Xiao Xia sucked in a breath of cold air, immediately turning and running. However, Gu Yu Fang also swiftly leapt down behind her and pursued with heavy steps.
“Ruan Zhan, save me!” Xiao Xia screamed. The loud echo made things even more frightening and might even awaken other spirits, but she couldn’t spare a thought for that. She also didn’t notice who it was she called out for when she was in danger. She only knew to desperately run and scream, but the only response was the gradually approaching single footstep.
It was a zombie. Gu Yu Fang had become a zombie.1 Xiao Xia fell to the floor after running an entire lap, finally coming to terms with the reality of her being chased by a hopping Gu Yu Fang. She climbed up in panic but realized she had been forced into a corner.
Was she about to die here? Was Ruan Zhan really not coming to save her? He always made it in the nick of time. Why was he abandoning her this time?
Xiao Xia had nowhere to go but still looked at the tightly shut doors, unwilling to give up.
Gu Yu Fang slowly hopped over but didn’t make a move, merely glaring at Xiao Xia. The pale, bloodless lips, red eyes and expressionless face still managed to convey strong resentment.
“If I can’t obtain something, no one else can either.” It suddenly whispered, one word at a time.
“You….”
Before Xiao Xia could finish, Gu Yu Fang suddenly stretched out an arm and gripped Xiao Xia’s slender neck. An indescribable chill immediately made her skin react as the feeling of suffocation overcame her.
At this moment, she felt her amulet give off a sort of warmth, making the zombie release her as though scalded. The moment she was free, Xiao Xia took the opportunity to keep running. However, there wasn’t anywhere to go in this enclosed space. Her neck was grabbed from behind by the zombie and the amulet’s rope was snapped. The only thing protecting her fell from her collar to the floor.
That was the only thing her grandmother had left her. She couldn’t lose it!
Her mind was filled with this thought as she tried to pounce towards the jade amulet. However, she was dragged back by the clamp-like ghostly hand. She just had time to see that the amulet hadn’t been damaged from the fall before she was twisted around to face the zombie.
Her survival instinct made her struggle against the grip on her neck, but the sewn-on arm was unmoving like a mountain, only giving off hollow thudding sounds.
“Can’t die like this. Someone will definitely come save me!”
She thought blurrily as she struggled stubbornly. She felt as if time had stopped. Right as she was about to lose consciousness, she finally heard the door open. She saw Wan Li charge inside holding the bloodwood sword, swinging at the zombie whose back was towards him.
The zombie didn’t fall. Instead, it let out a scream as it hopped around to face Wan Li.
Wan Li felt his arm go numb, feeling like the sword had struck something solid. Only now did he realize what was before him wasn’t a spirit, but a zombie. Therefore, the bloodwood sword could only frighten it, but wouldn’t have any actual effects.
How could a newly deceased person become a zombie? He was a little confused, but the weak glint on top of Gu Yu Fang’s head that reflected the faint yellow light of the morgue finally cleared up the situation. His experience with Ruan Zhan in college flashed through his mind.
He calmed down and slowly retreated, baiting Gu Yu Fang into following him one hop at a time.
A few minutes earlier, he had been standing helplessly outside the door, unable to think clearly from panic. He had suddenly realized that Xiao Xia couldn’t have locked the door by herself. It was probably another restriction. Therefore, without any other ideas, he took the risk of breaking the bloodwood sword and struck heavily at the metal door. The clever and sinister restriction was broken immediately and he pushed open the door that hadn’t been locked at all.
“Get up, run!” He yelled at Xiao Xia who was coughing violently. He watched as she stood up shakily.
The zombie in front of him seemed different from what he knew, and wasn’t just a mindless killing machine. It seemed to understand his words and immediately ignored him, turning back towards Xiao Xia.
The legs were its weakness. Wan Li recalled Ruan Zhan’s words in the past and pounced over from behind. He tackled it face first into the ground and kept it pinned. However, he knew zombies had astonishing strength and that he wouldn’t be able to keep it suppressed for long. He hurriedly called to Xiao Xia.
“Xiao Xia, pull out the needle on top of its head.”
At this moment, Xiao Xia also saw the strange object on Gu Yu Fang’s head. She hurriedly ran over. After some hesitation, she gritted her teeth and stretched her hand out. However, the zombie’s head suddenly twisted left and right in a wide arc, not letting her grab hold. In the end, the head actually came off its neck and swiftly rolled away.
Its body was still struggling so Wan Li couldn’t relax. Xiao Xia could only muster up her courage and chase after the head.
It was like a sentient soccer ball tangled with dense, black, long hair. It rolled and dodged continuously, its pale face coming into view occasionally, letting out a woman’s weeping all the while. This gave Xiao Xia a ton of psychological pressure and shock, making her unable to grab it after several tries.
“It’s attacking your senses, ignore it!”
“I can’t do it!”
“You can, Xiao Xia, you have to help me! You definitely can!” Wan Li couldn’t see what was happening and could only continue to give her encouragement. He was almost unable to hold on.
Xiao Xia knew things were urgent so she quickened her pace despite her trembling heart and stepped on the head’s long hair.
“You lied to me! You lied to me!” The severed head suddenly started shrieking, turning around and trying to bite Xiao Xia’s leg. Xiao Xia shrunk back in shock and it rolled away once more.
“Xiao Xia, hurry!” Wan Li yelled from the other side.
Xiao Xia forced her limp legs to move. She once again caught up and stepped on the head’s hair. At the risk of being bitten, she managed to pull out the steel needle controlling it before its mouth could bite down.
At the same time, the body being restricted by Wan Li immediately fell still.
Wan Li sat on the floor panting. It had been less than a minute but he was so tired he could barely stand. However, he was very impressed with himself. He didn’t expect to last so long. Looks like the time he spent as a gym rat normally wasn’t in vain.
“Really not a task fit for humans.” He cursed before forcing himself up to go find Xiao Xia. He found her standing there blankly, still holding that steel needle.
“Relax! Relax!” He lightly patted her back and pried her fingers open, taking the needle and carefully putting it in his wallet. “Say something at least!” He put an arm around her shoulder.
“I’m cold!” Xiao Xia spoke as though sleepwalking.
“Of course, this place is a morgue!” He crouched and shifted Xiao Xia’s foot which was still in place. He picked the head up and moved it to the body. He put the corpse back in place and aligned the head. After finishing all this, he was about to collapse from exhaustion.
“No wonder people talk about the weight of death! It’s really heavy! If she were alive, I could casually carry two of her.” He knew Xiao Xia was following behind him so he kept transmitting calm to her.
“But her head has broken off for no reason and we had just gone to see her. Will there be trouble?” Xiao Xia finally recovered her wits. She ran to the fallen amulet as she spoke and carefully felt it over.
Luckily, the amulet with spirit power was still undamaged. It just wasn’t as lustrous as before, and contained some faint blackness. She carefully put it in her pocket, waiting for a certain someone to return and purify it.
“Just say it had already fallen off before we got here. This case involves a cult anyway, so it’s normal for there to be some inconceivable things.” Wan Li lowered his head and carefully observed Gu Yu Fang’s mouth. “Xiao Xia, come take a look. Why is her lips twisted like that when she’s smiling?”
“If you keep messing around, I’ll ignore you for an eternity!”
“I cannot be any more serious.” Wan Li moved the corpse’s mouth as he spoke and fished out a crumpled piece of yellow paper. “Luckily the dead don’t salivate. Otherwise it would be soaked through and there wouldn’t be any evidence.” He carefully placed the slightly damp paper into a clean paper towel, planning to grab that bastard Ruan Zhan and ask him what spell this was. Who had been controlling the zombie, and how?
“What evidence?”
“Evidence of the evil cult. I think this is what caused Gu Yu Fang to turn into a zombie, along with that needle. Forget it, let’s get out of here first. We can talk about this later. First we must put on a performance.” He pulled Xiao Xia out of the morgue, locked the door, and put the key back on the administrator who was still unconscious.
“Act surprised in a bit.” He instructed Xiao Xia before pointing the bloodwood sword between the administrator’s eyes. With a flash of red light, the restriction on his body was undone.
“Hey, you should be careful. How did you suddenly fall? Did you trip?” Wan Li asked exaggeratedly as he helped the administrator up.
Xiao Xia received the bloodwood sword Wan Li had shoved at her and hurriedly put it into the case.
“I didn’t trip, just suddenly felt a little dizzy.” The administrator was very bewildered.
“Ah, what fortune! Working here, it’s inevitable…haha we should hurry and get this over with. I’m also unwilling to remain here for too long.”
“Right, right!” The administrator agreed and hurriedly took them inside the morgue. He felt fortunate that nothing seemed to be wrong with him.
The condition of the corpse gave them a huge shock. Wan Li was especially exaggerated.
“Why did her head fall off?!” He yelled so loudly it startled the other two.
Xiao Xia had no talent in acting and could only remain silent.
“This is the first time I’ve seen something so weird!” Those in charge of the morgue were all courageous people, but the administrator had also turned pale. “I heard this woman died very violently. Could something foul be afoot?”
“Let’s leave quickly!” Wan Li ‘promptly decided’, “We’ll look into it after getting out. I’m getting the chills!” He urged the administrator to leave while also turning and making a face at Xiao Xia. He completely didn’t notice that their actions were being transmitted by a paper crane that had almost fallen apart on top of a locker to a villa on the outskirts.