He went to the supermarket alone, watched a movie alone, and had a meal of hot pot alone.
When night fell, Han Fei came to the riverside alone.
The setting sun dipped into the river, and the street lights cast their glow upon him.
The temperature gradually dropped, and the passersby slowly decreased, but Han Fei still stood there, gazing at the opposite bank of the river.
"Han Fei? Why are you here alone?" Li Xue, dressed in casual clothes, jogged over.
"I didn't have any scenes to shoot today, so I just wandered around aimlessly." As midnight approached, Han Fei said he wasn't nervous would be a lie; whether he could survive the next time he logged in was entirely up to luck.
"I just saw you eating hot pot alone in the mall. I wanted to say hello, but you left right after you finished eating." Li Xue stood beside Han Fei: "When you're feeling down, it's best to go crazy with friends, forget everything, and just relax."
"I... don't have any friends," Han Fei took a moment and then added, "only one fairly decent neighbor."
"So, you've always been alone?"
"Yeah," Han Fei's voice was very magnetic.
Watching Han Fei standing by the riverside at that moment, Li Xue recalled something her leader had once mentioned: those who are too idealistic often don't fit in.
The river wind ruffled Han Fei's bangs as he silently stared at Smart New City across the river, where the high-rise buildings brightly lit, yet their dazzling lights could not reach him on the other side of the great river.
Han Fei and Li Xue stood by the riverside, while Zhao Ming and Zhang Xiaotian hid in the bushes about twenty meters from them.
"Why do I feel like Li Xue values Han Fei a lot? Do you think a guy with Han Fei's personality attracts girls?" Zhang Xiaotian squatted down and asked softly.
"It depends. For someone like Han Fei who is fairly good-looking, girls might find his melancholic temperament appealing; but for someone like you, with your misshapen features, I guess girls would think you're just moaning without illness."
"Are you asking for a beating?"
"Just stating the truth." Zhao Ming didn't continue to bicker with Zhang Xiaotian, he took out his phone and dialed Captain Wang's number: "Captain, we've followed Han Fei all day, he genuinely has changed my perception, it's unlikely he would commit arson."
Zhao Ming and Zhang Xiaotian's doubts about Han Fei had significantly diminished, moved by his unintended kindness.
"Did he notice you following him?" Captain Wang seemed skeptical of Zhao Ming's tracking skills: "What about Li Xue? Let her talk to me, although that girl doesn't follow orders well, she's very capable."
"Sister Li Xue? She's currently chatting with Han Fei by the riverside."
"What?"
"They're just talking about life and stuff..."
"Am I asking about that?! Is that the point of the issue? I told you to observe in secret! All three of you, get back here now! Immediately!"
Li Xue, who was standing by the riverside with Han Fei, suddenly received a message, but she seemed to have no intention of even looking at it.
After a while, her phone started to vibrate incessantly.
"Your phone? Are you not going to answer it?" Han Fei heard the buzzing sound.
"We'll have a chance to talk next time." Li Xue hung up the phone and left the riverside with her phone in hand.
The night grew darker, and Han Fei stayed alone until after ten before he went home.
Walking down the familiar road, Han Fei returned to his rented cottage. He ordered some barbeque takeaway and played programs he had previously acted in on his computer.
"I laughed so happily on the show, but was I really that happy?"
Time had passed unnoticed, and after drinking some alcohol, Han Fei sat quietly by the table, skillfully connecting various wires before lifting the gaming helmet with both hands.
Staring at the ever-changing time at the bottom of the computer screen, Han Fei didn't know what he was thinking. He forced himself to be alert, waiting for the moment midnight arrived, and then put on the gaming helmet.
His vision was obstructed, and his body felt as if sinking into the sea before everything around him turned blood red.
"Welcome to Perfect Life, where you can now choose your own perfect life!"
Before even opening his eyes, Han Fei smelled a pungent stench. He didn't move rashly, carefully feeling the chill transmitted from his ring finger.
"The ghost is right beside me."
There couldn't be worse news than this. Han Fei struggled to calm himself, knowing that the next few minutes might determine his life or death.
The moment he opened his eyes and focused, a morbid excitement surged within Han Fei. He needed to establish his "persona" through his acting skills.
Looking around, he was still in room 1034, but the room had undergone dramatic changes since he left.
All the furniture was destroyed, the floor was covered in fragments and residues, the wardrobe smashed, and the bedding torn to shreds, with children's handprints all over the room.
It seemed that the Little Ghost had turned the room upside down to find him.
The landlord's ring kept sending cold auras that fluctuated in intensity, somewhat blurry.
Han Fei raised his arm, feeling the coldness at his fingertips, and turned to look; Little Ghost was standing on top of the Spiritual Altar in the corner of the living room.
The small, dark shadow emitted a much weaker aura than before. Both of his arms were missing, now regenerating at a very slow pace.
Seeing this, Han Fei realized two things.
First, Little Ghost had rampaged around unable to find him and then probably moved on to other neighbors in the building, causing conflicts with other residents.
Second, Little Ghost's missing arms and fluctuating aura indicated that there might be more than one ghost in the building, more dangerous than Little Ghost!
He had only casually mentioned it, but it seemed to have a huge impact.
Without arms, Little Ghost stood quietly on the severely damaged Spiritual Altar, surrounded by torn paper figures, but no other children were visible.
"You just wanted someone to play games with you, and they cruelly took your arms. That's not fair." Han Fei walked up to Little Ghost, "Who did this? Perhaps I can help you."
Han Fei didn't outright say Little Ghost had lost the game, nor did he pressurize him to keep his promises, much less bring up the three things the other side had to do for him.
At that moment, Han Fei resembled someone who had found an interesting toy, not hiding his malice at all. He squatted in front of Little Ghost, "Don't cry, don't cry, what exactly happened?"
The same sentence, he had said it during the day, and now it rolled off his tongue effortlessly, but the feeling it conveyed was completely different.
Crouching beside Little Ghost, he seemed more like a wild beast picking its prey, stealthily sharpening his fangs.
The shadow turned its head towards Han Fei, seemingly appraising him.
Everyone in the neighborhood called him Little Ghost, but only Han Fei told him not to cry, not to cry, and seemed completely unafraid of him.
Little Ghost was reluctant to believe it, but his heart was gradually becoming unsettled. The man before him might be a more evil, more terrifying presence, perhaps even a ghost in human skin.