novelraw Chapter 245
Chapter 245
Soon, the first bloody handprint appeared. Then a second. Then more and more. They spread across the train’s windows like grotesque flowers blooming in rapid succession. The travelers seated near the windows leapt up, huddling toward the center of the carriage, their eyes wide and fixed on the eerie red stains.
Some tried to peer through the thick, swirling darkness beyond the glass, hoping to glimpse whatever left the prints. But as always, nothing was visible. Just an impenetrable void, with crimson smears that seemed to materialize out of nowhere.
A faint, skittering noise drifted down from above—like claws scrabbling across metal. Everyone knew the train’s exterior was sealed, yet the sound had an undeniable effect. Shoulders tensed. Breath caught. Muscles coiled, ready to flee if necessary.
Yu Xi, Lin Wu, and Ya Tong had already moved to their respective exit doors. Lin Wu stood by Door 1 of Carriage 2; Yu Xi at Door 4 of Carriage 3; Ya Tong at Door 1 of Carriage 4. Ya Tong was closest to Yu Xi, separated only by the inter-carriage door.
Unlike the others, Ya Tong wasn’t afraid. As passengers recoiled from the windows, she approached one to study the bloody print more closely.
The blood was fresh—still wet, with droplets slowly sliding down the glass. Yet the train was hurtling forward at high speed. Shouldn’t the blood streak backward instead of dripping straight down?
Then she noticed the shape of the prints. The fingers seemed fused together by thin strands of something. Webbing?
Were these even human hands?
Her phone buzzed. A message from Yu Xi:
not human. be careful. so far, no rule guarantees that puzzle-based platforms are safe if you choose the correct door. Lin Wu: Agreed. Stay sharp. Don’t assume.
Ya Tong: Yu Xi has no shield—stay alert.
Yu Xi: Got it.
The dim, yellowish glow of station lights filtered through the windows. The train decelerated, metal screeching as it eased into the platform.
All four carriage doors hissed open simultaneously. But no one moved.
The platform was awash with blood. Dark smears and slick puddles covered the floor, stretching from the edge of the train to the opposite wall. The ceiling dripped with fresh crimson, as though something had been violently torn apart just moments ago.
The air was thick with the sharp, metallic scent of blood. It clung to the back of their throats, making some gag.
The platform was empty. No bodies. No creatures. Just blood.
For a moment, nobody dared step out. It was like standing at the edge of a nightmare.
Yu Xi took the first step.
She kept her katana ready, all her senses heightened. Stepping onto the bloodstained floor, she turned back to look at the train.
It was just as drenched in blood as the platform. Crimson smears covered the walls, streaking downward from the roof like grotesque paint. But the thing that had crawled across the roof earlier—was gone.
Only the blood remained.
The exit hall was on the other side of the platform, about a hundred meters away. Unlike previous stations, this one had only a single level. The train tracks vanished into endless darkness on either end, the station seemingly cut off from the outside world.
But something was watching.
Yu Xi could feel it.
The presence lurked beyond the station’s edge, in the void where the tracks disappeared. Countless unseen eyes pressed against the darkness, observing them.
And yet, whatever was watching never stepped into the light.
One traveler stepping out encouraged others. Soon, most of the passengers had disembarked. The puzzle had been relatively simple, and most had managed to find the right answer in time. Even some of the new travelers had made it.
Still, there was no avoiding the blood. No matter how carefully they stepped, it coated their shoes.
The exit hall was to the right. Yu Xi, Lin Wu, and Ya Tong quickly regrouped, making their way toward it.
Then, a sharp cry rang out behind them.
A few travelers had stopped in place. Their legs were stuck—trapped in pools of blood that seemed to have come alive.
The thick red liquid slithered up their bodies like grasping fingers, wrapping around their torsos, their arms, their faces.
They clawed desperately at the blood covering their mouths, struggling for air. Their bodies convulsed, then stilled.
Dead.
Suffocated by living blood.
The remaining travelers recoiled, hastily stepping back to avoid touching any more of the crimson pools.
Ya Tong glanced at Yu Xi and Lin Wu. “Move.”
They ran.
**
White sand. Clear blue waters. A gentle ocean breeze carrying the scent of salt.
The sound of waves rolling onto the shore mixed with the chatter of vacationers lounging under sun umbrellas. People of all races, dressed in summer attire, laughed and played on the beach, lost in their carefree paradise.
Yu Xi glanced back at the door she had just stepped through. A beachside restroom.
She looked down at herself—combat boots, tactical pants, a utility vest, and a heavy backpack. Her fingers twitched, still half-expecting to feel the Tang sword in her grip.
But the blood was gone.
The suffocating stench. The horror of the station. The watching eyes in the dark.
All of it had vanished.
Yet her heart was still pounding.
She had seen this transition before. The moment they stepped out of the station, it was as if the previous nightmare had never existed.
She had adapted to it. The abrupt shift from hellish survival to unsettling normalcy.
But that didn’t mean she trusted it.
The phone in her pocket vibrated.
Location: Paradise Island (a-rank)
Time remaining: 22 days
Identity setting: enabled
Unlimited currency: disabled
Train Ticket: Not Expired (1 Station Remaining)
Reminder: Find the hidden departure station within 22 days, confirm the station (one attempt), and board the train.
Remaining Time: 21 days 23 hours 58 minutes 48 seconds
Inventory Slots (Max 10): Full (10/10)
Skills (Max 1): Level 2 Space (200 cubic meters, active)
Teammates: Lin Wu, Yu Qi
Team Status: Active
Team Permissions: Damage Immunity, Messaging, Destination (optional), Tips (optional)
Easter Egg (Activated): Fragment Collection Progress (20%), Site Fragments: 0
Yu Xi frowned as she read the last line. No Easter Egg fragment this time. She’d assumed that after collecting one in every previous station, she’d continue to get one at each subsequent stop. If she needed to find all five, she might have to pass through more stations than expected.
She pulled out the phone she’d bought in Wu Kong City and tried it. Still no signal. With a sigh, she tossed it back into her space.
Looking around, she spotted a colorful tourism brochure on a rack beside the restroom door. Flipping through it gave her a general idea of the station’s layout.
Paradise Island lived up to its name—a tropical island getaway in the southern hemisphere, far from any mainland. Small and densely packed with attractions, it was a tourism hotspot. Half the island was reserved for beaches and scenic areas, with only a modest portion developed into urban spaces.
The guidebook overflowed with photos of pristine shores, bustling markets, and luxurious resorts. To Yu Xi, they weren’t just tourist spots—they were potential puzzle points.
Lin Wu and Ya Tong both messaged the team chat. They’d materialized at different locations. Yu Xi and Lin Wu were both on the beach, but not nearby. Ya Tong had landed on a commercial street.
None of them had unlimited currency enabled.
In short: three broke travelers on a luxurious island paradise. Not even a coin to buy a bottle of water.
Ya Tong added that she’d triggered an Easter Egg fragment as soon as she arrived—but it was time-limited, with a two-hour window. She needed to stay in the commercial district to find it.
Yu Xi: Okay. You focus on the fragment. Tell us the street name. Lin Wu and I will meet you there. Also, Lin Wu—get rid of a gold bar. I’ll chip off a piece of emerald and see if we can exchange it.
Lin Wu: On it.
Ya Tong: Ooh, are you two coming to sponsor me? [smoking-face emoji]
**
Paradise Island was about the same size as Wu Kong City but with far less urban sprawl. Clean, well-maintained streets stretched through neatly arranged buildings. Light gray paving stones lined the sidewalks, flanked by manicured hedges and colorful flowerbeds.
Cars were rare; locals favored bicycles and small electric carts. At nearly every intersection, ornate fountains glimmered in the sunlight, their crystal-clear water cascading into shallow pools where laughing children splashed about.
The whole place radiated idyllic calm. It was hard to believe this was part of the Endless Train World.
Yu Xi ducked into a shopping mall bathroom, pulled an emerald the size of a human head from her space, and cracked off a fist-sized chunk.
The emerald’s color was exceptional. She split the piece into five smaller stones, each about the size of a pigeon’s egg—big enough to attract interest but not so large that buyers would hesitate.
Washed clean under the faucet, the emeralds sparkled vividly. Depending on the jeweler’s assessment, they might fetch anywhere between 100,000 and 600,000 in local currency.
Not that she needed that much. For now, she just wanted enough to cover food, supplies, and communication devices.
After swapping into jeans, a T-shirt, a hat, and a mask to conceal her face, she strolled to the mall’s first-floor jewelry store.
She pretended to be a tourist who’d lost her phone and wallet and now needed to pawn some souvenirs she’d picked up at her last destination.
The shop manager inspected the emerald with professional skepticism. Then, after weighing it and checking the clarity, he made an offer: 350,000 local credits.
Not a bad price for an eleven-carat rough stone. Still a bit low—but she had more where that came from.
Yu Xi made a show of hesitating. The manager, sensing her indecision, upped the deal: 350,000 credits plus a three-thousand-credit gold bar.
She agreed.
Half an hour later, she left the store with a small pouch of cash and gold tucked away in her backpack (and by extension, her space).
Another quick bathroom change—sundress, sunglasses instead of a mask, and a new backpack. Next stop: a phone shop to buy a new device.
She set up a local account, stored most of the cash at a nearby bank, then hopped on an electric tram to the commercial street Ya Tong had mentioned.
**
An hour later, they met at a steakhouse in the commercial district.
Lin Wu had arrived first. He’d pawned his gold bar for 200,000 credits and was already sitting at a table piled with food—steaks, salads, desserts, and cold drinks.
Ya Tong greeted them with a grin. “Fragment secured,” she said, waving her phone.
Like Yu Xi’s first Easter Egg, Ya Tong’s fragment had unlocked a piece of missing memory. But it was incomplete.
“All my memories feel like someone’s taken scissors to them,” Ya Tong muttered. “Bits and pieces everywhere. The timeline doesn’t make sense.”
“Probably designed that way,” Yu Xi replied. “Whatever’s going on here—it doesn’t want us remembering too much too soon.”
Lin Wu nodded. “The puzzle at the last station… The way that blood behaved. It felt more like… rules than biology.”
“Which is why we should keep testing those rules,” Yu Xi said. “Blood might be this station’s theme, just like mirrors were for Null City. The next step? Let’s stock up.”
They paid the bill. Yu Xi ordered ten more ribeye steaks and ten garden salads for takeout.
Before hitting the warehouse-style supermarket, they stopped by the bank to open an account for Ya Tong and deposit her share of the funds. Then they headed for the massive superstore.
Standing at the entrance, Ya Tong rolled her shoulders. “Alright. Time to fill that shiny new 200-cubic-meter space.”
Yu Xi cracked her knuckles and grabbed a shopping cart.
“Let’s go.”