In the room on the second floor of Zhendong's residence, two kinds of handwriting on the page, one question and one answer, outline a story development that is completely different from that of Zhenxi.
Luo Haihua and his wife witnessed the lantern overturning naturally at night. They planned to stop it, but they learned from a prop on their body that could analyze clues that the burial fire was not the point of death that was accidentally triggered, but was the key to clearing the level and deciphering the world view. key.
The props told them that Yanghua Town was burned down by fire many years ago and ceased to exist.
The Yanghua Town where they are now is a phantom of the past, a false existence in itself, and naturally there is no way to find a real exit.
Only after they have been burned by the fire can they enter the real Yanghua Town.
This statement is not groundless, the evidence is the letter hidden in their room:
[If this city falls, the family and country will be lost, and all your children and property will be slaves and money...]< br>
【There are many diligent kings in the southeast. After the king's master has passed, there may be a breath left. We must cut down fuel and collect firewood, burn down palaces and destroy palaces. Pearls, jade and golden cauldrons will turn into ashes and cannot be used by enemies. 】
It is said that Yanghua Town was about to be lost. In order to prevent the enemy from replenishing supplies after occupying the town, General Meng, who was defending the city, ordered his soldiers to start from the east of the town, drive away the townspeople, and set fire to the houses. Materials.
The entire town was burned to the ground, with many tramples and accidental injuries during the process. The townspeople who died in the war were unwilling to accept it. Their obsession condensed into the image of Yanghua Town before its destruction, and the ghosts of the innocent were wandering in the town as they were in life.
It's a classic horror story routine, and the evidence is very conclusive. After some struggle, Luo Haihua and his wife chose to believe it.
Subsequent development also proved that their choice was correct: they woke up, but the other players were gone, or in other words, they could not be seen.
All players who did not encounter the fire are trapped in another space, and can only communicate with them through pen and paper.
——It cannot be said that it has nothing to do with the situation in the player's perspective in Zhenxi, it can only be said to be completely opposite.
"General Meng... could he be Mr. Meng himself? After burning down the town, he somehow became a ghost and continued to rule the townspeople after his death?"
Qisi put the page back on the bedside table, raised his hand and touched his face: "And...why don't I remember that I was trapped?"
Luo Haihua's handwriting on the page is authentic, and The handwriting written by Luo Haihua, who was in the "Xiyi" state at Zhenxi Dishe, was generally the same, and it could be determined that it was written by the same person.
What makes Qisi more concerned is that there is no handwriting on the paper. The person responsible for communicating with Luo Haihua and his wife through paper and pen calls himself "Tang Yu" and is with Lin Chen. Mentioned his and Qiuxin's existence.
"Am I separated from them? Is this information false? Is there an NPC pretending to be a player? Or is this another timeline independent of everything I am experiencing now?"
Qi Si shook his head, his eyes falling on the wooden bed.
Luo Jianhua and Luo Haihua were still lying motionless. There was no difference or flaw in their appearance. They should not be dummies forged in a weird game.
The strange thing is that their breathing was even as programmed. Even if Qiss made a slight noise when turning the pages, it did not cause the slightest fluctuation.
Qisi sat down on the wooden bed and said at a normal volume: "Teacher Luo, wake up."
When he sat down, the wooden bed vibrated, and his voice was heard in the silence. Sharp and jarring.
Most old players are wary. When encountering such a movement, unless the copy is intentional, there will be no reaction.
However, the two people on the bed still closed their eyes tightly, not even their hair trembled, and had no intention of waking up.
Qisi raised his voice a little and read the same words again word for word.
The two people on the bed were motionless, their breathing did not change at all, as if they had fallen asleep and were unable to sense any movement from the outside world.
Chis thought for no reason that after midnight last night, he fell into an uncontrollable deep sleep. He had no dreams all night, and it was dawn when he opened his eyes again.
There was no way there was no movement outside the window at that time, but he was still in a deep sleep and had no memory of what happened during that period.
Is the situation now similar to last night? Players falling into sleep is an irresistible mechanism in the dungeon. Is it impossible to disobey it?
By the way, is the timeline of Luo Haihua and his wife really during the day?
Qisi glanced out the window. The sky was completely white, and it could be seen with the naked eye that it was not night.
He withdrew his gaze, controlled the cursed pendulum to fly towards Luo Haihua, and lightly poked her arm.
The scarlet pendulum sank into the skin easily and fell in without any hindrance. The light disappeared like the setting sun, as if penetrating a mass of nothingness.
Qisi took back the pendulum, and the piece of skin was intact. He reached out to touch it, and his fingertips missed the phantom, but still failed to touch the real thing.
Luo Haihua and Luo Haihua seem to be on different layers from him. They can only be seen through visual effects. They seem to be closely connected, but they cannot intersect.
"Is it a protection mechanism for sleeping people like "Double Happiness Town"? Or...at this time, I am in a 'Xi Yi' state to the people in Zhendong?"
< br>"Are the Luo Haihua couple who appeared here really the two people I met at the beginning?"
Qisi stood up and stared at the pages on the bedside table, lost in thought. .
Two seconds later, he picked up the pen and wrote paragraphs of words in ugly handwriting on the paper:
[I am Lin Wen, it is daytime after the dungeon started, in our world line Here, you disappeared and turned into strangers - just like us to you in your world line. ]
[Tang Yu, Lin Ya and I followed the mourners to the east of the town, trying to see if we could take the opportunity to leave the town. From our perspective, you are lying in your mansion, asleep. I want to know:]
[1. What day is it when the copy starts? 】
【2. How is the progress of your main mission? What about side missions? 】
[3. What is the specific time of year, month and day when you entered the dungeon? 】
Qisi actually has a lot of information that he wants to tell Luo Haihua and his wife. Some of the information is related to camp tasks and future layout, but more in-depth communication is not urgent.
He needs to confirm three points: first, whether the Luo Haihua couple in Zhendong are the real Luo Haihua couple; second, whether the Luo Haihua couple can receive his message; third, whether the information he delivers will be known to other NPCs , and cause impact.
"Brother Qi, we are out of town, but it seems that we are not completely out..."
In the palace of thought, the blood-colored soul leaves trembled slightly, and Lin Chen's voice sounded sadly: "There is indeed a large bamboo forest behind the residence, which is somewhat similar to the bamboo forest we were in before entering the town, but not quite.
"There are many scarecrows inside. After the old man's body was sent in, he also turned into a scarecrow..."
Qisi touched the bloody leaves in his consciousness and saw a blurry and strange scene through Lin Chen's perspective. picture.
The pile of corpses rises up behind the bamboo forest bordering the mansion. The bamboo leaves cover each other, forming a large dark cloud-like shadow. The cold and wet mist lingered in the forest, dragging dozens of human-shaped shadows.
Those people are not real people, but scarecrows with faces painted white and lipstick and blush. They are wearing human clothes, mostly black, but also white and red.
Their hands are held stiffly, and their bodies stand upright. From a distance, they look like a cross, as if they have been nailed to it.
A gust of wind blew, and they trembled and slowly turned over.
There is also a face drawn on the back, with three horizontal and one vertical lines drawn in ink to count the facial features.
Different from the smiling face on the front, this face is quite serious and hard to get along with.
The faces of two scholars flashed before Qisi's eyes for a moment, the faces of the old man and the old lady in charge of the house.
The Scarecrow’s serious and playful expressions seemed familiar, and seemed to be able to summarize the images of all the NPCs he had seen since entering Yanghua Town. The one with a straight face was the earliest scholar, and the smiling ones were the other NPCs...< br>
Qisi had some guesses that needed to be tested, but they were not troublesome.
"Lin Chen, you and Tang Yu just stand there and don't move around until I come to you." After he finished speaking, he exited the room and closed the door behind him.
......
In the bamboo forest, Lin Chen and Tang Yu saw the paper figures disperse. After waiting for a while and finding nothing unusual, they cautiously stepped forward.
The old man's body in black clothes stood upright, as stiff as a wooden board tied to it. Even though only his ankles were buried in the soil, he did not stagger.
He stared with dead eyes, motionless, and stood at the outermost edge of the bamboo forest like a road sign, indicating that this place no longer belonged to humans, but a strange territory. As the players approached, the strong smell of blood and putrid smell hit their faces. The old man's wrinkled skin quickly dissolved like fresh paint splashed with water, revealing the withered yellow straw under the skin, as if he was made of a scarecrow. Bones, skin, and flesh, and then covered with a layer of human skin.
The epidermis disintegrated in a few seconds, without a drop of blood or leaving any traces. It was as if it had been evaporated by the sun and turned into nothing. All that is left in front of the player is a scarecrow dressed in black, standing upright.
Not only that, after getting closer, the players discovered that the bamboo forest that they thought was densely packed with bamboo poles was actually not all bamboo. A scarecrow similar to the old man's remnants was inserted every few steps. , thin and straight, like a hemp pole, indistinguishable from bamboo from a distance.
The breeze whistled between the bamboo poles, and the scarecrows began to rotate with the wind. Soon they all faced Lin Chen and Tang Yu who were standing in the forest, as if they were looking at the foreign guests who had accidentally entered the home.
"This place is weird, let's go back first." Tang Yu said, taking a few steps back tensely.
His back hit something soft, and he turned around suddenly, only to see a scarecrow appearing behind what should have been a flat road. He had a bloody smile on his face and his arm was stuck. Between the two bamboo poles, he just blocked his escape route.
Not only that, all directions are blocked by scarecrows.
Each scarecrow opens its arms and is connected with the bamboo poles to form an artificial fence to surround the players.
To get out of the town, you have to get out of the bamboo forest; if you want to get out of the bamboo forest, you have to get over the scarecrow's blockage.
Either chop off these scarecrows, or bend down and pass under the scarecrow's armpits, but even a fool can tell that they are coming with bad intentions. Who knows whether acting rashly will trigger the point of death?
At this point, Tang Yu finally knew why the scholar dared to let them follow the funeral procession out of the town for a look. It was clear that they could not leave!
"Lin Ya, do you have any props that focus on force? Prepare them first." Tang Yu remained calm, drew his sword and pointed it at the nearest scarecrow, not forgetting to remind him, "Don't act rashly, do your best. Prepare for battle."
"Hmm! I have three force props, two with summoning effects and one with an unknown effect."
Lin Chen picked it up from the props bar when he entered the bamboo forest. He offered a black umbrella in case of emergencies.
At this moment, he and Tang Yu were standing back to back, communicating with Qisi while holding a black umbrella in front of him to protect him.
The black umbrella is a shield made of good material. If he really encounters a life or death crisis, he can also activate the prop effect and let the black shadow ghost lead him and Tang Yu out of the bamboo forest...
"Lin Chen , don’t use props yet, especially the [Umbrella Full of Pain].” Qisi’s voice sounded in Lin Chen’s mind at the right time, as if he saw his thoughts, and explained calmly, “I am not interested in this copy. There are some guesses about some of its mechanisms, and I may need to use its effect tonight to verify it. It will be very troublesome if it goes into cooling down during the day."
Lin Chen can understand what Qisi means.
The effect of summoning the Shadow Ghost has a 24-hour cool-down period. If you use it now, you will have to wait until this time tomorrow if you want to use it again.
If Qiss wants to verify certain clues at night, he may have to wait for another whole day, and he doesn't know how many variables will occur during this period.
You don’t need [Umbrella written with pain], maybe you can use [Psychiatrist’s Medical Record Book], since they are all summoning props, they shouldn’t be too different... Probably...
But can the ghosts of mental patients really cope with this weird situation?
Lin Chen looked at the crowds of stressful scarecrows with a little doubt.
"Lin Ya, let's choose a direction and rush out." Next to him, Tang Yu's voice was cold and stern.
In his mind, Qisi's voice was as calm as ever: "Lin Chen, just wait for me right there. I'll be there soon."
The road we came from has disappeared, and everything we see is a bamboo forest and a scarecrow.
"Hehehehe..." The sharp laughter seeped out from the scarecrow's abdomen, and combined with the bright red smile, it was particularly scary.
Lin Chen shuddered, holding a lantern under his arm, holding an umbrella in one hand and a medical record book in the other, looking sideways at Tang Yu.
Tang Yu had already taken a step in one direction, and his forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat, which dried in the wind.
He was gambling, and he didn't know whether the direction he chose was correct. He only knew that it was not advisable to stay here any longer.
Should I go or should I stay?
"Lin Ya, why are you dawdling? Let's go!" Tang Yu turned around and saw Lin Chen still standing there, and couldn't help but urge.
Lin Chen touched the [unusual blade] in his pocket, stood still, and conveyed his attitude of rejection.
Tang Yu tilted his head and stared at him for a while, frowning: "Did Lin Wen say something to you? Did he ask you to stay where you were?"
What's going on? Does Tang Yu know something?
Lin Chen was startled, and suddenly raised his eyes, hearing the young man in front of him continue: "I studied criminal investigation, and your performance was nothing like it. I knew him at first sight, and we formed a team with him. The team came in, right?"
Sweat dripped from Lin Chen's palms, and he pursed his lips in silence, which was equivalent to acquiescence.
Tang Yu gave him a strange look: "I have no problem with Lin Wen himself, but he doesn't know anything about the situation, so he just gives random instructions remotely. To be honest, he doesn't care about your safety.< br>
“I’ll give you a piece of advice, use whatever props you need, you only have one life, everything is in vain if you die. ”
At the same time, Qisi's voice sounded again: "Lin Chen, you are my president and the only person I can trust.
"I don't force you to believe me completely, but you should know, I'm very trouble-free and stingy, and I don't want to train another teammate and pay another 5,000 points.
"So, no matter what, I hope you can survive, and I will do my best to let you live until the end."
The words floated in the wind, as light as ghost whispers, And extremely breathtaking.
Lin Chen lowered his head, and cleverly put the black umbrella into the props shelf. He only took a medical record book, opened one page, and was ready to tear it off at any time.
"Gan!" Tang Yu slashed at the bamboo pole blocking the road. He turned around and saw that Lin Chen had put away the most effective prop. He couldn't help but facepalmed, "Okay, I respect your fate... By the way, what's your relationship with him? Do you believe him so much?"
Lin Chen fell into confusion from the moment Tang Yu found out the truth, and his mind went blank. Fortunately, he still remembered the confession he made with Qisi at the beginning of the copy.
He hesitated for a while and said in a confused manner: "Lin Wen is my cousin."
Tang Yu: "That's okay, it's me who is troublesome."
A few bamboo poles were chopped down by Tang Yu, and as soon as a path was revealed that could allow one person to pass, it was immediately blocked by a new scarecrow.
The scarecrows laughed "hee hee" and jumped close to the players with their bloody smiles on their faces, poking shallow pits one after another on the ground.
Lin Chen tore off a page from the medical record book and threw it in front of him.
[The effect of "Psychiatrist's Casebook" - "Randomly summon the soul of a patient for 30 seconds" has been activated]
The pages scattered into powder, falling like snowflakes on the ground It condensed into the shadow of a middle-aged man wearing a hospital gown.
Xu Xiang squatted like a frog, timidly moving his eyes left and right, looking around.
After looking at Lin Chen, he shouted in horror, "There's a ghost" and disappeared without a trace.
Lin Chen: "..."
Tang Yu wailed: "Lin Ya, are you using this prop to be funny?!"
Scarecrow: " Hee hee hee...hee hee..."
A gust of wind roared in, blowing the bamboo leaves and falling, accumulating a layer on the player's shoulders and head.
Lin Chen raised his hand to brush the bamboo leaves that fell on his eyes. From the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a few white pebbles scattered on the ground, which seemed to lead the way, extending forward one after another.
A vision flashed before his eyes: When he was trapped in the bamboo forest last night, he seemed to have found the way out of the bamboo forest by following the stones...
"Lin Chen, I'm here. , I saw you." Without warning, a clear voice floated from a distance through the mountain fog.
This time the voice was far clearer than the previous times. It was no longer a babble in my mind, but was actually spreading through the air in my ears.
Lin Chen looked in the direction of the sound.
The road that was originally covered by bamboo forests and scarecrows appeared again, with a shiny white stone sprinkled every half step.
At the end of the stone-paved road, a figure in red stood floating, embedded in the scene from a distance, shining like a road sign. (End of this chapter)