Chapter Forty-One: Rising Layer by Layer

I jerked my chin toward them, raising my head slightly, and asked, “What are you eating?”

The man with the goatee replied, “None of your damn business.”

I snapped, “Where did these mushrooms come from? Answer me!”

Lamia looked at me, puzzled by my agitation.

Le Gang strode toward the goatee, whose hand gripped his gun and clicked the safety off, saying, “Stop right there!”

Le Gang said, “I’d like to speak with your leader. You don’t have the scent of a leader about you.”

The goatee’s hand quivered on the trigger, growing more anxious as Le Gang approached. Suddenly, a large hand reached out and pressed the muzzle downward. It belonged to a rotund, tall man in a tidy blue shirt, half-bald, clean-shaven, and wearing jeans.

Le Gang addressed him, “Good day, sir. Please, allow us to pass through. We promise not to disturb you.”

The tall fat man asked, “Who are you?”

Le Gang replied, “We are civilized people from the Black Coffin. If you don’t mind, we wish to reach the upper floors—there’s something we seek there.”

The man’s eyes swept over us. Lamia and I knew they might easily take issue with Fei Zhong and his companions, so we moved to shield them. The tall man sighed, “We only occupy this floor and the one above. It’s too dangerous beyond that. We built walls to seal all entrances—you won’t be able to go up.”

Le Gang asked, “But we must go higher.” He glanced out the window. “Perhaps you’ll permit us to climb?”

The tall man replied, “Climb? The sky is full of those winged demons. The moment you reach the fourth floor or higher, you’re dead. Besides, I told you, the upper floors are too perilous, crawling with terrifying monsters—some you couldn’t even imagine.”

I said, “You couldn’t have blocked every corridor. There must be a door for you to come and go, isn’t there?”

From their expressions, I saw I’d guessed right. The tall man said, “Fine, I can let you pass—but only on one condition.”

Le Gang shook his hand and said, “Name it. By the way, may I ask your name?”

The tall man replied, “Tony. Tony Thorpe. Just call me Tony.” He coughed for a moment, then continued, “People have gone missing here—several of them. We want to search the upper floors, but we don’t dare. If you’re truly as capable as you seem…”

I cut in, “Don’t try to fool us! Didn’t you say all the routes were sealed? Why look upstairs instead of outside?”

Tony said, “You… don’t understand. The demons outside rarely break in—they fear this building. The floors we blocked off are strange… domains. Sometimes people just vanish—maybe to the other side of the wall.”

Lamia and I exchanged a glance. She said, “Another dimension?”

Tony said, “My people can testify. In fact, before you arrived, we were already planning to unlock the door during daylight to search for the missing.”

The goatee shouted, “Yes! Tony’s son, Little Tony, is missing, as are several children. We’re all desperate!”

Then an old man cried out, “The wall is sacred, built through the efforts of our ancestors. We have lived here for generations; we cannot cross it. Those who disappeared are merely the tribute the wall demands—how can we quibble over that?”

Tony snapped, “You old windbag! My son is missing! If you relics from the Wall Protection Society try to stop me, I’ll use you as the next sacrifice!”

The scene was all too familiar—I remembered the disputes in Waterless Village before disaster struck. Chatterbox wouldn’t let Orchid open the secret passage, but after it was opened, Orchid found the statue.

Le Gang said, “Open the way for us. We’ll do our utmost to find any clues.”

Tony said, “I ask to join you. Don’t be fooled by my appearance—I was once a skilled scavenger.” He held great authority; several people immediately volunteered to follow him.

Le Gang said, “As you wish.” He stepped aside, and Tony led us upstairs.

The black wall stood behind a security door, made of that marvelous metal from which the Black Coffin itself was built. Tony said, “We haven’t opened this door in over forty years.”

Soles asked, “Then how do you know what dangers lurk behind it?”

Tony shook his head. “We have no idea.” His hands trembled violently as he fumbled for the keys, fear evident in every motion.

The door let out a faint moan as it swung inward. The wall was about a meter thick; it took all our strength to push open the iron door set within it. The sound echoed down the corridor, sure to alert any sleeping things.

Le Gang crouched and inspected the floor. “No one’s been here. No human scent, no footprints, nothing.”

Tony said, “Are you sure? Couldn’t they be upstairs?”

Le Gang replied, “If they didn’t come through here, how could they get to the higher floors?”

Tony said, “How should I know? This is a strange, otherworldly place. I feel he’s up there.”

I asked, “You feel it? What rubbish is that? Some kind of father-son telepathy?”

Tony snapped, “He’s in this building—up above, I know it!”

Suddenly, howls filled the hallway. Something was galloping on all fours like a dog, rushing toward us—from both above and on our level.

I said, “White demons!” Tony’s group was terrified, but driven by some strange courage, none of them thought to retreat behind the wall.

Le Gang called, “You four guard the stairs above, I’ll hold the lower side. Hold your ground.”

The security door was narrow, allowing only three people through at once. If two white demons tried, they’d be crowded together—which meant we’d face at most two at a time. But this was a corner; we couldn’t make use of our firearms’ range advantage.

I said, “Lamia, Soles, take the center and shoot. Be careful not to hit our own.”

Lamia replied, “How could I?”

I whispered, “Mjolnir.” The thunder sword took shape, glimmering with dim blue light. Fei Zhong bared his hands, fingers gleaming like blades.

Two white demons appeared; Fei Zhong and I struck at once, cutting them down. More followed, fierce and reckless, charging at us.

Some were incredibly agile, dodging my attacks, but Lamia quickly fired Gungnir to finish them off. Soles used her ghostly fire, her hair lengthening like strings on an arrow, shielding her brother. Fei Zhong moved with fluid, effortless grace—no demon landed a true blow, while he could cripple or kill an enemy in two or three strikes.

Soon, demon corpses blocked the doorway, and the remaining ones seemed to give up, their assault subsiding. I glanced back at Le Gang—he’d slain even more than the four of us combined.

Fei Zhong and Soles’ ghostfire spread out, and for a brief instant, I felt a flash of hatred toward them, but I was long used to handling such things. At the same time, I noticed Tony’s people aiming their guns at Fei Zhong and Soles. I used my psychic blade, “Shepherd,” to lock them in place and said, “Don’t cause me trouble!”

Tony’s face was stricken with terror. “What kind of monsters are you?”

Fei Zhong and Soles sat cross-legged, gathering their ghostfire. I replied, “We’re modified rangers. You should be grateful we treated you so politely before.”

Tony’s expression softened. “Alright. Sorry.”

I asked, “Can you ‘feel’ if your son is on this floor?”

Tony said, “No, he isn’t—I sense he’s higher up.”

I didn’t trust his feelings or the man himself—was he scheming something? I wanted to send him away, but had no grounds, since Le Gang had agreed to his company.

Le Gang said, “Let’s move on. Mr. Tony, please be careful.”

The next ten floors passed without incident. Occasionally, a white demon would crouch on the ground, only for Le Gang to kill it in an instant. I was deeply relieved, feeling that the forty million bounty was within reach. It was a pity that, as one of the highest-ranking rangers, Le Gang couldn’t always accompany us.

Further up, the stairwell had collapsed, blocking the passage. Le Gang turned to Tony and asked, “Is there another way around?”

Tony said, “Yes, there’s an emergency staircase on the other side of the corridor.”

Lamia asked, “If the emergency stairs are in several places, what’s the point of blocking just one?”

Tony said, “That’s why there are two walls—each blocks an entrance.”

As we reached this floor, a stench of death assaulted me—faint at first, but quickly thickening, like a battlefield left uncleaned after a massacre. We all had some degree of night vision—Le Gang, being nocturnal by nature, and Lamia with her night-vision goggles.

Le Gang’s face was grim. He stuffed a cloth over his nose and sighed, “I don’t need to breathe anymore, but old human instincts still make me smell this stench. Be on your guard, everyone—the demons here are different.”

Soon, we found the source of the stench: ahead, a large pool of water had flooded the offices, thick and viscous as mud—perhaps from a broken toilet.

Lamia said, “Darling, carry me.”

I said, “What’s there to fear? It’s just a filthy puddle. You’re not afraid of demon blood—why balk at a little dirty water?”

Lamia replied, “It’s not the same. Blood is much cleaner than this.”

I wanted to tell her that was nonsense, but like any pitiable and wise married man, I’d long since given up arguing truth with my wife.

Le Gang shifted into wolf form and clambered along the ceiling, crossing the zone upside down. Soles used her hair, and Fei Zhong stretched his arms, both using the ceiling as a path. I sighed deeply and carried my beloved—more precisely, she sat atop my shoulders. Her half-metallic body looked slender but weighed a hundred kilos. Fortunately, my radiant hands and ranger’s strength bore the load, though I feared this ancient floor would not.

Tony and his group followed, single-mindedly ignoring the foul water.

Suddenly, Le Gang shouted, “Something’s wrong!”

Small white balls clung to the ceiling, resembling chewed gum. The gum began to swell, turning into white worms, which spat threads tipped with hooks at Le Gang. His fur deflected the strands. Soles and Fei Zhong shouted as the threads sliced their skin.

Fei Zhong gritted his teeth. “What are those?”

Lamia swapped her magazine and fired rapid shots. Her aim was flawless, striking down the white worms one after another. Tony’s group helped as well, but their marksmanship was so poor they nearly hit us several times.