"Highway Horror": Maybe This Is the Charm of 2 Minutes and 48 Seconds
The old man's expression did not change. Seeing that his customers did not want to buy anything for the moment, he clasped his hands behind his back and said leisurely, "The only place Daoji Highway leads to is a Funeral Parlor. That Funeral Parlor only operates between midnight and four in the morning."
"You've all come here in the middle of the night. Surely you didn't come all this way just to see an old man like me?"
His meaning was clear: the road ahead led to only one place, and they had come in the middle of the night. Where else could they be going but the Funeral Parlor?
The four were delighted. They hadn't expected to find a definite clue so easily!
They exchanged glances. Tan Xingyun was about to see if he could coax any more information out of the old man when the man's expression suddenly turned sinister. Narrowing his eyes, he said darkly, "It seems you folks don't know much about Daoji Highway."
The old man's sudden change of expression startled them all.
Xu Xiuman and Li Kang even took a step back instinctively.
Tan Xingyun forced a smile and asked, "It really is our first time here. Is there something we should know about this highway?"
Their behavior when they first arrived had made that obvious, and the old man had already seen through them anyway. They might as well admit it outright; perhaps they could get more clues out of him.
The old man looked around at the four of them, his tone meaningful. "Around here, Daoji Highway is also known as the Road to the Underworld. Rumor has it that most people who drive onto it disappear, and the few drivers who manage to come back out go mad."
"There was once a young explorer who heard about the strange things on this highway. He brought his livestreaming equipment and ventured onto it, intending to find out what was going on."
"But as soon as he entered the highway, every electronic device he had with him stopped working. That young man never came out again."
Seeing that he had frightened them all, the old man smiled in satisfaction, then abruptly changed tack.
"Of course, those are only rumors. I don't know whether they're true or not. This road has been around for a long time and has never been properly resurfaced, so it's bound to be a little rough. There are frequent accidents, and perhaps that's how those rumors started over time."
"If you folks are worried, you can buy some joss paper to keep in your car. If you run into anything strange on the road, scattering a handful will keep you safe."
Xu Xi let out a soft breath, and the tension he had been holding eased slightly.
The old man was quite a storyteller. His sinister expression and eerie tone had made those stories seem far more credible.
The other three were thinking much the same thing.
"Let's discuss it," Tan Xingyun said to the old man.
[Shit, he sounded so convincing, but he was just trying to sell them something.]
[Anyone else? He scared me into a cold sweat. I'm never afraid of horror movies, but somehow two ordinary rumors scared me.]
[Maybe it's because you know movies are fake, but in these instances, it's all real.]
[So should they buy the old man's joss paper or not?]
The four people in the instance were discussing the same thing.
They gathered in a circle, and Tan Xingyun spoke first. "At least we now know our destination is the Funeral Parlor at the end of Daoji Highway."
No one disagreed with that. The old man's hint had been clear enough.
"Those rumors... what do you think?" Xu Xiuman asked softly.
Her face was a little pale, but she remained calm.
Tan Xingyun gave his opinion. "If this were the real world, I'd rather believe it than risk being wrong. But this is a game instance, so all I can say is that those rumors are definitely worth taking into account."
In other words, the rumors were most likely true.
Li Kang looked miserable. He wasn't very brave, and he was already afraid before they had even driven onto the highway.
But having been through an instance before, he also knew that being afraid was no use. Running away would only get him killed in the instance.
Li Kang glanced at the old man out of the corner of his eye. The man stood beside the funeral wreaths, smiling as he watched them and patiently waited for their discussion to end. Li Kang asked timidly, "Then should we buy his joss paper?"
After asking, Li Kang looked expectantly at the young man beside him.
Xu Xi, who had inexplicably become the object of his expectations, said, "...?"
Why are you looking at me?
If Li Kang could have heard that question, he would naturally have answered, "Because I think you're a hidden big shot."
[Why did that guy look straight at 2 minutes and 48 seconds?]
[Wow, you really are using that nickname.]
[Don't change the subject. The way he looked at him, it was like he'd buy it if 2 minutes and 48 seconds told him to, and wouldn't if he said not to.]
[Yeah, by comparison, the beer-bellied uncle who's been leading them should be more reliable. If not him, then at least the woman in the denim skirt.]
[Maybe this is the charm of 2 minutes and 48 seconds?]
[Are you stupid? The other players in the instance can't see that information.]
To be honest, Xu Xi didn't know whether they should buy it either. They did have the banknotes the instance had given them, but... did they need to spend them here?
"I think we should buy some, but not too much. We can each carry a few sheets. If we do run into something, maybe they'll keep us safe, just like the old man said," Tan Xingyun said after a long pause.
Carrying joss paper around in the real world would be inauspicious any way one looked at it, but they couldn't apply conventional thinking inside an instance. The joss paper might turn out to be an important item.
"I think that works. We can't be sure the old man isn't deliberately tricking us, either. For example, he says it'll keep us safe, but what if it actually attracts disaster and makes us die in someone else's place? So it's better to buy less," Xu Xiuman added, voicing her own suspicions.
Xu Xi nodded. They couldn't simply pass it up. If it really was an item, there was no telling whether they would get another chance to obtain it later. But if it attracted disaster or something like that, they could throw it away immediately. They wouldn't spend many banknotes, so even if they needed them later, they wouldn't have to worry about running short.
After discussing it, they decided that each of them would buy about twenty sheets to carry. It was neither too much nor too little, just in case.
When the old man heard their decision, he sighed and shook his head. "The highway's a long one. I'm afraid that won't be enough."
He said nothing more, however. After they paid, he strolled back into the shop, saying as he went, "This old man wishes you all a safe journey. I look forward to your next visit."
The four watched as the old man's retreating figure disappeared behind the shelves.
Li Kang looked around and scratched his forehead. "That last thing he said sounded like it had some deeper meaning."
Even he had picked up on it, so the other three naturally had as well.
"Forget it. Let's keep going for now," Tan Xingyun said with a frown, deciding to proceed and see what happened.
[Twenty sheets each is a pretty conservative choice.]
[As expected, the uncle and the lady in the denim skirt are the reliable ones. 2 minutes and 48 seconds hasn't said a word.]
[I don't know what that guy was expecting.]
[Seriously, can't you watch a little longer? The instance has barely started and you're already putting people down to prop others up. Look at you.]
Some viewers in the livestream had had enough of the comments putting people down and making snide remarks, and finally couldn't help speaking up.
[Exactly. It's like he's committed some terrible crime just by staying quiet.]
[Maybe this newcomer was so impressive in his first instance that everyone's expectations went up.]
[Let's watch a little longer. There's no rush.]
After that rebuke, the comments finally quieted down considerably.