The tall dark-green trees, that could block out the sun, looked like grinning monsters who were spreading their pitch-black arms to claw you into the endless darkness.
This forest was far too quiet, and the dark clouds that were covering up the moonlight were wrapping the entire land into complete darkness. The wind and the sound of the cicadas had disappeared, and only the strong smell of blood remained in the air. From time to time, a few birds whimpering could be heard, and some owls, with their eyes wide open, quietly watched how the forest suddenly fell into a black curtain.
Qin Cheng dazedly ran through the forest, trying to avoid the engulfing darkness following close behind him. Occasionally, a thought would cross over his mind, in which he seemed to have come to this place alongside Lin Hongxing, however, he wasnāt able to remember why he came here in the first place.
āLin Hongxing!ā He shouted Lin Hongxingās name the loudest he could, but Qin Cheng could only hear his own echoes.
Carefully walking through the forest, a sudden and weird sound coming behind him made Qin Cheng subconsciously look back.
The first thing he noticed was a rotten corpse, whose face had a bloody mouth, green pupils protruding, and a pungent smell of putrefaction. This scene made Qin Chengās scalp feel numb, and he quickly turned around to run away without uttering a single noise!
Even though he was exhausted from running, he still wasnāt able to get out of this claustrophobic forest.
His legs were incredibly weak, but Qin Cheng didnāt dare stop because he knew that if he stopped now, there was only one way to go from here, and that was a path of no return.
He didnāt know for how long he had been running away, but when Qin Cheng finally collapsed without a trace of strength left in his body, the rotting corpse that was chasing him, rushed over and started to strangle him to death.
Qin Cheng tried to raise his leg to kick the rotten corpse with all his might, but it didnāt matter how many times he tried, it was useless!!
The suffocating pain caused Qin Cheng to struggle for his life.
Inside his heart, Qin Cheng started to shout ā Someone, anyone, help me! ā. Even though his mouth was wide open, Qin Cheng was unable to produce a single sound. His hand began to lose strength as it fell to the ground, which seemed to be the last struggle for his life left on his body. It also seemed like the last request for help before dying.
Right at the last second, Qin Cheng thought that he was certainly going to die. However, a ray of light suddenly shot through the thick night sky and reflected in Qin Chengās pupils. Then, the rotten corpse was thrown far away.
After having regained his freedom, and the chance to breathe once again, Qin Cheng crawled on his knees, curled up on the ground, and breathed heavily.
āIncompetent.ā
The voice coming from above his head startled Qin Cheng for a moment. He slowly opened his eyes to look at the owner of the voice, but the only thing he could see was bright yellow.
Qin Cheng then tried to raise his head and take a look, but he soon found out that it was impossible for him to do so.
The voice above his head continued speaking, mocking him with sarcasm: āIt was merely a little ghost <sup>1</sup> .ā
When he finished speaking, the dark clouds slowly began to withdraw from the sky, and the moonlight gradually presented itself, coating the bright yellow clothes with layers of fluorescent light. Suddenly, Qin Cheng, who could feel his body more relaxed, slowly raised his head. However, he fainted the moment he saw a white jade pendant pinned to the manās waist.
Before he lost consciousness, Qin Cheng thought that he had actually seen that jade pendant beforeā¦.
It was beautiful, really beautiful. And it had three characters engraved on itā¦.
āā¦..Jing ā¦..ā
Tang Lihua, who was guarding the hospital bed, suddenly heard her sonās voice speaking nonsense and hurriedly wiped out her tears, crying out in surprise: āSon, my son! Youāre finally awake! You almost scared your mother to death!ā
Feeling like he had heard his motherās voice calling out to him, Qin Cheng slowly opened his tired eyes.
"
"
When she saw that Qin Cheng opened his eyes, Tang Lihuaās tears rolled down her eyes as she started to press on the electric bell, calling the doctor who was on duty at the time. While her body was shivering with excitement, she took her phone and dialed Qin Longās number: āOur son is awake! Qin Long, our son has finally woken up!ā With a mixture of grief and happiness, Tang Lihua shouted to the phone.
Qin Cheng, who had just woken up, felt extremely dizzy and couldnāt remember anything for a while. After he was checked up by the doctor, to make sure he was in good condition and didnāt have serious sequelae, he slowly began to regain some consciousness and to remember the events of that night.
ā So I survivedā¦. ā
Qin Cheng, who was laying on the bed, didnāt have the strength to move for the time being. Still, he managed to hold Tang Lihuaās hand as he whispered to her, with the intention of comforting her: āMom, Iām fine. Besides, the doctor also said that Iāll get better after a few days of rest, right?ā
Qin Chengās hand was wrapped in gauze, and Tang Lihua didnāt dare to grab it with any force, so she could only cover it with her hands as gently as possible. The tears kept flowing down her cheeks as she heavily nodded her head. But she couldnāt say any word.
Seeing his motherās grief, Qin Chengās heart felt very sour, so he tried really hard to comfort her. In the process, his eyes became red from restrained tears.
Knowing that it wasnāt good for her sonās emotions to fluctuate at the moment, Tang Lihua wiped away her tears as she pulled out a smile. She said: āIām really happy, mommy is happy! Youāve been in a coma for two or three days andā¦.ā However, as these words were said, she couldnāt stop the tears that were still falling down her cheeks and started to cry once again.
Qin Cheng didnāt have any serious injuries on his body, and after he woke up, he just had to rest for another two days. As for why he was in an unconscious state these past couple of days, even the doctor couldnāt tell.
These past few days, several of his colleagues visited him in the hospital to see how he was doing. Even his professor, Li Guoxian, came to see him. For what happened in the mountain after he suddenly fainted, he found out just recently.
āWhen the police finally arrived that night, it was already 3 in the morning when they were able to find you. The first one they encountered was Lin Hongxing laying on a pool of his own blood, almost out of breath. While you and Jiang Bo were later found inside the tunnel. Jiang Bo was already dead and you were unconscious.ā
After he listened to Zhang Junās words, Qin Cheng thought for a moment before he asked: āHow is Lin Hongxing now?ā
āHeās still in a dangerous situation. No one knows why he has a big hole in his head, and the doctors can only delay his death. His family will take him to Beijing tomorrow for medical treatment.ā Speaking of that, Zhang Jun suddenly frowned: āWhat did you exactly run into? Was it a homicidal maniac? The police said that they canāt find out what happened at all!ā
Zhang Jun helplessly sighed and then continued: āDo you know? Jiang Boās family and Lin Hongxingās family are turning crazy. One of them is dead, and the other one is seriously injured. They run to the police every day to ask for an explanation, itās just that, the point isā¦.ā
At that moment, Zhang Jun looked at Qin Chengās face, and after some hesitation, he said: āTheyā¦.they all believe that you have something to do with this.ā
Qin Cheng wasnāt surprised by what Zhang Jun said. He had already thought of this outcome for a long time now. The police didnāt believe his side of the story, and of course, Lin Hongxing and Jiang Boās family members wonāt believe him either. Out of the three, he was the only one who was alright. Who wouldnāt suspect him? It was a perfectly normal reaction.
After thinking for a while, Qing Cheng finally closed his eyes and asked: āWhat did the police say?ā
āThe police? Of course, without any evidence, they canāt put you in jailā¦.ā He tried to find a more suitable word, but in the end, Zhang Jun couldnāt think of something better to say, so he could only sigh with frustration: āBesides, Jiang Bo died in a strange way. He didnāt have a single wound on his body, and the autopsy wasnāt able to find the cause of his death. It looks like he died of suffocation, but this canāt be confirmed. Even more, he was holding a bronze mirror in his hand, with a tight grip.ā
āA bronze mirror?ā When they went to look for Jiang Bo that night, because of the state they found him, and Lin Hongxingās accident later on, Qin Cheng didnāt have the time to check on Jiang Boās condition. ā So he was holding a mirror in his hand? ā
āIt was indeed a bronze mirror. At first glance, it looked like the bronze mirror that usually accompanies the burial ofā¦ ā
Zhang Junās words made Qin Chengās heart feel extremely heavy. Naturally, they know what a bronze mirror is for. In the past, people used bronze mirrors to calm the souls of fierce ghosts.
If he hadnāt experienced such a strange situation before, Qin Cheng wouldnāt have thought much about a bronze mirror, but now that he had, he began to wonder whether everything happened because of the bronze mirror.
ā If Jiang Bo dug out that bronze mirror, then, could he have released something? ā
ā Furthermoreā¦. ā
ā That white jade pendantā¦. ā
Qin Cheng heard from Tang Lihua that, at that time, he was clenching his fist with such force that even the doctors couldnāt separate his fingers. In the end, they had to bandage it directly. However, when Qin Cheng woke up, he actually found that jade pendant in his handā¦.
Noticing that Qin Cheng was absent-minded, Zhang Jun said to him: āThere are two injuries on Lin Hongxingās head, but only one of them is fatalā¦. What happened to the three of you is really too strange, and everyone was hoping that youāll wake up soon to clear the situation, so everyone could understand what happened.ā
Looking at Qin Cheng, whose face didnāt look very good, Zhang Junās face became a little heavier: āFor now, you should just take a good rest. Wait until youāre better enough to talk about it.ā
However, Qin Cheng didnāt explain anything to Zhang Jun, and yet, everyone soon got to know the details of what happened that night in the end.
Also, that nightmare was kinda creepy not gonna lieā¦
FFF for Lin Hongxing and Jiang Bo, they donāt have the MCās halo that managed to save his life from the ghosts lol
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(ą¹ĖĶ ą„¢ź“ ĖĶ)ćā” ą„°ą„±
Footnotes
<ol><b>éé </b> <b>chÄ« mĆØi</b> ; Itās an ancient Chinese mythological term for mountain Gods, but also refers to ghosts and monsters that harm people in the mountains and forests. Later on, this term was extended to all kinds of bad people.</ol>