Chapter 84: Death Class 7 (Part 8)

Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian were a little confused. Su Jin asked, “What do you mean ‘hide down low, not up high’?”

“I suddenly thought of it,” answered Xiao Muyu. “Luo Zihao had been dead for over ten hours. Logically, his corpse should be stiff. If that’s his form, it should be difficult for him to bend down. This is just a brief speculation, though. It’s always good to exercise caution.”

Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian thought Xiao Muyu’s reasoning made sense. Even if she guessed incorrectly, it didn’t matter.

“Eighty-nine!” Time was almost up. Shen Qingqiu glanced at Xiao Muyu. “Have you thought of where we should hide?” she asked.

Xiao Muyu’s expression was as placid as water. She stared at the floor plan in the group chat and then pointed to a spot.

Shen Qingqiu blinked in surprise before laughing. “Why do you always have the same idea as me?”

However, Xiao Muyu recalled something. She frowned, reaching out to touch Shen Qingqiu’s abdomen. The bandages were still in place.

Shen Qingqiu held her hand. She knew what Xiao Muyu was thinking. “I’ll be fine,” Shen Qingqiu whispered. “Time is running out. We can’t delay.”

With that said, Shen Qingqiu pulled Xiao Muyu along. The two of them avoided areas illuminated by streetlamps. They stealthily moved behind the trees and shrubs lining the path toward the artificial lake. There was a pavilion above the lake. The bottom of the pavilion hovered a little higher than the water’s surface. They could hide under it.

Although the water was cold in this weather, they didn’t care about that now. The two nimble women effortlessly made their way under the pavilion. The gap below the suspended pavilion was just enough for them to come up for breath.

Before the lake’s surface could settle, the count reached one hundred.

“Time’s up. I’m going to start looking.” The voice in the broadcast sounded thrilled.

Thumping followed the end of Luo Zihao’s sentence. Then, all was quiet again.

What was that noise?

Xiao Muyu felt something was wrong. She typed a message in the group.

It wasn’t just her. Su Jin and the others also found the thumping odd.

Su Jin: [It was dull and loud, like something hitting the floor.]

Zuo Tiantian: [He should be going out to seek. But those thumps didn’t sound like  footsteps.]

Shen Qingqiu’s heart suddenly dropped. She immediately turned to look at Xiao Muyu, who also appeared shocked. No, those were not footsteps. No one’s footsteps could be so heavy and dense, like…

Shen Qingqiu swiftly typed something before pushing Xiao Muyu’s head under the water.

Meanwhile, Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian read Shen Qingqiu’s message. Their expressions changed drastically. They promptly crawled out of the cabinet in the library’s office and climbed to the top of it instead.

*Thump, thump.*

That sound rang again. It was fleeting this time, echoing throughout the entire school.

They couldn’t stay in the water for long. Since the sound was still far away, Shen Qingqiu gently lifted Xiao Muyu to let her breathe. The movement was so light that it left only a few faint ripples.

The night provided poor visibility. Xiao Muyu couldn’t see what was happening beyond the water and the shoreline.

She was nervous. The location they had chosen based on her previous speculation was unfavorable. She’d made a mistake. She should have known how Luo Zihao died!

Luo Zihao’s voice continued to echo in the school. He kept asking questions. “Let me see. Where will you guys be hiding? Under the beds in the dorms or the desks in the classrooms? The gym? The library?” Whenever he named a location, the people hiding there became scared out of their wits. Some nearly cried.

Minutes passed. Luo Zihao passed by the artificial lake three times. Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu witnessed his ghost speed. He was nearly three times faster than normal people. It took him less than ten minutes to check all the places on such a large campus.

The weight in Xiao Muyu’s heart grew heavier. Even searching each building, he’d find someone within half an hour at that speed. But he had found no one thus far.

Xiao Muyu had a suspicion. It wasn’t that Luo Zihao couldn’t find anyone. He couldn’t find the one he wanted.

Suddenly, the loud thumps drew closer and closer. Xiao Muyu held her breath. She looked toward the shore and almost gasped. Seeing Luo Zihao, she reassessed their speculation.

The boy who fell from the building had broken his spine and legs. Although they had repaired his body a bit before placing him in a coffin, it was still twisted unnaturally. As he moved, his broken legs swung, with the bone poking out of the right leg.

His head bounced off the ground again and again like a spring.

Luo Zihao was not walking on his feet at all. He was jumping upside down. So, whenever his head hit the ground, it made those thumping sounds.

The dead’s posture referred to the position he died in. Because Luo Zihao had fallen headfirst to the ground, he was walking with his head.

The upside-down corpse began to wander around the lake. Xiao Muyu could hear his nose sniffing. He was smelling something.

*Thump, thump.*

Luo Zihao stood under a streetlamp by the lake. Its light shone upon his appearance. Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu didn’t dare breathe. They were completely underwater, so they had a murky view. The two didn’t dare peek, either. They could only judge the situation by the slightest noise.

The water blocked any light and sound, muffling the thumps.

Suddenly, Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu heard the noise growing much louder.

*Thump, thump*. Not only was there noise, but the lake water also trembled slightly.

Luo Zihao was jumping on the pavilion above their heads.

“Heh.” He grinned, jumping back and forth on the pavilion. “Is there someone hiding in the pavilion?”

Too much time had passed. The two didn’t know how long this damn ghost intended to stay here. Shen Qingqiu feared Xiao Muyu couldn’t hold her breath anymore. She reached out and touched her palm.

Xiao Muyu got the hint. The two boldly raised their heads a little bit. When the ghost shook the water’s surface, they revealed their mouths and noses, taking extremely light and slow breaths.

*Drip, drip.*

A few drops of liquid dripped onto the lake as they were about to sink back down. It was hard to see what it was in the dark. However, for the clever Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu, it went without saying.

Xiao Muyu had a keen sense of smell and slight mysophobia. She felt so disgusted that she almost threw up.

But Luo Zihao kept jumping on the pavilion, refusing to leave. When he found nothing, he bounced back to the shore. He tried to look up at the pavilion with his only remaining eye.

He circled the pavilion several times but couldn’t see anything atop the structure. He also didn’t smell anything.

Luo Zihao became more manic.

“I found you. Stop hiding and come out! Haha.” He suddenly laughed and roared towards the pavilion. His eye was so wide that it looked close to popping out.

“There’s two of you. I only need to find one. Xiao Muyu, Shen Qingqiu, aren’t you coming out?”

The more he talked, the more apprehensive Xiao Muyu became. She was again certain that his target would be her or Shen Qingqiu. In this instance, the students were prey like them. However, the hunter already had a target in mind when they shot.

Alarmingly, Xiao Muyu had never encountered a ghost who would take advantage of human nature until now. His words were meant to intimidate them into showing up on their own or killing each other.

The game would end once he found one person.

Shen Qingqiu moved her fingers underwater. Xiao Muyu immediately tightened her fingers and pulled them back. Their movement was almost non-existent beneath the water’s surface. But they both understood what the other wanted to say.

Shen Qingqiu suddenly felt a surge of warmth in her heart. She honestly never thought she would be a protector. On the contrary, she was born to be a destroyer.

But since meeting Xiao Muyu, she always instinctively wanted to protect her. At first, it was to get close to her. Now, however, it was beyond her control. She couldn’t bear to see her get hurt or those things bullying her.

Time passed, minute by minute. Luo Zihao probably hadn’t found any trace of his two targets elsewhere. So, he stubbornly circled the pavilion, refusing to leave.

He shouted angrily for a long time yet didn’t notice any movement. He was on the verge of losing his mind. Hissing bursts came from his throat.

“Come out, come out!” He started bouncing chaotically. “Can’t find them, can’t find them. Why can’t I find them? Why!? *Sobs.*”

Suddenly, his voice faded.

Luo Zihao stopped looking up. He lowered his gaze and locked on tightly to the spot under the pavilion.

He bounced towards the shore. Standing upside down, he stared at the water’s surface, then grinned. “Are you in the water?”

Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu’s expressions changed. Their heartbeats started racing.

An accelerated heart rate would also increase oxygen consumption. If the two hadn’t just taken breaths while Luo Zihao was going crazy, they wouldn’t be able to hold it right now.

Strangely, despite Luo Zihao’s suspicion, he didn’t jump into the water to find them. He kept patrolling on the shore.

That was the only thing the two could be thankful for right then. Otherwise, they might not be able to keep hiding.

Luo Zihao stared at the water’s surface for a long time but saw no figures. He grew furious.

He kept jumping on the shore. He tried to test the waters with his stiff arms several times. However, he didn’t dare to put his head into the water.

Luo Zihao had only been dead for over ten hours. He hadn’t lost his human fears yet.

It was a blessing in disguise. Xiao Muyu felt she had reached the limit of holding her breath. She was already forcing her heartbeat to slow down. She could no longer control her body’s instincts. She would’ve taken a big gulp of air if she hadn’t suppressed the urge through sheer willpower.

As Shen Qingqiu held onto Xiao Muyu with her fingers, she could sense her body growing taut. She knew the lack of oxygen had caused this uncontrolled reaction in Xiao Muyu’s body.

Shen Qingqiu had kept a mental estimate of how long Xiao Muyu could hold her breath. Most people could hold their breaths underwater for two minutes, tops. Some could do it for three to four minutes after training. It was unbelievable Xiao Muyu had endured for four minutes in such a tense situation.

So, when two minutes had passed, Shen Qingqiu inched closer. At this moment, she was almost face-to-face with Xiao Muyu.

She realized Xiao Muyu was fast running out of air.

Shen Qingqiu moved her left hand to the back of Xiao Muyu’s head. The two of them happened to be leaning against one of the pavilion’s underwater pillars. Shen Qingqiu turned her face. She pressed her lips against Xiao Muyu’s and give her air.

To prevent air from escaping and stir up too many bubbles, Shen Qingqiu forced their lips tightly together.

Xiao Muyu couldn’t control her instinct. She squeezed Shen Qingqiu’s hand, greedily taking the offered air. But when she regained her senses, she restrained her desire to inhale deeply.

The two kept their lips locked together without moving.

Luo Zihao hadn’t left yet. The air Shen Qingqiu gave was a drop in the bucket. Xiao Muyu couldn’t hold on for long.

Shen Qingqiu opened her eyes. Smiling, she released Xiao Muyu. She turned and pulled out her dagger.

Xiao Muyu knew what she wanted to do. She tried to stop her when something soft slipped past her lips, giving a gentle, teasing lick.

Xiao Muyu froze.

Shen Qingqiu was about to get out of the water. Suddenly, a basketball hit the lake’s surface. She heard it splash into the water.

Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu took this chance to surface for air. From their position in the gap under the pavilion, they discovered a basketball had hit Luo Zihao.

He had fallen face down on the ground. He couldn’t see them at all.

Shen Qingqiu and Xiao Muyu looked at each other, inhaled swiftly, and silently sank back down.

Shen Qingqiu used this opportunity to check on the group chat.

Su Jin sent: [Leader Xiao, Miss Shen, hold on!]

Shen Qingqiu almost laughed. But she wasn’t sure if Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian could hide well.

Seven minutes remained before the thirty-minute mark.

Luo Zihao had broken legs and hands and could only stand upside down. He struggled for a while to stand upside down again. He looked at the basketball floating on the water and roared.

Luo Zihao turned on his head. He bounced towards where the basketball had flown from, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Xiao Muyu quickly sent a message.

[He went to you guys. Be careful. Hide someplace high!]

---

Author had something to say:

This concept, as a little angel mentioned in the comments, comes from a ghost story I heard when I was a kid. It has always been the top horror story in my heart. When I brought it up in my college dorm, it scared a group of people into screaming. Should I tell it again? I feel like my version is even scarier than the one that little cutie shared. My memory is so good. Haha.

I’ll write it in the ‘Author has something to say’ section if anyone wants to read it?