Shen Ye returned from the pharmacy with several large boxes of calcium tablets.
As he entered the house, he happened to find his parents hosting several police officers.
"Many incidents like this happen every year. They're completely unpredictable. If you run into one, all you can do is accept your bad luck."
"There's nothing we can do either."
"Fortunately, you recovered, Shen Ye. That's a silver lining in all this misfortune."
"Get some rest. We'll be going."
After chatting for a while, the officers prepared to leave, accompanied by Shen Ye's parents.
Shen Ye remained seated on the sofa.
He had been hesitating over whether to tell the police what had happened.
But the statue had already shattered.
Besides, he had made a point of observing them carefully and discovered fear in these officers' eyes too.
Perhaps-
They simply didn't dare get involved in any of this.
Shen Ye suddenly spoke:
"What if someone else runs into something like this at the hospital? Would there still be absolutely nothing you could do?"
The officers stopped.
An officer who looked fairly young spoke:
"Shen Ye, I know you're upset, but there's something I need to tell you."
"The higher-ups have already approved it."
"That hospital will soon be abandoned. No one will ever be allowed inside again."
Shen Ye glanced at the police badge on his chest.
-Two crossed long blades, with three stars floating above them. That meant he was a chief.
In other words, the entire eastern district was under his jurisdiction.
So young...
Shen Ye studied the chief closely. He had single-lidded, long, narrow eyes that occasionally betrayed a languid air. Even as he sat there, he kept his legs crossed, looking as though he wanted no trouble coming his way.
I see.
The curse of the King of Myriad-Fallen Evil Ghosts was of a very high level. Not only were the police unable to deal with it, even the government found it troublesome.
This was as far as the matter would go. He had better pretend he knew nothing.
But-
Shen Ye was just an ordinary middle school student.
Even if his grades were excellent, surely he wasn't worth using something as formidable as the "Cursed Statue of the King of Myriad-Fallen Evil Ghosts" against.
Shen Ye considered this briefly, but smiled as he said:
"Thank you for telling me. I was just worried someone might be targeting me."
The chief waved impatiently.
"You're just a middle school student with very simple social connections. We haven't found any enemies of yours like that."
The atmosphere grew a little awkward.
A portly officer gave him a friendly smile and picked up the conversation:
"Shen Ye, you missed the first subject of the high school entrance exams. A place at a top school is out of reach now, but you still have a chance at an ordinary school. Keep at it."
"That's all we have to tell you. We still have official duties, so we won't trouble you any longer," the chief said, standing up.
The other officers rose as well, preparing to say goodbye.
"Thank you for making a special trip here," Shen Shi'an said.
Zhao Xiaoshang went to open the door and see the officers out.
Once all the officers had stepped outside and were standing in the corridor, the chief suddenly said:
"Go downstairs first. I'm going to use their bathroom."
"Yes, sir."
The officers went downstairs.
The young chief turned back into the house and went straight to the bathroom.
After flushing and coming out, however, he placed a business card in Shen Ye's hand.
He said quietly:
"If anything seems wrong, call me."
His voice was soft and unhurried, but his expression was serious. His earlier air of "strictly business," "impatience," and "going through the motions" had vanished.
"Thank you for taking so much trouble."
Shen Shi'an and Zhao Xiaoshang expressed their gratitude.
Shen Ye looked down at the business card.
"Luo Feichuan."
-That was the chief's name, followed by his office address and contact number.
Shen Ye picked up his phone and saved Chief Luo's number.
Zhao Xiaoshang closed the front door and remarked:
"That chief is quite responsible."
"Yes. Ye, come with me," Shen Shi'an called.
Shen Ye followed his father into the study.
Shen Shi'an handed him a medicine box and instructed him:
"This is a Marrow-Replenishing Pill. Take it on an empty stomach."
Shen Ye opened the box.
A dark green pill giving off a strong medicinal fragrance came into view.
"My body has already recovered. This pill is too expensive. Maybe I shouldn't take it," Shen Ye said.
The Marrow-Replenishing Pill was famous, and Shen Ye naturally knew how expensive it was.
At current prices, three yuan bought a bowl of beef noodles, forty bought a large hot pot, and even a phone cost only a few hundred.
This Marrow-Replenishing Pill was worth sixteen thousand.
And even then, you weren't guaranteed to find one for sale.
Shen Shi'an worked at the municipal epidemic prevention station, a government office with little money to be made.
Zhao Xiaoshang was an elementary school teacher, and her income was quite ordinary too.
Buying this pill must have emptied the family's savings.
His grandfather seemed to be wealthy...
But in Shen Ye's memories, Shen Shi'an rarely mentioned his grandfather and seldom had any contact with him.
"Dad, did you go to Grandpa for help?" Shen Ye asked.
"No! You're a child. Stay out of these things and take the pill," Shen Shi'an said, glaring at him.
"I just ate, so my stomach isn't empty right now. I'll take it later," Shen Ye said.
Shen Shi'an trusted his son completely and nodded.
"All right. Remember to take it."
He patted Shen Ye on the shoulder and asked with concern, "The second exam is in three days. Feeling confident?"
"Don't worry. Don't you know what I'm capable of?" Shen Ye said.
-That was how Shen Ye used to speak.
Shen Shi'an laughed heartily. Feeling that his son had finally recovered, he said with relief:
"Don't wear yourself out over the next couple of days. Balance work and rest, and make sure you get some sleep."
"I know," Shen Ye said impatiently.
Still the same way he used to speak.
Just then, Zhao Xiaoshang came in and called Shen Shi'an to go with her, saying they needed to visit his grandfather's house.
His parents left in a hurry.
Shen Ye was alone in the house again.
He returned to his room, closing the door behind him, then drew the curtains.
Gate.
He silently said the word in his mind.
A gate quietly appeared before him.
Shen Ye stepped back a few paces and examined it closely.
-As he grew more practiced at using it, it had transformed and no longer looked like a hospital room door.
Here in his home, it now looked exactly like the doors in his house.
This ability was quite good at adapting to its surroundings.
Another point worth noting was that, after awakening his ability, he had gradually gained control over the Gate's appearance and disappearance.
Now, accidentally thinking the word "gate" would no longer activate his ability.
The Gate would appear only when he truly wanted to connect the two worlds.
Shen Ye stepped forward and looked through the glass window in the Gate.
Big Skeleton had finished eating the corpse and lay silently among the scattered bones. There was no telling whether he was asleep or contemplating life.
Shen Ye raised the bag in his hand and called through the Gate:
"I bought you some calcium tablets. Want to try them?"
The parchment nailed to the Gate gave off a faint glow, forming a line of small text:
"Proceed with the trade?"
"Yes," Shen Ye said.
The next instant.
The plastic bag in his hand vanished.
In the corridor, Big Skeleton caught the plastic bag.
He swallowed the boxes of calcium tablets, plastic bag and all, and began chewing.
"Hey, you can't eat the plastic bag. It's hard to digest."
Shen Ye called out.
As though he hadn't heard, Big Skeleton slowly lowered his head and looked at one of his legs.
A crack in his shinbone faded slightly.
It worked!
For a monster made entirely of bones, like a skeleton, calcium supplements really worked!
But the effect seemed very weak.
After a moment's thought, Shen Ye said, "I can get you more calcium tablets, but I'll need some time. What do you think?"
Big Skeleton said nothing.
He slowly crawled over, extended a bony finger, and pointed through the window glass at the desk beside Shen Ye.
Shen Ye turned to look.
He had casually left the box containing the "Marrow-Replenishing Pill" on the desk.
"You want this?"
Shen Ye asked.
Big Skeleton nodded, staring fixedly at the box with a hint of longing.
Shen Ye hesitated.
As his ability awakened, this body had gradually recovered too. He really had no need for the "Marrow-Replenishing Pill."
But this pill was extremely expensive.
His parents had spent a fortune to buy a single pill so that he could recover his health and take the high school entrance exams.
-Was he really going to give it to a monster from another world, just like that?
Perhaps noticing Shen Ye's hesitation, Big Skeleton suddenly pressed his bony claw against the Gate.
The parchment abruptly burst into a hazy white glow.
The light took shape out of thin air and settled before Shen Ye.
Shen Ye froze for a moment, then suddenly realized that the other party was sending him something under the contract of "equal exchange."
The light dispersed.
A small cloth pouch appeared.
The pouch was open, revealing its contents:
A silver medal.
A diamond-shaped crystal giving off a magnificent purple glow.
The corresponding explanation appeared on the parchment:
"Your 'calcium tablets' have been deemed effective by the other party." "The other party has given you preliminary approval and discovered the more effective 'Marrow-Replenishing Pill' on your desk." "As a Battlefield Quartermaster, he has selected these belongings of an enemy soldier from the spoils he collected during the war, hoping to exchange them for your 'Marrow-Replenishing Pill.'" "Detailed item descriptions follow:" "1. Silver War Medal: A symbol of military merit and honor within the Elf Faction of the Nightmare World, awarded only to soldiers who have rendered great service;" "-Wearing this medal allows you to teleport into territory controlled by the Elves." "2. Lesser Nightmare Crystal: A skill-imparting item created by the High Elves, capable of directly instilling knowledge, skills, intelligence, and the like into frontline soldiers;" "-Within nightmares, war is the eternal theme. All the knowledge of civilization is built around rapidly improving combat strength."
Shen Ye froze.
He slowly turned to look at Big Skeleton inside the Gate.
Big Skeleton nodded at him, pointed at his own leg bones, then pointed at the Marrow-Replenishing Pill on the table.
-Those two things are yours, but I want the Marrow-Replenishing Pill.
No problem at all!
Shen Ye thumped his chest confidently and said, "Don't worry, but I'd like to try this Nightmare Crystal first."
This time, Big Skeleton showed no impatience at all.
He raised a bony claw and made a forceful squeezing gesture.
Shen Ye understood. He placed the diamond-shaped crystal in his hand and squeezed hard.
Crack.
The crystal shattered.
A purple mist spread out around him, enveloping Shen Ye.
One breath.
Two breaths.
Three breaths.
All the mist dissipated.
Yet a piece of information had appeared in Shen Ye's mind:
"Deer Walk Beneath the Moon." "Battle formation movement footwork." "White grade, the primary movement technique of Elven soldiers." "-Dodge, Charge, sidestep." "Description: Having mastered it, you can finally leave minor skirmishes behind and join a full-scale battle as a soldier in a battle formation."