Chapter 34: Luck

　　Yumeng bolted, panic-stricken, her cries echoing as she ran. But in her haste, she tripped over something, and her phone flew out of her hand, plunging her into darkness as the light blinked out.

　　Her fear spiked even higher. She scrambled up, sobbing, abandoning her phone without a second thought. The only sounds in the eerie night were her ragged breathing and the desperate pounding of her footsteps.

　　She had no idea how long she’d been running when she finally stopped, spotting a blurry figure near the haunted house entrance…

　　Could Xia Ning and Wu Jing have come looking for her?

　　Without a second thought, she dashed towards the figure. “Xia Ning… Xia Ning…” Her mind instantly assumed it was Xia Ning.

　　She was nearly close enough to see if it was really Xia Ning when she suddenly staggered—someone had grabbed her arm.

　　She turned to see Xia Ning. “Xia Ning?” Yumeng flung herself into Xia Ning’s arms, bursting into tears. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you…”

　　“Shh…” Xia Ning hushed her quickly, “Keep your voice down, or it’ll hear us.” Xia Ning pointed towards the figure at the entrance.

　　Yumeng froze, confused. “That… that’s not Wu Jing, is it? Why can’t we let her hear us?”

　　“That’s not a person. They eat people!” Xia Ning’s voice trembled with terror.

　　Yumeng’s confusion deepened. “Eat… people?”

　　Xia Ning nodded frantically. “Wu Jing’s dead, already eaten by them. We have to leave, now.” Without another word, Xia Ning pulled the stunned Yumeng deeper into the haunted house.

　　Yumeng couldn’t believe it. Could they really be playing such a twisted joke on her?

　　But just as she was about to say that this joke was going too far, she caught sight of Wu Jing lying behind a shattered cabinet, not far away. Her body was hollowed out, intestines spilling out, with a large pool of blood beneath her.

　　Yumeng’s eyes widened in sheer terror, and she was about to scream when Xia Ning clamped a hand over her mouth.

　　“Don’t scream… if you scream, we’re all dead!” Xia Ning whispered frantically into her ear.

　　“Don’t scream, okay?” Xia Ning turned Yumeng’s face towards her, looking directly into her eyes, her expression deadly serious.

　　Yumeng’s eyes were red, her brows knitted in fear, and tears streamed down her face. Muffled sobs escaped from behind Xia Ning’s hand as she fought to keep herself from crying out.

　　Xia Ning, terrified that Yumeng’s sobs would escalate, kept her hand firmly over her mouth, trying to calm her down. “Yumeng, if you keep crying like this, we’re just going to die faster. Do you understand?”

　　Yumeng nodded, and after what felt like an eternity, her sobs finally subsided.

　　Once she was sure Yumeng had quieted down, Xia Ning slowly removed her hand.

　　“Where… are we going?” Yumeng asked between sniffles.

　　“Just follow me!” Xia Ning grabbed her hand, ready to lead her away, but Yumeng collapsed onto the ground, too weak to stand, no matter how hard Xia Ning pulled.

　　“I can’t get up… I’m too scared…” Yumeng whimpered, her voice barely a whisper.

　　Her legs had gone completely limp from fear.

　　Xia Ning sighed, realizing she had no choice. She crouched down, carefully lifting Yumeng onto her back.

　　“Where are we going?” Yumeng asked again, clinging to her.

　　This time, Xia Ning didn’t answer.

　　Yumeng could only hold on as Xia Ning carried her deeper into the haunted house.The sound of footsteps echoed in the night, dampened by the trash scattered all over the ground. Xia Ning trudged forward, her steps uneven and heavy.

　　Yumeng glanced around, her heart pounding as she realized that all she could see were rows and rows of gravestones. Panic gripped her tightly.

　　She followed the direction Xia Ning was heading and saw a small, three-story building looming in the distance.

　　“Aren’t we… going to call the police?” Yumeng’s voice quivered as she struggled to hold back her tears.

　　Xia Ning didn’t respond, just kept carrying her in silence.

　　Yumeng didn’t dare ask again. She figured Xia Ning didn’t want to talk to her or even acknowledge her.

　　Creak…

　　The iron gate groaned open, and Xia Ning walked inside, still carrying Yumeng on her back. Once inside, Yumeng saw the room was a wreck. Directly ahead was another iron door, to the right was a broken cabinet, and on the opposite side, a staircase leading up.

　　Xia Ning walked over to the broken cabinet and gently set Yumeng down.

　　“Hide in the cabinet. It’s only big enough for one person. I’ll find somewhere else to hide. No matter what happens, don’t come out unless I do, okay?” Xia Ning insisted, her voice firm.

　　“I don’t want to be separated from you…” Yumeng started to cry again.

　　“Hurry up, we don’t have time. If we don’t hide, we’re both dead.” Xia Ning crouched down, gripping Yumeng’s shoulders, her tone urgent.

　　Yumeng had no choice. Reluctantly, she crawled into the cabinet, which was filled with garbage, and watched as Xia Ning headed up the stairs.

　　Once the creaky cabinet door was shut, Yumeng curled up in the cramped space, muffling her sobs with her hand. She didn’t dare cry too loudly, the image of Wu Jing’s mutilated body still haunting her.

　　I couldn’t help but marvel at Yumeng’s luck; she actually survived her first night there.

　　The sky outside was starting to brighten, and from her cramped spot in the cabinet, Yumeng could see the faint light filtering through the window. But she still didn’t dare come out, Xia Ning’s last words echoing in her mind.

　　She had no idea how much time had passed when her stomach began growling loudly. She was starving.

　　She didn’t understand why Xia Ning hadn’t come back for her yet. Had she fallen asleep upstairs?

　　The sky was bright now, so it should be safe, right? She decided to go look for Xia Ning. Slowly, she pushed open the broken cabinet door and crawled out, rubbing her numb legs before creeping up the stairs.

　　“The upstairs was completely empty, just a few vacant rooms. I was freaking out, thinking maybe you’d gone home and forgotten about me,” Yumeng said, rubbing her red eyes as she huddled under the blanket.

　　“I got so panicked that I rushed downstairs and ran out of the house. The sky outside was all gray, like the misty fog of early morning, and I couldn’t see the sun. I followed my memory back to the haunted house gate, and guess what I saw?” Yumeng asked me, her voice laced with fear.

　　“A body, chopped up into pieces,” I replied with a knowing smile.

　　She nodded, “Yeah, you’re right, it was a dismembered body.”

　　“When I saw them, I screamed and ran like hell. I somehow made it back to the school, but I couldn’t find you anywhere. I tried calling the police like crazy, but the call wouldn’t go through… I borrowed phone after phone, but none of them worked. I just couldn’t understand what was happening.” Yumeng sniffled, wiping her nose with a tissue before continuing.

　　“I even asked other people if they’d seen you, but everyone said no. I went to the teachers, and they actually told me you’d probably gone home. When I told them Wu Jing was dead, they just yelled at me…”

　　“I was completely hopeless, but I somehow mustered up the courage to go back to the haunted house to find you…”

　　“By then, it was almost dark. I searched every corner of that haunted house, big and small, but I still couldn’t find you…”The night had deepened, and Yumeng sat on the steps of the second floor, her tears falling unchecked. Dust clung to her clothes, and she was a mess, with strands of hair sticking out wildly.

　　“Xia Ning…” she murmured, her sleeve soaked through with tears as she dabbed at her nose and eyes with a crumpled tissue.

　　The events of the previous day replayed in her mind like a bizarre dream—Xia Ning’s warnings, Wu Jing’s lifeless body… The body?

　　Suddenly, a thought struck Yumeng: When she had wandered through the haunted house earlier, she hadn’t seen Wu Jing’s body anywhere.

　　But Yumeng, still in a daze, couldn’t piece together what it all meant. Her mind was a jumbled mess, like two heaps of trash mixed together, impossible to sort out.

　　All she could do was cry, her voice catching as she whispered the same name over and over, “Xia Ning…”