Chapter Six: The Mysterious Hospital Basement

“Ruan Qing~ Ruan Qing~”

Late at night, Ruan Qing, who had been sound asleep, suddenly sat bolt upright in bed. Her face was filled with terror, for she had clearly heard someone incessantly calling her name in her ears.

“Who? Who is it?”

Yet when she woke and listened carefully, the voice vanished without a trace.

“Was it just a nightmare?”

Without thinking too much, Ruan Qing lay back down, intending to sleep again. But at that very moment, strange sounds echoed in her ears.

“Weeping… weeping…”

The sound resembled the cry of an infant, yet also carried the wail of a vengeful spirit, making her heart race uncontrollably.

After confirming several times that it was neither a dream nor a hallucination, she tiptoed out of bed, careful not to disturb her mother sleeping nearby.

Her body had nearly recovered, but for safety’s sake, the doctor had asked her to stay for one more night under observation. Moving about freely was still permitted.

She slowly walked out of the ward and into the corridor, only then realizing that the world seemed somehow different from usual. To her eyes, the entire world appeared veiled, somber and gloomy—like a scene from a horror film.

The visual shock, combined with the wailing echoing in her ears, sent her adrenaline surging to new heights.

The intense stimulation and her curiosity compelled her to search for the source of the sound.

Unconsciously, she found herself at the emergency exit.

“Is the sound coming from below? Did some mother just give birth?”

This was a hospital, and births in the middle of the night were hardly uncommon, so the cry of a baby seemed almost normal.

But now that she was here, she decided to find out for herself.

Descending the stairwell, she soon noticed something amiss.

Why was it so quiet? Aside from the odd, intermittent cry in her ears, there were no other sounds.

That shouldn’t be possible—this was a hospital, there should at least be some night-shift staff.

Why was the silence so terrifying?

And why, as she descended, was there not even an echo?

This was starting to feel truly eerie.

But when she tried to return, she discovered there was no path behind her!

“Ah!!”

She cried out, collapsing to the ground, her whole body trembling uncontrollably.

Even a fool could now understand: she was caught in a supernatural event.

“Spirit of the disc! Is it you, spirit of the disc?”

Her first thought was of the spirit of the disc. If she had offended any ghost lately, it would have been this one.

But there was no response. Looking at the path ahead, she gritted her teeth and pressed onward.

Slowly, she descended to the second floor, then the first, but found no sign of a door—only able to continue downward.

She kept going until she reached the third basement level and finally saw a half-open metal door.

Though the door was metal, it was heavily rusted and seemed long neglected; besides the rust, there appeared to be stains the color of blood.

Ruan Qing’s breath grew rapid, her heart beating so fiercely it threatened to burst from her chest, sweat soaking her entire body.

Yet she was like one possessed, walking forward as if compelled.

No sooner had she stepped inside than the door slammed shut with a bang.

“Ah!”

Instinctively, Ruan Qing turned to look behind her, only to see the door tightly closed—and upon it, the shadows of two figures, one large and one small.

By the light, she could tell two people were standing behind her, seemingly watching her.

At this point, Ruan Qing was petrified. Though she dreaded it, she trembled as she slowly turned her head.

The moment she turned, she beheld two figures she would never forget for the rest of her life.

There were two: one towering and immense, especially the head, which alone accounted for half the body’s height.

The giant head’s eyes were uneven, scarred all over, staring at Ruan Qing with deadly intent.

The smaller one was even more grotesque—its body tiny, and its head only half-formed.

The entire head looked as though it had been cleaved with a blade, its insides still oozing downward.

Yet these two did nothing but watch Ruan Qing, for they could sense a faint, elusive aura within her.

[Terror value +30]

[Terror value +50]

[Terror value +80]

[…]

[Task 1: Kill Doctor Liu. Reward: Nightmare Mark x1]

[Nightmare Mark: Usable on human targets. After use, controls the target’s thoughts, shares senses, and absorbs terror value regardless of distance (reusable after recovery).]

[Task 2: Resentful Infants x13. Reward: Level +1]

Within Ruan Qing’s body, a blood-red figure slowly opened its eyes. Of course, it heard the system prompts, but beyond these notices, it could also sense the presence of its own kind nearby.

The reason Ruan Qing heard someone calling her name in her dream was the work of Xiao Zi, whose purpose was to awaken her and bring her here.

But the two kindred spirits outside were clearly growing impatient—especially the big one, who could not resist any longer. He erupted with a terrifying aura, roared, and raised his hand to strike Ruan Qing.

“Roar, roar, roar!”

But at that moment, Ruan Qing suddenly reached out, catching his hand firmly, then slowly raised her head, revealing a pair of blood-red eyes.

“What are you doing? This body is a useful vessel for me—I can’t let you destroy it so casually.”

The big brute was startled by the sudden turn of events. Sensing the powerful aura emanating from his opponent, he immediately tried to break free, but just then, he saw several streaks of red light flash before his eyes.

“Roar, roar, roar!”

He finally managed to break free, but the price was the loss of his arm.

“So this is the Soul Wind Blade… quite handy. I wonder what its effects are at higher levels.”

Just as he pondered this, the brute launched another attack.

This time, Xiao Zi didn’t hold back. Instantly using the Phantom Ghost Steps, he appeared behind his foe and unleashed the Soul Wind Blade.

A crimson light flashed swiftly, and the brute stopped in his tracks—his head had already fallen to the floor.

Yet surprisingly, even decapitated, he did not die. The head on the ground still glared at him with vicious eyes.

Turning to the smaller one, Xiao Zi saw it was already at his feet.

“Hehehe…” The laugh was unmistakably sly.

As the sound faded, the little one erupted with power, rushing to strike at Xiao Zi’s heart.

“Overestimating yourself.”

In an instant, Xiao Zi vanished from his spot and appeared behind the small ghost, again using the Soul Wind Blade.

But before the crimson light could hit the little one, something blocked its path.

Looking closely, a semi-transparent infant floated there!