MASG chapter 115

 

In an instant, the world spun.

Xia Yu was held tightly. His body and brain fell into a deadlock simultaneously, leaving him unable to react or struggle. At first, he only felt himself being scooped up, his legs leaving the ground as his body was lifted into the air. Gravity seemed to leave the Earth, and the corridor walls and floor tiles began to recede.

Then, with a whoosh, he flew.

The moment he flew out the window, light from all directions became very bright, and sunlight gathered before his eyes. In that instant, he felt a wind unlike anything he had ever experienced before, his mind going blank, and a sense of weightlessness. The playground turned into a silhouette and flashed past his vision, leaving only a blur of color. The whole world went quiet.

But this fake calm was immediately shattered by terror and trembling. His head felt heavy and his feet felt light as he fell rapidly. The sound of the wind turned into a horrifying scream sharp enough to pierce his mind. Before he could register falling from a height, he crashed into the bushes, his face pressed against someone’s chest.

Pain. His nasal bridge hurt badly. His whole body hurt.

Xia Yu didn’t have time to think and fainted just like that.

Only then did the screams of reality erupt, mixed with the echoing of the school bell through the campus. Mo An’s mind was in complete chaos. He could only see countless faces peering out from the windows; everyone was looking at him. Zhang Mingqiao and Xia Xiaoxiao were among them.

No, that’s not right. This is the virtual world.

But why can the virtual world be so fake? What just happened? Mo An only had one instinct left: to escape to safety. He grabbed Xia Yu around the waist and prepared to change locations. The alarm that sounded just now was the biggest flaw. This world was not as simple as it seemed. The building was strange. It was screaming.

The low bushes helped block some of the impact, but when Mo An stood up, he felt dizzy in a way that was unfamiliar to him. He covered his nose, and a stream of bright red blood flowed out.

This was… his own blood?

One of Mo An’s hands was still holding Xia Yu. He was stunned by the color of the nosebleed.

He actually had bright red blood? Not pale blue? That shouldn’t be possible. For a mermaid, only the gills and heart have red blood; all other parts are pale blue. He looked again at his arms. The protruding branches of the bushes had injured his skin, leaving countless cuts of various sizes.

But all of these small wounds were flowing with red blood.

What was going on? Had he turned into an ordinary human again? Mo An forced himself up and tried to move forward. In the real world, he could jump from more than ten stories up. But now it was only three floors, and he was already dizzy. Who were the people rushing toward him? What were they going to do? Take Xia Yu away?

No one was allowed to take Xia Yu away again.

Mo An tried to break through the crowd, but he fainted on the playground the next moment, still gripping Xia Yu’s school uniform tightly in his hand.

The campus security guards who rushed over immediately separated them, had them lie flat, and called an ambulance at the same time.

This was probably the most terrifying day of Zhang Mingqiao’s life.

He watched as his biological son embraced his stepson and jumped from the building. Although three floors isn’t especially high, it’s more than enough to kill someone. After jumping, both sons collapsed on the playground. Security guards put them on stretchers and accompanied them into the ambulance.

Penghu No. 1 Middle School had never experienced such a shocking incident.

The two children were rushed to the Penghu Emergency Center. Zhang Mingqiao couldn’t leave his side, so he first notified Xia Li. After taking care of business at the school, he hurried to the emergency center. Xia Li and Xia Xiaoxiao were sitting on chairs in the corridor, hugging each other and crying nonstop.

The person standing beside them, handing them tissues, was today’s interviewee, Lao Gui.

“How’s the situation?” Zhang Mingqiao ran over. Thankfully, one of their own was still with them.

“Stable! Both are stable! They’re just unconscious!” Lao Gui spoke before the mother and daughter could say anything. This matter had really blown up. Within the first hour of Mo An entering the virtual world, he had sent Xia Yu into emergency treatment. Wasn’t this making their mission more difficult?

Snatching someone from Nuwa’s virtual world was already an extremely difficult feat. Now, with Mo An causing this mess, Xia Yu might develop a strong rejection toward him.

“Really stable?” Zhang Mingqiao’s lips and hands trembled slightly.

“Both are stable. No life danger.” Lao Gui subtly took Mo An’s side. It was a good thing he had come along; otherwise, Mo An might have died here. “But how could something like this happen? Can you describe it to me?”

Zhang Mingqiao shook his head and sat heavily on a hospital chair. “I think I didn’t notice. It happened too suddenly.”

“I told you he was strange.” While comforting her mother, Xia Xiaoxiao complained softly. “Who hugs my brother like that without a word?”

Lao Gui tugged at the corner of his mouth helplessly. From Xia Xiaoxiao’s perspective, Mo An was indeed strange. It was only natural for her to dislike him. “Were you near them at the time?”

Xia Xiaoxiao sniffed. You could tell that she was only pretending to be strong. “Yeah, our homeroom teacher just asked me too. At that time, I was pretty close to them. Mo An suddenly went crazy.”

“How crazy?” Lao Gui felt that something was off. Mo An wouldn’t be stupid enough to insist on running away with Xia Yu. They couldn’t get far anyway. As long as Xia Yu was unconscious, they would never be able to leave.

Xia Xiaoxiao shook her head, unable to say anything because she couldn’t figure out the cause and effect. Lao Gui didn’t dare ask any more questions. Everything would have to wait until Mo An woke up. However, it seemed that on this island called “Penghu,” their physical strength had decreased. Although they were still better than normal people, they were far from their level in the real world.

When Mo An opened his eyes again, the first thing he felt was dizziness.

That damn dizziness again… Mo An still wanted to stand up. The unfamiliar environment made him worry even more about Xia Yu’s safety. The colors in this room made him especially uncomfortable—why was everything so white? And the IV needle stuck in the back of his hand was even more solid evidence. Had they been captured by Nuwa?

“Don’t move. Don’t move.” Lao Gui, who was sitting to the side, held him down and informed him first. “You fell and got a mild concussion.”

Mild…what? Seeing a familiar face caused all the muscles in Mo An’s body to relax. “What happened to me?”

“A concussion is a condition caused by a fall.” Lao Gui laughed helplessly. “You’re in a hospital in Penghu City right now. You and Xia Yu jumped off a building together, and now you’re both in the hospital.”

“I didn’t jump off a building! I was taking him to safety. That building was a strange species; this place is also an inorganic ecosystem.” Mo An remembered everything and struggled to pull the needle out of his hand. “Look! My blood is red. This isn’t normal!”

“It’s normal. All normal. You’re the one who’s too abnormal. Lie back down first.” Lao Gui could understand him. His adaptability was far stronger than Mo An’s, yet he was still a bit confused. “Listen to me. I’ve already asked around. When you took Xia Yu and jumped off the building, did you hear a metallic ringing sound?”

Mo An nodded, looking around anxiously for Xia Yu.

“That’s the class bell, the dismissal bell. In a high school in the virtual world, it’s a very normal sound. The teaching building isn’t anything unusual, understand?” Lao Gui pressed on his shoulder to keep him from getting too excited and flipping the bed over. “Our physical condition here is weaker, so you absolutely must not jump off buildings again. You’ll die!”

“But…” Mo An still wanted to get up.

“Your problem right now is how to explain things.” Lao Gui was really worried about this. “I’m going to call Zhang Mingqiao and Xia Li now. Speak properly. Xia Yu doesn’t belong to you alone. He’s their son and Xiaoxiao’s older brother too. Think carefully. Don’t give yourself away.”

“Then how is Xia Yu?” Mo An hurriedly grabbed Lao Gui.

“He woke up faster than you did, and he doesn’t have a concussion. He was probably scared unconscious right away. You hugged him and fell into the low bushes, so your injuries are worse than his.” Lao Gui said.

That sentence was like a reassurance pill. Mo An immediately stopped struggling. As long as Xia Yu was fine, everything was okay. But the reassurance soon wore off, and he started worrying again. Allowing someone who lived in the apocalypse to survive in a normal world was much more difficult than he had imagined—no less challenging than exploring Yukun City.

Everything Mo An did was preparation for survival. He had no idea how to relax.

Accompanied by Lao Gui, Zhang Mingqiao and Xia Li walked into Mo An’s ward together. Probably because Xia Yu had already woken up, the furrow between their brows had eased considerably.

Lao Gui immediately shot Mo An a look.

“…Dad…Auntie.” Mo An received the signal and spoke stiffly. “Sorry for making you worry.”

Zhang Mingqiao hurriedly sat down on the chair beside the bed. He was, of course, heartbroken, but his emotions were very complicated.

Lao Gui immediately shot Mo An another look.

Mo An tried to sit up. “Auntie, I’m sorry. This matter… it’s all my fault. Please don’t argue with my dad because of me. It’s my problem. If you want to scold me, then scold me. The fault is mine. I’ll accept it.”

“That’s not the case. We didn’t argue.” Zhang Mingqiao’s heart softened a little.

Xia Li also sat down. Saying she wasn’t angry was impossible. On the first day, a stepson she had never met before sent her biological son to the hospital. She had a lot of grievances in her heart. But after hearing Mo An, she didn’t know what to say. She could only sit with Zhang Mingqiao, revealing her embarrassment.

“It’s all my fault. How is Xia Yu? I want to see him.” After saying this, Mo An glanced at Lao Gui. Was it okay to say this?

Lao Gui shook his head. Don’t rush to see him yet. Soothe these two first.

“How could this happen?” Zhang Mingqiao finally lost his composure. “Xiao An, is there something you haven’t told me? How could you…?”

“Sorry, Dad. I really do have something… I hid from you.” Mo An thought for a moment and slowly spoke under Lao Gui’s gaze. “I actually have… post-traumatic stress disorder[mfn]Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that can develop after a person experiences or witnesses a deeply frightening, dangerous, or life-threatening event. People with PTSD may relive the trauma through intrusive memories, flashbacks, or nightmares, and may feel intense fear, guilt, or helplessness even when they are no longer in danger. They often try to avoid reminders of the event and may become emotionally numb, hyper-alert, or easily startled.[/mfn].”

Lao Gui nodded. This reason would work.

“What kind of post-traumatic stress disorder?” Zhang Mingqiao’s eyes widened.

“In Qingyao City… I went through a very terrifying… robbery.” Mo An continued making things up. “At the time I was in the middle layer… no, in a building buying things, and then someone rushed in with a gun…”

No, no. Lao Gui hurriedly blinked. Guns are forbidden in this world!

“Maybe it was a gun; maybe it was a knife. I didn’t see clearly.” Mo An immediately changed his story. “They were randomly injuring people. Blood flowed everywhere. There were victims everywhere.”

Zhang Mingqiao’s legs went weak. “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

“I thought you were already living a new life on Penghu Island. I was afraid of disturbing you.” Mo An looked at Xia Li guiltily. “Back then, I didn’t know what kind of temper Auntie had. I was afraid that if we contacted each other too much, she wouldn’t want you.”

Xia Li didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Why would you think like that, child…”

“I know blended families are very difficult.” Mo An spoke half-truthfully. “Those robbers were later subdued, but I developed post-traumatic stress disorder. When I hear frightening noises, I think someone is robbing us again. At that time… the bell rang and I got scared and wanted to run. Xia Yu was the closest to me. I thought I couldn’t just run away by myself. I had to take him with me.”

Not bad, not bad. Lao Gui gave him an approving look.

“So you mean you took Xia Yu because you wanted to protect him?” Xia Li pressed on. “Why?”

“I was scared, so I wanted to take him and run away. That’s all… At that time I just didn’t have time to take Xia Xiaoxiao. Otherwise, I would have taken them both. It won’t happen again in the future… I’ll try my best to control myself.” After Mo An finished speaking, he let out a breath. “Auntie, can you forgive me?”

“This…” Xia Li spoke from a practical standpoint. “If it’s really this serious, I’m more worried about your mental state than forgiving you. We should make an appointment with a psychologist for you.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Xia Xiaoxiao pushed open the ward door in a hurry. “Dad, Mom, my brother said he wants to talk to you.”

“I also want to go… is that okay?” Mo An immediately sat up. “I can apologize to him.”

“You should probably not go for now.” Xia Xiaoxiao’s expression became complicated. “My brother said he doesn’t want to see you for the time being. He’s very afraid of you.”

It was over. Mo An looked helplessly and blankly at Lao Gui. What should he do now? He had imagined all kinds of difficulties, but he never thought he could mess things up this badly!