A cluster of houses indeed appeared in the mountain hollow ahead, with wisps of cooking smoke rising through the thin mist. As they approached the village entrance, the group noticed that this village, called Gulou Village, though small, was not as dilapidated as they had imagined. Dozens of households were scattered along the slopes on both sides, all uniformly built from black wooden structures, giving it a very distinctive look—perhaps the village's name originated from this.
If not for being hidden away in this isolated mountain hollow, such a village would surely have been developed into a unique tourist attraction.
Of course, that was impossible, because here... ultimately, it was just a scene within a ghost story.
This time, the fourth production team had six people selected, which fit the typical scale of five to ten participants in an ordinary horror story. The six were Fang Sitian, Qian Zhengda, Guan Xian, Chen Nian, Lin Yang, and Li Chenyin.
Among them, Fang Sitian, Guan Xian, and Li Chenyin were newcomers who had just completed their novice scripts and were participating in their first official mission. Chen Nian and Qian Zhengda had only cleared one ordinary task each. Only Lin Yang, who had completed two horror stories, was considered a quasi-veteran.
This reflected the grim situation of the fourth production team: most members were inexperienced newcomers with no powerful exorcism tools at their disposal. Thus, for this "Deserted Village Ghost Marriage," the challenges ahead were extremely daunting.
As the saying goes, "Mountains may appear close, but they exhaust the horse." Outside this village with no road access, they walked for quite a while before reaching the entrance. Just then, a wailing cry of grief suddenly erupted from the center of the village. As everyone exchanged bewildered glances, it was followed by the sounds of gongs and drums and the piercing notes of suonas.
Leading the group was Lin Yang, the most experienced among them in this mission. By profession, he was an accountant who had encountered a supernatural event while working overtime with colleagues. Only he had escaped, eventually being drawn into the radio station.
Hearing the clamor of gongs and drums, Lin Yang immediately stopped, listened intently for a moment, and then a puzzled expression crossed his face. "It sounds like someone in the village has died, and they're holding a funeral."
"Someone died in the village?" At Lin Yang's words, Qian Zhengda and Chen Nian's faces tensed with anxiety. As participants, their nerves were razor-sharp. They hadn't even officially entered the village, and someone had already died?
"Are you sure?"
"My hometown is in the countryside; I can't be wrong." Lin Yang frowned in reply, inwardly cursing the bad luck.
The group immediately halted and stepped to the roadside. The sound of suonas from the village grew louder, and soon the funeral procession emerged. At the front were two middle-aged men holding high spirit banners—essentially lanterns made of white paper—followed by someone scattering paper money. In the middle was a black coffin carried by four people, with a white character for "funeral" on a black background pasted on it. At the rear were a few suona players, their mournful tunes wavering intermittently and weakly.
Encountering a funeral while escorting a bride was considered highly inauspicious—not only disheartening but deeply unsettling. After the funeral procession passed, the group finally entered the village before dark, only to find many villagers gathered at the entrance, curiously watching the bridal escort. Murmurs and pointed comments drifted over, though faint, Lin Yang and the others caught phrases like, "Who would marry here if not for the money?"
For the participants, though they knew this was part of the story's backdrop, being the subject of gossip was still unpleasant. Guan Xian's brows furrowed sharply, as if she was about to snap, but Chen Nian tugged at her and gently shook his head, signaling her not to act rashly.
"How annoying! These gossiping women—what business is it of theirs if someone's getting married? If they have time to chatter, they should keep a closer eye on their own men."
"Alright, miss, just keep quiet. We're... in a horror story here!"
Guan Xian snorted, her face darkening as she fell silent, inwardly seething with frustration. She came from a wealthy family and had rarely faced any troubles growing up. Being caught in a supernatural event and dragged into this eerie radio station was bad enough, but being assigned to this obviously harsh mountain village was utterly infuriating and stifling.
Unlike Guan Xian's scowling demeanor, Chen Nian wore a worried, downtrodden expression. Unlike her privileged background, he was just a nightclub security guard, accustomed to kowtowing to others in real life, and in missions, he was even more cautious and timid.
As the group stepped into the village entrance, another group of people, who seemed to have been waiting there for some time, approached with beaming faces. They stuffed a red envelope into Lin Yang's hand while uttering auspicious words. At that moment, detailed information about the mission surfaced in the participants' minds. From these details, they learned that these people were from the groom's side—a prominent family surnamed Wu.
Escorting a bride in the evening was already strange, but according to Gulou Village's marriage customs, after the bride was brought into the village, the wedding couldn't proceed immediately. They had to wait for an auspicious time. Until then, the bride and her escorts were to be housed in the village's only inn.
This so-called inn was actually a very old courtyard, built from the same black wooden structures as the other buildings, painted a deep black, with large red lanterns hanging in the inner courtyard. By now, it was dark, and the lanterns along the corridor had been lit in advance. The group noticed that Gulou Village seemed to lack electricity, relying on kerosene lamps and candles for light.
After settling the bridal escort, the Wu family and the assisting villagers withdrew one by one. Chen Nian then noticed one of the Wu family members pulling Lin Yang aside, seemingly giving him some additional instructions. He saw Lin Yang nod in response.
As the others left, the vast black building was suddenly left with only the six participants. Fang Sitian, who had been barely containing herself, finally lifted the carriage curtain and stepped out, looking around curiously.
The black ancient building, the flickering red lanterns, and the stone water tank in the center of the courtyard—everything felt both novel and terrifying to her, a city dweller.
Though everyone was exhausted, no one dared to truly relax in this unfamiliar mountain village. Lin Yang looked around, found a room with long benches, and called everyone inside. He lit the kerosene lamp on the table, checked the doors and windows, and then spoke slowly.
"About this mission, let's all share our thoughts. What do you think?"