Lin Gui works the late-night shift at a convenience store. One day, a black-and-white icon suddenly appears on his phone, and he can't delete it: “Gate.”
When the countdown reaches zero, he is dragged into paranormal instances parallel to reality: Hanako in an abandoned Japanese hospital, a mirror-dwelling ghost girl at a Korean school, the flying-head curse of Thailand, the deep-sea whispers of Cthulhu... Every instance comes from a real-world horror legend. The rules are brutal: die inside an instance, and in reality you become a vegetable, your soul trapped forever in the abyss.
Lin Gui awakens the ability “Empathy”: by touching fragments of emotion left behind by spirits, he can uncover the truth behind the horrors. He gathers twelve teammates, including forensic doctor Song Ci, retired soldier Bai Ye, and autistic prodigy painter An Rusu, and struggles to survive on the brink of life and death.
But behind the game is a mysterious organization called the Tianshu Society. And its leader is none other than Lin Gui's older brother, who disappeared five years ago.
Thirteen volumes, six hundred chapters. Some sacrifice themselves to stay behind and protect the others. Some choose to remain in the illusions inside the instances. Some grow from selfishness into responsibility. This is not merely a horror story, but an examination of human nature and the choices people make in the most extreme circumstances.
Fear is not a weakness, but an instinct that protects humanity.
When the final instance, “Gate to Guixu,” opens, Lin Gui must answer one question:
If erasing fear means erasing humanity, would you still press that button?
This is a homeward journey soaked in blood and tears. For all who returned, and all who departed.
