Chapter One: What They Are Looking For

  Chisel

  Before graduating from college, if someone asked me if humans could live forever, I would definitely give him two slaps and scold him "You show me what immortality looks like!"

  But now if someone asks me, I will be silent, because the two words "long life" have really suffered for me. Those days of being hunted by black and white were my lifelong nightmare. Of course, afterwards, because of this, I traveled through high mountains and deserts, and saw scenes that ordinary people can hardly see in a lifetime, which is also my eternal memory.

  I'm a college student, just graduated this year and about to rush to the unit I just found. I thought I would spend my life in a plain and ordinary way, going to work, falling in love, getting married and having children, and then growing old and dying. But on the day of graduation, something happened that made me become the target of everyone's pursuit in Jianghu, with no way out, no door to enter, I became like a street rat.

  Clearly remembered that it was June 1st, the scorching weather made the entire campus hot and dry, even the most remote lawn was illuminated by the sunlight shining through the treetops.

  "Damn it, where's the farewell gathering and hug from my junior sister? Not a single one showed up!" I cursed loudly in the corner of the lawn after being woken up by my alarm clock. I realized I had been fooled again. Last night, after the graduation party, those three roommates told me that several junior sisters we were close to would see me off at our usual spot, giving me a chance to flirt with them. But when I woke up, no one was there. I knew what was going on without needing to be told. Luckily, I'm a clever person and had set my alarm clock early, or else I would have missed the train for sure. Being late on the first day of work is a big deal!

  "Three bastards, bullying me for being single, just wait, next time I'll show you who's boss!" I cursed loudly as I dragged my luggage. But this is also my fault, the four of us in the dormitory and I'm clearly more handsome than them, but in the end, I'm the only one left single. Those three must have taken advantage of last night to get laid, I'll curse them to kidney deficiency!

  "Senior, goodbye senior" I met two younger schoolmates who were returning from playing basketball and was stunned by their greetings. What stunned me wasn't that in the blink of an eye four years had passed and I had graduated too, and the greetings I used to give others were now being directed at myself; rather, it was that I had actually forgotten to bid farewell to someone.

  "Damn it, Kang Cheng, if I don't get on the train this time, you can wait for death!" He suddenly turned around and ran back. In my heart, I shouted loudly, how could I forget to say goodbye to Kang Cheng? Yesterday afternoon, that kid said he would definitely go see him when he left, or else next time they meet, he would be scolded to death! Thinking of Kang Cheng's glass heart makes me feel a headache.

  The campus is not big, and soon I saw Kang Cheng in front of a dormitory building. Kang Cheng under the big locust tree had some melancholy eyes, making my scalp feel a bit numb. Damn it, don't look at me like that, okay? I'm not gay, what if others misunderstand? I don't even have a girlfriend yet!

  "Sorry, I was busy and forgot. You have something to say, speak up quickly, I'm in a hurry to catch the train." Because they were too familiar with each other, there was no need for any pleasantries, as soon as they met, he told him to get straight to the point, if not, then leave.

  "Nothing in particular, just thinking..."

  "Stop, it's fine if nothing happens, we're so familiar with each other, no need to make a big deal about the farewell, besides I'm not leaving for good, just like this for now, see you later." As soon as I heard him hesitating, I knew he was going to drag things out, interrupting his words and wanting to leave, damn it, really can't wait any longer, the train won't wait for people.

  "Wait, Lin Hao, I have something very important to say!" Kang Cheng grabbed my arm and shouted, looking like he was in a hurry.

  "Do you still remember the jade pendant I gave you?" Jing asked cautiously as he stopped in front of Kang Cheng.

  Yu Fu, I furrowed my brow and thought for a moment. It seemed like Gong Cheng had given it to me as a token of gratitude for my great kindness, and it was a family heirloom. I took it to the jade store to have it appraised, and the master inside said it was worth around 180 yuan. So, I threw it into the trunk in my dormitory, and if he hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten about it long ago.

  "I remember, it's in my bag, what's up?" I replied casually. Previously, I saw Kang Cheng attach great importance to that jade symbol, and didn't have the nerve to say it was thrown into the dormitory.

  But he turned pale upon hearing it and cried out "Quickly, quickly throw him away, don't bring him along, that's the source of all troubles, throw him away"

  I was annoyed by Kang Cheng's sudden outburst, took two steps back and said "Kid, what's wrong with you? Although that jade amulet is worthless, it's still a charm to ward off evil spirits. I'll keep it, it might come in handy."

  It's really true that when you have no money, one dollar can save your life, let alone 180 dollars. We can't afford to waste it.

  "No, Lin Hao, listen to me, you'd better get rid of it quickly, it will bring disaster upon you. It's not an ordinary jade pendant... Ah, never mind, just get rid of it!" Kang Cheng looked extremely anxious, almost incoherent, but my curiosity was piqued, the more he spoke like this, the less I wanted to casually throw it away.

  "What the heck is this jade token thing? Could it be... Hmm, police cars are arriving at school? So many police cars, could it be a pre-breakup rage killing of a love rival scene?" I was about to ask what's going on when I was interrupted by the increasingly ear-piercing sound of sirens. Turning my head back, I saw over ten police cars rushing in and stopping at the entrance of our dorm building.

  This is interesting. As a good citizen who abides by the law, I have great respect for the police. When there are fights at school, I'm also very enthusiastic about watching them.

  Right, speaking of onlookers, I arrived at the dormitory building but didn't see anyone. It seems like there aren't any seniors living in Kang Cheng's dormitory building. Have people become less curious nowadays? As I looked up towards the corridor of the dormitory building, my eyes were suddenly blinded by the flashlights from mobile phones.

  What the hell, what's going on? How can people come out without making any noise at all? This is unscientific. Normally, when something happens, isn't it always a big fuss and everyone knows about it?

  But when I saw someone aiming their gaze and phone light at me, I sensed something was off. Now it seems like there's no one around, if I get caught in a photo like this, with the imagination of students from this school, I'll definitely be on the headlines tomorrow, and it'll be a scandalous one too. My heart skipped a beat as I thought about running away, but when I turned my head back, I was shocked to find that Kang Cheng had vanished.

  Damn it, Kang Cheng you bastard ran off to where so quickly, people are gone, I didn't even have time to scold him, turned around and wanted to run, not running is stupid, but what I didn't expect was that the first step hadn't been taken out yet, a hand pressed on my shoulder, "bang" sound, face against the ground, I was actually pinned to the ground.

  "Report, a suspect was caught outside the scene of the crime... muttering to himself." The voice from behind directly stunned me.

  ……

  Because I had too much evidence of not being present, I walked out of the police station three hours later, but my whole body was still in a daze. I couldn't believe that Kang Cheng would die like this. The one who always thought he was the big brother was dead, so who did I see under the big tamarind tree? The more I thought about it, the colder my back felt.

  "Take me to the airport." I hailed a taxi and told the driver. I still have to rush to report to the company, taking the train is no longer possible, can only bear the pain of taking a plane.

  But the driver didn't respond to me, and after I saw the driver's sarcastic expression in the rearview mirror, I felt something was off. This son of a bitch might be a black car, but before I could react, a sharp object was pressed against my waist, and an icy feeling rushed straight to my heart.

  "Don't move" a low, hoarse voice whispered in his ear.

  I raised my hands, I didn't dare move at all, I almost cried, who the hell did I provoke?

  "It's said that Kang Cheng once gave you his family heirloom jade pendant. Where is it? Speak quickly!" the person beside him asked.

  "I, I don't know" I replied with a tremble. The last words Kāng Chéng said to me were still fresh in my memory, and that jade symbol must be something very important. How could I easily give it to someone else? And a very bad idea floated into my mind - that Kāng Chéng's death was directly related to this jade symbol.

  "I think you don't want to live, I'm asking for the last time, where is it?" The person next to me looked extremely impatient, and with a push of his hand, I felt like my skin was already pierced.

  It's over, I've run into a ruthless killer who doesn't bat an eye. I can feel the strong killing intent and don't dare to persist any longer. I quickly replied that the jade symbol is still in the dormitory. Kang Cheng, Kang Cheng, don't blame your brother for being too incompetent, you can only blame the enemy for being too powerful.

  Ten minutes later, the taxi arrived in front of my dormitory building which I had just left this afternoon. This building was inhabited by fourth-year students who were about to graduate and leave school, so there were hardly any people around now, making it pitch black and eerie. I cried out in alarm, "No one's here! How can I ask for help? They must be going to kill me and silence me!"

  "Don't dawdle, hurry up" Perhaps sensing my intention, someone behind me gave me a forceful push, knowing they were so alert, I had no choice but to take them to my dormitory 302.

  "The jade symbol is in the shoe box on top, it's used to store miscellaneous items." I said, pointing to the two-meter-high cabinet. At this moment, a thrilling plan emerged in my mind. This two-meter-high storage cabinet was unstable, and one of its legs was only propped up with a wooden block. With just a little force, it would fall over, and this was my chance. Life or death might be decided in this instant.

  "Go get it, don't play any tricks, or I'll kill you." The man threatened after grabbing a stool and bringing it over. This was the place where he had stayed for four years, so he knew it like the back of his hand. Moreover, being forced to this extent, they were also afraid that he would make a desperate last-ditch effort.

  I didn't say a word, pretending to be very scared, and tremblingly stepped onto the stool to reach for the shoebox. Just as I got hold of the shoebox, I suddenly sprang into action. With my left hand pulling hard, the massive cabinet fell over and pressed down on one person, while with my right hand, the shoebox landed squarely on another person's face.

  "Bang!" The man was also stunned by the sudden heavy blow. To know that this shoebox is not a trash can for jade symbols, but a stone picked up during camping in sophomore year. There are seven or eight strange stones, and with one blow, the man's face immediately bloomed.

  I didn't let my guard down after the first hit, I grabbed whatever was nearby and smashed it because the one-legged cabinet behind me couldn't hold back another person. I had to escape as quickly as possible, if I waited for the two of them to react, I would absolutely not be their match.

  "Bang" I slammed the stool into the person in front of me, knocking him down. Then I turned around and stepped on the cabinet to press him down, kicked his head with one foot, picked up a shoe box and ran out of the dormitory.

  I didn't breathe a sigh of relief until I left the dormitory. Every nook and cranny of this school, I know them all, avoiding one or two people is really too easy.