Illusion Paradox (IX)

Lu Rui's experience after waking up had been much like Ye Chu's: first, she found the paradox and broke the illusion.

Then she discovered a little girl under the desk in her room. The girl looked only five or six years old, curled up beneath the desk, sleeping peacefully.

Lu Rui tried to gently lift her out, but the moment she touched her, the girl woke up. Before she had even opened her eyes, she was already mumbling groggily, "Don't hit me, don't hit me."

Lu Rui gently stroked her head, cradling and soothing her. "Nobody's going to hit you. Go back to sleep."

But the girl opened her eyes anyway. Once she recognized the older girl from next door, she threw her arms around Lu Rui's neck and burst into tears.

Lu Rui had no idea what had happened. She simply patted the girl's back, over and over. "It's all right now. It's all right."

The girl cried herself out and fell asleep in Lu Rui's arms. When she woke again, she told Lu Rui that her name was Tian Yatou.

Lu Rui frowned. What kind of parents would give their child a name like that?

Tian Yatou told Lu Rui that she also had an older brother named Tian Guangzong. He was sick and staying in the hospital.

Lu Rui understood almost immediately. This was a family that valued boys over girls. The girl was called Yatou-"little girl"-so she would be easy to raise, while the boy was called Guangzong, in the hope that he would bring glory to the family.

She took Tian Yatou to the hospital. They ran into some trouble along the way, but fortunately, they met Wu You. Armed with a club, Wu You took down a monster with every swing, and the three of them reached their destination safely.

As soon as they arrived, they spotted the other three members of their team. Oh, and a terrifying-looking female ghost.

They spent some time exchanging information. Just as Lu Rui had suspected, Tian Fuguo's preference for boys over girls was extreme. The thought made her sick.

The six people and one ghost entered the elevator. It slowly ascended, and should have gone straight to the third floor, but when the number on the display changed to 2, the elevator stopped with a ding.

Someone outside had pressed the elevator button!

Wu You stood by the elevator doors, tightening her grip on her club. Ye Chu quietly opened his interface as well and took out the poison.

The elevator doors slowly opened, revealing Tian Fuguo's repulsive face. He was holding Tian Guangzong in his arms. The boy spotted his little sister at once and cried excitedly, "Sis!"

At the sound of her brother's voice, Tian Yatou peeked out from behind Lu Rui and cried in delight, "Big brother!"

Tian Fuguo squeezed into the elevator, but the hospital elevator was too small to hold so many people. Overloaded, it began sounding an alarm.

Behind Tian Fuguo came the female ghost crawling on all fours. At some point, she had crawled out of the hospital room. When she caught sight of Tian Fuguo's back, her black-hole eyes lit up, and her mouth split into a horrifying grin, revealing chillingly sharp teeth.

The moment Tian Fuguo saw her, he screamed uncontrollably, "Aaaah!" He frantically jabbed the elevator buttons, but the elevator only kept sounding its alarm. The doors would not close.

With the ghost about to enter the elevator, Tian Fuguo turned and scanned its occupants. He spotted his little daughter and yanked her out with one hand.

"Yatou!"

Lu Rui reached for her but missed. She could only watch as the man seized the little girl by her collar and hurled her at the ghost. "Big sister-"

Ye Chu reacted quickly. He immediately lunged out and caught Tian Yatou, shielding her in his arms as they both fell to the floor. The floor was filthy and muddy, and his wet clothes clung unpleasantly to his skin.

But this was no time to complain. Ye Chu stood up with Tian Yatou in his arms and tried to get her back into the elevator, but its doors had already closed.

The doors reflected his silhouette and Tian Yatou's, along with the ghost's.

Ye Chu turned around and came face-to-face with that gaunt face.

He swallowed, holding Tian Yatou close and pressing her head into his chest so she would not be frightened by what her mother had become. Step by step, he backed away.

The ghost suddenly lunged forward. Ye Chu twisted aside, narrowly dodging her. She hit the floor with a thud, and objects on the cabinet beside the stairs tumbled onto her. Yet she seemed unable to feel pain, turning her head with a series of creaks.

Ye Chu had been holding the bottle of poison the whole time, but had not used it. He knew the ghost before him was an important lead. Killing her would cut off every clue, so he could not kill her unless he had absolutely no other choice.

Tian Yatou raised her head from Ye Chu's arms. She froze when she saw the ghost, then her eyes filled with tears that pattered down her cheeks. "Mommy..."

The ghost froze at the sound of Tian Yatou's voice. Her hollow eyes blinked, and she drew back her fangs. She recognized her. This was her daughter.

She extended her skeletal fingers and used her long nails to frantically tidy her hair. Her mouth shifted again and again. She wanted to give her daughter a gentle smile, but it was far too difficult for her.

She did not want to frighten her child.

"Mommy..." Tian Yatou wriggled out of Ye Chu's arms. She tried to run toward the ghost, but Ye Chu caught her by the collar and scooped her back up.

"Big brother," Tian Yatou said, her wide eyes brimming with joy and pleading. "That's my mommy. I want to go to her."

Ye Chu lifted her into his arms and shook his head. "Not now. Once everything's over, I'll bring you back to see your mommy, all right?"

Ye Chu had a gentle face and a soft voice. Tian Yatou paused at his words, then nodded.

She waved at the ghost behind them. "Mommy, he said he'll bring me back to see you in a little while."

Ye Chu had braced himself for the ghost to fly into a rage and attack when Tian Yatou refused to go with her. To his surprise, she copied Tian Yatou, raising her cracked hand and giving two gentle waves.

Ye Chu was puzzled. Why was she willing to let her daughter leave?

But there was no time to think it through. He rubbed the little girl's head and ran toward the third floor without looking back.

The danger here had just been resolved, but over in the elevator...

"Pfft-" Tian Fuguo braced himself against the elevator wall and spat out a mouthful of blood.

Pei Yanchuan raised his fist and punched him in the face again. "That's your fucking daughter! She's just a little kid!" he snarled, throwing another punch. "If anything happens to Ye Chu, you're dead."

The elevator was silent. No one tried to stop Pei Yanchuan. Lu Rui took out some gauze and bandaged the wounds on the back of his hand.

The elevator reached the third floor, and its doors opened with a ding.

Pei Yanchuan rolled his wrist and was the first to step out. Even one more second in the same space as that scumbag made him sick. He strode toward the stairs, intending to go down and find Ye Chu.

An oppressive aura hung around Pei Yanchuan, like a wolf that might lose control and lash out at any moment. Only when he saw Ye Chu appear at the stairwell with Tian Yatou in his arms did that frightening pressure ease somewhat.

He jogged over to Ye Chu, grabbed his shoulders, and looked him up and down. "Ye Chu, thank goodness you're all right!"

Ye Chu returned Tian Yatou to Lu Rui's arms and told them what had just happened.

"Shouldn't she have gone on a killing spree when you took her daughter?" Su Fengzi was just as puzzled as Ye Chu.

"Yes, that's what I thought too." Ye Chu nodded. At the time, he had already opened the poison bottle and been ready to use it. "And I got the feeling that she wanted me to take her daughter away."

Why was that?