"Thanks for the tip, Tieling Bro. But honestly, I still want to hear from Liu Banxian—after all, he's the expert here."
I checked my phone's clock: just before midnight. Still some time before the short, stout grandma said not to go out after midnight.
"If worse comes to worst, I'll just run out and call the cops."
Liu Banxian from Qingcheng Mountain: "Young people these days really risk their lives just for money... Fine, since fate brought us together, I'll give you some advice."
"Thanks, Banxian."
The stream's viewer count jumped to thirty-seven—and climbing.
"Strong earth qi means a bright house. The occupant benefits and prospers. Weak qi means decay, with no life force nourishing the residents. Naturally, everything falls apart. Bro, open the window. I want to check the earth qi."
I did as he said, opening the window and shining my phone light inside.
"No grass growing, no flowers blooming, trees twisted and strange. Surrounded by tall walls, lower in the middle—the energy's stuck, dirty qi piled up with no way out!"
After a minute or two, Liu Banxian sent another comment: "Quick, close the window! Check all four corners of the room for white rice grains or marks where red, white, or yellow paper had been stuck."
I raised the camera and zoomed in. The corners of the room were clean, no spider webs. But when I focused on the double bed, I felt uneasy.
"White rice grains!"
On the inside of one bed leg, hidden in an inconspicuous spot, a few grains of wet white rice lay there, like soaked in cold water.
Liu Banxian: "White rice is not just an offering to ancestors; it's also used to soothe restless spirits. This place's layout is seriously cursed. More than one person has died here. Bro, go ahead and check under the bed. There'll be talisman papers to ward off evil. Don't get too close—if there are more than four, check out immediately to save your life."
"Under the bed?"
I got down on the floor again, one hand gripping the bed frame, the other holding the camera, and stuck my head underneath.
The cold floor seemed to freeze me. My whole body tingled, like tiny bugs crawling through my veins. What I saw was new to me—a feeling I can only describe as pure horror.
Underneath the mattress, roughly two meters long and one and a half meters wide, were countless talismans with red characters on yellow paper plastered everywhere.
Teletubby Murdered: "Whoa, that's triggering my trypophobia."
Officer Huang, Class 3-2: "Bro, call the cops. I always thought this case was fishy."
Don't Roast Me, I'm Fragile: "Damn, you scared me to death."
Feeling dizzy, I propped myself up on my elbows and sat on the floor.
"Banxian, I didn't count exactly, but I'm pretty sure there are more than four."
Liu Banxian: "Bro, good luck to you. Usually these talismans bring good fortune, protect the house, but these are sealing evil spirits. Now the evil energy is leaking out—those papers have lost their power. You were cursed the moment you entered this room."
"So, Banxian, you mean I'm doomed?"
"I want to help, but I'm stuck in Qingcheng. Can't do much from here."
Handsome & Skilled Girl: "You two are having way too much fun. I get it now—Liu Banxian from Qingcheng Mountain is a paid actor. Good lines, decent script, and props get a 90 out of 100. Better than some cheap Chinese special effects."
Teemo Stew Mushroom: "Is this acting? I'm only twelve—don't lie to me."
So I Married a Hater: "Heartless streamer faking it, scamming innocent viewers for gifts!"
Tieling Bro: "Who's the ignorant one here? Believe it or not, I'll smack you."
The flood of comments eased my inner fear. I lit a cigarette on the bed, but the images of those talismans covered all over the floor made me jump up and stand aside.
"Could this Peaceful Inn really be haunted?"
Even if I suspected, I didn't want to fully believe it.
"Without seeing it myself, speculation doesn't prove anything."
My police training made me think logically—before drawing conclusions, I needed a solid chain of evidence.
I smoked, the chat went quiet for a moment, but after that scene, the viewer count rose to over sixty.
"You can call me a liar or an actor all you want, but I'm staying here tonight. Dead men tell no tales—I'm not scared."
I clenched my teeth and lay down. With the decision made, I felt lighter.
Tieling Bro tipped 99 spirit coins: "Now that's the spirit, bro! Here's a tip!"
Liu Banxian also tipped 99 spirit coins: "Money is just an external thing. You can't take it when you die. Why bother, streamer?"
Honestly, I was troubled inside. The Netherworld Live Show mission was still active—breaking contract recklessly might anger some mysterious organization and end with me disappearing without a trace.
No escape—only to face it head on.
"I've seen so many ruthless, cunning, and heartless criminals. Am I really scared of some ghost?"
"Tonight, I'm not just staying here—I'm going to actively provoke the supernatural! If it's all fake, then I'll expose the Netherworld Live Show as a gang of frauds in ghost costumes with ill intentions!"
"Yes, it's their mission, but also my chance to reveal the truth!"
Thinking this, my fear was overcome by reason. I raised the camera to myself:
"Friends, I'm just as curious as you are—do ghosts exist? Is there really the supernatural? Among all those true-and-fake urban legends, what is human-made, and what hides a dark secret? So many unknowns waiting to be explored, and today is just the beginning."
"I'll try to reconstruct the guest's death as realistically as possible, taking you through the suffocating death scene! From now on, I am that ill-fated guest—I'll act like him, trying to trigger the same death outcome—witnessing a super terrifying event, then dying of fright!"
Role-playing as the victim in a death simulation like this can help solve cases, but it's usually complex and requires careful planning and psychology experts.
Here in this rural inn, I had to keep it simple. I'm no psychology expert, but I know a bit about environmental psychology and criminal behavior.
Teemo Stew Mushroom: "Style switched up—suddenly the streamer's pretty badass."
Senior Sister Loves Me: "Why does this feel like a nail-biting thriller?"
Officer Huang, Class 3-2: "I knew you were a professional. Time to show your real skills!"
"Death simulation isn't some fancy trick—it's reconstructing the victim's personality, the first crime scene environment, the motive, and criminal psychology to do a proper scenario."
I pointed the camera at myself. "I've followed this case—the victim was a local man from Jiangcheng, unemployed, with a gambling problem that left him deeply in debt. He had nowhere to go and fled to the Peaceful Inn to escape his creditors."
"What's interesting is that he rented this room for half a month without incident. And then, mid-month, something happened. What was it? Or what special action did he take to bring about his death?"
I lifted the camera and paced the room.
"Half a month hiding in one place, TV broken, no entertainment, facing two old scary faces every day…"
"And the death happened at night. What would a restless young man do? Could it be—"
I ransacked the room and finally found something under the pillow: a brightly colored card.
Teemo Stew Mushroom: "Streamer, what did you find? Is it a clue the victim left behind?!"
Handsome & Skilled Girl: "Hehe, little Teemo, it's not that we don't want to tell you, but sometimes silence says more than words."
Officer Huang, Class 3-2: "Please watch your language upstairs—this topic's heavy for a minor."
Handsome & Skilled Girl: "Heavy, fu**! I think you're also a paid actor, so stiff. Watch out or you'll get no lunch after this!"
Teletubby Murdered: "Wow, this chatroom's really deep."