Chapter 46
(Bright Skies, Aflame Earth, Red Snow)
The first person to discover Gu Liang in the morning was Professor w.a.n.g.
Upon climbing out from his sleeping bag, Professor w.a.n.g could not resist swearing out loud: “It’s way too f.u.c.king cold. I want to go to the toilet, what should I do?”
Scientist Li said: “Dig a hole in the snow, and then cover it with snow once you’re done. Please take your business further away from our camping site, don’t stink the rest of us to death.”
“Young people should speak politely; did you have to phrase it in such an unpleasant way?”
Professor w.a.n.g rolled his eyes and took out his card: “Hm? I received a new plot, ah… it’s asking me to go to the toilet. Huh, not bad, not bad, there’s a temporary toilet 500 metres down towards the foot of the mountain. The system is still quite humane in this respect. I’m leaving.”
At this moment, Doctor Xu had woken up as well, and she crawled out of her sleeping bag. “I found two gas fuel canisters and dehydrated vegetables. I’m going to make some soup and boil some hot water. We can’t keep eating energy bars.”
After seeing Doctor Xu, the disgruntlement on Scientist Li’s expression receded a little. “I’ll help you.”
“Hm? That Inspector Liu hasn’t returned from his night vigil?” Professor w.a.n.g was the first to walk out of the tent and he immediately noticed the fallen Gu Liang, whose face was red from the cold. “d.a.m.n! He couldn’t possibly be the deceased in the case, right!”
When Professor w.a.n.g’s words landed, Doctor Xu ran out in a hurry, and Scientist Li was last to exit the tent.
Thankfully, they discovered that he was still alive after they tested for his breath. He was merely unconscious.
Additionally, it was not like the system wished for the players to freeze to death; the winter wear that Gu Liang was wrapped in was enough to keep him warm, and he did not suffer from any frostbites either.
Although Scientist Li was perpetually sullen in expression, especially towards Gu Liang whom he was very dissatisfied with, he still carried him back into the tent with Professor w.a.n.g and tucked him inside his sleeping bag.
Afterwards, Professor w.a.n.g followed his timeline— he went to the toilet.
Scientist Li accompanied Doctor Xu to cook some rehydrated vegetable soup outside and boiled the water.
Upon hearing some movement coming from the tent, Doctor Xu knew that Gu Liang had awoken. Hence, she poured a bowl of hot water and brought it into the tent for his consumption.
Then, it was at that moment where Professor w.a.n.g had scampered back, cursing and swearing, after he was scared by a ghost.
* * *
Currently, the four people were sitting in a circle and drinking their rehydrated vegetable soup.
As they were drinking, Gu Liang gave some attention to the gas fuel canisters and read the description written on top.
“Miniature Gas Fuel Canisters, provided by the Huilong Snow Mountain Base Camp; suitable for travellers climbing the mountain on foot, it is recommended that 1-2 canisters are brought for each trip, if the supplies prove to be insufficient, return back to the base camp to get new ones.”
Meanwhile, Professor w.a.n.g finally managed to regain bits of his composure after drinking a bowl of soup. He could not help but ask Doctor Xu: “Were you keeping watch with Scientist Li the entire time? Those three corpses, especially Xiao Cao’s, were there any changes? Did the corpse reanimate all of a sudden?”
Doctor Xu replied, “No. Those three corpses were here the entire time. There weren’t any changes.”
“Which means to say that I b.u.mped into a ghost.”
Professor w.a.n.g’s tone of voice was particularly heavy. Then, he thought of something and glanced at Gu Liang: “Inspector Liu, did you encounter anything last night?”
In the face of Professor w.a.n.g’s question, Gu Liang thought about it momentarily before deciding not to say the truth for the time being. Instead, he shook his head, saying: “My physique isn’t the best. I probably had a dizzy spell from lack of oxygen because of the higher elevation here. Nothing really happened apart from that.”
Doctor Xu continued to question Professor w.a.n.g: “You mentioned that the ghost asked you… if you believed him?”
Professor w.a.n.g: “Yeah. Something along the lines of ‘why did you believe them and not believe in me’. It’s probably related to the ghost story that was featured in the beginning of the plot. All of you received the story as well, right?”
Everyone else nodded in agreement. Brow furrowing, Professor w.a.n.g uttered: “Which means that ghosts exist in this scenario’s setting… Presently, we’ve only seen Xiao Cao’s ghost. But there are three corpses. Say… Will we chance upon the other two ghosts? I’m referring to Xiao Hua, and the Xiao Dong who was hugging her.”
It was evident that Professor w.a.n.g was afraid of ghosts, judging from his slightly pale complexion.
Doctor Xu consoled him, saying, “Everything will be fine Professor w.a.n.g, don’t be afraid. Even if there are ghosts, it’s merely part of the script settings. Once the script enactment concludes, the ghost will disappear. When all is said and done, we still have to find the murderer.”
“I’m already at this age, I don’t take to scares well!” Professor w.a.n.g heaved a sigh.
Doctor Xu grinned: “You should be saying, at your age, what haven’t you seen before, why would I be afraid of ghosts?”
Professor w.a.n.g rolled his eyes at her. “Granted, I have seen all kinds of treacherous people, but when it comes to ghosts, I really haven’t encountered any. Sigh, forget it, forget it. Let’s not talk about it anymore, lest I become a joke to you young people.”
Gu Liang raised his rehydrated vegetable soup and drank it silently as he mulled over the words that Professor w.a.n.g had just said.
He caught two important points from the information.
Firstly, he encountered Xiao Cao’s spirit; secondly, the spirit asked: “Why didn’t you believe me?”
Apart from the time and location difference, the experience that Professor w.a.n.g was put through was basically the same as his.
Gu Liang genuinely wanted to know if the ghost would say the same thing no matter who he encountered, without the slightest difference in treatment, or perhaps it was more accurate to say, if there were any differences in his questions and reactions.
Hence, Gu Liang had chosen to lie just now, refusing to narrate the entire proceedings of his timeline last night.
He wanted to wait it out, so he could observe the situation further before reconsidering it again.
After finis.h.i.+ng her bowl of rehydrated vegetable soup, Doctor Xu entered the tent again.
When she came out, there was an additional box of medicine in her hands.
She gave the box of medicine to Gu Liang. “My character is a doctor and I had a medicine box with me. This is Rhodiola Rosea, it’s used to treat alt.i.tude sickness. You should feel better after eating some. After all, it’s really cold here, and if you were to collapse in the snow again, it’d be no laughing matter.”
“Thanks,” Gu Liang took the box of medicine.
“No need for thanks. Since we were all thrown into this game, and even wound up in such a nasty environment, helping each other is something we ought to do.”
Just as Doctor Xu said those words, Scientist Li picked up his vibrating card and interrupted her that instant. “Xiao Wan, I just received a timeline that concerns the both of us, can you check if you’ve received it as well?”
Xiao Wan.
Gu Liang guessed that it was Doctor Xu’s actual diminutive name.
Moreover, she had previously mentioned that the three of them had met in previous scripts, and they were familiar with each other.
“Mn, my card is vibrating too, let me take a lookk2026; Ah, yeah, we have the same timeline. Give me a moment and we’ll head off together.” Doctor Xu shot Gu Liang an apologetic smile before she stood up and walked away.
20 minutes later, Doctor Xu and Scientist Li left.
Gu Liang drank the remains of his rehydrated vegetable soup, ate an energy bar, and then cleansed the pot, bowls, ladle and basin, which could be considered as an exercise.
Once he accomplished everything, he returned to the tent and sat beside his sleeping bag without uttering a word, and the turns of his mind were indecipherable.
At the side, Professor w.a.n.g was rather bored, so he tried to initiate a conversation. “That, I don’t know if you noticed it but, Scientist Li is interested in Doctor Xu. Whereas Doctor Xu, she probably isn’t interested in him, which is why she was never forthcoming with an answer.”
“There’s way too many fussy girls these days, which makes gentle and magnanimous ladies like Doctor Xu a hard find. But it’s precisely because of these traits which make Scientist Li worry that she’ll be s.n.a.t.c.hed away whenever she talks to other men, and correspondingly, his att.i.tude towards other men leave much to be desired. The animosity he has towards you is because of this. Therefore, you shouldn’t take it to heart.
“However, it has to be said that it’s rather childish for Scientist Li to do this. I feel that you’re more mature and more compatible with Doctor Xu by comparison. Meeting each other in this game is a kind of fate too. And if everyone manages to survive, it’s even possible that you could make a good match. You ought to listen to an old man’s advice, huh… Hold on, are you married?”
The string of words that left Professor w.a.n.g’s mouth was akin to pebbles sinking into the deep sea, unable to cause the slightest ripple or wave.
Professor w.a.n.g was a little unhappy. “Could you say something at least?”
Gu Liang returned to his senses and gave him a slightly perplexed look. “Ah?”
“Are you married?” Professor w.a.n.g asked.
“No.”
“What do you think about Doctor Xu then?”
“Nothing of consequence.” Gu Liang replied honestly.
Professor w.a.n.g: “… With your personality, you’d be hard-pressed to find a girlfriend.”
— Sigh, trying to hold a conversation with him is truly difficult.
But Professor w.a.n.g still wanted to keep the conversation going.
Frankly speaking, he was way too bored.
Moreover, the weather was torturously cold; having a conversation partner could dispel some of the chill.
As Professor w.a.n.g desperately tried to fan the proverbial flames, Gu Liang had already slid into his sleeping bag and closed his eyes.
Professor w.a.n.g felt that it was growing cold. “You’re going to sleep again? Didn’t you just wake up?”
Gu Liang yawned. “Mn, it’s freezing, and it’s not like we have to do anything.”
Professor w.a.n.g: “……”
Gu Liang closed his eyes and continued to sleep.
Looking skywards, Professor w.a.n.g let out a long sigh. “You’re really not afraid of boredom… You’re more fatuous than an old man like myself.”
* * *
One hour into Professor w.a.n.g sitting around idly, Scientist Li and Doctor Xu finally made their return.
However, Doctor Yu needed to lend an arm to support Scientist Li back.
When they walked inside the tent, Professor w.a.n.g glanced over— Tch, what a man, Scientist Li is actually injured. The left side of his forehead was wounded and there was blood all over his head.
Anxious, Professor w.a.n.g asked: “Are you alright?”
Scientist Li shook his head: “It’s fine, a superficial injury.”
“But you still have to clean it as soon as possible.” Doctor Xu intercepted as she supported Scientist Li to his seat. Then, she rummaged for the iodine solution, gauze and bandages from her medicine box, before helping Scientist Li disinfect and bandage his wound. She asked: “Is your leg okay? Do you need it checked?”
“It’s fine, the problem isn’t big. It’s just a fall; my clothes were thick, there’s nothing to worry about.” Scientist Li said.
By this juncture, Gu Liang had already sat up, and he took the initiative to ask: “What did the both of you encounter??”
“We encountered the ghost as well. By that, I mean Xiao Cao’s spirit.”
Doctor Xu turned around to gaze at Gu Liang. “According to our timeline, the character Scientist Li wanted to talk to me about some matters. Later, the ghost arrived and he attacked Scientist Li.”
Gu Liang’s eyebrows furrowed minutely. He followed up with another question: “Xiao Cao attacked the both of you?”
“If we want to be precise… it’s not ‘both of us’, he only attacked Scientist Li.” Doctor Xu made a brief recall before she said in an affirmative manner, “That’s right, his target was Scientist Li specifically.”
Gu Liang queried: “After he saw you, did he say anything?”
Doctor Xu stood still as that terrifying scene slowly emerged in her mind.
Back then, Scientist Li had brought her 300 meters away from the camping grounds to act out their script.
Scientist Li: “I need you to help me with something.”
Doctor Xu asked: “What’s the matter? Why are you talking behind their backs? It couldn’t be that… You’re planning to take all the credit for this investigation?”
Scientist Li: “No, it has nothing to do with the inspection. It… It concerns those corpses. As you know, I took an optional course in mythology. I’m quite intrigued by the ghost story that has been circulating around, and I find that their deaths are rather queer. But if we were to hand them over to the police directly, we might not get a hold of any information.”
“Therefore, could you help me do a preliminary autopsy? Help me a.n.a.lyse them, and check what their cause of death was…”
Doctor Xu: “That’s not possible. Forensics isn’t my field of specialisation. Furthermore… It’s unethical to do that. It’s better to hand it over to the police.”
Scientist Li: “Xiao Xu, help me please? You’ve already promised to marry me, and yet you’re refusing to do such a small thing for me?”
Doctor Xu: “I really can’t. I’m not a forensics investigator after all. However… My best friend in the city happens to be a forensics investigator. Worst come to worst… when their autopsies come out, I’ll ask her to secretly tell us the results. They’re professionals, which is far better than my random meddling.”
Just as Doctor Xu finished saying those words, she saw a translucent ghost floating over from the distance. He was identical to Xiao Cao in appearance, it should be Xiao Cao’s spirit.
Doctor Xu’s pupils dilated in fear. However, because Scientist Li had his back towards the ghost, he did not see the apparition immediately, and he only asked: “What’s the matter with you?”
“Behind you… Behind you…” Doctor Xu pointed towards the back of Scientist Li.
Before Scientist Li could turn his head back, a hand pressed down on his shoulder in that instant, and a deep and demonic voice sounded next to his ear. “Why didn’t you believe me? Would you willingly believe them rather than believe in me?
Scientist Li jumped in shock, shoving the hand off his shoulder as he twisted his body back to take a look.
In the next moment, however, the previously kind and gentle ghost flew into a sudden rage; he reached for Scientist Li’s neck with both arms and strangled it tightly before pus.h.i.+ng him to the ground.
Doctor Xu almost fell from fright. Without caring if it was useful or not, she grabbed the snow on the ground and threw it in the direction of the ghost.
Since it was approaching high noon, the sun was becoming brighter and brighter.
The snow smashed against the ghost’s body viciously, causing the ghost to raise his head and glare at Doctor Xu angrily. A gust of snow kicked up, refracting rays of sunlight that was far more intense which fell into the ghost’s eyes. Unable to withstand the intense sunlight, he let go of Scientist Li and floated away.
After describing everything in the greatest detail she could manage, Doctor Xu said, “Maybe because the ghost didn’t have much strength, Scientist Li’s neck wasn’t strangled badly. There were no traces of strangulation when I checked it. The main cause and most severe of his injuries was due to him being pushed to ground, and he knocked his head against it. If his leg is fine—”
“My leg is fine.” Scientist Li cut in before he asked Professor w.a.n.g, “When you met him in the morning, did he attack you?”
Professor w.a.n.g shook his head. “No. But it’s also possible that I ran away too quickly. In any case, he asked me the exact same questions, about why I didn’t believe him and whatnot. I ran off after hearing it. Perhaps he didn’t have the time to attack me.”
Having thought of something, Doctor Xu asked Gu Liang: “The ghost should have run off in fear because of the sunlight at high noon. Since he’s afraid of sunlight, he should have an easier time lurking around at night. Inspector Liu, are you certain that you didn’t encounter anything when you were keeping vigil last night?”
Gu Liang paused for a moment before he continued to shake his head.
Professor w.a.n.g scratched his thinning hair and remarked: “That’s strange then. Why did the ghost choose to wander around during daylight instead of the night? However, the theory that I ran away too quickly still stands, or else I might have been attacked.”
Everyone had encountered Xiao Cao’s spirit, but only Scientist Li was attacked.
Indeed, this was quite strange.
But since they were in front of Scientist Li, Gu Liang did not tell Professor w.a.n.g anything for the time being.
After a moment of contemplation, Gu Liang asked Doctor Xu: “Was what you said everything?”
“Yes. That’s everything. I think I recounted it in great detail,” said Doctor Xu.
Gu Liang posed another question: “To surmmarise, when Xiao Cao’s spirit appeared, he only asked Scientist Li one question at the start before he proceeded to attack him. From beginning to the end, he didn’t do or say anything to you?”
Doctor Xu reviewed the entire incident from beginning to end one more time, genuinely afraid that she had missed out on something.
Some time later, she answered in a resolute tone: “None. I’m absolutely certain. It was to the extent where he didn’t even spare me a glance.”
“Okay. I understand.” Gu Liang said.
Feeling strange, Doctor Xu said: “You’ve already understood what is going on?”
Gu Liang shook his head. “No. I’m saying that, with regards to your story, I am now informed.”
Scientist Li sneered from the side. “Like I was saying.. How could he possibly grasp…”
Gu Liang did not acknowledge him. Instead, he sat beside his sleeping bag with his eyes closed to recuperate his energy.
In the afternoon, Doctor Xu and Scientist Li cooked more rehydrated vegetable soup together, which the four of them consumed alongside some energy bars.
After they finished their meal, Gu Liang washed the various cooking utensils and cutlery on his own accord.
By the time Gu Liang entered their tent, Professor w.a.n.g, Scientist Li and Doctor Xu were huddled together and conversing about something.
Upon seeing Gu Liang coming in, Doctor Xu took the initiative to ask: “There’s poker here, shall we play Fight the Landlord together?”
“The three of you can go ahead. I’m going to rest for a while.” Gu Liang did not hesitate in the slightest as he rejected her offer. Following, he turned around, slid into his sleeping bag and lied down.
Professor w.a.n.g could only shake his head upon seeing that. “Can you even sleep at night after sleeping so much during daylight?”
Gu Liang: “I can.”
Professor w.a.n.g: “……”
The three of them played an hour of poker and talked about the case briefly, except they did not manage to pa.r.s.e out anything useful. Thus, they started to make random small talk.
Although Gu Liang kept dozing off and waking up to various noises, his rest was considered fruitful.
This lasted until 5 in the evening, where all four of their cards vibrated simultaneously, which signalled that they had all received new plots.
Gu Liang opened his eyes and slowly climbed out of his sleeping bag. He felt around for his card before he managed to take a look, and the surface wrote: “5:10, your bladder was full, go to the temporary toilet to do your business.”
Gu Liang: “……”
— Seriously speaking, this timeline was too simple.
The four players were almost in unison as they placed down their cards.
Everyone exchanged glances for a moment. Gu Liang was the first to move.
Just as he reached the entrance of the tent, he realised that Professor w.a.n.g had caught up with him.
Without uttering a word, Gu Liang pushed open the hanging screen and took a few steps out. And when he looked over his shoulder subconsciously, he discovered that Professor w.a.n.g was still following him.
Gu Liang paused for a beat before he asked him: “Are you going to the toilet too?”
Professor w.a.n.g smiled. “Yeah, isn’t that coincidental?”
His response made Gu Liang glance back at Doctor Xu and Scientist Li, who were still in the tent. Thus, he chose to keep his silence for the time being, only nodding his head. “Let’s go.”
Since the sun was about to set beneath the mountain soon, the temperature experienced a plunge and the weather became increasingly frigid. Gu Liang tightened his down jacket and headed straight for the temporary toilet.
The temporary toilet was built by the people from the snow mountain’s base camp, and it was situated towards the foot of the mountain.
Hence, the direction from the camp to the toilet happened to be in the opposite direction of the mountain cave where the three corpses were hidden.
After going down 500 meters, Gu Liang and Professor w.a.n.g reached the toilet.
And Gu Liang did take the opportunity to go to the toilet.
Once he was done, Professor w.a.n.g watched him take out his warm thermos from his bag.
Professor w.a.n.g initially thought that he wanted to drink water, but he did not expect that he would take off his thick gloves and use the warm water to wash his hands.
Thus, Professor w.a.n.g could not help but comment: “You’re really too particular about things.”
“No matter how difficult or dangerous it is, you still have to be particular about hygiene.” Saying that, Gu Liang capped his water thermos and placed it back into his bag. Just as he took a step out of the toilet, however, he felt a gust of cold wind brus.h.i.+ng past his face.
Afterwards, his entire person was enveloped in drowsiness, and he fell to the ground without being conscious of it, and fell asleep.
When Gu Liang woke up again, it was from a loud and alarming noise, followed by a thick and scorched smell entering his nose.
Gu Liang forced himself into a sitting position from the snow-covered ground and looked in the direction of the fire light. Promptly, he realised that their camping grounds was on fire, and it should have begun from the initial explosion.
Professor w.a.n.g had fainted beside Gu Liang, and he was immediately awoken by the explosion as well.
He staggered to his feet and turned around in terror, wanting to run towards the base of the mountain.
Gu Liang called him to a stop: “What are you running for?”
Professor w.a.n.g halted and looked at Gu Liang, saying: “Do you have any common sense! We have to get away from here as soon as possible, we should run down the mountain first! That explosion wasn’t small, it’s impossible to guess if it’ll cause an avalanche! Why aren’t you moving yet?”
“You don’t need to be afraid.” Gu Liang said slowly.
Professor w.a.n.g rolled his eyes: “Even when the sky is about to collapse, you still look like you’re half-dead. I’m starting to think that you don’t even have the desire to live. Of course you’re not afraid of a snow avalanche. But I am! I have to leave.”
Gu Liang said: “I suggest that you don’t continue forward. Look carefully, there’s a thick fog 100 meters ahead of the toilet.”
“Thick… Thick fog…” Professor w.a.n.g seemed to realise something, “You’re saying… The thick fog that borders the scenario premises…”
Gu Liang said: “That’s right. There won’t be an avalanche. Whereas if you continue running forward, you will die.”
Professor w.a.n.g: “I can understand not running forward. But why won’t there be an avalanche? Why are you so certain?”
With a calm tone of voice, Gu Liang gazed towards the peak of the mountain, “The food prepared by the system can only sustain us for a day or so. Although this scenario’s map is outdoors, it is not big in actuality. When all these factors are taken into consideration, it signals that the script is about to end soon. It’s not like the system wants to kill us, so an avalanche is out of the question. On the other hand, you will be sending yourself to your death if you continue heading down the mountain.”
“Is… Is that how it is? I understand…”
Professor w.a.n.g scratched his head as he tottered towards Gu Liang and plopped down by his side. “Although you don’t speak much on a regular basis, you’re actually quite reliable!”
Gu Liang did not acknowledge his praise, merely fixing his eyes on their camping grounds without looking away once.
The flames rushed straight for the horizon, and its colours were brighter than the setting sun at the side.
With the lights from the sky and the fire from the earth, it was as though the snow had been smeared red.
Following, a person rolled towards the base of the mountain from amidst the flames, and Gu Liang seemed to realise something as he quickly went up to support her.
It was Doctor Xu.
“f.u.c.k, she couldn’t have died from the explosion, right?” Professor w.a.n.g could not help but ask.
After Gu Liang stabilised Doctor Xu’s frame, he checked her pulse. “She’s fine. She’s still alive, only unconscious.”
Not long after Gu Liang said those words, Doctor Xu also opened her eyes.
Her forehead had been wounded, and the resulting pain made her cover her forehead subconsciously as she struggled to sit up.
Professor w.a.n.g dissuaded her immediately, “Don’t rush, sit up slowly. Your head is wounded, you’ll probably feel dizzy.”
The setting sun gradually disappeared as the time crawled towards 7 o’ clock at night.
The system broadcast rang out: “The script enactment has come to an end, the case investigation segment begins.”
The three players looked at each other collectively. Their first reaction was—
Where did Scientist Li go?
A note about names:
Scientist Li addresses Doctor Xu as ‘小婉’ (pinyin: xiao wan) which is her diminutive or small name, since ‘小’ translates to ‘little’. Additionally, all the university students’ names can also be considered their diminutive names, but I reckon it was for the ease of convenience more than anything else.
However, the side character Li Xiao Yu (李晓玉) is her full name, not diminutive, because her ‘Xiao’ (晓) translates to ‘dawn’ or ‘to know’. Even when she is addressed as ‘Xiao Yu’ later in the future, they are still referring to her actual name, though more affectionately because the p.r.o.nunciation of her given name allows them to double it as her diminutive.