Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 255 Ghostly Image Mall
At night, Jiang Jin drove away from the brightly lit city center of Muxu and headed towards the new southern district in the southern suburbs.

He just bought this Maybach 62S this afternoon after exchanging his resentment crystals for cash.

Since it's his first time buying a car, he plans to buy one to try it out first, and then consider which brand of car to buy for his parents.

After being recommended by his aide and after much deliberation, he initially preferred Lexus, but ultimately chose Maybach.

He planned to try out this multi-million dollar luxury car first, to see what it felt like to drive it.

The further south you go, the more desolate the surrounding scenery becomes, the streetlights become sparse and dim, and eventually you are completely plunged into darkness, only able to rely on the car headlights to tear through the night ahead.

"This Maybach is indeed comfortable to drive. The roads around here are quite bumpy, but I hardly felt anything. It truly lives up to its reputation." Jiang Jin couldn't help but click his tongue in admiration. It was a pity that Liu Yan had left, otherwise he would really like to find an opportunity to drive her around.

His destination was Youxiang Shopping Mall, one of the seven restricted areas in Muxu City.

When he was young, this shopping mall was once very popular, but just five years after it opened, the era of meme pollution arrived, and it immediately suffered a very serious pollution outbreak. It was then urgently sealed off and became an absolute forbidden place where no strangers could approach.

The vehicle eventually came to a stop in a desolate area.

In the distance, the silhouette of a huge, dilapidated building stands quietly in the night; that is the Youxiang Shopping Mall.

Surrounding the shopping mall are large areas of abandoned, unfinished buildings, their dark windows like countless eyes, coldly watching this forgotten land.

The huge poster on the exterior wall of the mall has long since faded and peeled off, but you can still vaguely make out the smiling face of a long-outdated celebrity, who is endorsing a flip phone that now looks like an antique, full of a strange sense of time distortion.

Several tall barbed wire fences with high-voltage warning signs have been erected around the restricted area.

The beams of searchlights swept across the open area from time to time, illuminating the heavily armed and stern-faced soldiers behind the barbed wire fence, as well as a few reincarnators wearing special uniforms, with sharp eyes and an unusual aura emanating from them.

Jiang Jin's car was stopped at the outermost checkpoint.

Under the other party's instructions, he turned off the engine and got out of the car at the designated location. He showed the Reincarnator watch on his wrist to the soldiers on duty and the Reincarnator leader. After the system verified the information, the watch projected his identity information and temporary privileges for the night—[Newcomer Guidance Mission].

The person in charge of the reincarnation carefully checked the information, his gaze lingering on Jiang Jin's face for a moment, as if he recognized him. However, he didn't say much, only raising his hand to signal passage, and in an emotionless voice informing him: "The reserve reincarnations will appear at 'Lijian Gym' on the 3rd floor of Building B. Once inside, follow the 'rules' and complete the guidance."

The heavy iron gate slowly opened and then slowly closed behind him, as if separating two worlds.

Jiang Jin entered this forbidden zone, shrouded in death and eeriness, all by himself.

Upon entering the mall, a strange smell, resembling a mixture of cheap incense and rotten matter, immediately hits you.

The mall was in a mess, with broken glass, collapsed decorations, and scattered old shelves and product packaging everywhere.

Wherever the flashlight beam reached, there was only ruin and desolation.

Just then, lines of cold text suddenly appeared on the retina of his left eye:
"Reincarnator Jiang Jin, you have entered the Thai-style horror containment area of ​​the Ghost Image Mall. Please abide by all the following rules:"
First, no more than one person may be in the fitting room.

Second, if you see a double image in any mirror, immediately tear off the tag of any nearby garment.

Third, if an escalator is going in the opposite direction, you should immediately close your eyes and jump forward.

Fourth, if you smell the stench of a corpse, you should immediately go to the nearest shop to buy and use the corresponding scented air freshener.

Fifth, the Kumanthong statue displayed at the cashier must never be touched.

Sixth, when using escalators, you must stand on the right.

Seventh, if you smell incense, you must immediately buy any item from the nearest shop.

Note: If you accidentally touch anything that may be a medium for black magic, your SAN value will immediately decrease by 15% and you will be inflicted with a random curse effect.

Please complete your new employee mentoring task within the specified time.

Jiang Jin took a deep breath and firmly imprinted these rules into his mind.

Thai horror... is known for its black magic, Kumanthong, and vengeful spirits, and is eerie and difficult to guard against.

Following rule number six, he found a working escalator and stood on the right.

The moment he stood still, the escalator, which had long since stopped and was covered in dust, began to creak and groan, and then... slowly and smoothly started moving upwards!
The dull thud of gears meshing amplified infinitely in the deathly silent mall. The rubber handrails on both sides of the escalator were already old and cracked, exposing the sponge inside, and made a slight friction sound as it ran.

Above was endless darkness, and the escalator seemed to lead to some unknown, greedy maw.

Jiang Jin gripped the Death Cry hunting rifle tightly, remaining highly vigilant, with Death Bell following closely behind him.

The escalator finally reached the third floor.

Following the instructions, he found the place called "Life Fitness Gym".

Inside the dilapidated glass door, it was pitch black, and various fitness equipment were overturned and covered with a thick layer of dust.

The air was filled with an even stronger musty smell and... a faint, sweet, incense-like aroma.

Jiang Jin pushed open the door and went inside. He glanced at his Reincarnator watch; it was almost time.

Suddenly, the air in the center of the gym began to distort, and countless flickering pixels appeared, like those of an old television malfunctioning!

These pixels quickly coalesced, outlining four blurry human figures!

The next second, the pixelated block stabilized, and four cleaners dressed in bright orange appeared silently there!
They stood ramrod straight, each carrying a huge, seemingly extremely heavy metal box on their back.

After they appeared, they did not communicate with Jiang Jin at all, but mechanically opened the metal box lid behind them.

There was a person huddled inside each of the boxes!

There were three men and one woman in total, and they appeared to be in a coma.

After completing all this, the four eerie cleaners' bodies once again disintegrated into flickering pixel blocks, disappearing without a trace like images affected by signal interference, as if they had never existed.

Jiang Jin took a deep breath and stepped forward.

Looking at the four newcomers in the box who were about to be forced into a terrifying dungeon, he couldn't help but recall the confusion and fear he felt when he woke up in Qingtan Community.

"What I'm doing now is the same job Liang Qin did back then... Hehe, and I'm even using the same hunting rifle he used to have."

The only woman was the first to let out a groan and slowly open her eyes. Her gaze, dazed, swept around before finally settling on Jiang Jin's face. She paused, then blurted out, "It's...it's you? The one I asked for directions at the subway station this morning..."

Jiang Jin recognized her too. That morning, a quiet-looking girl had indeed asked him for directions at the subway station. He never expected… it would be such a coincidence to meet her again that evening. The other three men also woke up one after another, looking in horror at the haunted house-like surroundings and at Jiang Jin, who was holding a hunting rifle and exuding a cold, aloof aura.

“You’ve all been contaminated by memes,” Jiang Jin said without mincing words, getting straight to the point. Recalling the memory Liang Qin had given him, he said, “Your SAN value has now fallen below the 60% safety threshold, which means it’s irreversible. The only way to survive is to become a Reincarnator, enter the Horror Dungeon, and find a chance to recover and survive there.”

"Reincarnators? Shouldn't we be sent to an isolation camp for treatment? Where is this?!" A hot-tempered young man in a basketball jersey immediately jumped up to retort, his face full of disbelief.

Another man, wearing glasses and appearing more composed, frowned and asked with suspicion, "Could it be... that the recent international rumors about people with special abilities fighting against memetic contamination... are true?"

The girl, pale-faced and trembling, asked, "Why...why weren't we sent to an isolation camp for treatment? What does 'reincarnated' mean?"

Almost simultaneously, the four noticed the hunting rifle silently guarding Jiang Jin, and the hound Deathstroke lurking in the shadows behind him. Its eyes, burning with ghostly blue flames, and its ferocious appearance startled them, causing them to take a step back, almost screaming. This reminded Jiang Jin of the first time he saw Liang Qin's undead hound.

"My name is Jiang Jin, and I'm your new recruit instructor. You're all currently trainee Reincarnators. Time is short, so I have no reason to lie to you." Jiang Jin tried to make his tone sound believable. "Now, please introduce yourselves. Then I'll tell you how to enter the Horror Dungeon and about choosing a Reincarnator class."

"Why are you holding a gun? Are you from the Membrane Contamination Monitoring Department...?" The young man in the basketball jersey remained defiant.

Jiang Jin sighed, pulled out his police ID from his pocket and flashed it: "Look, I'm a police officer. My mission is to protect you as you enter the instance safely. This is the sealed-off Ghost Image Mall, a Thai-style terrorist containment area. We're all in danger."

"What? Youxiang Shopping Mall? You brought us into the quarantine zone?"

"Police? Can police break the law? We've been contaminated by memes, we should be sent for treatment!" Another boy, who looked somewhat cowardly, also mustered up the courage to shout. If it weren't for the fact that Deathstroke looked too scary and Jiang Jin was holding a shotgun, they would have almost rushed up and attacked.

Just when the two sides were deadlocked and the atmosphere was extremely tense—

"Boom...boom...boom..."

A dull thud, as if something was hitting the floor hard, came from the darkness deep inside the gym!

Immediately afterwards, an indescribable gust of wind, mixed with the stench of corpses and the strong smell of incense, suddenly blew up, causing the dust on the ground to swirl and dance in the air!

A pale, woman dressed in a tattered traditional Thai dance dress crawled out from behind a collapsed treadmill, her head twisted at an angle completely contrary to human physiology, her neck stretched out extremely long. She was on all fours, her head twisted at an angle completely contrary to human physiology. Like a spider, she slowly and wobbled out.

Her eyes were two empty black holes, but her mouth stretched into an astonishing arc, emitting a chilling, eerie "giggle" laugh!

"Aaaaaah—!" The girl and the cowardly boy instantly let out a heart-wrenching scream!
The young man in the basketball uniform and the man with glasses were also terrified, their faces turning ashen!
Jiang Jin reacted extremely quickly, raising his hand to lift the Mourning Blade and pulling the trigger without hesitation!
"boom!"

The bullet struck the crawling female ghost precisely in the chest, exploding into a cloud of black, foul-smelling slime!
The female ghost let out a sharp shriek, and her figure blurred for a moment, as if she had been struck, but she did not disappear. Instead, she crawled over at an even faster speed!

This shot also shattered the last shred of hope and doubt among the four newcomers!
Their extreme fear finally made them believe Jiang Jin's words—there really are ghosts in this world!

"Come on! Follow me!" Jiang Jin shouted at the four terrified people while keeping a wary eye on the female ghost that was crawling back.

At the same time, a new instruction appeared on their left retina: proceed to the "Taste of Siam" restaurant on the fifth floor.

The five men, along with Deathstroke, rushed out of the gym and ran wildly down the dark corridor.

The thumping crawling sound and eerie laughter followed me closely.

As Jiang Jin ran, he reminded them, "Check the Reincarnator class descriptions on your watches! Remember, becoming a Sorcerer requires special conditions, and only women can choose to be a Priestess!"

The girl, panting, followed after him and suddenly asked, "Becoming a formal reincarnator... will I no longer have to be afraid of these things? Will I... be able to make a lot of money?"

Her voice was filled with fear, but there also seemed to be a strange longing.

“Making money is a given, the dungeon rewards are very generous,” Jiang Jin replied, his voice slightly broken as he ran, “but the struggle against memetic contamination… will likely accompany me for a lifetime.”

A glint of light flashed in the girl's eyes. If she could earn a lot of money, she could bring her parents from the countryside to live in a big house in the city...

She asked eagerly, "Hello, officer, my name is Lin Lu. I'd like to ask... is it more suitable for a woman to choose the profession of a shrine maiden?"

"Not necessarily!" Jiang Jin immediately denied. "Although the priestess profession has the highest priority and bonus in curse-type abilities, it is also one of the professions most prone to backlash! Especially when advancing from LV2 Puppet Master to LV3 Blood Sacrifice, a part of one's soul needs to be injected into one's natal puppet. If one is not careful, one's soul may be completely usurped by the puppet, and one may be permanently sealed in the puppet, unable to live or die!"

During the conversation, a new wave of terror struck!
Countless strangely shaped, dusty Thai amulets, statues, and dolls appeared in the glass windows of the abandoned shops on both sides of the corridor!
Their eyes seemed to turn in unison, fixing on the five running people! A dark red liquid, like blood mixed with cinnabar, began to seep from the walls, emitting a pungent, fishy odor! There were even faint, incomprehensible, malicious Thai scriptures echoing in their ears!

Jiang Jin fired his gun with all his might, while Deathstroke kept biting at the withered, dark hands that tried to reach out from the shadows.

In the midst of extreme panic, the cowardly boy and the young man in the basketball uniform were dragged into the darkness as they ran around. They only had time to let out a brief, shrill scream before falling silent again!
Jiang Jin's heart sank!
My teammates are hopeless; two of them died in the blink of an eye!
This time, the reward for the newbie mentoring mission will be reduced by a full 100 Resentment Crystals!

More importantly, two vibrant lives were lost right before our eyes.

Finally, they saw the sign for the "Taste of Siam" restaurant.

Now, only Jiang Jin, Lin Lu, and the man with glasses remain.

"Go in! You'll be safe once you go in!" Jiang Jin shouted to the two, pointing to the restaurant door.

The bespectacled man, still shaken, looked inside the restaurant, then at Jiang Jin: "You...aren't you coming in with us?"

“I won’t go in. My task is simply to guide you to the entrance.” Jiang Jin shook his head. “Once inside, you’ll enter a Thai-style horror instance suitable for newbies. The instance will be based on Thai horror movies or games. After choosing a class, you’ll receive a newbie gift pack. Remember, each instance has its own set of ‘rules.’ Look carefully, strictly follow them, and try your best to survive!”

The bespectacled man, panting heavily, looked at the eerie sounds faintly coming from the dark corridor behind him, then glanced at the seemingly safe restaurant, finally gritted his teeth, nodded, and walked in with Lin Lu.

However, at this moment——

Mutations reborn!

Out of the corner of his eye, the bespectacled man suddenly noticed something... slowly crawling out from under an overturned table in the restaurant!
It was a Thai child ghost with bluish-black skin, completely white eyes, and a talisman pasted on its head!

Kumantong!
It was facing him, its mouth full of sharp teeth!

"Ah—! There are ghosts inside too!" The bespectacled man was so frightened that he backed away abruptly, trying to escape from the restaurant entrance!

"Go back! Go back now!" Jiang Jin exclaimed in alarm, trying to push him back to the safe area of ​​the restaurant!
But it's too late!
Just as the bespectacled man stepped back, the flashing pixelated blocks reappeared!

A sanitation worker wearing a gas mask and carrying a broom and dustpan appeared out of nowhere like a ghost, blocking his way out!
At the same time, a warning flashed frantically on the left retina of the bespectacled man, demanding that he return to the restaurant immediately! Otherwise, he would be cleaned up by the cleaners!
"Get out of the way!" Extreme fear made the bespectacled man lose his mind, and he actually kicked the nearest cleaner hard!
The sanitation worker who was kicked didn't react at all; she simply mechanically raised her broom and lightly tapped the man with glasses.

As if struck by an invisible force, the bespectacled man's body stiffened abruptly!
Then, under the horrified gazes of Jiang Jin and Lin Lu, his body, like a punctured balloon, began to shrivel and shrink at a visible speed! His skin tightly wrapped around his bones, his eyeballs bulged out, and his mouth opened to its maximum but could not utter a sound!
In just two or three seconds, he became as thin as a piece of paper and floated lightly to the ground!

Then, the cleaner gently swept it over with a broom, swept it into the dustpan, and "cleaned" it up!
Jiang Jin felt a chill run down his spine. He now knew what had happened to Xia Wei when she escaped from Qingtan Residential Area. Lin Lu, who had also wanted to escape, was so frightened by this scene that she returned to the restaurant!
However, at that moment, a translucent, icy ghostly hand suddenly reached out from the "safe" restaurant door and grabbed Jiang Jin's wrist! The strength was astonishing!

"What?!" Before Jiang Jin could react, he was violently pulled into the restaurant by an irresistible force!
"boom--!"

The restaurant door slammed shut behind him, completely isolating him from the outside world!

(End of this chapter)