My House of Horrors

After logging in, Chen Ge noticed his username had changed into a purple color. Clicking on his account profile, he realized it was because the thirty-minute video that he had posted the other day had been shared, viewed, recommended, and commented at least several thousand times already. With a cursory glance, Chen Ge found nothing useful; most of them were there simply due to curiosity.

Who knows, perhaps this might work, maybe there are experts hiding on the internet? Chen Ge started writing a new thread to provide more information about the mirror monster and used the special power afforded Purple Accounts to open a bounty thread.

“After playing the game on the video, I realized I’m now being haunted by the creature inside the mirror! Asking for help on how to remove this threat!”

The replies came pouring in mere seconds later.

” OP ¹ , you’re still alive?”

“A black dog’s blood is the best solution, or rear a cock, legend says all the bad stuff are afraid of cocks.”

“OP, listen to me and call this number. Tell them you need help, you can thank me later.”

“Ghosts are nothing but memories that were left behind in the physical world. Killing it will only earn you bad karma. Kindness goes a long way.”

“OP, have you tried reasoning with it? Education is the best solution!”

“If there’s something strange in your neighborhood, who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!

“If there’s something weird and it don’t look good, who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!”

“Mix yellow bean, white rice, and Indian ink together. Soak them in salt water for fifteen minutes. Spread them on the ground to watch them grow into powerful bean warriors.”

“I once saw a video that described the story of a man who was also haunted by a female ghost. To deal with her, he bought a gun, and when the female ghost returned that night, the man shot himself and later dragged the ghost into the bedroom to…”

“OP, serious though, listen to me, this method will definitely work! Go find an iron sword, preferably one that has tasted blood before. Ghosts are nothing but special magnetic energy, and such a sword will be able to harm them!”

Chen Ge scrolled through the comments, and only the iron sword seemed somewhat plausible; the others were merely trolling or impossible to accomplish. He also knew about the traditional legends regarding the exorcism power of a black dog’s blood and cocks, but where was he going to find such things in the middle of the night?

After leaving the forum, Chen Ge tossed his phone to the side, spacing out as he sat in his chair. Combating the mirror monster meant putting his life on the line; he definitely could not rely on these half-baked online suggestions.

After a roundabout detour, Chen Ge pulled out the black phone again. He knew he had to rely on the black phone because it was the only thing that was trustworthy. However, the black phone operated on the Law of Equivalent Exchange; to gain something, something of equal value had to be lost.

After several days of trial and error, Chen Ge had gained some understanding regarding the hidden laws of the black phone, such as its mission reward structure. Easy and Normal Missions rewarded items that would supplement the operation of the Haunted House; only Nightmare Missions would provide rewards that were directly beneficial to Chen Ge, like special powers.

In other words, to deal with the creature inside the mirror, completing Easy and Normal Missions were pointless; he needed the reward from the Nightmare Mission. However, Chen Ge was hesitant because he knew how dangerous Nightmare Mission; he could easily attract another dangerous specter on top of the mirror monster.

What should I do? Take the stakes or wait a little while longer?

It was then the Chen Ge realized it was already a new day, meaning the Daily Missions had been refreshed.

Easy Mission: If you want to provide the visitors a scary experience, then first you have to pay notice to the rhythm and tempo of their experience in the Haunted House. Setting off the scare too early might cause the visitors to lose their interest, so it is suggested that you install some sound detectors or surveillance cameras in the Haunted House to keep track of your visitors’ progress.

Normal Mission: You’ve achieved the criteria to enable the first expansion of the Haunted House. Search for a suitable location soon! Due to the current space limitation, you are unable to perform any Trial Missions to unlock scenarios!

Nightmare Mission: There are weird sounds coming from the bathroom every midnight. If you want to know why, follow my directions.

Daily Missions will refresh every day at midnight. User can only apply for one mission each day, and the reward corresponds to the difficulty of the mission.

(Beware! The more difficult the mission, the more dangerous it’ll be, so please choose carefully!)

Chen Ge read the mission descriptions. Since he temporarily could not complete the Normal Mission, he skipped it. Thus, he was left with the choice of the Easy Mission or Nightmare Mission.

When Uncle Xu gets me the money tomorrow morning, it should take less than a day to purchase all the necessary surveillance, but it’ll take more than that to install it all. According to the description, the Nightmare Mission is related to the bathroom… it sounds creepy.

Chen Ge was caught between a rock and a hard place. He was not confident that he could finish the Easy Mission, and even if he did, the reward would not be that great. However, the Nightmare Mission was too dangerous; after all, it all started inside the bathroom.

He sat mired in his thoughts inside the Props Room. Before he came to a decision, the sound of sawing came again, this time, more distracting than before. Chen Ge titled his head back and was sure that the source was again the third floor.

I’ve already carried out all four of the dolls, what else is it cutting? Chen Ge found the creature increasingly irksome. After putting the sewn dolls back into his pocket, he rushed up the stairs to the third floor holding his trusty hammer. When he arrived at the entrance to the Murder by Midnight scenario, he was shocked by what he saw.

There were mirror pieces lying around the entrance, and there were scratch marks on the wooden door.

The creature has been clawing at the door! What is it up to‽

Chen Ge’s back was covered with cold sweat. He could imagine a monster holding the mirror pieces while running around the building when he was asleep. He would never allow such a dangerous existence to live under the same roof as him!

Normally a nice guy, Chen Ge had sour expression at that moment. He locked the door to the Murder by Midnight scenario behind him and walked down the corridor, gripping the hammer. He stalked into every room to shatter every mirror he could find on the third floor. The sound of glass shattering echoed through the night. Chen Ge felt more like himself when he reached the end of the third-floor corridor.

During the first Nightmare Mission, the creature was held back by the doll who sat before the mirror. When it was attacking He San, it had to retreat when Xiao Wan strode into the room. However, after assaulting He Feng, it gained the ability to leave the mirror! It’s growing, and it’s growing fast!

Chen Ge knew he could not wait anymore. His Haunted House was finally on its way back, and he could not allow it to be ruined by an unknown creature.

After leaving the scenario and locking the door once more, Chen Ge switched on the black phone to accept the Nightmare Mission with a do or die determination. Hopefully the reward for this mission will be powerful enough.

“Are you sure you wish to accept the Nightmare Mission? After acceptance, unknown circumstances might occur.”

“Yes.”

The screen glowed, and the actual Nightmare Mission description started to surface.