"Who are you?" I asked tentatively.
If you're not Sam Wang, then who are you?
I was brought here by Sam Wang. He said I should sleep in his ward tonight.
Oh, you're the new arrival? That voice didn't sound mentally ill at all.
Yes, my name is Ethan Zhang. And you are?
Oh, you're the one who killed someone yesterday, huh? Heh, once you're in here, just behave yourself and wait it out. Things get easier once you survive this. Why kill anyone now?
What exactly is going on? I asked immediately.
Didn't you agree to that contract before coming in? the person shot back. I thought for a moment, then smiled.
I've been taken for electroshock a few times these days. My memory's a bit hazy.
The person next door went silent. I kept asking.
But in an instant, my eyes widened—the door to room 1043 appeared right in front of me. I was stunned, completely dumbfounded. I looked around, realizing that after all that running, I was still just as far from the outside light as before.
Suddenly, the door to room 1043 swung open. I stared in surprise. It was pitch dark inside, but I could make out a hospital gurney.
I turned and hurried away, running a short distance before stopping to get away from the open room. But as soon as I looked up, another room—4043—appeared before me. Its door creaked open, and a wave of cold air spilled out.
I started running again. No matter where I went, all I saw was the door to room 1043, and it always opened automatically.
I ran again and spotted room 1042—the room I'd just left. Now, though, it was closed. I rushed to push on the door to 1042, but it wouldn't budge.
I lifted my foot and kicked hard at the door to 1042, again and again. Even after several rounds of electric shocks and living on liquid food, I still had some strength left in me.
The bottom of the door was dented from my kicks, and I saw a small gap open up. I stepped back, charged forward, and delivered a powerful kick. Bang—the door burst open.
I rushed inside. The room was just as before, and I finally breathed a sigh of relief. Then a sinister laugh echoed out, and the door creaked. I quickly turned my head.
As the door closed, I saw the number 1043 on the plaque. Across from me was the hallway exit, with lights shining outside.
Bang! The room door slammed shut, plunging the place into complete darkness.
I clenched my fists, trying to summon my baleful energy, but it was useless—nothing came out. I forced myself again, and a sharp pain shot through my chest. I clutched my chest and crouched down.
Water. Suddenly, I felt water. The surroundings lit up, revealing rows of iron-barred cells. The ground was flooded, ankle-deep. I scrambled up, looking around—at the end of every cell, a green torch was stuck in the ground.
"Where is this place?" In my confusion, I walked to the edge of a cell and saw that inside each one was a skeleton—some intact, some scattered all over.
This narrow prison seemed endless. I walked forward a bit, then stopped. Aside from the differences in the bones within each cell, no matter how far I walked, nothing changed.
I started to wonder what this place was. Just then, my foot struck something. I hurriedly picked it up—a rotten wooden sign. On it was written: Madness Detention Block.
I thought for a moment—lunatic, isn't that just mental illness nowadays?
A sudden scream came from ahead. I ran over. Gradually, I saw—a patient wearing the same hospital gown as me, sitting in the water, terrified and trembling.
"Who are you?" I asked. The person grabbed my leg like a drowning man clutching at a lifeline.
"Help me, help me! Where did you just come in from? Hurry, take me, let's find the exit!"
I was startled and turned my head. The person stood up, pointing behind me.
"Is it that way?" I nodded. Without another word, he dashed off.
Just then, I noticed something was wrong with the place I'd just come from. I chased after him.
"Who are you, really? Where is this place?"
He said nothing, just kept running. Suddenly, I noticed a path appear on my left, surrounded by more prison cells.
A scream of agony pierced the air. I snapped out of my daze and quickly turned—he'd been grabbed by a huge figure, nearly two meters tall, with bulging pustules all over its body and face.
Though I was shocked, seeing that person grabbed before my eyes, I still rushed forward.
A piercing screech—the monster before me howled, and the person it had grabbed screamed in agony. Blood splattered. I lunged forward, grabbed him, and swung my fist at the monster's pustules.
With a crack, the pustule burst, spraying yellow-black fluid. I pulled the person away, screaming as I saw the monster's stomach split open into a huge mouth, gnawing on a pair of severed legs.
After I dragged the legless man back, the monster vanished. I quickly checked him—he gazed at me, barely alive.
"Save me, save me..."
"Where are we? What the hell is going on?"
"No one can escape, heh... The asylum, no one gets out, no one gets out, no..." As he spoke, his neck twisted, his eyes rolled back, and he died.
I stared in shock. Suddenly, I heard a squeaking sound—something was tugging at the corpse I was holding, with great force. I quickly let go.
Instantly, I screamed. A swarm of rats, sharp-toothed and red-eyed, crawled all over the corpse. I dashed away. In no time, the body was gnawed down to a skeleton. Not just a skeleton—I retched.
Inside the skull, a mass of white and red matter—brains, untouched by the rats. Then the rats disappeared into the water in swarms.
I clung to the iron bars and vomited. After a while, I turned around—the skeleton was gone.
Glancing around again, I hurried to the path I'd just seen. I planned to go that way, but just as I was about to step in, I stopped. That person had said the exit was where I entered.
Thinking again, I decided not to wander aimlessly. I turned back—maybe I'd find something.
As I walked, paths appeared on both sides, but I didn't enter them. Then I saw another intersection. I stopped—there was a table on the road, piled high with stacks of cash. I blinked, and for a moment, I felt tempted.
"Damn, trying to trick a ghost? It's obviously fake."
I said, planning to move on, but suddenly, bills filled the air, flying toward me. One stuck to my face—I grabbed it, and the texture felt real.
"It's obviously an illusion," I muttered, intending to keep walking.
"It's real!" A ghostly voice drifted over. I looked around and suddenly saw a skeleton in a cell, its jaw creaking as it moved.
I hurried over.
"If you choose that path, and you can escape, all that money will be yours."
The skeleton seemed to be laughing, its jaw moving up and down.
I glanced at the money again and shook my head helplessly.
"You died because of that money, didn't you? I, Ethan Zhang, admit I can't handle that kind of fortune." I said, then walked away.
"Come here..." A seductive female voice called out. I turned my head to the left—my eyes widened. A woman lay on a large bed, voluptuous and naked, her legs moving seductively.
I rubbed my forehead.
"Get lost. Tricks for kids. I'm not the type to get a nosebleed just from seeing a naked woman." I said firmly, though I glanced twice before walking away.
Bang—I kicked something underfoot. I picked it up. It was that rotten wooden sign. I laughed.
"I've found the exit, haven't I? Shouldn't you come out now, or let me out?"
I happily held the sign as a burst of wild laughter echoed.