Tang Ning was reviewing the task list handed to him by the production team of "Urban Legends," a web variety show that gained some attention for investigating paranormal events and frightening its guests. Inviting Tang Ning as a guest promised him some additional exposure.
Despite his fear of horror and supernatural subjects, Tang Ning bravely signed the contract.
He frowned upon reviewing the task list provided by the production team.
[At midnight, go alone to Jin Song Bus Station and take the last bus.]
This episode's paranormal investigation centered around the urban legend of a "Ghost Bus," where a young man boarded the last bus, fell asleep due to exhaustion, and woke up in a chaotic graveyard next to a lake. Near the lake was a crashed bus, emitting a foul odor, from which the young man insisted he had come.
At this moment, Tang Ning stood at the desolate Jin Song Bus Station, surrounded by cameras, alone, with the production team hidden somewhere.
Feeling bored while waiting alone, Tang Ning decided to play a game.
He discovered a new game app installed on his phone, which was adorned with a sophisticated card design featuring gold edges on a black background and framed by white skeletal hands and ghostly faces, with the title "Card Game" written in blood-dripping, ferocious red letters, striking a balance between bizarre, absurd, and a decadent beauty.
Tang Ning guessed his assistant had downloaded this new game for him.
Gaming was Tang Ning's hobby; despite not being very skilled, he enjoyed the thrill of spending money in games, which was a stress reliever for him.
However, his assistant had never downloaded a game with such a horror element before.
Hesitant, Tang Ning opened the game out of curiosity. The game displayed a lengthy agreement filled with words like "ghost," "death," and "player", which was too lengthy for Tang Ning's patience, leading him to scroll down and accept without reading.
[Please draw your card.]
A pure black card back appeared on the phone screen, indicating for him to tap the card to draw it, a typical mechanic in card games.
Tang Ning tapped it to draw, revealing a card with a dark gold border, a red background, and a depiction of a beautiful woman in a deep sleep on top of over twenty down quilts, her brow slightly furrowed as if trapped in a nightmare, with a small pea hidden under the high pile of quilts.
[Congratulations, you have obtained the "Princess Pea Card".]
[Princess Pea Card 1: You are delicate and weak, able to feel a tiny pea even under twenty down quilts.]
[Princess Pea Card 2: A prince has been searching for a true princess, and your delicacy ensures you'll attract the prince.]
Tang Ning found the card's art style appealing.
[Would you like to enter the game?]
[Yes] [Yes]
Laughing at the lack of an option to refuse, Tang Ning cheerfully selected [Yes].
As his fingertip touched the screen, a bus appeared in the distance, its old appearance and dim lights moving silently, adding a ghostly aura as it approached.
Tang Ning was surprised the production team managed to find such an outdated bus that could still operate, then checked the time to see it was precisely midnight.
The game on his phone seemed to freeze, displaying "System loading" in bloody red letters on a black background, unresponsive to any taps.
Tang Ning pocketed his phone and boarded the bus.
The bus's dim interior gave off a chill, as if the air conditioning was set very low, a surprise given the bus's old model.
Tang Ning looked for cameras but found none; however, he observed the other five passengers, all looking down, motionless, and not using their phones, they seemed very professional. One of the passenger, wearing a cap and mask, looked up at Tang Ning.
Feeling a peculiar sensation as if preyed upon, Tang Ning averted his gaze.
He initially wanted to sit in the front row by the window but felt the atmosphere from the actors behind him too compelling, fearing they would all stare at him if he sat in the front.
Feeling a chill, Tang Ning thinks the air conditioning should be turned up, but he doesn't want to come off as fussy.
Oddly, Tang Ning felt his usually comfortable clothes were now unbearably rough, his skin protesting every inch of fabric, especially his disposable underwear, which seemed to chafe.
Enduring the discomfort, Tang Ning moved to the back row by the window, noting the stained brown cushions.
Attempting to distract himself with silly videos on his phone, Tang Ning found no signal.
Looking up, he noticed a small child by the ticket machine, unclear if it was a boy or girl, with a pale, bluish complexion.
Tang Ning thought it was irresponsible for the production team to involve a child in such a setup, fearing for the child's safety on the moving bus.
Suddenly realizing the bus's smooth motion, as if floating rather than driving on roads, Tang Ning felt an eerie sensation.
Before he could ponder further, the lights went out, plunging the bus into darkness.
Tang Ning's heart skipped a beat, but he tried to stay calm, recalling a previous episode where the production team used a similar tactic to scare a guest.
Counting to three in his head, the lights flickered back on as if the darkness was merely a temporary glitch.
Expecting screams from the passengers to heighten the fear, Tang Ning wished for any sound in the unsettling silence.
However, the passengers remained silent, unchanged from their initial state.
Only the child, previously by the ticket machine, now stood near the first-row seat Tang Ning had first considered.
The child wore a cyan embroidered Hanfu and black shoes, seemingly blending with the shadows.
The child's eyes were pure black, large pupils staring directly at Tang Ning, giving off a chilling, ruthless vibe, far from the innocence typically associated with children.
As the lights went out again, Tang Ning fixated on the child's dark eyes, feeling as if still being watched in the darkness.
With the lights returning, Tang Ning saw the child had moved closer, now in the fourth row, the black eyes still unblinkingly focused on him.
Avoiding eye contact, Tang Ning's heart seemed to stop when he realized the child wasn't wearing Hanfu but a cyan embroidered shroud meant for the deceased.
The lights went out once more, fear and darkness engulfing Tang Ning, his legs trembling involuntarily.
Realizing the child, now dressed in a funeral shroud, was moving closer with each blackout, Tang Ning feared the next light would reveal the child beside him.
The thought of the child appearing next to him tightened an invisible grip around his heart, making breathing difficult.
Tang Ning grabbed his phone, turning on the flashlight in a panic, its bright light seemingly hurting the child's eyes, eliciting a piercing cry that strained Tang Ning's nerves, his hands trembling as he desperately scanned the area with the light.
Despite his efforts, Tang Ning couldn't locate the child, but the child's cries echoed around him, sometimes sounding distressingly close.
Where is it? Where?!
As the lights came back on and the cries vanished, everything seemed to have been Tang Ning's imagination, yet he felt no relief, knowing the eerie presence drew nearer with each blackout.
"Mama," a strange child's voice called out.
Tang Ning, following the sound, looked down to see the child at his feet.
The child's face was pale with numerous livor mortis spots, and under the harsh flashlight, its pure black eyes showed no light.
Struggling to breathe, Tang Ning then noticed the child wore no shoes; its pant legs were empty.
The child had no feet!
Tang Ning internally screamed, unable to make a sound, wanting to flee but feeling utterly powerless under extreme fear. The next moment, the lights went out again, and the child's crying turned into a mocking laugh, its cold hand pressing on Tang Ning's leg with an impossible weight, crawling onto him, causing intense pain wherever it touched.
Never imagining such terror, Tang Ning shook in agony, overwhelmed by fear, unable to push the ghost baby off as if paralyzed, his phone slipping from his grasp and losing its light.
As darkness enveloped everything once more, the cold hand crawled towards Tang Ning's neck, but suddenly, a strong hand lifted the ghost baby off him. The previously laughing child now screamed in terror, its mouth unnaturally wide.
The hand released, and the child trembled on the seat.
This all happened in seconds, and before Tang Ning could recover, the lights returned.
Tang Ning, in shock, saw the man who saved him remove his mask and cap, revealing a strikingly handsome face with a blend of Western features and Eastern skin, deep eyes under the dim light adding a mysterious, dangerous allure.
The man's smile, perfect in every aspect, dissipated all tension, making Tang Ning feel as if his earlier unease was just a misperception.
Sitting next to a stunned Tang Ning, the man spoke in a low, gentle voice, full of charisma, "Little Ning, are you still angry with me?"
Tang Ning, not recognizing the man or understanding his words, trembled, clinging to the man's clothes, "There's...a ghost..."
"What?" the man asked, puzzled.
"...A baby's ghost" Tang Ning's eyes reddened, his fingers trembling as if on the verge of tears.
"You mean this doll?" the man pointed to a spot beside Tang Ning.
A doll?
Tang Ning turned to see a worn doll lying next to him, legless, with two black buttons for eyes staring straight at him.
The fear of being watched by the ghost baby returned, Tang Ning collapsing onto the man, his breathing shaky, his thin shirt soaked with sweat, outlining his delicate shoulders, like a butterfly caught in a net.
Mo Yun Chu looked down, inhaling Tang Ning's scent, intensified by sweat.
"So fragrant."
"I don't want to do the show anymore!" Tang Ning, tears in his eyes, looked up at Mo Yun Chu, wanting only to go home, to escape this nightmare.
"I'm sorry, Little Ning, I know you're still upset. I shouldn't have missed our date for the show. I promise it won't happen again, okay?" Mo Yun Chu spoke softly, wiping away Tang Ning's tears.
Confused by Mo Yun Chu's words, Tang Ning, tear-soaked and bewildered, asked, "What?"
"I love you, Little Ning," Mo Yun Chu said tenderly.
[Ding—System loading complete.]
What's that sound?
[After boarding the ghost bus, Tang Ning's life changed dramatically.]
A cold male voice narrated in Tang Ning's mind:
[The ghost baby appeared constantly in his life, only subsiding when his boyfriend, Mo Yun Chu, a famous star, was around. But Mo Yun Chu couldn't always be by his side...]
[Newbie Mission: Ghost Baby]
[Difficulty: E]
[Main Mission: Survive! Players must survive seven days in the instance to pass.]
[Advanced Mission: Seal the Ghost Baby! Sealing allows early game completion.]
[Game Start]
Tang Ning was reviewing the task list handed to him by the production team of "Urban Legends," a web variety show that gained some attention for investigating paranormal events and frightening its guests. Inviting Tang Ning as a guest promised him some additional exposure.
Despite his fear of horror and supernatural subjects, Tang Ning bravely signed the contract.
He frowned upon reviewing the task list provided by the production team.
[At midnight, go alone to Jin Song Bus Station and take the last bus.]
This episode's paranormal investigation centered around the urban legend of a "Ghost Bus," where a young man boarded the last bus, fell asleep due to exhaustion, and woke up in a chaotic graveyard next to a lake. Near the lake was a crashed bus, emitting a foul odor, from which the young man insisted he had come.
At this moment, Tang Ning stood at the desolate Jin Song Bus Station, surrounded by cameras, alone, with the production team hidden somewhere.
Feeling bored while waiting alone, Tang Ning decided to play a game.
He discovered a new game app installed on his phone, which was adorned with a sophisticated card design featuring gold edges on a black background and framed by white skeletal hands and ghostly faces, with the title "Card Game" written in blood-dripping, ferocious red letters, striking a balance between bizarre, absurd, and a decadent beauty.
Tang Ning guessed his assistant had downloaded this new game for him.
Gaming was Tang Ning's hobby; despite not being very skilled, he enjoyed the thrill of spending money in games, which was a stress reliever for him.
However, his assistant had never downloaded a game with such a horror element before.
Hesitant, Tang Ning opened the game out of curiosity. The game displayed a lengthy agreement filled with words like "ghost," "death," and "player", which was too lengthy for Tang Ning's patience, leading him to scroll down and accept without reading.
[Please draw your card.]
A pure black card back appeared on the phone screen, indicating for him to tap the card to draw it, a typical mechanic in card games.
Tang Ning tapped it to draw, revealing a card with a dark gold border, a red background, and a depiction of a beautiful woman in a deep sleep on top of over twenty down quilts, her brow slightly furrowed as if trapped in a nightmare, with a small pea hidden under the high pile of quilts.
[Congratulations, you have obtained the "Princess Pea Card".]
[Princess Pea Card 1: You are delicate and weak, able to feel a tiny pea even under twenty down quilts.]
[Princess Pea Card 2: A prince has been searching for a true princess, and your delicacy ensures you'll attract the prince.]
Tang Ning found the card's art style appealing.
[Would you like to enter the game?]
[Yes] [Yes]
Laughing at the lack of an option to refuse, Tang Ning cheerfully selected [Yes].
As his fingertip touched the screen, a bus appeared in the distance, its old appearance and dim lights moving silently, adding a ghostly aura as it approached.
Tang Ning was surprised the production team managed to find such an outdated bus that could still operate, then checked the time to see it was precisely midnight.
The game on his phone seemed to freeze, displaying "System loading" in bloody red letters on a black background, unresponsive to any taps.
Tang Ning pocketed his phone and boarded the bus.
The bus's dim interior gave off a chill, as if the air conditioning was set very low, a surprise given the bus's old model.
Tang Ning looked for cameras but found none; however, he observed the other five passengers, all looking down, motionless, and not using their phones, they seemed very professional. One of the passenger, wearing a cap and mask, looked up at Tang Ning.
Feeling a peculiar sensation as if preyed upon, Tang Ning averted his gaze.
He initially wanted to sit in the front row by the window but felt the atmosphere from the actors behind him too compelling, fearing they would all stare at him if he sat in the front.
Feeling a chill, Tang Ning thinks the air conditioning should be turned up, but he doesn't want to come off as fussy.
Oddly, Tang Ning felt his usually comfortable clothes were now unbearably rough, his skin protesting every inch of fabric, especially his disposable underwear, which seemed to chafe.
Enduring the discomfort, Tang Ning moved to the back row by the window, noting the stained brown cushions.
Attempting to distract himself with silly videos on his phone, Tang Ning found no signal.
Looking up, he noticed a small child by the ticket machine, unclear if it was a boy or girl, with a pale, bluish complexion.
Tang Ning thought it was irresponsible for the production team to involve a child in such a setup, fearing for the child's safety on the moving bus.
Suddenly realizing the bus's smooth motion, as if floating rather than driving on roads, Tang Ning felt an eerie sensation.
Before he could ponder further, the lights went out, plunging the bus into darkness.
Tang Ning's heart skipped a beat, but he tried to stay calm, recalling a previous episode where the production team used a similar tactic to scare a guest.
Counting to three in his head, the lights flickered back on as if the darkness was merely a temporary glitch.
Expecting screams from the passengers to heighten the fear, Tang Ning wished for any sound in the unsettling silence.
However, the passengers remained silent, unchanged from their initial state.
Only the child, previously by the ticket machine, now stood near the first-row seat Tang Ning had first considered.
The child wore a cyan embroidered Hanfu and black shoes, seemingly blending with the shadows.
The child's eyes were pure black, large pupils staring directly at Tang Ning, giving off a chilling, ruthless vibe, far from the innocence typically associated with children.
As the lights went out again, Tang Ning fixated on the child's dark eyes, feeling as if still being watched in the darkness.
With the lights returning, Tang Ning saw the child had moved closer, now in the fourth row, the black eyes still unblinkingly focused on him.
Avoiding eye contact, Tang Ning's heart seemed to stop when he realized the child wasn't wearing Hanfu but a cyan embroidered shroud meant for the deceased.
The lights went out once more, fear and darkness engulfing Tang Ning, his legs trembling involuntarily.
Realizing the child, now dressed in a funeral shroud, was moving closer with each blackout, Tang Ning feared the next light would reveal the child beside him.
The thought of the child appearing next to him tightened an invisible grip around his heart, making breathing difficult.
Tang Ning grabbed his phone, turning on the flashlight in a panic, its bright light seemingly hurting the child's eyes, eliciting a piercing cry that strained Tang Ning's nerves, his hands trembling as he desperately scanned the area with the light.
Despite his efforts, Tang Ning couldn't locate the child, but the child's cries echoed around him, sometimes sounding distressingly close.
Where is it? Where?!
As the lights came back on and the cries vanished, everything seemed to have been Tang Ning's imagination, yet he felt no relief, knowing the eerie presence drew nearer with each blackout.
"Mama," a strange child's voice called out.
Tang Ning, following the sound, looked down to see the child at his feet.
The child's face was pale with numerous livor mortis spots, and under the harsh flashlight, its pure black eyes showed no light.
Struggling to breathe, Tang Ning then noticed the child wore no shoes; its pant legs were empty.
The child had no feet!
Tang Ning internally screamed, unable to make a sound, wanting to flee but feeling utterly powerless under extreme fear. The next moment, the lights went out again, and the child's crying turned into a mocking laugh, its cold hand pressing on Tang Ning's leg with an impossible weight, crawling onto him, causing intense pain wherever it touched.
Never imagining such terror, Tang Ning shook in agony, overwhelmed by fear, unable to push the ghost baby off as if paralyzed, his phone slipping from his grasp and losing its light.
As darkness enveloped everything once more, the cold hand crawled towards Tang Ning's neck, but suddenly, a strong hand lifted the ghost baby off him. The previously laughing child now screamed in terror, its mouth unnaturally wide.
The hand released, and the child trembled on the seat.
This all happened in seconds, and before Tang Ning could recover, the lights returned.
Tang Ning, in shock, saw the man who saved him remove his mask and cap, revealing a strikingly handsome face with a blend of Western features and Eastern skin, deep eyes under the dim light adding a mysterious, dangerous allure.
The man's smile, perfect in every aspect, dissipated all tension, making Tang Ning feel as if his earlier unease was just a misperception.
Sitting next to a stunned Tang Ning, the man spoke in a low, gentle voice, full of charisma, "Little Ning, are you still angry with me?"
Tang Ning, not recognizing the man or understanding his words, trembled, clinging to the man's clothes, "There's...a ghost..."
"What?" the man asked, puzzled.
"...A baby's ghost" Tang Ning's eyes reddened, his fingers trembling as if on the verge of tears.
"You mean this doll?" the man pointed to a spot beside Tang Ning.
A doll?
Tang Ning turned to see a worn doll lying next to him, legless, with two black buttons for eyes staring straight at him.
The fear of being watched by the ghost baby returned, Tang Ning collapsing onto the man, his breathing shaky, his thin shirt soaked with sweat, outlining his delicate shoulders, like a butterfly caught in a net.
Mo Yun Chu looked down, inhaling Tang Ning's scent, intensified by sweat.
"So fragrant."
"I don't want to do the show anymore!" Tang Ning, tears in his eyes, looked up at Mo Yun Chu, wanting only to go home, to escape this nightmare.
"I'm sorry, Little Ning, I know you're still upset. I shouldn't have missed our date for the show. I promise it won't happen again, okay?" Mo Yun Chu spoke softly, wiping away Tang Ning's tears.
Confused by Mo Yun Chu's words, Tang Ning, tear-soaked and bewildered, asked, "What?"
"I love you, Little Ning," Mo Yun Chu said tenderly.
[Ding—System loading complete.]
What's that sound?
[After boarding the ghost bus, Tang Ning's life changed dramatically.]
A cold male voice narrated in Tang Ning's mind:
[The ghost baby appeared constantly in his life, only subsiding when his boyfriend, Mo Yun Chu, a famous star, was around. But Mo Yun Chu couldn't always be by his side...]
[Newbie Mission: Ghost Baby]
[Difficulty: E]
[Main Mission: Survive! Players must survive seven days in the instance to pass.]
[Advanced Mission: Seal the Ghost Baby! Sealing allows early game completion.]
[Game Start]
