Chapter 32 Fantasy
The worst part of being inside this door is not only facing terrifying monsters, but also facing teammates who could betray you at any moment. While those inside the door may appear to be trustworthy partners at first glance, the very concept of partnership could change in an instant should something unexpected happen.
Because of what had just happened, even though the guide's voice could be heard outside, no one dared to move. Ruan Nanzhu remained lying on top of Lin Qiushi. He gently patted Lin Qiushi's shoulder and said, "Let's go."
Lin Qiushi: "Just leaving like that?"
"It shouldn't be a problem," Ruan Nanzhu said. "Besides, we can't spend the night in the temple."
That made sense. Lin Qiushi thought for a moment and said, "Why don't I go out first? If anything unexpected happens, you guys can act accordingly."
"Let's go together." Ruan Nanzhu said, "Trust me this time."
Seeing Ruan Nanzhu's resolute attitude, Lin Qiushi took a few tentative steps toward the temple, carrying him on his back. As soon as he left the temple gate, he saw the tour guide standing where they had parted ways, smiling and waving a flag at them. "Come here, come here quickly," the guide shouted at them. "It's getting dark. We have to get back before it gets dark."
Lin Qiushi looked around and found that the knives that had just fallen from the sky had disappeared. Only the bloody corpse at the door told him that everything that had just happened was indeed not an illusion.
He slowly approached the guide. Just as Ruan Nanzhu had said, no terrible accident had occurred. Cheng Qianli followed them, staring at the corpse. The expression on his face looked familiar—he had maintained this look of wanting to scream at any moment when Lin Qiushi had accompanied him to view the old corpse in the mountain village.
But at least Cheng Qianli managed to hold it back, and his whole face started to turn red.
Seeing that nothing unexpected happened to them, the rest of the people also started to walk out.
The tour guide seemed not to have noticed the bloody corpse at all. She smiled and asked everyone if they had a good time today and whether they had experienced the unique charm of the temple.
No one in the team paid any attention to her, but she spoke with great interest and didn't care about anyone's answers at all.
Walking back along the path we had come from, the sky began to darken, and the jungle became even more serene. The flags planted on the treetops fluttered in the strong wind, like the wings of a monster ready to take flight.
Nothing happened on the way back. They arrived safely at the bamboo house where they were staying and had a not-so-delicious dinner.
When the tour guide left, he agreed with them on a time to meet at 8 o'clock that morning.
Meng Yu asked which scenic spot they would visit tomorrow.
The guide looked mysterious. He said the place we were going to tomorrow was very special and we would know when we got there. We should not be late. He also said that the wind would be very strong tonight and it would be best not to go out after midnight.
Everyone knew this hint even without her saying it, and it didn't have much effect.
Dinner tasted truly terrible. Ruan Nanzhu seemed to have no appetite, but he managed to eat something. He had been in poor condition since arriving in this world, and now he looked exhausted, ready to fall asleep at any moment. If a normal person looked like him, they would probably look listless. But Ruan Nanzhu had a beautiful face, and even though he looked unwell, he still had a kind of sickly beauty.
Xu Jin said sourly that Ruan Nanzhu had slept all day, so how could he be so sleepy.
Ruan Nanzhu rubbed his chin against Lin Qiushi's neck and said softly, "I'm sorry. I've never been in good health since I was a child. Brother Lin, I'm sorry to have caused you trouble."
Lin Qiushi: “…It’s not a problem.”
Xu Jin: “…” Haha, what a pair of dogs.
Despite the unpalatable dinner, Cheng Qianli still stuffed his stomach. In his words, he would rather die with a full stomach.
Lin Qiushi actually admired him very much. After all, this dinner was really disgusting. If it were an ordinary person, eating so much would basically reduce their desire to survive.
After the meal, everyone dispersed to rest.
Ruan Nanzhu fell asleep as soon as he touched the bed and entered a deep sleep almost instantly.
Lin Qiushi and Xu Jin didn't have the time, so they could only chat casually.
Xu Jin talked a little about her experience in the world outside the door. She said that she was an ordinary college student who had just graduated this year. When she was crossing the road, she was forcibly pulled into this door. At first she thought she was dreaming, but later she realized that no dream could be so real.
"Are we going to die here, Brother Linlin?" Xu Jin said, "I'm so scared."
Lin Qiushi leaned against the window and said, "I don't know either. Don't think too much. Go to bed early."
Xu Jin glanced at Ruan Nanzhu who was sleeping, gritted his teeth, and said in a trembling voice, "Brother Linlin..."
Lin Qiushi: "Hmm?"
Xu Jin said: "I'm cold..."
Lin Qiushi: "..." Ruan Nanzhu, look at you, you've corrupted that girl. Although he didn't understand girls, he wasn't mentally retarded. Xu Jin's actions and expressions were too obvious. Lin Qiushi looked helpless and could only pretend not to understand. He said, "Oh, you're cold. Let me get you a blanket."
Xu Jin: "..." Why is it not necessarily what she thought? She gritted her teeth, stamped her feet, and let go of her last bit of reserve: "That's too much trouble. Can I... squeeze in with you?"
Lin Qiushi calmly refused: "You're too fat. I feel like you can't fit in."
Xu Jin fell into a mysterious silence. She glanced at the thin Ruan Nanzhu who had fallen into a deep sleep, then looked at herself and found that she was unable to refute for a moment.
Lin Qiushi: "Do you want more quilts?"
Xu Jin gave up on himself: "No, I have a lot of fat, I should be able to get through it if I hold on."
Although he knew this was unkind, Lin Qiushi still felt like laughing. But then again, this inner world was so dangerous, there was no time for romance. And there was no need to worry about a ghost suddenly appearing when the two of them were deeply in love, causing them to become impotent for life...
Xu Jin, perhaps having seen through Lin Qiushi's straight-laced nature, finally gave up and lay back on the bed, ceasing the awkward chat. After a while, quiet breathing could be heard, suggesting he had fallen asleep.
Lin Qiushi thought to himself, you guys fall asleep so quickly... He closed his eyes, tried his best to relax his body, and let himself fall asleep.
The next day's sunlight woke Lin Qiushi from his bed. The first thing he did after opening his eyes was to check whether the people around him were still there.
Ruan Nanzhu was already awake, sitting by the bed, slowly combing his hair. Hearing Lin Qiushi's movements, he said without turning his head, "Good morning."
"Good morning." Lin Qiushi replied.
"I went to bed early yesterday, so nothing happened in the second half of the night," Ruan Nanzhu asked.
"No," Lin Qiushi said, "The forest was very quiet, and I didn't hear any strange sounds."
Ruan Nanzhu: "I'm talking about you and Xu Jin..."
Lin Qiushi was filled with questions: "What could possibly happen between Xu Jin and me? Is there something wrong with her?"
Ruan Nanzhu: "..." He was quiet for a while, then asked a question, "Why did your last girlfriend break up with you?"
Lin Qiushi: "Girlfriend? I don't... I've never had a girlfriend." Ever since he started studying design, he's basically cut off from socializing. When he was in school, he did homework and took private jobs every day. After work, he worked overtime every day. Let alone a girlfriend, he's never even met a girl.
Ruan Nanzhu: "Oh, very good."
Lin Qiushi: "..." He felt as if he could see a subtle expression on Ruan Nanzhu's face.
After washing up, everyone had breakfast together.
Everyone was curious about where they were going today, but their curiosity was also mixed with a bit of worry, because they always felt that the situation today would be even more dangerous than yesterday.
"Let's go as many people as possible," Meng Yu said, "so that we can have someone to look after us if something happens."
Two men died yesterday, and now there are only fourteen people left in the team. Although it is a large number, I always feel that if something really happens, no matter how many people there are, it will be useless.
Cheng Qianli patted Lin Qiushi on the shoulder and said, "I'll go with you guys today."
Lin Qiushi said yes.
At eight o'clock, the tour guide appeared outside on time. She was still wearing the same clothes as yesterday, with the same expression on her face, waving the small red flag: "Is everyone here? If everyone is here, we will set off."
"All gathered." Meng Yu replied.
"Okay, let's go," the tour guide said. "Today we're going to a very special place. Once we get there, please don't make any noise and respect the local customs."
Everyone nodded.
Seeing this, the tour guide smiled and said, "There is no time to lose, so let's hurry up and set off."
Because of the special environment here, there is no other means of transportation except walking. Today the tour guide took them on another road that kept winding up the mountain, surrounded by dense forests.
Everyone followed the tour guide and marched forward with difficulty, but the road was so difficult to walk on that some people soon became exhausted and could not keep up with the main group.
"Can we take a break for a while?" someone in the team asked the tour guide.
"You can take a break," the tour guide said, checking his watch. "But we must reach our destination before noon."
"Why?" The man was a little puzzled. "Why at noon..."
"Because you'll be there for six hours," the guide explained calmly. "If you don't reach your destination before midnight, you'll have to leave the mountain after dark." A strange smile crossed her face as she finished speaking. "I'm sure none of you want to walk this mountain road at night."
Everyone looked unhappy when they heard this.
Those who couldn't walk began to grit their teeth and try to continue, after all, this was a matter of life and death.
Lin Qiushi was afraid that Ruan Nanzhu couldn't bear it, so he carried him on his back halfway. Fortunately, Ruan Nanzhu was lighter than an ordinary person, otherwise he really wouldn't be able to do anything.
But even so, Ruan Nanzhu still attracted some jealous eyes.
After all, girls cannot match the physical strength of men, so being able to be carried on someone's back to take a rest is naturally something to be envied.
Fortunately, just when everyone was about to give up, they finally arrived at the destination mentioned by the tour guide - a densely packed area of high towers.
These towers are dozens of meters high, and the shortest is only three or four meters high. They stand in the dense jungle. It is hard to imagine what kind of technology can build such magnificent buildings in such a difficult environment.
Everyone was shocked by these magnificent buildings and fell into silence for a moment, even forgetting the dangers of this world.
Fortunately, the tour guide's voice brought them back to reality. She said, "The next six hours of sightseeing will be over. I will come to pick you up after the time is up. Please enjoy the tour and experience the exotic customs!" After she said that, she turned around and left, disappearing into the dense forest.
Looking at her back, Cheng Qianli couldn't help but curse, saying that it was a good thing that this was the inner world, otherwise this tour guide would have been beaten to death several times.
"Let's go and take a look." Lin Qiushi put Ruan Nanzhu down and followed everyone into the tower complex.
This group of towers are of different sizes and heights, but what they have in common is that there is a wooden door under each tower, locked with a rusty lock.
"What is this place? A place for sacrifices?" Lin Qiushi felt puzzled. "But isn't there a temple at a place for sacrifices?"
"I think it should be a cemetery." Ruan Nanzhu observed it for a while.
Lin Qiushi: "Cemetery?" Speaking of cemeteries, he immediately thought of the wooden platform where he was pushed down yesterday. "So not everyone will be used for sky burial..."
Ruan Nanzhu said, "Open a tower and go in to take a look."
As he spoke, he and Lin Qiushi and the others walked to a secluded place, then took out his travel cards and started working.
The rusty lock opened easily. Ruan Nanzhu pushed open the wooden door, revealing the pitch-black tower interior. There was no light inside, but a stale smell emanated. Lin Qiushi used his phone to illuminate the interior and, as expected, saw a decayed corpse at the bottom of the tower.
"It is indeed a tomb." Ruan Nanzhu confirmed his guess.
"Then why did he bring us here?" Lin Qiushi asked, "Isn't the key in the temple?"
Ruan Nanzhu shook his head and said nothing.
After relocking the door, they walked toward the center of the tower complex. Lin Qiushi spotted the tallest tower. Its shape was somewhat unique, making it stand out among the smaller towers. Atop the tower stood a beautiful sculpture, resembling a circular disk. Beneath the disk were flowing cloud patterns, but its meaning remained unknown.
Everyone's attention was focused on this tower. Obviously, everyone thought that there would be some clues about the key in this tower.
After arriving at the bottom of the tower, the people who went there first found that the door on the tower was not a wooden door but a stone door. The stone door was not locked and was just ajar.
"Are there corpses in this tower too?" someone asked.
"Who knows?" No one could answer this question.
Just when everyone was hesitating whether to enter the tower, Lin Qiushi heard the sound of drums again. His expression changed and he immediately told Ruan Nanzhu about it in a low voice.
"Drumbeats?" Ruan Nanzhu asked, "That's where they come from."
Lin Qiushi: "In the distance." He looked up at the gloomy sky. "Not long after the drumbeats started yesterday, it started raining... No, to be more precise, it started raining knives."
Ruan Nanzhu looked around and said, "It seems the only way is to enter the tower."
There is wilderness all around, and no place to hide. The only place people can hide is the tall tower in front of them.
"Come in." Ruan Nanzhu raised his hand and was about to push the door.
"Are you going in?" Meng Yu, who was standing not far away, sounded curious.
"Yes." Ruan Nanzhu said, "Any questions?"
"Aren't you afraid of something happening after you go in?" Meng Yu asked, "To act so rashly..."
Ruan Nanzhu: "If you're scared, just wait outside." He pointed to the sky above his head, "I just feel like it's going to rain again."
Meng Yu's expression changed slightly.
When the others heard that it was going to rain, they started to get agitated. The young man who died tragically yesterday was still fresh in their minds, and no one wanted to endure the pain of being cut into pieces.
Ruan Nanzhu pushed open the seemingly heavy stone door in front of him, turned around and walked into the tower.
Lin Qiushi followed closely behind, turning on his flashlight to get a clearer look inside the tower. This tower didn't appear to be a tomb; at least no remains were visible on the first floor.
After they came in, the others followed in one after another when they saw that nothing happened.
"This tower should have about eight or nine stories," Ruan Nanzhu said. "Since we're here, why not go up and take a look?" He paused. "I want to take a closer look at the building on top of the tower."
Lin Qiushi knew that Ruan Nanzhu must have a reason for what he said, so he agreed to his proposal without hesitation.
So the four of them began to climb up.
The other members of the team saw their actions and expressed their disapproval. Indeed, in a world where one didn't know how to trigger the death condition, doing nothing seemed to be the safest option.
But if you do nothing, the key will not appear in front of you unless everyone around you dies.
The stairs in the tower are very narrow and can only accommodate one person.
Ruan Nanzhu walked in front, and Lin Qiushi walked at the end.
They climbed up the tower, observing the situation inside.
"There's something." Ruan Nanzhu, who was walking in front, suddenly spoke.
This was the eighth floor they had climbed, and they should be not far from the top of the tower. Lin Qiushi turned the stairs and saw what was in Ruan Nanzhu's mouth.
That's a beautiful drum.
Placed in the middle of the eighth floor, the drum body is red with some detailed sculptures on it. Although there are not too many decorations, its exquisiteness can still be seen.
The three people present immediately thought of the drum in the ballad, and their expressions grew serious. Only Xu Jin seemed a little dazed. She murmured, "What a beautiful drum!" She walked over to the drum and observed it carefully.
"Don't touch it." Ruan Nanzhu stopped her, "There's something wrong with this drum."
Xu Jin didn't say anything, and looked a little obsessed.
"Are you okay? Xu Jin?" Lin Qiushi noticed that something was wrong with her and called her name.
However, Xu Jin's next action was to stretch out his hand and gently tap the beautiful drum.
"Boom" - the clear and pleasant sound of drums reached their ears.
Lin Qiushi was shocked and felt a strong sense of dizziness. He covered his ears and closed his eyes in pain, almost falling to the ground.
In order to steady himself, Lin Qiushi reached out and held onto the wall next to him. However, when his fingers touched the wall that should have been made of stone, his whole body froze.
The stone disappeared, and the touch on my fingertips felt like something softer - human skin.
Lin Qiushi took a deep breath, opened his eyes, and saw the scene in front of him.
The stone wall that should have been there was gone, replaced by soft skin, which was still slowly moving with the pulse of the heart.
"My elder sister couldn't speak since she was little. She left home as early as I can remember..." A girl's singing echoed behind Lin Qiushi. He turned stiffly and saw a little girl covered in blood standing behind him. Her face was skinless, leaving only red flesh, and even the faintest trace of white bones was visible. In her arms, she held a beautiful red drum. Her dark eyes stared silently at Lin Qiushi. Her slender hands lifted slightly, then dropped heavily, leaving one bloody handprint after another on the pristine white drum surface.
"There is an old man sitting on the Mani pile, repeating a sentence over and over again..." The singing continued, and the girl walked towards Lin Qiushi while beating the drum.
Lin Qiushi was unable to make a sound or speak. He could only watch helplessly as her hand touched his body, and then... passed through him.
The next moment, Lin Qiushi's body shook violently, as if he had been electrocuted. The scene in front of him changed again. The little girl disappeared, and he returned to the cold stone tower, with two familiar people standing beside him.
"Lin Qiushi." Cheng Qianli looked at him in horror, "You...what are you doing..."
Lin Qiushi lowered his head and saw that his hand was placed on the red drum.
The texture of the drumhead was very soft, just as he had imagined, it felt like human skin.
"Qiu Shi." Ruan Nanzhu's voice came, and he asked him, "What did you see?"
"A girl." Lin Qiushi removed his hand from the drum and said, "A girl covered in blood, skinned alive. What just happened?"
"You suddenly ran over and beat the drum." Cheng Qianli said, "I couldn't stop you."
"Beating the drum? Isn't it Xu Jin who is beating the drum?" Lin Qiushi looked at the drum and felt cold all over. He wanted to stay away from the drum.
"She? She didn't come up with us." Cheng Qianli was puzzled. "She stayed downstairs the whole time."
Lin Qiushi: “…”
Ruan Nanzhu seemed to understand something. He walked forward and gently pressed Lin Qiushi's shoulder: "Don't worry, it's okay."
Lin Qiushi smiled bitterly: "How can this be okay?" Being able to see those things was obviously not a good sign.
Ruan Nanzhu: "Calm down, tell me what you saw first."
Lin Qiushi exhaled, closed his eyes, and began to recall the scene he had just seen: "I saw the walls of this tower turned into the appearance of human skin..."
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