Mysterious Resurgence: Starting with the Strange Bus

Chapter 35 Old Qin

Tatata!
In the hazy, ghostly world, the woman in the painting continued to move forward. Her red dress was as vivid as blood, and her face was shrouded in a mist that obscured her features. The crisp sound of her footsteps echoed around her.

As the woman in red moved, the ashes of the paper swirling in the air continued to fall, spreading in all directions.

at the same time.

in reality.

The ghost realm belonging to the ghost painting also began to move.

That hazy, illusory world originally only covered most of the city and part of the suburbs, but now that the ghost realm has moved, it has instantly enveloped the entire city of Dahai.

"What happened? Did a huge printing factory catch fire? Why is there so much paper dust falling?"

On a street in the city of Da Hai.

The taxi driver, sitting in the driver's seat, looked out at the falling snow that had turned the surroundings into a gray haze, and couldn't help but speak up.

In the back seat of the taxi, Li Hui's face instantly darkened.

He hadn't expected the Ghost Painting's Ghost Domain to expand so quickly, or that he had acted so swiftly. He simply threw the taxi driver 10,000 yuan, asking him to take him away from Dahai City as quickly as possible.

But before the vehicle could even leave the city, the entire city was enveloped by the ghostly realm depicted in the painting.

"This is the weakness of not having a ghost domain," Li Hui thought to himself.

If he had his own ghost domain, he would have disappeared long ago, instead of being stuck in the city center of Dahai City like this.

He was in a car; if he were walking, his speed would probably be even more appalling.

"This is a bit troublesome. The ghost realm of the Ghost Painting is very special, unlike the ghost realms of other vengeful ghosts. It's like a real world. Trying to force your way out is no less difficult than breaking the boundary between reality and the supernatural..."

Li Hui glanced at the environment outside the car window a few times and realized that he could not see through this gray and ghostly world. He immediately realized that the supernatural power of the three-story bus might not be enough to get him out.

If you want to leave, the best option is to find an oil painting that connects you to the real world, and then leave through that painting.

"Driver, please pull over to the side of the road ahead. I'll get off here," Li Hui said to the driver in the front seat, turning his gaze away from the road.

At this moment, the taxi appears to be driving on the streets of Dahai City, but in reality, it is driving through the ghostly realm of Guihua.

In other words, everything around them was a phenomenon reflected in the urban landscape of Dahai City by the ghost painting, and they were actually already in the world within the painting.

In that short period of time, Li Hui had noticed that the street scene had changed several times. At one point, the buildings on both sides of the street had turned into European-style castles, but then they changed back the next moment. The driver, who was just an ordinary person, did not seem to notice this.

Li Hui, who had read the original work, knew that the scene he had just witnessed was a brief alternation between the world he was in within the painting and the city background in another painting.

This is a characteristic of ghost drawings.

One painting is nested within another, and each painting may connect to the real world, but it is more likely to connect to real ghost paintings, or other oil paintings that also possess supernatural qualities.

If someone wants to leave through an oil painting, then before the final result is in, no one can guarantee that the painting they chose is correct, or that it is a painting that leads to grotesque mishaps.

"Young man, are you getting off here? Is it because the outside environment is too bad and you're worried about danger? Don't worry, I've been driving for over ten years, and my skills are absolutely top-notch."

Upon hearing that Li Hui was preparing to get out of the car, the driver immediately became somewhat displeased.

After all, Li Hui had given him 10,000 yuan as soon as he got in the car, saying that as long as he was taken away from Dahai City to any nearby city, the 10,000 yuan would be considered the fare.

But they hadn't even left the city center of Dahai yet, and Li Hui wanted to get off the bus. The driver instinctively thought that the other party had changed his mind, and that the 10,000 yuan he had just earned might be gone. How could he be happy about that?

Li Hui naturally saw through the driver's thoughts. His mind was completely focused on the ghost painting incident, and he had no time to worry about the ten thousand yuan. He said:
"Just drop me off here on the side of the road. The money I gave you when I got in the car is for the fare for this part of the journey. You don't need to return it."

laugh--

As Li Hui finished speaking, a sharp screech of brakes rang out.

"You should have said so earlier. Have a pleasant trip."

Amid the driver's fawning laughter, Li Hui pushed open the taxi door, got out, and then strode away in a chosen direction.

.........

at the same time.

Dajing City.

After leaving his office, Cao Yanhua went deep into the Ghost Tamer headquarters.

This is an old house that looks quite old and dilapidated, standing out from the other modern high-rise buildings in the headquarters.

There is a courtyard in front of the house, with vegetables planted on both sides. There are many kinds, including tomatoes and eggplants. It can be seen that the people living in this house yearn for the peaceful life in the countryside.

The house itself is very ordinary, just like those old-fashioned houses with yards in the countryside, nothing special. What's really special is the people who live in the house.

"Xiao Cao, you are here."

Cao Yanhua walked to the courtyard gate and just raised his hand to knock when a slightly aged, deep voice came from inside the courtyard. The voice was kind but also cold, giving people a very strange feeling.

As soon as he finished speaking, the courtyard gate in front of Cao Yanhua creaked open.

Standing behind the door was an elderly man wearing a gray overcoat, with age spots all over his face, leaning on a cane, and slightly hunched over.

"Mr. Qin."

Upon seeing the old man, Cao Yanhua immediately greeted him and then prepared to explain the purpose of his visit.

Two S-class paranormal events have occurred, and currently, the only person in the entire Ghost Tamer headquarters who can give him confidence is the old man in front of him.

After all, Elder Qin was not only the "pillar of stability" of the Ghost Tamer Headquarters, but also the true "guardian" of Dajing City in secret. It was because of Elder Qin's existence that Dajing City had never experienced a true supernatural event.

In fact, according to Cao Yanhua, the reason why the Ghost Tamer Headquarters was established was largely due to Qin Lao.

"Mr. Qin, it's like this, an S-level paranormal event suddenly broke out in Dachang City, and Professor Wang and the others are trapped inside..."

Cao Yanhua began, intending to focus on the key points and recount the events that had occurred in Dachang City and Dahai City.

However, before he could finish speaking, Old Qin interrupted him, saying, "I already know why you came. Go back. I will step in to resolve this when the time is right."

Already know?
Upon hearing this, Cao Yanhua was visibly taken aback, but quickly recovered.

He thought of Qin Lao's mysterious ability, which seemed to be able to foresee the future. In that case, it wouldn't be surprising to know why he came here.

The reason he came here in person to greet Old Qin was simply to put his mind at ease.

After all, those who control ghosts will pay a price for using their abilities. If it weren't for the sudden outbreak of the Ghost Painting incident, Cao Yanhua would never have disturbed Elder Qin so easily. Even Elder Qin is no exception; as long as he uses his supernatural powers, he will pay the corresponding price.

But now, Qin Lao's accurate reply clearly shows that he has foreseen the future, and his response is enough to put Cao Yanhua at ease.

"In that case, I'll head back now."

There's a lot going on at the Ghost Riders headquarters. I've said what I needed to say and reassured everyone, but I still have to finish the rest myself.

Unless absolutely necessary, Cao Yanhua does not want to use Qin Lao as a trump card.

Furthermore, even if Elder Qin intervenes and resolves the S-level paranormal event in Dachang City, he will still need to handle the follow-up arrangements.

After greeting Elder Qin, Cao Yanhua turned and left, without even entering Elder Qin's courtyard...

However, what Cao Yanhua didn't know was...

After watching his retreating figure, a hint of surprise appeared on Old Qin's usually calm face. He muttered to himself, "The future has taken an unexpected turn. I hope it's for the better..."

Long ago, Qin Lao had already 'foreseen' everything that would happen in the future by talking to his future self, and he had even 'foreseen' his own demise.

Perhaps someone else, upon learning of their impending death, would have tried every means to change it, but Old Qin remained calm, because the future he knew was bright; the supernatural era had finally been successfully ended…

However, according to the information he had previously received about the future, there was absolutely no ghost painting incident that occurred in Dahai City during this period.

This means that what happened in the real world deviated from the future outcome he had previously 'foreseen'.

"What kind of variables will there be..."

As he pondered, the surrounding temperature suddenly dropped significantly, and a chilling aura appeared. Subsequently, various inexplicable supernatural phenomena began to occur around Elder Qin.

Several illusory figures suddenly appeared around Elder Qin. Although their appearances were unclear, their outlines suggested that they were Elder Qin himself.
After the illusory figures appeared, they gathered around Elder Qin, as if they were communicating and telling Elder Qin what he wanted to know.

This strange paranormal phenomenon didn't last long. Soon, the illusory figures disappeared one after another, as if they had never existed.

After all this was over, Old Qin remained silent for a moment, then returned to the courtyard and sat on a stone bench in the yard for a while.

Not long after, two dim lights shone from behind Old Qin.

An old, eerie bus somehow passed through the wall, ignoring the obstruction, and finally stopped beside Old Qin, existing between reality and illusion, overlapping with the old house.

"A strange person has caused unexpected changes to the future. It seems some of the previous arrangements need to be changed. I should also pay a visit to those old guys while they're still alive..."

Old Qin looked at the old bus in front of him, a trace of nostalgia flashing in his eyes. Then, leaning on his cane, he slowly walked onto the bus, pushed aside the cold corpse in the driver's seat, and sat down himself.

soon.

The supernatural bus started moving, but it didn't follow the predetermined route. Instead, it was arbitrarily controlled by Old Qin, heading to wherever he wanted to go.

Finally, the supernatural bus drove away and disappeared into the headquarters.

.........

(End of this chapter)