Nightmare Strikes

Translator: Cinder Translations

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"Is that so," Feng Lan's heart fluttered, and her cheeks flushed, but she still pinched her fingers and pretended to stay calm as she said, "Thank you, Miss Yu."

Zhou Taifu glanced at Feng Lan, who had quickly forgotten about him, and imagined a flock of crows flying over his head.

Yu Wen wasn't fond of the current atmosphere either. Everything here felt odd—both the people and the surroundings. She quickly shifted the conversation, turning around and urging, "Let's go, Miss Feng."

"Alright."

But just as Feng Lan brushed past her, Yu Wen quickly stepped forward and stood before the stall Feng Lan had been in moments before.

The door to the stall was already open, and the scene inside was fully visible.

A few seconds later, the tension in her expression gradually eased as she finally understood what had happened earlier.

There were two footprints on the edge of the toilet, one on the left and one on the right. Feng Lan had been standing on the toilet seat earlier, so when Yu Wen crouched down to look, she hadn't been able to see her feet.

"Miss Yu?" Feng Lan, who was almost at the door, realized that Yu Wen hadn't followed her and turned around to see her standing by the stall door.

"Oh," Yu Wen snapped out of it and walked toward her.

"What were you looking at?"

"I thought I saw a mouse," Yu Wen lied with a straight face and feigned a frightened expression as she patted her chest, saying, "I'm terrified of those things, so I froze for a moment."

Whether it was due to the script forcing the character to act dumb or Feng Lan just being naive, this half-baked explanation, full of holes, somehow managed to gain her trust.

Zhou Taifu couldn't help but think, 'If only all the NPCs in future tasks were this easy to deceive.'

Just as they were about to leave, Feng Lan suddenly remembered something. She ran over to the sink, turned on the faucet, wet her hands, and squeezed some soap.

Yu Wen and Zhou Taifu watched her from behind, feeling a sense of relief. Feng Lan was proving to be a rare external ally, and in this regard, they were ahead of the other two teams, 404 and 405.

Speaking of which...

Both Yu Wen and Zhou Taifu simultaneously thought of Jiang Cheng's face and the things he'd said.

Things like, "The ghost's hands are twice as big as mine," or "I'm still going through puberty, I'm growing."

Zhen Jianren was probably a goner. But they wondered how Hao Shuai and that other fat guy were doing.

Had they found the school director, Mr. Li? What kind of information could they have uncovered?

TL: The gender of the director is ambiguous and has been mentioned as both 'she' and 'he'. It will be clarified when the director appears.

Or, like Zhen Jianren and his team, had they also run out of luck and fallen victim to the ghost?

The deadline for completing the task was fast approaching, and the ghost would only grow more complete as time passed. At that stage, anything could happen. If the ghost broke through all the restrictions placed on it by the rules, then everyone here would die.

Yu Wen still remembered what a veteran had once said: in at least half of the tasks, the entire team ended up wiped out.

After all, in this nightmare world, you needed both luck and skill to survive.

She stared at herself in the mirror, her throat tightening involuntarily.

This time... it won't happen...

Just as Feng Lan finished washing her hands and looked up, the reflections of all three of them appeared in the mirror.

It was as if some subtle chemical reaction had occurred. All three of their gazes immediately locked onto their own reflections.

Staring at yourself in the mirror, face-to-face with someone exactly like you, was a bizarre experience.

More accurately, it was downright eerie.

Especially in a place like this.

As time ticked by, Zhou Taifu noticed his reflection becoming increasingly unfamiliar. His skin began to pale, as if all the blood had drained from it.

His body was growing colder at an uncontrollable pace.

He had always been resistant to cold.

More specifically, he was insensitive to both heat and cold.

Years of training in Southeast Asian rainforests and the northern Siberian tundra had not only honed his killing skills but also toughened his physique.

But now, his prized killing techniques and physical strength were completely useless.

He stared blankly at his reflection, unable to move. Only his consciousness floated.

A strange feeling of unease welled up from the depths of his heart. His pupils slowly contracted, and the vitality was gradually stripped away from his once-strong body.

Twisting, vengeful, silent, freezing...

And that endless darkness, rushing toward him like a tidal wave, threatening to engulf him completely.

His world was void of light.

There was no hope left...

It was as if he had plunged into the depths of the ocean, surrounded by countless bubbles, yet not a single one offered any help...

Slap!

The crisp sound broke the eerie silence like a crack in silk, causing the dark world to tremble.

Zhou Taifu furrowed his brow.

Slap! Slap! Slap!

More slaps followed.

When Zhou Taifu came to his senses, he found himself standing in front of the mirror, dazed. He touched his face in confusion.

"Hiss—"

His face was stinging with pain.

Then he noticed his reflection in the mirror. His cheeks were bright red, with distinct handprints emblazoned on them, as if he had just participated in some humiliating performance art.

The next moment...

Slap!

Another slap landed on his face, and the now-conscious Zhou Taifu stumbled, nearly falling over.

Standing just in front of him, Yu Wen was rolling up her sleeves, beads of sweat forming on her forehead.

"Mr. Zhou is awake!"

Feng Lan's voice rang out, mixed with both joy and confusion.

Just moments ago, as they were about to leave the restroom, Zhou Taifu had seemingly fallen into a trance, standing still in front of the mirror. No matter how much they called or pulled at him, he didn't respond.

His eyes were vacant, silently staring at his own reflection in the mirror.

The scene was unnerving.

Yu Wen had acted decisively. When she realized that conventional methods wouldn't rouse Zhou Taifu, she rolled up her sleeves and delivered a couple of sharp slaps to his face.

Not until blood began to seep from the corner of his mouth did Zhou Taifu finally snap out of it.

Seeing that he was awake, Yu Wen finally relaxed. Her concern for him was undeniable. If it had been anyone else, she would have fled the scene long ago.

But now, her relief was hidden, her expression calm.

"I..." Slowly, Zhou Taifu's soul seemed to return to his body.

He turned his neck from side to side, feeling a strange stiffness in his limbs. Looking at Yu Wen in confusion, he asked, "What happened to me?"

Yu Wen glanced at the mirror but quickly averted her gaze.

"Something's off. We need to leave this place."

She grabbed Zhou Taifu's arm and led him out. His legs felt somewhat stiff as well, a tingling numbness running through them, making his movements clumsy.

As they walked, Yu Wen briefly explained to him what had just happened.

When Zhou Taifu heard that he had stood like a statue, staring into the mirror and locking eyes with his reflection as if his soul had left his body, a wave of fear washed over him.

Could it be that the ghost had marked him?

(End of the Chapter)

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