When they got back on the driverless bus, only then did Ning Qiushui and Liu Chengfeng finally breathe a true sigh of relief.
“We… we made it out alive, right?”
Panting heavily, Liu Chengfeng, with his scruffy beard, stared through the bus window at the terrifying, slender woman in red disappearing into the villa. Only then did he realize that his legs had gone weak like jelly.
“Yes,” Ning Qiushui replied.
Then neither of them said another word.
Five days had passed. Of the seven people originally on the bus, only two remained.
Liu Chengfeng felt a strange emptiness in his heart.
He hadn’t been particularly close with the others, but seeing them die so tragically before his eyes—it was hard not to feel a pang of sorrow, a kind of shared grief, like a rabbit mourning the death of another rabbit.
Because he, too, had been that close to death.
If it hadn’t been for Ning Qiushui, his fate likely would’ve been the same as the others.
Not long after they boarded, the bus doors closed and it slowly began to move.
Soon, they were once again passing through the thick mist beyond the veil of rain.
Drowsiness overcame them, and the two fell asleep right there on the bus.
When they woke again, it was already the next morning.
Ning Qiushui stretched his stiff body and looked out the window.
To his surprise, they were already back outside the black villa courtyard.
“Hey, Beard, wake up.”
Ning Qiushui nudged Liu Chengfeng. The latter jolted upright and yelled:
“Ghost! A ghost is coming!”
“Run!”
Ning Qiushui stared at him, speechless. This guy really had it rough—not only was he hunted by ghosts during the mission, he was also “working overtime” in his nightmares.
Once he realized the person next to him was Ning Qiushui, Liu Chengfeng wiped the sweat from his face and said, still panting:
“Damn, you scared the hell out of me!”
Ning Qiushui pointed at the black courtyard outside and said:
“Let’s go. We’re here.”
The two got off the bus one after the other and entered the black villa.
Back in the hall, they saw that only one person remained.
It was the unusually beautiful youth.
He looked like a porcelain doll, his skin pale with a rosy hue, his body small and delicate. If he didn’t speak, no one would’ve thought he was actually a boy.
“Why are you the only one left?”
Liu Chengfeng frowned.
Seeing the two return alive from behind the Blood Gate, the boy’s attitude was noticeably warmer than before.
“Uncle Yan had something to deal with—he returned to the world from before. Sister Xiaoxiao went to guide some newcomers through the Blood Gate. And another person is in the kitchen, cooking.”
Ning Qiushui’s eyes flickered slightly.
“We can… go back to the previous world?”
The boy poked at the coals in the fireplace.
“Why not?”
“If we could come here by bus, we can naturally go back the same way.”
He sighed deeply as he spoke and ran a hand through his long hair.
“I hate this part the most. Every time newcomers arrive, I have to explain so many things that my throat goes dry… What’s worse is, sometimes I just explained the rules to someone today, and by next week, they’re already dead.”
“But at least you guys made it out of the Blood Gate alive. If you’ve got questions, ask now.”
The two looked at each other. After a moment of thought, Ning Qiushui asked:
“What exactly are the Blood Gate and the mist?”
The boy replied:
“A curse.”
“We’re all cursed. The mist is a separate world, disconnected from the outside world. You can only enter or leave it by riding the bus within the mist world.”
“The villa courtyard we’re in is called a Haunted House. There are many Haunted Houses like ours within this mist world. Likewise, there are many Blood Gates.”
“Every so often, we have to go into the terrifying world behind the Blood Gate to complete the task written on it. While doing everything we can to survive, we also need to collect puzzle fragments.”
“Once we’ve collected 12 puzzle pieces, we can bring the completed puzzle and take the bus to the final destination of the mist world.”
As he spoke, the boy pointed to a picture frame hanging on the wall of the main hall.
The two looked over and saw that the frame was already half-completed.
The image appeared to be a decaying human head.
On the forehead, there was a blood-dripping hole resembling an eye, making the whole thing look extremely gruesome!
“What’s at the final destination of the mist world?”
Ning Qiushui asked. The boy shrugged.
“That, I don’t know.”
“None of us have ever been there.”
“Also, don’t blame us for seeming cold before… You should understand by now—in this world, death is a common thing. If you really make a close friend, and they die behind the Blood Gate, it’ll hurt… a lot.”
As the boy said this, his expression turned somber.
“Did something happen in the Haunted House before…?”
Ning Qiushui seemed to realize something, but before he finished asking, the boy nodded.
“About half a month before you arrived, Uncle Yan’s best friend—Uncle Mang—died behind the Blood Gate.”
“And Sister Xiaoxiao’s best friend, Zhi Zi… followed him in death.”
“So yeah, everyone’s been in a rough state lately.”
The two recalled the heavy atmosphere when they first arrived at the Haunted House. Now, it all made sense.
“Alright, time to eat soon. After the meal, if you don’t want to stay here, you can wait at the bus stop outside the villa.”
“A week from now, when it’s your turn to go through the Blood Gate for your second task, the bus will come pick you up in advance…”
At the dining table, the four of them sat in silence, heads down, eating quickly.
“Honestly, your cooking’s really not that great…”
Liu Chengfeng couldn’t help but complain after a few bites.
Meng Jun, who had done the cooking, looked up and shot Liu Chengfeng a cold glare.
“If you don’t like it, you can throw it away—or cook it yourself.”
Liu Chengfeng was usually a carefree guy with a bit of a temper. He was about to snap back, but the moment his eyes met Meng Jun’s, he instinctively shrank back.
Meng Jun’s gaze was terrifying.
In that instant, Liu Chengfeng felt as if a blade was pressed against his neck.
He was almost certain—this man, Meng Jun… had killed someone before.
Still, Liu Chengfeng wasn’t one to suffer in silence. He straightened his neck and declared:
“Fine! I’ll cook it myself!”
“And let me make this clear—starting today, I, Liu Chengfeng, am the head chef here. As long as I’m around, none of you are allowed in the kitchen. Whatever you want to eat, I’ll make it for you!”
He said the most submissive thing in the most aggressive tone.
Ning Qiushui couldn’t help but chuckle.
During the meal, he learned that there were only four veterans left in this Haunted House. Liang Yan was the leader—also the first person to enter the Haunted House.
The boy was named Tian Xun, an orphan who had survived alongside his younger sister.
Meng Jun was Liang Yan’s close friend from the outside world. He was a former soldier who had seen real battle on the border.
The only bewitching beauty, Bai Xiaoxiao, was shrouded in mystery. No one knew her exact background—just that she was… quite formidable in the outside world.
At some point, Ning Qiushui brought up the red-clothed ghost woman from their first Blood Gate.
To his surprise, both Meng Jun and Tian Xun fell completely silent after hearing it.
“Wait… why aren’t you guys saying anything?”
Unable to bear the awkward silence, Liu Chengfeng finally blurted out.
As soon as he spoke, Meng Jun picked up his tray and started heading toward the kitchen.
“I’m full,” he said flatly.
But the two newcomers could clearly sense a shift in Meng Jun’s attitude.
A sudden change.
Like spring warmth that had just returned—instantly giving way to a bitter winter chill.
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