The Ghost Seeker

Chapter 8: Things That Make Your Heart Stop

Xu xiao was seriously starting to question his sanity.

Inside Xie Jing’s mansion, the space was startlingly sparse. Minimalist decor bordered on sterile. Xie Jing claimed he lived alone, with only a cleaning service coming by periodically.

In theory, vacant mansions like this were prime targets for drifter spirits – entities that might cause spooky noises or minor disturbances, but rarely harmed anyone. Places devoid of life for long periods usually held residual cold spots or negative energy.

This house? Spotless.

Not a trace. Not even a faint energy signature!

Worse, the entity capable of leaving such severe bruising on Xie Jing had to be fueled by potent resentment. Even if it was lurking, it should have left traces. Like aged blue cheese – the nastier the spirit, the stronger the psychic residue. It shouldn’t be this… clean.

He’d been inside for nearly two hours. He’d swept the three-story mansion inside and out multiple times. Zero trace of paranormal activity. It felt like a professional exorcism squad had power-washed the place with holy water.

Xu xiao leaned against the expensive leather sofa, fingers pressing his temples. He pushed his aviators up his nose with his ring finger.

It shouldn’t be wrong…

His Yin-heavy constitution made him a beacon for lingering cold spots and negative energy. As a kid, powerless to stop them, they’d latch onto him, making him sick. Zhang Daoquan would brew herbs and draw talismans. Over time, he’d built up a weird resistance.

Learning rituals later kept them mostly at bay.

Years of constant exposure made him hypersensitive to those chilling presences.

Click.

Xie Jing placed a freshly washed, water-beaded glass on the marble coffee table. He poured chilled mineral water over ice cubes and a slice of lemon, the contents clinking.

He picked up the glass and walked over to Xu xiao. “Just water. Thought it might be tasteless, so I added lemon.” The ice hadn’t chilled the glass much yet. When Xu xiao took it, his fingers brushed Xie Jing’s knuckles. A distinct chill emanated from Xie Jing’s skin.

“Thanks.” Xu xiao accepted, his brown eyes visible behind the aviators studying Xie Jing. “Didn’t sleep well last night? Your hands are cold.”

“Hn.” Xie Jing withdrew his hand. As it fell to his side, another finger unconsciously rubbed the spot Xu xiao had touched. “Since the marks appeared… I keep startling awake at night. Broken sleep. Not very restful.”

Xu xiao raised his hand again, pressing his palm directly to Xie Jing’s forehead.

Xie Jing stiffened slightly at the sudden intimacy but held still, docilely letting Xu xiao check his temperature. Behind the shield of Xu xiao’s wrist, dark currents swirled in Xie Jing’s onyx eyes.

After two seconds, Xu xiao dropped his hand. “Xie Jing, you feel warm. Low-grade fever? Got a thermometer?”

Xie Jing nodded, stepping back to bend and rummage in the coffee table drawer. He pulled out a forehead thermometer.

Xu xiao aimed it at Xie Jing’s forehead. Beep. The display read: 100.2°F (37.9°C). Confirmed low-grade fever.

Xu xiao’s expression turned somber.

He’d noticed Xie Jing’s cold hands during the palm reading last night. The fever might have started then. The culprit? Likely that lingering negative energy that had been hiding within Xie Jing.

But not everyone had his resistance.

Seeing Xu xiao frown deeply at the thermometer reading, the patient himself offered reassurance. “Just a low fever. I’ll take something. Probably caught a chill on my walk last night.”

Walk…

Xie Jing lived in a gated community over forty miles away. Why would he be walking near Xu xiao’s apartment?

Suspicion flared, and Xu xiao asked bluntly.

Xie Jing remained unfazed. “Had dinner with friends nearby. Had a drink, so didn’t drive back.” He made it sound plausible. There was a large entertainment district in that area.

“Hn.” Xu xiao nodded. “During your walk… anything weird happen? Were the marks there before the walk?”

Since the house was clean, maybe Xie Jing had run into something nasty on his nighttime stroll? That could explain the potent, significant amount of energy Xu xiao had drawn out from him under the overpass…

Unfortunately, Xie Jing crushed the theory instantly.

“…No.” He denied. “The entertainment district isn’t far from the overpass. We met about ten minutes after dinner. Nothing happened in between. The marks… appeared before the walk. Right here in this house.”

Problematic.

Seriously problematic.

Hours ago, he’d confidently promised Xie Jing he’d handle the “ghost.” Now, he couldn’t find a single ghostly shadow.

Xu xiao inhaled sharply. “Your fever… might not be just a chill.” He left room for doubt, checking the time. Almost 2 PM. “Based on your account, the thing in the house is probably laying low. Short term, it likely won’t show itself…” Xu xiao had found nothing, but Xie Jing’s injuries were real evidence. He had to go by Xie Jing’s story. “Let’s get you checked at a hospital first. Don’t worry about the situation here. I’ll handle it.”

“Hospital?” Xie Jing hesitated. “But didn’t you say the house thing probably made me sick? Will the hospital help?”

Outside, dark clouds had rolled in, casting an ominous gloom. Sensing the light dim, Xu xiao pushed his aviators up onto his head, fixing Xie Jing with a sharp gaze from his peach-blossom eyes.

“I didn’t say that.”

“If you’re sick, you see a doctor and take medicine. No medium, no matter how powerful, can magically cure you.”

Xie Jing held Xu xiao’s upturned gaze for a beat before agreeing.

“Okay.”

“Whatever you say, boss.”

…

The muggy, suffocating heat before a storm pressed down. Worried the A/C might make Xie Jing’s fever worse, Xu xiao kept it off during the short drive to the nearest hospital, about six miles away.

From leaving the mansion, checking in, to the doctor confirming Xie Jing’s temperature, less than half an hour had passed. Xie Jing’s fever had spiked from 100.2°F to 102°F (38.9°C)!

Lying on the bed in a private room, an IV drip in his arm, Xie Jing looked up at Xu xiao with innocently wide eyes. Xu xiao deadpanned:

“Your crappy forehead thermometer was busted. You’re burning up. Can’t you feel it?”

Xie Jing: “Just feel a bit weak. Otherwise normal.”

Xu xiao: “…”

His client’s constitution was unreal. If it were Xu xiao, he’d be too weak to speak.

Xu xiao pressed his palm to Xie Jing’s forehead again. The heat was alarming.

Chirp!

A sharp bird call came from outside the window. Drawn by the sound, Xu xiao glanced over. His eyes turned icy.

He withdrew his hand. “Need to make a call.”

Xie Jing: “Okay.”

Only after the door clicked shut did Xie Jing turn his gaze to the sparrow at the window. The poor thing was flapping its wings frantically, trapped as if pinned by an invisible force despite nothing being there.

Chirp chirp chirp!

Its cries grew more frantic as it struggled desperately.

“Who sent you?” Xie Jing spoke softly from the bed.

The sparrow instantly stopped chirping. Its beady black eyes filled with terror as it stared at Xie Jing, then shrank into a trembling ball of fluff.

Xie Jing observed the fluff ball thoughtfully. After a moment, he raised a hand, crooked a finger towards the sparrow, his voice flat. “Come here.”

The command given, the sparrow stopped trembling. It stiffened and dropped onto the windowsill – fainted from fright.

Xie Jing: “…”

Heh. Eyes like beans, courage like a sesame seed.

Xie Jing’s window was cracked open. Cool breeze and the sound of drizzle slipped in, relieving some of the stuffiness. Outside in the hallway, Xu xiao stood by another window, watching the rain curtain.

His phone showed the call was connected, but silence reigned on the other end. Xu xiao waited. “Busy?”

Suddenly, a loud thud echoed down the line, followed by a cascade of clattering objects. After the commotion subsided, Song Lianzhou’s voice came through, slightly distant. “Hang on! Looking for something!”

Xu xiao waited silently. Two minutes later, Song Lianzhou’s voice was clearer, sounding like he’d just gulped water. “What’s up?”

Xu xiao: “Saw a bird.”

Song Lianzhou: “?”

Song Lianzhou choked. “Are you insane?”

Xu xiao paused, realizing how abstract that sounded. He re-phrased after a beat of silence.

Xu xiao: “Ever experience this… touching someone, and then… weirdness happens around you?”

Song Lianzhou’s eyebrow shot up. “What kind of weirdness?”

When he’d touched Xie Jing’s forehead and heard the bird, looking out the window, he’d seen that ghost – pale, purplish, in a hospital gown, hanging outside.

Just like when he’d touched Xie Jing under the overpass last night. Two touches. Two ghost sightings.

Xie Jing was in an upscale private room. A nurse was pushing a med cart down the hallway. Seeing her approach, Xu xiao changed “Saw a ghost” at the last second to:

“Saw something… heart-stopping.”

Song Lianzhou on the other end: “…?”

Their past conversations were all about department cases – paranormal stuff, ghosts.

Touch = see ghost. See ghost = scary. Scary = heart races. Xu xiao figured Song would understand the code.

Sure enough, Song Lianzhou paused for two seconds, then shot back: “Got it.”

Heart-stopping stuff? Definitely not PG-rated!

Full bars, plenty of minutes. Go on.

Not that he was nosy. Just being a supportive friend. Always here to help.

Sensing the situation’s gravity, Song Lianzhou even sat up straighter. “And? Other reactions?”

Xu xiao recalled carefully. “He seems… strangely familiar. Weird sense of déjà vu.”

Song Lianzhou: “Hmm.”

Xu xiao: “Sometimes… actions feel… instinctive. Impulsive.”

Like that forehead touch. His body moved before his brain could process it. And it felt disturbingly natural.

His usual habit was to keep distance, especially from strangers. He’d only known Xie Jing a day. Touching his forehead was major boundary-crossing. It shouldn’t have happened.

Song Lianzhou’s volume spiked. “Huh?! You acted on impulse?!”

Xu xiao, serious: “Yes.”

Song Lianzhou sucked in a sharp breath, lowering his voice conspiratorially. “Where did this… impulse strike?”

He understood.

Hormonal young adults, love at first sight, holding hands making hearts flutter… He just hadn’t expected his usually aloof buddy to fall so fast, so hard.

Xu xiao wondered what location had to do with it but answered truthfully. “At his place. After finding his fever… did it again. In the hospital. Just now.”

First time at Xie Jing’s mansion, feeling his cold hands, reaching out to check his forehead – too natural.

The second impulsive reach happened moments ago in the hospital room.

— A loud crash came down the line!

Xu xiao startled. “What happened?”

“Knocked over my chair! Fine!” Song Lianzhou sounded flustered, likely picking himself up. He cleared his throat. “T-Tw… cough… You! Can’t you control yourself?!”

His voice was strained, as if his neck was flushed.

Shameless!

Xu xiao said earnestly: “Told you, instinctive reaction. By the time I realized, I was already doing it.”

Song Lianzhou: “……”

Why are you telling me this over the phone?!

Silence. A long, heavy pause.

Xu xiao, getting no response, pressed on. “Is it serious? Has this happened to others?”

The department handled lots of cases. Maybe Song had encountered touch-triggered ghost sightings before.

Song Lianzhou righted his chair, only to hear Xu xiao ask this.

“So you’re at the hospital now?” Song confirmed.

Xu xiao: “Yes.”

Song Lianzhou: “OK. Got the picture.”

He took a deep breath. “Not serious. Happened before.”

He’d seen plenty of people crushing hard. Just never someone this close to him falling this fast.

Song Lianzhou admonished: “You shouldn’t be asking me if it’s serious! You should be taking care of the patient! Understand, bro?”

A mental question mark popped up in Xu xiao’s head.

Something’s off…

He was the one with the problem. Why care for the patient?

He was seeing ghosts. Not Xie Jing.

Xu xiao: “No—”

Cut off by Song Lianzhou: “Calm him down first!”

“Nope. Complicated. Better not over the phone. Text you later.”

Xu xiao: “Wait—”

Click. The call disconnected.