Bei Qian widened his eyes in fear. He suddenly realised that he couldn’t shake Zhou Rong loose. The latter gripped him like a vice. He was instantly reminded of Jiang Cheng, who had chosen to flee. Then, inscrutable fear floated in his eyes.
“Mr… Mr. Zhou,” He practically begged as his body trembled uncontrollably, “How about we go find Mr. Yi? He’s just outside. I think he has found a clue.” Zhou Rong was standing in the corner of the kitchen. The place was strangely dark. Beside him was a vat that was abnormally large. The vat’s surface was rough. A black pot was placed on top of it to cover it.
“There’s no need to hurry,” Zhou Rong said, “Come and check out the clues I’ve found first.” When he spoke, there was a whiff in his tone as if there was a hole in his windpipe. Zhou Rong lifted up the heavy-looking black pot with one hand. Bei Qian, who had no choice, was forced to look into the vat. The inside was inky black. It was filled with an unknown liquid. Just as he frowned, a string of bubbles appeared in the liquid. Then, a pale face floated up to the surface. The eyes were so wide that they almost popped out. The mouth was agape. From the expression, one could tell the person was scared to death before he drowned. However, this was not important to Bei Qian because… this was Zhou Rong’s face.
And Zhou Rong… was standing beside him. Just as he was about to scream, a cold glint flashed before him. The next second, his world turned upside down. During his last moment, he saw a twisted figure holding a giant knife in his hand.
Jiang Cheng lightened his steps after leaving the kitchen. He came to the door and grabbed the handle. He tried it. The door was locked. He gave up the idea of leaving from the door. He turned to look at the dark staircase. He hurried towards it. As he carefully climbed up the wooden steps, he heard the sound of an object falling in the kitchen.
The object should be spherical. It landed on the ground and rolled a few times before stopping.
Jiang Cheng moved faster. The windows and doors on the first floor had been sealed by a mysterious power. He came to the second floor to try his luck. After all, the nightmare realm wouldn’t seal up all the exits. If he sought no way out, he would set a fire and see if that’d help.
Earlier, he had already noticed the problems with Zhou Rong. His movement was weird. Plus, when he walked backwards, the footprints he left behind were highly questionable. They were merely dots, as if he was walking on tip-toe. This was clearly suspicious.
If there was something like a tree outside the window, he might end up as a human skewer, just like Jiang Zhongyi.
He slowly scanned his surroundings. The decor was relatively simple. This was once a study. There was a wooden partition near the wall. Next to it was an old arm-chair and an officious-looking table. There were brushes, inkstones, and other calligraphy tools on the table.
A dusty rocking chair sat in the corner.
A few strange-looking stones were placed next to the stairs. They looked weirdly out of place. Jiang Cheng’s gaze didn’t linger on these things until he saw a large dresser. The dresser was designed like its modern counterpart. However, the material was more solid.
However, the dresser also gave off an uncomfortable feeling because… its surface was covered in scratch marks. Some were long and some were short but all of them gouged deep into the wood.
When he saw the marks, a despairing image appeared in Jiang Cheng’s mind.
The sound of a door opening came from downstairs. Normally, the sound shouldn’t travel to Jiang Cheng’s ears so clearly. It was too purposeful. Clearly, the ghost was behind this. The kitchen door was opened.
Then, there was a long and slow rustling sound. Jiang Cheng’s heart skipped a beat. He could imagine the boneless body slithering on the ground. It appeared that Bei Qian was gone, and he hadn’t slowed down the ghost for long.
The ghost stepped on the stairs, moving towards Jiang Cheng.
He was presented with two choices.
One, jump out the window.
Two, hide in the dresser. Hold his breath and pray.
A normal person would undeniably choose the first. After all, once they jumped out the window, it would mean escaping from the building. The ghost would probably chase after them in daylight. Plus, the scratched dresser was too discomfiting.
The worst possibility was there were two ghosts in this building. And the other one… was hiding inside the dresser. Once someone opened it, the ghost inside would ambush the victim.
Time was ticking. The ghost’s footsteps had appeared at the corner of the stairs. Accompanying it was a grating sound of friction. It sounded like a sharp blade cutting through the rough cement wall.
She dragged along her broken body, holding the giant blade. She was slowly approaching him. She was like an experienced hunter, playing with her trapped prey.