After half an hour had passed without any sign of Lulu coming out of the restroom, Tiger was anxiously pacing around.
This was the first task Lu Fei had assigned him, and if he messed it up, how could he face staying at Evil Pawnshop?
"Tiger, I'm here. Where are you guys?"
"Lulu's in the restroom and hasn't come out. I'll go in and check on her."
Seeing Lu Fei's message urging him, Tiger gritted his teeth and cautiously entered the women's restroom.
He expected to be mistaken for a pervert, but to his surprise, he immediately saw Lulu standing by the sink.
The faucet was running, water flowing freely, but she seemed unaware, staring at the mirror in front of her, motionless.
"Lulu!"
Tiger looked around and, seeing no one else in the restroom, rushed over to call her.
"The boss is here. Let's hurry up and go."
"Lulu?"
Lulu didn't respond to his voice at all.
She stood, gazing blankly into the mirror as if something had captured her attention.
Tiger sensed something wasn't right and craned his neck to look at the mirror.
What he saw made his hair stand on end.
In the mirror, Lulu's eyes had expanded, her black pupils filling almost the entire eye, and her mouth was twisted into an unnaturally wide smile.
It was a disturbing smile; her scarred face remained expressionless, yet her mouth was drawn upwards to an impossible degree, as if invisible hands were forcibly stretching her lips into a sinister grin.
When Tiger looked at her, Lulu seemed to notice him.
Her black eyes shifted, her neck twisting, and she turned her gaze towards him, her mouth widening as she let out a chilling, crackling laugh.
"Wretch! You deserve to die!"
Tiger's heart pounded with terror.
That wasn't Lulu's voice.
Could she be possessed? But it wasn't even dark yet!
"Die! Die!"
With that eerie smile, Lulu raised her hands and clawed at her own face.
Her face was already covered in scars. If she clawed at it, the damage would be even more horrific.
"Stop!"
Tiger could no longer worry about his fear. He lunged forward and grabbed Lulu's hands.
Lulu thrashed wildly, like a fish in its final throes.
"Lulu, snap out of it!"
Relying on his strength, Tiger restrained her with one hand and grabbed the fang dagger Lu Fei had given him with the other, pressing it against Lulu's forehead.
Her skin broke, and a drop of black blood oozed out. Lulu's body stiffened and she immediately fainted.
Tiger quickly hoisted her onto his back and rushed out of the restroom, fearing he'd be mistaken for a pervert.
Lulu's body was ice-cold, with a faint stench of rot at the tip of his nose. It felt like he was carrying a corpse on the verge of decay.
Her body felt heavier and heavier, like a massive weight pressing down, forcing the six-foot-tall Tiger to hunch over.
His steps grew slower and slower. Realizing something was wrong, he tried to put her down, but Lulu's arms and legs were locked tightly around him, impossible to shake off.
They were in a quiet corner of the mall, with almost no one around.
Tiger broke out in a cold sweat. The short distance from the restroom to the mall entrance felt impossibly long.
"Tiger!"
Just as Tiger was about to give in, he heard Lu Fei's voice.
Lu Fei had waited outside the influencer apartment building but grew concerned when the two didn't show up, so he came looking. He arrived just in time to see Tiger carrying Lulu.
From Lu Fei's perspective, Tiger wasn't carrying just Lulu. A dark shadow clung to his back.
The shadow emanated tendrils of black energy that seeped into Tiger, who, despite trembling legs, was still trying to push forward.
"Ghostly pressure!"
Lu Fei quickly pulled out a bagua mirror and directed it at Tiger.
The shadow suddenly lifted its head.
For a brief moment, Lu Fei saw eyes filled with hatred, but in an instant, the shadow vanished.
At the same time, Tiger felt a weight lift from his back. The cold, crushing presence was gone, leaving only the much lighter Lulu.
"Tiger, are you alright?" Lu Fei asked, concerned.
"Ghostly pressure" is when a ghost attaches itself to a person's back, draining their energy. If the person collapses, their life force is extinguished.
Thankfully, Lu Fei had arrived just in time. A moment later, and Tiger might have been done for.
"I'm fine," Tiger replied, looking ashamed. "Boss, I'm so sorry. I couldn't handle the first task you assigned me."
"This was unexpected. How could I blame you?" Lu Fei shook his head. "The mall doesn't have much foot traffic, and there's no sunlight inside. Add to that the restroom's dampness, and it's the perfect place for the Sister Spirit to act up. How could you have known when Lulu would go to the restroom?"
"In the end, it's just that I'm not capable enough." Tiger hung his head, feeling defeated.
"It's not your lack of ability. It's the sheer strength of the backlash from that Sister Brand," Lu Fei said gravely. "Since the spirit was nurtured by Yinwood, it's incredibly powerful. It hasn't killed anyone yet, but if it manages to kill Lulu, it'll become a full-fledged malevolent spirit, and the two of us wouldn't stand a chance."
With that, Lu Fei led Tiger outside, where they stood in the sun.
In the blazing heat, Tiger felt no warmth.
When he was cursed by the Hungry Ghost, the suffering had been physical. Now, witnessing the true horror of dark objects from a different perspective, he felt a deep, visceral fear.
"What's the matter? Are you scared? There's still time to back out," Lu Fei said with a small smile. "Evil Pawnshop's business is all about dealing with cursed items. This is only the beginning—there might be even more terrifying objects in the future."
It was a dangerous line of work, and he wanted Tiger to think it through.
"Boss, I'm not leaving! No matter how dangerous, I'm sticking with Evil Pawnshop!" Tiger clenched his jaw. "A man should stand by his word. If I back down at the first sign of difficulty, what kind of man would I be?"
Seeing his determination, Lu Fei didn't press further.
For this job, he could use the help.
"Let's go."
The two of them carried the unconscious Lulu back to the influencer apartment building.
When they reached the 14th floor, outside Lulu's apartment door, Lu Fei applied a bit of incense ash to her forehead to boost her energy and then woke her.
Lulu trembled as she opened her eyes. Her blackened pupils seemed even larger, and she looked at the two of them in confusion.
"Shopkeeper Lu, wasn't I just at the mall? How did I get back to my apartment?"
"You were possessed when you went to the restroom," Tiger explained, recounting the events.
Lulu's tears welled up, a mix of fear and shame. "Did I… did I do something embarrassing again?"
"No. Tiger got there in time and saved you," Lu Fei reassured her. "Now, let's go inside, Miss Lulu. Tonight, we'll put that Sister Spirit to rest."
"Alright!"
The thought of being saved brought a spark of hope back to Lulu's face. She pulled herself together and opened the door.
The three of them entered the messy apartment.
Lu Fei mixed cinnabar with incense ash and spread it along the walls, creating a protective circle that enclosed the entire room.
"Miss Lulu, no matter what you see or hear tonight, don't leave this room. Understood?"