Forgotten Photo Studio

Chapter 62 Vaginal Guest

The rain stopped.

But the city felt even more damp and cold at night, with neon lights casting distorted bands of light across the wet streets.

Xu Yan manipulated Zhou Wenbin's body and left the disgusting cold storage.

Instead of heading in the direction Zhou Wenbin might have gone home, he relied on his memory of the way he came and walked towards the abandoned factory area where he had parked his car.

His goal was clear: to find a place where Zhou Wenbin's body could be properly placed, and where his own body could be easily evacuated.

Soon, he saw a sign flashing: "Night Owl Internet Cafe".

Such places are a melting pot of all sorts of people, and they're open all night long, making them perfect hiding spots.

More importantly, this place is filled with electronic environments of computers, routers, and data flow.

Even if something unexpected happens, he can use the "small boat" as cover.

His abilities have now become his silent support; with just a hint, he can interfere with equipment, tamper with images, and instantly disappear into the digital shadows.

He walked in, and a mixture of instant noodle smell, cigarette smoke, and sweat hit him.

The internet cafe manager behind the counter looked sleepy.

Xu Yan used Zhou Wenbin's money to book the innermost private room, said in a hoarse voice, "I'll book it for the night," and staggered in, perfectly playing the role of an extremely tired night traveler.

The private room was small and dimly lit.

He controlled Zhou Wenbin's body, making him slump into the computer chair, turned on the computer, and let the screen light dimly illuminate the room, creating the illusion that he was still active.

Having done all this, Xu Yan knew he had to leave.

The longer the possession lasts, the greater the risk and the heavier the mental burden on oneself.

He concentrated all his thoughts, sensing the invisible thread connecting the Mirror of Shared Life with his distant true self.

The process of breaking free is far slower and more uncomfortable than possession.

It was as if one's soul was being slowly pulled out of a pool of viscous asphalt.

The heaviness in Zhou Wenbin's body, the blue light from the computer screen, the greasy feel of the keyboard... these sensations are gradually fading and blurring.

Instead, there is a strong sense of detachment and the accompanying mental exhaustion, like the pressure of the deep sea.

In the instant before his consciousness completely slipped away, he mustered his strength and sent a final, powerful suggestion into Zhou Wenbin's subconscious, which was gradually regaining its autonomy but was still on the verge of falling into slumber:

"I was so tired... I just fell asleep... and had a chaotic dream..."

Then, he abruptly cut off the connection.

"Well--!"

Inside the black sedan, Xu Yan's body convulsed violently, and he suddenly opened his eyes.

The severe headache felt like a steel cone was churning inside my skull, my vision blurred, and a feeling of nausea shot straight to my throat.

He slumped over the steering wheel, panting heavily, as if he had just returned from an underwater dive, his whole body drenched in cold sweat.

He struggled to lift his head and stared intently through the car window at the entrance of the internet cafe a few dozen meters away.

Business as usual.

There were no alarms, no commotion.

Zhou Wenbin was not present.

He succeeded.

A sense of exhaustion from surviving a catastrophe, mixed with the weight of discovering a shocking secret, almost crushed him.

The scenes from Sector-07—the giant eye, the wedding dress ghost, the blindfolded ghost's pleas, and his master's compass—were etched into his mind like a brand. He needed to go back immediately, to process everything, and to formulate his next plan.

Xu Yan took a deep breath and started the car.

The engine's low growl was exceptionally clear in the quiet night.

The car slowly drove out of the abandoned factory area and turned into the alley leading to the main road.

Just as the headlights were about to illuminate the alleyway ahead, a figure, like a ghost, stepped out of the shadows by the roadside without warning and stood directly in front of the car.

The screeching sound of brakes tore through the night sky!

Xu Yan's body jolted, his heart pounded in his chest, and he could barely make a sound.

The headlights suddenly illuminated the figure ahead.

At that moment, his pupils contracted sharply, and his breath stopped abruptly.

It was Zhou Wenbin!

In a split second, his nerves shifted from sudden fear to utter disbelief: how could that figure, who shouldn't be here, be... blocking his car like this?!

At this moment, Zhou Wenbin's usual slickness and weariness vanished without a trace, replaced by an extremely sinister coldness. His eyes were as sharp as newly sharpened knives, fixed on Xu Yan's face inside the car.

He didn't get angry, he didn't roar, but spoke slowly in a tone that carried a chilling glint and sarcasm. His voice wasn't loud, but every word pierced the car window with crystal clarity:
"I didn't expect it to be you, kid. You've taken a tour inside my body and seen quite a few good things, haven't you? How was it?"

He tilted his head slightly, a smile that held no hint of genuine joy.

"Life has its fixed place, and death has its final destination. My body is the bridge to the underworld. Do you really think that the bodies of us who walk the underworld are like a teahouse where you can come and go as you please?"

Xu Yan felt a chill run through his body.

Zhou Wenbin continued, his tone as if stating an obvious fact: "The moment you touched the 'Forbidden Step Talisman,' I became three-tenths more aware. Even if I, Zhou Wenbin, lost half my soul, I would never touch that deadly thing!"

Xu Yan's heart sank, and a chill ran up his spine.

Sure enough, that link was the flaw! No matter how careful I was, I was eventually seen through.

Zhou Wenbin took a deep breath, letting out a soft inhalation through his nose, as if savoring a slight odor in the air, before pointing precisely at Xu Yan's car window.

“My nose has been honed since childhood by the practice of ferrying souls. A wanderer of the underworld can smell souls as clearly as a hunting dog smells blood. Even three streets away, I can clearly smell the scent of a living person mixed with the scent of a soul borrowing from the underworld.”

Xu Yan was shocked; the other party possessed such a bizarre tracking ability! He shifted into reverse, intending to back up.

"Trying to leave?" Zhou Wenbin sneered, his voice low but each word like a knife: "If you're awake, stop pretending to be asleep and get up and move around! A gentleman avoids ghosts and gods but respects them, but I'm determined to walk with them. If you trespass into my vagina, you'll have to pay the price of the underworld!"

He swiftly formed a strange hand seal in front of his chest, chanting, "Yin energy gathers, heed my command! Appear!"

In an instant, the night breeze, which had been just slightly cool, suddenly turned bone-chilling, whipping up fallen leaves and trash from the ground and howling like a mournful wail.

The light bulbs on both sides of the alley crackled and shattered one after another, instantly dimming the light.

A thick, hazy, ghostly miasma spread rapidly from Zhou Wenbin's center, like a tidal wave, not only obscuring his vision but also carrying a chilling power that disturbed his mind, enveloping the car.

This is not about summoning a powerful evil spirit, but about commanding all the wandering ghosts and spirits within a hundred meters.

In an instant, countless blurry, distorted shadows, emitting low cries or shrieks, emerged from the walls, the ground, and the corners, merging into the ghostly miasma like a swarm of gray locusts, rushing towards Xu Yan's car.

They frantically pounded on the car windows and rammed into the body, making a teeth-grinding scraping sound. Although not fatal, they greatly interfered with Xu Yan's actions and judgment.

"You really are lucky. You wasted one of my keys and were sent to the gates of hell and you still didn't die... Well then, today, I'll do it myself."

Xu Yan's knuckles turned white as he clenched his fists, his teeth clenched tightly.

That so-called cleanup commission... it really was a trap he had set long ago!
Zhou Wenbin's figure had already disappeared behind the surging miasma, and only a vague outline could be seen, like the mastermind behind the scenes manipulating a puppet.

　"Yin and Yang are distinct, life and death have their own paths. Ordinary people walk the Yang path, but we walk the Yin path." Those who walk the Yin path originally used their own blood and energy as a vessel to ferry souls into the netherworld. Now, Zhou Wenbin has broken the "soul-ferrying contract" made by his ancestors with the underworld, and the curse has begun. (A little background information to aid reading.)

　　
　
(End of this chapter)