Chapter 567: 11.93 First Green Star - Punishment World: 'Labyrinth - The Creepy Clown' (23)
Outside the school building.
Bill and his friends did what they had wanted to do all this time and threw their books and notes into the trash can. They had finally finished their school term and there is no way they would keep the books and notes they hate the most. They were about to talk about what they should be doing during the summer vacation only for Henry and his groupies to follow them out.
Guys where should we go tomorrow?
How about the barrens?
No way I heard another had been missing again. Heard about Betty Simpsons. She has been missing for a week!
Shus.h.!.+ Betty's mom is here.
One more is missing. Just how many had gone missing in this town? Even Georgie is...
The last one talking was Bill, he lost his younger brother weeks ago and his parents had long given up looking for his younger brother after a month as if the adults had a tacit understanding that the child would never be found after they've gone missing for more than a month. They were having and serious conversation when the group of menace appeared. It was Henry and his troop.
They intentionally b.u.mp on them, treating them as air. They were asking them for a fight but Richie and the rest didn't pick it up and wanted to ignore it. But Bill couldn't take it any longer when they heard their taunting laughter.
Hahaha~
Bill lost it, "S-Shu-Shut up, Henry Bowers!!" he stutters as usual.
Henry taunts him and copies his stuttered way of talking.
"D-D-Did you say s-something, bill? Hahaha~ f.u.c.ker can't even talk straight!" said Henry.
His group also laughed with him but he shut up when he saw his police father looking at him from the distance and pulled his friends to leave after showing off to Bill and his loser friends
Henry said, "Losers~ go home and tattle into your mommies that you were bullied. Hahaha~"
Han Ya and An Yuan watched the interactions between the children as they ate their corn dogs on the opposite road, even holding a large iced cola in their hands.
An Yuan commented, "Bullying is really normal in any school. This should be solved if the teachers mentioned and warned the children but sadly there are too few teachers who follow their duties to the core." He started talking like the educator he is. An Yuan is indeed a professor who loves teaching as a profession.
Han Ya said, "Any place in the world only has one permanent rule. Only the strong survive. In society, you need to be strong to keep up or you will fail in life."
"That is also true but Xiao Ya. Would you ignore me too if someone bullies me?" asked An Yuan.
Han Ya's expression turned dark and said, "Who dares to bully you? I will kill them!"
"Hahaha~ see it would be better if one is not alone as long as you have someone by your side you would be able to change your fate. Xiao Ya, I am very thankful for meeting you and loving you." said An Yuan.
Han Ya hugs him tightly and says with a smile, "I am also very happy to love you and protect you, A'Yuan."
This sweet scene was broken when Zane, who spotted them as soon as he ran out of the building, said, "Stop flirting you cheesy couple. That female target just now met my eyes. How could she see me!? f.u.c.k! She saw me inside the female restroom!"
"Dude! You entered a female restroom!? You're crazy as s.h.i.+t. Hahaha~" said Chu Mo who appeared with his lover, Lan She, and overheard the conversation between Zane and Han Ya.
An Yuan commented, "Brother Zane, did you forget? Even if we are in our ghost form, the targets could still see us while the rest don't."
"f.u.c.k! For real!? What should I do if she sees me?" said Zane.
Han Ya said, "The problem is not because she saw you, it is whether you left a tracker on the female target or not?"
Rendered speechless and guilty Zane, "...!!!..."
Lan She sighed, "You forgot hah?"
"Sorry~," said Zane with his head lowered.
Chu Mo was laughing at him.
An Yuan reported, "Brother Lan, I, and Xiao Ya found four targets. Xiao Ya left Tracing Talisman on them."
"Good work. We also found the last one. Let's go and find Sir Hei and Sir Abyss first to plan what to do next" said Lan She.
But then they heard a familiar voice in their ears.
"We are here~," said Hei Anjing.
Little Georgie eating ice cream, "Brothers, Ice cream. Eat~"
He appeared holding Little Georgie's hand. On their other hands are ice cream cones Ye Xiajie bought for them on the way. The tricycle was placed back in the storage by System Yang.
Chu Mo asked, "Sir Hei, Where's the big boss?"
"We found the target named Mike. He felt the eerie aura of that stupid clown targeting the boy so he left to save him for a bit. Don't worry he will be back soon. Let's follow the other boys first." said Hei Anjing.
In the end, their group was missing with only Ye Xiajie following the group, Bill, and the rest. When they saw them separated to go home their team had split as well. Each of them follows the other target's home.
Somewhere in the town, Mike was delivering some meat to their usual customers when he suddenly saw the bullies led by Henry. As an outsider, he is also hated greatly by this bully. He hid in some alley with his bike. Only when he saw their car pa.s.s that he sighed in relief.
Unknown to him he had longed to fall into a pennywise trap. As long as he is alone that evil clown would definitely target him. Within the alley what Mike fears the most appeared before him. A closed locked door. Coming from the slightly opened door are countless burned hands and voices asking for his help.
The sound of agony and pain lingers in his ears. Even the voices of his deceased parents were included among the suffering voices. Asking for his help.
Burns... It hurts a lot. Help... Please help us, Mike... It's too painful. Burning ah ah~
Mike stood there in shock at first but when he tried to approach the burning door Ye Xiajie in his child form appeared all of the sudden. In front of Mike, Ye Xiajie forcefully opened the closed door and saw the hidden h.e.l.l scene behind.
A land of fire with countless black figures howling in pain as they were burned alive. Within that red fire and black figures, Mike saw his parents suffering the same way.
Mike yells, "Mom! Dad!"
He wanted to come over but Ye Xiajie pushed him away from the scene.
"Don't block me! My parents are there!" yelled Mike at Ye Xiajie but he instantly stiffened when Ye Xiajie gave him a cold glance.
Those crimson eyes were devoid of emotions and stared down at him so indifferently as if he was nothing but a pebble by the side of the road.
Thoughts of Mike the moment Ye Xiajie looked at him, 'Who the h.e.l.l is this person?! He is so scary and looks dangerous...'
"Look carefully... If these illusions are indeed your parents. Look at the center. What do you see?" Said Ye Xiajie.
Mike once again looked beyond the door. He still saw his parents among the burning black figure but the words the dangerous boy in front of him just said echoed in his ears and looked at the center of the fire. He saw a frowning figure of an ugly clown glaring at him. He stepped back in fear.
Ye Xiajie spoke once again, "Fear him and he will get stronger. The more you are terrified the more he would use your pain and your fears against you and you would continue to see an illusion of your parents dying endlessly."
Bewildered, Mike spoke, "Illusions? Fear? Are you telling me this is not real?"
"Do you think a clown would appear in this kind of scene? Or would the parents who love you enough to sacrifice their lives to save you would ask you to come over and save them in exchange for yours? You have your own brain. Think for yourself!" said Ye Xiajie.
Then as if giving Mike the proof that everything is not the clown at the center of the fire morphed into a monster. His head inflated to a huge size and opened his mouth filled with sharp teeth. The aroma of death, blood, and flesh linger in his disgusting breath making Ye Xiajie frown.
Pennywise yells, "You're interfering once again! d.a.m.n Players!!!"
"You smell like s.h.i.+t. f.u.c.k off!" said Ye Xiajie.
AHHHH~
With a wave of his hand, countless small black fireb.a.l.l.s flew toward the demon clown and he screamed in pain when those black flames. .h.i.t him. Pennywise himself was shocked that this player's attack was able to harm him. It was the same as that beautiful soul before. Only those two are so strong that the dungeon rules and restrictions are not able to harm them at all.
The illusions of fire and burning dispersed when the clown got injured.
Pennywise was quite injured with a burn as he leers at Ye Xiajie.
"Who the h.e.l.l are you? You and that pure weakened soul from before! You two are not players!!! The Dungeon couldn't even restrain you! What the h.e.l.l are you guys!? Are you not a player at all!?" said the ugly clown.
"My wife is only here to have fun. As for the rest, I do not care as long as you don't upset my wife," said Ye Xiajie.
Pennywise spoke, "You guys are cheating!!? I will report to you!" then he once again disappeared after being injured by Ye Xiajie.
Their surroundings returned to normal and the opened door closed to resume its closed state from before. Seeing this Mike was shocked to the core while Ye Xiajie is nonchalant. He doesn't care at all. Now that he prevented the death of this target he doesn't care about the rest and was about to go back and look for his wife.
Mike stopped him on time.
"Please wait. Is everything you said real? All of those are illusions based on my reality and that... That clown... He is doing all this? All the missing children were eaten by him too?" said Mike. He was asking countless and endless questions, "What does he mean that you are an outsider? What is a player?"
Ye Xiajie said, "Believe what you saw. As for the rest, just forget about it. But that clown is indeed the reason for the disappearance of the children in this town. His domain is under this town. The entrance is that abandoned mansion on 13th street. If you wish to learn the truth. Find some friends and investigate. He would never stop until all of your children ended up in his stomach." then he disappeared in thin air, shocking Mike as if he had seen a ghost.
Stunned Mike mumbled, "D-Did I just see G.o.d?"
Countless scenes like this happened in the case of Stanley and the rest. The clown had visited them one by one but as expected Hei Anjing and the team had done a great job splitting to save the targets. These scenes continue for the whole afternoon. Bill, Richie, Eddie, Stanley, and Beverly all witnessed their fear manifesting, and only with the help of Hei Anjing and the team could they prevent their deaths.
There are eight targets and only seven in the team so Little Georgie volunteered to stay by his elder brother's side. But Little Georgie is only a weak ghost so Hei Anjing lend Zhi Yang to accompany him thankfully since Little Georgie's soul was saved by them the Evil Clown, Pennywise had nothing he could use against Bill and skipped him but still showed himself even for a bit only for that annoying protected brat to interfere. Plus Little Georgie had something powerful protecting him and he could only escape.
After the whole event was settled, Hei Anjing and the team once again gathered in the temporary mansion where they reside. They would continue doing the missions tomorrow again.