Chapter 251: Echoes of the Operating Room

Stark white lights. A silent corridor.

A pale green wooden door.

Having been forcibly pulled into a subconscious dreamscape before, Lu Xin was prepared this time. He deliberately lowered his mental defenses letting the other’s ability invade. So when the surroundings stabilized and sharpened into focus he smoothly found himself back in that same mysterious pale corridor.

The moment he entered the dreamscape, Lu Xin reached back.

His hand closed around something soft. Turning his head he met a pair of watery helpless eyes.

It was the monster possessing Dream Weaver-type powers.

Lu Xin had previously detected Dream Weaver powers emanating from Vice President Xiao. He was certain that among the mental monsters drawn out by this S-rank Ability User from the Sea Country there had to be a similar Dream Weaver-type monster.

So he had been waiting patiently.

Persistence paid off. He’d finally found this helpful soul.

He had to grab it quickly.

…

…

The only problem was the mental monster seemed completely bewildered.

It didn’t understand where it was or why it felt so terrifying.

What it couldn’t comprehend even more was how in a dreamscape *it* had constructed the other person seemed more adept than itself.

By the time it sensed something was wrong and tried to escape it found itself already caught.

The grip was firm yet gentle, careful not to let it escape but also not to crush it accidentally.

In the outside world amidst the chaos Lu Xin stood with his eyes closed surrounded by countless mental monsters.

The monster’s slender soft tentacles touched Lu Xin’s temples while his hand kept a tight grip on it.

The surrounding shadows pulsed and shifted as if experiencing complex emotions.

Among the swarm of mental monsters Mom watched Lu Xin enter the dream her expression indistinct.

…

…

The same distorted oppressive air hung heavy. Deep within the space countless eyes seemed to watch him in fear.

The faint coppery scent of blood lingered in the air.

Strange noises echoed ceaselessly in his ears.

Lu Xin forcibly suppressed the urge rising within him forcing himself to remain calm before striding forward.

He wasted no time pushing open the wooden door and entering a corridor lined with numerous rooms. He quickly walked past the bizarre but empty rooms arriving before the final three doors which remained tightly shut.

The first door was still shut tight the light inside dim.

Peering inside he could still make out torn toys and a disordered operating table.

He recalled the last time he entered this dreamscape seeing the pair of upside-down eyes behind this door—only the whites visible.

Lu Xin took a deep breath suppressing the tension that felt like it was about to overflow.

Then he gripped the handle and pushed the door open forcefully.

*Swish!*

As Lu Xin entered the room along with the motion of pushing the door a blast of white light hit him.

Lu Xin’s mind went blank for a moment.

Only after the dazzling white light faded could Lu Xin gradually make out the scene within the room.

He saw a bustling operating room filled with harsh white lights and complex instruments. Countless figures in white coats and masks hurried back and forth. The beeping of machines and their occasional hushed conversations filled the room with an anxious oppressive atmosphere that made one’s heart clench uncomfortably.

“Report on Experiment Subject 17’s vitals.”

“All stable even improving…”

“Unbelievable… Cut up like this and her vitals are *better*? Is she even human?”

…

Amidst their strangely grating voices Lu Xin’s gaze passed through them landing on an operating table.

A young-looking girl lay on the table. Various tubes connected instruments to her body. She wore a white dress stained heavily with blood. Her hair was messy large beads of sweat seeped from her forehead dampening her strands.

Her chest had been cut open numerous jarring wounds marred different parts of her body.

The most outrageous thing was that even in this state her hands and feet were still strapped to the operating table.

“We need to find out how she can control herself freely and why her wounds recover so quickly.”

“She doesn’t even seem human anymore… Seeing her crawl on the wall I thought I’d run into Sadako…”

“Sadako is terrifying precisely because she’s a ghost possessing superhuman power.”

“And our job is to unlock the secrets behind these powers.”

…

Lu Xin’s mind suddenly felt slightly dizzy a throbbing sensation pulsed at his temples churning his thoughts.

Everything felt so familiar.

It didn’t feel like a dream but like the real world.

*Beep beep…*

Suddenly the piercing alarm of an instrument blared.

“Oh no…”

A nurse’s startled voice cried out “The anesthesia wore off! She actually woke up early…”

“Should we administer more anesthesia?”

…

The middle-aged man in the room wearing gold-rimmed glasses adjusted his frames and stated coldly “No. The experiment has begun basic data is already recorded. Injecting more anesthetic now would affect our assessment results…”

Someone asked in shock “Then what do we do?”

“Continue the experiment.”

The middle-aged man replied calmly “She can’t break free anyway. We can also assess her pain perception.”

“Understood. Speed up the surgery.”

Instantly the room filled with the girl’s horrific screams and the sickening sound of scalpels slicing through skin.

…

An indescribable fury suddenly surged into Lu Xin’s mind.

He hadn’t felt anything so clearly in a long time. It was a rage that felt like it could burn him to ash seizing his brain instantly shattering all calm. A roar more terrifying than any beast’s tore from his throat.

He charged forward desperately flailing his hands clumsily.

He wanted to grab everyone in the room tear them apart annihilate everything completely…

*Rip…*

As his hand reached out the entire scene began to shatter.

It was like his hand had grabbed a television display shattering the screen.

All the images and figures started to distort crumble and disappear.

The last thing remaining in Lu Xin’s vision was the terrified helpless gaze of the girl on the operating table.

…

…

*Huu…*

Lu Xin snapped his head up finding himself back in the real world standing below the Donghai Grand Hotel.

In his hand he was crushing the white phantom.

The big-eyed helpful mental monster was now completely gone.

This white phantom had also become dim and tattered.

It looked like a crumpled piece of white paper torn to shreds by him.

*Bzzt…*

On the glasses he wore the word “WARNING” appeared in red on the frame near his left eye.

At the same time Lu Xin felt the frames of the glasses turning cold as if some strange emotion was being rapidly drawn out of his body. Images of a frenzied world under the Red Moon flashed rapidly through his mind.

This caused his uncontrollable fury to rush rapidly towards somewhere else.

Like a person on fire falling into an icy lake.

The flames engulfing him were being drawn away extinguished.

After a moment Lu Xin calmed down. He gently removed the glasses examining the red wooden frames. Their design seemed simple yet exuded a strange technological feel in many aspects. He confirmed something in his mind.

After another moment he put the glasses back on.

Silently he raised his head.

The Red Moon overhead appeared unusually full even though it shouldn’t have been a full moon tonight.

But under the Red Moon’s exceptionally vivid light Lu Xin’s shadow stretched out unusually large and dark.

“Time for a high-profile ending…”

Lu Xin thought silently turning and walking towards the high-rise building.

As he ascended higher the area of the shadow cast behind him by the Red Moon multiplied exponentially.”