingbai and wanted to have him, but absolutely not through such a near-forceful method. Xia Xianning said, “You know, the peach blossom spell induces feelings, while the bone ghost woman particularly enjoys devouring emotions. So this bone ghost woman we encountered likely appeared because she sensed the peach blossom spell’s aura, but you didn’t notice initially.” Luo Yingbai’s gaze darkened as he connected Xia Xianning’s previous words, immediately saying, “You mean, this peach blossom spell was originally placed on me! The conflicting auras masked my perception.” Xia Xianning slowly nodded. Luo Yingbai punched the table, now understanding how his little secrets were exposed to Xia Xianning, quite a coincidence. The peach blossom spell was something even a street fortune-teller could make a basket of in the blink of an eye. For Luo Yingbai and Xia Xianning, it was a trivial trick, but Luo Yingbai had this thing on him without noticing.
Like drug immunity, having been subjected to the separation spell, Luo Yingbai would develop antibodies to emotion-controlling spells like the peach blossom spell. Xia Xianning traced this clue to research and uncover the secret of Luo Yingbai’s tattoo.
But while Luo Yingbai felt nothing, Xia Xianning suffered. Unable to settle on Luo Yingbai, the spell worm targeted the drunk Xia Xianning, taking advantage of his unclear state and adding fuel to the fire. However, for Xia Xianning, the peach blossom spell could only temporarily confuse him, and its effectiveness quickly faded due to his own magical counterattack.
Luo Yingbai said, “It may not have been deliberately placed on me. It’s very likely I picked it up at the film set, where I’ve been spending most of my time recently. And I have something else I haven’t told you, which is why I came to the special investigation unit today.”
Xia Xianning looked at him questioningly. Luo Yingbai said, “Cheng Yin has become an idiot.”
He casually took a sip from Xia Xianning’s cup, which Xia Xianning stared at intently. Luo Yingbai, oblivious, put it down and continued, “I just heard about this recently. The police station called me. Do you remember when Cheng Yin was arrested that day, he was causing a big fuss, and a police officer hit his head, after which he became an idiot at the station.”
Xia Xianning had been there at the time: “That hit wasn’t hard.”
Luo Yingbai said, “Yes, I reported it, so they asked me to understand the situation and be a witness for the officer who hit him. I checked on Cheng Yin and found he wasn’t physically brain-injured, but his entire mental and emotional state had been stripped away, leaving him a blank-minded person.”
Xia Xianning saw that Luo Yingbai seemed able to let go of emotions, while he himself hadn’t eaten all day, experiencing shock and heartache, his emotions fluctuating wildly, giving him a headache. He rubbed his brow and said, “I see. There must be something wrong near that hotel.”
Luo Yingbai said, “Indeed. Looks like not eating for a few meals didn’t affect your brain. Impressive. Let’s eat. After eating, we’ll rest a bit and go take a look.”
Xia Xianning responded with an “oh” and lowered his head to eat. Luo Yingbai added, “Have some dishes too! I specially bought these. Don’t you like this?”
Xia Xianning agreed but continued poking at his rice. After a moment, he said, “I’m sorry.”
He only said three words, but they both understood. Normally, Luo Yingbai might have made a few teasing remarks, but remembering Xia Xianning’s “reuniting” irritated him, so he said somewhat impatiently, “If you’re apologizing for that day, just shut up. I said I don’t blame you.”
Xia Xianning said, “I know. I blame myself.”
“Oh, I can’t stand this!” Luo Yingbai hit him and said, not kindly, “Stop playing the victim. Are you blaming yourself for laying hands on me, or for not succeeding?”
” Xia Xianning: “…” He suddenly burst out laughing.
Lou Yingbai snorted and said, “Really, I have to come and coax you. ‘Ah Xian Ning, it’s really not your fault, please, eat quickly’ – as if I’ve taken great advantage of you. Don’t nag me like this again, got it?”
Xia Xianning laughed and said, “Isn’t it because I saw you seemed angry that day? You know me, I don’t care about anything, I’m just afraid you’re unhappy.”
Lou Yingbai smiled sarcastically and tapped his chopsticks, “Eat!”
This case seemed particularly strange, with the most tricky part being the opponent’s invisible and traceless nature, mysterious and thus capable of anything. The hotel was located in a bustling area with many people coming and going day and night. Xia Xianning was worried about accidents and had called in people to set up a perimeter.
After supervising Xia Xianning’s meal, Lou Yingbai also rushed over. By then, the special investigation team’s personnel were in position, and several Changliu Sect disciples were standing nearby, talking to Wei Shou. “
“Oh,” Lou Yingbai walked over, surprisingly surprised, placing a hand on each of two junior brothers’ shoulders from behind, “A-Xing, Qian Qi, what brings you down the mountain?”
These two were from Changliu Sect but had not entered the secular world. Lou Yingbai hadn’t seen them for a long time.
Lin Xing laughed, “Greetings, Senior Brother Lou, Senior Brother Xia. It’s been a while. We were commissioned to capture a Jiu beast here and didn’t expect to run into you. Some other sect members are setting up a spell formation ahead.”
A Jiu beast was a monster that specifically ate people. It liked to live in places with thriving incense but dared not appear in Buddhist temples or Taoist monasteries.
Meanwhile, Chen Qin stared wide-eyed at the screen, speaking into the walkie-talkie: “Xia Chu is right! Two are coming from the west, one each from the northeast and southwest, be careful!”
After the Wuxie beast was enlarged on the screen, it became clear that its shape was somewhat like a tiger, but with a human face, looking both ferocious and eerie.
This was the first time he had seen such a thing up close, and after closing his mouth, he could still hear his heart pounding against his chest, his body slightly trembling, his eyes fixed dead on the monitor.
There were four Wuxie beasts, approaching fiercely. Two people were guarding the northeast of the formation, working in perfect coordination. The formation instantly activated, and a light net dropped from above, pressing the fierce monster to the ground.
Xia Xianning was guarding the southwest, and facing the Wuxie beast charging towards him, he didn’t even use the formation. With one hand, he drew an arc in mid-air, maintaining his cool persona even while reciting the incantation.
