The pentagram, also known as the great star or five-pointed star, holds special significance in many civilizations and religions.
For example, in ancient Egypt, the pentagram was used as a symbol of the underworld's womb, while in ancient Babylon, it represented Nephthys (goddess of the underworld), the twin sister of the goddess Ishtar. In Greek mythology, the pentagram was also a symbol of the Earth goddess.
However, in Christian culture, an inverted pentagram signifies turning one's spirit downwards, connecting with hell, and is therefore a very evil symbol.
The inverted pentagram is also the mark of the King of Wrath, and followers of Samael also use the inverted pentagram as their sigil.
Interestingly, Freemason meeting halls also display a flag with an inverted pentagram. Those who know, know.
After the priests examined the red pentagram in the center of the hall, they confirmed it was a symbol of the devil.
In fact, Roy and Jennifer could also sense the lingering evil aura on the pentagram. The fact that it could still be felt after decades showed how much more terrifying the evil aura must have been back then.
"It seems there was a mistake in the previous records. Lock down the scene immediately!"
Saltana's expression wasn't good. Fortunately, she was wearing a gas mask, so others couldn't see her facial expression.
Under Saltana's command, the staff immediately took action. They cordoned off the area around the red pentagram with caution tape and set up digital cameras around it to record information.
Digital cameras?
I think I have one too!
Since the events of *Ring* and *The Grudge*, Roy hadn't encountered any situations that required the use of a digital camera. This digital camera had been mainly used to film his action movies, having captured a large number of valuable works. He could debut directly if he took them to Holywood.
Would taking it out now capture anything?
Theoretically, Freddy could also be considered a kind of evil spirit, except this kind of evil spirit exists within dreams. Mason's digital camera might actually be able to capture something.
The only problem was that Roy was currently operating with the FEA. He wasn't sure if taking out his digital camera would violate FEA regulations.
He should probably check with Saltana first.
Saltana had just issued the order to have the first and second squads explore the mental hospital separately and was now on the phone calling for more backup.
The current situation was somewhat beyond Saltana's expectations. To be cautious, it was better to call for more people.
However, the signal on Saltana's communication device was intermittent and completely unclear.
It should be noted that because of the nature of Saltana's work, the communication device she used was a satellite phone. As long as she wasn't in a cave, there shouldn't be any issues with a poor signal.
"Something's not right!"
Just then, Roy approached.
"Sister Saltana, can I film something?"
Saltana was a bit annoyed. If anyone else had approached her at this time, she would have definitely gotten angry.
"Roy, the bureau's regulations don't allow outsiders to keep video or photo records! But I don't think you're the type of person to do something pointless. Is there anything special about this digital camera?"
Unexpectedly, Saltana was so perceptive. Roy had no choice but to tell the truth.
"I got this digital camera by chance. It seems to be able to capture things that are invisible to the naked eye."
"Things invisible to the naked eye?"
Saltana picked up the digital camera in Roy's hand and fiddled with it, only to see some static on the monitor.
"Why is there static?"
One of the staff members answered Saltana.
"Ma'am, all of our equipment is showing static too!"
Saltana felt that something was wrong. All the equipment showing static, coupled with the poor satellite phone signal, indicated that there was some kind of interference in this mental hospital.
Then, Saltana saw through the monitor a man wearing a black wide-brimmed hat and a red striped sweater sneaking behind the first squad and entering the corridor.
"Wait, is that Freddy?"
"Where?"
Roy leaned over to take a look and indeed saw Freddy's back.
"Damn it, the first squad is in danger!"
Saltana immediately wanted to contact the leader of FEAR Squad One via radio, but at this moment, all signals were cut off, and even the digital camera in her hand turned into a screen full of static.
This was very wrong!
Roy realized they might have fallen into a trap. The problem with this mental hospital was more troublesome than he had anticipated.
"Look quickly!"
Nancy suddenly noticed that a person had appeared in the middle of the red pentagram, a beautiful nun wearing a pure white habit.
Roy instantly thought of Freddy's mother from the movie. That nun seemed to be dressed similarly.
However, Roy remembered that this nun was supposed to be kind and had even helped the protagonist's son in the movie.
"Who are you?"
Saltana mustered her courage and asked the white-clad nun her identity.
"I am the person you have been looking for, Freddy's mother."
"Aren't you supposed to be dead?"
"Yes, I am indeed dead, but my soul is also trapped here. Are you trying to deal with that demon Freddy?"
Looking at the kind and beautiful white-clad nun, everyone's initial wariness lessened slightly.
But Roy felt that this white-clad nun was a bit strange. Even though the white-clad nun in the movie was a good person, he still didn't let his guard down.
Saltana continued to question the white-clad nun.
"Yes, do you have a way to deal with Freddy?"
"To deal with Freddy, I need a pure virgin to possess me, and then with the power of God, drag him into hell."
Roy was stunned for a moment. There was indeed a pure virgin present: Nancy.
This was really too coincidental!
Saltana frowned slightly.
"Where am I supposed to find a pure virgin for you right now?"
The white-clad nun smiled and pointed at Nancy.
"This girl is the purest virgin."
Everyone's gaze focused on Nancy, making her feel a little overwhelmed.
How to put it? In this day and age in America, being a virgin, whether male or female, wasn't something to be proud of. Many people were even ashamed of it, considering not having lost one's virginity a sign of lacking charm.
At this moment, Saltana's thoughts were completely led by the white-clad nun. She asked Nancy,
"Ms. Thompson, would you be willing to try?"
"I..."
Nancy hesitated for a moment, and just as she was about to agree, Roy stopped her.
"Don't agree to her! This nun is a demon!"
These words seemed to shatter something. The light in the entire mental hospital instantly dimmed, turning from two in the afternoon to night.
Just before Nancy was about to agree, Jennifer suddenly leaned over and whispered something in Roy's ear.
"Roy, Lilith told me to tell you that she also smelled Samael's scent on this nun!"
Another ex-husband?
Roy immediately understood that things were not as simple as they were portrayed in the movie. He immediately stopped Nancy, preventing her from agreeing.
Then, this change occurred in the mental hospital's hall.
The white-clad nun's aura underwent a tremendous change. She glared at Roy with a fierce expression.
"Just a little bit more, and I would have succeeded! You damn bastard!"
At this moment, everyone seemed to wake up from a dream. The white-clad nun must have silently hypnotized everyone just now, which was why Saltana had easily believed her.
Roy and Jennifer, however, had higher willpower and were not completely hypnotized by the white-clad nun.
Now that the hypnotic environment was broken, the white-clad nun revealed her true colors.
The red pentagram beneath the white-clad nun's feet began to glow, and then a large amount of blood gushed out from under her feet, like a fountain, dyeing her pure white habit blood-red.
At the same time, the white-clad nun's originally beautiful and pure face also turned evil and ferocious.
"Since you won't fall for it, then I'll just have to do it the hard way!"
As she spoke, the blood began to gush out even more, flooding the entire mental hospital hall like a tide.
Saltana hurriedly issued an order.
"Everyone retreat!"
But this order was clearly too late. Several staff members who were close to the red pentagram were swallowed by the blood in the first instant.
Roy quickly pulled Saltana and Nancy back. Jennifer reacted even faster and was already almost to the door.
However, the doors of the mental hospital had somehow closed automatically.
With no escape route, more and more FEA staff and FEAR soldiers were swallowed by the blood, and the blood was about to spread to Roy and the others.
At this moment, Roy thought of some doubts. If this white-clad nun was so powerful, why did she stay in the mental hospital and not leave?
And why did she specifically ask for Nancy, this pure virgin?
"Something's wrong! There's something off about what we're seeing!"
Jennifer also reacted.
"I'm afraid we haven't broken free from that guy's illusion yet! We might even be in a collective dream!"
This speculation was quite likely. After all, Freddy was a master at manipulating dreams, and his mother might also have the same skill.
But even knowing this, Roy, Jennifer, and even Lilith had no way to solve it. Otherwise, Freddy wouldn't have gotten away last time.
Saltana looked at the priests beside her.
"Father, do you have a way?"
The three white-haired priests looked at each other, and one of them answered Saltana.
"We can try, but without knowing the demon's true name, I'm afraid it won't be very effective."
The traditional exorcism method of the church is to use the power of the Bible to call out the true name of an evil spirit or demon, thereby banishing them back to hell.
However, the FEA's records didn't contain the name of Freddy's mother, only that she was a nun.
This name seemed to have been deliberately erased by someone.
Fortunately, Roy, whose memory had greatly increased, still remembered Freddy's mother's name from the movie.
"Amanda Krueger, her name is Amanda Krueger!"
At this moment, the waterfall of blood was already very close. The priests had no time to discern whether what Roy said was true; they could only try it as a last resort.
"Amanda Krueger, in the name of God, I banish you from this world, return to your hell!"
The three priests began to exert their power simultaneously, causing a beam of holy light to descend from the sky at the dark and terrifying entrance of the mental hospital.
This situation caught Roy and Jennifer off guard. They instantly became weak. This could be considered an unexpected disaster.
"Roy, Jennifer, what's wrong?"
Saltana and Nancy were surprised and helped the two of them up. It was lucky that the priests' main target was the white-clad nun; otherwise, Roy and Jennifer might have revealed their true forms on the spot.
"Ah—damn it, how do you know my true name!"
The blood in front of them receded like a tide, and the three priests, holding Bibles and crosses, pressed forward step by step.
Amanda appeared to be in great pain under the priests' pressure, and could only kneel on the ground, struggling constantly.
Unexpectedly, the priests' power was so strong. No wonder they could suppress the power from hell. Roy had certainly learned something new today.
Just as Roy and the others breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the white-clad nun was about to be dealt with, a FEAR operative suddenly appeared in the corridor.
Roy immediately felt uneasy. This FEAR operative hadn't appeared sooner or later, but showed up at this exact moment, which definitely meant trouble.
"Be careful!"
Unfortunately, Roy's warning was useless. The three old men were already quite old and couldn't react in time.
The FEAR operative was seen firing an assault rifle towards the priests, and all three old men were shot multiple times and died on the spot.
It seemed that even God's shepherds couldn't withstand bullets.
The FEAR operative took off his tactical helmet, revealing a rotten and ugly face—it was Freddy!
Jennifer's previous speculation was correct. They had all been unknowingly dragged into a collective dream.
However, what surprised Roy was that his inventory was still usable in this situation.
Freddy ripped off his clothes, returning to his classic attire.
"What a mess, Mother!"
Amanda slowly got up from the ground, glaring at Freddy with an unfriendly look.
"Hmph! If you had been a little quicker, I wouldn't have been in such a mess!"
"There's no way around it. Converting dreams and reality also takes some time. It's not something that can be solved by just opening your mouth."
It turned out that Freddy had converted reality and dreams. In other words, Roy and the others hadn't fallen asleep but had entered a dream while conscious.
No wonder the inventory was still working normally!
As Freddy spoke, he looked towards Roy and the others.
"Hehehe, I seem to see quite a few familiar faces! But the most important one is still my little darling Nancy! Come on, little Nancy, become my mother's vessel!"
Amanda also reached out to Nancy, starting to tempt the young girl.
"Come here, Nancy Thompson. As long as you submit to me, I can let your friends leave."
Judging by this, Freddy and Amanda had a deeper conspiracy, and Nancy was the key figure.
However, the kind-hearted Nancy, facing this desperate situation, had already made a decision in her heart.
"Are you telling the truth?"
Amanda looked at the remaining survivors. Besides Nancy, only Roy, Jennifer, and Saltana were left.
"Of course, it's true!"
Nancy hesitated for a moment, then resolutely walked towards Amanda, but she was pulled back after only a few steps.
"I object!"