Ghost Computer

Chapter 5 Binding

At the entrance of Yi Ya's rented apartment building, Lü Yang bumped into Yi Ya and her two female classmates, Lin Yin and Hu Yulan, who were coming downstairs. Lin Yin greeted Lü Yang with a cheerful smile, "So early?"

Yi Ya seemed to know Lü Yang was there to see her and asked somewhat unhappily, "What's up?"

"Where's your sister? Isn't she with you?" Lü Yang glanced behind Yi Ya, guessing that if Yi Yi had come to see him in a huff, she was probably sleeping in on Yi Ya's bed. For Yi Yi, sleeping in was more important than anything else.

"What's wrong with you?" Yi Ya frowned.

"Don't be silly, your sister disappeared early this morning, packing all her clothes and belongings. I don't know what made her so angry." Lü Yang said to Yi Ya seriously.

When Yi Yi was around, Lü Yang didn't think much of it, but once she disappeared, he became very anxious. In Lü Yang's opinion, Yi Yi, with her somewhat absent-minded personality, wasn't very good at survival or taking care of herself.

"You're crazy! I'm not in the mood for jokes this early in the morning, I'm in a hurry." Yi Ya glared at Lü Yang fiercely, then turned and walked past him to chase after Lin Yin and Hu Yulan.

"Hey! Stop!" Lü Yang was getting impatient, grabbing Yi Ya's arm and pulling her back.

Yi Ya's words and expression were very different from what Lü Yang had known of her recently, but Lü Yang wasn't in the mood to think about it now.

"What are you doing?" After being pulled back by Lü Yang, Yi Ya looked around, her face slightly red.

Lü Yang let go, thinking to himself, "I hugged her last night, and now I'm just pulling her arm, why is she blushing so much? What's wrong with these two sisters? One ran away, and the other has such a sour face, what terrible thing have I, Lü Yang, done?" "Seriously? Didn't your sister come over? She disappeared this morning, I've been looking everywhere for her." Lü Yang asked Yi Ya with an even more serious expression.

"I only have one daughter, where would I get a sister?" Yi Ya took a few steps back, gave Lü Yang a look as if he were an alien, then turned and ran away quickly.

"Holy crap! Is it really necessary to be this angry? And I don't even know what you're angry about!" Lü Yang watched Yi Ya's retreating figure, cursing in frustration.

Helpless, Lü Yang ran upstairs himself and knocked hard on the door of Yi Ya's rented apartment for a long time, but there was no response.

Breaking down the door was out of the question, so Lü Yang could only stare helplessly at the security door.

After Yi Yi's phone broke last time, Lü Yang offered to take it to be repaired. Yi Yi said that no one was looking for her anyway, and since she wasn't at her rented apartment, she must be with Lü Yang, so she didn't need the phone. Now, she's suddenly disappeared, and Lü Yang has no way to contact her.

...

Back at his rented apartment, Lü Yang pondered Yi Yi's possible whereabouts. Suddenly, he thought of Lin Yin, Yi Ya's roommate. Lin Yin wasn't talkative, but she was quite honest, and she and Lü Yang usually got along fairly well. If Yi Ya wouldn't admit that Yi Yi was with her, Lin Yin certainly wouldn't lie to Lü Yang.

Thinking of this, Lü Yang quickly picked up his phone and dialed Lin Yin's number. Before he could even speak, Lin Yin's voice came through: "Lü Yang, what were you and Xiao Ya arguing about this morning?"

"Never mind her! I have something serious to ask you." Lü Yang said to Lin Yin very seriously.

"Okay, what is it?" Lin Yin also became serious.

"Did Xiaoya's older sister, Yiyi, go to your place this morning?"

"Lü Yang, Xiaoya said you're up to something, and you really are? Xiaoya and I grew up together. She's an only child, so where did this 'older sister' come from?" Lin Yin asked, sounding quite surprised.

"What day is it today? It's not April Fool's Day, is it? Are you all conspiring to prank me?" Lü Yang was getting angry.

"What exactly happened between you and Xiaoya? Who is this Yiyi?" Lin Yin seemed even more confused after hearing Lü Yang's question.

"Is Yiyi there or not?" Lü Yang's voice rose a few decibels.

"Who is Yiyi? Does Xiaoya have an older sister named Yiyi? Is she a cousin or something? Is she your girlfriend? Then what's going on between you and Xiaoya?" Lin Yin seemed completely bewildered. If she was acting, this acting was too convincing.

(Regarding Yi Yi's disappearance, the fact that no one else remembers her except the protagonist has raised questions in the book review section. Due to spoilers, I won't elaborate here; you'll understand as you read on.)

While Lü Yang was on the phone with Lin Yin, he inadvertently saw Yi Yi's Apple iPad 2 on the worn-out sofa. He suddenly seemed to remember something important, and without saying anything more to Lin Yin, he quickly hung up the phone, went to the sofa, and picked up the Apple iPad 2.

...

"Yeah! It's so boring. They even threatened me that if I don't complete the task before midnight, my score will turn negative, and then they'll erase me from the world before dawn."

"Hahaha, do you think you're pencil writing? That you can be erased by an eraser? Almighty God! Almighty Jobs! Just erase Miss Yi already, so I can sleep in the whole bed by myself!"

...

After touching the Apple iPad 2, a scene from yesterday suddenly flashed into Lü Yang's mind, sending a chill down his spine.

Erased from the world? Are you kidding me!?

Lü Yang subconsciously unplugged the Apple iPad 2, but unexpectedly, his hand stung as if pricked by a needle. Lü Yang quickly pulled his finger back, looked at it, and found a bloodstain on his finger, like a needle prick.

But quickly, the bloodstain disappeared, and the pain in his finger completely disappeared.

"What's that?" Lu Yang checked the area around the Apple's power switch with surprise, but found nothing. He touched it again, but the pricking sensation didn't occur again.

Just as Lu Yang checked the power, some words flashed on the iPad 2's screen. These words flashed by very quickly; if Lu Yang hadn't instinctively glanced at them, he might have missed them entirely.

They displayed something about DNA scanning and identity verification, but it was just a fleeting moment before the normal boot screen appeared.

Lu Yang looked at his finger again, wondering if he had misread it. What tablet computer locks DNA and identity verification upon startup? Modern technology hasn't advanced to that point yet, has it? Even if it were, would such advanced technology be used on a regular consumer iPad 2?

Shortly after powering on, a message popped up on the Apple screen: "Dear Master Lü Yang, the previous owner of this computer, Yi Yi, has been erased by the system due to negative points. You are now the new owner of this computer. How would you like to deal with the previous owner, Yi Yi? She will be automatically and completely erased in ten seconds."

Below the message were two options: 'Completely Eradicate' and 'Restore'.

Lü Yang was startled and quickly selected the 'Restore' option before the ten-second countdown ended.

The iPad displayed an error message: "To save the previous owner, Yi Yi, your account needs at least 100 Ghost Points. Your current Ghost Points are negative, making restoration impossible. Please try again within one year of Yi Yi's erasure; otherwise, the original owner will be completely erased."

(New book climbing the charts! I'm begging for clicks, favorites, and recommendations in freezing temperatures!)