Chapter 71

Chapter 71

These words left Xie Yinxue, Yan Wenhe, and the others in the adjacent cubicle stunned.

Even though they couldn't see anything, they instinctively looked at their hands – not only Yan Wenhe and Xi Can but even Xie Yinxue and Liu Buhua were firmly holding onto their door handles.

No one had let go, yet no one felt any "person" pulling at their door.

Xi Can then asked Han Dongni and Xia Rui, "Dongni, was your door being pulled?"

Han Dongni, filled with apprehension, took a moment to find her voice, replying, "... Yes."

He Min cried out as well, "Someone is really pulling our door; didn't any of you feel it?"

The three of them, their hands on the door handle, had to pull inwardly with all their strength to counteract the powerful force trying to pull their door from outside.

Hesitantly, Xi Can whispered, "... We didn't feel any pull."

Liu Buhua stated bluntly, albeit somewhat sharply, "We didn't feel anything. It seems like it was just your door that was being pulled."

Hearing this, Xia Rui and Han Dongni were both terrified and frustrated. Their cubicle was the innermost one, so if any entity or perhaps a real-life NPC performer had come in from the entrance, they should've started with the first cubicle where Yan Wenhe and Xi Can were. Why target their door directly?

Hearing Han Dongni's pitiable sobs, Liu Buhua said, "I can open the door to see if there's anyone outside."

After all, neither he nor Xie Yinxue was scared. They were quite curious about what the real-life NPCs in this horror escape room might look like.

"No, don't!" Han Dongni immediately objected, her voice reaching a near-hysterical pitch, "What if there's real danger outside? We can't afford to lose any of us!"

Moved by Han Dongni's concern even in her own vulnerable state, Liu Buhua replied, "If we don't go out, we'll remain trapped here."

"Let me think, there must be a way... just let me think..."

People either succumb to fear in critical moments or they rise to the occasion. After pondering for a short while, Han Dongni's eyes lit up with realization, "I've got it! There might be a secret passage in this cubicle. Everyone, feel around the walls!"

Han Dongni's conclusion wasn't derived from any specific clue. It was based on her experience from playing numerous escape rooms and understanding their patterns.

She then instructed Xia Rui and He Min to keep holding the door while she began feeling the wall behind her.

Sure enough, she quickly found a movable wooden panel. When she shifted it slightly, she saw a crimson glow emanating from the room beyond.

The sight of the red light unsettled Han Dongni. She feared that a ghostly hand might suddenly reach out to grab her ankle and pull her into the room. Instead of entering immediately, she informed the others, "Feel around the corner walls in your cubicles. There should be a movable wooden panel leading to another room."

Just as she finished speaking, Liu Buhua's voice emerged from the crimson-lit room, "There is one, and we're already inside. It's safe. Come and see for yourselves."

Yan Wenhe and Xi Can quickly made their way in, followed by Han Dongni and He Min. Xia Rui stayed behind to guard their cubicle's door. Once Xi Can entered, she positioned herself in front of the wooden panel, wary of someone—or something—from outside joining them.

Xie Yinxue surveyed the room, commenting, "This is a darkroom for developing photos."

In the era of film cameras, photographs were developed in red-lit darkrooms to prevent film exposure and subsequent damage. As technology advanced and printing methods evolved, such rooms fell out of favor.

Designed in the style of the 1970s or '80s, the darkroom in Xu's Photography Studio wasn't large. Everything, including the lighting, was drenched in red.

Beside the working table lay a white skeletal figure, dressed in tattered clothes. However, after the initial scare from the floating head outside, this skeleton seemed almost endearing in comparison. In fact, its presence was less daunting than the surrounding red glow.

"Ah, a darkroom. No wonder everything's bathed in red," Yan Wenhe remarked with a slight grimace, "Staring under this light for too long strains the eyes."

Liu Buhua approached the workstation and noticed some photographs scattered across it. "There are some half-developed photos here."

Han Dongni took a glance, but quickly recoiled in fear. The photos were eerily similar to the ghostly images hanging in the main photography room. Only those with immense courage, like Xie Yinxue and Liu Buhua, could dare to inspect them closely.

Everyone searched around in the dark room, but still found nothing of use.

Most of the items in the dark room were fixed in place, much like the decorations outside. The only unattached items were scattered photographs and a wooden tong used for developing photos on the workbench. Of course, ghostly photographs don't need to be fixed; out of a hundred players, perhaps not one would think to take them.

"Still no useful clues," He Min paced around anxiously, "I thought once we reached this room, we could leave the escape room."

Yan Wenhe pointed to the wall where the skeleton was leaning and said, "This is our way out. See? There's a door here, right?"

Behind the skeleton, the wall displayed a clear outline of a doorframe. Everyone looked at the skeleton and felt an eerie sensation. It seemed as if the skeleton, during its life, had found the exit to the Xu's Photography Studio but was unable to leave, ultimately trapped and dying in this mysterious dark room.

"We found our key in the pockets of the clothes in the changing room," Han Dongni glanced at the clothes on the skeleton and speculated, "Could there be a key or a note on it?"

"I'll check."

Liu Buhua bravely stepped forward and soon found a blank piece of paper beneath the skeleton. Holding it up, he frowned, "There's nothing written on it."

He inspected both sides of the paper, but it remained blank. However, the paper was unusually clean and thick, not at all like something that had accidentally fallen.

Xie Yin Xue glanced at the workbench with the photographs and gently wafted the aroma from the basin towards himself. After sniffing, he told Liu Buhua, "Try soaking it in this."

Following the suggestion, Liu Buhua used the wooden tongs to immerse the paper into the basin. Everyone gathered to watch. As the paper became saturated, blue text began to emerge.

Xi Can exclaimed in astonishment, "How is that possible?"

"Because the liquid in this basin isn't a photographic developer, it's iodine solution. You can smell it too," Xie Yin Xue explained, "If I'm not wrong, the text on this paper was written with rice water. Rice water contains starch, which turns blue when exposed to iodine. That's basic chemistry."

He Min leaned over the basin and took a whiff, "It's indeed iodine, and quite strong at that."

Yan Wenhe commented appreciatively, "Impressive! This escape room design is quite fascinating."

It was, almost too fascinating and frightening.

Han Dongni was so scared that she decided she would never play a paranormal-themed escape room again. She would stick to pure logic-based rooms. There really is no such thing as a free lunch. If given another chance, she would never have opted for a pricier themed room just to save a few bucks.

He Min said to Liu Buhua, "Let's see what it says."

By this time, the text on the paper submerged in the basin was almost fully visible. Liu Buhua used the tongs to remove the paper from the iodine solution and carefully spread it out on the workbench for everyone to read.

[I initially came here to take a wedding photo with Ah Rong. But once we entered, we found... there's no one in Xu's Photography Studio! Only ghosts! All of them are ghosts! At first...]

The handwriting became particularly messy from this point, full of chaotic lines making it indecipherable. Everyone could guess that this section documented the supernatural events they encountered after entering the studio. Thus, they skipped this part and continued reading further.

[Later, A Rong died... her head was missing... no matter how much I searched, I couldn’t find it... Then I found this darkroom where photos are developed. It’s safe inside, the unclean things outside can't enter. Most importantly, the exit is here! But this damn exit won’t open! After much investigation, I discovered that after entering this photography studio, one must take a picture to leave... But how can I possibly get my picture taken?! I absolutely refuse. Because the photos that are developed are...]

The end of the note stopped at that, without explaining what the pictures from Xu’s haunted photo studio looked like.

"What are they?" Liu Buhua, pointing at the photos on the worktable, asked, "Ghost photos?"

Xie Yinxue pondered, "Perhaps there's more to it."

"Is the note implying that we need to return to that initial photo room..." Han Dongni's eyes were filled with tangible dread, "...to take pictures?"

"Most likely," Yan Wenhe nodded in agreement, "Every room here contains hidden mechanisms. Only the photo room we first entered seemed ordinary. I found it strange then, but now it seems that room holds the climax of this mystery."

Han Dongni felt faint at the thought.

After all, if they had to go back to the photo room, they'd have to leave the changing booth, navigate through the flickering makeup room, bypass the horrifying severed head hanging from the door, and then pose in front of the camera!

And that's not the end. If they're lucky and taking the picture is the final challenge to leave the escape room, they'd have to make their way back from the photo room to this darkroom.

"How's it going in there?"

Xia Rui, who was still guarding the door in the changing booth, sounded increasingly anxious, "It seems quiet outside here."

"Let's go," Xie Yinxue sighed, glancing at the skeleton on the floor with a bit of dark humor, "If we don't take that picture, we might just end up like that."

Han Dongni choked up and gently tugged at Liu Buhua's sleeve, softly calling him "Brother Liu" in hopes that he would slow down and protect her. Being always kind-hearted towards young ladies, Liu Buhua reassuringly patted his chest, ensuring her safety. He Min and Xia Rui grouped together. The group then smoothly made their way out of the darkroom and back into the changing booth.

Knowing that everyone except him and Liu Buhua was frightened, Xie Yinxue said, "I'll go out and check first. If everything's okay, I'll call you out."

He Min replied, "Be careful then..."

Xie Yinxue, standing in front of Liu Buhua and Han Dongni, gently pushed open the door of the changing booth.

There was nothing outside.

The lights in the makeup and dressing rooms still flickered erratically, dazzlingly so.

After scanning the area and noticing nothing out of the ordinary, Xie Yinxue said, "It's clear, come out."

At his words, Han Dongni and the other girls cautiously stepped out of the booth.

However, as soon as she saw the severed head hanging high above the makeup room door, her legs weakened, and she couldn't move.

Xie Yinxue chuckled, "It's alright. Just don't look at it, and you won't be scared."

Han Dongni, her face sullen, responded, "Even if I don't look at it, I feel it staring at me."

Xie Yinxue: "..."

He genuinely wondered how someone so timid could muster the courage to play a horror-themed escape room. He didn't find this room particularly terrifying.

However, Xie Yinxue was self-aware enough to realize he had seldom encountered things that truly scared him.

In the end, Han Dongni only mustered the courage to quickly move past the doorway with the gruesome decoration by holding tightly onto Liu Buhua's arm and keeping her head down as she walked in the middle of the group towards the photo room.

The chandelier in the photo room was functioning normally, though the light was still dim. Coupled with the flickering red light seeping through the curtain of the dressing room and the eerie glow from the wall filled with framed photos, the ambiance remained unsettling and ominous.

Confronted with this scene, the hairs on Han Dongni and the others stood on end, trembling in fear. Xie Yinxue, however, remained calm. He walked straight to the camera, examined it for a moment, and said softly, "There's a button here."

Liu Buhua reached out and prodded, "Let's press it and see."

The moment he pressed the camera button, the vintage device made a "clack" sound and emitted a flash that momentarily blinded everyone. Apart from that, nothing else occurred.

Yan Wenhe, looking at the two chairs in front of the camera, pondered, "Maybe there's a sensor on one of the chairs? Someone might need to sit on it for it to work?"

Upon hearing this, Han Dongni looked as if she might faint any second.

Upon seeing her reaction, Xia Rui comforted her, saying, "I'll sit down, I'll sit down."

After speaking, Xia Rui took a deep breath and seated himself in front of the camera. Liu Buhua pressed the shutter button once more. This time, the old-fashioned camera emitted the distinct "click" sound of a photograph being taken.

Not only that, but an apparatus resembling a printer next to the old-fashioned camera began to vibrate, startling Han Dongni who was hiding beside Liu Buhua.

A few seconds later, the machine ejected an image from its left side. Though it was called a photo, the paper felt rigid, not like the texture of a typical photograph, and was affixed to a wooden board about a centimeter behind.

The photo revealed a man in a suit. It matched the identity of the liquor store owner that Xia Rui portrayed. However, it was a black-and-white memorial portrait, with the character "奠" written at the top and surrounded by wreaths.

At this moment, they finally understood why the skeleton in the darkroom preferred to die than to have its photo taken.

If the face in the photograph wasn't distorted and blurred, making it different from Xia Rui's own face, he would've probably screamed in terror just like Han Dongni and the other girls.

Nonetheless, Xia Rui felt goosebumps all over and found the theme of the escape room to be incredibly eerie. "Damn it... I think I'm going mad."

He cursed continuously, "This escape room is so damn terrifying. What were we thinking coming to play this theme?"

No one could answer Xia Rui's question. If they had to describe their decision, it would probably be summed up in four words: Bewitched by curiosity!

"How can the camera recognize that I'm playing the role of the liquor store owner?" Xia Rui, trying to spook himself like Han Dongni, grabbed his hair in horror and exclaimed, "It's not really my memorial portrait, is it?"

Seeing Xia Rui seemingly petrified, Yan Wenhe quickly reassured him, patting his shoulder, "That's not your face. Stay calm. It's definitely not your memorial photo."

"Right, the photo probably requires the character card for sensing." Xie Yinxue explained, "Buhua, try putting your character card on the chair."

"Alright."

Listening to him, Liu Buhua placed her character card on the chair without sitting on it and returned to Xie Yinxue's side.

Then Xie Yinxue pressed the shutter again. The old-fashioned camera took another photograph, and the machine beside spat out another black-and-white "memorial portrait."

Seeing that they didn't have to actually sit on the chair to take a picture, Han Dongni and the others heaved a sigh of relief. Liu Buhua whispered to Xie Yinxue while the others were preoccupied, "Godfather, I also find this escape room terrifying. If this was a 'Seal of Immortality' replica, the photo might've been a real memorial portrait."

Xie Yinxue shook his head and sighed, "Waiting for a memorial photo? If this was a replica from 'Seal of Immortality', a few would've died at the 'Gate of Heads' already."

Liu Buhua felt a pang of sadness and joined him in his sighs.

Holding their respective "memorial portraits", the group, excluding Yan Wenhe who remained composed, felt too frightened to think straight. They could only look towards Xie Yinxue, asking, "What's next? What should we do now?"

Xie Yinxue turned around, looking at the empty frames on the photo wall which he initially couldn't understand, and said, "Put the memorial portraits into these frames, and we should be able to exit."

Everyone followed his instructions.

He Min was the last to place her photo. As she carefully set the picture into the frame, before everyone could let out the breath they were holding in anticipation of victory, the lights in the photo room suddenly went out.

Author's note:

NPC: A ghost is here!

Xie Lao: That's all? Think you can scare me?

NPC: It's a lustful ghost.

Xie Lao: What?