Dr. Gao cradled his gravely wounded wife against the blood pool, slipping one hand inside his white coat.
He could barely stand, looking utterly wretched, clearly having no strength left to fight back. Yet even in this state, a smile lingered on Dr. Gao's face.
That smile made Chen Ge deeply uncomfortable.
The blood-colored world was beginning to collapse. The walls and floor made of flesh and blood lost their color, and the rain of blood seemed to have run dry.
"I know every single vengeful spirit on you — including Men Nan from the Third Ward. I predicted all of this. This scene has played out in my mind countless times." Dr. Gao produced a notepad from his pocket, its pages soaked in blood and stuck together, and casually tossed it toward Chen Ge.
To be safe, Chen Ge didn't reach out to catch it, letting the notepad fall to the ground.
The notebook fell open. A cold wind swept across its pages, revealing densely packed notes documenting every possible scenario. Judging by the dates, these had been written days ago.
"What are you trying to show me? Proving that you didn't lose because of a lack of intelligence?" Chen Ge also had the habit of recording important things down — in that regard, he and Dr. Gao really were very alike.
"I just want you to know that all of this was designed by me. I wanted to force myself into making a decision — one that could only be made when I was backed into a corner, with absolutely no hope of turning things around." Dr. Gao reached into his white coat once more and pulled a sharp scalpel from an inner pocket.
"Over five years, I conducted countless experiments, but none of them could awaken my wife. She had lost all her memories. I couldn't find her soul. I could only deceive myself by commanding her to do things. I knew that from the moment she was wheeled into the emergency room, I had already lost her." Dr. Gao gazed at the reflection on the scalpel's blade, holding his wife, whose expression was slightly vacant without Dr. Gao's commands. "Everything I've done — it was all just to find her again. A very simple wish."
As Dr. Gao straightened up and spoke, countless black threads began to crawl out from the sea of corpses surrounding him, burrowing into his body.
Those black threads carried a thick, oppressive malice, composed entirely of despair and every kind of negative emotion.
"This day has finally arrived — much sooner than I expected. I had originally planned to wait until after Xiao Xue's wedding before making this decision."
"What exactly are you trying to say?" Dr. Gao's emotional state wasn't right. Chen Ge silently called out to Zhang Ya.
"Actually, there is still one more vengeful spirit hiding in this blood-colored world." Dr. Gao's eyes were terrifyingly calm.
"Another vengeful spirit?"
The black threads continued to drill into Dr. Gao's body. The hundred-odd corpses — killed by the Strange Talk Association, steeped in despair and agony — began to dissolve as well, ultimately transforming entirely into black threads that poured into Dr. Gao. He was shouldering the entirety of the door world's negative emotions.
"Chen Ge, you've been to the Living Coffin Village. You should know — once a door-opener dies, they become the most terrifying vengeful spirit of all." Dr. Gao raised the scalpel. Black threads danced wildly within his eyes. The whites vanished entirely, and both eyes turned completely black. "Actually, I've always been curious — what exactly lies above Red Dress!"
The sharp scalpel descended toward his own body. Dr. Gao knew precisely where to strike for a single fatal blow.
The silver blade plunged downward. The distance was too great — no one could reach him in time to stop him.
It was too sudden. Chen Ge had never imagined that Dr. Gao's final trump card would be himself. No wonder he had been able to remain so calm the entire time — he had already made every preparation.
"The last vengeful spirit in this blood-colored world is Dr. Gao, the man who opened this door." Chen Ge watched from afar. By the time Zhang Ya's black hair lashed out toward Dr. Gao's arm, the blade had already broken through his skin.
No one could stop him in time. Just as Chen Ge was about to give up, a girl's scream — raw and desperate — erupted from the entrance of the operating room.