Translator: CinderTL
Although the old man had said that the passages on both sides of the staircase were blocked, Jiang Cheng still led the group to inspect the area.
As the old man had mentioned, the right staircase led downward, but after turning a corner, they encountered a metal gate.
The metal gate looked extremely sturdy, with a large U-shaped lock hanging from it.
The U-shaped lock was further secured with multiple loops of iron chains.
It gave the impression that once this gate was locked, it was never meant to be opened again.
Just looking at the gate made everyone's expressions turn grim.
This didn't seem like ordinary security measures; it was more like... they were worried about something escaping from inside.
Recalling the old man's earlier words, it seemed he hadn't been exaggerating.
Cao Yang, seemingly unwilling to give up, wanted to check the other staircase. Jiang Cheng could understand his feelings, as taking the elevator was a nightmarish experience for them.
After all, it was that damned elevator that had brought them to this world.
"There's no need," Jiang Cheng stopped Cao Yang.
Since the right staircase was blocked, it was certain that the left staircase would also be blocked. Otherwise, what would be the point of blocking only one side?
Without wasting any more time, after a brief discussion, Jiang Cheng pressed the elevator button.
Soon, the elevator that the old man had said was used to transport corpses slowly opened its doors.
Just as they had seen before.
Clean, tidy, with soft white light emanating from the elevator's interior. Everything looked as normal as it could be.
But for Jiang Cheng and the others, this elevator felt more like a coffin.
A metal coffin.
In such a confined space, if something went wrong, there would be no way to escape.
Moreover, Yu Yu looked visibly nervous, as she thought of Du Feng.
Du Feng had died in this very elevator.
When she saw the body, her mind went blank. The corpse's hands were clasped in front of its abdomen.
And in its arms... was its own head.
The lifeless eyes were still dripping blood, creating a horrifying scene.
A hand rested on her shoulder, and Yu Yu shuddered as if startled. She looked up and met Jiang Cheng's gaze.
"I'm fine," Yu Yu said, somewhat flustered. "I just... I just zoned out."
Jiang Cheng nodded without saying anything.
Once they actually entered the elevator and watched the doors slowly close, the people standing outside looked at them with a gaze that seemed like a farewell.
It was as if once the elevator doors closed, when they opened again, one of the three would be gone forever.
The cramped environment inside the elevator made Cao Yang feel suffocated. Especially since the elevator seemed old, with its components severely worn out, the overhead cables occasionally emitted a harsh grinding noise.
It felt like it could plummet at any moment.
But even if it did fall, it wouldn't be a big deal, Cao Yang reassured himself.
After all, they were on the first floor, and this hospital only had one basement level.
Fortunately, the elevator smoothly descended to Basement Level 1.
As the elevator doors opened, all three of them huddled at the back.
Cao Yang, despite his burly appearance, was the most visibly nervous.
Yu Yu, on the other hand, seemed to adapt quite well. Jiang Cheng had initially been worried, but now Yu Yu leaned closer to the elevator door and quickly glanced outside.
"It seems... there's nothing," Yu Yu whispered.
The space outside was larger than they had imagined, and even more clean and tidy.
It was just a long corridor, with nothing but a bench placed against the wall and no other decorations.
The nearby doors were predominantly white, along with other light colors like pale blue.
The overhead lights weren't very bright, but they provided sufficient illumination.
The overall atmosphere felt quite solemn.
The elevator doors opened to face a wall, and after turning the corner, one could see several rooms of varying sizes. The rooms weren't labeled with words but were instead identified by numbers.
It didn't look like the Morgue, so the group had no intention of opening any doors to check.
After all, time was of the essence, and it was better to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Every extra minute spent here was torture.
The group walked along the corridor toward the innermost area, where the Morgue was located. A small, conspicuous iron plaque hung on the door.
It bore the words "Morgue."
It was unclear if it was just psychological, but upon seeing these words, Yu Yu felt her heartbeat quicken.
It was as if the blood in her veins had frozen.
Jiang Cheng led the way, with Cao Yang bringing up the rear, and Yu Yu walked in the middle.
She was quite touched by their consideration, but now wasn't the time to express gratitude. Her eyes were alert, scanning the surroundings in all directions.
At the first sign of danger, she would sound the alarm.
Meanwhile, Jiang Cheng glanced up at the ceiling every few steps, deeply concerned about being struck by some unforeseen calamity.
His frequent upward glances made everyone else nervous.
At the same time, Jiang Cheng was carefully listening to the surrounding sounds and the footsteps of the group.
The footsteps echoed eerily in the empty corridor, unusually clear.
With his extensive experience in encountering Ghosts, he was trying to predict how the Ghost might appear—whether it might be following them, for instance.
But such speculations were something Jiang Cheng dared not voice, fearing it would be too much for his teammates to handle.
The further they went, the colder it became. Standing in front of the Morgue door, Jiang Cheng pressed down on the large handle, and the door slowly opened.
It wasn't locked?
Unexpected, yet somewhat logical.
After all, based on the horror movies and novels he'd seen, no reckless exploration team had ever been thwarted by a locked Morgue door.
Otherwise, how would the plot continue?
How would the author make a living? Wouldn't the readers, whose curiosity had just been piqued, tear the author apart?
Thinking about that scenario was quite terrifying.
With a long, somewhat grating sound of friction, the Morgue door opened to its fullest.
A wave of cold air rushed out, carrying a strange odor.
Cao Yang couldn't help but frown.
It was pitch black inside.
Everyone held their breath.
There was no sound.
Yu Yu's racing heart calmed slightly as she thought to herself: "Of course, it's quiet here. It's full of the dead. If there were sounds, that would be Ghostly."
But then she was startled by her own thought.
She decided to stop overthinking.
For now, they couldn't find any lights, so they took out their phones and used the built-in flashlights to illuminate the space.
Three phones.
The light dispelled the darkness, revealing the Morgue to everyone.
It was larger than they had imagined. Along one wall were six or seven Mortuary beds, and a tilted handcart with a tray stand, its metal surface gleaming under the light.
On the innermost side were rows of Mortuary cabinets.
The mortuary cabinets were integrated with the building's load-bearing walls, each compartment labeled with a unique number that recorded the deceased's name and date of death.
Jiang Cheng approached the mortuary cabinets, while Yu Yu naturally kept an eye on their surroundings.
Jiang Cheng and Cao Yang, using flashlights, began searching for the name Zhang Zhaowei.
The fourth watch has ended; we'll continue tomorrow. Good night, brothers!
(End of the Chapter)
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