A Core Ship From The Start

At the same time, the exploration team began their quest in the East Mansion. Even Duanmu Huai had to admit that the Western-style house before them was indeed peculiarly eerie.

Statues were everywhere.

The former owner of this Western-style house seemed to have an obsession with statues. There were numerous statues placed on both sides of the corridor. Yet, these statues appeared wicked, ugly, distorted, filled with expressions of blasphemy and pain. As they strolled through the dilapidated and dim corridor, gazing at the strange stone statues set on either side, the two actors naturally exhibited unease and fear without needing to act. Even the old professor, who was supposed to introduce as a guest, became less talkative. He silently walked among the staff, examining these bizarre stone statues, as if trying to uncover something from them.

Duanmu Huai, still at the rear, also inspected these stone statues. To his surprise, these statues turned out to be just stone statues. But the question remained, why would anyone put such items in their home? Duanmu Huai thought that no sane person would place such terrifying and twisted statues in their home, or to live in such a haunted place, surrounded daily by statues with grotesque expressions; how could anyone remain normal?

Additionally, the patterns carved on the walls were equally chilling. They didn't appear to be something that humans would create, more like traces left by some monster in a state of extreme rage and fear. As they ventured deeper, the voices of the exploration team grew quieter. Initially, the crosstalk actor wanted to make some exaggerated reactions to showcase, but gradually, his voice began to lower. His signature epilepsy-like comedic effect was gone, replaced by a dark, gloomy, complaining mood.

They began to complain about the damned weather, the damned Western-style house, and were full of grievances towards those who committed suicide there—even Duanmu Huai frowned slightly when he saw this. Although he wasn't part of the filming crew, even Duanmu Huai knew that such remarks shouldn't be made during a show.

"Do you know? In our country, there are tens of thousands of people who commit suicide every year, and the government simply refuses to address these issues. For them, it seems like an inevitable situation."

The crosstalk actor's topic started to veer off course. Initially, the duo was discussing the show's theme, questioning why people would come here to commit suicide. But gradually, the topic began to shift.

"Those who commit suicide are also at fault! Why do they have to die? Don't they realize the consequences their choice to die will bring? To me, they're too selfish! They only think about themselves and never about their family, their friends, their colleagues!"

The crosstalk actor waved his hands in anger, saliva flying. Beside him, the actress was so frightened by his words that she couldn't speak, merely staring at him in shock.

"If they're destined to die, I suggest that the country should establish a suicide law, allowing the transplantation of their organs to other patients. In my view, that's the best method! Dying in this desolate, uninhabited place is a complete waste! Since they've decided to die, why not contribute to society?"

...… Aren't you going to control this?

Watching the crosstalk actor get carried away, Duanmu Huai quietly looked at the filming crew trailing behind him, but the latter simply carried the camera in silence, seemingly turning a deaf ear to the crosstalk actor's words.

"Well, next up is the last room."

Fortunately, relative to the crosstalk actor immersed in his passion, the actress still remembered her duties. She stepped forward a couple of steps, then pushed open the room's door and raised her flashlight to peer inside. Then...…

"Ah—————!"

The actress let out a scream, nearly collapsing to the floor in fright.

"Th-there's a corpse!"

"What?"

Perhaps provoked by the actress's scream, the crosstalk actor and a few other staff members shuddered, as if waking from a dream, they approached the door, cautiously peering inside. With the flashlight's beam illuminating, they clearly saw a pair of pale feet protruding from behind a pile of boxes. Witnessing this scene, the others gulped nervously, at a loss for words.

However, at that moment, Duanmu Huai's voice rang out.

"That's not a corpse."

"Huh?"

Hearing Duanmu Huai speak, everyone was momentarily stunned.

"It's not?"

"That's right, although it appears to be... you'll understand once you go over and take a look."

...…

Despite feeling somewhat uneasy inside, they dared not refute Duanmu Huai. So, with trepidation, the crosstalk actor took the flashlight and walked in, slowly approaching the pile of boxes. Then, he suddenly illuminated it with his flashlight...…

"Whew...…"

In the next moment, the crosstalk actor also let out a sigh of relief.

"It's not a person, it's a stone statue."

"A stone statue?"

"Exactly."

As he spoke, the crosstalk actor reached out his hand, pulling out the shattered head of a stone statue from behind the pile of boxes and showing it to everyone.

"This stone statue was likely originally standing here, then fell to the ground and broke due to some seismic tremor or something, which is why it looks like this."

"I see...…"

Seeing this, the others also breathed a sigh of relief, while the actress glanced nervously around.

"We've finished filming on this side, right? Then isn't it time for us to head back?"

No one objected to this, naturally.

When everyone returned to the hall, they found the atmosphere there unusually grave. The director sat silently in a chair, and the other staff members were also silent. Witnessing this scene, the exploration team was a bit stunned, but before they could inquire about the situation, the director's gaze landed on them.

"Have you finished filming?"

"It's done."

"Good, let me see."

Over here, the camera was immediately handed over, and the director connected it to the computer, beginning to review the entire process. Initially, his expression was calm, but as he watched further, his demeanor grew darker; by the end of the footage, his face was nearly livid.

"What kind of crap are you filming here!"

The director suddenly slammed his palm on the table, startling everyone.

"What did I say? Is this how you present yourselves? Especially you!"

As he spoke, the director glared at the crosstalk actor, who also seemed aware of his mistake, hurriedly lowering his head, afraid to speak.

"What do you take this show for? Huh? A tavern where you can say anything you like?!"

Looking at the crosstalk actor, the director was absolutely fuming. Though variety shows don't shy away from making guests look foolish, and sometimes even intentionally design it that way, the problem was that the crosstalk actor's previous remarks were too outrageous; which show would dare to broadcast such anti-humanity statements?

If the station head sees this, won't it just get me fired?

"Useless! Useless! Useless!"

The director was so angry he could hardly stand still looking at the crosstalk actor. The reason he invited this crosstalk actor in the first place was because he admired his exaggerated style, hoping to bring something different to the show.

But I didn't invite you here to spout nonsense!

"Director, that..."

"Retake, just the last part was fine."

The director furiously waved his hand.

"Redo the entire scene; you're all professionals, you know what to do. Don't make me see such stupid mistakes again!"

Since the director had spoken, everyone could only obediently retake the scene. Repeated practice made them more familiar, and this time the two actors coordinated well, and even the old professor gathered his spirits to interject among them.

Because of the crosstalk actor's previous blunder, they refrained from discussing those who had committed suicide and instead focused on talking about the history of this house, past owners, and then some haunted reactions. As actors, if they can't even manage that, they might as well quit.

Soon, the group once again found themselves at the final room.

The actress and crosstalk actor exchanged a slight look of communication. The director had mentioned earlier that during the first filming, the last part was executed well, and it would be included in the final release, so their task was to replicate their initial actions here, and cut out at the right time for editing.

Thus quickly, the actress reached out her hand again to push open the door.

"Now up next is the final room, let's see......"

As she spoke, the actress poked her head inside, then froze for a moment, but nonetheless, displayed a horrified expression once more.

"There's a corpse!"

"What?"

Just like the first time, everyone gathered around the door, and then the camera captured the moment too—up to this point, it seemed enough. With a little editing during the switch, there shouldn't be any issues.

Of course, a proper act demands adherence to form. Like the first time, after some discussion, the crosstalk actor stepped forward, approached the pile of paper, and peeked inside—a moment that froze him completely.

"What's wrong?"

The actress and staff, surprised by the crosstalk actor's lack of response, looked at him quizzically, while the crosstalk actor turned his head, rubbed his eyes, and then looked at the back of the pile again.

"It's gone."

"What?"

"The statue, it's gone!"

"It's gone?"

Hearing the crosstalk actor's words, everyone was taken aback and rushed over to look behind the pile—sure enough, it was empty, with nothing there!

"How is this possible?"

The actress was quite surprised; everyone had come here before and seen the broken statue among the boxes, so how could it suddenly vanish in the blink of an eye?

"Could we have entered the wrong room?"

"No mistake."

Duanmu Huai poked his head out and glanced outside the door.

"This is definitely the last room, just like before."

"This......."

Everyone looked at each other, feeling a chill creeping over them as they stared at the current situation.

Something seemed off......

"The filming is done, we should get going."

Soon, one of the staff members spoke up.

"Yeah, it's already late; if we don't leave now, we won't be able to get back."

Since they had filmed twice in a row, it was already evening. Seeing the dark sky outside, the others didn't linger and hurried back to the main hall. This time, the director quickly reviewed the footage and revealed a satisfied expression.

"Hmm, not bad, this looks presentable. Remember, this is the vibe; don't make me repeat myself!"

Phew....... Hearing the director's approval, everyone sighed with relief, and a staff member spoke up on behalf of everyone.

"Director, since filming is over, shouldn't we be heading back?"

"Head back?"

However, upon hearing the staff member's inquiry, the director's face darkened.

"Heading back is not an option! You've wasted so much time, and now you want to leave? Don't you know the program is under a tight schedule? Take a break, and then continue filming! As for the West Mansion, it's time for a night exploration of the Western-style House, get it? No more mistakes!"

"What?"

Upon hearing the director's strict decision, everyone was shocked, and Duanmu Huai raised an eyebrow, curiously observing the director.

Is he doing this on purpose or is it accidental?