AnalogHorror: Rule Kaidan 4016
Chapter 1006 - 469 Group C Class 18, with... Ballad_2

Chapter 1006: Chapter 469 Group C Class 18, with... Ballad_2

...

May 10, 2023, 13:33, 8th floor of Teaching Building C.

The closer he got to the higher floors, the thicker the mist in the environment became, and the gloomy sky was still sprinkling sporadic ash like goose feathers. These elements were absent in the lower regions, yet they did not significantly affect Ah-Gui’s movements.

The real factor that impacted Ah-Gui’s actions was... a certain kind of song.

This song seemed like a sound coming from the non-existent broadcasting system in the teaching building, light and soft, akin to the background music that emerges when switching maps in a game. As soon as he stepped onto the corridor in front of the classroom, that sound began to appear.

This could never be the broadcasting system; it could only be an ancient and sinister song drifting from the layers.

The distance from the staircase to Class C18 was short, and Lin Yi effortlessly controlled Ah-Gui to reach there.

Perhaps due to the experience of being pulled by the mucus in the stairwell, or perhaps because of the environmental issue, Ah-Gui’s physical capabilities noticeably improved, and his movements no longer felt blurry or jerky.

Yet that sinister song, as if imbued with some kind of magic, made Lin Yi feel that the ashes within Ah-Gui had begun to stir uncontrollably.

He had heard songs from the depths of the sea before, distant as if sung by a sea monster, intermittently drifting until it finally reached his ears.

But the sound here was continuous, soft, as if it had been there all along, until now only faintly captured by Lin Yi.

The door to Class C18 was closed, but Lin Yi felt that the song seemed to come from inside the classroom...

He manipulated Ah-Gui’s hand to grasp the doorknob gently and then pressed it lightly.

"Click!"

The doorknob was pressed down.

Next, he pushed.

"Squeak—"

The door to the classroom creaked open, as if the door attribute could not stop Lin Yi who was possessing Ah-Gui.

The moment the door opened, the song indeed grew a few notches louder, yet it was still not loud enough.

Lin Yi didn’t hesitate; he pushed the door open and entered, then closed the door.

He knew that Zhang Lingzhen was in a situation similar to his and would definitely be able to push open this door.

What he needed to do was to accumulate a significant amount here, then use Zhang Lingzhen’s arrival to detonate the ashes he had gathered.

But now, he seemed to have encountered a brand-new situation...

The source of that song... seemed to be right here!

Right in Class C18!

The interior of Class C18, in its abandoned state, was similar to other lecture halls with bookshelves leaning askew, the lectern covered in dust, and the folding tables and chairs on the steps were in a state of disrepair.

Lin Yi furrowed his brow—of course, there was no visible change on Ah-Gui’s face.

Ah-Gui seemed like a stone, standing there, dumbly admiring the butterfly that had landed in front of him.

"I see...," Lin Yi thought of how this classroom had been attacked during the Grey Mist Invasion, as evidenced by the shattered glass of the rear windows!

His perception swept out, and he indeed detected a draft flowing out from the back of the classroom, though the draft seemed insignificant.

At least, not as strong as in other places.

But as his perception spread, he noticed that the closer he got to the back of the classroom, the denser the grid-like lines that were supposed to be evenly distributed in space became. This phenomenon was like "gravity" in physics.

The space and the layers over there... seemed to have some form of distortion!

Should I go and take a look? A thought arose in Lin Yi’s mind.

In some strange way, it felt like this was something Young Master Tian wanted him to encounter...

"Young Master Tian had been here before and left intact... Should I be able to do the same?"

He hesitated for a moment, quickly making a decision.

"Never mind... I should do what I came here for first, and then go over there to take a look."

He constantly reminded himself of the reason he came here.

Young Master Tian being able to leave unscathed didn’t mean he could do the same. If he fell into a trap and set off a mine and got killed after approaching, losing this puppet was a minor issue, implicating Young Master Tian would be the real problem.

He then moved to the center of the lecture hall and began absorbing all the residual extraordinary material there like a vortex.

He needed to ignite the ashes, but he couldn’t just ignite the ashes; the more extraordinary material, the more potent the effect would be.

As he drew in extraordinary material, he also attempted to extend his perception to gather as much information about the abandoned classroom as possible.

Suddenly, he discovered some spiritual crystals on the steps of the classroom, like salt precipitated from seawater, but upon closer induction, he realized it wasn’t salt, but... ashes!

It was as if ashes collected at the cost of life by zealots, ground into fine sand.

This was pure ash; perhaps what Maozi stepped on was this kind of ash... This guess emerged in Lin Yi’s mind.

And this concentration... perhaps it entered through the cracked window, then precipitated bit by bit, eventually settling on the steps?

The dead wouldn’t be ignited by ashes; instead, they could carry them.

Of course, this "carrying" could be phrased nicely as carrying, and not so nicely as being fossilized.

The perception continued to extend. When it was about to reach the ceiling, a faint sound suddenly entered Lin Yi’s ears...

"Clang, clang—clank, clank—"

It was the sound of chains swaying in the wind...

"This sound... is it them?"

As if to confirm Lin Yi’s reaction, ethereal giggling sounds started emanating from the ceiling.

Those broken statues suspended upside down, wrapped in chains, gradually replaced the discarded incandescent lamps in the distorted layers, appearing in Lin Yi’s perception.

[Lin Yi’s here...]

[He’s here...]

[Hahaha...]

Though it was Ah-Gui, those broken statues, with their piercing gaze, immediately called out Lin Yi’s name.

"How could I still be seen through?"

"Is it a coincidence?! Or is it because of... ’me’?"

Previously, no matter how many times he heard the call, Lin Yi didn’t feel scared, but this time, it made him question the established facts.

If his perception wasn’t reverse-captured to determine his identity, then the only explanation was—only he could perceive these countless broken statues stuck in the distorted layers!

The instant he had this conjecture, Lin Yi felt as if he had been plunged into cold seawater, chilled from head to toe...

[Take us away!]

[Take us away!]

[The time has come... you promised!]

[You’ve come as promised...]

One after another, the broken statues jeered, their grotesque faces filled with bizarre smiles, voices from near and far merging into what seemed like some evil coaxing chant.

Then, that distant song suddenly grew a few more decibels, intertwining with the calls of the broken puppets.

It was unclear which broken puppet started first, singing in a sinister and lengthy tone, accompanied by that distant song...

[’Lin Yi, oh Lin Yi... where will you go...’]

Soon after, some broken statues paused momentarily, but quickly some others caught on, beginning to hum along...

[’Lin Yi, oh Lin Yi... where will you escape to...’]

Gradually, all the broken statues began singing together:

[’Lin Yi, oh Lin Yi... where will you go...’]

[’Lin Yi, oh Lin Yi... where can you go...’]

[’Come back, come back...’]

[’I’m waiting for you in the desolation...’]

[’You know my body and name...’]

[’You know my power and might...’]

[’Lin Yi... Lin Yi...’]

[’Destiny is like an Ouroboros ring... looping back to the starting point...’]

[’Lin Yi... Lin Yi...’]

[’When the Withering Black Moon...’]

[’Sing my name loudly...’]

[’Lin Yi, oh Lin Yi...’]

[’Lin Yi, oh Lin Yi...’]

[...]