The World Below Surface

Chapter 89

Unaware of the sinister plot that awaited him, Lu Yan felt a surge of dread as he sensed the impending malice directed towards him. He was already vexed by the thought of being targeted.

He found himself in a desolate station, with no signs of life to be seen or heard. The moist, biting cold of the night greeted him, seeping into his bones. The winter wind howled mercilessly, shaking the station's windows and doors with a metallic clang.

Once again, he felt that oppressive stare, like a dark figure trailing him.

Who could it be?

Who was keeping their eyes on him?

A shiver ran through his body, freezing his blood, as he felt a cloak of ice enveloping him.

The stare didn't waver, but instead intensified, akin to a malignant wound festering and oozing.

What did it want?

What was its purpose?

He didn't dare to turn his head, but instead quickened his steps, desperate to escape the station. However, the station seemed to taunt him, stretching its corridors and platforms beyond his reach.

His eyes darted to the door.

Out of nowhere a red figure appeared. Its face was decayed beyond recognition, but Lu Yan felt its piercing gaze, fixed on him with malicious intent.

No, it was not alone. Another grotesque and menacing figure stood behind him.

What could he do?

Ever since the world went mad, ever since he witnessed his loved ones mysteriously die and came back to life, he had not known fear. He had faced the horrors with a cool head, devising strategies to survive.

He did not halt his steps, advancing towards the door.

In the past, he could easily evade the ghosts by ignoring them. But now

Was everything going to work out?

As soon as the blood-red spectre emerged, Lu Yan regained his mobility. He made his way to the door, but this time, he slowed down his pace on purpose.

The blood-red body still glared at him, putrid liquid dripping from its rotten, empty eye sockets, resembling a corpse freshly dug up.

Lu Yan approached it slowly, cautiously.

He was assaulted by the damp earthy smell that mingled with the foul odour of rotting flesh that wafted from its body.

He came face to face with the corpse.

It kept staring at him, motionless.

He took a step.

Another.

And another.

Lu Yan reached its side, but it made no move.

What was it doing there, if not to attack him? He wondered, his mind racing, but he could not shake off the feeling of familiarity.

Had he met the person who once inhabited this body?

But its face was beyond recognition, marred by dark veins that bulged and twisted, obscuring any features, its shape decayed and swollen. He dared not look at it for too long, lest he drew its attention, so he could not tell what it was.

As they brushed past each other, that corpse suddenly veered towards him.

It pounced on him in a flash, its arms reaching out, grabbing Lu Yans shoulder with a firm grip.

He felt the icy coldness of its flesh against his back, and the foul odour of its decay invaded his nostrils.

Lu Yan struggled to free himself, but its hands held on, refusing to let go. Strangely, it did not try to harm him, but let Lu Yan drag it along for a few steps, leaving a thin trail of blood on the floor.

Who was this thing? What did it want from him?

The station plunged into darkness, one light after another flickering out, as something unseen drew nearer to him. The thing on his back seemed unaware of the impending doom, but Lu Yans instincts warned him that he would not survive if that thing caught up with him!

He wasted no time, and ran as fast as he could with the rotting corpse clinging to his back.

As he sprinted down the stairs, the last light in the station hall went out. Darkness swallowed the whole place.

Lu Yan raced for his life with the corpse on his back, the streetlights behind him going out one by one.

That thing that thing was gaining on him!

The wind whipped up with even more force, and the deserted road showed no signs of life, with all the shops on either side firmly closed. He had arrived in a bustling city; there should have been people everywhere, especially near the train station.

But now, he was alone, except for Lu Yan sprinting desperately.

The corpse, lying still on his back, did not move, but... the foul odour from behind intensified, and the arms of the body wrapped around his chest stiffened, making it harder to shake off.

What was this thing?

The corpse on his back weighed him down, its limbs not rigid but slowly becoming soft, as if swelling. Determined, Lu Yan reached another crossroad and seized the hand of the corpse on his back, hurling it away, then flinging it roughly to the side...

It all happened in a matter of seconds, and finally, the corpse was violently cast off, tumbling on the ground.

Lu Yan exhaled in relief, realising he had finally freed himself from that thing.

But... nothing else happened?

As he thought that, he caught a glimpse of the back and quickened his pace. It turned out that the corpse he had discarded was slowly raising its head from the ground, its limbs twitching involuntarily, a sight that suggested an impending transformation into something else

It raised its head, and Lu Yan caught a glimpse of a mark on the rotten corpse. He did not stop to think, but turned and ran wildly towards the dimming street light that loomed ahead.

The corpse had the same mark on its chest as Lu Yan. Could it be that the corpse was him?

**

Lin Chu mingled among the crowd, eavesdropping on their conversations without contributing much, pretending to be a clueless newcomer.

She still had a chance to back out, but...

Why had the task suddenly changed to hunting someone down? The previous tasks were strange but understandable. This chase task seemed out of place. What had Lu Yan done?

What had he done to provoke the entity behind the task so much that it sent a horde after him? What if they failed this time? What would happen then?

Lin Chu mulled over these questions for a long time.

She spotted many familiar taskers in the crowd, some of them veterans who had completed more than ten tasks, while novices were few and far between. This made her more uneasy.

Some of them, after exchanging messages, sensed that something was off, but they had a task to do, and if they failed to complete it, they were screwed.

They did not care if Lu Yan held the key to solving the mystery in the future, they would not risk their lives for a vague possibility.

How could Lu Yan survive with so many hunters on his trail?

He was not known to everyone; some of them had met him during missions but had their memories erased by hypnosis, only recognising his name. Others had never seen his face. They were thirty-five in total, and they spent almost four hours debating how to kill an NPC before they finally parted ways.

The mission was still half a month away.

What they did not realise was that Lu Yan had received the flyer, telling him to return to the small town a month later.

The extra half month was meant to give the taskers time to adjust and get ready.

Otherwise, they might not stand a chance, even with their numbers.

The meeting dispersed, and Lin Chu sought out Chu Xiu again, her face grave.

We need to talk. Seriously. Maybe we can work together, she said.

Chu Xiu exhaled in relief, hearing what he had hoped for, almost eager to reply, Sure, Im in.

Lin Chu then outlined the tasks and issues they had discussed, while watching Chu Xius reactions.

How would he feel, knowing Lu Yan?

Two tasks? Searching for someone and killing Lu Yan, Chu Xiu scowled.

Thats right, Im just joining their meetings for now, not committed. Thats their plan, Lin Chu asked, Has anything like this happened before? Do we have to do both tasks, or is one enough to get out?

Chu Xiu shook his head, Not that I know of. And

And it was such a bloody task.

"What are your thoughts? Should we kill him?" Lin Chu looked him in the eye.

Chu Xius eyes darted nervously before he shook his head again, No, he cant die yet

I doubt he will die anyway, he added.

Perhaps not. They might be willing to do the dirty work themselves, but the tasks are so obviously targeting him, who knows, they might have some help from the task this time.

She did not name anyone, but Chu Xiu understood.

They all suspected that there was a hidden force or entity behind these tasks.

Lu Yan must not die, Lin Chu stated.

**

Night fell.

Yu Huai Yao rubbed his sore neck, ready to resume his work at his desk, when his heart missed a beat. A dreadful sensation swept over him, and at the same time, an image flashed in his mind.

A voice commanded him to complete a task. If he succeeded, he could carry on living; if he failed, he would die. Rejecting the task would also mean death!

The agony overwhelmed him, making him collapse on the desk. As he reached for his phone to call for help, the spasms disappeared without a trace.

A bloody hallucination. That's what it felt like.

But he knew it wasn't. It was something else. Something worse.

Yu Huai Yao glanced at his watch. The time was irrelevant. He had lost track of the days, the nights, the hours.

"Brother, do you believe in ghosts?"

The voice of Yu Huan, his dead cousin, echoed in his mind.

Bloody hell. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw him. Yu Huan, peeling off his bloody skin, layer by layer, revealing the rotting flesh and bones underneath. He screamed, he begged, he pleaded. But Yu Huai Yao could only watch, helpless and horrified. He had no choice but to believe.

Meanwhile, in another city...

Yi Zhen Zhen, who had lost her mother, sat in the living room, doing her homework. A framed photo of her mother's smiling face was on the table, next to her books.

As she wrote, she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her head, like a bloody needle piercing her brain. A wave of nausea washed over her, making her gag.

"...Task? Wha-what task?"

She gasped, clutching her head. The voice was unfamiliar, cold and menacing. It sounded like it came from inside her head, but also from everywhere.

She looked around, panicked, but everything at home was as normal as ever. No sign of anything bloody wrong.

Nightmares plagued her that night.

She was not the only one. Many relatives of the dead taskers had suffered the same fate, tormented by visions of horror and death. And the number of taskers had grown, spreading like a bloody infection.

Half a month later, the veterans of the meetings gathered at the assigned task location - an amusement park that had been abandoned for years. To their astonishment, they were shocked to see that the crowd had swelled again.

Fifty-three souls. That's how many they counted.

Lin Chu felt a surge of anxiety. She scanned the faces, looking for familiar ones. Then she saw him. Yu Huai Yao. What the hell was he doing here?

He saw her too. He made his way towards her, hoping to get some answers from her.

Soon enough, midnight arrived.

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