Chapter 45: Castle Exploration (III)
It seemed that due to the circuit just being repaired and the connection still being unstable, the light on the ceiling flickered again. The dazzling white light caused everyone's eyes to go blind for a moment, and also interrupted the cold-smiling youth as he was about to speak.
During this period, a stumbling footstep sound suddenly rang out, as if someone had lost their balance.
When everyone could see their surroundings again, the sound stopped. Everyone was standing firmly on the ground, in exactly the same position as before the light flickered.
They looked at each other, and the two groups that had arrived at the dormitory showed different reactions.
When the people from Qi An's group saw that no one had fallen, they all breathed a sigh of relief and continued looking around. Meanwhile, the people who had arrived first all changed their expressions. Those who had been sweating coldly before began to tremble violently, and without any attempt to hide it, they distanced themselves from the person next to them, hugging their bodies as tightly as possible, making themselves into a ball shape, like a little bird hiding under a wing.
"...The circuit broke again." The corner of the cold-smiling youth's lips pursed slightly, as if he was merely describing what he observed, but his gaze drifted to the ceiling above.
On the ceiling, behind the light bulb, the black on the wall had grown thicker and darker, gradually spreading to the white wall surface around it.
"What's wrong?" Seeing the fearful expressions of some people, a girl couldn't help but ask.
Once she spoke, the trembling among the people intensified even more. They looked around uncertainly, as if in a state of high alert. The teammates who had come with Qi An watched them in confusion, their gazes also turning strange.
"Nothing's wrong, they were probably scared by last night's spirit-summoning game. We really did summon something yesterday, hehehe." Before anyone else could speak, Zhao Qizhu摇晃着 her head and rushed to speak first, smiling warmly as she looked at the others. "It was really scary, but also very interesting."
She first gave the trembling club members an innocent and sweet smile, then turned to the group standing near the door.
"Well, they're just too timid." The bear-looking youth frowned almost imperceptibly, then glanced at the bespectacled scholarly youth before responding to Zhao Qizhu in a muffled voice.
"Brother and sisters, do you want to try it too? It's really fun. We succeeded with just one attempt yesterday, and we learned quite a bit about the future." Zhao Qizhu continued. "You know, I've tried many times before, but never succeeded. This place really is like the legends say, it's really magical."
"So you played it last night? Is it really that accurate?" A boy with a shock hairstyle asked.
"Yes, it really is that accurate." Zhao Qizhu's smile became even sweeter, her eyes like crescent moons, her long curled lashes trembling slightly. "We played the paper oracle. I asked how many of you would come and what time you'd arrive. It was exactly like in reality. There are two people in your group who didn't come because of special circumstances, right?"
"Ah, yes, yes. We didn't even tell you how many people would be coming. Was that also found out through the paper oracle?" The shock hairstyle boy's eyes lit up. "Can it really see through your future life's trajectory?"
The cold-smiling youth frowned hard, his gaze dark and uncertain as he stared at Zhao Qizhu. Seeing that no one in their group dared to speak up, he lightly raised an eyebrow, and a hint of mockery appeared in the corner of his mouth.
"Yes, that's right." Zhao Qizhu nodded affirmatively. "That's why I said it's very interesting. Although I was really nervous after summoning it, being able to foresee the future is really great. Knowing things that will happen in advance really does feel different."
While Qi An was paying attention to all this, he bent down to put on his slippers. When his feet touched the shoes, he suddenly felt a warmth spreading from the soles of his feet throughout his body's limbs and meridians, suppressing much of the coldness he had carried since childhood. Qi An's translucent pale cheeks visibly turned rosy.
[An'an, these slippers...]
Qi An's change naturally didn't escape the notice of the System and Zhang Zhaoqi. The System's voice noticeably changed, while Zhang Zhaoqi's cold expression shifted, becoming as plain and bland as the white water they usually showed. His eyes darkened, and Zhang Zhaoqi tightened his grip on the bear-looking youth's hand.
The bear-looking youth lowered his head to look at the hand Zhang Zhaoqi was holding, forcefully broke free, then shifted his gaze between him, Qi An, and Zhao Qizhu's faces several times. Finally, he placed his gaze on Qi An again.
The youth he had been observing for so long seemed to have been frightened, his body rigid and motionless. Under his weak and powerless slender fingers, the bones and tendons were clearly visible, creating a sense of delicate, fragile beauty intertwined with helplessness.
The bear-looking youth's eyes showed hesitation, his gaze locking onto the youth whose head was slightly lowered, as if trying to see something through him or think about something. Only after Zhang Zhaoqi cast his dangerous gaze over again did he withdraw his gaze, though his line of sight still occasionally flickered toward Qi An.
"After you finished playing, did anything happen?" Still not quite at ease, the shock hairstyle boy with heavy makeup asked again.
"As long as you're serious and sincere, and don't violate the taboos, you'll be fine." Zhao Qizhu's squinted eyes from smiling gradually opened, revealing her big dark eyes. "Do you all want to play together? That way you'll feel safer. And as long as you don't break those rules, nothing bad will happen, and there's a good chance you'll learn about your future."
"Well..." The shock hairstyle boy scratched his hair and laughed sheepishly. "If it really can predict future events, it does sound pretty good."
Zhao Qizhu smiled sweetly, her squinted eyes watching as the second team's people began discussing. Then she turned to look at Qi An. "I didn't expect to run into little brother so quickly. Little brother looks like he's gotten much better."
The loli-like girl showed a big, unreserved smile. "Even your cheeks have turned red, like a sweet, ripe apple. I want to take a bite and lick them."
The girl's expression was as innocent and cute as always. When she finished speaking, she even licked her lips, making them pink and tender. As if savoring some sweet flavor, she raised a dazed smile. Qi An glanced at the shoes with animals printed on them that she also wore, gave her a slight smile, then continued looking down at his slippers, with no intention of responding to her.
"Long time no see." Zhang Zhaoqi stepped forward, exactly blocking the girl's eager gaze. The girl rolled her eyes and giggled.
"If you want to play the paper oracle, you might as well wait until it's close to evening. It'll feel more authentic then." After most people agreed to play the paper oracle, the bear-looking youth said in a deep voice. "You've walked all this way, you must be tired, right? Do you want to rest first? There are rooms on the second floor."
"There are?" A girl cheered. "That's wonderful."
"Let's go." The bear-looking youth nodded and started walking toward the stairs leading to the second floor.
Because they had been far away before, they hadn't been able to see what was on the stairs clearly. But after crossing most of the first-floor lobby, the people coming to explore finally noticed that the stairs were decorated with a very childlike charm, completely different from the elegant luxury of the first floor.
It was covered with a layer of carpet, and this carpet was green, like a lush grassy lawn. When stepped on, it was soft and comfortable to look at. Moreover, it was brand new and clean, without a single trace of dust. The people who had just arrived at the villa assumed in their hearts that the carpet had been laid by the previous group.
"These dolls are so cute." A long-haired, pure-looking girl bent down and picked up a doll from the carpet.
Around the stairs, there were many cloth dolls, scattered on both sides of the staircase. Each one was extremely cute, with big colorful eyes and small, soft bodies. Especially their eyes, as if made from fine jade, were crystal clear and more beautiful than any normal person's eyes.
Qi An stood at the end of the group and glanced over the dolls on the stairs. He found they could be divided into two categories: on one side were exquisitely beautiful dolls, and on the other were cloth animals of various kinds.
Many girls in their group, combined with the extremely exquisite craftsmanship of these dolls, with the first girl as the start, one by one other dolls were picked up by the girls.
"Will you play a game with me?" The crystal-clear eyes of the picked-up doll lit up, and a voice as beautiful as the System's rang out in a female tone. This sudden sound made the girl pale with fright, and she let out a scream, almost throwing the doll in her hands.
Immediately, the other picked-up dolls spoke the same words one after another. The same voice, the same tone, the same line.
The emotionless voice, listened to carefully, could be discerned as intentionally designed.
The girl loosened her wrinkled hand that had been gripping the doll. She felt something hard inside the doll, like something specifically for batteries. The girl glanced sideways at the guys looking at her strangely, took a deep breath, and gently stroked her palm on the doll's body, a warm smile forming at the corner of her lips. "Okay, let's play a game together."
"Will you play a game with me?"
The stroked doll spoke in the same voice again.
The long-haired girl's lips maintained a comfortable, serene smile. Her hair spilled over the doll's body, making the doll appear even more petite and cute, her eyes pitch black. Under the gaze of those around her, the girl spoke with a childlike gentleness. "You're so cute. I really want to play with you."
The girl, who thought she had accidentally triggered some switch on the doll, slowly placed the doll back in its original position.
"Will you play a game with me?"
The placed-down doll repeated this seemingly only line it knew. The light in its eyes grew brighter, as black as fine obsidian, noble and profound. Paired with its perfect, as if otherworldly delicate features, this doll held a stunning attraction for the girl.
Under the watchful eyes of others, the girl who was slightly bent over slowly squatted down, fondling the doll as if she couldn't bear to part with it, the arc at the corner of her lips growing larger and larger.
Until the other girls who had also picked up dolls put them down, the girl was still bent over with her head lowered. Her black shoulder-length hair blocked her finely made-up face. It was only when a girl she was familiar with called her name that she reluctantly pulled her hand back, and together with the group, continued toward the second floor.
"Will you play a game with me."
A cheerful, mischievous voice suddenly sounded in Qi An's ear. This voice was like coquetry, like a child wanting candy, using its childish, irresistible tone to make its request.
The delicate youth's expression didn't change in the slightest. Everyone around acted as if they hadn't heard this voice, continuing to chat and laugh. However, just before reaching the second floor, Qi An inconspicuously looked back at the staircase. His gaze passed over the dolls on the high steps and landed directly on the doll on the first step.
Compared to the surrounding dolls, it was particularly eye-catching.
Even though there was no living person around, and no one could possibly trigger some mechanism of its, its eyes were still flickering with light.
Moreover, its position had changed.
Before, it had been facing the wall. But now it was at an angle. This allowed Qi An to see its half-turned face.
He saw it僵硬地把头扭了过来，正面与自己对视。人偶的眼珠子更加明亮了，它抬起了自己的手，摇摇晃晃地挥起了起来。He saw it stiffly turn its head around, facing him directly. The doll's eyeballs grew even brighter. It raised its hand and waved it unsteadily.
[These dolls?]
[The first team didn't pick up these dolls earlier. They were hesitating about something, but they also didn't try to stop the second team from doing so.] Qi An's voice paused. [And...]
Zhao Qizhu was urging them to play the spirit-summoning game.
Something must have happened when the first team played last night. But they showed no intention of warning the second team.
There must be some reason.
"Oh, this painting is so beautiful." The moment they stepped onto the second floor, someone exclaimed.
On one side of the second floor was a row of rooms, and on the other side was a massive mural connected together. This painting was very beautiful, featuring scenery completely different from real life. The trees in it were so tall they seemed to pierce the heavens, and the fruits they bore were shapes that simply didn't exist in reality. What was even more unusual was that the people picking the fruit beside it had ears and tails, wearing exotic-style animal skins.
This scene in the painting was very familiar to Qi An.
Because this was the beast-man world he had just experienced.
Qi An's eyes narrowed. In the beast-man world, their mission was to awaken the dream's master. But in this world, the mission description mentioned a line.
—The master of the castle has fallen into a long slumber, sleeping forever without waking.