Chen Ge's gaze lingered on Fan Yu, the boy's cryptic words—"I'm looking for something"—echoing in his mind, stirring a storm of emotions that threatened to unravel his composure. "Looking for heaven inside the well?" he asked softly, the question half-directed at himself as a chilling realization took root. The boy's fixation on the well, coupled with his aunt's mention of his parents' disappearance, sparked a memory of his own loss—his parents, vanished without a trace, tied to the black phone's mysteries. Chen Ge turned away, his chest tightening, and took a deep breath to steady himself, the cool air of the Siheyuan grounding him. The woman, distracted by her nephew's stubbornness, didn't notice his momentary lapse, her focus split between worry and exhaustion. Chen Ge's thoughts raced: Heaven, a lie told to a child to soften the blow of loss. But what if Fan Yu took it literally? The boy's behavior—his fearless draw to the dark, his obsession with the well—felt like a thread connecting to the Haunted House's spectral undercurrents, perhaps even to the School of the Afterlife. As he wrestled with the implications, Zhang Ya's crimson presence pulsed faintly in his mind, her "Yours forever" vow a silent reminder that every clue, every visitor, might pull him deeper into her dangerous web.
When Chen Ge turned back, he caught Fan Yu staring at him, the boy's dark, oversized eyes gleaming with the same unsettling intensity he'd shown toward Xu Wan in her blood-red bridal gown. Those eyes, like polished ebony, seemed to pierce through Chen Ge, locking onto his shadow as if it held secrets of its own. "Fan Yu, it's time to go home," the woman urged, her voice tinged with fatigue, but this time, the boy responded. He stepped away from the well, his head still bowed, yet a subtle shift in his demeanor suggested a flicker of contentment, as if the Siheyuan had given him something intangible. Chen Ge watched closely, noting the boy's small frame moving reluctantly toward the exit, his silence louder than any words. The woman's repeated calls had finally broken through, but Fan Yu's compliance felt less like obedience and more like a temporary retreat from his search. As they stepped out of the Haunted House, the afternoon sun bathed them in harsh light, and Fan Yu's demeanor shifted again—his shoulders hunched, his eyes clouded with fear, as if the brightness or the presence of living people unnerved him. Chen Ge's mind churned: Is it the light he fears, or the living? The boy's detachment, so stark outside the Haunted House's shadows, mirrored the spectral oddities Chen Ge faced daily, hinting at a connection to the black phone's cryptic missions.
As the woman and Fan Yu exited New Century Park, the woman turned to Chen Ge, her face soft with gratitude. "Thank you for letting us in," she said, her voice heavy with relief, before guiding the boy away, his small hand clasped tightly in hers. Chen Ge stood at the entrance, watching their figures fade into the crowd, a mix of curiosity and unease settling in his chest. The black phone vibrated in his pocket, its familiar hum pulling him back to the present. He sank onto the steps outside the Haunted House, the warm stone grounding him as he replayed the encounter. Fan Yu's words—"looking for something"—and his aunt's revelation about his parents' disappearance at Mu Yang High School gnawed at him. Heaven in the well… not a metaphor for him. The woman's lie, meant to shield a five-year-old from grief, had twisted into something darker, stunting Fan Yu's psyche. The boy's fixation on the well suggested a chilling possibility: Did he see something that night? His parents, pushed into a well? The thought sent a shiver through Chen Ge, the chill in his eyes—Zhang Ya's mark—flaring as he lit a cigarette absentmindedly, the smoke curling upward like a specter. He didn't rush to call the police, his mind too tangled in speculation, the black phone's weight urging him to dig deeper before acting.
The connection to Mu Yang High School hit Chen Ge like a thunderbolt, its name a dark thread woven into the black phone's missions. He pulled out the device, its screen glowing with an unread message that made his pulse quicken.
Opening it, he read: "Different choices lead to different results. The first special visitor has left. You made the correct choice during the visitation period. Congratulations for obtaining the reward!
Unlocked Hidden Trial Mission—Mu Yang High School!
This mission is part of the four-star scenario, School of the Afterlife's side mission.
Completing it will unlock a two-star scenario, Mu Yang High School, and lower the Trial Mission difficulty for School of the Afterlife.
Mission Venue: Mu Yang High School.
Mission Request: Arrive at the mission venue before 11 p.m. tonight and survive until dawn.
Mission Hint: Everyone has a deep well inside their heart where shameful and unknowable secrets stay buried.
Do you wish to accept the mission?
Warning: Trial Mission is only active for 24 hours. If you do not accept it within 24 hours, you will forfeit the mission, and the scenario will forever be locked."
The words sent a jolt through him, the stakes higher than he'd anticipated. Fan Yu, the "special visitor," had triggered this—a two-star Trial Mission, far more perilous than the one-star Ping An Apartments, where he'd barely escaped with his life. The mention of a well in the mission hint, paired with Fan Yu's obsession, felt like no coincidence, but a direct link to the boy's parents and the School of the Afterlife.
Chen Ge's cigarette burned low, the ash falling as Zhang Ya's crimson presence stirred, her sadistic whims a shadow over the mission's dangers, promising a night where survival would demand every ounce of his courage—and her volatile aid.
Chen Ge's eyes were glued to the black phone's glowing screen, his fingers tracing over the details of the newly unlocked Mu Yang High School Trial Mission as he committed every word to memory. The message was a labyrinth of warnings and promises: a two-star scenario tied to the elusive four-star School of the Afterlife, with a deceptively simple objective—survive until dawn at Mu Yang High School. Compared to his previous mission, which demanded he unmask a murderer in the Murder by Midnight scenario, this seemed straightforward, yet the black phone's designation of a two-star rating sent a chill through him, colder than Zhang Ya's spectral touch.
A higher rating means higher danger, he thought, his mind replaying the terror of the one-star Ping An Apartments mission, where survival had been a razor's edge. The phone's cryptic hint—"Everyone has a deep well inside their heart where shameful and unknowable secrets stay buried"—echoed Fan Yu's obsession with the Siheyuan's well, suggesting a connection to the boy's vanished parents and the school's dark rumors. Chen Ge's pulse quickened, the weight of the 24-hour deadline pressing down. Forfeiting the mission risked locking Mu Yang High School and its link to School of the Afterlife forever, a loss that could sever his path to uncovering his parents' fate. The black phone vibrated faintly, as if urging him to decide, its hum a reminder of Zhang Ya's "Yours forever" vow, her crimson presence a shadow over every choice.
The stakes gnawed at Chen Ge, his mind wrestling with the consequences of inaction versus the peril of acceptance. Forfeiting the mission meant losing not just the two-star Mu Yang High School scenario but also a critical piece of the School of the Afterlife puzzle, a four-star challenge far beyond his current capabilities yet tantalizingly close to his parents' disappearance. Two losses at once is too much, he thought, his fingers tightening around the phone. The Haunted House's survival depended on constant reinvention to draw repeat visitors, especially with New Century Park's closure looming in three months. A two-star scenario could be a game-changer, pulling in thrill-seekers and buying time to rival Eastern Jiujiang's Virtual Reality Futuristic Carnival. If I complete this, I unlock a new scenario and ease the path to School of the Afterlife. The pros outweighed the cons, but the memory of Ping An Apartments—its spectral traps and near-fatal encounters—made his resolve waver. Zhang Ya's mark flared in his eyes, a warning of the dangers ahead, her sadistic whims a wildcard in any mission. Yet the urgency of the 24-hour window and the need to keep the Haunted House alive pushed him forward. With a deep breath, he tapped "Accept," the screen flashing briefly before going dark, sealing his fate for the night ahead.
With the mission accepted, Chen Ge wasted no time, his mind shifting to action as the weight of the decision settled in his chest. He dialed Xu Wan, his voice steady despite the adrenaline coursing through him. "I'm heading out for the day," he told her, entrusting the Haunted House to her care. "Keep things running smoothly." Xu Wan's cheerful agreement crackled through the phone, oblivious to the danger he was walking into. Fan Yu, the "special visitor" who had triggered this mission, was the key, his connection to Mu Yang High School and the well a thread Chen Ge needed to follow.
He sprinted to the park's entrance, his eyes scanning the crowd until he spotted the woman and Fan Yu boarding a Route 14 bus, its doors hissing shut. Without hesitation, he hailed a cab, the driver's bored glance meeting his urgent command: "Get to the next stop for Route 14, fast." The taxi peeled away, weaving through Jiujiang's bustling streets, the city's noise a stark contrast to the eerie silence of the Haunted House. Chen Ge's mind churned—Fan Yu's fixation, the school's rumors, the black phone's cryptic hint—all pointed to secrets buried at Mu Yang High School, secrets that might mirror his own quest for his parents. As the cab pulled up to the stop, the bus lumbered in a minute later, and Chen Ge slipped into the crowd, his eyes locked on the woman and boy, ready to uncover whatever truths they carried.
The bus was a sardine can of passengers, the air thick with the hum of conversations and the squeak of brakes, as Chen Ge positioned himself at the front, keeping the woman and Fan Yu in sight. They were squeezed toward the back, the woman clutching Fan Yu protectively, her face etched with worry as the boy stared blankly out the window. They haven't noticed me, Chen Ge thought, his presence cloaked by the crowd's chaos. Following them home might reveal something—about Fan Yu, his parents, or the school.
The bus rattled through seven stops, the cityscape giving way to sparser, more desolate surroundings, the buildings thinning as fields and abandoned lots crept into view. Chen Ge's instincts sharpened, the black phone's weight in his pocket a constant reminder of the mission's stakes. When the bus neared its final stop, the woman and Fan Yu disembarked, not heading down the main road but turning onto a narrow, secluded path lined with overgrown weeds and cracked pavement.
Chen Ge followed at a distance, his steps silent, his mind racing. They live out here? The woman's mention of costly doctor visits for Fan Yu flashed back—such isolation likely stemmed from financial strain, but it also felt eerily fitting for a boy drawn to darkness. As he trailed them, the woman and boy suddenly quickened their pace, their figures shrinking into the path's shadows, as if sensing a presence—or something worse—lurking behind.