Chen Ge did not expect things to go so successfully. Before this, he had already had his eye on that haunted house in Xin Hai, but Shang Guan Qing Hong had refused to sell his own haunted house even though he was scared to the point of being hospitalized. The man himself appeared to realize how unique that asset was. But happiness always came so suddenly. Chen Ge had no idea why suddenly Shang Guan Qing Hong had changed his mind and decided to sell the Xin Hai haunted house.

  “Perhaps he has finally realized the large gap between his haunted house and my haunted house. If there is a chance, I should go to the hospital to visit him and thank him in person.”


  Holding the contract, Chen Ge walked out from Director Luo’s office. At that moment, the theme park was about to close for the day. However, there were still plenty of visitors lining up outside the haunted house. Many of them had come from different corners of the country just to visit the haunted house, so they kept queuing up to experience as many scenarios as they could so that they would not waste a second of their visit.

  Among them there were quite a lot of internet celebrities and private media individuals. Chen Ge’s haunted house had provided them with plenty of material to use, and of course, they had contributed back by increasing the popularity of Chen Ge’s haunted house. It was a symbiotic relationship. Other haunted houses basically would not allow anyone to conduct any video-shooting inside their premises, but Chen Ge’s haunted house was unique, and that was how Chen Ge had a close relationship with these people.

  Returning to the staff breakroom, Chen Ge put the contract nicely away. Director Luo wanted him to go over to Xin Hai to start dealing with the new branch as soon as he could. If Chen Ge had any needs, he should not tarry and could bring the issue up with Director Luo immediately, and the latter would help settle it. However, Chen Ge did not plan to go to Xin Hai so soon. Jiujiang was the place where he had grown up; he had a very unique relationship with this piece of land. Even though this city had numerous indescribable scary stories, stepping on this piece of land, he would feel strangely comforted as if there was some kind of hidden force protecting him. Xin Hai, in comparison, was a relatively stranger city for Chen Ge. In fact, the cursed hospital had possibly laid plenty of traps over there, just waiting for Chen Ge to voluntarily walk into them.

  “Before I go to Xin Hai, I must be very well prepared. I not only have to bring all the Red Specters with me, I have to give a notice to Captain Yan so that he can inform his colleagues in Xin Hai. I have a good history with our law enforcement after all.”


  Chen Ge had met the law enforcement of Xin Hai before. Back when he first visited Xin Hai, he had been escorted away by the police because he jumped down from the second floor of Shang Guan Qing Hong’s haunted house. He had experienced getting a ride in a Xin Hai police car.

  “The police are the citizens’ nannies. The reason I am going to Xin Hai is to help protect Xin Hai’s local safety and contribute as much help as I can to maintain the serenity at Xin Hai. I am sure that the law enforcement of Xin Hai will be able to understand my point of view.”


  Lying in bed, Chen Ge took out the comic and the black phone. He looked through the details of all his current employees again and memorized all of their individual unique powers in his mind.

  “There are still plenty of things that I need to do. Furthermore, it is not me who should be worried at the moment. The cursed hospital has suddenly lost a Demon God without actually knowing why. Therefore, they will keep sending people over to Jiujiang to conduct an investigation. As long as I intercept them and deal with the people they send to Jiujiang, I would be able to steadily drain their power.”


  After the completion of the ghost fetus’ mission, the pressure on Chen Ge’s shoulders had lightened significantly. In fact, one could even say that he was currently the one who had the upper hand. The ball was in his court.

  Xiao Sun was led by Ol’ Zhou to the underground morgue to conduct his special training. Other than the acting lessons, Xiao Sun also needed to study psychology, basic medicine, and psychiatry. The other employees had their own roles to complete, and they were preparing in their own way for their final mission.

  At around 9 pm, Chen Ge carried his backpack and left the haunted house. He took several Red Specters with him with the intention of helping Zhang Wenyu complete as many dying wishes of the suicide victims as he could, and at the same time, he wanted to see if he could encounter any new friends. After wandering around through the night, Chen Ge again helped Zhang Wenyu completed several wishes. Zhang Wenyu could be said to have full trust in Chen Ge. He believed that Chen Ge was one of those rare individual in the world who would stop at nothing to help others.

  Actually, perhaps only Chen Ge himself did not realize this. Most of the employees around him had already noticed that Chen Ge was actually someone incredibly charming. He could bring energy and courage to those in despair, and he had the great ability of sympathizing with others and thus would be able to understand things from another’s perspective and quietly listen to their story and past.

  “Is it because I have brought too many Red Specters with me? How come I did not run into even a single lingering spirit tonight?”


  After Chen Ge reflected on this, he believed that he needed to change his method of working.

  “This city is too big. The way I have been aimlessly searching for a new Specter is like finding a needle in a haystack. There has to be a method that is far more efficient.”


  Then, Chen Ge took out the black phone. He opened one of the apps, and a grotesque black spinning wheel appeared on the screen.

  “Currently, my title is Red Specters’ Favored. If I draw another ten Specters, my title will upgrade again.”


  If the title upgraded, Chen Ge would gain the affection of even more ghosts and Specters, and it would be much easier for him to gain their trust and affection. At the same time, however, it would mean that it would be much easier for him to run into misfortune and tragedy.

  “I really have no idea whether I can support having the title upgraded again. Speaking of which, why does this spinning wheel only reward me with Specters? Damn! The rules specify very clearly that there will be many different rewards, but I somehow keep drawing baleful Specters with extremely low probability. Could it be that I am Sun Xiaojun’s long lost elder brother?”


  The sky outside the window was turning bright. Chen Ge put away the black phone.

  “It is time for a quick nap. After I am done with the workers’ make-up, I should go and visit the futuristic theme park. Their theme park has quite good Feng Shui. It will be very suitable to spin the wheel there.”


  At 9 am, New Century Park opened its gate for business. As the body cart had been used to push out more than ten visitors the previous day, there was not one person who was there to cause trouble for Chen Ge. Even the fifty cent army’s activity on the haunted house app had conspicuously lowered.

  “Uncle Xu, I have something else to do, so I will leave the operation of the haunted house to you.” Chen Ge carried his backpack and hailed a cab to get to the futuristic theme park. He had purchased his ticket online the day before. When he pulled out his identity card to retrieve his ticket, all the machines at the self-ticketing counter lit up with red light. Moments later, three workers from the futuristic theme park ran over, and they followed Chen Ge like his bodyguards. Those who did not know would probably believe that Chen Ge was some kind of ‘VIP’ that they had invited.

  “Don’t be like this. It is making me so uncomfortable. See how many people are looking at us.” Chen Ge carried his backpack while being surrounded securely in the middle by three futuristic theme park workers. “I came today as a very normal visitor. You guys should relax.”


  Chen Ge’s initial plan was to go there to draw a prize and try his luck, but being surrounded so closely by so many people, he was too embarrassed to do that.

  “Boss Chen, we also do not wish to do this, but……” One of the younger employees was about to explain when he was cut off by a warning gaze from the other older employee. Then, the three of them trailed behind Chen Ge like his shadow without saying anything else.

  “Well, if you wish to follow me like that, I cannot do anything to stop you.” Chen Ge wandered his way over to the futuristic theme park’s haunted house. He noticed on the ranking outside the haunted house that the second place would be able to pass him with another five thousand points, and that caused a sense of danger to arise in his heart. Since I am already here, why not go in for a stroll? After all I have already paid for such an expensive ticket. Not using it sounds like such a waste.

  Chen Ge came to the control panel and randomly picked anything that caught his eye. He did not study them closely; he just scrolled through and selected any scenario that sounded interesting and then picked hellish mode. As if purposely to prevent the tragedy that Chen Ge caused during his previous visit from happening again, this machine could no longer mix more than fifty scenarios at the same time. The computer would instead select ten random scenarios from all the available scenarios and then create an amalgamation for the visitors to tour.

  Under the employees’ extremely guarded scrutiny, Chen Ge entered the futuristic theme park’s haunted house. He would be challenging the scenario alone. It was as if Chen Ge had booked the place for himself—that was how much the futuristic theme park ‘respected’ Chen Ge.

  Listening to the eerie background music, Chen Ge felt like he had returned to his second home. His expression was relaxed and happy. Somehow, he made it seem like he was enjoying a stroll through the park when in reality he was challenging a haunted house. After clearing the scenarios with ease, Chen Ge found a blind spot where the surveillance camera would not capture him. He silently took out the black phone and slid on the screen, clicking open an app.

  “Without even realizing it, I have already accumulated so many scare points. Should I commit to a ten draw this time? Since obtaining the black phone, I have not done something like this before. Zhang Ya should not be hibernating, and I’m currently at someone else’s haunted house. Another main reason is their boss came to my own haunted house just yesterday to purposely create trouble for me. It is only fair that I come to his haunted house and do a ten draw on the phone, right?” Chen Ge slowly convinced himself. But actually, he knew very well that the drawing process was extremely safe. At least, no accidents had happened from it in his previous experience.

  Looking at the spinning wheel on the phone, Chen Ge sucked in a deep breath. “I refuse to believe that I will draw ten Specters with ten draws.”


  Gritting his teeth, Chen Ge chose to spin the wheel ten times. Looking at the wheel that started to spin, Chen Ge’s heart was in his throat. The black spinning wheel was slowly dyed red. This was something that had not happened before. With Chen Ge as the center, the surrounding temperature in the room started to drop. Bloody red patterns started to surface on the shell of the black phone, but the patterns disappeared as suddenly as they appeared. Ghost faces flickered across the screen. These many signs all gave Chen Ge a very bad premonition. The spinning wheel slowly stopped. The black phone kept vibrating as he got ten consecutive messages!

  “Congratulations, Red Specters’ Favored, for obtaining a unique baleful Specter—Shi Guo!

  “Shi Guo (Rare Unique Specter, Draw Probability 1/100): A solitary soul wandering on Route 4 of the underground terminal. He walks through time. He will visit yesterday, pacing between minutes and seconds. He is a ghost forgotten by time.

  “Congratulations, Red Specters’ Favored, for obtaining a baleful Specter—Ce Gui.

  “Ce Gui (Draw Probability 1/20): He has nothing unique going for him. He is unassuming and appears to be completely harmless. He likes to stay alone inside the quiet bathroom. He is like an old man who has lost his interest in his marriage and his life.

  “Congratulations, Red Specters’ Favored, for obtaining a unique item—Butterfly Hairclip!

  “Butterfly Hairclip (The item of possession for a unique baleful Specter, Gui Qiudie, Draw Probability 3/10): This is the first present you ever gave me. I have always worn it in my hair. Hopefully, one day, you will be able to spot me through it in the crowd. You will be able to see the butterfly hairclip that you once gifted me.”
……

  “Congratulations, Red Specters’ Favored for obtaining a unique Red Specter—Xue Rong!

  “Xue Rong (Rare Unique Red Specter, Draw Probability 7/1,000): I once created more than one hundred breath-takingly beautiful faces until, one day, I realized I could not tell what beauty is anymore.

  “Warning! Red Specter Xue Rong is extremely dangerous and sensitive! Please visit the new city’s Yi Ren Pavilion beauty parlor after midnight!

  “Congratulations, Red Specters’ Favored, for obtaining a unique item—Bai Qiulin’s Severed Arm.

  “Bai Qiulin’s Severed Arm (Collection of Resentment): The lost arm that was stolen away by the gambler has been used as the underground casino’s boss’ prop to demand money from his debtors.”


  The temperature inside the room had dropped to close to zero. Every message on the black phone was related to a baleful Specter. The air of resentment was almost bursting out of the screen already.

  “Ten draws and I got nine baleful Specters out of it.” Chen Ge wiped away the cold sweat from his forehead. He was shocked by the result. Other than Bai Qiulin’s severed arm, the other nine were all baleful Specters, and one of them was even a Red Specter. The black phone recorded the backgrounds and the special powers of these baleful Specters. The Specters were dispersed all over Jiujiang, and it required Chen Ge to personally fetch them.

  “Of the ten draws, I only drew one Red Specter. Looks like the probability of drawing a Red Specter is still quite low. I was really lucky to have drawn Zhang Ya during my first draw.”


  But then again Chen Ge really did not know whether he really should call himself luck or unlucky. The temperature inside the haunted house slowly rose back to normal. Just like students who had just finished their difficult finals, Chen Ge felt like he had just overcome a big ordeal, so he visited a few other scenarios to clear them and to relax his tense mood.

  “If I manage to draw one more Specter, the title of Red Specter’s Favored will upgrade. The problem is, I still have a lot of accumulated Scare Points, and it is more than enough for me to draw a lot more.” Chen Ge was feeling very conflicted. His rational side told him that it was about time to stop, but his finger was twitching madly whenever he saw that spinning wheel on the black phone. “My parents’ disappearance might be related to the cursed hospital as well. In other words, they are the source of all my bad luck and the tragedy that has fallen the city. Facing such a powerful enemy, I have to fight with everything that I have got.”


  Chen Ge thus found another blind spot.

  “It is not often that I can come to the futuristic theme park to visit. How about I just go for broke this one time and use all of the accumulated scare points within their haunted house?”


  If he drew one more Specter, the title would upgrade, but Chen Ge had already considered it from every angle. After all, danger was already coming his way no matter what. Since it could not be avoided, he might as well make the storm blow even harder and bigger. Sliding the screen, Chen Ge opted for another ten draws!

  “Congratulations, Red Specters’ Favored, for obtaining a unique item—Xu Yin’s Music Sheet.

  “Xu Yin’s Music Sheet: He was once innocent and happy; he also once believed in light and goodness. He had written all his love into his song and sang it to the girls who killed him.

  “Congratulations, Red Specters’ Favored, for obtaining a unique item—An Incomplete Birth Certificate.

  “An Incomplete Birth Certificate: Men Nan is a child born inside a mental asylum. The world that is viewed as twisted and abnormal is the world where he grew up. This birth certificate contains his mother’s signature and is the last memory he has of her.

  “Congratulations, Red Specters’ Favored, for obtaining a unique item—White Valentine’s Candy

  “White Valentine’s Candy: These are candies she personally made for you. You promised you will finish all of them.

  “Congratulations, Red Specters’ Favored, for obtaining a unique item—Blue Raincoat.

  “Blue Raincoat: She bought her child a blue raincoat with cartoon characters on it. The child wearing the raincoat looks as cute as a little penguin. That night, it was storming in Li Wan City. She held her child’s hand waiting for the bus at the bus stop, but when Bus 104 entered the station, her child had mysteriously gone missing. No one knew where her child went. Perhaps this blue raincoat will provide you with some clues to his location.”
……

  After the second lot of ten draws, Chen Ge was stunned. “I did not manage to draw one single Specter, huh? This is so unscientific! Have I drawn all of the Specters available in the prize pool?”


  In terms of probability, baleful Specters were indeed rare draws, much less Red Specters. It was already hard enough to draw a normal Specter.

  “Is this done on purpose? I’d already mentally prepared myself for the title for upgrade, but the result is that I didn’t even get one baleful Specter?” Chen Ge considered it as rationally as he could for half a minute and then made a really irrational move. “Should I do another ten draws?”


  His finger reached dangerously toward the sliding screen, and the strange spinning wheel on the black phone started to rotate rapidly again.