Nightmare Despair

Chapter 87 Nothing Happens Tonight
As if shrouded in a thin mist, the expressions of the three began to shift eerily.

First came the struggle, the eyeballs darting wildly under the eyelids; then came the resistance, the muscles twitching uncontrollably; then came the adaptation, the body gradually calming down…

In the end, it transformed into a morbid fanaticism directed at Zhou Kai.

"Owner."

Wei Bao's gaunt face was the first to rise, his eyes empty yet devout.

Next was Hu Yuan... but Luo Tong, whose temperament was described as the worst according to the intelligence, remained silent for a long time.

"It doesn't look like a successful operation."

Zhou Kai drew his greatsword, holding the blade against Luo Tong's neck, carefully observing every muscle on his face.

If control fails, then kill him on the spot... But after observing for a while, Zhou Kai discovered that Luo Tong seemed to have succeeded as well.

However, Zhou Kai was still worried.

He sighed, flicked his wrist, and the sword cleanly and decisively severed Luo Tong's head.

Luo Tong's expression remained unchanged until his death.

Regardless of whether his martial arts journey has come to an end, let alone the indomitable brilliance that the will forged in defeat can unleash.

A person has to live.

But now, he's dead... and all storylines related to him have come to an abrupt end.

……

"Hu Yuan, I deliberately kept you alive so you wouldn't get hurt."

"Before 4 a.m., all surveillance cameras near the Xishan Hotel were turned off. Use all your resources... collect the bodies if necessary, and send the injured to the hospital if needed."

Zhou Kai, sword in one hand, sank comfortably into the leather sofa, his eyes, gleaming with a red light, staring at Hu Yuan like a gaze reflected from the abyss.

Hu Yuan was about to say something when Zhou Kai interrupted him with a wave of his hand.

"I don't need flattery, and I despise it."

"I just need you to do the work, go."

Hu Yuan fell silent. He lowered his head, nodded respectfully, and quickly turned around to get busy.

The cleaners he had pre-booked arrived on time, but even these professionals who handled corpses were puzzled...

Why is it that today's task is to clean up Xishan Hotel's own headquarters?

Wei Bao was taken to the hospital.

With his own savings and Hu Yuan's connections, he had enough money to heal his injuries.

Red Star's medical technology is advanced enough that even a severe injury that could have severed Luo Tong's path in martial arts could be completely cured.

However, that requires special channels, and even more so, it requires Luo Tong's exorbitant medical expenses that could bankrupt him.

After doing all this, it was just past three o'clock.

Hu Yuan took the initiative to explain some of his arrangements, mentioning the new type of level-two enhancement drug that Qiu Ping was hiding.

He also presented his several anonymous savings cards to Zhou Kai with both hands.

His personal cash savings amount to more than 70 million yuan, enough for Zhou Kai to live comfortably for the rest of his life.

"Wash it clean before giving it to me."

Zhou Kai glanced at the few black cards, his eyes flickered slightly, but he wasn't overwhelmed by the sudden windfall.

Hu Yuan was taken aback upon hearing this, then pulled out a pure white card from his collection and said respectfully, "I can set this card as an employee card for Xishan Hotel, and transfer funds into the hotel regularly in the form of salary."

"Based on past experience, monthly transfers of less than 50,000 yuan will not attract attention."

This person... is alarmingly vigilant.

Hu Yuan pondered to himself what had gotten into him that led him to attempt to murder such a monster... and that he hadn't taken it seriously at all.

It wasn't until the other side stormed in and slaughtered nearly half of the hotel's staff that they belatedly realized how terrifying Zhou Kai was...

Hu Yuan was clearly aware that he was under hypnosis, but he was unable to resist.

Putting Zhou Kai first in everything has become a code of conduct ingrained in his soul.

"Fifty thousand... that's enough."

Zhou Kai's emotions remained relatively calm.

As long as he is willing to take the risk of being targeted by relevant departments and prematurely exposed to groups he doesn't want to come into contact with, he can squander money as he pleases.

Money that was something you couldn't have not long ago is now suddenly within your grasp...

Deep down, Zhou Kai felt a growing emptiness in his ordinary, everyday self.

"Whether you have a lot of money or a little, it's all external; survival is what matters."

More than acquiring more money, he found that his current driving force had completely shifted to... becoming stronger, finding peace within the nightmare, and even, ultimately, conquering the nightmare altogether...

How unpredictable life is! Not long ago, he was a college student dreaming of achieving financial freedom. Sinking into the sofa, Zhou Kai pondered for a long time.

Then, he slowly closed his eyes: "It's time to dream."

……

"I am truly born."

Huang Zhang deleted the nightmare survival rules from Chu Siwen's memory, and now, tormented by his conscience, he is on the rooftop getting some fresh air.

The humid and lukewarm southern evening breeze in July made him feel drowsy.

But he remained on edge, waiting for news of Chu Siwen's death.

As long as she dies, the lives of most people in Xishan City will not be disrupted or changed in any way...

His agonizing ordeal will finally come to an end.

"She will never suffer again."

Park Hyo-yoon had somehow appeared behind Hwang Jang, and the two of them clung to the cold railing of the rooftop, looking down at the silent road below.

Huang Zhang suddenly spoke up: "Xiao Yin, do you know... when I first joined Wumeng?"

"I thought we were going to go into the nightmare, beat up those monsters, and completely drive the nightmare out of people's minds."

"But what we're doing now..."

Park Hyo-yoon chimed in, "It's far from that."

"But... it's already the best solution."

He was unusually calm, taking deep breaths of the humid air, without a single tear on his face.

Downstairs, in Chu Siwen's home.

"Second Team Leader Ding San reports: Chu Siwen, infected with the Nightmare of Reality, suffered cardiac arrest at 3:11 AM on July 16th and has been confirmed as a natural death."

Ding San gave a calm and even report over the phone.

On the other end of the phone, Deputy Director Zheng Wen's voice came through: "Very good, on behalf of the people of Xishan City, I thank you... You did a good job."

Ding San's breathing became heavy for a moment, but she quickly regained her composure and calmly replied, "It's my duty."

After saying that, Ding San hung up the phone.

She began dialing numbers in her phone one by one, calling the police, forensic doctors, and so on, and recorded the details in a booklet.

If a family member takes over, the body might be buried in a cemetery... or transported back to the family home.

But like Zhang Xiaodong, Chu Siwen has no family.

Their bodies will eventually be transported to an incinerator and burned to ashes at temperatures approaching 1,000 degrees Celsius.

If they're lucky, the urn containing their ashes might even get a spot in the cemetery.

If you're unlucky, it will just sit in some corner... until one day it's disposed of as unclaimed property.

"She's quite pretty, I hope she doesn't get reincarnated into this world again."

Ding San's warm palm gently touched Chu Siwen's cold cheek.

Everyone had left, leaving her alone in the room, facing the young, cold corpse.

Only at this time can Ding San live like a human being.

After a long while, even Ding San left the room.

As she closed the door, she silently said, "Nothing will happen tonight."

……

Drop drop drop.

The phone rang abruptly.

It was Li Xiangqian calling.

Ding San's right eye twitched suddenly, a bad feeling creeping over him. He answered the phone: "Hello, Xiang Qian."

On the other end of the phone, Li Xiangqian's voice was filled with unprecedented panic: "It's appeared... Third Sister! It's the Mirage, the Mirage has appeared!"

"I don't know how many there are, we're trapped, Third Sister! Me and Team Leader Niu are all trapped!"

"East of Xishan Hotel... Xinhui Pharmaceutical Industrial Park!!!"

"Kakaka..."

The sound on the phone quickly turned into a series of highly rhythmic, chilling clicking sounds.

Ding San gripped her phone tightly, using all her strength to prevent it from crushing on the spot.

"Hold on, I'll be right there."

(End of this chapter)