Ch. 7 - The Lucky Soul Down in the Cellar

A subtle rustling roused Fu Yan from his sleep. His eyes opened to a pitch-black room, though the darkness did nothing to hinder his vision.

He got up, draped his suit jacket over his shoulders, and moved toward the source of the sound, navigating the dark without a single stumble.

Dark mist had seeped into the district, the dense fog carrying the sickening odor of decay.

From his residence on the top floor of the castle, Fu Yan made his way down, the reek of decay growing heavier, punctuated by the sporadic, shrill scraping of claws against the glass outside.

He reached the entrance of the basement wine cellar, pinpointing it as the source of the noise.

Let's see which lucky soul has stumbled into his territory tonight.

As night fell, He Shuyue crouched in a drafty, dilapidated hut, cradling her unconscious brother in her arms.

Frantic, teardrops the size of peas fell to the floor in quick succession while she gently shook the man.

"Big Bro, wake up! Please wake up, it's nighttime now..."

Those things were about to come out again...

The night wind brushed past, carrying a damp, rotting scent. The thick black fog surged ferociously into the district; wherever it passed, plants withered, walls mottled, and all life faded into ashen decay.

"Wh... what is this... Big Bro, hurry... please wake up..."

The man frowned deeply, a cold sweat breaking out across his forehead, yet he showed no signs of waking.

Fishing a flashlight out of her pocket, He Shuyue turned it on and gingerly directed the beam outside along the window ledge.

Barely holding a charge after prolonged use, the flashlight produced only a very faint glow.

By the weak light, she saw countless withered, skeletal hands thrusting out of the black fog, clawing over each other.

They greedily grasped at everything nearby, devouring frantically; anything that came into contact with the skeletal hands decayed at an alarming speed.

As the dark mist threatened to breach the room, He Shuyue suddenly recalled what her brother had told her before passing out.

"If I don't wake up by night, run to the castle across the street and just leave me."

Opposite them stood an ancient castle that had sprung up out of nowhere. Her brother had said that the player residing within should be a pro and instructed her to beg the owner for help if things became dangerous.

However, her brother was unconscious right now. There was no way she could leave him behind.

He Shuyue cast a look at the dark mist looming right before her eyes. If she left any later, it would mean certain doom.

Clamping the flashlight in her mouth, she hoisted her brother onto her back with one arm, grasped his dagger in her free hand, kicked the door open, and dashed out just before the black fog swallowed the hut.

Locking onto her direction, she squeezed her eyes shut and sprinted wildly.

The castle, positioned at the very heart of the area, was not yet engulfed by the black mist.

Behind her, the billowing black fog seemed to catch the scent of the living and instantly surged with violent intent. It lashed out at her, determined to drag her into its pitch-black, ghostly depths.

Reaching the main entrance, He Shuyue beat against the castle's grand doors with all her might.

"Help me! Please, open the doors..."

A dead silence permeated the castle, whose exterior walls were covered in blood-red roses.

Behind her, the black fog had already crawled up her skirt. At this rate, both she and her brother would die right here.

Scanning her surroundings in a flash, He Shuyue darted to her right, where the dark mist hadn't yet reached. Running alongside the wall, she groped along its base, searching for any alternative way in.

Growing dimmer by the second, the flashlight's beam sputtered out, dying entirely after a couple of weak flashes and immediately plunging He Shuyue into absolute darkness.

Spitting the flashlight from her mouth, she gritted her teeth and continued to run.

Out of nowhere, the earth gave way beneath her, and her whole body fell into a pit.

Paying no heed to the pain, she lifted her brother back up, ready to scramble out, only to feel an upward-sloping staircase to her right as she felt her way around.

Where there are stairs, there must certainly be a door.

He Shuyue felt her way back and forth along the wall, and sure enough, she found a wooden door. She gave it a hard shove, and to her surprise, it wasn't locked.

Sprinting inside with her brother in tow, she hurriedly slammed the door shut.

As if aware of her impending escape, the dark mist churned far more aggressively. Five skeletal hands seized the chance to slide into the gap, scratching at her arm.

They caught He Shuyue right on the arm, but oddly enough, her arm didn't wither away like everything else. Instead, it radiated a faint, soft luminescence.

Realizing they couldn't rot her, the hands in the mist changed their tactics, digging in instead. Their razor-sharp nails instantly punctured her arm.

The pain made He Shuyue draw a sharp breath.

Clenching her jaw, she threw her body weight against the door with a vicious slam.

A resounding bang echoed as the wooden door closed with such immense force and speed that the hands gripping her arm couldn't retreat in time.

They were cleanly severed by the door and dropped to the ground.

Disconnected from the dark mist, the ghoulish hands writhed and spasmed on the floor briefly before ultimately melting into a pool of putrid black water.

Leaning against the door, He Shuyue collapsed to the ground, drained of all strength.

She cradled her brother in her arms and sobbed softly.

"Big Bro, I'm scared..."

Just then, a sharp creak echoed through the darkness, sounding distinctly out of place in the dead of night.

It seemed someone had pushed open a gate on the far side of the room, and, judging by the sound of footsteps drawing near, they had come inside.

Too dark to see a thing, He Shuyue held her breath and huddled in the corner, clutching her brother tightly. Her ears desperately tracked the footsteps that seemed to drift closer and then farther away.

She prayed desperately not to be seen.

As if the heavens had heard her silent plea, the sound of the footsteps gradually faded away.

Not until the footsteps vanished entirely did He Shuyue slowly let out a long breath.

She lowered her head to wipe the cold sweat from her brow, but when she looked up again, she was abruptly met with a ghastly blue-green face dangling right before her eyes, staring at her unblinkingly.

He Shuyue choked on her breath, her heart squeezing painfully.

After just enduring a life-and-death chase, she couldn't process this abrupt shock and passed out on the spot.