The building at the front of the line bore four large words: "Escape Room."
"Escape room? Is this what you brought me here to play today?" Lin Xiaowan asked with interest.
Su Lin nodded. "That's right, an escape room. They don't have these in Donghai—only in Modu, Didu, and Shudu. I didn't expect one to open in Zhongjiang too. I heard it was designed by the original Modu escape room team, so it should be pretty interesting."
"Oh? Have you played it before, Su Lin?"
Su Lin shook his head. "No, but I saw people online saying it was fun and thrilling. It can also deepen relationships and friendships, and reveal someone's character. Since it sounds so interesting, I had to give it a try."
"Now that you put it that way, I'm curious too. Do you know how it works, Su Lin?"
"Mm! The rules should be pretty simple. It's more interesting than a haunted house." Su Lin smiled.
"A... a haunted house? Are we going there too?" Lin Xiaowan did not even realize that her voice was trembling slightly.
Su Lin shook his head. "After playing an escape room, you won't have any interest in a haunted house."
"Uh... why does that sound kind of scary?"
"It's not scary. Not scary at all. It's like an intelligence-based challenge."
"Is that so?"
Just as Lin Xiaowan was looking doubtful, a couple who had finished playing emerged from the exit.
The girl was fair and delicate, but she was crying her heart out. She could barely walk steadily, and her boyfriend was supporting her from the side.
"They?"
"They probably failed the challenge. That girl is a little upset," Su Lin said flatly.
"Failed the challenge?"
Su Lin nodded. Escape rooms in this world were more dangerous and more interesting than those on Earth. Su Lin did not want to scare Lin Xiaowan away.
He still wanted to try it.
As they spoke, several more people came out of the exit. Every single girl was sobbing; some looked as though they had been badly frightened, utterly drained of the will to live. They looked rather pitiful.
Seeing that, Lin Xiaowan felt her scalp tingle. "Su Lin, how about we play something else? I've been to this amusement park before. Some of the other attractions are pretty fun too."
Su Lin waved his hand. "Bumper cars and log flumes are boring. I've played them to death. We're playing the escape room today. Xiao Wan, you promised that we'd play whatever I said."
Lin Xiaowan said dryly, "Fine~!!!!"
Su Lin smiled at that. "Look at how long the line is. So many people are here to play, and they aren't scared. What are you afraid of?"
"I... when did I say I was scared?"
Although Lin Xiaowan claimed she was not afraid, at some point her little hand had already grabbed the corner of Su Lin's shirt.
Su Lin found it rather amusing. It seemed this girl had weaknesses too.
Escape Room, Timid Lin Xiaowan
As one crying girl after another emerged, the long line outside grew even longer. Most of the boys had come with girls.
It was clear that girls were indeed a very contradictory group. They had no clear understanding of their own capabilities, yet insisted on seeking thrills.
Looking at Lin Xiaowan's slightly pale face, Su Lin softened a little. "If you're really scared, then we won't play this. We can go play those attractions you mentioned."
Lin Xiaowan shook her head. "So many girls are playing it, which means it must be interesting. It's just that they can't handle it. I want to try."
Courting death!
Sure enough, no woman could escape the universal law of courting death.
"Xiao Wan, I warned you. Don't start crying later and make people think I bullied you," Su Lin teased with a smile.
Lin Xiaowan shot him a glance, looking utterly charming. "I won't be like them."
After an agonizing hour in line, it was finally Su Lin and Lin Xiaowan's turn.
Lin Xiaowan carefully read the rules posted on the wall.
Su Lin tugged her along, and the two stepped forward together.
"Are you two doing the two-person mission or the solo mission?"
Su Lin looked at Lin Xiaowan before saying, "Two-person."
The staff member was not surprised by Su Lin's choice. "Go on in, then. Remember, don't run around inside."
Then he looked at Su Lin. "Keep an eye on your girlfriend. If you can't continue, shout loudly, and a staff member will take you out."
Su Lin nodded.
The two entered through the main doors.
As the doors closed behind them, the room went completely dark.
Feeling around in the darkness, Lin Xiaowan grabbed Su Lin's wrist. "Su Lin, why is it so dark in here?"
"I've never been here either. How would I know what it's like inside? Hold on to me. I'll lead you."
After his full-body enhancement, Su Lin's night vision had become exceptionally strong.
There had been a slight period of adjustment when he first entered, but before long, he could clearly see the layout inside.
After passing through two corridors, they arrived before an ancient gate.
The gate was wooden, the kind no longer seen in Zhongjiang. It was battered and worn, with two tattered lanterns hanging above it.
"Xiao Wan... Xiao Wan?"
"Ah! Where are we, Su Lin?"
"We're at the entrance to the escape room. Don't tell me you've had your eyes closed this whole time?" Su Lin asked, speechless.
"Ah! It was so bright outside and so dark in here. I couldn't adjust right away."
"Hehe! It's fine. There's light now, so you can open your eyes."
"Oh! Okay!!"
Lin Xiaowan slowly opened her eyes. "Ah! Where is this? How did it suddenly become like this?"
Before Su Lin could speak, the staff member's mission briefing began.
"Dear players, welcome to the escape room. Within the allotted time, you must find three clues. Then, use those clues to find the key. Only after obtaining the key may you leave the escape room."
"The first mission is as follows: Please enter the room, find a missing ancestral tablet, and place it among the tablets in the ancestral hall."
Su Lin half-wrapped an arm around Lin Xiaowan's shoulders and gently stroked her head.
Mm!!!
It felt really good.
Su Lin had wanted to do this for a long time. Lin Xiaowan reminded him of a noble Persian cat. Before, he could only imagine it, but now he could finally pet her head.
"Xiao Wan, don't be nervous. Let's finish the mission first."
"Su... Su Lin, why is this place even scarier than a haunted house?" Lin Xiaowan said, trembling slightly.
"Hehe! Otherwise, why would it be called an escape room? Let's go!!"
Su Lin pulled Lin Xiaowan into the house.
The furnishings inside were very particular, a typical Qing Dynasty arrangement.
There was a table and two chairs on each side. Directly ahead was another table with two chairs, and on the table sat a teapot and teacups, though there was no water.
Su Lin swept the room with his titanium-alloy eyes. After confirming there was nothing he wanted, he pulled Lin Xiaowan deeper inside. "Come on, let's go in."
"Oh!!"
Perhaps because of the limited space, the corridors here were extremely narrow. Su Lin and Lin Xiaowan could barely pass through side by side.
Su Lin led Lin Xiaowan through several rooms before finally spotting the missing ancestral tablet in one of them.
He looked around but found nothing suspicious.
"Su Lin, I see the tablet." Lin Xiaowan said excitedly.
After saying that, she let go of Su Lin's hand and moved to pick it up.
Su Lin sighed. Sometimes this girl was timid as a mouse, yet other times she was quite bold. Like now—she actually dared to go over there alone.
Su Lin would bet that the tablet would not be so easy to take.
Lin Xiaowan picked up the ancestral tablet. At that moment, Su Lin heard a piu sound, and a person sprang up from behind Lin Xiaowan.
Lin Xiaowan was about to return to Su Lin when she saw a pale-faced person staring at her.
"Why... are you taking my ancestral tablet?"
"Ah! A ghost..." Lin Xiaowan threw away the tablet and tried to run out.
Su Lin immediately scooped her up. "It's fake, fake!!! That's fake."
"A ghost, Su Lin... there's a ghost."
Su Lin patted Lin Xiaowan's back and shouted, "It's fake. That's a mannequin."
As he spoke, he carried Lin Xiaowan over with him. "Look carefully again."
"No, no, no... I'm not looking."
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