Beauty Makeup

Chen Ge's House of Horrors had only two scenes: Zombie Resurrection Night and **.

Zombie Resurrection Night had been criticized as worthless by the Black Phone, and Chen Ge had reflected on it. That horror scene really did have a lot of problems. Besides, the other scene needed at least three employees to perform it properly.

"Xiao Wan, today's theme is **. I'll go adjust the background music in a bit. When you're playing a ghost, remember to plug your ears. Also, I'll do your makeup myself today."

"Boss, you know how to do makeup?" Xiao Wan gave him a mischievous grin. "Sure, but don't turn me into an ugly monster."

"Don't worry. I'll make you so beautiful it'll take your breath away."

They entered the makeup room. Chen Ge sat Xiao Wan in front of the mirror and gently stroked her face with his palm.

"Use Beginner Talent Skill—Corpse Makeup."

As he looked at the young, adorable girl in the mirror, a jumble of memories that didn't belong to him slowly surfaced in Chen Ge's mind. They weren't just about color theory and makeup techniques, but also basic knowledge of Oral Science, Human Anatomy, Human Osteology, and Thanatology.

"Boss, do you actually know how to do makeup?" Thirty seconds passed. Sitting in front of the mirror, Xu Wan felt an unfamiliar warmth on her face. As she watched herself being fussed over in the reflection, her heart pounded, and for no reason at all, she felt a little embarrassed.

"A good makeup artist creates a different look for every face shape. Xiao Wan, you have a great foundation." Chen Ge's mind was completely clear. After using Corpse Makeup, Xu Wan had become a "corpse" in his eyes.

"Tweezers, a razor, medical forceps, sutures, alcohol, embalming needles—I don't have any of that. Looks like I'll have to stick to the basics." Chen Ge was talking to himself, but Xu Wan, seated in the chair, was thoroughly frightened. She couldn't figure out why someone would need such terrifying things to do the makeup of a Haunted House actor. She was a little scared, but too embarrassed to refuse, so she turned her head and secretly watched her boss from the corner of her eye, silently praying.

"The foundation shades are limited, the blush is too bright and a little harsh. Where's the lipstick?" Chen Ge muttered to himself. In the end, he started mixing his own colors. His movements were practiced, his fingers nimble, and his color sense exceptional. He looked nothing like a shut-in who'd never bothered to dress himself up.

The scene before her seemed unbelievable to Xu Wan, too. He was mixing colors and doing makeup from scratch. Who the hell had ever heard of that?

"Boss, I don't think you need to be so hard on yourself. It's so dark in the Haunted House that the visitors won't be able to see—"

"Less talk. Don't move." Before Xu Wan could finish, Chen Ge had already applied her foundation and brushed on the eyeshadow he'd mixed himself.

A few simple strokes, nothing more than a basic eyeshadow look, had changed Xu Wan's whole aura. She now seemed a little more striking and mysterious.

Xu Wan had been about to argue, but the moment she saw herself in the mirror, her mouth slowly fell open. Everyone loved looking beautiful, especially women.

"Cherry red by itself is too plain and lacks depth. But add Hibiscus Purple, and it's different. The colors transition seamlessly and blend together, as if they were made for each other." Chen Ge explained casually as he used a brush to apply blush to the back of his hand.

"Boss, what are you doing?"

"The cheap blush at our Haunted House is too vivid and saturated. It's made that way to create a visual impact, so I'm blending it out on my hand first." Chen Ge worked gently. A moment later, the blush had become fine and delicate, with a subtle shimmer to it.

Xu Wan's mouth had formed a perfect O. "You've been hiding your talents! Where did you learn all this?"

"I know plenty of things. Beauty and hairstyling are just hobbies of mine." Chen Ge smiled. When things were going well, his spirits lifted. The new memories in his mind were further proof that the mobile game could affect reality.

Chen Ge had finished Xu Wan's makeup in just ten minutes. "Take a look in the mirror. Happy with it?"

When she looked up, it seemed as though a veil had lifted from the mirror. The person in the reflection looked as if she'd stepped out of a painting or a poem, carrying the grace of a classical Eastern woman. Yet somehow, something about her seemed different.

Staring at the mirror, Xu Wan couldn't help but stand up. She watched her reflection, her expression shifting from shock to fascination, then suddenly shivered.

"Boss, I've never looked this beautiful before. Is the person in the mirror really me?"

"Of course."

"But..." Hesitantly, she reached toward the mirror. "Why do I feel like I'm looking at a dead person?"

Xu Wan's words made Chen Ge draw in a sharp breath. At last, he understood what was different.

Corpse Makeup was meant to restore the deceased's beauty as fully as possible. The makeup Chen Ge had applied wasn't meant for the living.

"Stop looking. The park is about to open. Hurry up and change, then wait in the second-floor scene. Remember to put on your Bluetooth earpiece and follow my instructions." Chen Ge changed the subject and sent Xu Wan away. With the little time he had left, he also worked on the Paper Figures and Dolls in the scene. With the Corpse Makeup skill boosting them, every Paper Figure seemed to come alive, deathly stillness threaded with a hint of vitality.

"That'll do for now. When I have time, I'll redo the colors on all of them."

Chen Ge put away his toolbox and hurried downstairs. Before he'd even reached the Haunted House entrance, he could hear the visitors outside chatting.

"You got scammed by that rotten bastard too, huh?"

"Damn it! I smashed my phone screen. What do you think?"

"You've got it easy. I'd taken my pants off, and I accidentally tapped the wrong thing. This popped up out of nowhere! Scared me so bad I shot upright like a carp. My parents heard the noise and thought I was having a nightmare, so they rushed over to check on me. For fuck's sake! I wasn't wearing a thing, just holding a roll of toilet paper. My parents were completely stunned when they saw me!"

Listening to the visitors' complaints, Chen Ge barely managed to hold back his laughter. He took a deep breath, kept a serious expression, and pushed open the door to the House of Horrors.

"Welcome to my House of Horrors."

Seeing the long line and the visitors fully armed, Chen Ge's lips curled upward.

"Xiao Chen, you've got a line this early in the morning? Not bad." A staff member from the Carousel looked surprised. He'd originally come over to say hello to Chen Ge, but once he got closer, he realized that the visitors seemed to be in a rather strange mood.

"Not bad, I guess. The visitors like it." Chen Ge shrugged and opened the safety barrier.

"Who likes it? You shameless bastard!"

"I'm here to cause trouble, not to visit!"

"Found the culprit! You're the one who posted that short video last night, right? Where's my knife? Where's my knife?"

The visitors were so enthusiastic that the scene nearly spiraled out of control. Chen Ge immediately spoke up. "Since you're all here, why not come in and give it a try? The best way to calm your fear is to stimulate your senses—to fight poison with poison until you go numb. That short video I posted last night really was inconsiderate of me. How about this: all Haunted House tickets are half price today. Don't miss out!"