In just one night, many changes had happened at the security company. The building looked like it had been singed, the fire took down the surrounding buildings as well. All the ghosts had been eliminated, forming a death zone where no one dared to enter. ‘The Singer looks mad but this is good too. The greater its destruction, the bigger the chance Butterfly would think it was The Singer who ruined the sea of flowers at the basement 4th floor.’ After narrowly escaping the Singer and shoving the blame of the company’s destruction onto it, Han Fei knew he mustn’t stay a moment longer at the security company. The elevator was not working. He came to the 2nd floor window. Just as he prepared to jump, the ground covered in blood and curse slowly protruded. There was rustling and then a black stone appeared in sight.
“Big Sin?” The poisonous insect with spines and menacing blood pattern rushed towards Han Fei happily. “Notification for Player 0000! You’ve been infected by Soul Poison, please seek immediate medical treatment!” Han Fei was glad that Big Sin was still alive but his Life Points didn’t allow him to do much celebration. Hugging Big Sin, Han Fei jumped down from the 2nd floor window. When he parted from his neighbours yesterday, he promised to meet them here at midnight. It was now midnight but there was no sign of them, they seemed to have run into trouble as well. There were hidden dangers at every corner of the cryptic world, other than Unmentionables like the Singer, no one dared to wander about freely.
“We should wait a little bit longer.” Han Fei couldn’t quit the game and he was alone. He felt extremely low on security. Time ticked by. Han Fei was pricked by constant anxiety but he had no idea where it came from. He only knew his heart was pounding very fast. ‘Perhaps it’s better for me to find a place to hide first.’ Han Fei signalled for Big Sin to follow him but it was acting very strangely. It was inordinately lively. It bounced about like it was dancing and the bloody pattern on its shell was startlingly red. “What’s wrong with you?”
As he reached out to touch Big Sin’s back, Han Fei received 2 more notifications. “Notification for Player 0000! Big Sin’s ability, Omen of Death has been triggered! It sees a thick haze of death on you, if there’s no surprise, you only have half an hour left to your life!
“You’ve been infected by Soul Poison, please seek immediate medical attention…”
“Omen of Death? I’m showing an omen of death?!” Han Fei looked at the Big Sin who was still twirling about and he was suddenly reminded of the feeling he had when he logged in earlier. Inside the blood frozen city, a pair of eyes slowly opened and locked onto him! ‘That can only be the Singer, it knows that I am here!’
Han Fei’s face twitched but he came to a decision immediately. He grabbed Big Sin and rushed towards the Ziggurat. ‘To exit the game, I have to complete 1 mission and stay for at least 3 hours. Big Sin already sensed death on me and the system said I only have half an hour to live, in other words, the Singer would arrive in half an hour!’ The bigger the danger Han Fei was in, the faster his brain would work. ‘Even with the collaboration of all my neighbours, they won’t be able to fight the Singer, so it’s pointless for me to return to Happiness Neighbourhood.’ Han Fei’s mind was clear. Since the Singer had targeted him and he had nowhere else to run, then he would go to Ziggurat. ‘Instead of just waiting for death, why not try to make something out of it? Even if I die, the Butterfly and the Singer would not have a good life, at least that would help the police and Huang Yin buy some time.’ After training in the cryptic world, Han Fei could maintain his clarity of mind at any moment, including when he was about to die. If he couldn’t change the ending, then he would make his death as valuable as possible.
Putting on the mask, Han Fei hid his presence and then raced towards Ziggurat with Big Sin attached to him. ‘The promise with the bride is that she'll come get me 4 days later. If I go to her home now, would she be there? If she’s not there but her husband is, things will be so awkward.’ Then again, Han Fei had no other solution. The Singer’s appearance had shattered all of Han Fei’s plans but in a way, it had already ruined the Butterfly’s plan as well. Everything was jumbled up and moved forward.
Ziggurat was the most dangerous locale at Yi Ming Street. The closer one was to Ziggurat, the stranger and scarier the ghosts one would meet. Han Fei was wise to hide from them. Han Fei found a second use for Big Sin. Whenever it acted with excitement, Han Fei knew immediately he had to turn around and use another path. Everyone saw Big Sin as the manifestation of disaster, but Han Fei saw it as a treasure. He didn’t blame Big Sin for predicting his death, it was not its intention, that was merely its nature. Furthermore, it was all thanks to Big Sin that Han Fei managed to know about the imminent danger. Before the Song arrived, Han Fei had already escaped from the scene. When he believed he was close to the Ziggurat, the strange song finally echoed from behind him. ‘It is here!’
Han Fei’s back straightened. He ran faster without even turning around to look. The Singer appeared suddenly and it moved incredibly fast. This time, it swore to not let Han Fei slip away again.
Han Fei abandoned his disguise and ran as fast as he could. Finally the cluster of buildings appeared at the end of the street. Compared to the other buildings, this cluster of buildings radiated a thick sense of death. The bottom of the buildings was covered in darkness. Han Fei could feel the buildings summoning him, calling him to join them. “Notification for player 0000! You are about to enter the Grade E Hidden Map—Ziggurat! You are 15 levels too early to challenge this map! Please consider this carefully!” The system kept giving warnings and hints, this had never happened before. But this also showed the danger and uniqueness of the Ziggurat.
The map left behind by the previous manager flashed in Han Fei’s mind, he had purposely circled out Ziggurat. This place was not only the most dangerous locale in this area, it also contained his memory fragment! If Han Fei could enter Ziggurat, he might have the chance to see Fu Sheng again. ‘I know this place is dangerous but I have no other choice!’
Han Fei was thankful that he had added all of his attribute points into stamina because the version of himself in the past wouldn’t have completed this journey in half an hour. The Singer was right behind him. Han Fei started his final sprint. His mind was clear as his fingers gripped around Big Sin. When the shrill song exploded beside his ears, he rammed right into the black mist.
“Notification for Player 0000! You’ve entered Grade E Hidden Map—Ziggurat! You’ve triggered the Grade E Hidden Mission—Death Curse!”
