Chapter 261: Second carriage, eerie scene! |
"Go on in."
"The compartments ahead may have better conditions, no filth, but the human nature remains unchanged, perhaps even worse."
The old man stood aside, watching Qin Nuo and the others as he spoke.
The players in front had no interest in listening; in their eyes, this was just a game after all.
Passing through the next compartment meant their instance progress accelerated, bringing them closer to completing the instance.
They stepped through the compartment door frame and vanished into the darkness.
Qin Nuo and Fang Ye hesitated only briefly before stepping through the compartment door as well.
The players in the compartment behind could only watch longingly.
Once all the players with black and gold cards had entered, the old man closed the heavy iron door, facing the remaining players with a faint smile: "Don't be discouraged, take a good rest. The next five days might feel quite long for you..."
Upon entering the door, the view ahead was pitch black, gradually becoming clearer as they moved forward.
Emerging from the passageway, Qin Nuo and the other players found themselves in a closed chamber, with sealed iron doors on the left and right walls.
In front of them was a table, and on the table was a stack of cards.
Everyone was stunned.
"What’s going on? Is this the next compartment?"
"There’s nothing here."
A tall man frowned, "Could that old man have tricked us?"
"Idiot, shut your mouth."
A cold reprimand came from the purple-haired man leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.
He ignored the tall man's angry glare, his gaze falling on a Snoopy doll behind the table.
It sat there, tilting its head, and when everyone’s eyes fell on it, it suddenly straightened its head, its voice echoing in the chamber.
"Honored and fortunate passengers, greetings."
"I am your guide, and I will direct you to the next compartment."
"Do we need a guide on a train? We're not lost," a player remarked.
Snoopy paused for a moment, then said, "That's not the case. For the upcoming second and third compartments, you have the right to choose. Regardless of which compartment you pass through, you can reach the fourth compartment."
Snoopy gestured with its little hands as if explaining.
"Take a card from the table in order; it will decide whether you go to the second or third compartment."
"Isn't it supposed to be our choice? How is this choosing?" a player said, feeling speechless. It made no difference to them; their fate in the next compartment was still dictated by others.
The advantage, however, was that they could skip one compartment.
Snoopy ignored them and simply said, "Begin."
The players exchanged glances, then stepped forward in turn to take their cards, their expressions turning somewhat peculiar upon seeing the front of the cards.
Qin Nuo also took his card, which depicted a crying ghost face.
He glanced at Fang Ye, "What about yours?"
Fang Ye turned his card, revealing a grinning ghost face.
Once everyone had taken their cards, Snoopy continued, "A crying face is for the second compartment, a smiling face for the third. If you're lucky, you'll meet in the fourth compartment."
"Of course, that's assuming you make it through."
"The left door is for compartment two, the right door for compartment three. Don't mix them up, or you'll be forced off the train."
"Good luck, passengers, and enjoy your time on the train!"
After saying this, Snoopy's little hands fell, and it made no further movements.
"Enjoy our time? Is it mocking us?" the purple-haired man sneered, holding a card with a crying ghost face.
"Looks like we'll have to split up," Fang Ye said.
"That might not be a bad thing; sometimes working in a team is more troublesome."
Qin Nuo flipped his card, murmuring, "Could the ghost face expressions on the cards relate to the compartments we enter?"
"Not sure, but I hope to see you in the fourth compartment. After all, your sister promised to get me into the Central Bureau."
Qin Nuo chuckled, "If I reach the fourth compartment and you don't, you'll be the one feeling awkward."
"Better keep an eye on that guy over there; he's in the same compartment as you." Fang Ye glanced at the purple-haired man.
He leaned there, idly spinning his card between his fingers.
"He seems like a tough character, but I specialize in dealing with tough characters. Hopefully, he knows better than to think I'm an easy target," Qin Nuo said calmly.
Black Rose approached, flipping her card to reveal a grinning ghost face, "I'm in the third compartment."
Fang Ye looked at her indifferently, "Want to team up? I don't like dead weight, understand?"
Black Rose had no intention of teaming up, merely saying, "Do you have a problem with women? Think they’ll just hold you back?"
"Frankly, people as self-righteous as you don't last long in instances, like that Black Tiger."
"Who knows, you might end up needing help from this 'dead weight' later."
She wanted to team up, hoping to latch onto Phantom's coattails, not Fang Ye's.
Now, being in the same compartment as Fang Ye and getting the cold shoulder, she naturally wouldn't indulge him.
Fang Ye snorted coldly, saying nothing.
The players, holding their respective cards, began heading to their respective doors.
"See you in the fourth compartment."
Fang Ye stopped talking and headed to the right door, with Black Rose not far behind.
Watching him leave, Qin Nuo didn't linger either, heading to the left door.
Including Qin Nuo, there were about eleven players at the left door.
After passing through the door frame, the eleven of them found themselves in a long corridor.
At the end of the corridor was a wooden door, with clean, tidy tiles on the floor, exuding an elegant European train style.
Suddenly transitioning from filth to such an environment, the group felt a bit out of place.
"Seems like the third compartment isn't as filthy and sloppy as the first."
"Hope the food improves, maybe some champagne, cigarettes; that would be heaven for me."
The players chatted as they walked, their minds still affected by the first compartment's environment, now fantasizing about the scenes beyond.
"Doesn't anyone find the compartment structure odd? The distance we moved sideways, the train doesn't have that width."
A man in a baseball cap spoke, eyeing the surroundings, "And how can we skip the third compartment and go straight to the fourth on a train?"
His words stumped everyone.
Only the purple-haired man spoke calmly, "Don't forget, this is a level 5 instance."
"So what? What's the connection?" someone asked indifferently.
"I've been in three level 5 instances, including this one. I've seen much more than you."
"Have you seen what truly terrifying ghosts are like?"
The purple-haired man looked at the person who wanted to argue, sneering, "Their ghost power can even alter the structure of space. Doesn't that make the train's irrationality seem more reasonable?"
"The existence of the Horror Civilization is inherently irrational."
"Like saying a fictional historical novel doesn't match real history, no one argues about irrationality in a game," Qin Nuo said calmly.
After his words, no one continued the topic.
Within a few sentences, they reached the end of the corridor. Without hesitation, the player at the front opened the wooden door and entered the compartment.
Once inside, the wooden door slammed shut.
Upon seeing the scene before them, everyone was stunned.
Was the compartment filthy?
Not exactly.
The compartment's quality was naturally a notch above the first.
But inside, there seemed to be no living people.
The seats were occupied by corpses that had died gruesomely.
Blood seemed to have become the dye of this compartment, splattering the ceiling and windows red.
The blackened blood on the floor emitted a pungent stench, with some horrific organs scattered about.
"Are these people passengers on the train?"
"Why did they all die so horribly? Was it caused by the previous batch of players, or is it just a feature of this compartment?"
Their minds were filled with questions. Any normal person entering and seeing such a scene would have the same bewildered expression.
The players moved along the aisle, checking and even turning over the bloody corpses.
These passengers were dressed differently from them, the men in suits, the women elegantly dressed, but all had died horribly, most with terrified expressions on their faces.
A few female players, though accustomed to such sights, still frowned and felt uncomfortable seeing such a hellish scene.
The purple-haired man's game ID was Feather. He looked at the corpses, then suddenly raised an eyebrow, pulling out a person from behind a corpse.
A living person.
Qin Nuo saw his game ID, Liusu, also a player.
He rubbed his sleepy eyes, looking at Qin Nuo and the others, his brain seemingly frozen for a moment before speaking, "The next batch of players?"
"Why pull me out? I haven't slept in ages, and I finally fell asleep!"
The other players gathered around, looking puzzled, asking, "What's going on in this compartment?"
"Why are you the only one here? Where are the other players?"
"Some players died in this compartment, eliminated. Some went to the next compartment."
Liusu shook off the purple-haired man's hand, sat on a seat, pushed away a bloody corpse, and began eating a piece of bread from the table.
The others watched his actions, confused, but seeing him eating the food on the table, they confirmed it was edible and unceremoniously grabbed food from other seats, devouring it.
Even food that had been nibbled on was devoured with gusto, eaten with relish.
After experiencing the food in the first compartment, the food here was a delicacy to them!
Qin Nuo also picked up a bottle of milk nearby, took a sip, and asked two key questions, "Why are you the only one staying here?"
"What are the game rules for this compartment?"
"I'm staying because I don't want to risk going to the next compartment. Here, there's food and drink, and my needs are easily satisfied."
"If you don't pass through all seven compartments, what's the point of staying here?" Qin Nuo asked.
Liusu looked at him oddly, "Are you really a level 5 player? You seem like a newbie."
"You can't complete the instance, but there's still a rating. Just no rewards."
"The rating in a level 5 instance is significant. After the instance time ends, my rating improves in the guild, earning me a decent income, enough to cover my expenses."
"Then why not just stay in the first compartment and rack up time?"
"The environment in the first compartment, didn't you see? Staying there for a day is torture."
"This second compartment provides food and drink, and no one bothers you. I thought it over, and it's better to stay here than risk elimination in the next compartment."
"It's like pseudo-completing a level 5 instance!"
Liusu leaned back on the sofa, putting his feet up on the table, looking extremely comfortable.
Everyone looked at each other, bewildered by his words.
"Seems logical; I might as well stay too. Good food and drink, though there are a lot of corpses. But this is a level 5 instance. As long as I'm not eliminated, surviving the time is an achievement, with many benefits."
Two players were swayed, considering the same idea.
Liusu, however, looked at them mockingly, "You won't enjoy it like I do."
"Trust me, you might not survive the night, let alone the following days."
"If you manage to reach the next compartment, you have great skills."
"Do you know how many players came to this compartment before us?"
"Thirty in total, but only ten left alive. Two-thirds were lost here."
"Look, those are the previous players!" Liusu pointed across.
A player's head was nailed to the wall with a wooden spike, their face unrecognizable.
"Are all these dead players?"
"A few are, but most are game NPCs."
Liusu used a fork to pick up a sausage, eating it as he looked at the others, "This is delicious food. Aren't you going to try it?"
"The food here won't run out; it refreshes daily."
"That's why I say this place is paradise. Of course, not just the food refreshes, but also the corpses. If you're not into such heavy tastes, it's better not to stay."
Hearing this, most players began eating.
Though they didn't understand, they decided to fill their stomachs first.
A tall man grabbed Liusu by the collar, speaking in a deep voice, "You still haven't said the main point."
"What are the game rules for this compartment?"
"Why did so many die, yet you're still fine?"
Liusu finished slurping his spaghetti, saying, "Don't worry, I didn't say I wouldn't tell you."
"At this time, we're safe. Everyone can sit down, eat, and listen to me."
"That's a good idea."
Over there, Qin Nuo, while eating, mumbled his agreement.
The tall man clenched his fist, smashing a watermelon on the table, then sat down, eating as he said, "The food's good. Go on!"