Chi You’s request was undoubtedly more beneficial than harmful for the Research Bureau, making it virtually impossible to refuse.
After a meal, the cooperation was finalized. The leaders stood up, preparing to leave with Jiang Luo. One by one, they shook hands with Chi You. “Mr. Chi, the situation is quite urgent. We’ve decided to depart earlier than scheduled. Would that be acceptable to you?”
“Of course,” Chi You replied, “I can fully coordinate with Chief Jiang’s schedule.”
As he spoke, he released the leader’s hand—and then held Jiang Luo’s.
The leader smiled, developing a slight fondness for Chi You. “Thank you for your understanding, Mr. Chi.”
Just as he was about to leave with Jiang Luo, several seconds passed—and Chi You still hadn’t let go of Jiang Luo’s hand.
The leader gave a pointed cough. “Mr. Chi?”
“Apologies,” Chi You said, still holding on, eyes focused solely on Jiang Luo. “Chief Jiang is just leaving like this? Not staying a while to catch up with me?”
Jiang Luo replied flatly, “Do we have any old times to catch up on?”
Chi You chuckled. “It’s rare for me to come here. As the host, shouldn’t you show me around a bit?”
At these words, the leader instantly tensed, his instincts on high alert. He glanced suspiciously at their clasped hands, suddenly sensing undercurrents he hadn’t noticed before.
He was well aware of Jiang Luo’s notorious romantic entanglements. Could Chi You be one of those rotten peach blossoms too?
With that suspicion, the leader quickly realized that the way Chi You looked at Jiang Luo was identical to those lecherous interviewees who had tried to take advantage of him during the recruitment process!
The leader was nearly furious.
So that’s why Chi You had taken such an interest in working with them—he wanted to exploit their Chief Jiang!
“Mr. Chi,” the leader’s smile turned thin and forced, “our Chief Jiang really doesn’t have the time. He’s indispensable to our bureau. I do apologize. Perhaps I could show you around instead?”
Hearing this, Jiang Luo immediately knew the leader had misunderstood. He subtly pinched Chi You’s palm with his fingernail. Chi You, with a regretful sigh, finally let go of Jiang Luo’s hand.
“No need to trouble you. Since Chief Jiang has no time, I won’t keep you both.”
The leader gave a stiff smile. “You’re too kind.”
He now thought his earlier admiration of Chi You was pure folly. Without lingering a moment longer, he hurriedly left with Jiang Luo.
As they exited, Jiang Luo shot Chi You a look: We’ll settle this when I get home.
It wasn’t until they were well away from the restaurant that the leader let out a heavy sigh, though his face remained dark.
“You don’t look too well,” Jiang Luo noted.
The leader hesitated, then sighed deeply, looking worried. “Little Jiang, I’m sorry. We really need Chi You’s help with the issues in the middle and lower Yangtze. We couldn’t reject the cooperation. All I can do is tell you to be careful. He’s clearly not a simple character. We mustn’t intend harm, but we must stay vigilant. When you’re working with him, keep your distance. Sigh…”
How absurd—an entire Research Bureau reduced to using the bureau chief’s charm to lure a malicious ghost into cooperating. What kind of operation was this?
Jiang Luo raised an eyebrow. What made the leader think he would be the one taken advantage of?
Crossing his legs, Jiang Luo flashed a self-assured smile. “Don’t worry. He wouldn’t dare lay a finger on me. And even if he did—he’d be the one who suffers.”
The leader assumed he was just putting on a brave face. Back at the bureau, he patted Jiang Luo’s shoulder apologetically and left, still looking slightly dejected.
Jiang Luo sat alone in the front passenger seat, deep in thought.
Time passed without notice, and the car gradually filled with a chill. A cold, eerie energy crept in from behind, wrapping around the vehicle.
Black mist crept forward like a living thing. The black-haired young man nestled within it leaned quietly against the seat, eyes closed, long lashes casting a shadow over his face.
A pale ghostly hand emerged from the mist, caressing Jiang Luo’s cheek in a teasing manner. It trailed down to his earlobe, tucked his hair behind his ear, and lightly tapped the exotic-looking earring.
“When did you start wearing this?”
Jiang Luo’s eyes flew open. Narrow and sly, they gleamed with mischief. He smirked at the ghost. “I knew you’d show up. I wore it just for you.”
The crimson soul-ensnaring earring hung from his earlobe to his shoulder, mysterious and striking. It swayed gently with his movements. The ghost hadn’t seen Jiang Luo wear jewelry in a long time, and now that he had, it sparked instant delight. Chi You’s fingers slid down, stroking the three grain-like pendants on the earring. He couldn’t hide his joy. “For me?”
“Yes, of course for you,” Jiang Luo grinned. “I wanted to see what’s going on in your head—and you walked right into the trap.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a wave of dizziness overtook him. Jiang Luo’s soul suddenly felt weightless, as if it had slipped from its shell, plunging into Chi You’s inner world.
Ever since being with Chi You, Jiang Luo had reluctantly removed the soul-capturing earring. He’d never been in a relationship before, but he understood that lovers needed privacy. Just as he didn’t like Chi You snooping in his private space, even if he was tempted to unearth all of Chi You’s secrets, he tried not to be hypocritical. He had curbed his desire to pry and given them both space.
But Chi You’s recent insistence on entering the Research Bureau had reignited Jiang Luo’s curiosity. He couldn’t resist anymore. Knowing Chi You would follow him, he wore the earring again—ready to peek into Chi You’s inner world.
Jiang Luo was faintly excited. When he opened his eyes, he was greeted by utter darkness.
Odd.
Why was it completely black?
Even Feng Li and the Fated One’s inner worlds had recognizable landscapes. Why was Chi You’s so different?
Was it because Chi You was the protagonist—so his had to be eccentric?
A bit disappointed, Jiang Luo took a step forward. As his foot touched the ground, the darkness receded like a tide, revealing four wooden doors surrounding him.
The doors were identical, with the same grain and doorknobs, positioned at the north, south, east, and west. They stood motionless.
Jiang Luo frowned, examining them.
What was this?
Four doors…
Wait—weren’t there four Yuan Tian Beads?
Could it be that because part of Chi You’s soul had been refined into those four pearls—and though they’d returned to his body, they hadn’t fully reintegrated—this resulted in four doors in his inner world?
Did each door represent a fragment of Chi You’s soul?
He only had three minutes here. Not enough to keep speculating. Jiang Luo randomly picked a door and stepped in without hesitation.
He believed no version of Chi You would harm him. More importantly, he trusted that his own ability would protect him even if things went sideways.
As the door opened, a wave of heat slammed into him.
Several houses were engulfed in fierce flames. Sparks scattered into the wind, soaring into the night sky. The air twisted from the heat, reeking of smoke and burning.
Bang. The door closed behind him.
In front of a burning house stood a teenage boy, about fifteen or sixteen.
Thick, unnatural black mist curled around him. Ominous and sinister, it seeped from the boy’s body, chilling even amidst the flames.
Jiang Luo stared at the figure, beginning to form a guess. He glanced around—the surroundings were unmistakably the ancestral home of the Chi family.
The soul-capturing earring allowed Jiang Luo to witness inner worlds—either of things most valued or memories too deep to forget.
This was clearly the latter.
Chi You’s teenage years. A fire.
Jiang Luo stepped softly, silently approaching.
As he drew closer, the boy’s mutterings reached his ears.
“I just devoured an evil ghost for them… and now they want to kill me.”
—“Yes, they want to kill you.”
A second voice murmured, full of overwhelming malice, as if crawling up from the abyss.
It sounded exactly like Chi You.
No—it was Chi You, persuading himself to fall into darkness.
Sinister spirit tattoos crawled up the boy’s neck like living worms.
“If I hadn’t escaped in time, I’d have burned alive.”
—“So accept me. Merge with me. Don’t you want to become stronger?”
Chi You said, “You’re right.”
The ghost mark twitched. “Then do you want it?”
Jiang Luo’s brow twitched. This scene… it matched a memory from his own mind.
This was when Chi You first merged with the ghost mark.
The moment he cast off his humanity and embraced the path of the malicious ghost.
Just then, as if aware of Jiang Luo’s gaze, the boy suddenly turned—catching Jiang Luo off guard—and their eyes locked.
That youthful face curled into a chilling smile.
With a flick of his sleeve, the boy’s clothes transformed into modern attire. The fire stopped. The tattoos froze.
The teenage version of Chi You smiled warmly, with cultivated grace. “Young Master Jiang,” he said gently, “we meet again.”
It was… the Chi You from the mirror world.
