The architecture of No. 7 Mansion sowhat resembles the building style of Olay Great Capital, with an exterior that practically lacks edges and corners, favoring smooth transitions instead.
The mansion is painted in an off-white color, with a flat roof, and circular stone columns scattered throughout its corners.
It is said that in the past, nobles from Olay Great Capital lived here. After the outbreak of war, the property was nationalized, and following multiple auctions, it ended up in the hands of real estate developers who, for so unknown reason, didn't develop it and instead rented it out to beco a thed restaurant.
And it was exactly during the ti this restaurant was in business that the strangeness occurred.
More than one person died inside, including a two-star exorcist who also fell here.
The key to seal the door was in the exorcist's hands, and Huang Chen had it sent over as quickly as possible.
After opening the mansion's outer courtyard door, the moss on the ground nearly caused Huang Chen, the first to walk in, to take a nasty fall.
Huang Chen's attempt to steady himself looked rather comical. His old face turned red, and he quickly looked back at the people following him, but no one was in the mood to laugh at him.
Except for Yan Junze.
"With your agile moves, I feel like you're not far from becoming a two-star exorcist yourself," Yan Junze said, putting on a serious air after dropping his smile.
Huang Chen said, "I've already applied, and next week I'm going to Tianng for the promotion test."
He paused before adding, "Everyone else, watch your step. This place hasn't been entered in a long ti. There's a lot of slippery moss on the path."
One by one, everyone entered the mansion cautiously, with Gu Bai supporting Lin ng last. Lin ng had a cara hanging around her neck, and their complexions were both not very good, with Lin ng's pretty face turning particularly pale.
Three-star exorcist Li Yue was always behind Yang Zhijun, even lending a hand to support him, making it seem as if Yang Zhijun was on the brink of death.
Huang Chen opened the doors to the mansion's main hall at the front.
As soon as the door opened, everyone outside imdiately felt an unbearable chill emanating from the hall, which slid down collars and cuffs, bringing a bone-chilling coldness.
This ti, Yan Junze was the first to walk in.
Standing in the dimly lit hall, he turned around and said to everyone, "Please move a little faster. There are 27 people plus , making 28 in total. Stand in three rows, from the front, ordered by height. People in the front and back rows should stand staggered so everyone can show their faces. And also, the photos in your hands."
Huang Chen then began directing, and soon everyone was in place as instructed, holding up their photos in a gap where they could also be captured by the cara.
Gu Bai, standing at the entrance to the hall, asked, "Should we turn on the lights?"
He looked around and felt that the electric lights here should all be working, and there seed to be no problem with the electricity supply.
Yan Junze glanced at the dimly lit scene and asked Lin ng, "How is the flash on your cara?"
"It's pretty good," Lin ng nodded.
"Then we won't turn on the lights. The darker the photo cos out, the better," he said.
With that, he ran to take a spot in the middle of the second row.
At that mont, everyone in the hall stood in silence, with worried expressions and brows tightly furrowed.
Moreover, each person was holding a photo of themselves looking back, whether it was a paper print, an illuminated phone screen, or a digital cara switched on with the image displayed—all facing the direction of Lin ng's lens.
Now, Lin ng raised her cara to her eye, her voice trembling as she called out, "E-everyone, look this way, look at ... here."
Through the lens, she noticed her friend Xia Ruolan's tense expression, holding up her lit phone, with the photo of herself looking back on display.
Perhaps due to the heavy chill in the hall, Xia Ruolan's body was also trembling slightly.
Fearing that so might not cooperate due to fear, Yan Junze kept saying, "Look at the lens. Most importantly, make sure the photo in your hand is fully visible, including your head, to ensure everything gets captured."
"Okay, let's start."
"Everyone look at the lens, one, two, three..."
"Cheese!"
With a click, the flash lit up, and the photographing was over.
Lin ng was sure that this was the most bizarre photo she had ever taken since she started photography.
Because Yan Junze had instructed that this photo could only be taken once; there was no option to take several shots and select later, as this could introduce uncontrollable factors.
After taking the picture, Lin ng imdiately looked down and brought up the photo she had just taken on the cara's screen to inspect it.
But after just one glance, she could not help but shiver.
Yan Junze left the formation and ca over, with Gu Bai and Huang Chen also looking on.
In the photo, everyone but Yan Junze had a uniformly grim expression, faces clouded with gloom, hands hanging down, and their postures seed oddly disturbing.
Under the flash's illumination, everyone's faces appeared freakishly white.
Most importantly, the photo's background was a uniform dark tone, and farther back it was hard to discern any details, creating the impression that at any mont, indescribable strangeness could erge from behind these people.
Because Lin ng had set the photo resolution to the maximum before taking the picture, even when enlarged tenfold, the photos in everyone's hands were clearly visible, including the vague outline of the Black Dress Woman in the photos.
Yan Junze quickly scanned the image to confirm that the photos in everyone's hands were all clearly captured and that all faces were visible.
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