Chapter 57: Confronting the Specter (2)

Qingfeng University was a long-standing and prestigious institution in Binhai, having nurtured many talented individuals. However, today, all teachers and students were forbidden from approaching the old campus, for the very reason that the Pen Fairy ghost was haunting it.

Only three students remained—a boy and two girls—being carefully watched over by a three-star Awakened, their eyes alert to every movement around them. They had all received a collaboration notice from the Specter Video Company. Though the Awakened would protect them, for the sake of the show, they might have to endure some suffering.

Of course, as the company assured them, their lives would not be at risk.

Though they would be subjected to considerable fright, the video company would compensate them handsomely. If they refused, the three-star Awakened would abandon the mission, and a one-star Spirit Investigator or Awakened would be sent in their place. In that case, not only would being scared be inevitable, but even their very lives might be forfeit. It was well known that when Awakened and ghosts of the same rank clashed, the Awakened could scarcely guarantee the safety of ordinary people.

The usual protocol was to ensure the ordinary people hadn't been possessed and, if not, evacuate them as soon as possible. If possession couldn't be ruled out, they would be isolated far from any haunted site for assessment.

Faced with the company’s mixture of threats and temptation, the three surviving students stood no chance—they became mere supporting characters in the livestream.

Who was the star?

Naturally, it was none other than Miss Pen Fairy herself—a one-star ghost! Even the three-star Awakened was only there to finish the show off with a swift exorcism at the end or to intervene in case of an accident.

Within an abandoned dormitory building, the three survivors sat at a table. The dorm was dilapidated, a thick layer of dust blanketing everything, but it was still faintly recognizable as a former girls’ dormitory.

One girl, with long black hair draped over her shoulders, spectacles perched on her nose, and a delicate, fearful expression, stammered as she addressed the others, “Do you… do you think… we’ll survive this?”

“We probably… will! A three-star Awakened should easily handle a one-star ghost!” said the only boy, drinking water to steady his nerves. His other hand gripped the girl’s as he set down his cup and tried to reassure her.

“But… he wasn’t hired by us… Will he really care? What if, for the sake of the program, we’re sacrificed?” The black-haired girl asked uncertainly. She was easy-going but clearly intelligent.

“Why did I ever agree to play this stupid game with you? Zhang Yao, Qian Feng, and Zhao Rou, you’re all bad luck—you’re going to get me killed!” snarled the other girl at the table, her heavy makeup and hot pants making her stand out. She slapped the table and glared at the others.

Beneath her disheveled blond hair, her eyes burned with resentment. Though her figure was striking, with curves accentuated by scanty clothing, her bitter gaze stripped all allure away.

At school, it was usually two boys and two girls who played Pen Fairy together—the boys hoping to get closer to the girls. After all, fear and infatuation were easily confused. But with the outbreak of actual supernatural events, this became pure folly.

“What’s it got to do with us? Li Lili, it was Qian Feng who invited you, not us! And you agreed to play Pen Fairy. No one wanted this to happen. If you have a complaint, go find Qian Feng!” Zhang Yao snapped, his temper flaring.

He was dating Zhao Rou, the easy-going girl with the black hair. As for Li Lili, he had no patience for her gold-digging ways. And Qian Feng—the boy who had already been killed by the Pen Fairy—who would dare go to him now?

“I don’t care! I don’t want to die, I really don’t want to die! I’m still young, woohoo…” Li Lili wailed, collapsing onto the dusty table in tears.

At that moment, the dormitory door opened and a young man in a magnetic-energy protective suit entered, carrying a brush with a black shaft and white bristles, about thirty centimeters long. The tip was not dipped in ordinary ink, but in magnetic energy.

What was the purpose of this brush?

He was the three-star Awakened whom the company had hired at great expense to ensure the livestream’s safety.

“Get ready—the time is almost here,” he told the three students as he approached.

“Sir, I don’t want to die! You have to protect me!” Li Lili pleaded, lifting her head. Her tear-streaked, ruined makeup made her look even more terrifying than a ghost, causing everyone in the room to frown.

The fact that ghosts could ascend by feeding on human negative emotions had been broadcasted on all major news channels in Huaguo dozens of times. Creating drama at this moment was tantamount to helping the ghost ascend—she was practically aiding the enemy!

“Don’t be afraid. It’s only a one-star ghost—it can trap you in illusions, but it can’t kill you directly. Don’t let your fear become fuel for the ghost’s ascension,” the young man said, resigned.

He had to console her—otherwise, if she did something foolish and triggered a mutation in the ghost, things would be much worse. The entire abandoned dormitory had been sealed off by the company to prevent any mishaps during the livestream.

“Please, you must protect me! I don’t want to die… I don’t want to die…” Li Lili muttered over and over, clutching her head and burying her face in her arms like an ostrich with its head in the sand.

The young man checked his phone—the time had come. He hung four blank scrolls on the room’s four walls, then quietly left. He needed to hide; if the one-star ghost sensed his presence, it would never appear.

Now, with all the supporting cast in place, it was time for the star to make her entrance.

The four scrolls began to fade, releasing invisible magnetic energy that seeped into the walls. Soon, the entire room was shrouded in an illusion woven by the young man, its effect radiating from the room out to the entire dormitory building.

Within this field, given his level of magnetic energy, it would be nearly impossible for the one-star ghost to sense its surroundings.

Inside, Li Lili still trembled at the table, while Zhang Yao and Zhao Rou held hands tightly. They were afraid, but more determined than ever to survive. Rather than pin their hopes on the Awakened, they trusted in themselves.

After all, they had already survived one pursuit by the Pen Fairy. Though Qian Feng had died, they were still alive, and each encouraged themselves in silence.

Tap… tap… tap…

Suddenly, heavy footsteps echoed at the door, as if someone was pacing outside. The scent of something burning slowly crept into the room.

At the same time, "Direct Hit: Specter" began its first livestream. To the viewers watching, the host’s voice rang out:

“Welcome to the very first episode of ‘Direct Hit: Specter’! Almost every school has its own legendary ghost stories, and among all the campus supernatural games, inviting the Pen Fairy is the most common! So today, we present to you—Miss Pen Fairy!”

The host’s voice was low and cool, sending a chill down the spine and carrying a playful edge.

Knock… knock… knock…

A heavy knocking sounded at the door. Though separated by the wooden barrier, the three inside felt as if a pair of eyes was boring through the wood, watching them intently.

On screen, the image showed the three students turning to look at the door as the knocking echoed. Their faces instantly paled, their bodies trembling more visibly.

“Who… who’s there?”

Summoning his courage, Zhang Yao shouted at the door.

They’d chosen this abandoned dormitory precisely because no one usually came here. Since the old campus had been sealed off, that was even more the case.

The cameras were all fixed inside the room; only the Awakened could be knocking. Unless…

Knock knock knock… bang bang bang…

The knocking paused at Zhang Yao’s words, then immediately escalated into a furious pounding. The wooden door shuddered under the relentless blows, threatening to splinter at any moment.

At the same time, the burnt smell flooded into the dormitory with the pounding.

“That’s the smell! Don’t come in! Get out!” Li Lili screamed, her whole body shaking. She wished the ground would swallow her up—the smell was exactly the same as the one that had suddenly appeared when things had gone wrong during their Pen Fairy game.

If an Awakened had been present, they would have seen fear radiating from her in black streams of negative energy, which gathered into a wisp of black mist and shot toward the door. The ghost was clearly there, feeding on the energy Li Lili provided.

Abruptly, the pounding ceased.

Perhaps Li Lili’s shouts had given it pause, or maybe the ghost was too busy gathering resentment to keep knocking.

Just as the three were starting to believe the young man’s illusion had worked and the ghost could not enter, a humanoid figure appeared behind Li Lili, though she was utterly unaware.

A denser wave of burnt odor swept through the room.

As the figure approached, the smell intensified. Zhang Yao and Zhao Rou noticed the source—a shape drawing nearer to Li Lili, its movements unnaturally odd. It seemed to walk backward, and where its face should have been, there was only a mass of thick, short black hair, obscuring all features.

Yet by its silhouette, it was not the same ghost that had hunted them before.