Thriller Zone: From the Mental Hospital to the Ghostly World

"Is this connected to the main alleyway?" Xu Sandao asked immediately, his expression not looking too good in the dim light of the fireflies.

"Do not."

Old Yang's expression was solemn: "This is the first mining area built. Back then, there was no winch, only a ladder connecting it to the outside."

"If we find a ladder, we can get out too."

He then explained that the abandoned mining area was not large, the terrain was narrow, and it was divided into several small mining areas.

As he spoke, he began to grope along the wall until he touched a wooden beam.

Under Xu Sandao's control, the fireflies flew to Lao Yang's side, their light already extremely dim.

Old Yang practically pressed his face against the wooden beam to see the numbers on it.

"19."

He murmured, "Go find 0."

Chen Ji nodded and followed behind Lao Yang, seemingly lost in thought.

Throughout, Lao Yang's attitude towards the fireflies remained indifferent, and it was unclear what Xu Sandao had said to him.

The mine tunnels were eerily quiet, and the fireflies flew about two or three meters in front of them, barely serving as a guide.

A dozen minutes later, after turning several corners, the group arrived at District 10.

And the fireflies suddenly went out.

It was pitch black all around, like a moonless night, and nothing could be seen.

The time limit for using fireflies has expired.

"I can use it twice more," Xu Sandao whispered in Chen Ji's ear, "but not now."

Fireflies are supposed to attract ghosts to follow their light, but now they're just used for illumination, which is a huge waste of their potential.

The three walked for a while...

Now we can only rely on Lao Yang's general impression and touch the engravings to determine it.

However, they soon realized one thing:

There is another creature in this abandoned mining area.

Da-da, da-da.

It's a mule!

At the same time, it was accompanied by the soft sound of bells.

"It's the mule that pulls the coal truck!" Old Yang shouted excitedly. "It's also trying to find its way out!"

"Coal transporter..." Chen Ji was taken aback, then realized what he meant.

He recalled the bloodstains on Pan Yin and the other two when they appeared. He guessed that the reason they hadn't broken any taboos was because they had witnessed the murder of others.

Since Pan Yin had already taken over that coal mine, the extra person couldn't be another miner; he must be a worker who came to haul coal.

The coal carrier is dead.

It is quite possible that the mule wandered here aimlessly without its owner's control.

but.....

After the roof collapsed, the air underground became increasingly thin.

Driven by the instinct for survival, mules will naturally seek out places with light and oxygen, which is the mine exit.

That's why their routes overlapped.

"Follow it."

Old Yang thought for a moment and said softly.

The three of them immediately set off in the direction where the bell rang.

The surroundings were silent, except for the footsteps of Chen Ji and his two companions, and the occasional sound of hooves.

The bells also guided the way ahead.

After traversing several small paths and forks in the road, Lao Yang walked in the lead, constantly changing direction.

Chen Ji supported Xu Sandao, feeling exhausted and aching all over, with a dry mouth and throat.

In this desolate, tomb-like mine, the only living people he knew were himself, Xu Sandao, and Lao Yang.

Pan Yin escaped being beheaded, but it's unknown whether he managed to escape.

There was also a living mule, silently walking alongside them.

"Uncle Yang," Chen Ji suddenly asked, "When Liu Yunfeng died, was there a glowing object on his body?"

"Like that thing on Xiaofei's neck."

Old Yang shook his head.

He was not aware of it.

"I heard it all from Lao Sun," Lao Yang recalled. "It wasn't my shift back then."

"Oh."

Chen Ji nodded, seemingly lost in thought.

He always felt that there was something fishy about the deaths of the previous five people.

It's impossible that they were all killed by the blacksmithing demons.

Since there are only five pieces of scrap material, if all five people die because of the scrap material, then the blacksmith ghost won't be able to throw out a new one today.

"Did you notice that the other three miner ghosts all died in pretty much the same way?"

Chen Ji whispered to Xu Sandao.

They all had a piece missing from the back of their heads, as if they had been hit by something.

But there was no roof collapse in the mine at that time.

"You suspect that someone else killed them?" Xu Sandao asked after thinking for a moment.

"Ah."

Chen Ji did not deny it, but all of this was just speculation and he had no substantial evidence.

"Assuming that's the case," Xu Sandao said slowly, "who killed them?"

"Liu Yunfeng, Liu Er?"

Chen Ji thought of how the miner ghosts followed Liu Yunfeng and shook his head.

"I don't think so."

Because, to this day, none of the people killed by these two brothers have died in such a manner.

Xu Sandao raised an eyebrow: "You mean there was a ghost, or a person, that we don't know about, who killed them?"

"What is the purpose?"

"..."

Chen Ji remained silent for a moment.

“But what you said is also possible.” However, Xu Sandao changed the subject: “Be careful.”

"From the very beginning, I've felt a chill running down my spine."

Xu Sandao's tone was unusually serious.

The three of them stepped over a patch of puddles, and the air began to feel less stuffy, but it became very cold.

They started walking a straight path five minutes ago.

The mule was walking slowly and leisurely not far ahead.

jingle.

The bell continued to ring softly and rhythmically.

Like white noise.

Listening to the clattering of hooves, Chen Ji couldn't help but recall the mule he had seen next to the coal pile yesterday.

It was snowing heavily at the time, and the ground was wet. A mule was pulling a cart, and its hooves were slipping.

It even gave Chen Ji a gentle "woof".

Then he jogged back into the shed.

Chen Ji was thinking casually when he suddenly stumbled forward.

"careful!"

Old Yang grabbed Chen Ji: "The ground here is uneven, be careful."

"it is good."

Chen Ji nodded...

Suddenly, a jolt went through him!

He immediately stopped Lao Yang and his companion, and covered their mouths at the same time.

In complete silence...

Da-da; da-da.

jingle.

Pause for one second, then repeat:

Da-da; da-da.

jingle.

"The sound of a mule's hooves...that's definitely not it."

Chen Ji's mind went blank as he recalled the scene of seeing the mule yesterday.

There's no such regularity at all!

Walking fast is like the rhythm of "da-da-da"; walking slowly, there will be varying pauses between the two sounds.

Moreover, there were many coal fragments and rubble on the ground.

Even people have difficulty walking on it, and mules have very poor night vision.

How could it not dodge at all, not make any splashing sounds, and maintain a constant speed from beginning to end?

Chen Ji felt his breath catch in his throat for a moment. Without hesitation, he immediately whispered in Xu Sandao's ear:

"I'm going to use 'I won't listen'."

He didn't know if the monkey's "enhanced eyesight" would work in this environment, but he had no choice but to give it a try.

Xu Sandao's body tensed instantly.

He grabbed Lao Yang and Chen Ji with one hand each, and slowly retreated.

[Don't listen], activate!

It was still pitch black...

Suddenly, all was quiet, as if I had entered a vacuum.

Chen Ji blinked several times in succession.

He suddenly realized that his field of vision was slowly expanding, it wasn't so dark anymore, and his eyes felt like they were wearing night vision goggles.

He could see the details of everything within a few meters of him in an instant.

The wooden board reads: [4].

They are in Zone 4.

There was black liquid on the ground.

The view ahead continued to extend, and soon, a tipped-over cart came into Chen Ji's view.

Chen Ji's heart suddenly tightened!

The next scene confirmed his guess—

There was a dead mule on the ground.

A mule... with only three hooves.

Next to the mule's head, which was foaming at the mouth, stood 1, 2, 3... 3 pairs of feet.

Leather shoes, cotton shoes, and a pair of women's casual shoes.

Chen Ji's blood almost froze in that instant, and goosebumps erupted all over his body!

This is a dead end!

But what truly terrified him was not the three zombie-like figures in the darkness—

There was another person a few dozen meters behind those three figures.

A man wearing a yellow miner's hat.

Standing at the end of the road, I couldn't see his face clearly, but he was definitely not one of the ghosts I had seen before.

What Chen Ji could see clearly was...

The miner held a bloodied mule hoof in his hand and gently tapped it against the rock wall.

The small bell in her other hand was also shaking.

......

In the boundless darkness.

Xu Sandao heard that only the mule was still walking.

Da-da; da-da.

jingle.

He felt even colder.

He didn't know what Chen Ji had seen, he only knew that the other person had suddenly gripped his hand tightly.

"Ok?"

Xu Sandao was suddenly stunned, feeling Chen Ji quickly write something on his hand.

Da-da; da-da.

jingle.

[4 Ghosts]

【run! 】

The sound of mule hooves stopped.