Thriller Zone: From the Mental Hospital to the Ghostly World

Chapter 362 [Yanjing Incident] Settlement (1)

"You came."

Luo Lin said calmly, patting the seat next to her, gesturing for Zhang Cheng and Chen Ji to sit down beside her.

Her attitude was very gentle, just like the Luo Lin Chen had imagined...

There is almost no difference.

After a two-second silence, Chen Ji nodded slightly.

The television was still playing.

After Zhang Cheng sat down, he froze, his nose twitching slightly.

A faint scent of laundry detergent wafted into Chen Ji's nostrils at the same time. It was barely perceptible, but it made his eyes dazzle for a second.

He thought of his home in Sunshine Garden a long, long time ago.

I thought of my mother hanging clothes out to dry in the sun.

This is...right, Luo Lin has long since passed away. This is just a phantom of the past created by Xu Sandao based on his own memories.

Chen Ji's throat bobbed as he looked at Luo Lin, who seemed to know they were coming.

"Xiao Chen," Luo Lin said softly, "I'd like to ask you for a favor."

Chen Ji noticed that her voice did not seem to be affected by the carbonization of her throat.

"Go find Xiaochuan and protect him."

Chen Ji didn't answer. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Is 'Xu Sandao' a law enforcement officer?"

Rowling nodded sadly.

Yes. But he's dead.

"Is Xu Chuan the same as 'Xu Sandao'?" Chen Ji asked again.

"Yes."

"I understand."

Chen remained silent.

Luo Lin's two "yes" directly clarified the mystery of this Netherworld and confirmed Chen Ji's guess.

The enforcer was Xu Sandao, but he lost his head, causing chaos in the prison. The enforcer became an emotionless execution machine. To put it bluntly, the prison no longer had a master!

Before his death, he separated Xu Chuan, but the fundamental principle of [Prison] is to enact laws and maintain the castle.

The law enforcement officers are still following this principle, which means that Xu Chuan, like everyone else, is subject to the same constraints of this Netherworld.

The person who caused Xu Sandao to lose his head may not only be due to exceeding the "time limit," but may also be Zeng Guichuan!

Because Xu Chuan committed the "trespassing" crime after Zeng Guichuan, it proves that Xu Chuan was separated from Zeng Guichuan after Zeng Guichuan went to prison.

It is now known that the "key" is the badge on a police uniform.

Luo Lin then asked them to protect Xu Chuan...

Chen Ji asked, "If Xu Chuan dies, we'll be trapped here forever, right?"

"Yes."

Luo Lin still only said this one word.

So Xu Chuan is the keyhole!

"What should we do?" Zhang Cheng asked from the side.

“Wait for his memories to return,” Rowling said. “After one round of laws is enacted, until the next round begins, the law enforcement officer will merge with his memories.”

"At that time, he was both Xu Sandao and Xu Chuan. If all the conditions were met, he would carry out a major purge."

After a pause, Rowling added, "Your chance to get out is right there."

"The Great Liquidation?"

“Yes.” Rowling gently raised his head and looked towards the hall: “In the courtroom.”

"This trial has been prepared for a long time... all that's needed is for the defendant to take his seat."

"I will be waiting for you there too."

Chen Ji nodded silently.

The final "liquidation" of [Prison], and even the very meaning of the existence of [Prison] itself, is to wait for the "defendant" that Rowling mentioned.

Zeng Guichuan.

He said no more and stood up from the sofa.

Zhang Cheng silently got up with him.

Just as he was about to step out of the living room, Chen Ji turned his head slightly and took a deep look at the woman on the sofa.

"Officer Luo."

He murmured, even though he already knew that the other person was not the real Rowling.

"Thank you... for saving so many lives."

Rowling did not answer.

She stared silently at the television, which was still playing the news report of her death from more than a decade ago.

again and again.

.....

In the shadows of the long corridor.

Chen Ji and Zhang Cheng chatted briefly. Zhang Cheng's mind worked very quickly and his thinking was very flexible, so Chen Ji didn't need to explain much.

He has basically figured out the background of this Netherworld.

"So Luo Lin's police uniform is the 'key,' and Xu Chuan is the 'keyhole,' but there's a big problem here; the 'keyhole' will also be destroyed."

Zhang Cheng concluded.

“Yes,” Chen Ji said. “Luo Lin’s meaning is very clear: the ‘key’ can only open the ‘lock’ at a specific time, which is after the trial of Zeng Guichuan.”

"The condition she mentioned should refer to the complete recovery of Xu Chuan's memories, after which his consciousness will merge with Xu Sandao's."

Chen Ji even speculated that Xu Chuan's charge of "major theft" had not been cleared because the law enforcement officers determined that he had stolen a portion of the officers' memories, or rather, their identity.

Zhang Cheng nodded. "So, the current goal is to find Xu Chuan?"

"Yes, we still need to bring Zeng Guichuan into the courtroom before this round ends," Chen Ji added.

Without saying another word, the two left the room and went to look at the room with the indulgence box.

Unsurprisingly, Xu Chuan was no longer here.

Chen Ji took another candle and tried to walk into the darkness deep inside the hall. The law enforcement officer had come out from here before, so this was most likely the courtroom.

He felt a chill run through his very soul once again.

In the dim candlelight, rows of rusty armor stood densely packed against the walls.

I don't know how many there are, but they look very eerie.

Further inside was a solemn, pure black door; once pushed open, one could enter the courtroom.

But now the door is locked.

“It’s not time for liquidation yet…” Chen Jiming realized.

He turned back, but just then, Zhang Cheng behind him suddenly turned around abruptly, making quite a commotion!

Chen Ji immediately turned around and saw Zhang Cheng's face filled with surprise and uncertainty.

Did he hear anything?

Chen Ji immediately fell silent, following Zhang Cheng's gaze to the armor by the wall.

Everything was silent.

Chen Ji could only hear his own heartbeat and Zhang Cheng's increasingly rapid breathing.

Then, in the deathly silence, he heard a very faint sound, so faint that he almost thought it was a hallucination.

Click.

It came from the wall.

Click.

Chen Ji was certain it wasn't his imagination!

He grabbed Zhang Cheng, and the two of them retreated step by step, staring in horror at the rust spots on the armor, before being shaken to the ground!

They... moved!

Zhang Cheng took off running!

Chen Ji followed closely behind. In the time it takes to breathe, he heard a loud metallic clanging sound behind him, with countless armor plates rubbing against each other. Then came the deafening sound of footsteps!

It was as if a thousand troops were chasing after them!

boom!

boom!

"What's going on?" Zhang Cheng was dumbfounded!

Chen Ji frowned, grabbed Zhang Cheng, and rushed towards the spiral staircase. He didn't know who the group of armored figures were chasing, but there was only one possibility—

The fifth charge has been issued.