Chapter 360 - Chapter 360: Chapter 359 Searching Patterns
Chapter 360: Chapter 359 Searching Patterns
A single Ghost Candle, Yang Jian had only used it once since he received it.
He didn’t carry it during that incident on the supernatural bus, so it wasn’t used.
The only time was on the second floor of the hotel, but not much of it was used then, so the candle was essentially still intact.
Even so,
it had only resisted one ghost attack before it was nearly burnt out. The explosion of light that burst forth like a fireball seemed to have exhausted all the energy of the Ghost Candle, leaving only a small section remaining.
“Ah~!”
The incident happened too suddenly. After the light of the Ghost Candle burst open, Lin Luomei who was holding it couldn’t help but scream, her voice indescribable and eerie, but it couldn’t hide the fear and terror in her heart.
The remaining bit of the Ghost Candle, still burning with a green flame, fell from her hand.
It fell on the carpet at her feet and then extinguished with a click.
The light around them once again became dim.
A scent of death suddenly rose from the bottom of everyone’s heart, creating a feeling of despair and collapse.
The Ghost Candle had gone out, the one thing that could ensure everyone’s safety was now gone.
And the ghost was right in front of their eyes, blocking the way back.
The situation suddenly became extremely bad. Although Xiong Wenwen hadn’t died, if things continued like this, the predicted time of death for the others would soon arrive, and then the vengeful ghost would launch another terrifying attack.
Next time, the Ghost Candle would no longer withstand the ghost’s attack.
“Follow me, keep away from this ghost,” Yang Jian said urgently, picking up the small section of the Ghost Candle that had fallen to the ground.
His loud growl finally woke the somewhat dazed and confused group.
Everyone hastily retreated, following Yang Jian deeper into the eerie hotel.
As they retreated, the tall and terrifying corpse in the corridor remained rigid, staying in place without moving, just like it had at the corridor crossroads before – the same posture, the same gesture, except now the ghost was facing their direction.
While retreating, Yang Jian rapidly thought things through, trying to analyze the ghost’s pattern of killing.
“Why did the ghost stop walking to kill? Did it see us? No, definitely not. Or is it because it was facing our direction, it would randomly kill one of us in front? No, that’s not it either. Xiong Wenwen had premonitions of his own death while he was in his room; he had predicted his death even then.”
“In other words, being seen by the ghost or facing it doesn’t matter, the ghost doesn’t rely on its senses to lock onto its victims, but rather a more stringent method of selection.”
But what could this pattern of killing be?
Although all the information was right before them, it seemed almost impossible to consider every detail in such a short time.
Without sufficient data, even someone with high intelligence like Wang Xiaoming couldn’t analyze it.
“Yang, Yang Jian, is it my turn next? Am I going to die soon?” At this moment, Luo Su Yi turned pale, sweat pouring down his face as he looked at Yang Jian in utter terror.
This was because Xiong Wenwen’s premonition had him dying at the hands of the ghost at 2:15 a.m.
It was now already 2:11 a.m.
In other words, he only had four more minutes of safety left. Once that time was up, he would probably die on the spot, just like the premonition.
“I’m not sure, this ghost’s method of killing is simple and brutal, but the pattern is very peculiar. Xiong Wenwen didn’t die, and I don’t know if the ghost will skip to the next target or is relentless in not giving up until it kills its first target. If it is the latter, then the second attack will also target Xiong Wenwen, not you,” Yang Jian explained while walking quickly. Although he was carrying the body of Zhao Lei, he was very focused, constantly observing the environment while looking for room number 31.
The way back was already blocked, there was only the option to move forward.
Even if they suffered heavy losses, they needed to take out the ghost who could manipulate memories; if they chose to run away at this time, it might make all their sacrifices in vain.
The ghost had already started killing; leaving the hotel probably wouldn’t help.
“What, what? It might still attack me, I’m done for,” Xiong Wenwen was so scared he was nearly crying, tears swirling in his eyes.
“What about the Ghost Candle? Don’t you still have the Ghost Candle? Get it out quick, I don’t want to die here. You promised Zhao Jianguo you’d bring me back to J city alive, you can’t lie to me… Just get me out of here, and I’ll introduce you to my mom, okay?”
Yang Jian ignored the latter part of the young kid’s plea and said gravely, “I have only one Ghost Candle left in my hand, and to block that last attack, the Ghost Candle nearly burned out completely, leaving only a tiny section. That little bit of candle surely won’t withstand the next attack, so we can no longer rely on the Ghost Candle to save us.”
“If there isn’t a turn for the better within five minutes, the next person the ghost targets is certain to die.”
Although it was cruel, Yang Jian didn’t hide any information at this critical moment – he had to tell them the reality of the situation.
“To be honest, I’ve never seen anything like this before. The Ghost Candle burned so violently, even when I faced the Hungry Ghost it wasn’t this bad. From now on, prepare yourselves for the possibility of dying here, though I will do my utmost to ensure your safety.”
“I just don’t know if I can stand up to it when the time comes.”
Yang Jian’s expression was extremely solemn; a Ghost Candle almost entirely consumed – this situation made his own heart tremble.
He was very clear that in such a situation, even he himself, if targeted by that ghost, might hardly escape death.
“Are we done for?” Luo Su Yi said with a trembling voice.
“No, not necessarily, there’s still a chance, as long as we figure out the ghost’s killing pattern, and if we can resolve it, we will be safe. The rules of ghosts are actually not complex, it’s just hard to determine in a short time. If we fully understand them, not to mention us ghost controllers, even ordinary people could survive,” Yang Jian said.
Ordinary people implicated in supernatural events weren’t necessarily doomed to die, unless they entered the Ghost Domain and couldn’t get out. Otherwise, in most cases, they could survive on their own strength.
For example, in the Headless Ghost Shadow event Yang Jian experienced, as long as one didn’t turn their back on the Ghost Slaves, they could avoid being attacked and then find a way to get out.
Even in the S-class Hungry Ghost event, ordinary people could still survive, as long as they were not seen, heard, or touched by the Ghost Infant.
“But there’s just over three minutes left. How can we figure out that ghost’s killing pattern in such a short time? It’s simply impossible,” Luo Su Yi said somewhat despairingly.
He wasn’t wrong.
While being attacked by the ghost, they were already too frightened to think about analysing the ghost’s killing pattern.
So although it seemed like ordinary people could survive, their own fear had already snuffed out their last glimmer of hope.
“If we try a few times, we’ll figure it out. You might be the next one to die. Don’t you want to try?” Yang Jian turned and looked at him.
“Of course, I do,” Luo Su Yi said.
Yang Jian stopped in his tracks; he had already come to the outside of another room.
Room 31.
This was a very important clue left behind by Zhao Lei before he died. Without this clue, Yang Jian wouldn’t have known that Room 31 was linked to the memory-altering ghost.
“Xiong Wenwen, foresee the future one more time. We don’t have time to figure out the ghost’s pattern right now. The only way is to try various possibilities in a short period based on your premonitions. This is our only chance to survive,” Yang Jian said as he put down Zhao Lei’s body, squatting down to look at Xiong Wenwen.
“This time, we must succeed, not fail.”
“I… I’ll try,” Xiong Wenwen said with a sob, hugging Yang Jian’s arm, too scared to let go.
“Good, it’s all on you now. Find the ghost’s killing pattern in the future. I believe you’ll succeed, and no matter what happens, I’ll protect you. You absolutely won’t come to harm, just like just now,” Yang Jian encouraged him, giving him confidence.
At this moment, it seemed everyone’s life was on his shoulders.
It was imperative to have Xiong Wenwen foresee the future in a relatively good state.
Xiong Wenwen nodded, and then his body gradually became ice-cold, his complexion turning to a deathly pallor, his breath slowly fading… as if, in a moment, he had gone from a living child to a cold, sinister corpse.
Since entering City Z, this was his third time using the Premonition Ability.
The frequency of use was a bit high, and Yang Jian had already noticed something was off when he used the ability in the room before.
While using the Premonition Ability, Xiong Wenwen was interfered with by the ghost inside his body.
The ghost was gradually awakening.
This was a sign of a malevolent ghost’s revival.
“Tell me, who is the next to die? Is it you, or is it Luo Su Yi, or maybe Lin Luomei?” Yang Jian asked.
The order of death was crucial.
He needed to figure out if the ghost would skip that target after failing to attack Xiong Wenwen.
Xiong Wenwen, with his eyes closed, struggled with an expression of agony on his face, as if trapped in a terrible nightmare from which he could not awaken, experiencing unimaginable horrors in the world of the nightmare.
“I… I didn’t die, Luo Su Yi, he… he died, the time is still the same as before, 2:15 AM.”
Hearing this statement,
Yang Jian’s expression changed.
Clearly, after the ghost failed to attack Xiong Wenwen, it skipped that target and chose another for its attack.
This, in turn, was a good thing.
It indicated that the ghost didn’t have to kill a specific person; it was only that a person coincidentally fit the pattern, and after one attack, whether successful or not, it wouldn’t attack again, unless… the person once again met the criteria.
“How about now? Is Luo Su Yi dead?” Yang Jian immediately opened the Ghost Domain, enveloping Luo Su Yi within it.
Xiong Wenwen, with his eyes still closed, foresaw the future again, he struggled and said, “He’s still dead, died in your Ghost Domain.”
From the results of the premonition, the Ghost Domain couldn’t save Luo Su Yi.
It was a terrifying killing move that could not be prevented just by covering with the Ghost Domain.