Cyshhz 74

 His sudden appearance startled everyone.

They hadn’t noticed that there was another person beside them!

Especially Gu Zhan, who detested such uncontrollable situations.

Looking at the sorcerer’s meaningful smile, Gu Zhan felt a rare surge of irritation and said, "Let’s go now."

The sorcerer smiled and said, "Aren’t you going to eat a little more?"

His implication seemed to suggest this was everyone’s last meal.

Sang Yue straightforwardly replied, "No, just help us with the recollection."

The sorcerer raised an eyebrow but said nothing and approached the dining table.

"Since that's the case, I will send you back... um, to the time when this movie was filmed. It seems the filming didn't take long; once the preparations were complete, the crew disbanded."

"Remember, just like the first recollection, you must survive until the end of the recollection, meaning you cannot die before the film crew disbands."

As soon as the sorcerer finished speaking, darkness enveloped Gu Zhan.

—

"Quick! Where's the script?"

"Why hasn’t the male lead arrived yet? His fame isn’t great, but the production seems large."

"Hey, screenwriter, it's a bit chaotic over here; please come this way."

Countless noisy voices flooded into Gu Zhan's mind all at once, making his ears ache painfully.

Someone pulled Gu Zhan, guiding him to the side.

When Gu Zhan opened his eyes, he found himself still standing in the Black Raven Mansion.

Confused, he followed the person next to him for two steps, only to realize that the Black Raven Mansion looked somewhat different now.

It was still the same mansion, and the extravagant decor remained, but the front door was wide open. It seemed to have just rained outside, the air was humid, and the lawn was lush and green.

What was most different was the large gate to the yard... that gate was also open, with several people moving black boxes inside.

There were people directing them.

"Walk this way."

"Don’t place them too close to the ground; there are cameras inside; they might get damp."

From a cursory glance, it looked like an ordinary film crew.

"Screenwriter?"

A voice of confusion nearby snapped Gu Zhan back to his senses. He turned to see a slightly shorter girl standing next to him, wearing a name tag that read "Production Assistant, Li Qing, Feast of Horror Film Crew."

"Li Qing?"

"Ah, it’s me! Is there a problem, Screenwriter?" Li Qing asked in confusion.

Gu Zhan shook his head, slowly regaining his thoughts.

"Nothing." He averted his gaze and said, "Aren’t we supposed to go to the lounge?"

"Oh, oh, oh, this way please..."

Li Qing led Gu Zhan downstairs, and coincidentally, the lounge was the same room Gu Zhan occupied in "reality" at the Black Raven Mansion.

The bed in the room has been moved out, replaced by rows of makeup mirrors, with makeup bags and costumes piled up in the corner.

The film crew must have just arrived, as everything is still in disarray.

Li Qing took a work ID from the desk drawer and handed it to Gu Zhan, saying, "You need to wear this ID to enter and exit the filming area. The rooms are upstairs, with two people per room. Just find your way according to the room numbers."

Gu Zhan took the ID and flipped it over—Room 101.

Li Qing added, "Oh, there’s a script reading tonight. Don’t forget, screenwriter."

"Got it," Gu Zhan nodded. "Does everyone need to attend the reading?"

Li Qing replied, "The main cast and the script supervisor will be there. The rest will join the readings starting tomorrow."

"Okay, thank you."

Gu Zhan gave up on the idea of looking for Sang Yue and the others, thinking they would most likely show up on their own for the reading tonight.

After taking the ID, Gu Zhan headed to the second floor.

There weren’t many signs of the crew on the second floor, and it was relatively empty.

The first room he reached was his. He opened the door to find it empty, with only two beds inside.

It seemed to be specially provided for the crew—simple iron single beds that looked plain and out of place compared to the overall opulence of the Black Raven Mansion.

Gu Zhan, still holding his bag, placed it on the floor and took a stroll around the room.

Outside the window, the crew members were still busy moving things in, with the front door wide open for anyone to come and go.

Could he do that too?

Gu Zhan turned around and went downstairs.

He faced no obstacles from the stairs to the front door. Even those entering and exiting would greet him as they passed by.

It was easy for Gu Zhan to step out the door.

The refreshing breeze outside made him momentarily feel like he was in the real world.

 

Even Chun Bai Cheng didn't have such flowing winds.

From the entrance to the courtyard gate was a path paved with bluestone slabs, with lush green grass poking through the cracks, brushing softly against his feet.

However, this path was inconvenient to walk on. The crew members opted to walk across the nearby lawn instead, compressing the soft grass beneath their feet.

Gu Zhan frowned slightly at this scene and decided to step off the stone path and onto the grass.

He quickly reached the gate, and as he exited, no one stopped him. Just as he stepped out, someone advised him, "This place is quite remote. Don’t wander too far, screenwriter, or you might get lost."

"Uh-huh," Gu Zhan acknowledged, choosing not to go further. Instead, he stood at the entrance and looked out.

The Black Raven Mansion was perched on a high slope, surrounded by woods. Standing on the slope, he could only see distant mountains and trees.

They were lush and green, resembling a sea.

As someone walked past Gu Zhan, he pointed to the small path extending from the Black Raven Mansion and asked, "What’s ahead?"

The person turned back to glance at him and replied, "Of course, it’s the path down the mountain. That’s how we got up here; don’t you remember? To the side is a river, and it seems there's a village nearby. When we came, the mansion's butler mentioned that village has been abandoned for many years, with dangerous buildings inside. He advised us not to go there."

"Okay, thank you," Gu Zhan nodded as the person moved on, carrying a box.

---

Time passed quickly.

Dinner was packed meals, one for each person, with the same dishes inside.

After dinner, Li Qing came to call Gu Zhan, telling him it was time for the script reading.

The reading location... was in the dining hall.

Gu Zhan arrived a bit late and saw a few people already inside.

Sang Yue, He Hui, and Ma Xiaowen were there, along with two men he didn't recognize, likely NPCs from the script.

One of them was sitting in Gu Zhan's original seat. Upon seeing Gu Zhan approach, he clapped his hands and smiled, "Today is our first reading, and we only invited our creative team. The others will join later. Let's go through the story today."

He looked to be in his fifties or sixties, dressed in a suit, with a short and stout figure and a prominent beer belly.

This appearance suggested he was the director.

Gu Zhan held his laptop and a thick stack of scripts, approaching to ask, "Where should I sit?"

The director moved aside and said, "You can sit next to me."

After saying that, he brought over an extra chair and placed it beside Gu Zhan.

Gu Zhan had no other thoughts; he simply walked over to set down his laptop and distributed the scripts to everyone.

As soon as Sang Yue received her script, she opened it right away, frowning as she read.

Gu Zhan hadn't seen the new script yet, but based on Sang Yue's reaction, it seemed different from what was in the Black Raven Mansion.

Once everyone had their scripts, Gu Zhan returned to his seat.

The director stood next to him, enthusiastically introducing, "This is our screenwriter, Mr. Gu. You can all call him Teacher Gu. This is our lead actress, playing Xiao Xiu, and this is our supporting actress, playing Qing Yi."

He Hui played Xiao Xiu, while Ma Xiaowen played Qing Yi.

Sang Yue was the script supervisor, responsible for organizing the shooting sequence.

The man next to her, named Chai Zhuo, played the son of the Black Raven Mansion’s owner, also known as the male lead who entered with financial backing.

He was quite handsome and looked delicate. When introduced, he waved to everyone.

However, having a male lead in a horror film seemed strange.

Even more absurd was the idea of this male lead having a romantic relationship with the "female ghost."

Gu Zhan nodded in acknowledgment.

The director said, "In that case, let’s all review the script. We’ll discuss it in thirty minutes."

Gu Zhan opened the script in front of him.

After glancing through it, he understood why Sang Yue was frowning. Besides the inexplicable addition of a male lead, some details of the plot had changed.

The number of dead people has increased.

However, when Gu Zhan closely examined the conditions of their deaths, they were still the same as what they had seen in the flashback segments.

Moreover, due to the increased number, the characteristics of the deaths became easier to summarize.

The deceased could be categorized into two types: those who died by fire and those who drowned.

Yet, in the story, there was only one ghost.

After finishing the script, Gu Zhan was the first to ask, "Was this male lead added without my knowledge?"

"Cough, cough, cough..." Sang Yue choked and started coughing violently.

But it seemed Gu Zhan's question aligned with his character's persona, so the director wasn't angry. He even walked behind Gu Zhan, placing a hand on his chair, speaking gently to him, "Well... weren't you busy? I just asked a little Liu from your team to help revise it. I've seen it, and the changes are pretty good! There's no need to question that; it’s definitely fine. Do you all have any other questions?"

The director looked up at the others.

The NPCs certainly wouldn't ask questions, and Ma Xiaowen and He Hui were too scared to ask anything.

Gu Zhan turned his gaze to Sang Yue, who, feeling helpless, had to speak up herself: "I see that the deaths in the script are of two types. Did the same ghost kill all of them?"

"Of course," the director replied with a smile. "There’s only one ghost in our story."

Sang Yue continued, "But how could one ghost have two completely different methods of killing? Furthermore, these two ways of dying contradict each other. If someone drowned, they couldn't have been burned, and if someone was burned, they couldn't have drowned."

The director was momentarily taken aback by the question.

He seemed like a machine that had jammed, his features contorted, and it took him a while to gradually return to normal.

However, he no longer had the patience he had before. Frowning, he looked ready to explode, "What logic are you looking for in a horror movie? I said this person died this way; that's how they died!"

"..." Sang Yue said, "If you can't explain it, just change the way they died. Horror films also need logic."

As soon as she finished speaking, Ma Xiaowen nervously pulled her back.

Sang Yue looked up and noticed that the director's expression was clearly off.

He seemed like a machine malfunctioning, starting to glitch out with random errors, his facial expressions shifting rapidly between joy, anger, fear… all without any logical progression. The more they changed, the more distorted his features became, as if he were on the verge of an outburst.

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