Chapter 577.2: The Voices From Hell

Yinyin swung the flashlight toward it. “This way!”

Seeing her advance, Yang Xiaoyang followed nervously. “Yinyin... maybe we should go back.”

"Wait! It’s just up ahead, we’re almost there!"

Following the source of that strange sound, Yinyin walked on eagerly.

She had already begun to forget whether she was doing this to help her friend find the perfect hiding place, or simply to hear more clearly what that voice was saying.

Perhaps it was both.

Yang Xiaoyang watched her back nervously. She felt things were drifting off the track, though she could not say exactly where it went wrong.

Yinyin seemed very familiar with this place.

Had she been here before?

She had never come down alone... We really should go back soon...

It would not matter if it was just her. But if they both disappeared, the lord would be furious.

The two walked through the pitch-dark basement until they reached a cluttered storage room. Behind a pile of discarded wooden crates stood a rusted iron door. Without a careful look, it was almost invisible.

At first glance, Yang Xiaoyang had mistaken it for scrap leaning against the wall. "What’s this..."

Yinyin’s eyes shone as she stared at the door. "I don’t know, but this must be it."

Yang Xiaoyang finally voiced the question gnawing at her heart. "Yinyin... how did you find this place?"

Yinyin shot her a strange look. "You didn’t hear it?"

Yang Xiaoyang froze. "... Hear?"

Weren’t they alone?

Could there be a third person?

Her little face paled.

"Yes!" Yinyin nodded hard, her voice full of excitement. "When I prayed silently that we could find the door, I heard the voice! I couldn’t hear the words clearly, but I could feel it saying so much, it was inviting us to come!"

"Heard..."

What did she actually hear?!

Yang Xiaoyang looked at her blankly, just about to ask, when Yinyin had already rushed forward, grabbing the rusted handle and yanking with all her strength. "... Xiaoyang! Help me!"

Staring at the immovable door, Xiaoyang sighed helplessly, "Wait, Yinyin... we don’t even have a key. Pulling won’t work..."

"What are you talking about! There’s no keyhole, it must be made to pull open... Ah! I think it’s moving! Quick, help me..."

Her words stopped suddenly. Her body froze, and her eyes dulled.

Before Yang Xiaoyang could react, Yinyin let go of the handle and collapsed to the ground.

"Yinyin!"

Was she electrocuted?

Or... was it gas?

Yang Xiaoyang’s face went white, but she did not flee. Clenching her teeth, she rushed over, dragged Yinyin away from the door.

But even away from it, Yinyin did not wake. If not for her faint breath, she looked dead.

"What... What happened?" Staring at the iron door, Yang Xiaoyang’s eyes filled with fear. Not daring to stay another second, she dragged the unconscious Yinyin back toward the basement entrance, then up the stairs to seek help.

It was pitch-black outside. It hadn’t felt long, yet somehow night had fallen.

At the north wing door, she looked around and everything was empty. There was not a soul in sight.

Strange...

They had been gone nearly half an hour, but no one had come searching, as if they had been forgotten.

This oddity stirred unease in her chest. But worried for Yinyin, she gathered her courage and yelled, "Miss fainted! Is anyone here, come quickly!"

Her cry was cut short by a rough, guttural groan.

"Arghhh..."

A woman stood in the corridor by the stairwell, head and shoulders drooping, neck twisted. Her hollow eyes stared straight at Yang Xiaoyang.

The sight was unspeakably eerie. Her gaze was colder than death.

As the woman staggered closer, Yang Xiaoyang swallowed hard and stumbled back. "D-Don’t come closer."

Her legs moved of their own accord, dragging her rigid body toward the stairs. Her instincts screamed that if they were caught, it was over.

The moment she rushed into the stairwell, the woman started to move quicker, snarling as she lurched forward.

Not daring to look back, Yang Xiaoyang threw her weight against the basement door, slammed it shut before jamming a steel bar through the handle.

Almost instantly, a blast rang through the air as something smashed against it, rattling the door.

"

Ahhh

!"

She shrieked, stumbling back, eyes wide at the trembling wood.

She had no idea what was wrong with that woman, nor what was happening outside.

Everyone had always been so kind to her. Why had they suddenly turned into something so strange?

The pounding stopped as the thing outside seemed to wait.

In the dark, Yang Xiaoyang held her breath, eyes locked on the door.

She could hear it, heavy breathing pressed right against the wood.

It was waiting...

If she so much as cracked the door, it would rush in and tear her apart.

But why?

What had happened to everyone?

Shaking in the dark, time dragged. Just as her eyelids began to droop, a faint sound came from behind her.

At first she froze, but then she heard her name.

"Xiaoyang..."

The voice was like a candle in the dark.

Tears sprang to her eyes as she rushed to Yinyin’s side, gripping her limp hand.

"Yinyin!"

"Sorry..."

"It’s okay! You woke up, that’s all that matters!"

"No... no..."

Yinyin shook her head painfully, clutching her skull, muttering, "It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have gone to the door... It got angry. It’s angry because of me..."

"... Angry?" Xiaoyang was bewildered.

Her gut told her what Yinyin was saying was connected to what was happening outside.

That voice...?

But Yinyin did not explain. She just repeated the words, rocking in self-reproach. "Sorry, sorry..."

"Yinyin! Calm down!" Yang Xiaoyang gripped her shoulders, but Yinyin suddenly clutched her hand.

"Xiaoyang... help me..."

"What do you need me to do? I’ll do anything!"

A relieved smile flickered on Yinyin’s pained face. "Tie me up."

"Tie... tie you up?!"

"Yes!" Sweat streamed down her brow. "Hurry... quickly!"

Seeing her strain to hold something back, Xiaoyang remembered that woman outside. Her blood ran cold.

Could Yinyin...?

"... No time..." Her strength faltered, eyes dimming.

"It’s okay..."

For some reason, Yang Xiaoyang felt no fear anymore.

She gripped Yinyin’s hand tightly and muttered, "I’ll stay with you..."

A lamb in the fold would one day be eaten, no matter how fond the shepherd’s family was of it. That fate was set the day it was born.

Why worry about it? Better to cherish each happy day.

Her bond with Yinyin was real and unconditional.

If, in the end, it was Yinyin who ended her... That wasn’t so bad.

Suddenly, gunfire cracked outside. Then came guttural roars, chaotic footsteps, and the sound of steel cleaving bone.

"Damn it, enough already!"

Yang Xiaoyang dimly heard a voice shouting words she couldn’t understand.

A thud was heard, then something splattered against the door.

The stranger kept cursing. "Fuck, this shitty quest is only worth 10,000, such a scam! Wait, I don’t even have money, damn it!"

Then a loud blast came next. The weakened door crashed inward.

Yang Xiaoyang froze as she stared at a figure in black armor standing in the doorway. His helmet hid his face.

In his right hand lay a rifle and in his left, a short blade. Blood dripped off his armor and torn flesh clung onto it.

"Your name?"

That, she understood.

Though trembling, she answered. "X-Xiaoyang."

The man let out a relieved breath and muttered something bizarre.

"Quest complete... Don’t forget to leave a good rating."