Chapter 275 The Twentieth Day of Entering a Xuanhuan Novel

Chapter 275: Day 20 in the Xuanhuan Novel

The smile on his face faded slightly, tinged with helplessness, as he spoke directly: "Don't overthink things in your head."

He paused, then added: "Especially don't think about me."

Gan Feng and the system's inner world instantly went dead silent!

Not only could he hear his conversations with the system, but he could also hear what he was fantasizing about in his mind?!

What was this? Mind-reading?

A technique?!

Gan Feng looked at the faint, knowing smile on An Yi's face and was scared out of his mind. Any lingering romantic thoughts vanished instantly. He stumbled back two steps, nearly dropping into a sliding kneel on the spot, and stammered out a jumbled apology: "S-Sorry!! Senior! I was wrong! I won't dare do it again!"

Xie Xuandu, standing nearby, witnessed the whole thing.

Though he couldn't hear the inner dialogue between Gan Feng and the system, he had clearly heard An Yi's words—"Don't overthink things in your head" and "Especially don't think about me."

He widened his eyes slightly, a flicker of surprise flashing in them.

Don't overthink things in your head? An Yi knew what Gan Feng was thinking about?

So that's it—An Yi could hear what others were thinking?

He blinked, his smile never wavering, and turned to An Yi, asking with a curious, amused tone: "An Yi, you can actually hear what others are thinking? Then... I wonder if you might be able to hear what I'm thinking right now?"

An Yi turned his head to look at him, meeting those smiling eyes with something unknown churning deep within them. A subtle smirk tugged at the corner of his lips, and instead of answering directly, he countered: "What? Does Master Xie have something on his mind he doesn't want me to know?"

Far from retreating, Xie Xuandu met An Yi's gaze and stepped closer, closing the gap between them until they were close enough to feel each other's breath.

His smile became more sincere as he said in a low voice: "No."

He paused, lowering his voice even further, with a bewitching tone: "Everything this humble one thinks, I would gladly share with you. I'm only afraid you'd find it too loud, or... be scared by it."

An Yi: "..."

He was a bit speechless and turned his head away. What the hell could he be thinking that would scare him? He said bluntly: "Can't hear it."

Disappointment immediately flashed across Xie Xuandu's face, completely undisguised, and he let out a soft sigh.

But he soon perked back up, a smile curling at his lips again as he gazed intently at An Yi's profile and said breezily: "No matter. If you can't hear it, this humble one can tell you. What I'm thinking right now is..."

"No need." An Yi cut him off, his tone reverting to its customary coolness as he started walking toward the county office: "Let's go inside and handle the matter at hand."

Xie Xuandu readily fell silent and followed.

Gan Feng, still standing where he was, watched the weird vibe between these two big shots that no one else could possibly break into—especially Xie Xuandu's unabashed proximity and words just now. He felt his scalp crawl and cold sweat run down his back.

(Gan Feng: System, I think... maybe I should find a chance to slip away?)

(System's voice crackled with static, deep and ominous: Dumbass, just do the mission!)

Gan Feng: ......

Gan Feng had a brief internal struggle, but ultimately didn't actually run off.

He gritted his teeth and followed behind An Yi and Xie Xuandu, stepping into the Luzhou County yamen together.

The few yamen runners whose arms were still sore and numb felt as if they'd been granted amnesty, scrambling and crawling over themselves to report their arrival.

In the back hall of the county yamen, the county magistrate—a middle-aged man of about forty—sat with his face etched with worry, restless and fidgeting.

When he saw Gan Feng enter, especially when he clearly recognized the dark blue cloud-patterned official robe representing the imperial special department, the Demon Suppression Bureau, a glimmer of hope flashed in the magistrate's eyes, like a drowning man grasping at straws. He quickly rose to greet them.

"This humble official, Luzhou County Magistrate Zhou Yuan, greets the Immortal Masters." His gaze lingered on the obviously extraordinary bearing of An Yi and Xie Xuandu, and his tone grew increasingly respectful.

Gan Feng cleared his throat, putting on a bit of official airs, and asked: "Magistrate Zhou, we've come about your esteemed son's strange illness. Please tell us the whole story in detail."

Zhou Yuan, as if he'd finally found someone to pour his heart out to, quickly laid out the entire matter.

His youngest son, only five years old, had drunk fresh milk delivered by a fixed dairy farmer in the city three days prior. Within an hour, he had suddenly fallen ill—a gripping pain in his chest, followed by unconsciousness, his whole body cold as ice, as if he'd been thrown into an icehouse.

He had called on every famous doctor in the city and even brought in top physicians from neighboring counties, but all were helpless. His pulse was strange, beyond the reach of medicine or acupuncture. One doctor declared it was likely from offending some evil spirit.

Someone had reminded him that the dairy farmer's household happened to have an infant who had just reached a hundred days old.

That infant hadn't cried or fussed at birth, with eyes that seemed unnervingly deep, not like the blank, innocent gaze of a normal baby. Some of the neighbors privately called it a "ghost baby."

So he suspected the "ghost baby" had brought bad luck and cursed his son.

By the end, Zhou Yuan's tone was tinged with resentment, clearly laying the blame on the innocent infant.

An Yi listened quietly, his expression calm and unreadable, without saying a word.

It wasn't until Zhou Yuan mentioned the term "ghost baby" and stated with absolute certainty that it had brought bad luck that he looked up slightly and interrupted: "Magistrate Zhou, I saw that infant outside earlier."

Zhou Yuan was taken aback.

An Yi continued, his gaze calm as he looked at him: "There's not a trace of evil energy on that child. His aura is pure, no different from any normal baby. The so-called 'ghost baby' theory is pure baseless nonsense. As for the child not crying at birth, that isn't a sign of being demonic either—the child was simply born mute, unable to make a sound."

Zhou Yuan opened his mouth, embarrassment and doubt flashing across his face. But facing An Yi's unnervingly calm yet penetrating gaze, he didn't dare speak up to contradict him.

Seeing this, Gan Feng chose that moment to stand up and said: "Since it's not the child's fault, the problem may lie elsewhere. Magistrate Zhou, would you mind if I took a look around the county office, inside and out?"

Zhou Yuan, of course, would refuse nothing.

Gan Feng then put on a show of walking around the rear hall, the front office, and even the courtyard, holding a compass in one hand and muttering incantations under his breath.

An Yi and Xie Xuandu remained seated, calm and still.

An Yi's gaze fell back on Zhou Yuan, and this time, there was open hostility in his eyes—as if he were looking at something filthy.

That look made Zhou Yuan's skin crawl, cold sweat beading at his temples.

Gan Feng finished his circuit and returned, his gaze finally locking onto Zhou Yuan as well, his brows furrowed. The compass needle quivered slightly, pointing toward Zhou Yuan.

"Magistrate Zhou," Gan Feng said in a deep voice: "The problem... I'm afraid it's not elsewhere—it's with you yourself."

Zhou Yuan was startled, reflexively stepping back half a step, his voice cracking slightly: "With... with me? Why would the Immortal Master say such a thing?!"

Gan Feng didn't answer directly, instead suggesting: "Please take us to see your son."