Safe House
Translator: CinderTL
Huai Yi gasped, thinking, Cao Yang usually seems so sharp. Why is he falling apart at a critical moment? Has the Ghost scared him silly?
"Go find her," Jiang Cheng said, turning to walk in the direction Lin Wan'er had disappeared.
"Wait," Cao Yang said. "Director Qi is still here."
As soon as the words left his mouth, a trembling figure emerged from the room. "Don't... don't leave me behind! I can give you money, lots and lots of money!"
It could only be Director Qi, but his condition was terrible. His eyes were bloodshot, and his body was covered in bruises and rope marks.
Huai Yi thought, Jiang Cheng is really serious about Miss Lin. Otherwise, with his usual alertness, he would never have forgotten about Director Qi.
On the way, Cao Yang explained what had happened after the Ghost went after Lin Wan'er. He and Yu Yu had hidden the disoriented Director Qi nearby.
They hadn't gone far, just stayed hidden in the vicinity.
After waiting for a while with no sign of movement outside, Yu Yu suggested they go look for help. Cao Yang, however, argued for staying put and waiting for rescue.
After all, relying solely on their two strengths, burdened by Director Qi, made survival incredibly difficult.
If Jiang Cheng and Huai Yi hadn't died, they would surely have come looking for him.
This led to a heated argument. In the end, Yu Yu decided to go out alone to seek help. "But Keke hadn't gone far when she encountered the Multi-headed Ghoul and was dragged away," Cao Yang said, his face etched with sorrow.
Their bond couldn't have been that deep; it was more like the sympathy of a fox for a dying rabbit.
Before a fierce ghost, all are equal.
Those with a Gate to rely on might still struggle, but ordinary people have little chance of survival if they make a single misjudgment.
Jiang Cheng wasn't interested in how Yu Yu had died; the person was already gone. He only cared about confirming Lin Wan'er's safety.
If anything had happened to Lin Wan'er, he'd tear the Multi-headed Ghoul's heads off one by one, even if it meant Wu had to crawl out of his body to do it.
He believed Wu was capable of this, as long as the conditions were right.
"We can't wander around recklessly, Brother Shen Jiang," Huai Yi immediately corrected himself.
Jiang Cheng's mental state was off. Huai Yi worried he might cause trouble, especially since a wandering Multi-headed ghoul was also in the hospital.
Huai Yi held no hope for Lin Wan'er, but he dared not shatter Jiang Cheng's last shred of hope. He had witnessed firsthand how terrifying a Disciple of the Door could become when driven to despair.
If the thing inside Jiang Cheng were to escape... Huai Yi glanced at Jiang Cheng's seemingly docile Shadow, swallowed hard, and thought, Everyone here would die.
"Go to Room 906," Jiang Cheng said coldly.
Hearing Jiang Cheng's decisive tone, Huai Yi finally breathed a sigh of relief. If any room in the hospital was special, Room 906 certainly qualified. It was where the Mad Nurse, one of the original survivors, resided.
Thinking of this, Huai Yi wanted to slap Director Qi across the face. If the director hadn't been unable to control his urges, they wouldn't be in this mess.
They moved with light steps, hearing no sound along the way. It was as if Lin Wan'er and the Multi-headed ghoul had vanished.
This wasn't a good sign.
As they reached the ninth floor and turned the corner into the corridor outside Room 906, they found the door to the ward open.
From a distance, they could see a light still on inside.
"This isn't a trap, is it?" Director Qi was already terrified out of his wits, so no one paid him any attention. He was just glad he could still breathe.
"Doesn't seem like it," Cao Yang said, staring at the ward. "If it were a trap, it would be too obvious. Maybe there's something special about this room."
"A safe room," Huai Yi said immediately.
"What do you mean?" Cao Yang turned to Huai Yi. The word "safe" had struck a chord with him; security was exactly what he lacked most right now.
"Don't you remember?" Huai Yi seemed certain of his conclusion, his voice filled with excitement. "That Mad Nurse lived in Room 906, and she was never harmed. Maybe our previous theory was wrong. It wasn't that the Ghost wanted her medical record and spared her life; it's that the Ghost can't kill anyone inside Room 906!"
As if responding to their speculation, a writhing figure appeared at the door of Room 906. The figure was covered in filth and wearing a hospital gown.
It was the Mad Nurse!
Perhaps hearing the commotion in the hallway, the Mad Nurse crawled onto the floor and peeked out. When she saw Jiang Cheng and the others, a flicker of light appeared in her eyes.
"It really is a safe room!" Huai Yi exclaimed excitedly.
With that, everyone sprinted toward Room 906. Huai Yi was surprised to see that Director Qi, who had seemed so weak just moments ago, was actually running faster than him.
"Stop!"
At Jiang Cheng's shout, the others froze as if under a command.
Director Qi, who had been in the lead, was now less than ten meters from the door. They could clearly see the bewildered expression on the Mad Nurse's face.
"What's wrong?" Cao Yang panted, gasping for breath.
Jiang Cheng pushed him aside and grabbed Director Qi by the collar, dragging him back behind him.
Huai Yi seemed to have figured something out. He immediately retreated a few steps, creating distance, while keeping a watchful eye on their surroundings.
The only thing that hadn't changed was the Mad Nurse. She lay on the floor, her head tilted to the side, stray hairs clinging to her face. Everything looked eerily peaceful and natural.
Soft light spilled from the ward, like the glow of a sacred temple.
"The shadow," Jiang Cheng murmured.
Huai Yi immediately turned to look at the shadow Jiang Cheng had left on the wall. Influenced by Huai Yi's reaction, Cao Yang and Director Qi also glanced at Jiang Cheng's shadow in unison.
"I meant her shadow," Jiang Cheng said. "Why are you all looking at mine?"
"Oh, right," Huai Yi nodded, realizing it had been a purely reflexive response.
A moment later, Cao Yang's gaze froze, followed by a sharp intake of breath.
Because the ward was lit, the Crazy Woman's shadow on the wall was relatively clear. But when he thought about it logically, she was lying on the floor, her position very low.
How could she possibly cast a shadow on the opposite wall?
As if realizing she had been discovered, the Crazy Woman's previously vacant eyes suddenly focused, her pupils filled with venomous hatred.
The next second, Director Qi saw the Crazy Woman's shadow on the wall shift again. It seemed to slowly stand up, finally...
Huai Yi's pupils began to tremble. A clear human figure appeared on the wall, its body grotesquely swollen, with over a dozen round spheres of varying sizes hanging from its shoulders.
"Holy shit!" Huai Yi's scalp went cold. "This bitch is cheating!"
Without needing to be told, Director Qi was the first to bolt.
Thump.
Thump.
Heavy footsteps followed close behind. Cao Yang glanced back, and the sight nearly made his skull fly off.
One of the Multi-headed ghoul's arms had fused with the Mad Nurse.
The Mad Nurse was now only a torso, as if she had sprouted from the ghoul's body. As they ran, her two arms flailed wildly.
(End of the Chapter)
---
📖Read (NS) on Pa.treon@CinderTL - c768. [+4]
🔑Early Access at $1.
✍Translated (6) Series, (3K+) Chapters, (4.2M+) Words.