Vermilion Wood Carving

If anyone had asked which of the six people present was most likely possessed by the Evil Spirit, there might have been no answer.

But if they had asked who was least likely, the obvious answer was Huangfu Jiajia.

As the exorcist, Ji Li had to come into contact with the Evil Spirit.

Fang Shenyan and the other three had arrived with the Evil Spirit, so they would naturally come into contact with it too.

Only Huangfu Jiajia, the patient guide, had had nothing to do with the Evil Spirit from beginning to end.

Yet the white smoke turning red was rising from Huangfu Jiajia's paper effigy.

In the Real World, a candle flame lit an equally dim room.

Huangfu Jiajia sat farthest away. Light and shadow flickered across her face, making her expression impossible to read.

The moment red smoke rose from her effigy, she fell silent. No one knew what she was thinking.

Of the four managers trapped in their chairs, Fang Shenyan fixed his gaze on the television.

On the screen, Ji Li returned to the candle with a black square box in his hands.

It appeared to be the tool for the second step, "Recognition."

But he was thinking about something else.

The four steps of the Exorcism Ritual seemed to be more than halfway complete.

For Fang Shenyan and the other three, it was as if they had been excluded from the ritual itself.

What followed would take place between Ji Li and Huangfu Jiajia alone.

But did a ritual like that still serve a purpose?

If the others caught In the Game were merely bystanders, wouldn't that mean they faced no danger?

Xue Tinghai was pondering the same question.

Seated in his chair, he studied Huangfu Jiajia with a brooding gaze, then swept