At That Time

"Finally, we're getting to the point."

Ji Li thought to himself. The conversation wasn't long; most of the useful information was in the latter half.

"What the heck did you send me? It flashed by and disappeared!"

"That can't be right. I still have it on my phone.

Just take a look, did you see what was in the photo clearly?"

"I didn't see it very clearly. Send it again."

"..."

"It flashed by again this time, but... I think I saw a hand..."

"Yes! It was a hand, a bloody hand!"

A hand...

For some reason, Lao Xue's phone seemed unable to process the image, which meant that even at this moment, Ji Li couldn't see the actual content of the photo through the chat log.

However, he did get a piece of important information: a bloody palm!

When he looked at the subsequent records, he saw a picture of extreme brutality.

This time, Lao Xue's phone could see it clearly.

It was a middle-aged man with a stiff, pale face. His back was to the camera, but his head was turned in an exaggerated manner towards the mirror image!

His hands hadn't fallen yet, but they were already held in that horrifying pose.

His death was the same as everyone else's!

He had broken his own neck with his bare hands!

"Lao Xue... Lao Xue...

Brother Xu, he..."

"How... how could this happen..."

"Stop talking, hurry up and come meet me. I have a feeling this isn't over, and the disaster stems from that bloody hand photo!"

The chat log ended here.

The remaining content was Xiao Li (Text Message Man) urging Lao Xue, right up until the moment Ji Li arrived.

Ji Li put down his phone and took a deep breath.

He could roughly piece together the secret between these three people.

First, Xiao Li and Brother Xu were hiding somewhere and saw Tong Guan and the others searching. At that time, they took a photo.

It was this photo that must have captured a supernatural phenomenon.

But he didn't hide it immediately. Instead, he contacted Lao Xue to urgently seek safety!

However, this photo carried a curse that living people couldn't resist. Everyone who saw the photo was mercilessly killed.

Brother Xu was the first to be affected. Xiao Li realized something was wrong and quickly told Lao Xue to take Xiao Qi and meet up.

But Lao Xue, driven by paternal instinct, didn't want Xiao Qi involved. After arranging for Xiao Qi to hide, he headed for the eighteenth floor.

However, at the same time, before he could even set off, he died in his office.

This was the secret between these people!

The source of everything was that photo that captured the bloody hand!

The spread of the curse also began from there!

As Ji Li thought about this, he felt a sense of clarity. Until now, all the deaths had been meaningless.

But the deaths of Lao Xue and the others could provide the most crucial intelligence.

The bloody hand in the photo was the core source of the curse's spread!

As long as he found it and saw it with his own eyes, Ji Li might have a chance to uncover the real truth.

Including the true mission objective and the real path to survival!

"Uncle, are you still taking me to find Dad..."

While Ji Li was lost in thought, Xiao Qi's timid voice reached his ears, making him suddenly remember that there was still someone with him.

He turned his head and looked at the little girl who was shorter than his abdomen, and he was troubled.

Xiao Qi's role wasn't actually that significant. As a child, she could only help Ji Li this much.

Next, Ji Li had to go to the eighteenth floor to find Xiao Li, the Text Message Man's body.

At that time, he hadn't checked the phone for issues. Now that he knew the true source of the curse, he should see for himself what that photo had captured.

Bringing Xiao Qi along would certainly be better.

In the current extreme situation, Xiao Qi might be able to act as a shield for Ji Li...

But Ji Li looked at the little girl who knew nothing and didn't want to do that.

He wasn't very willing, whether it was out of human instinct or some psychological element.

Although Ji Li was cold-blooded, it didn't mean he was devoid of humanity. He felt that killing those people meant there were no innocents once they were dragged into the mission.

But Xiao Qi was brought into the building by Lao Xue; she herself didn't have much agency.

After thinking for a moment, Ji Li took out the hotel phone and prepared to call Tong Guan.

After much deliberation, only Tong Guan seemed suitable to continue taking care of the child. He was also the only one among their group who possessed a shred of kindness.

However, as Ji Li held the phone, he once again felt an unknown tremor in his left pinky finger.

This sensation had occurred several times already, and each time without any discernible reason.

After repeated deep thought, Ji Li could vaguely discern that something within his soul or body was trying to give him a hint.

He hesitated for a moment but still chose to dial Tong Guan's phone.

But after a long time, it still showed no answer...

Ji Li clicked his tongue inwardly. He turned his head and looked through the wall towards the location downstairs. Logically, Tong Guan should be with Li Xing at this time.

Could there have been a variable on their end because of this?

Up to this point, he still hadn't considered that his own phone might be the problem...

The idea that the hotel phone represented the hotel's will and would never malfunction was deeply ingrained in the minds of the staff, and Ji Li was no different.

Ji Li thought for a moment, looking at Xiao Qi's expectant eyes. Finally, he bent down and placed his hand on her shoulder:

"Xiao Qi, take the little bear and go down the stairs. You'll meet a man with short hair and a woman with a ponytail. They are friends of your father.

Just explain the situation here with me, and they will take you to find your father."

These were the gentlest words Ji Li could think of.

Xiao Qi looked into Ji Li's eyes, then at Lao Xue's phone in his hand, and nodded silently before turning to leave.

But just as she was about to leave the room, she seemed to remember something and suddenly turned back to ask:

"Uncle, why do your eyes have so many colors?"

Ji Li was taken aback by the question. He subconsciously raised his hand and touched his eye sockets, "What colors?"

"When I first saw you, your pupils were black.

Later, your eyes flashed red, but it disappeared immediately.

And now, your eyes are a mix of gray and black...

They look very murky."

Ji Li's brow furrowed. He himself was unaware of the changes in his eyes, but listening to Xiao Qi's words gave him a sense of anxiety.

The source of all this made him think of the divine battle he had just fallen into.

As soon as he reached the fifth floor, he had fallen into a state of inexplicable reverie, a feeling he couldn't describe at the time.

All he knew was that some power within him was contending with an external force, and it had eventually ended.

But thinking back now, he finally found a fitting adjective to describe that feeling.

"Shivering, fear!"

And this wasn't fear of the external force; rather, it was the soul power that had reawakened within him!

He didn't know the source of that power, but the panic rooted in his soul was a sensation he had never experienced before.

Ji Li had never imagined that his own indomitable and strong mindset throughout his life could be afraid of something within himself.

"The person I saw, a man who looked exactly like you.

His eyes were gray..."

The Third Personality spoke quietly, realizing that something was changing.

Ji Li gazed into the gray and black pupils, looking out into the night in silence. After a brief moment of confusion, a sense of melancholy appeared.

"When I reached the fifth floor, perhaps I saw an opportunity.

An opportunity for the other person in my heart to awaken.

His pupils are merging with mine.

At that time, was I still me, was I still Ji Li..."