The hinterland

"Of course... heh heh, of course I know what I'm saying." Human Dragon slowly took a step forward and told them, "Countless people have come through this door, and I've said those words to every one of them."

"Countless..."

Everyone froze for a moment. Officer Li demanded fiercely, "What the hell are you people? How many people have you abducted?"

"'Abducted'?" Human Dragon tilted his head, a pair of murky eyes showing through the holes in his mask. He stared coldly at Officer Li and smiled. "Could you be mistaken? Were we really the ones who 'abducted' you?"

"Weren't you?!" Officer Li said through gritted teeth. "What, did we come here ourselves?!"

Lin Qin sighed and said to Qi Xia and Officer Li, "You both know they're lunatics, so don't try to argue with them. Let's get out of here."

Her words brought everyone back to their senses somewhat. The people wearing animal masks were already unhinged, and the man before them, with all those animal heads stitched together, was even crazier.

If they followed a lunatic's reasoning, it wouldn't be long before they went mad themselves.

They walked around Human Dragon and headed for the exit behind him.

"Remember, without three thousand six hundred 'Dao,' none of you can leave," Human Dragon reminded them quietly one last time.

For some inexplicable reason, Qi Xia turned back and asked him, "How do we get 'Dao'?"

"Seriously, why are you talking to him?" Qiao Jiajin shoved Qi Xia irritably. "Are you really going to look for those gold beads?"

"No matter what, I'm getting out of here." Determination shone in Qi Xia's eyes. "Someone's waiting for me."

Human Dragon nodded slightly and said, "Through 'games,' like the ones you've already experienced. Different games can earn you different amounts of 'Dao.'"

Qi Xia's expression darkened. He lowered his head to examine the gold beads in his hand. "You mean... we have to enter the games voluntarily to get 'Dao'?"

"Heh heh, that's right. Take them, take them." Human Dragon kept waving his filthy hands. "Make sure you leave this place."

Qi Xia stared thoughtfully at the beads in his hand.

The others had no idea how to talk him out of it, so they could only file through the door.

A breeze brushed their faces, carrying that indescribably heavy smell.

They slowly opened their eyes, but none felt the joy of a new lease on life.

Before them stood a dead city, little more than ruins.

An earth-colored sun hung in the dark red sky. Thin black lines marked its surface, spreading inward.

Beneath that grotesque sky, a dilapidated city stretched before their eyes.

It looked like the bustling district of a small city, except it seemed to have been bombed and then burned to the ground.

The fires must have raged for days and nights without being extinguished, leaving it in this state.

Most of the buildings were damaged, their walls cracked. Countless dark red plants crawled over the walls.

Officer Li swallowed and asked, "Hey, Human Dragon, what the hell is this place you've brought us to..."

He turned around, and his voice cut off abruptly. His mouth slowly fell open.

At the sound of his voice, the others turned to look as well.

There were no buildings behind them at all, only an open square.

The nine of them stood alone in the middle of the square, as though they had fallen from the sky.

"How did we end up here?"

"Where's the door we came through?! Where's Human Dragon?!"

Unfortunately, there was no one here who could answer their questions.

At the very center of the square stood a conspicuous, enormous electronic display. It looked years old, with even its edges rusting.

A baffling sentence currently glowed on the screen:

"I heard the echo of 'Calamity Summoning.'"

"Calamity Summoning? What the hell is that?" Qiao Jiajin read the sentence twice but still couldn't make sense of it.

Qi Xia noticed that a huge, mottled bronze bell stood above the electronic display.

Such an ancient object looked utterly out of place beside an electronic display.

After a long while, Han Yimo, the writer, slowly raised his head and murmured, "So we really are dead... this is the underworld, isn't it?"

Before seeing this scene, he had still clung to a sliver of hope.

Perhaps they hadn't died and had simply been abducted just before their deaths.

But how else could he explain this clearly abnormal world?

"I don't know whether we're dead, but I do know that if we don't treat your wound soon, you'll die for real." Doctor Zhao forced himself to rally and draped Han Yimo's arm over his shoulders.

Those words slowly brought the others out of their daze and back to reality as well.

Whatever the case, they seemed to be "alive" for now. As long as that was true, they couldn't give up.

"There seems to be a convenience store over there." Lin Qin pointed into the distance. "It looks badly damaged, but maybe there's a needle, thread, and gauze inside?"

Without another word, Qiao Jiajin draped Han Yimo's other arm over his shoulders and said with a wry smile:

"Let's have a look. Even better if there's something to eat."

They slowly made their way forward.

Everything around them exuded a constant air of strangeness, leaving them unsettled.

The convenience store stood halfway down a road. The glass at its entrance was completely shattered, and half its sign had collapsed.

Just as they were about to reach the entrance, they slowly came to a stop.

Across from the convenience store was a restaurant, with a figure standing at its entrance.

He wore a bull's-head mask and a black suit, his hands clasped behind his back, like a statue.

They couldn't help feeling nervous.

These people in animal masks were all lunatics.

Was he standing here to announce another "trial"?

They waited cautiously for a while, but the bull-headed man didn't move at all. Not only did he remain silent, he didn't even glance at them.

Only then did they finally muster the courage to edge a few steps forward and reach the convenience store entrance.

"Is he a mannequin?" Tiantian asked cautiously.

Qi Xia studied the bull-headed man closely. His eyes were still moving slightly beneath his mask, so he probably wasn't a mannequin. He seemed to be guarding the restaurant behind him.

"Whoever he is, let's pretend he isn't there." Officer Li turned and opened the convenience store's battered door.

The moment it opened, a nauseating smell hit them.

The city's smell was already exceptionally "heavy," but the smell inside the convenience store was even worse.

A raw, bloody odor, a stench of rot, and the smell of burning mingled with wisps of heat, hanging in the room.

All those smells seemed fresh, as though they had only just begun to spread.

"Urgh..."

Zhang Chenze, the lawyer, couldn't take it. She doubled over and began dry-heaving.

Tiantian looked at her with concern and asked, "You okay, counselor?"

"I'm fine..." Zhang Chenze wiped her mouth and looked at Tiantian. "You don't seem affected at all..."

Tiantian's expression grew awkward. All she could do was smile wryly and say, "Maybe it's because of my job... I've smelled worse."

"Don't... don't say any more..." Zhang Chenze nearly threw up again.

Covering his mouth and nose, Qi Xia stepped inside. Most of the shelves had toppled to the floor, which was black and sticky with something he couldn't identify.