Frightening Joke: Above the Mist
Chapter 226: Entering the Village

Chapter 226: Chapter 226: Entering the Village

"Knock, knock, knock—"

"Is anyone there?"

Bai Yanliang knocked on the door.

After truly stepping into the village, Zhongyuan Village felt even more dilapidated.

Weeds covered the ground. It was clearly daytime, yet there wasn’t a single person outside the village, with doors and windows of every house tightly shut.

Apart from the red funeral garments hanging outside every door, there were almost no traces of human life.

And just as Bai Yanliang knocked on the wooden door of this household, the red funeral garment hanging from the eaves suddenly started to move.

"Wait."

Yu Wenxuan stared at the blood-red garment, which was currently fluttering above the three of them, becoming more unsettling by the moment.

Bai Yanliang also stopped his knocking motion, his hand paused mid-air, as he looked up at the garment still swaying above him and asked, "Was there wind just now?"

Yu Wenxuan immediately shook his head, "No, I’m sure it moved on its own."

No wind, and no one touched it, yet it suddenly started moving on its own...

Could it be an invisible person touching it?

But Xu Zhifei’s hand was tied to his, and she hadn’t let go, so it couldn’t be her.

"Something’s not right, look!"

At that moment, Yu Wenxuan suddenly pointed toward the blood-colored funeral garment at another door.

It moved... they all moved!

With the slight shift of the funeral garment at this door, all the funeral garments in the village were moving!

One by one, the blood-red funeral garments swayed in front of every household, creating an extremely eerie scene.

"Should we leave first?"

Yu Wenxuan sensed something amiss; this village... was very unsettling.

Before Bai Yanliang could respond, there came a creaking sound.

The wooden door in front of them suddenly opened.

Someone had opened the door.

But, was it really a person who opened it?

Bai Yanliang and Yu Wenxuan instantly stepped back a few steps, warily eyeing the slowly opening wooden door.

Inside was very dark, and a small, indistinct shadow slowly lifted its head.

The three finally saw the figure clearly.

It was an extremely old lady, draped in a large, pitch-black cloak that wrapped her entire body tightly.

Bai Yanliang quickly glanced over her face, which had no patches of even remotely smooth skin, overrun with densely packed wrinkles.

"Come in..."

The old lady’s voice sounded strange, inexplicably unsettling.

Come in?

Bai Yanliang and Yu Wenxuan exchanged a glance, politely thanking the elderly woman.

"Be cautious, there’s something off about her."

Yu Wenxuan whispered.

Bai Yanliang gave a barely noticeable nod, subtly moving his left hand to alert Xu Zhifei.

This elderly woman, her sudden appearance and her words just now were very unnatural.

She asked nothing, as if she knew why Bai Yanliang and the others were here, and after a glance, she let them into the house.

It was very suspicious.

"Old lady, aside from us, have there been others who visited the village?"

Yu Wenxuan suddenly asked.

"Yes."

The lady replied while closing the door and bowing her head.

She seemed not to enjoy talking, always using the shortest phrases to express her thoughts.

"Can you describe what they looked like or their approximate age?" Yu Wenxuan continued to ask.

This time, the old lady didn’t respond again.

She led Bai Yanliang, Yu Wenxuan, and an invisible Xu Zhifei forward to the courtyard, whispering, "Don’t run around, don’t speak loudly, don’t go outside."

She seemed to dislike light very much, retreating continuously into her cloak as she spoke. Her house was also disturbingly dark, with black cloth covering the windows, blocking even a hint of light.

"You’ll stay in this house tonight, and I’ll take you to see the village head tomorrow."

Her tone was strange, as if she recognized Bai Yanliang and company.

But it was stranger for the trio, as they were certain it was their first encounter with this old woman. Perhaps... she misunderstood something?

Very likely.

"You can choose between the two rooms inside. Remember, after dark, don’t speak if you hear any sounds, make no noise, don’t open the door, don’t pull the black cloth on the windows, just sleep quietly and wait until morning to open the door."

"And..." she gave Bai Yanliang and Yu Wenxuan a glance, "after dark, trust no one."

This was the longest string of words the old woman had spoken, and the continuous "don’ts" left them a bit dazed.

"Alright, understood, thank you."

Yu Wenxuan smiled warmly and saw the old lady out.

"Looks like the villagers know something." Yu Wenxuan closed the door thoughtfully, "There are two rooms in the house, one for each of us for now, and we’ll follow her instructions."

"What about them?"

Xu Zhifei suddenly spoke.

Bai Yanliang and Yu Wenxuan understood she was referring to Jiang Li and Lu Guo.

"Adults must take responsibility for their choices." Bai Yanliang said coldly.

Yu Wenxuan had already explained the stakes, but Jiang Li and Lu Guo still didn’t want to enter the village early to find clues.

If that’s the case, they could only hope they find a place to stay before midnight.

This village is terrifying, which is why Jiang Li and Lu Guo refused to enter this haunted place before the mission officially started.

For them, every second here was a torment.

They planned to enter the village at midnight when the task officially began.

Yet... judging from the series of warnings the old lady gave, the night in this village is far from peaceful.

Good luck to them.

"I share Mr. Bai’s thoughts." Yu Wenxuan seemed uninterested in further discussing Jiang Li and Lu Guo. He glanced around the room and said, "Did Mr. Bai find the old lady’s behavior towards us very odd, as if... we had prearranged to stay at her house?"

"Yes." Bai Yanliang nodded, "Indeed, very strange."

"And she mentioned others had visited the village, yet from what we see now, it doesn’t seem like any outsiders have been here."

Yu Wenxuan mused, rubbing his chin.

"If we assume she’s not lying, then who are the visitors, and what’s their purpose? This might be an important clue."

"Yes." Yu Wenxuan nodded in agreement.

Just then, Bai Yanliang suddenly felt a tugging sensation from his left hand.

It was evident Xu Zhifei was moving.

She seemed to be reaching for something but momentarily forgot her wrist was tied to Bai Yanliang’s.

Though Bai Yanliang couldn’t see her, he followed her momentum inside.

"Did you find something?"

Bai Yanliang asked.

At this moment, a not-so-large photo frame floated up...

No, Xu Zhifei had picked it up.

"Look." Xu Zhifei’s cold voice rang out.

Yu Wenxuan and Bai Yanliang followed the sound and what they saw in the frame made their pupils contract.

It was a rather old black-and-white photograph.

And the person in the photograph... was the same old lady with the wrinkled face they had just met.