Chapter 96: Joyful Wedding, Mourning Cry 27
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When the official in charge received a call from a subordinate, he was en route to the convoy heading to Jia Village.
The subordinate’s report barely began, but it was interrupted by the official in charge.
“Is it about the program?”
The official lowered their head and looked at the screen displaying Yan Shixun’s split-screen on his computer. He spoke with seriousness, “I’ve already seen it. No need to report to me. Immediately focus on guiding online public opinion and preventing the situation from escalating. Fortunately, it’s quite late now, and not many people have seen it. Let’s resolve this as quickly as possible.”
After ending the call, the official in charge’s phone continued to chime with message notifications one after another. The relentless “ding, ding, ding” in the confined space of the car was increasingly irritating.
The first group to notice that Yan Shixun’s split-screen live broadcast was amiss was a team dedicated to this show on the video platform. They immediately reported the situation to the authorities. Following their instructions, they promptly restricted Yan Shixun’s split-screen from being accessed by new viewers, disabled screen captures and recordings, and prevented the situation from escalating.
Shortly afterward, social media platform staff contacted the authorities. They removed several trending and negatively oriented hashtags on the social media platform, such as “Program Discovers Corpse,” “Serial Murder Case,” and “Deadly Deep Forest.”
Furthermore, they temporarily disabled image uploads for tags related to the show. Tags like #YanShixun, #Thicket, and #RuralFarmstay, which were rapidly rising in real-time popularity rankings, were also suppressed.
While ensuring freedom of speech and preventing the spread of bizarre conspiracy theories, social media platform officials, under the guidance of a dedicated department, swiftly implemented content control measures. The goal was to maintain a balanced and respectful discussion of the topic without enabling sensationalism.
The audience who initially gathered on the platform to discuss and speculate about the images from both An Nanyuan’s split-screen and Yan Shixun’s split-screen soon realized they couldn’t post images.
Additionally, they found that except for Yan Shixun’s official tags like #YanMai# and several other tags provided by the production team for official discussions, newcomers couldn’t participate in other newly emerging tags related to the corpses shown on Yan Shixun’s split-screen.
Even though some of these tags appeared on the real-time popularity list, users were unable to access them.
Thus, resulting in a rapid decline in their popularity.
While the audience in front of Yan Shixun’s split-screen was being frightened to the point of screaming, the video and social media platforms remained relatively calm and didn’t exhibit a noticeable trend of extensive discussion or the generation of trending public topics.
However, because the official public opinion team didn’t impose a comprehensive ban on all related topics on the internet, it was still possible to subtly mention and discuss these issues within various small circles. Therefore, the audience and fans who were aware that something had gone wrong during Yan Shixun’s split-screen broadcast didn’t exhibit overly intense resistance.
All the turbulent currents were concealed beneath the calm surface. The collision of intense waters slowly subsided, with no new forces being added, and the water returned to a calm and continuous flow.
However, before the audience in front of Yan Shixun’s split-screen could be further frightened by the live footage, they experienced a long period of black screen after a brief flash of red light on the screen.
For many, the last image etched into their minds was Yan Shixun’s eyes, sharp and swiftly turning towards the back, his movement agile and graceful like flowing wind and drifting snow.
His beautifully shaped eyes no longer concealed their sharpness, piercing the screen as he glanced back.
It was like a close-up shot from a movie, with his piercing eyes occupying the entire frame, seeming to penetrate the depths of the viewers’ souls.
Many people were startled by this look, almost screaming in shock.
However, they soon realized that the intense gaze was not directed at them.
But at something behind the camera.
Viewers stared at the darkened screen, reflecting their own faces, feeling somewhat lost and anxious.
However, what was strange is that the split-screen livestream had not been shut down. Viewers were still in the split screen, and they could even continue to send bullet comments.
[??? What’s going on? At first, I thought Brother Yan’s split-screen was forcibly closed by the video platform, but now it doesn’t seem to be the case. Otherwise, how can we still send bullet comments?]
[I’m not sure what the video platform is up to. Just a while ago, they restricted the number of people in Brother Yan’s split screen. Many people who were scared and left can’t come back. Did you notice that when the camera focused on the bodies under the flowers just now, the real-time viewers on the side of the split screen dropped rapidly for a few seconds?]
[It doesn’t make sense, right? If the video platform’s officials wanted to shut down Brother Yan and the program team’s livestreams, they would have done it a long time ago. Why wait until now, and start by restricting new viewers from entering and then completely block it? Isn’t that redundant?]
[OMG! OMG OMG! Did any of you see the last scene just before the black screen? Brother Yan suddenly turned around and looked back, and I was so scared that I was sitting on the bed and frantically moved backward. I ended up with my back against the wall, not reacting. I was shouting “AHHHHH” like an idiot. It took me a while to recover. Brother Yan’s gaze was really terrifying! You guys mentioned before that Brother Yan could be quite scary sometimes, I didn’t believe it, but now I do. OMG! I almost thought Brother Yan wanted to kill me!]
[Chill out, friends! Brother Yan’s mood wasn’t directed at you. Even though we’re in a livestream, don’t forget that Brother Yan can’t see us at all. Moreover, Brother Yan doesn’t even have the habit of reading comments, and he doesn’t interact with us. So, Brother Yan must have turned around because there was really something behind him at the scene. But to be honest, even if I know that, I can’t help but feel scared. Brother Yan’s gaze, it’s like he saw through my soul, it sent a shiver down my spine. It feels like under his gaze, he saw right through me, and none of my little misdeeds or wrongdoings from the past could escape Brother Yan’s notice.]
[You’re not alone! I saw it too! Brother Yan originally went to talk to that cute and cheerful guy. But out of the blue, after a brief conversation, Brother Yan acted like that! I was already half-scared by Brother Yan, and then the screen went black, then I was terrified by my own disheveled and ghostly image on the screen! Oh my goodness, I’m definitely tying my hair up when I sleep from now on! I had no idea I looked so scary with my hair all wild and spiky, did I???]
[I also gave myself a fright… Suddenly, a face appeared on the screen, and I thought something was wrong. My heart nearly jumped out of my chest. Then I realized, ‘Oh, it’s me…’ Scaring others can be frightening, but scaring oneself is something else!]
[Can someone please tell me what just happened?! I feel like Brother Yan was originally questioning that young man across from him. From what Brother Yan said, it seems like the guy has some connection to the body in the flower bed and knows something. So, Brother Yan went to talk to him. But in the middle of the conversation, why did Brother Yan suddenly become so terrifying, like he was attacking someone who attacked him, doubling his retaliation?]
[I didn’t see the last part just now. In the blink of an eye, the screen went completely black, but the barrage was still rolling. I thought it was my home network issue, so I couldn’t load the images and could only see the barrage. When I saw you all discussing this in the barrage, I realized it wasn’t my problem.]
[I think the previous guess makes some sense. Let’s boldly assume that Brother Yan discovered that the young man was the killer of these several people, so he went to confront him face to face, intending to persuade him to surrender. But the young man got desperate and attacked Brother Yan directly? After all, at the moment, only Brother Yan has discovered this, and everyone else has gone back to their rooms. Brother Yan didn’t even have time to inform others. So, if the young man killed only Brother Yan, he could silence any witnesses, and no one else would know what he did.]
[That can’t be right. This young man seemed cute and interesting before. He couldn’t have done something like that, right? Even if he killed Brother Yan, what’s the use? At that moment, Brother Yan’s split-screen live stream had tens of thousands of viewers. We are all witnesses to this incident. If we report it to the authorities afterward, wouldn’t they take action?]
[People are often not what they seem, and bad guys don’t wear labels saying “I’m a bad guy,” right? Also, keep in mind that this was happening during a live broadcast, and that guy probably had no idea. From his perspective, it was just Brother Yan approaching him alone. If he had any bad intentions, it would have been a perfect opportunity for him, wouldn’t it?]
[But, wanting to take on Brother Yan’s life is a very misguided idea. I’ve been practicing martial arts for many years, I can tell you that there’s no chance I’d win against him. In fact, he could probably defeat me in just three moves. His techniques are incredibly powerful and efficient, and he’s not doing it for show or to intimidate anyone. He moves with precision and the sole purpose of quickly dealing with his opponent.]
[While it’s true that if this young man did something wrong, he won’t escape consequences, don’t be too optimistic. There’s a vast difference between theory and practice. You might not be familiar with the Southern region, and you may not know the situation with the Yang clan. Even though I don’t know about Family Tomb Village, I’ve had dealings with people from the Yang clan in my previous cargo business. These folks are local big shots, and they run things from top to bottom. If you cross them, the entire clan would come after you. If you manage to leave the Southern region with all your limbs intact, you’re considered lucky. Those of us who work on this route all know a saying, “After the geese pass Yang’s house, they’ll have less meat.” The Yang clan is not to be trifled with by ordinary people.]
[Indeed, when I was transferred to their village, I tried to provide livestock to help them become self-sufficient and improve their lives. However, they just took our entire shipment of livestock and drove all of us out. As a female, I was even scolded for being vulgar and embarrassing. They simply don’t interact with the outside world and have their own ways of doing things. But trying to make them punish one of their own? It’s challenging.]
[What kind of era is this? How is it possible to have such places! Even if you’re making up stories, at least make them sound somewhat believable. This is like fooling a child, isn’t it? Where’s the logic in this? What are the local authorities doing, just eating a free meal?]
[To the person above Well, I guess you’ll understand in a few years. The world isn’t inherently good; it’s because there are people fighting against the bad ones on our behalf to allow us to live in the light. But that doesn’t mean we should deny the existence of bad people. Denying their existence is no different from denying those who protect us in the shadows.]
[I just want to know how Brother Yan is doing now! Is he in any danger? Is he hurt? Is the video platform official gone mad? Why did they suddenly cut off the livestream? After it’s cut off, how do we know what’s happening over there? How can the official rescue team locate and save people?]
[Right! We need to demand answers from the video platform officials! Why are they hiding this from us? What are they up to?]
[Protest!]
The viewers in front of the Yan Shixun split screen gradually realized the current situation and, indignant, went to the video platform’s customer service to express their demand to continue Yan Shixun’s split screen live broadcast.
Not only did the customer service receive a flood of messages, the members of the team established specifically for this show on the video platform were also anxious.
At the very moment when Yan Shixun’s split screen went black, the official public opinion team called them to demand an explanation for why they abruptly cut off Yan Shixun’s live broadcast.
“The official rescue team is already on its way to Family Tomb Village, and our team leader is also watching Mr. Yan’s split-screen live broadcast. Why did it suddenly go black? Our team leader just called us and demanded an explanation for our actions but we couldn’t answer!”
The head of the official public opinion team said angrily, “Who gave you the authority to act on your own? Haven’t you seen that the discussions about this incident have exploded? Public opinion doesn’t work that way; the more you suppress, the stronger the backlash. Moreover, without the live stream, how will the official rescue team know what’s happening over there?”
The technical staff on the video platform were already swamped. The dozens of temporary personnel hastily brought in were frantically checking what had caused the black screen.
A member of the dedicated team ran his fingers through his hair impatiently and said with a wry smile, “It’s really not an issue on our end. We followed the plan completely. From a technical perspective, our platform is running smoothly. Our initial assessment is that the problem lies with Mr. Yan’s signal.”
“And…”
The member of the dedicated team paused as he observed the hand signals from the technical staff and continued, “You probably haven’t paid much attention to the other screens from the production team. It’s not just Mr. Yan’s split-screen that went black for a moment; all three screens from the production team also went black simultaneously.”
The official public opinion team received a quick report from their subordinates, confirming the situation.
Once they confirmed that the issue was on Yan Shixun’s end, the public opinion team quickly approved a contingency plan and asked the video platform and social media platforms to issue an announcement, explaining that the black screen was not an action taken by the official authorities, and to promptly guide public opinion.
The video platform swiftly prepared compelling evidence and released an official statement.
@VideoPlatformOfficialEditor: We understand your concerns! Our editors have been pushing our poor bald-headed colleagues to quickly determine the cause of the issue! Oh my, what a huge misunderstanding! *Whimpers* It’s not because the video platform has banned the “Heart-Pounding Journey of Ninety-Nine Days” live variety show; it’s because the production team lost the signal due to equipment issues. After all, the signal isn’t great where the production team is currently located, which is quite understandable. Please rest assured! Once we get in touch with the production team, we will immediately provide remote assistance to help them restore the signal and resume the broadcast as soon as possible!
In the official announcement, a nine-grid image was included, containing technical parameters from the video platform and providing some basic information about live streaming equipment. It explained the circumstances under which signal loss could occur.
This combination of actions has gained the trust of many viewers.
Although there are still some people who remain skeptical or, even if they believe, continue to express their concerns, the overall tense atmosphere of public opinion has been relieved. The majority of viewers have returned to rational discussions and have been expressing their worries, urging the official rescue team to quickly go to the scene to understand what has happened.
Indeed, before the signal of Yan Shixun’s live broadcast was interrupted, many people had already deduced the dangerous situation he was facing from the brief clips.
Equally concerned were the official in charge and Taoist Song Yi, who were traveling in the same vehicle.
Taoist Song Yi was watching the split-screen live broadcast attentively. In the first instance, he called his disciple, Lu Xingxing, who was with the program team.
However, the phone only played a busy tone.
The split screen featuring Lu Xingxing remained unchanged.
With a quick calculation, Taoist Song Yi scowled, “This brat! We had him accompany the production team to assist Junior Brother Yan in preventing any accidents. But look at him now! He’s actually fallen asleep!”
Taoist Song Yi looked like he wanted to drag Lu Xingxing over and give him a good beating. But the official in charge had no time to console Taoist Song Yi. He was anxiously monitoring the split screen, trying to restore the live broadcast as quickly as possible.
Indeed, the official in charge had witnessed everything that Yan Shixun had just gone through.
However, it was different from what the audience was seeing, as they were left in the dark about what had actually happened.
Just before the live signal disappeared, the official in charge had received a message from Yan Shixun.
According to the information provided by Yan Shixun, the six people buried beneath the flowers are all villagers from Family Tomb Village. They died sometime from early spring to mid-spring. The prime suspect for these murders is most likely the owner of the rural farmstay, Yang Yun.
In addition, in this message, Yan Shixun mentioned that Yang Yun’s mother passed away last year. His extreme actions could be linked to the grief over his mother’s death.
Yan Shixun requested the official in charge to inform the forensic team and the criminal investigation squad to prepare for the possibility of taking Yang Yun into custody when heading to Family Tomb Village.
Finally, Yan Shixun also mentioned a potential scenario.
“The estimated time of death for the person found hanging on Moon Mountain is also around six months ago. If the timing is accurate, it suggests that the six deaths at the rural farmstay and the hanging victim on Moon Mountain occurred around the same period, with not much time in between.”
“The simultaneous disappearance of seven people in a close-knit village under lockdown should have caused a major commotion. In such a small community, they should have been discovered almost immediately. However, the villagers of Family Tomb Village seem completely oblivious. Given the unusual circumstances, proceed with caution and seek advice from the Taoist elders of Haiyun Temple.”
After reading the information sent by Yan Shixun, along with some high-resolution photos taken from close quarters that came with the message, the official in charge promptly responded with a solemn commitment to investigate the matter seriously.
However, despite sending the message, it remained marked as unread.
Several minutes passed, and the official in charge couldn’t help but feel anxious as he stared at the prominent “unread” mark on his private account interface.
What could have happened on Mr. Yan’s side? Is Mr. Yan okay?
……
“Bang!”
In the next instant, as Yan Shixun’s keen ears captured the sound, his body, honed over many years in battles with both spirits and humans, reflexively moved to the side, narrowly avoiding a swooshing sound that cut through the air.
Yan Shixun had not yet seen what could have so thoroughly terrified Yang Tu, nor did he know from which direction the attack had come, but his body had reacted instinctively to evade the sudden, unexpected assault.
He swiftly turned around, vigilantly gazing in the direction from which the sound had emanated. His muscles were tense all over, ready to counterattack at a moment’s notice.
The black shirt he wore accentuated his well-defined muscular physique beautifully.
A severed bone, having missed its mark, clattered to the ground next to Yan Shixun, producing a crisp sound.
It was only at this moment that Yan Shixun realized the attacker who had been standing behind him was actually a skeletal figure devoid of any flesh or blood.
At some point, the skeletal figure had silently positioned itself right behind him, incredibly close.
If it weren’t for Yang Tu’s unusual expression that had raised his suspicions, he might not have noticed the disturbance behind him until the skeletal figure’s attack was about to strike.
However, this should not have happened at all.
Not only had he cultivated a habit of constant vigilance, but his long association with talismans and charms had imbued him with an aura of resolute power that usually kept most supernatural entities at bay.
So why had this skeletal figure managed to get so close without him detecting it? It was a question worth pondering.
Yan Shixun squinted his eyes and regarded the skeletal figure before him with even greater caution.
“Ko, ko…”
The skeletal figure clattered its jawbone open and closed as if it wanted to convey something to Yan Shixun. However, apart from some inharmonious noise, all that met Yan Shixun was the hollow stare of the skull.
The failed strike that Yan Shixun had countered with a powerful hand chop had severed an entire arm bone of the skeletal figure, sending it tumbling to the ground.
Losing one of its arm bones further impeded the already awkward and unsteady gait of the skeletal frame.
Its entire skeletal structure contorted into angles impossible for a living person, with the upper body and pelvis twisted nearly 180 degrees. It staggered and moved slowly towards Yan Shixun, entirely concealing the level of alertness that had initially caught Yan Shixun off guard when it appeared silently behind him.
The skeleton raised its remaining arm and slowly extended it towards Yan Shixun, as if requesting something. However, the finger bones had been sharpened to the point of resembling bone knives. It was clear that if those finger bones made contact, they would leave a gory wound.
“Ah… ah…”
The skeletal figure, moving unsteadily, drew nearer to Yan Shixun, the distance between them diminishing.
Yang Tu, who had been facing the skeletal figure head-on, had turned pale and was staring blankly at it. He was trembling, his bones and joints grinding together, producing a faint “ko ko” sound.
“Yang Tu?” Yan Shixun noticed something unusual about Yang Tu, whom he had protected behind him. He turned his head slightly and rapidly inquired, “Are you okay?”
“Hold on.”
Yan Shixun suddenly realized something and his expression turned serious. “Your reaction… have you seen this thing before? Do you know what it’s capable of?”
Otherwise, Yang Tu shouldn’t be this terrified.
While it’s natural for most people to feel fear and want to escape when faced with a skeletal figure, Yang Tu was different.
Yang Tu’s Second Uncle, Yang Han, was an eyewitness to the tragedy involving the breakfast shop owner, Yang Guang, and his wife Yang Hua years ago. Being close to Yang Han and valued by the village chief, Yang Tu had already heard quite a bit about what happened back then from the two of them.
Although Yan Shixun had yet to uncover what had occurred after Yang Hua’s escape from the village in those days and the circumstances surrounding Yang Duo aside from her being buried alive in the ancestral hall.
Considering the events involving Yang Hua being possessed by Yang Duo and the existence of a Ghost-Dispelling Well in the backyard of the village chief’s house, it was clear that Yang Duo harbored deep resentment towards not only Yang Hua but also the village chief’s family. This likely led to multiple instances of disturbing the village chief’s family, forcing them to seek help from a master and create the Ghost-Dispelling Well.
In this context, Yang Tu should have encountered non-human entities more than once, beings that disrupted and attacked the lives of regular people.
In theory, Yang Tu should have been more accustomed to such situations.
Rather than being on the verge of a complete breakdown, as he was now.
Unless Yang Tu had witnessed the consequences of the appearance of such a skeletal figure and knew it posed a life-threatening danger.
“I… I…”
Yang Tu’s teeth were chattering, and he could barely form a complete sentence. He just shook his head repeatedly, instinctively stepping backward as if trying to deny what was happening before his eyes.
His shoe soles scraped against the stone slabs, creating a coarse, scraping noise.
“It’s… It’s Yang Duo. She’s back.”
Yang Tu’s wide-eyed gaze fixed on the skeletal figure, his fear bordering on fainting. “She’s here, she’s come for us, for our lives! She wants to exact revenge on us!”
“Brother Yan, it’s our lives she’s after!”
Yang Tu let out a gut-wrenching scream, driven by his survival instinct, and he turned to run to the side, as if trying to put as much distance as possible between himself and the skeletal figure.
“Wait! Yang Tu, stop!”
Yan Shixun immediately shouted, attempting to halt Yang Tu.
But it was too late.
Originally, the skeletal figure hadn’t noticed Yang Tu’s presence because Yan Shixun had been blocking it.
However, when Yang Tu began to run, the empty eye sockets of the skeletal figure immediately locked onto his figure, slowly moving its skull in response to his movements.
Yang Tu, unable to control his fear, kept glancing back at the pallid skeletal figure, muttering words unrelated to him.
But the skeletal figure, which had originally been pointing towards Yan Shixun, redirected its arm towards Yang Tu.
It opened its jawbone wide, emitting a piercing and horrifying wail.
The sound was so jarring that it even made Yan Shixun furrow his brow, feeling discomfort.
— It was a sound filled with the essence of death, a call between the deceased and the dead.
It was like the wind rustling through the overgrown weeds on a burial mound, footsteps treading across the middle of a graveyard, or when the living’s weight pressed down upon the hidden bones buried beneath the soil, and the deceased let out cries and curses.
Before Yan Shixun could comprehend the intentions of the skeletal figure, he suddenly heard countless faint, scraping sounds coming from outside the rural farmstay’s perimeter wall.
It was like the sound of wooden sticks falling on stone pavement, and also like the eerie white bones of skeletons clattering against the walls.
In the next moment, Yan Shixun’s gaze abruptly caught sight of a stark, lifeless white object.
A fractured skull, damaged from being struck, protruded from behind the wall. Its empty, pitch-black eye sockets stared silently at Yang Tu and Yan Shixun.
Then, one, two…
The perimeter wall was covered in a dense, tightly packed collection of skeletal figures.
All of them had those soundless, eerie eye sockets fixed upon them.
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