Noise followed him everywhere in this sanguine world. From the far reaches of the sky to the top of his head, they disturbed him without rest. Countless illusory shadows passed in front of him, making him unable to tell what was real or not. He saw that giant fish again, slowly swimming across the red sky, its beautiful tail made of layers and layers of reality and illusion.
Lin Jue didn’t know what it was. He only remembered one thing – revive Song Hanzhang.
That memory carved into his very bones allowed him to walk out from the illusion, unzip his outer pocket, and take out that icy box.
[Sacrifice Count: 1/3.]
[Sacrifice Count: 2/3.]
Following the two notifications, Lin Jue placed the box back into his pocket and carefully zipped it.
One last one, he thought in a daze. His brain was working at a frighteningly slow pace, the overload of illusions seriously damaging his neural network such that he could barely maintain the most basic thoughts.
It was time to leave this place, he decided sluggishly. He didn’t even remember to pick up his spear as he stumbled towards the end of the world.
By the time he left the illusion, lava had completely overtaken the nearby waterways. Not a drop of liquid remained, only a lake full of burning lava that slowly creeped closer, turning the entire campus into a burning hell. This world that had been smoked into scorched earth seemed apocalyptic, without any hope or future.
He still needed one more.
Lin Jue’s rusty brain was bound tight to this obsession, a machine in an endless loop, marching forward under an unbearable burden.
He finally remembered his weapon: he needed to pick it up. So he turned around and searched for that spear.
Under the illumination of the moonlight, it quietly lay there.
And next to the spear, a person suddenly appeared.
He wore a wide cloak and held the spear in his hands.
A cloaked figure… Lin Jue’s brain lagged for a few seconds, then remembered that he had met him during the corpse ball; he was a member of team 2022, and the sacrifice he was looking for.
But his instincts made him doubt – was this person really who he saw at the corpse ball? Why did something feel different?
But it didn’t matter. As long as he killed him.
As the desire to kill rushed up his heart, a surge of energy entered his sluggish body. Lin Jue gripped the short bayonet in his hand and sprinted out like a hunting hound hearing its master’s command, covering the short distance of a dozen meters almost instantly.
Moonlight, lava, the glint of the spearhead – all these lights merged into a labyrinthine world in his eyes.
Quickly, almost there, kill him!
And then… Song Hanzhang would come back!
The faith he held onto as he sent out his attack crashed into the abyss when it landed on thin air.
That unmoving person dodged his attack like a ghost, the spear he held lashing out easily as if it was an extension of his own arm. It bit into his ribs like a venomous snake – a coldness crept up his heart; something soft had been mercilessly pierced.
The spear retracted from under his ribs. Blood flowed out in a small stream. Lin Jue slowly knelt onto the ground; it was only now did he realize how tired he was, so much that his scarred and exhausted body could no longer crawl up.
He didn’t feel pain nor hurt, he only felt blank confusion – he didn’t even understand what had happened, why he was suddenly collapsed on the ground.
Until that person crouched down and unzipped the pocket of his jacket.
On the verge of death, Lin Jue suddenly jolted awake and grabbed the person’s hand.
He couldn’t, this person was taking Song Hanzhang’s box, he couldn’t! He couldn’t lose hope for his resurrection!
It was only then that Lin Jue suddenly understood what had happened in that split second – he lost, he was about to die!
The belated realization made him grip onto that person’s hand with all that he had and shake his head firmly.
But what use was it? His poisoned wound bled out furiously, such that his consciousness also dimmed.
In the chaos, that person said coldly, “Lin Jue, remember this moment. Remember your weak and pathetic self.”
This voice… so familiar…
Amidst the cacophony of hallucinations, this voice called back Lin Jue’s dissipating consciousness. He raised his head with difficult and looked towards that person–
The face under the cloak belonged to himself.
An undamaged, whole himself.
It was as if the illusion from not long ago had come true again. Except that time, he won against himself, but could only watch as Song Hanzhang’s body sank into the lava; and this time, he lost utterly, and couldn’t even protect his Witch Box.
The other him let go of the spear and took out a dagger. A familiar dagger.
Lin Jue recognized it. It was the one he got from the wishing fountain and gave to Song Hanzhang, but had vanished after Song Hanzhang died.
“Also, have a taste of being stabbed in the chest by this dagger. He experienced this pain, so you have to remember it firmly,” he said with undisguised hatred.
With a chill in his chest, Lin Jue watched as he pushed the dagger in, then took it out.
Blood sprayed out, redder than lava.
In his endless sorrow and despair, the world slowly fell into an everlasting night.
He faintly heard the voice from him ten years later, distant like a dream:
“Today’s separations and deaths are for another reunion. Goodbye, me from ten years ago.”
He could no longer consider the meaning behind those words. All that was left in his conscious was unending regret and hatred, carving him into a lingering ghost.
[2012: Player count decreases by one. One survivor, forty-three markings moved.]
Hot air infused with the scent of sulfur blew past. Lin Jue looked steadily at his own corpse by his feet, the feeling of misplacement growing stronger. He clearly remembered how he had closed his eyes with such regret and pain ten years ago, then waited an endless amount of time in nothingness. It was truly endless. His consciousness was still awake, floating in a chaos that had no time, mass, borders, or colors. He couldn’t feel anything other than himself. He didn’t know how long this torturous exile continued for. In that void, he could only reminisce on his own memories over and over again. The memories about Song Hanzhang, those sweet, bitter, despairing memories, kept him afloat in that eternity.
Until fate allowed him to return.
It was only now that Lin Jue vaguely understood Song Hanzhang’s plotting. Even though there were still many areas he wasn’t clear on, like how Lu Ren revived in 2022 with Lin Jue’s Witch’s Box, it didn’t matter anymore. If there was anything he had learnt from Song hanzhang, it was not to dwell on what had already happened.
His mission now was to offer a final sacrifice for Song Hanzhang’s resurrection.
He was careful, eager. Nothing in this world could stop him, not even himself.
[Witch Box: A player bound to the Witch Box will not be erased after dying as long as the Witch Box has not been destroyed, and will instead lose all of their skills and items gained in the game. Players in possession of the bound Witch Box can revive the player within the box by sacrificing three players. Remaining Uses: 1/1, Sacrifice Count: 3/3. Activated.]
[Confirm resurrection?]
[Yes.]
The box in his hand suddenly lost all its weight as he made his choice, turning into flutters of glowing dust, floating a few meters ahead of him. Countless spots of light danced midair, slowly twisting into the shape of a man. Gradually, it created outlines, solidified, took shape…
In those few short seconds, Lin Jue had already began crying.
Across the river of time, he was finally by his side again. He felt then that everything he had endured was worth it. Even the wound on his soul which had once tortured him so much he had wished for death was gently and quietly soothed. He thanked the heavens, thanked the world for returning Song Hanzhang to him.
The spots of light faded. Song Hanzhang stood a few steps away from him, watching him quietly.
At that moment, Lin Jue could no longer suppress his longing. He ran towards him recklessly, burning tears streaming from his eyes, letting him wake from this neverending nightmare. The fury and disappointment he had held onto before were refined into the joy of regaining what he had lost. He held Song Hanzhang, Song Hanzhang who had warmth and a heartbeat, just like him. He felt like he was holding the entire world.
“It looks like we’ve succeeded.” Song Hanzhang’s cool voice sounded by Lin Jue’s ears with a hint of excitement.
The most uncertain link had held firm, meaning that his plan was successful. How could he not be excited?
Still grasping onto Song Hanzhang, Lin Jue came back down to reality, and that fury which he had almost forgotten returned to his mind. So he did something he would never dare to do under normal circumstances – he forced Song Hanzhang’s chin up with his fingers, and forcefully kissed him, even biting through his lips.1
Blood filled his mouth, dulling the entangling feeling of a kiss, but it cemented it further – this person had returned to him.
No longer a cold corpse, no longer gone, no longer the faded shadows of his memories. He was real, existent, the drive behind his life and resurrection.
If it wasn’t for this person, in the beginning, he would have been mediocre; in the end, a walking corpse.
“The next time you dare to disappear, I’ll tie you to my trousers!” Lin Jue, who was threatening Song Hanzhang for the first time in his life, said indignantly, his face all scrunched up.
If he ignored the blood on his lips and the tear streaks on his face, this maybe… perhaps… might sound more like a threat. Unfortunately, with this sobbing voice, it wasn’t half as threatening as it could have been.
Song Hanzhang reached out, his fingers lightly brushing against Lin Jue’s lips, wiping off the blood.
“I’m sorry… never again,” Song Hanzhang murmured.
That gaze was softer than moonlight.
Lin Jue couldn’t say a single word, didn’t want to say a single word. A burning flame and a great flowing river existed in his heart at the same time. Was that the abyss of suffering? No, it wasn’t. He had drowned, then burnt to ashes; all that remained of the world in his eyes was the elation of getting back something he had lost.
He wanted a kiss. But after that impulse, the shyness of reason returned to him and instead he started feeling ashamed of his previous impulse. He pondered apprehensively on Song Hanzhang’s reaction.
Maybe a hug would be better?
But he still wanted a kiss.
The obsession stood wildly under the siege of sanity, refusing to be beaten down.
He carefully peered at Song Hanzhang’s expression, pretending to not mean anything, but accidentally sending across his desires in his eyes.
Like a wounded little beast desiring the love of its master, it was hard to remain indifferent.
“Lin Jue.” Song Hanzhang called out his name, his naturally cool tone a little hoarse, but only making him seem more human, less machine.
Just hearing his voice made Lin Jue shiver. He widened his eyes and stared at him intently, his black eyes shining with undisguised trust and adoration.
He should say something: apologize for keeping his plans a secret or thank him. Really, he could say anything, because Lin Jue would never hold a grudge against him, even if he didn’t know the full reason yet.
But all of that could be done later. Before that, there was something he had to do.
A kiss.
When the soft sensation came from his lips, Lin Jue was sent into shock. He could have never imagined that Song Hanzhang would kiss him, and that it would be such a meticulous kiss: from his lips to his tongue to every corner, he explored so gently and delicately, as if trying to get to know him inside and out.
Did Song Hanzhang also like him? Was that so?
The joy of that moment sparked light in this dark night.
There was no more terror or despair. That dawn which had yet to come, had already quietly lit up his entire world.
***
1Don’t do that, readers. Kissing should not involve biting through anyone’s lips, or a lack of consent, but mostly not a lack of consent. Please make sure your advances are welcome before making them.
Vera & Luci Translations 