Dao Qi Wu Zang Guan Guan: I became a Daoist Master in the 1990s

Chapter 84 Morgue

midnight.

Chongqing People's Hospital.

The stark white light tubes hung from the ceiling, the light crashing down, blindingly bright and glaring.

The corridor was narrow and long, with walls painted a stark white that shimmered with a bluish-gray hue under the light, as if it had been frozen for too long and had lost its color.

The air was still, filled with the smell of disinfectant and an indescribable, cool, damp air rising from deep underground, mixed with a faint smell of rubber gloves.

The light bulb hummed softly, the only living thing in this deathly silence.

Deep in the corridor, the sound of wheels rolling over the concrete floor came from the back of the corridor—the clattering of an old-fashioned cart.

Each strike, echoing in the empty space, was both exceptionally loud and exceptionally dull.

Two men pushed the cart over.

They were all wearing dark blue coarse cloth work clothes, which had become stiff from washing.

One was taller, with a slightly hunched back; the other was short and stocky, with heavy steps.

Above the iron gate at the end of the corridor, a square electronic clock glowed faintly green, and the numbers jumped to 23:58.

"Sigh, this whole thing with Xiao Zhao is just...so sudden!"

Pushing the cart to the left, Fatty Wang smacked his lips, his voice ringing out clearly in the empty corridor, carrying a heavy Sichuan accent.

"You little bastard, you were only in your early twenties and were always so lively. Who knew you'd just disappear like that?"

Heart disease? What a load of rubbish! I've been working with him for over a year, and I haven't even heard him breathe loudly once. There hasn't been a single warning sign!"

Li Magan, the tall, thin man pushing the cart on the right, shrank back upon hearing this.

"Exactly, exactly, it's such a tragedy. The head nurse said his parents are still on the train and won't arrive until tomorrow morning... Sigh, he hadn't even had a girlfriend, his life had just begun... and just like that... he's gone."

He sighed, his voice muffled.

The wheel rolled over a dented paving stone and lurched violently.

Fatty Wang steadied the car, muttered "damned road" under his breath, and continued what he had just said, lowering his voice and speaking mysteriously, "Hey, Old Li, do you know what's really strange about the days before Little Wang died!"

"What's so weird?" Li Magan subconsciously slowed his pace and turned his head to the side.

"He said he's been having nightmares every time he goes to sleep for several days in a row!"

Fatty Wang's eyes widened slightly, the light from the incandescent bulb illuminating his face. "In my dream, I was lying in bed, clearly awake, but I couldn't move. You know what sleep paralysis is, right? And then... I heard footsteps!"

"Footsteps?" Li Magan felt a chill on the back of his neck.

"Hmm! Footsteps!" Fatty Wang nodded vigorously. "They came from afar, slowly but surely, heading straight for his bed!"

He said that on the first day, the sound was still outside the door; on the second day, it entered the living room; and on the third day… on the third day, the sound stopped by the bed!

"He said he woke up in a cold sweat, terrified, and said he must have been targeted by some unclean thing! And then, a few days later... he really died! Isn't that weird?"

"Hiss..." Li Magan gasped, a chill running from the soles of his feet to his head. He felt as if something was really watching from the darkness at the end of the corridor, where the light couldn't reach.

He shook his head violently, as if trying to shake off the ominous thought, his voice tinged with annoyance and feigned composure: "Don't talk nonsense! Fatty Wang! In our line of work, we have to watch what we say! Ghosts and gods, that's just feudal superstition!"

"Xiao Wang, that's...that's because of too much work pressure! He's so young, but the burden is heavy!"

He paused, as if trying to find a reason for himself, or as if trying to persuade Fatty Wang, and then spoke faster: "Have you forgotten? That car accident last month, a newlywed couple who had just gotten their marriage certificate, were driving at night when they were hit by a truck... The scene, tsk tsk, their heads were all... sigh!"

How long has Xiao Wang been here? Where has he ever seen a scene like this before?

You must have been terrified; your heart was constantly on edge, the mental stress was too much! Having nightmares is perfectly normal! What kind of ghost is watching you? Don't scare yourself!

“Yeah, that’s true…” Fatty Wang seemed convinced, but his eyes were still a little unfocused.

Just then, the wheel slammed into a raised paving stone!
"Bang!"

The violent jolting caused the white sheet on the vehicle to slip violently!
A pale, stiff, bloodless arm suddenly slid out from under the white cloth!

The arm hung straight down by the car edge, its bluish-purple fingernails particularly glaring under the harsh white light!

"Oh my mom!"

Wang Pangzi was so startled that he loosened his grip and almost pushed the car off course. His heart was pounding and his scalp was tingling with fear.

"Hahaha! You silly boy!" Li Magan, who was standing next to him, was also startled by the arm that suddenly slipped out, but when he saw Wang Pangzi's face turn pale with fright, he couldn't help but burst into laughter. The previous fear was greatly relieved by this comical scene.

"Who was just saying I'm feudal and superstitious? They're cowardly as a mouse!"

"One arm scared you this much?"

"Damn! You scared the hell out of me!"

Enraged, Fatty Wang's face flushed red. He cursed and swore as he quickly and roughly shoved the cold, stiff arm back under the white sheet, his actions tinged with venting his anger. "Damn it! What a mess these floor tiles are in!"

Are the logistics department staff just sitting around doing nothing? Don't they even know how to fix it?!

He wrapped the white cloth tightly around himself, as if that would shut out the cold aura of death.

The two pushed the cart and finally reached the morgue entrance at the end of the corridor.

The heavy iron door was pushed open, and a stronger, more intense chill, mixed with formaldehyde and the cold air from the freezer, rushed out.

Li Magan fumbled for the switch on the wall.

"Clap."

The fluorescent light tubes overhead flickered a few times, emitting a buzzing electrical noise, and the pale light flickered and dimmed, illuminating the room filled with large silver drawer freezers very unstablely.

Under the light, the metal surface of the freezer reflects cold, fragmented spots of light.

"Damn it! This broken light!" Fatty Wang cursed, his voice sounding particularly jarring in the empty, cold morgue. "I'll tear it down someday!"

"Alright, alright, hurry up and finish this and let's go!" Li Magan frowned, clearly dissatisfied with the faulty light.

The two men worked together to lift the body from the hearse and stuff it into an empty freezer drawer.

The metal drawer slides made a grating creaking sound, particularly eerie in the silence. The drawer door closed with a soft click as the latch clicked shut.

"Done!" Fatty Wang clapped his hands, breathed a sigh of relief, and turned to leave.

at this time!

The fluorescent light overhead, which had a faulty connection, suddenly started flickering violently again!

The light flickered and danced wildly.

At the very moment when the lights were at their brightest!

Out of the corner of Li Magan's eye, he seemed to catch a glimpse of the innermost corner of the morgue, a corner almost completely dark.

It looks like there's a figure standing there!
It looks like a woman's figure!

It stood there, straight and silent, in the shadows!
(End of this chapter)