"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
The sound was getting closer, from afar to the courtyard gate, and then from the gate into the yard. The noise was deep and muffled, like... like a zombie jumping.
Moreover, it headed straight for the room he was in.
Logically, the sound of jumping in the dead of night should be jarring enough to wake everyone, but let alone the other two rooms, even Yang Xiao and Nalan Shuo in the next room, separated by just a wall, showed no signs of waking.
His pupils slowly contracted, the uneasiness in his heart was validated; it was indeed coming for him. However, Xiang Fengchen didn’t understand what he might have done wrong.
But there was no ti to worry about these things. If he wanted to survive tonight, he would largely need to seek help. Far-off water won’t quench imdiate thirst, so he could not count on Chang Chuchu and the others; his only resources were Yang Xiao and Nalan Shuo.
At worst, he would use their lives in exchange for his own. There was nothing to hesitate about. Even if others found out, they wouldn’t say anything. After all, he was the most important person in this team and the only one who could wield the Divine Turtle Shell. With no exaggeration, without him, the probability of the team being wiped out would at least double.
As the thumping noise approached the door, Xiang Fengchen hurriedly walked towards the bedroom, "Stop sleeping, get up quick, trouble is..."
Before he could finish speaking, just as he was about to rush into the bedroom, Xiang Fengchen "thudded" into a wall. The impact made his head spin, and imdiately a warm liquid began to trickle down his forehead. He touched it with his hand, and it was all blood.
Blood flowed into his eyes, casting a blood-red tint on everything he saw. Xiang Fengchen was terrified, as he lifted his hand to feel a transparent barrier, like a wall separating him from the bedroom.
"Get up! Wake up fast!" Xiang Fengchen banged on the transparent barrier, shouting into the room, but to no avail. Yang Xiao and Nalan Shuo were as if dead to the world.
At the sa ti, Xiang Fengchen noticed sothing. He withdrew his gaze and stared at his fingertips, slowly sliding his finger down, feeling the texture and pattern of the barrier.
Suddenly, he realized, and it beca clear in his mind, the barrier was smooth with fine irregularities, made from a very expensive type of wood. He had only seen such wood in the Ancestor’s Sleeping Gold Pavilion.
With no ti to tend to the wound on his forehead, Xiang Fengchen’s heartbeat pounded like a drum. The crisis tonight was more severe than he had imagined because he was almost certain that tonight’s visitor was nothing else but the Ancestor’s ghost about to turn malignant!
The thing in the courtyard had already arrived outside the door, a candle burning on the table. The fla, as though sensing sothing, moved spontaneously without wind. First, it shrunk small as if to go out the next second, but then the fla suddenly soared, only to turn a ghastly green.
A gaunt shadow appeared on the door, taller than Xiang Fengchen. The silhouette swayed with the candlelight, ghost-like.
Xiang Fengchen retreated quietly, trying not to make noise. The shadow was too abnormal; even though the light was inside, the shadow was cast from the outside onto the door.
It was coming for him, no doubt about that. Sothing must have happened here that he was unaware of, either an unexpected turn in his own actions, or... perhaps soone was sabotaging him!
Xiang Fengchen drew a deep breath, calming himself down. Even if it was a desperate situation, even if he was fighting alone, with his own skills, there was a chance to carve out a path to survival.
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
The shadow started to jump in place, each thump as if stomping on Xiang Fengchen’s heart, leaving him breathless. More bizarre was the shadow’s descent and the "thuds" that were not in sync, as though there was a ti difference.
As the shadow began to leap, countless gray mists crazily infiltrated the room through the door gaps, window cracks, and the crevices between the roof tiles, quickly enveloping the door. Xiang Fengchen watched helplessly as the shadow was obscured by the mist.
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
With the last landing, Xiang Fengchen’s last sliver of hope was completely shattered. He heard clearly that this last sound was clearer than any before.
The creature... had entered.
...
Yang Xiao slept soundly. To be honest, this was his deepest sleep since entering the Nightmare World, especially since Xiang Fengchen was keeping watch, and they had just flawlessly completed tonight’s task.
The only downside was the dream he had, in which he was at his wedding banquet with many friends. He was plied with drinks and vaguely ushered into the bridal chamber. At this mont, he could hardly stand steady. The marriage bed was of an old-fashioned kind, adorned with jubilant red curtains, behind which sat a graceful figure.
Yang Xiao stumbled forward with unfamiliar steps, chuckling as he lifted the curtain, eager to unveil the bride. The next second, he was struck as if by lightning. Not only did the liquor wash away, but his soul nearly flew out of his body—it was the Ancestor!
Upon seeing the face of the Ancestor, Yang Xiao woke up in fright. Only then did he realize he was curled up under the covers, drenched in cold sweat.
"Hu—"
"Good thing it was just a dream."
Feeling suddenly much safer behind the barrier of the covers, and as ghosts cannot harm anyone shielded by a blanket on pain of extre punishnt, miscellaneous thoughts started rushing through his mind after the shock of that dream.
User Comments
0 comments from readers