Mohawk was about to explode in anger. His facial features contorted in anger as he glared at the man in sunglasses on the ground. “You’re afraid of retaliation, but not of me killing you?”
With that, he pulled a knife from his backpack and pressed it against the man’s neck. “Do you want me to kill you right now, or do you prefer to face retaliation? You choose!”
The man’s face turned pale, his body stiffened, and he didn’t dare move.
“I… I’ll talk,” the man said, staring at the knife in Mohawk’s hand with a pale face. “Just calm down and don’t shake that damn hand of yours; I’m scared.”
“It was Lady Yuexian, Lady Yuexian!”
“I accidentally entered Lady Yuexian’s temple when I was feeling hopeless. After that, I started having frequent dreams, a woman in my dreams claimed to be ‘Lady Yuexian’ and said she could save me as long as I worshipped her devoutly.”
“My eye was a gift from Lady Yuexian, but I had no idea that this eye was taken from another girl. I went to sleep, and when I woke up, my eye had been swapped. I even saw my own eyeball on the table, which startled me.”
“I didn’t want to see it, so I flushed it down the toilet.”
Mohawk asked, “You’re not lying to me?”
The man swallowed hard. “No, no, everything I said is true, absolutely no lies!”
Only then did Mohawk put away the small knife, and some tension left his expression.
He took a deep breath and tried to control his emotions. “Finally, I’ve found the answer.”
Seeing his determined expression, Bai Lixin guessed what he was about to do.
The man in the suit held Mohawk’s shoulder. “Are you sure you want to submit the answer? Shouldn’t we verify it again? What if it’s wrong?”
Mohawk: “I can’t care about all of this anymore. The time of death for the other three was uncertain, and right now, I’m still alive and kicking. I could die in the next second. It’s a risk worth taking. If I don’t fill it out, It’s certain death, but if I do, there’s at least a fifty percent chance of survival.”
The man in the suit: “But it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re the next player to die, it could be anyone, we’ve complained too. We don’t even know if the ‘one death per day’ rule is true; what if we’ve guessed wrong? What if the three were punished just because they haven’t completed their professional tasks?”
Mohawk angrily pushed the man in the suit aside. “But you guys haven’t complained as much as I have. You don’t have the same sense of impending death as I do. It’s my choice to submit; I don’t want to die like this. I want to fight.”
With that, he ignored the others’ protests and quickly filled in the answer as “Lady Yuexian.”
[Ding! Player’s answer is incorrect. You will now receive a system penalty: Decapitation.]
The system’s cold electronic voice appeared in everyone’s minds. Before they could react, a bright light flashed in front of them, and Mohawk’s head rolled off his neck.
His head rolled a few times on the ground before coming to a stop against the narrow wall next to the alley, his face still frozen in disbelief.
“Ah! He’s dead!” The man in sunglasses screamed and scrambled to get up from the ground, stumbling towards the alley’s exit.
Bai Lixin acted swiftly, grabbing the terrified man by his collar and pulling him back.
The faces of the five players present were all grim.
Even experienced players couldn’t remain indifferent when they saw a once-living person’s life taken away by the system in an instant.
The oppressive feeling of being controlled and manipulated by the system filled them with an indescribable sense of humiliation.
The man in the suit slammed his fist into the wall with a heavy thud as he said with a sullen expression, “Lady Yuexian was not the correct answer.”
He looked coldly at the man in sunglasses. “He deceived us.”
The man in sunglasses was already in tears, tears and snot streaming down as he begged, “I didn’t lie to you; that woman really said she was ‘Lady Yuexian.’ I’ve told you everything I know. I swear I didn’t lie; otherwise, my eyes will rot!”
“Maybe he really didn’t lie to us,” Twin Ponytails, who had been silently watching, said softly. “Is it possible that the woman deceived him?”
“The murderer is that person, but the murderer’s real name isn’t ‘Lady Yuexian,’ but rather using ‘Lady Yuexian’ as a cover?”
The man in sunglasses sobbed, “Yes, that’s right. She definitely fooled me too. I really didn’t deceive you all, you have to believe me, don’t kill me, please.”
Bai Lixin said, “There’s another possibility: the murderer is a follower of ‘Lady Yuexian.’”
“We won’t kill you,” he said, looking at the man in sunglasses who was nearly mentally broken. “Please tell us more about the woman’s appearance and features.”
The young man’s calm tone slightly comforted the man. He held back his tears and thought for a while before speaking, “She’s very beautiful.”
“Her voice was melodious and unique, very enchanting. She wore a cheongsam from the Republican era, and her hair was styled in large waves. She didn’t look like someone from our era; she looked like someone from the last century.”
After a moment of silence, Bai Lixin took out his phone and found a photo he had taken of Miao Pan’er. He asked, “Is this the person?”
The others also gathered around.
The man in sunglasses stared at the phone and examined it carefully for a while before shaking his head. “It looks very similar, but the face doesn’t quite match.”
“Oh,” Bai Lixin didn’t show much disappointment and simply retrieved the phone, flipping to another photo. “How about this person?”
The man in sunglasses looked again.
When he saw the black-and-white photo of the woman on the phone, his pupils suddenly dilated, and his trembling finger pointed at the phone screen. “It’s very similar! I’m certain it’s her! Who is this woman?”
The players all looked at Bai Lixin.
Bai Lixin enlarged the photo, saying, “This photo was hanging on the wall of fame in X University’s library, with her personal profile.”
Twin Ponytails leaned over and read the text on the phone while saying, “Professor Rumian, born s1913, died s1960, archaeology professor at X University. Major achievements include…”
“She was born in s1913 and died in s1960, so she was only in her forties when she passed away.”
“Why did this person suddenly come up?”
The man in the suit looked down at the man in sunglasses. “Are you sure this is the person you saw?”
The man shrank his neck and hesitated, “I… I’m not sure. The photos on his phone are too blurry, and I can’t see the face clearly. I just felt that the clothing and demeanor were similar.”
“I’m… I’m sorry.”
The man in the suit turned green. “Do you realize that because of your uncertainty, you might be responsible for someone’s death?!”
The man in sunglasses kept quiet, his neck shrinking.
Twin Ponytails asked, “Do you want to try this answer again?”
“Try? How do we try?” The man in the suit gestured toward Mohawk’s lifeless body on the ground. “Do we risk our lives like him?”
The already tense atmosphere grew even heavier, and everyone lowered their heads, refraining from saying another word.
Twin Ponytails hesitated for a moment and then spoke softly, “His death wasn’t entirely in vain; at least, we’ve eliminated one wrong answer and gained a clue. He’s dead, but we’re still alive. We can’t just give up like this, can we? Now we have another answer; what do you all plan to do? Verify it or give up?”
The man in the suit took a deep breath. “There are two directions now: one is to investigate the matter of ‘Rumian’ at X University, and the other is to find a way to communicate with the ‘Lady Yuexian’ in our dreams. Let’s split up.”
The man in the suit glanced at the man on the ground. “I’ll take care of this person; I’ll investigate that ‘Lady Yuexian.’”
Another player chimed in, “I’ll go too.”
Bai Lixin said, “I’ll make a trip to X University.”
Xia Chi added, “I’ll go with you.”
Twin Ponytails said, “I’ll go as well.”
Bai Lixin glanced at her and nodded. “Good, there’s no time to waste. Let’s go.”
Mohawk’s body on the ground disappeared into thin air, leaving only the five remaining people to split into two groups and race against time.
Around 4:30 in the afternoon, Bai Lixin once again arrived at X University.
There were no more people with banners at the entrance of the university, and the campus had returned to its usual tranquility.
The security guard happened to be one of the people from that morning, and he had a good impression of Bai Lixin. With warm greetings, the security guard didn’t obstruct their entry.
Mohawk was about to explode in anger. His facial features contorted in anger as he glared at the man in sunglasses on the ground. “You’re afraid of retaliation, but not of me killing you?”
With that, he pulled a knife from his backpack and pressed it against the man’s neck. “Do you want me to kill you right now, or do you prefer to face retaliation? You choose!”
The man’s face turned pale, his body stiffened, and he didn’t dare move.
“I… I’ll talk,” the man said, staring at the knife in Mohawk’s hand with a pale face. “Just calm down and don’t shake that damn hand of yours; I’m scared.”
“It was Lady Yuexian, Lady Yuexian!”
“I accidentally entered Lady Yuexian’s temple when I was feeling hopeless. After that, I started having frequent dreams, a woman in my dreams claimed to be ‘Lady Yuexian’ and said she could save me as long as I worshipped her devoutly.”
“My eye was a gift from Lady Yuexian, but I had no idea that this eye was taken from another girl. I went to sleep, and when I woke up, my eye had been swapped. I even saw my own eyeball on the table, which startled me.”
“I didn’t want to see it, so I flushed it down the toilet.”
Mohawk asked, “You’re not lying to me?”
The man swallowed hard. “No, no, everything I said is true, absolutely no lies!”
Only then did Mohawk put away the small knife, and some tension left his expression.
He took a deep breath and tried to control his emotions. “Finally, I’ve found the answer.”
Seeing his determined expression, Bai Lixin guessed what he was about to do.
The man in the suit held Mohawk’s shoulder. “Are you sure you want to submit the answer? Shouldn’t we verify it again? What if it’s wrong?”
Mohawk: “I can’t care about all of this anymore. The time of death for the other three was uncertain, and right now, I’m still alive and kicking. I could die in the next second. It’s a risk worth taking. If I don’t fill it out, It’s certain death, but if I do, there’s at least a fifty percent chance of survival.”
The man in the suit: “But it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re the next player to die, it could be anyone, we’ve complained too. We don’t even know if the ‘one death per day’ rule is true; what if we’ve guessed wrong? What if the three were punished just because they haven’t completed their professional tasks?”
Mohawk angrily pushed the man in the suit aside. “But you guys haven’t complained as much as I have. You don’t have the same sense of impending death as I do. It’s my choice to submit; I don’t want to die like this. I want to fight.”
With that, he ignored the others’ protests and quickly filled in the answer as “Lady Yuexian.”
[Ding! Player’s answer is incorrect. You will now receive a system penalty: Decapitation.]
The system’s cold electronic voice appeared in everyone’s minds. Before they could react, a bright light flashed in front of them, and Mohawk’s head rolled off his neck.
His head rolled a few times on the ground before coming to a stop against the narrow wall next to the alley, his face still frozen in disbelief.
“Ah! He’s dead!” The man in sunglasses screamed and scrambled to get up from the ground, stumbling towards the alley’s exit.
Bai Lixin acted swiftly, grabbing the terrified man by his collar and pulling him back.
The faces of the five players present were all grim.
Even experienced players couldn’t remain indifferent when they saw a once-living person’s life taken away by the system in an instant.
The oppressive feeling of being controlled and manipulated by the system filled them with an indescribable sense of humiliation.
The man in the suit slammed his fist into the wall with a heavy thud as he said with a sullen expression, “Lady Yuexian was not the correct answer.”
He looked coldly at the man in sunglasses. “He deceived us.”
The man in sunglasses was already in tears, tears and snot streaming down as he begged, “I didn’t lie to you; that woman really said she was ‘Lady Yuexian.’ I’ve told you everything I know. I swear I didn’t lie; otherwise, my eyes will rot!”
“Maybe he really didn’t lie to us,” Twin Ponytails, who had been silently watching, said softly. “Is it possible that the woman deceived him?”
“The murderer is that person, but the murderer’s real name isn’t ‘Lady Yuexian,’ but rather using ‘Lady Yuexian’ as a cover?”
The man in sunglasses sobbed, “Yes, that’s right. She definitely fooled me too. I really didn’t deceive you all, you have to believe me, don’t kill me, please.”
Bai Lixin said, “There’s another possibility: the murderer is a follower of ‘Lady Yuexian.’”
“We won’t kill you,” he said, looking at the man in sunglasses who was nearly mentally broken. “Please tell us more about the woman’s appearance and features.”
The young man’s calm tone slightly comforted the man. He held back his tears and thought for a while before speaking, “She’s very beautiful.”
“Her voice was melodious and unique, very enchanting. She wore a cheongsam from the Republican era, and her hair was styled in large waves. She didn’t look like someone from our era; she looked like someone from the last century.”
After a moment of silence, Bai Lixin took out his phone and found a photo he had taken of Miao Pan’er. He asked, “Is this the person?”
The others also gathered around.
The man in sunglasses stared at the phone and examined it carefully for a while before shaking his head. “It looks very similar, but the face doesn’t quite match.”
“Oh,” Bai Lixin didn’t show much disappointment and simply retrieved the phone, flipping to another photo. “How about this person?”
The man in sunglasses looked again.
When he saw the black-and-white photo of the woman on the phone, his pupils suddenly dilated, and his trembling finger pointed at the phone screen. “It’s very similar! I’m certain it’s her! Who is this woman?”
The players all looked at Bai Lixin.
Bai Lixin enlarged the photo, saying, “This photo was hanging on the wall of fame in X University’s library, with her personal profile.”
Twin Ponytails leaned over and read the text on the phone while saying, “Professor Rumian, born s1913, died s1960, archaeology professor at X University. Major achievements include…”
“She was born in s1913 and died in s1960, so she was only in her forties when she passed away.”
“Why did this person suddenly come up?”
The man in the suit looked down at the man in sunglasses. “Are you sure this is the person you saw?”
The man shrank his neck and hesitated, “I… I’m not sure. The photos on his phone are too blurry, and I can’t see the face clearly. I just felt that the clothing and demeanor were similar.”
“I’m… I’m sorry.”
The man in the suit turned green. “Do you realize that because of your uncertainty, you might be responsible for someone’s death?!”
The man in sunglasses kept quiet, his neck shrinking.
Twin Ponytails asked, “Do you want to try this answer again?”
“Try? How do we try?” The man in the suit gestured toward Mohawk’s lifeless body on the ground. “Do we risk our lives like him?”
The already tense atmosphere grew even heavier, and everyone lowered their heads, refraining from saying another word.
Twin Ponytails hesitated for a moment and then spoke softly, “His death wasn’t entirely in vain; at least, we’ve eliminated one wrong answer and gained a clue. He’s dead, but we’re still alive. We can’t just give up like this, can we? Now we have another answer; what do you all plan to do? Verify it or give up?”
The man in the suit took a deep breath. “There are two directions now: one is to investigate the matter of ‘Rumian’ at X University, and the other is to find a way to communicate with the ‘Lady Yuexian’ in our dreams. Let’s split up.”
The man in the suit glanced at the man on the ground. “I’ll take care of this person; I’ll investigate that ‘Lady Yuexian.’”
Another player chimed in, “I’ll go too.”
Bai Lixin said, “I’ll make a trip to X University.”
Xia Chi added, “I’ll go with you.”
Twin Ponytails said, “I’ll go as well.”
Bai Lixin glanced at her and nodded. “Good, there’s no time to waste. Let’s go.”
Mohawk’s body on the ground disappeared into thin air, leaving only the five remaining people to split into two groups and race against time.
Around 4:30 in the afternoon, Bai Lixin once again arrived at X University.
There were no more people with banners at the entrance of the university, and the campus had returned to its usual tranquility.
The security guard happened to be one of the people from that morning, and he had a good impression of Bai Lixin. With warm greetings, the security guard didn’t obstruct their entry.
