447 Advancing in the Dark
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Yang Jian wasn’t certain how many ghost hunters were still alive inside this dormitory building; after all, since the incident unfolded, others might have already dispersed and fled the area, possibly even without enough time to receive notifications from headquarters, let alone knowing the ghost’s pattern of killing.
But this was the place most steeped in darkness, which meant that both the ghosts and other ghost hunters were here.
Yang Jian could only take the risk of entering, for if he couldn’t accomplish his objective on this trip, an unsolvable supernatural event awaited him.
This was an unprecedented horror; should the ghost continue to grow stronger, the outcome would be despairing.
There was no escape, no confronting it, no possibility of containment.
Even with knowledge of the pattern, there would still be no way out.
With this thought, his pace grew even more urgent.
“Bang!”
Yang Jian kicked open the door of a dormitory room with brute force, taking a quick glance inside.
Desolate, not a single person in sight.
But he didn’t stop his search efforts there, instead proceeding to the next dorm room to look for any possibly isolated ghost hunters.
The second dorm room was empty, and the door to the third was ajar. There were belongings of a ghost hunter inside, yet it was still devoid of people—presumably evacuated by someone with a quick reaction.
Yang Jian felt a sinking feeling in his heart.
Once away from the dormitory building, even if not immediately fatal, it was as good as dead because the ghost would not spare an isolated target. Only by staying together was there a chance to survive.
But the real challenge lay in how to gather everyone together in a short span of time.
This was the Ghost Domain. Under the control of a ghost, most ghost hunters simply could not see through the darkness and were likely to get lost.
He kicked open the last door on the floor.
Suddenly, Yang Jian saw someone sitting in the furthest corner of the dorm room, hugging their knees. Although their expression was somewhat calm, it still betrayed a sense of unease and panic.
Especially when the door was kicked open, the person was startled enough to cover their mouth.
“I’m Yang Jian. You’re one of the ghost hunters from this group, right? There’s no time to explain, follow me immediately,” Yang Jian said upon seeing the person, feeling a sense of relief.
As long as they were alive, it was good.
“You’re Yang Jian? What in the world is happening outside? I woke up and felt something was off around me. There must be a supernatural event occurring here,” the person said, first startled, then relieved, asking earnestly.
Yang Jian approached and said, “Yes, a supernatural event has taken place. If you want to stay alive, don’t remain here, or the ghost will come to kill you soon.”
“Do you know the ghost’s pattern of killing? If not, staying quiet and still like me is the safest option. If I can just get through this period, I will survive once the ghost moves on,” the person explained, evidently having their own strategy for survival.
And it was indeed a very sound approach.
In most supernatural events, if people stay calm and motionless, pretending to be statues, they have a high chance of avoiding being selected as targets by ghosts.
Their chance to live is much greater than those who run around and scream.
“That ghost targets people who are alone. Your method is practically akin to courting death. I don’t want to waste any more time explaining; follow me right now. I have to find the others,” Yang Jian said as he reached the person’s side, immediately grabbing and pulling them up.
Then he placed their hand on his other shoulder.
“Don’t let go of my hand. I can see clearly here, and I’ll lead the way.”
“Okay, okay,” the person responded, clearly beginning to panic, no longer insisting on staying put. They immediately followed Yang Jian out of the dormitory building.
Those appointed to train here were ghost hunters with certain potential. Most knew to measure their actions.
“Yang Jian, there’s news. A ghost hunter named Qian Yi on the third floor is exiting through another safe passage and has now made it back to the first floor,” suddenly Huang Ziya whispered.
“Who?” the other person exclaimed, startled.
They couldn’t see the surroundings clearly and only realized there was another person beside them when they heard the voice.
“I’m Huang Ziya, one of the trainees this term, just like you. Yang Jian found me, and now he wants us to gather together,” Huang Ziya explained.
Yang Jian said, “Good, tell him to turn around and go back upstairs. I’ll meet him at the opposite safe passage.”
The dormitory building was not small; in fact, it was quite large.
Though recently constructed, perhaps taking practicality into account, its scale was much larger than typical dorm buildings. There were eight exits for safety alone and the stairways were also much wider than those in ordinary buildings.
This was entirely for safety reasons so that everyone could evacuate in the shortest possible time in an emergency.
The downside, however, was that the spacious interiors made it difficult for people to find their way out quickly in the dark.
Despite being able to see the path ahead clearly, Yang Jian, because he needed to keep an eye on the surroundings and lead the two behind him, couldn’t run recklessly through the dormitory building and could only move quickly forward.
Counting this person,
Currently, the number of ghosts on our side is four, but under special circumstances, this number can become five because Yang Jian still has a captured ghost in his possession, which can be released and suppressed in a critical moment.
However, the ghost inside the dormitory building can suppress at least five to start with.
Therefore, the three of us are still isolated.
At this moment.
The fourth floor of the dormitory building.