Translator: Cinder Translations
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The woman in the cheongsam suppressed her fear and turned to look at the mirror.
In the next second, her expression froze.
"Ahhhh!!!" Her eyes bulged from their sockets as she fell backward to the ground, her mouth wide open, letting out a piercing scream.
A shadow flashed before her eyes, and the intense pain lasted only for a brief moment before everything went silent.
The dark hallway was filled with a misty, fog-like color that lingered without dispersing for a long time.
It was a quiet night, at least for Jiang Cheng and Fatty.
Fatty was still fast asleep when the distant scream suddenly shattered the silence.
He was wrapped in two blankets, having heeded Jiang Cheng's advice to pull them up to his chin, leaving only his chubby face exposed.
At that moment, a sharp scream echoed from outside their room: "Ahhh, someone's dead!!!"
Fatty jolted awake in fear, almost rolling off the bed.
A few hours earlier, Jiang Cheng had taken over Fatty's night watch, and had stayed awake until now.
The scream came from a woman, not too old, and Jiang Cheng recognized her voice.
It was one of the three newcomers—the girl in the dinosaur pajamas.
"Doctor..." Fatty stammered, wanting to say something, but perhaps due to just waking up, his thoughts were muddled. Most of what he said was just a repetitive expression of his current fear, without any real meaning.
So Jiang Cheng immediately told him to shut up, then approached the door without hesitation.
Only when he heard the sound of a door opening and hurried footsteps outside did he finally open the door and step out.
Fatty followed behind him, his face filled with terror.
Not far away, the girl in pajamas was collapsed on the ground, while a crowd had gathered in front of a nearby room. Blood was faintly spilling out from the room, a crimson color stark and glaring.
Judging from the amount of blood alone, the person inside was surely beyond saving.
Fatty's small eyes darted around nervously, and after a moment, he swallowed hard and whispered, "The woman in the cheongsam is missing."
Actually, there was no need for Fatty to point it out. Jiang Cheng had already noticed that the woman in the cheongsam was the only one missing from the group, so it was obvious who the dead person was.
The girl in pajamas was pale with fear, unable to care about anything else as she continued to scream uncontrollably.
"Damn!" The man in the baseball cap, already in a foul mood, was irritated by her constant screaming. He cursed loudly, his face darkening, then turned and walked towards her. He raised his hand and slapped her across the face.
A crisp sound echoed, and the entire world fell silent.
The girl in pajamas was knocked to the ground, silenced, lying half-prone and trembling, but her eyes were filled with overwhelming despair.
This time, no one helped her, not even a word of comfort.
Even the usually gentle man in the suit pretended not to notice her plight.
Upon seeing the blood, it seemed like everyone had reverted to their true selves.
In a way, it wasn't until someone died that the task truly began.
Jiang Cheng and Fatty walked closer, step by step. The others soon noticed them approaching, and the middle-aged man in the vest even made way for them.
It was another dorm room, but judging from its condition, it had been abandoned long ago, with not even a single intact window.
A pair of legs extended from behind a corner, with faint blood splatters on them.
Jiang Cheng could now confirm that it was indeed the body of the woman in the cheongsam.
The door was half-open, but he wasn't sure if it had been left that way or if someone had deliberately placed it like that.
He reached out and pulled the door open completely, then stepped inside first.
Seeing this, Fatty's entire body trembled violently, as if his body rippled like the surface of a lake. He opened his mouth, trying to stop Jiang Cheng, but it was too late.
Jiang Cheng had already entered the room and was looking down at a corner of the room.
In a corner, a woman's body lay on the ground.
Blood was splattered across the room.
The bloodstains were chaotic, covering the table, the wardrobe, the abandoned bed, and even the walls.
The floor of the dorm was uneven, and the blood had pooled near one side of the bed, forming a large puddle.
The ground was muddy and slick, making an uncomfortable squelching sound when stepped on.
It was indeed the body of the woman in the cheongsam. She was lying face down on the floor, and from the current angle, there were no signs of struggle or visible external injuries, so the source of the bleeding couldn't be determined yet.
At that moment, a few others entered the room: the man in the suit, the man in the baseball cap, and another woman. When they saw the body of the cheongsam woman, their faces turned grim.
Sometimes, having your suspicions confirmed is a form of suffering.
Fatty also mustered the courage to step inside, but as he did, he slipped on a patch of blood and nearly fell.
The air was filled with a strange mix of sickly sweet and stale odors, causing strange images to pop into Jiang Cheng's mind involuntarily.
It was an old habit of his. He shook his head, trying to suppress the feeling, but it only made it worse.
In a daze, he took a step back.
That single step triggered a chain reaction: the man in the suit, the man in the baseball cap, and the woman with the ponytail all took a step back as well.
"What's wrong?" the man in the baseball cap asked in surprise.
Jiang Cheng ignored him, pressing his thumb and middle finger against his temples, massaging them.
After a while, he felt slightly better. When he looked up again, the others had retreated to the doorway, watching him closely, ready to flee at any moment.
"What's wrong with you guys?" Jiang Cheng frowned and asked.
The man in the baseball cap eyed him suspiciously for a while, then said, "Nothing, it's just that you seemed a bit strange," he licked his lips and added cautiously, "Did you find something?"
"No."
"Really?" The man in the suit didn't seem convinced.
"Really," Jiang Cheng confirmed. "Now, I need someone to help me flip her body over. Maybe we can find some clues."
"Who's going to do it?" he added.
At his words, everyone fell silent. The corpse's strange appearance repulsed them all.
(End of the Chapter)
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