Translator: CinderTL
Just after Lin Wan'er's figure vanished, a faint human shadow appeared on the dilapidated wall beside them.
But there was no one nearby.
The Shadow's strangeness wasn't just its sudden appearance; its color was even darker than the surrounding darkness, as thick and impenetrable as a pool of ink.
Even more eerie, as time passed, the Shadow seemed to come alive. Strange ripples rippled across its surface, and though it remained motionless, it gave Jiang Cheng the unsettling impression that it was staring at him.
Moments later, a bizarre scene unfolded. The Shadow transformed into a black phantom and stepped down from the wall. The sound of leather shoes striking the floor echoed through the empty room.
The phantom stopped before Jiang Cheng's body, its blood-red eyes faintly glowing as it stared at his sleeping face.
It reached out a hand, as if to touch Jiang Cheng's forehead like Lin Wan'er had, but was repelled by an unseen force halfway through.
In the next instant, a massive book materialized behind the phantom, its ancient and silent aura filling the air. Two completely different forces inexplicably intertwined at that moment.
The chilling sensation gradually faded, and the phantom vanished. In the silent room, the faint sound of someone stepping in water echoed, growing fainter with distance.
Drip.
Drip.
Accompanied by the sound of dripping water, Pi Ruan, lying on the communal bed, suddenly opened his eyes. He yawned, stretched languidly, and finally sat up contentedly.
The kerosene lamp in the room still flickered, but its flame had grown dim. The surrounding scene was shrouded in a layer of dark gray mist, transforming everything into blurred outlines.
Unlike ordinary mist, this layer seemed alive, slowly writhing and shifting.
Fu Fu and Huai Yi were both asleep, each occupying opposite ends of the communal bed, as if sworn enemies.
Looking down, Pi Ruan saw himself lying on the bed as well, his hands crossed over his chest, his face serene.
This world was eerily silent.
"Awake?" a calm voice asked, accompanied by the rustling of turning pages. A refined man sat at a table, a black-covered book spread before him.
Without glancing at the man, Pi Ruan continued, "Though this isn't the first time I've seen your ability, it still feels unreal every time."
"It was just a dream," Luo He said, turning to look at him. "When you wake up, it will all be over."
"Yes, just a dream," Pi Ruan agreed, staring at his body lying on the bed. He sighed, then turned to face Luo He, speaking in a soft yet earnest tone. "Number 3, do you know? We're all envious of you."
"Me?" Luo He's usually calm face showed a flicker of surprise.
"Yes," Pi Ruan said with a smile. "Each of us has regrets, things we wanted to do but couldn't, or dared not. Things we were forbidden from doing."
"But I have regrets too," Luo He said.
Pi Ruan's smile widened, his bright eyes fixed on Luo He, envy shining in their depths. "But at least you have a way to make amends."
"To build a dream for yourself, and in that dream, put a period at the end of your past regrets." Luo He shook his head. "Some people live too tiredly, too realistically. Sometimes it's good to deceive yourself a little, isn't it? At least you won't be fretting over this damn fate when you die."
"Some people hold their destiny in their own hands, but others don't. Their fates are predetermined from birth."
"Take us, for example," Pi Ruan said, turning to look at Luo He. "Our fates were sealed at birth. We were destined to be abandoned!"
In the dream, Pi Ruan's expression remained unchanged, but only Luo He could sense the resentment and fury simmering beneath the surface. If not for his deliberate control, No. 4's current appearance would already be...
"You could ask the Master," Luo He said, a hint of complexity in his gaze. "You could ask him to awaken No. 10 early. You know, once No. 10 wakes up, the Gate within him can save you!"
The Crimson members each possessed unique Gate abilities, some so bizarre and unheard of that they defied comprehension. However, the most exceptional and crucial Gate was universally recognized to reside within No. 10.
It was an incredibly rare Gate, utterly devoid of offensive capabilities.
In fact, it was more than just non-offensive.
To put it more accurately, it was a Gate of healing.
Being near No. 10 slowed the rate of Gate corruption, preventing Disciples of the Door from succumbing to the abyss.
Moreover, if No. 10 so desired, he could even pull a disciple on the brink of being completely consumed by the Curse back from the brink of the abyss.
This overturned the ironclad rule among the Disciples of the Door: those with a Gate within them could never be healed. They could only absorb more and more terrifying Curses to prolong the inevitable erosion.
The emergence of Number 10 changed everything.
But this came at a price. The cost of healing others was Number 10 himself, who had to bear the Curse in their place.
As he healed others, the Gate within Number 10 eroded him. It was like using a straw to suck the Curse from another's body into his own.
Pi Ruan, a member of the Crimson, was unwilling to use such a precious ability to save himself. Even if he were willing, the others wouldn't allow it.
Number 10's true purpose was to prevent Zero from falling into despair and plunging into the abyss. That was his greatest value, the core of the Master's plan.
As for Pi Ruan, his smile was bitter. He was nothing more than a dispensable pawn. His sole purpose was to take on all risks and cover Number 10's continued infiltration once Zero became suspicious, then die cleanly and decisively.
There's no better way to dispel suspicion than to have an enemy die cleanly and decisively. Worried he wouldn't have enough screen time, he even roped in Chen Qiang.
He'd stuffed the cursed straw doll into Chen Qiang's backpack in a rather clumsy manner.
Heh heh, Pi Ruan smirked. Now even Number 10 and Huai Yi were starting to doubt themselves. The play had reached its climax.
As an actor, he considered himself competent.
He had little time and few lines left. He would perform his final scene with utmost seriousness, so that when the play ended and the audience dispersed, someone would still remember him.
"I'm sorry," Pi Ruan said suddenly, wiping away his tears with a smile. "I lost control for a moment."
Though Luo He had little affection for Pi Ruan, watching one companion after another meet their end was still depressing.
"I know what you're thinking," Pi Ruan said, turning to Luo He. "You're wishing we'd killed Zero sooner, aren't you?"
"Then no one would have died. Everyone would be living well, and when the two worlds fully merged, we Gatekeepers wouldn't be seen as outsiders anymore."
His voice suddenly changed, becoming stern and solemn. "We would become the world's only gods."
(End of the Chapter)
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