My mind buzzed, and just now, the voice of Yin Choujian echoed deep within me. In an instant, everything came rushing back—all my memories, all my past.
"Where did you lock up my parents and Rachel Lan? Come out!"
I shouted loudly in all directions, glaring fiercely. The figure before me must be a Drowned Wraith. I steadied myself and stared at it. Suddenly, the Drowned Wraith lunged at me, and I quickly turned aside to dodge.
"Ironmask, where are you? Come out!" I yelled, when suddenly Ken Wang's voice called out behind me.
"Get away from the water, Ethan Zhang."
Without hesitation, I turned and dashed toward Ken Wang.
The Drowned Wraith behind us didn't chase. Gasping for breath, we ran to the edge of the village, where Nathan Li's corpse still lay. I stared blankly at Nathan Li, and thought of Lily Wu—my heart ached faintly. Both were people I truly knew: Lily Wu and Nathan Li.
"How does it feel, Ethan Zhang? It hurts, doesn't it? Even though this is a story I made for you, you killed them without hesitation, didn't you? Haha! You must be suffering now."
A burst of laughter drifted down from above. I glared fiercely at the sky.
"Don't listen to him, Ethan Zhang. It's okay. This is the world of stories. He can create stories, but he can't interfere. Now that you've remembered, that's enough."
"What's going on?"
"I've read this story before..."
The secret of Riverbend Village is actually the first story in Horror Stories. Everything I experienced here mirrors that story. In the tale, there's a ghost called the River God. Many who come here are drawn by the legend, bringing with them what they believe is the truth.
Those who are drawn by the legend become bewitched by the Drowned Wraith and act irrationally. In the novel, out of five people, only the protagonist survives and uncovers the truth. He remains in the village, warning all who come after.
"So what do we do now?" Ken Wang shook his head and continued talking with me.
He once had a happy family—a brother, a wife, and parents all living together. But everything changed after he brought home a copy of Horror Stories. First, his girlfriend disappeared, then his brother and parents vanished one by one.
Ken Wang's memories of them slowly faded. He began to forget things, and one night, after opening Horror Stories, he was drawn into the story.
"How did you escape?"
I asked, and Ken Wang shook his head.
"I don't remember, but I do recall one thing—someone told me that after escaping, I must never forget myself. So I started recording my daily life for two years, handing out business cards every day. Thanks to that, I didn't disappear."
This kind of forgetting spreads like a contagion—family members and close friends all catch it, without exception. So far, there's no solution.
After Ken Wang escaped, he spent a long time analyzing the connections. Whenever someone disappeared, the person who felt most strongly about them would be the next to vanish, and so on.
My heart skipped a beat as I thought of Rachel Lan. A surge of grief and anger welled up inside me. I clenched my fists and gritted my teeth.
"Don't think Yin Choujian can help you, Ethan Zhang. I went to great lengths to get you in here, sneaking past several Wraith Lords. Don't think you can get out so easily. Soon, when you lose yourself in my story, you'll belong to me."
"If you've got the guts, come out and face me. Stop hiding and whining from the sidelines."
Ken Wang looked at him in disbelief.
"Aren't you afraid of that ghost?"
I chuckled.
"I've seen plenty of ghosts in my time, but never one so cunning and vicious. If you've got the guts, come at me head-on—instead, you snatched my parents and my wife from the shadows."
"Let me tell you something good, Ethan Zhang. The stories here are all real. Enjoy them to the fullest. Hahaha..." The laughter faded away.