Chapter 97: Humans and Ghosts Ride Together

The passengers on the bus discussed for an hour.

Only when everyone felt exhausted did silence finally fall; no one knew when the next disaster would strike, so they seized the chance to rest—the interior held only faint breathing.

The only one who seemed pitiful was the driver, Old Zhao.

He had to keep driving, so he had no time to rest at all.

Time crept closer to eleven at night; some slept soundly, others lay with eyes closed, unable to sleep.

Suddenly—screech!

The bus slammed on its brakes, and everyone’s bodies lurched forward.

Wu Xian stood up and saw through the front windshield: another bus, identical to theirs, lay diagonally across the road, blocking their path.

Like the black-dressed woman ahead, who had flat breasts just like Du E.

“Let me propose something— the bus ahead can’t move, and this mountain road has no village ahead or behind. Leaving them here means death.”

A beautiful, flat-chested woman in a black dress sat to Wu Xian’s left front, sharing the seat with the black-clad girl Du E; another handsome man with long hair, dressed fashionably, boarded the bus, glanced around, then chose to sit beside Wu Xian.

That was Sha Xiwen’s voice.

Under these circumstances, only someone who wanted to die would still be stubborn.

Beside every original Fuli Academy participant now sat a new passenger—including on Old Zhao’s side, where a middle-aged man sat on the floor.

Outside, visibility was poor; all they could make out were shadowy figures gathering around. Some timid souls clutched their heads and broke into sobs.

Wu Xian’s lips twitched; his vigilance flared again.

When those people boarded, he had already confirmed they were ghosts.

The black-dressed woman to Wu Xian’s left front brushed her hair aside, sending a waft of fragrance through the air.

Another half-hour passed; it was now eleven-thirty at night.

Suddenly, Old Zhao’s expression twisted, his face turning dark as a pig’s liver.

Moments later, He Gai’s questioning voice also cut off abruptly.

And the man sitting beside Wu Xian had a face as handsome as Wu Xian’s own.

But Wu Xian didn’t blame Old Zhao—people shouldn’t be so hypocritical; since no one had been willing to go out with Old Zhao to face danger, they couldn’t complain when he brought the danger back inside.

Old Zhao spoke to everyone from the front of the bus.

As the long-haired man spoke, his finger brushed his nose—and the nose, along with a large patch of flesh, fell away, revealing an empty nasal cavity.

He’d heard every word they’d said; he wasn’t stupid. How could he possibly get off the bus under these conditions?

But the people outside kept pounding on the doors, the noise growing louder, making everyone inside anxious and terrified.

Wu Xian sighed softly.

After boarding, they scanned the bus, then each chose a seat and sat down.

Then he turned to Wu Xian and raised a finger.

…

Suddenly, a scream rang out inside the bus.

“Driver, our bus broke down—could you please get out and help us check?”

Old Zhao turned back and asked: “Will you come down with me to take a look?”

Then Old Zhao safely returned to the bus.

Wu Xian glanced at the man and secretly gripped the safety hammer.

The bus fell into an eerie stalemate.

Driver Old Zhao’s face froze.

And although Old Zhao had been cursed mercilessly, everyone still listened to his words.

Soon everyone rearranged their seats—even He Gai and Sha Xiwen, the couple who had been hugging, were forced apart into front and back rows, their hands clasped through the gap between seat and window.

This spot was a cliff edge; there was no way to detour around the blocked bus.

At that very moment.

The bus started moving again; the scenery outside receded, and the other bus vanished from view.

Thud. Thud.

Then a woman in a flowered dress urged: “We finally met someone—go out and check! Maybe they’re just ordinary people like us, dragged into the Fuli Academy. More people means easier solutions…”

The bus erupted into chaos again.

He, too, was a dead man!

Wu Xian’s face froze.

No wonder no one dared accompany Old Zhao—under these conditions, everyone could only think of themselves.

But he wasn’t surprised by what was happening.

Yet from his drenched sweat and unsteady steps, it was clear this negotiation hadn’t been easy.

Old Zhao had no other choice; his body shook like a sieve as he stepped out the door.

For an instant, he felt a terrifying sensation of weightlessness—no matter how many times he’d seen it, he still couldn’t fully adapt to such scenes.

Old Zhao’s expression looked like the sole of a shoe.

Among them were elders, couples, laborers, students—they looked like ordinary people, no different from the original twenty-two on the bus.

Ahead, headlights shone clearly; he could see that some outside, driven mad by the bus’s indifference, had raised a pistol, demanding Old Zhao get out—or they’d shoot.

When she brushed her hair aside, Wu Xian saw a mass of blood and gore—her occiput had a gaping hole, through which he could plainly see shattered skull fragments and a damaged brain.

“Shh, keep it secret—don’t embarrass the lady.”

More chilling still: certain features of these newcomers matched those of the people sitting beside them!

Behind her, He Gai anxiously asked what had happened, but Sha Xiwen only covered her mouth and wept, revealing nothing useful—making He Gai even more agitated.

The black-dressed woman was dead!

The handsome man beside Wu Xian gently tidied the black-dressed woman’s hair, covering the exposed brain.

Screams erupted one after another inside the cabin; Wei Dian laughed uncontrollably—the atmosphere was oppressive and bizarre.

Old Zhao swallowed hard.

The woman in the flowered dress again accused Old Zhao of bringing trouble aboard, and several others nodded in agreement.

Thus, this was no coincidence—it was deliberate. These twenty-two people were all demons and spirits; all of them had been targeted by a single malevolent entity!

“So please rearrange your seats—vacate the side seats. We’ll only carry them a short distance, then drop them off at the next populated area.”

“Ah!”

The Fuli Academy members needed no explanation—they knew the danger. Under these conditions, anyone who got off alone was asking for death, and the ordinary people were already terrified; they’d never follow Old Zhao out.

During this half-hour, the passengers from the other bus behaved perfectly normally—they simply sat quietly, showing nothing unusual.

“Then… I won’t get out either.”

The woman fell silent.

The driver’s side door was knocked on.

Everyone inside the bus watched the outside tenselessly, but they could only see Old Zhao negotiating with the figures outside—they couldn’t hear what he was saying.

Moments later, the people outside collectively pushed aside the blocked bus, clearing the road.

After the seat rearrangement, the group from the other bus entered one by one.

The others fell silent.

The number of those who boarded first was exactly twenty-two!

Midnight.

The bus.

Humans and ghosts ride together!

(End of Chapter)