My House of Horrors

1101 There Is Someone Else in My Shadow 2 in 1

Sitting by the bedside, Chen Ge leaned against the wall for support. His one arm was inside his backpack as he lifted his head to study the monster that was crawling on the ceiling. There was no fear in his eyes. If anything, there was more than a trace of befuddlement. This was something the monster had not experienced before. The two looked at each other like that quite for some time, and neither of them was quick to make any move lest they were caught in a trap.

“Wen Qing has been rescued again by that invisible child. Assuming that child is the ghost fetus, why would he care about Wen Qing’s safety at every moment? Based on what I know of him, he is not the kind of person who would do any sacrifice for another person’s mother. After all, in the worlds of the other children, he never once offered aid to rescue the family members of the other chosen children.” Chen Ge gave it some more thought. The most logical explanation was that Xiang Nuan had joined himself with the ghost fetus. Or rather, Xiang Nuan did not exist at all in this world, and Xiang Nuan was the ghost fetus from the very beginning.

The rustling sound kept coming from above him. The monster made up from multiple human heads crawled on the ceiling. Black threads that gave off a horrible smell dangled out from the many orifices of the many heads. The monster was much more careful than Chen Ge expected. Many pairs of vicious and heartless eyes stared at Chen Ge. It hesitated for a long time before it started to approach this prey before it that was quite unusual. Chen Ge was nothing like the other human beings that it had encountered before.

The stench enveloped Chen Ge. The human heads were inching closer and closer. This scene was enough to scare any grown man until they fainted, but for Chen Ge, it caused his brows to crease slightly.

The monsters from the black fog and red city appear to be quite different in nature. They give me a completely different feeling.

The confusion in Chen Ge’s eyes gradually dissipated. He was like a biologist in real life, studying a species facing extinction that he had not seen before at a close distance.

Most of the monsters in the red city are covered in blood. The baleful Specters, Half Red Specters, and Red Specters had their power determined based on the amount of blood they have and the level of resentment they carry with them, but it’s different with the monsters from the black fog. Their ability does not seem to correlate to the amount of blood they have on their body. They give off a deep sense of hatred and the urge to destroy.

The essence of a Specter is a lingering obsession. When faced with a Specter, I rarely feel the emotion of disgust. In fact, sometimes, I feel pity for them. But these monsters from the black fog elicit the disgust from my heart. It appears like the chance for me to recruit these creature as my haunted house employees is close to zero.

His mind working on overtime, Chen Ge looked at the monster before him. He finally uttered the thought that he was thinking. “I cannot give up on any ‘person’ so easily. When all my employees wake up, I should try to capture a few of the monsters from the black fog alive and bring them home with me to see if I can help them correct their irregular and incorrect life view.”

Chen Ge himself knew how difficult the challenge he had undertaken was, but he still wanted to give it a try. Perhaps he was being naïve, thinking everyone could be rescued.

The monsters from the black fog lacked humanity, but that did not mean that they lacked the faculty of thought. These monsters were incredibly cunning. The human heads on the ceiling probed again and again before finally confirming Chen Ge pose no threat to it. The feeling of being tricked angered it greatly. All the human heads that made up its body opened their mouths at the same time. To be honest, what before Chen Ge was rather scary. More than ten human heads were twisting inches away from Chen Ge’s own face. Many black threads dangled down from the monster’s body. They wanted to use the threads to pierce through Chen Ge’s body and then bind around Chen Ge like a giant snake.

Just the thought of this image would make one feel uncomfortable. If a man was bound by a giant anaconda, he would at most suffocate to death, but if he was bound by this monster, the human faces on the monster’s body would latch onto his body, and the ghastly mouths would start to gnaw on his flesh and bones.

They cannot be communicated with, and they lack any sense of empathy. There are only sin and destruction in their eyes. Why would such a creature even have the need to exist in this world? What is the purpose of their existence?

Chen Ge looked at the human faces that were almost touching his face. His hand that had been placed inside the backpack finally reached out. In his pam was a red, high-heeled shoe that was covered in fresh blood. He extended the heel before the monster’s face. Before the monster could react, Chen Ge moved his arm and stabbed the sharp end of the heel right into the monster’s face.

This thing is quite sharp.

This was the first time that the human head monster had been attacked by such a weapon. The thin strands of black threads that had come out of its mouths rushed at Chen Ge like a bunch of piranhas who had found their living prey. But just as they were about to reach Chen Ge’s body, the red high heel that was stuck into the monster’s face started to have many strange patterns appear on its surface. Every pattern represented a pleading soul begging for mercy. Upon closer inspection, one would realize that each of the patterns was twisted from living human faces, and they were harboring their deepest curse and darkest despair. The black pattern spread on the human head monster. In less than a second, it had enveloped and captured the giant monster like a web.

It does not appear that a Specter can directly consume the monsters from the fog. It is more difficult than usual for them to even kill them.

The red high heels had not fully eliminated the restriction of the rules placed on her by the world behind the door. She could not leave her item of possession and appear in person. Therefore, Chen Ge had to resort to this method to deal with the monster from the black fog. He dared to do this because when his palm first touched the red high heels, the shoes’ blood vessels and curses voluntarily entered his body to help him search for the reason behind his continuous weakening of strength.

At the time, he knew that even though the red high heels still was not able to leave the item of her possession, she could use part of her ability already. The human head monster was twisting like a giant centipede on the ground of the living room. Looking at the torture it was in, Chen Ge took out the other red high heel from his backpack and stuck the heel steadily and firmly into the monster’s neck.

Even though the red high heels could only use part of her power, but she is the presence among my employees that is closest to becoming a Top Red Specter. How come she has such difficulty killing a mere human head monster? It’s taking her so long to deal with just one of them.

Chen Ge did not mean that as an underestimation of the red high heels’ power. He merely thought that the monsters from the black fog were surprisingly resilient and hard to deal with. After all, the human head monster could only be considered a more normal monster among the ranks of the creatures in the black fog. He had seen much bigger shadows moving through the fog earlier.

The black patterns that covered the human head monster’s body gradually tightened and closed upon itself. It took a full ten minutes before the human head monster was killed. Its body crumbled. Many onyx-colored threads came out from its broken head and morphed into black smoke. They returned to become a part of the black fog again.

Picking up the red high heels, Chen Ge studied the patterns on the surface that were getting clearer. He knew that the red high heels were about to break through the barrier soon.

After the body of the human head monster collapsed, the black fog in the room turned thicker. If anything, it gave off the feeling that it had not died but merely changed into a different form to continue its life. Using his Yin Yang Vision, Chen Ge found some black bits where the human head monster’s body used to be. They looked like ash that would be left behind after some banknotes were burnt.

“What are these?” Chen Ge found a thermos in one of the rooms and filled the black bits inside it. He had no idea what these things would be good for. He planned to bring them back with him to study. Perhaps he would be able to find out more secrets about the black fog from them.

Moving his body, Chen Ge noticed that even though his limbs were incredibly cold and his body temperature was low, the fatigue that rose from the bottom of his soul had decreased significantly.

After the invisible child took Wen Qing away, my physical energy gradually returned. Looks like the weakening of my body has something to do with him after all.

Chen Ge’s eyes were calm. When he entered the world of the other children, none of the children were willing to help the ghost fetus. They were hostile toward the ghost fetus, and in the end, they would end up becoming an aid to Chen Ge.

It was completely different in the world behind Xiang Nuan’s door. Ever since he entered the door, Xiang Nuan appeared to have sided with the ghost fetus from the very beginning. In the real world, Xiang Nuan was a child who refused to communicate with the world. No one knew what the real Xiang Nuan was like. Even his own mother did not know him well enough.

Before any of my employees woke up, I was following Wen Qing because Wen Qing is being protected by the ghost fetus. Through her, I got some protection and evaded some of the danger that would have come my way. But now that my employees are almost waking up, there is no reason for me to stick with them.

Chen Ge, without the aid of his employees, was not much stronger than a normal human being, but once he gained the aid of his workers, the situation would be completely different.

The workers’ power is my power. I am still the same self, but the power that I possess will keep on increasing. That should be my only advantage.

The power at the haunted house kept improving, but the corruption of power never went to his head. Chen Ge kept his sanity intact, and his soul was shining with the brilliance of humanity. That was what separated him from his adversaries.

The cursed hospital was much stronger than him, but to achieve their own goal, their humanity had been completely twisted. Their patients had almost become synonymous with the term ‘monster’.

Doctor Gao was smarter than Chen Ge, and he had seen the maximum potential of humanity a long time ago. To achieve his own goal, from when he was still alive to until he died, not only had he abandoned his own humanity, he had even given up on the right of being a human.

Chen Ge’s power was gradually increasing, but the path that he had taken was completely different from everyone else. The road that he had chosen was very dangerous. He had practically handed his life over to the Specters. Just how much confidence in his workers did he need to be able to make a choice such as this? He tried to shove the red high heels into his pocket, but he tried for a long time and failed to do so because the pocket was too small for the heels. In the end, he had no choice but to place the red high heels back into his backpack.

The Doctor Skull Cracker’s Hammer is just a disguise. The real damaging weapon is the red high heels. I doubt anyone would expect me to wield a pair of woman’s heels as my actual weapon.

Dragging the hammer along, Chen Ge took another brief rest in the room. It was not until the building was slammed into again and the quiver became more intense that he decided to leave.

The cursed hospital obviously came prepared. In fact, I bet that they made better preparations than me. This will be a horrible tragedy for the ghost fetus.

The hospital had a clear goal from the very beginning. At Jin Hwa Apartments Block A, when they discovered Chen Ge stirring the pot, they left without hesitation to avoid having a direct conflict with Chen Ge. Between the ghost fetus and Chen Ge, they had chosen to deal with the ghost fetus. Apparently, that was because they had been preparing for this day for a very long time.

Chen Ge’s physical energy was slowly recovering, and the color of blood on the comic was deepening. When he played the recorder, he could hear a slight static sound. The employees were waking up one after another. The good news was flowing in. Chen Ge’s expression was slowly returning to normal.

Zhang Ya is a Demon God. The cursed hospital probably has a Demon God or at least something close to the power of a Demon God among them. The ghost fetus wanted to suppress both of them with the rules of the world behind its own door, but that’s very difficult. He cannot keep this up for much longer.

With the protection from the red high heels, Chen Ge was no longer that afraid of the black fog. He slowly moved down the stairs, listening to the sounds that came from outside the building.

Fight to your heart’s content. We will see who will stand to have the last laugh.

He followed the stairs and finally arrived at the first floor. Before Chen Ge left Jiu Hong Apartments Block 2, he turned back to take in the sight. This building was originally hiding the rag doll’s head. Every door behind this building was filled with the ghost fetus’ memories. Even though it had turned into a monster, it had not forgotten its past. Every time he pushed open a door, he would be greeted by a former version of the ghost fetus.

Even the ghost fetus has held on so strongly to its past, but why would I have forgotten about such important things from my childhood? Is it because someone does not want me to remember anything from that period?

Standing at the entrance, Chen Ge did not hurry to leave. The world outside the building had completely changed. Black fog shrouded everything, but there were bursts of red amid the fog. The whole world behind the door was like an abstract painting of a nightmare. The black and red were mixed together, twisting every ‘person’ that resided behind the door.

Before this world goes fully out of control, the ghost fetus will definitely send Wen Qing to a secure location. After Wen Qing’s safety is ensured, the biggest possibility is that he will come back to find me.

Chen Ge stood in the ghost fetus’ shoes and tried to analyze the situation.

Now is the most crucial moment for its birth. No matter how loud the interruption, he will focus on the rebirth as his most important goal.

Until now Chen Ge had no idea what form of rebirth the ghost fetus would make, but he had a feeling that the ghost fetus would return to find him because his own body was the best choice for the ghost fetus.

I do not need to have a direct conflict with the ghost fetus. I should try to buy as much time as I can.

For Chen Ge, the interior of the apartment buildings that were the territory of the ghost fetus was no safer than the black fog. His employees were slowly awakening, and the red high heels could already use part of her power. He had enough to ensure his own safety. He could hide safely inside the black fog that was beyond the ghost fetus’ control until all his employees broke through the limitation of this world.

If the child did not choose to rescue Wen Qing, it would most likely have taken over a large portion of my body by now.

There were some truths in the world that could not be refused. One of them was that the child cared deeply about Wen Qing. Based on what Wen Qing had told Chen Ge, Xiang Nuan had never uttered a full sentence to her before. He had not even called her mom once. But from the child’s various actions when they were stuck behind the door, Wen Qing occupied a position in his heart that could not be replaced by anyone else.

Walking alone in the black fog, Chen Ge carried the backpack, dragging with hammer with one hand and carrying the red high heels with another as he silently worked his way to the small garden at the residential area. Finding a hiding space, Chen Ge looked around him. The place looked like a scene from an apocalypse.

The buildings were teetering, and giant shadows crawled on the surface of the buildings. The ground was shaking, and the world mixed with red and black had echoes of screams coming from everywhere. Chen Ge was completely enraptured by his surroundings when he felt a pinprick of pain from his palm. He turned to look, and he saw the red high heels bleeding.

“Someone is coming?” Chen Ge seemed to feel something. He whipped his body around, and his eyes zeroed in on a point. There was a child standing behind him. He was standing right on top of his shadow like he was used to that position.

“Found you.”

The boy had his head lowered, so his face was shaded from view, but from the voice and the tone, it sounded very similar to Xiang Nuan. Chen Ge took one involuntarily step back. As he did so, the boy took one step forward.

The distance between them remained unchanged like a man and his shadow. No matter how he tried, the man was unable to shake his shadow off. Seeing that this was unavoidable, Chen Ge stopped wasting time. His eyes were calm as if he knew that this would eventually happen sooner or later. But the expression on his face was rather complicated. “It was you who voluntarily escaped, so why did you come back to find me?”

The boy did not speak. He kept his head lowered as if staring right into Chen Ge’s shadow.

“Get out of my way. From the moment you escaped, there was no connection binding us together.”