Moonlight
Translator: Cinder Translations
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"Doctor," the Fatty pointed at the creatures surrounding them, "Do you need me to draw these things away?"
The only possible way to survive was linked to the stone slab, but what the doctor needed most right now was time.
"No need," Jiang Cheng said plainly. "I need you to help me activate the stone slab."
"Okay."
He used a dagger to cut his hand. Fatty shuddered once but remained still, then took a deep breath and pressed his bleeding hand firmly against the stone slab.
In an instant, the red halo he had seen before suddenly burst forth, enveloping the stone slab, along with himself and Jiang Cheng.
The moon in the sky turned blood-red.
The ritual had begun.
Upon seeing the red halo, the creatures that had surrounded them all had their eyes turn red. A wild joy, almost human-like, spread in their bulging eyes, covered by a thin white membrane.
They scrambled to pounce, and as soon as they made contact with the blood-colored barrier, they fell to the ground as if poisoned.
No, it wasn't poison!
It was as if they had been doused with strong acid.
Their skin started to melt, followed by the muscular tissue, writhing in pain on the ground, exposing large, white bones in a gruesome display.
Yet the creatures behind them kept advancing.
The joy and madness in their eyes seemed ready to burst from their sockets.
But Fatty no longer had time to care about them, because... he saw a thin figure appear on the stone slab.
It was the old woman!
The monstrous, devouring old woman who had consumed one teammate after another!
She had appeared again.
It seemed Jiang Cheng was right; it truly was a legacy. The reason the old woman hadn't died like her previous teammates was that she had been chosen as the new host for the grotesque entity.
This curse was unsolvable.
One wave of "invaders" killed off the "natives," only to transform into the "natives" themselves, waiting in pain for the next wave of invaders to come and free them.
It was like an endless cycle.
The grotesque entity attached to the old woman was the key to unlocking this cycle.
The next cycle was about to begin.
"Doctor," Fatty turned his head, "Next... do I need to be consumed as well?"
Jiang Cheng looked at him, saying nothing.
"I understand," Fatty nodded. As he withdrew his gaze, he leaped onto the stone slab, and blood dripped from the wound on his hand, falling onto the pure white ground.
Like a drop of cinnabar spreading on rice paper.
The old woman still had that twisted, grimace-like smile. Her snake-like tongue twirled at the edge of her lips. Fatty had seen this look before; it was the same one the old woman had when she devoured Chen Ran.
But at that time, he had never expected that just an hour later, it would be his turn.
A massive shadow appeared beside the old woman, and the place where her shadow should have been began to twist. Though nothing was visible, a huge shadow with horns and a tail appeared on the stone slab.
Something enormous and grotesque was right before him.
But Fatty couldn't see it.
He could only feel the cold emanating from it.
"Goodbye, Doctor," Fatty turned his back to him and slowly closed his eyes.
"Goodbye," Jiang Cheng whispered softly.
In the next moment, Fatty's large body seemed to be suddenly grabbed by something, and only his legs struggled for a brief moment before a cracking sound of bones breaking was heard. His legs stopped moving.
Then, he was swallowed whole.
After everything ended, the old woman turned her gaze back to Jiang Cheng. She licked her lips in satisfaction. A single Fatty clearly wasn't enough to fill her stomach.
Jiang Cheng turned around and looked at the creatures that had rushed into the blood-colored barrier, their flesh turning into pus and only their pale bones remaining. He couldn't help but reveal a hint of disgust.
It was almost over; only a dozen or so creatures were still struggling in the blood.
The next moment, Jiang Cheng suddenly smiled. He turned back, eyeing the old woman, her face full of desire. He sighed, "Forget it, consider this a gift to you."
Then, in front of the old woman and the invisible creature, he slashed his own eyes with his knife, leaped into the air, and landed on the stone slab.
Moments later, a terrifying chewing sound echoed again.
But the old woman no longer smiled.
Her twisted face darkened as if it could drip water.
---
One hour earlier.
"Ha..."
A young man with an extraordinarily handsome appearance opened his eyes on a carved wooden bed.
His fringe covered his forehead, and his temperament was gentle, like jade. His light brown eyes were not at all aggressive, almost fragile.
He looked like someone straight out of a melancholic literature novel.
He didn't rush to get up; instead, he moved his stiff neck a little, then squinted at the pitch-black ceiling. After a few minutes, he slowly sat up.
This was an unusually large bedroom.
But there was no clue as to the owner's identity or interests.
Because there was almost nothing in the room.
The huge bedroom was almost empty except for a bed.
The man got off the bed and walked toward the side of the room where a tall, three-meter wooden door stood.
Placing his hand on the door handle, the man suddenly smiled. But no one would have expected that such a gentle man would look so sinister when he smiled.
The corners of his mouth stretched widely, revealing a set of stark white teeth.
"Creak—"
The ornate wooden door was pushed open, and a faint, ghostly light bled out of the crack. The man squinted, and beyond the door was a huge space. Dozens of specially treated chairs were arranged in rows.
The mournful sound of a piano echoed in his ears.
It was Chopin's "Moonlight Sonata," already reaching the slow section of the second movement. The tense third movement was about to begin.
About ten meters away from him, there was a grand piano, bathed in a serene stage light. A luxurious post-Baroque aura filled the air.
"I'm back," a soft female voice spoke after the piano stopped playing.
Chen Ran exaggeratedly grinned, tilting his head to look at the woman in front of him. He squinted and said, "Am I the only one who thinks this piece is more suited for a funeral?"
Her slender fingers danced on the black and white keys. The woman seemed to be showing off her skills, though it was more like she was just killing time. "Anyway, it's the same for you," she said casually.
Chen Ran's smile grew even more exaggerated.
"The gentleman is waiting for you." The woman finally turned her head to look at him.
In the faint ghostly light, she looked just like any other girl, a plain face and her simple attire didn't match the expensive piano in front of her. The only thing that matched it was her aura.
"Is it about that person?" Chen Ran raised his eyebrows dramatically and then smiled, "The gentleman sure cares a lot about him."
(End of the Chapter)
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