Is Someone Dead?

Lin Yang's palms began to sweat.

"What... exactly is a Faceling? What does he want?"

As he wondered,

a burst of grating static sounded, and the deep male voice rang out again.

"Friendly reminder: Facelings are more likely to hurt people at night. Please stay safe. Check your surroundings before going to sleep."

The voice echoed through the empty classroom for two seconds, then faded.

The classroom erupted!

Those who had fallen asleep jolted awake and stared at one another.

Even the fat man who had refused to believe it turned pale. He gripped the table leg in his hand a little tighter and looked around in panic.

"Who? Who said that?"

Someone immediately pointed at the corner. "The loudspeaker!" "It's that loudspeaker!"

"Facelings are more likely to hurt people at night. Did you hear that? Facelings really do kill people!"

"Is this real or not? Can someone tell me?"

"What if it's real? I don't want to die!"

Panic spread through the crowd like wildfire.

One person tried to run out, rushing to the classroom door and pounding on it. His fists struck the iron plate with dull thuds, but the door didn't budge.

Others cursed to distract themselves from their fear, or huddled in corners, trembling.

The fat man stood up and waved the table leg in his hand. "Everyone, shut up!"

"What are you panicking for? What's there to panic about? It's just a lousy loudspeaker! Maybe it's just trying to scare us! Some variety shows love pulling this kind of gimmick!"

"You still fucking think this is a variety show?"

The young man who had argued with him during the day stood up, his face flushed red. He pointed out the window.

"Take a good look! What's out there? What's outside that window? Can your variety shows send people to a godforsaken place like this?"

The fat man had no comeback. He muttered, "Then what do you think we should do?..."

His voice had clearly lost its confidence.

The young man looked around and raised his voice.

"The most important thing now is to stay calm. The announcement said Facelings are more likely to hurt people at night, so we should all stay where we are and not go off alone. We'll wait until daybreak."

"Right, wait until daybreak," someone agreed. "We'll be fine once it's light."

Most of them sat back down, but no one dared close their eyes again.

They pressed their backs tightly against the walls, watching the people around them warily.

Moonlight shone on their faces, each wearing a different expression. Some were frightened, some were numb, and some showed emotions that were impossible to read.

Zhang Lei huddled in a corner, not daring to move. A girl beside him tugged on his sleeve and asked,

"Brother Zhang, you're the Seer. Do you know if anyone will die tonight?"

Zhang Lei's Adam's apple bobbed. He opened his mouth and, after a long while, managed to force out a reply.

"I've used my check for today. I have to wait until tomorrow morning..."

"Wait until tomorrow?" The girl's voice was thick with tears. "What if there really are Facelings, and we don't make it through the night? It's so dark in here... I'm so scared."

Zhang Lei didn't answer. He shrank farther into the crowd, wishing he could hide himself completely.

And in an overlooked corner, Lin Yang saw a figure slowly closing in on Zhang Lei!

Lin Yang took it all in. He didn't know what would happen tonight, but for the moment, the storage room was relatively safe.

No one seemed to have noticed it.

He was a little afraid too, but as time passed, drowsiness washed over him like a tide.

Lin Yang braced a stick against the door, then moved a few cardboard boxes and stacked them in front of himself.

He leaned back against the corner and covered himself with two layers of cardboard that had been lying nearby.

The storage room was so quiet that all he could hear was the faint sound of air flowing through the ventilation ducts.

He thought he wouldn't be able to sleep.

But his body was far more honest than his brain. His eyelids drooped, and his consciousness sank away.

Early the next morning,

a scream yanked him awake!

The sound pierced through the door, sharp and shrill!

Lin Yang's eyes snapped open!

He sprang up almost instantly, a layer of cold sweat breaking out across his back.

His mind wasn't fully awake yet, but his hand had already found the wooden stick beside him.

He crouched behind the door and leaned close to the peephole to look outside.

It was daylight!

Before he could get a clear look,

the smell of blood had already seeped through the peephole and into his nose.

The crowd had huddled together on the left side of the classroom, as if a shepherd had driven them into a corner. Their faces were filled with despair!

Two people lay on the floor on the right side of the classroom!

To be precise, two corpses!