The taxi stopped at an abandoned factory in a remote area.
The driver hesitated, “Should I wait for you outside or…” leave?
Bai Lixin: “You want to come in with us?”
Driver: “…I’ll wait for you here. The sooner you go, the sooner you’ll be back!”
Ran Jingjing: “…”
This was an old industrial area. The mottled gray cement was marked with pits and uneven surfaces. Overgrown weeds tinged with earthy gray sprawled around, and rusted black and red steel bars protruded from the cement.
It was a relic of R City after its redevelopment. It was like an old man in his twilight years, forgotten after emitting its last bit of warmth.
The once bustling industrial area was now deserted.
Passing through the densely vegetated path, Bai Lixin and Ran Jingjing entered an abandoned factory.
A huge cylindrical barrel had torn into an oval shape, its precarious structure barely supported by horizontal and vertical struts to prevent it from collapsing.
Under the azure sky, it looked dilapidated and desolate.
The air around seemed distorted, and upon closer inspection, you could see faint changes at the edges of the building.
A corner of the abandoned factory gate was adorned with a faded yellow-white-blue caution tape fluttering in the wind.
“This is where Xiaohua was murdered.”
Kicking up dust, Ran Jingjing adjusted her pants leg to step over an obstacle. She hesitated briefly before pointing in a direction, “If I remember correctly, it should be that way.”
Bai Lixin followed Ran Jingjing’s direction and saw a small rusty iron gate tinted with green and red due to corrosion.
Entering the small room, due to the lack of light and dampness, the air inside had a mixture of mold and a fishy smell.
Ran Jingjing glanced inside and looked away, “It was in this dark room that I found Xiaohua. I still remember how fragile she looked lying in a pool of blood.”
Overwhelmed by emotions, Ran Jingjing didn’t want to go inside, so Bai Lixin entered the dark room alone.
“Why did Cao Ji’an choose to act here?” Bai Lixin bent down, looked at the ground, and asked Ran Jingjing, who was standing in the doorway against the light.
A golden halo spread around Ran Jingjing. Under the light and shadow, Ran Jingjing’s facial features were completely shrouded in darkness and could not be seen clearly, “This used to be the property of the Cao family. He’s familiar with this place.”
“It’s been ten years. What can you find here that the police didn’t find back then?”
Although he said he was looking for clues, Bai Lixin didn’t actually have much hope.
Not to mention that this was a publicly abandoned place, anyone could visit. When Xiaohua went missing, the police had already turned the place upside down, leaving nothing behind.
He wasn’t here for visible evidence. “Things beyond the mundane aren’t the police’s concern.”
A wispy white light swayed in a corner.
It resembled the tentacles of sea anemones in the ocean. They just appear for a moment and then disappear so quickly that it’s almost impossible to catch them.
Bai Lixin stared at the corner for a moment, then casually turned his head away.
From Ran Jingjing’s perspective, Bai Lixin seemed to be searching for something while crouching on the ground.
There was clearly nothing on the ground, and she had no idea what could be attracting him.
She even felt foolish.
She had blindly believed Bai Lixin without any verification and brought him to this deserted place.
If he intended to do something to her here, she might not even have the chance to resist.
Vigilance crept into Ran Jingjing’s heart at this moment. She quietly reached into her backpack and found the automatic alarm button on her phone.
“What exactly are you looking for?” Ran Jingjing didn’t dare to take her eyes off Bai Lixin. The sunlight around them visibly dimmed.
The sun was setting fast.
The handsome young man raised his head from the darkness, his eyes shining particularly brightly in the dimness.
“Shh.”
The young man raised a finger to his lips and winked at her.
Ran Jingjing was puzzled.
‘Shh?
Why would he… shh?’
‘Wasn’t it just the two of them here? Why the need for silence?
Could there possibly be a third… person here?’
As the thought flashed through her mind, a chill suddenly gripped Ran Jingjing and she couldn’t help but shiver.
Just when she was in a trance, Ran Jingjing saw the young man who had been squatting on the ground, seemingly searching for something, suddenly reach out towards a corner.
His hand was clenched into a fist as if he had grasped something invisible to her.
‘So mysterious?’
Ran Jinjing stood quietly at the door, staring at Bai Lixin’s actions with half belief and half doubt, and swallowed hard.
If there were really spirits here, then could this spirit caught in the small dark room be…
“Xiaohua!” Ran Jingjing’s eyes suddenly lit up, and regardless of everything, she rushed into the small dark room. “Is it you, Xiaohua!”
Bai Lixin: “It’s not Xiaohua, it’s a little boy.”
From a perspective that Ran Jingjing couldn’t see but Bai Lixin could, he was indeed holding something in his hand.
The faintly glowing spirit was a human, but unfortunately, it wasn’t Xiaohua.
Bai Lixin’s hand around the wispy white figure pulled with a lot of force, and the figure whimpered and begged unclearly.
“Waaa, I’m sorry, spare me, spare me.”
A boy who looked about eleven or twelve years old tried to pull his spirit body out.
It was somewhat different from the spirits he had seen before. Except for the part of this boy’s spirit body that could be seen clearly, the lower part had all turned into a continuously shrinking line.
From afar, it looked like an upside-down exclamation mark.
Even his movements to pull his own spirit body seemed weak.
Even weaker than a baby’s strength.
The spirit’s voice was sharp and thin. It had sunken eye sockets and was visibly frail.
Bai Lixin: “I’ll let you go, but you have to promise not to run.”
The spirit’s eyes were filled with fear, and he kept nodding his head.
Only then did Bai Lixin release his grip and let go of the young spirit.
As soon as the spirit slipped out of Bai Lixin’s control, it immediately tried to crawl back into the narrow crack in the corner.
Quick on his feet, Bai Lixin grabbed the tail end of the spirit once again.
The spirit staggered, like a child tripped by a stone, and his face was heading straight towards the ground.
Just as his face was about to hit the ground, a large hand caught the boy’s face, and the soft and warm touch felt like a velvet blanket.
“You didn’t hurt yourself, did you?”
His body straightened, and as he lifted his head, the spirit saw the young man’s caring and gentle face.
It was unknown what he was thinking about, but the spirit was stunned for two seconds and suddenly burst into tears.
Bai Lixin didn’t understand why this spirit was crying, “Why are you crying?”
“Waaaa, because I’m a ghost,” the spirit sobbed.
Bai Lixin didn’t understand what the spirit was crying about, “I know.”
Spirit: “You don’t know! You don’t know anything! Do you know how I spent all this time?”
“I’m a ghost trapped here, with nowhere to go. Why did you help me up? I’m a ghost, I have no substance, I can’t even hit the ground, waaa.”
The spirit’s thoughts were erratic, and it spoke incoherently, “Bad people, they’re all bad people.”
“Liars, they’re all liars.”
“There’s not even a ghost here.”
“They said we play hide and seek. I’ve searched this place thoroughly, where did they all hide? I can’t stop playing!”
“…,” Bai Lixin, “You’re playing hide and seek?”
The spirit sniffled and nodded sadly, “Yeah.”
“Who’s playing hide and seek with you?”
“A lot.” The spirit named them, “Xiao Hong, Xiao Lu, Xiao Ming, Xiao Zi, Xiao Hua, Xiao Lan.”
“Xiao Hua?” Bai Lixin interrupted the spirit, “Who is Xiao Hua?”
Unable to see the spirit, Ran Jingjing only heard Bai Lixin suddenly shout “Xiao Hua” and hurriedly asked, “Xiao Hua? Why did you mention Xiao Hua? Where is Xiao Hua?”
The boy tilted his head, “Xiao Hua, it’s Xiao Hua.”
“She’s a little girl, my good friend.”
Bai Lixin: “What kind of little girl?”
The boy: “Well… she’s a very cute little girl with big eyes, a pointed chin, and smiles like a sunflower.”
“The bangs on her forehead are straight as if cut with a ruler.”
“I don’t like her bangs. Sunflowers don’t have bangs. A large round face looks better.”
Bai Lixin: “…”
There were only a few photos of Su Xiaohua, and in those photos, she had thick bangs.
“But, I understood later.” The boy pointed the tip of his tail to his forehead, “Xiaohua also has a little flower here. Xiaohua said Xiaohua’s forehead is too ugly, so she hides the little flower.”
“I don’t believe it. Xiaohua is so pretty. Xiaohua must be afraid of being envied for her little flower, so she hides it from us.”
Bai Lixin frowned slightly, turned to Ran Jingjing beside him, and asked, “Does Xiaohua have a scar on her forehead?”
Ran Jingjing was stunned for a moment, “There is something on her forehead, but it’s not a scar. It’s a red birthmark. It’s shaped like a flower. Xiaohua thought it was ugly, so she always covered it with bangs. Later, she would deliberately use foundation to cover the birthmark.”
“How do you know there’s something on Xiaohua’s forehead? Who exactly are you talking to?” Ran Jingjing was anxious.
Bai Lixin described the boy’s appearance, “Think back, have you seen this child before? Maybe not now, but when you and Su Xiaohua were little.”
Ran Jingjing didn’t hesitate, “No, I have no recollection at all. Except for mentioning Xiaohua, what else did he say? If he saw Xiaohua with the flower birthmark on her forehead, then the Xiaohua he saw must be Xiaohua.”
Ran Jingjing couldn’t see the spirit, but the spirit could see and hear her, “She’s right! Xiaohua has a beautiful little pink flower on her forehead.”
“Do you know where Xiaohua is? Take me to her. Once we find her, I don’t want to play hide and seek anymore!”
Bai Lixin: “…”
‘Great, another one looking for Xiaohua.’
‘This copy really hits the point, I’m really looking for Xiaohua from beginning to end.’
But if this spirit could describe Xiaohua’s appearance and details, it meant Xiaohua had been here.
“I can help you find Xiaohua, but you need to answer a few questions first.”
“You can ask me anything, but let’s hurry and find Xiaohua now!” The boy’s spirit body moved toward the outside eagerly, but as he floated to the iron gate, an invisible force seemed to push him back, bouncing him away in an instant.
Just like when Bai Lixin first arrived in this copy and was trapped in that office building.
Bai Lixin didn’t miss it earlier—the twisted air and edge of the building were not just a summer mirage; it was a distorted force field.
That’s why the boy said he had been trapped here all along.
The boy’s information was too fragmented, so Bai Lixin could only guide him to say what he needed to know but bit through questions.
If Xiaohua became a spirit after her death, the boy might provide clues about her current appearance.
Bai Lixin lifted the boy from the ground, “Did you and Xiaohua meet here?”
The boy shook his head and said “yes” before trying to walk outside again.
As expected, he was bounced back once more.
Bai Lixin noticed that each time the boy was repelled, his body became fainter.
After two attempts, his body was almost transparent.
When he tried for the third time, Bai Lixin grabbed him by the collar, stopping the boy’s “self-destructive” behavior.
‘Bad uncle’ Bai Lixin threatened, “If you keep trying to run outside, I won’t help you find Xiaohua.”
The boy immediately stayed put, as obedient as a model student.
Bai Lixin asked several questions, but the boy’s answers were incoherent and provided no useful clues.
“How long have you been here?”
“A long time.”
“How did you die?”
“I don’t remember.”
“How old is Xiaohua?”
“Xiaohua is, of course, a cute little girl.”
“Did you and Xiaohua meet here?”
“Probably, I don’t remember.”
“Besides Xiaohua, were there many people here?”
“Yeah, there were many before. But they all left me during hide and seek.”
“Why did you suddenly decide to play hide and seek?”
“I don’t know. Xiaohua was gloomy all day. Even when I made the little stars she liked so much, she didn’t cheer up. I wanted to make her happy, so she suggested we play hide and seek.”
“Besides being gloomy that day, do you remember anything else?”
“That day… someone came.”
“What kind of person?”
“I just remember he was a very scary person, with a blue face and sharp teeth. I took one look and ran away in fear.”
“Long ago, there was a murder here. A man killed a big sister who looked a lot like Xiaohua. Did you see anything?”
“What? There was a murder here? That’s so scary! Someone who looked a lot like Xiaohua?”
“Stop asking questions, my head hurts! I’m so dizzy!” The spirit hugged his head and shook it with a painful expression.
Suddenly, his eyes locked onto Ran Jingjing, and he lunged at her.
“Xiaohua, is that you… Xiaohua!”
The nearly transparent spirit approached Ran Jingjing, and as it neared her, its form disintegrated like silk fabric in the wind, pieces falling and separating from it.
By the time it reached Ran Jingjing, the spirit body had dissolved into a tiny white speck.
The last white crystal point hovered near Ran Jingjing for a moment, then vanished completely.
The spirit had been trapped in this space for too long and finally couldn’t hold on anymore; it disappeared.
Ran Jingjing was bewildered, “Did you find out where Xiaohua is?”
“…,” Bai Lixin, “No, he disappeared.”
Ran Jingjing’s eyelids drooped slightly, and she couldn’t hide her disappointment. She smiled bitterly, “I see. Let’s go back then.”
“But the spirit did provide some information. Before he disappeared, he pointed at you and called you Xiaohua.”
Ran Jingjing had a puzzled expression, “That’s right. I’m Xiaohua’s secondary personality.”
The setting sun sank behind the horizon, and darkness gradually filled the already dim room.
Bai Lixin scanned the room with his eyes, “You told me before that Xiaohua disappeared in front of you.”
“But Cao Ji’an admitted himself that he had buried Xiaohua before, and later went to dig the grave only to find Xiaohua missing.”
“Why do the two of you have different stories?”
