Chapter 113: The Death of Baozi

Jiumei was absolutely furious.

It had always been her bullying others; never had anyone dared to bully her dog. Moments ago, she had been suspicious of where these people came from and whether someone might be lying in wait to ambush them, causing her to be extra cautious. But seeing Baozi “killed,” her rage ignited instantly. She could kill her own dog as she pleased, but no one else was allowed to touch a single hair on its head.

If you dare to take my dog’s life, I will take yours.

Jiumei went on a killing spree. With a few swift movements, she wiped out the first group of soldiers, their heads rolling across the ground. Before they could even stop spinning, her ghostly form flickered and reappeared behind the ambushers. After killing seven or eight of them, the rest fled without a trace.

They had scattered too widely, and Max was still left behind, trussed up like a dumpling. Killing minions was far less important than farming points. Besides, Baozi would respawn; his death didn't matter much to her. Jiumei was simply venting her anger. Once that surge of fury subsided, she returned to her cold, ghostly demeanor.

She flickered and appeared above Max. The old man had already returned to his original state. Under the constant cycle of slaughter, not only had he suffered no harm, but he was also growing younger in a bizarre way. For forty years, he had been locked in an asylum, never uttering a word to reporters, judges, or anyone else. It was this silence that had piqued the media's interest, leading fools to constantly try to interview him in hopes of landing a big scoop. He had remained silent for forty years, aging from a young man into a withered old one.

But since putting on the pig-skin mask, amidst the relentless killing, his aged skin had begun to rejuvenate. The speed of his recovery had only accelerated after being besieged by the first and second groups, as if the slaughter were releasing the power within him. However, with strength only several times that of an average human, he still couldn't break free from the foot-thick ropes binding him.

Watching Max struggle like a man having a seizure, Jiumei remained expressionless and raised her hand, decapitating him. His head rolled far away, and a mechanical voice echoed in her ears: "Max killed once. Time currency gained: 5 hours."

Before Max could regenerate, she flicked her wrist, kicked his head back, and pressed it against the stump. His flesh automatically mended. Then, with another slash, she cut his head off again. She repeated this over and over. After five or six times, the mechanical voice continued to chime. Seeing the tally of time currency rising, even someone as cold as Jiumei couldn't help but feel a flicker of pleasure.

Then, a sudden, unexpected mechanical voice made Jiumei freeze: "Three team members have been killed. Current scores are tied."

Jiumei’s hand faltered. Below her, Max finished repairing himself at a speed visible to the naked eye. With a powerful flex of his arms, he tore the ropes apart. His once lean, withered frame had become terrifyingly muscular, like a bear; not only had he grown taller, but his muscles bulged visibly.

The continuous slaughter was truly making him stronger.

Max leapt up and threw a punch at Jiumei. She shifted her form, unconcerned by physical attacks—how could a mere mortal touch a ghost? But to her shock, Max’s punch connected, and Jiumei was sent flying.

*Thud!*

With a heavy impact, she left a human-shaped crater in the wall before falling to the ground. Her indifferent expression turned to one of astonishment. She clutched her stomach and looked up to see Max’s terrifying pig-face mask, and a faint, shimmering frost coating his body.

That was her own elemental attribute!

How could it be on him? Had the repeated attacks caused Max’s body to absorb her supernatural power and evolve? This was impossible; this wasn't a fantasy film, just an insignificant horror movie, at most containing a few fleeting shadows of demons. How strong could an immortal slasher possibly be?

Jiumei refused to believe it. With a formidable enemy before her, she had no time to worry about the news of Baozi’s death. Since transitioning into a ghost, this was the first time she had been harmed; how could she let it go?

She flickered, appearing behind Max, and swiped at his head, sending it flying again. But the expected mechanical voice didn't sound. Instead, Max’s body suddenly grabbed Jiumei, followed by a brutal knee strike.

The force was immense, hitting its target perfectly. Jiumei felt as if her internal organs were about to be expelled; her eyes widened, and her body curled like a shrimp. She subconsciously tried to turn intangible to escape, only to find herself firmly gripped and unable to break free.

***

Max, headless and sporting a bullet hole sealed by frost, continued to strike with his knees. Each blow was stronger than the last, as if he intended to kick Jiumei into a pulp. If she were human, her insides would have been pulverized. But a ghost’s body lacked such parts, consisting instead of a singular, strange energy. While impacts caused damage, it would automatically mend in the next second.

Pain—she would always feel pain, but death was impossible. Jiumei hadn't tasted pain in a long time; the sudden, excruciating agony was unbearable. She shrieked, sinking her teeth into Max’s shoulder and tearing with all her might, ripping his right arm off along with the shoulder.

Blood sprayed, the arm hit the ground, and Jiumei managed to escape. In such a state, she didn't dare get close again. She flickered back repeatedly until she vanished entirely.

After standing still for a few seconds, Max’s severed arm and head rotted into dust. On the stump of his shoulder, new organs generated at a speed visible to the naked eye. His pig-faced head reappeared. Max looked silently toward the street, then turned and began to walk, with slow and steady steps, back toward the old woman’s house.

No matter how many times he was killed, the thing he cared about most was still the girl who had escaped him forty years ago. He had to personally finish that unfinished business.

The old woman remained calm. Though hidden in the basement, unable to hear the chaotic sounds outside or see the terrifying scenes, she had known since she escaped forty years ago that one day, Max would come for her. This was their destiny: only one of them could survive.

***

A few minutes earlier.

After his unexpected death, Baozi found himself in a refrigerated truck, surrounded by dogs—over twenty of them at a rough count. His heart sank. Had someone discovered his secret?

Just then, the truck’s cargo door opened, and several armed soldiers tossed in a few dog crates. Their movements were rough and careless; clearly, they didn't care about the dogs' well-being. Baozi noticed that the crates were labeled with pet store tags, containing well-groomed, clean puppies. The oldest was barely three months, the youngest only a few weeks, yet the soldiers tossed them in without hesitation.

Baozi’s heart raced. He felt something terrible was about to happen.

The next second, the cooling unit’s vents began to blast icy air. The temperature in the carriage dropped to minus five degrees Celsius in just a minute. The other dogs huddled together for warmth, but Baozi became frantic, slamming against his cage and howling madly. He wanted to convey the danger to the others and rally them to resist, but he had never learned the language of dogs; he was just a fraud. His barks were meaningless, his message a chaotic mess, and the other dogs didn't react. Baozi grew desperate.

"Damn it! Is this how I, Lord Baozi, go out today? Impossible! Wherever there are humans, there are dogs. Dogs cannot be exterminated! I won't die, I absolutely will not die!"

Baozi muttered, his voice fading as his body grew stiff, frozen solid.

Liang Bing received the notification and was so excited she could hardly believe it. After confirming it repeatedly, she let out a long sigh and ordered the soldiers to abandon the refrigerated truck by the side of the road. On the other side, the forced-conversion operation was terminated. All soldiers, according to their squad sizes, dispersed into different areas to wait for further orders.

The news that the scores were tied finally relieved Liang Bing’s anxiety. Now, she could hide with peace of mind.

***

Elsewhere, when Gao Ning heard the notification, he was eating dinner at a strange, roadside gas station diner. In Liang Bing’s town, it might not have felt like much time had passed, but in reality, two weeks had gone by since Gao Ning had left.

He had commissioned an information consulting firm to gather data, then hired a group of people to verify the locations and details provided. Two weeks later, out of a dozen eerie locations, only one expedition team had lost contact.

Full of anticipation, Gao Ning drove over, only to discover it was Silent Hill.

He had cast his money out, and sure enough, he had found a big prize. The advance expedition team had lost contact right after reporting their location there.

Having finished the strangely flavored steak on his plate, Gao Ning pulled out a bill and beckoned the waitress. A woman with long, flowing blonde hair and a slightly plump figure walked over.

"Thirty dollars, sir!"

"Answer me one question, and you can keep the change."

The waitress looked him up and down. "Honey, you're too late. I'm already married."

Gao Ning was torn between laughter and tears. "I admit you're beautiful, but that's not what I wanted to ask. Do you remember three days ago, a man and a woman came here to get gas and asked about Silent Hill?"

The waitress paused. "What happened to them?"

"Lost contact," Gao Ning shrugged. "So I also wanted to ask about the road to Silent Hill."

"That's strange. No one has gone there for years, and today, two people have asked. But my answer is the same: the road to Silent Hill has been gone for years!"

Gao Ning asked, "Who else asked?"

"That woman."

The waitress pointed toward a woman by the window talking on the phone, then pocketed the Benjamin and walked away. The woman was frowning, her tone sharp; clearly, she was in a bad mood. She hung up and headed for the door.

Gao Ning hurried after her. He had recognized her; this woman was Rose, the protagonist of Silent Hill. A foster mother with a rather peculiar way of thinking.

"Ma'am? Ma'am?"

Gao Ning jogged over, and Rose turned, looking suspicious.

"Excuse me, I asked the waitress about Silent Hill and was told you had asked as well. Are you planning to go there?"

Rose was guarded. "You’re mistaken. I’m not going, and besides, there is no road to Silent Hill anymore."

She turned to leave.

Gao Ning quickly added, "I’m just looking to carpool. How about another Benjamin for gas money?"

Rose was tempted.

Gao Ning upped the offer. "Two! I’m just hitching a ride; I’ll get out once we reach Silent Hill!" He pulled out two hundred-dollar bills.

Rose hesitated, then nodded. "Fine, you can sit in the back. Don't talk to my daughter." She snatched the money and walked toward the car.

They both got in. A female police officer stood not far away, watching them. Gao Ning glanced at her but didn't pay it any mind. He vaguely remembered the policewoman being a minor character who didn't appear later, so he didn't bother with her.

The girl sat quietly in the passenger seat. Zhang Lin had greeted her upon getting in, but the girl shrank back timidly. Rose quickly said, "Just a hitchhiker, also going to Silent Hill. Do you mind? If you do, I’ll kick him out!"

Gao Ning was speechless but couldn't say anything. Rose was obsessed with her daughter; she had nearly lost her life for a foster child who wasn't even blood-related, so being polite to him was already a courtesy. The girl watched Gao Ning through the rearview mirror, and he quickly flashed a smile. Seeming to sense his good intentions, the girl nodded slightly.

Rose patted her head, called her a good girl, and started the car. She remained vigilant, checking on Gao Ning from time to time. As time passed, the pleasure of the money she’d received slowly faded, and her wariness of Gao Ning reached its peak. She was already regretting agreeing to the ride when, suddenly, sirens blared from behind.

The policewoman was riding her motorcycle closer, using a loudspeaker to order Rose to pull over. Rose was startled. She glanced at the emotionless Gao Ning, her heart sinking. She immediately imagined them to be partners in crime. She slammed on the gas, and the car bolted forward.

Her flight only convinced the officer that Rose was guilty, and she gave chase with increased speed. Rose pushed the car to 150 mph, when suddenly a figure appeared in the road, and she crashed right into it. She slammed on the brakes, the car skidded sideways, and finally plunged into a ditch.

The protagonist hit her head on the steering wheel and passed out. Gao Ning, having just steadied himself, saw the girl being dragged into the shadows by a mass of black water.

Gao Ning smiled and pushed the door open to step out.

Finally, he had arrived at the hunting ground.