Chapter 37: In Fact, the Kitchen Knife Can Be Stored in the Boundary Stone Space

Duan Ming pressed his hands firmly against his chest, his face deathly pale.

"That was terrifying. We were almost discovered."

"No, we must have already been discovered."

Shang Xiaoya and Meng Qian: "!!!"

Duan Ming knit his brows tightly, staring blankly at the ghost cloth in his hand. "I originally thought this ghost cloth would be like the Invisibility Cloak in Harry Potter, capable of completely isolating our presence. But unfortunately, it isn't."

As he spoke, he suddenly unfurled the ghost cloth and draped it over the stunned Meng Qian. Indeed, in an instant, all traces of his existence vanished; his heartbeat and breathing were completely inaudible.

Yet, his physical form remained.

A person covered by a piece of rag.

Looking like an utter fool.

With his hypothesis confirmed, a wave of irritation washed over Duan Ming, while panic gripped Meng Qian. He hurriedly tore the ghost cloth off.

"W-what do you mean? We’ve already been discovered? Then why didn't she kill us?"

Duan Ming replied, "The ghost cloth can only mask our aura. It seems the Head Nurse views this room as a place of remembrance; she must be intimately familiar with the layout. How could she not notice a sudden lump appearing in the room? As for why she didn't strike... I don't know yet. But at least we are safe for now."

Meng Qian: "R-really?"

"Yes. The Head Nurse is only at the Fierce Ghost level and cannot kill at will. If our intrusion into this office had triggered her death rule, that moment would have been her best opportunity. In her eyes, she only knows that a few little mice snuck into this office, but she certainly doesn't know it's the three of us hiding under the ghost cloth. It won't be that easy for her to find us later."

Hearing this, Meng Qian and Shang Xiaoya let out long sighs of relief.

"Alright, this place is not meant for lingering. Let's get out first."

Duan Ming walked to the door first, listened for any movement outside, and cracked the door open. Seeing the corridor was empty, he quickly led the other two out, acting as natural as possible until they reached the far end of the hallway, where they finally felt the joy of having survived.

At the stairwell, Duan Ming turned back with a serious expression. "Don't speak of this to anyone. Just go about your business as usual and act as if nothing happened."

Meng Qian nodded repeatedly.

Just as Duan Ming was about to head upstairs, Shang Xiaoya suddenly called out to him.

"Duan... Duan Ming, thank you." Her face was flushed red.

Duan Ming recalled the intimacy of the moment and, avoiding her gaze, scratched his head. "Hahaha, I was saving myself at the time too, don't give it a second thought."

"Mm. But I still want to thank you. By the way, you might not know this, but ghost items like your kitchen knife can be stored in the Boundary Stone space; you don't have to carry them on you. Plus, keeping it hanging at your waist is so dangerous."

Duan Ming: "???"

...

Finding a spare moment, Duan Ming returned to the cafeteria. With the help of Chen Yongren’s treasure-hunting attribute, he actually found a special item in the kitchen.

[Specially Crafted Ghost Realm Indian God Oil (Consumable)]
[Uses: 10/10]
[Description: Apply this to an object to make its properties become rock-hard, while simultaneously triggering the object's corresponding defense or attack attributes. Duration: one hour.]

Duan Ming: "(-_-)"

Don't be angry, don't be angry. Regardless, it counts as a reward for a hidden mission; it must have a great use, it must have a great use, it must have a great use.

Comforting himself with these thoughts, he returned to the fourth floor of the inpatient department.

"The bully brother is back!!!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In an instant, the previously noisy corridor cleared out, and doors were slammed shut. Han Lingling heard the commotion and poked her head out to meet him.

"Took you so long?"

"Yeah, I found the fourth clue, it took a while."

Han Lingling: "???"

"Are you actually some child of destiny?"

"It's skill!!! Forget it, I won't argue with you. Are you going to take it or not?"

"I want it!"

Duan Ming chuckled. "Then call me brother."

Han Lingling immediately gave him a rap on the head. "Are you dreaming? I'm older than you!"

"So what? I've called you sister for so many years; it's not asking too much for you to call me brother, right? In the Ghost Realm, I'm more capable than you!" Duan Ming clutched his head and roared tearfully.

"That's just luck."

"Do you want it or not!"

"I want it!"

"Then call me brother."

"I'm older than you."

"I'm stronger than you."

"That's just luck."

"Do you want it or not!"

"I want it!"

...

The bully siblings went down to the second floor in a repeating cycle. The brother kept watch at the door while the sister took a few seconds to trigger the fourth clue and returned safely. The two returned to the fourth floor, expertly chased away the other teammates in the nurse's lounge, and locked the door.

Duan Ming: "What do you think, Sister Lingling?"

Han Lingling: "It all depends on tonight. Only the last clue remains. I explored the first floor briefly when delivering meals and found nothing suspicious; it's almost certain to be on the fifth floor."

"Yes, I think so too." Duan Ming nodded. "But there's one more thing... the Head Nurse is only at the Fierce Ghost level."

Han Lingling frowned slightly. "That's impossible, right? It's not like there aren't other Fierce Ghost-level spirits in this department. Even if she were at the peak of the Fierce Ghost level, she could never suppress the entire department on her own. I've always assumed she was at the Evil Spirit level."

"Also, when I was feeding Qin Wei medicine earlier, I secretly held the Evil Spirit Tarot in my hand. I observed her, and the Head Nurse didn't react at all."

"But the Head Nurse is indeed just a Fierce Ghost, with 99,999 Ghost Qi."

"Are you sure?"

"Sure. I have a method to detect Ghost Qi."

"Then what's there to be afraid of?" Han Lingling beamed, pulling out the Evil Spirit Tarot. "I have this. It's worth it to use it to complete a hidden mission!"

Duan Ming sighed. "Perhaps you won't even get to use it."

"Why..."

Halfway through her sentence, Han Lingling seemed to realize something. Her eyes widened, and she gave a bitter smile.

She flipped through the cards in her hand continuously. "I got ahead of myself. The Evil Spirit Tarot gives me too much confidence; I always feel like I can be invincible with it."

"You're right. It is a fact that the Head Nurse suppresses the entire department on her own. Either she has a way to boost her strength, or she uses other means to control so many ghost patients. Since we want to overturn the entire status quo of Qingshan Hospital, we should figure out her methods before making a decision."

"Mm, so we'll see tonight. Perhaps the truth revealed in the end will give us the answer."

Duan Ming then changed the subject. "Oh, by the way, you mentioned Qin Wei. Do you think someone like him, who came in from the outside for treatment, would also be bound by the rules of the inpatient department?"

This answer was very important to him. As a Fierce Ghost-level entity, Qin Wei was already capable of crying out. Once his illness was cured, he would definitely be an extremely powerful henchman. If he were trapped by the inpatient department, wouldn't that be a waste of such a strong asset?

Han Lingling: "I don't know. I've only been here for two days, and no one has been discharged in these two days anyway."

Fine, it seems he will have to wait for "night" to test it out.