6
There was a recently purchased bottle of perfume on my bookshelf. I picked it up and sprayed myself several times, then decisively poured the whole bottle over myself.
The heavy floral scent spread everywhere. It was so overpowering that stabbing pains shot through my head, and I even felt nauseated.
I fought through the discomfort and searched around for red paper.
I couldn't find any.
On second thought, that made sense. Female college students didn't normally take art classes, so where would they get red paper?
And even if they had any, with the tomb owner's caution, she'd have found a way to quietly deal with it over the past few months, leaving no opening like this for us.
Just as I was close to despair, I suddenly remembered that a guy from the department next door had pursued me before and given me a Cartier ring.
I thought it was too expensive, so I hadn't told anyone or even opened the box. I'd put it away in the closet, planning to find a chance to return it to him.
…The Cartier shopping bag was red!
I hurried to the closet and found the shopping bag, then cut a piece from it with scissors in three quick snips.
I grabbed a highlighter from the desk, the kind used to mark important points, and stared at this hard-won piece of red paper, lost in thought.
I knew all my roommates' birthdays.
But…
On the phone, Tiểu Nhiên reminded me, “This method will only work once. You absolutely must not write the wrong date.”
My fingertips trembled.
Was it Ngô Lam?
Given the situation, it must have been Ngô Lam. She and Tần Tiếu went to the restroom, and only she came back.
Was it really her?
Ngô Lam… was my best friend.
The pen tip kept touching the red paper, then lifting away again.
Tiểu Nhiên's voice reminded me in my ear, “The perfume isn't strong enough to protect you for long. You have to hurry!”
I closed my eyes, and countless details rushed wildly through my mind.
I had to stay calm. I had to trust my judgment.
The pen scratched across the paper as I wrote a birth date on it.
I had just tucked the red paper away when Quý Triệu's voice came through the phone.
He said in a low voice, “This is bad.”
“We've reached your school, but the ritual is almost at its hundredth day. The coffin is buried too deep now.”
As if to prove Quý Triệu's words, a sound came from inside the dormitory.
Drip, drip—
I looked up.
Drops of water fell from the ceiling and landed on my face.
The ceiling was completely waterlogged.
The drops fell faster and faster, as if they were about to gather into a river and flood our entire dormitory.
The ritual must be nearly complete.
“Listen to me. Don't panic.”
Tiểu Nhiên's voice pulled my soul back from the brink of leaving my body.
“The corpse fiend's barrier has grown so dense that it's like the coffin is buried deep underground. Digging down from the surface would take a long time.”
“But any place that isn't sealed is a vent in the coffin. The vent is its weakest point. If you can lure the tomb owner's soul to the spot directly opposite the window, Quý Triệu can break through the vent from outside in an instant.”
“So you can't keep hiding in the dorm. For one thing, it's an enclosed space. If the tomb owner comes in again, you won't escape.”
“Besides, the hallway is the only place where you'll have a chance to lure her over to the window.”
7
I pushed open the dormitory door.
There were no footsteps nearby. The hallway was deathly quiet.
I cautiously stepped out of the dorm and took a few steps forward.
Suddenly, a voice sounded behind me.
“Nguyễn Nguyễn.”
I whipped around and met a pair of eyes.
Ngô Lam's hair hung loose. In the darkness, her pupils were huge and black, as if they would fill her entire eye sockets.
She just kept looking at me, her voice heavy with gloom.
“Nguyễn Nguyễn, are you afraid of me?”
My heart leaped into my throat, and I instinctively turned and ran.
I ran frantically, the footsteps behind me drawing closer and closer.
Finally, as I ran past the corner of the hallway, I left behind the phone I was using to call Tiểu Nhiên and Quý Triệu. I started the ringtone on another phone and threw it out into the hall.
The phone slid across the floor like a bowling ball, its piano ringtone both melodious and eerie in the dark.
Right after that, I slipped into the nearby restroom and shut the door tight.
The footsteps passed slowly by the door, heading toward the phone's ringtone.
I let out a sigh and turned to lean against the door.
And came face-to-face with someone.
Tần Tiếu was standing behind me.
We both gaped, then realized we couldn't scream and had to swallow our cries.
Tần Tiếu covered her mouth and gestured to ask, “What's going on out there?”
I said nothing, watching Tần Tiếu.
Tần Tiếu's hair was loose, half her glasses were broken, and a large bruise marked her forehead. Her wound was still bleeding.
I gestured back, asking, “What happened to you?”
Tần Tiếu held up her phone and texted me.
“Sister Lam came into the restroom with me. I was washing my face when she suddenly attacked me.”
“I must have passed out. I only woke up when you came in.”
“What happened? Is Sister Lam a serial killer?!”
I opened my mouth, not knowing what to say. In the end, all I could do was shake my head helplessly.
Tần Tiếu thought I didn't believe her and hurriedly texted, “Don't disbelieve me. I already thought something was wrong with Sister Lam! There was a lot of blood on her lab protective clothing. I asked her about it, and she said it was from the lab's white mice.”
“How could white mice have that much blood? I'm sure it was human blood.”
I stared at her. “Did you call the police then?”
Tần Tiếu shook her head and kept texting. “How could I dare? I was going to move out first and rent a place. Once Ngô Lam couldn't find me anymore, I would call the police…”
Seeing how cold my expression was, she hurried to apologize. “I'm sorry, Nguyễn Nguyễn. I didn't mean to keep it from you guys. I was just so scared—afraid she'd take revenge on me.”
“Nguyễn Nguyễn, what do we do now? Lệ Nhi is still in the dorm…”
I gritted my teeth and took a step back, lowering my voice. “Lệ Nhi is dead.”
Tần Tiếu covered her mouth, her eyes wide.
“What are we supposed to do…”
Just then, behind us, the bathroom door was knocked on three times.
Knock.
Knock.
Knock.
Then a mournful voice came from outside the door.
“Nguyễn Nguyễn, I’m coming in, okay?”
8
Tần Tiếu’s face and mine instantly went pale.
Tần Tiếu shakily grabbed me, but I jerked my hand away.
Her voice caught in her throat. “Nguyễn Nguyễn, I was wrong. I know I should’ve warned you guys sooner… But now…”
I snapped at her, “Stop talking nonsense! Hurry and find something heavy to block the door!”
The two of us piled everything we could find in the bathroom against the door.
Quý Triệu had just told me that this coffin room was special: as long as you were inside it, both people and ghosts existed in physical form.
In other words, ghosts inside were subject to the laws of physics, too. They couldn’t pass through walls or slip in through cracks like in horror movies.
But…
The bathroom door was slammed hard from the outside. The titanium alloy lock made a strained creaking sound, and it looked ready to crack.
That’s right.
What Quý Triệu had just warned me was—
“Although ghosts are subject to the laws of physics, in places of extreme yin, they’re far stronger and faster than humans.”
A moment later, Ngô Lam slammed against the door again.
This time, the door was smashed open. A hand reached through the broken doorway.
The broken wood sliced her hand open, and blood poured from it, but she seemed not to feel any pain. She yanked back, tearing a huge section of the door away.
Through the gaping hole, I saw Ngô Lam’s face.
Her face was deathly pale, her hair long and black, her dress white, her shoes white.
I suddenly remembered that the clothes she was wearing were the birthday gift I’d given her.
Back then, she’d hugged the gift box and said gently, “Nguyễn Nguyễn, thank you. This is the first birthday present I’ve ever received.”
Now, in that same gentle voice, Ngô Lam softly asked, “Nguyễn Nguyễn, no matter what I say, you won’t believe me anymore, will you?”
I looked into her eyes.
A pain like my head was about to explode surged through it.
I suddenly remembered.
I remembered some memories I’d deliberately tried to forget.