Chapter 19

Five days of rest passed, and everyone took a bus to the Second Trial Competition venue.

They arrived in the afternoon. The destination was a boarding school called Changqing High School—one of the ten schools Jiang Luo and the others had sorted through.

Seeing this School, Jiang Luo recalled the information he'd memorized before.

Changqing High School had originally been a key high school in the city. It sat in a remote location, with old and dilapidated facilities, but its college admission rate was impressive. In 2012, the Education Bureau allocated funds, and after expansion, Changqing High School was split into an Old Campus and a New Campus. First- and second-year students studied at the New Campus; third-year students and fourth-year repeaters studied at the Old Campus, because the Old Campus was more remote and quiet, providing a peaceful study environment for exam-prep students.

But what should have been an ordinary expansion resulted in an accident—a third-year female student went missing during the construction period.

Changqing High School was a boarding School; students could only go home once a month. A student vanishing while enrolled caused a huge stir at the time, and over the following three months, several more female students disappeared in succession. Two construction workers also died in accidents. Changqing High School was completely removed from the list of key high schools.

But a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. Many students and parents still refused to be deterred and secretly rejoiced at Changqing High School's lowered admission cutoff, so the school's enrollment was no smaller than other key high schools.

But this year, something happened again at Changqing High School.

The staff member at the front spoke through a loudspeaker: 'The Second Trial Competition will last three days in total. Within those three days, you must find the female student who went missing in 2012, the cause of the workers' deaths, and what actually happened back then. After the Competition ends, we will select thirty people based on your answers to advance to the next trial. Your assigned dormitory is in the Old Campus. The Old Campus students have already been moved to the New Campus. The Second Trial Competition will also be livestreamed. Before the Competition begins, please sign a Death Exemption Agreement with us—'

'Thirty people?!'

'Holy shit... they're eliminating a hundred people outright?'

'One-in-four odds. Why is this trial so brutal?'

The murmurs exploded, suddenly drowning out the staff member's voice.

Jiang Luo clicked his tongue. 'Death Exemption Agreement? That serious?'

Zhuo Zhongqiu calmly reassured everyone. 'Don't worry. My old man was elected as a judge this year. I called him before the Competition and asked him to look after us. No matter how dangerous this trial gets, we'll definitely be safe.'

Ge Zhu sighed. 'Following Boss Zhuo really gives you a sense of security.'

Zhuo Zhongqiu curved her lips handsomely. 'Small matter.'

Reassured by her words, the already-prepared Baihua University Class 01 students went to sign the Death Exemption Agreement without hesitation, then followed the staff to the dormitory.

The Old Campus dormitory was a four-person room—two bunk beds and four desks pushed together. The roughly ten-square-meter space looked especially cramped. The moment they stepped inside, a damp stench hit them in the face.

The stench seemed like a Trash Heap that had been sitting for a long time, or like the foul smell from The Sewer. Wenren Lian covered his nose and sighed. 'That's obviously a boys' dormitory.'

'Of course it's a boys' dorm,' the staff member ahead said cheerfully. 'It's the Old Campus. The Sewer breaks down all the time. Please bear with us.'

'We can bear with it,' Lu You pointed at Zhuo Zhongqiu in confusion, 'but why is she, a girl, in our boys' dorm?'

The staff member's smile didn't waver. 'Must have been a mix-up when assigning rooms. But it's fine—no difference between boys and girls. Zhuo, you can use the faculty bathroom on The First Floor to shower and use the Toilet.'

A male student shouted from behind: 'So we can't walk around shirtless anymore?'

'Shirtless however you like. You can strip naked if you want,' Zhuo Zhongqiu drawled lazily. 'Brothers, I like pretty, soft girls. You've got no chest and a couple extra pounds of meat—no need to overthink it.'

Roars of laughter.

At each dormitory, the staff member called out names from the list. When they reached the last room on the Sixth Floor, the staff member said: 'Jiang Luo, Zhuo Zhongqiu, Bai Ye Feng, Xu Yan.'

Jiang Luo turned and saw Bai Ye Feng walking toward him with someone, a smile all over his face.

'What a coincidence,' Bai Ye Feng smiled at the black-haired youth. 'We're in the same room.'

That strange, familiar feeling came again.

Jiang Luo narrowed his eyes slightly. 'Yeah. I didn't expect it to be this much of a coincidence either.'

Two from Baihua University and two from Shanhai University in one room—the word 'coincidence' didn't even begin to cover it.

The staff member brought them to the dormitory and left. The four stood at the door for a moment. The person Bai Ye Feng had brought, named Xu Yan, watched Jiang Luo with wariness and hostility. Clearly, in the minds of Bai Ye Feng's followers, Jiang Luo was already their number-one enemy.

Zhuo Zhongqiu raised a hand and rested it on Jiang Luo's shoulder. The two walked into the dormitory together. 'Pick beds first.'

The Sixth Floor room also carried a sewer stench, but after being in it for a while, they stopped noticing.

After everyone finished organizing their things, Jiang Luo and Zhuo Zhongqiu left the dormitory.

Without needing to say it aloud, they had paired off almost two by two, with no intention of talking further with the other side.

In this Competition, anyone from a different School was a competitor. Out of a hundred and thirty people, only a fraction could advance to the next trial. Everyone was on guard against everyone else.

The Baihua University students gathered on the open ground in front of the dormitory. Kuang Zheng and Wenren Lian shared a room; Lu You and Ye Xun shared a room; Ge Zhu and Sailor shared a room. After comparing notes, they realized every dormitory's four occupants were split two-and-two by School.

'Are all the rooms four-person?' Jiang Luo frowned. 'Then the Note saying 4-5 person rooms—wasn't that referring to the Old Campus dorms?'

'Very possible,' Wenren Lian considered. 'That clue is too vague. Nothing matches up yet.'

He finished and looked at Jiang Luo. 'Jiang Luo, did you see anything?'

Jiang Luo turned and looked back at the dormitory building.

The sky was overcast. The old dormitory building was gray and dilapidated; some wall plaster had peeled off around the third and fourth floors, exposing the gray-white walls underneath.

Damp, gloomy—looking at it made one's heart feel oppressed.

'This place makes me very uncomfortable,' Jiang Luo's eyes swept from the Sixth Floor and stopped at the last dormitory window. Someone stood there looking down. Jiang Luo recognized Bai Ye Feng. He continued, his voice unhurried: 'I've felt this way since walking into the Old Campus.'

Zhuo Zhongqiu looked thoughtful. She practiced both body and Spirit Essence cultivation, so she was more sensitive to these things than most. 'Although I don't feel it as strongly as you, something does feel off.'

The two exchanged a knowing glance.

Jiang Luo unzipped his backpack and casually pulled out a stack of Spirit Papers. 'Five each. No more.'

The group was immediately moved to tears, almost rushing over to grab Jiang Luo and kiss him hard. 'Jiang Luo, how are you this amazing, waaah.'

'And you prepared this many talismans for us.'

'You must have spent forever writing these, waaah?'

Jiang Luo said modestly: 'Your safety is what matters most.'

He suddenly smiled. 'After all, if we all work together, we can take first place.'

After the brief gathering ended, the sky darkened completely. The big trees were bent halfway over by the gale; dark clouds gathered, as if rain were about to fall.

Ge Zhu looked up at the sky. 'It's going to rain from tonight until six tomorrow morning. Everyone head back to the dorms for now.'

On the way back to the dormitory, many participants still ignored the incoming rain and went out to search for clues. Most of these were people unsure of advancing to the next trial—anxiety kept them from wasting precious time.

Jiang Luo hadn't climbed a Staircase as high as the Sixth Floor in a long time. Fortunately, he had been exercising continuously with Lu You this past month, so climbing all the way up in one go didn't leave him feeling too tired.

In the dormitory, Bai Ye Feng was still there, but Xu Yan, who had been beside him, was nowhere to be seen.

Bai Ye Feng sat in a chair by the window, reading a book. Seeing Jiang Luo and Zhuo Zhongqiu come in, he smiled. 'You're back?'

Zhuo Zhongqiu nodded at him and asked curiously: 'What are you reading?'

Bai Ye Feng closed the book. The title was clearly Compass Detailed Guide. He smiled. 'I rarely read these basic books. Picking one up occasionally is actually quite interesting.'

Jiang Luo squinted at him and the book, feeling only that the stench in the room was getting stronger—so strong he felt it had stained him too.

'I'm going to take a shower.'

Jiang Luo took out a bottle of body wash and went into the dormitory bathroom.

The Old Campus dormitory bathroom wasn't great either, but thankfully it was cleaned well, with no clutter. Jiang Luo used one bottle of body wash to wash his entire body. While washing his hair, he suddenly smelled iron rust.

Jiang Luo opened his eyes and saw the hot water running down from above had turned the color of blood. The water churned, and the iron rust smell grew heavier.

Jiang Luo: '...shit.'

He shook his hand, pulled a Yellow Talisman from his pants pocket, and stuck it on the water pipe. After a moment, the iron rust smell vanished, and the blood-like water ran clear again.

Jiang Luo washed himself a second time, expressionless, with red liquid dripping from his head and face.

When he turned off the water and started getting dressed, someone knocked on the bathroom door. 'Jiang Luo, are you done? I'd like to shower too.'

It was Bai Ye Feng.

Jiang Luo walked over and opened the door for him. Looking outside, Zhuo Zhongqiu wasn't there.

'She went to The First Floor to shower,' Bai Ye Feng said with a smile. 'She told me to let you know before she left. She'll be back soon.'

Jiang Luo gave him a friendly smile. 'Thanks.'

He walked back and continued getting dressed.

Bai Ye Feng watched him, his smile ambiguous. He gently closed the bathroom door and took off his short-sleeved shirt.

In the Mirror, the pale, slender black-haired youth was looking down, fastening his pants. Behind him, a more solidly built figure walked over slowly.

'Jiang Luo,' Bai Ye Feng looked at the Mirror. 'Did anything happen while you were showering?'

Jiang Luo raised his head and met Bai Ye Feng's eyes in the Mirror. He suddenly curved his lips into a brilliant, clustered smile. The red mole on the back of his hand was fresh as a drop of blood. 'Why do you ask?'

Bai Ye Feng pointed at the Yellow Talisman on the water pipe. 'I don't remember this being here before.'

'Oh, this,' Jiang Luo reached up, peeled off the Yellow Talisman, and tucked it into his pants pocket. 'I have a habit of sticking talismans around me when I shower. Occupational hazard. You don't mind, do you?'

'Not at all,' Bai Ye Feng's smile lingered at the corner of his mouth. 'That's a very safe habit.'

Jiang Luo exchanged a few pleasantries with him. Once dressed, he prepared to head out, but Bai Ye Feng suddenly reached a hand toward Jiang Luo's shoulder. Jiang Luo reacted on instinct, grabbed his arm, and threw him over his shoulder. Then he pressed his knee hard against Bai Ye Feng's neck, pinning both of Bai Ye Feng's hands down. His gaze was sharp and cold, like an unsheathed blade. 'What are you trying to do.'

Pinned so brutally to the ground, Bai Ye Feng didn't seem to feel any pain. Instead, he laughed softly. 'Nothing, nothing. I just wanted to say, Jiang Luo, your collar is folded out at the back.'

Jiang Luo looked down at him from above. His wet hair draped over his shoulder; some of the water was absorbed by his clothes, the rest dripped onto Bai Ye Feng's chin. Bai Ye Feng slowly stopped laughing and looked at him innocently. 'What is it?'

Jiang Luo tugged at his lips, stood up, and pulled Bai Ye Feng to his feet. He patted Bai Ye Feng's shoulder affectionately. 'Sorry about that, Bai Ye Feng. I don't really like people touching my shoulder from behind. My bad for hurting you.'

Bai Ye Feng smiled gently. 'It's fine.'

Jiang Luo gave him a grateful smile and turned to leave the bathroom. The moment the bathroom door closed behind him, he suddenly thought of something and reached into his pants pocket.

But he didn't find the Spirit Paper—only a handful of paper ash.

Jiang Luo's fingers moved. He turned and looked back at the bathroom door. His beautiful eyes lifted slightly at the corners; his mouth curved up slowly.

Ah.

He seemed to have discovered a very interesting secret.