Chapter 31: Liu Sui's Talisman

I stared blankly as he lay down beside me, feeling utterly bewildered. Perhaps I had been too frightened, as I eventually lost consciousness of everything. When I woke up again, it was the next morning. The sun had already risen, and birds were chirping incessantly outside the window.

I recalled the scenes from the previous night and looked down at my bed, only to find no one else lying there. Could I have been dreaming? Regardless, I was safe, and that was all that mattered.

I checked my phone; it was only six in the morning. I wondered if Xie Laowu had arrived yet. I called him, but no one answered.

Feeling the urge to use the restroom early in the morning, I got up. When I pushed open the bathroom door, I found Li Xiang and Hu Tou lying on the floor, sleeping soundly.

Confused, I stepped inside and kicked them both. They slowly opened their eyes, looked around, and immediately jumped up, asking in astonishment, "What happened, Li Xi? How did we end up sleeping in the bathroom?"

I stared at them, puzzled. "How would I know?"

A chill ran down my spine as I remembered last night. In my daze, I had seen someone push open the bathroom door and lie down on my bed. Now, I found these two lying in the bathroom. What on earth was going on?

It seemed the situation was far more complex than I had imagined. I had to reach Xie Laowu immediately, or something terrible might happen.

After using the restroom, I returned to my bed. Just then, Xie Laowu called.

"Hey, you brat, you're not dead yet? I thought you wouldn't survive the night. If you had died, I wouldn't have had to come today."

I flared up instantly. "Damn your ancestors, can you say something decent? Where are you now?"

"Uh, I'm just getting ready to leave."

"The hell? You haven't even left yet?"

After hanging up, I was so angry I nearly smashed my phone. Xie Laowu was utterly unreliable, and I worried that even if he did show up, he wouldn't be able to help. It seemed I couldn't pin all my hopes on him; I needed to look elsewhere. But I had no one else to turn to.

Resigned, I put my phone away and headed to class. As it happened, we had no classes that afternoon. After the morning session, I ran into Cheng Keyan on my way. He sat in his car, shooting me a cold, indifferent glance, while I kept my head down and walked past him.

Thinking of Cheng Keyan only made my mind more chaotic, and I quickened my pace.

Suddenly, I bumped into someone. Before I could react, I felt alternating waves of heat and cold wash over me. When I came to my senses, I realized I had collided with a janitor, and all the trash from his dustpan had spilled onto me.

The janitor was none other than Liu Sui.

I stood there, stunned, looking at the colorful spots of grime all over me. Liu Sui, however, didn't seem the least bit embarrassed. He picked up his broom and began sweeping up the mess I had knocked over.

I pointed at him and shouted, "How can you be like this? Have you no sense of reason? This is a brand-new outfit!"

Liu Sui looked up, staring at me coldly. "Lift your dog legs."

He used the broom to nudge my feet, forcing me to lift them so he could sweep the trash underneath into his pan. Once finished, he turned and headed toward the trash bin.

My face turned green with rage; if not for the fact that I couldn't beat him, I would have charged over and pummeled him.

Liu Sui dumped the trash and walked back toward me, suddenly whispering, "Watch where you're going. If that pan had been filled with excrement, you’d be covered in it right now."

Watching him walk away, I trembled with fury, yet I was powerless to do anything.

Back at the dormitory, I rushed into the shower. To my surprise, Li Xiang and Hu Tou were already there. Li Xiang was stripped bare at the bathroom door, cursing because Hu Tou was taking too long.

I asked suspiciously, "What's going on?"

"Damn it, I'm the one who should be cursing! Hu Tou and I ran into a janitor on the way, and he dumped a whole pile of trash on us. We smell awful."

A janitor? I froze. "Both of you? Which one?"

Li Xiang said, "Who else? That mute guy, the one who never talks."

I was stunned, staring blankly at Li Xiang. The "mute" janitor he spoke of was Liu Sui. I couldn't believe they had been covered in trash too. What exactly was Liu Sui trying to do?

As I pondered this, Hu Tou yelled from the shower, "Damn it! That mute janitor must have spilled something on me; it won't wash off!"

The door opened, and Hu Tou stepped out wearing only his boxers. On his waist was a large, red mark—the "stain" he couldn't wash off.

But as I stared at the mark on his waist, I was struck with shock.

The mark on Hu Tou’s waist was actually a talisman, with clear, intricate, and complex lines.

Trembling with excitement, I rushed into the shower. After scrubbing, I discovered a mark on my own body, identical to the one on Hu Tou. Later, Li Xiang showered and emerged with the same talisman on his skin.

I was horrified. Even a fool could deduce that Liu Sui had drawn these talismans on us. Who was this man, really?

After showering, we returned to our beds. My bed had been occupied by Ren Yunwen's corpse the night before, so I quickly changed the bedding and threw the sheets into the trash.

I checked the time. Xie Laowu should have arrived by now, so I called him.

When the call connected, I said excitedly, "Master Xie, have you arrived? We've prepared a meal for you to enjoy."

To my shock, Xie Laowu poured cold water on me: "Look, I probably can't make it today. Why don't you hold on for one more night? I'll definitely be there tomorrow."

I was dumbfounded. "What do you mean? Are you coming or not?" My tone became aggressive.

Xie Laowu coughed twice. "You’re the one begging me, yet you speak to me like that? Forget it. You've annoyed me, so I'm not coming."

I was furious and wanted to scream at him, but he hung up first.

I stared blankly at Li Xiang and Hu Tou in the room, then looked out the window. The sky was gradually darkening. My heart began to pound.

Since Xie Laowu had stood me up, what was I to do?

Suddenly, I thought of Liu Sui.