The Ghost Order
At two o’clock in the early morning, delivery man Chen Dong receives a forced system order: deliver stir-fried rice noodles to Room 404 in an abandoned building. The building is gloomy and dim, with flickering corridor lights. Terrified, he finishes the delivery. A pale, icy hand stretches out from the room to take the food. After he leaves, he finds the payment has turned into joss paper, and the ordering number is no longer in service. The restaurant owner tells him this customer has paid with ghost money for three straight days, and orders Chen Dong to get the money back. When Chen Dong returns, he sees all previous deliveries piled untouched outside Room 404. A neighbor informs him that no one has lived in 404 for a long time. Chen Dong tries to flee, only to be trapped in a loop, repeatedly walking back to the door of Room 404. He accidentally watches a news report and learns a whole family was murdered in Room 404. The description of the victim matches the person who took his food, filling him with sheer horror. He tries to avoid the place, but his mother falls seriously ill and requires expensive surgery. Driven by desperation, he accepts high pay from his boss and heads to 404 again. Horrifying incidents follow: lost phone signal, broken flashlight, and a strange eye staring back at him through the peephole. Any money he marks still turns into joss paper. Desperate to raise funds, Chen Dong starts investigating. When he questions the neighbor, he spots a mole on the person’s hand matching the deceased victim, and the neighbor hints the customer is not human. Soon after, a shadow figure wielding a hammer chases him. While hiding, Chen Dong finds a note. It reveals the man of Room 404 was addicted to video games. His parents were robbed and killed, and he starved to death eventually. Shortly afterwards, Chen Dong is knocked unconscious and tied up inside Room 404. The neighbor reveals himself as the one placing the orders and prepares to kill him. Just then, the restaurant owner arrives with tableware. Chen Dong breaks free and flees with the boss, only to find the building gates locked. They hide in the neighbor’s house and piece together the truth: the “ghost food orders” are an elaborate hoax. Someone fakes supernatural phenomena to drive residents away and cover up crimes, and there are two culprits in total. A fight breaks out with the criminals. At the critical moment, police arrive and solve the case. Chen Dong receives a cash reward of ten thousand yuan, enough to cover his mother’s medical fees. But as night falls, the delivery system pushes another forced order to Room 404. The eerie occurrences are far from over.
