The nurse brought me back to the ward and sternly warned me not to wander around again before leaving with her little notebook.
This development was a bit unexpected. She brought me here and did nothing. Could it be that I was wrong from the beginning?
"She's just a guide; the real players haven't appeared yet!" The voice in my mind sounded again.
She had reminded me several times, even saving me from being trapped in illusions. I didn't know how she managed it, but her repeated warnings gave me the impression that she didn't want me dead.
"You mean the mother-son duo hasn't shown up yet?"
The little ghost and the corpse manipulator on the rooftop weren't the mother-son duo? If they still hadn't appeared, weren't they supposed to be the ones orchestrating all of this?
I couldn't believe I was discussing this with a ghost.
"This is your problem to solve on your own."
What?! Isn't it common decency to finish what you start? Since she was already warning me, couldn't she at least give me a suggestion? Unfortunately, no matter how much I pleaded, she stayed silent.
After calming down, I laughed at myself. I actually sought help from a ghost.
After everything I've been through, no matter how absurd, I've seen it all. Illusions? I can escape them myself. The books I've read weren't for nothing.
I retrieved a bag hidden deep in my luggage. It held the items I had bought from a mysterious shop. I had forgotten about them until now. Alone, I could only rely on myself to fight for a way out.
At the door, I barely opened a crack before meeting the nurse's dead, lifeless eyes.
"Didn't I tell you to stay in the ward and rest?" Her voice was chilling, and paired with her wooden expression, she looked even less like a living person.
Had she been standing outside the whole time?
Only now did I realize she wasn't trusting me to stay put but had been guarding the door. She must've heard everything I said earlier and knew I had figured out she wasn't human. I took two steps back to maintain a safe distance, watching her warily.
"Who are you, and what do you want with me?"
"You'll know when the master arrives."
She stood at the door like a gatekeeper, preventing me from escaping.
"…" The problem was, I had no intention of waiting for her master. To divert her attention, I secretly reached into my bag and grabbed a small bottle. When I bought it, the shop owner assured me that the liquid inside was even more potent than pure black dog blood. Just a drop could repel malevolent spirits.
"I advise you to behave and go back inside. You're no match for me," the nurse said, dropping her pretense.
Clutching the small bottle tightly, I yelled, "We'll see who's no match for whom!"
In a flash, faster than I thought possible, I splashed the liquid onto the nurse's face.
Caught off guard by my sudden attack, the nurse didn't dodge in time and took a full hit.
"What did you splash on me?" she screamed.
It worked better than expected—well worth the money I spent.
She hesitated to approach me, her eyes fixed on the bottle in my hand.
"I didn't plan to get rough with you, but since you insist on courting death, I'll oblige!" She vanished from sight, reappearing behind me. I quickly turned and splashed more liquid, but she disappeared again before it hit her, reappearing in another direction. I kept splashing and missing until the bottle was nearly empty.
"You're running out of your little potion, aren't you? Let's see how you fight me now," she taunted, her eerie laughter sending shivers down my spine.
Regrettably, I had only bought one bottle due to its price. Now that I truly needed it, it felt insufficient.
The potion had just enough for one last use. If I missed again, I was done for. As she closed in, I made a bold decision. Gritting my teeth, I downed the potion and lunged at her, spraying it from my mouth like a jet stream. While she was immobilized by the potion's effects, I pressed a Yongle Tongbao coin hidden in my sleeve onto her forehead.
She kicked me hard in the stomach, sending me flying several meters. I doubled over in pain, unable to stand, and watched as her body cracked along the edges of the coin before disintegrating into ashes. The coin fell to the ground, rolling a few times before stopping.
So she was a corpse puppet, not a ghost. Ghosts need a medium to inflict physical harm. I had been wondering why she could attack me directly—it all made sense now.
I sat on the ground, gasping for air. This was the first time I had independently dealt with a life-threatening supernatural being.
"You're not entirely useless," the voice from the jade pendant remarked, tinged with a hint of approval.
"You were here the whole time?" I recalled the push I felt on the stairs earlier and realized it might've been her. Could she have saved me twice already?
"You're still useful to me. Of course, I wouldn't let you die so easily."
Before I could probe further, she cut me off, evidently reading my thoughts.
From her words, it seemed she wouldn't harm me for now and might even save me in critical moments.
"Can you at least explain why you're clinging to me? If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be in this mess. I'm just an ordinary recent college graduate—why am I constantly fighting for my life?"
Knowing she wouldn't kill me, I grew bolder.
Honestly, I couldn't suppress my frustration. Before, the jade pendant had been silent and emotionless, leaving me no outlet for my grievances. Now that I knew a ghost resided in it, I couldn't help but vent my anger.