Chapter 555: Shattered Memories
by xennovelLu Xin looked at Ye Xue with a peculiar expression.
It was the first time his eyes had revealed anything other than the usual black particles.
He recognized this girl, yet she felt strangely unfamiliar.
Of course he remembered the little girl who had nearly been bullied while singing.
But he was certain that the singing little girl could never have the ability to stop him from executing the Scarecrow, nor could she wield the bizarre mental force needed to appear in this plaza.
Even stranger, she called herself “Number Nine” and smiled at him in a way that seemed very familiar.
That uncanny familiarity stirred something deep inside him.
It made him forget about executing the Scarecrow as all his attention was drawn to the girl.
……
……
“Don’t you remember me?”
Meeting Lu Xin’s unwavering gaze, Ye Xue stepped to the center of the plaza and firmly planted her feet.
Her features were youthful, with a hint of innocent charm reminiscent of a child.
Tilting her head slightly and grinning mischievously, she said, “I recognized you the moment I saw you. I’ve been reminding you of the old days—remember how we used to sing and attend classes together at the Orphanage?”
Lu Xin remained silent, as memories flooded his mind.
He recalled the first time he met this girl, her arms cradling a guitar as she sang that childhood tune.
That melody had replayed endlessly in his mind after just one listen.
It turned out the familiar feeling the song evoked was real—it was a memory of his own past.
“Swish!”
Lu Xin’s body remained utterly still.
Yet it felt as if a surging tide had suddenly slammed over him.
The black particles in his eyes began trembling once more, evoking the sensation of a damp, fearsome surge, while his smile quickly vanished and was replaced by impulsiveness, anger, and an odd sense of intimacy.
Creak…
The steel bars beside him, under an unknown force, twisted suddenly and let out a grating sound.
An abnormal radiation swirled around him, bending the steel bars into strange, eerie shapes.
……
“What is that?”
Beside the plaza, Father suddenly looked astonished.
Sister bit off a chunk of the adjacent wall with a crunch, glaring at Ye Xue with pure hatred.
Mom, her face grave, whispered, “Wait a little longer.”
……
“It’s wonderful—I never imagined I’d see you again…”
At that moment, Ye Xue, with a reflective calm, turned to face Lu Xin and spoke.
Lu Xin’s eyes narrowed as he fixed his gaze on her.
Chaotic mental radiation swirled around him, like a wild, directionless storm.
So many emotions surged within him that he found himself unable to react immediately.
It was as if his mind had been overloaded with information, unable to process anything at all.
Meanwhile, Ye Xue’s smile grew wider and more natural as she began to speak with a tinge of wistfulness.
Softly sighing, she said, “I never expected the reason we’d meet again would be because I was doomed. After all, you once tore me apart. I must admit, when you charged into the Orphanage in such fury—cold, ruthless, and suffused with darkness—your expression was remarkably like the one I see now…”
“……”
“I’ve always wanted to ask you…”
Smiling, she looked up at Lu Xin and said, “After you killed us, did you ever feel any remorse?”
Lu Xin’s hand trembled, his eyes growing vacant.
But he couldn’t bring himself to answer.
Ye Xue only laughed more brightly and said softly, “Over the past few years, I’ve heard so much about you.”
“They say you rebuilt the Orphanage in Qinggang.”
“And I heard that not too long ago, you encountered Little Nineteen in Qinggang…”
“So…”
Her smile shifted into a strange mix of mockery and inquiry as she asked, “Are you atoning for your sins?”
“Does a creature like you even feel remorse?”
“……”
That blend of provocation and questioning struck Lu Xin instantly.
His body convulsed violently, as if something had pierced his heart.
Once his eyes sharpened, he looked straight at her and slowly said, “You are Number Seven.”
Ye Xue suddenly burst into laughter and nodded lightly, “I’m touched—you still remember me.”
At that moment, the look in his eyes finally reclaimed its familiar intensity.
In his mind, chaotic images flashed like a sped-up movie, eventually extracting two distinct faces that overlapped—first, the gentle, quiet girl with a guitar, and then, someone altogether different.
She was the girl who had always stood out at the Orphanage.
When everyone wore the same hospital patient gowns, she would roll up her pant legs to reveal smooth calves.
She liked to take off the top of her gown and tie it around her waist, wearing nothing but an undershirt.
Although she was only around twelve or thirteen, her charm was undeniable; she often joked and acted affectionately with the staff at the Orphanage, after which those staff members soon disappeared.
At the Orphanage, while the children adored her, the staff secretly dubbed her the Demon.
In Lu Xin’s memory, she often seemed lost in thought.
Whenever she drifted off, she would sit there, motionless, as if her body had become nothing more than an empty shell…
……
Deep within his memory, he recalled sneaking out one night with a group of children from a heavily guarded dormitory. Suddenly, the darkness was pierced by bright lights and a row of gunmen aimed at them, while that very girl laughed gleefully behind them.
Lu Xin’s heart twinged sharply as strange emotions surged into his mind.
“Back then…”
He struggled to remain calm, though his voice trembled as he asked, “Did you betray us back then?”
“Hehe…”
At his words, Ye Xue laughed as if she’d heard the greatest joke.
“Mm mm mm…”
Nodding repeatedly, she laughed, “Even though it was just a childish impulse—not even a real plan—I did tattle.”
She laughed heartily, “I found it hilarious watching you all so earnestly plan your escape from the Orphanage, especially when you’d make pinky promises to keep secrets after every decision. I truly longed to see you get caught…”
“In the end, you didn’t disappoint me.”
“When the adults pointed guns at you, it was the most entertaining sight in the world…”
“……”
“……”
“This is a huge problem…”
“What exactly do you intend to do?”
Father stared intently at Lu Xin, who stood on the ruins of the Administrative Hall building in the distance, as if he had sensed something.
He was overcome with terror; his body rippled with dense, serrated patterns, as if Lu Xin’s rage had affected him, leaving him unable to use the black shadow to steady himself.
On Mom’s face, a trace of puzzlement emerged as she murmured, “Even I can’t figure it out…”
“Why did she appear here? Who exactly sent her…?”
“……”
“……”
Ye Xue continued laughing uncontrollably, her laughter unbridled and infectious.
The more she laughed, the more Lu Xin’s pain intensified.
It had been ages since he felt such agony, as if every inch of his body was being torn apart.
If all this suffering were only physical, perhaps it would be bearable.
His expression hardened with wrath as he fixed his gaze on the woman, and though a thousand urges to tear her apart surged within him, he still wanted to ask, “You think it’s funny, but back then, we were all so serious…”
“We grew up together, vowing to protect each other when we escaped—and yet you hurt them?”
“……”
But the words wouldn’t come, and he managed only to painfully ask his most pressing question:
“Did you regret it later, seeing their panic turn into something absurd…?”
“Then, did you ever feel any remorse?”
“……”
Ye Xue’s smile faded as a cold look replaced it, and she softly nodded, “Yes.”
Lu Xin’s face seemed to empty of emotion.
Then she slowly said, “What I regret is not realizing that you were serious about that game…”
“I never expected you to be so committed!”
Her expression suddenly turned icy as she fixed her gaze on Lu Xin and said, “If I had known, I should’ve stuck with that fast runner and tattled again…”
“She was your good friend, wasn’t she?”
“I’ve always regretted that—if you’d seen her being the one to tattle, your expression would have been priceless, wouldn’t it?”
“……”
“Buzz…”
Lu Xin’s face twisted in extreme pain.
His mind erupted with severe auditory hallucinations as countless voices surged in at once.
He lost control, lunging forward as a powerful distorted force field propelled him.
Leaving a trail of afterimages, he dashed across twenty or thirty meters in an instant and charged directly at Ye Xue.
Clenching his fist tightly, he struck toward her face with a fury that threatened to shatter her.
“Swish!”
Yet, just as his fist neared Ye Xue’s nose, it halted.
Because in front of his punch was nothing but the innocent, frightened face of a little girl—the woman had vanished.
……
……
“Why are you left with nothing but brute force?”
The voice of Number Seven echoed from a figure crouched on the ground about seven or eight meters away.
The man, struggling to lift his head, showed a look both familiar and detestable to Lu Xin as he said, “Have you forgotten I belong to the Ghost-type?”