Thriller Zone: From the Mental Hospital to the Ghostly World

At 11 a.m., Tian Qinghe's cell phone suddenly rang.

"Officer Zhong finally called back."

His expression shifted slightly as he turned on the speakerphone and answered the call:

"Hey, Inspector Chung."

"Fat Hua is dead, did you know?"

Apart from Huici, who was reciting sutras in another room, everyone else sat next to Tian Qinghe, holding their breath and listening intently to the conversation between the two.

"Zi-Zi-"

The signal on the other end of the phone seemed to be bad, and it took a few seconds before Officer Zhong's muffled voice finally came through.

"...This morning we found him hanging himself at home."

"What about the first draft?"

Tian Qinghe immediately pressed for more information.

"Zi-"

"Namo Amitabha Night..."

Amidst the crackling of static on the other end of the phone, a muffled background sound could be heard, seemingly someone chanting scriptures.

"Hey?"

Tian Qinghe frowned.

A few seconds later, the chanting stopped and the call returned to normal.

"Hey, Tian Qinghe."

Officer Zhong's voice came through.

"I'm at a temple, the signal is bad."

Tian Qinghe breathed a sigh of relief and asked again:

"Officer Chung, Fat Wah is dead, how are we going to get that first draft?"

Before he could finish speaking, Officer Zhong replied:

"Just go to his house and get it."

44, A-Yi Street, Tai Po District

"I'll go too—dududu."

Tian Qinghe glanced at the obituary, wanting to say something more, but the call had already been disconnected.

"He just died like that?"

Liu Zi muttered somewhat unhappily, "It's all so vague."

Tian Qinghe tried to call back, but it showed that the other party was not in the service area.

"The signal might be bad."

Xue Ran said, "Hui Ci also went to the temple yesterday. He said that all the temples here are on the mountain."

"Um....."

Tian Qinghe frowned, glanced at his watch, and stood up, saying:

"Tell Huici that we should set off."

"The memorial service will begin at 12 o'clock."

......

11:55.

Nine people stood at the door of a village house and knocked on the door.

The surrounding area was desolate and more dilapidated than the streets before.

You can even see groups of homeless people sleeping on the ground at street corners.

"To be honest, this time entering the domain is really different from what I imagined Hong Kong and Hunan in the 1990s."

Du Tingfeng had a complicated expression as he stood at the back of the line with Chen Ji and Fei'er.

He watched a lot of Hong Kong movies in his spare time.

In the movie, Xianggang in the 1990s is a very charming city, with dazzling neon lights and towering skyscrapers.

The characters played by those famous Hong Kong stars all seem to live carefree and unrestrained lives.

But this time, all he saw were narrow, dilapidated streets, vendors and citizens cursing over soaring prices.

What you imagine is also true.

Chen Ji looked at the homeless man on the roadside and said.

"It's just that this time, the domain didn't let us go to that area."

Du Tingfeng looked at the tall building that was vaguely visible behind the layers of Tang buildings and nodded silently.

The group waited a while longer, until exactly midnight, when the door was finally opened.

Chen Ji was taken aback when he saw who opened the door.

He originally thought that the people inside were community members or neighbors who volunteered to help with the funeral arrangements.

but.....

An old woman opened the door.

She was at least seventy or eighty years old, and her back was completely bent over, perhaps due to years of hard work.

The old woman's face was covered with wrinkles, loose skin hung on her high cheekbones, and there was a mole next to her mouth.

She gave the group a sinister look, said nothing, and turned to enter the courtyard.

"This isn't right."

Xue Ran said nervously, standing with his feet outside the threshold, hesitant to step inside.

Several funeral wreaths were placed in the courtyard, and a few yellowish-white paper flowers hung from the eaves.

The entire village house was completely silent.

There was absolutely no human presence.

Just like the guests at this memorial service...

There were only nine people entering the realm at the entrance.

Chen Ji's heart sank suddenly. The unease that had been rising in his heart since he heard the phone call reached its peak at this moment!

Fatty Hua's entire family is dead, so where did this old woman come from?

Even if the neighbors help, it's impossible to let someone that old do all the work, right?

Du Tingfeng's expression also changed slightly; he had the same question in his mind!

However.....

Tian Qinghe gritted her teeth and went into the courtyard first.

"Let's go."

"That's what Phil said calmly."

Chen Ji took a deep breath and followed closely behind Tian Qinghe.

They had no choice but to go in!

Because the old woman was clutching a book in her hand...

A book titled "A Ghost Story Every Day"!

That's a third version, different from the ones on the market and the ones Li Bo has!

The title on the cover of this ghost story book is handwritten!

This is the original first draft!

Moreover, Chen could clearly see that there were other things mixed in.

The glimpse of a corner, barely visible, resembles a photograph.

After a while.

All nine people entered the courtyard.

The door slammed shut with a loud bang, even though there was no wind.

Li Bo and Liu Zi stood in the corner closest to the door, their bodies slightly tilted, as if they were about to rush out at the slightest sign of trouble.

The old woman raised her head, coldly surveyed the nine people, and pointed at Tian Qinghe.

She opened her mouth, her voice as rough as fingernails scratching a blackboard:

"Incense."

Tian Qinghe froze, and before he could say anything, his body drifted uncontrollably into the house!

His feet didn't even touch the ground!

It was as if something unseen was pulling him forward.

In the blink of an eye, Tian Qinghe and the old woman disappeared behind the scarlet curtain.

Everyone was horrified!

"Damn it, this ghost isn't even going to act anymore..."

Liu Zi gritted his teeth and cursed under his breath. He immediately got up and was about to open the courtyard gate to go out.

However, this dilapidated door felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, and it couldn't be pulled no matter what.

"Hold!"

Liu Zi kicked the door hard, and deep in his fierce eyes was a barely perceptible fear!

Kicking the door won't change anything.

Chen Ji suddenly spoke, his eyes fixed on the curtain, his expression grim.

"We have to get our hands on that first draft no matter what; we absolutely have to attend this memorial service."

If Chen Ji's guess is correct, this is an inevitable stage in this domain's progression...

It's also a curse brought about by ghost stories.

It's just unknown whether this curse applies to everyone or only to a portion of the nine.

After a while.

The old woman lifted the curtain and walked out without making a sound.

Beside her...

Tian Qinghe was nowhere to be seen.

The old woman pointed at Fei'er:

"Incense."

Fei'er didn't move.

She stared intently at the old woman's wrinkled face and suddenly asked:

Where is Tian Qinghe?

"Incense."

The old woman didn't answer her question, but stiffly repeated the words she had said before.

Immediately afterwards, Fei'er's body, just like Tian Qinghe's before her, was also pulled behind the curtain!