My heart seized with horror. There was clearly only Wu Qian in the ward, yet the glass reflected two figures. Was I hallucinating?

I turned my almost rigid neck and peered closely into the room. Indeed, only Wu Qian was sitting there blankly.

"Did... did you see... that?" I stammered out.

"See what?" Pi Hou and Doctor Wang looked at me strangely, retorting.

No way, was I the only one who saw what was happening inside?

I turned back to the reflection in the glass. Perhaps because I was mentally braced, I wasn't utterly undone by the sight, but the terror inside me was still overwhelming; after all, I had never witnessed anything like it before.

I saw that directly behind Wu Qian, a woman with disheveled hair was clinging to his shoulder. Half her face peeked over the top of his head; through the curtain of black hair, one could make out a pallid countenance and bluish-black lips. Her hand pierced under Wu Qian's armpit and clamped around his chest. At that moment, she was opening her mouth, slowly gnawing on Wu Qian's shoulder.

Simultaneously, I saw a look of agony spread across Wu Qian’s face. He clutched both shoulders, his entire body seeming to curl inward. Could he actually feel the pain in his shoulder?

That woman definitely wasn't human; she was a ghost! Every nerve in my body tightened, and I instinctively took a step back, trying to tear my gaze away from the glass. But for some inexplicable reason, my head wouldn't turn, and even my eyes refused to shift even a fraction.

As if sensing my presence, the female ghost on the glass suddenly released her bite, lifted her head, and stared intently at me. Then, she actually opened her mouth toward me, seeming intent on swallowing me whole. The expanse of her mouth had already consumed her entire face—the bluish-black lips, the blood-stained teeth, and the pitted tongue. I was looking at a female ghost that was nothing more than a gaping maw...

Pi Hou and Doctor Wang noticed my distress and crowded closer, asking, "What's wrong?"

I wore a mournful expression, about to explain, when I saw the usually silent Wu Qian suddenly snap his head towards us. His gaze was equally vicious, as if he had just encountered an arch-enemy of years.

Then, his body stiffened, and he sprang up from the edge of the bed. With a sudden whoosh, he rushed directly toward us, not stopping until he slammed into the doorway.

"Bang..."

The collision inside the room produced a deafening sound. No one could have imagined that his skeletal frame, now so thin, could possess such explosive power. The ward door shook violently from the impact.

"What happened? What’s wrong with the patient? Nurse..." Doctor Wang, true to his medical training, first thought of calling for a nurse. He rushed to the door, shouldered me aside, and immediately saw Wu Qian repeatedly slamming his body against the ward door. Outside, a continuous series of "Bang... Bang..." sounds echoed. But I could hear that amidst these impacts, there was also a grating sound—a "creak, creak"—like friction, though I couldn't tell if it came from the door or the bone joints in Wu Qian’s body. The sound was gratingly sharp, making one's heart clench with every impact.

"Where are the nurses?" Doctor Wang used his body to brace the door and shouted around him.

Not far off, several burly male nurses were already rushing over.

"It's no use..." I muttered softly, though I didn't know why I said it. Through the reflection on the glass, I could see the figure of the female ghost clinging to Wu Qian as they slammed against the door. Moreover, with every impact, I felt the ghost’s expression become more monstrously distorted, especially one eye peeking through her hair, which was turning increasingly blood-red. Correspondingly, Wu Qian’s face morphed into that of a ferocious beast catching the scent of blood, his teeth bared, emitting low growls from his throat.

At this point, two nurses had also arrived and joined Doctor Wang in preparing to rush in and restrain Wu Qian.

I glanced at Pi Hou. Seeing his tense expression as he watched the door, it seemed he was merely confused by the unfolding scene. Did he not see the ghostly figure reflected on the glass like I did?

I grabbed him and gestured toward the glass window on the door.

Taking one look, Pi Hou gasped in shock, finally understanding my earlier expression. This time, both of us stood near the door as if paralyzed, staring dumbly at Wu Qian inside.

Doctor Wang was preparing to push the door open with the two nurses, but once the lock was released, the door wouldn't budge under their efforts. We watched as Wu Qian ceased slamming the door and stood still before it, seemingly pressing his hands against it. Through the glass, I saw him and the female ghost behind him reveal an almost synchronized, bone-chilling grin.

Then, his left hand suddenly slapped onto the glass window, his fingers tapping against the pane, pointing directly at Pi Hou and me.

"It's opening..." Doctor Wang suddenly yelled. Under the combined strength of himself and the two nurses, the ward door finally yielded a crack.

I desperately wanted to stop him; the scene inside was too terrifying. But Doctor Wang, driven by his professional duty, was already squeezing into the opening.

However, just as he managed to get his upper torso halfway through, Wu Qian inside suddenly exerted tremendous force, jamming Doctor Wang so tightly he couldn't move.

"Ah..." The physical pain forced a cry from Doctor Wang.

The two male nurses at the door turned pale with shock, momentarily flustered, trying to yank Doctor Wang out, but the door was jammed too tightly; they couldn't pull his body free.

Just then, through the crack, we saw Wu Qian reach out, grab Doctor Wang's left arm, open his mouth wide, and bite down hard onto his hand.

We clearly heard the crunching sounds—"Gachi... gachi..." Wu Qian wasn't just biting the hand; he was eating it, as if gnawing on a pig's trotter. The expression on his face was clearly one of pleasure, as if Doctor Wang’s hand was the most delicious food imaginable. Blood streamed down his lips, mixing instantly with the gore covering Doctor Wang's hand. In the blink of an eye, I saw the tips of Doctor Wang's fingers—the bloody flesh already torn away to expose the bone—while the torn skin and flesh were continuously ripped and chewed between Wu Qian's teeth.

Instantly, the hallway was filled with heart-wrenching screams interwoven with the grinding and chewing sound of teeth against bone.

"Gachi... gachi..."

That sickening sound seemed to overpower Doctor Wang's cries, echoing directly inside my head.

All this happened too quickly. As several more nurses rushed over, the group put their combined might into forcing the door open. The gap widened. Others grabbed at Doctor Wang, trying to pull him out, but the strength of the one person inside—Wu Qian—was greater than the two pulling him. While still gnawing on the hand he held, Wu Qian dragged them inward. Soon, Doctor Wang was truly pulled inside, and the two nurses holding him were dragged in along with him.

With no other recourse, everyone rushed into the ward. Unexpectedly, Wu Qian, one hand gripping Doctor Wang’s mangled, bloody limb, suddenly reached out with the other and snatched at the face of the nearest male nurse. A grin, indescribable and soaked in gore, twisted his mouth.