Linbiangui Village-Infinite Streaming Chapter 44

The Lamp of Resolution

There was no borrowing of luck, no sorcery. There was only a father’s clumsy, humble, yet all-consuming love. He paved the way for his son, even going so far as to fabricate such a fragile lie, only so his son wouldn’t bear a psychological burden—and this, ironically, became the knot in Wu Kai Ke’s heart that he couldn’t untie.

“Father…” A hoarse, broken whisper escaped Wu Kai Ke’s throat, and then he couldn’t make another sound. As if struck by lightning, he slowly lowered his head, looking at his trembling hands. There was nothing on them, yet they felt stained with blood.

The old oil lamp in Bai Lao San’s hand flickered twice, and the candlelight grew brighter.

“Give it to me!” Chen Jin reached out to Bai Lao San, his brows furrowed, his fierce expression chilling.

Bai Lao San froze for a second, but still hesitantly handed over the old oil lamp he was clutching.

The key to breaking the previous two worlds lay in explosion, so why would this world be any different? Chen Jin gripped the oil lamp, his mind racing.

If merely blowing up this coffin was enough, how would that differ from Wu Kai Ke’s current demand? If the trap set by such a deranged person could be solved with such a simple routine, they should have just indulged him earlier. The matter shouldn’t be this simple…

The shock and desolation on Wu Kai Ke’s face suddenly faded. His body began to tremble violently, followed by a maniacal, sneering laugh. After the laughter subsided, his expression shifted rapidly: ferocious, painful, regretful, sorrowful… like a京剧 (Peking Opera) face-change performance. Finally, all expressions solidified into a saint-like calm. The crimson in his eyes gradually receded, the violence dissipated, replaced by a clear, transparent clarity, like the transcendence after a great calamity.

“Is that how it is…” he murmured, his voice soft as a sigh, completely different from his previous arrogance. He slowly raised his head, his eyes complex and hard to read. Then he reached out to Chen Jin, “Chen Jin… light it, and then give it to me…”

Wu Kai Ke’s demeanor had undergone a drastic change, as if dominated by another soul, but who could be sure this wasn’t his trick?

Chen Jin was stunned. Give it to you?

“Light it,” Wu Kai Ke repeated, his voice gentle. He turned his head to look at the statue in the center of the main hall. Their eyes met, filled with shared sorrow. “And burn this temple… which has imprisoned too much pain and obsession… burn it all down.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Kai Ke cried out in pain and collapsed, his face contorted in agony. Two souls were fighting for control of the body.

Chen Jin’s heart sank sharply. This was Wu Kai Ke breaking free from his obsession. He looked at the countless struggling “selves” in the mirror, each accompanied by Wu Zeng.

Give it to him, return to that real world, and continue his solitary life? Or… stay here forever, becoming another solidified, painful reflection in the mirror world? For him, either option would be a form of release, ending quickly.

However, Chen Jin felt the kerosene lamp in his hand weigh a thousand pounds. An indescribable fatigue and despair washed over him like a tide. The calcified area in his abdomen burned, keeping him intensely sober. Since childhood, he had experienced too many partings. Since his parents died and he was forced to survive among indifferent relatives, he had been struggling, holding on. He gradually built high walls, using indifference as a disguise to avoid harm. But in this bizarre Mengle Village, under Wu Zeng’s repeated, unreserved intrusions and protection, that wall had long been crumbling. He didn’t want to rely on him, but at this moment, he was even more afraid of losing him.

A huge sense of emptiness gripped Chen Jin. Now that Wu Zeng’s fate was unknown, the affection and relationship between them felt more like a hopeless burden.

Rather than continuing to struggle in this endless cycle, rather than returning to that lonely world burdened by his concern for Wu Zeng and feelings that might never be spoken again, perhaps… it was better to end it here.

“Alright.” Chen Jin’s voice was unusually calm, even carrying a hint of relieved ease. He stopped looking at Wu Kai Ke, simply pacing forward, finally stopping in front of him. Looking down, he slowly reached out.

However, the direction he reached was toward the coffin—he intended to directly destroy the mirror world and remain forever stagnant in the infinite world!

The next second, a forceful scent of mint invaded the air, jarringly out of place in the hall filled with decaying sandalwood. A cold, slender hand covered Chen Jin’s wrist, gently guiding him back toward Wu Kai Ke.

“Don’t look back.” The voice was low and tender.

Wu Zeng!

The flame leaped violently. Wu Zeng led Chen Jin, personally delivering the kerosene lamp into Wu Kai Ke’s hands.

“You really…” Wu Kai Ke’s brows were tightly furrowed from the immense pain he was enduring, but he still forced out a smile uglier than a cry at Wu Zeng’s appearance.

Wu Zeng guided Chen Jin, pulling his index finger to his own lips and kissing it gently. The gesture also served as a silencing statement to Wu Kai Ke.

Chen Jin felt an electric current pass through his finger. The firelight flickered, illuminating Chen Jin’s trembling pupils. He was immersed in the shock of Wu Zeng’s sudden appearance. He didn’t even want to delve into how Wu Zeng recovered from his previous state, or how he managed to track him here. Whether it was real or fake, it felt as if his return was all that mattered…

Wu Kai Ke took the kerosene lamp, struggled to his feet, and slowly placed the lamp closest to his heart. His tailored suit quickly caught fire under the heat of the flame. Wu Kai Ke seemed oblivious to the pain, walking step by step toward the coffin with an air of release.

Wu Zeng wrapped one arm around Chen Jin’s chest, pulling him back.

This was Wu Kai Ke’s release; he was the catalyst for breaking this infinite world.

Reaching the coffin, the firelight made Wu Kai Ke glow. While his consciousness was still clear, he stepped into the coffin, dragging himself and this mirror world toward destruction.

“None of you are getting away!”

Just then, a sudden change occurred. Wu Kai Ke’s obsession gained the upper hand. In the second before he fell into the coffin, he sneered and tossed the burning kerosene lamp outward. Then, he plunged into the mirror world and was silent.

“Boom—!”

“What are you doing?!” Bai Lao San screamed in terror.

Wu Zeng quickly turned and covered Chen Jin, shouting at Bai Lao San near the doorway, “Run!”

Bai Lao San, with his childish nature, had no rationality left. He turned and bolted outside, seeing people approaching far beyond the temple gate—his two older brothers.

The fire from the kerosene lamp quickly caused chaos. The curtains, saturated with years of incense ash and oil, exploded upon contact with the flames. The fire instantly intensified. Tongues of fire, like greedy beasts, shot up along the curtains, frantically licking the wooden beams! The dry wood crackled and popped, sending sparks flying!

Thick smoke billowed up, mixing the smell of burning sandalwood and scorched fabric, instantly filling the entire hall!

The mirror-like surface deep within the coffin had vanished, now only pitch black. Surrounded by the raging fire, it was merely a wooden coffin engulfed in flames—no longer a flower in the mirror or the moon in the water.

The fire spread extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, more than half of the main hall was engulfed. Waves of heat blasted them, the scorching air burning their skin, and the thick smoke choked them, making breathing impossible.

Chen Jin coughed, trying to push Wu Zeng away. The moment his hand touched Wu Zeng’s shoulder, the searing heat radiating from him made him recoil.

—Wu Zeng’s back was on fire.

Wu Zeng seemed unfazed, gazing at Chen Jin with gentle eyes. He used one hand to brace himself on the ground, creating a slight distance between them. With the other hand, he fumbled in Chen Jin’s pocket, pulled out the shriveled mushroom, and immediately fed it into his mouth.

Wu Zeng was almost an unknown quantity to Chen Jin. Chen Jin couldn’t fathom his actions, but… it didn’t matter anymore.

“You want to…” The moment Chen Jin opened his mouth, his half-parted lips were captured by Wu Zeng. The fragrant dried mushroom was then passed over—to be precise, only half of it; the other half remained in Wu Zeng’s mouth.

The already scarce air became even more precious as their lips met. The surrounding high temperature, combined with the warmth of their post-calamity closeness, made Chen Jin burn all over. Just as his consciousness was about to be stripped away by suffocation and heat—

Wu Zeng reluctantly pulled away, giving Chen Jin a final, intimate peck on the lips, and whispered, “We won’t be separated again.”

Chen Jin was confused, his mind hazy from the surrounding heat. Only the clear fragrance of the mushroom and the minty scent lingered in his mouth.

As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Zeng pulled out a tortoise shell from somewhere and slammed it onto the ground. The shell instantly burst open and enlarged, roughly the size of a backpack.

“Bear with it, it will be over soon,” Wu Zeng said soothingly in Chen Jin’s ear as he scooped him up with one arm.

Wu Zeng held Chen Jin tightly, circling him in his embrace. With his other hand, he grabbed the tortoise shell from the ground and pressed it against Chen Jin’s back. Although having a tortoise shell on his back was slightly ridiculous, its size was just right, shielding Chen Jin from the high temperature and explosions.

Everything ready, Wu Zeng picked up Chen Jin and ran forward. His face was pale as paper, and there were fresh cuts on his forehead, blood and sweat streaming down. Under the combined assault of high heat and thick smoke, he looked utterly wretched. His body was covered in wounds, almost drenched in blood, and his back was lacerated, unbearable to look at!

Chen Jin’s consciousness was already fading. In his daze, he could only see Wu Zeng’s resolute eyes, which seemed to promise the end of everything. But the high temperature and lack of oxygen caused him to instantly pass out.

“Bang!”

Wu Zeng didn’t hesitate. Ignoring the licking flames and the burning beams that could collapse at any moment, he shot toward the coffin like an arrow released from a bow, stepping into the center of the fire.

The three Bai brothers had just arrived, only catching a glimpse of Wu Zeng holding Chen Jin as he charged into the heart of the blaze, before they vanished.

Uncle A Dong followed behind the three brothers, finally reaching the temple entrance. He leaned on a pillar, panting heavily. “Ouch, I’m burning!… Phew… Is it over?”

“What happened to you!” Bai Lao San shouted, pointing at Uncle A Dong’s sparkling body. His two older brothers immediately turned around.

Uncle A Dong was beginning to glow, the scattered light making the old man look somewhat ethereal. “Haha, Uncle is leaving! See you around.” (He made a heart shape with his hands.)