Rule Horror: The Nuo Mask Grandpa Left Me Bridges Yin and Yang

[Rule-based horror + suspense + mind games + folklore + Underworld Archives Division + inheritance storyline + no harem] At 12:47 a.m., Lin Jiuzheng’s phone rang. Caller ID: number ending in 4444. Before his grandfather died, he told him: the call was from the Underworld Archives Division. If he answered, he’d have to go below and investigate a case. If he didn’t answer, he’d still have to go. The phone rang thirteen times, and the King of Hell himself had called the roll. There was no getting out of it. He was forced to inherit his grandfather’s unfinished case file, “The Red and White Fiends.” In an old alley stood a Nuo opera house, with a theater stage dating back to the Republic of China era. Two figures stood on it: one wore a red wedding dress, the other a white mourning robe. “Whoever takes the stage tonight must be a descendant of the Lin family.” When he reached the theater clutching the bronze Nuo mask his grandfather had left him, the person in mourning clothes slowly turned around. Lin Jiuzheng saw that face clearly. It was his own. A new scar marked the corner of its eye, and a mocking smile curled its lips. “I’ve been waiting thirty-eight years for this performance.” The Nuo mask could serve as proof and allow its wearer to pass between the worlds of the living and the dead. What his grandfather had left him was no inheritance, but a game that had been destined, since 1982, to end by his own hand. The performance had begun. From the third quarter of the Zi hour until the Mao hour, the Red and White Fiends must appear on stage together. If either one is absent, their baleful energy will spill out, and ghosts will roam the night. Those watching the performance will see red but not white, or white but not red. If you see both, baleful spirits will cling to you, and you will surely die. Do not leave your seat or make a sound before the performance ends and the audience disperses. Those who disobey will be trapped on the stage forever.