CH 84

The soles of the shoes on the old floor echoed in the empty platform, the overwhelming flicker of overworked electric lights overhead, and the musty smell of decay hung in the air.

There is a fair amount of rubbish on the ground, swaying slightly in the wind, making the place seem less dead than it does in the train.

An old newspaper was blown to Xiao Lan's feet.

He picked it up in his hand and saw that the yellowing newspaper was full of gossip about parents, and in the middle of it was written in a somewhat faded bright red font: "To be rich, have fewer children and more trees, raise fewer children and more pigs".

Turning the newspaper over, the back is also printed in bold letters in addition to the advertisements: "One person over-birth, the whole village is tied" and "If you raise a good pig, you fatten yourself" ......

Xiao Lan's mouth twitched: "What a slogan full of age."

These slogans, which were widely circulated in the 1980s and 1990s, are rustic and impressive, and are in keeping with the style of this station.

Luo also saw the newspaper and wondered from a non-human perspective: "Why are humans so passionate about pigs?"

Xiao Lan: "...... I'd love to know too."

Maybe that's the love of farming that the Yankees have, he guessed blindly.

--

The two men continued on in the direction of the track.

In the train all that was visible was the moss on the ground, and it was only when we walked to the platform Xiao Lan realised that there was more water on the ground than it originally appeared.

Some corners may have been waterlogged for years, and the dark puddle of water has created an ecosystem of its own, with algae and small unknown creatures already growing in it, although it doesn't look peaceful and nice.

The sound of ticking and dripping always echoes as they progress.

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After a short walk, Xiao Lan saw the sign for the station ahead.

The sign points in the direction of a long concrete staircase, as old as this station, with darkness ahead, making it impossible to see the end.

The escalators on either side have long since ceased to function and are covered in nothing but dust and rust, making it doubtful that the thing will ever run again. Even if the old man could still move, Xiao Lan doubts that it would ever get out of order.

So, to get out of the station you will have to use the walk.

What kind of genius designed this station?

Imagine if a social animal got off the underground on the verge of being late, only to end up facing this desperately long staircase that must have sent a 10,000-word spiteful mini-essay to the designer in his mind. What a miserable image it would be to cry and scramble forward in a hurry.

But there was no other way to go here, and the two men stepped up the ladder anyway.

The space where the steps are located is not small either, and each step brings up a little echo of empty space.

The repetitive upstairs activity is quite monotonous, surrounded by a constant scene that makes you wonder if you are staying put or not.

It had been several minutes and the road ahead still had no end in sight in general, only the outbound sign where they had entered looked further and further away, indicating that they had gone a long way out.

Xiao Lan continues to walk forward in silence when suddenly he hears a voice behind him.

"Ta-da..."

"Ta-da..."

The sound appears imperceptibly behind Xiao Lan, subtly overlapping his steps and keeping pace with him. When he picks up his pace, the sound speeds up, when he slows down, the sound slows down, and when he stops, the sound stops again.

One part is not too much, one part is not too little, perfectly stepping in the rhythm of his pace. One could not hear it at all without listening closely, but there would be a sense that one's footsteps were odd.

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When Xiao Lan looked back, there was nothing on the steps as usual.

Xiao Lan lifted his steps forward again, and the sound behind him reappeared, as if something was clinging to his back and he was completely unable to detect the other side.

At that moment, the lights on the steps flickered a few times, emitting a nuisance current that made the already shabby surroundings seem all the more disconcerting, with the darkness all seeming to harbour hidden prying eyes.

It was as if a smug demonstration from the shadows was waiting to see his panicked reaction.

When Xiao Lan stops, Luo stops after him.

Xiao Lan raised his eyebrows lightly as he gave Luo a sideways glance, and without words Luo instantly understood what he meant.

In the next instant, the two began to dart forward at an unscientific speed.

The two figures were like a flash of meteors, and in an instant they had rushed out a long way up the steps, their forms leaving two streaks of shadow in the air, so fast that the naked eye could not catch them.

Don't you like to follow people? Go ahead, follow if you can!

The figure has disappeared from its place and only the sound of footsteps, which came only a step slower in the distance, echoes. Listen to the footsteps, they sound like two crisp slaps to the face.

The unknown ghosts left in place: "......"

What the hell are these two? Did they grow up on gasoline? They're running so fast!

The point is shit it can't really catch up and that's pissing people off, oh not the hell off.

Did you know you were speeding!!!

--

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Xiao Lan runs furiously for a while before stopping, and Luo beside him stops moving in tandem. The two of them are not red-faced, as if they had just been walking.

Xiao Lan took two steps forward and listened carefully to his footsteps, which had disappeared behind him like a shadow.

He turned back with a satisfied smile, you see how important it is to exercise.

By this time the stairs had reached their final stage and Xiao Lan finally understood why he could not see the end of the stairs at all from the bottom, as the light overhead became fainter and fainter the further he went, and had almost gone out by the time he reached the top.

When looking up from below, it is naturally a blackness where you can't see your head.

He took out his [Nuclear Flashlight] and began to explore the suspected exit point with the light of the torch.

The area is dark, with only a few indicators still standing firm, emitting a red or green light.

It was much more cluttered than the platform below, and when the torch shone through it was obvious that there was a lot of clutter on the floor, discarded mineral water bottles, shoes, clothes, and even socks and wigs from who knows who.

Even the vending machines were tilted to one side, as if they had been in some kind of storm.

There was still a faint mushy smell in the air, as if something with plastic had once burned.

Xiao Lan heads in the direction of where the gate should be placed.

Suddenly, the light from the torch swept up a ghastly white face.

His eyes were so wide that they almost came out of their sockets, and the strong torch light shining on his face didn't make him look away from the excitement. But although his eyes were fixed on Xiao Lan's direction, they were unfocused and seemed hollow and eerie.

"Ho, ho-"

His mouth was wide open and he was breathing heavily, his breaths coming in at a wantonly rapid rate, as if he was about to lose his breath. The wide open mouth caused his cheeks to sink in, his features to twist, and the muscles of his face to tighten.

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It was difficult to tell for a moment whether this was a person or a ghost.

He took two steps forward and raised his hand to Xiao Lan, not sure if he was speaking to Xiao Lan or to himself, "Tickets ...... tickets ...... no tickets... ..."

Seeing the probability that he was a human being, Xiao Lan asked tentatively, "Hello?"

But the person opposite did not respond, as if Xiao Lan was air, still maintaining this bizarre state muttering, "Ho ...... no ticket ...... no way... ..."

In the next instant he suddenly disappeared from the light of the torch.

Then came the violent clutter of footsteps.

The voice went in one direction, and Xiao Lan turned the angle of his torch and shone it in the direction he was going. He saw a figure lurching forward, surprisingly fast, and without the slightest intention of stopping even when he hit an overturned chair, as if he was unaware of the pain.

Xiao Lan and Luo hurriedly followed, trailing the eccentric man along the way.

Because the man was in an odd state, they didn't get too close, just kept a distance to observe what he was really doing.

The man made a mad dash all the way to where the gate was.

Then like a madman he launched himself towards the gates, not giving up even when he was blocked, flapping deadly, a meaningless roar escaping his lips, and soon his hands were bloodied.

As he tapped, the underside of the gate entrance lit up with a red forbidden symbol, a red glow that was unmistakable in the pitch blackness, flickering with a frequency that felt like breathing, and reflecting the man standing at the gate entrance as if he were mad.

Sensing that something was wrong, Xiao Lan took a few steps back, away from the gate area, which was looking more and more out of place.

At the same time he shouted twice in an attempt to revive the man's consciousness.

But as the saying goes, you can't stop someone who is hell bent on dying.

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The man still looked as if nothing around him existed, oblivious to Xiao Lan's words. At the moment, the only thing on his mind was breaking through the gate.

Soon after, he broke the block at the gate.

Then he lifted his head, raised his blood-stained hands and ran forward as if he were a victorious marathon runner crossing the finish line.

"Hahahaha! Out of the station! Out of the station!!!" He shouted nervously, despite his own injuries.

The moment he stepped out completely, his body burst like a balloon filled with water, splashing thick blood in all directions and staining the entire gate entrance area with a blood red colour.

This is what happens when you force your way out of the station without a ticket.

The strong smell of blood, accompanied by the wind from nowhere, and the red light that remained unlit, made Xiao Lan feel as if he was in hell.

Crikey, isn't it a bit more expensive to skip the ticket?