World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 172 The Little White Rabbit Enters the Black Forest
Lin An's first reaction upon seeing Joshua was shock.

Didn't I kill him?

On second thought, even a "wild" mystic like myself has received "heavenly dew" that brings the dead back to life, so it's not surprising that Joshua, as a member of a noble family, possesses one or two methods of rebirth.

As expected, the source-level mystics are very difficult to kill, especially when they also possess ancient heritage and resources.

However, since Joshua was still alive, why didn't he return to headquarters to fight that day?

Observing Joshua's current situation, Lin Anxin realized that the former head of the inspection team was in a very strange state. His eyes no longer had the sharp ferocity, but instead showed more confusion and emptiness.

It seems there's a price to pay for resurrection.

There was no point in thinking too much, so Lin An decided to test Joshua himself, since the other party didn't know him anyway.

While he was in the restroom, Lin An asked the waiter to bring Joshua a chocolate donut and a cappuccino.

When Joshua saw the waiter bring out the dessert, he was taken aback and frowned in confusion.

"I didn't order this."

"It was given to you by the guests at that table."

Given the nature of the original inspection team leader, even if he were to fall on hard times for unknown reasons or be on a mission of disguise and infiltration, the proud Joshua would never accept gifts from others that were almost charity.

Under Lin An's intrigued gaze, Joshua took a bite of the donut, his pupils dilating slightly. He then devoured the dessert in a flash, displaying an air of determination to compete with Ruan Ruyun in a battle of gluttony.

He really had amnesia. Lin An thought, the question is, to what extent had his "amnesia" progressed?
After finishing his meal, Joshua stared blankly for a few minutes before walking towards Lin An, who pretended nothing had happened and continued chatting with Ruan Ruyun.

"Thank you for paying for my meal," Joshua said. "The donuts were delicious."

“Easter is coming soon, and I hope everyone can spend every day with a smile. You’ve worked hard too, have some dessert to cheer yourself up,” Lin An replied kindly.

Joshua was taken aback. These words from the Virgin Mary could not fool the man of the past, but they deeply moved the man of the present.

"I never imagined there were such kind people in the world as you, willing to extend such unreserved kindness to strangers. I haven't seen such a kind person in a long time."

"Ahem..." Lin An cleared his throat. "It's fate that we met by chance. How should I address you, sir?"

"To my shame, I don't remember my own name. The owner of this amusement park took me in when I was homeless; they called me 'Hopo' because I was a vagrant."

Hearing this, Lin An felt a pang of sadness.

I'm sorry I didn't kill you cleanly back then.

Without Brother Lu's time travel ability, Lin An dared not act rashly. Joshua was one of the top mystics in the Eagle Kingdom, and also the "Judge" medium known for his combat prowess. He only appeared harmless because of his amnesia.

"Senior Lin, do you know him?" Ruan Ruyun asked from the side.

Lin An shook his head: "It's just an occasional burst of kindness."

“It’s truly unfortunate,” Ruan Ruyun said, pulling out a chair with a hint of pity. “If you don’t mind, please sit with us. These are all for you to eat; I haven’t touched them yet.” She paused, then asked, “How long have you been homeless? Hasn’t any family contacted you?”

"I may not have any family."

No, your family is worse than having none. Lin An thought to himself.

"Hmm..." Ruan Ruyun was momentarily speechless. "Do you remember anything?"

Joshua blurted out, "All I know is that I'm being called by some kind of mission."

"mission?"

“I don’t know when it will need me or what I should do, but it is closely related to the fate of humanity. The reason I am still alive is that I still want to uphold my determination to safeguard world peace and protect all mankind.”

These words made Lin An, who knew the whole story, twitch at the corner of his mouth, and also left Ruan Ruyun feeling quite helpless.

"Uh, you weren't a web novelist before, were you?"

"you know me?"

"I just feel like your wish is as epic as a web novel protagonist's. I hope you get back on track with your life soon." Ruan Ruyun muttered a complaint under her breath, then changed the subject in Chinese, "Senior, since we're already here, how about we go to the amusement park for a while?"

"So this is what you really wanted," Lin An said with a smile.

“It’s important to balance academics and leisure,” Ruan Ruyun said, opening a map of the amusement park. “The closest attractions to us are the teacups and the haunted house.”

As Joshua watched the two men get up and leave, for some reason, he felt a strong urge and couldn't help but take off his mascot costume and follow the young man.

To avoid being discovered by the two men, Joshua kept a distance of about fifty meters from them.

The two people, a man and a woman, went to the haunted house first.

As an employee of the amusement park, Joshua greeted the ticket inspector and sneaked in.

The haunted house is decorated with stereotypical horror elements: black walls adorned with eerie skulls, disgusting crawling insects and spider webs, and torture instruments such as chains and branding irons.

A chill emanated from the ground as Joshua walked through the narrow corridor, accompanied by terrifying sound effects from time to time, such as low growls, shrill cries, and chilling chuckles, making him feel as if he were in a real horror movie.

However, Joshua never felt fear, as if he were used to such situations.

In the stillness of the night, Joshua often pondered what kind of person he had been, but the memories of the first thirty-odd years of his life seemed to have been completely erased, leaving no fragments.

Now, he instinctively felt that the young man was unusual.

Perhaps that is the key to unlocking his past.

Following the young men and women, Joshua unknowingly arrived at a rather secluded area. The walls were adorned with images of living people turning into rotting corpses, and ahead lay a flight of steps with a large coffin resting on a raised platform.

The set is designed so that a vampire lies inside, and it pops out to scare tourists as they pass by.

Sure enough, as Joshua passed by, the coffin lid swung open, and a terrifying skeleton emerged from it, emitting a piercing and horrifying scream.

"Ahhhh!"

Joshua showed no expression; he was just a toy with springs.

The next moment, something shocking happened.

The skeleton, which should have been lying back in its coffin, suddenly crawled out uncontrollably, its bones cracking and popping, and lunged at Joshua as if it were alive.

"What……!"

Before Joshua could react, the skull's sharp, steel claws slashed across his shoulder, leaving a cut that stained his faded uniform with blood.

A wave of pain washed over Joshua, and he felt a vague sense of disorientation.

"Dangdang!"

Without hesitation, the skeleton gripped Joshua's arms like iron pincers and slammed him to the ground.

Joshua slammed his head against the steps, and his vision went black.

This skull was originally made of plastic, but at this moment, it feels frighteningly heavy, like metal!

Despite feeling no fear whatsoever, Joshua instinctively struggled frantically.

No matter what happens, if we don't run now, we're going to die!

A certain energy flowed from his will to survive to his fingertips, and a bronze snake tattoo hissed and flicked its tongue as it roamed all over Joshua's body.

At the same time, a strong wind suddenly swept through the enclosed haunted house, causing the set to flutter and the picture frames to crack and creak. An irregular crack appeared in the middle, and the continuously playing horror videotape went black, revealing a holy and beautiful luster like the sea.

In that instant, Joshua saw the young man reappear.

He walked at a leisurely pace, flicked his finger, and lightly flicked the crazed skull. Its metal shell shattered with a "clang," scattering into a pile of plastic decorations on the ground.

As Joshua calmed down, the strange phenomenon was withdrawn into his body, and the haunted house became eerily quiet, with only the flickering candlelight.

All electronic devices were destroyed by Joshua in a second.

However, the perpetrator was unaware of the whole story.

Joshua looked at Lin An in front of him and felt that his dark eyes were as deep as the starry sky, with a dazzling light that seemed to appear and disappear. He stood there calmly, and the lingering breeze brushed the corner of his clothes, blowing away the dust that was in his way.

After a long silence, Joshua spoke, his voice trembling.

"You saved me?"

"Yes."

Seeing Joshua's genuine shock, Lin An secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Just now, the "Judge's" overwhelming pressure was chaotic and aimless, and it did not reach the alchemical golem that attacked him at all.

Very well, the former team leader has lost his memory to the point that he has forgotten even the identity of the Mysterious One.

Joshua seemed to attribute the strange phenomenon he had just witnessed to Lin An, his face full of admiration, unaware that he had unconsciously activated the energy within his body.

"Is that skeleton... a supernatural phenomenon? What exactly is happening in this world?"

"Get up first." Lin An bent down and reached out his hand to Joshua on the ground. "It's dangerous here. Let's find somewhere else to talk."

The staff and tourists thought there was a power outage, but when flashlights shone from a distance, Joshua led Lin An out of the haunted house with practiced ease.

Ruan Ruyun was waiting outside when she saw the two of them appear together, and her expression became somewhat subtle.

"Senior Lin, he's still here."

"This gentleman is our official cameraman today."

By the end of the day, Joshua had earned Ruan Ruyun's new nickname, "Steve," until Lin An watched her figure disappear into the sunset and turned to Joshua to say it.

"As you can see, this world hides many mysterious events that are beyond the comprehension of ordinary people. They are like shadows that cannot be illuminated by the sun, lurking beneath the illusion of social peace. They are extremely dangerous, and one can easily lose one's life if one is not careful."

As he spoke, he suddenly moved closer to Joshua, grabbed his arm, and forcefully pulled down his sleeve, revealing that the brass snake tattoo had been moved to a different position.

"this--!"

Joshua's eyes widened. He remembered that his tattoo was clearly located on his chest, but now it had "climbed" to his upper arm!
“Unfortunately, when you gaze into the abyss, the abyss also gazes back,” Lin An said in a sorrowful tone. “You are entangled by it and can no longer escape.”

"Then what should I do?" Joshua quickly grabbed Lin An's hand. "By the way, you can use that power... can you teach me how to fight against those unknown crises?"

After a series of willing but conflicting arguments, Lin An sighed.

“Alright, I think I can guide you.” His smile was sincere and warm. “After all, I can’t bear to let a poor person die without knowing why.”

“Thank you so much, teacher!” Joshua said gratefully. “You are the best person I have ever met.”

Thank you to Qingmingkejian, TianyingxWuming, Book Friend 20210301106605444250, and Book Friend 20220424125231134 for the monthly tickets, and thank you all for the recommendation tickets and subscriptions.

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(End of this chapter)