Following the direction of Yan Junze's pointing finger, Zhang Tiantian's upside-down head slowly turned, a mechanical motion, as she looked at the red pen.
Then a wide-open right hand appeared from top to bottom, its finger joints bent, its skin deathly pale, slowly approaching the red pen and gently grasping it.
Yan Junze had already stood up, rubbing his somewhat numb knees and cursing internally, "Zhang Tiantian must still be possessed! Otherwise, which normal person would pick up a pen in slow motion? Just grab it, why make it so creepy!"
Seizing the moment she bent to pick up the pen, Yan Junze backed away again, wanting to put as much distance as possible between himself and that office desk.
It was only when he had backed up to the front of the sofa that he realized if he moved back any further, he would no longer be able to see Zhang Tiantian.
Yan Junze glanced at his phone that he had been clutching all along—it showed 5 minutes and 28 seconds remaining.
This timeline left him speechless, leading him to suspect an issue with the timer on his phone.
It was at this moment, Zhang Tiantian's body straightened up again. Her once lovely wavy hair was now even more disheveled, as if she were a lunatic who had escaped from an insane asylum.
However, she was still facing away from Yan Junze, towards the filing cabinet, unmoving.
Now that she had found the pen, Yan Junze merely hoped she would sit quietly, just like Ke'er used to watch him wash his hair in silence, without causing any more trouble.
But almost at the same time, a "huh" sound came over.
At first, Yan Junze thought Ke'er had entered the office and quickly looked behind him, only to realize the sound had come from Zhang Tiantian's direction.
"Where is the pen?" Zhang Tiantian continued, "Have you seen my pen?"
"Damn it!" Yan Junze was completely at a loss for words.
Hadn't you just picked it up? Why are you asking again?
But this time, he had no intention of going over there again, because Zhang Tiantian's way of asking was clearly a trick to lure him back.
That red pen must have been in her hand; of this Yan Junze was certain. She had just managed to pick it up and now she was starting to ask him again, wanting him to come over and help search for it.
No way!
This time, absolutely not!
"Never mind, let it be if you can't find it," Zhang Tiantian's voice rose again.
But what she said next made Yan Junze jump, "Just make a cut, suck out her Essence Qi, no need to exert so much."
At the same time as those words fell, Zhang Tiantian no longer faced the direction of the filing cabinet but turned slowly in her seat.
Yan Junze hesitated for a moment. He had planned to retreat to the office door where he could completely lose sight of Zhang Tiantian, but the moment she turned back, he found himself unable to take another step.
His feet might as well have taken root, glued to the spot, his gaze fixed on the rotating chair.
Not until Zhang Tiantian had completed her turn to face him again did Yan Junze feel a chill through his body, his scalp tightened sharply, and he felt icy all over.
The red ballpoint pen, which Zhang Tiantian herself had just picked up, was now inserted in her right eye socket, not very deep and looking as though it could fall out at any moment.
And Zhang Tiantian herself, although bleeding, seemed completely unaware of it.
"The Possession Spirit has started to harm its possessed victim!" Yan Junze immediately concluded.
He must not let it hurt Zhang Tiantian.
And just now, this guy even mentioned something about making an incision and sucking dry her Essence Qi.
"Troublesome?" Yan Junze, not knowing where he got the courage from, didn't retreat but instead stepped forward, saying, "Teacher, weren't you looking for that red pen?"
As he spoke, he moved closer to Zhang Tiantian's desk.
He remembered the task note had warned: Do not try to provoke it, or else the consequences would be severe.
If it was about buying time, then he should save her if he could, before this thing did irreversible harm to Zhang Tiantian. To simply watch Zhang Tiantian being toyed with to death right before his eyes was something Yan Junze simply couldn't do.
Moreover, if something happened to Zhang Tiantian, it was very likely that he would be next.
In just a few minutes, with the Possession Spirit's strangeness and power, it could torture Yan Junze ten times over.
The level of Trembling with Fear was indeed not for nothing.
Seeing Yan Junze walk back, Zhang Tiantian forced a gentle smile on her face, the corners of her mouth curving in a tempting arc, but coupled with the red pen twisted awkwardly in her eye socket, it looked unnerving.
Blood dripped down, already staining part of her blouse and pants red.
"Yes, where is the pen? I clearly had it just now, you must find it for me! Quickly!"
Yan Junze had already reached the other side of the desk, forcibly keeping calm and trying to make his tone as even as possible, "Okay, teacher. I will give you the pen now, please don't move."
Zhang Tiantian showed a hint of surprise and nodded.
In Yan Junze's view, the task background was very clear, "As a Possession Spirit, it is very lonely. Nobody has ever cared for or cherished it, so it can't let go. Therefore, it fell in love with attachment, preferring to bask in the embrace of pure auras, slowly draining the Essence Qi of its host, and then swallowing it bit by bit."
This meant that the entity might actually be reasonable to talk to, albeit with a quirky personality. If he could just meet its demands and stall for a little while, the mission could still be accomplished.
The main thing was, if it couldn't find the red pen now, it might start to extract Zhang Tiantian's Essence Qi.
Try to satisfy it, do not go against it. Yan Junze made up his mind.
Suppressing his disgust, nausea, inner resistance, trembling fingers, and the urge to run away, Yan Junze's left hand supported the desk as he raised his right hand and slowly reached for the red pen embedded in Zhang Tiantian's eye.
Time seemed to stand still.
It felt like a very long time before his fingers finally clasped the red ballpoint pen, while Zhang Tiantian, perfectly cooperative, didn't move at all, her other eye gazing steadily at the sweat-drenched Yan Junze.
At this moment, Yan Junze felt he had badly miscalculated. Because back when he was outside the office, Ke'er had already scampered off his back, and the constant chill that had accompanied him was gone; he should have immediately taken off the thick sweater he was wearing.
Now, already on edge, combined with the insulation of the thick sweater, he was truly burning up like joss paper in a coffin—overheated to the point of death.
The cap of the pen had long since fallen off, leaving just the pen barrel clinging on.
As Yan Junze gripped the red pen, large beads of sweat rolled down his cheeks, but without hesitation, he bore the fear and disgust, slowly pulling the red pen from Zhang Tiantian's eye socket.
Throughout the process, Zhang Tiantian didn't show any reaction; she didn't display the slightest pain nor did her lips even twitch.
Unexpectedly, not much blood flowed out, and the moment the pen tip was completely extracted, a lump of sticky substance also came out with it, with a plop, landing on Zhang Tiantian's thigh.
Yan Junze dared not look too closely, his whole right hand trembling severely now.
The red ballpoint pen was held up in front of Zhang Tiantian's other eye.
"Wow, you found it! How did you find it?" Zhang Tiantian exclaimed with a joyful smile.