The "door" in Liwan Town had gone out of control. The blood fog swallowed half the small town, and the boundary between reality and nightmare grew blurred.
Even
"A little further ahead, and we'll reach the building where I found the phone ghost's body. Should I go upstairs and check the water vat?" In reality, the phone ghost Tongtong's body had already been taken away by the police. If there was another body inside that vat, it would mean Chen Ge was most likely in the world behind the door.
The world behind the door was woven from the memories of the person who pushed the door open. As long as Xiao Bu's memories contained the phone ghost's corpse, there was a high probability one would appear in the water vat.
Of course, this was only Chen Ge's speculation. He had no better way to verify it right now.
"Fan Cong's apartment complex is with Xiao Bu's classmates, far from here. Getting there would definitely mean running into some things."
Chen Ge glanced behind him. Blood mist blanketed everything in every direction—the path he'd come by had already vanished. This world cloaked in blood fog seemed to allow entry but not escape.
"If this really is the world behind the door, then the only way out is through the door itself. Liwan Town's door is inside that building right across from Fan Cong's home. Looks like no matter the reason, I have to make a trip to his apartment complex tonight."
Having found his own justification, Chen Ge planned to tell the other passengers in the car about his analysis and lead them to that complex.
"I'm pointing them in the way out, saving their lives."
The blood veins crawling across the surface of Bus 104 multiplied with every passing second. The dense fog seemed almost alive, slowly trying to devour everything foreign.
"What are you muttering about?" The passengers had filed out one by one. The doctor sidled up to Chen Ge. "Stay close to me from now on. No matter what happens, don't let us get separated."
"Sure." Chen Ge looked toward the bus door. The drunkard was huddled together with the family of three, the smiling man stood off to one side, and the self-proclaimed "killer" who called herself Scissors lingered at the back.
"Before we've confirmed the buildings are safe, you'd better stay away from them. Who knows what kind of horrors might pop out at any moment—blood-soaked arms, flying severed heads, things like that." Chen Ge had seen similar scenes in Xiao Bu's game. He spoke from experience.
"Are you joking?" The drunkard had been thoroughly shaken awake. If he managed to leave Liwan Town alive today, he'd probably never touch another drop of alcohol again.
"I'm just saying. I don't know exactly what might appear—it could very well be worse than what I described." Chen Ge pointed toward the building where the phone ghost's corpse was located. "Let's head over there. We'll search floor by floor, and once we've confirmed there's no danger, we can take shelter inside."
"You seem to know this place pretty well." The middle-aged man's face was grim, his words dripping with distrust. "There are so many buildings around—why does it have to be that one? What if you've set up a trap inside?"
"You're overthinking it." Chen Ge smiled at the middle-aged man. "Killing you wouldn't require a trap."
The middle-aged man's expression changed instantly. Chen Ge waved his hand. "I'm kidding. I've never even killed a chicken in my entire life. The only reason I can stay calm is because I play a lot of horror games."
Chen Ge turned and pointed at the building he'd chosen. "There's a reason I'm sending you to this one. As the saying goes, know yourself and know your enemy, and you'll never lose a battle. Let's take shelter inside first, then use the windows to observe the bus outside. Whoever's pulling the strings dragged us into this blood fog—they'll definitely send someone to check on us. At the very least, we need to know what our opponent looks like and what they're capable of before we can formulate a plan. On top of that, this thick fog gives us almost zero visibility. If we're too close to the bus, we risk being spotted; too far, and we won't be able to see anything. Taking everything into consideration, I think that building is the most suitable option."
After this little speech, even the smiling man gave an involuntary nod.
The middle-aged man couldn't argue with any of it, but the unease still gnawed at him. "You go first. We'll follow behind."
"No problem. Just don't wander off on your own." Chen Ge agreed without hesitation, hoisting both large bags as he took the lead, the doctor close on his heels.