Xunian and Shen Mosi exchanged a glance, then silently approached the restroom door, pushing it open just a crack.
A disheveled man and woman dashed toward the door in a panic, and with a bang, the restroom door was flung open. The two quickly slipped aside.
There was no corner in this corridor; otherwise, they could have waited for those two to leave before sneaking in.
Yuan Shen and Qi Dong burst out, their eyes filled with fear.
Forced to make eye contact, the two pairs stared at each other.
Yuan Shen spoke first, pointing at the restroom door, his face pale. “Inside… there’s a ghost.”
“Stop talking nonsense, let’s get out of here.” Qi Dong looked back anxiously, tugging on his sleeve.
They hurried straight to the classroom, their backs hurried and tense.
A ghost?
“There’s a ghost. Let’s leave,” Shen Mosi pulled on Xunian’s sleeve nervously.
Xunian shook her head.
We’ve come this far.
“Well… alright then,” Shen Mosi barely hesitated before deciding to enter with Xunian.
Their hands tightly clasped, Xunian sensed her unease. “You wait outside for me.”
“No. I’m coming in with you.” Shen Mosi’s eyes were resolute.
In this way, Shen Mosi easily overcame her fear and firmly walked alongside Xunian.
Xunian frowned slightly, feeling like they were walking into a trap.
What exactly are they struggling over? The two are chained together; wouldn’t they either go in or leave together sooner or later…
Shen Mosi’s expression didn’t look fake. She was as resolute as someone about to join a league. If this were acting, she might even win an award for it.
Right now, the clue was more important. As for Shen Mosi… Xunian would probe slowly.
“Creak—”
The restroom door slowly opened.
A special camphor scent wafted in. The cracked, aged tiled walls with antique patterns came into view.
“Drip, drip, drip…”
Water dripped steadily from the white faucet into the basin below, pooling and splashing.
Xunian slowed her steps, quietly entering with Shen Mosi.
Once both were inside, she slowly closed the door behind them.
Clang—
The chains clinked against the door by coincidence. The restroom light suddenly dimmed, then flickered on and off, casting a buzzing sound.
Shen Mosi pushed hard at the frosted glass door, but it didn’t budge.
“The door won’t open.”
Bang!
Amidst the flickering lights, the innermost cubicle door suddenly swung open, hitting the radiator with a loud noise.
Xunian gripped her dagger tightly and stepped forward, shielding Shen Mosi behind her.
Shen Mosi grabbed the hem of Xunian’s clothes, peeking at the open cubicle door ahead, her eyes filled with curiosity.
“Hee hee~”
A bluish-black hand suddenly appeared over the door frame. A woman covered in blood slowly emerged from the cubicle, her white short-sleeve blouse and pleated skirt stained and filthy.
Under wet, tangled black hair clinging to the restroom ceiling, a blurred face lifted its head. Dark eyes stared fixedly at Xunian.
Where to start? Should the hand be twisted off first, or the legs, the feet, or… the head?
The dim light suddenly went out completely.
Darkness engulfed everything.
A chill breeze brushed past Xunian’s ear, stirring a few strands of hair.
She crouched quickly, turned sideways, and jabbed upward.
Pfft—
Something sticky dripped onto her hand.
The faint glow of a mobile phone lit up, then its flashlight turned on, casting a pale beam into the darkness.
Beneath the tangled black hair, the bluish-black face faintly revealed what had once been a beautiful countenance, the blackened mouth making her look weak.
The dark female ghost widened her heavily shadowed eyes. A dagger had been plunged into her lower abdomen, oozing sticky, dirty liquid.
Xunian stood, pulling out the dagger and pushing the female ghost backward until she floated away. Disgusted, she pulled Shen Mosi back a step, eyeing her dripping clothes.
“You didn’t just crawl out of the toilet, did you?”
She quickly took out a handkerchief and wiped her hands, tossing it into the nearby trash can.
The female ghost’s eyes widened in shock, her cold fingers touching the still-oozing wound. A hoarse, dry voice squeezed out in confusion.
“How could… this… happen?”
She was a female ghost, so why could a knife still hurt her?
It had to be an accident. This time, she vowed to twist that damned woman’s head off!
Her fierce, cold eyes swept toward Xunian, then she lunged forward with lightning speed again.
Pfft—
Xunian drew her dagger and, once more, pulled Shen Mosi away from the ghost with disgust.
“Ahhhhhhh—” The female ghost wildly flailed her purplish nails, clawing at Xunian.
Pfft—
Xunian drew her dagger again.
This time, the ghost dared not approach rashly. She seized an opportunity and swiped at Shen Mosi behind Xunian.
Xunian yanked Shen Mosi behind her and met the attack head-on.
Pfft— pfft— pfft— Three quick stabs.
“Waaah, please stop stabbing me! I’ll tell you whatever you want to know…”
The female ghost collapsed on the ground, croaking through a hoarse throat, covering her eyes while crying with snot and tears.
Her body was riddled with leaking holes; murky water trickled from her eyes, blending with the water on her clothes, dropping drip by drip onto the floor.
She hadn’t expected to provoke the wrong person. Normally, knives shouldn’t even touch her.
Xunian stepped forward, dagger in hand, towering over her, and asked calmly, “Who are you?”
The dagger in Xunian’s hand gleamed sharply. Their gazes locked. To the female ghost, Xunian looked like a merciless demon. She shrank back and answered obediently,
“I… I’m Hanako.”
“Hanako, don’t be afraid. I’m just asking some questions.”
“Heh… heh, I’m not… not afraid.”
Hanako nearly shook like a leaf; with the dagger almost pressing against her face, how could she not be scared?
Xunian walked to the sink, pointing at a bloodstain. “This isn’t your blood, is it?”
Hanako curled into a ball on the ground, nodding repeatedly at Xunian’s question.
“Yes, yes, yes, it’s not my blood. It’s a girl’s.
One day, on a sunny, cloudless day, I was in the restroom cubicle when I heard a lot of noise outside. I peeked through the door crack and saw someone beating a girl, hitting and cursing her.
They threatened that if she told anyone about it, she’d be sorry.”
Before Xunian could ask more, Hanako spilled everything she needed to say in one breath.
Shen Mosi squatted beside Hanako and asked, “Do you remember who beat her?”
Hanako glanced at her. Her previously vacant pupils suddenly shrank, and she trembled even more.
“There were… three or four of them.”
Demons! Two demons!
Hanako deeply regretted coming out. Wouldn’t it have been better to just live in the dark inside the cubicle?