Chapter 257: I Will Remember This

Chapter 257: I Will Remember This

Under the dimly lit corridor, Lu Yibei stood right in front of the rusty iron door that shut in front of her, as she thought of ways to lure the woman out of the house.

At this moment, the only functioning voice-activated light shone at the end of the corridor, and it was followed by the sound of footsteps that could be heard stomping down from the second floor. Soon, a large, middle-aged woman with dirty clothes could be seen.

The large woman walked down the corridor, and her eyes met with Yibei’s. She visibly frowned and walked over to the Witch briskly, then studied her up and down, as if she was trying to see through her.

“What are you doing here?”

“Hello! I am looking for a man named Qin Dalin. Can I ask if...”

Before Yibei could finish speaking, the large woman immediately looked left and right, and interrupted her, “Why are you looking for him?”

“I’m his relative. A close family member passed away recently, so I wanted to inform him about it,” Yibei lied with a calm expression. It didn’t seem like she was lying.

“You’re a relative?” the large woman’s eyes questioned her as she sneered. “I thought that nasty gambler’s family cut ties with him long ago!”

A nasty gambler? Did he gamble all of his money away? Is that why he lives in a place like this?

Lu Yibei cursed, frowned slightly, and spoke, “He has some bad habits, but blood’s still thicker than water, right? Aha... so, with how things are right now, we thought that we should at least inform him about. Do you happen to know his whereabouts?”

The large woman rolled her eyes, “It won’t be easy for you to find him.”

“Uh, why?”

“He has debt collectors looking for him, so to avoid them, he’ll camp out in those cardrooms to gamble or drink with his friends. He only ever comes back at midnight,” the large woman explained.

“I see. Do you know which unit he lives in? I can wait for him to come back.”

The large woman curled her lips, pointing upstairs impatiently, “Top floor. Unit 401.”

As soon as she was done, she walked past Yibei and walked towards the gate, but stopped before she walked past the threshold.

The large woman looked at Yibei, who was looking at the stairwell. She was silent for a moment, and spoke, “You seem like a nice girl. Listen to me – forget about that nasty gambler, and do not enter these houses if you have nothing important to do. Most importantly, do not stay here overnight. You must get out of here before dark; it’s way too dangerous for a young girl like you to be loitering around here!”

A young girl like... me? Is there a problem with me? The Witch wondered, then asked the large woman, “Why? Is there any urban legend around here?”

Hearing the word “urban legend,” the large woman suddenly appeared nervous. She opened her mouth, as if to speak, but stopped herself. She avoided the Witch’s gaze and hurriedly walked out the building.

Looking back at the long, dim corridor, she thought to herself:

Judging by her reaction, I must be correct. Something strange must be happening here.

However, why haven’t I felt anything ever since I entered the building? Could it be that they only appear after dark?

Her questions were left unanswered, but she had an idea. She reached into her pocket and took out her copper coin.

Will there be any urban legends in this building tonight? Heads for yes, tails for no.

Flicking the copper coin up into the air, she allowed her premonition to do the work, then reached out and grabbed the coin.

“So, there are urban legends lurking around here.”

Whispering to herself, she turned and walked towards the stairs at the end of the corridor.

Before she left, she wanted to scout through Qin Dalin’s unit.

Walking up to the second floor, it seemed darker and damper – cobwebs could be seen gathering in the dim corners, and the walls were mottled with mold.

Walking up another two floors, it seemed that the situation was improving, but it was still very dirty and run-down. A thick layer of dust stained the ground, and visible footprints could be seen upon the floor.

The footprints seemed to be leading away from Room 401. In fact, it went the completely opposite direction.

Following the footprints, it lead up to Room 420, and from a distance, she could see a door with a crack at the end of the corridor.

There was somebody lurking behind the door. Looking closer, she could see a woman with a large, dark-red birthmark on her face.

Wait, isn’t this the same woman from earlier? How did she get up here?

These vintage, old-fashioned buildings were usually unreasonable in their architecture. According to her own observation, she only saw one stairwell that accommodated for this entire building.

Could there be secret passages in this building? She wondered as she walked up to Room 420 to ask the woman, but once again, she slammed the door shut before she could open her mouth.

Slam!

Yibei was visibly stunned, then turned and walked towards the other end of the corridor.

Rejected again. I’m not going to try and make contact anymore. You know what they say! Curiosity killed the cat! Well, I already know where Qin Dalin lives – no point trying to pry further.

She quickly stumbled upon Unit 401, but was slightly startled upon seeing the condition of his door.

In the entire building, she observed that all the doors were old and worn out. The door to Qin Dalin’s unit, however, is an all-new security door, which looked incredibly impenetrable at first glance.

Moreover, it was plastered with talismans; its incantations written in cinnabar. The skull of a cow with strange seals carved into it was placed by the door as well.

Reaching out with her fingertips to touch the talismans, she felt a burning sensation and immediately retracted her hand.

She is now in the state of being an urban legend, and the talismans reacted to her very presence. It meant that these talismans aren’t the ones sold by scammers – these talismans were meant to deter urban legends like her.

“What the hell was this Qin Dalin up to?! Is an urban legend hunting him down?!”

Knock, knock.

She tried knocking on the door, but received no reply. Sighing, she quietly exited the building.

“Guess all I can do is go home. I need to make some preparations before coming back here after dark.”

...

Sitting in the bus that drove towards the city, Yibei suddenly recalled something as her eyes lit up. Taking out her phone, she opened up her browser and looked up the address of Qin Dalin.

It turns out that his apartment is the old staff building for the employees of the Huacheng Power Plant. Then, she looked up the query [Huacheng Power Plant Staff Building], tapped on searched, and after scrolling down more than a dozen pages, she could see several strings of noteworthy information.

What business does she have at the power plant?! I have never heard of anything strange happening there!

Did she dress up nicely to have go on a date there?!

That can’t be right! If you’re going on a date, shouldn’t you go to some place like a bar? Or a fancy restaurant? A club, even, or an amusement park, or a love hotel! Why the hell would you go to some place like that?!

Zhang Shan was fighting with his thoughts, and seeing that they were at the halfway point of her destination, he couldn’t help but blurt out, “Hey, aren’t you going to tell me any stories tonight?”

“...?”

A hint of surprise was plastered on the girl’s face, as if she was saying: Something’s wrong with you, Mr. Taxi Driver! What came over you today? Why do you want to a spooky story from me?

“Well, if you want to...” she pondered for a few seconds. “I can tell you a story.”

Mysterious disappearances, secret passages, a strange woman with a bloodied birthmark, a runaway serial killer, a door plastered with talismans...

Yibei felt that she might have inherited her father’s talent of telling stories. After all, he was an 18th-rate online novelist.

She combined the stories of the missing person reports she saw on the Internet, and discoveries made by the employees of the power plant, in addition to some fabrications she made up on the spot. Soon, Zhang Shan was pale, and his forehead flooded with cold sweat.

Truthfully, he has heard of these missing girls, but he never made the connection that the disappearances were related to urban legends.

When the storytelling stopped, Zhang Shan realized that the story ended abruptly. The serial killer was still on the loose, and the mystery was still unsolved.

“W-w-what happens next?”

She didn’t answer him, but pointed out the window with no expression, “We’re here.”

“Ah...”

His heart felt troubled after listening to only half the story. However, he was afraid that if he continued to ask questions, he might make the girl angry.

He could only watch as she scanned the QR code for payment. Then, she got out of the cab, took out a laba from her guitar bag, and played the main theme of [Detective Conan]. Illuminated by the cab’s lights, she began walking towards the old staff building of the power plant.

Could it be...

Zhang Shan immediately understood something. His body trembled slightly as his eyes widened.

She’s using herself as bait to find the serial killer!

The ending was meant for me to interpret! If you do something bad, then, urban legends will come to hunt you down and eat you alive! It is karma, in a way! The light of the underworld shining upon the Earth! How wonderful! I have got to tell this story to my listeners!

He could visibly feel Yibei’s impression in his mind improving. Looking up to find her, she had already disappeared into the power plant. Down its dark, winding path, the sound of her laba playing was tuned out by the ambient environment.

Realizing that his surroundings have fallen into silence, with the city lights far away from him, he found that his taxi’s lights were the only source of light surrounding him at the moment.

The story the Witch had just told resonated in his mind. He slightly panicked, and felt cold sweat dripping down his temples.

A-a-although that serial killer only targets young girls, what if they have a change of mind...?! They don’t want sweet desserts anymore, and want a taste a something a little more old-schooled?! I-I can’t stay here!

He stomped on his clutch, shifted gears, stomped on the accelerator, and skedaddled away in an instant. Truly, he was worthy of the title of being the fastest driver around in Huacheng.

...

Yibei was hiding underneath a big tree by the power plant, observing the building made of red bricks in front of her.

With how her mouth was pouting as half of her head was poking out from behind the tree, she seemed a little cute, and a little sneaky.

It was pitch-black, and neither star or moon was present in the sky. It was gloomy, and the dark windows of the building were like maws that screamed for help.

At this moment, she could hear the roaring of an engine sounding behind her, and she couldn’t help but be startled. When she turned around, all she could see was a taxi speeding away straight towards Huacheng.

Strong as ever, Zhang Shan.



Seeing him off, she withdrew her attention from his taxi and thought about what to do to attract Qin Dalin.

After all, she didn’t know what Qin Dalin’s thought process is when selecting a target.

Playing the laba is a big no-no. Although it could attract his attention, it might scare him considering that this is a spooky, abandoned location.

Or...

She silently lifted up her skirt and revealed her pristine thighs. She then stretched her leg out from behind the tree, swaying them.

However, after hearing nothing, she retracted her legs with a frown.

Damn it. Was I being too obvious. Do I go out and dance? I know Daydream used to dance with the memories I inherited from her.

Just as she was considering it, a figure emerged from the darkness and snuck up behind her.

[Somebody is sneaking up on you. He’s raising a piece of wood towards you...!]

A premonition flashed in her head, and she made a decision on the spot. I need to do my part in this performance. I’ll try my best!

The next moment, a piece of wood as thick as an arm swung out through the dark, hitting Yibei on the back of her head as it shattered into two pieces with a loud slam.

“Ah! T-that hurts...! Wha...”

Before she could ‘register’ what had happened to her, she rolled her eyes and fell to the ground, using the big tree as a support.

The moment she fell to the ground, she peered through her eyes to see who had attacked her – a middle-aged man in his forties, wearing a visibly-bleached-through maroon jacket. His hair looked greasy and messy, and his eyebrows were barely visible. The right side of his face seemed be lacerated by some kind of weapon, leaving a long, nasty scar.

The hell did you hit me that hard for?! I. Will. Remember. This! I’ll deal with you later! Yibei thought.

TRANSLATOR NOTES:

I may or may not be able to upload this Friday since its assignment deadline week is next week. As much as I enjoy TLing in my free-time, I really do need to get started on my assignments... T_T. Fret not, I’ll be back next week!

As always, if you’d like to support the translation, you can do so by clicking the button below! ^.^