Chapter Fifteen: The Light of Insight (Part One)

“What nonsense about tossing people into an oil cauldron to be fried!” On the way to school the next day, Shi Jun couldn’t help but vent to Little Rascal about the events of yesterday. “The Underworld is far too overbearing—is it true that if you miss your registration time, they’ll send ghost officers to throw you into the cauldron? No wonder so many wandering souls would rather drift endlessly in the human world. So that’s the reason!”

Little Rascal, hearing this passionate tirade, looked thoroughly aggrieved. “I’ve been in the Underworld for ages and visited every level of hell. I’ve never seen any oil cauldron!”

Normally, Shi Jun would have been eager to probe for more details whenever Little Rascal mentioned the ‘levels of hell,’ but today he was too distracted. He only half-believed her, asking, “Then why would Su Su say such a thing?”

“How should I know?” Little Rascal was just as bewildered.

“Hmm, maybe he just heard these tales from adults when he was little.” Shi Jun recalled his own recent blunder with ghost stories. “Forget it. Next time I see Su Su, I’ll try to talk some sense into him…”

As Shi Jun pondered this, a flash of white light appeared before his eyes—it was Chiyang.

This time, she had finally changed her attire: a white tracksuit on top, blue jeans below, a towel slung around her neck—a picture of youthful vigor, as if fresh from a morning run.

“Chiyang, did you get paid or something? That outfit looks great!” Shi Jun was intensely curious about Chiyang’s new look and couldn’t help teasing her as soon as he saw her.

“Don’t be ridiculous! I only dressed like this because of you,” Chiyang retorted with a hint of annoyance.

“Because of me?” Shi Jun was baffled.

“If it weren’t to coordinate with you, the half-baked Underworld Officer, and make it easier to move around in the human world, would I have to dress up like this?!” Clearly, this new style didn’t quite mesh with Chiyang’s own taste.

“But it’s nice! At least you look much prettier than before!” Seeing her feigned anger, Shi Jun couldn’t resist teasing her further.

Just then, a young man on a bicycle passed by, and despite being in a hurry, turned his head to whistle at Chiyang.

Shi Jun was stunned.

Could that man see Chiyang? That couldn’t be—until now, only he had been able to see her. How could anyone else…?

“What are you staring at?” Chiyang noticed Shi Jun gazing at her and suddenly felt a bit embarrassed.

“Did you see that? He could see you!” Shi Jun blurted out without thinking.

“Why are you so surprised? Anyone can see me now.” Chiyang smiled. “I’m not invisible.”

“If you’re not invisible, regular people can see you?” Shi Jun’s jaw nearly dropped.

“I told you, I’m not a ghost. If I’m not hiding, of course I can be seen!” Chiyang gave Shi Jun a playful punch.

“Not a ghost? Aren’t you from the Underworld? Then what are you?” Shi Jun fired off a string of questions.

“Stop calling everything a ghost, will you? Not everyone in the Underworld is a ghost! As for what I am, you wouldn’t understand even if I told you, so there’s no point in explaining.” Chiyang sounded annoyed.

So mysterious—was Chiyang some kind of ancient demon? Shi Jun had wanted to satisfy his curiosity, but seeing her growing displeasure at his repeated “ghost” remarks, he wisely fell silent.

“All right, let’s get serious. You’re way behind schedule; you’ve only just scratched the surface. Instead of gossiping about other people’s secrets, why not focus more on your task?” In truth, Chiyang was worried about Shi Jun, but somehow her words came out all wrong.

“There’s still time, isn’t there? You’re more anxious than the emperor’s eunuch!” Shi Jun was already disgruntled about this so-called “trial,” and now, hearing Chiyang’s sarcasm, he shot back in anger.

“Fine! I’m not anxious. Let’s see how you explain yourself when the time comes!” Chiyang, momentarily at a loss for words, stamped her foot and turned away.

* * *

Ever since Chiyang had appeared, Little Rascal, who was usually as chatty as a bird, had become uncharacteristically silent. Only after Chiyang and Shi Jun quarreled and she left did Little Rascal finally let out a long breath, clutching her chest. “That scared me to death! Big Sister Chiyang must have come to check up on us. Luckily, I haven’t gone out to play today.”

“Her?” Shi Jun, still fuming, scoffed, “I think she’s just crazy—on one of her manic episodes!”

Little Rascal didn’t dare get involved in their dispute; she stuck out her tongue and quietly retreated to the side.

After venting a while, Shi Jun realized he was being childish—he hadn’t always been so quick to anger. What was wrong with him lately? Why did he have such a bad attitude toward Chiyang? He couldn’t figure it out.

He shook his head, wanting to ask Little Rascal more about bringing Su Su over, but the little one seemed distracted by something novel and, after a couple of half-hearted answers, insisted on going to some amusement park. No matter how Shi Jun tried, he couldn’t persuade her otherwise.

Left with no choice, Shi Jun went to school alone.

After lunch, as was his habit, Shi Jun wandered alone along the path outside the sports field. He hadn’t gone far when Hu Hai came striding toward him.

“Knew I’d find you here.” Hu Hai’s big hand affectionately patted Shi Jun on the back of the head.

“Easy!” Shi Jun yelped. “Any harder and you’ll knock me silly!”

“Come on, I wish I could slap some sense into you—you’ve been acting like an idiot lately!”

Shi Jun was about to retort when, suddenly, he felt a heavy blow to his backside and fell flat on the ground with a thud.

“Why’d you kick me?!” Climbing up, Shi Jun angrily turned on Hu Hai, but then caught sight of Su Su, grinning triumphantly with a ball in his arms. Shi Jun was both furious and utterly bewildered.

“What do you mean, I kicked you? You tripped and blamed me?” Hu Hai looked genuinely confused.

“Bad guy! I’ll get you!” Su Su cocked his small head, beamed mischievously, pointed at the air, muttered something, and then shouted, “Now!”

Before Shi Jun could steady himself, he toppled over again, landing hard on the stone-paved path—almost splitting his backside.

“Why, you little rascal!” Shi Jun cried out in pain, and immediately felt another whack on the back of his head. “How dare you hit me?”

“Who hit you?” Hu Hai protested indignantly. “Are you nuts?”

Su Su burst out laughing and dashed off in a flash.

Shi Jun rolled his eyes and nearly fainted from exasperation. Why was this little ghost suddenly targeting him? So much for good intentions!

After a moment, he managed to stand up, only to find Hu Hai sizing him up with a suspicious look.

“Come on, let’s go!” Hu Hai grabbed Shi Jun and started dragging him off.

“Where to?” After three consecutive blows, Shi Jun ached all over.

“The hospital!” Hu Hai hastened, half-dragging, half-running with Shi Jun in tow.

“Why the hospital? I’m not hurt!” Shi Jun finally managed to break free, bewildered.

“Your head must be!” Hu Hai tapped his own forehead, deeply concerned.

Shi Jun froze, then understood Hu Hai’s meaning. He sighed and patted Hu Hai’s shoulder. “Hai, do you believe me?”

Hu Hai looked him in the eye. “I do.”

That was a relief—at least they could talk. Deeply moved, Shi Jun put on his most earnest expression. “Listen, Hai, there’s nothing wrong with me. I know it wasn’t you who hit me just now. In fact, it was a ghost—a mischievous one with more than forty years’ experience. But you can’t see it…”

* * *

As he spoke, Shi Jun realized he was starting to sound incoherent. Was he so riled up he couldn’t even talk straight? Yet looking up, he saw Hu Hai listening with apparent seriousness, eyes fixed on him without blinking. Shi Jun was overjoyed—what a true friend, the only one who’d believe him!

“Maybe,” Hu Hai began thoughtfully, “we should talk more about this after we get to the hospital?”

“Thunk!” Fuming, Shi Jun smacked Hu Hai on the head and stormed off.

* * *

By the fifteenth day, Shi Jun’s body had accumulated a fair share of bruises—all thanks to Su Su. The mischievous ghost seemed to delight in this face-to-face game of pranks, tormenting Shi Jun at every opportunity. Though none of it was truly serious, it was painful enough, and Su Su was endlessly amused by Shi Jun’s exasperation. He became Shi Jun’s nearly constant shadow.

Thankfully, Su Su’s mischief was confined to the campus—the ghost never ventured beyond school grounds. Shi Jun guessed that this might have been Su Su’s haunt in life; he’d heard the university was once a residential area before being redeveloped.

Seeking Little Rascal’s help was pointless; every time, she would simply say, “The Underworld Emperor said I can’t give specific help. Sister Chiyang isn’t here, and I don’t dare take matters into my own hands. Please don’t be mad, Officer!”

Now Shi Jun was at his wits’ end—not only was he nowhere close to completing his ghost-catching mission, but he was being endlessly tormented by Su Su. His hopes of visiting the Underworld were fading, and his life on campus was turning into a minefield. With his current abilities, how could he possibly deal with a ghost who had real powers? This so-called test was patently unfair—he couldn’t imagine why he’d ever agreed to it in the first place…

The thought filled him with frustration, but he had no solution.

After seeing how Liu Shuihuo had suffered at Su Su’s hands, and experiencing the pain himself, Shi Jun had come to appreciate the danger these wayward spirits posed. His initial resistance had faded; though he’d never aspired to be a hero who could turn the tide, he realized that doing a few good deeds—so long as they didn’t harm him—was worthwhile.

So, even though the Underworld Emperor’s refusal to give any help infuriated him, Shi Jun resolved not to give up. Being tormented by Su Su was hardly enjoyable, but he gritted his teeth, treating it as a test of his own resilience. Besides, for all his mischief, Su Su was really just a pitiful child—wasn’t he? So young, losing his life, forced to wander alone, unwelcome among the living and unable to move on to where he belonged.

That thought sustained Shi Jun through the hardest days—eventually, Su Su, ever the child, grew bored of him and turned his attention to a new “target.”

That target was Hu Hai.

At first, Shi Jun wondered why the mischievous ghost had disappeared for a day or two. Since he and Hu Hai weren’t in the same class, they didn’t meet every day, so Shi Jun was oblivious to Hu Hai’s mounting misfortunes.

By the twentieth day of his probation, even Little Rascal had stopped dropping in, and Chiyang was nowhere to be seen—whether she was sulking or busy elsewhere, Shi Jun didn’t know. The situation looked grim; it seemed as if the Underworld had lost all interest in him, ready to abandon him to his fate.

Just then, a thoroughly dejected Hu Hai appeared before him.

* * *

Since that trip to the hospital, Shi Jun and Hu Hai had each been busy with their own affairs. So when Shi Jun saw his always cheerful friend looking so downcast, he couldn’t help but laugh.

“Did Chen Ya dump you?” The two of them slipped off to a secluded spot in the school park to sit and talk.

“Alas!” Hu Hai’s face grew even gloomier, and he lowered his head with a sigh.

Shi Jun realized this was more serious than he’d thought and stifled the rest of his joke, instead giving Hu Hai a sturdy slap on the shoulder. “Cheer up, man! So what if you struck out with a girl? The sky isn’t falling!”

“That’s easy for you to say,” Hu Hai grumbled. “Have you ever had your study notes, which you’d already turned in, mysteriously fly back onto your desk during an exam, only to be caught by the proctor and forced to retake the class? Or had your legs suddenly give out while walking with your girlfriend, making you kneel in front of a pretty stranger and not only lose your girl but almost get beaten up by someone else’s boyfriend? What did I ever do to deserve this string of freakish disasters?!”

Hu Hai’s voice was weak and full of bitterness, his expression more mournful than anyone Shi Jun had ever seen.

Shi Jun had been about to laugh, but then he sensed something was off. He glanced around.

Sure enough, a grinning face was peeking at him—Su Su, baring his little tiger teeth and making faces at Shi Jun.

End of section.