Chapter 51: Awakening
This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation
“It’s not over yet,” Foxy whispered quietly, her voice trembling. In that very instant, Yu Sheng understood what she meant. No sooner had she spoken than an eerie sound drifted through the thick forest around them. A chorus of dreadful howls rose up, and a strange, hollow wind began to whistle through the valley. Instead of fading, the dark, menacing feeling that hung over this Otherworld only deepened. It was as though something hidden in the darkness had just awakened, and it was furious.
“What’s happening?” Yu Sheng demanded, turning quickly to Foxy. She stood behind him, her ears twitching with fear, as if she knew more than she dared to say.
“I… I’m not sure,” the young fox-girl stuttered, pressing herself closer to Yu Sheng’s back. Her face was pale, her eyes wide with terror. “But it… it happened before. The day the Immortal died, something woke up, just like this. The Immortal took the others and went outside… but none of them returned. Later, all we found were their bodies…”
She lowered her head, her voice quavering as she remembered. “My mom and dad hid me in a cave. They told me not to look outside. I never saw what happened. By the time I came out, everyone was… gone.”
From Foxy’s halting words, Yu Sheng pieced together a terrible truth. The real threat hidden in this valley wasn’t just that awful Flesh Monster they had just fought. There might be something else lurking here, something far more powerful. From the moment he and Irene had entered the valley, it had likely been waking up, bit by bit.
Gritting his teeth, Yu Sheng knew they couldn’t afford to stay. He sprinted toward Irene, who was not too far away, and knelt beside her. The valley was closing in around them, heavy with danger.
“We can’t keep fighting,” he said urgently. “There’s something far worse in this place. We have to use the backup plan—let’s just retreat. I’ll open the gate. Are you all right? Can you move?”
Irene tried to push herself up, but the moment she put weight on her arms, there was a horrifying cracking sound. Her arms snapped at the elbows. Splintered fragments fell away, clattering to the ground.
“No, I can’t,” Irene answered, her voice edged with frustrated calm. “My legs are damaged too. If I try to stand, they’ll probably shatter as well.” She sighed, glancing down at her broken limbs. “I told you this might happen. You must have used too much sand in my clay.”
Yu Sheng felt a shiver run through him at the sight of her broken arms, but Irene’s annoyed tone was oddly reassuring. “So… you can be fixed?” he asked, hopeful despite everything.
Irene gave a small nod. “Yes, but I have to return home first.”
Relief washed over Yu Sheng. Without wasting a second, he lifted the painting frame from Irene’s back, adjusted the straps, and slung it over his own shoulder. Then he gently scooped Irene up with his left arm. The little doll huffed in protest, clearly embarrassed, but with her arms in pieces, there wasn’t much she could do. In the end, she settled down, perched stiffly on his arm.
With his right hand now free, Yu Sheng reached into the air. He focused for a moment, and a shimmering doorway of pale light took shape before him. He could see the familiar living room of Wutong Road House on the other side, like a window into a safer world.
Nearby, three strangers stood watching, one of them a young man who looked oddly familiar. Their eyes went wide as they saw Yu Sheng conjure this doorway out of thin air, but he had no time to explain.
Once certain the passage was steady, Yu Sheng reached forward, pulling open the door as though it were a real one. Then he called out, “The escape route is ready! Everyone, move now—before that thing regenerates!”
He turned to Foxy, who stood trembling at the edge of the clearing. “Foxy, go first—don’t be scared. It’s safe over there,” he urged, trying to sound calm and encouraging.
Then he glanced toward Li Lin and the other two strangers who had appeared earlier. “You three—I don’t know who you are, but thank you for your help. Follow after Foxy once she’s through!”
Spurred by his words, Foxy finally gathered her courage. She stepped toward the glowing doorway, ears flattened with fear and uncertainty. Just as she reached it, a sudden and terrible whistling sound tore through the air behind them. Yu Sheng felt a gust of wind rush against his back.
All at once, a flood of strange images and feelings flooded Yu Sheng’s mind—visions of sharp, watchful eyes fixing on old temple ruins, of faraway skies and deep valleys, of a cold and chaotic hunger, and the grim delight of something about to feast.
He spun around just in time to see another Flesh Monster appear, slithering from the ruins’ shadows. Its vile body tore open down the middle, revealing a slick, whip-like tongue. Before Yu Sheng could blink, that tongue lashed out and pierced straight through his chest, driving itself into his heart.
He only managed to push Irene away before the blow struck. It had happened too fast—had the Flesh Monster regenerated already? Or was this a new one?
A thousand questions flickered through Yu Sheng’s mind, then everything went dark. He could hear Foxy’s scream, Irene’s furious shriek, and the distant howling of wolves. His vision grew dim as he collapsed to the ground. With fading sight, he watched in horror as more shapes rose up at the edges of the ruins. Shadows twisted, and in each trembling darkness a new Flesh Monster took form. The valley seemed alive with writhing tentacles and snapping jaws. Far off in the distance, fanged shapes sprouted from the mountains. Above, the sky itself began to crack open, letting in a strange, unsettling brightness.
“Benefactor!” Foxy cried, dashing to Yu Sheng’s side. She knelt beside him, tears threatening to spill from her wide eyes. She had seen him die and return before, but her mind refused to accept it this time. She was too frightened, too overwhelmed. “Are you… are you all right?!”
“What do you think?” Irene snapped irritably, lying where she had landed, struggling to move with her shattered limbs. “He’s obviously dead! You’ve seen this happen! Try to stay calm!”
Foxy blinked hard, trying to make sense of it. She had witnessed Yu Sheng’s strange ability before, but fear and worry still tangled in her mind. She looked like she might cry, but also that she might not, as if unsure how she should feel. In the end, she just looked lost and bewildered.
Li Lin, on the other hand, knew nothing of Yu Sheng’s peculiar condition. The sight of the Flesh Monsters lurking around them had already put him on edge, and now the death of this stranger made it all seem hopeless. He hovered near Foxy and Irene, trying to comfort them while keeping one eye on the monsters. “I’m sorry,” he said, voice tight, “but people can’t come back from the dead. We need to focus on—”
Irene cut him off, her voice surprisingly calm. “Don’t worry, he’ll be back soon. But we have to hold out for twenty or thirty minutes until he revives and can open the door again.” She glanced at Foxy. “Foxy, help me up—and don’t forget the painting.”
Snapped out of her daze, Foxy hurriedly pulled the painting frame out from underneath Yu Sheng’s limp body and then carefully gathered up Irene’s fragile form. She cradled the doll close, trying not to jostle her broken arms.
Li Lin and his companions fell silent, stunned and confused by Irene’s casual mention of Yu Sheng returning from the dead. They had no idea what to make of it. Was Irene just refusing to accept reality? But they had no time to puzzle it out.
All around them, the eerie howling swept in on a cold wind. The presence pressing in from every side was dreadful and maddening. Even Xu Jiali, who was clearly an experienced fighter, seemed frozen by the terror of this place.
From the shifting shadows at the edges of the ruins, countless twisted shapes emerged. Monsters of grotesque, fleshy forms clustered together, their blank eyes and drooling mouths opening wide. They pressed in closer, howling and snarling, filling the valley with their terrible cries.
“What on earth is this?!” Li Lin shouted, voice cracking with alarm. “The report said the Hunger Entity could only make one of these monsters at a time! How are there so many?!”
Xu Jiali lifted her head, swallowing hard. Slowly, she forced out the words that hung like ice in the air. “What if the valley… is already infected by the Angel?”
“What do you mean—?” Li Lin began, but he stopped as soon as his gaze followed hers.
He saw it clearly now. The valley itself was changing. Dark shapes twisted and stretched along the mountains, forming ridges that looked like jagged teeth. It was as if the land itself had grown a mouth, hungry and waiting.
But the most horrifying thing was the sky. It was opening up like a lid being lifted. What they had thought were just dark clouds or a strange night sky was something else entirely. A crack formed at the edge of the heavens, letting in a faint, unsettling light. Then it became horribly clear: it was not the sky at all.
It was an eyelid.
A colossal, unblinking eye had always been there, hidden overhead. Now it was opening, gazing down coldly on the valley. Within that giant eye, swirling lines and shifting lights gleamed, shining down on the forest and the ruins. Its eerie glow pushed back some of the darkness, bathing the valley in a disturbing brightness.
Li Lin could feel the panic rising inside him, threatening to choke him. As the wind howled once more, he heard Xu Jiali’s voice by his side, barely a whisper.
“The Dark Angel…”