Translator: Cinder Translations
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The hallway was too deep and too quiet, so deep it felt like it had no end. When they had arrived, a woman had led the way, so it hadn't seemed strange at the time. But now, it felt like the perfect start to a horror movie.
As they rounded the final corner, the group finally reached the end of the corridor.
On the left was the women's restroom, and on the right...
Jiang Cheng turned his head to look at the rusty, half-open iron door on the right, a strange emotion flickering across his face.
"Here," Yu Wen nodded toward the door of the men's restroom on the right, lifting her chin. "Let's take a look inside."
No one questioned her decision, as almost everyone could smell the scent of blood.
And the closer they got to the men's restroom, the stronger that scent became.
Finally, Luo Yi stepped forward to push the door open.
The moment he did, he quickly retreated a step. The room inside was dimly lit, and no one immediately stepped in. They waited for their eyes to adjust to the darkness.
Gradually, the scene inside became clearer.
Zhou Taifu, who was standing at the front, felt his legs go weak and collapsed to the floor.
Zhang Yinyin's face turned pale with terror, her lips whitening. Her teeth chattered uncontrollably, and she couldn't get a single word out.
Long Tao stood in front of everyone, his head slightly raised, his body stiff, like he had just been dragged from a pool of blood.
Like the cheongsam woman before him, his jaw was gone.
His exposed gums were gruesome and ugly, shattered teeth embedded in the mangled flesh, writhing like maggots in decaying meat.
The fat man, who had eaten just as much as Jiang Cheng for breakfast, felt his stomach churn violently.
Blood had sprayed everywhere.
On the mirrors, the sinks, even the moldy ceiling. It was clear the murder had happened in an instant, perhaps in less than a fraction of a second, and Long Tao's jaw had been torn off by some massive force.
The twisted and torn flesh was vividly visible.
You could even see faint traces of the throat and other broken tissues.
Yu Wen was the first to step forward, with Jiang Cheng closely following behind.
The two moved cautiously, carefully choosing where to step.
The sound and slick feeling of stepping into a pool of blood were deeply unsettling.
The corpse's hands hung limply by its sides. Jiang Cheng touched one and found that the muscles in the forearm were tightly tensed.
There were no signs of struggle; the scene was impeccably preserved.
The fat man, trembling, said, "Look… look at his eyes."
The corpse's eyes were wide open, the brows exaggeratedly raised. He must have seen something terrifying before he died.
Even in death, his face was frozen in indescribable fear.
There was even blood seeping from the corners of his eyes.
"His tongue is missing too," Yu Wen withdrew her hand.
Some began to wonder if she was accustomed to dealing with corpses; otherwise, she wouldn't be so calm, especially with a body right in front of her.
In nightmares, death was a common occurrence. What they needed to do was figure out the cause.
At this point, Zhou Taifu, his face slightly better, stammered, "Why… why was Long Tao in the men's restroom? According to what we discussed earlier, he was supposed to go to the women's restroom."
"That's right," Zhang Yinyin agreed softly. "I remember the woman told him to go to the women's restroom."
Luo Yi stroked his chin, and after a moment, he said, "Maybe Long Tao went into the women's restroom first, found something dangerous, and then switched to the men's restroom?"
"No," Jiang Cheng said as he examined the surroundings. "Long Tao never entered the women's restroom. He came straight here."
"What evidence do you have?"
Jiang Cheng merely glanced at the man with indifference and replied, "If he had really noticed something unusual in the women's restroom, do you think he'd have had the chance to escape from it and then come to the men's restroom?"
"Maybe the ghost deliberately drove him into the men's restroom," Zhen Jianren sneered. "You never know."
Jiang Cheng's calm attitude infuriated him.
Jiang Cheng spread his hands, looking innocent. "If you insist on thinking that, I won't argue with you."
"Hmm, I think Mr. Hao has a point," Yu Wen said after some thought. "What we need to do now is identify the ghost and uncover its story."
After hearing this, Zhou Taifu became agitated. "You still want to find the ghost? Wouldn't it be better to hide? After all, the mission will end in seven days!"
Luo Yi licked his lips, then suddenly laughed. "There's never a shortage of naive people in nightmares. It's frustrating, because you can't use 'naive' to describe stupidity."
Zhou Taifu glared at him, "What do you mean?"
"Jeweler Zhou Taifu," Luo Yi adjusted the brim of his cap to the right, revealing a scar on his forehead. This changed his entire demeanor. "Are you sure you'll really be able to leave here safely after seven days?"
Zhou Taifu stared at this man who had shed his facade. No, he wasn't young—he looked at least 35 or older.
Just then...
"Hmm?" Jiang Cheng squatted down, observing a corner of the restroom.
Hearing this, the others came over as well.
Following Jiang Cheng's gaze, they noticed some irregular marks on the messy floor.
They were hard to spot if you didn't look closely.
"What is this?" the fat man asked, puzzled.
At the same time, Yu Wen and the others also noticed the strange markings on the floor.
Most of the marks were near Long Tao's body, as if left by some kind of animal.
Yu Wen reached out to touch the marks. They were still fresh, easily distinguishable from the old stains on the floor. "They look like hoof prints."
Yu Wen's experience seemed extensive. After observing for only a few seconds, she concluded, "They're similar to goat or antelope prints."
The fat man's eyes widened as he looked at her and stammered, "You… you can't be saying that a goat ripped off his jaw, can you?"
It seemed too absurd, like something from a Greek myth.
Yu Wen ignored him and followed the trail of the marks, noticing that whatever left them had made a large circle in the restroom.
After pushing open the stall doors one by one, they found a pile of feces in the fourth stall.
It was still fresh.
It must have been left by Long Tao.
"He must have been killed by the ghost just as he was about to leave the restroom after using it," the fat man took a deep breath, stating the obvious.
Even though they had been prepared, the second victim left a heavy atmosphere hanging over the group.
Part of it was due to the eerie deaths of the cheongsam woman and Long Tao.
But more importantly, it was because of the mysterious goat.
(End of the Chapter
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