Zyklon-Säbel

Kapitel 33

"I swear to God!" I hurriedly and solemnly swore, "I went there on my home computer last night and just before I came here!"

"What?" Abao screamed repeatedly, his voice almost louder than his older sister's.

"What a disgrace!" Abao immediately pounded his chest and stamped his feet, looking heartbroken.

"Don't exaggerate like that!" I leaned back a little because I had a cold, and I was really afraid of getting punched in the face by A Bao's fist.

"No way!" Abao jumped up and down, then sat back down, saying, "I don't believe it!" With that, Abao's fingers began flying across the keyboard again, the words on the screen flashing rapidly, opening windows one moment and command programs the next. I certainly couldn't understand a thing; all I could hear in the room was the rhythmic, forceful tapping of Abao's fingers on the keyboard.

One minute, ten minutes, half an hour...

finally…

"Hey, what are you doing?" I couldn't help but ask, feeling a bit bored.

"Quiet down!" Abao waved at me and said, "I'm trying to figure out how to log into this website!"

Thinking of a solution? Could it be hacking? I looked at Abao with a bit of admiration. It seemed this little girl had some skills! Unfortunately, just as I was about to ask her for advice on computer matters, Abao suddenly let out a scream, so loud that even the poor little sparrow outside the window almost fell off the tree.

"What are you doing?" I asked loudly, covering my ears.

"Ah~~~~!!" Unfortunately, Abao hadn't finished his vocal exercises yet.

"Stop yelling!" I pulled hard on Abao and finally managed to stop him.

"Virus!" Abao's eyes were already brimming with tears, looking like a heartbroken child whose candy had been taken away.

"Virus?" I looked at the computer screen in confusion; it was completely black, with nothing there.

"Damn it! It's all your fault!" Abao suddenly grabbed my clothes, looking like he was about to fight me.

"Me?" I looked at Abao innocently.

"It's you! You're the one who gave me those website links, and now look what happened! My computer's been infected with a virus!" Tears streamed down A Bao's face as she put down my clothes and burst into tears.

Oh no! No way! My brain is about to explode, how could this happen? Looking at Abao crying uncontrollably in front of me, I was completely at a loss. I've always been helpless when dealing with crying women, but now I'm like an ant on a hot plate. I don't know whether to comfort her or run away.

After Abao cried for a full fifteen minutes, he suddenly raised his head, his eyes flashing with a small flame of hatred! He glared at me fiercely, as if he wanted to devour me alive, and asked, "Tell me! Where did you get this website address?"

"It came from a picture book!" I immediately confessed.

"A picture book?" Abao glanced at me and continued, "Where did this picture book come from? Tell me!"

"I got it when I was at the art exhibition yesterday!" I swallowed hard, afraid that if I gave the wrong answer, she would tear me to pieces.

"An art exhibition?" Abao pouted and asked, "Where is the art exhibition?"

"It's on a street near your house, Room 307, No. 77, ** Road!" I answered hastily and cautiously.

“Room 307, No. 77, ** Road?!” Abao scratched his head and said, “Then take me there now!”

"Huh? Take you there?" I really don't want to go to that weird art exhibition again; it's so gloomy and strange.

"Yes!" Abao pulled me up from the chair and said, "This guy designed a website that even I can't access, and it even infected my computer with a virus! I have to meet him!" After saying that, Abao dragged me out the door without saying anything else. Poor me, I had no choice but to be dragged out the door by her and led the way with a helpless look on my face.

※※※

Looking at the darkening sky, I lamented once again the unfairness of fate! Why can others happily go home and have a good meal, while I have to accompany a vengeful young woman from the martial arts world to find her imaginary enemy?

"Lin Xiao! Are you deliberately messing with me?" A Bao shouted at me, pointing his finger in the middle of the road!

What a miserable life! Trying to ignore the surprised looks from passersby, I sighed for the 326th time today and said, "It really is! It really is around here!"

"Why can't we find it yet? We've been wandering around here for almost half an hour!" Abao pointed to her watch. I knew she must be very anxious, and I was just as worried.

"Don't worry, let me ask for you." I stopped an elderly woman next to me and asked, "Ma'am, do you know where No. 77, ** Road is?"

"There?" The old lady gave me a strange look and said, "Walk a little further ahead, then turn left into a small alley!"

"Thank you, thank you!" Abao immediately replied, jumping up and down. Then he gave me a disdainful look and said, "I knew you weren't reliable!"

Ha! I've been looked down upon by a little kid! Shaking my head helplessly, I hurriedly followed behind Abao, who had already dashed far ahead.

After much effort, I finally found the inconspicuous alley. It seemed very similar to yesterday's scene, except that the abstract poster at the entrance was missing. I peered inside; it was pitch black and seemed to stretch on forever. Just as I was hesitating whether to go in, Abao had already run inside. Seeing that the darkness was about to engulf her, I hurriedly followed her in.

The high walls on both sides created a narrow space. I looked up and saw the outline of a building appear before me, something I hadn't noticed yesterday. It was very quiet all around, with only the occasional meow of a stray cat. It felt as if this place was isolated from the bustling city. The air itself seemed to have solidified.

When Abao and I finally arrived in front of the building, I finally understood what the strange look in the old lady's eyes meant. It was just an abandoned, unfinished building!

"No way! Are you really sure yesterday's art exhibition was held here?" Abao asked me, pointing to a building that didn't even have a door. All I could do was gape and wait for someone to shove eggs into my mouth! What's going on? I hadn't paid much attention last night, but it shouldn't be an unfinished building! Could it be that the old lady gave me the wrong directions? I looked at a wall next to the unfinished building; it clearly had "No. 77 ** Road" painted in red. Although the paint was a bit peeling and faded, I still recognized the Chinese characters.

"Hehe, hehe!" I chuckled dryly a few times and said, "Maybe they just like this postmodern style?"

"Hmm!" Abao nodded seriously, but then said something that almost made me faint: "Your reason is terrible!"

"Alright!" I finally lowered my proud head and said, "So what do you want to do now? Go back?"

"Go back?" Abao's tone immediately hardened. "We finally found it, we have to go in and take a look!"

"Go in?" I shrank back, a little hesitant. This unfinished building wasn't very big, but it was at least five or six stories high. Moreover, the area around the building was an abandoned construction site with no one around. It was already late at night, so it looked a bit like a haunted house, cold and desolate.

"You can even handle things at Heart Lake, what's there to be afraid of?" Abao gave me a push and said, "Besides, I'm here!"

It's because you're here that I'm even more worried! Of course, I can't say that out loud! I sighed heavily. I knew that if I didn't go in and check today, Abao would definitely not let me off the hook, and might even take care of me on the spot!

"Alright! Let's go in and take a look!" As soon as I finished speaking, Abao cheered and rushed towards the unfinished building.

"Wait for me! Ah Bao!" I didn't even have a chance to think it over again before rushing after Ah Bao and running into this strange, unfinished building.

Volume Two: The Devil's Left Eye, Chapter Four: The Eyeball in the Keyhole

Volume Two: The Devil's Left Eye, Chapter Four: The Eyeball in the Keyhole

The wall bricks, which should have been red, had turned a dark red from years of wind and rain, as somber as the blood of a corpse. To my left, a layer of black smoke rose from the surface of these dark red bricks, just like the one I'd seen on the female victim in the Heart Lake murder case. Could it be resentment? I reached out and touched the wall; it was damp, and a cold sensation seeped into my body.

"Abao, where are you?!" I shouted from the stairwell of the unfinished building. Abao is really something, he darted faster than a rabbit! My voice echoed throughout the building, as if I had entered a hollow mountain cave. The cold air made me shrink my neck.

"I'm upstairs, come up quickly!" Abao's voice came from upstairs, like a sigh from another world, extremely ethereal.

I looked up at the spiraling staircase; it was pitch black above, without a single ray of light. I had already stepped onto the stairs with one foot, and a strange sensation followed: my left eye felt slightly hot, and a red flush gradually spread before my eyes.

Thump! I could clearly hear my own heartbeat!

Because the staircase was unfinished, there was no handrail around it. I tried to stay close to the wall as I walked up. The spiral staircase was like a never-ending spiral, making me dizzy.

The faint sound of breathing was right next to my ear, but it wasn't my own. In the darkness, a demon was chuckling foolishly, revealing its hideous face to me.

The moment I reached the second floor, a black shadow flashed past my eyes. Looking up, a flash of white light appeared, and a figure was standing right in front of me!

I took a step back in fear, forgetting that I was standing at the top of the stairs. I missed a step and fell backward! I struggled to straighten myself forward, thankfully, I didn't fall! Looking closely, I realized that the figure was actually myself in the mirror!

What's going on? There's a huge mirror mounted on the wall in this unfinished building! Because the mirror faces the stairwell, people coming up the stairs are bound to be startled by their own reflection!

Although I knew I should hurry up and find Abao, the mirror still drew me over. The mirror was ordinary; it was just a large, undecorated piece of mirror mounted on the wall, with black stains on the lower left corner that blurred the surface. As I slowly walked over, I realized that the entire floor contained nothing but this mirror; the window was simply a hole in the wall.

My footsteps echoed through the empty building. I walked to the mirror, where the reflection was slightly distorted, and the person in it was crooked as well. My face appeared strangely grotesque in the mirror. Although it was dark all around, the reflection was strangely clear. I could even see the blood vessels in my left eye gradually thickening and becoming more blood red, as if they were about to drip blood.

Taking a deep breath, I couldn't resist the strange urge in my heart and reached out to touch the black spots on my lower left foot. The moment my fingers touched the spots, the originally solid spots suddenly felt like they had turned into a sticky liquid, and a familiar stench of corpses rushed into my nostrils.

I recoiled as if electrocuted, immediately bringing my finger to my eyes; the dark red liquid was right in front of me. I blinked, and the liquid seemed to vanish! Suddenly, a thought struck me, and I closed my left eye—there was nothing on my finger. A chill ran down my spine, and my scalp tingled. With my eyes closed, my whole body trembled.

I slowly opened only my left eye. Although I was mentally prepared, I still felt weak all over when the thick, dark red liquid appeared on my fingers.

Damn it! I shook my hands vigorously, trying to get rid of the liquid on my fingers. My eyes glanced unintentionally in the mirror, and there was a dark figure standing silently behind me!

I turned around abruptly, but there was nothing there!

Looking back at the mirror, the figure in it slowly raised its head. The strange man from yesterday's art exhibition was giving me a sinister smile! His face was so pale, but his left eye was bloodshot. I stood frozen in front of the mirror, stunned. I was certain there was nothing behind me! Was there something wrong with my eyes, or...?

I swallowed hard, but I didn't run away. In truth, my body was completely frozen with immense fear. The man's body in the mirror gradually receded, slowly disappearing. It was as if he were being sucked into an invisible space; his body was slowly fading away, first his feet, then his abdomen, then his head, until finally, only a lone left eyeball remained! Yes, a left eyeball, a blood-red left eyeball! Floating in the mirror, staring straight at me.

Suddenly! With a soft "thud," the blood-red eyeball fell onto the concrete floor! The eyeball bounced up and down like a very elastic bead, then bounced up again and fell down, leaping towards me again and again!

Using the last bit of courage in my body, I slowly turned around, but there was still nothing there. I was the only one standing in the empty floor!

"Gurgle~~~~~!" A strange sound came from behind me, approaching from afar, like the sound of beads rolling across the ground. The sound continued, and I knew that there was a mirror just a foot away behind me, but the sound seemed to be coming from inside the mirror, like something rolling in from within it!

I turned around again, but the blood-red eyeballs weren't in the mirror as I'd imagined! I was about to catch my breath when I was terrified by my reflection in the mirror, and then I heard a strange, agonizing laugh coming from my own throat!

Hahahaha~~~~~!

The echo vibrated through every nerve in my body. I looked at myself in the mirror with a bitter smile, my left eye bleeding from a tear. Blood was already streaming down my cheek, like a red tear streak!

"What are you laughing at? And your laughter is so awful!" A Bao's voice suddenly rang out behind me. I turned around in surprise and found that she had somehow gotten behind me!

Why wasn't her reflection in the mirror? I looked at the mirror again, puzzled. At that moment, A Bao's reflection appeared perfectly in the mirror, and my left eye was only slightly bloodshot. All the strange phenomena from before had vanished without a trace! Only then did I realize that my clothes were soaked with cold sweat, and even the hair on my forehead was stuck to my forehead with sweat.

"What are you doing? How can you sweat so much just from running up the stairs?" Abao nudged me and asked curiously.

"When did you arrive?" I asked hurriedly.

"I just got here a little while ago and I saw you standing in front of the mirror laughing like that!" Abao gave me a strange look, then said, "Hurry up and go up to the third floor for me! There's a door blocking the way, and I can't get in!"

"A door?" I asked in confusion. Wasn't this unfinished building supposed to have no windows at all?

“That’s right! There’s no room 307 on the third floor, there’s only one room with a door blocking the way!” Abao grabbed my hand and dragged me upstairs.

"Huh? Why are your hands so cold?" Abao asked, squeezing my hand.

"I guess I was wearing too little clothing!" I made up a flimsy excuse, not wanting to tell her that I was just scared! Luckily, Abao just said "oh" and didn't ask any further questions.

As Abao dragged me toward the stairwell, I kept my eyes glued to the mirror. In the distorted reflection, it seemed as if wisps of black smoke were rising. I couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. Why did I let Abao come up here?

"Let's go back!" Standing at the bottom of the stairs, I finally decided to back out.

"What? You're not scared, are you?" Abao asked with a look of disdain.

"It's not that I'm scared!" I said seriously, "I saw something unclean in the mirror just now. There's definitely something strange about this unfinished building! Besides, Li Hai and Fang Lei, who both know magic, aren't here right now. I think we'd better not take any risks!"

"Something's strange? I think you're the one acting strange! It's just a bit dark, how come I can't see any of those unclean things you're talking about?" Abao still wanted to go up and take another look, and started arguing with me.

Sigh! With a heavy sigh, I had no choice but to be dragged up to the third floor by the curious little Bao.

The third floor is different from the second floor. It's not that the entire floor is empty. As soon as you come up the stairs, there is an unfinished corridor. On both sides, there are several walls that divide the floor into rooms, but none of them have been fitted with doors yet, except for the door at the end of the corridor!

When I was led to the door, I realized that it wasn't locked; it only had a keyhole! The reason the door couldn't be opened was because a rusty iron chain was firmly fastened to it, and a large padlock, its keyhole almost completely blocked by rust, hung on the chain. The surface of the chain and lock had the same black marks as those on the mirror on the second floor.

"Okay, I can't open this lock either! Let's go!" After saying that, I grabbed Abao and tried to leave, but Abao broke free.

"Hey! You haven't even tried, how do you know it can't be opened!?" Ah Bao really wasn't giving up.

"Do you think I'm Popeye? That I can pull this chain apart?" I practically yelled at Po. "Even Popeye needs to eat spinach!"

"Hey! Why are you being so mean! I just wanted to see what was inside!" Abao pouted, looking aggrieved.