Chapter 306: Icy Cold

Chapter 306 Cold

The cold, rotting orange that went into his mouth carried not only the peculiar stench of decayed fruit but also the unmistakable moldy odor.

But Li Huowang, driven to the brink of starvation, paid no heed to such things. In his eyes, this rotten orange was more precious than any delicacy from the mountains or seas.

After swallowing one spoiled orange, Li Huowang, slightly comforted, suddenly stood up and shouted desperately into the pouring rain: "Chief Bai! Don’t be afraid—I’m having an episode. I have a disease, I really do!"

A middle-aged man holding an umbrella, seeing Li Huowang’s disheveled appearance, quickly pulled his wife away in fear.

Others reacted the same way. The street, already sparsely populated due to the rain, emptied completely.

Li Huowang ignored all these changes because he knew the situation on the other side was critically urgent.

There, he was nothing more than pork laid out on a chopping block—his life depended on finding a way to survive!

Yet the rain continued to fall, offering him no response at all, which made him feel increasingly agitated.

According to past patterns, the disturbances from that reality should have twisted into some kind of hallucination.

"Chief Bai! Where are you? Give me some sign! I can’t see you!"

At that moment, Li Huowang saw several men with umbrellas walking toward him, and his eyes lit up.

With his worn-out shoes, Li Huowang charged through puddles toward them. "Chief Bai!"

Suddenly emerging from the storm, Li Huowang clearly startled the man.

"Chief Bai, don't you remember I saved you before? Are you really going to harm your savior?"

As if that wasn’t enough, Li Huowang added:

"And besides! Bai Lingmiao is pregnant with my child. Whether you accept it or not, I am now half of the Bai family!"

"A lunatic," said the man with a black umbrella, backing away nervously as he tried to circle around.

How could Li Huowang let him go? He stepped forward, arms spread wide, blocking the man's path.

"Chief Bai, if you don’t believe me, let Er’er speak to you directly!"

Seeing Li Huowang like this, the man sighed helplessly. “Brother, please spare me. You pity me, I pity myself too—I still have to work and pay off my mortgage.”

“What did you say? Sorry, Chief Bai, I’m caught in a hallucination now. Everything you say will be misinterpreted.”

“How about this—Chief Bai, I’ll stay right here and won’t move. Just give me a few minutes, and I’ll return to normal.”

Though the man couldn’t understand what Li Huowang meant, hearing that he wanted to follow him, he panicked.

“Oh no, I’ve been cornered by a madman!” The man didn’t hesitate—he turned and ran.

Li Huowang, anxious, chased after him, but after a few steps, he stumbled and fell to the ground.

His body sensations, previously ignored during their conversation, returned with full force.

Cold... Li Huowang’s lips turned blue, his teeth chattering uncontrollably, so much that he could no longer feel his fingers.

Lying in the rain, Li Huowang felt limp and powerless throughout his body.

He tried to ignore these false perceptions, but survival instinct forced him to crawl painfully to his feet, hunching over, wrapping his arms around himself, and dragging himself toward the eaves.

"Get lost! Madman! If you don’t go, I’ll beat you to death!"

"Huh! Oh no, don’t step on my shop’s carpet!"

"Mom! Come quick! There’s a madman at our doorstep!"

Surrounded by these voices, trembling and staggering, Li Huowang pressed forward.

Looking around, his anxious heart found slight relief. "Since I'm still alive, then the lies I just told must have worked."

But just when one wave had calmed, another rose. His mind began to swim, as if from too much rain, he had developed a fever.

"I’m... I’m dying in this illusion. Should the real world be fine?" Li Huowang’s weak voice carried uncertainty.

Just then, he spotted a bridge arch far ahead, small but just big enough to shelter from the rain.

Biting his teeth, Li Huowang rushed forward and narrowly avoided a yellow school bus. A tiny face pressed against the window looked back at him.

Reaching under the bridge, the noise around him instantly ceased. Li Huowang panted heavily, slowly sliding down the wall.

Though no longer soaked, his body showed no improvement. "Why does this take so long? Why haven’t I returned yet?"

While waiting for time to pass, Li Huowang suddenly noticed something on the ground. He moved toward it.

In a corner of the bridge arch, several plastic bottles with straws, wrapped in tin foil, accompanied by a nearly dead lighter.

Li Huowang extended his numb hand and picked up the red transparent lighter.

“Click—click—” Trembling, Li Huowang struck the lighter, but it wouldn’t ignite.

As his head grew heavier, a tiny red flame flickered to life.

"It lit." Li Huowang smiled, his eyes reflecting the flame, like a pure child.

Looking around, he picked up a red plastic bottle with a straw and carefully placed it beneath the flame.

The red-white striped straw ignited and gradually spread into the bottle.

When the bottles were lit, forming a small smoky fire pit, Li Huowang cautiously brought his frozen hands close.

The smell from burning plastic was foul, but it was warm.

The heat from the flame slowly spread across his palms, warming his body. Gradually, his trembling stopped, and his lips changed from black to purple.

"Who!" Startled, Li Huowang spun around, looking toward the entrance of the bridge arch. A little girl wearing rain boots stood there, umbrella in hand.

She was a very cute little girl, perhaps seven or eight years old, with twin tails and a red cherry hair clip.

Her large eyes first showed confusion and curiosity, but upon seeing Li Huowang’s appearance, they turned into fear.

"December Eighteenth?" Li Huowang, unpredictable, muttered involuntarily.

This was the little girl who had once been kidnapped by him in kindergarten.

Judging from her backpack, she had graduated from kindergarten and was now in first grade.

"No, she’s no longer December Eighteenth. She must be some projection from the real world. There’s no one else in the reed field—it’s probably still the Bai family."

Li Huowang thought for a moment and walked toward her.

But as soon as he moved, the girl, like a frightened deer, screamed and fled.

When Li Huowang reached the bridge entrance, he found a small piece of Dove chocolate discarded by the girl.

He picked it up and put it in his mouth. The chocolate was deliciously sweet, and that special sweetness reminded him of Yang Na, of the chocolate she had given him on Valentine’s Day.

"Why was I abandoned on the street? Have my family given me up?" A bitterness so deep it couldn’t be melted by chocolate welled up in Li Huowang’s heart.

He sniffled slightly, turned around, and walked toward the fire.

He crouched again, staring blankly at the flames, murmuring to himself: "It’s all just a hallucination anyway. It’s better this way… it’s better this way..."

(End of Chapter)