Chapter 133: Night Parade of One Hundred Demons
Afterwards, Lin Qiushi sent Ruan Nanzhu several more text messages, asking about Ruan Nanzhu's whereabouts, but there was no response from the other end, and Lin Qiushi became more and more worried.
The rain continued to fall as Lin Qiushi sat at a bus stop. The empty streets were shrouded in a curtain of rain. The already dim streets became even darker due to the relentless downpour. The entire world seemed like a gradually melting oil painting, completely blurred.
Lin Qiushi felt a bit cold and began to cough softly. He knew it was time to leave again. At the end of the rain, he saw a slowly approaching black figure. Although he couldn't see its specific appearance clearly, he thought... it wouldn't be anything pleasant.
Lin Qiushi stood up and continued walking forward. As he walked further and further, the empty road became lined with black picture frames. These frames hung on the tree trunks lining the road. Some of the canvases were painted with ferocious figures, while others were empty.
In Lin Qiushi's eyes, the road seemed to have become a gallery, with the owner's beloved paintings on both sides, but some paintings had not yet filled up, and Lin Qiushi was the work that was targeted.
Lin Qiushi glanced at his watch. It was still at least two hours before dawn. Just as he was thinking about how to wait until dawn, he heard footsteps getting closer and closer behind him.
Lin Qiushi turned around and saw a skinless figure staring at him from the dark street—it was none other than Xu Jin's sister. She lay sprawled on the wet ground, her black hair tangled around her shoulders. Legless, she could only use her hands to move, but this didn't slow her down at all. Instead, she bolted towards Lin Qiushi like a wild beast freed from its cage. Raindrops fell on her body, washing away the bright red blood. Lin Qiushi also ran, but his speed was no match for Xu Jin's, and in a blink of an eye, she was overtaken.
Feeling a strong wind coming from behind, Lin Qiushi ducked down to avoid the attack. He hid in the bushes nearby and watched the monster pounce on the place where he was just now.
But this was just the beginning. Without Xu Jin's resistance, her sister did not hide her strong murderous intent towards Lin Qiushi at all. It seemed that she wanted Lin Qiushi to die in the most miserable way.
When Lin Qiushi left that door, she slapped him in the face, causing him to develop severe pneumonia and stay in the hospital for a long time. Naturally, she would not show mercy when she could take Lin Qiushi's life.
Lin Qiushi rolled around in the mud, looking utterly miserable. He got up and tried to leave, but the muddy ground caused him to fall flat on his face. Xu Jin's sister, taking advantage of his fall, quickly crawled over to him.
She lay on top of Lin Qiushi, tilting her head to look at him. The transparent rain washed over her skin, turning into a fishy-smelling scarlet liquid. Drop by drop, that liquid dripped onto Lin Qiushi's face and body. From his angle, he could even see a scarlet tongue through her grinning white teeth...
The monster gave Lin Qiushi a ferocious smile. She looked into Lin Qiushi's eyes, as if she was enjoying the fear before death in Lin Qiushi's eyes.
"Why does she like you so much?" The monster lowered its head and whispered in Lin Qiushi's ear. Its long nails scratched Lin Qiushi's skin, leaving a broken scratch on his cheek. Bright red blood slowly flowed out from the broken place, and Lin Qiushi felt the warm temperature of the blood.
It seemed like a dead end at this point, but Lin Qiushi's gaze passed the monster and saw an empty black picture frame hanging next to it.
He took a deep breath and said, "If you kill me, aren't you afraid that your sister will hate you?"
"Hate me? Why should she hate me? She cheated me of my skin and legs. She owes me." The monster chuckled, but the laughter was so harsh, hoarse and sharp, like a knife scratching glass.
Lin Qiushi smiled, "Really? But her eyes don't say that."
The monster stared at Lin Qiushi's smile, stunned for a moment. Then, she quickly glanced back. Seeing nothing behind her, her anger at being deceived instantly ignited. She grabbed Lin Qiushi's shoulder with all her might, tearing off a chunk of flesh. But taking advantage of this opening, Lin Qiushi, enduring the excruciating pain, leaped from the ground and grabbed the black photo frame hanging nearby.
The monster saw Lin Qiushi's movements, but she didn't realize what they meant. It was just a photo frame. Even if it hit her, it wouldn't cause much harm. This was just the dying struggle of the person in front of her... This thought disappeared the moment the photo frame touched her body. She felt an indescribable chill sweeping over her body. The picture in front of her began to distort, and her body was taken to another place by the powerful suction, unable to move at all.
The monster vanished from Lin Qiushi's sight, replaced by a blood-red painting. Within the painting, a skinless monster seemed to be struggling to break free from the paper.
Lin Qiushi's hand holding the scroll loosened, and the scroll fell to the ground, splashing water. He covered the bleeding wound with his hand and climbed up from the ground with difficulty.
His clothes were stained red with blood, but quickly returned to their original color due to the rain. The injured part was washed a pale white by the water. Lin Qiushi took out a roll of bandage from the backpack behind him and roughly wrapped the wound.
The backpack was completely soaked with water, but fortunately Lin Qiushi had put all the things into plastic bags in advance, so the things could still be used.
Lin Qiushi sat on the ground, gasping for breath, feeling extremely miserable. However, the scroll that had fallen to the ground beside him began to make strange noises, as if something trapped inside was struggling unwillingly, trying to break free from the constraints of the frame.
Lin Qiushi staggered to his feet, holding onto the wall and continued walking forward.
His cell phone vibrated slightly, indicating a new text message. Lin Qiushi hurriedly picked up the phone and saw that Ruan Nanzhu had sent him a reply.
Ruan Nanzhu revealed his current location, which turned out to be a school in the city center. However, he asked Lin Qiushi not to come to him for the time being, saying that the situation there was not very good, and if Lin Qiushi came, he might encounter even worse situations.
That’s right. Ruan Nanzhu has been married for so many years and has encountered many more monsters than Lin Qiushi. At this moment, all the ghosts and monsters rushed out at once, just like the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons.
Lin Qiushi gripped his phone, reading Ruan Nanzhu's message several times, word for word. By the time he realized what was happening, he was back in the middle of the street. A long, dark figure reappeared behind him, moving closer and closer. No matter how fast he sped, he couldn't shake her off.
Because of the injuries on his body, Lin Qiushi's steps became slower and slower, and his strength kept draining away from him. Just when he felt that he was about to give up and fall to the ground, a voice softly calling his name rang in his ears.
"Lin Qiushi..." It was a girl's voice, as sweet as an oriole. At first, Lin Qiushi even thought it was an illusion in his dying moments. However, the voice kept ringing, "Lin Qiushi, Lin Qiushi, Lin Qiushi..."
"Who..." Lin Qiushi's keen hearing played a key role again at this time. He avoided the noisy sound of rain and finally found the source of the sound. However, the place where the sound came from was a little incredible - it was on the road in front of Lin Qiushi, but the road was obviously empty and there was nothing.
Lin Qiushi asked, "Is that you? Zaozao? Is that you?" He felt that the voice belonged to Tan Zaozao, but he couldn't be completely sure. He could only call her name and walk towards the road where the voice came from.
When Lin Qiushi arrived at the location where the sound came from, he still didn't see anyone until he heard Tan Zaozao's call coming from the ground in front of him.
Lin Qiushi looked down in shock and saw the rainwater piling up on the road.
Because the rain was so heavy and couldn't drain quickly, puddles of varying sizes appeared on the road. The dim light from the street lamps cast a shadow over Lin Qiushi's features. However, in the puddle before him, a woman in a red dress appeared, eagerly waving at him, "Here, come here!"
Lin Qiushi asked, "Zao Zao?"
"Qiu Shi, come down quickly." Tan Zaozao said, "She's coming!"
Lin Qiushi didn't need to look back to know it was not far behind him, for he could already hear the sound of footsteps in the rain. He looked at Tan Zaozao, gritted his teeth, and tentatively stepped into the puddle in front of him. However, he missed the mark and fell directly into the shallow puddle.
Fortunately, the place he fell to wasn't too deep. Lin Qiushi took a few breaths before realizing that he had appeared in a dilapidated house. Above his head was not the ceiling, but a thin layer of water...
"Long time no see." Tan Zaozao smiled sweetly. Her hair was loose and she was wearing the beautiful long dress that Lin Qiushi had worn the last time he saw her. "Qiushi."
"Long time no see." Lin Qiushi replied.
Although Li Dongyuan had been mentally prepared yesterday, when he saw Tan Zaozao, he still felt an indescribable complex emotion in his heart. He said, "Is it okay for you to stay here?"
"That's great." Tan Zaozao said, "At least I can help the person I like." She curved her eyebrows and smiled happily.
"That's good." Lin Qiushi had a lot to say, but he didn't know where to start. So they were silent for a moment. Tan Zaozao said softly, "She's coming. No matter what she sees, don't say anything."
Lin Qiushi nodded.
The sound of footsteps in the rain stopped above their heads. Through the shallow puddles, Lin Qiushi saw the girl's black skirt and pointed hat brim. She also noticed the presence of Lin Qiushi and Tan Zaozao, and lowered her head slightly, revealing half of her pale face.
Lin Qiushi, who was standing below, looked into her eyes.
The girl grinned and gave Lin Qiushi a strange smile, then she turned around and just left.
"Gone?" Tan Zaozao seemed a little surprised. She said, "That shouldn't be the case..."
Before she finished her words, the girl's footsteps were heard again. Lin Qiushi was wondering if she had turned around to get something, and then he saw her raise her hand and reveal a painting framed in a black frame.
Lin Qiushi's breath nearly stopped after seeing the figure in the scroll. It was a handsome man, his expression utterly terrified, as he gestured with his hand outstretched. The man looked exactly like Ruan Nanzhu when he entered Girl in the Rain.
Tan Zaozao also saw the scroll. After a moment of surprise, she quickly covered Lin Qiushi's mouth with her hand, obviously afraid that he would scream.
Lin Qiushi stared at the scroll, his emotions churning inside him, while the girl grinned and laughed. She said, "Don't you like him very much? Why don't you come and save him?"
Lin Qiushi took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. He took out his phone and sent another message to Ruan Nanzhu, asking about the situation over there.
There was no response from the other end. Lin Qiushi stared at the scroll, his eyes looking as if he wanted to stare a hole in it.
The girl looked at Lin Qiushi's expression and laughed out loud. Then, she took the scroll out of its frame and pretended to tear it up. She said, "If you don't come out, I'll tear it up. Then, you'll never see him again."
Upon hearing this, Tan Zaozao shook her head at Lin Qiushi, signaling him not to make a sound.
Lin Qiushi held the phone tightly, and because he was holding it too tightly, the wounds on his body that had turned white from being soaked by the rain began to bleed again.
Seeing that Lin Qiushi remained indifferent, the girl growled softly, then tore the scroll in her hand in two and threw it roughly to the ground.
Lin Qiushi watched her movements and gritted his teeth.
Tan Zaozao looked at Lin Qiushi worriedly. It wasn't until the girl turned and walked away that she whispered, "That's definitely not Brother Ruan's painting. You have to trust Brother Ruan."
Lin Qiushi glanced at his phone and remained silent about Tan Zaozao's advice.
"Qiu Shi..." Tan Zaozao said, "She must have lied to you. That painting might just be a simple painting."
Lin Qiushi felt a little tired. He sat down beside the bed, leaning against the wall, looking at the sky above where it was still raining, and uttered two words: "It's okay."
But Lin Qiushi's expression didn't look like he was fine. Tan Zaozao sat next to him, trying to find a topic to lighten the atmosphere.
"What exactly is your situation here?" Lin Qiushi asked. "Will you have daylight? Or will you be trapped here forever?"
"As for me," Tan Zaozao said, "I'm in a strange state right now. I have memories of the day at night, but I can't remember what happened at night during the day." As she spoke, she observed Lin Qiushi's expression. "Maybe everything that happened at night was just a dream to me during the day."
Lin Qiushi was silent for a moment: "Have you ever seen Qianli?"
"Qianli? Why would I see Qianli?" After Tan Zaozao said this, she suddenly realized the hidden meaning in Lin Qiushi's words, and her eyes widened. "Qianli he—no way! How could it be!"
Among the Obsidian people, apart from Lin Qiushi and Ruan Nanzhu, the one with whom Tan Zaozao had the best relationship was Cheng Qianli. She had never imagined that Cheng Qianli was also...
Lin Qiushi sighed softly. Since Tan Zaozao reacted like this, it meant that she definitely had not met Cheng Guo Qianli.
Lin Qiushi was about to continue speaking when he suddenly felt a strong sense of sleepiness. He could see Tan Zaozao's mouth opening and closing, but he had no idea what she was saying.
The irresistible sleepiness made Lin Qiushi close his eyes. He fell into the corner and fell asleep.
After an unknown amount of time, the sound of the alarm clock woke Lin Qiushi from his sleep. He opened his eyes and saw the warm sunshine outside the window.
Lin Qiushi got up from the bed, checked the time, washed up hastily, and then went out to the airport.
In the car, he checked his text messages but saw no reply from Ruan Nanzhu. Everything that happened last night seemed like a bizarre dream. Only the dull pain in his shoulder reminded Lin Qiushi that this had really happened.
The shoulder that was injured by the monster was covered with purple handprints. Although it looked scary, it didn't hurt much, so Lin Qiushi didn't pay any attention to it.
Lin Qiushi boarded a plane at ten in the morning, still more than two hours before arriving at his destination. He was sleepy, but unable to fall asleep. The image he had seen the previous night kept replaying in his mind. He wondered if the shredded portrait was of Ruan Nanzhu. The thought hung heavy on his mind like a heavy rock.
There will be an answer to the matter eventually. Lin Qiushi decided to wait for Ruan Nanzhu's text message tonight. If Ruan Nanzhu didn't give him a message, he would go directly to the school Ruan Nanzhu mentioned to find him.
Lin Qiushi understood that caring too much would lead to confusion, but when it really happened to him, he couldn't remain indifferent.
He barely managed a short nap on the plane, and when the plane arrived at its destination, he rushed out of the airport and took a taxi straight to a certain location.
In the taxi, the driver, assuming Lin Qiushi was a tourist, enthusiastically introduced the city's scenery. Lin Qiushi responded intermittently, occasionally raising his wrist to check the time.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, Lin Qiushi arrived at an ordinary residential area. Relying on his memory, he went straight to a certain house number in a certain building.
Ding-dong-ding-dong, after the doorbell rang twice, a young boy's childish voice came from the door: "Who is it?"
Lin Qiushi moved his lips, but no words came out.
A moment later, the door in front of him opened, and a boy's face appeared in Lin Qiushi's field of vision. He stared at Lin Qiushi with his beautiful cat-like eyes and asked, "Who are you looking for?"
Lin Qiushi looked at his face and tears welled up in his eyes. He reached out and hugged him tightly in front of the child's terrified eyes. He finally called out his name: "Qianli."
Cheng Qianli, who was inside the door, was terrified. He instinctively wanted to struggle, but facing the tearful Lin Qiushi, he could only whisper, "Brother, did you recognize the wrong person? I don't know you."
Lin Qiushi let go of him and wiped away his tears. He asked, "Qianli, are you doing well?"
Cheng Qianli was frightened and quietly shrank towards the door. Lin Qiushi saw through his trick and directly pressed the door, saying, "Don't be afraid, I'm not a strange person." After he said this, he smiled bitterly. Judging from his words and actions, he didn't look like a normal person at all.
"Oh." Cheng Qianli responded, "But I...I really don't know you."
"You..." Lin Qiushi asked, "Are you an only child?"
Cheng Qianli nodded.
Lin Qiushi let out a breath and said, "I..." The words came to his lips, but he swallowed them back and said, "Forget it, it's nothing." He turned around and was about to leave.
Cheng Qianli's hesitant voice came over, and he said: "Um... do you want to come to my house for some popsicles?"
Lin Qiushi asked, "Aren't you afraid that I'm a bad guy?"
Cheng Qianli: "I'm scared." He scratched his head, "Don't steal from my house, I will call the police."
Lin Qiushi looked at him and thought, Cheng Qianli, oh Cheng Qianli, even if I could live my life over again, you'd still be just as foolish... Bringing a stranger home like this, if they really wanted to do something, how could a child like you resist? He sighed and lectured him seriously, "Never bring strangers into the house again."
Cheng Qianli: "Ah?"
Lin Qiushi said, "Did you hear me? You can't bring strangers into the house!"
Cheng Qianli looked at him in horror: "But you are a stranger too?"
Lin Qiushi said, "Your name is Cheng Qianli, and my name is Lin Qiushi. Okay, now we know each other and are no longer strangers."
Cheng Qianli said "oh", but he always felt that something seemed wrong. But before he could figure it out, Lin Qiushi had already walked into his house.
After entering the house, what caught Lin Qiushi's eyes was the living room of Cheng Qianli's house. The furnishings here were the same as he remembered, but there was one thing missing - the portrait of Cheng Qianli placed in the center of the living room.
Lin Qiushi's first visit to Cheng Qianli's home was to see his parents off. They cleaned the house and carefully placed a black-and-white photo in the center of the living room, lighting incense and laying out Cheng Qianli's favorite food. His mother muttered that her son was so clueless, wondering if he could ever find his way back home. His father chain-smoked in silence. Cheng Qianli's brother, Yixie, stood before the portrait for a long time, tears failing him. His lifeless black eyes gazed at his brother in the photo, a dead look on his face.
"It's all my fault." Cheng Yixie said something that Lin Qiushi had remembered for a long time. He said, "If it weren't for me..."
Lin Qiushi came back from his memories and wiped his face at the scene in front of him. He thought, at least in this world, Cheng Yixie's wish was realized in another way.
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