In Virtual Reality 59 ☆ Red Stairwell (6/10)

Having devoured Li Dong's head, the female ghost dragged his remaining body aside and slowly crept towards Xu Jin Yi. On this occasion, Xu Jin Yi found herself standing on the fifth-floor platform after leaving the house. The building, consisting of only five floors, meant that there were no steps to her right during her first circuit around the stairs. The female ghost obstructed her sole path down the stairs, and unless Xu Jin Yi re-opened the locked door behind her, escape was not an option.

— But who said I wanted to escape?

The stairs were infinite, and jumping out of the window was not the answer.

"So, how could she pass this level?"

Narrowing her eyes, Xu Jin Yi watched as the female ghost crept closer but made no move. Li Dong was the male owner of the fifth floor, and the bride was the female owner, now deceased. But what about the female ghost in front of her? Her youthful face did not match the bride's in the wedding photo. If she was the bride's child, it was impossible. The baby socks inside the house signified that even if the bride was lucky enough to give birth safely under Li Dong's abuse, the baby would still be an infant.

Furthermore, in the wedding photograph, the bride's abdomen was heavily stained with red. The ghost had spitefully cut open the groom's abdomen. She was probably beaten until she miscarried and then dismembered and killed.

But who was this female ghost in front of her?

The ghost's broken arms had already climbed onto Xu Jin Yi's waist, and she lowered her head, gazing into the ghost's pupil-less eyes.

Xu Jin Yi took a deep breath, extending her right hand towards the ghost and gently sweeping aside the broken hair on her right side. The deep knife scar on the ghost's face rose from the upper left to the lower right, perfectly slicing through the hair beside her ear.

Xu Jin Yi's thoughts drifted to the cutting board in the kitchen, the broken hair, and the two remaining teeth...

Suddenly, the ghost took a bite out of the fleshy part of Xu Jin Yi's right palm, causing her to freeze. She knew that as long as it was not fatal, she would not "die" and return to the room. She glanced over at the spot where Li Dong had died, where his headless body remained, and the bloodstains had not yet dissipated.

It appeared that resurrection was a process that required time. Xu Jin Yi used her left hand, which was idle, to brush aside the female ghost's left hair. Despite the female ghost gnawing on her right hand, Xu Jin Yi showed no reaction. Her left hand traced the scars left by the knife on the female ghost's face.

【The marks of being cut and then patched back together.】

She moved her hand to behind the ear.

【The ears were swapped, left for right.】

The neck.

【Numerous scars, the result of being cut multiple times.】

Lifting her left hand, Xu Jin Yi touched the white garment on the female ghost's body. There was a small circular embroidery just below the collar. It was the school emblem.

Xu Jin Yi could only feel the embroidery pattern but could not discern it clearly due to the female ghost's movements. Her hand finally returned to the female ghost's face, where she touched her eye corner.

"Ah ah ah ah —!!!"

Suddenly provoked by the action of the pink hoodie avatar, the female ghost lunged at Xu Jin Yi, pinning her to the ground. She ripped open her upper and lower jaws and sank her teeth into Xu Jin Yi's head!

**

When Xu Jin Yi opened her eyes again, she returned to the living room. She caressed her left fingertip; her gaze was clouded and inscrutable. The timer on her phone read fifty minutes, but after verifying the actual time, Xu Jin Yi confirmed that the game clock was ticking faster than in the real world. She reset the timer and pushed open the anti-theft door with determination.

Not long after Li Donggang regained consciousness and stood motionless, a hand reached out from behind and seized his collar, slamming him mercilessly against the anti-theft door! His skull throbbed from the impact, making him feel lightheaded, but his poor temperament allowed Li Dong to curse with his usual lack of restraint.

Suddenly, a powerful fist landed squarely on his left cheek, jarring his tongue against his teeth and nearly biting it off! His molars wobbled loosely while a sharp pang of agony and the taste of blood welled up in his mouth. When he parted his lips slightly, blood and saliva dribbled out.

Saliva dripped like an open tap.

"Soory," spoke the person with a small face in front of Li Dong, clad in a pink hoodie, without any hint of regret. Their pure black eyes brimmed with scorn that made Li Dong fume. "I have great strength, so endure it for a while."

Before he could react, Li Dong was dealt a ruthless kick in the stomach, causing him to instinctively curl up like a shrimp. But Xu Jin Yi did not allow him to curl up. She firmly grasped Li Dong's right hand and exerted force again, making the back of his head and the anti-theft door collide with full force.

She effortlessly retrieved her phone from her pocket and glanced at it.

【00:02:49】

"We have ample time," Xu Jin Yi stowed away her phone, then used her left hand to slap Li Dong's left cheek, who was already somewhat dazed. "But I dislike unnecessary chatter. You will answer my questions when I ask them. Understood?"

The man opened his mouth, but blood started to trickle down.

Xu Jin Yi disregarded it. "Tell me, did you murder your wife?"

Li Dong remained silent, but his pupils uneasily contracted.

"While she wasr pregnant, you assaulted her," Xu Jin Yi stated with an unemotional face, each word enunciated, "Not only did you physically abuse her, but you caused her to miscarry, didn't you? You promised her happiness, Li Dong."

At the sound of his name, the man stirred. He mumbled, his face swollen, "Who... who are you?"

"I'm the one asking questions now." Xu Jin Yi conveyed the current situation in a deep voice, but the man did not hear a word.

He continued muttering, "Are you that woman's lover? I knew it, she looked down on me... How dare she, with that kind of gaze--" Li Dong struggled, "I'm her man! Her husband! Who do you think you are? Let me go!!"

"Very well." Xu Jin Yi released him, and then, while the man was still dazed and confused, she stepped back and kicked him in the knee.

The searing pain made him kneel, his arms hitting the ground with force, drawing blood on the rugged concrete floor.

Xu Jin Yi circled around Li Dong and kicked him to the ground. "Are you angry?" she inquired. "Does it hurt? Are you in pain? Will you feel afraid when my fist makes contact with your body?" She squatted down, lifted his tattered shirt collar, and softly said, "You're lucky to be alive. But what about her? You beat her to death. Do you feel scared or grateful for every moment you run away? Grateful that the ghost you face isn't her..." She leaned close to his ear, whispering, "but the other student you killed?"

"I...I didn't..." Li Dong stammered, "I didn't kill...anyone..."

Xu Jin Yi smiled, "Oh, did I accuse you wrongly then? Let me think. You beat your own wife, forced her to have an abortion, killed her, and dismembered her body. And because she eloped with you, not many people knew about your family's situation. Moreover, she had a falling out with her own family, and didn't contact them for a year or two, so her family might think that she's still just being difficult." Xu Jin Yi touched his hair and tightened her fingers, asking softly, "You're not denying it, are you?"

Li Dong didn't speak, but his hand reached forward, trying to escape.

"I haven't finished asking yet," Xu Jin Yi smiled, but her eyes showed a fierce blaze. She grabbed his short hair and dragged him back. "I had thought that you had only killed your wife, even though that alone would be a grave sin," Xu Jin Yi stated, her gaze fixed on the corner platform on the fifth floor leading to the fourth, where five black plastic bags of varying sizes lay.

Her voice was subdued. "But you have also murdered another young woman. Tell me, how did you do it?"

"... Release me! Release me!" Li Dong cried, his hands trying to pry Xu Jin Yi's left hand tightly, clenching his hair. "I don't know! I don't know! Let me go!"

"How could you not know? How could you not know?" Xu Jin Yi interrogated. "Did you drag her to the kitchen? Did you decapitate her? Were you scared of her lifeless eyes, so you pierced them with chopsticks?! You dared to kill, but not to confront their accusing gazes?!"

"Please, let me go... I swear, I won't do it again; I swear, I won't do it again," Li Dong whimpered.

Li Dong held his head and wailed without stopping, his anguish piercing the air. Seeing him in such a state, Xu Jin Yi found little joy in uncovering the truth. What kind of game was this? Was it really worth the hype and explosive potential?

Compared to the new game, 《Red Stairwell》, Xu Jin Yi found the plot of 《Screaming Haunted House》 to be more compelling. At least 【Fang Wen Wen】 had escaped.

But what about now?

The bride and a female student did not survive. Despite repeatedly dying in the looping staircase of the game, 【Li Dong】 still clung to life.

Even as Li Dong continued to wail, Xu Jin Yi knew that even if he were to admit his wrongdoing, his heart would remain the same. Such a person never believes they are in the wrong; otherwise, he would not have killed his wife, let alone plot the murder of another innocent female student after her.

Suddenly, the black plastic bag in the staircase stirred.

Li Dong cried out, "It's coming! It's coming!!" The weary man struggled once more, his gaze fixed on the quivering plastic bag with growing dread.

Xu Jin Yi checked the time.

【00:09:50】

The black plastic bag ripped open, and a white arm emerged.

【52】

Half of a head tumbled out of the small, torn plastic bag.

【54】

The arms worked together to attach themselves to the torso.

【56】

They even pieced together the upper and lower parts of the face.

【58】

The head was pushed backwards by the arm in the wrong position, resulting in an upside-down face.

【00:10:00】

The ghostly female student forced a rigid smile and strode towards Li Dong, lying on the ground.

— Boom!

Thunder boomed outside the window behind her, lighting her patched-up body. With her legs unable to stand straight, she resorted to crawling forward on all fours, using her hands.

Li Dong was in a state of terror, screaming and struggling to escape, but Xu Jin Yi kept her foot firmly pressed on his back, immobilising him.

Stopping on the next step down, the female ghost extended her hand towards Li Dong, tilting her head and revealing a stiff, eerie smile. "Hello, uncle... It's raining... Could you lend me an umbrella?" she asked. "I'll return it to you... I promise."

As Xu Jin Yi watched the ghost repeat the same words to Li Dong, she sighed. Tentatively, she spoke a few words to the ghost, but the ghost did not respond and continued repeating herself to Li Dong.

"I won't lend it to you! I won't!" Li Dong cried out in despair. "Please, let me go, I'm begging you!"

The female ghost retracted her stiff smile, her pupil-less eyes fixed on the distraught man. "I said the same thing at the time..."

——— Translators Notes ———

While the story might sound fictional, sadly, Not so while back (21 February 2023 (aged 28)), there was a man who Butchered, Dismembered his ex-wife, Hong Kong model Abby Choi.

This also reminds me that a while back, a Trash Streaming in Russia beat his girlfriend, stripped her, poured cold water on her, and threw her out into a freezing cold winter, where she died. She had begged to be let in. All of it was on livestream. Later he said he did nothing wrong.

Real life can turn into real horror.

Please keep safe.

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