19: Chapter 19 The Crying Rag Doll and the Bloody Ritual

The woman's name was Wang Guifen, and she lived in a shantytown on the other side of the city. Her daughter, Xiao Juan, was eight years old this year.

"Half a month ago, she picked up a ragdoll on her way home from school." Wang Guifen's voice trembled uncontrollably, her hands tightly clutching a faded floral cloth bag. "The doll was very old, filthy, with only two black holes left where its eyes should be, and it was covered in... something that looked like red paint. Xiao Juan insisted on keeping it, saying the doll was crying, that nobody wanted it, and that it was very pitiful."

Lin Yuan poured her a glass of hot water and motioned for her to speak slowly. Only one desk lamp was on in the studio, casting a soft light, but the greyish-black aura exuding from Wang Guifen—a mixture of fear, anxiety, and a faint scent of blood—made the air feel thick and viscous.

"At first, I didn't think much of it; it was just an extra toy for the child. But within two days, Xiao Juan started acting strange." Wang Guifen's eyes reddened. "She would talk in her sleep, constantly shouting, 'Mommy, the doll is watching me,' or 'It's bleeding.' During the day, she was listless. She used to be so talkative and cheerful, but now she just curls up in a corner all day holding that doll, ignoring everyone. When I try to feed her, she mashes the rice grains and stuffs them into the doll's mouth, saying, 'The doll is hungry.'"

"We took her to the hospital, but they couldn't find anything wrong. We found an old person who knew about these things, and they said the doll wasn't clean and told us to burn it immediately. But just as we were about to burn it..." Wang Guifen's voice suddenly rose, filled with terror, "The doll... the doll rolled out of the fire on its own! It didn't burn at all! Xiao Juan fainted right then and there, running a high fever and talking in her sleep, saying the doll was angry and wanted to take her away..."

"And then?" Lin Yuan frowned deeply. A ragdoll that could resist ordinary fire? This was no longer just a simple case of lingering resentment; it was highly likely that there was something "inside" it.

"Later... later I had no choice, so I found another master who was said to be very powerful." Wang Guifen tremblingly opened the cloth bag, revealing a stack of crumpled yellow talismans, a few photos with burnt edges, and a tiny wooden puppet tied with red string, pierced with needles. "The master performed a ritual, saying it was a vicious 'infant grudge' that had latched onto Xiao Juan. He gave us these talismans to stick around the house, as well as this 'substitute puppet,' saying it could temporarily fool that thing. It seemed to get better for the first two days; Xiao Juan was able to eat a little. But last night..."

She suddenly grabbed Lin Yuan's arm, her fingernails almost digging into his flesh. "Last night, Xiao Juan suddenly sat up in the middle of the night, her eyes fixed, staring at the window... A smiley face had been drawn on the glass with blood! It was Xiao Juan's own blood! Her finger was cut! She even spoke to the empty air, saying, 'The doll says the game is about to begin, and it needs to find more friends'... Master Lin, I beg you, please save my daughter! I'll pay whatever it costs! I'll sell my house if I have to!"

Lin Yuan gently pried her hand off, his expression grave. A blood painting on glass, induced self-harm, searching for "friends"... This was no longer just ordinary harassment or possession; it was more like the precursor to an organized, purposeful, and evil ritual. That ragdoll was likely more than just a vessel; it was probably a conduit for an evil contract, or perhaps the larval form of a growing evil spirit.

"Where is that ragdoll now?" Lin Yuan asked.

"It's... it's still at home. The master said it couldn't be thrown away, or it would immediately retaliate. It's wrapped in the talismans he gave us and locked in a cabinet," Wang Guifen sobbed.

"Take me to see it." Lin Yuan stood up and began packing his things. This situation was far trickier than the one at Xiangyang New Village; it involved a child, a suspected growing evil spirit, and a bloody ritual, making it extremely dangerous and urgent. He brought almost all of his belongings: the small amount of remaining revealing powder, the spirit aura pointer, the bronze bell (with some cracks repaired), newly purchased potent cinnabar and special incense candles, and... he also carefully packed the crystal of intent containing the faint "mark of conquest" that he had carried with him since the Yongxin incident.

On the way, through Wang Guifen's intermittent explanations, Lin Yuan pieced together more information: the shantytown where they lived was facing demolition. Many long-time residents had moved away, and those remaining were filled with anxiety and rumors. The place where Xiao Juan had found the doll was near the ruins of an old, abandoned kindergarten slated for demolition.

"A kindergarten?" Lin Yuan caught onto this keyword.

"Yes, it's been closed for over a decade. I heard something happened there in the past, and it's been desolate ever since," Wang Guifen said, wiping away her tears. "We usually don't let the children go near there."

An old kindergarten where an incident occurred, an evil spirit related to children, searching for "friends"... The clues seemed to vaguely point toward some forgotten collective trauma.

Upon arriving at Wang Guifen's home, an indescribable chill, mixed with a cloying, metallic scent of blood, rushed to meet them. This was the typical smell of a "nest" where an evil spirit resided. The home was simply furnished, but the walls were plastered with many crooked, yellow talismans, some of which had faded. In the corner, Xiao Juan was curled up on an old sofa, tightly hugging a long, red-cloth-wrapped object—the very same "substitute puppet." The girl was pale, her eye sockets sunken, her gaze hollow, and she showed no reaction to the arrival of her mother and Lin Yuan.

Lin Yuan's spiritual senses instantly tightened. He "saw" that the girl was enveloped in a layer of thick, impenetrable greyish-black aura. This aura was like a living thing, constantly trying to burrow into her mouth, nose, and other orifices. Between her eyebrows, there was an extremely faint but malicious dark red bloodline, resembling plant roots, slowly growing deep into her brain. The source of this bloodline pointed directly to a locked, old-fashioned wardrobe in the bedroom.

"Is the doll in there?" Lin Yuan pointed to the wardrobe.

Wang Guifen nodded fearfully and took out the key, her hand shaking so much she could barely aim it at the keyhole.

Lin Yuan motioned for her to step back and stepped forward himself. He didn't unlock it immediately but instead took out the spirit aura pointer. As soon as it was taken out, the pointer spun frantically toward the wardrobe, and the light blue crystal even became covered in a faint blood-red glow. He sprinkled a little revealing powder, and as the powder neared the crack in the wardrobe door, it instantly congealed into tiny, dark-red, vein-like patterns that spread across the cabinet door before rapidly vanishing.

Such strong evil energy! And it carried a powerful sense of ritual and growth!

He signaled for Wang Guifen to cover Xiao Juan's ears (if possible) and then rang the bronze bell. Amidst the clear, resonant ringing, he infused it with the "Optimization" intent, attempting to disperse the greyish-black aura around the girl.

The moment the bell rang, the "substitute puppet" in the girl's arms jerked violently! At the same time, a dull thud came from inside the wardrobe, as if something had slammed against it from within!

A flash of pain suddenly crossed the girl's hollow eyes, and her body began to convulse violently!

"Xiao Juan!" Wang Guifen shrieked.

Lin Yuan immediately stopped ringing the bell. It seemed that forceful dispersal would provoke the evil spirit and directly harm Xiao Juan, who was acting as the "host" and "connection conduit." He had to find a gentler or more fundamental solution.

He asked Wang Guifen to comfort her daughter while he went to the bedroom window. The bloody smiley face on the glass had been wiped away, but the remaining traces of energy were still clear—it wasn't just a simple doodle, but a crude yet complete summoning talisman, filled with twisted intentions of "games," "sharing," and "eternal companionship," with the goal of attracting the vital energy or souls of more children.

"Did the master mention the origin of this evil spirit before? Or did he go to check out the ruins of that kindergarten?" Lin Yuan asked.

Wang Guifen shook her head. "The master only said it was a vicious 'infant grudge' and that it would take a lot of money to perform a more powerful ritual to send it away; we really couldn't afford that much money... He didn't mention the kindergarten."

Lin Yuan pondered. It seemed that the master either had limited ability or ulterior motives. This matter had to be solved at its source.

"Auntie Wang, stay here and look after Xiao Juan. Lock the door, and no matter what sounds you hear, do not open it, and do not let anyone in, including the master from before," Lin Yuan said in a deep voice. "I'm going to check out the ruins of that kindergarten. Before I return, do not go near that wardrobe, and do not attempt to stick any more talismans."

"Master Lin, you... you're going alone? That place is very sinister!" Wang Guifen was both scared and anxious.

"I must go." Lin Yuan's eyes were firm. "If I don't find the root cause, the connection on Xiao Juan cannot be severed. Doing as I say is the greatest protection you can give her."

He stuck a simple "Protection and Calming Talisman" he had drawn with cinnabar and Power of Faith on the living room door, and gave Wang Guifen a small packet of special incense ash, telling her to sprinkle a little inside the threshold whenever she felt panicked.

Leaving the Wang residence, dusk was approaching. The shantytown appeared even more dilapidated and desolate; many houses were abandoned, their doors and windows broken, resembling crouching beasts in the twilight. Following the directions Wang Guifen had given, Lin Yuan soon found the ruins of the kindergarten enclosed by wire fencing.

Rusted slides, broken swings, a sandbox overgrown with weeds... An old two-story brick building stood in the center, its wall plaster peeling, windows shattered, the pitch-black window frames resembling eye sockets that had lost their eyeballs. Above the entire ruin, a layer of thick, dark-purple resentment—imperceptible to ordinary people—shrouded the area, mixed with the fear and helplessness of children, and a sense of… "playful" malice that had been deliberately twisted and amplified.

The spirit aura pointer was completely useless here; after spinning frantically, it fell into dead silence. The bronze bell, meanwhile, emitted a continuous low hum, its body cold and bone-chilling.

Lin Yuan did not rashly enter the main building. He first walked around the perimeter of the ruins, observing the terrain and energy flow. He discovered that most of the dark-purple resentment was pouring out from a half-collapsed basement entrance behind the main building. In the corners of the kindergarten's perimeter wall, some long-weathered bones—suspected to be from small animals or birds—were scattered, and around the bones, there were faint, unnatural energy residues.

He arrived at the basement entrance, and a strong, strange odor of formalin mixed with dust and a faint scent of blood wafted out. There were several fresh footprints left at the entrance; judging by their size and pattern, they did not belong to Wang Guifen, nor did they look like those of a child.

Someone had been here recently! It was very likely that "master," or... someone else?

Lin Yuan heightened his vigilance, turned on his high-powered flashlight, and bent down to crawl into the basement.

The basement was piled high with discarded desks, chairs, and toys, covered in thick dust. But as the flashlight beam swept across the floor, a clear dragging mark could be seen leading into the depths. The concentration of dark-purple resentment in the air was extremely high, almost solidifying, constantly trying to bore into Lin Yuan's protective spiritual light (formed by his "Optimization" intent and faint Power of Faith), bringing waves of bone-chilling cold and the hallucinatory sounds of children laughing and crying.

He followed the drag marks to the end of the basement, where there was a rusted iron door, its lock violently broken.

Pushing open the iron door, the moment the flashlight beam shone inside, Lin Yuan's pupils constricted sharply!

The room was not large, looking like an abandoned storage room. But at this moment, it had been set up as a crude and evil altar!

On the floor in the center of the room, a complex, dizzying, and twisted magic circle was drawn in dark-red, not-yet-fully-dried blood. At the core of the circle lay seven or eight tattered ragdolls! Each doll was similar to the one that had latched onto Xiao Juan—filthy, old, with black holes for eyes, and twisted smiley or crying faces drawn on their bodies in blood. On two of the dolls, extremely weak, dissipating fragments of children's souls were entangled, emitting silent wails.

Around the magic circle, there were scattered ashes of burnt incense candles, strange herbal residue, and several yellow papers with twisted runes drawn on them.

In the corner of the room, Lin Yuan saw something that made his heart chill even more—an open, old leather suitcase filled with various materials and notes for evil arts, and on the floor beside the suitcase, the outline of an adult male drawn in chalk, twisted and struggling! Within the outline, there still remained a faint, deathly aura filled with terror and curses!

Someone had been performing an evil ritual here, using these ragdolls as a medium to attract and imprison the souls or vital energy of children! And this person, in all likelihood, had been "backlashed" or silenced not long ago!

This altar and the ragdoll that had latched onto Xiao Juan were absolutely from the same source! It was even possible that Xiao Juan's doll was a "finished product" or "semi-finished product" that had "leaked" out from here!

Just then, the crystal of intent in his pocket containing the "mark of conquest" suddenly grew slightly warm, pointing toward a black wooden plaque in the center of the altar's magic circle, which had been deliberately hidden and held down by a small stone.

On the wooden plaque was carved a familiar, twisted symbol—it was identical to the pattern on Mr. Mo's black ring!

Lin Yuan's heart sank abruptly.

Things were, as expected, not that simple.

This evil altar, this insidious ritual targeting children... was there, once again, the shadow of Mr. Mo behind it?

Or was it that someone was imitating him, or... conducting some kind of "sacrifice" in an attempt to establish a connection with that dangerous evil cultivator?

He cautiously approached, not touching anything, and simply used his phone to take photos of the altar, the magic circle, the suitcase, the wooden plaque, and the death outline.

He had to get back as soon as possible! The doll that had latched onto Xiao Juan was likely more than just a vessel for an evil spirit; it was a "node" or "beacon" in this ritual network!

Just as he was preparing to retreat, from the direction of the basement entrance, came the sound of slow, heavy footsteps, along with the screeching sound of iron being dragged across the floor.

A hoarse, wheezing laugh, like a broken bellows, drifted in eerily: "Hee hee... another one has come... to play games... with the dolls..."

Lin Yuan turned abruptly, the beam of his flashlight shooting toward the entrance.

In the darkness, a deformed monster with twisted limbs, appearing to be pieced together from the torsos of multiple children, with several old, tattered doll heads sewn onto its face, was dragging a rusty iron chain, walking toward him step by step. The monster exuded a bloody, evil aura that was the same source as the ragdoll in Xiao Juan's arms, but dozens of times more powerful!

Its mouths, crudely sewn together with needle and thread, simultaneously split into several eerie smiles: "Big brother... stay... forever... and play with us..."

Darkness, accompanied by suffocating malice, completely swallowed the glow of the flashlight.