Exorcist of the American Nightmares

"OK! Cut!!"

Loud calls to cut resounded throughout the carefully arranged filming location.

Drew looked at the three screens in front of him, observing the various data displayed, a trace of satisfaction fleeting across his face.

Doing it himself was indeed the best decision, and he didn't regret spending so much money on it.

Although living under someone else's roof didn't cost anything, for some reason, it was always inexplicably banned, which really frustrated him.

Thinking this, Drew stood up from his seat and walked towards the center of the filming area.

"Great job, everyone!"

As the person in charge behind the scenes, Drew clapped his hands as he cheered on Max and the actors who were hired for the shoot.

After the end, the hired actors began to return to normal, while the waiting staff entered the frame to clean up and distribute water to them.

"Hey!"

Drew looked at Ibrahim Khan, who got up from the bed, playing a possessed character, a third-rate actor who couldn't find work or acting opportunities, and exclaimed loudly.

"Hey! Who's going to give Ibrahim an Oscar?"

This remark undoubtedly hit the heart of the third-rate actor.

Ibrahim, while being wiped down by a staff member, smiled at the big sponsor.

"If I could win an award, the first person I'd thank would be you, Drew. You gave me inspiration."

These flattering words made Drew smile, and he went over to shake hands with the thoughtful actor.

"Thank you! Thank you all!"

In addition to shaking hands with Ibrahim, Drew also went to shake hands with several women playing family members, who helped create a great atmosphere. He made sure no one would go out and say their livestream was fake.

"If you want to take pictures or keep mementos, you can't upload them anywhere."

"Of course! We definitely won't talk recklessly, boss."

Hearing the promise, Drew nodded in satisfaction and smiled.

"Thank you! Thank you!"

After speaking, Drew continued to run over to his good friend and partner, Max, who was behind the scenes, and praised him.

"Great acting, buddy!"

Max glanced at Drew, smiled without saying anything, and just stared.

"Hmm?" Drew felt strange and felt a chill from Max's gaze.

"What's wrong, Max? Not tired, I hope? Come on, buddy, you used to be an indefatigable Energizer bunny!"

As he spoke, Drew habitually patted Max on the shoulder.

This action seemed to divert Max's attention.

"I'm fine, Drew. I want to know your next plan."

Drew was surprised, as in the past, this guy never asked about program-related topics. He shrugged: "I'm thinking of expanding our program."

"What kind of expansion?" Max picked up a bottle of mineral water from the high table and handed it to Drew.

"Ghost hunting! Séances!" Drew took it, not drinking, and confidently said.

"And visiting haunted houses! With such a rich lineup of programs, we can definitely attract many fans and passersby, and keep the show interesting, so the old audience doesn't get bored. Even if some people know it's fake, they'll continue watching it."

However, as Drew spoke, he didn't see the change in Max's expression, not knowing which words had struck a chord. Max frowned and said seriously.

"Drew, we've talked about this. Priests don't conduct séances, nor do they visit haunted houses. It's considered irresponsible, and they could be expelled from the church!"

Drew was stunned for a moment, not understanding why Max was particularly concerned about this point.

In his view, priests were just another profession; there were no demons or devils in the world, and no God either.

"I know, but Max, this is the first step that could expand our business, otherwise you'll never become a major internet celebrity with five million followers. Do you think having over a million followers is enough?"

Drew spoke earnestly.

"No, having over a million followers is just a small-time celebrity, a dime a dozen."

However, Max didn't want to listen any longer and simply shook his head, dropping a remark, "I don't want to do it," and then left, leaving Drew with a gradually grim expression.

"Damn!"

Drew watched Max's departing figure and felt somewhat headache, muttering a curse.

Meanwhile.

New York Cathedral.

Father Augustine, accompanied by Father Archibald, who was in training, was led into Bishop Romulo's room by a monk from the cathedral.

It was already half-past ten. Bishop Romulo had already taken off his daily bishop robes and changed into plain pajamas.

After reviewing the day's events and some information gathered.

"Not bad, I am pleased with the progress." Bishop Romulo glanced at Father Augustine, speaking calmly.

In the information, hordes of ghouls were eliminated in just one night

, completely cleared.

During the day, several related altars and magic circles were found and destroyed.

They also traced several suspicious individuals.

Receiving Bishop Romulo's praise, Father Augustine remained calm. He saw that the bishop had already seen the suspect's information and spoke.

"Bishop Romulo, these suspects have roughly been narrowed down to eighteen people, and they seem to be nomads, moving from place to place, each move leaving behind these altars and magic circles."

Father Augustine spoke with certainty.

"We can now confirm that these altars and magic circles indeed have summoning effects, and these, from sloppy to expertly crafted magic circle patterns, make me believe that among these eighteen, some have made deals with the devil. As to who exactly and what kind of deals, we have not yet discovered."

"Devil's deal?"

Hearing this phrase, Bishop Romulo's gaze lingered on the several photos before him, which were of tenants of houses that had hosted these altars, with their movements tracked below.

Importantly, Drew and Max's photos were among them.

Bishop Romulo shook his head, tossing the file on the table in front of him, and said calmly.

"I don't care who is involved in what, or who made deals with which devil. I only need you to find those who made the deals and uncover the truth."

In this world, an ordinary person making a deal with the devil, for Bishop Romulo, was just another day at the office. Having lived so long without dying, retiring soon, there wasn't much he hadn't seen.

Even if a devil appeared before him, it wouldn't disturb Bishop Romulo too much.

"Indeed," the elderly are wise, referring to his lifetime of experiences.

"Yes, Bishop!"

Father Augustine and Father Archibald respectfully nodded.

"With the help of the authorities, these eighteen suspects' traces will soon be found. As long as they still live in human society, they must use cards, money, etc. The only trouble is confirming everyone, one by one, to pinpoint the real suspects."

Hearing this, Bishop Romulo nodded and looked at the priests before him, waving his hand.

"Just manage it yourselves, and report back to me if there's anything you can't handle."

The two priests exchanged a glance, understanding the deeper meaning hidden in these words. If a demon they couldn't handle appeared, they'd call the bishop.

As the saying goes, when the sky falls, there's a tall one to hold it up, so although the high bishop usually didn't do much, his presence indeed brought much reassurance.

"Yes, Bishop!"

Father Augustine and Father Archibald, the two priests, quickly gathered all the documents and left.

They would use the methodical approach, with the cooperation of the official and the church, dividing their resources into eighteen parts to track down.

As for the timing, it would be determined by who was faster or slower. After all, free America was vast, and it was impossible to accurately confirm the reality of these suspects at the same time among the vast sea of people.

And so, time ticked by.

The following night.

When the report identifying the real suspects was about to reach Father Augustine's hands.

A filming location in Los Angeles had already begun deployment.

Drew, unaware that he had been targeted by both parties as a suspect, was directing on-site.

"Luciano, make sure the window bursts at the exact moment I say, got it?"

Drew said seriously: "This is important, I need the viewers, fans, and passersby to be shocked."

Luciano nodded confidently: "Boss, have I ever messed up?"

Hearing this, Drew looked at the window and smiled, then scanned the site, not seeing the person he was looking for, "Of course I trust you, Luciano. By the way, where's the sound engineer, Eman? Where did he go?"

Luciano hesitated, unsure whether to speak, and finally said: "He seems to have gone out to buy something."

But Drew directly saw through the lie, his expression turning stern: "He went to get high again, right? Damn it, go find him and bring him back. I don't want to see a junkie messed up on the job!"

Saying this, Drew looked at a young woman sitting in front of various devices playing with her phone, his mouth twitching.

He would never have hired such a person normally, as any slip-up could ruin the live broadcast atmosphere, an unacceptable mistake.

But he couldn't resist since Eman was his girlfriend's brother.

"Go find Eman! Tell him if he gets high again, he's out, and I won't pay him for earlier either!"

Luciano, hearing his boss wasn't joking, quickly nodded and then left to find Eman.

Watching Luciano's departing figure, Drew sighed, feeling that the recent troubles were becoming more frequent.

Even Max, an old friend, seemed a bit off, his normally

 carefree demeanor had changed.

"Did something happen that I don't know about?"

Thinking of Max, Drew flagged down a staff member who was setting up the site.

"Go, get Max for me, we're about to start shooting!"

The staff member nodded, but before he could go and find him, Max, along with a disheveled, dazed Eman, and a confused Luciano, walked in through the main door.

Seeing this, Drew couldn't help but exhale lightly.

"Hey, buddy, here's your script." Drew handed a script to Max.

Then looking at the pale, lifeless-eyed Eman, Drew frowned.

"Eman! You'd better wash your face first, or I won't let you work."

Eman, with a rough face and forehead covered in cold sweat, numbly nodded and then headed towards the restroom.

Drew was about to ask something, but Max had already taken the script and left on his own.

Instinctively looking at Luciano for an explanation, Drew only received Luciano's shrug and the reply that he had bumped into them right outside.

"Nevermind, go on, and check the props again."

Drew waved his hand, watching Luciano nod and leave, then shook his head and walked towards his girlfriend.

Anything is fine, as long as it doesn't affect the live broadcast.

Until it was almost time to start the scheduled live broadcast, another unexpected event occurred.

The hired actor was nowhere to be seen.

And there were only seven minutes left.

This ignited a fire in Drew's heart, muttering an angry "fk," but with the timer ticking down above, he was utterly helpless.

"fk, if they don't show up soon, I'll have to cancel this broadcast."

Drew looked at all the equipment set up on site, including Max and others. Although Eman hadn't appeared, there were still others who could replace him.

But the actor was a critical issue, especially important. If the performance was too exaggerated or overdone, it would completely prevent the audience from immersing themselves in the show, rendering the broadcast a failure. That's why he always hired professionally trained actors.

His girlfriend, Lainey, suddenly spoke up.

"What's wrong? You look so anxious."

"The actor hasn't arrived," Drew crossed his arms, helplessly saying.

"It looks like we'll have to cancel this broadcast."

Today was truly fraught with issues, giving him a major headache.

"The actor?" Lainey raised an eyebrow.

"The one playing the possessed?"

"Yes." Drew pinched the bridge of his nose while looking at everyone waiting on the set, and watching the timer now down to two minutes, he said.

"Not just anyone can perform that kind of hysterical demeanor."

Just then, his girlfriend's words sparked a realization.

"An actor? Isn't there one right here?" Lainey pointed at herself, smiling.

"You should know I was once part of a drama club!"

Drew looked at his girlfriend, a touched expression on his face, then clapped his hands and embraced her.

"That's wonderful, darling. You must be the blessing I earned in a past life."

Lainey merely said coolly: "You'd better sell more merchandise. I've decided to pick a better place for our honeymoon."

"You pick, anything you want!" Drew exclaimed excitedly, pulling his girlfriend out of the equipment area, towards the waiting crowd, and announced.

"The actor is here! My darling, Lainey, will take the role!"

Everyone was stunned for a moment, then cheered, only Max, dressed in a fake priest's robe, flashed a mocking look in his eyes.

He remembered the restroom, the man he had sacrificed to the devil as an act of sin.

"Brother and sister, what a perfect ending."

He looked at Drew, who held Lainey somewhat shyly in his arms, and muttered to himself.

Meanwhile, a plane from the Vatican had just landed at Kennedy International Airport...

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