Train of Fear

Li Shu had booked train tickets for us, departing at around eleven o'clock in the evening from Taiyuan City to Nanchang, Jiangxi. However, Nanchang was not our final destination. We had to take another train to a small county under the Yingtan City in Jiangxi, and then find a person named Zhang Jinya in the outskirts. This person was recommended by Mr. Zhou, but Mr. Zhou didn't specify his profession, and we were not well informed about him. The thought of spending more than thirty hours on the road made me feel quite troubled. With my small frame, enduring over a thousand kilometers on the train was going to be exhausting.

To conserve energy, neither I, Li Shu, nor the little brat Zhou Jing went out in the afternoon. With nothing else to do, I sat on the couch and started reading "The Tomb-robbing Techniques."

Although the book was written in ancient characters, I had learned these during my childhood from my father and grandfather, making me somewhat of an expert. Not to mention Chinese oracle bone script, bronze inscriptions, seal script, and stone drum script, I could even understand foreign hieroglyphs and the most mysterious Olmec script. Therefore, reading this book wasn't difficult for me.

The first part of the book talked about how to locate tombs, a technique called "dragon-spotting." Essentially, it was a form of geomancy. However, I wasn't interested in these methods. After skimming through it, I gave up. I had no intention of tomb-raiding. It's not only because it's a risky business, but also because I have a weak constitution. Just dealing with antiques led me into trouble, so going into tombs would definitely invite more trouble.

Next, the book discussed the rules and intricacies of tomb-robbing techniques. I glanced through it roughly, and in a blink of an eye, two-thirds of the book's content was left behind. Thankfully, I finally found something that interested me—the techniques to ward off evil spirits.

It was a vast system, detailing the causes of various demonic entities and methods to counter them. After reading through it, I was astonished. I never expected that there would be such profound knowledge about these supernatural entities. Unconsciously, it was already past ten o'clock at night, the time to go to the train station. Li Shu and Zhou Jing were almost ready, it was just me left.

I didn't have much luggage, just a few changes of clothes. Later, I hesitated for a moment, then decided to bring the Hundred Evils Dagger for self-defense.

Of course, I wasn't worried about people but about those things.

I wasn't sure about this, but according to "The Tomb-robbing Techniques," any filthy creatures were extremely afraid of weapons stained with blood. The Hundred Evils Dagger, buried in tombs for many years, still had clear traces of dark red bloodstains. It had killed countless beings and was definitely a "sacred weapon" against evil. Bringing it along wouldn't hurt. After all, this trip to Jiangxi was to solve the problems I had, and I was sure to encounter those things. It's better to be safe than sorry.

Li Shu knew that I had a weak body, so he booked soft sleeper tickets for us. Fortunately, it wasn't a holiday season, and the train wasn't crowded. The three of us occupied one soft sleeper compartment. Since I wasn't going on a vacation, my mood wasn't great. After boarding the train, I chatted briefly with Li Shu and then went to sleep, still dressed.

It was summer, and the air conditioning in the carriage was quite strong. Perhaps because I wasn't dressed warmly enough, around three o'clock in the morning, I was awakened by severe abdominal pain. It felt like my intestines were twisted together, causing me to shiver all over. I quickly got up from the bunk and prepared to go to the bathroom.

The carriage was dark, and the conductor had already turned off the lights in the aisle. Only the pale moonlight shone through the windows, giving the place a creepy atmosphere.

Li Shu had fallen asleep, his soft snoring echoing in the carriage. However, Zhou Jing, who was staying opposite me, was still awake. He was sitting cross-legged on the bed, and in front of him lay the white turtle shell that belonged to Mr. Zhou. I didn't expect Mr. Zhou to pass it on to him. The little guy was staring at the turtle shell with a focused gaze, lost in thought.

Seeing his expression, I felt a pang of sympathy. After all, he was just a ten-year-old kid who had probably never been separated from his grandfather. Suddenly, I spoke up to comfort him a bit.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Jing ignored me, probably still blaming me. He had already concluded that I was the one responsible for his grandfather's death.

Fine, I've been alive for over twenty years. I couldn't argue with a kid like him. I shook my head helplessly, took some paper from the table, and prepared to go to the toilet.

"Wait!"

Zhou Jing suddenly called out to me. I turned to look at him and saw that he was still staring at the turtle shell, his brows furrowed, his face looking strange and somewhat pale. He said slowly, "Listen to me, if you don't want to die, wait here for a while before going."

"Are you crazy?"

I muttered softly, annoyed by his interference. Although I did have some responsibility for what happened to his grandfather, it was unintentional. How could I have known that his grandfather would have an accident after I got him to divine? Now he was picking on me like this? Even when I'm trying to relieve myself? I was about to say something to him, but then my stomach started acting up again. This time, it was worse. I was sweating like crazy, and I felt like I was going to pass out from the pain. I couldn't be bothered with this kid anymore and turned to head to the toilet. However, just as I stepped out of the room, I heard a series of clanging sounds from inside the soft sleeper compartment. Zhou Jing had actually followed me out, shouting, "Hey, you can't go to the toilet, and you didn't bring your Fatiu seal!"

What the hell was he talking about? I was about to give him a piece of my mind, but before I could, my stomach twisted in pain again. This time, it was even worse, and I was shaking all over. I didn't want to waste any more time arguing with Zhou Jing, so I decided to ignore him and rush to the toilet. However, just as I was about to push the door open, I found that it wouldn't budge, no matter how hard I pushed!

What was even more bizarre was that the temperature in the toilet dropped rapidly, making me shiver.

I'd been in situations like this before, so I wasn't as panicked as before. I leaned against the window for support, preparing to kick the door open. Even if I couldn't open it, I could at least alert the conductor to come and help. But before I could act, I felt a pair of icy cold hands wrap around my waist from behind, holding me tight...