Chapter Eighteen: Captured?

Ruan Miao, a top graduate of Lingcheng Academy of Fine Arts, thought of herself as extraordinary, just like most young people. So, upon graduation, she refused the offer to stay at the academy and embarked on her own creative journey.

But reality was harsh. For a painter like her, without connections or fame, there was no way to make a name for herself, and without fame, her paintings were worth nothing.

One day, by chance, she came across a call for submissions to a “Horror Art Exhibition.” On a whim, she sent in one of her works. To her surprise, it was immediately accepted, and she received a small sum for it. With this money, she bought more art supplies and threw herself into her work with renewed vigor.

This experience made her realize her talent for creating horror-themed paintings. From that moment, she devoted herself entirely to painting horror art.

Yet, no matter how hard she tried, she could not recapture the feeling she had when she painted that first piece. In frustration, she tugged at her hair until strands littered the floor, but inspiration still eluded her—until, by accident, an article popped up on her computer screen.

“Shocking! Terrifying Doll and Girl in Red Appear in the City—Urban Legend or Chilling Reality?”

Her curiosity piqued, she clicked in, and was immediately captivated by the story of the doll.

As she delved deeper into these urban legends—“Abandoned Parking Lot Incident,” “Short Video Incident,” “Charity Concert Incident,” and so on—she became increasingly fascinated. Fear wrapped itself around her, but she only grew more engrossed, compelled to uncover everything about this doll. Now, she finally knew what she wanted to paint.

She swiftly spread out fresh paper, mixed her paints, and began, but after only a few strokes, she tossed the sheet aside. She tried again, but once more, discarded the work after just a few lines.

Her expression turned manic as she painted, scrapped, and painted again, until soon, her entire rented room was buried in crumpled sheets. When she reached for another, she realized she’d used up all her paper.

Stepping out, she decided to buy more supplies.

“Why? Why can’t I capture that feeling?” she muttered to herself as she walked, turning the question over and over in her mind. The doll in the legend was so terrifying—why couldn’t she evoke that same horror in her work?

Lost in thought, she was suddenly drawn by the sound of a lilting children’s song to a toy shop. It was an ordinary store, but inside sat a doll with a sinister smile and piercing eyes, staring right at her.

Ruan Miao jumped, stumbling back in shock. “This... this is exactly the doll I imagined!”

Without another thought, she rushed inside and pointed at the doll, asking the salesperson, “How much is that one?”

“Fifty,” the salesperson replied without hesitation, not even glancing at the doll.

Ruan Miao didn’t bother to bargain. She handed over fifty yuan, seized the doll, and left, elated.

“With this doll, I’ll finally be able to create a perfect masterpiece!”

After buying the rest of her supplies, she hurried back to her apartment, not daring to waste a moment.

Staring at the eerie doll, Ruan Miao trembled with excitement, forcing herself to steady her hand before beginning to paint. This time, her strokes were painstakingly slow, as if she wanted to capture every detail.

The first attempt, she made a mistake with the pattern on the doll’s dress and immediately discarded the sheet.

The second, she added an extra stroke to the doll’s expression—without a second thought, she threw it away.

The third, fourth, fifth attempts… Even when the painting was nearly perfect, the smallest flaw would see it ruthlessly tossed aside.

At last, after countless tries, she held up her finished painting and admired it. The terrifying expression, the menacing presence—she had captured every detail.

“Perfect! Absolutely perfect!”

Looking at her work, Ruan Miao wanted to remain modest, but her skill would not allow it.

She looked up, ready to thank the doll, but it had vanished without a trace. No matter where she searched, it was nowhere to be found.

Baffled, she checked her transaction records, but found no sign of a fifty-yuan purchase. And… there was no toy shop at that location at all.

A strange atmosphere quickly filled her apartment, but rather than fear, Ruan Miao only grew more exhilarated.

...

Meanwhile, in the city center, there was a sandy lot, its dilapidated surroundings indicating it had long been abandoned.

Li Juetian, accompanied by his subordinate Han Zhen, had surrounded a teddy bear. No matter how the bear tried to use miniature teddy bombs to break free, it couldn’t escape their seemingly flawed encirclement.

Watching the teddy bear bound by ropes, Li Juetian shook his head. “Too weak. Even at E-rank, it’s still nothing. I wonder how strong that doll really is.”

Han Zhen, holding the notebook he usually used to record observations—clearly his own peculiar creature—acted next. In a flash, the notebook slammed down, pinning the teddy bear beneath it. The bear struggled briefly before, its energy spent, it fell still.

Once certain the bear’s presence had dropped below a certain threshold, Han Zhen turned to Li Juetian.

“Boss, should we destroy it on the spot, or bring it back for the guys at the Institute of Biological Research?”

After defeating a bizarre entity, agents of the Bureau of Anomalous Creatures had two options: unless the higher-ups gave specific instructions, they could eliminate the entity directly, or turn it over to the local biological research institute for a handsome reward.

“Destroy it. Something this weak isn’t worth studying.”

Han Zhen nodded at his leader’s words, stepped forward, and used his psychic power to increase the pressure from the notebook on the teddy bear.

But suddenly, a strange turn of events!

A huge hand abruptly lifted the notebook, saving the teddy bear. It was a little girl in a red dress!

Li Juetian gasped in shock, “You’re that doll’s...”

Before he could finish, a chilling presence made him whirl around—a doll was standing there, giving him a sinister smile.

No time to think, he quickly untied the teddy bear and rushed at the doll.

But as soon as the doll touched the rope, it was tightly bound, struggled briefly, and collapsed to the ground. The little girl scooped up the teddy bear and vanished, her presence disappearing entirely.

Everything had happened so fast, Li Juetian barely had time to react.

Staring at the doll still struggling on the ground, he was baffled. “Is this the doll that kept me busy for so long? And its controller just left?”

For some reason, though, he didn’t find anything especially odd about it. He simply called for Han Zhen and headed for the Bureau of Anomalous Creatures.

Stuffing the doll into the car, he drove at full speed toward the bureau.

But he failed to notice that, as soon as the doll was bound, it flashed a wicked smile—as if everything had gone exactly according to plan.

Today, the Bureau of Anomalous Creatures was destined for something extraordinary.