Chapter 21: Father

Chapter 21: Father

Sang Xu stepped out into a dim, narrow corridor. This was an old villa, its wooden floors creaking underfoot. The lighting was poor; even in broad daylight, the interior felt gloomy. At both ends of the hallway stood floor-to-ceiling mirrors, reflecting the corridor into an infinite extension, making it seem at first glance as though it had no end.

The pink room he was in was on the second floor. Descending the spiral staircase led to the first floor.

Many people had already gathered in the living room sofa area, some sitting, some standing. A tall figure waved frantically at Sang Xu, who looked up and saw it was Han Rao.

"What a coincidence!" Han Rao greeted him. "Hey, handsome, we ended up in the same dream again!"

He clapped Sang Xu on the shoulder with excessive force, nearly knocking the wind out of him.

Though Sang Xu already knew Han Rao had recovered, he still feigned surprise and examined his leg.

"Completely healed," Han Rao said, rolling up his pants leg. "Look, not even a scar."

"How did you manage that?" Sang Xu asked.

Han Rao paused, his expression turning serious. He pulled Sang Xu aside and whispered, "You're smart; I wanted to talk to you about something. After I woke up from the dream, I inexplicably received a job offer. Someone called 'The Boss' offered me a job at his company, with a monthly salary of half a Heaven-Mending Pill. Not only did he know my identity and home address, but he also knew I urgently needed the Heaven-Mending Pill and fronted me two months' pay. A couple of days ago, he assigned me a task: to find fragments of twenty-four century-old sacred statues."

"I see," Sang Xu nodded. "So you're wondering if this boss is reliable?"

"No, no," Han Rao said. "The Boss must be some mysterious big shot who recognized my talent and hired me with a high salary! I've been in four dreams and have some understanding of the Outlander community. Among Outlanders, there are many organizations, but aside from a few prominent family groups, none are lavish enough to use Heaven-Mending Pills as salary.

"Most organizations just make empty promises; some even require Outlanders to pay upfront fees under the guise of 'training fees.' The Boss giving me half a Heaven-Mending Pill a month is essentially granting me an extra month of life each time. Handsome, trust my experience—this company is absolutely reliable, and I might even be the highest-paid employee there."

Sang Xu: "..."

He chose to remain silent.

"So, I must complete the task The Boss assigned—not just complete it, but do it well and quickly," Han Rao said confidently. "Handsome, I think of you as a brother already. I can refer you to join our company, and we can partner up for big things. How about it?"

"..." Sang Xu pretended to think for a moment. "Let me consider it a bit more."

As they spoke, a girl descended from upstairs. She wore a light blue qipao, carried a small embroidered purse, and had a string of Canaan beads around her wrist. Her demeanor was gentle and dignified, like a gardenia flower in blue-and-white porcelain. As soon as she appeared, she caught everyone's attention, and two blond guys whistled suggestively at her. The girl ignored them and sat alone on a sofa chair by the door.

"Everyone here must be Outlanders, right?" a man in a suit adjusted his glasses and stepped forward. "Seems like there aren't any locals here."

Indeed, everyone glanced around and nodded in agreement.

Outlanders and locals were easy to distinguish, not just by clothing but also by demeanor. The people in the living room clearly seemed to be from modern times.

"Let's take turns introducing ourselves clockwise," the suited man said. "I'm Gao Zhen, a manager at a listed company. I've had five dream experiences."

A girl in the corner raised her hand. "I'm Li Xiao, a florist. I've been in two dreams."

It was the turn of the two blond men. One was fat with a huge belly, the other skinny as if he'd never had a proper meal.

The fat one spoke casually, "We're brothers. I'm Xu Zhidong, and this is my brother Xu Zhixi. We just graduated from college, no jobs yet, and we've been in four dreams." He whistled at the qipao girl again. "Hey sis, you scared here? We'll protect you."

"No need," the girl said gently, as if she didn't hear his lewd remark. "I'm Shen Zhili, a university lecturer. I've been in four dreams."

Shen Zhili?

Sang Xu and Han Rao exchanged glances.

Was this girl Shen Zhitang's sister?

It was Sang Xu and Han Rao's turn. Han Rao said, "Han Rao, security guard, three dream experiences."

Sang Xu said, "Liu Jianguo, programmer, one dream experience."

"It seems I have the most experience," Gao Zhen said, unbuttoning his suit jacket and sitting on the sofa. "I'll take charge for now. Any objections?"

Xu Zhidong shrugged. "You've got experience, so you lead."

"I've already observed that there's a small yard behind the house with a swimming pool. Outside the door is a mist—chances of survival are low out there. The house, plus the backyard, is roughly our activity range," Gao Zhen said.

"Mm," Shen Zhili nodded. "I also checked; there's no way out of this house."

Xu Zhixi opened the main door. Outside was indeed a gray, swirling mist, accompanied by eerie rustling sounds, as if something was lurking out there. He quickly shut the door.

"This villa likely housed a family of seven: parents, grandparents, an older brother... and two younger siblings who seem around the same age," Gao Zhen said. "But obviously, they're not here now. The hint says this dream's theme is 'Sweet Family,' so the way out is probably related to this family. We don't know where they are now."

"How do you know it's a family of seven?" Han Rao asked.

Everyone looked at him as if he were an idiot.

Han Rao: "?"

"Brother Han, there's a family portrait on the wall," Sang Xu pointed toward the dining room.

Behind the dining table hung a large family portrait: grandparents seated in front, holding the younger siblings, with the older brother and parents standing behind. Everyone was well-dressed—men in suits, women in evening gowns and high heels, even the little sister in a dress with a bow.

Gao Zhen adjusted his glasses and continued, "This is all I've found since waking up. Does anyone have anything to add?"

The two blond men pulled out a stack of photos. "We found some everyday photos of this family."

Everyone examined the photos, which captured everyday moments: grandparents working on woodcraft with the children, building a toy house, the mother cooking. One photo showed the grandmother sick in bed, with the father feeding her medicine.

"I found a surveillance camera in my room—here's the memory card," Shen Zhili said, pulling a small card from her embroidered purse.

Li Xiao quickly raised her hand. "I also found a surveillance camera in my room."

All eyes turned to Sang Xu and Han Rao.

Sang Xu had been caught up with Zhou Xia after waking up and hadn't had time to observe anything.

As for Han Rao, he hadn't even noticed the family portrait behind the dining table, let alone anything else.

Xu Zhidong sneered, "A security guard and a programmer—are you two idiots from the same company?"

"Fuck you! I'll beat your ass..."

Han Rao lunged to hit him but was pulled back by Sang Xu. Gao Zhen jumped in to calm things down. "Mr. Han and Mr. Liu are newer to this, so it's normal they might have missed things. It's fine; from now on, we'll work as a team. I'm sure both will contribute. Let's check other rooms for cameras and look for a card reader to see what's on the footage."

They found an old computer and a card reader in a storage room on the first floor. After connecting the computer to the living room TV, Gao Zhen took the memory cards everyone had collected, inserted them, and played the surveillance footage from all rooms on the screen. Static appeared on the TV, soon replaced by a clear image.

A tall, thin figure pushed open a bedroom door where the grandparents were sleeping soundly, snoring like thunder. The figure left that room and entered a second bedroom, where the younger brother lay sprawled out asleep.

Descending the stairs, it entered a third bedroom where the older brother, around twelve or thirteen, slept surrounded by basketball player posters. The fourth bedroom had pink wallpaper, a toy house against the wall, and a little girl sleeping with a doll.

The figure exited and entered a fifth bedroom. The parents slept there—the mother on her back, the father on his side, face turned toward the darkness, features hard to make out.

Everyone fell silent, a silent dread coiling like a snake up their spines.

All seven family members were shown in the footage. Who was this tall, thin figure?

The next moment, the figure took out a syringe and gave the mother an injection. Her head slumped, as if she'd fallen unconscious. Then, the figure left the frame and returned with a knife. It approached the father on the bed, the knife moving closer.

Finally, the blade came down viciously towards the father’s neck.

Li Xiao screamed, covering her eyes, too afraid to watch.

On the screen, the blade rose and fell, and the father’s head rolled off like a ball, blood drenching the lens and painting the whole screen crimson.

Aside from Li Xiao, everyone else remained calm and continued playing the next segment of the surveillance footage. The screen flickered, and they saw the unconscious mother being strung up on a tree branch in the backyard. The camera, positioned outside the window, captured the scene unmoving.

The mother woke from her coma to find herself hanging from the tree. She struggled violently, trying to scream for help but unable to make a sound. Her neck twisted, and she was slowly choked to death. After watching all the surveillance footage they had collected, the tall, lean figure kept its back to the camera throughout, never once showing its face.

Although they only witnessed the deaths of the father and mother, the other family members probably didn’t make it either. The family wasn’t absent—they were all dead.

Li Xiao said in a trembling voice, “This is a haunted house.”

Gao Zhen said, “There’s gotta be other cameras. Let’s split up and search.”

Li Xiao whispered, “Such bloody footage… maybe we should skip the rest…”

Gao Zhen glanced at her and said, “Is this your first dream? If we don’t figure out the situation, how will we deal with whatever might appear tonight? How will we find a way out?”

They split up to search for memory cards, while Sang Xu and Han Rao took the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the villa’s layout. The villa had four floors: the fourth floor was an attic, the third floor had the grandparents’ and younger brother’s rooms, along with a study and a storage room. The second floor contained the parents’, older brother’s, and younger sister’s rooms, as well as a music room. The first floor consisted of the living room, dining room, and an open kitchen.

Moreover, the entire villa was locked up tight. As Gao Zhen had said, there was no way out of the dream.

Han Rao found it strange. “How can there be no way out of a place this size?”

Sang Xu furrowed his brow, remaining silent.

After searching for a few hours, everyone regrouped in the living room, all coming up empty.

“Impossible. Let’s keep looking,” Gao Zhen said.

“No, we’re running out of time,” Shen Zhili pointed at the wall clock and reminded them with a smile, “We woke up at noon, and it’s already 6 p.m. now. Generally, nighttime’s when things go down. I suggest we continue our search tomorrow during the day.”

“Alright,” Gao Zhen sighed.

Shen Zhili took out a stack of talismans from her handbag and said gently, “These are protective talismans I had a master write to keep evil out. Put these on your doors. If whatever recorded those videos is still around, it won’t dare enter at night.”

Xu Zhidong happily accepted the talismans, beaming. “Thanks, sis! You’re awesome!”

Li Xiao asked softly, “Sister Shen, can I sleep in your room tonight?”

Shen Zhili gave an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I don’t do shared rooms.”

The Xu Zhidong brothers grinned and said, “Hey, little sister, why not stay with us?”

Li Xiao shrank back and shook her head. She’d rather be alone than share a room with those two creeps.

Gao Zhen asked, “How about sharing a room with me?”

She bit her lip, shook her head again, and looked at Sang Xu. The young man seemed decent and more dependable. Sensing her gaze, Sang Xu said, “Sorry, I’m also not used to sharing a room with others.”

Li Xiao looked defeated, lowering her head without another word.

Gao Zhen looked around and said, “This is my first time in a Class-D dream. I’m not sure how it differs from Class-F. Has anyone been in a Class-D dream before?”

Everyone shook their heads.

Sang Xu frowned as he listened. How was his second dream already Class-D?

Gao Zhen continued, “It’s alright. Based on my experience, the first few nights are usually quiet. Everyone just needs to stay in their rooms, and things should be fine. If you need to use the bathroom at night, it’s best not to leave your room—just pick a corner. Also, has anyone noticed that our phones work here? Let’s swap WeChat info. We’ll meet back here tomorrow at 6:30 a.m.”

They created a group chat face-to-face, and Sang Xu specially made a throwaway account to join.

As time grew later, the outside of the house was covered in fog, making it impossible to tell if it was day or night. To play it safe, it was better to return to their rooms as soon as possible. Everyone went back to their respective rooms, and Sang Xu returned to the pink room.

He didn’t stick the talisman on the door—you couldn’t trust outsiders, and it was best not to use things given by them. Earlier, no one had wanted to share a room with Li Xiao precisely because everyone was wary of each other.

Besides, he had Zhou Xia in his room. That guy was better at keeping evil away than any charm. It was also because of Zhou Xia that he hadn’t chosen to share a room with Han Rao.

Zhou Xia was still lying on the bed, the blanket covering his face, motionless. The blanket was raised like a small grave mound.

Sang Xu closed the door, stood still for a moment, and asked, “Do you want to have sex tonight?”

Zhou Xia ignored him.

Whatever, Sang Xu thought. Better to let Zhou Xia have some quiet time. He turned and entered the bathroom, flushing the talisman Shen Zhili had given him down the toilet. Better to get rid of it. He also sent a message to Han Rao, telling him to trash his too.

He turned on the faucet, about to wash his face.

His phone suddenly vibrated.

Zhou Xia: “Asshole.”

Sang Xu frowned and looked up into the mirror. The mirror reflected the scene behind him—Zhou Xia was still lying on the bed, motionless.

He was caught off guard. Zhou Xia actually had a phone, could text, and even had his phone number.

Sang Xu: “What is it?”

Zhou Xia: “Nothing. Just cursing you out.”

Sang Xu stared into the mirror as messages popped up in the chat, but Zhou Xia on the bed wasn’t moving at all, let alone using a phone.

Could it be…?

Sang Xu: “Where are you?”

Zhou Xia: “In the attic, stargazing. The stars in dreams are much prettier. The stars back in your world are lame.”

If Zhou Xia wasn’t in the room, then what was that thing on the bed?

Sang Xu’s nerves went taut.

Just then, the thing on the bed sat up.

Through the mirror, he saw the blanket fall off, and a pair of feet stepped onto the floor, wearing polished leather shoes and checkered suit pants.

He didn’t know who it was, but it definitely wasn’t Zhou Xia.

Sang Xu: “Help me. There’s something in the room. I’m trapped in the bathroom.”

Sang Xu closed the bathroom door. The next moment, earsplitting banging sounds erupted outside. The bathroom door was like paper to the thing outside, splintering under the violent blows. Through the cracks, Sang Xu saw the man’s wide, white eyes and the stitched lines on his neck.

It was the decapitated father.

Zhou Xia: “Heh.”

Zhou Xia: “Handle it yourself. Serves you right if you die.”

Sang Xu wanted to beg him further. Zhou Xia was soft-hearted; if he said enough nice things, Zhou Xia wouldn’t leave him to die.

He sent another message, but it was rejected.

Sang Xu had been blocked.