pozo profundo

Capítulo 40

Cold sweat covered my entire body.

With a soft click, the incandescent bulb was switched on, its blinding brightness making me squint and close my eyes. It all happened in a fleeting instant, yet it felt like an eternity.

"Oh my god!" Li Yang shouted as he ran past me. Under the white light, a corpse was lying on the blood-soaked floor.

When I opened my eyes again and saw the corpse clearly, a chill ran down my spine. The face was weathered, and the dense, dark yellow wrinkles were now filled with bright red blood. The only remaining eye was cloudy.

Isn't this the man I bumped into in front of the art exhibition?

Looking out the window again, it was pitch black; there was nothing there.

"Lin Xiao, what are you standing there for? Come here!" Li Yang yelled at me, jolting me awake from my daze. Behind me, a middle-aged woman let out a blood-curdling scream that seemed to pierce the sky.

"Stop yelling, call 110 right now!" I ordered the middle-aged woman, who stumbled and staggered out in a dazed state.

Carefully avoiding stepping on the blood splattered all over the floor, I walked with a grim face to the corpse. Blood was still gushing from the slit throat, and the congealed blood clots around it reflected a white light.

Touching the body, it was still warm; it must have died recently. Could the earlier screams have been the victim's final cries for help? If so, we broke down the door almost as soon as the screams stopped; the killer couldn't have escaped so quickly—they must still be inside. But looking around, this unit only has one room, and the kitchen is where we just rushed in. There's no furniture in the room that could hide someone. So, could they be hiding in the bathroom?

Li Yang patted me on the shoulder, then pulled out a pistol from his waist. He carefully walked to the toilet, suddenly pulled open the door, but the gun was pointed at thin air. There was no one in the narrow toilet, and nowhere to hide.

Looking again at the corpse's right hand, which was clenched into a fist, I squatted down. For some reason, I completely forgot the rule that gloves must be worn when moving a corpse. As if possessed, I forcefully pried open the corpse's right hand.

With a soft "plop," almost leaping from the corpse's right hand, something swiftly struck my face. Caught completely off guard, I was immediately hit in the left eye, feeling warm, viscous liquid enter my eye. The object bounced back to the floor, and I immediately straightened up.

Bubbles, bubbles, bubbles!

It was the sound of something bouncing onto the floor. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be an eyeball, an eyeball with a blood-red pupil.

Startled, we stood frozen in place, our eyes fixed on the twitching eyeball, which bounced lower and lower until it came to a complete stop. Just as we were about to breathe a sigh of relief, the previously still eyeball suddenly moved back and forth, as if an invisible hand were pushing it.

Gurgle~~~~~! Roll towards me.

With an eerie rolling sound, the eyeball rolled right under my eyelids, then moved back and forth slightly before coming to a stop again. Its blood-red pupil stared blankly at me, a resentful and mournful gaze piercing through the lifeless eyeball. Instantly, goosebumps rose all over my body. Have you ever felt like you were being stared at by a blood-red eyeball?

"Lin Xiao!" Li Yang's voice trembled. I knew he was afraid. I turned around, but Li Yang took a step back in fear, pointing at me and saying, "Your left eye!"

"What's wrong?" I reached out and touched it; it was sticky, and warm blood immediately stained my fingers. I glanced up casually and saw a pale face reflected in the mirror on the wardrobe directly in front of me, with bloodshot eyes and a tear streaming down my cheek.

Is this me?

I stared in horror at my reflection in the mirror; my left eye, now bloodshot, gleamed with a menacing light. Then, the sensation of something foreign entering me returned, and the scene before me distorted.

A sharp gasp escaped his lips, for the mirror reflected a scene from outside the window: the left half of the white mask was covered in crimson blood, devoid of any other facial features; only a ghastly smile, filled with bloody tears, lingered on the face. Crying and laughter were strangely fused and twisted together, sending a chill down his spine. It was impossible to tell whether it was laughter within tears, tears within laughter, or a combination of both.

"Lin Xiao!" Li Yang's call woke me from my hallucination, and I stared at him blankly.

"What's wrong?" Li Yang asked with concern.

There was no answer. I almost collapsed, my body swaying. It wasn't fear anymore; it was an unprecedented feeling of powerlessness and exhaustion. I didn't know when my nerves would finally break down.

******

Driven by my professional ethics as a forensic pathologist and my doubts about the cases themselves, I finally suppressed my discomfort and proceeded with evidence collection and autopsies. After everything was finished, I was completely exhausted; these three cases had drained me of even the strength to lift a finger.

I practically buried my entire body in the parking space, leaning against the window, and dry heaved, but nothing came out. The churning in my stomach and the dizziness in my head told me that I was probably sick.

"Are you alright? Should we go to the hospital?" Li Yang asked, looking back at me with concern from the driver's seat.

I waved my hand weakly, patted my chest, and said, "Take me home."

"What time is it and you're still being stubborn?" Li Yang said unhappily, "You're not listening to me, are you? Fine, I'll call Fang Lei right now and have her come and persuade you." After saying that, Li Yang took out his phone from his pocket.

"No, no!" I pleaded like a child, begging for mercy, "I'll go to the hospital."

"Sigh!" Li Yang shook his head helplessly and said to me, "Didn't we already notify Fang Lei and Li Hai? I don't know when they can come back."

"It will come back when it's time." I gasped for breath, feeling a strange sensation in my left eye. Although the pain had subsided since the third victim, it hadn't eased my mind; instead, it had intensified my anxiety. The feeling of a foreign object invading my eye always stirred up anger and disgust within me, and the target of that anger was my damned left eye. Several times, my right hand had uncontrollably reached for my left eye, and a desire to gouge it out, like a demon, gradually took over my reason.

"Then let's go to the hospital now." Li Yang didn't say much, stepped on the gas and drove towards the nearest hospital.

******

When I got home carrying a bunch of bottles and jars of medicine, I was on the verge of fainting. Luckily, my friend Li Yang was at the hospital taking care of me. Watching his busy figure, a warm feeling flowed into my heart.

People do need friends.

I put down the medicine. Perhaps because of the fever and illness, I was so cold that my teeth were chattering and my fingernails had turned purple from the cold.

Without even taking a shower, I collapsed onto the bed. In my drowsy state, everything in front of me was a hazy gray, as if a thin film had been shrouded around it.

I slept extremely restlessly, tossing and turning for the entire first half of the night. The foreign body sensation in my left eye made it impossible for me to sleep soundly, and the self-loathing I felt made me break out in a cold sweat. On top of that, I was running a fever, and the suffocating discomfort made me curl up all over.

In my daze, a cold hand suddenly reached out from behind and placed on my forehead. I struggled to open my eyes, and a waterfall of black hair cascaded before me, the strands touching my neck making me feel itchy.

Volume Two: The Devil's Left Eye, Chapter Twelve: Bones Behind the Mirror

Volume Two: The Devil's Left Eye, Chapter Twelve: Bones Behind the Mirror

Without turning around, black hair moved in front of me without wind. I knew who it was. The straight, beautiful hair was still as clear as in my memory. Once upon a time, I began to enjoy smelling the fragrance of this hair. Once upon a time, I began to enjoy touching the softness of this hair. No matter how time has passed, it is still so unforgettable.

At this moment, I felt no fear.

I turned my head gently, and Yin Xue's beautiful face was smiling at me. I closed my eyes and remembered those ordinary mornings from many years ago, when Yin Xue would always lie on top of me to wake me up. Back then, her beautiful hair would always gently brush against my face. Then her hand would touch my cheek, so warm and comforting.

But why are her hands so cold now?

When I opened my eyes again, the gentle smile on her face suddenly turned solemn and resentful. My heart tightened. Yin Xue's image blurred before my eyes, and only her blood-red left eye stood out starkly.

The discomfort in my left eye intensified again, and my right hand began to twitch.

Yin Xue's small mouth suddenly split into an illogical arc towards her ears, the upturned corners of her mouth forming a sinister smile, a smile like that of a mask.

My body was stiff on the bed; I even forgot to move. I just stared at my reddened left eye, bulging out of its socket like a goldfish's bubble eye, swirling around in all directions. A wave of nausea made my vision blur. It felt as if something tiny was trying to burrow out of my eyeball. Suddenly, many tiny bumps appeared on the surface of my eyeball, and the sensation of a foreign object invading my left eye grew stronger and stronger.

I opened my mouth, wanting to call out Yin Xue's name, but I had no strength to utter a sound. Then Yin Xue suddenly sighed softly, her狰狞 smile and bulging eyes sending shivers down my spine.

“It’s your turn!” The sound coming from Yin Xue’s throat was unusually strange, as if it were a buzzing sound coming from a hollow shell.

More and more tiny bumps appeared on the eyeball, as if some living thing was trying to break through the surface. Then, the surface of one of the bumps suddenly burst open, and a maggot covered in yellow pus crawled out of the eyeball! Then two, three…

Countless maggots poured out of my eyeball—no, it should be said, a bloody eye socket—like a flood bursting its banks. A bitter, sour liquid immediately welled up in my throat. My right hand, in a convulsion, struck Yin Xue's face uncontrollably.

With a loud crash, like the sound of glass shattering, Yin Xue in front of me instantly broke into countless fragments. On each fragment was Yin Xue's terrifying face, as if countless Yin Xues were staring at me at the same time. The cold gaze shooting from her right eye was like ten thousand sharp knives piercing into every pore of my body, drilling into my skin, and flowing through my blood.

"Ahhhhh!" The sound that finally escaped my throat was a scream. When I came to my senses, Yin Xue had already vanished without a trace along with the fragments, and outside the window was still deathly darkness. But I felt as if I had been pulled out of the water, and even the sheets beneath me were wet to the touch.

Was what just happened a dream or an illusion?

Is it my turn? Yin Xue, are you already impatient to see me in the underworld? I propped myself up and looked at the alarm clock on the bedside table; it was a little past three in the morning.

Glass, why is it glass? I lay back down on the bed, panting as I pondered. Something in my head was telling me something, but it was disconnected, as if my thoughts had been ripped away. I smacked my forehead hard.

In the previous hallucinations, Yin Xue always said the same thing: "It's your turn." But why is there still a scene of shattered glass this time? Thinking of this, I got out of bed again and plopped down in front of the computer. Although reason told me that now was not a good time to go online, and even if I were to go online, I should have Li Yang accompany me, but sometimes people don't act according to reason.

Everything remained the same. A new email: the devil's left eye, a blank sender's name, black background with white text, but containing only one short sentence:

When the pain in your left eye subsides, you will see the devil's smiling face.

Yes, my left eye no longer hurts. So, is the so-called devil's smile just that eerie mask? And who is that masked man? A devil?

I rubbed my face, and the scene of shards of glass falling everywhere flashed through my mind again, each fragment seeming like a glistening tear from Yin Xue. Yin Xue, Yin Xue, what are you trying to do?

I stood up and walked to the window, gazing into the distance, where everything was pitch black. My breath formed a white mist on the windowpane, and I shivered from the cold. Suddenly, a large mirror flashed before my eyes, its lower left corner marked with patches of black.

The mirror in the unfinished building! I suddenly had a strange feeling, as if Yin Xue was going to tell me about that mirror. I quickly walked to the phone and dialed Li Yang's number.

*******

"Brother, do I really have to get up in the middle of the night to be your driver just because of your weird nightmare?" Li Yang asked me fiercely from his driver's seat.

"It's not strange, it must be Yin Xue sending me a message in a dream. I already thought that mirror was weird." I tugged at my collar. The temperature was unusually cold in the early morning, and I couldn't help but regret not wearing more clothes.

"Yin Xue, Yin Xue! You keep mentioning her name. Don't you already have Fang Lei?" Li Yang said, dissatisfied.

"Two different things!" I said without turning my head.

"How are these two different things? Tell me, who do you really love?" Li Yang seemed to be starting to stand up for Fang Lei.

I sighed and explained with unusual good temper, "Yin Xue is already dead, how can you compare them!"

"That would be terrible!" Li Yang said quietly. I looked at him with a puzzled expression. After a long while, he said slowly, as if talking to himself, "How can you compare a living person to a dead person?"

I was stunned for a moment. I never expected Li Yang to say such melancholy words. The faint helplessness and sorrow in his words made my heart sink into the darkness outside the window.

We remained silent the whole way, an unusual silence between us, until we reached the road. The alley was too narrow for the car to pass through. I quickly jumped out, ignoring Li Yang who was still locking the car, and with a leap, I disappeared into the darkness of the alley.

Whew, whimper~~

I could hear myself panting as I ran, and I almost ran all the way to the unfinished building. After crawling through the yellow police tape, I stepped back into the building.

I rushed up to the second floor. In the darkness, only the mirror shimmered with a hazy gray halo. My image in the mirror was distorted, like a reflection in ripples on water, subtly floating. The distortion gradually intensified, dazzling my vision, and the mirror surface seemed to become a fluid, undulating liquid. I heard a strange sound, like something rising from the depths of liquid.

With a sudden soft sound, half an eyeball suddenly appeared on the surface of the mirror. Yes, only half, while the other half seemed to be submerged underwater. The entire eyeball floated on the mirror surface like a buoy in the water.

Then one after another, and another after another…

I immediately got goosebumps all over my body, and my stomach and right hand started to cramp at the same time.

In a short while, the entire mirror surface was filled with countless blood-red pupils, each one seemingly alive, its movements flashing with a complex mix of emotions—coldness, resentment, wailing, and murderous intent…

I was trembling all over, my strength was being drained from my body, and the urge to vomit made me arch my back. I covered my mouth with my left hand, and something was rising in my throat.

Another wave of intense stomach cramps hit, as if I were going to vomit up bile. My right fingertips felt like they were being pricked with needles. With a flick of my wrist, my right hand struck the mirror with its countless eyeballs.

With a crash, the mirror shattered. When Li Yang ran up behind me, all he saw were shards of glass scattered on the floor and my right hand, bleeding profusely.

"Heavens, what are you doing?" Li Yang rushed over and grabbed my right wrist.

The pain in my right hand relieved my anxiety just right, and my gradually calming mood allowed me to regain a fairly clear mind. Looking at the wall where the glass had peeled off, a particularly blood-red section caught my attention.

I hastily took Li Yang's handkerchief and pressed it against the wound on my right hand, but my eyes never left the strange wall. After a long while, I finally asked Li Yang, "What does that look like?"

When I asked him that, Li Yang also shifted his gaze from my wound to the wall. After a long while, he suddenly exclaimed, "It looks like a human silhouette!"

Nodding, I walked to the wall. There was a deep red mark in the shape of a human. Although the entire wall was made of red bricks, right here, behind what had just been hidden by a mirror, a nearly blackish-red human-shaped mark was clearly visible to us.

I reached out and touched the wall. It felt cold and sticky. I put my finger under my nose and a stench made my eyebrows furrow. It was the smell of rotting meat, or to put it more bluntly, the stench of a rotting corpse!

Looking back at Li Yang, we saw him frowning in disgust, clearly having caught a whiff of the scent. Without saying much, we were all preoccupied with one thought: what was hidden behind that wall?

I moved the bricks around a bit, and the cement between them wasn't as strong as we'd imagined; it had started to wobble. I grabbed one of the bricks that was already bulging out and pulled it out with all my might. The human-shaped wall panel collapsed toward me like a row of dominoes being pulled apart.

They hastily retreated, and with a deafening crash, countless deep red bricks collapsed onto the floor. A cloud of dust rose slowly, and through it, a nearly skeletal corpse stood before them. Its face was mangled beyond recognition by some blunt force, with only one eye dangling from its jawbone, swaying as it stared at them. The rising smoke created an illusion, making it seem as if the skeleton was walking towards them.