Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 329 Hair and Seawater

Next, Jiang Jin and the other three did not immediately return to the villa.

“We have already completed the first step of Rule Seven by having an unviewer watch the original tape. But whether the curse has been successfully transferred, or whether anything will change, we need to observe.”

Jiang Jin said in a deep voice, while raising the copy tape in his hand that Lian De had copied: "Moreover, this copy tape itself is also a variable that needs to be paid attention to."

Li Shang nodded in agreement: "Then let's find a public place, a place with lots of people. That way we can observe Lian De's condition and see if the surrounding environment will show any abnormalities due to the presence of the copy tape."

After discussing it, the four decided to go to the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, which is popular with tourists.

Upon entering this instance, a large amount of Japanese yen automatically appeared in their pockets. So they chose an open-air restaurant with a wide view, ordered some light meals and drinks, and pretended to relax leisurely, but in reality, they were highly focused and vigilant for any subtle changes.

Lian De placed the copy tape on the table in front of him, his expression calm, but the fingers holding the teacup tightened slightly, revealing his inner vigilance.

As the first person to copy the videotape, he faced immense pressure.

While waiting for the food to be served, Li Shang lowered his voice and steered the conversation toward the investigation: "Let's talk about 'her' mother, Shizuko Yamamura. According to records, in 1946, which is Showa 21, Shizuko participated in the salvage of a legendary 'En no Sakumo' stone statue in the waters near Izu Oshima."

He paused, then continued, "En no Ozuno was a famous mountain hermit in ancient Japan, who was said to possess extraordinary powers. Since that salvage incident, Yamamura Shizuko has gradually shown amazing superpowers. She has been tested many times in public and in laboratory settings, including telekinesis, mind reading, and prophecy, and the results have all proven that her abilities are real and not just a hoax."

Jiang Jin nodded: "In the horror dungeon, it is rare for humans in the materialistic layer to gain power by relying on external objects."

“The key is ‘she’,” Li Shang said, his voice lowering unconsciously. “‘She’ completely inherited her mother’s abilities, and even surpassed her. According to top-secret files, ‘she’ killed a reporter who openly accused Shizuko of being a fraud and insulted her at the testing site, all with just her willpower when she was young. The whole process was silent and without any physical contact, and the reporter suddenly suffered a myocardial infarction and died.”

Kong Huaizheng, who practiced exorcism, said, "Killing someone with intention... this goes beyond the scope of ordinary superpowers. Even exorcists can't do such a thing. But 'she' could easily do it while she was alive..."

Li Shang continued his analysis: "In my understanding, most so-called superpowered individuals are still humans in the material world. It's just that they usually have abnormal SAN values ​​and special mental structures, which allows them to sense or even trigger the power within the mysterious layer to a certain extent, thus exhibiting phenomena that subvert the rules of physics in the material world. But 'she'... is completely different."

His tone became extremely serious: "'She' is an astonishing anomaly. Judging from the abilities 'she' has demonstrated, 'she' may have an innate, direct connection to deeper dimensions, such as the Lost Layer or even the Annihilation Layer. 'Her' existence itself may be an erosion of the Materialist Layer."

This topic made the atmosphere even more somber.

Just then, the Kobe beef that Jiang Jin had ordered arrived. Thinking that since he was in Japan, he might as well try authentic Wagyu beef, he immediately picked up his knife and fork. Moreover, he could also use the [Blood Decomposition Technique] to try and cut out pieces of meat that could replenish SAN.

At this moment, Li Shang asked again, "Have you heard of the 'Celestial Master Team'? This team was very famous many years ago."

Kong Huaizheng seemed to know something about this and chimed in, "I know. The Celestial Master team was indeed renowned many years ago. The team had two LV3 peak reincarnators, who were said to be 'shamans'. When the two of them joined forces, with their exquisite coordination and powerful combined attacks, they were even able to bind or even kill the evil spirits in the Annihilation Layer."

Li Shang nodded and added the most crucial information: "The Celestial Master team's claim to fame was in the [Midnight Bell] dungeon. They were probably one of the first teams to successfully break the curse and survive. But even so..."

His tone turned serious as he said, "During that instance, the Celestial Master team also paid an extremely heavy price, losing more than two-thirds of its members."

Upon hearing this, Lian De gasped and instinctively looked at Li Shang, saying with a tone of comfort and reliance, "It's alright, you're still here, Brother Li Shang, aren't you? Those two in the Celestial Master team are only LV3, but you're a genuine LV4!"

However, Jiang Jin's expression changed slightly when he heard "the Celestial Master Team".

He spoke slowly, his voice tinged with a hint of sorrow: "As far as I know, the entire Celestial Master team perished in the [Undying Curse] instance five years ago, shortly after the 'Fall of Edo' incident. It was an even more dangerous place than this... None of them survived."

Kong Huaizheng nodded, clasped his hands together, and said, "God help us, Nirvana Team, and hope that we never enter the [Undying Curse]. I still don't know how Zhou Chen and Qin Mei from the Bloody Team managed to get out of there alive."

At this moment, a sudden change occurred!
The two undead hounds that had been lying quietly at Jiang Jin's feet—Deathstroke and Sadie—suddenly let out a low, threatening growl at the same time.

Deathstroke stood upright, his eyes burning with ghostly fire fixed on the plate in front of Jiang Jin, his sharp Soul-Splitting Shuttle claws waving in the void as if fighting against some invisible enemy.

Jiang Jin felt a chill run down his spine. As the master, he immediately sensed Deathstroke's extreme tension and vigilance.

"Something's not right!" he hissed, his gaze instantly locking onto the steak he was cutting.

Inside the cut steak, between the muscle fibers, large clumps of wet, black hair were clearly visible!
Jiang Jin suddenly stood up, knocking over the chair in the process.

The surrounding tourists and restaurant staff were drawn to his actions and cast puzzled glances at him.

But when Kong Huaizheng and the others followed Jiang Jin's gaze to the plate of steak, they only saw a piece of ordinary roasted meat that had been cut open.

"Sir, what's wrong? Is there something wrong with the food?" A waiter quickly approached and asked with concern. Jiang Jin composed himself and looked again—the steak on the plate was perfectly normal, juicy, and with clear meat texture; there was no hair anywhere.
The terrifying scene he just witnessed seemed to be nothing more than a hallucination.

"No...it's nothing, maybe I'm seeing things." Jiang Jin suppressed the turmoil in his heart, sat down again, and waved to the waiter.

The waiter left with doubts.

However, Jiang Jin's sense of crisis was not relieved.

Because at that moment, the familiar sound of waves, seemingly from the deep sea, began to faintly echo in his ears once again—

Wow... Wow...

Moreover, he felt a cold, venomous gaze, as if piercing through layers of space, locking onto him from some unreachable depth.

That's Sadako's gaze!
Sadako is in the Annihilation Layer, watching them from behind the barrier of the Contaminated Layer!

"Deathstroke! Sadie!" Jiang Jin sternly warned the two restless undead hounds through the soul link, "Without my order, you are absolutely not allowed to attempt to infiltrate the Annihilation Layer! Otherwise, I won't be able to save you!"

He knew that with Deathstroke and Sadie's current strength, if they rashly entered the Annihilation Layer and faced Sadako Yamamura, they would only be torn apart and devoured instantly.

"Did you... hear anything?" Li Shang suddenly frowned and listened intently.

Kong Huaizheng and Lian De also wore serious expressions. Kong Huaizheng whispered, "It sounds like... water? Waves?"

However, Lian De looked bewildered: "The sound of waves? I didn't hear anything unusual."

Only Lian De didn't hear it!
This bizarre discrepancy made Jiang Jin's heart sink. He took a deep breath and forced himself to calmly analyze the situation: "It's 'she'... 'she' is warning us. She's reminding us of Rule Seven in this way, urging us to make as many copies of the videotapes as possible and then show them to people."

Kong Huaizheng frowned: "Could copying the videotape really disperse or weaken 'her' curse? Is this some kind of alternative 'survival method'?"

Just then, Jiang Jin's phone rang in his pocket. He took it out and glanced at the caller ID; it was Yu Tianlun.

"Captain."

"Jiang Jin, how's the situation over there? Bring the videotape back first. There's a new development: the Japanese reincarnator Takamiya Yui we encountered in the [Lanruo Temple] instance has entered this instance. The system mission requires him to rendezvous with us and watch the videotape within 24 hours."

"Gao Gongwei?" Jiang Jin was a little surprised, but immediately replied, "Understood, we'll go back now."

After hanging up the phone, Jiang Jin briefly informed Li Shang and the other two of the situation. "Let's go back to the villa and meet up first, then we can discuss this further."

Inside the villa, Yu Tianlun put down the phone and said to Gao Gongwei sitting opposite him, as well as Xu Yinqiu and Lian Xuan beside him, "Jiang Jin and the others are on their way back. Gao Gong-kun, this mission is dangerous, welcome to join us."

Takamiya Yui remained upright, gently stroking the hilt of his samurai sword at his waist, and replied, "Mr. Yu, you flatter me. It is the mission's requirement, and I will do my best. Moreover, your country's Dragon Soaring Army has been of great kindness to the people of Edo, and I will repay it with my life."

He paused, as if remembering something, and said, "Speaking of which, I also met a Chinese reincarnator in Shibuya. His name is Wang Qiusen. He runs a Chinese restaurant there. He's a very kind person and has taken good care of me. He mentioned that he used to be a member of your country's 'Light Wheel Team.' I wonder if Mr. Yu has heard of him?"

"The Light Wheel Team? Wang Qiusen?" Upon hearing this, Yu Tianlun was stunned for a moment, then his face showed an expression of disbelief and shock. "You...you mean Wang Qiusen, the deputy commander?! He...he's in Japan?"

Gao Gongwei was somewhat confused by Yu Tianlun's strong reaction: "Yes, that's what Wang Sang said. Does Yu Sang know him?"

"It's more than just knowing them!" Yu Tianlun's tone was filled with barely suppressed excitement and admiration. "Deputy Commander Wang is a legendary figure in the Chinese Reincarnator circle! Back then, the 'Light Wheel Team' was at its peak, and its leader, Zhuge Yu, was recognized as the world's number one Reincarnator! And Chang Wuyong and this Deputy Commander Wang Qiusen were Zhuge Yu's strongest right-hand men! If... if the Light Wheel Team hadn't been suddenly wiped out in that Chang Wuyong rebellion... Deputy Commander Wang would have been Zhuge Yu's sister's fiancé long ago."

He took a deep breath, calming his turbulent emotions: "I never imagined that Deputy Commander Wang would actually be in Japan, and even own a restaurant... This is truly..."

Gao Gongyu suddenly realized, and then revealed a gentle smile: "So Wang Sang has such a glorious past in China. However, he has now settled down and started a family in Japan, and is living a very peaceful life."

Upon hearing this, Yu Tianlun's eyes were filled with complex emotions, which eventually turned into a long sigh: "Life is so unpredictable... The once-powerful Light Wheel Team, Commander Zhuge has fallen, Chang Wuyong... Alas, he betrayed and created the Old Core Organization, and only Deputy Commander Wang is missing. I never expected that he would choose to settle down in Japan and live the life of an ordinary person."

This conversation about past powerful figures stirred up a wave of sighs within the villa.

Outside the window, dark clouds had gathered in the Hakone sky, as if foreshadowing an even bigger storm to come...

(End of this chapter)