The clammy, cold sensation sent shivers down Li Zixuan’s spine, whilst the dwindling oxygen levels left her dazed.
Help!
…………
Lu Mian, oblivious to everything, rushed back to the dormitory in a flurry.
Glaucoma! It can cause blindness!
She had to get online straight away to find out which hospital had the best ophthalmology department; she’d book an appointment tonight and go for a check-up tomorrow.
Lu Mian pushed open the dormitory door, only to find Chen Jiaqi and Wang Ying, who were usually obsessed with gaming, huddled together, both looking terrified.
“What’s wrong?”
Lu Mian leaned in curiously, only to find both their mobile screens frozen on the same news story—‘Student found hanged in mysterious circumstances at Ningjiang University Library’.
Lu Mian narrowed her eyes. Something was off—very, very off.
“Lu Mian, we feel like we’ve seen a ghost! What should we do?” Wang Ying’s voice trembled with tears.
Lu Mian raised her hand to interrupt her, her expression grave as she opened her notifications panel. She wasn’t one to delete messages, and there, among the ignored notifications, was the very same message that Wang Ying and Chen Jiaqi had received.
Wang Ying and Chen Jiaqi’s eyes also fell upon Lu Mian’s phone. The moment they made out the message, their faces paled even further.
“We definitely haven’t searched for any of this, yet it was pushed to us all at the same time. Doesn’t that prove…” Chen Jiaqi didn’t voice the chilling suspicion.
“Our phones are eavesdropping on us!” Lu Mian interjected at just the right moment.
“Eh?” Wang Ying and Chen Jiaqi both looked utterly baffled.
“I knew something was off. I’ve only ever searched for things like ‘how to switch careers in our field’ and ‘part-time jobs for university students’. How did this suddenly pop up? It looks like it overheard Lin Yue telling that ghost story last night.” Lu Mian scoured the settings with a grave expression, determined to disable the eavesdropping function.
“But,” Wang Ying began, listing the inconsistencies one by one, “we looked closely at that news report. That girl, Huang Qingqing, hanged herself in an elevator. How does one hang oneself in an elevator? Where would the rope be attached? How could someone hang themselves without any support to achieve suffocation?”
“What’s more, Huang Qingqing used to live in Block 3, Room 404—the very dorm we’re in now. And even more coincidentally, she died in the early hours of 13 May 2011. Today is 12 May,” Chen Jiaqi added, her face pale.
“So, what are you getting at?” Lu Mian looked at the two of them, her expression turning grave.
“There’s a ghost in the school!”
Lu Mian felt as though her heart had turned to stone. It was over; their dormitory was truly doomed. Following Xu Xia, two more had taken up the occult.
What on earth should she do? How could she get her roommates to return to normal?
“Lu Mian, shall we stay awake tonight? Let’s hold out until tomorrow, and then we’ll go and find a master, shall we?” Wang Ying’s voice took on a tremor.
Lu Mian waved her hands urgently. “No, I’ve got an eye test at the hospital tomorrow. If I don’t sleep tonight, it’ll affect the results.”
Seeing that the two were still frightened, Lu Mian suggested, “Here’s what we’ll do: if you’re really scared, just huddle together. If anything happens tonight, just wake me up, all right?”
The two hesitated for a moment, but eventually agreed. Lu Mian was the bravest in their dorm; with her there, they’d feel a little more at ease.
Seeing the two of them huddle together, Lu Mian said no more and climbed into bed to look up the hospital.
Wang Ying and the other girl messaged Xu Xia and Lin Yue in the group chat to ask when they’d be back at the dorm; they’d feel safer with more people around.
Xu Xia replied quickly.
[Xu Xia: On my way, will be there soon.]
Sitting on the bus, Xu Xia’s hands were trembling as she typed the message.
Earlier, the spiritual healer summoned by Su Qing’s family had revived her. Su Qing had explicitly told them there was a ghost in the school, and now she was certain that the ghost was Lin Yue.
She hadn’t wanted to return to the dormitory at all; she’d intended to stay at the hospital with Su Qing and the others. But whilst she was away for a moment to use the toilet, she had seen Lin Yue.
Su Qing’s ward was on the eighth floor. As she stepped out of the toilet and glanced out onto the balcony, she had come face to face with Lin Yue’s blood-stained face.
Her eyes were bulging, and the blood seeping from them had congealed into eerie patterns across her face. Her long black hair obscured the side of her face, further highlighting the dark red bloodstains in the centre.
Lin Yue was on the ground floor, whilst she was on the eighth; she should never have been able to make out Lin Yue’s face, yet she did. She let out an instinctive scream, which indeed drew the shaman’s attention—the shaman saw Lin Yue too.
The shaman immediately declared that this ghost was too vicious for her to handle and ordered bystanders to leave at once.
Terrified, she ran straight back to the university.
Buses in Ningjiang City usually only run until half past ten in the evening; this was the last bus of the night. Had she been just a little later, she might not have caught it.
The bus stopped at the Ningjiang University stop. Xu Xia walked quickly, sending messages in the group chat as she went, making sure she and her roommate were in constant contact. That way, she felt she wasn’t alone, and her fear wasn’t quite so intense.
It took about ten minutes to walk from the main gate to the dormitory. Perhaps it was the return to familiar surroundings, or the fact that the ‘ghost’ had gone to hospital, but Xu Xia gradually began to relax.
‘Ee-ya, ee-ya—’
A melodious song gradually rose up. Xu Xia quickened her pace. The dormitory block opposite theirs often played music late at night; she used to find it annoying, but now it gave her a sense of reassurance, and she found herself listening to the music subconsciously.
As she listened, Xu Xia realised the melody was quite distinctive—melodious and lyrical, yet tinged with a touch of sadness.
Accompanied by the singing, Xu Xia found herself humming along silently.
At first, the sound seemed distant, as if drifting from afar, but as she sang along, it grew closer, as though the song and she were meeting each other halfway.
Xu Xia felt her mind relax; the dormitory must be just around the corner.
After walking for a few more minutes, Xu Xia suddenly stopped. Why hadn’t she reached the dormitory yet?
Xu Xia looked up ahead. There was the brightly lit dormitory area, and she could clearly see people moving about. Yet she had clearly been walking for several minutes; she should have passed through the dormitory’s iron gate by now. Why was she still standing here?
“Ooh-la-la—”
The melodious, lilting song echoed clearly in her ears.
Yes, she could hear the singing; she’d heard it so many… times.
No!
Why did she suddenly feel as though the singing was coming from behind her?
Xu Xia turned her head stiffly and slowly, her mind already conjuring up a thousand images of a ghostly face appearing before her, but to her surprise, there was nothing behind her at all.
Xu Xia turned her head uncertainly to take a closer look; only the school’s trees stood silently in the darkness, like demons from hell.
Xu Xia gave a start, quickly looked down and hurried forward. She had barely taken two steps when she suddenly bumped into someone.
She instinctively looked up to see a girl wearing a blue long dress, her hair tied in a bun, smiling at her.
“Sorry!”
Xu Xia assumed she’d been in such a hurry that she’d accidentally bumped into the girl. After apologising, she tried to step past her and leave.
But the girl stepped in front of Xu Xia once more.
Xu Xia blinked in confusion. “Is something wrong?”
The girl said nothing, merely maintaining her smile as she watched Xu Xia in silence.
Xu Xia kept trying to step past the girl and leave, but the melodious singing continued to echo in her ears, making her increasingly irritable.
Wait a moment—singing?
Xu Xia stiffly looked up; the singing was coming from the girl herself!