Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 342 Entangled Love

As evening fell, NHK television staff began to leave work, and Reiko Asakawa arrived at the agreed-upon location to pick up Yoichi, looking exhausted.

When she saw Jiang Jin and the others, she clearly sensed that something was wrong.

The man who had previously called himself "Kurosaki Ichigo" and his colleagues had faces so gloomy they could practically drip water, and an indescribable heaviness filled the air.

Seeing this, Reiko instinctively hugged Yoichi, who had run over.

Kong Huaizheng's unexpected death rendered the previously convenient hypnosis techniques unusable.

Faced with Lingzi's questioning yet wary gaze, Li Shang stepped forward. As a sorcerer, he possessed another method of influencing minds, though not as subtle as Kong Huaizheng's hypnosis, and carrying a hint of the sinister, but he couldn't care less at this moment.

Li Shang muttered incantations, his fingers subtly forming a strange hand seal. An imperceptible, dark energy, like spider silk, quietly coiled around Lingzi. Lingzi's eyes glazed over for a moment, her resistance rapidly weakening.

“Vice Commander, the situation has changed. We have no choice but to use the ‘Love Entanglement Spell’.” Li Shang whispered to Jiang Jin in Chinese, his tone grave. “This spell can make her develop an irresistible obsession and love for you in a short period of time, and she will be willing to do anything for you. But the side effect is… it may distort part of her mind, and the duration is limited, requiring regular reinforcement.”

"Huh?" Jiang Jin frowned, glanced at Lingzi who looked wary, and although he felt something was off, he thought of the dead Kong Huaizheng and the imminent crisis, and finally nodded heavily: "...Let's do it, but control your strength."

Li Shang received approval and no longer hesitated.

He could have made Lingzi "fall in love" with Yu Tianlun, but with Xu Yinqiu present, it would have been awkward, and Jiang Jin's wife was conveniently absent. Moreover, influenced by the soul imprint, he would subconsciously seek benefits for Jiang Jin.

Then, Li Shang took out a black cloth bag and tied the opening with a red rope.

He untied the red rope and carefully plucked out a small pinch of black granules mixed with special herbal powder, shimmering with an eerie phosphorescence, and a hair as thin as a strand, yet faintly glowing with blood... his own hair!
He began chanting incantations, the syllables strange and rapid. As the incantation was recited, the mixture at his fingertips seemed to come alive, wriggling slightly and emitting a strange fragrance.

At the same time, he secretly formed a complex and sinister hand seal with his left hand, and an invisible dark energy spread from his fingertips, silently wrapping around Asakawa Reiko.

This energy was not a direct attack, but rather carried a strong suggestive and distorting force, targeting Reiko's emotional center.

As Lingzi was wondering, she suddenly felt a slight dizziness, as if a warm current was brushing against her heart.

She subconsciously glanced at Jiang Jin, who stood before the crowd with a cold expression. The instant her gaze met Jiang Jin's, an unprecedented and intense emotion, so powerful it frightened even herself, surged forth like a flood bursting its banks!

My heart was pounding uncontrollably, and my cheeks flushed an unnatural red.

The man before her, who called himself "Kurosaki Ichigo," had a furrowed brow that looked like deep worry to her eyes, and a cold face that symbolized perseverance and reliability. Even the lingering murderous aura emanating from him gave her a fatal attraction, making her want to be drawn to him like a moth to a flame.

The vague identification with the "colleague" identity that had been created by Kong Huaizheng's hypnosis was now completely covered and reshaped by this surging emotion.

A near-blind love, unconditional trust, and a strong possessiveness and protectiveness instantly filled her mind.

This even... made her completely ignore the wedding ring on Jiang Jin's left ring finger.

"Kurosaki...kun?" Reiko's voice trembled slightly, the wariness and confusion in her eyes gone, replaced by a burning, almost melting, adoration. "Are you... alright? You don't look well. Did something happen? Please tell me if there's anything I can do to help!"

She even took a step forward involuntarily, ignoring everyone else, her gaze fixed on Jiang Jin, as if he were the only light in her world.

Yang Yi, who was being led by her, seemed to sense his mother's unusual behavior and tugged at her clothes uneasily, but Lingzi's attention was no longer on her son at this moment.

Li Shang said in a low voice, "Vice Regiment Commander, that's enough. Right now, you're more important to her than anything else. You can make your request directly, and as long as it's not about killing her immediately, she probably won't refuse."

Looking into Lingzi's eyes, which were filled with an abnormal adoration, Jiang Jin felt a mix of emotions. He felt guilty for using such methods, as well as helpless about the current situation.

He took a deep breath, trying to make his tone sound calm: "Ms. Asakawa, we have indeed encountered some... tricky problems. This isn't the place to talk. Would it be too much of a bother to come to your house to discuss this in detail? I don't know if that would be too much of a disturbance!"

"Of course! No problem!" Lingzi agreed almost without thinking, her face even showing a look of joy, as if Jiang Jin's willingness to come to her house was a great favor. "My house is not far from the TV station, please come with me! Don't worry, I won't bother you!"

She took Yang Yi's hand and led the way, her steps light and quick, a stark contrast to her earlier exhaustion.

Throughout the journey, her gaze was almost glued to Jiang Jin, occasionally revealing a look of concern and infatuation, while she almost ignored everyone else.

Lian De felt a little envious; this was Nanako Matsushima, a goddess of Japanese dramas!
Then, the group silently followed Reiko to her residence.

Her house is large, decorated warmly and neatly, and full of life.

Afterwards, Lingzi diligently poured water for Jiang Jin, took the initiative to sit down next to him, and kept her eyes on him for a moment.

Sitting around in the living room, Jiang Jin and the others began to probe Lingzi for clues. They mainly focused on two directions: first, whether she had recently heard of any urban legends about the "strange videotape," and second, whether anything unusual happened or any special files were left behind when NHK went to Izu Oshima to film a documentary decades ago.

Under the influence of the black magic, Reiko tried hard to recall in order to please Jiang Jin, but in the end she shook her head and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun. I don't remember much about the strange videotape. As for the NHK documentary from a long time ago... I wasn't even born then, and the station rarely talks about things from that long ago."

Seeing Jiang Jin's solemn expression, she felt guilty for not being able to help her lover and immediately offered, "However, if you need it, Kurosaki-kun, I can ask the senior staff at the station when I get to work tomorrow. Maybe someone will know."

Jiang Jin nodded in thanks. After a moment's thought, he asked another crucial question: "Ms. Asakawa, if I may ask, do you have a niece named Oishi Tomoko? We have some... research on youth media exposure, and we might need to consult her for information."

He came up with a lame but barely plausible reason.

Unsuspecting, Lingzi, under the influence of the black magic, quickly told Jiang Jin her niece Zhizi's home address and school information, all in an effort to help her lover. Upon receiving the address, a cold glint flashed in Jiang Jin's eyes, and he immediately decided to act that very night.

Kong Huaizheng's death weighed heavily on his heart like a boulder. He desperately needed to find a breakthrough, to make progress, and to have the strength to fight against that terrifying existence.

"Wait, Jiang Jin." Yu Tianlun grabbed his shoulder, his voice low and serious, carrying an undeniable admonition, "I know you're anxious, but you need to stay calm, especially in times like these. Wasn't Kong Huaizheng's lesson profound enough? Sadako's terror far exceeded our initial expectations! Acting rashly in the dark, especially without knowing the situation at Tomoko's house, could very well lead to another disaster. It would be safer to wait until daytime, when the yang energy is at its peak, before we act."

Yu Tianlun's words were like a bucket of cold water, extinguishing the flames of anxiety in Jiang Jin's heart.

He felt intense guilt over Kong Huaizheng's death. After all, if it weren't for his own sake, a level 2 apocalyptic like him wouldn't have needed to enter such a dangerous and terrifying instance.

He glanced at the deep darkness outside the window, as if he could feel the omnipresent, cold gaze from the shadows.

Jiang Jin took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. The commander was right; there couldn't be any more unnecessary sacrifices.

This night was exceptionally long and agonizing for the Nirvana team, who stayed at their temporary lodging near Lingzi's apartment.

No one could sleep peacefully, wary of the slightest disturbance. The image of Kong Huaizheng's tragic death and the shadow of the return-to-town rune possibly malfunctioning weighed heavily on their hearts.

The next day...September 1st, the start of the school year for elementary and middle schools in Japan.

The sunlight dispelled some of the night's gloom, but it could not illuminate the heaviness in the hearts of the reincarnators.

Reiko Asakawa helped Yoichi put on his elementary school uniform and confidently assured Jiang Jin that she would definitely find out the information.

Subsequently, the Nirvana team located the school where Tomoko Oishi was located based on the address provided by Reiko.

The campus was bustling with the noise of the first day of school. Students dressed in sailor uniforms or school uniforms gathered in small groups, exuding youthful energy.

Yui Takamiya, relying on her memory of the film, clearly sketched out the image of Tomoko in her mind, which was played by a young Yuko Takeuchi.

According to the original storyline, Tomoko was already at her vacation home in Hakone, watching the cursed videotape with her friends.

Her fate was now in its final seven days, and the film opens with her bizarre and tragic death at home.

Even after her death, her soul could not find peace and was enslaved and assimilated by Sadako. In the original movie, it was she, now a ghost, who guided Yoichi to watch the videotape, thus perpetuating the curse.

During a break between classes, they finally "bumped into" Tomoko Oishi in the hallway.

She was a girl who looked no different from any other high school girl, with neatly combed short hair and a face that showed a touch of youthful naiveté and curiosity typical of her age.

Jiang Jin stepped forward, trying to keep his expression calm. He took out the original videotape and tentatively asked, "Hello, are you Tomoko Oishi? We're doing some research on video materials. Do you remember the contents of this videotape? We heard you might have seen something similar when you were on vacation in Hakone recently?"

When Tomoko saw the videotape, her eyes flickered, revealing a look of confusion and recollection: "Ah... this... yes. About a week ago, my friend Haruko and I went to Hakone and stayed at a holiday home in Hakone. That night, we were bored, so we borrowed this videotape from the manager's room. It was supposed to be a folk documentary, so we watched it out of curiosity... but the content was really strange, and it made us feel a little uncomfortable. The videotape packaging also had some very strange rules written on it, so we returned it after watching it."

Her tone sounded fairly normal, as if she didn't associate the viewing with any supernatural events, but rather considered it an unpleasant movie-watching experience.

However, Xu Yinqiu, standing behind Jiang Jin, was observing Zhi Zi intently. Her expression gradually became serious. She whispered in a voice that only her teammates could hear: "Her SAN value... Although she seems to be behaving normally now, judging from the rate and depth of the memetic contamination erosion, it is showing a precipitous downward trend! In seven days... no, it may not even be seven days, she will completely fall into the annihilation layer."

Meanwhile, inside NHK television station.

Under the continued influence of the black magic, Reiko Asakawa took the newspaper fragment from 1958 that Jiang Jin had given her, which reported on the "rusted ferry" and the collective anomalies, and went to consult with her senior, Saito.

“Saito-senpai, look at this,” Reiko handed over the newspaper scraps. “I’ve been organizing some materials lately and stumbled upon this. It’s about some… strange things that happened when our NHK was filming a documentary on Izu Oshima back then. Have you heard of it?”

When Saito's gaze fell on the newspaper, especially when he saw the word "SADAKO" and the paragraph describing the collective abnormal behavior, his face turned deathly pale, and his hand holding the coffee cup trembled slightly.

He abruptly pushed the newspaper shreds aside, his voice carrying an unprecedented sternness and a hint of barely perceptible fear:

"Asakawa! Where did you find this?! Stop investigating! Do you hear me?! Forget about what you've seen; this isn't your territory!"

Reiko was startled by her senior's strong reaction, but her doubts, her reporter's instinct to get to the bottom of things, and her determination to help her lover at all costs led her to ask: "Senior, why? What exactly is this 'SADAKO' mentioned here? What exactly happened in Izu back then? Why are people at the station so tight-lipped about this?"

"Don't ask anymore!" Saito almost roared, interrupting her, a fine layer of cold sweat beading on his forehead, his eyes darting around. "Some things are better left unsaid! For your own sake, and for Yoichi's sake, don't delve any deeper! This isn't a warning, it's advice!"

After saying that, he almost frantically grabbed his briefcase and hurried away, leaving Lingzi standing there alone, her heart filled with huge questions and a chill.

The senior's reaction was too abnormal; there must be a huge secret hidden behind it, and this secret seemed so dangerous that it couldn't even be mentioned.

Lingzi then sat down at her desk and dialed the phone number Jiang Jin had given her, treating it as a rather sleek mobile phone.

"Kurosaki-kun? It's me, Asakawa. I asked a senior colleague, and his reaction... was very strange. He was terrified and sternly warned me not to continue the investigation, especially regarding 'SADAKO'. I think that senior colleague... might know some crucial inside information."

Jiang Jin's eyes lit up instantly upon receiving the call.

The breakthrough has finally been found! This senior is probably the key figure to unraveling the mystery of Izu back then, and even to understanding the true origins of Sadako!

(End of this chapter)