Chapter 19: Large Fire

August 27th.

The high-concentration alcohol Ming Ci bought online arrived, with 2.5 liters per bucket, totaling six buckets, all packed into his large suitcase.

The suitcase stood against the wall, while Ming Ci sat at his desk, first composing a short email, scheduled to be sent at 9 a.m. on August 29th. Then he closed his laptop, pulled out a piece of draft paper, and began writing with a pen.

The monster couldn’t read, silently watching as Ming Ci filled the entire paper with writing.

After Ming Ci finished writing the last word, he put down the pen, stood up, and walked to the living room. He placed the draft paper on the most conspicuous spot on the coffee table and used an empty porcelain cup to weigh it down.

In case he didn’t return, this letter would be his farewell note to the police.

Today’s highest temperature reached thirty degrees, but Ming Ci wore long sleeves and pants when he went out.

Because the monster couldn’t control its form, it had already spread to his arms and legs.

“Ming Ci, what are we doing today?” the monster asked.

Ming Ci replied expressionlessly, “An outing, taking you out to play.”

He dragged the suitcase out of the neighborhood and waited for a few minutes before getting into a taxi.

Half an hour later, the taxi arrived at a desolate suburb, slowing down near a dilapidated unfinished building.

The driver, feeling uneasy about arriving at such a deserted place, couldn’t help but ask, “Young man, what are you doing alone in a place like this?”

Ming Ci took out his phone to scan the QR code for payment, not bothering to look up as he said, “Filming.”

“Filming? What’s there to film in this place? It’s just a bunch of unfinished buildings.”

“We’ll film these unfinished buildings and post them online. Some people like to watch them.”

After paying, Ming Ci stepped out of the car, retrieved the suitcase from the trunk, and walked towards the overgrown construction site.

A while later, he stopped in front of a row of portable cabins.

These abandoned cabins were common steel containers on construction sites, with only narrow fence windows and a door.

After years of wind and rain, many cabins had peeled paint and rusted, but when Ming Ci vigorously smashed them with a stone, he found that the steel plates were still strong.

The monster thought that Ming Ci had come here to play a game of smashing rocks against the walls. It was about to come out to accompany him, but then it saw him put down the stone and walk into the waist-high weeds.

“Aren’t we playing with rocks anymore, Ming Ci?” it asked.

Ming Ci, head lowered, picked up some dry grass, speaking calmly, “No more rocks, we’re playing something else.”

Under the scorching summer sun, a normal person doing work like this would have been sweating profusely. However, there was no trace of moisture on Ming Ci’s clothes; they remained dry.

Because the sweat on his body was all licked away by the monster, never getting a chance to touch his clothes.

The dry grass, sun-dried to a crisp yellow, was highly flammable and surrounded a steel cabin in a circle.

Inside the steel cabin, there was also some grass laid out, as well as some dry branches that could withstand burning. Air vents and windows were deliberately left open to ensure air circulation, and branches were placed on the outside.

When arranging these things, Ming Ci’s expression was very calm, as if he were just doing ordinary chores.

The monster noticed something unusual, “Ming Ci, your heartbeat is so fast.”

Ming Ci paused slightly in his movements, not responding.

“Are you happy now?” it asked cheerfully.

Ming Ci opened the suitcase, his gaze falling on the neatly arranged six buckets of alcohol, and replied, “I’m nervous.”

“Nervous?” The monster had heard of this word before but didn’t quite understand the emotional meaning behind it. “Does being nervous also make a human’s heartbeat faster? Why is Ming Ci nervous?”

His heart was pounding in his chest, and Ming Ci slowly exhaled, his pitch-black pupils staring fixedly at the alcohol.

“Because I’m worried that what I’m about to do will fail.”

His tone sounded calm at first listen, but upon closer inspection, it carried an unmistakable tremor.

The monster understood the meaning of failure and followed up with another question, “What are you about to do?”

“Wait, you’ll see soon,” Ming Ci said.

After saying this, Ming Ci picked up the alcohol, unscrewed the cap, and poured it slowly along the pile of dry grass.

A few minutes later, the pungent smell of alcohol permeated the air, and all the preparations were complete.

Because all his actions were under the monster’s watchful eyes, Ming Ci was afraid of arousing suspicion, so he didn’t bring a lighter but specifically bought matches.

He felt the matchbox in his pocket, and his fingers trembled as if they were shocked by electricity.

It wasn’t time to light the fire yet.

Ming Ci walked into the steel cabin, took out a folding knife from his pocket, and said to the monster, “Xiao Hong, I’ll feed you blood, and then we’ll play a game. If you behave, there will be a reward after it’s over.”

As the blade touched his hand, the crimson suddenly surged out and knocked the knife to the ground.

Caught off guard, Ming Ci’s heart tightened for a moment, even thinking that the monster had guessed his true intention.

But the next second, it exclaimed urgently, “No! I don’t want Ming Ci to feed me blood!”

Ming Ci tensed up all over, his voice even changing tone, “Why don’t you want it?”

The monster completely emerged from him, its crimson body perched on the dry grass and twigs all over the ground, earnestly replying, “Because Ming Ci will be in pain when cut, and I don’t want you to be in pain.”

“You’re a fragile human, don’t feed me with methods that will cause pain. Not this time, not in the future!”

Ming Ci’s expression changed, his throat felt as if it were stuffed with sourness, and he couldn’t speak for a moment.

“Ming Ci should be happy,” the monster pinched a palm and gently stroked his cheek, “You don’t have to give me blood. I also want to play games with you.”

The monster couldn’t lie; every word it spoke was its truest thought.

Ming Ci was well aware of this, but he would rather it lie so that he wouldn’t hesitate at this moment.

The fire hadn’t been lit yet, but it seemed as if a fierce flame had already ignited here, burning his soul.

Ming Ci lowered his eyelashes and asked softly, “If you don’t eat my flesh and blood, what will you rely on to grow? Weren’t you planning to keep growing and then keep me captive?”

“I can eat other things, as long as they belong to Ming Ci, they can help me grow.”

As it spoke, the crimson fingertips ventured into his lips, taking in some saliva.

“When my body grows very large, I’ll be able to keep you captive.”

Ming Ci lifted its hand away, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips, “Alright, let’s play a game now.”

The monster squatted in front of him, “What game? How do we play?”

“This game is called hide and seek.” Ming Ci looked at the pile of alcohol-soaked dry grass, his voice soft and slow, “The rules are simple. You hide in this room, and I’ll go outside. You don’t have to do anything, just wait quietly.”

Reluctantly, the monster asked, “Are we going to be separated again? Can’t we hide together in the room?”

“No, we must play this game like this. You hide in the room, and I’ll be outside the door. I’ll come in to find you soon.”

The monster replied despondently, “Okay, then please hurry.”

Ming Ci closed his eyes, turned around, walked out, closed the door, and locked it with wire.

The monster looked at him anxiously through the cracks between the window bars and branches, urgently asking, “Ming Ci, are you coming in?”

“Don’t move. Can you count? Count from one to ten, and I’ll come in.”

“I can, one, two…”

“Once you can’t see me, start counting,” Ming Ci interrupted the monster, gazing deeply into its jet-black eyes. “Today, I’m going to teach you something new.”

The monster paused. “What?”

“Lies. I lied to you,” Ming Ci whispered.

“Lies?” The monster felt vaguely impatient and uneasy. “What does that mean?”

Ming Ci didn’t answer it but passed by the window, disappearing from its view.

The monster just wanted to end this game quickly and immediately began counting, “One, two, three, four…”

Ming Ci took out the matchbox, struck two matches lightly, igniting a small flame.

“Five, six, seven…”

The burning match fell on the alcohol-soaked wick, and the flame spread rapidly, igniting the entire circle of dry grass.

“Eight, nine, ten!”

Before the monster could finish counting, a raging fire burst into the steel cabin through the window bars and ventilation holes. The high-concentration alcohol ignited instantly, and all the dry grass and twigs burned, turning the entire room into a sea of flames in an instant!

Ming Ci took a few steps back, silently watching the blazing fire, his eyes reflecting the redness of the flames.

“Ah! Ahh!”

The monster screamed in anguish, its piercing cries echoing in his ears, causing his heart to race uncontrollably.

“Ming Ci… there’s fire, fire everywhere, it hurts so much!”

The exits connecting to the outside were all filled with flames, and it couldn’t get close. The fire in the room was even more intense, with no escape.

“Ming Ci!!”

The sharp and desperate screams pierced his eardrums. Ming Ci pressed his teeth against his lips, unknowingly biting into blood.

His palms clenched into fists, the faint blue veins on the back of his hand bulging, as if he were desperately restraining something.

Stop calling my name.

Don’t call my name anymore.

But the monster kept calling him, its tone distorted into something unlike human speech, sounding even more ferocious and terrifying.

“Ming Ci!”

“Don’t come in! Run away! Run away quickly!”

Ming Ci’s movement to turn around froze, his pupils dilated, his brain almost blank.

—What is it saying?

“Ming Ci, run quickly, don’t come in, so much fire… it hurts, wuwuwu…”

Perhaps it was about to be burned to ashes, its voice gradually weakened.

—It’s telling me to run, to run quickly.

Ming Ci’s eyes trembled slightly, his breathing becoming heavier, his gasps filled with a strong scent of blood.

After a dozen seconds, he suddenly made a short, breathy sound, which sounded like laughter and crying at the same time. Then he forcefully covered his face, muffling the sound coming from between his teeth in his palm.

“Ming Ci…”

The last call was as light as a breeze, almost inaudible.

Ming Ci lifted his face from his palm, staggering to the window.

In the steel cabin, the alcohol, dry grass, and thin twigs had all burned out, leaving only some fire-resistant wood still burning. Ming Ci looked at the ashes all over the ground, feeling as if his soul had been sucked away, his expression showing a kind of numb calmness.

The raging fire had burned away the danger and fear, while simultaneously turning into ashes whatever unspeakable things lay deep in his heart. There was no joy in escaping death; all that remained in his heart was a hollow sense of emptiness.

After a long silence, Ming Ci said hoarsely, “That’s a lie.”

“Xiao Hong, I lied to you, this isn’t a game. Even if you count to ten, I won’t come in.”

A hot summer wind blew by, scattering ashes from the window, and dark specks floated in the air, slowly drifting down in front of him.

He reached out his hand, staring at the ashes on his palm.

“Farewell.”

TN:

Well…