Mysterious Revival

Chapter 646: Chapter 643: Curse Inheritance

Wang Xiaoming was not one who liked to employ conspiracies and trickery; he always laid out a rational and reasonable plan before you, giving you a choice.

The catch was that there was no wiggle room in this choice, because you couldn’t find a better alternative than his plan, and in the end, you were forced to agree, even if you killed him now, you would still choose his plan.

So, this was an open strategy.

He had now made the consequences of the experiment’s failure and success very clear.

Only one of Yang Jian and Guo Fan could survive, and whoever lived would possess the current body of Yang Jian, becoming an exceptional ghost master in control of three ghosts.

“Is this all you’ve thought of? You had this plan in mind from the outset, which is why you agreed so readily. To you, no matter what, you don’t stand to lose. On the contrary, it’s me. I, who had the possibility to choose, am now forced to gamble with you, reluctantly accepting this outcome.”

Yang Jian’s gaze still fixed tightly on Wang Xiaoming.

He had considered Wang Xiaoming’s solution to the curse of the Eight-Tone Music Box but never imagined the specific plan to be this.

The moment he agreed, it would mean putting his life into Wang Xiaoming’s hands.

As for what would happen afterward, Yang Jian no longer had a say.

“At least you still have a chance to gamble. Many don’t even have that opportunity. Having mastered three ghosts and suffering from the Eight-Tone Music Box curse, your path as a ghost master is at its end. Conventional methods will no longer keep you alive; only a unique and dangerous plan holds the possibility of extending your life.”

Ignoring Yang Jian’s piercing gaze, Wang Xiaoming stated calmly, “You’ve been through a lot. There are many things now that don’t need explaining from me.”

“Right, the principle is clear, but how do I know if you have any ulterior motives? Once the consciousness and the curse are separated successfully, will you willingly return my consciousness, and not forever trap it in a spirit tablet, occasionally offering it a few sticks of incense? If that plan succeeds, anybody could replace me, not just Guo Fan.”

As Yang Jian spoke, the Ghost Domain instantly spread outwards from his eyes, permeating the surroundings.

This fifth floor had yet to be sealed, so his Ghost Domain could seep outward, albeit not very quickly.

“Mastering three ghosts is no easy feat, so no one is more suitable than you. Guo Fan is merely an emergency replacement to prevent the rebirth of a malevolent specter as a hidden threat upon your death.”

Wang Xiaoming spoke earnestly, “If you truly have such worries, then this plan can’t be carried out.”

“Since you put it that way, I have nothing to worry about. But since you want me to bet my life, it would be unfair to just gamble against Guo Fan. Let’s have everyone take the risk together. From now on, no one is to leave or enter this building; anyone who does will be attacked by malevolent ghosts,”

Yang Jian coldly stated, his words not directed at Wang Xiaoming but meant for the Ghost Child.

The Ghost Domain enveloped the area as his final command was issued.

Those who leave the building die, and those who enter die.

In that moment, a window upstairs revealed a ghostly child with cyanotic black skin, utterly cold without a hint of warmth. Dressed in a burial robe stripped from a corpse and clutching a decomposed head, it began to sprint swiftly along the corridor.

The Ghost Child was given a murderous directive by Yang Jian.

To kill anyone entering or exiting the building, and with the new command overtaking the previous order to remain stationary, it gained the ability to move autonomously.

In other words.

From now on, a terrible supernatural event started to take place in this building: a Hungry Ghost from the Second Stage would roam here incessantly.

“Was what you just said a threat?” Wei Jing stared at him and asked.

“No, I was merely taking some precautionary measures. Don’t worry, I’ve checked this building earlier, there are not many people, so if an accident really occurred, it wouldn’t cause too much harm. I don’t wish for accidents to happen,” Yang Jian said.

“Let the experiment begin. The time of my curse’s outbreak is tomorrow night at twelve o’clock. It’s impossible to confirm whether this information is true or false, but this item won’t lie.”

As he spoke, he produced an old wooden Eight-Tone Music Box.

The Eight-Tone Music Box was open at the moment, its interior shrouded in darkness, making it unclear what exactly was inside, but it exuded an eerie aura from all around.

“I have researched the curse of the Eight-Tone Music Box. After the curse explodes, the music box will close by itself and return to its original state, waiting for the next person to open it, so this item makes the perfect timer,” Wang Xiaoming said.

“If you have made your preparations, now enter that room, lie in the Ghost Coffin and hold that spirit tablet. Once the consciousness transfer begins, results should come swiftly. The Ghost Coffin is no longer intact, and I do not have much confidence that it can suppress the uncontrollable ghost within the body, so I will have Wei Jing monitor it.”

Yang Jian didn’t speak, just walked coldly into that special room.

Thick walls surrounded the space, preventing the Ghost Domain from penetrating; it was specially constructed that way. The only means of communication with the outside was a not-so-large glass window.

After he entered, the door closed with a heavy thud and locked firmly.

In that moment, Yang Jian felt isolated from the outside world, unable to hear any sounds, and everything became eerily silent around him. All that lay before him was a black coffin without a lid and an old, dirty spirit tablet covered in dried, darkened bloodstains.

The black and white photo on the spirit tablet was of Guo Fan.

His face was pallid, and his expression conveyed fright and unease, as if he had been threatened with death, clearly, he hadn’t been willing to transfer his consciousness into the spirit tablet, and most likely had been coerced by Wang Xiaoming and eventually had no choice but to compromise.

Although Yang Jian had volunteered, it was also due to circumstances that left him with no alternative.

“With his personality, he would agree so easily? His file doesn’t suggest he’s the kind of person who compromises easily,” said Wei Jing from outside, his voice cold and strange.

He had read through Yang Jian’s file and had generally understood the man’s character, knowing that it wouldn’t be easy to make him accept this plan so readily.

Yang Jian’s attitude just now had confirmed this point; they had nearly come to blows.

“This shows that the file is outdated; he has grown, and he has not compromised, on the contrary, his methods have become even more intense. He must have made some arrangements that I don’t know about, it’s just that they have not yet taken effect,” Wang Xiaoming furrowed his brows slightly.

“However, none of that matters now because the result will appear very soon.”

At this moment, he saw Yang Jian contacting the Ghost Coffin and executing the plan as described earlier.

Inside the room, Yang Jian didn’t hesitate much. He had done what he needed to do, and what was left was to wait for the results. If he couldn’t survive despite all the preparations, then it could only mean his luck wasn’t good enough.

Approaching the Ghost Coffin, he glanced inside.

There was no Ghost Envoy lying inside the Ghost Coffin this time, nor did any other ghost appear; it simply looked like a very ordinary coffin.

The only thing to note was the pitch-black interior of the coffin, like an abyss leading to hell, which could make one feel dread.

“Last time when I stole the Ghost Coffin from the Ghost Envoy, did it result in the Ghost Envoy not being fully nurtured and some of the supernatural element remaining in this coffin? So, this coffin without a lid has become one of the even more shattered jigsaw puzzles of the Ghost Envoy…”

Yang Jian observed the situation of the Ghost Coffin and then boldly stepped directly into it.

As soon as he did, he felt the ghost within his body being suppressed, but this suppression was special—it would not completely crash the ghost, yet it allowed the manipulator to continue using the ghost’s abilities.

It was as if an invisible shackle had been placed upon the ghost manipulator.

After feeling out his condition, his gaze went back to the old wooden spirit tablet placed in front of the coffin.

“Will my consciousness be transferred into the spirit tablet if there’s continuous contact?” Yang Jian grew anxious at this thought.

Whether the transfer would succeed depended on this moment—if it failed and the curse from the Eight-Tone Music Box transferred along with his consciousness, he’d face the worst scenario… His body could be taken over by Guo Fan, and his consciousness could be wiped out by the curse.

All his efforts would vanish.

Despite the risk, Yang Jian still had to go through with it, because he had no other choice.

Quickly,

he reached out and picked up the spirit tablet.

The wooden, worn spirit tablet was covered with dry bloodstains, as if many hands with their terrible stories had touched it. However, when Yang Jian held it, a chill invaded his body instantly and his consciousness seemed to be pulled away at that moment, which was terrifying.

It felt as if he was dying, bit by bit.

At the same time, the expression on Yang Jian’s face changed rapidly, from initial calm and composure to panic and unease. In an instant, the aura he emitted seemed to transform entirely.

The black-and-white photograph on the spirit tablet twisted gradually, and the visage within changed.

Yang Jian’s face appeared on it, while the picture of Guo Fan that had been on the spirit tablet faded rapidly, vanishing… At last, his image appeared on Yang Jian standing in the Ghost Coffin.

The exchange of identities between the two was completed at that moment.

“Did it work?”

Wang Xiaoming was very curious about the situation and quickly moved closer, peering through the glass window to observe the inside.

“Now, whose body carries the curse from the Eight-Tone Music Box? Is it in the Yang Jian within the spirit tablet, or has it successfully been taken over by the current Guo Fan?”

The answer to come would decide who would live and who would die.

At this moment, the ‘Yang Jian’ inside the Ghost Coffin moved. He slowly turned his head, his eyes showing a trace of confusion and hesitation, as if this consciousness had stayed in the spirit tablet too long and was not used to the difference.

“I, am I still alive?” His voice was Yang Jian’s, but the tone was Guo Fan’s.

With a surprised look, he saw Wang Xiaoming standing outside the window and then recalled the previous events.

Guo Fan remembered inviting Wang Xiaoming to his place for tea and insisting on borrowing the spirit tablet from him, which led to an argument… and he had given in at the end.

He had thought he was surely going to die after that, but against all odds, he found there was a chance to live.

It felt like a long sleep, he had never been in the spirit tablet for such a long time because the longer one stayed, the greater the invasion by the ghost, and in the end, he might never return.

“Guo Fan, how do you feel now?” Wang Xiaoming asked through the intercom outside the window.

The room was insulated from the supernatural, but not from signals.

“I feel great, I seem to have returned to normal, even better than before, wait, something’s wrong…” Guo Fan frowned, looking down and realizing he was still holding the spirit tablet. Instinctively, he quickly pulled it back.

But soon, he noticed that his body didn’t seem to be his own.

“Is this Yang Jian’s body?”

He saw his own face on the spirit tablet, and instantly understood everything.

Professor Wang had actually gotten rid of Yang Jian and successfully saved him. This was indeed inconceivable. Does this mean, from now on, he was no longer the former Guo Fan, but rather Guo Fan with the Ghost Eye controlling three ghosts?

At this thought, Guo Fan got excited. Now, he could discard the spirit tablet, no longer needing it to stave off the deterioration of his body, because he knew Yang Jian had achieved the balance with the three ghosts. This was a new beginning.

He immediately threw away the spirit tablet, and couldn’t wait to try to step out of the Ghost Coffin.

“You’d better not rush into anything; you can’t control Yang Jian’s ghosts. If you step out of the Ghost Coffin, you could die from the revival of the fierce ghost,” Wang Xiaoming warned with a stern face.

Controlling three ghosts required experience; it wasn’t something that could be done by merely switching consciousness. The balance and suppression between ghosts all needed to be mediated by the living manipulator. If this balance were upset, the revival of the fierce ghost could occur.

“Right, right, right, Professor Wang, you’re right. I was too hasty. I should take some time to observe and get accustomed to Yang Jian’s body,” Guo Fan replied, still excited.

He felt like the protagonist in a novel, on the brink of death, but so luckily given such an opportunity.

Not only had he survived, but he had also become a top ghost manipulator; his life seemed to have reached its zenith.

Guo Fan even thought that after getting out of here, he should vie for the team leader’s spot and have Zong Shan humbly follow him, making him utterly envious.

However, in the midst of these wild thoughts, Guo Fan suddenly said, “But Professor Wang, could you turn off the music in this room? It keeps playing on loop, and I’m getting a little annoyed by it.”

Music? How could there be any music in the room? There was only an intercom.

Wang Xiaoming outside the glass window shifted his expression slightly, then ignored Guo Fan and instead looked at the spirit tablet that had fallen next to the Ghost Coffin. The image of Yang Jian was still on the spirit tablet, with the same cold expression.

“Is luck still on Yang Jian’s side?”

At this moment, he realized that the so-called music was the curse from the Eight-Tone Music Box, which had now been inherited by Guo Fan, while Yang Jian successfully hid inside the spirit tablet to avoid the risk of being killed by the curse.

But the current Guo Fan seemed unaware of what he was experiencing.