The Impassable Barrier

She Qingqing had been locked up for three days.

She knew what kind of place this was.

Cihang City was crawling with monsters—urban legends, demons, Hengyu, Vengeful Spirits, Demons, and countless others.

Yet even now, the people of Cihang City knew nothing about the supernatural.

That was thanks to the Fourth Mental Hospital. Whenever someone encountered an abnormal event and decided to tell the media, they were hauled off to the hospital and turned into an Imposter.

In short, the Fourth Mental Hospital dealt with those who didn't belong.

Humans weren't supposed to know too much. If they did, they no longer belonged.

Conversely, demons were supposed to kill people. If they didn't, they no longer belonged either.

The Rabbit Nurse had told She Qingqing, "Normally, someone like you would be erased. But I'm willing to give you a chance."

That chance meant killing someone as proof of loyalty, then joining them.

She Qingqing was miserable. She had never liked killing, though she didn't know why. But now that things had come to this, she had no other choice.

How had things turned out like this?

How could she have been so naive as to fall for that man's trick?

She Qingqing knew she was stupid. She always had.

That was why she kept everyone at arm's length.

At first, others of her kind had shown her kindness.

But She Qingqing was afraid. Alliances between monsters were fragile, and it was all too common for them to slaughter one another over territory and resources.

So she had turned everyone away.

She Qingqing had grown used to living alone.

Yet whenever she saw others together in little groups, she couldn't help envying them.

Sometimes she even found herself imagining, with a sick sort of hope, that something would make them turn on one another.

I'm awful.

She Qingqing hated herself for thinking such dark thoughts. Before loneliness could swallow her whole, she left the mountains.

To join them, I have to kill someone.

Otherwise, they'll never accept someone like me.

When the tattooed man harassed her at the Internet Cafe, She Qingqing had been furious enough to cross the line she had drawn for herself. Then Chen Feng suddenly stepped in to help and confessed, "The moment I saw you, I felt like we clicked. Like we'd met in a past life."

Huh? He likes me? Someone's confessing to me?

She Qingqing had heard plenty of stories. In one, a Snake Demon married an apothecary's apprentice to repay a debt of gratitude. In another, a scholar and a fox demon fell in love at first sight in an abandoned temple.

Whenever she heard stories like that, they had seemed too far-fetched. How could a human and a demon be together?

But when it happened to her, her heart raced.

Maybe I'm the exception.

She Qingqing had left the mountains because she couldn't bear the loneliness. Finding a human partner didn't sound bad at all.

Once the Landlady's curse is lifted, I'll ask him to come live with me in the mountains!

That had been She Qingqing's plan. She never imagined that the one time in her life she found the courage to open up, it would all be a lie.

The moment the Water Ghost appeared, She Qingqing understood. She wasn't the exception. She was the fool.

She Qingqing bit down hard on her lower lip and spat bitterly:

"Humans are the worst creatures in the world. Despicable, cunning, and full of lies."

Just then, a familiar voice sounded outside. "Holy shit. You're not talking about me, are you?"

Chen Feng was lurking outside the isolation room. Silently, he said, Check-In!

The system didn't respond. As expected, he had to actually reach the Check-In location for it to count.

Then Chen Feng heard a voice thick with hatred from inside the room. "You!"

"Uh... sorry."

After hearing what had happened to her, Chen Feng felt bad. If he hadn't knocked her out, she wouldn't have ended up locked in here.

"All right, I was wrong to lie to you."

"But you know the Landlady's no good either, right? She put you two downstairs to use as cannon fodder against the Water Ghost."

"So if you think about it, I actually saved your life."

Chen Feng spun the story so thoroughly that She Qingqing fell for it.

"Is... is that so?" she asked, confused. "Then thank you."

See? She's even thanking me.

Chen Feng grabbed the lock on the isolation-room door, intending to crush it as he had before.

"Hang on. I'll get you out in a second."

But when he squeezed, the lock didn't budge.

Huh. That's strange.

Chen Feng tried again, this time with all his strength. The result was the same.

"It's no use," She Qingqing told him. "This room has a barrier on it. Without the keys, there's no way to open it."

Keys?

Only then did Chen Feng notice that the door had two keyholes.

Recalling the conversation he'd overheard before being turned into an Imposter last time, everything clicked.

So She Qingqing is the new colleague! That's why they mentioned the one they caught a week ago.

The key in Professor Sheep's office is for this door. And if I remember right, they said the other key was at the Nurses' Station.

With that, Chen Feng set off.

Hearing his footsteps recede, She Qingqing panicked. "Don't go! I'm not angry anymore. Stay and talk to me a little longer."

After three days locked up, the loneliness could drive anyone mad.

Chen Feng knew that all too well after spending seven days locked up himself. "I'm going to get the key and free you," he reassured her. "Wait for me."

"You won't lie to me again, will you?" She Qingqing asked quietly.

"I never break my word."

After saying goodbye to She Qingqing, Chen Feng returned to the corridor and headed straight for the Nurses' Station in the lounge.

Inside, the Rabbit Nurse was resting on a sofa.

Careful. Slowly.

Chen Feng took off his shoes and crept closer. He did his best not to make a sound, but when he came within five meters of the Nurses' Station, those long rabbit ears twitched.

"Who's there?"

Those ears really are sharp.

Chen Feng clenched his fist and drove it toward the glass around the Nurses' Station.

He'd been spotted, so there was no point sneaking anymore.

To hell with caution. If she wants a fight, she'll get one!

Crash!

The glass shattered, sending countless shards flying at the Rabbit Nurse. But before they could reach her, something stopped them.

A translucent barrier, almost like glass, had appeared in front of the Rabbit Nurse.

A shield?

Chen Feng froze for only an instant before attacking again.

At the same time, the system's notification rang in his ear.

[Ding! Congratulations! You have successfully checked in at the Fourth Mental Hospital's Nurses' Station.]

A dull thud echoed through the lounge.

Damn it!

Agonizing pain shot through Chen Feng's hand. His punch had struck the barrier head-on, but instead of shattering it, the backlash had injured him.

The barrier remained intact.

"What a hard shell."

Chen Feng shook out his numb arm.

Meanwhile, the Rabbit Nurse had seen his patient uniform, but his face was wrapped in strips torn from a bedsheet. She couldn't recognize him. "Who are you?"

Guess.

Chen Feng kept the answer to himself. He wasn't about to speak and let her identify him by his voice.

That barrier really is tough. Even the Drill Instructor would have felt that punch, big as he was. But the barrier didn't so much as crack.

At this rate, even if I draw the Three Kingdoms Mythology System again and use Lü Bu's Peerless Protection to double my strength, it probably won't help.

Maybe there's a weak spot somewhere else?

Chen Feng circled around and tried attacking from behind, then dropped glass shards on it from above. The barrier blocked everything.

Looks like a dome. If I could burrow underground, maybe I could break through from below.

The ability might have a time limit, but it must last over a minute. That's enough time for the Nurse to get a name from the Logbook.

She doesn't seem to have any other abilities. But a defense that makes her practically invincible for at least a minute, plus an attack that can kill an enemy instantly within that minute? That's already top-tier.

They had fought for less than a minute, but Chen Feng had already figured out what the Nurse could do.

At that moment, a name appeared in the Logbook in the Nurse's hand.

"So it's you."

The Nurse pulled a pen from her pocket.

"My luck's off today. You win this round."

Chen Feng picked up a blade-shaped shard of glass and drew it across his neck.

It would be several days before the next rain. Chen Feng had no desire to spend them as an Imposter.

"But next time, I'll kill you."

Blood gushed out. Chen Feng had slit his own throat!