Chapter 7

If that was an urn of ashes, then whose ashes were they?

The dead female teacher's?

Then was the reason School Doctor Cheng could remain the only living person in this school because he had this urn in his possession?

Ning Buwen was just about to go out and demand an explanation from School Doctor Cheng when his body suddenly froze.

It was as if he were standing naked amid ice and snow, the cold piercing his bones while his mind remained perfectly clear.

His body felt terribly heavy, too.

He had done nothing, yet his body weighed a ton, as though he were carrying someone on his back.

Possession!

Those three words flashed through Ning Buwen's mind in an instant.

Suddenly, his limbs were beyond his control, and he walked straight out.

Stop. Stop!

Ning Buwen screamed frantically at himself, but no matter how fiercely he willed it, his body kept walking out against his wishes.

He watched himself extend both hands and give School Doctor Cheng, whose back was to him, a gentle push.

Stop—

Stop!

Ning Buwen realized that whoever controlled him seemed to be planning something. He absolutely did not want to become a puppet who killed people.

But could human will stand against these unknown forces?

A flood of thoughts passed through Ning Buwen's mind, but no matter how much he thought at this moment, it seemed impossible to salvage the situation.

He watched himself draw closer and closer to School Doctor Cheng, yet School Doctor Cheng seemed not to have noticed him at all. He was still muttering to the urn.

"Run..."

Ning Buwen's lips moved soundlessly.

No. There was no sound.

Try harder.

Harder!

This is my body. It should obey me.

As he fought desperately, Ning Buwen could practically feel someone breathing beside his ear.

Cold.

So cold.

Ning Buwen concentrated nearly all his strength in his throat.

"Run!"

Finally.

The sound finally came out of his throat.

School Doctor Cheng finally heard his voice. He turned around and froze when he saw Ning Buwen.

But before he could react, Ning Buwen, under someone else's control, snatched the urn from School Doctor Cheng's hands and shoved him viciously.

Surprise appeared on School Doctor Cheng's face.

It was as though something had lifted him, sending him flying through the air.

With that light push, he was sent straight toward the edge of the rooftop.

There was nothing there to stop him. A fall meant certain death.

The instant he gripped the urn, Ning Buwen suddenly felt his body grow much lighter. Without thinking, he lunged toward where School Doctor Cheng had flown.

"Grab my hand." Ning Buwen's arm was nearly scraped raw by that slide as he stretched desperately toward School Doctor Cheng.

School Doctor Cheng's fingertips barely brushed Ning Buwen's. It was only an instant of contact before he fell.

"No—"

Ning Buwen shouted in panic. "School Doctor Cheng!"

The only answer was the sound of a heavy body hitting the ground.

Ning Buwen stood stunned for a long while before looking down. Other than bloodstains, there was nothing on the ground.

Just like the female student who had died by suicide earlier, nothing remained but that tiny trace.

At that moment, Ning Buwen felt colder than he had when someone else controlled him.

A man who had been perfectly fine a moment ago had died just like that—and Ning Buwen had pushed him?

He couldn't come to terms with it.

He never would.

"What? Do you want to go down and keep him company too?" A woman's voice drifted out eerily. "Give me that urn, and I can spare your life."

It was her.

She had possessed me just now!

She had used my hand to kill School Doctor Cheng!

Ning Buwen picked up the urn and slowly rose to his feet.

He stared at the woman before him as though she were his mortal enemy.

At first, he had thought this was only a game, a world somewhere between illusion and reality.

So even when Zhao Shudong killed a student right in front of him before, he had not felt much about it.

Call him hypocritical or say he had double standards, but Ning Buwen was truly, utterly furious now.

"He was the last living person in this school." Ning Buwen's eyes nearly blazed as he looked at Zhao Shudong. "Didn't you like him? Why did you use my hand to kill him?"

"Give me the box in your hand." Zhao Shudong had no interest at all in discussing this with Ning Buwen. She only wanted the box in his hands.

School Doctor Cheng had more or less died for it.

Holding the box, Ning Buwen slowly backed away.

It was daytime now.

Zhao Shudong should be somewhat restricted.

Just now, she had needed to possess him to seize the chance to push School Doctor Cheng off the roof. Now there was no one else here for her to possess. The box was in his hands, but Zhao Shudong had not tried to take it by force, which proved there were not many methods available to her.

Calm down!

There had to be a way out.

Rationally, Ning Buwen knew what he ought to do now, but his emotions could not settle down all at once.

He had personally pushed School Doctor Cheng down...

School Doctor Cheng's stunned face as he flew away kept appearing before Ning Buwen's eyes. If he could, he might have rushed over and fought Zhao Shudong to the death right then.

"Give it to me." Zhao Shudong said it again.

There was only one door on the rooftop, and she was blocking it.

If Ning Buwen wanted to escape, he had to pass through the door she guarded.

It was not dark yet, so Zhao Shudong did not make another move. But once night fell, the slight advantage Ning Buwen held would vanish in an instant.

I can't keep dragging this out with her. I have to think of something.

Ning Buwen took two small steps back. One plan after another rose in his mind, only for him to dismiss each one.

Too dangerous.

No.

Trying to keep the box and stay alive was simply too difficult.

Maybe if he threw the box from here, Zhao Shudong would follow it down. But then School Doctor Cheng would have died for nothing.

Ning Buwen did not want to throw away the box, even if it might be his only hope of surviving.

He had never killed anyone with his own hands.

Even the crushing guilt over Chen Ying's death because of him did not amount to a tenth of what he felt over pushing School Doctor Cheng down just now.

School Doctor Cheng was the first person Ning Buwen had begun to feel fond of.

But that budding fondness had just been forcibly crushed.

No. There had to be something he had not noticed.

Calm down. Think carefully.

Zhao Shudong was now half human and half ghost. During the day, she was only much stronger than an ordinary person, completely different from what she was at night. Daytime Zhao Shudong still retained some reason and could be spoken to, but at night she was basically a ghost.

School Doctor Cheng had originally been the only living person in the school, and the infirmary counted as a safe zone. If Zhao Shudong wanted to kill him, why had she not simply done it earlier? Originally, she had wanted School Doctor Cheng's diary, but now she wanted this urn?

No. It should be that Zhao Shudong had wanted this urn from the beginning, but she could not find it. That was why she wanted School Doctor Cheng's diary—to find some clue in it.

She might not even have been able to kill School Doctor Cheng directly, which was why she had slowly approached him. Ning Buwen's presence gave her the chance to kill School Doctor Cheng, so she had never gone all out to kill Ning Buwen!

This was, after all, only a novice instance. Zhao Shudong could not possibly kill people as she pleased; she had rules she had to follow too.

But the situation had already started to worsen.

No. There had to be some other restriction.

There were plenty of students in this school she could possess. To kill School Doctor Cheng, she should not have needed to single him out.

Then why?

What was the difference between me and the original me?

Right. The diary!

I have the diary on me.

Ning Buwen took the diary he had hidden beforehand from his clothes. Zhao Shudong's gaze immediately snapped toward it.

"Let me leave." Ning Buwen tucked the urn under his arm, freed one hand to pull a lighter from his pocket, and lit it. "If you don't stay away from me, I'll burn this diary."

Zhao Shudong's expression changed instantly. "You dare?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Ning Buwen met her gaze without the slightest fear. "If you have the ability, try possessing me again."

Zhao Shudong said nothing. She only stared at Ning Buwen.

The air suddenly turned oppressive, making even breathing difficult.

Silence spread.

Ning Buwen did not yield an inch. Bearing that inhuman pressure, he moved the lighter another step closer to the diary.

Zhao Shudong's pupils constricted, but she slowly moved away from the door.

Ning Buwen immediately ran for it.

"You can't escape." Zhao Shudong's voice sounded eerily by Ning Buwen's ear.

"Then let's see." Ning Buwen answered sharply. "We'll see whether you die or I do!"

Ning Buwen successfully returned to the infirmary with the diary and urn.

Only after reaching it did he dare relax slightly.

"Woof." Xiaoxin wagged his tail and trotted over, rubbing his furry head against Ning Buwen's calf.

Soft fur.

For the first time, Ning Buwen felt there was nothing bad about having drawn a dog. At least at a time like this, it could warm his heart a little.

"School Doctor Cheng is dead. I got him killed." Ning Buwen was deeply dejected. "If I hadn't taken over his infirmary, if I hadn't shamelessly insisted on staying in his dormitory, he probably wouldn't have gone looking for this urn. If he hadn't taken it out, Zhao Shudong wouldn't have gone after him."

"Woof."

"Forget it. You probably don't understand anyway." Ning Buwen muttered to himself. His dejection gradually gave way to a resolute expression. "I won't admit defeat like this. Absolutely not!"

The question was how he would survive the next few nights.

Zhao Shudong still had some restrictions during the day, but her power would greatly increase at night, and he had little that could fight her.

Or perhaps the urn and diary held some secret? There were still too many mysteries in this school, but the present situation did not allow Ning Buwen to investigate them one by one.

"Compared with the urn, she seemed more concerned with the diary. I've read its contents, and there was nothing particularly strange, so what she values must be the diary itself, or something hidden inside it." As Ning Buwen analyzed the situation, he ran his fingers over the diary. His gaze gradually settled on its cover.

No matter what, this diary's cover was a little thick. If something was hidden inside, it should be there. As for what might happen after he damaged the diary, Ning Buwen could not worry about that now.

Sometimes, risks had to be taken.

He found a pair of scissors in the infirmary and cut into the diary's thick cover.

There really was a compartment inside the cover.

Ning Buwen carefully pulled out what was inside it.

It was a yellowed photograph.