National Guardian's Gone and We're Done

The night was like a vast black curtain,

completely shrouding the entire construction site.

The lights around the site’s perimeter flickered with all their might,

trying to drive away the endless darkness, but they still seemed powerless.

On this seemingly ordinary yet ominous patch of open ground,

a bloodcurdling scream suddenly tore through the silence of the night like a sharp dagger.

It pierced the night’s tranquility,

the sound long and shrill,

as if its owner were struggling in agony, their throat squeezed tight by some evil force.

It lingered and echoed in the air, making every hair on one’s body stand on end.

Zheng Bolan and Zheng Xuezhen, who were already on edge like startled birds,

jolted at the sudden scream as if they had been struck by an electric current.

Their faces instantly turned deathly pale, completely drained of color,

and their bodies began to shiver uncontrollably, as if they had been plunged into a freezing cellar.

In almost the same instant,

their gazes snapped toward the source of the sound like frightened fawns,

their eyes filled with terror and alarm,

as if a ferocious, man-eating beast lurked in that dark corner.

Zheng Qifeng and Xiang Xiufang’s faces also paled in fright at the scream.

Their normally composed expressions were now twisted into grimaces.

A flash of panic crossed their eyes,

but years of experience allowed them to quickly regain their composure after the initial shock.

Zheng Qifeng’s sharp gaze swept over the area.

He then led several burly-looking workers

and strode toward the source of the sound. Their steps were hurried and frantic,

each one laced with tension and unease.

Chu He and Xia Chengli followed unhurriedly from behind.

Chu He’s expression was as calm as still water, his deep eyes revealing a profound composure, as if nothing in the world could stir a ripple in his heart.

Xia Chengli moved with a light, graceful gait,

his eyes holding a quiet confidence, as if he were already fully prepared for whatever unknown situation they were about to face.

Meanwhile, Zheng Bolan and Zheng Xuezhen were like two terrified little quails,

sticking close behind Chu He and Xia Chengli, not daring to stray a single step.

To them, the two men were their only safe harbor in this Dark World.

Zheng Bolan and Zheng Xuezhen’s eyes darted about like searchlights,

constantly scanning their surroundings with paranoid expressions.

Every subtle movement and every swaying shadow sent their hearts racing,

terrified that something horrible would lunge from the darkness at any second and mercilessly claim their lives.

The group broke into a jog and, moments later, arrived at the source of the scream.

There, a middle-aged man in a yellow hard hat

and a reflective work vest lay on the hard, cold ground,

his body convulsing violently, as if being manipulated by an invisible force.

Wretched screams poured ceaselessly from his mouth,

sounding like the wails of a demon from the depths of Hell, enough to make one’s scalp tingle and a chill creep into their heart.

His eyes were bloodshot and vacant, fixed on the sky

as if he were seeing something unimaginably terrifying in the endless darkness.

His gaze was filled with terror and despair,

his very soul seized by the horrific vision.

His limbs flailed wildly, as if controlled by a malevolent spirit,

creating a terrifying and grotesque sight that sent shivers down the spine.

A crowd of workers had gathered around, their faces filled with utter terror.

They had instinctively backed away,

keeping a safe distance from the convulsing man, as if he were carrying some deadly plague.

Nearby construction vehicles had also ground to a halt.

The once-bustling construction site fell eerily silent,

so quiet that the only sound was the man’s wretched screams echoing through the air.

It was as if the whole world had frozen in the face of this sudden horror.

"Hou Yuguai, what’s going on?"

Zheng Qifeng approached cautiously,

wanting to get a closer look at the man’s condition, but he hesitated.

In the end, he didn’t dare to touch the man directly.

He just stood to the side and called out, his voice laced with anxiety.

"We really don’t know!"

A worker quickly replied, his voice trembling so badly he sounded on the verge of tears. "A moment ago, we were all working hard in this area. Everything was fine.

But then, out of nowhere, Hou Yuguai suddenly stopped what he was doing.

He looked panicked and said something—someone—was watching him.

Then he started screaming in terror that it was a ghost.

At first, we all thought he was joking and didn’t pay him any mind. We just kept working.

But he got more and more frantic, running around us,

muttering over and over, ’There’s a ghost, there’s really a ghost.’

Then, he just fell flat on his back, and... well, he ended up like this."

"Could it be an epileptic seizure?"

A site supervisor walked over, frowning.

Looking at the convulsing man on the ground, he spoke with a worried expression.

Zheng Qifeng’s brow furrowed deeply,

a profound sense of worry and unease in his eyes.

He couldn’t help but recall what his son had just said.