Chapter 52: Blood Door Village

The Bus traveled down the dark highway for about ten minutes. The Old District had long been left behind, and the scenery outside the windows shifted into desolate, rural wilderness. Not a soul was in sight.

Next stop: Blood Door Village.

As the Bus pressed forward along Inner World Avenue, Gao Tian stared at the scenery. Something was wrong with the village in the distance. Every single house had a blood-red door, glaringly bright and piercing to the eye. They formed a stark contrast with the mottled walls. If it were just one or two homes, it could be dismissed as a coincidence. But every single house in sight shared this macabre feature. It was impossible to ignore.

Just what had happened in this village?

Not that it was Gao Tian's problem. His final destination was Pagoda Primary School. No matter how bizarre Blood Door Village might be, as long as he didn't leave Bus 444, it couldn't threaten him.

"Blood Door Village, arriving shortly.

"Passengers who wish to disembark, please gather your personal belongings and exit through the rear doors."

The cabin shuddered as the Supernatural Bus came to a halt in this eerie place filled with blood-red doors. In the front row, Shen Nian stood up and cupped his hands in a respectful salute toward Su Jiu and Gao Tian.

"Thank you both for your company and support during this brief journey," he said.

"My destination has arrived. Blood Door Village is my final stop. According to the intel I've gathered, the most recent traces of a living human child were found right here in this village. Even if there's only a one-in-ten-thousand chance it's my child, I have to go in and check.

"I wish you both a smooth arrival at Pagoda Primary School to complete your task. More than that, I hope you can soon break free from the Living Apartment that cursed you."

Did Shen Nian truly believe his child could still be in this Inner World location called Blood Door Village?

Gao Tian had wanted to say a few words, but swallowed them before they reached his lips.

How long had Shen Nian been searching the various stations of the Inner World for his child? Judging by his travel-worn, utterly haggard appearance, it had to have been at least a week.

Let alone an ordinary child with zero survival skills, even among professional ghost hunters, who could guarantee they would survive in the Inner World for that long?

Especially in a terrifying place like Blood Door Village. Gao Tian hadn't even gone inside; just looking at it from the outside gave him full-body goosebumps.

It was even more hideous and bizarre than the Old District or Dexin Hospital.

Shen Nian's child... if they had wandered into this place, there was a ninety-nine percent chance they had already met a tragic end.

That was what Gao Tian thought, but he wasn't so emotionally stunted as to say it out loud.

If a supernatural rookie like him could see the truth at a glance, how could a middle-aged ghost hunter like Shen Nian not know?

He simply refused to believe it.

He was clinging to a sliver of hope, a tiny bit of luck—just in case.

That hope was the only thing keeping Shen Nian going, the only thing keeping him alive as he traversed one Supernatural Zone after another. If Gao Tian shattered that fragile pillar, Shen Nian—despite his seemingly iron-forged will—would likely collapse on the spot.

One could only say that a father's love was like a mountain.

Gao Tian merely cupped his hands in return to bid Shen Nian farewell:

"If we make it back to the real world alive, there's a lot I'd like to ask you about supernatural phenomena. With your experience, you're more than qualified to be my teacher.

"May our next meeting be in a coffee shop in the real world. I'll definitely buy you a drink then, instead of seeing you in this hellhole."

Su Jiu also chimed in from the side: "Hero Shen Nian, please be careful on your way.

"That village is so eerie. You must stay safe, find your child soon, and return peacefully to reality with your family."

Shen Nian smiled. He was in his forties, his face lined with the wrinkles of a man who had weathered life's hardships. In terms of age and experience, he was old enough to be a father to these two youths from the Living Apartment.

Before stepping off the Bus, he glanced at the schedule:

"Your destination, Pagoda Primary School, is still three stops away.

"That place... although I've never been there, I've exchanged intel with other ghost hunters on the Bus, so I know a little about the rumors surrounding it.

"Even in the Inner World, where demons and monsters roam everywhere, that place is one of the most sinister.

"Unlike other Supernatural Zones, it seems to be constantly expanding and growing.

"Yes, you heard me right. It is a growing Supernatural Zone. Every now and then, when ghost hunters enter it to scavenge for treasures, they find that Pagoda Primary School seems to have 'grown larger.'

"At the same time, the other Supernatural Zones near Pagoda Primary School, along with the Fierce Ghosts inside them, inexplicably vanish. It is as if they are being assimilated by Pagoda Primary School.

"It's hard to say whether that's a good or a bad thing. But if Pagoda Primary School keeps devouring everything like this, it will soon collide with ancient Supernatural Zones like Blood Door Village and the Old District. When that happens, no one knows what will transpire or what the situation inside Pagoda Primary School will be."

Seeing Su Jiu's face turn stark white with fright, on the verge of tears, Shen Nian realized he had said a bit too much. He quickly comforted her, "But there's no need to put too much psychological pressure on yourselves.

"After all, didn't that woman say your task would be considered complete as long as you rode the Bus to the gates of Pagoda Primary School?

"Just taking a glance at the school gates without actually going inside shouldn't cause any major problems.

"A thousand words boil down to one sentence: you can never go wrong with being careful."

With that, Shen Nian hurried out into the station, carrying the three Long Spears hidden beneath his trench coat.

At this stop, no one boarded either. For a hundred miles around Blood Door Village, aside from the tightly shut blood-red doors, not even the shadow of a ghost could be seen.

With Shen Nian's departure, the number of passengers in the cabin dropped to three.

The doors slowly closed, and Bus 444, forever unceasing in the Inner World, embarked on the journey to its next stop.

Through the window, Gao Tian watched Shen Nian's figure slowly walk away, shrinking into a tiny dot as he advanced toward Blood Door Village.

His pace was slow and extremely cautious, ready to draw his weapon and fire at the slightest sign of trouble.

Gao Tian recalled another matter.

Jiang Yang and his fiancée's fifth task had been to enter Pagoda Primary School.

During that task, his fiancée had sacrificed herself so that Jiang Yang could return alive.

Five tasks were probably the absolute limit and ceiling for an ordinary person.

How strong, then, was the monk Yusheng, who had survived his sixth task?

Gao Tian specifically checked his pocket; the Wedding Ring Jiang Yang had entrusted to him was still there.

There were only three stops left. Surely nothing unexpected would happen now, right?

The Bus drove smoothly for about eight minutes before its speed slowed once again. It was entering the second-to-last stop.

Leaning against the window, Gao Tian gazed at the blood-red horizon in the distance.

Countless white bones were piled up on the far horizon, forming exquisite and beautiful little pagodas.

Who knew what had happened here, causing the deaths of so many people that their bones could be stacked into towers.

"Next stop: Blood-Red Nursery, arriving shortly."

Following the cold, mechanical female voice's announcement, the Bus began to decelerate in preparation to pull into the station.

As the distance closed, a new, burly figure could be seen waiting at the stop.

The moment Gao Tian saw the "passenger" for the next stop, all trace of drowsiness vanished from his mind, and he shot up from his seat.

What was that thing?

Outside the Bus, a towering woman dressed in crimson stood waiting. She appeared to be the passenger ready to board at the next stop.

From the first second Gao Tian laid eyes on her, a primal sense of terror welled up within him.

The woman's facial features were blurry, possessing a painfully ordinary, unremarkable face. But for some reason, no matter how long he stared at it, he simply couldn't commit it to memory.

What truly sent a shiver down his spine were the countless metal Dog Leashes clutched in her hand. The leashes fanned out, collaring livid, purplish-blue creatures crawling on all fours. They resembled dogs, yet they had human faces.

Ghost Infants.

The first thing that popped into Gao Tian's mind was Xiao Qianqian's username from the Galan Society Chat Group.

He wasn't sure if the Fierce Ghost that Xiao Qianqian had dealt with when she was alive was the same filthy thing this tall woman was walking on a leash, or if the two were the exact same entity.

If they were, then it was utterly terrifying, because the number of "Ghost Infants" the tall woman held on her leashes numbered in the dozens. While waiting for the Bus, they bit and played with each other, forming a squirming, livid mass.

If this woman boarded the Bus, wouldn't the passenger count instantly explode?

Gao Tian felt a terrifying oppressive pressure radiating from her, a pressure he had only previously felt from the Multi-Headed Ghost. Just looking at her from afar made him feel like a small animal encountering its natural predator, completely stripping him of any courage to fight.

In fact, Gao Tian suspected that this Fierce Ghost's strength might even faintly surpass that of the Artist. Whether the rules of the Bus could suppress her the way they suppressed the Multi-Headed Ghost was a glaring question mark.

"Get off!"

Gao Tian subconsciously made his decision. If that woman wanted to board, the two of them had to get off. This passenger's caliber was far too high; she wasn't someone he could mess with at his current level.

But was it safe outside the station? If simply getting off the Bus guaranteed safety, the Inner World would be far too easy.

At that moment, the rear doors of the Bus opened at the station called the Blood-Red Nursery. Outside, ankle-deep blood flowed across the ground, with countless white bones floating in the crimson tide. If they got off here, they were destined to stand and wait in that blood.

If one were to call this stop a nightmare hellscape, it couldn't be more fitting.

In the distance stood a building resembling a sanctuary, barred around its perimeter by massive pillars of white bone. From within the sanctuary, the mournful, piercing wails of weeping infants echoed incessantly.

The timid Su Jiu was already so terrified her limbs had gone stiff. Hearing Gao Tian's call, she instinctively tried to stand up and leave the Bus, but upon seeing the scene outside, her courage evaporated once again.

"Brother Gao, my legs are like jelly. Even standing up feels impossibly hard.

"Go on without me. Don't worry about me. I would rather die inside the Bus than get off at this stop..."

Outside the windows, the harrowing cries of infants resounded across the land.

As an ordinary person who had been put through so many horrors, Su Jiu's mental fortitude was already beginning to collapse.

In truth, Gao Tian found himself caught in a terrible dilemma as well.

Staying on the Supernatural Bus might mean death, but getting off could mean dying even faster.