Chapter 025: Night Goddess Wei

Back at the apartment, Su Cheng headed straight for the bathroom to wash away the blood and grime, then changed into fresh clothes, poured himself a glass of cold water, and settled in the living room. The incident with the Sanike Group had reached a temporary conclusion; the rest would be left to the police. As for whether the authorities would trace the matter back to him, Su Cheng wasn’t overly concerned. There were no surveillance cameras near that derelict building, and even if there were witnesses, no ordinary person could have clearly seen his face at his speed.

Still, the whole episode served as a warning: some players who gained power through horror games might well use these abilities to stir up trouble in reality. Tokyo was likely in for turbulent times.

But maintaining peace and fighting crime was the job of the police; as long as he and those close to him weren’t implicated, Su Cheng had no desire to intervene. After all, he was just an ordinary foreign student. His main mission was to study well and enjoy a peaceful university life.

He allowed himself a brief daydream of idyllic campus days, then drew from his inventory the strange gray soul crystal.

“This soul crystal seems different from an ordinary one. Can I absorb its energy directly?” After a moment’s hesitation, Su Cheng placed the gray crystal in his palm and focused on absorbing it.

A faint stream of gray energy darted into his hand.

“Doesn’t seem like anything special happened.”

Previously, after absorbing the energy from a soul crystal, Su Cheng could feel clear changes: sharper senses, greater strength, and increased endurance. This time, however, he felt nothing at all.

Just as he was puzzling over this, a black spot suddenly appeared in the center of his palm.

At first, he thought he’d gotten some dirt on his hand. He grabbed a tissue and tried to rub it off, but the mark not only remained, it grew larger.

“It’s not dirt? When did I get this black spot on my hand? Please don’t tell me it’s age spots.”

Within moments, the black mark had expanded again.

Could it be from that gray soul crystal?

Su Cheng’s expression soured—what kind of absurdity was this? Was he really developing age spots?

What truly unsettled him was how the black mark in his palm began to swell like a virus, expanding rapidly. In less than a minute, his palm was consumed by a black hole the size of a baby’s fist.

“Could it be a zombie virus?”

The thought struck him with dread. The symptoms did resemble an infection, yet he hadn’t come into contact with any zombie virus. Why was this happening?

What should he do now? Go to the hospital?

Setting aside whether doctors could treat this bizarre condition, going to a hospital risked exposing what had happened that night.

The black mark continued to spread, soon turning his entire right hand as black and translucent as if it had been dipped in ink.

Through the Eye of Sin, he could faintly see wisps of black mist rising from his palm.

“Doesn’t seem like a zombie virus. What a peculiar sensation.”

What surprised Su Cheng was that, aside from the color, his hand felt perfectly normal. Unlike Jun Sanike, whose flesh had withered as he zombified, Su Cheng’s hand seemed more like a finely carved artifact of black jade, gleaming with an obsidian luster.

He reached out and picked up the thick glass on the table; with a mere squeeze, the cup shattered in his grip. Razor-sharp shards pressed against his skin but didn’t leave so much as a scratch.

“My hand’s gotten stronger,” he murmured in astonishment. Previously, he couldn’t have crushed a sturdy glass cup with one hand even at full strength. Now, a light touch was all it took.

And the glass shards didn’t hurt him at all.

After a moment’s thought, he fetched a sharp kitchen knife and gently drew it across his finger. The keen blade met resistance as if slicing into solid jade, not even leaving a mark.

“So hard!”

Su Cheng was secretly amazed. He could sense a powerful force coating his hand, reminiscent of the power of ghosts and gods.

“In other words, this power should be controllable.”

With that realization, he concentrated on withdrawing the energy. Gradually, the blackness shrank until it was just a small spot nestled in his palm.

At least it wasn’t a zombie virus.

Su Cheng finally breathed a sigh of relief. At that instant, the room filled with the lilting melody of his ringtone.

“…I heard Snow White is on the run, Little Red Riding Hood fears the Big Bad Wolf…”

He glanced at his phone. It was an unfamiliar number.

A telemarketer, perhaps?

He answered, and a commanding female voice came through the line.

“Sorry to bother you. Are you ‘Big Orange’?”

Silence.

‘Big Orange’ was just a random username Su Cheng had picked. Hearing someone say it so earnestly over the phone was deeply embarrassing.

“That’s me. How can I help you?”

“I’m a fellow horror game player—my screen name is ‘Dusk Veil.’ If you’re free tomorrow, could you meet me in Akihabara? I’d like to speak with you in person.”

At the mention of the name, Su Cheng remembered he’d once messaged Dusk Veil on the forum. He hadn’t expected a response, let alone such a direct invitation.

“Is this about recruiting for a dungeon?”

“That’s right. We’ve run into a problem on our end… The details are best discussed face-to-face.”

She sounded troubled—clearly, something serious was going on.

After the call, Su Cheng logged into the horror game forum to research Dusk Veil. There wasn’t much info available; he only learned that Dusk Veil was a seasoned player, likely ranked above Bronze Tier II—two ranks higher than himself—and, in reality, the daughter of a wealthy family: beautiful, rich, and powerful.

The next noon, Su Cheng caught the train from Shinjuku to Akihabara and walked ten minutes to the designated café.

This was the spot Dusk Veil had chosen—a renowned maid café in Akihabara.

There were many such cafés in the district, but this one, Eternal Garden, was the most exclusive and expensive.

As he entered, two girls in traditional black English maid outfits greeted him with sweet smiles. “Welcome home, Master.”

“I’m back,” he replied in Japanese. Though he’d never been to a maid café before, he knew the drill from popular culture.

Inside, Dusk Veil hadn’t arrived yet. Su Cheng picked a window seat and prepared to order a drink while he waited.

There were two unavoidable charges at a maid café—the base entrance fee, about 500 yen, and the cost of food or drinks. Prices here were higher than in regular cafés, but still within his budget.

After about a minute, a tall woman strode into the café, clad in black leather pants and jacket—a picture of efficiency and command. She came straight to Su Cheng’s table.

“So you’re ‘Big Orange?’”

“…Just call me by my real name—Su Cheng.”

“Night God Wei.”

Night God Wei showed none of the shyness or reserve typical of Japanese girls. She exuded a queenly aura, and plopped down across from Su Cheng, briskly ordering a coffee and a sandwich.

She was like a force of nature.

“Let’s dispense with pleasantries. My team’s had a bit of trouble—a member deleted their character. The problem is, this next dungeon is crucial, so I need to recruit a temporary member.”

Su Cheng noticed a flicker of sadness in her eyes. In horror games, deleting your character meant dying in the real world.

“Why choose me? Surely many players would jump at the chance to join your team, Miss Night God.”

With her generous rewards, not to mention her background and beauty, she was surely beset by suitors.

Su Cheng, after all, had only cleared two dungeons—practically a rookie. He didn’t seem to fit her criteria.

“Hmph. Those guys are just looking for an easy ride. Besides, among Bronze-level players, there aren’t many with abilities that counter ghosts or vengeful spirits. You barely qualify.”

So that was it—his unique ability.

Su Cheng nodded in understanding. That was the real reason for this meeting. Whether he was truly qualified to join still remained to be seen.

“Could you tell me more about this dungeon?” he asked, wanting more details before he decided.

“There’s little info from the game itself. All I know is it’s a supernatural-type dungeon, not low level, with a high risk of total party wipe,” Night God Wei replied, sipping her coffee and watching Su Cheng, as if weighing his reaction.

Su Cheng’s mouth twitched. A total party wipe in a dungeon meant everyone who participated would die in real life. Hardly a laughing matter.

“But the greater the danger, the greater the reward. Even with little intel, it’s safer than stumbling blindly into the unknown.”

“Heh, you’re not wrong.”

A rare smile appeared on Night God Wei’s face. Her slender fingers drummed on the table as she fixed him with a piercing gaze. “One last question: what makes you think you’re qualified to join my team?”

The question was blunt, but Su Cheng took no offense. As team leader, she had to protect her members; letting in a useless freeloader could doom them all.

Suddenly, Su Cheng reached out his hand toward her delicate face.

Night God Wei frowned, her beautiful eyes flashing with distaste, thinking he was trying to take advantage of her.

But in the next instant, Su Cheng’s hand transformed, turning jet black like polished jade. In a flash, he grabbed Night God Wei’s neck and yanked forcefully, as if pulling something free.

A chilling, rodent-like screech filled the air.

Night God Wei’s face turned deathly pale. On Su Cheng’s palm writhed a grotesque, blood-soaked, big-headed monster infant.