Darkness is the shadow of light; ghosts are the shadows of the human heart. When darkness falls, the terror hidden in the deepest recesses begins to stir, and there is finally nowhere for you or me to flee… The Return on a Rainy Night—what exactly did that person from the grave bring with them? The shattered haunted mansion—will we finally wake up from this two-year-long nightmare? When the root of this terror transforms into a series of *Horror Novels* that you must star in, you’ll have nowhere to hide and no way to retreat. Only by confronting the truth head-on will you have a glimmer of hope!
Chapter 49: Hey, Are You Dead or Alive?
Just as Ye Shenle was about to complete the 100-meter stretch required by his Main Quest 1, the suddenly appearing hearse seemed like the Grim Reaper blocking his path halfway up the mountain. The dozen or so corpses in front of him were tightly covered with white sheets, with only a pair of feet—wearing tattered black cloth shoes—peeking out, looking filthy. Just standing there, Ye Shenle could feel a chill wash over him. Although the corpses lay motionless, in Ye Shenle’s mind, these bodies—controlled by the Transdimensional Library—could have crawled right up to him at any moment, revealing terrifying, hideous, or even rotting, unrecognizable faces, and he wouldn’t have been the least bit surprised. The events in Ye Shenle’s first horror novel, *The Library of Lost Souls*—where Chen Shu and the others came back to life after death—were still vivid in his mind… “Even in this post-apocalyptic mode dominated by an online game aesthetic, has the ‘horror’ theme of horror novels remained unchanged?” “And…” As Ye Shenle sorted through and processed the information he’d gathered so far, he turned his head slightly to look at a corpse wrapped in white cloth lying not far behind him, blocking most of the road’s width. “Even if I decided right now to abandon the main quest, it wouldn’t be that easy to leave.” “And if I keep going, what will I run into…” Ye Shenle straightened up again and looked straight ahead at the dozen or so corpses lying haphazardly, nearly blocking the entire road. For some reason, the moment he looked in that direction, a strong sense of dread sent a cold, stinging pain down his spine. “I think I can guess…” Ye Shenle was now almost certain that the corpse behind him was the same one that had blocked his path earlier. Not only were their builds strikingly similar, but the width of the road blocked by it was almost identical to what he’d seen before. Moreover, when the hearse had driven by, it had dropped only one corpse in front of him before driving off. and afterward, as Ye Shenle made his way through the greenbelt, he encountered no danger whatsoever along the way. The reason he hadn’t encountered any danger along the way was that they were luring him into a larger, pre-set trap. And that’s why this scene unfolded… More than a dozen eerie, terrifying corpses, covered in white sheets, lay scattered across the road like carelessly discarded trash, blocking Ye Shenle’s path. Behind him, one corpse appeared to have reanimated and moved on its own to his rear. This scene—the sort one would normally only see inside a morgue—had unfolded right as Ye Shenle was carrying out his mission. If an ordinary passerby had walked by here—even without any paranormal activity—the spine-chilling aura emanating from those corpses alone would have been enough to terrify them into freezing in their tracks. Unfortunately, Ye Shenle was no ordinary person—at least not psychologically speaking. As the protagonist who had already survived three horror novels, although he might not yet be fully mature mentally, anyone who manages to survive a horror novel—note this carefully: a “horror” novel! —must surely have had all his experiences and fears intertwined with that genre. And in so-called horror novels, “horror” itself is the central theme. If you can’t even overcome a certain level of fear, how can you possibly survive? The fact that Ye Shenle has managed to survive three entire horror novels so far indicates that, to a certain extent, he has rationally suppressed some of his fear. In *The Library of Lost Souls* and *The Avengers*, he has experienced it all: the distrust inherent in human nature, even more terrifying corpses, the reanimated dead, and even scenes of people being disemboweled,let alone the corpses before him now, whose faces he couldn’t even see. Although he cannot see the hideous faces concealed beneath the white cloth—and the unknown is the greatest fear—it is precisely because of this that the moment of not seeing is when fear is at its peak. Because once you can’t see, you’ll constantly imagine where the danger might lie,just how terrifying and grotesque the corpses beneath the white cloth might be—much like when you walk with your eyes closed, your body and brain instinctively imagine what you might bump into, how your face might be injured, and so on… As a result, after all the wild speculation and beliefs running through your mind, what you imagine may end up being even more hideous and terrifying than the reality. Ye Shenle stood there, his body trembling, his breathing gradually becoming heavier, because he had finally made a decision. Take a deep breath… Don’t panic… I absolutely have to get these two enhancement points. All I have to do is run ahead—it’s only a 5-meter distance. There’s nothing to be afraid of. With his entire body tensed, Ye Shenle took a deep breath. A low growl escaped his throat, as if he were mustering every ounce of strength in his body. Clutching the gun in his hands, he quickened his pace and, without so much as a glance at the ground, charged straight ahead. He imagined doing exactly as he had the first time he ran past those corpses—simply ignoring them and running right through. Only five meters remained; as long as he covered those five meters…his mission would be complete. Besides, these corpses might really just be out to scare him—they might not be aggressive at all. Though that was just wishful thinking on his part. However, when God opens a door for you, He is bound to close a window. In the missions of the Transdimensional Library, there’s never a free lunch handed to you on a silver platter—and even if there were, it would be poisoned! As Ye Shenle sprinted forward, it wasn’t long before he suddenly felt something grab his foot. He stopped and looked down,it turned out to be one of the white-shrouded corpses that had suddenly extended an incredibly withered hand, gripping his foot tightly. To his horror, Ye Shenle discovered that while the corpse holding him was still lying on the ground, the others—including the one that had previously blocked his path from behind—were now slowly propping themselves up with their hands, as if about to stand. The white cloth still covered their bodies, as if glued in place, but the undeniable fact was that they had risen from the ground and were now moving. Those dead bodies… were all about to awaken! And they were going to take Ye Shenle away, turning him into one of their own! Ye Shenle frantically tugged at her foot, which was being held by that withered hand, but it was as if she were being pulled by a powerful magnetic force. Her resistance was like a pebble sinking into the ocean—it stirred up only a slight ripple and had no real effect. To make matters worse, Ye Shenle realized she was now trapped right in the middle of the entire horde of corpses. With a corpse clutching her foot, she was pinned in place, while all around her—front, back, left, and right—corpses draped in white cloth were slowly crawling to their feet. Ye Shenle didn’t even have to think to know what would become of her once all these corpses were fully reanimated. Did you do that on purpose…? Just to trap me right here, with nowhere to escape. While Ye Shenle struggled futilely, she frantically tried to come up with a plan. It seemed she had been completely surrounded by this horde of corpses, and once they all rose, she would be trapped in an inescapable encirclement—there would be no way for her to break free. But just then, a voice suddenly reached Ye Shenle’s ears. “Hey… hey…” “Who’s there?” Ye Shenle froze in shock for a second, then looked around, trying to locate the source of the voice. But in the vast darkness of the night, he couldn’t see a single person—and yet, the voice sounded so familiar. “Hey, can you hear me? It’s Li Wentian.” Li Wentian? At that moment, Ye Shenle suddenly realized the sound was coming from inside his own clothes—and seemed very close to his ear. Although some of the corpses had already risen and were slowly approaching him, Ye Shenle felt he needed to locate the source of the voice first. “I’m here. What’s up?” Ye Shenle finally located the source of the voice. It turned out that tucked inside the folded collar of his camouflage jacket was a miniature walkie-talkie. No wonder Ye Shenle had previously wondered why none of these people carried a cell phone or any other communication device—how would they manage if they got separated? It seemed they had been prepared for this all along. “Oh, nothing. Just wanted to confirm if you’re dead or not…” On the other end of the walkie-talkie, Li Wentian’s voice remained as cold and detached as ever. Watching the several corpses draped in white cloth gradually draw nearer, Ye Shenle tugged at his collar and anxiously stamped his feet twice, but it did no good. “I’m not dead, but I’m about to die. Are you happy to hear that?” “Get to the point. I’m in a tight spot here—I might not make it back today.” Just then, Ye Shenle suddenly came up with a plan. The corpse had only grabbed his shoe—it hadn’t actually seized any part of his body. Just as the withered hand of a white-shrouded corpse about to reach him was about to grab him, he suddenly bent down, reached out, and grabbed the heel of his shoe. His entire body slipped out of the shoe, and in the end, that withered hand brushed past him, stopping just 1 centimeter from his clothes. “I’ve safely completed the main quest and returned. I’m on my way back now, and on the way, I suddenly remembered that I still owe you a life. I’m not the type to leave debts unpaid.” “So what?” As Ye Shenle ran forward, a rotting, pus-oozing hand—so decayed that the white bones beneath were visible—suddenly shot out from the upright, human-shaped white cloth figure and lunged straight for his face. The air was thick with a putrid stench so overpowering it felt like an olfactory explosion. Frowning, Ye Shenle ducked and darted right through the armpit of the white cloth figure. “I tried to contact you using the walkie-talkie under my collar. If you’re dead, then I can choose to forget this favor; if you’re not, I’ll try to repay you.” This was the longest sentence Ye Shenle had ever heard Li Wentian say, and although Li Wentian’s tone was icy, the sense of concern in his words warmed Ye Shenle’s heart. He suddenly began to realize that Li Wentian’s true inner self—or perhaps even something he himself hadn’t noticed—was the reason he appeared so cold and unapproachable: it was simply a matter of self-protection, a refusal to interact with the world or engage with others. A beautiful rose is so dazzling, but its thorns can leave the one who picks it bloodied and battered. It’s enough just to admire its beauty; but if touching it means getting hurt, it’s better not to touch it at all. And in that moment in *Extreme Space*, when Ye Shenle abandoned his final decision to kill Li Wentian, Li Wentian’s entire inner world was one of emptiness and serenity—because he had nothing, he appeared both fearless and utterly destitute. He lived while rejecting the entire world, so he was empty—so empty that he could only rely on the frost in his heart to fill the void. He did his utmost to present himself as cold as ice and utterly indifferent, simply to prevent anyone from discovering the ice in his heart. Such people usually harbor a deep contradiction: they both hope someone will enter their inner world to fill their emptiness, yet they also fear that person might leave even deeper scars on their defenseless inner self. Ye Shenle set aside his personal feelings and acted out of kindness; even when Li Wentian treated him that way, Ye Shenle did not end his meaningless life. This act was like a raging fire that completely melted the Han Bing in Li Wentian’s heart. So don’t be fooled by Li Wentian’s current cold demeanor—he claims it’s merely to repay a debt of gratitude, but in reality, it’s just a pretext he’s deliberately invented to protect himself so he can come to Ye Shenle’s rescue. Even without this excuse, after what happened last time, Li Wentian would have come anyway to save the person who, like Han Bing, had filled the void in his heart! Ye Shenle had already understood Li Wentian’s feelings. As she ran for her life, a mysterious smile appeared on the corner of her lips, and she whispered softly, “Thank you!” There was a noticeable pause on the other end. “I don’t know what you’re thanking me for…” “Hehe, it’s enough that I understand—you don’t need to. Also…” At that moment, at least five white-shrouded corpses approached Ye Shenle from the front, extending ten terrifying ghostly claws—some rotting, some withered. Glancing behind her, she saw that the corpses surrounding her from behind were already closing in. Ye Shenle looked down at her feet—one high, the other low. First, he hobbled forward for a while. Just as he was about to get close to those five corpses, he suddenly leaped over a curb and dashed into the nearby greenbelt. But because he was in such a hurry, he tripped over a railing, fell into the mud, and took a face-plant. After spitting the dirt out of his mouth, Ye Shenle suddenly broke into a meaningful smile. “I once paid one yuan to have my fortune told by a fortune-teller at a roadside stall. Don’t worry about me—he said… I definitely won’t die today!” Li Wentian fell silent again for a moment, then replied with a hint of sarcasm, “I’ll say—even fortune-tellers who scam people only take 1 yuan. Besides you, I can’t think of anyone else…” Ye Shenle flashed his pearly white teeth, stood up—still covered in mud—and laughed as he continued running forward. “You seem to know me pretty well?” PS: Yeah,Double updates start today. Since this chapter is pretty long, I’ll just count it as two chapters. After eight days of mental trials and a hiatus, “Assault on the City” is back. Today I realized my writing has improved yet again (happy ●﹏●). Thanks to everyone who’s supported me all along—I hope I can stay with you until the very end. Thanks to Xiao Xiao Daza for the tip, and thanks to Wangliang Laogui for the tip!
