Seven cinema chains could never have imagined that "The Corpse of the Mountain Village," which had been experiencing a steady decline in box office performance, would see a dramatic rebound on its sixth day of release, with audience numbers skyrocketing overnight.
And this surge occurred during the chilliest hours of the night.
Across the seven cinema chains, a total of twenty-eight theaters were involved.
As four hundred and eighty thousand people flocked to cinemas to watch "The Corpse of the Mountain Village."
The twenty-eight managers were all woken up by their duty managers in the middle of the night.
Upon learning that nearly twenty thousand people had booked tickets as a group to watch the movie, the managers immediately activated backup screening halls.
In all twenty-eight theaters, any available screening room was utilized to provide better service to customers who came to watch movies late at night.
As the film began to play, the bustling cinemas finally quieted down.
But as the suspenseful moments in "The Corpse of the Mountain Village" continued to unfold, screams echoed through each cinema like a rising and falling tide.
Ten thousand people screaming, and in the middle of the night, one can only imagine the consequences.
Residents living near the cinemas were awakened by the sudden screams that erupted in the middle of the night.
Each person woke up from their sleep, listening to the intermittent screams from outside, with bewildered expressions.
Those living closer, upon realizing the screams were coming from the cinema, promptly locked their windows, put on earplugs, and went back to sleep.
However, residents who lived farther away, unsure of the source of the noise, began calling the police, describing the sudden screams in the middle of the night to the officers on duty.
Some residents, still groggy from sleep, thought an earthquake or some major event had occurred. They ran out onto the streets in their pajamas, exchanging blank stares with others who had done the same.
The commotion caused by ten thousand people screaming in the middle of the night led to a large contingent of police officers visiting the twenty-eight cinemas.
After investigating the entire incident, the police officers were left somewhat speechless.
Who would have thought that tens of thousands of people would group together to watch a horror movie in the middle of the night, resulting in a "supernatural event" of widespread screaming?
The final resolution was that all twenty-eight cinemas received verbal warnings, with no fines imposed.
The mass screaming was deemed an unforeseen event with uncontrollable factors, so the police did not make things difficult for the cinemas.
Furthermore, the police instructed the cinemas to control the number of tickets issued late at night and to try to schedule movie screenings during the day to avoid similar screaming incidents in the future.
This incident was initially a minor episode. After the warnings were issued, the police were preparing to leave.
But just as they were about to depart, another unexpected situation arose at the cinema.
Three in the morning, Guojin Cinema.
"Manager Yu, today it's just a verbal warning, but if this kind of thing happens again, it will be escalated to a public order offense. It won't be just a warning then. We're all familiar faces, so don't make it difficult for me."
"Don't worry, Sergeant Hu. We will make rectifications tomorrow and cooperate with the police. Would you like to have a late-night snack? My treat."
"No need for a late-night snack, I have to get back to duty. But, is "The Corpse of the Mountain Village" really that scary?"
"Whether it's scary or not, I don't know, I haven't seen the movie myself. But all my employees who watched it have taken leave and are currently in a temple in Shencheng praying for blessings."
"That scary?"
"Who knows? Anyway, I don't dare to watch it!"
As Sergeant Hu You was talking with Cinema Manager Yu Hui, screams from the audience once again erupted from the screening hall.
The two exchanged glances, skipped their previous topic, and walked out of the cinema while chatting.
As soon as they stepped out of the cinema, they saw reporters who had been waiting for a long time rushing forward with microphones, bombarding Sergeant Hu You with interview questions.
Someone must have leaked the news to the media, as they arrived shortly after the police.
"Officer, was the mass screaming in the middle of the night caused by the movie "The Corpse of the Mountain Village"?"
"Officer, tens of thousands of people screamed and disturbed public order. Aren't you going to arrest them?"
"Officer, I heard from unofficial sources that the mass screaming tonight was a supernatural event. What do you have to say about that?"
"Officer, I heard that the movie "The Corpse of the Mountain Village" has caused multiple supernatural incidents. Is it possible that Chu Renmei really appeared in the cinema tonight?"
Except for the official media reporters from "Hong Kong Daily" and "Hong Kong Radio," whose questions were relatively standard, the others were from gossip magazines, and their questions were off-topic.
In Hong Kong, dealing with the media was a routine matter for the police.
Therefore, Hu You completely ignored the gossip media and only answered the questions from the official media.
As he was skillfully answering the reporters' questions.
Two cinema employees, supporting a fainting audience member, rushed over quickly.
"Make way, don't block the path!"
One of the employees shouted.
Seeing that the crowd in front was unresponsive, the employee directly cursed, "Your mother, get out of the way! Someone fainted, damn it!"
As soon as the profanity was uttered, the police officers who had responded turned around, their expressions clearly displeased.
But upon noticing the woman being supported by the employees, everyone was stunned into silence.
Manager Yu Hui cleared his throat and quickly offered an explanation to those nearby.
Soon, the crowd blocking the way parted.
The two employees, supporting the unconscious woman, rushed towards the waiting ambulance.
Instantly, the area in front of the cinema doors was filled with the sound of camera shutters, and flashes of light illuminated the three retreating figures.
As the two employees and the unconscious woman boarded the ambulance and left.
Two more ambulances remained in the parking lot, waiting.
But after only ten seconds.
A doctor in a white coat and a nurse carrying a first-aid kit stepped out of one of the ambulances.
Their appearance immediately drew the attention of the media again, and their cameras instantly focused on the pair.
The doctor and nurse paid no attention to the media photographing them and quickly headed into the cinema.
This was because the doctor had received a message via pager from inside the cinema indicating that an audience member was experiencing convulsions and required emergency treatment.
Therefore, the two of them had abruptly entered the movie theater.
Such sudden situations were not only occurring at Guojin Cinema.
The other twenty-seven theaters were also indirectly experiencing audience members fainting from fright or acting erratically.
Tonight, over four hundred thousand people had come to watch the movie, and the situation was rife with incidents.
Many viewers who had initially been skeptical and dismissive of "The Corpse of the Mountain Village" were completely silenced after experiencing it firsthand.
Their doubts and dismissiveness had long been drowned out by the fright from the movie.
Three-fifty in the morning.
As the final post-credits scene appeared, the chilling face of Sister Chu once again cast a shadow over the audience who were about to leave.
With the final screams fading, the movie finally ended.
The audience in all twenty-eight theaters walked out of the screening halls, completely dazed.
The four hundred and eighty thousand moviegoers.
Before they came, each person was full of bravado, scoffing at the idea of a movie scaring people into the hospital, completely unconvinced.
But after watching it, everyone's faces were pale, their eyes vacant, and they left the cinema in a state of mental disarray.
They were a far cry from their demeanor before entering.
Some of the braver audience members only appeared slightly pale, but upon closer observation, their hands and feet were trembling.
"The Corpse of the Mountain Village" had taught these defiant individuals a harsh lesson.
Later that night.
"The Corpse of the Mountain Village," with its small flame icon, quickly climbed to the top of the trending topics on Hong Kong social media platforms.
At the very top of the trending topics were media reports of the night's events.
In addition to audience members fainting and being rushed to the hospital, there were also reports of on-site treatment and mass screaming in the middle of the night.
Below the news, there were even more comments from audience members sharing their feelings after watching the movie.
[I'm speechless. I thought it was just a movie that would make girls cry. I never expected that I, a grown man, would almost pee myself. Damn it!]
[No wonder a movie can scare people into the hospital. Now, whenever I close my eyes, all I see is Chu Renmei's terrifying face.]
[Stop talking. It's been hours since I got home from the hospital and I haven't dared to go to the bathroom, just in case Chu Renmei suddenly appears from the drain.]
[Damn it, tonight's sleep is ruined. As soon as I turn off the lights, I feel like Chu Renmei will crawl out of the TV. Even drinking water, I'm afraid it will attract Chu Renmei.]
[Son of a bitch, I'd rather die than watch it a second time. It's a lifelong psychological shadow!]
In just ten minutes, tens of thousands of post-viewing impressions flooded the trending topics.
There were also paid commenters.
But how could their comments overwhelm the reactions of hundreds of thousands of moviegoers?
At four in the morning.
The more than four hundred thousand viewers who had watched the movie and were too scared to sleep were still online.
They continued to post on the internet, engaging in various discussions with fellow netizens who were in the same predicament.
However, by nearly five in the morning, some netizens, experiencing physical and psychological discomfort, went to the hospital for treatment overnight.
Suddenly, the psychology departments of hospitals of all sizes in Hong Kong were fully booked.
According to leaks from media moles embedded in the hospitals, over fifty thousand people visited the hospital for treatment that night, nearing sixty thousand.
This number once again set a new record for the number of people seeking medical attention due to watching a movie.
When the media reporters received the news and published the numbers online.
The trending topic for "The Corpse of the Mountain Village" fell into complete silence.
After about half a minute, the comment section of the topic was once again flooded with messages.
Everyone's message was almost the same.
"Sister Chu, I was wrong, I surrender."
Who would have thought that nearly sixty thousand people would seek medical attention at the hospital after watching the movie tonight?
This group of four hundred and eighty thousand moviegoers was perhaps the most embarrassed batch.
.....
The next morning.
The trending topic for "The Corpse of the Mountain Village" remained high on the charts.
Netizens who had not yet seen the movie were preparing to see what kind of ordeal the moviegoers had gone through the previous night.
Upon seeing the various news reports in the trending topics, everyone was stunned.
"Eerie screams suddenly erupted in Hong Kong at three in the morning, the reason being the movie "The Corpse of the Mountain Village"!"
"Latest report: Medical staff are on standby for screenings of "The Corpse of the Mountain Village."
"According to statistics, the number of people seeking medical attention due to watching "The Corpse of the Mountain Village," and the number of people who fainted on the spot, have reached new heights."
Looking at the reports about "The Corpse of the Mountain Village," netizens who had not yet watched the movie and were waiting to see the spectacle were completely dumbfounded.
Overnight, the four hundred thousand moviegoers not only broke box office records but also shattered various previous data.
After a night of numerous unexpected incidents, "The Corpse of the Mountain Village" finally exploded in popularity in Hong Kong.