Chapter 1: The Bus

 

Chapter 1:

In the thick fog, a dilapidated bus slowly moves along an endless road.

There are seven people on the bus: three women and four men.

They sat on the bus, staring out the windows at the dense fog, their expressions varying.

Confusion, bewilderment, fear...

But aside from these, their faces are uniformly pale.

It’s as if they have experienced something terrifying on the road.

The bus continues on until it finally arrives at the front of an old and decrepit villa, where it comes to a stop.

The villa is shrouded in the surrounding fog, completely black, mysterious, and eerie.

The bus doors open, seemingly signaling to the passengers inside… it’s time to disembark.

The seven people slowly get off the bus, glancing back with an indescribable look of fear in their eyes.

Because, at the driver’s seat of the bus, where there should have been a driver, it is completely empty.

Yes, this bus… has no driver.

As the last passenger exits, the bus doors close automatically and then drives off, disappearing into the depths of the fog...

Standing outside the black villa, the seven people look at each other, seeing the extremely grim expressions on their faces.

"Let’s go..."

"I think we have no other choice."

At a critical moment, a slender man in the crowd speaks up. He wears deep brown, square-framed wooden glasses, and his delicate face shows a calmness that sets him apart.

"Do we… really have to go in?"

A beautiful woman with golden earrings trembles as she speaks.

She’s dressed lightly, so it’s very cold.

She wraps her arms around herself, rubbing her arms to warm up.

"What if it’s… unsafe inside?"

The others remain silent.

Originally, they thought this was some kind of prank or that someone had invited them to participate in a show…

But when they realized there was no driver on the bus, they fell into deep fear!

Although they had all been staunch materialists before, some events that had happened earlier were just too bizarre to believe!

"So, are you going to walk into the fog?"

Ning Qiushui takes a deep breath, trying to keep himself calm.

In reality, his heart is racing.

From the moment he received the mysterious letter to arriving at this place, it had been less than an hour.

But that hour had been a massive shock to his worldview!

"Do you remember the fat guy who jumped off the bus at the intersection?"

Mention of the fat guy immediately fills the woman’s beautiful eyes with immense terror.

Her legs went weak, and she almost loses her balance!

Earlier, there had been eight people on the bus.

Everyone had suddenly appeared on this bus after falling asleep.

Among them was a fat man who had been complaining loudly, saying it must be some unscrupulous show producer inviting them to participate in a reality show.

The fat man had impatiently said that their phones must have been switched, that the bus driver was actually driving the bus under them, and that the fog scene was specially created with dry ice, etc.

Finally, when the bus stopped at an intersection, the fat man opened the window, jumped out, and walked into the fog alone...

Up until this point, everything was relatively normal.

However, when they reached the next intersection, they found something hanging from the fog-covered traffic lights...

As the bus slowly approached, they saw clearly that what was hanging from the traffic lights was... the bloodied skin of the fat man who had left earlier!

The skin was completely peeled off, and they could even see the fat man’s expression, which was extremely terrified and twisted, as if he had seen something particularly horrifying before his death!

And on the traffic light’s pole, large amounts of bright red blood were flowing down!

This scene directly stunned everyone on the bus!

Some people, in disbelieve, opened the window, and the nauseating stench of blood filled the bus...

...

Mentioning the fat man made everyone’s faces look terrible, and some even began to retch.

"... Since no one dares to approach the fog, we can only enter the black villa..."

Ning Qiushui takes a deep breath.

He is also scared.

But for some reason, whether it was seeing the bloody skin hanging from the traffic lights or smelling the blood, his reaction is far less intense than that of the others.

Moreover, he is very interested in the mysterious letter he received earlier.

What exactly does the letter’s sender want to tell him?

Leading the way, Ning Qiushui and the others push open the iron gate of the black villa and enter the garden outside the villa.

The surroundings are very quiet.

Too quiet, in fact.

The group has to huddle closely together. The beautiful woman with golden earrings feels someone brushing against her, but she only frowns and says nothing more.

Being brushed off is better than being skinned alive!

Thus, they arrive at the door of the black villa. Ning Qiushui knocks on the door.

Knock, knock, knock—

As he knocks, footsteps can be heard from inside the door, and the others instinctively step back a few paces, watching the door intently, looking very nervous!

Creeeak—

The door opens.

However, the terrifying scene they expected does not appear.

The door is opened by a very delicate and beautiful young girl.

She seems to be only fifteen or sixteen years old.

"Have you arrived?"

"Come in."

The girl speaks, and the group realizes that she is actually… a boy.

A very beautiful boy.

But the boy’s voice is very cold.

There is little emotion in it.

As they see Ning Qiushui follow the boy inside, the others exchange glances, unsure whether to follow.

"You’d better come in quickly..."

As the group hesitates, the boy’s voice comes from inside the house again.

"The fog… is very dangerous."

Hearing about the fog again, everyone recalls the fat man’s gruesome death and shudders, rushing into the house.

The villa’s hall is very spacious, with a classical decor. On the left side are neatly arranged bookshelves, and on the right side is a wooden staircase leading upstairs. In the middle are three large sofas.

At the center of the sofas is a burning brazier.

Inside the room, four people are gathered around the brazier.

They stare blankly at the flames, lost in thought, not speaking.

The atmosphere, in such silence… becomes increasingly cold.

"Excuse me… where is this place?"

"Why are we here?"

"What’s the deal with the fog outside and the bus?"

"…"

Finally, after a moment of contemplation, Ning Qiushui asked these three questions.

But still, no one answered him.

Even the four people warming themselves by the fire didn’t spare him a glance.

At this moment, Liu Chengfeng, the man with a beard standing behind Ning Qiushui, couldn't hold back any longer:

"Hey, I’m asking you!"

"Are you all mute?"

His voice was loud, booming through the room and making everyone’s eardrums ache.

Finally, the man in the suit, who was sitting across from Ning Qiushui by the fire, spoke up:

"I know you have many questions..."

"If you survive coming back from the first blood gate, I will answer your questions."

Upon hearing this, a sense of ominous dread filled the hearts of the crowd.

"Blood gate? What is that?"

Ning Qiushui’s mind raced as he remembered the mysterious woman’s phone call earlier, and he asked.

The man in the suit, without lifting his head, pointed to the third floor of the villa.

"You don’t have much time left. In less than 5 minutes, the blood gate will open. When that happens, you will enter the terrifying world beyond the blood gate and complete the tasks required."

"After completing the tasks, the bus will come to pick you up."

After he finished speaking, a short and skinny girl with twin tails in the crowd, Yan Youping, weakly asked:

"What if… we don’t complete the tasks?"

The man in the suit slowly looked up and met Yan Youping’s gaze.

His calm and indifferent eyes made Yan Youping shiver.

"You will die."

"And it will be… a very tragic death."

Hearing this, everyone’s bodies went limp.

They wanted to believe this was just a joke.

However… the serious expression on the man in the suit crushed their last shred of hope.

"Is it… not possible to avoid going?"

A young man with dyed blond hair swallowed hard and asked.

The man in the suit glanced at him.

"Yes."

"But… you’d better not sleep after that."

The blond man was stunned:

"Why?"

The man in the suit smiled coldly:

"Because if you don’t go through the blood gate and complete the tasks, then… something will come out from behind the blood gate to find you."

"No matter where you try to escape, they will find you."

"And then…"

The man in the suit did not continue, but the others already knew the outcome.

Ning Qiushui glanced at the third floor and finally asked the man in the suit:

"Do you have any final instructions before we go in?"

The man in the suit was slightly taken aback, then shifted his gaze to Ning Qiushui. Seeing Ning Qiushui’s calm demeanor, a trace of subtle admiration flashed in his eyes.

"Final instructions… yes."

"Though the story behind the blood gate is extremely dangerous, there is more than one way to survive. As long as you find the way, completing the tasks and surviving… is not difficult."

Ning Qiushui nodded.

"Thank you."

After saying this, he took the lead and stepped towards the stairs, heading upstairs.

Seeing Ning Qiushui’s decisiveness, Liu Chengfeng, after a fierce internal struggle, gritted his teeth and followed.

"Man, you really have guts!"

Arriving behind Ning Qiushui, Liu Chengfeng whispered.

He had actually noticed Ning Qiushui during the journey.

It was hard not to.

Whether it was seeing the fat man's skin or smelling the intense stench of blood, Ning Qiushui had shown little reaction.

"Guts?"

Ning Qiushui gave a self-deprecating smile.

"Do you think we have a choice?"

Liu Chengfeng was tall, so even though he was a step lower than Ning Qiushui, he was only a little shorter.

"When we saw the fat man's skin, you didn’t even blink. Have you ever… done this kind of thing before?"

"What kind?"

"Assassin."

"Too many movies. There aren’t that many assassins in reality."

"Uh… well…"

"I’m a doctor."

"Oh~ No wonder, a forensic pathologist?"

"Close, a veterinarian."

Liu Chengfeng: "…"

As they chatted, they reached the third floor of the villa.

Upon arrival, they stopped talking.

The strong stench of blood mixed with the pungent odor of rotting wood filled the air.

The third floor of the villa was empty except for a blood-stained wooden door.

The crimson blood on the door had a message written on it:

[Take care of the bedridden elderly for five days]

"Taking care of the elderly… this is our task."

Ning Qiushui’s gaze flickered.

Others gradually arrived upstairs and saw the bloodied door, all stunned.

"Is it… really that simple?"

Wang Yuning, the woman with the golden earrings, asked in disbelief.

The crowd murmured among themselves. Suddenly, they all stopped, seemingly sensing something, and looked toward the wooden door in unison.

Creeeak—

From behind the door, it seemed as if something was pushing it open.

Soon, the door, stained with blood, was pushed open by a pair of pale hands!

As the blood-stained door slowly opened, darkness suddenly engulfed the crowd, and they lost consciousness…

☞ Chapter 2