599: Chapter 599 saw something that shouldn't exist in this world.

At five o'clock in the afternoon, the abandoned water plant in the suburbs.

The lead-gray clouds hung low, as if it was going to rain again soon.

Several young figures were currently standing in front of the rusty iron gate of the water plant.

Taiwan Novel Network is super considerate and super convenient

The door panels were mottled and dilapidated, and even the characters "Pingjiang Water Supply" on it had become blurry and unclear.

"I must say, this place is even more dilapidated than the legends say."

A bowl-cut boy wearing black-framed glasses exaggeratedly covered his nose and muttered to a short-haired girl in camouflage next to him:

"President, are you sure there are ghosts here? I think it looks more like a homeless hangout."

The short-haired girl raised her eyebrows, and without a second word, lifted her leg and delivered a side kick.

"Clang!"

Accompanied by a loud crash, the rusty chain on the iron gate snapped open in response.

The door leaf swayed under her foot, sliding inward to reveal a half-meter-wide gap.

She patted the dust off her hands, her tone full of boldness:

"Zhou Ming, cut the nonsense. Are you doubting this president's wise decision?"

"No way, no way. As your deputy, I'm just briefly expressing my opinion."

Zhou Ming quickly shrank his neck and smiled ingratiatingly.

Fang Cheng's gaze lingered on the short-haired girl for a moment, then swept over his friend's fawning appearance, a trace of amusement appearing on his face.

Her name was Wang Lan, the sports committee member of the next class and also the president of the Supernatural Research Club, as well as the school's notorious tomboy.

It was said she had even learned combat skills, and many boys were not her match.

"President, Vice President, the detector has already been turned on and calibrated."

Behind Wang Lan, a girl with a ponytail and a plain long skirt was cautiously fiddling with a palm-sized metal instrument.

Her complexion was slightly pale, but her gaze was filled with Focus:

"I've tuned the detector's magnetic field frequency to a special channel. As long as a ghost-like abnormal energy body approaches, it will sound an alarm."

As she spoke, she took out several brightly colored, exaggeratedly styled water guns from her school bag and handed them to everyone:

"The weapons are also ready. What's inside these are talisman waters enshrined by my mom's shrine, and it's said to be very effective against evil spirits."

Her name was Lin Xue, the mastermind role in the club.

Her mother was a locally well-known shrine maiden, and having been influenced by her since childhood, she could be considered professionally matched for such supernatural things.

At this moment, a fat boy next to them also came over, chewing on potato chips while speaking vaguely:

"Don't worry, the president is very strong. Ordinary ghosts can't get close to her. I also brought chocolate, beef jerky, and energy bars; absolutely enough to replenish physical strength."

"Li Dazhuang, bringing so much food, are you treating this exploration like an autumn outing picnic? Aren't you afraid of eating yourself to death?"

Wang Lan unmercifully roasted him.

The fatty just chuckled, scratched his head, and was too embarrassed to retort.

Fang Cheng stood at the end of the line, his gaze sweeping across this group of people.

A hot-tempered female president, a big-mouthed yet cowardly glasses-wearing guy, a rambling shrine maiden, plus a fatty who treated exploration like a picnic activity.

He shook his head inwardly, unable to help sighing in his heart.

If they really encountered any ghosts, could they be counted on?

Wang Lan seemed to enjoy the feeling of leading an exploration team, and she waved her hand grandly:

"Alright, stop standing around stupidly at the door. Let's go in and take a look."

Everyone drilled through the half-meter-wide door gap one by one.

Passing through the creaking iron gate, the light inside the water plant suddenly dimmed.

The air was much colder and gloomier than outside, and a scent mixed with rust, engine oil, and decay drilled straight into their nasal cavities.

The factory space was tall and large, and many machinery and equipment inside were already rusty, like steel behemoths that had slept for decades.

Pipes crisscrossed, extending towards the dark depths.

The ground was covered with thick dust and debris. Stepping down produced a soft creaking sound that echoed in the empty factory, adding a bit of eeriness.

Everyone looked around, searching everywhere, and a strange emotion of tension and excitement arose in their hearts.

"This water plant has been abandoned for more than twenty years and used to supply water to the entire urban area. It is said that there is an underground river underneath, and the water quality is particularly good. Later, due to water source pollution, the government abandoned this place."

Wang Lan introduced as she walked:

"However, in the past year or two, some strange rumors have started to spread here..."

She lowered her voice and said mysteriously:

"Some people say that at midnight, they can hear the sound of machines running in the abandoned pump house, and others say they have seen a black shadow wandering aimlessly around the factory area."

"Before, a security guard came here to patrol at night and saw that black shadow with his own eyes. After coming back, he fell gravely ill and lay in bed for half a month before recovering."

Everyone stared at her with burning gazes:

"And then?"

"Then..."

Wang Lan cleared her throat, and her tone became even more spooky:

"When that security guard woke up, he only remembered one sentence, 'It is looking at you from behind'!"

"Ah!"

Zhou Ming was so frightened that his body shook violently, and the potato chips in Li Dazhuang's hand instantly spilled all over the floor.

"Hahaha!"

Wang Lan looked at their cowardice and couldn't help laughing out loud:

"Cowards, and you call yourselves boys. This is nothing yet."

As she spoke, she turned her gaze to Fang Cheng.

Seeing that Fang Cheng's expression was calm, even carrying a trace of contemplation, there was no fear in his eyes.

A trace of surprise flashed in Wang Lan's eyes. This fair and thin boy was not as simple as he looked on the surface.

"Alright, this place is really too big. To improve efficiency, we will now start splitting up."

As the president, she glanced around and made arrangements decisively:

"Zhou Ming, you group with Fang Cheng, responsible for the left reservoir area."

"Lin Xue, you group with the fatty and me, responsible for the right purification equipment area."

"One detector per group, two water guns. If you encounter any situation, call out loudly immediately."

Hearing this, Zhou Ming's eyes lit up, and he eagerly shuffled up to Wang Lan's side:

"President, why don't I group with you? I am experienced and can protect you."

Wang Lan gave him a blank look and refused unceremoniously:

"Oh come on, who can your half-baked skills protect? You'd better go with Fang Cheng, take good care of our new member, and just don't cause trouble for me."

Zhou Ming instantly looked like a defeated rooster, dejectedly following behind Fang Cheng.

After distributing equipment and explaining operational precautions, everyone split up.

Fang Cheng took the water gun. The weightless feel in his hand aroused a trace of absurdity deep in his heart.

Could this so-called talisman water... really deal with that kind of thing?

He and Zhou Ming went one after the other, carefully walking along the left passage toward the depths of the factory.

The cement ground under their feet was full of cracks, and emerald green moss grew in many places.

The cement beams overhead were hung with thick cobwebs, and the air was filled with an indescribable moldy and rotten odor.

The screen of the detector in Zhou Ming's hand flashed green light, making a faint buzzing sound.

Everything seemed normal.

"Zhou Ming, do you like Wang Lan?"

Fang Cheng suddenly spoke, his voice softly echoing in the empty factory.

Zhou Ming's foot slipped and he almost fell, his face instantly turning the color of a pig's liver:

"Y-You, what are you talking nonsense about! I... I just admire the president. A girl can be so brave and fearless, which is very worth learning for me."

He argued stubbornly, but didn't dare to look at Fang Cheng, his earlobes already turning completely red.

Fang Cheng chuckled softly and didn't pursue it further, changing the subject:

"Right, that black shadow you told me about at school before, have you seen it with your own eyes?"

Zhou Ming obviously breathed a sigh of relief and resumed his usual talkative demeanor:

"I haven't seen it. It was seen by one of my uncles with his own eyes."

"Just like the story Wang Lan told?"

Fang Cheng pressed on.

"Pretty much."

Zhou Ming nodded, his tone becoming a bit solemn:

"My uncle used to be a soldier on the frontier, and once he was on duty in a sentry post late at night. Outside was a deserted Gobi desert, and in the distance, snow mountains could still be seen."

"That day he had just rotated off duty and returned to the room to rest when he saw a pitch-black shadow seep in through the door crack."

"That shadow wriggled weirdly, having no physical entity, yet it seemed to have long limbs, twisting into strange shapes one moment and rapidly shrinking into a ball the next."

"The most creepy thing was that its head had no facial features, only two dim red lights flashing in the dark, like a pair of malicious eyes staring at my uncle."

"My uncle was so scared his whole body stiffened at that time, instinctively grabbing his service pistol and pulling the trigger, only to find that after the bullets penetrated that ball of black shadow, it had no effect at all."

"That shadow silently slid against the wall, floating straight toward him, and the air instantly became bone-chillingly cold."

"My uncle was almost frightened into Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering at the time, but fortunately the black shadow didn't seem to have any intention of killing him, and he only woke up after being in a coma for several days."

"Ever since that incident, my uncle was forced to retire, and he changed like a different person, rambling all day and saying things others couldn't understand."

"But he told me that he saw things that shouldn't exist in this world."

Zhou Ming raised his voice, his tone carrying a trace of yearning:

"It was because of this matter that I started to take an interest in supernatural phenomena and wanted to uncover the secrets of this world!"

His eyes flickered, like an explorer bearing a great mission.

Listening to Zhou Ming's excited account, Fang Cheng's heart grew heavier and heavier.

After a moment of silence, he tentatively asked:

"Did your uncle... ever tell you if he also saw black rain?"

Zhou Ming was stunned, a look of surprise on his face:

"Black rain? How do you know?"

"My uncle did mention it, saying that on that night, black rain started to fall as well."

"But when I asked him about the specifics, he couldn't give a clear explanation, only saying it was very disgusting and very smelly."

"I've never seen any black rain since I was little. Fang Cheng, could it be that you've seen it too?"

Hearing this, Fang Cheng's heart sank abruptly.

Zhou Ming hadn't seen the black rain, but his uncle saw it, and he himself had witnessed it with his own eyes.

At this moment, the redness and swelling on the back of his hand had not completely subsided, which was the trace left by the corrosion of the black rain.

Could it be... that only a few special people can see these things that shouldn't exist?

For instance, himself and Zhou Ming's uncle?

Just at this moment, a terrified scream suddenly came from afar, interrupting Fang Cheng's thoughts.

"Ah—"

"That's Wang Lan's voice, something happened over on their side!"

Zhou Ming's face turned pale, and he immediately raised his water gun and shouted:

"Quick, let's go over and take a look!"

Fang Cheng also sprinted quickly toward the direction where the sound came from, feeling creeped out in his heart while also rather expectant.

This feeling of personally facing supernatural phenomena was more real than any story or rumor.

It made him even more convinced that he was getting closer to certain truths.

The two of them passed through a half-collapsed wall and rushed into another area.

This was the pump house of the water plant, and several huge water pumps lay horizontally on the ground like rusty giant beetles.

Wang Lan and Lin Xue leaned against a wall, their expressions appearing very nervous.

The detector in their hands emitted a harsh "beep-beep" sound, with an astonishingly fast frequency.

The urgent chirping sound proclaimed that there was some strong abnormality nearby.

"What's wrong?"

Zhou Ming rushed close and asked anxiously.

At this moment, Wang Lan's eyes were fixedly staring at a corner.

Her left hand raised the talisman water gun, and her right hand clenched into a fist, striking a combat posture ready to strike at any time.

"Did you see it? The ghost is right there!"

Wang Lan reached out and pointed into the depths of the darkness, her voice carrying a trace of trembling yet suppressing excitement.

Fang Cheng and Zhou Ming looked in the direction Wang Lan pointed.

Sure enough, in the darkness, there was a mass of twisted shadows, indistinct and shadowy, as if peeling away from the wall.

"Quick, spray it with the gun!"

Zhou Ming shouted, taking a step ahead to raise the talisman water gun and pull the trigger.

"Whoosh—"

A column of white water shot accurately toward that mass of black shadow.

However, when the black shadow was hit by the talisman water, no changes occurred at all.

The detector's alarm sound was still ongoing, so sharp it almost pierced the eardrums.

Thinking the firepower was insufficient, Wang Lan also hurriedly raised her water gun and sprayed fiercely at that mass of black shadow.

"Wait a minute!"

Fang Cheng suddenly felt something was wrong.

That black shadow was too quiet, so quiet it didn't move at all.

He narrowed his eyes, walked forward a few steps, and finally saw clearly the so-called "black shadow".

It was clearly just a few pieces of old canvas hanging on a pipe, plus the dim light, which made Wang Lan and the others misidentify it.

Fang Cheng reached out and pulled the cloth off in one go.

Needless to say, everyone saw it clearly now.

"Then what about this?"

Lin Xue raised the detector in her hand. The screen indicator light was still flashing urgently, and the harsh alarm sound was still ringing nonstop.

Fang Cheng's gaze swept over the surrounding water pumps and slowly explained:

"These old-fashioned water pumps all have large permanent magnets inside, which easily interfere with high-sensitivity detection instruments like yours."

"Uh..."

Wang Lan awkwardly lowered her arm, her cheeks turning red:

"It seems I saw wrong. It's mainly because the light in this place is too dim."

Zhou Ming laughed heartily along, and the tension just now was swept away:

"I told you, how could it be so easy to see the real deal!"

Lin Xue also breathed a sigh of relief and temporarily turned off the detector.

Just as everyone relaxed and giggled, Fang Cheng suddenly noticed that someone was missing.

"Where is the fatty?"

Everyone suddenly realized that Li Dazhuang was gone.

"He just said he was going to pee, why hasn't he come back after so long?"

Wang Lan said with confusion.

Nothing could have really happened to him, right?

Everyone's hearts tightened, and they quickly walked back, searching everywhere for Li Dazhuang's traces.