Light Novel Pub

Chapter 1: Play rock-paper-scissors with the mirror

“Why would a living person have lividity?”

“Medically speaking, it could be due to a minor injury, or prolonged pressure leading to ruptured blood vessels under the skin, forming a bruise, which then looks very similar to lividity.”

“Alternatively, conditions like purpura or vasculitis could also cause skin spots that resemble lividity.”

Xie Yizhi pushed up his black-rimmed glasses, earnestly looking at the bullet comments on the public screen, answering the questions posed by the Water friends.

——【If not medically speaking, what if it's not 'like' lividity, but it *is* lividity?】

——【What we want to ask is, the abnormal kind…】

The Water friends were typically timid yet talkative, insisting on getting to the bottom of things.

“If you can confirm it's lividity, why can't you confirm that you are actually dead?”

Xie Yizhi answered calmly.

That short sentence sent shivers down the spines of hundreds of people in the live stream, and with it being past midnight, the atmosphere became even more terrifying.

——【Newcomers don't be scared, don't be fooled by the 主播's appearance, he often suddenly says terrifying things like this.】

——【I often wonder why Xie Ge knows so many strange things.】

——【I don't know… I also stayed because this brother looks as innocent and well-behaved as a male college student who hasn't experienced the world.】

——【The live stream title says 'Let's Talk About Something Exciting', I clicked in excitedly, and this is way too exciting (I'm now honest).】

——【Is it scary? I think it's alright? Next, I will go to the restroom alone to use the toilet.】

——【No need to be so adventurous.】

Watching the scrolling bullet comments, Xie Yizhi took a sip of water and stood up.

He had been streaming for almost three hours today, meeting the required duration, so he could wash his face and end the stream.

Holding his phone stand, just as he reached the living room, Xie Yizhi suddenly paused, turning to look towards the bathroom.

There was no mistake; waves of chilling energy were emanating from his bathroom.

It is well-known that in many residential layouts, bathrooms are often located in corners that receive no sunlight, hence these corners are also called 'yin corners'.

These are the easiest places for some unclean things to hide.

This is why some people inexplicably shiver the moment they reach the bathroom door when getting up at night to use the toilet.

Because the bathroom might simultaneously be used by 'others'.

Ordinary people might not be able to discern it, but Xie Yizhi naturally couldn't be mistaken.

The reason is simple… it can only be said that his profession aligns perfectly.

This brings us to Xie Yizhi's somewhat 'netherworld-ish' family background.

Going back a few generations, Xie Yizhi's family, it could be said, had no one engaged in a 'proper' profession.

His Ancestor was a Zou Shan Ke, and his Ancestor was a corpse-sewer.

His Great-Grandfather was a Maoshan Taoist, and his Grandmother was a Fengtian Chuma Xian.

His grandfather made paper effigies, his Grandmother was an embalmer, his father drove corpses, and his mother raised 蠱…

Born into such a family, Xie Yizhi was pampered by the family from a young age, growing up steeped in talismans and medicinal concoctions.

The 'grasping ritual' was skipped; regardless of whether it was a high-ranking or low-ranking profession, Xie Yizhi had to learn them all.

By the age of twenty-three, he had already mastered most of his family's skills.

Although he hadn't put them into practice, Xie Yizhi always felt that he would be very formidable.

He had thought that after so many years of learning these skills, and graduating from university, his family would surely arrange a job for him to help him with employment, but to his surprise, there was no news at all.

He stayed in his rural hometown for two months, eating and sleeping, then sleeping and getting scolded, so he could only honestly go to the city to find work, streaming while working.

Therefore, Xie Yizhi was able to detect the anomaly in his home immediately.

“Of all places to hide, why my home?”

Xie Yizhi muttered.

For so many years, what he had learned before was all theoretical, and he had never truly encountered any ghosts or monsters. Thinking of this, Xie Yizhi felt a bit apprehensive.

The skills his family taught him, they shouldn't be fake, right?

Just then, a bullet comment popped up on the public screen.

——【Are there really ghosts in this world?】

——【If so, is there any way to see them? Or how can I know if there are ghosts in my house?】

Xie Yizhi set up his camera, went to the sink to wash his hands, and answered, “There is indeed a way to know if there are ghosts in your house.”

——【I'm renting a place alone for work, it's a bit too cheap, and I always hear strange noises at night, I suspect…】

——【It's cheap? Where is it located?】

——【Yangcheng, two bedrooms and one living room, just over a thousand a month.】

——【Oh my god… Is it possible the landlord gave you a shared rental price?】

——【Don't scare me!!! Xie Ge, tell us quickly, we need a solution!!!】

Xie Yizhi paused, looked at the time on his watch, 0:42.

He then pointed to the mirror in front of the sink; Xie Yizhi in the mirror mirrored his action, also pointing out of the mirror.

“First, the test must be done at midnight, which is when ghosts begin to act.”

“Then, like me, come before a mirror in your home.”

Xie Yizhi continued.

The Water friends listened, stunned, though they had all heard the saying about not looking in mirrors at midnight.

As for why they shouldn't look in mirrors, they were all unclear.

Actually, this saying has little to do with encountering ghosts or evil; not looking in mirrors at night is a saying passed down from ancient times.

Ancient mirrors were polished bronze mirrors, and they couldn't reflect clearly in the dark of night.

That's why they all said not to look in mirrors at night, nothing more.

——【Come before the mirror, then what? Any brave souls want to try?】

——【I'm already here, nothing happened?】

——【There's nothing unusual in the mirror, it's still me reflected. Then what? What do I need to do? The 主播 isn't trying to scare us on purpose, is he?】

Xie Yizhi glanced at the bullet comments, then looked at the mirror.

In the mirror, he was wearing a black hoodie, his figure was slender, and his expressionless face indeed showed no abnormalities.

“What the mirror reflects is your mirrored self.”

“So, whatever action I make, the me in the mirror will make the same action.”

“If the actions are inconsistent, it means…”

Xie Yizhi didn't finish his sentence, and the live stream was eerily quiet; the Water friends were indeed scared by his words.

They didn't even need him to say the second half; the Water friends had already guessed what Xie Yizhi was going to say next.

——【So, brother, are you planning to do some high-difficulty moves to test if your mirrored self can do the same?】

——【Handstand? Fist in mouth? Or touching your navel with your reverse hand?】

Under the camera, Xie Yizhi drew out his voice, then unexpectedly raised his right hand sharply, “Rock, paper, scissors!”

——【Oh my god! Rock-paper-scissors!!】

Loading...