INSIDER Chapter 98

Under the dim light, the ten-plus people present all held their breath, adhering to the atmosphere.

Silent, eerie.

The pencil, pushed lightly by four people, drew circles on the white paper, making a faint but piercing sound.

The four of them had their eyes closed, muttering a chant continuously—

“Pencil spirit, pencil spirit
You are my past life
I am your present life
If our fate continues
Please come to meet…”

Time passed by slowly.

Lu Chu stared intently at the pencil held by the four, sorting through the information about the pencil spirit in his mind.

He had never played any spirit-summoning games and only had a limited understanding of such things from hearsay.

In Lu Chu’s impression, these spirit-summoning games had many taboos and restrictions during play.

The three most well-known taboos were:

First, the person inviting the pencil spirit can ask the spirit to predict things that will happen around them or ask about the spirit’s knowledge of them, but must never ask about the spirit’s private matters—such as the spirit’s name or past life. The most taboo question is about the spirit’s cause of death. Second, one must invite the pencil spirit with at least a skeptical reverence towards ghosts and gods, and must send the spirit away properly at the end. Third, when the pencil starts to move on its own, one must feel grateful and reverent, and only release the pencil after the spirit has completely left.

If any of these taboos are violated, the pencil spirit might turn into a malicious ghost that stays by your side indefinitely, leading to unpredictable consequences.

There were countless rumors of accidents caused by playing the pencil spirit game.

The eerie atmosphere was intense on-site, and with the synchronized chanting of the four, it was hard to tell if it was the effect of alcohol or some other illusion, but everyone felt as if time had momentarily frozen.

In the closed space, the quiet was such that even a pin drop could be heard.

The air grew thick, and someone’s breathing became suddenly rapid.

Suddenly, the four people playing the game clearly felt that the pencil, which they had been controlling to draw circles, started to resist as if it had its own will. They immediately opened their eyes, looked at each other, and saw surprise and excitement in each other’s widened eyes.

The onlookers also realized—this meant they had summoned the pencil spirit.

Du Yangnan’s eyes lit up, signaling the four to start asking questions quickly.

Gao Yong swallowed and, after some hesitation, asked politely in a hoarse voice, “Excuse me, are you the pencil spirit? If so, please draw a circle.”

The pencil moved, lightly scraping the paper, and drew a perfect circle as if made by a compass.

A girl let out a small, frightened shriek.

Next, it was Chen Hong’s turn to ask a question.

Chen Hong thought for a moment and asked, “Will I fail any subjects this semester?”

With a few soft scratching sounds, the word “Yes” appeared on the paper.

Chen Hong choked.

Everyone laughed, and the eerie, scary atmosphere dissipated a bit.

Wu Xuan quickly asked, “Pencil spirit, pencil spirit, when will I find a partner?”

As the pencil moved, an “X” appeared on the paper.

“Hahaha—” a boy couldn’t help but burst out laughing, clutching his stomach.

Wu Xuan frowned at the other three, “Are you guys messing around?”

Chen Hong retorted, “I think it’s you who’s messing around.”

.

Afterward, except for Du Yangnan and Lu Chu, everyone started asking the four to help them ask questions, which were mostly about when they would get rich, find a partner, or what the exam contents would be. The pencil spirit would either answer or draw an X. Du Yangnan explained that the pencil spirit would choose the questions it liked to answer.

As for Cao Wenwen, she played the game to show off.

After all, among the timid and delicate girls she looked down on, only she dared to play this game. She wanted the boys to be impressed by her bravery, craving that unique admiration and praise. But now, everyone’s attention was drawn to the pencil spirit. Despite being a medium, she felt sidelined.

Thinking of this, Cao Wenwen squeezed Chen Hong’s fingers hidden under her hand, and then, while everyone was asking questions, she suddenly interjected with a smile, “Aren’t we playing the pencil spirit for the thrill? Why are you asking such mundane things?” The others looked at her in confusion.

Seeing that she had everyone’s attention, Cao Wenwen raised her delicate eyebrows and said, “Why don’t we ask something interesting?”

Lu Chu and Du Yangnan immediately realized what she intended to ask.

“Don’t—” Du Yangnan quickly tried to stop her.

But he was too late. Cao Wenwen asked the next second, “Pencil spirit, pencil spirit, how did you die?”

The air froze for a moment.

The pencil began to tremble violently, the tip forcefully scratching erratic and sharp lines on the paper, even tearing it in some places. The sofa they were sitting on started to shake, the table followed suit, and the four holding the pencil could hardly keep their grip.

Cao Wenwen yelled, “Who’s messing around?”

No one answered. The pencil tip, pressed too hard, had broken, but it didn’t stop drawing.

Seeing this, Cao Wenwen released the pencil, stood up, and said, “Whoever is pulling the pencil like this is boring!”

“Why did you let go?!” Du Yangnan quickly turned on all the lights, shouting angrily.

“So what if I let go?” Cao Wenwen looked at him, “This boring game, play it yourself if you want.”

“You?!” Du Yangnan was furious.

Only Lu Chu knew why Du Yangnan was so upset—Cao Wenwen had violated two taboos at once.

The boys comforted the angry Cao Wenwen, criticizing Du Yangnan for arguing with a girl and lacking gentlemanly manners. Couldn’t he see how upset Cao Wenwen was?

Du Yangnan couldn’t defend himself, and Lu Chu was about to say something when Gao Yong suddenly exclaimed.

Lu Chu looked at him, “What’s wrong?”

When Cao Wenwen let go, Chen Hong and Wu Xuan also released their grip, leaving only Gao Yong holding the pencil. Now, with his hand raised, Gao Yong showed everyone the broken pencil in his palm, speaking with difficulty, “The pencil… broke by itself…”

Tang Shizhe’s eyes widened, “Broke…?”

Everyone looked at Gao Yong’s hand and saw that the once-intact pencil was now perfectly split in two, the cut smooth as if done by a machine.

A creepy silence fell over the group.

After a long time, Du Yangnan, now calm, sneered, “We’re screwed.”

Chen Hong laughed awkwardly, looking at the broken pencil, “Maybe it was just an accident?”

Even though it was early spring and chilly outside, the heated room should have been warm, but everyone felt an inexplicable coldness surrounding them.

Lu Chu remained calm.

Du Yangnan adjusted his glasses, trying to maintain his composure despite the fear surging within him.

Most of the people present were atheists who had suggested the game after drinking too much. However, Du Yangnan, who loved horror and supernatural stories, came up with the idea because he believed in such things. Seeing what had happened, atheists might think someone was playing a prank or that it was an accident, but Du Yangnan was convinced they had encountered something unclean.

Swallowing hard, Du Yangnan said, “What do you think the pencil spirit is?”

Someone hesitated, “A spirit attached to the pencil?”

Cao Wenwen guessed, “A ghost of a dead person?”

Zhang Qian was pale with fear, and Chen Hong, half-hugging her, comforted her while glaring at Du Yangnan, “There’s no such thing as ghosts and spirits. Stop scaring people.”

“Believe what you will, but some things exist whether you believe in them or not,” Du Yangnan smiled, “It’s there beside you.”

“So,” Wu Xuan frowned, “what is the pencil spirit?”

“Shh—” Du Yangnan put a finger to his lips, “Don’t use disrespectful terms like ‘thing.’ We failed to send off the pencil spirit properly. It’s now watching us.”

Wu Xuan shivered, rubbing his arms and looking around as if something was lurking in the shadows.

Everyone was startled, and Du Yangnan continued, “There are various theories about the pencil spirit. I personally believe it’s a soul that has some connection to us, attaching to the pencil during the game to communicate with us.”

Lu Chu, hearing this for the first time, asked, “If the pencil spirit is a soul that has been around us without causing harm, why are there so many scary stories about pencil and plate spirits?”

Du Yangnan smiled at Lu Chu, “Good question. Remember, the pencil spirit game is a summoning game.”

Lu Chu understood immediately, “Summoning doesn’t always bring familiar spirits…”

Summoning can bring any entity beyond scientific explanation.

Including—malicious ghosts.