As soon as the tourists filed out of the room, the senior immediately shut the door to the Photography Department. His expression was frantic, and he kept muttering under his breath, "How is that possible? How did she get out again?!"
Behind him, the door was being pounded with furious force. The doorframe shook violently, as though it could burst open at any moment.
The senior was a decent actor, and the tourists—already on edge—grew even more nervous under his influence.
"There's been a small problem here. You should go ahead to the freshman check-up room at the front. The doctor has already arrived." The senior forced out a smile.
The door continued to rattle violently. The tourists stared down the pitch-black corridor. Having someone guide them had been nerve-wracking enough; now they were being asked to venture forth on their own, which was asking far too much.
"What are you still standing around for? Go! Now!" The senior's voice turned shrill with impatience. He had his back pressed against the Photography Department door, using his entire body weight to hold it shut, yet even so the door still shook as though it might give way at any second.
"Listen to him. Let's move." Cui Ming and Li Yuan led the group forward. They had barely gotten a short distance away when the senior standing guard at the Photography Department doorway spoke again.
"Oh right, let me give you one more warning! The elevator has malfunctioned and is temporarily out of service. Try not to go to any other floors, because in the hallways there are—" He cut off mid-sentence. A pale hand suddenly thrust through the middle of the door and seized him, dragging him inside the Photography Department.
"Help me! Help me!" The senior's screams echoed down the corridor. His ashen face appeared in the crack of the door, his cheeks streaked with blood, his hands desperately waving toward the outside. "Help me! Quick! Pull me out!"
Splatters of crimson paint flew wild behind his head, spraying everywhere. Under circumstances like these, few people would dare to get close.
The tourists watched helplessly as the senior was dragged, inch by inch, back into the room, blood trailing across the floor.
"Help me!" The senior screamed with every ounce of his strength, his hand flailing wildly. At that moment, Chen Ge—who had been standing at the very back of the group—walked forward.
His shoes crunched through the red paint. This "blood" wasn't nearly as viscous as the real thing—it was more like red dye diluted with water.
Without much hesitation, Chen Ge reached the doorway of the Photography Department and grabbed the senior's hand.
"Help—"
Before the senior could finish, Chen Ge shoved him straight back through the door, then locked the Photography Department shut.
The corridor fell silent in an instant. Even the ghosts inside the Photography Department forgot their lines.
The tourists stared wide-eyed at Chen Ge, but he acted as though nothing had happened, even looking somewhat sheepish as he said, "Sorry about that. My hand slipped."
It wasn't until Chen Ge had walked three meters away that the door began shaking again, and from inside the Photography Department came the senior's screams along with a female ghost's cruel laughter.
"These actors can think on their feet," Chen Ge remarked, returning to the back of the group. He noticed the other tourists were still staring at him. "Stop standing around like stunned deer and go find the doctor. That student just said the hallways aren't safe, and we're standing way too close to them right now. Who knows what might crawl out at any moment. After all, you all just saw the film—that ghost first appeared in the hallway."
His tone was calm, his analysis level-headed. Having personally shoved their guide into the fire, he could still maintain this kind of composure. It left a deep impression on the other tourists.
"He's got a point. We are way too close to the hallway." Li Yuan was getting scared. He glanced back at the corridor behind them, then at the dark passage ahead, not daring to move forward. No one knew what monster might pop out next.
He shuffled his feet, visibly uneasy, and turned to look at Chen Ge for help. "Hey, big brother—how about you take point?"
"And you want to bring up the rear? Actually, the rear guard is way more dangerous than point. The back of the line is closest to the hallway. You might be walking along and suddenly find there's one extra person behind you."