Escape from the Thriller World – Chapter 31
by Little PandaVolume One: The Old Corpse in the Mountain Village
The Burial Clothes
【Damage value against ghosts: 50%】
Six hours later, on the rooftop of Tong Lau.
At 11 PM, darkness descended heavily.
Ning Lan looked out the window into pitch darkness. The night enveloped the Tong Lau, with resentful energy swirling around it.
Akita Kyoko escaped from the hospital under cover of darkness and returned to the Tong Lau – her true domain, the place where she was wrongfully burned to death, and where resentful energy gathered.
She lurked silently within the building, making no sound.
Ning Lan took out the Qin King Bone-Viewing Mirror from her backpack and said to Shen Qingyou: “Let’s proceed according to our original plan. If anything goes wrong, I’ll call you to implement the backup plan.”
Shen Qingyou gave her a meaningful look and said: “Ning Lan, don’t you dare die. I can’t lose such a good teammate.”
“Good teammate” – these three words, she deliberately emphasized them.
There was a different emotion mixed in Shen Qingyou’s eyes, though it flashed by quickly, and Ning Lan didn’t notice this subtle detail.
Ning Lan stepped onto the 23rd floor, the forbidden zone according to the Tong Lau’s rules, holding the railing with one hand while carrying the Qin King Bone-Viewing Mirror.
Many residents of the Tong Lau had moved away, leaving only old tenants who refused to leave. They had gone to bed early, except for a few children still playing with marbles.
The residents of the 19th floor had just moved out, and the children on the 20th floor started playing again.
“Click, clink…” Several marbles rolled out through the door gap on the 20th floor, and a five-and-a-half-year-old child lay on the ground, reaching out from the doorway to pick up the marbles.
His limbs moved clumsily as he looked down the hallway at a paper doll with braids waving at him.
Out of childish curiosity, he crawled slowly in the direction where the paper doll was beckoning.
In the next moment, the child was dragged into the depths of the corridor by the paper doll that jumped out from the shadows.
The child made whimpering sounds, seemingly crying and calling for his mother, but his irresponsible parents were out all night, leaving only an elderly person to look after him.
The elderly caretaker, who usually went to sleep right after putting the child to bed, hadn’t noticed the child crawling out to collect marbles.
The sound of the elder’s heavy snoring came from the room, but she couldn’t hear the child’s cries.
The revived paper doll moved nimbly, with festive red rouge [sāihóng, traditional Chinese makeup] on both cheeks, and its black eye beads rolled around.
Only its mouth was different – sewn shut with thread, as ugly as a centipede.
Creak… creak…
It stepped closer and closer behind Ning Lan. She covered her mouth, sensing the paper figure coming alive behind her, grinning menacingly and extending both arms.
Ning Lan didn’t dare breathe, with only the Qin King Bone-Viewing Mirror as her spiritual tool.
Life or death!
She chose to risk it all!
Ning Lan gripped the Qin King Bone-Viewing Mirror tightly with both hands, closed her eyes, held her breath, and suddenly swung it at the paper doll behind her.
The lifelike paper doll looked exactly like Jiang Mengjia, and Ning Lan smashed directly at its head.
It wasn’t Jiang Mengjia, but the doll that had been brought to life by the Sanqing Taoist Priest [Btw, ‘sanqing’ means Three Pure Ones’]!
The paper doll’s head, as fragile as a foam box, was struck off and rolled to the side.
It fell! The paper doll fell!
She had gained a chance at survival!
Overjoyed, Ning Lan ran up the stairs along the handrail without looking back.
Amazingly, in less than three minutes, the paper doll’s head rolled several times on the ground before jumping back onto its body, automatically stitching itself back together…
Its mute mouth moved again, the stitches opening up, and it spat out a stack of white paper – the material used to make paper dolls!
From the paper doll’s mouth came that horrifying nursery rhyme again, its demonic sound echoing throughout the Tong Lau.
“Sister carries a doll on her back, walks to the garden to see mama, calls out to the flower doll, earthworms on the ground, giggling.”
The sleeping people in the Tong Lau were all affected by her demonic sound, falling into endless nightmares.
The entire building instantly fell into an eerie state.
Ning Lan climbed to the rooftop, panting heavily. The edges of the Qin King Bone-Viewing Mirror had been slightly scratched from her violent action earlier.
In the mirror, her hair was disheveled and her lips were cracked.
“Master Taoist, I’ve brought the Qin King Bone-Viewing Mirror!” Ning Lan clutched the mirror and ran toward the central position where they were performing the ritual.
The two Taoist priests from the paper offering shop had arrived before her, preparing to set up an altar for the ceremony.
“Excellent. With this mirror placed at the center of the ritual altar, Akita Kyoko’s ghost form will surely be pierced by the Buddhist light,” Xiao Qiang nodded mysteriously as he spoke.
Ning Lan carefully placed the mirror in the Kun Palace [the southwestern position] at the center of the Eight Trigrams Formation.
The Taoist Eight Trigrams Formation consists of eight positions marked with talismans, arranged in the order of Qian, Kan, Gen, Zhen, Xun, Li, Kun, and Dui [the eight trigrams representing different natural elements].
This formation’s main purpose was to strengthen its internal power, primarily to lure Akita Kyoko into it for complete sealing.
As soon as Ning Lan placed the mirror, countless golden rays shot out from it, making it impossible for Akita Kyoko to hide.
“You’ll be responsible for making Akita Kyoko wear this burial clothes. Once she does, she won’t be able to use any ghost magic,” Xiao Ming took out a Chinese burial garment from his wooden box, sized apparently for a woman’s proportions.
“I’ll keep watch in hiding and catch her by surprise,” Ning Lan took the burial clothes from Xiao Ming and quietly hid near the stairwell entrance on the rooftop.
The stairwell entrance was the only passage between the rooftop and the floors below. From this position, she could see the two Taoist priests performing their ritual.
What Ning Lan didn’t know was that the paper doll she encountered on the 19th floor had silently followed her up, tracking her spiritual energy.
“Got you, got you…” the paper doll giggled.
It caught her legs from behind!
Ning Lan quickly folded the burial clothes and set them aside. She kicked at the paper doll behind her, but the incredibly strong paper doll wrapped around her legs like vines around tree branches.
As the paper doll was about to drag her down to the next floor, she struggled forward and shouted: “Sanqing Taoist Priest, lend me your fire! Burn the paper doll!”
The Sanqing Taoist Priest looked closely and recognized it as the paper doll he had brought to life in 1972.
“You were created by my hand, so let me end you!” the Sanqing Taoist Priest shouted toward the stairwell.
He rushed forward with his peach wood sword [traditional weapon against evil spirits], which was marked with his blood curse . It could burn both ghosts and paper dolls.
He stabbed the paper doll from behind. The Sanqing Taoist Priest instantly severed its feet, and its legs slowly burned to ashes as flames spread throughout its entire body!
It let out painful moans before turning to ashes in an instant.
Ning Lan caught her breath. Her legs were scratched by the paper doll’s attack, reducing her blood status bar by 20%.
“At least it’s finally over. Created by my hand, and now ended by my hand,” the Sanqing Taoist Priest sighed as he withdrew his peach wood sword.
He handed the peach wood sword to Ning Lan and said: “Take this sword for protection. When we perform the ritual later, we won’t be able to help you.”
Ning Lan nodded, taking the peach wood sword while holding the burial clothes tightly.
【Game System Notification】
【Congratulations on receiving a peach wood sword from the story character】
【It has 50% damage value against supernatural entities】
【Talismans can enhance its maximum power】
Ning Lan saw the peach wood sword appear in her inventory slot. She clicked to equip it, while the Qin King Bone-Viewing Mirror, which she had handed over to Xiao Qiang earlier, left her inventory empty.
As soon as the two Taoist priests reached the 23rd floor, they sensed evil energy surging skyward.
Xiao Ming held a blue-white porcelain bottle, cut his finger, and dipped it in the bottle to apply some talisman water [blessed water used in Taoist rituals] to his eyes.
The blood-enhanced spell opened his Yin-Yang eyes. Xiao Qiang walked onto the rooftop and felt a gust of ghostly wind hitting his face. He made a hand seal and shouted: “Akita Kyoko, we know you’re in this building!”
Xiao Qiang retreated five meters from the formation, holding a soul-catching bell. When the bell rings, it would summon ghosts.
“Ding-ling, ding-ling…” the soul-catching bell rang.
It detected the arrival of a supernatural entity.
Xiao Ming supported Xiao Qiang by drawing talismans and pasting them all over the rooftop.
The talismans covered the rooftop floor, side railings, and the wooden clothes-drying racks.
Xiao Ming drew talismans with blood, pasting them one by one, quickening his pace as he couldn’t afford to waste time.
With Xiao Qiang’s stern shout, Akita Kyoko crawled out of the rooftop’s water tank, wearing a kimono.
Blood blisters emerged from her palms, and the water in the tank was contaminated, turning completely bloody.
A bloody head burst from the water tank, with the water bubbling like it was boiling.
Her black hair, soaked in bloody water, hung loosely over her shoulders, and her crimson eyes stared at the two Taoist priests.
In her arms, she held the hungry ghost child Huazi, who was nuzzling against her chest for milk.
Its head emerged from Akita Kyoko’s embrace, crying: “Mama, I want milk.”
Akita Kyoko’s maternal instincts surfaced as she comforted Huazi: “Don’t rush, Huazi. Let mama deal with these two old Taoists first!”
Huazi responded by gripping Akita Kyoko’s embroidered clothes, clinging to her body like a gecko!
Akita Kyoko sprang from the water, leaping down with water dripping onto the ground.
“You two old Taoists with your weak magical powers think you can subdue me!” Years of resentful energy stored within Akita Kyoko were finally about to explode!
She stepped forward alone, grabbed their collars, and seized both Taoist priests’ necks with her left and right hands.
The two Taoist priests deliberately feigned weakness before Akita Kyoko, stepping backward.
Just fifty meters more, and Akita Kyoko would enter the formation!
“Akita Kyoko, our ancestral master died from severe injuries while sealing you. Today we’ll avenge him!” Xiao Qiang suddenly grabbed her ghost hand and pressed a talisman toward her forehead!
Akita Kyoko was thrown back ten meters. Ning Lan, waiting in the stairwell, saw this perfect opportunity and darted out, draping the burial clothes over her from behind!
Akita Kyoko was instantly trapped by the burial clothes’ magical inscriptions, as the garment contracted like a fishing net around her body.
“Master Taoist, we’ve succeeded!” Ning Lan said, catching her breath.
Just as the three were about to throw Akita Kyoko into the Eight Trigrams Formation!
But the ghost child in her arms let out a piercing laugh, its teeth growing sharp!
The ghost child actually bit through the burial clothes, and Akita Kyoko hugged it and crawled through the hole. The burial clothes instantly shattered into pieces, scattering paper fragments across the ground.
“Even your ancestral master couldn’t kill me, how could you possibly succeed? Hahaha!” Akita Kyoko stood again at the edge of the rooftop water tank, sneering.
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