Chapter 63: Water and Notification
Something is in here.
The growing pressure in my chest told me I had become the other party’s prey. I could feel an unusual gaze, but behind me was Lianbing. In this space of Accelerated Thought, nothing could move. This was just me being overly suspicious.
I told myself this, yet the strange aura surrounding me still closely scrutinized me from behind. That was definitely not a human aura.
I desperately wanted to turn my head and look, but in this space, I couldn’t even move myself. To regain mobility, I would have to pay a great price, and that was a price I couldn’t afford. Only by confirming there was nothing behind me could I escape this soul-crushing state. The unease of being passive, the fear of being caught in danger, I still couldn’t completely get used to it, but it put me in a state of heightened excitement with my nerves on edge.
My senses felt like they were sharpening, all of them focused on what was behind me. Then, gradually, I could smell it. It was a decaying odor with a hint of blood, seeping into the air, surrounding me… No, I could already “see” it.
Black gas spread out from behind me like an attack, gently enveloping me, as if weaving a cocoon with silk. Except the silk wasn’t white, but pure black. Black and translucent, like a phone screen in standby mode, it extended before me, reflecting what was behind my back to me.
The surroundings were still so dark that I couldn’t see clearly, only the general outline. It looked like an eye, or perhaps a mouth, but whatever it was, it was so terrifyingly strange that it made my hair stand on end.
What is it! Playing spooky tricks in broad daylight!
A thud. I had stood up, and the Accelerated Thought had ended. My classmates were all looking at me, confused as to why I had suddenly stood up. And I, turning around sharply, saw Lianbing tilting her head and looking at me.
… The aura from just now wasn’t from Lianbing. It felt different from the sensation of death, more… how should I put it? More restless?
“What’s wrong, Juncheng?”
“Ah, nothing. My calf just cramped, and I thought I was going to get a charley horse, so I stood up.”
“Is that so? … Well, be careful with your body. Zi’ai, you should go back to your seat too. Class is about to start.”
Zi’ai glanced at me first, then walked straight to Xuan’er’s seat and sat down.
I began to ponder: what exactly was that phenomenon just now? The Accelerated Thought activating automatically had happened several times already. Was this…
“That’s a predictive function of the Yata no Kagami.”
“Whoa!”
Startled by the head that suddenly appeared before my eyes, even my usually calm self couldn’t help but exclaim. I’ve been startled so much today, it’s not my fault. There are always sudden appearances like this that scare you; it would be strange if I *weren’t* startled.
“What is it now? Juncheng?”
“Uh, Teacher Xiaozhen, I feel like my leg still cramped up.”
Seeing my contorted smile, Teacher Xiaozhen believed my lie and said with concern, “Oh? Then hurry to the infirmary! Who will escort Juncheng?”
“I will! Teacher!”
“Alright, then it’s up to Lanhua.”
And so, with Lanhua’s support, I left the classroom and headed to the infirmary, where there were basically no people…
“What’s wrong? Juncheng, you’re acting strange today.”
Lan, of course, saw that I had lied just now. But having been watching me, she must have also noticed my unusual behavior, which is why she jumped in to help me before Lianbing. However, her real intention was to ask me what was wrong.
“…Indeed, I just got startled. I thought I saw a friend I hadn’t seen in a while.”
“A friend? Did they send a video request?”
“No, she’s right in front of you.”
Lan’s mouth opened in a shocked expression, and she looked around… but the other person was actually right in front of her. *As expected, others can’t see you, can they? Ba?*
“Yes, even with Yin-Yang eyes, you can’t see me whenever you want! Hmph!” ‘Ba’ put her hands on her hips and puffed out her flat chest, striking a ‘Aren’t I amazing?’ pose. I responded with a drawn-out “Oh~” before remembering that this guy was Yama King. Was I courting disaster by patting Yama King’s head like this? But fortunately, Ba didn’t show any displeasure, humming a little tune through her nose, seemingly enjoying it.
Then, Lan made a very peculiar expression because, in her eyes, I was clearly patting air.
“…Juncheng, are you, perhaps, really sick?”
“Uh, no, there’s really someone here, but you just can’t see… it’s like Zihua, who only you can see. Do you understand now?”
“…No.”
“Please believe me!”
“I understand, I understand. I’ll go back first. Juncheng, you should… well, have a good chat with your ‘friend’.” Lan Hua then left the infirmary, giving me a pitying look as she left.
It’s really not an imaginary friend! I have a friend now! Sigh… But it’s good that Lan isn’t here. Speaking of which, she seemed to glance to the side just now, was she looking at Zihua? Lan mentioned that Zihua hasn’t appeared for a while; it seems she can be seen again… She must have given up this chance for us to be alone because of Zihua. Did that strange illusion say something else to Lan?
At this moment, I heard Ba, who was standing beside me, murmur softly. “…Meaning, such an existence is still possible?”
I turned to look at Ba. She said another sentence, “Yes, yes, your death is indeed not my concern… You will disappear when the time comes anyway.” Then she took off her shoes before me and lay down on the pillow, on her side.
I turned back and looked at Yama King, who had occupied the bed. “Who were you just talking to?”
“Just someone who is about to die.” “Ha.”
This statement made me, who had been about to ask if she was talking to Zihua, freeze.
“Speaking of dying, you’re next, Juncheng An.”
“What the heck?!” Am I going to die? This death pronouncement from King Yama sounds incredibly convincing!
“Yes, didn’t I just tell you?”
“Right, you just told me that was the predictive function of the Yata no Kagami or something, did you mean that I suddenly entered Accelerated Thought?”
“Yes. Originally, the Yata no Kagami’s predictions usually appear in dreams, but if information needs to be conveyed to you while you’re awake, that phenomenon will occur.”
“How do you know all this so clearly?” ‘”Oh, I’ve heard of it. No good people before the Mirror of Sin. It’s a mirror used to investigate sins committed during one’s lifetime, right?” ‘Yes, and that Mirror of Sin is actually incomplete; it can only see the past. A complete one is called the Yin-Yang Treasure Mirror. It was shattered into two halves a long, long time ago. The Yin Mirror part was refined by us into the Mirror of Sin. Now, guess where the other half went?” “Bingo! You got it right. The yang mirror part was remade into a demon-reflecting mirror, and after several changes of hands, it eventually ended up in the island country, becoming the Yata no Kagami, one of the Three Sacred Treasures.” “I see.” “The Yin-Yang Treasure Mirror, in game terms, would be SSS-class, legendary, world-class. Among divine artifacts, it’s the highest rank. And this mirror’s most amazing function is its ability to see the past and the future. The Yin Mirror is used to see the past, and the Yang Mirror is used to see the future.” “See… the future… That was a fragment of the future just now.” “Actually, you’ve already seen it several times, haven’t you?” “….” The most obvious one was that time I decided to chase Li Nai into the underground. I clearly saw ominous signs. As a result, I died and became a zombie. The premonition came true. The last time I saw that mouth on Xuan’er’s hair, I was bitten on the uninhabited island. “Simply put, this mirror will tell you through dreams or special illusions that you’re doomed!” “…Tsk.” “Tsk, I thought you’d be begging me to save you, tears streaming down your face, but you just give me this grumpy look.” “Is there a way to save me?” “That’s why I’m here. Otherwise, why do you think I’d choose such a busy time to see you!” “…Speaking of which, tomorrow is the Ghost Festival.” The reason I knew Ba’s whereabouts wasn’t that Ba and I had no contact at all. Our means of contact, of course, was very sci-fi… Yes, it was just using a mobile phone. So Yama Kings also use cell phones, and even QQ, WeChat, and Weibo? It really makes me… Has the information age even spread to the dead?… And the lazy grim reaper, Miss Qin, has also added me for a long time and always complains about how hard her job is. You’re clearly slacking off! Speaking of which, how is this radio wave transmitted? It’s really curious. “Yes, tomorrow is the Ghost Festival, also known as Obon. Many ghosts apply to return to the human world to visit relatives, like the Spring Festival travel rush. The approval documents are piling up like a mountain.” “I don’t see any gratitude from you… Sigh, I really owe you from a past life. Here, take this. An important item for giving orders. -” Ba reached into her skirt and pulled out a small bottle of mineral water, tossing it directly at me. Completely unprepared, I barely managed to catch it in a panic. If it’s an important item, don’t just throw it around! The bottle contained a clear, colorless liquid. Its color reminded me of a certain viscous liquid, but this liquid was clearly much thinner. “This water is called ‘Yi Shui’ (Memory Water). Hmm, how should I put it? It’s the exact opposite of Meng Po’s soup. I finally managed to get it. – Ha.” Meng Po’s soup makes you forget everything… So, drinking this water allows you to remember everything? “Yes, that’s right. If you drink too much, you can even recall things from past lives.” “Uh, how is this used for giving orders?” I painstakingly removed the memories of my past lives; wouldn’t it be stupid to remember them again after drinking this? Who am I supposed to give this to? “How should I know? The item has been delivered, so it’s up to you to decide where to use it. I’m leaving.” Ba threw the pillow at me, then climbed to the edge of the bed, put on her small shoes, and made to jump down. “Eh?! Wait!” “Bye! Hope I don’t see you in the underworld next time.” I stared blankly at the bottle of Yi Shui in my hand. After some thought, I returned to the classroom. At that moment, I hadn’t realized who this water was meant for. The answer was so simple, so obvious—if one could sense it, one could prevent what was about to happen. But foolish me missed it. By not using this water in time, I couldn’t stop her, which is why things developed the way they did. After class, Li Nai and I were still out on patrol, carrying out our search mission. The workload today was astonishing. Even past 10 PM, mission alerts kept coming in. “This is terrible—I’ll probably have to be on duty all night… I need to call my younger sisters first.” Just then, Li Nai walked over and handed me a can of coffee. “Here, coffee.” “Oh, thanks.” I flicked it open and took a sip, asking, “What’s going on today? Why so many abnormal events?” “Who knows… Ah, another message is coming in. Ugh, how annoying, I haven’t even had dinner yet!” I took out my earphones, and the latest news came from my phone. “Attention all members of the organization, this is Head of Human Resources, RAO. I am issuing an urgent notice: a major abnormal disaster has occurred in Sector 3 of the city. The disaster level is A-Class. Repeat, a major abnormal disaster has occurred in Sector 3 of the city. The disaster level is A-Class.” A major abnormal disaster? And it’s A-Class, that sounds serious. “It seems something big is about to happen… Huh? Li Nai? What’s wrong?” Li Nai’s expression was one of shock, her previous ease completely gone. “Juncheng, did you just say… the words ‘abnormal disaster’?” “Yes, uh, could this be different from an Anomaly?” “Completely different! This is a disaster! And it’s A-Class…” “What?” “Five years ago, in the old district of this city, now Sector 4, there was also an abnormal disaster. The content was the outbreak of the Zombie Virus. That’s when I became a zombie—” “And that disaster level was only B-Class! The incident where ghouls invaded the Underworld was only classified as D-Class, street destruction level… A-Class represents a natural disaster!” This is that serious! “The Logistics Department is to immediately proceed to the site, seal the area, and evacuate civilians. Sections 1 through 3 of the Control Department are to proceed to the site to rescue trapped personnel and members of the Investigation Department, and clear derivative entities. Sections 4 and 5 are responsible for protecting the external employee ‘Jiang Xueqing’ and the contained A-Class Anomaly ‘Zi’ai An’. Finally, the Special Combat Unit Section 6 is to proceed to eliminate the source of the abnormal disaster.” It didn’t mention what the Investigation Department should do. Sector 3? It’s quite far from here. Should we go take a look? “Target for annihilation is: former external employee, I Gui, individual codename—” My heart skipped a beat. “— Xiangyue Qi.” *Snap.* The phone fell to the ground, its screen shattering into a spiderweb.
