Chapter 335: Inflatable

Time trickled by. Just as Zhang Wenda was crossing the 42nd pool, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Before him was still a pool, surrounded by the same stark-white, almost blinding tile.

But unlike before, a black-and-white soccer ball now floated on the water’s surface. A large, painted handprint was slapped on it, with a smiley face drawn in the center of the palm.

The ball bobbed with the water in the pool, causing the smiley face to rise and fall, making it look eerily like a human head.

“I’m here. This must be the ‘toy’ he was talking about.” Zhang Wenda fixed his gaze on the soccer ball, now on high alert, and continued along the path from memory.

The pool wasn’t large. Soon, Zhang Wenda reached the next one. This time, a brightly colored plastic children’s spiral slide sat in the middle of it.

An object like that, placed inexplicably in the center of the cold, light green water, surrounded by empty white tiles, created a bizarre contrast of both scene and color.

“Was this here before?” Zhang Wenda racked his brain. He was certain the slide hadn’t been here the last time he came.

*What’s going on? Is something moving them?* Zhang Wenda wondered as he pressed on.

The pools that followed continued to feature all sorts of whimsical objects. Luckily, whether it was a giant tri-colored slide or a floating doll, none of them had any adverse effect on him, aside from their inexplicable weirdness.

But Zhang Wenda didn’t lower his guard. Region 1, “High Summer,” had started just like this, with hidden dangers being planted silently. He wouldn’t fall for the same trick twice.

“A few of you, go stand watch at my Prefrontal Strait. If you notice any anomalies in my memory, tell me at once.” The Little Black Cats in the window nodded vigorously, then clamorously went off to carry out Zhang Wenda’s orders.

With them on watch, any sign of memory deletion or tampering would be spotted immediately.

After walking for about twenty minutes, Zhang Wenda finally reached the spot where he had ambushed Hu Maomao. Four days had passed, and the place was now empty.

Even the wet footprints Hu Maomao had left behind when she was drenched had long since evaporated.

He knelt on one knee, touching the spot where she had stood. After a moment of thought, an idea for finding Hu Maomao came to him.

He opened the door to his Inner World and let out one of Song Jianguo’s cats. The Black Cat quickly transformed into a large black dog, pressed its nose to the ground, and began sniffing intently.

As Zhang Wenda watched expectantly, the large black dog followed the scent along the edge of the pool.

It led him past three pools before finally stopping in front of an inflatable bouncy castle floating on the water. It turned to Zhang Wenda and barked twice.

The bouncy castle was crammed with all sorts of oversized inflatables. A giant inflatable moon stood back-to-back with a ten-meter-tall inflatable astronaut, while an inflatable fruit basket sat next to an inflatable slide. The interior was packed to the brim with these things.

Zhang Wenda had only ever seen these things at amusement parks. It was five yuan a turn. He’d never gone in one himself but had heard Fatty describe the experience.

He’d said it wasn’t a great experience. Kids would secretly pee inside, and then other unsuspecting kids would wipe it up with their clothes. Their parents would just think they were playing so hard they’d worked up a foul sweat.

Plus, when it was time to leave, it was incredibly easy to mix up your shoes with someone else’s.

“Hu Maomao’s in there?” Zhang Wenda asked the dog, confirming, as he stared at the bouncy castle that took up nearly the entire pool.

The stark, cool-toned pool and the bright, warm-toned bouncy castle were a complete mismatch.

“Woof! Woof!”

Taking that as confirmation, Zhang Wenda slowly stepped inside. The inflatables were unnervingly large, making him feel as though he had shrunk.

The surface was extremely unstable underfoot, like walking through a swamp.

“Maomao? Maomao? Maomao, are you in here?” Zhang Wenda called out tentatively, searching for his old friend.

His calls went unanswered. Aside from the faint, intermittent sound of water, there was only the squeaking of cheap plastic rubbing against itself.

Just as he was debating whether to cause a bigger commotion, a shadow suddenly drifted toward him. Zhang Wenda waved a hand instinctively. With a sharp *pop*, a goldfish-shaped mylar balloon, shimmering with a metallic white light, burst apart where he’d sliced it.

After a moment of cautious observation, Zhang Wenda realized it was just an ordinary balloon, the kind a child might have accidentally let go of.

“No, that’s not right. A balloon can’t just suddenly appear here.” Looking around, Zhang Wenda headed in the direction the balloon had drifted from.

After making his way around two more inflatables, Zhang Wenda spotted a tinfoil pot in a corner. He picked it up and, using the nose of the rabbit, sniffed it lightly. He was certain—this belonged to Hu Maomao! She was here!

“Maomao! Where are you?! Hu Maomao! I’m here to find you!” Zhang Wenda shouted. “If you can hear me, use your power to mind-control me!”

Now more certain than ever, Zhang Wenda picked up his pace, searching the area frantically.

But searching was difficult. The giant inflatable toys swayed back and forth with every step he took.

Frustrated by how much the oversized toys were obstructing his view, he began to slice them open, letting the air rush out.

They were enormous, but they were just inanimate objects. Soon, the inflatables throughout the castle began to deflate.

And yet, the bouncy castle didn’t feel any less crowded. No matter which way he looked, he was still surrounded by inflatable objects.

He wasn’t sure if it was an illusion, but the space inside felt far larger than it had appeared from the outside.

No matter how many inflatables he punctured, he still couldn’t find any sign of Hu Maomao.

“What the hell? The place isn’t that big. Could she have gotten away? Where on earth did Hu Maomao go?”

Just as the thought crossed his mind, he stopped dead. The scythe-like claws he had swung out froze just inches from the inflatable toy in front of him.

This inflatable doll, sewn to the floor, was small. It was a human figure, dressed in a blue school uniform and canvas shoes.

As the floor shook, Hu Maomao swayed gently from side to side, letting out an ugly, grating squeak.