Horror Movie Set: This extra is too good at playing the tricks.

Chapter 27 The "Clothes" Taken Off

Table World, Boys' Dormitory 501.

Bao Ping followed Li Mu and squeezed into the dormitory, his palms sweaty.

By the dim light filtering through the corridor, he could make out the furnishings in the room. There were four standard iron-framed beds, and three of the other beds were already occupied.

The three students lay flat on their backs, their hands folded over their stomachs, the blankets covering their chins, their breathing low and perfectly synchronized. If you didn't see their slightly rising and falling chests, you would really think you were in a morgue.

"Li Mu..."

Just as Bao Ping was about to say a few words to Li Mu, Li Mu suddenly collapsed onto the only empty bed.

Taking off shoes, getting into bed, covering oneself with the blanket, and closing one's eyes—the whole process takes less than 3 seconds, with no unnecessary movements.

Bao Ping swallowed, feeling a slight tingling sensation on his scalp.

"Students these days sleep so well!"

Bao Ping muttered something to himself to bolster his courage.

Now that everyone's asleep, it's time for him to get moving.

He tiptoed to Li Mu's bedside and scanned the surroundings. Under the pillow, nothing; under the blanket, nothing.

The gaze finally settled on the slightly yellowed thin mattress beneath Li Mu. One corner of the mattress was slightly raised, revealing the black bed frame underneath.

Bao Ping extended two fingers and carefully lifted a corner.

A crumpled piece of drawing paper lay there quietly.

Bao Ping pulled the painting out and examined it closely under the light from the doorway.

The art style is extremely abstract, with a background of chaotic black lines covered with countless gray geckos. These geckos have no eyes, only large, suction-cup-like mouths.

In the center of the gecko group, there was a bloated giant. This giant wore a Zhongshan suit and his entire body was covered with arms that thrashed wildly like tentacles. Even with terrible drawing skills, Bao Ping could recognize the distinctive head shape at a glance—wasn't that the headmaster?

In the corner of the image, a tiny figure in a security guard uniform lies on the ground, seemingly badly injured.

A dark, heavy shadow stretched out from beneath his feet, incongruously outlining a blood-red high heel.

Bao Ping's hand trembled slightly.

This Li Mu... seems to know everything.

......

The Otherworld, the dormitory lobby.

The air inside was even colder than outside, carrying a damp, fishy smell, as if you had stepped into a slaughterhouse that had just been washed.

Lu Dan dragged his crippled left leg, and with each step, his broken ribs rubbed against his chest. If it weren't for the "roommate" in his left ankle numbing his pain receptors, he would have already gone into shock.

Lu Dan looked up, and the beam of his flashlight pierced the darkness, illuminating the hall before him.

All the previous dark figures had disappeared, and the place was now covered with "clothes".

Countless thin red ropes hung from the high ceiling of the hall, each rope holding a complete human skin.

These hides were incredibly perfect, complete with hands and feet, and even the facial features were clearly visible. They swayed gently in the breeze, like flesh-colored trench coats waiting to be worn, making a soft "pat-pat" sound.

What's even more terrifying is that all of these skinned creatures have a perfect smile with the corners of their mouths turned up at a 45-degree angle.

"So hygienic, hanging so many clothes out to dry." Lu Dan muttered, forcibly suppressing the churning in his stomach.

He must traverse this "forest of human skin" to find clues.

The beam of the flashlight swept across a small door on the right side of the hall, with a wooden sign hanging on it: Dormitory Manager's Duty Room.

Strangely, the eerie ghostly aura around the door seemed to encounter some taboo and automatically detoured when it approached. The square meter of cement floor in front of the door was spotless, without a single speck of dust.

Safe house, or a deeper trap?

Lu Dan carefully pushed open the door, and a faint smell of ink wafted into his nose.

The room was simply furnished, a stark contrast to the bizarre and bloody world outside. A single bed with clean white sheets; a desk; a chair. Nothing else.

Lu Dan scanned the area with his flashlight and, after confirming there was no danger, practically collapsed into his chair.

He was panting heavily as he pulled open the desk drawer with his right hand. Inside lay a thick, black notebook—the Chengde Middle School dormitory registration form.

Lu Dan opened the notebook; the paper was dry and somewhat brittle. His fingertips traced over the densely packed names, finally stopping at two:

[Room 501, Male Students, Li Mu]

[Girls' Room 304, Su Ke]

After Su Ke's name, someone drew a heavy circle in red pen and added a very small note: "Perfect body size, awaiting suturing."

Lu Dan's pupils suddenly contracted.

It's Su Ke again!

The name appears far too frequently, from half a love letter to annotations on a registration form; all the clues are like a giant vortex, swirling around this girl who wants to become the wind.

You need to go to 304 first.

Lu Dan closed his notebook, leaned on the table to stand up, glanced at the stopped clock on the wall, and pushed open the door to re-enter the forest covered with human skins.

......

The world outside, girls' dormitory 304.

The atmosphere in the room was somewhat awkward.

Su Ke was fast asleep, breathing evenly, like a porcelain doll. Lin Xiaoxiao sat on the edge of the bed, her eyes warily fixed on the doorway, pondering the meaning of the words on the paper.

"Teacher Lin, how is Uncle doing?"

Zhang Kai lowered his voice and casually picked up a small round mirror from the table to play with.

"You should worry about yourself instead." Lin Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes at him, annoyed. "When the dorm supervisor does room checks and sees you, a boy, in the girls' dorm, you can expect to be stuffed into the septic tank."

"I'm not afraid. I'd go through fire and water to protect Su Ke!" Zhang Kai joked, then idly raised a small mirror in his hand and looked at himself behind him.

The mirror reflected a faint light, illuminating the entire dormitory.

Zhang Kai's gaze casually swept across the mirror, then suddenly he froze.

"Teacher Lin... Teacher Lin..." Zhang Kai's voice trembled, as if he had a fishbone stuck in his throat.

"What is it now?" Lin Xiaoxiao turned her head impatiently.

Zhang Kai was still facing away from the bed, but the mirror in his hand was fixed on Su Ke. His face was deathly pale, and his eyes were wide open, staring intently at the mirror.

"Look...in the mirror..."

Lin Xiaoxiao's heart skipped a beat, and she leaned closer to look at the mirror.

The mirror did not reflect a cozy dormitory.

In the mirror's reflection, Su Ke's bed was empty, with only a rumpled quilt. Above the bed hung a red rope, on which hung a complete human skin, swaying slightly.

The human skin had the exact same face and the same long hair as Su Ke. Its head was lowered, its empty eye sockets staring at the sleeping Su Ke below, and its thin lips seemed to be opening and closing in a smile.

Lin Xiaoxiao turned sharply to look at the bed. Su Ke was still sleeping peacefully, and there was nothing on the ceiling. Looking in the mirror, she saw the human skin slowly drooping down, the empty arm almost touching Su Ke's cheek.

"This is her skin..."

Zhang Kai's hands trembled violently, and the mirror almost slipped from his grasp.

Is Su Ke really the one living here?

"Don't make a sound."

Lin Xiaoxiao grabbed Zhang Kai's hand, cold sweat beading on her forehead.

"Thump...thump...thump..."

Every step felt like stepping on the hearts of the two of them.

Someone is coming.