Chapter 38: Before the trip

The Next Day, Clear

If this summer brought Xueqiu anything, it was a sense of ease, inside and out.

From March to July and now, she hadn’t attended a single proper class.

Her only “study” was daily training with Xia Yin.

Training often meant sparring—one wielding a sword, the other a branch cut that day.

Naturally, Xueqiu wasn’t the branch-wielder.

Since that day, Xia Yin had lent her “Mist Cutter.”

At first, she worried about hurting him, but she soon realized her concern was baseless.

Even with a sword, she couldn’t get near him these past months.

Countless times—maybe dozens—her blade was knocked from her hand by the branch’s inexplicable force.

She couldn’t fathom how, even with Contracts suppressed at the Academy, Xia Yin could toy with her using pure physical skill.

But today, there was no sparring.

Not because Xia Yin was tired or she’d given up, but because something more important awaited.

Leaving the Academy to join the “Investigation Team.”

Five days had passed since Ou Ziyun’s call.

That night, Xueqiu told Xia Yin, who was glued to his screen, muttering about “finally winning” and “insecticide.”

“Investigation Team? No way, that hellhole has no signal, no internet… Go alone if you want, but don’t say I pushed you if something happens…”

Yet, when she mentioned the “extra credits” perk, his tune changed.

“Well, it’s not impossible. You’re an early-admission freshman. If something happened, how’d I face the professor or principal…?”

He abandoned his post-game interview, swiftly packing, stuffing leftover instant noodles into his suitcase.

At least now, Xia Yin would join her, Xueqiu thought.

“Lights off? Plugs out? If not, go pull them—but not the fridge. I don’t want to come back to maggots…”

At the dorm door, Xia Yin’s left hand rested on his black suitcase, his right pulling Xueqiu’s beige one, a rod bag on his back.

Unlike when they arrived, he carried an extra chest-strapped bag, stuffed full, though he hadn’t brought his computer.

“Done,” Xueqiu said, locking the door and handing him the key.

She wasn’t mute yet, at least not now.

“Brother Xia?”

Before leaving the hallway, a familiar voice called out.

The voice’s owner seemed thrilled to see Xia Yin with luggage, nearly rushing to hug him.

It was Su Xi, a sophomore, Xueqiu’s senior or “sister.”

Su Xi pulled an identical suitcase, humming an unfamiliar tune, as if this were a trip for the three of them.

But this wasn’t a trip.

Meeting Su Xi wasn’t in Xueqiu’s plans—though she hadn’t made any, just following the flow.

“Don’t dawdle. The president gets mad if you keep her waiting, and she’s scary when mad,” Su Xi said, smiling as she took Xueqiu’s suitcase, acting like a caring older sister.

“Who else did Ou Ziyun call? Carlos? Not the news department paparazzi, right? If it’s them, we’re breaking the ‘Investigation Team intern casualty’ record,” Xia Yin said, his dead-fish eyes blinking.

Xueqiu hurried after them, pushing stray thoughts aside.

Per Ou Ziyun’s later words, this trip was just an extracurricular activity.

A field exercise in the world called Youdu?

In the elevator’s corner, Xueqiu stared at her phone’s buzzing messages, her mind stirring.

In a QQ group chat, a user with a pink-haired anime girl avatar shared travel photos, tagged in Ting’an City.

Xueqiu knew who it was.

[Snowball, back in Qingtan? If not, come hang out! Qingyuan and I just got to Ting’an this morning.]

Another user—the group’s last—posted a cute cat emoji, their avatar a cyan bird.

This group, or rather discussion, had just three members: Xueqiu, Su Qingyuan, and Jiang Cheng.

Xueqiu recalled it was created in their sophomore year for a city physics competition, meant for coordination.

But the day before, Xueqiu caught a fever, missing her only city-level competition in three years.

She wasn’t surprised the group was active again.

Scrolling up revealed why.

Jiang Cheng: Seriously? You got early admission to Ting’an University? Don’t lie—you got kicked out, right? (2024/03/20)

Jiang Cheng: So lucky, no second mock exam. You don’t know how brutal this test was. (2024/04/03)

Su Qingyuan: Xueqiu, how’re you doing there? (2024/05/22)

Messages like these piled up, from mock exams to graduation and college applications.

From Jiang Cheng and Su Qingyuan, Xueqiu gathered that Jiang stayed in Qingtan for university, while Su Qingyuan got into a 211 university in Lühe City…

She usually replied earnestly but never mentioned “Shadow Ghosts” or “Youdu.”

She didn’t know what would happen if she told her only two former friends.

For them, the less they knew, the better.

[Sorry, I’m interning with my senior. Can’t make it back these days.]

Sending the pre-typed message, Xueqiu sighed inwardly, looking up to find Xia Yin staring.

Those dead-fish eyes.

The meeting point, a ten-minute walk from the dorm, was west of the library.

When Xueqiu arrived with her seniors, Ou Ziyun was already waiting.

“You’re late again, Xia Yin. Always late,” Ou Ziyun said coldly.

“But I’m not the only one, right? Don’t just call me out, Madam President,” Xia Yin retorted, glancing at her before stepping behind Xueqiu.

Xueqiu knew Xia Yin and Carlos got along, but his relationship with Ou Ziyun seemed strained.

If so, why invite him?

Xueqiu didn’t understand, just as she didn’t get why the meeting point was here.

It was a small grove, nothing like the campus gate.

ps: I’ve got four exams in the coming weeks, so the double-update plan will shift. If there’s a double update, I’ll note it at the chapter’s end. Planning to resume double updates by next Friday.
(Random toothache lately.)
(Begging for monthly tickets and tips, as always.)