Discours étrange

Chapitre 23

This awe-inspiring electric dragon vanished in an instant.

All the energy fluctuations returned to normal, and I was still in the same place, still in another world.

What happened? Why did it disappear just like that, even though we knew lightning would make a lot of noise but produce little effect?

It seemed that the lightning bolt had exhausted the storm's power, and the rain began to subside. Several smaller lightning bolts followed, but none of them helped.

The surrounding scenery became clearer and clearer. I finally understood what was happening.

If I'm not mistaken, I'm on the rooftop of a tall building. It's not your average twenty or thirty-story building; judging by the pointed spire in front of me and the circular platform under my feet, it's at least a landmark building in the area. It's certainly no less than two hundred meters tall; the spike alone is tens of meters high.

It's precisely because of this high and prominent location that the lightning is so concentrated around me. And the reason why the most powerful lightning bolt, which was very close to me, didn't have its intended effect is quite obvious.

Lightning rod, damn lightning rod!

How could there not be a lightning rod at the top of such a tall building?

I looked up at the spike; it had destroyed my last hope.

I didn't have the strength to look for the next thunderstorm; I had lost all hope. I was almost out of breath.

The rain quickly subsided, until I could no longer see the raindrops, and then it was completely over.

Suddenly, without warning, a powerful wave appeared behind me. It spun around, generating a tremendous suction force that shattered everything in its path.

Before I could even look back, everything had changed.

From ecstasy to despair, and then suddenly rescued from the brink of death, my emotions were overwhelmed by such a huge shift. I only had time to take a long-awaited breath of air, and as I did so, I turned back around.

Then I held my breath again.

Oh my god, how many more tests will my heart have to endure?

Behind me is a sphere.

A ball of light, slightly larger than a basketball, floating in the air, orange with some blue and white flecks.

A thunderstorm had just passed, and this sphere of light rescued me from this other world. The name of the sphere of light has already taken root in my heart.

Ball lightning!

A natural phenomenon that scientists have studied for over a hundred years, publishing more than two thousand research papers on, yet still cannot provide a reasonable explanation.

It is certain that ball lightning contains many times more energy than a regular lightning bolt; such energy is enough to vaporize any metal upon contact.

But what puzzled the scientists was... Good heavens, this ball of lightning was slowly moving towards me. I dared not move, because retreating might attract more ball lightning.

The ball lightning suddenly accelerated, and I watched helplessly as it struck my left arm.

Yes, that's what puzzles scientists. Sometimes ball lightning can instantly vaporize anyone who touches it, while other times, like now, nothing happens at all.

I even felt a little cool, and then the electric ball disappeared right before my eyes.

No one can understand why such an energy-rich ball of electricity would suddenly disappear, just as it is inexplicable why it could gather so much energy in the first place.

But that's something scientists should worry about; for me, it's been a long and winding road, but I've finally returned.

When facing death, people experience certain things and forget others. But once the threat of death passes and everything returns to normal, people always revert to their original selves.

And now, I can barely stand up.

It wasn't because of the strong wind at a high altitude, but because of the severe muscle spasms in my legs. I've had cramps before when swimming, and at this moment I suspected that every muscle in my legs was cramping. The muscles in my upper body and waist were also quite tired, but compared to the excruciating pain in my lower body, those were negligible.

I couldn't hold on for more than a few seconds before collapsing to the ground, sweat pouring from every pore, and then the world around me began to spin.

Before I passed out, I thought about what I had looked down on as I collapsed. The buildings below looked like ants. This skyscraper must be much taller than I had imagined, at least two hundred meters. But the streets below were a sea of red, densely packed. Were they all people? Red-clad people? People dressed in red? The downpour had just ended, and there were already so many red people on the streets. Where was I?

I arrived in Taipei.

The place I was in before I fainted was not two hundred meters away, nor four hundred meters away, but the very top of Taipei 101, the world's tallest building at 508 meters.

Taipei 101 is always the focus of Taipei residents' attention. During the afternoon's torrential rain and thunder, more than one photography enthusiast pointed their cameras at Taipei 101, hoping to capture a photo of lightning striking the building. As a result, they not only took photos, but two photographers who persisted until the rain stopped also noticed a ball lightning that suddenly appeared on the top of Taipei 101 through their telephoto lenses.

Of course, they also saw me suddenly appear beside the ball of lightning, and one of them unfortunately dropped his precious camera. Within half a minute, the Taipei City Police Department received two emergency calls about Taipei 101; both photography enthusiasts unanimously said they might have seen aliens.

I was rushed to National Taiwan University Hospital for emergency treatment. My symptoms included dehydration, energy deficiency, and mild cerebral hypoxia. These could be resolved with intravenous glucose and hyperbaric oxygen therapy, but the extent of the overuse of my lower limb muscles was astonishing. The attending physician was shocked; he had never seen similar symptoms before and couldn't even imagine how someone could use both legs to the point of all the muscles cramping at once. I could only rest in bed for two weeks, after which I could try rehabilitative leg exercises. The doctor said that if it weren't for the timely rescue and my good physical condition, my legs would have become necrotic, and there was a risk of amputation.

I walked endlessly in that other world for so long, and because of the strange rules of that world, I didn't feel any strain at the time. But once the master returned to the normal world, he had to pay back everything he owed.

It's October 1st now, six days since I entered this other world. That's not a short time, but it's not a long time either. No one can walk for six days without eating or drinking, let alone without breathing. But in another world, I feel like my biological clock has been running for more than 144 hours.

I was in a private room, and from the moment I woke up, several people from the "Security Bureau" interrogated me repeatedly. From the few belongings I had left behind, they already knew that this person who suddenly appeared on the top of Taipei 101 was from mainland China, so it was natural for them to be nervous. To them, my identity, my purpose, and how I got there were all major questions.

I thought about it and felt there was nothing to hide. So I told them about being pulled into another dimension by a little girl, only omitting the part about the Holy Maiden Cult. As for Zhou Qianqian's true identity, I asked them to find out through their own channels with the mainland police.

I thought they would dismiss what I said, but to my surprise, although they were astonished, they didn't insist that I was talking nonsense. Later, while watching Taiwanese programs in the hospital room, I learned that the atmosphere surrounding the supernatural is very strong in Taiwanese society. Many variety shows invite "masters" who all have elaborate theories, and many celebrities openly share their ghost encounters.

So after several days of detailed questioning, these people left. But I didn't get any peace and quiet. I could often hear the slogans of the anti-Chen Shui-bian red-shirt marches outside my window. Before I passed out, all I saw were citizens wearing red shirts taking to the streets. In addition, there was the relentless attack from the media. I, a mainland Chinese man who suddenly appeared on the roof of Taipei 101, became one of the most interesting hot topics in Taiwan at the time, besides the red-shirt marches.

On various TV shows, fortune tellers started calculating my birth chart, feng shui masters began predicting how my presence would affect the feng shui of Taipei 101, and metaphysics masters went on and on about other dimensions and the supernatural. When "Kangxi Lai Le" invited me to appear, I quickly declined, thinking that going on in a wheelchair would surely lead to me being tormented to death by Little S. The impersonator "Nine-Kong," a favorite of mine from the show "Everybody's Big Pot," dressed up as me, wrapped in rags and sporting a messy hairstyle. After being electrocuted by a ball of lightning, that's exactly what I looked like. They even designed a segment where I appeared as a messenger from heaven, offering sarcastic commentary on the current political situation in Taiwan.

I recovered much faster than the doctor expected, but my mood remained low. Because I was unable to freely communicate with the outside world, I had no idea what happened after Zhou Qianqian locked me in the alternate dimension that day, whether the police attacked the Holy Maiden Cult, or whether He Xi would be alright.

Ten days later, I was able to walk around the hospital with crutches, but I wasn't allowed to leave. I was worried about the communication between Taiwan and the mainland, but thankfully, on the morning of the 12th, I was informed that I would be flying to Hong Kong on the 13th, where someone would pick me up and take me back to Shanghai.

On the evening of the 12th, my last night in Taipei, I was finally allowed to go for a walk indoors. However, I had to be accompanied by two "security bureau" personnel.

I threw away my cane and slowly strolled around Ximending, eating oyster omelets. Then I sat down at a folk music restaurant called Libra and listened to some music for a while. One of the resident singers there left a deep impression on me; he had long, golden, lion-like hair and sang with a powerful, surging voice, incorporating many difficult techniques such as glissando and vibrato.

I was quite surprised that a singer from a place like this could possess the power to captivate audiences. Unlike many bar singers who like to liven up the atmosphere by rambling on and on, he was almost completely silent when he wasn't singing, and rarely responded to anyone. Occasionally, a shy expression would appear on his face, which seemed extremely incongruous with his hair and singing voice. It was as if he was gathering all his energy, waiting to unleash it all when he sang.

I asked the people around me his name, and they told me it was Jam Hsiao. I wrote him a note, not to request a song.

"If your voice can be heard by more people, I bet you'll become famous. When you come to Shanghai, please give a reporter named Na Duo an exclusive interview opportunity." I was already on my way back to the hospital when the host read what I had written on the note.

At the exit of Hong Kong Airport, the two people who came to pick me up surprised me a little.

It was the plump aunt and Detective Wang.

Inspector Wang caught up and gave me a firm handshake.

"Congratulations on your safe return," said the plump aunt with her signature smile.

My perilous mission was given to me by the fat auntie. There's a reason for this, and she came here to pick me up. I didn't feel particularly flattered.

"Why are you here too?" I asked Detective Wang.

"You paved the way for us and then encountered such danger. What's wrong with me coming to Hong Kong to meet you? Besides, the bureau has allocated some funds as a reward for you, to let you have a good time in Hong Kong for a few days. I'm just accompanying you, haha, so I'm also benefiting from your presence."

"Ha!" I laughed. "Then relax for the next few days."

Suddenly my heart tightened, and I hurriedly asked, "Where's He Xi? Didn't she come?"

Even Detective Wang is here; He Xi couldn't possibly be unaware of my safe return. What happened after I disappeared at the Holy Maiden Cult's stronghold that day?

“That day, you hadn’t heard from me for a long time, so you surrounded the area. Then I led my men in and stormed in. Their saintess, that little girl Zhou Qianqian, was furious when she saw us rushing in. She yelled at us, ‘Disappear!’”

My face turned pale instantly, and I asked tremblingly, "And then?"

"After she said that, she suddenly disappeared."

"She just disappeared?" I stared wide-eyed.

Detective Wang nodded affirmatively.

“We consulted some people, and it seems her abilities weren’t enough to transfer so many people into that strange space all at once, but she strongly desired everything in front of her to disappear. So her abilities still activated, and she herself was pulled into the alternate dimension. I don’t know if it was fulfilling her wish or a backlash from her abilities,” the plump auntie said.

Playing with fire will get you burned, absolutely playing with fire will get you burned.

Were there any casualties that day?

Detective Wang shook his head.

"Then what about He Xi?"

"The next day she threw a resignation letter on the table and disappeared; it seems she went back to Switzerland."

I paused for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh: "Oh, I think she'll be back soon."

“That’s what I think too,” Detective Wang said with a smile.

Four days later, one afternoon, I boarded a plane from Hong Kong back to Shanghai.

I was exhausted from playing these past few days, and my body wasn't fully recovered. As soon as I got on the plane, I closed my eyes and started to doze off.

"Hey, let's switch seats." I heard a voice say next to me as I was falling asleep.

"Oh, okay," Detective Wang replied.

Huh, why is Detective Wang so obedient? He's not usually this easy to talk to.

Curiosity chased away my drowsiness, and I opened my eyes, looking ahead to see a beautiful profile.

"What a coincidence," I said.

“It’s quite a coincidence,” she said.

"Why didn't you dissect the body at the police station? Why did you come all the way to Hong Kong?"

"I was too tired recently, so I came out for a few days of vacation."

"Oh—" I drawled out the sound, then closed my eyes and went back to sleep.

About half a minute later, I was forced to open my eyes, and the flesh on my cheeks had been rotated 360 degrees under her hand.

"Hey! Let go! Let go! I'm still a wounded soldier!" I yelled, grinning.

He Xi let go of my hand and glared at me fiercely.

We stared at each other like fighting cocks for ten seconds.

“Hey, I’m telling you, you’re being childish,” I said.

“It’s none of your business,” she said, raising her eyebrows.

"I'd actually like to do something about it." I laughed, let out a sigh of relief, reclined my chair a little, and lay down comfortably.

"Stop pinching me," I said. "Let me think about where we should go for dinner tonight, or what other fun things we can do."

"Mmm," she responded softly, and then fell silent.

I knew she was watching me. I decided to open my eyes later so she could gaze at me for a little longer.

【over】