Chapter 28: Sickness, Secrets, and Spilled Milk

Shi Mo hadn't felt right since morning.

Her stomach churned. Her head ached. The usual dull whisper of her Gu parasite had turned into a low, constant hum beneath her skin.

She blamed the cafeteria's questionable tofu.

Zhou Zhi blamed stress.

Fu Yunshen, ever observant, didn't say anything—but he kept watching her like he already knew something was wrong.

By mid-afternoon, Shi Mo couldn't keep up the act.

She slumped onto her desk, arms folded, face buried in the crook of her elbow.

"I think I'm dying," she groaned.

Zhou Zhi leaned over. "From what? Heartbreak? Ghost trauma? Math?"

"Food poisoning," she mumbled.

Fu Yunshen raised an eyebrow from across the room. "You look pale."

Shi Mo waved a weak hand. "I'm fine."

"You're sweating."

"Intentionally. It's a detox."

Zhou Zhi blinked. "Like, ghost detox?"

Shi Mo didn't respond.

Because just then, her stomach growled audibly… then twisted.

She bolted from her chair.

Ten minutes later, Shi Mo was curled up on her dorm bed, wrapped in two blankets, face buried in her pillow.

She had vomited. Twice.

And in the middle of the chaos, she had also—very unfortunately—spilled a carton of milk… on herself.

Fu Yunshen stood in the doorway, holding a hot water bottle in one hand and a bottle of electrolyte water in the other.

"You look like roadkill," he said calmly.

"Thanks," Shi Mo croaked. "You're too kind."

He walked in and placed the hot water bottle on her stomach. She groaned in appreciation.

Zhou Zhi peeked in. "So… do I call an ambulance or an exorcist?"

Fu Yunshen turned. "You call the delivery place and ask if they served expired tofu."

Zhou Zhi nodded solemnly and disappeared.

For a while, Fu Yunshen sat quietly at the edge of her bed.

Shi Mo, too weak to care about appearances, let her voice slip.

"I'm not good at being sick," she whispered.

"You're doing an excellent impression of someone dying."

She managed a laugh.

"Do you want anything?" he asked.

"A new body."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Or sleep. That works too."

As night fell, Shi Mo finally dozed off. But in her half-dreaming state, she murmured something under her breath.

Fu Yunshen leaned in slightly.

"…Don't tell them," she whispered. "They can't know…"

He stiffened.

"Who can't know what?" he asked gently.

But she was already asleep.

The system pinged quietly in her subconscious:

[Host status: Mild physical distress. Emotional defense weakened.][Passive Bond Acceleration: +40 Brotherhood Points][Fu Yunshen – Vulnerability Milestone Recognized][Current Total: 810 / 1,000,000]

When Shi Mo awoke the next morning, her head was clearer, though her body still ached.

Her eyes fluttered open—and she saw Fu Yunshen, fast asleep in the chair beside her bed, head resting on folded arms.

A blanket had been thrown over him.

One of hers.

She blinked in surprise.

Zhou Zhi tiptoed in with a bowl of porridge and whispered, "He stayed all night."

Shi Mo's lips parted in quiet disbelief.

This boy, so often unreadable and distant… had stayed.

Not because of duty.

But something else.

Something quieter.

And far more dangerous.