[ Inaudible noises ]
…
[ Beeping sounds of medical equipments ]
…
[ Heavily opening my eyes ]
…
"-What?! What do you mean cancer?! How could it even happen?!"
"Ma'am, I knew that this truth is unacceptable, but you need to calm down"
…
"… Wang has terminal cancer?? Why it has to be my son!?"
"Ma'am, please, I know it's hard to accept this, but your son only has a few months left to live. In that case, I'd recommend your family to spend his final moments to be the most memorable."
"No! It can't be over just yet! I've heard that people have found the cure to stop this, there must be a way to save our son."
My mom, trembling, biting her nails as she process the situation, while my father seemed to accept it.
Heavily getting myself together, I can't help but ask a question
"How much time do I have left, doctor?"
"You have 12 months in best scenarios, but your body could stop functioning any moment from now"
"…"
"I see… thank you doctor."
"…why your reaction seems…lackluster."
Facing the doctor's question, I found myself speechless, is it because I already knew it? I seems to found clues of a tumor spreading ever since the day I took caution of what happening to my body, I always deceived myself as if it is just another common disease. Maybe my recklessness got the best of me.
The room is filled with silence, with occasional hiccups from my dread-filled mother.
Lost in thoughts, I wonder, why did this happened to me. My lifestyle is appears to be the healthiest of them all. No drinking, no smoking, not even stimulants like coffee or energy drinks, only occasional sweet drinks on special occasions and never ate processed food more than twice a month. The more I think about it, the less sensible it seems.
Could I because of my "healthy" lifestyle?
How could it happened to me?
After losing in the train of thoughts, I finally decided to accept my fate and make the most out of my little time left on this beautiful planet.
I've seen majestic natures of this land, the hospitality of the people, and the beauty of culture, doing what I loved while being by my side with my beloved family.
"Doctor, is there any way to make my farewell a bit more… controlled?"
"Hm, are you sure about this?"
"Yes"
After all, there is little left I could do.
Might as well stop this sufferings, can't let my family to endure this anymore…
…
"I feel, complete."
'Maybe, it is the best to stay with my family in the last moments.'
"Ma'am, I think you ought to meet your son for the last time"
Hands in hands, tears in fear, the fear of losing a beloved one is truly consuming.
"We will finish this in just a moment."
No pains, no groans, only tears have fallen.
A painless death, the best mercy for a forsaken one.
"Perhaps, death is not the end"
"Another one has succumbed to demon's corruption." (魔种)[1]
Steps by steps, the sounds of someone walking get closer.
The world seems to be frozen in time.
"I feel weightless"
As I rise up from laying, I saw a much alienated figure.
A figure of approximately 6 foot in height, human-like, moderately slim with likely oversized robes with strange symbols etched, which looks like a mix of pictographic word and some sort of mythical beasts.
His eyes bear the unyielding tiredness, a messy but natural hair style with weirdly done hair bun and aged face with visible wrinkles, with a headband made from layers of silk-like fabrics.
One hand holding a crooked cane with a hanging lantern of green flame, other hand is put behind his back with no inconvenience.
"Follow me", he said with a plain tone.
"Why? And who are you, what is demon's corruption?"
"You ought to not ask such questions"
"Are you death? I've heard things about someone who guide souls of deceased one to reincarnation river"
"You can understand it like that, now you can go without doubts?"
"We have plenty of time, don't we?"
Seeing such stubbornness, he can't help but let out an inaudible sigh.
"O' stubborn soul, shalt thy obstinate be gone"
Chanting these words almost inaudibly, chains of spiritual energies invisible to mortal eyes chained Wang with absurd restrictions, rendering escaping efforts into nothing more than a worm.
"I have to be obedient to my job, blame yourself to make me using such methods"
Shocked, Wang could do nothing other than musing in astonishment
'Is this power of a god?'
"So you are a god?" Wang asked in deep interest.
"This is nothing more than few tricks to keep my job feasible, now scramble"
"Is there any way to become powerful as you-" Wang got pulled downward with immense forces
"Tsk tsk, this soul might've been tainted, better off let the liquidators handle this"
[The Underworld]
"Next" the receptionist, who resembles a lot like human but with a pair of goat horns, wearing a tidy robe calling for the next person on the line.
"Name?"
"Liu Yue"
"Corrupted?"
"Excuse me, what?"
"Eh, probably not, go through my right side gate."
"Alright then"
"Next"
A big thud, creating darkish red a dust cloud, spanning approximately 5 meters in diameter and 3 meters in heights.
'After such a fall, I couldn't feel pain? This is truly what being "dead" feels like'
Dusting my clothes off, I can't help myself but to be amazed.
"Such a gloomy place, is this the Underworld that dead people have to go through? I never thought things like this would exist"
"New comer? Get in the line"
The guards gave me no time to recollect what just happened.
…
"Next"
"Name?"
"Wang"
"What Wang?"
"Liu Yi Wang"
"Corrupted?"
"You meant demon's corruption? I never knew what it means-"
"Go to the left gate"
"Alright I guess?"
The left gate an ominous feeling can't described by words, screaming to me not to go inside.
"Welp, what worse could happen."
Steps by steps, the deeper Wang go, the more ominous it feels, up to a point a single step become so mentally exhausting that an ordinary person would've collapsed.
"Is this a trial for me? Houh, I really wonder what is after all this."
After 200 steps, the pressures vanished, leaving behind a crimson dust cloud vanishing into the atmosphere.
"Phew, I almost fainted there."
"I wonder what is after all this"
[ In a distant place ]
A person doing the paperwork, seemingly annoyed by how much work is left, is losing their mind.
{Warning! The Myriad Souls Cauldron is breached. Attention required immediately.}
Ding! A window panel pops up, the person informed by such news suddenly stood up with much motivation.
"Finally! I can't stand doing these paperwork anymore, Eoulva, lead me to the cauldron."
Shooting off into the sky, they started flying toward the crimson sphere in the distant horizon.
[1] I tried to translate this into English with my limited knowledge (idk if it could give the same feeling to western readers)