The Shouhua had been gifted by Su Zimo, so no matter how Su Gan wanted to use it, it was his choice. According to what the ghost umbrella said, even if Su Kun received one, after the malicious spiritâs revival, the life from the Shouhua was just lingering.
In addition, even the most advanced medical technology may not be able to determine whatâs wrong with Su Kunâs body.
This was actually kind of ironic, this way of curing the otherâs body.
However, after understanding the source of the Shouhua, Su Zimo didnât feel it was a pity to use the flower in this way. After all, he only needs to sell over 300 yuan of ghost tools to make another flower bloom in the store.
He chose to give the Shouhua to Su Gan not because he thought it was precious, but because it was the first that bloomed in the store, so it was more memorable than other gifts.
Su Gan and the others had accepted all of the incredible events around them so quickly, which surprised Su Zimo greatly.
âDonât you think this is weird?â Su Zimo couldnât help asking.
When Su Zimo asked, everyone just watched Su Kun, who was lying blackened on the ground, slowly change. The blackened skin from the ghostâs influence began to recover slightly. Even the burned wounds from the red liquid were healed little by little. In the end, apart from the extensive damage to his clothes, he looked more intact and his skin was even whiter than before.
Just as Su Zimo had previously guessed, Su Kun <sup>1</sup> didnât wake up from this. Although it appeared to be an ordinary coma on the surface, deep in his bones the cause was a supernatural collision between the malicious spirit and the Shouhua. No one knew whether Su Kun would wake up in this lifetime.
âUnfortunately, the third son may not be able to attend these gatherings in the future.â The reason Su Gan sighed was because of such a trivial matter. âAccording the the will, if someone is absent from the gathering, their shares and properties will be lost. Now that itâs all going to social welfare, the third son has done a rare good deed.â
Su Ganâs interpretation of Su Duanâs vision was a bit complicated.
âFuqin <sup>2</sup> , donât you think what happened to Third Uncle is weird?â Su Zimo couldnât help asking again.
For ordinary people who knew nothing about the nightmare world, Su Ganâs reaction was too calm. Su Hewen was the same. Obviously Fourth Uncle Su Niâs family had avoided it to the end. Su Ni even asked his wife and daughter to go upstairs to rest.
âYeah, itâs really weird.â Su Gan took a cigar from his pocket and just dangled it without lighting it, and even laughed twice. âBut when I was with your mother, sometimes we would encounter very strange things. What happened to the third son wasnât the worst.â
âI canât remember much about my mother.â Su Zimo listened to Su Ganâs words and tried to recall the mother who he only had childhood memories of, but found that the originally good memories were blurred.
Su Zimo clearly remembered that he had a very loving relationship with his mother, and many of his worldviews had been influenced by his mother. His mother was a person who had a very profound influence on him, just like his grandfather in his memories.
But for some reason, Su Zimo could hardly remember any details.
Su Zimo remembered one thing. The first time the ghost umbrella appeared in front of him in human form was in one of his dreams. That dream was the funeral for Su Zimoâs mother.
Recalling what Ghost Umbrella said to him in his dream, Su Zimo felt that those words were obviously something that only people who knew his mother could say.
In other words, Ghost Umbrella likely knew his mother.
Fuqin Su Gan said that he had experienced many incredible things with his wife, and Su Hewen, who stood aside, was the adopted son of Su Zimoâs mother who had embraced Shoushan bit by bit.
Standing by those two gave Su Zimo a weird feeling, as if most people around him knew his mother better than he did.
âThose are very complicated matters. Letâs talk more in depth when we have time.â Su Gan didnât know where to start. He could only play with the cigar in his hand and say, âActually, I also want to know how this Mr. Ghost Umbrella emerged out of thin air. He seems to be the housekeeper you hired before, Momo? That you said was recruited from the internet? And who had already been fired?â
[This umbrella is considered Boss Suâs man.] This time, Ghost Umbrella didnât even claim to be a housekeepr. Maybe he thought this status would be slightly higher than that of a housekeeper.
âWhat happened just now was caused by the destruction of Third Uncleâs ring?â Su Hewen surprised Su Zimo and Ghost Umbrella when he spoke. He obviously didnât know about ghost revival, but he had inferred the truth.
But maybe to prevent Su Duan from learning too much, Su Hewen lowered his voice.
[Yes.] Ghost Umbrella nodded.
âIâve seen some other people wearing the exact same ring as Third Uncle. Will things like this continue to happen?â
Su Zimo wasnât surprised when he heard Su Hewen say that there were identical rings outside. After all, he knew from the start that it was a poor ring numbered 003, and all the rings should have been mass-produced in batches with malicious intent.
So Su Zimo nodded to Su Hewen. Although the owners of the other rings may not fail at attacking others like Su Kun, one day all of the ghosts bound within the rings will revive. What happened to Su Kun today would happen again to those other rich people with money to spare.
âSo there will be accidents just with these rings?â Su Hewen once again asked a critical question. âAre there any necklaces or bracelets?â
This time, Ghost Umbrella and Su Zimo looked at each other. After seeing his boss nod, he shook his head to Su Hewen and said: [Yes. There will be more and more such things, and now there will be more and more special items in the world. People who use these things will eventually harm others and themselves, and all the holders will eventually become like that one on the ground.]
[Those who want to harm others will eventually be pushed back.] When saying that, Ghost Umbrella glanced at the second son, Su Duan, who was shrinking back into the corner.
Su Hewen also glanced at Su Duan, then said to Su Zimo, âZimo, I have something to ask this Mr. Ghost Umbrella. You should handle Third Uncle first. Letâs go to the study on the second floor and discuss in detail.â
âOkay.â Su Zimo originally wanted to find an opportunity to tell the Su family about things. Now Su Hewen was willing to converse with Ghost Umbrella face to face After all, this weird umbrella knew much more than him.
Maybe Su Hewen could glean something more from Ghost Umbrellaâs chaotic speech.
As for Su Kun lying over thereâŚ
Su Zimo asked someone to find some new clothes so he could change the suit that was almost destroyed. Then, after notifying Su Kunâs wife and daughter, he arranged to a vehicle to take Su Kun to the hospital as quickly as possible.
The second son Su Duan, who also harbored ill intentions, never left the scene, but he had already seen everything. It was no longer necessary for Su Zimo to cover anything up. It would be better to let him see clearly.
In this situation, Su Zimo couldnât control Su Duanâs mouth, butâŚ
Before the things in the nightmare world were widespread, no one would believe Su Duan. After the nightmare world was fully presented, Su Kunâs minor situation wouldnât be so important.
Su Gan and Su Ni accompanied the comatose Su Kun to the hospital. Su Kunâs well-known strict wife rushed to the hospital as quickly as she could. Judging from her tone in the conversation, Su Zimo felt that she suspected someone had poisoned the Su familyâs dinner.
However, whether she could vent her anger or not depended on the results of the consultations with the hospitalâs experts. Itâs just that since ghost revival was very unique in their current world, Su Zimo didnât think the hospital could diagnose anything.
Su Zimo didnât know what Ghost Umbrella and Su Hewen discussed that day. The person and ghost both seemed mysterious. Even Mu Feng didnât know why he joined their team.
Su Hewen didnât say anything, but Ghost Umbrella occasionally said something about turning the entire mountain into a stronghold.
Turn Shoushan into a stronghold?
Su Zimo occasionally ascended to high vantage points, looking down from the pavilion in the back garden onto the bright lights of the city.
If the world was really about to change drastically, then the choice was correct. He would also transfer âAn Yu Yi Yuâ to Shoushan. It would truly be âsafe in a corner.â <sup>3</sup>
Thinking of that, Su Zimo smiled mockingly.
He really wasnât a saint.
In the next half of a month, various reports appeared frequently in the news that began to make the Su family more intent about the idea to turn Shoushan into a âfortress,â and Shoushanâs security system became more inclusive.
There were also more plans for construction in Su Zimoâs study. Most of the construction would stay below the mountainside and wouldnât affect the Su familyâs activities. However, all kinds of details needed to be approved by Su Zimo himself. Even Su Hewen and Su Gan had no right to make those decisions, so Su Zimo rarely entered An Yu Yi Yu during that time.
The construction didnât happen overnight, but words about what was happening appeared frequently in the news.
âA large number of missing persons cases are due to the unexpected deaths of trainers?â After one of his rare returns to the shop, Su Zimo could only ask the ghost umbrella beside him about it.
âItâs possible. But not all of them.â When the ghost umbrella stayed in the store, his ghostly undertone disappeared and he felt more like an ordinary human. âIt may be the second stage.â
âSecond stage?â
âThe appearance of the nightmare world is like an integration of space. In the first stage, itâs still independent. So, when the trainer enters the nightmare world and then leaves, the time lapse in the real world is only a fraction of a second.â
âBut after the second stage, the space integration is successful. After the trainer enters the nightmare world, time doesnât stop.â
âYou mean those people arenât missing, but have just entered the nightmare world?â Su Zimo began to read the news more carefully, and he found that some of the missing people had suddenly reappeared, but were vague about the reason for their disappearance.
"
"
âYes. The time in the nightmare world is now the same as in reality.â The expression on Ghost Umbrellaâs face became more and more serious.
Su Zimo looked at the Shouhua that had just blossomed in the store. He knew that for the safety of those around him and for future transactions with mysterious merchants, he had to find more opportunities to sell his goods.
Itâs just that there were no three star products that could be sold an An Yu Yi Yu, nor had it attracted any valuable customers. Su Zimo thought about it, then reached out to the side door leading to the nightmare world.
Just as he was walking to the sliding side door, Su Zimo stopped, then walked towards the front door of An Yu Yi Yu.
The display next to the front door continued showing a few lines of textâ
[World Options:]
[001: Real World]
[001: Nightmare World]
[Not Yet Open]
[Not Yet Open]
[âŚâŚ]
Before then, Su Zimo had only selected â001: Real World,â but this time, he reached out for â001: Nightmare World.â
With just a touch of his fingertips, the originally sunny Jiangdu Xincheng Street outside of the glass window was far away like in a sci-fi movie. The whole shop retreated into the darkness at a fast speed, and Xincheng street seemed to have become a small movie screen in the distance, gradually disappearing from his sight.
Immediately after, a thick mist appeared out side of An Yu Yi Yu.
When the mist cleared, what appeared in front of Su Zimo was a school campus in the evening.
Su Zimo could even see a huge playground and a spectatorâs stadium not too far away. There were several dormitory buildings with signs on the left, and a library on the right. A poster flew in from nowhere because of the wind and stuck to the glass door of the shop. It said âNIghtmare University is Recruiting New Students.â
Su Zimo opened the shpo door and took a look outside. He found that An Yu Yi Yu was actually integrated with the teaching building. NExt door was the schoolâs printing room. On the right was the student gymnasium. The âAn Yu Yi Yuâ in the center was out of the ordinary due to its bright lights.
"
"
An Yu Yi Yu had really entered the nightmare world.
Footnotes
<ol>Raws said Su Gan, not Su Kun. Adjusted for continuity. Fuqin is a more formal way to say dad, like father. Safe in a Corner is one way to translate AYYY.</ol>