Pan Jie's heart raced as she desperately tried to refuse the ghost.
"Wait!" She quickly raised her hand, speaking in a rush. You can't follow me—I'm scared! And... I have weak yang energy. I've been prone to encountering spirits since childhood. The doctor said I have a vulnerable constitution. If I'm around someone like you... uh, I definitely won't survive three days!"
Gasping for breath, she added, "Besides, we're just an ordinary family in a tiny apartment. If you follow me, my mom will be terrified! And I take the bus everywhere, school, work, home. You won't suddenly scare people on the bus, will you? What if that causes an accident?"
Rattling off excuses, Pan Jie grew more convinced by the second. Finally, she clasped her hands and looked at Lin Yuan earnestly. "So please just leave me alone! I'll burn incense for you every day to help you reincarnate soon!"
Lin Yuan sighed deeply, massaging his temple.
"I don't need that." He sounded defeated. "Basically, I'm just an energy form, like an electric current."
Pan Jie blinked, stunned that ghosts now used science terms.
Lin Yuan added, "Of course, humans around strong electricity for too long can still get hurt."
At this, Pan Jie mentally scoffed: Since when does a ghost need such a precise scientific analogy?
"Also, your Yin-Yang eyes haven't been fully sealed yet, have they?" Lin Yuan changed tack, staring at her. "Once they fully activate, you know how many ghosts will hound you, right?"
Pan Jie swallowed, unable to deny it.
"But with me here, you won't have to deal with pesky ghosts," Lin Yuan drawled. "I've got nothing better to do, might as well be your bodyguard. No pay required. Sound like a good deal?"
Pan Jie's eye twitched. This felt like she was being forced into a deal.
"Besides..." Lin Yuan smiled faintly, mocking tone evident. "That Master Lei you're looking for is a fraud."
Pan Jie froze. "What?"
"A Dragon Tiger Mountain descendant mastering Maoshan magic?" Lin Yuan scoffed. "Are you really that naive? Dragon Tiger Mountain specializes in Thunder Magic and formations. They know some talisman work, but it's barely related to Maoshan techniques."
Pan Jie frowned. "How do you know that?"
"Can't tell you, but my info's reliable," Lin Yuan said flatly, having checked with Jiuchong.
"And you really think a social media 'master' can fully seal your Yin-Yang eyes?"
Pan Jie felt guilty. She'd doubted Master Lei too, but with more supernatural incidents popping up, her options were limited.
Seeing her waver, Lin Yuan softened his tone. "I just need you to 'borrow' my spirit to leave this building. It's not hard. You help me, I help you. Mutual benefit, right?"
After a long debate, Pan Jie bit her lip and nodded at the evil ghost.
"Deal." She ground out.
Lin Yuan smirked and raised his hand to tap her neck. A faint black mark materialized, sealing the contract.
...
Pan Jie woke to find herself still in bed, room lit. She instinctively touched her neck—it felt cool but normal.
"Jiuchong, what's the mark for?" Lin Yuan asked casually in their shared consciousness.
"A temporary contract to keep you linked," Jiuchong explained. "If she tries to back out, it'll make her dizzy... maybe even cause temporary soul separation."
Lin Yuan nodded, watching Pan Jie rub her neck. "It won't hurt, just stops you from escaping."
Pan Jie's face froze. "You!"
"You agreed." Lin Yuan drawled. "No take-backs."
Gritting her teeth, Pan Jie tried to protest but felt the mark's odd presence. She even sensed the room's "abnormalities" more clearly.
Taking a deep breath, she asked, "So what's next?"
Lin Yuan crossed his arms, smirking. "Investigate my death, of course."
Pan Jie frowned. "But... didn't the police already look into it?"
Lin Yuan sighed. "They only looked at the surface. I don't think my death was an accident, it was murder."
Pan Jie pondered. Though no forensic expert, she knew police rarely dug deep without obvious suspicion.
"...Fine." She gritted her teeth. "But I'm warning you, if this gets too risky, I'm done."
Lin Yuan shrugged. "Suit yourself. I won't force you."
Before she could relax, he added, "But if you quit halfway, the mark stays."
Pan Jie: "..."
She should have known no ghost would be this kind.
===================
潘洁的心跳如擂鼓,脑子里疯狂盘算着该怎么拒绝这只鬼.
"等一下!" 她猛地举起手,像是在课堂上急于抢答的学生,语速飞快地说道,"你不能跟着我,我害怕!而且... 而且我阳气不足,小时候就容易撞邪,医生都说我体质弱,遇到你这种... 呃,我肯定活不过三天!"
她一口气说完,又补充道:"再说了,我家里条件一般,住的地方也不大,你要是跟着我,我妈肯定会被吓死!还有,我上课,打工,回家都得搭公交,你不会突然在车上吓人吧?万一出车祸怎么办?"
潘洁一股脑地列出一堆借口,越说越觉得自己有道理,最后索性双手合十,一脸诚恳地看着林远:"所以你还是放过我吧,我每天都给你烧香,保你早日投胎!"
林远扶额,深深地叹了口气.
"这些我不需要." 他无奈道,"说白了,我只是个能量体,类似于电流一样."
潘洁一愣,没想到这年头鬼都能用科学术语了.
"当然." 林远继续说道,"人类长时间接触强电流,对身体多少还是会有影响的."
潘洁听到这句,忍不住在心里疯狂吐槽:你一只鬼,用得着这么严谨的科学比喻吗?
"再说,你的阴阳眼还没找人彻底封住吧?" 林远话锋一转,盯着她,"一旦阴阳眼再次完全开启,到时候你会被多少鬼缠上,你自己心里清楚吧?"
潘洁咽了咽口水,不敢否认.
"但如果我在你身边,你就不用担心这些小鬼或者鬼灵来烦你了." 林远慢悠悠地补充道,"反正我现在没事干,不如就当你的 '保镖',你也不需要给工资,你不觉得这交易很划算?"
潘洁嘴角抽搐,她怎么觉得是被强买强卖了?
"而且..." 林远微微一笑,语气里带着几分嘲讽, "你找的那个雷大师是个骗子."
潘洁愣住:"什么?"
"龙虎山传人精通茅山术?" 林远轻嗤了一声,"都不知道你是真傻还是假傻.龙虎山主修雷法和阵法,符箓倒是略懂一些,但跟茅山术根本扯不上多少关系."
潘洁皱眉:"你怎么知道的?"
"无可奉告,但我的消息来源很可靠." 林远在和九重确认信息后,淡淡地回道,"而且,你真指望这种网红大师能帮你彻底封住阴阳眼?"
潘洁顿时心虚.她确实也怀疑过雷大师的真实水平,可是现在遇到的灵异事件越来越多,她能做的选择也不多了.
林远看着她的神情,知道她已经动摇了,语气又放柔了一些:"我只是要借用你的身体,带我走出这栋楼而已,又不是让你干什么难事.你帮我,我帮你,互惠互利,如何?"
经过一番拉扯,潘洁咬着嘴唇,看着眼前这只恶鬼,最终还是点了点头.
"成交." 她咬牙道.
林远勾唇一笑,缓缓地抬起手,指尖轻轻点在她的颈侧,一道黑色的印记悄然浮现.
合作达成.
...
潘洁睁开眼,发现自己还躺在床上,房间里依旧亮着灯.她下意识地摸了摸自己的脖子,能感觉到那里有点凉凉的,但并没有什么异样.
"九重,这个印记有什么用?" 林远在意识空间内随口问道.
"相当于临时契约,保证宿主和她不会分开太远." 九重解释道,"如果她试图反悔,印记会让她头晕目眩,甚至可能导致短暂的灵魂出窍."
林远满意地点点头,随即看着还在揉脖子的潘洁:"别担心,这个印记不会伤害你,只是防止你跑掉."
潘洁闻言,顿时脸色一僵:"你..."
"你已经答应我了." 林远懒洋洋地说道,"反悔是不可能反悔的."
潘洁气得咬牙切齿,但她刚刚已经试过了,那道印记真的有点奇怪,她甚至感觉到自己好像比之前更容易察觉到房间里的 "异常".
她深吸了一口气,冷静了一下后才问:"所以,接下来我们该怎么做?"
林远双手抱胸,嘴角微扬:"当然是开始调查我的死因."
潘洁皱眉:"可是... 警察应该已经查过了吧?"
"他们只查表面证据." 林远叹了口气,"但我有种直觉,我的死亡不是意外,而是蓄意谋杀."
潘洁陷入沉思,虽然她不是学法医的,但也知道,如果一个案子没有太大嫌疑,警方一般不会深入调查.
"...好吧." 她咬了咬牙,"但是我要提醒你,万一这件事牵扯太深,我是不会继续调查下去的."
林远耸耸肩:"随你,反正我不会强迫你的."
潘洁松了口气,但她还没高兴多久,就听见林远补了一句:"不过... 如果你半途而废,印记可不会消失哦."
潘洁:"..."
她就知道,这鬼不会这么好说话!