Chapter 1 Haunted House

　　My name is Xia Ning, a lively high school girl. As for my appearance, well, I can only say that I am just a tiny bit less attractive than Fan Bingbing.

　　It was 10 o'clock on this evening when my girlfriends and I arrived in front of this abandoned haunted house, which had been closed for many years. Rumor has it that there was a murder case here, but the details are unknown.

　　The moonlight was dim, making it hard to see things clearly in the distance, everything appearing blurry.

　　Leading the way was Wu Jing, a carefree and easygoing girl. She suggested this activity, claiming it was our last gathering before summer vacation ended. She insisted that I had to come, and well, I ended up going along with her without much thought.

　　I remember some boys in our class overheard our conversation and got all excited, insisting on joining us. I have no idea why they were so thrilled, but Wu Jing tricked us by coming a day earlier, just to avoid those annoying guys from our class.

　　Sitting beside me was Yu Meng, a timid and cautious girl with a small appetite for adventure. I have no clue how Wu Jing managed to convince her to come. She must have some incredible persuasion skills.

　　"That's it! Inside, there's a section called 'Courtyard.' I heard it's a massive scene!" Wu Jing crouched like a thief, using her phone to capture the skeletal entrance gate.

　　"We don‘t go in, okay? This is so scary!" Yu Meng stood closely beside me, holding her phone tightly against her small chest, looking very scared.

　　"Oh come on, we're already here. Stop being such a party pooper," I initially resisted, but as soon as I laid eyes on this uniquely designed entrance gate, I couldn't help but feel a bit impatient.

　　My comment made the timid girl feel a bit embarrassed, and she fell silent.

　　I reached into my backpack and pulled out a lollipop for her. Smiling, I said, "Here, have this. It'll help distract you from being scared!" She murmured in agreement, hesitated for a moment, and then unwrapped the candy, popping it into her mouth.

　　"Ugh, Can we actually go in?" I impatiently exclaimed to Wu Jing, who was still fiddling around.

　　"Ah, the moment to witness a miracle has arrived!" With that, she pushed the skeletal door, and to our astonishment, it actually opened!

　　Both Yu Meng and I were dumbfounded.

　　"Sweetie, how did you manage to open it?" I asked, astonished.

　　"Lock-picking skills are my specialty!" She proudly laughed and gestured with a hand.

　　I gave her a thumbs-up and exclaimed, "Impressive, impressive!"

　　"You're amazing!" Yu Meng chimed in.

　　"Please!" Wu Jing smiled, reveling in her triumph.

　　I took out my phone and turned on the flashlight, leading the way ahead. Little did I know that as soon as we entered, Yu Meng, who was behind me, let out a scream and grabbed onto my hand. I turned to look at her, and as the beam of my phone's light swept to the sides, I saw a gruesome sight behind the door—limbs and heads covered in blood strewn across the floor. In the flickering light of my phone, it looked especially horrifying!

　　Startled, my hand trembled, and I almost dropped my phone.

　　"Come on, they're just some unused dolls!" said Wu Jing, uninterested. She even went inside and started rummaging through them, making those limbs and heads produce the distinct sound of plastic hitting against each other.

　　I have to say, Wu Jing really has nerves of steel. Even the fake dolls are scary enough!. But it could also be that she's laid-back, I thought with ill intent.

　　"You guys go in, I'll wait outside...!" trembled Yu Meng's voice. I could feel her body shaking, clearly frightened.

　　"Pff, you're scared? Well, then you can wait for us outside!" said Wu Jing, picking up a doll's head and playing with it.

　　As I observed her actions, I didn't want her to outdo me either. I grabbed a severed hand and gave it a glance, as if we were in a contest to see who would get scared first.

　　"Well, why don't you wait for us outside, we'll be out soon!" I said while toying with the prop.

　　Without saying a word, Yumeng dashed straight to the door.

　　"I... I'll wait for you guys outside, but please come back quickly..." Her voice grew fainter as she spoke, but we could still hear her clearly. After all, in this silent night, there weren't many sounds.

　　Wujing and I exchanged a smile. However, in the dim glow of my phone, her smile unexpectedly made me feel uneasy, especially with the doll's head still in her hand.

　　"Let's go!" I proposed.

　　We left behind the doll props and began walking inside.

　　An abandoned toll booth stood before us, with a worn-out shelf on each side. Some weeds were sprouting from the ground, and the broken tiles had moss growing on them. There was also a cabinet of unknown purpose, lying in ruins on the ground. As I peered inside, I instinctively took a step back—there was a moving shadow inside!!!

　　Seeing my reaction, Wujing burst into laughter, taunting me, "What did you see that scared you like this?"

　　"There's something inside, alive!" I said fearfully.

　　Wujing shook her head as she saw my expression and approached the cabinet to take a look. However, she didn't react at all.

　　"Wujing... What did you see?" I cautiously tugged at her sleeve.

　　She remained motionless.

　　"Wu..." Just as I was about to call her again, she suddenly turned towards me, making a scary face and nearly scaring me into screaming.

　　"You scared me to death!" I angrily exclaimed.

　　She smirked, reached into the cabinet, and pulled out a small mirror about the size of a palm.

　　I sighed in relief, while she looked at me with disdain. I awkwardly took a few steps forward and hastily defended myself, "I didn't see it clearly just now!"

　　"Alright, alright, you didn't see it clearly, but I did!" She laughed and quickly walked a few steps ahead of me. I hurriedly caught up from behind.

　　"Wait for me..."

　　We hadn't walked for long when we reached the entrance of the scene. The entrance was an unlocked iron gate with two blood-red characters written on it, "Courtyard!" Without hesitation, she walked right in. I admired her courage in my heart.

　　As we entered the scene, all we could see were tombstones with tall iron mesh walls on either side.

　　I noticed that the iron mesh walls were entangled with barbed wires. At the end of the tombstones stood a dilapidated three-story building. It had a modern villa-style architecture with tall French windows that seemed to be obstructed by something, making it impossible to see inside. Illuminated by the dim moonlight, the entire scene appeared eerie.

　　We walked up, crossing the cemetery, and heading towards the decrepit three-story building. Along the way, I also noticed unburied graves with skeletal remains inside. It sent shivers down my spine, but she seemed completely unfazed.

　　After about twenty minutes, we stopped about a dozen meters away from the villa. She intended to go inside and take a look, but I held her back. I checked the time and realized it had been almost thirty minutes since we entered. I was getting worried about Yumeng.

　　Wujing sensed my concern. "Hey, why are you worried about her? She's not a child!" Wujing said nonchalantly.

　　"If you want to go in, go ahead. I'll go outside and wait for you with her!" I said, growing somewhat angry.

　　"Fine then, let's go back. But next time, we have to do this again!" Wujing remained enthusiastic.

　　On the way back, I walked ahead while she followed behind. Holding my phone, I turned on the flashlight and passed by one tombstone after another until we reached our starting point.

　　In the distance, illuminated by the faint moonlight, I saw the door of the haunted house partially open. Yumeng stood at the entrance, her back facing us. However, something felt off to me.

　　"Yumeng! Yumeng!" I called out twice, but she didn't respond.

　　Thinking she might not have heard me from afar, I approached and called out again, "Yumeng!" As soon as the words left my mouth, I dropped my phone in shock and covered my mouth.

　　There, at the entrance, with her back facing us, was Yumeng, suspended between two doors. A gentle breeze brushed against the hem of her white dress.

　　Summoning my courage, I slowly approached her. Her body remained completely motionless, as if standing on something, but when I looked down, I realized there was nothing beneath her feet!

　　Trembling, I mustered the strength to reach out and grab her sleeve. As I pulled back, her body unexpectedly fell, leaving her head behind. As her feet touched the ground, the headless body collapsed towards me!

　　"Ahh!" I screamed, about to run, but her neck hit my chest, drenching me in a warm liquid. The salty, metallic taste filled my mouth. I knew what it was—it was her blood!

　　Panicking, I pushed her headless body aside and ran out until something tripped me, causing me to fall unconscious.