Long-term salvation

Just as the girl was hiding the knife in the sleeve under her hospital gown, the door of the ward was suddenly pushed open from the outside.

The tall man's back slammed hard against the wall. The huge impact made him spit out a mouthful of blood. The blood soaked the gaps between his white teeth, giving the serial killer who was labeled "single challenger" a slightly rusty taste.

Single Duel: Katsuyama Chuanshin slowly stood up while clinging to the wall, looking gloomily at the young man who entered through the dilapidated ward door.

"Mr. Rhodes!"

Asuka Jing Muji cried out in surprise, tumbling off the bed and even falling to the ground. The girl straightened herself up and embraced Rhode—but he merely flicked her smooth forehead, causing her to yelp in pain and step back half a step.

The next second, Rhodes clenched his right fist and hit the heavy punch that was coming at him!

As their fists collided, Rhodes felt a dull pain, but the serial killer opposite him clenched his teeth, his facial muscles twitching, and breaths mixed with pain escaped from his lips.

Rhodes approached, twisted his torso, and hit the challenger in the face with a right hook. The latter had not yet fully recovered from the tinnitus and broken jaw, and was shocked to find that his ribs were hit by two more heavy punches!

Pain, the long-lost pain, flooded into Dandun's brain, making him scream in pain as shrill as a child falling down. However, the pain of breathing caused by the rib fragments piercing his lungs made the scream swallowed back into his throat.

Dandun still wanted to continue fighting, but he just waved his fists randomly. However, with the crisp sound of joints being broken, this ridiculous counterattack was immediately strangled.

"Cough cough..."

Rhode slapped Dandiao twice to help him wake up, then grabbed his hair, made his extremely tasteless face look at him, and asked calmly:

"Why are you here?"

"I...I don't want to...come...time! Time's almost up!"

Rhodes rolled his eyes, carrying the single-handedly, walked to the window of the ward and pressed his face against the glass. The darkness outside the window was wriggling, and insatiable hunger and hatred and malice penetrated through the bloodshot eyeballs, sucking out the moisture in the lens bit by bit.

"I'll ask you one last time, how did you—"

"John Walker!!!" Shengshan squeezed out the name from between his teeth, causing Rhode to frown slightly. The serial killer then gasped for a few breaths and said with a wry smile, "He told me... that as long as I kill this woman... I won't be haunted by nightmares anymore... I thought you knew..."

"You certainly don't."

Rhodes opened the window and left him to the darkness outside with a desperate cry of single combat.

A creepy chewing sound was then heard. The spirit of this man would become food for those dark monsters. They would savor this hard-earned delicious meat, and even better, they would remember the taste of this man.

Nightmares are with you, and even death cannot end them.

Chapter 84: Dreams Come True: I Am the One (2/2)

"Fortunately, I was lucky today and arrived just in time."

Rhode turned his head to look at the girl with an expectant look on her face. He sighed, stepped forward, stretched out his hands to hold her in his arms, patted her back gently, and said comfortingly:

"Thanks a lot."

"I've always been fighting," the girl hugged Rhodes tightly, even though the magazines in the chest pouch hurt. Tears as bright as morning dew gathered in the corners of her eyes and flowed down the curve of her cheeks, leaving a dark mark on the camouflage. "Just like Mr. Rhodes, I've always resisted and fought. I've bitten off those people's fingers and cut bloody wounds on their faces with a knife."

"You did very well, very well, Miss Asuka Ikiji."

"Call me Muji," the girl folded her arms tighter, her words firm and unyielding.

The girl turned her face away to hide the blush that she didn't want to show to others.

"...Okay, Muji."

Rhodes touched the girl's head and asked her to let go. The same shock wave as before was surging along the corridor. This seemed to be a precursor, meaning that a new consciousness had entered this place again.

New consciousness, new serial killer?

Rod twisted his neck, making it make a crisp sound, then put the rifle on his back and checked the holster on his lower waist and the revolver inside.

"You stay here. I'll get more intel," Rhode said. He saw his eagerness in the girl's eyes. Speaking of which, Rhode hadn't fought humans much, whether with guns or in close combat. "About two minutes? I'll be back in two minutes. Whether there are new enemies or not, I'll wake you up."

"Tomorrow... tomorrow night, can you come earlier?"

"It's up to you, Muji. Try to control this power, and then use it to call upon me."

As Rhodes spoke, he stepped out of the ward and immediately saw a man with a ferocious face.

The moment he saw Rhodes' figure, confusion and anxiety appeared on the man's face. He said impatiently:

"Hey, when you came out of that room, did you kill that woman?"

"Not yet," Rhodes shrugged. "Who are you?"

"What does this have to do with you?" The man frowned, his eyes moving down to see the holster on Rhodes' waist. This made him subconsciously reach behind him, where he found a small knife specially used for skinning. "I'm warning you, if you delay any longer, you will be torn to pieces by those monsters!"

"I have something to ask you."

"Huh? Why should I—"

Rhodes didn't waste any more words. He fired two shots and shattered the man's knee. The all-seeing eye mask revealed that this man was also a serial killer, named Sonoda Jun, and his name was as good as his name.

Blood slowly spread out under the man's body, and his painful wails echoed back and forth along the corridor, attracting the turbid eyes of those wandering nearby.

“Hu…ah…ah…”

Peeling Noodles·Sonoda Jun collapsed to the ground, supporting his upper body with both hands, and the pool of blood with his blurred face imprint was immediately stepped on by a combat boot.

"How did you enter this dream world?" Rhodes asked. He raised his left hand slightly, and with a thought, a lit cigarette appeared between his fingers. He took a deep breath, exhaled the smoke, and kicked the man to the ground.

Amidst the wailing, Rhodes crushed the serial killer's knees with his boots, causing more blood to spurt out from the broken wound.

"answer my question."

"A man! A guy named John Walker, he sent me a dream machine, for free!" Hitoshi Sonoda cried, he retched a few times, and screamed in the constant pain - these serial killers are nothing but despicable cowards, they enjoy the pain of their victims, but are afraid of the same pain being inflicted on themselves, "That machine... He said we must wear this to sleep at night, and return the call, otherwise he will make what we did public! He is monitoring us!"

"Name," Rhodes deadpanned.

“DC mini!!!”①

The serial killer cried out with tears streaming down his face, his voice mingled with a hint of a monster's roar. Rhodes looked up and saw some staggering monsters walking towards him. They were covered in dust and mist like a sandstorm, their bodies were dry, and the skin on the six palms of their six arms was wrinkled, as if they had been dried out and dehydrated for thousands of years.

[Pollution points in the other world increased by 1]

Rhodes raised his foot, turned and walked towards Asuka Jingmuji's ward. He had collected enough information.

"Wait, please, don't leave me here!"

Hearing this, Rhodes turned sideways and saw the serial killer crawling towards him with his hands, his terrified face full of pleading.

After thinking for a moment, Rhodes walked over, reached out and lifted his collar, and said with a smile:

"That woman in the ward, I'm the only one who can kill her. You murderers, weak as ants...ah, how disgusting! Are you worthy of being like me? But never mind—there's someone else, like that John Walker. Tell him that this dream is controlled by me, and so is that woman."

"She's my prey, and I'm obviously not sharing her with anyone."

"Remember, you are just a bunch of boy scouts wielding sticks, and I am the murderer who enjoys your screams in the night."

After saying that, Rhodes gently patted Sonoda Jun's face, and the next second he became furious and nailed his palm to the ground with a dagger!

Ignoring the cries for mercy behind him, Rhode walked briskly into the ward. Seeing Asuka Ikiki, whose expression had returned to calm, he smiled and said:

"Okay, it should be enough for at least a week or two, long enough for me to finish my business in the United States and come pick you up."

"Hmm..." The girl hugged Rhodes gently. Feeling his suddenly tense body, she asked in a low voice, "Mr. Rhodes must have a lot of cute girls who like him, right?"

"I don't want to brag, but - yes, it is true."

"How cunning."

"Eh?"

"No...it's nothing." The girl let go of his hand, wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, and a smile appeared on the corners of her mouth. Her eyebrows curved into a beautiful arc. "Please kill me, just like in the past."

Rhodes blinked, instinctively feeling something strange, but the footsteps of the monsters outside the door were approaching. They had obviously finished eating the serial killer's body and were now approaching this place.

[Pollution points in the other world increased by 1]

There is really not much time left, and we cannot waste any more.

"Good night, then, Muji."

"Good night, Mr. Rhodes."

The trigger was pulled, the world collapsed, and a dazzling white light bloomed with the girl's body as the center, engulfing everything around it.

Breathe… breathe… breathe… breathe…

Rhode felt as if something was pressing down on his chest. He struggled to breathe, opened his eyes, and met a pair of cat pupils. The cat's face was filled with frustration, evident to everyone. It looked like it didn't particularly enjoy being on its owner's bed—was it being used as a pillow, or perhaps a hug?

"Pickman? Why are you here? Wait, how did you open my car door?! It's so cold!"

After closing the car door, Rod wrapped Pickman in a small blanket like a cat and threw him on the passenger seat.

He yawned and let sleepiness drag him into a deep sleep again, but this time he didn't dream.

The light of dawn is slowly emerging from a corner of the sky.

①DC mini-series releases the animated film "Paprika"

Chapter 85: Ghost Invasion: Moving In (1/2)

Like most places, the new day in Arkham begins with the residents greeting each other. The Christmas holidays are long over, and the breadwinners of every household must dress up and leave home, dropping their children off at school or daycare before heading to work.

The early morning sun shines on these people who are busy working for their families, but it cannot bring them much warmth, because the power of the cold winter has not yet subsided. The dirty water from the slightly melted snow is lurking in every tiny hole on the sidewalk, waiting for those who are not alert enough to step on it.

Today was actually a little different. Trucks drove in from outside the town one after another, all bearing the Atlas Corporation logo. This caused rumors to spread throughout the town, and even rumors spread that Atlas Corporation was planning to turn this place into a tourist attraction. This all ended quickly with the news that Hill Manor on the outskirts of town had been purchased, and the townspeople could only sympathize with the unscrupulous buyer of the haunted house.

Because of this, a three-row sedan with a luggage cart behind it would naturally not attract the attention of the townspeople.

The packed car drove smoothly along the town's flat road toward Hill Manor, stopping only briefly when passing a trash can. The window rolled down, and a little girl leaned out with great effort to throw the trash in. When she pulled back, the car was filled with encouragement and praise for her.

The car, filled with joy and happiness, continued driving until it arrived at Hill Manor.

Hugh Crane and the Crane family's father got out of the car and saw four large trucks neatly lined up, their rear hatches open, facing the villa. A black RV and four tarpaulin-covered Hummers were parked further away.

A dozen workers in matching uniforms were moving furniture and other goods, some smoking, but each had an unstoppable smile on their face. Faint voices of conversation and shouting could be heard from there, bringing a touch of life to this desolate villa.

"What's wrong?" Olivia Crane asked. Although she was a mother of five children, the years had not left many traces on her face. "Did we come to the wrong place?"

"No, honey, get the kids out of the car... Steven, get your brother and sister to put their coats on!"

"Good dad."

Steven Crane, the eldest son, jumped out of the car and stepped onto the wet road. The snow had been cleared long ago, but traces of its presence remained. The boy shivered in the cold wind and then turned to fold the coats of his youngest siblings.

The two youngest children in the Crane family are twins named Luke (boy) and Eleanor (girl). Their faces are filled with curiosity about everything around them. Even the cold and lonely background of the villa is painted with bright and cheerful colors by the children's inner expectations.

The next to get off the bus was the third child of the Crane family, Theodora. She was a sensitive girl and wore thicker clothes than the others, but this was obviously more than she needed to keep warm.

"Go a little further, Theodora. I need to get off," Shirley said. She was the second child in the family, and unlike her eldest brother, she had a certain authority of an older sister. "Ah, my clothes seem to be caught... Hmm? What are you looking at?"

Shirley looked up and saw that her brothers and sisters were all staring at the forest beside the villa. She followed the direction of their gaze and looked -

A blonde girl stood there, her face delicate and lovely yet shimmering with lifelessness, like a puppet. A hole ripped through her forehead, and a swirling purple light emerged from within. Thin streams of light flowed down the girl's face and neck, spreading throughout her body like the threads controlling a puppet.

"!!!"

Shirley was shocked by this horrific scene. It felt like her head had been struck hard, and the tinnitus in her ears turned into thousands of fine needles stirring in her mind, causing waves of piercing pain. Her eyes opened wide subconsciously, but her gaze was fixed firmly on the blonde girl.

"That is……"

The vortex slowly spun, crushing memories and cognition bit by bit, expanding the boundaries of imagination to infinite realms that no mortal brain could ever reach. A melody, a melody not heard on Earth, was playing. Thousands of voices sang in unison, and an invisible force caused five children's mouths to speak simultaneously:

"praise……"

Who to praise?

"Praise the unity of all things..."

A cat's meow suddenly hit Shirley's ears, bringing her back to her strange state. When she looked again, the blonde girl not far away had bent down and let the pure black cat climb up her arm and onto her shoulder.

Hallucination?