Chapter Three: Absolute Cruelty

Mu You felt the world spinning around him. With no time to consider anything else, he leaned over the body of a young woman beside him, opened his mouth, pressed his lips to her cold red ones, and desperately began to inhale.

It wasn’t as difficult as he’d imagined. With a bit of effort, Mu You sensed a warm current flow down his throat into his body, and a wave of comfort immediately swept over him. The amount of spirit was minuscule; he felt as if one breath had emptied it. Straightening, Mu You glanced at the female spirit watching him “act indecently” toward her own corpse. Embarrassed, he bent over and apologized sincerely:

“I’m terribly sorry. Circumstances left me no choice. It truly wasn’t intentional.”

He kept his posture, not daring to straighten up, but she did not reply for a long while.

Puzzled, he looked up to find the female spirit still in her previous position, gazing blankly around, fading away, never once acknowledging his presence.

“Very few spirits or souls retain intelligence after death. In fact, since I was born, you’re the only one I’ve met, big brother. But from now on, 07 won’t be alone anymore. That’s wonderful,” the little girl said happily, grabbing a dissipating soul and devouring it with gusto. The soul watched her calmly as she consumed it bit by bit. Mu You was truly baffled by her appetite.

“If you eat, you gain strength. The more you eat, the stronger you become, and the longer you last. Big brother, don’t just watch me—eat quickly! Spirit is scarce and fades fast. If you don’t eat now, it’ll be gone.”

Mu You nodded in understanding. The dead cannot return to life; better, then, to send them on their final journey.

Soon, the two of them had swept the entire morgue clean of spirit and soul. After consuming the last one, Mu You felt a series of popping sounds inside him, like electricity crackling, a tingling current sweeping through him. As the air touched his soul, faint ripples seemed to spread across its surface. At that moment, Mu You felt a qualitative leap in his being.

“Hee hee, congratulations, big brother. When your soul resonates slightly with the air, it means you’ve begun to transform. From now on, even if you don’t absorb spirit for a while, your soul won’t dissipate.”

The little girl beamed as if such good fortune had happened to her.

Mu You rubbed his slightly bloated stomach, smiling wryly, at a loss for words. Still, he had at least managed to remain in the world of the living.

Thinking back to all that had happened, Mu You still felt a lingering terror.

Now that things were momentarily settled, what next—

Mu You narrowed his eyes. He had to figure out the truth behind everything!

“By the way, why do you eat souls? Is it possible for beings of the same kind to consume each other?”

At his question, the little girl paused, turned to look at him, nodded slightly, and smiled sadly. “Because I am a spirit.”

What!

Mu You was incredulous. Wasn’t it said that a person’s spirit dissipates completely upon death?

The little girl gave him a silent glance, then turned and slipped through the wall behind her. Mu You hesitated a moment before following.

“What is this—?” Mu You felt a sudden suffocating shock.

Before his eyes was a mountain of bodies—or rather, a mountain of dismembered limbs and remains!

Looking around, he saw some bodies already rotting and festering, some still fresh and steaming, and others dried to bare bones. Blood-soaked fragments intertwined in heaps, layer upon layer, numbering at least a thousand corpses.

Compared to this, the previous morgue was nothing short of paradise!

What was this place? What on earth was happening in this hospital?

At the heart of the corpse mountain, Mu You spotted rows of aluminum frames holding smaller remains. Holding his breath, he peered inside—

There lay bodies the size of infants, the largest no more than three years old. All their organs had been removed, even their eyes. Mu You was overwhelmed by nausea; his stomach convulsed, but he could not vomit.

He was no longer who he once was, and this world was no longer the one he had known.

Most of these infants looked eerily alike, as if cloned en masse. What struck Mu You like a needle to the heart was that, in the center of the pile, he saw a figure in red. Judging by the hair, it was a little girl, her body so decayed her features were unrecognizable. She seemed just able to walk, a tattered cloth doll clutched in her hand. On her wrist hung a tag, Mu You’s sharp eyes caught it.

07.

At some point, the little girl had come to Mu You’s side. Neither of them spoke, falling into long silence.

Mu You’s fists slowly clenched, and did not release.

“Big brother, did you know? When I first awakened, I was just a wisp of spirit, only this big.” As she spoke, the little girl raised her hand; a faint, thumb-sized mist floated in her palm.

“I was confused then, with no sense of self. Just as I was about to fade, I was discarded here, placed above a corpse—right there.” She pointed to the bones beneath her own remains.

“I am grateful to him. His soul had just left his body and wrapped around my spirit. I had never felt such desire before, so I ate him...”

As she spoke, the little girl crouched down, leaning against her corpse, burying her head in her knees, recounting in a calm tone as if telling someone else’s story.

“Afterward, I ate my own soul as well. That’s when I gained self-awareness. Once consciousness returned, I remembered the past, and I was truly afraid. I kept eating, kept growing stronger, so I could finally brave the outside world and see what had happened.”

Mu You listened quietly, fringe shadowing his eyes, his expression unreadable.

“…The more souls I devoured, the more fragmented memories I gained. Gradually, I understood: I was a test-tube baby. Not only me—all the children here were test-tube babies.”

As she spoke, the little girl raised her head, hatred flickering in her eyes—so different from her previous innocence.

“Those damned billionaires spent fortunes to create omnipotent stem cells, cultivated us in embryos, hired surrogates to bear us, then kept us locked in dark cages, raising us secretly. We were livestock, fed measured portions of high-energy nutrient solution each day to ensure our growth and bodily purity. Our so-called ‘fathers’ lived in luxury outside, draining themselves with indulgence, then returned to harvest our organs, replacing theirs with our ‘new equipment’. I imagine all the corpses here died much the same way.”

She wiped her tears, stood up, and donned an indifferent expression, yet her resolute gaze could not hide the tidal sorrow in her eyes.

“When I watched my companions dragged from their cages, disinfected on the butcher’s table, then dismembered alive, I listened from the shadows to their pure, pig-like screams. I realized I would meet the same fate one day. So I made up my mind: I had to escape! I started starving myself, hoping to waste away. At first, no one noticed, but later the guards found out and beat me savagely. I got smarter. After each meal, I’d secretly vomit, then lie weakly in a corner, watching my companions lap up my vomit, all while praying for freedom to come.

“Finally, one day, my body could pass through the bars! Under my companions’ puzzled, vacant stares, I wriggled along the ground, picking up a bloodstained, rusty knife and hiding it close. I crawled toward the main gate. There was so much flesh on the floor that I was covered in blood. The guard was so used to it, he picked me up and used me as a pillow. I lay perfectly still, not daring to breathe, then raised the knife and stabbed it into his neck.”

As she recounted this, excitement crept into her expression. Mu You, on the other hand, felt cold sweat pouring down his face.

“Human blood is so warm. For the first time, I tasted something better than nutrient solution. After days of hunger and torment, I was exhausted, but dared not linger. Gathering what strength I could, I fled—ran blindly through the darkness. The big yellow dog at the gate followed me, licking the blood off my body, trying to bite me. I cut off its tongue. In the dawn’s light, I tasted raw flesh for the first time. Though it was raw, it was delicious. It was my first time in sunlight—I even felt taller. I had been redeemed...

“I wandered the streets, alone but blissful. I was free. Then a kindly aunt found me, gave me a rag doll, and took me to a remote village, introducing me to a strange couple. When I learned they would be my new parents, I called them sweetly. I had parents! I was no longer an unwanted tool, no longer a bastard no one wanted! But I didn’t know my ‘parents’ had bought me from traffickers to sell me to the hospital for a higher price. And so, I returned here.”

When she finished, the little girl forced a smile, but her bitterness was heart-wrenching.

“I still have nothing. I thought I had gained freedom, but I realized as long as people live, they can never truly be free. I drifted here in a daze, until I met you—a kindred spirit, brimming with tempting fragrance. I finally met someone like me. I’m not alone anymore, am I, big brother?”

Finishing, the little girl shook Mu You’s arm eagerly, her bright eyes misted with emotion, cheeks flushed as she waited for his response.

Mu You felt something choking his chest. He opened his mouth, but his throat was tight. Seeing the longing in the little girl’s eyes, he gently patted her head and nodded firmly.

She smiled, radiant as a quiet orchid blooming in a secluded valley—tranquil, fragrant, flawless.

“07 is such an ugly name. Let me give you a real one,” Mu You said softly, his gaze gentle.

“Really? I can have my own name?” The little girl looked up in disbelief. She’d always thought she was unworthy of a name carrying hope.

“Of course…” Mu You said, his heart aching for her. “You’ll be called Mou You—‘Clear Gaze’. When I first saw you, I was captivated by your pure eyes. I hope you can always keep that innocence. Do you like it?”

“Mou You… Mou You…” She repeated the name softly, delighted, and then threw herself into his arms. “I’m Mou You! I have a name now! I’m not nothing anymore—I have value. Thank you, big brother…”

She began to sob, crystalline tears sliding down her cheeks like magnolia petals. Mu You’s heart twisted with pain.

What a pitiful child.

“Big brother, I don’t know your name yet,” Mou You asked, lifting her tear-streaked face, earnest and hopeful.

“My name is Mu You—it sounds like ‘None’. I’m an orphan, with no family, nothing in this world.”

“But now you have me! You’re not all alone!” Mou You pouted, correcting him, looking adorably stubborn.

They shared a smile, a feeling of mutual understanding blossoming between them.

Suddenly, Mu You felt discomfort in his soul, as if something were fiercely pulling him back. His body began to retreat, and he clutched wildly but in vain.

“What’s happening?”

In panic, he looked at Mou You, only to see her eyes wide and mouth agape in disbelief.

“No, that’s impossible. Once the spirit is scattered, it can’t be restored—returning to life is impossible!”

“You mean I might survive?!”

Mu You’s eyes lit up with hope!