Train Survival: Can I get a treasure chest by touching my goddess?

people.

living people.

Shen Wen didn't sheath his knife, and asked coldly, "Who are you?"

"My name is Wang Erniu!" The man knelt on the ground, afraid to move, his voice trembling violently. "I was ordered by Mayor Jiang to wait at the town entrance for you gentlemen!"

Shen Wen frowned.

Town mayor?

Wait?

He looked at Su Qingxuan, who raised an eyebrow slightly.

There are actually living people on this platform, and there's even a storyline involved?

Shen Wen quickly went through it in his mind.

The previous two stations, the armory only had monsters and supplies, and the abandoned hospital only had polluters and supplies.

Upon arriving at this ghostly town, a living person suddenly appeared, saying something like "waiting on the orders of the town mayor."

He glanced at the time.

[Distance until end of stop: 03:55:00 (Stop delay in effect...)]

Four hours.

Is it enough?

Su Qingxuan had already spoken, her voice steady and flawless: "We are the Exorcists. Now take us to see Mayor Jiang, and explain the situation along the way."

Wang Erniu, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon, kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "Yes, yes, yes! Please come with me, sir!"

He got up, turned around and walked towards the town, his steps unsteady, but he dared not slow down.

Shen Wen sheathed his sword and gave the three of them a wink.

Su Mu gripped his spear tightly, Jiang Youchu raised her rifle, and Su Qingxuan slightly raised the muzzle of his submachine gun.

The four followed Wang Erniu into Ghost Town.

The bluestone path was wet from the rain, reflecting a faint light. The windows of the houses on both sides were dark, like empty eye sockets.

Occasionally, a gust of wind would pass through the alley, making a whistling sound, like someone was crying.

As Wang Erniu walked, he spoke rapidly, his voice trembling: "Gentlemen, our town has been bewitched!"

Two weeks ago, the town started to be haunted. First, it was Old Li's family at the east end. They heard crying in the middle of the night, and the next day all seven members of the family were dead. Their deaths were gruesome...

He swallowed hard. "Later, there were more and more ghosts. They would come out at night, wander the streets, and kill anyone they saw."

The town mayor organized able-bodied men to keep watch for three days, during which more than twenty people died.

"After that, no one dared to go out. Every household nailed their doors and windows shut and hid inside, waiting to die."

Five days ago, the town mayor said he was going to the prefectural city to ask for help and sent someone out on horseback. Yesterday, that person returned and said that the prefectural city had sent the Exorcist Guard, who would arrive today.

The town mayor told me to wait at the town entrance, and I've been waiting since this morning...

He turned around, his face beaming with relief: "I almost thought you weren't coming! If I had waited any longer, I would have frozen to death here!"

Shen Wen didn't reply, his gaze sweeping over his surroundings.

The butcher instinctively didn't call the police, thinking there was no immediate danger nearby.

But through those dark windows, he vaguely sensed that something was watching them.

It wasn't eyes, but a colder, more chilling gaze that sent shivers down your spine.

Su Qingxuan asked, "What exactly is the situation? What do the ghosts look like? How many are there? Do they come out during the day?"

Wang Erniu shook his head: "I don't know either... I've never seen a ghost, I've only heard people talk about them."

Some say it's a woman in white, some say a headless ghost, and others say a child ghost. Anyway, it comes out at night, and nobody dares to go out after dark.

"What about during the day?" Su Mu asked.

"Nothing's happening during the day," Wang Erniu said, "but nobody dares to go out. Who knows if ghosts come out during the day? What if we run into one?"

Shen Wen frowned.

In other words, all the information about ghosts is hearsay; no living person who has actually seen one can give a clear account.

The four followed Wang Erniu through two streets and arrived at a slightly larger house.

The courtyard gate was tightly closed, and the door panel was covered with densely packed yellow paper talismans, which had become a mess after being soaked by the rain.

Wang Erniu went up and knocked on the door, but the knock came back three times.

The door opened a crack.

A cloudy eye peered out from the crack, saw Wang Erniu, and then saw Shen Wen and the other three behind him. The eye lit up for a moment.

The door was pulled open.

A middle-aged man in his fifties stood at the door, wearing a long gown, with a haggard face, dark circles under his eyes, and chapped lips.

"My lords!" he bowed respectfully, his voice hoarse. "I am Jiang Deren, the town mayor. You have traveled a long way; please come in!"

Shen Wen stepped over the threshold and glanced around the courtyard.

It was an ordinary little courtyard with a main house, side rooms, and a woodshed. In the center of the courtyard stood a large vat containing lotus flowers, which had withered, leaving only bare stems.

The main door was also covered with talismans, even more so than the courtyard gate.

Mayor Jiang welcomed the four people into the main house, closed the door, and bolted it shut before finally letting out a sigh of relief.

The room was dimly lit by an oil lamp. Tables and chairs were crammed together, and bedding and food were piled in the corner, suggesting that someone lived there.

"Please forgive me, gentlemen," Mayor Jiang said with a wry smile. "The town is haunted, so I dare not go home. I moved here and squeezed in with a few able-bodied men. More people around gives me courage."

Shen Wen didn't sit down, but stood at the door, still holding the knife in his hand: "Tell me about ghosts."

Mayor Jiang sighed and began to speak.

That's pretty much what Wang Erniu said.

The haunting started about two weeks ago, with sporadic occurrences at first, but then becoming more and more frequent.

They would come out at night, roam the streets, and kill anyone they saw.

More than a hundred townspeople died, and the rest hid at home, too afraid to go out.

"Gentlemen," Mayor Jiang said, his eyes reddening, "the town is almost finished. If you hadn't come, there would be no one left in this town in a few days."

Su Qingxuan asked, "How many ghosts are there?"

"I don't know," Mayor Jiang shook his head. "Nobody dares to count."

"What does it look like?"

"I don't know," Mayor Jiang shook his head again. "Everyone who saw them is dead."

Shen Wen frowned.

Ask three questions.

This person is of no use other than providing some background information.

Mayor Jiang noticed their dissatisfaction and quickly said, "Sir, I don't know much. But I have someone record the location and time of the ghost's appearance; it's all in this notebook."

He took out an account book from his pocket, opened it, and handed it to Shen Wen.

Shen Wen took it and glanced at it.

The map above is a crooked, simple drawing of the town, with the date, time, and location marked.

Three creatures appeared at Old Li's house at the east end in the middle of the night;

Two appeared at Wang's General Store on West Street at 9 PM;

At midnight, five creatures appeared at the Zhenbei Earth God Temple...

The records are fragmented, but patterns can be observed.

The ghosts are mainly concentrated in the east and north of the town, with relatively fewer in the west and south.

They all appear after dark, the earliest being the end of the You hour (5-7 PM) and the latest being the beginning of the Yin hour (3-5 AM).

Shen Wen handed the account book to Su Qingxuan and looked at Mayor Jiang: "How much longer until it gets dark?"

Mayor Jiang was stunned for a moment, then realized what was happening, quickly walked to the door, and opened it a crack to look outside.

"There's one more hour." He closed the door. "It will be dark in an hour."

Shen Wen glanced at the time.

[Distance until end of stop: 03:40:00 (Stop delay in effect...)]

One shichen is two hours.

There are three and a half hours left for the stop.

In other words, they have one hour and forty minutes to solve the problem after dark.

Shen Wen looked at Su Qingxuan.

Su Qingxuan understood his meaning and nodded slightly.

The ghost town after dark is the real ghost town.

Those ghosts will appear before them.

Shen Wen gripped the hilt of the knife tightly, the cold light on the blade flickering slightly under the oil lamp.

The butcher instinctively didn't call the police, but he could sense that those things were already watching them.

The vicissitudes of life speak volumes about the righteous path in the world: Read this book!