The Wooden Door

Translator: Cinder Translations

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Jiang Cheng's words made Fatty recall many unpleasant events. During the last mission, as they approached the end, the world was also about to fall into eternal night.

At this moment, the campus was eerily quiet.

The mournful cries of autumn insects, which could occasionally be heard before, had now vanished without a trace.

Jiang Cheng and Fatty did not delay any longer and quickly walked west along the designated path.

Throughout the journey, the features on Fatty's face were twisted in worry. He looked at Jiang Cheng and repeatedly opened and closed his mouth, finally unable to hold back his unease: "Doctor, do you think everyone else has already been killed by the ghosts?"

After pondering for a moment, Jiang Cheng replied, "Not necessarily."

Upon hearing that there might still be some teammates alive, Fatty's pale face gradually regained some color.

"Maybe one or two have been caught by the ghosts," Jiang Cheng continued as they walked. "Then they might have their arms and legs torn off to raise them, keeping them around for company."

Upon hearing this, Fatty's legs went weak, and he nearly cried out.

After about 20 minutes, they saw a courtyard ahead on an open patch of ground.

In the night, they shouldn't have been able to see it so clearly, but two large red lanterns hung high at the entrance of the courtyard.

The lanterns emitted a scarlet glow, looking extraordinarily eerie from a distance.

It was like the eyes of a giant beast lying in the wilderness, maliciously staring at the approaching living.

"Doctor," Fatty hid behind a tree by the road, his voice trembling, "are those really two lanterns?!"

Jiang Cheng crouched next to Fatty, pressing down a branch with his hand and peering through the gap towards the equipment center. "Thank you," Jiang Cheng said, "Fatty."

Fatty was taken aback for a moment and then looked at Jiang Cheng with a puzzled expression. "What are you thanking me for?"

"I thank you for telling me those are two lanterns," Jiang Cheng said calmly without looking at him. "Otherwise, I wouldn't have known."

Fatty: "..."

After observing for nearly 10 minutes, the area around the equipment center was very quiet, as if nothing was wrong aside from the glaring red lanterns.

Since being choked up by Jiang Cheng, Fatty had been more cautious in his speech, trying to skip some unnecessary exclamations. "Doctor," he licked his lips, "what are your plans next?"

"Let's go take a look first," Jiang Cheng thought for a moment and replied.

As they approached the equipment center, they noticed more abnormalities—not an ethereal feeling, but tangible irregularities.

A massive lock secured the gate from the outside, tightly wrapped in thick iron chains. The lock gleamed darkly, appearing very sturdy.

"Strange..." Fatty widened his eyes. "Why is the lock on from the outside?"

Jiang Cheng stood in front of the door, pondering for a moment. "Let's go," he turned and said. "Let's walk around nearby."

Fatty left, glancing back three times, seemingly worried that the door would suddenly open and a ghost would come rushing out with unkempt hair.

Not long after, they discovered a hidden side door concealed in the bushes.

It was a wooden door, about the same size as a household door, but it looked like it had endured many years.

Its edges were worn and chipped.

However, what truly caught Jiang Cheng's attention was not that, but that the door was sealed from the outside with sturdy wooden planks, surrounded by large nails—some as thick as a baby's finger.

Jiang Cheng stepped forward and pushed gently, finding it utterly unmoving.

Fatty's sharp eyes spotted a corner of yellow material peeking out from the gap at the bottom of the door, and he cautiously reached out to pull it out.

Once he retrieved it, he found it was a tightly folded piece of yellow paper.

"Doctor," he called Jiang Cheng over while carefully unfolding the paper, "look at this, what is it?"

The paper was covered with a strange red drawing, the brushstrokes sharp and clearly not just a random doodle but something that took effort to create.

On either side of the drawing were segments of text, but unfortunately, Fatty couldn't read it.

Jiang Cheng stood still, looking at the wooden door, then slowly crouched down. In a moment, Fatty heard him take a deep breath.

Following his gaze, Fatty saw that the door's gap was stuffed with this yellow paper, and even stranger, each piece of paper was neatly folded into relatively standard triangles.

Fatty's hand holding the yellow paper trembled, a sense of ominous foreboding rising in his heart.

"It seems there must have been some strange incidents in this courtyard," Jiang Cheng said suddenly in an undeniable tone, "this is a Taoist talisman, stuffed in here to deter ghosts."

Fatty had a hunch about this too, but out of fear, he didn't dare to say it.

The next second, Fatty abruptly tossed the yellow paper onto the ground.

"Doctor," on the way back, Fatty clung to Jiang Cheng as if afraid of being separated, his face as pale as if he were about to die, "this is way too scary! The gap in the door is stuffed with talisman paper—what kind of hatred is this?!"

Recalling the scene from earlier, Fatty's heart raced violently.

Based on the clues from before, Fatty followed up with his thoughts, "Could it be that when Chen Yao was alive, she couldn't be with Su Yu because of Li Yanwei's meddling, and after she died, she couldn't bear the loneliness, wanting to come back to Su Yu for some unfinished business?"

"So she knocked on Su Yu's door every day, but Su Yu, out of fear, summoned these talismans and locked himself in this courtyard, refusing to come out."

Jiang Cheng frowned slightly. "But why didn't he leave this school? Staying here would eventually lead Chen Yao to find him."

"And have you considered," Jiang Cheng continued to ask, "that Su Yu is just the equipment center's administrator? In the school, he doesn't hold any significant position. Transforming the equipment center like this isn't a small project; it certainly couldn't be done by just one administrator nodding. It must have the approval of higher authorities."

Fatty's expression gradually became strange, and suddenly a flash of insight crossed his mind. He looked at Jiang Cheng and exclaimed, "Doctor, do you mean Li Yanwei?!"

"Are all these things permitted by Li Yanwei?!"

By this time, they had returned near the main door. Before Jiang Cheng could respond, a strange noise came from inside.

Jiang Cheng and Fatty immediately held their breath and quietly hid behind a nearby low wall. As the surroundings quieted down, the sound grew clearer.

"Ssss..."

It was a sound somewhat like a snake hissing, but upon closer inspection, it was different. Just as the two prepared to lean in closer to hear better, a sudden "click" sounded from the door.

(End of the Chapter)

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