While Fang Xiu was deep in thought, noon had already arrived. He casually found a ramen shop, ate a bowl of ramen, and then set off again.
He wanted to observe more anomalies and discover more truths.
Soon, afternoon came, and dusk was now approaching.
The dim sunlight beat down on Green Vine City, as if casting a layer of haze over the entire city, and the anomalies within the city grew even more blurred and ferocious.
Finally, Fang Xiu arrived near the Hundred Willows Academy.
The Hundred Willows Academy was a luxury villa area. Although the location was relatively remote and the surrounding streets were empty with no pedestrians in sight, it still could not conceal its exorbitant, price-per-inch-of-land nature.
The villas focused entirely on luxury and tranquility, making it convenient to house hidden mistresses or run some underground clubs and the like.
Those who could afford houses here were mostly picked up and dropped off by luxury car drivers. This distance was nothing to them, and instead, they valued the tranquility here all the more.
Fang Xiu rode a shared bicycle down the quiet, tree-lined path. The landscaping on both sides was very good, with trees providing shade and flowers and plants growing luxuriantly, trimmed into various exquisite shapes.
This was repaired by the developer of the Hundred Willows Academy at great expense, because this road was the main thoroughfare leading to the academy, and the end of the road was the Hundred Willows Academy.
Perhaps because the location was relatively remote and sparsely populated, even the surrounding anomalies were quite few, just a sparse two or three.
Fang Xiu passed through this main road, and abruptly, he stopped in his tracks, carefully sizing up the building before him.
Undercurrents surged in the depths of his calm pupils.
The Hundred Willows Academy... was gone!
The large area of villas that used to have beautiful scenery, neatness, and luxury had vanished.
Replacing them was unexpectedly a psychiatric hospital.
The psychiatric hospital covered a vast area, consisting of several buildings connected by skybridges.
The walls were dilapidated, with paint peeling off in many places, as if it had been abandoned for a long time. The overall appearance exuded a gloomy and terrifying feeling.
The sign at the entrance was already tilted and covered in dust, but the name could still be clearly seen.
Green Mountain Psychiatric Hospital.
Fang Xiu stared expressionlessly at the psychiatric hospital before him. He was very clear that he had not taken the wrong road.
This place was originally the Hundred Willows Academy, not some Green Mountain Psychiatric Hospital.
"Is it an anomaly again? Unlike the previous living anomalies, this time it's actually a psychiatric hospital? Or could it be that this psychiatric hospital was also created by an anomaly?"
Fang Xiu developed the urge to investigate. Along his journey, this was the first time he had seen such a sight, and his intuition told him that some hidden secrets regarding anomalies were likely contained within this place.
Immediately, Fang Xiu put down his bicycle and turned on his phone.
Earlier, he had turned off his phone because the manager Wu Dahai kept harassing him with calls. Finding it a hassle, he had simply shut it down.
Turning on his phone to take a look, there were 13 missed calls from Wu Dahai, and another three missed calls from Zhao Hao.
Zhao Hao was Fang Xiu's colleague, and the two of them usually had the best relationship.
After a moment of thought, Fang Xiu dialed Zhao Hao's number.
Beep, beep, beep...
After waiting for about thirty seconds, Zhao Hao's heavy breathing and deliberately lowered voice came from the other end of the line.
"Brother Xiu, why are you only calling back now? What's your situation over there? That turtle-spawn Wu Dahai has gone ballistic, saying he's going to fire you and make sure you don't get a single penny."
A rapid-fire series of words came from the other end of the phone, his tone filled with anxiety and concern.
Fang Xiu fell silent.
Is everyone alright?
Clearly, the Hundred Willows Academy had turned into a psychiatric hospital, but judging by this meaning, it seemed the colleagues working inside had not been affected.
An hallucination?
Or, just like those anomalies, was this psychiatric hospital also an anomalous building that only he could see?
"Brother Xiu, why aren't you saying anything? Did something happen to you over there?"
"I'm fine." Fang Xiu's calm voice sounded: "You guys are still at the office, right?"
"Yeah, we're all at the office. You didn't come today, and damn it, that turtle-spawn Wu Dahai took all his anger out on us and made us work overtime again. By the way, Brother Xiu, you..."
"We'll talk in a bit."
Fang Xiu cut off Zhao Hao's words, directly hung up the phone, and turned it off once more.
He intended to enter the Green Mountain Psychiatric Hospital to investigate. Naturally, during this period, he couldn't have his phone ring at a crucial moment like in the movies, causing unnecessary trouble.
Fang Xiu walked straight toward the main entrance of the Green Mountain Psychiatric Hospital.
The main entrance was gloomy and dilapidated, coupled with the dim twilight, it surprisingly resembled a giant maw swallowing people, looking extremely terrifying.
However, this was hardly enough to evoke fear in Fang Xiu. Or rather, it seemed he no longer possessed the emotion of fear.
Whenever he encountered anomalies, the first emotions to arise in him were invariably anger, hatred, and even excitement.
The only thing absent was fear.
Tap, tap, tap...
The surroundings were so silent that only Fang Xiu's footsteps could be heard.
Yet the next second, thud!
Fang Xiu slammed heavily against empty air, a dull ache spreading across his face.
"An air wall?"
At this moment, he was standing at the main entrance walking inward, but before him was seemingly a wall blocking his path.
He reached out to touch it, and a cold, rough texture greeted his hand.
"This isn't an air wall, but rather a real wall, only it's invisible. Could it be that this psychiatric hospital cannot be entered?"
Fang Xiu refused to give up. Like a blind person, he continuously felt along this invisible wall with his hands, attempting to find the entrance.
"Xiao Fang, what are you doing over there? Is this the latest performance art?" A slightly teasing voice came from the side.
A ripple stirred in Fang Xiu's heart, but his expression remained completely motionless.
Having been killed by his wife multiple times, he had long since mastered the skill of remaining as steady as a mountain. In such a bizarre psychiatric hospital, if someone suddenly called out to you, making a reaction at this moment would probably result in being eaten in the next second.
However, he was not entirely without action either; instead, he continued searching and advanced in the direction the voice came from.
Once the distance was about right, he used the corner of his eye to look, only to see a person standing distinctly to his front-left.
A young man wearing a security guard uniform, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, was watching him with an amused expression.
Fang Xiu recognized this person; he was precisely the security guard of the Hundred Willows Academy.
Unlike the security guards of other residential compounds, the security guards at the Hundred Willows Academy were very young, seeing as they catered to a high-end route.
As for when they would be replaced by elderly grandpas, that would have to wait until the houses were mostly sold.
An hallucination? Or was it an anomaly disguised?
Just as Fang Xiu was pondering, this security guard had already walked over and patted him on the shoulder.
"Xiao Fang, why are you still ignoring people? Just now from far away, I saw you bumping into the wall here, and after bumping into the wall you started feeling it up. What's the deal? Is this wall that sexy?"
Fang Xiu felt the body heat radiating from his shoulder, deep in thought.
Able to make direct contact?
He isn't an anomaly?
Immediately, Fang Xiu turned around: "Brother Zhao, you've been here the whole time?"
The security guard named Brother Zhao looked somewhat surprised, and even reached out to wave his hand in front of Fang Xiu's eyes.
"Xiao Fang, do you need to get a pair of glasses? I've been standing guard right in the pavilion, standing straight as an arrow, and you still couldn't see that?"
A pavilion?
There was no pavilion in the Green Mountain Psychiatric Hospital; Fang Xiu was very certain of that.
He couldn't help but look toward the direction Brother Zhao had just walked from, and instantly froze.
He saw that the place which had been empty just moments ago had genuinely given rise to a pavilion.
He used to see this small pavilion every day when he went to work, and had even gone inside it before. A small air conditioner was installed inside, making it very cool in the summer.
How could this be?!
Before you continue