The Haunted Cinema

However, just as Allen had steeled himself for a desperate struggle, mentally prepared for the worst, the scene in the script shifted. Now, the narrative turned to focus on the protagonist Dan's storyline.

The guidance toward the graveyard had come to an abrupt end.

Naturally, the others had realized this as well. Though sudden, it was an expected turn of events. After all, Dan was the protagonist, and in any horror film, the plot would naturally center around him.

So… as long as Dan remained alive, they, as supporting characters, would inevitably be relegated to mere bystanders. This was the impotence and helplessness of being a secondary character—something they could not change.

Now, with a lull in the narrative, as long as their actions remained consistent with the character's logic, there would be no NG (No Good) marks.

Should they wait here for a while? Perhaps if they did, the protagonist would eventually join them. With Dan present, survival would be assured. Otherwise, venturing out alone to find the graveyard would be exceedingly dangerous.

"Do you… still remember the way?" Allen asked.

Jiang Yi scratched his head, finally shaking it and saying, "I… can't remember. How should we go?"

An hour… they had only walked for about fifteen minutes. Yet, they still had a long forty-five minutes ahead.

Moreover, they had lost track of the route to the graveyard. But it shouldn't be far now.

Should they go… or not?

Meanwhile, Dan, also known as Charles, was walking alongside two other passengers, Lu Yuan and Lin Yu, a couple traveling together.

As per the script's requirement, Charles followed them along their path. The three of them were engaged in constant conversation.

Lu Yuan asked, "You must feel like you're cursed, right?"

"Yes… Although I never believed in ghosts, everything that's happened so far has made it hard to think that way. I remember you two were with a group searching for Liu An earlier, but now it's just the two of you. Where are the others?"

"They… are all dead," Lu Yuan took a deep breath. "Dead… all of them…"

"W-what happened to them?"

"They… were covered in blood." Lin Yu gripped Lu Yuan's hand tightly, her face turned to the side as she murmured to Charles, "I don't want to remember… I don't want to remember…"

Charles nodded, then continued, "Anyway, we need to hold on until dawn. I need to find my companions. My girlfriend is dead, and I don't know whether the others who were with me are alive or not. There's definitely something terrifying hidden on this mountain. I'm sure of it!"

At this moment, Lin Yu had started sobbing, while Lu Yuan comforted her beside her.

The mountain path was treacherous, constantly shifting between steep ascents and descents. The terrain was uneven, and the woods were full of branching paths. The ground was thick with grass and scattered stones. From walking so much, their shoes had worn thin.

In contrast, Charles, with his experience from three previous horror films, maintained a stronger mental fortitude. He knew that in times of terror, the more dire the situation, the more essential it was to stay calm. Panic would only cloud judgment and hasten death. Only by keeping a clear head could one see the way forward. For him, as of now, the script had not yet called for his death. The second act had entered a phase of script chaos, but now, with the third and final act beginning, everything would return to a rational narrative. There would be no more problems.

Yes… everything would be fine now…

"I really regret it now…" Lu Yuan's dialogue interrupted his thoughts. "I never imagined that this trip would end up like this. The travel agency strongly recommended this itinerary and even said it was much cheaper in a group, so that's why we…"

At this point, new dialogue appeared in Charles's mind. He quickly picked up, "Yes, this travel route was something my girlfriend and I decided on together… but now she's…"

Charles sighed heavily and continued, "If only we hadn't tried to save money. I remember we were browsing a group-buying website for tours, and when we saw this recommended route, the price wasn't too high, yet we could see so many natural sights. I was immediately tempted, so we booked the tour early…"

"Yeah, we also booked it through a group deal," Lu Yuan added. "I never thought it would turn out like this…"

Meanwhile, on the other side…

"We're going!"

Allen had finally made up his mind to search for the graveyard. Staying put, waiting passively—who knew what might happen? Even if they reunited with the protagonist, could they really be assured of survival? How many supporting characters in horror films had died right by the protagonist's side? And who said the protagonist would follow the script to the letter? He might decide to use his redemption tickets and act independently!

With that in mind, why not take the initiative, ahead of the protagonist, and use this script-free interval to find the graveyard, which could very well be the source of it all? He needed to find out exactly what this "filth" was!

It was very close now. The script had said so, so it must be true. Though "close" might be vague, Allen believed it would be findable!

"Dean!" Clark hurriedly grabbed his hand, his face filled with fear as he asked, "It's so dark now. Shouldn't we rest a bit before continuing?"

Forty minutes remained until the film's end!

Forty minutes!

So many things could happen in that time!

But Allen paid no heed. For him, even if it meant losing redemption tickets, he had to take a gamble! Staying here and doing nothing was no different from waiting for death. He didn't believe the script would let him survive—after all, he had already died in the second act! Moreover, whether Dan—the protagonist—would survive was still uncertain! What's more, this was only a script gap, and it didn't mean Dean's storyline would pause. Perhaps, soon, their scene would be the one that led to the graveyard, which meant no redemption tickets would be deducted!

Clark's face shifted from red to pale, while Cathy appeared to be deep in thought. As for Zhang Dekun, he frowned and asked, "So, are we going or not?"

Cathy glanced at Allen's determined expression, seemingly trying to decipher the source of his confidence. Unfortunately, actors in this ghostly cinema could not communicate any of the film's secrets to one another. They had to perform each role perfectly in order to survive. Right now, she was just a secondary female character, and in this horror film, her chances of survival were far from guaranteed.

"Alright," Cathy finally resolved. "Clark, you saw it too. Miss Mu died, yet she appeared before you. I'm afraid there really are ghosts in this world. We… we have to find that graveyard and uncover the truth behind it!"

Time flew by quickly. In the blink of an eye, fifteen minutes had passed.

Soon, in front of Charles—Dan—the bus appeared.

And surrounding the bus were five or six other passengers. They were also part of the group.

Charles hurriedly ran forward, recognizing several faces among the five or six people. One woman, dressed in purple, he had spoken to earlier.

At this moment, his scripted actions and dialogue prompted him to rush toward the woman in purple. He asked urgently, "Miss Mo! What happened? Where are the others?"

"They're all dead!" Miss Mo responded with an ashen face, her voice hollow. "All of them… they're all dead!"

Charles's heart clenched. At the same time, he felt a surge of sympathy for these extra actors. But now, wasn't the time for sorrow. He reached into his pocket and tightly gripped the cursed mirror stained with the blood of the deceased, then asked, "Have you seen my companions? Cathy, a beautiful woman with curly hair, and Dustin, the one with a small mustache, and Dean, Clark…"

"I haven't seen them." Miss Mo's face remained devoid of color, her expression blank. "I don't know them."

"How… how could this happen…" Charles immediately feigned an expression of anxious dismay as per the script, but in truth, whether Dean and the others were alive or dead didn't concern him. His only focus was on surviving.

"How… how could this happen… how could this be…?"

And at that moment…

"I found it!"

Allen brushed aside the foliage and, suddenly, deep within the woods ahead, he saw two stone tablets!

He began to walk faster, and soon, only Cathy remained by his side, with Clark and the others trailing behind.

Racing to the stone tablets, Allen swiftly took out his phone to shine light upon them.

The stone tablets were illuminated.

And there, he saw it. The so-called "filth."

Charles stepped onto the bus, where, according to the script, Dan was still supposed to inspect the filth. Meanwhile, he was gripping the cursed mirror tightly in his pocket.

Just then, an incredibly cold hand slapped onto his shoulder.

Charles swiftly turned around and immediately drew the mirror!

At this point in the script, there was no indication whether he would encounter a ghost or not.

As he took out the mirror, he looked back and saw that the figure in front of him was none other than Lu Yuan.

At that moment, he regretted it deeply. Even taking out the mirror for a mere second would cost him five hundred redemption tickets—five hundred!

He quickly tried to return the mirror to his pocket, but his motion was too forceful, and it slipped from his hand, falling to the ground. He hastily bent down to pick it up, but in that instant…

Through the mirror's reflection, he saw Lu Yuan as a blood-soaked man, his head mangled and unrecognizable!

The inscription on the stone tablet read: "Here lies the loyal husband, the virtuous wife, the dutiful son, the wise daughter, and the loving parents. May you all rest in peace." Beneath it, in smaller text, was a note: "In memory of the 37 victims of the 5.7 bus accident."

On the stone tablets were dozens of black-and-white photographs, each about the size of a small passport photo.

In these photographs, there was the bald driver, the tour guide Miss Mo, Jiang Yi and Han Ruoyue, the couple, the burly Sichuan man Zhang Dekun, the young man with a duck-bill cap Liu An, and also Lu Yuan, Lin Yu, and others…

"This… this… what is this…?"

At that moment, a new script directive appeared in his mind.

Along with it came a terrible piece of news. As the information flooded into his thoughts, Allen received a chilling revelation.

The protagonist, Dan, was dead!

With just over twenty minutes left before the film ended… dead!

These passengers weren't actors? They… had they all been dead from the start?

Thirty-seven victims! There were 43 people on the bus, including the driver. Subtracting the six from the protagonist's group, that…

Exactly thirty-seven people!