Chapter 24: Xiaolan Loses Her Soul

"Fourth Brother, say no more. Just give me the address, and I’ll head over right now."

"You’re a real pal, brother, truly stand-up. Tell me your location, and I’ll have him send a car to pick you up."

"No need, Fourth Brother. I can just take a bus."

"That won't do! When my brother goes out to handle business, it's about their attitude. If they don't arrange the provisions and transport properly, what are they even playing at? It’s a matter of principle."

Li Si’s words made me feel quite appreciated.

"Alright, Fourth Brother. Tell him to head toward Fengming City. Have him contact me when he arrives; I don't have a fixed location while I'm out."

After hanging up, I thought about how Li Si, having grown up in the streets with his father, was far too sharp for his own good.

A few hours later, I put on my clothes, tucked the five hundred yuan I’d gotten from Little Zhao into my pocket, and headed out. Since I didn't want them to know I was still in school, I had no choice but to wait outside.

I wandered through a mall and bought a gift box to house the Whip of God-Striking. I figured it made the weapon look a bit more prestigious.

Half an hour later, my phone rang. The person sent to pick me up had arrived.

Once I got in, I saw a beautiful woman in the passenger seat, appearing to be in her twenties. Her expression turned sour the moment she saw me. We didn't speak the entire journey. I closed my eyes, and by evening, we finally arrived at a villa in the provincial capital. The car stopped.

She stepped out on her own without a word. I was annoyed by her attitude, but since I was already here, I had no choice but to go in.

Inside, I saw an elderly man sitting in the main seat on the sofa. He looked pale, and upon seeing me, his brows knit together. "Little brother, you came all by yourself?"

I nodded and said, "I’m just here to take a look. If I can’t handle it, I’ll leave immediately."

The old man was stunned. His mouth twitched, and after a three-second silence, he asked, "Are you the friend that Young Master Li Si mentioned?"

I looked at the old man. His face was filled with deep suspicion. Based on his physiognomy, I could tell he had recently been plagued by misfortune.

I didn't overthink it and replied, "Li Si didn't tell me the specifics of your situation when he called."

"Grandpa, why are you even asking? Someone like him—how could he possibly cure Mom’s condition!" The woman glared at me, stamped her foot, and added, "That spoiled rich kid, he’s going to be the death of me!"

"Cough, cough, cough," the old man coughed twice and quickly said, "Xiaoping, don't speak like that. Everyone who comes is a guest; if he can't treat her, that’s just how it goes."

"Grandpa!"

"Enough, say no more. Haven't we had enough people come over these past few months? I'm used to it," the old man said calmly.

"Well, this spoiled brat is just completely unreliable!" Xiaoping fumed and stomped upstairs.

"Young man, would you like to eat first or..." I could see the old man was losing his patience, ready to skip even the basic courtesies. I frowned and said, "Let’s go. Let's get straight to the point."

The old man immediately shouted upstairs, "Xiaoping, take Fang Yuan to your mother’s room."

There was no response from upstairs. The old man’s brows furrowed further as he said, "Listen to me, don't be willful. This is a matter of great importance; you cannot act on your own impulses."

Only then was there a response. Click-clack, the sound of high heels approached from upstairs at a measured pace.

When Xiaoping reached the top of the stairs where she could see me, she tilted her head and said with a look of disdain, "Take off your shoes before coming up."

I thought to myself: she’s walking all over the house in her shoes, yet she wants me to take mine off? This is clearly a jab at me.

I smiled faintly, ignored her, and walked up the stairs, saying, "I don't have the habit of taking off my shoes."

"You!" Xiaoping stared at me with her bright, intelligent eyes, as if she wanted to kill me.

I reached the top. She was standing right at the landing. I stepped onto the final stair, bringing our eyes within a foot of each other, and looked at her with a smile.

Xiaoping tossed her head, her long hair whipping across my face, and she stomped off in a huff.

She stopped at the room at the very end of the second floor, pushed the door open gently, and whispered, "Mom, I’m here to see you."

There was no reply from inside, so Xiaoping peeked in.

I walked to the doorway. Xiaoping whispered, "Be quiet. My mom gets scared if she hears noises."

The room was dim—so dark that you couldn't see a person's face from more than two meters away. As soon as I entered, I felt a chill, like the cold draft from an air conditioner. I wondered how anyone could live in such a cold room all day.

I walked around the room and saw a woman with long hair covering her face, sitting silently in front of an antique solid-wood dressing table, not making a sound. As I passed by her, I couldn't even detect her breathing. I glanced at her with curiosity, and that one look gave me a start.

When I looked at her from the side, her hair covered her face. But when I looked at her from behind, the woman in the mirror wasn't covering her face at all—it felt as if she were simply looking into the mirror.

I stared blankly at the glass, because I could see the woman in the mirror staring right back at me.

"What are you staring at? If you can't see what's wrong, get out!" Xiaoping said angrily.

I ignored her and said coolly, "I don't need you telling me how to do my job. You invited me here to handle this, and if you don't want me to look, I’ll leave right now."

Xiaoping was stunned. She glared at me, her eyes practically spitting fire. She held her tongue for three seconds before turning away and standing by the door, refusing to look at me again.

I stood in the room, quietly watching the mirror. The woman in the mirror was also staring at me without blinking. By now, I was certain that the woman’s own hair was indeed covering her face.

I knew there was something wrong with the dressing table. I started silently reciting the contents of my grandmother’s notebook, searching for a solution to this situation among the cases recorded inside.

From the conversation between the old man and Xiaoping, I knew they had already sought help from others. I was sure I wasn't the only one who saw the problem; the issue now was how to fix it. But fixing things was my weak point—I was a novice, and my practical experience was so limited that I had only ever served as an assistant to my grandmother.

I continued to ponder. The woman had covered her own face with her hair, yet another face appeared in the mirror. It was clear that the face in the mirror had formed a connection with her.

My grandmother’s notebook had a record of this: a story about a person who had lost their soul and had to go find it themselves.

A human soul can also be called a "living soul"—the soul of a living person. My mind suddenly cleared. She had lost her soul, and that soul was trapped in the mirror!

I whispered to myself, "Sigh, my experience is still too shallow. Why didn't I consider that the problem was with her herself instead of obsessing over the mirror?"

But on second thought, the mirror really was the problem—how could it actively harvest a soul?

At that moment, a white speck of light, no bigger than a match head, vibrated slightly in my mind. My brows knit together. It was my Bean Soldier, Huang Liulang. I cursed myself under my breath, "Damn it, I was careless. How could I have forgotten him!"

Just then, I heard Xiaoping whispering on the phone in the hallway: "Hurry up and get here! Don't let him run away!"

My heart sank. What was going on?