Chapter 5

Journalist Mana Shinda hung up the phone and hurriedly put on the coat that was on the chair: "Mr. Lin, can you come with me? Please, my friend watched that video tape!"

"That video tape?"

"Yes, an urban legend! If someone watches that cursed video tape, they will die seven days later! Please, Mr. Lin!" Shinda Mana bowed deeply to Lin Yifan.

Lin Yifan stroked his chin. Before finding Captain Liu and the others, he could only go with the journalist. At least it was better than wandering aimlessly on the streets.

Besides, it was daytime, so Lin Yifan wasn't particularly afraid.

"Let's go, but be careful." He took out a small stack of yellow talismans from his backpack and handed them to the journalist, who clutched them tightly, his forehead drenched in sweat.

After Shinda paid the bill, the two of them got into a taxi and headed to his friend's house.

In the car, Lin Yifan secretly took out the video tape of Sadako, puzzled. Could the reward video tape be a copy? And he still didn't know what it was for.

Shinda's friend's house wasn't far, and they arrived quickly in the taxi.

As soon as the car stopped, Shinda hurriedly opened the door and got out. However, when the two of them reached the door, they saw a body being carried out, and the police had set up a cordon and were investigating.

"Mr. Takahashi!" Shinda ran to the stretcher but was forcibly held back by several police officers.

Lin Yifan stepped forward and said calmly, "We are friends of Mr. Takahashi."

The police officers exchanged glances and then released the frantic Shinda.

When Shinda pulled back the white sheet, the body's expression was horrifyingly twisted, with white eyes and a mouth that remained open even in death.

"What's going on here?"

A police officer replied, "We found him already dead for a day."

"No... It's impossible, we just talked on the phone." Shinda looked incredulous.

"Is that so? But the body clearly has been dead for some time, at least three hours. It's impossible for him to have made any calls."

After hearing the police, not only Shinda but also Lin Yifan felt a chill down his spine.

Indeed, the situation had developed beyond the plot. The characters appearing before them, except for Sadako, were not from the story.

If the cycle travelers wanted to avoid Sadako by relying on their familiarity with the plot of "The Ring," it was clearly impossible.

Sadako in this world... was actively attacking the cycle travelers!

Although he didn't know what Sadako was thinking or why she was doing this, Lin Yifan was clear about one thing: it would be even harder to find Captain Liu and the others now.

On the other side, Shinda, drenched in cold sweat, sat against the wall, his face pale. "Mr. Lin, the person we just talked to on the phone..."

"Yes, it was Sadako, the main character of the cursed video tape." Lin Yifan nodded with a serious face.

Beep beep... beep beep...

Shinda's beeper rang again, scaring him so much that he turned pale and didn't dare to move.

Shinda didn't dare to look, and Lin Yifan couldn't understand it either.

"Shinda! Shinda!" A man shouted and ran over, dressed similarly to Shinda, drenched in sweat and panting heavily.

Shinda's beeper finally stopped, and he lifted his pale face. "Ko...Koizumi?"

"Shinda, I just heard that Mr. Takahashi died at home. What's going on?" The panting man helped Shinda up and noticed Lin Yifan standing nearby.

"Takahashi watched that video tape! Seven days ago, he watched it!" Shinda's voice trembled as he spoke.

Koizumi's eyes widened, and he staggered back a few steps.

Lin Yifan glanced at him, thinking that people who court death keep coming one after another.

"Koizumi?" Shinda looked puzzled.

Koizumi clutched his head and knelt down, his face full of fear and his eyes trembling. "I... I... watched it too."

"What!? When, when did you watch it, Koizumi!" Shinda stood up, grabbing the man's shoulders and shaking him forcefully.

Koizumi, pale and trembling, raised his head and forced a smile that was uglier than crying. "Maybe... maybe Mr. Takahashi's death was just an accident. How could there be ghosts?"

"I wish, but Koizumi, tell me, when exactly did you watch it!"

"If... if I remember correctly, tonight is the seventh day..."

Shinda grabbed Koizumi and shouted, "How could you be so reckless, you idiots!"

To be honest, Lin Yifan wasn't particularly concerned about their deaths, but he was curious about the video tape.

"Where is the video tape?"

Koizumi's face stiffened, and he lowered his head. "It's at my place. We didn't believe in it, and Mr. Takahashi was excited to see it for himself..."

"Enough, take me to see it." Lin Yifan just wanted to confirm if the video tape was on him. He felt that the video tape might be the only way to deal with Sadako.

Koizumi looked at Lin Yifan, puzzled. Shinda quickly explained, "This is Mr. Lin, an expert I invited. This is my colleague, Mr. Koizumi."

"Please, don't expect too much from me. I'm in trouble myself." Lin Yifan quickly clarified.

Shinda just chuckled and didn't take Lin Yifan's words seriously, thinking he was being modest.

Koizumi, looking like he had lost his soul, seemed to find a savior and respectfully said, "Mr. Lin, this way. My car is over there."

The three of them got into Koizumi's car and headed to his residence. Lin Yifan, resting his chin on his hand, looked out the window at the old-fashioned billboards and vintage cars on the narrow, busy streets.

However, for those with a sense of nostalgia, everything here was comforting.

Even though it was the terrifying world of "The Ring," it still had a lively atmosphere during the day.

While enjoying the atmosphere of the era, Lin Yifan suddenly shouted, "Wait!"

Through the car window, he saw a man and a woman with backpacks crossing the street. Although he hadn't been with Liu Ming and Yaoling for long, he recognized the backpacks with the yellow talismans.

"What's wrong, Mr. Lin?"

"Stop the car!"

"Okay!" Koizumi immediately hit the brakes, and the car behind almost crashed into them.

Lin Yifan pushed open the car door and crossed the street, but a few cars passing by forced him to pause.

However, Lin Yifan wasn't in a hurry. Liu Ming and Yaoling were just a short distance ahead.

After a few cars passed, Lin Yifan crossed the street and ran towards them. At that moment, a tram passed, obscuring their figures. When the tram moved on, Liu Ming and Yaoling were gone.

"Did they get on the tram?"

Lin Yifan quickly ran after the tram, shouting, "Stop! Wait!"

The driver looked back, and the tram gradually slowed down. Lin Yifan rushed onto the tram and pushed his way through the crowd, grabbing two large backpacks. "Captain Liu!"

"Huh? Who are you?" A man turned around, looking at Lin Yifan as if he were crazy.

Seeing that both backpackers were men, Lin Yifan was taken aback. "Sorry, I mistook you for someone else."

As he was about to leave, the man grabbed Lin Yifan's hand.

Thinking the man was going to cause trouble, Lin Yifan's face turned cold. "Let go, I said I'm sorry, I mistook you for someone else."

The man looked at Lin Yifan for a moment, then slowly let go and said, "Kid, you have a lot of yin energy. If you run into any trouble, you can call me."

Lin Yifan took the business card but heard the driver shouting, "Pay or get off, don't think I can't find you just because you're in the crowd!"

There was a commotion in the crowd, and the ticket collector was clearly looking for him. Lin Yifan didn't take the man's words seriously, put the business card in his pocket, and squeezed through the crowd to get off the tram from the back door.

Just as Koizumi's car pulled up, Lin Yifan opened the door and got in. "Drive."

Koizumi, who was about to ask something, immediately shut up and turned the car to head home.

As the car drove away, Liu Ming, sitting in a noodle shop, stared at Koizumi's car in disbelief.

"What's wrong, Captain Liu?" Yaoling, who was eating noodles, put down her chopsticks and asked, puzzled.

"I just saw the new guy?"

Yaoling's face stiffened, and she shook her head. "That's impossible, his code name was removed from the mission."

"Could it be..." Liu Ming's face darkened, making everyone tense.

"Could it be what?" Yaoling leaned in, her face tense.

Liu Ming said seriously, "Could it be that the new guy's ghost came back?"

"Cough!" Yaoling almost spat out her food, covering her mouth and swallowing before saying, "What a joke, Captain Liu."

"Here, in a supernatural plot, who can say for sure?" Liu Ming, putting down his bowl, was very serious and not joking.

Yaoling shook her head and picked up her phone. "Captain couldn't... uh..."

The two of them, sitting in the noodle shop, looked as if they had seen a ghost.

Last night, when they checked the survivors on their phones after escaping, they saw that Lin Yifan and Liang Dong had been removed from the list.

Liu Ming blinked in disbelief. Now, Lin Yifan's name was back on the survivors' list!

"Let me check mine!" Liu Ming quickly took out his phone and opened it. Lin Yifan's name was clearly on the list.

The two of them slammed the table and stood up, their eyes wide. "Could that really have been the new guy just now?"

"Or... his ghost?" Yaoling took a deep breath.

"Should we go find him?"

Biting her lip, Yaoling lowered her voice when she noticed other customers looking at them. "He's a mystery. Even I was scared to death the first time I entered the cycle, but what about him?"

"Indeed, very strange. I've been through three cycles, and I've never seen such a calm new guy."

"Whatever he is, we need to find him first."

The two of them immediately packed up their things. Unlike Lin Yifan, they had already exchanged their paper money in the main space and paid the bill easily.

On the other side, Lin Yifan, sitting in the car, frowned, looking at the sun setting in the distance, his forehead drenched in cold sweat. "Shinda, what time is it now?"

"It's already six in the evening, Mr. Lin. What's wrong?"

——————

Happy Children's Day, big and small friends! Extra update at 5 PM.

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