Chapter 44: Chapter Forty-Four: Hitting the Wall?

The characters on the signpost had long been worn by wind and rain, and had already peeled off.

Only the final stop could be seen, a place called X Gate Village.

Withdrawing his gaze, K looked at Tang Luo: "Monk, what do you think?"

As one of the only two 'seniors,' in K's view, only this monk could be consulted to accomplish the mission.

Perhaps they could help each other then.

As for the other newcomers, just not dragging them down would be enough.

K did not count on them.

Wait a moment.

Tang Luo looked up at the sky.

This rain darkened the sky, making it hard for them to judge what time it currently was.

If it were still early, waiting here would likely see the bus arrive.

That was the safest way to get to the terminus.

But this bus obviously heading to the city's edge likely had its last run at around five thirty.

Once they missed the last bus, they, who knew almost nothing about every aspect of the mission,

would not find the terminus so easily.

The mission was to go to the terminus and spend a night there.

It was clearly divided into two parts.

If they couldn't even find the terminus, the mission would surely fail.

If they found it but couldn't stay there for a night, the mission would likewise fail.

There was no scenario where I would not complete the mission, let the big shot do it, and just get by.

Either succeed or fail.

Just two outcomes.

Wait?

K frowned slightly; this laid‑back attitude was obviously not his style.

If the bus had already left, waiting here would be wasting time.

He glanced toward a side road, where a faintly visible house lay at the end of his sight.

"I plan to go there and ask, see if anyone's around, gather some info," K said, not seeking anyone else's opinion, pulling up his hood and walking straight into the rain curtain.

His outermost layer was a windbreaker, completely waterproof.

He paid no heed to the heavy rain outside.

The others had no recourse.

Step outside, and you're a soaked chicken.

Especially Mi Ke, who kept rubbing his arms, obviously chilled.

The temperature here was clearly lower than in the real world.

Aunt Shu Fen, however, kindly took off her apron and gave it to Mi Ke.

It couldn't keep warm, but it could at least provide some cover.

"Wearing so little, you're letting everyone see," Aunt Shu Fen said.

Mi Ke gave an embarrassed laugh.

"Tch, the fake stuff you squeeze out—I don't give a damn."

That remark seemed to prick Lin Ziang, who couldn't help but speak up.

Mi Ke's embarrassed expression became even more obvious.

His body even shrank a little.

"How do you kids talk! Just now, who couldn't even roll their eyes out!" Aunt Shu Fen glared with both eyes.

"You..."

"What's it to you, you want to pick a fight?"

"I..."

"Oh, you really want to fight, these youngsters nowadays—"

Though she said that, Aunt Shu Fen was itching to act, almost raising the broom in her hand.

Obviously, the quarrel she had in mind was certainly not a gentleman's war of words.

"Crazy woman!"

Lin Ziang cursed and stepped back to the side.

Let me clarify: Aunt Shu Fen's stature is only a bit shorter than that of Mao Mei.

Here, Mao Mei refers to the kind that has been past its expiry date for over twenty years.

Her arms are thick, almost one and a half times Lin Ziang's.

If they really fought, Lin Ziang estimates he wouldn't be her match.

"Amitabha."

Tang Luo uttered a Buddhist chant, halting the escalation: "The poor monk intends to go check out that house."

K's silhouette had already vanished into the rain curtain, and it was unknown whether he had reached the house.

Because of the rain, the sky wasn't overly dark, but visibility was actually quite low.

Tang Luo stood up and pulled the white hood on his back over his head.

His outfit comes with a hood.

Usually they are set aside; when needed they are put on to ward off wind and rain—pulling them down a little can still shield most of the face even at night.

"Little Master, first give me a blessing before you go."

Shufen said.

"Okay."

Tang Luo pressed his palms together and chanted a few lines of sutra that nobody could understand.

"Is that all?"

Shufen moved her hands and feet.

Tang Luo nodded, said nothing more, walked into the rain curtain and headed toward the house.

If those three people had sharp enough eyes.

They would notice that the rain falling on Tang Luo's clothes could not wet them at all.

It would just slide off the clothes, leaving no trace.

Walking up to the two buildings, K raised his head and surveyed the two adjacent houses.

The outside was the roughest cement surface, with no tiles or any exterior decoration.

There was a worn‑looking small door that seemed aged, beside it a push‑open window, outside of which was a security bar.

Looking through the window, all that could be seen was a pitch‑black expanse, merely a faint reflection of oneself.

The screws on the security bar were blotched with rust, showing they had been there for years.

K reached out and slapped the small door, shouting loudly, "Anyone there!"

He wasn't sure whether these two adjacent houses were inhabited.

In such overcast rainy weather, visibility was low both inside and out.

If there were someone inside the house, they ought to have turned on a light.

Moreover, on the road only these two isolated houses stood.

As expected, after knocking twice on the door, there was no response from inside the house.

K then threw a heavy punch and kicked up with his foot.

If nobody was there, he would just leave.

He never expected that kicking like that would cause the door in front of him to collapse with a bang.

It crashed heavily onto the floor inside the house, kicking up a lot of dust.

"Cough cough cough!"

K inadvertently inhaled a big gulp, coughing as he stepped back.

"Nobody." K glanced inside the door.

He could barely make out an empty space, with only a few pieces of old furniture remaining.

Besides dust, the most abundant thing was spiderwebs.

Retreating, K followed the same procedure and kicked open the door of another house.

Likewise, an empty house with nobody inside.

It looked a bit cleaner than the previous one.

At least the dust kicked up wasn't as much; having learned his lesson, K didn't inhale too much this time.

After thinking, K entered this house.

He didn't rashly go up to the second floor, just wandered around the first floor.

This place had been moved out quite thoroughly.

K took a brief look but couldn't find anything.

He was about to leave as soon as he stepped out.

But just as he stepped out of the door and was walking outside, his steps suddenly stopped.

A look of confusion gradually appeared on his face.

"I'm not going out?"

K widened his eyes; before him was a pitch‑black "room".

Behind him was the door he had just walked through.

K suddenly turned around and looked behind.

The door he had kicked to the side was still on the ground, half exposed to the outside light, half hidden in darkness.

Light shining into the pitch‑black house actually gave a faint sense of a beam.

One could see dust drifting within the "light".

It was practically like moving microorganisms.

Clearly this is a phenomenon that only appears when the sun is strong, yet it strangely showed up in this overcast rain.

K felt his heart start to race.

His movements sped up as well.

After turning, he lunged forward with a sprinting posture and burst out the door.

He plunged into a stretch of darkness.

K's steps had to stop.

His toes pressed against the front of his shoes, causing some pain.

Once again, he re‑entered the house.

"Ghost wall?"

K warily surveyed his surroundings.

He had already prepared to release the skill.

This time doesn't count; K has experienced three missions in total, two successes and one failure.

He had two skills.

Could it be that this must be used first here?

But in a ghost-wall situation, no matter which skill, it seems none are suitable and it's not easy to resolve.

Forget it.

No time to dilly-dally; when danger strikes, one must act decisively.

K once again ran toward the door.

This time, as he approached, his speed suddenly dropped and he stopped.

One foot was outside, the other foot was also outside.

"None..."

After confirming his direction was correct, K's foot inside the door suddenly pushed.

His whole body lunged out.

Unlike the feeling of stepping on the ground, the sensation under K's feet was wood.

He lowered his head, his right foot stepping on the wooden plank.

Once again, he returned to the room.

K didn't even know how he had gotten in; his eyes hadn't blinked at all.

He maintained his posture without moving.

K listened quietly; there was not a single sound inside the house.

Only his breathing, his heartbeat, and the rain outside could be heard.

He began to retreat step by step, back to the doorway, and continued retreating.

Seeing that he had finally truly left the house, K felt a surge of joy and suddenly turned around.

"..."

His expression of astonishment froze; he saw a door.

Light streamed in from outside the door, already much dimmer than when he had just entered.

He took a forceful gulp of air, and K felt his breathing grow difficult.

It seemed as if something had smeared over his mouth and nose, and also over his eyes.

Ghost wall, or ghost covering the face?

"Come out!"

"You come out!"

K roared, his voice echoing inside the house.

It drowned out the rain outside.

K bent down, lifted the door panel, and began to swing it, as if fighting an invisible enemy.

Next, he slammed the door panel hard toward the window.

The window, covered with black paper inside, shattered; the door panel struck the anti-theft bars, producing a loud bang.

K once again rushed toward the doorway.

Next, his whole face felt as if it had slammed into a wall.

Pain and numbness spread, and tears and snot streamed uncontrollably.

With his eyes closed, he could see nothing before him.

He instinctively reached out, seeming to grab the door frame, and pulled hard outward.

Raindrops fell on his body, and K felt a surge of joy.

He dared not open his eyes, continuing to lower his head and charge forward.

So closing one's eyes could actually break it?

Next, his head seemed to have hit something—by feel, it was a hand?

Was he being held down by a 'person' on his head?

Without the slightest hesitation.

K raised his hand and unleashed his skill 'Fierce Wind Cut'!

A pale blue light appeared in his palm, forming a sharp, arc-shaped gust.

It cut toward the obstacle before him.

The obstacle's other hand swung outward, the back of the hand striking the pale blue wind blade.

Like shattering waves, it was directly dispersed.

At that moment, K also opened his eyes.

"Is it you?"

He froze; what stood before him was not the ghost he had imagined.

But a person.

The one who called himself Xuanzang, the monk.

"Indeed, I am the humble monk; your appearance, benefactor, is quite unique." Tang Luo said, loosening his grip.

The hand that had been pressing K's head was smeared with some spider silk, which the rain washed away.

K reached for his own head.

Only then did he realize that, at some point, his head and face had been covered in a large amount of spider silk.

"Cough cough cough."

K coughed loudly, face flushed red.