Fiery red light shone on his long silver hair-or rather, his silver hair reflected the fiery red light. Its moonlit halo dimmed slightly, lending the strands a faint warmth. But 39's face remained cold and stern. He stood tall and elegant, his dark leather coat enveloping him, forever belonging to the mysterious, dangerous darkness.
Who are you? Who are you, really?
Wei Yanchi felt his heart tighten. He must have been staring, transfixed. Why else would he think this haunting place was beautiful?
Beiwei's voice brought him back to his senses, and he coughed awkwardly.
Fortunately, Yue Xiamo had not noticed anything unusual about him. She, too, was stunned by the man's overwhelming strength, a ripple of admiration breaking through her icy expression.
Beiwei hurried over and asked anxiously, "Mr. 39, you weren't hurt, were you?"
39 shook his head, motioned for them to look inside the room, then took out the three love letters and handed them to Wei Yanchi.
It was still the young girl's room. The window facing outside the factory was pitch-black, radiating an ominous chill. Nothing could be seen through it.
They entered the room.
Wei Yanchi lowered his head to read the letters in his hands. Less than thirty seconds later, he looked up with complete certainty in his eyes.
All the clues had fallen into place. The smile on Wei Yanchi's lips deepened, and his presence became even more soothing. "I think I know what the Instance has in mind," he said gently.
"What does it have in mind?" Yue Xiamo asked urgently.
"Wait."
Having uttered that single word, Wei Yanchi sat down on the room's only bed as though he could finally relax. In excellent spirits, he slowly read out the contents of the love letter.
"I dedicate this poem to my beloved.
When I met you,
A withered tree found spring again.
You were joy long absent,
Ripples on a tranquil sea.
When I met you,
Time began to move faster and faster,
As swift as a horse,
Beyond my reach.
Yet sometimes it crawled like a snail,
Leaving me to suffer through your moments of happiness.
How I envied her,
And I would forever resent time for carrying away the moments we shared."
Wei Yanchi's voice was lovely, like jade chiming beside a clear spring. His recital had a classical grace that eased the stifling heat around them a little.
But only a little.
Unable to contain his anxiety, Xie De looked urgently around him.
While Wei Yanchi was reciting the poem, the flames that had been on the first floor had already spread to the second. Looking out of the room, they could no longer see anywhere safe to set foot. The fire was fierce, surging straight toward them.
Worse still, there was no way out of the room! The window would not open, and even if it did, they had no idea what lay beyond the factory.
The wooden door could not hold back the flames. Waves of heat swept over the wind chime outside, making it jingle like a summons from the grim reaper.
Yue Xiamo was already pale. As the heat surged in, she felt herself struggling to remain standing.
Wei Yanchi rose to support her. "Are you all right?"
"Not really. How long do we have to wait?"
"I don't know."
Yue Xiamo grew even paler, waves of dizziness clouding her vision. Wei Yanchi helped her lean against the wall and reassured her quietly, "Soon. Just hold on for another five minutes."
Five minutes? Wouldn't we be roasted into jerky by then?
Even the bed inside the room had caught fire.
The flames spread so fiercely that merely approaching the area lit by them could leave someone burned. Cold sweat was no longer their only problem; sweat from the heat kept breaking out across their faces.
Xie De noticed that Yue Xiamo's lips were beginning to turn blue. She was barely holding on.
455 piped up, "She's fine. She hasn't eaten for two days, so her blood sugar's low. She'll be all right once we get out."
But they had no idea when they would get out, or what exactly the protagonist was waiting for.
Xie De sighed. Since they would be getting out within the next few minutes, he patted Beiwei and motioned for her to give Yue Xiamo the biscuits she had collected earlier and no longer needed.
Beiwei always listened to him and acted immediately. She walked over expressionlessly, as though carrying out a mission, placed the biscuits in Yue Xiamo's hands, and stared at her until she ate them.
Bewildered, Yue Xiamo took a bite of a biscuit and swallowed, then looked toward 39 along with Wei Yanchi.
But after giving Beiwei her instructions, Xie De paid them no further attention. He was staring at the room's only window.
"455, what do you think's out there? What are our chances of surviving if we jump out the window?"
455 answered honestly, "Guaranteed death. There's nothing but a void out there, beyond the Instance. How long do you think you could survive in space?"
"That would be a pretty horrible death."
"Stop letting your imagination run wild. Trust the protagonist's judgment."
"I'd love to." Xie De was speechless. The flames were simply too fierce. Thick smoke was already rising from the burning objects, forcing them to crouch and cover their mouths and noses. The threat of death hung over them every second.
Beiwei had begun coughing. The flames scorched her pale face until it flushed, her skin turning blood-red.
At last, just before they burned or choked to death.
The Instance System's voice finally arrived, belated and unhurried.
"All players, please resolve the boss's concern! Why did a fire suddenly break out in the factory?"
Wei Yanchi coughed from the smoke, but his answer remained calm and clear. "Ma Hui and Zhang Zhi both liked Chunju, but Chunju liked the boss. Because the Boss's Wife was in the picture, she pretended to like Wu Yong instead, while Wu Yong liked Ma Hui."
"Wu Yong and Li Qiang were at odds, so Li Qiang teamed up with Zhang Zhi to ostracize Wu Yong. Wu Yong knew Zhang Zhi liked Chunju, so in a fit of anger, he accepted Chunju's confession. Chunju had no choice but to date him. After they got together, her jealousy of the Boss's Wife drove her to encourage Wu Yong to seduce her, which eventually led to the boss beating his wife to death."
"Ma Hui discovered that Chunju liked the boss and told Wu Yong the truth. She only wanted them to break up, but she never expected Wu Yong to try to kill Chunju. Unable to stop him, Ma Hui went to fetch Li Qiang and Zhang Zhi. When Zhang Zhi saw Wu Yong attacking Chunju, he flew into a rage and tried to kill Wu Yong."
"Their fight took place in the kitchen. Wu Yong didn't die in the building's collapse. He angrily confronted the others. There was a gas stove in the kitchen, and their shoving caused the fire!"
The Instance System paused. "Correct answer."
The tangled relationships between these people could rival Thunderstorm.
The third letter, which did not identify either its writer or its recipient, was Chunju's letter to the boss. Its last few lines alluded to the boss and the Boss's Wife.
Xie De turned toward Wei Yanchi in shock, but the smoke was so thick that his eyes watered and he could barely see. He could only complain inwardly.
My god, the truth behind this Instance was seriously wild. Who could possibly have figured that out?
The Instance had kept throwing out clues that muddled the story: the Kuman Thong the boss worshipped, the child labor, the sixth overseer...
Those were clues too, just not clues to this particular storyline.
For extracting all the clues and piecing together the Instance's final story, Xie De wanted to applaud Wei Yanchi.
At last, they felt a hint of coolness. When they looked up again, the window was no longer pitch-black. Outside was a cold, rainy day, with untended greenery growing in the desolation.
Wei Yanchi pushed the window open and glanced back with a smile. Though he looked thoroughly disheveled, he still carried himself with the poise of a pine. "Mr. 39, may I have your contact information?"
Why are you wasting time? The fire's coming!
Xie De did not answer the protagonist's question at all. Desperate to save himself, he vaulted through the window and jumped.
Wind howled past his ears.
He never landed on the ground. Instead, after a spell of weightlessness, Xie De opened his eyes.
He was back in his shabby home.
With a thud, Xie De collapsed weakly onto the floor and stared around in bewilderment. Only when the little house centipede on his shoulder curiously crawled down his arm onto the floor did he come to his senses. He scrambled up and staggered into the bathroom.
He vomited until the world spun.
He nearly emptied his entire stomach.
455's voice came weakly. "Host, stop throwing up for a second, and don't pass out yet. Charge me first!"
Before you continue