These two women were veteran film critics from our local area.
And also prominent social media influencers.
Each with about seven or eight hundred thousand followers.
They made money by sharing good movies and promoting products.
This time, the organizers had invited them to the screening with paid expenses.
They also wanted to leverage their influence to boost the popularity of their film.
But who would have thought, as soon as the movie started.
Old Mo and I were chattering in the back row. Our voices weren't loud.
But it really annoyed the two of them, so they mocked us a few times.
But who would have thought, these ghosts around us were not happy.
After all, they had been trapped here for five years.
No one had delivered them to the afterlife, no rituals performed, no souls sent off.
They simply couldn't leave this place.
The appearance of Old Mo and me gave these ghosts hope.
Seeing someone mock us now, they all showed expressions of anger.
The Yin energy enveloped them, directly suppressing the temper of the two women.
Coupled with the resentment these wandering souls held towards them.
This caused the Yang energy of the two film critics to rapidly decline, their luck diminishing.
Therefore, it led to these two women suddenly being able to see ghosts filling the room.
Some of the ghosts even appeared as they had when they were burned to death.
Bloody and terrifying.
When the two women saw ghosts filling the room, they screamed "Ah!"
They were so scared their faces turned pale, and they almost burst into tears.
The screams of the two women drew the attention of everyone else.
They thought the two women were screaming because they were scared by the movie.
Completely unaware that it was because they saw ghosts filling the room.
Just as the two women were at a loss,
A middle-aged ghost sitting next to them suddenly spoke to them:
"You are not welcome here, hurry and leave..."
One of the women saw the middle-aged ghost speak.
And the middle-aged ghost revealed its flesh.
The two women were so scared they couldn't sit still any longer.
"Ghost! There's a ghost!"
"Don't come near, don't come near!"
The two women screamed and ran out.
They even lost their shoes.
The ghosts by the aisle directly made way for them.
The other audience members stared blankly, finding it quite amusing.
They thought they were just scared by the movie.
Some even took out their phones to take pictures.
Some media workers had even prepared headlines:
"Your Three Lives Three Worlds Come Find Me" premiere, film critic Xiao Xiao was frightened and left halfway through...
The organizers quickly chased after them.
And at the same time, they appeased everyone and asked them to continue watching.
After all, besides us, no one else could see the ghosts.
But Li Shiyao, sitting in the front row, clutched her protective amulet tightly.
Looking back at us in the back row with great nervousness and worry.
Old Mo and I sat in the back row. Seeing Li Shiyao turn around, we felt awkward.
But I still sent her a message, telling her not to worry.
From then on, we could only wait.
After all, that malevolent spirit had not returned.
During this time, besides watching the movie, I also inquired about the basic situation here from these ghosts.
And the ferocity of that ghost.
From the inquiries, I learned that
There was a fire here five years ago.
And the culprit was that malevolent spirit.
Because of a romantic entanglement with the cinema owner.
She used gasoline bottles to set the venue ablaze, intending to take revenge.
And die with the cinema owner.
She sealed off the entrances and exits, coupled with design flaws in the entrances and exits and poor fire safety.
As a result, when the fire broke out, everyone in the screening hall couldn't escape.
But what was even more absurd was that the owner was in another screening hall at the time, and the owner didn't die, so over a hundred people were sent to their deaths.
By the time rescue personnel arrived, all one hundred and three people in the hall had died inside the screening hall.
And most of them had suffocated to death by the thick smoke.
Since then, these over a hundred ghosts had been wandering here, unable to leave.
That female ghost, it seemed, failed to kill the cinema owner.
Thus, her resentment did not dissipate, and she became a malevolent spirit...
Besides this, Old Mo and I also checked some information online.
We did indeed find news of a fire here five years ago, which resulted in over a hundred deaths.
The owner fled, and the cinema went out of business.
What happened afterward was not mentioned.
But half a year ago, the current company took over, renovated, and reopened.
There were several posts online saying that this film was a bit uncanny.
But the click-through rate was not high, and it didn't garner much attention.
After understanding the whole process, and the history of the cinema.
I felt sympathy for these ghosts in the screening hall.
One person's mistake caused these ghosts to suffer.
After death, they could only be confined in this dark screening hall.
Moreover, the female ghost, after her death, became a malevolent spirit.
She didn't treat these ghosts well either, often tormenting them.
Especially the male ghosts, they were tortured by her to the point where they wished for death but couldn't achieve it.
"Daoist priest, you must help us unfortunate souls!"
"Yes! Daoist priest, you must bring justice for us!"
"We are all so afraid of her returning, we don't want to stay here anymore."
"..."
The male and female ghosts around them spoke at this moment, as if they had found a lifeline.
Wishing for Old Mo and me to help them leave this place and be reborn into the lower realms.
I nodded and whispered,
"Everyone, please rest assured. After the movie, I will help you all."
"That malevolent spirit hasn't returned yet, everyone finish watching the movie first!"
Old Mo echoed in agreement.
After all, this was Li Shiyao's film premiere, and we didn't want to ruin it for her.
Sending off souls and expelling ghosts would have to wait until after the movie.
The ghosts around heard us and nodded.
They all sat down properly and began to watch the movie.
The movie was already halfway through, and I watched it intermittently.
Although the special effects were garbage and the female lead was a bit ugly, the plot was quite good.
It was roughly about a female ghost waiting for her man for three lifetimes.
And it's worth mentioning that Li Shiyao's acting was quite good.
Although she was only the third female lead, her appearance as a ghost was stunning.
Her presence and acting completely overshadowed the first and second female leads, making Li Shiyao's role feel like the best in the entire film.
When the movie ended.
The lights in the screening hall turned on.
The director and other staff members came to the front to give speeches, take questions, and take photos with the audience.
A crowd of ghosts sat motionlessly in their seats, watching.
Neither happy nor sad, making no sound.
Li Shiyao was liked by the audience, and many asked for photos with her.
But the female lead, who had left a long time ago, was nowhere to be seen.
Just as the director and actors were waiting for the female lead to return for a group photo.
The ghosts in the screening hall suddenly became restless.
They all looked towards the entrance in fear.
The female ghost family sitting next to me cast terrified glances at me.
They spoke nervously:
"She's here, she's here!"
"She's back, she's back..."