Forbidden Land – CH 040

Zhang Chao and Chen Rong grabbed their bikes and prepared to return, riding along the main road in the western district.

Along the way, Zhang Chao kept thinking about the old man from earlier, who had told them not to come at night anymore. To Chen Rong, the old man seemed perfectly normal, so why did he feel something was off?

Remembering Lin Yi’ang’s scolding, he realized he’d been acting strangely lately. Everyone else was living their lives perfectly well, yet he kept thinking about bizarre things.

Was he just delirious, indulging in wild fantasies, or were all his observations real?

Reality and illusion, which used to seem so distinct, were becoming increasingly blurred.

Suddenly, Zhang Chao slammed on the brakes, coming to a stop.

Chen Rong rode two meters before stopping, asking curiously, “What’s wrong now?”

Zhang Chao didn’t answer, simply staring silently at the grass on the west side of the road.

They were currently standing just outside the School of Medicine. The main road in the west district led all the way here. To the west of the road was a grassy area several tens of meters wide, and beyond that, the vast, seemingly endless marshland.

Zhang Chao pointed to the grassy area to the west and whispered, “Look.”

Chen Rong stepped back to his side, followed his finger, looked for a moment, and asked blankly, “What are you looking at?”

Zhang Chao whispered, “It’s still there. Stop the bike slowly; don’t disturb it.” With that, he slowly dismounted his bicycle, quietly parked it by the roadside, and walked two or three meters onto the grass.

Chen Rong followed him, parked her bike, and came to his side, asking curiously, “What did you say is still there?”

Zhang Chao pointed to a small river in the distance. Although small, it was nominally the school’s protective moat, the dividing line between the school and the marshland. It was no more than five meters wide and one or two meters deep. Zhang Chao said, “Did you see that? Under that tree by the river, next to the grass, isn’t there an animal?”

This time, Chen Rong followed his gesture and looked. On the school side of the river, there was a crooked old tree, and under it grew a clump of weeds, at least half a meter high. Standing in the weeds was a dark, log-like object. Chen Rong said, “Is that a piece of wood?”

Zhang Chao shook his head firmly, saying, “No, it’s an animal. I saw it last time. I can clearly see its eyes are looking at me.”

“Ah?” Chen Rong seemed a little worried. Looking at the log again, in the light, it did seem to have two eyes. But its entire head and body were dark and blurred together, making it difficult to see clearly.

Chen Rong seemed a little scared, saying, “I’ve seen snakes and rabbits in Zijingang before, and I’ve heard people have seen wild boars. That… must be a wild boar, right? Let’s go back quickly.”

Zhang Chao shook his head firmly, saying, “You don’t need to go over there. I’ll go take a look; I’ve definitely seen this animal before.” With that, he mustered his courage and walked towards it step by step.

The animal was about 30 meters away, its body and head still motionless, its eyes, reflecting a faint light, still locked on Zhang Chao.

Zhang Chao moved forward step by step, and Chen Rong, behind him, grew further and further away. When the animal was only about 20 meters away, he could vaguely see that its head was covered in black fur. He quietly bent down, then suddenly took a step, about to rush towards it.

He had only run three or four steps when suddenly, a figure appeared in front of him. Zhang Chao was startled and instinctively jumped back, falling to the ground. Looking up, he saw that the person in front of him was Chen Rong.

Zhang Chao let out a long sigh and said, “How did you get in front of me so quietly? What are you doing?”

“I did not!” Chen Rong said. “I’ve been standing perfectly still the whole time; I haven’t moved an inch.”

Zhang Chao looked and was immediately chilled to the bone. Chen Rong was still standing on the grass beside the bicycle; she hadn’t moved ahead of him at all. And the place he was now lying in was where he had just stepped into the grass.

Chen Rong said, “Weren’t you going to go over there? Why were you circling around me?”

“What!” Zhang Chao exclaimed in shock, “I was just circling around you?”

Chen Rong said, “Yes. You even squatted down, like a pervert, pshaw.”

Zhang Chao’s face changed drastically: “I clearly walked towards that thing. How… how… impossible! Is this… is this what they call being trapped in a ghost wall?”

“Being trapped in a ghost wall?” Chen Rong looked at him and shook her head. “I don’t know what’s wrong with you. Anyway, I’ve lived in the countryside for so many years, and I’ve never encountered anything like being trapped in a ghost wall myself.”

Zhang Chao looked up at the riverbank. The animal was still there, motionless, its eyes still open, seemingly still watching him.

Zhang Chao took a deep breath and said, “I refuse to believe it!” He stood up and walked towards the creature again.

This time, however, he was running, his pace very fast.

But Chen Rong, seeing his movements, instantly had a panicked look on her face. Zhang Chao said he was going to chase the animal, but he was heading diagonally to the other side.

Seeing him running towards the other side, only ten meters or so from the river, Chen Rong shouted, “Zhang Chao, come back! Come back! It’s dangerous!”

Zhang Chao turned around and saw Chen Rong calling him. He only replied, “It’s okay, I need to see clearly what this thing is!”

Having said that, he turned and continued walking forward.

Suddenly, a ‘clucking’ sound came from behind Zhang Chao. Startled, he looked back and froze. He wasn’t running towards the tree at all; he was veering to the other side, about to run into the river.

He was now standing about five or six meters from the riverbank.

Zhang Chao quickly turned around and saw Chen Rong still standing there. He rushed back, his face filled with fear and unease, saying, “What…what’s going on?”

Chen Rong looked worried and said, “Didn’t you see? You kept running towards the river!”

Zhang Chao asked in surprise, “I…I kept running towards that animal.”

Chen Rong’s expression changed slightly. “I…I feel like you…it seems like you’ve really encountered a ghost wall.”

Zhang Chao said, “Then that ‘clucking’ sound just now, was that you making it?”

Chen Rong nodded and said, “My grandfather used to say that if you encounter a ‘ghost wall,’ you should crow like a rooster. He said that when the spirit hears a rooster crow, it thinks it’s dawn and will hide, and the ghost wall will disappear. I’ve never tried it, but seeing you in danger going down there, I suddenly thought of crowing like a rooster.”

Zhang Chao asked, “What exactly is this ‘ghost wall’ you’re talking about?”

Chen Rong said, “According to what we say in the countryside, some ghosts or other evil spirits use the ‘ghost wall’ method to play tricks on or deliberately harm people. Sometimes, even a very short path can take you hours to find your way out. To outsiders, you just look like you’re going around in circles. Encountering a ghost wall near a reservoir is the most dangerous; it can lure you into the water.”

Just then, they heard a soft “splash.” They looked up in that direction. The animal under the tree was gone, ripples spread across the river, and the haystacks in the marshland on the opposite bank seemed to move slightly before returning to normal.