Brother...let him go."
Li Xiu murmured and pleaded to the monster in front of him.
Something seemed to flicker slightly in Lord Hong's empty eyes, and then he leaned towards Li Xiu.
Wet and cold, the surging and soft flesh and blood wrapped around Li Xiu, and then slid into his mouth, nose, ears like a mollusk... and also swallowed up Li Xiu's weak and desperate pleas.
The scarlet and sticky sea of blood completely overwhelmed Li Xiu's mind.
*
A feeling of dizziness.
When he regained consciousness, Li Xiu staggered. He subconsciously held onto the wall beside him, and it took him a while for his vision to gradually focus.
Everything that came into view made him feel a little bewildered.
He found himself in a somewhat old hospital.
The long, narrow corridor was filled with the strong smell of disinfectant. It seemed dark, and the ceiling lights were worn out. Theoretically, with so many lights, the light should be bright, but Li Xiu felt the surroundings were always dim. At short intervals in the corridor, there were two doors facing each other. The doors to the wards were tightly closed. From within, the rhythmic sounds of some equipment could be faintly heard.
Li Xiu is not alone.
Occasionally, someone would pass through the corridor, but upon closer inspection, each person looked like a shadow. Doctors, nurses, patients—every face was blurry, and their clothing seemed subtly outdated.
"Where is this...?"
Li Xiu stared blankly at everything before him, still feeling the lingering sense of exhaustion from being completely enveloped by his "brother." No one looked at the young man stumbling down the corridor; some even simply walked right through him.
Have I become a ghost?
This thought naturally came to his mind.
As Li Xiu was wandering around, he suddenly felt a chill on his wrist. He lowered his head and was met with a face covered in blood, swollen beyond recognition.
A skinny child, wearing a baggy, blood-soaked T-shirt, stood beside him. Its red eyes peeked out from between its purple lids, staring at Li Xiu unblinkingly. A severe wound pierced the child's forehead, and a faint hint of bone could be seen beneath its purple, protruding scalp.
He reached out and held Li Xiu's wrist.
Fear pierced Li Xiu's heart like a steel nail. Excessively frightened, the boy froze in place like a wild animal caught in the high beams of headlights - Li Xiu had no idea when this child appeared beside him.
During the time when his brain was down, Li Xiu found that the child did nothing. He just looked at him quietly from beginning to end.
Li Xiu suddenly recalled the past events that she had learned from Teacher Xu.
Li Xuelin, who was deceived and betrayed, and the child with an extremely miserable life experience, whom she should have called "brother".
"Li Yu...Brother?"
Li Xiuqiang suppressed his fear, looked back at the child and called out his name.
His heart was still beating fast, but for some reason, after realizing that the child was most likely Li Yu, Li Xiu's fear gradually faded away.
"I am coming."
Li Xiu adjusted his breathing and after hesitating for a moment, he said to the child.
"I will accompany you from now on. Can you please let the others go?"
Although he didn't know why he appeared in the hospital inexplicably, after all, according to previous experience, Li Xiu originally thought that he would appear in the Xiao family villa. Li Xiu didn't care too much. He seized the opportunity and pleaded with his "brother" whose image had changed drastically.
But after hearing his words, Li Yu still just looked at him expressionlessly.
"Hurry, the patient needs urgent rescue—"
"No, the patient's heart has stopped—"
…
Then, a burst of hurried footsteps suddenly sounded in the corridor.
The wheels of the transfer bed made a harsh friction sound on the smooth floor of the corridor. A group of people pushed the transfer bed hurriedly over, and then ran past Li Xiu and Li Yu.
Although it was only a moment, Li Xiu could see the patient on the bed clearly at a glance.
The skinny child with bruises all over his body, a frail body, and his entire face hidden by the oxygen mask was clearly Li Yu who was standing beside him at this moment.
Li Xiu looked at the backs of those people walking away in surprise, then he turned his gaze back to Li Yu.
Li Yu still didn't say anything.
The child, covered in bruises and beaten beyond recognition, noticed Li Xiu's gaze. He slowly raised his extremely thin hand and pointed to the door of the emergency room at the end of the corridor.
Li Xiu followed the direction of his finger. He thought he would see Li Yu's death. But when he arrived at the emergency room, he found that the seriously injured child had miraculously regained a stable heartbeat under the doctor's emergency treatment.
That must be a miracle. Even Li Xiu, who knew nothing about medicine, could tell that Li Yu was seriously injured. Everyone surrounding Li Yu, including the doctor giving the child first aid, probably shared Li Xiu's thoughts. They looked incredibly surprised as the child's vital signs stabilized.
"Oh my god, he was injured like this and he still managed to recover?! Damn, Doctor Liu, you are so awesome!"
"This child is truly blessed with a long life."
"I'm so lucky."
…
Everyone involved in the rescue breathed a sigh of relief.
But Li Xiu felt a surge of anxiety as he watched the scene unfold. He clearly remembered Teacher Xu's words that Li Yu had died after being taken to the hospital due to the long-term abuse she endured. Yet, now, Li Yu had clearly been resuscitated by the doctors...
"Wuwu... Dean Song, I really have no other choice. I can only beg you."
Li Xiu suddenly heard a low sobbing sound.
Following the sound, Li Xiu instinctively walked towards the outside of the operating room. Soon he saw a young woman and a vaguely familiar man outside the operating room.
From Li Xiu's perspective, he could only see the word "Song" written on the man's badge.
At this moment, he was looking nervously at the woman crying in his arms with his head down.
"It's not that I won't help you with this matter," the man said in a very low voice, but Li Xiu could hear it clearly. "...It would be fine if the child died, but he's already been revived. Furthermore, you're asking for a double kidney transplant. Aren't you asking me to kill someone? I can't possibly do such a thing."
The woman with her back facing away from Li Xiu trembled slightly.
"I know, I know everything. But Xiao An is my child. I don't want anything. I just want him to grow up safely, healthily and happily. That child is my brother's illegitimate child. Li Xuelin died a long time ago, so no one will investigate. Don't worry, I will take care of the rest of the matter. What's more, with such a big thing happening, the Ou family will definitely help. You also saw the condition of the child when he was sent here. No one would believe that he could really survive. Even if the rescue is successful temporarily, wouldn't it be normal for him to have an accident later?"
"…"
Seeing that the man still didn't speak, the woman's voice suddenly lowered a little.
"Dean Song, you know what? For Xiao An's future, I can do anything. I can pay any price you want, as long as you are willing to pay..."
Doctor Song's eyes flickered.
"Mrs. Fang, this isn't a question of money. Li Xuelin is also my student. How can I sleep well in the future if you ask me to do this?"
Mrs. Fang suddenly leaned over to the man's ear and whispered a number.
…
Li Xiu saw clearly that the man who was originally hesitant suddenly had a gleam of light in his eyes after hearing that number.
Intuition surged towards Li Xiu like a winter tide. The truth that was about to be revealed made Li Xiu feel his stomach churning. Something shattered in his heart, causing every breath and every heartbeat to be accompanied by a sharp pain.
Soon, he watched helplessly as the child, who had finally struggled back from the brink of death, was secretly pushed into the operating room for the second time.
When the child was pushed out again, his thin body was wrapped in a body bag.
"No..."
Li Xiu subconsciously wanted to stop the corpse transport vehicle, but at this moment, his wrist felt heavy. He lowered his head and saw that the child was holding his hand again.
The scene in front of him suddenly changed, and the child covered in blood and Li Xiu suddenly appeared in a sunny nursing ward full of advanced equipment.
Li Xiu couldn't look away. He saw Li Yu raise his hand - the arm was covered with horrific, unhealable wounds and corpse spots, and the bluish fingertips were pointing directly at the lively, cheerful, and pampered child on the hospital bed.
Another child with similar features but a completely different fate.
Although the child was still very young, Li Xiu recognized his identity at a glance.
That was Fang Qianan when he was a child.
"Mother!"
Fang Qianan snuggled in his mother's arms.
"I want to go out and play tomorrow!"
"Kid, you've been playing outside for quite a while now, haven't you? I've told you so many times that you need to take good care of yourself. Once you've fully recovered, you can play outside for a while longer."
"But I've been recovering from my illness for a long time. You always say that."
The boy was still a little unwilling.
The woman looked at him tenderly, with an uncontrollable smile on her face.
"This time is different from before. This time you can really get better..."
"Really?"
"Really, Mommy promises you. You'll be all right soon."
"Wow, that's great!"
…
Li Xiu felt his body was so heavy that it seemed as if it was not his own.
Tears filled the boy's vision, and the warm and harmonious scene in the ward was gradually drowned in blood.
He understood everything.
"sorry--"
He lowered his head and looked at Li Yu.
The child still looked as miserable as ever, but when Li Xiu looked at him this time, she no longer felt afraid.
"I'm sorry, brother… I don't know anything…"
"You're so pitiful..."
The bone-chilling coldness spread directly towards Li Xiu along the part where their skin was connected. The coldness was like an invisible swamp that wanted to swallow Li Xiu completely. But even so, Li Xiu still hugged the child in his arms tightly regardless.
Tears streamed from his eyes.
"elder brother..."
"Li Yu" raised his face in surprise and looked at Li Xiu.
The thin fingertips, stained with blood, slowly touched Li Xiu's face.
A tear fell on his hand, and he suddenly pulled his hand back as if it was burned.
"A Xiu."
The terrifying child who had been silent all this time opened his mouth and made a sound for the first time.
"Brother Xiu."
He repeated it.
The child curled up in Li Xiu's arms began to swell little by little. Soon, the skinny, ragged child turned into a towering, terrifying monster.
Lord Hong raised his deformed arms and stared at Li Xiu. After hesitating for a moment, the monster awkwardly hugged Li Xiu back.
"Don't cry."
It spoke softly to Li Xiu.
"It doesn't hurt anymore..."
The monster wearing a paper mask carefully wiped away the tears from the corners of Li Xiu's eyes.
Unconsciously, the posture between the two had changed from Li Xiu holding Hong Da Ren to Hong Da Ren holding Li Xiu.
The frail boy lay obediently in the monster's arms, as if he had finally become the property of the horrible inhuman creature.
*
"A Xiu——"
In the ghost den covered with flesh and blood, a hoarse roar suddenly sounded.
"Wake up!"
"Wake up the fuck!"
A figure struggled and tore off the scarlet and smelly flesh on his body, revealing a small part of his body.
Li Xiu's body shook, and he turned around, just in time to meet Fang Qianan's bloodshot eyes.
The boy, who was over 1.9 meters tall, looked extremely thin and weak under the restraint of Mr. Hong. Li Xiu could hardly see any intact skin and flesh on his body. The boy was covered in blood and had horrific wounds all over his body.
When he shouted at Li Xiu, Li Xiu could see the bulging blue veins on his forehead.
"That guy is a liar—it's not Li Yu at all!"
"Li Yu was devoured by it a long time ago! It's just a ghost that stole Li Yu's identity and memories!"
Maybe it was because the injury was too serious, or maybe it was because I was too scared.
While shouting, Li Xiu saw Fang Qianan crying.
"Fang Qianan..."
Li Xiu instinctively reached out his hand towards Fang Qianan.
He grabbed the other man and tried to pull him up.
However, the next second, Lord Red reached out from behind him, his cold fingertips resting on his wrist, forcing him to let go.
The monster's eye sockets were deep and its aura was eerie.
The movements of wrapping around Li Xiu revealed a possessiveness that was visible to the naked eye.
The scene before him obviously made Fang Qianan's remaining sanity collapse even more. The boy's expression was distorted and looked ferocious.
"Let Ah Xiu go, damn it! I was the one who took Li Yu's kidney! I'll give it back to you! Just take it away!" Fang Qianan roared like a dying beast, "But Ah Xiu doesn't owe you anything!"
He screamed, fell to the ground and struggled desperately to crawl towards Li Xiu.
"A Xiu doesn't owe you anything, he has always treated you as his brother! How could you leave him in such a damn place! How could you bear to let him guard a disgusting thing like you——"
Fang Qianan's struggle seems so weak in a world controlled by ghosts.
Li Xiu saw Lord Hong raise his fingertips slightly.
Countless rotten and deformed ghosts, who knew how long they had been wandering in the darkness, suddenly appeared beside Fang Qianan. Their pale skeletons were stuck in the boy's joints, and they seemed to be dragging him back into the depths of darkness...
"don't want!"
Li Xiu screamed.
He held Red Lord's nailless, slender, and cold fingers tightly.
"Please don't hurt him, okay...Brother, I beg you..."
Li Xiu sobbed.
"I'm going with you, I'm doing this voluntarily. I'm going to that world to accompany you and stay with you forever."
Lord Hong stared at Li Xiu deeply.
Li Xiu had cried so much that her vision was blurred.
"Let Fang Qianan go." The boy's throat tasted blood as he spoke.
"You let him... him, he is my only... friend."
"Brother, please don't make me sad."
After a long silence that seemed almost eternal.
A sigh came from the depths of Red Lord's throat.
Fang Qianan only felt that his surroundings became a little blurry.
"Li Xiu, don't go crazy—"
The school bully let out a broken scream.
"I don't need you to save me. Who the hell do you think you are? I don't need you to save me—"
…
The boy's rough and distorted crying finally disappeared into the darkness.
Li Xiu's body was stiff. He was breathing heavily and looking in the direction where Fang Qianan disappeared.
He stared at that spot for a long, long time, until he felt a chill on his face. Li Xiu shuddered, then realized that it was Master Hong's fingertips caressing his face.
Red Lord wiped the tears from his face.
"Ah Xiu, are you happy?"
Red Lord asked softly.
Li Xiu looked back at him, and after a long silence, he stretched out his hand tremblingly and slowly lifted the paper mask on Lord Hong's face.
...I didn't see any indescribable scene of rotten teeth, red eyes and flying eyes.
Beneath the blood-soaked paper mask lay the face of a young man. His cheeks were pale, his eyes were unusually dark, and his lips were thin and sharp. To Li Xiu, his features held a familiar aura, for he actually bore some resemblance to Fang Qianan.
If Li Yu could survive, he would look like this.
"This is the first time you see me, but I've seen you a long time ago. Brother Xiu."
Lord Hong met Li Xiu's gaze, lowered his eyes, and spoke in a low voice.
"My mother wanted to take me back to my grandmother's house, but she saw you downstairs."
Li Xiu's pupils constricted slightly.
"When grandma taught you to walk, you were always unsteady and fell down all the time. It was really pitiful to look at you."
Lord Hong stroked Li Xiu's cheek, and the distance between the two people gradually became closer.
"Mom and I hid in the corner and watched you for a long time. Then, she took my hand and left."
*
In the old streets and alleys many years ago.
The young and haggard woman had a pale face. She tightly grasped the child in her arms, turned around with difficulty, and walked towards the outside step by step.
"Mother?"
The young boy looked at his mother in confusion.
"I want to play with my brother, Mom. You said I'd have a new brother when I met Grandma!"
Thinking of the beautiful child he had just seen, the boy's eyes were full of anticipation.
"He's so cute, but so clumsy. He can't even walk properly. Mom, I'll teach him how to walk when the time comes! That way he won't cry all the time... Mom? Why are you crying?"
"I'm sorry, Xiaoyu," the woman suddenly bent down and said word by word, "We're not going back."
"Ah? Why! Why? Mom, but I want my brother——"
Seeing that the child was about to make a fuss, the woman hugged her child tightly.
"Hush, stop it, Xiaoyu. Listen to what mom says... Have you seen your brother? He has trouble walking, right? So he needs a lot of care." As she spoke, the woman's hesitant heart became firm. She explained seriously, "In the future, mom will be very busy. She will be too busy to stay by Xiaoyu's side. But grandma is old too. If I send you back to grandma's house, she will only be able to take care of you and not your brother. As long as you go back, your brother might be sent away."
The woman stroked the soft child in her arms and took a deep breath.
"That would make him too pitiful, wouldn't it, Xiaoyu?"
"Even if Xiaoyu doesn't have a mother, she still has a father...but her brother has no relatives except grandma. So, Xiaoyu, why don't you go live with your father?"
The boy pouted and tears welled up in his eyes.
"I don't want to be with Dad. I want to play with my brother—"
The woman smiled.
"It's okay. When Xiaoyu grows up, she can come and play with her brother!"
She soothed.
"Really?"
"Really. Our Xiaoyu likes her brother so much, and her brother must like Xiaoyu very much too."