double

Chapitre 27

"Alright, let's get out of this awful place! No matter what, we've had a very fruitful day!" Li Hai patted my shoulder, and I took Fang Lei's hand as we walked out of the laboratory.

As I was the last one to leave the lab and close the door, I suddenly felt incredibly sorry for Yang Yi and Lin Junxian. They were both being manipulated by a mastermind behind the scenes, perhaps dying without ever knowing what they had done, while that mastermind could play them like puppets. How pitiful! People who can't control their own destiny will never see their own lives. And at that moment, I was completely unaware that I, too, was being manipulated by an even more hidden, invisible hand. What I didn't know was that after I closed the lab door, the once clear pool water began to turn red again, eventually becoming a dark red, and within the churning water, I could vaguely see a human body immersed in blood.

Walking through the sewers again, the initial excitement was gone. When we passed the skeleton again, I removed the head from it. This action startled Fang Lei and Li Hai, who looked at me strangely, thinking I had some kind of fetish. I had to explain that I needed to take the skull for some forensic examination, hoping it would help with the case. So, I carried the skull with them all the way out of No. 77 Guhuai Street. The entire way was eerily quiet, but this quietness didn't bring us any peace; on the contrary, it gave us a feeling that a storm was brewing.

To be honest, I'm not without experience carrying a skull while walking, but the feeling right now is particularly strange. Plus, with Fang Lei beside me wearing only a few layers of clothing, the feeling is even more eerie and erotic, especially stimulating to my senses.

We thought our appearance might scare people, but thankfully our ordeal had taken up a lot of time, and it was already past midnight with not a single pedestrian in the neighborhood. Strangely, however, we couldn't find the small path we'd originally taken, and ended up going in a huge circle before finally finding our car.

Chapter Fifty-Eight: A Photograph

When I woke up this morning, sunlight streamed in through the curtains, dazzling like a thousand golden rays. I rubbed my eyes; it was Sunday, so instead of getting out of bed immediately, I lit a cigarette. Through the swirling smoke, I stared blankly at myself in the mirror—pale face, but bright red lips. I gently exhaled a puff of smoke and lay there contentedly. Although I'd quit smoking for a while, recent events had made me start again. This wasn't good for my health; if Yin Xue were still here, she'd definitely scold me! I gave a wry smile, realizing I still remembered Yin Xue's words. Wasn't that unfair to Fang Lei?

I stubbed out my cigarette, got out of bed, and started washing up, my mind still replaying the events that followed our encounter at 77 Guhuai Street. First, the next day we pretended to go to Yang Tianxing's house to look for him. With the neighbors and the building's security guard as witnesses, we opened the door, but to our astonishment, Yang Tianxing's body was nowhere to be found. Of course, we didn't mention we'd seen his body; we could only report him missing to the police. This was one of the things that worried us. The second thing was that Cao Ying had also disappeared. We couldn't contact her at all, not even by phone, and couldn't reach the hotel where she'd stayed. Then, Li Yang used his connections at the police station to check her phone information at the telecommunications bureau. They discovered that the night after we went to 77 Guhuai Street, she received a phone call and then never made or received another. But when we called the number that had last called her, it was a dead number!

The third thing that unsettled us was that we discovered all the leads we could follow had gone cold. Even Li Yang's charm trick had failed to get any useful confidential information from the library girl. Did we really have to rush to the deputy mayor and confront him? I buried my face in the cold water, the coolness stimulating my skin. After wiping my face, I walked to the desk and sat down in front of the skull I had taken from the sewer.

When I first brought it home, my older sister's reaction was truly astounding; the neighbors almost thought I was abusing her. After I repeatedly assured her that I would only keep it in my room and with a bunch of Häagen-Dazs ice cream, she finally stopped saying anything. Touching the clay on the skull, I prepared to begin the final steps of my handmade skull reconstruction.

Originally, I wanted Fang Lei to use magic to solve this complicated process, but strangely, the skull-alignment spell she invented couldn't be used on this skull at all, so we had to give up in the end. As for the computer at the bureau, I did consider using it, but unfortunately, I couldn't take the skull to the bureau's lab to do private work, so I finally decided to do it at home myself.

The technique of reconstructing faces using skulls isn't a modern invention. As early as 1895, a Swiss anatomist named Wilhelm Siss pioneered this technique. I simply adopted some of his methods. First, I attached rubber tips to key locations on a plaster model of the skull to fix the skin thickness—the dimensions of which were well-documented. Then, I filled the spaces between the rubber tips with clay according to carefully drawn dimensions. Unfortunately, the nose was the most difficult part to work with because human soft tissue disappears due to decay, making perfectly precise sculpting impossible. The skull is now basically complete. I've added artificial eyes, but because I didn't add a wig, the bald head looks awkward.

Although it was handmade, it should still be able to restore about six or seven tenths of the original head's appearance. Staring coldly at the skull before me, I wasn't surprised at all that it was the mysterious man. Closing my eyes, I recalled the man's face and some of his words. I guessed that he was very likely the one Yang Yi had mentioned, and the one who told Yang Yi about the elixir of immortality!

I opened my eyes again. The dazzling sunlight streamed through the glass window, reflecting off the portrait. The interplay of light and shadow created a striking visual effect, and a malevolent glint emanated from its artificial, fake eyes. I blinked, convinced I was seeing things. I touched the portrait; the clay surface, far from feeling warm from the sunlight, was strangely cold. I withdrew my hand and glanced at the skull beside it. The dark, hollow eyes seemed to hold another pair of eyes watching me, a feeling that made me very uneasy.

Because my older sister had disappeared again, it was very quiet around me, with only the sound of my breathing. Although I knew it was just the sound of air entering my lungs and then being exhaled, unease gradually crept over my entire body, leaving me feeling cold all over. The image in front of me stared at me expressionlessly. I stood up, a little annoyed, and turned to go get breakfast. Just as I turned, the image seemed to split into several parts. I immediately stopped and stared at the image. There was clearly only one, but I stared intently at it. My hand gripping the chair was a little damp. When I opened my hand, I saw that my palm was covered in sweat.

Don't scare yourself! I slapped my face. Was I still half asleep? I walked out of the room quickly, feeling like there was a pair of eyes watching me from behind, and a sudden cramp ran down my back. I quickly closed the door, not even daring to look at that profile picture again.

Stepping into the kitchen—or at least if you'd call it a kitchen, since there's nothing there except a refrigerator and a microwave—there's not even a gas stove. Yes, because my sister and I are too lazy to cook, and we certainly don't know how, so we skipped that when we moved in. My sister said it was to avoid wasting resources; if we definitely wouldn't use it, we shouldn't buy it! I have no problem with that, since I mostly eat at the office or outside. As for her, I guess she's pretty much the same; most of the time I see her not eating anything, saying she's on a diet!

After taking some bread out of the refrigerator, I plugged in the electric kettle. Since we don't have a gas stove, we use an electric kettle to boil water, which is why we never have to pay our gas bill, yet our electricity meter keeps spinning rapidly. The thought of the strange expressions on the faces of those who come to read our gas meter makes me want to laugh.

I poured myself a glass of milk and leaned against the refrigerator, munching on my breakfast. The slight vibrations from the refrigerator made me feel a little reassured. After taking a sip of milk, my eyes involuntarily drifted towards the room. The door wasn't closed properly, just a crack. This reminded me of the long corridor in that villa and the doors on either side of it. I tightened my grip on the glass, then looked down and took another bite of bread, but a dark shadow flickered past in the crack.

"Who is it?" I shouted, my voice echoing through the room. I strode to the door and flung it open. Nothing there, just that image, still staring at me expressionlessly. Relieved, I closed the door again. What's wrong with me? Why have I become so timid? It's not like it's the first time I've been home alone, yet I'm so paranoid. I gave a self-deprecating laugh and went back to the kitchen.

"Ring ring..." A sudden phone call startled me, nearly causing me to drop my cup. Slightly annoyed, I answered lazily, "Who is it?"

"Lin Xiao is me!" I recognized Li Yang's loud voice without him having to announce his name.

"What?" I asked.

"Are you still half asleep? Didn't we agree that you'd bring over the profile picture you've finished today so we could study it?"

"Oh, I almost forgot!" I slapped my forehead. I'd been a bit absent-minded since I woke up this morning, and I'd completely forgotten about the important thing.

"Are you coming or not?" Li Yang asked anxiously.

"Coming, coming right away! Wait for me!" I hurriedly hung up the phone, hastily biting off a few bites of bread to finish my breakfast. Rushing into my room, I paused at my desk, stunned. The portrait remained motionless, but to me it looked more like a human head coldly staring at me. Touching my nose, I quickly grabbed a bag and stuffed the portrait and skull inside. Then I fled the house as if escaping.

※ ※ ※

When I arrived at Li Yang's house, Fang Lei was already there. She looked very tired, and I thought she must be worried about Cao Ying. Although we hadn't spent much time together, Fang Lei had already come to treat Cao Ying like her own younger sister. And how could Li Yang and I not be worried?

"Did you bring it?" Li Hai poured me a glass of water and asked.

I nodded, handed him the bag, and said, "It's all inside. Have you figured out what to do next?"

"There is a way, but it's a bit old-fashioned!" Li Yang looked at me with a grin, but I felt a chill run down my spine. This kid's method must be more than just old-fashioned.

With a helpless sigh, I said, "Tell me, what is it?"

"Hehe," Li Yang scratched his head and said, "Just take a picture of your face and then take the photo to ask them!"

"What?" I almost spat out the water in my mouth. He even compared himself to Sherlock Holmes reincarnated. How could he come up with such a deadly method?

"I've got everything ready!" Li Yang, oblivious to my disdain, proudly displayed his camera in front of me.

"Isn't there a better way?" I knew it was useless to talk to him, so I could only look helplessly at Li Hai and Fang Lei. Unfortunately, both of them shrugged at me. It seems that Li Yang's outdated method is the only option left.

Watching Li Yang, unusually serious, place the portrait on the table, carefully adjust the angle, and then point the camera at it, ready to take a picture.

*Click*, a flash went off in front of me. Because I was staring at the image, my vision blurred noticeably after the flash, and the image appeared as a superimposed image in the halo of light—a sinister grin flashed before my eyes. I couldn't help but shudder. Looking at the others, I saw strange expressions on their faces. It seemed I wasn't the only one hallucinating. Li Yang's previously excited face fell, and he lowered the camera, looking at us nervously. He asked, "Did you see anything just now?"

Li Hai and I exchanged a glance without speaking. Fang Lei frowned and remained silent as well. The atmosphere grew cold. Li Yang, holding the camera, looked at a loss, unsure whether he should continue taking pictures.

I pressed my temples; I had a slight headache. The image in front of me made me uneasy. It felt like it was no longer just a sculpture, but had come to life. And staring at a living head is not a comforting thing.

Perhaps sensing the slightly eerie atmosphere, Li Hai smiled awkwardly and looked at us, asking, "Does this look like the scene in 'The Ring' where they're taking pictures of Sadako's portrait?"

"Get lost!" I immediately punched Li Hai. This kid's analogies never please anyone. Fang Lei and Li Yang also glared at him fiercely.

"Why take a joke so seriously?" Li Hai shrugged, feeling wronged.

"Alright, stop fooling around and keep shooting!" The beautiful woman finally gave the order, and Li Yang nodded hurriedly. He didn't just press the shutter button a few times and call it a day like before.

"When are we going to develop it?" I asked as I took the camera equipment and took out the film.

"Of course, right now, the sooner the better!" Li Yang replied.

"Let's go then! Let's go together!" I waved to Fang Lei and Li Hai, and the four of us hurriedly headed towards the photo printing shop.

※ ※ ※

Although it was expedited photo developing, it still took some time, so we decided to sit and wait at a nearby coffee shop. We chatted casually for a while, but the atmosphere was very tense because of the case and Cao Ying's unexplained disappearance, and everyone tried to avoid talking about this sensitive topic. Finally, the appointed time with the photo developing company arrived, and I immediately volunteered to go get the prints while they waited for me.

Upon entering the photo printing shop, the receptionist gave me a strange look, clearly remembering my earlier request for expedited printing. She then pulled a paper bag from a drawer and tossed it to me like it was trash. I immediately frowned. How could the service here be so awful?

"Your photos!" The receptionist's voice trembled slightly. I didn't say much, just gave her the money and took the photos out of the bag while she was giving me change.

When the photos fully came into view, I began to understand the receptionist's strange behavior. The portrait in the photo displayed a bizarre expression; it wasn't the original portrait I had created. The slight upturn of the corners of the mouth carried a cruel meaning, and the eyes flashed with a fierce light. Perhaps because Li Yang's hand trembled slightly when taking the photo, the outline of the portrait in the photo was a bit blurry, as if covered by a layer of fog, but fortunately, the face was still discernible. What surprised me was that the following photos were completely exposed, making the portrait completely illegible. Only the outline of a white head was visible, and the surface of the head resembled a white vortex.

I blinked, unable to tear my gaze from the photos behind me. The white vortex seemed to be moving, like a white black hole swallowing something. I shook my head, feeling a little dizzy.

"Sir, here's your change!" the receptionist called out to me.

"Huh? What?" I stared at her blankly. She handed me the money, and only then did I realize what was happening. I quickly took it. I forced a smile at the still suspicious-looking young lady and hurried out of the photo printing shop.

Chapter Fifty-Nine: Genius A Bao

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"Excuse me, sir, do you remember seeing this person before?" I stopped an elderly man with white hair and asked.

The old man glanced at the photo in my hand, then gave me the look of someone watching a monkey in a zoo, shook his head, and walked away. Sigh! This is the 869th old man I've asked today. I feel like an idiot! How could I have agreed to Li Yang's suggestion that we each take a photo and ask an old man if he recognizes the face in it?! I shook my legs and stretched my neck. Wandering around the streets for over five hours has left me feeling completely exhausted, but the results were the same: no one recognized the face.

"Damn it!" I sighed and leaned against a telephone pole. I wondered if Fang Lei and the others had made any progress; it was definitely not going to happen to me. I let out a sigh and continued walking, keeping an eye out for any elderly people so I could ask them something. Looking up, I realized I had unknowingly walked to the entrance of the Black Forest Bar. Since it wasn't open yet, the door was still closed.

"Would you like to come in and rest for a bit?" A familiar female voice sounded behind me. I turned around and saw it was Tian Niang! She was wearing tight jeans and a white shirt without buttons, tied only in a bow with a thin string. Through the open shirt, I could see a black lace bralette underneath. I had to admit, this woman was not only beautiful but also knew how to dress. She looked both youthful and vibrant, yet undeniably alluring and sexy.

After staring at her chest for a while, I tried to look away and said, "Do you have any wine?"

"Of course." Tian Niang smiled at me and then gently pushed open the bar door. I, blinded by lust, obediently followed behind her, leaving the task Li Yang had entrusted to me in Siberia.

Entering the basement from last time, Tian Niang took out a jar of wine from the cabinet. As soon as the seal was broken, a subtle yet refreshing aroma wafted out, instantly filling the room with fragrance. The wine's color shimmered with iridescent colors in the glass—could it be a cocktail?

"What kind of wine is this?" I picked up the glass, and the seven-colored light shone in my eyes like the aurora borealis, as if a seven-colored gem had been embedded in my eyes. The subtle fragrance was like a gentle hand caressing my sense of smell, taste buds, and then my heart, and a familiar feeling welled up in my heart.

"Illusions are only in the mind!" Tian Niang replied after taking a small sip.

"What?" This name is so strange. Are there wines with such a name? I looked at it again and said, "Is the color artificially created?"

"Of course not, this wine is made from a very magical flower through a series of processes. It's authentic flower wine!" Tian Niang gave me a knowing smile.

"A flower? What flower?" Although my biology isn't great, I honestly didn't know there was such a magical flower that could make seven-colored wine! Maybe if Aunt Tian told me, I could apply for a patent or something, wouldn't that be amazing? I've already started dreaming of getting rich!

"It's a pity that this flower is extinct," Aunt Tian said regretfully, nipping my get-rich-quick dreams in the bud.

"But it must have a name! What does it look like?" I persisted.

“It’s been extinct for too long. All I know is that it looks like a lily, but it has more petals—seven in total—and it can emit a seven-colored glow in the dark. As for its name, I don’t know either,” Tian Niang replied.

"Oh?" I raised an eyebrow, but my heart skipped a beat. I glanced down at the ring on my finger, the one I still couldn't get off. The flower on the ring did indeed have seven petals, but the whole flower was black. It couldn't be such a coincidence, could it? I looked up at Aunt Tian, who gave me an ambiguous expression, which immediately made me feel incredibly frustrated!

I took a sip of the liquor. It wasn't the mellow sweetness I'd imagined; instead, it was unusually strong, even more potent than Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor). I immediately frowned. Holding the liquor in my mouth felt like holding a ball of fire. My features contorted in pain, but with such a beautiful woman in front of me, I couldn't bring myself to spit it out—it would be incredibly embarrassing. So, I forced myself to swallow it. But the moment the liquor slid down my esophagus, the intense sensation vanished, replaced by a delicate fragrance and a comforting feeling, like a lover's first kiss gently touching my skin. Then came the warmth in my stomach. I thought this liquor would taste even better in winter. My whole body gradually relaxed, like the languid comfort of basking in the sunlight.

"How are you feeling?" Tian Niang asked from the side.

"It's great! I feel like a cat dozing in the sun!" I replied with a laugh, feeling slightly dizzy. Was I drunk? I'd only taken a sip!

“There’s a story behind how this wine was made!” said Tian Niang.

"Oh? What story?" I asked curiously. It seems that I not only feel like a cat now, but my curiosity is almost as strong as itss.

"I'll tell you the story later! Now I want to ask you, how are your children doing?" Tian Niang's smile was still calm, but I could vaguely sense a conspiracy behind her greeting.

Straightening up, I answered seriously, "Oh no, Cao Ying has gone missing."

"Really?" Tian Niang put down her wine cup and said, "Do you need some advice?"

A suggestion? I raised an eyebrow. Sure enough, this wine wasn't good. The fox's tail was showing, wasn't it?

"What are your conditions?" I knew she definitely wasn't offering a free medical consultation; she must have her demands. As for why I thought her advice would be useful, I could only explain it with two words: intuition!

"Hehe..." The way the beautiful woman covered her mouth and chuckled was not to be underestimated; its destructive power could reach level A. After Tian Niang finished laughing, she looked at me with her big, peach-blossom eyes and said, word by word, "Be my—disciple!"

"What?" I jumped up from my seat. Although I had expected that she would have some kind of request, I never thought that it would be such an absurd condition. Do I look like something that crawled out of an ancient tomb?

Tian Niang looked at my reaction with a smile and said, "You can take your time to think about it. There's no need to rush to reply to me."

"No need to consider it." I shook my head vigorously, saying, "I have no interest in being your disciple. I have no interest in cultivation."

"Whatever," Tian Niang shrugged and said, "Then I'll tell you something first, it's free!"

Free? You think you're some kind of expert in traditional Chinese medicine?! I glanced at Aunt Tian indifferently; there was absolutely no way I'd become her apprentice!

“That Soul Locking Array actually has another function.” Tian Niang ignored my gaze, but her words successfully piqued my interest, and I immediately focused my attention.

“Generally speaking, ghosts have to go through the Yama King’s Palace and the Six Paths of Reincarnation before they can be reincarnated, but in doing so, their original memories and magical powers will also disappear.” Tian Niang’s expression began to turn serious, and I thought she wasn’t lying.

“There is a kind of formation in this world that allows ghosts to reincarnate according to their own will, and their memories will not be lost. Their magical power can even be doubled,” said Tian Niang.

I immediately understood what she meant. In other words, the Ten Thousand Souls Locking Spirit Array did not only have the function of locking spirits. But if we follow what Tian Niang said, why didn't this ghost reincarnate when the array was first built, but instead waited for decades? What was he waiting for?

"To activate this formation, we not only need to gather a certain number of souls, but also require the help of the Yin Maiden," Tian Niang explained, noticing my confusion.

"The Yin Woman?" I thought of Lin Yuyan.

“That’s right, a Yin woman is a woman born on the 7th day of the 7th month of the lunar calendar,” Tian Niang explained.

"And then what?" I pressed.

"That's all my free advice. If you want to know what happens next, just agree to my request, okay?" Tian Niang leaned towards me, and her stunningly beautiful face immediately magnified before my eyes. Her smooth, jade-like skin seemed to drip with moisture.

"No!" I quickly took a step back. The woman was beautiful, but she was also a dangerous object; it was best not to touch her.