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Gate of the Apocalypse
墨書 Inktalez
Li Ming squatted in the greenbelt, diligently pulling out the dried-up little grass and flowers. Before long, a small pile had formed beside him. He blinked for a moment, then changed direction and continued... weeding.
Passersby glanced over at him. The boy was only seventeen or eighteen years old, looking like a delicate jade doll, but he seemed a bit slow-witted. It wasn't surprising that people thought this way; the weather had been extremely abnormal lately. It was only August, yet the temperature was nearing fifty degrees Celsius. Who would sit in the sun doing nothing in such heat?
When Li Yan arrived, he saw his younger brother pitifully squatting on the ground. He hurried over after getting out of the car and took out a napkin to wipe his sweat. "Sorry, I’m late. Mingming, let’s go home and have ice cream, okay?"
Li Ming tilted his head and thought for a moment. When he looked up, his entire face was flushed from the sun. Li Yan felt a pang of heartache at the sight. "Chocolate flavor," Li Ming said before climbing into the car and sitting in his designated spot behind the driver's seat to play with a Rubik's Cube.
Seeing that the child was happily engrossed in his game and didn’t seem upset, Li Yan felt relieved and drove home. Li Ming was seven years younger than him. Their mother had complications during childbirth; while the child was born, their mother did not survive. Later, their father remarried. People often said stepmothers lacked compassion, and it turned out to be true; Li Yan's stepmother appeared dignified and virtuous in public but found ways to mistreat young Li Ming behind closed doors.
At first, no one noticed anything amiss. Even when Li Yan sometimes saw scratches on Li Ming and asked about them, their stepmother always claimed that Li Ming had been naughty and hurt himself. It was normal for young boys to be mischievous; even Li Yan often bumped into things himself, so neither their father nor he paid much attention.
However, one time their stepmother lost heavily while playing mahjong and beat the child mercilessly until he fainted, hitting his head against the door frame in the process. After two days and nights of emergency treatment in the hospital, news of her abuse finally came to light.
Li Ming was saved but suffered severe cognitive regression. The doctor explained that he had hit his forehead; the brain is complex and no one could say for sure what would happen. Unfortunately, Li Ming's injury had affected his nerves, meaning that even if he physically recovered, he would still be mentally impaired—his intelligence would only reach that of a seven or eight-year-old at most as he grew up.
At that time, their father was at a critical juncture in his political career; Li Yan's stepmother's father held significant power in the provincial office and could help their father advance. Although their father felt furious about what had happened, with his stepmother already pregnant, he buried his anger deep inside for the sake of his future.
From that point on, Li Yan and Li Ming moved out to live with their grandfather. For eighteen years until their grandfather passed away two years ago, they never returned to that so-called home; whenever Li Yan saw that well-dressed man on television, he would simply change the channel.
"What does Xiao Ming want to eat today?" Li Yan asked through the rearview mirror while looking at obedient Li Ming. Now twenty-one years old, Li Ming had skin so delicate it was almost translucent, with large watery eyes and a slightly pouting mouth that made him look incredibly cute—people who didn't know him might think he was only sixteen or seventeen.
Li Ming lowered his head and remained silent; he wasn't feeling well today because he had failed his driving test during the maneuvering exam. "Brother, I didn’t pass," he said softly, but Li Yan, who had been paying close attention to him, heard him clearly.
"It's fine, we'll try again next time." It was originally just for the child to come and have some fun. Recently, Li Ming had been insisting on learning to drive after watching something on TV. Li Yan smiled gently at him and accelerated the car. The temperature had been frighteningly high these days, and he heard that many people had been hospitalized due to heatstroke.
This morning, he overheard a subordinate talking about something from 2012, and Li Yan chuckled at himself, realizing he must have watched too many movies. However, the weather this year was indeed abnormal; it was either drought in one place or flooding in another. Occasionally, he would see news online about earthquakes or tsunamis in various countries.
"Brother! Brother!" Suddenly, the car shook violently, and Li Ming turned pale in the back seat.
Li Yan quickly turned the steering wheel and pulled over to the side of the road, getting Li Ming out of the car. In less than a minute, Li Yan was tightly holding onto Li Ming, and when he turned to look, he was drenched in cold sweat.
The spot where his car had just been was now a one-meter-wide "sinkhole." Fortunately, Li Yan had reacted quickly; otherwise... "It's okay, it's okay. You're doing great, Mingming. Everything's fine; I'm here."
Chinese people have this peculiar interest in natural disasters; they like to go take a look when something happens. They might say sympathetic words, but their eyes often gleam with a sense of excitement and schadenfreude.
Sure enough, it wasn't long before Li Yan and Li Ming were surrounded by people. Seeing that Li Ming's face had turned white, Li Yan hurriedly pushed through the crowd and got him back into the car. Gathering his courage, he approached the sinkhole. He gasped when he saw it; it was at least ten meters deep.
His heart raced violently as he breathed heavily. He had never felt so close to death before; if he had been even a few seconds late earlier, both he and Mingming might... Wiping his face to clear his mind, he quickly got back into the car and left that terrifying place. But his heart continued to race as he drove away at top speed.
Thus, he did not hear the screams and cries from the crowd behind him or the sounds of the ground shaking. He also did not see the sinkhole suddenly expand, swallowing up those who had not managed to escape in time.
Li Yan bought a high-end apartment in a community not far from the company. The environment there was serene; despite being in a bustling city, the greenery was well-maintained. Li Yan purchased a penthouse with a glass conservatory mainly because Li Ming enjoyed planting flowers and plants. He thought it would be good for Mingming to have something to do.
Upon entering the house, Aunt Wang, their maid, was watching the news. When she saw the Li brothers return, she hurriedly poured two glasses of ice water. "You must be hot! The news said today’s temperature reached 45 degrees! This weather is just abnormal; when I was young, it wasn't this hot—just using an old fan was enough," Aunt Wang said. She was in her forties or fifties and was quite nice but a bit chatty. "I heard someone in our community suffered heatstroke at home a few days ago and no one noticed until it was too late."
"Aunt Wang, I'm taking a break this afternoon; you can head home now," Li Yan said as he drank some ice water to cool down and finally felt a bit calmer. He added some cool water to Li Ming's ice water before letting him drink it. Heatstroke can be fatal? If it weren't for that sinkhole earlier, Li Yan would have thought it was just a joke; but now... this world really seems crazy.
"Alright, I'm heading back now. Li Yan, you really are good to your brother. It's a pity my daughter isn't as fortunate, haha." Aunt Wang's daughter just graduated from college this year, and Aunt Wang had intended to set her up with Li Yan, but Li Yan politely declined. Of course, once she learned about Li Yan's relationship with Li Ming, she completely abandoned that idea.
"Jia Yu is beautiful and capable; Aunt Wang will definitely enjoy her blessings in the future." Li Yan responded politely, gently watching Li Ming as he drank water. After Aunt Wang closed the door and left, he went over and hugged Li Ming tightly, giving him a passionate kiss.
Li Yan knew that his love was not accepted by society; he loved his brother deeply, cherishing this innocent child. He didn't know when it started, but by the time he realized it, he couldn't let go.
Li Yan's phone rang; it was his best friend Zhou Miao calling. This guy joined the army right after graduating high school. His family was in the military too, so he quickly rose through the ranks. "Li Yan, are you there?" The voice on the other end sounded urgent.
"What’s going on?" Li Yan took out a chocolate ice cream from the fridge for Li Ming and sat back on the sofa, watching the child eat seriously. It seemed that what happened earlier hadn't left a shadow on him, which eased Li Yan's mind a bit.
"Li Yan, I'm serious right now. You need to go outside and buy enough food—more is better. Don't ask why. You should also prepare winter clothes; get everything you can ready. Oh, and don’t go out recently; make sure all doors and windows are closed. By the way, what floor do you live on?" Zhou Miao's voice was urgent but quiet, as if he was avoiding something.
"Top floor? What’s going on? Is it the end of the world or something?" Zhou Miao usually joked around, so Li Yan thought he was just messing with him. He relaxed back on the sofa, holding the phone to his ear.
"Li Yan, I’m not in the mood to joke around! Do you believe me this time or not? If what I'm saying is nonsense, I’ll die along with my whole family!" There was a hissing sound from Zhou Miao's end that made it hard to hear clearly. "Just do what I say! And keep your precious brother inside—don’t let him go out even if you have to tie him up at home..." Before Zhou Miao could finish his sentence, the call dropped.
When Li Yan tried to call back, it said the user was out of service area. Out of service area? Where could Zhou Miao be? A chill ran down Li Yan's spine; he felt something strange about this situation.
"Brother." Li Ming came over with an empty box and tapped on the side of the sofa; his meaning was clear—one wasn't enough.
Li Yan lifted Li Ming onto his lap and gently rubbed his cold little belly. "Ming Ming, be good—just one a day. If you eat too much, your stomach will hurt. Have you forgotten how it felt last time?"
Li Ming visibly shrank back; last time when both Li Yan and Aunt Wang were away, he had eaten five ice creams alone in one afternoon and ended up with a stomach ache that required three days of IV treatment. The sight of him crying while getting treated made Aunt Wang feel guilty for an entire month. Since that day, Aunt Wang had been even more vigilant about monitoring Li Ming's eating habits.
"Dear viewers, we are now at Huashan Hospital's Emergency Room. According to the Head Nurse, there have already been thirty-three cases of heatstroke today. Due to the continuously rising temperatures, the Emergency Rooms in major hospitals are overflowing. Next, we will invite the emergency director of Huashan Hospital to introduce ways to prevent heatstroke..."
Li Yan watched the broadcast on television along with Zhou Miao's earlier comments, feeling an inexplicable sense of anxiety and irritation rising within him. Just as he was about to turn off the TV to avoid further aggravating his mood, he noticed blood was actually dripping from his wrist, likely from when he had scraped it during the recent earthquake.
Li Ming blinked and also saw it. He grabbed Li Yan's hand and pulled him over, causing the wound to tear open further; what had been a slight trickle of blood was now flowing profusely. Startled, Li Ming instinctively stuck out his tongue to lick it. He had seen Li Yan do this whenever he bled from his fingers, but being at an early stage of development, he didn't understand the difference between bleeding from a finger and from a wrist.
"Don't, Mingming..." Li Yan tried to say, but it was too late; blood flowed down into Li Ming's mouth and dripped onto the jade pendant hanging on his chest.
It was an unprocessed irregular piece of jade that had been left to Li Ming by their grandfather, said to be passed down from their ancestors for his safety. The child had a tough life; Li Yan hoped that his future would be smooth and prosperous.
Just as Li Yan was about to find a clean towel to wipe it off, something unbelievable happened. The blood on the jade was absorbed at a visible speed. Li Yan and Li Ming stood frozen, watching as the jade continuously absorbed the blood flowing from Li Yan's wrist—more and more, turning increasingly red—until Li Ming asked in a very soft voice, "Brother, your blood is being absorbed." This statement was definitely a declaration.
"Huh? Absorbed?" Li Yan's mind was in a state of shock; he couldn't process what was happening. By the time he finally reacted... it seemed like his head was starting to spin. But the jade still seemed unsatisfied with the amount of liquid it had absorbed; the blood on Li Yan's wrist flowed as if it had a life of its own. He wanted to move away but could only continue watching helplessly as the blood flowed away. "Mingming, push... push me a bit," Li Yan said as his head grew increasingly dizzy.
Li Ming obediently pushed Li Yan with all his might, but Li Yan remained completely still. Tilting his little head and widening his round eyes, he muttered, "Stop drinking brother's blood, you bad stone."
Li Yan watched as Li Ming picked up a fruit knife from the coffee table and forced himself to shout, "Mingming, what are you doing! Put that down... No... Mingming, damn it." Damn it, what is going on? Why can't I move?
It wasn't until some of Li Ming's blood dripped onto the jade that Li Yan felt noticeably relieved. However, he still found himself... engulfed in darkness before his eyes...
The author has something to say: Mei Mei has opened a new story; everyone is welcome to come and check it out! A few minor details have been modified.
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