Chapter 130: Three Must Be Present, None Can Be Spared 23

Xia Yu shook her head slowly. "I only know that he and Yuxi met at a psychological clinic. I had never seen him before. Besides, there have been so many people labeled in the past that I can’t even remember their names, let alone their friends and family."

She pondered for a moment, then looked at Shi Xianyu with a lost expression. "Actually, these are... just our conjectures. There’s no way to definitively say that everything has nothing to do with Du Xiaoling..."

"Then let’s verify it," Shi Xianyu said.

"Verify?" Xia Yu frowned. "How?"

"The Spirit Disc game." Shi Xianyu tapped the table lightly. "Let's try the Spirit Disc again. If we can summon Du Xiaoling’s vengeful spirit, it means our entrapment is related to her. If we cannot, then it has nothing to do with her."

Xia Yu looked hesitant. "But, after every Spirit Disc game, there is always..."

"The door is already locked; ghosts cannot get in," Shi Xianyu said calmly. "And besides, every time it’s only been sounds. None of you have actually seen Du Xiaoling’s vengeful spirit, have you?"

Xia Yu bit her lip. After thinking for a moment, she nodded with a determined look. "All right, let's try it one more time!"

She stood up, took a deep breath, reached out, and placed her fingers on the coin in the center of the table.

The Spirit Disc is a form of divination passed down from ancient times. Its principles are much the same as those of the Pen Spirit or Coin Spirit, only the medium differs. It is a process of asking spirits questions to fulfill one’s wishes, though what is usually summoned are nearby floating entities, earthbound spirits, or wandering ghosts, rather than true deities.

Shi Xianyu also stood up slowly. Before reaching out, she said to Xia Yu, "If something goes wrong, take out the protective talisman I gave you."

Xia Yu tightened her face and nodded.

Shi Xianyu reached out and placed her hand on the other side of the coin.

"Spirit Disc, Spirit Disc, please appear." Xia Yu closed her eyes and focused. "Spirit Disc, Spirit Disc... tell me, who caused Du Xiaoling's death..."

Shi Xianyu also closed her eyes, focusing just as Xia Yu did.

A moment later, she opened her eyes and looked at the coin on the table.

The coin remained motionless. The only hands pressing on it were hers and Xia Yu’s.

She looked up at Xia Yu, who happened to be looking at her as well. They waited in silence for a while longer before letting go at the same time.

"Nothing..." Xia Yu murmured. "It worked every time before, but this time... there’s not even a flicker of movement..."

"That’s because it’s only you and me in the cafeteria right now," Shi Xianyu said, looking into her eyes. "Before, he was hiding among you, acting mysteriously, making everyone believe the ghosts outside were Du Xiaoling, leading you to hunt for a so-called murderer."

"Could he be the one who killed Du Xiaoling?" Xia Yu’s face turned pale. "On the day of the school anniversary, many outsiders came to the school. Is it possible he came too?"

"Let's wait patiently. If it really is him, he will eventually show his true colors." Shi Xianyu turned to look out the window. "Staying here, he will definitely make a move. After finishing off Wan Qianqian and you, the next one will be Bai Yuxi..."

Hearing this, Xia Yu felt a chill run through her body, her fingers clenching into fists. "...When will he come?"

"He should wait until everyone is exhausted and Zhou Bushan has lowered his guard before finding an opportunity to come," Shi Xianyu said thoughtfully. "As for the method of killing, it should be the same as before—using some medium to lure nearby evil spirits and committing murder through them. Mirrors, combs... what will be next?"

Xia Yu gritted her teeth. "...Fine, then I will wait for him to come, and then I will expose him!"

The two stopped talking, sitting at the table and continuing to wait...

Time ticked by second by second. The empty cafeteria was dim, and there was no sound from outside.

Xia Yu’s anxiety grew. She couldn't help but gnaw on her fingernails, pacing back and forth by the window. The feeling of knowing something would happen but not knowing when was unbearable.

Shi Xianyu remained calm, though she worried that they might not be able to gather enough evidence against him. After all, she and Xia Yu were locked inside; even if someone outside were deliberately causing trouble, they couldn't see the person's face.

Unknowingly, the light seemed to dim further. She frowned and turned to look at the corner of the room, where many tables and chairs were piled up. Perhaps because they were stacked so high, the shadows in the corner were deep, almost pitch-black.

Shi Xianyu: "..."

Did you follow us here on purpose? You’re quite clingy...

Xia Yu, by the window, suddenly stopped, her voice trembling: "Look... look... down there..."

Shi Xianyu was slightly stunned and got up to go over. "What is it? What do you see?"

"Look... look..." Xia Yu couldn't speak. Her face was ashen, her teeth chattering as if she had seen something truly horrific.

By then, Shi Xianyu had reached the window and looked down. She froze instantly, her breath hitching.

Not far from the first floor of the cafeteria was a viscous, massive black object. It had many heads, many hands, and many legs... It looked like countless corpses stuck together with black tar, piled and squeezed against each other, slowly crawling toward them.

Shi Xianyu’s hair stood on end; her blood felt as if it had frozen in an instant!

She had never seen such a monster!

"It’s Xiaoling..." Xia Yu covered her mouth in terror, her pupils constricting. "I see her... and Qianqian... they are all there..."

"They have been consumed by the monster, and now it wants to eat us too." Shi Xianyu quickly pulled out several talismans, stuck them on the window, and grabbed the frozen Xia Yu, running toward the corner. "Follow me!"

"Where, where are we going?!" Xia Yu was in a panic. "The door is locked!"

Shi Xianyu didn't speak. She dragged her to the corner, crouched down, and pulled a chair in front of them to block their view.

Xia Yu didn't think a chair would offer any real protection, but before she could speak, Shi Xianyu covered her mouth and whispered in her ear, "Hush."

"Don't speak," Shi Xianyu’s voice was barely a breath. "No matter what happens, do not make a sound."

Xia Yu nodded, her heart pounding, holding her breath.

The window creaked; the massive monster was trying to climb in.

The two women in the corner curled inward, not daring to move, their eyes fixed on the rattling glass window.

The window was a sliding type, unlocked. A withered, long, thin hand was the first thing to appear in their field of vision—

As the window was pushed open, the wind from outside rushed in, carrying an indescribable, rotten, fishy stench—cold, damp, and putrid, like dead rats soaked in a sewer for who knows how long.

Xia Yu could no longer tremble; her nerves were stretched to the breaking point. When she saw the monster crawling outside the window with her own eyes, the string snapped! She fainted on the spot.

Shi Xianyu held Xia Yu steady, remaining in the shadows, continuing to observe the monster in silence.