Chapter Twelve: The Eerie Classroom Building

Time flew by, and before I knew it, the moment everyone looked forward to—school dismissal—had arrived again. I stepped out of the school gates and, under the gaze of many, climbed into my master’s car. Chewing gum, he asked, “So, where shall we eat tonight, apprentice?”

I thought for a moment and replied, “Let’s keep it simple. There’s a dumpling shop near home that looks pretty good. Master, let’s go there. It’s been ages since I’ve had dumplings.” As I spoke, I licked my lips.

Master glanced at the rearview mirror and laughed, “Alright, dumplings it is.”

The car started up slowly and headed toward the dumpling shop near my house. Ten minutes later, Master parked right in front of the place. I got out, looked up at the sign above the shop—it had a pleasant name, "Fragrant Dumplings." Even before entering, the scent wafting out made my nose twitch in anticipation.

Master finished parking and walked over, giving me a playful smack on the back of my head. “What are you sniffing at? Is it really that fragrant? Come on, let’s go in.” With that, he strode inside.

I followed, grinning. As soon as we entered, a waiter greeted us. Seated, I glanced at the menu—so many flavors of dumplings. After a moment’s consideration, I chose the chive and lamb dumplings. The waiter nodded and took the order away.

Moments later, the chef himself brought out two steaming plates of dumplings. I inhaled deeply—indeed, the aroma was wonderful. I picked up a dumpling with my chopsticks, dipped it in the sauce, and popped it into my mouth.

“Wow, Master, these dumplings are incredible!” I mumbled, mouth full.

Master smiled at me, “If they’re good, eat as much as you like. If it’s not enough, just order more.” He, too, began to eat.

I devoured dumplings one after another, finishing several plates in quick succession. After eating, Master settled the bill. The shop owner approached us, smiling, “So, how did you like our dumplings?”

I wiped my mouth, nodding vigorously. Master smiled and nodded as well, saying, “Boss, your dumplings are truly remarkable. I’ve been in Chongqing for years, but this is the first time I’ve tasted dumplings this good.”

The owner laughed, “Thank you both for dining here. You’re always welcome. I promise you’ll be satisfied every time.”

Master nodded, and together we left the dumpling shop. Standing outside, I rubbed my now round belly and let out a satisfied burp. Master went to fetch the car, and after a while, we returned home. Once inside, I went upstairs to my room to organize what I’d need for the evening.

I spent quite a while tidying up, but honestly, there wasn’t much to pack—I hadn’t mastered any powerful spells yet, and apart from the jade pendant grandpa gave me, I carried nothing else. After finishing some homework, I headed downstairs and saw Master sitting on the sofa watching television. Noticing my neat attire, he looked perplexed and asked, “Where are you off to this late?”

I walked over and replied cheerfully, “Master, the school is holding a class meeting tonight at eight. It’s meant to make up for the opening ceremony of the new semester. Everyone in the class has to attend.”

Master nodded and stood up, “Alright, I’ll take you there.”

I quickly waved my hand, embarrassed, “No need, Master. I know the way to school like the back of my hand. I’ll go alone, don’t worry!” With that, I turned toward the front door. Master frowned at my retreating figure and called me back. Surprised, I turned around, and he tossed me a phone, saying, “Here, bought you a phone. Take it tonight—call me if anything happens. Don’t get addicted to playing on it, understand? Also, the weather’s getting cold, wear a few more layers.” He threw me several thick jackets.

Seeing that Master didn’t press me further, I breathed a sigh of relief, slipped the phone into my pocket, nodded, and left the villa. I arrived at the school gate promptly at eight, but found it deserted. I waited a while longer, still no one. Just as I was about to head home, I heard some noises nearby—beams of flashlight sweeping through the darkness. I counted about nine lights swaying in the night.

Under the streetlamp above, I soon saw that the newcomers were Yu Wenzhou and the others, with Chu Mengxi standing behind. Yu Wenzhou spotted me and hurried over, saying, “Lin Xuan, you’re early! Punctual as always.”

I shot him a look, annoyed, “Easy for you to say. Weren’t we supposed to meet here at eight? I’ve been waiting nearly half an hour, Brother Wenzhou.”

“Well, something came up at home and delayed me. Sorry, Lin Xuan,” Yu Wenzhou replied, scratching his head in embarrassment.

I sighed, glancing at everyone, “Let’s go. I checked just now—no security guards, and the gate isn’t locked. When we go in, let’s keep quiet.”

Everyone nodded. I walked up to Chu Mengxi and whispered, “You’re pretty brave, aren’t you? Staying out so late instead of being at home.”

Chu Mengxi smiled, “Do girls always have to be less courageous than you boys?”

I was momentarily speechless, shrugged, and joined the group in opening the gate, slipping inside carefully. Yu Wenzhou and I led the way. Inside, the school wasn’t entirely quiet—the dormitory lights were still on, but the sports ground was deserted and eerily bleak, even the lights flickered. After winding through several corridors, we finally reached the unfinished teaching building Hu Ming had mentioned.

I counted the floors—five in total, none fully built. The exterior walls were dilapidated, and the nighttime gloom made the building appear especially frightening, with only the dark outlines of windows visible. On the rooftop, there was an indistinct figure that looked, from afar, like someone with disheveled hair standing there.

We approached the building cautiously, and an icy chill enveloped us. Though autumn had arrived, Chongqing’s weather was notoriously fickle, and the cold felt like falling into an ice pit. I glanced at everyone’s reactions—they were all hugging their shoulders, just as cold as I was. Chu Mengxi, too, exhaled visible puffs of breath. I walked over and draped my extra jacket over her shoulders—thankfully, I’d worn several layers, or I would have frozen solid. She looked at me, surprised, but said nothing.

Just as we prepared to investigate the building, I suddenly felt a surge of warmth in my right arm, pushing out the cold within me. I touched my hot arm, not thinking much of it, and joined the others as we climbed the stairs.

The first floor was quite spacious. After searching with our flashlights for a while, we finally found the stairs to the second floor. Looking around, we ascended cautiously. Before reaching the second floor, one of the girls who had come with Chu Mengxi grew frightened, clutching Chu Mengxi’s arm and shrinking back, “Maybe we shouldn’t go up—this place is so dark and creepy.”

“Liu Xiaohui, we’re already here. You can’t back out now. If you’re scared, why did you come? You’re such a bother,” another classmate chimed in.

The speaker was a boy named Wu Liang, known in class as the king of snark. He always liked to tease others, and he’d been one of the strongest advocates for coming to the building tonight.

Liu Xiaohui, hearing Wu Liang’s words, became even more fragile and whimpered, “I…I…”

Seeing she was about to cry, I quickly intervened, “Wu Liang, don’t be so harsh. Aren’t you scared? If not, go ahead and lead. Why hide behind us?” I stepped aside, pointing ahead.

With people like this, reasoning won’t work—the tougher you get, the clearer the message. Wu Liang, hearing my words (and remembering how I’d sent Kang Shun flying earlier), pursed his lips and said nothing, though his expression was a bit disgruntled.

I looked at everyone and continued, “I’ll lead, you just follow. But let’s be clear—just a quick look, no lingering. If anything happens, none of us can shoulder the blame.”

Yu Wenzhou, standing beside me, eyed me suspiciously, “Why can’t we stay too long?”

I shined my flashlight at him. “No reason. If you trust me, follow my lead. If not, there’s nothing I can do.”

Truthfully, I wasn’t entirely confident myself—this building was definitely not ordinary. Thinking back to the cold we’d felt downstairs, it wasn’t just the weather. Master had told me the jade spirit in my pendant would automatically protect its owner; if danger threatened, I’d feel warmth in my arm as a warning.

From the moment we entered, I’d felt several surges of energy from the black-and-white twin fish on my right arm, making me increasingly uneasy. As the saying goes, anything out of the ordinary has a cause. Clearly, something unclean haunted this building. But I’d still come—not for pride, but for Chu Mengxi. For reasons I couldn’t explain, ever since I first saw her in class, I’d felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity, and not just once.

I rolled up my sleeve, letting the black-and-white twin fish on my arm show—not that anyone else could see them. Leading the group, I circled the second floor. Nothing happened, so we moved on to the third floor—still nothing. I relaxed a little.

But when we tiptoed onto the fourth floor, something strange occurred. Zhou Ping, who was at the back of the group, suddenly let out a terrified scream. We all jumped, turning to see him standing frozen in place. Yu Wenzhou cursed, clutching his chest, “Zhou Ping, what are you screaming about? Are you crazy? Scared me to death!”

But Zhou Ping showed no reaction, standing rigidly. I frowned, walked over with my flashlight, and patted his shoulder—still no response. Wu Liang joined us, scolding, “Zhou Ping, are you bored or something? That little trick doesn’t scare us.” He shoved Zhou Ping.

Zhou Ping finally snapped out of it, scanning us, then glancing toward the fourth-floor window. Suddenly, he turned and ran downstairs. His reaction frightened us all, especially the girls, who were speechless with fear. Liu Xiaohui, after holding back for so long, finally burst into loud sobs.

Watching Zhou Ping’s retreating figure, I shouted to Wu Liang and the others, “Wu Liang, Sun Yang, you guys—hold Zhou Ping down, don’t let him run wild. This building’s dangerous. If you can’t manage, knock him out and get him out of here, quick!” Having seen Pang Dun possessed by a jar ghost before, Zhou Ping’s reaction made me suspect he was possessed too. If he ran unchecked, he might fall down the stairs or even attempt suicide.

Wu Liang and the others, flustered, hesitated for a bit before nodding and running after Zhou Ping with their flashlights. I turned to Yu Wenzhou and the girls, “Don’t panic, everyone stick together. Let’s head downstairs.”

The remaining group gathered close, Yu Wenzhou trembling as he asked, “Lin…Lin Xuan, what’s wrong with Zhou Ping? Why did he go crazy and run off?”

I couldn’t reveal the truth about possession, so I glanced at the others and said, “No idea—maybe he was just too scared and bolted. It’s fine, let’s go downstairs.”

I turned toward the stairs, but what I saw stunned me. Zhou Ping, face covered in blood, stood at the stairwell, head hanging, arms limp. Yu Wenzhou and the others saw him and screamed in terror. I swallowed hard, retreating with the group.

After three steps, Zhou Ping weakly called out, “Help…help me.” Then he collapsed.

Stunned by the scene, I hesitated for a moment before running over to help him up. He looked at me, gasping, “Help…help me, it hurts so much.”

Panicking, I was about to ask what happened, but Zhou Ping’s head lolled and he passed out. I wasn’t trained in first aid—what should I do? I glanced at the dumbfounded Yu Wenzhou and shouted, “What are you standing there for? Come help!”

Yu Wenzhou snapped out of it, hurried over, knelt to check Zhou Ping’s injuries, and after a while, panted, “He’s alright, just fell and broke his arm—probably slipped on the stairs. His face is scratched, nose broken.”

He removed Zhou Ping’s jacket, pressed it to the bleeding wound, then tied it around Zhou Ping’s arm to immobilize it. After finishing, he wiped his brow and looked up at me. I stared at him, astonished, “You know how to set bones? Where’d you learn that? Impressive.”

“My dad’s a chief surgeon at the hospital, my mom’s the head nurse—where do you think I learned it?” Yu Wenzhou replied, still out of breath.

I nodded, about to help carry Zhou Ping downstairs when, suddenly, I saw a ghostly woman in white standing by the window, hair covering her face, her body facing me. Every hair on my body stood on end. Yu Wenzhou looked up and saw the ghost, shrieked, and collapsed onto the floor, shouting, “Oh my god, a ghost! There’s really a ghost! Don’t come after me—I haven’t done anything wrong!”

Goosebumps raced across my skin. Chu Mengxi and the others, hearing Yu Wenzhou, turned and saw the ghost, bursting into terrified tears. Liu Xiaohui even fainted, unmoving on the floor. Chu Mengxi fared slightly better, but was still badly shaken, crouching and breathing hard.

I swallowed, heart pounding, staring at the ghostly figure. Just as I was about to speak, several more white-clad female ghosts appeared on the fourth-floor landing, their heads bowed, fingers unnaturally sharp. Sweating profusely, I retreated hastily, shouting, “Damn, there’s more!” When I reached Chu Mengxi and the others, I forced myself to steady my voice, “Stay calm, stay calm, let’s see what they want.”

As soon as I finished speaking, the ghosts began to laugh with chilling voices, their laughter echoing all around, making my skin crawl as if thousands of ants were crawling over me.

Annoyed by the laughter, I cleared my throat and said loudly, “What’s so funny? Can’t you speak?”

The main ghost stopped laughing, her voice shrill as she replied, “Little one, cursing isn’t a good habit. I’ve been sealed here for centuries—truly boring. Thanks to you all, my split soul was unsealed and my strength has returned a bit. But just after breaking the seal, I’m still quite weak. Little one, I see your bloodline is decent. Why not offer yourself willingly as a sacrifice? When I rule the world, you’ll be counted among my greatest supporters. What do you say?”

Frowning, I pondered her words—“split soul unsealed”? Had Wu Liang and the others triggered something while chasing Zhou Ping? I spoke up, “If you’re just bored, I’m happy to chat. But if you threaten our safety, I’m afraid that won’t do.”

By now, I was completely unafraid—the storms I’d weathered as a child made this ghost pale in comparison. The ghost, hearing my refusal, grew angry, gathering all her split souls together. Her presence intensified, nearly suffocating me. I looked at the others—they too seemed close to passing out. After a while, the pressure eased. The main ghost, dressed in white with hair cascading down her back and heavy makeup, hovered above us, gazing down, “Refuse a toast and you get punishment. Poor child, with such promise, only to be buried here. It’s your own doing, not mine. Once you’re dead, you’ll become my sacrifice.” She finished with a chilling, whimpering laugh…