4 Chapter 4: Discovering the Secret Room

The uphill path featured smooth steps and a gentle incline, so it wasn't really tiring to climb. However, there was a lack of streetlights. Good thing Du Jun was thoughtful enough to bring flashlights to illuminate the way for everyone.

Our surroundings alternated between rocks and deep woods, with odd bird calls occasionally echoing through the night. Chilled by intermittent gusts of cool wind, it all felt eerily spooky.

Thankfully, we were a large group. Even if we were to encounter any wild animals, we could simply pile on and scare them away without having to engage in a fight. Basically, safety in numbers prevailed.

The mountain wasn't famous or notably high, but it boasted a thousand steps. Nearing the halfway point, some less physically fit members were winded and called for a rest.

Du Jun agreed and everyone took a breather. Looking back, we could make out the view of the town nestled at the foot of the mountain. The brightly lit town appeared stark against the surrounding darkness, making the town's nightscape even more stunning. We believed the view would be even more impressive from higher up the mountain.

While resting and hydrating, Lin Xi and a few girls engaged in lighthearted banter. The conversation shifted towards Gu Fan, with the girls prodding Lin Xi about why her boyfriend wasn't present.

Lin Xi, mindful of Gu Fan's reputation, fabricated an excuse that Gu Fan was slightly unwell, likely due to the change in environment, hence his absence. She skillfully sidestepped the issue, embodying the same consideration and understanding that Gu Fan deeply admired about her. Polite, understanding, and stunningly beautiful - with her big eyes and flawless skin - who could ever resist?

While everyone's attention was drawn to the scenery, the girls silently nodded their approval for Du Jun and shared their initial belief that Lin Xi and Du Jun would end up together. They were surprised when Gu Fan swooped in, though they still believed that Lin Xi and Du Jun made a better match.

For that, Lin Xi simply offered a noncommittal smile. She knew these girls were on good terms with Du Jun, so speaking in his favor was expected. However, whether Du Jun had solicited this was a mystery.

Suddenly, a male classmate cracked a joke: "You think there are ghosts in this forest?"

At his words, a shiver ran through the group. A chill wind blew just as odd bird calls echoed once again from the dark woods, frightening some of the more timid girls who promptly scolded the jokester.

At this point, Du Jun chimed in, "Everyone, no need to worry about ghosts and monsters. We should put faith in science. Besides, if this mountain were truly haunted, the townsfolk would surely have known and warned us. But they didn't say anything."

Everyone found Du Jun's words reassuring. However, scary thoughts still occasionally filtered in, putting us all on edge.

During our break, Du Jun aimlessly shone his flashlight around, realizing something was off. The woods seemed to collapse at a particular section, not far from where we were.

Du Jun shared his discovery with the group and expressed his intention to investigate, not even waiting for our feedback. Everyone trusted him enough not to worry, knowing that he wouldn't do anything reckless.

Suddenly, a loud gasp made everyone jump. Whirling around, we noticed Du Jun was missing, his flashlight no longer in sight.

"What happened? Where's Du Jun?" Lin Xi's face paled, panic spreading among the group. An icy breeze blew, sending chills down everyone's spine. A couple of the more timid girls even turned stark white as horrifying images resurfaced in their minds.

A male classmate plucked up the courage to call out thrice, "Du Jun, Du Jun, Du Jun," but received no reply. Everyone was on the brink of losing their calm. How could a person just vanish like that? Could this place really be haunted?

Lin Xi managed to compose herself and said, "Let's all go and take a look."

"Ok… alright…" The remaining members huddled closely together, with one following the other, slowly moving towards where Du Jun had disappeared. Hearts raced, nerves preconditioned the atmosphere, and fear seemed suspended in the air.

As they got closer, a chill coursed through the first occupant of the line, his body slightly shaking. He wasn't certain if he was frightened, or if it was the girls behind him who were.

Despite Lin Xi's inherent strength, she was still a girl, hiding behind the guys. At that moment, she only wished Gu Fan, her official boyfriend, would be with her, protecting her.

Suddenly, a ray of light pierced the silence and startled us all. A disheveled figure crawled out from a ditch, grumbling, "My god, I wasn't careful where I stepped and fell down."

Hearing those words, everyone sighed in relief. It just turned out a false alarm.

Unable to contain herself, Lin Xi complained, "Du Jun, do you know how much you scared us?"

A dust-covered Du Jun also apologized, "I'm sorry. I didn't expect the ground to cave in suddenly. Fortunately, I'm alright. Otherwise, it would've been terrible."

Someone raised a question: "Since you fell into a pit, why didn't you respond when we called out to you?"

Du Jun quickly explained, "I was dazed after the fall, it seemed like it wasn't a pit at all, there's a man-made passage below, and a door." After saying this, Du Jun quickly shone his flashlight on the pit that had tripped him up.

Everyone immediately gathered around, and looking down, sure enough, as Du Jun had said, it wasn't just a pit. There was an iron door below, but it seemed that Du Jun had accidentally hit it and knocked it open when he fell. Behind the door were stairs, seeming to lead to another place.

Someone couldn't help but exclaim, "Can't be! Have we discovered the legendary underground chamber?"

Another person expressed a different view, "It might be someone's tomb. Considering the degree of rust on the iron door which Du Jun knocked open so easily, it must be quite old."

Lin Xi frowned, "Strange, why didn't the village residents mention this to us? Didn't they know about it?"

In response, Du Jun shook his head, "Look at the signs around. This place seems to have been exposed after the ground collapsed recently. I guess it's related to the previous earthquake."

"Oh, I see, Du Jun, you mean this chamber was well concealed originally. Even the villagers living below the mountain didn't know about it, but the previous earthquake caused a landslide, exposing the chamber."

Du Jun nodded, "It's merely my guess. It's uncertain what the actual situation is. However, now that we've found this chamber, what should we do next? Do any of you want to go down with me to take a look? There might be treasure."

Upon hearing the word treasure, a few of the male students' eyes sparkled. They thought, "Exactly, this might be a gift from heaven that would make us rich, saving us at least twenty years of struggle after graduating from college."

Nevertheless, there were some timid souls whose minds were filled with ghosts and monsters, and were worried about the possibility of the place being haunted if it turned out to be a tomb.

Everyone was uneasy about this unknown place, which could be either a chamber or a tomb. Someone suggested that it might be better to return the way they came instead of meddling with unknown things.

Du Jun firmly responded, "What's there to be scared of? If there really are ghosts and they scare us to death, we'll give them a hard time when we too become ghosts."

Everyone found his words reasonable; the more people they had, the safer they would be. However, they were all still afraid of ghosts.

Seeing that everyone was scared, Du Jun knew that he must stand firm, especially in front of Lin Xi. He needed to outshine his romantic rival, Gu Fan.

Du Jun then adopted a resolute posture, "How about this? Those who aren't scared, come down with me and let's see what's inside. If there's nothing we will come back right away, it's just an expedition."

At this time, four of his close friends stepped forward to support Du Jun, they owed him for all the meals he had treated them to in the past, it was time for them to step up.

So, the five of them mustered up their courage, walked through the rusted, dilapidated iron door, and began descending the steps. They were given three of the five flashlights borrowed from the villagers. Everyone just wished that they would return safely.

At first, they could hear the footsteps and see the light from the flashlights of the five guys going down. However, as the footsteps gradually faded and the light dimmed, everyone started to grow anxious again.

Finally, when the light disappeared completely and there was no trace of Du Jun and the others, they wondered how far they had gone and what they might encounter. Even if the chamber wasn't haunted, what if it was booby trapped?

The deeper Du Jun and the others went, the greater the anxiety everyone felt. The chilling breeze, the eerie bird calls, the occasional sound of wings beating in the woods, any little noise was enough to put everyone on edge.

After waiting for a long time with no sign of them returning, everyone had a sense of foreboding. They wondered if something had happened. They knew they shouldn't have let them go down. Should they run back to the village for help?

Just when everyone was extremely anxious and uncertain about what to do, Du Jun's voice suddenly came from below, "Everybody, come down. It's safe here. It's just a weird chamber. Come and have a look."

Upon hearing this, everyone heaved a sigh of relief. Thankfully, everything was fine. Otherwise, the situation would have been too thrilling. Their hearts couldn't take the stress.

Then, the remaining people began descending one by one, walking down the steps towards the 'weird chamber' that Du Jun referred to.

Meanwhile, Gu Fan was also encountering something strange.