Chapter 2: Monster

The wall was covered in grease stains. The mind of this young man, who had just turned eighteen, was a tangled mess of chaos; he didn't even scream immediately.

What is this?

Xueqiu's left hand, which had just pressed the switch, was firmly pinned to the wall by a tentacle. A fishy, bloody stench drilled into his nostrils, nearly suffocating him.

Under the incandescent light, the dining table was snapped in two. Soup and rice were spilled all over the ground, gluing the gauze table cover to the concrete floor. On the other side of the room lay a pool of fresh blood. In the center of that blood lay a severed arm, so thin it was just skin and bones.

"It's... Grandma..."

Terror, rising from the very depths of his heart, blocked Xueqiu's throat, yet he still managed to squeeze those few words out through his teeth.

"My only family..."

"Killed..."

"Why..."

The physical potential that had been ignited by fear suddenly extinguished. He felt completely powerless, as if the last thread of strength had been drained from his body. He slid down along the wall, but because his left hand was still firmly pinned by the tentacle, he couldn't slump onto the floor.

Xueqiu had never believed in the existence of demons or ghosts. After his parents passed away, his grandmother had become a devout Christian, but none of that mattered anymore.

That tentacle—whether it was a ghost or a monster—didn't matter anymore.

The chaotic mess before his eyes, along with the blood and the severed arm on the floor—none of it mattered anymore.

I'm going to die.

His eyes grew dim and lackluster. Those two copies of "5-Years-3-Years" were already soaked in blood. Until just a few minutes ago, they had been the key this young boy planned to use to break the shackles of this small city.

But, that didn't matter anymore.

My last relative has left me.

Is this death...?

Where do you go after you die...?

Watching the black tentacle slowly extending toward his neck, Xueqiu suddenly thought of this question.

In Buddhism, there is the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss and the Eighteen Levels of Hell. In Christianity, there is also the distinction between Heaven and Hell.

In the past, Grandma often said that those who believe in God go to Heaven when they die.

Then, when I die... will I go to Hell?

No. After death, there is actually nothing. It’s like pouring boiling water over a scrapped laptop, smashing it with a mallet, grinding it into dust, and scattering it into the sea. The files inside—not even the tiniest fragment—will remain. They will simply vanish forever.

Then... do I want to live?

Amidst the daze, this thought suddenly flooded his mind, crashing in like a car driving the wrong way down a highway.

Can I live?

What is there to live for, in this world where I’ve lost all my family?

Will living on be any good? Can I even do it?

The tentacle before his eyes…

Live on…

Live on…

Live.

In an instant, the will in his heart broke free from Xueqiu's control. A warm current involuntarily surged through his brain, drilling through his entire body like an electric shock.

He suddenly began to pull and yank with all his might, seemingly oblivious to the pain, until he forcibly tore his hand free from the gap between the tentacle and the wall.

Animals have an instinct to seek gain and avoid harm. Naturally, when faced with imminent death, a human will cast aside everything else and struggle for survival.

Xueqiu staggered backward. His gaze, previously blurred by sorrow, sharpened into clarity. Soon, he saw the tentacle under the incandescent light for what it was.

A monster.

What kind of existence was this?

Pitch-black, with blood and dust clinging tight to its jelly-like torso. The tentacles extending from the top of its body were thick and long.

Its owner was currently squirming up and down beside the pool of blood, as if it were…

Chewing.

In a split second, Xueqiu snatched up those two copies of "5-Years-3-Years" from the ground and smashed them viciously at the tentacle. Following them were shards of porcelain bowls, wooden planks, and anything else within reach that could be thrown.

The "stone-throwing" instinct, dating back to primitive society, was displayed to its fullest in this very second.

However, it was all futile.

The books were shredded; the porcelain shards and wooden planks were swallowed by the tentacle's jelly-like body. This time, the tentacle gave Xueqiu no time at all.

With a sharp whoosh, it stabbed straight toward his chest.

I'm going to die.

Bang—!

A deafening boom, like two steel blades colliding at high speed, neither gaining the upper hand.

Xueqiu opened his tightly shut eyes and found that the tentacle had been intercepted by an external force. Forcibly halting it was another tentacle—gray, completely unfamiliar, and radiating steam. It had come from the blind spot behind Xueqiu.

Subconsciously, Xueqiu looked back, but there was absolutely nothing there.

At the same time, that gray tentacle—which had been just as rigid as the black one—suddenly went limp.

Then, Xueqiu’s soft body was instantly pierced through by the black tentacle.

He felt only a chill in his chest. His body lost all strength. From the moment he was impaled, his blood pressure crashed into chaos. Blood gushed wildly from the wound, like a bright red fountain.

A few seconds later, intense pain began to spread throughout his body.

Pain…

Xueqiu collapsed to the ground without even managing to catch his breath. His vision began to blur, and fragments of past memories flashed through his mind.

His younger self, always pestering his father for bedtime stories…

His mother, whose behavior grew stranger and stranger, as if she had become a different person…

Himself, unable to emerge from grief for a long time after learning of his parents' accident…

And his classmates, Jiang Cheng, Su Qingyuan, and…

I'm sorry…

"Xiao Qiu, you need to control your emotions."

"Xiao Qiu, Mom is going to be fine, Dad promises you."

"Xiao Qiu, Mom and I are going away for a while. It’ll be okay; Grandma will come to take care of you."

"Qiu'er, you must study hard. Later, become a doctor like your father, curing diseases and saving people..."

Pain, panic, and tension converged all at once, twisted together like three thin ropes. His consciousness gradually returned, just enough for him to force his eyes open.

Footsteps, approaching from afar.

"Hello, hello, hello? Professor? Can you hear me, Professor? Surely there's a signal in Qingtan this time, right?"

"Right, I've arrived in Qingtan. I'm not late... at least this time I'm definitely not. You can rest assured—put ten thousand hearts at ease. It's just him here; no bystanders."

"The Shadow Ghost? Already butchered it. And that guy is alive and kicking, too; he's staring right at me... No, it’s not a 'stare of death'! Sigh, if you don't believe me, I'll just snap a photo for you..."

With a click, Xueqiu saw through his blurred vision that someone was pointing a phone at him and gently pressing the shutter button.

"There, it's this kid. But why does he look different from the photo? He even dyed his hair white. Meh, is he cosplaying? Who can you cosplay with blood-stained white hair, anyway...?"

White hair?

“Sigh…”

The voice sounded somewhat hoarse and thin. Feeling strength slowly returning to his body, Xueqiu struggled to crawl up from the ground, but he still lacked the strength. He could only roll around on the concrete floor, which was coated in blood and soup.

"Hey, hey, hey! Don't move yet! I haven't finished collecting samples. If it stays like this, my credits will get docked when I go back..."

His vision gradually cleared. Xueqiu saw distinctly that he was lying at the feet of a stranger.

It was a boy, wearing an old gray jacket, with black hair and about the same age as him—except for a particularly conspicuous ahoge sticking up from the top of his head.

Seeing that Xueqiu was insistent on standing up, the stranger reached out a hand and helped him sit by the stairs, his mouth never stopping its rambling.

"See? You wanted to get up, so I helped you up. That's pretty cool of me, right? Remember to put in a good word for me with the Professor later. Hiss... actually, how about this? Just say you are extremely grateful to Senior Brother Xia Yin who saved your life. How’s that? Simple enough right?"