Chapter 12: The Sheling Tunnel Files
After his cousin finished breakfast and left for work, Zhang Yuanqing returned to his room to get some more sleep.
When he woke, his ears were filled with the sound of high-energy sound effects. Opening his eyes, he saw the ceiling light was still off, but the room was lit with the flickering glow of the television screen.
He sat up and looked toward the window. His aunt was sitting cross legged in front of the TV, playing his PS5, her sleeves rolled up to reveal two pale, delicate arms, while her petite frame swayed left and right in tandem with the controller movements.
With a yawn, Zhang Yuanqing got up to turn on the light, then walked over behind his aunt to watch her play.
She was playing a sinister-looking horror game with a disturbing art style and eerie music. The protagonist was an ugly little figure carrying a blood-drenched axe, carving a path through enemies in a gory rampage.
The glow of the television was reflected in his aunt's eyes, which were clear like the water of a lake in autumn. Her round, oval face was bright and cheerful, her expression carrying a hint of excitement.
"This game is great, perfect for nighttime play. It's pretty therapeutic," his aunt said without turning her head.
His aunt had three great hobbies: shopping at malls, watching horror movies, and playing horror games.
More like depressing, you twisted woman... Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself.
"It's pretty interesting," he replied instead, without a hint of sincerity.
His aunt turned around and rolled her eyes at him. "Why are you being so fake with me?"
She turned back to the television screen, saying, "Actually, this is a therapeutic game. All the monsters on screen are imaginary, conjured up by the mind of a little boy who is mentally ill. To keep from being consumed by his inner demons, he fights hard, finally carving out a bloody path to see the light. The ending is very touching."
While she spoke, Zhang Yuanqing had already poured himself a glass of water.
"Good concept," he replied as he took a sip.
His aunt grunted in acknowledgment and continued, "Every boss follows specific patterns. As long as you observe carefully, even a little boy can defeat terrible demons. But the horrifying visuals and music often make people afraid, causing them to lose their calm judgment. You should play it as well."
Zhang Yuanqing wasn't in the mood to play games with his aunt. It had been about 20 hours since he'd left the Spirit Realm, and in another dozen hours or so the Spirit Realm would open again. What awaited him might be death.
Given that looming destiny, he might as well think about what to do with his last dozen hours of life to avoid leaving with regrets.
Would he call his mom and curse her out? Hold his aunt and cry his heart out? Have one last crazy session of singing, dancing, and rapping with his uncle?
He suddenly realized he actually had no particular regrets or burning desires. As a college student from a reasonably well-off family, he hadn't faced too many troubles in life.
Only those who had weathered life's storms had regrets they couldn't shake off.
His aunt twisted to face him, acting cute.
"Come on and play!"
Looking at her lovely figure from behind, Zhang Yuanqing's expression softened. He sat down beside his aunt and took the controller from her hands.
If he only had a dozen hours of life left, playing another game with her wouldn't be that bad.
His aunt munched on chips and chattered away, guiding him through the game, and Zhang Yuanqing eventually managed to beat it. When he checked the time, he found it was already 11 PM.
"Not bad, not bad," said his aunt. "You're quite talented."
She sucked the remnants of the chips from her pale fingers, patted her nephew's shoulder in praise, and conveniently wiped her saliva on him.
"Gross! That's disgusting," Zhang Yuanqing said with disgust.
"Pfft, this is nectar and ambrosia. Don't be ungrateful for your blessings," Jiang Yu'er said shamelessly.
"Nectar and ambrosia? How much per pound?" Zhang Yuanqing scoffed.
"I wouldn't sell it for any price, but Auntie can give you a few sips," Jiang Yu'er said as she pouted, acting as if to wipe more saliva on him.
Zhang Yuanqing leaned back to dodge.
Click!
The door handle turned to reveal Grandmother standing in the doorway, frowning as she looked at the two of them. Zhang Yuanqing and Jiang Yu'er immediately sat up straight and proper.
"Are you eating dinner or not?" Grandmother scolded. "Sleeping at night and again during the day, waking up just to play games. Do you want to become an immortal despite being human? Someone born on earth, but wishing to reach the heavens?"
Zhang Yuanqing put down the controller. "I know, I know. I'll eat right away."
Grandmother shot her daughter a cold glance, and his aunt slunk back to her room.
***
Dinner had been kept warm, and Grandmother reheated some leftover dishes. Zhang Yuanqing hastily filled his stomach, returned to his room, summoned his Inventory and confirmed the Corpse Suppression Talisman was still there.
Then, he examined his attribute panel.
After that, while praying that Li Dongze would contact him with good news, he pondered every detail from the mountain goddess temple.
During the gaming session with his aunt earlier on, he'd had a new realization. Since the Spirit Realm was also a game, perhaps there were patterns to it as well. If he could decipher the patterns, then perhaps he could successfully clear it, even if he was just a powerless little boy.
A sudden harsh ringtone cut through these wild thoughts, almost making Zhang Yuanqing's heart stop.
He grabbed the phone from his bedside. The caller ID indicated an unknown number, but he still chose to answer.
"Hello, is this Zhang Yuanqing?" came a sultry voice through the speaker.
Zhang Yuanqing's face lit up with delight as he hurriedly asked, "Did you get the information about Sheling Tunnel?"
Guan Ya replied in the affirmative. "The Squad Leader got you more detailed materials," she continued. "He had me send them to your email. I know you young people never check your emails, so I'm calling to let you know."
Zhang Yuanqing's mood instantly brightened. These were the actions worthy of an official organization. He had indeed made the right choice.
Suppressing the urge to rush to his computer to check the email, he said sincerely, "Please thank Squad Leader Li for me, and thank you as well, Sis Guan Ya. When I successfully complete the trial mission, I'll treat you both to dinner."
Successfully complete the trial... Guan Ya sighed inwardly. After several aborted attempts to speak, she finally said in an uncharacteristically gentle voice, "Alright. We'll be waiting for you."
She had already gone over the materials sent over by the Taiyi Sect, and reading them had left her feeling only cold despair. No wonder Squad Leader had been gloomy all day.
In Li Dongze's mind, this newly recruited Nocturnal Specter would most likely perish in the trial mission.
After ending the call, Zhang Yuanqing plopped down into his ergonomic chair and eagerly turned on his laptop to log into his email.
He found Guan Ya's email among the disorganized pile of unread messages, and downloaded the attached document.
***
【Sheling Tunnel. Spirit Realm ID 0079. Difficulty Level: S. Type: Solo (Death Type)】
【Main Mission One: Survive for three hours.】
【Main Mission Two: Explore Spirit Realm No. 0079.】
Zhang Yuanqing perked up. It was the same as his trial mission. This was a good sign. The closer the content matched his mission, the better.
【The setting of Spirit Realm No. 0079 is not actually Sheling Tunnel, but rather a Ming Dynasty ancient temple called the Temple of the Three Paths Mountain Goddess.
【Based on my speculation, this goddess should be an extremely high-ranked Nocturnal Specter. No—perhaps she can no longer be called a Nocturnal Specter. It's unclear whether such a stunningly beautiful goddess actually existed in the Ming Dynasty, or if the Spirit Realm fabricated her.】
After that came a long section describing the deeds of the Three Paths Mountain Goddess, which was identical to what Zhang Yuanqing had read in the temple.
He skipped further down.
【The first quest, to survive for three hours, is relatively simple. Initially, after reading through the notebook's contents, I was harassed by a vengeful spirit. Its defining characteristic is to continuously drain the Yang Qi from its living target until the target dies. Nocturnal Specters can naturally suppress such spirits. I did not expend much effort to drive it away, but when I tried to devour it, I met enormous resistance. Perhaps the Spirit Realm offers protection to these vengeful spirits.
【Everyone who reads the notebook will be cursed, and subject to relentless harassment from the vengeful spirit. Any removal methods are temporary. Driving away the vengeful spirit each time provides roughly 15 minutes of safety.
【Another thing worth mentioning is the temple's overall layout. It consists of one main hall and two adjacent rear courtyards. The candles in the main hall are extremely powerful items that have exorcism and purification effects. Therefore, the main hall is a refuge that provides safety.
【The downside is that the candles eliminate fear from people's hearts. Bathing in the candlelight for long periods makes one fearless, and in such a dangerous Spirit Realm, fearlessness is fatal. Additionally, the candles cannot be moved or taken out of the Spirit Realm.
【After staying in the main hall for half an hour, I suddenly heard cries for help from the rear courtyard, interspersed with bone chilling roars that did not sound like they came from living creatures. After some hesitation, I decided to explore the rear courtyard.】
The main hall was indeed a safe house. Zhang Yuanqing had verified that personally. However, he hadn't expected the source of protection to be the candles. He'd thought it was that beautiful mountain goddess.
The cries for help mentioned in the account had come from inside that big banyan tree, but he hadn't heard the roars.
That eastern courtyard really was terrifying, Zhang Yuanqing recalled. Something tightened around his heart as he silently sucked in the cold air.
He took a deep breath and focused on reading more. The information that followed was crucial. If he could understand the situation in the other courtyard beforehand, he could avoid its dangers during his own exploration.
【The big banyan tree is dangerous. Don't face your back toward it. I repeat, don't face your back toward it...
【This banyan tree seems to have gained consciousness, but why does it cry for help? As for the terrible roars, I never found their source, because their appearance interrupted my exploration. They are... a pair of red dancing shoes.
【They didn't attack me immediately, but instead invited me to dance. Out of curiosity, I agreed to their invitation.】
Zhang Yuanqing recalled those shoes well.
【I simply couldn't remember their dance steps. They were too chaotic, too complex. For someone inexperienced in dance like me, it was an impossible requirement. No—even someone with experience in dance couldn't possibly remember those steps. I failed, and the red dancing shoes began hunting me.
【I successfully escaped back to the main hall, but they broke two of my ribs. I think I've seen through their true nature. The Red Dancing Shoes is an extremely terrifying item. They can track their target, disregarding terrain and obstacles, never stopping until they achieve their goal. My preliminary assessment is that they are a Rule-type item.
【Unbelievable. A trial Spirit Realm actually contains a rule-type item. I finally understand why Qian Shou died in the mountain goddess temple despite the item he had, and why this Spirit Realm has never been cleared. What a joke. Those who can enter Sheling Tunnel are either ordinary people or novice Level 1 Nocturnal Specters. How could they possibly clear it?
【I still don't know the reason for the mountain goddess temple's decline, nor do I know what that secret related to a thousand years of upheaval is. I hope to successfully complete the second main mission and bring the truth back to the organization.】
The document ended there.
Zhang Yuanqing knew this Nocturnal Specter had most likely died during the second main quest.
