Netherworld Investigator

NEW NOVEL: First and foremost, I'm delighted to announce that our long-time veteran translator littleshanks has finally launched his new novel, Rise!  Rise is a novel about the esports scene in Shanghai, the competitive gaming capital of China. It follows the story of Lin Feng, a boy who has just moved to the city for his last year of high school. He's a passionate gamer and dreams of being the best professional League of Legends player in the world. The twist? He almost achieved his dream, but failed at the...

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When I opened the door, the four eavesdroppers almost fell onto the ground. Li Meijing started yapping away, "Song Yang, you’re amazing! Earlier, he refused to say anything to us and pretended to be crazy. But you managed to get so much out of him. You’re definitely a hero of both the mortal world and the underworld."

I brushed her off and turned to Dali, "Go get my tools. We’re leaving now!"

"Dude, are you planning on going?” he frowned. “Do you really believe in a madman’s words?"

Secretly winking at me, he pointed his finger at Luo Youyou while the others weren’t paying attention. His focus was entirely on Luo Youyou so he wasn’t really sincere in helping the boy. The whole exorcism was merely a ploy to approach this pretty junior. However, my principles prevented me from giving up halfway. After all that’s been said, going to look for the supposed corpse wouldn’t take much effort.

My intuition told me there was more to this than meets the eye. What if we really found a body?

"Enough of your nonsense!” I chided. “Go!"

Li Meijing stared at me like a love-struck fool. "Wow, Song Yang, you’re so manly!" I felt a burst of goosebumps.

The three of them insisted on joining us when Ding Xu got up from bed, revealing a flowery skirt and two furry thighs. The dreadful mismatch was enough to give me sore eyes!

"Change out of the skirt!” demanded Zhang Cheng. “If you go out like this, you’re going to be a laughing stock.”

"No, I’ve always liked wearing skirts!" Ding Xu stubbornly twisted his hips. 

"Don't forget that you’re in someone else's body now,” I warned. “If you’re arrested as a lunatic, both you and the owner of the body will suffer."

My argument talked some sense into Ding Xu who relented and went to the bathroom to change into pants.

Seeing that he was occupied, I took the opportunity to scroll through Ding Xu's cell phone. The boy read online novels but preferred genres like "Otherworldly Merchant," not some Mary Sue meeting the overbearing CEO type.

After Ding Xu was done changing, Dali asked to meet us outside the school gates. On our way out, Li Meijing commenced with noisy chatter, making my head pound.

There were too many of us to take one car so Dali suggested Luo Youyou and Ding Xu ride in our Mercedes, while Li Meijing and Zhang Cheng took a taxi behind us. At first, Li Meijing insisted on going in one vehicle but I circumvented by saying, "I have a few more questions to ask Luo Youyou alone." 

That was obviously just an excuse to give Dali the opportunity to chat with Luo Youyou!

Luo Youyou and Dali sat in front, while Ding Xu and I sat in the back. Throughout our ride, Dali blew his own trumpet trying to impress Luo Youyou. Ding Xu stared blankly out the window, pointing out the right direction from time to time.

The car eventually entered a more desolate area until we reached the outskirts of the city, where darkness pervaded every corner. 

"Are you sure you were buried here?" asked Dali.

Ding Xu ignored him, tilting his chin upwards in a show of aloofness.

Dali looked meaningfully at me, to which I replied, "Just follow his directions. I promise to fill the gas tank when we get back.”

“I’m not worried about using up gas…” Dali said, looking out of the window hesitantly.

After driving for more than half an hour, the taxi behind came to an abrupt stop and so did we. Li Meijing jumped out of the car and said, "Song Yang, the driver refuses to continue. He says we’re about to leave the city."

“We’re almost in Yishan County,” Dali glanced at the GPS. “Looks like we won’t be going back to our dorms tonight."

Ding Xu suddenly sat up straight and peered out of the window, "This looks like the right place."

"Come down and have a proper look!" I waved at him.

We ended up exploring on foot, slowly walking down the deserted street, led by Ding Xu who looked as if he were sleepwalking. After quite some distance, Li Meijing suddenly lost her temper. "Oi, Fatty Ding, are you trying to make a fool out of us? The exam will be held in two days. We’re spending all our valuable revision time just to accompany you! "

"I was dragged all the way here,” Ding Xu chewed on his finger. “I can't remember clearly."

"Were there any landmarks around?" I patiently asked.

When he shook his head, Li Meijing's shrill voice rang out again, "Why don't we drag you along and help you recall? In my hometown, all you have to do to cure a self-professed madman is strip him of his clothes and whip him with willow branches dipped in salt water!"

"Meijing, don’t say that!" Luo Youyou tugged on her sleeve.

“Why should I shut up?” Li Meijing waved her hands. "He's wasting our time with all that crazy talk! So I think I have the right to speak as I please!"

"Shut up!" I shouted.

Rendered speechless, Li Meijing stared wide-eyed at me. The irritating buzzing in my ear was gone and the world was at peace again.

"Can we start from the road again?" asked Ding Xu.

"No problem,” I nodded. “We’ll keep searching until we find your body, even if it takes all night!"

Ding Xu walked to the side of the road and scanned the area as if looking for something. Then, he picked a direction and walked for a short distance before crouching with his head sandwiched between his hands. "I can't remember! I can't remember!"

"There isn’t a dead body, is there?!" scoffed Dali.

"I know I died here!” retorted Ding Xu. “I'm 100% sure there was a signpost that read 50 kilometers from Yishan County. It’s the one in front."

There was obstinacy in his eyes, but it wasn’t enough to convince me.

I sat down beside him and asked, "Do you remember what you saw, heard or smelled at the time? Any little detail matters."

"There were dogs barking in the distance, many dogs.” Ding Xu bit his lip, “And the stench of excrement, like cow dung. There were several birch trees beside the place I was buried."

There were indeed birch trees nearby and dogs barking in the distance. Li Meijing couldn’t help but interject, "He’s making it up as he goes. Why didn't he say this before?"

"Let’s look along the edge of the woods," I said, sweeping a solemn gaze across Ding Xu.

Li Meijing and Zhang Cheng were beginning to show impatience, casting reproachful glances in Ding Xu’s direction. We spread out and searched for some time, walking from the middle to the end of the woods, yet we came up empty. When I turned around, I found Ding Xu crouching again.

"Have you found something?" I asked.

I was startled to see tears streaming down his face. When the sobbing eventually ceased, his tone had returned to normal. "I'm sorry, Song Yang. I lied to you. I’m not possessed at all!"

On the contrary, his confession disappointed me. I called the others back, and as soon as Li Meijing joined us, she gave Ding Xu a good scolding. 

"It's alright,” Dali comforted. “You’re probably suffering from psychological problems due to too much pressure from the exam."

"Let's go back then!" I said.

As we walked out of the woods, Luo Youyou tugged at my shirt and whispered, "Song Yang, don't you think Ding Xu's actions are a bit strange?"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Look at the way he’s walking!" she pointed at him.

I looked in front, only to notice that Ding Xu's gait was rather coquettish. He unconsciously lifted his heel which was a habit that only women used to wearing high heels would have. Obviously, a stout young man like Ding Xu couldn’t have picked it up. 

The realization dawned upon me–perhaps he found something but deliberately feigned ignorance.

"Qiu Wanxia!" I shouted.

Ding Xu stopped in his tracks and turned around to look at me out of reflex, though he quickly looked away. Indeed, things weren’t as simple as they appeared, and Ding Xu still retained Qiu Wanxia’s consciousness. But no matter how careful a person, reacting to their name was a spontaneous action hard to get rid of.

I immediately called for a U-turn back to the place where Ding Xu was crouching earlier. 

"I already admitted I was lying,” said Ding Xu, his expression turning ugly. “Why don't you believe me? Haven’t I already apologized?"

"It's past 9 o'clock, let's hurry back,” Li Meijing chimed in. “Otherwise, we won’t make it back in time before they shut the dormitory."

"I need to be sure there’s nothing,” I persisted. “Give me five minutes!"

With that, I darted to that particular spot and found traces of scrabbling on the ground. Wiping away the loose soil on the surface, I discovered a tattered skirt!

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