Entering

[Welcome to play "Investigator"!]

[Confirming game ID... 4812]

[Game items confirmed: Voidwood Box; Wicker Man; Damaged Sextant; Xia Lun's Single-Action Revolver; Mosu Steel shortsword "Night Plume"; Gunpowder Barrel]

[Items inside the Voidwood Box confirmed]

[You have burned 4 "Snail Statues." The marked item has been identified. This scenario's difficulty has greatly increased.]

Pure white game information emerged from the darkness, like white rice paper beneath an ink wash. As the characters trembled faintly, a starlike red dot suddenly flickered into Xia Lun's vision.

At the same time, a vague chant rang in his ears—or perhaps inside his mind. The voice rose and fell, like a Taoist reciting morning prayers, yet also like a medieval monk chanting scripture.

"Do not listen with your ears. Listen with your heart..."

Xia Lun concentrated, trying to make out the chant's exact words. Yet the more he focused, the hazier the sound became. It seemed like a murmur, or dream talk, like an itch beneath his cortex—always near, always out of reach, maddeningly irritating.

"Do not listen with your heart. Listen with your qi. Empty yourself and await things; await things gathering in emptiness..."

[You have gained Temporary Language Comprehension!]

As another line of information appeared before him, the darkness slowly receded and his vision gradually returned. The irritating chant also faded away, like an echo dispersing through mist-shrouded mountains.

Unlike the overhead perspective of the previous scenario, this introduction unfolded directly from a first-person perspective.

Dusk deepened. The first thing he saw was the fading glow of the setting sun, dim golden light veiling a winding bluestone mountain path. The old stones were cracked all over, and clusters of red mycelium poked out from the fissures like weeds, swaying in the wind.

Xia Lun's viewpoint slowly moved forward, climbing step by step. As he advanced, the thickly spread mycelium became scarlet, flattened mushrooms. They piled over the steps and pinewood like tendons exposed beneath peeled-back skin.

It seemed that he was currently climbing the mountain along the bluestone path.

[Background Introduction]

[Oh, welcome, Pill Seeker, who longs to cure his terminal illness. Perhaps you are already beyond saving, with death close at hand. But since you have arrived in our great city, Sorrow Hill City, you still have a sliver of hope.]

[The Yin Longevity Pill is precisely the medicine that can cure your terminal illness. However, we have encountered a few minor troubles, so please wait patiently. Or, if you are desperate for the pill, you may try resolving the matter yourself by visiting the seven small mountains near Sorrow Hill City.]

[But no matter what, the chaos and trouble will be resolved before tomorrow's sun rises. So, hehe... cherish your final moments.]

As the information subtitles surfaced layer by layer, the last remnants of sunset vanished completely. Night's darkness, like fear clinging to the human heart, shrouded and swallowed everything.

Xia Lun's viewpoint continued forward, and soon three deep bell chimes reached his ears.

"Dong—dong—dong—"

With those three heavy tolls, the winding bluestone road finally came to an end.

Dark clouds hung low, and the moonlight was dim. A somewhat dilapidated complex of ancient buildings stood at the end of the bluestone road, trembling like an old man in his twilight years.

The complex appeared to be a Taoist temple. It had a tall mountain gate shaped like a ceremonial archway, carved with elaborate reliefs of beasts and glazed flying eaves. But now, the glaze was stained and the carvings weathered away.

In stark contrast to the ruined Taoist temple nearby was the brightly lit city at the foot of the mountain farther away. Though it was distant, countless swaying red lanterns illuminated it as brightly as day.

[Your personal information is as follows.]

[Name: Xia Lun]

[Game rounds: 1]

[Proficiencies: Firearms Use Mastery 28%; Cold Weapons (Swords) Proficiency 55%; Cold Weapons (Throwing) Proficiency 3%; Comprehensive Navigation Beginner 99%; Symptom Reading Beginner 80%; Stealth Beginner 5%]

[Talents: Nonhuman Toughness; Familiarity with Pain; Reflexive Evasion; Transcendent Regeneration (Enhanced); Treasure Hunter (1/3); Mass Murderer (10/100)]

[Skill: Heightened Focus (Enhanced: Weakness Insight) (4/4)!]

[Attributes: Strength 13, Agility 16, Constitution 11, Charisma 14, Intelligence 12, Perception 18]

[Mental Health: Calm (0/0), Severe Error]

[Physical Health: Temporarily Healthy (Curse: The Decay Has Come, Temporarily Alleviated), Estimated Maximum Survival Time: 3395:00:01]

[Memory Points: 400]

The viewpoint extended a hand and pushed at the gate covered in red mycelium.

The gate's hinges gave a dull groan, then slowly opened. Amid a teeth-grinding creak, a line of deathly pale subtitles, like rice paper, appeared.

[Scenario Objective: Escape Sorrow Hill City, or survive until dawn the next day.]

The subtitle lingered for a moment, then slowly dispersed like white paper ash spiraling through the air after funeral offerings were burned. Xia Lun regained control of his body.

Although Xia Lun was an expert in violence, he did not immediately manifest his revolver and shortsword after regaining control.

Don't manifest weapons yet. If there really are enemies, I can pretend to be unarmed and catch them off guard. Xia Lun planned rather darkly. Anyway, manifesting weapons can be done instantly.

No, I need to learn my lesson. This time, I should try negotiating first. I can't be so aggressively violent.

My personal objective this time is the same as last time. I want to come into contact with as many supernatural forces as possible, to find something that can cure my curse or extend my lifespan.

As he thought, he raised his head and looked around.

The light was dim, and he could barely make out the outlines of things by the sparse, murky moonlight.

At that moment, he stood in a filthy, dilapidated courtyard. Withered trees sprawled crookedly about like the hands of dying men reaching for the sky, while red mycelium crawled over them like climbing ivy.

Beyond the courtyard's dead trees, which were covered in mushrooms, stood a row of side rooms. Outside them, bronze censers, fly whisks, and folding screens lay scattered about like trash, surrounded by footprints and stains.

Xia Lun narrowed his eyes, slowly adjusting to the darkness. With his exceptional perception, he quickly made out the wall of the leftmost side room.

—The yellowed wall was covered in dense bloody handprints. Some were large, some small; some deep, some faint. Broken fingernails were embedded in the plaster, along with several shriveled, flayed scarlet fingers.

Huh, a classic horror movie scene. Are a few zombies going to crawl out later? Xia Lun could not help making a bad joke to himself. Come to think of it, Sorrow Hill City is a really strange name...

Unlike the previous scenario, where he had faced a life-or-death crisis from the very start, this one seemed quite freeform.

The scenario objective is to escape Sorrow Hill City, so I can try turning back first. After all, I came by this road. Even if the odds of success are low according to game logic, there's no harm in trying. If it works, I'll have a way out.

With that thought, he turned around. But when he saw the scene behind him, he frowned slightly.

The tall ceremonial-arch mountain gate from which he had come was gone, as was the bluestone road. In their place was a terrifying, dense fog, thick as cream of mushroom soup, boiling and churning.

At the same time, a line of information flashed across his vision.

[Yin Bo Wall (Death Fog): According to the Celestial Observatory, there are four stars in the night sky that should not exist: Zi Gong, Yin Bo, Luo Xiong, and Ji Ming. Among them, Zi Gong governs the calamities of fortune, Yin Bo governs the calamities of lifespan, Luo Xiong governs the calamities of wealth, and Ji Ming governs the calamities of fate. They are all Sunset Stars, and seeing them is inauspicious.]

[However, before the enlightened Man in the Flesh who has perceived the Astral Ritual, these hidden, baleful stars can be used for his own purposes—touching the Yin Bo Wall will permanently reduce your lifespan. The amount lost depends on the duration of contact.]

[The Yin Bo Wall is exceedingly dangerous, but if you have likewise perceived the Astral Ritual, perhaps you may walk safely within it.]

"..."

Seeing the Information Panel's prompt, Xia Lun immediately gave up on testing it recklessly. He had less than five months left to live. If he touched that fog, he might simply die of old age on the spot.

Simple deduction: there must be a way to learn the Astral Ritual in this scenario. Once I learn it, I can break through this fog wall, which should allow me to achieve the scenario objective of escaping Sorrow Hill City. That's one possible route to completing the mission.

As he thought, he lowered his head and looked at what he was wearing in the scenario.

Even now, he did not know his exact identity within the scenario. During the game's introduction, it had only mentioned that he was a Pill Seeker suffering from a terminal illness. Everything else was unknown.

But with only a glance downward, Xia Lun froze. He was not wearing ancient clothing, but a dark gray overcoat. The coat was lined with leather and iron plates, making it lightweight and warm while offering some defensive ability.

Why does my whole style seem a little out of place with the surroundings? Xia Lun was puzzled. He reached toward his waist and actually felt an ammunition belt buckle.

His fingers probed downward. The next moment, Xia Lun was even more shocked—six speedloaders filled with hollow-point rounds were tucked into the ammunition belt buckle!

Thirty-six extra bullets out of nowhere?

Somehow, Xia Lun instinctively felt that this round of the scenario was strange. He suppressed his confusion and continued searching through the pockets of his overcoat.

Soon, he found a yellowed sheet of paper smeared with thick blood plasma.

Under the faint moonlight, Xia Lun vaguely made out the paper.

It was filled with extremely blurry writing. Though he could not read a single character, Xia Lun somehow knew that it was an invitation with the function of a travel permit—it bore his name and served as proof that he had entered Sorrow Hill City.

This feels just like a dream.

He shook his head, tucked the paper back into his pocket, and began considering his plan of action.

I need to find an opportunity to extend the amount of time I can live in good condition. The Yin Longevity Pill mentioned in the scenario introduction may be a clue, so I need to find one first.

Raising his head, Xia Lun looked toward the distant cluster of side rooms, which appeared steeped in sinister yin energy.

I'll start by searching the buildings ahead. This scenario seems very freeform—I need to investigate every inch of this place!

But before he could act, the wooden door of the leftmost side room in the distance suddenly let out a hair-raising creeeak.