Chapter 217: Inside the Tunnel

The starry sky above was brilliant, and the city lights behind us were dazzling, but none of it could compare to Tie Ningxiang in front of me. She was simply breathtaking.

"Beautiful."

I praised her from the bottom of my heart, then took out the other jade pendant and put it around my neck.

The United Heart Jade touched my skin, its subtle coolness seeping into my body and instantly calming my restless heart.

"Senior, you must keep this jade on you at all times. Never take it off."

Ending the conversation with Tie Ningxiang, I turned to look at Yi Yi. The little girl had been terrified by my earlier reaction and didn't dare meet my eyes.

"Uncle, I just wanted to play a joke on you." She held her hands together in front of her and slowly looked up, guilt in her eyes.

"It's okay." I smiled. To be honest, Yi Yi really had startled me at first. My nerves had been stretched tight, and the very thing I was thinking about had suddenly become reality while my guard was completely down. That was why I lost my composure.

Now that everything was out in the open, Yi Yi slowly revealed a smile too. I leaned back against a bench in the rest area and asked, "How did you two decide to come to the Amusement Park? And why did it have to be the night session?"

"A classmate gave me two tickets for the night session, so I asked my aunt to come with me."

"Can I see your tickets?" Feeling this was too much of a coincidence, I asked for the ticket stubs, but couldn't find anything wrong with them.

"Relax. The Amusement Park just opened, so they're handing out free tickets everywhere to advertise. This isn't one of Lu Xing's schemes." Seeing my cautious look, Tie Ningxiang gave a helpless sigh. "You're a detective, but how are your professional habits worse than mine?"

"This Amusement Park was shut down five years ago. There were a lot of accidents here. It's better for you to be careful. Once you're done looking around, hurry up and go home."

"Let's wait a bit longer." Tie Ningxiang affectionately ruffled Yi Yi's hair. "There's a special parade at ten-ten. Yi Yi has been looking forward to it for a long time."

I looked at Yi Yi's pleading gaze and couldn't bear to refuse. "Alright. But you absolutely have to leave before midnight."

I had no way of predicting what would happen two hours from now. Looking at the crowded throngs of people and the bright sea of lights, my fear and worry faded. 'With all this noise and activity, even if there are dirty things here, they wouldn't dare get close. As long as we leave before the park closes, nothing should happen.'

Looking around at the bustling crowd, I lowered my guard. After all, it was impossible for this many people to all be ghosts in disguise. Besides, news of the Amusement Park's grand reopening could be found online. Everything in front of me was real, not an illusion or the Dream Realm.

With that thought in mind, I finally relaxed.

"Uncle, it's rare for you to come out, so just relax a bit!" Yi Yi grabbed my hand and excitedly pointed at the nearby tunnel roller coaster. "The parade doesn't start for a while. Let's hurry up and ride the tunnel coaster, okay? Auntie is too scared to go with me. Come on, Uncle!"

Meeting Yi Yi's expectant eyes, I really couldn't bear to refuse. But the moment I remembered that this tunnel coaster had once derailed and killed several people, my feet refused to move.

"Gao Jian, just take Yi Yi for a ride," Tie Ningxiang said, patting my shoulder and giving me a thumbs-up. "It's fine. Just close your eyes and it'll be over before you know it."

"Easy for you to say." I grimaced, handing the Black Leather Suitcase to Tie Ningxiang for safekeeping before sitting down with Yi Yi on the coaster that ran through the artificial mountain tunnel.

The track was over nine hundred meters long. The coaster averaged a speed of over fifty kilometers per hour, featuring pitch-black tunnels inside the artificial mountain and massive, near-ninety-degree turns. It was incredibly thrilling.

Pulling down the safety harnesses, Yi Yi and I sat in the middle of the coaster. Since it was getting late and everyone was waiting to watch the parade, the coaster wasn't full. There were still plenty of empty seats.

"Yi Yi, when we hit that ninety-degree turn later, make sure to protect your head and curl up."

Hearing my strange instructions, Yi Yi didn't ask for a reason, simply nodding in agreement. This was her first time riding it too, and her little face was flushed with excitement.

"I really don't know what's so fun about this." I smiled bitterly. In my eyes, none of these amusement rides were as thrilling as my real life. Every live broadcast was a challenge to my heart's endurance.

After double-checking our safety harnesses, I memorized the faces of all the surrounding passengers before the coaster started. A young couple sat in the very front row. Behind them were two teenage boys around seventeen or eighteen, and behind them was a middle-aged father with his child. Next were Yi Yi and me. As for the seats behind us, they were completely empty.

Whoosh!

Wind roared in my ears as the coaster started without warning. Dropping down the first massive slope, everyone—including Yi Yi—screamed at the top of their lungs, venting their excitement. I was the only one frowning, coldly watching everything around me.

'I just hope nothing happens.' The contents of that news report kept surfacing in my mind, and the taxi driver's words lingered in my ears.

'A middle-aged man, the only surviving little boy, and a big sister who never existed.' The artificial mountain scenery blurred past us. My mind was filled with a chaotic mess of information. I stared straight ahead. Right in front of Yi Yi and me sat a father and son.

'A middle-aged man and a boy?' The father and son in front of me seemed to slowly blur, their figures gradually aligning with the pair I had seen in the news. This was probably just psychological. When people were extremely terrified, their imaginations ran wild, and I was no exception.

Rumble!

A massive racket erupted between the wheels and the tracks as the coaster took a forty-five-degree turn and plunged into the pitch-black tunnel. If ridden during the day, one would be able to see the jagged, bizarre rocks inside the cave. At night, however, all that could be seen were dim, lifeless little light bulbs.

They emitted a sallow glow, but this didn't seem to dampen anyone's spirits. Screaming, shouting, and reveling without restraint, even the usually quiet Yi Yi was yelling along with the crowd.

'Looks like my worries were unnecessary.' Time seemed to slow down in the darkness. The coaster's speed didn't change. I silently counted my heartbeats, only wishing I could get off this ride as soon as possible.

"Can you see me?"

Out of nowhere, a girl's voice suddenly sounded right by my ear. It was very soft, mixed into the screams of the crowd, almost like an auditory hallucination.

'It came from behind me!' If I had been immersed in the thrill of the coaster, I definitely wouldn't have been able to make out the voice. Even if I had heard it, I would have brushed it off as my imagination. But by pure coincidence, I was entirely focused on counting my heartbeats and tracking the time, so the moment the voice appeared, I caught it clearly.

I turned my head and looked back. The seats were completely empty.

'What's going on?' I could still recall the girl's tone, but there was clearly no one behind me.

'This isn't right. This place is cursed. I need to leave immediately.' The empty seats behind me suddenly seemed much more eerie. I didn't dare look back again, terrified that if I turned my head, hands would cover my eyes from behind, and I would hear that horrifying voice once more.

"Guess who?" Just thinking about those words made my skin crawl.

The coaster continued to speed through the tunnel, quickly approaching the largest turn. A loud banging echoed from the tracks, and I instinctively shielded my forehead.

At the ninety-degree turn, our bodies tilted in midair. If not for the safety harnesses holding us down, we would have instantly flown out of the car.

Pulled by gravity, my hair stood on end. My heart raced faster and faster. I was forced to turn my head back around, but in that split second, I caught a glimpse of a faint red figure slowly appearing in the seat behind me. Her hands gripped the safety harness, forcefully prying it open.

"Who's there?!"

My shout was drowned out by the noise of the crowd. Bright light suddenly hit my face as the coaster burst out of the tunnel.

The coaster slowed down and finally rolled back into the station, stopping at its original position. Her hair a mess, Yi Yi cheered about how thrilling it was, but my legs felt like jelly. I stared at the empty back rows in lingering terror.

"Uncle, are you okay?" Yi Yi grabbed my hand, realizing my palms were drenched in sweat, and looked up at me.

"I'm fine." I gently pulled my hand away, ignored the staff members trying to stop me, and walked over to the coaster. I grabbed the safety harness of the seat right behind mine and tugged at it.

"What are you doing? Those are locked in place! Tourists aren't allowed to touch them!" two staff members yelled as they ran over. But in the next second, they witnessed a shocking scene. With just a light pull of my fingers, the locked safety harness in the back row easily popped open.