Translator: CinderTL
"The school teachers called us in repeatedly about this. At first, we all refused to disband the club, arguing that it was our right and wasn't harming anyone."
"But then, one of the teachers approached me privately." Yuan Xiaoyi's voice dropped to a whisper, as if she had something difficult to confess.
"She told me I was different from the other five girls. My family is from the countryside, and I'm only able to attend this school because they waived my tuition and provided me with a scholarship."
"The teacher warned me that the school administrators were displeased with the club. She urged me to be grateful to the school."
"She also said that if the Urban Legends Club continued to exist, I would lose my eligibility for this year's scholarship."
"But I... I never imagined anything would happen to them!" Yuan Xiaoyi's voice cracked with emotion, her shoulders trembling. "My plan was to have them investigate the rumored sites of the urban legends themselves. If they found nothing, the rumors would crumble on their own."
"After all, those are just legends, unsubstantiated rumors. I enjoy urban legends, but I know they're not real!"
"If they'd just admit that the supernatural events on campus are fake, the Urban Legends Club would lose its purpose."
Yuan Xiaoyi didn't need to say the rest aloud. Everyone understood: dissolving the club would secure her access to the school's resources, allowing her to continue her studies undisturbed.
But the opposite happened. Those who went searching for urban legends vanished without a trace, erased from the world.
Perhaps Yuan Xiaoyi never imagined that supernatural events were real, that incomprehensible entities lurked in the shadows of this world.
And her five missing friends had encountered these very things.
In other words, the stories they had told might all be true.
Jiang Cheng's fingers tightened slightly as he considered this, a flicker of realization in his eyes. He suddenly understood that the stories A Zhe, the Red-Clad Woman, and the others had recently shared weren't just tales—they were their personal experiences.
Could there be a connection between these events?
After a moment of contemplation, Jiang Cheng reassured her, "This isn't your fault. Don't blame yourself too much. You're just an ordinary student. If I were in your shoes, I would have made the same choice. After all, no one could have foreseen how things would turn out."
Hearing Jiang Cheng's words, a faint glimmer appeared in Yuan Xiaoyi's dim eyes. "Really? You don't think I'm the one who put them in danger?"
"What's done is done," Jiang Cheng thought, "dwelling on the causes now is pointless. As for whether you're to blame... deep down, don't you already know the answer?"
Though his thoughts were blunt, his outward demeanor was completely different. Jiang Cheng leaned down, gently stroked Yuan Xiaoyi's hair, and looked at her with unwavering sincerity. "Of course not," he said softly. "You're a good girl. Don't carry this burden alone. Please... let me share it with you."
The warmth in Jiang Cheng's eyes seemed to dispel the lingering darkness in Yuan Xiaoyi's heart. She stared at him for a long moment before finally snapping out of her daze. "Thank you," she whispered. "With your help, we'll find them and prove they exist!"
Affectionately ruffling her hair, Jiang Cheng urged her to continue. "Tell me everything," he insisted, "in as much detail as possible. It's crucial."
"Oh, right," Jiang Cheng said, "since you've formed a club, you must have a place for your members to gather, right?"
Yuan Xiaoyi nodded eagerly. "Yes, yes! It's in the university's student activity center."
Huai Yi sensed something amiss. "You dare to hold your club activities in the activity center?" he asked skeptically.
Earlier, Yuan Xiaoyi had claimed the school didn't support them. Now she said their meeting place was in the activity center. Wasn't that a contradiction?
Noticing their confusion, Yuan Xiaoyi looked apologetic and quickly explained, "It's not what you think. While our meetings are technically held within the activity center, it's not in a designated classroom. We use an inconspicuous, abandoned warehouse there."
"Hardly anyone goes there, and we only meet on Friday nights."
"An abandoned warehouse..." It didn't sound like a promising location, but for the sake of their mission, the group agreed to check it out.
The middle-aged man then asked, "Can you take us there now?"
What seemed like a simple request made Yuan Xiaoyi hesitate. She lowered her voice, looking worried. "If I went, I'd be recognized immediately."
It was then that everyone realized things were different now. Yuan Xiaoyi was well-known at school, and the teachers would likely notice her the moment she entered the activity center.
Jiang Cheng and the others had only recently arrived in this world and wanted to avoid conflict with the school staff.
"Then draw us a map instead," Jiang Cheng suggested as a compromise. "Just mark the warehouse's location."
Yuan Xiaoyi agreed without hesitation. She unzipped her backpack, pulled out a notebook, and sketched a route. After tearing out the page, she handed it to Jiang Cheng. "There's something I need to warn you about. I went there after they disappeared, but the place had completely changed."
A look of confusion clouded her eyes. "For some reason, everything inside had been replaced. All traces of its former existence were gone. Now it's used as the gym teacher's nap room."
"If it truly existed, it must have left some trace behind," Shen Mengyun asserted, echoing Jiang Cheng's belief.
"Tell us everything you remember about the warehouse, especially anything related to the Urban Legends Club," Jiang Cheng said to Yuan Xiaoyi.
Yuan Xiaoyi began to recall the details. Worried they might not remember everything, she grabbed a notebook and started sketching the layout as she spoke. Through her explanation, the group gained a basic understanding of the warehouse's arrangement.
After securing the sketch, they prepared to leave. Being seen with Yuan Xiaoyi could attract unwanted attention, especially considering Jiang Cheng's true identity as a transfer student, not the influential Director Jiang who could command the elements.
But just as they were about to leave, Yuan Xiaoyi, who had seemed hesitant earlier, called them back. She stammered, "I'm afraid that if you go to the warehouse and find no traces, you won't believe me. I... I have one more crucial piece of evidence to prove everything I've said is true."
Yuan Xiaoyi opened her mouth as if she were about to say something, but then hesitated. She pulled out her phone from her pocket, tapped the screen a few times, and the bright display suddenly went dark.
Jiang Cheng and his group leaned closer and saw a photograph.
The background was pitch black, indicating it had been taken at night.
(End of the Chapter)
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