Nightmare Assault

“Fatty,” Jiang Cheng suddenly said.

Fatty nodded as he walked, “Doctor, you can go on. I’m listening.”

“When we go back, tell them what happened today.”

Fatty blinked, “In what way?”

“Just be honest.” Jiang Cheng elaborated, “And be detailed.”

“Doctor, you should tell them then,” Fatty said embarrassedly, “Doctor, you know how dumb I am. I’m scared I might get things wrong.”

Jiang Cheng sighed and groused, “If people will believe me, do you think I need you?” Things were as Jiang Cheng expected, or rather… it was worse.

Fatty sat at the table. Everyone sat in a circle. Fatty was the one telling the story, but everyone stared at Jiang Cheng suspiciously. Jiang Cheng astutely took several steps back from the table. Everyone relaxed and found Fatty more believable.

“So Butler Zhou sneaked into the Huang Residence. He is the dead woman’s father, and he’s here for revenge?!” You Qi gasped.

Zuo Qing glanced at him. “Not only that, but he also wants to use some dark ritual to revive his daughter.” They understood that the human-skin drum and the midnight plays were created by Butler Zhou’s people to create opportunities for the ghosts to kill. The goal was to revive the girl.

“But how did they manage it?” You Qi looked around. “Elder Huang is not dumb. After all, he didn’t get rich for being a dummy.”

“It is through Young Master Huang,” An Xuan explained, “Elder Huang’s heart broke after he lost his son. I believe Butler Zhou told Elder Huang that he had a way to revive Young Master Huang. The reason Elder Huang is acting the way he is is due to Butler Zhou’s persuasion.” That was a valid explanation.

“How much longer do we have?” Xia Meng posed a key question.

“I’m not sure.” Fatty copied Jiang Cheng and shrugged, “The book says we still have four days, but… I think,” He shook two fingers, “We only have two more nights.”

“Does the book provide a way to deal with the ghost?” An Xuan asked, even though he knew the answer was unlikely to be given by the book.

“No.”

“We have to stop the ritual,” Chen Qiang suddenly announced, “I mean… If we all refuse to participate in the play, will that… stop the ritual?”

“We might also be punished for violating the rules,” Jiang Cheng said naturally. At that moment, everyone was reminded of Tang Shirou’s ghastly death. She was the best example.

“The ghost… wouldn’t attack everyone if we all violate the rules, right?” You Qi supported Chen Qiang.

“Who wants to be the first?” An Xuan posed the big question. His gaze was calm but oppressive. You Qi shut up. Time was too precious to waste on meaningless problems.

“Mr. Hao, what is your opinion?” An Xuan turned to Gao Ming. Zuo Qing also turned to him. No one believed that Fatty had found all the information. They should come from Jiang Cheng. He might have even more clues that he hadn’t shared.

“I think we should go examine the painting,” Jiang Cheng suggested.

The painting was covered by a piece of red cloth. The deep red unsettled An Xuan and Zuo Qing. It looked like a challenge from Deep Red. You Qi stood awkwardly before the painting because he was the one who put the red cloth over it. Based on his family’s tradition, red cloth could… ward against evil. Some families put red cloth over old mirrors and paintings as superstitions. Before entering the nightmare realm, You Qi didn’t believe in these things. However, his world changed. After all, he knew that ghosts were real and they were scarier than he thought.

“The person who did this can take off the cloth,” Xia Meng ordered.

You Qi swallowed. He wanted to explain himself. However, after seeing the gaze tossed his way, he cleverly kept his mouth shut. He went out to grab a stick and used that to move the red cloth. When the cloth fell away, Zuo Qing, who was closest to the painting, sucked in a cold breath.

The painting… Had changed.

The woman had fully turned around. Her smiling face was gone. The woman smiled wickedly. Her eyes were cold. Her brows were raised high. She looked just like the paper dolls.

As expected…

They didn’t have much time left.

The background was different as well. There were more details. A red moon hung in the sky. The building under the moonlight was creepy. A paper doll straddled the humanskin drum and beat on it. One could feel the waves of chill through the painting.

Someone knocked suddenly on the door. The middle-aged woman’s mirthless face appeared. She stood outside the door and didn’t come in. Perhaps because everyone had known the truth, the travellers stayed away from the middle-aged woman. She probably worked for Butler Zhou. They took full control of the Huang Residence after convincing Elder Huang with their words.

“The old master wants to tell you that you are required to come to the lakeside to participate in Young Master’s play at San Geng. Listen to the drum.” The middle-aged woman scanned everyone. “Tonight’s play is called… fetching the bride.” The woman turned and found a stick in the yard. She used her nails, which were inhumanely sharp, to cut the stick into small segments.

“In the process, no matter what you see and hear, you are not allowed to make any sound.” The woman said, “Until the play is over.

“Everyone will keep a segment of the wood in your mouth. You can only remove it at the end of the play.” The woman raised her cupped hands. It contained a small pile of severed sticks.

You Qi was the closest to her, so he unwillingly went to accept the pile.

The middle-aged woman suddenly chuckled to herself. You Qi shivered and almost dropped everything.

“You can split these among yourselves.” The woman ordered and left.

“What… is going on?” You Qi stared at his hands and raised his head. He looked at everyone in fear. By then, everyone had gotten their own segment.

However… he still had two segments in his hands.

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