Although the black-clad man remained expressionless, even as he spoke, I could detect a hint of disdain in his eyes.
I had to admit, I looked quite pitiful at that moment. My situation was entirely my own doing. If I had just listened to him and not rushed in, I wouldn't have ended up being threatened by Zhang Yun with a knife.
But back then, I couldn't just stand by and watch someone I knew—someone who had helped me before—die in front of me. I wasn't capable of such cold indifference.
"Even if I could choose again, I would still come back to save him."
Hearing my words, the man seemed a little surprised. He stared at me for a long time without saying anything. Finally, he uttered three words: "Lu Zhiqiu."
It took me a moment to realize he was telling me his name.
To be honest, my first reaction upon hearing his name was to laugh. Such a sharp and striking man, yet he had such a soft-sounding name. What on earth were his parents thinking?
Zhang Yun, seeing the two of us casually chatting as if he wasn't even there, seemed to feel humiliated. He pressed the knife closer to me. "Liu Cunxi, since you came back to save me, why don't you let me kill you instead?"
I had never encountered someone so shameless. He wanted my life, and he dared to say it with such righteous conviction, even expecting me to willingly offer myself up. He must still be dreaming.
"Brother Zhang, what's troubling you so much? Tell us, and we'll figure out a solution together. Right now, our only enemy is that child ghost. If we can catch it, everything will be resolved."
For a brief moment, my words seemed to move him, but then he tightened his grip on the knife.
"Impossible. None of you can defeat it. I've tried every method I could think of. I deeply regret warning you that day. If I hadn't spoken up, it wouldn't have come after me."
So, it turned out that the ghost targeted him because he had warned me of the danger that day. But even if that was the case, there was no way I'd just hand over my life. I had fought so hard all this time, all for the sake of survival.
Suddenly, as if struck by a thought, Zhang Yun charged straight at me. This time, Lu Zhiqiu didn't hold back. With a swift kick, he sent Zhang Yun crashing into the wall with a resounding thud.
Hearing that hollow impact, I winced on Zhang Yun's behalf.
"He's my colleague. Was it necessary to go so hard on him?"
Of course, I only said that out of formality. Zhang Yun was still my colleague, and after this incident, we'd have to work together again. Running into each other would be incredibly awkward.
"He's already unconscious. What's the point of saying that now?" Lu Zhiqiu saw through my pretense and hit the nail on the head.
His bluntness left me a bit embarrassed.
"Alright, now isn't the time to dwell on this. Do you know how to find that ghost? It had Zhang Yun attack me just to stall for time. Do you know what it's planning?"
He turned to look at me. "Not too dumb after all. Do you know if there's a basement or similar space here? It's likely hiding in the dark to recover. I injured its yin energy, and this funeral home, steeped in yin, will allow it to heal rapidly. We need to act quickly, or none of us will make it out of here."
Reflecting on my time here, I realized I hadn't gotten to know the staff well or chatted with them much. I was so focused on my work that I knew very little about the funeral home itself.
Faced with Lu Zhiqiu's question, I could only look blank. His disdainful gaze once again pierced me.
I didn't know if there was a basement, but I knew how to find out. With my background in architectural design, if I could get a floor plan, I could quickly determine if there was a basement and where it was.
"I'm not sure, but if we can get a floor plan from the security office, I can figure it out."
But as soon as I said that, I earned another disdainful look from him.
"Do you really think you can make it to the security office right now?"
Damn it. Why did my brain always seem to stop working around him? If we could reach the security office, we wouldn't need to worry about getting out in the first place.
"So what now? Are we just going to search every corner? Do we even have enough time?"
At this moment, the only person I could rely on was Lu Zhiqiu.
I faintly heard him sigh before he pulled a compass from his bag. Its needle spun rapidly, unable to settle on a point.
I recognized the device—it was similar to what the master had used to locate a ghost before. If Lu Zhiqiu was using it now, it wouldn't be long before we found our target.
"To the southeast," he said, leading the way. He motioned for me to follow, but as I glanced back at Zhang Yun lying on the ground, I hesitated.
Seeing me lag behind, Lu Zhiqiu turned back. When I looked at Zhang Yun with difficulty, he removed his mask for the first time. The sight of his face stunned me—I couldn't help but feel envious. I had assumed he kept himself so covered because he was disfigured or plain, but he turned out to have the face of a celebrity.
Not only was he extraordinarily capable, but he was also incredibly handsome. It was impossible not to feel inferior.
"If you take him with you, he'll only drag you down. You'll end up unable to save him or yourself. If you want to stay with him, fine—guard him here. But I'm not wasting my time."
With that, he walked off. I couldn't afford to stay either—my life depended on him.
Resolving to study Tales of Yin and Yang properly after this ordeal, I vowed never again to leave my survival in someone else's hands.
Catching up to him, we stopped at the elevator. The compass needle had stopped spinning.
"Here?"
I looked at the tightly shut elevator doors in disbelief. Having followed the master for so long, I knew ghosts and evil entities preferred dark, isolated places. Elevators, bustling with people daily, seemed too crowded for a ghost to hide.