Ch53 – Gunshot
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The jingubang trembled in Zhou Sheng’s grip, growing longer and extending to the other side of the cliff before expanding to form a cylindrical bridge for the two of them to walk over.
“Be careful.” Zhou Sheng said absentmindedly. He was thinking about how to obtain Chen Yekai’s permission to summon over the dragon and soldiers that were on standby outside the Golden Crow Wheel.
Along the way, he tried all different manner of approaches, including but not limited to telling Chen Yekai that he has a dragon and asking him to imagine the dragon appearing in his dream. But ultimately, his efforts were in vain. There must be some other conditions that haven’t been met……Zhou Sheng thought.
“You and Yu Hao……have known each other for a long time?” Chen Yekai asked tentatively as he stepped onto the jingubang.
“No.” Zhou Sheng roughly explained how he had rescued Yu Hao.
Chen Yekai answered, “Just as I suspected then.”
Zhou Sheng thought that Chen Yekai must have made countless deductions before inquiring about the truth — and this would have included Yu Hao’s self-destructive tendencies in the past.
Chen Yekai came to an abrupt stop.
Standing in the middle of the jingubang bridge with nothing around to support them, Zhou Sheng keenly sensed that something was imminently rushing towards them from the bottomless abyss!
“Run!” Zhou Sheng shouted decisively.
But just a short moment later, hundreds of shrieking eyes and mouths shot out from within the unfathomable abyss, and the mouths were even spitting out sharp knives. Chen Yekai and Zhou Sheng quickened their pace, but Zhou Sheng roared, “Dodge!”
Chen Yekai and Zhou Sheng staggered to the side, narrowly avoiding the crisscrossing bladestorm that grazed past them by hanging from the edge of the jingubang bridge.
An enormous black shadow emerged from the bottomless abyss and transformed into a humanoid form; its two eyes were as wide as basketb.a.l.l.s, and it was yelling in English. It lunged towards them.
“What’s that?!” Zhou Sheng shouted.
Chen Yekai, “……”
Zhou Sheng, “Kaikai!”
While holding onto the jingubang bridge, Chen Yekai’s arm was cut by a sharp knife, and fresh blood immediately gushed from the wound; his grip loosened and he almost fell into the bottomless abyss before Zhou Sheng seized his shirt collar with his right hand. He arduously held on to the jingubang bridge using the crook of his left arm.
“That’s……” Chen Yekai stared, transfixed on the black shadow, “Solimai……it’s him, it was him who posted our video……”
Zhou Sheng shouted, “This is a dream! Don’t be afraid of him!”
Chen Yekai was shocked out of his stupor by Zhou Sheng’s shout and instantly sobered up. He drew a gun from behind his back and fired three shots at the black shadow. Within the blares of gunfire, the black figure wailed in anguish and collapsed; it disintegrated into a ma.s.s of black smoke only to once again converge on the other side. Immediately afterwards, even more floating mouths loomed. Sharp knives emerged from the gaping mouths and shot towards the two of them.
“Aim for the eyes!” Zhou Sheng was grabbing the jingubang bridge with one hand while he held Chen Yekai with the other. He exerted some strength and hoisted up Chen Yekai, who turned over and hung from the jingubang bridge as well.
Only eyes and mouths could be seen floating above the abyss, and all the mouths were incessantly chittering in English, j.a.panese, Spanish, Italian……
“What are they saying?!” Zhou Sheng said, “I don’t want to go through another English Listening test!”
Chen Yekai suddenly became indignant and roared out a sentence in English.
Zhou Sheng, “???”
Zhou Sheng instantly realised what had emerged from this bottomless abyss — these were the slandering accusations incited by this man that Chen Yekai and Ryuusei had to suffer through. They had to constantly avoid the sharp daggers that relentlessly hurled past. Chen Yekai started shooting at them, and after a burst of gunfire, their surroundings gradually began to quieten.
Chen Yekai, “Where’s your shield?”
Zhou Sheng, “It’s the jingubang. It either becomes a shield or a weapon. I can’t use these two items at the same time unless I’m in Yu Hao’s dream.”
They were still in a state of panic as they gasped for breath. Within the darkness, it seemed as if there were more monsters that were scaling the cliff.
“Let’s go!” Zhou Sheng urged.
Chen Yekai flipped over onto the jingubang, then pulled Zhou Sheng up with one hand. The ma.s.s of black smoke swarmed in front of a gate and transformed into another man.
Zhou Sheng caught up with quick steps. The man’s gaze suddenly flooded with terror, and he retreated. Chen Yekai slammed his face in with a punch; the man immediately raised both his hands and slowly knelt down on the ground.
Chen Yekai couldn’t stop trembling. He turned sideways, drew his gun and pressed it against the figure’s forehead.
Zhou Sheng withdrew his jingubang and watched Chen Yekai carefully from the platform. Chen Yekai arduously gasped for breath as he began to gently pull back the trigger with a finger.
Zhou Sheng waited for the sound of a gunshot, but Chen Yekai never pulled the trigger.
“Blii tlw.” Eseerfl’r nblmf gjcu bea klatlc atf vjgx jysrr, “Kjxf gfnfcuf obg wf, sbe mbkjgv……xlii tlw, kts jgfc’a sbe rtbbalcu tlw?”
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But similar to the idea of how ‘you can’t play into the enemy’s hands’, Zhou Sheng realised that perhaps at this moment, Chen Yekai shouldn’t pull the trigger. What changes would take place if he shot this perpetrator in his dream?
One second, two seconds, three seconds……
Chen Yekai regained his composure.
“Get lost.” Chen Yekai said in a deep voice, “Never appear in front of me again.”
Solimai instantly wailed, and the black smoke dispersed. Huge rocks rose from the bottomless abyss and rapidly covered the darkness below the cliff. The surrounding area transformed into a s.p.a.cious pa.s.sageway, and in front of them was the gate to the core area of Chichén Itzá.
“Nicky, you trash——” Ryuusei’s voice let out a shrill outcry within the void.
“Yes.” Chen Yekai said, “Ryuusei, if doing so could make you feel a little better, then I’m willing to pay the price of being imprisoned for 20 years, or even my whole life.”
He retrieved his gun, “But I clearly remember the day you said you didn’t want me to kill, because you couldn’t bear that price, and that all of this would gradually become a part of the past. You said that being together was more important than anything else.”
“I didn’t mean it——!” Ryuusei’s roar was almost hysterical.
“Come back ba.” Chen Yekai said, “Ryuusei, which one is the real you?”
Zhou Sheng, “……”
The huge gate before them slowly opened to reveal a dazzling beam of light.
“Is anybody here?” Yu Hao shouted, “Nakagawa Ryuusei! Where are you? Show yourself!”
“Is anybody here is anybody here……” Echoes could be heard from the well.
Yu Hao suddenly heard it — the echoes didn’t seem to be his own.
“Is anybody here?” A weak voice said.
Yu Hao, “!!!”
Yu Hao turned his head abruptly; that voice came from the well! What’s going on? Aside from him and Ryuusei, there was another person here?!
“Who are you?!” Yu Hao asked.
“Who are you?” The voice in the well answered.
Yu Hao could discern a figure as he looked into the well. He looked everywhere to search for a rope, but found none.
“Give me a moment!” Yu Hao said, “I’ll pull you up right now!”
Yu Hao dismantled his long staff into daggers, cut the vines that surrounded the cenote, tied them together, then lowered it down. When he felt someone grasp the rope from below, he quickly pulled it up.
Not a moment later, a young man looked up from within the well and stared blankly at Yu Hao.
Yu Hao, “!!!”
Yu Hao was completely dumbfounded. A fair face, frail and thin body, bare upper body, black hair and black eyes —— another Nakagawa Ryuusei! Compared to the dark Ryuusei Yu Hao saw before, this young man’s expression was filled with more melancholy and nervous unease.
“Ryuusei?” Yu Hao asked.
“Ryuusei?” Ryuusei repeated Yu Hao’s words, then looked at him uneasily.
Yu Hao asked again, “Who……who are you? Don’t let go! Come up!”
The Ryuusei in the well seemed a little afraid of Yu Hao and wanted to release his grip, but no matter what Yu Hao said, this Ryuusei would only repeat his words. Yu Hao was a bit flabbergasted. This is……the other Nakagawa Ryuusei in Chen Yekai’s dreamscape? Is he the original, kind Ryuusei? Where did Dark Ryuusei go?
“You still want to struggle?” A cold voice called out from behind him, followed by a kick that pushed Yu Hao into the well. Yu Hao immediately cried out and fell in, but before he realised what he was doing, he forcefully grabbed the wrist of the well Ryuusei. When he looked up again, he saw the other cold, sorrowful Ryuusei outside the well!
Yu Hao tenaciously grabbed onto the vines, while his other arm wrapped around Ryuusei’s waist. He shouted, “Ryuusei! Don’t let go!” Although he didn’t know what was in the well, his instincts told him that he definitely couldn’t fall in!
Dark Ryuusei roared madly, “Don’t even think about s.n.a.t.c.hing a dead person’s lover! Yu Hao! You beast——” As he spoke, he grabbed the vine tied around a pillar, but the m.u.f.fled sound of a gate opening could be heard in the distance. Dark Ryuusei turned around. Something seemed to have happened outside.
Immediately afterwards, Dark Ryuusei leaped onto the opening of the well again. He held a huge stone in his hand and ferociously glared at Yu Hao and the other Ryuusei.
Yu Hao, “……”
But at this moment, he suddenly had a hunch that something was about to happen……the other Ryuusei holding onto his shoulders trembled; with one hand, he took the gun from Yu Hao’s back pocket and handed it to Yu Hao.
Yu Hao had no time to think about it; he freed one hand and pointed the gun at the Dark Ryuusei standing outside the well — Dark Ryuusei’s eyes widened considerably.
With the blast of a gunshot, the head of Dark Ryuusei who stood outside the well was pierced through. Blood and brains burst out in all directions, and that huge rock fell into the well. Yu Hao was unable to avoid it. He abruptly turned around, protecting Ryuusei with his back, and they fell to the bottom of the well together.
The instant the huge rock fell, Yu Hao turned and hugged Ryuusei and flapped his wings as hard as he could. But as soon as his wings unfolded, they harshly sc.r.a.ped across the walls of the well so he couldn’t fly at all.
“Zhou Sheng!” Yu Hao shouted towards the top.
No one answered. Yu Hao fell into the darkness together with the shining Ryuusei. The bottom of the well seemed to be pulling them in with an immense force, causing them to fall rapidly; Ryuusei grabbed onto Yu Hao’s shirt and kept tugging on it, his eyes filled with earnest expectation.
The b.u.t.tons on Yu Hao’s shirt tore off, and his white shirt began flapping crazily as they fell. His eyes widened as he looked at Ryuusei, then nodded. The moment he nodded, the shirt immediately disintegrated into a golden powder and with a whoosh, it reformed on the shining Ryuusei. The Ryuusei who now possessed that white shirt instantly scattered into light particles that illuminated the bottom of the well. The light particles rapidly dispersed and transformed into a strange s.p.a.ce.
Yu Hao looked down, and a ball of bright light drew closer and closer, and in the next moment, another loud cry could be heard — he had landed solidly in a room filled with light!
Zhou Sheng and Chen Yekai pa.s.sed through the gate and sprinted through the tunnel. Suddenly, the sound of a gunshot cracked from the end of the tunnel — it was so earth-shattering that the entire dream world seemed to shake.
Chen Yekai slowed down, and at this moment, Zhou Sheng seemed to have realised something — the gunshot appeared to have a very intense stimulating effect on Chen Yekai.
“Yu Hao——!” Zhou Sheng shouted.
It was quiet at the end of the tunnel; no one answered his call.
Zhou Sheng was about to rush forward when Chen Yekai began gasping violently. He pressed against the wall of the tunnel with a hand. The entire Chichén Itzá shook unsteadily in waves, and dust showered down with every quake of the pyramid.
“Kaikai.” Zhou Sheng had to slow down and turn around to inspect Chen Yekai, “Calm down! You’ve already decided to face all this!”
Chen Yekai’s mental condition was in an extremely fragile state right now — especially after the gunshot had sounded. If he had a mental breakdown, everything would be completely destroyed.
Chen Yekai said, “Yes, okay, I know. I just haven’t, for now……I haven’t managed to convince myself yet……”
“Take a break.” Zhou Sheng said, “And adjust your state of mind; I’ll go ahead to take a look.”
Suddenly, Zhou Sheng vanished into thin air.
Chen Yekai said, bewildered, “Zhou Sheng?”
In the real world.
Yu Hao felt like he was endlessly falling, and then he suddenly came to a stop as he landed on something. A bright light shot towards him, and before he could register anything, Zhou Sheng reflexively reached out and grabbed him while still in the dream, then he opened his eyes and pulled him back onto the bed.
Yu Hao realised that he almost fell off the bed.
He was sleeping too close to the edge of the bed……the two of them were sleeping on a single bed, so it was very cramped. Zhou Sheng was only wearing a bathrobe too, so Yu Hao was really afraid that he would unconsciously take the initiative to hug him while they were sleeping.
“I……”
“Shh.” Zhou Sheng motioned to Yu Hao to not wake Chen Yekai up, “Move in closer to sleep. How’s the situation?”
“There’s something at the bottom of the well.” Yu Hao described the situation to Zhou Sheng. He wore a doubtful expression on his face, and seemed to have suddenly comprehended something. He whispered, “Sleep ba, I’ll go down and get you out later.”
Zhou Sheng rolled sideways and let Yu Hao lie on his shoulder. With their bodies in close proximity, they covered themselves with the blanket and continued to dream.
Dream World·Chichén Itzá
With a ray of light, Zhou Sheng reappeared.
Chen Yekai, “Zhou Sheng?”
Zhou Sheng waved his hand, “It’s nothing, accidentally woke up just now.”
“Let’s go.” Chen Yekai said, “I’m fine.”
Chen Yekai was about to walk forward when Zhou Sheng said, “Wait, Kaikai.”
Chen Yekai stopped, then looked at Zhou Sheng.
Zhou Sheng said, “Before going through this door, you must think everything through clearly in order to face your true self.”
Chen Yekai’s breathing became ragged, and his eyes widened. They looked up at the door — an image of the Feathered Serpent G.o.d was carved into it.
“What do you regret?” Zhou Sheng turned his head sideways and looked at Chen Yekai, “What would you live on for in the future? What kind of life do you want to have? And what kind of person do you want to be?”
“Before thinking through all these questions clearly,” Zhou Sheng said, “We won’t open the door. You want to be rescued with our help, but before that can happen, you have to save yourself.”
Chen Yekai whispered, “Actually, what I feel the most guilt for all this time is not entirely Ryuusei’s death.”
Zhou Sheng looked at Chen Yekai. Chen Yekai sighed and answered, “When he was alive, I gave him too little love.” He looked at Zhou Sheng with an apologetic gaze, “Everything came so suddenly and easily that I didn’t know how to cherish it. In this relationship, I think, from the very beginning, Ryuusei felt it was imbalanced. He was too afraid of losing me.”
“……that was the true cause of everything that happened afterwards……and what I really regret the most……”
Zhou Sheng, “Since you’ve figured that out, then go and find the real you ba. Go, push the door!”
Chen Yekai raised his voice, “I’m coming! Ryuusei!”
Zhou Sheng, “Yu Hao! We’re coming!”
Together, the two of them slowly pushed the door open, revealing the central area located in the deepest chambers of Chichén Itzá. There was a huge well in the interior, as well as a Feathered Serpent G.o.d statue. Nakagawa Ryuusei’s corpse hung on the railings around the well, with half of his body dangling into the well while the other half was exposed outside. His bare upper body was drenched in blood, and the back of his head had a b.l.o.o.d.y, gaping hole from where it had been pierced through by a bullet.
Chen Yekai, “……”
Zhou Sheng steadily approached the well.
Suddenly, a ma.s.s of black vapour erupted from the well and billowed into the skies before surging into Ryuusei’s corpse. Zhou Sheng shouted, “Kaikai! Watch out!”
“Nicky, looks like you’re determined to bid farewell to the past me?”
The black vapour erupting from the well was injected into Ryuusei’s corpse, which stirred in the next moment. Scuffling sounds could be heard as he crawled up; that black vapour now obscured the sky and covered the earth!
“Kaikai! Calm down! Think about what you said outside the door!” Zhou Sheng wielded the jingubang in his hand, still searching for Yu Hao’s whereabouts. The central area was surrounded by walls; there weren’t any hiding places and the environment here was exactly the same as what Yu Hao had described, so where on earth did he go?
Suddenly, Zhou Sheng thought of the only remaining possibility, and his gaze fell upon the well at the centre.
Ryuusei sneered, “Nicky, do you think that all the fault lies with me?”
Chen Yekai said urgently, “Ryuusei, on the day of my graduation, I wanted to propose to you.”
Chen Yekai’s eyes widened, but Zhou Sheng was slowly approaching the well from the side.
“Ryuusei……Ryuusei……” Chen Yekai’s voice was trembling as he continued to approach Dark Ryuusei.
Dark Ryuusei was revived once again. He held onto the well platform for support as he slowly stood up. Within his mouth that was dripping with blood, sharp teeth could be seen and he looked just like a zombie. He roared madly at Chen Yekai!
Zhou Sheng could distinctly see something in the well — a speck of light suddenly flashed within the darkness.
“Where’s Yu Hao?” Chen Yekai asked in disbelief.
Zhou Sheng motioned to Chen Yekai. He pointed to Ryuusei, which meant that he was asking him to delay him, before pointing at himself, then the well, as a secret hint to him that he would think of a way to save Yu Hao.
Dark Ryuusei became instantly aware of Zhou Sheng’s proximity. The ma.s.s of black vapour erupted again from the well and condensed into a shock wave that sent the other two flying.
The World in the Bottom of the Well.
Yu Hao struggled to get out of bed.
He found himself in a bright room, and it looked a bit like Chen Yekai’s dormitory, but the layout of the room was very different. Only the sofa, bookshelves, and the arrangement on the dining table were similar, yet the tablecloth was exactly the same.
Flowers were arranged on both the table in front of the sofa, as well as the dining table.
“Where is this place?” Yu Hao was utterly baffled. He looked up at the ceiling. This is a room, yet the ceiling has no cracks or openings. This is the world in the bottom of well?!
Is this Chen Yekai and Ryuusei’s home? Yu Hao had a sudden flash of inspiration. But how could there be such a place at the bottom of the well?
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