The night air felt like ice against Lin Ze's burning lungs as he ran. His heartbeat pounded in his ears, drowning out everything but the woman's soft, ghostly laughter that seemed to follow him no matter how fast he moved.
"Hehehe…"
He didn't dare look back, but his mind kept screaming: Is she behind me? How close is she now?
[Bullet Comments]
* "Lin Ze! Don't stop! Keep running!"
* "Oh my god, she's RIGHT behind you!"
* "I saw her shadow. Don't turn around, DON'T TURN AROUND!"
Lin Ze stumbled, nearly falling face-first into the dirt. His hands scraped against rough stones as he pushed himself back up.
Then…
The chat fell into complete silence.
His camera's night vision flickered erratically. And through the broken static, one clear image emerged.
His own reflection.
But not just one.
In the camera feed, Lin Ze could see himself running—but another figure was running right behind him. Exactly mimicking his movements. Step for step. Sway for sway.
And that figure had no face.
Just a blank, pale surface where eyes and a mouth should have been.
Lin Ze gasped for air, his legs trembling. He could barely keep his balance.
Then, the voice came again.
Right at his ear this time.
"You're the one… I've been waiting for…"
He couldn't resist anymore.
His head turned.
Slowly.
Painfully.
She stood just inches behind him, her feet still hovering above the ground. Her long, black hair shifted slightly as if moved by an unseen breeze.
And her face…
Lin Ze's eyes widened in horror.
She had no eyes. No nose.
Just that enormous, bloody smile stretched impossibly wide, splitting her face in half.
"Hehehe…"
Her mouth opened wider.
Wider…
Lin Ze screamed.
He turned and sprinted downhill with everything he had left. Branches whipped across his face, rocks tore into his knees, but he didn't stop. He couldn't stop.
Somewhere far away, his livestream viewers watched helplessly.
The camera caught glimpses of the woman still floating just behind him, her white dress trailing like mist in the night.
Then—static.
The screen went black.
And in that pitch-black silence, a single line of red text scrolled slowly across the screen:
[She's already with you now.]
Meanwhile…
Across the city, in dark bedrooms and silent apartments, the viewers who had tuned into Lin Ze's final livestream felt an icy chill creep through their rooms.
Some heard faint knocking on their doors.
Others smelled the overpowering scent of jasmine.
And a few… a very unlucky few… heard that terrible, soft laughter right behind them.
"Hehehe…"
Those people?
They would be the next ones to disappear.
——End of Chapter 3