"What wish do you plan to make to it?" Lu Yanli asked.
The Chinese word for "it" has the same pronunciation as "he", so Chu Xiu didn't notice anything wrong with Lu Yanli's description. On the contrary, his tone sounded quite pious.
Chu Xiu looked out the window. The scene outside was no different from usual. The sun was shining, the streets were clean and tidy, and vehicles were coming and going, making the place look prosperous.
"I still haven't sorted out my thoughts yet." Chu Xiu said to himself, "I always feel like I've overlooked some crucial information."
He changed the subject: "What about you? If it were you, would you make a wish?"
Lu Yanli smiled bitterly: "Do I have any other choice now?"
Indeed, ghosts or gods make no difference to them. No matter what they want to do, ordinary people are completely unable to resist.
"But I always feel that..." Chu Xiu hesitated.
He always felt that everything was not that simple. Compared with the bloody and brutal killings by ghosts and monsters, the so-called "wishes" of God gave him a chilling sense of danger.
From Wen Qing to them, everything seemed to be... controlled by a "god". No matter what choices they made, they could not escape this vicious cycle.
Who else made a wish to God? What price did they pay? Chu Xiu didn't know.
Lu Yanli looked at him and suddenly asked, "Did you make a wish to it?"
Although he used a doubtful tone in his words, he was more certain. Chu Xiu was shocked and blurted out: "How did you know?"
Lu Yanli: "I said it casually, but you admitted it." In fact, the fact that Chu Xiu did not deny it directly was suspicious enough, because because of the constraints of this "God", he did not deny it directly.
"What wish did you make?" Lu Yanli asked, his eyes piercing Chu Xiu's face, straight as a knife, "I think you can see that it is difficult for us to leave with our own strength, and only cooperation can give us a chance of survival, so you'd better not hide it anymore. Similarly, I will tell you the information I know."
Chu Xiu was silent for a while, then asked, "What else do you know?"
"It depends on what you want to know. Switch between them."
Chu Xiu: "How do you know I made a wish?"
Lu Yanli: "Because I also made a wish, what is your wish?"
Chu Xiu: "I hope I can be resurrected to the day before, but now it seems that this wish is not a good one." The reason why you wish to go back to the day before is because you subconsciously want to avoid the game on the first day, so as not to repeat the task? He asked: "What is your wish?"
Lu Yanli: "I will tell you when the time is right, but I can exchange it for other information."
After confirming that the other party was not cheating on purpose, Chu Xiu agreed to the deal: "One for three."
Lu Yanli: "Yes." He thought for a while, "First, Ye Shengke has been haunted by a female ghost, which can be discovered through cameras and other equipment; second, Wen Qing and Wen Zhengxin both have a statue of a god, and it is not certain whether they are in the same statue. In the case that they have died but have generated a new cycle of reincarnation, it is reasonable to suspect that they were resurrected by making a wish to the evil god, and the price is currently unknown. Third, Wen Zhengxin killed his daughter's best friend Yun Qian for unknown reasons, and it is speculated that it may be related to Wen Qing."
Chu Xiu raised his hand to interrupt: "Xiao Xiao, you said Yun Qian was killed by Wen Zhengxin? When?"
"Yes, he kept Yun Qian's body in the closet in his room."
"How do you know?"
"I found it." After recognizing Wen Zhengxin, he sneaked into the room and found Yun Qian's body in the closet. He managed to take away the statue.
The blurry shadow in the video that Nie Yun watched later was him. He deliberately put the statue back on Wen Zhengxin's bedside table and edited the video for him to watch, wanting to see what would happen if this group of people carried the statue on the mission.
But unexpectedly, the statue disappeared.
Otherwise, there is no need to let Chu Xiu know this.
"But in this case..." Chu Xiu discovered something was wrong, "The cause and effect relationship doesn't match at all, isn't this a dead loop?"
"What else? Is it really so kind? Can it come back to life just by making a wish?"
Chu Xiu lowered his head, not knowing what he was thinking about. Lu Yanli raised his hand and put it on his shoulder, looking straight at him. His eyes seemed to become deeper. He asked in a bewitching tone: "Tell me, which round of Chu Xiu are you from? How did you get here?"
Chu Xiu suddenly had a strange feeling. He felt that the secret that he was supposed to keep to death was not a big deal after all
The person in front of me is trustworthy, so there is no problem if he says it, right? If I conceal it, I don't know how many more rounds of death and rebirth I will have to go through.
"This is the fifth time." Chu Xiu said.
"The first round... was when we were playing the Four Corners game. We were in a factory at the crossroads at the end of Yinming Road. I was inexplicably killed inside. So, I prayed to be resurrected until the day before."
"In the second round, this round of the game ended smoothly, and there was no loss in the apple peeling game. Then we returned to the hotel and played the elevator game... In the second elevator game, I chose to play with three friends, but I didn't get out of the elevator and died."
"In the third round, I found you and played the elevator game together. This time, we chose to exit the elevator, but inexplicably ended up in another world. Before I died, I asked to be resurrected again."
"In the fourth round, I returned to the factory where I played the Four Corners game. There, I killed my former self. It was also at that time that I realized who had attacked me at night in the fourth round of the Four Corners game. After I came out, I continued to choose to look for you and chose not to leave the elevator, but I also died."
"In the fifth round, I continued to move forward according to the correct answer I had chosen before and came here." Chu Xiu was being watched and unknowingly told the story.
This is also the reason why he did not find it strange to see Lu Yanli. He thought that the person he met was the Lu Yanli who came to the "other world" by playing the elevator game with him in the last round.
Lu Yanli loosened his hand on his shoulder, his expression slowly calmed down, and he said, "So that's how it is."
I don’t know what he understood.
Chu Xiu vaguely sensed that something was wrong. He came back to his senses abruptly and frowned, "Do you know how to give psychological hints?" Deep down in his heart, there was a hint of anger that he concealed well, but to Lu Yanli, this little bit of emotional concealment was almost the same as not concealing it at all.
No one would like to be forcibly interfered with by others. Lu Yanli didn't care about the other party's negative emotions at all. He said calmly with a hint of sarcasm: "Didn't you disobey my wishes at the beginning? Now it's your turn, and you're angry?"
Chu Xiu calmed down and apologized straightforwardly: "I'm sorry."
He apologized and immediately asked: "How many rounds did you go through?"
Lu Yanli pondered for a while, then shook his head: "I won't tell you."
He didn't know how he had acted during Chu Xiu's experience of dying and coming back to life, but he thought the result was not good, otherwise the other party would not have to make wishes repeatedly.
"you… "
"But you can try another approach, try to go back to the original starting point, and then, take a different path, try to solve the problem from the root."
"Are you sure we will die here?"
"Yes, this is destined." Lu Yanli said, "Although I don't know why you insist on seeking death, but don't take me with you."
Chu Xiu was stunned: "Do you have any solution?"
"Me?" Lu Yanli's lips didn't move at all, as if he was showing a slightly cold smile, "Don't worry about this."
Before Chu Xiu could think about it, he added: "Now, let's make a wish at the same time. You try to go back to the beginning, and then stay away from Wen Qing and her friend Yun Qian! And stay away from this hotel."
"You mean, the way to survive is..." Chu Xiu suddenly came to his senses.
"Yes, otherwise where did the god you made a wish to come from? If you don't wish to be resurrected by it, you won't die because of it."
Lu Yanli tried once, but he had already clearly analyzed everything he saw and heard.
Chu Xiu was awakened by the words and understood everything. He murmured to himself, "So that's how it is..."
The mission required them to pick up two strangers to play with on the first day. They met Wen Qing and Yun Qian on Yinming Road and naturally thought that they were the escape route arranged by the mission.
However, choosing them would mean choosing a dead end. Wen Qing and Yun Qian were trapped in a vicious cycle of praying to God for resurrection and then death, and they were forced into it.
This was the trap of the mission... They fell into it from the beginning, and because they misunderstood that although the game on the first day was dangerous, the ghosts were attracted to Yun Qian, which led to the situation that they spent the first day safely, they did not return to the idea of the first day.
It's just like... a Möbius strip. Once you fall into it, no matter what choices you make, you will end up at the same destination.
He said this, and Lu Yanli added: "Do you think it's a Möbius strip? This..." He didn't say its name after all, but used an ambiguous pronoun, "It also arbitrarily overlaps the results of our choices and puts us together in all time and space."
Therefore, the more times they make a wish, the more chances they get to start over, and the more "other worlds" they create. It seems that they have countless chances, but once they enter the other world through the elevator game, they will be lost, unable to find a way out, and will surely die.
The only way to crack it is: don't make a wish from the beginning! Don't start over!
"Okay, I'll remember it." Chu Xiu nodded, hoping to fundamentally break the impasse. He thought about it and asked again: "What about you?"
Lu Yanli looked out the window: "I told you, it's none of your business."
"Now that it has been confirmed, let's act separately." Chu Xiu was not the kind of person who talked a lot and made the decision immediately.
When he opened his eyes again, Chu Xiu found himself sitting in a car. Outside the window was the road speeding backwards and the scene becoming more and more desolate.
He came back again... Chu Xiu calmed down and felt very relieved.
Fortunately, he got an important clue. If they didn't think of Wen Qing as the cause, they would never get out of this vicious circle.
In fact, if Wen Qing and Yun Qian had been kept alive, or if they had not appeared, this mission would not have reached the current hell mode.
"Okay, let's find two people here." He suddenly spoke, surprising the other three people in the car.
"Brother Chu, are you sure you want to stay here?"
"Let's look for them." He didn't explain. The other three had no choice but to follow suit and try to find a few reliable candidates.
After a while, the car started again, and two unconscious people were lying in the back seat. When the car entered the Yinming Road, two mature young girls appeared in front.
This time, they passed by Wen Qing and Yun Qian, and the one who was affected in the ghost summoning game at night was Ye Shengke.
Then, at Chu Xiu's insistence, they changed to another hotel. Away from the "god" factor, the next few games were not that difficult.
It was precisely because Wen Qing thought they had killed Yun Qian that he had followed them all the time, and the elevator game was no exception. Without Yun Qian and Wen Qing's interference, they could have stayed in the elevator and spent the elevator game safely.
After Chu Xiu left, Lu Yanli heard the sound of his own wish.
"God who knows everything, please let me... let me live."
He just made this one wish.
A hotel in the city center.
Chu Xiu was standing outside the door.
He had been lurking for a long time and finally saw his target. His eyes lit up, and after following him for a distance, he greeted him.
"Sir, are you interested in playing a game?"
Lu Yanli's body was stiff.
Anyone who was pointed at by a gun would have the same reaction. He recalled the surveillance camera arrangement in the parking lot and determined that this blind spot should not be easily seen. He asked, "What game?"
"Don't worry, no one will die. As long as you cooperate, your life will not be in danger."
"Yes, is it?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Chu Xiu suddenly realized that something was wrong. Before he could react, the gun against the other party's waist was grabbed by his wrist and thrown out. Then, he was hit hard on the head and fell to the ground.
Lu Yanli grabbed his neck and slowly tightened his fingers: "Didn't I tell you? You are looking for death, don't bother me anymore."
He paid a heavy price for making a wish to a so-called omniscient god.
Chu Xiu was surprised: "Do you still remember?"
"So what if you remember? So what if you don't remember?" Lu Yanli elbowed him again before standing up with a cold expression, "Don't drag me along if you want to die."
"No, no! That's easy to talk about." Chu Xiu endured the pain and got up from the ground. "I have been investigating you today. Have you joined some omniscient religion?"
Lu Yanli didn't answer and agreed.
"I know a lot about this religion. If you want me to join, I will provide you with information. How about that?" He didn't believe that this man joined the Omniscient God Church because of his faith. He must have other purposes.
Lu Yanli sneered: "Are you treating me like a fool? At first you didn't even know what the All-Knowing God was, but today you say you understand it?"
"I have channels to find out. I'll give you the information in about... two, two or three months."
Lu Yanli had an idea in his mind that the two to three months he mentioned was probably the frequency with which he completed his tasks.
A thoughtful look emerged on his face. He pondered for a long time before nodding and agreeing to come.
On the way, Chu Xiu explained to him what had happened that day.
Ye Shengke was fine while playing games that day, but when everyone went to call him the next day, they found that he was dead in bed, his body covered in blood and there was a dark purple mark on his neck.
"So now there are only three people left, and I have to find another one." Chu Xiu explained.
"Well, what are you planning to play?" Lu Yanli asked.
Hearing this question, Chu Xiu felt a little embarrassed to speak.
"At midnight, at the crossroads of Yinming Road, place a bowl of rice, light three incense sticks and stick them on the rice. After they burn out, mix the incense ashes with the rice and eat it."
Lu Yanli: “…”
Chu Xiu: "You've already agreed." It's really hard to find people to play this game. If an ordinary passerby vomits, some weird events might happen. After thinking about it, it's better to have someone you know.
Lu Yanli: "It's okay." He turned his head to look out the window, and suddenly smiled sinisterly, "Incense ash is nothing... I have tasted ashes."