Chapter 198
The third day, the fourth day, and the fifth day.
Just like watching heads fall one by one before his eyes at the beginning of the game, when he heard "The Sixth Day" uttered from the mouth of the vengeful spirit that tormented him, Li Yong felt as if he were on the verge of collapse. Like a person standing under the gallows, he was overwhelmed by pain and regret and could not bear any more.
So when he opened his eyes for the seventh time, he didn't care about anything else and ran all the way to the street, where he grabbed someone and cried his heart out.
"I know I was wrong, I regret it! I shouldn't have killed anyone, I shouldn't have treated human life so lightly! Call someone to arrest me! Call someone to arrest me now!"
People seemed stunned by this sudden scene, and those who wanted to watch the spectacle and those who wanted to help gathered around.
There was a constant commotion from all sides, with crowds of people and shadowy figures asking what had happened.
Li Yong knelt on the ground, clinging tightly to the man, and tearfully confessed all his crimes, including participating in bullying when he was a child and framing classmates for fun.
No matter who tried to pull him up, he refused to get up, repeatedly saying, "I was wrong! I'm guilty!"
After saying that, he kowtowed heavily!
The noise grew quieter and quieter, like the tide slowly receding, turning into countless cold, numb gazes scrutinizing Li Yong as he continued to confess.
Until a calm voice rang out, its volume neither high nor low, yet it struck my heart like a heavy hammer: "Do you really know you were wrong?"
"I know! I know!" Li Yong said hastily, as if grasping at the last straw, his face covered in tears and snot.
Then he was arrested and taken to law enforcement.
Law enforcement officers checked his crimes one by one. When they found the first one, they frowned slightly and looked at Li Yong seriously: "This person is not dead, but he was indeed hit by someone. Are you the hit-and-run driver who is on the run?"
Law enforcement officers told Li Yong that not only were those people not killed, but his confession that the crimes occurred several months later was pure nonsense!
Now it can be confirmed that it was an attempted murder, and the victim will have to stay in the hospital for several months.
At first, Li Yong wouldn't listen at all, nervously biting his fingers and stammering as he admitted his mistake.
He only looked over blankly when his aunt rushed to the law enforcement agency in a panic and started yelling at him.
After being detained in the detention center for about ten days, Li Yong went to court.
He was handcuffed and dressed in a gray prison uniform. He looked haggard and had a stubble beard. When he saw the man's parents in the victims' section, he seemed guilty and ashamed. He didn't dare to look them in the eye and just lowered his head to confess to the crimes he had committed.
Because of his good attitude in admitting his mistakes and the fact that no death occurred, he was sentenced to ten years in prison during the trial.
On the day he was imprisoned, Li Yong was taken off the vehicle along with other serious offenders.
The high walls stand majestically, like a silent behemoth.
There was a large open space in front of the gate. The limestone ground shone brightly under the blazing sun. It was deserted, with no one else in sight except for armed guards.
He queued up and stepped across the porch. With a loud bang, the silver-white metal door slammed shut behind him. Li Yong couldn't help but turn around and take a look.
Two figures stood silently at the doorway, their faces blurred in the sunlight, resembling his aunt and uncle, before turning and leaving.
Li Yong opened his mouth to call for help, but before he could, the figure had already faded away. He stared blankly for a long time before closing his mouth and walking silently into the prison.
What followed was a long period of imprisonment.
The alarm clock rings at 6:30 a.m. to wake up, cleaning is done at 7:10 a.m., assembling on the playground at 7:20 a.m., and entering the factory area to work at 7:30 a.m. The supervisory unit has a very strict control over the time of the inmates. The various rules and regulations seem to be hammering the rules into people's spines, leaving no possibility of cheating or shirking responsibility.
Free people living in society find it hard to adapt to a life where they have to loudly report when they go to the toilet. Moreover, there is a hierarchy of contempt among prisoners. People like Li Yong, who are heartless and cruel, and who drive into people out of jealousy, are truly despicable.
As a result, Li Yong had his blankets stolen when he slept, had to offer sacrifices when he ate, had to bow and bend over when he met his elder brother, and if he said the wrong thing, he would be pinned to the ground, have his head stepped on, and be asked with contempt and disdain if he admitted his mistake.
Li Yong accepted it all, and said humbly with a sob in his voice, "I admit it, I admit it."
For the first two years after arriving in prison, Li Yong was basically in a daze, often unable to distinguish between reality and hallucination, staring blankly at the time on a clock or electronic display screen.
Five years later, he seemed to have finally accepted reality and gotten used to this kind of life. He stopped saying "I was wrong" and instead took practical actions to repent for his sins.
He was paid for his prison labor and saved all the money, not spending a single penny. He sent half to his aunt and half to his husband.
Two more years passed. Li Yong served his sentence diligently and honestly. Whenever anyone in the prison had a problem, he would do his best to help. When someone wanted to escape and take him with them, he firmly refused and reported it. He received numerous awards and praises. Gradually, people's opinions of him changed, and even the guards couldn't help but praise him.
Seven years passed in this way. Due to his good behavior and his meritorious service in reporting others' prison breaks, Li Yong was granted a reduced sentence.
It felt like just yesterday when he was released from prison. Li Yong looked around the empty gate helplessly until he saw his aunt with red eyes. His lips trembled, and he quickly walked over to her, excitedly calling her name in a low voice.
His aunt looked at him without saying a word. After a long while, she sighed with a sob in her voice and said, "Let's go, let's go!"
We returned home in silence.
Li Yong developed a habit of keeping track of time while in prison over the years, and he didn't change it even after returning home. He needs to hold a watch or alarm clock to fall asleep peacefully.
The next day, he found out where the man was staying and went to apologize with nutritional supplements and fruit.
Seven years have passed, and both of them are getting on in years. The man has settled down, started a family, and is now living a happy and harmonious life.
When the child saw Li Yong sitting awkwardly on the sofa, he skipped over and handed him an orange, smiling sweetly, "Uncle, you can have this."
Looking at this happy family, Li Yong's eyes sparkled. The man thought he would be jealous and resentful, but to his surprise, Li Yong smiled with tears of joy: "It's so good, so good."
The man's tense muscles suddenly relaxed, and he looked at Li Yong suspiciously. He had actually corrected his mistake?
No one believed that Li Yong would turn back from the wrong path, and Li Yong himself found it unbelievable, but he seemed to have gotten used to living under rules and regulations and to abiding by public order and good customs.
And so it went, day after day, and several more years passed.
Whether it was a miracle or not, Li Yong's old injury healed on its own, and he no longer needed to wear a ventilator all the time.
People couldn't accept his scars, so he wore a mask. Because of his good personality and his willingness to help his neighbors, people gradually accepted his appearance and would occasionally invite him to banquets and meals.
One sunny afternoon, a noodle shop on the street was being renovated and expanded, and they asked Li Yong to come and help. Li Yong happily agreed.
He was standing behind the construction workers, handing them tools, when he suddenly heard a loud thud beside him.
Looking back, I saw a person's body turn transparent, and the table and chairs they were carrying instantly slipped off their faded shoulders and crashed to the ground!
"What's wrong with you?" Li Yong rushed forward and asked in a panic.
The man was initially surprised, seemingly not expecting his own change. Then, seeing Li Yong's anxious appearance, he exchanged glances with the others and chuckled, "It's alright, Lao Li! Don't panic."
The man decided to be honest and smiled sincerely at Li Yong, saying, "Actually, this world is still fake. It was built by that god specifically to make you atone for your sins. Now that you have repented, there is no need to keep you locked in this cage anymore."
"Li Yong, congratulations, you've proven yourself. Now that our hatred has been avenged, we'll have nothing to do with each other from this day forward."
As soon as the words were spoken, the familiar street scene shattered like a glass dome, falling down in a soft, dripping stream.
Li Yong subconsciously closed his eyes, and vaguely heard a voice in his ear: "The seventh day has passed..."
Like the tolling of church bells, melodious and lingering, doves of peace fluttered in the orange-red twilight, their white wings drifting down.
In the pastor's gentle and holy intercessory prayers, the stains on the sinful souls were finally cleansed.
[Ding! The shop owner voluntarily concedes defeat. The score is now tied at 1-1. The game is about to end!]
Li Yong opened his eyes.
He found himself standing at the front of the dodgeball event, with only a ray of sunlight shining through the open tent curtain in the dim light.
He was reinstated as shopkeeper, and the comments panel of the kingdom's citizens reappeared before his eyes. The audience was extremely excited about Xie Xubai's defeat and discussed how to punish this clown.
Li Yong watched silently, then turned his head away.
Several vengeful spirits floated in mid-air; they were the men he had killed in life. Even after death, their karma remained unbroken, so they were imprisoned as his accomplices and forced to be enslaved by him.
Perhaps because Li Yong didn't react immediately, but just stared at them blankly, the man stepped forward and said with a kind smile, "Old Li..."
For over a decade in the illusion, Li Yong proved his sincere repentance through his actions, and the man reconciled with Li Yong in the fifteenth year. He called him "Old Li" with the warmth of rekindling old friendship.
The next second.
哢.
The butcher's knife whistled through the air as it struck, catching all the vengeful spirits off guard. In the blink of an eye, the man's grotesque body was severed in two, and thick, scarlet blood splattered like flowers.
The other vengeful spirits stared at the man lying on the ground, then at Li Yong, who was holding a blood-stained butcher knife and smiling honestly and peacefully, their pupils dilating inch by inch.
The vengeful spirit: "Why did you..."
Another "snap".
The butcher's knife swung down and cleaved him in two.
Li Yong wiped the blood splattered on his face. His honest and simple face slowly narrowed into slits with his eyes, and a vicious and cruel smile burst forth: "That felt good."
"I endured humiliation and hardship for seventeen years, waiting for you to slip up and for that bastard to run out of energy. It was worth it."
Li Yong is still the same Li Yong.
Just like those villains who reform themselves during their imprisonment but continue to cause trouble after their release.
No one, including the victims, could have imagined that they were such good actors, having acted for over a decade.
Li Yong was filled with resentment for having been someone's grandson for over ten years. Now, he finally got his revenge and burst into laughter as he killed people!
That's the feel, that's the expression of pain!
Scream louder, scream more pitifully! It makes him happy!
It was at this moment that Li Yong caught a glimpse of Xie Xubai.
The young man stood at the entrance of the passage, his eyes wide with disbelief. He seemed to regret admitting defeat and letting him go. He tried to rush forward to stop them, but was blocked by the other vengeful spirits who cried out for him to run away!
"Naive, so naive! You lost the game and you're trying to run away?! Hahaha!"
With a single thought from Li Yong, the young man was bound to the rules, unable to move.
More and more vengeful spirits came to stop him, but Li Yong grinned maliciously and swung his arm, his butcher knife cutting through grass as he beheaded the vengeful spirits one by one.
One, two, three...
Six!
Seven!
Eight!
Including the man from the beginning, a total of eleven vengeful spirits met their tragic end.
The young man ran away, his back to him. Li Yong suddenly remembered the nightmare at the very beginning of the game, the part about dying on the seventh day, and he laughed out loud.
He simply raised the butcher's knife, swung it across the young man's head, and then released the restraints.
The young man regained his mobility and was patted on the back. He instinctively looked over and saw Li Yong smiling slightly at him. Suddenly, Li Yong raised the heavy, sharp butcher knife and, meeting the young man's terrified gaze, forcefully chopped down on his head.
"Die!!"
Clang!
The butcher's knife struck the bone squarely, and a stream of scalding hot liquid slid down Li Yong's forehead, dripping onto the corner of his upturned mouth. It was thicker than water and smelled like rotten rat meat.
Li Yong touched his face blankly, then opened it to find his hands covered in blood.
He slowly raised his head and looked over. The person whose head had been chopped off clearly had his face on it!
Did he... kill him?
As if reliving the nightmare of being beheaded, Li Yong belatedly felt the pain of his head being split open.
Sharp, intense.
Li Yong was in so much pain that he collapsed heavily to the ground. The butcher's knife clattered to the ground, and his pupils gradually dilated. He convulsed and twitched like a dying dog.
He couldn't believe it.
How is this possible? Why is this happening? The game was clearly over, and that person's mental energy was exhausted, wasn't it?
Was it designed by him?
Was this all planned from the beginning by that player named Yan Chuyi?!
Li Yong had no time to care about any of this.
The unharmed vengeful spirits gathered around Li Yong, coldly looking down at him.
There was no seventh day; it was just to set up a psychological defense line for Li Yong, to make him mistakenly believe that he was safe, so that he could confidently tear off the pretense.
The vengeful spirits declared in unison: "Today is your death day."
A realistic system announcement sounded.
[Due to the player being hit by the "real ball" and suffering a serious injury, he is unable to continue the game. The match is declared a victory for the shop owner, "Yan Chuyi." Congratulations! Both players will now exit the game...]
When I opened my eyes again, I was back in the old dodgeball lobby.
The rules reset his physical condition, and Li Yong's wounds healed in the blink of an eye. He struggled to his feet, drenched in sweat.
If I hadn't "died" so many times, I might not have been able to withstand the pain in the illusion.
As he reached out, he touched a blood-stained butcher's knife, a weapon previously used to torture and kill innocent people and players, which this time ended up cutting into his own head.
Li Yong's hand snapped back instantly. He was traumatized. When he looked up again, he met Xie Xubai's calm and indifferent eyes.
Those eyes were as deep and serene as the vast universe.
The Milky Way inside is dazzling and captivating, but its boundless mystery is also awe-inspiring.
Xie Xubai is such a complex combination; he is gentle and beautiful, yet powerful and dignified. In the blink of an eye, one can be unconsciously drawn into his charm.
The game is over.
But the shop owner has not yet received the "punishment".
Xie Xubai looked at Li Yong and said in a declarative tone, "Your employer didn't ask you to cut off other people's heads. That was your personal hobby. You enjoy watching other people suffer before they die."
Li Yong wanted to beg for mercy, but he couldn't speak. He was frozen in place by the rules, his pupils trembled wildly, and tears streamed down his face again.
But those were just crocodile tears; they couldn't change his vicious and incorrigible nature.
“In that case,” Xie Xubai said, “as the shop owner, I will give you the authority and responsibility of acting as the shop owner, to be in charge of reaping the heads of the losing players, which is to say, your head.”
"Let's get started now."
Knowing that he was really going to die, Li Yong's fear reached its peak. He screamed wildly in his heart, tears and snot streaming down his face, making him look utterly pathetic.
He shakily grasped the knife he had just dropped, held it across his neck, and slowly drew out a line of blood.
In moments of extreme fear, Li Yong would recall how, in his hallucinations, he realized his mistakes, received forgiveness from his aunt and uncle, worked hard to support his family, and lived happily with those around him.
If that kind of life continued, and one could act for a lifetime until death, wouldn't that be nice?
Li Yong deeply regrets what he did!
But he never got that chance... ever since he hit the man and then reversed back, repeatedly running him over until he died.
Xie Xubai didn't look at Li Yong again, turned around and walked out of the tent.
The gaunt, eerie figure cast a deathly, sinister gaze at him from the billboard, its writhing shadow almost leaping out to devour him, but Xie Xubai paid it no heed.
The original shop owner died, and Xie Xubai took the opportunity to become the shop owner. He can still see the comments section in the background.
He glanced at the audience's comments, and sure enough, they were all sarcastic and abusive.
The citizens of the kingdom tend to enjoy entertainment programs filled with torment and suffering. It is undeniable that Xie Xubai's antics with the shop owner made them feel good, but this is just as painful as wanting to curse Xie Xubai and watching him suffer. It does not conflict with that.
Xie Xubai simply smiled and said, "I also think my game is terrible, and I'm too ashamed to continue running the shop."
The audience thought he would at least say something in response, but to their surprise, he humbly accepted the harsh criticism... Wait a minute, something's not right!
Xie Xubai smiled gently at the vengeful spirits who obediently clung to him, "Since you don't plan to continue operating, and it's just taking up space here, I, as the shop owner, entrust you with the power to destroy it. Help me dismantle it."
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