Mysterious Revival

Yang Jian originally only planned to pick up a phone to satisfy the headquarters' arrangement and then head back to Dachang City. He had never considered dealing with any paranormal incidents. Although he was slightly more skilled than other ghost controllers, he also didn't want to deal with ghosts all the time.

Therefore, he was thinking about how to be lazy, skip work, and clock out as soon as possible.

But who would have thought that while catching a pickpocket on the bus, he assumed that such a trivial matter could be easily resolved? However, when he realized something was off, he discovered that there was something unusual about this bus.

At first, the bus was operating normally, making stops at several stations along the way and picking up passengers. But later, there was something wrong with the bus. Its route had been changed, and it hadn't stopped at any station for over ten minutes. What's more, the direction it was taking was off. By this time, it had already left Xiaochun City proper.

"Although there are some eerie aspects right now, they're not so bad as to put me in danger. Let's just keep it this way for now."

Although Yang Jian was in a bad mood when he encountered this kind of situation, his experience in dealing with special events reminded him.

Never mess around when you encounter something off. Calm down, find a place to sit, and smoke a cigarette to think things through, which is better than getting emotional and yelling.

Of course, most people can't stay calm in the face of danger.

Yang Jian checked the time.

6:20 PM.

But since the days are longer in summer, it wasn't considered nighttime yet, as there was still sunlight outside. It's just that the bus had already driven to the outskirts, with mountainous areas blocking the view, giving the illusion that the surrounding sky was rapidly dimming.

It was the rapid change in the light and environment outside the window that alerted him to the oddness.

"Should I check to see if it's really a paranormal incident or just jump out the window and leave?" Yang Jian was now faced with two options.

Although he was 80% sure that this was the beginning of a paranormal event, everything inside the bus still seemed normal. Maybe the driver had simply taken the wrong route.

"Just jump out the window and leave. I don't want to get involved in this," Yang Jian didn't think twice and immediately made a decision.

Whatever the situation, whether it's dangerous or a misunderstanding, he would leave first and ask questions later.

Yang Jian immediately reached out to open the window next to him, preparing to jump out and leave. With his current capabilities, even if he jumped from the tenth floor, as long as he didn't hit his head, he would be fine, let alone jumping from a bus.

"The window won't open?"

However, the next moment, as he tried to push open a glass window on the bus, he found that it was stuck and simply wouldn't budge.

He tried again, using more force, but it still wouldn't open.

The glass window remained sealed shut, immovable, as if it were stronger than steel.

"With my current strength, I should be able to easily shatter tempered glass. How can this window not react at all?" Yang Jian's expression changed subtly.

Since he couldn't break the window, he had to use Ghost Domain.

He placed his palm on the glass window, and his palm split open, revealing a ghost eye that emitted red light.

However, the red light of the Ghost Domain couldn't spread outside; it was blocked by the carriage. It was as if the outside world and the inside of the bus were in two different realms. Even the Ghost Domain couldn't cross this boundary. The seemingly normal bus only began to reveal its eeriness after some probing.

"What in the world is this? It's one thing not to be able to open the door, but to have even the Ghost Domain blocked..." Yang Jian furrowed his brows deeply.

He now believed that Xu Feng, the missing ghost controller from Xiaochun City, most likely met his end on this bus. His satellite-located phone wasn't picked up by someone; it probably fell somewhere on this bus.

It was just his bad luck to want to help retrieve the phone but ending up on this strange bus by mistake.

At this moment, the five young men and women sitting nearby were still unaware of what was happening around them. They were discussing ghost stories, taking turns telling them, and having a great time. But an argument broke out—the backpack-clad young man and a girl believed in ghosts, while the other three did not, leading to a dispute.

"Hey, buddy, I have a question for you. Do you think there really are ghosts in this world? Don't tell me you don't know about the incidents in Dachang City. I believe it's haunted, but they say it's not," the backpack-clad young man asked Yang Jian, the stranger.

Yang Jian slightly lifted his head and glanced at him: "What's your name?"

"I'm Zhang Haw," the backpack-clad young man said with a laugh, his demeanor quite amiable.

"Zhang Haw, we just voted three against two, and you lost. There are no ghosts in this world, so how could you still be trying to get votes?" a girl next to him said.

Zhang Haw chuckled: "You didn't say we couldn't count the other people on the bus. Buddy, back me up, will you? Otherwise, we lost, and we'll have to treat everyone to dinner later."

Yang Jian didn't answer but looked at them and said, "Before discussing whether ghosts exist or not, I have a question for you. Are you afraid of ghosts?"

"Of course... Not afraid. Ghosts? What are they? If I really come across one, I'll take them down with a punch. I don't believe my twenty-two years of Virgin Boy Power will be afraid of those things," Zhang Haw said with great confidence.

I really don't know where that confidence of his comes from.

Yang Jian gave him a thumbs-up and sighed with admiration, "Big brother, you're truly a brave man. Just for that statement alone, I have immense respect for you. I can't do it. I'm terribly afraid of ghosts. Like right now, I may seem composed, but my heart is actually in turmoil. If it weren't for you guys breathing around me, I'd even doubt whether the people sitting next to me are really humans."

Right now, he couldn't even be sure if there was something wrong with the more than twenty people on the bus.

However, Yang Jian had seen these five people get on the bus and talk non-stop. They should be fine among this group of people on the bus.

"Why would you say that?" Zhang Haw was puzzled.

Yang Jian said, "Haven't you guys noticed anything unusual after riding for half an hour? I'm a foreigner and don't know the roads here, but could it be that the buses in Xiaochun City all head to the suburbs?"

He pointed outside the window.

"The route was changed recently, the road ahead is under construction, and the route has been altered to this direction. It's correct," Zhang Haw looked out and didn't seem particularly surprised.

"?" Upon hearing this, it was Yang Jian's turn to feel puzzled.

There's no problem with the route?

How is that possible? If the route is fine, then why can't the windows of this bus be opened? Could it be that I am physically weak?

"Dammit, the driver has taken the wrong route. I just remembered, the city roads were repaired a while ago, and the route had changed back five days ago. No wonder something has felt off. Zhang Haw, you really are blind. How could you not realize we've been on the wrong route for so long?" Another boy reacted.

"What do we do now?" A girl was taken aback.

"I'll ask the driver to see if we can get back on the right route," Zhang Haw quickly stood up, his interest in ghost stories gone completely.

If we keep going like this, who knows when we'll get off the bus.

"You better be careful," Yang Jian warned.

Be careful?

Zhang Haw glanced at Yang Jian, "What do you mean by 'be careful'?"

"Nothing much, just taking the words at face value. It might be dangerous to go ask the driver directly, though I'm not sure. I'd suggest you call out a few times and try that," Yang Jian said.

"Could it be that the driver is a criminal and he's hijacked us?" a girl next to him asked, somewhat frightened.

"What are you thinking? With so many people, he wouldn't dare to hijack us alone. Don't worry, I'll go and inquire about the situation," Zhang Haw said.

Seeing him like this, Yang Jian didn't urge any further. It would be good for him to check out the situation, to test the waters.

There's always one who sticks his neck out first, right?

Yang Jian didn't think much of it at first, but after hearing what he said, Zhang Haw felt strangely scared.

Could it be that someone really has hijacked the bus?

Yet, Zhang Haw still walked over, but as he reached the middle of the bus, an elderly grandmother sitting beside him suddenly stretched out her wrinkled hand and grabbed him.

He turned to look.

But he saw the old lady smile, "Young man, just sit down and relax for now. You can get off at the next stop. There's no need to ask the driver to change routes."

"Why?" Zhang Haw asked, puzzled.

Yang Jian's eyebrows twitched as he fixed his gaze on the old woman.

"I'm old and it's not easy for me to get around. This bus happens to pass right by my village, and I want to get home earlier," the old lady said.

"Then... okay," Zhang Haw thought for a moment and decided not to press the issue of changing the route.

The old lady seemed to notice Yang Jian was looking at her. She turned her head and gave him an embarrassed smile before turning away.