Mysterious Resurrection: What If

Chapter 199 The City I Can't Remember

Old Qin stared at the drop of lake water, his expression changing slightly.

"Tick-tock..."

The lake water splashed onto the ground, creating a strange ripple. The water spread extremely quickly, as if it were alive, frantically spreading outwards along the paving stones.

In a short while, the entire hall floor was covered by a layer of blackened lake water. Although it was only an inch thick, the bottom of the lake was unfathomably deep, and several blurry corpses could be vaguely seen floating in the darkness.

The stench of corpses filled the air. Old Qin stood on the lake surface, not sinking, and quietly looked at his reflection in the lake.

"Ghost Lake, but not complete..."

Old Qin had a keen eye; he determined the state of Ghost Lake in just a short moment of observation.

But that wasn't the end of it. Just as Old Qin was observing, a muffled bark suddenly rang out.

"Woof—Woof!!!"

A large dog with jet-black fur suddenly leaped out of the lake, its limbs splashing through the water.

It circled Yang Jian twice, then lowered itself, letting out a low growl as it stared intently at Old Qin.

"A nightmare..."

Old Qin looked at the big black dog, his expression shifting slightly.

Just as Yang Jian said, although this dog was exactly the same as the one he had seen before, it gave him a more terrifying feeling, like a more complete vengeful ghost.

However, he quickly calmed down.

"Yang Jian, your appearance has indeed surprised me a little."

He raised his old cane and gently tapped the lake surface, as if it were a habitual action, or perhaps it was the triggering of some terrifying medium.

Immediately afterwards, centered on Elder Qin, the entire lake water quickly dissipated, and the dry ground reappeared. In the blink of an eye, Ghost Lake retreated back into Yang Jian's body.

"I was right."

Yang Jian stared at Elder Qin. Even in this illusory world, Elder Qin's level was still beyond reason. Even the lake water that could sink into the ghosts could not get close to him, let alone suppress him.

With heavy steps, Old Qin walked towards Yang Jian, seemingly wanting to observe the big black dog up close.

Yang Jian did not stop him. He could sense that Qin Lao did not have any killing intent; he was just testing the strength of Ghost Lake.

As he approached, Old Qin lowered his head, his cloudy eyes scanning the large black dog at Yang Jian's feet.

Gradually, a complex mix of emotions flashed across his eyes, but they quickly dissipated. He looked away, now certain that this was the source of his nightmares, and something even more terrifying.

Looking at Yang Jian, Old Qin didn't say anything more. No one knew what he was thinking. He turned around, leaning on his cane, and slowly disappeared into a long passage.

His already hunched back seemed to grow even older at this moment.

"Go to the third basement level and find him."

Yang Jian acted immediately. The crimson ghost domain shot straight down like a line, and Yang Jian quickly found Wang Xiaoming.

He was still wearing those metal-framed glasses, his white lab coat was clean and tidy, and his expression was calm. He seemed to have been waiting there for quite some time.

“I heard everything we just talked about.”

He stood up, opened a door behind him, glanced back at Yang Jian, and gestured for him to follow.

Wang Xiaoming said as he walked:
"So you want me to help you leave this place, right? There is another me in another world, and you trust him in a certain sense, which is why you came to me for help."

Yang Jian nodded noncommittally. It seemed that Wang Xiaoming in this world was just as abnormal.

"I don't have many options, so I have to find a way that is safe enough."

The two walked through a dark and secluded passage, and Wang Xiaoming seemed to be leading him to a place where evil spirits were imprisoned.

Wang Xiaoming suddenly said, "Perhaps both worlds are real, but you arrived here through supernatural means, which is why you think it's fake. As for the difference in the level of terror you mentioned, it might just be because the world I'm in isn't complete, like the puzzle pieces of a vengeful ghost. This phenomenon is reflected in this world." Yang Jian gave Wang Xiaoming a deep look; he was exactly like the one in the real world. In just a few words, he deduced the biggest anomaly in this world.

That is incomplete. No matter where Yang Jian wants to go, he must do so by triggering a mission, otherwise he will be trapped in one place forever.

"Make a deal."

The two arrived at a door, and Wang Xiaoming pushed it open and entered.

This is an old archive room.

The metal shelves were covered in dust and piled high with densely packed documents and numbered files. The air was thick with the smell of musty paper.

Wang Xiaoming climbed the metal escalator and took down a gold briefcase from the top floor.

"I will tell you the information on how to get out of here, and you will help me perfect the existence of this world."

"No problem, I promise you."

Yang Jian agreed without hesitation, as he had originally planned to learn some important clues about the Republic of China through this opportunity.

Wang Xiaoming placed the suitcase on the table, took out the key, and unlocked the latch.

“A manager came to headquarters before. Like you, he displayed supernatural powers that were beyond the norm. He should be from the same place as you, but he chose to stay.”

Yang Jian's eyes flickered slightly. "Sure enough, that internet cafe has been restricted in some way, and there are other people in this world who are also trapped here."

Pointing to the contents of the suitcase, Wang Xiaoming continued:
"This was left to me by him. Now it seems that it should be given to you, or rather, to the outsider who has strayed into this world."

Yang Jian followed Wang Xiaoming's finger and his pupils suddenly contracted.

It was a piece of paper, or more precisely, a torn piece of diary paper.

The paper is yellowed and blackened, and the edges are curled.

As if it had been soaked in corpse oil for too long, the entire piece of paper was completely soaked in oil and water, reflecting a sinister and terrifying white light.

Yang Jian was all too familiar with this piece of paper. In the museum, the tall man from the Republic of China era had traveled to modern society through this diary and almost killed Yang Jian with a single blow.

Yang Jian asked coldly, "What's his name?"

"I can't remember his name, and everything about him is vague to me. You can go to this place to look for him."

Wang Xiaoming pointed to the three large characters on the paper.

"Dachuan City?" A hint of doubt flashed in Yang Jian's eyes.

Does such a place exist?

"Doesn't this city exist in your world?"

Yang Jian shook his head. "Something's not right... Everything here is exactly the same as in reality. It's impossible for a city I've never heard of to appear out of thin air."

At this moment, Yang Jian considered many possibilities, but none of them could explain the current situation. He prepared to set off immediately to investigate the so-called Dachuan City.

"Send a helicopter to take me there immediately."

"Zhao Jianguo is already prepared on the ground, and your friend is there too."

Yang Jian nodded, picked up the gold briefcase, and turned to walk towards the elevator.

Inside the archives, Li Jun's figure emerged from the darkness.

"Professor Wang, is everything he said... true?"

Wang Xiaoming shook his head.

"Don't give up, and don't stop. We haven't reached the point of complete despair yet. As I said, we and he may be in two different real worlds, but like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, ours is incomplete."

(End of this chapter)