Having devoted myself to guiding souls, I was surrounded by them after my death.

"Try self-harm."

As soon as Wu Hui finished speaking, Zhang Chengkang suddenly raised his hand and punched himself in the face with his brass knuckles, shattering his glasses and knocking himself to the ground.

"Besides you, how many other people came?" Wu Hui asked.

“There’s one more person,” Zhang Chengkang answered truthfully, his eyes vacant, seemingly devoid of any independent consciousness, just a puppet on strings.

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Chengkang threw another punch, knocking out several of his own teeth.

"Let's go take care of this first."

Wu Hui opened his toolbox, took out a saw, and his gaze fell on Zhang Chengkang's head.

Just then, a figure darted out from the corner and rushed straight at him.

It was Chen Shi.

"Hmm? When..."

Wu Hui glanced at it:

"They slipped in while the ferryman was making a commotion?"

Wu Hui didn't have time to think, and the tuning fork wobbled:

"Ding--"

Chen Shi, who was sprinting, suddenly stopped, as if his life force had been gripped by an invisible hand. He stood there blankly, his eyes vacant, one hand hanging down and the other in his pocket.

"Chen Shi?"

Wu Hui was taken aback for a moment, but his eyes immediately turned cold:

"I knew that evil spirit was well hidden, how could it suddenly be exorcised... So you're the ferryman? You hid very well."

He had no regard for teacher-student relationships and coldly said, "Commit suicide."

Having said that, he turned around without looking back, preparing to deal with Zhang Chengkang. The stronger a person's inspiration, the weaker the control effect of the tuning fork. He couldn't directly order a second-level ferryman like Zhang Chengkang to commit suicide; he could only control him and then take matters into his own hands.

However, after taking a few steps, Wu Hui realized something was wrong.

Chen Shi didn't move!

"what happened?"

Wu Hui turned around abruptly and saw Chen Shi still standing there, as if he hadn't heard any orders.

The tuning fork is not working?

No, it's clearly under control. Could this kid have a stronger intuition than that brass guy?

"Never mind, I'll do it myself."

Wu Hui, carrying a saw, strode forward.

However, just as he reached Chen Shi and was about to saw off the boy's head, an unexpected scene unfolded...

Chen Shi suddenly looked up, his gaze returning to him, and raised an eyebrow at him:

"Brother, are you surprised? Are you taken aback?"

"What!? How is that possible!" Wu Hui's eyes widened.

Chen Shi took his left hand out of his pocket, and there was a rope loop wrapped around his wrist.

It was a rope, its surface patterned with a dark, scarlet sheen, as if engraved with runes.

[Strangulation rope]

[Effect: Can suppress the target and inhibit supernatural effects]

"You made the right bet."

Chen Shi smiled.

The suspension rope can suppress paranormal effects.

Clearly, the rope can suppress a spirit when it is tied to it. But if you put it on yourself, you can suppress any supernatural effects that you might generate.

Wu Hui's tuning fork was clearly a magical artifact, and the rope loop could counteract its supernatural effects.

"Chen Shi! You're asking for it!"

Realizing he had been tricked, Wu Hui flew into a rage and picked up a saw to strike.

However, the next second, a bright red figure rushed out silently and kicked him in the face, sending him flying to the ground.

It's Su Yining.

"How is that possible? There's another person?"

Wu Hui rolled around on the ground a few times. Two unexpected changes occurred in just one minute, leaving him feeling dizzy.

Didn't the ferryman just say there was only one person?

Is he lying? No, that ferryman is definitely under control; he couldn't possibly be lying...

what's going on?

Just as he was panicking, Chen Shi threw the rope again, and the loop accurately snagged his neck!

"Gotcha."

Chen Shi's face hardened, and he pulled the rope with all his might!

"Cough! Uh..."

Wu Hui felt weak all over, unable to muster any strength in his limbs, and saw stars in his vision.

He tried to shake the tuning fork, but it seemed to be suppressed and couldn't make a sound at all.

"Give up, Mr. Wu... Wu Hui."

Chen Shi showed no mercy, pressing his knee down on Wu Hui's body while simultaneously pulling the rope again!

"Uh--"

In his panic, Wu Hui began to fumble for the rope around his neck, but as a magical artifact, the [Binding Rope] made it impossible for him to break free on his own.

"Cough... Damn it, at least..."

His eyes widened as he looked at the water tank next to him, where he saw that it had been drilled.

With his last ounce of strength, Wu Hui picked up the vial of red reagent and threw it into the opening of the water tank…

However, a slender arm reached out from the side and firmly grasped the vial of reagent.

With her red hair flowing, Su Yining nodded slightly, glanced at Wu Hui with her crimson eyes, and smiled contemptuously.

Seeing that the situation had been settled, Wu Hui was completely heartbroken and fainted.

Chapter 14 Tattoo

"call……"

Chen Shi breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that Wu Hui had stopped breathing.

He didn't hold back; he went straight for the kill.

Logically, the best way to obtain information is to capture him alive, but Wu Hui was so powerful that even Zhang Chengkang, a level-two ferryman, couldn't handle him. To avoid any unforeseen complications, he decided to go for the kill.

Besides, if he can play dead, so can Wu Hui. This guy was so decisive in his actions, so he has no reason to back down.

but……

"vomit!"

Chen Shi couldn't hold it in and found a secluded corner to vomit for a while.

He didn't regret it; it was just that it was the first time he had killed someone with his own hands, and he felt somewhat uncomfortable due to his physical instincts.

"Junior, are you alright?"

Su Yining stepped forward and patted his back with concern.

"It's alright, I'm still not quite used to it the first time."

After a few minutes, Chen Shi finally calmed down a bit.

"Speaking of which, junior, you're quite something. The situation is exactly as you guessed."

Su Yining looked at him with admiration, and ruffled Chen Shi's hair again. The movement was so big that her own hair swayed along with it, giving off a faint fragrance of crape myrtle.

"Luckily you guessed right, otherwise I would have been helpless."

Chen Shi felt fortunate that he had obtained the information through the death rewind.

His plan was to use himself as bait, use the rope to counteract the control effect of the tuning fork, and catch Wu Hui off guard.

However, considering that Wu Hui might be superior to him in physical skills, he used Su Yining as a surprise move.

As for why he was so certain that Wu Hui wouldn't discover Su Yining...

In the previous round, Wu Hui didn't initially notice his presence. It was only after Zhang Chengkang entered the room and was killed that Wu Hui deliberately returned and killed him.

Considering the mind control effects of the tuning fork, it is clear that Zhang Chengkang must have leaked the information that "there are other people outside" after he was controlled.

After killing him, Wu Hui said, "That solves everything."

In other words, Wu Hui thought that besides Zhang Chengkang, he was the only one left.

As for why...

Let's make a bold guess: when Zhang Chengkang saw Su Yining, his expression clearly changed—as a second-level ferryman, he may have already realized that Su Yining was not "human".

Based on this understanding, if Wu Hui asks "How many people are left?" after Zhang Chengkang is controlled and loses consciousness, Zhang Chengkang will only answer one, because Su Yining is not human.

This guess seems far-fetched, but with Wu Hui's dying words, "All resolved," everything becomes traceable.

But besides that, there's another point—the tuning fork might affect Su Yining.

Chen Shi recalled that at the beginning, before Wu Hui entered the water supply room, he deliberately knocked on a tuning fork twice, and the uncle and the old man fell to the ground one after the other.

Therefore, it can be seen that the tuning fork does not have a range effect, but can only target one object.

Therefore, he needed to maximize his role as bait and draw all of Wu Hui's attention to himself.

As a spirit, Su Yining has no shadow, walks silently, and comes and goes without a trace. While Wu Hui is focused on dealing with her, she can sneak into the water supply room without making a sound.

Like a ghost.

After catching Wu Hui off guard, it was his turn to use the rope to resolve the fight.

A perfect plan.

"As expected of me." Chen Shi felt a little proud.

However, unexpectedly, the murderer turned out to be someone from within the school, and even his club teacher.

"Oh right, that elite guy..."

Chen Shi then remembered Zhang Chengkang, ran over and saw Zhang Chengkang lying on the ground with a bruised and swollen face, his glasses frame shattered.

"Waaah... I got beaten up so badly." Su Yining rubbed her face.

"It looks like the control effect has been lifted, and he should wake up in a little while."

Chen Shi checked that Zhang Chengkang was still breathing before relaxing and saying:

"By the way, senior, can I take a look at that reagent tube?"

"this?"

Su Yining handed over the reagent.

"Hmm...it seems this is the source of the widespread poisoning deaths," Chen Shi thought to himself.

Chen Shi squatted on the ground, picked up the reagent and examined it carefully. The liquid was dark red, more viscous than water, and looked more like blood. Upon closer inspection, one could see dark, surging lines within it.

"That guy just wanted to throw this into the water tank?" Su Yining chimed in.

She knelt down next to Chen Shi, her hands supporting her knees, her waist slightly leaning forward, her hair falling down, framing her delicate oval face even more beautifully.