Thriller Zone: From the Mental Hospital to the Ghostly World

The morning sunlight slanted across the breakfast stall's canopy.

It was already the second day after entering the domain.

Chen Ji picked up a piece of hot, freshly made rice noodle roll and looked at Du Tingfeng and Fei'er across from him:

Did Tian Qinghe contact you last night?

Du Tingfeng shook his head. The nine entrants hadn't discussed the mission since returning to the hotel, as there were still too few clues.

He thought for a while and said:

"The police haven't contacted him yet."

He glanced at his watch again and added, "It's only nine o'clock now. Yesterday, Officer Zhong arranged to pick up the first draft from Fatty Hua's place at noon."

"We should have news by 11 o'clock at the latest."

Chen Ji nodded slightly, said nothing more, and continued eating breakfast.

This time, the time allotted for the domain seems to be quite generous.

After visiting Fatty Hua's hideout yesterday, no further unexpected situations arose.

Chen Ji and his two companions were somewhat unaccustomed to this, so they went to the surrounding neighborhood to inquire about information, but they didn't find anything.

He looked at the local residents walking by on the street, then suddenly turned his gaze to the street corner.

"Newspapers for sale!"

"The latest newspaper—"

This was the third time Chen Ji had seen a newsboy, but this time the newsboy looked very happy.

He, Fei'er, and Du Tingfeng exchanged a quick glance, then waved to the newsboy.

However, the newsboy seemed somewhat afraid of them, pretending not to see any of them, and tried to turn into a side alley.

"We just want to buy a newspaper."

Chen Ji shouted something and waved the money in his hand.

The newsboy was initially a little nervous, but after seeing the banknotes, he walked over with some hesitation.

"Give."

He spoke rapidly, threw a rolled-up newspaper on the table in front of them, and was about to take the money from Chen Ji's hand.

"Wait a moment."

Du Tingfeng said, grabbing the newspaper boy's clothes.

"What?!"

A look of wariness immediately appeared on the newsboy's dirty face.

He took several steps back, but Du Tingfeng grabbed him, preventing him from going far.

Chen Ji gave Du Tingfeng a wink, signaling him to let go of the newsboy's clothes, and then counted out a few coins from his pocket.

He placed the stack of change along with the money he had earned for the newspapers in the newsboy's hand before asking:

Is there any good news today?

The newsboy was about to slip away when his clothes were loosened, but he stopped when he saw the extra money in his hand.

He carefully put the money into his small bag before saying gruffly:

"Fatty Hua is dead, how could I not be happy!"

Fat Man Hua is dead?

Chen Ji and the other two were all taken aback!

However, this was not entirely unexpected.

Chen Ji's mind was churning with thoughts, but he didn't show it on his face and asked:

"how do you know?"

The newsboy pointed to the table, a pleased smile playing on his lips: "It's all written in the newspaper."

"Deserve it!"

"Weren't you following him? He's dead, why are you so happy?"

Du Tingfeng said with some doubt.

The newsboy made a face, his nose wrinkling up tightly:

"Who hangs out with that fat guy?"

“He bullies children every day. Everyone gets their books from him. He charges others three dollars for a book, but he charges me five dollars!”

"If I sell it, I have to give him an extra dollar for his hard work!"

"I'm the one who sells the books. He just sits on the sofa all day, doing absolutely nothing. What kind of hard-earned money does he expect to make?"

Chen Ji was slightly taken aback, not expecting Fatty Hua to exploit children to this extent.

He glanced at the newsboy's dirty clothes, which hadn't been washed for days and had several scattered holes.

Clearly, newsboys, unlike other children, were not well cared for or supported by their parents.

It's possible he doesn't even have parents.

"I see."

Chen Ji nodded and said something to the little boy, who then ran off in a flash.

He stared intently at the newsboy's retreating figure before turning around and opening the newspaper.

"I guessed he would die, but I didn't expect him to die so soon."

Du Tingfeng sighed.

"Fatty Hua also read the first draft, so of course he would be cursed. I just don't know how he died."

Chen Ji said that he kept flipping through the newspaper and finally saw the obituary in an inconspicuous corner on the back.

It occupies a very small portion of the text:

Obituary

Luo Shuhua, a resident of Daepo Ward, hanged himself in his home on the night of July 17, 1999.

It is hereby scheduled for noon on July 18, 1999.

A memorial service was held at No. 44, Jia Yi Street, Daepo District.

After reading the obituary, all three felt a strange sensation.

Fei'er asked with some confusion:

"Is this how an obituary is written?"

This obituary is far too rudimentary.

Chen Ji was silent for a few seconds before saying, "No."

"Generally, the person who writes the obituary is a family member of the deceased, and the social relationship between the deceased and the writer will be listed in it."

"Unless his entire family is dead, he wouldn't write it in such an official style."

"and......"

"He died last night, how come it's already in the newspapers this morning?"

This obituary is eerie in every way.

Just as the three were pondering, the hotel door next to the breakfast stall was suddenly pushed open.

Tian Qinghe walked out with a very solemn expression.

"What happened?"

Chen Ji stood up and said, noticing that Tian Qinghe was followed by other entrants.

"A new ghost story has been added to this book!"

Tian Qinghe walked to Chen Ji and the other two and lowered her voice.

"The title is strange."

As he spoke, he opened the book "A Ghost Story Every Day".

[Anomaly (Revised Version Based on Luo Shuhua's Experience)]

"Who is this Luo Shuhua?"

Xue Ran frowned and said, "I've never heard of this name before."

"...It's Fatty Hua."

Chen Ji said, showing them the obituary.

His brows furrowed deeply. Fatty Hua had actually died like this!

If the ghost story truly reflects Fat Man Wah's experiences perfectly, then the unusual aspects of this obituary can be explained.

Because Fat Man Wah's entire family is dead!

In the story, the protagonist witnesses his newborn son and his aging mother swap bodies.

His wife, on the other hand, was transformed into his own cat and inexplicably dismembered.

In the end, the protagonist was driven mad by the trauma and killed all his abnormal family members before hanging himself.

Tian Qinghe's voice rang out, asking the same question:

"How come this obituary was published in the newspaper so quickly?"

Chen Ji shook his head, then suddenly remembered something:

When did this new ghost story appear?

He looked at Li Bo, who had been telling ghost stories to him all along.

"How would I know?"

Li Bo said irritably, "I went to bed at nine o'clock last night and only saw it when I woke up this morning. I immediately told Tian Qinghe afterward."

"..."

Did you sleep for that long?

Chen Ji looked at him; the timing of the ghost story was a very important clue.

If it appeared last night, then it proves that the curse is indeed as the book's title suggests.

One per day

He didn't say anything more to Li Bo, but said softly:

"We have to check ghost stories every hour today."

"【Wedding dress】corresponds to Ah Xiang from the night before, and 【abnormal】corresponds to Fatty Hua who died yesterday."

"Today, there will likely be a new curse."

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Thank you Lin Guyi for the update reminder! Thank you Yeyeye for the amazing verification!