Night of Terror

The village chief's spare room was neither too big nor too small. Supposedly, it had originally been meant for his son, but after the son went to school in the city, the village chief added another bed and turned it into a guest room.

The autumn night was chilly. Whenever the wind blew, the wooden window creaked, so Yu Xing simply shut it and turned to sit on the bed.

He had just told Carlos the clue and gotten what he wanted. The oddly behaving Magician had then left.

That left him free to return to his room and rest.

The room was simply furnished, and there was basically nothing suspicious about it. He had finished his cursory investigation, and there was nothing else to do.

His gaze shifted to the backpack beside the bed.

Just then, the door opened, and Xiao Xuechen walked in, looking a little awkward. In the faint moonlight coming through the window, she could make out the outline of Yu Xing's figure.

They had already explored the ancestral hall together and grown more familiar with each other, but she was still a girl, after all. She wasn't quite used to sharing a room with a man. After hesitating where she stood for a moment, she walked over anyway. "San."

"Hm?" Yu Xing was sorting through his backpack. Since entering the game, this was the first time he had looked through what was inside.

Apart from his easel and other painting tools, there was a notebook, some water, and a few simple snacks. At the very bottom of the backpack, a glint of cold metal showed faintly.

A dagger?

Yu Xing grabbed the handle and pulled it out.

It was a dagger, just as he had thought. It was made of ordinary materials, but its edge was very sharp. A casual swipe across skin would still draw blood.

He searched his memories. He had probably bought the dagger in the small town beside Guan Family Village after getting off the plane.

"I already warned Wei Gong," Xiao Xuechen said. She had seen Yu Xing put something under his pillow but didn't ask about it. "Ju Lan was there, too. Wei Gong said he'd let Xu Hong and Xu Yuan know, so they could be careful tonight as well."

"How are the rooms assigned?" Yu Xing hadn't paid much attention to that.

"Ju Lan and Carlos are sharing a room, and Wei Gong is staying with the two brothers. But when I went over, the brothers still hadn't come back." After a few exchanges, Xiao Xuechen gradually relaxed. She began putting her things away and asked, "If we can't let anyone in tonight and we can't go out either, should we move something to block the door?"

Yu Xing shook his head slightly. "No need. Just slide the bolt into place. We'd better not disturb anything in this room."

"Oh, all right. I'll listen to you." Though she didn't know why, Xiao Xuechen decided to trust the expert.

After puttering around for a while longer, the two of them each lay down on a bed.

Yu Xing's bed was beside the window. Its wooden boards were hard and poorly maintained, with signs of insect damage on both sides.

After examining it for a while, he pressed down on the pillow, then reached underneath it. His dagger was right there, within easy reach.

Once he had confirmed that, Yu Xing closed his eyes, pulled the icy quilt over himself, found a comfortable position, and went to sleep without a worry.

Going to bed around nine-thirty was a little early, but whenever Yu Xing was tired, any time or place was a good time to sleep.

Besides, he probably wouldn't get any restful sleep after midnight. He could only use this chance to get enough rest; otherwise, his body wouldn't hold up.

Xiao Xuechen fiddled with her phone for a while, then turned to look. The guy across the aisle was already sleeping on his side. In the silence, she could just make out his steady breathing. He hadn't taken off his clothes, probably to be ready for an emergency and to accommodate her as a girl. A corner of the thin, old quilt covered his stomach, making him look rather well-behaved.

With nothing else to do, she stared at Yu Xing for a while, half-dazed and half-admiring. Then she took off the jacket over her T-shirt and pulled the quilt over herself.

She had been muttering to herself that San fell asleep way too fast, as if he wasn't worried at all about what might happen that night. But perhaps the person sharing the room had rubbed off on her: to her surprise, she soon began to feel sleepy, too.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Who's there?

Yu Xing heard a noise through his drowsy haze. His brows knitted slightly as he rolled over.

"Knock, knock, knock, knock."

Which little bastard dared to disturb his sleep?

He unconsciously buried half his face in the pillow, but it did nothing to block the noise that kept coming.

His long, knuckly fingers felt around beside the pillow and soon found something cold. In an instant, Yu Xing's eyes snapped open, the haze vanishing as he remembered his situation.

Right, he was in a deduction game...

"Knock, knock, knock..."

The pounding at the door sounded like it was meant to wake everyone from a deep sleep. It was impossible to ignore.

"San, are you awake?" Xiao Xuechen whispered from the other side. Yu Xing answered with an "Mm" and sat up. She seemed to have woken a little earlier than him. Her curly hair lay neatly in place, and she had one leg on the floor, alertness in her eyes.

Yu Xing ran a hand over his tousled hair, yawned, and checked the time on his phone.

12:03 a.m.

As expected, it had come right on time. How diligent.

He watched the door tremble slightly. His voice was still hoarse and resonant from just waking up, and he called lazily, "Who is it?"

Xiao Xuechen held her breath, waiting for an answer from outside.

The knocking stopped abruptly.

In the unnerving silence, Yu Xing stretched. "If nobody's there, we'll go back to sleep. Whatever it is can wait until morning. I'm so sleepy~"

"I'm here for that young girl..." At last, a reply came from outside. Xiao Xuechen's arm broke out in goose bumps. Sure enough, it was the woman's voice!

The hell? She'd even said she was here for me. Did she really think I was an easy target?

She gave a cold snort, refusing to back down. Her words, however, came out perfectly polite, leaving no room for complaint. "What do you need, ma'am? It's late, and young people need to sleep. You should get some rest, too, and take care of your health."

Yu Xing chuckled softly.

"Young lady, the weather's cold. I'm afraid you'll catch a chill, so I want to bring you a thicker quilt. I've already brought it over. Open the door for me." The woman's voice was gentle, but now that they knew what they were dealing with, every word sounded chilling.

"No need, ma'am. I'm not cold, just sleepy. Go back. You should keep the thick quilt for yourself. I want to sleep." Hearing that the woman couldn't seem to force her way in, Xiao Xuechen felt even more confident.

"..." The person outside seemed to fall silent for a moment.

"Young lady, when you're sharing a room with a young man, it's better to have a thicker quilt." A few seconds later, the woman tried again.

Yu Xing: ?

What was that supposed to mean?

That put him in a bad mood. He swung his legs off the bed and put on his shoes. While Xiao Xuechen whispered, "What are you doing?" he walked to the door. The woman was still trying to persuade them. "And you, young man, think about it. You don't want your female companion to catch a cold, do you? Why don't you open the door..."

"Knock, knock." Yu Xing rapped twice on the wooden door with his knuckles.

The thing outside was interrupted.

He smiled. "Ma'am, you'd better go back to sleep. It'd be inconvenient to come in at this hour. I usually sleep naked."

Xiao Xuechen: ?

The thing outside: ?

If you sleep naked, how did you walk over to the door?

Watching Yu Xing lie through his teeth, Xiao Xuechen found herself wanting to laugh in spite of the atmosphere. She got out of bed and joined him.

The woman clearly didn't believe him, but from their attitude, she could tell that the two of them might already know something.

Her voice suddenly turned sinister. "Open the door!"

As soon as she finished speaking, the door began to swing open under force. Fortunately, the bolt was in place. The door opened only a narrow crack and wouldn't budge any farther.

Yu Xing took the opportunity to look outside.

It was pitch-black beyond the door. It seemed the woman hadn't lit a candle.

He quickly turned on his phone's flashlight and shone it through the crack.

The opening was too narrow. Squinting, he could just make out the outline of a woman.

The next moment, an eye abruptly pressed up against the crack. It was wide open, apparently straining to peer into the room.

"Damn!" Xiao Xuechen, who had also been watching the crack, jumped in surprise and instinctively took a step back. Then a flash of cold light caught her eye. A dagger shot toward the crack at a speed her eyes could barely follow. The hand holding it was beautiful, yet moved cleanly and without a trace of feeling.

Her gaze traveled up that hand. A dark light swirled in Yu Xing's black eyes, glinting faintly in the darkness. His slightly upturned eyes and the smile that was hard to read, paired with his cold lips, made him seem...delighted? Or immersed in the moment?

Like a psychopathic killer who had found his prey and was plotting things she didn't want to think about.

That expression left her stunned. The sudden change in his aura sent a chill sweeping over her, even though she was on his side. Her hair stood on end. It was as if, in the next second, this man would smile as he cut her into pieces with his dagger!

This person...was dangerous...

A scream from the thing outside snapped her out of it. As the blade sank into flesh, Xiao Xuechen shuddered. She saw the shattered eye retreat, and Yu Xing yanked the dagger back. The door slammed shut with a bang, and then...

"There's no blood. As expected, it should be a corpse." San's voice sounded just as it had before, but to Xiao Xuechen it was like a demon whispering.

She couldn't help it. That close-up, firsthand impression of him in that moment had been too strong.

"Hm?" Noticing the young woman's strange expression, Yu Xing glanced over at her.

"N-no, it's nothing." He's my teammate, an expert, a good person... Xiao Xuechen repeated to herself.

The next moment, Yu Xing realized what she was thinking.

"Haha, don't be scared, pretty lady. I'm very kind~" He bent slightly, lowered the dagger, and flashed an innocent smile. Like a bright light in the dark, it instantly dispelled the gloomy aura around him.

Xiao Xuechen covered her eyes.

Forget it...she'd pretend she hadn't seen anything. Right, he was very kind!

"Bang!"

Another loud crash made the two of them, who had just dealt with the thing outside, turn toward the sound.

It came from the window.

At some point, the village chief had appeared outside. His square, blocky face twisted into a smile as he reached out and pushed open the unlocked window.

"Something's wrong!" Xiao Xuechen cried and rushed to close it. Yu Xing was faster, of course, and crossed the room in a few strides. But before he could reach the window, the village chief sneered, and his figure vanished into the darkness.

Gone? Yu Xing didn't think it would be that simple.

He had just reached out to close the window when a familiar, frightened female voice came rushing closer. "Don't close it! Help me! Let me in!"

A girl came running from the direction of another house. In the dim moonlight, her adorable face was twisted with terror.

It was Ju Lan.

Xiao Xuechen's eyes widened slightly. A question came to mind: Why had she gone outside?

Just as the girl was about to throw herself through the window into their room, Yu Xing quickly—and mercilessly—shut it.

"No!!" Ju Lan cried out, her voice shrill. She clung to the window and pounded on it. "Let me in! Let me in!"

"Weren't you sharing a room with Carlos? If you're out here, where is he?" Xiao Xuechen demanded, remembering something.

"He wasn't in the room when I woke up. There was a paper figure on his bed. I don't know where he is! Please, let me in! There's a ghost, there's a ghost—"

As Ju Lan spoke, two tall, thin figures slowly emerged behind her.

They were two villagers.

One held an axe, and the other dragged a firewood cleaver.

Ju Lan glanced back at them, then turned around in despair. Tears streamed from her eyes. "Please...Xu Yuan and the others wouldn't let me in. You're the only ones left..."

Yu Xing braced a hand against the window and turned to look at Xiao Xuechen.

"What do you think? Should we open it?"

Yu Xing suddenly left the decision to her. Xiao Xuechen froze for a moment, then instinctively realized that he was testing her.

She didn't know how her answer would affect Yu Xing's opinion of her. She only knew what the right choice was for a deduction player.

She closed her eyes. Her voice was full of reluctance.

"We can't open it."

Ju Lan's expression crumpled, and deep hatred rose in her eyes.