Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
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After getting out of the car, Gu Wuji felt a chill creep up the air around him; the intensity of the yin energy here was comparable to the ghost caves in some dungeons.
Austin also got out of another car nonchalantly, pretending to be perfectly normal, and hurriedly came to Gu Wuji’s side to fulfill his duty as his bodyguard.
By this time, the rest of the crew had already arrived, and the filming location was almost set up. They had already filmed some unimportant scenes and were just waiting for the actors of the key roles to arrive.
Because it wasn’t peak tourist season, there weren’t many tourists, and the sparse crowds walking on the streets, coupled with the gloomy weather, gave the impression that something terrifying was lurking in the darkness.
“Master Gu, is this place really okay…?” Cheng Jia was practically covered in talismans.
“The number of ghosts here seems astonishing! That’s great! This way, we can purify even more ghosts.” Gu Wuji was excited, feeling like he could rack up a lot of points. It really felt like playing a game, much more exciting than mobile games.
Moreover, the script for the movie they were filming seemed to have some issues, probably because someone was tampering with it behind the scenes. Maybe they could uncover something along the way.
Gu Wuji, thinking about the ghosts he’d soon encounter, was quite eager to try.
Cheng Jia, standing beside him, was moved. As expected of Master Gu, even in a place like this, he was thinking of everyone. It seemed he couldn’t just think of himself and run away; he had to persevere until filming was finished!
….
The accommodations in this village were quite good, with many guesthouses… In fact, in terms of scale, it was already considered a town, even with quite a few old houses remaining.
Thanks to the Cheng family’s generous sponsorship, the film crew had rented a historic house for everyone to stay in. The environment inside was very nice, and many places could be used for filming, making it very convenient.
As the group entered, they felt as if they had traveled back in time, yet they also felt uneasy, as if they were being watched. Cheng Jia, suspicious, asked an attendant, “Are there any strange rumors about this house?”
The attendant leading the way seemed to stiffen for a moment before enthusiastically explaining, “This house is very historic; it was once the courtyard of a large family. As for rumors, of course, there aren’t any. Please feel free to stay.”
This only made the group feel more uneasy, but most people wouldn’t suspect anything, so they simply went into the restaurant.
Meanwhile, the rest of the film crew was waiting, mainly for Cheng Jia, their major investor, and their attitude towards Gu Wuji was also extremely respectful.
However, many secretly held a negative view of Gu Wuji, believing he had risen to fame solely through connections and, despite his popularity, was unqualified to star in this film.
Moreover, their prejudice largely stemmed from Gu Wuji’s exceptionally handsome appearance. Although they had heard that Gu Wuji’s acting skills were supposedly quite good, these people hadn’t seen the movie and simply assumed it was all hype.
Among them was even a senior actor like Cheng Liangmiao, who, due to a previous misunderstanding, already disliked Gu Wuji intensely. He was completely unaware that the person who saved him at the awards ceremony was actually Gu Wuji.
On the other hand, Qiu Jian, the actor playing the third male lead, although he concealed it well, the dissatisfaction in his eyes was still subtly revealed. After all, he believed he was more suited for the male lead role, and if it weren’t for Gu Wuji’s connections, he wouldn’t have ended up as the third male lead.
However, Gu Wuji was completely oblivious to these subtle psychological reactions, greeting everyone warmly and appearing quite happy (after all, he had already purified many ghosts on his way there, putting him in a good mood).
Some people, seeing Gu Wuji’s attitude, felt ashamed, realizing that Gu Wuji wasn’t as high-profile as they thought. As for people like Qiu Jian, they were filled with an involuntary rage.
Regardless of their true thoughts, the meal was enjoyed by both host and guests. Near the end, the director addressed everyone seriously, “I think you all understand there are some rumors surrounding this place. So please be careful and follow the instructions of the master.”
Everyone nodded, but in their hearts, they didn’t take it seriously at all. What ghosts could there be in this world? It was only because the director was so paranoid that he had some kind of master perform a ritual before filming began, and that master had probably spouted some nonsense about ghosts. In reality, if there really were ghosts, there wouldn’t have been any murders here.
Meanwhile, Gu Wuji noticed that many people in the crew seemed to be surrounded by dark energy. He immediately distributed the talismans he had previously purchased to everyone. These talismans had a certain defensive ability and could alert him.
Everyone accepted them, but they didn’t think much of it, considering the talismans to be cheap and easily bought from a street stall.
Even the director thought Gu Wuji was too mysterious. Could Gu Wuji’s talismans be more powerful than the ones the master had given him? And these talismans look so cheap! But thinking that having more talismans meant more safety, the director carefully put them away close to his body.
Cheng Jia was so anxious seeing this that he was about to explode. Did these people even know what precious things they were holding? These were Master Gu’s talismans; others couldn’t even buy them! And these people didn’t even express their gratitude? It was outrageous!
Afterwards, Gu Wuji gave Cheng Jia a few more, which finally made him forget about the matter and gratefully put all the talismans away. In his eyes, each talisman was almost as valuable as his life.
After parting ways, everyone headed towards their lodgings. Tonight would be a rare night’s rest; after all filming would officially begin tomorrow.
At this moment, almost no one noticed that, under the cover of night, the mansion was almost completely enveloped in a dark fog.
The third male lead, Qiu Jian, sneered, and while no one was looking, crumpled the talismans into a mess and threw them into the trash can. Then he pulled his assistant aside and gave Gu Wuji a meaningful look.
….
Gu Wuji and Cheng Jia’s accommodations were naturally the best. The interior decoration retained the atmosphere of the original mansion while being very convenient and comfortable. If it weren’t for the eerie surroundings, Cheng Jia would have thought he was on vacation.
Originally, the two of them were supposed to stay in single rooms, but Cheng Jia was too cowardly, so he came to find Gu Wuji. As long as he was by Gu Wuji’s side, he felt safe, even if he had to sleep on the floor!
As for Austin, he was assigned to stay with the other bodyguards. But of course, he secretly returned to Gu Wuji’s pocket watch that night. He didn’t care what others would think if he didn’t go back for the whole night.
Gu Wuji abandoned his idea of purifying the ghosts and started reading the script, hoping to find some clues. Although he couldn’t recall the contents of the script no matter what he did outside, after entering this village, the contents of the script seemed quite ordinary.
The script was about an engaged couple, but the female lead suddenly became very strange after a car accident. One day, she left without saying goodbye, leaving clues pointing to a remote town.
So the male protagonist hurriedly came to this town in order to find the female protagonist. He met a Taoist priest who claimed to be there to exorcise evil spirits and whose behavior was different from that of ordinary people. After encountering various ghosts and investigating clues, the two of them entered the haunted house that the townspeople avoided.
Legend had it that this mansion was haunted by a terrifying female ghost who died in a power struggle within the household. Her resentment clung to the mirrors, cursing anyone who saw their reflection in the mansion. The female lead was suspected to be the reincarnation of her enemy…
As for the third male lead, his role was relatively small; he played a local character with a significant amount of screen time, constantly being terrified by ghosts, which was quite unrefined. That was why the actor playing the third male lead particularly hated Gu Wuji.
“I see.” Gu Wuji closed the script. Having likely read it many times before, the lines and plot were crystal clear in his mind.
Cheng Jia, after reading it, was utterly horrified and couldn’t help but complain, “The plot is quite good, but what was the director thinking? Doesn’t he think our current location is similar to the haunted place the protagonist visits in the alternate story? Is this meant to give the actors time to get used to it?”
He even hesitated to look at the mirror in the guest room. And this trope was all too familiar! Wasn’t the haunting of their Cheng family home caused by the mirror in his room?
Cheng Jia immediately went forward to find something to cover the mirror.
“Maybe.” Gu Wuji nodded.
Cheng Jia then hurriedly said, “Then our house isn’t really haunted, is it…”
“That’s for sure.” Gu Wuji nodded, “Of course, nothing will happen to you, don’t worry. As for the ghost in the mirror, I reckon it doesn’t exist.”
Unless he himself summoned the vengeful ghost boss Cheng Jia, who was connected to Cheng Jia, here by chance. But why did he always feel a strange sense of familiarity after arriving at this place…
At this moment, Gu Wuji noticed some movement outside the window and immediately raised his pocket watch, signaling to Austin inside.
….
“Brother Qiu, isn’t this a bit inappropriate?” The assistant followed behind Qiu Jian, who was now wearing a wig and his face was painted deathly white. At first glance, he could really scare people, especially in this gloomy house. Passersby would probably really think he was a ghost.
The assistant was trembling with fear, deeply worried about what they were about to do. “Are we really going to dress up as ghosts to scare Gu Wuji? What if we scare him sick?”
After all, Gu Wuji had even distributed some kind of talisman, clearly believing in such things. What if he actually saw a ghost and died of fright?
“If he’s really that timid, that’s perfect. I’ll be the male lead then.” Qiu Jian sneered. He had long disliked Gu Wuji, feeling that he wasn’t much worse than him. Then why wasn’t he as popular as Gu Wuji? It must be because he didn’t have a powerful backer.
However, in the assistant’s opinion, Qiu Jian was far inferior to Gu Wuji in terms of looks, acting skills, and even character. If he were more popular than Gu Wuji, the audience would be blind!
“But Xiao Cheng lives next door. If Xiao Cheng gets scared and something bad happens, we’ll…” This was the assistant’s biggest worry. If they offended Xiao Cheng, they could forget about working in the entertainment industry. No, forget the entertainment industry, they might not even be able to survive in this city.
“Don’t worry about that, we’re all in makeup, who will recognize us! Besides, we’re not real ghosts, just trying to scare him.” Qiu Jian said confidently.
“Gu Wuji must have read the script too. If we follow the script, he’ll definitely be startled.”
….
Meanwhile, on the other side, several staff members cautiously made their way towards Gu Wuji’s location. On the surface, they were just ordinary staff members, but they had secretly received money from a client to create a scandal involving Gu Wuji during the filming of this movie.
They strongly suspected that Gu Wuji and Cheng Jia were having an affair, so they planned to secretly film something here to make a fortune.
“Let’s hurry up, so we don’t get caught.” The leader urged in a low voice, although he vaguely sensed something was wrong. There seemed to be only four of them, but there seemed to be an extra shadow behind them…
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