Chapter 149: The Second Corpse

This time, Li Lan managed to hold his ground, refusing to become a frightened bird because of the incident. The next day, with his injured leg in a brace, he still went to school.

Three days had passed, yet neither the police nor the administration had issued any official statement, not even the slightest hint of official news.

The news was suppressed as much as possible. Even if the citizens could be kept in the dark, the teachers and students inside the Normal University could not be fooled, not to mention the rumors spreading among the students off-campus.

It would have been fine if the stories came from actual eyewitnesses, but the problem lay with those who hadn't witnessed the primary crime scene yet still couldn't resist grasping at shadows and weaving tales. Within two or three days, this already bizarre student death from a fall was blown out of proportion, spawning several different versions, each more exaggerated than the last...

For instance, rumors that a psycho serial killer was on the loose in the school would still be considered the milder ones.

The theory of a "haunting" was spreading most widely, which was only natural given how strange the whole affair was.

Putting aside the horrific appearance of the victim for a moment, the current situation alone was exceptionally panic-inducing.

Logically speaking, the police had been called immediately, the incident had happened in plain sight of a crowd, and it took place right on campus—yet the case showed zero progress.

The Mingde Teaching Building remained sealed off, with unauthorized personnel strictly barred from entering or leaving.

Furthermore, neither official nor private sources had leaked any information, showing no signs that the case was anywhere near being solved.

As time slowly ticked by, the panic among teachers and students not only failed to dissipate but instead intensified. Fear enveloped the entire university campus in the early winter, casting a gloomy and somber shadow over it.

By now, no matter how much most students had initially considered the matter none of their business, they were gradually growing uneasy... A young life had perished so tragically and inexplicably, yet the reason remained elusive.

Many parents of local students began arriving in succession, personally demanding an explanation from the school administration. A prestigious institution could not simply refuse to provide answers.

Yet... there was also a tiny minority of people who not only felt no anxiety, but actually found the whole thing rather thrilling?!

Perhaps the usual campus life was simply too dull, and the sudden outbreak of such a major event, steeped in suspense, felt novel and exciting.

In any case, classes had not been able to proceed under the usual atmosphere for several days.

***

On Friday, Li Lan only had half a day of classes, scheduled for the afternoon.

With two required courses, his mind was utterly absent throughout the day. If it had been the death of some other stranger, it might have been easier to brush off, but the victim happened to be one of his few friends, making it all the more baffling.

From time to time, he would secretly pull out and look at the gruesome photographs of Yue Peng's corpse. Although he had grown used to them and no longer found them horrifying, every single time he gazed at them, his inner perplexity deepened a fraction.

The most thought-provoking and bizarre aspect of this whole affair was... well, everything else could be explained, but what on earth was that blue liquid flowing from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose?

After grabbing a quick bite at the cafeteria during lunch, he leaned on his crutches, intending to rest for a bit in Xu Yang and the others' dorm room.

Passing by the sealed teaching building, he paused and looked up. The classroom window on the fifth floor, shattered by Yue Peng's body, remained untouched; before the case was closed, there was naturally no time to repair it, nor could the crime scene be disturbed.

Even in broad daylight, the winter sky was completely blanketed by thick white clouds, bruised and dark blue in patches. Without the warmth of sunlight, the atmosphere remained perpetually dreary.

And looking into that broken window of the art studio... it appeared deeply gloomy, pitch black and murky.

Five stories high... from that distance, even for someone like Li Lan, if some "ineffable" entity truly lurked inside, he wouldn't be able to sense it.

However, whether due to the atmospheric suggestion or psychological effect, the entire teaching building currently felt nothing like the bustling, scholarly ivory tower it usually was... It was a good thing the South Campus was newly built with all-modern educational facilities; otherwise, had it been any older or more dilapidated, it would have been instantly dubbed a "haunted building."

Upon arriving at the dormitory, he could hear groups of three or five students chatting away inside several rooms. The topic of conversation, naturally, remained this very incident. Everyone had been discussing it for the past two days; leaving aside young students like themselves, even the teachers and counselors couldn't help whispering about it behind closed doors.

Xu Yang's dorm was located on the second floor, which was relatively convenient for an injured person like Li Lan on crutches.

Dormitory 203. Having finally made his way to the door, Li Lan saw it was tightly shut and raised his hand, preparing to knock...

With his hand still suspended in the air, mere inches from the wooden panel, he froze abruptly. Almost by instinct, he whipped his head around like lightning.

Just in time, he caught sight of a deeply unsettling figure turning the corner from the end of the corridor into the stairwell.

It was merely a sudden, fleeting glance—he didn't even register whether the person was tall or short, fat or thin, male or female. But the crucial point wasn't the physical form; it was... the extremely familiar sensation that suddenly welled up from the depths of his heart. To him, it felt like an eerie, chilling wind that instantly triggered his most sensitive nerves.

***

The reason he found it extremely familiar was simply because he was Li Lan. Anyone else might not have felt a thing—after all, several other students were lingering in the corridor besides him, and two of them were actually closer to the end of the hallway, yet they sensed nothing unusual. But Li Lan was different...

It was almost like... an instinct.

Born with the constitution of a natural spirit medium, his "Third Eye" had never truly closed. Whenever any evil entity appeared within a certain radius of him—even without a physical form—that sensation was painfully real and impossible to mistake.

Li Lan stood frozen for a moment, wanting to chase after it to get a clearer sense of the feeling, but... alas, one of his legs was still encased in plaster. Managing to walk a short distance on crutches was already a feat; quick movement was definitely out of the question.

Yet he still stared fixedly in that direction, even though there was nothing left to see, and the feeling of palpitations had already vanished as quickly as it came.

A few seconds later, someone gently tapped him on the shoulder, snapping Li Lan back to reality.

"You're... Li Lan from the History Department, right?" The person addressing him was a male student with messy hair. He was a roommate of Xu Yang in Dorm 203, and the two knew each other.

Quite enthusiastic, the student smiled and asked, "Looking for Fat Xu? I just saw him over by the basketball court; he hasn't come back yet."

Li Lan nodded. "Oh... I just wanted to use the lunch break to rest in your room for a bit. I'll give him a call then."

"Sure thing." The student didn't press further and knocked on the door himself. No one answered; presumably, the rest of the roommates were still out.

Pulling out his own key, he unlocked the door. The very instant the door swung open, before he could even take a single step inside, a pale face hung upside down directly in front of him, barely a foot away...

The bulging eyeballs had already turned a lifeless ash-gray. From the eyes, ears, mouth, and nose... deep blue, mysterious liquid was oozing out. Because the figure was suspended upside down, the blue water continuously dripped backward along the strands of hair.