Nightmare Assault

With everyone watching, a boat much larger than theirs slowly moved out of the mist. When they saw the boat, the four reacted differently.

This was an old awning boat. The thing that frightened them was the fact that the boat was painted from top to bottom in red. It was very eye-catching. Moving through the mist, it looked more like a coffin than a boat. This was probably the second boat meant for An Xuan and Xia Meng.

Even though it was not stated explicitly, everyone had the same thought. This bloodred boat was meant to ferry the corpse… or the bride.

An Xuan used his force to pull the two boats closer. With a deep breath, he jumped onto the red boat. The boat appeared safe. Xia Meng joined him. When they inspected the boat, they realised the boat was even older than they expected. The red was not blood but paint. Upon closer inspection, the paint was already peeling in places to reveal the wood underneath. The cabin was even leaking.

“This boat doesn’t seem like it’s used often.” An Xuan knelt before the cabin door. “It looks like a salvaged sunken ship.”

Xia Meng was silent before saying, “Now is not the time to be concerned about that. Let them get into the water first.” Time was limited. They had to find the corpse before the second drumbeat.

Fatty and Chen Qiang tied the rope around their waists. Then, they helped to check if they were secure. Staring at the black water, Fatty’s heart trembled. However, he had no choice. If he didn’t go into the water, he’d die.

Chen Qiang was scared too, but he still encouraged Fatty, “Brother, if you encounter any danger underwater, gesture at me, and I’ll rush over to help you.”

“Thank you.” Fatty nodded, “You should do the same.” Fatty had a good impression of Chen Qiang. When they picked out the costume, he let Fatty go first. If possible, Fatty did want to help him.

“Are you ready?” Xia Meng stood at the bow and urged, “Then, hurry up.”

Fatty looked around and swallowed, “Do we go down here? Is the… bride around here?” He asked, “But I remember Shi Liaozhi saying it is closer to the shore.”

“Turn back and look,” An Xuan cut up.

Fatty turned around and realised the mist had cleared slightly. They were not far from the shore. They were near the embankment made of rocks. That was what Shi Liaozhi pointed out that morning.

“After you’re down the water, we’ll communicate with the rope.” An Xuan pulled on the rope. Fatty and Chen Qiang could feel the tug clearly, “Pull once if you need to come up for air. Pull twice if you run into danger, and we’ll haul you up as soon as possible. Pull thrice if you’ve found the corpse. The water is dark. Stay closer to each other.” An Xuan added with concern, “Do not split up.”

SPLASH!

The two entered the water. Chen Qiang appeared to have diving experience. He was quite agile. Fatty was quite unfortunate because he instantly swallowed a mouthful of water. Thankfully, the lake was not as deep as they thought. Plus, it was not entirely dark. It was hard to open one’s eyes underwater, but they did it quite easily. Fatty puffed up his cheeks. His stubby arms flailed around in the water. It was a strange feeling. He hoped to touch something, but at the same time, he did not.

Chen Qiang was right behind him. This was a promise they made before they went underwater. They would try their best to watch over each other’s backs. Different from what they anticipated, the bottom of the lake was very clean. Fatty even managed to grab a handful of soft sand.

Chen Qiang had the same confusion. They both felt like… the corpse wouldn’t be there.

Soon, Fatty ran out of breath. He poked Chen Qiang behind him. They shared a look and pulled on the ropes once. Thankfully, the people on the surface got the information and started to pull. Chen Qiang was quite a good swimmer. He moved faster than Fatty. Fatty wiggled his legs and tried to move up. He eventually saw the blurry shape of the boats.

DONG!

He was careless and bumped his head into the bottom of the boat. This collision dulled Fatty’s brain. Holding the rope with one hand, his other hand waved crazily about. He hoped to grab something like the rim of the boat and leave the water as soon as possible.

In his panic, he grabbed a hand. He believed it was Chen Qiang. Just as he turned to look, he shivered involuntarily. Several seconds later, a chill much colder than the water pierced through his body. He saw a bloated corpse silently sticking to the bottom of the boat. The corpse was dressed in red. It had basically joined with the bloodred boat. The soaked limbs floated with the water.

Fatty’s right hand was holding the corpse’s boneless, slimy, and unusually cold hand. The corpse’s rotten face slowly turned towards him. The next second, Fatty discovered something, and his eyes widened…

…

“This is bad!” Zuo Qing couldn’t hold it in anymore.

Just not too long ago, they heard the third drumbeat. Based on the rules, the four who left should have carried the bride back before the third drumbeat.

Something bad must have happened to them…

You Qi turned to the door. The fear in his eyes was clear. “Why… has none of them returned? What happened to them?”