13: Chapter 13 The Crying Driver

Chen Mo stayed at the Farmhouse for another two days.

He organized the supplies he brought back from the military base.

The vehicle weapon rack was installed on the bed of the pickup truck, with five rifles secured and ready for use at any time.

Advanced fuel was poured into spare fuel cans, and the medical kit was placed under the passenger seat.

He spent the rest of his time studying that "Infiltrator" serum.

The liquid in the syringe was pale gold and very clear; the Pupil of the Sequence could see some tiny black particles inside.

Those were the Impurities caused by the missing ingredients.

Without the "tear of the ghost shadow" to neutralize them, these Impurities would spread throughout his body after injection, triggering side effects.

As for what the side effects were, the manual had written it down:

The shadow would act independently and attack its host.

Chen Mo could imagine the scene: his own shadow suddenly standing up and strangling him.

He couldn't fight it, he couldn't run away, he could only wait for the effects to wear off.

Therefore, he had to find the "tear of the ghost shadow".

The next evening, he drove to Trading Post No. 1.

Old Zhou was still there; seeing him come in, he frowned slightly.

"You're here again?"

"I need information," Chen Mo said. "About the Crying Face Driver."

Old Zhou's expression changed.

It was a rather complex expression, as if he had recalled something unpleasant.

"Why are you looking for it?"

"I need something it has."

Old Zhou was silent for a few seconds, then pulled a hand-drawn map from under the counter.

"The Crying Face Driver, an E-Class Ghost Shadow, has a range of activity between Highway 23 and Highway 27."

He spread out the map.

"Its characteristic is that it only appears on rainy days, and only in front of those Chosen Ones who are alone."

"What do you mean?"

"It will disguise itself as an ordinary car."

Old Zhou said, "Or a hitchhiker. Once you get in the car, it will reveal its true face, and then a 'game' begins."

"What kind of game?"

Old Zhou glanced at him.

"No one knows, because those who knew never came back."

Chen Mo stared at the map.

Highway 23 to Highway 27 is about one hundred kilometers from here.

If I leave now, I can get there before dawn.

"There is one more piece of information," Old Zhou said.

"Where it appears, it will definitely rain. Not ordinary rain, but that kind of... black rain. As long as you see that kind of rain, it means it's nearby."

"Black rain?"

"Yes," Old Zhou nodded.

"Like ink; it doesn't wash off if it gets on you. But as long as you don't get out of the car, it can't get in."

Chen Mo noted this.

He took out five fragments and placed them on the counter.

"Thanks."

Old Zhou didn't take them.

"This information is free," he said.

"But I advise you not to go."

Chen Mo looked at him.

"Why?"

"Because those who went never came back," Old Zhou said.

"No matter how strong or smart they were, they didn't come back. That thing... is not something you can deal with just by strength."

Chen Mo was silent for a second.

Then he pushed the fragments over.

"Take them," he said. "Whether I come back or not is my business."

He turned and left.

Behind him, Old Zhou's voice followed him:

"Chen Mo—if you really go, remember one thing—"

Chen Mo stopped.

"Do not answer the questions it asks you."

Chen Mo did not turn back.

He pushed open the door and walked into the night.

Three hours later, Chen Mo arrived at Highway 23.

It started to rain.

It wasn't ordinary rain.

It was black.

What a damn coincidence; it was as if all of this was prepared for him.

It really looked like someone had overturned an ink bottle in the sky. Rainwater fell onto the windshield, flowing down and leaving streaks of black.

The wipers were on the fastest setting, but could only barely keep his vision clear.

Chen Mo slowed down, his Pupil of the Sequence working at full capacity.

In his golden field of vision, there was nothing on either side of the road—no Ghost Shadows, no living creatures, only endless darkness and black rain.

He continued driving forward.

Highway 24, nothing.

Highway 25, nothing.

Highway 26, still nothing.

The rain grew heavier and heavier, to the point where he could barely see the road.

Chen Mo had to pull the car over to the side of the road and wait for the rain to let up before continuing.

He turned off the engine and leaned back in his seat.

Raindrops hit the roof, making a dense, rhythmic sound.

The sound didn't seem like rain; it was more like... something was knocking.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Rhythmic knocking.

Chen Mo's right hand instantly gripped the cleaver.

He stared at the roof.

There was nothing there.

But the knocking continued.

He pushed open the car door and rushed into the rain.

The black rain poured over him, ice-cold and biting.

He looked up at the roof; it was empty, with only rainwater flowing over it.

The knocking stopped.

But another sound started~~~

The sound of an engine.

A car was approaching from the distance.

Chen Mo narrowed his eyes and looked toward the end of the road.

In the darkness, two headlights were approaching.

Not the bright white light, but a dim yellow light, like old-fashioned headlights.

The car drew closer and closer.

It was a taxi.

Old-fashioned, the kind from the nineties; the body was yellow but mottled and worn by the rain.

It drove slowly and stopped beside Chen Mo's pickup truck.

The window rolled down.

A driver was sitting inside.

A man in his forties, wearing a taxi driver's uniform and a hat.

His expression was a bit off.

Too ordinary.

So ordinary that it looked painted on.

"Getting in?" the driver asked.

His voice was also very ordinary, with an ordinary tone and volume.

But Chen Mo's Pupil of the Sequence was sounding a frantic alarm.

In his golden field of vision.

The taxi was completely covered in dense, golden lines.

Like a cocoon woven from gold thread.

Those lines were wriggling, breathing, and...

Looking at Chen Mo.

[Target: E-Class Ghost Shadow "Crying Face Driver"]

[Status: Disguised]

[Core Rule: Must complete three "passenger missions"; failure means being devoured]

[Current Stage: Boarding Invitation]

[Suggestion: Refuse to board, evacuate immediately]

Chen Mo didn't move.

He looked at the driver.

The driver looked at him too.

The rain was still falling, the black curtain of rain separating the two.

"Getting in?" the driver asked again.

Chen Mo's mind was racing.

Old Zhou said it only appears in front of Chosen Ones who are alone.

Now that it had appeared, it meant it considered him to be "alone."

Old Zhou said not to answer the questions it asks.

If he answered "No," what would happen?

The Pupil of the Sequence gave no answer.

Chen Mo took a deep breath.

Then he pulled open the back door and sat inside.

The moment the door closed, the sound of the rain outside vanished.

The car was dead silent inside.

The driver didn't turn back, just gripped the steering wheel and looked ahead.

"Where to?" he asked.

Chen Mo looked at the driver's face in the rearview mirror.

The face was still ordinary, with ordinary features and ordinary skin tone.

But the eyes had changed.

Pure black, with no whites.

"Where to?" the driver asked again.

Chen Mo spoke.

"Anywhere."

The driver nodded and stepped on the gas.

The taxi started slowly and drove into the black curtain of rain.

Chen Mo sat in the back seat, his right hand gripping the cleaver.

He looked out the window.

He couldn't see anything, only endless darkness and the occasional flash of rain.

But he could feel it.

The space inside the car was changing.

Not a physical change, but some kind of... rule-based change.

[Entering independent instance]

[Instance: Crying Face Driver's Taxi]

[Rule: Complete three passenger missions, or you cannot leave]

[Current Mission: None]

[Waiting for driver to issue]

Chen Mo gripped the cleaver tighter.

What would the first mission be?

The taxi continued forward.

The driver didn't turn back.

But in the rearview mirror, those pure black eyes were watching him the whole time.