As soon as he arrived at school, Li Xiu realized that there was something wrong with the entire class’s atmosphere today.

It was too quiet.

It was as if a mute button had been pressed, even for the whispering and flipping of pages that should be occurring during morning self-study.

His brow furrowed, and as soon as he entered the classroom, he saw someone lying on the table next to his seat.

Fang Qian’an’s figure was so recognizable that even though the boy currently had his face buried in his arms, Liu Xiu recognized him at a glance.

Very good. This prince was able to catch up on sleep during morning self-study without any scruples or psychological pressure.

It should be for this reason that the others in class were worried about disturbing Fang Qian’an and were utterly quiet, right?

Li Xiu looked over the classroom casually and found that everyone’s expressions were a bit odd, all of them staring blankly at their textbooks without saying a word.

“……”

He looked away, pursing his lips as he looked at the back of Fang Qian’an’s head.

Why was this guy still here? 

Li Xiu complained unwillingly in his heart.

When he thought of how Fang Qian’an had disturbed his class the day before, the youth fell into a gloomy mood.

Thanks to the special phone call Fang Qian’an made to him last night, Li Xiu hadn’t slept very well. His head was as heavy as lead at this time, and he couldn’t squeeze out any extra energy. Thus, no matter how much displeasure he aimed at Fang Qian’an, Li Xiu could only lower his eyes and pretend not to care. Crossing the narrow space between Fang Qian’an and his seat, he reached his spot.

There was no movement from Fang Qian’an. He seemed to be sleeping deeply.

Li Xiu glanced in his direction and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that he wasn’t awake.

Good, at least he didn’t have to deal with this young master right then.

Li Xiu took yesterday’s unfinished paper from his school bag to write a couple of pages, but as he did so, he found that he couldn’t concentrate.

The students in Class 1A…..seemed to be a little too quiet today. This thought was like dark clouds in the sky, passing gloomily through his mind.

Was Fang Qian’an really that scary? Scary to such a degree that they weren’t even discussing the breaking news from last night? As Li Xiu thought, he habitually glanced at the class schedule in the corner of the blackboard.

It read: 

First period: English

Second period: English

Third period: English

Fourth period: English

Li Xiu’s pupils shrank, and he sat woodenly in his seat.

He recalled very clearly that today’s lessons were never supposed to be a full day of English. And hadn’t it been said yesterday that Ouyang, who was in charge of English, had disappeared and might even have hanged himself?

Had the school already found a substitute teacher?

But even if there was a substitute, why would there be a full day of English?

Just as Li Xiu was thinking wildly, the class bell suddenly rang.

In the silence of the classroom, the bell sounded particularly harsh. Immediately after, a slender figure stepped inside right on time.

It was Ouyang.

Ouyang, who had confessed the night before to molesting minors and committed suicide out of fear and guilt.

The man still looked the same as he did before, with a good-looking face and humorous and witty speech.

Other than his face being a little pale today, Ouyang looked no different than usual.

Ouyang said with a smile: “Aiya, it’s English all day today. It looks like the students have a heavy-learning task today…..”

He had a slight slur as he spoke.

His lips were slightly purple. Li Xiu didn’t know if he was seeing it wrong, but at a quick glance, he seemed to see red and black blood all over Ouyang’s teeth.

Li Xiu gulped.

He couldn’t help but look around again, finding that all of his classmates appeared calm.

They just looked at the handsome, witty, humorous internet celebrity male teacher at the podium as if there was nothing unusual. 

If there really was something off, it was that they seemed to be much more serious about class today than usual.

What exactly was going on…..

Li Xiu felt dizzy.

He hesitated for a while before realizing that Fang Qian’an might have tricked him.

That vague phone call yesterday was actually fake news, wasn’t it?

What kind of stupid, boring joke was this?

No, no way. Only a fool like him would believe anything that came out of a bully’s mouth, right?

Li Xiu sent a sharp look toward Fang Qian’an beside him. The latter was still lying on the table motionlessly, never making any movement.

He was deeply asleep.

Just as Li Xiu was distracted by Fang Qian’an, at the podium, the pale-faced English teacher had already opened his mouth to start teaching as usual.

“…..Alright, let’s talk about the third reading question on yesterday’s paper.”

Li Xiu stared blankly when he heard this.

Generally speaking, lecture topics began with basic questions, so why did Ouyang start out with the reading questions today? Following the teacher’s command, Li Xiu looked at the paper at hand.

The title of the English material used in the question was: <<The Death Car>>.

The reading material was not very difficult. The plot with a bit of pop-horror style could even be considered rather interesting. This story told the tale of a couple who were driving at night, but the car broke down halfway. The husband left the car to find some help, and the reason the wife waited there was not for her husband to return. She waited because of the constant knocking sound coming from the roof.

The trembling wife hid in the car until the police arrived, and finally learned what was going on with the banging sound lingering above the car all night.

The murderer had hung her husband directly from a tree branch above the car.

The toes of the deceased were constantly hitting the roof…..

…..

Although he felt that the order of Ouyang’s lecture was wrong, Li Xiu still instinctively picked up a pen to take notes due to years of habit.

“…..Hanging is very painful.”

However, what the male voice in his ears spoke of was not the English question.

“It really, really hurts. The wire is so thin that it sticks in the throat. It hurts more than a stab from a knife…..no matter how hard you try to dig with your hands, you can’t use any strength at all…..”

The pen in Li Xiu’s hand came to a stop.

He continued to maintain a posture as if listening intently to the lecture, but his fingers began to slightly shake against his will.

Ouyang’s voice in the classroom became increasingly unclear. It seemed as if his vocal cords had been damaged, or something was stuck in his mouth.

“Hu…..hu…..”

Ouyang’s breathing also became abnormally labored.

“The body also becomes very heavy. It keeps pulling down, down, pulling on the neck…..when you hear a strange clicking sound, you will know, ah, it turns out the cervical vertebra has broken…..”

Along with the increasingly strange narration, Li Xiu’s fingers coated in cold sweat became extremely smooth and slippery, and he accidentally dropped the pen on the floor.

Ouyang’s muttering stopped abruptly.

The sound of the gel pen falling to the floor was incredibly clear.

Li Xiu’s mouth felt dry for a spell.

“Li Xiu, you dropped your pen.”

A nearby classmate alerted him.

“Oh.”

Li Xiu lowered his head, not daring to look up at Ouyang. He gingerly bent down and prepared to pick up the pen on the floor.

The moment he grabbed it and was about to sit up, Li Xiu glanced around.

And this glance instantly caused Li Xiu’s back to break out in a cold sweat.

He saw the feet of his “classmates.”

They were all backwards.

Obviously, everyone was sitting upright in their seats, facing the blackboard.

However, under their seats, Li Xiu could see clearly that their toes were all pointing toward the back of the classroom.

[A-Xiu, ah…..what are you watching that troubles you so?]

[Grandmother, wuwuwu…..I’m so afraid…..the g-ghost’s heels are raised….wuwu…..that auntie has been tiptoeing too…..]

[Silly boy, that stuff on TV is all nonsense. Grandma will tell you, real ghosts…..]

[Their feet grow backwards.]

Inexplicably, a vague conversation suddenly leaped out of his chaotic and distant sea of memories.

Bang—

Li Xiu sat up abruptly and his body hit the table hard, creating a loud noise.

He gritted his teeth as panic caused his heart to beat wildly. 

His mind went blank.

But just at this moment, he heard a thin, trembling voice come from his side.

“Don’t scream.”

“Don’t let them find out…..”

Li Xiu turned his eyes with difficulty to meet the gaze of the boy beside him, peeking through the gap in his arms.

“Oh…..my neck hurts…..oooh, it hurts, ah…..”

Ouyang’s teaching voice turned completely into gasps and wails of extreme pain.

In the bone-chilling cold air, Li Xiu tensely exchanged looks with the pale-faced former school bully.

“Find out what?” Li Xiu asked almost at the volume of a breath, trembling.

“That you’ve discovered them.”

“What exactly is going on?”

Fang Qian’an didn’t answer Li Xiu this time, and just continued to bury his face in his arms.

A hand suddenly grabbed Li Xiu.

It was Fang Qian’an’s.

His hand was just like Li Xiu’s, cold as ice.

It’s a dream, he wrote carefully on Li Xiu’s palm.

Yes, ah.

Everything he was experiencing must be a nightmare.

Fang Qian’an told this to himself desperately, because only in this way would he not be scared completely insane.

He no longer remembered how many dreams within dreams he had gone through.

This time, he even thought he was truly awake. After all, he had experienced getting up in the morning and Aunt Su making breakfast for him. But when he sat down in the classroom, he suddenly realized that something wasn’t right. Completely the opposite of Li Xiu, who studied hard and had no distractions, the carefree school bully soon saw the situation under the seats.

Everyone in the classroom had similar faces.

They……

They weren’t human at all.

Yes, this is just a dream, this is just a dream, this is just a dream— —

Just wait until the dream is over.

As long as I’m not discovered.

In the shadow of his arms, Fang Qian’an continued to mumble silently to himself.

And beside this young master who was about to have a mental breakdown, Li Xiu was also shaking uncontrollably.

He had just glanced toward the podium from the corner of his eye, and Ouyang’s figure had vanished at some point.

Only the “students” with dull and lifeless faces were in the classroom, sitting there motionless.

Very good, at least…..

At least Ouyang was gone.

If this was a nightmare, the worst part was over.

Li Xiu strived to stay calm, but at this moment, a shadow flashed in the corner of his eye.

The youth’s movements suddenly stiffened.

After a good while, Li Xiu rapidly gasped for breath as he looked to the side.

He saw a pair of feet.

It was a long-dead corpse, its toes already the rotting red color of decay. Some long-dried excrement caked the insides of its calves and ankles in black.

The nails on its toes had fallen off due to a violent struggle, and presently, those feet were hanging in front of Fang Qian’an’s desk.

Swaying.

And swaying.

Tears oozed from Li Xiu’s eyes.

He stared unseeingly at the papers on his desk, his eyes focused on the last sentence of the reading material.

[…..his feet were bumping gently on the roof of the car — bump, bump, bump, bump.]

Fang Qian’an obviously sensed the presence of those feet.

His shoulders shook violently.

Li Xiu’s lips trembled and he made a whimpering sound.

He said, “Fang Qian’an, don’t raise your head.”

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The Author Has Something to Say:

En, the English reading material actually exists. It’s called “The Death Car,” and the English excerpts in the story also come from it.

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Chapter 18 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 20