Face (4)

In Shen Xing's view, the fact that his scalp began to itch and sprout a strange, long strand of hair after coming into contact with Song Xiaoyu was no coincidence.

Perhaps others who had contact with this woman also had a certain chance of being afflicted; he simply didn't know how high those odds were or just how lucky he had to be to encounter it.

Therefore, he made a decision the previous night: he could not afford to wait. Starting the next day, he had to investigate this matter thoroughly; otherwise, if he let the scalp itch continue, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Early the next morning, he immediately called the orphanage to ask if Feifei was alright, only to learn that she was perfectly normal.

Shen Xing then obtained the phone number of the male volunteer nicknamed "Big Monster" and asked if he had any physical abnormalities, receiving the same reply.

It seemed that neither of them had been afflicted, or if they had, the effects had yet to manifest at this point in time.

Shen Xing's second plan was to visit Song Xiaoyu's home after daybreak.

According to Li Naijing, if Song Xiaoyu's parents lived with her, their contact would be much closer, and they might have been possessed by this Scalp Ghost just like him.

Of course, this was merely Shen Xing's speculation; he needed to verify it. If her parents weren't afflicted, he could take the opportunity to warn them.

Another crucial reason for Shen Xing's decision to visit was that his understanding of Song Xiaoyu's traits had reached 75%.

According to previous system prompts, if he reached over 80%, he could temporarily lock onto this Scalp Ghost even without the wooden carving container.

Relying solely on his previous encounters, Shen Xing couldn't deduce what other traits she might have. The only way was to come and see for himself; as long as he caught a glimpse of a clue that pushed his understanding to 80%, he would lock onto her without hesitation.

There was no other way—his life was at stake. If he dragged this out, other complications might arise, such as the Scalp Ghost seizing his consciousness, which would turn him into a walking corpse.

Naturally, he also wanted to see if he could wait until his understanding reached over 90% to absorb her so-called "Latent Skill."

However, since his life was on the line, there was no comparison between a Latent Skill and his own survival.

Regardless of the situation at Song Xiaoyu's home, he had to go and see.

Furthermore, Zheng Ruijun from the Special Case Investigation Unit had said he would be staking out the place last night. Shen Xing had called him just now to confirm if he was still there, so he would have some backup upon arrival.

Although Zheng Ruijun didn't give a direct answer, his tone implied that he hadn't left.

Of course, the best-case scenario would be for Shen Xing to figure out Song Xiaoyu's remaining traits without needing Zheng Ruijun's help.

Although Shen Xing possessed a Mental Antibody and had powerful grip strength in his fingers, giving him some confidence in dealing with anomalies, he still brought a kitchen knife hidden on his person for safety.

After he knocked, the middle-aged woman who opened the door was likely Song Xiaoyu's mother.

Standing at the doorway, Shen Xing could see a middle-aged man sitting on the living room sofa—presumably Song Xiaoyu's father—who was currently smiling at him.

Everything seemed perfectly normal, though Zheng Ruijun was nowhere to be seen.

Of course, Shen Xing couldn't be certain that the couple was completely fine, so he didn't choose to enter immediately, opting to ask directly instead.

"Excuse me, have you two experienced any uncomfortable symptoms these past few days, such as... an itchy scalp?"

Song Hao and An Lifen were clearly stunned for a moment. Song Hao shook his head and laughed, "Itchy scalp? Why would my scalp be itchy? Are you in the shampoo business?"

Shen Xing smiled faintly without answering, instead asking An Lifen, who stood before him, "Ma'am, has your scalp been itchy at all these past few days?"

An Lifen's smile remained natural as she shook her head. "Not at all."

"I see. Song Xiaoyu mentioned her scalp was itching terribly a few days ago, so I specifically brought her a bottle of anti-dandruff shampoo."

As he spoke, Shen Xing held up the bottle of shampoo he had just bought.

There was no helping it; he couldn't arrive empty-handed and needed an excuse. Conveniently, this excuse aligned with his purpose for coming.

"I'll thank you on Xiaoyu's behalf!" Song Hao stood up cheerfully. "Come in and sit. I'll go wake Xiaoyu up; she seemed very tired yesterday and slept in a bit late. Please wait a moment."

"Right, no problem." Shen Xing remained at the door, showing no intention of entering.

The sound of Song Hao's footsteps echoed down the hallway toward the bedrooms, followed by the sound of a door opening.

Because the water dispenser was still on and the water had boiled again, An Lifen prepared a cup of hot tea for Shen Xing and invited him into the house once more.

If he refused to enter now, it would only arouse suspicion.

Shen Xing walked into the room and sat on the sofa, noticing another cup of tea on the other end of the coffee table that appeared untouched.

"Ma'am, did you have another guest earlier?" he asked, trying to sound casual.

An Lifen didn't answer, as if she hadn't heard him. She simply sat down beside him, her gaze fixed on him with the scrutinizing look of a mother-in-law assessing a son-in-law.

Under that gaze, goosebumps broke out all over Shen Xing's body. He intuitively felt that the couple had misunderstood his intentions, assuming that he had traveled all this way to deliver shampoo because he was courting their daughter.

Just then, Song Hao walked out with a smile. "Xiaoyu is awake. She wants you to come in; she's waiting for you in the bedroom."

"What?" Shen Xing was taken aback.

If he really had come specifically to deliver shampoo to Song Xiaoyu, his intentions would be quite obvious, and it would be strange if the couple didn't think in that direction.

What Shen Xing didn't know was that the reason Song Hao and An Lifen appeared to have no issues wasn't because they were normal, but because in their eyes, Shen Xing was now considered "one of their own."

Even though he hadn't yet reached the point of losing his consciousness and being fully controlled.

The conversation between the two parties was faintly overheard by Zheng Ruijun, who was hiding in the bathroom.

Zheng Ruijun never expected that the way these people treated him versus how they treated Shen Xing would be so different. Not only were they acting normally, but they were even being as polite to him as if he were family.

"Is this really an era where you can get by on your looks? Not just people, but ghosts too?"

Zheng Ruijun couldn't help but touch the crow's feet by his eyes, then ran a hand through his messy hair, only to come away with a handful of grease.

The static sensation on his body was fading; he knew the electrostatic field on his skin was dissipating and needed to be replenished immediately.

He retracted the needle tip of the pen back into its casing, aimed the exposed hollow opening at the skin of his arm, and was just about to press the trigger to generate static electricity when the bathroom door moved. Song Hao pushed it open and stepped inside.

Regarding Song Hao and An Lifen, Shen Xing felt they were very enthusiastic, much like Zheng Ruijun had been. However, he guessed this was likely related to him making a special trip to deliver shampoo to Song Xiaoyu; the two of them had most likely misunderstood his intentions and thought he was pursuing their daughter.

Back at the orphanage, the unusually quiet Song Xiaoyu hadn't said a word the entire time, which was a stark contrast to the behavior of her parents. Shen Xing also noticed that the skin on both of their necks was perfectly normal, without any wrinkles.

Of course, no matter what was said now, Shen Xing would not enter the bedroom.

"Please, Uncle, ask her to come out. I'll just wait here in the living room."

As soon as he finished speaking, a sound came from the bedroom door as it seemed to open. Immediately after, Song Xiaoyu, wearing floral pajamas and looking frail, walked out with her hair disheveled.

Just then, Song Hao turned and walked into the bathroom. Shortly after, An Lifen also headed toward the bathroom.

Shen Xing stood up, while Song Xiaoyu sat silently on the other end of the sofa, a fine-toothed yellow comb still hanging in her loose hair.

Clearly, she had been combing her hair just a moment ago.