Ghosts in Medical School Horror Files

Chapter 29

Luo Shimin pouted, with the shyness unique to young girls, and said softly to Xia Chen, "I have something to ask you for help. Can you lend me your black notebook to take a look?"

Xia Chen, who was drinking milk tea, spat it out upon hearing Luo Shimin's words. Luo Shimin quickly pulled out a tissue and handed it to Xia Chen, who wiped his mouth and asked, "I told you, my notebook is full of really scary things. Why do you want to see it?"

Luo Shimin said resentfully, "For the Night of Terror!"

Xia Chen's eyes widened upon hearing the word "horror." "A night of terror? What's that? Has another strange case occurred on campus?"

Luo Shimin explained resentfully, "Our dorm has a terrifying night every month. Last time I fell asleep while they were telling stories, and this time they want me to tell a really, really scary story. If I don't scare them, I'll have to clean the dorm for a month. You don't want me to clean for a month, do you? Your experience was so thrilling, the things written in the black notebook will definitely scare Hu Rongrong and Shui Lan."

Xia Chen took a black notebook out of his backpack. The black cover had four large characters on it: "Terror Files." The font was red, an eerie red like blood, flowing across the surface of the characters. Xia Chen thought seriously for a moment, but still didn't hand the notebook to Luo Shimin. "This notebook has a very special meaning to me. I've thought of a compromise. How about this: I'll tell you a true horror story that happened at Yishi Academy. It'll definitely scare your roommate."

"Okay." Luo Shimin was a little disappointed. It seemed there was still some distance between her and Xia Chen. Xia Chen had never been willing to open up to her, and she thought that this distance had disappeared after they had experienced two terrifying events together.

Xia Chen took one last sip of his milk tea. "Class is about to start, let's go to the classroom." Luo Shimin complained, "This class is in that old building again, it always feels eerie, like there's an eye watching you from behind. There are countless horror stories that have happened in that building, I just don't understand why the school doesn't just tear it down and rebuild a new teaching building."

“Every school has its own secrets.” Xia Chen stood up and put his hands in his pockets. Luo Shimin gently wrapped her arms around Xia Chen’s arm. This was the first time she had ever made such an intimate gesture to a boy. It was also the first time Xia Chen had ever been so intimate with a girl. The two of them walked out of the restaurant with blushing faces.

After the two had walked away, the students nearby picked up their eyeballs from the ground, which had just fallen out of their sockets in shock. One boy said, "Did I see that right? Was that girl Luo Shimin? Am I dreaming? How could something like this happen?"

Another boy said, "The world is crazy! I'm going to tell everyone I know what I just saw. They will never believe it. Luo Shimin is in love! Luo Shimin is actually in love! God help me, I hope Luo Shimin's brother Luo Xie won't cut that boy into pieces."

Xia and Luo naturally didn't hear these words. They had already reached the entrance of the old building. In front of them were three girls, namely Luo Shimin's roommates Hu Rongrong, Zheng Yubing, and Shui Lan. Of the three girls, Xia Chen was only relatively familiar with Hu Rongrong. The three of them had experienced two terrifying and unbelievable cases together.

Luo Shimin said to her roommate, "How about we move our horror night outdoors tonight? Let's find a scary place; it'll have a much better atmosphere than in the dorm. We'll definitely be scared out of our wits."

Hu Rongrong and Luo Shimin grew up together and know each other very well. She smiled and said, "Why outdoors? Is it related to the scary story you're going to tell tonight?"

“Uh… Rongrong, I’m not good at telling stories, but I’ve found someone to tell them for me.” Luo Shimin pulled Xia Chen in front of her. “His stories will definitely be very exciting.”

Hu Rongrong said with a mischievous smile, "If his story isn't exciting, you'll have to clean the dorm for a month, and he can't help you with that."

Luo Shimin had great confidence in Xia Chen, "Don't worry, his story will definitely be very interesting."

Among Luo Shimin's roommates, Shui Lan was a petite girl, less than 1.6 meters tall. True to her name, she was always gentle like water, even when angry, she looked like a cute doll. Shui Lan walked at the front, hopping up the stairs one step at a time, "1...2...3...4...5...6...7...8...9...10...11..." Two more steps and she was up the stairs.

Xia Chen, like a bolt of lightning, leaped past Hu Rongrong and Luo Shimin, who were blocking his way, and caught Shui Lan just as she was about to fall. Shui Lan was only one step away from jumping up the stairs when she lost her balance and fell into Xia Chen's arms. Shui Lan was terrified by Xia Chen's sudden action. "You...you...what do you want to do?"

Luo Shimin and the others looked at Xia Chen in surprise, not understanding what he was doing.

Xia Chen's face was as cold as ice, and his tone was as cold as a Siberian frost. "Let me tell you a taboo: never, ever count the steps on the first floor of an old building. The consequences are terrible, a hundred times worse than the worst thing you can imagine."

Hu Rongrong was taken aback at first; she was indeed frightened by Xia Chen. Then she laughed and said, "Xia Chen, our night of terror is at night, so I'm sure the story you're about to tell will be very exciting and terrifying."

“I’m not telling a story,” Xia Chen said coldly. “I’m not joking either. Something terrible happened at the bottom of these steps. I’ll tell you the story tonight, and you’d better tell it to your friends too. And whatever you do, don’t count these steps. Even counting them in your head isn’t allowed.”

Luo Shimin was the first to speak up, "Don't worry, we will tell everyone that we can't count the steps."

Xia Chen was relieved. "Everyone, please remember this. Class is about to start, let's go to the classroom."

The teacher's lecture was excellent, but none of Shui Lan and the others paid attention. They were all thinking about Xia Chen's strange taboo—don't count the steps! What kind of terrifying story lay behind this taboo? Everyone was filled with anticipation, hoping that night would come quickly so they could hear Xia Chen's terrifying tale.

Every second of the wait felt incredibly long, and the group spent the long day in anticipation. Night finally fell as promised. Hu Rongrong ate a quick bite for dinner. Since tonight's 'Night of Horrors' was to be held outdoors, and Xia Chen's horror story was related to the old building's staircase, Hu Rongrong decided to hold the event there. The eerie building, the immersive feeling, coupled with the flickering lights—just thinking about it was thrilling. Hu Rongrong, holding a candle, went alone to the old building. The old building stood silently under the moonlight; from a distance, it resembled a giant tombstone—who knows what horrors lay buried beneath?

Hu Rongrong gently pushed open the door of the old building. The moment her hand touched the cold metal doorknob, a chill ran down her spine. A bloody scene flashed through her mind: just a few months ago, Nurse Song from the infirmary had suddenly gone mad. The old building had just had its glass doors replaced, and she had slammed her head against one. The shattered glass severed her carotid artery. In a mere minute, blood splattered everywhere. By the time the ambulance arrived, Nurse Song was already dead. Many classmates had witnessed this scene. Hu Rongrong wasn't there at the time; she only heard about it from her classmates, yet she had a strange feeling of being there herself.

Hu Rongrong muttered to herself, "Why did I suddenly think of this?" She shook her head vigorously, trying to shake the bloody image out of her mind. She pushed open the glass door; the old building's corridor was pitch black, and she seemed to hear a sigh coming from the darkness.

"Hi, is anyone there?" The only answer she received was a gradually fading echo.

Hu Rongrong deliberately didn't press the light switch in the corridor. She wasn't a timid girl; some of her experiences might have driven a grown man crazy. She was quite satisfied with this feeling of terror; it was exactly the feeling she wanted. She walked to the stairwell, laid out the jar, lit the candle, and patiently waited for the others to arrive. The candlelight illuminated half of her face, while the other side remained hidden in darkness, making her look ferocious and terrifying. The flame flickered, like a terrifying monster lurking at the boundary between light and darkness, ready to leap out and tear people to pieces at any moment.

"Rongrong... are you in there?" Zheng Yubing and Shui Lan arrived, but unlike Hu Rongrong, they weren't so bold. Several terrifying incidents had occurred in the old building. Just a few weeks ago, a girl was murdered in a first-floor art studio and drained of her blood. The next day, students saw the murdered girl wandering the campus. The police hadn't solved the case yet, and the students were divided on the matter: one side believed it was a zombie, the other a vampire. The two sides argued fiercely, almost coming to blows several times.

Hu Rongrong shouted, "I'm at the stairwell, you two hurry up and come over!" Before the story even began, Zheng and Shui were already quite frightened, their voices trembling. It seemed Luo Shimin had escaped unscathed. But who would clean the dorm next month? Should Zheng and Shui each clean for a month? That was a good idea.

Shui Lan was startled when she saw Hu Rongrong's grotesque face illuminated by the candlelight. Trembling, she asked, "Haven't Luo Shimin and Xia Chen arrived yet? Are we too early?"

Hu Rongrong said with a smile, "The two of them are having dinner at the restaurant and will be here soon. You two can sit down first." Her smile was even more terrifying than her usual one; in Shui Lan's eyes, it was nothing short of a devilish grin. Shui and Lan sat down close together, practically hugging each other, both facing the exit, ready to stand up and run at the slightest sign of trouble.

Speak of the devil, and he appears; Cao Cao was undoubtedly the fastest runner in Chinese history. Even Sun Wukong couldn't catch up with him in a single somersault covering 108,000 li. "We're here!" Luo Shimin appeared in everyone's sight with a radiant smile, pulling Xia Chen along. Today, her relationship with Xia Chen had made significant progress; Xia Chen had tacitly accepted their relationship, which made Luo Shimin extremely happy.

"Let's begin then." Hu Rongrong was eager to hear the scary story about the steps.

Xia Chen sat sideways on the blanket, with Luo Shimin nestled in her arms like a happy kitten. Xia Chen spoke slowly in a deep voice, "There's a terrifying rumor about the steps in front of us. When you walk up and count, there are thirteen steps. But when you walk down and count, it becomes fourteen. After you finish counting, something horrific will happen. No one knows exactly what it is, but the rumor says that once you've counted the steps up, you can't help but count down, and everyone who has counted the steps will die within seven days without exception."

Shui Lan's face turned deathly pale. This morning, she was so close. If Xia Chen hadn't stopped her in time, he would have finished counting the steps, and she would have died mysteriously seven days later.

Xia Chen's next sentence eased everyone's tension: "Of course, what I'm talking about is just a legend. Legends, as they are passed down from person to person, tend to deviate further and further from the truth. Some become influenced by the subjective opinions of the person spreading them, while others omit crucial details. So, never believe legends. But there's another possibility: perhaps the rumor itself is even more terrifying than the rumor, and the truth is even more unbelievable." Xia Chen's "but" made everyone tense up again.

"The story I'm about to tell takes place about a hundred years ago. I want to emphasize that it's not just a story; it actually happened, and the location is right here where we are right now." Xia Chen took a sip of water and continued, "A hundred years ago, during the darkest period in Chinese history, society was in turmoil, people were suffering, and more than half the population was starving. A Swiss doctor named Denangel came to China. After arriving in our city, he decided to stay and build a nursing school. That was the predecessor of our Yishi College. We won't discuss his motives for now. The story I'm about to tell takes place during the construction of the school."

D'Annanger raised a large sum of money, but he had no workers. So he handed the project over to a foreman named Meng Yin. Meng Yin was a local nightmare; he sent people to nearby villages saying that foreigners wanted to build houses, offering generous wages, three meals a day, white flour buns for lunch, and one meat meal a month. At that time, the nearby villagers were barely able to afford cornbread, and just for the promise of three meals a day, a large number of villagers flocked to the construction site, Chang Si being one of them.

To talk about Chang Si, we must mention his family background. Chang Si's grandfather was a renowned scholar in the area, and the Chang family was considered a wealthy household. Chang Si enjoyed a few days of carefree living as a child. After his grandfather's death, his father took over the family business. He first became addicted to gambling, then to opium addiction, squandering the family fortune in just a few years before taking his own life, leaving behind a widow and orphan. Ten-year-old Chang Si and his mother depended on each other for survival. His mother did odd jobs, and young Chang Si herded sheep. The two of them survived in this chaotic world.

When Chang Si was twenty, her mother exhausted her savings to arrange a marriage for her. Her new bride, Li Yishu, was the daughter of a wealthy farmer. She was skillful, well-educated, and pretty. Her only flaw was that she was mute. However, Chang Si didn't mind; she just wanted a peaceful life. After the marriage, Chang Si borrowed money from the Li family and bought a small plot of land in the village, where they lived a simple life of farming and weaving.

Chang Si enjoyed a happy life for half a year, but then the world turned upside down. A once-in-a-century drought struck China, resulting in a complete crop failure and subsequent famine. Chang Si's family's food supplies had run out a month ago, and all the edible wild grass within a hundred miles of the village had long been dug up. Even tree bark was stripped off, soaked in water, and boiled for consumption. People are capable of anything when they are utterly depraved; rumors circulated that in some places, even cannibalism had occurred. Under these circumstances, Li Yishu became seven months pregnant, and Chang Si was on the verge of despair. Just then, Meng Yin came to the village to recruit workers, and Chang Si signed up without hesitation.

The work on the construction site was tough. For the first few days, just as Meng Yin had said, they only ate three meals a day: porridge and cornbread for breakfast and dinner, and two white flour buns for lunch. Chang Si was reluctant to eat much, only consuming a little at each meal. After work, he would carry the saved food for over ten miles home to his wife and mother. Chang Si would sit and watch his mother and wife eat, and at those moments, he felt incredibly happy. His mother didn't eat much either; they gave most of the food to Li Yishu. Li Yishu would always try to get Chang Si to eat some, but he always refused, only taking a small bite when he was truly starving.

After some time, Meng Yin began to cut back on the workers' food. Everyone was resentful, but they had no choice but to endure it in order to fill their stomachs. If they lost their jobs, their whole families might starve to death in the Great Famine.

A few days later, something happened that completely changed Chang Si's life. It was a pouring rainy afternoon, with thunder and lightning. Chang Si's mother was struck in the back by a large rock that rolled down the hillside. When she was found, she was barely breathing, constantly calling out for Chang Si, wanting to see him one last time. Li Yishu, heavily pregnant, carrying a tattered oil-paper umbrella, walked out of the village to find her husband at the construction site. The dirt road was extremely muddy and difficult to walk on after the rain. She nearly fell several times, and before she even reached the construction site, she was covered in mud.

At this moment, Meng Yin was venting her anger inside the house. "Damn this awful weather! If it weren't for the fact that it hasn't rained for months, and then it starts raining and it never stops, those foreign devils are always urging us to hurry up. Just hearing their gibberish gives me a headache. How can I be fast in this weather? Those peasants must be happy. They can do nothing today and still get food. Tell the canteen to cut everyone's food in half." A henchman responded and went to relay the message.

Another henchman said with a fawning smile, "Master Meng, it's not our fault that the project is slow. I used to work on construction sites, so I know a little bit about this. There's something fishy about the house that the foreigners built. There are secret rooms, hidden passages, and other things that I can't quite put my finger on. I don't think these foreigners are good people either. We should steal the blueprints and ask someone knowledgeable. Maybe we can get some more money from the foreigners."

Meng Yin slapped the henchman across the face. "Damn it, why didn't you say so sooner? You've delayed my money-making." The henchman covered his face and laughed, "Master Meng is right, I deserve to be hit." To curry favor with Meng Yin, the henchman slapped himself twice more, and half of his face immediately swelled up.

"How can we steal the blueprints? The foreigners are keeping a close watch on them, and we don't know where they've put them." Meng Yin walked to the door and saw a blurry figure in the heavy rain. It seemed to be a woman. Meng Yin beckoned her henchmen to her. "I see someone on the construction site. Could it be a thief?"

The henchman glanced at her and said, "It's a woman. I've seen her before. She's Chang Si's wife. She's quite pretty, but it's a pity she's mute. Coming to see Chang Si in this heavy rain, something must have happened at home."

With a lewd grin and eyes blazing with fury, Meng Yin said, "I've been stuck in this godforsaken place for months, I've almost forgotten what a woman is like, and yet here she is, delivering herself to my doorstep." What happened next is best left unsaid: Meng Yin and his gang raped Chang Yin's wife. To silence her, Meng Yin strangled her to death, and under the cover of a downpour, threw her into the nearly completed foundation, sealing the entrance. In another version of the story, Chang Yin's wife didn't die; she was merely strangled unconscious. Li Yishu awoke to find herself in darkness, surrounded by cold and fear. She opened her mouth, desperately trying to scream, but no sound came out. She tried to dig a way out, her fingers leaving bloody streaks in the cement. Finally, she and her unborn child died, filled with resentment, two lives lost. Chang Si's mother also didn't live to see Chang Yin, closing her eyes with regret.

After the rain stopped and the construction resumed, Chang Si felt uneasy. A voice seemed to be calling to him, but he couldn't pinpoint its source. Three days later, villagers came to the construction site to find him, and he learned that something terrible had happened at home. He ran home like a madman, buried his mother in tears, and searched everywhere for his wife, but to no avail. On the fifth day, a henchman with a shred of conscience told Chang Si what had happened that night. Chang Si went to confront Meng Yin like a madman. How could a peasant like him be a match for Meng Yin? He was beaten half to death and thrown out. Knowing revenge was hopeless—he couldn't beat Chang Yin in a fight, and reporting it to the authorities was useless, as Chang Yin had foreign backers—Chang Si returned home that night and set himself on fire. Villagers who rushed to put out the fire saw Chang Yin still cursing Meng Yin loudly in the flames until his death.

After Chang Si's death, Meng Yin became even more reckless, and soon forgot about the incident. A few months later, the project was nearing completion. Meng Yin led his henchmen to inspect the construction site. Ascending the stairs where Chang Si's wife was buried, he counted 13 steps. Descending, he felt there was an extra step; he counted again, and sure enough, there were 14. He counted several times, and it was always the same: 13 steps going up, 14 steps going down.

Everyone was astonished. One of the henchmen suddenly remembered something and was so frightened that he wet his pants on the spot. Meng Yin cursed, "You useless idiot, how can you be more timid than a woman? You've embarrassed me so much."

The henchman stammered, "Master...Master...Master, you...forgot...that...Chang Yin's wife is buried...buried...buried down here."

Everyone began to feel a chill run down their spines, especially the henchmen who had been there that night, whose legs went weak and they could barely stand. Meng Yin slapped his forehead and laughed lewdly, "Haha... How could I forget about this mute woman? She was really something. Now I regret killing her back then. I should have played with her a few more times before killing her."

The henchman continued, "Master Meng, I heard a foreign missionary say that the number 13 is particularly unlucky in their country. And the 1 in 14 is pronounced 'yao' in some places, which, when combined with 'poison,' becomes 'want to die,' which is also very unlucky. Besides, I was in charge of supervising the construction of this staircase, and I remember clearly that my foreigners requested 15 steps. How did it end up like this?"

Another henchman said, "Master Meng, I heard Zhou the Blind Fortune Teller on the street say that a pregnant woman who dies unjustly is very fierce, even more so than the Red-Clothed Female Ghost. Shouldn't we think of something?"

Upon hearing the henchman's words, Meng Yin's face turned green, and he felt a surge of fear. He led his men and fled in a panic. That night, he hired a group of Taoist priests to perform an exorcism ritual in front of the steps, but it seemed to have no effect. When dawn broke, no one saw Meng Yin or his men again, only a large pool of blood and their clothes were found on the steps. Only a few newly joined henchmen who hadn't counted the steps remained.

The local tyrant, Meng Yin, along with his henchmen, mysteriously disappeared. This was a major case at the time, but it was quickly suppressed. To avoid delaying the construction, Denanger allowed the laborers to elect their own foreman and even gave them a raise. Meng Yin was soon forgotten. The stairs became a taboo subject on the construction site. Unless absolutely necessary, the laborers would rather walk a longer, more circuitous route than tread those blood-stained steps. Thanks to the laborers' efforts, the building was completed on schedule. After the laborers returned home, the legend of the terrifying stairs began to circulate. Gradually, a custom formed in the city: one should not count the stairs when going up. Parents would repeatedly warn their children against this, and if they accidentally broke the rule, they would be severely scolded or even beaten. This custom still exists today.

The story seems to end here, but it doesn't. A few years later, a minor earthquake struck the city, causing cracks in the building's staircase. A nurse accidentally discovered a human skeleton within the staircase. D'Annanger ordered the staircase demolished, retrieving twelve complete skeletons. Two more skeletons, one large and one small, were found in the foundation beneath the stairs; the smaller one was still unformed. People believed these were the remains of Meng Yin, his henchmen, and Chang Yin's wife. The school burned the skeletons and rebuilt a new staircase. Soon after, a terrifying legend began to circulate quietly throughout the college: Chang Yin's wife was extremely resentful and filled with malice. When climbing these stairs, remember, never count them; if you do, her vengeful spirit will emerge from the stairs and drag you down with her. This legend lasted less than a week before a bold and curious nurse mysteriously disappeared from the campus. The last time people saw her was in this very building; everyone believed she had counted the stairs and been dragged away by the vengeful spirit.

More than a decade later, war broke out. Switzerland was a neutral country, and Dernangel fled back home, never to return. The nursing school he had painstakingly built vanished in the war, leaving only these eerie old buildings and a series of terrifying legends. Among them, the steps are one of the most terrifying.

"Alright," Xia Chen clapped his hands. "My story is finished."

The moment Xia Chen finished speaking, everyone seemed to hear a sigh coming from the cold steps in front of them!

002 Counting Steps

The women were completely captivated by Xia Chen's story, remaining lost in thought for a long time. Even Luo Shimin, who usually dozed off during stories, was engrossed. Xia Chen finally spoke up, asking, "What's wrong with you all? Say something."

Hu Rongrong sighed and said, "Chang Si's family is so pitiful, but the story you told wasn't scary at all. I wasn't afraid. Luo Shimin, you'll have to clean the dormitory for a month next month."

Luo Shimin argued, "How can it not be scary? I found it very scary, I was frightened. Shui Lan and Zheng Yubing, were you scared too?"

“We…” Shui Lan was rather timid; the mere mention of ghosts or dead people in the story would scare her. Zheng Yubing was a little braver; she simply found the story interesting but wasn't actually frightened. If it were anyone else, she would definitely tell the truth. Luo Shimin was no ordinary person; her background was known throughout the entire academy, and the consequences of offending her were beyond description.

Xia Chen said in a low voice, "The terror I understand is not simply piling up some cold and gloomy words, making people feel a chill down their spines, and then forgetting it after a while. The terror I'm talking about is hidden between the lines. No matter how much time has passed, you will never forget it. As soon as you think about it, the terror hidden between the lines will gradually spread out like a chill, making your soul tremble and your body break out in a cold sweat. Fear will accompany you like your shadow for the rest of your life. No matter what method you use, you cannot drive away the fear."

Xia Chen's words were thought-provoking. Hu Rongrong was not one to give up easily. She retorted, "What you said is true, but I didn't sense any hidden fear in your story."

"That's because you didn't hear what I said. I didn't want to say it, but you forced me to," Xia Chen said in a deep voice. "What I said is basically true, although some parts are unverifiable due to the passage of time. But since the founding of Yishi Academy, in less than twenty years, there have been seven cases of students mysteriously disappearing in this old building. In three of them, witnesses saw the last place the missing students appeared on these steps in front of you. You're all smart people, you understand what I mean, right?"

The girls all turned to look at the steps. In the flickering candlelight, the short staircase seemed to grow longer and longer, like a monstrous serpent writhing its thick body. Xia Chen asked, "Now you feel the horror, right?" The girls all nodded. Luo Shimin jumped up and cheered, "Yay! We don't have to clean the dorm next month!"

A gust of cold wind blew by, extinguishing all the candles, and darkness instantly enveloped everyone. Shui Lan's scream shattered the tranquil night. Zheng Yubing asked, trembling, "The doors and windows are all tightly closed, where did the wind come from? It can't be... it can't be..." Luo Shimin said, "It seems to be blowing from the direction of the stairs." The women screamed and ran away. Xia Chen and Luo Shimin calmly stood up, tidied up their belongings, and walked out of the old building hand in hand.

There's an old European proverb, "Curiosity killed the cat." Curiosity is a very strange thing. Humanity's continuous progress, its rise to become the pinnacle of creation, and its current prosperity are inextricably linked to human curiosity. Everything has two sides. In many science fiction films, humanity opened Pandora's box for momentary curiosity, nearly leading to its extinction; countless people have died because of it. Whether curiosity is good or bad is for posterity to judge. On a stormy night with torrential rain and thunder, Shui Lan and Zheng Yubing nearly lost their lives because of momentary curiosity, which also uncovered a century-old secret.

On their day off, Shui Lan and Zheng Yubing had nothing to do, so they decided to go shopping together. Around noon, a thick cloud rolled in, covering the sky in less than an hour, signaling an impending downpour. The two grabbed a quick lunch on the street and hurriedly hailed a taxi to head back. Halfway there, the rain started pouring down, water streaming through the car windows, completely obscuring the view outside. Taxis weren't allowed inside the academy, so they had to stop at the school gate. The two girls, soaked to the bone along with their purchases, ran through the rain. Shui Lan, being less physically robust, couldn't run far before collapsing. They reached an old building, and Zheng Yubing pulled Shui Lan inside.

There were hardly any people in the old building. The hallway was poorly lit, a hazy gray. Zheng Yubing pressed the switch next to the door, but none of the lights in the corridor turned on. Zheng Yubing cursed, "This lousy school, they collect so much tuition from us every year, and I don't know what they do with it. I can count the number of times the lights in this corridor are on in a year on my two fingers."

Water and Zheng were still dripping with rain. Shui Lan pulled Zheng Yubing to sit down against the wall. "Let's rest for a while. I'm so tired from running."

"Achoo!" Zheng Yubing sneezed, her hands clasped to her chest from the cold. "If only I had a cup of steaming hot coffee right now."

After resting for a while, Shui Lan recovered and remembered the countless terrifying stories that had happened in this old building. A chill ran through her, and Shui Lan shivered. Looking at the torrential rain outside the door, she said, "Let's go back to the dormitory when the rain gets a little lighter. Staying here is too scary."

A deafening roar followed, a bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, and the earth was briefly illuminated, making everything inside the old building clearly visible in an instant. Shui Lan didn't hear Zheng Yubing's reply. Turning her head, she saw Zheng Yubing staring unblinkingly at the terrifying staircase. Shui Lan had a bad feeling. "Yubing, what are you looking at?"

“You know what I’m looking at. I’m looking at those steps,” Zheng Yubing said without turning her head. “I’m curious about what will happen after you count the steps. Aren’t you curious about how those people disappeared?”

“I’m a little curious, but I’m more scared. Stop staring at those steps. We’ve been walking on them for years. What’s so interesting about them?”

Zheng Yubing stood up and said, "These past few days I've been secretly observing Xia Chen and Luo Shimin, and I've noticed that they still walk on these steps every day. Normally, if there were something wrong with these steps, it would create a psychological shadow on them, and they would unconsciously avoid them. But the two of them haven't done that."

Shui Lan was stunned. She didn't expect that Zheng Yubing hadn't forgotten this matter even after so much time had passed. "You mean that the horror story Xia Chen told about the stairs was fake? There was no Meng Yin Changsi at all? But the disappearances Xia Chen mentioned were all true. Many classmates disappeared in this old building."

“It’s not certain whether it’s true or not.” Zheng Yubing took two more steps forward. “We’ll know once we try it ourselves.”

Just as Zheng Yubing was about to reach the stairs, Shui Lan ran over and grabbed her. "Yubing, what are you doing?"

Zheng Yubing seemed to be bewitched. "I want to try it myself and see if the horror story of counting stairs is true. Every time I think about the story of counting stairs, it feels like a bunch of kittens are scratching at my heart. I've always been very curious since I was a child. I can't take it anymore, I have to find out today."

"Are you crazy!" Shui Lan scolded. "What if the story of counting stairs is true, and the female ghost appears to take you away? What will you do then?"

“I have this.” Zheng Yubing grabbed a red thread around her neck and pulled out a jade Buddha image about the size of two coins. “Jade can ward off evil spirits. This is a piece of top-quality Xinjiang Hetian jade, blessed by a master. It was offered to the Buddha statue for two years and received incense offerings for two years. I’ve also carried it with me for over twenty years. No matter how powerful the ghost is, it can’t harm me. Shui Lan, don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”

Seeing that Zheng Yubing was determined to try, Shui Lan stopped trying to stop her, let go of her hand, and said cautiously, "Then be careful." But she didn't know what to be careful about.

Zheng Yubing walked step by step to the steps. She was wearing soft-soled shoes, but the sound of each footstep was still exceptionally clear. Reaching the top of the stairs, her heart suddenly began to pound. She took a few deep breaths, trying to calm her racing heart. Shui Lan stood behind her, her heart pounding with tension. Zheng Yubing was her best friend; if it were anyone else, she would have run for her life even if it were raining knives.

"One..." Zheng Yubing lifted her right foot and stepped onto the first step. Shui Lan's heart leaped into her throat, her hands clenched tightly, veins bulging on her wrists. Zheng Yubing paused for half a minute, feeling nothing unusual. Shui Lan asked loudly, "Yubing, are you alright?"

"I'm fine." After confirming that there was nothing wrong, Zheng Yubing lifted her left leg and stepped onto the second step. "2..." She counted loudly to bolster her courage, the echo gradually fading into the dark stairwell.

"two……"