ATFBETIBM Chapter 700

Bai Lixin remembered the black mist.

More accurately, he remembered this feeling.

That year, his mother lost her sanity and dragged him to a shaman to arrange a ghost marriage.

There were only their birthdates and horoscopes, no photographs.

He heard that the match was with some kind of earth spirit, which would protect him from being harmed by malicious ghosts.

After returning from the shaman, he fell seriously ill and had a high fever that lasted for days.

At that time, he was so dizzy with fever that he felt like he was already standing at the door of the Palace of Hell, only to return home in the next second.

He opened his eyes and saw his mother’s tearful face.

Mother Bai Lixin held his hand, sobbing, praying to heaven to let her child survive.

Behind his mother, he saw the outline of that terrifying black mist.

The black mist spoke to him: “My little bride, your body cannot accept me yet. I will wait for you to come of age.”

After that illness passed, he began to see the black mist more often.

No one else could see it, only he could.

Sometimes it would stand outside the square, watching him from afar, other times it would sit across from him at the dining table.

He thought he might have developed schizophrenia.

Medically speaking, mental illness could be hereditary, and he feared he had unfortunately inherited his mother’s madness.

Mental illnesses require prescription medications, and for someone like him who needed a guardian to accompany him, with his mother’s condition just starting to improve, he didn’t want to trigger another episode in her.

He didn’t go to the hospital but secretly took his mother’s medication for schizophrenia.

After being around his mother’s treatment for so long, he had a general idea of what medication to take for different symptoms.

After taking the medicine for more than half a month, the black mist that often appeared around him disappeared.

He stopped taking the medication as a result.

But now, he was seeing the black mist again.

Bai Lixin rested his forehead against the cold glass in frustration.

It seemed his schizophrenia had returned.

His mental state over the past few days had indeed been concerning.

He fell into the lake but had lost his memory of that event.

He saw a ghost of Dr. Cao Lin who was suspected to be dead.

He heard knocking sounds that didn’t exist.

And now, he saw the black mist again, even hearing its voice.

Ah, despair. He had no will to live.

Bai Lixin leaned his forehead against the window and, like an old monk tapping on a wooden fish, knocked his head lightly against the glass repeatedly.

The sound of “bang, bang, bang” attracted the curious glances of those around him.

“Poor child,” the familiar deep, magnetic voice rang in his ear again. Bai Lixin suddenly felt a soft sensation on his forehead. He looked and saw the black mist blocking the area in front of him. “Your head’s turning red, let me cushion it.”

Bai Lixin: “…”

‘You’re quite a good person.’

He rubbed his temples. It seemed that he should go home this afternoon to secretly take some of his mother’s medicine, and while he was at it, grab a change of clothes.

The black mist stayed with him all the way until the subway reached the station, then it vanished from his consciousness.

Worried about seeing more hallucinations, Bai Lixin hurried out of the subway station and rushed to Q University.

This year, he was a sophomore, and his coursework had just reached its most relaxed point.

He had a total of four classes today—three in the morning and one in the afternoon. After his first afternoon class ended at three, he would be free for the rest of the day.

The first two classes in the morning were anatomy classes, held in the medical building.

Who knew why students in the art and design department had to go to the medical building to observe cadavers? Isn’t that something medical students should be doing?

According to their teacher, this learning opportunity had been specially arranged by the department to give them a more comprehensive understanding of the human body.

They not only needed to understand the structure of living bodies but also that of the deceased.

It all sounded great.

Just… don’t say it again next time.

The first two classes were combined, with both Art and Design Class One and Class Two attending, making a total of more than sixty students.

Before entering the medical building, the teacher repeatedly emphasized that in front of the cadaver, they must remain calm and focused, with a sense of reverence, and absolutely no loud talking.

The teacher was probably overthinking it.

Who would dare to speak loudly in front of a cadaver?

So, as soon as they entered the chilly medical department, all sixty-plus students fell into complete silence.

Even the air seemed thick with stillness.

It was a spacious classroom. Although it was not fully utilized, it made people feel claustrophobic.

Various anatomical diagrams of human body parts were posted on the walls, and shelves along the walls displayed jars of specimens preserved in formalin.

In the large classroom, the students huddled together in the center, unwilling to move their feet any more than necessary.

Bai Lixin stood toward the back of the group. The cadaver lay on a special hospital bed at the front, and when they arrived, a teacher in a white lab coat was already waiting there.

The teacher was tall and had his back to them.

To get a better view of the cadaver’s structure, Bai Lixin shifted his position slightly.

“Come on, everyone, move up a little,” the anatomy teacher beckoned them forward. “Observe closely. What are the differences in the body’s appearance after death compared to when it was alive?”

Bai Lixin moved closer and examined the cadaver on the bed.

The cadaver’s face was covered with a white cloth, making it impossible to see its features, but they could see the torso and limbs.

From what was exposed, it seemed that this cadaver had once been a relatively young adult male.

A student raised their hand.

The anatomy teacher: “Go ahead.”

The student whispered, “After death, blood no longer circulates, and the body becomes grayish-white. It’s paler than a living body.”

Bai Lixin looked at the cadaver on the bed. Indeed, its skin was extremely pale.

The anatomy teacher: “This classmate is right. Now, everyone, hold out your hands and compare them with the cadaver’s. Look at the differences in color. I know you can find pictures of corpses online, but due to the distortion of color saturation in images, the corpses you see online don’t show the true colors. That’s why I brought you here today—to observe the real characteristics of a corpse.”

Upon hearing this, the students all extended their hands.

Bai Lixin followed suit.

His eyes fell on his own hand, then shifted to the hand of the cadaver on the bed.

The degree of whiteness was about the same.

Bai Lixin quietly pulled his hand back into his sleeve.

Was his complexion that bad now?

It seemed that the illness from a few days ago had taken a toll on him. He really needed to nourish himself.

Otherwise, who could tell the difference between him and a corpse?

“Teacher,” a student raised their hand, “the surface of the cadaver looks much rougher. Is that also a difference?”

The anatomy teacher nodded. “That’s right. The surrounding air will erode the skin. When we’re alive, dead skin cells are shed through metabolism, but after death, that process stops, and the skin starts to crack as it’s eroded by the environment. Even though the cadaver has undergone special preservation treatments, it still can’t stop the body from ultimately decaying.”

“Your eyes alone can’t give you a full understanding. You can touch it to feel for yourselves.”

The students looked at each oy, no one daring to reach out.

“Bai Lixin.” The anatomy teacher called him by name. “You come up and experience it.”

Bai Lixin: “…”

‘No, why are you cueing me?’

I’ve already hidden in the back. Doesn’t that make it clear I’m not interested?’

The other students quietly sighed in relief and they made a path for him.

Bai Lixin had no choice but to walk forward, reluctantly reaching out with one finger to touch the cadaver’s arm.

The teacher in the white coat, who had been silently standing by the bed, suddenly spoke up to encourage him, “Don’t be afraid. Try using your whole palm.”

Under the sympathetic gazes of his classmates, Bai Lixin gritted his teeth, resigned to his fate, and spread his hand flat, pressing it against the cadaver’s chest.

Cold, stiff, rough.

The texture made him very uncomfortable.

He quickly pulled his hand back and retreated to the back of the group.

The teacher in the white coat wasn’t done with him yet, asking, “What did it feel like?”

Bai Lixin: “Cold, hard, and a bit rough.”

White Coat: “Do you like it?”

Bai Lixin: “Not really.”

White Coat: “Then you’d better start liking it.”

Bai Lixin: “…”

How could he like touching a corpse? It wasn’t like he had necrophilia.

After responding to the teacher’s questions, he noticed that his classmates were looking at him with admiration.

One of the students nearby gave him a thumbs-up and whispered, “Bai Lixin, you’re amazing. You’re so brave!”

The anatomy teacher’s eyes flashed with approval. “Bai Lixin did an excellent job. Everyone should follow his example and use their palms to feel the texture.”

Bai Lixin: “…”

‘Please, teacher, don’t push this. I was just doing what you asked.’

“Teacher,” another student raised their hand, “why is the cadaver’s face covered?”

The anatomy teacher explained, “This cadaver committed suicide by swallowing razor blades, so their face is somewhat damaged. It’s usually covered during teaching.”

The student boldly asked, “Then why doesn’t the school apply for a more complete cadaver?”

“Cadavers are a very scarce educational resource,” the anatomy teacher continued with the lesson. “Our university only has two cadavers, and they’ve both been used for over ten years. In fact, there aren’t many people who choose to donate their bodies for educational purposes, and the requirements for cadavers are also quite strict. Finding one that meets all the criteria is extremely rare. But the school is actively applying, hoping to bring in new cadavers as soon as possible.”

Bai Lixin stared down at his shoes, quietly wondering when these two classes would finally end.

The air around him was icy cold, and he felt incredibly uncomfortable being there.

Suddenly, there were gasps from the students around him.

Bai Lixin subconsciously looked up and his eyes happened to fall on the cadaver’s face.

Somehow, the cloth that had been covering the face had fallen to the ground, revealing the features beneath.

The cadaver’s eyes were closed, and the sockets had sunken deep into the skin.

Everything else seemed normal, except for the mouth. It looked as if it had been torn open and hastily stitched back together.

The grotesque wound stretched from the corner of the mouth to the back of the ear, terrifying and chilling.

Bai Lixin’s pupils constricted.

His stomach churned violently.

Something seemed to be crawling its way up from his gut.

He clutched his mouth, retching dryly.

The room erupted into chaos.

The anatomy teacher hurriedly picked up the cloth and covered the cadaver’s face again, frantically directing two students, “Quick, take Bai Lixin to the bathroom. He looks like he’s going to vomit.”

Bai Lixin couldn’t pay attention to anything else at this point. He felt himself being supported by two male students as they hurried him out of the classroom.

In the bathroom, Bai Lixin vomited continuously, expelling everything he’d eaten that morning, until only stomach acid came out.

The cadaver’s face kept flashing in his mind, overlapping and merging with another face he had seen just a few days ago, until the two became one.

—So, you can see me, huh. Come play with me.

Teacher Cao Lin.

Bai Lixin heaved, vomiting more stomach acid.

How could the cadaver look exactly like Teacher Cao Lin from his dream a few days ago?

He had never seen Cao Lin’s face before. So why had it appeared in his dream?

Was it really just a dream?

Was it really just a hallucination?

A cold sensation spread through his limbs. He walked out of the bathroom only after he had nothing left to throw up.

He wiped the corner of his mouth at the sink and stared at his reflection. His face was unnaturally pale.

His lips, however, were a vibrant red.

The contrast gave him an eerie, broken beauty look.

Bai Lixin quickly lowered his head to wash his hands.

The two male students who had helped him were nowhere to be seen. The narrow corridor outside was dimly lit, with one end leading back to the classroom and the other toward the exit.

Still shaken by the cadaver’s face, there was no way Bai Lixin would return to class.

He’d rather get marked absent than see that horrifying face again.

After glancing around, he decisively chose the path leading to the main entrance of the building.

The corridor was long and eerily quiet.

Only the sound of his hurried footsteps echoed.

His heart pounded wildly in his chest, and soon his quick steps turned into a full sprint.

He ran through the corridor, desperate to escape.

But no matter how fast he ran, the exit still seemed far away.

Even though he could clearly see the door ahead, it felt like he was getting nowhere.

Exhausted from his earlier vomiting, combined with fear and exertion, Bai Lixin’s back was drenched in sweat.

His face grew paler and paler, and he slowed from a run to a walk. Using the wall for support, he gasped for air and eventually stopped altogether.

At some point, the corridor had changed.

He couldn’t see the bathroom anymore, yet the corridor remained the same narrow stretch.

On one side, he could see the classroom door, and he could even hear the anatomy teacher’s lecture.

“This cadaver committed suicide by swallowing razor blades, so their face is somewhat damaged…”

His head throbbed, and Bai Lixin clutched his stomach, feeling nauseous again.

“Tap!”

“Tap!”

“Tap!”

The sound of leather shoes stepping on the hard marble floor echoed behind him.

Under his damp hair, Bai Lixin forced himself to lift his eyes and look over.

A man appeared at the classroom door. He wore a white lab coat, his hands tucked into his pockets, and a blue mask covered his face as he strode toward him.

Bai Lixin’s pupils trembled. He gritted his teeth and dragged his heavy steps, leaning against the wall to walk away quickly.

His body seemed to be on the verge of collapse and every step felt incredibly heavy. His mind urged him to leave, to stay far away from this man, yet his feet felt weak, as if they were bound by a thousand pounds of weight.

The sound of the shoes behind him grew closer.

He began to hear a strange, raspy sound like that of a snake.

“Finally found you, hehe, come and play with me.”

His stomach churned, and cold sweat trickled down his forehead.

Bai Lixin’s vision darkened, and he felt as though he were about to faint.

A dark mist slowly extended from behind him.

The mist covered his eyes, and Bai Lixin heard a low, magnetic voice sigh with amusement, “Ah, what a pitiful little bride.”

There was a loud crash and a scream from behind, but Bai Lixin had no idea what had happened.

At this moment, his weakened body could only lean entirely on this strange mist.

His consciousness grew more and more blurred, and he felt something warm and moist pry his mouth open, slipping inside.

It was as though a parched land had finally met rain; he clung to the lifeline, sucking desperately on that thing.

So thirsty.

So delicious.

Give me more.

Give me all of it.

Bai Lixin greedily sucked, frantic and eager…

“Bai Lixin, Bai Lixin?” A distant voice called out, and Bai Lixin blinked, looking around.

White tiled walls.

Concerned classmates.

He was still in the bathroom.

His classmate examined him up and down, “Are you feeling better? Do you still feel uncomfortable in your stomach? Do you need to go to the medical office? Are you still recovering from your cold?”

Bai Lixin was in a daze for a moment before nodding his head stiffly, “I’m much better now, thanks.”

Classmate: “Are you going back to class?”

Recalling the corridor he couldn’t seem to escape earlier, Bai Lixin nodded again, “I’ll go to class.”

His classmate gave him a look of admiration. “No wonder you’re a top student. Even in this state, you’re determined to attend class. If it were me, I’d have run off long ago.”

Bai Lixin wanted to cry but had no tears.

‘You don’t understand, I also want to run away.’

“But you do look a bit better than before,” his classmate commented as they looked at Bai Lixin, “Your face has a little more color now.”

Hearing this, Bai Lixin glanced at the mirror by the sink. Indeed, his pale cheeks had gained a bit of color.

On his way back to the classroom, his mind replayed the events that had just occurred.

Had he been in the bathroom the whole time?

Was that memory of leaving the bathroom and trying to escape the building just his imagination?

Why did it feel so real?

Back in the classroom, the cadaver’s face was once again covered by the white cloth, and the anatomy teacher was efficiently guiding the lesson.

The students were gathered around the cadaver, but the teacher in the white lab coat who had been by the bed earlier was gone.

The anatomy teacher approached Bai Lixin with concern, “Were you frightened earlier?”

Bai Lixin couldn’t tell the teacher that he’d seen a ghost of Teacher Cao Lin, so he just nodded and admitted, “A little.”

The anatomy teacher: “Next time, if you’re scared, tell the teacher sooner. There’s no need to push yourself. I know you’ve always been a diligent student, and you were very brave when you touched the cadaver earlier. I only expected you to touch it with a finger, but you went ahead and used your whole hand to feel it, and even gave feedback to the class on what it felt like. You performed exceptionally well in this lesson.”

Bai Lixin’s gaze flickered. He looked at the cadaver on the bed, then back at the anatomy teacher.

“Earlier… no one asked me to touch it. No one asked me any questions. I… I touched it with my palm on my own, and gave feedback on my own?”

The anatomy teacher thought Bai Lixin was emphasizing his courage, and replied, “I know, that’s why I said you were brave. I’ll be giving you extra marks for your class performance.”

Bai Lixin’s stomach churned again. “…”

Was it all him?

So who was it that told him to touch it, and who asked him those questions?

Was his schizophrenia getting worse?

Bai Lixin didn’t stay for the rest of the afternoon classes. After two anatomy lessons, he quickly asked for leave and went home.

His mother wasn’t home.

The house was spotless.

Once Bai Lixin was sure his mother wasn’t around, he sighed with relief and quickly found her medicine, taking about twenty Risperidone tablets and putting them into an empty vitamin C bottle.

After taking the medication, he let out a silent sigh.

This wasn’t a solution. He had to see a doctor.

This episode was worse than before. Back then, he’d only seen that dark mist. Now he was not only seeing it, but also experiencing hallucinations and even memory loss.

He hadn’t gone to the hospital before because, as a minor, he needed a guardian. Later, when he turned eighteen, the episodes stopped, and he never went.

Now that it had flared up again, as an adult, he could go to the hospital on his own.

At least this way, he could keep it from his mother.

Bai Lixin planned to visit the psychiatric hospital that afternoon.

He returned to his room and quickly packed a few clothes. While doing so, he found an old item deep in the closet.

It was a rather Tibetan-style necklace, strung with beads of different shapes, sizes, and colors, with a beast tooth hanging from the end.

His mother had gotten it from a shaman.

The shaman claimed the tooth belonged to a young dragon, and wearing it would ward off evil.

Bai Lixin had worn it for a while, but the necklace was heavy, and the beads chafed his neck, so he’d eventually stashed it in the closet.

Given the strange things that had been happening lately, Bai Lixin thought for a moment before deciding to toss the necklace into his bag.

His mother hadn’t returned even after he made some food. Since he was eager to get to the hospital, Bai Lixin quickly ate, left a note, grabbed his things, and went out.

He arrived at the hospital around 1 p.m.

The doctor wouldn’t be available until 1:30.

Bai Lixin registered and sat in the hospital corridor, dozing off while mentally rehearsing how he would describe his symptoms to the doctor.

But he didn’t end up seeing the doctor. Just before the doctor was about to start their shift, Bai Lixin received a phone call.

The call was from Q University’s affiliated high school—Xia Chi’s classteacher.

The teacher’s tone was very serious, and Bai Lixin had no choice but to rush to the school, leaving his medical visit unfinished.

When he arrived, Xia Chi was standing in the office with several other boys, their faces bruised and battered—clearly, they had been in a fight.

The class teacher was a young woman with rimless glasses, and she glared at the students with a stern expression.

When Bai Lixin entered, Xia Chi, who was sporting a swollen face, stuck his tongue out at him.

“Teacher, I’m Xia Chi’s brother,” Bai Lixin decided to play the polite card and get a sense of what had happened, “Whatever he’s done wrong, I’ll make sure to teach him a lesson when we get home.”

“Don’t get worked up just yet,” the teacher said politely, gesturing for Bai Lixin to sit down. “It’s nothing major, but it’s not a trivial matter either. Let me explain what happened.”

“These students,” she pointed to the three boys huddled in the corner, “ganged up to bully a second-year student, and Xia Chi caught them. He stepped in and taught them a lesson.”

She then glared at the three boys, her expression darkening. “I’ve stressed countless times that bullying is forbidden. Are your ears blocked?”

Turning back to Bai Lixin, she said, “I’ll handle the matter with these boys. You should take Xia Chi home and have him looked at. He’s a good kid for standing up for what’s right, but next time, I hope he’ll be more mature and come to a teacher for help rather than handling things himself.”

Bai Lixin let out a sigh of relief. “So that’s what happened. Thank you, Teacher. I’ll talk to him more when we get home.”