Starting with dissecting ghost stories

The sensation of the soft fabric being cut was transmitted to Shen Xing's fingers through the blade. At the moment of the cut, Shen Xing could also see a large number of black, noisy "mycelium"-like objects rapidly contracting from the doll's body along its neck toward its brain.

With just a single circular cut, Shen Xing easily severed the head of [02-Doll].

Shen Xing lowered his left hand, picked up the head, examined it in front of the DV camera, and then looked at the notch in its neck.

Like the cut of the abnormal flesh and blood produced by the [01-Wall], it is a deep black cavity inside, which is opaque and bottomless, with only flickering noise.

However, unlike the mutated flesh, the cut edges of the [02-Doll] have tiny black mycelium splitting and stretching, looking like the antennae of an insect constantly peering out.

A noisy buzzing sound also rang in Shen Xing's mind. This was the sound emitted by [02-Doll], and he still didn't know how to block it.

Shen Xing temporarily placed the head on the left side of the control panel, away from the place where the mutated flesh and blood were placed.

After placing the head in place, Shen Xing took the more cartoonish doll he had bought and cut its head open.

The doll was very well made, with tight fabric. Shen Xing cut a button about five centimeters long, revealing the fluffy white cotton inside.

He reached in and scooped out some cotton, then pressed the remaining cotton tightly to create a cavity the size of a fist.

After doing all that, he looked in the direction of [02-Doll] and found that the mycelium under its neck had spread out from the edge of its neck and was crawling along its head at a speed that was almost imperceptible and slower than a snail.

It's as if they want to distance themselves from Shenxing.

Shen Xing clenched his left fist, and the black mycelium quickly contracted back. The puppet remained motionless, as if nothing had happened.

I'd like to cut off a section and study it.

But maybe next time.

Shen Xing lifted the head and stuffed it into the gap that the new doll's head had created. He then used tweezers to pick up the abnormally muscular little man and stuffed him directly under the neck of the [02-Doll]. Afterward, Shen Xing used needle and thread to sew up the doll's neck.

The amount of this abnormal flesh and blood is no different from yesterday's abnormal beef, and it can provide some extra energy for [02-Puppet].

After letting the new doll sit still for a while, Shen Xing quickly sensed that the [02-Doll] had once again established a slight connection with him.

This was very similar to the first time he fed the abnormal beef, and as the other party devoured it, Shen Xing felt the buzzing in his brain gradually weaken.

If that buzzing sound still represented "begging for mercy" or "screaming", then it has now stabilized.

Shen Xing looked at the DV camera screen.

In the image, the new doll begins to show obvious changes.

The noise can be seen, starting from the pupils of the new doll and then spreading down the neck to the entire body of the new doll.

Shen Xing could almost picture the scene inside the doll—black mycelium crawling and exploring inside.

Can it attempt to establish a connection with the new body?

Will its abilities decline after changing bodies?

Shen Xing's doubts were quickly answered.

In the DV footage, the noise disappeared shortly after the entire body of the doll was covered in it.

The child with no facial features and dark circles under his eyes reappeared on the control panel.

The old body of the [02-Doll] lying paralyzed to the side has not disappeared, but it is missing a head.

Losing a head isn't a big problem. There are no other cuts on the doll's body. Cutting off the head is just to make it easier to stuff the internal organs in.

However, the strange transformation of this new doll gave Shen Xing some ideas.

Initially, before the [02-Doll] had completely corrupted the new doll, it appeared as a normal doll on the DV camera screen.

Does that mean that this [02-Doll], like itself, also has the ability to maintain a form that can be seen by ordinary people?

Then, under its own control, it actively transforms into a "mimic human" that can be observed by humans.

That would be so convenient if possible.

When it doesn't need to act, it's just an ordinary puppet; it only mimics others when it receives an order from Shen Xing.

Shen Xing dressed the new doll in clothes, and the size was just right. The hair could also be implanted normally. As for the photo, Shen Xing tentatively placed the photo on the new doll's chibi-style face.

The photo, like the hair, seemed to have sunk into black water and been dragged into the interior of the new doll by the mycelium. Then, the [02-Doll] inside the DV camera transformed back into Shen Yuan's appearance.

perfect.

Shen Xing glanced at the time.

It's 12:30 now, and I still have a little over an hour...

Are you going to dispose of the body now?

It won't work during the day, and it would be best if it could return to the appearance of a doll in other people's eyes.

Shen Xing now knows quite a few people, and he doesn't want others to see him walking around with a little girl. He can't explain it clearly, and he doesn't want to be suspected of being a human trafficker because of it.

Shen Xing came up with a relatively simple solution.

【02-Puppet】It is very obedient to Shen Xing's commands, but if you want it to understand complex commands, you have to use language, gestures, or even actions to make it develop a conditioned reflex.

Shen Xing tried using his hands to choke the other person's neck, causing the fungal hyphae to retract back into the brain—he succeeded.

Whenever he pinched the neck of the new doll hard, it would be startled, retract its mycelium, and break free of its mimicry.

After several attempts, as long as Shen Xing made a choking gesture, it would automatically retract all the mycelium, forming a conditioned reflex.

However, as long as Shen Xing does not maintain this posture, the puppet will revert to its human-like appearance within about three or four minutes.

enough.

Shen Xing stuffed all the dolls—including the [02-Doll]—into his suitcase.

However, Shen Xing temporarily placed the children's mannequin in a corner to avoid it smelling too strongly with the dolls in his suitcase.

Fortunately, the doll's internal organs had been dehydrated, so the smell was much milder than that of rotten organs.

It's May now. Although it's the rainy season, there's still some time before the main flood season in June, so the river isn't as turbulent yet, and there are still shallow streams and reed beds along the banks.

The old town is located upstream of the river, with the river running between the old town and the new town. Several bridges connect the two areas. The new town, located downstream, has many factories and a large, diverse population.

As for the location of the body disposal, the old town area near the river would be more suitable, but those areas are definitely full of police now, searching along the river.

He left his suitcase in the garage.

Tonight, he will pack his suitcase and set off on his plan.

With the remaining time, Shen Xing cleaned the garage one last time, then went out, locked the door, slung his bag over his shoulder, and headed towards the school.