"You're so powerful. If you had any ill intentions, you would have acted already. But you didn't, which shows you're a good person," Gu Qin said as she looked into Derek's eyes.
"I don't know if I'm a good person, but I am someone who keeps my promises. Since I've promised to uncover the truth behind your sister's death, I'll follow it through to the end and bring the culprit to justice!" Derek, moved by Gu Qin's trust and her beautiful, expressive eyes, felt a surge of determination.
"Thank you. You are a good person. With you here, I won't be afraid to keep vigil," Gu Qin said gratefully.
"Keeping vigil… Aren't you afraid of ghosts?" Derek asked, after thinking for a moment.
"She's my sister. She never hurt anyone, and she wouldn't hurt me either," Gu Qin replied, lowering her head as her eyes grew red.
"That's true," Derek sighed.
Derek brought two chairs from the classroom and kept chatting with Gu Qin, gradually becoming more familiar with her. As the night deepened, Gu Qin grew visibly tired, nodding off occasionally. Derek, sensing her exhaustion, stopped talking and instead quietly observed their surroundings.
Since he had already created a ghost domain earlier, Derek had to wait five hours before creating another. This left him somewhat uneasy about staying in the women's restroom without his ghost clone's powers to protect him. If Gu Ling, Gu Qin's ghostly sister, appeared during this downtime, Derek wasn't sure how things would turn out.
But the worry proved unnecessary.
Five hours passed, and Gu Ling didn't appear. Once Derek could activate the ghost domain again, his confidence returned, and he eagerly awaited Gu Ling's appearance.
Hours passed, and dawn began to break. Derek, weary and hungry, noticed the sounds of footsteps downstairs as students started to arrive for morning self-study. Staying any longer in the restroom seemed unwise, so Derek and Gu Qin decided to leave.
"Looks like your sister didn't show up tonight," Derek said, glancing at Gu Qin.
"People have claimed to see her, but for some reason, she won't come to me," Gu Qin said, looking disappointed and struggling to stay awake.
Feeling the pangs of hunger himself, Derek guessed Gu Qin might also be hungry. "I'll go downstairs and get some breakfast. Wait for me here, okay?" he said.
"There's no need; you've already done so much," Gu Qin said, trying to be polite.
"It's no trouble. Just wait here," Derek replied with a smile before rushing downstairs.
The university campus was large, and the breakfast stalls were quite a distance from Building 10. Derek asked for directions as he hurried along, and by the time he returned to the fifth floor, panting with food in hand, some diligent students had already arrived for self-study. Gu Qin, however, was nowhere to be found.
Derek searched every classroom on the fifth floor but couldn't find her. He even sneaked into the women's restroom during a quiet moment, but Gu Qin wasn't there either.
Did she go back to her dorm? Derek wondered. Maybe she felt awkward about accepting breakfast from me, since we're not in a relationship.
Frustrated, Derek smacked his forehead. I spent the whole night with her and forgot to ask for her contact information!
He consoled himself with the thought that she'd likely return tonight for evening self-study and to keep vigil. Next time, I'll make sure to get her number, Derek resolved.
With dawn fully breaking and the building buzzing with activity, it was unlikely Gu Ling would appear during the day. Derek left the university and returned to his rented apartment to catch up on sleep. Once rested, he began investigating the Outang Corporation.
Outang Corporation was a prominent company in Cangsong City, primarily dealing in real estate, furniture sales, and investments. Derek quickly found their headquarters' address in the International Trade Tower on the 45th floor. Further research on the company's website revealed a senior executive named Xia Yanguì, who seemed to be a relative of the chairman, Xia Yanfu. Derek suspected Xia Yanguì might know something about Xia Yichu, whom Derek was investigating.
Using some of his ghostly powers to convert mana into cash, Derek bought a suit, printed fake business cards identifying himself as a furniture company manager, and headed to the International Trade Tower. He convinced the company's leasing manager to let him meet Xia Yanguì under the pretense of renting a large space in their new furniture mall.
Once Derek located Xia Yanguì's office and confirmed his presence, he activated a ghost domain, dragging Xia Yanguì into it. After facing simulated tortures in the domain, Xia Yanguì confessed everything, including Xia Yichu's photo, contact details, and current whereabouts.
Xia Yichu was out of town in Yujing City but would return to Cangsong City the following morning at 9 a.m. His girlfriend, Shen Ting, planned to pick him up, and the two had arranged to visit the newly opened amusement park Carnival Valley, an investment project of the Xia family.
With this information secured, Derek left the office, deciding to confront Xia Yichu after his return the next day.
That evening, Derek returned to Cangnan University's Building 10 to search for Gu Qin again. Despite thoroughly scanning the classrooms, she was nowhere to be found. Disappointed and slightly anxious, he wondered if he was starting to like her. Am I here so early because I couldn't wait to see her?
Trying to shake off his thoughts, Derek found an empty seat in a quiet corner and quickly fell asleep.