Chapter 31: Recording of the Great Escape (Part 2)
Jian Heng took off his blindfold.
He was obviously in the banquet hall on the first floor of the castle. He was sitting at a long table in the middle of the hall. The candlesticks were emitting halos of light, illuminating the surroundings.
The windows seemed to be covered by something, and the hall was dark, as if it was at night.
There were stairs on both sides, with brass handrails winding upwards. At each end was a bird flapping its wings, ready to fly, and its sapphire red eyes were dark and deep in the dim candlelight.
Looking up, there should have been a chandelier hanging above the head, but now there was only a circle of evil dragons carved out of glass embedded in the dome. It closed its eyes slightly, and its ferocious and ugly appearance exuded an ominous aura.
Jian Heng remembered what was said on the radio: "This is the castle of the evil dragon..." He was startled immediately, and dared not look anymore. He lowered his head to organize the scattered objects around him.
A lute.
A shoulder bag.
Several ink pens.
A poetry collection.
There were some other messy things in the shoulder bag, but he could not see the use
of them for the time being. He flipped through the poetry collection, which recorded some self-composed poems. The handwriting on the first few pages was old and blurred, and the last few pages were only half of the book. It was obvious that this poetry collection had been used for a long time.
Most of the poems recorded what "he" saw and heard when traveling to various countries. There were historical features and legends of celebrities. The last few pages were an exception, more like a diary.
[I think he is about to die.
It should be said that he has been dead for a long time.
The departure of his companions made him miserable. The last companion gave him the chance to live, but he could not find a way out.
"Live with everyone's blessings"
is a promise that is difficult to fulfill.
The cross sword is majestic, but he can only hold the sword and wait calmly for the moment of the soul's end.
In the last moment of disappearance, he hoped that I could play a song of Green Sleeves for him.
He said that it was a song from his hometown.
】
【I can't get out. 】
The last page reads.
In addition, he found the key clues provided by the program team on the hard shell of the poetry collection: You are a recorder, you are a participant.
Recorder? Participant?
Jian Heng shook his head in confusion, put these bits and pieces into his bag, and finally remembered his health bar. He took a look at it with his backhand - he didn't know until he saw it, and he was shocked.
Only one third of his health bar is left!
What happened? ! Is the air here poisonous? !
Jian Heng almost fainted. When he came to his senses, he quickly picked up his bag and lute and rushed to the bathroom at the speed of a 100-meter sprint.
Wet towel, wet towel... Wet towel, save my life!
He ran so happily that he didn't notice that the brass bird that stayed on the handrail made a very subtle buzzing sound after he left, and slowly flapped its stiff wings.
Jian Heng rushed into the bathroom, but couldn't find a towel, so he had to take off the vest under his coat, wet it, and cover his mouth and nose.
After three minutes, his second health bar was completely cleared, and there was no sign of slowing down the speed of blood loss.
Jian Heng kept repeating to himself, "calm down, calm down, calm down..." The production crew wouldn't be so perverted as to kill him at the beginning. There must be a solution...
He stood in front of the mirror, scratching the hair on his forehead with his wet fingers, trying to make his thoughts clear by clearing his vision.
But in the mirror, the boy's expression was already filled with anxiety.
A faint red light flashed in the afterglow, and Jian Heng was uneasy. He took a closer look and met a pair of deep ruby eyes.
A brass bird.
It stood above the cubicle, with its arms spread out, its eyes moving without moving, looking at the mirror.
Jian Heng made eye contact with it through the mirror, and a chill suddenly rose on his back.
The silent bathroom.
There was only the sound of dripping water.
While Jian Heng's mind was full of dirty words, the bird tilted its head, revealing a very human...curiosity.
...Mom, mom, there is a ghost bird!!!
Even though he knew that it was most likely an NPC set up by the program team, Jian Heng still couldn't escape the double punishment of atmosphere creation and psychological pressure. A dirty word was just stuck in his throat, and he turned around and wanted to run!
The door was not closed, and he ran into Yu Wen who was going to the toilet. Jian Heng's mind went blank. He was stunned for a while, and then blurted out: "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, Xiao Yu, save me!"
He jumped behind Yu Wen at a speed comparable to teleporting.
Yu Wen was pushed in in a daze, and when he looked up, he saw the brass bird squatting on the door panel of the compartment.
"..."
He looked into the red eyes, was silent for a moment, and said sincerely, "I'm sorry."
Then he stretched out the tip of his sword and sucked the "ghost" down.
The bird didn't expect him to do this. After being caught, it still flapped its wings and struggled hard. Who would have thought that Yu Wen had just taken at least five birds for testing along the way, and now he is very skilled and can be called a ghost killer.
He skillfully took out the ink bottle he carried with him and pressed the bird's head into it. When it came out again, the ruby eyeballs were completely covered with ink, temporarily losing its visual function.
He also blew twice to let the ink dry quickly.
Finally, Yu Wen took the bird outside the bathroom and released it, saying eagerly: "Fly!"
The remote control worker behind the bird: "..."
Yu Wen was kind-hearted and turned around to see Jian Heng's shocked face.
-Jian
Heng: "I have a lot of questions, can you answer them one by one, Mr. Yu..."
Yu Wen: "Ask, Xiao Jian."
There are ghosts everywhere outside, and it is not suitable to wander around casually. Jian Heng's identity is unknown, and Yu Wen does not plan to take him to his small study, so the two simply communicate in the bathroom.
Yu Wen hugged the sword and half leaned on the sink.
Jian Heng glanced at his sword hesitantly with his remaining eyes, and he was hesitant to speak.
"First..."
"Well."
"Do you have a cheat?"
"...You call this first?"
Tu Qie Bi saw it, your Yan State map is too short.
Jian Heng changed the question: "What was that bird just now? It was scary."
"'Ghost', didn't the radio say that ghosts are everywhere?"
"How do you know it was a ghost?"
"That's a long story... Anyway, I paid a painful price in blood."
His health bar dropped by a full third!
Jian Heng realized something and hid his left hand with the exposed health bar slightly behind his body.
"Could it be that today's NPC is not a human..." he muttered.
Those who have done homework on the program in advance know that the NPCs in "Battle Royale" are everywhere and will appear at any time when the guests are doing tasks. Some NPCs are very aggressive and are basically either catching people or on the way to catching people. The guests' clothes have a sensor coating on the surface. Once touched, the health bar will drop.
Before the recording of this season began, the producer announced on social software that the third season will be upgraded, attracting hundreds of millions of investment, and will bring a brand new visual experience to the audience. Guests are also requested to be prepared...
Is the upgrade here?
However, although the group of ghost birds is not as powerful as the NPCs played by humans, they are silent and have a strange and gloomy temperament. Moreover, there are more of them and they are more difficult to find. Overall, it is hard to say which one is more terrifying.
Yu Wen: "Did you find it?"
Jian Heng glanced at him strangely.
The ghost bird is a new NPC setting for guests who are prepared or veterans of the first two seasons. With experience as a foundation, they will presume that they need to be wary of humanoid NPCs that may appear at any time. By the time everyone notices that the health bar is dropping abnormally, it will be too late to look for the source.
It is abnormal that Yu Wen reacts so quickly.
Jian Heng: "What about your sword? Why can it catch ghosts?"
Yu Wen answered without hesitation: "Because my identity today is a ghost killer."
Jian Heng: "...speak human language."
Yu Wen sighed, "The program team made a special device at the bottom of the scabbard. Although I don't know what it is used for now, it must be related to a mechanism somewhere in this castle. This device must have magnetic components that can attract ghost birds like magnets."
"Ghost" is the biggest NPC in this episode. It is impossible for the program team to give him such a cheat. The special device at the bottom of the scabbard must be the key to some hidden mechanism. It should have been discovered only when enough clues were given in the later stages, but Yu Wen accidentally discovered this special device, and also found a bug.
If he wasn't afraid that he couldn't restore it, he really wanted to take the device at the bottom apart and find the corresponding mechanism. Then he could find the important clues that the program team wanted to hide until the end, and maybe he could pass the level painlessly and create the shortest escape record in history.
Yu Wen stroked the scabbard, and he was a little eager.
But thinking about the effect of the program, he had to suppress this idea with regret.
Jian Heng nodded thoughtfully, his fingers stroking the edge of the bag, "...Who are you?"
Yu Wen looked at him, smiled and didn't answer.
Jian Heng was helpless, "Only cooperation can lead to win-win results. Although you and I may be each other's direct targets, it is also possible that we are not... Without exchanging information, we won't even know the story line."
"How do you want to exchange?"
Jian Heng: "I have a collection of poems here. What do you have in your hand?"
"Notes."
Jian Heng: "Exchange."
"Okay." He answered straightforwardly again this time, with a smile on his face, as if he had never doubted or considered, and trusted the person in front of him wholeheartedly.
Jian Heng had watched the variety show that made him a little famous, and knew how deceptive this colleague with a simple appearance was, but at this moment, Jian Heng felt that the netizens were right, reason is one thing, and the information fed back by the visual nerves is another.
Really, it's hard not to be confused.
-
[The second year of William I's reign, cloudy.
A young man approached me and invited me to team up with him to rescue the princess from the dragon.
I refused.
Boring.
The second year of William I's reign, sunny.
The young man came again, well... Although he praised me as the greatest magician in human history, I am still not interested in saving the princess.
Boring.
With this time, I should study magic.
The second year of William I's reign, sunny.
It's been seven days, and I have to admit that this young man has moved me and is worth using my magic wand once.
...It's not because his butter bread is delicious.
...
The third year of William I's reign, sunny.
The team composed of me, the brave, the elves, and the dwarves successfully rescued the princess, and the king held a grand award ceremony for us.
The brave conquered the dragon, and they seem to have become great friends.
Hey, this boy actually became friends with a dragon.
Interesting.
The third year of William I's reign, sunny.
The princess invited us to a dinner party at the palace.
I think she really wanted to invite the hero, and the other three members of our hero team were just invited along. This is not surprising, after all, they grew up together and have a deep relationship. The great magician can forgive them this time.
Love can be tolerated.
The third year of William I's reign, cloudy.
Wonderful, the princess invited me to dance the first dance.
Did she quarrel with the hero?
The third year of William I's reign, sunny.
Today the princess said something very interesting to me. Let me think...
She believes that people can be friends with dragons, people can be friends with little ants, and people can be friends with the flowers in the flowerbed... She
said that she and the clouds in the sky are good friends!
Is it because she is only fifteen years old?
Interesting!
The fourth year of William I's reign, cloudy.
The princess is a very cute little girl, she is a little lively and likes to compete with the hero for butter bread. They have a very good relationship. When I see them, I feel that fresh green branches are sprouting from my body.
And I am a half-elf magician. I may be older than the princess's father.
The sixth year of William I's reign, sunny.
The princess has grown up a little. She is no longer a cute little girl, but a beautiful girl.
The king chose a husband for her, and she was not satisfied with any of them.
The ninth year of William I's reign, sunny.
The princess gave me an iris ring, which is very beautiful.
But why not give it to the hero?
The thirteenth year of William I's reign, sunny.
The princess was abducted by the devil.
The hero once again assembled a team of heroes. This time, he didn't need to beg. I am willing to go.
After all, the princess said that I am also her friend.
The
great magician has the habit of writing a diary. This may be related to his long and boring life. He is worried that he will forget some important things, so he always writes down what he remembers.
Li Daniel and Yi Ming huddled at the table and finally finished reading a thick diary.
Yi Ming let out a long breath, pinched his sore shoulders, and sat up straight, "So, the four of us and the princess knew each other before this time?"
Li Daniel is the great magician and the "real person" in this diary. He has always been sentimental and can get into the character very quickly. After reading this diary, he seems to have regarded himself as the great magician himself, and his handsome eyebrows are full of sorrow.
"Yeah." He turned a few pages, his melancholy still showing. "We have known each other for at least nine years, and we have a very close relationship."
Yi Ming was alerted immediately when she saw this expression on his face. "Don't let your emotions get the better of you, or you'll run to the princess again..."
Li Daniel shook his head, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "I won't be so into the show."
"...You can't say for sure." Yi Ming muttered in a low voice.
She remembered that in previous shows, Li Daniel had suddenly betrayed because of the story setting. And she had worked with Li Daniel before, and knew that this guy was fucking sentimental.
Li Daniel: "No, I've already promised you."
This thick diary was obtained by them working together to unlock the mechanism of a secret room. The premise of Yi Ming's help was to share what they had, share information, form an alliance, and never betray each other.
Li Daniel agreed.
"Look here." Yi Ming pointed to the two words on the last page of the diary, "The princess was abducted by the 'demon king', but this is clearly the dragon's castle. Could it be written wrong?"
Li Daniel pondered for a moment and shook his head.
"The program team would not make such a low-level mistake. This can only mean that there is something hidden in it."
Yi Ming nodded, "And the diary also said that the hero and the dragon became friends, so the dragon should not be a bad guy."
Li Daniel suddenly said, "Who is the hero in this episode? He may be the key that connects all of us."
Yi Ming thought about it.
"Yu Wen."
-Yu
Wen walked to the banquet hall.
In the hero's notes, there is a hint from the program team: You are the center of the event.
When he showed it to Jian Heng, he tore off that page, and a hard shell also disappeared from the poetry collection that Jian Heng handed over.
These core information cannot be shown to others easily.
Jian Heng's poetry collection is recorded in a messy way. Except for the last few pages, only two poems in the front are valid information.
[Brave man!
He embarked on his journey;
again
and again,
he saved the princess from danger;
this young man who was in partnership with the evil dragon;
still has a heart as pure as a child!
]
Once again?
In partnership with the evil dragon?
[The beautiful princess was coveted by the evil dragon;
the powerful warrior overcame the danger;
who knew that
nine years later,
the devil would descend;
in these countries of the north and the south! No one is his enemy!
The brave team went to battle again;
no one returned,
no one returned;
what was the end of the warriors? What
was the fate of the warriors?
Flowers flying all over the sky, please hear my wish;
please bless them, and one day they will return safely...
】
Yu Wen came to the banquet hall and looked around.
He had just left the study and wanted to come to the hall to take a look. "You are the center of the event." This sentence, interpreted from a macro level, does not have any extra information, but if interpreted from a spatial level, it may imply that his story line can find clues from the center of the entire castle - the banquet hall.
The elegant medieval style, the glazed windows are covered by something, and no light can penetrate. The portraits on the walls in the shadows are as deep as sculptures, silently gazing at everything here.
He leaned against the corner formed by the stairs, compressing the empty space around him. Sure enough, the next second a ghost bird could not scan him and flew in front of him.
Behind the ghost bird was the remote control of the staff. So before taking action, Yu Wen looked directly into the eyes of the ghost bird and said sincerely: "I'm sorry."
He stretched out his sword and sucked the bird down.
Staff: "?"
During the recording, everyone was doing their own job. Before the news of Yu Wen's bug spread, the staff behind the ghost bird took off their headphones, put down the remote control, and looked at their team leader blankly.
"Team leader, he sucked me away... He also put ink on my eyes..."
This high-tech brass bird has been waterproofed, so there is no need to worry about water entering, but the scanning part of the brass bird is the eyes. If the eyes are covered with ink, it means that the scanning sensitivity is greatly reduced. If the ink is too thick, the whole scene will become blind.
The staff said a little aggrieved.
Everyone has only one little yellow bird... He hasn't played enough, so now he can only sit in front of the monitor and watch... Hey, wait a minute. Is
he off work? ! !
On the other side, the director sat in front of the monitor and worried.
The first episode of each season means a new beginning. He is determined to do a good job and give the audience a "warning". The script of this episode is a tearjerker. I don't believe that netizens are not moved. Now it seems that everything is going according to plan...
Except Yu Wen!
If he continues to toss around like this, all the NPCs will have to go off work!
The key is that the director can feel that for the sake of the show's presentation, Yu Wen is actually still holding back - otherwise he should have dismantled the device at the bottom of the scabbard for analysis.
Don't think he didn't see that this kid just put a screwdriver in his pocket!
Everything can only be attributed to the fact that Yu Wen has a certain metaphysical existence.
In order to save the speed of passing the level from danger, the director thought carefully and made a painful decision.
"Send the humanoid NPC." He pointed at Yu Wen and said, "Mainly him."
The director's expression was almost like he was saying directly: severe punishment!
"Also, speed up the line over there with the bard."
-Yu
Wen skillfully caught two little yellow birds that flew in front of him, smeared them, and released them.
The decoration of the banquet hall was very simple, with a long dining table in the middle and candlesticks on both sides. At first glance, it even looked a bit empty. There was no chandelier overhead, only a circle of glazed sculptures.
Yu Wen's eyes were fixed on the circle of glazed sculptures.
It was a dragon.
The dragon's body was swirling, its wings were folded, and its face was lifelike. Even when it was asleep, it couldn't conceal its ferocity. Even from such a long distance, one could feel the pressure. It was not difficult to imagine how terrible this evil dragon would be once it woke up. However,
on the angry dragon's horns, there was a dense circle of beautiful protrusions.
It looked like a wreath, or maybe a crown.
The candlelight was dim, and Yu Wen couldn't see clearly. He just felt vaguely that it was a little familiar.
After a moment, he suddenly lowered his head and looked at the badge on his chest.
Around the badge, there was a circle of similar protrusions.
Wisteria.
It symbolizes loyalty and friendship.
He raised his eyes again, and in the darkness, he looked into the eyes of the evil dragon.
It is carved with colored glass, depicting a lifelike dragon head, with eyes tightly closed. At a certain moment, the candlelight refracted on the glass, and a crystal light flashed by, like a teardrop.
Although the dragon is carved to be ferocious and terrifying, its face is more detailed. If you look closely... you can see an inexplicable sadness.
Why is it entrenched here?
To occupy?
Maybe not.
The young brave man stood silently, quietly looking up at the evil dragon above his head. His eyes were calm and peaceful, and also with a little sadness.
The dragon statue just stretched its head in his direction. Although its eyes were tightly closed, it seemed that it would open in the next second.
Old friends are reuniting.
The camera in the corner recorded this scene silently.
The director behind the screen took a deep breath and thought that the ratings for this episode were stable.
Although Yu Wen didn't know anything at the moment, and maybe he just happened to take a look, this one look was a soul-stirring fate for his story line!
Metaphysics! This kid has metaphysics!
Director: "Okay, okay, it's our blessing to have him..."
He instantly forgave Yu Wen's behavior of getting stuck in the bug. Children love to get stuck, so many sticks!
He instructed the executive team: "In that secret room later... collect two NPCs, don't scare our little Yu."
The assistant director on the side stared at the display screen and suddenly said: "Lao Yan, he didn't go to the secret room in the hall."
Director: "What? Didn't find it?"
"No... he didn't look for it at all," the assistant director hesitated, "He seemed to have found other clues and went back to the study directly."
-Yu
Wen took out a book from the bookcase and turned to the page he had glanced at based on his memory.
Jian Heng's poetry collection revealed several very important information: First, he had heard the story of the brave team and knew that no one returned from their end; second, the brave led the brave team and fought at least twice.
The brave team mentioned in the broadcast is four people: the brave, the great magician, the dwarf, and the elf.
The captured princess is also hidden in the castle.
Five people.
But there are six guests this time, so who is the one who is missing?
Obviously it is Jian Heng, the troubadour who travels around singing with a lute on his back.
He is a bystander and a recorder.
What's more, he and the others are probably not in the same time and space.
"Time here is frozen," the brave man's notes read.
——Into the stagnant time, a wandering troubadour broke in, and was eventually trapped here because of the magic cast in the castle.
This is the story line of the troubadour.
Now it seems that the brave man's notes clearly state that the great magician and the elf are dead, and they are played by Li Daniel and Yi Ming, which means that at least two of the roles played by the guests this time are not living people, but dead souls.
It is uncertain whether the others are dead or alive.
The bard was the last to arrive at the castle. After all, his collection of poems also included stories about the brave that he had heard from others.
Yu Wen quickly flipped through the pages of the book. There was a chronicle in the bookcase. He had glanced at it before, and the content inside only recorded the time in the broadcast, which was "the twelfth year of William I's reign." After learning from Jian Heng that the brave team had fought twice, he immediately realized that the chronicle would at least record the situation of the first expedition.
That was the past of the brave team.
Found it.
[The second year of William I's reign.
On October 13, the brave team assembled.
The third year of William I's reign.
On January 21, the brave team successfully rescued the princess and returned.
On January 22, the king conferred honors and titles on the brave team.
On May 14, the dragon suddenly appeared.
On May 15, the hero declared his conquest of the dragon, took the wisteria flower as an oath, and engraved loyalty and friendship on the dragon's horn.
...
William I's twelfth year on the throne.
On March 28, the devil appeared and the princess disappeared.
On April 13, the brave team went to battle again.
On September 11, no one returned.
On December 1, the dragon guarding the palace disappeared.
】
The events are recorded here.
Yu Wen closed the events and leaned against the fireplace to think. What is known now is that the news broadcast on the radio was vague, and the director team tried to mislead them into thinking that the brave team was a temporary team, but in fact, they had known each other for at least nine years.
In addition, the radio broadcast claimed that this was the "dragon's castle", but the chronicle recorded the devil, which was definitely not a mistake. The overlapping of the castle owner... there must be a deep meaning behind it.
The most important thing now is to find out their ending, or the cause of death is more appropriate, after all, everyone said "I can't get out."
What is the magic covering the castle, like endless mountains? What kind of magic can trap the entire team of heroes here?
Yu Wen put the chronicle back in place, and a light bulb suddenly flashed in his mind.
He stopped and thought hesitantly:
If these people who appear now are all the afterimages of the past...
what about the dragon?
The dragon guarding the palace came to the distant forest and transformed into a glass sculpture on the dome, watching every inch of this place, staying here forever...
Is it dead or alive?