Reunion
Translator: CinderTL
"That's good. Director Qi's safety is in your hands now. But don't expect me to fight the Ghost to the death. I'll do my best to buy you time."
"How are Yu Yu and Cao Yang?" Huai Yi messaged.
"They're both alive and hiding in the hospital. I've already warned them that the Ghost is impersonating you, so try to avoid meeting up." Jiang Cheng replied.
"Understood."
The conversation ended there. Jiang Cheng still had doubts about Huai Yi's trustworthiness and wouldn't share any specific information with him.
For example, the true location where Director Qi was hiding.
"We're almost there," Lin Wan'er said from the driver's seat. "The hospital is just ahead."
Under the cover of night, the hospital resembled a crouching beast, appearing as a massive shadow from their current vantage point.
The area was eerily silent. Lin Wan'er stopped the car several hundred meters from the hospital.
After turning off the headlights, they quickly advanced toward the building.
The first-floor lobby was brightly lit but deserted. Director Qi had mentioned seeing Huai Yi standing at the entrance earlier.
Now, the Ghost had vanished again.
Could it be that his caution had paid off? The Huai Yi he'd been texting with was indeed a ghost.
After hearing Jiang Cheng's explanation, Director Qi had left the hospital and gone to the hotel to find Director Qi?
Jiang Cheng had originally wanted to call Director Qi directly, but he felt it was too risky, so he sent a text instead.
He received a reply almost immediately.
Following the instructions, they soon found Director Qi huddled behind a tree, curled up in a ball.
Seeing Jiang Cheng and Lin Wan'er, he nearly burst into tears from relief. "I've finally been waiting for you! You have no idea how terrified I was when that Huai Yi came out earlier. I thought he was coming for me."
"You said Huai Yi left?" Jiang Cheng asked.
"Yes, shortly after we spoke. He was standing right there earlier," Director Qi said, pointing at the hospital gate. "But for some reason, he suddenly looked down at his phone for a moment, then hurried off."
Looking down at his phone was impossible. Director Qi must have meant he was texting Jiang Cheng.
Indeed.
Huai Yi was already dead.
The Huai Yi who had been texting Jiang Cheng was a ghost in disguise.
The Ghost's target was Director Qi. Upon learning that Director Qi wouldn't be coming to the hospital, the Ghost left. Jiang Cheng wondered how it would find him among so many hotels.
But it didn't matter. The key to completing this mission lay in Director Qi's survival.
If they could ensure his survival through today—October 16th in this world—the Prophecy would be broken, and they would have cleared the mission.
Whether the Ghost would disappear afterward was of no concern to Jiang Cheng. He couldn't control it.
All he cared about was Lin Wan'er and himself surviving safely and leaving this world.
He had hoped to glean some information about the Gate from Huai Yi, but the man had been useless, dying instantly.
Huai Yi's Qilin Arm looked quite impressive. Anyone who didn't know better would have mistaken him for a muscle-bound gym rat. Now, Jiang Cheng had reason to suspect how he had actually trained his Qilin Arm.
The area was pitch-black, giving off an unsettling vibe. Jiang Cheng scanned his surroundings. "Let's go," he suggested. "We should head inside and meet up with the others."
"Yes, yes," Director Qi agreed eagerly, relieved to be leaving the area.
To hide here, he was covered in scratches, large and small, suggesting he had tried hiding elsewhere before.
Director Qi followed closely behind Jiang Cheng. After walking for a while, he asked, "Where are we going?"
Jiang Cheng had chosen a secluded path, circling around the hospital's main entrance.
"The side gate," Jiang Cheng replied.
During his previous encounter with Blind Zheng, Jiang Cheng had discovered a side gate on the hospital grounds. The main entrance was too conspicuous, especially with the lights still on.
The empty, brightly lit lobby gave Jiang Cheng the creeps. It felt too much like a trap.
Perhaps the ghost hadn't left at all but was lurking near the main entrance, waiting for them to walk right into its clutches.
Reaching the side gate, Jiang Cheng surveyed the area before the group quietly slipped inside.
The hospital was eerily silent. It seemed everyone had vanished. All the nearby doors were closed, including the room where Jiang Cheng had shared drinks with Blind Zheng.
Each door stood in shadow, as if concealing countless untold stories.
Cautiously ascending the staircase to the second floor, they passed through the central hall between two corridors when Director Qi suddenly stopped, his mouth agape, his face turning pale.
"The elevator!"
The elevator had silently ascended and stopped precisely at the second floor.
The situation unfolded so suddenly that before Jiang Cheng and the others could react, the elevator doors opened with a sharp "ding." The elevator was empty.
Jiang Cheng immediately pulled Director Qi back. Director Qi's legs were trembling uncontrollably, and Jiang Cheng was practically dragging him.
Even more bizarrely, the elevator doors remained wide open, showing no sign of closing, as if someone inside was constantly holding down the door-open button.
As if responding to Jiang Cheng's thoughts, a few seconds later, half a face peeked out from behind the elevator door.
It was Huai Yi!
Jiang Cheng turned and grabbed Director Qi, ready to flee. It was clear they had been tricked; the Ghost hadn't left at all.
Everything Director Qi had seen earlier had been an illusion, a smokescreen.
"Wait!" Huai Yi's voice called out from behind them, laced with a hint of fear but mostly desperation to explain. "Don't run! I'm human! I'm really Huai Yi! I... I'm not a Ghost!"
Running with someone slowed them down considerably, especially since Director Qi was like a puddle of mud, collapsing after only a few steps.
Jiang Cheng steeled himself and violently flung Director Qi behind him before turning to face Huai Yi.
"Don't attack!" Huai Yi immediately raised his hands. "Brother, we're on the same side!"
Jiang Cheng's kick didn't falter, sending Huai Yi sprawling to the ground. However, Huai Yi remained rational and didn't retaliate, instead clutching his chest and waving his hands frantically. "Brother, don't... don't..."
"He's probably human," Lin Wan'er said.
"Of course I'm human! If I were a Ghost, I would have attacked long ago," Huai Yi complained. "I just came from the morgue. The elevator had been out of service, but it finally started working just now, so I came up."
Seeing Director Qi safe, Huai Yi's expression visibly improved.
Jiang Cheng took out his phone and dialed Yu Yu's number, but it was cut off after only two rings.
"She hung up on me?" Jiang Cheng stared at his phone, surprised. This was a stark contrast to her earlier willingness to sacrifice herself.
He tried calling again, but the call was hung up once more.
Jiang Cheng had a nagging feeling that something wasn't right.
A moment later, he received a message from Yu Yu.
Following the instructions in the message, Jiang Cheng opened WeChat. There was a friend request from someone named Little Fishy.
After accepting the request, a video was sent.
The scene was dimly lit. After watching for a while, Jiang Cheng realized the background was the open space in front of the hospital. The video must have been taken recently.
The angle suggested someone was holding a phone out the window, filming from a high vantage point.
In the darkness, a car pulled up. A figure in a trench coat hastily exited the vehicle and sprinted toward the hospital entrance.
The gate was illuminated by lights, gradually clarifying the video. As the trench-coated figure drew closer, they could make out his face.
It was Director Qi!
He finally disappeared at the edge of the video frame.
As he frantically rushed through the hospital gate, the video abruptly ended.
A little late, but good night everyone.
(End of the Chapter)
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