Bang!
With a loud crash, the door was flung open from the outside and then slammed shut with force.
When the person turned around, what greeted everyone was a face filled with terror.
“Senior?”
Ran Jingjing looked at the panicked woman and asked, “What’s wrong with you?”
The person who had just appeared was none other than Cao Jiyun, the sister of Cao Ji’an, a former suspect in Xiaohua’s disappearance case.
Cao Jiyun seemed to have just experienced something terrifying. She pressed against the door with both hands, her eyes full of fear, “There are… there are monsters outside.”
As soon as these words came out, everyone looked at each other in shock.
Ran Jingjing immediately thought of the twisted black shapes they had seen earlier from the car, “What kind of monsters?”
Cao Jiyun was gasping for breath and trying to calm herself, “Black, snake-like monsters. They… they are man-eating monsters. I saw them devour my brother’s corpse with my own eyes!”
After saying this, she let out a scream, her eyes rolled back and she passed out.
The wooden house fell into a brief silence. The silence was soon broken by Xiao Xin’s wailing.
Cao Jiyun’s almost hysterical state had evidently frightened the young child. She was sleepy and hungry. After enduring for a long time, she finally fell into her mother’s arms and cried loudly.
The child’s cries seemed to unlock the emotional floodgates of everyone present. Those who had managed to remain somewhat calm up until now, in the face of this inexplicable supernatural occurrence, finally exposed their unrestrained reactions.
“What is going on!” Mrs. Shen held Xiao Xin tightly. “If someone is putting on a show to achieve some goal, this is too cruel! Targeting me is one thing, but dragging a child into this is outrageous!”
As she spoke, her gaze swept across the room, landing directly on Bai Lixin, who had remained silent the entire time, “It’s you, isn’t it? You’re behind all of this, aren’t you?! You liar, you’re the one who stole the film, aren’t you?”
Then, as if recalling something, her fierce look shifted to Wang Tou, “And you too, huh? You suspected Shen Shukuang wasn’t killed by Su Hong, you think the real murderer is someone else. Then why don’t you go catch the real killer? Just because of one roll of film, you suspect that I’m the killer? It’s not me, I’m not the killer. End this farce right now and get me out of here!”
“And you,” Mrs. Shen suddenly aimed her accusation at Lawyer Ran, “A policeman, a liar, and a lawyer—now the three of you are perfectly coordinated. What progress have you made on the real issue? Xiaohua’s case has been going on for ten years. One keeps talking about restoring the truth while the other keeps saying that she wants justice for her good sister—what have you achieved? Just because of your incompetence, you target me?”
Ran Jingjing’s expression changed slightly.
The frown on Wang Tou’s serious face could kill a fly, “Film? What film?”
“Stop acting.” Mrs. Shen suddenly stood up from her chair, held Xiao Xin tightly as she strode towards the wooden door. “It’s too fake, I’m going home. You have no right to detain me.”
The wooden door that Cao Jiyun had closed with force was opened. The next moment, the ferocious-looking Mrs. Shen’s eyes were filled with the same fear as Cao Jiyun’s after seeing the scene outside.
At the same time, everyone inside the wooden house finally saw the scene outside clearly.
At some unknown moment, what had been an empty fog outside was now surrounded by countless black, viscous tentacles.
They seemed to emerge from the ground, black columns as thick as tree trunks snaked upwards, as lush and rampant as a sea of trees in a dense forest. The small wooden house where several people were housed appeared tiny in front of these terrifying tentacles, as if it would be submerged in the eerie black ocean in the next second.
Originally, the black tentacles swayed like sea anemones in the depths of the ocean, following a certain pattern. But the moment the door opened, they were like wolves that smelled blood and they all aimed their pointed ends at Mrs. Shen.
Immediately afterwards, the tentacles rushed towards Mrs. Shen in a frenzy.
In an instant, a hand grabbed Mrs. Shen’s collar and another forcefully closed the wooden door.
There was a loud bang on the door, and the entire wooden house immediately began to shake.
Dust fell from above, frightening cries and screams erupted from those present.
However, the impact soon stopped, and the wooden house stabilized from its precarious state.
The small wooden house had actually withstood the impact of those black monsters outside.
[Safe House]
These two words flashed through Bai Lixin’s mind.
Mrs. Shen fell back onto the ground in a sorry state, and then she finally saw the person who had pulled her back from the brink of death.
She held Xiao Xin, staring blankly at Bai Lixin. Her lips trembled for a long time, but in the end it was like something was stuck in her throat and she didn’t say a word.
Bai Lixin didn’t say much either. He just released Mrs. Shen, silently picked up the unconscious Cao Jiyun, and placed her on an empty rattan chair.
Then he stood aside, his gaze slowly sweeping over each person.
The countdown timer in the taskbar was decreasing rapidly.
[Task One: Please find Xiaohua’s whereabouts. This copy is a single player copy, and the task difficulty level is S. After completing the task, you can receive rewards based on your performance. (Task Completion: 20%)]
[Task Two: Survive in the copy for 15 days. (Countdown: 23:24:45)]
[Master Bai Lixin, the countdown speed has changed.]The escape system warned, [Time flows at double speed in the fog, which means that although it appears there are 23 hours left, you actually have less than 12 hours remaining. Currently, your task completion is only at 20%, so please complete the task as soon as possible, otherwise, you will face system punishment.]
S419M: [Everyone is gathered here. Is there any significance?]
Bai Lixin: [Currently, I don’t know the reason they’ve been gathered, but these people are all personalities of Xiaohua.]
S419M: [Even Xiao Xin?]
Bai Lixin: [Yes, she is too. When we were investigating at Shen Shukuang’s house, did you notice that Gan Tai went to play with Xiao Xin in a very familiar and affectionate manner?]
S419M: [It seems there was such a thing. What about you, Lord Host? You’re not Xiaohua’s personality, so why are you here?]
Bai Lixin: [There are two possibilities. The first may be because I was holding Xiaohua’s head at the time. This wooden house gathered all of Xiaohua’s personalities, and Xiaohua’s head is also part of the personality, so I entered this place as well.]
S419M: [What about the second possibility?]
[The second possibility is that in this copy, my character might be one of Xiaohua’s personalities. Don’t forget, Gan Tai once touched me intimately.]
[Ah?]The escape system exclaimed, [If it’s the second possibility, then it could be troublesome.]
S419M: [Why?]
Escape System: [From Shen Shukuang, Su Hong, and Cao Ji’an’s deaths, it’s clear something is trying to eliminate all of Xiaohua’s personalities. If Master Bai Lixin is also one of Xiaohua’s personalities, he too will face life-threatening danger. Ah, that explains the taxi chase earlier.]
S419M’s voice became subtle: [Trying to eliminate the host? Hmm… then I wish it success.]
Bai Lixin: […]
“What’s with the film?” The scene temporarily stabilized, but Wang Tou hadn’t forgotten what Mrs. Shen had just said and raised the question again.
Mrs. Shen barely broke free from her terror. She glanced at Bai Lixin, then at the precarious wooden door, hesitating for a while before speaking up: “I filmed some of Shen Shukuang’s scandals and used them as leverage to force him into marrying me.”
Wang Tou frowned: “What scandals? Could it be related to Su Xiaohua?”
As soon as the topic was broached, Mrs. Shen seemed to be suddenly relieved of some heavy burden and she felt lighter.
She nodded, “Back then, Shen Shukuang lived next to Su Hong’s house.”
“Su Hong wasn’t a good person either. Using providing a place for Xiaohua as leverage, she helped him shoot some unsavory videos as repayment.”
“Of course, Shen Shukuang is not a good person either.”
“At that time, Shen Shukuang didn’t have much money, so in order to earn some, he agreed to tutor Xiaohua who lived next door. Xiaohua was very beautiful, and over time, while he was dating me, he also developed feelings for the Xiaohua next door. Su Hong noticed Shen Shukuang’s feelings and suggested helping him win over Xiaohua.”
“Shen Shukuang agreed, but what he didn’t know was that Su Hong wasn’t such a kind person. The only reason he helped Shen Shukuang was to secretly film their videos.”
Mrs. Shen glanced at Zhang Li, who was curled up on the sofa, and continued, “That afternoon, Su Hong called Shen Shukuang to his house. Xiaohua thought it was just another tutoring session as usual, but Su Hong handed her a drink. However, Shen Shukuang managed to retain some humanity and escaped the scene when he finally regained consciousness. But what happened between him and Su Xiaohua was still recorded.”
Wang Tou frowned, “Is that film you’re talking about? How did you get your hands on it?”
Mrs. Shen revealed a sneering smile, “If I didn’t have some ability, could I be Shen Shukuang’s wife?”
“I installed a listening device on Shen Shukuang’s phone and heard their conversations. Later, I found Su Hong and spent a lot of money to buy that tape. One reason was to wipe up after Shen Shukuang, and the other was to secure a permanent hold over him.”
Wang Tou frowned even more, “You were young back then. Since you knew what kind of person Shen Shukuang was early on, why did you help him like that? Wouldn’t your best choice have been to leave him and find someone better?”
Mrs. Shen raised an eyebrow, “I have never believed in love. Back then, although Shen Shukuang was poor, his intelligence was undeniable. With my level of education and social status, finding someone like him wasn’t easy. He was my means of transcending social classes, not the culmination of love. All the money I spent on him over the years was my investment. My judgment has always been sharp. If he hadn’t died, he would have been the youngest senior professor at the academy soon, and I would have been the wife of the school principal in the future.”
She sighed, “But despite all calculations, I never expected him to die so young.”
As Mrs. Shen spoke, Xiao Xin stared at her mother with wide eyes, as if trying to understand her words.
“So you’re reaping what you sowed,” Ran Jingjing sneered coldly, “Villains will be punished.”
Facing Ran Jingjing’s accusation, Mrs. Shen was quite composed. She smiled and pointed to Zhang Li behind her who remained silent, “I am a villain? Then what about her? Do you think she’s any better?”
“Did you think Su Hong was the only one controlling Xiaohua to film? Let me tell you, there was always someone next to Su Hong, it was she who helped Su Hong control Xiaohua. Instead of reporting Su Hong for filming Xiaohua, she not only condoned it but joined in that demonic act that resembled an execution.”
“What am I compared to them? Marrying Shen Shukuang was at least preventing the leakage of trash resources into society. I was actually purging evil for the people. It’s their family who truly reap what they sow—they have done all sorts of wicked things, no wonder their son died young and did not die a natural death!”
Upon hearing the word “son,” Zhang Li, who had been in a daze, instantly snapped awake. She jumped off the sofa like a mad woman and lunged towards Mrs. Shen, “Don’t curse my son, don’t curse my son!”
Seeing Zhang Li’s frenzy, instead of dodging, Mrs. Shen burst into a loud laughter. She kicked the frail Zhang Li to the ground with one foot and pressed down on her head with disdain, “You’re dependent on Su Hong, but I am not. Do you think I’m easy to bully? Don’t think I’m as useless as you.”
Upon hearing this, Zhang Li’s body trembled violently, and she collapsed on the ground in emotional breakdown, crying.
Seeing Zhang Li crying, Mrs. Shen’s expression became increasingly arrogant. An inexplicable pleasure even flashed through her eyes, “Incompetent and narrow-minded women like you are the type I despise the most.”
“Women as foolish as you can’t stop their evil husbands, can’t save their poor sons, and don’t even know what they want. What use are you, really? What is the meaning of your existence in this world?”
“You might as well die. Every second you live is a waste of air and food.”
“That’s enough, let her go!” Ran Jingjing couldn’t bear it anymore and stepped forward. She pushed Mrs. Shen away and helped Zhang Li up.
However, when she helped Zhang Li up, Ran Jingjing froze.
The Zhang Li who had seemed to be crying in despair was now grinning widely.
Her trembling shoulders were not from crying, but from laughter.
Those cries were not sobs, but suppressed laughter.
On her wrinkled face, the corners of her mouth were pulled up to her ears, forming a creepy smile, like the face of a clown wearing a mask in a horror show, terrifying and eerie.
