HUFF!
Chu Fan bolted upright in bed, panting heavily.
Crimson moonlight filtered through the window lattice, casting his rigid shadow onto the mottled earthen wall. It twisted and warped, like a tormented spirit struggling in its prison.
A night breeze blew through the window, and only then did he realize he was soaked in a cold sweat.
He'd dreamed of that scene again...
The images, the sounds—they churned uncontrollably in his mind, roaring like a tempestuous sea.
The child's pale, swollen body, the empty eye sockets, and that faint, lingering cry—
It was like an ice needle, piercing his eardrums again and again, striking the most tremulous depths of his soul.
'This world... is hell…'
Chu Fan clenched his fists, the corners of his eyes twitching uncontrollably.
The image of that little girl surfaced in his mind once more.
She was crying. Not in sorrow, but in supplication—
