Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 166 Zhou Chen and Qin Mei

The time has come to 23:00.

Qin Mei and Chen Yao stood in front of the bathroom mirror.

Qin Mei's cold and beautiful face was reflected in the mirror, but tiny water droplets had begun to seep from the edges of the glasses.

"They're here," she whispered.

Chen Yao stood behind her, holding a glass bottle that he had taken out of the cupboard.

She stared intently at the mirror, and saw that the water droplets did indeed appear to be, as described in Rule 10, a viscous amber liquid, like melted resin, slowly sliding down the mirror surface.

"What is this thing..." Chen Yao muttered to himself, bringing the glass bottle close to the bottom of the mirror.

The liquid dripped into the bottle with a soft "plop." It was thicker than expected, like some kind of semi-solid gel, slowly flowing at the bottom of the bottle.

Even more bizarrely, when the liquid dripped, the mirror surface distorted slightly, as if the world in the mirror was dissolving.

"Don't touch it," Qin Mei warned. "In the original story, this thing might be the source of the skin changes."

Chen Yao frowned: "Sister Qin, are you talking about Junji Ito's 'The Head Balloon'?"

Qin Mei's voice was calm to the point of being cold: "There was a sequel in the comic where the human head balloon disappeared for a time. The survivors later discovered that their skin had turned into nylon. If nylon melts, it is indeed possible for it to turn into this liquid state."

Chen Yao's fingers trembled slightly, and she almost dropped the glass bottle.

"You mean...we'll become like that too?"

"It's just a meme contamination phenomenon; we can resolve it as long as we leave this copy."

Chen Yao swallowed hard and didn't say anything more.

At 23:07, the liquid stopped seeping out.

Qin Mei tightened the bottle cap and placed the glass bottle on the sink.

The liquid swayed slightly in the bottle, almost like some kind of living thing.

“Tomorrow, as the rules say, throw it in the recycling bin,” she said.

Chen Yao nodded, but felt inexplicably uneasy.

The six members of the Shadow Blade team squeezed into the Japanese-style room in the Yamamoto family home, with spare bedding taken from the closet spread on the tatami mats.

The sorcerer Li Zhen placed copper coins at the four corners of the doors and windows as protective charms. Each copper coin was tied with a paper figure written with incantations by the shrine maiden Shirakawa Rin by a red string.

Zhu You Linping was inspecting the silver thermal blanket; his Zhu You Eyes could see the faint spiritual light flowing across the blanket's surface.

“We’ll take turns keeping watch.” Qin Mei set the alarm on the old-fashioned grandfather clock to 3 a.m. “Two people per group, rotating every hour.”

By this time, the bodies had all been disposed of.

The shrine maiden Shirakawa Rin knelt by the window, while a small paper doll, the Guhuoniao, stood guard on the window frame.

The petite girl remained silent, mechanically folding new paper figures. As a Japanese woman, she didn't utter a single word after entering the house, and showed no reaction to the deaths of the elderly Japanese couple.

At 1 a.m., the first watch began.

Li Zhen and Bai Chuanlin sat in the living room. The former hammered several curse nails onto the coffee table, while the latter continuously injected spiritual energy into the paper doll.

Occasionally, the sound of patrol footsteps could be heard outside the window. Whenever those people passed by, Shirakawa Rin would pay attention to whether they were wearing silver armbands.

At three o'clock in the morning, Qin Mei and Chen Yao took over on time.

The sixteen-year-old priestess rubbed her sleepy eyes; her ponytail had come undone.

She was holding a thermos with an anime design printed on it, which contained a special invigorating tea brewed from the tea leaves inside her Reincarnation Watch.

"Sister Qin," Chen Yao asked in a low voice, "I thought hunting down the Nirvana team would be easy, but it seems they really have some skill to find such a battlefield."

Qin Mei was examining the old man's photo album when she heard this and looked up: "What, are you scared?"

“No…” Chen Yao took a sip of tea, “Well, I also think… we didn’t really need to kill that old lady, did we? We’ve already got her under control.”

Qin Mei closed the photo album.

“I’ve already killed her husband, and I can’t bring myself to continue using her. They seemed to love each other, so I’ll send them to the afterlife to be together. Dying on the same day, month, and year would be a happy ending for them.”

Chen Yao's thermos cup stopped in mid-air.

"Sister Qin, you have quite a lot of insights into love!"

"I wouldn't call it insightful, but I've had some experience..."

"What experience?" Chen Yao immediately became gossipy.

“I have a friend… her husband died from meme contamination, and later she had a romantic relationship with a boy 19 years younger than her.”

"19 years old? No way, that's an old cow eating young grass!"

"Love transcends age and status."

"That's true... but is that boy an adult?"

"He's an adult now."

"That's alright... but the road ahead will probably be very difficult. Society is more tolerant of older men marrying younger women than younger women marrying younger men. The former is considered disgusting by many people."

"Disgusting?" Qin Mei smiled bitterly. "But that child is the only person who makes her feel alive after her husband's death."

She wanted to confide in him, but dared not reveal any more details, afraid that Chen Yao would guess what she was talking about.

Chen Yao didn't know how to respond, and the only sound in the room was the ticking of the clock.

After a long pause, the girl hesitantly asked, "And then?"

"There was no 'later.' This isn't a romance novel; there's no ending."

Just then, Chen Yao suddenly looked up and gazed out the window—

Above the house, a huge face appeared that looked exactly like her!
Head balloons!

The balloon had a blank expression and looked completely lifeless.

"Follow the rules, close your eyes and turn around!" Qin Mei slammed the curtains shut.

Chen Yao turned around reflexively, her heart pounding as if it would burst out of her chest.

She remembered the rules: If a resident sees a balloon that looks exactly like them, they should immediately close their eyes, take three steps back, turn around, open their eyes, and leave. It is strictly forbidden to look directly at the balloon's pupils for more than 3 seconds.

After turning around, she opened her eyes and quickly moved away from the window.

Despite being reincarnators, they had no way of dealing with these human head balloons.

"When...when did it..."

"Take your medicine first," Qin Mei handed over two blue pills. "Go to sleep after you've taken them."

Chen Yao mechanically swallowed the pills, then drank water from the cup in his hand to swallow them as well.

She was still trembling as she lay down in bed. In the end, she was still too young, a sixteen-year-old LV2 reincarnator. Many people said she was a genius, and that she was exceptionally recruited by the Bloodthirsty Team, but she knew how much psychological pressure she was under.

Through the thin curtains, she could feel the balloon that looked exactly like her still floating outside the window, waiting silently.

Chen Yao woke up in the early hours of the morning.

She suddenly opened her eyes, her fingers instinctively reaching for her face.

The touch doesn't feel right.

Her skin... became unusually smooth, as if coated with wax, and even had a slightly plastic feel when touched with fingertips.

She sat up abruptly, looking at her arm in the faint moonlight streaming through the window—

The skin is reflecting light.

It's not the shine of normal skin, but an artificial, almost nylon-like smoothness.

She continued to touch her cheek, trembling, the touch equally cold and unfamiliar.

"Qin. Sister Qin..." she whispered, her voice filled with barely concealed fear.

Qin Mei opened her eyes and her gaze fell on Chen Yao's face.

"It's started after all," she said calmly, reaching out to pinch Chen Yao's cheek. "Does it feel like nylon?"

Chen Yao nodded stiffly.

"In the original story, after their skin turned like this, the balloons reappeared to find them."

Chen Yao's breathing quickened: "Then...we..."

"Don't panic," Qin Mei interrupted her. "Tomorrow morning, use the reflection in the sink to see what changes occur."

Chen Yao gripped the blankets tightly, his knuckles turning white.

She suddenly remembered that rule—

"If the face reflected in the image is obviously abnormal, it means your balloon has appeared."

Now, her balloon has appeared. What unusual thing will her reflection show?
At the same time, at the Black Crow Hotel.

Jiang Jin stood in front of the bathroom mirror, staring at his skin that was gradually changing.

“As expected…” he murmured, his fingers tracing his cheek. The texture no longer felt like human skin, but rather a smooth, almost plastic-like material.

Yu Tianlun stood behind him, his brows furrowed: "In the original work, people's skin did indeed begin to turn into nylon."

Jiang Jin used a boning knife to lightly make a cut on his arm—

No bloodshed.

Where the blade sliced, the skin slightly dented, then slowly bounced back, like some kind of elastic material.

“We’ve been assimilated,” Liu Yan whispered. “Assimilated into nylon material similar to balloons.”

Liu Yan's Gu worms crawled across her wrist, detecting changes in her skin.

After a moment, she looked up: "This is not a simple physical change, it is some kind of meme contamination."

Tomie stood to the side, touching her face with interest: "Oh dear, my skin hasn't changed much."

Yu Tianlun glanced at her: "Maybe it's because you're not human."

Tomie chuckled: "That's so mean..."

4:45 a.m., Yamamoto's living room. Chen Yao curled up in the tatami mat, her fingers unconsciously rubbing her smooth cheeks.

The nylon-like texture made her feel uneasy.

Qin Mei sat by the window, the curtains tightly drawn, but her gaze still occasionally swept out the window, as if she were observing something through the eyes of a medium.

Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the fabric, casting dappled shadows on her face and making her expression appear ambiguous.

Chen Yao hesitated for a moment, but couldn't help but ask, "Sister Qin... the friend you were talking about earlier, it wasn't you, was it?"

Qin Mei tapped her fingertips lightly on the coffee table and said, "How could it be me..."

Chen Yao bit her lower lip: "I just... find it a little strange. Her husband died from meme contamination."

Qin Mei's fingers paused for a moment.

"So you think it's acceptable if it's me?" Her voice was soft, but it carried an indescribable sense of pressure.

Chen Yao froze, then quickly shook her head: "No, no! I just... don't quite understand."

Qin Mei was silent for a while, then suddenly chuckled softly.

"Chen Yao, do you know what the most luxurious thing is in the cycle of reincarnation?"

Chen Yao looked at her blankly.

“It’s the feeling of being alive.” Qin Mei’s voice was low, as if she was recalling something. “When you’ve experienced enough instances and witnessed enough death, you’ll find that… human emotions are actually the most fragile yet most precious things.”

Her gaze fell on the night outside the window, as if she could see a distant shadow through the curtains.

Qin Mei first met Zhou Chen in a building shrouded in the stench of blood.

She had just killed a rival reincarnator, and her body was still covered in undried blood.

She leaned against the window in the hallway, and then she saw him—

A boy in a black shirt stood at the corner of the stairs, his wrists wrapped in bandages, blood seeping from the gaps and dripping onto the floor from his fingertips.

His eyes were cold, like ice that would never melt.

"You're... the captain of the Crimson Team?" Qin Mei raised an eyebrow. "That genius boy, Zhou Chen?"

The boy did not answer, but simply stared at her silently, as if assessing her threat level.

Qin Mei scoffed, "What, all alone? Where are your teammates?"

"They've dispersed." His voice was calm, yet carried a suppressed madness.

Qin Mei narrowed her eyes.

She knew what kind of ghost she was facing: a woman who always carried a utility knife and would occasionally spit nails out of her mouth.

"So you're all alone now?" Her tone was laced with sarcasm, showing no fear whatsoever of this bloodthirsty team leader.

Zhou Chen's eyes flickered slightly, and he suddenly tugged at the corner of his mouth: "Aren't you the same?"

Qin Mei was taken aback, and then the two stared at each other in silence for a while.

Then, they all heard the sound of someone pushing the blade of a utility knife!

Qin Mei's expression changed drastically.

"Run!" She grabbed Zhou Chen's wrist and dragged him toward the nearest room.

According to the rules of this horror instance called "Sweet Home," as long as you hide in the closet, even if you enter in front of the ghost, the female ghost will not be able to detect your presence and will never open the closet door.

Zhou Chen did not resist and let her pull him along.

All the glass windows on both sides of the corridor shattered, and shards flew like rain.

Qin Mei closed the door behind her, pushed Zhou Chen into the cabinet, and then went into another cabinet next to it herself.

"Don't move," she whispered. "As long as we don't make a sound, it will never find us."

Zhou Chen leaned against the cabinet, his breathing unusually steady.

Soon, a female ghost wielding a utility knife rushed in, searched the room for a while, and then left.

Opening the cabinet door, Zhou Chen's gaze fell on Qin Mei's profile, and he suddenly asked, "Why did you save me?"

Qin Mei didn't turn around: "Just doing it."

Zhou Chen chuckled softly: "Lying."

Qin Mei frowned, about to retort, when she suddenly felt his fingers lightly touch her back.

"Your medium's eyes are bleeding."

Qin Mei was taken aback, only then realizing that there were indeed bloodshot streaks in the corners of her eyes—a side effect of overusing her abilities.

She raised her hand to wipe it and chuckled, "It's just a minor injury."

Zhou Chen didn't say anything, but simply took out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to her.

Qin Mei stared at the clean handkerchief and suddenly felt it was absurd—in this dungeon full of blood and death, this boy actually carried such a thing?

She took the handkerchief and casually wiped her eyes. "Thanks."

Zhou Chen withdrew his hand, leaned against the wall, and closed his eyes to rest.

Qin Mei suddenly felt that he looked... very lonely.

They survived.

As they were about to return, Qin Mei stood on the edge of the rooftop, while Zhou Chen sat on the water tank behind her. The bandage on his wrist had been replaced, but blood was still seeping out.

"Your blood won't stop?" Qin Mei turned to look at him; it must have been from the female ghost's utility knife that had cut him.

Zhou Chen said calmly, "The curse will backfire and will be restored after the dungeon ends."

Qin Mei clicked her tongue, walked over, grabbed his wrist, and roughly unwrapped the bandage.

Zhou Chen did not resist, but simply watched her quietly.

His wrists were covered with fine knife marks, each one deep enough to expose the bone, like some kind of self-mutilation ritual.

And embedded in the center of these wounds is a blue crystal—a shard of resentment!

"Are you crazy?" Qin Mei frowned. "You're embedding crystal fragments directly into your body? Aren't you afraid of being turned insane by the backlash?"

Zhou Chen's eyes were calm: "I need power."

Qin Mei stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly laughed: "What a madman."

She took out her first-aid kit and skillfully cleaned and re-bandaged his wound.

Zhou Chen let her do as she pleased, then suddenly asked, "Why don't you join the team?"

Qin Mei paused for a moment: "What, curious?"

"Forget it if you don't tell me."

"I'm just used to it. But I think you're not quite the same as the rumors suggest."

What is the rumored version of me like?

"Cold-blooded, cruel, and willing to do anything to achieve their goals."

Zhou Chen chuckled: "More or less."

Qin Mei finished bandaging herself, looked up and met his gaze: "I don't think so."

Zhou Chen's eyes were calm, yet held an indescribable obsession: "Should you consider joining the Bloody Team?"

Qin Mei was stunned.

His pupils seemed to burn with flames.

She suddenly felt her heartbeat... getting out of control.

Memories return to reality.

The living room of the Yamamoto family home.

Qin Mei's fingertips unconsciously rubbed her wrist, as if someone's warmth still lingered there.

Chen Yao asked cautiously, "Can she and that student be together?"

Qin Mei snapped out of her reverie and chuckled softly, "Who knows? But she won't give up."

"why?"

"Because some boundaries, once crossed, can never be crossed back." Qin Mei's voice was very soft, as if she were speaking to someone else, or as if she were warning herself.

Chen Yao nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

"Go to sleep, you have to get up early later."

She had her back to Chen Yao, so no one could see her expression at that moment.

Outside the window, perhaps in some unseen corner, two enormous balloons shaped like human heads are floating in the air—

One of them is hers.

One of them belongs to Zhou Chen.

The next morning, in the Yamamoto family's kitchen sink.

Qin Mei placed her left ring finger on the edge of the sink and leaned over to look at the water.

In her reflection, her face was sinister and distorted, the corners of her mouth were turned up in an unnatural arc, and her pupils were so large that they almost filled her entire eye socket.

“My balloon has appeared too…” she whispered.

Chen Yao stood behind her, his face pale: "My reflection... is like this too."

Qin Mei did not answer, but just stared at the water.

And their balloons might already be waiting somewhere...

"Take the blue pills first, Sister Qin."

Qin Mei nodded and took the medicine bottle.

She needs to obtain more information before Zhou Chen comes in!
(End of this chapter)