Translator: CinderTL
The Old Professor sighed, his gaze filled with a complex mix of emotions as he looked at Jiang Cheng. Jiang Cheng, in turn, raised an innocent and bewildered face toward the professor, blinking his eyes.
"All of you, leave," the Old Professor gestured to Qin Yi and the others. "I need to speak with them privately."
"Yes, Professor," Qin Yi replied, clearly respecting the Old Professor's authority. Without further ado, he led his team out, leaving the office to them.
"Professor, why are you here?" Jiang Cheng leaned closer, a strange warmth welling up within him toward the Old Professor, a feeling of familiarity he couldn't quite explain.
"If I hadn't come, you wouldn't even know you'd been transferred," the Old Professor said, pausing before his gaze shifted. After a moment, he continued, "You know about the swimming pool incident, don't you?"
"I know some of it," Jiang Cheng replied, briefly recounting Yuan Xiaoyi's story to the Old Professor. Strangely, he felt no need to hide anything from the professor. The aura the Old Professor exuded inspired an inexplicable trust in Jiang Cheng.
"Hmph—" The Old Professor exhaled, then turned to Jiang Cheng. "Did Yuan Xiaoyi tell you all this?"
"Yes," Jiang Cheng confirmed.
"What she said is true, but not entirely," the Old Professor said, his voice tinged with hesitation, as if he understood the weight of this buried past.
"Not all the high school girls died. Some survived," the Old Professor said, looking at Jiang Cheng. "The one who lived is the Yuan Xiaoyi you saw."
Jiang Cheng had already suspected this, so he wasn't surprised.
That the school had allowed Yuan Xiaoyi to remain and continue her studies in her current state was highly suspicious. To claim nothing was amiss would be a blatant lie.
This arrangement served as a form of compensation, silencing her family and preventing them from spreading rumors while simultaneously keeping Yuan Xiaoyi under surveillance.
"So, besides the girl who drowned, there were six others. Five died, leaving only Yuan Xiaoyi alive?" Jiang Cheng asked.
To his surprise, the Professor shook his head. "Besides the child who drowned, there were indeed only five others. But after Yuan Xiaoyi's incident, she was saved because she was found in time."
"Ah, yes," the Old Professor explained. "She was the last one. By then, the other children were already dead. She was at the police station, having just confessed the truth."
"When she was found, her entire head was jammed into the toilet, and her face was disfigured. Fortunately, she was rescued in time and her life was saved."
"To quell the incident and minimize its impact, the school spent a fortune on multiple surgeries for the disfigured Yuan Xiaoyi."
"She looks almost like a completely different person now."
After a pause, the Old Professor continued, "And to further reduce the impact, the school made an exception to admit her. Her grades weren't nearly good enough."
"She even changed her name."
The mention of her name caught Jiang Cheng's attention. He immediately asked, "What was Yuan Xiaoyi's original name?"
"Jiang Yanran," the Professor replied without hesitation.
Fatty, who had been sitting beside them, was so shocked that his mouth hung open. He practically leaped off the sofa. "Is that the Jiang Yanran who went missing along with the other five girls?"
This woman had been looking for herself?
Fatty's brain felt like it was short-circuiting again.
Jiang Cheng shot a glance at Huai Yi, who immediately pushed Fatty back onto the sofa and signaled to Jiang Cheng and the Professor to ignore them and continue.
Fortunately, the Professor's attention remained fixed on Jiang Cheng.
As various clues reassembled in his mind, Jiang Cheng had already formed a general understanding of this mission. All that remained was to fill in the details.
"Professor," Jiang Cheng said, turning to the Old Professor in a low voice. "Is this Yuan Xiaoyi the same Jiang Yanran who survived back then? And when did she become like this?"
"Right after she was rescued and regained consciousness, her mental state was off," the Old Professor explained. "The doctors said it was due to severe trauma—her mind couldn't process it all at once. After all, she was just a child. Besides, who wouldn't be traumatized by such an experience?"
The Old Professor seemed to want to say more, but he moved his lips without making a sound. Finally, he sighed and remained silent.
Through their previous investigation and the Old Professor's words, Jiang Cheng had pieced together the general picture.
His earlier suspicions were correct. The swimming pool was indeed the key to this mission.
And the person they were meant to save this time was the real "Yuan Xiaoyi"—the sole survivor of the incident, Jiang Yanran.
Leaving the School Security Department, the group walked back, the sky darkening. Streetlights flickered to life, casting a dying glow.
Jiang Cheng and Wang Qi led the way, occasionally speaking in hushed tones.
This panicked Fatty, who was following behind. He wanted to eavesdrop, but thought it inappropriate. Huai Yi, who was with him, advised him not to approach. It was clear they were discussing serious matters, and it wouldn't be right for them to interrupt.
"Brother Huai Yi," Fatty said, his tone rising and adopting an air of superiority, as if he and the other three were in a different league. "Watch your tone."
Having spent time with Fatty, Huai Yi had come to realize he was a straightforward man. While his abilities might be terrifying, he was ultimately reliable.
"What are you talking about?" Jiang Cheng stopped and turned to ask.
Wang Qi also turned, his gaze at Fatty different from the others—a mix of confusion and, above all, reluctance.
At Jiang Cheng's summons, Fatty immediately rushed forward. "Doctor, tell me, what's really going on here? Is that guy following us the high school girl who drowned in the swimming pool, or the Heart-Corroding Demon? I'm completely confused."
"Both," Wang Qi replied.
Fatty froze, stunned.
Huai Yi, on the other hand, slowly relaxed his brow, as if he were beginning to understand.
Wang Qi looked at Fatty and continued, "The high school girl who drowned is actually Yuan Xiaoyi's heart demon—or rather, Jiang Yanran's heart demon."
"The Heart-Corroding Demon's method of killing is to invade a person's consciousness, identify and kill their host personality, and only then does the physical body die."
"But when it tried to kill Jiang Yanran, something went wrong."
"Jiang Yanran's mind was so severely traumatized that it shattered. Her sense of self dissolved, and her host personality, Jiang Yanran, hid within five newly split-off secondary personalities."
Fatty's eyes widened in belated realization. "So that Yuan Xiaoyi who's been with us all this time, introducing us to all these Urban Legends... she's the ghost!"
"No, it's the Heart-Corroding Demon! The Heart-Corroding Demon has possessed her body!"
"Everything she said was the Heart-Corroding Demon trying to manipulate us!" Fatty's large head seemed to finally understand something. He continued, "That's why she always made excuses not to join us at night when we went to investigate the Urban Legends and look for her friend."
The body was still Jiang Yanran's, but her consciousness had long been taken over by the Heart-Corroding Demon.
The Heart-Corroding Demon had patiently guided them all along, naturally to use them to kill all five personalities hiding within the Urban Legends.
Only by doing so could it finally eliminate the last survivor, Jiang Yanran.
"But if that's true, then Jiang Yanran must be hiding in the swimming pool Urban Legend, which is the Heart-Corroding Demon's main base," Fatty said, puzzled. "How could she possibly hide there without being discovered?"
(End of the Chapter)
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