In the excessively quiet night, the knocking sounded especially harsh.

Each knock seemed to strike directly against the tip of the heart.

Wen Ruyu’s eyelashes trembled as he suddenly raised his eyes and looked toward the dormitory door.

The one being knocked on… was their dorm room.

It was already past one in the morning. No student would be returning to the dorm at this hour, and no one would be visiting someone’s room either.

So the person outside…

who was it?

Wei Jiayu frowned as well. A strange unease tightened in his chest.

The fourth roommate had something to do tonight and would not be coming back. The third roommate rarely stayed in the dorm anyway. Normally only he and Yang Ruiqing lived here.

At this hour, no one should be coming to find them.

Wei Jiayu slowly walked to the door.

He did not open it immediately. Instead he asked in a low, guarded voice.

"Who is it?"

There was no response from outside.

Only the knocking grew more and more urgent.

The force of the blows became heavier, making the door panel tremble slightly.

It felt as if the person outside had run out of patience.

A sense of unease rose in Wen Ruyu’s heart. He unconsciously pressed his lips together. His slender fingers curled slightly as his body tensed, hugging the book in his arms while staring fixedly at the door.

At one in the morning even the smallest sound was amplified. The knocking might wake the other students.

Although Wei Jiayu had received no answer, after hesitating for a few seconds he still reached for the doorknob.

Just as he was about to pull the door open a crack to see who was outside—

Bang.

A violent kick struck the door.

The dormitory door was forced open with brutal strength.

Wei Jiayu had been standing right behind the door. When it burst open it slammed directly into him, sending him stumbling backward several steps as his chest tightened painfully.

Because of the commotion, the motion activated lights in the corridor had already turned on.

The light now fell directly onto the figure standing at the doorway.

A tall figure stood there.

The man wore a black hoodie and a baseball cap. His entire body gave off a dark, dangerous aura.

The person who had come was—

Shen Ji.

He had clearly rushed here in a hurry. His breathing was slightly uneven. The moment the door was kicked open, his gaze passed over Wei Jiayu and locked directly onto Wen Ruyu.

That gaze was like a cold venomous snake locking onto its prey.

Obsessive.

Possessive.

Urgent.

"Come with me."

Shen Ji spoke without any unnecessary words. His voice was low and hoarse, filled with unquestionable authority.

Wei Jiayu’s face had already darkened the moment Shen Ji forced his way in.

Holding his aching chest, he stepped in front of Wen Ruyu, his tone icy.

"Breaking into someone’s dorm and kicking down the door in the middle of the night isn’t exactly appropriate."

Shen Ji did not even spare him a glance.

His eyes remained locked on Wen Ruyu as he spoke coldly.

"Yang Ruiqing is already dead."

"He will come to find you soon."

Wen Ruyu’s face turned pale. His slender body stiffened slightly, and even his voice trembled.

"W what do you mean?"

"He has already become a vengeful ghost."

Shen Ji spoke each word clearly.

The meaning, however, made one’s scalp crawl.

"You think stealing his photos to run romance scams online wouldn’t come with a price?"

"He is still trapped in the library for now. But when the time comes, he will come out immediately."

"And the first person he will come looking for…"

"is you."

It was obvious that Shen Ji knew far more than ordinary people.

He clearly understood the strange nature of this university.

He also knew that after Yang Ruiqing died, he would turn into a vengeful ghost.

The library’s restraint would not hold for long.

Once Yang Ruiqing broke free, the first person he would seek out would undoubtedly be the one who had indirectly caused his death.

Every time it happened the same way.

Aside from those who died inside the library itself, the first person to die was always the one who had stolen the photos to commit online scams.

In the past Shen Ji had never cared who died first.

He had never even known who that person was.

But now that he knew him…

he could not ignore it.

He could not stand by and watch this person die.

Death here might not be true death.

Nor was it disappearance in the conventional sense.

But the person who returned afterward might not still be the same person.

Shen Ji understood that better than anyone.

Even he himself was gradually losing the ability to remain clear minded.

All of them had long since been broken.

Wei Jiayu, however, clearly knew none of this.

To him, the man standing before them sounded like a lunatic spouting nonsense.

Seeing Shen Ji step toward Wen Ruyu, he immediately shouted sharply.

"What nonsense are you talking about?! A vengeful ghost? Coming to find him?"

"Do you think we’re three year old kids?!"

"Get out!"

"If you don’t leave I’m calling the police!"

Wen Ruyu’s face had grown even paler.

His slender body trembled slightly.

Unlike Wei Jiayu, he believed Shen Ji’s words.

After all, the dungeon had already formed.

Yang Ruiqing might not know that someone had tried to kill him.

From his perspective, it would seem that the stolen photos and online scams had caused his unjust death.

Of course he would not let it go.

If he truly became a vengeful ghost, the first person he would kill would certainly be Wen Ruyu.

And the man standing in front of him…

clearly was not ordinary.

From what he had just said, it was obvious that he knew a great deal.

Combined with that abnormal strength, even if something dangerous happened he would likely be capable of escaping.

Going with him seemed like the best choice.

Just as Wen Ruyu trembled slightly and began to stand, intending to follow Shen Ji—

Shen Ji lost the last of his patience.

He suddenly grabbed Wei Jiayu and dragged him aside.

The strength was so great it was completely beyond that of a normal person.

Wei Jiayu was thrown directly against the desk beside him with a loud crash.

"I don’t have time to waste."

Shen Ji strode forward and seized Wen Ruyu’s slender wrist.

His grip was so strong it left no room for resistance.

Wen Ruyu had no intention of resisting anyway.

But the sudden action still startled him.

His eyes widened as he instinctively tried to pull his hand free.

However, his strength was far too small.

In front of Shen Ji, he was like a child.

Completely powerless.

Holding Wen Ruyu’s thin wrist tightly, Shen Ji turned and dragged him straight toward the dormitory door.

His pace was fast as he headed directly toward the stairwell.

Wen Ruyu stumbled from the sudden pull.

He could not match Shen Ji’s stride and could only struggle to keep up.

He looked fragile.

Helpless.

Like someone being forcibly taken away.

Wei Jiayu had only just recovered from the impact when he saw Wen Ruyu being dragged away.

He immediately rushed forward to stop them.

But the moment he reached them, Shen Ji pushed him back with one hand.

Wei Jiayu’s back slammed violently against the wall.

He fell directly to the floor.

The pain was so intense that he could not get up for a long time.

All he could do was watch helplessly as Wen Ruyu was forcibly taken away.

He stared at their disappearing figures.

His nails dug deeply into his palms.

His eyes were filled with gloom and helplessness.

He hated it.

Hated his own weakness.

Hated that he could not protect the person he wanted to protect.

Gritting his teeth, Wei Jiayu endured the pain and pulled out his phone, preparing to call the police.

But before he could press the call button—

two figures suddenly appeared at the stairwell corner.

The same two people who had just left.

Wei Jiayu: "…?"

His finger froze.

Confusion appeared on his face.

He could not understand why they had come back.

Or what was happening now.

Wasn’t this supposed to be a kidnapping?

Shen Ji had not intended to bring Wen Ruyu back.

But when the two of them had just reached the stairwell, they saw people coming up from downstairs.

And not just one or two.

A whole group.

If they continued going down, they would run straight into them.

Shen Ji did not want anyone to know he had taken Wen Ruyu.

Nor did he want Yang Ruiqing’s attention to lock directly onto them.

He had no desire to provoke that madman.

No one dared provoke that madman.

Shen Ji made a decision almost instantly.

He pulled Wen Ruyu back upstairs.

Back to Wei Jiayu’s dormitory.

When they passed Wei Jiayu in the corridor, Shen Ji grabbed him by the back of his collar like he was dragging a piece of trash and roughly hauled him back into the dorm as well.

Then he shut the door.

And turned off the lights.

It was already past one in the morning.

Most students were asleep.

Almost no dorm rooms in the entire building still had lights on.

After Shen Ji switched off the lights, the dormitory lost its only source of illumination.

The room instantly fell into darkness.

Only the faint glow of the streetlamp outside filtered in through the window.

When people were placed in darkness where they could not see clearly, their nerves tightened instinctively.

Other senses became sharper.

Especially hearing.

Soon, hurried footsteps echoed from the stairwell.

Wei Jiayu had been furious after being dragged back into the dorm.

Just as he was recovering from the pain and preparing to confront Shen Ji—

he heard the footsteps in the corridor.

His heart tightened.

Instinctively he fell silent.

The footsteps were chaotic.

And urgent.

They were coming straight toward their room.

Closer.

Closer.

Finally—

they stopped outside their door.

The next moment, muffled voices began speaking outside.

A man asked in a low voice.

"Are you sure it’s this dorm room?"

"It should be."

A woman replied softly, confusion in her voice.

"Wasn’t the light just on?"

"Maybe they just went to sleep."

The man continued quietly.

"Try knocking."

As soon as his words fell, knocking sounded again.

Knock knock knock.

This time the knocks were much softer.

But still extremely clear in the silent night.

Then the same man spoke again in a polite and gentle voice.

"Hello, is anyone there?"

"We’re police officers. Please open the door and cooperate with the investigation."

The moment Wei Jiayu heard the word "police," he instinctively moved to open the door.

But Shen Ji immediately grabbed him.

"He’s lying."

Shen Ji whispered in a voice so quiet it was almost inaudible.

He dealt with the police more often than most people.

He was very familiar with them.

And he was absolutely certain—

the people outside were not police.

Wei Jiayu froze.

Confusion and doubt filled his eyes.

He suspected the man in front of him was the one lying.

Seeing the suspicion in his gaze, Shen Ji normally would not have bothered explaining.

But since he was inside the dorm as well, he forced himself to speak again.

Still in a low voice.

"Police usually work in pairs during routine investigations."

"Unless it’s a large scale operation or the arrest of a suspect, they don’t move in groups like that."

"The people outside…"

"are not police."

Wei Jiayu had never dealt with the police before.

He knew nothing about these procedures.

Half believing and half doubting, he pulled out his phone and searched it.

It was true.

His fingertips trembled violently.

The people outside the door…

were probably not police at all.

Chapter 31

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