Thriller Zone: From the Mental Hospital to the Ghostly World

The smell of disinfectant in the air filled Chen Ji's nostrils with a cold, metallic scent.

Upon hearing the conversation inside, he shuddered violently, opened his mouth, then closed it again.

A bloody scene flashed through his mind.

It was the body of Chen Ji's mother, Zhang Sufeng.

One knife was plunged into his heart, and the other into his neck. In the sweltering summer heat, the corpse had decomposed, and the stench of the bodily fluids flowing from it was unbearable. Even today, Chen Ji can still smell it!

That thing that replaced Mom...

It really was a ghost.

A ghost with someone else's face, a painted-skin demon.

Chen Ji took a deep breath. Not only her, but even the doctors arranged by the hospital were definitely not normal people.

Tang Qin.

From the very first day she arrived at the mental hospital, Chen Ji noticed her strange left eye!

Every moment, eyes were on him.

Moreover, there is no doctor named Tang Qin listed in the hospital's staff register!

However, all the nurses, doctors, and patients in the hospital knew Tang Qin, as if she had worked there for many years.

It's as if their perceptions have all been altered, making them think that everything is normal!

Chen Ji had already guessed Tang Qin's purpose with a high degree of accuracy.

Every day, she would meet with Chen Ji to discuss his illness and the case.

She was trying to get information out of him.

She needed to know why Chen Ji's perception hadn't been changed like her neighbors'!

Chen Ji was certain that Tang Qin knew just as much as he did...

I'm not sick at all!

Everything he said was true!

However, Chen Ji did tell two lies.

First, he could see Tang Qin's true appearance.

However, he did not reveal the existence of that strange eyeball.

Secondly, why did he wait a week to kill the creature that had replaced his mother?

The real reason is actually...

Chen Ji was indeed deceived for a week!

That week, he had no recollection of his mother dying ten years earlier; instead, like everyone else, he felt that everything was normal.

This is how life should be.

Until... a week ago.

He received a package that wasn't delivered to his home; instead, it appeared directly in Chen Ji's desk.

There was only one boat ticket inside.

An old-fashioned boat ticket, yellowed with age, bears his name and a line of slightly illegible writing.

Destination: [High school for repeat students]

In addition, there are two lines of text on the back:

Departure Date: August 14, 2024

The ferry departs on time; tickets are non-refundable.

This document does not specify the place of departure, the ship's information, or even the port of destination.

But the moment Chen Ji touched the ticket, his previously hazy memories suddenly cleared up as if swept away by a gust of wind.

The next second, he realized the terrible truth that had been hidden all along.

His mother...

That gentle woman, Zhang Sufeng, is long dead!

All the heartwarming moments spent together this week, the meals prepared by her mother, her helping Chen Ji with his homework in the evenings, and the occasional walks they took together after dinner...

Looking back now, it seems so fake and ironic.

That wasn't just a simple deception; it could even be said that it was a desecration of the memory Chen Ji cherished most.

Chen Ji took a deep breath and turned his gaze back to the cold hospital corridor.

The conversation inside continued, but he touched the ship ticket he had been hiding in his pocket, no longer interested in listening.

He now faces an even more difficult problem.

The Painted Skin Ghost, having left the morgue, is very likely to come to the hospital!

Tang Qin's purpose is unknown, but it is most likely related to the ghost who replaced Zhang Sufeng.

Chen Ji immediately got up; he wanted to return to his ward.

Given Chen Ji's status as a murderer, the hospital had very tight security on the first floor.

In addition, the iron bars on the windows, a feature unique to mental hospitals, meant that Chen Ji had no way to escape given the suddenness of the incident.

But there is another way to go.

He clutched the ship ticket tightly in his hand; the paper had been slightly warm since midnight that day.

Now it's too hot to handle.

The departure date on the ticket is today!

Chen Ji had no idea where he was supposed to depart or which dock it was, which is why he held onto a sliver of hope.

The starting point might be right here.

Mental hospital.

This was an unrealistic wish, but everything Chen Ji had experienced during this period made him believe that it was possible!

Even if this glimmer of hope is extremely slim...

He will also do his best and make all the necessary preparations.

Chen Ji walked quickly, and the next floor was his ward.

"oops--"

Chen Ji walked quickly with his head down. Suddenly, his face bumped into something, and with a woman's soft cry, he fell to the ground.

A young nurse had just come around the corner and bumped right into Chen Ji.

A strong scent of perfume wafted into Chen Ji's nostrils.

"You're a patient? You can't just wander around in the hospital, don't you know that?" she complained, pulling Chen Ji up with one hand.

"Where are you rushing off to in such a hurry?"

Chen Ji didn't look up, staring straight at his toes, and said in a very low voice:

"Let's go to the cafeteria for lunch."

The nurse sighed, "I'm going there too, so come with me so you don't bump into anyone."

Accompanied by the sound of footsteps, Chen Ji walked all the way to the elevator, where he suddenly stopped.

"Sister, you go first. I just remembered I haven't taken my medicine yet," he said softly.

The nurse did not move.

"It's the same whether you eat it after you finish eating."

"Sister, my medicine is different; I have to take it before meals," Chen Ji said in a low voice, taking steps back.

He didn't look up the whole time; his eyes were fixed on the nurse's calves.

Only one black shoe was visible beneath the long trouser legs.

On the other side, there were heels several centimeters high.

Nurses can only wear flat shoes.

Even a nurse wouldn't have her feet completely reversed!

The next second, accompanied by a series of clicking sounds, Chen Ji suddenly turned around and ran forward, his whole body ice-cold!

Amidst the strong perfume scent, a familiar, rotten, foul-smelling body fluid finally wafted out!

Behind him, cracks appeared on the nurse's pretty face, which then peeled off completely, revealing gray lividity underneath.

After a few seconds of silence, a sudden burst of rapid low-heeled footsteps rang out.

Da da da da——

The speed at which it ran was so fast that it could not possibly be produced by a normal person.

Chen Ji dared not turn around. His heart was pounding and his head was throbbing as if it were about to explode!

The Painted Skin Demon arrived so quickly, which was beyond his expectations!

Chen Ji gripped the boat ticket tightly; the yellowed paper was burning hot.

The emergency exit is just ahead; he needs to go upstairs from there!

Just then, Chen Ji suddenly felt a tingling sensation on his face, as if he were being watched by a snake.

He looked in horror at the emergency exit in front of him. In the dim green light, a bloodshot eye was staring intently at him!

Tang Qin stood there, her lips curving upwards in an eerie arc, almost reaching her ears.

Chen Ji's arms immediately broke out in a dense layer of goosebumps!

Without a second's hesitation, he immediately turned and entered the ward next to him, locking the door behind him.

A few breaths later, a rotting, ashen face covered in lividity was suddenly pressed against the night watch window.

Then, Tang Qin, dressed in white, stood next to the Painted Skin Ghost.

She chuckled twice, and a clinking sound rang out.

It's a key!

Tang Qin is the attending physician, so of course she has a key to the ward!

Chen Ji moved his throat; it seemed he had nowhere left to escape.

unless......

A miracle will happen.

With the click of the door opening, Chen Ji's eyes widened suddenly.

A river, as long as an arm, suddenly appeared in mid-air, flowing quietly, shimmering with light and color, its surface sparkling like countless stars.

The ticket in his pocket was shaking violently, as if urging him to step inside.

"It really is... a river."

Chen Ji murmured.

The next second, he took a deep look at Tang Qin, who had burst through the door, and stepped forward as if to walk towards the door.

"No!"

Just then, Tang Qin seemed to sense something, her expression changed, and she lunged forward to grab Chen Ji's hand.

But Chen Ji's body seemed to step into the void, having already completely entered that river.

His figure was instantly swallowed by the air, leaving nothing behind.

Beside Tang Qin, the nurse ghost's mouth suddenly split open, and fury burned in her sunken eye sockets.

"He entered the Yu River."

Beside her, Tang Qin's face was ashen, and she held a piece of clothing in her hand: "I sensed the aura of the domain."

"Once Chen Ji's domain is opened, no one but him will be able to see it."

She glanced with disgust at the rotting corpse beside her, which reeked of a strong stench, and walked to the window.

"He will still be here when he comes back."

Tang Qin gazed out the window for a long time, murmuring, "Chen Ji, we've been looking for you for so long, you'd better not die in there..."

Her voice was hoarse and alluring, completely different from before, creating an eerie incongruity with her bloodshot left eye...