Horror Game Designer Chapter 41: Auntie Pang

At 10 pm, the investigators stood around the perimeter of the apartment. The whole street was blocked off. The atmosphere was suffocating. There was no warcry or preparation. The chosen investigators slowly moved forward with silence and determination.

Numbers were pointless to solve an anomaly. The ghosts in the shadow world could replace your teammate. A newbie would only be a burden, so the centre only sent the elites this time. The core was members who had experienced level 4 anomaly before. They formed individual teams. They were prepared to die so that innocent people could maintain their dignity. Regardless of their past, at that moment, the investigators showed the fearlessness of humanity. The human figures disappeared into the apartment. Several seconds later, a wail echoed. The shadow around the apartment spread! The anomaly had been triggered!

Compared to the night before, the anomaly this time was at least three times larger. Even the logistics workers sealing the streets were taken into it!

Gao Ming, who was hiding in Building C, had his right eye twitched madly. His group was directly consumed. They had no time to react. The red light on the black band blinked. The coms were cut off. The light in the corridor flickered. Every unit was affected. The doors looked like gaping jaws.

“Something’s wrong.” Xuan Wen sighed. She touched the corridor wall. Her face was pale. “I assumed I’d be kicked out like last time, but I was targeted by this horror as well. Once the shadow touched me, I was pulled in!” Xuan Wen wanted to hunt the horror, but this time, she was the prey.

“This feels strange. Something is calling me.” Yan Hua removed his jacket and opened his arms. He allowed the shadow to crawl all over him. “This is so nice. I’ve never felt so free. I seem to belong here.”

Wan Qiu reacted more reservedly. He stood beside Gao Ming and held the talisman given by Uncle Wu. The back of his neck was wet.

“Shush.” Gao Ming perked up his ears. “Why… is there the sound of a beating heart inside the walls?” He opened the door of the unit next to him. The place looked normal, but standing inside it, he could hear the strange beating heart. Gao Ming’s heart also beat faster to match the strange heart’s pace.

“Let’s go. Let’s head to Building B. This is a giant horror. Our past experience won’t be of use here.” Xuan Wen walked to the front. She looked weak, but her eyes were bloodshot.

They came to the fifth floor corridor. Yan Hua moved the fence. The short corridor connecting the buildings was like a shadowy river. They were small boats wading through it.

Xuan Wen and Yan Hua were the first to reach Building B. To Gao Ming’s fear, they didn’t stop moving but slowly pulled away from Gao Ming. They didn’t seem to realise Gao Ming and Zhu Suisui were still behind them. They didn’t turn around. They seemed to speak to the air around them and suddenly moved faster.

“Xuan Wen!” Gao Ming called her. Xuan Wen appeared to hear something. She turned around in confusion. Her eyes looked behind her, but she didn’t seem to see Gao Ming. They were soon consumed by the shadow. Gao Ming held Zhu Suisui’s arm and stood in the middle of the corridor. When they turned around, Wan Qiu was already gone. In his place was a broken talisman. Back then, Uncle Wu gave Gao Ming three talismans. Gao Ming, Zhu Suisui and Wan Qiu each had one. Three teammates had already disappeared. They seemed to have gone a different place from Gao Ming.

“What’s happening?” Zhu Suisui held her axe. She had not expected this. In less than 3 minutes, her teammates were almost all gone.

“We can’t back out now.” Gao Ming comforted her. “Keep moving forward. Don’t be scared.”

Two large red lanterns hung in the fifth-floor corridor of Building B. It was decorated with the calligraphy for a wedding. The faded red light chased away the shadows. The place didn’t feel less scary.

“This… appears to be Building B from years ago.” Gao Ming came there in the morning. The place was dirty, and the walls were cracked. But at this moment, the walls were white, and the corridors were clean.

“The building uses voice-activated lights from twenty years ago. The doors aren’t rusted either.” The old elevator that had broken down in real life was activated. The creaking echoed down the corridor. The steel grille was pulled open, and a fat lady with a big stomach waddled out. She carried a basket of rotten vegetables in her left hand and tattered cloth in her right.

“Auntie Pang?” Gao Ming recognised the woman easily. He met her at the noodle shop that morning and even went to her home. However, compared to the morning, this auntie’s stomach was much larger. She carried the stuff with difficulty. When she saw Gao Ming and Zhu Suisui, she waved at them with a smile. “Are you two planning to move here too?”

The large body moved forward. Smelly water oozed out of her stomach.

“Be careful.” Zhu Suisui didn’t dare to look at the fat lady. She held her axe tightly.

“Just act normal.” Gao Ming whispered and then walked over. Gao Ming held the talisman in his palm. Even when he was right before Auntie Pang, the talisman didn’t do anything, “How about I help you with the groceries? Are the kids still at home?”

“If I had known how troublesome kids were, I wouldn’t have given birth. It’s hard on all of us.” The flesh on the auntie’s neck was squished together. With each of her steps, water would leak out of her stomach. “Do you want to come in for a sit?”

“Okay. We plan to look at some houses.”

“Listen to me. It’s worth it to purchase haunted houses.” Auntie Pang handed the basket of rotten vegetables to Gao Ming. They walked from Building B to Building A. This was where Auntie Pang lived. Auntie Pang opened the bloodred front door and was about to squeeze in when her neighbour opened the door. Zhu Suisui looked over and almost screamed.

A woman about 40 poked her head out. She wore a patterned dress and maintained a good figure. However, her face had no eyes and nose, only four mouths. “Every day, you go around persuading people to buy haunted houses. Karma will get you.” The woman didn’t seem to realise how strange she looked. She kept on yapping, “If you go into her house, you won’t be able to leave. This old hag has a stomachful of evil ideas. Be careful!”

“Busybody! Say something else, and I’ll tear your mouth off!” Auntie Pang said angrily.

“I only told the truth!” Auntie Busybody wasn’t scared. “Also, you keep going around collecting people’s old clothes. Is your eldest son changing skin again?”

Auntie Pang carried a bag of old clothes. How was that related to skin?

At that moment, a thin and sallow arm reached out from inside the house.

“It seems like your son can’t wait anymore.” Auntie Busybody’s four mouths cackled. Auntie Pang stopped arguing and rushed into her house. Soon, the sound of children crying and clothes tearing came from inside the house.

“You are lucky to have run into me.” Auntie Busybody hugged her arms. “If you want to stay here forever, then find any unit you like. If you still want to leave, don’t go into any room.”

“Not one room?”

“An old granny on the first floor might be able to help you, but you need to be careful of the building manager.” Auntie Busybody’s lips curved. “One more thing. Don’t tell anyone I’ve told you anything. I’m a tight-lipped person.”