Chapter 28 Temporary Group Formation
Yeah, important things must be said three times.
"Enough already," Zhou Dali covered his ears, the big and burly man looking pitifully at Yan Junze, "You\'ve already said it three times. My answer is: I... am... not... going!"
"Are you sure you won\'t go?" Yan Junze asked seriously.
"Where are you guys heading?" Bao Jie, from the next desk, leaned over, full of curiosity.
"To a place where no one else is," Yan Junze said, pretending to be mysterious.
"But it has its strangenesses," Zhou Dali added.
Bao Jie got even more excited: "Are you guys going to shoot a video?"
"Right, I plan to upload my second video to the \'Open Your Eyes\' platform," Yan Junze nodded. "But this cowardly Dali doesn\'t dare to go."
"Who says I\'m scared."
In front of the girl he liked, Zhou Dali\'s feisty spirit surged up in an instant, but it quickly deflated, and his voice became barely audible, "I just happen to be busy this weekend and can\'t make it."
Yan Junze then turned to Bao Jie: "Do you want to go?"
Bao Jie startled, then her face showed fear, shaking her head: "I only dare watch through a screen, delve into the site of strangeness? I dare not."
Yan Junze assured them, "You guys can rest easy, no matter what happens, I guarantee there\'s no danger for you."
As he spoke, he took out a black button and weighed it in his palm for a moment.
"This is..." Zhou Dali leaned closer, took a careful look for a while, and his expression turned to surprise, "Is this that..."
"Correct, the Hidden Buckle, an exorcism technique from the Exorcist," Yan Junze immediately put away the black button.
"How do you have that item?" Bao Jie exclaimed in surprise. "I\'ve seen it on TV, I heard that normal people aren\'t supposed to possess Exorcist\'s items, otherwise the consequences can be severe."
Yan Junze smiled, "You don\'t need to worry about that, my aunt\'s neighbor\'s dog Erleng, who befriended the Exorcist\'s watchdog Er Ya from Shuntian, accidentally brought it back while they were playing."
Bao Jie and Zhou Dali looked at each other, bewildered.
At that moment Jiang Ruixin returned from the restroom, shaking off her wet hands, and accidentally splashed the water on Zhou Dali\'s face.
Zhou Dali was jolted back to his senses and quickly asked Yan Junze, "What were you just saying?"
"Just that the origin of the Hidden Buckle is quite clear, you don\'t have to worry," Yan Junze waved his hand.
"If that\'s the case…" Bao Jie pondered, "Then count me in. My family has a portable DV, it shoots really well. When the time comes, I\'ll be your videographer."
"Are you sure you\'re not going now?" Yan Junze tilted his head to ask Zhou Dali.
The guy had a constipated expression, struggled for half a day, and finally said, "Fine! But I\'m going only to protect Bao Jie, not to give you face."
"Yeah, I know," Yan Junze nodded.
"What are you guys talking about? Where are you going?" Jiang Ruixin dried her hands and looked up at the three of them, looking somewhat dazed.
Five seconds later, this supernatural adventure quartet had been temporarily formed.
Yan Junze said, "We\'ve tentatively set the operation for Saturday. I\'ll start a group chat, and I\'ll notify everyone of the specific location and time in the group. Also, Dali, you need to prepare some tools for Saturday morning, for prying walls and digging. That task is yours."
"I knew it wouldn\'t be simple when you asked me to come!" Zhou Dali grumbled.
"I\'ll prepare several powerful flashlights," Jiang Ruixin offered, raising her hand.
Her family owned a small supermarket, so getting those things was no problem at all.
With each person assigned a task, everyone but Yan Junze seemed very nervous, yet the excitement clearly outweighed their nervousness.
The school day on Friday ended quickly.
Before leaving school, the four of them started a group chat named "We Are Not Afraid of Strangenesses," which, using one\'s little toe, could have been guessed to be the brainchild of Zhou Dali, whose brain was smaller than his own arm in circumference.
On his way home, Yan Junze casually threw the black button he\'d picked up into a trash bin.
He, of course, didn\'t have any Exorcist\'s Hidden Buckle; he\'d only used that trick to put the others at ease. His secret was not the Hidden Buckle, but the ability to Rewind time, which he obviously couldn\'t share with anyone.
As for choosing them to help him with the "Peeking From the Crack in the Wall" mission, there was a reason for that as well. First, the mission notes required tools, which likely meant having to break through walls, a task that seemed tailor-made for Zhou Dali.
Then there was being in an unfamiliar environment; it was good to have friends along for mutual support. Otherwise, just the thought of Yan Junze sneaking alone into the B1 floor of Jianye Building would seem quite difficult.
Now, with ample Different Dimension Energy and having not completed many missions, he needed to explore a path suitable for future development. Moreover, some missions probably weren\'t as efficient to complete alone as they were with a team.
Whether alone or in a group, he had to try both to find out.
Moreover, the level of the "Peeking From the Crack in the Wall" mission was classified as "Anxiety-Inducing (High)," but it did not exceed that level to reach "Trembling with Fear."
Therefore, completing it shouldn\'t be too difficult, which was why Yan Junze dared to have these three classmates follow him.
Of course, before starting, he would preemptively set a Rewind point. Should anything unexpected happen to anyone, he would choose whether to continue or to quit the mission after weighing the pros and cons.
After returning to FH Community and entering Building 7, Yan Junze instantly saw the white figure of the Back-faced Woman.
The Back-faced Woman had moved to the side of the wall near the stairs on the first floor; to use the stairs, one had to pass behind her.
At the moment, a man in his thirties wearing a black jacket was descending the stairs, looking utterly terrified. With one hand over his chest and the other on the stair railing, he seemed too scared to even breathe deeply, his attention fixed on the Back-faced Woman, not even noticing Yan Junze standing at the stair entrance.
The Back-faced Woman remained motionless.
The man, tiptoeing and cautiously descending the steps, finally caught his breath, glanced at Yan Junze, moved his lips, and quickly walked out of Building 7.
Yan Junze roughly understood that the man was warning him to be careful when he went upstairs.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om
Although the Back-faced Woman was terrifying, as long as she wasn\'t provoked, she didn\'t seem to be very dangerous—especially when she was standing quietly facing the wall.
Following the middle-aged man\'s lead, Yan Junze stayed close to the railing, quietly ascending the stairs, and when he passed behind the Back-faced Woman, a chill ran down his spine and pierced his heart.
Thankfully, he made it upstairs without any trouble and immediately sent a text message to his parents, reminding them to be careful when they come back.
And unsurprisingly, Ke\'er, who had been lying on his back, had long since vanished without a trace.