Translator: CinderTL
"Could it really be those refugees returning to seek revenge on the Feng family?" Pan Du frowned, sensing something amiss with this theory but unable to pinpoint the flaw.
"No," Jiang Cheng shook his head.
"What's wrong?"
Jiang Cheng looked out the window, which remained open, letting in a constant stream of cold wind. "The order is wrong," he said. "Notice the faces of the Feng family members—they're identical to those of the dead refugees in the last car of the train."
His calm tone dispelled the lingering sense of unease. Everyone nodded; he was right. The Ghost that killed the train refugees and the one that killed the Feng family members was the same.
This naturally eliminated the theory that the refugees had become Ghosts and returned to seek revenge on the Feng family.
After a moment of silence, Chen Qiang spoke: "So, it seems the existence of that Abnormality train, Train No. 5, is also the work of this Ghost."
If Train No. 5 was a prison, then the refugee Ghosts aboard were its inmates.
They were doomed to ride that train day after day, forever unable to escape.
It sounded rather pitiful.
Having just arrived in this world with few clues, further discussion proved pointless. The group decided to retire to their rooms to rest.
For safety's sake, they agreed to all sleep on the same floor.
Three teams, all seasoned dungeon veterans, possessed a basic level of vigilance.
They knew that in Nightmares, things that could kill them weren't limited to ghosts, and even their teammates couldn't be fully trusted. No one suggested sleeping together in the main hall.
Instead, they split up, each choosing their own room.
Luo He and Fu Fu naturally headed for a door in the corner. As they were only two, their room was the most secluded.
Watching Luo He and Fu Fu disappear, Zhao Xingguo turned back to Jiang Cheng and the others, lowering his voice, "Stay vigilant tonight. And the Night Watchers..." He paused, "...aren't necessarily reliable either."
"If the Night Watchers aren't reliable, are you?" Jiang Cheng chuckled.
"Brother Jiang, the waters here run much deeper than you imagine," Zhao Xingguo said, his expression turning strange, as if he were debating whether to share something.
After a moment, he finally spoke, his voice so low it was barely audible. "I suspect there's something strange about that gate. The Night Watchers are very interested in it too."
"If we really stumble upon secrets we shouldn't know, do you think they'll let ordinary people like us live?" Zhao Xingguo stared into Jiang Cheng's eyes.
"What, they'd dare kill us to silence us?" Fatty's eyes widened in disbelief. This didn't fit the image of the Night Watcher he had in mind.
Earlier, though he had been abducted by the Night Watcher, he hadn't been tortured. They had only questioned him about Jiang Cheng before releasing him.
Hearing Jiang Cheng's words, Zhao Xingguo said nothing more. He simply clasped his hands in a gesture of respect and led Pan Du and Linghu Yong to another room.
But unnoticed by the others, Lin Wan'er, who had remained silent throughout, suddenly raised her head. Her gaze swept across the backs of the departing trio as if searching for something.
Finally, her eyes settled on Pan Du's back.
The next moment, Pan Du entered the room and turned to close the door.
"Hey, it's just us now," a weak voice called out. From the tone, it was Pi Ruan.
"Doctor, let's sleep together. We can look out for each other," Fatty said naturally, turning to Jiang Cheng.
After a moment's thought, Jiang Cheng scanned the other side of the room. "We'll take these two rooms," he said, pointing with his finger.
Following the direction of his finger, they saw two rooms side by side.
"Six people crammed into one room won't be able to react properly in a sudden supernatural event," Jiang Cheng's gaze swept over the group. "Fatty, you're with me. Boss Lin gets one room, and the rest of you share the other."
Hearing this, Pi Ruan glanced at Huai Yi, then at Chen Qiang. Neither seemed to object, but Pi Ruan timidly raised his hand. "Dr. Jiang, I have an objection."
"Save it for tomorrow," Jiang Cheng said, already at the door. He pulled it open, checked for any immediate danger, and stepped inside first.
Fatty jogged in after him, followed by Lin Wan'er.
As the groups dispersed into their respective rooms, the vast hall fell silent. Soon after, night descended.
Rain began to fall outside, the droplets tapping against the windows with a soft, rhythmic patter. After a while, the sound became almost hypnotic, conducive to sleep.
Jiang Cheng crossed his hands behind his head, gazing calmly at the ceiling. Only the occasional flicker of unease in his eyes betrayed the turmoil within.
The Ghost in this instance was one thing, but the creature that accompanied it was what truly worried Jiang Cheng.
Pi Ruan.
More precisely, a Ghost wearing Pi Ruan's skin.
Based on the boy's description, Jiang Cheng suspected the Rotten-Faced Ghost had peeled off Pi Ruan's skin and donned it as its own.
Pi Ruan was dead, and crying for revenge now was pointless. What truly puzzled Jiang Cheng was the Rotten-Faced Ghost's motive.
This act was clearly premeditated, but it remained unclear whether the target was the instance itself or someone in their group.
Lost in thought, Jiang Cheng unconsciously turned his head. His gaze fell upon a sleeping, delicate face.
Lin Wan'er lay beside him, not on the bed, but on a thick layer of blankets he had spread on the floor.
Perhaps influenced by Jiang Cheng, Fatty had also abandoned his habit of sleeping in a bed when dealing with supernatural events. His large frame was now curled up on a small sofa, which must have been quite uncomfortable.
But discomfort was better than losing his life.
Jiang Cheng's thoughts gradually drifted away, and a flood of meaningless images began to surge through his mind, as if a lock hidden deep within his memory had suddenly been unlocked.
This happened to him almost every month, but this time it was particularly intense. The images gradually sharpened, and he saw the bodies sprawled on the ground before him.
The corpses lay scattered in disarray. He couldn't make out their faces clearly, yet he felt an inexplicable familiarity with them.
It was a bone-deep familiarity, like recognizing the most familiar person even after years apart. Even if you only caught a fleeting glimpse of their back in a strange place, you'd recognize them instantly.
In the distance, struggles and sounds of battle echoed through the air, punctuated by muffled groans of pain, as if someone had suffered a grievous injury.
But when he strained his eyes to see, he could make out nothing. A thick fog had rolled in, obscuring his vision, limiting his view to just a few meters.
Heavy footsteps approached, and Jiang Cheng immediately tensed. But when the figure emerged from the mist, he froze in shock. It was Fatty.
Yet Fatty was no longer the timid, subservient man Jiang Cheng had known. His plump face was etched with grim determination, and his entire body was soaked in blood, as if he had just emerged from a fierce battle.
Spotting Jiang Cheng, Fatty's bloodshot eyes blazed with an astonishing light. "Zero!" he roared. "Get out of here! We've been ambushed! This wasn't a mission at all—their target was..."
In the next instant, a hand plunged through Fatty's chest. Crimson droplets of blood trickled down the wrist and dripped from the slender fingertips.
"You..."
Fatty managed only one final word before the hand slowly withdrew. The light in his eyes faded rapidly, and his massive frame crashed to the ground, revealing a slender figure behind him.
The figure, hidden in the mist, was clearly a woman with an exquisite physique.
(End of the Chapter)
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