Chapter 13 - Another World

Ruan Baijie only needed to whimper once for Lin Qiu Shi to be unable to refuse her. 

The two were talking when Xiao Ke and Xiong Qi came out of the kitchen carrying food. So Ruan Baijie temporarily stopped that topic of conversation and smiled at Lin Qiu Shi as she started talking about something else.

Dinner was simple. No one's mind was really on the food as they ate and discussed where the door might be located.

"I think we should also search the carpenter's house," said Xiong Qi. "That man doesn't seem like an ordinary villager." 

"Mm," Xiao Ke's mood seemed to have improved a lot since the thing she was most worried about was resolved. She actively suggested various possible locations where the door might appear.

While the others were talking, Cheng Wen sat silently to the side. Compared to when he had first woken up, his eyes no longer looked so blank, but he still seemed somewhat gloomy. He didn't blame Lin Qiu Shi for knocking him out, or more accurately, he hadn't said a single word to Lin Qiu Shi since waking up. 

When it looked like the others had just about finished their discussion, Cheng Wen slowly opened his mouth. "Lin Qiu Shi."

Lin Qiu Shi looked at him warily. "What is it?"

Cheng Wen asked, "Was Wang Xiao Yi a monster?" 

Lin Qiu Shi shook his head to indicate he didn't know either, but the fact that Cheng Wen could ask this question meant his mental state was clearly not optimistic.

Cheng Wen said, "She must have been a monster. Saw everything." He tilted his head in an unsettling way as he neurotically demanded of everyone, "You all saw it too, right? Her shadow, and the things she vomited..."

No one made a sound. In fact, Lin Qiu Shi felt Wang Xiao Yi most likely was still human, otherwise it wouldn't have been so easy for Cheng Wen to split her head open with a shovel. But now that she was dead, continuing to talk about these things seemed meaningless. 

Yet Cheng Wen seemed to be obsessed with this matter, repeatedly asking if Wang Xiao Yi was a monster. This finally annoyed Xiao Ke to the point where she retorted, "Whether she was a monster or not, you killed her already. What's the point of still talking about this? Are you afraid you killed the wrong person?" 

Cheng Wen's expression changed drastically at these words. He hurriedly got up from his chair and turned to leave. 

Xiao Ke continued to mock him. "What, so decisive when killing her, but scared now? Dare to do, but not dare to own up to it. Coward."

"Is killing companions considered very serious inside the doors?" Lin Qiu Shi had wanted to ask this for a while. 

"The world inside the doors believes that all things have souls. To put it bluntly, anything that dies may turn into a ghost," said Xiong Qi with a complicated expression. "So you definitely should not casually take lives."

Lin Qiu Shi uttered a sound of understanding, then thought some more. "But doesn't that mean there's a loophole? You said at least one person has to make it out alive. If that one person kills everyone else, wouldn't they fulfill the condition of only one person remaining?"

"You wish," Xiao Ke said. "Why would everyone just wait for you to kill them? As long as you can't wipe out everyone in one go, then escape at top speed, you would absolutely die in here." 

"The things you killed in the morning might come looking for you by noon," said Xiong Qi. "I've seen it happen." He gestured meaningfully in the direction Cheng Wen had departed in and shook his head. 

So that was how it was. Lin Qiu Shi showed an expression of sudden comprehension.

They had gone to move the coffins in the morning. In the afternoon, everyone was looking everywhere for the door, until night fell without finding any clues related to the door. Lin Qiu Shi and Ruan Baijie went to the carpenter's place. On the way there, Ruan Baijie told Lin Qiu Shi to stay alert tonight, and that they would leave at night.

Just thinking that he could finally leave this place, Lin Qiu Shi's steps quickened. He reached up and touched the red gemstone earring on his earlobe that hadn't been there before. It looked to be made of glass. He didn't know where Ruan Baijie had learned the skill, since he hadn't felt anything when she put it through his ear. And since his mind had been completely occupied with thoughts of the door, only now did he take the time to ask Ruan Baijie what this earring actually was. 

"A little gift I gave you. The fates intertwined within the doors, cherish this affinity[1]..." said Ruan Baijie. 

Upon hearing this, Lin Qiu Shi didn't bother investigating this detail any further. After all, once they left this place, the two of them might never meet again. He secretly glanced at Ruan Baijie's beautiful profile and sighed regretfully to himself. It would have been better if he hadn't met her in such a peculiar place...

At four in the afternoon, night fell. 

It wasn't snowing today, but the skies were gloomy. The wind biting at his face made his skin sting painfully. When Lin Qiu Shi and Ruan Baijie returned, Xiong Qi and Xiao Ke were already home. 

"Did you find it?" they asked each other. 

Upon receiving answers in the negative, Xiong Qi sighed and said there was no hurry for this matter. It looked like they would have to spend another night here, so everyone should rest early and continue looking tomorrow. 

Ruan Baijie and Lin Qiu Shi voiced their agreement. So the two of them returned to their room early, but did not get into bed to sleep as usual. Instead, they sat at the bedside waiting for night to fall.

Ruan Baijie leaned against an oil lamp as she slowly passed time eating melon seeds[2]. 

Lin Qiu Shi had assumed that once night came they would be able to leave, but unexpectedly, something still happened. Cheng Wen in the room next to theirs let out a ghastly shriek, the kind of scream that sounded like he was shredding his throat. 

"Help–– Save me––" Cheng Wen pounded desperately on the wall. "Help me, someone come––"

Accompanying his screams were the sobs of a woman, a sound Lin Qiu Shi had heard many times already - belonging to Wang Xiao Yi. 

Previously, it had been Wang Xiao Yi crying for help. But this time, the one crying for help had become Cheng Wen. 

In just a short span of time, Cheng Wen's screams had already grown weak. What followed was the sound of a bladed weapon hacking into flesh - chop, chop, as if the one wielding the weapon would never tire. 

Cheng Wen's pleas ceased, but Wang Xiao Yi was still weeping. 

Ruan Baijie's expression, however, had gradually turned solemn. She looked at Lin Qiu Shi and asked, "Are you afraid?"

Lin Qiu Shi said, "I'm fine." 

Ruan Baijie said, "Things might have changed, we can't keep waiting." 

Lin Qiu Shi nodded and followed Ruan Baijie out of the room. As he left, he saw a pool of blood seeping out from the floorboards of the room to their right. It seemed Cheng Wen's ending was destined to be tragic. Although Lin Qiu Shi had seen his share of dead people, he also knew clearly that there were some things he was powerless against. He was just an ordinary person after all. When faced with these ghosts and monsters, he was completely without the power to resist. 

Ruan Baijie naturally took Lin Qiu Shi's hand in hers as they headed straight downstairs. 

Just as Lin Qiu Shi was about to ask where they were going, Ruan Baijie pulled him to the courtyard downstairs. 

There was nothing in the courtyard, only an empty well. Ruan Baijie brought Lin Qiu Shi to the side of the well and bent over to peer inside. 

Seeing this, Lin Qiu Shi imitated Ruan Baijie's actions and looked down the well mouth a few times.

The well mouth was pitch black. He couldn't see anything, only the stench of damp soil wafting up, making him feel extremely uncomfortable. 

Lin Qiu Shi was looking closely when he suddenly felt a fierce shove at his back. As he staggered, trying to keep his balance, the person behind him pressed down forcefully on him. 

Ruan Baijie said, "Go on." As her words fell, a massive strength came, and Lin Qiu Shi was directly pushed down the well by her. 

This sudden situation caught Lin Qiu Shi completely unprepared. His entire body plunged into the well as he blindly flung out his hands, trying to grab onto something at his sides. But the well walls were slippery, not giving him any chance to struggle at all. Just as Lin Qiu Shi resigned himself to falling badly, he felt his body land on something soft. 

That soft thing felt like silk cushions. Lin Qiu Shi fell onto it without getting hurt one bit. He arduously stood up from the cushions, and by the faint moonlight shining down the well mouth, he clearly saw what was underneath him. 

It wasn't any cushions at all. It was clearly a massive pile of squirming black hair. A subtle change came over Lin Qiu Shi's complexion. He hadn't expected there to be such a sight at the bottom of this well. Fortunately he quickly calmed back down again. Looking all around, he discovered there was an inconspicuous small path at the base of the well. 

Lin Qiu Shi had wanted to call out to Ruan Baijie a few times, but he was a little worried that his shouts might disturb this strange hair, so in the end he gave up and slowly shifted his footsteps to walk towards the small path. 

The path was narrow, but he could tell it had been deliberately built. Inside, Lin Qiu Shi had to walk with his head lowered. That black hair extended forward continuously, like a paved carpet. 

He didn't know how long he walked until finally reaching the end of the path. He also discovered the source of the hair - it seemed to be growing out of the walls. And at the end of the walls stood an imposing black iron door. Hanging prominently upon the door was a conspicuous bronze lock. 

This was the door Lin Qiu Shi had seen in his own home's corridor. The only difference was that there had been no lock on that one. He took out the key that he had placed in his pocket and slowly walked forward. 

Bronze key, bronze lock. Lin Qiu Shi inserted the key into the keyhole and gently twisted it. Ka-cha. The lock opened. 

As he was unlocking it, he saw something fall from behind the lock onto the ground. 

It was a white slip of paper. Lin Qiu Shi bent down to pick it up and saw four words written on it: Fei Er Xia Niao[3]. 

Lin Qiu Shi didn't understand the meaning of those four words, but he didn't want to waste any more time here. He casually stuffed the slip of paper into his pocket, then grasped the bronze door handle and pulled hard. 

The door opened. Outside was a stretch of soft light. Although no other sights could be seen, it gave people an exceptionally reassuring feeling. 

Lin Qiu Shi looked back towards the black hair, which seemed stimulated by the light and had started to grow somewhat restless. Not daring to tarry any longer, Lin Qiu Shi strode forward into the halo of light. 

"Ruan Baijie must also make it out alive..." This was Lin Qiu Shi's final thought as he departed.