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墨書 Inktalez
Hearing Li Zhisheng's voice, I immediately woke up to see a woman in white standing in the aisle between the seats, slowly approaching an unsuspecting man ahead.
"Could it be... that because of Onizuka's trigger earlier, time has reversed, and now that time is flowing again, I am witnessing this scene once more?!" I whispered.
"If what you say is true, and it really is because of Onizuka, then it wouldn't be surprising for us to see this scene again," Li Zhisheng replied, lowering his voice as well.
At this moment, both Li Zhisheng and I understood what was happening before us, but Hu Fang remained oblivious. She looked nervously at the ghostly woman in the aisle and asked, "Is that woman a ghost? Is she going to do something to hurt someone... Shen Xu... should you stop her?"
After hearing her, I hesitated for a moment. But before I could speak, Li Zhisheng interjected, "I stopped you earlier; now you have a second chance to choose—save or not save—it’s up to you..."
To save her might provoke the ghost's wrath, and without any means to suppress her, it could lead to disastrous consequences—not just for us, but also for the other three passengers and the driver on the bus.
However, if I chose not to intervene, that ghost would likely do as we had seen before—possessing that man and tormenting him to death...
I found myself trapped in a dilemma. Seeing my indecision, Li Zhisheng leaned closer and whispered in my ear: "It's like that famous thought experiment: 'A runaway train is speeding toward a fork in the tracks. On one side are five railroad workers; on the other is a child playing.' What would you choose..."
His words deepened my conflict. Watching the ghost draw nearer, I gritted my teeth and managed to utter a few words: "I choose the child..."
Hu Fang looked at me with surprise. "Shen Xu, what's wrong? I thought you could come up with a solution that saves everyone. Didn't you find a way before to save both Death Apostle and Yao Long while keeping that important book safe? There must be a way... think again..." She gazed at me with hopeful eyes.
At that moment, Hu Fang's expectant look felt like scorching sunlight, intensifying my anxiety. "Sometimes..." I said slowly, "not everything can have a perfect solution. We must make choices that yield the greatest benefit at the cost of some sacrifice. Isn’t that what being human is about? Think about it—if I act now, it could very well provoke the ghost's fury... Setting aside my own safety, even you all—and everyone else on this bus—could die!"
"Maybe," Hu Fang countered. "You don't know unless you try..." She paused for a moment, biting her lip before standing up abruptly. "You weren't like this before. When you saved Death Apostle back then, you knew there was only a one percent chance of success yet still acted. But now... Shen Xu, you've changed. You're no longer the person I once knew who would do anything to protect others' lives..."
As I watched the female ghost approach the seat of the male passenger, preparing to enter his body through his mouth, Hu Fang suddenly squeezed past me and shot me a glare. "If you won't save him, I will!" she declared, moving forward.
Seeing this, I quickly grabbed her tightly by the arm. "You don't understand, we can't always have it both ways. Right now, I'm scared. I'm afraid that if we die, no one will be able to stop Yang Master. I'm afraid it will bring even more death. I'm afraid you will get hurt, I'm afraid you might die... I'm sorry, Hu Fang, I'm really scared..."
With that, I clenched my other fist and slammed it against the seat with a loud thud.
Hu Fang stood frozen in place. She didn't struggle but looked at me with disappointment and helplessness before slowly returning to her seat.
"To be honest, my choice is the same as yours..." Li Zhisheng said quietly from the side, patting my shoulder gently.
I didn't respond; I just kept my head down. Hu Fang's words pierced deeply into my heart. Yes, I've changed. I don't know when it happened, but I've become cunning, I've craved power, I've relied on Void Spirit, I've become aggressive...
"I'm sorry, Hu Fang. I don't even know what's wrong with me. Maybe I'm just too tired; let me calm down for a moment..." I murmured without daring to look up because I was afraid to see the painful struggle of the male passenger and confront my own choices.
Hu Fang remained silent, and Li Zhisheng did too. The three of us sat quietly in our seats, the roar of the car engine drowning out the sounds of the male passenger's desperate struggle.
Yet even so, images of Onizuka witnessing the male passenger's tragic state before being triggered flooded my mind—his hands clawing desperately at the fabric of the seat while his body convulsed in pain...
Just as I sank deeper into guilt, a hoarse voice suddenly rang out just a step away from me: "Why? Why won't you save me? You know that not everyone else on this bus is going to die! Why? Why!"
The voice was raspy yet powerful, filled with accusation.
I quickly looked up to see a bloodied middle-aged man standing before me. His face was grotesquely decayed; patches of skin were peeling away, revealing crimson muscle beneath that oozed blood and twitched slightly.
"Answer me! Why?" He grabbed my collar and lifted me up.
I panicked and reached out for help from Hu Fang and Li Zhisheng, but I found their seats stretching away, as if they hadn't heard my voice at all. They sat there expressionless, completely motionless.
"Hu Fang! Li Zhisheng! Help me!" I screamed with all my might until my throat was hoarse and I could no longer make a sound, yet I failed to catch their attention.
At that moment, my heart sank completely. The Evil Spirit in front of me grinned wickedly as a woman dressed in a white shirt crawled out of his mouth, her clothes stained red with blood.
She crawled slowly from the man's mouth, extending her sharp-nailed hand, which gradually pierced into my eyes while she let out mocking laughter: "This is what you brought upon yourself..."
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