At midnight the following day, Team Yuyu set out once more, smoothly leaving Nanyue County and getting onto the national highway. Twenty minutes into the drive, guided by Ding Shi, the car turned onto a concrete road that looked long-abandoned. Innumerable hardy weeds had thrust their way through the fractured surface, leaving it looking utterly dilapidated. After driving for another ten minutes, a road sign appeared, reading "Unnamed Road." It also displayed a crossed-out signal icon, indicating there was no cell service on this stretch.
With the high beams on, Ding Shi got out to walk ahead while the car trailed behind. After three hundred meters, the pavement shifted to crude asphalt—simply asphalt poured directly over gravel rather than concrete slabs, offering very poor load tolerance. The road narrowed to a width of just 3.5 meters.
The biggest change was that reeds flanked both sides of the road, backed by woods that rose slightly higher than the roadbed. The path twisted and turned so sharply that the visibility of the high beams was hardly better than the low beams.
Brother Kai got out of the car, stood beside Ding Shi, and remarked, "This terrain is prime for an ambush."
Ding Shi said, "This road is 120 kilometers long."
Brother Kai replied, "Two hours—two and a half at most—and we can get through."
The two returned to the car and drove on. Brother Kai was on high alert, keeping the speed at fifty kilometers per hour. In many spots, a sharp bend appeared every hundred meters or less. As they rounded yet another sharp turn, they spotted a red sedan parked along the roadside.
Brother Kai hit the brakes, stopping thirty meters from the red car. "What should we do?"
None of the three in the back seat had fallen asleep; they all saw the red sedan.
Chu Yu narrowed her eyes in thought. Should they send someone over to investigate? Could it be a trap? The headlights only illuminated a narrow area. If someone was lurking in the dark to stage an ambush, their chances of success—whether by damaging the vehicle or attacking the passengers—would be very high.
Yet if they passed by such an obvious clue without checking, it might leave the rest of their journey in even greater danger.
Brother Kai asked, "Yuyu?"
Chu Yu took a deep breath and asked, "Who's going to take a look?"
Ding Shi said, "I will."
Chu Yu asked, "Anyone else?"
Brother Kai offered, "Me."
Chu Yu said, "Not you. You need to stay at the wheel."
Everyone looked expectantly to Ritian, but he didn't answer. He seemed terrified of spooky, supernatural things. Even though the system had stated that this instance contained no paranormal creatures or events, looking at the red car caught in the high beams gave Ritian an inexplicable sense of dread. No one knew what was inside.
Mumu opened the door. "I'll go."
"Wait." Ding Shi gave a few brief instructions, then got out alongside Mumu. One after the other, each gripping a rock, they slowly approached the red car from its left side.
When they were about five meters away, Ding Shi signaled downward with his left hand, and Brother Kai shut off all the lights. Ding Shi and Mumu quickly tiptoed forward two meters and crouched down.
The whole world was plunged into darkness. Ding Shi didn't believe any bad guys would have night-vision goggles. If hostile people really were waiting, this sudden change stood a high chance of baiting them into making a move.
After waiting about a minute, Brother Kai switched on the high beams as agreed. There by the front of the sedan stood a little girl roughly 1.1 meters tall, dressed in a white frock. Her head drooped low, her hair hanging down in disarray so completely that it was impossible to tell whether she was facing toward or away from the car.
Brother Kai, Ritian, and Chu Yu stared intently—and then screeched together like groundhogs. Tears streaming down his face, Ritian subconsciously flailed his right hand, slapping Chu Yu's shoulder over and over. Chu Yu, whether from being hit or from sheer terror, let out screams that climbed and dipped across a musical stave.
The sheer volume could have filled a mountain and then some.
Hearing the screams, Mumu whirled around and caught sight of the girl's silhouette. Panicking, she grabbed Ding Shi's left arm and bit down with all her might. Ding Shi instantly shrieked. Mumu channeled her entire body's strength to fight off the terror, clamping onto Ding Shi's flesh with her teeth while staring unblinkingly at the little girl. She bit down so fiercely that Ding Shi couldn't pry her off with his right hand in time and could only scream bloody murder: "Ah... let go... Fuck! Let go of me!..."
A second later, Ding Shi punched Mumu in the stomach. Reflexively loosening her grip, she let go, and Ding Shi leaped three meters away. He looked down at his arm. In the dim light, he couldn't see the wound clearly, but it felt sticky and wet—she had obviously drawn blood.
A masterclass in how a single little girl could thoroughly wreck a team of grown adults.
To Ding Shi, what was a little girl? He had stared down Ghost Grandma point-blank, played mahjong with Ghost San Niang, and even toyed with Zombie San Niang's eyelids. He walked right up to the little girl and brushed aside her hair. Her eyes held a trace of terror as she looked at him, but she didn't step back.
Ding Shi knew what was what. Lifting her chin with two fingers, he examined her face from left to right. Now doubly certain, he asked, "Who are you?"
Inside the car, Chu Yu snapped. She pinned Ritian, who had been pummeling her shoulder, into his seat and beat him black and blue before getting out and walking over to Ding Shi, turning to look at the girl with him.
She wasn't scared, but she had nearly been battered unconscious by a terrified Ritian. Ding Shi wasn't scared, but he had nearly been chewed to death by a terrified Mumu. Often, what does you in isn't demons or monsters, but your own useless teammates.
The little girl was chubby, clutching a small teddy bear. She cast a timid glance at Chu Yu, then lowered her head. "My name is Yingying."
Chu Yu squatted down to eye level with Yingying and asked gently, "Yingying, why are you out here?"
Yingying answered, "My brother suddenly got sick. Mommy and Daddy told me to wait in the car while they took him to find help."
Chu Yu looked around at the pitch-black surroundings. "Where did they go to find help?"
Yingying turned and walked forward. When she reached Mumu, Mumu stepped back to the roadside to clear the way.
Yingying passed the red sedan. By the headlights of their car trailing behind, Ding Shi peeked inside as he followed her; it was completely empty. Ding Shi was now triply certain of things.
Ding Shi looked back at Brother Kai behind the wheel and pointed at the red sedan's fuel tank. Brother Kai flashed an OK sign.
Following Yingying another five meters or so, a dirt-and-gravel path appeared on the right. Yingying stopped at the fork, turned to the approaching Chu Yu, and said, "They went this way."
Chu Yu asked, "Why didn't they drive up there?"
Yingying: "I don't know."
Ding Shi answered, "The red car's chassis is too low. It can't handle this road."
Yingying said, "Can you help me find them?"
Quest: Find and help Yingying's parents.
All five members of Team Yuyu received the system quest simultaneously.
...
Ritian was afraid of ghosts, not a living girl who merely looked like one. He brought out biscuits for Yingying and waited on her with water at her side, his eyes brimming with sympathy.
Before the headlights, Team Yuyu held a meeting. The topic: should they take on the quest?
Chu Yu analyzed the team's current situation and concluded that they should do the quest. The other four had no objections.
Chu Yu said, "Until we find Yingying's parents, she can't be left alone. We also need someone here to guard the car. My suggestion is to split into two groups."
Brother Kai cautioned, "Yuyu, generally speaking, splitting the party in a horror movie is a terrible idea."
Chu Yu asked, "Brother Kai, based on what we know so far, what does this have to do with a horror movie?"
Brother Kai held up his hands. "Fair enough, I'm fine with splitting up."
Ding Shi said, "I have two proposals. First, Chu Yu and I search along the path and check out the situation. Second, I stay behind with Yingying and protect the car." Ding Shi didn't particularly want to operate with the group. As for why his first proposal involved going with Chu Yu, it was because she controlled all of the team's funds. What if the rest of them just took off?
To the side, Mumu was wrapping Ding Shi's arm in gauze. The bite went so deep that looking at it scared even her. She had no idea what had come over her; in her sheer panic, her body had trembled uncontrollably, her mind going blank with an overwhelming urge to latch onto something. Only when she came back to her senses had she realized her mouth was full of the taste of blood.
Hearing Ding Shi's suggestions, Mumu glanced at Chu Yu. "I'll stay behind alone."
Chu Yu looked at Mumu. "Can you handle that?" Ritian sensed there was a secret passing between their eyes, but he had no proof.
Ding Shi objected, "No way. One person can't watch a kid and guard the car at the same time."
Chu Yu said, "Then Ding Shi, stay behind with Mumu."
After thinking it over, Mumu said, "All right."
Chu Yu said, "We'll leave you one of the flashlights." She had bought two flashlights at the supermarket in the spawn area for night lighting.
Mumu glanced at Yingying nearby, then looked back at Chu Yu. "You'll need it more. Be careful."
Chu Yu caught the underlying meaning in Mumu's words and look, and gave a grave nod.
Chapter 45