Chapter 69: Exploring the Secrets of the Ghost Building (4)

Luo Qi sat on the ground, shivering. Chaotic and foul Yajian kept closing in on him, causing him unbearable pain; he was almost driven to a dead end. Within his own Yajian, he vaguely heard ghost-like wails echoing around the room, constantly emitting loud noises he could not distinguish, each one stimulating his nerves. He traveled back and forth between reality and the world after his thoughts had materialized, the boundary between reality and his inner world becoming increasingly blurred.

He wanted to start running, but from the moment he could no longer distinguish between reality and his inner world, he could no longer distinguish the direction to run. He curled up inside his inner world, curled up at the Anchor Point he had unintentionally condensed earlier, but a black storm began to blow within his Yajian. Ink-like wind and rain raged, and he began to feel hatred amidst his fear.

Chen Hao carefully pried at the door lock bit by bit, when his eyes blurred and he saw a bloody gash appear on his hand. He shuddered in fright, but when he looked again, his hand was still intact. He couldn't help but hold his breath, feeling a bit hesitant about the work on his hands. Only then did he suddenly realize that he couldn't quite see the keyhole. Although he had originally relied on feel rather than his eyes to complete the lock-picking, he suddenly remembered that it was a sunny noon, at most one o'clock in the afternoon, and the corridor should have been very bright.

He turned his head to look out the window and was surprised to see that, at some point, the sky had turned overcast. The sun was hiding behind the clouds, and the wind had picked up, howling as it blew through the holes in the window. The gale not only brought dark clouds but also the sandstorms common in the northern spring; in an instant, the outside world turned into Chaos, as if a thick fog had descended.

Chen Hao was a bit afraid. One of his shoulders was pressed against the wall; just now, Guanzi had stood behind him so as not to block his light. Now, if he wanted to see Guanzi, he would have to let go of his work and lose all his progress. He was reluctant to let go and called out to Guanzi, "Are you dead? Look at how dark the corridor has become. Don't you know how to use the flashlight on your phone to help me?"

There was no movement behind him. A chill swept across Chen Hao's spine. "Guanzi!"

"Huh? Huh?" Guanzi reacted belatedly, at least still there. "What did you say?"

"Phone! Light it up!" Chen Hao shouted impatiently. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing." Guanzi shifted behind him and moved to his front. He still wanted to scold him, but at a glance, he saw Guanzi's face was ashen, no longer its usual self.

"What's wrong?" Chen Hao asked, but just at this moment, the feeling in his hands changed, as if he had hooked the right position. Yet, he felt no joy at unlocking it; instead, his heart suddenly sank.

"Boss," Guanzi said, pressing his lips together, "help me look back and see if there is someone in the stairwell."

Chen Hao's hands loosened, and the door lock made a slight *click*, unexpectedly popping the mechanism open at this moment. Chen Hao was terrified that the door would open right then, so he subconsciously pulled it shut tightly and turned his head back toward the stairs, his hair standing on end. "There's no one..."

"Shh," Guanzi suddenly lowered his voice to shush him, "look down."

Chen Hao's gaze involuntarily lowered. At the height of an adult's thigh, behind the wall pier at the stairwell, two children's heads poked out, one on each side, their pitch-black eyes staring at them. He was so scared that he stood up abruptly, his hands still gripping the doorknob tightly. Only then did he realize that he might have opened a door that should never have been opened.

There was no need for him to say anything more; Guanzi already understood clearly from his reaction. Guanzi swallowed, a heavy sound echoing in his throat.

"Are they human?" Guanzi said with difficulty.

Chen Hao suddenly reacted, "Guanzi, check the phone."

Guanzi was stiff; he was a person who couldn't live without his phone, and the phone was clutched in his hand.

"Check the phone, check if the phone is broken and you'll know." Chen Hao said, his hands still gripping the door, not daring to let go; his Yajian vaguely knew that he must never take his hands away, must never open this door.

Guanzi finally came to his senses and picked up the phone to press it.

The phone screen remained black.

He refused to give up, thinking perhaps the phone's main button was broken. He pressed it several times with his sweat-dampened hands, but there was no response. He pressed the lock screen button and even the volume buttons. Yet, the phone screen remained pitch black, without any response, and no signs of damage could be seen, just like... just like those high school seniors trapped in the Ghost Building.

"It's broken." He said in a guttural voice, staring fixedly at the stairwell.

Chen Hao was already terrified. Just then, a strong wind blew in from the broken window, violently blowing open the door in his hands, as if an evil ghost had pulled open the gates of hell for him.

Chen Hao stood blankly at the doorway. A person stood inside the door, with their back to the light. Before Chen Hao could see the person's appearance clearly, Guanzi let out a scream and turned to run. Guanzi ran toward the other end of the corridor, where there was another stairwell, but Chen Hao held no hope.

He took a deep breath, unable to even scream. A woman stood at the doorway, her long hair fluttering in the wind. Her face wore a cloying, ingratiating smile, but her eyes were tightly shut, with two steel nails driven deep into them.

Chen Hao took a step back, just one step, when someone tugged at his baggy pants. Under immense fear, he looked down sluggishly. Two small children were pulling at his pants, one on each side. The expressions on their faces were identical, as if they were wearing two masks. Only then did he realize that these were two dolls, not people.

A scream from Guanzi came from the end of the corridor in the distance, followed by the sound of a fall, and he knew it was over.

"Guanzi." Chen Hao called out in a low voice. No one answered him; even Guanzi was gone. He was the only one left here.

"Brother," one of the dolls looked up with a dull face beside his knee and said in the most innocent voice, "stay and play with me."

Chen Hao screamed in horror, finally able to make a sound, but the voice seemed to be driven by another Yajian, the fear screaming out from his throat and gripping his Yajian tightly in his mind.

"No, no, no, no, no, no—" he let out a series of screams, "I won't stay, no—"

He struggled to break free from the little ghosts; he knew he couldn't leave this building, he knew he couldn't leave.

He turned his head; the broken window looked like a gaping hole. He struggled frantically, ran to the window, and jumped onto the sill. The world of the living outside was calling to him; as long as he leaped out from here, he could return to the world of the living.

Chen Hao's hands let go, and he leaped down like a large bird, flying toward his own world.

Unfortunately, he only flew halfway when a huge force pulled him from behind. He struggled desperately and looked back, seeing a human face in the brilliant sunlight; the one pulling him was a person.

That person's expression was very anxious and terrified. He shouted, "Luo Qi, Luo Qi! Stop! Luo Qi, stop!"

His name was Chen Hao, not Luo Qi; this was his last thought, and then he lost consciousness.