Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 51 Deeper Terror

"Hello everyone, the new semester has begun. I am your new homeroom teacher for Class 5 of Senior Three. My name is Liu Yan, and I will be teaching you Chinese."

In the brand-new classroom, when Liu Yan walked to the podium, many students below showed amazement. Some students who were sleepy also opened their eyes wide and listened attentively.

"Teacher, did you start teaching right after graduation?" A student raised their hand and asked, "You're so young!"

"It's alright, I'm 25 years old this year." Liu Yan didn't shy away from mentioning her age like other girls do. "I'm only 7 years older than you all. So, you can all be my friends."

At that moment, Zhao Kaiming's impatient voice came through the Bluetooth earpiece she had plugged into her ear: "Who told you to be approachable? These high school seniors need to respect you so that you can emphasize strict adherence to the rules later. Do you really think you're here to teach?"

After mentally preparing herself, thinking, "The world is so beautiful, yet I'm so irritable. This isn't good," Liu Yan finally held back. She thought, "As a new homeroom teacher, if I immediately put on a show of hostility and start explaining the rules to them, do these people not have a rebellious streak? Why should they respect me? How did someone with this kind of mind become the head of Dachang City? Fine, fine, for the sake of the bigger picture, I'll tolerate you, this NPC, for now."

“Listen up, enough with the nonsense, let’s get to the student code of conduct. The entire school, including the restrooms, has been equipped with surveillance cameras by the Ghost Riders headquarters. We will monitor every student in real time, and if any class under your charge lets things fall apart, they will be held accountable. Your club is run by Professor Wang’s brother. If this matter is not handled well, not only will I, the person in charge of Dachang City, be held accountable, but you shouldn’t expect Professor Wang to give you a pleasant look.”

Liu Yan stood in front of the podium and opened her lesson plan.

On the podium, there was a red storage box about the size of a donation box, with a small hole at the opening.

"See this red box, everyone?" She pointed to the box and said, "Most of you should have received the student handbook when you returned to school. I want to emphasize this again: the student handbook must be strictly followed. Otherwise, the academic affairs office will record a demerit or even expel you. Do you understand? In addition, the academic affairs office encourages reporting violations of the handbook. Those who report violations will receive a cash reward, which will not be deducted from class funds but will come from the school's budget."

The students all replied in unison, "We understand."

Sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating an empty seat at the back of the classroom.

There should have been a student named Li Hua sitting there, but he was late today.

"Alright, everyone, open your Chinese textbooks. Today we'll be studying the text 'The New Year's Sacrifice'." She had practiced for a long time to prepare for her role as a teacher, and her voice was calm. "This is a very famous text by Mr. Lu Xun."

The classroom was quiet, with only the sound of turning pages.

But Liu Yan always felt that something was watching her, like a gaze seeping in through the crack in the back door.

As a sorcerer, her intuition is something she would never easily ignore.

She looked at the classroom next door.

This is the 5th floor of the teaching building.

Next door is the classroom of Senior Three (7).

The classroom where everything originated.

She tapped her fingers lightly on the podium, and a gray worm emerged from her sleeve, silently sliding to the ground.

This is her natal Gu worm, capable of sensing supernatural auras.

Of course, only she herself can see this.

The gray nematode crawled along the floor, and when it passed the third row from the bottom, it suddenly curled up—that was Li Hua's seat, with a line of crooked words carved on the desk: Do not question the student code of conduct, do not question the student code of conduct.

Liu Yan frowned.

How is this going?

Suddenly, the classroom door was pushed open, and Li Hua walked in with his head down, his face pale.

"Sorry, teacher, I overslept."

His voice was very soft, as if he was afraid of disturbing something.

Liu Yan nodded, gesturing for him to sit down.

But Li Hua didn't move.

His eyes were fixed on the red storage box on the podium, as if he had seen something terrifying.

"Li Hua?" Liu Yan called out to him.

He looked up abruptly, his eyes glazed over for a moment, then forced a smile: "...It's nothing."

He walked back to his seat, but didn't sit down. Instead, he stared at the inscription on the table, his fingers trembling slightly.

The gray nematode quietly crawled up the tip of Liu Yan's shoe.

The class continued, but Liu Yan began to feel that the atmosphere was becoming increasingly strange.

The sound of chalk writing on the blackboard became grating, as if something was imitating the writing.

Liu Yan's fingertips felt slightly cool.

Just then, the back door of the classroom creaked open a crack. No one pushed it open.

A cold wind blew in, and Liu Yan smelled a faint stench of decay.

Li Hua suddenly turned his head, staring intently at the back door, his lips trembling as if he wanted to say something.

"Li Hua?" Liu Yan called out to him.

He seemed not to hear, showing no reaction whatsoever.

No one noticed that a ghost hound was crouching in the corner of the classroom.

Jiang Jin was worried about Liu Yan, so he sent Deathstroke over.

Now, it's right there, watching everyone in the classroom.

Especially Li Hua.

It let out a silent growl from its throat, as if it had smelled the scent of death.

After writing another line with the chalk, Liu Yan tapped the podium with her knuckles. At that moment, Li Hua suddenly jerked, and the pencil left a long mark on the composition book.

Just now, he seemed to have a vague feeling that something was wrong with the exercise book. Then, he stared at the exercise book for a long time before he realized that there was no transparent liquid on it, so it must be due to the light.

But at that moment, tiny goosebumps appeared on the back of his hand.

The gray nematodes that Liu Yan had released beforehand slithered along the ground towards the back of the classroom—

Suddenly, it stopped.

On the floor next to Li Hua's desk, some small water stains had appeared at some point.

As soon as the gray nematode tried to get close, it suddenly curled up, as if it had been frightened by something!

"The sacrificial customs mentioned in Lu Xun's 'The New Year's Sacrifice'..." Liu Yan's voice suddenly stopped. The gray threadworm, her natal Gu, in her cuff was writhing wildly, constantly warning her, but she didn't know the source of the danger.

After a long while, the bell rang, and the students excitedly ran towards the classroom door one by one.

Liu Yan walked to Li Hua's seat and looked down.

Beside the table, the gray nematodes she had dispatched suddenly convulsed violently, then froze and remained motionless.

But at this moment, the tiny water stains had disappeared.

Liu Yan's heart sank.

Something is watching them from inside the classroom.

In a vast, deep space far removed from the material world, there exists something far beyond our current capabilities to contend with.

At this moment, she suddenly noticed that Li Hua was standing motionless at the door of Class 7, Grade 12 in the corridor.

Then, Li Hua reached out and gently pushed the door open.

"squeak--"

The door opened.

The classroom was empty, and the desks and chairs were covered in dust.

But Li Hua's pupils contracted, and a choking sound came from his throat.

The undead hound slowly stood up and silently walked towards Li Hua.

Its teeth gleamed coldly, yet it struggled to lock onto its prey.

At this moment, Li Hua's deskmate Cheng Mi came over and poked his arm with her fingertip: "Li Hua, want to go to the convenience store? Let's buy some food. I was in such a rush this morning that I didn't eat much for breakfast."

"Now?" Li Hua looked out the window. "Alright then."

At that moment, Deathstroke's breath hit Liu Yan's ankle, but she only felt a chilling cold.

She closed the door to Class 7 of Senior Three. The moment the lock clicked shut, she realized that terror was lurking in the darkness she could not reach, waiting for its chance to strike.

　Please read it! Please collect it!

　　Happy Children's Day!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)