Li Xian had repeatedly compared the differences between rooms as he advanced. His conclusion was that, aside from the number of doors, they really were identical. But that did not worry him-because Ji Xie would definitely be waiting for him in the real Control Room, the "Source Instance."
The only question now was how to find the right path.
Li Xian paced back and forth near the doors in front of him, trying to find some clues. Yet during this brief pause, the notifications of health points being deducted, which had finally stopped, began sounding in his ears again.
This time, though, the numbers were lower than before, only an occasional point or two.
After a moment's thought, Li Xian leaned forward, brought the tip of his nose close to the gap around a door, and sniffed lightly a few times. Then he moved to another door and did the same.
On his third attempt, he suddenly paused. Then, as though he had caught a scent, he leaned a little closer, until his nose almost touched the door-
There was a scent here...
A very faint smell of blood.
Li Xian's clenched hand tightened, and he immediately reached up to open the door.
The instant the door swung open, a heavy stench of blood rushed into his nose, followed by a sea of crimson-
Before him was the same familiar Control Room, but it was covered in blood and severed limbs. Whenever his soles touched the floor, they compressed unidentified tissue soaked in blood, making wet, squelching sounds.
Li Xian carefully walked to the center of the room and looked around. Although the "body parts" beneath his feet had been cut into small pieces, he could still tell that they came in all sorts of shapes and did not resemble