Chapter 64: Chang Gui (4) part 1
Creak… Creak…
When a person is overly tense, the bones in their body can sound like machine parts, making involuntary noises.
This slight rustling sound reached Old Wangâs ears like a clap of thunder.
He didn’t dare look back, nor did he dare run forward again.
The events before him had completely overturned his worldview of several decades. How could this be happening?
He had been running for so long; why was he still on the eighth floor?
This old manâwhat exactly was he?
“You young people, running off without saying a word. How impolite.” Uncle Liâs voice sounded behind him.
“The photos aren’t finished yet. Why are you running? Come back with me and continue the shoot!”
Hearing that he had to go back, Old Wang shuddered violently, knowing he couldn’t stall any longer.
Seeing that he remained motionless, Uncle Li stepped forward, intending to personally pull him back.
Suddenly, a gimbal was hurled at him, striking him hard in the head.
After throwing the object, Old Wang looked back in panic. It was this single glance that made his heart and liver feel like they were splitting apart. He let out a gasp that caught in his throat and rushed downward regardless of everything.
Uncle Liâs head, having been struck by the gimbal, actually fell off just like that, rolling across the floor like a ball.
In the dim light, his face took on the white of dead silence. After rolling a few times on the floor, it seemed all its essence was sucked away, and it rapidly shriveled.
In the stairwell, only the heavy sound of Old Wangâs running echoed incessantly.
He ran until his strength was gone, leaning against the wall and gasping for breath. Tremblingly, he pulled out his phone and pointed the light at the wall, only to find in despair that he was once again on the eighth floor.
But this time, he didn’t encounter Uncle Li.
Old Wang steadied his mind and frantically tried to unlock his phone to call for help.
It was only then that he realized the livestream had been cut off at some point, and there wasn’t a shred of signal.
Damn his father!
Old Wang cursed inwardly. In his extreme terror, a feeling of despair spread everywhere, nearly crushing his precarious nerves.
The surrounding darkness seemed even more oppressive under the meager light of the phone. He couldn’t help but wonderâwas he really going to be trapped here?
A chilly night wind blew through. Jiang Si, who was currently adjusting his equipment, suddenly couldn’t help but cover his mouth and sneeze. He looked up at the sky in confusion. “Is it this cold today?”
“Maybe someone is thinking about you,” Bai Qiniang said eerily as she passed by.
“Who?” Jiang Si glanced at her.
“Who knows?” Bai Qiniang stroked her chin with a giggle. “Whoever you’re thinking of is the one thinking of you.”
Jiang Si: “…”
He hadn’t scolded her enough earlier.
Todayâs scenes were mostly finished, so he packed up his things, intending to head back. Suddenly, after taking a few steps, he stopped in his tracks.
Standing in the central open area of the circular tube building, he looked back. The pale white moonlight struck one side of his face. NPC ghosts who had finished their shift and received their pay kept greeting him as they passed by.
“Goodbye, Boss Jiang.”
“We’ll come back tomorrow.”
“Bye-byeâ”
Jiang Si ignored them, feeling as if he had overlooked something.
Seeing him standing there as if dazed, Bai Qiniang came over to urge him along, but Jiang Si asked her in return: “Do you remember how long it’s been since that person who said he was here to explore went in?”
“Huh? A few hours, right?”
“He hasn’t come out yet.” Jiang Si pondered for a moment and handed the things to her. “Put these in the car. I’m going to go check on the situation.”
When this building was constructed, it only had two exits. After being abandoned for so many years, the other exit had been completely boarded up, leaving only one. To leave, one would have to pass by the area where they were filming, regardless of where they came from.
With dawn almost approaching, that exploration streamer still hadn’t ended his livestream.
Jiang Si couldn’t help but think a bit more, connecting this to the pranks from a few days ago where people were tricked into coming here for part-time jobs.
Seeing that her calls to him were futile, Bai Qiniang stamped her foot. She muttered to herselfâwhat was there to see? A grown man couldn’t just vanish into thin air, could he?
Jiang Si was just worrying too much.
Ultimately, she was still afraid something might actually happen. She tossed the things in her hands to a passing ghost, ordering him to put them in the car, and then ran a few steps to catch up with Jiang Si.
“What’s there to look at?” Bai Qiniang grumbled in a low voice. “You’re worried something happened to him, but why aren’t you worried about whether I’ll starve to death?”
Jiang Si gave her a sidelong glance, and his opening words were a fatal blow: “You’ve already started acting; don’t you have any professional awareness as an actress? Do you know how thin those female stars are? Look at youâyou must have eaten quite a lot of Sister Lanyue’s offerings lately, haven’t you?”
“…What?” Bai Qiniangâs voice instantly rose dozens of times in pitch: “What do you mean? Am I fat? Look at meâlook at my figure, my lines! How am I fat!”
She wished she could perform a transformation into a giant snake on the spot just to show Jiang Si what a slender figure truly looked like.
Jiang Si hadn’t expected his words to trigger such a defensive reaction from her. Taken aback, he actually did look at her instinctively.
Bai Qiniang placed her hands on her waist and stood tall for him to observe.
After a long while, Jiang Si, relying on his years of keen visual sense from drawing the human body, pointed out directly: “Your jawline has become a bit rounder.”
“…”
Bai Qiniang immediately covered her face, not wanting to say a word to Jiang Si.
“Alright, alright.” Jiang Si comforted her somewhat insincerely. “You’re not human; why do you care about this? Besides, even humans can’t keep dieting forever. An actor’s body needs to be adjusted according to the role. I was just teasing you.”
“…” Bai Qiniang remained silent.
Jiang Si sighed helplessly, leaving her space to mourn, and continued up the stairs.
He checked floor after floor and didn’t see a soul. He couldn’t help but thinkâcould that exploration streamer have actually left?
By now, there were faint signs of dawn outside. The sound of his footsteps, with a drawn-out tone, struck the dust-covered floor. Jiang Si turned another floor, lost in thought for a moment.
He was caught off guard and startled by a head peering out from a corner.
The man was standing just a step away from him, peeking around the wall.
Both of his eyes were glowing eerily as he stared unblinkingly at Jiang Si, his voice extremely vigilant: “Who are you?”
Jiang Si took two consecutive steps back. Sensing that the other partyâs emotional state wasn’t right, he spoke tentatively: “We met downstairs earlier. I’m the director whoâs filming.”
“Are you f*cking human or a ghost!” The man let out a roar of breakdown.
“Damn it! I can’t take it anymore! I’m not hiding! if you want to kill me, just give me a quick death!”
“I’m human, of course.” Jiang Si sensed this man must have encountered something just now. “If you don’t believe me, you can call the police. Why would I want to kill you?”
“Call the police? Is there a signal here?” Old Wang repeated the words blankly. He hurriedly took out his nearly dead phone to check and found it had returned to normal. He almost cried with joy.
He clutched his phone and began to wail loudly.
“I was scared to deathâI thought I was going to die here today! Waaaahâ Momâ I’m still alive!”
The sight of a burly man in his thirties clutching his phone and painfully calling for his mother was truly hard to appreciate. Jiang Si watched with a complex expression for a long time until Bai Qiniang caught up from behind, asking Jiang Si suspiciously.
“What did you do to him?”
“Good question. I’d like to know too.” Jiang Si was also puzzled.
After crying for a while, Old Wang clutched his phone, wanting to leave immediately. Jiang Si was quick and grabbed him, asking what had happened.
As he asked, his gaze was fixed on Old Wangâs face. He clearly saw the manâs pupils dilate instantly, his jaw muscles clenching tight, and the veins on his forehead throbbingâit was an expression of extreme terror.
Recommended Reads
