Chapter 20: Hidden Blade

Xueqiu carefully slid the profile across to Professor Chen, pointing to the photo of a youthful boy in the top left corner.

“This is what I used to look like.”

Professor Chen seemed to have anticipated her question but didn’t rush to answer.

He picked up the form she’d pushed over, pondering briefly before looking up.

“Xia Yin didn’t go into detail about this, did he?”

Xueqiu nodded.

The old man rubbed his forehead, as if torn or scrambling to find the right words.

“Some things he kept quiet about for the bigger picture. But this? His silence is purely personal.”

“Personal?” Xueqiu didn’t understand.

“When Xia Yin first saw you, didn’t he act… odd?” Professor Chen asked.

First time?

Xueqiu recalled that night—Xia Yin saved her, then chatted casually, showing no strange behavior.

But by early morning, he’d changed, tossing out words like “dead person.”

Thinking it over, Xueqiu had already pieced together a guess, but no one had confirmed if she was right.

“That morning, he seemed reluctant to see me,” she said softly.

While mulling this, Xueqiu had been staring at her shoes.

When she looked up, another A4 sheet lay before her.

“Your physical change is tied to Shadow Ghost genes, but the specifics? The board needs to decide before I can tell you,” the old man sighed.

“As for Xia Yin’s reaction… you’ve probably guessed. You now resemble someone he knew.”

Sunlight streamed through the room’s only window, illuminating the data-filled forms.

The new sheet wasn’t Xueqiu’s, but its photo showed a half-body shot identical to her current self.

Or rather, the smiling white-haired girl in the picture matched her perfectly.

“Her name was Wuyue Liuli, class of 2021, Xia Yin’s senior. She guided him on multiple Shadow Ghost extermination missions,” Professor Chen said deliberately, stretching each syllable.

“Extermination?” Xueqiu’s heart jolted, the word slipping out.

Before coming here, she’d seen Xia Yin leap from a speeding van on the highway to face unknown monsters.

At her grandma’s, she’d glimpsed him fresh from killing the tentacle creature.

She wasn’t clueless about the school’s possible purpose.

But when Professor Chen casually uttered “kill” and “exterminate,” as if discussing lunch plans, Xueqiu was caught off guard.

It was like something human in her was quietly erased.

“That’s one of our school’s two founding purposes,” the professor said, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes.

Xueqiu lowered her head again, refocusing on Wuyue Liuli’s profile.

Former student council president, former anime club leader, former Ting’an City Pivot Reserve, and…

Contract Number: 007

Contract Type: Domain/Spatial

Contract Name: Yinglong

The girl’s Contract was clearly listed in the second column, while Xueqiu’s own profile left that field blank.

“Yinglong…” The name felt familiar, but she couldn’t place it.

“Same as Xia Yin’s Contract,” Professor Chen said, clearing his throat.

“We’ll cover Contract naming in my Contract Management and Research course if you take it. For now, focus on the entrance exam.”

“Is this senior still in contact with the school?” Xueqiu asked softly.

Holding the profile, she noted every title prefixed with “former.”

Combined with Xia Yin’s demeanor, it was hard not to fear the worst.

“She died in the line of duty a few years ago,” the professor said quietly, no sugarcoating.

Xueqiu’s heart sank, though her face stayed blank.

His words matched her guess, but guesses didn’t change reality.

“Exterminating Shadow Ghosts” wasn’t easy.

“Some students crumble after orientation. Most suffer varying degrees of trauma after their first mission. Yet you show no expression,” Professor Chen said, pleased with her composure.

Xueqiu wanted to tell the old man that since her parents died five years ago, she rarely showed emotion.

Crying and smiling faded; this blank face was her default.

Fear lived in her heart—she just didn’t know how to show it.

Ding-a-ling!

The white rotary phone on the desk rang.

The room’s decor screamed vintage—no computers, wooden chairs, an old-school phone.

“Our talk ends here for now. Go back, prepare for the exam. Your rank will be assessed then, Xueqiu,” Professor Chen said, hand hovering over the receiver.

Xueqiu wanted to protest—she didn’t even know the exam’s format or content, yet everyone assumed she did.

But before she knew it, she’d closed the door behind her, standing alone in the hallway.

By the elevator, she saw Xia Yin.

Only then did she realize over an hour had passed.

“What’d the professor say? Grand speeches about our noble ghost-slaying mission? Or ‘beware of fire, thieves, and your senior—don’t let him whisk you away’?” Xia Yin teased, a lollipop stick wobbling in his mouth, urging her to answer.

“He told me to prepare for the entrance exam,” Xueqiu said after some thought.

“Just the entrance exam? That’s nothing. I’ve been here almost six years—newbie tests are pretty much the same every year.”

“But I don’t know how to prepare.”

Xia Yin froze, his face a mix of pity and frustration. “The old man didn’t tell you?”

She shook her head.

His tone echoed high school math teachers saying, “Calculus will cover this,” while calculus teachers ask, “Didn’t high school teach you this?”

“Fine, fine, I’ll explain back at the dorm. Knew that geezer would forget something. Last time, he forgot to grade my final paper. The time before, he forgot to tell me I was held back…”

*

In room 401, Chen Qiyun pressed the receiver to his ear, his face grave, a stark contrast to his earlier warmth.

“At this hour, you’ve met our stellar early-admission freshman, right? Smart? Cute? Who’s better—her or Wuyue?” a man’s voice, no older than thirty, chirped through the line, carefree like an old friend catching up.

Chen Qiyun showed no slack. “As the board predicted, but… she doesn’t seem like a bad kid.”

“Bad or not, doesn’t matter. Good kid, bad kid—if they kill Shadow Ghosts, they’re useful, right?” the voice coughed, maybe from smoke or talking too fast.

Silence filled the office.

After a long pause, Chen Qiyun spoke into the receiver.

“We can’t keep her in the dark forever. We’ve no right to burden a new student with ghost-slaying.”

“Why so grim? Training her wasn’t just my call—it’s the board’s. Sure, those fossils are as rotten as this school, but… her Shadow Gene purity decides this.”

“…”

“Let me guess—seeing her brought back memories of that old student, huh?”

“Xueqiu’s just a freshman. Her path is long,” Chen Qiyun sighed.

He rarely sighed; it only aged his already elderly appearance further.