Translator: CinderTL
"I asked her, 'Who are you talking to?'"
"She said no one, she was just getting up to use the bathroom."
"I went into the bathroom. The space was small, and the only place someone could hide was under the sink cabinet. I opened it, but it was empty. No one was there."
"I was completely stunned. Xiang Nan asked me if I was under too much work pressure recently and if I was hearing things. She advised me to rest well and not overthink it."
"But I know myself well. That couldn't have been an auditory hallucination!"
"From that moment on, I started paying close attention to Xiang Nan's every move."
"Soon, I noticed more and more strange things about her."
"She often talked to herself when she was alone, mostly in the bathroom, and occasionally in the hallway."
"When she talked to herself, if I was on the phone, the signal would become very poor, with long stretches of static, as if something was interfering."
"One late night, I came home and, before I even went upstairs, I heard Xiang Nan seemingly arguing with someone. I took off my shoes and quietly went upstairs to figure out what was happening."
"I found Xiang Nan standing barefoot in the hallway, shouting at the wall, her emotions extremely agitated."
"She was saying things I couldn't understand. I heard words like 'Gate,' 'let go,' 'take,' and 'possess.'"
"I could tolerate all of that, but then she actually mentioned Xuan Xuan!"
"She said she could give Xuan Xuan to it, as long as it would let her go!"
"Xuan Xuan is our child!"
"I was furious, but I held it in. I suspected my wife was having a mental breakdown, that these were just her delusional ramblings."
"I love her. Even if she really has gone mad, I'll find a way to treat her and stay by her side."
"Before I could approach her, Xiang Nan started cursing at the wall, crying hysterically, saying things like, 'Get out of my body! I don't want this, I don't need this!'"
"She said, 'I've already given so much to you as you demanded. Why... why won't you let me go?'"
"'I don't need you. I don't want to live like this, neither human nor Ghost!'"
"But then I heard a low laugh, and I immediately recognized the voice!"
"It was the one hiding in the bathroom, talking to Xiang Nan!"
"I couldn't make out what the person said because all my focus was on trying to find them."
"But the laughter seemed to come from all directions. After listening for a while, I felt like my head was splitting from the pain."
"However, I vaguely remember the person coldly saying, 'If you lose me, you will immediately age, lose your current beauty, and even die of old age in an instant.'"
"'No man will ever like you again. Everything you enjoy now will be taken away. After all... it's because of my existence that you have Eternal youth.'"
"The person said... said..."
"He actually said Xiang Nan is 70 years old!"
"How is that possible?!"
At this point, the man's emotions were in turmoil, and Jiang Cheng could even hear his heavy breathing.
"After the person finished speaking, Xiang Nan suddenly stopped shouting. Then, she covered her face and began to cry, saying she was wrong and begging the other party not to hold it against her."
"She even mentioned her face, saying that her youth and beauty were everything to her, begging the other party not to take them away."
"No matter what the other party demanded, she would fulfill it."
"But she only hoped for one thing—she actually begged it not to harm me!"
"Upon hearing this, my heart trembled. I truly thought she had gone mad, that all of this was her delusion. No, not just her—I felt like my own mind was beginning to unravel."
"But I never expected that, even in such a state, she still cared for me."
"Before I could think further, I heard her say that she would expedite her plan and offer a new sacrifice to it."
"I suppressed the urge to rush forward, wanting to see what she was really up to."
"But just when I thought something else might happen, Xiang Nan wiped her tears after crying, turned around, and left the hallway, returning to the bedroom."
"She must have known I would be back soon, and she certainly didn't want me to see her like this."
"I'm not sure what I was thinking at the time. Though I was furious—after all, she had mentioned sacrificing our child—after the anger, there was still a hint of tenderness."
"She still cared for me. She loved me, just as I loved her."
"I had already decided to send her to the best hospital for treatment. My business had connections with many hospitals, and I would find the best doctors to treat her, no matter the cost. I would cure her illness."
"But the very next second, as I shifted my gaze away from the bedroom where Xiang Nan had disappeared, I suddenly sensed something was wrong in my peripheral vision."
"A shadow!"
"It was a shadow!"
"After Xiang Nan left, her shadow remained on the wall!"
Jiang Cheng's expression gradually changed as he stared at the radio. The identity of the man who had left this recording was now clear.
It was Xiang Nan's second husband, Yin Zhenliang.
Just as Jiang Cheng and the others had suspected, Yin Zhenliang had also noticed the abnormalities in Xiang Nan, which was why he had sent her to the hospital—ostensibly for treatment, but in reality, for confinement.
Unfortunately, an unknown variable had emerged midway: Director Qi.
What surprised Jiang Cheng even more was that there was a Gate within Xiang Nan's body.
Just like him.
It was clear from the recording left by Yin Zhenliang that it confirmed Xiang Nan's role in the deaths of the two children.
To be precise, it was a transaction.
A deal between the entity within the Gate inside Xiang Nan and herself.
In Xiang Nan's words, it was a Sacrifice.
She offered living lives to it, and in return, the entity within the Gate granted her eternal youth.
At this thought, Jiang Cheng instinctively glanced at his own shadow.
Though his shadow remained on the wall, appearing perfectly normal, Jiang Cheng knew what kind of terrifying monster was hidden within it.
Though Wu had not yet demanded anything from him, he had a premonition that what it wanted would be something he couldn't bear—something more important than his life.
Holding the radio, Jiang Cheng compared his current situation to his previous Nightmare experiences.
It was clear that this case was extremely unique.
He hadn't been dragged into this through a Nightmare, but in the real world.
Did this mean that the Gate within Xiang Nan was different from any he had encountered before?
It wasn't a matter of strength, but of control.
According to Jiang Cheng's previous understanding, once the host of the Gate died, the Gate should disappear as well. However, the incident with Xiang Nan revealed that things were not so simple.
After the host's death, the Gate would continue to exist, no longer requiring Nightmares as a medium. It would begin to directly erode this world in an almost uncontrollable manner.
This was perhaps what Wu truly desired.
Returning to the hotel to start updating, more to come later.
(End of the Chapter)
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