Chapter 94: A Quiet Night

In the land of extreme cold, half an hour had passed, and the first and second groups carried out their night watch rotation.

Amidst the swirling snow, the Scholar and the Horsekeeper were the first to push open the crimson coffin. They emerged slightly earlier than planned.

Not far away, Ren Ye remained hidden beneath his robe, observing in secret.

“Go inside,” the Horsekeeper said after stepping out of the coffin, instinctively hunching his shoulders against the freezing cold.

Guo Cai’er and Xing Tao nodded and prepared to enter the coffin for warmth.

Just then, standing beside the coffin, the Scholar suddenly strode straight toward Ren Ye.

The unexpected action left everyone momentarily stunned. Even Tang Feng and Li Yan, who were practically frozen together, forced themselves to lift their heads and watch despite their bodies being pushed to the limit.

The Horsekeeper, watching the Scholar’s back as he approached Ren Ye, felt a wave of unease.

Damn it, this kid isn’t about to do something reckless, is he? Is he planning to take No. 5 by force and drag us all into this mess?

After a brief moment of thought, the Horsekeeper quickly took a few steps forward and grabbed the Scholar’s arm. “What are you doing?”

“Swish!”

The Scholar shook off his grip without hesitation and continued walking toward Ren Ye.

“Shit, don’t mess around,” the Horsekeeper warned in a low voice. “He’s got a fur robe for warmth, and he’s in great shape. If you stir things up now, we’re all screwed. I don’t want to spend another damn day here—we have to get out!”

Not far away, Ren Ye clenched his fists tightly as he watched the Scholar approach.

To everyone’s surprise, the Scholar stopped at an open patch of ground and suddenly dropped to his knees.

The sight left the entire group dumbfounded. What was he kneeling for?

Even Imperial Inspector Liu, known for his sharp mind, was momentarily puzzled as he emerged from the coffin. “What the hell? I was out for just half an hour, and the enemy camp already surrendered? No spine at all…”

As confusion settled over the group, the Scholar began to tremble.

Without uttering a single word, he pressed his forehead to the ground in a deep bow. Though he struggled to suppress his emotions, the moment his head touched the frozen earth, tears streamed uncontrollably from his eyes.

Li Yan was the first to react. “The place where he’s kneeling—that’s where No. 11 died.”

Tang Feng frowned. “But why is he bowing to No. 11?”

“Who the hell knows?” Li Yan shook his head.

The biting cold wind howled as the Scholar knelt on the ground, bowing three times with force. He then used his hands to desperately dig into the snow, trying to scoop up a handful…

But the ground was frozen solid, harder than steel. The blood and shattered flesh of No. 11 had long since disappeared along with the previous coffin scene.

The only thing left for him to take was snow. But snow melts in the warmth of one’s hands…

“Ah!!!”

The Scholar knelt there, wailing in anguish.

Ren Ye and the others watched him without sympathy or words of comfort.

Soon, Xu Qingzhao and Imperial Inspector Liu emerged from the coffin, replacing Tang Feng and Li Yan. At the same time, Guo Cai’er and Xing Tao entered the coffin for warmth.

After the shift change, out of a sense of “team spirit,” the Horsekeeper walked over, helped the Scholar to his feet, and led him to the southern side.

The two squatted in the snow, silent for a long time before the Horsekeeper finally couldn’t hold back and asked, “You knew No. 11 in real life, didn’t you? Who was he to you? A close relative?”

Under the moonlight, the Scholar wiped the tears from his face and suddenly turned to the Horsekeeper. “There are four of us left in our faction, but the other two are a CP (couple)—their bond is unshakable, understand?”

The Horsekeeper was momentarily stunned.

“Externally, we four are, of course, a team,” the Scholar added before saying no more.

No one was a fool. The Horsekeeper immediately understood the implication and slowly nodded. “Let’s watch out for each other.”

With that, the two fell into silence again.

…

On Tang Feng’s coffin, Xu Qingzhao sat cross-legged.

After Tang Feng entered the coffin, she quietly took a seat on top of it, her expression calm and detached, as if she had transcended all worldly concerns.

For some reason, after sitting for only a short while, Xu Qingzhao suddenly stood up and walked toward Ren Ye.

Moments later, she sat cross-legged beside him, her expression neither sorrowful nor joyful, just like when she meditated in the sleeping hall.

This scene left Ren Ye momentarily stunned. He peeked out halfway and couldn’t help but ask, “…You’re sitting directly on the ground. Aren’t you afraid of getting stomach cramps when your period comes?”

“What do you mean by that?” The biggest change in Xu Qingzhao’s interactions with Ren Ye was that she now actually engaged in conversation with him, unlike before, when she would minimize her words as much as possible, often not even bothering to explain.

Among the nine players present, Ren Ye was currently the only one who had the privilege of speaking with her at will.

“I mean, when you have your monthly cycle, your stomach will hurt,” Ren Ye replied.

Xu Qingzhao shot him a sideways glance. “You certainly are well-versed…”

“This… In my place, it’s common knowledge that a devoted admirer must understand.”

As Ren Ye deepened his “exchange” and “contact” with his consort, he found that she truly did not seem to be from the outside world. To put it bluntly, she didn’t seem like an Earthling at all. But since she never spoke about it, Ren Ye felt it wouldn’t be appropriate to press her for answers.

“The ground is cold,” Ren Ye reminded her again.

“The coffin is even colder,” Xu Qingzhao replied softly.

“You could squat down, like everyone else.”

“…It is unseemly for a woman to squat,” Xu Qingzhao shook her head in firm rejection.

At that, Ren Ye suddenly stood up, pulled off his robe, and draped it over Xu Qingzhao.

This action took Xu Qingzhao, who had maintained a composed expression, by surprise, her face showing a hint of astonishment and nervousness. “What are you doing?”

“Keeping you warm,” Ren Ye replied as he stood against the icy wind, stretching his limbs.

Xu Qingzhao found such an intimate gesture a little embarrassing.

She blinked stubbornly and reminded him, “You and I are not truly husband and wife…”

Seeing her serious yet somewhat adorable expression, Ren Ye couldn’t help but playfully flick her nose.

Humans, sometimes, can’t resist doing things they know are asking for trouble.

Xu Qingzhao suddenly stood up, her delicate face flushed with anger and embarrassment. She raised her right palm and aimed straight for Ren Ye’s chest. “You dare tease me? Do you think my coffin lid isn’t sturdy enough?”

Not far away, Imperial Inspector Liu, who was looking for a spot to relieve himself, was dumbfounded. “Holy crap, internal conflict?! No. 5, No. 5, hold on! I’ll help you beat that woman…”

Whoosh!

Ren Ye, already prepared, dodged to the side and quickly raised his hands. “Don’t hit me! When we return to the royal manor, won’t my lady still need me?”

Xu Qingzhao furrowed her delicate brows, her face icy as she stared at him. “If you dare lay hands on me again, I will send you to accompany No. 11.”

“I just wanted to tell you,” Ren Ye replied with a grin, “that where I come from, handsome boys should take care of beautiful girls—it doesn’t have to be about being married. That’s called being a gentleman.”

Xu Qingzhao roughly understood his meaning, but her expression remained unchanged. She simply spread out the fur robe, sat down, and curled herself up under it like a small cat.

“Get some rest.”

Leaving these words behind, Ren Ye braved the cold wind and walked toward the approaching Imperial Inspector Liu.

“…Zhu Zigui.”

Suddenly, she softly called out.

Such an unfamiliar name made Ren Ye pause for a long moment before turning back.

“Thank you for the robe,” she added in a whisper.

“Heh, women—they only slow me down when I’m trying to practice my Tang-style moves,” Ren Ye chuckled, shivering like a dog as he headed toward Old Liu.

“Why did she hit you?” Imperial Inspector Liu asked as he ran up. “Need me to step in?”

“…Nah, she insisted I hold her, but I refused,” Ren Ye casually replied.

“Really?” Imperial Inspector Liu’s eyes lit up. “I’ll go try then.”

“Last night, four people on the other side fought her one-on-one. She managed to injure two of them and successfully escaped,” Ren Ye said, grinning at him. “Given your build, how many punches do you think you’d take before going down?”

Imperial Inspector Liu came to a sudden halt. “Damn, I’m not here for charity—I’m already freezing as it is.”

Ren Ye looked at the peculiar man before him and suddenly found him quite amusing. “Let’s go take a piss together?”

“Let’s do it.” Imperial Inspector Liu nodded.

Men have many ways to establish social bonds—it could be a shared cigarette, a dirty joke, or… a piss.

On the mountain path, Ren Ye finished relieving himself quickly. As he stretched and moved around to warm up, he asked, “Imperial Inspector Liu, what do you do in real life?”

“Me?” Imperial Inspector Liu was briefly stunned. “Oh, I’m an artist.”

“…An artist who can’t go a sentence without swearing?” Ren Ye couldn’t hold back his laughter.

“Artists are straightforward. The closer one gets to the true path, the more unpretentious they become.” Imperial Inspector Liu, despite his usual demeanor, could still spout something philosophical when the mood struck.

Ren Ye paused slightly before saying, “Before this, we had different stances, and I might’ve wronged you. I hope you can let that go. I’m someone who speaks my mind—if you’re good to me, I’ll be good to you. In a place like this, every step determines life or death. We shouldn’t have barriers between us.”

That one sentence cut straight through the tension.

Imperial Inspector Liu was silent for a long moment before politely asking, “Before we get rid of our barriers, can I curse at you once?”

“Go ahead.”

“You motherfucker!!” Imperial Inspector Liu’s eyes bulged as he clenched his fists, cursing with full intensity. “You guys really played me like a fool! I went over everything in that coffin just now—I nearly wanted to kill myself! Do you know how touched I was when you saved me that day?! And today, right before I knelt down to you, I hated you just as much! It was the first time I ever felt like I was missing ten IQ points!”

“Haha, well, from your perspective, it does make sense.”

“You think so too, huh?”

“Yeah. When I was in prison, I read a book,” Ren Ye said as he rubbed his shoulders against the cold. “It was called The Narrow Perspective.”

“You’ve been to prison??!” Imperial Inspector Liu was shocked, as if he’d just found a long-lost comrade. “Which prison were you in?”

“Shanghai. Why?”

“Which one? Qingpu, Tilanqiao, Wujiaochang, or Zhoupu?” Imperial Inspector Liu rattled off the names like he was listing dishes.

Ren Ye blinked at him. “Are you sure you’re an artist?”

“I’m a double-certified artist in sewing and handmade crafts! Hahaha!” Imperial Inspector Liu burst into laughter and slung an arm around Ren Ye’s neck in a brotherly gesture. “We’re both people who’ve been through the wringer. No more barriers now.”

“…”

Ren Ye was speechless.

…

One night of frost and snow. One night of silence.

In the midst of the tense and fierce factional conflict, the nine players had suddenly paused. And in that brief pause, those who were distant drifted even further, while those who were close drew even closer.

The next day, as the sun rose, the sky brightened.

[The cold wave has receded. Players may now leave the snow-avoiding coffins.]

Half an hour later, Star Gate issued another prompt.

[Congratulations to all players. No casualties occurred during this cycle of the second trial. You have successfully passed the test. In ten seconds, you will proceed to the next level.]

…

Meanwhile.

At the bar, Huang Wei and Yan Duoduo had been waiting nearly all night and were now dazed from exhaustion.

Tap, tap!

A young woman in cyan robes stepped out from a room that looked like a dressing area and approached the two of them, speaking softly, “Headquarters has notified me—you two don’t have to wait anymore. You can head back.”

“Then… what about Ren Ye’s father?” Yan Duoduo rubbed her eyes and asked.

“He’s been kept behind. The higher-ups still have things to discuss with him.” The woman in cyan smiled.

Yan Duoduo and Huang Wei exchanged bewildered looks, both wearing expressions of disbelief.

Just what kind of matters could Ren Ye possibly have that was worth discussing all night?

Why was Headquarters keeping Ren Daguo there?