Chapter 035: Can One Drown in a Bathtub?
The world appears overcast, as if rain might fall at any moment. Chi Shen looks up at the sky, following the girl along the riverbank.
This world reminds him of his time in the death game where it was mostly night. The rare daylight was devoid of sunshine, the sky forever gloomy, with specters lurking in the shadows.
Li Xiu's dream realm felt eerily reminiscent of that other world to him. However, he wasn't perturbed by it; he was acutely aware he'd left the death game behind.
Chi Shen adjusted his sleeves, ensuring the ghost face adhered more smoothly to the fabric.
After a short walk, they came upon a bridge enveloped in mist, spanning both shores. A woman in a blue and white floral dress stood atop it, staring intently at them.
She was a beautiful woman, her hair airy and voluminous with a
Hong Kong flair.
Yet, her gaze bore a chilling stillness, as though she might bore a hole right through them with her eyes.
“That's a female ghost,” the ghost face whispered from its perch on Chi Shen's sleeve. There was a tremor in its voice. “The little girl with you is also a ghost. They're both... formidable.”
"Thank you," Chi Shen responded.
“It's best to keep your distance. Don't provoke them. Answer when they speak, don't anger them, and don't initiate conversation,” the ghost face cautioned in a hushed, rapid tone. “As for the little girl, stick with her if you wish to find someone. Once we locate that man, we're leaving. I'll guide you out. I don’t intend to perish here with you.”
Chi Shen replied, "Understood."
The ghost face murmured nervously, “This place is so odd, oozing eeriness at every corner. Why are there so many ghosts? Can all the spirits that follow him access his dream realm? We should leave as soon as possible. Why does entering here bring us to this place? This isn't right…”
By now, Chi Shen was beneath the bridge, less than ten meters away from the woman in the floral dress, who continued to fix her gaze upon him.
“Move quickly!” The ghost face's voice grew desperate. “If she sets her sights on us, we won't be able to leave!”
Raising his head with a smile, Chi Shen acknowledged the woman on the bridge.
She immediately took a step back.
"Long time no see," Chi Shen greeted, waving to the floral-dressed woman, much to the horror of the ghost face.
The woman in the floral dress recoiled another step, and without a moment’s pause, she turned and fled.
Chi Shen's smile remained frozen on his face, as did the ghost face's expression of terror.
With a touch of awkwardness, Chi Shen dropped his hand. Unsure of what to say to salvage the moment, he merely tugged at his sleeve, flicked the ghost face, and acted as though he'd said nothing.
“Auntie Zhao has been waiting here for someone,” the little girl noted sweetly as she enjoyed her candy. “She's convinced she'll meet them soon.”
Chi Shen thought of the file Li Xiu had given him, which mentioned a victim named Zhao, the surname of the woman in the floral dress.
However, the floral-dressed woman he saw in this dream was vastly different from her real-world counterpart. Aside from the dress, there was no resemblance. The woman outside had desiccated skin, her appearance barely discernible, looking unmistakably ghostly. Yet, here, she appeared indistinguishable from any living person, her visage even lightly adorned with makeup, enhancing her delicate beauty.
The young girl was no different. Outside, she had no lower body and was covered in blood. Here, she was a healthy girl wearing a lovely dress.
Li Xiu's dream realm seemed to fulfill the lingering obsessions of the vengeful spirits, explaining their affinity for him. This made sense to Chi Shen.
Crossing the bridge, a residential area came into Chi Shen's view. It looked like an ordinary neighborhood, yet he felt a strange sense of déjà vu, as though he had seen it somewhere before.
A raven perched on a pillar at the entrance of the housing complex, its dark eyes fixed on the group.
“My uncle lives in Unit 2, apartment 8-6,” the young girl paused at the entrance, informing Chi Shen.
Chi Shen smiled and patted her head, “Alright, aren’t you coming in with me?”
“It's about to rain,” the girl replied, pointing in a certain direction. “I have to go to the kindergarten. I can't wander around when it rains; I have to stay inside there.”
Chi Shen looked in the direction she indicated. Indeed, a kindergarten stood shrouded in drifting mist. From it, occasional eerie, shrill giggles of children echoed, sounding startlingly close despite the facility being quite distant.
The ghost face trembled slightly upon hearing the laughter from within Chi Shen's sleeve.
Unfazed, Chi Shen said with a smile, “Then you should head to school. I'll go in alone.”
“Goodbye, big brother!” The girl called out, taking a few steps before turning back, “Remember to use an umbrella when it rains.”
“Thank you, I’ll keep that in mind,” Chi Shen replied.
After the young girl left, without further delay, Chi Shen ventured into the housing complex. Suddenly, a clap of thunder resounded from above. The raven at the entrance cawed loudly, flapping its wings and flying away.
Rain was indeed imminent.
“Umbrella…” Chi Shen pondered, rubbing his chin, “Where can I find one?”
For some reason, the ghost face seemed exceptionally anxious hearing Chi Shen's musing. It didn’t dare speak or move, contracting its form slightly, as if attempting to diminish its presence.
After surveying his surroundings, Chi Shen’s eyes brightened upon spotting the security post. He approached it, peering inside and noticing it was unattended. Skilledly, he reached through the window to unlock the booth’s door, then rummaged inside and retrieved a black umbrella.
Witnessing Chi Shen securing the black umbrella, the ghost face seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, regaining its normal size. It whispered, “This place is eerily strange. Let's hurry.”
Chi Shen moved to the entrance and opened his umbrella.
Lightning streaked across the sky, followed by a raindrop that fell onto a crow soaring above. Struck by the raindrop, the crow seemed to forsake flapping its wings. More raindrops hit, transforming it into a smudge of black ink that plummeted from the sky.
Drops that landed near Chi Shen morphed into tearful faces. He slightly raised his umbrella to observe the sky.
There was a disturbance among the clouds, revealing three massive voids resembling a human face. The torrential rain appeared as if the sky-face was weeping.
"Is our boss, Li Xun, this fragile inside?" Chi Shen mused aloud, "He seems fine on the outside, but it appears his heart cries every day."
The ghostly face retorted, "...Which eye of yours sees your boss as normal? This dream is full of ghosts, how is that related to being emotionally frail? That's clearly a ghost in the sky, not his inner soul weeping!"
Amidst the ghostly face's rant, Chi Shen, shielding himself with the umbrella, located apartment 2. Once inside, a stray raindrop accidentally splashed on his sleeve.
His sleeve began to dissolve as if it were burning. The ghostly face was also splashed with the raindrop. Its expression shifted to sorrow, and it started sobbing, its face contorting in agony.
Chi Shen, raising his other hand, plucked a translucent raindrop — a transparent face of sorrow — from his sleeve. Tossing the face into the hallway, it swiftly transformed into water, merging with other raindrop-faces, indistinguishable from one another.
As the rainwater was drawn out, the ghostly face ceased its weeping. Its usually pallid complexion turned even whiter, verging on a sickly blue. "That... that water can influence my emotions. It tried to compel me to die. I was almost assimilated and driven to self-termination," it said, its voice trembling with a mix of fear and relief.
By the end, its voice was shaking.
"An emotion-manipulating specter," deduced Chi Shen calmly.
Lightning streaked across the sky, briefly illuminating a menacing shadow lurking in the hallway. In that split second, both Chi Shen and the ghostly face saw the shadow grinning malevolently, displaying a row of eerily white teeth.
"We need to get out!" The ghostly face wriggled anxiously on Chi Shen's sleeve, quickly sliding up to his shoulder. "I'll open the door right now, I'll... What's going on?"
The ghostly face's shrill voice echoed in the dim corridor, "Why? I can't open it! I can't get it open!"
"You're so loud," Chi Shen said, rubbing his ear in annoyance. "If it won't open, let's go up and see."
The ghostly face had now slid down Chi Shen's back, keeping its distance from the specter in the corridor, trembling in fear.
Umbrella in hand, Chi Shen walked past the menacing shadow and headed for the elevator. The ghostly face quickly moved to Chi Shen's right, trying to keep as much distance as possible between itself and the shadow. However, the shadow just stared with bloodshot eyes, watching them until they boarded the elevator.
Standing in front of the elevator, the ghostly face grew restless again, wondering if they should really be taking the elevator in such a bizarre place.
But recalling Chi Shen's earlier reprimand, it didn't dare voice its concerns.
It felt a pang of regret. It shouldn't have followed Li Xu today. It shouldn't have entered the pantry, let alone get into a cup of water upon seeing an attractive man drawing water, thinking he'd be an easy target.
Little did it know that this seemingly ordinary and even appealing young man had more than one face, forcing ghosts to commit such terrifying acts.
If it ever got out, it vowed to behave, to remain peacefully in the water, never to harm anyone again.
Chi Shen, appearing completely unfazed, stepped into the elevator as if he was simply returning home. Yet, the moment he entered, an alarm began to blare.
Overloaded.
The elevator was eerily empty, housing only Chi Shen.
The ghostly face, in growing unease, slid back to Chi Shen's cuff, looking around anxiously.
Chi Shen glanced at the ghostly face and then at his black umbrella.
Feeling Chi Shen's gaze on him, the ghostly face quickly blurted out, "I'm weightless! I'm just a face, it's not me!"
Chi Shen pinched its mouth with a hint of exasperation. "How can you, a ghost, be so afraid of ghosts? Even more so than a regular person like me. Aren't you disgracing your kind?"
The ghost made a whimpering sound, lamenting without tears. "Do you truly believe you're just an ordinary person?"
Chi Shen took his black umbrella out of the elevator. Raindrops slid from its tip, pooling on the elevator floor to form transparent faces of tears. As he stepped on them, the faces shattered instantly, turning back into mere droplets.
The overload warning ceased. Chi Shen pressed the elevator button and headed to the eighth floor.
In front of apartment 8-2, moist handprints appeared on the security door, so vivid as if someone had just knocked.
The humidity in this floor grew more intense, with droplets even hanging on the walls.
"Such a strong yin energy," the ghost whispered.
"A familiar scent," Chi Shen said, smiling brightly.
He had once spent over a century in such a world. From initial panic and fear to eventual numbness, he never thought he'd encounter this sensation again in a dream realm.
The scent from the game of death.
Chi Shen didn't bother with the security door, instead turning towards the communal balcony.
Watching the drizzling rain outside, the ghost suddenly felt an ominous premonition and screamed in terror, "What are you doing? Ah! Come back—"
Chi Shen ignored its cries, leaping off the balcony. As rain hit him, transparent crying faces tried to crawl into his clothes. But soon, those faces turned fearful and burst out in droves.
Dark, ghostly energy emanated from him, undulating over his clothes like spilled ink. Every crying face it touched vanished into raindrops.
The world seemed to shift beneath Chi Shen's feet. He stood upon the wall as if it were the ground. The world inverted around him, and he confidently circled the building, finally landing on the balcony of 8-2 and stepping inside.
The ghost's shrieks finally ceased as it shakily emerged from Chi Shen's pocket, gazing around the apartment.
The room was silent except for the splashing sound coming from the bathroom. It was odd, as though someone was playing with water.
Without hesitation, Chi Shen proceeded into the bathroom.
Someone indeed was playing with the water. Li Xu was submerged in the bathtub, feebly struggling as if about to drown.
"Your abilities are still handy," Chi Shen remarked, glancing at the ghost on his sleeve. "See, they've genuinely affected him."
Ghost Face: "...Don't falsely accuse me! This has nothing to do with me!"
*
Author's Note:
No double updates today. I'm adjusting my schedule, aiming to get back to updating at 12 noon. I'll make it up with additional updates this weekend!
Chapter 035: Can One Drown in a Bathtub?
The world appears overcast, as if rain might fall at any moment. Chi Shen looks up at the sky, following the girl along the riverbank.
This world reminds him of his time in the death game where it was mostly night. The rare daylight was devoid of sunshine, the sky forever gloomy, with specters lurking in the shadows.
Li Xiu's dream realm felt eerily reminiscent of that other world to him. However, he wasn't perturbed by it; he was acutely aware he'd left the death game behind.
Chi Shen adjusted his sleeves, ensuring the ghost face adhered more smoothly to the fabric.
After a short walk, they came upon a bridge enveloped in mist, spanning both shores. A woman in a blue and white floral dress stood atop it, staring intently at them.
She was a beautiful woman, her hair airy and voluminous with a
Hong Kong flair.
Yet, her gaze bore a chilling stillness, as though she might bore a hole right through them with her eyes.
“That's a female ghost,” the ghost face whispered from its perch on Chi Shen's sleeve. There was a tremor in its voice. “The little girl with you is also a ghost. They're both... formidable.”
"Thank you," Chi Shen responded.
“It's best to keep your distance. Don't provoke them. Answer when they speak, don't anger them, and don't initiate conversation,” the ghost face cautioned in a hushed, rapid tone. “As for the little girl, stick with her if you wish to find someone. Once we locate that man, we're leaving. I'll guide you out. I don’t intend to perish here with you.”
Chi Shen replied, "Understood."
The ghost face murmured nervously, “This place is so odd, oozing eeriness at every corner. Why are there so many ghosts? Can all the spirits that follow him access his dream realm? We should leave as soon as possible. Why does entering here bring us to this place? This isn't right…”
By now, Chi Shen was beneath the bridge, less than ten meters away from the woman in the floral dress, who continued to fix her gaze upon him.
“Move quickly!” The ghost face's voice grew desperate. “If she sets her sights on us, we won't be able to leave!”
Raising his head with a smile, Chi Shen acknowledged the woman on the bridge.
She immediately took a step back.
"Long time no see," Chi Shen greeted, waving to the floral-dressed woman, much to the horror of the ghost face.
The woman in the floral dress recoiled another step, and without a moment’s pause, she turned and fled.
Chi Shen's smile remained frozen on his face, as did the ghost face's expression of terror.
With a touch of awkwardness, Chi Shen dropped his hand. Unsure of what to say to salvage the moment, he merely tugged at his sleeve, flicked the ghost face, and acted as though he'd said nothing.
“Auntie Zhao has been waiting here for someone,” the little girl noted sweetly as she enjoyed her candy. “She's convinced she'll meet them soon.”
Chi Shen thought of the file Li Xiu had given him, which mentioned a victim named Zhao, the surname of the woman in the floral dress.
However, the floral-dressed woman he saw in this dream was vastly different from her real-world counterpart. Aside from the dress, there was no resemblance. The woman outside had desiccated skin, her appearance barely discernible, looking unmistakably ghostly. Yet, here, she appeared indistinguishable from any living person, her visage even lightly adorned with makeup, enhancing her delicate beauty.
The young girl was no different. Outside, she had no lower body and was covered in blood. Here, she was a healthy girl wearing a lovely dress.
Li Xiu's dream realm seemed to fulfill the lingering obsessions of the vengeful spirits, explaining their affinity for him. This made sense to Chi Shen.
Crossing the bridge, a residential area came into Chi Shen's view. It looked like an ordinary neighborhood, yet he felt a strange sense of déjà vu, as though he had seen it somewhere before.
A raven perched on a pillar at the entrance of the housing complex, its dark eyes fixed on the group.
“My uncle lives in Unit 2, apartment 8-6,” the young girl paused at the entrance, informing Chi Shen.
Chi Shen smiled and patted her head, “Alright, aren’t you coming in with me?”
“It's about to rain,” the girl replied, pointing in a certain direction. “I have to go to the kindergarten. I can't wander around when it rains; I have to stay inside there.”
Chi Shen looked in the direction she indicated. Indeed, a kindergarten stood shrouded in drifting mist. From it, occasional eerie, shrill giggles of children echoed, sounding startlingly close despite the facility being quite distant.
The ghost face trembled slightly upon hearing the laughter from within Chi Shen's sleeve.
Unfazed, Chi Shen said with a smile, “Then you should head to school. I'll go in alone.”
“Goodbye, big brother!” The girl called out, taking a few steps before turning back, “Remember to use an umbrella when it rains.”
“Thank you, I’ll keep that in mind,” Chi Shen replied.
After the young girl left, without further delay, Chi Shen ventured into the housing complex. Suddenly, a clap of thunder resounded from above. The raven at the entrance cawed loudly, flapping its wings and flying away.
Rain was indeed imminent.
“Umbrella…” Chi Shen pondered, rubbing his chin, “Where can I find one?”
For some reason, the ghost face seemed exceptionally anxious hearing Chi Shen's musing. It didn’t dare speak or move, contracting its form slightly, as if attempting to diminish its presence.
After surveying his surroundings, Chi Shen’s eyes brightened upon spotting the security post. He approached it, peering inside and noticing it was unattended. Skilledly, he reached through the window to unlock the booth’s door, then rummaged inside and retrieved a black umbrella.
Witnessing Chi Shen securing the black umbrella, the ghost face seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, regaining its normal size. It whispered, “This place is eerily strange. Let's hurry.”
Chi Shen moved to the entrance and opened his umbrella.
Lightning streaked across the sky, followed by a raindrop that fell onto a crow soaring above. Struck by the raindrop, the crow seemed to forsake flapping its wings. More raindrops hit, transforming it into a smudge of black ink that plummeted from the sky.
Drops that landed near Chi Shen morphed into tearful faces. He slightly raised his umbrella to observe the sky.
There was a disturbance among the clouds, revealing three massive voids resembling a human face. The torrential rain appeared as if the sky-face was weeping.
"Is our boss, Li Xun, this fragile inside?" Chi Shen mused aloud, "He seems fine on the outside, but it appears his heart cries every day."
The ghostly face retorted, "...Which eye of yours sees your boss as normal? This dream is full of ghosts, how is that related to being emotionally frail? That's clearly a ghost in the sky, not his inner soul weeping!"
Amidst the ghostly face's rant, Chi Shen, shielding himself with the umbrella, located apartment 2. Once inside, a stray raindrop accidentally splashed on his sleeve.
His sleeve began to dissolve as if it were burning. The ghostly face was also splashed with the raindrop. Its expression shifted to sorrow, and it started sobbing, its face contorting in agony.
Chi Shen, raising his other hand, plucked a translucent raindrop — a transparent face of sorrow — from his sleeve. Tossing the face into the hallway, it swiftly transformed into water, merging with other raindrop-faces, indistinguishable from one another.
As the rainwater was drawn out, the ghostly face ceased its weeping. Its usually pallid complexion turned even whiter, verging on a sickly blue. "That... that water can influence my emotions. It tried to compel me to die. I was almost assimilated and driven to self-termination," it said, its voice trembling with a mix of fear and relief.
By the end, its voice was shaking.
"An emotion-manipulating specter," deduced Chi Shen calmly.
Lightning streaked across the sky, briefly illuminating a menacing shadow lurking in the hallway. In that split second, both Chi Shen and the ghostly face saw the shadow grinning malevolently, displaying a row of eerily white teeth.
"We need to get out!" The ghostly face wriggled anxiously on Chi Shen's sleeve, quickly sliding up to his shoulder. "I'll open the door right now, I'll... What's going on?"
The ghostly face's shrill voice echoed in the dim corridor, "Why? I can't open it! I can't get it open!"
"You're so loud," Chi Shen said, rubbing his ear in annoyance. "If it won't open, let's go up and see."
The ghostly face had now slid down Chi Shen's back, keeping its distance from the specter in the corridor, trembling in fear.
Umbrella in hand, Chi Shen walked past the menacing shadow and headed for the elevator. The ghostly face quickly moved to Chi Shen's right, trying to keep as much distance as possible between itself and the shadow. However, the shadow just stared with bloodshot eyes, watching them until they boarded the elevator.
Standing in front of the elevator, the ghostly face grew restless again, wondering if they should really be taking the elevator in such a bizarre place.
But recalling Chi Shen's earlier reprimand, it didn't dare voice its concerns.
It felt a pang of regret. It shouldn't have followed Li Xu today. It shouldn't have entered the pantry, let alone get into a cup of water upon seeing an attractive man drawing water, thinking he'd be an easy target.
Little did it know that this seemingly ordinary and even appealing young man had more than one face, forcing ghosts to commit such terrifying acts.
If it ever got out, it vowed to behave, to remain peacefully in the water, never to harm anyone again.
Chi Shen, appearing completely unfazed, stepped into the elevator as if he was simply returning home. Yet, the moment he entered, an alarm began to blare.
Overloaded.
The elevator was eerily empty, housing only Chi Shen.
The ghostly face, in growing unease, slid back to Chi Shen's cuff, looking around anxiously.
Chi Shen glanced at the ghostly face and then at his black umbrella.
Feeling Chi Shen's gaze on him, the ghostly face quickly blurted out, "I'm weightless! I'm just a face, it's not me!"
Chi Shen pinched its mouth with a hint of exasperation. "How can you, a ghost, be so afraid of ghosts? Even more so than a regular person like me. Aren't you disgracing your kind?"
The ghost made a whimpering sound, lamenting without tears. "Do you truly believe you're just an ordinary person?"
Chi Shen took his black umbrella out of the elevator. Raindrops slid from its tip, pooling on the elevator floor to form transparent faces of tears. As he stepped on them, the faces shattered instantly, turning back into mere droplets.
The overload warning ceased. Chi Shen pressed the elevator button and headed to the eighth floor.
In front of apartment 8-2, moist handprints appeared on the security door, so vivid as if someone had just knocked.
The humidity in this floor grew more intense, with droplets even hanging on the walls.
"Such a strong yin energy," the ghost whispered.
"A familiar scent," Chi Shen said, smiling brightly.
He had once spent over a century in such a world. From initial panic and fear to eventual numbness, he never thought he'd encounter this sensation again in a dream realm.
The scent from the game of death.
Chi Shen didn't bother with the security door, instead turning towards the communal balcony.
Watching the drizzling rain outside, the ghost suddenly felt an ominous premonition and screamed in terror, "What are you doing? Ah! Come back—"
Chi Shen ignored its cries, leaping off the balcony. As rain hit him, transparent crying faces tried to crawl into his clothes. But soon, those faces turned fearful and burst out in droves.
Dark, ghostly energy emanated from him, undulating over his clothes like spilled ink. Every crying face it touched vanished into raindrops.
The world seemed to shift beneath Chi Shen's feet. He stood upon the wall as if it were the ground. The world inverted around him, and he confidently circled the building, finally landing on the balcony of 8-2 and stepping inside.
The ghost's shrieks finally ceased as it shakily emerged from Chi Shen's pocket, gazing around the apartment.
The room was silent except for the splashing sound coming from the bathroom. It was odd, as though someone was playing with water.
Without hesitation, Chi Shen proceeded into the bathroom.
Someone indeed was playing with the water. Li Xu was submerged in the bathtub, feebly struggling as if about to drown.
"Your abilities are still handy," Chi Shen remarked, glancing at the ghost on his sleeve. "See, they've genuinely affected him."
Ghost Face: "...Don't falsely accuse me! This has nothing to do with me!"
*
Author's Note:
No double updates today. I'm adjusting my schedule, aiming to get back to updating at 12 noon. I'll make it up with additional updates this weekend!
