Free Web NovelLi Weiyi didn't know how long he had been staring at the phone on the table. By the time he finally forced himself to calm down and face the unknown fear, it was already past 10:40 p.m.
He had tried every way to save himself, but sometimes, without trying, people don't know what despair is.
Calls were busy, live streams were instantly blocked, messages wouldn't send due to network issues... It was as if a strange force was preventing him from contacting anyone.
And after his continuous attempts, he finally received a warning from the new University City Ghost Story Chat Group review group.
【One Hundred and Two-Thirds Cats: @HumbleLittleLiPleaseLetMeGo Please complete the review task alone, otherwise your review qualification will be revoked.】
Li Weiyi stared blankly at his phone for a long time, finally realizing that he couldn't escape.
Now he was cornered, either go mad or die.
He didn't dare to think about what terrible things would happen if his review qualification was revoked.
He just faintly felt that to have a glimmer of hope, he must go to the South Suburb Slaughterhouse alone at midnight tonight and stay until dawn.
...
Exactly 10:30 p.m.
Li Weiyi stood in front of his front door wearing a black fisherman's hat and carrying a bulging travel bag filled with his homemade exorcism items.
Only at this moment did he realize how unreliable the exorcism items he usually bought were; this whole big bag couldn't give him even a shred of security.
"Whoosh—!"
He took a deep breath, gripped the doorknob, turned it gently, and pushed the door open.
The hallway in the dark night was quiet, the old incandescent light cast a dim yellow glow, the smell of incense and candles hadn't dissipated, and a damaged paper figure abandoned in the corner, missing half its body, lay on the ground, its pale face adorned with strangely shaped, exceptionally bright blush.
Li Weiyi didn't want to linger in this once familiar, now eerie hallway. He jogged through the hallway, went down the stairs, and left the tube-shaped building.
At this time, there were very few taxis on the street. He stood by the roadside anxiously for over ten minutes before hailing a taxi.
"To South Suburb Slaughterhouse."
Hearing the name South Suburb Slaughterhouse, the Uncle Driver was clearly startled, his face pale as he glanced at the passenger in the back seat through the rearview mirror.
"Young man, the South Suburb Slaughterhouse closed three years ago!"
Li Weiyi glanced at his watch and said impatiently, "I know. Just drive. I'm in a hurry."
After speaking, he seemed to remember something, and his eyes, hidden in the shadow of his hat brim, lit up slightly. "Brother, to be honest, I'm actually going to..."
"I don't want to hear it!" Before Li Weiyi could finish, the Uncle Driver hastily interrupted him. "I'm just a driver. Where you go and what you do has nothing to do with me."
"South Suburb Slaughterhouse, right? Let's make this clear first, I can only drop you off near there, I wouldn't dare take you to the entrance."
"Okay," Li Weiyi responded, then leaned back in the rear seat. He glanced at the small metal box holding business cards near the driver's seat, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes.
This driver named Zhang Shan might be in league with those urban legend. How would a regular driver dare to wander around late at night? Li Weiyi thought.
The car started and headed from the west of the city towards the South Suburb.
Zhang Shan glanced at Li Weiyi, who was resting with his eyes closed, through the rearview mirror and sneered inwardly.
Want to tell a story? No way!
I've seen plenty of strange guys like you.
Listen to a story and get entangled – that trick is old news to me!
...
Half an hour later.
Zhang Shan parked the car by the roadside two kilometers away from the South Suburb Slaughterhouse, turned his head, and said to Li Weiyi, "Young man, we're here."
As he spoke, he raised his finger and pointed to the fork in the road ahead. "See that intersection? Go in from there, keep heading south without turning, and you'll arrive in about two kilometers."
"Okay," Li Weiyi responded, and was about to open the car door and get out.
"Come back, come back! You're just leaving?"
Li Weiyi looked at Zhang Shan in confusion and asked, "What? Do you need something else?"
Zhang Shan rubbed his fingers together towards Li Weiyi. "The fare?! You took the car, and you want to leave without paying?"
Since he successfully collected the fare from the white-haired monster last time, his guts had grown bigger and bigger; he dared to collect fares from anyone.
So what if it's a Strange Tale? Don't urban legend have to pay for rides?
"How much?" Li Weiyi said impatiently.
Zhang Shan shrugged, pulled out two QR codes, one blue and one green, from under the steering wheel, and handed them to Li Weiyi.
"Eighty-seven. Cash payment not accepted!"
Li Weiyi glared at Zhang Shan, slightly parted his lips, suppressed the anger in his ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ heart, took out his phone, scanned the QR code, paid, and turned to walk towards the fork in the road ahead.
He was now even more certain that Zhang Shan was in league with those urban legend.
It wasn't that he hadn't taken a taxi at night before, but those drivers were all timid, afraid of attracting anything strange. This was the first time he had encountered someone as brazen as Zhang Shan.
...
It was already very dark, a cold wind was blowing on the street, there were no pedestrians, and withered leaves were tumbling in the wind.
Following the direction Zhang Shan pointed, Li Weiyi turned into the fork in the road and quickly entered a very secluded street.
The village houses on both sides were low and dilapidated, their doors tightly shut, and the windows were pitch black, with not a single person visible.
After walking for a while longer, there were no more houses on either side, and the road surface underfoot changed from asphalt to a broken concrete road.
The streetlights abruptly stopped at the junction of the asphalt and concrete roads. Further ahead, it was as if swallowed by darkness, with only the outlines of plants that had overgrown onto the road visible.
Li Weiyi paused slightly here, moved his travel bag to his chest, and fumbled for the flashlight he had prepared earlier.
"Click—Click—!"
He pressed the switch several times in a row, but the flashlight didn't light up. Li Weiyi cursed under his breath, "Huh? Damn it, why won't it turn on!"
Just as his voice fell, his back was patted by someone.
Li Weiyi spun around abruptly and discovered an old woman had appeared behind him at some point.
"Granny, you..."
After seeing her appearance clearly, his body couldn't help but shiver, and he was speechless for a moment.
It was a terrifyingly pale face, covered in wrinkles like rehydrated bean curd skin across the entire aged face.
"Have you seen my grandson?"
The old woman's voice trembled, as if something was stuck in her throat, her words slurred and unclear.
"Hoo—hoo—!" Li Weiyi took two deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down. "Old woman, I, I haven't seen your grandson. I just arrived."
"Oh... you haven't seen him..."
The old woman spoke slowly, her cloudy eyes staring intently at Li Weiyi, yet also seeming to stare at the dark road behind him.
"Are you going to the Slaughterhouse?"
"Yes, yes," Li Weiyi stammered in response.
"There... there..." the old woman mumbled, as if she knew something but was unwilling to say it.
"Old woman, do you know something?" Li Weiyi asked.
"Hehe!" Hearing Li Weiyi's question, the old woman suddenly burst into laughter, her breathy laughter sharp and eerie, the wrinkles on her face creased together, and her cloudy eyes trembled. "My grandson is there! If you see him, tell him to come home early."
After speaking, the old woman turned and ran off down the deserted, secluded street.
Her limping posture looked as if possessed, but her speed was very fast, so fast she didn't resemble an old woman on the verge of death at all.
The South Suburb Slaughterhouse was ahead, and she said her grandson was there... Li Weiyi's face changed, and a chill uncontrollably rose in his heart.
Just then, at his feet, the flashlight that hadn't been able to turn on flickered a few times and "pop!" it lit up.
"Gulp—!"
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Li Weiyi swallowed, stood frozen for a while, then pulled out two strings of prayer beads, two crosses, and a string of garlic from his backpack and hung them around his neck before daring to pick up the flashlight.
...
The dust on the broken concrete road was very thick, and in some places, dirt had accumulated. Most ominously, some nearly rotten paper money was scattered among the dirt.
Relying on the faint light of the flashlight, Li Weiyi walked nervously along the road. After an unknown amount of time, he finally saw the legendary South Suburb Slaughterhouse.
It stood isolated in this wilderness. The courtyard wall was high, with long grass growing on top. The paint on the main gate had peeled off, and three rusty wrought-iron characters hung above the gate.
Slaughterhouse...
Li Weiyi silently read those three words in his heart, a fierce look flashing in his eyes. He pushed open the slightly ajar iron gate and walked in.
Passing through the main gate, a smell of animal waste assailed his nostrils. Walking a few steps further, he could see a cluster of grey-tiled houses in the distance.
Li Weiyi stood rooted to the spot, hesitating for a moment. Just as he was about to continue forward, he suddenly heard a loud bang from behind him.
"Clang—!"
His body trembled, and he cautiously turned his head to look back.
He saw that the three large characters on the main gate, perhaps due to weathering, had partially fallen off.
Corpse Ground...
An ominous premonition surged wildly in Li Weiyi's heart. The next moment, a sharp pain came from his shoulder. He looked down and saw an iron hook used for hanging pigs had pierced his collarbone, and bright red blood was gushing out.
"Hiss—Hiss—!"
Heavy breathing sounded behind him, spraying onto his back. His body froze in place as if it had rusted.
The next moment, a terrifying pull came from the iron hook. Intense pain struck, and Li Weiyi's body was flung backward into the darkness.
...
"Help! Help! Hel—"
At midnight, a terrified and tragic cry for help echoed over the South Suburb Slaughterhouse, and soon fell silent again.
In the wilderness not far from the South Suburb Slaughterhouse, a man quietly stared at the flickering crimson light inside the South Suburb Slaughterhouse building in the darkness.
He was tall and thin, with a messy afro. On his sallow face hung heavy dark circles. His demeanor was listless, as if he hadn't slept for days and nights.
He was wearing a pitch-black cloak. At the collar was pinned a bright yellow emblem, which upon closer inspection, was a funny emoji in the shape of a skull.
A gentle breeze came, fluttering his cloak, revealing two pitifully thin but hairy legs.
Suddenly, a black figure flew over from a distance with a "Swish!" and landed steadily beside the man.
The newcomer was a very small girl, looking about seven or eight years old. From her short, mottled hair, a pair of black cat ears poked out, swaying from side to side.
She wore a black cloak identical to the tall and thin man's. The collar was high, covering the lower half of her face, and she had the same emoji emblem pinned to her chest.
The girl landed beside the tall and thin man, crouched down like a cat, looked at the man sideways, and began to complain.
"A Se (Old Pervert), you should quickly report to Void and transfer that guy named Wang Bu Liu Xing to another review group, okay? I really can't stand it anymore!"
The tall and thin man glanced at the girl, "What? She reported the review group again?"
"Not again, but every day!" The girl said irritably, "Since she discovered that re-reviewing or whatever is just a bluff, in the past month or so, she's reported an average of twice a day! The most she reported in a single day was seven times!"
"Do you know what seven times means? Do you really think we don't need to consume Spiritual Energy to handle reports?"
The tall and thin man scratched the back of his head and chuckled dryly, "It's just reporting, isn't it? It's not that big of a problem, is it?"
"If it were just simple reporting, that would be fine!" The girl rolled her eyes, "Besides sending me a bunch of trash talk in private messages for no reason."
"Last week, she somehow got a Trojan horse and sent it to me. If I hadn't reacted quickly, my information would have been stolen by her!" freewebnovel.cσ๓
"And yesterday, she somehow got a bunch of lewd pictures again, sending dozens, even hundreds of unique ones in the group..."
Hearing this, the tall and thin man's eyes lit up, "Oh—!? Lewd pictures? I like them."
"I understand, I'll go find Void right now and apply to 'go head-to-head' with her!"
The girl stood up, crossed her arms over her chest, and said faintly, "Void said that female group members are not allowed for you to review, otherwise..."
"Otherwise, what? Will you tarnish their innocence? What the hell is he talking about!" The tall and thin man interrupted, "I have absolutely no interest in 3D women."
"Hehe!" The girl sneered twice, "You certainly won't do anything to them, but you will arrange their review location in..."
Saying this, she paused, her head slightly lowered, a blush appearing on her cheeks, and her words became hesitant.
"In... in... that kind of place!"
"What kind of place? How would I not know?" The tall and thin man shrugged and played dumb.
The girl stomped her foot in anger and growled, "It's that kind of... den of iniquity! Do you have to make me say it? Bastard! LSP!"
"Tch! What do you, a little kid, understand? That's called paradise! Do you know paradise?" The tall and thin man rolled his eyes and said.
"Filthy, I'm too lazy to bother with you!" The girl stuck out her tongue at the tall and thin man. Her gaze inadvertently swept towards the South Suburb Slaughterhouse. Seeing the pitch-black area, she was startled for a moment. She raised her hand to look at the children's electronic watch on her wrist and asked doubtfully, "Where is that Li Master?"
"It's already 12:13, why hasn't he come yet? Did that kid run away? What did you do?"
"He came a long time ago!"
"And then? Where is he?" The girl asked urgently.
"And then..." The tall and thin man glanced in the direction of the South Suburb Slaughterhouse, and curled his lip, "Then, he was instantly killed as soon as he entered the door. What's there to say?"
"Hmph, I'm convinced!" The girl rolled her eyes and said, "He's so weak, yet he has the nerve to call himself Li Master, capable of ascending to heaven and descending to earth? I even made a special trip to watch the show!"
"Didn't he already change his name to 'Humbly Begging for Release'?" The tall and thin man shook his head and said, "If you ask me, aren't we a bit too cruel? Arranging his review in such a high-difficulty place."
"Nonsense! He's on the blacklist, and we were commissioned! Of course, the more tragic his death, the better!" The girl put her hands on her hips and said angrily.
"Besides, when he deceived girls' feelings, why didn't you say he was cruel? When he sold fake goods and caused people to be attacked by urban legend, why didn't you say he was cruel? He..."
"Alright, alright! I get it, you're long-winded!" The tall and thin man impatiently waved his hand, interrupting the girl. He then changed the subject, "Speaking of which, have you chosen the review location for Wang Bu Liu Xing?"
"Hmm..." The girl frowned and thought for a while, her peripheral vision drifting towards the South Suburb Slaughterhouse in the distance.
Under the cover of night, shadows flickered within the long-abandoned slaughterhouse, as if hiding some ghostly beings. Faintly, the cries of livestock being slaughtered drifted on the wind.
"Right here is fine."
The tall and thin man was startled for a moment, and turned his head to look at the girl, "Are you kidding me? Isn't she a newborn Strange Tale? And a key target on the red list, bringing her here..."
"Oh! I get it! You're using public office to avenge private wrongs! You little girl, you're not old, but you're quite scheming!"
"Do you think I'm like you?" The girl rolled her eyes, "Void has a very high opinion of her. Since she's so strong, why not let her conveniently take care of that guy on the blacklist in the slaughterhouse?"
"..." The tall and thin man was silent for a moment and said, "Suit yourself!"
"Speaking of which, how much money has she received?"
"She received..."
The girl hesitated to speak, as if she had suddenly remembered something, and her mouth twitched.
"Oh dear! Just don't worry about it. Within a week, I will definitely make her accept the review!"
...
The next morning, in front of the Jingyi Apartment Complex main gate.
Lu Yibei stood at the main gate, propping his chin with one hand, staring at the wallet on the ground for a long time, lost in thought. People going to work and school in the morning hurried past him, but seemed not to see the wallet on the ground.
Lu Yibei, "..." It's been several days in a row! Which simpleton designed this fishing trap? It's not even as clever as Mr. Rabbit.
Meanwhile, on the stone pillar of the complex's main gate, a tabby cat with beautiful fur was secretly watching him. Seeing him bend down and pick up the wallet on the ground, a hint of excitement flashed in the tabby cat's eyes, and the corners of its mouth slightly curved, revealing a human-like smile.
He picked it up, he finally picked it up! I thought he was so noble! Didn't pick up one yuan, didn't pick up ten yuan, didn't pick up one hundred yuan! So he thought it was too little? Now it's good, straight to the point!
As the tabby cat was thinking, its ears suddenly twitched slightly. From afar, it heard Lu Yibei's voice coming from the police station at the street corner.
"Uncle Police, I just picked up a wallet over there. There are several thousand inside! I'm rushing to school, so I'll hand it over to you first!"
"..."
"Meow (Damn)—!" Hearing this, the tabby cat cursed, slammed a paw onto the stone pillar, leaving behind a smoking claw print.
