Chapter 79 - 76: Eerie Train

Chapter 79: Chapter 76: Eerie Train

On a train, in a two-person soft sleeper cabin, Zhong Shu was hunched over a small table, writing something.

He had some savings; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to afford a two-person soft sleeper.

This trip alone cost nearly ten thousand.

Zhong Shu was a long-term contract screenwriter for a theater troupe, earning a salary plus additional script fees.

On top of that, he also wrote novels online. Yes, web novels.

Although play scripts and web novels are both forms of writing, their natures are completely different.

Play scripts are more like traditionally published books, placing the highest value on literary style.

The dialogue between characters is almost like prose poetry.

As for web novels, literary style is secondary. Even the grammar can be imprecise. What matters are the thrill-points and the plot.

Commonly known as "power fantasies."

And power fantasies are divided into logical power fantasies and mindless power fantasies.

What Zhong Shu wrote were mindless power fantasies.

He didn’t make much money from it, just enough to scrape by on the attendance bonus each month, but he enjoyed writing them.

All the frustrations of his life could be vented in his stories.

His protagonist was named Li Xinyuan.

A young leader of an underground organization, like a mafioso boss, but countless times more powerful.

An absolute God Level tycoon, the absolute pinnacle of combat prowess, and absolutely ruthless.

The kind of guy who, if he so much as coughed, the entire city would catch a cold, and the Mayor would rush over with medicine in the middle of the night, terrified he might go on a killing spree.

It was hard to imagine that this gentle, artistic young man—so kind he bordered on weak—would project such fantasies of himself into his books.

Zhong Shu’s palms grew sweaty as he wrote, the thrill so intense it felt like his soul was ascending. He finally stopped typing.

He took off his headphones, gazed at the beautiful scenery outside, and stretched contentedly.

"I’m going to die... I’m going to die..."

The intermittent, soft, and delicate voice came continuously from the opposite bunk.

Only then did Zhong Shu notice that on the opposite bunk, a girl had her head buried under the covers.

The blanket was trembling nonstop, as if the person inside was experiencing something terrifying.

After a moment’s thought, Zhong Shu walked over and gently nudged the person under the blanket.

"Are... Hello, are you sick...?"

As if from a reflex, the person under the blanket violently threw it off and shot upright.

Zhong Shu was startled.

"I-I’m sorry."

The girl didn’t speak. She just kept trembling, staring at him with a terrified expression.

Zhong Shu discreetly sized up the girl.

She was of mixed race, with golden hair. Possibly one of the Russians.

She wore a white dress, her eyes large and beautiful, and her hair was a bit of a mess.

Like a runaway Disney Princess.

Zhong Shu’s heart skipped a beat. He pulled a bottle of orange juice from his bag and offered it to her.

"Are you okay?"

When the girl saw the orange juice, her eyes instantly lit up. She practically snatched it from him and began to gulp it down.

She finished the entire bottle in one go, then licked her lips as if still wanting more.

It was then that Zhong Shu sensed something was wrong.

Liancheng was this train’s departure station.

In other words, there was no way the girl across from him should have been this thirsty.

What was even stranger was the feeling she gave him, as if she had been unconscious in this train car for a very long time.

RUMBLE RUMBLE...

Zhong Shu heard the girl’s stomach rumbling.

He took a loaf of bread from his backpack and handed it to her.

The girl tore at it with large bites. After wolfing it down, she sized up the man before her.

As if sensing his kindness, or perhaps having determined he wasn’t some kind of monster, she finally spoke her first words.

"Where... where are we?"

Zhong Shu was bewildered.

"The train just left the station."

The girl grabbed Zhong Shu’s hand as if she’d lost her mind, her voice sharp.

"Where is this place!"

Zhong Shu swallowed hard.

"Liancheng."

In an instant, the girl lost all her strength. She collapsed onto the bed, her eyes vacant.

"It’s over... it’s over... We’re at Liancheng. I’m doomed."

Zhong Shu took out his phone, preparing to call the police.

’This girl is clearly not normal!’

But, his phone had no signal.

Zhong Shu asked,

"Who are you? What happened? I’m here, so don’t be afraid."

The girl gave a bitter smile and began to recount her ordeal.

"My name is Natasha..."

She was of mixed race. Her full name was Bai Tasha.

Her father was from the Xia Kingdom, and her mother was from Russia.

Later, an accident took her parents’ lives.

A Sheriff from the Xia Kingdom said her father had once made significant contributions to the country, so they would do their best to provide for her material needs.

Although she grew up in the Xia Kingdom, she chose to study in Russia after her parents passed away.

The Xia Kingdom held too many painful memories for her.

A month ago, she returned to the Xia Kingdom during a school break, wanting to see her old family home.

She chose to take the train. And for a month, she had been on this very train, unable to get off.

...

Zhong Shu, having heard half the story, couldn’t help but ask,

"Wait, did you say you’ve been on this train for a month?"

Just then, a knock came at the door.

"Hello, room service."

Bai Tasha’s expression filled with terror, and she shook her head frantically at Zhong Shu.

Zhong Shu was half-believing, half-doubting Bai Tasha’s story.

Bai Tasha’s appearance was certainly unusual.

But she didn’t seem like a lunatic, because her speech was perfectly logical.

The knocking continued, as if it wouldn’t stop until someone came out to get the meal.

Zhong Shu decided to test Bai Tasha’s words and got up to open the door.

The train attendant took a steak from the dining cart and handed it to Zhong Shu.

Zhong Shu froze for a moment.

He had never seen steak served as a meal on a train before.

He asked,

"How much is it?"

The attendant wore a professional smile.

"It’s free."

Just then, the attendant saw Bai Tasha on the bunk. His expression stiffened, and his smile grew even more bizarre.

"You’ll be getting off at the next stop, you know."

Bai Tasha’s face went deathly pale.

Zhong Shu was afraid Bai Tasha would be terrified, and he also felt that something was off about this attendant.

He quickly said, "Thank you," and shut the door.

Zhong Shu carried the steak to the table and examined it carefully.

It had a rich, meaty aroma and looked so delicious he wanted to devour it in one bite.

Besides the fact that the steak was free, which was a little strange, nothing else seemed wrong with it.

Zhong Shu picked up a fork and gently poked the steak.

Bai Tasha screamed,

"Don’t eat it!"

Zhong Shu said,

"I’m not going to."

Seeing how frightened Bai Tasha was, he tried to comfort her, speaking in a conspiratorial tone.

"Hey, don’t worry. I have a gun. We don’t have to be afraid of anyone."

To prove his point, Zhong Shu took an antique flintlock gun from his suitcase.

He slapped the flintlock gun down on the table.

"See? I really do have a gun. If that attendant dares to do anything to you..."

He stopped mid-sentence. Zhong Shu saw something unbelievable, his eyes slowly widening.

The antique flintlock gun had touched the plate of steak. After emitting a strange white mist, the steak transformed.

It wasn’t a steak at all, but a plate of rotten fish and shrimp!

Mixed in with the pile of rotten fish and shrimp was a human finger!

Bai Tasha shivered all over.

"No wonder they got sick after eating... No wonder..."

Bai Tasha looked up at Zhong Shu, a light shining in her eyes.

"Are you an Exorcist? You’re here to save us, right?"

Zhong Shu sat on the bed in a daze, still unable to process what had just happened.

...

The interior of this train had a vintage design, specifically a medieval retro style.

The hard seats were wooden chairs with a cushion laid on top.

The more advanced option was a six-person cabin.

Just like modern "green-skin" trains, with upper, middle, and lower bunks on both sides.

What made them a step up from modern green-skin trains was that they had wooden doors and a private restroom.

The five people tailing Zhong Shu were currently in one of these six-person cabins.

The room was cramped. The twin strongmen, the woman with her hair in a bun, and the old man with a long braid were all on their bunks.

The boy in the red robe sat in a wheelchair, watching the passing scenery. He slowly began to speak.

"Something isn’t right."