Wang Mei took a deep breath, her shoulders starting to shake as she tried to hold back her emotions. Suddenly, she yelled, "The bus driver is dead!"
The teenagers and Lin Xiao were stunned into silence. The revelation hung heavy in the air, and an eerie stillness settled over the temple. Lin Xiao's character automatically responded, "What do you mean?"
Wang Mei was hyperventilating, her breaths coming in short, ragged gasps. "The bus driver is dead," she repeated, her voice cracking. "We are all dead. The bus was in an accident, and the next thing I remember is waking up here. Nobody else remembers it but me."
Lin Xiao felt a chill run down his spine. His mind raced, trying to process the new information. The game had taken a dark and unexpected turn. The teenagers looked around at each other, their faces pale and their eyes wide with fear and confusion.
One of the boys stepped forward, his voice shaking. "W-what do you mean we're dead? How can we be dead if we're standing here, talking right now?"
Wang Mei's eyes were wide with panic. "I don't know! I just know that the bus crashed. I saw it happen, and then... then I woke up here. Everything feels wrong, like we're trapped in some kind of nightmare."
The teenagers couldn't believe her. "You are crazy, we can't be dead!" one of them shouted, his voice tinged with a mix of fear and defiance.
Wang Mei's eyes locked onto the teenager who had called her crazy. A twisted smile spread across her face, and then she started laughing, a harsh, almost hysterical sound. "You think I'm crazy?!" she spat, her laughter echoing in the silent temple. "How dare you!"
Before anyone could react, Wang Mei dashed to a nearby tent and grabbed a knife. The teenagers froze in shock as she turned and ran toward the boy who had doubted her. With a wild, determined look in her eyes, she plunged the knife into his abdomen.
The temple erupted into chaos. The teenagers screamed, some scattering in fear while others, driven by a surge of adrenaline, bravely tackled Wang Mei to the ground, wrestling the knife from her grip.
"Wang Mei, what are you doing?!" they yelled, their voices frantic and panicked.
Pinned to the ground, Wang Mei struggled against her captors, her eyes wide and desperate. "Check his wound!" she screamed. "I'm not crazy!"
The boy who had been stabbed looked down at his stomach, his hands pressing against the wound. But to his astonishment, there was no blood, no pain—just a strange, numbing sensation. He pulled his hands away and saw that his skin was unbroken, as if the knife had never touched him.
Lin Xiao watched the scene unfold, his mind reeling. This was unlike anything he had encountered in the game before. He took a step forward, his character moving closer to the group. "What just happened?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
The teenagers, still holding Wang Mei down, looked at each other in bewilderment. "The knife... it did nothing," one of them said, his voice shaky. "How is that possible?"
Wang Mei's breathing was ragged, her eyes filled with a mix of fear and vindication. "I told you," she said, her voice trembling. "I told you we're dead. Nothing here is real."
She pointed a shaking finger towards Lin Xiao's character. "He lied when he said he saw the bus driver!"
The teenagers turned to Lin Xiao, their expressions a mix of confusion and fear. "You lied to us?" one of them asked, their voice quivering. "Why would you do that?"
Another teenager stepped forward, eyes narrowing with suspicion. "Are you part of this? Are you trying to trap us here? Are we in hell?"
The time stopped and options came once again.
[1. Run away]
[2. Restart the game]
[3. Try to Convince the teenagers]
Lin Xiao was skeptical but decided to choose the third option again. He knew that running away or restarting wouldn't solve anything. He needed to convince them that he was on their side.
Lin Xiao's character raised his hands defensively, trying to calm them down. "Wait, I can explain," he said, his voice steady but urgent. "I just want to help. I thought if I told you the truth, you wouldn't believe me. I didn't mean to deceive you."
The teenagers continued to back away, their trust in him shattered. "Why should we believe you now?" one of them demanded. "You've been lying to us all along!"
Lin Xiao's character took a deep breath, his mind racing for a way to regain their trust. "Listen, everything here is strange, I know. But we need to stick together if we want to find a way out of this. I didn't mean to lie, I just wanted to keep you safe."
Despite his pleas, the teenagers remained wary, their eyes darting between Lin Xiao and Wang Mei. The atmosphere was thick with tension, and Lin Xiao could feel the weight of their mistrust bearing down on him.
Lin Xiao saw some kids approaching him and could feel they were hoping to subdue him.
Suddenly, time stopped again, and options appeared before him:
[1. Run away]
[2. Restart the game]
Lin Xiao decided to choose the first option. His character ran, some of the kids following him. He sprinted through the village, the teenagers hot on his heels.
As he ran, Lin Xiao could hear their footsteps pounding behind him, their shouts growing louder.
He knew he could subdue them, but something held him back—maybe it was the strange invulnerability he saw when Wang Mei stabbed the other teenager or maybe their numbers.
The village seemed even more desolate as he dashed through the empty streets, the shadows from the rising sun casting eerie shapes across the ground.
The buildings loomed like silent sentinels, their dark windows watching his every move.
Lin Xiao's character raced towards the well, his mind racing with possibilities. He could feel the teenagers closing in, their determination driving them to catch him.
He reached the well and turned, only to find himself encircled by the teenagers. Their faces were a mix of fear, anger, and confusion.
Time stopped once again, and the options appeared before him:
[1. Restart the game]
[2. Fight the kids]
Lin Xiao was confused about what to choose. Fighting the kids seemed pointless—they might not even be real, considering the strange rules of this world.
He hesitated for a moment, then decided to choose the first option.
As soon as he made his selection, the world around him dissolved into darkness.