Chapter 56
The situation was a bit complicated.
With the fall of the supervisor’s photo, he seemed to have been enraged by Jiang Liu. The entire world was swept by a fierce wind, and countless rolling black mists shot out. Not only the players who had stumbled in, but even the people originally trapped inside were all thrown out.
In just a short moment, the photo studio was filled with Ghostly Shadows. Numerous gray-black misty forms almost overlapped, instantly dimming the light of the incandescent lamps to an extreme low.
Zhao Ziming clutched his Peach Wood Cross tightly, on the verge of tears at the sight.
“Sis! What on earth did you do?”
Just now it was only one Ghost Hand. How did it become like this in the blink of an eye?
How could they possibly fight this! These things could drown him with their spit alone!
“Cut the crap. Where are the others?” Jiang Liu pulled him behind her, only then noticing that Zhao Ziming was the only living person left in the entire shop.
“They all disappeared!” Zhao Ziming waved his arms to resist the ghosts, almost cursing.
“Disappeared? I didn’t see them.” Zhang Xiaochen stood there dizzily and subconsciously replied upon hearing this.
Yang Caisi wasn’t much of a talker, and these past two days had been killing him.
Only then did Zhao Ziming notice his presence, a hint of joy finally appearing on his face. “You’re okay?”
He hadn’t thought much of it when he was used to it, but it was only when Zhang Xiaochen was gone that he felt a sense of frustration. There was no one left in the entire team to banter with him!
Zhang Xiaochen rolled his eyes and patted his chest, his tone exceptionally proud. “Who do you think I am? Of course I’m fine!”
Seeing the two of them about to start chatting under these circumstances, Jiang Liu felt both speechless and amused.
But this was definitely not the place for reminiscing.
She narrowed her eyes and stared in the direction of the Ghost Hand.
A pair of hands, almost half a person tall, moved nimbly in the air, covered in calluses and wrinkles. Jiang Liu guessed they were the hands of a middle-aged man. The color of the nails had turned bluish-purple, and the bulging veins were clearly visible.
The wrists were neatly severed, and there were even bloodstains on them, constantly dripping down with the movement of the hands, looking like specimens dissected for research.
But there was no denying that these hands were alive, and they were also tangible.
That made things much easier.
Jiang Liu stretched her muscles, a long-lost thrill flashing in her eyes. With a flick of her wrist, a dagger flew out. Before Zhao Ziming could see clearly, she had already shot out with a whoosh, almost becoming an afterimage.
At the same time, a sentence fell.
“You two take pictures to deal with the Ghostly Shadows. Leave the rest to me.”
As she spoke, she didn’t forget to give Yang Caisi a look in her spare moment.
The latter immediately understood. Seeing that Jiang Liu had already lured the Ghost Hand away, she also rushed forward in a few steps, leaping into the air and tightly hugging one of its fingers.
The left hand immediately began to struggle frantically, flailing wildly in mid-air. Seemingly realizing it couldn’t shake off Yang Caisi, it quickly rose higher, pulling her into the air.
Her body rose rapidly, but there was no fear on Yang Caisi’s face. Using a clever trick, she arched her waist and was already straddling the finger.
In the next second, Jiang Liu’s figure had already rushed under her. The sharp dagger flashed with a cold light in mid-air, unhesitatingly pressing against the edge of that finger, almost completely sinking into it.
The Ghost Hand was enraged, thrashing up and down even more violently. Warm blood splattered all over Jiang Liu, but she paid it no mind and continued to circle around to attack.
This coordinated effort between the two of them made Zhao Ziming’s heart pound. He thought to himself that it was a matter of a split second.
If Jiang Liu had struck earlier, or if Yang Caisi’s movements had been a moment slower, the dagger would have plunged fiercely into Yang Caisi’s chest. With that kind of force, even calling an ambulance in advance would have been futile.
These two people had clearly not communicated at all, yet they seemed to be very familiar with each other’s moves, cooperating seamlessly.
Zhao Ziming wiped away a cold sweat, thinking to himself, Could this also be telepathy?
As he stood there in a daze, his body was suddenly pulled off balance by Zhang Xiaochen, who was urgently speaking in front of him, “What are you standing there for? Hurry up and take pictures!”
These Ghostly Shadows were gathering more and more, layering on top of each other to the point where he could barely see where Jiang Liu was. If they didn’t deal with them, something bad might happen.
Seeing that he was about to grab the camera on the front desk, Zhao Ziming dazedly came back to his senses, his face turning completely pale. “You can’t touch it!!!”
As he spoke, he didn’t know where he got the strength from, but he fiercely grabbed Zhang Xiaochen’s waist from behind, barely managing to pull him back.
Zhang Xiaochen was also angry. “What the hell are you doing?”
Although the Ghostly Shadows weren’t very aggressive, they were clearly causing some interference for Jiang Liu and the other two.
“These cameras all have problems! Anyone who touches them will disappear!”
Recalling what had happened in the afternoon, Zhao Ziming’s face was pale, his voice filled with extreme terror.
This instance was too strange.
In the past, the ones he had experienced mostly had a complete logical connection between the plot and the quests. Although they were also very dangerous, players could deduce things from the clues within.
But this photo studio was different. There was no guide NPC after entering, and even Yang Caisi herself was trapped inside. Either The System had a bug, or someone was messing with things.
Speaking of which, a figure appeared in his mind.
In that moment of distraction, a heavy object fell to the ground. A finger, about the thickness of his thigh, was cut off by Jiang Liu, landing on the floor with a bloody mess. The thick smell of blood instantly filled his nostrils. Zhao Ziming’s stomach churned, and he almost threw up.
“What are you two doing!” After finally dealing with one finger, she turned her head to see the two of them standing there motionless. Jiang Liu frowned in annoyance, almost roaring.
Before she could get an answer from the two of them, the Ghost Hand’s muscles twitched in pain. Jiang Liu could almost see it grimacing from its palm.
Just as she was about to repeat the trick, she suddenly felt a chill behind her. The feeling of being watched from last night returned. Before her mind could react, her body had already taken the lead, ducking and arching her back to dodge the incoming impact.
Her movement was perfect, but what she hadn’t expected was—there was another one behind her.
Yang Caisi, who was originally straddling the finger, suddenly widened her eyes. Without thinking, she used the momentum to jump off and accurately pounced on the monster behind Jiang Liu.
The sound of flesh hitting flesh echoed in her ears. It all happened too fast. Jiang Liu hadn’t even had time to get up before she saw a huge, round object flash past her eyes, taking Yang Caisi with it and crashing heavily into the wall.
Jiang Liu’s pupils instantly dilated. At that moment, her heart was about to jump out of her throat, and only one thought remained in her mind.
Did she have to save me like that?
By the time Jiang Liu reacted, she had already rushed forward. Only then did she see clearly that the monster was two giant eyeballs, as if they had been gouged out of their sockets alive. The eyeballs were still moving wildly.
“Xiao Si!”
She shouted, feeling that this form of address was exceptionally familiar, almost blurting it out without thinking.
“I’m fine.” Yang Caisi’s voice didn’t betray anything, but she quickly got up and reminded her, “Hit its eyeball.”
Seeing that she could still move, Jiang Liu unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief and then gripped her dagger and flew forward.
At this distance, she could see clearly. At this position, the pair of eyes could clearly dodge. She had originally only intended to corner it before making a move, but who knew what kind of madness the Ghost Eye was in. In the process of retreating, it suddenly hesitated for a moment, allowing Jiang Liu to stab into it.
The unexpected success puzzled Jiang Liu, but she chose to seize the opportunity and forcefully swung her arm, stirring it around in the eyeball with a force that could have pierced it through.
As the eyeball was destroyed, she seemed to hear a piercing scream in her ear. The eyeball deflated like a balloon that had run out of air, turning into a pool of turbid blood.
Only then did Jiang Liu see clearly that behind it was the tripod standing in the corner, with the camera placed securely on it.
Recalling the eyeball’s non-dodging, advancing appearance, a flash of inspiration struck her mind, and she suddenly raised her leg and kicked at the camera.
The Ghost Hand seemed to have sensed something. Its figure made a turn in mid-air and charged towards Jiang Liu at full speed.
She understood most of it in her heart and immediately turned to look at Zhao Ziming. “Smash the cameras!”
This ghostly thing treasured them so much, there must be a reason.
Seeing the two of them entangled with the Ghost Hand again, Zhao Ziming finally dared not to be dazed anymore and called for Zhang Xiaochen to smash the cameras.
There were six machines, big and small, on the first floor. They had counted them carefully and had even used them to repel the Ghostly Shadows at the time, so they were very familiar with their placement.
Following their actions, Jiang Liu discovered that the Ghost Hand was actually showing signs of retreating. It completely avoided her attacks and charged madly at Zhang Xiaochen and the other two.
Found the key!
A smile blossomed on her lips. Imitating Yang Caisi’s earlier move, she rode on the Ghost Hand, holding on tightly and using all her strength to prevent them from bothering Zhao Ziming.
At some point, Yang Caisi had also joined in. The two of them, each on a Ghost Hand steed, made Zhao Ziming’s eyes red with envy.
If it weren’t for the truly horrifying scene of blood and gore all over the floor, he might have wanted to try it too.
“Where are you hurt?” Jiang Liu took a moment to turn her head and carefully examine Yang Caisi beside her.
It was clear that she could still move nimbly, so it probably wasn’t a serious internal injury, but her face was clearly two shades paler than before, almost transparent, and her lips had lost their color, which made her a little worried.
It was clearly a difficult situation, but Yang Caisi actually laughed out loud.
After a round of intense exercise, her forehead was dotted with a few beads of sweat, but a hint of fanaticism flashed in her eyes. Although her face was pale, she didn’t look weak at all. Instead, her whole person was imbued with an upward vitality.
She casually brushed aside a lock of hair soaked with sweat. When she smiled, the small mole in the corner of her eye sparkled, as if she had completely abandoned her cold facade. Her voice was filled with delight. “Are you worried about me, sister?”
Looking at that bright face, Jiang Liu felt as if an electric current had silently passed through her, instantly traveling through her limbs, making her heart flutter.
She subconsciously nodded lightly, but her gaze never left Yang Caisi’s face.
Compared to that feigned cold, icy mountain appearance, this Yang Caisi was like the first light of spring, full of life, making it impossible for people to look away.
Perhaps because the Ghost Hand was swinging too much, the delicate chain around her neck flew up with the movement and landed outside her shirt, coincidentally caught by Jiang Liu.
It was the pattern of the Willow Seal.
In an instant, Jiang Liu’s mind exploded like fireworks. Memories that had been sealed away for an unknown amount of time poured out like a flood.
—That was the necklace she had given her.