“What the - what’s happening?!” Tae Kuo tried to pull on the door, and found that it was locked tight, and an invisible force was stopping him from opening.

  “It’s a diversion, DIVERSION!” Gloria rushed over to the door and started pulling it along with Tae Kuo.

  “Fug sneaky fucker.” Gyuu Park took out a small folded talisman from his pocket: “Let me try this - ”

  Befyuu Park could finish, a sudden child’s cry drew their attention. When they looked at the dire from which it came, they did not see a child at all. Instead, they saw a rge rat, with bllowing eyes and a scaly long tail, standing in the shadows of the vents.

  All three of them almost cursed at the same time: “What the - ”

  The mouse opes mouth a out another child-like cry. This time it was higher-pitched, came with a little bit of echo and somehow murgling. Gloria immediately threw the empty bottle that used to tain blessed water at it. After a loud crash and a pained screech, the mouse was sent flying with its bad front legs broken.

  “Alright - that’s - let’s leave that to the custodians.” Gyuu Park grunted, still pulling the door.

  Chitterlings and scratches drew the attention of all three of them once again. They turned around, and found that there were more tha, but a whole horde of them ing from shadowy ers of this ptform. Bloodshot glowing eyes fixed at them.

  —--------

  Oher side, shortly after Sue and Luoshan Zi closed and barred the door, they heard a young woman’s void some knog at the door: “Hey! Let me in! I need help!”

  “Wait - who - who is this?” Sue asked through the dloria? Is that you?”

  “Yes! Please let me in! She’s - she’s hurt me! I’m bleeding! Please let me in!” The voice outside became more desperate and hoarse: “Please! Open the door!”

  “What is today’s special?” Luoshan Zi pulled Sue to the side and asked.

  “What - oh!” Sue was about to ask before she gasped and covered her mouth.

  “What!? Help me! Please! Help me! I’m injured! I’m bleeding! Please!” The voice became even more hysterical. The frame of the door shook when she ba: “Open up! Open up!”

  “Go away! You’re not Gloria!” Sue screamed.

  “Open up!” The person outside screamed once more.

  “Go away! Leave!” Briah held her wife and son in his arms, and yelled.

  The voice disappeared.

  Sue and the Teiths let out an exhale of relief. Luoshan Zi rushed over to the side of the door and pulled out the bowl of inse ash from one of the bags. She then ruffled through them and found the butter and rd they bought.

  “Here! Here!” Luoshan Zi raised the ash and the blobs of half-solid animal oil: “e here! Everyone!”

  “Okay, what?” Brian asked.

  “Wok-bottom ash.” Luoshan Zi sat down on the floor as she ripped open the packages for the butter and rd and put it into the ash, mixing two ingredients together “This is a very - and I mean very old trick. By putting the ash you gather from the bottom of a wok on your forehead and shoulders. Oh - I fot this - your wrists and the soles of your feet as well, so, socks off, NOW!”

  “But - what?” Samatha still seemed fused.

  “NOW!” Luoshan Zi raised her voice, and turo Sue: “Sue, you too. You’re a civilian.”

  “On it.” Sue nodded, and took off her socks.

  “Listen to her, mom, dad.” Kevin raised her hand: “I - I read somewhere about the wok-bottom ashes as well. But - isn’t this inse ash?”

  “Inse ash, presumably from the bottom of the burner, from how fi is. By rubbing it oain parts of your body, it mask you in the eyes eneral senses of paranormal entities.” Luoshan Zi nodded as she rubbed some oily ash on Sue’s forehead: “And when the wok-bottom ash couldn’t be found, a known substitute is this - inse ash with some grease.”

  “Does it work?” Brian asked.

  “It should.” Luoshan Zi picked up another small blob of greased ash onto Sue’s left shoulder: “Better putting it on and not knowing, than rying.”

  “But - we still don’t know if - ” Samantha sniffled.

  “Just do it.” Luoshan Zi turo the Teiths after handing a blob of ash to Sue to let her apply it herself. The Teiths hesitated for a brief moment, but after a quick exge in looks, they decided to trust Luoshan Zi, a Kevi first.

  “Tick - tick - tick - ” Some sudden sound of water dripping ihroom almost got everyone in the department to jump up from where they were sitting.

  “Here. Hold these.” Luoshan Zi immediately pulled the bags with blessed water and rice over and whispered to the Teiths and Sue: “I’ll go check. If there’s anything, I will buy you some time. Try to run out the door.”

  “O - okay.” Brian and Samantha nodded, shivering.

  “Be careful.” Kevin sniffled.

  Luoshan Zi smiled, nodded and headed towards the bathroom, croug and with lightened footsteps.

  The water kept dripping, and seemingly with faster and faster pace. And after a while, she could evehe water spshing onto the ground. The water pipe seemed to be making a strange humming and buzzing sound as well.

  Step by step, Luoshan Zi reached the door to the bathroom. And with a handful of blessed rifused with her Qi, and otle of blessed water, she was ready to throw a sudden attack at whatever that invaded her bathroom.

  When she peeked through the bathroom door, there was nobody inside. Instead, it was only that her faucet was leaking and her sink was clogged for some reason, causing the water to overflow onto the ground.

  Just this moment, a few grains of rice hit Luoshan Zi’s shoulder. She looked back, just in time to see a shadowy figure climbing over the railings on the baly, and the civilians crawling toward her in panic.