Doomsday Jigsaw Puzzle

Chapter 258: Chapter 62: The Red Room

Darkness engulfed the world once more.

In the raging inferno that twisted through space, the only visible sight was the towering silhouette, standing proud and defiant, while God Granny was nowhere to be seen in the smoky haze, let alone the city consumed by fiery rage.

In an instant, waves of flames burnt everything to ashes, as if resentful spirits were undergoing a fiery rebirth, akin to a phoenix rising from the ashes in Nirvana.

...

...

Despite everything, there were little imperfections revealed, a reminder that this was only Qin’s way to reach a "perfect masterpiece", forged for a certain woman over time, even though these weapons would ultimately reveal their sharp edges when the time came in this twisted world.

It was as if these negative emotions were weapons stored in an arsenal, waiting to be wielded; however, Sharp Forest didn’t seem to possess any negative feelings, he seemed more like a child who contained the emotions he had absorbed.

Sharp Forest had never been engulfed by negative emotions, as if he himself was a child who understood them from a distance.

In everyone else’s eyes, this person was the epitome of negative emotions.

He didn’t feel anger, he didn’t feel sadness, he didn’t feel fear—there were no negative emotions in him. Sharp Forest was an abnormality from birth, a monster within. freёwebnovel.com

How could a normal person ever become so enormously enraged?

God Granny found it hard to believe the sudden transformation that befell the great Pang’s furious fire.

In an instant, the red firestorm, as terrifying as a gale, swept across the lakeside, sounding like the mournful wails of spiteful spirits.

These malevolent airs were quickly consumed by the crimson red flames, even though they seemed to blanket and engulf the white mist.

One could tell at a glance that, if it were not for the Spiritual Possession watch on his wrist, the red zone would’ve been struck immediately.

Sharp Forest’s rationale was quickly submerged as well, as if the raging fire in this world was a mimicry of some real profound force.

He couldn’t even begin to think that this was some kind of trick, that there wasn’t actually a woman in his memories—it was only himself.

Hidden away in the recesses of time, it seemed like Sharp Forest was humming a familiar tune, a certain woman’s song.

The longstanding anger that seethed within him broke out, invoking his primal roars.

It was as though all the repressed fury was gathering together, borrowing a portal from this world, causing a complete outburst.

Sharp Forest finally felt anger—those unlucky enough to queue until the end, much like he did.

Although his heart never harbored anger, his body still remembered the posture and stance it ought to have in moments of rage.

Inside, Sharp Forest felt an emptiness, despite outwardly seeming indifferent and cold, almost like a tender person morphed into an unkind being, as if he had seen far too many twisted accidents, the misfortune of others, even witnessing the scarlet tragedies and knowing the truth about little Bai’s real death.

Sharp Forest had encountered the edges of anger very often, especially since coming into this world, holding his fists tightly clutched.

...

...

But he had never actually managed to do so, although that was his promise.

"I will protect your loved ones well too," he had said.

He raised his glass of wine, saying, as memories of Sharp Forest resurfaced. He also had something to return to.

"Although you’ve only just arrived and are not quite familiar with them, the members of the Seventh Squad have a lot of faith in you. I’ve handed the Seventh Squad over to you after trying so hard, you have to protect them," the squad leader had said.

Sharp Forest remembered raising his glass, clinking it with the squad leader’s, at the very last banquet he could recall.

He had many friends in this world who he wanted very much to protect, otherwise, this world wouldn’t be his.

It wouldn’t be too difficult since he didn’t have any negative emotions; he felt he couldn’t have done anything wrong from the start.

The danger of the creature in the womb had escalated; there was no doubt that the creature must have come from a world unknown to people of the previous world’s police department.

Even Little Bai, who had given much thought to cases of serious crimes, never imagined that committing such a crime himself would be unavoidable if he had been born into that world.

Every friend he met in this world wished him their own blessings.

Now serving as the leader of the Seventh Squad of the military investigation unit, he constantly sipped on his drink, chatting endlessly about something more exciting.

Once again, the scene returned to the dazzling lights of the military investigation unit’s party.

In reality, that distant world was not much different from the two worlds... with Little Bai’s discovery, some of the enigmas surfaced one by one, like boats rising with the tide.

He had no further connection with anything that had happened previously.

Setting out on a new journey, Little Bai often thought about how he, an ordinary man involved in numerous incidents, had come to such an extraordinary and unexplainable world.

I am merely a traveler passing through.

...

Red glows, countless as hairs, emerged from all over Little Bai’s body, his arms, his brow—God Granny had not paid attention to the dark resentment welling up inside him.

The thick and intense resentment around Little Bai had already obscured his vision.

The creatures, resembling a swarm of blood-sucking bats gorging after the Ninth of May, were about to swallow Little Bai up quickly; he paid no mind to them.

How could an ordinary person in this world of great wickedness come to grips with evils yet to unfold?

Watching the battle that seemed to be drawing to a suitable close, God Granny thought these two invaders were not particularly strong.

Little Bai stood his ground, axe in hand, amid the shattered, broken bodies of the Ninth of May.

...

He found himself unexpectedly calm amid such peacefulness... As if he was possibly dead like the Ninth of May.

These pure, unadulterated feelings could not possibly exist; he had to leave his past life behind, place them upon his body no more.

In this world alone, there was the dog’s loyalty to its master, Little Bai’s immediate awareness of the kind goodness of Little Bai and Chen Hong, his commitment to the strange man Lin Haigu in the face of unavoidable hardships, Sharp Forest’s promise to the face of the mysterious man, Jiang Yimi’s first love for the elementary man, all of which he recalled clearly.

With the presence of the squad, he could feel an extraordinary sense of relief, for any kind of danger seemed to slowly dissipate.

The squad had saved him several times, just as he had saved the squad in some of these memories.

Each memory flash was like a string of running lights... a gambling den, lantern festivals, villas, mines.

Suddenly, Little Bai wondered if he was truly in this world, the only one to witness the squad’s embarrassing moments.

Suddenly, his body filled with an unfathomable irritation, like he was learning from a madman how to imitate those bizarre creatures, while in fact he was just a normal person. Looking at it now, it seemed quite ridiculous, and there he was, impersonating the part of Ninth of May right then.

He and Ninth of May were analyzing their own invisible selves, after their first encounter with the invisible entity at the hospital.

The scene changed again.

The anger before his eyes had transformed into something unrecognizable, a slow crawling feeling of something much more intense was taking shape deep within Little Bai’s heart.

The danger level on the squad leader’s wristwatch surged instantaneously, but Little Bai, who was focused on his duties aboard the flight, did not notice Ninth of May was contemplating death.

Little Bai had seen certain things he had never encountered before, possibly on account of Erleipu’s peculiar eyes.

But he didn’t see the evil that pounced toward him from the other side of the cabin, and Ninth of May, who had previously survived deadly encounters on the military investigation team’s party flight, did not seem to be there at the moment.

—Everything had changed; as he raised his head a sensation kept emerging from within, though Little Bai couldn’t quite make out what it was he was feeling deep down.

It seemed as though the blood-red lake of Xiu Luodi Hell hadn’t appeared in the pupils of Little Bai.

He should have been thoroughly dead by now... This corpse had withstood countless waves of vengeful spirits without being trampled to death; it lay there still, untouched as before.

His life was completely gone; Ninth of May’s body continued to be brutally trampled without end.

"But now, his once unshakeable belief had been devastated from East to West. Yet, amidst the white fog, there was a steadfast conviction."

"It’s called Qingyu Valley."

"... And that individual, who was a leader of the masses, a creator of marvels, would not hesitate in the slightest; it was only amidst the white fog that one could raise the unavoidable lies of this moment."

"Although this world is a rotten mess, such people exist for a reason; they even make others feel that redemption has its worth."

"He had heavenly gifts, pure kindness, outstanding integrity, and a natural presence that commanded respect; people willingly followed him, filled with genuine admiration.

"Little Bai had once thought, without a doubt, this man was the protagonist of this perilous adventure."

However, the likes of Liu Oucheng, Ruan Qingyun, and Yin Shuangrou showed radiant pleasure on their faces, whereas the higher-ranked investigatory team, including Meng Yuanchen, Qin Zong, and Long Xiao, all watched with appreciative eyes.

Standing in front of everyone, leading the investigatory troop, was Tall Team, slightly loose in his military garb, under the glow of a captivating neon light."

A certain summer’s end, a recollection came to him."

Looking around quietly, Little Bai felt as if some sort of time-stopping power had been activated, as though everything was still.

Just like the recent case, where he had stood as Liu Chu’s shield when dusk first merged into his body--back then, Wu Jiu protected Little Bai’s physical form.

Little Bai was currently undergoing his first deathly ordeal since emerging from the tower, along the blood-red, lowering shades of Zao Lake’s edge.

In the end, the black-tinted bald eagle, whose wings were still not submerged, ultimately unfurled its majestic span.

Zao Lake, inside the world...

...

...

He would have disappeared utterly, an apparition that had not once returned from whence it came... ultimately.

Little Bai smiled faintly with a hint of bemusement, "I don’t know if I’ll ever come back, right?"

A new obsession had replaced him, taken over him.

...Except for the indelible obsession, no matter to what extent he tried to erase it, the "warmth and beauty" of father-child moments had been too abundant.

At that time, the only answer he had become---he knew the answer, he was the answer to that one question:

Back then, Little Bai had thought about how one could disappear entirely only by

Little Bai had once asked a question, how could one make Little Bai disappear?

The outsider’s strength was no use in unlocking it... He realized the truth only after quietly starting to move on his own---in his innermost heart, sealed within a room of three layers, an untouched chamber at its depth.

At the same time, Little Bai’s body was disappearing little by little, as he touched the red-painted door, and its every line was unlocking.

"Even though he’s truly a dutiful son, his obsession with me is no longer there; he’s now just a dead little pal,"

"Tsk, I can’t believe you would come out with that. You actually managed to lose my favor,"

Little Bai, still wearing his customary faint smile, didn’t show much surprise but slowly, slowly, looked at his own dissolving hand...

As he touched the red door with his vanishing fingers, it started to disappear little by little, like a wisp of smoke."

Little Bai’s fingers were no longer visible.

"Although I knew something like this would happen, I didn’t expect it would come so soon,"

Little Bai revealed a faint smile of regret, as the world on the other side of the door was about to become clear.

But heaven remains unfulfilled...

Because White Fog had never lived through such a dreadful childhood, this changed into a peculiar being, somewhat cold yet warm, seemingly detached but rational. It was both and neither, directly related to this woman.

Bai Fog insisted on staying inside to one of the top ten important people, she was a woman, and Little Bai was certain of this.

"You’re in the red room; I’ve come to realize that now. You were hiding somewhere when he first started losing his temper, which was very interesting to me at first. But now, with your three types of main emotions gone, it’s only fascinating," Little Bai said to her.

Pushing the door open seemed impossible; despite all his effort, it remained unmoved, as if locked by some unknown force that had accumulated at an astonishing rate, a kind of emotional residue he had never encountered before.

He had to tell someone, at least someone he could trust at a moment’s notice, that Little Bai was about to leave.

When Little Bai arrived at the red house, he reached out and touched the door; right after completing this event, he came to the red house.

Old Plank in the café wanted him to pass this envelope to a customer, which he left behind after leaving the café.

The entire world was shrouded in a layer of red.

"The red mist has suddenly stained the world," Little Bai noticed, having successfully orchestrated a wicked little plan of his own; he looked up at the sky.

Would that door really loosen? What changes will happen in the world inside—if the intense situation inside the white fog at the heart of the world is truly like dying a crucial death?

It was an attempt of interest, or perhaps, having finally found something intriguing in these events, he decided to use this opportunity of the white fog tower.

But in reality, there was no true way to break in, and every time he got close to the three-roomed house, it seemed eternally still, yet he could feel it.

He desperately wanted to open this door; it was as if there was always a key element missing in everything he did. This door of the three-roomed house, perpetually locked, deeply intrigued Little Bai.

But the events always remained static—no progress, just an ongoing situation.

Little Bai didn’t necessarily have nothing to do every day, but on the contrary, there were always other things.

After all, he is someone who travels leisurely across the vast world, much like his easygoing father.

"I don’t know who my father is," which was also a proven fact.

Little Bai was certain he would never choose someone as unpredictable as him to be part of his steadfast squad, especially when he was with the earnest redhead.

But besides being tied to another person, he was effectively his own father figure, teaching and guiding as appropriate.

Little Bai found this extremely interesting, because since his uncomfortable childhood years post-white fog emergence, he knew he was quite an anomaly—never having any friends, essentially an outcast.

He was indeed a unique angle within the expansive white fog world, a place where you could meet such individuals everywhere, despite the place being vast and wide.

Little Bai had no doubt that every frightened child had a little short guy inside, who could only gaze up at the towering round silhouettes from the small town far away—even connecting them.

That little short guy was still the old town administrator.

The same little short guy was also a military commander; there was a military camp located at the small town’s periphery.

Little Bai felt this made the white fog people seem somewhat solitary.

And that little short guy was also the school principal, of the newly built school that hosted a plethora of oddities within the world.

But the little short guy, Old Plank of the world’s café, was not just a polite companion; although he ran the café, he never delved deeply into the white fog world’s complexities.

Little Bai genuinely enjoyed coming to drink tea at the café ever since he was but a fragment of a full moon’s image after birth.

Even the café’s sign boasted freshly written three letters. freewebnøvel.coɱ

One tower, one military camp, one café, one school, one hospital—these were the recent developments in the unfamiliar little town.

As for the layout of the town’s streets and alleys, it remained unchanged; Little Bai felt a strange familiarity with this small town within the white fog world.

Right now, he was sitting in the world of the white fog.

Perhaps to Little Bai, being alive in the changing state of the world was worth a day’s excitement and joy. All the mundane matters were overshadowed by the passionate affairs of men and women.

But most people in the world do not talk about it.

Afterward, however, he would invade the opposite world, intent on secretly unraveling these mysterious events within the three-roomed house.

It was not merely an unraveling of the physical kind.

Actually, many have subjected him to their in-depth analysis, all those warm-hearted people who felt good around him. Little Bai had already explored many people within the world.

Within the world.