Thriller Zone: From the Mental Hospital to the Ghostly World

"Walk."

Old Yang didn't waste words with them, but simply glanced at Chen Ji and the other man as if by chance:

"If you two get tired, you can come here to rest anytime."

Chen understood perfectly.

This was a warning to Pan and Yin that they would come to keep an eye on Xiao Fei from time to time.

Old Yang couldn't say it outright either. The mine was pitch black, and if he directly exposed Pan Yin and the other man's thoughts, no one knew what they would do.

The three of them walked forward in silence...

Once on the coal face, Lao Yang turned his back and began silently digging coal, sending coal fragments flying everywhere.

clang! clang!

The sound of hammering immediately echoed throughout the mine tunnel.

Taking advantage of the loud noise, Xu Sandao whispered:

"Let's go see where Liu Er died later."

That is, the very end of this mine tunnel.

Chen Ji nodded.

He smashed his pickaxe into the coal face, and his wrist throbbed with pain from the impact.

"I have a feeling something's not right," Chen Ji murmured. "The other three dead men haven't appeared yet. Are they still inside the mine?"

"Very likely." Xu Sandao asked, "Did you bring any strange objects?"

Chen Ji nodded, a small monkey and a pen he always carried in his coat: "Did you take them?"

"It's covered."

Xu Sandao lifted his clothes, revealing a thin rope around his waist, with...

Fireflies, dolls, a small, all-black knife, a half-eaten cookie...

Chen Ji looked completely bewildered.

"You robbed the company warehouse?"

Even if it's the supervisor, they shouldn't lend out so many strange items at once, right?

"I did take a few extra," Xu Sandao smiled slightly. "It's better to be prepared."

"However, they are not of high grade, and some of them have strong side effects."

He put the clothes down and changed the subject:

"I have a guess about the taboos surrounding these ghosts."

"I've been wondering why Liu Er killed Zhang Xiangdong out of so many people?"

"I used to think that Liu Er changed his target because Liu Yunfeng came to us, but—"

Chen Ji continued:

"But Liu Yunfeng didn't believe Liu Er was dead at all, so there shouldn't have been any tacit understanding between them."

"Correct."

Xu Sandao nodded.

"Then, Zhang Xiangdong's death was inevitable; he was the person Liu Er had chosen from the very beginning."

Chen Ji seemed to be deep in thought. He had previously noticed that Zhang Xiangdong had actually done something that no one else had done.

"After seeing Liu Er, Zhang Xiangdong shouted 'There's a ghost!'" Xu Sandao revealed Chen Ji's thoughts.

Others did not.

"Then the same applies to other ghosts."

Chen Ji continued, picking up where Xu Sandao left off: "Liu Yunfeng knocked on the door, but we didn't respond, so he came to check if we were asleep."

"Because if we wake up but don't open the door, it indirectly proves that it's a ghost."

"And the female ghost in the cafeteria forced us to eat for the same reason."

“I always feel…” Chen Ji frowned and said, “They still seem to see themselves as ‘humans’ rather than as ghosts.”

"However, the characteristics of ghosts also make their behavior very strange."

These ghosts still retain traces of their lives, such as the female ghost cooking in the morning and Liu Yunfeng going to find his lover.

“The idea is correct,” Xu Sandao said. “Actually, there’s no need to make it so complicated.”

"In general, the way to avoid breaking taboos is to avoid making them feel 'out of place'."

"To put it simply, we have to go along with them."

However, the boundaries are very subtle, and no one knows what the ghost is thinking or what it wants.

Blindly obeying others could also lead to one's own death.

If they had actually opened the door last night, who knows where Liu Yunfeng would have taken them?

After the two finished communicating, Xu Sandao instructed Lao Yang to try to remain natural if the ghost reappeared.

A few minutes later...

Amidst the thumping sounds, a sudden burst of footsteps was heard!

They came from the direction of Pan Yin and his group!

"The coal trucks are here?"

Chen Ji was taken aback, and suddenly saw a hint of confusion flash across Lao Yang's face.

"No," Old Yang murmured, "the coal truck was only accompanied by one person..."

The footsteps were scattered and even a little hurried!

The three men, each holding a pickaxe, felt a sudden tightness in their chests.

There's been an accident outside the mine shaft.

Before long, Pan Yin and Zheng Jinming appeared before everyone!

Xiao Fei was standing behind them, his face pale and his whole body trembling like a leaf!

At the same time, each of them was splattered with blood.

"you--"

Just as Lao Yang was about to say something, his gaze suddenly sharpened!

Four figures appeared behind Pan Yin and his two companions.

Silently.

The one leading the group was none other than Liu Yunfeng!

Old Yang recognized at a glance that behind Liu Yunfeng were three other dead miners!

Liu Er was not among them.

but.....

Liu Yunfeng grinned and pointed to his own body:

"Old Yang, look what I found."

He comically wore a red jacket over his military overcoat.

The mine was completely silent.

Old Yang's heart was pounding like a drum. How could he not see that Pan Yin and the other two had been driven here by Liu Yunfeng!

What is the purpose?

Just then, Lao Yang felt someone poke him in the back.

It's Xu Sandao!

I'm reminding him to act more naturally!

"Hehe..." Old Yang chuckled dryly, "The color of the clothes is strangely festive."

Liu Yunfeng nodded twice, his head resting on his back.

"I bought these for my younger brother; they're new clothes for the Chinese New Year."

"However, he can no longer wear them."

This statement shocked everyone. Did Liu Yunfeng already know that Liu Er was dead?

"...half of his body is missing."

The word "missing" was emphasized.

Without pausing, Liu Yunfeng stared silently at the three of them:

"I need to find my brother, are you coming?"

Chen Ji instantly understood why Pan Yin and the other two had been driven here like donkeys.

The place where they were in Tuanzi Noodles was the very spot where Liu Yunfeng died.

Meanwhile, at least one other miner has been killed.

After a two-second silence, Lao Yang nodded with difficulty.

They have no right to say no.

The group continued walking forward, the atmosphere extremely tense.

The further you go into the mine, the darker it gets, because there's no way out at the end.

Liu Yunfeng clearly intended to lead them to that single-headed noodle shop.

That is, the place where Liu Er died.

Dutou Tuanzi noodles, as the name suggests, is a dead end.

The front, left, and right sides were all black coal walls, the passage was extremely narrow, and the air was as solid and decaying as in a tomb, filled with a thick sense of death.

Liu Er's half-body had already been removed, leaving only a patch of dark red blood.

Liu Yunfeng pointed to the coal wall.

"Help me dig."

Dig... dig for what?

Is it Liu Er's other half of his body? But how could it be hidden in a coal mine?

"...Brother, can I go back and get a pickaxe?"

Pan Yin trembled as she spoke ingratiatingly.

"Need not."

Liu Yunfeng said quietly.

A corpse behind him walked up and smashed a cloth bag on the ground.

There were eight or nine pickaxes inside.

They come in various sizes and shapes.

Liu Yunfeng pointed at Xiao Fei and Lao Yang, indicating that they should each take a pickaxe.

Next came Xu Sandao and Pan Yin.

Chen Ji narrowed his eyes, looking at the remaining four pickaxes.

The one on the far left has a clearly off color, and it's covered in bloodstains.

The moment Liu Yunfeng pointed at Chen Ji, he immediately stepped forward and reached for the sharpest of the three weapons on the right!

But at that moment, Lao Yang noticed that Zheng Jinming stretched his foot out, seemingly trying to trip Chen Ji up!

Chen Ji immediately staggered.

At that very moment, Zheng Jinming grabbed the pickaxe that Chen Ji was about to pick up!

"Zheng Jinming, you coward!"

Old Yang got impatient and couldn't help but start cursing.

Chen Ji didn't say anything, calmly walked over, and casually picked up a blunt pickaxe.

"How could you be so careless while walking?" Zheng Jinming asked, feigning concern. "Did you fall?"

"fine."

Chen Ji smiled faintly.

This startled Zheng Jinming.

He vaguely recalled that Chen Ji seemed... not to have touched his outstretched foot.

But in the end, he still fell.

Chen Ji did it on purpose!

He immediately looked at the pickaxe in his hand; it was so new and incredibly sharp, but...

Only in the dim light of his miner's lamp did he notice a small bloodstain on the bottom of his pickaxe.

A single character was written crookedly on it:

Liu.

Zheng Jinming's mind went blank. He jerked his head up and met Liu Yunfeng's gaze—

The other person wore a chilling smile.

_____

My comment, which I posted right at the last minute, seems to have been deleted. So, I'd like to wish all our book lovers a happy birthday tomorrow night! May the new year bring you all the best and happiness every day!