Little Pink Starfish

Hua Rongyue’s sudden departure left Wu Ci completely at a loss. He vaguely recalled seeing a flash of red in her eyes just before she ran.

But before he had time to feel afraid, Hua Rongyue had already turned and left, catching him entirely off guard. He had no choice but to stay behind and handle the aftermath alone — burying the body and escorting the girl out.

Meanwhile, Hua Rongyue’s mind was buzzing. Her thoughts were spiraling out of control, and as she ran, she pleaded with the voice in her head: “Please, I’m begging you — stop! If this keeps going, something bad is going to happen!”

Strangely enough, that seemed to work. Though her mind had been on the verge of exploding, her plea seemed to pacify it somewhat. She leaned against a wall, trying to calm herself. Her face must’ve been pale as paper. The cause of all this — no doubt — was the man who had taken his own life earlier.

He had probably killed himself for the girl’s sake.

That tragic scene had provoked the “other one” in her mind.

Hua Rongyue could feel her inner guest throwing a fit — like a moody teenage girl. Not enough to go berserk, but certainly not letting things go peacefully either.

“Take a break already!” Hua Rongyue yelled internally. “Can we talk this out, please? Disappearing so suddenly is too suspicious — Wu Ci will definitely start suspecting something.”

Then she remembered to add hastily, “Of course, you’re a big shot, I know that. You’re not afraid of some small fry like him. But still… we gotta survive out here, right?”

Once she finished speaking, she really did feel a bit better.

Huh? Did… did acting pitiful actually work on this moody ghost?

Was she dealing with… a tsundere?

Holding on to that weird suspicion, Hua Rongyue turned to the side — and saw someone standing there, watching her for quite a while. She jumped in surprise. It was a lame man — a cripple.

…

But this cripple seemed harder to deal with than most able-bodied men.

Hua Rongyue’s hair practically stood on end. The man stood with arms crossed, quietly observing her.

“How long have you been like this?” he asked.

“Like what?” Hua Rongyue feigned ignorance.

No way Wu Ming could really tell something was wrong with her. After all, she wasn’t the one with the problem.

— The one with the issue was Yi Linglong, not Hua Rongyue. If only she could swap bodies, all this mess would disappear. Now that she’d calmed the other voice, she was totally fine again — not afraid of any questioning.

So she stood confidently, without a hint of guilt.

But Wu Ming just replied in a mild voice, “If this goes on, something bad will happen. Better be cautious while you’re still young.”

He looked at her and said, “Seems like you’ve already been to that girl’s place. Is she still alive?”

“She is,” Hua Rongyue replied.

“That’s good,” Wu Ming said. “I don’t know what the Songshan Sect has to do with you, but I won’t try to stop you if you want to interfere.”

“But don’t take everything so seriously,” he added softly.
“People who are too serious tend to walk into dead ends — and once you’re in, it’s hard to get out.”

“…Thanks for the warning.” Hua Rongyue gave a polite nod to this strange man who had appeared out of nowhere, then turned and left.

Wu Ming didn’t seem offended by her cool response. Maybe he knew popping up like that was odd. He turned and went back into his house.

What was that about? Why had Wu Ming suddenly come out to tell her not to be so serious? Honestly, his advice rubbed Hua Rongyue the wrong way.

— Because being “serious” wasn’t Yi Linglong’s trait. It was hers.

That comment — whether it was just something Wu Ming said in passing or not — felt strangely personal, as though he had been speaking directly to her, not Yi Linglong. And Hua Rongyue had always carefully distinguished herself from the fragments of Yi Linglong’s consciousness within her.

But now, the word “serious” made her feel as though her identity was blurring.

It was then she realized: in her dazed state, she had once again run to Wu Ming’s home.

Was this place cursed or something? Why did she always end up here when she lost control?

Terrifying.

…

Still, what she did had earned her real credit. While the Songshan Sect had already given up, she had gone alone, rescued the girl, and — in the eyes of Six Doors — proved herself.

In short, Hua Rongyue had just earned an S-rank rating.

They praised her for her meticulousness and diligence. She even got a raise. The rescued girl was later sent home by Yu Ci and didn’t manage to leave the mountains.

Hua Rongyue also returned to Baicaotang and greeted the remaining Songshan Sect disciples. The short one looked surprised to see her back, but she greeted him like nothing had ever happened — just as she had the first time they met.

The short guy seemed a little guilty for having left earlier. He exchanged a few words with her, then, too embarrassed, made an excuse and slipped away. Fangcunj i, on the other hand, came over calmly and chatted with Hua Rongyue as though nothing had happened.

His composure was impressive — Hua Rongyue knew she couldn’t manage something like that.

Doctor Qi quietly asked her what had happened. Hua Rongyue whispered back, “I’ll tell you later.”

The Songshan Sect left. But Wu Ci stayed behind. He wasn’t sick — just sitting around. Doctor Qi was puzzled by his presence but couldn’t exactly throw him out.

Hua Rongyue knew why he stayed — clearly it was because of what he’d seen that day.

But she couldn’t say anything.

There were Six Doors agents nearby — normally her intel contacts, but if they overheard something suspicious, they’d report her in a heartbeat.

Even though she was part of the “Eye” division, that didn’t mean she could act insane without orders. If those agents caught wind that she’d “lost it” that day, things could go very badly.

So Hua Rongyue decided to play dumb. She kept her head down and worked like usual. Wu Ci, however, edged closer, observing her carefully. Her complexion had returned to normal. Her movements were smooth again — not like the stiffness of that day.

It was as if nothing had happened. Maybe it had all been his imagination.

But Wu Ci knew he would never forget the sight of Hua Rongyue sitting pale-faced in that room. His jaw clenched, his hands trembling slightly. If she really was insane, that moment was the first time he’d seen any trace of it.

And it had clearly been triggered by something.

He looked at this gentle-seeming apprentice doctor. On the surface, Hua Rongyue behaved like any ordinary apprentice — aside from being unusually handsome and well-dressed.

But Wu Ming knew the truth — he knew how terrifying this person really was.

Which is why Hua Rongyue’s decision to hide away in this tiny place always seemed strange to Wu Ci. He didn’t believe it was without reason. Outsiders didn’t know the story, but he had a hunch there was more to it.

If Hua Rongyue were to explain it honestly, she would tell him — it was all because of another “god-tier” presence messing with her. None of this was actually her doing.

But she couldn’t say that.

“After you got back… you haven’t felt unwell again, right?” Wu Ci asked, trailing after her.

Hua Rongyue glanced sideways and spotted a Six Doors informant passing by the clinic, eyeing them. Her heart sank. She had to find a way to get rid of Wu Ci. Or, failing that… silence him somehow…

Just as she began to weigh whether to do something drastic, Wu Ci leaned in even closer. Hua Rongyue’s mind raced, trying to come up with an excuse that wouldn’t draw attention from the informants.

People always said she was stubborn — but compared to this guy, she didn’t even come close. This was real stubbornness right here.

And indeed, people who took things too seriously often ended up obsessively chasing ghosts. Like Wu Ci, now.

But thinking about obsession made her recall the conversation she’d had in Shibatting with Wu Ming:

“People who are too serious tend to walk into dead ends — and once you’re in, it’s hard to get out.”

…Huh?

Hua Rongyue suddenly had a mischievous impulse. She wanted to spook Wu Ci a little — to teach this nosy kid a lesson. Some things just shouldn’t be poked at too deeply. Otherwise… you’d go mad.

And it wasn’t just her saying that — even seasoned madman Wu Ming had said it.

Maybe it was all the time she’d been spending around Xiao Han, but she was starting to get a bit playful. And with her innocent appearance, even when she caused mischief, people would just blame themselves.

“That day… did you remember something?” Wu Ci was still fishing. “If it was painful, you can talk to me.”

At that moment, Hua Rongyue turned to him. Her voice dropped low — different from usual. Her eyes suddenly filled with deep emotion — part pain, part tender nostalgia.

“He said a lot of things I still remember. I still remember all the things he liked, too.”

Her voice grew softer with each word.

This should scare you for life, Hua Rongyue thought, amused.

— Otherwise, you little brat will never learn when to stop digging.