Flower Blooms Twice

Eileen thought it was absurd that Yu Sheng could live in an "Otherworld" for so long without realizing it—but Yu Sheng thought this whole world was absurd.

"So, like you said, this world is full of 'Otherworlds,' right?" Hiding in a corner of the ruined temple, Yu Sheng chatted idly with Eileen in his mind. "It's just that most people can't come into contact with them because they can't observe them?"

"More or less, but as for whether the entire 'world' is like that... I'm not really sure either," Eileen said. "The world is huge, after all. But at least within Boundary City... Otherworlds appear very frequently, so this place seems to be called something like The Crossroads... I don't know the details. I've been in this painting for too long, and my mind has gotten a little muddled."

"The Crossroads?" Yu Sheng raised an eyebrow. The name gave him a strange sense of déjà vu, but then he noticed another piece of information Eileen had revealed—

She had specifically emphasized "within Boundary City"—which meant that this enormous city, seemingly without boundaries, actually had an "outside"!

He hesitated for two or three seconds before finally asking, "What's outside Boundary City...?"

"Outside Boundary City? Maybe more cities? Or maybe... the sea, or something?" Eileen's answer was vague and fragmented. "I don't remember either. I've really been in this painting for too long. I only remember a little about this city..."

She suddenly stopped, then asked in confusion, "You don't know? You've never left Boundary City either?"

Yu Sheng's mouth twitched, and he fell silent.

How would he know? He had only been in this place for two months—forget outside Boundary City, he still hadn't figured out the bus routes more than four blocks from his home!

But after remaining silent for a long while, he decided not to mention it. For now, he did not want a Cursed Portrait he had only just met to know this little secret of his.

"I haven't gone out. I'm kind of a homebody... Forget it, let's not talk about that," he said casually, changing the subject. "Let's figure out how to solve my problem first. How do I get out of this so-called 'Otherworld'? And... you can get out of an Otherworld, right?"

Eileen thought for a while, seemingly sorting through her disordered, hazy memories after such a long imprisonment. After a long time, she finally replied, "There are many kinds of Otherworlds... Sometimes it might just be a house that doesn't exist on any map. Sometimes it might be an extra bus stop on a route. Sometimes it might even be a forest, a kingdom you can enter by opening a wardrobe door—generally speaking, smaller Otherworlds have relatively fixed and obvious exits, or you can return to reality by following certain rules. But the larger the Otherworld, the more complicated things become."

She paused before continuing, "I don't remember the specifics very clearly. Otherworlds should have a complete classification system, as well as some kind of 'depth' classification and Danger Level standards, but I really... I've been in this painting for too long..."

Her voice gradually lowered, and she sounded somewhat dejected.

Yu Sheng had originally wanted to make a sarcastic remark. This doll had rambled on and on but couldn't remember a single useful piece of information. But after hearing her final quiet mutter, he still kept his mouth shut and did not bicker with Eileen as he had before.

She was already trying her best to help—she had simply been sealed away for too long.

"Let's look around. We'll find an exit eventually," Yu Sheng said, shaking his head as he looked toward the valley beyond the ruined temple. "This place doesn't seem small. Just within sight, there are mountains on both sides and woods in the distance. Going by what you said, getting out... might not be easy."

"Mm," Eileen responded. "You can first look around the Original Landing Point where you entered the Otherworld. See if there's anything that feels completely out of place in the surroundings—something you can tell at a glance just shouldn't be there. Usually, an Otherworld's exit will be nearby. If there's nothing around, find a higher spot and see whether you can spot reflections like a mirror or hear a constant wind...

"But even if you find something like that, don't rashly approach it. It could also be a trap leading to a 'deeper level.' As for the specifics... I can't really explain them. You'll have to rely on your instincts."

"Instincts?" Yu Sheng could not help asking.

"...Yes. Strictly speaking, what you need is actually 'inspiration,' a kind of spiritual intuition. Trained investigators know how to use this perception—I know you haven't been trained, but there's no other way now. You'll just have to bite the bullet.

"But don't worry too much. Spirituality exists in all intelligent beings. Ordinary people have it too, even without training; it just hasn't been awakened. If you're careful, you'll be able to sense warnings and omens arising from the essence of your own being—if you really come across something you can't judge, tell me. I'll... do my best to help."

Yu Sheng agreed and slowly emerged from the corner where he had been hiding, cautiously walking toward the ruined temple's entrance—the unsettling sense of being watched and the hunger still surrounded him. They even seemed to have seeped into the air around him, becoming part of the entire valley, but he forced himself to step outside.

Based on the information Eileen had provided, he had to find an "exit" as quickly as possible if he wanted to leave this place—waiting in the corner would not make a door open in front of him on its own.

At the same time, perhaps to ease his nerves, he continued chatting idly with Eileen.

"You said the place I've been living in is an 'Otherworld.' How did you figure that out? I never felt like there was anything wrong with my home..."

"I can sense it," Eileen replied. "The kind of 'inspiration' I mentioned. I can clearly sense that there's something wrong with that building—though on the surface, it really does look perfectly normal... I don't know why that is."

"Instinct again..." Yu Sheng shook his head. "So by your logic, every day when I go home and walk through the door, I'm entering an Otherworld, and when I open the door to leave, I'm leaving it? Then my home really is a harmless 'good Otherworld' where people and animals can come and go freely."

After two or three seconds, Eileen spoke faintly. "...Opening the door to leave doesn't necessarily mean you'll arrive where you want to go, does it?"

Yu Sheng's expression instantly froze as he remembered why he had ended up trapped in this place.

He seemed to know exactly what was wrong with his "home."

Thinking about it, the fact that he had lived peacefully in that big house for two months was a miracle in itself!

As they talked, he had already returned to the clearing in front of the ruined temple, the "landing point" where he had first entered this "Otherworld."

"I didn't find anything here." Yu Sheng carefully searched around the clearing and confirmed that he could not find the kind of "out-of-place key item" Eileen had described. "Looks like it really won't be that easy."

"Yeah, that's within expectations," Eileen sighed. "Try walking farther out first, but remember: never touch anything glowing or anything that suddenly starts moving in front of you. Also, unless absolutely necessary, don't eat or drink anything in an Otherworld..."

"I know... Say, wouldn't it be better to search after daylight comes?" Yu Sheng looked up at the sky, which seemed forever covered by a murky curtain. "Being active outdoors at night just feels creepy."

"Otherworlds often defy common sense. Daytime may not necessarily be safer. There may not even... be daytime," Eileen immediately said. "I still suggest finding an exit as soon as possible. If you drag this out too long, something might change on your side."

Yu Sheng curled his lip and could only walk helplessly toward the distance.

And at the exact instant he stepped beyond the ruined temple's grounds, a sound... reached his ears.

At first, it seemed to be nothing more than a faint, indistinct sound of breathing.

Yu Sheng instinctively looked toward where the sound had come from and happened to see a cloud of white mist slowly dispersing in the air, as though some invisible giant beast had just exhaled a breath of foul air.

He heard the sound, and so the giant beast's breathing came into being.

He saw the white mist, and so the giant beast's existence began to be confirmed.

A black shadow emerged in the air, nearly three times Yu Sheng's size. It slowly took shape before him, accompanied by heavy breathing.

Now, he saw the giant beast's outline—the giant beast existed.

Yu Sheng's heart instantly clenched. An overwhelming sense of danger crashed down upon him, more oppressive than the Frog in the rain had been!

And the moment his heart tightened, the black shadow solidified.

It was something Yu Sheng had never seen before—a bear? A lion? An eagle? Or perhaps a tiger and a snake? Countless ferocious, bizarre, vaguely familiar limbs were piled upon that enormous, ugly mass of flesh, as though many beasts had been forcibly melted together in a great pot before being mashed into a single lump that crawled out of it. This nauseating horror used its swollen limbs of varying sizes and shapes to support its massive body as it looked down at Yu Sheng, and within its disorderly layers of eyes... hunger overflowed.

Yu Sheng slowly raised his head and met the giant beast's gaze.

The giant beast pounced without hesitation—at the critical moment, Yu Sheng abruptly lowered himself and narrowly dodged past one of its gaping bloody mouths.

Then he fell into another of its giant mouths.

Savage teeth snapped shut, instantly tearing apart half of Yu Sheng's body. Yet at that moment, the excruciating pain instead seemed to become a distant illusion of numbness. Everything before his eyes slowed down. He saw snake-like limbs extending from behind the giant beast, and another huge mouth biting into him, tearing at what remained below his chest—he saw his own heart again.

His heart beat slowly, then vanished into the depths of the snake's mouth.

"Fuck your uncle!"

Yu Sheng squeezed out one final curse from his throat. He knew he seemed to be dying again, but he could not let things end like this.

While the last bit of muscle in his body could still contract, he turned his head with all his strength and bit down on something beside him—he did not know which part of the giant beast it was, nor did he know what good that bite would do. He only knew that he had bitten into it.

Even if he died, he would at least tear off a chunk of flesh.

Yu Sheng poured all his strength into that moment. He viciously tore into the giant beast, and the giant beast tore into him—blood and flesh, claws and teeth, food and diner...

Before his thoughts completely sank into darkness, Yu Sheng forced out one final thought—he softly spoke to Eileen, somewhere far beyond his reach. "Eileen..."

"Huh?"

"Nothing. I'm hanging up first."

Eileen froze, unable to react for a moment.

Then Yu Sheng hung up.