Ling Yan and Anna, having fled the laboratory, swiftly realized the power outage.
"Without electricity, the mirror ghost will struggle to kill. Don't contact anyone. Be wary of invisible ghosts. Sister Ling Yan, please take the divine bird's blood to the room where Sister Grace's body lies. I'll set up the camera on the second floor," Anna stated, her mind racing to the next course of action.
"Weren't there three ghosts?" Ling Yan inquired.
"The first victim was moved outside. If it intends to attack again, it will most likely enter through the main door, not here. The second is Elizabeth. Unless it can split itself, it can only pursue one person at most. As for Soren, less than 120 hours have passed since her death. I possess the 'mask of nothingness,' and you retain the 'memory of pain.' We can operate separately and efficiently, unafraid of surprise attacks. Once the camera is positioned, I'll come downstairs to meet you. Please ensure your safety!" Anna explained calmly.
"Okay, you be careful too," Ling Yan replied, recognizing the urgency of the situation. Without further hesitation, she dashed towards the stairs. Anna, meanwhile, sprinted to the end of the corridor, cleared a table adorned with a bonsai, dragged it to a dimly lit spot, and began setting up the camera, meticulously adjusting its angle.
This camera could be activated at a preset time. However, using previously recorded footage would display a five-minute countdown, seemingly the maximum recording duration for this function.
Anna had just finalized the camera's position when the door of a nearby room creaked open, revealing the pallid, slightly blue face of the white-collar worker.
He had been hiding in the room, gripped by fear since receiving the text message. The survival instinct had just begun to overcome his terror, only for Anna's movements in the corridor to terrify him anew. Now, he cautiously peered out through the narrow opening.
Upon seeing Anna, the white-collar worker's eyes brightened. He was about to push the door open and step out, but a sudden thought caused him to slowly retreat back into the room.
After securing the camera's position, Anna checked the table's stability and then pulled off a piece of the tablecloth to conceal the indicator light. Satisfied, she took a couple of steps back, intending to leave.
Just then, a creaking sound echoed behind her, and something rushed towards her with startling speed!
A look of astonishment flashed across Anna's face. She had maintained the "appearance of nothingness" throughout, making it impossible for a ghost to detect her unless it was in close proximity. After all...
But it was too late to turn around.
Boom!
A dull thud resonated from the back of her head. The searing pain instantly blurred Anna's vision. She crumpled to her knees, but thankfully, her hands shot out in time, preventing a complete fall.
The white-collar worker stood there, a copper candlestick clutched in his trembling hands. He had exerted considerable force. Although Anna hadn't fallen, she was reeling with dizziness. Seeing her struggle to turn over, the white-collar worker gritted his teeth, raised the candlestick again, and brought it down with another forceful strike.
Bang!
This time, Anna slumped to the side, losing consciousness completely.
"Yes... I'm sorry. But you have so many valuable things on you. I just want to live. Blame yourself for possessing such treasures."
The white-collar worker tossed the candlestick aside, his teeth clenched. He reached out and tore the blood-stained mask from Anna's face, disregarding the gore as he hastily placed it over his own head. Then, he patted her pocket and retrieved the Clearwell Pill from her coat.
"You..."
Anna's will proved resilient. The moment her consciousness flickered back, she saw the white-collar worker rifling through her belongings. Ignoring the throbbing pain in her head, she lashed out with a kick, connecting squarely with his body.
"Ahhh!"
The white-collar worker gasped as he was struck in a vulnerable area, collapsing onto the floor in agony. Anna swiftly rolled away, clutching her head, and slowly pushed herself to a standing position, her expression icy. "What do you intend to do?" she demanded.
"What do I intend to do? I want to live!" the white-collar worker retorted, abandoning any pretense. He leaned over and snatched the candlestick again. Recognizing the imminent danger, Anna ignored the searing pain and spun around, bolting towards the stairs.
"Don't run!" He yelled after her.
"How can one person possess so many valuable items!" He muttered to himself.
"As long as I have your things, I can survive!"
The white-collar worker had succumbed to complete madness. The psychological torment of the past few days and the relentless deaths had shattered his sanity. Now, his eyes were bloodshot, fixated solely on Anna, oblivious to everything else.
There was no staircase on the third floor for Anna to escape. Disoriented by dizziness and pain, she couldn't discern the correct direction and inadvertently ran toward the balcony at the end of the corridor.
"Hahahaha! You can't escape!"
Finally, the white-collar worker, having cut off Anna's retreat, stood before the balcony, a triumphant laugh escaping his lips.
Anna gasped for breath, blood seeping through her fingers and down the back of her hand, making her grip on her head feel sticky. The cold wind and rain sweeping across the balcony chilled her, yet it also brought a sliver of clarity amidst the throbbing pain. Observing the white-collar worker's deranged state, she couldn't help but utter, "I can jump down from here."
"Huh? Jump down? Even if you fall to your death, I can still recover your belongings! Do you think you can still scare me?" The white-collar worker approached slowly, a smug expression on his face, though his hands instinctively covered his vital areas, lending a comical awkwardness to his movements.
"Rami checked the area on the first day. There's mud underneath here. On such a rainy day, I might survive the fall," Anna said, taking a step back and gripping the railing. The partially extended roof of the balcony no longer offered any protection, and the rain poured directly onto her hands and body.
"If you jump, you won't be fine," The white-collar worker sneered. "There are so many ghosts; any one of them will kill you if they find you."
A shadow of apprehension flickered across Anna's face.
Seeing this, the white-collar worker erupted in laughter, raising the paper-wrapped Clearwell Pill in his hand. "Did you see this? I never expected you truly didn't want to eat it. An honest fool like you—" He swallowed the pill in one gulp, "—is simply paving the way for my survival!"
"Haha, so you've been waiting for this moment," Anna remarked, leaning against the railing, a sudden smile gracing her lips. "Listen to the sound behind you... Shi Song died here. This corridor is the territory of invisible ghosts."
Indeed, just as the white-collar worker was reveling in his perceived triumph, the distinct sound of footsteps began to echo behind him. This time, there was no visible presence. It was the invisible ghost, drawn by the sound and the scent of blood, closing in.
"It turns out even clever people make fatal mistakes," The white-collar worker declared, spreading his arms and laughing boisterously. "Little girl, have you forgotten that a ghost can only kill one person? I've taken the Clearwell Pill, so the only one who will die here is you!"
"I'm not that foolish," Anna sighed softly, pushing herself upright using the railing and walking towards the white-collar worker.
"Oh? Do you want to beg for mercy? But no, even if I were merciful enough to let you go, ghosts probably don't understand human pleas! But don't worry, after you die, I will make good use of all your valuable possessions!" The white-collar worker stood his ground, slowly lowering his arms. The sound of approaching footsteps behind him grew louder.
Anna continued to walk towards the white-collar worker, step by step, lowering her right hand that had been covering her head. Rain mixed with blood streamed down the back of her hand, leaving dark trails on the floor.
"You... you actually called me a smart person."
Halting just half a step away from the white-collar worker, Anna reached into her pocket with her left hand, extended it, and swiftly removed the "face of nothingness" from his face, revealing a look of utter horror beneath the mask.
The invisible ghost materialized before the white-collar worker, not passing him to seek Anna, but seizing him directly.
"You... you are not human... you are a substitute ghost! You are a ghost! The little girl is a ghost!!!" The white-collar worker shrieked, but Anna remained unmoved. She slowly placed the mask back on his head, shook her own, and sighed, "You truly understand nothing until your final moments."
Then, Anna walked past the white-collar worker, who was now firmly in the ghost's grasp, and past the invisible ghost, which had already begun its deadly work, and exhaled a long breath.
"Kill."
Behind her, the sickening sound of bones breaking echoed through the corridor.
In the hall downstairs, a group of black mist-like ghosts appeared to be fixated on the people before them. Despite the obvious commotion from the second floor, they did not move, continuing to patrol around the remnants of the protective shield. Beom Seok and his group were not content to simply wait for their demise. After a hushed discussion, they decided to flee in different directions, leaving it to fate to determine who the ghost would pursue.
They didn't wait for the shield to dissipate naturally. Instead, they seized the opportunity when the ghost circled to the other side and burst out collectively. The corridors and staircases on both sides offered potential escape routes.
Beom Seok darted into the kitchen and scrambled through the window, while Rami sprinted directly up the stairs. The ghost was momentarily taken aback by the sudden dispersal, then emitted a sharp, piercing whistle and gave chase.
Its target was the couple.
The Hand of Decay had been discarded by the two. At this point, the artifact was useless, yet even so, the ghost's pursuit showed no signs of abating.
The man pulled the woman up to the second floor. Rami happened to glance back and immediately waved his hand. "Don't just stand there! This way!"
"Brother Rami!" the man exclaimed, relief flooding his voice. But at that moment, the black fog also billowed up the stairs, and the sight sent a fresh wave of terror through them. "Brother Rami! It's catching up! What should we do!" the man cried.
"Run with me!" Rami roared, sprinting towards the other end of the corridor. The couple followed close behind. Reaching the balcony on the second floor, Rami kicked the wooden railing, shattering it, and then leaped down.
"Ah!" The woman screamed. The man rushed to the broken railing and looked down. Rami had landed in the mud and was already on his feet. He looked up and shouted, "Jump!"
"This... this is too high..." The woman stammered, fear gripping her. But before she could say more, the man embraced her and jumped. The two landed in the mud with a splash.
"Hurry, get up, let's get away from the main house; the ghosts are here now!" Rami urged, quickly pulling the two to their feet. Miraculously, none of them were seriously injured. In this critical moment, they all moved with their utmost speed and vanished into the rain.
On the second-floor balcony, the belated black fog hovered in a daze before the broken railing, slowly dissipating into the heavy rain, and transforming into wisps of fine black smoke.
Simultaneously, in the corridor on the opposite side of the second floor of the main house, the corridor where Anna had set up the camera, a figure stealthily emerged from a room. Seeing that the downstairs area was deserted, he exhaled in relief, then a sinister grin spread across his face as he ambled away.
On the first floor, Noah ran down the corridor for a while before turning back to snap a picture with his mobile phone. Finding that the black fog wasn't pursuing him, his pace gradually slowed, and he found himself torn between rescue and escape. Just then, Anna slowly descended the stairs and their paths crossed.
"You!" Noah exclaimed, instinctively taking a step back. The sounds preceding the white-collar worker's death had been quite loud, and Noah had vaguely heard them. He couldn't be certain whether Anna was a ghost, but he certainly didn't dare let her get close.
The wound on Anna's head continued to bleed, and a wave of nausea washed over her. The white-collar worker had been brutal, and it was only his initial hesitation that had prevented Anna's death on the second floor.
"It's... Noah," Anna mumbled, her current weakened state severely impairing her cognitive abilities, so much so that she didn't even register Noah's wary suspicion. But she at least remembered that she needed to find Ling Yan.
Without saying much more, she stumbled towards the room where the body was placed. Noah, still fearful of a sudden attack, maintained a safe distance. Only after Anna opened the door of a room and entered did he realize that his back was drenched in cold sweat.