chapter1

虽然钟乳石洞里透着湿气和寒冷,但李火王只穿了一件粗糙的粗麻布衣服.他的脸上没有透露出任何不适,仿佛这些困难毫无意义.他和其他人之间的唯一区别在于他们怪诞的身体——白化病,脑瘫,所有可以想象的先天性畸形都挤满了这个"异常博物馆",位于药物粉碎室内.和他一样,他们都执行着同样令人毛骨悚然的任务,尽管有些人对研磨药石几乎没有表现出奉献精神.那个劝开嘴巴的胖子瘫倒在地板上,被突如其来的冲击惊呆了.两秒钟后,他痛苦地嚎叫着,紧紧抓住自己流血的伤口.雪白头发的少女,没有受到玷污,战战兢兢地紧紧地依在李火望身后."听这里!你是死肉!你知道我的师父是谁吗?当他听说这件事时..."胖子扭曲的脸在愤怒中扭曲."他不过是个沾满尿渍的垃圾!"山洞里陷入了死寂.谁也没想到这个所谓的"师弟"竟然这么大胆地说话.李火望深吸一口气,压抑着内心升起的诡异怒火.我为什么这么生气?这不是我...平静.必须保持冷静.一声尖锐的尖叫划破了空气,一个唇裂的青年向一名白化病女孩扑来."我发誓,只要轻轻一碰就行了!呵呵..."无视这片混乱,李火望继续他有节奏的敲击.当女孩的哭声变得绝望时,他用石臼砸了下来,发出令人作呕的砰砰声.胖子又瘫倒在地,像一只受伤的野兽一样哀嚎着.当他们走出房间时,一个驼背的女人用痴呆的眼睛拽着李火旺的袖子:"吃...甜...糖果?他把她递来的发黑的肿块塞进他的袖子里,无视她喃喃自语的"主人的糖果"的感谢.小路通向一个巨大的大厅,两旁是粗糙的道教圣地——灵公宫,四大殿——它们的名字粗暴地刻在腐烂的桃木上.在密室的中央,隐约可见一座五层炼丹炉,它的影子将李火望整个吞噬.炉后站着一个身穿蔚蓝道袍的身影,银发安详...直到他转过身来.这个男人的脸就像一场噩梦——满是麻子,长满了黄牙,下巴像石像鬼一样突出."啊,我的好徒弟.准备好改进了吗?那个身穿长袍的人悬浮起来,将流口水的女人扔进一个石缸中,然后以雷霆万钧的力量放下了他的杵.空气中弥漫着吟诵的咒语:"定钉延长我的寿命,定海保护我的灵魂..."两个满脸红润的侍僧匆匆忙忙地添加配料——粉末,草药和扭动的东西.一股令人作呕的甜味弥漫在洞穴里.The master's eyes gleamed as he faced Li Huowang. "Called me 'piss-stained,' did you?"Reality fractured.The hellish cave dissolved into sterile hospital sheets, Li Huowang's legs bound tightly."Phew, finally back." Li Huowang exhaled deeply, shouting toward the bedside microphone.Soon, his attending physician wheeled in a white tablet, flanked by a nurse. "How are you feeling, Xiao Li? Any new developments in your hallucinations?" The doctor asked gently, settling onto a stool.Same environment, same routine. Except this time, the balding master had brutally murdered someone right before my eyes... and even refined her into elixirs." Li Huowang recounted the horrors of his visions in meticulous detail."Mm-hmm." The doctor nodded, fingers dancing across the tablet.After a pause, Li hesitated. "Doctor, what do these shifting hallucinations signify? What do they mean for my psyche?""No need to dwell on that. Focus on duration and stability metrics." The doctor dismissed his concerns. "Remember—these are illusions. You've overcome hallucinatory perception disorder. Stay vigilant.""But what if...""Just follow their logic during episodes. With treatment, you'll recover soon."Li tensed. This was about his discharge date.The doctor patted his shoulder. "You've improved tremendously. Remember when you couldn't distinguish reality from delusions? Keep it up."As they spoke, light footsteps approached. A girl in a high-neck black sweater peeked inside—her porcelain skin glowing, raven hair cascading like ink. At sixteen, she radiated blossoming beauty.The doctor smirked, adjusting his glasses. "I'll leave you two. Don't forget your meds later, Li."The moment the door closed:"Ugh, look what I brought!" Yang Na grinned, producing a cloth backpack.Li groaned. "After all these years? Really?""New handheld games from teachers!" She dangled the device. "Say 'sis' first.""Sis! You're my real sis!" He grabbed the console, eyes alight. Life in the asylum had been unbearable until now."Don't overdo it. Finish homework!" Yang sat sideways, watching him boot up the device. Her delicate fingers tugged his hospital gown. "Promise we'll get into the same university."Li froze, voice solemn."We agreed."Her cheeks flushed. "Get well... please."They embraced—a rare moment of normalcy. When Yang finally left, Li lingered at the door, suddenly recalling: In my hallucination, the mortar was right here.His blood ran cold. The "mortar" had transformed into his lunchbox."What's wrong?" Yang frowned."Just kidding!" He grinned, but she swatted his waist. After several rounds of playful resistance, their hands finally clasped.Other patients smiled at the tender scene.At the gate, Yang stamped her foot. "Top three student here doesn't need your pity!""Liar," Li chuckled, clutching his chest as she sprinted to the bus stop.Later, lying awake, Li stared at the new medication. Daytime visions and Yang's smile flickered through his mind. What if my condition worsens before college exams?He flipped open Yang's study materials, drowning anxieties in equations. Hours later, stretching at his desk, he felt something odd—a dark stain on his collar.Taste-testing the viscous residue, his pupils dilated. That's the dead sister's candy from the hallucination! Reality and delusion had fused.

 

When Li Huowang confirmed the candy in his chest was real, his heart raced. The first thought that surged through him was instinctive: "I must tell Dr. Li!"But as his right foot lifted, other possibilities crystallized. This hallucination isn't just candy—there's something far more valuable here!Tasting sweetness on his tongue, he paced the ward. "This is an opportunity! A chance to make Yang Na and me filthy rich! To reach life's pinnacle!" Excitement hardened his resolve. "I won't tell Dr. Li—they'd lock me up for dissection. This isn't their jurisdiction anyway."Yet caution followed: "I need proof. I must uncover the truth."The room began to warp.Accustomed to hallucinations, Li acted swiftly—tossing his books into a corner, slamming the red panic button. The last sight before oblivion: nurses storming in, strapping him to the bed.Reality snapped back—cold stone walls, deformed "apprentices" staring. Rising from the floor, Li surveyed his surroundings with new eyes. This isn't madness. This is a treasure vault.Maybe I'm not sick. Maybe I've unlocked something... rare.The label "schizophrenic" had haunted him for years. Now, defiance burned: "I am normal. They're the abnormal ones."He chuckled, ruffling a bald apprentice's head. "Heh, this is amusing.""Stop loitering! Finish grinding herbs for Master's elixir—or we'll flay you alive!" A sneering voice cut through.Li turned. The haughty Taoist priest Xuan Yang stood there, eyes narrowed. "Still not chosen as Master's sacrifice? Shame."Ignoring the taunt, Li fixated on Xuan Yang's jade pendant. Antique? Worth a fortune in the real world..."Scared, little brother?" Xuan Yang sneered, vanishing into shadows.That jade... it's my next test subject.A pale hand tugged his sleeve. "Hurry, Li Shi Xiong. No food if you linger." Yang Na—the albino girl he'd helped—held out half-melted candy.He pressed the stone into her palm, resuming his grind. For now, play it safe.

 

Midnight ManeuversThe dormitory fell silent. Li Huowang groped in darkness, clutching a glowing stone. "My creation—safe to explore."Navigating the labyrinthine cave, he reached Xuan Yang's quarters. Empty. The jade lay where the priest had discarded it.Examining the artifact under his phosphorescent stone: intricate cloud carvings, flawless translucence. "This could pay four years of Yang Na's tuition..."A group of robed figures rounded the corner—Xuan Yang among them, clad in hemp. "Join us," Xuan hissed. "We're escaping this hellhole."Li lunged for the jade—Xuan's hand clamped over his mouth. "Fool! The Gatekeepers will kill us all!"When Xuan Yang clamped a hand over Li Huowang's mouth, the others armed with fireboxes swarmed forward, their eyes sharp and hostile, encircling him."So you're not leaving? Then you die here today!""We'll never let you warn that bald fool!"Li Huowang felt no panic. Rolling his eyes, he cursed the absurd plot twist of this hallucination and inhaled deeply.When he opened his eyes again, leather straps bound him to a hospital bed. The "brothers" had vanished."Auntie Wang! I'm awake—can you undo these?" he shouted at the night-shift nurse through the intercom. No response. She was probably binge-watching dramas again.He squirmed against the blue-and-white gown, pressing his palms against his chest. The jade pendant—was it still there? The restraints made it impossible to tell. Defeated, he sighed.Yawn. Time to wait for Auntie Wang to finish her show.Darkness swallowed the ward. Li drifted into fitful sleep, only to wake shivering on cold cave stones. The escapees were gone."Hah! Think you can outsmart us, NPC?" He palmed the jade, its coolness grounding him.Half an hour later, back on the straw pallet, he awaited dawn. The jade's value could fund Yang Na's tuition…When dawn came, the disciples gathered in the cavernous "Hui'an Hall." Li noticed absences—Xuan Yang and the Bald Master's disciples. Had they escaped?A grotesque face emerged from the shadows. Master Dan Yang."So the rats tried to flee," Dan Yang sneered, his voice dripping with faux sorrow. "Disgraceful.""Tsk. Even Xuan Yang's pathetic," Li muttered.The crowd shuddered as Dan Yang's hand twisted into a Taoist seal. "Open!"The floor split, revealing a gaping abyss. Screams echoed from below."This is what happens to traitors!" Dan Yang's command froze everyone in place.Li peered into the darkness. A black cauldron bubbled with viscous fluid, emanating a metallic stench. Not a hallucination…A tendril snapped out, yanking a disciple into the void. Panic erupted.It's real. The realization clawed at Li. If these horrors aren't fake…He clutched his chest. The jade—it's a bridge between worlds."Li Huowang!" A guard's shout snapped him back.Back in the ward, sweat drenched his gown. It was just a hallucination… right?