It seemed that in the blink of an eye, the scenery before Xin Meng had changed.
In the dim bathroom, a damp mist filled the air, accompanied by a foul smell of sewage. The light flickered intermittently, as if it had a poor connection.
He was not alone in the bathroom; there was a beautiful young girl dressed in a pink tracksuit, holding two lit candles, looking at him with concern. “Xin Meng, what’s wrong?”
Xin Meng was taken aback. What was going on?
Seeing that he didn’t respond, the girl continued, “You’re not really scared, are you? I’m sorry for dragging you into this. I just can’t bear to do it alone. Xiao Li and the others refused to join, saying that if we did it together, Mary wouldn’t show up…”
The girl rambled on. After all, she was an NPC tasked with providing some exposition, so Xin Meng patiently listened for a while and gradually understood the situation.
The girl across from him was named Xiao Jia, a college student with five roommates who were like sisters. They did everything together, and they were all quite bold and curious, enjoying trying new things, especially games involving summoning spirits.
They had played various games like “Pen Spirit” and “Plate Spirit,” not only trying them out but also experimenting with different variations. Eventually, they grew bored, so they gathered to see if there were any new games to explore.
One day, Xiao Jia finally heard about a game they had never played before, said to have originated from the West. The game was called “Bloody Mary,” which, when translated, meant “血腥瑪麗.” It was said that by performing a certain ritual, one could summon a girl named “Mary” from the mirror, and the summoner could ask her three questions, with the price being their own life.
The girls were not too concerned about the so-called consequences, as they had played similar games before and had ways to break them. They had encountered some supernatural events, but they were cautious this time since the ritual needed to be done alone, not as a group. They specifically invited some boys from another dormitory—namely, players like Xin Meng—to act as their protectors.
Xin Meng was the one protecting Xiao Jia, and the location was in the bathroom of their dormitory. The others were guarding the other five girls in different dorms. Since it was summer vacation, most of the other dorms were empty, making it convenient to play this game.
“Here, this bag is vermilion, and this bag is lime. Remember, after I ask the third question, you must sprinkle the lime on the mirror first, then the vermilion! Don’t get it wrong!” Xiao Jia placed the candles down and handed the two plastic bags to Xin Meng, looking worried as she instructed, “My life is in your hands. Xiao Li said you guys are the most reliable, which is why I specifically asked for you. Don’t mess up at a critical moment!”
Xin Meng took the bags and, after hearing the rules, asked, “Aren’t I supposed to go into the bathroom alone?”
Xiao Jia looked at him as if he were hopeless. “Haven’t I explained this to you? You need to stand outside the bathroom; you can’t come in. I won’t close the door. If anything happens to me inside, you rush in and sprinkle the lime!”
Xin Meng thought to himself, when did you explain this to me? But knowing this was part of the game’s setup, he didn’t press the issue.
He turned and stepped outside, standing at the bathroom door.
At this moment, the bathroom was left with only the girl. She took a deep breath, encouraged herself, and placed the candles on the sink beneath the mirror, positioned between herself and the mirror.
In the dark mirror, only the lower half of her face was reflected; the upper half was swallowed by darkness, as if torn apart by the tongue of a beast. Only her eyes, like polished lacquer, shone with a nervous yet expectant light, restlessly darting around.
Xiao Jia recalled the summoning steps, then closed her eyes, concentrating, and began to chant in a strange, almost comical tone, elongating her words: “Bloody Mary—”
Once.
“Bloody Mary—”
Twice.
“Bloody Mary—”
A third time.
Xiao Jia suddenly opened her eyes.
Nothing happened.
“What the heck, it turns out to be a scam…” Xiao Jia was very disappointed, feeling it was less thrilling than the previous games like Pen Spirit. She turned to complain to Xin Meng.
However, Xin Meng sensed something was off. The air, which had been flowing normally, suddenly became stagnant, and a heavy, oppressive atmosphere quickly enveloped the bathroom. Most importantly—
Xiao Jia had turned her head, but the reflection in the mirror was staring intently at her, expressionless.
“Be careful!” Xin Meng immediately shouted a warning!
Xiao Jia, confused, glanced at the mirror and screamed!
“Ahhh—”
But the situation in the mirror changed again; her “self” gradually faded away, leaving only a pair of blood-red eyes, staring grotesquely at her from the mirror. Blood began to seep from the mirror and the wall, creating a scene reminiscent of hell!
Xiao Jia screamed in terror, shaking her head frantically. This horrifying sight caught her completely off guard; neither Pen Spirit nor Plate Spirit had ever caused such a commotion!
“Come here!” Xin Meng shouted, seeing that Xiao Jia was frozen in fear. He rushed over and grabbed her.
Just then, a pair of bloody arms, covered in terrifying tears and scars, slowly reached out from the mirror, grasping towards Xiao Jia…
Xin Meng was faster than the arms. Realizing the danger, he grabbed Xiao Jia’s wrist and forcefully pulled her back. The hands missed their target and slowly retreated.
This time, Xiao Jia was so scared that she couldn’t even scream; her voice was caught in her throat, and she nearly fainted.
Xin Meng couldn’t help but scoff. Didn’t she say she was brave? How could she be like this now?
Perhaps due to regaining some memories, Xin Meng felt that the variety of emotions he had just experienced had dropped a few, with fear being the most evident.
He was no longer afraid.
Regarding ghosts and death, he seemed to lack the original fear. Watching them bleed, kill, and reveal their sinister smiles felt like observing a worker at their job.
He even had the mind to scoff.
Xin Meng had a premonition that he probably wouldn’t be playing this game for much longer.
But for now, he still had to continue the game. He symbolically pulled Xiao Jia behind him.
The pair of eyes did not disappear. Perhaps the attack had failed; their gaze seemed somewhat unfriendly, but they couldn’t do anything else. Soon, a woman’s ghostly voice echoed from within: “You can ask me three questions, and I will answer them all. Once the three questions are asked, your life will belong to me. Now, let’s begin…”
Xiao Jia trembled violently, nearly crying, but upon hearing the woman’s words and seeing the lime and vermilion in Xin Meng’s hands, she relaxed a bit. She grabbed Xin Meng’s arm for support but dared not approach the mirror again, only speaking to the mirror spirit from a distance.
“The, the first question is…” Xiao Jia swallowed hard, stammering, “Who was my, my past life?”
Xin Meng: “…”
He simply couldn’t understand why she would risk her life to play such a terrifying game just to ask about some unknown past life?!
Was that reasonable?
The mirror spirit, or more accurately, the mirror ghost, grinned sinisterly, and then the eyes gradually faded away, revealing…
A cucumber.
That’s right, a bright green, long cucumber, topped with a small yellow flower.
“Ahhh—” This time, Xiao Jia’s scream was even more tragic than before!
Xin Meng was startled, watching as Xiao Jia shook his arm vigorously. “I’m a cucumber! No, I was actually a cucumber in my past life!”
Xin Meng thought she had lost her mind from the shock, but then she said, “No wonder I can’t eat cucumbers in this life; I throw up every time I do! So that’s why! It’s so accurate! Much more accurate than what the Plate Spirit said!”
Xin Meng: “…There are too many points to criticize; I don’t know where to start.”
“Of course it’s accurate.” The blood-red eyes reappeared. “Second question!”
After the earlier “accuracy” was confirmed, Xiao Jia completely forgot her fear and seemed a bit excited. “The second question is, does my crush, the boy I like, have a girlfriend?”
Xin Meng: “…”
“Giggling!” The blood-red eyes disappeared, and this time, a handsome boy appeared in the mirror, riding a bicycle with a beautiful girl on the back seat. The girl’s arms were wrapped around the boy’s waist, her face resting on his back, looking very happy.
“Yes, he has a girlfriend.”
“What? He has a girlfriend!” Xiao Jia clearly couldn’t accept this blow, instantly becoming despondent. “How could he have a girlfriend? How could he have a girlfriend…”
The mirror ghost impatiently urged, “There’s one more question; hurry up and ask.”
Xiao Jia was lost in the turmoil of “the person I secretly like is dating someone else,” and disregarding Xin Meng’s warning, she blurted out the last question without thinking: “When will they break up?”
The blood-red eyes let out a more terrifying laugh, as if celebrating the delicious meal about to be served.
The mirror displayed a corresponding scene: in a hall, the boy in a suit was holding the hand of a beautiful girl in a wedding dress. They gazed deeply into each other’s eyes, hands clasped, with wedding rings sparkling on their ring fingers.
“They will not break up; they will get married and have children, growing old together,” the blood-red eyes sneered. “Are you satisfied? Now, your life is mine!”
Xiao Jia didn’t even have time to mourn the love that had barely sprouted before it was snuffed out. She felt an invisible force pulling her, making her uncontrollably rush towards the mirror!
“Help! Help!” Xiao Jia screamed in panic, “Xin Meng, save me!”
Xin Meng reached into the plastic bag containing the lime, grabbed a handful, and sprinkled it onto the mirror!
“Ahhh—” This time, it was the mirror ghost’s turn to scream, and the pulling force vanished, causing Xiao Jia to fall to the ground.
“Damn it! Damn humans!” The mirror ghost was only temporarily suppressed for a moment; soon, it angrily returned, this time targeting Xin Meng, who had caused it pain!
Xin Meng grabbed another handful of vermilion and sprinkled it onto the mirror. This time, even the mirror began to emit a faint pink smoke, and the mirror ghost screamed incessantly!
However, in the end, the mirror ghost did not disappear.
The eyes revealed their true form: a woman with torn flesh and a hideous face, baring sharp teeth, her lips curled back to reveal razor-sharp fangs.
