Chapter 2151 - 1177: Leave It to Fate (2)

Cultural Palace, third floor.

Inside the night school classroom, Zhao Xuehua looked at Zhang Xiaomin on the stage, her expression a mix of amusement and helplessness.

The teacher who came tonight was teaching the most basic four arithmetic operations, and the audience was a group of workers with little schooling. The teacher quickly noticed Zhang Xiaomin’s mathematical talent and insisted on inviting her on stage to demonstrate for everyone.

This situation put Zhang Xiaomin in a dilemma. She initially didn’t want to go up, but she couldn’t resist the teacher’s repeated invitations and the enthusiastic applause from the workers below.

Finally, during the break of the first class, Zhang Xiaomin fled the classroom, and Zhao Xuejun followed suit.

The two of them stepped into the corridor outside, intending to take a stroll nearby and check other rooms. But unexpectedly, while passing through a nearly deserted corridor, they made a discovery.

"Look, there’s light over there!" Zhang Xiaomin suddenly said.

Zhao Xuejun also noticed something unusual at this moment. The corridor was quite dark, with one door seemingly ajar, and light was seeping through the crack.

This door was not unfamiliar to them. Chief Zhou had assigned them this storeroom as their secret base.

Curious, they walked over and stopped outside the door, only to hear rustling noises inside the room, as if someone was rummaging through things, and the room’s light was still on.

"Someone’s inside," Zhang Xiaomin frowned and whispered.

Zhao Xuejun turned his head, saw that the two people not far away hadn’t noticed them, and slowly pushed the door open a crack. Then, he peeked inside, through the gaps between the shelves, and he finally felt relieved.

Yang Xiao was standing with his back to them at the table, flipping through documents and the map spread out on the table.

Knowing that standing outside the door for too long would arouse suspicion, Zhao Xuejun quickly slipped inside, followed by Zhang Xiaomin, who gently pulled the door shut behind her.

After doing all this, Zhao Xuejun exhaled deeply, his tense nerves easing somewhat. He circled the shelves and walked towards Yang Xiao, "Captain Ma, what are you looking for? Do you need our help?"

However, after taking several steps, Zhao Xuejun noticed something was amiss because Yang Xiao didn’t respond at all, not even the most basic reaction. He continued to face away from them, flipping through the documents and the map.

Moreover, these were meaningless repetitive actions.

At the same time, the overhead bulb flickered and emitted a "zzz" sound, as if there was a poor connection.

Seeing this, Zhao Xuejun and Zhang Xiaomin turned and ran. But just as they were about to reach the door in a split second, "pop," the overhead bulb went out, plunging the storeroom into complete darkness.

But there was no stopping now; Zhao Xuejun continued to rush forward until he felt a wall. His only option now was to find the door, open it, and escape.

They hadn’t locked the door when they came in; he remembered that clearly.

This was probably the most correct decision they’d made all night.

Zhao Xuejun continued feeling along the wall for the door, but after several seconds passed, his heart sank.

"Gone... the door... the door is gone..." Zhao Xuejun was almost in despair. He was sure he was facing the right direction. In the last second before the lights went out, he clearly saw the door a few meters ahead. But now... now the door was gone, leaving only a wall.

They were completely trapped in this storeroom, and no one would come to rescue them anytime soon; no one knew they were here.

Even more frightening, in the darkness, they heard a chilling sound.

"Scratch——"

"Scratch——"

.....

The sound was like someone sliding their feet on the ground, dragging their body along, stiff and numb, filled with terrifying silence.

"What do we do? What do we do?" Zhang Xiaomin was so scared she lost her composure, the scent of death never so real, enveloping them as she panicked.

At this moment, Zhao Xuejun demonstrated remarkable calmness. He knew the door was lost; staying would mean waiting for death. He groped and grabbed Zhang Xiaomin’s hand beside him, leading her to hide on the other side of the storeroom.

Ghosts don’t strike indefinitely. As long as... as long as they hold on, there’s a chance to survive.

Though they lost the light, the storeroom wasn’t entirely pitch-black. It was a chaotic darkness, and once their eyes adjusted a little, they could make out some vague dark outlines in the dimness.

The most conspicuous were the shelves that stood taller than a person, piled with large boxes or bags, filled with discarded electronic components or mechanical parts like bolts and nuts.

At this moment, the rubbing sound disappeared, but Zhao Xuejun wished it would continue. After all, through the footsteps, he could determine the ghost’s location.

What is more terrifying than a ghost appearing is when the ghost disappears after appearing, and you know the ghost is right next to you.

Regrets now were useless, Zhao Xuejun gathered his courage, steadied himself. He had to find a way out.

Leaning against a shelf, his gaze swept over the darkness ahead, and suddenly, his heart was wrenched.

He saw a dark shadow appear, near the position of the door, close to the wall, next to a shelf. No idea when it appeared.