Free Web NovelChapter 18: Chapter 18: The Arcade’s Child
Xu Yuan had been killed by a powerful ghost in the Sapphire Mall years ago. After his death, he used supernatural powers to preserve his own body.
With both incidents having occurred in the Sapphire Mall, it was inevitable that some unusual phenomena would be left behind.
The old security guard squinted, looking out at the crowded mall. He thought for a long time before speaking.
"Rumors of a haunting?
"I’ve been the security guard here ever since construction began on this site. Because I was a dedicated worker, I stayed on even after the outsourcing company pulled out. Forget about since the mall opened—not a single worker died even when they were laying the foundation. How could there possibly be rumors of a haunting?
"Now, if you’re talking about something that happened here *before* construction started, that was over twenty years ago. I’m completely in the dark about that.
"Old classmate, it’s been a while. Why ask about such morbid things? Come on, let’s go grab a drink up ahead."
The Supernatural Walkie-Talkie at Gao Tian’s waist remained silent.
This meant that neither Xia Ta and Jiang Yang’s groups had found any clues, whether in the basement levels or on the floors above.
Gao Tian grabbed the old security guard’s arm and looked him in the eye.
"Think carefully. What is special about this place.
"You *will* remember, because it is very important."
With this mental suggestion, the old security guard’s eyes glazed over once more. The Memory Ghost had begun to exert its influence.
"Something very important...
"There is one thing... I don’t know if it’s important or not."
Gao Tian:
"Tell me."
The old security guard pointed up toward the third floor.
"At the far end of Area B, there’s an arcade that’s been abandoned for years.
"The owner of that arcade won the bid to open up shop right when the Sapphire Mall was first built. Business was booming at first; he was swamped every single month.
"But then, for some reason, his kid died, his wife divorced him, and soon after that, the owner himself went mad and committed suicide.
"His shops in other malls were quickly sold off. But for some reason, no one ever took over this one in the Sapphire Mall. Business had been good, but all the equipment and decorations were just left to rot inside. It’s been three years and no one has touched it.
"I don’t know if that’s the kind of story you were looking to hear.
"Come to think of it, the owner went mad and killed himself less than a year after the arcade first opened."
Gao Tian released his hand and nodded.
"Understood."
His method for finding the body was different from Xia Ta’s team; he wasn’t doing a floor-by-floor sweep. The Sapphire Mall had such a high volume of foot traffic, swallowing up countless visitors every day. Every nook and cranny in this place must have been stepped on innumerable times by innumerable people.
A body hidden by normal means couldn’t possibly have remained undiscovered for two years. So many people had failed to find its hiding place for so long; for Xia Ta and the others to think they could find it in a single day was a recipe for failure.
That was why Gao Tian had changed his strategy from the start. A green-text mission was bound to leave clues. He had to start with local rumors or urban legends.
He’d start by following the old guard’s lead and checking out the arcade. If it was a dead end, he’d only have wasted fifteen minutes. Then, he would just have to go down the list and question everyone who knew the mall well: the janitors, the mall manager, the elevator repairmen, and so on.
"Ah, and about that business with Brother Dao... I’ve wanted to thank you for all these years. Are you sure you won’t have a drink?"
Seeing Gao Tian turn to leave, the old security guard seemed disappointed. It wasn’t every day a man his age ran into an old classmate, and he wanted to persuade him to stay a little longer.
Gao Tian turned his head and looked at him.
"Sir, you’re about forty years older than me. How could I possibly be your old classmate? freeweɓnovel.cѳm
"I must have gotten the wrong person. You’re misremembering."
The old security guard looked completely dumbfounded.
"Huh?"
Before leaving, he made sure to eliminate as much of the Memory Ghost’s influence on the man as possible.
The arcade in Area B on the third floor was harder to find than he’d expected. It was situated at the very end of a hallway, around a corner, and all the directional signs had been removed. The further Gao Tian walked, the more desolate the area became and the fewer people he saw, until he almost felt like he’d left the Sapphire Mall entirely.
No wonder this spot hadn’t been rented out in all the time since the owner’s death. Gao Tian had a sneaking suspicion that the mall’s management had completely forgotten this storefront existed, just letting it sit idle.
At the far end of the hall, a pair of large iron doors was locked fast. The wrist-thick iron chain securing them had rusted to a deep crimson. Even if Gao Tian had the original key, it wouldn’t have mattered—the keyhole was completely sealed with rust.
Peering through the grimy glass panels on the doors, he could just barely make out the dusty shapes of various arcade cabinets inside. If they had held a clearance sale when the arcade first closed, they could have made a decent bit of money. Now, they were worthless.
’What a shoddy operation this world is,’ he thought.
The lock, however, was no match for Gao Tian. He had brought an important tool with him: the Ghost Transformation Spear. While its primary effect was absurdly powerful, its sharpness and durability were no joke.
He began striking the rustiest part of the chain with the tip of the spear. The clang of metal on metal echoed in the hall. With each powerful blow from Gao Tian, the chain link began to visibly deform. A few more strikes and it would surely break.
Just as the chain was about to snap, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed from around the corner. A staff member in a Sapphire Mall uniform, who happened to be passing nearby, had faintly heard the noise. He rushed over and caught Gao Tian red-handed.
The staff member’s expression changed in an instant. He strode quickly toward Gao Tian, speaking into the walkie-talkie on his collar.
"Hey! What are you doing here? Who gave you permission to smash this lock?
"This is private property! If you can’t give me a good reason for what you’re doing, I’m calling the police."
At the same time, a colleague’s voice crackled over the walkie-talkie.
"Ban? Ban, you there? I’m patrolling the fifth floor.
"What’s going on down there? Another burst pipe? Or did a rat get in?"
Seeing that he couldn’t talk his way out of this, Gao Tian remained perfectly calm. He feigned surprise, pointed up at the ceiling, and gave the staff member an innocent look.
"I have no idea. I heard a loud noise as soon as I got here.
"Maybe it’s construction from upstairs? Did you get a notice about any renovations happening on the fourth floor today?"
The Memory Ghost’s power activated once more. Gao Tian’s gestures and words all worked in concert to implant a false memory in the staff member’s mind.
"The fourth floor? What does the fourth floor have to do with anything? It was obviously you..."
The staff member’s expression shifted from anger to confusion, then to bewilderment, before finally clearing with a look of dawning realization.
He looked up in the direction of the fourth floor, then started jogging back the way he came, speaking into his walkie-talkie.
"Hey, go check if there’s a construction crew on the fourth floor today. I’m on the third, and I can hear a bunch of banging..."
Gao Tian watched as the staff member’s figure disappeared around the corner at the end of the hall. It seemed the Memory Ghost’s ability had successfully sent him away.
He turned and brought the Ghost Transformation Spear down one last time. The iron chain snapped. With a light push, the long-sealed doors to the arcade swung open with a loud CREAK.
Gao Tian slowly stepped inside.
Having been sealed for years, the air was thick with the smell of dust. The arcade itself wasn’t large—less than two hundred square meters—but it was packed with several dozen arcade cabinets, making the space feel crowded even when empty.
’If I’m going to find any clues in here, where should I even begin?’
’Maybe I’ll check the front counter first.’
’The owner’s sudden suicide probably wasn’t just because his son died and his wife went mad. Perhaps the arcade’s profits were also a problem.’
Gao Tian tightened his grip on the Ghost Transformation Spear. It was useless against actual ghosts, but at least it was incredibly sharp. Wielding it as a weapon gave him a welcome sense of security.
Just as Gao Tian moved further in, a sound suddenly cut through the silence from a corner of the empty arcade—a frantic clatter of button-mashing, the clicking of a joystick being jerked left and right, and the electronic sound of a game character taking damage.
’No. Fucking. Way...’
Gao Tian felt his entire body go rigid.
Even the simple act of turning his head to find the source of the sound felt incredibly difficult.
’In an arcade that’s been abandoned for over two years, someone is playing a game? One of the machines is actually running?’
You didn’t have to be a genius to know that was impossible. Forgetting for a moment whether the machines even worked, how could any ordinary person get in with the front doors chained shut? The cabinets needed electricity, and with the owner dead, who would have kept paying the power bill all this time?
That left only one possibility for who—or what—could be playing a game in here right now.
A ghost.
Every muscle in Gao Tian’s body tensed as he prepared for a fight. He slowly turned his head toward the only lit machine in the entire arcade.
Sitting before the machine was a boy of about twelve or thirteen. With pale skin and red lips, he was quite handsome, dressed in a black and red school uniform with a backpack still on. He was completely absorbed in controlling his character on the glowing screen, seemingly unaware that someone else had entered the arcade. He didn’t even spare a single glance in Gao Tian’s direction.
’Who is this kid?’ Gao Tian wondered. He remembered the arcade owner had a son who died mysteriously, which had indirectly led to the owner’s suicide and the closure of the arcade.
’Could this be the owner’s son? His soul trapped here for some reason, unable to move on, still playing games in his old man’s territory?’
The standoff between them lasted for a moment. Gao Tian could have just walked right out of the arcade, but his instincts told him this boy was a key figure. If he let fear get the better of him and left now, he might not find him again.
Gao Tian decided to take a risk. He would try using the Memory Ghost’s ability first, to see if he could influence the boy and pry some useful information from him.
"Kid."
"Remember me? I’m your favorite, Brother Gao. That Transformers toy you love so much, the one sitting back at your house? I’m the one who bought it for you.
"Your dad’s around here somewhere, right?"
