《The Villa》 1.Bus without a driver ¡­ In the thick fog, a dilapidated bus slowly drove along a boundless highway. There were seven people on the bus, three women and four men. They sat in the bus, looking at the fog outside through the windows, their expressions varied. Doubt, bewilderment, fear¡­ But besides that, their faces were all the same pale color. It was as if they had experienced something terrible on the road. The bus continued on its way, finally stopping outside an old and dilapidated villa. The villa was shrouded in fog, completely black, mysterious and eerie. The door opened, seemingly telling the passengers inside¡­it was time to get off. The seven people on the bus slowly got off. They looked back, their eyes filled with indescribable fear. Because, in the driver''s seat of the bus, where a driver should have been...it was empty. Yes, this bus...had no driver. As the last passenger got off, the bus door automatically closed, then drove off, disappearing into the depths of the fog... The seven people standing outside the black villa looked at each other, seeing the extremely ugly expressions on each other''s faces. "Let''s go..." "I think we have no other choice." At this critical moment, a thin man in the crowd spoke. He wore a deep brown square wooden frame glasses, and his delicate face showed a calmness different from others. "Really...are you sure we should go in?" The beautiful woman with the gold earrings asked in a trembling voice. She was wearing very little, so she was very cold. Her hands were wrapped around her arms, constantly rubbing. "What if it''s...not safe inside?" The others remained silent. They had originally thought it was some kind of prank, or some people specifically invited them to participate in a program... However, when they found that there was no driver on the bus, they were all plunged into deep fear! Although they were all firm materialists, some of the things that had happened before...were simply too unbelievable! "So, are you going to walk into the fog?" Ning took a deep breath, trying to appear calm. Actually, his heart was beating very fast. From the moment he received the mysterious letter to the moment he arrived at this place, it had only been less than an hour. But this hour had had a huge impact on his worldview! "Did you forget about the fat guy who jumped out of the car at the intersection?" At the mention of the fat man, the woman''s beautiful eyes were immediately filled with immense fear! Her legs gave way, and she almost fell! Previously, there were eight people on the bus. They all appeared on the bus suddenly while they were asleep. Among them was a fat man who kept grumbling along the way, saying that it must be some unscrupulous program producers who invited them to participate in a reality show. The fat man complained impatiently, saying that their phones must have been replaced, the driver of the car was actually driving the bus under their feet, the foggy scene was specially created using dry ice, and so on... Finally, when the bus stopped at an intersection, the fat man opened the window and jumped out of the car, walking alone into the fog... Things progressed normally up to this point. However, when they reached the next intersection, they found something floating on the fog-shrouded traffic lights... As the bus slowly approached, they could finally see clearly. What was fluttering on the traffic lights was...the bloody skin of the fat man who had left earlier! The skin had been completely peeled off, and they could even see the fat man''s face contorted in extreme terror, as if he had seen something particularly terrifying before he died! The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. And on the traffic light pole, large patches of crimson blood kept dripping! This scene directly scared the people on the bus silly! Someone didn''t believe it and pulled down the window, so the nauseating smell of blood drifted into the car... ... Mentioning the fat man, everyone''s faces were very ugly, some people even started to vomit. "...Since no one dares to go near that fog, we can only enter this black villa..." Ning took a deep breath. He was also afraid. But for some reason, whether it was seeing the bloody skin on the traffic lights or smelling the blood, his reaction wasn''t as great as the others. Furthermore, he was very interested in the mysterious letter he received earlier. What did the author of the letter...want to tell him? With Ning taking the lead, the others followed behind him, pushed open the iron gate of the black villa and entered the garden outside the villa. It was very quiet around them. Quietly terrifying. The group had to stick close together. The beautiful woman with the gold earrings in the middle felt someone groping her, but she just frowned slightly and didn''t say anything. Groping so be it...it''s better than being skinned without reason! Like this, they reached the door of the black villa. Ning knocked on the door. Knock, knock, knock As he knocked, footsteps were soon heard from inside the door. The people behind all involuntarily took a few steps back, watching the door warily, as if they were very nervous! Creak¡­¡­ The door opened. However, the terrifying scene they had expected didn''t appear. The person who opened the door was a very delicate and beautiful girl. She seemed to be only fifteen or sixteen years old. "You''re here?" "Come in." The girl spoke, and the group only then realized that he was actually...a boy. A very beautiful boy. However, the boy''s voice was very cold. Not much emotion. The group watched Ning follow the boy inside, and for a while they looked at each other, not knowing whether to follow or not. "You guys better hurry up..." Just as the group was hesitating, the boy''s voice came from inside the room. "That fog...is very dangerous." Mentioning the fog, the group thought of the fat man who had died earlier, and they shuddered in fear, rushing into the room one after another. The villa''s hall was very spacious and decorated in a very classical style. On the left was a row of neatly arranged bookshelves, on the right was a wooden staircase leading upstairs, and in the middle resting area were three large sofas. In the center of the sofas was a burning brazier. In the room, four people were gathered around the brazier. They stared at the flames in the brazier, lost in thought, not speaking. The atmosphere, in this silence...became colder and colder. "Excuse me...where is this place?" "Why are we here?" "What about the fog and the bus outside?" "..." Finally, after pondering for a moment, Ning asked these three questions. However, no one answered him. Not even the four people who were roasting by the fire looked at him. At this time, the man with a beard behind Ning , Liu, couldn''t take it anymore: "I''m asking you a question!" "Are you all deaf?" His voice was very loud, booming through the room, making people''s eardrums hurt. Finally, the man in a suit who was sitting opposite Ning on the sofa roasting by the fire spoke: "I know you have a lot of questions..." "If you can survive the first blood gate, I will tell you the answers to these questions." Upon hearing this, a sense of foreboding immediately filled everyone''s hearts. "Blood gate? What is that?" Ning''s heart moved, remembering the mysterious woman''s phone call to him earlier, and asked. The man in the suit didn''t look up, and pointed at the third floor of the villa with his finger. "You don''t have much time. The blood gate will open in less than five minutes. At that time, you will enter the terrifying world behind the blood gate and complete the task on the blood gate." "After completing the task, the bus will come to pick you up." After he finished speaking, a short and thin girl with twin ponytails in the crowd, Yan, asked weakly: "What if...we don''t complete the task?" The man in the suit raised his head slowly and met Yan''s gaze. Those calm and indifferent eyes made Yan''s heart tremble. "You''ll die." "And it will be...a very miserable death." Everyone was limp after hearing this. They wanted to think it was just a joke. However...the man in the suit''s serious expression dispelled the last sliver of hope in their hearts. "Can...no, can''t we go?" Another young man with bleached blond hair swallowed, asking like this. The man in the suit glanced at him. "You can." "But...you''d better not sleep from now on." The blond man was stunned: "Why?" The man in the suit smiled coldly without smiling: "Because, if you don''t complete the task in the blood gate, then...things will come out from behind the blood gate to find you." "No matter where you run, they will find you." "Then..." The man in the suit didn''t continue speaking, but everyone already knew the outcome. Ning took a look at the third floor and finally asked the man in the suit: "Before we go in, is there anything else you want to tell us?" The man in the suit was slightly stunned, then shifted his gaze to Ning . Seeing Ning''s calmness, which was different from the others, a hint of subtle admiration flashed in his eyes. "Advice? Yes." "Although the story behind the blood gate is extremely dangerous, there is more than one way out. As long as you find the way out, it won''t be difficult for you to complete the task and survive..." Ning nodded. "Thank you." After he finished speaking, he was the first to take a step forward, walking towards the upstairs. Seeing Ning so decisive, Liu, who was behind him, went through a fierce struggle in his eyes, and then gritted his teeth and followed. "Damn, bro...you''re really brave!" Behind Ning, Liu said in a low voice. On the way, he had actually already noticed Ning. It''s hard not to notice. Whether it was seeing the fat man''s skin or smelling the strong bloody smell, Ning didn''t react much. "Brave?" Ning laughed self-deprecatingly. "Do you think we have a choice?" Liu was very tall, so even though he was a step lower than Ning , he was only slightly shorter than him. "When you saw the fat man''s skin earlier, bro, you didn''t even blink. Have you...been doing that before?" "Doing what?" "A killer." "You''ve read too many novels. Where are there so many killers in reality?" "Uh...then..." "I''m a doctor." "Oh~ I see, a forensic pathologist?" "Almost, a veterinarian." "..." The two of them chatted and reached the third floor of the villa. As soon as they arrived, the two of them stopped talking. A strong bloody smell mixed with a strong smell of decaying wood filled the air. There was nothing on the third floor of the villa, only a blood-soaked wooden door. **A line of blood-red words was written on the wooden door: [Take care of the bedridden old lady for five days] "Take care of the old lady...that''s our task this time." Ning''s eyes flickered. The others also came up one after another, saw the words on the wooden door, and were all stunned. "Is it...that simple?" Wang, the woman with the gold earrings, couldn''t believe it. The group murmured among themselves, and suddenly, they all stopped as if they had the same feeling and looked at the wooden door together. Creak Inside the wooden door, it seemed as if something was pushing the door. Soon, the blood-stained wooden door was pushed open by a pair of pale hands! As the blood-stained wooden door slowly opened, everyone''s vision suddenly went black, and they lost consciousness... 2.A Strange Welcome When they regained consciousness, they had all arrived behind the blood-red wooden door. They were separated into a beautiful villa complex in a suburban area. However, strangely, although the villas were built with great sophistication, they seemed to be lifeless. After passing through several villas, Ning confirmed that there was no one in the villa complex. It was eerily quiet. "Is it uninhabited, or are they all out at work?" Ning carefully observed the villa complex, as if he had discovered something. "No..." "The gardens have been recently trimmed, there are goldfish in the pond, and there are some commonly used tools in the yard...There should be people living here." "But...where did they all go?" A hint of doubt flashed in Ning''s mind, and he continued walking forward. Soon, he saw the villa that the task required them to enter. It was not difficult to recognize. Because in the entire villa complex, only this villa had someone standing outside. It was a woman dressed in a glamorous, stylish outfit, carrying a suitcase. She was wearing a sun hat with a small red flower pinned on it, and she was holding the hand of a young girl, about eight or nine years old. They were standing in the yard under the not-so-hot sun, smiling at the people who came here. The woman smiled beautifully, the kind of wife who gets prettier the more you look at her, but for some reason, Ning felt a chill down his spine when he looked at her smile. That smile didn''t seem like she was welcoming guests, it was more like... Just as Ning was lost in thought, a big hand patted him on the shoulder. Ning jumped in surprise and turned to see that it was Liu with the bushy beard. "Bro, you''re here too?" Ning nodded. "Yeah, it looks like that villa is where we need to go." Liu took a distant look at the villa and his expression became much more serious. He then pinched his fingers and muttered: "Damn..." Seeing him like this, Ning''s eyes lit up: "You can tell fortunes?" Liu shook his head. "Outside, I do help people tell fortunes...but I just realized, I actually can''t tell fortunes, I''m just a charlatan." Ning''s breath caught in his throat. This is crazy. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. This guy really...is the quintessential example. He''s told so many lies that he believes them himself, right? Also... Why can you say this so confidently? "Forget it..." Ning helplessly shook his head and directly took a step forward, walking towards the villa where the woman was standing. There were already people there. The villa''s hostess didn''t speak to them, just gave them an official smile. The smile was neither cold nor warm. When they spoke to the hostess, she would only reply with: "Please wait, a few nurses haven''t arrived yet." After about ten minutes, the seven of them were finally all present. At this moment, as if a certain condition was triggered, the hostess, who had only been smiling, suddenly spoke to them: "Are you all here now?" "I''m so sorry to ask you all to come and take care of my mother. My husband is out on business, and I need to take my daughter to the beach for her birthday, so there''s really no one at home..." "My mother is old and not only paralyzed in bed but also has severe cognitive impairment. I was worried that two or three nurses might not be able to take good care of her, so I simply hired you all from the company..." "You don''t have to worry about the money, I''m not short of money." "After I come back...if my mother is well taken care of, I will pay you individually." She spoke, leading the group into the villa and onto the second floor, to a spacious room. The room had poor lighting. There was...a not very pleasant smell inside. On the large bed by the window, lay an elderly woman with a kind face, looking calmly at Ning and the others. A subtle, eerie smile hung on her face, giving everyone a feeling that their hairs were standing on end. "This is my mother..." The woman introduced her mother to them, then squatted down beside the old woman, her eyes filled with affection. "Mom, I''m going to take Tuan Tuan to the beach for her birthday, I specially found seven nurses for you, they will take care of you for the next five days..." After she finished speaking, she leaned closer to the old woman''s ear and whispered something. Then the woman stood up, looked at the group, and smiled. "My mother is paralyzed in bed and has some senility, but she can understand some simple words. And my mother''s body is generally good, she doesn''t have any other diseases, and her appetite is good...oh right, I haven''t taken you to the kitchen yet." She spoke, and then led the group downstairs to the villa''s kitchen. The kitchen was also very large, with a full set of kitchen utensils on the table, all of which were meticulously cleaned. On the left side of the kitchen entrance, there were two huge refrigerators. "It''s summer here now, and the rainy season is coming soon. The rainstorms here are terrifying, and there may be strong winds and heavy rains in the next three to five days, which will make it very inconvenient to buy vegetables and meat..." The woman spoke, pulled open one of the large refrigerators, revealing the meat and vegetables that were packed inside, and smiled at the group. "But you don''t have to worry." "I have already prepared plenty of food and water for you..." "Also...my mother doesn''t like vegetables, so when you make meals for her, just cook more meat." After the woman finished speaking, she didn''t immediately leave with her daughter, but asked the group: "Do you have any other questions?" Ning was the first to speak: "Excuse me, does anyone else live in this villa area?" The woman was stunned for a moment, then smiled confidently. "Yes, actually, this villa complex has been built for some time, but because it''s too remote, no one else lives here except for us. In fact, if it wasn''t for my mother, we wouldn''t live here either..." After a pause, she added: "During these five days, just treat yourselves as the owners of the villa. I''ve already tidied up the accommodation on the second floor for you, just choose the room you like." "But pay attention, everyone...you absolutely, absolutely cannot enter the third floor of the villa, understood?" As she said this, the woman''s expression suddenly became extremely serious. Everyone agreed. Seeing that everyone agreed, the hostess smiled again. "Since you all understand, then...I''ll leave my mother in your care!" "Oh, the car is about to leave, I have to leave with my daughter now, or we''ll miss the train..." She spoke, hurried to the door in her high heels, and took her daughter and luggage to leave. Ning vaguely felt something was not right, so he went to the window and watched the woman leave. Just as they were getting in the car, the little girl held by the woman turned her head and met Ning''s gaze through the window. This glance directly stunned Ning. His eyesight was very good. So, Ning clearly saw a hint of...fear in the little girl''s eyes! She was afraid. Afraid of what? Afraid of going to the beach? Afraid of her mother? Or...afraid of the villa they were in? Just as Ning was thinking, Liu, the big man with the bushy beard, came over and clicked his tongue. "What are you looking at? They''re gone." "Bro, I didn''t expect you to be into married women at such a young age...not bad, not bad, you have a bright future!" 3.The Unseen Terror After the villa''s hostess left, everyone returned to the hall. After briefly introducing themselves, they began to discuss how to take care of the elderly woman. Among them, the short and thin girl with twin ponytails, Yan, weakly raised her hand. ¡°That...speaking of, how did you all get on the bus?¡± ¡°I, I was on the high-speed train, playing with my phone and got sleepy, so I...slept for a while. When I woke up, I was on the bus.¡± ¡°Me too. I was working overtime at the company, and then suddenly I felt very sleepy...¡± Everyone spoke up, and one by one, they discovered that everyone''s method of arriving on the bus was exactly the same. This strangeness made their already apprehensive hearts even more apprehensive! ¡°Damn...it''s really cursed..." Liu with the bushy beard cursed. Yan was silent for a while and then weakly said: ¡°Do you think...this is some kind of program group inviting us to do a reality show in this way?¡± ¡°After all, I''ve seen on TV before..." Before she finished speaking, Liu interrupted her with a cold laugh: ¡°So soon you¡¯ve forgotten about the fat man?¡± ¡°Does TV make programs by killing people and skinning them?¡± Yan''s heart suddenly trembled, but she glared: ¡°What if...what if it was just a prop?¡± ¡°The blood was a prop too?¡± ¡°Who knows, maybe it was chicken blood or dog blood..." Yan was still trying to deceive herself, but Ning''s abrupt words next to her shattered the last line of defense in her heart: ¡°It wasn''t animal blood.¡± Everyone looked at Ning. He seemed to have already accepted everything and was unusually calm. ¡°I used to be a veterinarian, and I¡¯m especially sensitive to smells. The blood of cats, dogs, pigs, sheep, cows, chickens, ducks, fish, geese, and pigeons has a distinct difference in smell from human blood.¡± ¡°For example, sheep blood is very strong, while human blood has a distinct iron rust smell¡­¡± ¡°I can tell you all very clearly that the blood on the traffic light was 100% human blood.¡± ¡°And it was...the freshest human blood!¡± After Ning finished speaking, Yan shuddered and hugged her knees, sobbing softly: ¡°Don¡¯t say it anymore¡­¡± ¡°Please...don¡¯t say it anymore..." Seeing her like this, Ning softened his tone slightly. It¡¯s not surprising that the girl was frightened. Normal people in real life, if they saw what happened before, would probably have a psychological shadow that would linger for a long time. Only those who frequently deal with corpses would be relatively better. After all...that scene was too bloody! ¡°Let¡¯s just think about how to get through these five days¡­¡± A man of average appearance, about 170cm tall, with a gloomy look in his eyes, said. His name was Xue. ¡°We have seven people, and this time the task is to take care of the old woman in bed for five days. How are we going to divide the work?¡± Everyone looked at each other. Seeing that no one was speaking, Ning said: ¡°Let¡¯s do this. Three girls will be responsible for cooking and washing clothes, and the four of us men will be responsible for taking care of the old woman¡­¡± As soon as he finished speaking, the beautiful woman with gold earrings, Wang, said sarcastically: ¡°Oh, women should do laundry and cooking for you smelly men, huh?¡± ¡°You¡¯re good at being lazy, aren¡¯t you? You heard the hostess say that the old woman is lying in bed and can¡¯t move, so you volunteered to take care of her¡­Do you think we¡¯re stupid or something?¡± ¡°You say you¡¯re taking care of the old woman, but you probably don''t have to do anything, just laze around?¡± Hearing Wang¡¯s words, Liu couldn¡¯t help it. Raising his chin, he said nonchalantly: ¡°You look beautiful£¬Why are you so mean?¡± Wang''s face also darkened: ¡°You, you dare to curse me?¡± This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Liu was about to say something else, but he was interrupted by Ning. ¡°If you don¡¯t want to do laundry and cooking, I can switch with you. You take care of the old woman, from 9 am to 10 pm. After 10 pm, it will be dark anyway, so we can wash up and rest.¡± Wang glanced at Ning, snorted coldly. ¡°Well...thank you.¡± Although she said this, there was no gratitude in her tone. Only full of mockery. ¡°By the way...it¡¯s already past five o¡¯clock, I¡¯m hungry. Aren¡¯t you going to cook? Go ahead.¡± Ning looked deeply at Wang, didn¡¯t say anything more, and turned to the two girls. ¡°Do you want to switch?¡± Ya Mo, the girl who hadn¡¯t spoken, raised her hand. ¡°I¡­¡± ¡°Sorry, I really don¡¯t know how to cook.¡± Compared to Wang¡¯s annoying appearance, Ya Mo was much more sincere. In this society, there are too many pampered children, and there are many men and women who don¡¯t know how to cook. It¡¯s not strange. ¡°Is there any man who knows how to cook?¡± The remaining three men were silent for a moment. Liu impatiently said: ¡°Ugh, forget it, forget it. I''ll go with you to cook and wash clothes!¡± ¡°What a bunch of good-for-nothings, they don¡¯t even know how to cook or wash clothes!¡± Wang coldly said: ¡°Rough man, watch your mouth!¡± Liu glared and pointed at Wang: ¡°If you are a man, you¡¯d be dead today!¡± Wang sneered, clicked her high heels and went upstairs. The kitchen was on the first floor, and the old woman was on the second floor. The villa was very large, and everyone went about their own business, so they separated. Liu grumbled and followed Ning to the kitchen. Along with him was the little girl, Yan, who was constantly sobbing. ¡°Okay, stop cursing.¡± Entering the kitchen, Ning was really annoyed by him, so he interrupted Liu. ¡°Isn¡¯t...this a lot to take?¡± Liu glared. Ning opened the refrigerator and started to take out ingredients. ¡°You really think taking care of the old woman is...a good job?¡± Hearing this, Liu¡¯s breath suddenly stopped. ¡°Bro, what do you mean?¡± Ning slowly turned his head and looked at Liu and Ya Mo next to him. ¡°Remember what the man in the suit in the black villa told us?¡± ¡°After we survive the blood gate, they will answer our questions.¡± ¡°This means that the world behind the blood gate...is unimaginably dangerous!¡± After he finished speaking, Yan¡¯s thin body trembled again! She trembled and said: ¡°Wh...what kind of danger?¡± Ning shook his head. ¡°We don¡¯t know yet...but since the task on the blood gate is to take care of the old woman, it¡¯s most likely related to the old woman.¡± ¡°Anyway...be careful.¡± Hearing Ning¡¯s warning, Liu rolled his eyes, secretly pinched his fingers, and the previous gloom on his face disappeared. He grinned and said: ¡°Bro, I think you¡¯re right, I¡¯ll follow you.¡± Ning looked at Liu in surprise and shook his head, but he didn¡¯t say anything more. He first took out the vegetables from the refrigerator and then looked at the freezer. There was a lot of meat there, as the villa hostess had said. The hostess had cut the meat into pieces and put them into different bags. Ning took out a bag labeled "Beef Tenderloin" and threw it into the pot to defrost over low heat. As he was closing the refrigerator, Ning¡¯s peripheral vision suddenly noticed something. He took out a piece of meat that was frozen solid from the back of the refrigerator. In the bag containing the meat, there were many black, unidentified substances. It was just that the crushed ice was covering too much, and the bags containing the meat were all vacuum-sealed, so it was impossible to see clearly what those black substances were. There was no label on this bag, indicating the meat. It seemed that the hostess had forgotten. Ning stared at the meat for a while, when Liu, the rough big man with a bushy beard, came over. ¡°Why is this meat black?¡± He curiously asked. Ning shook his head and put the meat back in the refrigerator. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe it¡¯s been frozen too long and it¡¯s gone bad.¡± The three of them were busy in the kitchen. To Ning¡¯s surprise, Liu, who looked like a rough old rascal, could actually cook really well! He washed, cut, and stir-fried the vegetables with the movements of an expert. ¡°Dinner¡¯s ready!¡± Liu put the stir-fried meat and vegetables on the table and shouted loudly upstairs. Then, without caring whether the people upstairs came or not, he directly picked up the steaming rice and ate it with big mouthfuls. Yan watched Liu¡¯s ghost-like eating habits and couldn¡¯t help but ask: ¡°Aren¡¯t we waiting for them?¡± Liu said impatiently: ¡°Waiting for what?¡± ¡°Eat!¡± After saying that, he wolfed down his food again. Tap tap tap ¡ª Four sets of footsteps came from upstairs. Wang was still on the stairs when she saw Liu, who was burying his head in eating, and couldn¡¯t help but sneer: ¡°Look at your eating habits, like a starving ghost reincarnated..." If it had been before, Liu would definitely have retaliated fiercely. But he seemed to be exceptionally focused on eating, completely ignoring Wang¡¯s mockery. Wang simply thought he was backing down and ate her own food. At the dinner table, everyone was silent. They didn¡¯t know what to say. It was just that they felt it getting darker and darker in front of them, and later, they couldn¡¯t even see the beef in their bowls clearly. It wasn¡¯t until Ning stood up and turned on the light that they realized...it was dark. ¡°Damn!¡± ¡°Why did it get dark so fast?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not even 7 o¡¯clock yet!¡± The man called Bei Dao shouted, his startled demeanor made everyone feel a little uncomfortable. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Xue, whose face was already not good-looking, frowned even more. ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear the villa hostess say before that the rainy season is coming soon?¡± ¡°It¡¯s normal for it to get dark...what¡¯s the big deal.¡± He rebuked Bei Dao, his tone was a little too agitated, but everyone knew why, and they all tacitly didn¡¯t say anything. The atmosphere in the villa...was too oppressive. ¡°Hey, hey, hey, is this how you take care of the old woman?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve eaten your fill, leaving a paralyzed old woman upstairs to starve, is that appropriate?¡± ¡°No one really thinks that taking care of the old woman means doing nothing, right?¡± Liu, who had finished eating, put down his chopsticks and said sarcastically to Wang, who was sitting opposite him, as he picked his teeth. The latter clenched her fists and her gaze became even colder. ¡°Humph, you think everyone is a rough rice bucket like you?¡± ¡°You¡¯re as disgusting as a maggot.¡± She disdainfully kicked her high heels and went upstairs to get a bowl of rice, grabbed some leftover food, and went upstairs. Everyone watched her disappear into the dark hallway, and for some reason, their hearts inexplicably beat faster... ¡°Were you all on the second floor just now?¡± Ning also put down his chopsticks at this time and asked the three who were responsible for taking care of the paralyzed old woman. Xue ¡°hmm¡±ed. ¡°We went all over the second floor, there was no one else except the paralyzed old woman.¡± ¡°Our rooms are opposite the old woman¡¯s room, all on the same corridor.¡± Ning asked: ¡°Didn¡¯t you notice anything unusual?¡± Xue shook his head, hesitated for a moment, and replied: ¡°There¡¯s a...very strange smell in our rooms. I can¡¯t describe what it smells like, but it¡¯s not good.¡± ¡°All seven rooms have it?¡± ¡°Yes, all of them.¡± At this time, Ya Mo, the girl who had been quietly standing by, added softly: ¡°One more thing is very strange¡­¡± ¡°The rooms that the hostess prepared for us all have bathrooms.¡± Bei Dao snorted: ¡°What¡¯s so strange about that? She¡¯s rich, she doesn¡¯t want to run around to use the toilet, right¡­¡± Ning frowned. ¡°No¡­it¡¯s really strange.¡± ¡°This villa, clearly only the hostess¡¯ family lives here, even if the host was home, it¡¯s only four people. Why would they prepare so many bedrooms and toilets?¡± ¡°What¡¯s so strange about that, maybe they¡¯re very hospitable?¡± ¡°They often invite friends to their home for parties. Don¡¯t rich people like to do that?¡± Bei Dao¡¯s tone was a little flustered. No one responded to him. Everyone fell into a strange silence again. Until... A piercing scream came from upstairs, breaking the terrible silence¡ª ¡°Ah!!!¡± 4.The Hunt Begins The sudden scream shattered the deathly silence of the villa. Everyone immediately looked towards the second floor. "What happened?" "I...I don''t know!" "Go and see!" Everyone quickly rushed to the second floor and arrived at the source of the sound. It was the room where the paralyzed elderly woman was. Wang, who had been carrying the food earlier, was now slumped on the floor, leaning against the wall, hugging her knees and trembling! The steaming food...was scattered all over the floor. "What happened?" Ning asked. In front of everyone, Wang slowly stretched out a finger, pointing at the paralyzed old woman lying on the bed with a stiff expression, and said in a trembling voice: "She...she...just now...she suddenly spoke!" Following the direction of her finger, everyone looked at the old woman who was lying motionless on the bed, staring out the window in a daze. Liu sneered: "What''s the big deal...didn''t you hear the hostess say? Her mother is just paralyzed." "Why can¡¯t she speak?" "I thought you were so brave?" "A paralyzed old woman scared you like this?" Liu had finally seized an opportunity, and his mouth was like a machine gun, chattering away. But Wang, who was huddled in the corner, seemed to be terrified, and she stuttered and couldn¡¯t even retort. Ning glanced at the old woman on the bed, then signaled Liu to help clean up the floor, and he pulled Wang up from the floor. ¡°She spilled it herself, but she wants me to help clean it up. What the hell..." Liu muttered under his breath, but he was surprisingly obedient and quickly went to the bathroom to get a towel to start wiping the floor. This scene felt a bit incongruous. It seemed like Liu, who was not easy to mess with, was so obedient to Ning. But no one asked. After cleaning up the room, Ning went to the old woman¡¯s bedside, carefully looked at her kind face, helped her cover the blanket, and turned to leave the room with everyone else. Back on the first floor, the sky had completely darkened outside. The pale light illuminated the hall. But for some reason, everyone felt like they were still in the dark. The quiet atmosphere made them uneasy. ¡°Okay, Wang, you can tell us now...what did the old lady tell you upstairs just now?¡± Ning sat down on the sofa opposite Wang and poured himself a cup of hot tea. At the mention of what happened upstairs, Wang¡¯s previously beautiful complexion turned pale again! Her fingertips tightly clutched her clothes. ¡°Just now...just now wasn¡¯t I feeding her? ¡± ¡°She took a bite of the beef and then...then she spit it out!¡± Liu glared: ¡°Damn, she spit it out?¡± ¡°My cooking is that bad?¡± Ning frowned. ¡°Liu, let her finish first.¡± Liu smacked his lips, muttered a few words under his breath, and didn¡¯t interrupt anymore. Wang¡¯s eyes were filled with fear, and her expression was resistant, as if she didn¡¯t want to recall what had happened just now: ¡°...I thought it was too hot, so I tasted it myself. However, the food wasn¡¯t hot, so I fed her a second bite, but she still spit it out¡­¡± ¡°And this time, after she spit it out, she, she turned her head and stared at me and said...said...¡± For a long time, she couldn¡¯t utter a complete sentence. Xue¡¯s eyebrows were so furrowed . He urged: ¡°What did she say, just say it!¡± Under Xue¡¯s urging, Wang finally mustered her courage and said through gritted teeth: ¡°Her voice was very low, I couldn¡¯t hear it clearly. It sounded like she was saying...the meat has no...the meat has no taste!¡± ¡°Yes...she must have said the meat has no taste!¡± As soon as these words were spoken, a terrifying lightning bolt flashed across the sky, followed by a deafening thunderclap! Everyone was startled by the thunder! "Damn, what a thunderbolt..." Ning looked at the dark sky outside and suddenly went to the window and opened it. The cold wind carrying raindrops blew against his face. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°It¡¯s raining...heavy rain, strong wind¡­¡± He closed the window again, his face becoming more solemn. ¡°These have already started to come true..." ¡°That letter...it wasn¡¯t a prank after all?¡± Unlike the others, Ning had received a mysterious letter...before he got on the bus. He had never told anyone about this. Just as everyone was whispering and discussing the matter of the tasteless meat, Ning suddenly closed the window. He closed it tightly, not letting a single bit of wind blow in. ¡°Okay, she doesn¡¯t want to eat, forget it. It¡¯s getting late, let¡¯s go to bed early...¡± ¡°Get up early tomorrow morning and make some meat porridge for the old woman.¡± ¡°Have you chosen rooms?¡± Everyone, who had been discussing, suddenly fell silent. ¡°Are...are we really going to sleep in separate rooms?¡± At this time, Ya Mo, who seldom spoke, spoke up, her expression timid, as if she had been frightened by what had just happened. Xue said: ¡°We took a brief look at the rooms earlier. They¡¯re very big, with double beds, and the rooms are very clean. Two people can sleep in one room just right.¡± Yan¡¯s eyes were still a little swollen. Hearing that they had to share a room, she anxiously said: ¡°But...but there are three of us girls!¡± Xue sighed: ¡°The rooms are not small, you girls are relatively small, you can sleep together.¡± The three girls looked at each other, but didn¡¯t speak. No one likes to sleep in the same bed with a stranger. But they already knew that this villa...was not safe. Everyone felt as if something was lurking in the shadows, staring at them... After turning off the lights, they went to the second floor together. After a brief discussion, Ning and Liu entered the same room first. The three girls were in the innermost room on the right side of the corridor on the second floor, farthest from the old woman they were taking care of. The remaining two boys chose the room next to Ning¡¯s. For some reason, Ning seemed to have a magical power about him, and being close to him made everyone feel safer. The last girl to go to her room was Wang. While she was still lost in thought about what had happened during the day, everyone had already gone into their rooms. For a moment, she was the only one left in the corridor. The corridor¡¯s light switch was at the top of the stairs, and it was a single switch. However, the rooms they chose were at the very end, at least twenty meters away. If she wanted to turn off the light, it meant she would have to walk through twenty meters of darkness. Her gaze fell on the open louvered window at the end of the corridor. The trees outside were growing like devils, twisted and grotesque, accompanied by the cold wind, as if they were about to enter and devour Wang at any moment! She couldn¡¯t help but shiver, she didn¡¯t dare to turn off the light anymore, and quickly entered the innermost room, then locked the door tightly. Bang! ¡­ Inside the room, Ning took off his shirt, revealing a set of sharp-edged, explosive muscles. Liu, who was brushing his teeth, glanced at him in surprise. Ning put on his clothes, but you couldn¡¯t tell he was such a muscular hunk! ¡°Bro ¡­I didn¡¯t expect it, you¡¯re hiding it pretty well!¡± ¡° These abs, if you went to a nightclub¡­wouldn¡¯t the rich ladies be vying for you?¡± Liu chuckled and winked at Ning. Ning rolled his eyes: ¡°So why are you following me all the time?¡± Hearing this, Liu spat out the toothpaste foam, restrained the small expression on his face, and said seriously: ¡°...You¡¯re pretty perceptive, bro, but I can¡¯t tell you yet. After we survive the blood gate this time, I¡¯ll tell you¡­¡± Hearing Liu¡¯s answer, Ning was stunned for a moment, then laughed: ¡°You¡¯re so mysterious.¡± Liu shook his head and changed the subject: ¡°By the way, bro, do you think¡­that old woman is suspicious?¡± Ning was silent for a moment. ¡°It¡¯s not just the old woman, the whole family, even the villa complex, is suspicious!¡± Liu was stunned: ¡°What¡¯s wrong with the villa complex?¡± Ning said: ¡°The villa hostess said that only their family lives in this area, but actually, I passed by quite a few villas, and there are traces of people living in them, and they were left recently, within the past month or two. There were eight houses I saw, all of them were like this, not to mention the many I didn¡¯t see¡­¡± ¡°This proves that...this area was inhabited not long ago.¡± Listening to Ning¡¯s words, cold sweat gradually seeped out from Liu¡¯s back. If Ning¡¯s observations were correct, then...where did those people go? Ning paced to the window, his expression solemn, his hands in his pockets, and continued: ¡°And, if only one person lives here, they wouldn¡¯t usually buy such a large villa, so the people who live here generally have family or friends. Even if they go out to work, there won¡¯t be absolutely no one at home¡­¡± ¡°But in fact, this villa complex seems to be left with...just us.¡± He pointed with his hand. Following the direction of his finger, Liu clearly saw that the dozen or so houses in front of their window...were all pitch black! Not a single light! ¡°This...¡± ¡°How come?!¡± His face turned extremely ugly. Ning said slowly: ¡°Something must have happened here.¡± ¡°Something...very terrible.¡± He carefully checked the window to make sure it was locked tightly, not letting a single bit of wind blow in, and then pulled the curtains closed and returned to bed. Without the wind, both of them lying on the bed could smell a...strange odor. ¡°What¡¯s that smell?¡± Liu asked. The smell wasn¡¯t strong, but it lingered, it seemed like...something was rotting and decaying. The two recalled what Xue had said earlier, and after a search, they finally found the source of the smell. ¡ªAbove their heads. The wooden ceiling there was sticky, as if some kind of liquid was seeping through. The liquid was yellowish-brown and smelled terrible. ¡°Damn...¡± Liu felt a bit nauseous and quickly moved the bed away a bit. ¡°What is that?¡± Standing below, Ning squinted at the damp patch on the ceiling. After a long silence, he said: ¡°Big Beard, do you trust me?¡± Liu didn¡¯t understand what Ning meant, but he nodded anyway. ¡°Yes.¡± Ning said slowly: ¡°Tonight, don¡¯t fall asleep, don¡¯t turn on the lights, no matter what you hear...don¡¯t pay attention.¡± Liu¡¯s body stiffened. ¡°Bro, do you mean...something is going to happen tonight?¡± Ning was silent for a long time before finally nodding imperceptibly. He turned off the light, and the room was instantly plunged into a silent and terrifying darkness... Liu lay in bed, his mind in a mess. Although he tried his best not to fall asleep, as time went by, sleepiness finally spread throughout his body... He didn¡¯t know how long it had been, but he was woken up by a strange sound. The sound came from outside the door. It was a sound...like two sharp metal objects rubbing against each other. Screech¡ª Screech¡ª Hearing this sound that made his hair stand on end, the first thing Liu thought of...was knives and forks! He often cooked, and he was all too familiar with the sound of kitchenware and tableware! Liu sat up abruptly, wanting to turn on the light, but then he suddenly heard Ning¡¯s warning and lowered his hand. ¡°Bro , are you there?¡± Liu asked in a low voice, and immediately a ¡®shh¡¯ sound came from beside him. ¡°Don¡¯t make a sound.¡± Ning¡¯s voice was also very low, and there was a hint of an imperceptible tremor. Obviously, he was also nervous. The door to their room wasn¡¯t completely closed, there was a gap, and the light from the corridor outside shone in through the gap under the door. As the terrifying sound brushed past their door, a ghostly black shadow also flashed by¡­ The terrifying scratching sound almost made Liu¡¯s heart jump out of his throat! The thing outside...had stopped at their door! Liu clenched his fists, and his breath stopped! What was that thing outside? What would happen if it came in? At that moment, his mind went blank, as if he had lost the ability to think. It felt like minutes, but it also felt like just a moment. The terrifying black shadow outside finally moved again, walking towards the depths of the corridor¡­ The piercing scratching sound rang out again¡ª Screech¡ª Screech¡ª It felt like an executioner was looking for a prisoner to be slowly tortured... It went all the way in, stopped for a while at the second door, then went to the innermost door on the corridor. It also stopped for a while outside the door before finally disappearing... At this time, Ning suddenly sat up from the bed and crept to the door, pressing his ear against the crack in the door. He listened for a long time. No more sounds came from outside. It was as if that black shadow had simply vanished. After listening quietly for ten minutes, he confirmed that there was no more sound outside before returning to bed. ¡°Bro, what was that thing outside?¡± Liu asked in a low voice. Ning shook his head: ¡°I don¡¯t know, but it¡¯s definitely not human.¡± ¡°It didn¡¯t make any sound when it walked.¡± Hearing this, cold sweat immediately broke out on Liu¡¯s forehead. No way¡­ This villa¡­ Could there really be something unclean? 5.The Missing Knife The room was eerily silent. Combined with the unpleasant smell that lingered in their nostrils, they both felt a chill run through their bodies. Tick-tock¡ª A drop of liquid fell from the ceiling beside them, hitting the wooden floor. The sound itself wasn¡¯t loud, but in the completely silent room, it was amplified infinitely... Ning could even feel Liu beside him shudder as the unknown liquid fell. ¡°Br...bro¡­¡± Liu¡¯s voice trembled, and he slowly raised his hand, as if trying to touch something. Ning took a deep breath and said: ¡°Don¡¯t turn on the light.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t want to die.¡± Liu was stunned. ¡°Wh...why?¡± Ning shook his head. ¡°I can¡¯t explain yet.¡± ¡°...Just know that in a place with wind, it¡¯s best not to turn on the light.¡± ¡°If the light is on, then stay away.¡± After listening, Liu suddenly remembered that whenever Ning passed by the window, he would always close it tightly! For some reason, he felt a chill run through his entire body! Then, Liu¡¯s gaze fell on the crack under the door, and he couldn¡¯t help but curse in his heart. He didn¡¯t know which bastard was the last one to enter the room, but he hadn¡¯t turned off the light in the corridor! After what happened, neither of them could sleep, and they didn¡¯t care about being in close proximity to the same sex, they squeezed onto the same bed, as if each other''s body temperature could bring some comfort. He didn¡¯t know how long it had been, but the sky gradually brightened outside, and the rain wasn¡¯t as heavy anymore. Liu looked at the time and saw it was already morning. The light from outside, though not very bright, was enough to see through the gray haze. His gaze fell on the floor to his left. The constant dripping sound that had been coming from there. Liu got out of bed and carefully looked at the stain on the floor. He bent down and smelled it. ¡°Ugh¡ª¡ª¡± The pungent stench almost made him vomit. Ning, who was nearby, also noticed his strange behavior and came over to take a look. Ning bent down and sniffed, his face changed slightly. ¡°This is¡­¡± Liu leaned over: ¡°What is it?¡± Ning was silent for a long time before slowly saying: ¡°Corpse water...or corpse oil.¡± ¡°Usually, when an animal rots to a high degree, the fat oozes out in an oily form¡­¡± Liu couldn¡¯t take it anymore and quickly interrupted Ning: ¡°Okay, okay, bro, stop! I...I get it.¡± His face was pale, and he looked up at the ceiling above the stain. The place where the wooden ceiling was soaked with corpse oil had gradually grown from the size of a fist to the size of a human head! What on earth was above them...? Just as Liu was thinking, two extremely shrill screams, belonging to women, suddenly came from outside the door! ¡°Ah!!!¡± The two exchanged a glance. Something had happened! ¡°Let¡¯s go and see!¡± Ning was the first to open the door, taking Liu with him out of the room. As soon as they stepped out, Ning frowned. The smell of blood was so strong! On the corridor, a streak of crimson blood stretched from the door of the room at the end of the corridor all the way to the stairs... You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. The screams were coming from the louvered window at the end of the corridor. A group of people were gathered there. Ning and Liu walked over, pushed through the crowd, and saw Ya Mo and Yan sitting slumped on the ground by the door, trembling like sieves, their faces pale. Beside them, besides a large pool of blood, there was also vomit... ¡°What happened?¡± Ning asked sternly. The two girls looked at Ning, their eyes filled with intense fear, as if they had experienced something incredibly terrifying! They trembled their lips, unable to utter a complete sentence, and pointed to their room, tears streaming down their faces. Ning looked towards their room and was about to open the door, but he was stopped by Xue, who was standing beside him. His face was extremely ugly. ¡°It¡¯s...not a pretty sight inside.¡± Ning glanced at him, pushed his hand away, closed the leaky louvered window next to him first, then opened the door. When they saw the scene inside, the people outside held their breath! They saw that on the bed closest to the door in the room, lay a corpse soaked in blood! The corpse...was clearly Wang, the woman with the gold earrings! Someone was dead! Ning endured the nauseating smell of blood and entered the room. As he walked further in, he could finally see the bloody corpse clearly! This scene almost made even Ning vomit! The corpse lying on the bed still had its head intact, its neck was white and slender, but below the neck, the skin had been ruthlessly torn open, revealing crimson muscles everywhere, with hideous scars all over! The internal organs were gone, large pieces of muscle were torn apart and missing, scattered everywhere¡­ What was even more terrifying was Wang¡¯s expression¡­ Her eyes were closed, and her face showed no sign of pain, instead...it was frozen in a strange smile. "Damn it..." Liu, who had followed in, widened his eyes, his legs went weak, and if he hadn¡¯t been holding them tight, he would have peed himself on the spot! ¡°This...this...¡± Now, he finally understood why the two girls outside had become like this! If it had been a man, even if it had been him, he wouldn¡¯t have been much better than the two of them right now! Ning endured the discomfort in his heart and walked towards the corpse. The others were all outside, unwilling to take a step into the room. It was...too terrifying inside! After inspecting the corpse, Ning suddenly remembered something, his face changed drastically, and he turned and ran out of the door! ¡°Bro, what¡¯s wrong?¡± When Liu saw Ning running, how dare he stay in the room? Everyone else didn¡¯t dare to stay on the second floor either. They followed Ning all the way down to the first floor, to the kitchen. Ning stared at the cutlery hanging on the wall for a long time before muttering: ¡°One pair is missing¡­¡± Bei Dao, who had already been scared silly, hurriedly asked: ¡°One pair of what is missing?¡± Ning slowly uttered a few words: ¡°The knife and fork for eating steak.¡± Hearing this, Liu was the first to be terrified. When he heard the sound of metal rubbing against each other in the corridor outside his room last night, he thought it was the sound of knives and forks rubbing! Could it be that... Liu seemed to think of something terrifying, and his whole body trembled! ¡°One pair of knives and forks is missing, does it have anything to do with the corpse upstairs?¡± Bei Dao was still asking. Most of the people still didn¡¯t understand. Ning slowly turned his head, stared at them, and uttered words that chilled them to the bone: ¡°The wounds on Wang¡¯s body...were left by the knife and fork!¡± As soon as he finished speaking, everyone¡¯s faces turned pale. ¡°Ning, you, what are you...¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± Ning didn¡¯t answer Bei Dao, but asked the two girls: ¡°Last night, did you hear Wang¡¯s screams?¡± Both girls shook their heads, their eyes filled with fear. ¡°No, we were too tired last night and fell asleep very quickly¡­¡± At this time, Xue suddenly said through gritted teeth with a strange expression: ¡°I¡­I heard it last night¡­¡± ¡°Heard what?¡± ¡°...It was the sound of metal rubbing, now that I think about it, it sounded like knives and forks!¡± Ning and Liu exchanged a glance and said to him: ¡°You go and make porridge first.¡± ¡°Add more meat.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go and check on...the old woman upstairs.¡± Liu nodded. ¡°Bro, you¡¯re overthinking!¡± ¡°What about us?¡± ¡°Come with me.¡± Yan and Liu stayed in the kitchen to make porridge, while Ning took the others quickly upstairs to the room where the paralyzed old woman was. As soon as they entered the room, everyone was stunned. Because, on the table next to the paralyzed old woman...lay a gleaming knife and fork! It was the missing pair from the kitchen! As if sensing their arrival, the old woman lying on the bed slowly turned her head and gave everyone a kind smile. ¡°Ah!!!¡± Ya Mo screamed in fright and crawled downstairs. Bei Dao and Xue were no better off. Their faces were pale. If it hadn¡¯t been for Ning, who was as steady as a rock beside them, they probably would have fled with Ya Mo the first time! After experiencing such a terrifying incident, Ning, instead of being afraid of the old woman in front of him, actually...walked towards her! "Damn it! Ning, are you crazy?!" Xue¡¯s face was ugly. Anyone with eyes could see that the old woman lying in bed was the murderer of Wang! And...she was probably not human! Ning ignored Xue and went straight to the old woman¡¯s side, picking up the knife and fork to examine them carefully. They were very clean. He brought them to his nose. No smell. Ning frowned. He looked at the old woman in bed, lost in thought. Ning leaned down beside the old woman¡¯s ear and whispered: ¡°Old lady...are you the only one who lives in this house usually?¡± The old woman moved her lips. ¡°Meat...¡± ¡°Meat...no...¡± She seemed to have some mental problem, repeating herself over and over. Ning narrowed his eyes. No meat? No what? No taste? He listened carefully for a long time, but he couldn¡¯t hear the old woman say the third word. At this time, Liu came up with the bowl of porridge. ¡°It¡¯s been chilled with water, it¡¯s not hot, you can drink it directly.¡± I have to say, the porridge really smelled delicious. The aroma of beef. And the green onion garnish. Ning personally lifted the old woman¡¯s mouth, scooped up a spoonful of meat porridge, and brought it to her lips. Everyone was watching nervously, their breathing slowed down, as if they were afraid that the old woman would suddenly open her bloody mouth and swallow Ning. However, the terrifying scene they expected didn¡¯t happen. The old woman quietly ate the porridge into her mouth. But when she ate something, she suddenly frowned, and with great disgust, she spat it out. It was a piece of beef. Then, the old woman continued to spit, until she had spat out all the meat porridge in her mouth, and then she was quiet. ¡°Meat...no...¡± She started to repeat those two words again. Ning leaned close to the old woman¡¯s ear. This action was extremely risky in everyone¡¯s eyes! Because if the old woman was really the murderer who killed Wang last night, then...Ning¡¯s action was undoubtedly suicide! Fortunately, the old woman didn¡¯t bite off Ning¡¯s ear. And it was this risky action that gave Ning a crucial piece of information! ¡°Meat...no...cooked...¡± The third word wasn¡¯t ¡®taste¡¯, it was ¡®cooked¡¯! But...why did she say the meat wasn¡¯t cooked? Ning took a bite of the beef porridge himself. It was cooked. Definitely cooked. After standing there pondering for a while, Ning suddenly thought of something and said to Liu: ¡°Big Beard, quick, go make a bowl of porridge without meat!¡± Liu, who was standing outside, felt a little strange when he heard this, but he still followed Ning¡¯s instructions. Soon, he came in with a bowl of plain rice porridge. This time...the old woman ate it. She didn¡¯t spit it out anymore. 6.Unseen Shadows Everyone was stunned at the sight. What was going on? She vomited after drinking beef porridge, but not after drinking plain congee? After feeding the old woman the porridge in the bowl, Ning handed the bowl to Liu and left the room. ¡°Bro, what¡­ what¡¯s going on here?¡± Liu asked curiously. Ning shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s complicated. We¡¯ll talk about it later¡­ Right, where¡¯s Yamo?¡± As he asked, everyone realized that Yamo, who had run downstairs in fear earlier, had disappeared! ¡°Yamo!¡± Liu shouted loudly. But there was no response from the villa, only an eerie silence. A sense of foreboding filled everyone¡¯s hearts. They searched for Yamo all over the downstairs. Finally, Ning stood at the open door, looking out at the rain, and said to everyone: ¡°No need to look.¡± ¡°She¡¯s escaped.¡± ¡°Ah, she escaped?¡± Liu was closest, and he looked at the blurry wind and rain outside and shivered involuntarily. For some reason, the first thing that came to everyone¡¯s mind after hearing this news was the fat man who jumped out of the window of the bus and was later skinned by something unknown! The task required them to take care of the paralyzed old woman in the villa for 5 days. What would happen if they left the villa during this time? Ning was about to return to the living room on the first floor, but his eyes fell on the shoe rack at the door. He had a hunch and squatted down to rummage through the shoe rack. ¡°Brother, what are you looking for?¡± Liu trotted over. Ning narrowed his eyes. ¡°There are no men¡¯s shoes.¡± Liu: ¡°Ah?¡± Ning¡¯s mind raced. Even he didn¡¯t realize why his mind was¡­ so sharp. ¡°The villa owner mentioned earlier that her husband is away on work.¡± ¡°But there are no men¡¯s shoes in this house!¡± Liu¡¯s body stiffened. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°Bro, you mean¡­¡± A sharp glint appeared in Ning¡¯s eyes: ¡°There are two possibilities.¡± ¡°First, her husband moved out for some reason¡­¡± ¡°Second, she doesn¡¯t have a husband.¡± Liu frowned. ¡°She doesn¡¯t have a husband?¡± ¡°But how? Then, her daughter¡­¡± Before he finished speaking, Ning looked at him and slowly asked a question that made Liu¡¯s scalp tingle: ¡°Why do you think¡­ that girl is her daughter?¡± ¡°Just because¡­ she was holding her hand?¡± After looking at Ning for a few seconds, cold sweat began to form on Liu¡¯s forehead. He swallowed hard, realizing the seriousness of the situation. Yes. There was no evidence to prove that the child the woman was holding¡­ was her daughter! ¡°¡­ Let¡¯s go back.¡± After a moment of silence, Ning looked at the blurry rain outside and felt an inexplicable chill, as if something terrible was watching him from the depths of the rain! He immediately closed the door, triple-checked it before returning to the living room with Liu. Everyone¡¯s faces were pale. The villa was large, and they had originally been 7 people, so there was still some life in the house. Now, Wang was dead, and Yamo had escaped into the rain, leaving only five people in the room. ¡°Ning, what was that¡­ that old woman saying?¡± Xue¡¯s face was pale. So far, he was relatively calm. This was simply because he had been a funeral makeup artist and had seen too many dead bodies in terrible conditions, so his psychological resilience was stronger than that of ordinary people. Seeing everyone¡¯s eyes focused on him, Ning said directly: ¡°Her words were¡­ the meat wasn¡¯t cooked.¡± Everyone was stunned. The meat¡­ wasn¡¯t cooked? ¡°It''s bullshit£¡¡± Liu was unhappy at that time, and he glared and cursed. ¡°I know if the meat is cooked or not, okay?¡± Seeing Liu¡¯s frantic appearance, everyone¡¯s expressions eased slightly. This bearded man¡¯s loud curses had plenty of yang energy, which was perfect for dispelling the gloomy atmosphere in the dead quiet villa. Unlike the fear on everyone else¡¯s faces, Ning¡¯s calm was abnormal, as if¡­ he had experienced such scenes countless times. ¡°So, those three words¡­ were not ¡®the meat wasn¡¯t cooked¡¯.¡± The chattering people suddenly fell silent. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Xue frowned. Ning raised his eyebrows and said: ¡°The old woman upstairs¡­ is very old, very unhealthy, and mentally unstable.¡± ¡°Her speech is slurred.¡± ¡°And we were prejudiced, misled by the death of Wang earlier.¡± ¡°We subconsciously assumed that the old woman¡¯s first two words were ¡®the meat¡¯.¡± ¡°But actually¡­ I think the old woman upstairs was not trying to say those words.¡± Beidou sneered: ¡°Who cares about what the murderer says?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you see the knife and fork on her table this morning?¡± ¡°Obviously, she killed Wang last night!¡± After pausing, he glanced fearfully at the second floor to make sure no one was there before lowering his voice and saying: ¡°Maybe¡­ Wang¡¯s missing flesh was eaten by her!¡± His voice was gloomy, and as he finished, Yan was so scared that she hugged Liu next to her! Liu was also startled by Yan¡¯s sudden move and cursed: ¡°Beidou, are you telling ghost stories here?!¡± ¡°Look how scared you¡¯ve made the girl!¡± Beidou¡¯s face was also very ugly, and he twisted his fingers nervously and muttered: ¡°I don¡¯t want to die¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to die like Wang¡­¡± ¡°Did you see¡­ she was clearly eaten¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s too scary¡­ It¡¯s really too scary¡­¡± Xue felt annoyed and impatient, saying: ¡°Enough!¡± ¡°Stop babbling!¡± ¡°Who wants to die? Huh! Who wants to die?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t everyone trying to find a way out now?!¡± Liu turned his attention back to Ning, who was thinking seriously. It had to be said that his calm and composed appearance could bring peace of mind to everyone and subtly became the anchor in everyone¡¯s hearts. ¡°Bro, have you figured anything out?¡± Ning looked up and glanced at him. ¡°I have a guess, and I need someone brave to verify it with me tonight.¡± As soon as everyone heard that they had to do this at night and thought of what happened last night, they all fell silent. After a long time, Liu gritted his teeth and asked: ¡°Bro, why do we have to go at night¡­ Can we go during the day?¡± Ning shook his head: ¡°No.¡± Liu was stunned. He had originally wanted to remain silent and act like a mute, but after looking at the calmness in Ning¡¯s eyes, he blurted out: ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll go with you!¡± As soon as he finished speaking, Liu wanted to slap himself! Damn it! Why can¡¯t I control my mouth?! ¡°Alright, you¡¯ll follow me tonight.¡± Just then, a shrill scream came from the second floor: ¡°No! Don¡¯t!!¡± ¡°Please¡­ I know¡­ AAAAAAAAH!!!¡± Everyone was startled by the scream and shivered! They looked at each other and saw the fear in each other¡¯s eyes¡ª They were very familiar with this voice. It was¡­ Yamo, who had just escaped from the villa! 7.Blood!s Silence The shrill scream lasted only a short time before it completely subsided. Ning was the first to rush upstairs, followed by Liu and the others. But as they stepped onto the second floor, they suddenly stopped. A look of shock and disbelief appeared on everyone¡¯s faces. ¡°No, it can¡¯t be¡­¡± Beidou¡¯s voice trembled, and his legs shook. In front of them, the bloodstains that had been splattered on the floor¡­ had completely disappeared, not even a single speck of blood could be seen! It was as if¡­ everything that happened this morning was a figment of their imagination! ¡°Look!¡± Just then, Yan let out a sharp cry, pointing to the room at the end of the corridor. Everyone looked over and saw that a large amount of scarlet blood was slowly seeping out from the doorway, extending all the way to the corridor outside¡­ The wind blew in from the open louvered window at the end, carrying a sickening smell of blood! ¡°Damn¡­¡± Liu managed to spit out two words from his mouth, and his hair stood on end. The others looked no better. Ning stared at the louvered window, his eyebrows furrowed. He distinctly remembered that when he went up to check Wang¡¯s body this morning, he closed that window and locked it. No matter how strong the wind was outside, it was absolutely impossible to open that window. Moreover, the lock could only be opened from the inside. After coming down from the second floor, Ning had been staring at the door to the old woman¡¯s room, and she had never come out, so it was impossible for her to have opened the window. At that time, they were all searching for Yamo on the first floor, so it was impossible for any of them to have opened that window. If that was the case¡­ who opened that window? Could it be¡­ Wang, who was already dead? The thought flashed through his mind, and Ning felt his hair stand on end. But unlike the others, he didn¡¯t shrink back in fear, instead, he¡­ took a step forward, walking towards the door that was constantly seeping blood. Seeing Ning¡¯s action, the people behind him opened their mouths, not knowing what to say¡­ If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Damn¡­ Why was this guy named Ning so bold? Wasn¡¯t he afraid of¡­ something behind that door? ¡°Ning, are you crazy?¡± Beidou shouted, but Ning completely ignored him and continued walking towards the louvered window at the end of the corridor. Suddenly, another person squeezed out from the crowd. It was Liu. He ran to catch up with Ning. ¡°Brother, wait for me¡­¡± As Liu followed Ning, the other three temporarily suppressed their fear and gritted their teeth and followed! Reaching the end of the corridor, Ning¡¯s first action was to close the louvered window and lock it again. After doing that, he slowly opened the door to the room at the end, under everyone¡¯s terrified gaze. As the door opened, Yan vomited on the spot! ¡°Ugh¡ª¡° The others also took a step back in fright! Inside the room, Yamo¡¯s body, soaked in blood, was hanging in mid-air, her stomach was hollowed out, and her internal organs were gone, leaving only bloody bones¡­ Yamo¡¯s neck, as if broken by force, was twisted 90 degrees, a strange smile hung on her face, and she was staring straight at them¡­ No one dared to meet her gaze. Except for Ning. He came to the spot below Yamo¡¯s body and carefully observed it, his eyes becoming increasingly sharp. ¡°The method of death is almost identical to Wang¡¯s, it was done by the same person.¡± ¡°Was it the old woman on the second floor?¡± Ning turned his head and glanced at the old woman¡¯s room, remembering the old woman¡¯s words, and suddenly his pupils constricted. Could it be¡­ ¡°Wait, didn¡¯t you guys notice¡­ Wang¡¯s body is missing!!¡± Beidou suddenly pointed to the bed behind Yamo¡¯s body, his voice trembling with fear. Everyone looked over. Indeed. Wang¡¯s body, which had been lying on the bed, had disappeared. The bloodstains on the bed were also completely gone. So¡­ where did her body go? Bang! Ning suddenly closed the door, glanced at the blood on the door, and said calmly: ¡°Let¡¯s go downstairs.¡± Xue beside him widened his eyes: ¡°Go downstairs?¡± ¡°Then, then Yamo¡¯s body¡­¡± Ning shook his head and said calmly: ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, it will take care of it.¡± Hearing this, everyone¡¯s hair stood on end. As they followed Ning downstairs, they asked: ¡°Bro, who is your ¡®it¡¯?¡± Ning replied without looking back: ¡°The thing that killed them.¡± ¡°Is it¡­ the old woman on the second floor?¡± Ning didn¡¯t answer. They returned to the villa¡¯s living room, and everyone was dreadfully silent. Fear¡­ had engulfed everyone like a tide. In this way, until dusk, Liu finally couldn¡¯t bear the suffocating atmosphere and got up and said in a low voice: ¡°I¡¯m going to cook.¡± Ning also stood up. ¡°I¡¯ll go too.¡± ¡°For the time being¡­ no matter what you do, don¡¯t act alone.¡± After that, he ignored everyone and went into the kitchen with Liu. As for Yan, it seemed that after she learned that the ghost thing in the villa used the knives and forks from the kitchen to kill people, she didn¡¯t dare to step into the kitchen at all. In the kitchen, Liu saw that no one else had come in, so he lowered his voice and asked: ¡°Bro, you want to go to the third floor tonight?¡± Ning, who was taking meat from the refrigerator, was startled and then laughed without turning around: ¡°Looks like you¡¯re not as stupid as you appear.¡± ¡°Rough on the outside but fine on the inside!¡± Praised by Ning, Liu scratched his head awkwardly. ¡°Bro¡­ I have one thing I don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°Why can¡¯t we go to the third floor during the day and have to wait until night?¡± ¡°That place¡­ should be very dangerous, right?¡± Whether it was the villa owner¡¯s warning before she left or the intuition in everyone¡¯s hearts, it told them that¡­ the third floor was incredibly dangerous! Moreover, the iron gate leading to the third floor was locked with an iron lock. They didn¡¯t have the key. Ning, while searching for something in the refrigerator, said: ¡°It is indeed very dangerous¡­ especially during the day.¡± Liu was stunned. After being prompted by Ning, he suddenly understood! ¡°Bro, you mean¡­ that ghost thing that killed people is not the old woman on the second floor, but¡­ on the third floor!¡± ¡°During the day, it rests on the third floor, and at night, it comes out to¡­ hunt?!¡± Ning nodded slightly. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°The old woman should be a normal person, she was used as bait by the ghost thing in the villa¡­ to lure people.¡± ¡°Moreover, I have a very bad hunch¡­ but this hunch can only be verified tonight.¡± 8.Something is Coming Down Ning was looking for something when he suddenly discovered something and retrieved several pieces of meat from the refrigerator. The meat was vacuum-packed and had no labels. Inside¡­ all of them, without exception, had some black stuff. But because of the large amount of crushed ice, they couldn¡¯t see what it was. So Ning handed the meat to Liu, who was standing beside him. ¡°Cut it open and take a look.¡± Liu took a knife and cut open the vacuum plastic bag, but suddenly stopped abruptly. ¡°Damn¡­¡± He looked at the meat in the vacuum plastic bag and couldn¡¯t help but swear. The vacuum plastic bag contained a piece of meat with thick hair! Judging from the position of the hair, it should be from the leg¡­ And it belonged to a human! ¡°What the hell is this¡­ this is human flesh?!¡± Liu was so scared that he threw the meat in his hand. The frozen piece of meat fell to the floor, making a crisp sound of impact. He suddenly thought of the meat they had eaten earlier and couldn¡¯t help but gag. Liu knew that what he ate was beef, but he still felt nauseous. Ning picked up the meat on the floor, examined it carefully, and finally put it back in the bag. ¡°I think I know why the old woman on the second floor doesn¡¯t eat meat anymore¡­¡± Liu, who had finally managed to hold back his urge to gag, said with a pale face, ¡°Why?¡± Ning said slowly, ¡°Because someone fed the old woman this meat before we arrived, causing her to have a severe psychological aversion to meat¡­¡± ¡°And don¡¯t you find it strange?¡± Liu frowned. ¡°What¡¯s strange?¡± After wrapping the meat well, Ning put it back in the refrigerator. ¡°The old woman is clearly paralyzed, but the windows in her room have been nailed with many steel bars, as if they were afraid of the old woman escaping¡­¡± Liu thought about it carefully and realized that it was indeed the case. But immediately, he felt a chill run down his spine, as if he had thought of something terrifying¡­ ¡°You mean, the old woman¡¯s paralysis¡­¡± You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Ning¡¯s gaze was sharp, and he nodded. ¡°It¡¯s very possible.¡± ¡°But that¡¯s not the scary part, the real scary thing¡­ is yet to come.¡± As he spoke, he selected a piece of lean mutton from the refrigerator and threw it to Liu. ¡°Something even scarier?¡± Liu caught the mutton, his face pale. Ning¡¯s brows furrowed into a knot. ¡°Haven¡¯t you noticed¡­ this family, they don¡¯t even have a single photo?¡± Liu, who was cutting the meat, paused for a moment. Indeed. The girl the villa owner was holding earlier was at least 8 or 9 years old, and even if the husband and wife divorced after so many years, there would still be some photos of the woman and her daughter at home¡­ But in fact, there were absolutely no photos of the woman, the girl, or the old woman on the second floor on either the first or second floor! Why¡­ was that? ¡°Moreover, if I¡¯m not mistaken, those women¡¯s shoes in the shoe rack at the door¡­¡± Ning paused suddenly, then shook his head. ¡°Forget it¡­¡± ¡°Let¡¯s cook first.¡± ¡°Many doubts¡­ should be answered tonight.¡± Seeing that Ning didn¡¯t want to elaborate, Liu also wisely didn¡¯t ask further. But he couldn¡¯t help but secretly observe Ning. This man¡­ was too strange. Whether it was the human skin he saw from the fat man earlier or the series of bizarre things they encountered in the world behind the bloody door, he hadn¡¯t shown much panic. He was even¡­ strangely calm! This kind of psychological resilience, something Liu had never seen in his 30 years of life! Was he really a veterinarian in the outside world? Liu began to feel a strong curiosity about this man named Ning. ¡­ Dinner. Everyone sat at the dining table, silent. ¡°Liu, why aren¡¯t you eating vegetables?¡± Xue noticed that Liu, the cook, had only given himself a small amount of plain congee and hadn¡¯t eaten any vegetables at all. The mutton tonight was very fragrant. But Liu hadn¡¯t touched it with his chopsticks. He even put the mutton in the farthest corner from himself. ¡°Ah? Vegetables?¡± ¡°Oh, right, vegetables¡­ I, I don¡¯t feel very well¡­¡± Liu mumbled, his face pale. He and Ning hadn¡¯t told everyone about the human flesh in the refrigerator. After all, two people had already died among them. Everyone was like a bird startled by a bowstring, and if they revealed these things, it would only increase fear. Moreover, even if everyone knew this information, it wouldn¡¯t help them survive. The task stipulated that they had to take care of the old woman in the villa for five days, so they had to stay there for five days. After dinner, everyone faced a new problem¡ª How to accommodate Yan. Since the two girls had already died, only Yan was left in the group. Should¡­ she sleep alone in a room? ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t want to sleep alone!¡± Seeing the strange atmosphere, Yan was about to cry. What a joke! Would she sleep alone in such a terrifying place? What was the difference between that and killing her directly? Compared to life and death, things like male and female intimacy were nothing to Yan! ¡°Then, why don¡¯t¡­ you sleep with us tonight, we¡¯ll sleep on the sofa, and you can sleep on the bed.¡± Beidou said. Xue had no objection either. After all¡­ there were fewer and fewer people left in the team. The more people died, the more dangerous it was for those who remained! Yan nodded and gave them a grateful look. Ning saw this and shook his head slightly. Ning knew that if the thing hiding in the villa wanted to kill someone, it wouldn¡¯t matter if there were a hundred of them gathered together. Seeing that their faces had improved somewhat, he said: ¡°It¡¯s getting late, everyone should get some rest¡­ Also, remember to check your doors and windows, make sure they are closed.¡± ¡° Two days passed, we only have three left before we can leave.¡± Everyone nodded. Turning off the lights in the living room on the first floor, Ning went upstairs with them, and after watching everyone enter their respective rooms, he turned off the lights on the corridor. The light switch for this corridor was at the entrance of the stairs. Normally, the light switch in such places would be two-way or even multi-way, one place to turn it on, another place to turn it off, making it more convenient to use. But for some unknown reason, the light switch for the second floor corridor of the villa was designed as a single-direction switch. As the lights in the corridor went out, the entire villa plunged into pitch-black darkness! Ning felt goosebumps on his skin. He was about to go to his room when he suddenly heard a faint sound coming from behind him, not far away. The sound wasn¡¯t loud, but in the dead silence of the darkness, it sounded so clear! It was¡­ the sound of the iron gate lock to the third floor being unlocked! Ning¡¯s body stiffened. Upstairs¡­ Something seemed to be coming down! Moreover¡­ it was right behind him! 9.The Terror in the Corridor In that instant, Ning felt like every cell in his body froze! Screech¡ª Screech¡ª The sound of cold metal scraping against metal came from behind, making Ning¡¯s scalp tingle! That was¡­ the sound of a knife and fork rubbing together! Right behind him! And it was getting¡­ closer! At the same time, the louvered window at the end of the corridor was suddenly blown open! The cold wind, carrying a strong smell of blood, constantly stimulated Ning¡¯s nose and lungs! Fear¡­ engulfed his entire body! He¡­ Was he going to die? In that moment, indescribable fear surged like a tide, threatening to drown Ning! He raised his hand, instinctively wanting to turn on the light! Light¡­ he needed light! Only light could dispel this terrifying darkness! But just as Ning¡¯s hand was about to press down on the light switch, he abruptly stopped! In his mind, part of the contents of the mysterious letter he had received earlier suddenly surfaced¡ª ¡­ {[¡­]} {[Wind does not light a lamp, rain does not light a candle]} {[The sun does not climb the stairs, the night does not close its eyes]} ¡­ ¡ªWind does not light a lamp. Ning gritted his teeth, forcing himself to ignore the indescribable fear in his heart and not turn on the light! He retracted his hand and walked towards the end of the corridor, step by step, against the cold wind carrying the smell of blood! The terrifying sound of metal scraping seemed to be in his ears, constantly stimulating his nerves. As if the thing behind him could stab him with a sharp knife and fork at any moment, chopping him into pieces! Ning took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, clenched his fists, ignoring the terrifying sound of metal scraping behind him, and moved forward step by step! He was gambling. Gambling that he hadn¡¯t triggered the death condition, that the thing behind him¡­ couldn¡¯t attack him! One step¡­ Two steps¡­ At this moment, Ning felt like his adrenaline had surged to the extreme. Every step was a severe test of his mental strength! Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. But he didn¡¯t dare to run, and he couldn¡¯t run. The wind blowing towards him was too cold, as if it penetrated his skin and went straight into his muscles, bone marrow¡­ his whole body was stiff. Fortunately¡­ Ning had guessed right. The terrifying thing behind him seemed to be blocked by something, unable to harm him. When he reached the door of his room with difficulty, grasped the door handle, the sharp metal scraping sound behind him abruptly disappeared¡­ The bloody wind on the corridor gradually subsided. In the faint moonlight, Ning saw that the louvered window at the end of the corridor¡­ had somehow closed tightly again. ¡°Just an illusion¡­¡± Ning panted, his eyes narrowed. The bone-chilling coldness behind him gradually dissipated, as if the thing that had been following him¡­ was gone. Ning felt like his brain was blank. He pushed open the door and entered, only to realize that his clothes were soaked through with sweat. In the darkness, Liu¡¯s rough voice sounded, carrying a hint of fear: ¡°Bro, are¡­ you okay?¡± Obviously, he had also heard the terrifying sound of metal scraping on the corridor! Ning shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Liu came over, fumbled around in the darkness for Ning¡¯s hand, confirming that Ning had a living temperature, before letting out a long sigh of relief and admiringly said: ¡°Bro, you are really¡­ so awesome!¡± ¡°I thought you wouldn¡¯t make it back!¡± ¡°Was there something on the corridor outside just now, was there¡­ something?¡± Ning nodded. ¡°It appeared.¡± Liu widened his eyes, incredulous: ¡°It¡­ it didn¡¯t kill you?¡± Ning remained silent for a moment, then said: ¡°It can¡¯t kill us at will.¡± ¡°Only when we trigger the ¡®death condition¡¯ can it attack us.¡± Liu recalled the previous events, and his heart was filled with countless waves! ¡°So¡­ Bro, you know what the death condition is?¡± Ning whispered: ¡°I know part of it.¡± ¡°I already told you earlier.¡± ¡°But those aren¡¯t all the death conditions, only it knows how many there are¡­¡± ¡°What we need to do now¡­ is to investigate the truth as soon as possible.¡± Liu¡¯s breathing was a little rapid: ¡°But even if we know the truth, it won¡¯t be much help in surviving, right?¡± Ning remained silent for a while. ¡°The truth should also come with a way to deal with it.¡± ¡°Remember what the man in the suit said to us earlier?¡± ¡°There are more than one way out in the world behind the bloody door, it seems incredibly dangerous, but it¡¯s not completely impossible to fight back.¡± ¡°Besides, that woman in the red dress warned us not to go to the third floor of the villa, so that place must be very important!¡± Liu¡¯s eyes flickered, finally he gritted his teeth and said: ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Bro, when are you going, I¡¯ll go with you!¡± ¡°If we¡¯re going to die, we might as well die together!¡± Ning: ¡°Wait a bit.¡± The two of them waited in the room for a long time. Until the middle of the night, the terrifying metal scraping sound suddenly echoed through the corridor outside again! Both of them knew that it was the sound of a knife and fork rubbing together! The thing on the third floor¡­ had come down to hunt again! Even though they were mentally prepared, Liu could clearly feel his hair stand on end and his hands and feet couldn¡¯t stop trembling! Who would be its target this time¡­ Screech¡ª Screech¡ª Screech¡ª As the scraping sound got closer, Liu¡¯s heart beat faster and faster. He glanced at Ning, who was sitting beside him, and found that¡­ he was actually drinking tea. Liu was stunned. Then, he admired the other man¡¯s mental fortitude once again. ¡°Bro, you can still drink tea calmly in this situation¡­ you are the first person I¡¯ve ever seen who can do that!¡± Liu kept his voice extremely low. Ning put down his teacup. ¡°I¡¯m very nervous too.¡± ¡°But different people have different ways of showing their nervousness.¡± ¡°When I¡¯m nervous, I like to eat or drink something.¡± Although he said this, his voice was very steady, almost impossible to hear any tremor. Outside the door, The terrifying sound still stopped in front of them first. The sound of the knife and fork scraping against each other rang out again and again, as if a hungry evil spirit was standing at their door, drooling at them¡­ Liu felt that he was being pathetic, but his palms were indeed sweating profusely. He was truly afraid. Afraid that the terrifying thing outside the door would suddenly rush in¡­ But fortunately, what he imagined didn¡¯t happen. The thing stopped at their door for a while, as if it found that it couldn¡¯t attack them, so it turned its target to another room. This time¡­ It was exactly the same as last night. The sound¡­ disappeared outside the next door. After about five minutes, Ning, who was leaning against the door, still couldn¡¯t hear any sound, so he slowly pushed open a crack in the door. Ning observed for a while, then pushed the crack wider, poked his head out, and looked around in the dark, silent corridor. Except for the louvered window at the end that was open and the cold wind whistling past, there was nothing on the corridor. ¡°Now¡¯s our chance, let¡¯s go!¡± Ning beckoned to Liu, and the two of them tiptoed out, carefully navigating the darkness and walking towards the stairs¡­ 10.The Un-Eaten Skeleton The two of them reached the stairs. They saw that the iron gate leading to the third floor was open. There was an extremely foul smell coming from it. The smell was exactly the same as the corpse water dripping from the ceiling above their room! It was the smell of animal decay! Liu couldn¡¯t stand the smell, so he covered his nose and mouth, his brows furrowed. He endured the urge to vomit and followed Ning up to the third floor. Once they reached the third floor, the smell of rotting flesh became even stronger, so much so that Liu couldn¡¯t control himself. His stomach cramped, and he finally vomited on the floor! ¡°Ugh¡ª¡° Liu dry-heaved, his face pale. Ning patted his back. After vomiting up his dinner, Liu felt a little better. The two of them walked along the dark corridor. The floor was very sticky. Liu¡¯s face was pale as a ghost. Although there was no light, he could still guess what was on the floor¡­ It was¡­ corpse water! This stuff covered the entire third floor! Both of them were shocked. How many corpses had to rot and decompose to release enough corpse water to cover an entire floor? ¡°As expected¡­¡± Ning narrowed his eyes. Although he also found the smell in the air extremely disgusting, he didn¡¯t feel like vomiting. As for the situation on the third floor, he had already guessed it more or less before they came in. Stepping on the sticky, disgusting corpse water, the two finally reached a room with a particularly strong smell of decay, slowly opened the door, and the scene they saw shocked them both! This terrifying scene would surely stay with them forever¡­ They saw that in the room bathed in moonlight, countless rotting corpses were placed in a dense arrangement! Among these corpses, there were some that were relatively fresh, still bloody and fleshy, and there were others that had long since rotted into a pile of bones, only skeletons and hair remained! But without exception, they all preserved their almost intact heads, the faces of the corpses that hadn¡¯t fully rotted yet were hung with eerie smiles, looking at the two at the doorway, as if wellcoming them¡­ The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Thump¡ª Liu covered his mouth, took a step back in fear, his body trembling. He looked at the other rooms, seemed to understand something, and used his trembling hands to open the other doors. ¡°Holy shit¡­!¡± Liu almost cried out. Sure enough. Every room was piled high with rotting corpses! The internal organs of these corpses were all gone, their flesh was also covered with fork marks, indicating that something had feasted on them! Wang and Yamo¡¯s bodies were also among them! Liu¡¯s legs were weak, he leaned against the wall and slowly squatted down, his face paler than the moonlight. ¡°So¡­¡± ¡°The corpse water on the ceiling of our room¡­ came from here¡­¡± ¡°But where did all these corpses come from?¡± ¡°Could it be¡­¡± Ning looked through the window at the distant black villa complex. ¡°I¡¯m afraid¡­ all the original residents of this villa complex are in these rooms.¡± Liu swallowed, his forehead covered in cold sweat. This thing hiding on the third floor of the villa¡­ had eaten all the people in the entire villa complex? ¡°I guess we¡¯re not the first caretakers to come here. There are so many rooms set up downstairs, and they even have separate bathrooms. They must have been prepared for the caretakers who came to take care of the old people in the villa¡­¡± Every word Ning said made Liu¡¯s heart jump! ¡°Bro¡­ let¡¯s go back quickly¡­¡± ¡°What if it comes back, aren¡¯t we¡­¡± Liu started to back down, but Ning had no intention of leaving. ¡°We¡¯re very close to the truth¡­¡± ¡°Big beard¡­¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you curious what exactly that thing is that ate all the original residents of the villa complex?¡± Hearing Ning¡¯s words, Liu was startled at first, then his mouth twitched. ¡°No, Brother, I¡¯ve discovered that you are truly fearless¡­¡± ¡°Is the truth¡­ more important than life?¡± Ning asked back: ¡°Can you leave this floor, can you leave the villa, leave the villa complex?¡± ¡°Who knows what other rules it has for killing?¡± ¡°Maybe we triggered its killing rules from the moment we entered the villa, but we were lucky and it wasn¡¯t our turn yet¡­¡± ¡°And it¡¯s already gone downstairs to hunt, it might be feasting right next door to us¡­ As more people die, we¡¯ll only become more and more in danger!¡± Liu¡¯s face was changing color. Finally, he gritted his teeth and said: ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll trust you this once!¡± They passed by these rooms and reached the innermost room. It was a study. There were no bloodstains at the door, it was clean as if it didn¡¯t belong to this floor. The two of them looked at each other, their eyes lit up. ¡°This must be it!¡± With a pounding heart, they pushed open the door, and a strong smell of dust rushed towards them. Looking at the furnishings, it seemed to be a study. It wasn¡¯t big or small, there was also a skeleton inside, which had been decaying for a long time. Judging from the size and details of the skeleton, it was a girl of about 14 or 15 years old. In the skeleton¡¯s hands, it was holding a teddy bear. The teddy bear¡¯s eyes were black and seemed to be examining them. Ning walked up to the skeleton, checked it, and said: ¡°¡­ This person wasn¡¯t eaten.¡± ¡°There are no fork marks on her ribs, breastbone, or throat bone.¡± He had checked the bodies of Wang and Yamo earlier, and although their internal organs and some muscle tissue had been eaten, there were also many fork marks on their bones. But there were none on this skeleton. ¡°Not eaten?¡± ¡°Then how did she die?¡± Liu¡¯s doubts deepened. Ning examined the body for a long time. ¡°It¡¯s most likely she died of starvation or dehydration.¡± ¡°That thing outside shouldn¡¯t be able to get into this room, but she couldn¡¯t get out either, she was trapped here¡­ no water, no food, most people would die in three or five days.¡± ¡°Look, this window is nailed with steel bars. There is heavy rust on the steel bars, unlike the ones in the old woman¡¯s room on the second floor, indicating that these steel bars were nailed up a long time ago. It¡¯s likely that at some point, her family was afraid that she would climb out of the window. After all, this is the third floor, so they nailed up her window.¡± ¡°But at that time, her family probably didn¡¯t expect that these steel bars would be¡­ what cut off her last hope of escape!¡± Liu listened to Ning¡¯s words, and a cold chill spread through his heart. He could imagine the despair of this skeleton before it died. There was a terrifying man-eating monster outside, and there was no other way to leave the room, so she could only be trapped to death here in despair! ¡°Hey, Bro, look, behind that corpse¡¯s butt¡­ there seems to be something!¡± 11.Trapped in the Villa Ning also noticed it. He stretched out his hand and touched it. In the darkness, Ning felt a book. He picked it up, the dust on it still bearing the fingerprints of despair. He flipped it open. By the dim moonlight from the window, the two saw the contents recorded in the book¡ª ¡­ [2037.6.1, Cloudy] [¡­Grandfather called, Grandma is dying, telling Mom to come back home¡­] [But for some unknown reason, Mom, who always cared about Grandma, refused very firmly.] ¡­ [2037.6.9, Cloudy] [Mom didn¡¯t go to work.] [She looked very scared.] [What was Mom scared of?] ¡­ [2037.6.12, Cloudy] [These days, I¡¯ve seen Mom crying secretly, asking her why she was crying, Mom didn¡¯t speak, just hugged me.] [She hugged me tightly, I felt like I couldn¡¯t breathe.] ¡­ [2037.6.21, Rain] [Grandma passed away, Grandpa called Mom, after Mom hung up the phone, her face was pale.] [She suddenly went out, and didn¡¯t come back until late at night, gave me a blood-red jade stone, told me to hang it by the window, no matter what happens, don¡¯t take it down.] ¡­ [2037.6.22, Heavy Rain] [Mom packed her bags, left home with Dad, leaving me and Grandma Wang , the housekeeper who has been taking care of this house for many years.] [Before leaving, they told me and Wang , if we see them come home, don¡¯t open the door.] ¡­ [2037.7.12, Heavy Rain] [Mom came back.] [I remembered what Mom and Dad told me, but I still opened the door.] [I¡­ I missed them so much.] ¡­ [2037.8.1, Heavy Rain] [No¡­.] [It¡­ It¡¯s not Mom!] ¡­ [2037.8.15, Heavy Rain] [I¡¯m not a good child, I didn¡¯t listen to Mom and Dad, I let that scary thing in¡­] [It¡¯s outside now¡­] [I¡¯m thirsty and hungry, but I dare not go out¡­] [Will¡­ I die?] [What should I do?] ¡­ The content of the diary ends here. The contents are shocking. The two looked at the contents of the diary, speechless for a long time. ¡°It turns out¡­ the old woman on the second floor wasn¡¯t the villa owner¡¯s mother, but¡­ the villa¡¯s housekeeper.¡± Liu¡¯s throat moved. ¡°Then, that monster¡­¡± Ning closed the notebook and said to Liu behind him: This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ¡°At the entrance of the villa, in the shoe cabinet, there are neatly arranged new women¡¯s shoes, I was thinking, a woman who loves shoes so much, if she really wants to go on a trip, she should at least bring a few pairs, right?¡± Liu was stunned. They all passed by that shoe cabinet several times, but no one noticed it. This guy Ning¡¯s observation skills¡­ are too scary, right? ¡°Besides, don¡¯t you want to know what the words that old lady on the second floor kept repeating are?¡± Upon hearing this, Liu regained his senses a little and looked at Ning. ¡°Yes, what are they?¡± Under the pale moonlight, Ning and Liu looked at each other, and slowly uttered the truth that made Liu¡¯s blood run cold: ¡°The old lady on the second floor wasn¡¯t saying the meat is not cooked.¡± ¡°She was trying to tell us¡­ the person didn¡¯t leave!¡± Liu¡¯s breathing quickened, his eyes widened: ¡°Bro, you mean, the woman in red dress we saw first¡­ didn¡¯t leave?!¡± Ning nodded slowly. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°It didn¡¯t leave at all.¡± ¡°It probably went to a nearby secluded place¡­ and ate that girl.¡± Da! Liu¡¯s legs went weak, he couldn¡¯t stand firm, and almost fell. ¡°Damn¡­¡± He was numb. His whole body was numb. Ning stood by the window, stretched out his hand, and touched the blood jade hanging by the window. No matter what it is, what it¡¯s made of¡­ it doesn¡¯t matter. What matters is¡­ This blood jade can block the terrifying woman, whose true identity is unknown, inside the villa! Suddenly, he thought of something and said to Liu: ¡°Big Beard, hurry!¡± ¡°We¡¯ll split up, you go to the kitchen on the first floor and pack food, prioritize cooked food that can fill the stomach!¡± Liu was stunned for a moment. ¡°Then¡­ what about you, bro?¡± Ning replied: ¡°I¡¯ll go to the second floor and move the old lady up!¡± Liu immediately understood what Ning was going to do. ¡°Won¡¯t we bump into that¡­ thing?¡± Ning¡¯s eyes were sharp, his tone was firm and resolute. ¡°We have to give it a shot!¡± ¡°There are not many of us left, and we can only enter the third floor at night when it is foraging!¡± ¡°After tonight, if we want to bring the old lady and food in here again, it probably won¡¯t be so easy!¡± Upon hearing this, Liu gritted his teeth. ¡°Okay!¡± There¡¯s no turning back now. By now, he had complete trust in Ning. If it wasn¡¯t for him, he would have probably died on the first night. Now, they had to take a gamble! The two retreated from the room door, and after confirming that the ghost thing hadn¡¯t returned, they immediately went downstairs. Liu went straight to the kitchen on the first floor, without turning on the lights, he took the bags in the kitchen and started packing food! Although it was pitch black here, Liu remembered Ning¡¯s instructions and didn¡¯t turn on the lights, but luckily, Liu had been working in the kitchen, he had a rough idea of where each ingredient was. However, Liu¡¯s hands were shaking badly. In the darkness, it seemed like countless pairs of eyes were watching him. In those dark corners, behind the doors, it seemed like a terrifying phantom could appear at any time and eat him! ¡°Quick¡­ quick¡­¡± He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. Large beads of sweat fell from his forehead. Soon, Liu packed three bags full of food. He dragged the three bags of food and quickly ran upstairs, seeing Ning also carrying the old lady towards the stairs. The old lady was stout and weighed about 150 to 160 pounds. If it weren¡¯t for Ning¡¯s extraordinary physique, he really couldn¡¯t carry her! ¡°Go up first!¡± Ning saw Liu stop in the hallway and directly instructed. Liu nodded and ran towards the third floor with the food. Ning also went to the third floor, but the floor on the third floor was sticky and slippery, he couldn¡¯t go too fast, otherwise he would fall. The old lady was weak, if she really fell, who knows what would happen! ¡°Almost¡­ almost there¡­¡± Reaching the third floor, Ning strode towards the study at the end, Liu was already standing inside the door, with half of his body exposed, looking out. He was looking at Ning, full of vigilance. Suddenly, he seemed to see something, his eyes filled with immense fear! Liu waved at Ning, exclaimed in terror: ¡°Hurry! Bro!¡± ¡°It, it¡¯s catching up!!¡± Ning, carrying the old lady, froze when he heard this! Sizzle¡ª¡ª Sizzle¡ª¡ª Sizzle¡ª¡ª The horrifying sound of cutlery rubbing against each other rang out behind them again, Ning gritted his teeth and ran towards the door without regard for the possibility of falling! At this point, he couldn¡¯t afford to hesitate anymore! Ning knew that if he lingered any longer, he would surely die! The icy killing intent spread over with the pale moonlight, enveloping Ning¡¯s whole body, he dared not look back, nor could he look back! Faster¡­ Faster!! Ning roared in his heart, gritting his teeth, running desperately forward! But even though he had given it his all, he could still hear the terrifying sound of cutlery rubbing against each other behind him getting closer¡­ No! He was carrying a person, he couldn¡¯t outrun the ghost thing behind him! As they were only five steps away from the door, a cold and pale hand suddenly reached out from behind and grabbed Ning¡¯s neck! ¡°Where are¡­ you going?¡± A woman¡¯s voice, full of resentment and coldness, echoed in his ears. Ning¡¯s whole body went cold, his strength was drained away visibly. He was¡­ too slow. Just as Ning was waiting for death to come, a figure suddenly rushed out from behind the door of the study, pressing down on the pale arm! ¡°Ahhhhh!!!¡± The woman¡¯s shrill scream rang out, accompanied by a puff of white smoke, she let go of Ning, and Ning was also grabbed by another warm hand, dragged into the study! As soon as they entered the study, Liu scrambled to the window, rehanging the blood jade! Only after doing this, did Liu collapse on the ground with a thud, his legs shaking like sieves¡­ ¡°Ah!!!¡± The woman in red outside screamed wildly, filled with rage, she twisted her body, came to the door of the study, her eyes filled with resentment as she looked at the two! Only at this moment did the two finally see clearly the appearance of the woman in red, under the moonlight¡­ What a horrifying face was it? Her enormous mouth stretched to her ears, her mouth was full of densely packed sharp teeth, and they could vaguely see hair and shredded flesh inside¡­ The area around her eyes was full of cracks, as if rotting. Her limbs were twice as long as a normal person¡¯s, her whole body was like a spider curled up on the wall! That blood-mud covered sharp cutlery was clutched tightly in one of her hands! ¡°Damn¡­ what the hell is this?!¡± Liu felt like his breath was about to stop, he couldn¡¯t help but curse! The woman in red outside was restless, constantly pacing back and forth, as if she wanted to enter the room, but seemed to be wary of something, in the end she could only give up, roared at the two in the study, turned and left¡­ 12.The Friend in the Photo "So close..." "So close." Ning was almost killed by that terrifying woman! If Liu hadn''t rushed out with the blood jade at the critical moment to help, Ning would have been doomed! "Thank you..." Ning sat cross-legged on the floor, propping himself up with one hand on his knees, gasping for breath. "Just now... it was so incredibly dangerous!" Liu patted his trembling legs as he shook his head, saying: "I should be thanking you, bro..." "If you hadn''t brought me to this place, I would have been eaten by that terrifying woman sooner or later!" He finished, then burst into laughter. It was the unrestrained joy of having escaped death. Liu, like a madman, lay on the ground and laughed hysterically. After a long time, he returned to normal. "Right, brother... what about the others?" Liu helped the old lady to sit upright, confirming that she was alright, then asked Ning. The latter''s eyes flickered slightly. "We absolutely cannot go out now..." "It''s too dangerous outside, let''s see if we can contact them from the third floor tomorrow, if that doesn''t work, then we''ve done all we can." Ning seemed indifferent to the death of strangers. He didn''t mind helping those people, especially those who had no grudge against him. But the prerequisite was... that he wouldn''t be put in danger. After all, when he asked those people if they were willing to join him in adventuring to find the truth, none of them stepped forward. He took the risks, while others enjoyed the benefits, no one would be happy about that. He was not a merciful, compassionate, and selfless monk. "Right, brother... I have another question." Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Liu, having basically recovered, seemed to remember something. "Go ahead." "You... how did you know the killing rules of the ghost thing in the villa?" Upon mentioning this, Ning fell silent in the darkness for a while. "Because, before I got on the bus, I received an anonymous letter." "A letter?" "Yes, the letter with a photo and a few words." He finished, then slowly recited those words: "Wind does not light lamps, rain does not burn candles." "Sun does not climb the tower, night does not close its eyes." Hearing those four sentences, Liu was wide-eyed, his face filled with disbelief: "Holy crap... that''s right!" "Brother, you''re too awesome, you have a mentor helping you!" "Then, what about the photo?" Ning glanced at him, his eyes moving slightly. "You want to know?" Liu¡¯s face stiffened. "What, is it inconvenient?" "If it''s inconvenient..." Before he could finish, he saw Ning reach into his black checkered shirt and take out a slightly yellowed photo, facing him. The latter looked at the photo, his pupils constricted! "No way..." Under the moonlight, Liu saw that it was a person''s photo. And the person in the photo was none other than... Liu himself! The two looked at each other, separated only by a thin photo, speechless for a long time. Liu saw his own photo, but did not see the words behind it. Yes, on the back of this yellowed old photo, there was a line of black writing¡ª [A friend worth knowing... but full of questions] Liu stretched out his hand, wanting to take it and examine it carefully, but Ning took back the photo, smiling at him: "Surprised, right?" "I¡¯m surprised too." "Originally, I thought it was just a prank, or someone filled in the wrong recipient..." "But when I woke up on that bus and saw you, I realized that things were not as simple as I thought." "That bus without a driver, that mysterious mist, that strange blood door... and us on the bus." "All this, behind it, there must be an invisible hand manipulating it!" Liu chuckled upon hearing this. "Bro... to be honest, in the real world, I doubt anyone could do all this." "You saw the situation outside." "That¡¯s not something humans can achieve." Ning remained silent. He didn''t continue to argue about this. But that mysterious letter, so far, everything on it has come true. The strange blood door, the strange killing rules... and a friend he didn''t know but who risked his life to save him. It¡¯s a scary thing. As if... someone was watching him, unseen. The night passed without a word. The two hadn''t slept much the whole night, now they had gone through such tension, after calming down, sleepiness came like a tide. Until the next morning, the shrill screams from the second floor broke the silence of the villa. Obviously, someone had died again. What made the survivors on the second floor even more terrified was that not only had someone died in their sleep, but three people had also gone missing! What the hell are they supposed to do? Ning and Liu listened to the sounds from the second floor, and knew that the man who died last night was the one called Beidou. He was eaten. "Woooo..." "They... they''re all gone..." "Have they all been...?" "Woooo..." "I''m so scared! I don''t want to die here..." Yan¡¯s intermittent cries came from downstairs. Liu shouted loudly at the window, wanting to pass the message down, but it seemed like their voices were confined to the third floor, no matter how hard Liu shouted, no one came to save... well, no one heard him. "Alright, stop crying." Seeing Liu¡¯s unyielding posture, Ning shook his head slightly. Liu felt uncomfortable with Ning''s indifference. "Bro, aren''t you a doctor? There are two living people down there, are we just going to abandon them, isn''t that a bit..." Ning closed his eyes and said: "Although I''m a veterinarian, there are three people I don''t save." Liu was stunned: "Three people you don''t save? Which three?" 13.The Last Sacrifice "I don''t save animals that are bound to die, it wastes my energy." "I don''t save dying animals, it shortens my lifespan." "I don''t save sick animals, I''ll catch their diseases." Liu almost laughed out loud. "Bro, are you kidding me? You''re a veterinarian, if you don''t save this one, and you don''t save that one, aren''t you going to starve to death?" Ning smiled faintly, "I''m a veterinarian, but I''m not just a veterinarian... who told you that I make a living by treating pets?" Liu spread his hands, "Alright... then what kind of animal will you save, brother?" Ning answered quite casually, "If I like them, I''ll save them." "...Even if I know I can''t save them, I''ll do my best." "Even at a cost." Liu looked at Ning in surprise and laughed. This guy... his personality is so interesting. After laughing, Liu thought of something else. He suddenly started writing and drawing in the study, then used the curtains to tie the notebook he wrote on and kept hitting the window downstairs! Since his voice couldn''t reach the second floor, the sounds coming from the second floor... could always attract their attention, right? As a result, he had only hit it a few times when the curtains suddenly broke! Liu pulled back the remaining half of the curtains and pulled them hard, muttering to himself: "No way... ,how could it break so easily..." He tried several more times, but to no avail. The strange phenomenon made Liu¡¯s back turn cold, he vaguely felt an ominous feeling of being watched, so he gave up on continuing to send messages downstairs. "What''s wrong?" Ning saw that he had finally stopped and casually asked. Liu¡¯s forehead was sweating, "I feel like something is staring at me, if I continue doing this..." He didn''t finish his sentence. But Ning already understood. Obviously, according to the rules of the villa, the third floor was separated from the other floors. If they forcibly tried to send messages from the third floor to the second or first floor... it would be breaking the rules of the world behind the blood door and would face terrible misfortune! "Sigh, well, they''re really at the mercy of fate..." He sighed, sat down against the corpse by the window, picked up the diary from its hand again, flipped through it for a while, and then said, "Brother... what exactly is that monster outside?" Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Ning thought for a moment. "From the diary¡¯s records, that terrifying woman outside should be related to the girl¡¯s grandmother, and the girl¡¯s parents must have known something." "But what exactly happened, we don¡¯t know yet." "Maybe, when this is all over, we can go back and ask that man in the suit..." Liu nodded. ¡­ For the next three days, they stayed in this room eating, drinking, and relieving themselves. Fortunately, there was plenty of food and water, so survival wasn¡¯t a problem. As for the two survivors downstairs, they eventually failed to survive the last three days. When Xue was also killed and eaten by the thing on the third night, the remaining Yan collapsed in extreme terror. She ran out of the villa and escaped into the rain, her fate was obvious. Liu felt a bit uncomfortable. After all, they had spent some time together, and they weren''t bad people. But this discomfort quickly faded with time. In the middle of the night on the fifth day, the two were awakened by the sudden sound of a car horn outside the window. The two quickly got up and stood by the window, looking out at the rain outside. They saw a bus parked outside the villa, honking its horn. They were familiar with this bus. It was the one that took them into the mist! "Hey! The bus''s here! The bus''s here!" "But... brother, how do we get out?!" Liu looked at the dilapidated bus parked at the entrance of the villa, and had just exclaimed with joy, but when he turned his head, his joy was quenched by a wave of coldness! He saw that terrifying, tall, red-clothed woman standing at their door, staring at them with lustful eyes! It seemed that the woman in red knew they wanted to leave. "We have to figure out a way quickly!" "That bus won''t wait for us too long!" Ning¡¯s eyes flashed as he searched for tools. Just as he was considering dismantling the iron bars on the window, the old lady lying next to him spoke. Even though her voice was very weak, they were close enough to hear what she was saying. "Young men... push me out..." The two lowered their heads slowly, looking at the old lady. The expression on her face was surprisingly calm, her eyes regained a brief moment of clarity. It seemed that after a long period of torture, she wanted to end it all. "It... can''t do anything else... when it''s eating..." "Push me out... while it''s eating me... you guys quickly leave... never come back..." Liu¡¯s eyes widened, "How can we... woah, bro, are you really going to push the old lady out?!" Ning replied, "Push, one dies." "Don''t push, three die." The old lady also smiled, "He''s right..." "I... won¡¯t... blame you... being alive... is too painful for me..." "Just do me a favor... set me free..." Upon hearing this, Liu no longer had any qualms about being merciful. He gritted his teeth and, together with Ning, pushed the old lady out in front of the woman in red! The woman in red wasn¡¯t originally planning on eating the old lady, because she still needed to keep her around to continue fishing. But it hadn¡¯t eaten anything in two days... it couldn¡¯t resist this fresh meat right at its doorstep! It stabbed its knife and fork into the old lady¡¯s chest and abdomen, and then... the extremely brutal scene made Liu feel sick... "Go!" Ning snatched the blood jade from the windowsill and, with Liu, rushed past the woman in red who was feasting! The bone-chilling coldness radiated from the woman in red¡¯s resentful gaze, making their legs go weak! Fortunately, the old lady didn¡¯t lie to them. The ghost couldn¡¯t do anything else while it was eating! "Hurry!" Ning looked back and shouted. "It eats fast!" Liu, running ahead, was sweating profusely, gritting his teeth, running wildly towards downstairs! Bang! He practically rammed out the villa door! The yellow headlights of the bus ahead were like a beacon of hope, guiding the two. As Ning also ran out of the villa door, a terrifying roar came from the third floor, followed by a loud booming sound from inside the villa! That woman in red... was chasing after them! "Brother, hurry!" "Hurry!!" Liu didn¡¯t immediately enter the bus, but stood at the door, shouting to Ning. As Ning ran to the door, he reached out and pulled him into the bus! Behind them, the terrifying woman in red, twisting and crawling on the ground like a spider, was only three or five steps away from Ning! But as soon as Ning got on the bus, the woman in red suddenly stopped chasing, roaring angrily at the two inside the bus! But she could only bark a few times, she didn¡¯t dare to get close to the bus. It seemed that the incredibly vicious woman in red was very wary of the bus they were on. In the end, she could only slowly turn around and disappear into the villa on the other side of the rain... 14.The Puzzle Pieces As they sat back on the driverless bus, Ning and Liu finally breathed a sigh of relief. ¡°We¡­ we survived, right?¡± Liu, with his thick beard, panted heavily, staring out of the window at the terrifying, tall woman in red entering the villa before realizing that his legs were as weak as jelly. ¡°Yes.¡± Ning replied. Then, neither of them spoke again. Five days had passed, and out of the seven people originally on this bus, only two remained. Liu felt a strange sense of emptiness. He didn¡¯t have much affection for the others, but seeing them die so miserably in front of him, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of sadness. Because, he had also been so close to death. If it hadn¡¯t been for Ning, his fate would have been the same as the others. Shortly after getting on the bus, the door closed, and the bus slowly started moving. Soon, they were back in the fog, once again traveling through the rain. The two of them drifted off to sleep on the bus. When they woke up again, it was the next morning. Ning twisted his stiff body and looked out the window. They had already reached the black villa¡¯s courtyard. ¡°Hey, Big Beard, wake up.¡± Ning nudged Liu, who jumped up with a start, yelling, ¡°Ghost! Ghost!¡± ¡°Run!¡± Ning looked at Liu, who was flailing his arms, and thought to himself, this guy is really unlucky, he¡¯s being chased by ghosts in the blood door mission, and now he¡¯s having nightmares about it too. After confirming that the person next to him was Ning, Liu wiped the sweat off his face and panted, ¡°Bro, you scared the life out of me!¡± Ning pointed to the black courtyard outside and said, ¡°Get off, we¡¯re here.¡± One after the other, they got off the bus and entered the black villa. When they entered the hall again, they saw that only one person remained. It was that particularly handsome boy. He was like a porcelain doll, with fair, rosy skin and a small, frail figure. If he didn¡¯t speak, almost no one would think he was a boy. ¡°Why are you the only one here?¡± Liu frowned. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Seeing the two of them return alive from behind the blood door, the boy¡¯s attitude warmed considerably compared to before. ¡°Uncle Liang has something to deal with, he went back to the world before. Sister Bai went to bring new people through the blood door, and another one is cooking in the kitchen.¡± Ning¡¯s eyes flickered. ¡°Can we go back to the world before?¡± The boy poked the charcoal in the brazier. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°If you can take the bus here, you can naturally take the bus back.¡± ¡°Sigh¡­¡± He sighed and rubbed his long hair with his hand. ¡°I hate this part the most. Every time new people come, I have to explain so many things, it makes my mouth dry¡­ what¡¯s even worse is that sometimes I just tell them the rules today, and next week they die.¡± ¡°But at least you guys made it out of the blood door alive, if you have any questions, ask now.¡± The two looked at each other and thought for a moment before Ning asked, ¡°What¡¯s the deal with the blood door and the fog?¡± The boy said, ¡°It¡¯s a curse.¡± ¡°We are all cursed people. The fog is a separate world, separated from the outside world. You can only enter and leave by taking the bus in the world of fog.¡± ¡°The courtyard we¡¯re in is called the Villa. There are many Villas like this in the world of fog. Likewise, there are many blood doors.¡± ¡°Every so often, we have to enter the terrifying world behind the blood door and complete the task on the blood door. We have to survive with all our might and try to collect as many puzzle pieces as possible.¡± ¡°When we collect 12 puzzle pieces, we can take the complete puzzle and take the bus to the end of the fog world.¡± As he spoke, he pointed to a picture frame above the hall. The two looked at it. The picture frame was half-filled with a puzzle. The painting depicted a rotten human head. There was a blood hole on the forehead, resembling an eye, which was bleeding, making it look very hideous! ¡°What¡¯s at the end of the fog world?¡± Ning asked. The boy shrugged. ¡°I have no idea.¡± ¡°After all, none of us have been there.¡± ¡°Also, don¡¯t blame us for being too cold before... you know, in this world, death is commonplace. If you make a close friend, and he dies in the world behind the blood door, you¡¯ll be incredibly heartbroken.¡± The boy¡¯s expression became subdued as he spoke. ¡°Before, was the Villa¡­¡± Ning seemed to understand something, but before he could finish, he saw the boy nod. ¡°About half a month before you came, Uncle Liang¡¯s best friend, Uncle Mang¡­ died in the world behind the blood door.¡± ¡°And Sister Xiao¡¯s best friend, Zhizi¡­ also committed suicide with him.¡± ¡°So actually, everyone isn¡¯t in a good mood.¡± Thinking back to the heavy atmosphere in the hall when they first entered the Villa, they could understand now. ¡°Alright, it¡¯s almost time for dinner. After dinner, if you don¡¯t want to stay here, you can wait for the bus at the bus stop outside the villa.¡± ¡°When it¡¯s time for your second blood door mission in a week, the bus will come to pick you up in advance¡­¡± At the dinner table, the four sat opposite each other in silence, eating quietly. ¡°Honestly, your cooking skills are terrible¡­¡± Liu ate a few bites and couldn¡¯t help but complain. Jun, who was cooking, looked up and gave Liu a cold glance, ¡°If you don¡¯t like it, you can throw it away, or you can cook it yourself.¡± Liu was a boisterous man with a bad temper, and he was about to retort, but when he met Jun¡¯s gaze, he shrank his neck. Jun¡¯s eyes were terrifying. At that moment, Liu even felt like a knife was being held to his neck! He could almost be certain that this man named Jun... had killed people! However, Liu was not a man who would swallow his pride. He stiffened his neck and said, ¡°I¡¯ll cook it myself then!¡± ¡°I¡¯m putting it out there, starting today, I, Liu, am the head chef here. From now on, as long as I¡¯m here, you¡¯re not allowed to enter the kitchen. Want to eat something? I¡¯ll cook it for you!¡± He said the most cowardly words with a tough tone. Ning couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. During the meal, he learned that there were four other older people left in this Villa. Liang was the head of the house and was also the first person to enter the Villa. The boy was called Tian and was an orphan who depended on his sister. Jun was Liang¡¯s best friend in the outside world and was a soldier who had fought on the border. The only beautiful woman, Bai, was very mysterious. Everyone didn¡¯t know her background, only that she was¡­ very powerful in the outside world. During the conversation, Ning brought up the matter of the woman in red from their first blood door. However, Jun and Tian remained silent after hearing it. ¡°What¡­ why aren¡¯t you guys saying anything?¡± Seeing the two of them silent, Liu couldn¡¯t help but shout. As soon as he finished speaking, Jun picked up his plate and walked towards the kitchen. ¡°I¡¯m full.¡± He said calmly. But both of them could sense a change in Jun¡¯s attitude towards them. This change was very abrupt... As if spring, which had just warmed up, suddenly plunged into winter. 15.The Mysterious Letter ¡°No, what''s wrong with you guys?¡± ¡°Did we say something taboo?¡± Liu felt very strange about the change in their attitude, as if he had said something he shouldn¡¯t have. Tian¡¯s face was clouded with uncertainty, and after a long time, he exhaled a sigh of relief. ¡°You guys¡­ you¡¯re really unlucky!¡± The two looked at each other, and Ning frowned, ¡°What do you mean?¡± Tian introduced them to the mechanism of the terrifying world behind the blood door: ¡°The ghosts inside the blood door are divided into two types¡­ one is born in the place, these ghosts are bound spirits, no matter how powerful they are, no matter how deep their resentment is, when we complete the mission and leave the blood door, the grudge with these ghosts will come to an end.¡± ¡°But the other type¡­ is special.¡± ¡°Although they are also restricted by the rules of the blood door, they are not limited to one area. When they have slaughtered all the NPCs in a certain area, they will go to other places to wreak havoc.¡± ¡°These ghosts¡­ have an absurd amount of resentment!¡± ¡°Usually, after you encounter one in the previous blood door, the next blood door will have something to do with its story!¡± ¡°And the blood door stories involving these ghosts are all more terrifying and have a higher death rate than ordinary blood doors!¡± After a pause, Tian¡¯s tone carried a hint of sympathy. ¡°I don¡¯t know what bad karma you guys have¡­ you encountered a ghost like that in your first blood door, no wonder only two of you survived.¡± ¡°But I think you¡¯ll only live until this point, I¡¯m not cursing you¡­ go write your last will and testament, make arrangements for your affairs.¡± ¡°Say goodbye properly to your family and friends.¡± Tian sighed longingly and helped them to collect their dishes, carrying them to the kitchen. At that moment, the two of them finally understood why their attitude had changed so drastically. Because in their eyes, the two of them were already dead! ¡°Seriously, do they really look down on us like that?¡± ¡°If we can survive the first time from that ghost thing, we can survive the second and third time!¡± ¡°They think we can¡¯t survive the next blood door, well, we¡¯ll survive to show them!¡± Liu grumbled and pretended to be nonchalant, but Ning could hear a barely perceptible tremble in his voice. After washing the dishes, Tian still took the two of them to their room in the Villa. Surprisingly, they didn¡¯t live in that villa. Instead, they lived in a flat behind the garden. The environment was beautiful, even though it was desolate, it was definitely much better than that dark villa. Tian handed them the keys, instructed them about a few things, and then went back to the villa to watch TV. Although they had a TV in their room, the one in the villa was much larger. Because Ning and Liu both had things on their minds, they didn¡¯t take the bus back to their original world, wanting to wait for Liang, the headman of the Villa, to come back and ask him about the next blood door. But even until nightfall, no one came back from the villa. The two of them had no choice but to decide to wait another day. In the middle of the night, Ning felt restless, so he went out for a walk in the yard, but he heard whispering coming from the villa. He raised an eyebrow and went to the back door to eavesdrop. He heard the voices of a woman and a calm man. He recognized the man''s voice, it was Jun. As for the woman... he had never heard her voice before. It must be Bai¡¯s. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Bai¡­ are you sure you¡¯re not wrong?¡± ¡°What, you don¡¯t believe me?¡± ¡°You know about Liang and Mang¡¯s relationship, right? If he knew that Mang¡¯s death was intentional, Liang wouldn¡¯t let him get away with it!¡± Just as Bai was about to say something, she suddenly turned her head, looking towards Ning ¡¯s position, and said coldly, ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± ¡°Come out!¡± Ning emerged from the darkness. Seeing that this guy was a newcomer to their Villa, the coldness on Bai¡¯s delicate face eased slightly. She was wearing red lipstick. Very red. Like a phoenix in flames, it was a stark contrast to her name. ¡°It¡¯s so late, why aren¡¯t you asleep?¡± Ning didn¡¯t mind being rejected, he simply said, ¡°You guys aren¡¯t asleep either?¡± He sat down on the sofa without hesitation and looked at the fire pit in the center. With his arrival, the two suddenly stopped their conversation. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Finally, Bai spoke first. ¡°Ning .¡± ¡°Hm, how did you feel about your first blood door?¡± Ning opened an unopened bottle of ice beer on the table and took a sip. ¡°Honestly, it wasn¡¯t good.¡± ¡°I almost died.¡± Bai absentmindedly ¡°hm¡±ed and gave him a very perfunctory comfort, ¡°The world behind the blood door is like that, if you¡¯re not careful you¡¯ll lose your life. But after going through one, the next ones will be easier¡­¡± Before she could finish, Jun, who was beside her, said coldly, ¡°There aren¡¯t any more doors.¡± Bai snapped out of her daze and said with some surprise, ¡°Jun, what do you mean?¡± Jun stood up. ¡°Just ask him yourself, I¡¯m going to sleep.¡± He left without looking back. Bai looked at Ning , who then described the story of his next blood door in detail. Of course, Ning omitted some facts. About the mysterious anonymous letter. He only mentioned the death rules that they had discovered by chance. After listening to Ning ¡¯s description, Bai¡¯s eyes shifted back and forth. It was a very complex look. There was admiration, sympathy¡­ even a hint of regret. ¡°Jun and Tian are right. The woman in red from your first blood door is definitely not an ordinary bound spirit, she¡¯s a very difficult, terrifying ghost¡­ fortunately, this was your first dungeon, her abilities and killing rules were severely limited by the blood door, and thanks to your boldness and meticulousness, you found a way out in time, otherwise you would never have survived!¡± ¡°Moreover, the story behind your next blood door should be related to this ghost.¡± ¡°If you can deal with it cleanly, you might be able to bring back a ghost artifact from behind that blood door.¡± Ning was stunned. ¡°A ghost artifact?¡± Bai turned her palm, and a bloody wooden comb instantly appeared in her fair, delicate palm. ¡°Like this.¡± ¡°Usually, things from the blood door can¡¯t be brought out, but in some high-difficulty blood doors, there will be powerful items, these items are very valuable, and they have different functions.¡± ¡°For example, this comb of mine, if you comb your hair with it, ghosts will be unable to target the person who used it for a minute.¡± ¡°These ghost artifacts can greatly increase our survival rate in the world behind the blood door!¡± Ning remembered the blood jade he brought out from behind the first blood door and thought thoughtfully. Things from the blood door cannot be brought out, except for ghost artifacts. It seems¡­ that blood jade is also a ghost artifact. Seeing Ning ¡¯s expression, Bai thought he was scared by the next blood door. She hesitated for a moment and said, ¡°Never mind, there aren¡¯t many people left in our Villa. Several batches of newcomers have come recently, but they were all wiped out in the first three doors¡­¡± ¡°Next week, when you go into your second blood door, I¡¯ll take you through it for free.¡± ¡°And... you guys actually have potential worth cultivating.¡± As soon as Bai finished speaking, Ning suddenly remembered that Tian had told them that Bai brought new people through the blood door in the outside world. ¡°This thing¡­ can it be brought in?¡± Ning was a bit surprised. Bai nodded. ¡°Newcomers can have other people accompany them through their first six blood doors.¡± ¡°There are even specialized ¡®studios¡¯ that do this.¡± ¡°But this kind of escorting, usually requires a hefty fee, after all, we¡¯re all human. Even if you¡¯re experienced, there¡¯s still a risk of failure when entering a low-difficulty blood door¡­¡± Ning nodded, understanding. After all, it was a matter of life and death, it¡¯s normal to charge more. After all, money is nothing compared to life. After figuring this out, Ning rested at the Villa for a night, then took the bus and returned to the world outside the fog. A friend named ¡®Mole¡¯ had sent him a message. The message was short¡ª [Can¡¯t find it. There¡¯s no record of that anonymous letter at the post office.] [The people at the post office told me that the anonymous letter I was looking for was¡­ a nonexistent letter.] [But don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll keep an eye out for you] Ning narrowed his eyes. Mole was his friend. A person who was¡­ very good at finding things. ¡°Even you can¡¯t find it¡­¡± Ning murmured to himself. Ding-dong¡ª As he was lost in thought, the doorbell suddenly rang. The sound startled Ning , he got up and went to the door, opening it. It was his neighbor, a chubby aunt in her fifties named Cui. She was wearing a floral dress, as if she had just been out shopping, with some sweat on her forehead. She smiled and handed Ning a letter. ¡°Ning, your letter.¡± Ning took the letter, his eyes suddenly changing. ¡°Auntie Cui, this letter¡­ where did you get it?¡± Cui took out her key to open the door, casually replying, ¡°From the mailbox downstairs...¡± ¡°You¡¯re such a careless child, every time you come home, you should remember to check the mailbox¡­¡± She opened the door and went inside. Holding the letter, Ning closed the door as well. He went to the sofa in the living room and sat down, looking at the letter on the coffee table, his breathing quickened. The second letter. He opened it. Sure enough, it was anonymous again. But this time, there were no hints, only a photo. And this photo made Ning freeze in place! It was¡­ a photo of Bai! It was also old and yellowed, as if it had been around for a while. But the Bai in the photo was clearly the same age as the Bai he had seen! Her smile was vivid, her red lips were not eroded by the marks of time, so beautiful. ¡°Damn¡­¡± This time, even the normally calm Ning couldn¡¯t help but curse. This¡­ was too strange! He slowly flipped the photo over. His fingers trembled slightly. On the back of the photo, there was also a sentence¡ª [She cannot die in your second door] ¡°Sure enough¡­¡± Ning ¡¯s back was ice cold. The person who sent the letter¡­ was watching him from somewhere! Just¡­ Why did he have these photos, and why was he giving him hints? What exactly¡­ was he trying to do? 16.A Living Hexagram Ning put down the yellowed photo in his hand, feeling his heart racing wildly! Who was constantly watching him? Even the world of mist couldn''t stop the other party''s prying eyes! Sitting on the sofa, Ning finally regained his senses after a long time. After hesitating for a moment, he sent these messages to his friend "Mole." Mole quickly replied: "Well, the last letter hasn''t been figured out yet, and now another one comes... Anyway, don''t worry, I''m not very busy lately, I''ll figure out a way to help you, if it doesn''t work, I''ll contact that lady..." The moment that lady was mentioned, Ning paused, and after a moment, he only said: "Thank you." He hung up the phone, as if all his strength had been drained, and he collapsed on the sofa. A few days later, one morning, Ning was brushing his teeth when he suddenly felt a sense of premonition. He rinsed his mouth briefly and went to the window. Looking down at the building. Sure enough. There was a thick fog rising in the area. An old bus was parked downstairs, and there was no fog within ten meters of the bus, as if it was isolated. Ning opened the door to his house. The entire building was silent. It was as if he was the only one left here. Ning sighed, went home to get the blood jade that he had brought back from behind the first blood gate, and went downstairs. As soon as he got on the bus, he heard a familiar voice exclaim in surprise: "Bro!" Ning looked up, stunned for two seconds before realizing... it was Liu. However, after returning this time, Liu seemed to have tidied himself up, shaving off his beard. Without the beard, Liu looked cleaner and fresher, but his whole person still seemed rough. "Just us?" Ning sat next to Liu. "I think so." Liu sighed. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. Although he was still in his usual carefree manner, Ning could still see the dark circles under Liu''s eyes. Clearly, he hadn''t slept well these past few days. "Having nightmares again?" Ning asked. Liu nodded, unscrewed the mineral water bottle, and cursed: "Damn it, that female ghost... keeps appearing in my dreams, it''s scary." Ning joked: "Then she really loves you deeply. As the saying goes, a thousand miles of marriage is tied by a single thread. You must cherish this opportunity..." Puff! Liu, who was drinking water, couldn''t hold it back and sprayed it out. "Bro, you''re being too much!" "Since you understand cherishing so much, why don''t you go and cherish her!" Ning shrugged, lamenting: "I''d like to, but she doesn''t like me, she''s never come into my dreams once." Upon hearing this, Liu''s face turned pale again,. Then, Ning, who was sitting next to him, suddenly thought of something and asked: "By the way, you haven''t told me why the first blood gate is sticking to me." After several days, when the question was raised again, Liu''s eyes flickered, and he said mysteriously: "Bro, I have a question for you... Do you believe in fate?" Being asked this by Liu, Ning was stunned. He thought about it carefully for a moment and shook his head. "No." Liu chuckled. "I do." He flipped his palm, revealing three square-eyed copper coins. They were strung with red, yellow, and blue threads, respectively. "In that blood gate, I cast three divinations." "I finally discovered that the other two were all death hexagrams, only the hexagram on your body, brother, was different." "Bro, you''re the only one with a living hexagram in the team." Ning''s eyes flickered, and he smiled: "Liu, you really know how to tell fortunes." Liu sighed: "Making a living is hard these days. When you''re out in the world, the more skills you have, the better." "Why didn''t you tell me before?" Hearing Ning''s question, Liu looked apprehensive: "Bro, our line of work has its rules¡ª "First, you can''t divine for yourself, divination for others, not for yourself, divination for yourself means death!" "Second, you can''t divine for fellow practitioners when you already know the situation!" "Third, you can''t divine for the dead!" "Besides these three things not to do, there are also two things not to do¡ª "First, don''t reveal everything to the person you''re divining for, the more you reveal, the more you shorten your lifespan." "Second, don''t interfere with matters that have too much impact. If it''s just saving a person or helping them with a disaster, the impact on the diviner is actually limited. But if the person''s life and death involves too many things... then, the diviner cannot interfere casually, otherwise, they may be punished!" Ning understood. "So, after the matter is over, you come out, you won''t be affected, right?" Liu nodded. "Of course." "What has happened, no matter what, it''s all okay." The bus drove into the mist, no other passengers boarded, the two arrived at the familiar haunted house, as soon as they entered, they saw four people sitting in the hall. They seemed to be discussing something important, as soon as the two of them entered, their conversation immediately stopped. "It seems we''ve arrived at a bad time." Ning said jokingly. Liang replied calmly: "The haunted house is our home, it''s also your home, you can come back whenever you want, there''s no such thing as a good or bad time." "By the way, your second door is about to open, are you ready?" Ning sighed. "We''re not ready, can we not go in?" There was a strange silence in the hall. Bai got up. "Let''s go, to the third floor." She had changed into a sporty, slim-fitting outfit, which looked more youthful and energetic, not as glamorous as when she was wearing a nightgown. The two followed her to the third floor of the haunted house. In the center, there was still the wooden door that exuded an icy aura. On the outside, there were a few more lines of blood written. [Task: Survive the Seventh Day of the Village''s Temple Festival] [Clue¡ª] [The kind people have drained their blood, turning it into sweet rain; the compassionate people have cut off their heads, bringing peace; the innocent people have closed their eyes, begging for the sweet rain and peace to descend, they wait, and they wait...] 17.The Headless Guest "There are still clues on the blood gate?" Ning exclaimed in surprise. Bai, who was beside him, explained: "Only the first blood gate doesn''t have any." "Because 99.999% of the first blood gates are very easy to pass. Ghosts want to kill people... it''s quite difficult. Most of the time, they just scare you, they won''t really do anything." She paused, her eyes filled with teasing, as if she was teasing them: "That''s why your faces are so dark, you two encountered that kind of ghost in the first blood gate, and you almost got wiped out!" "After the first gate, the second gate will be a level higher in difficulty, but the blood gate will also provide corresponding, important clues." "Then there''s the sixth gate... but those can be talked about later." "The most urgent thing now is to figure out how to survive the second gate." "Your second gate... is not easy!" After Bai patiently explained, Ning immediately memorized the clues on the blood gate. "The kind people have drained their blood, turning it into sweet rain; the compassionate people have cut off their heads, bringing peace; the innocent people have closed their eyes, begging for the sweet rain and peace to descend..." This clue is very strange, it sounds... creepy. Soon, their time to enter the gate arrived. The blood-stained wooden door was slowly pushed open again by a pale hand, and then the three of them quickly lost consciousness... ... When Ning regained consciousness, he found himself standing in front of a huge building. The building was quite dilapidated, the two white walls at the entrance were full of cracks, covered with moldy moss. The ground was covered with broken stones and weeds. On the right white wall, painted in red paint, it said: [Qiyu Village Tour Group Reception] "Tour group..." "This time, we''re appearing as tourists?" Ning looked around. There were fourteen people in this large courtyard, standing in groups of three or two. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Soon, Ning found Liu and Bai. Their faces didn''t look good. Ning walked over and whispered: "What''s wrong?" Bai pointed to Liu with her lips, and said lazily: "Ask him." Ning looked at Liu. The latter had sweat on his face, and a hint of fear in his eyes. "My birthplace was at the foot of the mountain behind that forest. I wanted to follow the road signs and go through the forest, but when I was in the middle of the forest, I saw a... headless person!" Ning''s eyes narrowed slightly. "Are you sure?" Liu gasped, his eyes filled with intense fear! "Yes!" "I''m sure!" "It... walked all the way forward, and then..." Liu''s voice trembled. "Come on, then what?" Ning urged. Liu''s next words made Ning feel a chill down his spine. "Then... it blended into the crowd and disappeared." Ning: "Disappeared?" Liu nodded vigorously. "Yes!" "That headless person... is hiding among the people around us!" After finishing, he looked around with fear, took a deep breath. Ning turned to Bai. " Bai, what do you think?" Bai shook her head. "No need to panic for now. This is only the second gate, the ghost hasn''t become so perverted as to kill people right away!" "But... we still need to be careful." As soon as she finished speaking, a middle-aged man''s voice came from outside: "Everyone, sorry to keep you waiting!" The people in the open space turned their heads to look, and saw a man in plain clothes, with dark skin, standing in front of them. "Let me introduce myself, my name is Kong, I''m the leader of the Qiyu Village Travel Agency. From now on, I will be on duty, usually sitting in the hall on the first floor. If you have any questions, you can come to me!" "If you think the travel experience this time is good, please help promote it, thank you!" He said, smiling, and handed everyone a key to their room. "There''s a free dining hall next to the village reception, after you''ve eaten your fill, you can go around and take a look, our Qiyu Village has quite a few local scenic spots..." "After seven days, there will be the annual temple festival in the village. At that time, everyone in the village will participate, and you can all join in... although you people from outside don''t believe in these things, it''s always good to ask for a blessing." He gave everyone a brief explanation, and then led them to the reception. The whole process, this leader named Kong had a smile on his face. The smile was very shallow and faint, but it looked... very strange. Ning just glanced at him, and he felt a shiver down his spine. "This is your room, electricity and hot water are available 24 hours a day, and there are some rules in the village, so I hope you will try to follow them." "First, there''s a curfew in the village, from 12 midnight to 6 am, it''s best not to go out." "Second, the back mountain of the village is where the temple is located, due to the preparations for the festival, it''s not allowed for outsiders to approach now." "Third, if you encounter anything strange in the village, you can go to Granny Ruan." After finishing, Kong didn''t care if anyone had any questions, he turned and rushed downstairs. Ning looked through the window of the hall, and saw Kong walk into the dense black forest, and then... he never came out. After regaining his senses, he began to check his room. The reception, although it looked dilapidated, the wooden floor and wooden doors were all cracked, but the room was still quite clean. Ning, Liu, and Bai were standing together when they received their keys, so their rooms were also next to each other. In the room, Ning looked at the ticking clock overhead. Three in the afternoon. There was still some time before dinner. He walked around his room, and found that the bed and floor were very clean, the walls were new and white, but there was always a... burnt smell in the air. It''s like something has been burnt. At this moment, Ning suddenly felt a warmth in his pocket. He instinctively reached out and took it out, it was the blood jade. Ning saw that the blood jade lying in his palm... was emitting a faint red light! He wasn''t unfamiliar with this scene. When they were in the villa behind the first blood gate, as long as the red-clothed female ghost on the third floor approached their room, the blood jade hanging there would emit red light! In an instant, Ning''s body tensed up! Could it be that there''s... something unclean in his room? 18.Under the Bed The thought of an invisible, dirty thing lurking in the shadows of his room, watching him, made Ning''s skin crawl! He left the room calmly and went to the corridor. But a scene that made his hair stand on end appeared... The red light emitted from the blood jade in his palm not only didn''t extinguish... but grew even brighter! "Damn it!" Ning couldn''t help but curse under his breath. He waved the blood jade around, his inner unease intensifying! Because he soon discovered that as long as he was in the reception, the jade would emit light! Could it be... the entire reception was unclean? He pondered for a moment, immediately found Bai and Liu, called them to his room, and closed the door. Then, Ning took out the blood jade and placed it in front of them. "Hey, isn''t this the one from the last dungeon... Woah! Why is it glowing?!" Liu''s face showed surprise first, then turned into terror. He remembered the female ghost from the last blood gate, looking around every corner of the room. But he didn''t see anything scary. "Don''t look," Ning shook his head, his face turning serious. "As long as I''m in the reception, this blood jade will emit light." He then explained to Bai, who was beside him, the origin and effect of the blood jade. Bai listened, her brows furrowed. She spoke softly: "This reception is definitely problematic." After finishing, Bai looked around Ning''s room, her gaze fixed on the wooden bed. The wooden bed had been carefully cleaned, quite clean, even the corners at the head of the bed hadn''t been missed, but... Bai extended her long finger, gently brushing across the ground under the bed, and then her finger was covered with a thick layer of dust, and a little... hair. "See?" The two of them nodded, Ning thought thoughtfully, while Liu was clueless. "Isn''t this just that it hasn''t been cleaned underneath?" "It''s normal..." Ning said: "It''s not the problem, it''s the dust... it''s too thick." "It''s as if... a house that hasn''t been used for a long time, is suddenly cleaned specially for us ." This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Liu was stunned. "That''s right." Bai looked at Ning''s eyes with a hint of appreciation. She had brought many new people. Very few were as thoughtful and sharp as Ning. In fact, most newcomers were not even as good as Liu, encountering a situation they would only know how to scream and cry for help. "... But, this is the village''s travel agency reception, I heard from that NPC called Kong, the village is quite concerned about tourism, how could it be that it hasn''t been used for a long time?" Liu felt a strange sense of unease. Ning followed: "You''re right, unless..." He said, his face slightly changed, he looked up, and happened to meet Bai''s gaze. The other party''s face was also serious, she nodded subtly, seemingly knowing what he was thinking. "Unless what?" Liu was dying to know, he leaned forward and asked with his face close to his. Ning shook his head. "... I can''t be completely sure yet, I''ll tell you later." Bai checked the time. "It''s getting late, and we don''t know when it will get dark in the village, so let''s get some rest after dinner." "We''ll go around the village tomorrow morning." Liu raised his eyebrows: "With so much time at night, why don''t we go out for a stroll?" He remembered the last blood gate, the female ghost told them not to go to the third floor, and the way out was hidden on the third floor. This time, that NPC called Kong also told them not to go out at night, perhaps... Bai glanced at him and said calmly: "The world behind the blood gate is usually extremely dangerous at night!" "Think about your last blood gate, didn''t the ghosts come out to kill people at night?" "If there is no clear indication or a definite clue that requires adventure, I don''t recommend going out at night." Liu immediately became quiet. The three of them had dinner and went back to their rooms to rest. It turned out that Bai''s experience was indeed very useful. Because around seven o''clock, the Qiyu Village became dark at a speed visible to the naked eye. From sunny to completely dark, it took less than ten minutes! Even the nearest scenic spot from the reception, it would be impossible to get back in ten minutes! That is to say... those who are still outside looking for clues to the way out, must return in the dark! "It''s not yet 12 o''clock, it should be fine, right?" Ning thought so. The moonlight was bright, even though it was night outside, the muddy road was still visible. The blood jade emitted a faint light, lying on the bed. He lay down on the bed and closed his eyes to rest. Around the middle of the night, Ning woke up. He was woken up by something. Ning heard... something in his room. Almost instantly, Ning woke up! He held his breath and listened carefully, it felt like something was crawling on the floor of his room! Creak¡ª¡ª Creak¡ª¡ª The thing probably had claws, and as it crawled on the ground, it made a creepy scraping sound! Ning''s whole body stiffened. He could almost be sure that this thing... definitely wasn''t human! The blood jade in his palm grew even hotter. "What''s under there... what is it?" A strong burnt smell, the kind he had smelled before, reached his nostrils! Ning really wanted to turn his head and see what was under the bed... but his rationality told him that he absolutely couldn''t move at this time! Moving... could be the difference between life and death! "Gulp¡ª" The terrifying thing made a very unpleasant sound in its throat, as it crawled and crawled, it seemed to have discovered Ning, and suddenly crawled towards this side of the bed! The sound of its claws scraping on the ground was especially terrifying, Ning felt a chill all over his body, the foul smell of burnt filled every corner of the room, if he hadn''t forced himself to hold back, Ning would definitely have coughed violently! But he knew he absolutely couldn''t cough at this time! Although he didn''t see the ghostly thing crawling under the bed, Ning vaguely guessed that it couldn''t see him, it didn''t know he was on the bed! Ning endured the immense psychological pressure, not making a single sound. Sure enough, the ghost crawling in the room couldn''t climb onto the bed due to some restriction, it only crawled under the bed for a while, and then finally, after making sure that it didn''t find what it was looking for... it crawled out the door. When it left, it even closed the door for Ning. "This ghost... is quite polite." Ning made a self-deprecating joke in his heart. But only he knew how dangerous the situation just now was! He guessed that if he had made any big noise, or had made eye contact with the ghost... he might have been dragged away or killed! After the ghost that exuded a burnt smell left, the smell of burnt in the room became much fainter. The temperature of the blood jade in Ning''s palm gradually returned to normal, it wasn''t as hot anymore. Just when he was about to continue sleeping, a man''s extremely shrill scream came from outside the window! The scream was soul-chilling, instantly dispelling all of Ning''s sleepiness! 19.The Headless Plea "Help... Help me... uh uh..." The man screamed for help towards the reception, but all he got in response was silence. Ning got out of bed and went to the wooden door, locked it, then walked step by step to the window, looking down at the scene below in the cold moonlight. He saw a dark figure stumbling out of the forest, frantically scratching its neck! It was the man who had called for help! The man screamed for help towards the reception, frantically scratching his neck as if there was something there. He tried to reach out to the reception, but his hand seemed to involuntarily retract and continued to scratch his neck frantically! His whole body was just spinning around in the yard, seemingly unable to get close to the reception. The man''s screams became increasingly miserable, sending chills down one''s spine! But the whole time, no one from the reception came out to save him. Maybe no one heard. But even if someone heard, no one dared to go out and save him. Everyone knew what kind of terrifying place the world behind the blood gate was! Rashly going out to save someone, not only might not save the person, but would also doom yourself! Finally, after about ten minutes, the man outside stopped screaming. Just when he thought things would end there, the next scene made Ning''s eyes widen, almost making him shout! He saw that in the pale moonlight, the man in the empty space of the yard was kneeling on the ground, his hands reaching out forcefully, he actually tore his own head off! A large amount of blood sprayed out, reaching as high as the second floor! Even more terrifyingly, after tearing off his own head, the man still didn''t die, and he was still making a creepy plea for help: "It hurts... save me... please... save me..." "It hurts so much... I''m in so much pain..." "Why... no one is coming to save me... why..." He said, and suddenly picked up his bloodstained head, slowly turned towards the reception, as if he was checking each room! Ning, with sharp eyes, immediately looked away, and walked step by step back to his bed! Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! He felt his heart beating extremely fast! It wasn''t until much later that there was finally no more sound outside. And Ning finally fell asleep, dazed and confused. The next morning, Ning was woken up by the knocking on the door outside. He got up and opened the door, it was Bai, already dressed. She was the same as usual, with almost no makeup, just a touch of bright red lipstick. "Get dressed, after breakfast, we''ll go to the nearest scenic spot, maybe we can find some useful clues to get out." Ning nodded, and didn''t say anything more. He quickly put on his clothes, and when he went downstairs, he saw Liu and Bai waiting at the door. There was already a large group of people there. Ning counted, suddenly frowning. Three people were missing. Did they leave first, or didn''t get up? Or... "What''s wrong?" Standing next to Liu and Bai, Ning asked. Both of them remained silent, Bai tilted her delicate chin and motioned for Ning to look at the empty space in the courtyard. There, lay a corpse. Bloody and mangled. Headless. It was the man Ning had seen last night. He pushed aside the whispering crowd and walked towards the corpse. The man''s head was gone, leaving only a headless corpse, his neck was covered in bloody scratches, and there was still a lot of flesh and blood left under his fingernails! "Does anyone know him?" Ning suddenly turned around and asked the crowd. At this time, a girl stood up from the crowd, her face pale, and she replied softly: "He... he seems to be my friend... but I''m not sure, because he doesn''t have a head." Ning waved to her. "Then come over and take a closer look." The girl panicked when she heard this, she quickly waved her hand, her voice choked with tears: "No... I, I won''t go..." Ning was speechless. But after thinking about it, he seemed to understand. This was his second blood gate, so most of the others matched were also newcomers. Seeing such a gruesome corpse for the first time, their reaction wouldn''t be very good. At this time, someone in the crowd seemed to push the girl, she screamed, staggered a few steps forward, and knelt in front of the headless corpse! The girl quickly covered her eyes, not daring to look at the corpse. Fortunately, the corpse had been blown by the wind overnight, the bloody smell wasn''t as strong, otherwise, Ning was worried that the girl would vomit! He got up, stood at an angle, and said to the girl who was covering her eyes: "Okay, I''m blocking the bloody part for you, now take a look at his clothes and other details, can you confirm his identity?" The girl, hearing this, opened a sliver of her finger, took a look for a few seconds, then nodded and said tremblingly: "It''s... it''s him!" Ning frowned. Sure enough. It was one of them who died. "What was he doing last night, do you know?" The girl took a deep breath, and after a long time, she finally stabilized her fear. "Last night... he, he wanted me to go with him to the temple on the back mountain of the village, that NPC called Kong didn''t let us go to that place, it must be because the way out is there, but I was afraid, so I didn''t go..." "He went alone, and then... he never came back!" Temple? Hearing her words, Liu''s face turned pale in the crowd. Apparently, he had the same idea before. But because of Bai''s objections, he didn''t put his idea into practice. Otherwise... There might be one more headless corpse on the ground! "See, this is the consequence of acting rashly at night..." Bai''s voice was soft, but it made Liu shiver. "Alright, let''s go to the dining hall for dinner." She opened her red lips, yawned, and then led the way out of the reception, avoiding the corpse, towards the village dining hall. Someone in the crowd behind her said: "This corpse is just lying here... don''t we do anything?" Bai didn''t look back: "If you''re feeling charitable, you can bury him, but it''s all pointless." "Inside the blood gate, dead people... corpses will soon disappear." After carefully examining the corpse, Ning seemed to discover something, he took something out of the corpse''s clothes and hid it in his palm, then he also stood up and followed Bai and Liu to the dining hall... 20.Six Days to Escape The dining hall was located not far from their reception. Unlike the reception, the dining hall looked... strange. Generally speaking, dining halls are a single large hall where everyone sits together to eat. But the Qiyu Village dining hall was divided into three floors, with many rooms dedicated to diners. While getting food, Ning asked the chef, a middle-aged lady: "Auntie, is your dining hall always like this?" The lady serving food seemed surprised by Ning''s question, she froze for a moment, a flash of panic in her eyes before she stammered: "Yes... yes." "It was a big dining hall before... but some tourists didn''t like it, and tourism is an important source of... that source for the village, so we changed it to this way." Ning narrowed his eyes upon hearing this. "That source? Which source?" The chef seemed a bit flustered by Ning''s sharp gaze, she looked away and said: "It''s... economy." "I think it''s called economy... Oh, Auntie is just a cook, I don''t understand these things!" "For questions like that, you should ask the relevant person in charge." Ning nodded slightly and smiled: "Thank you." He carried his food to a partitioned room on the left side of the first floor. Bai and Liu were chatting about something. Seeing Ning enter, Liu hurriedly asked: "Bro, did you hear someone calling for help outside last night?" Ning put down his plate. "I did." "It was the man who died outside calling for help." "He ran out of the forest, then scratched his neck frantically, and finally... tore off his own head." Listening to Ning''s calm description, Liu felt a chill down his spine. "He, he... tore off his own head?!" "How is that possible?" Bai calmly interjected: "Nothing is impossible in the world behind the blood gate." "Those who saw this scene last night, it''s not just Ning and me." "After the man tore off his head, he screamed for a long time before he died." "No one went out to save him... thankfully no one did, otherwise, who knows what would have happened!" As Bai finished speaking, Liu shivered. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. He could imagine how strange and terrifying that scene was! But these two people... are so calm? Bai is fine, she''s been in and out of the blood gates, but Ning''s mental strength... is it not normal? "So... why did he tear off his own head?" Liu cautiously asked this question. There was silence at the table for a while, then Ning suddenly took out a wooden plaque from his chest and placed it on the table. "I don''t know why he tore off his own head, but I know... he definitely met something unclean in the temple on the back mountain of Qiyu Village!" The two looked at the wooden plaque in Ning''s hand, their eyes suddenly narrowed. It was... a deceased person''s memorial tablet! "Bro, this is..." "Found in his pocket." "Woah! This this this... this is a very ominous object, you dare touch it!" Ning shook his head. He took out the blood jade again and placed it next to the memorial tablet. The blood jade did not glow. "I''ve checked, the tablet itself is fine, the problem is in the temple." Bai took the tablet, extended her finger, gently stroked the name on the tablet, her beautiful eyes sparkling. "Guang..." She softly chanted the name, as if she had thought of something. Then, Bai brought the tablet to her nose and smelled it, her eyebrows raised slightly. "There''s the smell of incense." "It does seem like something offered to the dead." Liu, who was beside them, said: "Let me smell it?" Bai handed him the tablet. Liu sniffed it, and his face changed drastically. Seeing his reaction, the two hurriedly asked: "What''s wrong, is something wrong?" Liu''s expression was serious, and his voice was slightly dry: "My master used to play with incense... Usually when offering incense to the dead, they use sandalwood or agarwood, or dragon''s spittle, agarwood, and other seven incense, besides representing the respect of the living for the dead, the most important thing is to ward off evil spirits." "But the smell of incense on this tablet... is Huai which attracts evil spirits!" "That kind of thing... is simply not sold on the market, it''s made by experts in playing with incense, using special methods!" After saying that, he smelled it again, confirming that he hadn''t made a mistake. The three fell silent again. They all realized the abnormal situation in this village¡ª The things enshrined in the temple on the back mountain of Qiyu Village seemed not to be some kind of god, but... the dead! Even more strangely... Someone used Huai, which attracts ghosts, to worship the memorial tablets of these dead people! "I told you, your blood gate this time is super troublesome..." A rare frown appeared between Bai''s eyebrows. "Its actual difficulty is likely to be higher than the normal fourth, or even fifth gate!" "But it''s actually understandable, if it wasn''t so underworld-y, if it wasn''t so complicated, it wouldn''t have spawned such a terrifying ghost like the one you encountered in your first blood gate..." Ning thought of something, and told them about the thing crawling with a burnt smell in his room last night. Both of them shook their heads, saying that they didn''t encounter this thing last night. However, Liu''s face was still quite ugly! This village behind the blood gate... was too much like the underworld. "It seems we need to speed things up, the village will hold the temple festival in six days, this is the deadline given by the blood gate for us to find the way out, if we don''t find the way out in these six days... then when the temple festival is held, something extremely terrifying will definitely happen!" Bai said, a creepy smile appeared on the corner of her mouth, making the two beside her shudder. "Alright,, the world behind this blood gate is scary enough, don''t be so mischievous, where should we go after we finish eating?" Liu raised his hands in surrender. Bai rolled her eyes, then put down her chopsticks and said: "Let''s go to the nearest one." "There is The Temple of Binding Nightmares about two miles from here, we can go there first, and by the way... ask the villagers, who is this Guang?" "I have a feeling, this dead man called Guang is the key to unlocking all of this!" Both agreed. After dinner, they returned to the reception. As Bai said, the headless corpse was gone. Even the blood on the ground had completely disappeared. It was as if nothing had happened there. And inside the reception, Kong was still in his room. But he sat at his desk like a puppet, only repeating two things¡ª Drinking water, answering the phone. "Hey! Okay! I''ll arrange it!" "Gulp!" "Hey! Okay! I''ll arrange it!" "Gulp!" "Hey..." Just by watching for a while, all three felt a creepy feeling. Ning tried to speak to Kong, but no matter what he said, the other party would only respond with a smiling "Okay". Seeing that they couldn''t ask anything, the three had to leave the reception. The sunlight hit them, but they couldn''t feel any warmth. "Damn it... this place is too evil!" Liu rubbed his arms and cursed. Bai put on her backpack and said: "We''re just getting started, the evil things are yet to come..." "Just wait, your gate... is just beginning." "Hopefully, when you leave this gate, you won''t have any psychological shadows..." 21. The Silent Temple The Temple of Binding Nightmares. It was a rather special temple. It was built in the forest, about two kilometers away from the village. This large forest itself was also a scenic spot of the Qiyu Village. The villagers had spent years and efforts building crisscrossing forest paths and detailed signposts in it, allowing visitors to have a sense of adventure while not getting lost or encountering danger. Following the forest path east. The two-kilometer road was not long, it could be reached in about twenty minutes. On the way, as if afraid that the headless black shadow would reappear, Liu kept looking around, feeling like a startled bird. Fortunately, they were lucky. The journey was smooth. When they reached the Temple of Binding Nightmares, the sun was getting brighter, dispelling some of the gloom in everyone''s hearts. The temple was built with exquisite detail. One could feel its heaviness and solemnity from afar. There was a ditch nearby. It wasn''t the rainy season yet, the water in the ditch was shallow, with jagged rocks and many wooden stakes washed away by the rain embedded in the mud. The three entered the temple, there was only one elderly man with a stooped back sweeping the ground in the outer courtyard. There was a house nearby. It seemed to be where the old man lived. The temple was very quiet. Apart from the old man, they did not see anyone else. "Old man!" Liu called out loud. But the old man didn''t bother with him. The three felt a little weird. Only when they walked closer did they realize that the old man''s hearing was not good, only one ear could barely hear the sounds from outside. They had to be very close to be heard. "No wonder he was thrown to such a place..." Liu sighed. They told the old man they were there to visit the temple, and the old man was happy to let them have a look around, just don''t touch anything inside. At this time, Bai asked the old man if anyone had been to the temple yesterday, the old man recalled for a while, and said two people, they came at night, about 8 or 9 pm, but they didn''t stay long before they left. After chatting for a while, Bai changed the topic and asked: "Old man, do you know Guang?" The old man frowned and put the ear he could barely hear near Bai: "What?" The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. Bai shouted at his ear: "Guang!" The old man heard this, his face changed dramatically, and he quickly shook his head: "No...I don''t know!" "I don''t know...I''ve never heard of him...I don''t know him!" He spoke incoherently, repeating these words constantly, as if he was trying desperately to make everyone believe he really didn''t know Guang. At this time, Ning suddenly touched his clothes, took out Guang''s memorial tablet and handed it to the old man. "Old man, take a closer look, really don''t recognize him..." The old man with the broom, as soon as he saw the memorial tablet, a fear beyond words suddenly flowed from his cloudy eyes. He cried out in shock, as if stimulated by something, he dropped the broom immediately, turned around and hobbled towards the distance! He ran, and kept shouting: "It wasn''t me...It wasn''t me...I don''t know anything...Don''t come after me!" The old man ran wildly and ended up falling into the ditch, tripped by wild grass, he immediately fell silent. The three of them felt a deep unease in their hearts. They immediately went to the ditch to check. But they shouldn''t have looked. As soon as they got there, the scene in the ditch made them stunned in place: The old man fell on his back, impaled on a wooden stake, his chest and the back of his head were pierced by the huge wooden thorn on the stake, his blood gushing out, flowing down the shallow creek towards the downstream... The old man''s empty eyes were full of fear, staring straight at the three people on the bank of the ditch... Liu was so scared by the dead man''s eyes that he took a step back: "Oh my god...He''s dead?" The two''s expressions were all a bit ugly. "He clearly knew something, but for some reason, he wouldn''t dare to speak." Bai said this and turned to Ning. "Ning, do you have any idea?" She saw Ning staring at the old man''s corpse in thought, so she asked, but Ning shook his head. "I''m still thinking about the cafeteria..." Bai frowned slightly. "Cafeteria? What about the cafeteria?" Ning said softly: "Don''t you think...the cafeteria''s decor is a bit strange?" The two nodded. Liu on the side scratched his head: "It is a bit strange, but maybe that''s just the style of the village''s cafeteria?" Ning stared into the two''s eyes and asked a question that made their scalps tingle: "Is there a possibility...that the village''s current cafeteria is actually the original guest house for tourists?" As soon as Ning finished speaking, Liu froze for a moment, then immediately gasped: "Oh my god...bro, you''re so smart! It really...seems like it!" Bai''s eyes flashed: "It''s not like it, it should be it." "That cafeteria is divided into three floors, except for the central place to serve food, the rest are all compartments, exactly the size of a room..." "I thought it was weird before, but I didn''t think about it this way. But now...the clues seem to be connected a bit." She reached out and patted Ning on the shoulder, raised an eyebrow and praised: "Good job, Ning!" "It''s been a while since I''ve met such a meticulous guy!" Ning was choked by Bai''s half-joking tone. Wow. Are you praising me or cursing me? "So, the current situation is...the original guest house for tourists was changed into the cafeteria, and the villagers turned another large house that had been empty for a long time into the guest house?" Liu seemed to understand something. Ning nodded. "Yes." "But...why did they do that?" "I don''t know, but that big house is not clean, so they definitely don''t want us to be happy." While saying this, the three passed through several doors and entered the interior of the temple, seeing a painting in the main hall, as well as a statue and annotations beside the painting. The statue was made of pure gold, although only the size of a palm, but its value was definitely not low, for a remote village like the Qiyu Village, it was definitely not a small expense. Bai played with the golden statue, then put it back in place. Then, the three''s attention was drawn to the painting. The location of the painting should also be Qiyu Village. It just looked a bit aged, it should be something from decades or even hundreds of years ago. It shows a man holding a sickle, stepping on someone else''s back. There are three people tied up, kneeling on the ground. They are a middle-aged man, a woman and a child. Behind this middle-aged man holding the sickle, there are also large numbers of people, they look like villagers, with angry faces, raising their arms and shouting, as if responding to something... "What is this? Are they rebelling?" Liu was confused by the painting. Bai approached the painting, reached out with her slender finger and gently rubbed it, a hint of suspicion flashed in her beautiful eyes. "Something''s not right. Take a closer look at the background of the painting..." When they heard this, they also noticed something...too desolate about the background of the painting. "The sun is scorching, the vegetation is dead, the streams are dry..." "This...is a drought?!" Liu exclaimed. Ning seemed to have thought of something, he muttered "The blood of kind people has dried up, turning into sweet rain..." 22.The Twisted Legacy At that moment, Ning felt a chill running down his spine. He had a vague feeling that something terrifying might have happened in the village during that drought... While Ning and Bai were carefully observing the painting, Liu went to the side and checked the annotation next to the painting. "It was indeed a drought... Hey, come and look!" Liu seemed to have discovered something, his expression changed, and he shouted at the two people beside the painting. The two immediately came over. When they saw the direction Liu pointed at, they were stunned. There... was a new name. Guang Xiu. "Also surnamed Guang? Could it be related to Guang?" Ning''s eyes lit up, and he quickly read the annotation of the picture. The annotation roughly meant: About one hundred and twenty years ago, a drought lasted for three years in the Qiyu Village. The streams dried up, and not only did the crops fail to produce grains, even the flowers, plants, and trees on the mountain completely withered. At that time, the water source for the entire village relied on an ancient well dug by their ancestors. Seeing more and more people starving to death in the village, some villagers went to the house of Guang Xiu, the only wealthy man in the neighboring village, hoping to borrow some grain to eat. But after they went, they never came back. Other villagers noticed something was wrong, so they secretly went to the front of Guang Xiu''s house, and peered over the wall and found that Guang Xiu had actually killed those who came to his house to borrow grain, chopped them up and fed them to his dogs! When this matter was exposed, the villagers of the entire village were enraged! Under the leadership of a middle-aged man named Ruan Huang, the villagers charged into Guang Xiu''s house and chopped Guang Xiu to pieces. His wife and children were imprisoned in the Yanyu Temple. Yanyu Temple was built by Guang Xiu with the money collected from the entire village to pray for rain, the villagers would offer tribute every year, praying to the earth for good weather and abundant harvests every year. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. But in fact, that temple was just a means for Guang Xiu to accumulate wealth. Strangely enough, the night when Guang Xiu was chopped to pieces, it rained. The Yanyu Temple was struck by lightning and caught fire. Someone saw that the fire not only did not go out under the rain, but instead burned more vigorously, so Guang Xiu''s wife and children were burned to death in the Yanyu Temple. The villagers thought it was the gods'' mercy, that the evildoers had been punished. Finally, under the leadership of Huang, the villagers gradually restored their peaceful lives. In memory of Huang''s contribution to the Qiyu Village, later generations made a miniature statue of him in gold and built this temple. The above is the complete content of the annotation. "It seems that the person holding the sickle in the painting is Huang, and the ones tied up on the ground are Guang Xiu and his wife and children." "So..." Ning immediately took out the memorial tablet in his hand, looked at the words Guang on it, and said excitedly: "Guang... Could he be the son of the Guang Xiu who was burned to death?" Bai nodded in agreement. "Most likely." As she spoke, she seemed to have discovered something, and uttered a "huh", walked to the annotation, looked it up and down, took out a flashlight from her body and shone it on it, her voice suddenly became serious: "There''s something behind this annotation!" When Ning and Liu heard this, they immediately rushed over. "What is it?" Bai''s eyes flickered with light. "I don''t know, but there is a large space behind the wall of the annotation." "You... step back first." The two knew what she was going to do, Liu widened his eyes and stopped her: "Sister Bai, don''t do anything reckless, didn''t the old man who swept the floor just say that you shouldn''t touch things in the temple?" Bai said calmly: "Don''t worry, I know what I''m doing." Seeing that she was determined, the two stepped back, and Bai, without any hesitation, took out a few coins from her pocket. She picked a coin from among them, fiddled with it on the annotation frame for a while, and the screw on it was loosened! "Wow, you can loosen screws like that!" Liu was stunned. As the screw on the annotation frame was loosened, Bai carefully removed the annotation, and a large recess in the wall behind it was revealed! The terrible sight inside the recess made all three of them dumbfounded! Inside the small recess, two corpses were crammed together, their shapes extremely twisted! This recess was approximately 50*50*50cm cube, it''s hard to imagine how two adult bodies could be crammed into such a narrow space! The expressions of the two corpses were extremely terrified, as if they had seen something horrible before their death, they were intertwined with each other, two pale faces, one on top of the other, just staring outside the recess... "It''s them?!" Ning exclaimed in a low voice. The two looked at him. "Bro, do you know them?" Ning nodded and replied: "Do you remember what the old man who swept the floor said just now, two tourists came here last night from 8 to 9 pm..." "When we first entered the blood gate and assembled on the open ground yesterday, although I didn''t see the faces of everyone clearly, I could roughly remember their clothes, these two people, like us, are from outside the blood gate!" "I was still wondering this morning, why there was only one body on the open ground outside, why three of us were missing!" "Now it seems... the other two missing people are right here!" As Ning finished, Liu swallowed: "What... what turned them into this?" Both of them were silent. Theoretically, it''s impossible for humans to do this. At least not in a way that doesn''t leave any blood, turning two bodies into dough, stuffing them into such a narrow space! So... what could it be? Just as the three were silent, a voice that made their scalps tingle came from behind them! "Didn''t I already tell you... don''t touch anything in the temple?" "You..." "Why don''t you listen..." 23.The Unholy Harvest The moment that terrifying voice appeared, the three felt their souls freeze! They slowly turned their heads and saw the old man who was clearly dead, appearing in front of them again! Only this time, the old man was not holding a broom in his hand, but... a sharp pair of scissors! He slowly approached the three, the smile on his face becoming more and more twisted and eerie. The wrinkles seemed to be about to engulf his features, and the cold aura radiating from him grew stronger. All three knew that the old man in front of them was probably no longer human! Realizing the danger, they wanted to escape immediately, but they found they couldn''t move their feet no matter what! Their legs, as if filled with lead, were incredibly heavy! "Is this the power of a ghost...?" A cold chill swept through Ning''s heart! They were too weak, they had almost no power to fight back in front of the ghost! Seeing the old man walking towards him step by step with the scissors in his hand, Bai behind him calmly said: "Old man, we didn''t deliberately touch anything in the temple, but Guang... doesn''t like these things, it''s what brought us here." As soon as she mentioned the name Guang, the ferocious expression on the old man''s face froze. Then, his lifeless, dead fish eyes filled with immense terror! He turned his gaze and stared fixedly at Bai. "What are you saying..." Sweat trickled down Bai''s palm, but her expression remained unchanged. She continued: "If you don''t believe me, we can show you something." As soon as she finished speaking, Ning also sensed the change in the old man''s aura and immediately took out Guang''s memorial tablet. Seeing the memorial tablet, the old man, as if he saw something terrifying, suddenly screamed in terror, dropped the scissors in his hand, turned and ran towards the depths of the forest... The moment he left, the three of them finally regained control of their bodies. Cold sweat soaked their backs, they were all panting. Liu said to Bai in admiration: " Bai, you''re still the best!" Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "You managed to scare that old ghost away with just a few words!" Bai let out a breath and said: "I just tried it, I still have other ways if it didn''t work..." "... Now it seems that the events described in the annotations of this picture are likely not consistent with what happened back then. Otherwise, the old man wouldn''t have been so afraid of Ning''s memorial tablet!" "Even a ghost is afraid, it shows just how powerful the resentment of the owner of this memorial tablet is after his death!" Ning glanced at the memorial tablet, feeling a chill down his spine, but still put it away, and said: "Let''s leave. The old ghost might come back at any time, and there seem to be no other useful clues here..." After all this delay, it was already noon. They returned to the resting area provided by the village for tourists and went to the cafeteria to get food. As soon as they finished getting their food, they saw a beautiful woman wearing jeans walking towards them, she said to them: " Are you free?" Ning and Liu didn''t respond. Bai smiled: "Yes, what''s up?" The beautiful woman in jeans extended her hand towards her. "My name is Tang . Would you come to a meeting with us?" "Most of the other blood gate participants are here." Bai hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "No problem." She followed Tang and went to a larger room on the second floor. Four other blood gate participants were sitting inside. Ning scanned them and frowned: "How come three more people are missing?" As soon as he asked this question, the expressions of two of the people present became extremely ugly. Judging from their expressions, those three people were probably not coming back. "What exactly happened? Is it convenient to talk about?" Perhaps Bai''s beauty played a role, as soon as she asked this question in a gentle voice, one of them slowly replied: "... Nothing much, they just teamed up and went through the jungle to the temple on Heiwu mountain, looking for a way out." "We tried to stop them, but they insisted on going, and promised that no matter if they found clues in the temple on the mountain or not, they would come down within an hour." "The mountain is not high, and there are very neat stairs built for going up and down, it won''t take more than ten minutes... However, we waited for almost three hours at the bottom and didn''t see them coming back, so we thought they might have encountered something on the mountain, just when we were considering whether to go up the mountain to rescue them..." By this point, the man''s fear had almost overwhelmed him. As if he recalled some horrifying scene, he suddenly covered his mouth and started to dry-heave! Although the companion beside him seemed more stable, his face was pale as paper. Seeing their situation, no one urged them, and they quietly waited. When the man who was dry-heaving finally stabilized the spasms in his stomach, he said in a hoarse voice: "Just as we were considering whether to go up to rescue them or leave, something suddenly rolled down from the mountain and almost hit us..." "When it finally stopped on the open ground, we saw what had rolled down from the mountain..." "It was... it was their bodies!" Hearing this, the breathing of everyone in the room stopped. Dead silence. The man who had been dry-heaving, with empty eyes, muttered: "Exactly the same as the body outside the guest house this morning... exactly the same..." "Their heads were ripped off... It was a ghost... It must be a ghost!" "There''s a ghost in the temple on that mountain!" Seeing him become somewhat neurotic, the companion beside him slapped his face forcefully, handed a bottle of cold water to his mouth, and after a few sips, the man''s emotions finally stabilized, he stared at the table in front of him, remaining silent. After a long time, Tang sighed. "Everyone, we''ve seen the current situation." "We don''t know what''s going on with this blood gate, it''s supposed to be the second blood gate, but it''s incredibly difficult..." "To be honest, I''m actually a veteran who has passed five blood gates. I''m here to bring new people, but this blood gate is just too difficult. It''s even worse than the fifth blood gate I passed before!" "If we don''t work together, we might get wiped out this time!" At the sound of "wiped out", except for Ning, Bai and Liu, everyone''s faces changed dramatically! 24.Unraveling the Lies ¡°Cooperation, of course, no problem, but how do you want to cooperate?¡± Bai crossed her long legs, lightly resting her chin on one hand, blinking her eyes at Tang. Tang didn¡¯t seem to like Bai¡¯s scrutiny, she slightly frowned. Her intuition told her that this Bai... was not a newbie. People who were not newbies, were usually not easy to fool. ¡°Cooperation... is also very simple.¡± ¡°Our top priority right now is to find a way out of this blood gate within six hours.¡± ¡°Before we entered, I think everyone got the tips on the blood gate, but just relying on these tips, it is impossible to leave alive, we need to gather more clues.¡± ¡°And the clues... are in the various tourist attractions in the village.¡± Here, Tang looked at the silent crowd, her tone firm and unquestionable: ¡°I propose that we form teams of two or three people, and go to different tourist attractions. If nothing goes wrong, we will be able to gather all the clues within one or two hours!¡± ¡°This is currently the safest way to find a way out!¡± ¡°The faster we find a way out, the fewer people we will lose!¡± After she finished speaking, one of the girls in the crowd immediately asked timidly: ¡°Then... will those attractions... be haunted by ghosts?¡± Everyone looked at her, this girl was Fang. She was quite timid. She stayed in her room all day, only going out of the guesthouse for meals. Tang said indifferently: ¡°This is the world behind the blood gate. What about you?¡± Fang heard this and her face turned pale immediately. ¡°Then... then can I not go...¡± Her voice was already filled with a hint of crying, but Tang didn''t show any mercy, she said coldly: ¡°Of course you can.¡± ¡°However, since you don¡¯t want to go, we can also not share the clues that we risk our lives to find.¡± Hearing this, Fang immediately panicked: ¡°No... I, I¡¯ll go! I¡¯ll go!¡± Although she was a newbie, she had experienced one blood gate, and she understood what clues meant, and what would happen without them¡­ If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. In the blood gate, everyone is doomed to die! Only by finding a way out, is there a chance to survive! Seeing no opposition, Tang nodded in satisfaction. ¡°Since everyone agrees, then, let¡¯s form teams and go look for clues... it will be dark here around 7 pm, but don''t worry, as long as we come back to the guesthouse before 12 , we should be relatively safe from danger!¡± In fact, by now, everyone who wanted to form teams had already done so, the remaining two or three people who weren¡¯t in a team automatically formed their own team. ¡°We have eight people left, a total of three teams, we¡¯ve already been to Fangcun Pond, the clue from that spot has been obtained, you don¡¯t need to go there.¡± ¡°There are four attractions left, discuss among yourselves, each team goes to one attraction today. If you come back late, we¡¯ll hold a meeting in the cafeteria tomorrow to exchange clues.¡± As soon as Tang finished speaking, Bai lazily said: ¡°We¡¯ve also been to one attraction and obtained important clues.¡± ¡°Oh? Where did you go?¡± ¡°The Temple of Binding Nightmares.¡± As soon as Bai finished speaking, a strange light flashed in Tang''s eyes, and she made a very unreasonable request: ¡°In that case, you should go to another important attraction to find clues this afternoon.¡± As soon as she said this, Liu immediately couldn¡¯t sit still anymore, he glared and said: ¡°Why?!¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you go?¡± Tang crossed her arms and said coldly: ¡°You want to know why?¡±¡¯ ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll tell you why.¡± ¡°First, the clue I got is in Fangcun Pond, it¡¯s the furthest attraction from the guesthouse, it takes almost two hours to get there and back. This means that there is the greatest chance of something going wrong, the journey is the most dangerous!¡± ¡°Second... we actually decided to go to the Temple of Binding Nightmares this afternoon.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve already taken the lead in doing the most dangerous thing, and I¡¯m going to help you check if anything is missing... Is it fair to ask you to go to one more attraction to look for clues?¡± Liu wanted to retort, but was stopped by Ning. The latter motioned for him to shut up. Bai, however, pursed her lips and smiled: ¡°Fair¡­ Fair enough.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s settled then.¡± After everyone discussed for a while, Bai decided to go to the Inexhaustible Well in the afternoon. That well, was the well water that sustained the villagers of the entire village during the drought that year. It was also the furthest attraction from the guesthouse, second only to Fangcun Pond, only half a kilometer away from Fangcun Pond. After everyone dispersed, Liu said dissatisfiedly: ¡°Why?!?¡± ¡°That woman acts like she¡¯s in charge of everyone, she¡¯s so annoying!¡± Bai said: ¡°Do you want to live or die?¡± Liu: ¡°Of course I want to live!¡± Bai: ¡°Then don¡¯t talk nonsense, follow me.¡± Liu stared with wide eyes: ¡°Wait, I¡¯ve noticed you two are so easy to bully, you¡¯re afraid of ghosts, but also afraid of people...¡± He didn¡¯t finish his sentence, he was interrupted by Ning: ¡°That woman named Tang is lying.¡± Liu''s aggressive aura paused, he froze: ¡°Huh¡­ lying? Bro, how did you figure that out?¡± Ning¡¯s gaze was sharp: ¡°Record the time, after we go to the Inexhaustible Well, you¡¯ll understand.¡± Liu looked at his watch, and suddenly understood. ¡°Bro, you mean... that woman named Tang never went to Fangcun Pond?!¡± Bai also spoke: ¡°Think about it, where did she have the time?¡± ¡°The trip takes almost two hours back and forth, and this is assuming nothing goes wrong.¡± ¡°We spent the entire morning just going to the Temple of Binding Nightmares, do you think Tang went to Fangcun Pond in the dark last night?¡± ¡°If not, then she wouldn¡¯t have had the time, because we saw her outside the guesthouse this morning when we went out for breakfast!¡± Liu now understood completely, this woman named Tang had deceived everyone, she was using them as pawns! ¡°Holy crap¡­ she¡¯s using us as pawns?!¡± Liu¡¯s temper flared, and he let out a curse. ¡°I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s not that simple, she¡¯s deceived and concealed more than just this from us...¡± ¡°This woman has a lot of problems!¡± Bai¡¯s cold words made the two beside her shiver. Liu swallowed: ¡°Bai, what else have you discovered?¡± Bai shook her head and smiled: ¡°If I told you that the three people who died at the Temple of Binding Nightmares and went to the back mountain were probably all ordered by her¡­¡± Liu¡¯s pupils constricted, his eyes filled with shock. ¡°Holy crap¡­ this wicked woman!¡± ¡°Why would she do this?¡± 25.The Hidden Hand ¡°We''re not sure about her motive yet..." Bai glanced at Ning unintentionally. He lowered his head, silent, as if he had something on his mind. "Anyway, we have to collect clues by ourselves." ¡°We still have some time, let¡¯s go to the farthest place first. That way, the pressure on the remaining ones won¡¯t be so great.¡± The three of them followed the signposts in the dense forest and arrived at the Inexhaustible Well. This well was located in a grove of emerald bamboo. Its opening was covered with moss, the surrounding area was overgrown with weeds. Except for a wooden signpost by the well, there was nothing else. It seemed that nobody had come here for a long time. The annotation on the signpost was about the long history of this well. It also briefly mentioned what happened during the great drought. About Huang and Guang Xiu. "These villagers are indeed grateful..." Liu praised. He went to the edge of the well and peered into the water. Ning and Bai stood in front of the signpost, one on each side, examining it for a long time. ¡°Do you have any thoughts?¡± Bai asked. She was very interested in Ning, this newcomer. His mental strength... even among the veterans who had been through four or five blood gates, he was one of the best. ¡°I have a very bad guess..." Ning¡¯s voice was grave. ¡°Do you remember when we first met Kong, he told us that if we encountered anything strange, we could go to the village¡¯s Ruan Shaman?¡± Bai pondered: ¡°You mean... Ruan?¡± Ning nodded. ¡°Yes, same surname. This Ruan Shaman is very likely to be a descendant of Huang.¡± ¡°The events that happened in the village back then are definitely not as simple as recorded. The villagers must have hidden some very crucial... truth.¡± ¡°Remember the tip the blood gate gave us, kind people bled dry, becoming sweet rain¡­ If, just if, the Guang Xiu who was chopped up was actually a good person?¡± The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. He wanted to continue, but he saw Liu beside him, his face suddenly changed, and immediately went to the wellhead, grabbed Liu, who was about to jump into the well, and dragged him back! ¡°Liu, are you crazy?¡± Ning exclaimed. But Liu seemed to have not heard, his eyes were vacant, his hands firmly gripping the wellhead. He squeezed inside, while mumbling: ¡°So thirsty... I''m so thirsty¡­¡± ¡°Let me have a drink... just one sip¡­¡± Ning was no weakling. He was used to high-intensity training and had terrifying physical strength. But even so, he could only barely stop Liu from jumping into the well, he couldn¡¯t stop him at all! Seeing that Liu was about to enter the Inexhaustible Well, Bai¡¯s voice came from behind: ¡°Ning, hold on!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Ning clenched his teeth, almost using his body as a rope, holding on to Liu who was desperately trying to crawl into the well! But even so, it was useless! Ning felt that if this continued, he would also be pulled into the well by Liu! If it was anyone else, Ning would have let go long ago. But in the previous blood gate, when he was grabbed by the red-clothed female ghost on the third-floor corridor, Liu risked his life to save him! So Ning didn¡¯t let go. He gritted his teeth, his originally handsome face turned red, and the strength of all his muscles was pushed to the limit! Just as Liu was about to fall into the well, Bai finally found a tattered, bloodstained copper mirror. In a flash, she pointed the mirror at the ancient well! ¡°Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh-¡± A terrifying, shrill scream came from the dark well. At the same time, Liu screamed: ¡°Holy crap!¡± ¡°Bro, bro pull me up!!¡± Without the mysterious force holding him, Ning¡¯s terrifying strength came into play. He almost threw the 160-pound Liu out, holding him around his waist! He rolled several times on the ground, lay in a pile of fallen leaves, panting heavily, his face pale! Bai saw that Liu had broken free from the restriction and withdrew the mirror. As she withdrew the mirror, Ning keenly noticed that there were several cracks on the already broken mirror. "Sorry..." he said. Bai didn¡¯t mind. She said: "This is how it is in the blood gate¡­ if you are not careful, you will fall victim. So, the further you go, the more people prefer to go in groups of two or three. If something happens, someone else will be able to help in time." Here, her eyes dimmed slightly. It was only for a moment, then hidden. But Ning saw it. He knew that Bai must have been thinking of her girlfriend who had died by suicide. In this misty world, to become a girlfriend or brother, it must have been a bond forged in life and death. Such a partner suddenly leaving would undoubtedly be a huge blow to the other person. But Ning didn¡¯t say anything more. He just looked at Liu lying on the ground beside him. He seemed to have returned to normal, but his face was pale, and his eyes were full of terror. ¡°Big Beard, what the hell was wrong with you just now?¡± Liu slowly turned his head, covered in cold sweat. "I¡­ I just took a look inside, it was completely dead water, there was nothing, but then¡­ dead faces appeared in the water!¡± ¡°I wanted to run away, but I couldn¡¯t move my body at all!¡± ¡°Later, they crawled out from the bottom of the well, grabbed my hand, and pulled me down!¡± In the bamboo forest, a cold wind blew, making the three of them feel a chill down their spines. ¡°However..." Liu¡¯s face changed slightly. ¡°They seemed to be burned by something afterwards. As they were pulling me back, I saw one of them holding something that was glowing. I grabbed it¡­" The two¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°What is it?¡± Liu spread out his hand, a damaged wooden sign appeared in his palm, tied with a red rope. He wiped the disgusting stains on the signpost with his clothes, and he saw a large ¡°Ruan¡± written on it! ¡°Ruan?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I thought it was something important¡­¡± Liu looked disgusted. Bai on the side smiled: ¡°It is indeed important¡­¡± ¡°To get this, it proves a guess we just had.¡± Liu was confused: ¡°What guess?¡± The two did not answer him. ¡°It seems that this Ruan Shaman does have a big problem¡­¡± Ning said, suddenly his gaze fell on the depths of the bamboo forest. His expression changed, and he whispered: ¡°Quick!¡± ¡°Someone is coming, hide!¡± 26.The Headless Monk The three of them ran towards the other side, where there were many large rocks in the bamboo forest, which could be used for hiding. As the dark shadow approached from afar, everyone finally saw what it was! The one that came in front of the inexhaustible well¡­ was a headless person! ¡°Damn it¡­!¡± Liu silently cursed, his heart, which had just calmed down, tightened again! How many dirty things are there in this village? Their first blood gate was dark, but at least there was only one ghost, and that ghost would basically only come out at night and kill people on its own initiative. But Qiyu Village was different, there were ghosts everywhere, and the ghosts could do whatever they wanted to them in broad daylight! The three of them didn¡¯t dare to breathe, they saw the headless man walking steadily to the well, picked up the wooden bucket next to the well, and threw it into the well, the bucket fell into the well. Then¡­ it started to draw water. Only, as the bucket was slowly lifted up by the headless corpse, it was not water that was filled inside, but¡­ a rotten head! The corpse held the head with both hands and put it on its neck, the dead fish eyes on the rotten head turned, but soon, the headless corpse took the head off its head and put it aside, continuing to repeat the previous actions¡­ This bizarre scene lasted for a full half an hour. Until the headless corpse seemed to have a sense of it, it stopped drawing water¡­ and drawing its head, and went back along the road it had just walked, leaving behind fourteen rotten human heads by the ancient well¡­ Behind the giant stone, Liu slowly stuck his head out and took a look: ¡°Damn it¡­ what is it doing? Looking for a head?¡± No one answered it, Ning leaned against the giant stone, his eyes were absent, and he muttered to himself: ¡°The compassionate person cut off his head and gave peace¡­¡± He vaguely felt like he had grasped something important. But just then, he heard Liu, who was poking his head, suddenly cry out in panic: ¡°Damn, you guys look, these heads¡­¡± When the two saw Liu¡¯s state was wrong, they also looked towards the side of the ancient well. This look directly made them go from head to toe! They saw that the rotten human heads beside the ancient well had turned at some point, looking straight at the three people¡¯s hiding place, their dead fish-like eyes emitted a eerie green light, and their faces were hanging with venomous smiles! The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. As if the next moment, these heads would fly over and eat them alive! ¡°It¡¯s so cold down there¡­ come down and join us¡­¡± ¡°Come and join us¡­¡± ¡°Join us¡­ together¡­¡± ¡°Never be separated¡­¡± These human heads all made emotionless voices together, like a death talisman, transmitting into everyone¡¯s ears! ¡°Hey, should we¡­¡± Just as Liu asked in a trembling voice whether they should run away, he suddenly found that no one was beside him. Liu turned his head and saw that Ning and Bai had already run away ten meters away! ¡°Damn it¡­!¡± Liu was stunned. He also ran after the two of them! ¡°No, you two wait for me!¡± ¡°Running away without a word?¡± ¡°That¡¯s mean!¡± The three of them ran for hundreds of meters, until a platform appeared in front of them, and they finally stopped! Liu held his hands on a tree beside him and gasped for breath. ¡°You two really¡­ ¡± ¡°At least say something when you¡¯re running away!¡± Ning glanced at him, shook his head: ¡°Big Beard, be more alert next time, if you don¡¯t run away from this scene¡­ you¡¯re waiting to die!¡± Liu recalled what had just happened and couldn¡¯t help but shiver. ¡°But what¡¯s the situation with that headless corpse, is it looking for¡­ its head?¡± Ning replied: ¡°It¡¯s wearing something like a monk¡¯s robe, although it¡¯s stained with blood, it doesn¡¯t have the same murderous intent as other ghosts, it feels¡­ it should just be looking for its head.¡± Speaking of the monk¡¯s robe, Bai and Liu both remembered the ¡®compassionate person¡¯ on the blood gate prompt. ¡°Could it be¡­ that he is the compassionate one?¡± Ning touched his chin: ¡°It should be.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just that I don¡¯t know whether he voluntarily cut off his own head¡­ or if someone else cut off his head.¡± ¡°Also, do you still have that wooden sign you got from the well ghost?¡± Liu nodded, took out the wooden sign and handed it to Ning. ¡°Sister Bai, this thing is quite valuable, so I kept it.¡± Ning held the wooden sign engraved with the word ¡®Ruan¡¯ in his hand, carefully looked at the word ¡®Ruan¡¯ on it, and suddenly asked inexplicably: ¡°You guys¡­ are the people from the Ruan family kind people, or compassionate people?¡± The two looked at each other, neither of them answered Ning. They also had no answer. Ning looked at it for a while, then put the wooden sign on himself. ¡°This thing is not auspicious, Big Beard, I¡¯ll keep it for you for now.¡± Liu shrugged. ¡°Whatever, you can have it if you want.¡± After putting away the wooden sign, the three of them looked around, and then confirmed their current location through a wooden sign. ¡°We¡¯ve actually reached Fangcun Pond?¡± Liu mumbled to himself, his eyes fell on the high platform in the distance. Vines climb over the bluestones, and grow together with the black algae that spreads from the center of the pond, looking like human hair. The stone steps are nine levels, and there are many thick rusty chains around. On the center platform at the top of the four-sided stone steps, there is a square pond about four square meters in size. This is Fangcun Pond. ¡°Hey, bro, Sister Bai, you¡­ what strange things are there in Fangcun Pond on the top of that platform?¡± Liu seemed to have recovered from his fear, and was not as afraid as he was at the beginning. Both shook their heads. ¡°Heart, this place¡­ feels very bad!¡± Bai¡¯s voice became serious, and her face was filled with rare seriousness. The fine hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. Although there were no abnormalities around, Bai just felt something was wrong. In fact, as soon as she entered this place, Bai felt cold all over. She rarely had such a feeling. ¡°Damn it¡­!¡± Ning and Bai searched everywhere for annotations, but they couldn¡¯t find any, but Liu suddenly let out a strange shout. They followed the sound and found that Liu¡¯s face was ugly, staring at the black algae on the ground, his eyes full of doubt. ¡°Big Beard, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Liu hesitated: ¡°Just now, I saw the black algae on the ground¡­ it seemed to wiggle.¡± ¡°Maybe I was mistaken¡­¡± Before he finished speaking, the three of them heard the sound of water rushing from Fangcun Pond on the high platform, as if¡­ it was boiling! 27.Bound by Algae The attention of the three was almost instantly drawn to Fangcun Pond. The surging and boiling sound of water continued to come from Fangcun Pond, as if something was about to come out of that place! The three of them all stared at Fangcun Terrace on the high platform, their hearts tensed to the extreme! ¡°Back off!¡± Bai whispered. All three slowly backed away, but soon, they discovered that the black algae under their feet actually began to wriggle, quickly climbing up their legs and fixing them in place! ¡°Damn it!¡± Liu¡¯s eyes widened. He reached out his hand to try and remove the black algae, but the black algae was surprisingly strong, no matter how much he pushed, it wouldn''t budge, as if it had grown into his body! Bai, who wasn¡¯t far away, reached into her backpack, seemingly wanting to take out something, but just then, a terrifying red figure slowly rose directly from Fangcun Pond! The three of them looked up at the red figure, feeling as if all the blood in their bodies had solidified¡­ It was clearly a bloody woman''s skin! The outside of this skin was full of cuts, as if it had gone through a slow torture! And the algae on the ground were originally this woman¡¯s hair! ¡°Damn¡­it¡± At this moment, all Liu could utter were these two words. Besides that, he couldn¡¯t say anything else, all thirty-six thousand pores on his body seemed to be emitting cold air. After the woman¡¯s skin appeared, the pair of eyeballs hanging outside the eye sockets rolled a few times, suddenly locking onto the three people below the high platform! Dah¡ª Dah¡ª Dah¡ª The skin¡¯s feet landed on the ground, stepping one step at a time on the stone steps, blood gurgled down, dyeing the entire stone steps red. It slowly walked towards Ning, who was closest to it, its eyes filled with terrifying resentment and grief. This process was clearly not long, but it made people feel like they were living through years, as if every second was torment! Finally, the skin stopped in front of Ning. By now, all three of them were completely unable to move! Bai, who was beside her, had her back soaked in cold sweat. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. She had her own life-saving items, and this female ghost couldn¡¯t kill her, but now she was bound by the black algae and couldn¡¯t take anything out to save Ning, she could only watch helplessly as the woman¡¯s skin pointed its finger at Ning¡¯s brow! ¡°Ugh¡ª¡± Ning felt the threat of death, the coldness on his forehead gradually spread to his whole body, he struggled frantically! After the coldness came terrible pain! Ning felt like his whole body was about to split open, as if an invisible knife was cutting his flesh, scraping away his bones, digging out his internal organs¡­ At first, he was still able to endure it with gritted teeth, but as that terrifying pain spread to his entire body, Ning finally couldn¡¯t hold back and screamed. It was this scream that allowed him to slightly break through the woman''s skin hair¡¯s binding, and his body leaned to the side. Something fell out of his pocket onto the ground. Plop¡ª This sound wasn''t loud. But in the silent forest, it seemed so clear. They heard it. The woman¡¯s skin also heard it. It was the ¡®Guang¡¯ plaque. Focusing her eyes on this plaque, the female ghost paused for a moment, and actually withdrew the finger she had pointed at Ning¡¯s forehead, her hair moved, and rolled the ¡®Guang¡¯ plaque on the ground into her hand. She stared at this plaque for a long time, as if lost in some distant memory, she didn¡¯t move again. At this time, Ning finally caught his breath slightly. He saw the grief in the female ghost¡¯s eyes and seemed to understand something, ignoring the pain that was almost tearing his body apart, and yelled at the female ghost: ¡°I¡¯m not from this village, I¡¯m here to investigate the truth!¡± ¡°What happened in the village during the famine?¡± ¡°How did Guangxiu¡¯s family¡­ die?!¡± ¡°You must know something, tell me!¡± Under Ning¡¯s questioning, the female ghost actually raised her head, only her eyes were still filled with terrifying coldness and death! She stared at Ning. For a long time. The female ghost grinned, revealing a terrifying smile, her mouth made a sobbing, frenzied laugh: ¡°Bring her to see me¡­¡± ¡°Bring her¡­ to see me!!¡± After repeating this a few times, her body suddenly fluttered like a kite, and finally drifted onto the high platform, sinking into Fangcun Pond¡­ On the ground, all the black algae receded, returning to their original appearance. As if¡­ none of this had happened. Dong¡ª Ning knelt on one knee, about to fall, but thankfully Bai, who was beside him, quickly caught Ning. ¡°Ning, are you alright?¡± Bai asked worriedly. Ning gasped, waving his hand. He felt like all his bones were about to break, he tried to stand a few times, but he couldn¡¯t succeed. ¡°I¡¯ll carry you!¡± Liu didn¡¯t say anything, he directly carried Ning on his back. ¡° Bro, don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t abandon you, from now on, I am your legs, you tell me to go east, and I will never go west!¡± Ning nodded slightly, took a few breaths, and pointed to the high platform: ¡°Take me to see Fangcun Pond.¡± Liu looked at Fangcun Pond on the high platform, remembering what had happened, he was silent for a few seconds, gently put Ning down, and then covered his calves, yelling ow, ow, ow. ¡°No way, bro, my legs hurt so much, I must have a cramp!¡± Seeing his appearance, the two couldn¡¯t help but roll their eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, if that female ghost wanted to kill us, we would have died just now¡­ at least you and I would have been dead.¡± ¡°The fact that she¡¯s willing to entrust us to help her with something means that she won¡¯t kill us for now.¡± ¡°This is a good opportunity.¡± Liu sighed, looking at Ning with complex eyes. ¡°I don¡¯t know what kind of evil I, Liu, have done, but why did I meet such a reckless teammate¡­¡± He complained, but still carried Ning on his back, carefully stepping up the stone steps, one step at a time, onto the high platform. Bai followed them. After getting onto the high platform, the three of them looked into Fangcun Pond, and they were stunned. ¡°I, I, damn it¡­¡± The terrifying sight inside made Liu¡¯s legs go weak, and he almost fell! After seeing what was at the bottom of the pond, they understood what the iron chains around the platform were for¡­ They saw that in the pond, a woman¡¯s skin was pierced through its four limbs by four iron chains, fixed in the water, facing the sky. And the skin¡¯s arms, legs, chest and abdomen, and cheeks were all covered with dense cuts. At the bottom of the pond below the skin, a large number of complete bones were scattered¡­ This woman¡­ was actually fixed in Fangcun Pond during her lifetime, and all her bones were stripped alive! 28.The Footprint of Betrayal ¡°My god... what did she do to be killed so cruelly?!¡± Liu''s lips trembled, as if he couldn¡¯t imagine what kind of cruel torture this female ghost had gone through in her lifetime¡­ Being soaked in a cold water dungeon, her limbs pierced, her bones slowly stripped away¡­ Just thinking about it made him feel cold all over. ¡°Let¡¯s go back.¡± Ning seemed to understand something, and told Liu to take him off the high platform. After getting off, he patted Liu on the shoulder, motioning for him to put him down. After a while, he felt a little better and was able to walk. ¡°Are you okay, bro?¡± Liu was still worried and asked tentatively. Ning waved his hand, looking somewhat weak: ¡°I should be fine, it¡¯s just that my whole body hurts, like there are knives cutting my flesh, digging my bones¡­¡± Liu and Bai looked at each other, and immediately understood that the female ghost had just used the method villagers used to kill her¡­ to kill Ning! If Guang¡¯s plaque hadn¡¯t happened to fall and attract the female ghost¡¯s attention, Ning¡¯s fate now would have been¡­ ¡°Looking at the female ghost¡¯s reaction, it seems like¡­ she knows Guang?¡± Even Liu, who was a bit thick-headed, could see that the female ghost¡¯s eyes contained abnormal sadness when she held Guang¡¯s plaque. Bai looked at Liu in surprise and teased: ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to be thoughtful in your clumsiness.¡± Liu snorted. ¡°I¡¯m just rough but refined!¡± Ning said: ¡°It¡¯s not just that she knows him.¡± ¡°She should be related to Guang¡­ either Guang¡¯s wife, or Guang¡¯s mother.¡± ¡°Personally, I lean towards the latter.¡± Liu gasped: ¡°In that case¡­ the drought in the village that year actually had some unknown things happening, and these things were not recorded by the villagers!¡± ¡°But the female ghost in Fangcun Pond wants us to bring her¡­ who is ¡®her¡¯?¡± Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Ning and Bai exchanged glances. The latter nodded, then shook her head slightly. ¡°It¡¯s getting late, let¡¯s go back¡­ it¡¯s going to be dark soon, this village is very evil, it¡¯s very dangerous at night!¡± The two agreed with Bai¡¯s proposal. In fact, it wasn¡¯t very late yet, but it would take them at least an hour to go back to the hotel from this place. With a lot of doubts, the three of them started their return journey. Fortunately, they were quite smooth along the way, they didn¡¯t encounter anything weird in the woods again. It was almost dinner time when they returned to the hotel. Ning and Liu returned to their room, tidied up briefly, and then knocked on the door to call Bai to eat together, but Bai stood in the room with a solemn expression and didn¡¯t immediately go to the cafeteria with them. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Sister Bai?¡± Seeing Bai¡¯s wrong expression, Ning felt a pang in his heart and asked. Bai sneered: ¡°After we left this afternoon, someone entered my room.¡± She took out the black flashlight, pointed it at the ground. On the originally empty ground, there were actually footprints, one after another. The footprints were chaotic, but they could still be seen as coming from two different people! The two¡¯s eyes changed. ¡°This¡­¡± Bai¡¯s beautiful eyes flickered, and she said: ¡°This morning, Ning woke up and there was a charred ghost looking for something in his room last night. I was wary then, this hotel definitely has problems, but it can¡¯t be ruled out¡­ that it¡¯s a human factor.¡± ¡°So, after we finished lunch, I went back to my room and sprinkled a special powder on the ground, and yours too¡­¡± She said, shining the flashlight, following the footprints along the corridor, and finally found that¡­ their three rooms had all been secretly entered! And judging by the footprints, the same person had entered all three rooms! ¡°Size 35 shoes, most likely a woman.¡± Bai said, glancing at Ning: ¡°It seems like this is the reason why a certain unlucky person was targeted by that charred ghost on the first night.¡± Ning didn¡¯t say anything, he was still pondering, Liu, who was beside him, couldn¡¯t hold back, he clenched his fists tightly, and his anger flared up: ¡°Damn it!¡± ¡°Which bastard, with no reason to do so, is messing with us, if I catch him, I will¡­!¡± Looking at Liu who had lost his temper, Bai said lightly: ¡°What are you going to do? Kill her?¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Liu was suddenly choked by Bai¡¯s words. ¡°I have to warn you, behind the blood gate, never kill anyone personally.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because behind the blood gate, a person who dies will definitely turn into a ghost!¡± Hearing this, Liu¡¯s breathing stopped. Bai continued in a serious tone: ¡°People who commit suicide or are killed by ghosts will turn into ghosts, they are absolutely neutral entities and have no effect on the dungeon, but people who are killed by other people and turn into ghosts¡­ that¡¯s different!¡± ¡°They usually have intense resentment, they will immediately go for revenge, and even¡­ they may implicate other people behind the blood gate!¡± Looking at Bai¡¯s serious expression, Liu couldn¡¯t help but swallow, and the little evil thought that had arisen from his anger disappeared. But soon, he couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore and said: ¡°Then, then we can¡¯t just sit around and wait for death!¡± ¡°Someone messes with us and we don¡¯t say anything, what¡¯s the matter with you!¡± Bai rolled her eyes and sighed: ¡°You, you¡­ really are a hothead!¡± Liu also seemed to realize that his rage was foolish, he scratched his head in embarrassment. ¡°Yes¡­ I was too hasty¡­ sorry.¡± At this time, Ning, who had been silent, spoke up: ¡°It seems that the thing I¡¯ve been worried about has come true.¡± Both of them turned to look at Ning, Liu raised his thick eyebrows. ¡°Bro, what are you worried about?¡± Ning didn¡¯t answer Liu immediately, but pointed to the footprints on the ground and said to Bai: ¡°Although it¡¯s already almost certain, I still want to confirm, Sister Bai, go and see if this footprint¡­ belongs to Tang.¡± Bai nodded, turned and left. After a while, she returned and said coldly to the two of them. ¡°It¡¯s her!¡± 29.Unlocking the Truth Hearing that the footprint belonged to Tang, Liu¡¯s eyes widened: ¡°Damn it¡­ it¡¯s actually her!¡± Bai rolled her eyes. ¡°Please, Big Beard, is it that surprising?¡± ¡°Everyone went out to visit scenic spots and look for clues this afternoon, only she went to the nearest Fu¡¯e Temple¡­ of course, she may not have even gone, anyway, she hardly tells the truth.¡± Liu said angrily: ¡°I knew that this woman was no good, before in the room, she pretended to be holding a meeting, but in fact she was bossing everyone around and tricked us into doing her dirty work!¡± ¡°Now¡­ she¡¯s trying to harm us!¡± Ning kept staring at the ground and suddenly said: ¡°Sister Bai, give me the flashlight.¡± Bai nodded and handed Ning the special flashlight that could illuminate the footprints on the ground. Ning turned on the flashlight, went around the room following the footprints, and finally stopped in front of the huge wardrobe. He carefully examined the wardrobe, then touched it up and down, and finally, in a very hidden broken corner of the wardrobe, he touched a wooden plaque from the gap in the wood. This wooden plaque had a red rope tied to it, and it was written with a character that the three of them were very familiar with¡ªRuan. Seeing this wooden plaque, Bai¡¯s eyes flashed. Liu seemed to understand something as well, and he exclaimed: ¡°Last night, bro, the charred ghost in your room was looking for this plaque?¡± Ning nodded. ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°This plaque should be something that people from the Ruan family can possess, at least we tourists from outside are impossible to get it casually. Tang could get so many of the Ruan family¡¯s plaques, she must have met the Ruan Shaman in the village¡­¡± Bai¡¯s eyebrows raised slightly. ¡°¡­ Did the Ruan Shaman instruct Tang to do all this?¡± Ning sighed. ¡°Yes, this is the worst-case scenario.¡± ¡°We are tourists from outside, our understanding of the ghosts wandering in the village is definitely far less than the Ruan Shaman. If she wants to use these ghosts to kill us, it¡¯s almost impossible to defend ourselves!¡± Liu didn¡¯t understand. ¡°But we have nothing to do with the Ruan Shaman, why would she do that?¡± Ning was silent for a moment. ¡°I guess, it may have something to do with the temple festival after six days!¡± Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°Big Beard, do you still remember that diary from our first dungeon?¡± Liu nodded. ¡°Of course I remember¡­ the girl¡¯s mother received a call, her grandparents¡¯ bodies were rapidly deteriorating, and they were about to die, so she needed her daughter¡¯s mother to go back. But the girl¡¯s mother resolutely refused at the time.¡± ¡°And later, when she learned about her grandmother¡¯s death, the girl¡¯s mother felt very scared, as if she was afraid of something coming for her, she even specially got a piece of blood jade from somewhere to protect the girl¡­¡± When Liu got here, he suddenly froze, and he muttered: ¡°Bro, do you mean¡­ that girl¡¯s grandmother is the Ruan Shaman in the village?¡± Ning said: ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°The girl¡¯s mother is the Ruan Shaman¡¯s daughter, she must have grown up in the village, she must know something¡­ and the fact that the Ruan Shaman¡¯s body suddenly deteriorated is probably not due to any disease, but has something to do with the ghosts in the village!¡± ¡°I guess, in the timeline behind our first blood gate, this Qiyu Village¡­ lost control!¡± ¡°Those ghosts with extreme resentment are all looking to take revenge on the Ruans!¡± When Liu thought of that scene, he couldn¡¯t help but gasp. ¡°Damn it¡­ what kind of evil deeds did this Ruan family do to create such terrifying vengeful spirits?¡± Then, he seemed to understand something. ¡°Before in Fangcun Pond, the female ghost with the skin that wanted us to bring someone¡­ couldn¡¯t it be the Ruan Shaman?!¡± Bai patted Liu on the shoulder, feeling quite relieved. ¡°Big Beard, not bad, you¡¯re getting smarter!¡± Liu was speechless. ¡°So what do we do next?¡± ¡°Go directly to the Ruan Shaman, tie her up and bring her to Fangcun Pond?¡± Ning shook his head. ¡°There are so many vengeful spirits in this village who want to kill the Ruan family, but they are still alive and well, they must have some powerful skills, they are not so easy to deal with.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s first think about how to deal with the person who put this plaque in our room¡­¡± Both of them knew that it was Tang. ¡°What else can we do, she messes with us, and we¡¯ll mess with her!¡± ¡°We¡¯ll hide all the plaques in her room and let her experience the feeling of being watched by ghosts at night!¡± Liu hated evil and loved justice, whenever he mentioned Tang, he felt angry. ¡°But I still don¡¯t understand one thing, why would she help an NPC mess with us? What benefit would she get?¡± ¡°If more of us die, no one will help her find the way out, wouldn¡¯t she be in more danger?¡± Facing Liu¡¯s question, Bai explained: ¡°There are two very strange hidden rules in the blood gate, the first is that if the number of people who die in a blood gate exceeds 90% of the number of people who entered, then the difficulty of the blood gate mission will be greatly reduced, the restriction of the ghosts in the dungeon attacking people will also increase. Like that place in Fangcun Pond just now, if only Ning is left alive, the female ghost with the skin will not easily attack him, there needs to be a trigger condition that comes first, and that condition is not easy to trigger.¡± ¡°The second hidden rule is that there must be bloodshed in the blood gate!¡± ¡°If there is a powerful person who finds the way out before everyone dies¡­ then this way out will randomly reduce the number of people it protects, the ghosts in the dungeon will randomly choose up to 1/10 of the people to kill!¡± ¡°Finally, there is a compensation mechanism, if only one person survives from a blood gate¡­ then he will definitely receive a ghost artifact bestowed by the blood gate!¡± As soon as these last words came out, Ning and Liu¡¯s faces immediately changed! ¡°Driven by huge benefits, people will do anything, no matter how crazy.¡± Bai seemed to be used to this. ¡°This is why people in the dungeon almost always team up in groups of two or three from the same faction, you rarely see people from different factions forming a team.¡± ¡°As for putting these plaques in Tang¡¯s room, it¡¯s not wrong either.¡± ¡°But her door is locked, we need to find a way to unlock it.¡± At this time, Liu chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s easy, just find a piece of wire, leave it to me.¡± The two looked at him in surprise. ¡°You can do this?¡± Liu seemed to feel the strange gazes of the two of them. He coughed and said: ¡°Let me be clear, I learned this skill from my master, I have never used it for anything bad¡­ and now we live in a law-abiding society, with my skills, I can easily make a living, I don¡¯t need to take risks to do such a thing.¡± The two of them nodded, they quickly found a piece of wire, gave it to Liu, and he bent the wire, making it into a strange shape, then the three of them came to the door of Tang¡¯s room, confirmed that there was no one around, then Liu expertly poked it in, and the three of them heard a faint sound from the keyhole. The door¡­ opened. 30.The Hidden Clues The room that came into view was almost exactly the same as everyone else¡¯s rooms. Ning searched around the room and finally decided to put the wooden plaque with the character ¡®Ruan¡¯ under Tang¡¯s pillow. ¡°Just put one?¡± ¡°One is enough.¡± Facing Liu¡¯s questioning, Ning replied. ¡°The other party is not completely unprepared, if we put too many, it¡¯s easy to expose ourselves.¡± Liu was still worried. ¡°Will she die?¡± Having this item in the room doesn¡¯t necessarily mean she will die. Ning survived the first night. From Ning¡¯s description, as long as he lies in bed and doesn¡¯t move or make any noise when the ghost appears at night, he will be fine. ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much¡­ if she doesn¡¯t die tonight, I have other ways.¡± Bai¡¯s lazy voice carried a touch of coldness. She put her hands in her pockets, her eyes filled with undisguised killing intent. She had never liked people like Tang, and she would definitely not be soft-hearted. After the three of them finished doing this, they confirmed that they had left no traces and quietly exited the room. Afterwards, they went to the cafeteria to eat dinner. With Bai¡¯s analysis, Liu looked at the cafeteria with different eyes, with a sense of scrutiny. He soon discovered that Ning was right, how could a building with this architectural style be a cafeteria, it was clearly a hotel! The villagers of the village specially changed the original hotel into a cafeteria, and changed an empty building that was hardly used into a hotel, their intentions were difficult to fathom. They carried their plates and came to the room they had agreed to meet in at noon. The atmosphere was still silent. Fortunately, this time, no one was missing. Seeing Ning and the other two walk into the room with their plates, Tang, who was about to pick up some food with her chopsticks, paused, she slightly lifted her eyelids and swept over the three of them with a startled gaze, then quickly returned to normal. ¡°You¡¯re finally here. You haven¡¯t come back for so long, I thought something had happened to you!¡± Tang pretended to be relaxed and sighed, her face wore a smile. However, the three of them, who already knew what Tang had done, no matter what, felt that her extremely hypocritical smile was simply disgusting. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. She pretended to be united and worked together to find a way out, but she secretly betrayed everyone. ¡°Nothing much, just after visiting the Inexhaustible Well, we also took a trip to Fangcun Pond, so we were delayed a little.¡± As soon as Bai finished speaking, the girl sitting to their left hurriedly said: ¡°Now everyone is here, let¡¯s exchange clues briefly!¡± Everyone nodded. ¡°We¡¯ll go first. This afternoon we went to Maple Leaf Bridge¡­¡± The bespectacled man who spoke began to recount their encounter on Maple Leaf Bridge. Actually, the ¡®clues¡¯ in their mouths were basically useless surface-level things. However, Tang and the other two still listened very carefully. After the bespectacled man finished, Tang even pretended to praise him, saying that the clues he provided were very useful, maybe if they integrated the clues from other places, they could find a way out. The three people in the bespectacled man¡¯s group all had a look of joy in their eyes, and then they looked at Ning and the other two in unison. ¡°By the way, Ning, did you find anything this afternoon?¡± ¡°What about the Inexhaustible Well and Fangcun Pond?¡± Facing the bespectacled man¡¯s questioning, Ning calmly recounted their encounter this afternoon, but concealed the fact about the female ghost with the skin. Fortunately, Bai had a powerful life-saving ghost artifact, otherwise the three of them would have died in that place. He was a great storyteller, like a scholar, even hearing these things from Ning¡¯s mouth, everyone could feel how extremely dangerous the situation was at the time! After listening, they realized that their bodies had been soaked in cold sweat! Tang, who was sitting farthest away from Ning, flashed a hint of displeasure in her eyes, but this displeasure was soon replaced by a sinister sneer. ¡°Good luck¡­ but unfortunately, this luck will save you for a while, but it won¡¯t save you forever!¡± Thinking of the ¡®thing¡¯ in their rooms, the corners of Tang¡¯s mouth couldn¡¯t help but rise. These seven idiots in front of her probably still didn¡¯t know that they were being played around by her. It would be too late by the time they found out. With the Shaman¡¯s promise and help, she was bound to be the last one alive, not only would she successfully complete the task of the blood gate and leave this place, but she would also receive a ghost artifact bestowed by the blood gate! Thinking of this, Tang was so excited that even her fingers holding the chopsticks trembled slightly, but she quickly steadied her emotions, took a deep breath and said to everyone: ¡°We¡¯ve already found quite a few clues, but I need some time to think about some things. We¡¯ll meet here again for breakfast tomorrow morning, and I will integrate all the clues we¡¯ve gathered, including Fangcun Pond and Fu¡¯e Temple, for everyone.¡± ¡°Everyone, thank you for your hard work tonight. After dinner, go back to rest early, it¡¯s not safe in this village at night!¡± The other group vaguely felt something was wrong. Everyone shared their clues tonight, but Tang, the initiator of everything, didn¡¯t say a word. They were newcomers, but they weren¡¯t stupid. Just as they doubted whether they were being played by Tang, they heard Bai say in a low voice: ¡°Tang, we¡¯ve all shared our clues, but you¡¯re keeping yours hidden¡­ isn¡¯t that inappropriate?¡± ¡°What can be told to us tomorrow morning, can¡¯t be told tonight?¡± As soon as she finished speaking, the bespectacled man immediately adjusted his glasses, timidly agreeing: ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Why not share?¡± ¡°We can all combine our clues together tonight to figure out where the way out is, three heads are better than one, right?¡± If Bai¡¯s words were a fuse, then the bespectacled man¡¯s agreement was the spark. Seeing that everyone¡¯s eyes were on her, Tang¡¯s face visibly froze. Under the table, she clenched her fists. Damn Bai¡­ She had felt that this woman was not easy to fool as early as noon when she saw that look in Bai¡¯s eyes. She was probably a veteran who had gone through several blood gates. Generally speaking, newcomers in blood gates, although their intelligence is fine, under the strong pressure of ghosts, they don¡¯t have that much vigilance towards humans. The terrible environmental pressure makes them easily believe in strangers. Therefore, newcomers are very easy to fool. This is something Tang has tried and tested many times. She has three ghost artifacts, all of which she got by ¡®taking newcomers with her¡¯ and completing the tasks in the first two blood gates with lower difficulty levels. However, this time, it seems she has met a troublesome person. 31.Fatal Clue Although she was being watched by everyone, Tang wasn''t a pushover. A plan flashed through her mind, and she crossed her arms, leaning back in her chair with a defiant look. "Are you sure you want to know this clue?" she asked. The bespectacled man, noticing her strange demeanor, asked, "Is this clue special?" Tang was unfazed. "Of course, otherwise I would have told you already." "The hidden clues I know about the Temple of Binding Nightmares and Fangcun Pond are somewhat dangerous. Those who know them... might encounter something unholy tonight." "Are you sure you still want to hear it?" Her voice, as she spoke, turned strangely ominous, a chilling smile curving her lips, causing the three newcomers to hesitate. If that was the case, it was understandable that Tang wouldn''t tell them the clue. In a way, she was even protecting them. Bai, seeing Tang''s defiant expression, knew what she was thinking. This cunning woman simply wanted to provoke her. In Tang''s mind, the following scenario would unfold - Bai, not wanting to be swayed, would insist on hearing the clue, and then mysteriously die tonight. This would validate Tang''s claim, and the remaining three newcomers would be grateful to her, their trust in her reaching a new level, making them easier to control, even becoming her puppets! Of course, Bai saw through all of this. She herself had passed through many Blood Gates, experienced countless betrayals and deceptions, and had met countless people like Tang. But, she still decided to play along with this woman''s game. "I''m not afraid, just tell me the clue." "Just so happens I can help you all determine whether this woman who claims to have passed through five Blood Gates is real or fake." The man with the glasses and his team were overjoyed. "Thanks, Bai!" Bai waved her hand. "Don''t mention it." Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. The three left the room, and Tang called out to the young woman who was with her, leaving only the four of them in the room. Tang then took out a wooden plaque from her pocket and placed it on the table. The three looked, and indeed, it was the one with Ruan''s identity on it. "This, this is the clue I found." Bai pretended to be surprised. "Just this?" Tang nodded. "Just this." She had no intention of explaining to the three, so she put the wooden plaque back in her pocket, turned, and left the room. It seemed, in Tang''s eyes, Ning, Liu, and Bai were already dead; talking to them more would be a waste of breath. Once Tang was completely gone, Liu let out a curse. "Damn it, every time I see that bitch''s face I just want to slap her!" Bai''s fair fingers tapped lightly on the table, and she chuckled softly. "Me too." "But, there''s no need to be angry with a dead woman." "She probably won''t survive the night." Soon, night fell. Everyone stayed in their own rooms, pondering their escape plans. In reality, most of them couldn''t think of anything, because they hadn''t received any useful clues. The moonlight outside was still bright and cool, but as it shone through the windows into the room, it seemed inexplicably cold. At some point, Ning, who had fallen asleep, was awakened by a strange noise. He listened carefully, and soon realized that the noise was the sound of that horrifying, charred ghost crawling on the ground, the same sound he had heard last night! The sound of its fingernails scraping on the ground, sharp and piercing, was like a steel needle scratching at Ning''s heart! However, this time, the charred ghost didn''t enter Ning''s room, instead, it crawled past his door, step by step, towards the front... As the sound faded into the distance, Ning quietly got out of bed, opened a crack in the door, and looked out carefully... Even though the corridor was dark, there was a balcony on one side bathed in moonlight, and Ning could see clearly what was crawling on the ground¡ª It was an upper torso, burned to a crisp, the corpse of a child! The corpse''s upper body was small, belonging to a child. Its spine and internal organs, dragging behind it, were still visible, but all were black as coal, the entire body emanating a pungent stench, as it crawled on the floor on its two arms... The moment Ning saw the corpse, he suddenly remembered the annotations he saw at the Temple of Binding Nightmares. Those descriptions mentioned that Guangxiu''s wife and son were locked in the Misty Rain Temple, and later, the tower was struck by lightning during a heavy storm, igniting a fire that the rainwater couldn''t extinguish... He suddenly understood everything, and took out the plaque he carried. ¡ª¡ª Guang. "That''s right..." "This guy must be Guang... Guangxiu''s son!" "So, this supposed guesthouse we''re in is actually the Misty Rain Temple that Guangxiu''s family built for the village!" Having deduced this truth, Ning''s heart tightened! The villagers of the Qiyu Village had actually transformed a haunted house into a guesthouse for them, outsiders! What were they... trying to do? Why were they so eager for them, the outsiders, to die? While Ning was pondering, he heard the sound of a door opening from a room ahead. Click¡ª Soon after, the room emitted a terrified scream from a woman. "No... it''s not me... you''ve got the wrong person... wrong... ahhhh!!!" This voice, Ning recognized it immediately. It was Tang! He didn''t know what she encountered in the room, but her scream was incredibly heart-rending. Soon, her screams subsided, and something inside the room started making a chewing sound... Ning listened to this sound, his scalp tingling, and quietly closed his door, returning to bed. Tang''s scream had been quite loud. That night, everyone on that floor stayed awake, cowering under their blankets, trembling. Only until dawn broke, did a desperate cry come from the other end of the hallway. "Sister Tang... Sister Tang!!!" 32.The Price of Lies Tang''s screams echoed through the night. No one dared to investigate, not for a moment. No one knew what horrors unfolded within that room. It wasn''t until the following morning, as sunlight pierced through the guesthouse, chasing away the lingering dread, that a newcomer, the one Tang had brought through the blood-red door, found the courage to approach her room. A hesitant push of the door, a glimpse inside, and the poor girl was met with a sight so horrifying that she instantly lost control of her bladder. Normally, adults possessed a certain level of mental fortitude. Even when faced with the macabre and the terrifying, while long-lasting psychological scars were inevitable, incontinence was a rarity. However, there were exceptions. Especially when one had been holding in a full bladder all morning. The girl''s bloodcurdling shrieks drew everyone to Tang''s room. Hesitantly, they peered inside. Tang lay sprawled on the floor, her body twisted at an unnatural angle. Blood and viscera painted the floor, erasing any semblance of her human form¡­ "Did any of you hear her screaming last night?" the bespectacled man asked, his voice trembling. Bai¡¯s eyes held no pity as she looked upon Tang''s remains. ¡°She was screaming loud enough; of course, we heard her.¡± ¡°Then¡­ why didn''t anyone help her?¡± ¡°You heard her, why didn''t you?¡± ¡°I, I was scared¡­ We''re just newcomers; we don''t have any life-saving artifacts...¡± Bai scoffed. ¡°Life-saving artifacts are precious. Any ghost artifact brought back from a blood-red door, regardless of its power, has limited uses. Three times at most!¡± ¡°Why would I waste a precious tool to save someone irrelevant?¡± Silence descended upon the group. Even the bespectacled man fell quiet. Only the girl on the floor continued to sob uncontrollably. The air reeked of blood and urine. The girl, Luo, was the newcomer Tang had brought through the Blood Gate. It seemed she and Tang had been close. Now, she knelt, wracked with grief. Liu pitied her. He was about to offer some words of comfort when Luo suddenly lifted her tear-stained face and glared at them accusingly. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. "You selfish monsters! You had life-saving tools but you didn''t even try to save Sister Tang!" "Now she''s gone! The clue is gone! None of us will make it out of here alive!" "Waaaaah..." Bai folded her arms beneath her breasts. ¡°Well, she''s dead, yes, but it doesn''t really affect our chances of finding a way out¡­" ¡°After all, your precious Sister Tang was lying to us from the very beginning. I''m sure she had more than one life-saving artifact on her, but I suspect she got careless last night and didn''t even keep them close¡­ To be so reckless knowing the dangers lurking behind these blood-red doors? She got what she deserved.¡± As soon as Bai finished speaking, a look of realization dawned on the bespectacled man''s face. ¡°Bai, you just said¡­ Tang was lying to us from the beginning? What do you mean?¡± ¡°Some of it''s speculation, but¡­ there¡¯s something I know for a fact. Tang never went to Fang Cun Tang." "She was just trying to intimidate us!" Luo, who had been sobbing on the ground, suddenly reacted as if she¡¯d been stung. "You''re lying! Sister Tang went there!" "I went with her!" Luo¡¯s outburst wasn''t about defending Tang''s honor. She knew if everyone found out Tang had lied about going to Fang Cun Tang, her own claim ¨C as Tang¡¯s companion ¨C would be equally invalid. Two possibilities terrified her: First, she would be ostracized, excluded from any leads that might promise survival. Second, she would be forced to visit the remaining attractions alone, facing whatever dangers lurked there, hoping to find a clue she could then share. Normally, the second option might have been manageable. But ever since Ning had recounted his harrowing experience at the last attraction, a bone-chilling fear had gripped Luo. Even Tang had hinted at the potential horrors hidden within those attractions, whispering about unclean entities lurking in the shadows. "Oh? You went with her? Are you sure about that?" Bai, usually friendly and alluring, now radiated an oppressive aura. Luo stammered, her face flushing red. "I¡­I¡¯m sure!¡± ¡°Sister Tang went there!¡± Bai shook her head, a smirk playing on her lips. ¡°That¡¯s a terrible lie. At least make it believable.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not lying!¡± ¡°Fine. Answer one question and I¡¯ll believe you.¡± ¡°Wh-what question?¡± Bai smiled, her eyes glinting. "No one here has been to Fang Cun Tang, so I won¡¯t ask you to describe it. It¡¯s not like anyone would know if you were lying or not." ¡°Tell me this¡­ if you and Tang went to Fang Cun Tang, when did you go?¡± Luo¡¯s heart skipped a beat. It seemed harmless enough, an easy question to answer. Except¡­ it wasn¡¯t. This was their third day in the village. The previous afternoon, Tang had declared, with utmost confidence, that she had been to Fang Cun Tang. Which meant Tang could only have gone sometime before yesterday noon! Thinking quickly, Luo was about to say they had gone that morning. However, she remembered Fang Cun Tang being the farthest attraction from the guesthouse. Without thinking, she blurted out, ¡°We went in the afternoon on the first day.¡± "We arrived at 3 pm and thought it was still early, so we decided to explore some attractions. See if we could find any clues..." The moment the words left her mouth, everyone knew she was lying. ¡°And what time did you get back?" Bai pressed on, her voice colder now. Luo swallowed hard, trying to maintain her composure. ¡°I¡­ I don''t remember.¡± "It was already late when we got back, and I didn¡¯t check the time." ¡°Didn¡¯t check the time? You mean to tell me you don''t look at your own wrist, even with a glow-in-the-dark watch right there?¡± Luo trembled. Perhaps she¡¯d reached her breaking point, for she suddenly shot to her feet. She glared at them, her voice bordering on hysterical. "I¡¯ve had enough! We went to Fang Cun Tang, on the afternoon of the first day!" "Believe what you want!" "Ganging up on a newcomer! That¡¯s all you¡¯re good at!¡± With that, she pushed past them, storming back to her room. The door slammed shut with a resounding bang. Bai seemed unfazed. "Sis Bai, wasn''t that a bit much?¡± Liu whispered, concern etched on his face. He hated injustice but had a soft spot for the innocent. Bai gave him a cold stare. "In an avalanche, no snowflake is innocent.¡± ¡°Tang wouldn¡¯t have shared anything important with her, but she definitely wasn''t completely in the dark either. Yet, she chose to stay silent, to be complicit in this whole charade.¡± ¡°Does that sound like a good person to you?¡± Liu fell silent. "That girl, she might be cowardly, but she''s not stupid¡­. If she had the guts, the ruthlessness¡­ she could have been even worse than Tang." With a sigh, Bai stretched her arms overhead. "I''m exhausted. I¡¯m going back to get some sleep." ¡°That infernal wailing all night¡­ Not a wink of sleep did I get..." 33.The Missing Aunt Ghost crafts are gifts bestowed upon trial-takers by the Blood Gate. Because of this, they possess absolute privacy. One person can lend their ghost artifacts to another within the same Blood Gate, but they cannot be given away. When the owner of a ghost artifact dies, all the ghost artifacts they possess will be sealed and become ordinary objects. The newcomer named Luo, after everyone else left, carefully opened her room door. Biting her teeth, she suppressed the fear in her heart and entered Tang''s room. She dared not look at the gruesome corpse on the ground and trembled as she searched the room. Finally, she found three ghost artifacts in Tang''s backpack. Although she knew this rule, she still packed the three ghost artifacts. Who knew if they would work? Maybe they would be useful! When people are desperate, they won''t let go of even a tiny glimmer of hope! Luo was like this. But when she put the three ghost artifacts into her backpack and was about to turn and leave, she suddenly stopped. Her eyes were filled with immense fear as she stared at the ground in front of her, trembling. The corpses that had been strewn all over the floor just a moment ago... disappeared! Not only the corpses but also the bloodstains on the ground were gone. It was as if... this room had never been inhabited by a person named Tang. Luo was terrified. She felt a chill behind her back, as if the dead Tang was watching her from somewhere, so she ran out of Tang''s room without looking back and returned to her own residence, then bolted the door... Around 10 o''clock in the morning, the three men with glasses went out to look for new clues again, while Bai, who had been actively searching for clues, had just woken up and finished washing up. Ning moved a chair and sat in the open space to bask in the sun. He didn''t seem to be in a hurry. The two were not in a hurry, but Liu was anxious. "Bro, what''s going on with you two?" A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. "Aren''t we going to look for clues this morning?" Ning didn''t turn his head, sitting on his chair, rocking gently, but his brows were furrowed as if he was thinking about something. "Clues? What more clues do we need?" Liu strode up to him. "We still have one scenic spot left to visit, don''t we?" "Maybe there are key clues at that scenic spot?" Ning shook his head. "It''s useless." Liu didn''t understand what Ning was thinking. He sighed and was about to continue asking when Bai''s voice came from behind: "We''ve already got the clues we wanted. Going out to look for more clues, all we''ll see are the villagers'' lies." Liu didn''t understand, and Bai continued to explain: "These scenic spots were built by the villagers, they want us to see them, so trying to find the truth from these scenic spots... is simply impossible." Liu was a little anxious: "Then what should we do? We can''t just sit here and wait for death, and there are less than five days left before the temple festival begins!" Seeing Liu''s appearance, Bai sighed softly. "I know , but don''t rush." "It''s no use rushing." At this time, Ning, who had been sitting on the chair basking in the sun, asked the question he had asked at the beginning: "Tell me, what role do the people of the Ruan clan play in the hints given to us by the Blood Gate?" "Are they the kind-hearted who bled dry, or the compassionate who cut off their heads?" "Or... are they the innocent who yearn for rain and peace?" Both of them heard the implication in Ning''s words, and Bai vaguely caught something and glanced at Ning. "Ning, what do you think?" Ning turned his head and looked at the two of them, his eyes sharp and clear as never before. "The answer is... neither." The two were startled. "Neither?" Ning said: "At first, I didn''t understand what the hint given to us by this Blood Gate meant..." "But now, I think I understand." "Pay attention to the order of these hints." "The kind-hearted bled dry and turned into rain; the compassionate cut off their heads and bestowed peace... If that''s the case, why do the innocent still wait for rain and peace?" The two were stunned. Ning continued: "Because they neither received the rain bestowed by the benevolent nor the peace bestowed by the compassionate!" "Among these people, there is another... evildoer!" "He made the benevolent bleed dry, made the compassionate lose their heads, and made the innocent... get nothing!" Listening to what Ning said, the two felt their breathing become rapid. "Bro, are you saying that Granny Ruan is the evildoer?" "But why would she do that... It doesn''t make sense, they''re all from the same village, and there''s no feud..." Just when Liu was confused, Bai beside him said with a cold smile, a sentence that made his back shiver: "How can a village witch''s status be reflected?" "Of course... it''s by making the village haunted." Boom! As if struck by lightning, Liu widened his eyes and stood motionless. "This... this..." Seeing his incredulous look, Bai sneered: "Sometimes... people can be more terrifying than ghosts!" After a moment of silence, Ning said: "Yesterday at noon, there was an aunt who served me food in the canteen. When I asked her about the architectural style of the canteen, her eyes dodged..." "She must know something, but when I went to the canteen to find her this morning, she wasn''t there. The canteen staff said she wouldn''t be there until noon." "We still have time, let''s wait a little longer. I want to talk to her alone at noon... with Guang''s tablet." The two nodded. If they could directly ask the truth from a knowledgeable person, that would be the best. When noon arrived, the three of them entered the canteen. However, when they saw the canteen aunt who served the food, Ning frowned. This person... wasn''t the one from yesterday! Vaguely, a sense of ominousness filled his heart. "Uncle, I want to ask... why didn''t the aunt who served the food yesterday come?" The canteen old man with cloudy eyes was confused for a moment before realizing what Ning was asking. "She, ah, seems to be feeling a little unwell..." 34.Confronting the Past "Is she sick?" The old man who served the food shook his head. "Then I don''t know, I didn''t ask in detail, it''s probably some kind of illness... The medical conditions in the village are not good, and there''s a bit of evil spirit, occasional headaches are also normal." Ning heard this and asked the old man for the aunt''s address. After getting the information he wanted, he took the plate and went to Bai and Liu''s room. "Bro, how is it?" Liu was shoveling rice into his mouth while looking at Ning and asking. "She didn''t come, she said she was unwell, but I think things are not that simple. After eating, let''s go to her house and see what''s going on..." The two nodded. After the meal, they followed the directions given by the old man and entered the village where the villagers lived. To be honest, this was their first time coming to this place. The scenic spots visited in the village and the guesthouse are completely different from the village. The architecture of the first two is very elaborate, while the living environment of the villagers in the village is quite simple, and even has a bit of a remote and impoverished flavor. Judging from the architectural environment of the scenic spots, the three originally thought that the villagers'' economy was not bad, and everyone lived a relatively affluent life. However, the current environment is very different from what they expected! The ground is all paved with mud and gravel, and most of the houses where the villagers live are adobe houses, and some don''t even have brick walls. Everywhere you look, it''s desolate. "Damn... how can it be so dilapidated?" Liu murmured softly,. The three walked along the dirt road, and occasionally villagers passing by, as well as villagers busy in the yard, cast strange glances at the three. It was a strange scrutiny. There was a touch of unspeakable guilt in their eyes, and three points of unclear gloom. But without exception, these villagers looked at them secretly when they looked at them, and no one dared to look them in the eye, let alone talk to them. "These people really have ghosts in their hearts." This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Ning sneered. Soon, they arrived at the address of the aunt who served the food at noon yesterday. When they pushed open the dilapidated fence gate and entered the courtyard, they happened to bump into a middle-aged man who had just come out of the house. The middle-aged man was holding a basin of water in his hand, and there was a towel next to him. After seeing the three of them, the middle-aged man''s eyes changed suddenly. He first showed a sudden panic, but it was quickly suppressed. "Who are you, what are you doing in my house?" The middle-aged man''s voice was very flat, as if he was hostile towards the three of them. Ning said: "We''re here to find Milana." Milana is the name of the aunt who served the food in the canteen at noon yesterday. The middle-aged man''s expression was cold. "You''re looking for the wrong person, there''s no one named Milana here." After saying that, he wanted to drive everyone out. Just as Ning was considering whether to force his way in, Bai suddenly spoke up: "You better not stop us." "To tell you the truth, it''s not us who want to see Milana, but a... someone you can''t afford to mess with." The middle-aged man''s movements froze slightly. Bai walked towards him unhurriedly, whispering a name in his ear. Hearing that name, the middle-aged man''s face turned pale! He took two steps back, and cold sweat had already seeped out of his forehead. "You don''t believe it?" Bai smiled faintly. "Do you want us to take out that thing?" "It''s in his arms!" This faint voice, like a cold wind blowing from the depths of winter, made the middle-aged man shudder. He hurriedly shook his head. "No... no need to do that." "Milana is my wife, she''s not feeling well today, so I don''t really want her to see outsiders." Bai smiled gently: "Don''t worry, there''s a grievance and a debtor, we''re not here to seek revenge on her, we just have some things to confirm with her, and we''ll leave after asking." The middle-aged man immediately poured out the water in the basin and placed the basin on a stone platform, then led everyone into the room. The room looked even more dilapidated than the outside, as if it hadn''t been cleaned for a long time. Many pieces of furniture showed signs of heavy years, giving the impression that the house was built decades ago, and there has been no update since then. And a short and stout middle-aged woman was lying on the bed, wrapped in a quilt, her lips pale. Her eyes were closed, as if she was asleep. Bai stepped forward and reached out to touch the middle-aged woman''s forehead. She had a fever. And it was a high fever, probably over 39 degrees. It seemed that the movement of the three people was a bit loud, which woke Milana up. As soon as she opened her eyes, she exclaimed: "You... when did you come to my house?!" Ning gestured to Liu to close the door. With a creak, the door was closed, and the room suddenly darkened. Click! He turned on the light. The dim light shone on the people in the room, adding a bit of strangeness to their figures. "I have a question to ask you, and we''ll leave after asking." As if she still remembered Ning''s face, Milana''s expression softened a little, not as panicked as before. However, as Ning asked the next sentence, Milana''s body, which was hidden in the quilt, suddenly tensed up! "Why clean up a haunted house for us outsiders to live in?" Milana stammered, her face pale: "What, what haunted house?" "I don''t know what you..." Ning looked into Milana''s eyes and suddenly showed a smile: "The building you temporarily cleaned up, it should be the site of the Misty Rain Temple, right?" After hearing this, Milana trembled violently. The middle-aged man next to him saw that something was wrong, and just as he was about to step forward to stop him, he saw Ning suddenly take out something from his arms and put it in front of him. After seeing this thing, the middle-aged man let out a scream, covered his head and knelt on the ground, shivering! He seemed to be possessed, muttering non-stop: "It''s none of our business... we didn''t do it... don''t come to us..." At this moment, what Ning was holding in his hand was Guang''s tablet! 35.The Price of Peace "I have only one question. Why clean up a haunted house and let foreign tourists like us stay here?" Ning stared intently at the woman on the bed. Milana bit her lip tightly. She originally wanted to remain silent, but when she saw the ancestral tablet in Ning''s hand, her whole body couldn''t help but tremble! "It wasn''t our intention¡­ We didn''t want it to be like this¡­" Milana''s voice was filled with deep guilt and helplessness. "But the temple festival is coming soon... If we haven''t prepared enough¡­" She had just arrived when she heard the middle-aged man in the room roar, "Milana!" "Shut up! Do you want to die?!" "How can this be talked about?!" The three of them were startled by the middle-aged man''s sudden yell. They turned to look at him and found his eyes bloodshot, his mental state somewhat abnormal. "We can''t¡­ This kind of thing¡­ It can''t be revealed!" "If the Shaman finds out... we''re finished!!" Mentioning the Shaman, the middle-aged man seemed to have mentioned some taboo. He was extremely fearful, his expression almost collapsing. Milana, who was about to tell Ning and the others everything, seemed to be awakened by the middle-aged man''s roar. She bit her lip tightly and stopped talking. Seeing that the atmosphere in the room had fallen into a stalemate again, Bai, who had been quietly staying by Ning''s side, suddenly pulled out a sharp knife from her pocket! There was a name engraved on the knife¡ªZhi. "I''ve killed enough people outside, so¡­ I don''t usually like to kill in the world after entering Blood Gate." Bai''s voice suddenly became extremely cold, completely different from her usual lazy and casual demeanor! Her aura became terrifying, and a thick murderous intent filled the room. Even Ning and Liu, who were beside her, were frightened! "If we can''t find out the truth, we''ll die." "Since we''re all going to die anyway, we might as well kill a few more¡­ as stepping stones!" A s she spoke, she walked step by step toward the middle-aged man with the knife. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. The man picked up a wooden bench beside him, intending to fight back. However, he obviously underestimated Bai''s skills. With a slight sideways dodge, the sharp blade in her hand plunged into the middle-aged man''s neck, subduing him on the ground! The icy coldness of being close to death finally calmed the middle-aged man down. He dared not move. Ning and Liu were dumbfounded. What just happened?! She directly subdued an NPC in the Blood Gate with force? "Let me tell you, this knife avoided your artery, but if you dare to act rashly, I just need to twist the blade slightly, and you''ll be dead!" "Do you understand?" Bai''s charming and icy temperament was fully revealed at this moment. She was like a demon, riding directly on the middle-aged man. It should have been a very sensual scene, but the sharp and cold blade in her hand did not evoke the slightest distracting thought! Under the threat of death, the middle-aged man nodded slightly. He didn''t dare to move too much, because Bai''s knife was still stuck in his neck! "Now, answer our previous question." The middle-aged man closed his eyes in pain and hesitated for a long time before saying in a hoarse voice, "I can tell you the truth you want to know, but you must not tell anyone else." Bai smiled, her previously cold face suddenly becoming friendly. "Don''t worry, we will never tell anyone else." "But we also know quite a lot. If I find out that you are lying¡­ You know the consequences." After speaking, she withdrew the knife in her hand and elegantly wiped the blood off it. The wound on the middle-aged man''s neck was not deep, and it obviously did not hurt any important blood vessels. It only bled a little before it stopped. He let out a long breath, obviously aware that if the three people in front of him did not get the answers they wanted today, he and his wife would have a hard time surviving. "This matter is too old, and we don''t know everything. Long story short¡­" "The village needs to hold a temple festival every year, and the sacrifice for the temple festival¡­ is a person!" Hearing that the sacrifice for the festival was a person, although the three of them were mentally prepared, they couldn''t help but shiver slightly. "What are you sacrificing to?" The middle-aged man''s face turned ugly. "Sacrificing¡­ to some people who died a hundred years ago." "Why sacrifice to them?" "I don''t know about that¡­ The Shaman has always been in charge of all this. We¡­ We are only responsible for providing sacrifices according to what she said, and we don''t care about anything else¡­" Hearing this, Ning suddenly asked a strange question, "Why is the village so poor?" The middle-aged man fell silent when the topic was brought up. After a long time, he said, "Every year, every household in the village needs to sell a large amount of food and meat, and use the money they earn to build mountain temples and land temples, so that we can have good weather and peace in the coming year¡­" Ning laughed suddenly. "All of this is also organized by the Shaman, right?" The middle-aged man nodded. "Yes, it is precisely because of the Shaman that everyone can live a stable life. This kind of thing is for everyone''s common benefit, and we have no reason to refuse. Although we are poor, at least¡­ everyone can live in peace." Ning thought for a moment and raised a finger. "One last question for you, and we''ll leave." The middle-aged man: "Okay¡­ Okay." Ning asked, "How did the Guangxiu family die in that famine year?" As soon as he finished speaking, before the middle-aged man could open his mouth, a strange, cold, old woman''s voice suddenly came from outside: "A hundred years ago, during the famine in the village, the Guangxiu family not only hoarded a large amount of food, but also killed the villagers who went to borrow food. They even made them into food¡­ This family usually rode on everyone''s heads, domineering and amassing wealth and food in the name of the Misty Rain Temple. It''s fine, but at this critical moment of life and death, he actually did such an outrageous thing, causing the villagers to live in poverty, and there were starving people everywhere. Fortunately, my ancestor Ruan Huang stood up and led the villagers. We rushed into Guangxiu''s house and ended his wicked life!" As soon as this voice came out, the bodies of the five people in the room instantly tensed up! Especially the middle-aged man and Milana on the bed, their bodies were trembling violently, their faces pale¡­¡­ 36.A Chilling Encounter The sudden appearance of the aged voice caught everyone off guard. Even though it was their first time hearing it, Ning, Bai, and Liu were almost certain that the voice belonged to Granny Ruan, the village shaman. A terrifying pressure emanated from beyond the dilapidated wooden door before the figure even entered, washing over them like a wave. Soon, the door was pushed open. A withered face appeared before them. The moment the middle-aged man in the room saw the face, he collapsed onto the ground as if all his strength had been drained. Even the light in his eyes seemed to vanish. He knew it was over. He had no idea how long the shaman had been standing outside the house or how much of their conversation she had overheard. If she had heard everything¡­ Fear and despair filled his heart. He knew what the shaman was capable of. He couldn¡¯t bear to imagine the horrors that awaited them¡­ "There should be a guest house in the village specifically for visitors. What brings the three of you running into a villager''s home?" The plump shaman leaned on a dragon-headed cane. A peculiar wooden tag hung from her thick waist. The trio had seen the tag many times before - it was the Ruan clan''s identity tag. "It''s nothing serious... We just noticed that the lady serving food in the canteen had changed. We casually inquired about it and heard she wasn''t feeling well. I happen to know a bit of medicine, so I came over to take a look," Ning replied calmly, without a hint of nervousness. He wasn''t lying. Every word he said was true. The shaman glanced at Ning. Her gaze was chilling, like a hungry wolf in the forest eyeing its prey. Moreover, Ning noticed a red patch on the shaman''s neck, near her shoulder. Although her clothes were heavy, he could vaguely discern that it was a sore that circled her entire neck. At first glance, it created the illusion of a bloody mark around the shaman''s neck. "There are no doctors in the village, but we have our own ways of treating illnesses. Thank you for your concern," the shaman said as she slowly walked towards the woman lying on the bed. Her eyes held only indifference as she looked at the woman, as if she were looking at a corpse. The shaman slowly extended her right hand toward the woman on the bed. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. At that moment, the man in the room suddenly lunged at the shaman like a madman, clutching her leg and pleading desperately, "Granny, please, I beg you, spare her life!" "Milana just has a fever, it''s just a fever that messed with her head, she, she didn''t do anything!" "It''s my fault, it''s all my fault, please spare her life!" The man kept kowtowing as he pleaded. However, the shaman remained indifferent to his pleas. "I heard from other villagers that outsiders had entered the village, so I came to check. Isn''t your wife running a fever? It could be that she''s been possessed by an evil spirit. Let me take a look at her¡­ Don''t you want your wife to get better soon?" The shaman''s aged voice carried a hint of feigned concern. The man looked hesitantly at his wife who was shivering on the bed. He remained silent for a long time before finally letting go of the shaman''s leg. The shaman extended her wrinkled fingers and grabbed at the air, muttering something under her breath before sprinkling it on the face of the woman lying on the bed. She looked exactly like a charlatan. However, everyone clearly saw that as the shaman finished her act, the woman who had been shivering on the bed suddenly quietened. The fear in her eyes vanished, replaced by a strange smile. Her gaze also became inexplicably vacant. "There, your wife is healed." The shaman seemed a little tired after completing her act. Her tone carried a hint of challenge as she looked at Ning, seemingly asking him if his medical skills could have taken effect so quickly. Ning smiled faintly. "Granny, your methods are truly impressive. Today, we, the frogs at the bottom of the well, have truly broadened our horizons¡­ Since Milana is already fine, we won''t intrude any longer." The shaman didn''t say much else. She watched as the trio left the room and walked towards the edge of the village. Under the shaman''s gaze, all three of them felt a chill run down their spines. It was an extremely uncomfortable feeling. As they walked further away, the wooden door in front of the shaman slowly closed shut¡­ Inside the room, the middle-aged man''s terrified and despairing gaze was completely cut off by the dilapidated wooden door¡­ ¡­ "Damn¡­ That old woman is scary!" Liu cursed as he shivered, shaking off the chill that had settled over him. Back in the room, when the shaman''s eyes swept past him, he felt a shiver run down his spine. "Bai, you''re so skilled, why didn''t you just knock her out and take her to Fang Cun Tang? We could have just ended it there and then!" "That female ghost is definitely looking for this shaman. As long as she gets her revenge, maybe she''ll tell us the truth and show us the way out." Bai put away her chain and returned to her usual lazy demeanor. "As the saying goes, martial arts are no match for immortal arts." "I do have some tricks up my sleeve, but they are limited to physical combat. I wouldn''t dare to provoke someone who practices such evil and unorthodox techniques¡­" Ning said, "That shaman is indeed too sinister. But she doesn''t seem to be in a good state either. Not only does she have those blood-red bumps on her body, but she also emits a rotten stench." Bai frowned. "You smelled it too?" "I thought I was imagining it." Ning nodded firmly. "I smelled it." "The villagers in this village¡­ The ones who know seem to be afraid of Guang, the deceased man. However, with the shaman around, there shouldn''t be any hauntings¡­ At least, not frequent ones." "Thinking about it, there''s only one possibility¡­" The other two turned to Ning. "What possibility?" Ning slowly said, "The villagers of Qiyu Village must have done something to wrong the Guang family. They are guilty, which is why they are afraid!" "But the Guang family lived a hundred years ago. The villagers couldn¡¯t have participated in Ruan Huang leading the villagers to kill them." "These people most likely know the truth about what happened back then but chose to hide it. They even twisted the facts¡­ Remember the attractions we visited earlier?" "Almost every place with an annotation mentioned the famine back then, praising Ruan Huang''s achievements and criticizing the Guang family''s cruelty and wickedness." "However, it''s very likely that things¡­ are the complete opposite of what those annotations recorded!" Silence fell upon the trio after Ning finished his words. At this moment, Liu, who was walking on the far left, suddenly asked a question, "But if the Guang family didn''t do anything wrong¡­ why did the villagers storm into their house and kill them?" His question brought the three of them to a halt. After a moment of silence, they suddenly lifted their heads, their eyes filled with indescribable horror! "Could it be¡­ food!" 37.Seeds of Doubt Once the terrifying thought took root in their minds, it became nearly impossible to eradicate. Food. The moment those two characters surfaced in their thoughts, they lingered, refusing to dissipate. "No way¡­" "Even if it was for food, they wouldn''t kill for it, would they?" Liu gasped, drawing in a sharp breath. It wasn''t the act of killing itself that frightened him. It was the reason behind those villagers murdering Guang Xiu''s entire family... just for food. "This isn''t the first time something like this has happened. In ancient times, during severe droughts and famines, people would even resort to cannibalism. Many people think it''s just an exaggeration, but it''s actually not an exaggeration at all!" Ning said, his voice heavy with the weight of the truth. "Of course, that''s not the scariest part." "After all, in those circumstances, people could only follow the law of the jungle, the survival of the fittest, to stay alive." "What''s truly terrifying is that those who committed evil deeds, after weathering the crisis, used lies to cover up their crimes and even pinned the blame on the victims!" "Back then, what was stolen from Guang Xiu''s family wasn''t just food, but also their lives, their reputation..." Bai sighed sympathetically, "That''s the scariest part..." "Everyone knows you''re innocent, but no one speaks up for you. They even band together to fabricate absurd accusations against you, point their fingers at you, and put you on trial..." "I think I can understand why such a terrifying vengeful spirit was born in this village..." "This is no longer just a simple matter of life and death, of revenge." Their hearts heavy with the weight of their discoveries, they fell silent, unable to continue the conversation. They returned to their guesthouse in somber silence. By now, they could basically piece together what had happened in the village all those years ago, but they still hadn''t found the way out. Time flew by quickly, and soon it was dinner time again. Due to their heightened caution, apart from Tang, no one else had vanished. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Seven remained. During dinner, everyone sat at the table, their silence deafening. Only Luo stared at her plate, a constant smile plastered on her face. Her smile was eerie, her expression dazed. No one knew what she had experienced alone in the guesthouse that afternoon. Ning observed Luo, a sense of familiarity tugging at the back of his mind. He felt like he had seen that smile somewhere before, but he couldn''t quite place it. The others noticed it too, subtly distancing themselves from Luo. As a result, a strange scene unfolded around the circular dining table. Luo sat alone, while the remaining six squeezed together on the opposite side. "Luo, Luo!" "What are you smiling about?" Finally, someone broke the silence. It was Fang, the timid girl. Luo''s strange demeanor terrified her. But Luo didn''t respond. She held her chopsticks in her hand, not bothering to pick up any food. Her eyes remained fixed on the plate in front of her, and she would let out a soft chuckle every now and then, as if someone beside her was telling her jokes, amusing her. The scene was incredibly eerie. Fang felt that if they weren''t surrounded by so many people, she would have run out of the room without a second thought. "What, what''s wrong with her?" The bespectacled man panicked. No one answered his question because none of them knew. Ning continued to eat, but he would glance up at Luo from time to time, seemingly observing something. Suddenly, he stopped picking up food. It dawned on him. He finally remembered why Luo''s smile felt so familiar... He had seen that very same smile on Milana''s face not too long ago! Back then, when the shaman approached Milana, who was lying ill in bed, and chanted some incantations and sprinkled something on her, Milana had worn that same smile! Could it be... Was it the shaman''s doing? What was she trying to do? As Ning pondered, Luo suddenly stood up in a daze and walked towards the door. She moved like a walking corpse, devoid of any life. But no one in the room dared to stop her. It wasn''t until Luo had walked some distance away that Fang spoke up, her voice weak and trembling, "Are we¡­ are we going to die?" Her voice was laced with panic and on the verge of tears. "There are only four days left. We''ve basically been to all the attractions we could go to, and found all the clues we could find... But we still haven''t found where the way out is!" "Is it possible¡­ that there''s no way out of this door at all?" Under immense pressure, emotions crumble first. And once emotions collapse, intelligence follows suit. People in this state would constantly doubt themselves, doubt everything around them! Everyone''s faces darkened. "Hey, Bai, did you guys find any useful clues?" "Tell us about it. Let''s brainstorm together. It''s better than fighting alone!" "After all, we''re all in the same boat now!" Although the bespectacled man was a newcomer and hadn''t performed well in many aspects, his initiative in searching for a way out gave his companions a glimmer of hope. "Alright¡ª" "We did find some useful clues. There are seven of us left¡­ Oh no, strictly speaking, there are only six of us now. So I''ll share with you what we''ve found." Bai began to explain. She first told everyone present about the famine that had ravaged the village a hundred years ago. Then, she mentioned the clue given by the Blood Gate. "The clues given by the Blood Gate are usually not complete. In fact, apart from the ''Kind One,'' the ''Compassionate One,'' and the ''Innocent One,'' there''s also an ''Evil One'' in this village." "And that ''Evil One'' is the shaman of this village!" "As for the way out¡­ We need to help the Kind One get revenge, eliminate the Evil One, and help the Compassionate One find its lost head, restoring peace to the village." "And we have less than four days to do all of this." "If we don''t accomplish these things before the temple ritual, then what awaits us¡­ is likely the final reckoning of the ''Kind One'' and the ''Compassionate One''!" 38.A Deadly Deception "Damn it! You''re saying we missed a great opportunity!" The bespectacled man exclaimed, slamming his hand on the table in frustration. "That shaman, Granny Ruan, came to the guesthouse this afternoon¡­ If we had known, we should have tied her up!" Ning said slowly, "You shouldn''t be feeling regretful, you should be feeling lucky." "If you had known about this back then and made a move against Granny Ruan... It would most likely be you who would have ended up in trouble." He recounted the afternoon''s events in the village, and everyone instantly understood how Luo had ended up in her current state. It had to be Granny Ruan''s doing! "Why, why would she do that to Luo?" The bespectacled man, who had been kicking himself for not capturing the shaman earlier, now felt a chill run down his spine. If they had returned to the guesthouse a little earlier, they might have already fallen victim to Granny Ruan''s sinister machinations, turned into mindless puppets like Luo! "I think... it might have something to do with Tang''s death." Bai spoke up. "Tang was originally just a pawn in Granny Ruan''s hands, used to force or lure us into doing certain things. Now that this pawn is gone, she definitely has to take matters into her own hands..." As she spoke, Ning suddenly seemed to grasp something, a hint of excitement entering his voice. "I finally understand, this is the key!" Everyone immediately turned to him, their faces etched with curiosity and confusion. "What is it, kid? What do you know?" Looking at their puzzled expressions, Ning slowly uttered words that sent chills down their spines. "From the moment we entered the Blood Gate, we''ve been misled by the prompt. The temple ritual didn''t begin four days later¡­ In fact, it has already begun, from the day we arrived!" Silence descended upon the room, heavy and absolute. "Remember our mission from the Blood Gate?" "The mission was to survive the temple ritual on the seventh day. It didn''t mean that the temple ritual would only begin on the seventh day!" Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "Let''s go back to what we''re experiencing now¡ª" Ning''s speech grew faster, his thoughts crystallizing. "The shaman first approached Tang, promising her survival and colluding with her to lead us to our deaths... Those who went up the mountain secretly under Tang''s guidance, those who went to different attractions¡­ They were all part of the shaman''s plan!" "In our eyes, those attractions might hold clues to our survival¡­ But in the shaman''s eyes, those are all places for offering sacrifices!" "Fang Cun Pond, the Shrine of Binding Evil, the Inexhaustible Well... Even the guesthouse we''re staying in (Misty Rain Temple), they''re all haunted by terrifying ghosts!" "The people of this village... From the moment we entered, they''ve been trying to sacrifice us to those dead!" "That''s why, after Tang''s death, the shaman suspected that someone among us had figured everything out. So, she didn''t bother looking for another accomplice and chose to take action herself!" As Ning laid out the truth, a bone-chilling cold settled over everyone in the room¡­ "The ritual¡­ has it already begun?" The bespectacled man mumbled, his face pale. Following Ning''s revelation, everyone suddenly recalled something that had been happening all along, something they had completely overlooked. ¡ªPeople were dying every day. Yes. If they were indeed sacrifices, would the villagers and the shaman allow them to die so easily before the ritual even began? Of course not. The room was plunged into a deathly silence. No one spoke. The ritual they had thought wouldn''t begin for another four days had actually commenced two days ago. "Damn it!" "We should have realized this sooner!" The bespectacled man cursed under his breath. Bai, who had finished her meal, set down her chopsticks. "Alright, it''s getting late. Everyone, please stay inside tonight. " "The village isn''t safe to begin with. Also, when you return to your rooms, remember to check every corner. If you see a wooden tag with the character ''Ruan'' written on it, throw it away immediately!" Their hearts heavy with foreboding, they returned to their rooms. Ning carefully inspected his room, ensuring nothing was amiss before bolting the door shut. Darkness descended quickly upon the village, and soon, the world outside was cloaked in an impenetrable black. They had uncovered a lot today, and Ning''s mind was still racing. He sat on the bed, trying to organize his thoughts. "Although we have a general idea of what happened back then, many details remain unclear. The deaths of Guang Xiu''s family, and why the Compassionate One appears as a monk¡­ But now that the shaman is highly suspicious of us, it''s unlikely we''ll be able to investigate everything thoroughly one by one..." Most of the villagers still alive were under 70 years old. Ning had been paying attention to this detail since they entered the village. Realistically speaking, given the medical conditions in the village, those who lived past 60 were lucky to be alive. Therefore, these survivors couldn''t possibly know everything about what had transpired a century ago. Some of the details, perhaps they were truly unaware of, having only heard snippets of the story from their elders. They probably only knew that the Guang Xiu family had been wronged. "It seems the key¡­ still lies with the shaman!" Ning''s eyes narrowed. Although they were reluctant to confront the shaman head-on, it was becoming increasingly clear that it was an unavoidable step. With no wooden tags left in their rooms, they encountered no sign of Guang that night. Perhaps consumed by vengeance, the vengeful spirit seemed to have no interest in them, its sole focus on finding the wooden tags inscribed with the character "Ruan." The next morning, when Ning went for breakfast, he discovered that¡­ Bai was gone. 39.Missing Yes, Bai was gone. Early that morning, Ning and Liu knocked on her door, but there was no response. They found it strange, assuming she might have woken up early for breakfast. But when they arrived at the canteen, there was no sign of her. Ning inquired with the canteen staff, but the old man serving food hadn''t seen her either. A sense of unease crept into their hearts. They rushed back to the guesthouse and to Bai''s door. Ning gently tried the doorknob, and to his surprise, the door swung open. The room was empty. A faint trace of Bai''s shampoo lingered in the air. "This is bad¡­" Liu muttered. "Could she have run into a ghost last night?" Ning scanned the room, his expression grave. "There are no signs of struggle, no signs of resistance. And she took her backpack. Judging from these details, she must have left on her own accord¡­" Liu frowned. "Left on her own?" "Yes," Ning confirmed. "Bai is not impulsive. For her to make the risky decision to leave alone, she must have discovered something extremely important last night!" Ning''s heart sank. He could tell from the state of the room that Bai had left voluntarily, but he couldn''t be sure if she was still alive. After all, this village was shrouded in an unsettling aura of dread. Especially the back mountain behind the forest in front of the guesthouse. They hadn''t been there yet. They had a hunch that the place was a forbidden zone within this Blood Gate, far more dangerous than the other attractions! Venturing into that area could lead to unforeseen and perilous consequences! "Bro, where do you think she could have gone?" Liu asked, his voice edged with worry. Ning shook his head. He couldn''t fathom what Bai might have seen that would compel her, always cautious and level-headed, to take such a risk. "Let''s wait a little longer. We still have time. Don''t panic." "The most important thing now is to stay calm. If we panic, we''re more likely to make mistakes!" This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Liu nodded in agreement. However, they waited the entire day. Even as night fell once more, Bai remained missing. This time, it wasn''t just Liu who was getting anxious. The other three were starting to worry as well. "What? Bai is missing too?" The bespectacled man was stunned. That morning, they had also discovered that someone was missing from their team. ¡ªLuo. She had disappeared sometime during the night. However, Ning and Liu had been preoccupied with Bai''s disappearance and were unaware of Luo''s absence. There had been little interaction between the two teams. It was only that evening that they realized two people had gone missing the previous night! "In that case¡­ could Bai have left with Luo last night?" Ning nodded. "It''s possible." "So, are we doing anything tonight?" The bespectacled man asked, his voice tight with tension. Time was running out. A day seemed like a long time, but it could pass in the blink of an eye. "We don''t have any life-saving ghost artifacts. It''s too dangerous to move around at night. Let''s wait and see." After a moment of deliberation, Ning decided against venturing out at night. They had been forced to act at night in the previous Blood Gate due to the specific rules set in place. Bai had warned them that unless absolutely necessary, it was best to avoid moving around at night, as the world behind the Blood Gate was usually fraught with danger! Once again, everyone checked their rooms for the wooden tags and bolted their doors shut. After everyone had retired to their rooms, Ning quietly slipped out of his room and returned to Bai''s. His earlier search had been rushed, and he might have missed something. After careful consideration, Ning believed that with Bai''s cautious nature, even if she had left on her own, she wouldn''t have left them completely in the dark. So, under the cover of night, he returned to her room. This time, he found a cracked, bloodstained bronze mirror tucked under her pillow. Ning recognized the mirror. It was the same one Bai had used to save Liu from being dragged into the Inexhaustible Well! "She deliberately left a ghost artifact for us. Does this mean... she knew something might happen to her?" Holding the mirror, Ning stood in Bai''s room, staring at the reflection. He froze. Although it was dark, the moon outside was bright. Even without the lights on, Ning could see that the reflection in the cracked bronze mirror was not his own. It was a woman with long, flowing hair, dressed in a red wedding gown. The sight was unsettling, but Ning knew that the woman in the mirror wouldn''t harm him. "This mirror still possesses spiritual power. It hasn''t been sealed, which means Bai is still alive!" A glimmer of hope flickered in Ning''s eyes. Aside from the second mysterious letter he had received, he genuinely didn''t want Bai to die in this Blood Gate. After all, she had entered this cursed place for him. Logically, he should be the one facing the danger. Ning hated being indebted to others. "I''ll wait for dawn¡­ Even with the bronze mirror for protection, it''s still too risky to go out at night." He returned to his room and lay down, his mind racing. He couldn''t shake off the worry gnawing at his heart. The second mysterious letter he had received outside his door stated that Bai couldn''t die in his second Blood Gate. What would happen if she did? Although Ning had no idea who was sending him those letters, he sensed that the sender meant him no harm, at least not for now. Otherwise, he wouldn''t have made it out of the first Blood Gate alive! He tossed and turned in bed, sleep eluding him. As he drifted in and out of a restless slumber, dawn broke. The first rays of sunlight pierced through the window and into his room. Ning sat up, exhaustion clinging to him. After a quick wash, he knocked on everyone''s doors, waking them up. "Bro, where are we going?" Liu asked, his trust in Ning absolute after their previous experience. "I''ve given it some thought. There are only two places Bai could have gone." "First, the back mountain behind the forest." "Second, Granny Ruan''s residence!" "The back mountain is too dangerous. Let''s try to find the shaman''s residence first." The bespectacled man frowned. "But that shaman is no pushover. If she discovers us, we''ll be in deep trouble!" Ning nodded in agreement. "We can''t just barge in. We need to find a way to lure her out!" 40.The Room of Heads Around nine in the morning, three figures stealthily entered the village. Just like when Ning and his companions had first arrived, the villagers eyed them with a mixture of guilt and apprehension. Their gazes darted away the moment they met the newcomers'' eyes, as if ashamed to be caught staring. They would quickly busy themselves with whatever task they had at hand, pretending to be engrossed in their work. Ning knew these villagers were in cahoots with the shaman. Otherwise, there was no way the shaman could have arrived at Milana''s house so quickly the previous afternoon. Someone must have alerted her. As expected. Hidden near the shaman''s residence, Ning and Liu watched as a figure dressed in coarse hemp clothing rushed out from the village entrance. They followed the figure to a grand residence situated beside a temple in the west of the village. The residence was even more imposing than the temple itself, its entrance guarded by two exquisitely carved stone lions with fierce expressions. Not long after, the villager and the shaman emerged from the residence, walking briskly towards the village. Ning couldn''t be sure if it was his imagination, but the shaman''s back seemed even more hunched than before, her steps a little unsteady. Once they were certain that the shaman and the villager were out of sight, Ning and Liu stealthily made their way into the residence. The moment they stepped inside, a wave of icy cold washed over them, accompanied by a strange, pungent odor. Ning recognized the smell - it was the same one that clung to the shaman. It was difficult to describe, a mixture of decay and a hodgepodge of other unpleasant scents. The shaman''s residence was surprisingly spacious. Standing in the courtyard, Ning whispered, "We don''t have much time. Let''s split up and search." Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. "Got it!" Liu nodded, and they each went in opposite directions. They quickly scoured the rooms the shaman frequented, but their search yielded little. "It''s all just talismans for warding off evil spirits and some strange Buddhist scriptures," Liu reported, panting slightly as he rejoined Ning ten minutes later. He was getting anxious, his eyes darting towards the entrance every now and then, as if afraid someone might walk in. "Damn it, I haven''t felt this guilty in ages! The last time I felt like this was eleven years ago when I stole a sip of my master''s wine...!" Ning rolled his eyes. Just as he was considering whether they should leave, his gaze fell upon a secluded corner of the courtyard. It was in the southwest corner of the garden, concealed by dense overgrowth. At first glance, one would easily mistake it for a shed used to store junk and discarded items. "Let''s check that room," Ning said, pointing towards the inconspicuous structure. They hurried over to the nondescript room. Unlike the other rooms, this one was locked. "That''s strange¡­ She lives here alone, why would she lock this room?" Liu wondered aloud. With practiced ease, he pulled out a piece of wire and began picking the lock. As he worked, he muttered to himself, "Almost¡­ almost there¡­ Yes, that''s it¡­ Got it!" A click echoed through the air as the lock yielded to his efforts. Ning shot him a strange look. Liu, oblivious to his companion''s bewilderment, asked, "What? What''s with the look, bro?" Shaking his head, Ning pushed the door open and stepped inside. The room was pitch black, almost impossible to see. The air was thick with that strange, pungent odor - the shaman''s scent. Ning fumbled around until his hand found a switch. Click ¡ª The light flickered on, and he froze, his blood turning to ice. The sight that greeted them sent chills down their spines, making their skin crawl. Three rows of shelves lined the walls of the otherwise empty room. Large glass jars were neatly arranged on each shelf. And inside those jars¡­ were human heads! Preserved in some unknown liquid, their eyes were wide open, staring back at the two intruders with a mixture of horror and despair. "Holy shit¡­" Liu''s legs began to tremble uncontrollably. "Wait!" Ning''s eyes narrowed as he scrutinized the heads in the jars. A gasp escaped his lips. "These heads¡­ they''re still alive!" Liu''s eyes widened. "What?!" A wave of cold fear washed over Ning. He couldn''t comprehend what he was seeing. These heads were severed from their bodies, how could they possibly be alive? Yet, they blinked. Their eyes followed their every move. And then¡­ they started to speak. "It hurts¡­" "Sob¡­ please get me out of here¡­ It''s so dark¡­ Where am I?" "Has someone come to save us?" "Please, someone, anyone, help us¡­" Terrified cries and desperate pleas filled the air, bouncing off the walls of the dark room, their voices a chorus of torment that hammered against their hearts. "Bro, turn off the light!!" Liu yelled, his face ashen. But Ning raised a hand, silencing him. "Shhh¡ª" Seeing Ning''s serious expression, Liu quickly closed his mouth. Ning strained to listen, his eyes scanning the room. He moved to a corner, pulled away a dusty cloth, and lifted a pristine glass jar from its hiding place. Liu''s eyes widened in horror. No sound escaped his lips. Because inside the jar, staring back at him with vacant eyes, was the severed head of¡­ Bai! 41.The Chase Begins "Holy crap, i-is that Bai?!" Liu felt his heart clench at the sight of the head in the jar. He never imagined that Bai''s head would appear in the glass jar before his eyes! The shock was indescribable. After all, Bai was a veteran who had passed through numerous blood gates and possessed many life-saving ghost artifacts. If even she couldn''t handle the Shaman, what were they supposed to do? The two of them carefully examined the head in the jar. As much as they didn''t want to believe it, they had to admit the truth¡ªthe head in the jar did indeed belong to Bai. Her charming face was now paler, and her usually languid peach blossom eyes were filled with emptiness. Ning examined the bottom of the jar. The break at Bai''s neck was perfectly clean, suggesting it was severed by something extremely sharp. But there was a large patch of black around the wound; he couldn''t tell what it was. Normally, a person whose head was severed would have no chance of survival. However, somehow, the Shaman had managed to keep Bai alive! Carrying the jar, Ning closed the door to the treatment room. Instantly, the entire house plunged back into darkness. The chattering sounds that had filled the air gradually disappeared. Ning carried the jar out of the empty room and spoke to Bai''s head inside, "Bai, can you hear me? What''s your situation right now?" Silence hung in the air for about three seconds before the head in the jar spoke, "What time is it?" Ning told Bai the time. He had to admit, this woman was truly extraordinary. She was more than just a beautiful face. Even in her current predicament, Bai remained composed. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. "Good... it''s not too late." Bai''s weak voice sounded relieved. "Listen, we don''t have much time. You must remember everything I''m about to say!" Ning nodded. "Go ahead, Bai." Bai paused again, as if speaking took considerable effort. "There''s something wrong with the Shaman''s body. It seems like she''s been using some kind of dark magic to suppress the ghosts in the village for a long time, and now it''s backfiring..." "Under her bed in her bedroom, there''s a mechanism. If you twist it, a hidden compartment will open. Inside, you''ll find a very important book that contains the truth about what happened in this village... and how to safely reach the mountain temple!" "You need to take that book... and whatever you do, don''t confront the Shaman directly. You''re no match for her!" As soon as Bai finished speaking, Ning asked, "Is there any way to save you?" Bai''s face remained expressionless; in her current state, she couldn''t really make any expressions. "If you can find my body and bring it here before sunset today, I can live." "My body... it''s at the mountain temple." Ning simply said, "Okay!" He was about to put the jar containing Bai''s head back in its original place when he heard her voice again. "Oh, right... there are many corpses in the mountain temple. It might be hard to find mine just by looking." Ning was taken aback for a moment before he heard Bai whisper, "I have a dagger-shaped birthmark on my left buttock, it''s quite obvious..." Seeing a hint of shyness in Bai''s voice, Ning couldn''t help but feel amused. However, they both knew that in the face of life and death, such things seemed trivial. After returning Bai''s head to its original position and ensuring they left no trace of their presence, they carefully backed out of the room. "Lock it up, Big Beard!" Liu nodded, not only relocking the door but also restoring the lock to its original position. "Ning, what did Bai tell you?" Ning hesitated for a moment before shaking his head. It wouldn''t be appropriate to tell others about the birthmark on her buttock. After all, Bai was still a woman. "Let''s go to the Shaman''s bedroom first and find that book with the important clues!" The two of them entered the Shaman''s bedroom once again. They had been here before, but it hadn''t occurred to them that the Shaman would be so cautious as to set up mechanisms and traps in her own living space. Following Bai''s instructions, they quickly located the mechanism beneath the Shaman''s bed. With a gentle twist, a hidden compartment appeared before them. Just as Bai had said, there was a yellowed book inside. The book''s cover was incredibly old and worn. Despite being well-preserved, it was still marked by the passage of time. Some areas were inevitably damaged from frequent flipping. Without hesitation, Ning picked up the book and closed the compartment. They then left the Shaman''s bedroom and headed into the courtyard. But just as they were about to leave, the courtyard gate slowly creaked open¡ª A familiar, aged face filled with wrinkles appeared before them! Their eyes met, and both parties were caught off guard. The atmosphere instantly became awkward. Especially when the Shaman saw the important book she had hidden in Ning''s hand. After a moment of silence, Ning immediately turned and ran towards an arched doorway in the courtyard! "Big Beard, run!!" With a shout, both of them bolted towards the western archway without looking back! The Shaman''s face contorted into a ferocious expression, and with an enraged roar, she hobbled after them, leaning heavily on her cane! 42.Into the Trap "Holy shit, we are so screwed!" Liu cursed. "This old hag, couldn''t she have come back any other time? She just had to show up when we were about to leave!" Ning didn''t respond, his mind instantly recalling the layout of the Shaman''s house. He had memorized the main passages during their previous search. The walls were too high to climb, topped with sharp shards of glass, and a direct confrontation with the Shaman was out of the question. Their only option was to find a way around. Fortunately, the Shaman was alone. The villagers never came here, leaving her completely isolated. "Holy crap, bro, look!" Liu glanced back, his entire body trembling. The Shaman, who usually walked with a shaky gait, was now chasing them with astonishing speed! She had discarded her dragon-headed cane, her face contorted in a terrifying grimace. Her eyes reflected an indescribable hunger, and her running grew increasingly twisted and eerie. "You... you dare trespass in my house!" she shrieked. "I will skin you alive, peel your bones, pry open your skulls, and pour hot oil into your brains!!" As the Shaman roared madly behind them, Liu felt a pressure building in his bladder. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead. He knew the Shaman wasn''t joking! From the grotesque sights they had witnessed in the Fangcun Pond and the Inexhaustible Well, he knew she was fully capable of carrying out her threats. "Holy shit, holy shit, why is she getting faster?!" They finally circled back to the main gate, only to find it bolted shut from the inside! Clearly, the ever-suspicious Shaman had anticipated potential intruders and taken precautions. The gate was secured with an old-fashioned lock and heavy chains, effectively sealing their escape route. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. "Quick, Big Beard, open it!" Ning''s heart pounded like a temple gong as he saw the Shaman appear at the end of the hallway, each thud echoing in his ears. Liu didn''t hesitate. Pulling out his trusty wire, he began working on the lock. The Shaman''s terrifying figure drew closer with every passing second. They could practically smell her foul stench filling the air. "... I treated you with kindness, but you ungrateful wretches not only showed no gratitude, but you dared to sneak into my house and steal from me!" Her voice dripped with venom. "Since you like my home so much, why don''t you stay... forever..." Obscured by Ning, the Shaman couldn''t see Liu frantically working on the lock. She assumed they had given up and were simply waiting for their demise. In her hand, a sinister object materialized ¨C a bone-white blade! The blade was stained with a black, viscous substance that sent chills down Ning''s spine. He instantly recognized it from Bai''s severed neck. This was the weapon that had taken her head! As the Shaman closed in, the lock finally yielded with a satisfying click! With a roar, Liu kicked the gate open. Bang! Ning was the first one out. This was no time for courtesy! Survival was their only priority. They fled with all their might, the Shaman''s enraged roars echoing behind them. It seemed even she hadn''t expected one of them to be skilled at lock picking! However, the importance of the book in Ning''s possession fueled her determination, and she continued her relentless pursuit. "Damn it, how can this old bat run so fast? With legs like that, why bother pretending to need a cane?!" Liu gasped, his face pale with exhaustion. Years of intense training had given Ning incredible stamina. This level of exertion was nothing to him. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for his companion. "She''s not actually in good shape... Don''t let her current state fool you. This chase is taking a toll on her body. She''ll pay the price for it!" A glimmer of hope flickered in Liu''s eyes. "So, we can just run her into the ground?" Ning shook his head, slowing his pace slightly. Liu gratefully followed suit, catching his breath. "I could, but you probably couldn''t... But it doesn''t matter. I have the book. Her reaction tells me it holds a very important secret, one she won''t give up easily." "She''s slowing down now. Let''s slow down too, pretend we''re exhausted. Give her hope, make her think she can catch us..." Liu glanced back at the pursuing Shaman. The old woman was terrifyingly persistent. He was about to pass out, yet she still seemed relatively unaffected. If her pace hadn''t slowed, he''d be consumed by despair. "Hey, bro, doesn''t this path look familiar?" Liu asked, his eyes widening as recognition dawned. Ning, adjusting his breathing, replied, "Of course it does." "This path... leads to the Fangcun Pond!" The familiar name sparked a light in Liu''s eyes. "Damn... you''re brilliant, bro!" "Leading her straight into that deathtrap?" Ning hefted the book. "These things are too important to her. She won''t give up." They continued their calculated retreat, drawing closer and closer to the Fangcun Pond with every step. The high platform, their destination, emerged through the trees, a beacon of hope. Just then, feeling a surge of relief, Liu risked another glance back at the Shaman. And that''s when his smile froze. 43.Vengeance From the Deep After taking that glance back, Liu was horrified to find the Shaman, who had been running on two legs, was now down on all fours like a wild beast. She charged towards them with terrifying speed, a ravenous wolf on the hunt! "Holy crap, did she just devolve?!" Liu yelped, his brief moment of relief vanishing in an instant. The Shaman, who had slowed down momentarily, surged forward with even greater speed as her hands touched the ground, faster than before! Unlike animals, the skeletal and muscular structure of humans made it difficult for most to run effectively on all fours. Aside from coordination, most people lacked the arm strength and flexibility to support their weight and propel themselves forward quickly. Mimicking an animal for a short burst was one thing, but doing it for extended periods would lead to injuries. Yet, the Shaman chasing them seemed to have truly transformed into a fearsome predator! Her movements were grotesque and twisted, yet astonishingly fast! In a matter of seconds, the distance between them had shrunk by ten meters! She was now less than twenty meters away! "Shit, bro, she''s catching up!" Liu gasped, his lungs burning, vision blurring. Only sheer willpower kept him going. His body was at its limit. Even if he willed himself to go faster, his legs wouldn''t obey. At this rate, the Shaman would catch him in less than five seconds! Reaching the Fangcun Pond would take at least another twenty! The gap between them closed relentlessly... The Shaman''s hideous face loomed larger with each passing moment. Her features were contorted in a terrifying snarl, eyes bloodshot and devoid of any humanity. Liu pushed himself like he was squeezing the last drops from a sponge, desperately trying to summon a final burst of energy. But his legs wouldn''t respond. Finally, the Shaman was upon him. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Staring into the face of the monstrous witch about to pounce, Liu felt a wave of despair wash over him. He had only one thought¡ªif he survived this Blood Gate, he would take up long-distance running! "Hey! Are you looking for this?" Pinned to the ground by the Shaman, her bone blade poised to strike, Liu heard Ning''s voice. The Shaman paused, her bloodshot eyes fixated on the book in Ning''s hand. In a swift motion, he threw the book towards the Fangcun Pond! The Shaman roared in fury and panic, releasing Liu and scrambling after the airborne book. She snatched it from the air just before it could plunge into the water. As soon as her fingers closed around the book, the Shaman instantly reverted to her human form. Standing on the platform, back to the water, she faced them with murder in her eyes. "The game is over, insects!" she hissed, a triumphant smile twisting her lips. "Such a pity¡­" "I win in the end... as always! I never lose!!" Ning pulled the stunned Liu to his feet. They walked slowly towards the platform, stopping at its base, and looked up at the Shaman. "Yes," Ning said, a slow smile spreading across his face, "the game is over." The Shaman''s triumphant expression faltered. A feeling of unease crept into her heart. At that moment, the sound of churning water erupted from the pond behind her. The gurgling grew louder, as if the entire pond was boiling! The Shaman trembled involuntarily. She looked down at the stone beneath her feet, her eyes widening in fear. How¡­ how did she get here?! In her frenzy to catch Ning and the book, she had entered [that] state, a state where her rationality was suppressed. She tried to step back from the platform¡¯s edge, but tendrils of black algae shot up from the water, wrapping around her body, binding her tightly! "No... No!!" The Shaman screamed, slashing at the algae with her bone blade! The blade was sharp, capable of slicing through a vengeful spirit''s unbreakable hair. But the algae were relentless. For every strand severed, more surged forward to take its place. Soon, even her arms were pinned! Gurgle¡ª Gurgle¡ª The churning grew louder, closer. Suddenly, the water parted, and a woman¡¯s flayed skin rose slowly from the depths, stopping behind the Shaman. The skin reached out, a single swipe of its hand severing the Shaman''s fingers, sending them tumbling down onto the stone platform at their feet. "Gah..." the Shaman cried out, but the algae quickly covered her mouth. The skin picked up the fallen bone blade, turning it over in its grasp, examining it closely. Then, tears of blood trickled from its eyes, and it began to sob, a mournful cry escaping its lips: "Guang Xiu..." "Guang Xiu..." As if responding to the skin''s mournful call, the bone blade trembled, vibrating in sync with its cries. The Shaman struggled furiously. She was strong, that much was undeniable. Even as the skin held the blade, she managed to rip free one of her arms from the algae¡¯s grasp. Clawing at the strands covering her mouth, she tore them away. Finally free, she began chanting, strange, arcane words spilling from her lips. As the chant grew louder, the skin cried out in pain. The algae binding the Shaman ignited, burning away until nothing remained. Below, Ning and Liu watched in shock. "Holy shit, she''s that strong?!" Liu yelped, a mix of awe and terror in his voice. Just as it seemed the Shaman might break free, he grabbed a stone from the ground and hurled it at her. Whether by luck or fate, the stone found its mark, lodging itself in the Shaman''s open mouth, cutting off her chant. The Shaman¡¯s eyes bulged. She clutched at her throat, choking. But by the time she managed to dislodge the stone, the black algae had returned, stronger than before. This time, the vengeful spirit gave her no chance to escape. 45.The Headless Monk When everyone realized that Ruan Huang had deceived them, it was already too late. They had become the village''s most ruthless executioners. Their hands were stained with blood that could never be washed away. No villager dared to collect Guangxiu¡¯s body. He lay in his own courtyard, his body smashed beyond recognition by tools like hoes and sickles. Blood and bits of flesh splattered across most of the yard. His caved-in skull had only one eye left, staring blankly into the sky. In his gaze, apart from fear, there was only¡­ confusion. He truly didn¡¯t understand. Why did the villagers he had spent nearly all his wealth to help, turn around and kill him? Of course, no one knew why, but on the night Guangxiu died¡­ the drought in the village ended. A rainstorm fell. This blessed rain was something the entire village had longed for. They cheered, cried, and shouted... They forgot the crime they had just committed. They forgot what they had done to their former savior. Guangxiu was dead, and the drought was over. Somehow, a rumor began to spread in the village. People said that Guangxiu had secretly done many bad deeds behind people''s backs. He had built the Misty Rain Temple to worship the land gods, but in reality, he used the temple to hoard grain and wealth. This, they said, angered the gods and caused the drought! Naturally, this rumor was started by Ruan Huang. He needed to destroy Guangxiu''s influence over the villagers quickly. In the end, he succeeded. The villagers seemed to really believe him, and he got what he wanted: he became the village chief. Later, Ruan Huang burned Guangxiu¡¯s son Guang alive in the Misty Rain Temple and secretly kidnapped Guangxiu¡¯s wife, Zhu, planning to make her his captive. Zhu was beautiful. Even after giving birth, her looks and figure hadn¡¯t changed much. Her gentle, fragile demeanor as a wife made her a renowned beauty in the region. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Ruan Huang, however, was the opposite. He was born ugly, with unattractive features and crooked teeth. His parents had worried he would never marry, so they searched everywhere for a bride. But when the girls saw Ruan Huang¡¯s face, they either shook their heads and left immediately or reluctantly agreed,. Over time, even his parents gave up. After Guangxiu''s death, Ruan Huang was deeply drawn to Zhu¡¯s tear-streaked face as she wept over her husband¡¯s body in the courtyard. For the next few nights, he couldn¡¯t sleep, constantly thinking of her face. Unable to resist his desires, Ruan Huang devised a plan: he would claim the gods were angry and send down lightning to burn the Misty Rain Temple, killing Zhu and Guang in the fire. But in reality, only Guang was burned to death. Zhu was secretly kidnapped and hidden in Ruan Huang¡¯s underground cellar. For the following months, Zhu suffered unspeakable torture and abuse. No matter what Ruan Huang did, she refused to submit, always cursing him until she passed out from the torment. One day, Ruan Huang grew bored. Or maybe, after venting all his frustrations on her, he realized women weren¡¯t as special as he thought. When she cursed him again, Ruan Huang finally snapped. All his bottled-up anger exploded. First, he cut out Zhu¡¯s tongue and poisoned her so she couldn¡¯t speak. After crudely stopping the bleeding with ashes, Ruan Huang, whose mind had grown twisted, came up with a new way to torment her! He spent money to build a special pond for Zhu and summoned the village¡¯s best butcher. They chained her arms and legs to keep her from moving, then began slowly stripping her bones. As he watched Zhu¡¯s beautiful face twist in agony, her mouth wide open but unable to make a sound, Ruan Huang laughed with satisfaction. He had never felt such pleasure. Zhu''s body soaked in the icy water, and after having most of her bones removed, she finally bled to death. But even after her death, the punishment didn¡¯t end. Ruan Huang had the butcher complete his work, stripping Zhu¡¯s skin from her body. Gazing at the pool of bright red blood, Ruan Huang tossed a piece of gold to the butcher and walked away. About half a month later, while searching for a new wife, Ruan Huang heard that the butcher who had helped him skin and dismember Zhu... was dead. And he had died horribly. At first, Ruan Huang thought it was just an accident. But later, he began having terrifying nightmares, and strange events started happening around the village. Ruan Huang finally realized... they were in deep trouble! The dead had returned as vengeful spirits seeking revenge! People in the village began dying. Each corpse was left in a terrifying state, their eyes bulging out, veins popping with blood, and faces frozen in unimaginable horror as if they had seen something extremely frightening before death! As more and more people died, a strange atmosphere settled over the village. Ruan Huang knew that if this continued, it would be his turn soon! But he refused to give up the power and respect he had worked so hard to gain! In the end, Ruan Huang paid a large sum to a villager who traveled far away to a famous monastery, seeking help from the monks there. The monks refused the money. A young monk named Fahui followed the villager back to the village. Upon entering, he told the villagers: "The dead are filled with too much anger. It cannot be easily resolved." "Either the villagers leave, or you will all die here!" Hearing this, the villager wasted no time and immediately brought the young monk to Ruan Huang. "Master, is there really no way?" Ruan Huang, pale-faced, poured out his sorrows to the monk, telling him that the Ruan family had been village chiefs for generations, and that he couldn¡¯t allow the village to be overrun by evil spirits! Perhaps the monk was too naive, or maybe Ruan Huang was a convincing actor, but the monk believed him and was moved by Ruan¡¯s apparent willingness to sacrifice himself to protect the villagers. The monk loudly proclaimed: "Amitabha! If I do not go to hell, who will?" The monk then told Ruan Huang that there was one way to protect the village, besides resolving the ghosts'' anger. The method was to behead the monk, reattach his head using a special ritual, and place his body alongside the corpses of the vengeful spirits. They would then build a temple over them and have monks chant prayers for seven days and nights. Through the power of the Buddha, the monk¡¯s spirit would suppress the evil ghosts. However, there was one crucial condition: the monk¡¯s head must never be separated from his body... 46.Blood Sacrifice Once his head leaves his body, his power will completely disappear, and the suppressed evil spirits will reappear! Back then, Ruan Huang remembered this very clearly. Therefore, before he died, he never let anyone approach the temple, and the monk''s head never left his body. That period was probably one of the few peaceful times in the village. However, such a time came to an end after Ruan Huang''s son took over as the village head... He lacked prestige and felt the distrust of the villagers. In fact, many people in the village knew what his father did back then. After all, they were also participants. However, they were afraid of Ruan Huang''s methods, coupled with their own guilt, and they could not face the past, so no one mentioned it again... ¡­ It was not until after Ruan Huang''s death that his son Ruan Xin took over as the village head, that Qiyu Village''s nightmare really began! In order to stabilize the villagers and keep his position as the village head, Ruan Xin went to the Houshan Temple in the village alone and took off the monk''s head! This time, something happened in the village again... With the successive deaths, Ruan Xin finally realized that he had caused a catastrophe! He went up the mountain in a panic, trying to put the monk''s head back on. However, when he came to the temple again, a terrifying thing happened... Ruan Xin saw that the body of the monk who was supposed to be sitting in the center of the temple...was gone! This time, he completely panicked! Originally, Ruan Xin just wanted to use this method to retaliate against the villagers, let them feel the fear, so that they could remember that it was his father who brought them peace. But who would have thought that once this matter happened, there would be no way to end it! Anxious Ruan Xin immediately found a villager, imitated his father, and asked him to take money to the temple to seek help. However, this time... it failed. After decades, the temple no longer had incense offerings. The monks either died or left. When the villagers arrived at the temple, they discovered that it had become an empty temple! The villager returned to Qiyu Village with a heart of despair. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Terrible things continued to happen in the village. In the end, when they were desperate, the villagers had already made the worst plan and prepared to leave. This village gave birth to them and raised them. No one wants to leave their hometown unless there is no other way. Especially since they don''t have much money. It was under such circumstances that a turning point appeared in the village. A woman appeared. She first asked the villagers about the situation here. After figuring it out, she unexpectedly told Ruan Xin that she could help Ruan Xin solve the problems in the village for free, but the premise was... Ruan Xin had to marry her. . Of course, Ruan Xin didn''t know the specific reason. Of course, at that time, did Ruan Xin have the right to choose? He didn''t want to give up the power in his hands, so he could only agree. He didn''t expect that not long after he married this woman, the village would really... be peaceful. It''s a pity that the good times didn''t last long, and the woman died within two years. Died in childbirth. But the child miraculously survived. It''s a girl. This girl is now the Shaman. She was very smart since she was a child. She has been studying the relics left to her by her mother, and she also learned in detail from her father what happened in the past. Eleven years later, Ruan Xin died of a heart attack and the Shaman succeeded him. At this time, she already enjoyed considerable prestige in the village. But after she came to power, she intensified her efforts compared to her father. She not only spread various rumors and slandered the dead about what happened back then, but also forced the villagers to hand over their finances and food to build various temples. In fact, most of these belongings went into her own pocket! But even so, there are still villagers who die mysteriously from time to time. Seeing that the population of the village was gradually dwindling, the Shaman knew that this could not continue. So, she came up with a way, and this way... is to let outsiders replace the villagers as sacrifices! In this way, the grievances of the dead can be temporarily calmed down. From that year onwards, the village has been constantly developing tourism. They spent a lot of energy and financial resources to build scenic spots, and open to the public every year when sacrifices are needed! This method is really useful. Since the rise of tourism...the village has never died again. Oh, of course, they don''t call those tourists who come to visit as people. They call them... sacrifices. This is the whole truth about Qiyu Village. "These people are really beasts!" "From top to bottom, from front to back, there is not a single good thing!" Liu scolded fiercely, his eyes were red. He seemed to feel that it was not enough to vent his anger, so he ran up and kicked the meat ball of "the Shaman" severely, kicking the meat ball to pieces. There was a ground of minced meat and bones. A strong smell of blood permeated the air, the two felt uncomfortable, so they took the book and walked back. "This method is not only harmful to reason... it is inherently drinking poison to quench thirst." Ning sighed. "Just imagine that there are more and more people who died unjustly in the village, and the resentment will only grow stronger. When it reaches a certain point and finally can''t bear it, it will all be fed back to these villagers!" "Remember what Bai said? The "the Shaman" has begun to be backlashed..." Liu thought about the red-clothed female ghost they met behind the first blood gate, and couldn''t help shivering! No wonder such a terrifying evil spirit was born, it is not enough to slaughter a whole place, and it has to go to other places to continue to slaughter! "The red-clothed female ghost we met behind the first blood gate should be a fusion of the resentment of dozens or even hundreds of people in Qiyu Village for hundreds of years!" "It''s no wonder it''s so ferocious that it killed all the people in the entire villa area!" "Damn it, knowing what these bastards did, I don''t want to save them!" Ning said, "We weren''t going to save them in the first place. We have to find a way to rescue Bai first, and then help the monk find his head. I guess only the monk can suppress the resentment of Guangxiu and these unjustly dead people. But now that the monk has no head, he can do nothing." 47.Bloodstained Steps It was already afternoon when they returned to the guesthouse. The two ate a quick meal and found the three men with glasses also present. Their faces were grim, and they had some wounds on their bodies. Fortunately, their injuries were not serious. Seeing Ning and Liu return without Bai, the bespectacled man''s face immediately darkened. After all, they took a huge risk this time to attract the Shaman and even almost paid the price with their lives, but in the end they got nothing, which inevitably made people feel a little frustrated. "You... didn''t find Bai?" Fang, the timid girl, asked weakly. Ning was silent for a moment. "We found her, but she is in very bad shape right now... Besides, the Shaman is dead, which is good news for us." Hearing that the Shaman was dead, everyone''s faces finally softened a little. After all, it was the Shaman who had always wanted to kill them in this village! "That''s great!" The man with glasses waved his fist fiercely. "Now that the Shaman is dead, we are safe!" Liu, who was standing by the window of the room looking out, sneered. "Safe? You wish!" The bespectacled man froze when he heard his sarcasm, and then said with some puzzlement, "Isn''t that right?" "It was the Shaman and the villagers who wanted to kill us. Now that the Shaman is dead, and the villagers have no leader, we will naturally be much safer!" Ning said, "Why don''t you think about it again... why did the Shaman and the villagers want to sacrifice us to those dead people?" Hearing Ning''s words, the man with glasses was stunned for a moment, then seemed to react, and beads of sweat suddenly appeared on his forehead! Yes indeed¡­ Although it was the Shaman and the villagers of Qiyu Village who had always wanted to kill them, how could they attack outsiders if they were not forced to? Back to the most essential question, their real crisis still comes from those who have died in the village over the years! "This book records a safe way to enter the back mountain of the village. Then we will be divided into two groups. You go to find the lost head of the monk, and we will go to find Bai''s body..." This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it After Ning finished speaking, the third member beside the man with glasses spoke up. "Is it really necessary to waste time and energy to save her... I mean, her head was chopped off, there is absolutely no reason for her to survive, right?" "At least there''s a possibility, isn''t there? When the time comes, we''ll take a huge risk to bring her body out, only to find out that she''s still dead. Wouldn''t we be doing something completely meaningless?" This member was a man, usually taciturn and quiet in the team, and didn''t speak much. Ning and the two had no impression of him, and didn''t even know his name. His questioning changed everyone''s mentality a little. Indeed, this is a very heartless thing to do. Abandoning companions, and abandoning a companion who has contributed to the team. Everyone will inevitably feel self-blame. But it''s not the beginning when they just entered this blood gate. They have seen terrifying scenes several times, and almost lost their lives here. Under the pressure of such intense survival pressure, all they want to do now is to find a way out as soon as possible, and then get out of this blood gate alive! "I hope that when you are in danger, you can only watch helplessly as your teammates leave without looking back!" Liu sneered, but the man just replied lightly, "But I''m not the one in danger now, am I?" Hearing this, Liu couldn''t help it at the time. He stood up with a swoosh, looking eager to fight, but Ning stopped him. "We''ve already told you how to go up the mountain. Next, we''ll go our separate ways, and no one owes anyone anything." The man with glasses nodded. "Okay, thank you for giving us this book...we will try our best to find the head." When they got up and left, the man whose name they didn''t know looked back at Ning and the two, and sneered, "Two idiots!" After speaking, they left without looking back. Liu was furious, and slammed his fist on the table. Bang! "This bastard, we shouldn''t share the contents of this book with them!" Ning replied unhurriedly, "Whether they like it or not, they have to help us. After all, if they can''t find the head, everyone will be in danger!" "Let''s get ready a little bit, it''s just the right time to go to Houshan now!" "We must go back before dark and return Bai''s body to her." Liu nodded. They packed up their ropes and backpacks, and after confirming that nothing was missing, they walked through the woods and came to the foot of the back mountain. This was their first time here. It was basically the same as what was recorded in the book, the entire back mountain was shrouded in a faint red mist... As soon as he arrived at the foot of the mountain, Liu couldn''t help but shiver. "Damn it, why did the temperature suddenly drop in this place?" He muttered, his eyes glancing around uneasily. This was not his illusion, because the moment they approached the back mountain, Ning also felt the temperature plummet! This mountain is very quiet. It was so quiet that it was even a little weird. A long and neatly built stone step stretched all the way to the top of the mountain in a winding way. The two raised their heads, but their eyes couldn''t penetrate the faint red mist, and they couldn''t see what was on the mountain. They just felt vaguely uncomfortable. It was as if behind the red mist, something was staring at them coldly! But having come this far, neither of them had any intention of turning back. As soon as they set foot on the stone steps, they were about to step up step by step. It was also at this moment that the situation suddenly changed! When their feet landed on the stone steps, a terrifying scene happened! The two were horrified to see that blood was suddenly flowing down the originally clean and tidy stone steps! The disgusting and strong smell of blood also entered the noses of the two of them. They looked up again, only to see that the sky above their heads was dim and covered with thick fog, and the blood gushing down was flowing out from the depths of the indistinct, pale red thick fog at the end of the stone steps... What''s even more frightening is that when they came back to their senses, the stone steps covered in blood were lying horizontally and vertically, densely packed with corpses... 48.The Corpse Smiled "Holy crap, bro, what the hell is going on?" Beside him, the bearded Liu cursed again in fright! He first pinched his leg hard, then raised his foot and sniffed the sole carefully. "Ugh!" The pungent, sticky smell of blood almost made him vomit! "Damn it, is this an illusion?" Ning stared at the blood flowing down the stone steps, shook his head, his expression serious. "I''m afraid this is the true appearance of this back mountain!" "What we saw before may be an illusion covered by the power of ghosts!" Liu cautiously followed Ning step by step upwards, his eyes revealing undisguised fear. "Be careful, don''t step on these corpses, stay away from them as much as possible!" On the stone steps, the scattered corpses all had their heads chopped off. When Ning was searching among these corpses, he just glanced over them briefly and passed by. These corpses were all male corpses. "Damn it... that bastard Shaman, how many people did she actually kill?" The two kept going up from the foot of the mountain, and when they reached about halfway up the mountain, they had already seen dozens of corpses! "These people weren''t killed by ghosts." Ning said suddenly. Liu beside him asked, "How did you see that, bro?" Ning pointed to the broken neck of a corpse by the road. "Look carefully, is there black mucus on it?" Liu took a look, and it really was. Although these corpses had their heads chopped off, the wounds on their necks were very smooth, and there was not much blood flowing out, but covered by a thin layer of black fluid. Even, the wounds of these corpses have healed! "This is not...!" Seeing this situation, Liu immediately thought of the human heads sealed in glass jars in that dilapidated house in the Shaman mansion! The necks of those human heads were the same, covered with a thick layer of black matter. This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. What made people feel the most terrifying was that these people whose heads were chopped off...were not dead yet. "What on earth does she want to do..." Liu''s legs were already trembling. Fortunately, he brought a stick as a walking stick when he came up, so he could barely stand still on the wet and slippery stone steps at this moment. Ning thought carefully for a moment, as if he had figured something out¡ª "Remember what Bai told us? The Shaman''s body has gone wrong because of the backlash of the wronged souls..." "When we saw the Shaman for the first time, I smelled a rotten smell from her, and there were large patches of dense red papules on her neck, as if that place had begun to rot!" "I''m thinking, is the Shaman trying to use some strange evil technique... to replace herself with a new body?" Although there is no record in the ancient book found in the Shaman''s room, Ning''s guess made Liu gasp. He had also seen the circle of red papules on the Shaman''s neck. At first glance, it looked as if the place had been chopped off, leaving bloodstains. Ning''s guess... is likely to be true. "...Come on, when we find Bai''s body, everything should come to light!" The two endured the fear and disgust in their hearts, and finally reached the top of the mountain. Fortunately, the headless corpses on the road did not transform into zombies, nor did they make things difficult for them. They just lay quietly in a pool of blood, motionless. Although the scene was very terrifying, at least it did not pose a substantial threat to the two of them. At the end of the stone steps was a huge jungle platform. Among the dense jungle, there was a temple overgrown with vines and weeds. The blood on the stone steps flowed continuously from the walls and tiles of this temple... There were also many headless corpses in the temple, but these corpses were all strung up with ropes, like bacon, and hung from the ceiling of the temple, swaying, as if being air-dried! These corpses were far fresher than those lying on the steps. Obviously the Shaman had done it not long ago. Ning quickly found Bai''s body by her clothes. Things went unexpectedly well, but he always felt something was wrong deep down. Taking the body off the ceiling, to confirm the situation, Ning asked Liu to go out, while he slowly pulled down the body''s pants. He saw a dagger birthmark on the snow-white left buttock of the body! Ning pulled up the pants of Bai''s body, and tied Bai''s body up with a rope together with Liu. They didn''t do this because they had any strange hobbies, but because they were worried that when they went down the mountain, Bai''s body would suddenly move for some unknown reason, hindering them, or even threatening them! After doing this, Ning asked Liu to carry Bai''s body on his shoulders, while he looked around in the temple. The uneasiness in my heart grew stronger... "No... something is wrong!" Ning forced himself to calm down, his eyes kept searching around. He always felt that something was wrong, but when he thought about it carefully, he couldn''t figure it out. He got this feeling when he was looking for Bai''s body just now. What exactly... is wrong? At this moment, Ning caught a glimpse of a corpse in the corner of the wall from the corner of his eye. It was this glance that made his soul jump. He finally knew what was wrong! That corpse... has a head! Moreover, not only did it have a head, but its whole body seemed to have been smashed, the flesh and blood were blurred and stuck together, it looked extremely terrifying! And at this moment, the corpse was lying in the corner of the temple, staring at the two of them with an extremely exaggerated and weird smile! "Run!!!" Ning didn''t say any more nonsense, and shouted directly at Liu behind him. But the moment they turned around, the gate of the temple slammed shut with a bang! The sunlight outside couldn''t penetrate at all, and the entire temple fell into a pitch-black darkness where one couldn''t see their fingers... Standing in the darkness, the two of them felt their bodies stiffen like ice, unable to move at all! And behind them, there were terrifying footsteps... Pada¡ª Dada¡ª Pada¡ª ¡­ 44.A Century of Lies The Shaman''s body was completely engulfed in a mass of thick, black hair. The strands tightened, squeezing the life out of her. ¡°Aaaahhh¡­!!¡± Her screams echoed across the platform, sending chills down their spines. The sound grew increasingly inhuman, distorted by pain and terror. Blood seeped through the gaps in the hair, staining the stone platform crimson, and dripped onto the ground below. Crack. Crack. The sickening crunch of bone grating against bone reached their ears. They watched, transfixed, as the Shaman''s body contorted, shrinking within the suffocating grip of hair until it resembled a fleshy, pulsating ball. It was less than half its original size. The urge to turn and flee gripped them both. This vengeful spirit was terrifying beyond words. The Shaman¡¯s screams faded into silence, leaving only the stench of blood and the soft, mournful sobs of the ghost. Ning stood his ground. It wasn¡¯t that he wasn¡¯t afraid, but the ghost still held something vitally important¡ªthe book he¡¯d taken from the Shaman''s bedroom. That book was their only hope of reaching the mountain temple, their only chance of saving Bai. Ning never abandoned his friends. Bai had risked her life to help them, entering their second Blood Gate. He wouldn¡¯t leave her to die now. Taking a deep breath, he stepped towards the weeping ghost, "We delivered the one you sought. You¡¯ve had your revenge. Can you return the book now? I need it... to save my friend." As if startled by his words, the skinless ghost looked up, its borrowed eyes staring at them through a curtain of bloody tears. Liu tugged at Ning''s sleeve, his voice a hushed whisper, "Bro, I don''t like the way she''s looking at us. Let''s get out of here! We¡¯ll find another way to help Bai. Now that the Shaman¡¯s dead, we can search her house again. There must be other clues." ¡°If we die here, Bai dies too!¡± The moment he finished speaking, the ghost vanished from the platform and reappeared right in front of them. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Though they had seen her before, its sudden appearance at such close proximity sent their hearts racing. The air around them grew frigid, the ghost''s gaze searing through them, chilling them to the bone. The warmth of the sun overhead offered no comfort. Was it planning to kill them too? A twisted reward for their efforts? The thought sent a shiver down Ning¡¯s spine. After what felt like an eternity, the ghost slowly extended its hand, offering him the damp book. Then, with a sickening squelch, it reached up and plucked out its own eyes, placing them on the palm of its outstretched hand. Ning swallowed hard, forcing himself to accept the gruesome gift. If the ghost wanted them dead, they would be dead already. It was offering them these eyes for a reason. He handed one to Liu. As soon as their fingers closed around the eyeballs, the world around them dissolved into a dizzying blur. When their vision cleared, the ghost was gone. The black algae on the platform withered, dissolving into dust in a matter of seconds. A strange sensation washed over Ning. He climbed the steps to the platform, staring down at the pond. He watched as the ghost''s skin disintegrated before his eyes, dissolving into the murky depths. "Bro, what is it?" Liu called from below. Ning shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s gone.¡± Liu knew exactly what he meant. He let out a long breath, leaning against a nearby tree. "At least that vengeful spirit was true to its word." He closed his eyes, recalling his master''s words from years ago, "Sometimes, people are far more terrifying than ghosts.¡± Back then, he had dismissed it as a joke. But now, after years of wandering the Jianghu, he knew it to be true. As they thought back on their experience in this village, they realized his master had been right. It wasn¡¯t ghosts that had tried to kill them, but the villagers themselves. A humorless laugh escaped Ning''s lips. What a cruel irony. He opened the book, his smile fading as he began to read. ¡°Bro, what is it?¡± Liu asked, sensing his friend''s distress. Ning took a deep breath, composing himself before handing him the book. "See for yourself." Liu scanned the pages, his eyes widening with anger. He clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles turned white. "Those bastards! The Ruan clan!" he roared. "How can they live with themselves after committing such atrocities?!" The book revealed the truth of what transpired in the village all those years ago. A century ago, a devastating drought had gripped the land, plunging the village into famine. The Guang family, the wealthiest in the village, had opened their storehouses, sharing their grain with the starving villagers. Their selfless act earned them the respect and admiration of the people. This did not sit well with Ruan Huang, who had his sights set on becoming the next village head. But there was nothing he could do. Even he relied on the Guang family¡¯s generosity to survive. As months passed, however, even the Guang family¡¯s reserves began to dwindle. Faced with the prospect of his own family starving, Guang Xiu made the difficult decision to stop sharing their remaining grain. It was the opportunity Ruan Huang had been waiting for. He didn''t need to do much to sway the villagers. Their fear and desperation proved to be far more persuasive. When Guang Xiu stood before them, announcing his decision, their gratitude vanished, replaced with a predatory glint in their eyes. You fed us when we were hungry. Now that you no longer can, we starve? That¡¯s as good as killing us yourself. Their hunger festered, breeding suspicion, greed, and resentment. Two days later, driven to the brink of madness by hunger, the villagers began gnawing on tree bark and digging for roots. That was when Ruan Huang made his move. He uttered just one sentence: ¡°Last night, I saw the Guang family eating meat.¡± 49.Whispers of Doom Hearing the footsteps, the two in the darkness felt their souls freeze! "Bro, what do we do now?" Liu''s voice trembled fiercely, he felt that his brain was completely blank now! Ning didn''t answer him, but he was already holding the bronze mirror Bai gave him! If there is anything that can save their lives now, it can only be this bronze mirror! He had personally witnessed the power of this bronze mirror at the bottomless well. Bai just shone the bronze mirror slightly, and all the wronged souls at the bottom of the well were dispelled. Of course, Ning also knew that the evil ghost in the temple at this moment was far from what was at the bottom of the bottomless well! "This guy should be Guangxiu... The resentment is too strong!" The sound of footsteps getting closer and closer behind him seemed to be stepping on the hearts of the two of them. Every step seemed to crush their hearts! Dong¡ª Da¡ª Dong¡ª The emotion of fear continued to ferment in the sound of footsteps! Ning clenched the bronze mirror in his hand tightly, the sweat in his palm was already very sticky. Finally, the footsteps stopped behind him. Then, there was a long, silent silence... This feeling of waiting for judgment in the dark was really terrible. Even someone as mentally strong as Ning felt cold sweat oozing from all the pores of his body at this moment! He knew that the terrifying thing was right behind him, staring at him! Ning desperately wanted to turn his head, but he couldn''t move at all. The blood jade on his chest was constantly emitting a fierce heat, almost burning Ning''s skin! Ning didn''t know how terrifying the ghost behind him was, it could make the blood jade emit such a high temperature, as if it was about to melt! "Hungry..." Like bubbles squeezed out from the depths of his throat, the voice was shrill, weak and hoarse, but it pierced into their eardrums like steel needles! At that moment, Ning only felt that his eyes went dark, and he almost fainted! At this moment, something cold and sharp pressed against his back! If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. The thing cut through the skin on Ning''s back, making Ning feel a burst of pain! It was also at this moment that the bronze mirror that had been sleeping in his hand awakened! "Woo..." In the darkness, a woman''s whimpering and crying sounded out of thin air. The moment this sound sounded, the two of them, who were already a little cold, suddenly felt a bone-chilling chill! They shivered violently, and only then realized that they could move! "Big Beard, open the door!" Ning almost roared out. Liu naturally knew that the female ghost couldn''t buy them much time, so he shook himself vigorously, ran forward with big strides, and then slammed open the gate of the temple! The light from outside poured in. The two who were almost suffocated finally smelled the breath of life! They rushed out of the temple without looking back, and ran down the mountain. Before going down the mountain, Ning looked back. He saw the female ghost in the red wedding dress standing in front of Guangxiu, her red figure was fading at a speed visible to the naked eye... Guangxiu was still standing there, as if blocked by the female ghost, but in its terrifying face full of cracks and cracks, a pair of blood-red eyes were staring at the two going down the mountain! The resentment in those eyes almost overflowed! "Hurry up!!!" Ning urged again loudly. Liu, who was running at the front holding Bai''s body, heard Ning''s urging, and sped up again! He panted heavily, not daring to turn his head, and ran wildly all the way! Ning ran behind Liu, and suddenly heard the sound of something cracking in his hand. He looked down and found that the bronze mirror was completely broken! The female ghost in the red wedding dress in the mirror also disappeared at this moment! His heart sank... He originally thought that this thing could be used a second time, but now it seems that its durability has reached its limit. If Guangxiu catches up at this time, they will surely die! Thinking of this, Ning looked back again, but with just one glance, his heart skipped a beat! On the top of the mountain behind, Guangxiu walked out of the temple and stood on the top of the blood-stained stone steps, staring at the two coldly! Although its feet didn''t move, its body would appear on the next nine steps every second! This speed is not unpleasant, the two of them are running down the mountain, because they are afraid of falling, they dare not run too fast, it takes at least two seconds for them to go down nine steps! "Liu, hurry up, it''s catching up!!" Ning yelled. Liu, who was running ahead, howled miserably, "It''s already the fastest speed, bro, I can''t run anymore!" Ning sped up and snatched Bai''s body from Liu''s shoulder. Although Bai is not heavy, plus she lost her head, she weighs about a hundred catties, but if a normal person carries a hundred catties to run, he won''t be able to run for long! Fortunately, Ning is in good physical condition, carrying Bai''s body is much easier than Liu! Since the distance between the top of the mountain and the foot of the mountain is not long, the two quickly ran down the stone steps. They didn''t dare to look back, nor did they dare to stop, and plunged into the woods! Ahead, three figures suddenly appeared. Ning looked up and saw that it was the man with glasses and the others. "Run!" Even so, Ning still shouted at them. The three of them obviously didn''t understand the situation, seeing Ning and Liu running towards them desperately, they were a little confused for a while. What''s going on? While they were in a daze, Ning and Liu had already passed them! "Run!!" Ning didn''t look back, but shouted again. This time, everyone moved! On the one hand, the strong herd mentality ignited the fear in their hearts. On the other hand, they saw Guangxiu, whose body was covered in cracks, the scarlet flesh turned outward, as if it would shatter at any time! "Shit!!" The man with glasses cursed in a low voice, but still followed behind Ning and the two. Because they were running behind, it seemed that Guangxiu''s hatred was attracted, Guangxiu stopped chasing after Ning and Liu, and turned his target to them! "Damn you, Ning!!" The man running at the back roared at Ning, with fear and fear in his eyes! Unlike the others, they were injured in the village this morning because they wanted to lure the Shaman, and he happened to be injured in the leg! At this moment, coupled with the tension and fear in his heart, he couldn''t run at all, and could only watch helplessly as the four people in front of him got farther and farther away from him... 50.A Second Life "Help me, help me, I''m still behind!!" Lu felt the icy breath getting closer and closer behind him, he stretched out his hand towards the front in horror, and shouted in panic! However, the people in front were only concerned about escaping for their lives, so who would turn their heads to look? Lu finally understood what Ning said before. He was not willing to risk his life for his teammates, and now, his teammates were not willing to risk their lives for him either. He was abandoned. Lu gritted his teeth, his eyes were full of resentment! These damned bastards actually left him to escape alone! He had also contributed to the team, how dare they? "Damn it, no one is reliable at critical moments!" He cursed angrily in his heart, but he didn''t dare to stop at all. Even though he had a leg injury, he still limped forward! However, as Lu ran, he suddenly felt something was wrong... It seems... the body is getting lighter. This feeling came very suddenly, but once it appeared, it never disappeared. Lu was still running forward desperately, but his body became lighter and lighter... In the end, it was like a light feather, without weight. Lu couldn''t feel his body anymore. He stared forward in horror, his eyes fixed, as if he saw something extremely terrifying¡ª He saw a headless corpse, whose body shape and clothes were exactly the same as his, running forward staggeringly! The corpse fell to the ground after running for a short distance, and then there was no movement... "Hungry..." A terrifying bubbling sound came from his ears. It was not the bubbling sound made by normal humans, but more like some kind of long-disrepaired machine that suddenly started working again, the strange sound made by the knob rubbing against the rust! A bloody hand was holding Lu''s hair, and slowly turned his face around. Lu finally saw what the person chasing him looked like! This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. He opened his mouth wide in horror, but couldn''t make a sound... ¡­ "Quick, it''s getting dark!" Ning panted, he had been running with Bai''s body in his arms for so long, even he couldn''t bear it. But he dared not stop. The setting sun in the distance was sinking little by little. The remaining afterglow of the setting sun was gradually shifting towards the horizon. He had to rush to the Shaman''s mansion as quickly as possible to return Bai''s body to her head! "Big Beard, open the door!!" Ning yelled, Liu immediately ran to the front, kicked open the Shaman''s door, came to the corner of the house, outside the inconspicuous room, inserted the wire into the keyhole, and tried to unlock it. Fortunately, he was very skilled in this craft, even if he couldn''t see it, he quickly opened the iron chain just by relying on the sound and feel. Ning came to the corner, immediately took out the transparent glass jar containing Bai''s head, and said to her, "Bai, I brought your body back, what should we do now?" In the transparent glass jar, Bai''s charming pale face looked extraordinarily stiff, her eyes gradually became empty and stagnant, compared with a living person, at this moment, she looked more like a lifeless statue. Seeing that something was wrong with her state, Ning hurriedly patted the glass jar vigorously, and shouted her name loudly, "Bai, Bai, can you hear me!" Perhaps Ning''s patting worked, Bai''s stiff eyes finally moved slowly in the glass jar, she stared at Ning outside, and after a while, she said in an extremely weak voice, "You...are back..." Ning looked back at the setting sun that was about to set, panted, and said to Bai in a loud voice, "We brought your body back, what should we do now?!" Bai replied, "Smash...the glass...put my head...back...on my body..." Clang! As soon as Bai''s words fell, Ning slammed the glass tube hard on the ground, the fragile bottle body shattered immediately, a large amount of liquid splashed on the ground, and Bai''s head, Was held in Ning''s hands! Without any delay, he hurriedly put Bai''s head back on her body with Liu! At that moment, the moment the broken section of the head''s neck came into contact with the broken section of the body, it immediately stuck together! There was only a faint red mark on Bai''s slender neck, as if she had been strangled by a rope. At the last moment when the sun went down, she lay in Ning''s arms and finally opened her eyes. The watery eyes trembled slightly at first, as if a drop of water had fallen into the lake, disturbing the mirror-like tranquility, and then light and spirit appeared inside. As Bai let out a soft groan, the two of them finally felt relieved, knowing that she was alive. "Holy crap, that scared me to death!" "Bai, we almost thought you couldn''t survive!" Seeing that Bai finally woke up, Liu wiped the cold sweat off his forehead, panting heavily. Bai thanked the two of them, and slowly stood up from Ning''s arms with her hands on her hands. She looked at the setting sun in the distance, and smiled wryly, "This blood gate is really dangerous..." "I thought I was cautious enough, but I almost overturned..." After finishing speaking, there was an unspeakable gratitude in her eyes when she looked at the two of them. This kind of person who is willing to risk his life to save you is really rare ... Of course, in addition to gratitude, she also had some undetectable shyness towards Ning. She knew that in the temple on the mountain, Ning pulled down her pants and saw her...butt. Of course, people who often experience life and death are not as concerned about these things as ordinary people, so she quickly returned to her usual calmness. "Where are the others?" Bai asked. "Almost all of them are dead. If there is no accident, there should be... 5 people left." Liu''s face turned ugly when he mentioned the current number of survivors. There were 14 people when they came in, but only five days later, less than half were left! At this time, there are only the last two days left. If they still can''t help the monk who bestowed [Peace] to find his head in the last two days, then they will face the liquidation of Guangxiu, who has become a ghost, and all the grievances who have died in the past hundred years! 51.Unclean Refuge "Say, do you think Guang Xiu will chase us here?" Liu anxiously glanced back at the door behind them. His worry wasn''t without reason. The Guang family had always held a deep hatred for the Ruan clan. Now that Guang Xiu was free from the temple, his first priority was likely seeking revenge against the Shaman! "I think Guang Xiu might not be the only thing we need to worry about¡­" Reminded by Liu''s words, Ning''s face suddenly turned grave. He glanced around, as if searching for something¡­ "Ning, what''s wrong?" Bai also noticed Ning''s unusual behavior. Ning slowly spoke, revealing a chilling fact that sent shivers down their spines. "When we followed your instructions and found the book in the Shaman¡¯s bedroom, just as we were about to leave, the Shaman returned. What followed was an intense chase throughout the house¡­" "When we escaped, the main gate of the Shaman¡¯s residence should have been open. She wouldn''t have had the time to close the door before chasing us, not when she was so focused on getting that book back.¡± "And the villagers generally avoid this place." "So, during the time we were away from the Shaman''s residence¡­ who else could have entered?" As Ning¡¯s voice fell, the hairs on their necks stood on end. They too looked around at the surrounding darkness with vigilance, as if something might suddenly jump out from those inconspicuous corners! "No matter what, let''s get out of here first!" The three immediately left the Shaman''s residence. On the way, Bai learned about the Shaman''s death. She turned to the two and said, "Let me see the eyeballs that the Skinless Ghost gave you." Ning and Liu didn''t refuse, directly handing over the two eyeballs to Bai. After the events of the past few days, they had built a high level of trust in each other. Bai carefully examined the Skinless Ghost¡¯s eyeballs for a moment before suddenly saying, "It shouldn''t be a ghost artifact." "Ghost artifacts are usually independent and can''t be disassembled into parts." If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Liu asked, puzzled, "Not a ghost artifact?" "Doesn''t that mean these things are useless?" Bai shook her head and said seriously, "That''s not necessarily true. Items that aren''t ghost artifacts just can''t be taken out of the Blood Gate. However, these eyeballs should serve a very important purpose; otherwise, the female ghost wouldn''t have given them to you before leaving." "And since they¡¯re special items given to you by the female ghost, only you can use them. They¡¯re useless to anyone else." He returned the eyeballs to them. Ning held the eyeball in his hand, carefully observing it, lost in thought. Soon, they returned to the guesthouse, the former [Misty Rain Temple]. "Do we really have to go back to this ghostly place?" "Didn''t they say this place is unclean? Should we¡­ just spend the night in the canteen?" This was their first time standing in the open space at night, looking at their lodgings. It was a strange feeling. The three of them felt that the place where they lived was terrifyingly eerie. Those dark windows felt like mouths that wanted to swallow them whole. "The bespectacled man and the others haven¡¯t come back either¡­" That man''s room wasn¡¯t far from theirs. Ning looked towards his window and found that there were no lights inside, and the curtains and windows hadn¡¯t been touched at all. He guessed that either the bespectacled man and his companions had been killed by Guang Xiu¡­ or they had discovered something and left this place. "Let¡¯s not go back, it''s not safe inside." Ning took out the blood jade. The closer he got to the [Misty Rain Temple] guesthouse, the brighter the red light emitted from the blood jade became! Clearly, there was something unclean inside the guesthouse! "Let''s go to the canteen. The others should be there." By now, night had completely fallen, and strange things were wandering around the village. It wouldn¡¯t be safe to continue wandering outside, so the three decided to go to the canteen, the former guest reception area, to spend the night. When they arrived at the canteen, they saw a light on from afar. This sliver of light added a rare touch of life to the otherwise dead and empty canteen. Upon entering the canteen, they went into the lit room and saw the bespectacled man and the timid girl, Fang, sitting in silence, staring at each other. "Bai!" Seeing Bai appear before him, safe and sound, the bespectacled man was pleasantly surprised. He hadn''t seen her for some time, and in this precarious situation, an extra pair of hands was always welcome! Moreover, Bai was sharp, calm under pressure, and a valuable asset to the team! "Tell me about your situation first." Faced with Bai¡¯s question, the bespectacled man nodded, his face slightly pale. "He''s dead¡­" "When that terrifying ghost chased us down the mountain, we each fled for our lives. No one could help him. Later, when we returned to the guesthouse, we waited for a long time, but he never showed up. Instead, we encountered a small ghost, its body burnt to a crisp, with only half of it remaining¡­" As they recounted their experience at the [Misty Rain Temple] guesthouse, the bespectacled man and Fang trembled slightly, clearly still shaken by the terrifying experience. Fortunately, the ghost hadn¡¯t shown much interest in killing them. Its primary goal seemed to be wandering the building, searching for something. Otherwise, they would already be dead! "The situation is very clear now. With the Shaman''s death, the ghosts that were suppressed in Qiyu Village are now free from their restraints¡­ They can no longer hold back and are ready to unleash a terrifying massacre upon Qiyu Village!" Hearing Bai¡¯s words, tears immediately streamed down Fang¡¯s face. She tightly covered her mouth, trying her best not to make a sound! Despair spread through everyone''s hearts. "Does that mean we''re doomed?" Liu slumped onto the bench like a puddle of mud, his eyes filled with despair. "Not necessarily..." Bai crossed her arms, her next words bringing a glimmer of hope to everyone. "The time limit for the mission behind the Blood Gate is seven days. This means that the ghosts in this world will definitely be bound by the Blood Gate¡¯s rules within these seven days. They can¡¯t just go on a rampage and kill us all." "Otherwise, with Guang Xiu¡¯s abilities and resentment, we wouldn¡¯t have survived until now." "The current problem is how to find the lost skull of the monk [Compassionate One] as quickly as possible, and return it to him!" "Only when [Compassionate One] has his skull back will he be able to restore peace to the village!"