Chapter 40: The Secret Specialty Instant Noodles of the Luxianbei Family
In the moment Jiang Li’s consciousness returned to clarity, those pale, countless, nearly formless tentacles suddenly trembled violently, as if struck by lightning, writhing and dancing backward, creating a series of invisible ripples imbued with eerie power, which instantly hurled her away.
“Bang—!”
The clothing on Jiang Li’s chest instantly exploded into dust, and her back crashed hard against a streetlamp by the roadside, twisting and distorting the lamp post, causing the light to flicker a few times before going out.
At the moment the light extinguished, those pale tentacles, reminiscent of a nightmare in the deep night, retreated into the black doorway of the underground parking lot, as if dissolving into the darkness, disappearing along with the horrifying spirit energy fluctuations that accompanied them.
The urban legend vanished, as if it had never appeared at all.
Jiang Li’s body fell weakly to the ground, splattering mud that soaked her clothing. The pain in her abdomen made her uncontrollably break into a violent cough, a faint taste of iron spreading in her mouth.
She covered her chest with one hand, gazing deeply in the direction where the pale tentacles had disappeared.
Had she already fallen into their trap before entering the underground parking lot?
When did it happen?
Was it when she made contact with that woman, or at the moment she heard the sound of the mouth harp?
Jiang Li complained to herself, feeling a mix of embarrassment and anger; she had nearly been effortlessly dealt with by the urban legend.
Although such occurrences often happen when the Siye Society handles urban legend cases.
In the past, there had even been A-level operatives who, unable to deploy spirit patterns in time, fell into traps of B-level urban legends, resulting in tragic events of being mutilated or possessed.
However, as an experienced operative of the Siye Society, she should have done her best to avoid such situations.
Not having sensed any spirit energy fluctuations in Happy Neighborhood, I actually let my guard down—how careless of me, Jiang Li thought.
In fact, when investigating urban legend hideouts like Happy Neighborhood, which were surrounded by residential areas and inconvenient for casually using spirit patterns, it was common for two or more Siye Society members to act together to avoid situations like the one she just experienced.
This was also one of the reasons Jiang Li decided to invite Luxianbei to complete the bounty together.
After pondering for a moment, she retracted her thoughts and noticed that Luxianbei was still standing not far behind her, playing the suona. Jiang Li frowned, stood up, and walked toward Luxianbei, covering her tattered chest with both hands.
“The urban legend has retreated.”
Luxianbei ignored Jiang Li, completely unconcerned by her dark expression as she continued playing for another three to five minutes.
Only when Jiang Li opened her mouth to ask, “How long do you plan to play?” did Luxianbei finally put down her suona.
“That’s enough! The urban legend shouldn’t be coming back anytime soon,” Luxianbei said. “Alright, let’s head back.”
After saying that, she turned around and swaggered in the direction of their rented apartment.
Jiang Li, “…”
In fact, sometimes, having a partner who was such a timid and cautious person was not so bad, right?
It’s just that I suspect that when faced with a life-and-d*ath crisis, she would most likely be the first one to flee.
Jiang Li contemplated while glancing at her torn clothing and then at Luxianbei’s sports coat, quietly saying, “It’s a bit cold.”
It wasn’t really cold, just that in this state, walking around the neighborhood, if someone were to see her, it would be too embarrassing.
However, she couldn’t ask Luxianbei to take off her coat for her; she’d only imply it.
Upon hearing this, Luxianbei turned around, expressionless, and scrutinized Jiang Li for a moment, softly saying, “I really can’t do anything about you.”
As she spoke, she unzipped her jacket and stepped forward.
Just as Jiang Li thought Luxianbei understood the implication and was about to lend her coat, she unexpectedly pulled Jiang Li into her embrace.
The unforeseen action caught Jiang Li slightly off guard.
As she was momentarily stunned, Luxianbei zipped up the jacket, which obligingly wriggled a bit, expanding just enough to wrap both of them snugly together.
The warmth of the coat and the soft, elastic sensation from behind made a hint of redness appear on Jiang Li’s tanned face, though she quickly regained her composure.
Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced back at Luxianbei and coldly said, “Are you taking advantage of the situation?”
“Didn’t you say it was cold?” Luxianbei retorted nonchalantly.
“I suddenly don’t feel cold anymore.”
“Come on, you’re just worried that your clothes are too tattered and you’ll be embarrassed if someone sees, right?” Luxianbei interrupted.
“Besides, we’re both girls; there’s nothing to be shy about. We’ll be back home soon anyway.”
Jiang Li, “…”
This is truly terrible!
This was probably something she learned from that scumbag Bai Kai, right?
Luxianbei, “…”
Yes, that’s right.
Not just Bai Kai, even Luxianbei’s father had taught her this since she was little.
This was likely because they were worried that this child would have trouble finding a wife in the future, right?
—————
On the rainy night, the public area of Happy Neighborhood was quite deserted. Jiang Li returned smoothly to the door of their rented apartment without encountering anyone.
Before she opened the door, she heard a series of enticing gasps from behind it, causing her already gloomy mood to darken further. She coldly said, “Aren’t you going to explain?”
“Uh…” Luxianbei awkwardly scratched her head and said quietly, “Isn’t it because I couldn’t provoke them when borrowing something before? So I thought I’d try a different approach.”
“You don’t understand; the neighbors upstairs and next door are both single. If they mistakenly think two beautiful girls are doing something scandalous at home, with such uncontrolled noises, how can a normal person endure it?”
“It’s me; I definitely can’t endure it. I’d have disassembled the door for you!”
“And the result?” Jiang Li said blandly.
“The result…” Luxianbei paused, “is that I found out they weren’t angry at all. On the contrary, they seemed to be quite happy listening, as if they didn’t plan to disturb us.”
“Maybe they have some voyeuristic tendencies?”
“Ugh!”
Jiang Li spat with a face full of disdain, struggling to break free from Luxianbei’s embrace. Then, she snatched the key from her hand, opened the door, and stepped inside without looking back.
Luxianbei followed her in, just about to say something, when the bedroom door slammed shut with a “bang!” followed by a “click” sound as it locked from inside.
“Hey! Didn’t you skip dinner? I’m planning to cook. After eating, we can shower and then sleep?”
“No need!” came Jiang Li’s cold retort from behind the door.
————
This was a modest-sized bedroom with slightly drawn curtains, dim lighting, and a double bed placed in the middle, topped with crisp, new bedding. A row of wardrobes stood in the corner, half-opened, empty inside.
After responding to Luxianbei, Jiang Li collapsed onto the bed. The brief contact with that urban legend had caused her insides to tremble, leaving her with some minor injuries. She had been holding it in all the way, and only now did she have the chance to heal her wounds.
In the darkness, she bit her lip tightly, releasing a portion of her spirit energy to guide her consciousness as she slowly began repairing her injuries.
However, while spirit energy could accelerate flesh growth and repair injuries to a certain extent, it did nothing to alleviate the pain.
A faint blue glow flickered beneath Jiang Li’s skin as her slightly thin body uncontrollably shivered, cold beads of sweat emerging on her surface, soon covering her in a sheen.
As the faint blue glow beneath her skin subsided, Jiang Li completed her healing, lying exhausted on the bed, staring at the ceiling, reflecting on her recent experiences, lost in thought.
That urban legend had appeared and then immediately retreated, clearly without the intention to k*ll her, so what was its purpose in luring her?
Luxianbei had said her suona was for self-defense.
She had even spent three days specially learning to play the suona, and it had indeed been useful at a critical moment. She had foreseen that such a situation might arise, hence her preparation.
But from where did she know such information?
It shouldn’t have been derived from the bounty description; she had no access to internal Siye Society materials, which contained no related content…
Could it be that it was from some urban legend?
Moreover, her coat even had spirit energy fluctuations, albeit not strong, but of high purity.
She hadn’t expected that there were other urban legends existing around her all along.
……
After lying on the bed and pondering for a while, Jiang Li gradually regained her strength and got up to turn on the light. She then wrapped a blanket around herself and opened the door.
Her mind was filled with questions, and she needed to seek answers from Luxianbei.
————
When Jiang Li walked out of the bedroom, Luxianbei was still busy in the half-open kitchen. With steam rising and an enticing aroma wafting through the air, Jiang Li couldn’t help but wonder what Luxianbei was cooking.
What is this smell… it seems somewhat familiar?
Jiang Li furrowed her brow slightly, tiptoed, and stretched her neck to peek into the kitchen to see what Luxianbei was making, only to accidentally collide with Luxianbei, who had turned around at that moment.
“Hey? You’re out? I thought you’d be in there for a while longer!” Luxianbei exclaimed, “How does our family’s secret specialty instant noodles taste? Isn’t it fragrant?”
Instant noodles? It felt as if something in her memory was stirred, causing Jiang Li’s emotions to become chaotic, and the corner of her brow trembled uncontrollably, yet she still responded calmly, “Mm, not bad.”
Perhaps I’m overthinking it; such a simple food as instant noodles can be found anywhere.
Besides, that person doesn’t even have the surname Lu, Jiang Li thought.
“It’s more than just not bad; it’s simply perfect, okay? But it’s unfortunate that I thought you wouldn’t come out, so I only made one bowl. If not…”
“You can just watch me eat,” Luxianbei said earnestly.
Jiang Li, “???”
Although I know you’re not human, could you at least speak normally when interacting with humans?
“Just kidding,” Luxianbei added, completing the final step of making the Lu family’s instant noodles—sprinkling on some fragrant scallions and drenching it with broth.
“Here, I noticed you were soaked all over earlier, so I specially added some minced ginger in to warm you up.”
Luxianbei said, placing the bowl of noodles on the small bar counter in front of the kitchen and pushing it in Jiang Li’s direction.
Jiang Li glanced at Luxianbei before turning her attention to the bowl of instant noodles that looked extremely familiar and affectionate, momentarily lost in thought, and took a while to reach for the chopsticks.
“What are you dawdling for? Hurry up and eat! There’s lard in there; it won’t taste good if it’s cold!”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Li came back to her senses, her eyes filled with confusion, almost questioning as she looked at Luxianbei, hesitating to speak.
Luxianbei was puzzled by Jiang Li’s expression, scratching her head and saying, “Why are you looking at me like that? Are you worried I poisoned it?”
“No,” Jiang Li shook her head, gently saying as she took a few steps forward, picked up the bowl of noodles, and sipped a small mouthful of broth.
The rich broth, infused with the fragrance of eggs, scallions, and lard, spread across her palate, immediately igniting a spark of excitement in her eyes.
This was the flavor she had had Ahua attempt to recreate for so long but to no avail.
After just a gentle sip of the broth, Jiang Li immediately disregarded her image and dove into eating, within two to three minutes, having finished the entire bowl, emptying the broth completely.
Although Jiang Li still appeared to be a bad girl at that moment, Luxianbei couldn’t help but feel incredulous when she recalled the cold silver-haired girl.
Who would’ve thought she had this side to her?
Is what my old man said true? Our Lu family’s ancestral recipe really does make it taste so good, it’s like a spring tonic?
Once we figure out what caused my old man’s d*ath, I should really go back to Mudan Street and open a small tavern. Luxianbei thought.
While she was lost in her thoughts, Jiang Li held the bowl of noodles in both hands, looking at her with eyes that had lost their previous icy aura, now resembling that of a pitiful young girl, gazing at her expectantly.
“Wow! Don’t look at me like that; it’s a bit scary! I wrapped you in my coat because I didn’t want you to lose your clothes, and the audio of the moans was genuine…”
“Is there more?”
“…”
“Wait a moment.” Luxianbei replied expressionlessly, turning around to busy herself again.
As she watched Luxianbei’s busy figure, Jiang Li’s memories uncontrollably floated to the distant past.
In truth, the secret specialty instant noodles of Luxianbei’s family weren’t extraordinarily delicious compared to genuine gourmet delicacies.
However, sometimes, a person cannot forget a certain “deliciousness,” not because of the taste itself but due to the memories intertwined with that flavor, long engraved in their minds.
And Jiang Li’s unforgettable memories were related to the uncle who made these instant noodles.
————
Amber Hall was a famous haunted house in Huacheng, once a favorite of various spirit exploration livestreams and short videos, before the current surge in the number and danger of urban legends.
The legend states that Amber Hall once belonged to a wealthy businessman, who, after failing in business, went mad and killed his wife and daughter before committing s*icide, which turned it into a haunted house.
But in reality, Jiang Li knew very well that no one had ever died in Amber Hall because her father was that businessman.
The reason it became a haunted house was that her father had been involved in a gamble that an ordinary person could never win.
Jiang Li’s childhood was very happy; her father was successful, her mother gentle and virtuous, and their family was deeply loving—a perfect template for a happy family that only existed in stories.
However, everything shattered when she turned thirteen. All the beauty she once had was destroyed, sharp fragments piercing deep into her memory, eternally unremovable.
From then on, day by day, year after year, it tormented her.
At that time, her father, who had originally been in the building materials business, made a hefty fortune after shifting to the real estate industry due to the booming housing prices.
Once people have money, their desires expand along with it; things they previously didn’t dare to imagine suddenly seemed tempting, and Jiang Li’s father was no exception.
After purchasing a series of extremely extravagant items, including mansions, luxury cars, and yachts, he soon began to feel empty inside and quickly fell into the vice of gambling.
From large stakes in local card games to illegal underground casinos, and then to gambling in Macau, Monaco, and Las Vegas, the stakes escalated dramatically in just about a year.
Although those gambling amounts were enormous, when compared to Jiang Li’s father’s annual income, they were merely a drop in the bucket. Even if he lost more than he won, it wouldn’t shake his foundation.
However, her father soon became dissatisfied with that level of gambling. He sought even more thrilling bets, and his desires were met.
Jiang Li still wasn’t quite clear how her father got involved in that gambling scheme organized by urban legends, but she knew that during that six-month period, her father lost countless things.
First his businesses, then his luck, followed by his lifespan, and eventually, even the freedom of his wife and daughter.
She didn’t know how the Solar Eclipse Society acquired her “life” from that urban legend’s gambling scheme.
She only remembered that she fell seriously ill due to her parents’ mysterious disappearance and being threatened by a group of sinister debt collectors.
On the day the people from the Solar Eclipse Society came to Amber Hall, it was pouring heavy rain outside, as if the sky had been punctured.
All the household staff, except for Ahua, who was adopted as an orphan, had long been dismissed, and Ahua had recently been chased away by Jiang Li.
With no one to care for her, she lay half-alive on her bed, running a high fever and drifting in and out of delirious dreams.
She dreamt of a group of indistinct shadows invading her home. Some shadows appeared to be tall humans; others resembled various wild beasts, and many more took on forms so bizarre they were difficult to describe.
Once those shadows entered Amber Hall, they searched through drawers, devoured food, occupied rooms, and many of them even stood at the head of Jiang Li’s bed, either glaring at her maliciously or pointing and whispering in strange tones.
Later, when she regained a little bit of consciousness, she heard the sound of someone climbing over the wall, someone coming in from the backyard, masked, wearing a scarlet robe with a hood, which was embroidered with a black sun totem, looking just like a cultist from a movie.
She was terrified; she felt that if those people discovered her, she might be killed. So she hid in the wardrobe, observing the situation from the gaps between the doors, silently praying to those deities she only knew the names of.
However, those robed cultists seemed to know exactly where she was, walking straight toward her room, their footsteps gradually approaching, ultimately stopping right in front of the wardrobe…
