Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 355 Repair Hotline
The Nirvana team took a taxi and returned to their villa in Hakone amidst an increasingly somber atmosphere.

Throughout the journey, everyone remained silent, wary of potential follow-up attacks from the sorcerer or Sadako.

Frankly, Yu Tianlun couldn't understand it at all. Even if Jiang Jin had offended the Insect Cave team because of Bai Miya, was it really necessary to send the Insect Cave Lady's personal guards to take action? Wasn't this giving the Nirvana team too much credit? Moreover, using a Gu worm like the Void-Sheath Insect to assassinate Jiang Jin? Had the Insect Cave already discovered Jiang Jin's terrifying talent?
However, no one could answer Yu Tianlun's questions.

Upon returning to their villa in Hakone, Yu Tianlun immediately reinforced all the protective formations he had previously set up, while Li Shang also deployed more anti-hellification measures around the perimeter.

Yang Jian was ready to unleash his Ghost Domain at any time, just in case.

Lingzi was placed on the sofa in the living room. Although the black marks on her arms had been temporarily suppressed by the incantation, they were still shocking. Her face was pale and her breathing was very weak.

"Newcomer gift pack... I hope it's not too late..." Jiang Jin frowned as he looked at Lingzi's pained expression.

Fortunately, the reincarnation system has strict mechanisms in this regard. When the time came, everyone looked up and saw a green treasure chest with a small parachute hanging below it, slowly and precisely descending towards the villa's courtyard.

"It's a newbie gift pack!" Lian De shouted.

Jiang Jin immediately rushed out of the villa and retrieved the green treasure chest.

He obtained the treasure chest, its surface engraved with mysterious patterns. He placed it in front of Lingzi, gesturing for her to open it.

Lingzi weakly reached out and touched the lock on the treasure chest.

With a click, the treasure chest opened automatically.

Inside, several items were neatly arranged: a bottle of shimmering potion, an antique thread-bound book, a string of wooden prayer beads exuding a tranquil aura, and several crystals containing pure life energy.

That bottle of seven-colored potion is actually the [Universal Antidote]!
Jiang Jin immediately picked up the antidote and handed it to Lingzi, who then carefully took it.

After the potion entered her mouth, it transformed into a cool energy that flowed throughout her body. The dark color on her arm faded rapidly at a visible speed, the numbness and excruciating pain of the wound disappeared, and a trace of color returned to her pale cheeks.

"It works!" Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Reiko felt as if she had woken up from a terrible nightmare. Although she was still weak, she could feel her body getting better.

She looked at Jiang Jin gratefully: "Kurosaki-kun... thank you..."

“My name is Jiang Jin… After all, you saved me first.” Jiang Jin’s gaze fell on the other items in the treasure chest, and he took them out one by one.

The book was titled "Basic Incantation Methods and Techniques," the prayer beads were calming prayer beads (beginner level), and the crystal was something called "Life Essence," which only incantation practitioners could absorb.

These are all resources and items that are very suitable for beginners in the Zhuyou sect to start out, enough to allow Lingzi to stabilize her LV1 level in a short period of time.

However, Jiang Jin's mood did not lighten much.

He looked at Reiko, who had just escaped death, and said in a deep voice, "Miss Asakawa, although your poison has been cured, a greater crisis has not been resolved. You watched the videotape, and the curse will cause 'her' to regard you as an object of killing, and will constantly force you to copy the videotape."

Jiang Jin paused, his tone becoming extremely serious, even carrying an undeniable air of authority: "With your current strength as a newly promoted LV1, if you leave my side, 'she' could kill you with ease. Therefore, from this moment on, you must stay by my side 24 hours a day, and you must not leave my side by more than two meters! Remember, 24 hours in the strictest sense, not even for a second!"

"24 hours in the strict sense?" Reiko was taken aback at first, then two red clouds quickly rose to her cheeks, her eyes showing a hint of panic and shyness. "Being by your side? Then... then when we go to the toilet, sleep, or even take a shower?"

Jiang Jin hadn't forgotten how Xu Yinqiu died, and his tone was resolute: "Take your time with the shower for now, or just wipe yourself down with a damp towel. When you go to the toilet, you must be within my sight! After all, my current semi-domain only works when I'm around. This is for your safety, there's no room for negotiation. My semi-domain can isolate most rule pollution and mental erosion, so as long as you're within the domain, 'she' will have a hard time directly harming you."

He had to ensure Lingzi's absolute safety; it was his responsibility to her and also a way to make up for his guilt.

As Lingzi listened to this almost "unreasonable" request and looked at Jiang Jin's serious and earnest eyes, her blush deepened.

In her mind, influenced by the black magic, Jiang Jin's words didn't seem excessive at all; on the contrary, they seemed more like a manifestation of... a strong possessiveness and protectiveness?

She lowered her head and replied in a voice barely audible, "I...I understand...I will always follow Kurosaki-kun..."

A secret sweetness even welled up in her heart, completely misunderstanding Jiang Jin's true intentions.

Jiang Jin sighed and didn't try to correct her name anymore.

If only he were the male protagonist of "Bleach," all sorts of demons and evil spirits could be wiped out with a single "Getsuga Tenshou" from his Zanpakuto.

At this moment, Jiang Jin looked at Lingzi's expression and smiled bitterly to himself. He knew that she had misunderstood again, but now was not the time to explain, nor did he have the energy to correct her. Should he say, "Miss Asakawa, I absolutely did not have any intention of spying on you. Please feel free to come with me to the restroom?"

Explaining this kind of thing will only make things worse, making you look like a pervert, so it's better not to say anything.

The expressions of the people around them also became very strange.

Lian De, in particular, was utterly dumbfounded by Jiang Jin's expression.

He leaned closer to Jiang Jin and whispered in Chinese, "Vice-Captain, why don't you consider just forgoing the curse and adding her to your harem? It's common for leaders and vice-captains of large teams to have a dozen or more 'wives.' Look at how many women Blood Lord has around him? Ye Xiu, Long Mingzhang... they have at least thirty women around them! Many of them are leading ladies from dramas! What's more, she's a Japanese drama goddess! It's definitely a good deal!"

“Lian De,” Jiang Jin said coldly, “are you itching for a beating?”

"I'm sorry, Vice Regiment Commander," Lian Xuan quickly pulled his younger brother back as he stepped forward, "I've spoiled him too much, please don't take it to heart..."

……

Night falls again.

After a day of adventure and rest, the team decided to watch the cursed videotape again.

After Jiang Jin advanced to LV3, his perception improved significantly, which might allow him to discover details he had previously overlooked. Moreover, they urgently needed to find a new breakthrough.

Everyone gathered in the living room and arranged the environment strictly according to the rules.

The television screen lights up, displaying static, dark clouds, a mirror reflecting hair combing... familiar scenes unfold once more.

Jiang Jin was completely focused; his LV3 hunter's perception was like the most sophisticated radar, scanning every frame of the screen. When the screen showed the news report text, Jiang Jin's pupils suddenly contracted!
He saw it!

Against the backdrop of those tadpole-like, swimming texts, a completely new and never-before-seen scene was briefly inserted—a woman in a white dress, standing on the edge of the crater, leaping into the rolling, dark red lava of Mount Mihara!

The scene was filled with despair and resolve. Although brief, it was imprinted on Jiang Jin's mind with unparalleled clarity and depth!
However, strangely, when this scene flashed by, the subsequent content continued until the ancient well appeared at the end. The screen was covered with snow and noise, and the total duration displayed by the recorder was still 1 minute and 20 seconds!
Not a second more, not a second less!
The extra scene of "the woman jumping into the volcano" was "inserted" in a way that went beyond the normal timeline!

This is precisely the method that only the Annihilation Layer Evil Spirits can achieve!
"Rule Nine has been triggered!" Jiang Jin said in a deep voice, his expression solemn. "I saw that scene!"

A glint flashed in Yu Tianlun's eyes: "We've finally waited for this moment!"

Jiang Jin had long wanted to meet that so-called "repair technician." If this condition wasn't triggered, he even considered using the Lawyer's abilities again to forcibly change the rules and lure the snake out.

Lingzi whispered, "I secretly checked the repair phone number you mentioned using the TV station's internal lines before... and it showed that it was... not in service."

"That's normal, I expected it."

Without further hesitation, Jiang Jin walked to the old-fashioned rotary phone, took a deep breath, and dialed 03-3486-0429 according to the number provided in Rule Nine.

The call was answered almost instantly.

What came through the receiver was not a normal busy tone or the operator's voice, but a... extremely eerie sound.

The sound was like a mixture of countless different frequencies of electrical noise, mixed with sounds like metallic friction, drowning, and some kind of low, whimpering, distorted synthetic sound. It was impossible to tell the speaker's gender or age, or even whether it was a "human" voice.

"Hello?" Jiang Jin steadied himself and said, "I watched the videotape and it showed a woman who 'does not exist' in the rules jumping into the volcano. The videotape is malfunctioning and needs to be repaired."

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone, then that indescribable voice spoke again, each word seemingly carrying a cold echo:
"I understand... that a... repair... technician... will be dispatched... to... your... door... within... three... hours... Please... pay... attention... to... check... the... repair... technician's... golden... eagle... badge..."

The sound was intermittent, distorted, and sent chills down one's spine.

Finally, the voice left behind an even more chilling sentence:
"Please...pay... attention...to...your...well..."

Click, the call was disconnected, leaving only the monotonous busy tone.

"Please note the well in your yard?" Jiang Jin put down the receiver, his brows furrowed, his mind filled with confusion. "What do you mean? There's no well in the yard of this villa."

Everyone looked at each other, puzzled. This abrupt and unfounded warning was more unsettling than the repair technician himself.

“In any case, the repair technician will arrive within three hours.” Yu Tianlun checked the time. “Everyone, be prepared. We have no idea whether this ‘repair technician’ is friend or foe, or what her relationship is with ‘her.’ We must be extremely vigilant.”

The atmosphere inside the villa became extremely tense in the following hours.

Everyone was speculating about how the repairman would appear and what he would bring. Would it be a turning point to break the curse, or an even more terrifying disaster?

Jiang Jin kept Lingzi close by his side, and his miniature killing domain remained activated, enveloping the surroundings.

Time ticked by, and the three-hour deadline drew ever closer.

With less than half an hour left before the appointed time, Deathstroke, who had been on high alert, suddenly sent an extremely strong message to Jiang Jin, filled with confusion and warning!

It sensed an extremely subtle but real distortion in the spatial structure somewhere inside the villa!
Jiang Jin, who shared the vision of Deathstroke, suddenly turned his head to look in the direction of the corridor leading to the storage room in the villa!

That was where a solid load-bearing wall should have been...

"Over there!" Jiang Jin shouted, wielding the Moon Shadow sword, and charged forward in an instant!
Yu Tianlun and the others immediately followed.

Upon reaching the end of the corridor, Jiang Jin was astonished to find that there was now a door!

A rustic, old-fashioned wooden door with deep textures, completely out of place with the modern Japanese-style decor of the villa!

It appeared silently where the wall used to be, as if it had always been there, but they had never noticed it before!
The door was unlocked.

Jiang Jin and Yu Tianlun exchanged a glance, then suddenly pushed open the wooden door!
Behind the door was not the room I had imagined, but a narrow, steep stone staircase leading downwards!

A chilling wind swept in from below the steps!

"Basement? This villa clearly didn't have a basement before!" Lian De exclaimed.

Jiang Jin's ominous premonition reached its peak.

"Please be careful with your well..."

The warning from the repair call echoed in his mind.

Without hesitation, he took the lead and walked down the stone steps. Yu Tianlun, Li Shang, Yang Jian and others followed closely behind, while Lingzi, who was firmly protected within Jiang Jin's domain, also followed nervously.

The stone steps meander downwards, as if leading to the depths of the earth.

The surrounding light quickly dimmed, the air became increasingly damp and cold, and the walls began to be covered with slippery moss.

Finally, they reached the end of the stairs.

Before my eyes stood a structure built of rough stones—

An ancient well!

The wellhead was deep and pitch black, as if leading straight to hell. A thick, pungent, and rotting resentment emanated from the well, almost suffocating people!
A chill ran through everyone, rising from their feet to the top of their heads. Sadako's ancient well... had appeared in their "home" in this way!

The appearance of this well undoubtedly means that the final, terrifying showdown is imminent!

(End of this chapter)