Chapter 7, The Haunted Castle (3)

Darkness once again enveloped the vision, an extremely uncomfortable chill approaching like the Grim Reaper wielding a scythe, as if it were completely blowing away consciousness

It is highly likely to be a path to destruction

The translucent creature, resembling a ghost, appeared before Pei Renli at a distance of less than one meter, its towering body nearly enveloping him completely, filling his field of vision with a ghastly white.

Thank you, thank you

The sound of water droplets hitting the floor intrudes upon the eardrum; such a faint sound should be difficult to notice in an environment filled with terrified screams, yet for some reason, it stands out remarkably and sends shivers down one's spine

However, to speak of it, even after narrowly escaping a calamity, Pei Renli still felt lingering fear, and his hands and feet felt particularly stiff

Pei Renli, who remained motionless, noticed that some people, like himself, were so frightened that they could not move, while others had collapsed to the ground, their crimson blood soaking their clothes and forming a small puddle beneath them. The expressions of terror, twisted in their final moments of life, were frozen in time, and the acrid smell of blood only now surged into his nostrils

Indeed, due to the brief duration of the lighting, one can only make a judgment in an instant. Pei Renli actually had little confidence, which is why he referred to it as a gamble

However, it seems that it is not very certain, after all, it is not uncommon for men to have long hair

Compared to this, he also wanted to find an exit and how to survive in this hellish castle of horrors

Long hair... should it be a woman?

As previously mentioned, there were quite a few people near Pei Renli, and naturally, he was not the only one to notice such a monster. With the momentary flash of light illuminating and then disappearing, exclamations and screams arose in succession, accompanied by a series of hurried footsteps, as if someone was trying to escape

The voice is quite neutral, making it difficult to discern the gender. This person bent down to thank Pei Renli, and a tuft of platinum-colored hair fell out from beneath the hood of the cloak

A collection of entities, each nearly the height of a person, with bodies that appear almost translucent and exhibit a ghastly white color, emerged in the field of vision

Just as lightning pierces through a starless and moonless night, the suddenly illuminated surroundings caused Pei Renli's wide-open eyes to slightly narrow. As he now sat up straight, the direction he was facing was different from when he had been lying on his side.

In response to the other party's gratitude, Pei Renli merely nodded lightly as a reply, and did not intend to take action together or introduce himself.

As the latter moved slightly from side to side towards Pei Renli when the light turned on, this action evoked the impression that it was sniffing the air. The intense sense of crisis and chill gave Pei Renli the illusion that his body had momentarily frozen.

Immediately thereafter, as the extreme cold drew nearer, the illuminating flash that dispelled the darkness shone once again

He unconsciously held his breath, even though his face turned red from the strain, he did not dare to exhale.

The short stick in hand, which could serve as a weapon, was completely useless; in fact, Pei Renli felt it was more like a pitfall.

The illumination of the surrounding flashes should follow a certain pattern, perhaps maintaining a brightness interval of several seconds, or there may be other unclear patterns. In a state of panic, Pei Renli truly had no mood to calculate the time

This translucent monster has no visible feet and requires no support, floating in mid-air

Only through actual experience can one truly understand the significance of this statement

Laozi has won the bet

The person initially attempted to struggle, but upon hearing these words, immediately became motionless.

It may also be that it has not broken free

After a moment, when he finally regained his composure and the surrounding flashes of light reappeared, he noticed that the kind of monster he had seen before had already run to the other end of his field of vision, possibly chasing the person who had just escaped, growing increasingly distant

Aside from his lackluster skills, if he cannot strike his opponent down in one blow, when darkness descends, the other party can move and counterattack, while he remains in a state of complete blindness... to engage in a fight with someone akin to a ghost...

Even though he felt the danger gradually receding, he did not dare to breathe heavily, only able to slowly release his breath. It was unclear whether it was the joy of surviving or the hypoxia caused by holding his breath for too long, as a slight dizziness enveloped his mind

The rigid body suddenly erupted with strength, and Pei Renli felt that he had never moved so quickly in his life. He rolled over and tightly embraced the person who was trying to escape, pinning them firmly to the ground.

-- - ーー -- - ーー

Those monsters do not attack those who remain still, and they seem to only be able to move when darkness descends. When illumination appears, they merely float in place, striking poses.

However, having a strong capacity for acceptance means a shorter time to regain composure, which has become an exceptionally valuable quality

This person is draped in a heavy brown cloak, completely concealing their figure, making it impossible to discern whether they are male or female, with even their face hidden in the shadows of the cloak

At this moment, the flickering lights illuminated once again

Columns supporting the ceiling are arranged neatly, extending towards the distant darkness, while beneath them lies a floor covered with square tiles, each with a side length of 1 meter

The chilling cold had almost reached its peak, and Pei Renli was uncertain whether his thoughts were correct; he could only say that escaping was unlikely, so he might as well take a gamble.

In the pitch-black darkness, the only sensations that can be felt are body heat and a breath so faint it is almost nonexistent, while the heart pounds wildly, rapidly circulating blood throughout the body, yet failing to alter the fact that the hands and feet are growing increasingly cold

A sentence was squeezed out from the throat, the voice barely audible, mingling with the surrounding terrified screams

Pei Renli finally recovered and let out a sigh of relief

Although he found a hint stating that 'silver is deadly poison to any ghost' and held what appeared to be a silver-plated spear, had he chosen to resist just now, the outcome would likely not have been favorable

Pei Renli considered himself to have a strong capacity for acceptance. While others might panic in the face of such an event, he quickly and calmly accepted it. However, his situation was exceedingly troublesome, and the rapid developments left him somewhat overwhelmed.

If it were not for Pei Renli's boldness and keen observation, many details would truly go unnoticed. The best outcome would be to be chased by those terrifying ghosts, without any knowledge of when the pursuit would end.

Already in a darkness where one cannot see one's hand in front of one's face, lacking any sense of security, now it is even worse, as the sense of security has been completely thrown to the dogs

Before entering the haunted castle, the elegant demon king stated that in order to survive based on his experience, one needs courage, but even more so, intelligence and luck

Tick-tock

Although the duration of the illumination was extremely brief, akin to a flash of lightning, even amidst the fear, Pei Renli still noticed a detail

Pei Renli decided from the very beginning to avoid contact with others as much as possible for safety reasons. His action of pushing the other party down was not only out of fear that excessive movement would attract ghosts, but also stemmed from a reluctance to witness death without offering help, which was almost a reflexive response

Beside this corpse, the semi-transparent creature that was just seen is floating towards the person who is trying to escape further away. The sound of dripping water that was just heard comes from the oversized scissors in its hands

At this moment, he felt the temperature rapidly dissipating from his left hand, and the person who had fallen to the ground with him quickly got up, attempting to escape

A strong discomfort surged in Pei Renli's stomach, accompanied by a desire to vomit; however, his rigid body seemed incapable of executing even this instinctive reaction, leaving his face pale as iron.

Even more terrifying was that many of the sounds heard by Pei Renli lasted only half as long before stopping

Shh, do not move

But almost at the same moment he nodded, a sound of something sliding came from the solid floor beneath his feet, followed by a strong sense of weightlessness enveloping Pei Renli

The eyes moved slightly, scanning the surroundings.

If one were to ask why Pei Renli is able to see so clearly, it is because there is one just about four or five meters away from him!

Naked, the exposed arms are slender and twisted like those of a leprosy patient, covered with blisters of various sizes. The palms are completely absent, replaced instead by a large pair of scissors measuring about forty to fifty centimeters in length.

Pei Renli's first reaction, of course, was to run, as far away as possible. At that moment, he couldn't care less about whether it was dark or if he would run into a wall. However, every muscle in his body felt as if it had stiffened, and he even had the illusion that his blood had stopped flowing. While his mind was screaming and shouting, his body remained immobile.

It may be due to the absence of certain spirits that the lighting has returned to normal, at which point it was noticed that Pei Renli's location resembled a vast room of over one thousand square meters.

Perhaps it was fear that caused a sharp increase in adrenaline, or perhaps it was the instinct for survival that restored his blank consciousness; at that moment, it seemed as if a flash of inspiration had crossed his mind

That entity barely possesses a human form, with a hunched back that rises high, its entire body covered by a similarly translucent robe. Where the face should be, only a swirling chaos of deep black can be seen

Staying in place is not a good choice, but no matter which way to go, one must not advance towards the darkness from which the ghost has vanished. We still need to search carefully for other possible exits in the vicinity

As Pei Renli observed his surroundings, the person he had previously knocked down also stood up, appearing somewhat unsteady on their legs and swaying slightly

However, it does not matter if the pattern is unknown; the light once again dispelled the darkness

Although I survived by luck, wit, and chance, it is not yet time to be completely at ease until I leave this place known as the Castle of Terror

The brightness lasted only for a moment, and when darkness enveloped him again, Pei Renli felt the coldness gradually receding. Although he could still not see, he instinctively sensed that he had escaped a calamity. His hands, feet, and body regained warmth, and only then did he realize that he was drenched in cold sweat, which clung to him in a sticky manner.

After approximately one minute of the cycle of light and darkness repeating, the lighting above returned to normal, as if the darkness had never occurred, and the translucent monsters were nowhere to be seen

The only remaining warmth comes from the person who was accidentally bumped into by him, standing nearby. It is uncertain whether they are also too frightened to move, but at least having someone nearby offers a semblance of comfort, preventing the strings of reason from snapping.

Time became incredibly surreal, making it difficult to determine whether several seconds had passed or if it was merely a fleeting moment. Pei Renli, whose mind was almost entirely blank, could not articulate it clearly

At the moment it lit up, Pei Renli's first sight was a pale, translucent object, which he didn't know what it was, almost sticking to him at a lover's distance.