Die, Replay, Repeat

Chapter 19: Here to Save You

Without hesitation, Wu Dahai sprang into action when Wang Ziteng called for his help. After all, he always admired Wang Ziteng.

With a forceful slam, Wu Dahai used his big, hefty body to knock Zhao Hao to the floor. Moving swiftly, he and Wang Ziteng pushed Fang Xiu out and shut the storeroom door tight.

From that moment, it felt like two different worlds on each side of the door. Fang Xiu stood alone outside, while his friends were inside. He could see their faces by peering through the small window in the door.

Zhao Hao had crashed into some furniture when he fell and was now hollering in pain.

Wu Dahai and Wang Ziteng sternly guarded the door. Another person inside couldn't even lift their head to look out the window.

Wang Ziteng said to Wu Dahai, "Don't let that door open. We can't let Fang Xiu back in!"

"Don't worry, Mr. Wang. This old wooden door might not keep out a Specter, but it sure can keep a person out," Wu Dahai assured him.

However, after a few moments, they noticed there was no pushing or banging from the other side. They exchanged glances, looked out the window, and saw a pale face pressed against the glass, silently staring at them. Shives ran down their spine.

"I never thought I would find people fascinating again, but sometimes, people are even more exciting than Specters. Thanks for spicing up my life. I'll pay you back next time," Fang Xiu's voice came through the cracked wooden door, puzzling Wang Ziteng and Wu Dahai. His strange words left them with an uneasy feeling.

Then, a clicking noise echoed. The doctor appeared. That familiar sound felt like the tolling of a funeral bell, causing everyone in the room to hold their breath, afraid of catching the Specter's attention.

Even knowing how deadly the "doctor" could be, the sight of the Specter still scared them.

Fang Xiu heard the noise but didn't even turn his head. He continued grinning at Wang Ziteng and Wu Dahai, as if trying to etch their faces into his memory.

In the blink of an eye

WHOOSH!

Something shiny flashed, and Fang Xiu's head dropped heavily to the ground.

"Go, now!" Wang Ziteng yelled from inside, bursting the door open and sprinting out.

As he ran, he couldn't help but glance back at Fang Xiu's head. He was still grinning, and his peaceful eyes seemed to watch him. Wang Ziteng's heart pounded in his chest, and he ran off without looking back.

***

Fang Xiu's hand felt cold and sticky. A long, pale leg came into sight.

"I'm back," Fang Xiu muttered. A Specterly grin flashed across his face so quickly that Zhao Hao next to him didn't even catch it.

Fresh from the brink of death, Fang Xiu didn't do anything differently. Like a TV show on repeat, he mirrored everything he had done before his do-over.

He touched his leg, started running, and headed downstairs. The dimly lit stairwell was engulfed in darkness that seemed to cling to the air. Fang Xiu and Zhao Hao raced down the stairs together. One floor, two floors, three floorssoon, they heard the sound of rushing footsteps ahead of them.

A panicked shout came next, "Specter! The Specter is catching up!"

Just like before, Fang Xiu leaped from the stairs to the next floor, successfully rejoining Wang Ziteng and the rest.

"It's just Fang Xiu and Zhao Hao! You guys scared me, I thought the Specter was right behind us," a coworker huffed.

Zhao Hao looked at everyone, puzzled, "Why are you guys running so slow?"

"Slow? We've run down at least twenty flights of stairs. How about you guys? How are you so fast?"

The same conversation played out again.

"It's the Specter's Labyrinth! It must be the Specter's Labyrinth," Wang Ziteng started to explain again. But before he could finish, a loud bang interrupted him.

A door was open. Fang Xiu stood quietly in front of it.

Wang Ziteng was dumbstruck, and so were the others.

_'Where is the supposed Specter's Labyrinth? How did Fang Xiu find an exit so fast?'_

No one questioned it, though. They all dashed toward the door. Once they reached the diverging road, they stopped.

"Fang Xiu, did you activate your psychic powers?" Wang Ziteng asked with a complicated look.

As soon as he asked, everyone turned to look at Fang Xiu. They had learned from Wang Ziteng that only psychics could stand a chance against the Specter, and activating psychic powers was a prerequisite to becoming one.

Hearing Wang Ziteng's question, a glimmer of hope sparked in their hearts.

It made sense for Wang Ziteng to ask. After all, Fang Xiu had navigated through the Specter's Labyrinth too quickly this time. Before, he had to feel his way around, but this time, he walked right to the door and opened it.

So, Wang Ziteng speculated that Fang Xiu might have used his psychic powers to sense the door. Everyone's hopeful and confused gazes were on Fang Xiu. He didn't answer right away but checked his phone for the time.

Then he looked up and said, "In one minute, the Specter will show up."

Everyone was shocked.

"If you even know when the Specter is going to show up, you must really be a psychic. Fang Xiu, if you can get me out of the Specter Zone, I'll give you five million!" Wang Ziteng offered urgently.

"Fang Xiu, please get us out of here."

"You must know the right way. If you lead us out, we'll make sure to repay you."

But at that moment, Fang Xiu shook his head and calmly said, "No rush."

His simple words sent everyone into a frenzy.

"Before we get out of here, there's something I gotta do."

Wu Dahai was about to lose his cool, "What could possibly be more important than"

"Ahhhh!" A sharp scream sliced through the room, cutting Wu Dahai off.

Everyone gaped at Fang Xiu retracting his leg and at Wang Ziteng, curled up on the ground in a fetal position. Wang Ziteng's face was twisted in pain. His face was flushed, veins bulging, and he was shaking like a leaf as he screamed his lungs out.

Everyone stared at him, almost as if they could hear the sound of an egg cracking.

"You, you...ahhh!" Wang Ziteng was in so much pain he couldn't even get a full sentence out.

As Wang Ziteng's right-hand man, Wu Dahai, snapped, "Fang Xiu! What did you do? Why would you kick him out of the blue?"

The others chimed in, "Yeah, why did you attack him out of nowhere?"

Everyone was caught off guard by Fang Xiu's sudden attack, even Wang Ziteng, the one on the receiving end. He probably would never understand why he got kicked right after he offered five million.

_'Isn't the money enough? If it isn't, he could've just said so!'_

Just then, Fang Xiu gave his reason. He simply said, "This Specter is much faster than any human. So when the minute's up, someone's gonna die. Now that Wang Ziteng can't move, he'll be the one to die, which means I just saved all of you."

Everyone was left dumbstruck. No matter how hard they thought about it, they couldn't make sense of Fang Xiu's logic.

Before they could react, Fang Xiu kicked him again. The next second, another ear-piercing scream filled the room. This time, it was Wu Dahai on the ground. His pose was a mirror image of Wang Ziteng's. He clutched his groin as he squirmed in agony, screaming at the top of his lungs. But he wasn't as good at handling the pain as Wang Ziteng, and after another scream, he passed out.

Everyone knew that the groin was a guy's weakest spot, and Fang Xiu hadn't held back at all. So it was clear that Wang Ziteng and Wu Dahai wouldn't be moving anytime soon.

This time, the group erupted in fury at Fang Xiu for his seemingly random and ruthless attacks on Wang Ziteng and Wu Dahai.

"Xiu, what are you..." Zhao Hao instinctively backed away from Fang Xiu, one hand protectively covering his groin.

The rest looked at Fang Xiu with suspicion and caution in their eyes.

"Fang Xiu, what's your deal? You said you hit Wang Ziteng to save us, so why did you hit Wu Dahai?" one coworker angrily demanded.

No one wanted to stick around someone who might randomly attack them, especially with such brutal force that could cause serious harm, possibly even leading to them being sterile.

But even with all their accusations, Fang Xiu stayed cool and simply said, "We need a backup plan."