When I woke up at dawn, I sprang out of bed and saw sunlight streaming in. It felt almost unbelievable. I rushed to the edge of the hot spring pool and opened the window. The air was still cold, but the clouds had vanished. Today looked like a bright, sunny day.
Last night, after Serena Chen finished telling me about the Hades Circle, I went to sleep. When I asked her what this place really was, a look of pain crossed her face, so I didn’t press further. There’s plenty of time now—I can ask her slowly. Even though she dislikes people from the Hades Circle, in a place like this, I’m the only one she can talk to.
If Serena Chen really is from the era of the Second Generation Sect Master of the Nether Syndicate, then she must have lived for more than 700 years.
Such prolonged loneliness must have been unbearable for Serena Chen. It was still early, so I reheated the food I’d prepared last night. After breakfast, I soaked in the hot spring.
I had no idea where Serena Chen actually lived, but I figured she’d come find me. After a while, I headed to the highway by the river. Standing under the sun felt wonderful—after so many days, I was finally seeing sunlight again.
"You look very happy."
Serena Chen’s voice suddenly sounded behind me, making me jump.
"What exactly are you, that you can sneak up on me without a sound?"
I asked, and Serena Chen walked up slowly, giving a slightly helpless smile as she spoke.
"Maybe you won’t be so happy after a while."
Serena Chen’s words dampened my mood, despite how happy I looked.
"Should I really be sulking after finally seeing the sun again?"
"This place is called Tenfold Crossing. There is no north, south, east, or west—no heaven, no earth, no past, no future, no life, no death. My husband, Hugh Go, created this supernatural barrier."
I swallowed hard.
"So you’re saying there’s no way out of here?"
I cried out in shock. I’d heard about Tenfold Crossing from Ethan Zhang before. That special Spectral Green Ghost named Ray Lin used Tenfold Crossing’s power. If Serena Chen was right, there really was no way out.
"Wait, didn’t May Shaw get out?"
Serena Chen shook her head.
"Are you sure she really got out?"
I stared at Serena Chen, full of doubt.
"Everything you see here, you can think of as nonexistent—yet it all truly exists, including yourself. Once you step inside, this place becomes your tomb."
I frowned in anger. Serena Chen just smiled.
"Over all these years, 5,684 people have entered, but without exception, none have ever left alive. With no directions, you never know where you are. With no heaven or earth, you can't tell night from day. With no past or future, there is no time. With no life or death, there is no reincarnation. You can think of me as Tenfold Crossing itself, or as a soul imprisoned here."
Serena Chen’s words sounded so mystical, I still couldn’t quite believe her. I’d seen May Shaw run outside, her face lit up with hope at the sound of long-lost voices, a smile of joy on her face.
"If you don’t believe me, you can go to the town tonight and see for yourself. That girl is still there. As for the other three girls, they’ve already committed suicide."
I stared at Serena Chen in disbelief. She vanished again before I could ask anything. Annoyed, I stamped my foot and glared at the snow-covered town behind me.
I waited until nightfall, then started walking along the riverbank. I realized something strange: after using my powers, they wouldn’t recover. This shocked me—I couldn’t use any abilities now.
After nearly an hour walking on the river, shivering, I arrived at the town of Faceless Ones. Sure enough, everything in the town was reversed and incredibly eerie.
I kept passing through the bodies of Faceless Ones, finally reaching the strange hotel by the mountain—the place I was staying.
After entering, I looked around and went to my room. The doorknob was reversed—very odd. I opened the door and was shocked to see May Shaw curled up and trembling on the bed. She was the girl who had briefly touched me, passing through my body, and one of the four girls who went missing over a year ago.
"Are you May Shaw?"
I asked. Instantly, the girl on the bed turned over and burst into tears, shouting that she’d finally seen someone, that she’d made it out. I comforted her, holding her and soothing her emotions. She must be only 22—looks like she’s been trapped here far too long, her mind on the edge. These girls were just ordinary people. None of them ever imagined going through something like this.
After a while, May Shaw calmed down, wiping her tears with joy. But suddenly, her cheeks began to turn to stone.
"Why is everything still reversed? Why?"
A shrill scream rang out. I grimaced, my ears ringing.
"It’s okay, Miss Shaw. I’m a police officer who specializes in these kinds of cases. It took a lot to find this place. Even though I can’t get out right now, I’ve already found a way to escape."
May Shaw instantly broke down in grateful tears, clutching my hand and thanking me over and over. But I knew deep down I couldn’t explain anything yet—her mind was already on the verge of collapse.
Once May Shaw finally calmed down, I said that since we had nothing else to do, we should take her statement. I started asking about the four girls.
It all started when Ivy Chen’s cousin, Rainie Chen, returned from vacation here and told her four best friends about the hauntings. Her friends just laughed it off, teasing Rainie. At the party that night, Rainie challenged her four friends: if they dared to visit Snowveil Crossing at the end of the year and didn’t encounter any ghosts, she’d pay double for all their expenses.
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The four girls agreed, and the five of them even drafted a formal contract and signed it. At the time, May Shaw was sure she’d win, since she’d been here before and knew there were no hauntings like Rainie Chen claimed.
After that, the four girls wanted to bring Rainie Chen along, but she refused, telling them to just bring back all the receipts from their trip.
When Rainie Chen and the other three girls arrived here, nothing supernatural happened. They just had fun for three days. But on the fourth day, everything changed.
One of the girls called Rainie Chen after three days, saying they hadn’t seen any ghosts and teasing her. But Rainie insisted they stay, saying they’d definitely encounter something.
At this point, I started feeling something was off. Why was Rainie Chen so sure there were ghosts here?
But the girls were worried Rainie would break the deal, so they decided to leave. Rainie, determined to prove herself, transferred 10,000 yuan to them. The girls immediately decided to stay and have fun for another week.
After a week, the four girls were bored and decided to leave. They’d spent almost all the money, and by agreement, Rainie would owe them another 10,000 yuan when they got back.
But things didn’t go as the girls expected. Rainie insisted the place was haunted and wanted them to see it for themselves. She was afraid they’d leave, so she transferred another 20,000 yuan. The girls reluctantly agreed to stay another week.
But the place had lost its novelty for the girls. They decided to secretly spend a few days in the city before returning—after all, they’d been given enough money.
One morning, the four girls checked out on a foggy day and drove away in the thick mist. But then something strange happened. Even though it was foggy and they drove slowly, it should have taken just an hour to reach the highway, but after three hours, they still hadn’t arrived.
The four girls started to wonder if they’d taken a wrong turn. But what terrified them was that there wasn’t a single car on the road. After driving for five hours, their car ran out of gas. They tried to return to town, but couldn’t; driving forward, they had no idea where to go.
The girls began to cry, completely lost and with no cell signal. Rainie Chen had warned them not to leave town if they wanted to see ghosts, but they broke the deal.
Afraid to leave the car, they huddled together, shivering from the cold. The fog didn’t lift all day—if anything, it grew thicker. Only at night did it finally clear.
Terrified, the four girls ran toward the brightly lit town behind them, shouting as they rushed in. But to their surprise, the town was deserted. One girl found gasoline behind a hotel, and they tried to drive away. When they returned to where they’d parked, their car had vanished. No matter how hard they searched, the highway seemed endless and impossible to find. They could only return to the empty town.
"The four of us stayed in that empty town for over a year, but no one ever came."
I stood up in astonishment.
"You never saw Serena Chen?"
As soon as I finished, May Shaw shook her head, saying she didn’t know who Serena Chen was. I swallowed hard, remembering Serena Chen had called May Shaw’s name before.