The black shadow was a semi-transparent Pekingese dog, held by the nape of its neck by Vangar. Its four short legs were huddled in front of it, and its nose twitched and emitted low whines, clearly unaware of its own death and still full of vitality.
After it left the body, Xia Xia slowly opened her eyes, looking around in a daze. Her parents rushed over, holding her hand tightly, calling her name one after another. They looked tense but spoke gently, afraid of startling their daughter. Because their daughter had been restless all night, no matter how they called her, they couldn't bring her back to her senses. She didn't recognize anyone and couldn't speak a word, just kept barking and sniffing around, even trying to lick a spot emitting a meaty odor on the ground. If anyone tried to pull her away, she would struggle and howl in fright.
Her every move was no different from a dog, and the doctors couldn't provide a reasonable explanation for her condition, only suggesting a more thorough CT scan of her brain the next day. Normally, this kind of madness couldn't be cured in a short time, and yet strangely, after a short rest, Xia Xia suddenly opened her clear eyes and spoke in a strange tone, "Mom, Dad, why am I suddenly in the hospital?"
"Xia Xia, you can talk? Xia Xia, call us Mom and Dad again!" Xia's parents hugged her almost ecstatically.
"Mom, Dad, what happened to me? Xia Xia's face changed, her voice trembling, "Do I, do I have a terminal illness? Tell me the truth, I can accept it, I really can. Please don't hide anything from me if there's something wrong!"
"I'm afraid you can't accept it, look at your previous state." A colleague squeezed to the bedside, played her a video of her barking.
"Ah! What on earth is going on? How could I be like a dog? This can't be me at all! I can't accept it, I absolutely can't accept it, delete it quickly!" Xia Xia's screams could almost knock the roof off, and Vangar had already stepped out of the hospital room, riding on her lively and powerful tone.
Zhao Wenyin could see and understand clearly, but he didn't ask anything, just silently followed the young man, while Cao Xiaohui, unable to suppress his inner anxiety and fear, whispered, "Vang...Teacher Vang, just now, when you patted Xia Xia, she woke up. Is she under a spell? Did you save her?"
As an agent who called his own artists 'teacher', Cao Xiaohui was obviously a top figure in the entertainment circle.
"Yes, she's under a spell." Vangar stopped a familiar man and asked, "Where is Chongming Daochang's ward arranged?"
This person had also come to visit Xia Xia and naturally knew Vangar, and said, "Teacher Vangar, he's in room 607, the third room on the left downstairs."
"Thank you for letting me know." Vangar nodded politely and then went to room 607.
Daochang Chongming, with his arm suspended, got up and turned to the window as soon as he saw him, preparing to jump out. As long as he could escape from this demon's pursuit, even if he became disabled from the fall, he would accept it. Under everyone's gaze, he couldn't do anything else to himself, could he?
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At this moment, a human-shaped mist suddenly pounced in from the window, fiercely knocking over Chongming, then sitting with his legs crossed on top of him, pinning him down. This also bought enough time for Fanguro, who casually walked into the sickroom, sending the fuzzy black shadow at his fingertips into Chongming's body, whispering, "Your spiritual strength far surpasses Xiaxia, so you should remain conscious. I can only wish you good luck. Remember, everything you have done is not unknown, the heavens know, the earth knows, and I know."
He lightly patted Chongming's shoulder again, then backed out of the sickroom, standing at the door and nodding slightly to bid farewell. In terms of etiquette, he was more thoughtful than anyone else. However, before he had gone far, Chongming, on all fours, dashed out of the sickroom, barking and yelling, "Stop me, quick! It wants to eat poo! It wants to eat the poo from the toilet!"
Cao Xiaohui, who was originally puzzled, couldn't help but burst into laughter. Eat poo? Did he hear that right? At the same time, his awe of Fanguro deepened even more. If it weren't for Zhao coming tonight, he would have definitely fled by now. He was afraid that Fanguro would lightly pat his shoulder and turn him from a human into a dog.
"Was the previous Xiaxia harmed by him?" Zhao Wenyuan quickly grasped the point.
"Exactly," Fanguro nodded slightly.
"Then he brought it on himself," Zhao Wenyuan not only wasn't afraid but felt it was only natural.
---
At three in the morning, Fanguro finally returned to the Moon Bay community. No one could see that behind him, there was a small cloud of mist following as his shadow. They slowly walked to the edge of the artificial lake, standing and gazing. The silvery moonlight sprinkled down, casting a phosphorescent glow on the seemingly bottomless lake, and the wisps of white fog condensed into strange shapes and forms, full of the smell of fishiness mixed with the taste of water weeds.
Just by the smell, one could tell that this lake was a dead water lake, where there were no waves of flowing water bringing endless new life. Eventually, it would only become a dirty and stinky tomb.
The small black shadow actually became hesitant in this fishy fog, couldn't help but pull its big brother back, signaling for him not to go. The only speedboat had been destroyed by his parents. Without a boat, his big brother couldn't find his body at all.
Fanguro, however, pushed away his hand and whispered, "Wait here, I'll be back soon." He took off his black shirt and plunged into the deep, fishy, almost mossy green lake, like a fish. After entering the water, he didn't even emerge, just swaying his long legs, swimming deeper and further away. The water plants entangled his body, but he lightly broke them; the rough stones blocked his path, but he skirted around them, and in the thick, dark, almost viscous darkness, he seemed to fly freely.
His goal was clear, it was the box tied to a giant rock that had sunk in the heart of the lake.
A few hours later, the nearly black lake surface finally heard the sound of rushing water. The small black shadow, sitting on the lakeshore with legs drawn up, quickly stood up and stretched his neck to look into the distance.
Before long, a tall figure slowly walked from the deep water to the shallows, dragging a huge suitcase in his hand.
The small black shadow quickly handed over the shirt that he held, then turned into a small and delicate child. He looked up, with a pair of large eyes, full of anticipation and anxiety, watching his big brother. He didn't know how he could return.
Fanguro wiped the water droplets off his face, removed the water grass from his hair, and then put on his shirt. Only then did he open the seemingly strong password lock and expose the body lying in the cold moonlight. After being soaked for days, it hadn't swollen or rotted, just slightly more pale and with some livor mortis. The strong aura in the community acted as the best preservative.
The small shadow squatted down and tried to touch his own body, but his hand simply passed through. He was already dead, so his soul couldn't return.
Seeing his despondent expression and the black tears falling one after another, Fanguro sighed, "Although life and death are fated, I promised and I won't break my word. Come, I'll escort you." He patted the small shadow's head and then lightly pushed him onto the box.
However, for some reason, this time, he didn't penetrate the tangible object, instead, he directly occupied the dead body. Chongming's ability, refined and amplified by Fanguro, could even control dead souls and corpses.
The small body curled up in the box suddenly opened his eyes, looked around, and then slowly climbed up, feeling his own body, with an expression full of wonder and disbelief.
"Ah ah!" He grinned and laughed at Fanguro, struggling to finally produce three words filled with love from his long-broken throat, "Bro, thank you!"
Fanguro's tense face finally let slip a hint of a faint smile, lightly patting the child's wet head, saying, "Let's go, I'll take you home."
The little boy nodded repeatedly, then awkwardly climbed out of the box. His movements were like a turtle desperate to roll over, making Fanguro show even more amusement in his eyes. The silvery moonlight fell on their heads, and was gradually dissipated by the approaching dawn and a hint of morning light, and before they knew it, the next day came.
Building 1 was the only building in the community that was lit with bright orange lights in the early morning. The young man, drenched all over, led the drenched little boy, climbing up the revolving staircase step by step. The housewife on the fourth floor had a tired face and a bird's nest-like hair as she went shopping. Her in-laws demanded that she must wake up at this time to buy the cheapest vegetables.
There was a heavy bruise on the corner of her eye, and her swollen eyes seemed on the verge of bleeding. It was easy to imagine the torment she had experienced the previous night. Seeing the two drenched figures, her numbed face finally showed a little surprise and she stared at the handsome face of the young man for a long time, seeming to find him familiar.
The little boy lowered his head to avoid her gaze.
The two continued to climb up, and on the seventh floor, they encountered a middle-aged man hurrying out. He was wearing a pair of black-rimmed glasses, dressed in a respectable suit, and holding a beige briefcase, looking earnest and kind. Upon seeing the young man and the child both soaked, he asked with concern and urged them to hurry back home and change their clothes to avoid catching a cold. But his personality also seemed caring and gentle.
The anti-theft door on the fourteenth floor had been replaced, but the tenant had never dared to come back because the exterior wall of their house was covered with large red banners, bloodily writing: "[Sisters, this is a scammer, cheating you of money and your body is just the beginning, it may cost lives! According to conservative estimates, eighteen sisters have already been victimized, so be careful! Those who don't believe can join the group chat, we can talk to you by real names! Group number: XXXXXXX.]"
Some of the banners had been torn off, but more were put up, a continuous and persistent effort.
Fanguro glanced into the corridor and couldn't help but smirk. Seeing that he seemed pleased, the little boy also smiled with pursed lips.
The two continued to climb up, but even after climbing more than a dozen floors, they didn't break a sweat or breathe heavily. Finally, when they reached the seventeenth floor, the relaxed expression on the little boy's face slowly became tense. But before he could knock on the door, someone inside had already called out, speaking in a very stern tone, "Where is Yangyang? I had a bad feeling last night, so I specifically went to visit Mr. Xu's parents, but I didn't see Yangyang there. Even the neighbors said you didn't send the child there at all. Why did you make your parents lie for you? Where did you take the child?"
"That's my own child, it's my business where I want to send him," Mr. Xu argued defiantly.
"If I don't see Yangyang in the next twenty-four hours, I have every reason to suspect that he is missing and investigate. You are his guardian and have an inescapable responsibility for his safety. You will be my primary subject of investigation!" Liao Fang's voice, filled with concern and anger, echoed in the corridor.
The only person who would run day and night for a child with whom they have no blood relationship, seemed to be only the police.
Mr. Xu's eyes flashed with a hint of fierceness, his teeth lightly bit together, seeming to have made a certain determination.
He changed his impatience and theatrically said with sadness, "Since you have already investigated, then there's nothing I need to hide. Come in and see for yourself." He turned to the side, revealing a dark, unlit living room. His wife seemed to have hidden in the corner for a long time, but now she finally emerged from the darkness behind her husband, like a ghost that appeared out of the blue.
To Liao Fang's surprise, she seemed to be lacking any sensation, and instead, Mr. Xu quickly took out a wad of cash from his wallet and handed it to Fanguro, bowing repeatedly, "Thank you, Mr. Fanguro, I'm so grateful today, this is just a small token of my respect."
Fanguro's pitch-black eyes briefly flickered with a coldness, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he pushed the child into the door that didn't let in the slightest breeze, murmuring, "Go, you're home now."
The main gate was closed in a hurry with a loud bang, which illuminated the whole building due to the voice-activated lights.
It wasn't until this moment that Liao Fang could finally put her heart at ease. She patted her chest and said, "So the child really went missing for a whole night! Mr. Van, what kind of people are they? The child has been missing for ten or twenty hours, and they are not in a hurry to find him. Instead, they make up lies to fool the police. Isn't this hoping for something bad to happen to the child? I must come back for regular visits in the future, or else the child will definitely not be well."
Van Gaara looked at her face, which was both lucky and scared, and asked slowly, "You're scared to death at the thought that being a parent doesn't require an exam, aren't you?"
Liao Fang lowered her head and said sadly, "Yes, I'm scared to death, but those parents never seem to have the same feeling."
"They will," Van Gaara sighed, and with his slim figure, slowly disappeared into the narrow corridor.