117. The Abyss Bar and the Witch’s Scent

Noticing Chen Shang’s figure suddenly vanish, Chu Jianlai drew his sword from his waist, alert. The white fox’s ears perked up in fright, letting out a startled yelp, “The planner… the planner’s gone?”

“No way,” Chu Jianlai frowned deeply and pushed open the door to the bar, but no matter where he looked, there was no trace of Chen Shang.

Chen Shang had truly vanished as if evaporating into thin air, disappearing right before their eyes.

...

A brief darkness engulfed his vision, accompanied by a dizzying whirl that assaulted his mind. Chen Shang rubbed his forehead, dazed, slowly rising from the floor.

The moment he stepped into the abandoned bar, his vision blackened, and a strange sense of displacement overwhelmed his brain, as if he had crossed into another realm.

“Where is this...”

Before him lay an empty bar, its wooden tables and chairs neatly arranged but somewhat worn with age.

A flickering coal stove lamp hung on the wall, casting a wavering glow. An old phonograph played raspy cello music, and the scent of decaying wood mixed with the coal smoke from the stove lingered in the air.

Behind the bar stood a robotic bartender polishing glasses, emitting an eerie purple light. It seemed Chen Shang was the sole patron of this place.

He had just been in the wasteland district—how did he suddenly end up in this bar?

First, he ruled out the possibility of being knocked unconscious and kidnapped upon entering the abandoned bar. His two undead companions were no pushovers; even if the Financial Consortium sent troops, they wouldn’t be able to abduct Chen Shang right under their watchful eyes.

Second, and more absurdly, he might have truly been transported to a “different world.”

After a quick glance around, Chen Shang scratched his head helplessly and sighed, “What is this? Is it turning magical now?”

He carefully checked his bag and found all his weapons and medicines intact.

But if this world had truly become magical, would these weapons still be any use?

Holding a light crossbow in one hand and a pistol in the other, he approached the robotic bartender with a forced friendliness, trying to gather some information:

“Hey buddy, how’s business here? Got any Erguotou?”

The bartender stopped polishing, its purple light flickering as it scanned Chen Shang’s face.

After a moment, it spoke: “Minors cannot consume alcohol. Would you prefer mutant milk or nuclear cola?”

Though Chen Shang wore tarot glasses, the bartender had quickly determined his age.

“Forget it. Those things sound weird,” Chen Shang said, dismissing the offer. “Do you know where this place is?”

The bartender pondered for a moment, then poured a glass of bubbling black liquid and placed it on the table before him:

“This is a bar.”

—You’ve got to be kidding me...

“I know it’s a bar,” Chen Shang snorted lightly, pressing further, “I mean, which district of Night Pivot City is this?”

“This is not Night Pivot City,” the bartender shook its head. “You must be a visitor from that world…”

Suddenly, the purple lights on its face flickered erratically. “No, wait. I sense the witch’s aura on you. You were invited by Her.”

“What witch aura? Some time rewind heart-pinch trick, huh?” Chen Shang muttered sarcastically, instinctively rubbing his forehead, baffled by these unfamiliar concepts.

What’s with this other world, witches, and all these nonsensical Cthulhu elements... How many things unknown to him had this game stuffed in without his knowledge?

Compared to the blond Xu Qing, he now felt like he was being cheated on.

The bartender ignored his complaints and began speaking mysteriously: “Since you were invited by the witch, you cannot linger in this bar long… Go find Her. She has been waiting for you a long time.”

“Enough with the riddles,” Chen Shang slammed his pistol on the table, voice serious.

“Explain this place to me. And tell me everything you know.”

The bartender placed the cleaned glass in the cabinet and asked solemnly, “Do you know about mirrors?”

“Yes, so?”

“You live in a world like the front of a mirror. This place is the back side,” it explained calmly.

“This is the reflection of that world, the dark shadow of it. There were originally five gateways between the two worlds; now only one remains…”

“What happened to the other four?” Chen Shang asked curiously.

“They exploded,” the bartender said. “Around eighty years ago.”

“Eighty years ago...” Chen Shang thought carefully—wasn’t that during the nuclear war?

“So those gateways were destroyed by nuclear bombs?” Chen Shang nodded thoughtfully, suddenly struck by an idea.

Instead of blindly exploring this strange “other world,” why not just drop a nuke here and blow it up?

That would solve everything, and no more abyss goddesses would be summoning Chen Shang.

“I know what you’re thinking,” the bartender seemed to see through his thoughts and quickly warned:

“The gateways are both doors connecting and separating the two worlds. Imagine if your front door blew up—what would happen?”

“That would be like having a draft at home, strangers just walking in,” Chen Shang retorted.

“Exactly. If the last gateway is destroyed, the two worlds will merge,” the bartender nodded, continuing:

“You definitely don’t want to see that happen.”

“Why? Is there something bad about this other world I’m in?” Chen Shang tilted his head.

Though he asked casually, Chen Shang had long sensed this world bore traces of Cthulhu elements; the consequences of the worlds merging would be anything but simple.

“What’s bad here?…” The bartender repeated thoughtfully, “To those who live here, everything is perfectly normal… but to you, it’s definitely not good.”

“I see... I understand completely.” Chen Shang clapped his hands and asked, “I came with a few companions. Where did they go?”

The bartender thought a moment, then said, “Only normal humans can pass through the gateways. Overly powerful beings are blocked by the gateways’ laws… Frankly, your companions probably aren’t normal humans, right?”

“Yeah...” Chen Shang thought about it and didn’t bother to argue.

His two companions were indeed beyond normal humans, their abilities far exceeding human limits.

Before Chen Shang could ponder more, the bartender spoke again, as if urging him:

“Leave the bar quickly. The dice of fate will guide your path.”

“Rushing me out?” Chen Shang was unsatisfied with the information and pressed on:

“How do I return to my original world? I can’t just stay here forever.”

The bartender considered before answering gravely, “Only death can free you.”

“Cut the riddles. Explain clearly,” Chen Shang couldn’t help but demand.

But this time, the bartender ignored him. The purple lights dimmed abruptly, its head drooped weakly, apparently shutting down due to power loss.

Chen Shang patted the metallic head, realizing it would no longer respond.

Though the bartender’s words felt like empty riddles, he hadn’t uncovered much. Chen Shang decided not to linger here; investigating outside seemed more reliable.

At least from what he knew, the bar was relatively safe. If danger arose outside, he could retreat here for shelter.

He casually grabbed two bottles of liquor from the bar, then approached the entrance and gently pushed open the door.

Immediately, a torrent of “death” surged in from outside like a fierce winter wind blowing into the room.