Each player holds a lantern and is led by the scholar out of the boundary of Zhenxi Dishe.
The footsteps of "pat, pat" sounded rhythmically, and the wooden house with black crows drifted away behind them.
The shadows of large buildings shrank quietly like dark clouds blown away by the wind, and the white skylight splashed down from above, reflecting the ground.
Yanghua Town is very lively during the day. The wooden buildings on both sides of the road are full of various shops, selling clothes, rouge, literature, and pawning things. There is a dazzling array of everything.
The air is filled with light incense, reminiscent of the smell of bamboo leaves or wild flowers. When the wind blows, it infects the player's clothes.
Townsfolk wearing various colors of clothing walked among the shops. They were blue, green, white, yellow and gray, all colorful.
Lin Chen firmly remembered Qisi's previous conclusion that "different professions dress differently", and at this moment he deliberately used his peripheral vision to observe the clothes and faces of every town citizen.
The one in blue is a child of a wealthy family, followed by a group of men and women in yellow and gray; the one in blue is a scholar, and the one in white is a beggar...
Sure enough, People with different identities or genders dress differently, while people in the same "business" dress generally similarly.
It’s as if... people are deliberately divided into categories.
Lin Chen recalled for no reason that in third-rate games on the market, because they were too lazy to re-model, they directly copied and pasted the NPCs created from the original models.
The personnel layout in Yanghua Town also has a deliberately shoddy feel. The atmosphere of human fireworks instantly becomes distorted and false, just like looking at the flowers hidden behind through thick fog. Only when you get closer do you realize that they are hidden behind. It is the sore of decaying corpses.
"Brother Qi, it seems that the dress of the townspeople is indeed what you said, determined by their status and occupation. Many of them have faces that do not look consistent with their status, and there may be exchanges of occupations. , Memory follows the trade..."
Lin Chen silently contacted Qis through the soul contract.
After realizing that there might be a group of invisible and intangible "Xi Yi" around him, he always felt like the fish on the chopping board, being watched with malicious intent by countless pairs of eyes.
When it comes to conveying information and exchanging clues, it's better not to put it into words, lest the NPCs listen to it.
After Lin Chen described his observations, he thought silently in his mind: "Why is the weird game designed like this? Is it to facilitate management and rule? Changing identities will obviously make things more confusing. Well..."
"Who knows?" Qisila said in a long tone, "When we meet Mr. Meng, we may be able to ask him the reason. Maybe he will tell us when he is in a better mood. "
...This mechanism looks very weird. Is it true that nothing will happen if you directly ask the NPC?
Lin Chen was speechless, his eyes wandering among the crowd, and he saw a middle-aged man in blue choosing among the art shops, looking at items that were obviously not cheap to the naked eye.
The middle-aged man has a weather-beaten face and dark skin with ridges and grooves. He looks like a farmer who has worked in the fields for most of his life. He is incompatible with the clothes that symbolize his identity, but he is still happy with himself.
This person is obviously the same as the scholar who came this morning. He is a person who has changed his profession, but the difference in appearance is more obvious than that of the scholar.
Lin Chen saw this in his eyes and sighed from the bottom of his heart: "If all the identities in Yanghua Town, regardless of whether they are rich or poor, high or low, can be randomly exchanged, then it will indeed be fair to these townspeople, haha "
He also passed this to Qisi, and then he heard the young man's voice sound coldly: "Lin Chen, do you really think this is for fairness? Or - do you really? Do you think this means fairness?"
Lin Chen just said it casually, not knowing how to answer.
Ziss continued in a calm tone: "The capital accumulated over a long period of time is wasted in one fell swoop. Those who are lucky but lack the ability get something for nothing. They only enjoy rights without assuming obligations, or they work hard but do not receive corresponding rewards." , itself is an injustice.
“I don’t think the core NPC who controls Yanghua Town is a naive utopian. His attitude towards foreigners is enough to prove that he has utilitarian thinking, otherwise he would not. Just because we are suspected, they will lock us up in a dormitory to fend for ourselves.
“I tend to think that this exchange of identities is random and disorderly, or that only a small part of the exchange is intentional for a certain purpose, and the rest is just natural. "
Lin Chen seemed to understand: "But... isn't it troublesome to change identities? We should let nature take its course and let them live with one identity until death..."
“This is for normal humans. But who knows what the citizens of Yanghua Town are like?”
"Ah? Oh!"
While Qisi and Lin Chen were chatting privately, Tang Yu suddenly pointed to a group of people in the distance and asked the scholar: "What happened to them?"
The location Tang Yu pointed to was the end of the street where the players were.
Because there are roads on all sides and there are no wooden buildings blocking it, the place is wider than the surrounding area, forming a small square, which is now filled with people like a rally.
Not only that, the originally mixed flow of people gradually took direction, giving full play to the aggregation effect of the sheep, rushing towards the already crowded crowds of people, forming a black circle at the intersection. Blocked the road.
The scholar stopped and turned to look at Tang Yu: "They must be dead. They are all here to watch. People die every day, every day."
Birth, old age, illness and death are human nature, in a city every day It is normal for people to die for various reasons.
But in a weird game, players cannot be careless when it comes to life and death.
Tang Yu held the handle of the knife at his waist and asked in a cold voice: "Isn't your town very strict about foreigners and catching scoundrels? Why do people still die every day? How do those people die? "
The dark eyes on the scholar's pale face turned in a circle, staring into Tang Yu's eyes: "The mountain god has to eat one person every day. This is the rule. It is also a rule to watch the clock at midnight. All of us who live in the town know these rules. ”
Another rule.
The players all remembered what the scholar said yesterday.
‘The newly dead ghost must harm one person every night, otherwise his soul will be gone. Wait until tomorrow to see if anyone dies, and you will know if there are any scoundrels among you. ’
‘At that time, we will ask Master Meng to come forward and deal with the scoundrels who sneak into the town who do not obey the rules. '
Originally, players thought this "unruly" expression was quite strange, but now it seems that it is not just a random statement.
The townspeople and the mountain god - the tiger - have most likely reached some kind of agreement. Both the townspeople and the tiger's "ghosts" must act according to the rules.
Tang Yu frowned and said: "So your rule is that if one person dies every day for the tiger to eat, the tiger cannot send minions into the town to harm other people?"
Scholar, please tell me the location. He shook his head and said word by word: "Yes, the rules are the rules. Whoever breaks the rules first will be punished."
Of course, the premise is that you are caught breaking the rules. The players silently added in their hearts.
After all, as far as the three of them knew, a villain like Hun Xin had already sneaked into the town.
Lin Chen thought of a question and asked immediately: "That's not right, you already have this kind of rules, why do you still invite people to hunt tigers? Doesn't this count as breaking the agreement?"
The scholar turned to Lin Chen, a strange smile appeared on the corner of his lips: "Mr. Meng invited you here. If you don't understand something, maybe you can ask Mr. Meng."
Okay, ask Mr. Meng again. ...
Lin Chen made a complaint, but he also had some guesses about the hidden story behind it.
In the final analysis, rules are the playthings of the strong, and the wishful thinking of the weak will be broken by absolute violence at any time. If human beings want to continue for a long time, they should be prepared for danger in times of peace.
Despite the rules, there are still minions sneaking into the town to harm people. Who knows if the tiger will become vicious one day.
Rather than letting this unstable factor hang over your head like the Sword of Damocles, it is better to make plans early and try to solve the trouble once and for all.
Taking a step back, no one has to sacrifice for others as a matter of course. It is definitely not a long-term solution to exchange one person's life for the consideration of others.
"They have all gone to watch. Do you want to go and watch together?" The scholar's eyes scanned every player, with an all-or-nothing attitude.
"Well, let's go take a look." Qisi nodded and walked in the direction of the crowd.
He added in a compassionate tone: "If it is really what you said, the deceased knew that he would die, but still insisted on calling the clock at midnight. I think he was a righteous man who would rather sacrifice himself to save everyone. , we should go see him off."
Qisi's words were high-sounding and righteous, but Lin Chen and Tang Yu didn't like it. They thought it was strange and ironic.
Fortunately, the scholar did not notice anything was wrong and said with a smile: "Okay, let's wait nearby for a while. The funeral procession is coming, and there will be far fewer people watching. You can follow and have a look.
“According to the rules, we people in Yanghua Town are not allowed to watch the deceased on the way out of Yanghua Town. Maybe it doesn't matter that you are foreigners. ”
Lin Chen blinked and asked: "Really? Can we go out of town with the funeral procession today?"
The scholar said: "Yes. But we can't get too close. We have to stand. Ten feet away."
"Hmm! Then... Master Meng, aren't you in a hurry?"
The scholar twisted his neck and made a rustling sound. A meaningful sentence: "If you are watching a funeral, I can make an exception for a few of you and take you there later."
While speaking, several townspeople were already clinging to the wall and walking through the gaps on both sides of the road. left.
As they walked, they talked quietly:
"Uncle Li died, alas, it was all for us. He was the only one who died last night."
"He passed away peacefully. , there is no pain, just like falling asleep..."
"That's fine. The older one dies in one fell swoop, which is no different from ending his life."
Tang Yu surrendered to the scholar. With a questioning look, before he could speak, the scholar said: "The night watchman is selected by everyone together, and everyone knows it."
When encountering matters related to the deceased, the scholar seemed particularly talkative: "Generally speaking, the chosen watchers will be the oldest old people in the town. They have lived enough at this age and are almost dead, so they are willing to use their own Life is exchanged for the safety of children and grandchildren."
Lin Chen muttered to Chisi in his heart: "No wonder the tiger wants to send minions into the town to eat the old people every day. It probably doesn't want to..."
Qisi was noncommittal, looked at the scholar, and asked abruptly: "How old is Mr. Meng? How old is the old lady of the Meng family?"
When the scholar heard this, his face showed a visible confusion.
He stared blankly at the void in front of him and murmured: "How old are you?...How old are you?"
He seemed to be possessed, repeating the same words, his hands randomly grabbing in the air, as if there were countless invisible figures wandering around him.
Tang Yu's face was slightly condensed. He turned his right hand and pulled out the saber from his waist and held it in front of him.
Qisi also pulled Lin Chen to take a step back, keeping a safe distance from the obviously unconscious scholar.
"The mourners are here! Everyone, give way!" A shout sounded in the distance, blown by the wind.
The scholar's murmur was interrupted, and his expression immediately returned to normal.
He looked at the player with a smile, as if he had no memory of just now, and repeated what he said before: "If you go to see the funeral, I can take you to see Master Meng later."
"People Once you die, you will be buried in peace—" The shouting sounded again, closer than before.
"Lay in peace..."
"The deceased will clear the way..."
Small responses gradually overlapped, and the words of the townspeople were heard. The sound spread in all directions, like the spell of an ancient witch, pulling the crowd back to both sides like a tide.
Soon, the townspeople retreated into various lanes and disappeared, like the sea flowing into hundreds of rivers.
There are only three players left on the street and the figure of the scholar who guides the players.
Chiss looked in the direction where the sound originally came from.
I saw four white people riding on four equally white donkeys, walking slowly and slowly.
The person is a paper figure, only a thin layer of paper thick, cut out into a human shape. There is no face, and it is completely white.
The donkey is a paper donkey, but it has a face painted on it. The eyes, blush and smiling mouth are painted in a color as bright as blood. It looks like a human being, which makes people feel sick when they look at it.
Qisi’s eyes fell on the body lying on the ground again.
It was a little old man wearing a hat and black robe, his eyes were closed, as if he was fast asleep.
He has a face that is familiar to all players, with wrinkled skin and yellow teeth. He is the one who was in charge of the residence yesterday and disappeared this morning.
Every player present clearly knew that he was killed by hatred.
The time of death is before Zi hour.
The reason for death is that the ghost must kill one person every night.
The reason why I chose him is because he has exposed the shadow of a human figure, so he can be sure to be a real living person.
Obviously it was the player who killed the person, but the choice was made from the player's perspective from beginning to end. How could it be related to the inherent rules of Yanghua Town and the agreement between the "mountain god" and the townspeople? ?
Four paper figures riding donkeys have already walked to the corpse, got off the donkey lightly, and surrounded the corpse with swaying figures.
They didn't even prepare a roll of straw mat. They just raised their hands and feet, mounted the donkeys again, held the old man's body high, and moved forward along the long street.
The players looked at each other and followed. (End of this chapter)