In the northern suburbs, inside a three-story teaching building of a medical school that was almost abandoned.
Even though it was only three in the afternoon, the fog and thick clouds had already made all of Backlund dim and gloomy, as if a heavy rainstorm was imminent.
In the dilapidated corridor, the cold and eerie light slanted obliquely through the windows, leaving everything in a quiet, desolate, and creepy state.
Having come here for the second time, Audrey was no longer as nervous and tense as before. Wearing a surgical cap and a large mask, she turned her head slightly left and right, habitually observing the environment, every detail.
Viscount Grelint walked beside her, gradually becoming frightened, and couldn't help lowering his voice:
“This place feels a bit strange…”
“Are there ghosts or evil spirits?”
As a lover of mysticism who had only one foot in the circle, the truly supernatural phenomena he had witnessed were only Fors walking through walls and opening doors, and he wasn't sure whether vengeful spirits and shadows really existed.
But that didn't stop him from being afraid of similar monsters!
Fors glanced sideways at him, suppressing a smile, and said:
“Most of the people attending the gathering are Beyonders. If there were really evil ghosts and spirits, they would be very happy, because that would mean materials or servants.”
Seeing Viscount Grelint noticeably relieved, she deliberately added:
“Of course, I'm only talking about the weaker ghosts. A truly formed shadow might be able to kill everyone here silently, so that if you tried to escape, you could only wander back and forth among the three floors, unable to get out, as if you had entered a maze.”
Xio nodded in agreement:
“I once encountered a similar vengeful spirit. I circled around a cemetery several times and couldn't escape. During that process, people kept turning around for no reason and then suddenly dying. If it hadn't been for a Beyonder carrying a 'Sun Charm', maybe you wouldn't be seeing me today.”
Viscount Grelint shuddered and quickly turned his head to look out the window. At that moment, a withered branch driven by the cold wind hit the glass, making a soft sound.
Grelint almost cried out, and flustered, he moved a little closer to Fors and Xio, the two Beyonders.
Audrey suppressed the laughter that was about to escape, quietly watching this scene, and thought:
I have seen Mr. Fool, who is almost a god; I know about the Silver City in the Forsaken Land of God; I've heard of all kinds of terrifying monsters in the depths of darkness. Why should I be afraid of vengeful spirits and shadows?
But… I really haven't encountered a ghost yet. Bah! Audrey, what are you thinking? It's better not to run into such things casually!
Unless I have already become a 'Psychiatrist', with supernatural ability to influence other beings, or I have obtained a magical item that can restrain ghost-type monsters…
The four of them couldn't help quickening their pace and soon arrived at today's meeting place.
Just before entering, Fors found an opportunity, leaning slightly, and whispered in Xio's ear:
“You played along pretty well. You came up with a story so quickly to scare him.”
“Look at Viscount Grelint; the parts not covered by his mask are so pale that you can hardly see any other color.”
Xio turned his head and replied somewhat blankly:
“I didn't make up a story.”
“That happened before I came to Backlund.”
“…” Fors was stunned and blurted out, “That's true?”
“Why would I lie about that?” Xio's puzzled expression was hidden by the mask.
Fors turned her head, took two steps forward, and suddenly shuddered.
By this time, Grelint, who no longer wanted to stay in the dark and eerie corridor, reached out and pushed open the door to the meeting place.
With the sound of creaking, what met his eyes was a concrete floor, and what reached his nose was the smell of preservatives that made one frown.
Then he saw a large pool in the center, filled with a transparent yellowish liquid, with several figures floating inside.
Those figures were all naked; some were relatively intact, others had half their skin peeled off, revealing a brown color like beef jerky.
These were all corpses!
“Ah!” A male scream of terror echoed in the room.
All eyes turned to Grelint.
These gazes came from the white-clad figures surrounding the pool. They also wore surgical caps and large masks, only their eyes and a bit of skin exposed.
Grelint swayed, wanting to turn and run, but he saw Audrey, Fors, and Xio calmly pass by him as if nothing had happened, acting as if they hadn't arrived together.
He took a deep breath and barely held back vomiting.
He looked back outside; the corridor was dark and cold, with blurred shadows, not a single living person in sight.
Shuddering again, Grelint hurried to catch up with Audrey and the others, and sat down in the seat farthest from the pool.
After a few minutes, one of the figures in white stepped forward, used a hooked pole next to the pool to drag a corpse to the edge, and then directly pulled it onto the concrete floor.
He paused for two or three seconds, took out a scalpel, and cut open the abdomen of the corpse.
As the incision deepened, a cold and raspy voice suddenly came from inside:
“The gathering begins.”