第28章 别点灯

The mist grew even thicker, like a slowly closing white curtain that swallowed the light at the entrance of Dorm Seven bit by bit.

Tang San's back was already soaked in cold sweat.

He turned his head sideways, his voice low, squeezing out from the bottom of his throat: "Xiao Wu, hide, anywhere will do, just hide."

Xiao Wu did not move.

Tang San shouted again: "Xiao Wu!"

She still did not move.

She stood in front of him, her entire body rigid like a block of wood.

Her eyes were wide open, her lips parted slightly, wanting to scream, but the sound was completely choked in her throat.

She just stared blankly at Tang San's left shoulder.

Tang San saw the look in her eyes.

That was not the look of "watch out behind you." It was the look of "it's already too late."

His throat tightened, and he turned his face very, very slowly.

On his shoulder, at some unknown point in time, something extra had appeared.

It was very cold.

Like a piece of silk fished out of a well, or like an extremely thin finger sliding across the back of his neck, bit by bit, crawling toward the front of his throat.

Tang San's pupils suddenly shrank to the size of pinpricks.

His whole body felt as if it had been struck by lightning, his spirit power burst forth with a boom, the blue silver grass grew wildly, and the Clear Sky Hammer appeared in response.

He closed his eyes, no longer caring about any hidden weapons, movement techniques, or judgment, and simply swung wildly behind him, driven by a terror surging from the cracks in his bones.

"Ahhhhhhhh--!"

(;´༎ຶД༎ຶ`)

The Clear Sky Hammer smashed out with a dull sound of wind, and he heard himself scream.

The hammer slammed into the door frame, shaking the entire Dorm Seven as if it were quaking. He swung a second time, this time smashing into the ground, and the stone slab cracked with a crack.

He did not know what he had actually hit, and when he opened his eyes tentatively while panting heavily, there was nothing left around him.

The chill on his shoulder was also gone.

There was only the mist, and the trembling tail end of his own scream that had not yet dissipated.

"San-ge..." Xiao Wu was on the verge of tears.

"San-ge..." Xiao Wu was on the verge of tears, her nails digging fiercely into Tang San's arm.

She dared not look outside the door, nor dared she look inside the room, and could only bury her face behind his back, her spirit power scattered in a complete mess.

Tang San was no better off.

His lower back pressed against the door frame, his chest felt as if it were being gripped by someone, and even his breathing trembled.

The Clear Sky Hammer was still held horizontally in front of him, but there was only mist in front of him.

That mist seemed even thicker than before, and even the shadow of the old locust tree outside the door could not be seen.

The whole world seemed to be packed into a white cloth bag, suffocating people with panic.

"Listen to me."

He lowered his voice, speaking almost in a breath: "Get up slowly, we'll go back inside and light a lamp."

Xiao Wu nodded, her limbs weak as she followed him and backed away.

When they retreated to the edge of the bed, Tang San felt for his flint.

He struck it with a click.

The flame leaped up.

At that very instant, he saw the opposite wall.

On the wall, at some unknown time, an extra line of characters had appeared.

Red characters.

As if written by dipping in something. The handwriting was crooked and still dripping down, as if written not long ago:

"Don't light the lamp."

Tang San's hand shook, and the flint almost dropped to the ground.

Xiao Wu froze on the spot.

"Ah!"

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh--!" ×2

(;´༎ຶД༎ຶ`) ×2

The two screams almost blew the roof of Dorm Seven off.

Tang San grabbed Xiao Wu, and Xiao Wu grabbed Tang San, the two of them acting as if they were chased by a ghost for three streets.

The flint dropped to the ground with a snap, rolled to the edge of the bed, and the room went dark again.

Then, an irrepressible laugh came from overhead.

"Hhahahahahaha--!"

Luo Yan rolled down from the roof beam.

Xiao Wu was still trembling all over. She pointed at the dark figure on the ground, her voice shaking: "Luo... Luo Yan?"

"It's me! Of course it's me! Who else could it be, a ghost?"

Luo Yan rolled around laughing: "I just made some mist, made a fake hand, and patted your shoulder—good grief! San-er, you almost demolished this dump of mine! What did the door frame ever do to you? You were smashing it all over the place?!"

Tang San did not speak, only panting heavily.

With one hand supporting the wall and the other still gripping the Clear Sky Hammer, the sweat on his forehead dripped down his chin. The back of his neck was still numb, and his back was as wet as if he had been fished out of a river.

He slowly turned his head to look at Luo Yan.

Xiao Wu exploded first.

"Luo Yan, are you out of your mind?! Playing god and acting like a ghost in the middle of the night! Paper dolls! Embroidered shoes! Red characters! And touching necks! Whose neck are you touching! Do you believe I'll twist your neck off right now and use it as a door knocker?!"

The angrier she got, the more she picked up another pillow on the bed and smashed it at Luo Yan's head.

After smashing the pillow, she copied a shoe, copied a teapot, and threw whatever she could lay her hands on.

Luo Yan dodged while laughing: "I was wrong! Wrong, wrong! Wasn't I just thinking of adding some color to you and San-ge's dull academy life?!"

"Add your head! You scared San-ge so much he called for his mommy!"

"I didn't call for my mommy!" Tang San roared.

"You did!" Xiao Wu and Luo Yan said in unison.

Tang San was so angry he laughed, genuinely laughing. He slowly stood straight, walked up to Luo Yan, let out a laugh, and laughed again: "Luo Yan, if you aren't buried at the base of the wall by me tonight, I'll write the two characters for 'Tang San' upside down."

Luo Yan's eyes lit up instantly: "San Tang? This name sounds pretty good too. Do you want me to give you a pen name called San Tang? From now on, whenever you go out, just say you're my younger brother!"

"I am your--!" Tang San grabbed Luo Yan by the neck, but before he could exert any force, he suddenly paused.

Footsteps.

Hasty and chaotic, like a dozen pairs of feet running over from the end of the corridor simultaneously.

Someone was shouting: "Over there! Dorm Seven! Hurry!"

Tang San and Xiao Wu looked at Luo Yan at the same time.

"What did you mess with this time?" Tang San lowered his voice.

Luo Yan spread his hands, his face still wearing that smile distorted by Xiao Wu: "This really isn't me this time. I'm right here in front of you guys, but—"

He tilted his head, his eyes slanting toward the outside of the door, and smiled even deeper.

"You guys seem to be in trouble."

"What trouble?" Before Xiao Wu could finish speaking, the doorway was already jammed with people.

Leading the group was Yu Xiaogang, followed by the night-duty teacher and several senior teaching assistants, each of their expressions a mix of shock and anxiety.

They had obviously heard the two screams from earlier, or perhaps the sound of the hammer smashing the door.

"Xiao San! What's wrong?!"

Yu Xiaogang stepped inside in one stride, startled by the crack on the door frame.

He lowered his head to look at the threshold, then at the cracked stone slab on the ground: "That commotion just now... did a fight break out? Is anyone hurt?"

Tang San subconsciously wanted to raise his hand to point at Luo Yan.

"It was hi—"

Before he finished speaking, he turned his head.

Behind him was empty and desolate.

At the spot where Luo Yan had stood, only a single embroidered shoe thrown on the ground by Xiao Wu was left behind.

The other one still lay lonely at the doorway, and the mist had completely dispersed.

The old locust tree rang softly outside the window, and the person was already gone.

Tang San turned back again; all the teachers were looking at him, and Yu Xiaogang's brows furrowed tighter and tighter.

"Xiao San."

Yu Xiaogang's voice sank: "What on earth is going on? Who was here? You said 'it was him,' who?"

Tang San opened his mouth, and after a long time squeezed out two words: "...A mouse."

"A mouse?" Yu Xiaogang obviously did not believe it: "A mouse could drive you to smash the entrance?"

"It was a very big mouse." Xiao Wu added in a low voice beside him: "Really... especially big. It could laugh."

"It could laugh?" Yu Xiaogang exchanged glances with several teachers, their expressions growing even stranger.

Tang San took a deep breath and turned his face away.

What else could he say?

Say that Luo Yan had come back, played a ghost to scare them, and even touched his neck, resulting in him closing his eyes in fear and wrecking Dorm Seven?

"I... I'll go to sleep first, I had a bit of a nightmare." Tang San said, his tone as dry as swallowing half a catty of sand.

"Xiao San, your complexion is terrible."

Yu Xiaogang walked a step closer, lowering his voice: "Is it because your cultivation has been too intense lately? You even used the Clear Sky Hammer..."

"No, Teacher."

Tang San interrupted quickly: "I might have... really seen a mouse."

"Yes! A mouse!"

Xiao Wu nodded fiercely: "And it could call! The cry was extremely miserable! Just like a person! Really!"

Yu Xiaogang looked at the two students in front of him with pale faces and vacant eyes, then looked at the crumbling door.

He sighed, as if he understood something, yet as if he understood nothing at all.

"Report for repairs tomorrow."

He said: "You two go sleep in the empty room next door tonight; don't stay here."

"Okay." Tang San replied quickly.

When the teachers had all left, a whistle rang out.

The two looked toward the sound, and Luo Yan leaned against the roof beam, winking and making faces at them.

"Was it fun?"

Xiao Wu extended the Great Desolation Prison Finger: "I'll fun you (hundred-thousand-year-old spirit beast curse)!"