Tonight, Qin Luo arrived outside the university’s campus wall—the real, physical wall, not the online one.
According to the message Yang Cong sent, both murders had occurred at night. That meant the culprit—the spirit creature—would likely appear tonight.
He deftly scaled the wall and dropped inside, looking like an old hand at it.
Relying on his memory, he quickly made his way to the small bamboo grove. The area was already cordoned off with police tape, but Qin Luo ignored it completely.
Entering the grove, it had seemed quiet and secluded during the day. But at night, the tall trees blocked the moonlight, and the pitch-black darkness felt like it could swallow everything.
He couldn’t see his own hand in front of his face. Underfoot was a thick layer of fallen leaves, soft and spongy to step on. Turning on his phone’s flashlight, the deeper he went, the more cigarette butts he found littering the ground. No wonder this place was called the “Lovers’ Holy Land”—it was a veritable wildfire zone.
Suddenly, he heard a strange sound behind him.
It’s here!
Qin Luo immediately switched off the flashlight. Perhaps because of his awakened ability, not only had his hearing become sharper, but his night vision had also improved significantly.
Rustle—
The sound of footsteps on dry leaves echoed, and a figure appeared before him.
It was a girl, wearing a loose T-shirt, with a slender figure, an oval face, fair skin, and delicate features.
It’s her!
Qin Luo recognized her at a glance—his classmate, Liu Wei. As one of the prettiest girls in the class, he naturally remembered her.
A strong beam of light shone in his face, making Qin Luo squint.
“It’s me, Qin Luo.”
Since it was a classmate, he simply revealed himself.
“Liu Wei, what are you doing here?”
Qin Luo frowned slightly. Normally, Liu Wei was very polite when addressing people, especially boys, always adding “classmate” after their names.
“A murder happened here, of course I’m curious. What about you?”
“Same reason,” Qin Luo replied.
This was a bit surprising. He had thought Liu Wei was the obedient, good-girl type. He didn’t expect her to be so bold, daring to come to a place like this alone.
Now he had company, and it was the prettiest girl in the class. In this environment—the small bamboo grove, late at night, a boy and a girl alone… it was hard not to let one’s thoughts wander.
Right then, a dark shadow flashed past the corner of Qin Luo’s eye.
But he had no time to dwell on it. Instead, he felt a pang of anxiety—if he ended up fighting the spirit creature later, what should he do about Liu Wei?
Protect her? Or save himself first?
“Ah!”
Qin Luo was suddenly startled.
“Eek!”
A cry of surprise came from beside him, followed immediately by a soft body pressing against him, a pair of arms tightly wrapping around his waist.
Meow—
It was just a cat.
Qin Luo let out a sigh of relief and patted her hand. “It’s okay, just a stray cat.”
He thought she would let go, but instead, she held on even tighter.
“I’m so scared, Qin Luo. Will you protect me?” Liu Wei’s voice trembled slightly, filled with fragility and helplessness.
‘If you’re scared, why did you come here?’
Still, he nodded. “Of course. We are classmates, after all.”
But…
Qin Luo suddenly felt something was off.
Liu Wei’s tone seemed to have taken on a hint of… ambiguity.
“Actually, I’ve always felt that you’re different from the others.”
Her breath was close to his ear, her body pressing even closer.
Qin Luo stiffened completely.
‘What is this situation?!’
He was here to catch a spirit creature, not to fall in love!
“Want to… take it a step further?”
At that moment, a chill shot straight up Qin Luo’s spine to the top of his head.
This woman was definitely not Liu Wei!
The usual Liu Wei was an excellent student with a proper, upright personality. Even when faced with advances, she would maintain her distance and never get physically close with any boy.
But now—
Not only was she actively clinging to him, she was hinting at taking their relationship further.
That left only one possibility—
She was the spirit creature!
And one that had already claimed two victims!
To make things worse, she was currently plastered against him. In this position, he was practically defenseless.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?” Liu Wei pressed her face against his, her breath warm, her arms tightening even more.
‘Steady! Don’t panic!’
“I… find this a little hard to believe,” Qin Luo forced himself to sound calm.
“Giggle, then should I give you a kiss to confirm this is real?”
Liu Wei chuckled lightly, released her grip, and pulled him to face her.
She even slightly lowered her collar and straightened her posture.
But Qin Luo’s heart remained utterly unmoved.
The moment she leaned in—
Qin Luo’s eyes sharpened, and he shouted in a low voice:
“Evil creature, take this!”
Hum—
A faint moonlight glow emanated from his palm as he struck out.
However—
The Liu Wei who had been gazing at him lovingly a second ago, her eyes turned icy cold in the next.
“Hmph, you don’t know what’s good for you!”
She raised her hand and swept it outward.
Boom!
Qin Luo was sent flying backward, crashing through several bamboo branches.
Cough, cough…
His internal energy and blood churned violently, as if all his organs had been displaced.
“Just what are you?”
“Me?”
Liu Wei giggled:
“Me… I’m not human at all.”
The next moment, her appearance instantly transformed.
Her original black long hair turned orange. Her ears became long and pointed. Her oval face shifted into a delicate, heart-shaped one, her features growing even more exquisite.
In the darkness, her eyes glowed with a jade-green light.
Like an elf.
Qin Luo was stunned—
‘She looks just like an elf race from Western fantasy!’
“Although your body is still quite young, your vital essence is exceptionally pure.”
“Absorbing you will be enough for me to recover fifty years of cultivation.”
She stepped closer, one step at a time.
Naturally, Qin Luo wasn’t about to just wait for death.
Recalling the feeling from when he dealt with the female ghost, he channeled all his power with full force. Moonlight glow once again appeared on his palm.
“An ability user?”
“Liu Wei” was taken aback for a moment, then the killing intent in her eyes intensified.
After just a few exchanges, Qin Luo was forced back again.
It wasn’t that he was too weak, but that his opponent was too strong!
Cough, ack!
He was grabbed by the neck by the spirit creature and slammed hard onto the ground.
‘You’ve got to be kidding me! Didn’t they say the mission matches opponents of similar strength?!’
‘This is a complete one-sided slaughter!’
“Ability users… all deserve to die.”
“Liu Wei’s” voice was icy and bone-chilling.
“I originally wanted to let you die in ecstasy… but since you’re an ability user, don’t blame me for being merciless.”