Horror revival: I Own a Ghost Bus

Seizing the brief moment while the ghost was repelled, Jiang Yan and the Black Hat Man sprinted out of the bamboo forest, breathing heavily as they finally emerged. They gasped for fresh air, the adrenaline still coursing through their veins. Had Jiang Yan not activated the second level of his ghost domain, they would likely still be trapped within that cursed bamboo grove.

Looking around, they realized they were still surrounded by bamboo—yet something was different.

"What's going on? Are we still in the ghost domain?" the Black Hat Man asked, a hint of panic in his voice.

Jiang Yan took a careful look around before shaking his head. "No. We're out. This is a real bamboo grove."

The Black Hat Man peered closely at their surroundings and noticed the difference as well. These bamboo stalks were vibrant green, unlike the dark-speckled bamboo of the ghost domain. Beyond the grove, he could see open fields and daylight, confirming they had returned to the real world.

However, glancing back, they saw the shadows deep within the forest where rows of spotted bamboo loomed like silent sentinels.

"The ghost domain is still right behind us," Jiang Yan murmured with a sigh of relief.

"Then let's get out of here. I'm not taking any chances," the Black Hat Man urged, stepping quickly away from the lingering shadows.

They hurried down the slope, exiting the forest into open land where they could finally see the broader view of the village. Yet their sense of triumph was short-lived.

Ahead of them, they were met with a sight all too familiar—the clustered rooftops of Gongyue Village.

Jiang Yan and the Black Hat Man exchanged frustrated glances. They'd escaped the ghost domain, only to find themselves back in the village they'd been desperate to leave. They were still trapped.

The Black Hat Man's frustration boiled over as he cursed under his breath. Jiang Yan could only sigh as he surveyed the village from their vantage point. They were on a hill outside the village proper, and from this position, they could see many familiar landmarks: the village head's house, Zhang Tiantian's house, and even the old suspension bridge in the distance. It was a bitter reminder of their failed escape.

"It's not just the ghost domain keeping us here," Jiang Yan said grimly. "There's something else at work in this village. We'll have to get to the root of it if we want to get out."

The Black Hat Man clenched his fists, then exhaled heavily. "So, you're suggesting we just... solve the whole damn mystery? Do you realize how absurd that sounds? We've encountered two ghosts already, the mimic ghost and the ghost of the bamboo grove, both of which are far beyond our ability to handle alone. We can't do this without backup."

With a quick motion, he pulled a satellite phone from his pocket and dialed his organization's emergency line. But he was met only with a relentless busy signal.

"What the hell? Even this phone isn't working? The spiritual interference here must be blocking our only connection to the outside world." Frustration etched across his face as he lowered the phone.

"Since we can't get any help, we'll have to handle this ourselves," Jiang Yan said calmly.

"No way! These ghosts are out of our league!" The Black Hat Man shook his head, nearly overcome by frustration. "We'll get ourselves killed. We need backup."

Jiang Yan, however, wasn't swayed. "The mimic ghost's rules are clear, and the bamboo ghost won't leave its domain, so long as we stay cautious. You're only afraid because you think we have no way out, but do we really have a choice here?"

The Black Hat Man opened his mouth, then closed it again, realizing Jiang Yan was right. Without external help, their only path forward was to dig deeper into the mysteries of the village itself. Escape was only an option once they unraveled the truth here.

He sighed, nodding reluctantly. "Fine. Let's try it your way."

As the village's residents were still preoccupied with their ancestral rituals, Jiang Yan and the Black Hat Man began their exploration of the outskirts, moving toward a cluster of abandoned mud-brick houses, relics of the 1980s, now decayed and mostly uninhabited. These houses, surrounded by overgrown weeds, lay in disrepair, giving the area an eerie, desolate atmosphere.

They soon found themselves in front of one of the larger, more intact mud-brick buildings, which must have once belonged to a wealthy family or a village leader. Without hesitation, they entered, hoping to find documents or items that might shed light on the village's secrets.

The rooms were mostly barren, filled only with dusty, broken furniture and rusty cooking utensils—nothing that might reveal the history of the village.

"I guess even the village leader here wasn't much for books," the Black Hat Man muttered wryly, kicking aside a broken pot.

Just then, Jiang Yan paused in his steps, his gaze drawn toward the corner of the house's backyard.

"Wait," he said softly.

Following his gaze, the Black Hat Man saw it too—a narrow, secluded courtyard with an old well in the center. The two men approached cautiously, a foreboding sense creeping over them.

"What's so special about this well?" the Black Hat Man asked, a hint of unease in his voice.

"Look closely," Jiang Yan replied, nodding toward the water inside.

Peering into the well, the Black Hat Man's expression twisted in horror. Instead of reflecting the blue sky overhead, the water was pitch-black, like a dark, bottomless abyss.

"Something's wrong here. If this well is connected to the village's water system, then everyone in Gongyue Village has been drinking this… cursed water."

Jiang Yan nodded, a chill running down his spine. "Good thing we didn't eat or drink anything here. Who knows what might've happened to us?"

They exchanged uneasy glances, both silently grateful for their cautious restraint. But the discovery left a dark, lingering impression.

"I thought this was just an ordinary village, but the residents have clearly been… changed by whatever they've been drinking from this well. This place isn't as innocent as it looks," Jiang Yan muttered.

The Black Hat Man shivered, recalling the foreboding warnings of the man in the portrait. "Maybe he was right to warn us. Thinking back, we should've suspected something when we saw that suspension bridge—the only connection this village has to the outside world? It's too isolated, almost as if it's meant to be… cut off."

Jiang Yan's thoughts aligned with this, a theory beginning to take shape in his mind. "An isolated village, almost untouched by the outside world… It's like a sealed-off refuge, some hidden 'paradise.' Or perhaps more like a ghostly utopia."

The Black Hat Man scoffed bitterly. "A paradise? Are you serious? That's the last thing I'd call this place."

Jiang Yan shrugged. "If the world were to fall under a supernatural catastrophe, some might see a secluded place like this as a final refuge."

The Black Hat Man shook his head. "I don't care about that. All I want is to get out of here," he muttered darkly. "And as you said, this village is anything but a utopia."

The two resumed their search, moving from one abandoned house to the next, yet found little besides relics of old furniture and broken pottery. It seemed as though anything of significance had been carefully removed.

"Still no clues. Looks like we're out of options—we might need to search the village head's house," the Black Hat Man said, his tone resigned.

Jiang Yan's brow furrowed. He, too, had hoped to avoid that, as he'd glimpsed a strange shadow there the last time they'd passed by. Entering the house unprepared would be risky, especially if that shadow turned out to be another ghost.

"Let's check out those last few houses. If there's nothing there, then we'll go to the village head's place," Jiang Yan suggested reluctantly.

Nodding, they continued their search, coming across another half-collapsed mud-brick house at the edge of the village. But as they approached, they heard a faint, crackling sound coming from within—like the hum of static.

"Is… is there someone in there?" the Black Hat Man whispered, exchanging a wary glance with Jiang Yan.

They carefully peered through the broken window frame, taking in the scene inside.

At the center of the dilapidated room, an old-fashioned black-and-white television sat on a wooden stool, the screen flickering with distorted images as it played a news broadcast… 

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𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙢𝙮 𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙮. 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚!

𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 shoutouts 𝘁𝗼:

•Leroy

• Jonathan Bailey

𝗔𝘀 𝗮 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸:

• 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝙂𝙚𝙩 50+ chapters 𝙖𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚.

• 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁-𝗢𝘂𝘁: 𝙍𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙖 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩!

𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗳𝘂𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗺𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀 𝗺𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻 𝘆𝗲𝘁, 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀!

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