Nightmare Despair

Chapter 8 Stalker

Zhou Kai wasn't sleepy at all; the reason he was sleepy last time was because of the thrill of narrowly escaping death.

This time, it was the fireplace that had cleansed his drowsiness and fatigue.

I feel even better than after a good night's sleep.

The corresponding search results appeared on the webpage very quickly.

Evelyn Soraka

He vaguely remembered watching a movie called "The Peeping Tom" a few years ago, for which she received a Best Actress nomination.

I opened the encyclopedia entry and glanced at it.

Useless information.

He quickly selected the next item.

[A noble residence nestled in the Decree Mountains, a visit to the mysterious town of Soraka].

This is it.

With a light tap of the fingertip, the link redirected a few times, and a video playback window popped up that lasted three minutes and twenty seconds.

The image quality is rough, giving off the vibe of an amateur expedition team.

An overly excited voiceover accompanied by cheap, canned music.

"The legendary town of Soraka, which disappeared half a century ago, was actually a noble summer resort built in 1786..."

The camera panned across several newly renovated, gleaming wooden cabins, exuding the artificiality of a commercial tourist attraction.

"Around No. 1 Manor, this area gradually transformed into a prosperous town nestled deep in the mountains... In the oral traditions passed down through history, there are inexplicably no written records..."

“Local legends have turned this place into a ghost village, but our investigation suggests that the town may have been hit by a devastating flash flood… After half of the buildings were destroyed, the remaining residents all relocated…”

"...So, the town we see today is actually a restoration project of a modern scenic area..."

The sunny "Soraka" in the video has absolutely no connection to the decaying, oppressive, and darkness-swallowed Jedi in his nightmares, except for the name.

He read it again.

Then it was the third time.

No, not a single shot matches.

He slammed his notebook shut, looking utterly dejected.

The next second, he suddenly lifted the lid and continued searching.

This time, he focused on those bizarre and outlandish forums.

A niche antiquities forum caught his attention.

Zhou Kai posted a message there.

I received a reply very quickly, almost instantly, along with a friend request.

[Flash Dillam: Soraka? You mean that great knightly family bestowed with that name by the ancient conquerors? Are you interested in that history?]

Zhou Kai squinted.

A stranger who was online at 3 a.m. and offered to help.

What do you want from me?
Did you take my kidneys?

He accepted the friend request.

The guy who replied instantly was a chatterbox and had an almost fanatical worship of that so-called "ancient conqueror".

Zhou Kai patiently guided the conversation, precisely steer the other person's boasting in the direction he needed.

Finally, he got to the point.

"Soraka swordsmanship? Yes, you can learn that at any swordsmanship club around here."

"Okay, I'll send it to you."

A file transfer pop-up window appeared.

[Soraka's Swordsmanship.mp4]

Zhou Kai stared at the filename, stunned.

It's that simple?
no strings attached?

He carefully chose his words and slowly typed: "This... is really kind of you. Thanks, brother."

Flash Diram: "We're already calling each other brothers, so what else is there to say?"

Flash Diram: "I have quite a collection, I'll share it with you when I have the chance."

Zhou Kai was suddenly a little touched. Brother... he's practically an internet angel.

It's unbelievable that such rare creatures still exist these days.

Zhou Kai typed back: "Too passionate, bro."

……

After one hour.

Zhou Kai held a broom and imitated the sword moves on the screen.

The video is real; the actions are precise and ruthless.

But his body was like a rusty machine, every movement was awkward.

Nothing happened.

There were no system prompts, no flashes of inspiration.

There was only one idiot waving a broom in the living room.

I feel the problem isn't with the software, but with the hardware.

Perhaps he needs a real two-handed sword.

Another expense.

He threw the broom aside.

If I could really learn that, that would be great. That way, I could squeeze out every last drop of experience points when burning corpses next time.

He switched back to basic training.

In the dim light, he would sometimes throw a punch, and sometimes slide down the path.

As dawn broke, a familiar phrase lit up in front of me.

[Light Steps Experience Points +1]

Unfortunately, mixed martial arts made no progress.

[Character: Zhou Kai]

[Status: Erosion]

[Skills: Mixed Martial Arts lv2 (0/25), Light Footwork lv2 (3/25), Occultism lv0] [Items: Residence Permit, Bloodstained Axe, Rusty Chef's Knife, Morning Star Notebook, Dried Seed, Dried-up Oil Lamp]

[General Experience Points: 4]

[Erosion Progress: 3/9]

(Tip: Some items can be upgraded using universal experience points)
"Finally, they're not warning you to avoid death anymore... As for item upgrades..."

Zhou Kai had actually noticed it a long time ago, but he was always short of experience points.

The only items that can be upgraded are the axe and the chef's knife; now, seeds and oil lamps have been added.

seed.

Based on the description on that letter, it might be worth upgrading.

He focused his attention on the inventory.

Zhou Kai immediately found it quite interesting.

The upgrade path is not fixed, but customized.

It takes 1 experience point to transform a shriveled creature into a plump one.

Upgrading to the [Glowing Sunflower Seed] requires an expensive 59 points.

The same applies to axes. Sharpening and making them less prone to damage requires 2 points, while transforming them into huge, high-temperature axes requires 30 points.

A thought suddenly popped into my head.

If items can be upgraded, what about the [home]?

The image of that grotesque, twisted monster outside the window flashed back into my mind in an instant.

A safe haven...

Its value far exceeds that of a fancy axe.

Zhou Kai leaned back in his chair, a harsh reality pressing down on him.

General experience values ​​will never be sufficient.

He will forever struggle on the poverty line.

Open source is always more effective than cost-cutting.

He needs a new source of income.

……

Zhou Kai ate something haphazardly, sent his sister his usual good morning message, and said, "I'm fine, I've fully recovered."

I went out and headed to the Falcon Wing Boxing Gym.

He walked down the street, his eyes scanning every recruitment poster pasted on telephone poles and shop windows.

I need to find a job, a job that can make quick money.

Zhou Kai was making plans for the current stage.

I can't keep sucking my sister's blood.

And in order to buy items that make it easier to survive in nightmares, a lot of money is needed.

"Store clerk? 17 per hour... Delivery driver, 6000+ per month..."

……

"It's him, he's coming out! Hurry up and catch up!"

As Zhou Kai emerged from a narrow alley, walking towards the bus stop in the light drizzle.

A black sedan silently slid out from the roadside and followed him at a distance.

It wasn't intuition.

It is keen observation.

Zhou Kai saw its reflection on the glass of the billboard at the bus stop.

A block later, I saw the same reflection in the window of a closed bakery.

That's really amateurish.

Zhou Kai boarded the bus, chose a window seat, and quietly observed.

The car disappeared, swallowed up by the morning rush hour traffic.

This disguise still failed to deceive Zhou Kai's eyes.

More than half an hour later, Zhou Kai got out of the car and walked into a shopping mall near the boxing gym.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the black car reappear, parked in a parking lot a hundred meters away.

Five men got out of the car, gestured with their hands, and split into three groups, entering the mall through three different entrances.

Classic pincer-shaped encirclement.

Soon, the three of them headed towards a safety passage.

The man in the lead reached out and patted the shoulder of the young man in front of him.

"Is this Mr. Zhou? Can we talk? We mean no harm."

"Oh, who is it?"

The young man turned around; he had a similar build to Zhou Kai and wore the same boxing gym uniform.

But the face is a completely different face.

He stared at the man, his face filled with confusion and wariness.

"It's you! You've been following me the whole time! What do you want?"

"I'm warning you... I'm not some kind of person who's easily swayed... If you lay a hand on me, I'll call the police immediately!"

The man stood frozen in place, his hand hanging in mid-air, feeling awkward.

"Sorry, I mistook you for someone else..."

After the young man walked away cursing, the man leaned against the fire door and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

"Damn it, how can a young guy who just graduated from university have such a sophisticated counter-surveillance awareness?"

"Damn it, we lost them!"

He pressed the earpiece.

However, the next moment, the man felt the air move behind him.

Before he could turn around, an arm was already clamped across his neck like an iron clamp.

Click.

An immense force instantly locked his throat, and he was silently dragged into the darkness of the fire escape.

(End of this chapter)