Chapter 104: Sage’s Fate |
Yu Xiao felt a pang of pity for the sobbing girl in front of her. She wanted to give her a hug, or at least a pat on the shoulder, but she hesitated. Where would she even touch her? The girl’s entire body was covered in … well, let’s just say a mysterious brown substance.
Yu Xiao decided to keep her hands to herself and reached for a crisis-relief talisman in her pocket instead.
“Hey, are you okay? Do you need one of these?” she asked, holding out the paper talisman.
Zhou Xiao Zhen wiped her face with her sleeve and looked up. She saw the Sage holding Yu Xiao’s hand. Her eyes widened and she stared at them for a few seconds before speaking. “Is this…the Sage?”
Yu Xiao nodded. “Yeah, this is him. He’s the Sage.”
Zhou Xiao Zhen gave them another look, a flicker of understanding in her eyes. She smiled weakly and said, “Smiley, you’ve done well.”
Yu Xiao felt her mouth twitch, but she didn’t bother to explain.
She changed the subject. “By the way, how did you escape from the hospital?”
Zhou Xiao Zhen’s eyes lit up and she slapped her thigh. “Oh, you won’t believe it. It was so exciting. Qing Shi told me that the doors had clues behind them. So I knocked on a bunch of them, but they all wanted me to cut myself or something. No way, I’m not doing that. I just picked a random door and opened it, thinking I could handle one ghost with all the talismans I had.”
“But the ghosts were too strong. I couldn’t beat even one of them,” Zhou Xiao Zhen continued. “So I opened two more doors.”
She had seen Zhou Xiao Zhen’s actions in the painting, but she still couldn’t wrap her head around her logic. “You couldn’t beat one, so you let out two more?”
Zhou Xiao Zhen nodded, as if it made perfect sense. “Yeah, because I needed four players for mahjong.”
Smiley bit her lip, conceding that Precious had a point. That was exactly how it went down.
“I was sure I’d never see any of you again. I was freaking out, no clue how to escape,” Zhou Xiao Zhen shuddered, remembering. “Then I thought, screw it, I’m not going down without a fight. So I ran like hell, flinging open every door I saw. There were so many ghosts, they had to share, right? And then, bam, I saw the exit.”
“And then?”
“And then I kept running and opening doors, as long as I was faster than them, I was golden,” Zhou Xiao Zhen boasted, “Turns out, I’m a total badass. All those ghosts on my tail, and I still made it out alive.”
“…”
Yu Xiao felt a pang of guilt. She had been so worried about Precious, even bribed the ghosts to spare her, and Precious didn’t need any of that. She got out by herself.
They were interrupted by Zhao Lan and the others.
“Smiley! Precious!”
Zhao Lan ran over, gasping, “Precious, what the hell happened to you?”
“Wuwuwu…” Precious didn’t say a word, just lunged at Zhao Lan and hugged her tight, rubbing her filthy clothes on her. It was payback for ruining her outfit yesterday. “Misty, I’m so pathetic. I didn’t sleep a wink. I had people, cockroaches, rats, and mosquitoes all after me…”
Zhao Lan gagged at the stench but held it in. She even patted Precious’s shoulder, “Precious, you poor thing, but can you let go now? I just ate…”
Liu Yu and the rest only had eyes for Sage. They stared at the hand that Yu Xiao and Sage were holding, then gave Yu Xiao a look. They heard that hooking up with NPCs was a thing now, but damn, this girl was fast. One night and she had him wrapped around her finger.
The seven of them stormed into the hospital, ready to face whatever horrors awaited them. They expected blood and guts, screams and moans, maybe even a severed head or two. What they didn’t expect was the cold.
The lobby was freezing, as if someone had cranked up the AC to the max. They wrapped their arms around themselves, teeth chattering.
“Where’s the damn thermostat?” Fang Yu muttered.
“Never mind that,” Zhao Lan said, turning to the Sage. “How do we save this place?”
The Sage scanned the lobby with his piercing eyes. He had known about the hospital since he was born, but he had never set foot inside.
“The top floor,” he said. “That’s where it is.”
“Alright then,” Yu Xiao said, flashing her wicked grin. “Let’s go kick some ass.”
They made their way to the second floor, where the hospital looked more like a hospital. White corridors, white doors, white everything. It was spotless, as if someone had scrubbed away the traces of Zhou Xiao Zhen’s ghost rampage.
That made things harder. They had no clue which door led to the hidden passage.
“Why don’t we split up and knock on every door?” Liu Yu suggested. “It’ll be faster that way.”
The others nodded, about to start their search when the Sage walked up to a random door and opened it without hesitation.
They gasped as they saw the dark stairwell behind it. He had found the right door on the first try.
“Wow,” Zhou Xiao Zhen said, clapping her hands. “You’re amazing! I wish I had that talent. I wouldn’t have been chased by those nasty ghosts all over the place.”
The Sage ignored her and stepped into the stairwell. “Hurry up,” he said. “We don’t have much time.”
Yu Xiao pushed the others to follow him. She thought he was eager to get this over with.
As soon as the stairwell door closed, the doors on the second floor burst open, releasing a horde of rotting, oozing hands. The ghosts had sensed the Sage’s presence. The arrival of the Sage disrupted the balance of the hospital, granting temporary freedom to the ghosts who were unable to open doors themselves.
The Sage didn’t bother to check the doors on the other floors. He knew which one was the right one. He just opened it and moved on.
The others trailed behind him.
They reached the twelfth floor in no time. That’s when the Sage stopped. And so did they.
Yu Xiao raised an eyebrow at the Sage. “What’s the holdup? Are we there yet?”
He shook his head and pointed at a door. “One more to go.”
“Sweet.” Zhou Xiao Zhen clapped his hands. “I was getting tired of these stairs. How many floors did we climb, anyway? The hospital looked way smaller from outside.”
“It’s not over yet.” The Sage’s voice was grim. “It’s dangerous there.”
Yu Xiao felt a shiver run down her spine. “Dangerous how?”
“The terrifying presence belonging to this hospital.” The Sage’s eyes darkened. “Born together with this world’s fear.”
Zhou Xiao Zhen gulped. “Is it worse than those freaks in the wards?”
The Sage nodded. “Those are just outsiders.”
“Outsiders?” Zhou Xiao Zhen frowned. “What do you mean?”
The Sage didn’t answer. He walked towards the door.
Yu Xiao blocked his way and opened the door herself. She flashed him a wicked smile. “Hey, I promised to protect you, remember? You stay behind me.”
She stepped into the darkness, feeling a cold blast of air hit her face. She held her breath, waiting for her eyes to adjust. The others followed her, shuffling nervously.
There was no light behind the door, but it wasn’t completely dark either. They could make out some shapes and shadows.
Yu Xiao let out a frosty breath. It’s freezing, she thought. So did the others.
They climbed the stairs, hoping to reach the end soon. Then they heard a weird noise, like someone snoring.
“Look.” Zhao Lan whispered, pointing at something.
The top floor was divided into several rooms, all separated by glass walls. They could see everything inside. Zhao Lan pointed at one room where a blob of rotten flesh lay on the floor. It moved up and down, making the snoring sound.
Yu Xiao pressed a finger to her lips, signalling for silence. “We can’t afford to make any noise here. Sage, lead the way.”
Sage nodded and veered left, walking with his usual calm and confident stride. Yu Xiao and the rest trailed after him, trying to look inconspicuous and failing miserably.
They had barely taken a few steps when Zhou Xiao Zhen lost her footing and landed on her butt with a thud.
She clamped her mouth shut, but a muffled whimper escaped her lips.
Everyone gasped and stared at her, terrified. Zhou Xiao Zhen winced and whispered, “Something slippery tripped me up. What is it?”
She glanced down and saw a thin, transparent thing in her hand, like a plastic bag.
She pulled at it and realised it was much longer than she expected. “What the hell is this?”
The others followed her line of sight and saw the other end of the plastic thing attached to a room. The glass window of that room was obscured by a massive plastic sheet, with two blood-red spots that looked like eyes. The sheet was pressed against the glass, watching them with a malicious interest.
Zhou Xiao Zhen felt a surge of horror and flung the plastic thing away from her.
The sheet-like creature crinkled its eyes, as if smiling wickedly.
“Hehehe…”
A shrill laugh cut through the air, breaking the silence that had been filled with snoring.
“Run!”
Someone screamed, and they all bolted. Yu Xiao grabbed Sage’s hand and dragged him along, not caring if he could keep up.
“Bang!”
“Clang!”
The sound of shattering glass followed them. They didn’t dare to look back, but they knew that they had woken up something monstrous behind them.
The sound of snarling and slithering grew louder behind them. Yu Xiao clenched her jaw and ran faster.
Out of nowhere, huge shadows loomed on either side of them.
“Bang!”
Glass exploded, sending shards flying. Two blobs of mud blocked their path, oozing and pulsing.
“Go on!” Zhou Xiao Zhen yelled and ran towards them. “I’ll distract them!”
The mud blobs stretched out their tentacles, but hesitated when they saw Zhou Xiao Zhen. She plopped down on the floor and opened a mahjong set. The mud blobs, along with a plastic sheet creature that had followed them, stopped and joined her, shuffling the tiles with their slimy appendages.
Zhou Xiao Zhen looked tiny among them, but she didn’t seem to mind.
“Let’s go!” Yu Xiao gritted her teeth and surged forward. It wasn’t the time to worry about this and that; now, she could only trust her companions.
But Zhou Xiao Zhen could only keep three monsters busy. There were more coming.
“We’re screwed!” Liu Yu cried, her eyes wide with fear. “They’re gaining on us!”
Yu Xiao thought quickly and pulled out the Coin of Great Observation. “Misty, take Sage and get out of here.”
“No way!” Zhao Lan refused.
Sage glanced back and snatched the coin from Yu Xiao.
“What the hell, Sage?”
He tossed the coin to Zhao Lan, who caught it by reflex. Sage said, “Count to ten in your head before you use it.”
Zhao Lan didn’t get what he meant, but she started counting anyway.
When she reached ten, a fork in the road appeared out of thin air. Zhao Lan knew it was their chance. She paused and threw the coin in the air, hoping for the best.
It landed on tails!
Without a word, Zhao Lan spun around and sprinted for the left passage. She had no idea where it led, but anywhere was better than here.
The monsters, entranced by the Coin of Great Observation, felt a surge of greed and obsession for Zhao Lan. They forgot about the others and followed her like a pack of rabid dogs.
Liu Yu and the rest watched them go with a mix of relief and horror. “Well, that worked out nicely,” Liu Yu said, trying to sound cheerful.
Yu Xiao glared at her with bloodshot eyes. She clenched her teeth so hard they could hear them grind. “Where the hell are we going?”
The Sage, who had been leading them through the maze of corridors, pointed to a door up ahead. It was made of glass and had a huge transparent sphere inside, like a giant snow globe.
“Right there,” he said.
They pushed the door open and stepped into a different world.
The ceiling was gone, replaced by a night sky full of twinkling stars.
The Sage gazed at the stars with a dreamy expression, as if he could see beyond them. He turned to Yu Xiao and said, “Yu Xiao, do you believe I’m real?”
Yu Xiao blinked, taken aback by the sudden question.
The Sage gestured to the stars and said, “Those are the stars I’ve been watching for decades. You say this world is fake, just a simulation in the hospital game. But I feel real. I have preferences, emotions, even love…”
He trailed off, looking at her.
Yu Xiao was about to say something, when Liu Yu interrupted. “What’s that?” she asked, pointing to the dark corridor they had just left.
Yu Xiao looked and saw shadows moving in the darkness, like a swarm of rats. They were coming closer.
“Those are the outsiders from the lower wards,” the Sage said.
“From the wards?” Zheng Hong gasped. “Does that mean…”
“What do we do?” Fang Yu asked, panic in his voice. “You’re supposed to save the hospital, right? Why aren’t you doing anything?”
The Sage blinked, as if he had forgotten about that. “Oh, right,” he said. “We have to stop them. Just give me five more minutes.”
“Five minutes?” Fang Yu repeated. “How are we supposed to stop them for five minutes?”
Yu Xiao reached into her pocket and pulled out a handful of talismans. She handed them out to everyone. “We fight,” she said.
The Sage grabbed her hand. “You come with me,” he said.
He dragged her to the giant sphere, which looked like a cross between an astrolabe and a disco ball. In the centre of it, there was a platform. The Sage climbed on it and pulled Yu Xiao with him. He sat down there.
Starlight poured from the sky, wrapping the Sage in a radiant cocoon. He looked like a god in his white Tang robes, glowing with celestial power.
Yu Xiao felt a pang of dread. “What’s the deal with this thing?” she asked, pointing to the sphere he was sitting on.
The Sage smiled faintly at her. “I guess I owe you an explanation.”
He said, “This world is called the Sage World. Every few decades, a new Sage is born here. They have amazing wisdom, able to see the past and the future. They get stronger as they grow older.”
The light around him grew brighter and brighter.
“But this world needs energy to keep going. Some mysterious force built a hospital in the middle of it. Every once in a while, outsiders come out of the hospital. They want to take the Sage inside, and use their power to run this world.”
Yu Xiao gasped. “You mean…”
He nodded. “Ten years ago, I found out the truth. I was scared, terrified of being snatched by the outsiders. So I made the Sage Tower and hid in it. I never left the tower. No one could find me. I was safe for a long time.”
He paused, then said, “But then I saw you.”
The Sage looked at her with starry eyes.
**
Zhao Lan ran for her life. The creature was right behind her, closing in fast. She couldn’t stop, not even for a second. She had to stall for time, until Smiley finished the job.
The creature was almost on her. She felt something brush against her hair.
She looked ahead and saw a figure. A woman. She had long hair and a slim body, but Zhou Xiao Zhen couldn’t make out her face.
What the hell? A woman here? No way, she had to be one of them.
Zhao Lan ran like hell, but she knew it was hopeless. She had just passed a woman’s figure, standing still and silent. But as soon as Zhao Lan was in front of her, the woman moved. She was fast, too fast, and she lunged at Zhao Lan from behind.
Zhao Lan barely saw a flash of red nails before something crashed behind her.
“Bang!”
She looked back and saw the woman. Or what was left of her.
She was a mess of blood and bones, twisted and broken. Her limbs were bent in unnatural angles. Her face was smashed beyond recognition.
But she was still alive.
She pushed herself up with her red-nailed hand and came at Zhao Lan again.
“Bang!”
“Bang…”
Each time, Zhao Lan felt the horrors chasing her, getting farther away with each step. She didn’t know why, and she didn’t really care. All she wanted to do was keep running.
“Bang!”
The woman hit the ground again, harder than before. Her head snapped to the side, cracking her neck. Half of her long, dark hair was ripped off, exposing her bloody scalp. Her leg was snapped in half, her arm was twisted like a pretzel.
She was barely moving, but she wasn’t giving up.
She crawled towards Zhao Lan, dragging her broken body behind her.
As she passed Zhao Lan, she reached out with her red-nailed hand. She was holding something. Zhao Lan didn’t know what it was, but she felt a strange calmness. She took it from the woman, holding it tight as she ran on.
Behind her, she heard angry screams and gnashing teeth.
Zhao Lan held on to the small, hard thing in her hand. She didn’t know what it was, but it felt important.
**
“I was lonely,” the Sage said. “When I moved to the tower, I wanted nothing to do with anyone. I thought I’d be happy by myself forever. Then I figured, maybe a phone call wouldn’t hurt.”
“Then I started to miss seeing people, not talking to them, just watching them.”
“Then I wanted to talk to them, to connect with them. But they ignored me, and I couldn’t relate to them because I knew everything about them.”
“Then I decided, screw it, I’d rather die for loving an outsider. At least I’d get to experience something new and beautiful.”
The Sage laughed, “Love is sweeter than I ever dreamed. I don’t think I can live without it.”
“You could’ve refused,” Yu Xiao said, her voice cracking, “You could have said no to me using that card.”
“I lied,” the Sage said, fading away, his face barely visible, “I believe in fate. The fate of the Sage is to become starlight here. Even if there were no outsiders, I’d end up here sooner or later. When I die, a new Sage will be born in this world.”
The Sage sighed, “It’s a shame, the Sage has always been here, but I never had a name.”
Yu Xiao tried to speak, but the Sage was gone, the starlight gone, the sky clear.
“Gone! They’re gone!”
Liu Yu and the others cheered, throwing their last talismans in the air. They had barely managed to fend off the ghosts. They had lucked out when the ghosts decided to leave.
Yu Xiao reached for the spot where the Sage had been, but there was nothing there. He had disappeared, without a trace.
Yu Xiao felt tears in her eyes. She wondered, for the first time, if everything in the instance world was real.
“It’s moving! It’s moving!”
“Holy crap, it’s not dead…”
Yu Xiao turned and saw a figure outside the glass door, trying to get up.
Liu Yu ran to Yu Xiao and pointed at the figure. “Yu Xiao, did you see that? That ghost saved us. We were toast, and then it showed up, like a badass, and scared off the other ghosts. But it got hurt, and it collapsed. I thought it was a goner…”
Yu Xiao watched as the figure got up, leaning on the glass door with a hand that had three broken fingers.
It slouched, its head low, as if carrying a heavy weight. As it walked away, it looked at Yu Xiao. Its face was filthy but kind. Its eyes were dark red, and they made Yu Xiao’s heart flutter.
“I have your phone!” Yu Xiao blurted out, “And a charger! If you want to send messages, tell me!”
“What?” Liu Yu and the others said, confused. “Who are you talking to?”
**
In the middle of the mahjong game, the three monsters suddenly fell asleep.
Zhou Xiao Zhen couldn’t believe what was happening. Who would have thought that a mahjong game could come to a halt just because some players dozed off?
As she tidied up the tiles, she couldn’t help but tremble. She had just narrowly escaped a life-threatening situation. She had had enough of the game. When she glanced up, she noticed a pair of wheels right in front of her.
Zhou Xiao Zhen crouched down and saw Qing Shi’s angry face above her.
“Well, well, well,” Qing Shi said, his voice like a cheese grater, “look who’s still breathing.”
Zhou Xiao Zhen felt a chill. Why did he sound so pissed at her?
“Uh…” Zhou Xiao Zhen said, “does this mean we can go now?”
“Ha!” Qing Shi snorted. He was mad. His domain was supposed to be one of the hardest, but they had all made it out alive.
**
Everything went dark for Yu Xiao, and when she opened her eyes again, she was back in the ward.
She looked around, glad to see Zhao Lan and Zhou Xiao Zhen alive and well. “Thank God, you guys are okay.”
“That was insane,” Zhou Xiao Zhen said, cuddling her mahjong and smooching it. “My mahjong is awesome, it even tamed monsters.”
Zhao Lan didn’t look happy. She thought for a bit, then said, “I… I met a very weird… ghost.”
“Hee hee hee…” Zhou Xiao Zhen giggled creepily.
Yu Xiao wasn’t in the mood. She didn’t bother to ask what was so funny.
“Smiley, check this out,” Zhou Xiao Zhen showed her phone. “Don’t you and the Sage look cute holding hands?”
Yu Xiao froze, looking at Precious’s phone.
It was a photo, taken from the side, by a sneaky hand.
In the photo, she and the Sage were holding hands, she was clueless, looking forward, talking to someone. The Sage turned his head slightly, looking at the camera, his plain eyes mirroring the others around.
(Aahhh, the first sniffle arc. Don’t worry, the next death will make you cry even more… Hahhahah!)