The open door revealed nothing but pitch-black darkness inside—no light at all, but also no ghost emerging from it.
Seeing Chen Mo safely open one of the doors, Li Yan then walked to another door and cautiously pushed it open.
Yet inside that other door was also a dark space.
In other words, whether inside or outside, the two red doors were no different from each other.
Where was the hint from the mirror maze?
If anything was the most suspicious presence right now, it was the little girl standing before everyone. But even if the hint was on her, who would dare to casually touch this obviously ghostly little loli?
A few minutes later...
Should he take a gamble?
Chen Mo's gaze fell eagerly on one of the doors before him.
Between the two doors, at least one should be the real exit—a fifty percent chance.
Just as Chen Mo was hesitating, a casual glance made a flicker of confusion cross his face.
A mirror beside him reflected his figure and the image of the blood-red door. For a moment, he felt like something had moved, but when he looked closely, there was nothing unusual.
What's going on?
Chen Mo was by no means careless. In this supernatural world, even the slightest oddity could become a fatal trap.
For some reason, the dark space before him suddenly gave him an intense sense of danger.
Just as he was about to close the door again, a glance finally revealed the anomaly.
The darkness inside the room, almost tangible, was slowly flowing out of the door like water spreading across the floor, forming a black claw that had somehow grabbed his left foot.
Not good!
Chen Mo's heart jolted. He finally realized what had felt off earlier. The dark shadow he'd seen in the mirror, he'd mistaken for his own silhouette cast by the light, but he hadn't moved—yet the "shadow" had shifted on the ground.
No.
The dark space inside the door was definitely not the exit!
Suddenly, an eerie force yanked at him, pulling him toward the door.
I never thought I'd let my guard down...
Just as this thought flashed through Chen Mo's mind, a tremendous force suddenly grabbed him around the waist. Turning his head, he saw it was Fatty, his mountain-like body anchoring him like a thousand-pound weight.
Chen Mo stopped struggling and shouted at Fatty, "Watch out for the shadow on the ground!"
"What?" Fatty was startled, then noticed a dark patch like a shadow writhing toward him.
"What the hell! Is this ghost a Naruto character?" Fatty yelped, unsure whether to let go of Chen Mo.
What to do?
Feeling the increasingly powerful supernatural force dragging him toward the door, Chen Mo's heart sank to the bottom.
He still had no clue.
Opening the door triggered a supernatural attack. All signs pointed to the escape hint for the mirror maze ride having been given already—they just hadn't found it yet.
What clues were there now?
A bouncing ball, a ghostly loli chasing it, a blood-red door blocking the ball.
Every detail replayed in his mind.
The ghost loli chased the red ball, and the red ball led them, the participants, to the blood-red door. At that moment, the door was closed, so the ball stopped in front of it.
If the ball hadn't been blocked, what would have happened?
It would have entered the door.
And when the ball entered the door...
I've got it! Chen Mo shouted inwardly.
The ball, the girl, the door—they were all hints. But the space inside the door wasn't meant for participants to enter.
It was meant for the ghost to enter!
So the way to pass the mirror maze was...
Just as Chen Mo realized this, a hand reached out from beside him and picked up the ball from the ground.
Thump!
The red ball was thrown forcefully into the door!
It was Li Yan!
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The red ball bounced inside the dark space, and at the same time, giggles, giggles—a girl's laughter suddenly sounded behind them.
"Little ball, kick it high, flowers bloom all over the sky, two-five-six, two-five-seven, two-eight-two-nine-thirty-one..."
A flash of white, and the mysterious ghost loli, true to form, chased the ball into the pitch-black door. As her form fully entered the space, bang—the blood-red door slammed shut on its own.
With the door closed, the twisted shadow on the ground quickly retracted into it, and the oppressive, eerie coldness around them faded away.
At the same time, the other blood-red door gradually vanished like an illusion.
"That ghost loli was indeed the source of the supernatural power in the maze. The red ball and the blood-red door were probably remnants of her memory."
"But in this horror story, those once-happy memories have twisted into nightmares."
"Let's go. This time, let's see what hints the door gives us."
As if knowing what he'd find, Li Yan walked to the door and opened it again.
Inside the red door was no longer a terrifying dark space, but a cozy children's room—a pretty little bed, shelves of toys, and a cute little girl.
"Little ball, kick it high, flowers bloom all over the sky, two-five-six, two-five-seven, two-eight-two-nine-thirty-one..."
In her childish voice, the red ball bounced cheerfully. But suddenly, a loud roar from the next room shattered the warm scene.
Arguments, crashes—like a storm descending. The little girl covered her ears, curled up in a corner of the room, staring unblinkingly at the red ball as if it were a haven from reality.
Bang! The door burst open. Her mother roughly grabbed the little girl's arm, a suitcase in her other hand.
"We're leaving!"
"Remember, don't call that man 'Dad'! You don't have a father!"
The little girl pitifully glanced at the red ball left in the corner, like a helpless lamb being dragged away. In the distance, a man's furious roar echoed.
Roll, roll, roll—the red ball rolled to Chen Mo's feet. The scene before him peeled away like old wallpaper, the room vanished, and the image returned to the amusement park.
It was dark. The park had long closed its gates. Not a single visitor remained in the cold, empty grounds, but on a swaying swing set, a small figure sat.
The little girl sat on the swing, creak, creak, slowly rocking back and forth.
No one wanted her anymore.
First, she lost her father. Then, her mother disappeared too.
A single crystal tear fell from the little girl's red eyes.
"Mommy, I'll be good. I won't be naughty anymore, I won't beg for toys..."
"Mommy, I'm so scared. Why haven't you come to get me..."
Plop, plop—more and more tears fell like broken pearls, soaking her pretty white dress.
Just then, a beam of flashlight suddenly landed on the little girl's frightened face.
"Little girl, what's wrong?"
"Where are your mommy and daddy?"
The harsh glare of the flashlight kept her from seeing who it was, but Chen Mo and Li Yan could see—the person wore a night patrol uniform from the amusement park.