Chapter 39

Chapter 39

Give me back my Rong Ge!

Only five or six days have passed since Shen began dealing with supernatural events.

With little experience and few encounters with ghosts, Shen faced a ghost capable of creating illusions for the first time.

Li Ling was clearly unaware that the ghost haunting her possessed such a unique ability.

She hadn't provided Shen with any relevant clues, leaving him and Rong Ye completely unguarded. From the moment they disembarked the plane, they stepped into the ghost's carefully woven trap.

In some ways, this ghost was more challenging than those encountered in the 404 blood case.

Seated in a dusty, abandoned classroom, Shen fell into deep thought.

From his interactions with several ghosts, it was apparent their thought processes were not fundamentally different from humans'.

His past five years of experience could be applied to this situation.

It wasn’t a big problem; he already had an idea.

Cold fingers, tinged with the scent of blood, gently massaged Shen's brow. He looked up into Rong Ye's deep blue eyes.

“You’re anxious, Shen.”

Emerging from his heart, Rong Ye cupped Shen's face, “Since Li Ling's disappearance, you’ve been overly anxious. Your concern for her safety is causing you to overlook details. You need to calm down to make objective and rational decisions.”

“Remember what I told you during our first case together? Don’t get emotionally involved. View everything from a detached perspective, without pity for the suspects or sympathy for the victims, until the truth is revealed.”

Their eyes met, and Shen smiled, leaning into Rong Ye's palm, “Thank you, I understand now, Rong Ye.”

Rong Ye always appeared irritable, but his eyes were like a calm deep sea, rarely showing significant emotional fluctuations.

There was a strong sense of dichotomy about him. Even after five years, Shen didn’t fully understand Rong Ye.

He knew Rong Ye had serious psychological issues that required medication, but he didn't know why Rong Ye fell ill.

He knew Rong Ye's parents were murdered, but he didn't know how the young Rong Ye escaped from the same peril.

Memories before the age of twenty were scars Rong Ye refused to revisit, secrets he wouldn’t share with anyone, including Shen.

At this moment, Shen felt relieved that Rong Ye had never shared these secrets with him before.

For Shen, determining whether he was in the real world was actually quite simple.

He pulled out his phone in front of the ghostly man and dialed He Junye's number.

“Shen...”

“Alright, Xiao He, pass the phone to Xiao Shi, let it talk to me.”

“Oh, okay.”

The other end of the phone suddenly went silent. Shen made his judgment decisively and hung up, “Rong Ye, your guess is correct.”

“Unlike the introverted Xiao Jie, He Junye is more expressive and likes to show his emotions. He would cry and cling to my legs in the middle of the police station hall, in front of everyone. Even though he's been through a lot, he'd still scream when he saw you and Pei Yue in the hospital room.”

Rong Ye placed his hand on Shen's forehead, using the coldness of a ghost to cool him down, “You thought he was too calm just now, not fitting He Junye's character?”

“Exactly. Li Ling hasn’t interacted with He Junye, so she only knows his voice, not his personality. Similarly, the ghost haunting Li Ling wouldn’t have had a chance to meet He Junye. If the person on the phone was really He Junye, he would have asked a bunch of questions and said a lot of irrelevant things when I asked for a stone to talk.”

“That makes some sense,” Rong Ye frowned, “But during the 404 blood case, you only had a book. How did the illusion-creating ghost know that Xiao Shi was actually a stone and not just a nickname you gave a friend?”

“That leads to another issue. Since we don’t know much about the ghost, we need to figure out what kind of illusion he creates based on the information we have.”

Shen slightly turned his head, avoiding the ghost man’s hand.

He was still uncertain whether the Rong Ye in front of him was the real one.

“Everyone perceives the world differently. To create an illusion, the ghost needs a reference point. I’ve been thinking, and illusions can roughly be divided into three categories.”

Shen's gentle demeanor vanished as he extended his finger, “The first type is an illusion created from someone else’s consciousness.”

“The ghost creates a false world based on his own thoughts or the memories of people like Li Ling and Jia, pulling our consciousness into it.”

Rong Ye opened his mouth as if to say something.

Shen smiled reassuringly, “No need to discuss, Rong Ye. I have a way to rule out the first possibility myself.”

"The assistant has always been working hard to keep the existence of the Holy Father Simulator a secret from everyone."

"Not only did Shen just open the simulator, but he also teased the assistant. This clearly indicates that the illusion we're in cannot possibly be created based on someone else's consciousness."

“The second type of illusion is one generated based on my consciousness.”

Rong Ye quickly caught up with his train of thought, “If it’s this type of illusion, everything we see, including people and events, must exist in your memory. The development of events should align with your way of thinking.”

Rong Ye paused, then turned to look at the dusty classroom, “Only after Jia mentioned that Yizhong had been abandoned, did your brain register the specific information of ‘Yizhong’s abandonment’. Only then, in the illusion, we would see this deserted school.”

“If the illusory world we’re in is indeed created based on our memories, then we must have fallen into the trap before leaving Li’s house. Tsk…”

Shen nodded gravely, “Right, the best-case scenario is that both our bodies and consciousness are in the illusionary world. The worst case is that we’ve merely lost consciousness and our bodies are still in Li's house.”

Rong Ye floated to the window, looking at the desolate and dilapidated schoolyard, “While we’re trapped in the illusion, Jia won't be. We need to wake up from this comatose state as soon as possible, or we’ll never get the chance to wake up again.”

The ghostly man in front of him, in terms of tone, demeanor, intelligence, and response speed, showed no difference from the Rong Ye Shen remembered.

He couldn't find any issues with him.

Sunlight streamed through the broken windows, scorching Rong Ye momentarily. Irritated, he returned to Shen's side with a cold expression.

In Chongqing's summer, the temperature is very high, especially in the afternoon, reaching 38 degrees Celsius. The abandoned teaching building had no air conditioning, and Shen's clothes were already soaked with sweat from running around.

Rong Ye floated behind him, intending to embrace him in his arms.

Shen, feeling dizzy from the heat, swiftly got up and dodged to one side the moment Rong Ye raised his hand.

The ghostly man was taken aback, “Shen?”

“Brother, don’t come close to me for now.”

“I am a ghost, my body temperature is very low. Being in my arms is no different than being in an air-conditioned room.”

“I know,” Shen wiped the sweat off his face and smiled apologetically at him, “But I can’t be sure if you, as you are now, are a figment of my illusion or the real you.”

Rong Ye huffed, slightly displeased, but stood his ground without moving closer.

“I’ve broadly categorized the illusions that a ghost might create into three types. I've already talked about the first two. Before I discuss the last type, I need to ask you a question.”

Shen’s voice was softer and more apologetic than usual.

“To determine if you're the real Rong Ye or just an illusion shaped by my consciousness, you need to reveal a secret that only you know and I don’t.”

“Of course, I know you might also be doubting me. But you usually get emotional when you're with me. Even if you have suspicions, you wouldn’t show them.”

“This could be the ghost's strategy to sow discord between us. To put your mind at ease, I’ll first share a secret that you don’t know. If my answer seems off to you, feel free to strangle me. Similarly, if I find your answer unsatisfactory…”

Shen gazed at Rong Ye tenderly, pulling out “A Warm World” from his bag.

“Rong Ye, I love you, but the one I love is the real you.”

————

"Ah!!!!"

Startled awake again, Teacher Li collapsed, clutching her head and screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Help me! Stop torturing me, please! I beg you…"

"I'm sorry I broke up with you! I shouldn't have moved out secretly. It's all my fault, I'm sorry, please let me go, I won't dare anymore!"

Having endured countless nightmares, each time she opened her eyes, she would see bright sunlight and bustling crowds. Everything felt so real, as if she had returned to the real world.

But just when she let her guard down and was about to breathe a sigh of relief, the faces of everyone around her would suddenly transform into her ex-boyfriend's gruesomely distorted face.

What broke Teacher Li the most was the hallucination she had just experienced.

In that hallucination, she was attacked by her ex-boyfriend; a malevolent spirit smashed her car window and crawled inside.

Cen Sheng came running from a distance, holding a clearly divine statue of the Holy Mother in one hand and that magical book in the other, saving her.

He fought the ghost in front of her, bleeding profusely from wounds on his right hand and shoulder.

After killing the ghost with the statue, Detective Cen, covered in injuries, comforted her gently for a long time. His smile was so warm and reassuring.

Teacher Li took him to the hospital to redress his wounds and to her favorite restaurant for a meal. During this time, Detective Cen consoled her and even video-called Xiao Jie Jie and others.

To repay his life-saving grace, Teacher Li invited him to her home, planning to take care of him personally until his injuries healed, before letting him return to the old industrial city.

Just as Teacher Li was finally relaxing, thinking of taking a bath and resting, Detective Cen suddenly burst into her bathroom.

He pushed her into the bathtub, intending to assault and kill her.

Detective Cen once mentioned he kept a ghost as his lover.

Even if he's a hypocrite or a beast in disguise, he wouldn't engage with someone else in front of his ghostly wife.

At that moment, Teacher Li realized that Detective Cen hadn't saved her, and she was still trapped in a nightmare.

She had sought help from the police and fled to temples. She cut her arms with a knife, trying to wake herself up, and banged her head against walls to jolt herself awake.

She even jumped off a bridge, hoping to escape the endless nightmare through death.

Teacher Li was on the verge of madness.

"Kill me, please! Kill me and end this torment!"

"I'll do anything, I can get back together with you, anything at all! Just let me go, please, I'm begging you!"

Old Zhang and his spouse were snapping beans when they heard the harrowing cries from next door in Apartment 501, startling them both.

His wife pressed her ear against the wall, "Why is Little Li screaming so miserably, is she being beaten?"

"I'm not sure, I just heard her screams. But there were many visitors at their place today. A young man went there around noon, and just recently, it seemed another young man went to find them."

"All men visiting? Could it be Little Li and Little Jia owe money and are being harassed by debt collectors? I heard young people like them often borrow money online and fail to repay. Many young people in Changqing have recently committed suicide over such issues."

The crying abruptly stopped, leaving the elderly couple even more anxious.

Worried about Teacher Li's safety, they supported each other to the corridor and knocked on the door of Apartment 501.

After only two knocks, the security door was opened.

Seeing the elderly couple at the door, Doctor Jia looked apologetic, "Sorry for disturbing you. Little Li teaches high school seniors and is under a lot of stress, causing a bit of an emotional breakdown."

"She's been saying she's encountering ghosts lately, which I didn't take seriously. Today, for some reason, she adamantly refused to go to work in the morning, insisting the school was haunted. She was napping just now and suddenly started screaming. I thought it was a nightmare, but even after waking up, she was talking nonsense."

Doctor Jia's clean and handsome face was filled with sorrow. Anyone would believe he's a caring boyfriend genuinely concerned for his girlfriend.

The elderly couple sympathized with them, lamenting the teacher's hard life while comforting him.

After sending off the neighbors and the onlookers, Doctor Jia closed the security door and turned to look at the living room.

On the sofa lay two young men, both unconscious.

One was Detective Cen who had come around noon, and the other was Detective Xue who had just arrived.

Doctor Jia only knew from Teacher Li that Detective Cen would be coming from out of town. He hadn't expected Detective Cen to hire another detective.

Detective Xue, unable to contact Detective Cen, suspected something had gone wrong.

He had driven a luxury sports car to the neighborhood looking for him, greeting passersby warmly on his way upstairs. He almost seemed to announce to the world with a loudspeaker that he was going to Apartment 501 to find his peer, Cen.

Doctor Jia originally planned to kill Detective Cen. Being from out of town, his disappearance for a day or two wouldn't raise any suspicion.

But now, with Detective Xue's intervention, he didn't dare to harm them.

That ostentatious limited-edition sports car was still parked downstairs, surrounded by people taking photos. It wouldn't be long before pictures with the car flooded the internet.

If something happened to the two detectives, the police would be at his door in no time. Even if they couldn't prove he murdered anyone, breaking into someone's home and pretending to be Teacher Li's boyfriend was enough to land him in jail.

Doctor Jia, holding a kitchen knife, stared coldly at the unconscious detectives. He thought several times about killing them but ultimately lacked the courage.

The ghost he collaborated with wasn't strong enough to help him escape the joint manhunt by the police and the Detective Association.

Putting down the knife, Doctor Jia walked into the kitchen.

The beautiful male ghost, covered in blood lines, was floating motionless in mid-air, expressionless and with a vacant stare, having lost consciousness.

Across from him, another ghost with twisted limbs and a gruesomely disfigured face stares directly into Rong Ye's eyes, blood continuously flowing out of its own.

This ghost, collaborating with Doctor Jia, is Teacher Li's ex-boyfriend who committed suicide by jumping off a building.

"Your wife kept yelling and attracted the neighbors, so I knocked her out."

Doctor Jia frowns, "Why are you still keeping Li Ling around? Do you really like her that much?"

The ghostly ex-boyfriend gasps for air, "She was mine in life and will be mine in death! I will torture her to death with my own hands. Even when she becomes a ghost, she won’t escape from me!"

"To be loved by a madman like you, Li Ling is indeed unfortunate."

The ghost doesn't respond to his comment, "Detective Cen is clever. He quickly saw through the illusion I created."

"You know I'm not skilled in combat, only able to torment people with illusions. I wanted to awaken his most painful memories, but some curse-like power is preventing him from recalling that past."

Doctor Jia carefully observes Rong Ye, "So you can’t kill him?"

"I can. Besides those sealed memories, he has other painful experiences. Once he's engulfed in despair, I'll devour him!"

The ghost laughs excitedly, "He smells delicious, and so does the detective who raised him. Eating them will bring me a step closer to becoming a ghost king!"

"This ghost is stronger than me. To control him with illusions, I have to keep staring into his eyes. If I look away, he'll quickly break free. He's smart, and the pretty boy he controls won’t be easy to handle either."

"Worried about Cen waking from the illusion? Can humans break free from your illusions?"

"Maybe. After dealing with this ghost, I'll take care of those two detectives. Don’t worry, I can drive them insane. As long as they don’t die here, the police and the Detective Association won’t trouble you."

Doctor Jia nods, picking up a bottle of wine and heading back to the living room.

"Alright, you handle the ghost, and I'll watch over them."

————

In the dusty, abandoned classroom, Cen shares his secret with Rong Ye.

"Due to certain reasons, my sexual orientation was exposed in my sophomore year of high school. Since then, I've been relentlessly bullied."

"Some boys in my class would lock me in the bathroom, waving a mop handle in front of me, mockingly suggesting it could 'satisfy' me. They posted my information on gay dating sites, leading to constant harassment by pedophiles."

"They called me a 'disease spreader,' claiming I carried AIDS. They wanted to ruin my life, thinking it was fun."

Rong Ye stares at him, his eyes filled with compassion.

Cen takes a deep breath, clenching the hardcover book in his hand, "To get revenge, I planned to invite them over and poison their food, to kill all seven of them."

"Cen, you..."

With a light chuckle and warmth in his eyes, Cen says, "The always careless Wu Pang accidentally discovered my plan. He knelt down, crying and begging me not to poison them, not to become a murderer."

"He said I was his best buddy, the kindest and gentlest person he'd ever met. My life should be bright, splendid, and full of happiness. I shouldn't be branded a murderer at such a young age."

"Since then, Wu Pang stayed by my side every day. Whoever insulted or hit me, he would fight back. For over a year, he helped me shoulder the burden. I owe Fat Bro my life, so even at the cost of my own, I will protect his family."

Rong Ye can't hold back anymore and reaches out to embrace him.

Cen raises the book, creating a barrier between them, "Your turn, Rong Ye."

Rong Ye falls silent for a moment, "The year you became my assistant, you accidentally killed a criminal. I know it was an impulsive act. After you left, I cleaned up the scene and disposed of the body. To this day, no one knows that criminal is dead."

"I never told you this, Cen. Are you satisfied with my answer?"

A smile finally appears on Cen's face. He rubs his reddened eyes and lunges at Rong Ye.

"Bro, I had such a hard time those years, give me a hug."

As Rong Ye moves to catch him, Cen suddenly swings the hardcover book, striking the ghostly man's face.

"How could I be satisfied! Rong Ye's intelligence isn't that low. After being together so long, he must know that I realized he handled the body!"

"This is an illusion based on my memory; you're not the real Rong Ye. Lacking his memories, you can only mention what I know! Rong Ye never directly told me about this; I guessed it myself. You couldn't find a better answer, so you brought it up, trying to pass it off!"

The sudden change catches the man off guard. He doesn't dodge in time, his handsome face nearly deforming from the impact.

"Cen, you..."

"Don't call me Cen! I'm angry, give me back the real Rong Ye!"

Cen, with a stern face, his fingers cracking from the tight grip, declares, "I've said that illusions can be divided into three types. The last type is where the ghost creates the illusion based on my memory, while also mixing in its own consciousness!"

"I don't even know where No.1 Middle School is. How could the Cen in my memory drive me to this place! If the illusion was completely based on my memory, then He should have been overly dramatic, not so calm!"

Cen's swift and fierce attack leaves the man unable to retaliate; he covers his face and ducks away.

"Calm down, we're not enemies! I am the Rong Ye generated by your consciousness. If it weren't for me reminding you, you wouldn't have realized we were in an illusion!"

"You liar, it wasn't you who reminded me, it was me!"

Cen has figured it out.

Back at Teacher Li's house, when Doctor Jia attacked them with an eyeball, their attention was entirely fixated on that eyeball.

Led by Doctor Jia, they mistakenly believed the ghost's eyeball was the key, failing to notice that Doctor Jia's eyes also had issues.

Destroying the ghost's eyeball, they let down their guard. After getting the clue about No.1 Middle School from Doctor Jia, they unwittingly fell into the illusion.

Doctor Jia's presentation of the eyeball was meant to give them a false clue, making Cen think there would be noticeable discomfort before falling deep into the illusion.

After wandering around the abandoned school, Cen subconsciously sensed something was off. But in his urgency to find Teacher Li, he didn't realize it immediately.

The Rong Ye, created from his consciousness, spoke out his own speculation before Cen could.

Through the recent questioning, Cen realized that the Rong Ye before him actually had independent thought.

When he posed the question, Cen had already prepared several answers in his mind.

If the Rong Ye in front of him was truly generated entirely from his consciousness, then during Cen's recount of his past, Rong Ye would have risked getting hurt to rush over and embrace him.

Afterwards, he would choose an answer from the options Cen had thought of.

What seemed like one question from Cen was actually two.

The man before him failed both tests.

Since he had to painstakingly pretend to be Rong Ye to gradually gain Cen's trust, it indicated that he wasn't Cen's match and dared not directly threaten or intimidate him.

In this illusion world generated from Cen's memory, where the Saint Father Simulator works perfectly, there's no reason for him to lose in a one-on-one battle!

Cen pulls out the hanging ghost's hemp rope and flings it at the man. The rope automatically loops around his neck, binding him in place.

Cen wraps the man up like a zongzi, and with "A Warm World" in hand, he strikes down fiercely.

"You've angered me, I'm very mad now. Give me back Rong Ye! Don't force me to kill you!"

Author's note:

I'm back!

For those who didn't win the prize, don't be sad (even my own secondary account didn't win QAQ).

There will be more giveaways in the future! Fortune doesn't always favor the same person!

A big thank you to the angels who voted for me with their King's tickets or nurtured me with their nutrient fluids from 2023-09-12 21:16:05 to 2023-09-13 21:58:13~

Thank you to the angels who nourished me with nutrient fluids: Beautiful He 86 bottles; Tea-san 40 bottles; Four Annoying Ones 20 bottles; Tea Pear 8 bottles; Xiu Yun, acsg 2 bottles; Wuuu, why no update, Jiu Jiu, Qin Zhao, and Again I See Erxi. 1 bottle each;

I'm truly grateful for everyone's support, I will continue to work hard!