The incense in the brazier burned vigorously, creating a thick pungent smoke that made the eyeballs feel dry and uncomfortable.
It was clearly the main hall dedicated to a god, but when his gaze tried to penetrate the curling incense clouds, it was blocked by a heavy red curtain.
The temple’s Taoist priest said the statue of the Red Prince was behind the curtain. Because the Red Prince did not like his subjects to look directly upon him, it had to be shielded.
Xin Hexue surveyed the surroundings. The red of the curtain was intense and mournfully bright, like the azalea flowers in the courtyard. Above it hung a gold-painted plaque reading “The Sea Kingdom is Everlasting.”
“His hearing is extremely sharp. He will listen carefully to the wish of every subject.”
The Taoist priest said with a calm expression and stood to the side.
“And what happens after the wish is fulfilled?” Xin Hexue turned and looked directly at him. “The person who hanged himself in the meditation hall was my companion. Before that, he had made a wish to the Red Prince.”
To collect payment, did the Red Prince take his life?
A flicker of panic passed through the Taoist priest’s eyes, not because of anything else, but because of the implied disrespect towards the Red Prince in Xin Hexue’s words, which made him feel anxious and afraid.
“He is an impartial god. Your companion’s wish was fulfilled, and he was taken to the sacred Sea Kingdom. There, he will be far from the poverty and hunger of the mortal world. There will be no sorrow, no aging. It is an eternal kingdom.”
Xin Hexue lowered his brows. It was pointless to argue with these devout believers. Like the other worshippers around, he knelt on the soft cushion, lowered his body and bent forward.
The Taoist priest instructed him: “Even if you don’t speak your wish aloud, as long as you recite it silently in your heart, your thought will be clearly transmitted to the god.”
Xin Hexue pressed his forehead against the cushion, holding this posture for three seconds.
After getting up from the cushion, he took a few steps forward and inserted three incense sticks into the large incense burner. But his movement was unsteady for a moment, and the hot incense ash fell directly onto the back of his hand.
“Hiss…”
His right hand trembled slightly, and the ash fell into the burner.
He looked closely at the red mark left by the burn, but it faded at a speed visible to the naked eye and the skin returned to its original state.
Xin Hexue stared directly at the red curtain. There was no change there at all.
………
Gu Mifeng and Xin Hexue left the temple together. By the time they descended the mountain, it was already noon, the time of day when the Yang energy is strongest.
Gu Mifeng had his jacket draped over his elbow. He lowered his head to sniff it and confirmed it had not picked up too much of the incense smell.
“What wish did you make to the Red Prince?”
Xin Hexue: “I didn’t think of anything.”
He didn’t come to the temple for that.
Since he hadn’t made a wish, the countdown timer for the question on his identity card was still ticking.
Once back inside the clinic, Xin Hexue, Gu Mifeng, and Yu Xingzhou discussed. “According to custom, the wedding procession will first go to the bride’s house to pick her up, then proceed up the mountain to the Red Prince’s temple.”
Gu Mifeng frowned as he analyzed: “The wedding procession’s primary destination will definitely be 511. Don’t go back there tonight.”
He looked at Xin Hexue, his gaze resting on the pale face. “Hide here. I’ll stay by your side then. No matter what comes, we’ll open fire immediately.”
Gu Mifeng brought out a large leather case. It made a heavy thud when he placed it on the lacquered wooden table. He flung it open and picked up two MP5 submachine guns from inside, slinging them over his shoulders.
Beretta 92FS, Uzi, M16, Benelli M3, PKM…
It made one suspect he had stolen everything from He Qinghong’s arsenal.
“How can it be called stealing when it’s for the strategic alliance of useless lovers?”
Perhaps because the thoughts were too obvious on Xin Hexue’s face, Gu Mifeng refuted the “stealing theory” with righteous confidence.
He said openly and without shame, “With a great enemy before us, we should put aside the disputes between the ‘mistress’ and the ‘concubine’ and present a united front.”
[That’s very united.]
[Laughing to death, the child’s biological father is coming for his wife. In a moment, you won’t even be able to be the ‘mistress’ anymore.]
[All fear stems from insufficient firepower.]
Yu Xingzhou was also handed a machine gun. He turned his head and let out a low “tsk,” questioning, “These things might scare living people, but are you sure they’re effective against ghosts?”
This isn’t a popcorn gore film.
Xin Hexue pressed his fingers to his temples and sighed. “Let’s have an early dinner. I’m hungry.”
………
Gu Mifeng’s residence was behind the clinic. The door at the end of the clinic corridor led to a central square courtyard. The courtyard was isolated from the outside world, only connected to the clinic and the house.
Assistant Xiao Huang wasn’t of much use, so Gu Mifeng simply gave him a few days off in the morning.
The wind suddenly picked up at night, and withered branches outside the window lightly tapped against the green glass.
Xin Hexue held Xiao Hei in his arms, using nail clippers to trim its slightly long front toenails. He asked absentmindedly, “What’s eight minus four?”
“Woof…” The little black dog’s fate was in its Mother’s hands; it couldn’t control its own front limbs. “Woof, woof! Woof, woof!”
“…”
“What about eleven minus four?”
Such a complex math problem fried Xiao Hei’s brain.
It whimpered and sobbed, acting spoiled as it licked and nuzzled Xin Hexue’s neck.
Yu Xingzhou knocked on the doorframe. The bedroom door had been left open. “Are you preparing it to take the Beidao civil service exam and become a police dog with an official position?”
“I heard smarter dogs can reach the intelligence of a five or six-year-old child.” Xin Hexue stroked the little black dog hidden in his arms and lifted his fine, dense eyelashes. “I was just thinking of testing if it’s true.”
“What time is it?”
Yu Xingzhou raised his wrist to look. “8:59.”
The moment his words landed, the second hand reached 59. “It’s time.”
He turned and closed the door. “I’ll go keep watch outside.”
He Qinghong was still severely injured and recovering. The operating room conditions were limited at the time, and sterile procedures weren’t perfect. Perhaps the wound was inflamed as he had a high fever today and lay unconscious in the hospital room.
Gu Mifeng was guarding the clinic.
To enter the bedroom, one would have to pass through the clinic corridor and the central courtyard.
The wind blew over in gusts, and the sound rushing through the hall was like low, eerie sobs. Apart from that, no human voices could be heard. Normally, at this time, people would be drinking and playing cards at the night market food stalls, and children would be running up and down stairs, forming the usual background noise.
But tonight, the entire walled city was unusually dead silent.
From far, far away.
A suona suddenly blared, and the sharp notes of festive music pierced the night. The horsehead fiddle and copper gongs were uneven in pitch. The music traveled through the streets and alleys, heading straight this way.
The music grew closer and louder, so noisy it made one’s eardrums ache.
Qiang-dong-long-dong-qiang!
Qiang-dong-long-dong-qiang!
Yi-yi-yi, de-de-de, long-dong-long-dong-qiang!
“Woof, woof woof!”
The little black dog sensed danger in the air and started barking loudly.
Usually, it barked like this only when it was unsure and afraid.
Xin Hexue frowned and patted it. “Go back.”
Along with the advancing music came the sound of several footsteps, layered and heavy. He could tell the visitors were numerous and meant no good.
Xin Hexue took a small plastic bag of alcohol swabs and put it in his side pocket. Then he went to the small table and took two pills with water.
Although benzodiazepines can relieve acute symptoms in the short term, they are addictive and long-term use can lead to dependence. But since this is inside a game, it shouldn’t affect his real body after leaving.
The suona sound drilled into the cerebral cortex relentlessly over and over again.
Xin Hexue’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed the pills.
He turned the bedroom doorknob. The moment he opened the door, a ghastly white face crashed into his vision, so close their noses could touch. The paper figurine had two red circles on its cheeks, its mouth stretched into a grin from ear to ear.
Xin Hexue’s heart skipped a few beats.
Countless paper figurines stood densely packed in the living room, so crowded there was no place to step.
Qiang-dong-long-dong-qiang!
Yi-yi-yi, de-de-de, long-dong-long-dong-qiang!
They played the joyous music to its climax. Their sheet-like bodies made way, revealing a bridal sedan chair parked in the courtyard at the end.
Xin Hexue glanced at the paper figurines lining the path on both sides. Their pitch-black hollow eyes stared fixedly at him, but they seemed to have no intention of harming him.
“Did you kill Gu Mifeng?”
His gaze shot straight at Yu Xingzhou standing among the crowd of paper figurines.
“You aren’t surprised at all.” “Yu Xingzhou’s” expression couldn’t be seen from the shadows of the mango tree in the corner, only his voice could be heard. “I left him a whole corpse.”
“That way he can lie intact under the marital bed and eavesdrop.”
It seemed the Red Prince’s tastes were more unique than what ordinary people could imagine.
Xin Hexue pinched his palm to maintain his mental clarity. He applied so much force that he could imagine the deep marks that would be left when he let go.
The full moon was cold and gloomy, shining into the courtyard. The black area at Yu Xingzhou’s feet was even larger than the shadow of the mango tree, spreading to the wall at the far end of the courtyard and radiating over half the wall.
“Are you planning to use Yu Xingzhou’s body to consummate the marriage with your new wife?” Xin Hexue smiled. His lips pressed together, forming a dewy, enticing color, as captivating as rouge. “That sounds good. I like the bodies of high school students.”
After speaking, without waiting for the other party’s reaction, he entered the bridal sedan chair amidst the surrounding paper figurines.
The paper figurines lifted the sedan chair unsteadily and began to stagger forward.
Halfway there, Xin Hexue lifted the curtain and looked back.
“Yu Xingzhou” wasn’t following.
His earlier words might have made the Red Prince abandon that body.
Xin Hexue glanced at his identity card.
[Survivors: 7]
The real Yu Xingzhou wasn’t dead, and Xin Hexue knew where to find him.
Seeing him poke his head out from the sedan chair, the paper figurine’s pitch-black eyes followed closely. “The Master is waiting for you in the main hall for the ceremony. Don’t keep the Master waiting.”
………
The entrance to the temple for both weddings and funerals was through the side door, requiring a long detour to reach the main hall.
Xin Hexue remembered asking the Taoist priest where the restroom was.
As they passed by it, he knocked on the wooden window of the sedan chair. “Stop.”
The sedan chair stopped. The paper figurine that had spoken to him earlier came forward again, speaking woodenly, “What is it?”
Xin Hexue held up the little black dog with both hands for it to see. “My child is crying and fussing. I need to breastfeed first before I can go to the ceremony.”
“Look clearly, this is your Master’s own flesh and blood.” Worried it might not understand, Xin Hexue tugged the little black dog’s ear and pulled at its snout, revealing its canine teeth. Xiao Hei waved its paws in protest. “Woof woof!”
“It’s hungry. The consequences will be severe.”
Xin Hexue smiled faintly, his tone containing a hidden threat as he used the ’emperor’ to command the ‘princes’.
“The restroom is right there. I’ll be back soon.”
The paper figurine had no choice but to step aside and stand still. “I will wait here for you to come out.”
“Whatever.”
Xin Hexue entered the restroom as he wished. Breastfeeding was just a cover; he didn’t care about the paper figurine waiting outside the door.
Not only was the outside decorated with red ribbons, but red double-happiness paper-cuts were even pasted on the restroom window.
Xin Hexue pushed the window open. He was about to climb out when a paper figurine below looked up and cracked a grin at him.
But it soon couldn’t smile anymore.
“Click.”
The flame from the lighter sprang up brightly. An alcohol swab quickly caught fire and was thrown onto its face.
“Ahhh!”
Before the scream could fully emerge, the paper figurine’s upper body was burned away.
After landing, Xin Hexue quickly ran forward. The few alcohol swabs he dropped soon ignited a blazing fire behind him, overwhelming everything!
This was the real purpose of his and Gu Mifeng’s trip up the mountain during the day. While the Taoist priests were busy cutting window decorations, they had splashed gasoline in various places. All it needed was a single spark to ignite in the blink of an eye, especially since the temple itself was largely composed of wooden structures and lush vegetation, all natural conditions for a fire.
The flames rose high, instantly devouring this land!
The little black dog closely followed at its Mother’s heels.
Back at the clinic, the Red Prince didn’t understand why he wasn’t surprised by “Yu Xingzhou”. In fact, His flaws were far more than just that one.
When “Yu Xingzhou” pulled him down from the edge of the well, Xin Hexue saw the reflection in the well. It was like looking through a layer of clear glass; the Yu Xingzhou inside was pounding with his fists, shouting at him.
Never stopping his escape, Xin Hexue finally reached the abandoned well opening and scrambled up the well wall.
There was a shallow cut on his calf from the reeds on the way, and blood was trickling down.
He looked down into the pitch-black well, took a deep breath, and hugged the little black dog.
“Splash!”
A huge splash of water rose from the well.
[Running away with the ball? Interesting.]
[Since the player did not answer within the specified time limit, the question has been refreshed.]
………
Xin Hexue sank down, sinking continuously. Salty, fishy seawater pressed in from all sides, submerging him, and swallowing his consciousness.
Tick, tick, tick…
The clock’s hour hand was being adjusted, making a creaking sound like gears turning.
He felt like Alice falling down the rabbit hole. This descent felt very long, yet also seemed to last only an instant.
Xin Hexue woke up struggling, drenched in cold sweat. Due to prolonged oxygen deprivation, his chest heaved violently.
Someone pushed him. “Classmate, hurry up and get off the bus.”
He was dazed, not reacting to the current situation. His throat was also a bit hoarse. “Get off the bus?”
What bus?
Didn’t he jump into the well?
The boy who pushed him seemed a bit impatient initially, but when Xin Hexue looked up at him, he instantly changed the harsh tone he was about to use and softened his voice. “The bus to Beidao City doesn’t go into the village roads. We need to find a minivan or motorcycle here in this town to get into the village.”
The bus stop only went as far as the township. The driver had reached the terminal and was getting lunch at a roadside restaurant.
“I heard from the locals that it’s still a long way to Nanwan Village. We obviously can’t walk there.”
“Nanwan Village?” Xin Hexue looked around the environment. The bus interior had a stifling smell. Someone prone to motion sickness would probably feel like vomiting after a while. He followed the student off the bus. “Not Nanwan Walled City?”
“What Nanwan Walled City? I’ve never heard of it. Aren’t we going to Nanwan Village? The theme of our practical class is to investigate the folk culture of the fishing villages on the south coast of North Island. Did you completely miss the teacher’s briefing before departure?”
The boy found it very strange.
Xin Hexue looked around at the street environment…wide rural roads, asphalt pavement, a general store where they got off, and shops lining the streets.
Alarm bells rang in his head. “What is the current date?”
The boy had already walked away, his voice fading. “Noon, twelve o’clock. The teacher said we have free time, but we have to gather at the bus stop at 1:30.”
Xin Hexue found something in his backpack that absolutely should not have appeared in 1990.
A smartphone.
Although it was about as thick as a small brick.
He pressed the power button on the side, and the screen lit up.
May 16, 2010.
He remembered…Nanwan Village.
Nanwan Walled City was built on the ruins of Nanwan Village. There was a sudden tsunami at the end of the 19th century, the authorities failed to notify the local residents to evacuate in time, and the entire south coast was swallowed up.
Xin Hexue searched online for all information about tsunamis occurring on the south coast of North Island but found nothing.
He slowly squatted down and hugged his knees. His identity card fell to the ground.
“Are you a player too?”
A male voice sounded.
“Oh dear, don’t squat on the ground. Your skirt is getting dirty.”
A female voice followed immediately. Xin Hexue was pulled up by the woman, and she patted his pleated skirt.
“We are players too.”
A couple stood in front of Xin Hexue.
There were seven survivors. Excluding the ones Xin Hexue knew, there were three left.
He knew why he had never seen these three people in the walled city.
Because they were on a different timeline.
Even the worldline was inconsistent. In this worldline, Nanwan Village did not experience a tsunami.
