Nightmare Shuttle

A low, beguiling hum echoed softly in the air, the ubiquitous darkness slowly swallowing every speck of light, plunging the quiet building in a heavy, malleable gloom. The scent of roses followed it's traces, softly seeping into every crack and crevice until even the air seemed to take on a sickeningly, sweet taste, clinging to their throats like a honeyed paste.

A hum slowly echoed from the depths of the Institute, the singing voice comparable to that of first-rate tenors echoed out from the thickening fog, each pronunciation so clear, so elegant and so impeccable. But it was also full of unspeakable evil and ostentatiousness, as if a poisonous snake was flicking out its tongue and showing off its fangs. The voice was saturated with both temptation and terror .

The words could not be made out or understood but it was almost as if what he was singing was the most ancient and revered song that boomed and resounded in the battlefields of the God's.

A pale, almost translucent hand slowly stretched out from the darkness, the powerful lines that traced it glowing faintly, as if the gentle moonlight was struggling to illuminate the darkness, the captured light fighting to break free from its gloomy shackles.

The hum in the air gradually deepened, settling into a sonorous laugh, excitement and anticipation seemed to seep into the unfathomable voice.

The space was still and silent, almost as if all life had been sucked away by the darkness.

But from it, a new presence was born, the shadows were slowly torn apart, the slender hand joined by another, until the figure of a tall, man bore down oppressively into the space.

His face was obscured by heavy darkness, but from the gloomy shadows, thin lips stretched into a bloody, exaggerated grin, hands twisting gently along with the soft hum of the tune that left his lips. The figure wore a solid black suit, the white shirt and bright red tie around his neck was neatly folded, and the dazzling, crimson rose on his chest glistened with night dew. In the darkness, the man seemed cult and sly, the wandering phantoms lingering in the darkness around him infinitely.

A voice shattered the silence, sultry and hoarse like a voice from the abyss leading the wandering souls to hell.

"Chu Yi."

The sinister darkness surged powerfully almost as if in connection with his raging emotions–

The evil in the man's grin seemed to deepen as the name slowly spilled from his lips, the arc of this smile like a sharp pressing thinly against a fragile neck. The man's hum sudddnly ceased and with a lazy wave, the deepening darkness seemed to dissipate.

Half of the man's perfect face was still cloaked in the shadows, and the other half is faintly reflected by the rose's unnatural crimson light. It was clearly a handsome and fascinating face, but it only made people feel fear.

The man slowly examined the solid walls, he could feel a gushing heat and chaos building on the other side. The game between them was still on but the clamoring deep in his soul made him unable to resist breaching the agreement too early. He had waited too long for him, so long that he couldn't even remember some past events, he didn't want to wait anymore. The system's harsh warning about using his clones to play as key characters too many times rang in his head but he ignored it with a sneer. 

It couldn't kill him.

He stretched out his hand, the slender and beautiful white fingers were instantly entangled by leafless rose vines winding and intertwining between the gaps. On the vines, scarlet roses suddenly bloomed with a heavy crimson light.

He gently stroked the petals of the roses, watching it shake and rustle with excitement.

"Chu Yi."

"Chu Yi."

"Chu Yi."

The man in the black suit caressed the petals as It was his lover, but his voice never stopped chanting the name that drove him crazy.

Then with an unexplainable smile on his face, leaning down slightly, he kissed the rose. Even the surrounding atmosphere contained a certain unspoken tense atmosphere, shrouded in the pitch-black shadows, dangerous and charming.

From the outside, the man is more like a well-dressed and elegant professor with a heavy sultry atmosphere.

It is a pity that the death and madness of his gestures betrayed him.

The man slowly lifted his head, watching the rose jn his hands curl shyly.

It seems like this little thing decided to follow along as well, although it's true body would not be able to appear in this level of the copy, it didn't seem to care.

His fingers suddenly twisted a petal, abruptly pulling the pale leaf it from the red cluster, the rose was instantly aggrieved and he could vaguely hear a twittering squeak in his consciousness.

His face didn't change and in the same breath, a droplet a scarlet red blood appeared on his fingers and dripped down onto the soft crimson petals.

The red rose bloomed to an even brighter crimson in an instant, the sweet flowery stench of roses intensifying to the point of becoming tangible.

"Boom!–"

As if a barrier had been shattered, life suddenly flooded into the space.

He felt the changes in the atmosphere, sensing that the familiar presence was nearing and slowly stood up, a fanatic grin appearing with the happy rumble in his chest, the rose vines wrapped around his hands suddenly shot out, growing and twisting into colossal plants that instantly flooded the room in a thorny, rose maze, a meandering dark green trail with specks of red making for a beautiful yet sinister sight.

The man walked though the thorny maze, phantom shadows appeared beneath his foot with every step,

One after another, like screaming souls they rose up, the darkness around him rose up, and those souls were sucked in by them just like billowing smoke. 

The fragrance in the air overpowered even the smell of sulfur and blood that naturally emanated from the darkness,

As if in a show of joy, or dissatisfaction, the roses bloomed brightly!

His voice suddenly changed, becoming extremely low and deep, like the hissing of a poisonous snake before it launched a fatal attack, 

"Alright, alright."

The man's grin was malicious and evil.

"The show is almost starting and you'll see him soon."

The roses blossomed a dazzling red.

*****

The blood and black sludge that exploded from the swollen parasite, splattered on the walls of the room in a gruesome display of fetid red flesh and muddy water. The players gaped, unable to process the rapidly changing situation, this was no longer a two pronged attack this was a massacre.

Tang Shun who seemed to be the direct cause of the sudden crisis, immediately received accusing and resentful glares, but hidden under that hostility was also fear and horror. 

They were assaulted with dangers one after the other with no chance to breath or escape. This wasn't what they expected when they agreed to come to the second negative floor, some players even felt a little resentment to Mu Fang.

If he hadn't chosen to venture down here, none of this would have happened.

They couldn't even be sure if they could come out alive! 

He didn't want to die–

A voice in his head seemed to be whispering maliciously,

'You don't have to.'

'What if they're nothing wrong with the water.'

'You just need to know.'

'Push him!"

This is for the good of everyone, if he doesn't die that's his good luck, if he does then he can only say sorry in the next life.'

'They won't blame you, you're doing it for the good of everyone.'

His eyes flashed cruelly, since he didn't want to die someone else would have to die for him.

Yes. It was for the good of everyone–

The players eyes bulged savagely, red veins like winding caterpillars burst from his temples, almost if something inside him was urging and pushing the dark emotions in his heart,

The overwhelming dissatisfaction and fear in their hearts made these players make a vicious decision. 

Mu Fang's voice immediately piped up in the back, trying to soothe the agitated players and appealing for them to focus on the current situation. 

Although Chao Bin was still feeling the effects of the larvae venom, it still couldn't stop the scoff that came from his lips.

His Messiah Act would be much more believable if he wasn't standing protected by all the others as cannon fodder. Tang Shun's hands on his shoulders tightened, his brows furrowed the dangerous feeling didn't seem to be from the sludge encroaching on them.

Something else was coming.

Although the players were eventually appeased with the reminder that Mu Fang had graciously given them a life saving talisman but the already fractured player group seemed to be heading for the worse.

Chu Yi didn't care about the happenings behind them his entire focus was on the gradually expanding hole that had been revealed from the tubes fall. The feeling of frivolous and dangerous malice made his heart palpitate sharply, his eyes darkened to deep red slits and a cold smile suddenly appeared at the corner of his lips.

"Scree!––"

"Bang––"

One after another the parasites exploded into a shower of rotten flesh and liquid, harsh and ear piercing screeches like wailing babies echoed unceasingly in their ears, they seemed to have completely lost the ability to reforming.. It seemed that the black sludge had the ability to bypass this ability. Although in the end they didn't have to figure out a way to kill them but none of the players felt thankful for that fact.

With the continuous flow of water, the players were pushed back farther and farther, until they could only barely occupy a small radius of 20 meters in the room. And even then this space would not last long, in due time they would be surrounded by water.

One player couldn't help but speak up hesitantly, 

"Maybe it will only hurt the monsters, I mean we walked through it to get here...."

The others were silent, it would be good if turned out to not be harmful but what if it was.

No one here wanted to risk their lives for a chance.

"What do we do..."

The black sludge was getting closer and closer and a few of the players eyes flashed as they started thinking of ways to save themselves. Even if they were teammates, in the end they still had to ensure their own hides first–

They looked down,

It practically surrounded them now!

The players scrambled on top of the fallen shelves and desks desperately, shoving to find a stable footing. 

Chu Yi jumped onto an intact shelf, glanced down at the sludge at his feet and looked backs towards the hole. 

Presumably they're only means of escape.

An anxious player suddenly pointed to Tang Shun, "This is all your damn fault. You started a fire, so our oxygen will be less soon enough, you made this weird black sludge come here and now you've given, us no way out! Are you intentionally trying to get us killed!"

Tang Shun glanced at him fainly, disdaining to even answer him.

The players face turned red in anger, the finger that pointed at him trembling faintly, unexpectedly the man said something next that immediately made Tang Shun's eyes dilate into angry slits, " When you die later you monstrous freak, I'll make sure your little lover follows you to cross the yellow river–"

Mu Fang open his mouth to speak but before anyone could react, one of the players suddenly let out a thunderous yell and flung himself across the room!