Chapter 20: The Magical Store (VIII)
The wall that was gradually becoming translucent resembled a gate leading to another world. Qi An suddenly had a strong premonition—if he took just one light step forward, he could enter the world inside, just like those who had gone before.
Even though he had never received an invitation letter.
Qi An glanced at the people around him. Through the reflections in their eyes, Qi An could still see the same physically broken wall as before. In the vast darkness of night, this dilapidated wall silently blocked the progress of those seeking to explore.
This abnormality was directed at him alone.
They refused to welcome others in, yet they welcomed only Qi An, in the way they deemed most enthusiastic.
Qi An couldn't see the scene inside the wall clearly. He couldn't determine whether this was the shop they were looking for.
Because there were far too many grotesque things scrambling to gather at that somewhat narrow exit.
One after another, constantly pushing to get inside.
Even when squeezed out of shape, they still stared longingly at the front-row positions. Those in front desperately tried to hold their spots while those behind wore menacing expressions and疯狂 charged forward. Everyone was tireless in their desire to occupy the most conspicuous spot.
The front row—only by standing there could the young man outside see them.
See them with those cute, sparkling eyes.
They wanted Qi An to see them.
This scorching, pathological gaze was chilling. Though Qi An was dressed in thick clothing, he felt a subtle sensation as if someone had stripped him naked. Blinking, a complex expression flickered in Qi An's eyes.
This invitation directed at him—should he enter or not?
Qi An suddenly recalled the words of that bright-smiling young man in the dormitory. He had likened the ghosts haunting the campus to industrious bees in a half-joking manner.
Bees wandered through flower seas, stopping and going, all to gather the sweetest nectar.
—And Qi An happened to be that sweetest existence.
"If we really want to get in, we need to find a way to get an invitation letter." Ji Xiaoyu wrapped herself in her clothes, shivering slightly. For some reason, the wind carried increasingly biting cold. The green leaves rustled loudly, the rustling sounds growing more urgent and loud in the dark street—sounds that resembled some kind of peculiar language.
As if urging something.
"The angel is one way." Zhao Qizhu blinked her watery big eyes and playfully wrinkled her nose. "Other haunted incidents are also breakthroughs, so—want to explore around campus tonight? Exploring and such… sounds really fun."
"Tonight?" Ji Xiaoyu's expression changed. She felt a suddenScalp prickling looking at Zhao Qizhu's enthusiastic gaze.
Perhaps it was the oppressive atmosphere at the moment, but Ji Xiaoyu suddenly found this always sweetly smiling girl somewhat frightening.
"That's right, once paranormal events start happening, they quickly escalate into a fever pitch, big sister." Zhao Qizhu giggled, not吝啬ly curving her lips into a big arc. "So… hm?"
What?
Not only did Zhao Qizhu's words suddenly stop, but Ji Xiaoyu also felt a heavy low-pressure atmosphere—this stagnant air current came from Zhang Zhaoqi.
Ji Xiaoyu followed the girl's smiling gaze and couldn't help but shiver. She saw that the quiet, delicate young man who had been silent all along suddenly moved, walking toward the wall as if possessed.
A gentle breeze passed, blowing up the young man's somewhat loose clothing, faintly outlining his slender, thin waist. In that instant, Ji Xiaoyu suddenly forgot they were in an extremely bizarre situation, and a strange thought popped into her mind.
That waist was so thin, as if it could easily snap with just a light touch.
Truly… delicate.
Qi An disappeared, just like the students who had received invitation letters before—he became translucent piece by piece as he stepped into the wall.
They had been in the same time and space the moment before, and the next they were inexplicably separated.
Zhang Zhaoqi looked at his empty palm and frowned. He reached out again to touch the dilapidated wall, but though the broken wall stood trembling, when his hand touched it, it was as hard as solid rock.
Zhang Zhaoqi withdrew his hand, lowering his eyes to look at the conspicuous dust on his fair palm. His gaze gradually filled with dense, ink-dark shadows.
"The little brother is indeed very interesting." Zhao Qizhu revealed two large dimples, her pitch-black eyes filled with thick amusement.
Ji Xiaoyu wanted to ask something, but her sixth sense told her that both these people were extremely dangerous at the moment, so she wisely stayed aside, pretending to be deaf and mute.
"Return to school." Zhang Zhaoqi恢复了冷漠的样子，语气平平地说。
"That's right, we need to get the invitation letter quickly." Zhao Qizhu looked at Zhang Zhaoqi with a playful smile, speaking innocently like a child. "Only this way can we rescue little brother early. It's like… a hero saving the beauty."
Hero saving the beauty?
Ji Xiaoyu found this phrasing somewhat strange. She turned to look at the petite loli. The girl's eyes were like a doll's—big and innocent, always smiling in her expression, but Ji Xiaoyu suddenly felt very cold.
Not physically cold, but like a chemical reaction, a shiver that arose involuntarily from the depths of her soul.
Tap tap tap…
The sound of rapid footsteps.
From the moment he stepped into the wall, Qi An's world turned to darkness. With his vision lost, he could only identify his location through hearing.
Besides the footsteps, there seemed to be some continuous, intense sounds of fighting.
Very intense—so much so that Qi An could clearly hear the screeching sounds of fists cutting rapidly through the air.
There were also some miserable, anguished screams.
But none of this concerned Qi An, because there was a pair of warm hands tightly gripping his, leading him toward an unknown direction, guiding him away from these chaotic places.
Those hands were large, wrapping tightly around Qi An's slightly cool right hand.
Qi An suddenly felt these hands seemed somewhat familiar, as if someone had held him like this before.
But before Qi An could find any clues from his long, tangled memories, the other person gently picked him up, carrying him against their warm chest in a princess carry.
Qi An heard the热烈, active heartbeat.
The path ahead seemed bumpy and difficult. The swaying Qi An raised an eyebrow, and as if somewhat shy, extended his thin, snow-white arm to wrap around the other person's neck.
When the two made contact, Qi An seemed to hear the other person laugh lightly.
Filled with complete… pleasure.
This path wasn't far. Qi An was soon set down by the other person, placed on a soft cushion, and then he heard the other person leave.
The darkness before his eyes gradually faded into blurred light and shadows.
Qi An rubbed his brow, letting his eyes adjust to this non-harsh light. His mind churned with thoughts.
Had that person deliberately prevented him from seeing them?
Qi An narrowed his eyes to examine his surroundings, then froze.
—Countless greenish eyeballs were staring at him.
Just like the scene he had seen before the wall.
The surrounding light was bright white. Though it was night in the real world, here it was like daytime. In fact, Qi An even saw a bright sun hanging in the sky.
Qi An looked around. He saw structures resembling a palace. A hall meticulously crafted from white ivory-like jade stood at the center.
Before the magnificent, elegant hall was something like a fountain.
Then Qi An saw a sculpture—a lifelike angel.
If not for the bizarre things surrounding it, this truly would have been a place like paradise.
"You can see us." A somewhat eerie voice sounded. Qi An looked over—a tiny doll, only the size of a thumb. It wore a beautiful little dress, tilting its head to look up bashfully at Qi An in the distance.
But… it had no face.
Except for the faintly flushed cheeks, every place that should have had features was now a blank.
As if someone's face… had been torn off.