Doomsday Wonderland

Snuggling herself in a soft duvet, Ljn Sanjiu bent her legs and stomped her feet on the ceiling. It was her third day staying in the Lost Dog Pod Hotel, and although Dali claimed that this room was the largest amongst all the rooms she owned, it was only at waist height.

She drew a circle using a red pen on the hand-drawn map inside the check-in brochure. After she found the location of the hotel on the map, she traced a line. It was crooked, but it was still a line, and she linked them together.

There was a small paragraph of hand-written text at the bottom of the map. She read it out loud, “Black’s Market, otherwise known as the black market…This might be the only black market with a specific location! It occupies a vast area and has high traffic. There are a total of five exits, namely A, B, C, D, and E. Among the five exits, both Exits B and D have a checkpoint respectively. There’s another checkpoint in the middle of the market near the stall that sells pan-fried buns stuffed with duoluozhong slices, and this brings the total number of checkpoints in Black’s Market to three. The heavier the flow of people, the easier it is for one to locate a checkpoint. This is because people tend to avoid the checkpoint, and this creates a vacuum-like sac around one. Hence, go straight for the sac and you’ll surely be able to check in. Please refer to the next page for the street view of the checkpoint.”

For the last two days, Lin Sanjiu would check in at the alley behind the hotel. She had not encountered Mophead ever since. It seemed to her that he had gone to another spot to wait for his next victim. Also, perhaps he was avoiding Lin Sanjiu as he was very clear that she would certainly get in his way of striking a deal if there was somebody who was unfortunate enough to step in and activate the pocket dimension.

‘If I go to Black’s Market now, then I can’t check in to the alley anymore.’

“Are you heading out?” Dali rushed over from the other side of the corridor once Lin Sanjiu stepped out of her room. She stopped in front of her, causing the golden bracelet and ornaments on her body to jangle. “Don’t forget to check in!”

After Lin Sanji told Dali about her stepping into a pocket dimension, she felt apologetic. Therefore, ever since then, she would remind her every time she met her to make up for it.

“Yes, don’t worry about that,” said Lin Sanjiu as she walked towards the back door along with Dali, “I’m not coming back tonight. I want to have a look at Black’s Market.”

“If there’s something you can’t find in here,” Dali replied with a nod, “It will be lacking itself.”

“Huh?”

“That’s the slogan of Black’s Market. My helpers used to source for materials there. How long will you be staying there? One night?”

“It depends,” said Lin Sanjiu as she stepped out from the hotel, “Besides, I’ve found a checkpoint over there.”

“Alright, then. I’ll still keep the room for you.” After that, Dali went away again. With so many chores waiting to be done, she could not afford to waste even a single minute.

There was a huge variety of transportation options in the Heaven Underworld for them to choose from. If the passenger’s height and weight were within the ballpark, then they could choose to travel through the tube conveyor. The airstream inside the tube would fetch them to their desired destination. This was one of the cheapest ways, and the most expensive one was said to be a spaceship known as the Sky-Arach. Those passengers who could afford a Sky-Arach was said to be a self-conceited person. This was because the Sky-Arach would play a magnanimous symphony as it glided across the surface of the planet.

After she had checked in, Lin Sanjiu bought a long-distance coach ticket. She thought she had chosen the most mundane transportation. However, she was proven wrong when the bus in which she was traveling broke down under the ocean, leaving her and the other passengers no other choice but to pull out the diving suits and oxygen tanks beneath their seat and put them on.

‘Oh yeah, this reminds me to look out for an oxygen tank when I arrive at Black’s Market.” 

With that thought in mind, she pushed the door open and walked into the ocean, allowing the darkness to consume her whole.

There were about twenty posthumans on the bus. All of them pushed the raggedy amphibious bus and traipsed along the seabed. By the time they met up with another bus that came to fetch them, they were about ten nautical miles away from the breakdown site. Lin Sanjiu never expected that she would spend money only to tire herself out. When she arrived at Black’s Market, she was so exhausted that she could barely lift a finger.

Like a school of chum salmon swimming against the current, a constant stream of posthumans walked past her and clustered at the end of her vision. While Lin Sanjiu walked along with the pedestrian flow, a veil of darkness fell. The moment the night sky arrived, it was speared by the kaleidoscopic flashes of light that shot up from the ground, eventually splitting into countless sparkling fragments.

Although there was a market named Black’s Market, it occupied an area the size of a city. At the entrance to Black’s Market was a huge and majestic castle gate that cut off several streets. Raising her head to admire the regal eminence, Lin Sanjiu could see a crazy combination of galvanized glass and iron-gray frames that ran across the surface of the gate, forming several geometric patterns. There were grooves interlaced between each geometric pattern and a soft glow of white lights were flowing through them. Eventually, the rivulets of white lights lit up the big “C” alphabet that was situated on the gate about a meter above the ground.

Along with a hundred posthumans, Lin Sanjiu went through the disinfection process. Carrying the familiar chemical smell, the people pushed her into Black’s Market.

Speckles of light filled the air, looking as if somebody had accidentally knocked a jar of diamonds into the deep blue night sky. The lights gyrated slowly in a pulsating manner and formed a line of words that read: If there is something you cannot find in here, it will be lacking itself. Black’s Market.

Posthumans who first arrived here would often be so enticed by the dreamy starlit sky that they could not get back to their senses even if somebody stepped on their shoes.

The small interlude in the afternoon had upset Lin Sanjiu’s plan. She spent five small crystals and got herself a Black’s Market map. Grabbing the map tightly in her hands, Lin Sanjiu charged straight towards the checkpoint in the center of the market without stopping to look at anything.

The checkpoint was located in central district 1A, right at the center of the intersection of four streets. The black market at night was even livelier than in the daytime. The street was filled to the brim with all sorts of shops, tents, vendors, clothing promenades, and rows of single houses.

The eyes of the pedestrians were glowing, reflecting the variegated lights on the street. The combined effort of body temperatures and the heat from the food and lights caused their faces to turn red and drip with sweat. Lin Sanjiu continued to walk for a while more, and suddenly, she realized that the view had not changed for a long time. She lowered her head only to find that she had physically stopped walking ahead. Everything that she had been experiencing earlier on had all been in her mind. Right now, she was standing in front of a spherical tent along with a few more posthumans. A woman, whose face was shielded behind a black veil, was sitting in the center of the tent. She was drinking water from a bottle, trying to soothe her throat after having finished singing a song.

Two men were quarreling in front of the tent. One of them felt that since he had paid the woman to sing, it went without saying that she should sing for him. On the other hand, another protested that not only did the voice of the siren greatly affect the traffic, but it was also very bothersome. In fact, he had been lured by the woman thrice after he got lost in the market.

“Thank me,” Mrs. Manas said triumphantly, “Look. The other people are still affected by her voice.”

Seizing her chance, Lin Sanjiu closed her ears and quickly went away.

There were many stalls selling special skills and merchandise in Black’s Market. However, when Lin Sanjiu came across a shop that put up a sign for a smile on sale, she thought that somebody was pulling a joke on her.

The shop owner was a well-dressed man with a slothful voice. He was fanning himself as he hollered out, “Twenty Rondes for one.” His face was greasy and he had stubble growing on his chin.

Judging by his appearance, Lin Sanjiu was certain that his smile was not worth even a single red crystal. Be that as it may, Lin Sanjiu could not suppress the curiosity that swelled in her heart. In the end, she walked into the shop and asked, “What are you selling here? Smiles?”

“An emotion that makes people smile involuntarily.” The plump shop owner pulled out a jelly-like plastic vox. “It can last for several hours. That’s why I said it’s worth the money. Besides, I can see that you need it a lot. You look like somebody who has gone through stormy weather and stress.”

Even though many posthumans were doing business in Black’s Market, most of them were not professional businessmen. Hence, they were pretty blunt. Since Lin Sanjiu thought it might be time for her to start taking care of her skin condition, she purchased a smile from the shop owner.

“Please return the box once you have used the smile. I’ll exchange it for money!” the fatty reminded Lin Sanjiu as she stepped out from his shop.

Although Mophead had low morales, his brochure was complete. Just like the description in the brochure, Lin Sanjiu found that the flow of people was thinning as she got nearer to the center of the street. Like a proton clashing with a proton, people stopped their pace, turned their bodies, and walked away before they stepped into the area, leaving the area devoid of any humans. Lin Sanjiu took out the check-in brochure and began to crosscheck the appearance of the street with the depiction in the brochure. Once she confirmed that this was the place she was looking for, she strode straight towards the empty zone.

On a half-broken telephone pole, the word “checkpoint” was written on it. Occasionally, several posthumans would come up to slap the telephone pole once. When they saw Lin Sanjiu, a sympathetic expression would crawl upon their faces.

Lin Sanjiu felt relieved after she had checked in. In large strides, she walked towards the shop that had a sign that said, “pan-fried buns stuffed with duoluozhong slices”. Several white, beancurd-like buns were sizzling on top of the iron griddle, and the air was permeated the sweetness of the milk.

‘This should be the stall that sells pan-fried buns.’ With that thought in mind, Lin Sanjiu looked at the iron griddle. Then, she let out a relieved sigh when she did not see any signs of the duoluozhong slices.

A woman wearing a mask was standing behind the iron griddle. She had obviously misunderstood Lin Sanjiu’s gaze. She said, “I’m sorry, but we are sold out.”

‘Seriously? Is there anyone who would eat duoluozhong?’ 

“It’s okay,” said Lin Sanjiu as she used her Higher Consciousness to prevent the smell of the milk from penetrating her nose, “Hey, do you happen to know where can I buy a house?”

“A house?”

“A few friends of mine are looking for houses as they are going to settle down in the Twelve Worlds,” Lin Sanjiu said, “So, they sent me here to look for houses. There should be a broker in Black’s Market, isn’t there?”

The woman put the shovel in her hand down. She looked at the telephone pole next to her shop and then glanced at Lin Sanjiu. “First time in the Heaven Underworld?”

“Yes.”

“You will need a guide,” she said as she turned the iron griddle off, “A guide is responsible for running your errands, guiding you around, helping you find people, comparing prices…When you are purchasing stuff, a guide can be of great help. It’s much better than you running around like a headless chicken and wasting your time.”

Lin Sanjiu nodded in assent, then she asked, “Where can I find one?”

“You can hire me as your guide,” the woman responded as she looked at the few buns on the iron griddle, “The boss isn’t in today. I’ll be in charge of the closing, so I can close the shop earlier. If you hire me, I can give you these buns for free.”

Lin Sanjiu thought for a while and asked again, “How long have you been working here?”

The woman answered, “Five years.”

‘I don’t think she’s worked here for 5 years straight. After all, she had to change worlds every 14 months.’

“Rest assured,” the woman said after she saw the expression on Lin Sanjiu’s face, “I often work as a guide for others in my free time. The people here know me well. I’m very reliable. You can go around and ask for yourself.”

The woman aroused Lin Sanjiu’s interest, so she talked with her for a little more and asked a few more questions. The woman answered all her questions readily and confidently. She seemed to know every nook and cranny of Black’s Market. After both of them had struck a deal, she turned around and pulled out a tray. Then, she put several buns on the tray and handed it to Lin Sanjiu.

“Here you go.”

Then, Lin Sanjiu’s expression changed. She stared fixedly at the woman in front of her. She did not take over the tray but summoned a silvery whip on her palm instead.

The woman wearing a mask looked unflustered.

“When you turned around,” Lin Sanjiu inspected the woman meticulously from head to toe and growled out her question, “I saw the corner of your lips through the opening of your mask. Mind telling me why the corners of your mouth make a slit from ear to ear?”

“Because I am a kuchisake-onna ,” the woman wearing the mask answered matter-of-factly, “Or I should say, this is what others call us after seeing our faces. And yes, I’m a duoluozhong .”

“You…you are a duoluozhong ?!” Lin Sanjiu yelled out loud. Realizing that she may have shouted too loudly, she closed her mouth with her hand and looked around anxiously. However, to her surprise, none of the passersby stopped.

“My name is Naga-ashi,” the kuchisake-onna said and pointed at the sign, “Why do you look so surprised? Can’t you read the sign?”

Lin Sanjiu darted her eyes between the sign “pan-fried buns stuffed with duoluozhong slices” and Naga-ashi. “Aren’t inside of these buns the flesh of duoluozhong ?”

“Nah, it means the meat sliced by a duoluozhong like me.” Naga-ashi shrugged. “It’s been going around here for a long time, and we are famous for it.”