Chapter 7: Ghost Mountain Villa 77
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Zhang Wubing originally set up the main camera for the livestream in the villa’s living room. He turned on a dim reading lamp and spread out a blanket on the couch, intending to create a cozy atmosphere for the late-night livestream so that viewers could enjoy a peaceful ambiance even in the middle of the night.
However, things didn’t go as planned. At some point, the light in the living room suddenly went out, shrouding the entire villa in darkness.
Since most of the guests had turned off their split-screen cameras for the night, and many viewers had come to the livestream from social media platforms due to the excitement surrounding the variety show Vlogger, they found themselves thrust into the main screen of the livestream.
As soon as they opened the livestream, they were greeted by a horrifying and blood-soaked ghostly face.
Viewers: “There’s a ghost AAAAAAAH!!!”
However, the ghostly face seemed even more panicked than the viewers. In the brief few seconds it appeared on camera, it kept looking back as if it were being chased by something, swiftly passing by the camera, leaving only a trace of deep red behind.
Viewers: “?”
Just as the viewers in the main screen were filled with confusion, the fans who had been waiting in the split-screen with An Nanyuan were nearly driven to madness.
One moment, the camera showed a handsome young man smiling, and the next moment, the door to the room swung open, revealing a screen drenched in blood-like deep red. Following that was a face that appeared dangerously insane, resembling a monster from a horror movie, he even threatened to eat An Nanyuan.
Outside the room, the lighting was dim, and within the dark corridor, nothing could be seen through the camera. They could only hear An Nanyuan’s abrupt screams.
Some of the more timid fans were already in tears.
[What happened to Brother?! Is he okay? Please give us a response!]
[Oh my god! Did you all see that red thing just now? I happened to be recording, and when I replayed it in slow motion, I freaked out and almost threw my phone. That’s definitely a ghost!]
[I originally came here because I saw Brother Goose’s post and wanted to debunk this shameless publicity stunt for the variety show. But what was that thing that just passed by? Can someone explain to me?]
[Sisters, quickly go check Brother Goose’s post and the comments of the show. It seems like there’s a real ghost in that mansion!]
[Is this for real? Isn’t Brother in real danger?]
The comments in the split screen were in chaos, but the camera was faithfully recording everything.
Gradually, the fans who had adapted to the darkness in the mansion’s hallway used the faint light to see the terrifying face clearly and heard his self-introduction.
“I am Yan Shixun, one of the guests.”
As that face regained its composure after the earlier wild and manic expression, without the influence of the environment and expressions, it returned to a normal level of handsomeness.
That level of handsomeness was considered top-notch even in the eyes of many Ocean King fans, who were numerous and could form long queues for their favorite Brother. It helped many fans recover from their previous fear.
Most importantly, Yan Shixun was a real person, not a ghost.
The fans breathed a sigh of relief.
[As long as he’s not a ghost, it’s fine.]
[But if you watch those few seconds in slow motion, it really looks like…]
[This little brother is handsome too, but his expression just now was really scary. I thought he was a ghost.]
While Yan Shixun was stiffly confronting the camera, he had no idea about the lively chat and comments. He was just trying to recall what he had done earlier and whether it would lead to Zhang Wubing’s program being suspended… hopefully not?
“…Why did you leave the split-screen on while sleeping?” Yan Shixun slowly removed his hand from An Nanyuan’s mouth, stepped back to increase the distance between him and the camera, and asked with suspicion, “Are you a pervert?”
An Nanyuan sighed and said, “Mr. Yan, I’m a member of the TK group, and we have certain requirements for exposure. Besides, I wasn’t sleeping just now; I was chatting with my fans during a live broadcast.”
In simpler terms: I’ve got to work!
“……”
Yan Shixun pondered for a moment, still holding on to his last glimmer of hope as he asked, “You probably don’t have many fans watching Zhang Wubing’s show, right? Even if you left the split-screen on, there shouldn’t be many viewers this late, right?”
An Nanyuan knew that Yan Shixun wasn’t familiar with the entertainment industry, so he chose the most straightforward way to present the numbers, saying, “I have nine million followers on my social media account and tens of thousands of subscribers for the split-screen.”
Yan Shixun silently took out his phone and messaged Zhang Wubing, “[What would your reaction be if your live show got banned?]”
Since being woken up by Yan Shixun, Zhang Wubing, who had been anxiously monitoring the live broadcast, responded vigorously, “[I’ll go down with the show! Brother Yan, please explain in front of the camera that there’s no ghost. If this continues, my live streaming rights will really get banned!]”
Yan Shixun quietly opened the program’s comment section, and sure enough, several top comments and many users were discussing the ghostly figure that had flashed on the screen just moments ago. Some even posted screenshots for discussion in the comments.
As the topic became increasingly popular on social media, more and more people flooded into the live show. Upon seeing that the main screen had gone pitch black, they turned to the only split-screen still active, which belonged to An Nanyuan.
Yan Shixun looked at the rapidly increasing number of viewers displayed on his phone and thought about Zhang Wubing, who considered the show as a starting point for his dreams. Finally, he raised his head and faced An Nanyuan’s split-screen camera with a serious expression to explain.
“Just now, it was just the wind blowing the curtains. Don’t make wild guesses. You’ve all stayed up too late, and now you’re experiencing hallucinations.”
He shook his phone toward the split-screen camera, indicating that he had seen the viewers’ comments in the show’s comments section.
“Go to sleep now. Why are you watching a livestream in the middle of the night? It’s past 1 AM, don’t you know?” Yan Shixun scolded sternly. “At this rate, you all want to die from exhaustion?”
An Nanyuan looked at Yan Shixun with a skeptical expression.
Although he had mistaken Yan Shixun, he did see something dark red running in the darkness when he opened the door. The camera couldn’t convey the feeling, but he, who was present, could clearly sense that when he passed by that thing, a chilling wind gave him goosebumps and sent shivers down his spine.
Furthermore…
Where did the curtains in the corridor come from? The curtains and fabric in his room were all white; there was no dark red material.
“Aren’t you going back to sleep?”
An Nanyuan was lost in thought, and Yan Shixun asked him, “Didn’t the director tell you to sleep at night and not go out?”
“Oh, I came out to get a glass of water, I’ll go back in a moment…”
An Nanyuan was in the middle of explaining when he heard a loud “creak,” and the door he had pushed open was forcefully slammed shut by the wind.
He shivered involuntarily, and when he turned to look, he was stunned.
He found that the door was locked tightly, and no matter how hard he pulled, he couldn’t open it. An Nanyuan froze and said, “I didn’t bring the key. How am I going to get back in?”
Yan Shixun had originally intended to hurry An Nanyuan back into his room so that he could continue chasing after that thing. He asked, “…..You don’t bring the key when you go out?”
The mountain night was cold, and An Nanyuan was getting anxious, causing him to break into a sweat. “I just came out to get some water. I didn’t plan to go far, so I didn’t bring the key.”
Yan Shixun looked at An Nanyuan in silence, observing how he tried various methods to open the door and how he seemed to want to say something but held back, perhaps remembering the presence of the camera.
During the afternoon, Yan Shixun noticed something peculiar. Although the old steward had been involved in the process of assigning rooms to the guests, he only stood outside each room, introducing the room and sharing the history of the villa. He never set foot inside any of the rooms.
Furthermore, when the old steward tried to stop Yan Shixun from entering one of the rooms, despite his anger, he couldn’t pull Yan Shixun out if he stepped inside.
If Yan Shixun’s suspicions were correct, the rooms seemed to act as safe zones, having a deterrent effect on certain things within the villa, preventing them from entering the rooms and harming the occupants.
That’s why he had reminded Zhang Wubing and all the other guests during dinner to return to their rooms and lock their doors, not coming out until daylight.
Indeed, with something pretending to be Zhang Wubing outside his door and trying to deceive him into opening it, it appeared that after nightfall, the door could only be opened from the inside.
Once closed, as long as the people inside the room didn’t open the door, there was nothing that could be done from the outside to damage or enter the room.
The same applied to Bai Shuang; she could only leave the room herself, and nothing could enter the room and take her away.
As for the woman who had created illusions for Yan Shixun in Bai Shuang’s room and sang outside the villa, no matter how angry she was, she couldn’t enter the room and confront Yan Shixun face-to-face.
——Actually, Yan Shixun was quite regretful; he really wanted to tell that woman in person that her singing was really unpleasant.
It was disturbing.
“Don’t bother, it won’t open,” Yan Shixun finally couldn’t stand An Nanyuan’s futile attempts and spoke up, “Just wait here until morning, and the door will open on its own.”
On the other side, after trying and failing to open the door, An Nanyuan turned back and looked at Yan Shixun with a pleading expression, “Yan…”
Yan Shixun decisively picked up his pace and walked ahead.
An Nanyuan was startled, and as he glanced at the villa sinking into darkness and remembered the eerie dark red thing he had seen earlier, images from horror movies he had watched in the past automatically flashed through his mind.
Under the fear of the unknown brought by the darkness, An Nanyuan’s mind raced rapidly, and he began to mentally replay the scene he had witnessed when he opened the door, frame by frame.
Then he suddenly realized —
That deep red thing, instead of attacking Yan Shixun, seemed more like it was being chased by Yan Shixun!
Moreover, he was initially frightened by Yan Shixun’s expression, thinking that Yan Shixun was a ghost. In that case, could it be that Yan Shixun was actually a hidden master who rarely appeared in the world? Was that why even ghosts were afraid of him?
Furthermore, Yan Shixun had been confrontational and displayed a tough and fearless demeanor right from the beginning…
An Nanyuan’s powerful imagination made him increasingly believe this scenario, and when he looked at Yan Shixun again, his gaze shifted from seeing a fellow guest on the show to a pleading “Master, save me” look, as if Yan Shixun were a hidden expert concealing his true identity.
In his moment of desperation, he even forgot that his split-screen camera was still on and immediately rushed over, grabbing Yan Shixun’s arm.
And, decisively he changed his address from “Mr. Yan” with politeness but distance to “Brother Yan” a more affectionate term.
“Brother Yan! It’s fate that we meet like this. It’s so dark outside, are you really going to leave me here alone? Let’s go together; wherever you go, I’ll go.”
An Nanyuan held onto Yan Shixun tightly with both hands, looking nervous as if he was afraid Yan Shixun would run off at any moment.
He had watched horror movies before! Usually, on nights when strange things happen in the mountains, if you were alone, something bad was bound to happen!
“How about I stay in your room for the night!”
In any case, he didn’t want to be left alone in this pitch-black place!
In moments of panic and danger, hidden potential can be unleashed, and one can exhibit great strength. Additionally, as an idol, An Nanyuan maintained physical fitness as part of his daily routine, and dance training gave him even more strength.
Yan Shixun tried to break free by struggling, but for a moment, he couldn’t escape from An Nanyuan.
With every step Yan Shixun took, An Nanyuan moved right along, resembling a human hand pendant swinging with the motion.
“……”
Yan Shi Xun’s eyebrows twitched as he forcibly suppressed the urge to push away the guy next to him.
He couldn’t afford to have any violent or bloody scenes, as it might result in his livestreaming privileges being revoked. And that little troublemaker, Zhang Wubing, would come crying and screaming at him again, giving him a headache.
Hold it in, hold it in…
“Let go of me!” Yan Shixun lowered his voice, unable to bear it any longer, and angrily shouted, “I’ll take you with me, but you have to let go of me now and keep your distance!”
An Nanyuan looked at Yan Shixun with a skeptical look, “Brother Yan, you’re not deceiving me, are you? You might run away when I release you.”
Yan Shixun, who had initially thought about it: “…”
His sharp eyebrows furrowed as he solemnly declared, “Of course not, I never lie.”
With his original intentions exposed, Yan Shixun clicked his tongue in annoyance and had no choice but to take An Nanyuan with him.
Furthermore, he originally wanted to chase after that thing hiding outside Bai Shuang’s door. With this delay, that thing was probably long gone, and chasing after it would be futile.
Bai Shuang and An Nanyuan’s rooms were on the same side of the third floor, not too far from each other.
Since he couldn’t chase after that thing, Yan Shixun had to search for Bai Shuang’s whereabouts again. Following the principle of proximity, he casually asked An Nanyuan, “Bai Shuang is not in her room; she’s missing. Do you have any idea where she might have gone?”
Yan Shi Xun didn’t really have high hopes for An Nan Yuan’s answer, but to his surprise, An Nan Yuan thought for a moment and actually replied.
“Bai Shuang seems to really like the garden downstairs. After the evening game ended, she said the garden looked beautiful at night and she wanted to take a selfie under the moonlight to post on her social media account.”
When he had heard Bai Shuang mention it earlier in the evening, An Nanyuan hadn’t thought much of it. However, now that he had just brushed past something unknown and found himself in this eerie, pitch-black environment, as he repeated it, he belatedly realized that something was wrong.
“Bai Shuang left the villa? Then she?”
An Nanyuan’s mind started connecting dots without his consent, drawing upon scenes from horror movies he had seen in the past, especially those where someone walked out of a building at night, unaware that danger was closing in from behind.
His body involuntarily shivered, and the look in his eyes as he peered into the unknown darkness was filled with fear.
Unable to contain himself, Yan Shixun let out a curse and then stormed towards the stairs with determination.
“Are you going to the garden to find Bai Shuang, Brother Yan?” An Nanyuan hesitated for a moment. “It seems unsafe outside the villa, and there might even be wild animals in the mountains.”
Yan Shixun rolled his eyes. “Then wait here; I’ll go alone.”
“Wait!”
An Nanyuan turned pale and grabbed Yan Shixun’s clothes. “Let’s go together! I’m really worried about Bai Shuang too.”
Yan Shixun looked back at this nervous wreck, realizing that there might be unknown things in the garden that could trap him. With no one else outside the villa rooms except An Nanyuan, if something happened to him, Yan Shixun wouldn’t be able to rush back in time to deal with it.
Given this, he had no choice but to take An Nanyuan with him.
“Taking you along is fine, but no matter what you see, no shouting, no running, just stay close to me,” Yan Shixun said. “And, don’t forget to pay me tomorrow.”
An Nanyuan, with his overactive imagination, was almost scaring himself with his own thoughts but readily agreed.
The viewers flooding into An Nanyuan’s feed were utterly confused. “?”
“What’s happening?”
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Thanks for the update
Loving this series so far, thanks for translating