Chapter 323 The Village Outside the Old Forest

One after another, screams echoed in the silent world. They came suddenly but quickly subsided.

Soon, the area around the haunted bus returned to deathly silence, with only a few corpses left there, and a few terrifying ghosts lingering around.

A lot of people suddenly poured into the winding path in the old forest.

The strange thing is that after everyone entered the old forest, they found that all the paper money and cloth strips in the sky had disappeared.

This was definitely not because it was blocked by the woods, but it actually disappeared.

Not only that, the people who went deep into the path could vaguely see through the gaps in the woods that the two teams had collided with each other, but nothing unusual happened.

The two teams of evil spirits seemed not to have noticed them and left on their own.

“It’s safe here. The ghost didn’t even notice us.”

“It’s incredible. This forest seems to be able to block the perception of evil spirits. Otherwise, I would definitely be dead by now.”

“Even if we survive, what can we do? The bus is so far away from us. If it starts, will we have time to get on it? If we don’t get on the bus, we will soon die from the resurrection of the evil spirit.”

“I don’t care about that anymore. Let’s survive first. If you still want to get on the bus, go ahead. I don’t dare to get close to that bus.”

There were discussions, and those who survived were feeling lucky. As for what happened next, they no longer wanted to think about it.

Jiang Shan paid close attention to the people who were following him into the woods. There were more people than he had imagined.

Excluding a few unlucky guys who were attacked by ghosts, there were as many as nine ghost riders alive at this time.

It seems that after the ghost bus was stopped, the number of passengers killed by ghosts was not as many as imagined.

This is quite normal. Those who can ride on the ghost bus are basically ghost riders. Although their strength varies, they all have some self-protection ability to some extent.

Although the ghost bus was stopped by the Red and White Devils, there were only two evil spirits on the bus, and all this had just happened when they had already fled into the old forest, so the mortality rate was reduced to a great extent.

If there hadn’t been this old forest blocking the evil spirit’s perception, most people would have died by now.

“Everyone, stop for a moment. I don’t think we can go on. I decided to wait in this old forest for the ghost bus to restart, and then find a way to rush back.”

“If we continue forward, the bus will restart and leave, and we will most likely be trapped here. Is there anyone willing to join me?”

“None of us knows what dangers lie ahead. Jiang Shan will definitely not care about us. My name is Liu Nan, and I own a ghost domain. If you don’t mind, I am willing to use the ghost domain to get people on the bus as soon as possible.”

The ghost rider who wears glasses and has always been the backbone of the group.

At this moment he suddenly stopped, unwilling to go deeper into the old forest. He planned to take refuge here temporarily and then wait for an opportunity to return to the bus.

After he said this, many people stopped and looked at him in surprise.

“Use the ghost realm to take us away? Are you telling the truth?”

“Tell me, what are the conditions?”

Someone immediately asked. They were all ghost riders whose lives were hanging by a thread, and they would never imagine that there would be a free lunch in the world.

What’s more, every time you use supernatural powers, you are consuming your own life.

If you say that the man with glasses had no intention, few people present would believe it.

The man named Liu Nan said, “Of course it’s true. Would I joke about this? And I also need someone to help me fend off the attacks of evil spirits, so as to avoid any accidents when getting on the bus.”

“You guys aren’t really planning to follow Jiang Shan deeper, are you? Do you see the village on the other side of the forest? How could it be such a coincidence that he encountered a ghost bus less than two hours after he got on it. From the moment he got on the ghost bus, he had a purpose. I won’t risk my life to accompany him.”

After saying that, he pointed at Jiang Shan not far away with a serious look in his eyes.

At this moment, Jiang Shan stood at the edge of the old forest, looking through the sparse shadows of the trees at the vaguely visible village in the distance.

The outline of the village seemed blurred in the dim sky, as if shrouded in a thin layer of mist.

Jiang Shan frowned slightly, feeling vaguely uneasy.

Although this old forest temporarily blocked the perception of evil spirits, the village ahead gave people an indescribable weirdness.

His extremely good hearing allowed him to hear the conversation between Liu Nan and others, but he didn’t care about it at all.

For him, the purpose of these ghost handlers is to serve as scapegoats for him to explore the laws of evil spirits. Although they have value, it is not very great.

So even if this group of people leave, it won’t have much impact on me.

“Red and white collided, the ghost bus was stopped, and there was a small path in the old forest… From this point of view, the appearance of the two teams of evil spirits should not be accidental. There is definitely something wrong with this village. It may even be a mysterious place left by the ghost riders of the Republic of China.”

Just as Jiang Shan was pondering whether to enter the village outside the old forest, a voice came from behind him, with a hint of temptation and hesitation.

“Minister Jiang, what exactly do you want to do by bringing us here? It’s true that you are the minister, but that’s not a reason for us to work for you.”

At this time, Liu Nan gritted his teeth and walked quickly to Jiang Shan, speaking in a cold tone.

“Ok?”

“Crack~!”

Suddenly, a crisp sound of mouth rang out, and Jiang Shan looked at the man with glasses on the ground with cold eyes and said in a cold tone:
“You question me? Who do you think you are?”

Glancing at the people who were looking at each other in bewilderment, he continued calmly:
“Since you don’t believe anything I say, I won’t waste my breath. I can only tell you that you can choose to stay here. I have no objection to this. If any of you come to question me again, the price will not be as simple as a slap in the face. But what I want to know most is, how long do you think you can hold on?”

“What do you mean?” a ghost rider in the crowd immediately asked.

“This old forest can block the perception of ghosts. What do you think it is? Since you are so willing to stay here, I respect your choice.”

When Liu Nan heard this, his face suddenly changed. At this moment, half of his face was covered in blood. He pushed his glasses and his eyes flickered.

He looked at the other ghost riders around him and found that most of them showed hesitation and solemn expressions. Obviously, Jiang Shan’s words made them feel uneasy.

After all, the only thing that can affect ghosts is a ghost, so that means… this old forest is also a ghost? !

“Minister Jiang…” a tall and thin ghost rider couldn’t help but ask, “Even if this old forest is a ghost, it can at least guarantee our temporary safety. We can just wait here for the bus to restart. Why risk entering that village?”

Jiang Shan smoked a cigarette and smiled contemptuously. He turned around, glanced at everyone, and said slowly: “Do you think you are really safe if you stay here? Although this old forest temporarily blocks the perception of evil spirits, no one knows how long this shielding can last.”

“And no one can be sure when the bus will start again. If it doesn’t start, will you just keep waiting? Are the conditions of many of you still allowing you to stay here and wait to die?”

“Who do you think you are? In my eyes, you are not even as good as a ghost. I can only tell you that although that village is not a way to survive, it is better than waiting to die.”

Everyone looked at each other, obviously touched by his words.

Although the ghost riders were still filled with fear and solemnity, Jiang Shan’s logic made them unable to refute.

After all, staying here and waiting for the bus to restart is indeed a passive choice.

Although entering the village is dangerous, there may be a glimmer of hope for survival.

Many of them knew that Jiang Shan could help ghost riders control evil spirits, and because of this, many people were tempted.

If Jiang Shan could help him control a fierce ghost in some special circumstances in the next operation, then they would no longer have to sit on that damned ghost bus and survive. The conditions for survival are extremely tempting for ghost drivers.

“Minister Jiang… I’ll go with you.” Liu Nan finally made up his mind.

Seeing this, the other ghost riders nodded in agreement.

To a certain extent, Liu Nan’s inquiry into Jiang Shan was the opinion of everyone, after all, Jiang Shan’s fame was well known to everyone.

Instead of letting them make their own choice, it would be better to look at Jiang Shan’s choice, but at this time they also know that they have no better choice.

Jiang Shan didn’t say anything, but turned around and continued walking towards the village outside the old forest.

Everyone followed him, carefully passing through the old forest and heading towards the village.

As the distance got closer, the outline of the village gradually became clearer.

It was a typical rural village with low houses scattered on the hillside and a winding path leading into the village.

The village is surrounded by tall trees with lush branches and leaves, giving people a gloomy feeling.

However, what was most disturbing was that there was not a single sound in the village.

There was no crowing of chickens or barking of dogs, and no noise of human voices, as if the whole village was plunged into a dead silence.

“This village… why is it so quiet?” A ghost rider couldn’t help but whisper, with a slight tremor in his voice.

Jiang Shan did not answer, but just quickened his pace. He knew that the quieter the place, the greater the danger it often hid.

As they walked into the village, the dirt road under their feet made a slight rustling sound, as if reminding them that outsiders were not welcome here.

Most of the houses in the village are built with wood and mud. They look very old and some are even dilapidated.

However, strangely, the doors and windows of these houses were tightly closed, as if the people inside were deliberately avoiding something.

“Look… over there…” Suddenly, a ghost rider pointed to a house not far away, with a hint of fear in his voice.

Everyone looked in the direction he pointed, and saw that the door of the house was slightly ajar, with a faint yellow light coming through.

The light gave people a strange feeling, as if it came from another world.

Jiang Shan frowned and walked towards the house.

Everyone followed him, feeling nervous and uneasy.

Walking to the door, Jiang Shan reached out and gently pushed it open.

The door hinge made a slight creaking sound, which made people’s teeth ache. The light in the room was dim, and the air was filled with a decayed smell.

“Is anyone there?” Jiang Shan asked in a low voice. His voice echoed in the empty house, but there was no response.

He walked into the house and looked around. The furnishings in the house were very simple, with a wooden table, a few chairs, and some farm tools piled in the corner.

The most eye-catching thing was that there was an oil lamp on the table, the wick flickering slightly, emitting a dim light.

Liu Nan asked in a low voice, with a hint of uneasiness in his voice: “Who turned on this light?”

Everyone shook their heads and no one answered. Jiang Shan just walked to the table and touched the oil lamp.

The lamp holder was warm, obviously someone had just lit it.

“The light is hot, there must be someone here just now.” Jiang Shan said in a low voice.

When everyone heard this, their hearts suddenly tightened.

They looked around, trying to find the person who lit the oil lamp, but the house was empty, with only the oil lamp burning quietly.

“Let’s… leave.” A ghost rider couldn’t help but say, with a slight tremor in his voice.

Jiang Shan shook his head: “Now that we are here, we can’t leave easily. We must find out what happened here.”

After he finished speaking, he turned and walked out of the house. Everyone followed him, feeling uneasy.

The streets of the village were empty, with only the rustling sound of wind blowing through the leaves. As they went deeper into the village, a strange feeling gradually came over them.

They found that although there was no one in the village, the doors and windows of every house were closed, as if the people inside were deliberately avoiding something.

“Do you feel…that there is someone watching us…in these houses?” a ghost rider whispered with a hint of fear in his voice.

When everyone heard this, their hearts suddenly tightened. They looked around and found that behind the windows of every house, there seemed to be a pair of eyes watching them. The feeling of being spied on was creepy.

“Don’t worry about them, just keep going.” Jiang Shan said in a low voice, with an unquestionable firmness in his tone.

Everyone nodded, suppressed the fear in their hearts, and continued to follow Jiang Shan forward.

The village was large, but as they went deeper into the village, the eerie feeling of emptiness became stronger and stronger.

They found that some strange traces began to appear on the streets of the village. There were some messy footprints on the ground, as if many people had walked here before.

Those footprints gave people an indescribable sense of weirdness, as if they were not human footprints.

“These footprints…what’s going on?” Liu Nan asked in a low voice, with a hint of uneasiness in his voice.

Jiang Shan squatted down and looked at the footprints carefully.

He found that the shapes of the footprints were very strange, and the toes were abnormally sharp, as if they were the footprints of some wild beast, but the size of the footprints was about the same as that of human footprints.

“These are human footprints.” Jiang Shan said in a low voice with a hint of solemnity in his tone.

When everyone heard this, their hearts suddenly tightened.

“Human footprints? Are you kidding me?!”

“So, this village was inhabited not long ago?”

Everyone looked around and found that there were more and more footprints on the street, as if something was secretly watching them.

“Let’s… leave.” A ghost rider couldn’t help but say, his voice trembling.

As they went deeper into the village, the houses on both sides of the street gradually became denser, but no matter what, the doors and windows of those houses were still closed, as if the people inside were deliberately avoiding something.

There were more and more footprints on the street, and a smell of decay filled the air.

Suddenly, Jiang Shan stopped, his eyes fixed on the front, his brows slightly furrowed.

“What’s wrong?” Liu Nan asked in a low voice, with a hint of uneasiness in his voice.

Jiang Shan didn’t answer, but just pointed forward.

Everyone looked in the direction he pointed, and saw a group of people appearing on the street ahead without knowing when.
(End of this chapter)