Chapter 5: Third Brother, Don’t Be Like This

“Ghost Suppression Division? Soul Reaper? Wait, I think I remember now—there really is an organization by that name in this body's memories, dedicated to capturing all kinds of spirits.”

“So, the commotion that day must have drawn their attention.”

Xu Ye worked to digest the words the young woman had spoken.

“Miss Silent, besides me, did anyone else from the Xu family survive?” he continued, directing his question to Lin Buyu.

“I wasn’t there yesterday, so I’m not entirely sure what happened. But I heard from the returning soul reapers that aside from you, only a young girl from your household made it out alive,” Lin Buyu replied, her voice betraying a hint of hesitation, as if she feared Xu Ye might not withstand the blow. In the end, though, she told him the truth.

Hearing this, Xu Ye finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“My little sister is still alive. Good, very good,” he murmured inwardly.

Without a doubt, the young girl Lin Buyu spoke of was his younger sister, Xu Yin, the same courageous girl who had braved the agony of her flayed skin to burst into the room and save him the night before.

The unguarded smile that flickered across Xu Ye’s face made Lin Buyu look at him with a touch of confusion.

“How is my sister’s injury now?” Noticing the oddity in her gaze, Xu Ye quickly changed the subject.

“Her wounds were grave. After she was rescued, she was sent immediately to the Sanctum of Healing. But don’t worry—my master is overseeing her recovery. Her life is no longer in danger,” Lin Buyu assured him.

That news finally put Xu Ye’s heart at ease. With his sister still alive, he was not entirely alone in this strange world.

Lin Buyu withdrew her gaze from Xu Ye, then reached for a brush soaked in vermilion ink from the table.

“Give me your hand,” she suddenly said, reaching out to him as he sat on the edge of the bed.

“My hand?” Xu Ye was puzzled, but he obediently extended his hand.

“You’ve been in close proximity to evil spirits for more than half a month. Who knows if they left anything inside you? This cinnabar ink can detect residual ghostly energy,” Lin Buyu explained as she took his slender, almost delicate hand in her own fair and elegant one. With the brush, she touched a spot of red onto his palm, then stared intently at the mark.

“Are doctors in this world also exorcists?”

Though Xu Ye was filled with questions, he kept still, letting her inspect his hand without protest.

“Consider yourself lucky,” Lin Buyu said after a moment, releasing his hand with a long breath of relief. “The color didn’t change—there’s no lingering ghostly energy in you,” she explained, setting aside the brush and stretching her arms.

At that moment, sunlight poured through the window, illuminating her figure and accentuating every graceful curve for Xu Ye to see.

He couldn’t help but marvel, “If only I could’ve been transported here at this very scene!”

Bang!

Just as Xu Ye was about to avert his eyes, the door to the infirmary was suddenly kicked open.

“Miss Silent! Please, save Zhao Wuchang! He’s been bitten by a marrow-eater—he’s dying!”

A burly man in uniform burst in, carrying a barely conscious figure on his back. Several more officers followed, all in a desperate rush.

“Quick, lay him flat on the bed!” Lin Buyu shouted, hurrying over.

Curious, Xu Ye climbed out of bed and, though his head still throbbed, made his way to the bedside to observe.

“You’re sure it was a marrow-eater that bit him?” Lin Buyu asked, donning a pair of gloves etched with gold calligraphy as she examined the wounds.

“I’m sure!” the sweating officer nodded vigorously. “A few days ago, we received reports that sheep and swine in several pens were dying mysteriously, with rows of bite marks but no other wounds. When we skinned the carcasses, their bones were gone—only flesh remained. What else but a marrow-eater could do that?”

“That certainly sounds like the work of a marrow-eater,” Lin Buyu acknowledged, her gaze shifting to the man’s injured leg.

With a sharp rip, she tore open the trouser leg.

Beneath, everyone could see that Zhao Wuchang’s lower leg had turned a deep, mottled purple-black, tendrils of dark smoke rising and a foul stench filling the air. The heel was a mangled mass of flesh, blood still oozing steadily.

That was clearly the bite wound.

“After we spoke with several families outside the city, Zhao Wuchang, some of our fellow soul reapers, and I split up to stake out the homes with livestock. We watched all night, but nothing happened. I was exhausted, so I dozed off for a moment. Who could have guessed—that’s when the marrow-eater struck. Wuchang shielded me, taking the brunt of the attack. He managed to drive it off, but the marrow-eater, which had possessed a wildcat, bit him. It’s all my fault—mine alone!” The officer pounded his chest in regret.

Xu Ye found himself frowning, his gaze drifting over the man, scrutinizing him from hair to hem with a strange intensity.

“Third Brother, don’t be like that. The important thing now is saving Wuchang!” someone urged, as the other officers hurried to restrain him.

“Right, saving Wuchang comes first.”

At those words, all eyes turned to Lin Buyu, as if she were a drowning man’s sole hope for rescue.

Lin Buyu sensed their desperation but said nothing. She finished her inspection, then drew a sharp dagger, slicing open Zhao Wuchang’s clothing from the collar downward.

His chest was bared, revealing blue veins crisscrossing his skin like a web. Lin Buyu’s delicate brows drew together in a frown.

“The marrow-eater’s ghostly energy has already spread throughout his meridians. To drive it out, we’ll need a third-grade sacred silver needle to seal his acupoints, or a ghost weapon of fierce-spirit rank to suppress it. But I only have a set of fourth-grade sacred needles.”

She looked up at the assembled soul reapers in frustration.

“Third-grade sacred object?!” the burly officer gasped, then said with sudden hope, “Miss Silent, which one do you need? I’ll fetch it from the Sanctum of Healing right away!”

“Yes, just say the word and we’ll go together!” the others chimed in. “Wuchang was injured in the line of duty—the Sanctum won’t refuse us.”

“I’m afraid there’s not enough time. In less than half a cup of tea, the ghostly energy will reach his marrow and gestate a ghost fetus. Before that happens, we must burn it out.”

Faced with those pleading eyes, Lin Buyu steeled herself, though it pained her to do so.