Thriller Night Talk

Translator-Rhapsodite

Editor-PerpetualMreow, Proofreader-Spring Flower

My nis Zhang Shan, from Shanshi, and I am twenty-seven years old.

I am an ordinary but confident office worker. I graduated from 985 University and currently work in a graphic design company. My annual incafter tax is almost 200,000 yuan. In addition to not having a girlfriend, I can barely be an "other person's child" at a family gathering.

The building where my company was located appeared to be haunted.

When it cto jobs that could earn you money, putting in shard work was usually the way to go. The 996 work schedule was quite common. The schedule where people worked from 9 am to 9 pm, six days a week. During the busiest of times, even working until 007 (midnight) was not uncommon.

At least one-third of the people who work in the sbuilding ashave similar work schedules.

Ah, I forgot to mention, our company is located in a high-end office building in the Fengxing City commercial district.

The building has a total of 52 floors. On the sfloor, there is also a law firm, an arts and crafts import-export company, and a digital marketing company. Of course, this office building is quite large, and almost every floor has several companies.

Every month, companies move in and out, so even as someone who has been working here for a solid four years, it's hard to keep track of how many companies are on each floor. It's quite a bustling place!

So it's not uncommon for long-temployees here to have heard rumors about the "Haunted Floor."

It's quite a cliché ghost story, isn't it?

According to the story, during the construction of this office building, there was a worker who mysteriously disappeared.

On his 24th birthday on the lunar calendar, that worker invited his colleagues for a round of beer and sgrilled skewers. After mentioning that he needed to use the restroom, he never returned. He just disappeared, without a trace at that, and was never seen again. He neither appeared alive, nor was found dead. It was as if he had just evaporated from the face of the earth, disappearing without a trace.

Even the police couldn't locate him. It wasn't until many years later that a fellow villager of the missing worker, while intoxicated, let it slip and confessed to having killed him.

It's a truly shocking and unsettling turn of events.

After the police arrested the person and interrogated them, they found out that there was a financial dispute between the fellow villager and the missing person. On that day, they impulsively killed the other person, but afraid of the consequences, they hid the body inside the exterior wall of the building. He was in the building, and there was no evidence to prove anything.

At that time, he was constructing the wall of the 44th floor of the building that says "and" on it.

The case was solved, but the body had already becone with the wall, making it impossible to remove.

They had no choice but to leave the body there, forever "watching" the people coming and going on that floor.

Whether this story was true or not... let's put that aside for now, but the 44th floor does seem a bit eerie.

I've noticed that no matter what company moves in there, they either quickly go out of business or relocate. It's like no company can stay there for more than three months.

The fact that the spacious 44th floor is consistently vacant is already quite suspicious. However, in the past two months, a new company has moved in.

I took a closer look at the floor distribution map in the lobby, and the sign indicated a broadcasting company called "Santuchuan."

No, no, no, the point I want to talk about is not the newly moved "Santuchuan".

The key point is that the 44th floor, known as the "Haunted Death Floor," seems to have been causing even more trouble recently.

Alright, letsummarize the gossip I heard about the "Haunted Death Floor" while I was sneaking around and taking breaks in the pantry.

Firstly, let's start with the mysterious disappearance of the "44th" button in the elevator. It vanished without a trace, and now the buttons jump from "43" to "45" with no transition in between. It's strange, isn't it?

It stands to reason that even if the original button was cut out and the floor number was reordered, there should be an extra blank button.

But an Old fried dough stick like me, who has been using the elevator for a solid four years, couldn't spot anything unusual on that seemingly aged metal panel. It's as if the number "44" never existed in the first place.

Next, there's a story about a curious cleaning lady who decided to take a peek on the 44th floor while she was emptying the trash bins in the hallway during the evening. But when she turned to that floor, she almost couldn't find her way out.

According to the cleaning lady herself, she walked back and forth in a corridor shaped like a "concave" for a whole hour, feeling like she was hitting a dead end. She couldn't find the elevator lobby that should have been right in the center. And another thing, the security guards in the office building have been reporting that the surveillance cameras have been mysteriously malfunctioning lately.

Not to mention the 44th floor, no matter how many times they reinstall it, it breaks down the next day. Even the cameras at the main entrance, elevators, and hallways often go out of order. They don't even need to call someone for repairs because, after a few minutes, they magically start working again. It's quite strange, isn't it?

Because of this, the property management suspects that the surveillance system has been hacked. To ensure security, they have even invited the security company that handles the monitoring equipment to inspect it twice. However, they've confidently assured everyone that their system had not been compromised by hackers. They believed that the occasional malfunctions were simply minor bugs caused by voltage or network issues.

But with the frequent occurrence of these bugs, anyone would feel that something is not quite right, right?

It is said that the security guards now have an unspoken agreement to avoid the 44th floor during their night patrols to ensure their safety.

After all that buildup, what I'm about to tell you is my terrifying experience from last night.

Last night, just like countless other nights, I was working overtuntil 10:30 pm before finally calling it a day and heading home.

It wasn't until I was almost at the train station that I realized I had forgotten to grab my apartment keys, so I hurriedly turned back to the office.

While waiting for the elevator, I encountered a stunning beauty!

That girl was probably in her early twenties, with long black hair tied up in a ponytail that reached almost to her waist. She had a beautiful face, fair skin, and a tall and slender figure. She looked like a classical beauty straight out of a painting.

Okay, I admit it, when I saw such a gorgeous girl, I couldn't control my heartbeat. My mind was filled with cheesy poems like "The distant mountains have long eyebrows and slender willow waists. When the makeup is done, the spring breeze will blow, and a smile will cost you a fortune." or "She looked back and smiled so charmingly that the other concubines in the palace were overshadowed."

But I just couldn't gather the courage to strike up a conversation with her.

Just then, with a "ding," the elevator doors opened.

The beauty stepped into the elevator and leaned against the left side.

At that moment, I suddenly realized that this might be the most important, and possibly the only, opportunity to strike up a conversation. Finally, the moment had arrived!

I took a deep breath and said, "Beauty, which floor are you going to?"

The beauty replied, "The 44th floor, thank you."

I admit that I was completely captivated by her beauty. My brain malfunctioned, and my IQ dropped. I didn't even notice what was wrong. I just eagerly pressed the "44" button for her.

The elevator slowly ascended.

It wasn't until this moment, that I suddenly woke up.

Damn, wasn't the "44" button long gone!?

Why did it suddenly appear again!?

After realizing this, I was instantly filled with fear, and I almost wet my pants on the spot.

I didn't even dare to turn around and confirm whether the stunning beauty standing behindhad a shadow or not.

For that minute inside the elevator, it was pure agony for me.

Finally, with another "ding" sound.

I looked up and realized that the elevator had reached the 44th floor.

The elevator doors slowly opened.

And then, I saw a sight that almost took my breath away.

Outside the door, there was another beauty standing there.

She had long, straight black hair tied up in a ponytail, fair skin, and red lips, radiating beauty that could captivate anyone.

Her beauty was breathtaking, meant to enchant souls. But here's the problem - her face was the sas the beauty who should have been standing next to me! Ahhhhh!

I saw the beauty outside the door givea slight smile and say, "You've arrived-"

.....

After that, I had no idea what happened next.

Yes, I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I fainted.

But, I'm certain that it was a female ghost! How else could she have used a clone technique!?

I'm Zhang Shan, the mountain of rocks.

T/N-Shan (L) means mountain (U) the word rocks (L) also have (L) thus he is saying he is a mountain made of rocks.

The above is a terrifying story that I experienced, and there's not a single word of falsehood. If anything I've said is a lie, may lightning strike me!

Please, everyone, you must believe me!

Ever since "Santuchuan" moved into the office building in the downtown business district, the "Haunted Floor" has rapidly gained attention in just two months. It even made it to the top of the intehot searches, becoming a potential new urban legend in Fengxing City. This is so awkward, I tell you.

On this day, while having breakfast, Wei Fuyuan opened a WeChat account he subscribed to, a metaphysical public account. He saw the headline "How Fierce Are the Ghosts on the Haunted Floor?" and almost choked on his tea.

"Wupu! Cough cough cough!"

He coughed and smacked his chest while glancing at his phone. With a quick scan, he tried to see what the article was all about.

This public account claims to have a background in Daoism, with several Daoist masters in charge. The original articles they publish analyzed problems from the perspective of feng shui and metaphysics. They even had a live reader Q&A section twice a week, where they remotely helped people with their troubles. It seemed pretty legitimate and like the real deal.

However, this time, the new article titled [How Fierce Are the Ghosts on the Haunted Floor?] felt like it was possessed by a late-night TV drama. From the title to the content, it was full of gimmicks that made people both criticize the editor's lack of integrity and secretly curious about what it said.

Wei Fuyuan had been following Bei Quan for a while and, being a diligent and inquisitive person himself, he had picked up sknowledge along the way.

So he could tell that the person who had written this article probably hadn't even set foot in the office building. They just relied on the appearance of the building on a certain map and concluded that "the feng shui of this building is improper and easily attracted evil spirits." Wei Fuyuan was really like "???".

The truth is, the reason he chose this "Fierce Ghost Haunted Floor" as the new location for "Santuchuan" was simply because the rent was much cheaper compared to similar buildings.

Although it's true that "cheap" often means there was probably something wrong in the housing rental market, like a haunted house or an accident-prone place.

But at that time, young Master Wei was thinking, even if a few people had died in that building, so what? This wasn't just an ordinary company. No matter how fierce the ghost in the red dress was, could it be fiercer than "Santuchuan," where "everyone inside is not human"!?

If it was just a figment of someone's imagination, then it was no big deal. But if that office building had sshady stuff going on, moving there could be a chance to "clean up" for free and do a good deed.

Besides, even though young Master Wei may be wealthy, he was not a foolish spendthrift. Getting a large company with a great location and work environment for one-third of the price, was there a better option than this?

At that time, Wei was feeling pretty optimistic and excited. After spending a whole day finalizing the new location for the company, he wholeheartedly focused on the more important task of finding a love nest.

He never even considered that "Santuchuan" was completely unsuitable for being in a bustling commercial building...

"Alright, alright, don't worry."

Seeing Wei Fuyuan choking on water, almost coughing up his lungs, Bei Quan stood up from the dining table and gently patted his back. "It seems like we'll have to move out of this office building."

Wei Fuyuan finally managed to stop coughing and spoke with difficulty. He lifted his head, staring at Bei Quan with watery eyes, full of resentment.

"Can't you just remove those formations you set up in the office building?"

Wei Fuyuan felt that the security of the office building was quite good. There were plenty of security guards, strict access control, and surveillance cameras everywhere. There was no need to set up so many confusing formations and turn the forty-fourth floor into a "disappearing floor."

However, Bei Quan smiled faintly and coldly retorted, "Do you think those security guards, access control, and surveillance cameras are useful against me?"

Wei Fuyuan suddenly found himself at a loss for words.

Bei Quan smiled again and asked, "But if one or two covetous and malicious spirits like 'Ah song' were to appear, could the security guards, access control, and surveillance cameras stop them?"

Wei Fuyuan: "..."

He had to admit that Bei Quan made a valid point.

Bei Quan continued, "Besides, if we remove the formations now, our "Santuchuan" will probably be invaded by meddlers in no time."

Wei Fuyuan: "..........."

He didn't even want to say a single word anymore.

"Don't worry, I still have that dangerous building in the alley."

Bei Quan reached out and hugged Wei Fuyuan's shoulder, pecking his cheek forcefully, and said with a smile:

"Next week, let's move back!"