Chapter 115 - Walk into the Light

Room 208…

It might not sound so ominous to others, but that was because they didn't know who stayed in Room 208. As for Li Feng who had been keeping tabs on them right after he found out that they were ghost-hunters hired by the girls most of the time, he knew exactly who those four people were.

Li Feng's hand went to massage his forehead as he sighed. Did he really have to be surprised that something would be occupying their room when the school closed? Then, he answered, "That's their dorm, Grandfather. Liu Xiaodan stayed in Room 208, along with his friends."

Mian Tianyu only hummed as he walked up the stairs. The other floors didn't seem to have much activity aside from random scuffling of shadows and emotions on a loop. The entire dorm was quiet and yet empty, eerie and yet peaceful. The old man reached the third floor and read the energy again.

"Oh, it already noticed me." Mian Tianyu had a shadow of a smile on his lips. The curious non-human spirit seemed to be paying attention to him. He then took steps to get to the dorm room in the middle of the west wing. "Show yourself. Don't be shy."

Li Feng found it odd for Mian Tianyu to be lively in a cleansing ritual. He probably was amused by the existence that roomed with the other hors.e.m.e.n in the absence of Guangru and his father. For some reason, he then felt something very close to Guangru's presence awaited them in the room.

"Grandfather—"

Mian Tianyu opened the door and was greeted by something he didn't think would be there. His eyes flickered as he failed to make anything out of it. However, his amused smile deepened as he tried to cross through the door frame…

Which he could not do.

"I knew you're a strange spirit, but for you to be this strong? What exactly are you?" Mian Tianyu didn't want to hurt the guardian spirit sealing the room from anyone or anything who wanted to enter. He only wanted to see what it was out of curiosity.

Spirits like this one were only present in hospitals and orphanages. For something like this to surface in a dorm of young a.d.u.l.t boys…

It's just that… it was obviously out of place.

"What is a stuffed toy doing inside their room?" Li Feng frowned as he walked closer… and picked it up from the floor. He gave it a good look and faintly sensed its power. However, it didn't seem to be malevolent, and it had been spending efforts in purifying the miasma inside the room.

"It's a guardian spirit. Most toys for children had the ability to rear such a thing." Mian Tianyu tried to enter, but he still couldn't bring himself to lift his leg. "Li Feng, can you negotiate with it?"

"Negotiate?" Li Feng then looked back at everyone else. It seemed that he was the only one allowed to enter the room. He then looked at the horse's face. "Hello? No need to be guarded against them. It's okay..."

"Baba's kin... only..."

Li Feng frowned as he heard a faint voice coming from it. Baba's kin? From this, he already had a bad feeling about the toy. He then looked at his grandfather. "G-Grandfather, it seemed to be… connected to Guangru..." Right. He only knew Guangru as the resident who was interested in a father.

Mian Tianyu gave up resisting the guardian's power. He could break it himself, but he might harm such a pure spirit, Such spirits were the only ones they were supposed to leave alone.

He only hummed. "Of course, he must have mistaken the child for a real one. If there's nothing worth the interest in the room, we're looking around again."

Li Feng was about to put it back on the floor, but he decided against it. He just tucked it in his arm. "I'll sew it up first before leaving it alone again. Since Grandfather spared it, I need to help it at least."

"Aiya, good luck in stitching." Li Yunru chuckled as she walked next to her cousin.

The next destination was the fourth floor, and Li Feng only held onto the horse as he stared at it. His dorm was in the wing they were facing, and flashes of that night started flooding in. However, as soon as he felt like being affected by a spirit, a strange white light spread around him.

His eyes then looked at the black horse. It was actually this strong?

"Feng'er, there are two spirits in the room in the middle. Whose room is that?" Mian Tianyu asked again as he walked ahead to the place.

"Mine, Grandfather..." Li Feng sighed again, but this time, it was filled with disappointment. He unconsciously stroked at the black horse before he watched the door open. As soon as he took a step inside, the atmosphere seemed to change. However, it wasn't hostile at all.

It was like it was filled with confusion and gratefulness, frustration and relief.

Li Feng turned in the direction of his bed and saw faded images cooped up on his bed. One was stuck to the corner while one was lying down as if he owned the bed. He stared at them as if he could recognize them if only he squinted some more.

"Can you not tell at first glance?"

"Hello, Li Feng..."

His eyes then widened as images began overlapping over the two entities inside the room. Chen Gang looked up at Li Feng as if saying 'hi'... Jiang Hou didn't even spare him a gaze. Li Feng wanted to break down then and there, but the white light around him was intensifying.

After a deep sigh, he began to speak, "Jiang Hou… Chen Gang… why are you two staying here at the dorm? Aren't you supposed to be… crossing over?"

Mian Tianyu wasn't surprised by his words, but he continued to not interfere. Perhaps Li Feng was enough to make these two cross over before the waves of purification would force them away. Besides, the black horse was incredibly strong enough to calm the storm inside Li Feng's heart.

"I don't know… it feels like I can't leave just yet." Chen Gang pushed up his broken glasses. "I have a feeling that I can't leave without seeing that poor guy again. He was trying to help me, and yet… I heard he was… incarcerated? Uhm… and the things I saw… he was the only one who believed me..."

"The things in the dorm had grown rather wild over time." Jiang Hou finally cast a gaze at Li Feng, but he took it away just as instantly. "That black thing you're holding… it started cleansing the place. I don't feel as angry and murderous as I did before. Moreover, there's something I need to do..."

"It can cleanse the entire dorm?" Li Feng looked down at the black horse. He then brought his eyes back at the two men on his bunk bed, especially at one of them. "Jiang Hou… I'm sorry. I..."

Jiang Hou got up and placed his feet on the floor. He then got to his feet and stood next to Li Feng. He didn't know if that old man outside could see him properly, but he didn't care. "I shouldn't have gone when you told me not to. I didn't know what exactly happened, but monsters attacked me.

"My actions had brought you to a fall you can never climb from." Li Feng twitched as he heard Jiang Hou's somber tone and when he felt that squeeze on his shoulder. "I am very sorry. If nothing happened to me that night, none of this would happen to you. Can you forgive me?"

"Why are you blaming yourself for something you cannot control—?"

"Because you'll blame yourself, and I can almost hear shit spilling from your mouth." Jiang Hou took his hand off of his friend. "If you're going to look for those monsters, there's no need to. It's better for you not to see them… or how that freaky child killed all of them..."

Chen Gang nodded. "I saw that, too. The child didn't even have to touch them to make them all explode. The ones that remained were the ones like me who couldn't pose a threat to anyone… even Jiang Hou almost got killed. Ay, forget I said something."

He then hid his face as Jiang Hou glared at him murderously. Jiang Hou then turned to face Li Feng who had not moved just yet. "Feng, no need to worry. That horse is like some kind of saint, taking away everything negative from everyone. I think I'm only here to wait for your return."

"Jiang Hou..." Li Feng forced himself to smile even if his eyes were watering. "Of course, I forgive you, you asshole. I can't expect you to have your brain intact all the time, can I?"

"Ay, I want to punch you. Can I punch you?"

"Hehe, you can try."

However, Jiang Hou only walked closer and hugged his best friend… before vanishing. A tear rolled down, but Li Feng didn't want to cry in front of a lot of strangers. His eyes flickered to get rid of the excess water before rubbing his nose to stop sniffing.

He then turned to Chen Gang. "Classmate, Liu Xiaodan is sent somewhere very far. You can't see him anymore. You don't have to worry; I'm pretty sure he'd be sad if you get stuck here. I can give him your gratitude and regards. You should walk into the light now."

Chen Gang only nodded before he got off of the bed and vanished as he walked off. Only his voice remained, "Tell him 'thank you for believing me'. It feels good to know that I'm not crazy. I tried to warn him that day, but things had gotten really overwhelming for me."

"..."

"Let's proceed to the cleansing ritual, Feng'er," Mian Tianyu spoke after a few seconds of silence.

Li Feng only nodded and held tighter onto the black horse. He walked out of the dorm room and felt like everything was getting less and less cloudy, and yet he was being suffocated faintly by his guilt. However, in the end, Jiang Hou's soul was not corrupted anymore… unlike what he had last seen when he was being escorted out by the police.

He then looked down at the black horse. "There's no way I'm not seeing him now, am I wrong?"