Chapter 17: Liu Yu

“Junior sister, your school’s freshmen report next Sunday, right?”

“Sigh, can’t believe it—blink of an eye, and you’re off to university! In my mind, you’re still just a kid!”

After a day of hustling, Liu Yu had just showered and now lounged idly on the hotel bed, chatting animatedly with the person on the phone.

“I just got to Hangyang today—exhausted to death.”

“From what my master said, we’ll be sticking around here for a good while this time.”

“Maybe your senior sis can even drop you off for orientation?”

Though replies from the other end were sparse compared to her chatter, Liu Yu kept “harassing” her adorable junior sister with undimmed enthusiasm.

“Alright, alright—enough from me. You heading to bed? Nighty-night.”

Hanging up, Liu Yu sighed and stretched lazily.

She and her junior weren’t from the same sect—just that her martial uncle (the junior’s master) had a mercurial temper, always vanishing like a dragon in hiding.

The junior had spent more time with them, and over the years, bonds had formed.

But lately, it felt like the junior was starting to take after her uncle’s personality.

With that thought, Liu Yu sprawled on the bed, fiddling aimlessly with her phone.

She wasn’t clear on the details—just that lately, a bunch of folks she knew from the trade, all capable oddballs and specialists, were converging on Hangyang.

She’d see what her master arranged come time.

Liu Yu scrolled the video app’s home feed, hunting for engaging clips.

Owing to her line of work, she loved little ghost stories and spirit-hunting vids.

“Too fake—saw the fishing line.”

“Talismans don’t look like that; total poser crap.”

“Team audio leaked right in…”

She ripped through various ghost-hunting shorts, gripes nonstop.

Finally, she sighed wearily.

“No natural streamers out there?”

These high-view hits were all polished productions, dripping with contrived vibes.

Sure, they hooked their crowds…

But for someone like Liu Yu, it pulled her right out.

That’s when a low-view newbie vid popped on her feed.

“Haunted House Vlog…?”

Liu Yu tapped play.

Yup—fresh upload, timestamped midnight, just an hour back.

The title was bland, no clickbait hook.

Not some hyped “haunted” spot either, or the thumbnail or header would’ve screamed it.

Though these days, any “spirit site” known to the masses was streamer central—scripted to hell—but for views, those classics still delivered.

From this, Liu Yu pegged it as a rookie creator.

After binging formulaic ghost hunts, she perked up for this newbie’s take.

Glancing at the runtime: a full hour.

With her master out tonight, she could slack and burn the midnight oil.

Liu Yu cracked open a complimentary soda from the minibar and hit play.

Though she held zero hopes for raw newbie content.

The vid opened on a vast courtyard—old-money estate vibes.

“Hello, everyone. It’s about eight in the morning now, and today I’ll be spending the day in this mansion rumored to be a haunted house, to see what happens.”

A clear, cool girl’s voice narrated from the frame; Liu Yu’s brows lifted in mild surprise.

A female creator?

Nice voice, though—flat as a script read.

“Rumored to be a haunted house…?”

Liu Yu felt a twinge of exasperation.

“So vague?”

“No ghost story intro?”

Solo creator, probably?

Otherwise, she’d question the team’s coaching.

“As you can see, this is right at the courtyard entrance.”

“Now, we’ll cross the courtyard and head to the main house.”

The footage shifted; Liu Yu eyed the courtyard reveal, cross-referencing mental notes from past online haunt hunts…

Same site, hit by dozens or hundreds of creators—Liu Yu, avid viewer, had most hot spots’ environs memorized.

“Weird—not matching any…”

So, had this creator really scouted her own haunt?

As the vid progressed to the mansion proper.

The building filled the screen.

Liu Yu felt her lips twitch.

A few viewers shared the sentiment.

[This a haunted house? My crib’s a ghost pad then.]

[Ghost hunters not even pretending anymore?]

Bullets zipped across the opulent facade.

Liu Yu’s inner monologue echoed much the same.

Feels kinda dull…

Wasting time on this; she moved to exit back to home, but her eyes snagged on the frame one last time.

“Hm?”

She paused.

Rewound a tick to the full mansion shot.

A bullet drifted by.

[…This place still occupied? Shadow on the second-floor balcony.]

Liu Yu zeroed in on the upper balcony.

Sure enough—in the shadowed recess, a half-translucent red silhouette flickered, elusive.

It almost felt like they were locking eyes.

The mansion’s initial lavish punch had masked it; without scrutiny, the anomaly slipped by.

[Creator’s ghost effect, duh.]

[I’m blind.]

[Easy post-prod P.]

Bullets scoffed it off.

But Liu Yu knew better.

Her focus locked on that red, translucent shade.

Even through the screen, she sensed the ill omen.

This wasn’t edited in—it was there from the start!

This house… wasn’t clean.

She’d stumbled on something big by accident…

But the easy mood had fled.

Now, she fretted for the filmer—a young-sounding girl’s safety.

Red meant it could bleed through media into reality…

The vid rolled on.

Unable to budge the door, the creator seemed set on another entry.

Cut to a window on the house.

“The wind must’ve just blown through and shut all the doors and windows.”

She was window-bound.

“Don’t—don’t go…”

Even from the screen, Liu Yu wanted to burst in and yank the greenhorn back.

She dealt with that stuff daily.

That window— just looking raised her hackles.

How had this creator—eight characters tough enough to fell trees?—sensed zilch?

“Screeech—”

“This is…”

The creator’s pale, slender hand—knuckled distinct—entered frame.

Normally, Liu Yu would’ve complimented it.

But now, her gaze nailed the waterweed coiled on it.

In the window’s reflection, wrapped around it: a paler, feminine hand—