The End of the Line

Ye Chuan returned to Qiu Ya's carriage, and Yellow-Hair followed him back.

The woman had disappeared; after all, she had been swallowed by the Guji Monster. However, in the eyes of Qiu Ya and the others, it seemed as if she had simply been taken away by someone.

"Little brother, couldn't you find the bathroom? You were gone for so long," Qiu Ya asked curiously upon seeing Ye Chuan return.

Ye Chuan didn't pay her any mind. Instead, he silently returned to his seat—of course, he wasn't willing to sit directly on the chair covered in sticky substances. He coated it with a layer of ice before sitting down.

Although it wouldn't harm him, it was still a bit disgusting.

"Hmm?" Seeing that Ye Chuan ignored her, Qiu Ya looked a bit bored.

Time passed slowly, and no new passengers appeared along the way.

Yellow-Hair and the old granny sat there as well, seemingly in a daze.

"Bzzt... Bzzt... Bzzt..."

After an unknown amount of time, the sound of electric current suddenly came from the broadcast. However, from Ye Chuan's perspective, it was inaudible. Conversely, Qiu Ya beside him got a bit excited.

"Ah, the next stop is coming up. I can finally call Mom and Dad."

"Today is my birthday, and I bought a cake, but a really bad car smashed my cake."

Qiu Ya muttered to herself, as chatty as ever. Hearing this, Ye Chuan casually asked her,

"The cake was smashed? What kind of car?"

"A truck. A really big one."

"And you're actually okay?" Ye Chuan thought Qiu Ya was quite lucky.

"I was also..." Qiu Ya answered subconsciously, but then seemed to remember something. Her voice grew smaller and smaller. She clutched her clothes, her expression turning unsightly.

Ye Chuan: "..."

"What is it?"

"Didn't I... already die?" Qiu Ya's single sentence changed the atmosphere in the carriage.

Yellow-Hair and the old woman glanced at Qiu Ya, but as if realizing something themselves, they fell into silence.

"Dead?" Ye Chuan froze for a moment.

"Yeah, I definitely died... How strange..." Qiu Ya murmured, "Why am I here?"

Ye Chuan seemed to suddenly understand something and turned his head to look at Yellow-Hair and the old woman.

"That's right... I was stabbed in the heart by that guy while on a mission..." Yellow-Hair also murmured,

"I'm already dead..."

The old woman didn't say much. She just looked at Ye Chuan with a gaze filled with pity.

"Such a young child..."

So, were these passengers all people who had already passed away?

Just then, the train broadcast sounded again—

"Hello, passengers... Welcome to the Rusty Pilgrim... Bzzt..."

"Bzzt... We are arriving at the terminal station... Bzzt..."

"Death is not the end... Bzzt..."

"Thank you for riding with us..."

The train slowly decelerated. Ye Chuan looked out the window at a world of ultimate evil, bathed in blood-red.

The sky was a dark crimson, thick as coagulated blood, without a ray of light. Countless twisted black clouds writhed slowly, and purple lightning flashed through the gaps, illuminating the suffocating landscape below.

There was no soil on the ground, only undulating mountains that resembled festering flesh. The surfaces of these mountains were covered in a slimy membrane, under which countless thick blood vessels pulsed madly. Occasionally, giant tentacles would burst from the mountains, thrashing against the void.

"Could it be..." Ye Chuan seemed to realize something and took out Lilith's orb of light.

Under Lilith's protection, Ye Chuan's contamination level began to plummet—and the scenery before him underwent a drastic transformation.

The blood-red world vanished. Outside the window lay an endless grassland. The grass was as emerald green as jade, swaying gently in the breeze and emitting a fresh, woody fragrance.

The prairie was dotted with unknown white flowers, their petals adorned with crystal-clear dew that refracted the warm sunlight.

The sky was a clear azure blue with a few fluffy white clouds drifting by. The sunlight sprinkled softly over the earth, carrying no scorching heat, only a comforting warmth.

In the center of the grassland stood a massive gate of light. It was composed of pure white radiance, with golden runes flowing along its edges. Inside the gate, one could faintly discern a blurry yet peaceful scene; melodious singing and crisp bird calls drifted out from within, relaxing the very soul.

The train slowly pulled into the station, and the doors slid open—

"Little brother, I'm getting off now," Qiu Ya said, standing up as if she understood everything.

"I didn't expect it to end like this... but I have no regrets..." Yellow-Hair also stood up. He tidied his appearance.

"Just as well... I'm going to see my old friends."

The old woman slowly rose to her feet. A long-absent gentle smile appeared on her withered face. She raised a hand to smooth her graying hair, her voice choked with emotion yet full of anticipation.

"Old man, I'm coming to keep you company... Don't be angry that you had to wait so long."

They stepped off the train, their bodies seeming to fade in color, transforming into white shadows that walked toward the massive gate of light in the distance.

In a trance, Ye Chuan noticed that Qiu Ya's shadow seemed to look back at him, as if waving.

Just as Ye Chuan raised his hand, she turned back and continued walking forward.

"..." Ye Chuan didn't know how to describe his current mood.

Perhaps he had misunderstood the meaning of the Death Train.

A train that brings death?

Perhaps that was only a part of it.

Or maybe life and death were inseparable to begin with.

Ye Chuan looked into the distance and saw many white shadows disembarking from the train, all walking toward that gate of light—

Ye Chuan took out a bottle of wine and downed it in one go.

After being contaminated once again, Ye Chuan looked into the distance and saw quite a few black shadows being dragged into that blood-red world.

Ye Chuan looked up outside the carriage and discovered that the monster was constantly spitting out black shadows.

"Guji... Guji..."

This process lasted for a long time, until the black and white shadows had gone to their respective worlds.

Ye Chuan sat in his chair, watching silently until he heard a movement beside him.

He looked back and found the flesh-and-blood monster standing right there, waving its tentacles.

"So that's how it is. You're the guy who devours the souls of the wicked?" Ye Chuan asked.

"Guji~"

"Then where do you think I should go? Heaven or Hell?" Ye Chuan asked curiously.

Hearing this, the monster touched its head with a tentacle.

"Guji... Kin... Good..."

"You're actually quite interesting." Ye Chuan stood up. "It's time for me to go back."

"Kin..."

Ye Chuan took out Lilith's protection. The surrounding blood-red world began to fade, and the monster before him transformed into a tall, slender female attendant.

"We look forward to having you on board again," she said with a smile.

"I will," Ye Chuan replied. He took out his mobile phone; the screen already displayed that the mission was complete.

[Arrived at (Death Train Terminal Station), Evaluation: A]

[Pure souls will ultimately ascend to the light beyond the clouds, while filthy spirits deserve only to sink into the darkness of the abyss]

[The Death Train]