Chapter 84: Casting
He took out his communicator and turned it on, and a string of messages popped up instantly.
Little Sheep: "I'm so rich now! Does anyone need money? I'll send you some."
This should be a perk for newcomers entering the story for the first time, with an improved initial identity. His identities in the previous two storylines weren't good, but this one was alright.
Old Lamp: "My identity is a janitor. What should we do now, Doctor?"
Little Sheep: "Uncle Lamp, do you need money? Why isn't Doctor saying anything?"
Old Lamp: "Not for now. Doctor probably hasn't checked the communicator yet."
Marcus picked up the communicator, edited a message, and sent it:
Doctor: "We're setting up a stage for a production. You all play your roles as locals, wait for instructions, and don't act rashly."
Little Sheep replied instantly: "What production? Are you at the theater? Don't worry, Doctor, I'll listen to you. Do you need money?"
Seeing Little Sheep's reply, Marcus repeated:
"No, wait for my arrangements, don't act on your own."
Little Sheep: "Got it, don't worry."
Marcus waited a minute, received Old Lamp's reply, and then put away the communicator.
Opening the laptop he carried, he found a paranormal investigation livestream video with over 5 million views on a streaming platform.
The streamer's profile picture was a photo of James Webb, the male protagonist of the first film, and Gabe, a supporting character.
Gabe was a heavyset man, the nephew of Master Alex at St. Michael's Church, who usually helped his uncle with various tasks. He appeared in both films.
In the first film, when James's wife, Sarah, was in high school, she and her best friend, Lily, both fell in love with James. Sarah, driven by selfishness, didn't help Lily confess, but instead pursued James herself, and they dated and got married.
Lily's love letter was leaked, and she was ridiculed by her classmates, causing their friendship to break down.
After being bullied at school, Lily saw the boy she liked getting together with her best friend, so she hanged herself. More than ten years later, she transformed into a malevolent spirit, seeking revenge.
The video of James and Gabe performing the ritual was filmed by one of the girls who was bullied at school, forced to hang herself by the malevolent spirit, and the video was a farewell message.
Marcus clicked on the video.
In the dark night, blessed salt covered the streets and alleys, and white candles lined the walls with black lettering reading "Memorial Service" and providing a route map.
As the video progressed,
a burlap sack sealed with protective charms was thrown into the river by two spirit mediums.
The Four Archangels—Michael and Gabriel on the left bank; Raphael and Uriel, along with two other guardians, were on the right.
A priest dressed as the Grim Reaper, wearing a black hooded robe, holding a ceremonial scythe, with face paint and a false beard, lit a pile of sage. While chanting and performing the exorcism, the video ended.
Marcus quietly watched the stopped video and the photo of James on the host's profile picture.
At this time, James's wife was pregnant, but it wasn't the real Sarah. Sarah should have been killed by Lily's spirit when Lily caused havoc at St. Michael's Church.
At this moment, Sarah was actually possessed by the spirit Lily, and it was unknown how James had gotten the spirit pregnant.
At the end of the second film, one of the dark wisps of the Soul Collector also approached the couple.
To completely eliminate the Soul Collector, they first had to eliminate its backup plan.
Marcus thought for a moment—since they were going to put on a show for the four unknown Keepers, they had to use real actors.
The other party wasn't stupid; they couldn't be fooled by characters unrelated to the plot.
Therefore, James, who only made a brief appearance in the second film, was a very important character. Marcus remembered the contact information under the video and decided to cast him as the lead actor.
Then Marcus entered another name into the video platform: "Greyson Bear".
The platform pulled up a video of "Night Exploration of the Abandoned Mall" filmed last year.
This was Greyson who hired Jamie to summon Bloody Mary and film the ritual.
Later, during the filming of the ritual, he discovered the Soul Collector's fiery red eyes and was killed by it.
Afterwards, the Soul Collector possessed the camera. Near the end of the film, his girlfriend Quinn, while sorting through his belongings, touched the camera and was possessed by the Soul Collector.
This Greyson was also a supporting character in the movie, and also a way for the Soul Collector to escape.
Marcus decided to have him act in his production and eliminate this backup plan.
The next morning, Kyle called, saying he had prepared the funeral service guest list overnight and asked when Marcus would be available.
Marcus asked him to send the list and also invited him to his hotel.
He chose St. Michael's Church responsible for the exorcism ceremony. Marcus checked online and found it was indeed very famous, specializing in various rituals.
Their business scope ranged from live-streaming the sale of various blessed ritual items to spiritual consultations, exorcising evil spirits, and fortune-telling—anything that science couldn't explain.
With Marcus's discerning eye, the 999+ comments from users were obviously fake.
It seemed St. Michael's had invested heavily in advertising, which was the source of its fame.
But as long as it was famous, that was enough.
"Uncle," Kyle had already arrived at the hotel.
Marcus nodded, pointing to the streaming platform on the computer:
"See this currently trending video of the ritual?"
Kyle, standing beside him, nodded, somewhat puzzled.
"To make an ordinary paranormal video so popular, that's some real talent."
"The online media industry is booming lately. I'm also planning to start a media company. This young man, I think, is quite good; he should be someone who can get things done."
Marcus pointed to the video's profile picture, praising him.
"Uncle, he's just lucky. Look at his other videos, they're all pretty average."
Hearing the phrase "get things done," Kyle felt a sense of crisis and subconsciously began to belittle James.
"You're not convinced? Why compete? Let me tell you, some people in this world are born talented, making a living through their skills. The videos go viral because of their ideas and ability."
Marcus smiled and lectured Kyle.
"Uncle, you're right!" Kyle replied somewhat defensively. He wanted to continue belittling James, but he was afraid of angering his uncle.
Young people are proud and competitive, and they can't stand hearing their parents praising other people's kids.
"Kyle, you seem unconvinced?"
"I wouldn't dare, Uncle."
"Wouldn't dare? That means you're unconvinced!"
Marcus chuckled, staring at Kyle with eyes that saw through a child's tricks.
"It's understandable to be dissatisfied, but you can't deny someone else's abilities. You may not have his talent, but you have me, your uncle."
"Why compete? Don't blame me for not giving you a chance. Since you're dissatisfied, then invite him to film this ritual."
"I don't require you to necessarily surpass him, but within this timeframe, no matter what you use, you must get close to him, even become his apprentice, learn all his filming techniques and methods, and win him over to your side."
(End of Chapter)
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