Chapter 178: Corpse Fraud
There was no other way; apart from believing Wang Xiaoming, Wang Tao really didn’t know how to survive.
The wound on his neck truly scared him; he knew very well that Wang Xiaoming wasn’t exaggerating, and if it went on for a while longer, he might really be strangled to death by the “air”.
【Very simple, because a ghost’s attack can only kill a human. After contacting a fierce ghost, if you survive, then you will shed your human identity and become an existence similar to a ghost.】
“I’ve done it, what should I do next?” Wang Tao gritted his teeth and said.
【You need to find a fierce ghost that can contact you but won’t kill you.】
【Your state isn’t good; it’s best to make a choice nearby soon.】
Fierce ghosts that can be controlled by ordinary people generally fall into two types under normal circumstances. The first type has very weak supernatural power, not even able to kill a single person easily.
However, that’s only a minority case; more often, the controlled fierce ghosts are just in a state similar to hibernation. When an ordinary person contacts a hibernating fierce ghost, they have the possibility of becoming a ghost controller while awakening the fierce ghost.
Such fierce ghosts are very hard to find, so the number of ghost controllers is so rare.
But the environment inside the haunted house seems unusual; although there are many fierce ghosts, they are all inactive, with many suitable targets to choose from.
His gaze swept over the screen following the movement, and Wang Xiaoming quickly selected a target suspected to be a fierce ghost.
【Turn around, walk back to the aisle entrance.】
Wang Tao didn’t type; he just silently followed Wang Xiaoming’s instructions and acted.
In just a few short steps, he had returned to the corridor entrance.
That eerie sense of peeping appeared again.
Clearly, this area was within the influence range of that previous ghost eye shrub.
Wang Xiaoming’s gaze shifted; this fierce ghost’s terror level was undoubtedly higher, but unfortunately it was too active and not suitable as a control target.
【Ignore that fierce ghost’s influence, don’t look up, directly raise your hand.】
【There’s a thing above your head; if nothing unexpected, it should also be a fierce ghost, but it’s not active, so the possibility of controlling it is high.】
He obediently did so.
To be safe, Wang Tao simply closed his eyes.
He tentatively reached out, about to ask the exact position, but his finger touched a cool thing first.
“Ding ling ling.”
A bell hanging at the doorway was lightly touched, and a crisp sound accompanied the slight swaying of the bell body.
A strange feeling appeared in Wang Tao’s heart; he wasn’t sure if it was an illusion, but he felt as if he had established some unclear connection with this bell.
Closing his eyes and waiting nervously for a long time, there seemed to be no other feeling.
That’s it?
He reached out and gently lifted; the bell fell accordingly, landing steadily in Wang Tao’s hand.
He put away the bell and typed doubtfully: “I’ve taken down this bell, then what?”
【It’s already complete; your luck is good.】
【Still don’t look up now, return to the aisle first.】
Through the live broadcast screen, Wang Xiaoming could clearly see that this bell sound affected the ghost eye shrub not far away.
More eyes emerged from the bushes, but it was unknown whether this influence was good or bad.
“The wound is indeed gone…” Wang Tao shrank back into the corner, observing his condition using the flipped camera.
The bluish-black strangulation mark on his neck had disappeared, with no trace left from before.
He curiously played with the bell in his hand.
Its material was neither metal nor jade, and even less like wood; if anything, it was a bit like bones.
But there were no assembly traces on this bell, and it was unknown whose bones could be this large.
He gently shook it, and a pleasant bell sound immediately rang out.
Wang Tao was now blocking his finger inside the bell, yet it didn’t hinder the clapper’s movement—or rather, there was no such thing as a clapper inside this bell.
Even so, he didn’t feel any sign of an attack.
Wang Tao couldn’t help but ask curiously: “I nearly died when I touched that rope earlier, but this time touching the bell cured my previous wound. Both are contacting a fierce ghost—why the difference?”
【Continue deeper; when you leave the old house, a specialist will train you, and they will answer all your doubts at that time.】
“Alright.”
After standing up, Wang Tao still advanced into the corridor in that previous wretched posture.
There was no way; although he had now controlled a fierce ghost, he was completely ignorant about it and felt no practical use.
Plus, with Wang Xiaoming instructing him not to shake the bell casually, Wang Tao didn’t dare have other ideas.
He hadn’t walked far.
Wang Tao had arrived in front of a wooden door.
【This is the place, open the door and go in to take a look.】
If there really is a mourning hall, it should be set up in a front room, convenient for relatives and friends to come pay respects.
The door opened silently.
The light in the room was very dim; only with a few flickering candles could the interior situation be barely seen.
In the roughly thirty-to-forty-square-meter room, there was no other furniture, only a vermilion coffin placed in the center.
It was unknown whether it was the candlelight’s effect or Wang Tao’s psyche playing tricks, but this red seemed to exude a bit of eeriness—not like paint, more like soaked in fresh blood.
The surrounding space was very empty, with only a stand in front of the coffin, on which there seemed to be a photo.
Looking closer, the photo showed an old man.
The old man’s hair was combed neatly, and he wore a single-lens glasses over his right eye, adding a touch of mystery to his ordinary face.
“Ding ling ling—”
An ethereal bell sound suddenly rang out.
Wang Tao’s face suddenly became unsightly, and he turned to run toward the door.
This sound clearly came from the bone bell on his body, but he knew very well he hadn’t touched that bell.
Something had changed in the room; he had to leave as soon as possible.
However, Wang Tao was still one step late.
The wooden door had closed right in front of him; though it was just a thin panel, he couldn’t break it open.
“Cough cough cough…”
An inexplicable coughing sound came.
Gritting his teeth and turning back to look, the coffin on the ground had unknowingly opened.
The inside of the coffin was empty, with nothing there.
A corpse fraud?
Wang Tao pressed tightly against the door, clutching the bell in his hand, his eyes scanning back and forth in the small room.
Suddenly, he noticed that the black-and-white portrait had undergone some changes.
Under the candlelight’s flicker, the portrait alternated between light and dark, and the old man’s entire face was divided into light and shadow areas.
One half was normal, but the other half with the glasses had rotted away unnoticed—not like a human face, more like a distorted fierce ghost.
