Swapping Heads

"Liu Qiang, haven't you noticed anything wrong with yourself?" Yang Jian asked him seriously, staring intently.

Liu Qiang was stunned by everything he saw in the surveillance video. He tried to recall, but some things truly slipped his mind, as if he had periods of memory loss. If he didn't pay close attention, nothing seemed amiss. He appeared to be just working his job, not doing anything out of the ordinary.

"Yang Jian, are you saying that I, like those people in the surveillance video, had my head swapped?"

Liu Qiang looked at him in shock, his face filled with disbelief.

"It seems you don't know your own situation. I'll ask you, where were you when you came to the monitoring room before?" Yang Jian said.

"I was..." Liu Qiang started to answer, but then froze again.

How did he get to the monitoring room?

Did he come right after the power went out? But which path did he take, whom did he meet, what did he see?

He couldn't remember. Liu Qiang couldn't remember, or rather, he had no memory of that part at all.

Yang Jian said, "You can look for your own surveillance footage. The mall's surveillance cameras usually have night vision capabilities. Even if all the lights outside were turned off, it should be clear."

"I'll look," Liu Qiang immediately began searching for his surveillance footage.

Soon, he found it.

The time rewound to when Master Luo was performing the ritual.

Everyone in the mall was in the first-floor lobby watching Master Luo's ritual.

Then, Yang Jian, finding it amusing, couldn't help but interrupt Master Luo's ritual, leading to a brief argument.

But Liu Qiang in the surveillance footage at this moment seemed to ignore the incident and left directly.

No one paid attention to a security guard leaving.

"I, why did I go to the power room at that time?" Liu Qiang was shocked when he saw himself in the surveillance footage.

After Liu Qiang in the footage went to the power room, the mall's power went out shortly after.

The power was cut by Liu Qiang himself.

Yang Jian said, "Just because you don't remember doesn't mean you didn't do it. Keep watching."

After all the lights in the mall went out, Liu Qiang stood frozen, like a wooden doll, motionless. However, this situation didn't last long.

He moved again soon.

He turned and walked towards the restroom on the first floor of the mall.

Seeing this, Yang Jian realized it all connected with what had happened earlier. The ghost that had entered the restroom just now was Liu Qiang.

"Impossible, this is impossible! Why can't I remember doing this at all?"

Liu Qiang suddenly stood up. He looked back at Yang Jian, his face filled with terror.

Yang Jian took a step back. He said seriously, "Because when you lost your memory, you were no longer human, but a ghost, or replaced by a ghost. The reason you could still retain your memories is simply because your head is still intact, not yet rotten. In a few more days, when your head rots, your memories will completely disappear."

"So, strictly speaking, you already died a few days ago. Touch your neck. The wound from the head swap should still be there. If you weren't a ghost, you absolutely wouldn't have that wound."

Liu Qiang subconsciously touched his neck.

As his palm brushed over the skin on his neck, a small cut immediately opened up, revealing raw, bloody flesh. At the same time, a foul, putrid smell emanated from it.

He was already rotting.

"Impossible, I don't believe it! I don't believe I'm dead. I'm clearly still alive and well."

Liu Qiang became agitated. He kept touching the wound on his neck to confirm if Yang Jian's words were true.

However, it had been several days since his head was swapped by a ghost. The wound was no longer tightly sealed. When he touched it, the wound widened, and flesh and skin fell off.

The stench of decay grew stronger.

"I, what should I do? I don't want to die! Yang Jian, is there any way you can help me?" Liu Qiang was completely panicked upon discovering this fact. His hands were covered in blood and reeked of foulness. His head was displaced on his neck, looking at Yang Jian at an unnatural angle.

Yang Jian saw fear, pleading, and despair in his eyes.

"Sorry, I have no way to help you," he said very seriously. "The only thing I can do is remind you. Make a call to your family, say a few words. This is the only thing you can do."

Liu Qiang trembled as he took out his phone from his pocket. Tears streamed from his eyes as he lowered his head, preparing to call his family.

However, as he lowered his head.

His displaced head could no longer support itself on his neck.

"Bang!"

A dull thud echoed as his head detached and fell to the ground. It rolled several times on the floor tiles before finally coming to a stop against the wall.

The headless body immediately stiffened. The phone in his hand had just lit up, but it hadn't been used to make a call.

Glancing at Liu Qiang's pale, bloodless head lying on the ground with its eyes closed, Yang Jian sighed inwardly.

Another person killed by a vengeful ghost.

He withdrew his gaze and looked at Jiang Yan, who was leaning against the wall, trembling with fear.

Yang Jian walked over, roughly grabbed her delicate face, and pressed her head against the wall. Then, he forcefully dragged his finger across her neck.

"You're not a ghost?" Yang Jian asked with a hint of surprise.

His finger slid across her neck, but he didn't find the wound.

Jiang Yan was both scared and angry. "You suspect I'm a ghost?"

"I have to, you're also a staff member of the mall. Who knows if your head has been replaced? Anyone whose head has been replaced is a ghost, and they don't even know it themselves." Yang Jian released Jiang Yan.

"Then what do we do now? Those things are everywhere outside, how do we leave here?"

Jiang Yan wasn't angry about this. Instead, she was afraid Yang Jian would be angry. She grabbed his hand, looking a bit pitiful.

Yang Jian said, "There are still people in the mall. I'll bring them out and then we'll leave. And the key to the main door should be with Sister Li. Once we get the key from her, we can go."

"But before we leave, you have to stay here and look through these recordings for me. Figure out the true identity of this ghost, and preferably find its source."

"Ah, I don't want to stay here, I want to follow you."

Jiang Yan was startled and quickly hugged his arm, refusing to let go.

Yang Jian shook his head. "No, I need you to watch the monitors. Otherwise, how will I know when a ghost is approaching me? And how can I confirm the ghost's final identity? I don't have time to waste here anymore. It's almost dark, and once night falls, this mall will be completely dark, which will be even more disadvantageous for us."

"But, but here, Liu Qiang is here. I'm scared if I stay here," Jiang Yan said with a crying tone.

Yang Jian ignored her. He simply took a phone from Liu Qiang's corpse and then dialed his satellite positioning phone.

"Keep the call connected at all times. Notify me immediately if anything happens. Also, you must remember one thing: never turn your back on anyone. That ghost can only replace heads from behind. As long as you face the ghost, and the direction of the head is wrong, the ghost won't attack you."

After speaking, he placed the phone in Jiang Yan's hand.

"I, I'm still scared," Jiang Yan said.

"Have you forgotten what you promised me on the first floor? If you don't listen, you won't be able to leave alive. You're a smart person, you know what to do and when to do it. Just be a little braver, and this won't be a problem for you. Alright, enough talk, let's get to work."

Without another word, Yang Jian left the monitoring room.

"Hey," Jiang Yan tried to stop him.

But the door slammed shut with a bang.

Jiang Yan wanted to follow, but she immediately stopped.

Because it was more dangerous outside. Only this young security guard had the courage to wander around the mall full of ghosts.

After hesitating for a moment, she finally gritted her teeth, suppressed her fear, and walked towards the monitoring console, tightly clutching Liu Qiang's phone.

As for Liu Qiang's headless corpse and the head leaning against the wall, she didn't even dare to look.

"Hello, can you hear me?"

Yang Jian walked through the mall, speaking into the satellite phone.

"I, I can hear you. I can see you here already," Jiang Yan's nervous voice came from the other end of the line.

"Very good. Pay attention to any movement around me and tell me promptly."

Yang Jian clipped the walkie-talkie-like phone to his chest and then headed towards the place where Boss Tang and his group had met their fate.

Sister Li was among that group. And she was a ghost.

"The million won't go to waste, right?"

Yang Jian thought to himself, "But if Jiang Yan cooperates well this time, I can earn this money without using the power of my ghost eye."

Just as he began to act, the mall, which had been deserted and quiet moments before, now saw figures slowly emerging from various hidden corners and closed shops.

They had different appearances, their faces were pale, their eyes were closed, and their movements were somewhat stiff.

Jiang Yan, who saw this scene in the monitoring room, was so scared her face turned ashen.

And those who were closer had already appeared not far from Yang Jian.

"Th-those things have appeared," Jiang Yan warned with a trembling voice.

"I know. Just report the locations of the ghosts near me, don't worry about anything else. And don't forget what I reminded you earlier." Yang Jian's tone was calm, which made Jiang Yan much more composed.