Players, Please Board the Train

She was like a tightly drawn string, ready to snap at any moment.

”Your condition is very poor,” Xu Huo stated matter-of-factly.

Wu Qiuyi was provoked by his calmness, her eyes red as she said, ”Just one month ago I was an ordinary office worker with a harmonious family and happy life! Now, my family, my boyfriend—they’re all dead! All dead!”

”My condolences.”

”Condolences?” Wu Qiuyi laughed bitterly in anger, throwing a punch at Xu Huo. He caught her fist with one hand, then grabbed her other wrist and pinned her firmly against the glass cabinet.

”Do you still want to live?” Xu Huo asked from behind her.

”Everyone I care about is dead! Why should I keep living?!” Wu Qiuyi struggled fiercely.

”Then why haven’t you died?” Xu Huo said calmly. ”If you truly couldn’t go on living, you would have committed suicide when you found your boyfriend’s body.”

”You’ve survived until now because you want to live.”

”There are many ways to live. Others can’t control you, and you can’t control others.””We’re just strangers who met by chance. I have no obligation to counsel you.”

Wu Qiuyi laughed bitterly. ”How realistic. Evolution hasn’t been around for long, yet we’ve already lost the most basic human compassion.”

Xu Huo released her and stepped back. ”If you want human compassion, you’ve come to the wrong place.”

”Yeah.” Wu Qiuyi turned to look at him. ”A game like Dimensional Rift suits people like you perfectly. Only cold-blooded, heartless people can thrive in a killing game!”

”Think whatever you want.” Xu Huo pushed the door open and went out, just as Gu Yu and the others returned with biscuits.

Seeing Wu Qiuyi’s red eyes as if she had just been crying, they immediately pulled her aside and looked suspiciously at Xu Huo. ”Did you take advantage of her?”

”I despise men who bully women the most. Xu Huo, if you’re that kind of person, my earlier offer of alliance is void!”

Xu Huo looked at them steadily for a few seconds. ”I should have gone to the gas station earlier.”

”Nothing happened. I was just thinking about my boyfriend,” Wu Qiuyi explained proactively.

The three women reconciled instantly, amiably distributing the food among themselves.

Xu Huo alone climbed to the rooftop of a nearby small building.

Looking across the entire town, the most prominent clock was the large one atop the mayor’s office building. That large clock should be the 20,001st timepiece—Master Nise’s final masterpiece.

Its time perfectly matched the black gemstone watch.

What special significance did these two specially calibrated timepieces hold?

Just as Xu Huo considered investigating the mayor’s office building again, a sharp whistle sound suddenly came from the east gate direction. He turned abruptly to see dust rising from the woods, followed immediately by a scream!

It was Nian Hong’an!

In that instant, players scattered throughout the area simultaneously appeared on different rooftops, rushing toward the east gate. But just as they reached the town entrance, a body flew out from the woods and crashed directly before them!

Nian Hong’an was unrecognizable—his head twisted two full circles and dangling behind his back, several finger-sized bloody holes puncturing his shoulders and throat, one arm completely missing, his entire body bent backward like a broken popsicle with his heels touching his shoulder blades!

The sound of twisting metal continued to emerge from the woods. Without even looking, they knew the Mutant had appeared. At this point, the players couldn’t care less about Nian Hong’an’s horrifying death; they immediately turned and fled back into the town.

”Execute the plan!” Xu Huo shouted.

”I’m out! You go if you want! I’m hiding!” The terrified Wang Chaoqing fled in another direction.

Xu Huo moved closer to Shen Yi. ”That thing is busy dismantling the car right now. If we scatter, we still have time. Only by luring it into town do we stand a chance. Are you in?”

”I’m in!” Shen Yi gritted his teeth. ”I’ll take point!”

With that, he leaped onto another building and frantically pulled the strings of bells hanging from the carpet.

The twisting sounds stopped. A white shadow shot out from the woods, moving so fast its form was almost indiscernible!

Even more terrifying was that its speed didn’t decrease at all after entering the town. Using its powerful physical body, it smashed through walls, doors, and windows, charging recklessly toward the source of the bell sounds. The cries from the Dolls scattered across the ground didn’t distract it in the slightest!

From the rooftop, Xu Huo watched it tear through five or six buildings to reach the trapped street. The moment it leaped onto the carpet, he raised his Lighter and shouted, ”Burn!”

The gasoline-soaked carpet erupted in flames. Though its rationality was gone, its instincts remained—the Mutant tore through the carpet covering it in mere moments, then leaped upward without any assistance, landing directly on the third-floor rooftop and pouncing toward Xu Huo!

The crimson sword was already in his hand. As the short Mutant charged head-on, Xu Huo swung his sword with full force!

Given their distance and the Mutant’s speed, this strike should have been unavoidable. But unexpectedly, it seemed to sense danger—its toes dug into the ground, forcibly changing direction to avoid the frontal assault and launching a surprise attack from the side!

The Mutant’s grotesque face rapidly filled his vision. The instant Xu Huo raised his shield, he was knocked off the building, and it leaped down after him!

”Bang! Bang!” Two gunshots rang out as a green bullet and a black bullet exploded against the Mutant’s face and chest respectively. Gu Yu stood on the opposite rooftop shouting, ”Pull him up quickly!”

A spring rope shot from Shen Yi’s hand, wrapping around Xu Huo’s waist and yanking him upward, while the Mutant fell to the ground below!

Watching it tear away the melted flesh from its face without any sign of pain, the wound on its chest barely bleeding, Xu Huo grabbed Shen Yi and Gu Yu the moment his feet touched ground and ran forward.

They had only covered two or three meters when the spot where they’d just stood suddenly exploded. Amid flying bricks and debris, the small-statured Mutant burst through the wall, lunging straight for their backs!

”Die!”

Gu Yu fired several shots, all missing their mark. The spring rope Shen Yi threw was instead caught by the Mutant, which pulled it back violently. In that split second, he was lifted up like a kite—even releasing the rope immediately couldn’t counter the inertial force!

As he was about to collide head-on with the Mutant, Xu Huo flung out piano wire that hooked around his neck and pulled back. Shen Yi’s forward-leaning body jerked backward, narrowly avoiding the Mutant’s claw!

At that moment, Shen Xin rushed out, shouting ”Panda Impact!” as she launched herself like a cannonball, smashing the Mutant two buildings away!

With the Mutant’s condition unknown after crashing into the wall, Shen Xin quickly picked up the spring rope. ”Run, run! That Mutant is too fierce!”

The four immediately fled toward another building. With the trap clearly ineffective, Xu Huo had to improvise. ”Lure the Mutant over! We haven’t used all the gasoline yet—douse it!”

”What if it doesn’t work?” Gu Yu said urgently. ”We only escaped unscathed just now thanks to luck!”

”I’ll distract it!” Wu Qiuyi appeared several dozen meters away, pulling the nearest string of bells. ”If it doesn’t work, ring bells elsewhere and we’ll find another way to lure it to the gas station!”

”Get it to the main street first!” Xu Huo changed course alone. ”You stay and help Wu Qiuyi! If one strike doesn’t work, don’t waste time—use the bells to lead it over!”