novelraw Chapter 372 - 323: Possessed by a Demon (4K)_2
Chapter 372 - 323: Possessed by a Demon (4K)_2
The chief surgeon had almost given up. But he had stepped forward, in front of the live broadcast cameras, saved the situation, and perfectly completed the surgery.
"Uh... ah..."
Li Ang responded sluggishly. He slowly put down his phone only after the call ended.
Memories surged into his mind—those minute, trivial fragments of recollection churning to the surface.
He remembered his name and origins:
the loneliness of long hours studying by the window,
the nervousness of entering the examination hall,
the hesitation when applying to university,
the feeling—three-parts solemnity, three-parts nervousness, three-parts excitement, and one-part confusion—when he took the Hippocratic Oath.
He thought of all the little moments in his life, the happy and the unhappy, all the things that had made him who he was.
Li Ang raised his hand and gently touched the light stubble on his chin. In the phone screen’s reflection, he saw himself, a few years older now.
He silently woke the screen and opened an app.
"...Okay, guys, all eyes on me! Watch me, watch me! I have an announcement: I’m an idiot!"
"We’ve arrived at the world’s highest city, Litang! Litang is so beautiful! Hey, isn’t this just perfect? Let’s check out the distant snow-capped mountains, family!"
"The Try Not to Laugh Challenge starts now!"
"According to data from Johns Hopkins University in the United States..."
The screen’s glow illuminated Li Ang’s unconsciously smiling face. A warm night breeze blew in through a crack in the window.
He put down his phone and reached his hand out the window.
Skyscrapers and the modern city seemed within arm’s reach.
Everything was so beautiful, so real... so real it was hard to believe.
What’s wrong with a world like this?
Pure, factory-produced water flowed from the taps. High-speed trains and airplanes covered vast distances in a day. Mobile phones and computers offered incredible convenience.
Some parts of the world might be unstable, and various problems might exist. But wasn’t peace, development, and prosperity the life he pursued?
Li Ang stared at the bustling city, the smile on his face gradually fading.
He turned and looked toward the end of the corridor.
There was a closed emergency door, the green and white "EMERGENCY EXIT" sign above its frame glowing faintly.
This world is indeed good, he thought. But, on the other side, I still have things to do.
Chai Cuiqiao, Li Leqing, the Academic Palace, the Water Poison, the sick house...
Along the way, his attachments had grown, becoming so numerous he couldn’t let go.
He took a step forward, and the entire corridor vibrated.
DING-LING-LING.
The phone rang again. A boisterous voice came from the other end, "Hey, where are you, kid? The net cafe is one short for a team, hurry up and join!"
"Sorry, I’m busy."
Li Ang hung up and stepped forward.
DING-LING-LING.
The phone rang again. A melodious, somewhat seductive female voice asked, "Doctor Li? I’ve already booked a table at the restaurant on the top floor of the Yin City Building~ When will you be joining me...?"
"Sorry, I’m busy."
DING-LING-LING.
"Is this Li Ang? AHEM. I’m the new director of the Red Star Orphanage. We’re planning a commemorative event and would like to invite you to attend..."
"Sorry, I’m busy."
Call after call came in from friends, classmates, mentors, acquaintances...
With each disconnected call, the corridor twisted and deformed, hindering Li Ang’s progress.
It even tilted vertically, like a deep well, gravity dragging him down.
Li Ang grabbed a bench bolted to the wall to keep from falling. Looking down the now-vertical corridor at the modern city below, he vaguely recalled the well at his old home in Yizhou.
Under the pull of gravity, flower pots, carts, and other unsecured objects in the corridor tumbled and fell. With a CLANG, they smashed through the glass windows, plummeting into the vast night.
Li Ang looked away. Using his hands and feet, he maneuvered through the corridor, narrowly avoiding all the falling objects as he continued to climb.
BANG! CRACK! CLANG!
A surgical stretcher cart tumbled down from above.
Li Ang arched his back to dodge. His caseless phone, still ringing, slid out of his pocket and fell out the window.
"Ah..."
Li Ang watched with a twinge of regret as the phone disappeared from sight. He took a deep breath and continued his climb.
Finally, he reached the precipice formed by the T-shaped corridor.
Fierce winds howled atop the cliff. Li Ang had to grip the metal frame of a plastic seat to keep from being blown away.
Amidst the fierce winds, the LED lights embedded in the ceiling flickered.
Li Ang squinted. In the dim light, he could vaguely make out a blurry figure standing at the far end of the other side of the corridor.
"Are you sure?" the figure asked, its voice deep and hoarse. "This is your world too. There are no bloodthirsty, murderous demons here, no unpredictable Aliens, no life-or-death dangers. It might be a bit boring, a bit dull, but you have the peace and stability you desire here."
"...I quite like it here too," Li Ang said after a moment’s silence. He shook his head and pointed at the emergency exit. "But there are people waiting for me over there."
The figure at the end of the corridor remained silent for a long while, then sighed faintly, took half a step back, and vanished into the darkness.
The wild wind suddenly ceased. The final obstacle was gone.
Li Ang breathed a sigh of relief, nodded toward the blurry figure across the way, then leaped up and pushed open the emergency exit door.
***
In the black-mist-shrouded Floating Tower, a ten-meter-tall cocoon stood silently.
The surface of the cocoon was smooth, flawless, and incredibly glossy, like a mirror. Only upon closer inspection would one notice it wasn’t a mirror but countless layers of dark-gold metallic filaments.
The Demonic Qi permeating the air seeped into every corner of the Floating Tower.
The Buddha Light Prohibition was eroded and corrupted.
The Buddha’s relics enshrined in each compartment grew dim and lightless, eventually cracking apart.
Just as the Demonic Qi was about to infiltrate the Mo Si—
THUD.
A muffled sound echoed from within the cocoon, like a drumbeat, a thunderclap, a heartbeat.
THUD.
The sound grew louder. Fine cracks spread across the surface of the Mo Si, as if something within the cocoon was awakening.
THUD!
A long gash split the cocoon’s surface.
Countless resilient Mo Si strands parted, spreading outwards, unfurling—
And finally, transforming into wings.
Li Ang opened his eyes and surveyed the cramped confines of the Floating Pagoda, a space now barely large enough to hold him.
At this moment, he had merged with Mo Si. Elongated, backward-curling horns grew from his head. His skin was covered with dense, thick scales, and sharp spines sprouted from his back, arms, and legs. A tail, extending from his spine, swept and swung unconsciously, tearing the sturdy bricks of the Floating Tower to shreds.
Every fluttering strand of Mo Si was an extension of his body.
He didn’t need eyes to perceive the slightest disturbance in the surrounding space.
He didn’t need ears to sense the flow of water deep underground.
His muscles were unprecedentedly strong, his senses sharper than ever, and the circulation of his Spiritual Energy had never been more efficient.
This was the combat form Mo Si had evolved into, guided by his last command—"enhance myself"—given while he was trapped in the illusion.
Having absorbed the Jialan Sect’s centuries of collected treasures and the special metal from the iron box, compressed countlessfold, Li Ang himself didn’t know what stage Mo Si had now reached.
Horns, scales, spines, a long tail, and wings. With this appearance, it’s doubtful anyone would believe I’m not a demon...
Thoughts churned in his mind. Li Ang took a deep breath and lifted a massive hand to his face.
Mo Si spontaneously covered his features, his human face vanishing, replaced by the ferocious visage of a demon.
That should do it.
Li Ang smiled with satisfaction, his non-human face terrifyingly fierce.
As easily as toppling a sandcastle on a beach, he casually pushed aside the thick walls blocking his path. He stepped out of the dilapidated Floating Tower and looked down upon the stunned Sui Yi and the others below.