Chapter 118: “Please Be Wary of Roommates or Housemates Who Have Been Out of Sight for Over 24 Hours!”

Chapter 118: "Be wary of any roommate or cohabitant who leaves your sight for over 24 hours!"

Faced with Yi Fengchu's polite request, the driver's face cycled through pale, green, then purple.

Countless times, he even considered rolling his eyes upward and fainting on the spot to escape reality.

However, the young man who had materialized like a specter smiled and added, "The fare is two thousand."

At that moment, the driver, who had been on the verge of passing out, shuddered and suddenly snapped to attention, as if filled with renewed energy.

When he glanced at Chu Fu through the rearview mirror again, the young man’s face half-hidden in shadow no longer struck him as sinister...

This passenger—whether human or ghost—might as well have been radiating the glow of a wealth god in the darkness of night!

Spurred by the promise of cash, the driver immediately straightened his back, suppressing the trembling in his hands, and drove the car swiftly and steadily.

Half an hour later, the canary-yellow cab came to a smooth stop at the gates of Guiyin University.

Chu Fu stepped out of the car, found his footing, and leaned against the door as he pulled out his phone to scan for payment. But then he suddenly realized a problem—

He urgently mentally queried his phone, *"Wait, can I even use my own bank account to pay in this world?"*

*"...That’s right,"* the phone replied after a brief silence. *"I thought you were planning to use the original body’s funds."*

Chu Fu then pulled out the original body’s phone and glanced at the balance, immediately barking a laugh at the pitiful sum. "A balance of 3.45? What kind of 'funds' is this?"

The driver, still sitting inside the car, rolled down the window just enough to peer out through the narrow gap with one eye, cautiously and regarding with superstitious awe Chu Fu before weakly saying, "Ahem... if you don’t have any more of our... *ahem*... currency from our world, then forget it."

"Honestly, the fare you just gave me earlier was already enough for me to drive around the whole city. Thanks..."

*Just please, if there’s ever another job this terrifying, spare me next time.*

The driver silently prayed.

"No, I always keep my promises. This money is rightfully yours," Chu Fu said softly, his slightly furrowed brow smoothing out as he calmly put away his phone. "I know how to pay you now."

"Go back to your normal work and life. The fare will manifest within your possession within two hours."

The driver couldn’t shake the feeling that the smile on his lips held arcane promise. Before he could ask further, the young man’s figure gradually melted into the night, disappearing beyond the school gates.

Full of doubts, the driver slowly drove off, meandering down the street.

Before he knew it, he had reached an area he didn’t usually frequent. Seeing the empty streets ahead and behind, he figured that there probably wouldn’t be any more passengers tonight.

Suddenly, a wild-haired woman rushed to the roadside and frantically flagged down his taxi, wheezing as she urged, "Quick—take me to Second People’s Hospital!"

"Please drive as fast as you can! My daughter’s about to give birth—I need to get there now!"

Hearing the urgency in her voice, the driver nodded repeatedly and immediately stepped on the accelerator. Along the way, the woman, in a state of panic, spilled her frantic story to him: "Driver, thank goodness I ran into you!"

"It’s so late—I was working herself into a frenzy on the sidewalk, not a single taxi in sight! I don’t know how to drive, I had no idea what to do..."

When the taxi stopped at the hospital entrance, the woman paid the fare and hurriedly took a few steps before suddenly remembering something. She turned back, pulled out a red envelope, and thrust it at the driver’s hands.

"Ah, how could I forget this..."

"Driver, thank you so much today. This is a lucky red envelope I prepared in advance for my daughter and grandchild—please take it!"

"Driver, good luck to you! And good luck to our family too!"

Dazed, the driver opened the red envelope and pulled out two crisp thousand-yuan notes—in their country’s currency system, the largest and most valuable denomination was a thousand yuan.

At that moment, he understood exactly how that mysterious young man had settled the fare.

The driver thought to himself that he might never forget this supernatural ordeal for the rest of his life.

The next day, before the driver could fully process the strange events of the previous night, several badged agents from an official organization appeared at his doorstep. Their uniforms bore a unique emblem—a flame-tipped quill, entwined by two symmetrical, double-helix chains.

The pen stood for truth-seeking and the recording of events as they were; the chains represented the containment of anomalies, minimizing their harm.

In a world infested with all sorts of bizarre anomalies, how could humanity remain completely unaware?

Even if most people were ordinary and powerless against these anomalies, there would always be those who willingly lit the way forward with their lives, navigating the world’s perilous shadows.

The investigators showed their credentials and spoke solemnly: "Hello, we’re investigators from the Guiyin City Anomaly Containment Bureau. Please cooperate with our work."

After carefully documenting the driver’s account of the previous night, one investigator flipped open a record book, preparing to document preliminary information about the new anomaly.

On the page before the blank one, there was already a fresh entry—

*"January 6, 2025, 20:32:03*

*Reported by the night watchman of Guiyin Southern Suburb Cemetery*

*Anomaly recorded: The Invisible Tombstone*

*Preliminary hazard rating: D, temporary designation D-0174*

*Containment location: Southern Suburb Cemetery; containment method: None*

*Characteristics: D-0174 resembles an ordinary tombstone, measuring 2 chi 7 cun in height and 1 chi 8 cun in width. It warps perception subtly, causing people to subconsciously overlook or forget its existence.*

*The tomb belongs to Chu Fu (male, 23 years old), with confirmed death records dated December 17, 2024. However, subsequent reports indicate posthumous activity attributed to him, while all surrounding individuals have forgotten his death. Current status and motives unknown... (See file B-062 for details)."*

The investigator pondered for a moment before drafting a new entry.

*"January 7, 2025, 9:13:34*

*Statement provided by Mr. Liu Qingguo, taxi driver for Yunyun Group, Guiyin City*

*Anomaly recorded: The Returned*

*Preliminary hazard rating: B, temporary designation B-062*

*Containment location: B-062’s activity range covers approximately 650 square kilometers in the southwestern urban area, including Guiyin University. No effective containment protocols currently exist.*

*Characteristics:*

*B-062 takes the form of a young human male, 23 years old, with black curly hair, blue eyes, and a height of approximately 1.79 meters. He exhibits human-like communication, behaves politely and courteously, and honors bargains. He exhibits strong resistance and suppression against other anomalies and can orchestrate chance events to achieve his goals through unknown means.*

*B-062 assumes the persona of Chu Fu, but investigators doubt the correlation as to whether he is truly the deceased Mr. Chu, who died young.*

*Current assessment suggests a neutral or benevolent alignment toward humans, with a willingness to abide by societal rules. Pending psych evaluation by specialists is required."*

"..."

As the investigator wrote, a colleague beside him peered at the notes and frowned. "Guiyin U. again?"

"Come again?"

"In the past half month, reports of urban legends and anomalies at Guiyin University have spiked dramatically, and many long-dormant urban legends have become active again."

The colleague rattled off: "From what I know, there's B-021 'The Endless Library,' A-017 'The Doppelgänger,' A-087 'I Found You'... God knows what other horrors are lurking in the shadows."

The investigator unconsciously tightened his grip on the pen, a chill running down his spine. "Let's hope it doesn't cause too much trouble."

...

At this very moment, the audience in Live Room No. 8 was spectating the streamer's bizarre sleep.

「With skills like his, why does OP still need sleep?」

「What do you know? It's called aesthetic living!」

「AFK moment—polite question: why is the streamer sleeping standing up instead of in bed?」

「Maybe the streamer thinks unfamiliar beds are icky?」

「Given that the original owner’s wardrobe was stuffed with blood-soaked laundry, who knows what other traces of murder might be in the bedding.」

「What’s this habit called in the human world... 'neat freak'?」

「Also, based on that side-eye the streamer gave us earlier... his true form might resemble a peacock? I think those birds sleep standing up.」

「+1. Maybe the streamer feels more comfortable sleeping upright. We divine beings have all kinds of weird sleeping postures.」

「This is what they call: even under the guise of a harmless human, the true nature of a non-human creature still bleeds through ()」

「Thankfully, this dorm room only has the streamer. If a roommate saw a figure standing stiffly in the dark, they’d be scared to death...」

「Midnight horror (lol)」

「Speaking of which, can we try luring viewers from other livestreams here?」

「...I can already smell the mischief in that idea.」

「Bring in more victims to join our Hotel California situation, huh?」

「How could you say that? Are we really that kind of audience? We just want to help the streamer pump those viewer numbers a little ^^」

「Exactly. The grind for clout is our duty!」

「Seriously though, I think even if we do nothing, poor saps will stumble in eventually... After all, this is a viewing chamber with a permanently closed door and no viewers ever leaving! Wouldn’t you be curious?」

「A viewing chamber with no exit... Is this our urban legend as viewers?」

「Haha, so we’re the challengers after all (cackles) (flatlines)」

As night passed, Chu Fu, who had been leaning against the wall to sleep, opened his eyes. After a cursory freshen-up, he energetically walked to the original owner’s desk and checked his class schedule.

"No classes today," Chu Fu mused, his gaze shifting to a club commemorative badge on the desk. "Might wanna check out this 'Urban Paranormal Sharing Club.'"

Naturally, zero objections in chat, all spamming hype emojis instead.

Before leaving the dorm, Chu Fu made a point to glance at the neatly made bed on the other side—clearly, the original owner had a roommate, but for some reason, they hadn’t returned all night...

Odds are it's related to an urban legend?

Halfway there, Chu Fu pulled up short at a bulletin board and scanned the notices.

At the center, two bold red lines blazed ominously:

"RED ALERT: Be wary of roommates or housemates who leave your sight for over 24 hours!"

"They may not be who you think they are at all!"