Chapter 553: 553, a bit dizzy and disoriented (second update)

But this girl was clearly not as tall as him!

How could she walk so fast?

"Then, are you with friends?" the man continued to ask.

Chu Jin stopped in her tracks, glanced at him sideways, and said steadily, "I came with my fiancé."

Fiancé?

The man halted, watching her retreating figure, a look of regret crossing his face, originally thinking a beautiful encounter could be formed, but unexpectedly, she was already someone else’s fiancée.

What a pity! What a pity!

Following the Pendulum’s instructions, Chu Jin successfully found the small grove.

The trees in the grove grew very densely.

Even during the day, the sunlight could not penetrate, creating a very sinister feeling.

Nobody usually set foot in the little grove, and as Chu Jin walked around, she found footprints on the ground and signs of tree branches having been broken.

In front of a grave, she found the corpse of a black cat.

Chu Jin frowned slightly, the death of the black cat was not a good sign.

"Qingyi, Xinran, can you hear me talking?" Chu Jin called out standing amidst the trees.

No one responded to her.

In the silent woods, there wasn’t even a bird in sight.

"Jin, it’s no use calling out like that, they won’t be able to hear you," Zi reminded her.

Chu Jin also knew it was futile to shout, so she took out the tools from her backpack and began setting up an array.

Right at that moment, a sudden gust of wind blew violently through the once silent grove.

Whirling up the fallen leaves.

The trees also swayed chaotically.

The wind produced a mournful wail in the air, this gust was too eerie, as the weather outside was clear and sunny, yet a strong wind blew only within the grove.

Chu Jin, though puzzled, did not pay attention and continued setting up her array.

This was the evil spirits deliberately trying to attract her attention away to foil her array set-up.

As expected, the wind quickly died down.

And Chu Jin’s array was completed.

She had set up a Geo-load array.

The Geo-load array was one of the twelve, its shape square, commanding four angles, difficult for enemies to confront, its form unfathomable, with endless utility, it could not stand alone but when paired with yang!

It was derived from the eight trigrams of the Geo-load array.

Full of killing intent.

One could enter another space through this array.

Only by doing so did Chu Jin have confidence in rescuing the people trapped inside.

By this time, the sky had also gradually darkened.

Chu Jin threw the Pendulum in her hand into the sky, where the chain conveniently caught on a tree branch, and the Crystal Ball emitted a white light, enveloping the entire forest.

Seen this way, the small grove looked even more terrifying.

Especially that lone grave.

Speaking of Mo Qingyi, she, along with Li Jiaqi and Chen Li, walked together, but because of Ghost-covered Eyes, Mo Qingyi could not see the others, and they could only communicate through writing as they went.

The three of them had already searched the small grove seven times over, but still had not seen Miao Xinran or the others, "Xinran, where are you? Xinran!" Mo Qingyi’s voice was already hoarse.

During the eighth pass by the grave, Mo Qingyi tripped over something, falling to the ground.

It was as if she was tripped up, or as if she had been pulled down by a pair of hands.

Who knows what sort of things lurked in the pitch-dark grove.

Could it have been a ghost hand?

Mo Qingyi was terrified, so scared that she didn’t even have the strength to get up for a moment.

Chen Li and Li Jiaqi wanted to help her up, but their hands would pass right through Mo Qingyi’s body whenever they reached out, leaving them feeling helpless.

After a while, Mo Qingyi finally got over her shock and slowly regained her strength. She clenched her phone tightly, mustered her courage, and shone the flashlight on the pile of things that had tripped her.

Her heart felt like it was about to jump into her throat.

Mo Qingyi took a deep breath and turned her gaze toward the pile! She saw that the thing that tripped her was a person! And looking further, there were two more people!

In total, there were three people.

They were precisely Wang Keke, Li Yong, and another boy who had left earlier.

They lay there on the ground, ashen-faced!

Chen Li and Li Jiaqi were also startled.

They lay there on the ground! Could it be they were dead?

Mo Qingyi swallowed, reached out tentatively with her finger, and prodded Wang Keke’s nose.

Exhale—

Thank goodness, there was still breath.

Mo Qingyi checked the other two as well, and found they were all still alive, merely unconscious. She breathed a sigh of relief and dragged the three under a pine tree to lean on, and even found some banana leaves to cover them.

The three boys were quite heavy, and it took a lot of effort for Mo Qingyi.

Chen Li and Li Jiaqi had not expected Mo Qingyi to do this, especially since these three had abandoned her earlier. Now, there was no reason for Mo Qingyi to concern herself with them.

Just then, a rustling noise came from the surroundings.

Mo Qingyi instantly became alert.

Chen Li and Li Jiaqi tightly held hands, also very panicked.

The noise grew closer, as if someone was running.

But curiously, in the dark night, nothing could be seen, only the sound of footsteps could be heard.

Mo Qingyi still called out with a chilling feeling in her scalp, "Xinran, is that you?"

The whole forest echoed with her voice.

But nobody responded to her.

Just at that moment, a figure rushed over to their side, panting hard.

With the light of the phone, Mo Qingyi finally saw clearly; it was Miao Xinran.

When Mo Qingyi saw Miao Xinran, her whole body relaxed, and her heart returned to its place. She hugged Miao Xinran and said with a tearful voice, "Xinran, I thought I’d never see you again."

Seeing Miao Xinran return, Li Jiaqi and Chen Li also smiled.

Although they still hadn’t found a way out, at least, of the nine people, seven were now together.

Right then, Li Jiaqi remembered the rules of the game. A light flashed in her eyes, and she quickly picked up a twig and began to write on the ground.

"Here I am, back safe and sound!" Miao Xinran patted Mo Qingyi’s back, "Don’t cry, don’t cry. I think I just encountered a ghost hitting the wall; no matter which way I went, I couldn’t find my way out. It scared me to death!"

As soon as Miao Xinran finished speaking, she saw the moving twig on the ground and stepped back in fright, her face paling, "What is that?"

Mo Qingyi looked to the ground and explained, "That’s Li Jiaqi and Chen Li. For some reason, although they are in the same space as us, they can see us, but we can’t see them. So, we can only communicate by writing."

Li Jiaqi’s writing on the ground was already halfway through.

Hearing this, Miao Xinran grabbed Mo Qingyi’s hand and said darkly, "Anyway, nobody can see them now. Let’s just pretend they’re dead! Forget them!"

Mo Qingyi frowned slightly and shook off Miao Xinran’s hand, "Xinran, how can you say that? They are our classmates!"

"Why can’t I say that?" Miao Xinran’s eyes widened, and she said fiercely, "You have no idea how these bitches talked behind your back! Just now, they were hiding behind the tombstone, pretending to be ghosts to scare you! People like that are better off dead! They don’t deserve to be our classmates!"

Hearing this, Li Jiaqi and Chen Li hung their heads in shame.

Miao Xinran was right, they truly didn’t deserve to be their classmates.

"They already know they were wrong. We’re all classmates; why do you have to be like this? Xinran, you weren’t like this before." Mo Qingyi looked up at Miao Xinran, and when she did, she was completely shocked, her pupils dilating in fear.

She saw that there was no Miao Xinran in front of her at all! Instead, there was a girl with disheveled hair, wearing something like a school uniform, clutching an old doll, her face utterly devoid of color, as if it were coated with white powder, chilling to the bone!

But the most terrifying part was her eyes, hollow, pitch-black as if they lacked any whites, and the corners of her mouth were curled into a strange, eerie smile!

"Ah!"

The three of them screamed at the top of their lungs!

They tried to run, but their legs felt as though they were filled with lead, unbearably heavy and unable to move at all!

Scared out of their wits, they could only cover their faces tightly, shivering uncontrollably.

Acting on instinct, when faced with something terrifying, one’s subconscious choice is to flee, thinking that by doing so, they might escape the calamity.

Just then, a glimmer of light appeared deep within the woods.

The female ghost suddenly turned her head, revealing a horrifying face, and drifted toward the source of the light.

Chu Jin had just entered the array when she encountered this female ghost.

She was holding a doll, her eyes utterly vacant. Although her body was pervaded by ghost Qi, there was no sign of malice. From this, one could ascertain that she had not harmed any human lives. It was uncertain why she had trapped them this time.

She looked at Chu Jin, revealing her ghastly ghostly visage, and warned, "I advise you not to meddle in affairs that aren’t your business! Otherwise, I’ll make sure you never return!"

Chu Jin curled her lips slightly, took up the Life Umbrella, and with a flick of its tip, she pressed it against the ghost’s temple, "Do you believe I can obliterate your soul right now?"

The female ghost didn’t reply.

She just laughed—a cold, miserable laugh that sent chills down one’s spine.

Chu Jin increased the pressure on the umbrella, "Speak up, where did you take those students?"

The female ghost remained silent.

Just as Chu Jin was about to dispose of the ghost, Zi reminded, "Jin brother, don’t be rash! If you kill her, these illusions will vanish along with her, and then we’ll really be unable to find those students."

Chu Jin pursed his lips then eventually withdrew the Life Umbrella.

The female ghost’s laughter grew even more sinister.

"Hahaha——"

At that moment, countless dolls began to crawl up from under the ground. They kept growing larger, much like zombies, with sharp teeth baring at Chu Jin, advancing toward him like a tidal wave.

"Momma! I didn’t see this little ghost had such tricks! Go, Jin brother." Zi propped up her legs in a casual style, picked up a side of sunflower seeds, and, while cracking them, said.

Chu Jin was speechless, quickly pulling out a stack of talisman papers from his backpack! He tossed them into the air, and in an instant, the talisman papers came to life, flying onto the heads of these dolls, igniting a flame that turned them instantly to ash.

But these dolls were like regenerating creatures, continuously crawling up from underground. No matter how many talismans Chu Jin had, he couldn’t exterminate so many dolls!

Chu Jin was furious! He leaped forward, standing right in front of the female ghost. When his gaze landed on the doll in her hand, he almost reached out to snatch it when the female ghost, as if realizing his intent, let out a strange cry and burrowed away underground!

With the female ghost’s escape, those eerie dolls also disappeared without a trace.

Encountering such a female ghost left Chu Jin somewhat helpless.

He could neither capture her nor attack her!

Therefore, he had no choice but to seek another method.

Chu Jin furrowed his brows slightly, pacing a few steps on the spot, then his gaze suddenly fell on a solitary grave.

To be precise, it was on the black and white photograph affixed to the gravestone.

The girl in the photo was clearly the female ghost!

The girl’s name was You Jia.

The tombstone recorded her birth details and the date of death.

She had died at the age of 16.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you shall win a hundred battles.

If one could understand the cause of this girl’s death, perhaps the remaining problems could be easily solved.

By using her birth details, one could calculate her cause of death. Chu Jin hurriedly took out Tarot cards from her backpack, set them up in an array - a standard Universal type array - then closed her eyes and drew one.

The Five of Swords in reverse.

The card depicted five people arguing, yet only three people were visible to the naked eye. The tallest person had won the battle, but who would ultimately win the war remained undecided.

Because the problem had not been truly resolved.

The card reflected a mood of anger, terror, and betrayal.

Very oppressive.

Moreover, the problem goes far beyond what’s presented on the face of the Tarot cards, as there are many hidden potential crises.

Looking at the card, Chu Jin sighed, put away the upgraded umbrella, and walked toward the formation.

Yu Jia is such a child of misfortune.

Zi looked at Chu Jin with a confused face and asked, "Jin, what did you see? What on earth happened to this Yu Jia?" He could no longer figure out what Chu Jin was thinking.

Chu Jin slightly curved his lips, "Want to know?"

Zi nodded eagerly, "Yes, yes."

"I’m not telling you."

Zi: "..." Are you happy now that you’ve teased me like that?

Chu Jin raised an eyebrow, "Yeah, quite happy."

Zi immediately stuffed melon seeds into his mouth, still caring, such a fearsome host, isn’t it?

Chu Jin continued walking inside.

After what had just happened, Mo Qingyi, who was inside, was scared stiff and lay on the ground, no longer daring to run around; Li Jiaqi and Chen Li were the same, clinging to each other, trembling with fear.

"Li Jiaqi, Chen Li, are you still there?" After a moment, Mo Qingyi called out with a shaky voice.

The two were so scared they were out of their wits, and it took a while before Chen Li wrote a word on the ground, "Here."

Just then, the sound of footsteps echoed through the air again.

Startled, Mo Qingyi backed away a few steps, "Who... who’s there?"

"Qingyi!" A clear female voice called out through the air, "Is it you, Qingyi?"

The voice was all too familiar.

Mo Qingyi suddenly started crying, "It’s me! Jin, it’s me."

Chu Jin comforted her on hearing her cry, "Qingyi, stop crying for now. I’m trying to figure out how to get you out. Are you and Xinran together?"

Chu Jin’s voice seemed to be laced with a magical power, soothing to the heart, and Mo Qingyi calmed down instantly, "Jin, I can’t find Xinran. I’m with the other classmates right now."

The other two students weren’t as scared as before, at the very least, someone from the outside had noticed them now.

"Jin, why can’t I see you?" Mo Qingyi continued to ask, having been tricked once before, she feared that this might be the ghost-woman again!

Chu Jin explained faintly, "The space is different, so you can’t see me, and I can’t see you. By the way, if you want to leave here, remember my words. You must stick together, never abandon any classmate at any time! By the way, how many are you all together?"

Mo Qingyi replied, "Nine people."

"How many people are with you right now?" Chu Jin asked next.

Mo Qingyi answered truthfully, "Six in total, Xinran and two other classmates haven’t been found yet."

"Okay, I got it. Just stay there for now, don’t go anywhere. I will look for the other three, and we’ll regroup here,"

Mo Qingyi nodded, "Okay."

For the nine people trapped here, this space might be an endless loop.

But for Chu Jin, it was no different from any other place.

Moreover, she could switch to any space using the Geo-load array.

Before leaving, Chu Jin specifically left a special marking here, then traversed to another space.

"Xinran." As Chu Jin walked, she continued calling out Miao Xinran’s name.

Finally, she found Miao Xinran in one place.

Miao Xinran’s situation wasn’t much better than Mo Qingyi’s; she was scared half to death, all dirty and in a sorry state. She had been walking in circles in the same spot, but couldn’t find her way out.

Moreover, she had discovered that time seemed to be forever frozen at 20:48.

The moment she heard Chu Jin’s voice, it was as if she saw light and hope.

"Jin, I’m here," Miao Xinran said joyfully.

Once Chu Jin pinpointed Miao Xinran’s location, she instructed, "Follow the direction you’re facing, first walk 7 steps south, then 5 steps north, and then... "

"Jin," Before Chu Jin could finish, Miao Xinran interrupted her, "Can you just tell me forward, backward, left, right instead?" She was getting dizzy with east, south, west, north.

Chu Jin had no choice but to repeat the directions using forward, backward, left, and right.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read