The Terror Train

Chapter 7: Meeting New People

Frank turned his head in slight surprise， and then， he saw a pair of terrifying， glowing green eyes， like copper bells.

　　From the nostrils below， two streams of air were being expelled， which had just brushed against the skin on the back of his neck， making him aware of their presence.“Ah—” He suddenly let out a heart-wrenching， pitiful scream.

　　Ajex， Chris， and the others were slowly exploring towards the thicket a hundred meters away. The quagmire was too terrifying; no one dared to take it lightly. The man in his thirties who had been trapped in the quagmire was grateful to Ajex and the pretty girl for devising the method of using clothes and belts to form a rope， which saved him.

　　He wanted to get closer to Ajex and the girl， so he asked for their names and introduced himself as Bob Williams. Everyone reported their names in turn. The group was familiar with Bob， recalling the scene where Emily had given cookies to his child.

　　Chris interjected，“Your son is very cute.” Hearing his son mentioned， Bob nodded and smiled， then sighed softly. The smile was because having a son made him feel blessed， but the sigh was due to the current situation; no one knew what would come next， especially since his child was still too young to protect himself.

　　“By the way， is the girl who gave the cookies a friend of yours?” Bob suddenly remembered Emily standing next to Ajex and the others.

　　“Yeah， her name is Emily. She’s a novel enthusiast and a friend of ours. Oh， and her relationship with Ajex is a bit… you know， hehe，” Henry said with a sly grin.

　　Bob immediately looked at Ajex. Ajex， seeing everyone looking at him， shook his head helplessly， exasperated by Henry’s blabbermouth. The 22 or 23-year-old girl， who was very charming， generously introduced herself as Fang Xinyi after hearing Ajex and Bob state their names. Henry’s eyes lit up， and he said cheerfully，“Fang Xinyi， what a nice name， and you’re from the same place as me.

　　My name is Henry. Everyone， don’t we look alike?” The implication of his words was clear， and Fang Xinyi rolled her eyes at him， not responding.

　　Bob smiled and said，“We do look alike.” Fang Xinyi immediately rolled her eyes at Bob too， clearly unhappy with being compared to Henry.

　　Suddenly she said，“Hey， Bob， your wife and son are both very beautiful， tsk tsk，” while sizing up Bob. Bob was taken aback by Fang Xinyi’s words， then laughed heartily， saying，“So I’m the only ugly one， right? Haha.”

　　Reminded by Fang Xinyi， everyone recalled that Bob’s wife was indeed beautiful， and his son was also clean and cute. However， Bob had dark skin， small eyes， and a big mouth; in terms of looks， he was indeed considered unattractive.“That reminds me… it seems like… hehe， Brother Gu， you’re really something. Do you have some secret trick? Teach us， brothers，” Henry chuckled. Bob wasn’t handsome and didn’t seem wealthy based on his attire， yet he had married such a beautiful wife， which Henry found quite admirable.

　　Bob smiled and said，“You might not believe it， but I come from the countryside. I used to work for a courier company on Ming Island， just delivering packages. You could say I was poor and had nothing. My wife Ada was a doctor at the Ming Island City Hospital， a permanent employee， and her father was the hospital director. There was quite a gap between us.”

　　Many people looked at him as James exclaimed in shock，“No way， how did you two… how did you two get together?” Bob laughed，“My wife used to run a small online store in her spare time and often called me to deliver packages. We got to know each other over time and hit it off. Eventually， we got together.”

　　He sighed，“Her family was fiercely opposed when they found out. For my sake， my wife gave up her job at the hospital and left her parents’ home to work with me in Jibei.”

　　Ajex and the others were stunned， thinking about how Bob， with no power or status and ordinary looks， had a wife like Ada who was willing to give up such a good family and job for him. What did that say?

　　After a moment， Henry murmured，“Damn， that’s love. Today I finally saw what love is. Now you all know， there is true love in this world.”“By the way， now that your child is two or three years old， do your wife’s parents still oppose?” Chris inquired.

　　Ajex couldn’t help but think that they were all aboard the train to Ming Island. Bob’s wife， Ada， had parents living there， and it seemed that relations between the families were finally easing.

　　Bob’s face lit up with a smile.“Her father used to think that her marrying me brought shame to their prestigious family. He staunchly refused to acknowledge it. But her mother， well， she’s a different story. This time， it was her mother who called us， inviting us to spend the Lunar New Year with them. I suppose… her parents have come around，” he chuckled.

　　Chris sighed， gazing at Isabella， his own love interest.“A love story that bears fruit—proof that true love exists beyond material wealth， power， and other worldly concerns.”

　　The others looked on， their eyes filled with envy.

　　Ajex smiled.“Girls like her are indeed rare these days.”

　　Fiona， a former weightlifting champion， scoffed.“Rare? There are plenty of good women out there. It’s just that you men don’t know how to appreciate them. You all assume women are only after money and status.”

　　Henry grinned.“And are you one of those‘good’ girls?”

　　Fiona shot him a glare.“Why not…”

　　But before she could finish， a chilling scream pierced the air from somewhere behind them. Everyone jumped， and even Fiona’s tough exterior faltered. They turned， expecting to see the source of the scream， but there was nothing.

　　“Was that the young man from earlier?” Henry blurted out.

　　Indeed， it was the same terrified young man who had cried earlier. He had walked away alone， presumably heading back to the station. But how could such a blood-curdling scream follow? Had he stumbled into a treacherous mud pit again?

　　The group exchanged uneasy glances. After the scream， an eerie silence settled， no more cries for help.

　　“What should we do? Go back and check?” Henry asked.

　　Chris pondered.“What do you all think? Investigate or leave it be?”

　　Bob spoke up.“We can’t ignore it. He screamed like that; he might be in danger. We can’t just let him die.”

　　“Timid little guy…” muttered Fiona， unimpressed by the young man’s fear.

　　Fiona， built like a fortress， stepped forward.“A life is at stake. Let’s go see.”

　　The majority nodded; it was a matter of life and death.

　　Chris gestured.“Let’s go， then.”

　　Ajex， silent， marked their current location. They had already explored this area; no mud pits lay ahead—just solid ground. The group sprinted toward the direction of the scream.

　　Thankfully， this path was mud-free， allowing them to run freely.

　　Soon， they arrived at a spot covered in thick water grass. Frank， the young man， lay half-naked amidst the grass. Blood surrounded him; his throat had been torn open， a gaping wound from which blood flowed freely.

　　Bob checked his pulse and breath.“He’s gone.”

　　Frank’s twisted， wide-eyed expression told them what they already suspected: he was dead.

　　The weight of it settled on each person’s heart.

　　Fiona and the other woman， Fiona， averted their eyes from Frank’s half-naked form.“Who could have killed him?” Fiona wondered aloud.

　　Ajex took a deep breath， catching a faint whiff of blood.“A large creature， monstrous. It bit him.”

　　Chris suddenly exclaimed，“Goblins! It must be goblins!”

　　The group tightened their grip on their daggers.

　　“Perhaps the goblin hasn’t gone far，” Ethan shrieked， fear etched on his face.

　　Despite their numbers， the chill of dread hung in the air.

　　Almost simultaneously， something shifted—a sinister change that would alter their fate forever