Chapter 3: Don’t Come to School
Lu Feng stared blankly at the shattered flowerpot in front of him.
If that thing had hit him just now, even if he hadn’t been seriously injured on the spot, at the very least, a head split open and bleeding was unavoidable.
With lingering fear in his heart, Lu Feng looked toward the “person” who had just pushed him aside—
Liuli stood in front of him, looking at him with a worried expression.
“You’re not hurt, are you?”
She asked with concern.
“Ha, what could possibly happen to me?”
Lu Feng forced himself to stay calm as he stood up, coldly glaring at the female ghost in front of him.
“Besides, wasn’t all of this your doing in the first place?”
The female ghost froze instantly, her eyes showing a hint of confusion.
“What… do you mean by that?”
“Why are you still pretending to be clueless? Putting maggots in my lunchbox, throwing flowerpots at me—weren’t those all just so I couldn’t come to school tomorrow?”
Hearing these words, Liuli was stunned again for a moment.
Then, she bit her lip in grievance.
“I didn’t… I didn’t do those things…”
But such a feeble denial couldn’t possibly convince Lu Feng, who was already furious.
Right now, he clearly needed far more convincing evidence.
“Then tell me, besides you, who else could do something like this? Is there another ghost in this school?”
“But… it really wasn’t me…”
Her repeated denials only made Lu Feng’s expression darker.
Actually, it wasn’t even that big of a deal.
If she had just explained things properly, it wasn’t like he would flat-out refuse to listen.
But to resort to such disgusting and frightening tricks?
Thinking of Yu Mo’s pale face when she was frightened earlier, Lu Feng grew even more irritated.
“Fine, I’ll believe it wasn’t you. But can you tell me why I can’t come to school tomorrow? What exactly is the reason?”
Lu Feng forced himself to soften his tone and asked Liuli.
“Because… something bad will happen…”
“What kind of thing?”
At this, Liuli lowered her head and said softly,
“I… don’t know…”
“If that’s the case, then how am I supposed to believe you?”
Facing Lu Feng’s questioning, Liuli fell silent, unable to say a word.
Just then, a girl came rushing downstairs in a panic.
When she saw the shattered flowerpot, her face went pale.
But noticing that Lu Feng was safe and sound, she immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
She hurried over to him and apologized,
“I’m sorry, I’m really sorry! When I was watering the flowers just now, I accidentally knocked the flowerpot over. Thank goodness it didn’t hit you…”
The girl’s words left Lu Feng dumbfounded.
So, this really had nothing to do with Liuli, and he was simply unlucky?
In fact, once he calmed down a little and thought about it, something didn’t add up.
If Liuli had really wanted to drop a flowerpot on him to keep him from coming to school tomorrow, then why had she saved him just now? Wouldn’t that have been completely pointless?
He had really… been a little too impulsive just now…
“Ah… it’s fine, it’s fine. It didn’t hit me anyway. Just be more careful next time.”
Lu Feng replied absentmindedly to the girl, but his eyes were searching for Liuli’s figure.
However, the female ghost was already gone.
…
Lu Feng eventually found Liuli in front of an abandoned old school building in the back courtyard.
Thinking about how Liuli had just saved him, yet he had lashed out at her in return, Lu Feng didn’t know how to face her.
He could only scratch his head awkwardly while his shoes scuffed at the ground—because he had stepped in dog poop on the way here.
Honestly, Lu Feng had never even seen a stray dog on campus.
To step in dog poop inside the school grounds… even he found it unbelievable.
Not knowing what to say, Lu Feng hesitated for a long time before stammering out,
“Um… thank you for saving me just now, Liuli…”
But Liuli only squatted down with her back to him, without any reaction.
“And… sorry… I misunderstood you earlier…”
“…No, I should be the one apologizing.”
The ghost suddenly blurted out such a sentence without context, then slowly stood up and turned her head toward Lu Feng.
“Do you know, Lu Feng, even though I don’t know what will happen tomorrow, I do know that I must stop you from coming to school—”
Her calm exterior carried a sinister undertone, completely different from her usual harmless demeanor.
“What you encountered today was only a sign, just like how cats and dogs grow restless before an earthquake, or how ants move their nests—”
“So, I need to apologize first. I’m sorry, I really don’t want to do this…”
As she finished speaking, a gleaming knife floated up from behind her and finally landed in her hand.
It was only then that Lu Feng was shocked to realize—she had been sharpening a knife just now!?
The next moment, Lu Feng was horrified to find that he couldn’t move at all.
His entire body felt as though countless invisible hands were holding him down, making him completely immobile.
“It’ll probably hurt a little, so just bear with it… But don’t worry, it’ll only draw a little blood. It won’t take your life.”
Liuli spoke softly.
A female ghost holding a knife, saying she only wanted to “let a little blood out”—this kind of scene would have already scared most people into wetting their pants.
Luckily, Lu Feng had encountered ghosts many times before, so at least he didn’t collapse on the spot.
“W-wait! Liuli, calm down!”
“I’m sorry, I really have no choice but to do this…”
Liuli lowered her head, apologizing sincerely, but her hands didn’t stop moving in the slightest.
At that moment, Lu Feng truly panicked.
This female ghost was serious!
“I—I came here just to tell you about this!”
Lu Feng shouted in desperation, hurriedly explaining to her,
“I won’t come to school tomorrow! I’ll go ask my homeroom teacher for sick leave right away!!”
Liuli, who had been about to strike with the knife, froze upon hearing his words.
“R-really?”
“Really! Absolutely true, couldn’t be truer!”
Liuli still didn’t seem reassured and confirmed it with Lu Feng several times.
Only after finally believing that he truly wouldn’t come to school tomorrow did she put down the knife.
At that moment, Lu Feng also broke free from the invisible shackles restraining his body.
With a clang, the knife fell to the ground.
Liuli dropped to her knees as though drained of strength, and Lu Feng noticed her body seemed to have become even more transparent.
“Thank goodness…”
Liuli had returned to her usual harmless appearance, kneeling on the ground, gasping for breath.
Her neckline was open wide, though she hadn’t even noticed.
But Lu Feng had no mind to look at such a scene.
Still shaken, he kept his eyes on the female ghost, thinking that whether woman or ghost, both were far too terrifying.
Looking at the kitchen knife on the ground, Lu Feng suddenly recalled that anime where a scumbag was decapitated by his girlfriend.
His hair stood on end, and he quickly threw the knife far away.
“I’m sorry…”
Seeing his actions, Liuli lowered her head again and apologized.
“I never intended to hurt you, but… I must stop you from coming to school tomorrow…”
So why exactly? Lu Feng really wanted to ask.
But he knew—Liuli didn’t have the answer either.
“Ah… haha… it’s fine, it’s fine. If that’s the case, then I just won’t come tomorrow. It’s not a big deal anyway.”
Looking at Lu Feng’s expression, which seemed like a mix of laughter and tears, Liuli suddenly let out a chuckle.
“You really are strange. I never thought that after becoming a ghost, there’d actually be someone willing to talk to me voluntarily. Aren’t you afraid of ghosts at all?”
“Well…”
Lu Feng scratched his head awkwardly.
“Maybe I just got used to it since I was little. And besides… I know you don’t really want to hurt me.”
His words left Liuli stunned.
She stared blankly at him, and her gaze seemed to change slightly.
“Then it’s settled. No matter what, you must not come to school tomorrow.”
“Don’t worry, I wouldn’t dare even if you killed me…”
Lu Feng responded with a bitter smile.
He had already been unlucky enough today.
If something worse happened tomorrow, wouldn’t he just die on the spot?
…
The busy day soon came to an end.
Before leaving, Lu Feng asked his homeroom teacher for leave.
The teacher readily agreed and even reminded him to take care of his health and not sacrifice it for the sake of studying.
Hearing this, Lu Feng couldn’t help but complain inwardly.
Weren’t you the one who usually cut into PE class time the most? And now you’re preaching to me about health?
Of course, as a good student, Lu Feng still put on a weak and weary act on the surface while thanking the teacher.
Still, being able to get leave so easily—this was probably the privilege of a good student.
Strolling leisurely out of the school gates, Lu Feng thought about all the strange things that had happened today.
It seemed as though every sign was telling him one thing—
Don’t come to school tomorrow.
But the more that was the case, the more curious Lu Feng felt.
If he did come tomorrow… what would happen?
At the same time, he couldn’t help but wonder.
What exactly was the “bad thing” Liuli had mentioned repeatedly, yet couldn’t explain? Would it truly happen tomorrow?
The more he thought about it, the more lost he felt, and a faint unease crept into his heart about what tomorrow might bring.
Just then, Yu Mo—who had already grown impatient waiting at the school gate—came over, looking at him with suspicion.
“You don’t look sick at all, Xiaofeng. Why did you ask for leave?”
As she spoke, she reached out a slender finger, intending to touch Lu Feng’s forehead.
Lu Feng tilted his head back to avoid her touch and shrugged.
“Even the most diligent person feels like slacking off once in a while, right?”
This left Yu Mo stunned.
Then, worry slowly appeared on her face.
“Xiaofeng, are you… really sick? Should we go to the hospital?”
“Hey, hey, do I really seem like someone who would never slack off?”
Seeing her nod seriously, Lu Feng was left speechless.
The two of them continued bickering like that as they walked home together.
But after they hadn’t gone far, Lu Feng suddenly had a strange feeling.
He instinctively turned his head back—
And saw that lonely ghost, standing all by herself under the streetlight at the school gate, watching the two of them leave.
When she saw him turn back, she smiled faintly and waved at him.
In that moment, Lu Feng seemed to fall into an illusion—
He saw Liuli no longer as a weightless, half-transparent ghost, but with a real, solid body.
She stood silently under the streetlight, like a beautiful dancer bathed in a spotlight.
And behind her, the academy had transformed into a terrifying beast crouching in the darkness.
Its bloody maw opened wide, as if it wanted to devour everyone who entered within.