Inside the unlit private room, the furniture laid in darkness. Jiang Luo was wrapped head to toe in black mist—no hair, no fingertip left exposed.
He was pinned against the wall by the mist.
His wrists were bound above his head, feet barely touching the floor. He looked up at his hands, struggling against the invisible restraints.
The veins on the back of his hands bulged from the effort, appearing strangely alluring and sensual against the backdrop of darkness.
The black mist gradually took on a human shape. A pale, slightly bluish long finger extended from it and gently touched the tip of Jiang Luo’s finger.
That lifeless ghostly hand moved from Jiang Luo’s fingertips down along his forearm, brushing over the veins as if teasing, before finally landing at his lips—and then suddenly clutching his jaw with force.
Jiang Luo grunted lowly and raised a leg to kick forward.
But the ghost blocked him.
His bent leg was wrapped by another strand of black mist, suspended midair. Another pale, ghostly hand lightly rested on his long leg, slowly gliding upward from behind his knee to his thigh.
The touch was fleeting and light as a dragonfly skimming water, yet the icy, lifeless feel of that ghostly hand was like touching a corpse—an ice block frozen for who knows how many years—instantly raising goosebumps across the skin.
Something was very wrong.
Jiang Luo’s sense of danger screamed in alarm.
Everything the ghost did was utterly illogical, bizarre and absurd—just as the hexagram of Wu Wang gua foretold. Jiang Luo bit his teeth hard, an ominous feeling rising in his heart. He turned his head sharply to avoid the fingers that were now tracing his lips, but in the next moment, his jaw was forcibly turned back by the ghost.
Jiang Luo cursed under his breath, “Chi You, what the h*ll are you doing!”
No matter how he imagined it, he could never have predicted a situation like this!
The black-haired youth wore an expression of both fury and shock—an extremely rare sight on his face. A low chuckle echoed from within the black mist.
The next moment, the ghost fully emerged from the shadows.
Leather shoes pressed between Jiang Luo’s legs, touching the boundary of the wall. The black mist that had held up his leg dissipated, replaced by the ghost’s hand sliding gently down from his thigh.
The pose was strange to the extreme, and Jiang Luo’s expression twisted further. He struggled to move his leg, trying to retreat further against the wall.
Chi You’s face appeared before him. The ghost’s features were still flawless—high nose bridge, smooth brow, long brows slanting into the temples. But this time, there was a mark: the tail end of a whip scar from the last time Jiang Luo had struck him, still red on his left cheek.
That red mark, only an inch in length, looked wild and wicked on Chi You’s face—like a symbol of the madness, coldness, and cruelty buried deep in his blood and bones.
This was bad.
Very bad.
Jiang Luo’s internal alarms blared again.
He focused all his attention on the ghost. Honestly, Jiang Luo would rather face a blade than deal with this kind of bizarre confrontation with Chi You.
It was all too strange.
Chi You bent slightly, leaning toward the retreating Jiang Luo. “Look who it is,” he said softly.
His hair brushed against Jiang Luo’s ear, bringing a faint ticklish sensation. In a quiet murmur, Chi You whispered, “Isn’t this the classmate who said he wanted to make me feel so good I’d die?”
The ghost had no breath, no warmth, yet Jiang Luo could still feel that icy whisper and the unmistakable malice in the words.
D*mn it.
Jiang Luo cursed Chi You’s pettiness again and again in his heart. But that eerie absurdity hadn’t faded—it was only getting worse, making his heart beat faster with unease. He tried to summon the Yin-Yang hoop, but his wrists were tightly bound by black mist—he couldn’t move at all.
The hand at his jaw rubbed his lower lip red. The black-haired youth tensed all over, refusing to yield as he dodged Chi You’s touch. When that hand moved toward his upper lip again, Jiang Luo couldn’t stand it anymore—he bit down hard.
“Get lost!” he spat.
But he only bit into mist.
Chi You lifted his jaw again, looking down at the black-haired youth from above.
Something inside him was churning, burning like fire—or like a deep, stormy sea. He didn’t know what that feeling was, but he did know it was the effect of the Harmony Talisman and the Lover’s Flower.
Without a target born under a specified birth date and hour, the Harmony Talisman—mixed into the tea—would take effect on anyone who drank it. Chi You had intended to trick Jiang Luo, but he ended up drinking it himself.
Not that it seemed to be a problem.
Jiang Luo’s slightly panicked look was one Chi You had never seen before.
That astonished expression, those evasive movements, the curses from his lips…
As long as Jiang Luo was uncomfortable, Chi You was delighted.
Chi You lowered his head and pressed close to Jiang Luo’s earlobe. “Classmate Jiang,” he whispered flirtatiously, “Let me teach you something else.”
His tone was intimate: “When you say something, you’d better follow through.”
He leaned even closer, almost at Jiang Luo’s neck—the most vulnerable, sensitive place. Jiang Luo turned his head away. It felt like a beast was about to bite down on his throat at any moment.
Why had Chi You become so strange?
Jiang Luo wanted to push him away, but his hands were restrained, his legs immobilized. His expression changed again and again—until it finally settled into calm.
“I said a lot of things, Teacher Chi,” Jiang Luo smirked at the corner of his mouth, lips red from the rubbing. “Which one exactly are you referring to?”
He raised his brow in challenge. “Don’t tell me it’s the one where I said you’d become my secret admirer?”
As he baited Chi You with his words, Jiang Luo secretly kept trying to shift his Yin-Yang hoop. But the mist had wrapped him too tightly—he’d have to turn his wrist at least halfway around just to move it a little.
“Or…” Jiang Luo glanced at the ghost and gave an exaggerated grin, “Do you actually want me to sleep with you?”
Chi You didn’t react, but the hand on Jiang Luo’s thigh started moving downward again.
Jiang Luo kicked at him hard a few times but couldn’t budge the ghost. He could only pant heavily, head tilted back as he calmed his breathing.
Now he was starting to understand the price of having a sharp tongue.
But even if he had to go back, Jiang Luo knew he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from mouthing off.
Chi You finally withdrew his foot from between Jiang Luo’s legs. Yet each of his movements made Jiang Luo’s heart pound faster.
Something was off with Chi You.
Why?
Jiang Luo traced everything back to its source—and his thoughts landed on that cup of tea at the dining table.
It seemed that right after drinking it, Chi You’s gaze had started changing.
Sweat trickled from Jiang Luo’s forehead into his hair, soaked up by thick strands. He hadn’t given up—he kicked Chi You again, and this time, one hit landed on the ghost’s arm, leaving half a footprint on his clothes.
Chi You raised an eyebrow, then caught Jiang Luo’s ankle in his hand. He slowly stroked it, praising with a drawl: “Nice kick.”
Jiang Luo took a deep breath—and still couldn’t hold back. “F*ck!”
What the h*ll was in that tea? How did it make Chi You act like this?
Forcing himself to calm down, Jiang Luo suddenly recalled what Chi You had said back at Bai Qiu’s house:
—“Put it in water, and you’ll get unexpected results.”
Was it the ashes of the Harmony Talisman?
Jiang Luo instantly understood.
Chi You had probably meant to give that water, infused with the ashes of the Harmony Talisman, to him.
Jiang Luo’s eyes turned cold—but just as quickly, he realized something. Wasn’t it Chi You who drank the tea in the end?
His brows relaxed. He looked up at Chi You.
The Harmony Talisman, even if effective against an evil spirit, probably wouldn’t last very long. Thinking of Bai Qiu’s state under the charm’s influence, Jiang Luo couldn’t help but let out a gloating smile.
Poetic justice. Trying to trap him only to end up falling in instead—how does it feel, watching yourself fall in love with your enemy? Jiang Luo figured the ghost must be fuming inside.
Jiang Luo suddenly stopped struggling and said lazily, “Chi You, you’re really starting to piss me off.”
Even if the ghost wasn’t as out of it as Bai Qiu had been, the effects were clearly not minor.
This was the perfect chance to get back at the evil ghost—of course Jiang Luo intended to make full use of it.
His lips curled slightly, eyes laced with deliberate irritation and disdain. “I really hate this kind of behavior.”
He paused, then glanced sidelong at Chi You, a half-smile playing at his lips. “You wouldn’t want me to start hating you too, would you?”
If the ghost really was “in love” with him, like Bai Qiu had been, those words should sting.
The ghost stared at him, then, just as Jiang Luo hoped, let go. Jiang Luo rubbed his wrists—his feet finally touched the ground. He smiled and let out a soft whistle.
The Harmony Talisman—what a useful little thing.
Jiang Luo walked over to the glass round table and sat down. He took a drag from a cigarette, eyes narrowed, considering how best to mess with Chi You in his current state.
Leaning back on his hands, his posture relaxed, Jiang Luo remained on alert. He didn’t know how long the talisman effect would last, so he had to finish his little act quickly and then bolt.
He exhaled a plume of smoke, tilted his head slightly. His black hair slid like silk over his shoulder. An idea came to him. He smirked, voice lifting just a little. “Kneel.”
Jiang Luo crossed his legs, his striking features bathed in smoke. His Adam’s apple bobbed in a distinctly sensual way. He added with a smile, “Right here. At my feet.”
Chi You didn’t move.
Jiang Luo straightened up from his relaxed pose, propping his chin on his hand, elbow resting on his knee. He blinked at Chi You. “Don’t you want me to like you?”
That seemed to strike a nerve. The ghost stepped forward, murmuring, “What an irresistible offer…”
Jiang Luo thought: He’s really lost it.
But honestly, he hoped Chi You lost it even more. Ideally, to the point where if Jiang Luo told him to die, he’d just go and do it.
Jiang Luo watched the ghost approach, anticipation and wariness both tightening in his chest. He was ready to activate the Yin-Yang hoop at any second.
The ghost stopped at his feet and began to kneel. Even that movement was graceful, more like a knight bowing to his king than someone submitting to humiliation.
Jiang Luo tapped Chi You’s waist with the tip of his shoe and drawled, “Too proud. Don’t you know how to beg? How to chase after love?”
“You should be humble, pitiful, pathetic.” Jiang Luo looked down at the ghost, his tone slow and deliberate. “Make me enjoy the sight. Understand?”
The ghost’s eyes lit with sudden clarity. “I understand.”
But the next moment, the ghost surged forward, pinning Jiang Luo down. One hand shot up, replacing the black mist to hold both Jiang Luo’s wrists in place. His leg pressed between Jiang Luo’s, pinning him fully against the glass table.
The glass surface gleamed, Jiang Luo’s black hair spilling across it. His eyes widened in shock.
The ghost smiled. “But I think—making me happy is more important.”
***
The disbelief on Jiang Luo’s face made the ghost laugh softly.
His cold fingertips landed at the corner of Jiang Luo’s eye.
“Your eyes are beautiful.”
His fingers drifted lower, smile curling. “And your mouth too.”
“If you want to please me,” the ghost said wickedly, “this isn’t enough.”
His thumb shifted.
…
But soon, the talisman’s effect completely wore off.
The ghost froze briefly, then looked down at the person beneath him.
The black-haired beauty was panting, his clothes a disheveled mess from the struggle. His lips were swollen from being handled, the corners of his eyes red. He glared up at Chi You, eyes blazing with fury.
Chi You raised an eyebrow.
“You’ve got a lot of nerve,” the ghost said, gripping Jiang Luo’s throat. “Telling me to kneel?”
The ghost had come back to his senses.
Jiang Luo sneered, then suddenly kicked at the ghost’s weak spot. Chi You dodged on instinct—but Jiang Luo had already activated the Yin-Yang hoop. A golden-scripted python burst out, scattering the black mist and lunging toward Chi You.
Driven by Jiang Luo’s mood, the snake’s attack was even more vicious than it had been by the river, its bloody jaws gaping wide.
Chi You barely avoided the strike—but the next second, Jiang Luo’s fist came flying in.
He’d wrapped a talisman around his knuckles, and the blow hit hard. But as it landed, the ghost’s form dissolved into black mist and vanished into thin air.
Jiang Luo rubbed his wrist, his expression blank as he stared into the dark room.
There was a knock at the door.
Senior Brother Qiao’s voice called out: “Junior Brother, are you in there?”
What a f*cking actor, Jiang Luo thought.
His fists itched. He stormed out the door—and without a word, slammed his fist into Senior Brother Qiao’s face.
Senior Brother Qiao staggered back two steps from the punch, standing there blankly, seemingly not having processed what had happened. “Junior Brother…”
“Senior Brother, I’m sorry,” Jiang Luo said with fake sincerity. “I mistook you for someone else and reacted without thinking. Are you okay?”
He walked over to check. A bruise had already bloomed on the side of Senior Brother Qiao’s face, and judging by the injury, it was likely to swell up soon.
“Senior Brother Qiao,” Jiang Luo added, “I’m really sorry. How about I accompany you to the hospital?”
Senior Brother Qiao shook his head. “Forget it, Junior Brother. It’s just a minor injury, no big deal.”
“Really?” Jiang Luo asked with concern.
Senior Brother Qiao gave a reassuring smile, wincing slightly from the pain. “Don’t worry.”
“By the way, Junior Brother,” he asked in return, “why were you in an empty private room?”
“I ran into someone I knew,” Jiang Luo replied with a forced smile. “We chatted a bit.”
Senior Brother Qiao looked at him hesitantly. “Did something happen to you?”
The black-haired youth looked like he had been bullied—anger smoldering on his face, clothes disheveled, a clear finger-shaped bruise around his ankle. He looked very much like he had just experienced something unspeakable.
Jiang Luo answered firmly, “I’m fine.”
“Alright then,” Senior Brother Qiao didn’t press further. “Shall we head back and finish our meal?”
“No need, Senior Brother,” Jiang Luo didn’t want to spend another moment with that d*mned ghost. “I have class this afternoon. Time’s tight, so I’ll head off first.”
Senior Brother Qiao nodded agreeably and watched him leave the hotel.
Once Jiang Luo’s figure had completely disappeared, Senior Brother Qiao pushed open the door to the now-empty private room. He moved effortlessly through the darkness and picked up a silver e-cigarette left on the round glass table.
He took a slow drag and exhaled a thin stream of smoke, his ordinary face suddenly gaining a strange, magnetic allure.
This time, Chi You hadn’t controlled Senior Brother Qiao from afar. After finishing a duel of spells with Feng Li, he had simply possessed Senior Brother Qiao’s body nearby.
Because of this, he could clearly feel the physical pain.
For example, at this very moment, half a cup of water infused with the Harmony Talisman was wreaking havoc inside him, gnawing from organs to flesh like ants. His bones itched unbearably, as if real insects were tunneling through them.
The little spell he had casually added to that teacup was enough to make someone wish for death from the pain. But Chi You’s expression didn’t change at all.
He simply muttered to himself with a trace of sentiment, “It’s been so long since I last felt pain like this…”
***
When Jiang Luo got back to school, it was still early.
He hadn’t eaten lunch, but he had no appetite anyway. He went straight back to the dorm to shower, scrubbing every inch of skin that ghost had touched.
That ghost’s version of love was so f*cking heavy. Thankfully, the whole ordeal only lasted fifteen minutes. Other people’s love meant giving and sacrifice—his was pure self-indulgent madness.
After cleaning himself up, it was about time for class. As Jiang Luo left the dorm, he saw several storage bins stacked neatly against the hallway wall.
He walked past them and entered the classroom just before the bell rang.
Lu Youyi looked surprised. “We thought you weren’t coming today.”
“Why?” Jiang Luo asked.
“We heard Feng Li officially took you as his disciple,” Lu Youyi answered honestly. “I thought he’d lock you in the Heavenly Master Residence to train before the next competition.”
Jiang Luo smiled. “I’ll return to the Heavenly Master Residence, but I still have to attend class.”
To everyone’s surprise, the teacher brought a new student to class that day.
“Starting today, Classmate Qi Ye will be transferring to our school,” the teacher boomed with unconcealed delight at acquiring a prodigy. “Come on, everyone, let’s give Classmate Qi Ye a warm welcome!”
The eight students stared blankly for a moment, then all clapped in unison.
Qi Ye stood beside the teacher—tall, sharp-featured, and radiating an air of impatience.
His gaze swept over the class, and the moment he spotted Jiang Luo, a fiery battle spirit ignited in his eyes.
Jiang Luo instantly understood: those storage bins in the hallway were Qi Ye’s—he was moving into the dorm.
Qi Ye belonged to the Qi family, one of the Six Great Clans. They studied a wide variety of disciplines, which should’ve made them jacks-of-all-trades and masters of none. But starting three generations ago, every Qi descendant was born with an exceptional spiritual constitution.
Thanks to that talent, they could master many things, and the family had firmly maintained their place among the Six Greats ever since.
Qi Ye was the most promising young talent of his generation.
After his brief self-introduction, Qi Ye naturally took the seat next to Jiang Luo.
The metaphysics class had only nine students now, including the newly transferred Qi Ye—three rows of three. Jiang Luo sat in the center of the third row, with Cyril on one side and Qi Ye on the other.
Cyril was fine—an old acquaintance. But Jiang Luo had a hunch that Qi Ye hadn’t transferred here just for school.
Qi Ye sat through class with a reasonable level of attention. But as soon as class ended, he stood up aggressively, walked over to Jiang Luo, and dropped a familiar challenge: “I’ll be first in the next round.”
