Infinite Nightmares

Seeing Ouyang’s grotesque face, Zhang Wenda’s scalp went numb, and he slowly backed away.

’He had no idea what was happening. How did my teacher suddenly turn into a monster? Can I even stay here anymore?’

He reached out to touch the wooden door behind him, only to find it had vanished, leaving only a cold, hard wall.

"Who told you? Answer me!" The ceramic cracks on Ouyang’s face widened, a foul stench wafting out from within.

Seeing another male teacher staring at him with the same bizarre expression, Zhang Wenda’s mind raced. "Teacher, there’s no need for this, is there? I was just asking! I didn’t go!"

"Answer me!"

The situation was urgent, but Zhang Wenda didn’t answer directly. "Um... if I tell you, what will you do to her?"

"Use Green Dam to completely eradicate the source! Completely eradicate it!"

’Hearing this, Zhang Wenda jumped in fright. Thank god I didn’t sell out Song Jianguo just now. The punishment is that severe? Getting caught means death.’

"I just overheard someone say it! After school, I heard someone on the street mention it! I didn’t even get a clear look at their face!" Zhang Wenda blurted out an excuse.

"No! You’re lying!"

A powerful gust of wind sent Zhang Wenda flying, and he was pinned firmly against the wall by Ouyang’s cracked ceramic arm.

Before he could recover from the pain in his back, he saw the shattered ceramic fragments on Ouyang’s body shift, their sharp edges slowly pressing toward him.

"Answer me! Where is the source of the Internet World!"

The sharp ceramic shards began to slowly dig into Zhang Wenda’s flesh.

As the pain intensified, Zhang Wenda swiped his right hand behind his back. A flashlight appeared in his palm. With a flash of red light, Ouyang’s ceramic arm was instantly sliced in two, dropping to the floor and shattering completely.

He couldn’t worry about anything else now. The moment he broke free, Zhang Wenda bolted toward the window.

CRASH! With the sound of shattering glass, Zhang Wenda burst through the window and landed in the hallway outside.

But before he could take more than a few steps, Ouyang, now with one arm missing, appeared before him again.

Ouyang looked utterly inhuman now, her eyes fixed on Zhang Wenda as she repeated her previous words. "Answer me! Who told you! Who!"

Zhang Wenda glanced around and sprinted down the left corridor. ’As long as it’s not a confined space, Ouyang can’t keep up with me.’

But his relief was short-lived. A bald, bespectacled teacher blocked his path, speaking the exact same words as Ouyang, as if he were a clone.

’It’s all happening too fast. Just because I said one word, the school has turned into a house of monsters!’

But Zhang Wenda didn’t give up. He immediately turned and headed for the spiral staircase nearby.

The students who had stayed behind to clean the school saw this and looked over, their faces full of curiosity.

Ouyang walked slowly to the edge of the balcony, watching Zhang Wenda run down the spiral staircase. With a light clap of her hands, the students who hadn’t left yet all stopped in their tracks. Like zombies, they blankly began to close in on Zhang Wenda. At the same time, Ouyang’s voice began to boom from the school’s loudspeakers.

By the time Zhang Wenda reached the first floor via the spiral staircase, he was instantly met with the sight of several hundred students slowly surrounding him. He was completely trapped.

’This is a school. There are just too many teachers and students. Fighting them here would be a huge disadvantage.’

A piece of chalk flew from above and at an angle, spinning rapidly as it embedded itself in Zhang Wenda’s flesh, causing him immense pain.

Zhang Wenda looked up at Ouyang on the second floor and yelled, "Teacher Ouyang! I know you can hear me! What did I do wrong! Why are you all doing this to me? Is it just because I said one wrong word? Didn’t you promise Teacher Rabbit you would take good care of me?! Is this what you call taking care of me?"

Ouyang, who had been getting closer, stopped. The ceramic cracks on her face closed slightly. "I’m doing this for your own good, to keep you away from the Internet World. This *is* me taking care of you."

"Your tardiness, your truancy, your unfinished homework—I can overlook all that. But I never imagined you would get involved with the Internet World. That is a place of depravity. The fact that you want to go there... you’ve disappointed me so much."

Hearing this, Zhang Wenda erupted in anger. "You think I want to go? I’m suffering! I’m in pain! Do you have any idea how awful it is to be randomly attacked every few days for no reason? Do any of you?!"

"Since none of you can help me, I have to go there and find a solution myself! I’m just looking for a way to end the pain, so why can’t I!!"

Faced with Zhang Wenda’s questions, Ouyang finally revealed her reason. "The Internet World is a place of depravity. They call it ’digital heroin.’ Once you’re hooked, you’re finished. People who go there can only grow up to be thugs and prostitutes."

Zhang Wenda was stunned for a moment. Then, he laughed, infuriated. "Fuck, it’s this same old bullshit. I should have known. So that’s how it is, that’s how it is."

Another piece of chalk shot over, smashing against Zhang Wenda’s head and drawing blood.

But this time, Zhang Wenda made no move to dodge. He raised his head and stared stubbornly at Ouyang.

"If you had any other reason, I might have argued with you. But if *that’s* your reason, then I’m sorry, but you’re wrong! You’re dead wrong!"

He spoke through gritted teeth, "I’ll tell you the truth: I am *definitely* going to the Internet World! What are you going to do about it? Try to drag me off to an internet addiction school? Come on! You can try!!"

As the Red Core pulsed faintly, Zhang Wenda stomped his feet hard on the ground and lunged forcefully toward Ouyang on the second floor.

Just as Zhang Wenda was about to strike Ouyang, she waved her hand lightly. The familiar wounds appeared on his body and spread rapidly.

With the sound of cracking bones, his fingers twisted like pretzels. The flashlight in Zhang Wenda’s hand slipped from his grasp and clattered to the ground.

Lying on the ground, Zhang Wenda endured the pain that nearly made him pass out as he watched Ouyang’s legs slowly approach.

He stared daggers at her. "You can do this too? So you can do it too! You knew what was happening all along, didn’t you! And you never told me!"

The cracks on Ouyang’s face gradually sealed, and her expression returned to that of a smiling ceramic doll.

"You see? Look how much harm the Internet World has done to you. You’ve already been brainwashed. You just heard its name, and you already dare to raise a hand against your teacher. If you actually went there... I can’t even imagine what you would do."