Horror Game Designer Chapter 45: Gong Xi

The illusions faded away to reveal the normal life. At the doors of the rentals, children chased after each other. The friendly neighbours greeted each other nicely. They hadn’t been absorbed by mobile phones and preferred to talk to each other in person.

Red lanterns hung high on the ceiling. The stalls made by the tenants lined the corridors. Some sold handcrafted stuff, and others sold lengths of cloth. There were also dentists, butchers and simple shops. Si Sui Apartments Building A formed its own special community. It was isolated from the outside world. The tenants smiled like they had zero trouble in the world.

“You two look unfamiliar. Are you here to look for new rentals?” A comfortable voice asked. A young man in an old-fashioned suit stopped Gao Ming and Zhu Suisui. He covered his mouth, and his eyes danced like they could speak.

As a good service worker, he would welcome any kind of customer, even if Gao Ming carried a broken carcass on his back.

“Yes, that’s right.” Gao Ming tried to be as normal as possible. Under the bloody lanterns, inside the dark corridors, the monsters grinned at them. They looked at Gao Ming’s group like they were food.

“My name is Gong Xi, and I am a volunteer at Han Hai Charity. I’m also the rental agent at Si Sui Apartments. Do you need a tour?” The young man led the way. He patted the dust on his shoulder and looked down the corridor. Signs of age lingered on the wall. The lantern light shone on the neighbours’ faces. The smell of meat was everywhere as there were feasts being held. Everyone was one big happy family. There was no high-class art, but there was the warmth of the common life. It was the most treasured thing.

“You won’t go wrong with picking Si Sui Apartments. Every unit here has its own story. You can taste them. Do not use your eyes, and you can appreciate the uniqueness here.”

“Can you take us to look around the floors?” Gao Ming couldn’t hear the sales pitch anymore. He didn’t seem to see the same world as Gong Xi.

“Okay. Is there a floor that you would like to see?”

“Let’s go to the fourth floor.” Gao Ming knew from Bai Xiao’s black band that the morgue and the rooms with the white lanterns on the fourth floor were safe. He wanted to find a safe zone.

“Fourth floor?” Gong Xi was shocked, but the customers were always right. “You have good taste. There are a lot of empty rooms on the fourth floor. I live on that floor.”

Gong Xi led the way. Gao Ming and Zhu Suisui followed behind. The two outsiders carried a dead carcass and were covered in blood, but the tenants didn’t seem surprised by this.

“This is such a strange place.” Zhu Suisui nudged Gao Ming, “Why do you think the agent keep his mouth covered?”

“Don’t be so curious. Act normal.” Gao Ming still remembered the advice from the young man in Building B. They would be hunted if they touched the taboo. Therefore, he needed to figure out the taboos as soon as possible.

Zhao Xi greeted every neighbour that they passed. When they passed the butcher’s shop, the butcher even gave Zhao Xi a piece of meat. Gao Ming looked through the iron bars into the butcher’s room. The room that had been modified into a slaughterhouse had a few investigators. They were naked and looked very scared. Their bodies were normal. Their mouths opened, but they couldn’t speak. They could only make mooing or baaing sounds. The butcher kicked an investigator. He glanced at Zhu Suisui and grumbled, “So fresh.” Gao Ming and Zhu Suisui felt a lot better after they left the ghost market.

When they passed the public restroom on the ninth floor, Gong Xi tossed the butcher’s meat into the trash.

“Isn’t that a waste?” Gao Ming noticed this detail. He felt like Gong Xi was different from other ghosts.

“My family and I are vegetarians.” Gong Xi shrugged, “If you want, I could give the meat to you.”

“That won’t be necessary.” Gao Ming shook his head. “Are the human animals the wordless humans in the butcher’s shop?”

“Yes. They are animals to be sacrificed to the God of Flesh and Blood. They look like humans, but they are not.” Gong Xi was a nice young man, but he had great maturity.

“Right…” Gao Ming nodded. Zhu Suisui beside him almost vomited.

“Are you sure you want to go to the fourth floor? The units on the eighth floor are not bad too. You don’t have to go to the fourth floor.” Gong Xi suggested softly.

“Why?”

“The fourth floor is not that clean…” Gong Xi stopped. “I mean, the floor is haunted.” At the same time, Gong Xi lowered his hand. His lips were sewn together. His mouth was stuffed with paper money. It was a miracle he was able to speak.

Gao Ming was ready to fight, but Gong Xi kept talking, “Ghosts are scary. Tragedy follows them. It’s easy to trigger taboos interacting with them.”

“It’s very unconvincing to hear you say that.” Gao Ming didn’t sense any malice from Gong Xi. This young man appeared like he just wanted to do this job.

“I’m not kidding.” Gong Xi added, “If you encounter any rooms with white lanterns on the fourth floor, run away.”

As they went down the stairs, they met many strange neighbours. The tenants were all affected by the God of Flesh and Blood. The flesh manifested their deepest desire.

They soon arrived at the fourth floor. This floor was more deserted than the other floors. Gong Xi took out a ring of keys. Before he could say anything, suddenly, a man in a rat’s mask and deep green clothes lunged on a door. His body crushed the door until it cracked.

“Building manager, why are you here?” Gong Xi was anxious. He rushed over to stop the building manager from opening the door. However, many kids crawled out from underneath the building manager’s shirt. The children all wore rat’s masks. Their eyes were red. Without warning, they used their sharp nails to scratch Gong Xi.

The lock was destroyed. As the door was about to be forced open, Gao Ming choked one fo the kids and tossed him aside. Zhu Suisui also ran over with the axe. Sensing Gao Ming, the building manager stared at Gao Ming’s heart. The red eyes under the mask kept moving. After a pause, the building manager turned to leave. The kids returned to his clothes and disappeared.

“Thank you so much.” Gong Xi was scared. He looked at the scary scratch marks on the door. “It looks like I have to move.”

“Who is that?” Gao Ming was confused. The man looked like he wanted to eat Gao Ming, but he was afraid.

“Those in the rat’s masks are building managers. They help maintain the order here, but they never speak.” “Why are they after you? Are you hiding something in your house?” Gao Ming asked. “If you have any difficulty, you can tell us. I can help you.”

Gong Xi, who had been so welcoming, stood at the door and removed to budge. After some time, the door opened from inside. A wrinkly face peered out. “Xiao Xi, you’re home.”

The old lady said. Gao Ming and Zhu Suisui saw her. She was about 90 plus, and she had no missing body parts.

“Grandma, don’t come out!” Gong Xi’s face darkened. He was worried Gao Ming might harm the old lady.

The old lady opened the door shakily. She looked at everyone in confusion. “Who are you? Why are you here? Are you here for Xiao Xi?”

The old lady seemed to have Alzheimer’s. She couldn’t recognise Gong Xi. Gao Ming used this chance to say, “We’re Gong Xi’s friends. We’re here to visit you.”

“Wonderful. Please come in then. My grandson is a hardworking child. He’s so kind, but he has had a hard life.” The old lady shuffled back into the room with her cane. Gao Ming followed.

Gong Xi had no choice but to concede. “Come in then.”

The room was small, but it was welcoming. There were a lot of pictures between Gong Xi and the old lady. Gao Ming supported the old lady. After some time, he noticed a shocking truth: the old lady was still alive!

A living person in the shadow world!

“I believe you’ve discovered it.” Gong Xi closed the door. He looked at the pictures in the room. “My grandma is a ghost. She has been following me after her death. Perhaps she worries about me.”

“She’s a ghost?!” Gao Ming’s eyes widened. “So, you think you’re human?”

“Obviously.” Gong Xi told the story between him and his grandma. His parents came to Han Hai to work when he was a child. Then, they both disappeared. His grandma brought him to Han Hai to look for Gong Xi’s parents. That was how she raised Gong Xi on her own. They lived in the apartments provided by the charity. To share her burden, Gong Xi worked several jobs. He was his grandma’s reliance and vice versa until she passed away.

Strangely enough, one day, he ran across his grandma in the apartment again. However, his grandma couldn’t recognise him anymore.

This was Gong Xi’s story, but Gao Ming heard another version from the old lady.

The old lady held Gong Xi’s picture and apologised to Gong Xi. She brought Gong Xi to Han Hai, but that ruined his life.

She had Gong Xin join the charity organisation, but Gong Xi heard something he shouldn’t have, and he disappeared. She had been searching for her grandson, but she couldn’t find him.

“My grandma’s mind is a bit fuzzy after she became a ghost.” Gong Xi sat beside the old lady and held her calloused hand. “She has forgotten many things. She can’t even recognise me anymore.”

Gao Ming looked at Gong Xi’s face. Gong Xi’s mouth was stuffed with paper money and sewn up. The old lady’s story was more likely to be true.

Gao Ming didn’t expect to encounter something like this in the building. He treated the ghost stories as games, but that was not the truth.

Gao Ming hesitated but eventually asked, “Gong Xi, aren’t you afraid since your family is a ghost?”

“Of course I am.” Gong Xi didn’t let go of her hand. “I’m afraid for her to worry about me. I’m afraid that she might be bullied. I’m afraid that she’ll suddenly disappear.”

Gao Ming’s heart swayed, and he wanted to tell the old lady the truth. He knelt before her and lightly touched her other hand. “Granny, if Gong Xi comes back as a ghost to see you, will you be afraid?”

“Yes…” The old lady nodded. “I’m afraid that I won’t be able to recognise him.”