Shao Lan

Biodata

Background / History

Before entering the game, Shao Lan worked at the front desk of a funeral home and frequently dealt with corpses. After an early-morning shift, he developed a fever, took medicine, and fell asleep on the sofa in his rented apartment. He awakened in an unfamiliar house, where he immediately recognized stains of dried blood and corpse fat 1.

His first attempt to escape ended when the stairwell dissolved into darkness. Waking on the same sofa, he noticed that the altar’s goldfish had decreased from four to three and that a longer rule had appeared beneath the sofa. He and Jiang Mingran confirmed that both remembered the previous attempt, establishing that they were trapped in a repeating game 2.

Appearance

• Complexion: His face is described as pale when reflected in the apartment window 1.
• Usual clothing: A white shirt and black trousers, giving him the appearance of an ordinary office worker 19 49.
• Build: Smaller than Jiang Mingran; unlike his companion, he can fit beneath the assessment apartment’s sofa 4.
• Distinguishing mark: A scar reading VIII over the prominent vertebra at the base of his neck. He identifies it as the Roman numeral 8, but its meaning remains unknown 16.

Personality

Shao Lan is cautious, analytical, and unwilling to trust appearances. He thoroughly questions Pancake Uncle despite considering him unlikely to be responsible for Jiang Mingran’s death. Later, he conceals his money even from his companions because he believes hunger, fear, and desperation can change otherwise decent people 6 17.

His priority is survival rather than winning fights. He discourages Jiang Mingran from confronting the assessment killer directly and repeatedly favors concealment, distraction, and buying time. When threatened by other residents, however, he is willing to use lethal force or credible threats of it 4 8 20 49.

His loyalty has clear limits. He gives up an opportunity to escape alone so that Jiang Mingran and Pancake Uncle can receive another chance, but later explicitly tells Jiang Mingran that he will not sacrifice himself if opposing Instance factions make their survival mutually exclusive 10 50.

Abilities & Skills

Observation and Deduction

• Recognizes blood and corpse-fat stains through his experience handling corpses 1.
• Deduces that the blind assessment killer can detect fresh blood, explaining why Jiang Mingran’s hiding place was exposed after he killed a rat 7.
• Notices that louder rain means a window has opened, alerting him that the killer has bypassed the locked security door 8.
• Uses contradictions between two mirror reflections to identify a corpse as a hallucination 25.
• Reconstructs the players’ movements to establish when Song Liru disappeared, then identifies inconsistencies in Xu Jiaojiao’s explanation 27 30.
• Connects a misspelled room inscription to Xu Jiawei’s manipulation of the Guesthouse arrangements 35 39.

Tactical Planning and Improvisation

• Coordinates a police call using Jiang Mingran’s mouse imitation as a warning signal 4.
• Assigns separate distraction, retreat-covering, and telephone duties during the assessment 8.
• Exploits the killer’s protected abdomen with hot oil rather than challenging her strength directly 8.
• Uses a hostage to stop Wu Suxia from attacking while Pancake Uncle calls the police 10 11.
• Forces Zhang Fang to press the elevator button, turning the building’s compulsory Instance entry into a way to remove a stronger opponent 20.
• Uses Xu Xiaocai’s blood to redirect Blind Fish against Xu Jiawei’s water ghosts 45.

Close-Quarters Combat and Stealth

• Throws an armed robber over his back and into a wall 19.
• Uses conversation and a bed’s blind spot to approach Xu Nan before attacking with a dagger 19.
• Follows Wu Suxia by matching his footsteps to hers, concealing their sound 8.
• Catches a thrown knife and immediately holds Li Chengyuan at knifepoint 10.
• Endures a nail-gun hit without moving or crying out, convincing his pursuers that his crouched silhouette is a decoy 20.
• Limit: He is not his group’s strongest fighter and recognizes that he cannot defeat three armed robbers alone 19.

Deception and Information Gathering

• Claims to be a medical graduate student specializing in mental illness to keep Zhang Fang out of the village Health Station; his established real-world occupation is a funeral-home clerk 1 32.
• Trades candy and beef jerky for Xu Xiaohong’s knowledge of the village’s eyeless children 33.
• Bargains with Qin Ning using information, securing both a promise of assistance and an agreement to pursue Zhang Fang 39 45.

Survival Resource Management

• Buys ingredients and cooking equipment instead of relying on overpriced ready-to-eat food 16.
• Stocks up on food, warm clothing, and knives using the money attached to his assigned Instance identity 21.
• Buys three identical iron doors to protect his group’s rooms and visibly signal an alliance to potential attackers 50.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Knives and dagger — Purchases a knife from the building’s vending machine before the robbery; later obtains additional knives at a rest stop inside an Instance 20 21.
• Wedding pocket watch — Receives Li Chengyuan and Wu Suxia’s valuable wedding watch, which contains their photograph. Obtaining it earns a 10,000-yuan bonus 12 16.
• Cooking equipment — Purchases a cooker and pot to reduce food costs 16.
• Outdoor clothing — Buys a softshell outfit, sweaters, a down jacket, scarf, hat, and gloves for the village Instance 21.
• Mother Ming’s Flower Sacrifice — Obtained upon completing Xu Xiaocai’s Wish; its abilities are not described in the supplied chapters 47.
• Iron doors — Purchases and helps install three matching doors for the group’s protection 50.

Documented Rewards

Relationships

• Jiang Mingran — Closest survival companion and the group’s stronger fighter. Their cooperation develops across the assessment loops; Shao Lan later offers to accompany him into an Instance to heal his injuries 5 10 19 50.
• Zheng Bingfeng / Pancake Uncle — Fellow assessment survivor. Shao Lan questions him for clues, incorporates him into escape plans, and later helps provide food and protection 5 8 14 49 50.
• Lin Zhizhi — Would-be teammate whom he rejects because he suspects her sole-survivor status may have involved sacrificing others. After the coordinated robbery, he concludes that she disclosed his group’s circumstances to the attackers 18 20.
• Xu Nan — Armed robber and enemy. Shao Lan attacks him during the robbery and confronts him again inside the village Instance 19 20 26.
• Zhang Fang — Stronger enemy whom Shao Lan forces into an Instance. He later saves Zhang Fang from drowning for strategic reasons, then bargains with Qin Ning to have him killed 20 32 39.
• Xu Jiawei — Assigned romantic partner within the village Instance, not an established real-world partner. Initially his guide, she is exposed as a member of the opposing faction who manipulated the players’ room inscriptions 21 39.
• Qin Ning — Tactical ally whose cooperation is negotiated through bargains. She fulfills her promised support by entering the water to draw Blind Fish away from his boat 39 45.
• Xu Xiaocai — Offers him access to a hidden boat in exchange for taking her out to sea. Shao Lan ultimately carries her bones to Mother Ming and helps fulfill her final wish 43 44 47.
• Li Chengyuan and Wu Suxia — Central figures in his assessment. He uses Li Chengyuan as a hostage, then releases him after recognizing that their farewell fulfills the final rule 11 12.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Night of the Cannibal Assessment

Shao Lan becomes the group’s planner as repeated deaths reveal the apartment’s rules. He investigates the killer’s senses, identifies her guarded abdomen, and realizes that her apparent pregnancy is cotton padding beneath her jacket. He provokes her into charging toward a window, securing himself with his jacket while she falls outside 5 7 8 9.

The arrival of a fake policeman overturns their apparent rescue. After Jiang Mingran dies, Shao Lan deliberately restarts the loop rather than leave his companions trapped. In the final attempt, he restrains the impostor, identifies him as Wu Suxia’s husband Li Chengyuan, and permits their farewell after recognizing its connection to the last rule. Li Chengyuan kills Wu Suxia and himself, bringing the scene to its end 10 11 12.

Building 7 and the Robbery

After passing the assessment, Shao Lan receives Room 802 and begins investigating the building. He concludes that objects sent through its tiny windows cease to exist and later discovers that residents’ rooms disappear when they die 14 17.

His refusal to admit Lin Zhizhi precedes an attack by three armed robbers. Badly wounded and outmatched, he deliberately draws Zhang Fang toward the elevator button and forces him into an Instance. Xu Nan is also compelled to enter, while Jiang Mingran and Pancake Uncle remain behind 18 19 20.

Nether God Sacrifice

Assigned as Xu Jiawei’s partner, Shao Lan investigates hallucinations, Song Liru’s disappearance, and the village’s eye-restoration practices. He uncovers a sacrifice system in which Blind Fish Fry and the Sacrificial Song transform outsiders into sacrifices, and exposes Xu Jiawei’s role in manipulating the opposing players 21 25 27 39.

With Qin Ning’s help and Xu Xiaocai’s access to a boat, he reaches the Nether Sea. He realizes that Mother Ming’s two sisters need an apology from a member of the Xu Family, then delivers Xu Xiaocai’s bones so she can apologize. The sisters disappear, the village’s curse ends, and he returns with clearance and side-story rewards 43 44 45 47.

Return and Preparation for Another Instance

Back on the eighth floor, Shao Lan drives Tang Zhang and Li Yun away from Pancake Uncle and finds Jiang Mingran suffering from infected wounds. He arranges food, reinforces the group’s rooms, and explains that surviving the transition into an Instance will heal injuries sustained in the building 48 49 50.

He offers to accompany Jiang Mingran but warns him about mortality and conflicting faction objectives. Jiang Mingran agrees to enter, having exhausted his money and needing both treatment and future survival funds 50.

Notable Quotes

“Even if we really have to fight, hold off until there's absolutely no other choice. Remember, our goal is survival.” 4

“It wasn't your fault. We didn't have all the information.” 7

“Jiang Mingran, I'll be honest with you. I'm willing to help you as much as I can, but I'm no saint. If we really end up in a situation where only one side can survive, I won't sacrifice myself.” 50