The First Night Was About to Begin

"Oh, this..."

Upon hearing the broadcast, Feng Xue's expression twitched slightly. Although this kind of plot was a classic trope for long-distance travel, as an unexpected situation within the realm of supernatural Weird Tale, it required more consideration.

Generally speaking, rule-based Weird Tale can essentially be seen as a collection of Bad Ends derived from one or more unexpected events that occur in a specific scenario (this is the author's personal summary, and we welcome discussion if you disagree).

To put it simply, it's a game made up of a lot of bad endings. You have to use the existing information (rules) to avoid the bad endings in order to achieve the "one" good ending.

In other words, within the scenario, every unexpected event inevitably leads to at least one bad outcome.

For example, in this emergency requiring a doctor, there are two options: help or ignore it. If you ignore it, will the person die and become a vengeful ghost? If you help, can you bring them back to life? If you fail to save them, will their family members hold a grudge? What if you save them but they turn out to be a dangerous person?

However, Feng Xue doesn't need to consider all that, because...

"Hello? I am a passenger on K7 Train. Someone on board needs emergency medical treatment. Please send your fastest ambulance."

After saying that, Feng Xue slammed down the phone. Soon after, the urgent sound of a whistle, "Wanliu wanliu wanliu..." echoed across the vast Gobi Desert.

The Ambulance Demon's phone, which Feng Xue had always treated as a regular mobile Phantom Object that could be used in different worlds, was now fulfilling its original function.

Call the most expensive ambulance in town.

However, just as Fake Stone Stool can be used to open automatic doors, the essence of this phone lies not in the high cost of the ambulance it calls, but in that description—

"They will surely be able to be summoned."

In other words, this is a mandatory skill. Put simply, whether he's on a train, an airplane, or even Space Station, as long as there's an ambulance service and a phone call can be made, an ambulance will definitely arrive.

Although Feng Xue didn't know how an ambulance would arrive if called from an airplane—well, maybe, a Cybertronian named Ambulance?

Instead of continuing her divergent thinking, Feng Xue continued studying the Travel Guidebook in her hand, starting to look for potential problems along this route.

This seven-day, seven-night tourist train journey crosses three countries, passing through diverse landscapes including wetlands, forests, grasslands, and permafrost, and traversing countless bridges and tunnels, where many unexpected events could occur.

However, as if sensing Feng Xue's vigilance, nothing unexpected happened on the train while he was on edge. Even the two stops at each station were remarkably smooth. Until 8:03 PM, when the surroundings were mostly desert, hills, railway tracks, and tanks, the train's announcement system blared once more—

"Dear passengers, this train is about to arrive at Hongxiongji Station. The estimated stop is four hours. After that, we will enter Kent Country territory. Passengers who need to disembark may do so for a rest, but please return before 12 o'clock."

"Good heavens, even looking at the tanks around here, this isn't a place you can just get off anywhere. Not to mention, the train rules include a rule about Lights Out after nightfall. Although it's from midnight to five o'clock, in the Gobi Desert where it's already dark by six o'clock, the difference between midnight and 8 o'clock doesn't seem to be that big for 'wild animals.'"

Better safe than sorry.

Feng Xue herself had no need to get off the train, nor did she intend to challenge the rules on the train. She simply lay quietly on the bed, maintaining a state of both stillness and movement, meditating while sending out her mental energy to sense the surrounding situation.

Although the train has stopped, the spirit that seeps out of the train disappears without a trace the moment it leaves the train, as if only the train itself truly exists.

Time passed slowly, and Feng Xue gradually reduced her presence. About two hours later, Feng Xue suddenly sensed unsettling footsteps approaching the door.

Although it was essentially no different from ordinary footsteps, Feng Xue felt inexplicably uneasy. Feng Xue knew very well that this was definitely not normal, so he immediately exited his meditative state, opened his eyes, and the moment his gaze fell on the doorway, the face of a woman of above-average height came into view through the window in the door.

"Grass!"

Feng Xue's first reaction was to immediately focus his attention on his pockets. The moment his mind connected with the School Hell, three female high school students who were buried in their studies came into his consciousness, especially one of them, who looked exactly like the person who had just arrived at the door.

Although it's unknown whether the three passengers are human or ghost, there's no doubt that the one outside the door who looks exactly like her is definitely not human.

With a thought racing through her mind, Feng Xue flicked her fingers, and three business cards flew out from under the blanket, landing on the lower bunk opposite her. She then closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep.

"Click..."

The door opened, and the three beautiful women, who had been chatting and laughing, paused when they saw Feng Xue sleeping on the lower bunk. Lin Jiaxin even frowned and said:

"Why is this person like this?"

"Never mind, we don't know anyone here. I wouldn't be happy if all the good seats were taken when I got on the bus. Hmm, why is there a potted plant on the table?"

"He must have brought them, right? I heard some of the bonsai are quite expensive, so we'd better not touch them to avoid being scammed!"

Two more female voices entered my ears; they were indeed the voices of the other two from the School Hell.

Three footsteps approached in unison and sat down in the opposite bunk. At the same time, a deliberately low but still audible sound rang out:

"Why is this person sleeping so early?"

"I Think he just took the bunk and pretended to be asleep."

"Keep your voice down. If you anger someone, the three of us women will be the ones who suffer."

"What's there to be afraid of? We can just call the Train Police. The train berth allocation is unreasonable to begin with. Everyone bought tickets with their real names, and they actually sold a sleeper compartment that housed three women to a man... Wait, what's this?"

"It looks like a business card. Hmm, why is your name on it?"

"Isn't this yours?"

"How could this be? I didn't print any business cards. And what's with this high school? I'm already a junior in college..."

One sound after another came from the opposite bunk, but Feng Xue kept her eyes closed and rested, using only her perception of the Circle Realm to lock onto the three "people".

The moment the corresponding Student ID arrived in the hands of the rightful holder, Feng Xue had a fleeting thought, but nothing happened.

"It's not an identity replacement? This is getting a bit troublesome." Feng Xue, who hadn't noticed the new student in her School Hell, frowned. But just then, the car radio started playing again—

"Attention passengers, according to the weather forecast, a Cold Current will be passing through Hongxiongji tonight. Please take precautions to keep warm..."