Outdated Game

This is a feeling Tang Luo couldn't experience.

He didn't have much money, but he never worried about the small expenses of daily life.

Zhang Yuchou's family had distributed their money, and after buying a house, they still had millions left.

But he worked alone outside, and that was for his wife's dowry; he couldn't spend it on daily expenses.

His life was tight, the complete opposite of Tang Luo's.

"Yes, yes, yes."

Tang Luo responded insincerely a few times and got to the point, "You still haven't told me what you encountered?"

"You really believe me?" Zhang Yuchou asked.

"Do you want me to reimburse you for the bullet train ticket and the hotel money?" Tang Luo asked with a laugh, "If I didn't believe you, why would I have rushed over? Do I have too much money?"

"I encountered a Plate Spirit," Zhang Yuchou said, his expression serious, unlike his usual "yes."

"Plate Spirit?"

Plate Spirit.

As the name suggests, it's a spirit on a plate.

This is a metaphorical term; that which is unpredictable and unfathomable is called a spirit.

It originated from the ancient practice of "Fu Ji" and belongs to divination techniques.

Later, it gradually evolved into a supernatural game.

It's one of the methods used by the protagonists, who are often the "death-seeking experts" in horror movies, to court disaster.

Other methods include, but are not limited to, vacationing in remote cabins, watching legendary cursed videos, opening sealed attics, and exploring abandoned buildings.

In terms of modern scientific explanation.

Games like Plate Spirit and Pen Spirit.

Are essentially psychological games, full of suggestibility, amplification, and unintentionality.

Domestic horror films have provided scientific explanations—everything is man-made.

Believe in science!

But Tang Luo's life had long passed the stage of shouting, "This is unscientific."

He made a gesture, signaling Zhang Yuchou to continue.

Tang Luo was curious why this guy would play such an outdated game.

Yes, Plate Spirit, Pen Spirit, and the like are outdated games among contemporary young people.

Even if they want to play, aren't there supernatural apps and cell phone spirits?

You have to keep up with the times.

Only domestic horror films, with their fearless spirit and desire to implement scientific thinking, would "invite" Plate Spirits and Pen Spirits again and again.

"A colleague of mine wanted to play Plate Spirit to hint at and confess to the girl he liked," Zhang Yuchou said.

"..."

After a second of silence, Tang Luo gave a thumbs-up, "He's truly a genius!"

Using a supernatural game to hint and then confess.

That young man must have been single for over twenty years and received more than a dozen "friend zone" cards.

"The girl he liked was a supernatural enthusiast," Zhang Yuchou said, as if slapping him.

Tang Luo lowered his thumb, the world is truly wonderful.

"So, you cooperated with him to play the Plate Spirit game?" Tang Luo asked.

"We didn't really want to."

Zhang Yuchou had a helpless expression, "But that guy, although only two years older than me, is our Department Deputy Manager. He asked us to stay until 12 AM. We could do anything before that. Going home was fine, but if we came back before 12 AM, it would count as two hours of overtime!"

"There was a full 500 yuan, tell me, who could resist?"

At this point, Zhang Yuchou's tone became excited.

What is considered a huge sum of money? This is it!

For a young person like Zhang Yuchou, who had been beaten by society, even if his mouth said no, his body was honest.

When you're old, it's not necessarily the same; even if you want to, your body can't keep up.

Thus, Zhang Yuchou and three other colleagues stayed behind, along with the young Department Deputy Manager and the girl he liked.

A total of six people.

Four men and two women. Although not the standard "two men, two women" configuration, they could still play.

Who knew that playing this game would lead to trouble.

That night, they played quite smoothly, and the implied confession was also successful.

As a result, the manager was too happy and broke a taboo.

The so-called taboo is the precautions in the game.

For example, questions should be asked one by one.

After asking one question, when asking the Plate Spirit to return, one must close their eyes and say three times: "Plate Spirit, Plate Spirit, please go back."

At this time, the Plate Spirit will return to its original position.

Only after everyone has asked their questions can the Plate Spirit be asked to return.

The process of inviting and sending back cannot be skipped.

The mistake they made was that not everyone had finished asking their questions, nor had they asked the Plate Spirit to return, and they directly interrupted the game.

And among the people present, even that girl, only treated the supernatural as her hobby.

No one cared about this matter at all.

After the confession was successful, everyone packed up and went home.

Waiting for the overtime pay directly rewarded the next day.

However, they did not receive the overtime pay.

What they received was the news of the Department Deputy Manager's death.

"Speaking of which, you guys played this game in the company late at night, and someone even died," Tang Luo said. "If the deceased wasn't the one who proposed it, the boss would have wanted to kill someone."

"The boss is heartbroken," Zhang Yuchou said. "The Department Deputy Manager is his son, otherwise, do you think he would have gotten the position at such a young age?"

"..."

"Our company prohibits office romances," Zhang Yuchou added.

"I understand," Tang Luo nodded.

How did a perfectly good supernatural event turn out to be so realistic?

"I heard from others that the Deputy Manager's death was extremely tragic, as if he was being cut into a thousand pieces. The blood, it flowed all over the floor."

"How did he die?" Tang Luo asked.

"He was cut to death by the shattered pieces of the plate," Zhang Yuchou said.

"Hmm?" Tang Luo raised an eyebrow slightly.

Zhang Yuchou said, "It was the plate we used that night, similar to a vinegar plate, but a bit larger than a regular vinegar plate."

He extended his hand, fingers spread, then slightly closed, forming a circle with his thumbs and index fingers, indicating the size.

"After the confession that night, we each went home, and no one remembered how the plate was disposed of in the end." Zhang Yuchou said.

"There should be your fingerprints on the plate, right?" Tang Luo asked.

Since they played the game, fingerprints would definitely be left.

"Yes."

Zhang Yuchou said, "When I assisted with the investigation, they said that our fingerprints could barely be distinguished, and only the fingerprints of a few of us."

"Just this, it doesn't count as a supernatural event, does it?" Tang Luo said.

Ceramic tableware shattered, gloves put on, and the sharp edges used to kill someone.

It's something that can be done intentionally.

"The Deputy Manager lived alone outside. When he died, the door was locked from the inside, with no signs of forced entry. The window was half-open, and there were iron bars outside," Zhang Yuchou said. "Moreover, the fragments found in his home, when pieced together, were about one-sixth the size of the original plate."

How was the Deputy Manager discovered dead?

Although everyone "worked overtime" until midnight, they still went to work the next day.

The Deputy Manager did not show up in the morning.

Zhang Yuchou and the others didn't find it strange.

After all, he was the boss's son, and skipping work for half a day was not a big deal.

But when he still hadn't shown up by the afternoon, the boss found it strange.

That Deputy Manager was not a completely spoiled brat; his position as Deputy Manager was not solely due to nepotism.

He was quite serious about his work attitude.

He rarely slacked off.

The boss, who was also his father, called, but no one answered.

He knocked on his door, but no one opened it.

When the door was opened, he found his son lying on the living room floor, covered in blood.

The boss almost collapsed on the spot.

"The shape of the found fragments, when pieced together, was like a triangular pizza slice," Zhang Yuchou said. "It was about one-sixth of the plate, exactly the size of the plate used for the Plate Spirit game by the six of us that night."

His voice trembled as he spoke, his tone quite hollow.

"Two days later, that girl, the one who was confessed to, also died. Bloody fragments were found at the scene as well."

"Next is the third person."

"Three out of six people are dead! Fragments were found at every scene."

"This is quite a vicious murder case," Tang Luo said. "Did the police send anyone to protect you?"

"Yes," Zhang Yuchou broke free from his earlier emotions.

"So a total of three people died?" Tang Luo asked.

"Originally, yes."

Zhang Yuchou gave a wry smile. "But three days ago, another one suddenly died!"

From the department manager to the third victim, the time between incidents did not exceed seven days.

After the third victim appeared, Zhang Yuchou immediately resigned.

People were panicking and had no mind to work.

After all, he was a "second-generation demolisher," so he had some confidence.

Besides, the remaining two colleagues did not resign.

One of the only two survivors from three days ago told Zhang Yuchou that something else had happened.

The same cause of death, and fragments found at the scene.

Zhang Yuchou went to assist with the investigation the day before.

He also couldn't leave Xihang City, as he might be needed to provide assistance at any time.

It was already a major, vicious case, and a special task force had been established.

"Do you think it's the Plate Spirit?" Zhang Yuchou stared at Tang Luo and said.

"Hmm, it's possible," Tang Luo replied.

Although he didn't detect any signs of lingering resentment on Zhang Yuchou.

Well... Tang Luo didn't know how to do that.

"Let me perform a Consecration for you first," Tang Luo said to Zhang Yuchou.

"Consecration?"

"Didn't I go on a trip? I met a great monk, and learned the Divine Art of Consecration from him. It can help people avert disaster and bring peace," Tang Luo said earnestly.

"Okay, okay."

Zhang Yuchou said.

His mood was like a roller coaster, sometimes he was like nothing happened, even joking with Tang Luo.

Other times, he felt terrified and extremely agitated.

He also had talismans from the temple on him.

If Tang Luo wanted to perform Consecration, then let him do it.

Zhang Yuchou himself wasn't sure whether, deep down, he believed there really was a terrifying Plate Spirit, or if he thought it was man-made.

His worldview, formed over many years, was beginning to crumble.

It was fine to be superstitious.

Everyone was a pragmatist.

If someone said the Plate Spirit was killing people, most wouldn't believe it.

But if you told people that the stray cats in the neighborhood were actually cat demons, and because you fed them, they would turn into cat girls to repay you.

Most people would happily say, "I believe it, I believe it! Where are the cat girls?"

The process of Consecration was simple. Tang Luo clasped his hands together, holding the Merit Jade Lotus within them, bowed his head slightly, and closed his eyes, murmuring scriptures that Zhang Yuchou couldn't understand.

After two or three sentences, it was over.

"What is it?"

Zhang Yuchou clearly felt that after Tang Luo finished reciting the scriptures, he distinctly raised his head to look at him.

It was a bit abrupt.

"Nothing, trust my Divine Art of Consecration, it will surely keep you safe," Tang Luo said with a smile.

"Let's go, I'll treat you to a meal."

Zhang Yuchou stood up and smiled.

Having a friend visit would surely lift his spirits.