TDSDE 20

20. You’re the Idiot!

That ghost really was just like the rumors said—floating and eerie, with no visible feet.

Bai Yuanxiu was so terrified he nearly lost his soul, but he didn’t dare move recklessly. He kept his nerves taut and stared at the figure, hoping he could at least memorize the ghost’s path this time.

He’d heard that vengeful spirits lingered in the places they were most attached to. Some ghosts would even repeatedly reenact the tragic moment of their deaths. Bai Yuanxiu wanted to see if he’d catch one doing just that.

He focused all his attention forward—until suddenly, he realized the pale white figure had vanished without a trace.

Just as he was about to shift his body for a better angle, a chill ran up his back.

“What are you doing?”

The voice came out of nowhere behind him. Bai Yuanxiu jumped like a cat whose tail had just been stepped on, letting out a yelp as he practically launched off the rooftop.

He was so spooked he’d gone half-mad, wildly swinging his peachwood sword.

For a swordsman, wielding a blade was second nature—even a panicked flail had real force behind it. The wooden sword slashed through a few roof tiles and lunged straight for the figure in front of him. But just as it was about to strike, its momentum halted.

Two pale fingers pinched the sword mid-air. The grip was so precise and controlled, the wooden blade didn’t even splinter.

Bai Yuanxiu froze from the pressure on his hand. When he got a clear look at the person, he immediately tossed the sword aside and launched himself at them.

“Ah Qing! There’s a ghost—there’s really a ghost!”

His voice had a distinct tremble, eyes shut tight and arms locked tightly around the man in front of him, clearly scared out of his wits.

Xiao Qing’s hand hovered mid-air, frozen in hesitation for a moment before he gently placed it on Bai Yuanxiu’s back and patted lightly.

Bai Yuanxiu was still trembling, muffled sobs even leaking out against Xiao Qing’s shoulder. Xiao Qing opened his mouth a few times, but in the end, all he said was, “It’s okay. I’m here.”

Bai Yuanxiu wouldn’t let go, and Xiao Qing didn’t press him. He just held him quietly, his hand slowly stroking from the back of Bai Yuanxiu’s head down his spine, gentle and steady.

With that comfort, Bai Yuanxiu gradually calmed down. As soon as he straightened up, he heard Xiao Qing say, “Didn’t I already tell you? All those ghost stories and vengeful spirits—they’re fake.”

His words were a little disdainful, but the tone was so soft that Bai Yuanxiu couldn’t even be annoyed. He just muttered, “But I am scared…”

There was no response.

When Bai Yuanxiu looked up, he just happened to catch Xiao Qing turning away. He couldn’t quite tell whether that hint of a smile at his lips had been real or not.

Thinking back to what just happened, Bai Yuanxiu’s face grew warm. He squinted and leaned in close. “You were laughing at me, weren’t you?”

Xiao Qing replied with a straight face, brushing at imaginary dust on his robe. “No.”

That firm denial shut Bai Yuanxiu up. He picked up his peachwood sword and waved it twice. “I’m saying you’re the scary one. What are you doing wandering around this house so late?”

“Wandering?” Xiao Qing replied. “I just got here.”

Bai Yuanxiu’s body stiffened.

He turned his head with great difficulty—like someone who’d pulled a neck muscle—and saw Xiao Qing staring at him expressionlessly.

And Bai Yuanxiu knew. Xiao Qing never joked about things like this.

He thought of the pale shadow he’d glimpsed earlier and instantly broke out in a cold sweat. Just as he was about to say something, a faint bumping noise came from a corner of the house.

That spot—coincidentally—was exactly where Bai Yuanxiu had seen the apparition earlier.

Bai Yuanxiu’s reflexes were faster than his brain. By the time he registered what was happening, he’d already darted behind Xiao Qing, crouching low, peeking around Xiao Qing’s shoulder with just half his face showing.

Xiao Qing snorted lightly, neither warm nor cold. “What? Not playing the righteous hero anymore?”

He was referring to something from early in their acquaintance—back then, they’d stumbled into a haunted estate.

The place had been abandoned for years: damp, dark, and filled with death. A vicious ghost in a red wedding dress haunted it, dragging anyone who got close inside and devouring them. But the manor was in such a remote location, the local yamen had only stuck a warning sign nearby and left it alone.

At the time, Bai Yuanxiu had been hounded by a half-mad old man who swore he was a reincarnated star deity and begged him to exorcise the ghost.

When he’d stood in that abandoned manor facing the red-dressed ghost, Bai Yuanxiu had been trembling so badly he could barely stand—but he’d still shielded Xiao Qing, sword held steady in his right hand.

And now? He was crouched behind Xiao Qing like a terrified rabbit, only his head peeking out.

Bai Yuanxiu looked up at Xiao Qing, meeting those unreadable eyes.

He didn’t argue. Just reached out and poked Xiao Qing’s shoulder. “Go look.”

Xiao Qing shifted his gaze, no longer teasing him. With a light step, he drifted down like a snowflake.

Bai Yuanxiu hurried to follow, clutching his peachwood sword tight.

His light footwork wasn’t great, but he landed without a sound. Xiao Qing, who was more skilled, moved like a ghost himself.

Like two shadows, they silently crept toward the dark corner of the courtyard.

Bai Yuanxiu hadn’t lit any lanterns in the house, afraid the ghost might hide if it saw the light. Now, without moonlight or candles, the place was pitch-black. The two of them held their breath, waiting in total silence.

After a long wait, a barely audible sound finally reached their ears.

Bai Yuanxiu was just about to say that they couldn’t see anything and waiting like this was pointless, but as he leaned closer to Xiao Qing, his hand was suddenly clasped by Xiao Qing’s.

“Don’t be scared.”

His heart gave a little jolt. He wanted to say, You’re overthinking—I’m not scared, but the words never came out. He simply stepped a bit closer.

Even though Bai Yuanxiu hadn’t said anything, Xiao Qing clearly understood.

Xiao Qing took the lead, Bai Yuanxiu right behind him. The two cautiously moved toward the firewood shed in the corner.

Just as they were about to push the door open and take down whatever was inside—ghost or not—a gust of wind blew past and flung the door wide open.

Creak.

In the dead of night, the sound was painfully loud.

And then—just for a second—a pale shadow flashed past inside the room, moving incredibly fast.

Bai Yuanxiu had a good eye from martial training, and in that fleeting moment, he saw it.

Long hair.

And a streak of blood across the ghost’s face.

Bai Yuanxiu was already frozen to the bone, so when the figure darted out, he didn’t even think—he just hurled the peachwood sword in his hand.

He used a hidden sword technique; the wooden sword whistled through the air with a sharp whoosh, showing just how much inner energy he’d poured into it.

But in the end, it was still just wood. The white figure raised a hand and deflected it effortlessly—instantly shattering the sword into splinters.

The move gave away their position. A few sharp sounds followed, and the wooden shards came flying back, laced with inner energy.

The peachwood sword had been decent quality, so the hail of fragments now felt like a storm of throwing knives.

Xiao Qing dodged and blocked, finally losing his patience. “Why the hell are you chucking wood at it?!”

Bai Yuanxiu was frantic too. “You’re the one who said peachwood swords ward off evil!”

“Are you an idiot?!” Xiao Qing caught a fragment and flung it back, striking the fleeing ghostly figure hard enough to throw it off balance. “There are no such things as ghosts!”

Bai Yuanxiu roared back, “You’re the idiot! You lied to me! You’re a damn liar!”

Xiao Qing drawled an exaggerated “Haaah?” and said, “If I’m a liar, then what does that make you? Weren’t you the one who played me like a fiddle too?!”

Bai Yuanxiu yanked out the silver-white scabbard at his waist. With a flick of his wrist, his blade gleamed like lightning streaking through the night.

He shot forward. Now that he knew that white figure wasn’t a ghost, he wasn’t afraid of anything anymore. He slashed with full force—missed the figure, but took the side-room door clean off its hinges.

All the while, he yelled, “LIAR! You’re the biggest liar under heaven!”

Xiao Qing ducked away from the sword energy, snatching up anything he could get his hands on and chucking it—his left hand tossing things at Bai Yuanxiu, his right hurling them at the white figure.

Clang! Bai Yuanxiu cleaved a firewood stick in half, stunned. “You seriously hit me with a stick!?”

Xiao Qing crushed a little gardening trowel in his hand and sneered, “And you didn’t throw an iron shovel at me first?”

Bai Yuanxiu choked. He tried to defend himself. “It was too dark—I couldn’t see what it was.”

Xiao Qing deadpanned, “Oh. Me too.”

That half-assed tone made Bai Yuanxiu’s temper flare again. He raised his arm in a classic sword technique stance, black robes fluttering, and charged Xiao Qing like a shadow cutting through the dark.

Xiao Qing grabbed something to block the strike—and froze when he saw what it was.

It was a curved sickle, its glinting tip just a hair’s breadth from Bai Yuanxiu’s nose.

Xiao Qing: “…If I say I didn’t mean to, will you believe me?”

Bai Yuanxiu flipped his blade into a reverse grip, pressing it right up to Xiao Qing’s throat.

Bai Yuanxiu: “Oh. Me too.”

Exactly the same words Xiao Qing had used.

And so the cursing, the crashing of blades, and the clatter of weapons echoed on. Who knows how long it went on for, until—

BOOM! A thunderous crash rocked the northeast side of Wu’ai Town. Dust and debris exploded outward in a thick cloud.

——The old Zhai residence had collapsed.

Bai Yuanxiu clambered out from a pile of broken tiles, just thinking how useful his black-iron sword had been—when he saw Xiao Qing standing a few paces away, arms behind his back, looking down at him.

“I won,” Xiao Qing said.

Bai Yuanxiu glanced at the broken blade, then tossed it aside and said feebly, “Give me a hand.”

Xiao Qing didn’t say a word. He simply stepped over and extended his hand.

But the moment Bai Yuanxiu grasped it, his eyes crinkled with a smile—and with a surge of inner force, he yanked Xiao Qing down.

Xiao Qing wasn’t expecting it and stumbled right into Bai Yuanxiu’s arms. He scowled up at him—only to meet a pair of sparkling, mischievous eyes.

“Now it’s a tie,” Bai Yuanxiu said.

Xiao Qing’s frustration instantly deflated. He asked, “Chase?”

Bai Yuanxiu nodded. “Let’s go. If we wait, it’ll get away.”

So in the moonless night, a black and a white figure vanished like a gust of wind into the ruined courtyard.

The Demonic Sect disciples who arrived after receiving the alert looked at the chaos and devastation—and nearly burst into tears.

My Lord! That “little scuffle between kids” you mentioned—don’t you think you were slightly underestimating things!?