Here Lies The Wicked - Chapter 32

Chapter 32: The Carnival’s Haunted House

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation

Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

When Fang Zheng arrived at the carnival on the bund, it was already 9 pm. 

Fang Zheng found a men’s clothing store on his way there and got a new jacket. His jacket and shirt were torn from the battle. 

Zhou City’s bund was built along the river. 

Of course, Fang Zheng knew this place inside out. 

This was an urban landmark the Zhou City Council had been prioritizing in terms of development. It included wet scenic spots, restaurants, shopping malls, bars, and more. 

There were also BBQ parties, fireworks shows, beer festivals and similar youth-focused activities held in the area. It drew a huge crowd. 

The Zhou City bund was about two kilometers away from the Tongjiang Bridge—one could even see the newly-built bridge clearly. 

Under the pitch-black sky, the Tongjiang Bridge seemed as if it was a long dragon with tall thorns; it was faintly discernible. 

When Fang Zheng rushed to the bund’s carnival, he found a huge crowd outside. There were three queue lines both inside and outside as well. Cops were present to maintain order and prevent stampeding.

On top of that, Fang Zheng also saw 120 ambulances. 

In the midst of noisy surroundings, while speaking on the phone, Fang Zheng finally found the two girls. Chen Tongtong and Lin Jiabao were shuddering in the crowd; their faces were pale. 

“Fang Zheng! Fang Zheng! We’re here!”

Chen Tongtong and Lin Jiabao looked at Fang Zheng excitedly; they ran quickly toward him, panting. 

At this moment, the university students were freezing in the cold wind, their lips were purple, and their faces were a little pale—they seemed pitiful and weak. 

“Are you okay?”

“What happened here? I saw police cars and ambulances parked outside the carnival. I heard the tourists congregating at the entrance say that someone had died at the carnival?”

Fang Zheng asked the duo out of genuine concern. He felt at ease after seeing Chen Tongtong and Lin Jiabao unharmed and only a little shaken. Fang Zheng comforted the girls while asking for more details about what had happened. 

‘People had died in the carnival!

‘Three tourists had died in the Haunted House Adventure.’ 

Lin Jiabao and Chen Tongtong were here to sightsee given it was a weekend. However, when they were at the Haunted House Adventure, they—together with other tourists—found three people hung in the air by their necks with sharp iron hooks. They seemed like slaughtered pigs. Their eyeballs popped out, and it seemed as if they had died with grievances. They were staring right at the tourists in the haunted house. Blood flowed down their hung bodies and splattered onto the ground like a mini waterfall—they seemed like slaughtered animals being hung up. 

Tourists had assumed that these were props, but they seemed so real that the tourists had goosebumps; no one dared move forward. 

Later on, a courageous tourist approached it and touched the bodies of the trio—alas! These weren’t props! They were actual people! 

People had died! 

A stampede erupted, as tourists rushed out of the haunted house in tears and screams. Soon after that, security and the person-in-charge of the carnival were alerted to the situation. 

Police and ambulances followed. They sealed off and shut down the entire carnival; tourists had been interviewed by the police from 2 pm to night. 

When the girls called Fang Zheng, they had just completed their interviews. 

After seeing the sky turn dark, and given that it was their first time encountering dead people in such a terrifying setting, both Chen Tongtong and Lin Jiabao were horrified; they decided to ask Fang Zheng for help. They hoped that Fang Zheng would come over and get them. 

After such an incident, the carnival would probably be unable to operate for the next one or two months. 

Fang Zheng had a doubtful gaze as he stared at the carnival under the night sky. He had a ghastly feeling that could not be explained. 

‘Was it truly as simple as a murder?’

Fang Zheng was deep in thought. 

They had already missed the last bus at this hour. Taxis were a rare sight near the Tongjiang Bridge at night; thankfully, the Zhou City Council was quick to arrange a few public buses and tourist buses to transport the stranded tourists. 

Just as the trio were waiting for the next bus, a line of people came out of the carnival. 

They were a few police officers and forensic doctors but what caught Fang Zheng’s eyes was a man and woman who were walking together with the line of people. 

The man’s face had a horrifying scar on it—it did not seem like it was caused by a knife. It seemed more like he was attacked by sharp claws of a beast; his flesh was torn up fiercely, and the scar stretched from the corner of his eye to his chin. 

The woman had an ordinary appearance—she seemed like she was about 30 years old, and she had a mature aura to her. 

However, that was not the key. 

A cloud of Gray Qi rose from the body of that ordinary-looking woman before it was absorbed by the Human Skin Scripture Fang Zheng carried with him. 

Fang Zheng was excited. 

The answer was obvious. 

This was another supernatural incident! 

This scar-faced man, together with the ordinary-looking woman, were both from the special branch—the Supernatural Investigation Bureau!

Together with the man in shades cool guy prior to this, and the “boss” he was referring to, Fang Zheng had already met a total of four people from this special branch. 

The woman seemed to have felt Fang Zheng’s gaze from about 100m away. She turned around to look in Fang Zheng’s direction, held his gaze for a second, before turning her head away. 

Fang Zheng immediately pretended to be talking to the girls next to him. 

However, he had a serious look. He had a feeling that this woman’s powers were stronger than his. When she was staring at him, he had goosebumps—he sensed danger. 

‘Maybe that scar-faced man had powers equally as strong too!’

“Fang Zheng, what’s up with you?”

An observant Chen Tongtong realized something was wrong with Fang Zheng; she had asked him out of concern. 

Fang Zheng shook his head and said he was alright. 

Soon after that, Fang Zheng silently realized that the scar-faced man and the ordinary-looking woman got into a black buggy and left. 

Ten minutes later, the public buses and tourist buses that were meant to pick up stranded tourists broke the darkness of the night and drove into the carnival. 

On the way back, Fang Zheng finally saw the river closure project he had read about in the news.

Lights could be seen on top of the river as large construction equipment were erected from ground-up. The sounds of machines working roared like beasts—people were staying up to work overtime at night. As he sat on the top deck of the bus, Fang Zheng could see that the river closure project had almost been completed. 

He did not expect the project to progress this quickly. 

This showed that the relevant authorities were adamant and determined to solve the issue regarding the Tongjiang Bridge. 

‘They wanted to solve the root cause of the problem. 

‘They wanted to thoroughly put a stop to it.’

Fang Zheng thought that the “mandatory sanitization” plan Sun Yushu was talking about over the phone could be in the final few days of its execution. 

Judging from the progress of the project, it seemed like the river would be completely closed at any moment now. 

Cars were driving slowly on the road under the night sky. 

When the trio returned to their apartment, it was already nearly 11 pm. At this moment, they were all starving—Chen Tongtong and Lin Jiabao wanted to buy Fang Zheng Sichuan hotpot for dinner as a token of appreciation. It was also to drive away the chill of the night. 

However, Fang Zheng paid for the meal secretly when he went to the toilet.