“Andy, what do you need me to investigate these things for?” Sophia leaned in slightly.
“Ghost hunting,” Li Andy replied.
“Are there really such things?” Sophia shivered.
Li Andy nodded, “I’m not sure about the others, but there is indeed a ghost in that academy that can attach itself to various machines. My goal is to catch it, and… to find out who is behind it.”
“Then what else do I need to do?”
Sophia curled around Li Andy from behind like a cooked shrimp around chopsticks, asking with some unease,
“Let’s be clear, I can’t exorcise!”
Li Andy glanced at her, suddenly recalling a joke he had seen before: when there’s no danger, the brother is the most dangerous; when there’s danger, the brother is the safest.
“Heh heh, just focus on your growth. When you can last three rounds against Sister Amy, I’ll consider giving you a raise and more challenging tasks.”
Sophia frowned, “I know you learned some strange things from the Headmistress, but don’t let money make you reckless!”
“I know what I’m doing,” Li Andy closed his notebook.
Sophia lightly pursed her lips, a hint of hesitation flashing in her eyes. Moments later, she gently lifted her skirt, resting a long, fair leg over.
“??”
Li Andy’s eyes widened slightly, his heart filled with surprise.
“Rub… rub medicine!” Sophia gritted her teeth, sounding strong but her face was beet red.
That’s right, it’s much better to be honest.
In this day and age, tsundere isn’t in style anymore.
Li Andy couldn’t help but curve his lips, taking out the medicated oil and dripping it onto the soft jade.
Initially cool, then warm and tingling.
Sophia hugged her pillow, her ears flushed, chatting about her experiences at the academy as if to distract herself.
She said she met a strange girl; the girl was small, but she alone knocked down three people. Although she didn’t know what their conflict was, that short girl gave her a very dangerous feeling! Just like… the Headmistress when she became demonic back then.
She said the students at that academy were also very strange, even harder to get along with than the orphans at their orphanage. Their groups had clear hierarchies and various strange taboos. It took her a lot of effort to squeeze into their circles. But after spending some time with them, she realized that everyone was actually just ordinary people…
She said there were many things in class she had never seen before, like typewriters, all sorts of incense, and illustration techniques, but did nobles… really like those things?
She also said that going to school actually felt pretty good, if only… the school were a bit more normal.
Li Andy nodded gently in agreement from time to time, his hands slowly pushing and pressing with his breathing. He maintained a perfectly appropriate distance, yet with a hint of unintentional intimacy. Time flowed quietly in this tranquility, as if even the air had become soft.
Unbeknownst to them, the midnight bell had already chimed.
Sophia looked out the window with some concern:
“Has Youxi not returned yet?”
Li Andy looked up at the gas lamp, which had burned down more than halfway, his brow gradually furrowing:
“Let’s go find her.”
Just as he was about to get up, the door suddenly made a slight sound and slowly opened.
Outside the door, there was no one.
The dim corridor seemed to be enveloped by a thick shadow, with no figures visible, only endless silence and darkness.
Sophia shivered, pressing tightly against Andy from behind.
Li Andy narrowed his eyes, seeing a streak of white in the darkness, slowly growing larger.
A few seconds later, Youxi’s figure appeared at the edge of the lamplight.
Li Andy’s pupils constricted rapidly.
Youxi’s pretty face was expressionless, her eyes completely empty.
Half of her dark long hair had actually turned a dazzling white!
The longevity lock that was always around her neck was now nowhere to be found!
The half-feathered seal failed?!
What’s going on?!
What did that woman Anna do?!
At this moment, Youxi’s eyes gradually focused, staring coldly at him. Li Andy immediately felt a chill down his spine; the feeling of his soul being torn apart that day reappeared!
“Youxi, wake up!” Li Andy clutched the revolver in his arms, struggling internally.
Youxi seemed not to hear, taking one step, then two, rapidly approaching.
But the next second, Li Andy’s brain crashed.
However… it wasn’t a crash from soul damage.
Instead… two soft, small petals were blocking his mouth.
The pain of his soul being torn rapidly faded. Sophia covered her head and looked up, her mouth wide open in surprise.
Then, Yuquan Youxi, as if her last bit of energy had been exhausted, slumped softly into Li Andy’s arms.
At the same time, the air behind Youxi suddenly twisted, and two masses of black mist slowly condensed into shape.
Immediately after, two Faceless Nuns, nearly three meters tall, emerged from the black mist. They floated silently to the bedside, like a pair of loyal dead servants, quietly standing guard.
Li Andy froze, looking down at the unconscious Youxi:
“You borrowed ‘non-object’?!”
She… she actually cultivated!
Just then, footsteps sounded in the corridor.
“Tap, tap, tap…”
Sister Anna, wearing an eye patch, walked into the room.
Li Andy looked at her, and she slightly curved her lips, revealing a strange smile.
…
…
“Dong—dong—”
The bell echoed above the church.
The hands of the large clock swung with a heavy ‘thud’ to two o’clock in the morning.
In the dim room, two white candles spontaneously ignited, their ghostly blue flames flickering in the darkness, casting shifting light and shadow on the faces of Sister Anna and Li Andy.
Li Andy subconsciously looked around, only to find that the room seemed to be swallowed by thick darkness, making even its outlines difficult to discern.
This was his first time entering Night Raven Sister’s room, yet he couldn’t even find the door he came through.
His gaze finally returned to Sister Anna’s face, trying to discern some clue from her pale countenance. However, the thick black eye patch was like a barrier woven from mist, keeping all prying eyes out.
“Don’t worry, your sister is fine. She just borrowed some power from ‘the Lord,’ borrowed some… ‘non-object.’”
A soft female voice spoke,
“In our world… ‘object’ is everything tangible that we perceive. Sometimes they are ordinary, but sometimes they are mysterious bridges, ineffable vessels, and even witnesses to covenants. For example, ancient artifacts, mysterious talismans, cursed treasures, and even spirits of nature.
“And ‘non-object’ are the invisible existences that we cannot directly perceive, cannot touch, and cannot comprehend. They are the source of mystery, the secrets of the universe, the primordial chaos, they are rules, they are consciousness, and they are… the only ‘things’ we can borrow to fight against the strange.”
Li Andy was silent for a moment, his gaze like a knife piercing into Sister Anna’s eyes, hidden by the eye patch:
“There’s always a price for borrowing! Did you force her to borrow?”
He had thought about tricking Youxi into borrowing non-object for cultivation before, but the prerequisite was that he thoroughly understood the risks and rules involved.
However, in just a few days, Youxi had already embarked on this unknown path, completely disrupting his plans.
Sister Anna did not answer immediately, but instead, her lips curved slightly, revealing a meaningful smile:
“Did Father John teach you these things?”
Li Andy pressed his lips together, remaining silent.
Sister Anna did not press further, only shaking her head gently:
“Firstly, I did not force your sister. Secondly, she doesn’t have to pay a price.”
“No price?” Li Andy’s pupils constricted slightly.
Sister Anna slowly explained:
“She is a darling of spirituality; as long as she doesn’t get lost, she will never need to pay a price.”
“What if she gets lost?”
Sister Anna smiled:
“Pay… everything.”
“Everything…” Li Andy’s Adam’s apple subtly bobbed, “What does that mean?”
“It means exactly what it says.”
Anna said with a faint, chilling smile,
“If one day you feel you’ve forgotten someone, perhaps that person truly existed once.”
“…” Li Andy was silent for a few seconds, “Then how can she avoid getting lost?”
“Find your own anchor.”
“What is an anchor?”
“It can be anything, an object, a memory, or even… a person.”
“What is my sister’s anchor?”
Sister Anna smiled without speaking, simply gazing at him quietly.
Li Andy was stunned for a moment, then reacted:
“Me?”
“Yes, it’s you,” Sister Anna responded softly.
Li Andy fell silent again.
“…Then… can I cultivate by borrowing non-object?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because you are a discarded child of spirituality.”