True Chinese Horror

Wen Xishu knew this was likely the content of the second room.

He suddenly felt a pang of guilt, an emotion he shouldn't have, which made him feel somewhat annoyed.

Tang Rui wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes:

"Is my voice really unpleasant now?"

Wen Xishu didn't shake his head to feign comfort; he nodded and said:

"It really is unpleasant."

Tang Rui smiled, a rather grim expression, and refilled her cup:

"Again, again!"

"I'll accompany you to the end."

Wen Xishu began to shake the dice.

The girl's luck was clearly starting to falter. This time, it was an odd number again. A seven.

"List another similar painful event that you cannot forget."

There were four doors in the beginning.

This meant that Tang Rui had likely experienced four events that could be described as despair. The scumbags she encountered were not just her parents and Teacher Yan.

Perhaps influenced by the strange nature of the wine cups, the red liquid was particularly intoxicating.

Tang Rui felt a sense of brokenness and catharsis. From initial resistance, she gradually developed a desire to confide. After drinking another full cup, her eyes held a faint sadness and haze:

"It was my best friend who made me have nowhere to turn."

This was a very brief sentence.

But before Wen Xishu's eyes, a series of dense, oppressive memories unfolded.

"My name is Xiao Ru. From now on, we're roommates."

"Mhm, you can just call me Xiao Rui..."

"Hey, what's wrong with your voice? It's so scratchy, doesn't match your appearance at all."

"It's... it's nothing. I've had an unpleasant voice since birth."

"Hehe, it's fine, I don't mind. By the way, we just met today, want to go sing karaoke?"

"I, I can't sing. My singing is terrible."

"It's okay, I don't mind your bad singing."

The scene quickly shifted from the freshman dormitory to a KTV room, filled with male and female freshmen singing.

Although Xiao Ru's singing wasn't good, her voice was at least normal. And her speech had a slight lisp; while her singing ability wasn't great, it was the sweet kind of voice that boys liked.

She seemed to enjoy being teased and surrounded by the boys. To highlight how sweet her own voice was, she handed the microphone to her friend, whom she had just met that day – Tang Rui.

The naive girl didn't realize this was actually a form of humiliation. She simply thought that after accepting fate's compromise regarding her parents and getting into university... she would finally be loved.

She picked up the microphone and sang, thinking she couldn't refuse her friend's kind gesture. Every note she sang seemed to tug at the desperate wounds from her high school days.

In the KTV room, some covered their ears, some frowned, some took out their phones to record the hoarse, unpleasant singing. Only Xiao Ru smiled, looking incredibly happy.

Looking at Xiao Ru's smile, Tang Rui still persisted and finished the song. She thought to herself, It's so good... she doesn't mind my bad singing.

Tang Rui mistook the smile on Xiao Ru's face for acceptance and lack of judgment, completely unaware that it was merely a form of mockery and amusement.

Life is sometimes like this.

When you desperately grasp for love, like a drowning person clinging to a piece of wood, what often comes your way is the evil that pushes you further into the abyss.

So, from a very young age, Wen Xishu knew that only when one no longer needed love could they truly understand it.

Tang Rui couldn't understand.

Even after graduating from university, she still believed Xiao Ru was a very good friend. She never imagined she was merely a prop for comparison.

The deep-seated inferiority complex made her feel that if someone liked her, she shouldn't question it. If she encountered unpleasant things, she should just endure them.

She was willing to cherish such a friendship until her death. But what is fake cannot become real.

After graduation, Tang Rui, who worked diligently and was down-to-earth and ambitious, although she didn't pass the civil service exam as her parents wished, she was doing quite well.

Xiao Ru, on the other hand, was overconfident and underqualified, struggling to find a good job.

In the end, it was Tang Rui who arranged for Xiao Ru to interview at her company. Their relationship thus transitioned from classmates to colleagues.

This was certainly not a continuation of a beautiful friendship story. University is a microcosm of society, and the evils hidden within student life only become more malicious once they enter the real world.

The seeds of evil took root and sprouted, draining every bit of Tang Rui's vitality. Finally, one day, the malice blossomed.

That day, Tang Rui arrived at work only to find almost everyone pointing fingers at her.

"How could she be that kind of person?"

"Oh my god, I can't believe she had that kind of history."

"Tsk, I knew it. Some people are so cold on the surface, but they're wild underneath."

"Back in my student days... Oh, I never would have guessed, I really never would have guessed."

In his memory, there was a dim, yellowish candlelight, and dark figures layered upon each other, forming undulating waves of darkness.

"Slut."

"Seducing her boss."

"Shameless."

"Did you do those things just to get a good price from the boss?"

Those figures spewed vicious words, one after another, like a tide of bats in the darkness, rustling through the girl's soul.

The girl had worked diligently and conscientiously for years, never making enemies, quietly doing her work, quietly staying late, enduring hardship without complaint.

The boss had also noticed her steady and serious demeanor, and began to assign her more important tasks.

She did every single one of them well, approaching everything with all her effort and caution, afraid of being disliked, afraid of embarrassing anyone.

She had once thought that life like this was good, that perhaps she had been forgotten by the deity who controlled misfortune. Perhaps she too would experience some small stroke of luck.

But she was wrong again.

Tang Rui could never have imagined that it was Xiao Ru who had embellished her past, twisting it into rumors and spreading them throughout the office building.

The graduation photo of the two of them was still on that desk. She should have been her best friend.

"You see, don't you? This is my good friend, Xiao Ru."

Tang Rui suddenly looked at Wen Xishu, a bitter self-mockery in her voice:

"I never competed with her for what she wanted. If she wanted to be adored by everyone, I was content to be a dim firefly. If she wanted to be the center of attention, I would retreat into the shadows."

"Because many years ago, when I was at my loneliest, she handed me the microphone, and I thought... that was the turning point in my life."

"I used to trust her so much, her smile was so healing, I never thought to consider if there was malice hidden behind that smile."

"I even told her about my experiences, just like I'm telling you now. But I could never have imagined that she would maliciously spread rumors about me."

"Just because the boss didn't accept her invitation, just because I was appreciated by the boss... she thought I stole her happiness."

"To make people hate me, she twisted my past, saying that all the pain I had suffered was something I had asked for myself!"

Tang Rui spoke these words through gritted teeth.

She had lived her life diligently, and it had taken her many years to cover up the wounds of her past.

It was as if she had finally become a normal bird, able to integrate into the forest.

But her best friend, just as her life was about to begin a new chapter, tore open her wounds again, reminding her in an even more malicious way...

She was a parrot, and she had never left her cage.

Wen Xishu sighed lightly, finally understanding why Wen Renjing regretted it so much.

This girl, who had never been loved from beginning to end, truly craved love.

But Wen Renjing had been too simplistic, thinking that a good lover could compensate for the lack of familial and friendly affection.

"I can't stay here. The rumors about me are increasing, and becoming more and more vicious. They've even said I had an abortion and slept with many different people."

"Am I a terrible person? I've asked myself that more than once."

After saying this, Tang Rui fell silent for a long time, her voice gradually lowering:

"I thought I wasn't, but then I suddenly realized that I was. Only if I am such a terrible person will they leave me alone."

"If I try to defend myself, they will only torment me more."

"I started drinking heavily, I started getting tattoos, and I changed my appearance, starting to become the person they wanted me to be."

"This way, everything became reasonable, their story... was finally complete."

Yes, their story was finally complete.

The girl was just like the rumors said, a slut at heart, she drank, got tattoos, frequented nightclubs, and had all sorts of bad habits, perfectly fitting people's preconceived notions.

All the gossip about her perfectly matched her current actions. All the fabrication and malice had reasonably become labels stuck to her.

Wen Xishu couldn't help but think, it was fortunate that Wen Renjing hadn't truly anchored this story.

To meet the most perfect person in the world from such a completely broken world... that was certainly good.

But that person would disappear.

Perhaps Wen Renjing had realized this point, realized what a cruel thing he had done—

In the boundless darkness, you lit a small fire. Others thought it was a lamp, and flying towards the light, they would meet the lamp's owner who would lead them out of the darkness.

But you just lit the fire and left.

That's what Wen Renjing had done, spending seven days to love a girl, making her feel happy, and then disappearing completely. Thinking that love could overcome everything, thinking that being loved would heal past misfortunes.

The pain that others endured their entire lives seemed like a small problem that could be solved with just one act of love from you.

How arrogant that was.

"Fortunately, Wen Renjing didn't anchor this story. Your tragedy has not yet been finalized."

The past cannot be changed, but the future can be wild.

Perhaps it was the alcohol, but Wen Xishu felt an urge to grab Tang Rui and do something crazy.

He checked the date and was surprised to see it was close to the date Jack "evolved" in Moen City.

He suddenly thought that perhaps it wasn't just Moen City, but the entire human world, that would fall apart at some point.

The apocalypse was here, everywhere.

So, the countdown to the collapse of all rules, to humanity losing all order, had begun.

Wen Xishu didn't know how to heal a person, but he knew how to find happiness, especially... happiness from revenge.

However, he hadn't obtained the final piece of information yet.

He already knew what the three items from the three scenes corresponded to. Returning to the Tower of Deception would allow him to quickly clear all three scenes.

But there were four doors in total, and one last door, corresponding to the final item.

He was getting impatient, wanting to take this broken girl and do something crazy.

"Continue?"

"Yes, continue!"

The dice landed, showing a one and a four. A total of five. Tang Rui smiled carelessly and took another drink.

She was starting to get drunk.

Her consciousness was beginning to blur. The people around her seemed to be affected by some power, each thinking of some sad past event.

"Ask, ask, everything... I'll tell you. Anyway... it's all going to end soon."

"The fourth thing, what is the fourth thing in your life that made you collapse?"

Wen Xishu asked more directly than last time. But to his surprise, Tang Rui shook her head:

"There isn't one... There's no fourth thing."

The Truth Serum Wine Cups were still effective. It was impossible for the person who drank from them to lie, and indeed, there was no fourth thing.

Although Wen Xishu was confused, he didn't ask further. He fell silent for a while, as if he vaguely understood something.

At the end of this game of truth or dare, he picked up his wine cup and downed the wine in it heartily.

Tang Rui propped her head up with her hand, feeling drowsy and confused:

"What... what are you doing?"

"I've learned everything I wanted to know, so I'm returning a secret to you here."

Tang Rui smiled and asked, her words a little slurred:

"Then... why have you never been loved? I've always been curious. You clearly had a happy family."

Her broken life had left her no time to consider others' pain. Yet, she had become interested in this young man who had broken into the end of her life with a magical wine cup.

He had such a wonderful childhood, so why did he say he had never been loved?

Wen Xishu also smiled:

"Because, we are the same kind."

He said these words with a smile, but it wasn't a pleasant one.

Those familiar scenes were merely meticulously crafted lies. Only at this moment did Tang Rui see the complete memory.

"Xiao Shu, Xiao Shu, look, look, what is this? This is the ROG handheld console Mom bought for you, happy?"

The child was naturally happy, but as the camera moved away, when his hand touched the game console's packaging, his eyes suddenly became vacant.

"Mom, is it an empty box again?"

The woman didn't respond, merely staring blissfully at the video on her phone, adjusting beauty parameters, wondering how many likes this video would get.

The child didn't ask again, sensibly taking the empty box and walking towards home.

"Xiao Shu, Mom brought you something to eat. After school, we'll go celebrate your birthday together! Hehe."

The scene shifted to the classroom entrance again, where countless children looked at Wen Xishu with envy. Such a beautiful mother, and she loved him so much.

But they didn't know that after walking outside the classroom, the child's smile slowly faded:

"Mom, my birthday passed many days ago. You don't... you don't even remember, do you?"

"That's not important. Come, Xiao Shu, sit here, open the 'heart-shaped' bento Mom made, and smile. Yes, be happier."

The little boy smiled. The camera used a warm lighting filter, and the caption read, "Mom will always love you."

But under such a filter, the undercooked rice couldn't be seen clearly.

The memories continued.

"What about Mom and Dad? Are they high-level NPCs too?" the boy asked.

The man shook his head:

"To others, Mom and Dad are powerful NPCs, but no matter if you are poor or rich in the future, no matter if you become successful or not..."

"From the moment you were born, we have been on your side, and that will never change."

When these words were spoken, the little boy felt happy. At least for a moment, he thought he had been happy.

But the camera was turned off shortly after, and the man urged the child to go to sleep. A little while later, the man left the bedroom and closed the door.

The woman said:

"Honey, how much longer? I really want to have our own child."

"Soon, my dear. We'll be financially free. Look, the whole internet is saying we're a happy family now, praising how much we love our child. Many people are even imitating us and starting to make family videos."

"It's only a few more days. Then, all we'll have to do is cry, and countless people will sympathize with us. No one will suspect what we did!"

"When our own child is born, they'll even bless us."

The man and woman embraced and smiled. They had no idea that on the other side of the door, the child, barefoot, with an ear pressed against the door, was silently shedding tears.

Tang Rui shivered all over and looked at Wen Xishu in disbelief.

She hadn't expected that this young man, who looked even younger than herself, had such a horrifying past.

She seemed to understand why, in her memories, there was a child standing in the flames, saying he loved himself. She felt a chill run down her spine, a shiver of fear.

Outside the bar, a heavy rain suddenly began to fall, a downpour without warning, as if trying to extinguish a distant flame.

Wen Xishu chuckled softly:

"In a way, we've exchanged secrets tonight."

"See, I'm also a discarded child, but so what?"

Tang Rui didn't know how to respond.

In another version of events, Wen Renjing had given Tang Rui ultimate love.

But now, what Wen Xishu wanted to do was teach Tang Rui how to please herself.

Wen Xishu suddenly raised his wine cup again and took a sip, as if to prove he was telling the truth.

His smile gradually became charming again, the bone-chilling cold hidden within his words:

"Tang Rui, when I was little, I loved watching horror movies the most. Everyone said Chinese horror films were scary, eerie, malevolent, and spine-chilling, much more stimulating than the bloody American horror films, but I didn't think so."

"Chinese horror films are indeed interesting. As vengeful spirits, they repay grievances with grievances and hatred with hatred. Sometimes I think, from a ghost's perspective, Chinese horror films are really like fairy tales."

"People don't realize that true Chinese horror is when you're bullied but can't express your grievances."

"When you want to laugh, they tell you not to get carried away. When you want to cry, they tell you not to shed tears easily. When you want to be angry, they teach you to endure."

"They clearly don't love you, but they constantly tell you that everything they do is for your own good."

"They show all their light to irrelevant onlookers to prove how well they're doing, but they only leave the darkness for us."

"They are the good people who reap honor and praise, and we are the deformed, twisted monsters."

Wen Xishu's smile grew gentler:

"The place I come from is beautiful. Everyone lives in harmony within established rules. But because of this, those who break the rules never get a good outcome."

"I believe that the things people praise exist, they just don't belong to cursed people like us. In that world, a scumbag like me could only accept my fate."

"But now it's different."

Wen Xishu drank again, emphasizing the truth of his words:

"I won't deceive you. This world is about to shatter, and all order will vanish. All the shackles imposed on you will also break."

"You will evolve, become powerful, and make everyone fear you. Perhaps then, many will beg for your protection. But that won't be because they love you; it will only be because they need you."

"Promise me, when that day comes, don't do anything foolish like reconciling with your past self."

Tang Rui was slightly stunned. The man still had a charming smile, but his eyes blazed with ferocity and evil.

For some reason, she found it very attractive.

Wen Xishu, like a demon tempting humanity to sin, his voice gradually rising:

"In your unfortunate life, shouldn't there be at least one cathartic release? Repay grievances with grievances, and hatred with hatred. Let scumbags meet their end, and let degenerates meet their fate. Those wrongs cannot and should not be let go."

"I promised you I would bring you luck. If you want to be a parrot, then tonight is just a normal drunken spree. In a few days, whether you jump off a building or wallow in self-pity, that's your freedom."

"But if you don't want to be a parrot, if you still harbor hatred and unwillingness, anger and frustration in your heart, then come with me!"

Facing Wen Xishu's outstretched hand, listening to the sound of the torrential rain outside the bar, Tang Rui asked with a trembling voice:

"Where are we going... going?"

Wen Xishu smiled gently and said, word by word:

"Of course, we're going to find them."

That's all for today. The scene of a bloody massacre on a rainy night will have to wait until tomorrow. There's not much profit from massive updates during the free period of a new book, so I hope everyone won't just save it for later.