Peerless Bodyguard of a Stunning Beauty

The Black Ghost looked at Zhao Rong and said, ”Hero, this secret of mine might sound a bit fantastical, but you have to believe me…”

Zhao Rong looked at the Black Ghost before him. He was short, with an ugly face and sparse hair. ”If you have something to say, spit it out.”

Upon hearing this, the Black Ghost thought for a moment. ”Well, this secret is actually a story, and it all started ten years ago…”

Hearing the Black Ghost drone on, the assistant couldn’t stand it and flew forward with a kick. ”Damn it! Just tell us the secret! We’re in a hurry! You have one minute!”

The Black Ghost, who had been knocked to the ground, climbed back up, rubbing his arm. He said plaintively, ”Fine, if you don’t want to hear the whole story from beginning to end, then I’ll just give you the short version…”

As the Black Ghost continued to ramble without getting to the point, Wang Meili finally lost her patience. With a swift axe kick, she knocked the newly-risen Black Ghost back to the ground. ”Wasting other people’s time is tantamount to robbery and murder! Cut the crap and talk!”

The Black Ghost, floored by Wang Meili’s kick, staggered to his feet again with a troubled expression. ”Alright, alright! Since you’re in such a hurry, I’ll be brief… Actually, this secret is about a story of mine…”

At that moment, Zhao Rong, the assistant, and Wang Meili felt as if they had run into a perpetually preaching monk. They could bear it no longer. Without another word, the three of them rushed forward and gave the Black Ghost a sound beating.

Suddenly, the Black Ghost leaped to his feet and yelled, ”Stop! I’ll talk!

”I, the Black Ghost, was once the principal of Xi Jing University. But one day, a toad demon appeared, possessed my body, and replaced me as the school’s principal.

”And I was cursed, becoming the Black Ghost, forced to hide in the abandoned library of the science building…”

Hearing this, the three of them stared blankly for a moment, then burst into laughter.

Zhao Rong looked at the Black Ghost in disbelief. ”The only ones who would believe a story like that are other ghosts.”

The assistant added impatiently, ”If we believed you, we’d have to be complete idiots.”

Wang Meili was even more direct. ”The principal of Xi Jing University once derived Einstein’s energy equation and proved Goldbach’s Conjecture. Can you do that?”

In response, the Black Ghost immediately dragged a blackboard over, picked up a piece of chalk, and began to write. As he worked through the equations on the board, he narrated the history of Xi Jing University, his own story, and the various suspicious things about the current principal.

A short while later, when the Black Ghost in front of them had successfully derived Einstein’s energy equation and proved Goldbach’s Conjecture, the three of them were utterly dumbfounded. Especially Wang Meili, who recognized the complexity of the work; seeing how brilliant the Black Ghost was, she immediately believed him. ”In this world, the only people who could derive Einstein’s equation and prove Goldbach’s Conjecture are Einstein himself, Goldbach, and Wang Xiaolong, the principal of Xi Jing University…”

The assistant gaped at the incredibly complex equations on the blackboard. ”Black Ghost, it seems your story and your secret are actually true…”

Zhao Rong frowned, looking at the dazed Black Ghost. ”Even if your secret is true, what good does telling us do?”

The Black Ghost tossed the chalk stub aside, looked up at the ceiling, and declared with passionate fervor, ”Of course it’s useful! If you promise to help me return to my body and become principal of Xi Jing University again, then I will help you find the Mermaid! I will also appoint you as vice-principal, the assistant as dean of students, and Wang Meili as a faculty dean! Furthermore, I will give the three of you 80% of the shares in Xi Jing University!”

Hearing that he could become dean of students and get shares in the school, the assistant immediately nodded and promised the Black Ghost, ”No problem! We’ll definitely help you drive out that toad demon and get you back into your own body. But you have to keep your word! Make me dean of students and give us the school’s shares!”

Zhao Rong said, ”As long as you help us find the Mermaid and get the antidote to the poison, we will help you achieve your dream.”

And Wang Meili said, ”Black Ghost, you are the principal of the prestigious Xi Jing University. It is our responsibility and our duty to help you return to your position.”

Hearing that all three had agreed to his request, the Black Ghost burst into gleeful laughter. ”A gentleman’s word is his bond! Now, I will take you to find the Mermaid in the sewers…”

With that, the Black Ghost led the three of them toward a corner of the library. When they reached the easternmost corner, the Black Ghost pulled three pickaxes and a shovel from a nearby cabinet. ”Alright, let’s dig through the wall here.”

Hearing this, the assistant looked at the pickaxe the Black Ghost handed him. ”Black Ghost, what are you playing at? Are you telling us to literally undermine Xi Jing University?”

Wang Meili looked at the shovel in her hands, completely bewildered. ”You said you’d take us to a secret chamber to find the Mermaid. Why are you making us dig through a wall?”

The Black Ghost, already swinging his pickaxe and digging furiously at the corner, said between swings, ”Dig down from this corner, and we’ll reach the secret chamber of Xi Jing University!”

Standing nearby, Zhao Rong also picked up a pickaxe and started digging. ”He used to be the principal here. We should trust him.”

Hearing this, the four of them began digging at the corner together. Before long, they had broken through the library’s eastern corner wall. Sure enough, once the wall was breached, an illuminated manhole was revealed.

When Zhao Rong saw light coming from the manhole, he immediately asked the Black Ghost, ”The secret chamber is down there?”

The Black Ghost nodded, preparing to descend. ”Of course. Why else would there be light?”

Wang Meili stood beside them, musing thoughtfully, ”Whether it’s in TV shows, novels, or cartoons, any secret chamber is bound to have torches that never go out. Since there’s light, this must be the place. Let’s go down.”

Zhao Rong agreed with her. He said to the Black Ghost, ”You go first. The three of us will follow you.”

Upon hearing this, the Black Ghost immediately jumped down.

Seeing him go, Zhao Rong prepared to be the second one down, but the assistant excitedly pushed him aside. ”Big Bro Zhao Rong, since it’s a secret chamber, there must be all sorts of cool things inside! Let me go down first and see how amazing it is!”

After speaking, the assistant chuckled to himself. Since it’s a secret chamber, there must be a lot of gold and treasure. If Zhao Rong goes first, he’ll get the best stuff! No way! I, the assistant, must go down first, grab the most valuable loot, get rich, and bring honor to my ancestors…

With a sudden movement, the assistant leaped into the manhole.

As he jumped, the Black Ghost, who was carefully climbing down the ladder inside, called out in surprise, ”Dude, this manhole is over twenty meters above the chamber floor! There’s a ladder right here. Why would you jump? Aren’t you afraid of breaking your ass?”

When the assistant realized there was a ladder next to him and that he had chosen to freefall, he was instantly filled with regret. But it was too late. He crashed heavily onto the granite floor of the secret chamber, landing sprawled on his back and bleeding from every orifice.

By the faint light coming from the manhole, Zhao Rong was shocked to see the assistant plummet. He quickly warned Wang Meili, who was behind him, ”Meili, there’s a ladder next to the manhole. Let’s climb down carefully. Don’t be like the assistant and just jump; you could get yourself killed.”

With that, Zhao Rong and Wang Meili gripped the ladder firmly, found their footing, and slowly made their way down into the secret chamber.

Once the Black Ghost, Zhao Rong, and Wang Meili were inside, they rushed over to the assistant lying on the floor.

Looking at the assistant, who was bleeding profusely and no longer breathing, the Black Ghost said in shock, ”Whoa, don’t tell me this guy actually died from the fall.”

Wang Meili took a fearful step back. ”Assistant… that’s such a horrible way to die.”

Just as the Black Ghost and Wang Meili were convinced the assistant was dead, Zhao Rong pulled a bottle of water from his bag and splashed it onto the assistant’s face. Jarred awake by the icy water, the assistant shot up into a sitting position. He shook the water from his face and hair, looked around, and demanded, ”If this is a secret chamber, where’s the treasure?”

Seeing a man they thought was dead suddenly come back to life, the Black Ghost was so scared he plopped onto the floor. ”This is the school’s secret chamber, not a palace’s! Why would there be treasure? At most, you’ll find a pile of dissected human bodies from the biology lab, some spare cadavers, and the carcasses of various animals.”

Hearing that the school’s secret chamber only contained corpses for dissection and no treasure, the assistant burst into angry tears. ”Damn it! If I had known there was no treasure in here, I wouldn’t have been in such a rush to get down! I nearly died from that fall!”

When Wang Meili saw the assistant was once again playing dead, she gritted her teeth in anger. ”Assistant, why can’t you ever change your greedy ways? We came here for an adventure, to take risks and find an antidote to save people! How can you still be lying on the floor pretending to be dead for your own selfish gain?”

Hearing this, the assistant tried to talk his way out of it, his mind racing. ”How can you all misunderstand me? I wasn’t pretending to be dead… I was scared to death!”

Before the assistant could even finish his sentence, Zhao Rong, Wang Meili, and the Black Ghost, who were standing opposite him, suddenly took three steps back in sheer terror, as if they had seen some horrific, unknown creature looming behind him.

When the assistant saw that his own words had actually frightened them, he snickered inwardly. Is it really that scary? It was just a little joke. What a bunch of cowards…

But before he could finish the thought, he suddenly felt a pair of cold, dead hands rest upon his shoulders…