Every place has its unique magnetic field, just as every object has its distinct glow.
Even though humans have degenerated to rely on only five senses, with their innate third eye now sealed as the pineal gland, there are still moments when inexplicable things can be perceived in a flash of insight.
For example, when meeting a stranger for the first time, some can instinctively discern good from evil. Or when entering an unfamiliar place, the vigilant might sense fortune or misfortune lurking in the air.
By instinctively avoiding danger and intuitively choosing goodness, humans have dubbed this eerie perception as “God’s sixth sense”—a precognitive power they inherently possess, one that has gradually eroded over time.
Today, the human sixth sense is either dormant or, when it does stir, signals a dramatic shift in personal fortune or a disturbance in the environmental magnetic field that warrants attention.
Like now.
Si Nuocheng’s thoughts and body are at odds. Goosebumps rise, a chill spreads from his feet to his head, and though he hears his friend’s voice nearby, it feels as if it’s coming from a distant place.
He suddenly turns around, only to find nothing behind him.
Just a slightly open window letting in a cold breeze that keeps the curtains fluttering. Below the window sits a massage bathtub, with round-the-clock hot water for a relaxing soak. Steam billows, blurring the lights.
“Eh, it’s just the curtains!” Yu Mingyang’s slightly disappointed voice crackles through, lamenting the lack of juicy gossip as if he’s lost a fortune. “Tsk, I’ve been single too long—now even a curtain looks charming to me.”
Si Nuocheng: …
If you weren’t so far away, this power bank would be lodged in your brain by now.
“Nothing else? Then hang up,” Si Nuocheng says, stepping forward to close the window and draw the curtains. “I’m going to take a bath now. You hang up, or I will.”
“Wait!” Yu Mingyang persists, clearly in an annoying mood. “Boss Si, about that WeChat moment you posted this morning—about the hotel being haunted—was that real or just a joke?”
Si Nuocheng: …The worst teammate isn’t the dumb one, but the one who’s dumb and serious.
He doesn’t even bother answering, but Yu Mingyang is already rambling on.
“I heard that single men staying in big hotels are the ones most likely to be haunted by long-haired ghosts in white dresses,” Yu Mingyang says in a hushed tone. “She’s stunningly beautiful, and she’ll knock on your door at midnight. You won’t be able to resist letting her in, and then she’ll feast on your body, sucking away your life force while doing this and that…”
Si Nuocheng suddenly asks, “Which movie?”
Yu Mingyang blurts out, “The Return of the Scholar with the Hotel Ghost… Uh!”
Silence falls. The suite feels unnervingly quiet.
At that moment, a knock sounds on the door. Si Nuocheng looks up, and Yu Mingyang holds his breath. Both glance at the clock—it’s precisely midnight.
Si Nuocheng: “Who is it?”
Outside: “It’s me, Ji Si.”
Si Nuocheng: …
The room, though luxurious, feels emptier than before. Ji Si’s voice, slightly distorted through the door, only adds to the eerie atmosphere. Yu Mingyang, hearing it over the video call, is absolutely thrilled.
“What does ‘It’s me, Ji Si’ mean?” Yu Mingyang’s excitement is uncontainable. “No ‘May I come in?’ Just casually telling you to open the door—implying a certain level of familiarity? And at this hour? Scandalous!”
“Boss! Let me see Ji Si for just a second! Please!” Yu Mingyang’s curiosity knows no bounds. “Just one peek, I swear I won’t tell anyone!”
“Go watch a movie,” Si Nuocheng snaps, cutting off the video call and shutting off his phone, effectively blocking any further interference.
Peering through the peephole and confirming it’s indeed Ji Si, he casually opens the door. “What’s up?”
But what he sees makes him pause. Ji Si stands there, hair flowing, face handsome, dressed in a robe that touches the ground. He’s holding a string tied to a toothbrush and calmly declares, “I came to share a bath with you.”
“I came to share a bath with you.”
“To share a bath.”
Sharing… a bath.
An infinite loop.
Si Nuocheng: …
At this hour, with that face and those words, aside from the gender difference, it all fits a rather strange script. Remembering their prior silent confrontations, Si Nuocheng feels that refusing to share a bath would somehow seem cowardly.
As for Ji Si’s obsession with sharing a bath, Si Nuocheng can understand that too.
If someone ever doubted his manhood simply because of how he looked, he might very well challenge them to a bath too, just to make a point. Smashing heads in fights wouldn’t be out of the question either.
So, a bath it is. What’s there to fear? After all, they’re both men.
Si Nuocheng unties his bathrobe confidently, revealing well-defined muscles. “What are you doing with a toothbrush tied to a string?” he asks.
Ji Si’s gaze remains fixed on the bathtub as he replies, “It’s a pendulum.”
Si Nuocheng: …
He silently reties his bathrobe, his tone now cautious. “What’s a pendulum?”
“It’s a tool, like a simplified dragon-seeking compass,” Ji Si replies, his toothbrush beginning to rotate slightly, pointing toward the bathtub as if guided by invisible forces. “Pendulums are used for divination, purification, or detecting unusual magnetic fields.”
Si Nuocheng watches in stunned silence.
Seeing Si Nuocheng’s reaction, Ji Si continues with a sense of reassurance. “People often use metal or crystal for pendulums, thinking materials buried underground for thousands of years are better for spirit communication. But the material doesn’t matter as much as the person using it.”
“After a spiritual awakening, anything can serve as a pendulum.”
Listening to Ji Si’s mystical explanation, Si Nuocheng massages his temples, trying to absorb the absurdity. “Alright, what movie did you watch? Or what book did you read?”
Ji Si turns his head. “Hm?”
Si Nuocheng: …
That “Hm” was too spiritual, a big red flag. No books, no movies—was he out of his mind?
Taking a deep breath, Si Nuocheng retightens his bathrobe, his hands slightly trembling. “You came here in the middle of the night with a pendulum just to share a bath?”
Ji Si nods. “But first, the magnetic field needs to be cleansed. I didn’t need the pendulum, but since you’ve helped me so much, I thought I’d let you witness something.”
“Witness what?”
“There’s unseen filth in this room.”
Si Nuocheng: …
Ji Si bends down, dipping the pendulum into the water. As invisible energy ripples outward, concentric circles form on the surface.
“This place once saw someone fall from a great height,” Ji Si explains. “The unwillingness to die, combined with the terror of death, trapped the spirit here. It lingers, longing for an exit, leading to guests’ experiences of seeing ghosts.”
At the bottom of the bathtub, a pale shadow begins to form, slowly converging toward the pendulum.
“If you suddenly feel cold, shivers, or unease, don’t ignore it. Your body is warning you,” Ji Si’s voice deepens, full of gravity. “Now… don’t speak. I’m sending it away.”
As the last of the shadow enters the pendulum, the negative energy in the room dissipates. The dim lights brighten, the air becomes fresh with a hint of cedar, and even the temperature rises.
Ji Si gathers the pendulum and softly murmurs, “Go swiftly, return to the cycle. The connection to life ends, the karma follows.”
It’s hazy and unclear, like something has left, yet nothing has changed. Si Nuocheng only knows that the room feels different, lighter. The lights now cast a soft glow on Ji Si’s white robe as he gazes compassionately at the pendulum.
After a moment of silence, Si Nuocheng flatly asks, “Why do you need to say something when sending it away?”
Ji Si smiles. “Words follow the law.”
Before he can elaborate, he notices Si Nuocheng sitting fully dressed in his bathrobe, scrutinizing him, phone in hand, the screen paused on the emergency call number for 120.
Ji Si: …
Si Nuocheng calmly explains, “I only turned on one light, so the room wasn’t bright. The low temperature is from evaporation, and the poor air quality is just from the urban environment.”
“Didn’t you notice the room has brightened, the temperature has risen, and the scent is stronger?”
Si Nuocheng, unfazed, “White robes reflect light, naturally brightening the room. I turned on the heating, so of course, it’s warmer. And I just took a bath—don’t I smell nice?”
Ji Si: …
For some reason, the logical explanation made sense, and Ji Si found himself at a loss for words.
He takes a deep breath. “Do you know what ‘words follow the law’ means?”
“I know, and I can do it too,” Si Nuocheng boldly claims. Then, looking up at the ceiling, he commands, “1704, turn on the light! Drain the water! Turn off the air conditioning!”
“Yes, sir,” a sweet electronic voice responds, activating the suite’s high-tech system. The room lights up brilliantly, the bathtub drains automatically, and the air conditioning hums as it enters sleep mode.
Quick, convenient, and efficient—everything controlled by voice.
Amid Ji Si’s indescribable expression, Si Nuocheng crosses his hands over his stomach, one leg crossed over the other. “See? That’s what ‘words follow the law’ means.”
Ji Si: …
“What can be seen and touched is real,” Si Nuocheng declares. “Now, tell me—what did you really come here for, aside from sharing a bath?”
“To tell you… a bedtime story.”
Si Nuocheng: …
Author’s Note:
Si Nuocheng: Think you can fool me? Haha, I went to college. You can lust after my body, but fooling my brain? Not a chance.
Ji Si: …
Yu Mingyang: And you wonder why you’re still single…
1 thought on “Chapter 9 – The Ninth Ray of Light”
ooooooooof, if there’s ever gonna be a romance here…..I don’t think my imagination is enough for that. Great chemistry between them though! Feels like a very light enemies to lovers? mhhhhh