Chapter 147 - Still The Same (1)
Half an hour later, the two fox demons arrived at the metropolitan hospital, where the young pupils were admitted. They sneaked inside using Xiao Bai's invisibility enchantment, so the humans that they met in the hallways weren't aware of their presence.
The young children were all under comatose, with their parents crying outside the ICU room and wondering what kind of sickness had turned them into this. While the nurses on duty looked at them with pity, Shen Minyao and Qin Zhi did not. It wasn't new for these two demons to witness death amongst the humans, so it was natural that they were unperturbed by the scene in front of them.
Shen Minyao's nose curled, with her brows furrowing. The scent of disinfectant was so strong in this area that it was making it hard for her and Qin Zhi to catch the trace of the demon on the children.
All the children were showing the same symptoms, just like what Qin Zhi said earlier. Their complexions were extremely pale as if their life essences were being drained completely from their body; leaving them like empty husks by the demon.
'When did it start?' Shen Minyao asked her brother using telepathy.
.They stood in the hallway of the ICU, checking the patients' conditions one by one.
'About three months or so,' Qin Zhi replied. 'At first, the school thought that they caught some kind of flu. One by one, the kids started to fall sick, which forced the school to close their doors temporarily until the doctors found out the reason for their sickness.'
'They might have assumed that this sickness is contagious,' Shen Minyao commented as soon as they were done inspecting the young children. 'Is there anything else I should know?'
'I sent someone to investigate what has been happening at the kindergarten. The school had hired several new teachers and aides to look after the students. The first case happened just two weeks after that.'
'So you assume that one of those people is possessed by that demon?'
It would make sense, based on Shen Minyao's opinion. Not only would it give the demon a perfect way to stealthily feed on these children, but they could also get away without leaving an obvious trace that could lead to them.
'Hn. It's just a possibility. I suppose we could check those humans to make sure they aren't possessed,' Qin Zhi said.
Shen Minyao frowned at her brother's words. This only meant that they would need to stalk and observe those humans.
'Shouldn't your people know by now whether those humans are possessed or not?' She questioned.
'They checked, but all those humans under suspicion smelled like demons. It was hard for my people to know which one of them has a direct connection to the demon, so we would need to see them ourselves. It's important we solve this problem as soon as possible before humans take notice."
The fox woman scoffed at that, but she refused to comment on it.
Demons who fed on vulnerable children were one of the things she disliked the most. She might be a devious demon in everyone's eyes, but she wasn't that evil to feed on human infants and children. She preferred to feed on fickle, greedy, and murderous humans as they emitted stronger negative energy.
She understood that she and Qin Zhi weren't the only demons capable of hiding their presence, suppressing their energies to mingle among the humans; so it's not impossible that Qin Zhi's subordinates weren't certain which humans should be dealt with.
'So how many humans are we talking about here?' She asked.
'Six humans. All females,' Qin Zhi answered. 'That is the last child that fell sick before the school decided to close.' He then pointed at the young boy inside one of the ICU rooms.
Shen Minyao narrowed her eyes and gauged the life essence that remained on the young boy, who she assumed was around six years of age. Like the rest of the children that were fed on by the demon, the boy still had a little color in his complexion, but it was obvious that he was in discomfort. The boy kept mumbling incoherent sounds as he slept.
'Do you know the last person in the school that he encountered?' The fox woman suddenly asked. The sooner they could find the demon, the better.
'That's hard to answer, Daji. All those six humans have interactions with those children, so it's hard to pinpoint who caused all of these.'
"How troublesome," Shen Minyao muttered as she burrowed her hands in her side pockets and walked away from the ICU room. She thought that she would be able to feed on another demon tonight, but it seemed like she still needed to wait.
Qin Zhi followed her without a word until they stepped outside the hospital. Taking advantage of the blind spots of the CCTV cameras of the hospital, Xiao Bai dispelled his enchantment. The two fox demons were now visible to human eyes as they stepped out of the premises and met Qin Zhi's bodyguards at the parking space.
"Are you free tomorrow? We could see and meet those six humans personally," Qin Zhi asked her as soon as they sat at both ends of the backseat of his car.
"My midterms exam is over. I won't have any prior engagement for this weekend," Shen Minyao answered him, her expression one with boredom. Just when she thought she could have action tonight… she was deeply disappointed.
Qin Zhi nodded in understanding. When Shen Minyao didn't reach out to him after she left his mansion, he had been restless, only to find out that she was a student at Spring Hill High, a popular academy for wealthy families.
The moment he found out that his sister possessed and took over Shen Minyao's body and identity, he made a background check about her human host. It turned out that she was still a high school student in her senior year.