Chapter 33: Delayed Effect?
Yu Sheng thought that his blood didn't seem to work on Irene—perhaps it was because the oil painting, as the sealing medium, prevented the blood from penetrating, or perhaps it was because Irene, as a doll, was not affected by the blood, or more likely… Hu Li being affected was the special case.
After waiting for a long time and nothing happened, Irene in the oil painting ran out of patience. She looked up at the top of the frame and muttered, "Then wipe off the blood. After all, this is where I live. It's so unlucky to have so much blood on it…"
Yu Sheng: "…You're a weird doll sealed in an oil painting, and you still have the mind to complain about this! Just having you here is unlucky enough, alright!"
Irene was not happy to hear that. "Who said I'm unlucky! How can I be unlucky when I'm so good-looking? Some people even put a wall of plastic figurines in their rooms, and you're complaining that an oil painting with a beautiful girl on it is unlucky?!"
Yu Sheng was stunned. He couldn't even imagine how this person could summarize all this content into one sentence.
However, he still waved his hand, muttering "How can this be the same" as he got up and took a wet wipe, preparing to wipe the blood off the frame.
He couldn't wipe it off.
Yu Sheng was stunned for a moment. Seeing that the wet wipe had no effect, he rubbed it hard on the frame again (he didn't dare to wipe the canvas part too hard, for fear of damaging it), but the bloodstains on it still didn't move.
But compared to the bloodstains that couldn't be wiped off the frame, Yu Sheng paid more attention to the situation on the wet wipe—there wasn't even a little red mark.
Even if the bloodstains were hard to wipe off, it couldn't be like this!
But Irene couldn't see the situation with the wet wipe. She just looked up and saw Yu Sheng suddenly freeze, and immediately felt a little uneasy. "Uh, what happened?"
"I can't wipe it off," Yu Sheng said in a daze, looking at the bloodstains that seemed to have become part of the frame. "It didn't seep in, but… it's like the original color of this frame."
But Irene didn't respond.
Yu Sheng lowered his head in confusion and saw the doll in the painting staring at him blankly, as if her head had suddenly disconnected. After two or three seconds, Irene's expression gradually changed from dazed to terrified, as if she had suddenly remembered something. She suddenly pointed a finger at Yu Sheng and let out a scream, "Ahhh Yu Sheng you you die die die die…"
Yu Sheng was stunned for a second, then he understood what was going on. Seeing that Irene was still screaming, he calmly sat down on the chair opposite him. "Don't shout so many 'die's, it's unlucky—although the actual number is indeed a bit high."
Irene stopped abruptly, glanced at Yu Sheng, and then continued to scream.
Yu Sheng had to get up and find a way to comfort this frightened doll—she was much less calm than that fox.
However, verbal comfort was obviously of limited effect. It was unknown whether it was because the impact of the blood's delayed effect was too fierce, but she seemed particularly agitated.
But fortunately, Yu Sheng suddenly had a dark flash of inspiration and came up with a solution.
The next second, he grabbed Irene's oil painting, shook it vigorously in the air, and finally threw it into the air in a spinning motion. After catching it, he shook it twice more and put it back on the table.
He watched the little doll try her best to climb back onto the chair covered with a red velvet blanket.
Irene didn't scream anymore.
Irene's cursing was foul.
But this time, Yu Sheng was familiar with the process of comforting her—he finally managed to calm the doll down, and in the midst of Irene's lingering anger and cursing, he clearly explained the situation to her.
At the same time, he finally confirmed that his blood was also effective on Irene in her sealed state. Although it seemed that the blood only acted on the oil painting frame, for some reason, Irene was indeed affected by it, and the same thing happened as with Hu Li: she remembered the "event" of Yu Sheng's death that she had witnessed.
However, so far, Yu Sheng had not perceived Irene's "thoughts" and "memories" as he had when he was with Hu Li before.
He looked up at the still angry doll, and didn't have the heart to say that he actually suspected that Irene was lacking in both of these things…
Irene was still puffing her cheeks, but in any case, the impact of Yu Sheng's "return from the dead" was greater than the "roller coaster" just now. Her attention was still on Yu Sheng's "resurrection."
"You said… this is not the first time?" she stared at Yu Sheng, her tone still filled with disbelief.
"Yes, in fact, it had already started before I met you," Yu Sheng thought for a moment and recalled the frog in the rain. "But don't ask me about the principle. Just like that door just now, I only know that such a thing exists, but I don't know how it happened…"
"Are there any aftereffects or costs?" Irene asked immediately.
"At the moment… none have been found," Yu Sheng hesitated for a moment and said cautiously. On this matter, he still put away his nonchalant attitude. "Including physical and mental ones, no problems have been found."
Irene still stared at Yu Sheng's eyes. "Then you still have to try to avoid this kind of 'resurrection' in the future."
Yu Sheng sighed helplessly. "Of course I know."
"The aftereffects may be in the distant future, and the cost may be in a way you can't imagine," but Irene seemed to be afraid that Yu Sheng didn't really understand this warning, so she tirelessly explained, "Everything in the world tends to return to balance. Things that are beyond reason and order will always encounter the 'counterattack' of reason and order. And resurrection… is really the most ridiculous situation among all trans-rational events. Although you said you didn't find any problems, I don't really believe it."
Speaking of this, she paused and then explained with a serious face, "I'm not not believing you, I'm not believing the 'appearance' of this matter."
"I understand, I understand," Yu Sheng nodded seriously, but then he spread his hands helplessly. "But then again, do you think I died voluntarily any of these times?"
Irene: "…Oh."
"I just have a good mentality. After all, there's nothing I can do. I can only maintain a good mentality in the valley," Yu Sheng sighed. "I understand your worries. Don't worry, I know my limits."
Irene stared at him for a long time, and finally muttered and withdrew her gaze. "Alright, just remember… I'm still waiting for you to get me a body."
Yu Sheng let out a sigh of relief.
I have to say, this doll's ability to accept things is really strong. For such a ridiculous thing, she actually accepted it so easily in the end…
Irene suddenly looked up again, with an expression that she couldn't hold back. "Hey, I'm really curious. Are you a human or not! Are you really sure you were born to parents and grew up eating human food? Can't you recall if there was anything… in your childhood?"
Yu Sheng: "…"
He retracted his thoughts. This doll's ability to accept things didn't seem to be that strong.
After a few perfunctory words, Yu Sheng didn't pay attention to the doll's subsequent muttering. After testing the "blood" matter, he still remembered his original plan.
Continue to familiarize himself with the ability of "opening doors" and its characteristics, and find a way to replicate the passage and accurately locate the "landing point."
Until he could open the door leading to the valley.
To send food to Hu Li.
Irene finally gradually quieted down. She watched Yu Sheng grasp the kitchen doorknob. After hesitating for a long time, she finally couldn't help but ask, "Even if you really find the 'door' back to that valley, have you thought about how to deal with 'Hunger' afterwards?"
Yu Sheng slowly turned the handle, perceiving the subtle feeling coming from the depths of his so-called "spiritual intuition," and slowly said, "I'll take it one step at a time."
"Doesn't that mean you haven't thought it through at all!?" Without even turning his head, he could tell that Irene must have widened her eyes again. "Then are you going to send food to Hu Li or to that monster!"
"I mean, if I can beat that monster, I will. It's good to temporarily eliminate the materialized body of 'Hunger.' This has a high probability of helping Hu Li escape the influence of hunger; if I can't beat it, I'll find a way to bring Hu Li out through the 'door,' but there will be aftereffects, and Hu Li may still be targeted by 'Hunger'; if the second method doesn't work, then at least send some food in to make Hu Li feel better. Anyway, as long as I have a stable way to open the door, everything can be planned in the long run.
"When I said I'll take it one step at a time, I meant I'll choose one of these three options depending on the situation at the time. But as for how to deal with that 'entity'… I really have no clue now."
"Alright, you've planned to this extent, so that's good," Irene sounded relieved. "As long as you don't just go in and feed that monster."
Yu Sheng thought for a moment, but still didn't say the words "after eating me, the monster's mouth and stomach didn't match." Because once he said that, who knows how much more that doll would babble…
He turned this irrelevant thought in his mind and slowly pulled open the kitchen door.
An endless darkness entered his eyes. In the distant darkness, faint stars flickered. Other than that… there seemed to be nothing outside the door.
Yu Sheng looked at the empty scene opposite the door in confusion. After a moment, he suddenly reacted and slammed the door shut with a bang.
"I'm shocked, it's outer space!"