Chapter 1

A faint mist started to float in the pitch-dark night, permeating the cold air as if the whole world was enveloped in a haze.

An SUV sped along the road, breaking through the dense fog and racing ahead with such velocity it seemed as if it was being chased by a torrential beast.

In such a deep night and on a quiet roadside, a Long-haired Woman in white stood. Her features were unclear in the darkness; she stood straight, her arm extended and waving in the air as if trying to hitch a ride from the passing SUV.

Vroom-

The SUV sped past, bringing with it a gust of chilling wind.

Not only did the vehicle not stop, but it seemed to speed up even more and soon disappeared into the thick fog.

…

Twenty minutes later, the same SUV once again spotted the Long-haired Woman by the roadside, still in the same position, her arm extended and waving as if summoning spirits.

This time the vehicle went even faster, leaving behind a trail of exhaust with a loud vroom.

…

Another twenty minutes passed, and upon seeing the Long-haired Woman again, the SUV abruptly screeched to a halt and made a sharp U-turn, decisively speeding away!

Through the rearview mirror, one could almost see the Long-haired Woman’s deep white teeth and her strange smile, matched with the eerie fog, sending shivers down one’s spine.

…

The atmosphere inside the vehicle was clearly tense.

Jiang Long, sitting in the passenger seat, looked towards the back, but the Long-haired Woman was no longer visible. The road was getting stranger by the minute; not a single vehicle was in sight, neither ahead nor behind, and further on was only thick fog, obscuring everything. This highway led to City A and was usually bustling. He had driven it several times and had never encountered such quiet emptiness; it seemed as though they were the only car left in the world.

He said nervously, “Heng-Ge¹, we should have lost her by now, right?”

Bi Heng, driving, looked stiffly at the rearview mirror and replied, “I don’t know.”

Jiang Long turned away, anxiously adding, “We haven’t seen another car all this way, what do we do, what do we do?! Are we going to die…”

They had encountered the woman five times already. They had been driving for over an hour, which should have been enough to reach their destination, yet not only had they not arrived, but they also kept returning to the same spot and once again seeing that eerie Long-haired Woman trying to hitch a ride.

The first time they saw that woman, neither Bi Heng nor Jiang Long thought much of it. In such a desolate area with not a house in sight, a woman flagging down cars was not someone wise folks would stop for. Besides, neither Bi Heng nor Jiang Long were the charitable type, nor did they like to meddle in others’ affairs, so they naturally ignored her.

What they hadn’t expected was to encounter her again. When Jiang Long saw the woman the second time, he didn’t realize it was the same one. He joked, “Heng-Ge, your charm is unstoppable! People want to hitch a ride with you even in the dead of night. Why don’t you do a good deed and help her out? It’s not like it’s out of your way anyway.”

Bi Heng didn’t respond, but he gripped the steering wheel a bit tighter and sped past her.

By the third encounter, even the usually oblivious Jiang Long sensed something was amiss. The woman flagging down cars was exactly the same as the first two!

This realization sent shivers down his spine and goosebumps all over his body, leaving him utterly confused.

Of course, Bi Heng was not much better off. Being more observant, he had already sensed something odd about the strange woman during their second encounter. He was also shocked and couldn’t understand how the woman had gotten ahead of them. Looking at the unfamiliar yet somewhat familiar surroundings, he made a snap decision and stepped on the gas, speeding past… But not long after, they saw the woman again!

He floored the accelerator, but no matter how fast they went, after a while, they would see that strange long-haired woman standing by the roadside, waving at them.

At that point, Bi Heng guessed that they might be experiencing the phenomenon known as the Ghost Wall².

By the fifth time, when he saw the Long-haired Woman again, he made a sharp U-turn and drove in the opposite direction, refusing to believe that they would end up back where they started.

Jiang Long was nearly in tears, because the car was bouncing wildly due to the high speed, and he had to buckle his seatbelt. He pulled out his phone to call for help, but this only led to more despair. “Heng-Ge, what do we do, what do we do? There’s no signal! I can’t make any calls!”

Bi Heng clenched his teeth and grunted, “I know.” He had already tried during their second odd encounter.

Jiang Long said, “Heng-Ge, could it be that we’ve encountered…”

Bi Heng’s face turned ashen. “Don’t talk nonsense, there are no ghosts in this world. Don’t scare yourself. I think we might have accidentally hit a peculiar magnetic field.”

Jiang Long widened his eyes, hopeful, “A peculiar magnetic field that creates strange women?”

Bi Heng gritted his teeth without daring to stop the car, let alone slow down. He pressed hard on the accelerator, desperate to escape this cursed place.

Jiang Long felt the same way, fearing that stopping would be the end of them.

Suddenly, he screamed, “Oh no, no, no!”

Bi Heng shuddered and glared at Jiang Long, “What are you yelling for? Calm down.”

“How can I calm down?” Jiang Long replied in panic. “We’re running out of gas! The car is almost out of fuel!”

Bi Heng’s heart sank.

It seemed like the umpteenth time they had encountered the Long-haired Woman. She was still beckoning tirelessly, her face adorned with that eerie smile that sent chills down one’s spine without even trying.

Clutching himself in fear, Jiang Long suggested, “Heng-Ge, maybe we should give her a ride. We’ve been going in circles and she hasn’t done anything else. Maybe she doesn’t mean to harm us. Considering we’ve helped her, perhaps she’ll spare our lives. Otherwise, when we run out of gas, we won’t be able to escape. What if she gets angry and kills us?”

Bi Heng gave Jiang Long a disdainful look as they drove past the Long-haired Woman again. After traveling some distance and losing sight of her, he pulled over to the side of the road.

Agitated, Bi Heng raked his fingers through his hair, regretting his decision to drive at night. “We don’t even know what that woman wants. Approaching her blindly is a sure way to a mysterious death!”

Fiddling with his phone, he attempted to seek help, but alas, there was no signal. He even tried to dial 911, but to no avail. They were utterly helpless, calling to heaven and earth in vain.

“We left after midnight, and since encountering that woman, we’ve been driving for about two and a half hours. In another two or three hours, it’ll be daylight. Don’t all these creatures fear the sun? If we can just hold out for another couple of hours, we should be safe,” Bi Heng calculated. If the Long-haired Woman was still waiting there, they would wait on this side. Just surviving these few hours should be enough.

But despite his words, Jiang Long did not respond. Bi Heng frowned and turned towards him, only to find Jiang Long gripping the seatbelt, his face filled with terror as he stared ahead as if seeing some horrifying sight!

Bi Heng’s heart skipped a beat as he turned to look, and there she was-the Long-haired Woman standing right in front of the car, walking towards them with a strange gait-one step, two steps, getting closer and closer!

Bi Heng swore that he had been swaggering around for over twenty years, dominating the capital city, and had never feared anyone except his own father. But today, his hands were shaking so much that he was fumbling to start the car. Jiang Long seemed to have been jolted awake and rushed over, urging him, “Hurry up, drive the car!”

But the more hurried he was, the more likely he was to make a mistake.

The car simply wouldn’t start.

Knock knock-

Knock knock knock-

Bi Heng heard someone tapping on the car window. He stiffened, turning his head rigidly to see the Long-haired Woman standing in front of the window. Her face, though pretty, was deathly pale and devoid of any color, her dark eyes shining as she flashed a stiff, forced smile, showing off her gleaming white teeth. She spoke politely, “Hello, could I possibly catch a ride with you?”

Bi Heng’s teeth were chattering, “No, I’m sorry, it’s not really convenient…”

The Long-haired Woman frowned slightly and tilted her head to look at him. She rummaged through her pocket and pulled something out to offer him, “I can pay you. Please, could you give me a lift? I’m in a hurry to get home.”

Bi Heng saw the money she handed him and broke out in a cold sweat. Jiang Long, who was already terrified, saw the money-it wasn’t ordinary money at all, but Paper Money meant for the dead! Without a second thought, his eyes rolled back and he fainted. Bi Heng just heard a thud, and the sound of Jiang Long’s teeth chattering stopped completely. At that moment, Bi Heng also wanted to faint; if he fainted, he wouldn’t know anything anymore and wouldn’t have to face this terrifying…

“Thank you, I’d rather not take the money…”

The Long-haired Woman seemed puzzled as to why he was trembling so violently. She looked down at the money in her hand and suddenly realized, “Oh, I’m sorry, I took the wrong one.”

She took back the Paper Money and rummaged again, pulling out another bill, “Here, take this money instead, is it enough?”

Bi Heng looked at the ten yuan³ note she extended towards him. He didn’t feel relieved; instead, he felt even more frightened. This female ghost’s tricks were too much, using a deception to trick him. If he took this money, he feared he might lose his life right here!

“No need, really, I don’t want the money.”

“Thank you, then can you give me a lift?”

“…” Could he even refuse?

Bi Heng looked at the Long-haired Woman’s earnest expression, especially those pitch-black eyes and pale face. He was terrified that if he refused again, he might anger her, and then she would open her gaping maw and swallow him whole! Jiang Xiaolong was no help at all, not offering to assist in any way, just fainting from fright.

The Long-haired Woman got into the car.

Bi Heng noticed that her walk was very stiff and slow, much like a Jiangshi⁴, though she did not need to hop around like one. However, her movements felt very unfamiliar.

After the Long-haired Woman got in, she sat in the back seat behind the driver’s seat, and the car seemed to cool down several degrees.

Bi Heng caught a glimpse of her curling the corners of her mouth, a strange, satisfied smile appearing on her face. He felt a chill in his heart.

The Long-haired Woman said, “I’m seated now, you can start driving.”

Bi Heng felt that this was not the road to town, but rather a road to death. He started the car with trembling hands. At that moment, Jiang Long slowly came to, rubbing his sore head and suddenly looking towards the window. The Long-haired Woman’s figure was no longer there, and Bi Heng was just about to drive off.

Jiang Long exclaimed with surprise, “Heng-Ge, where did that Long-haired Woman go? Did she leave?”

As Bi Heng ground his teeth and glared at him, making frantic eye signals, a faint voice came from the back seat, “Are you talking about me? I haven’t left.”

The Long-haired Woman sat in the back seat, shrouded in darkness, her face pale as snow, her dark eyes deep, smiling at him.

Jiang Long: “…”

Bi Heng: “…”

With a thud, Jiang Long’s eyes rolled back, and he fainted again.

Bi Heng: “…”

The Long-haired Woman asked, “What’s wrong with him?”

Bi Heng replied, “Nothing, he’s just tired.”

The Long-haired Woman, puzzled for a moment but considerate, did not press further, “Oh. It’s quite late, it is time to sleep. Do you want to sleep too?”

Bi Heng swallowed hard: “…No, I don’t.”

The Long-haired Woman: “Hmm, then let’s get going.”

Bi Heng: “…Okay.”

Bi Heng started the car, unsure whether to drive faster or slower. All he wanted was for the sun to rise quickly and drive away the woman in the back.

Footnote:

1. 1. Ge(哥):In Chinese culture, it is quite common to address someone as “xx 哥” (pronounced as “xx ge”). The term “Ge” means “older brother” and, when used in this context, typically carries a sense of affection and friendliness. It indicates respect and amiability towards the person, similar to calling someone “bro” or “big brother” in English.

1. 1. Ghost Wall(鬼打墙):“Ghost Wall” is a Chinese term that describes a supernatural phenomenon where a person becomes disoriented and feels as if they are walking in circles, unable to find their way out, often occurring at night or in remote areas.

1. 1. Yuan(元): Yuan (yuán) is the basic unit of currency in China. The symbol for yuan is ¥, 1 yuan ≈ 0.15 USD.

1. 1. Jiangshi(僵尸):In Chinese folklore, the jiangshi, is a corpse that moves by hopping.