Bathhouse Weird Tales

"Brother Kai, what exactly happened last night? I heard the Commander promoted you to captain?"

Yang Kai was surrounded by several people, bombarding him with questions.

"Heh, of course! Last night..."

Yang Kai's face was full of pride. After being promoted to captain, he not only got a better dorm but also gained over a dozen more brothers under him, not to mention the improved treatment. However, when it came to last night's events, Yang Kai's eyes darted around, and he said mysteriously, "Want to know? Heh heh, you guess!"

Seeing Yang Kai playing coy, the people surrounding him let out a chorus of boos.

At this moment, Yang Kai's gaze shifted, and he saw a figure emerging from the dormitory building. His eyes lit up instantly, and he pushed the people beside him away. "Get lost, get lost!"

He then quickly strode towards the figure, "Brother, brother, you're alive!"

Xiao Ran looked up in confusion and saw Yang Kai approaching him.

"Brother, how did you survive last night?"

Last night, Xiao Ran had told Yang Kai and the others to leave first while he stayed behind to deal with the Embroidered Shoes. This morning, Yang Kai and the others had seen Wang Jun and the others' corpses in the hallway and thought Xiao Ran was dead. They hadn't expected him to still be alive.

"By luck."

Xiao Ran sighed, looking as if he was still shaken.

At this point, Yang Kai also noticed that Xiao Ran was still stained with blood and was carrying a black plastic bag. The bag looked quite heavy, and the outlines of limbs could vaguely be seen within.

"My roommate died, so..."

Xiao Ran's face fell, filled with self-blame. He regretted being too greedy, not expecting the old man's corpse to be so fragile. After using Borrowed Essence to extract a few talismans, the corpse suddenly fell apart.

The flesh and skin turned into something like weathered foam, completely disintegrating into a mess.

"Sigh, my condolences..."

Yang Kai nodded silently in agreement. Seeing the dejected look on Xiao Ran's face, he was deeply moved.

In a place like this campus, having a brother who was so loyal and righteous was as rare as a ray of light in the darkness.

"This guy is too kind."

Yang Kai waved to the people behind him. "A few of you, help me throw this brother's brother... oh, send him to the Meat Furnace."

"Meat Furnace?"

"Yeah, you just got here, brother, you don't know. All the corpses here have to be thrown into the Meat Furnace behind us to be burned as firewood. You'll get used to it after a while."

After speaking, Yang Kai saw the bloodstains on Xiao Ran's face and said with concern, "Brother, you should stick with me from now on. If you stay by my side, you'll definitely have enough to eat."

"This is actually a good thing. Living alone in a dorm is a bit conspicuous. It's better to blend in with Yang Kai and his group; it'll be good cover during the big sweeps."

"Thanks, Brother Kai."

"What thanks are needed? Come on, let's go take a shower and change into some clean clothes."

Yang Kai slung an arm over Xiao Ran's shoulder and said to his followers behind him, "From now on, this is my brother. Everyone call him Brother Wang."

"Hello, Brother Wang!"

These people didn't dare to be careless and immediately shouted in unison.

Yang Kai then introduced the two followers who were originally by his side, Xie Xinrong and Xie Hongyi. They were brothers, with Xie Xinrong being the elder and Xie Hongyi the younger, both serving as Yang Kai's right-hand men.

"Brother Yang, you've been promoted?"

Xiao Ran also realized that Yang Kai's current demeanor was significantly different from before, and he even had many more followers.

"Hahaha." Yang Kai grinned, a little smug, and lowered his voice. "Last night, our Commander went to hunt down a Night Ghost, and we followed..."

As he spoke, Yang Kai glanced around before whispering, "We ran into the Commander halfway there. The Commander got a little injured, and we carried him back."

After saying that, Yang Kai couldn't help but mutter, "He probably ate something bad. The Commander was in the toilet all night. I don't know why, but he was yelling while he was pooping."

Yang Kai took Xiao Ran to the school bathhouse.

There weren't many people inside. Yang Kai glanced at the time. "Hurry up and wash. Remember, if anyone asks you what day it is while you're showering, tell them it's September 5th."

Seeing Xiao Ran's confused expression, Yang Kai pointed to an inconspicuous sign on the left.

[Bathhouse Rules]

1: Please shower quickly and do not linger after you are done. 2: Maintain quiet; no roughhousing. 3: Hot and cold water are provided randomly; it's all up to luck. Weird Tales: If anyone asks you what day it is, please tell them it is September 5th.

"Aren't you guys going in to wash together?"

Looking at the rules, Xiao Ran turned to Yang Kai.

"We can't."

Yang Kai lowered his voice. "Actually, there's a hidden Weird Tale: if more than six people shower together, only five will come out in the end."

"There's a hidden Weird Tale?"

"Yeah, there are actually many Weird Tales in this school, but they've been deliberately hidden. We only figured out a few through the lives of our predecessors. They're extremely sinister. I'll tell you all about it after you're done with your shower."

He finished speaking and gestured for Xiao Ran to hurry inside, while they guarded the entrance for him.

"Oh, okay."

Xiao Ran nodded, his confusion growing. Hidden Weird Tales, beggars created out of thin air – what was going on with this school?

With his doubts, Xiao Ran walked into the bathhouse and took off his clothes.

The campus bathhouse was very basic, more of a communal shower room than anything else. There were no large soaking pools like those found in the north. Each shower stall was separated by partitions.

It was a bit crude, but sufficient for the school.

He turned on the hot water tap, but nothing came out. It seemed his luck was out, and he'd missed the hot water.

It didn't matter, though. He could shower with cold water; he often did at home.

He turned on the cold water valve, and a wave of chill washed over him.

Even though it was a school bathhouse, each shower head had soap and shampoo hanging from it. For Xiao Ran, covered in blood and reeking of stench, being able to take a clean shower here was a godsend.

He picked up the shampoo and lathered it into his hair, rubbing it vigorously. Just as he was about to rinse it off with cold water.

"Splash... drip, drip, drip..."

From behind the partition, the sound of splashing water followed.

Xiao Ran paused. "Is someone else coming in to shower?"

Yang Kai and the others were really unreliable. Didn't they say they'd watch the door for him?

He quickly rinsed the shampoo from his hair. Cold water poured down from above. Xiao Ran rubbed his head and suddenly sniffed.

"Blood!"

A pungent smell of blood wafted over. Xiao Ran's eyes snapped open, and he looked around warily.

This fresh scent of blood was completely different from the smell of corpses. It definitely wasn't coming from him.

He looked down and saw the bloody water pooling at his feet. The blood wasn't from his side; it was flowing from behind the partition next to him.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran hesitated. He took out the [Mourning Ring] from his spatial storage, activated it, and put it on his hand. He then took out his black cleaver, narrowed his eyes, and peeked over the partition.

"Drip, drip, drip..."

Water splashed onto the floor. Behind the partition, a thin young man was squatting on the ground, covering his face with both hands. His shoulders trembled uncontrollably, and his body was covered in small wounds, from which blood was flowing.

Looking at the young man on the ground, Xiao Ran's eyes held a hint of surprise. He scanned the other person's body. "Do you need help?"

The young man froze and looked up at Xiao Ran in astonishment.

"I can't stitch you up, but I can stop the bleeding."

Seeing that the young man's consciousness wasn't fading, meaning he hadn't reached the point of spiritual oblivion, Xiao Ran took out a stick of incense and lit it in a dry spot nearby.

The scent of the incense spread. The young man couldn't help but swallow. He glanced at Xiao Ran, then walked over to the incense and greedily inhaled its smoke.

As wisps of smoke were drawn into the young man's nose and mouth, his previously ethereal body began to solidify.

Xiao Ran took the opportunity to wipe himself down and change into a new pair of underwear before walking over to the young man. "Are you a Night Ghost?"

That's right, the young man before him was a spirit.

Seeing him, Xiao Ran felt a sense of familiarity, more so than seeing the students outside. He had been here for a while, and besides the old man he saw on the stairs last night, the only other beings he had encountered were Night Ghosts.

But those Night Ghosts were not normal souls; every pore on their bodies exuded intense negative emotions.

In comparison, this young man seemed like a normal soul.

This was one of the reasons Xiao Ran was willing to help him.

Hearing the words "Night Ghost," the young man shook his head. While still inhaling the smoke, he said, "There are no Night Ghosts. We don't know where those Night Ghosts come from."

"Do you have other classmates?"

Xiao Ran keenly caught the word "we" from the young man's mouth and immediately pressed further.

"Yes..."

The young man nodded. "But ever since the school built that big iron furnace, there have been fewer and fewer classmates. I sometimes see them, but they don't talk to me and disappear quickly."

"Big iron furnace?"

Xiao Ran thought for a moment. Yang Kai had mentioned a "Meat Furnace" earlier. Could it be that?

Xiao Ran wanted to ask more, but after saying so much, the young man seemed exhausted. He shook his head, covering his head. "I don't know, I don't know anything. My head hurts so much..."

Seeing that he couldn't get any more information, Xiao Ran had to let it go for now. He picked up the burnt incense ash, rubbed it in his hands, and blew it towards the young man's wounds.

Instantly, the wounds covered by the ash stopped bleeding.

Even though the blood wasn't real, this should make him feel a bit better.

"Rest well. I'll come see you again when I have time."

With that, Xiao Ran prepared to leave.

"Wait!"

"What's today's date?"

Xiao Ran paused, then looked the young man over. "September fifth."

Hearing the date, the young man's body trembled involuntarily. He looked up, his pupils turning completely black, and stared blankly at Xiao Ran, a sinister smile forming on his lips. "Incorrect answer..."