Chapter 16: From Now On, I Am Your Sister

Chapter 16: From Now On, I Am Your Sister

Upon opening the door to Room 104, a thick, musty odor rushed to greet him. Large patches of peeling wallpaper were covered in mold, and the already sparse furnishings were dilapidated, with several floorboards missing.

*Thwack, thwack, thwack.*

There was no electricity in the room, so the lights wouldn’t turn on, but the faint glow from the streetlights outside provided enough visibility to get the gist of the place. It was a tiny room: a cramped bathroom, a bed, and a large wardrobe—nothing else.

Duan Ming felt that even the hostels by the train station were better than this; at least those had thoughtful room service. He rubbed his grumbling stomach, feeling a wave of frustration, but there was nothing to be done.

Just a short while after entering, an inexplicable chill enveloped his entire body. He figured it was because night had fallen, and at this hour, going out to find food was absolutely out of the question.

"It’s only six hours. Just think of it as pulling an all-nighter back in high school when I was broke."

Consoling himself with this thought, he began to inspect the room. Even though Wang Jue had said the room was safe, he dared not let his guard down. The room being small had its advantages; the bathroom was visible at a glance, and after checking under the bed and opening the wardrobe, he felt significantly more at ease.

"Ah..."

Duan Ming sprawled across the bed in a "star" shape, finally able to relax his entire body after a long day. As he carefully recalled every experience from this first day of transmigrating—full of both terror and satisfaction—he drifted into a deep sleep.

He had a dream.

He dreamed he was sleeping.

Suddenly, he felt a cold breeze against the soles of his feet. Then, a black shadow slowly emerged from under the bed, crawling inch by inch toward his sleeping form. In his dream, he felt his body growing heavier and heavier; he couldn't move at all, and even breathing became difficult.

Sleep paralysis!

At the critical moment, he recalled the various teachings of the older generation.

"F*ck your..."
"Your mother's..."
"Go to..."
"Beep——————"

Every word was a masterpiece of profanity, every sentence pure essence; even the legendary gangster Liu Huaqiang would have been stunned.

Hey, you wouldn't believe it, but the trick actually worked. Duan Ming woke up on the spot. He opened his eyes and looked around—there was nothing unusual.

"Was I just scaring myself?" he sat up and chuckled to himself. But the next second, his breath hitched, followed by a bone-chilling numbness that spread through his entire body.

At the foot of the bed stood a dark, shadowy, ghost-like figure. Judging by its expression, it seemed a bit confused.

"Did you just curse at me?" it asked.

"No," Duan Ming denied decisively. It wasn't really cursing the shadow; it was cursing the thing in his dream.

The shadow replied: "Bullsh*t! I heard it! It was all masked by static, and you’re still denying it! Why did you curse me!"

Duan Ming: "I really wasn't cursing you. I had a dream, and someone was blowing on the soles of my feet."

"But I hadn't even started blowing yet!"

"Uh, how about... I go back to sleep? Shall we run through the routine?"

"Fine... your head! Damn it, you've got me all confused! I'm here to eat you!"

With that, the shadow lunged at the bed. But Duan Ming was no longer a pushover. With a nimble roll, he tumbled off the bed. Once he crouched steadily, a toy gun appeared in his right hand, and he fired without hesitation.

*Bang!*

A pitch-black bullet shot from the barrel, striking the opponent's left hand. The shadow’s forearm instantly dissolved into a puff of black smoke and drifted away.

The shadow let out a muffled groan. It never expected this human to possess such a high-damage weapon. It leaped back to keep its distance, not daring to advance.

Duan Ming held the toy gun in a cool pose, though only he knew he was just bluffing. The toy gun did have impressive destructive power, but the instructions didn't mention it needed time to charge up the bullets! A rough estimate suggested at least ten seconds.

Damn it!

Duan Ming held the gun with a serious expression, aiming wildly while taking out the red toilet paper. Taking advantage of the lull, he cast an inspection.

[Lonely Soul]
[Name: Wang Jue]
[Level: Fierce Ghost]
[Ghost Qi: 1159]
[Friendliness: -100]
[Target Info: A remnant soul wandering in the "Night." Its favorite thing to do is eat stray ghosts in the "Night." Of course, if it's a living human, even better. Until one day, it discovered a room with a broken seal...]
[Hint: Beat the crap out of him!]

Duan Ming was stunned. It wasn't because of the crude hint, but because this shadow was also named Wang Jue. Upon noticing this, he looked closely at the shadow's face. While it differed greatly from the bloated, rotting Ghost King Wang Jue, looking closely, the features were remarkably similar.

What was going on!

The gun in his hand had charged a second bullet, but he hesitated to fire. The shadow seemed to notice Duan Ming's hesitation and slowly moved toward the window, to the small, inconspicuous crack in the glass—the spot where it had slipped in.

Just as it prepared to flee, seeing that Duan Ming hadn't reacted, a massive pressure descended from thin air, rendering it completely unable to move. The same pressure fell upon Duan Ming.

"So you really are here!"

The familiar voice made Duan Ming’s heart nearly stop.

Ying Hongyan!

Unable to turn around, he felt every hair on his back stand up.

*Creak—*
*Creak—*
*Creak—*

In his field of vision, Ying Hongyan's stunning face appeared, along with those terrifying red markings. Without her making a move, the amulet in his pocket floated up. Seeing the character "Chen" on it, her expression suddenly softened.

"Chen-Chen, where on earth are you?"

The tenderness lasted for only a few seconds before her eyes turned cold again. She stared fixedly at Duan Ming and said coldly, "Tell me, where did you find this amulet?"

The sudden increase in pressure made Duan Ming taste sweetness in his throat, but his eyes were suddenly devoid of fear, replaced by the glimmer of a long-awaited reunion. He looked straight at Ying Hongyan and said slowly, "Before I tell you the origin of the amulet, can you hear me tell a story first?"

"Speak!"

Duan Ming caught his breath and said with a dejected look, "Actually, I had an older sister."

"When I was very young, one day, she said she would take me to play in the water. I remember it clearly; the weather was great that day. We went to the stream behind the mountain, just the two of us."

"I was so happy because Mom and Dad usually wouldn't let me play by the stream, saying it was dangerous. Only my sister was willing to take me."

"But suddenly, before I knew it, I had drifted into the deep water. There was nothing for my feet to push off of. I was drowning."

"I swallowed so much water. I thought I was going to die. That was the moment I saw my sister. She had come to save me. But a second before I lost consciousness, I suddenly remembered: my sister didn't know how to swim."

"When I was rescued and woke up, the thing I dreaded most had happened..."

"I no longer had a sister."

By the time he finished, Duan Ming was already tear-streaked. At that moment, he felt the pressure on his body lift. Looking at Ying Hongyan, she was also tearful, sobbing uncontrollably, the red markings on her face flickering in and out of existence.

"And then?"

Duan Ming shook his head, saying nothing. He paced to the window and rested his hand on the shoulder of the terrified shadow, Wang Jue. He sighed before saying, "After that, until now, I have lived in guilt."

"Damn it, why! Why was I so playful back then! If it weren't for me, my sister wouldn't have...!"

As his tone intensified, the shadow Wang Jue felt the pressure on his shoulder grow heavier and heavier. He gritted his teeth, not daring to make a sound.

At this point, Ying Hongyan suddenly said, "You must not blame yourself. Since your sister knew she couldn't swim but still went to save you without hesitation, it means she was prepared to sacrifice herself. You living well is exactly what she hoped to see."

Hearing this, Duan Ming’s eyes flickered as he slowly turned back. With two long trails of snot hanging from his nose, he said in a trembling voice, "R-really?"

"Really." Ying Hongyan had completely hidden her red markings, speaking with a gentleness like that of a thoughtful neighbor’s sister.

"Because, I am also a sister."

"Yes! Yes! That’s the look!" Duan Ming suddenly shoved the shadow Wang Jue backward and moved toward Ying Hongyan with a dazed look in his eyes. "Do you know why I called you sister during the day? You felt so much like my sister that I really mistook you for her, which is why it slipped out."

"I miss her so much."

"Do you know? I heard from the elders that after people die, they turn into ghosts and enter the Spirit Realm. I have thought about committing suicide more than once to find my sister. Once, I finally made up my mind, and that was when the barrier between the Spirit Realm and the real world opened. I held it in for four years, finally waiting for my first chance to enter the Spirit Realm."

"This morning in 604, I really thought I had found her."

Duan Ming covered his face and knelt, sobbing. Soon, he felt his shoulders being held firmly, and a gentle voice sounded in his ear.

"If you don't mind, until you find your sister, I will be your sister."

"Sister!"

Duan Ming shamelessly lunged into her arms, rubbing his tears and snot directly onto Ying Hongyan's chest.

Ying Hongyan gently patted the back of the person in her arms: "By the way, what was your sister's name? Did she have any distinguishing features? I've traveled all over the Spirit Realm these years; perhaps I've seen her."

Duan Ming's movements froze, and he began to cry even more heartbreakingly.

*Damn it, I made it up, where would I get a name or features?*

Is anyone reading? Leave a comment, let me know I’m not alone. Also, please help with follows, recommendation tickets, or beginner investments ( )
(End of chapter)