After hearing Song An explain the story behind the location, everyone had broken out in a cold sweat despite the blazing sun. They folded their arms around themselves, and when they looked again at the lush green Qingji Mountain range in the distance, they could not help finding it eerily haunted.
Qi Gu raised his eyebrows slightly. "..."
Wasn't I supposed to just explain things this time, without having to do anything?
This place sounded sinister enough just hearing about it, okay?
Song An gave him an apologetic look and lowered his voice. "We originally chose somewhere else, but the investor insisted on Qingji Mountain."
So it was the client's demand. Nothing to be done about that. Qi Gu gave in very quickly.
Meanwhile, the live chat erupted in discussion of the rumors about Qingji Mountain.
[I apologize for saying the production team put no effort into picking a location. You've really got guts with Qi Gu backing you up, huh? You even dared to come somewhere this obviously bound to have trouble.]
[Qingji Mountain, seriously? Hasn't the stuff about Qingji Mountain been all over the internet lately... Those five deaths were really suspicious. Before the pictures got taken down, I sent them to a friend who knows a bit about the occult. My friend said they all died violent deaths, and there wasn't a trace of their souls left in their bodies. They might have run into something that sucks out people's souls.]
[The bit about reaching the summit in four hours is really suspicious too. Qingji Mountain isn't that high, but the trails are incredibly complicated. It should take at least six hours to get to the top, and that's for top-tier hikers.]
[So has anyone traced that first hiker's IP address and contacted them?]
[I'll give it a try.]
Someone got straight to work.
Before long, the tech-savvy viewer returned to the livestream, his face deathly pale, and typed: [I just tried pinpointing their exact address... and found that they're right inside Qingji Mountain.]
[AAAAAA holy shit, I'm going to faint.]
[Fuck, you'd better hurry up and tell me the production team hired you to fake this. I've still got a night shift later!!!]
[So that first post really was bait to lure people in!]
[Then that extra shadow must have been the person who made the first post, right?]
Shortly afterward, the tech-savvy viewer continued: [Just now, it replied to my private message and said since I care so much about its address, I should go keep it company AAAAA.]
The tech guy was clearly genuinely terrified. He immediately sent a fireworks gift worth ten thousand yuan in the livestream, keeping his message brief: [Qi Gu, save me!]
Song An had still been trying to reassure himself that the Qingji Mountain story was probably just a rumor and might not be as frightening as people online claimed. Then he witnessed the tech guy's experience in the live chat. "..."
Qi Gu performed a divination on his fingers, his tone calm and somehow reassuring. "Don't panic. It can't go that far. It's just trying to scare you. If you're really frightened, you can spend the night at a nearby Buddhist or Taoist temple."
Hearing this, the tech guy relaxed considerably. [Then I'll go right now. Thank you for clearing that up, Master!]
Qi Gu glanced at the screen. "Stop doing nasty things like tracing people's IP addresses. What if... what you track down isn't human?"
His words left the tech guy drenched in sweat again, and he immediately declared in the chat that he would never dare do it again.
[I was just about to say that tracing people's IP addresses like that is illegal. But... I guess this guy got a punishment scarier than anything the law could dish out.]
[You really shouldn't do things that weigh on your conscience...]
[LMAO, with Qi Gu saying that, I feel like fewer people are going to be tracing IP addresses from now on.]
The vehicle had driven as close to the foot of the mountain as it possibly could. Because of difficulties with water and electricity, the surrounding area was practically uninhabited. Calling it remote mountain wilderness would not have been an exaggeration.
Even the signal bars on everyone's phones began to drop.
Qingji Mountain stood right before them, its dense branches and leaves a mass of verdant green. Not a single patch of midsummer sunlight could penetrate them. The woodland trail looked sinister and eerie. A breeze passed through, rustling the leaves, and together with the chirping of insects and birds in the mountain forest, it made a hollow, layered dread spread through their hearts.
Recalling the story they had just heard and the little incident in the live chat, everyone grew uneasy, their faces seeming to pale a shade at the same time.
Mu Xingchen looked terrified. "Director, are we really going up there? You saw those comments in the chat just now too... There really seems to be something unclean on this mountain!"
Although he had already "seen a thing or two" at Lotus Town Health Center, experiencing fear once did not make anyone immune to it.
Song An thought he hardly needed to be told that. He was considering throwing in the towel right then himself.
He then looked cautiously at Qi Gu. "Master Qi, given the situation, can we still film the show?"
Qi Gu closed his eyes, observing the wispy black threads, and made a brief calculation. "Yes. To be safe, let's have everyone wear a sachet from our Taoist temple too."
[Is it really okay? I'm a little worried about Gugu.]
[Ugh, watching this is giving me the creeps.]
[I'm so nervous. I'm scared, but I want to keep watching.]
[Does anyone else think there's a black shadow in the woods behind Qi Gu? It flashed past just now.]
[Maybe it's some little animal?]
[It looked pretty tall. Probably not an animal... unless there are elk on this mountain.]
[Then... could it be that thing tricking people into going into the mountain?]
[Hiss-]
[Hurry up and give me a sachet AAAAA.]
[I want one of Gugu's sachets too!]
With Qi Gu's assurance, Song An relaxed and directed the crew to unload the various pieces of equipment.
Then Qi Gu rummaged around in his plastic bag and pulled out a handful of little sachets without even any packaging, their style making it obvious they had been sourced from Yiwu Small Commodity City.
"They might look a little crude, but they've all been blessed. Wear them on you, and they'll keep you safe."
Hearing Qi Gu say this, everyone stepped forward in turn to collect a crude little sachet, carefully tucking it deep into a pocket for fear of accidentally losing it.
Lin Hanzhi and Pubu Gesang waited until everyone else had collected theirs before stepping forward. Although Qi Gu felt Pubu Gesang did not really need one, he still gave him a pale yellow sachet.
Then Qi Gu held up two sachets, one red and one green, and said to Lin Hanzhi, "I remember you like red and green together, just like me. I saved these two colors especially for you. You can have them both."
He was quite attentive to Lin Hanzhi, a guest whose taste in snacks and aesthetics aligned so closely with his own.
The handsome man's jaw tightened as he took the red and green sachets through gritted teeth. He was about to stuff them into his pocket when Qi Gu said, "Your clothes have zippers. It'll be more convenient to hang them on a zipper."
Dressed in couture that was stylish yet understated, looking ready to grace a magazine cover at any moment, Lin Hanzhi's expression went blank for an instant. "..."
Here came the retribution for praising Qi Gu's taste against his conscience.
Before you continue