A few days ago, I heard that Chloe Miller had started dating a wealthy heir. His family apparently carried great influence in Bayshore City.

The moment I learned this, I guessed Chloe would soon use her boyfriend’s connections against me. What I didn’t expect was how quickly she lost patience and came looking for trouble.

I could only sigh.

This clinic had been entrusted to me by my master, Gabriel Reed, on his deathbed. It held the dedication and effort of his entire lifetime. How could I ever sell it so easily?

Most importantly, if I gave up this clinic, what would happen to the unusual patients who showed up every night?

Some of them were missing limbs, some played with their own severed heads, others stitched together their torn bodies. Any ordinary person who saw these sights would be terrified out of their wits.

If the clinic disappeared, these spirits would have nowhere to go, no restraints to keep them in check, and chaos would erupt across Bayshore City.

As I sighed helplessly, I noticed a little boy wearing nothing but a vest climbing on top of the ceiling fan, laughing as he played.

I snapped irritably, “Ryan Hughes, get down here right now! If you break my fan again like last time, I won’t let you off.”

Ryan floated down obediently, blinking his big eyes, worry clouding his small face.

“Rachel, you’re not going to sell the clinic, right? If you do, we’ll all be homeless. Then we could only linger in the world of the living for seven days before being forced out. A lot of the others might lose control and lash out at people. That would bring disaster to the whole city.”

I sighed again. “Chloe has been coming at me more aggressively than ever lately. I can’t guarantee how much longer the clinic can stay open…”

Before I could finish, Ryan blurted out anxiously, “Then go ask our Hughes family for help! In Bayshore City, we’re second to none. My own brother is the one in charge of the family now. If you just go and say the word, no one would dare cause trouble for you again.”

Before I could reply, a crowd arrived outside the clinic.

Leading them was Chloe’s wealthy boyfriend, Adrian Hughes. He had brought along more than a dozen burly bodyguards. Reeking of alcohol, Adrian swaggered in, kicked the counter, and cursed at me:

“Bitch, how dare you refuse to treat my dog! Do you even know who I am?”

“Ever heard of the Hughes family in Bayshore City? I’m Adrian Hughes, eldest grandson of the current family patriarch.”

“Today, if you don’t treat and bandage my dog, I’ll smash your clinic and break your arms and legs. Even if you call the cops, it won’t help you!”

Looking at Adrian’s arrogance, then at Chloe’s smug, triumphant expression beside him, I just felt exhausted.

Couldn’t they stop courting death?

The spirits in the clinic glared at them with murderous intent, looking ready to pounce and tear them apart.

Especially Ryan, the mischievous little ghost boy. Standing on the counter, he glared fiercely at Adrian and cursed:

“How could our Hughes family produce such a disgrace of a descendant?”

“What was my brother thinking when he raised this brat?”

“A worthless heir like him will only bring disaster to our family. Tonight, I’ll carry out justice—even if it means dealing with my own kin!”

The moment the words left his mouth, Ryan Hughes lunged at Adrian Hughes.

I stopped the impulsive boy just in time. If Ryan really harmed Adrian here in the clinic, it would surely draw the attention of the Underworld Court.

This clinic stood at the boundary between the living and the dead, balancing on a fragile equilibrium. If a spirit attacked a living person here, the consequences could be catastrophic.

I had only been running this clinic for less than half a year. I couldn’t let my master Gabriel Reed’s lifelong devotion go to waste.

Adrian, of course, couldn’t see the unusual patients in the clinic, nor could he hear what Ryan had just shouted.

Snarling arrogantly at me, Adrian said, “Bitch, don’t say I didn’t give you a chance.”

“Don’t think I’m joking. I’ll give you ten minutes. If you don’t clean and bandage my dog’s paw, don’t blame me for what happens next.”

Chloe, clinging to his arm with a smug smile, sneered at me:

“Did you hear that? You’ve only got ten minutes. My boyfriend’s influence in Bayshore City is beyond your imagination. If you don’t want to spend the rest of your life crippled, you’d better get moving and treat Coco.”

I looked at the Maltese lying weakly on the counter and could only shake my head.

Its injury wasn’t serious. But when Chloe barged in earlier, the many spirits inside the clinic had all turned their cold eyes on the dog. The poor thing had been overwhelmed by the heavy aura of death in the room.

Animals can see what ordinary people cannot. Surrounded by so many spirits, the dog’s courage collapsed entirely. Its body convulsed violently—it was beyond saving.

I sighed softly. “I’m not a veterinarian. There’s nothing I can do.”

At my words, the Maltese gave a final shudder. The light faded from its eyes, and its breathing stopped.

Adrian froze, stunned, while Chloe’s eyes lit up with excitement.

Pointing at me, she let out a shrill, fake-anguished scream:

“Rachel Evans, this is all your fault! If you had treated Coco sooner, he wouldn’t have died!”

“You killed him!”

“This was my boyfriend’s most beloved pet. You’re dead this time.”

Then she turned to Adrian, feigning tears:

“Darling, Coco died so tragically. You have to make this bitch pay!”

Already drunk and enraged, Adrian hadn’t understood exactly how his dog had died. But Chloe’s pitiful wailing fueled his anger toward me.

With a sudden swing, he slapped me hard across the face and cursed, “You damned bitch! You killed my dog—I’ll never forgive you.”

“Even if God himself came down, he couldn’t save you tonight!”

He turned to his bodyguards and roared, “What are you waiting for? Smash this pathetic clinic to pieces!”

At his command, the dozen burly men stormed in and began smashing everything in sight.

The spirits in the clinic grew even more furious, the dark aura thickening until the lights flickered wildly as though the electricity was failing.

I hurried to restrain them. I couldn’t allow the spirits to harm the living. If they did, this clinic would truly be finished.

At the same time, I shielded the shrine inside the clinic.

Inside rested my master Gabriel Reed’s memorial plaque.

Even if everything else in the clinic were smashed, I wouldn’t care—I could always replace furniture and equipment. But Gabriel’s memorial plaque could never be damaged.

The bodyguards, for now, hadn’t laid hands on me. Chloe Miller, however, had no such restraint. She suddenly kicked me hard in the stomach, sending me sprawling to the ground.

She crouched beside me, yanking my hair, slapping me viciously across the face several times. With a cruel, gloating smile, she hissed:

“I warned you before—shut down this clinic and sell the building to my family. But you refused to listen.”

“Now my patience has run out.”

“I only planned to stir up trouble and give you a lesson tonight. Who knew Adrian Hughes’s dog would die here? Truly heaven is helping me.”

“Rachel Evans, you’re finished tonight!”

Looking at the sinister grin on her face, I sighed inwardly.

If this chaos continued, someone was bound to die tonight. The only question was—who?

The violent hostility radiating from Adrian and Chloe was deeply agitating the spirits within the clinic. Even Ryan Hughes, the mischievous ghost boy, now had eyes glowing an eerie green. The aura of death grew heavier, the temperature in the clinic dropping noticeably.

Clutching Gabriel’s memorial plaque tightly, I warned them urgently:

“If you don’t want to die, leave now—before it’s too late!”

I wasn’t bluffing.

The spirits’ patience had nearly reached its limit. If Adrian and Chloe continued smashing and provoking them, even I might not be able to hold the spirits back.

But my words only made Adrian and Chloe laugh scornfully.

Chloe sneered, “You can’t even protect yourself, yet you dare to threaten us? Rachel, you really don’t know what’s good for you!”

Adrian said impatiently, “No one in Bayshore City dares threaten me. You think I was joking earlier?”

Then he ordered his bodyguards, “Break her hands. Teach her a lesson she won’t forget.”

The men hesitated.

Smashing up my clinic was one thing—the Hughes family would cover damages afterward. But harming a person? That was another matter entirely.

One bodyguard finally spoke up cautiously:

“Sir, tomorrow is Mr. Charles Hughes’s eightieth birthday. If word spreads that we went too far tonight, the old man may be displeased. Perhaps just rough her up a little, and leave it at that.”

The others nodded in agreement.

Adrian frowned, wavering for a moment.

Chloe clutched his arm anxiously, her voice pitiful as she pleaded,

“Darling, you can’t let her off so easily. She killed Coco—you can’t just ignore that.”

“Coco was your favorite dog. You said before, if anyone ever harmed a single hair on him, you’d never forgive them.”

“This bitch has always been against my family. She’s cruel and conniving. I’ve wanted to punish her for a long time.”

“Do it for me—tonight, you must teach her a brutal lesson…”