Allen, at this moment, possessed another ticket to redemption from death. As long as he could survive a little longer, he could accumulate more such tickets. Yet, the porcelain vial weighed heavily on his mind.
Ultimately, the birth of vengeful spirits was inextricably linked to that blood-stained porcelain. How the Ouyang family had conjured such a curse to create this eerie artifact remained an unsolved mystery. What would unfold during the next phase of using this mysterious cursed object was still unknown…
In any case, time continued to pass.
The three of them now sat on the same couch, with Allen positioned in the center. Ouyang Zuping was seated so close to Allen that it seemed as though he wished to press his entire body against him. He knew that Allen, holding the porcelain vial, was the only person capable of saving his life. The three of them huddled together, holding a candle to illuminate the surroundings. In Allen's hand was a fruit knife, and should anything happen, he would immediately cut his finger, letting blood fall onto the vial.
It was one in the morning.
There was still one hour until the film ended…
One hour!
And only ten minutes before Allen could use the porcelain vial. Of course, if anything occurred during this time, Allen could terminate the rental period at any moment and return the vial's ownership to Hank. The rental period was valid for "any time before the end of this horror film." So, while they were not yet invulnerable, for the moment, there was no need for excessive worry.
But, how much longer would it take for the spirit, now turned vengeful, to reappear before them under the vial's influence?
At this moment, Ouyang Zuping shakily retrieved a cigarette, leaning over to the candle's flame to light it. The smoke was thick in the air, but Allen said nothing. Under these circumstances, if he didn't smoke, it was likely that he would break mentally. With the candle's flame flickering, the glow from the cigarette hardly seemed noticeable.
After lighting the cigarette, Ouyang Zuping took a long drag. He had only this last cigarette left, the rest of the pack wrinkled and discarded. The Ouyang family's wealth was vast, and this was a fine cigarette, but as it sat in his mouth, Ouyang Zuping found it impossible to enjoy the flavor.
The minutes ticked by, each one adding to the suffocating tension that gripped them all.
Before long, it was 1:10 AM. Allen could now use the vial again. Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief. Another fifty minutes remained...
But from here on, everything became eerily silent.
1:20…
1:25…
Finally, it reached 1:30. Only thirty minutes remained until the film's conclusion.
According to the script, by now, Ouyang Zuping and Zhang Hua were dead, leaving only Liu Haiping trapped alone in the dark villa.
Half an hour!
If Allen used the vial now, the next opportunity would come precisely at the end of the film!
The thought made him tense, filled with anxious anticipation. He could only hope that nothing would go wrong now.
Just then, unexpectedly, the candles in front of them began to flicker and one by one, extinguish.
Without hesitation, Allen swiftly slashed his finger with the fruit knife and retrieved the porcelain vial, letting his blood drip onto it! The moment the blood touched the porcelain, the candles miraculously reignited!
But then, on the opposite couch, a new corpse appeared!
It was Zhao Xiaoya, the body from the basement! The wound on her neck, inflicted by porcelain shards, remained distinctly visible!
Three... four... five... five seconds had passed!
However, just as Allen was about to return the vial to its place, something horrifying occurred...
Blood began seeping from the mouth of the vial! Not only that, but a pale, skeletal finger slowly emerged from the porcelain! Then, a second finger followed!
Allen's hand trembled, and he quickly hurled the vial forcefully against the wall! At the same time, he instantly ended the lease! Hank immediately relinquished all claim to the vial in his mind! The relinquishment of ownership could be done at any moment, and once it was done, the cursed object appeared before the camera—no further payment for the redemption ticket would be required.
The curse had revived!
Once the curse was revived, it could not be weakened or suppressed unless the object was returned to the Ghost Cinema. Even if placed back in the pocket, the curse would remain uncontrollable!
Just seconds ago, the curse had not yet revived, but now it had!
The porcelain shattered against the wall, and immediately, a flood of blood poured out, staining the entire wall. The blood flowed incessantly, creating an incredibly terrifying scene! Soon, the three of them noticed that the blood on the wall had formed a distinct shape—a human figure!
A woman's silhouette!
"Run... quick, run!"
The three of them grabbed the candles and fled. Following the escape route they had planned earlier, they dashed into the hallway. There were still thirty minutes left, but the curse had revived. This was the worst possible scenario!
It was over...
Hank felt a wave of despair wash over him.
They were doomed! With the curse revived, survival was impossible unless someone like Donna, with extraordinary abilities, were present.
Donna... if only she were here...
Hank had worked with her once. He would never forget the terrifying voodoo tattoo on her back. That tattoo, which she had endured while a Thai witch doctor engraved it into her skin, was a deadly curse—a grotesque face of a man. Once she exposed the tattoo, even if the curse revived, the ghost would be sealed by it, much like the curse was trapped within the Ghost Cinema itself.
Hank realized that despite his hatred for Donna, in this critical moment, he would accept any humiliation or abuse from her as long as she could save him. In the face of a revived curse, only Donna could stop it. Of course, this came at the cost of her life. Once the curse was revived, she would be the first to perish.
Perhaps... she hadn't been wrong. To them, Donna had always been a tool. They needed her because she was useful.
But now, without her... without her voodoo tattoo...
Hank knew deep down, he was as good as dead!
Just then, Allen grabbed his arm and said, "Liu Haiping, we can't just sit here and wait for death!"
"I... then what can we do?"
Hank suddenly had a thought—could it be… another NG?
But if they did that, could they make up the negative redemption tickets? His pay was 600 redemption tickets, but if they reset, his tickets would become -6000 or more! How could he possibly make up that many redemption tickets in half an hour? It was impossible!
However, Allen's words stunned him even further.
"Throw the severed finger! Perhaps we can gamble everything on it!"
Hank was frozen in shock by Allen's words.
This man was insane!
The idea of willingly reviving the cursed object—wasn't that equivalent to suicide? But upon further reflection, with only half an hour left, perhaps they could survive. If death was inevitable in the end, then their only option would be to reset the game.
It was the only way out!
With gritted teeth, Hank immediately issued the command to relinquish ownership of the severed finger in the script. He then took the finger and handed it to Allen.
Allen rushed back to the living room, throwing the severed finger into the space within. Without hesitation, he turned and ran!
Half an hour. Only thirty minutes left!
Could they survive?
Could they?
Eventually, the three of them reached the second floor. After all, there was no escape from this villa—there was no difference between the first and second floors.
Below them, all was eerily silent.
The three moved cautiously through the second-floor corridors, trying to stay away from dead ends where there was no escape.
Ten minutes passed.
Twenty minutes left!
The final twenty minutes!
The curse from the severed finger had surely revived by now. Below, there were two spirits—the vengeful spirit born from the severed finger, and the one created by the blood porcelain curse!
The reckless thought of letting the two ghosts battle it out and reaping the benefits was, in Allen's mind, an act of desperation in the face of extreme hopelessness. After all, even his high heels would be useless now!
Another five minutes passed... still silence. Yet, this very stillness felt more terrifying and hopeless than anything before.
They continued walking... until they found themselves in Ivan's room.
Inside, Ivan's body lay on the bed, covered with a blanket. The room, having been sealed off, had begun to smell foul as the body decomposed.
Then, suddenly, a sound reached them from below—a chilling cry that made Hank's heart lurch!
He remembered that sound from the horror film where he first obtained the severed finger!
The curse had revived... what had become of that vengeful ghost? What would happen next? Life or death? Or... something else?
But then, something even more horrifying happened. The crying sound began to grow louder, moving from a distance to much closer!
"Run..." Hank's terror reached its peak. He could never forget the dread he felt in that other horror film! Unlike The Room of Isolation, this film had been far more deadly!
Ouyang Zuping nearly collapsed, his body trembling uncontrollably. Allen, too, felt dizzy from the mounting pressure.
Only fifteen minutes left! Just fifteen minutes, and they could return to the cinema! But in those fifteen minutes, that ghost could kill them countless times! No... wait—two ghosts now!
In this case, the only choice left was to deliberately reset the game. Allen's pay was low, so resetting would mean losing 1,500 redemption tickets. But maybe there was a glimmer of hope to recover from that... but upon reflection, it seemed impossible. He had never even managed to exceed 1,000 redemption tickets in this entire film!
A sharp pain twisted in Hank's chest. At that moment, Donna's words echoed in his ears again.
You are all hypocrites...
Hypocrites...
The crying sound drew closer. Did it matter how fast they ran now?
Hank finally understood.
Yes, Donna had been right. They were indeed hypocrites. She hadn't been wrong—not at all. He had no grounds to judge her.
"Ouyang, wait a moment," Hank called to Ouyang Zuping.
"Huh? What is it?" Ouyang Zuping could barely walk now, shaking uncontrollably from fear.
"Come into this room."
"What? Is there some hidden trick?"
"Yes," Hank replied, pushing open a door and pulling Ouyang Zuping inside. He pointed to a table in front of him and said, "Look."
Ouyang Zuping hastily looked over. Just as he did, Hank grabbed a chair and swung it at the back of his head with all his might!
Yes, they were hypocrites. At this critical moment, there was no need to "pretend" anymore!
Ouyang Zuping was immediately knocked unconscious, his vision blacking out. Allen stared in shock at Hank, asking, "W-Why? Why are you doing this?"
"Help me lift him!" Hank, with a fierce look in his eyes, dragged the unconscious Ouyang Zuping and said, "Haven't you heard? When being chased by a wild beast, you don't need to outrun the beast—you just need to outrun the others!"