DNSTU 10. Truth

Xiang Ye could not swim. Worse yet, he seemed cursed when it came to water.

Chen Junyang could swim, but he was worried about leaving Xiang Ye alone on the island. His grip on the blade tightened. Frustration flared so strongly that he wanted to curse out loud. A violent edge gathered between his brows, and he looked ready to cut someone again.

Xiang Ye, however, remained calm. “You go in. I’ll stay on shore and ring the bell.”

Chen Junyang blinked. “What?”

Xiang Ye walked over to the firewood pile, pulled out a thick branch to use as a striker, and took the large bronze incense burner at the front of the temple as a makeshift bell. “We’re not far from the shore. Still within visible range. The louder the noise, the more they’ll hold back. People from Lu Ye are even more afraid of being exposed than we are.”

He checked the time again. The police might arrive soon.

Xiang Ye felt he had been misled earlier. He had been shoved by a “ghost” on the street and nearly hit by a car. When he tried to report it, the police station caught fire. All of it had been to intimidate him, to make him believe in ghosts and accept the story spun by his false parents. But in truth, the people from Lu Ye were like rats in the sewers, lurking and hiding, desperate to stay out of sight. The moment they were exposed, the Enforcement would come after them.

Of course, their tactics were brutal. Worse than ghosts. Which meant this was a matter of who was more ruthless, who feared death less.

Chen Junyang still hesitated, but Xiang Ye had already begun to strike the “bell.” With one swing of the firewood—

CLANG—

The sound exploded into the night sky.

The ashes in the incense burner trembled. The curling smoke wavered off its path, scattering and reforming.

Xiang Ye tightened his grip on the wood. His eyes were cold. He struck again.

CLANG—

CLANG—

The pealing sound rolled across the lake. Chen Junyang no longer hesitated. He shrugged off his jacket and shoes and dove into the water. Let’s see which ghost dared to stop him now.

Back in the village behind the trees, the villagers who had just been frightened by the corpse in the coffin heard the clamor and ran out again, their faces full of confusion and fear. They clutched at their chests and stared toward the temple.

When they squinted and finally made out the scene, one man was pounding on the incense burner and another was swimming in the lake. The villagers looked even more bewildered. Who in their right mind went out at night to pound on a burner? Who decided to take a midnight swim in the lake?

It could only mean one thing…

“It’s the water ghost! The water ghost is back to kill again!” a woman screamed. Her shrill voice pierced the night sky. A sudden gust of wind swept through, sending chills racing up everyone’s spines.

Panic spread like a rupture, leaking everywhere. Most of the villagers still living in Guan Shui Tan were elderly. Already superstitious, they now believed completely.

But none of that noise reached Chen Junyang. He swam fast, focused. The boat was still drifting, seemingly pushed by wind and current, but in truth, it was being nudged along from beneath.

A cold hand gripped his ankle. It yanked him backward.

Chen Junyang gave a low snort. Just what he was waiting for.

He dove in one breath, vanishing below the surface.

People onshore saw it. Flashlights swung over the lake, searching, but found nothing. More gasps and cries erupted.

Xiang Ye sensed something. Without turning, he reached into the incense burner and grabbed a handful of hot ashes. In one smooth, rapid motion, he flung them behind him.

A scream rang out right behind him.

Ignoring the pain in his hand, Xiang Ye tightened his hold on the firewood and struck hard in that direction with full force.

Another scream followed. He had hit something.

Those who burst through the Gate from Lu Ye had lost their physical bodies. They had become wandering spirits. But they were not ghosts in the traditional sense. They still had form. What they lacked was the right to walk the world openly. No longer human, not quite ghost.

Just like this one now.

Xiang Ye stayed alert. He dared not let his guard down. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched the rippling surface of the water while scooping another handful of ash from the incense burner, ready at any moment.

Just then, a sudden light flared up behind a cluster of trees near the edge of the pond.

Headlights.

A van emerged from behind the trees and sped off along the same path they had taken earlier.

To appear at that moment, then flee—Xiang Ye immediately thought of the little girl with the pigtails.

“Chen Junyang!” he called out urgently.

As if he had heard the summons, Chen Junyang finally broke through the surface, surfacing right beside the boat. With a splash, he climbed aboard and turned the boat around, racing back to the island.

Xiang Ye was already waiting on the shore. Before the boat could fully reach land, he jumped aboard, carrying Chen Junyang’s clothes and shoes. “Go. We need to catch that van.”

Chen Junyang had been with the Enforcement long enough to understand exactly what “decisive action” meant. No need for words. He started the engine immediately.

“What about the water ghosts? Are they dead?” Xiang Ye asked.

“One escaped. One’s dead,” Chen Junyang replied.

Including the one that attacked Xiang Ye on the island, that made three “ghosts.” Xiang Ye gave Chen Junyang a quick reminder and followed him ashore.

To pursue anyone, they would need transportation.

Xiang Ye turned on his heel and doubled back to the village. The villagers saw the two of them return alive after facing off with water ghosts. Some wanted to go closer and ask what had happened, but at the same time, they hesitated. Anyone who could walk away from a ghost encounter probably wasn’t someone to mess with.

While they wavered, Xiang Ye pointed to a small electric scooter parked by the roadside. Chen Junyang understood and hopped on with him.

The villagers stared in silence.

The scooter roared off, vanishing around the bend in a flash. Only then did the owner realize what had happened and shouted, “My bike! They stole my bike!!”

A gust of wind carried his shrill cry high into the night.

Xiang Ye remained perfectly composed. The one who was rattled was Chen Junyang, despite all the chaos he had seen before. Maybe it was exactly because he had witnessed large-scale battles and deadly missions that this kind of petty crime threw him off. By the time they had ridden quite a distance, his heart was still hammering and his face was flushed with embarrassment.

The more flustered he felt, the faster he drove, desperate to leave the scene behind. And to make matters worse, he was still soaked. Every droplet rolled straight off him and onto Xiang Ye, who was seated behind.

Xiang Ye calmly placed a hand on his shoulder and said in a low voice, “Careful not to flip. You’ll have to return it later.”

Chen Junyang nearly swerved the scooter into a ditch.

What the hell are you, a ghost riding on my back?

He managed to stay upright in the end. The scooter sped along the village road like a bullet. At one point, they even passed right by a police car.

Because they were going so fast, the police turned on their siren. One officer leaned out the window and shouted, “You up ahead! Slow down!”

The bike thief, feeling guilty, eased off the throttle but dared not look back. The officers were too busy dealing with the situation at Guan Shui Tan and let them go without further question.

Chen Junyang let out a breath of relief.

Just then, Jueming’s voice came through Xiang Ye’s earpiece again.

“I checked the surveillance around Shen Ningxiang’s daughter’s residence. Based on what I found, it’s likely the daughter also returned to Guan Shui Tan. She was probably following the old lady and the girl. If she took the girl after the grandmother’s death, then her likely escape route is—”

“She would leave Guan Shui Tan via County Road 724, cross three bridges, take a left, and follow the road straight through another village. That leads to a shortcut connecting to National Highway 221. From the highway, it’s a thirty-minute drive to the expressway.”

Jueming was clearly using a map to guide them in real time. Xiang Ye didn’t doubt his intel. He silently counted the bridges as they passed. “Turn left.”

The scooter veered into a narrow side road. It was only wide enough for two cars to pass at once, and it grew tighter the farther they went, until they were weaving between scattered homes.

Even so, a regular car could still make it through.

While they continued the pursuit, Jueming took the opportunity to brief Xiang Ye. “Shen Ningxiang’s daughter is named Tang Wan. After graduating from university, she stayed in the city to work. Three years ago, after her husband died, she sent her daughter back to the countryside to be raised by her mother. Tang Wan has since remarried. Her current husband is a local from Qingshui City. So far, there’s nothing suspicious about him.”

A few moments later, Jueming’s voice dropped into a grim tone. “There’s definitely something wrong in Qingshui City. The captain was ambushed while trying to return. They’re stalling on purpose. Tell Yangyang, whoever came isn’t here with good intentions. He must be careful. No matter what happens, he has to protect himself first.”

Xiang Ye frowned. Something was off.

He had been too focused on the chase to think it through earlier. Now that he had a moment, the whole thing felt riddled with problems. For starters, what exactly was Tang Wan’s role in all of this? If the people from Lu Ye really intended to take the little girl, why wait until Xiang Ye was on the island to leave? Was it to trap him there? That didn’t make sense.

There had been nearly an hour between the old lady’s death and Xiang Ye’s discovery of the body. If they wanted to run, they would have done it long before. Even if they had to stay behind to deal with the corpse, leaving two “water ghosts” behind would have been enough. When no one was watching, they could open the coffin and retrieve the body. That would have been the ideal plan.

So what was with the van?

A diversion?

A feint?

Xiang Ye grabbed Chen Junyang’s shoulder. “Turn around.”

Chen Junyang whipped the scooter into a one-eighty without hesitation and sped back the way they came. Only after they had regained balance did he shout into the wind, “Why!”

That youthful voice, filled with frustration, sounded like a rebellious teenager yelling at his dad.

Xiang Ye said, “No one’s in the van.”

Chen Junyang was stunned.

No one?! We chased them halfway across the countryside!

Xiang Ye began to lay out his suspicions. He had seen Lu Ye’s tactics before, from the fog on the highway to the incident at Qingshui Lake and the attack on the riverboat. They were methodical and unpredictable, never using conventional approaches.

That van had seemed perfectly placed, like it had been waiting for Xiang Ye to give chase. And the “water ghost” that attacked him on the island had disappeared after taking a single blow, letting him leave unhindered. Xiang Ye had every reason to believe the pursuit had been a setup.

So where was the girl?

Most likely, still at Guan Shui Tan.

Xiang Ye remembered that across from Shen’s village, on the opposite side of the pond, there was a stretch of forest. The woods were dense and rarely visited. There were even a few old graves that had never been relocated.

Where did the forest lead?

Xiang Ye didn’t know. But Jueming did.

“The map shows farmland beyond the forest,” Jueming said, his voice picking up speed. “This isn’t good. The old lady’s body has been discovered. The plan is compromised. That little girl isn’t like you, Xiang Ye. You’re bait, meant to lure out Chu Lian, so they can’t kill you easily. But the girl… they might decide to go all the way. Kill her, extract the bone, and vanish.”

Xiang Ye relayed this to Chen Junyang.

Chen Junyang said nothing. The murderous look in his eyes only deepened.

The two of them raced back to Guan Shui Tan but stayed clear of the main road.

The police had arrived. They would definitely be screening suspects. If the two of them charged in now, they could get detained before they could save anyone.

They ditched the scooter and took a side path. Chen Junyang practically dragged Xiang Ye behind him, pushing through the thick woods on the far side of the pond as fast as possible.

“Can you smell blood?” Xiang Ye gasped.

Chen Junyang shook his head. But the more primitive the environment, the sharper his instincts became. He quickly chose a direction and kept going with Xiang Ye at his heels.

Xiang Ye gave it everything he had, trying not to slow Chen Junyang down, but his stamina gave out quickly. Before long, he had fallen far behind.

Fortunately, that was when Chen Junyang finally caught the faint scent of blood on the wind.

“You go ahead,” Xiang Ye said.

“This might save your life.” Chen Junyang hesitated only briefly before pressing a talisman into Xiang Ye’s hand. He then vanished into the dense forest without another word. His mission was to protect Xiang Ye, but with the way things stood, dragging him along would only endanger them both. He might fail to save the girl and lose Xiang Ye as well.

Xiang Ye looked down at the talisman in his hand. It was the cheap kind, frayed at the edges with loose threads still dangling. In the past, he would never have believed in something like this. But after witnessing the power of the Water Step Talisman, he tucked it against his body without hesitation.

He caught his breath and was just about to move forward again when his phone suddenly rang.

The ringtone echoed through the forest, jarring in the stillness of night. Xiang Ye pulled it out and saw an unfamiliar number. His first instinct was to decline the call. But just as he was about to press the button, he hesitated. On impulse, he accepted.

“Good evening, little one,” said Chu Lian’s voice on the other end.

“What are you trying to do, Chu Lian? Why bring me to Guan Shui Tan? What are you after?” Xiang Ye’s voice was low and steady.

“You wanted the truth, didn’t you?” Chu Lian replied.

“You mean that photo?”

“That’s only the tip of the iceberg.”

Chu Lian did not deny that he was the one who had lured Xiang Ye to Guan Shui Tan. He let himself be goaded with ease, his tone unreadable. Then his voice shifted.

“The truth is just ahead. Will you keep going?”

Xiang Ye said nothing. His footsteps were all the answer he needed to give.

Chu Lian spoke again. “Do you know why none of us ever told you the truth? Because you’re too weak, Xiang Ye. The truth is far more terrifying than you think. Aqi would rather you live in peace, untouched by all of this. He didn’t want to see you fall into the dark. If you turn back now, it’s not too late. You can go to the Enforcement and ask for protection. Leave all of this behind.”

Xiang Ye’s voice carried a faint edge of mockery. “Isn’t it a little late for that now?”

Chu Lian chuckled. “It is.”

Xiang Ye said, “If you’re not going to tell me what I want to know, then stop wasting my time.”

Chu Lian asked, “Are you really sure?”

Xiang Ye was not sure.

He looked ahead into the pitch-black forest, thick and deep like ink, waiting to devour anything that stepped too close. He still had no idea why he had ended up here. All he knew was that empty talk grated on his nerves.

And when that happened, he usually chose to hang up.

They said he could still turn back. So why had they lured him here in the first place? They claimed they wanted him to live untouched by darkness. But who had ever given him that choice?

There was no ground to stand on. No road to retreat. This was where he stood now.

Xiang Ye kept running forward.

On the other end of the line, Chu Lian was momentarily stunned by the abrupt hang-up. After a long silence, he smiled, pulled out the SIM card, snapped it in half, and tossed it into a nearby trash can before walking away.

Jueming had been monitoring the call through the earpiece. He knew they had no chance of tracking Chu Lian through a single phone call, but he still had to try. While attempting to trace the signal, he also had to keep track of both Xing Zhou and Xiang Ye. His voice had grown tense with strain.

“Xiang Ye, the situation on your end is still unclear. Trust Chen Junyang. Find a place to hide. Xiang Ye!” Jueming’s voice carried a growing sense of dread. The fact that Chu Lian had chosen this moment to call meant that whatever was happening up ahead, whatever truth was waiting could seriously affect Xiang Ye.

But if Xiang Ye could be persuaded that easily, he wouldn’t be Xiang Ye.

He charged deeper into the forest, his strides growing faster, until he broke through the limits of his own endurance.

Ten minutes later, he finally heard the sounds of a fight.

A flash of dark red light gleamed. It was Chen Junyang’s blade. Xiang Ye, panting hard, moved in quickly but didn’t rush forward. He ducked behind a tree, carefully peeking around the trunk with his breath held low.

Chen Junyang was locked in combat. His style was rough and grounded, like a street brawler. Raw and feral. But there were three enemies. He was outnumbered. And in the parts of the forest Xiang Ye couldn’t see, there might still be “ghosts” lurking.

At that moment, Xiang Ye caught a strong scent of blood.

It was so strong that even he could smell it. It had to be close.

He glanced at Chen Junyang, clenched his teeth, and retreated. Circling around, he followed the trail of blood.

In a clearing ahead, he saw a thin man raising a dagger high in the air, ready to strike.

The blade flashed under the pale moonlight. Xiang Ye’s pupils constricted. He was just about to lunge out when a red figure burst from behind the man, stumbling forward and slamming into him.

Clang.

The dagger fell. The man toppled to the ground, caught off guard. He scrambled up, face twisted in rage. “Are you trying to die?!”

The figure lifted her head in pain. It was a woman in her thirties, her face drawn and bleeding from the corner of her mouth. She was dressed in a red dress, in complete disarray. She clutched at the man’s ankle.

“You lied to me. You said it was just adoption. You never said you were going to kill her.”

The man sneered. “Adoption? Since when does adoption cost half a million? You took the money. That girl belongs to us now. You already sold her. Why do you care if she lives or dies? And didn’t you kill your own mother? You think you can lecture me?”

The woman froze, her face going sheet-white. Her grip on him slackened. Her voice trembled with helpless denial. “No, I didn’t. I didn’t kill her. I just pushed her. I didn’t mean to—”

The man didn’t care. He kicked her aside and bent down to retrieve the dagger, eyes blazing with murder.

Xiang Ye followed his gaze and saw the little girl lying on the ground, unconscious. Her hair was in pigtails, the same familiar style.

She was covered in blood. Whose, he couldn’t tell.

Xiang Ye felt cold. His blood turned in reverse.

And suddenly, he understood what Chu Lian had meant by truth. Half a million. A number so familiar. The unexplained five hundred thousand deposit in Shen Yanzhi’s account.

Was Chu Lian trying to tell him that his father, just like this woman, had once tried to sell his own child for that sum?

“Xiang Ye? Xiang Ye!” Jueming’s voice came frantically through the earpiece, more urgent with every unanswered call.

But Xiang Ye could no longer hear him. All he could see was the little girl and the dagger being raised once more.

His fists clenched. His nails dug into his palms, but he felt no pain.

The next second, as the man brought the blade down again, Xiang Ye grabbed a rock from the ground and hurled it with all his strength.