Der Weg der zu Unrecht behandelten Geister, Teil 1Der Weg der zu Unrecht behandelten Geister

Kapitel 9

Regardless of the reasons, his wife's actions were hurtful to him. This made everyone seem to understand Lei Ming's strange behavior, including Qin Ge. Qin Ge realized that what emanated from him might not be murderous intent, but rather resentment. Who wouldn't feel resentment if such a thing happened to them?

“I lay at home alone for three days, neither eating nor drinking, hoping that one day I would hear a knock on the door and see her come home as cheerful as ever, telling me that it was just a joke she played on me. Three days passed, and she didn’t come back. I told myself that she was gone, with another man. She abandoned me, abandoned the happy times we had shared and all our dreams for the future. Now, I have to live alone, and whether I sleep during the day or wake up at night, her familiar shadow will no longer be by my side.”

Lei Ming's eyes narrowed, and his voice became sharp: "I hate the person who took her away. If I could stand before him, I would tear him apart without hesitation. But now, I can't find him. This world is too big, and I don't know where to find my wife and my enemy. I thought about it for a long time, and then I joined that tour group to Lijiang Ancient Town, which my wife had longed to visit. In that legendary place where even the air is filled with the scent of love, perhaps if I suddenly turned around, I could see her again. But I never expected that before I even got there, I would end up in this valley."

Lei Ming let out a long sigh of relief, and his heaving chest gradually calmed down.

"I've finished explaining my business. Are you satisfied now?"

Everyone remained silent. They could now see that Lei Ming was actually in deep sorrow; his cold exterior and strange behavior were merely a mask for his inner pain. This story must have stirred up his troubles, and everyone now felt a pang of sympathy for this seemingly rugged and unruly man.

Qin Ge felt a pang of guilt, unlike the others, because he was the one who had made Lei Ming reveal his deepest secret. However, he had to harden his heart at this moment, because Lei Ming had omitted an important detail in his account.

"How did you find out about your wife?" he asked.

“She left a letter,” Lei Ming said. “She left me a letter at home, in which she confessed everything to me. She said she was sorry and didn’t know she could get my forgiveness, so she left with that person and never came back.”

"Then can I take a look at that letter?" Qin Ge continued.

This request seemed a bit excessive. Qin Ge felt some resentful gazes on him, and even Dong'er, who was beside him, kicked him from below. Qin Ge was a little embarrassed, but for the moment he could only pretend not to see them.

Lei Ming's murderous aura intensified. He glared coldly at Qin Ge and shook his head coldly: "Believe me, I don't have it on me, but even if I did, I wouldn't let you see it."

Qin Ge nodded quickly: "It's okay, it's okay, I just said it offhand."

Lei Ming stood up, strode to the door, and turned his back to everyone, seemingly already annoyed with Qin Ge and not wanting to even look at him again. Qin Ge smiled self-deprecatingly, not wanting to get entangled in Lei Ming's matter any longer, and turned his gaze to Huang Tao and the young woman who hadn't spoken yet.

Huang Tao hesitated, opened his mouth as if to speak, but just then, the young woman sitting next to him suddenly slid heavily off the stool and onto the floor with a thud. Huang Tao immediately bent down to help her up, only to see that the woman's face was ashen, her lips were deathly pale, her eyes were tightly closed, and her face was filled with extreme pain.

Su Hedong and the young models immediately surrounded the woman, who was clearly unconscious. Huang Tao loudly told everyone to disperse, then picked her up and carried her to the door to let her breathe some fresh air. Lei Ming, standing by the door, remained motionless, as if something in the rain outside had captivated him.

Qin Ge frowned; the rotting corpse upstairs once again filled him with worry. So much time had passed, and the young woman, who had seemed to have regained consciousness, had fainted again. Could it be that some other evil power was hidden within that corpse?

Huang Tao put the young woman down and let her sit against the door. Huang Tao stood up and saw Lei Ming still staring blankly into the rain, so he subconsciously followed his gaze. Immediately, he was startled, and a strange sense of fear arose in his heart.

He turned and waved to Qin Ge, who, for some reason, quickly ran to the door. The others, somewhat puzzled, soon followed suit. A group of people crowded around the door, their gazes all fixed on the rain-soaked scene ahead.

Through the rain, two figures were walking slowly towards us.

From a distance, the figures were just blurry little blobs, and it was impossible to tell if they were male or female, but everyone could sense that the two were walking very leisurely. Wandering in the mountains and fields is usually a pleasant experience, but if it happens to be raining heavily, then this person's behavior is rather strange.

Qin Ge immediately tensed up. He had just seen someone walk so leisurely in the rain.

However, the man collapsed and died as soon as he reached the small building. Perhaps he didn't die until he reached the building; he had a newspaper in his pocket, and the dead man in the newspaper looked exactly like him.

If the news in the newspaper is true, then, did he come from the dark and cold underworld?

The others nearby had no idea what Qin Ge and Huang Tao were worried about; the two young models even cheered with joy. Since last night, they had mysteriously appeared in this valley, experiencing all sorts of strange events, and each of them was filled with fear. At this moment, encountering two local mountain people would be a truly joyous thing. If those mountain people could tell them where they were and how to get out of this valley and back to the outside world, then they would be overjoyed.

Lei Ming only realized what had happened when everyone crowded to the door. He had been staring at the rain and was the last person to see those two figures.

"Go back, all of you!" Qin Ge said sternly.

Ashe Hell: 773 Horror Series 12, Part 3, Chapter 36: The Soul Bottle (4)

No one responded; no one understood what he was saying.

"You all go upstairs. No one is allowed to come down unless I call you!" Qin Ge raised his voice, his tone becoming more stern, and his expression increasingly tense.

"If you don't want to see two dead people, listen to Qin Ge and go back upstairs."

This time it was Huang Tao who spoke, and his expression was just as tense as Qin Ge's.

A silence fell over the crowd, everyone somewhat at a loss. Zhang Song looked around, then silently waved to everyone, and they reluctantly went inside. Dong'er was a little unhappy; she grabbed Qin Ge's hand, trying to stay put, but Qin Ge glared at her fiercely, and she obediently followed the others.

Now only three people remain by the door: Qin Ge, Huang Tao, and Lei Ming.

If Lei Ming doesn't want to move, who can force him?

No matter how slowly the figures in the rain walked, they would eventually reach the building. Their shadows gradually grew larger, and it was vaguely discernible that they were a man and a woman. They were holding hands as they walked, but their bodies were far apart.

As they approached, Qin Ge and Huang Tao grew increasingly nervous. When the two people's faces became clear, they practically held their breath.

The two had reached the porch, yet they continued walking steadily toward the small building. Their movements were stiff, each step seemingly laborious. Their bodies swayed slightly as they walked, as if they were losing their balance. They held hands, but never glanced at each other. Their faces were deathly pale, their expressions blank, and their eyes a lifeless gray.

But what terrified Qin Ge and Huang Tao at this moment was their appearance.

Their faces were blurred, covered with pitted scars. Their prominent noses had disappeared, leaving only large nostrils. Their lips had been smoothed out, as if cut off with a dull knife, revealing two rows of menacing teeth. Their hair was like desert weeds, clumps here and there, the exposed scalp a fleshy red color, also uneven and pitted.

Only one thing could create such a appearance—fire. Qin Ge and Huang Tao stood frozen by the door, seemingly able to smell a truly acrid odor.

The two men were now almost touching the small building. Their gazes were fixed blankly ahead, a space silent and shrouded in an eerie atmosphere. Qin Ge and Huang Tao stared at them, seemingly enveloped by this strange aura. A chill ran through them, and they felt utterly weak, as if an invisible barrier in the air was binding them, rendering them immobile.

The two people in the rain stopped less than three meters from the door, then stood frozen for a moment, seemingly staring at the two people inside. At that moment, immense fear made Qin Ge and Huang Tao want to run away from the ghostly-looking man and woman in front of them, but their legs felt like they weighed a ton, and they couldn't even take a single step.

The man and woman suddenly fell forward, crashing heavily into the mud.

Gradually, feeling returned to their bodies, and their heavy legs finally returned to normal. Qin Ge and Huang Tao exchanged a glance, both noticing the sweat beading on each other's foreheads. They were still breathing heavily, as if confronting the couple had been an incredibly arduous task. Now it was all over. The couple, like the man who had arrived earlier, had collapsed in front of the building. Were they, like the man before them, already dead?

Qin Ge and Huang Tao went outside and quickly determined that the two people lying on the ground were dead. As if by unspoken agreement, they each began to check the pockets of the two corpses, and another newspaper appeared before their eyes.

The newspaper was an evening paper from a small city in Jiangxi. It contained a news story about a young couple living together who, after a trivial argument, the young man, in a fit of rage, set fire to their rented house. The fire destroyed more than ten rooms, and the young couple perished in the blaze. Although the news report didn't include photos, Qin Ge and Huang Tao had no doubt that the horribly distorted couple before them were the protagonists of the story.

The newspaper was published two months ago.

These are two people who have been dead for a long time.

Although they were mentally prepared, the incomprehensible reality still dealt Qin Ge and Huang Tao a heavy blow. They stood frozen in the rain, exchanging bewildered glances, both seeing a deep-seated fear in each other's eyes. The dead don't walk on their own, and the dead from different places wouldn't come to the same place unless some unseen force was orchestrating everything. So, what exactly was this small building deep in the mountains? What magic did it possess that could draw the dead to it?

Now, this group of people are all inside the small building. Qin Ge slowly turns his head to look at the small building and suddenly feels that the small building is a monster crouching in the rain, about to tear this group of people apart and devour them.

Even more terrifying things were yet to come, giving Qin Ge and Huang Tao no chance to catch their breath. Huang Tao suddenly groaned softly, and Qin Ge quickly turned around to see an expression of extreme astonishment on his face.

Following Huang Tao's gaze, Qin Ge saw another figure appear in the rain ahead.

This time, it wasn't two people, but four. Like the previous two groups, they moved slowly, as if strolling leisurely in the rain. Their faces were obscured by the distance, but at this point, what did it matter whether they could see them clearly or not? Qin Ge and Huang Tao had no doubt that they were four dead men, and long-dead at that.

How many more dead people are walking towards the building?

Qin Ge couldn't help but let out a low groan, just like Huang Tao.

Ashe Hell: 773 Horror Series 12, Part 3, Chapter 37: Resurrection (1)

By noon, twelve corpses were lying outside the small building.

Qin Ge and Huang Tao had long since retreated inside, and the door was tightly shut; they didn't even want to look at what was happening outside. A group of people sat together, no one speaking. The silence made the air feel tense, as if it were about to explode. The continuous patter of rain felt like a series of heavy hammer blows, relentlessly striking everyone's hearts. It wasn't just the air that was about to burst, but also everyone's chests.

At this point, Dong'er was no longer afraid of anything. She clung tightly to Qin Ge, gripping his arm with both hands, her nails already leaving several marks on it. The young woman who had fainted woke up again, still slumped over the table, seemingly too weak to even sit up. Moreover, Huang Tao had just checked her; she had a fever, her forehead was frighteningly hot, and her face—especially her lips—was frighteningly pale. The six young models sat huddled together at a table, their bodies pressed close together, their hands clasped together, their terrified eyes filled with despair. Zhang Song and Lei Ming were relatively calmer. Zhang Song frowned, deep in thought, while Lei Ming sat alone in a corner with a gloomy face. Su He and Tong Hao, sitting at the same table with Zhang Song, frequently met each other's eyes. They were both much more at ease now; perhaps, in this dangerous situation, their hearts would easily collide. Everyone could see Tong Hao's infatuation with Su He, so how could Su He not see it? Although this infatuation came so suddenly, Su He still felt a strange sense of emotion. She thought that in the real world, she definitely wouldn't care about a brat like Tong Hao.

Tong Hao looked at least several years younger than her; he was still just a big kid.

The door was tightly shut, but everyone knew what had happened outside. Twelve corpses lay on the open ground in front of the small building. They were men and women, in various poses, but all were dead, and long since. The twelve people were divided into three groups. The first group consisted of the man and woman who had been burned to death at the beginning. The second group consisted of four men. Qin Ge and Huang Tao had checked on them when they fell. One of them had committed suicide because his contractor, who had worked in the city, owed him wages. When he refused to pay, he was beaten and, in a moment of despair, jumped off the scaffolding. Another was an old man with three sons and two daughters, who had been driven out of his home by their children in his old age, leaving him lonely and destitute. He eventually froze to death under a bridge. The remaining two were brothers who, because they had failed to pay their annual agricultural taxes, had their house demolished by the village chief and his men. In a fit of rage, they grabbed a knife and stormed into the village chief's house, accidentally killing him. The two brothers were shot dead by the police while resisting arrest during their escape. The faces of the four men were still vaguely recognizable as they had looked when they died. The migrant worker who had been thrown to his death had a bloody, mangled face; the old man who had frozen to death had a livid face; and the two brothers were still bleeding. Even with their strong willpower, Qin Ge and Huang Tao felt a metallic taste in their throats and an urge to vomit when faced with these four corpses. Huang Tao actually squatted down and dry-heaved for a long time, his face showing a pained expression.

When figures reappeared in the distant rain, they seemed unable to even stand.

This time, the number of figures increased to six.

What kind of evil valley is this? What kind of magic does this small building possess that attracts so many dead people to it? More importantly, how many more corpses are heading this way?

Qin Ge and Huang Tao shuddered at the thought. They no longer had the courage to continue. After exchanging a glance, they staggered back into the small building without a word, quickly closing the door. Even as they sat down at the table, their faces were still filled with dread. They didn't want their fear to infect others, but fear is beyond your control. When that deep-seated fear descends upon you, then you become fear itself.

If Qin Ge and Huang Tao are like this, then what about the others?

Silence. Waiting.

Time passed, and the rain outside seemed to have lessened considerably. Still, no one spoke, except for the occasional low moan from the young woman slumped over the table. No one wanted to speak, nor did they know what to say. Although Qin Ge and Huang Tao knew that leaving the small building was something they had to do, they lacked the courage to stand up. Where could they go if they left? Mountains surrounded them. Perhaps the dead were walking towards them from all directions, and encountering them halfway through their journey would be terrifying. But sitting in the building and waiting wasn't an option either. What could they expect besides corpses outside?

The sound of rain finally turned into a drizzle, intermittent like a beautiful woman shedding tears.

The young woman, suffering from a high fever, was becoming somewhat delirious. She uttered incoherent murmurs, her body constantly shifting slightly, as if she were waging a desperate struggle against a nightmare. Huang Tao, who was closest to her, hesitated for a moment before leaning down to touch her forehead, a worried expression on his face.

"She has a high fever. If we don't do something about it, something unexpected might happen."

The young woman suddenly hugged him tightly, so tightly that he could hardly breathe. Huang Tao looked embarrassed, his hands flailing helplessly behind her back, unsure whether to push her away or hold her tighter.

"Cold—cold—" The young woman's pale lips moved, and this time everyone heard her words clearly.

Qin Ge sighed and tried to stand up, but Dong'er held him tightly. He whispered in Dong'er's ear, "I'd better go upstairs and get a blanket."

Dong'er hesitated for a moment, then let go of her hand.

Ashe Hell: 773 Horror Series 12, Part 3, Chapter 38: Resurrection (2)

Qin Ge went upstairs to get a blanket. As he left, he glanced at the door of the room where the young woman had stayed the night before, and a chill involuntarily ran down his spine. He hurriedly went downstairs, knowing that no one would be going upstairs to sleep tonight.

Huang Tao wrapped the blanket around the young woman, and to prevent it from slipping off, he had to reach out and hold her. He looked pleadingly at Su He and the young models, and Su He sighed and came over to take Huang Tao's place. As she came over, Tong Hao beside her immediately showed a disappointed expression.

Huang Tao sat down next to Qin Ge. He stared blankly at Qin Ge, and Qin Ge stared blankly at him. After a while, the two nodded in unison, but their expressions were full of helplessness.

They both stood up at the same time.

"What are you going to do?" Dong'er asked nervously.

“No matter how mysterious this building is, we still have to spend at least one night here. I don’t think anyone wants to be surrounded by corpses outside while they sleep, so let’s go out and deal with the bodies,” Qin Ge said.

Dong'er and the other girls wore expressions of utter despair.

Dong'er whispered, "Then you must wash your hands thoroughly after you finish your work."

Qin Ge shook her head and smiled bitterly, then fell silent, rising with Huang Tao to walk towards the door. Lei Ming hesitated for a moment, then stood up and followed. Su He glanced back at Tong Hao, who understood the meaning behind her look. He wanted to stand up and follow, but was too afraid to rise. Su He sighed softly and looked away.

As Qin Ge passed by Zhang Song, who was about to stand up, Qin Ge patted him on the shoulder and said, "You stay here and keep an eye on these women."

Zhang Song breathed a sigh of relief. Qin Ge understood his relief at that moment; who would want to face a group of corpses, especially such bizarre ones?

I opened the door, and twilight rushed in; it was already evening without me realizing it. The rain that had been falling for a day and a night had finally stopped, with a few fine drizzles still drifting by, but now they were soft and powerless. The mountains were shrouded in a gray-white twilight, thick clouds swirling and shifting rapidly across the sky, with only a thin ray of light lazily illuminating the heavens and earth. The heavy rain had washed the green mountains clean, revealing the steep cliffs in a pristine dark blue-green hue. They stood out sharply in the twilight, winding endlessly like a forest of swords and spears, stretching to who-knows-where on the horizon. The fresh, rainy air was invigorating, but it also seemed to carry a different kind of scent.

Qin Ge, Huang Tao, and Lei Ming's gazes fell upon the twelve corpses scattered on the ground, and a look of worry immediately settled on their brows. After a moment's hesitation, Qin Ge and Huang Tao walked towards the bodies. Six more corpses lay on the ground. Though frightened, they couldn't resist checking if there were any newspapers on the bodies. How had these six bodies died?

Qin Ge had already found the newspaper on the child, Huang Tao was searching a man's pocket, and Lei Ming was still standing motionless in front of the door. Just then, they all froze, their eyes darting around, their faces showing expressions of horror.

The sound of drums. They heard—or rather, felt—the sound of drums again.

The drumbeats emanated from the heart, each one deep and resonant, yet powerfully trembling. When the trembling subsided, you couldn't trace the source of the drumbeats, nor could you hear any sound at all. If you hadn't seen the other two people sharing your astonishment, you might have doubted whether the drumbeats were merely a hallucination.

But the drumbeat is real; it strikes your heart again and again, making you feel a sense of panic for no reason. Moreover, as the drumbeats continue, your heart becomes empty, as if it could float away with the wind at any moment, without anything to rely on.

The drumbeats continued to pound in my heart, dusk deepened, and a layer of gray enveloped the entire world. Yet, a thin veil of light shone on the distant mountains, allowing their outlines to be clearly seen. The continuous downpour had dispelled the gloom from the sky; the once dense, dark clouds had been blown away by a gust of wind. The clear, deep blue of the sky reflected a few faint stars; looking up at it, I felt a profound, otherworldly tranquility.

But being detached from worldly affairs can also bring some fear to people here.

The drumbeats seemed to possess a magical power. Qin Ge, Huang Tao, and Lei Ming stood tall and tense in front of the small building, their bodies taut like stretched springs, as if a slight jolt could lift them off the ground. Although they couldn't discern the direction of the drumbeats, their eyes were fixed on straight ahead—the direction from which the corpses had come.

The drumbeat was struck by a deathly pale, stiff "zombie." It was this very drumbeat that had led this group of people to this secluded mountain village late last night. Now, as it sounded again, what would it bring to these people who didn't know where they were?

Although the drumbeat was soft, the entire valley seemed to vibrate because of it.

Ashe Hell: 773 Horror Series 12, Part 3, Chapter 39: Resurrection (3)