Chapter 30: Clapping Game

Wu Xian had been living in fear for a long time; after extending his hand inside, he pulled it back several times quickly.

But the thing he feared never happened—the integrated stove had no traps, and the statue could be moved easily; Wu Xian dragged it out without effort, a smile spreading across his face.

Plop!

Wu Xian’s smile froze.

“Damn it!”

Things were not as simple as they seemed—something else had come out along with the statue!

It was a warm, sticky mass, one end tied with a thin rope to the statue; when the statue was pulled out, this thing was dragged from deep within the stove and landed with a wet slap on the floor.

“Have you ever heard this prayer?”

The method to summon the Child-Seeking Ghost Mother was already known to everyone.

“Praise the Ghost Mother, offer me flesh and bone, cover my eyes to save my life, clap to honor the Master!”

Secondly, the Ghost Mother claps continuously while waiting; in every round of the game, she must appear at least once.

“How can you guarantee that after we summon the Ghost Mother, we won’t be killed by your Ghost Mother?”

He suddenly understood Yue Mei’s meaning—just as predators have territories, other predators usually retreat before a stronger one.

It seemed the male corpse’s mode of movement was crawling on hands and feet, dragging its torso along the ground.

Although he had memorized the game rules thoroughly.

On the first night, she encountered immense terror.

So Wu Xian found a box in the room, placed the statue of the Lord of Fortune and Karma along with the incense burner and candles inside, and dragged the box quickly out of the room.

Hearing this familiar prayer, Wu Xian’s pupils dilated.

This shape…

Within one minute, a second person must clap; the first person, while blindfolded, must find the second person within ten minutes, after which the second person becomes the seeker…

No wonder the male corpse hung in such an obvious place—it was a trap! Anyone who tried to worship using the statue in this room would immediately release the male corpse and draw the attention of the male corpse spirit!

Players are divided into seekers and the sought.

The remaining six people formed pairs, each pair staying in a different room.

Yue Mei assumed the clapping posture, her expression devout.

After dinner.

After stepping outside, Wu Xian examined carefully.

The way to prevent the Broken Door Great Curse from attacking at night is to lure a stronger curse here!

But a stronger curse is even more deadly to them.

“It’s simple—everyone plays a game with the Ghost Mother!”

But on the second night, she found in the terror a rare sense of safety since entering the Blessed Land—a feeling that made her happier than ever before.

Yesterday had been too rushed, so everyone had just made do; today, seeing the steaming dishes, they forgot their disgust and devoured their food greedily.

Su Huilan asked Yue Mei: “You were hiding things this morning—it’s time to speak plainly. How do you plan to solve this?”

It was that male corpse with its abdominal cavity hollowed out!

“Shit!”

Besides, tonight’s situation was different from before—he had to return early to discuss a plan with Yue Mei for surviving the night.

The sun sank below the horizon.

He discovered a clear human-shaped imprint on the floor—left by the male corpse when it fell—and footprints, handprints, and drag marks leading into the shadows.

All survivors gathered in the first-floor lobby of Ping’an Hostel.

The city was dark, with only a few billboards still glowing; the atmosphere was eerie and terrifying, and occasionally, twisted shadows flashed by.

Throughout the entire game, no one may open their eyes, and everyone must remain relatively quiet, making no loud noises except clapping.

When the seeker changes, the information reaches the ears of everyone nearby.

If the game proceeds smoothly, the Child-Seeking Ghost Mother is merely an ordinary player within the game, and no curses will appear at all.

Though his vision was blocked, Wu Xian knew exactly what had fallen.

“I only hope this thing finds me either early or late—please, don’t interfere with tonight’s plan…”

The group fell silent for a while; Wu Xian voiced the question everyone wanted to ask.

Upon closer inspection, the mass consisted of heart, liver, stomach, lungs, intestines, and brain—internal organs—and the mixture stained the floor red and yellow.

The sun outside had already dipped low; if he wasted too much time outside, he would face the strange monsters without shelter.

The game rules were simple.

Wu Xian angrily tugged at his curly hair—he realized he’d been tricked again.

But being blindfolded still filled him with dread, especially since the door was open, ready to let any curse in at any moment.

Only the doors of rooms 404, 401, and 403 were open.

First, timing must be exact.

She was a kind-hearted girl.

Such good fortune must be shared with everyone.

The dishes had changed from intestine rice to stuffed pig stomach rice—this group’s cooking never strayed from offal and innards.

“Do you know the Child-Seeking Ghost Mother!”

To survive the game, certain iron rules must never be broken.

“Do not be disrespectful—show reverence to the Ghost Mother!”

Not like those of beasts or livestock—these were human!

Before Wu Xian could understand what had happened, a piercing scream rang out outside—filled with agony and a strange sense of relief.

Fourth floor of Ping’an Hostel.

This cycle repeats—that is the basic rule of the game.

But to avoid harm after summoning the Ghost Mother, there is only one way: play the “Clapping Game!”

Wu Xian and Shi Ji, eyes closed, stood on opposite sides of room 403—this was their prearranged position.

But he had no time to deal with the hidden danger.

The sudden change cast a shadow of unease over Wu Xian’s heart.

Rustle!

Amid the clinking of chains, a shift of light and shadow appeared behind the billboard, and something fell from it with a dull thud.

The sky was not yet dark.

Yue Mei scolded sharply; when she spoke of the Ghost Mother, her eyes glowed with strange light—yesterday, she had been forced to seek a path to survival among the natives.

…

The first seeker is the Ghost Mother; she targets the first person who claps. Once found, that person replaces the Ghost Mother as the new seeker, while the Ghost Mother remains in place.

So she returned to Ping’an Hostel and spread the Gospel of the Ghost Mother to other outsiders like herself.

But there was no choice—this game had to be played.

Today, Shi Ji was still in charge of cooking.

…

Just clap.

Yue Mei described the appearance of the Child-Seeking Ghost Mother; everyone instantly understood—it was the first curse ever described by Wen Chao!

Shi Ji asked doubtfully: “Can this curse help us avoid the Broken Door Great Curse?”

But if anyone breaks the rules,

the Child-Seeking Ghost Mother will become a terrible nightmare, exacting the price of death from the violator…

(End of Chapter)