Thriller Zone: From the Mental Hospital to the Ghostly World

"Teacher Zhan has already told us about the nightmare he had, in which Zhang Wenxuan came to ask him for his schoolbag."

"You yourself said that Huang Ying released the water, so she and the junior high school student ghost are in a cooperative relationship, and the two ghosts are on the same side."

"Huang Ying taking the red schoolbag is very likely the intention of the junior high school ghost, because he couldn't get into the school back then!"

Since Zhu Guang had obtained almost no information, only knowing that the ghost was still in the water, they were unable to draw a clear conclusion for the time being.

Tongzi shook his head and finally said, "Don't tell anyone about this yet. Let me ask Teacher Zhan."

Teacher Zhan has already gone out; he plans to ask again during the afternoon Chinese class.

"I know."

Zhu Guang nodded. Firstly, he was only guessing, and secondly, it was hard to guarantee that no one would have ulterior motives after learning about the abilities of his strange creatures.

He had learned this the hard way.

Before we knew it, it was time for class.

Hong Tian did not come.

Ah Gou didn't appear, confirming his death. Zhong Ge, on the other hand, didn't seem to be acting strangely. Li Bi was a little annoyed, but neither of them seemed particularly sad.

Before class, Chen Ji glanced at Hong Tian through the dormitory window and saw Hong Tian lying alone on the bed in the dimly lit dormitory, occasionally tilting his head and spitting out a mouthful of river water.

His skin had a faint bluish-white tinge, and his face was dull and lifeless.

He looked desperate.

Chen Ji's expression was complicated. Hong Tian was really unlucky. He hadn't done anything, but first he encountered a ghost, then he was replaced by someone else to die, and then he was suspected by others.

Hong Tian's drowning symptoms are shrouded in mystery, and it's unclear how they can be reversed.

After English class, the next class was PE. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the remaining eight students climbed over the wall and left the school.

Outside was a small town. According to Chen Ji's inquiries in his class, someone said that a tour group had visited the town before.

Tongzi and Chenji both believed that the clues in the newspaper were very important, and that it was even possible that the people who drowned in the group were the drowned ghosts who tried to take their place.

After leaving the school, the group slowly explored the boundaries of this domain while searching for clues about the tour group.

This town is really not very big.

It's just one street, crowded with fertilizer shops, hardware factories, and some small restaurants.

The gray cement walls are covered with advertisements printed in red lettering, a typical scene of a northern village.

Why do tour groups come here?

Zheng Meng asked, puzzled, "There aren't any tourist attractions around here, are there? It's all plains, just connected by a small river."

This question also came to Chen Ji's mind, and that strange feeling grew stronger and stronger.

The town clearly hasn't developed any tourism industry, so what exactly was the purpose of that tour group coming here?

The sun was blazing, and there were hardly any people on the street. The eight of them walked for a long time before finally finding a small bus station.

The ticket seller yawned lazily.

Li Yinghe then went up to them and began to communicate in their dialect. She asked questions for a long time, her expression gradually changing from expectation to confusion, before finally walking back in disappointment.

"No tour groups have ever come here."

She said, "That child probably doesn't understand. The ticket seller said that a year ago, some outsiders did come to this town, which caused quite a stir, but they came to inspect the factory construction site!"

“That group of people never went to the water's edge. I heard they went straight back to the city and didn't even go to the villages below.”

"One year ago..."

The boy was speechless. The person the student was talking about was completely different from the people in the newspaper.

“I think we’re wasting our time,” Li Bi said quietly, standing next to Zhong Ge. “The tour group has eight people, but Hong Tian saw nine ghosts. What about the extra one?”

“The reports may be inaccurate,” Wan Xiaoshuang said. “The key question is, if it wasn’t that tour group, then did the ghost corresponding to us just appear out of thin air?”

Huang Ying was a student here; she drowned herself in the river.

According to Teacher Zhan's dream, Zhang Wenxuan's disappearance was most likely due to drowning in the river.

However, those ghosts that corresponded to Chen Ji and his nine companions had no origin and were too incompatible with the background of this domain!

It has no connection whatsoever with Huang Ying or Zhang Wenxuan.

They have no connection whatsoever.

That's how they feel about this domain.

Huang Ying and Zhang Wenxuan seemed to be complete strangers, yet they ended up working together.

Even the guidance was of little help. Even without those few words, Zhu Guang could have known that the ghost's purpose was to find a scapegoat when he faced Zhang Wenxuan last night.

This has resulted in the fact that even after half a day, the newcomers still feel as if they are facing a fog, with all the clues being fragmented and incomplete.

The group walked under the scorching sun for half a day, sweating profusely, but made no progress. At this point, a look of confusion appeared on the faces of some of them.

The domain includes this town....

But there were no clues in the town.

The boy hid in the shade, deep in thought. He and Zhu Guang discussed it and decided to go outside a bit more.

If they really have to trek several miles to another village, then that's the only option.

But just then, Chen Ji suddenly remembered something and abruptly said:

"Huang Ying's home is in town."

“I saw Teacher Zhan’s log last night. Huang Ying lived with her grandparents. After Huang Ying drowned, Teacher Zhan went to town to find a rescuer, but Huang Ying’s grandparents were unwilling to pay.”

"what?"

Li Yinghe was somewhat incomprehensible; she didn't know Huang Ying's specific experiences: "Her own granddaughter jumped into the river, and her family didn't save her? What about her parents?"

“...It’s a long story.” Chen Ji shook his head. “Her parents and Huang Ying’s younger brother work in the city.”

This was indeed a clue worth investigating. The eight people, each with their own agenda, split into two teams.

One team, consisting of Zhu Guang, Tong Zi, Li Bi, and Wan Xiaoshuang, went to explore the boundaries of the domain and inquire whether anyone knew about the tour group in the downstream village.

One team consisted of Li Yinghe, Chen Ji, Zhong Ge, and Zheng Meng, who went to visit Huang Ying's family.

After agreeing to meet at the bus station, Chen Ji walked at the very back of the group, following the others to find out the location of Huang Ying's house.

Before they even had a chance to ask anyone, they walked a little further and found what appeared to be Huang Ying's address.

Huang Family Noodle Shop

It was lunch break time, and the iron gate of the noodle shop was pulled down, but it wasn't locked; only a small gap was left.

"Have you any money?"

Chen Ji asked Li Yinghe in a low voice.

"Yes, I do." Li Yinghe paused, then pulled a wad of cash from her coat tied around her waist. "What do you want to do with this?"

"I don't think they'll necessarily tell you if you ask them directly."

Chen said calmly.

The fact that they prevented Huang Ying from attending school and then caused trouble at the school demanding money reveals the attitude of her family towards her.

Most families don't allow Huang Ying to attend high school so that she has to work to support her family; this kind of thing still happens nowadays.

“…I understand.” Li Yinghe pursed her lips.

The iron gate was pulled up, and light finally shone into the noodle shop.

The air was filled with a foul, fishy smell, like it had been urinated on by a cat. There was a layer of dust on the ground, and the fan was creaking and groaning, but there was no one in sight.