Translator: CinderTL
Teachers and students passed by frequently, their glances at Jiang Cheng and his group filled with curiosity and speculation. It was clear that everyone recognized Yuan Xiaoyi.
"Let's get her out of here first," Jiang Cheng said. "And make sure Wang Qi doesn't follow us."
To ease the tense atmosphere, Jiang Cheng led Yuan Xiaoyi slowly through the campus, stopping frequently, until they reached the small grove they had visited the day before.
Wang Qi, seemingly aware of his unwelcome presence, trailed far behind with his hands in his pockets, feigning indifference.
"Let's sit down for a while," Jiang Cheng murmured.
Perhaps because of their interaction the previous day, Yuan Xiaoyi showed noticeably less resistance to Jiang Cheng than to the others. She nodded slightly and prepared to sit on a stone step.
Suddenly, a hand gently stopped her.
"Wait," Jiang Cheng said. He removed his jacket, folded it neatly, and placed it on the step as a cushion. "It's cold. Now it's okay."
Yuan Xiaoyi froze for a moment, then flushed with embarrassment. Fatty watched as her ears turned bright red.
Jiang Cheng, unfazed, sat casually beside her. Leaning close to her ear, he whispered, "Don't worry about what others say. I believe you."
Yuan Xiaoyi looked up at him, her lips moving silently. Before she could speak, Jiang Cheng continued, "I'm certain your memory is correct. Even if everyone else says you're wrong, I'll stand by you."
"Th-thank you, Jiang..." A sudden surge of emotion welled up in Yuan Xiaoyi's eyes. She knew Jiang Cheng's name, but saying it now felt inadequate.
"Call me Senior," Jiang Cheng said, adopting a mock-serious tone.
"Se-Senior," she stammered.
"That's better," Jiang Cheng said, unconsciously shifting closer to Yuan Xiaoyi, nudging his hip against hers. Leaning in, he asked, "Xiaoyi, what exactly did you dream about last night? You look terrible today."
"Senior, I dreamt about Xiaoting—no, it wasn't a dream! She actually came back to find me last night!" Yuan Xiaoyi blurted out, her voice trembling. "It wasn't a dream, it was real!"
"Xiaoting?" This wasn't what Jiang Cheng had expected. If he remembered correctly, Xiaoting had disappeared in the Medical Building. He had assumed it would be Xiaoran.
"Yes, it was Xiaoting!" Yuan Xiaoyi's entire body shook, her face pale with terror.
"Don't be afraid, Xiaoyi," Jiang Cheng said, placing his hand on her leg and gently reassuring her. "Xiaoting must have returned because she had something she wanted to tell you, right?"
Fatty and Huai Yi stood guard outside the small grove, keeping watch for the Doctor.
"Senior, you were right," Yuan Xiaoyi said. "Xiaoting told me so much. She said she's trapped inside the Medical Building, completely lost and unable to find her way out. It's pitch black and terrifying in there, nothing like we've ever seen before. She's so scared."
Jiang Cheng paused, then spoke in a soothing tone, "Xiaoyi, I agree with what you said earlier. Xiaoting and the others aren't dead; they're just trapped somewhere—somewhere no one can find them." He deliberately emphasized the last part of his sentence.
Yuan Xiaoyi nodded vigorously. "Senior, I understand! They must be trapped inside the corresponding Urban Legends!"
"We're best friends, Senior," she pleaded, gripping Jiang Cheng's hand tightly. "Please, you have to help me rescue them!"
"Xiaoyi, you're even braver than I thought," Jiang Cheng said, his gaze softening with a warmth that went beyond mere encouragement. "Even if it were just for you, I would help."
"Now, can you tell me about the Urban Legend Xiaoting shared that night?" Jiang Cheng asked gently, his voice as kind and understanding as an older brother's.
Slowly exhaling, Yuan Xiaoyi raised her head. Her first words immediately captivated Jiang Cheng: "It's a long-standing rumor at the medical school—the Ghost Face Old Madam."
"Senior, you might not know this, but Jiangtan University is rife with urban legends. Some even say the university was originally built to suppress something buried beneath it."
"I once found an aerial photograph of our campus. Xiaohui, who's well-read, pointed out that its overall layout resembles a Bagua formation."
"There are several universally acknowledged 'haunted spots' on campus. The Medical Building is one of them. Unless absolutely necessary, even the professors from our department avoid going there at night."
Realizing she had strayed from the main point, Yuan Xiaoyi paused before diving into the story: "Years ago, an old woman developed a bizarre condition. A strange fleshy growth appeared on the back of her neck. Her family initially thought it was a tumor and rushed her to the hospital. But tests revealed it was just ordinary tissue, not cancerous. The hospital scheduled surgery to remove it."
"But what happened next was even stranger. In the days leading up to the surgery, the growth rate of the fleshy mass suddenly accelerated, multiplying in size several times in just a few days. And even more horrifying, the mass gradually began to take on the shape of a face."
"A face?" Jiang Cheng asked, slightly surprised.
"Exactly," Yuan Xiaoyi nodded solemnly. "Eyes, a nose, a mouth—it had all the features, but they were just crude outlines. The whole thing was still a large mass of flesh."
"Then, late one night, the nurse on duty was passing by the Old Madam's room when she suddenly heard faint voices coming from inside."
"The voice was barely audible, high-pitched and strained, as if the speaker's throat was constricted, forcing her to exhale through a tiny airway."
"The nurse didn't think much of it, assuming the Old Madam was anxious about the surgery and couldn't sleep. She pushed the door open to comfort her. But the moment she opened the door, she realized that the face lying on the pillow wasn't the Old Madam's face at all—it was the face that had been growing on the back of her head!"
"Her head had been twisted a full 180 degrees!"
"The fleshy face's mouth was opening and closing rhythmically, and its eyes were staring directly at the doorway."
"The nurse was terrified. She collapsed to the floor, paralyzed with fear and only able to scream."
"Not long after, we heard the old woman had died suddenly in the middle of the night. The exact cause of death was never specified."
"The very next day, her family signed a body donation form, donating her remains to Jiangtan University School of Medicine for anatomical research."
"But that's not the whole story!" Yuan Xiaoyi suddenly lowered her voice, leaning in conspiratorially. "There's a rumor in the hospital that the old woman was deeply superstitious. In her village, she was known as a 'Great Immortal'—a spirit medium. Days before her death, she foresaw her impending doom."
"While still lucid, she repeatedly begged her family to cremate her body immediately after death, warning them never to leave her remains behind."
"However, the old woman's condition was incredibly rare and of significant research value. The hospital secretly contacted her children, offering to buy her body for study."
"They reportedly offered a substantial sum. The children couldn't resist the temptation and signed a contract with the hospital, though officially, it was presented as the old woman's dying wish to donate her body to science."
(End of the Chapter)
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