Forgotten Photo Studio

Chapter 20 Appreciation
But she will never come again.

All that came was the ever-present, chilling ringing of the bell.

Xu Yan listened in silence, his gaze sweeping over the girl.

He couldn't see a clear form, but he could sense an extremely weak yet unusually stubborn energy field, like spider silk wrapped around her, filled with sorrow and reluctance, yet also carrying a stubbornness that could drive a living person mad.

He turned around and instead of taking the dark silver Soul-Sealing Camera, he took out an older bellows camera with a dark brown body from under the counter.

Chen Zhiwei nodded slightly when she saw his choice.

Using a soul-sealing camera is too costly; using it for such a weak and harmless "last thought" is like using a cannon to kill a mosquito, and it could cause unnecessary damage to the girl's soul.

This old camera is gentler; its function is to "develop" and "soothe" rather than "seal" and "plunder," making it more suitable for handling such incidents.

Chen Zhiwei then walked to the incense table, washed her hands, and lit three thin sticks of incense for calming the soul.

Wisps of smoke rose as she chanted softly into the void, her voice deep and rhythmic, carrying an ancient, comforting power:

"Fragrant clouds swirl around, permeating all directions."

"Let your soul wander, do not linger in this mortal world."

“Obsession takes form and returns to this shadow.”

"Dust to dust, ashes to ashes, and the spirit to its resting place."

This is not about driving them away, but about persuading and settling them in.

Inform that persistent desire that its attachment has been sensed and that it should no longer linger in the world. Allow it to leave its final trace through photographic paper and finally persuade it to let go of its obsession and go to the peaceful place it deserves.

As she chanted, the fragrant mist seemed to come alive, slowly swirling around the girl.

That intangible and formless energy of sorrow seemed to slowly calm down in this gentle thought and fragrance.

Xu Yan seized the opportunity to raise the brown camera. He didn't recite the aggressive incantation, but instead whispered:
"The body is broken but the spirit remains, causing worry and distress to the living."

"Now I capture your image, to sever this entanglement."

"The shadows and people are at peace, and neither side will interfere with the other."

Click.

The shutter clicked softly, without any glaring flash; only a gentle halo of light flashed from inside the camera.

The photographic paper was slowly expelled.

Above, the extremely faint, semi-transparent outline of an old woman gradually appeared.

She was no longer the source of terror that plagued her granddaughter. Her face was blurred but radiated kindness, and her eyes held a deep reluctance, but also a hint of understanding and relief.

Her image is slowly turning into specks of light, seemingly about to dissipate, and finally settling into a state of eternal tranquility.

The girl stared blankly at the photo, her tears flowing even more fiercely, but they were no longer tears of fear.

Through this photograph, she seemed to feel her grandmother's clumsy yet persistent love one last time.

They did not charge any fees.

Chen Zhiwei placed the photo into an ordinary file folder labeled "Temporarily at peace," and said gently:
"Leave it here, and you'll give her a home. She won't bother you anymore. What you'll remember isn't the ringtone, but her love for you."

The girl nodded emphatically, expressing her gratitude profusely. She then insisted on giving them the basket of fruit she had brought before leaving, turning back to look at them every few steps.

Just as she stepped out the door into the drizzle, she suddenly stopped and turned around. Rainwater soaked her hair and clung to her pale cheeks.

She looked at Xu Yan and Chen Zhiwei with a complicated expression, then suddenly said loudly, "Thank you... but please don't let her be too lonely!"

After saying that, as if afraid she would regret it, she suddenly turned around and ran away quickly, her thin figure soon disappearing into the gray rain.

Xu Yan held the still-warm photograph in his hand, remaining silent.

The girl's last words pierced his cold, hard exterior like a needle.

She fears forgetting, yet she also dreads the price of remembering.

She longed for liberation, yet worried that her beloved soul would be left alone.

This contradiction is so similar to his own.

Chen Zhiwei gently took the photograph from his hand and put it into the filing cabinet.

The soft sound of the cabinet door closing was particularly clear in the photo studio, where the rain was pattering.

This little incident seemed to inject a new meaning into the photo studio that was under renovation.

They were not merely passively carrying out the "center's" cleanup orders, but were also actively maintaining a more humane balance between the living and the dead.

A few days later, one evening, the rain had just stopped, and the air still carried the damp scent of earth.

The door to the photo studio was pushed open without any politeness, and the wind chimes made a series of rapid, chaotic sounds.

Ah Zhe leaned against the door frame, not coming in immediately. His gaze swept over the newly renovated shop like a searchlight, finally settling on the walls covered with portraits of the deceased.

"Tsk, the treatment for Silver-level is really different, Mr. Xu." His tone was still nonchalant, but the eyes hidden behind his smart glasses were sharp. "It seems that the bounty for 'Eye of Sorrow' is enough for you to arm this place from head to toe."

Xu Yan looked up from the ledger, his eyes cold, and didn't respond. But Ah Zhe's next words made his gaze sharpen slightly.

“However, while ‘hardware’ is easy to upgrade, interference at the ‘software’ level… can’t be solved with money alone.” A-Zhe strolled in slowly, his fingers seemingly tracing patterns in the air. On the lenses of his smart glasses, pale blue data streams cascaded silently like a waterfall. “That little bit of ‘background noise’ on you… well, it’s been suppressed, not as noisy as before. But why do I feel that the ‘sound source’ underneath… is actually deeper and more stable? Like it’s gathering strength?”

He accurately described the true effect of the damper: it does not eliminate, but rather suppresses and transforms.

This insightful observation filled Xu Yan with trepidation.

This Ah Zhe is no ordinary bronze-level technician.

Ah Zhe seemed oblivious to Xu Yan's instantly tense jawline. He walked to the counter, leaned forward slightly, lowered his voice, and spoke with the excitement and blatant allure of a tech geek discussing their field:
"Seriously, boss. You have a lot of good stuff here, but your defense system is too old-fashioned, all based on passive defense using 'aura' and 'talismans.' The monitoring technology of those people at 'the center' is constantly evolving. I can fool you with low-level privileges, but what if someone of Manager Lin's level becomes interested in your little shop someday..."

He paused, then tapped his fingers lightly on the countertop, making a soft, rhythmic sound.

"Give me a little bit of authority, just a little. I'll set up an 'active defense matrix' for you. It's not just simple interference, but something that can simulate all sorts of harmless energy signatures and hide your real data in a massive amount of junk information. Even if they scan you with the highest level of spectral analyzer, all they'll see is... well, a harmless 'nostalgic old photo magnetic field'."

He laughed as he spoke, but the shrewdness in his eyes remained undiminished. "How about it? Isn't it much more interesting than your 'invisible wall'?"

As he spoke, Xu Yan glanced coldly and noticed that a secondary sensor that had been dormant on the belly of the hovering octopus drone quietly lit up, emitting a very faint buzzing sound. An invisible scanning beam was precisely projected onto the drawer in the corner where the "E-sequence" file was stored.

appreciate?

Xu Yan did feel a sense of amazement at the tech madman's abilities, but this was quickly followed by a deeper sense of vigilance.

This guy's ability is a double-edged sword. If used well, it can be an asset, but if used carelessly, it can be like inviting a wolf into the house.

“I said, I don’t need it.” Xu Yan’s voice was colder than the rain outside the window. He casually adjusted his posture, perfectly concealing the drawer from his presence. “Your ‘help’ comes at a high price.”

　Please help generate buzz for this book; voting and comments are both welcome. Thank you!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)