While Fang Xiu pondered, noon arrived. He casually found a ramen shop, ate a bowl of ramen, and then continued on his way.
He wanted to observe more bizarre creatures and uncover more truths.
Soon, the afternoon arrived, and it was now dusk.
The dim sunlight cast over Green Vine City made it seem as if the entire city was shrouded in gloom, and the bizarre creatures within the city became even more blurred and terrifying.
Finally, Fang Xiu arrived near Hundred Willow Academy.
Hundred Willow Academy was a luxurious villa area. Although it was located in a relatively remote place, with empty streets and no pedestrians around, it still couldn't hide its exorbitant land value.
The villas mainly emphasized luxury and tranquility, convenient for keeping mistresses or operating underground clubs.
Most of those who could afford to buy houses here were picked up and dropped off by chauffeurs in luxury cars. This distance was nothing to them; they valued the tranquility even more.
Fang Xiu rode his shared bicycle on the quiet tree-lined road. The greenery on both sides was excellent, with shady trees and lush flowers and plants, trimmed into various exquisite shapes.
This was meticulously maintained by the Hundred Willow Academy developers at a high cost because this road was the main access to the academy, and Hundred Willow Academy was at the end of the road.
Perhaps because the place was relatively remote and sparsely populated, even the bizarre creatures nearby were few and far between, only two or three scattered around.
Fang Xiu rode through this main road, and suddenly, he stopped in place, carefully examining the building in front of him.
Underneath his calm gaze, undercurrents surged.
Hundred Willow Academy... was gone!
The once scenic, orderly, and luxurious expanse of villas had disappeared.
In its place was a mental hospital.
The mental hospital covered a large area with several buildings connected by skywalks.
The walls were dilapidated, with peeling paint in many places, as if it had been abandoned for a long time, giving off an eerie and terrifying feeling.
The sign at the entrance was tilted and covered in dust, but the name was still visible.
Qingshan Mental Hospital.
Fang Xiu stared at the mental hospital in front of him without any expression. He knew very well that he hadn't gone the wrong way.
This was originally Hundred Willow Academy, not some Qingshan Mental Hospital.
"More bizarre phenomena? Unlike the previous living bizarre creatures, this time it's actually a mental hospital? Or is this mental hospital also created by bizarre entities?"
Fang Xiu's curiosity was piqued. This was the first time he had encountered such a sight on his journey. His intuition told him that this place might hold some secrets about the bizarre.
Immediately, Fang Xiu put down his bicycle and turned on his phone.
He had turned off his phone earlier because Manager Wu Dahai had been constantly harassing him with calls. He found it annoying, so he had simply turned it off.
Turning on his phone, he saw 13 missed calls from Wu Dahai and three missed calls from Zhao Hao.
Zhao Hao was Fang Xiu's colleague, and they usually had the best relationship.
After thinking for a moment, Fang Xiu dialed Zhao Hao's number.
Beep beep beep...
After about thirty seconds of waiting, Zhao Hao's panting, deliberately lowered voice came from the other end of the phone.
"Brother Xiu, why did you take so long to call back? What's going on your end? That bastard Wu Dahai is furious. He said he's going to fire you and make sure you don't get a single penny."
A barrage of words came from the other end of the phone, his tone full of anxiety and concern.
Fang Xiu fell silent.
Were people okay?
Clearly, Hundred Willow Academy had turned into a mental hospital, but judging from Zhao Hao's words, it seemed that the colleagues working inside were unaffected.
A hallucination?
Or like those bizarre creatures, was this mental hospital also a bizarre building that only he could see?
"Brother Xiu, why aren't you saying anything? Did something happen on your end?"
"I'm fine," Fang Xiu said in a calm voice. "Are you all still at the office?"
"Yeah, we're all here. You didn't come today, and that damn Wu Dahai took it all out on us, making us work overtime again. By the way, Brother Xiu, you..."
"I'll talk to you later."
Fang Xiu interrupted Zhao Hao, hung up directly, and turned off his phone again.
He planned to enter Qingshan Mental Hospital to find out what was going on. During this time, he certainly couldn't have his phone ring at a crucial moment like in movies, causing unnecessary trouble.
Fang Xiu walked straight towards the main entrance of Qingshan Mental Hospital.
The main entrance was gloomy and dilapidated. Combined with the dimming sky, it looked like a giant, devouring mouth, utterly terrifying.
But this was difficult to evoke fear in Fang Xiu, or rather, it seemed he no longer had the emotion of fear.
Whenever he encountered something bizarre, the first emotions that arose in him were anger, hatred, and even excitement.
Fear was the only thing absent.
Tap tap tap...
The surroundings were silent except for the sound of Fang Xiu's footsteps.
However, the next second, thump!
Fang Xiu heavily collided with the air, his face aching.
"An invisible wall?"
He was standing right in front of the main entrance, trying to walk in, but there seemed to be a wall blocking his way.
He reached out to touch it, and a cold, rough texture came from his fingertips.
"This isn't an invisible wall, but a real wall, just invisible. Could it be that this mental hospital cannot be entered?"
Fang Xiu didn't believe in giving up easily. He groped along this invisible wall like a blind man, trying to find an entrance.
"Little Fang, what are you doing there? Is this some new performance art?" a slightly teasing voice came from the side.
Fang Xiu's heart stirred slightly, but his face remained unchanged.
Having been killed multiple times by his wife, he had long since developed the ability to remain as still as a mountain. In such a bizarre mental hospital, if someone suddenly called you, reacting might mean being eaten in the next second.
However, he wasn't entirely without action. He continued to feel around, moving towards the direction of the voice.
When he was about the right distance away, he used the corner of his eye to look and saw a person standing in the front left.
A young man in a security guard uniform, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, was looking at him with an amused expression.
Fang Xiu recognized this person. He was the security guard at Hundred Willow Academy.
Unlike the security guards in other residential areas, the security guards at Hundred Willow Academy were very young, as it was positioned as a high-end community.
As for when they would be replaced by older men, that would probably be after most of the houses were sold.
A hallucination? Or a bizarre creature disguised?
Just as Fang Xiu was thinking, the security guard had already walked over and patted him on the shoulder.
"Little Fang, why aren't you paying attention to people? I saw you bumping into the wall over there from a long way away. After bumping into the wall, you started feeling it. What's up? Is the wall very sexy?"
Fang Xiu felt the warmth coming from his shoulder, a thoughtful look on his face.
Could he directly touch him?
Was he not a bizarre creature?
Then, Fang Xiu turned around. "Brother Zhao, have you been here the whole time?"
The security guard, called Brother Zhao, looked slightly surprised and even waved his hand in front of Fang Xiu's eyes.
"Little Fang, shouldn't you get a pair of glasses? I've been standing guard in the booth, standing perfectly straight. Can't you even see that?"
A booth?
There was no booth in Qingshan Mental Hospital, Fang Xiu was very certain of this.
He couldn't help but look in the direction from which Brother Zhao had just come, and he was instantly stunned.
He saw that a booth had actually appeared in the previously empty space.
He used to see this small booth every day when he went to work, and he had even gone inside. It had a small air conditioner installed, which was very cool in the summer.
How could this be?!