Chapter 83: The Prank He only came to entice the other to make a small mistake, not to get himself tangled up in it.

“…Since we’ve been sent here, and the number of patients is balanced, there must be something we can do, right? I mean, didn’t that nun say something? In the past, there have been doctors who could free patients from their strange illnesses. Though rare, they weren’t nonexistent.”

After You Huo and Qin Jiu left, the examinees did not remain idle.

They attempted to gather more information from the patients or find additional clues inside the church.

Gao Qi and Zhao Jiatong became the leaders of the group.

“Since the patients are all in this state, the so-called ‘curing’ definitely isn’t what it literally means,” Gao Qi said, carefully examining the carvings at the base of the stone pillars. “Everyone, keep searching. If you discover anything, try to share it as much as possible.”

Zhao Jiatong added, “First, look for anything related to the patients. After all, they’re the key to the current question, even though they themselves have already…”

She wanted to say “become neither human nor ghost,” but in the end, compassion got the better of her, and she changed her words to, “They’ve already forgotten everything, but there’s always some trace left behind. Maybe clues are hidden in them.”

“Makes sense.”

“Let’s go, split up and search.”

The examinees echoed in agreement, dispersing to every corner of the church.

To Gao Qi and Zhao Jiatong’s surprise, some examinees they didn’t know at all asked them, “What about those two? Are we just letting them go out like that? Won’t something happen?”

People are always like this—in dangerous environments, they’d rather retreat into safe areas. They’d already familiarized themselves with the church interior, which felt far safer than unknown territories.

In their view, even though those two were incredibly capable, going outside was still fraught with danger.

Gao Qi thought, with the first-generation Head Examiner and the second-generation Head Examiner teaming up, what is there to be afraid of?

However, he remained modest and reassured them, saying, “Those two are very steady. They have a good sense of what they’re doing. If they really run into any trouble, they’ll be the first to come back and ask for help.”

After the examinees left, Zhao Jiatong suddenly let out a sigh.

Gao Qi: “What’s the matter?”

“It’s quite surprising.”

“What’s surprising?”

“The exams have grown more and more cunning over the past two years, to the point of being unreasonable.” Zhao Jiatong said, “More often than not, they seem determined to keep everyone trapped here. Under these circumstances, you’d expect the examinees to become more callous, more… animalistic.”

Selfishness is the mildest change of all.

There are people who harbor malice just to survive.

She never expected that the examinees she encountered would unite against a common enemy, be willing to share information, and worry about a barely familiar companion.

Gao Qi thought for a moment and said, “Because it hasn’t reached that point yet. At least not in this exam.”

“That’s true.”

Gao Qi ran his hand over the stone pillar and after a moment added, “Actually, that makes me suddenly understand why A is always so unconventional.”

Zhao Jiatong was taken aback. “Why?”

“I just feel that with his personality, he wouldn’t necessarily need to stand out in everything. He may be proud, and there might be a touch of madness in him that I never noticed before, but it shouldn’t be to this extent.”

Zhao Jiatong nodded in agreement. “Yes, to be honest, I’m quite surprised. I almost thought it was because he was influenced by 001.”

Gao Qi said, “Maybe he just wanted to make the exam seem less terrifying? Even a bit childish, like a joke. To make the examinees in the same session feel that it’s not necessary to abandon their humanity to fight.”

Zhao Jiatong fell into thoughtful silence.

Gao Qi paused for a moment before adding with a complicated expression, “So when Candidate 001 was a participant, his lawless behavior might have stemmed from the same mindset?”

If that were truly the case, he could understand why those two had grown so close now.

Suddenly, not far away, Zhou Qi’s voice came through: “Brother Qi, Sister Tong, come take a look.”

They looked up.

She and Yang Shu were crouching by a toppled stretcher bed.

Yang Shu pointed under the bed and said, “There’s blood writing.”

Everyone gathered around at the words, and beneath the bed, they saw a patch of crooked handwriting.

From these marks, one could imagine that some patient had once hidden under the bed, using fingers so injured they were bleeding, to leave this passage behind—back when their consciousness was still clear.

Both the nun and the duke are devils, they’re madmen! They harmed me…

……

* * *

Behind the back door of the church was a dilapidated garden.

On both sides were long corridors; passing through them led to a pointed-roof cottage.

As You Huo and Qin Jiu swept through the area, they found no trace of the nun or Patient No. 26, but the door to the pointed-roof cottage was slightly ajar, leaving a narrow gap.

Exchanging a glance, the two silently slipped inside.

This place hasn’t been inhabited for quite some time, with a thick layer of dust covering every corner.

The mirror, candlesticks, and furniture were all veiled in milky spiderwebs, emitting a faint musty smell.

Qin Jiu brushed away the dust before him, covering his nose as he glanced around.

You Huo looked disgusted and coughed lightly a couple of times.

He used his fingertips to open drawers and wooden boxes, rummaging for a moment before an old book suddenly caught his eye.

All the books in the room were either placed on the bookshelf or stored in wooden boxes. Only that one lay on the mantel of the fireplace, its corners jagged and uneven—clearly torn at some point.

He opened the book and flipped through a few pages.

“Found anything?” Qin Jiu approached and asked quietly.

“A book on witch doctors.” You Huo pointed to the faded signature on the title page. “Belonged to the priest, stained with blood and missing pages.”

Coincidentally, the missing pages, judging from the preceding content, were precisely about a certain kind of resurrection witchcraft.

The book stated that this was an extremely evil form of witchcraft, requiring a flesh and blood sacrifice for resurrection—an exceptionally brutal process.

The content came to an abrupt halt here in the preface; the following dozen or so pages were destroyed, showing signs of tearing and scorching.

This is quite evident——

Since they arrived here, they have seen no trace of the priest. He is likely either dead or among the 26 patients.

…Perhaps it is this missing person.

The only person in charge here is the nun, yet there is no trace of her living anywhere in the entire church.

Either she lived elsewhere in the town, or she wasn’t quite normal.

Suddenly, a wail shattered the silence of the small hut.

The voice was muffled and dull..

Qin Jiu listened intently for a moment, then quietly pointed at the floor and said, “It’s underneath.”

The sound was coming from somewhere below ground; there must be a basement hidden here.

They found the trapdoor beneath the desk. To avoid hindering themselves, they took off their formal coats and hung them on the edge of the bed—the only spot without cobwebs.

The silk shirt and long boots were still far from ideal for a fight, but at least they were no longer as restrictive.

Beneath the trapdoor lay a long flight of stone steps, damp and dark.

At the end were several narrow alleyways.

A draft, blowing from an unknown source deep underground, made the flames on the stone walls flicker faintly.

They could faintly hear a woman’s hoarse whispers, drifting through the twists and turns of the narrow alleys, sometimes close, sometimes distant—creating an atmosphere perfect for haunting.

The alleyway was piled with heaps of white bones.

It is said that beneath some ancient castles in Europe, there are similar alleys piled with the dead from the Black Death.

You Huo furrowed his brow, gestured to Qin Jiu, and followed the sound deeper into the passage.

Hidden deeper within were a few rooms, secured with iron bars—likely dungeons.

The first room was covered in moldy straw, with several animals sprawled in the pile. Their bodies were faintly moving, indicating they were still alive, but not far from death.

You Huo leaned in for a look and mouthed to Qin Jiu, “Two pigs, four goats, one snake.”

Qin Jiu: “Keeping pets underground, quite a unique taste.”

You Huo: “…The smell is even more unique.”

His expression tightened as he held his breath.

The nun’s voice came from right ahead, separated only by the rough stone wall of a single cell.

She lowered her voice, speaking hoarsely, “Only five more, just five more sacrifices. Why are you always thinking of escaping?”

Another voice whimpered, trembling.

“Look at how obedient the other patients are. Only you… Do you know what you’ve become?” the nun asked softly.

The whimpering stopped, replaced by a shuddering voice. “I know… I know. The book says it clearly. Using that kind of dark art demands a price of flesh and blood, and you’ve shifted all the cost onto us… I should… I should be… not quite human anymore.”

“It’s a bit surprising that you remember so much.” The nun giggled and said, “However, it’s not that they’re not quite human—they simply can’t be called human at all. Do you know what happens when the sunlight outside shines on you? When it shines on your hand, your hand becomes a skeleton. When it shines on your face, your face becomes a skull. It’s midsummer now. If you were to walk out and stand completely in the sun, how many townspeople would you drive mad?”

“That should be yours to bear,” the voice sobbed. “You, and the Duke, this is the curse you deserve.”

The nun said, “Yes, thank you for the help from you kind-hearted folks, allowing us to avoid such torment. How about this…”

A faint rustling sound echoed in the dungeon, like the swish of a wide skirt brushing against the stone floor.

“I will grant you release early, so you won’t wander about any longer. Besides, your mental strength is surprisingly formidable—remarkable… truly remarkable. How did I overlook this before?” said the nun. “It’s perfect; I’ve grown tired of this woman’s identity. I want to switch back to a man.”

“Please, no… don’t light the candle… I beg you, don’t light the candle.” The wretch stammered incoherently, “You can’t. I’m rotten, already rotten, devoid of flesh and blood. Changing will be pointless.”

The nun replied, “It seems you stole the book but never studied it closely. Your transformation to bones under the sunlight is the curse’s doing. If I find a body to replace yours, you won’t have to remain so wretched. Isn’t that splendid? Lend me your body, and I’ll transfer the curse to this nun. She will take your place in the sickbed—how does that sound?”

“No… no! You’ll cut me, slice me to pieces—I’ve seen the Duke do it!”

“I won’t, I promise.” The nun continued persuading, with an unexpectedly patient and encouraging tone: “The Duke just used the wrong method at the beginning, causing him to frequently replace bodies in a piecemeal fashion. However, that’s only because he’s too particular. Once he finds a body that’s sufficiently perfect and powerful, I think… he’ll try not to make it look so… unpleasant.”

The missing “patient” was still weeping softly, repeating, “No, please,” but the nun paid him no mind.

You Huo and Qin Jiu stealthily approached, quietly leaning against the wall and taking a glance.

Inside the dungeon, they saw the nun with disheveled hair, placing candles around a bloodied figure, forming a complete circle.

Suddenly, the candle flames flickered, turning a deep crimson, eerie and terrifying.

The nun gently stroked the top of the bloodied figure’s head, bent down, closed her eyes, and murmured a few low words.

The moment the candle flame flickered wildly, You Huo bent his finger at Qin Jiu, giving a hand signal.

Kidnapping?

Together.

* * *

While those two gentlemen stormed into the dungeon without any hesitation, a tall, slender figure slipped through a side door of the church and vanished into the dusty little house.

No one else, but the Duke’s steward, Douglas.

With a pallid face, he gave a soft cough, his gaze falling upon the ceremonial attire beside the bed.

“Ah… caught in the act.” Douglas murmured quietly. “Not wearing the ceremonial attire during the day—a small mistake that displeases His Lordship somewhat.”

However, it appears those two gentlemen have strayed into the dungeon by mistake.

If the witch doctor gets there first, things will be a bit rough…

Tsk, poor guys.

Douglas muttered to himself.

Familiar with the route, he found the trapdoor and descended the stone stairs into the dungeon, hoping to rescue the two gentlemen before the witch doctor made his move.

Douglas quickened his pace involuntarily upon hearing a commotion while crossing the long alley.

He expected to see this: two gentlemen tied up, kneeling pitifully in the dungeon trembling and begging for mercy, a witch doctor temporarily inhabiting a nun’s form standing amidst candles with hands placed on their heads, smiling as she awaited them to offer their bodies.

But when he truly stood before the iron bars and the real scene came into view, he nearly choked on his own breath.

The candles were indeed there.

Everyone was present.

But the positions were reversed…

Kneeling in the circle was the witch doctor, pinned down by the two gentlemen.

In a nearby corner lay an unconscious, bloodied patient—the former priest.

Inside the circle of candles, apart from the witch doctor, there also lay a pig.

One of the two gentlemen was using his knee to press against the witch doctor’s back, while the other held the witch doctor’s hand and placed it on the pig’s head.

The witch doctor was nearly losing his mind.

Douglas was also about to go mad.

What’s terrifying is that the two gentlemen heard his movement immediately and turned their heads in unison.

One of them tilted his head slightly, smiling as he said, “How convenient, here comes another one.”

The other replied, “Then I’ll go catch one more.”

Catch one more of what?

The butler didn’t want to know……

He had only come to lure the other party into making a minor mistake, not to get himself involved.

Absolutely not!