Chapter 105: Luxianbei’s Spirit Patterns
Luxianbei originally thought that the deformed villagers he saw in the bamboo slips were the true victims. He never expected that the strange shadow beneath the sinkhole was the real victim.
He really didn’t know what was so good about becoming a deity. At that moment, Luxianbei sincerely wished that there had never been any saviors, nor any celestial beings or emperors~!
“So how exactly should this be dealt with?”
“I’ve told you so much, and you still don’t understand?” Hearing Luxianbei’s question, Jumeng snapped back, “There’s no way to deal with this thing, so you might as well think of a way to get rid of it quickly! Stop picking up random stuff like a little kid!”
Feeling once again that the holy sovereignty of his little nest was being infringed upon, Luxianbei emphasized, “This is my home, not yours…”
“What relationship do we have right now! Your home is my home, right? Hehe!”
Luxianbei, “…”
He had thought that after being baptized by Water Brother, he had developed a strong immunity to such shameless characters until he met Jumeng.
What else could he do? He couldn’t fight back, they had signed a contract, and he couldn’t drive her away!
After a moment of silence, Luxianbei got up, put the bamboo slips away in an ancient wooden box, silently went upstairs, and found a corner in the storage room to cover it with some clutter.
Leaving the storage room, he went to his bedroom and found his phone, which was already charged. He pressed the power button.
Last night, he had been researching things from the Urban Legends Chat Group. Although he hadn’t participated in discussions, his phone had unintentionally drained its battery and shut down during the mental journey.
It was only now that it turned back on after being charged all night.
As soon as he turned his phone on, Luxianbei noticed three new messages, all of which made him quite distressed.
[Gu Qiqi: Why did you give me three yuan two? You must explain, I thought about it all night and didn’t sleep well!]
Luxianbei, “…”
How the hell would I know why I gave you three yuan two? Because I thought you looked pitiful?
If it weren’t for the urgent need to save someone and having pulled out twenty yuan, leaving behind twenty-three yuan two, wouldn’t you have gone crazy?
Luxianbei thought, shaking his head, and clicked on the next unknown number.
[180XXXXXXXX: Hello, this is the Orthopedics Department of Huacheng Central Hospital. I am Ma Zhen’s attending physician. If convenient, please come to accompany him a bit more, after all…
After all, every time he goes to the bathroom, he always needs to drag along other patients in the same ward with him, which is really inconvenient. We’ve changed his ward three times already and have received complaints from three people.]
Luxianbei, “…”
It seems that although Professor Ma didn’t say it outright, his experiences last night must have scared him.
What can I say? I hope the other patients are fine.
Thinking this, Luxianbei swiped the screen and opened the last unread message. Before he could even see the contents, he frowned upon seeing the sender.
The message was from his counselor. Since he reported to the department, they hadn’t been in contact at all after exchanging contact information.
Counselors are a strange type of creature. If you don’t contact them, they likely won’t contact you. Once they take the initiative to reach out, it usually means something unpleasant is about to happen, like a moth to a flame.
[Counselor: Luxianbei, with the school anniversary approaching, the school has learned of your heroic deeds in saving people despite being seriously injured and feels your spirit is highly commendable.
Therefore, we hope you can give a speech at the school anniversary cultural lecture event. Please come to my office when you have time so we can discuss the details.]
Luxianbei, “…”
What, there’s even a follow-up to this? Just great!
It’s all Jiang Li’s fault; couldn’t she think of a better excuse?
Heroically saving people while being stabbed eighteen times? Why not say three thugs attacked me and I took them down instead?
Feeling a wave of frustration, Luxianbei put away his phone, changed into a clean set of clothes, took some change and a spare key, and headed downstairs.
It was already around noon. He planned to find a random place to grab some lunch before going to meet Jiang Li.
As for what Jumeng would have for lunch…
What do I care? Luxianbei thought.
When he went downstairs, Jumeng was engrossed in watching some major ethical romance idol drama.
Honestly, he had watched it for a moment. Based on the limited fragmented information, he couldn’t figure out whether the male lead, who was abandoned by the female lead, loved her or the female lead’s widow stepmother.
Is this the so-called idea that if I can’t be your husband, I’ll be your dad?
Seeing Luxianbei about to head out, Jumeng suddenly straightened up, staring at him from a distance with a meaningful raised eyebrow.
“Xiao Beibei, where are you going? Are you going to help your sister gather the core of the urban tales again? You really don’t need to be so dedicated; it’s not very efficient to go out during the day.”
“Come on, let me check your body. Did that knee strike hurt you?”
“You’re thinking too much.” Luxianbei shot her a glance and said calmly, “I’m just going out because the economy has been bad lately and the city’s management team called me to set up a stall to save the market.”
“Ah? You’re setting up a stall? What kind of stall?” Jumeng looked a bit confused.
Luxianbei pointed to his expressionless face and said seriously, “Facial paralysis.”
Jumeng, “…”
After Luxianbei put on his shoes and turned to leave, Jumeng suddenly called out to him.
“Wait a minute, I just remembered something.”
Luxianbei tilted his head, saying coldly, “You can figure out your lunch yourself!”
“Tsk!” Jumeng let out a sound of disdain. “Do I still need you to say such things? Of course I’ll figure it out myself! What I wanted to say was, didn’t you have a ceramic talisman at home before?”
“Had it?”
“That one, its main function is to refresh the mind and repel mosquitoes and bugs!”
With Jumeng’s reminder, Luxianbei suddenly recalled the talisman that Li Xuan had given him, which had somehow been forgotten at home, and immediately asked, “What’s wrong? Is there a problem with that talisman?”
“A small problem. When I came out of the bathroom after taking a shower yesterday, I found someone using it to spy on me.”
“What?” Luxianbei’s expression changed. “When did I let you use my bathroom? You didn’t use my towel, did you?”
For a second or two, Luxianbei seriously contemplated whether using a towel that had been used by an urban legend would make him sick.
Then he realized that he didn’t seem to be human anymore.
“Hey! Your focus is strange! Aren’t you concerned about who was spying on you?”
“That’s also important, but I’m more concerned about whether you used my towel.” Luxianbei’s tone was serious.
“I did, and it still has my youthful fragrance! It’s a peach blossom scent; do you want to smell it?” Jumeng teased, raising her eyebrows at him, her long, thick eyelashes resembling a pair of enticing little hands.
Luxianbei, “…” d*mn! Stinky sister actually used my towel; it looks like I’ll have to buy a new one later.
Thinking of this, Luxianbei, knowing the answer already, asked, “Alright then, here’s the second question: do you know who was spying?”
“I don’t know, but at that time, I was both shy and angry, so I shot out a dazzling light. He’s probably blind by now.” Jumeng boasted.
Luxianbei, “…”
If I were to tell her right now that she attacked a member of the Siye Society, would she still be so smug?
But unexpectedly, that thick-browed, big-eyed guy, Li Xuan, would actually do something like installing a pinhole camera in someone’s home? Why is he so against me?
…
1:53 PM.
Luxianbei arrived at the Huacheng Folk Culture Research Management Bureau more than half an hour ahead of the study time he had arranged with Jiang Li.
Though he was a bit worried that Li Xuan might deepen his suspicions about him after being dazzled by Jumeng, he was even more worried that if the appointed time passed and he didn’t show up to study with Jiang Li, and Li Xuan was stirring up trouble, his situation would become even more dangerous.
As long as I walk into the Siye Society confidently, I won’t be suspected! Luxianbei thought. A true double agent wouldn’t dare to swagger into the Siye Society like this, right? That understanding, at least puts me on the fifth level!
Arriving at the Siye Society and led by the frowning Ahua to Jiang Li’s office, Luxianbei found her playing mahjong again and wasn’t surprised at all.
In Luxianbei’s perception, the daily life of that limping girl seemed to revolve around catching urban legends or playing mahjong as her only form of entertainment.
Moreover, based on his observations during this period, Jiang Li’s love for mahjong extended beyond just 2D mobile mahjong games, including various online mahjong games from local Huacheng networks and even illegal online gambling games in Macao.
The most ridiculous part was that she was winning 90% of the time and even winning money from illegal online mahjong matches.
What’s the point of a game where you can only win? Luxianbei watched Jiang Li, who was completely engrossed in the mahjong game, and couldn’t help but curl his lip. Unless there’s some trickery involved! But what could playing mahjong have to do with urban legends?
While Luxianbei was secretly complaining, Jiang Li’s computer speakers sounded with a victory notification from the game.
She closed the game, looked at Luxianbei, nodded slightly, and said lightly, “You came early? Just in time. Before class, I have some good news and some bad news for you. Which one do you want to hear first?”
Luxianbei, “…” What good news and bad news? Don’t tell me it’s a nested version of the same situation presented differently?
“Then I’ll listen to the good news first?”
“The good news is that the spirit pattern I applied for you has been approved. Soon, you will become a formal member of the Siye Society, of course, if you want to.” Jiang Li said.
Although the urban legend core used to help Luxianbei draw the spirit pattern was brought in by Bai Kai, Bai Kai insisted Jiang Li not tell Luxianbei, and she complied.
Of course, it wasn’t due to fear of Bai Kai’s harassment. She wasn’t afraid of Bai Kai sneaking into the Amber Hall anymore; she had already found a way to cope—sending Ahua to play funeral music outside his house whenever Bai Kai invited women to his place.
“What’s the bad news then?” Luxianbei pressed.
“The bad news is…” Jiang Li paused, “The courier in charge of delivering the raw materials encountered some problems on the way, so there might be a delay before it arrives.”
That didn’t seem like a big issue? Luxianbei rested his chin on his hand, pondering for a few seconds, then looked at Jiang Li and asked, “Can I ask in advance what kind of spirit pattern you’ve prepared for me?”
“What we’ve prepared for you is…”
Just as Jiang Li’s thin lips were about to finish speaking, the office door was suddenly pushed open.
The person who entered was Li Xuan, and as soon as he walked into the office, his gaze locked onto Luxianbei, a meaningful smile tugging at his lips.
