Nightmare Despair

Chapter 40 Contact with the Mystery
[The body is perishing beneath the roots of the Moonlit Orchid. Welcome back.]

The subtitles for the nursery and fireplace appeared simultaneously, and in the blink of an eye, Zhou Kai was back home.

He almost immediately turned his gaze to the inventory...

Very good, the three potted plants are lying quietly in the cubicle.

"I brought it in."

"It's not just the flowers, but also the clean, unpolluted soil."

After confirming that the fire in the fireplace could last a while longer, Zhou Kai did not delay any longer and quickly went to the vicinity of the nursery.

He carefully removed the three potted plants from their pots intact and then transplanted them into the nursery.

He poured every last grain of soil left in the flowerpot into the black soil of the nursery.

Both flowers and soil are important.

In the town of Soraka, almost every inch of land is polluted by rainwater, but this nursery is the only pure land.

But in the real world, "clean" soil is readily available...

This means that Zhou Kai could continuously dig soil from reality and bring it to the nightmare world, like an ant carrying food, to expand the nursery.

"Strengthening these special buildings is, in a sense, also strengthening myself."

"I can't think of any other way to make a fireplace for the time being."

"But the nursery is different."

As long as there is clean soil and bricks to build it up... it can keep expanding!
After doing all this, Zhou Kai patted the dirt off his hands and stood quietly by the nursery, waiting for the dialog box he wanted to see to pop up.

After a few breaths, Zhou Kai's eyes darkened.

Above the nursery, a line of cold subtitles flickered.

Something's not right, let's look again.

It's the same excuse again, exactly the same as when they were looking for fireplace fuel...

It seems that not just any crop can be cultivated in a nursery.

"Can we use experience points to accelerate ripening?"

Zhou Kai muttered to himself as his fingers reached for the palm-sized snake plant.

Snake plants have the ability to grow in low-light environments, but getting them to give you special feedback requires more experience.

You have consumed 2 general experience points.

[Experience points 17 → 15]

When the notification of -2 experience points popped up, Zhou Kai immediately stopped and decided not to add any more points for the time being.

"It would be good if we could use experience to cultivate special plants... But for now, let's try our luck in town and see if there are any wild plants like Moonshine Orchid."

With the remaining experience points at hand, there's no doubt that the best strategy is to use them to enhance combat abilities at crucial moments.

As for logistical tasks such as strengthening shelters and creating special plants... those should be given a slightly lower priority.

Zhou Kai took a deep breath, turned around, and went back to the fireplace on the first floor.

He took out another piece of loot from his pocket, besides experience points, which he had acquired during the last siege.

【A memory, from the wanderer】

"use."

A few seconds later, Zhou Kai pulled himself out of the jumbled fragments of memory, his expression quite amused.

"This wanderer was a newsboy before it turned into a monster?"

What kind of monstrosity could turn a twelve or thirteen-year-old kid and that postman into the same kind of monster?

Zhou Kai couldn't figure out the answer for the time being; the mystery could only be gradually uncovered in subsequent explorations.

"Not bad, so you can gain experience points from memories too..."

Zhou Kai twitched the corner of his mouth and looked at the subtitles in front of him.

You have learned Soraka's Swordsmanship. Soraka's Swordsmanship experience points +1

【索拉卡剑术Lv2（5/25）→（6/25）】

That unfortunate newsboy's greatest dream in life was to join the Soraka family's guard.

He often lay outside the training ground, watching the guards train, and secretly learned a few moves.

Zhou Kai happened to observe this memory.

Even a little experience is still experience, so I'll gladly accept it.

……

The blood tide refreshes every twelve hours, and there is still a considerable amount of time before the next one.

Although the streets outside are still fraught with danger, and who knows which corner might be lurking with a monster, compared to the overwhelming terror when the blood tide arrives, the current period can be considered a safe time to explore.

After carefully placing the Moonlit Orchid Amulet close to his body, Zhou Kai gripped his axe tightly and slipped out of Soraka 777 without making a sound.

This time, Zhou Kai's target was a higher area of ​​the town. "If those bastards who attacked me last time are still lingering in the lowlands, then heading north should reduce the monster density."

Each time lightning streaked across the sky, Zhou Kai would use the brief flash of light to orient himself before plunging into the darkness and running at high speed.

As long as he doesn't run into tough opponents like the chain-hammer armored warriors, Zhou Kai is not afraid of relatively weak monsters at all, and even hopes they will come to him.

His only fear was being attacked by the masses.

Therefore, areas with sparse monster density are very suitable for Zhou Kai to explore.

The house numbers in the town seem to make no sense; around number 777, there are numbers starting with 600 and numbers starting with 400.

In front of a house marked 454, Zhou Kai used the handle of an axe to pry it open and then pulled hard, tearing the rotten wooden door and bolt off with his bare hands.

A pair of hunter-like eyes stared sharply into the room.

The room was empty and deathly silent.

Zhou Kai leaned the door panel back against the wall, then took out the talisman and, using the faint blue light, began to search the house.

Besides hunting monsters, acquiring equipment, items, and information is equally important.

Zhou Kai will not let go of any detail that he can grasp.

The living room and study were unremarkable, with outdated decor and furnishings, much like No. 777, and the rotten wood gave off a musty smell.

I'm getting a little tired of seeing Zhou Kai.

He specifically checked the fireplace here; it was cold and lifeless, without any mystical features, unlike the one in number 777.

Zhou Kai muttered, "It probably requires a residence permit or something similar to activate it."

He wasted no more time and quickly climbed to the second floor.

In a bedroom, Zhou Kai finally made a new discovery.

There are always some unusual phenomena in the nightmare world... For example, in a dilapidated kitchen, you can find an almost brand new axe with fresh bloodstains.

The same applies to Zhou Kai at this moment.

In a room that was probably a girl's bedroom, on a table covered with black and yellow mold, there was a clean notebook sitting there inexplicably.

Zhou Kai squinted and, after confirming that there were no signs of traps around, stepped forward to read the document.

The handwriting in the notebook was childish and crooked, and there were several crude line drawings next to it.

It might be a little boy?
I initially thought my new neighbor would be difficult to get along with, but ███ is actually a very lovely person. I like her, and we will become good friends.

My mom said they also have the surname Soraka, just like Mr. Westchester...

Elizabeth is a strange woman; her father says she's a libertine, and who knows how many men she's been with...

But at least she loved (presumably a name, which was forcefully erased)?

【Isn’t it? 】

"Those three...or maybe four households at number 777?"

Zhou Kai narrowed his eyes, finally realizing who the woman in those three photos with her face slashed to pieces was.

"The slashed photo is of Elizabeth..."

But Zhou Kai's doubts deepened.

According to the diary of the notebook's owner, there was a resident in number 777 who could be his friend.

The girl who can be friends with a little boy is most likely a little girl?

"This...the little girl whose name I can't write down..."

"Is she Elizabeth's daughter? Or that Lanzer's daughter? Or perhaps the bald, bearded one?"

The thought had barely crossed Zhou Kai's mind when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his head.

It felt as if countless venomous gazes were fixed upon him, sending chills down his spine.

Zhou Kai's vision blurred, and everything in front of him began to sway and distort like jelly.

The hanging curtains and the rags scattered around all came to life at this moment, stretching out slimy tentacles.

The wooden planks beneath our feet were no longer solid, but rather like mud or a swamp.

A cold sensation crept up his ankle, threatening to drag him into the abyss...

Just then, the amulet on his chest suddenly became scalding hot!

Chi!
A touch of deep blue bloomed, and the tranquility of the deep sea instantly submerged the frenzied illusion.

The feeling was like someone smashing a noisy, terrifying mirror in your ear with a hammer.

Zhou Kai was panting heavily; apart from feeling a little dizzy, he was otherwise fine.

[You have uncovered some secrets; Mysticism Experience Points +5]

Knowledge is a double-edged sword... the more you gain, the more you lose; the more you see, the more you pollute.

[Hint: Upgrading your Occult skills will likely grant you more rewards during exploration and combat.]

(End of this chapter)