IGSB – Chapter 6
Chapter 6: Entering the New World (Part 6)
After having the wild thought that Master Gu eats people, Xia Zhiyi had another one: “He couldn’t be the Ghost King, could he!”
Regarding Xia Zhiyi’s guess, Jing Ruyu couldn’t give a definite answer.
Who could say for sure whether the Ghost King was a person or not?
In the New World, anything seemed possible, and it seemed there was never a rule that the Ghost King had to be a ghost.
Xia Zhiyi rubbed her arms, feeling a chill run down her spine. “If he really is the Ghost King, does that mean we can’t eat the food he gives us?”
“Not necessarily,” Jing Ruyu analyzed seriously. “The New World doesn’t allow us to bring things in from the outside, and it hasn’t set up a no-win situation. So there must be something in here that can help players replenish their energy.
“This Master Gu wants us to gain weight and get fat. Whether his purpose is to make us work or something else, we still don’t know. But we already ate the food they gave us at noon, and nothing has happened so far, so it should be fine.”
Xia Zhiyi thought she made sense. After a moment, she added, “But we still can’t let our guard down. Let’s take it one step at a time.”
Jing Ruyu nodded.
“Let’s go back to the courtyard first.”
“Okay.”
By the time they returned to the courtyard, it was nearly evening, and the players who had been assigned to work were also trickling back.
The first to return were the man in the suit, who had been the first to witness the horrors of the New World, and his roommate, a slender girl.
In this place, where everything was strange, the domineering quest NPC didn’t care about separating men and women when assigning rooms. In her eyes, they would all end up as corpses anyway.
Everyone had briefly introduced themselves at noon. Xia Zhiyi remembered their names: the man was Gao Hui, and the girl was Xiao Ya. Like her, they had both arrived in the New World in a state of confusion.
Xiao Ya’s state was very downcast, and Gao Hui’s expression wasn’t much better.
As soon as the two returned to the courtyard, they plopped down on the steps, not caring about anything else, their faces grim and covered in dust.
Seeing them like this, Xia Zhiyi could guess what had happened with her toes.
Gao Hui looked up at the two of them. After a moment, he spoke, “You saw it too when you were working, right?”
Xia Zhiyi nodded.
Seeing that everyone had the same experience, Gao Hui grabbed his hair in frustration and cursed, “What the fuck is this goddamn place? How can a place like this exist in the world? Can we fucking get out of here or not?!”
Jing Ruyu remained composed. “We can.”
Gao Hui looked up at her.
Jing Ruyu said, “We can get out by clearing the instance.”
Gao Hui: “…”
“That’s just stating the obvious!”
He stood up irritably and went back to his room, muttering curses.
“He’s so fierce,” Jing Ruyu said, turning to Xia Zhiyi, though her expression showed she didn’t really care.
Looking at her, Xia Zhiyi inexplicably wanted to laugh. Then she remembered Xiao Ya, who was still in the courtyard.
Xiao Ya was younger than them and still in college. She had been silent and withdrawn ever since entering the New World.
The first time Xia Zhiyi saw her, she felt the girl was completely dejected, as if she had already lost all will to live.
Watching her sit huddled quietly to the side, Xia Zhiyi suddenly felt a pang of pity for her. She couldn’t help but walk over, bend down, and gently place a hand on her shoulder.
“Don’t be afraid. We can get out. There are always more solutions than problems.”
Xiao Ya slowly raised her head.
Xia Zhiyi smiled at her. “This place has all sorts of weird things, but aren’t we still alive and well? Doesn’t that mean we’re incredibly lucky and have a good chance of escaping? So don’t be afraid. Pull yourself together and believe in yourself.”
Xiao Ya’s gaze wavered. She opened her mouth, then closed it again, tightly gripping her pants.
A few seconds later, she stood up and said, “I don’t care. If I die, I die. I’m going to die anyway.”
After saying that, she also went back to her room to stay.
Xia Zhiyi was completely bewildered by this attitude, finding it inexplicable.
She scratched her face in confusion. “Did I not comfort her the right way? Why does she still look so unhappy?”
Jing Ruyu glanced at Xiao Ya’s room, then looked back at Xia Zhiyi and said reassuringly, “No, you spoke very well. Even I felt comforted.”
Xia Zhiyi smiled. “Thank you for the support, President Jing.”
Jing Ruyu returned the smile. The atmosphere became relaxed for a rare moment.
At dinnertime, Xiao Qiao arrived punctually with people to deliver dinner, thoughtfully ordering them to bring it into their rooms.
Xia Zhiyi went back to her room and took a look. With Master Gu’s orders, dinner was indeed more lavish, almost enough for a Manchu-Han Imperial Feast.
Xiao Qiao stood at the courtyard gate and said, “Our distinguished guests have worked hard today. My master specially instructed the kitchen to prepare a sumptuous dinner for everyone. Please enjoy it to your heart’s content.
“Also, in one hour, all the candles in the residence will be extinguished. Please finish your dinner before then, rest well, and gather your strength for tomorrow. And do not run around.”
“Why extinguish the candles?” Gao Hui asked.
“There is no why. We never light lamps at night in our residence. Everyone must comply,” Xiao Qiao replied coldly.
The thought of this gloomy place being unlit at night made Gao Hui feel even more on the verge of a breakdown.
“I told you the wedding didn’t need to be so grand,” Xia Zhiyi suddenly said. “See? You’ve run out of money, haven’t you? So poor you can’t even afford to light a single candle?”
“Ah, Qiao, now I’m starting to worry you won’t get your wages.”
Xiao Qiao: “…”
There was really no need to worry so much on their behalf.
Jing Ruyu, standing beside Xia Zhiyi, let out a soft laugh.
In a world like this, her ex-girlfriend was still interesting. At least she could lighten the mood.
Xiao Qiao didn’t respond to Xia Zhiyi’s banter. Instead, she turned, took a fruit platter from the servant behind her, and personally presented it to Xia Zhiyi.
“This is a token of my young lady’s goodwill.”
Xiao Qiao gave a slight smile.
“You are to eat it alone.”
Instantly, all eyes in the courtyard were fixed on Xia Zhiyi.
Xia Zhiyi sensed a trap and also smiled slightly. “What kind of special treat is only for me to eat? I’m not even familiar with your young lady.”
Xiao Qiao said, “My young lady knows you are clever and witty, and she heard you worked especially hard today, so she specifically ordered me to bring you this fruit platter as a reward.”
With an air that brooked no refusal, she pushed the fruit platter toward Xia Zhiyi. “Eat. I’ll watch you eat. I can only go back and report once you’ve finished.”
A silent pressure surged like a wave, aggressively bearing down on Xia Zhiyi.
The originally luscious fruit platter, in Xia Zhiyi’s eyes, now seemed to be emitting a sinister black aura. It didn’t look like anything good.
In an instant, the atmosphere in the courtyard became incredibly tense. Every wisp of air hid an indescribable danger.
Xia Zhiyi’s gaze rested on Xiao Qiao’s face. “Do I really have to eat it alone?”
Xiao Qiao: “Yes.”
Xia Zhiyi: “Why can’t I share it with others?”
Xiao Qiao smiled. “Because my young lady likes you, of course.”
Xia Zhiyi immediately frowned, a hesitant look on her face. “Your young lady likes me… Does her groom know?”
Xiao Qiao: “?”
Xia Zhiyi covered her lips bashfully, saying coyly, “She’s about to get married, this isn’t right, is it? Besides, I’m not ready to start a new relationship… I’m sorry, I can only refuse her goodwill.
“Sigh, I don’t want to, but who can be blamed when this love has come at the wrong time?
“You go back, just tell her I wish her happiness, a long and happy life together, and not to think of me.”
Everyone: “…”
Excuse me, has she always been this narcissistic and this good at spinning tales?
Veins bulged on Xiao Qiao’s hand. “I told you to eat, so eat!”
Xia Zhiyi said righteously, “I won’t. A forced love will never have a good outcome!”
Xiao Qiao: “…”
Her fists clenched.
In all her years in this line of work, she had never met someone who could spout so much nonsense!
Just as she opened her mouth, a cold piece of peach was suddenly stuffed into it.
Xia Zhiyi patted her on the back and said shamelessly, “How did you get so angry from just talking? Here, eat some fruit to cool down.
“It’s delicious, right? Sweet, right? Can you feel the young lady’s burning love now?”
Xiao Qiao froze for a moment. After coming to her senses, she chewed a couple of times and swallowed the fruit in front of everyone. Nothing happened.
She couldn’t be bothered to waste any more words on Xia Zhiyi. She pushed the fruit platter toward her again and said succinctly, “Eat.”
Seeing that nothing happened to her, Xia Zhiyi knew she couldn’t escape this ordeal and relented.
“Alright, alright, I’ll eat.”
Xiao Qiao stared at her until she finished the fruit before leaving with her people.
Once again, only the few players were left in the courtyard. They looked at each other, then gave Xia Zhiyi a few extra glances, not understanding why she was receiving special treatment.
No one spoke. They all returned to their own rooms and hurried to eat.
Xia Zhiyi closed the door. Having just finished a platter of fruit, she had less of an appetite when she looked at the food on the table.
She grumbled as she walked back to the table and sat down opposite Jing Ruyu. “I really don’t know who eats so much fruit before a meal…”
When she looked up, she found Jing Ruyu staring at her intently.
“What are you looking at?”
“Nothing. I was just thinking about that fruit platter, but I don’t have any clues. After all, nothing is apparent right now.”
“Mmm… Xiao Qiao was fine after eating it, so I should be fine too. Let’s eat quickly, otherwise it’ll be too inconvenient when they put out the lights.”
“Okay.”
Night seemed to fall with unusual haste today.
Silence filled the surroundings. A cold moon hung in the sky, so cold that the night temperature seemed to drop with it. The small courtyard was filled with a sinister and terrifying aura.
The doors and windows were shut tight. Xia Zhiyi and Jing Ruyu lay on their respective beds, trying to drift off to sleep.
They were still unaware of the dangers of the night, and Xiao Qiao had told them not to run around. Besides sleeping and waiting for daylight, there was nothing they could do.
Being in this place for the first time, Xia Zhiyi felt little sleepiness due to a trace of unease in her heart. But looking in Jing Ruyu’s direction, she inexplicably felt at ease, and her mind gradually relaxed.
When they used to live together, she always slept well beside Jing Ruyu, as if embraced by all the security in the world, fearless and undaunted.
Thinking of the past, perhaps due to a psychological effect, her eyelids began to grow heavy and eventually closed slowly.
No matter what, at least she had an incredibly familiar person by her side…
All was silent, and the moonlight was deathly pale.
In the middle of the night, Xia Zhiyi woke up groggily. She vaguely heard a noise outside the door. Someone was knocking.
“Zhiyi, open the door.”
Jing Ruyu’s voice sounded from outside the door.
“I forgot my key.”
Xia Zhiyi glanced toward Jing Ruyu’s bed in the faint moonlight and saw that it was indeed empty. Only then did she rub her eyes, get out of bed, and go to open the door.
Back when they lived together, before they changed the lock, Jing Ruyu would occasionally forget her key, and she would open the door for her just like this.
This feeling was all too familiar…
As she reached for the wooden door, her fingertips touching the cool bolt, she suddenly froze.
Something… felt wrong?
Just then, a hand reached out from behind her, gently grasping her wrist and pulling it back. The movement was full of vigilance.
Then, Jing Ruyu’s voice sounded by her ear, “Zhiyi, I’m here.”
Xia Zhiyi instantly felt as if she had woken from a dream, her whole body relaxing as if freed from a restraint.
When she came back to her senses, she saw a thin, slender black shadow projected on the door.
The black shadow was calling from outside, telling her to open the door.
At that moment, she finally remembered what was wrong. The door didn’t have a lock, so why would it need a key!
“Zhiyi, wake up, quickly open the door for me.”
The “person” outside the door was still calling.
“I don’t know what’s out here, I’m afraid it’s dangerous. Hurry up and open the door.”
Xia Zhiyi was about to ask Jing Ruyu what to do when she saw the paper on the window lattice of the door suddenly get poked through, and a finger leaped into their view.
The finger was long and slender, with a very sharp nail, as if it could slice open a person’s skin with a light scratch.
In the blink of an eye, she was swiftly pushed down by Jing Ruyu.
The two of them crouched down below the door, holding their breath, and looked up in silent understanding.
There was a small hole in the door.
The night wind blew past. It was empty, with only a dead silence continuously squeezing through the small hole into the room.
Looking out from inside, they could still see the courtyard floor bathed in pale moonlight.
The next second, a malevolent eye suddenly appeared at the hole!
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