Chapter 86: Dead

Chapter 86: Dead

In a sudden panic, An Zhi left everyone behind and dashed out of the building to stand by the lake.

Looking out, he saw the small boat in the middle of the lake all alone, with Qin Huai nowhere to be found.

"Where is he?" An Zhi was utterly perplexed.

Suddenly, a faint cry echoed from beneath his feet, "An Zhi—"

Hearing this, a chill ran down his spine. He lowered his gaze to see what was happening.

Ripples occasionally disturbed the surface of the water, which was crystal clear and shimmered like jade. Visible to the naked eye were underwater plants and fish playfully darting about. Slowly, a figure emerged from beneath the reeds.

If it were any other day, An Zhi would have assumed it to be a corpse floating in the water and hastily fled. However, for some reason, he felt a strange sense of familiarity with the situation today. Curiosity piqued, he eagerly wanted to see who or what that figure was.

He crouched down, his palms supporting his body on either side. His fingers sank into the damp, black soil by the lakeside as he leaned forward gradually.

Just as his nose touched the icy cold water, the figure suddenly shot towards him like a kite whose string had snapped.

An Zhi instinctively closed his eyes as droplets splashed onto his face.

As he slowly reopened them, he found himself nose-to-nose with the figure before him.

In the next second, his eyes widened in shock, his pupils dilating, and his complexion paled dramatically as cold sweat broke out across his forehead.

The reflection in the water was none other than himself!

How bizarre!

An Zhi attempted to run away, but as he straightened up, his legs gave way, causing him to collapse to the ground.

Gazing at his submerged body, he felt as though he had forgotten something crucial, yet it eluded his memory. Each time he delved deeper into thought, a piercing pain stabbed at his temples, as if someone were deliberately obstructing his train of thought.

A small silver fish swam past An Zhi's lifeless form.

"Wen Yan—" Suddenly, his voice echoed from behind.

An Zhi shuddered, turning around to look.

Wen Yan approached him step by step and said, "You drowned long ago, don't you remember?"

An Zhi remained unconvinced. "I'm still perfectly fine here."

Wen Yan asked, "Then are you brave enough to give it a try? Take a stroll through the city center and see how others react. Can they actually see you?"

Seizing the opportunity, An Zhi proposed a condition. "After that, you have to ensure Qin Huai's safe return."

Wen Yan nodded. "Agreed."

An Zhi's anxiety and fear were still lingering, causing his legs to tremble uncontrollably. He struggled to stand up, afraid of being ridiculed by Wen Yan. He bent down, holding onto his knees tightly with both hands, and said, "Let's give it a shot then."

Wen Yan stepped aside, allowing An Zhi to proceed first. "After you."

An Zhi's expression froze slightly. Unable to lift his legs, he smiled and said, "I mean... aren't we going to walk to the bustling city center? You must have driven here, right? How can I go first when I don't even know where you parked?"

"You really won't give up until you reach the Yellow River," Wen Yan said, quickly catching up to An Zhi's side. He lifted An Zhi's arm and slung it over his shoulder.

With a gust of wind, the two of them instantly appeared in the heart of the city's busiest intersection.

The sky had turned deep blue, and neon lights flickered to life, amidst the hustle and bustle of people and the rush of vehicles. All this sensory overload assaulted An Zhi's eyes and ears.

Suddenly, a blaring car horn pierced the air, and headlights shone directly into his eyes. A sedan was speeding towards them, and he instinctively tried to dodge.

But Wen Yan held onto his shoulder, asking, "Weren't you going to give it a try?"

An Zhi shrieked, "I'm not sure if I'm dead or not! If you do this, I might as well be dead!" He shrugged off Wen Yan's grip and demanded, "Let go!"

Wen Yan smiled but didn't release his hold.

The honking grew closer, and An Zhi closed his eyes in fear.

Suddenly, the car stopped right in front of them. The driver, cursing, stepped out, "Are you trying to get yourself killed? Stopping in the middle of the road like that!"

An Zhi sighed in relief but was still visibly shaken. His voice quivered as he muttered, "I told you I wasn't dead..."

Before he could finish, the driver walked past them, heading straight for a man and a dog behind them, yelling, "Walking your dog on the main road instead of the park? Have you lost your mind?!"

An Zhi turned to look and saw the man and the dog behind them.

The dog obstinately refused to move from the road, and the man couldn't pull it away, so they remained on the pavement.

The man scooped up his large dog, repeatedly apologizing to the driver, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it seems like it suddenly saw something and started barking while running this way. I really couldn't hold it back, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

An Zhi's hands hung limply by his sides, "They can't see me..."

Wen Yan said, "I didn't want you to leave the bedroom because I was afraid that if you knew the truth, it would be too much for you to handle all at once."

"You're quite considerate then," An Zhi was deeply affected and struggled to accept it. He murmured in a daze, "Am I really dead? No... I... I remember just falling asleep and ending up in that game. How could I... be dead? When did this happen?"

Wen Yan replied, "Have you recently recalled certain events? Like how you caused Qin's stocks to crash, leading many people to lose everything and even commit suicide by jumping off buildings?"

The car that had almost hit them passed through their bodies as if they weren't there.

An Zhi nodded, "It was Ju Lang who made me forget those memories."

Wen Yan said, "They made you forget more than that."

An Zhi asked, "Who else besides Ju Lang? What kind of things?"

"Don't worry, I'll tell you one by one," Wen Yan replied. "Actually, besides you, everyone close to you knows about your situation – I, Wen Yu, Qin Huai, Ju Lang, and Shi Huai. But apart from me and Wen Yu, they don't want you to fall into demonic cultivation."

"I remember, after those people killed themselves, I already..." Tears welled up in An Zhi's eyes as he looked intently at Wen Yan, wondering, "If I were to fall into demonic cultivation, what would they do with me?"

Wen Yan answered, "Just like in your previous hundred lifetimes, they would kill you."

Ju Lang had long since made it clear to An Zhi that if he fell into demonic cultivation, he would personally end his own life. He had always known the outcome, but hearing it confirmed from Wen Yan's mouth still made him shed tears.

Tears streamed down his face, and An Zhi took a deep breath, asking through sobs, "So, did they kill me? Was it Ju Lang who did it?"

Wen Yan nodded, "Yes."

In an instant, An Zhi couldn't hold back anymore. He raised his hands to cover his cheeks, hiding his despair.

Under his palms, tears kept rolling down. He kept inhaling and exhaling to control his emotions, but it was futile.

Seeing this, Wen Yan gently placed a hand on An Zhi's shoulders, which were quivering from his heavy breathing. He patted softly, seemingly trying to comfort him, and said softly, "Embrace demonic cultivation. You won't have to care about others anymore; you can follow your heart freely. How liberating it would be."

An Zhi shook his head. He wanted to say "no," but his throat ached, preventing him from making a sound.

Wen Yan removed An Zhi's hands, holding them firmly, "Look at me."

An Zhi didn't want to lift his head, allowing him to see his tearful face. It would be too pathetic and embarrassing. He kept his gaze lowered, his head bowed, staring at the ground.

In the bustling crossroads, surrounded by the flow of vehicles, traffic lights changed, cars continuously passing by their sides.

Wind blew from all directions, some people strolled and laughed, enjoying themselves; others carried heavy hearts, hurrying along; some dispersed in the wind, while others reunited amidst it.

In short, nobody noticed Wen Yan and An Zhi, and their emotions were irrelevant to anyone else.

Under the massive LED screen, Wen Yan let out a long sigh, reluctantly conceding, "If you don't want to look at me, that's fine—"

But he had no intention of giving up on making An Zhi fall into darkness. He spoke candidly, "On the day I sent you the game program, you weren't about to leave for a business trip, but had already returned. On the third day after you arrived in City S, which coincided with the Ghost Festival, you rushed back on a high-speed train and got into a car accident. You drowned in a lake."

Wen Yan continued, "Later, when I found your body, my purpose was to make you see with your own eyes, to reveal the true faces of those people."

Disregarding the tears still hanging on his chin, An Zhi lifted his head, looking earnestly at Wen Yan, asking, "If they wanted to kill me, why did they leave my body and soul in this world?"

Wen Yan lowered his gaze, studying An Zhi's apricot-shaped eyes, now shimmering with the multi-colored lights from the LED screen due to his tears, "The fact that you're asking me this shows that you still doubt me. They've killed you countless times, yet you still defend them?"

An Zhi tilted his head slightly. "That's your assumption, not mine. I just…" He quickly spun his thoughts, pondering for a moment before finding an excuse. "I don't want to falsely accuse them based on unverifiable hearsay. The game world is full of wonders, and I'm alone with weak skills. Thanks to them, I've been able to journey safely so far. They're all good people."

"Unverifiable hearsay? Haha!" Wen Yan laughed in fury. "What I said are facts!"

An Zhi attempted to withdraw. "They must be looking for me and Qin Huai by now. I came with you as you asked, so you should keep your promise and tell me where Qin Huai is."

"Very well. I'll take you to him." A profoundness appeared in Wen Yan's eyes, as if he was hatching some plan within.

...

In the blink of an eye, Wen Yan brought An Zhi to City S.

"Former Museum of the XX Site Excavation in City S," An Zhi read the name of the building before them. "Isn't this the case I'm working on? The project was initiated two decades ago but was suspended due to technical issues. There shouldn't be any artifacts left in this old museum, right?"

Wen Yan replied, "Qin Huai is inside."

He led An Zhi through the closed gates and into the museum.

Indeed, there weren't many artifacts on display; only a few scattered pieces. However, at the center of the room, there rested a white jade sarcophagus. Although it was referred to as a sarcophagus, it more accurately resembled an enormous white cocoon.

The cocoon radiated light from within, enveloping its surroundings in a veil of ethereal white.

An Zhi stepped forward, reaching out to touch the cocoon. The icy coldness of jade traveled from his fingertips throughout his body in an instant. He asked, "Is Qin Huai inside?"

Wen Yan replied, "Yes. If you can open it, you can take him away."

Without any hesitation, An Zhi agreed promptly, "Alright."

Despite its imposing appearance, the cocoon opened surprisingly easily. With a gentle push, An Zhi managed to break it open.

Sure enough, Qin Huai lay peacefully within. His eyes were softly closed, his hands crossed over his abdomen, his face calm and serene as he slept soundly.

"Come on—time to go back—" An Zhi bent down, attempting to rouse Qin Huai.

In his sleep, Qin Huai murmured, "Uncle, I want to be your elder, to protect you too…"

Upon hearing this, An Zhi's eyes reddened. "You already are my brother…"

Unexpectedly, Wen Yan struck him from behind, sending him tumbling into the cocoon.

With a thunderous crash, the cocoon sealed shut, trapping him inside.

"Wufeng Han," Wen Yan gazed intently at the center of the Illusory Dream Scroll, commanding, "Sleep soundly within there and let all that you've forgotten resurface in your mind."

--------------------