Strange Tales from the Deep Mountains (Part 20)

"Damn, this kid's really acting strange!"

"Help! What are you doing?!"

"Damn it, I, Su Bao, was even afraid of bumping into you! You brat!!!"

Li Su's heart skipped a beat, and her voice was a little hoarse: "W-what did you say?"

“I said—” the little snake drawled, but then reached out and put the latch on the cabinet door back in place.

"Daddy can't come out."

The little snake gave an innocent smile to the gap in the wardrobe, then turned and left.

"Don't go! Don't go!" Li Su pounded on the cabinet door.

The cabinet was pitch black, with only a dim light filtering through the narrow gap in the cabinet door.

This little snake is such a master of disguise that it makes people subconsciously overlook its identity and treat it as just a child. But a wild beast is a wild beast, and it will always bite its prey's throat when the prey is relaxed.

The light in the gap suddenly brightened, and before her eyes could adjust to the strong light, Li Su subconsciously raised her hand to shield her eyes from the glare.

Hehe~

Once her eyes adjusted to the bright light, Li Su realized that the little snake had somehow returned to the cabinet door, holding the kerosene lamp in its hand.

"I didn't leave." The little snake blinked innocently and asked softly, "Daddy, are you scared too? What are you scared of?"

Li Su frowned subconsciously, not understanding what he meant.

"Let me out first, and I'll tell you anything you want to know..."

Before Li Su could finish speaking, the little snake interrupted her. A look of disgust appeared on the little snake's fair face, but it was quickly replaced by a grinning expression, so quickly that Li Su wondered if it was just her imagination.

"Did Dad really lie like that?" the little snake murmured. "Too bad I don't want to hear it."

The little snake tilted its hand, and the swaying kerosene liquid poured out of the cup and dripped onto the wooden floor.

"Dad, you should try too. How can you escape the pain that Mom and I have suffered?"

The snake's voice was very soft, and it was almost inaudible amidst the crackling and popping of the rapidly burning firewood.

"What are you doing?! What are you doing?! Why is this kid playing with fire like that?!"

"I knew it! This kid is the real boss, isn't he? That female ghost wasn't him at all!"

"But what did that brat mean by what he just said?"

"Help! Help! Someone's angry!"

The entire wooden room was quickly set ablaze, and thick fog spread into the dark night sky, the firelight illuminating the area.

The female ghosts that had surrounded the room had long since disappeared, and two men with gloomy expressions stood behind the wooden house in the darkness.

"Let go." Doctor Qi said in a grim tone.

Qi Wujin grabbed Qi Wuyi's arm, his face expressionless, but staring at the flickering firelight in front of him, he said in a deep voice, "We can't go in now. Do you want to let Su Su's efforts go to waste?"

A large hand gripped her pale neck, slowly tightening its grip. Doctor Qi stared expressionlessly at Qi Wujin's face.

Qi Wujin, his breath caught in his throat from the pressure of his second consciousness, blushed slightly, and managed to say with difficulty, "It'll be soon. I won't let him get hurt..."

"Don't forget the rules of the game: interfering at crucial moments will be detected by the mainframe..."

Qi Wujin paused, taking in the air around him: "Going in now won't help him, it'll harm him..."

Doctor Qi's face grew increasingly grim, and he finally loosened his grip on Qi Wujin's neck.

"Cough cough..." Qi Wujin couldn't help but cough twice.

Neither of them spoke, and an eerie silence fell over the air, broken only by the sound of burning firewood.

The two men behind the cabin stared intently at the house billowing smoke in front of them. Although they didn't exchange a word, they were both ready to break into the cabin at any moment.

The red-clad female ghost, Rou Rou, carrying a wooden basket filled with bright red apples, suddenly dropped it to the ground upon seeing the firelight, scattering all the plump, red apples across the floor.

"Baby! Baby!"

Without any hesitation, Rou Rou pushed open the wooden door that hadn't been burned yet and rushed into the wooden house.

The influx of oxygen fueled the relentless flames, which leaped more than a meter high from the wooden bed and shot straight up to the roof.

The little snake, who was sitting on the edge of the bed observing, was startled by the sound of the wooden door suddenly being pushed open. He watched as the familiar red dress ran straight toward him through the firelight.

"Baby!"

"Cough cough—"

Her soft skirt passed through the flames unscathed. Her steps became completely frantic by the end. Waves of heat rushed towards her, but she seemed oblivious to them. She rushed to the bedside and pulled the little snake into her arms.

"Baby, don't be afraid, Mommy's here, baby, don't be afraid..."

Her soft voice was choked with sobs, her breathing was rapid and disordered, and her whole body was trembling, yet she still held the little snake on the bed tightly, using her own body to shield it from the surrounding flames.

“Mom…” the little snake whispered in response.

"Mommy's here, Mommy's here, baby's not afraid, baby's not afraid..."

The fire grew larger and larger, and thick smoke rose up, making visibility inside the wooden house almost zero.

Li Su covered her mouth and nose with a wet towel she had temporarily redeemed from the system store, and vigorously patted the wardrobe with her palm.

Li Su clearly saw the little snake pour kerosene in front of the wardrobe, but the wardrobe seemed to be protected, and the flames didn't reach it at all.

The latch on the wardrobe became precarious due to the violent shaking and the heat from the flames. It finally came off after Li Su slammed it again, falling to the ground with a dull thud.

Except for the wardrobe, the entire wooden house was on fire. The most dangerous place had now become the safest place. The successive impacts left Li Su somewhat exhausted, and she leaned against the wardrobe.

The system, which had been silent since he entered the cabin, finally reappeared.

[Hidden Quest Quiz: Player Li Su has only one chance to answer each question. A correct answer will grant a hint for the hidden quest; an incorrect answer will result in the player being eliminated by the system.]

[Q&A begins.]

[Question 1: What was the cause of death of the red-clad ghost, Rou Rou? (Easyest question!)]

The chat room buzzed with activity as people eagerly answered the question.

"This is an easy question! I know how to do it!"

"Fire! Fire! Fire!"

"Burned to death! Next question, next question!"

[A. Burned to death B. Died of grief]

Looking at the two options in front of her, Li Su selected option A, "Burned to Death," almost without hesitation.

Are you sure you want to confirm your answer? Players can change their answer before submitting it.

"What do you mean? Did I choose the wrong one?"

"Huh? When did the system in this horror game become so good?"

"They're giving us a chance to change our answer? Did we choose the wrong one?"

"I think we should still change it, the system has already given us a heads-up..."

Li Su was also taken aback by the sudden prompt. He pursed his lips and clicked the confirm button anyway.

[Player Li Su's final answer is A. Burned to death.]

[Congratulations to player Li Su, your answer is correct.]

"Damn, what's going on? We made the right choice, why pull that stunt?"

"Oh no, everyone, I lost my willpower and changed my answer when the system prompted me... If this were in a game, I'd be dead already..."

"Upstairs, add one, waaaaah..."

"This system is really cunning, deliberately messing with people's mentality. Luckily, I didn't change my answer."

[Question 2: Did the red-clad ghost, Rou Rou, willingly allow herself to be burned to death?]

A. Yes B. No

"???"

"Is the system malfunctioning? Giving out easy questions?"

"How could anyone willingly be burned to death? This is another easy question."

"Not bad. They were saying that you only get one chance to answer each question, and if you answer wrong, you're out. I thought it was going to be really hard, but it turns out these are all easy points..."

"BBBBBB Next question!"

"Holy crap? What's going on? This player chose A???"

"Huh? Baby, did you order the wrong thing?"

"How could it be voluntary? Honey, you clicked the wrong thing!!! Change it right now!!!"

A line of small text reappeared on the screen: "Are you sure you want to confirm your answer? Players can change their answer before submitting it."

Her heart was pounding, but she couldn't tell if it was from lack of oxygen or from nervousness. Li Su clenched her fist and clicked confirm again.

"Damn, this is going to be a disaster..."

"I can't bear to look..."

"Baby! Waaaaah..."

[Player Li Su's final answer is A. Yes.]

[Congratulations to player Li Su, your answer is correct.]

The moment the system voice sounded, all the viewers were stunned. The rapidly scrolling comments seemed to have been paused, and no one spoke.

[Question 3: Before the fire, did the woman in red, Rou Rou, realize that the player wasn't her husband? Did her child, Little Snake, realize that the player wasn't his father?]

[A. Before the fire broke out, the red-clad female ghost Rou Rou had already recognized that the player was not her husband, and the little snake had already recognized that the player was not his father.]

B. Before the fire broke out, the red-clad female ghost Rou Rou had not yet realized that the player was not her husband, while the little snake had already realized that the player was not his father.

C. Before the fire broke out, the red-clad female ghost Rou Rou had already realized that the player was not her husband, while the little snake had not yet realized that the player was not his father.

D. Before the fire broke out, the red-clad ghost Rou Rou had not yet realized that the player was not her husband, and the little snake had not yet realized that the player was not his father.

"Holy crap, is this even a difficult question??? Didn't you only have two options? Why are there four options all of a sudden???"

"I dare not choose my family..."

"Who knows? Didn't the woman in red call the player 'husband' from the beginning? And didn't this little snake call him 'daddy' from the start?"

"These ghosts can act too, right? Otherwise, how could that little devil have locked my precious up so innocently and then set it on fire so easily!"

"What the person upstairs said makes so much sense... I'm totally dumbfounded..."

"How do I choose the answer to this question? It seems like every option is possible!"

Each option on the screen has only subtle changes, making it hard to keep up with your eyes.

The damp towel in his hand was almost dried by the heat of the flames. Thick smoke seeped in through the gaps in the towel, making Li Su's head feel dizzy. He frowned uncomfortably and closed his eyes.

"??? You're not choosing anymore?"

"I thought he was really good. I bet he just guessed at the question earlier, didn't he?"

"Where did this lunatic come from? I decoded it in just one second. The person upstairs is the same one who was swearing before, right?"

"If you're so great, you do it yourself. Who do you think you are? You're a joke."

"Waaaah, honey, don't sleep..."

[Countdown: 5]

"No, I'm telling you, don't make this game too ridiculous! Give it some thought! With the countdown starting so fast, how can anyone possibly understand all the questions at once?!"

"That's right!!!"

"People need time to think!"

[Countdown: 4]

The system countdown continues: [Countdown: 3]

Li Su still didn't open her eyes. Although the wardrobe isolated her from the flames, the heat waves kept hitting her, and her porcelain-white face was flushed pink from the steam.

"It's a bit of a shame. It's been a long time since I've seen a streamer who suits my taste so well. I initially thought she was just a pretty face, and now that I'm starting to get interested in streamers, it's all over..."

"Was she knocked out by the fumes?"

"Even if I'm afraid of answering incorrectly, I can't just not answer, right? Am I just going to wait to die?"

"Wife, my wife..."

[Countdown: 2]

All the details from when I first met Rou Rou and Xiao Gui flashed through my mind.

Every fragment rushed out of her memory, and the voices in her head gave Li Su a headache.

"Honey, do I look good?"

"Honey, come in quickly, our baby must have been waiting for you for a long time."

......

"Isn't Daddy the one who loves the baby the most?"

"Hide and seek, Dad, you and I used to play that game before."

......

[Countdown: 1]

[Countdown has ended.]

As soon as the system displayed this message, Li Su opened her eyes and pressed the screen.