Chapter 13

‘Thank you for the gifts you sent. I like them very much. Today, let’s meet in the library after school. I will be waiting for you at the spot nearest to the leftmost wall on the second floor. ——Xiao Chen’

The boy’s body was trembling, and the hand holding the note was even more unstable. His head was lowered, and the thick bangs and glasses hid his expression.

Xiao Chen was standing at his own desk, and was baffled by this sudden scene. When he saw clearly who was in front of him, he couldn’t help but widen his eyes. He walked for a few steps around the boy, until he noticed the words on the note. He squeezed his hand tightly.

As the boy fell into contemplation, there was a short-haired girl standing at the back door of the classroom with a cold face. She observed the boy’s actions with her eyes narrowed in indifference, and even some viciousness. Xiao Chen could almost recognize her at first glance——it was Yang Jie.

He involuntarily held his breath, his heartbeat speeding up.

Was this Xu Sheng’s memory?

Xiao Chen watched the boy gently hold the note like it was a treasure, as if he was afraid that there would be any creases. He pulled out a thick blue notebook from his desk and carefully smoothed out the note he had received, before tucking it inside.

Every move expressed utmost joy.

The boy patted his own clothes, worried that there might be dust. He even tied his shoelaces several times, knot over knot, to ensure that he wouldn’t accidentally trip. In this way, he was finally satisfied.

He shyly took out a gift box from his desk, a bit excited. Then, he walked out the door, leaning against the wall timidly.

When Yang Jie saw him get up, she immediately withdrew her gaze and pretended to know nothing as she returned to her seat.

But the other students raised their heads simultaneously, laughing in ridicule as they observed him.

Xiao Chen followed the boy, his footsteps light. He clearly didn’t feel hot, yet his forehead was mysteriously coated in cold sweat. With his eyes wide, he could only watch the boy skillfully evade crowded areas and pass through the teaching building, taking a long detour. Under everyone’s strange looks, he entered the library.

It was that kind of look, the one that contained undisguised revulsion and loathing. For a moment, Xiao Chen almost felt like he was Xu Sheng, even though he understood that these people weren’t focused on himself. But when their cruelty swept over him, he couldn’t help but get chills.

The boy appeared as if he didn’t realize others’ maliciousness. He happily skipped up to the library’s second floor and slowly headed towards the leftmost wall. He wanted to jump in joy, but at the same time, he nervously rubbed his hands together. Soon, he steadily sat down.

The clock hanging on the wall made Xiao Chen guess that school was already over.

Minutes and seconds flowed by as the boy patiently waited in place. Even after the occasional chattering in the library had turned into total silence, he still soundlessly remained there, looking forward to meeting that person.

However, Xiao Chen’s spirits sank lower and lower as time passed. He sat across from the boy, examining him closely as the other gradually revealed his restlessness. Xiao Chen’s heart tightened.

“Xu Sheng, don’t wait anymore, he won’t come.” His voice was hoarse and tearful, but the boy couldn’t hear him, much less answer him. He knew that the boy couldn’t see him either.

Xiao Chen listened to the ticking of the clock and slightly shook. He had already guessed what Xu Sheng was going to experience next.

In the distance, footsteps began to approach the two. Xiao Chen and Xu Sheng turned towards the sound’s source together. The boy was elated, but he restrained himself.

But Xiao Chen’s breathing became rapid, and his hands started to tremble.

“Holy cow, Xu Sheng really came?”

“He’s actually gay?”

“So nasty!”

“Just him? He dares to have delusions of being with Senior Xiao Chen? That’s so ridiculous! He should just piss on the ground and look at his own reflection!”

Xiao Chen’s face was pale. At first glance, he noticed Yellow Hair, also known as Wang Tong, standing in front of him.

Xu Sheng froze, and his lips began to quiver.

Xiao Chen wanted to lead him away, but his hand went through the other’s arm.

What frightened him even more was that he discovered he couldn’t move the rest of his body, and he was fixed to his chair.

“Xu Sheng, quickly run! Quickly run!!” He shouted distressingly, sweating all over. But no one perceived his presence.

His lucky phoenix eyes were filled with tears, and his voice was choked as he saw Xu Sheng being dragged away by a group of people. He was helpless to prevent it from happening.

His surroundings started to twist, and a black shadow quietly emerged from behind him. A pair of hands reached to wipe away the tears trailing from his eyes.

The black shadow secretly sighed, adjusting himself so that Xiao Chen was comfortably nestled in his embrace. Ultimately, he was still unwilling to let Senior view his most embarrassing moments.

The environment transformed again, this time into a long hallway.

Xiao Chen covered his nose and mouth and almost cried out.

This was the scene from the dream he had before.

No, it was different.

With a click, the door opened. The curly-haired girl crossed her arms across her chest and stood beside the door.

“Dad, what are you doing? Just ignore him and leave him there. It’s so noisy!” The curly-haired girl rolled her eyes, yelling loudly at the man taking the photos.

The man stuffed his phone back into his pocket. He didn’t forget to vehemently kick the boy one last time before replying, “Coming, coming!”

He turned around, never looking back as he closed the door.

Xiao Chen’s heart fully cooled.

{Congratulations to player Gao Xuhan for resetting the rules of the game and obtaining a permanent escape quota.} The broadcast sounded once more. {Pandora’s magic box has been opened, and the demons within the people in the game have been released. Through a lottery, the final player of the previous round was chosen. The KING of this round is Wang Tong.}

{Next, he will be the one…} The broadcast paused. It was obviously a mechanical voice, but it made people stiffen with chills. {…to decide whether you live or die.}

“What does this mean?”

“What happened?”

“What KING, why have the rules of the game changed again?”

“Gao Xuhan?! What did she do? Why her?”

After listening to the broadcast, the surroundings erupted in scattered discussions. Everyone was stunned, their sights falling onto Wang Tong. Each carried hints of jealousy and hatred that were hard to conceal.

Why him?

Wasn’t he the one who drove Xu Sheng to suicide?

But those remarks rapidly disappeared. After all, the broadcast had said that Wang Tong controlled the lives of everyone present! With this, no one dared to offend him.

Wang Tong’s eyes widened and he pursed his lips, feeling ecstatic inside. Ever since he arrived in this place, he had been endlessly anxious in his heart. He was the mastermind behind Xu Sheng’s death, so he understood that the other would never let him go!

Now that he had a chance to survive, how could Wang Tong not be exhilarated?

But what did the broadcast mean when it said that he would determine the students’ life and death?

At the same time, the Boston ivy that had completely enveloped the library building became denser and denser. It had even intertwined with numerous earth-colored vines, clustering together as it advanced through the windows. Some vines had crawled up to the doorway, and in an instant, countless of them slowly crept in like snakes.

“Frick me, what is that?”

“AHHHHHHH! So disgusting! Let me go!”

“Go away!! Go away!! Save me!”

“Wuwuwuwu!!!”

It was as if the vines had been bestowed life, selectively binding people in the library. The vines trapped them firmly, and neither a stick nor a knife could do anything.

Why was it said that the vines were selective?

Shockingly, an innumerable amount of them had accurately bypassed Wang Tong. Within a minute, everyone was bound by them, and only Wang Tong remained in place without any harm.

A chill ran down Wang Tong’s spine, and he exhaled.

Suddenly, the sky outside shifted from day to night. Where the sun once was, there was now a scarlet moon, carrying bloodthirsty mystery.

The broadcast turned on. {KING, have you seen these revolting bugs?}

“Wuwu!!”

“Hmmmm!!!”

{Their life and death is currently in your hands! Let’s play a game! The name is…} The broadcast’s voice was as ruthless and indifferent as the Devil’s. {…And Then There Were None!}

{There are still twelve bugs here, so let’s play three rounds.} There was no fluctuation in the broadcast’s voice, but for some reason, it seemed menacing to the people present. {As long as you succeed, you can bring them and leave.}

{But the choice is all yours. If you don’t wish to play, you can depart right now. Then, however, all these bugs will die immediately!} The broadcast paused.

{Skinning, disembowelment, lingchi, the Five Punishments, being boiled alive, and being buried alive…….} With its mechanical voice, the broadcast laughed. {Which one do you like?}

“Wuwuwu!!!!!”

“AHwuwu!!”

“Hmmmwuwuwu!!!”

Help me!!!

Wang Tong’s lips were pale, and his sight blurred. His body was shaking. He observed as the people around him painfully and intently stared at his face, their noses running and tears streaming. Eventually, Wang Tong took a deep breath, weakly murmuring, “Okay, I’ll play!”

{Congratulations to player Wang Tong for activating punishment mode. The first round is dripping sulfuric acid!} The broadcast sounded again.

{In front of you, there is a large bottle with sulfuric acid in it.} The broadcast was interrupted by the noise of creaking bones. {If you place your right hand inside for thirty seconds, then the first round will be cleared.}

So,

are you willing?

T/N: Remember Huang Mao, the one who bullied Xu Sheng in Chapter 1? Well, I just realized that he is the one and only Wang Tong! This entire time, I thought Wang Tong had black hair, and Huang Mao was a separate person. Now, I’ve changed the previous chapters, and Huang Mao will be Yellow Hair from here on out. To apologize to Wang Tong and you guys, I’ve attached a sorry.jpg below.

I apologize to you!

Wife, I was wrong!

Baby knows it was wrong!

Wife, pay attention to me, okay?

Wife, I was wrong…for tasting your chubby cheeks.

撒泡尿照照镜子, which is using your own urine as a mirror to look at yourself. It’s a derogatory phrase that means “know your place, and reflect on the shameful things you have done”. In many rural and poverty-stricken areas, people don’t have access to toilets or weren’t brought up with the habit of using one, so they go to the bathroom in public. Since this behavior also isn’t good for hygiene, 撒泡尿照照镜子 is used to point out someone’s despicable actions and low status.

Details on various forms of punishment:

抽肠, a punishment for prisoners on death row for bullying, imposed at the beginning of the Ming dynasty by the Hongwu Emperor. It is a form of disembowelment. A rope was hung around the middle of a wooden pole, with one end tied to a stone, and the other to a hook. The hook was inserted into the person’s anus until it was connected to the large intestine. Then, the stone was pulled or released. You can imagine what happened next. During the late Ming dynasty, another way was said to be invented by Zhang Xianzhong. First, the large intestine was dug out from the anus with a knife and tied to the leg of a horse. The horse was pierced with a needle, and when it ran, the person’s intestines would be pulled out in one go. Which is more merciful than lingchi, but still very painful.

具五刑, the collective name for a series of physical penalties for crimes in Chinese dynasties. They varied over time. Before Western Han dynasty Emperor Han Wendi’s reign, they involved tattooing, cutting off the nose, amputation of one or both feet, castration, and death. Following the Sui and Tang dynasties, these were changed to penal servitude, banishment, death, or corporal punishment in the form of whipping with bamboo strips or flogging with a stick. Another change was that penalties could be evaded through payment in copper cash. The punishment of death included strangulation, decapitation, lingchi, being boiled alive, cutting the body into four pieces, tearing off the head and limbs by attaching them to chariots, and execution then abandonment of the corpse in the local public market. There was also a version for female offenders.

蒸煮, which is being boiled alive. It mainly existed during the Qing dynasty. Prisoners were put into large pots with scalding water. Their skin would be burned, as well as their respiratory tract when breathing in the hot air. Most of the time, deaths were due to the inability to breath because of water vapor. Overall, the process of death was slow.