Chapter 36

Chapter 36

Wei Yangze stubbed out his cigarette.

In the ashtray placed in the car, there were already scattered cigarette butts of various sizes.

Rain had soaked the windshield.

Even with the wipers going, they couldn’t clear it all, leaving the view still blurry.

But he kept his eyes fixed ahead.

Only when the two figures completely disappeared from his sight did he reach out and kill the engine. The headlights cut out instantly, and the sound of rain reached his ears, as if things had snapped back to normal.

"Stay put in the car, don’t budge," he glanced at the back seat. "I need to go handle something."

"..."

Hearing this, Bao Zhehan broke into a cold sweat.

Move? That was asking too much.

Forget running—he didn’t dare twitch a muscle now.

He’d climbed into the car half an hour ago.

Realizing he couldn’t talk Ye Jishu out of it, and sticking around might just make things worse, he’d hesitated, staring at Ye Jishu, torn. Once he was sure Ye Jishu wouldn’t budge, he had no choice but to leave the dorm alone.

But it felt like he’d wandered into some hidden zone.

His limbs went cold, and he wandered in terror, trapped in the dorm’s oppressive darkness.

"A ghost wall. No doubt about it."

Facing one dead end after another, Bao Zhehan was on the verge of tears, mentally replaying every bad thing he’d ever done.

I’m sorry... I never should’ve done any of it!

If I make it out alive, I’ll never act high and mighty again.

The moment the thought hit him.

He stumbled into the bushes just as the car’s headlights flared to life.

Like a deer in headlights, he looked helplessly towards the light, revealing Wei Yangze’s face, clad in uniform.

The other unlocked the car door and let him in.

Then, this guy from the Bureau of Infection Management and Control smoked while staring at his phone screen.

His expression was unreadable, and it was unclear what he was thinking.

The phone kept pinging with new messages.

Bao Zhehan didn’t dare make a sound or ask, just trying to minimize his presence in the back seat.

When Ye Jishu appeared, his heart leapt with joy, and he wanted to call out to him. But soon, he noticed Yan Mei standing quietly beside him, like a cold splash of water, and his heart instantly turned ice-cold.

"I'll stay put in the car."

Bao Zhehan immediately assured.

Worried that if he hesitated, the other party would impatiently throw him out of the car.

He definitely didn’t want to get out again!

Wei Yangze glanced at him in the rearview mirror, his eyes hidden behind sunglasses, then flicked the cigarette butt into the ashtray.

Then, he pushed open the car door.

He stepped out into the pouring rain. Rain slid off his waterproof jacket.

He headed for the dorm entrance.

As he passed the elevator, he glanced at it.

A red light glowed above it, showing 'Under Maintenance.'

When he reached the dormitory floor where Ye Jishu was supposed to be according to the records, he saw Lin Lin at the end of the corridor, leaning against the wall with his back, barely standing—blood streaming from his eyes, nose, and mouth.

Blood dripped from his chin to the floor.

It was a horrifying sight.

But Wei Yangze remained unmoved.

He didn’t even move to help, but just stood at a distance, watching him struggle.

Employees could be injured in any number of ways, and the 'source of infection' killed in bizarre ways. Surviving was a miracle.

With his experience, he could tell—

Lin Lin had not suffered any physical injuries.

Not a scratch.

Only his mind had been infected, leaving it blank.

His body couldn’t handle the mental breakdown, triggering a rejection response.

At such times, the only one who could help him was himself.

A thought occurred to Wei Yangze.

"He didn’t even act. Somehow, it’s amazing."

Because—

His gaze turned towards the wall.

Not far away was a pulpy mass of flesh and blood, crushed into foam. It oozed across the window and floor, with densely packed eyeballs flattened into white traces.

The window was open, swaying.

Rain and damp air crept in through the half-open window.

Black slime clung to the window edges, giving off a sulfur-like smell.

It looked like something had just fled from there, leaving a piece of itself behind.

Based on deduction alone, it was impossible to piece together exactly what had happened.

"Can you hear me?"

Wei Yangze’s gaze returned, focusing on the disheveled, blood-covered Lin Lin.

His fingers twitched slightly.

It was a sign he’d heard.

Wei Yangze pulled out his phone from his uniform jacket.

He started recording and set the phone on the floor in front of Lin Lin.

"When you’re ready, tell us what just happened."

The recording would be sent to headquarters right away.

Everyone had to know what had happened.

This would likely be the key to figuring out how they should respond.

Though Lin Lin looked like a lab rat, he should’ve been ready for this since joining the Bureau of Infection Management and Control.

Lin Lin should’ve known.

Even the slowest person would get why they were here and their role when they saw what made them join the Bureau.

Lin Lin’s body twitched, and he finally got out his first words.

"...That thing...it was Wen Yuhe—"

Though he didn’t specify, he was talking about the still-moving blob of blood.

With every twitch, it let out a groan like an old man’s, or maybe just the sound of wind.

Wei Yangze couldn’t tell if it was alive.

But in this case, maybe death was better than life.

Lin Lin’s pupils were wide.

Still, he pushed himself to explain what had happened.

But at the end, he added one more thing.

"...We were wrong. Yan Mei. It’s not the source of infection."

This was totally unexpected.

Wei Yangze froze.

"I heard...what it said when it killed Wen Yuhe and warned the other infection source. It didn’t care I was there because Ye Jishu is incredibly important to it—that’s the only reason it’s keeping things the way they are..."

The conversation had reached the most crucial information.

As Lin Lin's mind raced, his words had gradually shifted from coherence to incoherence.

He chewed over and recounted, punctuated by eerie moans, struggling to convey his thoughts to the headquarters observers.

That is—

Ye Jishu's existence was more important than they had thought.

Not to mention Ye Jishu's ability to preserve the world's normalcy.

Upon his touch, the levels of infection of those abnormal things would immediately disappear, restoring them to normalcy.

Anything he firmly believed to be normal would inevitably become normal.

"Now, it's unclear how much of his conviction remains."

Even without mentioning this, focusing on the root cause of all this would send a chill down one's spine.

Because "Yan Mei" himself did not exist.

What it was for in the beginning.

It was completely impossible to guess.

Perhaps it was just a whim, or a facade created for amusement.

As for why it was maintained.

The truth that headquarters initially couldn't grasp could now be glimpsed.

"Yan Mei"...

was simply a "normal" personality facade created by Him to stay by Ye Jishu's side in the "normal" world.

If He were to leave Ye Jishu.

"Yan Mei" would cease to have any reason to exist.

In other words—

Ye Jishu was, without a doubt, the entirety of "Yan Mei."

If He was not the previously suspected source of infection, but some unknown, all-encompassing entity... the disappearance of "Yan Mei" would herald the most terrifying and unpredictable event in the entire normal world.

Even Ye Jishu's ability to eliminate infections risked being unable to halt their spread.

Yet, paradoxically—

Only Ye Jishu himself could resolve such a massive risk.

Because "Yan Mei" loved him.

...

Ye Jishu sat in the car.

He glanced at the front of the car, where the blinking clock displayed 3 a.m.

He had never been out this late before.

Even if he was awake at this hour, he should be playing games in bed.

He’d keep playing until he was tired, then pass out. That was his normal routine.

"So how did it end up like this?"

Ye Jishu didn’t move a muscle.

But from the reflection in the car's rearview mirror, he saw Yan Mei's figure in the passenger seat.

Yan Mei was staring straight ahead.

Though his face showed no emotion, his fingers tapped lightly on the steering wheel, betraying the anxiety surging inside him.

"Ever since earlier..."

"So where are we headed, exactly?"

When he mentioned "breaking up," Yan Mei froze, his smile faltering.

He stared at him for a long moment.

Then, as if he hadn’t heard, he added, "I didn’t go on a trip. I got a gift for Jishu."

A gift? Why would he get me something?

Even Ye Jishu was thrown off by the sudden shift.

"Let’s check it out together, okay?" Yan Mei said. "It’s fine if you say no. I get it. Just being with you is enough. Just a suggestion."

Ye Jishu noticed eerie, foam-like white eyeballs floating in the dark, empty room.

As Yan Mei spoke, the black shapes seemed to lean in, staring intently at him.

"..."

Is this really okay?

But now, refusing didn’t seem like an option.

Ye Jishu stared silently at Yan Mei.

If he could refuse, why were those tentacles back?

While waiting for his answer, the tentacles coiled around his ankles, blocking any escape, watching his every move.

Yan Mei added, "I don’t care."

"..."

After all the games he’d played, Ye Jishu knew the drill.

How to avoid the worst-case scenario.

Now, there was only one option.

"—Okay."

So, this is how it ended up.

Ye Jishu looked out of the car.

Half the streetlights were off, but the stars still faintly twinkled.

It felt like they were back in the real world.

Even though it was late, normal pedestrians were still out on the streets of the big city.

Ye Jishu stared at them for a few seconds.

The world was just as he remembered it—normal.

But through the car window’s reflection, he saw the inside.

Around Yan Mei, the eyes, black mist, and hidden tentacles remained.

He kept his eyes fixed outside.

The eerie scene, clashing with the normal world he saw, felt even more disjointed.

Yan Mei seemed to have dropped all pretense.

His face showed coldness and a twisted resentment, his emotions clearly unstable.

The steering wheel creaked under his tight grip.

"This is all your fault..."

Ye Jishu stayed silent. ...This was terrifying.

He could tell the hatred wasn’t aimed at him...

But he couldn’t shake the feeling someone else was being blamed—and it wouldn’t end well.

Suddenly, he heard the engine stop.

Ye Jishu looked ahead.

When he saw where they were, his eyes widened in shock. He hadn’t expected this.

"The arcade?"

This was where they’d had their first date.

It had closed down a month ago.

But now, the green "Open" sign was on, flickering oddly.

Yet, the place was empty.

Even passersby didn’t seem to notice anything strange inside.

However, the unmistakable noise of a game arcade could be heard from inside.

Even without entering, one could imagine all the arcade machines in operation.

It felt as if...

The place was open just for the two of them.

Was this Yan Mei's gift to him?

Just as he thought this, Ye Jishu suddenly heard a faint noise from beside his ear.

Realizing what it was, he was startled and immediately turned his head.

In the next moment, he saw Yan Mei.

At some point, the other had already slumped over the steering wheel, hiding his face with his arm, his shirt completely crumpled.

Though he couldn't see his face, Ye Jishu had a feeling that the other was at his lowest.

"Breaking up... absolutely not..." he stammered incoherently, "If something went wrong, let's start over from there... I put so much effort into this, I absolutely don't want to break up with Jishu, sob..."