Translator: CinderTL
Currently, the Ghost and the two men were circling several bookshelves along a fixed route.
The Ghost was between them, and both Gao Yan and Fatty were hunched over, moving cautiously at the same pace, afraid of making any noise that might attract the Ghost.
The Ghost was cooperating, advancing steadily step by step at a slow, even pace.
Gao Yan's eyes lit up as he stared at an intersection ahead, with a dark bookshelf to the side.
He had an idea.
After calculating the timing, he took out his phone, set an alarm for one minute later, and gently placed the phone on the bookshelf.
Then, he walked away as if nothing had happened.
At their current pace, the alarm would go off just as Fatty passed by the bookshelf.
The alarm would startle the Ghost, and then Fatty...
Bang!
Plop!
The sound of books falling to the floor echoed behind them.
Gao Yan's face paled.
What was going on?
The Ghost seemed to have been triggered, suddenly accelerating to twice its previous speed.
Seeing this, Gao Yan didn't dare waste any time. He immediately quickened his pace, the Ghost's speed forcing him to accelerate as well, lest he be caught.
But just a few seconds later, Gao Yan's pupils constricted, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
Damn it!
If he sped up now, wouldn't he arrive back at the bookshelf with the phone just as the alarm went off?
No way! Absolutely not!
Though time was running out, Gao Yan forced himself to calm down. Why had the Ghost suddenly accelerated? What had triggered it?
It couldn't be him. It had to be that Fatty!
Thinking this, he turned his head to see where the Fatty had gotten to. But what he saw left him stunned.
The Fatty... was gone.
There were only a few bookshelves nearby, and an invisible Ghost was circling between them. Gao Yan wouldn't dare stop.
So... had the Fatty escaped?!
No wonder the Ghost had suddenly sped up. It must have realized someone had gotten away and was now taking its anger out on him.
But how did he do it?
There was nowhere to hide nearby except for a few bookshelves. If he tried to escape, the Ghost had no reason not to chase him.
But he clearly didn't have enough time to figure out the answer. Gao Yan steeled himself and stepped further into the trap he had set for Fatty.
"No, this can't be happening!" He raised his head, his eyes bloodshot. He decided to gamble everything and sprint past the bookshelf with the phone.
If he could just stall for a little longer, the mission would end, and he wouldn't die.
"Yes, that's it!"
Gao Yan hesitated no longer, quickening his pace. But just as he accelerated and charged past the bookshelf, his body suddenly lurched to a halt, as if he had slammed headfirst into a wall.
Yet there was nothing in front of him.
His mind blank, Gao Yan shakily reached out his hand to feel forward. He did indeed touch something—rough, cracked, like old tree bark.
His throat convulsed violently. He hadn't expected the Burnt Ghost to remain motionless, standing here waiting for him.
Creak—
Crack, crack, crack
The sound of charred charcoal snapping echoed in Gao Yan's ears. Perhaps because the mission was nearing its end, the Ghost finally revealed its true form.
Its body was enormous. A charred, pitch-black head with melted features slowly retracted, then lowered, leaving empty, hollow eye sockets.
Yet Gao Yan knew the Ghost was watching him.
In his final moments, Gao Yan finally understood the mystery that had plagued him: the Ghost hadn't been waiting for him; it had been guarding the person on top of the bookshelf.
That Fatty had actually climbed up there and hidden at the very top!
When the Ghost had first appeared, its head had been raised, looking upward. Gao Yan had stumbled into it, only then drawing its attention.
"Ring, ring, ring..."
As Gao Yan's phone rang, a massive Ghost Hand clamped down on his head. Then, amidst a bloodcurdling scream, the Burnt Ghost and Gao Yan vanished together.
The sand in the hourglass finally ran out.
Hearing the scream, Jiang Cheng emerged from his hiding place, and Huai Yi and Shen Mengyun immediately raced toward the sound.
When they arrived, the library was empty except for a few tall, bulky bookshelves. Fatty and Gao Yan were nowhere to be seen.
"That sounded like Gao Yan," Huai Yi said, looking around.
"This is..." Shen Mengyun picked up a phone from a shelf. After a moment, she nodded decisively. "This is Gao Yan's phone. I've seen him use it before."
The phone was here, but Gao Yan was gone, and they had heard a scream.
"It's so good to see you."
Suddenly, a voice came from above, as if whispering directly into their ears.
Startled, Huai Yi instinctively tried to run, but instead slammed into Shen Mengyun, nearly knocking them both down.
"Don't be afraid, it's... it's me."
Jiang Cheng looked up and saw a large head peering over the top of the dark bookshelf. It was none other than Fatty.
"Damn!" Huai Yi clutched his forehead, but his face was lit with surprise. "Brother Fugui, how did you end up hiding up there?"
Fatty carefully climbed down from the bookshelf and quickly explained.
The Burnt Ghost had been searching for him and Gao Yan nearby, and they couldn't escape. In desperation, he'd decided to climb onto the bookshelf.
Though the Ghost was tall, it wouldn't be able to see the top of the shelf at eye level.
But after he'd climbed up, he hadn't expected the Ghost to follow. It had just waited patiently at the base of the bookshelf, refusing to leave.
He looked up at the ghost's position, nearly scaring Fatty to death.
"Wait," Shen Mengyun said, her eyes narrowing as she turned to Fatty. "How did you know the ghost was waiting below and looking up at you?"
According to the rules of the 4th Floor, ghosts were supposed to be virtually invisible. How could he have seen one?
"I... I saw it," Fatty stammered, swallowing nervously. "I realized something: if you're positioned higher than the ghost, you can see it."
Jiang Cheng pondered for a moment, then gestured for Fatty to continue.
"After that, I thought, 'Oh shit, I'm in trouble now. That ghost has its eye on me, it's definitely going to come after me.' But then..." Fatty's tone shifted. "Gao Yan suddenly appeared out of nowhere and rammed right into the ghost."
"And then the ghost turned around and... took him away," Fatty finished, his voice trailing off, a mixture of bewilderment and embarrassment in his tone.
"Mr. Jiang," Shen Mengyun said, handing Gao Yan's phone over. "Take a look at this."
The phone screen displayed the alarm clock, set just a few minutes earlier.
Jiang Cheng quickly pieced together Gao Yan's plan: he'd intended to use the phone to trick Fatty, but it had backfired spectacularly.
(End of the Chapter)
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