Resurgence of the Unknown

Chapter 49: The Mall's Truth

In the mall's security room, Liu Qiang was busy accessing the recorded footage. "The security footage can store up to fifteen days. I'm pulling the last seven days' recordings now," Liu Qiang said as he continued to operate the system. "By the way, what are you looking for in the older footage?"

"I'm trying to find out what happened to a few people over the last few days," Yang Jian replied calmly.

Suddenly, Liu Qiang frowned. "Huh, who's this? I don't recognize her. The mall has been closed for a few days, so how did she get in?"

A middle-aged woman in a dress appeared on the footage.

"You don't know her?" Yang Jian asked cautiously.

Liu Qiang shook his head. "No, but she does look familiar. I can't quite place where I've seen her before."

Yang Jian didn't recognize the woman either. After all, he had only been at the mall for two days and had only met a few of the employees. But something about her felt off.

"Keep an eye on her. Let's see what she does in the mall," Yang Jian instructed.

He had a feeling that this middle-aged woman might be the ghost, but all evidence pointed to Liu Qiang being the real ghost. If the ghost could switch identities, then everything would make sense. However, guesses were meaningless without proof. He needed the footage to confirm his suspicions.

As they continued watching, the woman's actions became increasingly strange. She took the escalator to the second floor but then stopped at the stairwell, standing there like a statue for a long time.

"Fast forward," Yang Jian instructed.

The footage sped up. The woman stood motionless at the stairwell for about half an hour before suddenly moving again. She approached the second floor's cashier area, where Wei Xiaohong was working.

Wei Xiaohong was at the register, seemingly exhausted. She stood up to stretch.

The middle-aged woman slowly approached her from behind, silently getting closer and closer. Wei Xiaohong, oblivious, continued stretching, her back to the woman.

"Slow it down," Yang Jian ordered.

The footage returned to normal speed. The woman stopped just behind Wei Xiaohong, standing still for a moment. Then, without warning, she reached out and grabbed Wei Xiaohong's head.

Wei Xiaohong's body shuddered slightly, and then something unimaginable happened. The woman lifted Wei Xiaohong's head off her neck, as if she were a doll.

There was no screaming, no blood, only a disturbing calm. Wei Xiaohong's headless body stood rigidly in place, as if life had left it completely.

"This... this can't be real!" Liu Qiang exclaimed in disbelief.

Jiang Yan, who had been quietly watching from the side, was also terrified. She covered her mouth to prevent herself from screaming.

Yang Jian, however, remained composed, continuing to watch the footage.

The strange woman, now holding Wei Xiaohong's head, removed her own head as well. Then, she placed Wei Xiaohong's head on her body.

In mere moments, the woman had transformed into Wei Xiaohong. With a few casual movements, she picked up her discarded head and the lifeless body and walked away from the second floor, acting as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

As Yang Jian watched the ease with which this new "Wei Xiaohong" moved, he realized that no ordinary person could do this.

"Five days ago, Wei Xiaohong became a ghost," Yang Jian murmured, his expression serious.

Now it all made sense. That's why Wei Xiaohong's head had been so decayed. If the ghost had taken her head five days ago, it explained why her head had rotted so quickly.

"Keep watching her," Yang Jian instructed Liu Qiang, his voice tense.

"Right, okay," Liu Qiang stammered, still shaken.

They fast-forwarded to the next day's footage. On the fourth day, Wei Xiaohong went about her day normally—greeting people, eating, chatting with colleagues—showing no signs of being a ghost. But by the afternoon, things changed.

Sister Li, feeling bored, invited a few female colleagues, including Wei Xiaohong, to try on clothes. They headed to a clothing store on the fifth floor.

The store was closed, but all the clothes were still on display. Sister Li held up a dress, comparing it to herself in the mirror, completely unaware of the danger lurking behind her.

Wei Xiaohong's behavior became strange again. She slowly approached Sister Li from behind, her hands reaching toward her head.

But just as Wei Xiaohong was about to make her move, Sister Li turned around, chatting with her, holding the dress in her hand. The camera had no sound, but the conversation was clear enough.

Wei Xiaohong stopped, her intentions halted by Sister Li's unexpected movement.

Sister Li, not suspecting a thing, continued trying on clothes, oblivious to the danger. But as soon as she turned her back again to admire her reflection, Wei Xiaohong made her move.

She reached out and, just like before, removed Sister Li's head.

Yang Jian frowned. "If Sister Li's head was taken, then how is she still walking around? That doesn't make sense. There's only supposed to be one ghost."

But as he watched the next part, his confusion grew.

Wei Xiaohong, after removing Sister Li's head, took off her own head once more. The two heads were swapped again, and both women stood motionless for a moment before continuing to try on clothes as if nothing had happened.

A chill ran down Yang Jian's spine. The situation was far more complicated than he had originally thought. Quickly scanning through the remaining footage, he focused on the fifth-floor footage.

In front of the storage room, someone was standing with their back to the camera, their identity obscured.

"Pull up this camera," Yang Jian instructed.

Liu Qiang accessed the footage. Ten minutes ago, Tang, Master Luo, Manager Li, Sister Li, and Yan Li had entered the storage room. As they did, a group of people slowly emerged from the elevator, the emergency exit, and the surrounding stores, all moving unnervingly slowly.

These figures began to surround the storage room, standing eerily still. But after a while, for reasons unknown, they slowly dispersed, disappearing into the dark corners of the mall.

Yang Jian's heart pounded as he watched.

The ghost wasn't just one entity. There were multiple ghosts—perhaps every person whose head had been swapped was now a ghost or being controlled by one.

And then, Yang Jian's gaze settled on Liu Qiang's neck. A faint red line circled it, as if his head had once been severed.

Liu Qiang was one of them.