American variety show world begins with subduing Jason

"It's really kind of you to remember." The short, stout old man, Charlie Dalton, the mysterious folklore professor at Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, happily accepted the bag.

"There are also some for the students, everyone gets one." There are very few students majoring in mysterious folklore, so Zhu Mingyao simply prepared one for each person when he went shopping.

You should know that most people who choose this extremely niche major, apart from a few who are genuinely passionate about it and plan to do research in the future, are mostly children from wealthy families who are at the end of their inheritance line. They come here to get a degree and make a good impression, because they might need it someday.

"Thank you, Milyo."

"Thank you for the gift."

"Oh, you're not planning to continue attending lectures? That's a shame."

As the youngest student here, Zhu Mingyao was quite popular. After saying goodbye to everyone, he followed Charlie Dalton to the office at his suggestion.

"Regarding what happened between Clay and his fiancée, I must express my sincere gratitude to you. Thank you for your selfless help; otherwise, Clay might have lost his lover, and I might have lost this nephew..."

Professor Charlie politely invited the boy to sit down, offered him a cup of coffee, and said gratefully.

"If I hadn't heard their vivid descriptions, I wouldn't have known that you were such a powerful exorcist. Although I know a few psychics and mystics because of my research, they can only communicate with the souls of the dead or perform some ineffective rituals. They are far from being as, uh, professional as you."

“Professor Charlie, you’re too kind. As exorcists who follow the Xuanmen tradition, our school also upholds the philosophy of ‘cherishing life’. When we encounter innocent lives threatened by evil forces, I naturally cannot stand idly by, especially since they are your relatives. I have to help them even more.” Zhu Mingyao sat up straight in his chair and answered politely.

"As for your praise, I dare not accept it. In the magnificent and mysterious hall, I am just a small beginner. I can only help because I happen to be good at exorcism. In other aspects, I may not be better than your acquaintances."

Charlie Dalton chuckled, "That's your typical Eastern humility again. Clay once asked me for help in finding well-known occult experts near Los Angeles, but the ones I knew were either taken away by the government or mysteriously left Los Angeles..."

"That's because the Special Investigations Bureau was attacked on Christmas Eve. During this period, the authorities conducted a major crackdown on the superhuman community in Los Angeles and even the Golden State area. Those with dirty laundry were arrested, and those who were clean didn't want to cause trouble, so they temporarily fled to other places to lay low. Ordinary superhumans didn't dare to show their faces for a while," Zhu Mingyao thought to himself.

The more high-level extraordinary individuals, such as the elders of the Chinese Federation and the bishops of the Catholic Church, naturally remained in the area, but those people were clearly beyond the reach of someone like Charlie Dalton.

Despite being a professor at a prestigious university, he is at best a middle-class person in the federal society. The fact that he knows some marginal figures in the supernatural community is already thanks to his profession as a professor of occultism.

Professor Charlie's situation is a normal phenomenon in federal society. In this country, truly skilled masters either master both literary and martial arts and sell themselves to the imperial family to officially join the official ranks, or they mingle among the wealthy and famous, making them rarely accessible to ordinary people.

For example, the elder Singh whom Zhu Mingyao met last time was a very kind and approachable person. However, in his daily life, even state legislators who wanted to see him had to make an appointment two days in advance. Ordinary people who wanted to pay a visit would have to wait at least one or two months.

"By the way, I wonder how Miss Christine is doing? I ran into some urgent matters after we parted ways last time, and I haven't been in touch with them since."

Professor Charlie clapped his chubby little hands. "Look at me, I've been talking for so long and I forgot to tell Clay that you're here. I should have told this kid to thank you properly too."

He glanced at his watch, dialed the phone on the table, and said, "He doesn't have classes today. He should be at Professor Marlow's in the psychology department around this time, helping to organize some materials. I'll treat you to lunch; the three of us can go out for a good meal!"

Tuesday is the settlement day for Qidian data. The results largely depend on today's collections and reading activity, so please give us your support! For those who are holding back their reading, please turn to the last page today and read it carefully later (^ω^).

Chapter 63 Psychological Experiments in the Haunted House

"...You've actually met the famous exorcists, the Warrens? I wonder what kind of people they are?"

In Professor Charlie's office, Zhu Mingyao, holding a cup of hot tea, asked with interest.

After calling Clay, the two continued to sit there and chat. Although Professor Charlie was just an ordinary person, he had seen many strange people and events during his decades of studying mysterious folklore, and could be described as having a wealth of experience.

However, when it comes to supernatural powers, it's hard for others to believe unless they've seen it with their own eyes, so he basically never talked about it in class, which is why Zhu Mingyao only heard some of the stories today.

“Oh, the Warrens, I’ve only met them once, more than a decade ago. They were being interviewed by a famous magazine at the time, and the editor of that magazine happened to be a friend of mine. He knew I was doing academic research in that field, so he invited me to accompany them.”

"As for what kind of people they are, I can't really say for sure..." Charlie Dalton said, raising his eyebrows as he tried to recall.

"Anyway, they're not quite like the devout and enthusiastic exorcists of legend. Of course, I'm not questioning their faith in God, but rather saying they're very good at communicating, and their words are always perfectly tactful..."

Just then, two men pushed open the slightly ajar door and walked in. The tall, thin young man in front was Clay Dalton, followed by a middle-aged white man with brown eyes and black hair.

Charlie Dalton stood up, somewhat surprised, to greet him.

"Professor Maro, what brings you here?"

“Clay told me you have a very special guest here. I happen to have some things I'd like to ask him in person…”

The middle-aged man first greeted Charlie Dalton familiarly, then glanced at the boy sitting in the chair, seemingly thinking he was too young, and spoke hesitantly.

Clay Dalton, standing nearby, disregarded everything else and excitedly grasped Zhu Mingyao's hand, repeatedly expressing his gratitude:

“Mr. Milyo, you were right last time. After resting for a while, Christine has fully recovered and has not had nightmares since.”

Seeing your radiant face, I knew what was going on, the boy thought to himself, but deliberately teased, "That must be inseparable from Assistant Coach Clay's constant companionship and meticulous care."

Although Clay stayed on as a teaching assistant after graduating from the ivory tower and didn't spend much time in society, he was still an adult with a fiancée. Naturally, he wasn't embarrassed by this little dirty joke. On the contrary, he felt that the mysterious young exorcist in front of him had lost some of his mystique and become much more approachable.

He watched as Zhu Mingyao looked the man who had come in with him up and down, and quickly introduced him:

"This is Professor Marlow from the Psychology Department. He was my professor in college, and I'm currently interning under him. This time, I'd like to..."

Before Clay could finish speaking, Professor Marlowe interrupted him.

"Alright Clay, don't be like this the moment we meet, it's too rude. Uh, I know a newly opened Turkish restaurant nearby, the food is really good, why don't we go and try it together, it's on me."

Professor Charlie, being an experienced and shrewd man, could tell at a glance that Marlow probably wanted to ask for help with something, but he also felt that Zhu Mingyao was too young and somewhat unreliable. For a moment, he hesitated and didn't know how to make a decision.

He didn't say anything, but just smiled and said, "Then we won't stand on ceremony. Everyone can order whatever they want. Their psychology department is known for its generous funding." He even winked at Zhu Mingyao as he spoke.

Zhu Mingyao understood immediately. This was clearly a business opportunity, and Old Charlie was implying that the other party had a lot of health, so he just needed to sharpen his knife.

While Charlie Dalton and Marlowe were getting the car, Clay briefly spoke to Zhu Mingyao, explaining the situation.

Professor Marlow is one of the dozen or so associate professors in the psychology department of this university.

As a renowned federal university, the University of Southern California does not have a fixed number of assistant professors and associate professors.

However, the number of full professors, or tenured professors, has been relatively stable over the long term. Only when someone is unable to continue teaching for various reasons will an associate professor be promoted to fill the vacancy. Therefore, the competition among the faculty is quite fierce.

Recently, a tenured professor in the psychology department is preparing to retire due to his advanced age. Several senior associate professors, including Marlowe, are eyeing the vacant position. The most important criterion for standing out from the competition is a remarkable academic achievement.

"So your teacher, Maro, is planning to conduct an experiment on the psychological effects of a haunted house atmosphere?"

As the saying goes, "a trade is like a mountain," and the young man couldn't remember the difficult and stubborn psychological terms the other person used, so he could only repeat them according to his own understanding.

"Nominally, it's about studying insomnia, but in reality, it's pretty much what you're saying."

To be honest, I also felt it was a bit unreliable, but the other associate professors who participated in the competition all found good research topics. To beat them, our research topic had to be eye-catching and novel enough, and most importantly, the experimental period had to be short so that we could produce results before others.

Professor Marlowe came up with this idea, and as his former student and now his assistant, I couldn't refuse to help him.

Clay Dalton shrugged, a hint of helplessness in his expression.

“In the past, I would have only thought about helping him complete the experiment as soon as possible.”

But after what happened with Christine, now whenever I see a haunted house, I can't help but have all sorts of wild thoughts. So these past few days, I've been using my own experience as an example to try and persuade him to bring a professional along.

"You just happened to hear I was here today, right?"

The young teaching assistant grinned, a little embarrassed, and said:

"Yes, instead of going to those charlatans whose authenticity is unknown, it's better to trouble you to make the trip. Actually, I thought of you from the beginning, and I even went to the antique shop a few days ago, but you didn't seem to be home..."

Seeing the two professors' car parked outside the window, he quickly seized the opportunity and whispered a few more words.

"The funding for this experimental project that we applied for from the school is sufficient, and the timeframe is also short."

"You only need to stay there for a few days, and you'll receive 5000 Federal Gold Dollars as a reward. If you're willing to go, you can negotiate the price further. Professor Maro values ​​this matter highly, and as long as the offer isn't too outrageous, he should agree."

A reward of 5000 gold coins is indeed quite generous considering the difficulty of this task.

Based on Zhu Mingyao's experience learning from Zhang Shouzhong over the past few years, nine out of ten haunted houses are just rumors. Even if there is a real haunted house, it is at most a local spirit or something that can scare people by breaking pots and pans.

Now it's the 21st century, an era of advanced information. Those truly dangerous and murderous haunted houses and places would have long since attracted the attention of officials or civilians to deal with them, nipping the danger in the bud. Unlike the Lanruo Temple in A Chinese Ghost Story, which remained untouched for years until a huge monster finally emerged.

Thinking of this, he nodded slightly.

I'll find out more about the situation while we eat. If it's not too much trouble, earning some extra money wouldn't be a bad idea.

Tuesday is the settlement day for the starting point data. Brothers, please make sure to turn to the last page today! Reading the data starts today.

Today was pretty busy. My driver's license expired and I had to renew it, so I didn't have much time to write. (￣.￣)

Chapter 64 Professor Marlow's Invitation

Layers of sliced ​​meat were stacked into pillars and roasted until fragrant and golden brown. They were then slowly rotated on iron skewers more than a meter long. Every now and then, the waiters would pour chilled licorice juice from a huge copper pot next to the counter and serve it to the guests.

At noon, the Turkish restaurant was almost full.

The chef here is indeed very skilled. Zhu Mingyao forked a piece of Dorma from the plate and took a bite. He felt the slight sourness of the fermented grape leaves bloom on his tongue, which perfectly balanced the greasiness of the mutton pieces. The two, combined with the rice, turned into an enticing sweetness that lingered in his mouth, making him very hungry.

After rinsing his mouth with the black tea in his cup, the boy enthusiastically lifted the lid of the small earthenware pot in front of him. Accompanied by a crisp and refreshing vegetable platter, he launched an attack on the beef stewed until tender and succulent with plenty of spices.

Aside from exchanging a few polite words upon taking his seat, Zhu Mingyao didn't even lift his head once throughout the meal, focusing solely on the food on the table. Even when Professor Maro tried to subtly steer the conversation towards mysterious and supernatural events, he refused to respond, appearing completely uninterested.

"Don't rush things!" Zhu Mingyao understood this principle very well. The other party was clearly somewhat skeptical of his identity as an exorcist, and being too eager at this time would only backfire.

He could sit still, but others couldn't.

While chatting with Charlie Dalton, Marlowe frequently glanced at the boy across the table. He himself didn't really believe in ghosts or spirits. As a psychology expert, he was confident that he could replicate the tricks of psychics guessing card colors and mind reading on television with sufficient preparation.

In fact, this is also the mainstream perception in society. In this era, the psychic energy is dormant and supernatural powers are not very active. However, the population has increased many times over compared to ancient times. With the decrease in the number of people and the increase in the number of people, coupled with the intentional cover-up by the authorities, most people will never come into contact with any supernatural beings in their entire lives, or they may have come into contact with them without realizing it.

Therefore, exorcists were not part of Marlow's experimental plan at all. This was a study of psychology, not a TV show about the supernatural.

However, Clay, who had just experienced the curse, insisted on his advice, claiming that he and his fiancée had witnessed the existence of evil spirits and exorcists. He urged Clay to be careful and not to treat haunted houses as just legends, but to have a professional accompany him, just in case.

Despite Clay's repeated pleas, Marlowe's stance began to waver.

Although he still harbored doubts about the existence of supernatural forces, he trusted the character of his disciple and current assistant. Hearing that the disciple was willing to risk his reputation to swear that what he said was true, Maro felt that spending more money to hire a so-called exorcist to go with him was not a bad thing.

In any case, the expenses can be reimbursed in the name of the volunteers participating in the experiment. As long as academic results are produced, South Jin State University is relatively lenient in approving the budget.

However, this exorcist was far too young. Maro watched the boy devour his food, and the corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily.

Oh well, let's just consider it another control sample for the experiment.

He cleared his throat and said, "Mr. Milhaud, Professor Charlie and my assistant Clay both speak highly of you..."

Yes, I'm planning to organize a psychology experiment soon, about how terrifying external environments can have a psychological impact on humans.

The experiment will be conducted in a remote mountain manor with a history of haunting rumors. As a professional, could you offer some valuable advice to us who are about to visit such a place?

You're being so tactful, yet you're still putting on airs?

Zhu Mingyao calmly sipped his black tea to moisten his throat.

"This kind of thing is quite complicated. The phenomenon of the deceased wandering in buildings and causing disturbance or even harm to the living can probably only be referred to as a haunted house by ordinary people."

"But in the eyes of professionals, the different causes and the severity of the consequences can be divided into many categories."

"Simply put, the least harmful type is when the location of the house, the internal spatial distribution and furnishings happen to match certain concepts in mysticism."

In Eastern terms, this is considered bad feng shui. People living in such places are prone to feeling the lingering echoes of the deceased, experiencing insomnia, hallucinations, and other similar symptoms. This situation can usually be effectively resolved by simply changing the environment inside and outside the house.