Author: 颜凉雨 / Yan Liang Yu
Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/
Chapter 168: Shadowless
In a small bedroom on the second floor, the five companions stood in front of the bed in silence.
This was a playful children’s room, painted in a light blue like the clear sky, with a soft, long-haired carpet on the floor and a small pink wooden horse standing quietly on it.
The companions’ collective focus was on the children’s bed in the corner of the room, sized for a five- or six-year-old child to sleep in. However, there was no one on the bed, only a doll propped up at the head of the bed.
It was a beautiful doll, with slightly wavy blonde hair, lake-blue eyes, and a well-fitted doll dress that tried to showcase her innocence and cheerfulness.
Unfortunately, the attempt wasn’t quite successful.
Because her expression was too faint—faint enough to give the illusion that those amber-like eyes were coldly staring at you.
Xu Wang bravely broke the silence. “Are you sure it’s this one?”
For some reason, dolls always manage to evoke a deep-seated fear in horror settings, chilling to the bone.
Wu Sheng took out the cross from his arm, his eyes sparkling with the light of academic experimentation. “Let’s try and see.”
Qian Ai admired their strategist for this quality, daring to take samples from hell and conduct experiments at the graveside.
Chi Yingxue subtly moved closer to Kuang Jinxin, gripping the blood-stained cross tighter, ready for any unexpected events that might occur next.
Kuang Jinxin, preoccupied with both Wu Sheng’s actions and his own [Stationery Box], thought about using his stationery immediately if something went wrong.
Wu Sheng’s cross was inserted slowly and steadily into the doll’s heart.
Only when a quarter of the sharp end was completely submerged, resting against the doll’s body without going any deeper, did Wu Sheng release his hold.
The doll remained quietly seated, unaware.
Wu Sheng straightened up, silent.
Qian Ai started to doubt. “Could we be wrong? Maybe… Oh fuck!”
As he screamed, Qian Ai jumped backward more than a meter, his eyes filled with terror as he looked at the bed.
The companions didn’t move, but their calmness was just as forced.
The doll on the bed stood up.
With the cross still embedded in its heart, the doll walked to the edge of the bed, fell to the floor with a missed step, stiffly got up, and continued walking until it stopped next to Wu Sheng.
It was just taller than Wu Sheng’s knees, standing beside his leg like a child.
Wu Sheng moved forward, and so did the doll; Wu Sheng stepped back, and so did it. It mirrored his movements without any inclination to attack.
Xu Wang watched with mixed feelings. “She likes you…”
Realizing the reason, Wu Sheng explained, “Because the cross is mine.”
When the priest gave them the crosses, he didn’t explain much. Their intel from Mr. Fan only mentioned using the cross to capture ghosts by inserting it into their hearts, without mentioning what to do afterward. Now, seeing the state of the first doll ghost, they understood—the cross could neutralize a ghost’s combat ability and make it follow the person who subdued it with the cross.
That meant once they captured all the ghosts, they could naturally take them to the church, as the ghosts would follow them there.
Leaving the Bloody-Faced Man’s house, the five companions walked east along the street and soon arrived at the second haunted house marked on the map.
This was a minimalist three-story house, almost entirely covered by climbing ivy, with only glimpses of its original light gray color visible through the gaps. The color hinted at a Nordic coolness, but now the ivy made the whole house feel dense and swamp-like.
The front door was in disrepair, hanging askew in its frame.
Standing at the entrance, they could see a faint, colorful light inside.
Upon entering the living room, the doll automatically walked to a corner and stayed still, as if it knew the five were about to start part 2 of their ghost hunting and was obediently waiting.
The living room was covered in thick dust, and beneath the dust lay toppled, broken furniture. The only intact items were the fireplace and the deer head mounted above it on the wall, which seemed neglected and lonely after possibly being vandalized.
Yet, this room was decorated with a string of twinkling lights. The colors were varied and uniformly mystical and dim, casting an eerie glow over the entire living room.
The faint, colorful light seen from the doorway originated from here.
“Whoosh—”
Without warning, a sound echoed behind them, like fabric being suddenly unfurled.
The five immediately turned around, only to see a vampire cloaked in a cape right behind Qian Ai. He had golden short hair, deep and handsome features, eyes gentle enough to drown in, and the occasional glimpse of fangs beneath an elegant smile.
Such a handsome gentleman naturally needed emphasis on his entrance; hence, the cape fluttered as if a wind machine was built into it.
Qian Ai couldn’t appreciate his beauty, as, in a moment of shock, he didn’t even bother to use any stationery but delivered a roundhouse kick right to the vampire’s chest.
The elegant vampire was solidly kicked away, drawing a less-than-beautiful arc through the air before landing with a pained “Ow”.
Qian Ai had always had an instinctive fear of ghosts, but that kick seemed to crack his fear, especially after hearing the ghost’s scream, boosting his confidence. Thus, he stepped forward without hesitation and delivered a second kick to the vampire now on the ground.
This time, the vampire didn’t give him a chance but desperately grabbed his kicking leg, wailing, “Help—murderer—”
Xu Wang, Wu Sheng, Chi Yingxue, and Kuang Jinxin, who came ready to assist: “……”
With one leg in the air, Qian Ai was baffled. “What the hell? I’m the murderer?”
The handsome vampire clutching his leg declared resolutely, “It’s you! One more kick, and my heart would break!”
Qian Ai got goosebumps from this peculiar accusation. “Aren’t you a monster? Have some professional ethics? Just do your thing without adding so much dialogue. Are you crazy?”
The handsome man retorted, “I’m human. I came here looking for ghosts!”
Suddenly, the air went quiet.
Their eyes met, and Qian Ai gently lowered his leg, displaying an awkward yet polite smile.
The handsome man was helped up by Xu Wang. Though the misunderstanding was cleared up, the pain remained. He gasped and rubbed his chest, devoid of any vampire elegance from moments ago.
“Why aren’t you guys dressed up?” He finally managed to speak, his first question lacking substance.
Xu Wang ignored the question, getting straight to the point. “What are you doing here?”
“Exploring.” The man removed his fake vampire teeth to speak more clearly. “This place is known as a haunted house in town, perfect for an adventure during Halloween.”
“A haunted house?” Xu Wang feigned shock and surprise, his expression as genuine as could be.
The four companions silently glanced at the demon doll in the corner, once again impressed by their captain’s quick adaptation.
The blond man, oblivious, naively explained to Captain Xu, “A family of three used to live here—a couple with a son in middle school. One day, the boy suddenly disappeared from home. The police suspected he was killed by his parents, but no body or evidence was found, and the case went cold. Later, unable to bear the rumors, the couple moved away, and the house has been abandoned ever since.”
“That’s abandonment, not a haunted house.” Wu Sheng joined the conversation, sticking to his strict definition of a “haunted house”.
“I wasn’t finished.” The blond man continued, “With the house abandoned and the ivy covering it, it started to get that atmosphere. Then people looking to explore started coming…”
Kuang Jinxin curiously asked, “Did they find anything?”
The blond man shook his head. “No, they disappeared.”
“People disappeared?” Xu Wang frowned.
“Yeah, everyone who came here to explore vanished.”
“And you still came?” Qian Ai couldn’t understand such a death-wishing mentality.
“I’m curious,” the blond man stated proudly, momentarily exuding a fearless aura dedicated to exploration.
However, his charm was fleeting. The next second, he looked around nervously, whispering, “I always feel like that missing boy is still in this house and has never left…”
His hushed tone chilled the living room.
The small colored lights continued to blink, like the eyes of phantoms.
Xu Wang was about to probe further when the blond man suddenly gaped in horror, as if seeing something frightfully shocking, rendering him speechless.
The companions were startled, immediately looking in the direction he stared at, but there was nothing there. It was just a wall, unclear if it was gray or white.
In that eerie moment, the blond man was abruptly lifted into the air, as if flung by a giant hand, and hurled towards the fireplace!
This time there was no arc; the sheer force sent him crashing into the deer head above the fireplace.
The deer’s antlers pierced through his chest, causing his blood to stain his cloak and clothes underneath.
He was motionless, like a piece of clothing hanging on the wall, eyes still open.
One second alive, the next dead before their eyes. Despite their experience in navigating levels, the companions needed a moment to recover.
But the ghost lurking in the shadows didn’t give them a moment to breathe.
The five companions were collectively lifted into the air, following the same deadly trajectory as the blond man towards the blood-stained antlers. This time, they felt the overwhelming force they couldn’t resist!
“Xiao Kuang, delay—” In the moment they were lifted, Wu Sheng shouted.
Kuang Jinxin’s [Stationery Box], always ready for action, was finally put to use as Wu Sheng shouted “delay”. He activated it immediately!
[Owl: Someone used [(Defense) Delaying Tactics] on you~~]
Just as Xu Wang, the first to be lifted, was inches away from the antler tips, the defense stationery finally took effect. The speed of the five companions’ collision suddenly slowed, giving the sensation of floating in a spacecraft.
Xu Wang grabbed onto the antlers, sighed in relief, then pushed upwards, avoiding the antlers and gently colliding with the wall.
The other four followed suit.
Chi Yingxue was the last to land.
Then, the deer head responded to the call of the stationery—
[Owl: Someone used [(Illusory) Easter Egg*] on you~~]
*(复活彩蛋) When the text is broken down, it’s translated as Resurrection Easter Egg, signifying how Easter is the holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus.
The eyes of the deer head immediately came to life, and then the deer head began to move. The wall started making cracking sounds. Eventually, with a loud roar, the deer burst through the wall, transformed into a full deer, carrying the blond man on its antlers, and galloped away, leaving only the sound of hooves in the night wind.
Only one classmate had the stationery capable of reviving the dead.
The four companions looked towards Chi Yingxue.
Chi shrugged. “Just in case.”
As if to validate his action, the ghost in the shadows lifted the five into the air for the second time. This time, with no sharp objects on the walls, the haphazardly positioned furniture floated up, turning into projectiles shooting towards them from all directions.
The companions weren’t afraid of such physical attacks; they had enough stationery for defense. But the task was to catch ghosts, and how could they do that without even seeing a shadow of one, only passively getting hit?
Finally, the living room calmed down.
“We have to search, quickly,” Wu Sheng said, not minding his unstable breath.
The companions immediately sprang into action, swiftly checking every room on the ground floor, finding nothing unusual but a basement.
“Should we leave someone outside to keep watch?” Qian Ai asked as they were about to enter the basement.
Wu Sheng decisively shook his head. “We can’t split up in this level.”
Xu Wang added, “The tragedy of countless horror movie protagonists begins with splitting up.”
“…..” Qian Ai, a horror movie enthusiast, acknowledged this golden rule upon reflection.
Entering the basement, they were first hit by the nauseating smell of decay.
Wu Sheng found a switch on the wall, pressed it, and the light came on.
This wasn’t surprising; the small lights in the living room already suggested the house had electricity. However, why an abandoned house still had power was a point of interest for Wu Sheng.
But he had no time to ponder.
The basement was full of bodies.
But this time, there were no dismembered limbs or blurred flesh—just bodies sitting or lying quietly, clothes intact but flesh rotted over time.
“Killed by the ghost…?” Qian Ai’s voice trembled.
Kuang Jinxin, taking a brief look around, eventually shook his head. “Doesn’t seem like it…”
Xu Wang and Wu Sheng moved forward to inspect without daring to touch, merely squatting in front of the bodies for a closer look.
“It looks more like they died trapped here…” Wu Sheng concluded.
Kuang Jinxin remembered what the blond man said, tentatively asking, “Sheng Ge, could these be the explorers who disappeared after coming here?”
Wu Sheng, noting the diverse styles of clothing on the bodies, nodded. “Possible.”
“Then no need to ask.” Qian Ai walked to the basement door, pulling it with force, to find it immovable. “We can’t leave either.”
He had become quite resigned to such dire situations.
[Owl: Someone used [(Defense) Cicada Shed Its Shell] on you~~]
With the stationery taking effect, the companions felt light-headed as they returned to the street outside the house. The ghost doll, somehow, was already back at Wu Sheng’s side.
Escaping wasn’t difficult, but catching the ghost was.
Qian Ai looked at the ivy-covered, haunted house at a loss. “We’ve used so much stationery but haven’t even seen the shadow of the ghost.”
Xu Wang pursed his lips. “If it’s really the kind of ghost that comes and goes without a trace, it’ll be troublesome.”
“But such a setup is basically unsolvable,” Kuang Jinxin said, frustrated. “Without locking onto the ghost, how can we use the cross?”
Wu Sheng, previously frowning in thought, lit up at Kuang Jinxin’s words. “It can’t be unsolvable, or the logic of overcoming the level wouldn’t hold. There must be a way to force it to show itself. We just haven’t found it yet.”
“How do we find it?” Chi Yingxue disliked the passive situation and rarely joined in the conversation to ask.
Wu Sheng looked up at the building now covered in dark green, stating calmly and confidently. “We go back in.”
If one entrance didn’t work, they would try two, and if two didn’t work, they would try three. Data would eventually be collected completely, and then, the answer would emerge.
Re-entering the living room, before the ghost doll could automatically go to the corner, they stopped short.
In the center of the living room, the blond man in the cape, eyebrow raised, looked at them.
He wasn’t smiling, so his vampire teeth weren’t visible, but the cape still fluttered behind him, stirred by an unseen wind.
He had no wounds on his chest and was as handsome and elegant as ever, but his gaze towards the five was unfamiliar and surprised. “Are you here to explore too?”
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