Chapter 19
The mountain winds howled, rain pounded the ground, and lightning lit up the dark sky.
'Deng Lan' had vanished, and the cold feeling that had gripped Ye Nianchu also disappeared.
After a brief moment of silence, the chaos began. It was as if hell had erupted. Hysterical screams filled the air, and the rain dripping from the eaves took on a strange, red hue.
Not everyone stayed calm. As fear intensified, the spirits hiding in the darkness began to consume people. The more you fear something, the more real it seems. Ye Nianchu had heard footsteps in the hallway earlier. Her fear that the dark shadow from the photo on her phone might come to life had likely made 'Deng Lan' appear.
Through the glass door, she could hear voices from the third floor:
“Don’t come over, don’t come over! Brother Wang, help—”
The last word was cut off suddenly, leaving a haunting silence.
Earlier, when Ye Nianchu was in her room, all the outside noises had been blocked out. Now that the disturbances had stopped, she could hear the real sounds of panic and despair that filled the stormy night.
By the river, where only Deng Lan’s body had been seen the day before, there was now a row of bodies, each in different states of death. But they all had one thing in common: their faces were all skinned off.
On a thick tree by the road, five or six bodies hung in a dried-out state, their faces blurred and unrecognizable. When the wind blew, they swayed like macabre wind chimes.
Anyone who saw this early in the morning fled home, crawling and unable to speak. Over a dozen people had died overnight, both tourists and locals.
The once peaceful paradise now felt like a ghost town. Every house had its doors tightly shut, with white lanterns hung in front. The town's residents finally realized the gravity of the situation: staying here felt like waiting for death.
Yesterday, only one person had died; today, more than a dozen had fallen. With this rising number, fear was palpable. How many more would die tomorrow? Would death come for them?
The fear in the town overshadowed the sadness. More and more people, carrying umbrellas and bags, gathered at the town entrance. The psychological strain had reached a breaking point.
Everyone wanted to leave, but no one could.
Ye Nianchu tiredly rubbed her eyes and looked through the glass door at the distant mountains. After listening to the sounds above, she finally opened the door.
Coincidentally, the teenager from the next room also came out. Unlike Ye Nianchu, he seemed well-rested and in good spirits.
Last night, the second floor had seemed calm. Ye Nianchu wondered if she was being specifically targeted by the BOSS.
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