The 19th level of Hell

Chapter 20

On that very night, Haruyu became Sadako Yamamura in hell, and from then on, she would bear Sadako's sorrow and pain, praying for resurrection in the world from the bottom of the dark well...

Just as Sadako was about to be resurrected, a rapid cell phone ring pulled Haruyu back from hell. She realized she was still in bed, the phone screen lit up in her hand. She quickly answered the call, but heard nothing on the other end, only a few faint gasps, which immediately sent chills down her spine.

Suddenly, Chunyu thought of the story in "The Ring," where after watching the cursed videotape, she would receive a mysterious phone call—she dared not think any further and quickly ended the call. Just then, she received a new text message—"You have passed the 7th level of hell and entered the 8th level."

Five o'clock in the morning.

The girls' dormitory remained shrouded in darkness, and the cold rain outside showed no signs of stopping, accompanying the girls in the building as they dreamed.

As spring rain slept, the ringtone sounded once more, but this time it was Jay Chou's "Dong Feng Po"—someone had given it to him.

She made a phone call. On the pitch-black bed, she felt as if she'd been stung by something, almost jumping out of bed. Slowly picking up her phone, she rubbed her sleepy eyes and looked at the screen, only to realize it was Nan Xiaoqin's number.

Chunyu immediately answered the phone and heard Nan Xiaoqin's voice on the other end of the line: "Chunyu, are you still alive?"

What kind of talk is this? If an ordinary person received a phone call in the middle of the night and heard such a question, they would probably be furious. But Chunyu answered with unusual calmness, "I'm still alive." "Are you sure you're still alive? Many people are already dead, but they still firmly believe they are alive. These are the living dead." Nan Xiaoqin spoke in a very serious tone, not at all like she was making a prank.

Chunyu remained calm. She checked the time and said, "Nan Xiaoqin, are you awake?" "Are you really sure you're not dead? Look at yourself under the light and see if you can see your shadow. If you can't see your shadow, then you've become a ghost."

Listening to Nan Xiaoqin's earnestness as she spoke, Chunyu felt a chill run down her spine.

For some reason, the rambling conversation on the phone made her subconsciously turn on the bedside lamp. The white light shone into her eyes, and it took her pupils a few seconds to adjust. Then she looked back at the opposite wall, where a faint shadow flickered in the dim light—her own shadow cast by the bedside lamp.

Before she could even tell the person on the phone the results of the "experiment," Nan Xiaoqin said as if she had revealed a secret: "You can't see any shadows, right?"

Spring Rain looked at Winter Rain in the darkness outside the window and asked, "Nan Xiaoqin, what's wrong? What happened?"

“There was an old man.” “What did you say?” She felt that Nan Xiaoqin’s voice now sounded like those phone calls from “hell.” “Since you’re already dead, it’s okay for me to tell you—it was during my senior year of high school. One time, I was riding my bicycle home from evening self-study, going down a dimly lit side street, when an old man was crossing the road. I didn’t see him clearly at first, and I lost control of the handlebars, so I crashed into him.” “You injured him?” “I didn’t know at the time. I only saw that under the streetlight, the old man’s head hit the concrete ground, and blood was everywhere, some even splattering onto my pants. I was terrified. Seeing that there was no one else around, I quickly rode away.” I got on my bicycle and sped home. "You didn't save the old man?" "Yes, I was terrified. All I knew was to run away. I thought the old man might die, and then I'd be in big trouble. The college entrance exam was in two months. If I took the old man to the hospital, his family would definitely pester me, and I'd definitely ruin my exam. I'd already put so much effort into the exam; I couldn't let this ruin my life." "But what about the old man's life? You couldn't just stand by and watch him die. You should have taken him to the hospital; maybe he could have survived."

Nan Xiaoqin answered with a sob in her voice, "But at the time, my mind went blank. I was so scared I almost lost my soul. I never even thought about such a thing. When I got home, I didn't tell my parents about it and secretly washed the blood-stained pants. I never dared to ride a bicycle again, nor did I dare to walk that path again. I forced myself to forget that old man and focused all my attention on the college entrance exam. Finally, I got into our university, but that old man became my nightmare." "Don't think like that. That old man might not be dead." "Whether he's dead or alive, it's the same to me. Chunyu, did you often hear my screams in my nightmares in the past?"

Chunyu did remember: "Yes, we were all terrified back then." "Actually, I dreamt about that old man. I think I'm guilty, I have committed great sins, and now it's time for retribution." "Don't say that, you should cheer up."

"Chunyu, you, Qingyou, and Xu Wenya are all in hell now. To be honest, I miss you all very much." Nan Xiaoqin seemed to be in tears. "I will always miss you, my good roommates."

The call suddenly dropped. Chunyu hurriedly called Nan Xiaoqin again, but the phone kept ringing without anyone answering. It seemed that Nan Xiaoqin didn't want to answer the phone anymore. Chunyu put down her phone, and the dormitory returned to deathly silence, with only the continuous rain outside the window making the room seem like it was forever submerged in dark water.

After waking up in the morning, Chunyu was listless, watching the endless rain outside as if it were a lock shut around her, trapping her inside. In the afternoon, there seemed to be some commotion in the corridor; some girls were either huddled together whispering or screaming in terror. Chunyu went outside to see what was happening, but everyone hid when they saw her. Given the magnitude of this incident and the mysterious events of six months ago, her classmates now viewed Chunyu as a jinx, as if anyone near her would suffer a fatal fate. So no one wanted to talk to her; they would even point and whisper about her, avoiding her at all costs. A few days ago, when she entered the large classroom, all the other students sat in the back rows, leaving her alone in the front, as if she had been approached by someone with AIDS.

Actually, the person those girls were talking about was Nan Xiaoqin.

Nan Xiaoqin was in a car accident.

The accident occurred at an intersection near the school. Around 9:00 AM, Nan Xiaoqin reached this intersection; crossing the street from here would quickly get her to school. The traffic light was red in front of her, and vehicles were flowing across the intersection. Nan Xiaoqin was already standing at the intersection, waiting for the pedestrian light to turn green. The red light at this intersection stays on for a long time, and there are many vehicles crossing, so normally no one dares to jaywalk. But Nan Xiaoqin suddenly ran off the crosswalk and towards the opposite side of the red light. Her walking posture was so leisurely, as if she didn't even see the cars speeding by. A Buick was passing through the intersection at that moment. The driver, completely unprepared for someone suddenly appearing, slammed on the brakes, but due to the slippery road from the rain, he still struck Nan Xiaoqin.

The driver was a good person; he quickly took Nan Xiaoqin to the hospital. After the doctors' tense efforts, she was finally out of danger, but she remained unconscious, and it was unknown when she would wake up.

Chunyu only learned about Nan Xiaoqin's car accident from her teacher at four o'clock in the afternoon. She was stunned, unable to believe her ears. Chunyu knew Nan Xiaoqin very well; she was always very careful when crossing the street. Even if there were few cars on the road, she would never dare to jaywalk, let alone at that busy intersection. She often crossed that intersection with Nan Xiaoqin, and they both knew...

In such a busy traffic area, jaywalking is tantamount to suicide—did Nan Xiaoqin really commit suicide?

Chunyu immediately thought of the strange phone call Nan Xiaoqin made in the early hours of the morning.

Was that an omen? Nan Xiaoqin told Chunyu on the phone that she had hit an elderly person with her car in high school and then fled the scene without offering any help, a nightmare that haunted her. Now, Nan Xiaoqin herself had been hit by a car—wasn't this the retribution she had spoken of?

Furthermore, Nan Xiaoqin was clearly out of her mind on the phone, mistaking Chunyu for a dead person from hell, and even said that she would miss her roommates forever, which sounded like a tragic farewell.

A few days ago, Chunyu also received a text message from Nan Xiaoqin, saying that she had received a message from the deceased Sulan, asking her, "What is the 19th level of hell?" It was almost identical to the message Chunyu received from the deceased Qingyou. Nan Xiaoqin, like Chunyu, probably entered the hellish game, and then…

Chunyu touched her heart, afraid to think any further.

She decided to go to the hospital to see Nan Xiaoqin.

At 7 p.m., Chunyu braved the cold rain to arrive at the hospital, and after several twists and turns, she finally saw Nan Xiaoqin in the intensive care unit.

Nan Xiaoqin's head was wrapped in thick bandages, but thankfully there were no injuries on her face. Her hands looked like they had been badly injured, and they had all been bandaged. She lay on the hospital bed with her eyes closed, tubes in her nose, and an IV drip in her hand; she was completely unrecognizable as the tall, slender girl she used to be. Her mother sat beside her, holding her daughter's hand and weeping uncontrollably. She knew Chunyu was Nan Xiaoqin's roommate, but she didn't know that Chunyu had long been considered a jinx, so she was still very grateful that Chunyu had come to visit Nan Xiaoqin.

The mother said that Nan Xiaoqin had been staying at home for the past few days, saying she wasn't feeling well but refusing to go to the hospital. She spent her days glued to her phone, and her room was constantly ringing with text messages late at night. Just yesterday, around midnight, Nan Xiaoqin suddenly appeared in the living room, wearing a white nightgown, and started circling the coffee table. She accidentally knocked over a cup, and her mother rushed out to see her daughter like this, quickly pulling her close. Unexpectedly, Nan Xiaoqin blurted out, "Do you know what the 19th level of hell is?"

Nan Xiaoqin's mother was completely confused, but the look in her daughter's eyes when she spoke was frightening, so she could only help her back to her room to sleep. The next morning, Nan Xiaoqin seemed to have recovered and said she was going back to school. Her mother was also very happy and watched her daughter leave, but unexpectedly, she was involved in a car accident on the way.

As Nan Xiaoqin's mother spoke, tears welled up in her eyes again. The doctor said that Nan Xiaoqin had suffered a severe head injury. Although she was out of danger, it was still difficult to say whether she would fully recover, and they could only continue to observe her.

Chunyu felt empty inside. She looked at Nan Xiaoqin on the hospital bed, wondering if she could speak to her again. What exactly did Nan Xiaoqin see last night?

Suddenly, Chunyu boldly asked, "Auntie, can I see Nan Xiaoqin's phone?"

Nan Xiaoqin's mother nodded, opened the schoolbag her daughter had left behind, and handed the phone inside to Chunyu. Chunyu immediately opened the text message menu, only to find that all the previous messages were gone, leaving only the last one—Chunyu seemed frozen, staring blankly at the English phrase on the screen. She quickly snapped out of her daze and looked at the sender of the message; it was indeed that number—"741111".

The text message was sent at 9:19 a.m. today, which happens to be the time Nan Xiaoqin had her car accident.

Chunyu sighed deeply. All the doubts had been confirmed; Nan Xiaoqin was "dead" in hell.

After glancing at Nan Xiaoqin one last time, Chunyu hurriedly took her leave. She left the hospital, umbrella in hand, the city lights twinkling in the night rain. She murmured to herself, "The first was Qingyou, the second was Sulan, the third was Xu Wenya, the fourth was Nan Xiaoqin, so who is the fifth?"

She slowly lowered her umbrella and looked up at the purple sky.

A raindrop fell into my eye.

When Chunyu returned to her dormitory at nine o'clock at night, she felt damp all over, with a chilly dampness seeping into her bones.

She quickly went to the bathroom and took a hot shower. There weren't many people in the bathroom, but when they saw Chunyu come in, they all scurried to the side. One girl didn't even have time to lather up with soap before hurriedly drying herself and running away.

Soon, Chunyu was alone in the bathroom. Her eyes were blurred with tears or steam, her vision reduced to a hazy mist. Gradually, the sound of her sobbing grew louder than the running water. The spray from the showerhead on her face brought her an unprecedented sense of loneliness.

After turning off the shower, she rubbed her blurry eyes and looked back at the empty bathroom. Besides the lingering steam, the only other sound was the clear dripping of water. Chunyu looked down at her body; how alluring and perfect it was. She suddenly thought of Qingyou and Sulan; at least she was lucky compared to them. She rubbed her fair, smooth face after the shower, cherishing this body bestowed upon her by God. Back in her dorm room, Chunyu repeatedly combed her long hair, the gleaming strands still steaming, cascading over her snow-white shoulders. The rain outside had almost stopped. Chunyu looked around the dorm room again. The beds on the left were Xu Wenya and Nan Xiaoqin's, and the beds on the right were Qingyou's and hers. She didn't dare touch their things, or even their beds. It seemed Qingyou hadn't left yet, and was secretly watching her from some corner…

After some time, the text message alarm suddenly went off.

She was already in bed when she sat up reflexively. She picked up her phone and received another text message: "You have entered the 8th level of hell. To leave the Ring, you will choose: 1. Ghost Inn; 2. Lanruo Temple; 3. Dracula's Castle; 4. Hell Cafe."