His scalp was going numb, and his brain was fuzzy. Chen Ge did not dare to turn around; he was afraid of saying something wrong and getting killed immediately. “I am not sure what you’re talking about.”


  “Twenty years ago, there was a door that was about to open in Jiang Yuan Apartments, but no one knew about its location. The only known info is that it is within this area. The area has been rebuilt, but the door still hasn’t closed. Negative emotions kept coming out from behind the door and attracting the ghosts and Specters that pass by. The poor ‘people’ that you met are gathered here because of that door, and it was because of that door that I was lucky enough to become a Red Specter.”


  “Now that you put it that way, perhaps that door is really related to me,” Chen Ge answered carefully. “But I have forgotten many things, so I cannot be sure of it. If you can give me more hints, perhaps I can be reminded of something.”


  “It was a door that was half open, this is the first time I’ve seen a door like that. It was like when someone was about to push the door open, salvation suddenly came for him.” The dried hands tightened their grip, and the Red Specter’s voice appeared in Chen Ge’s ears. “Only when one is in deepest despair can a door be pushed open. That kind of despair shall never be saved.”


  Chen Ge memorized the Red Specters’ every word. He might not understand everything now, but with some investigation, he might understand more of its meaning.

  “I really can’t remember anything now. Have you entered the door? What is inside the door?” Chen Ge started to ask questions. It was mainly because he had seen too many Red Specters, and the fear in his heart was slowly replaced by a feeling like he was chatting with an old friend.

  “You want to know what’s inside the door?” The dried hands pressed on Chen Ge’s neck. “Haven’t you just seen it?”


  “Me? Seen it?” Chen Ge widened his eyes. “Fourteenth floor? The world behind the door is my home?”


  “Yes, that was your home, but now it is my home now.” The malnourished fingers were like knives slowly piercing into Chen Ge’s neck. “I helped you push the door open, but I failed to become the door pusher. I’ve been thinking about it, and now I get it. Perhaps that’s because the real door pusher is still alive. Only by killing him can I officially take over the door.”


  “Calm down. Let me think about this. Perhaps I have no relation to that door at all! Really! How could a person like me who is so bright and sunny be in such despair to push open a door?”


  “But when you showed up, the door opened on its own, and voices that I haven’t heard before came out from behind it.” The hands of the Red Specter had a tighter strangle.

  “Fine, I cannot deny the relationship between me and the door, but it wasn’t me who pushed the door open. If you want to look for the real door-pusher, I can help you.” Chen Ge pointed at the edge of the roof. “You saw it yourself. The child who was pushed down the building should be the real door pusher. I am looking for him as well.”


  “Your lies will not fool me. The scenario behind the door is weaved from the memory of the door pusher. The voices that you heard on the fourteenth floor and the scene you saw on the roof were memories from the deepest part of your heart. Those are all your memories; that’s why you saw yourself in them.”


  The Red Specter’s statement accidentally reminded Chen Ge. A light shone through his mind. “Memories?”


  The things that he should have forgotten were retained in the door. Even though the scenario was despairing, it was his memory.

  “I think I get it now.” Chen Ge’s eyes narrowed. “The red city contains many different scenarios, and each scenario is created by the door pusher. The scenarios are created from the door pushers’ despairing memories. The younger version of myself said one thing on the roof earlier—human beings exist due to their memories, but if human beings have forgotten them, will the memories get angry? Human, ghost, memory, lingering spirit……”


  “Are those your final words?”


  “Wait!” Hearing the Red Specter’s voice, Chen Ge snapped into focus. “You saw the scenario earlier; the memory wouldn’t lie. The real door pusher has been pushed off the building by the doctor. He is already dead. The real reason you haven’t taken over the door is because his lingering spirit is still around.”


  Chen Ge’s words made sense, but that was not enough to convince the Red Specter.

  “I know, it’s pointless for me to say any more. I will not give you any fake promises, but I hope you can give me several days to go and find the real door pusher.”


  The Red Specter behind him did not speak, so Chen Ge quickly added, “If you think several days is too long, how about we make it twenty-four hours? I really need to go home to confirm some things. If you are that worried, you can come with me. You can hide in my shadow to watch over me. My life will be in your hands.”


  The pain around his neck lessened. The Red Specter was slowly persuaded even though he still had not said anything. The silence continued for several minutes. Then Chen Ge appeared to give up. He slowly raised his hands. “Fine, looks like you’re not going to let me go. Then, can I ask for one last little favor?”


  “Speak.”


  “Give me a few minutes to call the police. In the stairwell, I promised to help find the girl’s killer. Since I can’t do that, I at least have to leave her with some hope. I can’t allow her to stay in that frozen condition.” Chen Ge took out his phone. The Red Specter did not object to it. After some time, the dried hands moved away, “Three days. In three days, at 2 am, I will wait for you on the fourteenth floor.”


  The pressure slowly disappeared. The iron door that headed to the roof was slammed shut, and everything returned to normal.

  Chen Ge was standing where he was, but the white cat on his shoulder could not suffer it anymore. Probably because it had held the same posture for so long, the white cat unnaturally jumped onto the ground. Its body appeared to be frozen. It was limping while it walked.

  Seeing the white cat starting to move around, Chen Ge sighed in relief. He slid down the wall.

  “You’re really useless! The Specter was lying on my shoulder. Shouldn’t you at least warn me about something that serious‽”


  “Meow‽”


  The white cat was angry when it saw Chen Ge. It circled around him and howled angrily as if saying, “How about you try lying next to a Red Specter for once?”


  The man and the cat argued for a while, and Chen Ge recovered somewhat. He put on the jacket and reached out to hug the white cat. Going back down was impossible, and he did not think taking the elevator was a good idea, so Chen Ge decided to wait for dawn to arrive.

  “This was such a scary night. After the sun comes up, I’ll have to go to the futuristic theme park for some necessary relaxation……”