Hawkeye quietly watched Qian Cangyi, making no further attempt to explain the basic rules, seeming uninterested in doing so to newcomers.
After waiting for half a minute, Qian Cangyi realized Hawkeye had indeed no intention of continuing, so he broke the silence:
"Is this some kind of reality show?"
But his words were abruptly cut off by Hawkeye:
"--No."
Qian Cangyi swallowed a saliva, continuing to ask:
"What is Hell's Movie? Can I quit?"
Hearing these two questions, Hawkeye leaned against the sofa, crossed his arms over his chest, and answered:
"I don't know what Hell's Movie is, it could be an unknown entity, or it could be... God."
"The only thing that is certain is that you have been chosen by Hell's Movie."
"We are actors in Hell's Movie, expected to participate in some... bizarre and mysterious films."
"The one thing common in these movies is that if we don't do something, we will surely die in the end."
"As for quitting?"
"I wish someone could tell me the answer."
"And by the way, let me tell you one more thing."
"After each movie performance, you'll get a film remuneration as well as an Honor Value reward."
"The remuneration can be exchanged for special props, and Honor Value can increase your Actor Level."
"I won't go into the details, you'll naturally find out if you can survive."
"That's it for the question and answer session."
"If you have any other questions, you can ask someone else, provided... you can survive."
After Hawkeye finished speaking, he reached into the inner layer of his coat, took out a pair of sunglasses, and put them on.
Qian Cangyi knew that Hawkeye was reluctant to further discuss the matter, but for him, the more information he had, the better chance he had to unravel many doubts.
Weighing the pros and cons, he decided to give it a try, considering that now he had someone who could answer his questions, which was precious.
He asked:
"Actors should know how to act, I don't know how to act at all, is that okay?"
"And, is it just the two of us?"
He asked the question and waited for Hawkeye's response.
Hawkeye didn't move at all, completely ignoring him.
Out of options, Qian Cangyi leaned back against the sofa, sorting out everything that had happened from last night to now in his mind.
Why was I chosen?
Was it because I like slightly brain-burning horror games?
The problem is Hawkeye doesn't seem to be that kind of person.
All sorts of questions arose in Qian Cangyi's mind, but there was no way to verify any of the speculations.
After some time, the black bus gradually slowed down until it stopped.
The door at the front opened.
"Let's go." Hawkeye stood up and walked towards the door.
"Oh." Qian Cangyi got up and followed behind Hawkeye.
Out the door was pitch black and the black fog obscured everything. He couldn't see anything clearly.
Hawkeye, undeterred by the black fog, stepped right out.
Qian Cangyi hesitated for two seconds, then followed Hawkeye out of the bus door.
After his feet touched the ground, Qian Cangyi looked around for Hawkeye but could not find him, so he decided to advance.
The scent of earth mixed with faint floral notes reached Qian Cangyi's nostrils, soothing his soul.
As Qian Cangyi continued to move forward, the black fog gradually faded until it disappeared completely.
Qian Cangyi looked down and found himself standing on a country road.
The small road followed the contour of the valley, winding and twisting like a light-colored belt wrapped around emerald mountains.
Qian Cangyi turned his head to find Hawkeye standing to his right.
The two of them had changed their clothes.
Hawkeye was wearing a white shirt with a black coat on top, fitted sky-blue jeans, and black sneakers.
Qian Cangyi was wearing a white shirt with a blue coat on top, loose light blue jeans, and white sneakers.
The sun on the horizon was somewhat dazzling, and Hawkeye took out a pair of sunglasses from his coat pocket and put them on.
Seeing this, Qian Cangyi also started to search his pockets, but he could not find any sunglasses of his own.
Hmm? Why don't I have any?
Qian Cangyi checked again, but he still didn't have any.
At this moment, some memories surfaced in his mind, memories about the character he was playing. At the same time, the script for the first act of "Death Sacrifice" also appeared.
The script surfaced in his mind in the form of book pages. As long as he concentrated slightly, he could clearly see the content on it; there was no need to specifically remember the lines, and since there were no requirements for tone or speed of speech, he would basically not read it wrong.
Qian Cangyi was playing a character named Bian Zhe, and Hawkeye was playing a character named Zhang Zian.
The relationship between the two of them was that of colleagues, both of them rural teachers.
They were planning to go to Yu Xi Village, a remote mountain village.
In Yu Xi Village, there was a student of theirs named Li Ling who hadn't attended class for three days and hadn't taken a leave of absence, so they discussed together to visit Yu Xi Village to check on him.
Qian Cangyi began reading the script in his mind.
[First Act]
[Under the bright sky, branches swaying, the mountain village was eerily silent, as if deserted.]
[At three in the afternoon, at the entrance of Yu Xi Village.]
[Two young men slowly approach from the distance and stop at the entrance of the village.]
[Bian Zhe: It's Yu Xi Village ahead, we're almost there, but I have a feeling something isn't right. Yu Xi Village seems empty. Although it's a small village, it has both old and young, and it's not possible for the entire village to move all of a sudden, unless something extraordinary has happened.]
[Zhang Zian: Indeed, we'll go in and have a look first, then decide what to do based on what we see. It's getting late, we need to hurry.]
[Bian Zhe: Yeah, it's not safe in the mountains, we need to get back before the sun sets. But I have an uneasy feeling, I don't know if it's a case of worrying unnecessarily.]
[Zhang Zian: An uneasy feeling? Could you be more specific? Are you saying there's a plague in the village? Or a beast?]
[Bian Zhe (shaking his head): No, it's not that, I can't quite explain it. Never mind, pretend I didn't say anything.]
[The two men head towards Yu Xi Village, and the shadow behind them starts to shake in a strange way.]
[Bian Zhe (turning around): That's odd, I thought I felt something staring at my back just now.]
[Zhang Zian: Something staring at you? Could it be because you watch too many horror films and hence associate everything with that?]
[Bian Zhe: You're right, that could be the case, let's go.]
[End of the First Act]
After quickly scanning through the script, Qian Cangyi turned to look at Hawkeye.
As a newcomer, he naturally had to see what Hawkeye would do first before making a decision.
Hawkeye, calmly, said:
"Keep going."
"If you want to leave, you can choose to go back, but I don't know where that will lead or what might happen, so I don't recommend doing that."
Qian Cangyi shook his head:
"I'll follow you."
The two of them pressed forward along the small road, silent all the way.
About ten minutes later, they turned a corner, and up ahead, a village nestled among the green mountains appeared before their eyes.
This village, without a doubt, was the destination of Bian Zhe and Zhang Zian—Yu Xi Village.