The Persian's bizarre death was too gruesome to look at closely.
"Qingqing, something doesn't feel right," Wu You said. Though frightened, time was more important—12:31—less than thirty minutes left. But this bead…
The bead was fine; it could fit in his pocket. However, Wu You didn't put it in rashly. He only tested it at the bag's opening and felt the leather bag's strong suction on the bead.
"Draw a knife and cut the thigh; the bead comes out and the person dies," Gu Qingqing suddenly said.
"What are you thinking about?"
"It's a story from the *Taiping Guangji*. To make a long story short, there was an ancient man named Li Mian who saved a Persian just like we're doing today. The Persian also cut a bead from his thigh and gave it to him, but Li Mian didn't keep the bead for himself; instead, he put it back into the Persian's mouth," Gu Qingqing said.
"Why put it back?"
"It seems to be an ancient Persian tradition. These bead merchants would ultimately keep one bead for themselves so their souls could find peace."
"..."
"Not just this story, there are similar accounts from ancient times, some of which involve cutting open the thigh to get the bead, others of cutting open the armpit to get the bead. In short, those righteous people would eventually return the bead to the Persians."
"In that case, we...we don't have time."
Gu Qingqing looked at Wu You, and Wu You stared back at Gu Qingqing.
The two girls stared at each other silently for two minutes.
"Okay, if we just take the bead, this problem is a bit too easy," Wu You said.
"This question is probably testing our ability to make choices." Gu Qingqing then remembered to examine the blue bead closely. Its luster was extremely ordinary, and its shape wasn't perfectly round, yet it somehow felt extraordinary. "This is probably the legendary Green Clay Pearl, extremely rare."
"Rare or not, we can't take it with us." Wu You didn't hesitate any longer and placed the bead into the slightly open mouth of the dead Persian. The dead man's mouth, like a leather pouch, created a suction effect on the bead, and it quickly disappeared.
"Why don't we just put the Persian in the pouch? The bead is inside his stomach anyway," Wu You said.
Gu Qingqing suddenly exclaimed, "Wu You, look at the Persian's face!"
Wu You looked over, and the eerie expression on the Persian's face was gone, replaced by a peaceful acceptance of death.
This change in the dead man, though from bad to good, was unsettling.
Just as the two hesitated about whether to put the Persian's body into the leather bag, a large ship suddenly appeared in their sight, like a scene from a movie.
The Persians on board were all dressed in gold and silver, adorned with jewels. One of the Persians, who appeared to be a leader, ordered the small boat to be tied up.
Soon, the entire small boat, along with its people, was tied to the large ship by incredibly strong sailors.
Gu Qingqing and Wu You had no choice but to let the sailors lift the small boat up.
The Persian leader didn't say much, focusing instead on examining the Persian's body. He placed his hand on the Persian's chest, lingering there for a moment before his brow gradually relaxed.
The leader walked up to Gu Qingqing and Wu You, clasped his hands together in a gesture of respect, and said, "Thank you, my two kind friends. That jewel may bring wealth to outsiders, but for my deceased friend, it represents the return of his soul."
Gu Qingqing returned the leader's greeting.
Wu You secretly observed the Persians behind the leader. They were all burly, fierce-looking men, but seeing the leader's actions, they all showed more amiable expressions. Wu You couldn't help but wonder: if she had secretly kept the bead, what would the leader have done to the two of them?
It seemed her decision this time was correct.
She didn't know what Gu Qingqing had said to the leader, but the leader had a subordinate bring over a treasure box: "You two ladies are gentlemen; consider this bead a return of your bead."
The box lid was opened, revealing another green clay bead, only rounder and more lustrous.
"Thank you!" Wu You couldn't wait any longer; there probably wouldn't even be 10 minutes left. She picked up the green clay bead and put it into her leather pouch.
With a heavy thud, the leather pouch received another bead.
...
When Gu Qingqing and Wu You returned to the hall with the wooden fragments, they found the furnishings were somewhat different from before.
"I suspect this is a combination of many halls," Wu You said, pointing to a corridor ahead. "Let's look around."
The time on his phone was exactly 1:00 PM.
That meant the 13-hour deadline had passed.
Of the 13 members, those who were supposed to return have already returned. Those who couldn't, well…
Gu Qingqing slowed her pace: "Wu You, did you hear any voices over there?"
Wu You listened carefully, but couldn't make it out clearly, so she simply shouted, "Ke Xun! Ke Xun! Are you there?!"
Gu Qingqing: "I don't think it sounds like Ke Xun's voice."
Wu You: "Anyway, I'll just call out Ke Xun. That name gives me courage!"
Gu Qingqing: "…,… Ke Xun!! Is that you?!"
…
Ke Xun sneezed three times in a row: "Is it a bit disrespectful for me to sneeze at the Eight Wax Temple?"
Yue Cen laughed: "The gods wouldn't stoop to the level of mortals. Besides, we found the statues of the eight gods with great difficulty; I believe these gods will definitely protect us."
Yue Cen looked at the fragment of a wooden tablet in his palm, which had a partial pattern of a string of wheat ears on it.
"We're really fast; we still have three hours left." Ke Xun walked over and pushed Yue Cen's wheelchair.
A beam of light appeared before them, and Ke Xun pushed Yue Cen out of this world.
...
Upon returning to the hall, the scene before them horrified them.
The hall was still familiar, but in a corner lay a large pool of blood, and slumped within it sat a blood-soaked figure!
Ke Xun felt a rush of blood to his head. Forgetting about pushing Yue Cen, he stumbled, his legs almost giving way, and ran towards the figure.
Yue Cen and Ke Xun had experienced many emergencies in the world of the 'Eight Wax Temple,' but they had never seen this person so frantic.
"Yiran," Ke Xun said softly, pulling the nearly unconscious Mu Yiran into his arms.
Mu Yiran's consciousness was still sharp. He looked at Ke Xun, who was so close, scrutinizing him as if checking if Ke Xun had "returned unharmed."
Ke Xun tried to make Mu Yiran more comfortable: "Don't worry, I'm fine. Hang in there, I'll try to find a doctor."
"This place isn't the real world, there probably isn't a medical room here," Yue Cen said, also wheeling over. "Let's look for Mr. Mu's fatal wound first."
Ke Xun's heart was in turmoil. Having just returned to this world, despite being mentally prepared for the possibility of his comrades' sacrifice, he hadn't expected to see Mu Yiran covered in blood the moment he returned.
Mu Yiran waved his hand slightly and said with all his might, "There are no wounds. I was just poisoned in that world. That poison makes every pore of the body bleed until all the blood is drained."
Ke Xun's heart sank. He gently wiped the blood from Mu Yiran's face and found that the bleeding had stopped. Ke Xun then carefully checked Mu Yiran's arms and other areas, which were also no longer bleeding.
"It seems the bleeding gradually stopped after leaving that world," Yue Cen observed cautiously from the side. "You stay with him. I'll go try my luck at the podium. Maybe there's some mechanism or method to contact that NPC teacher."
Ke Xun nodded slightly, his attention now entirely focused on Mu Yiran.
"Ke Xun," Mu Yiran's voice was extremely weak, "My blood loss hasn't reached its limit yet, I can still hold on for a few more hours."
Ke Xun suddenly realized, "Yiran, are you alone?"
Mu Yiran tacitly agreed, unable to believe that she would be the first member to leave this world.
Ke Xun was anxious, but didn't want Mu Yiran to worry, so she tried to say something lighthearted to ease her mind, but the more she tried, the less she could find a topic. She simply held Mu Yiran tightly, remaining silent.
Mu Yiran, on the other hand, looked calmly at her lover: "Ke Xun, I have something important to tell you."
Ke Xun's heart grew even heavier; Mu Yiran's expression made it seem as if she were about to give her last words.
"Ke Xun, Happy New Year." Mu Yiran smiled slightly, then coughed a few times, and blood spilled from her mouth.
Ke Xun's heart clenched. He wiped the blood from Mu Yiran's mouth with his sleeve. "Yiran, I believe everyone will come back and get through this. We'll be out in about two more hours. Let's go to the hospital. Oh, and Lao Qin too. He'll be out in a bit. Let him take a look at you first. He's a skilled doctor; maybe he can find some acupoints to stop the bleeding."
"The bleeding has stopped," Mu Yiran wanted to rest for a while, but couldn't help explaining to Ke Xun, "What I vomited was just residual blood in my mouth."
"Yiran, rest and recuperate." Ke Xun sat on the cool marble floor, using his legs as a pillow so Mu Yiran could lie comfortably. "When we get home, I'll stew your favorite beef brisket. I still have a lot of jujubes with donkey-hide gelatin saved up. You said they were delicious last time; they're good for replenishing your blood."
"Mmm..."
"Also, Sister Cen and I felt... well, never mind, we'll talk about that when we get back."
Mu Yiran slightly opened her eyes: "Tell me, I've been here alone for over three hours, and I'm already lonely."
"Over three hours? Yiran, when did you get back?" Ke Xun was quite surprised to hear this.
"Around seven o'clock..." Mu Yiran's voice seemed to carry a hint of grievance.
The boss is indeed a boss, managing to get out of that world all by himself in just seven hours.
"I chose a shortcut because the other paths require two people to complete," Mu Yiran said, though tired, she couldn't help but want to talk to Ke Xun, "What I chose was to fight a Nian beast... its teeth are poisonous, causing me to bleed the whole time..."
"That's really... too much of a waste of our talents..."
"Hmm..."
"Hey!! You bastard!!" Suddenly a strange scream rang out.
Immediately afterward, Ke Xun saw Wei Dong rushing over from around the corner of the hall: "What happened to Da La?!"
Mu Yiran immediately closed his eyes to rest.
Ke Xun: "Dongzi, who are you paired with? What happened to your tongue?"
Fang Fei also came over: "He's been acting like a goose for over ten hours, he can't speak human language anymore."
"Fa Fa."
"Bia Jiao Wa!" Fang Fei was anxious, and ran over to check Mu Yiran's injuries, "How did this happen?"
Mu Yiran made a gesture: It's nothing, I want to rest.
Suddenly, Luo Cheng's voice came from the hall. Luo Cheng pushed Yue Cen's wheelchair over, followed by Hua Jiqiu.
"We found water, and it's warm water, so Mr. Mu can replenish his fluids." Several paper cups filled with water were placed on the table on Yue Cen's wheelchair.
"Is there anything wrong with this water?" Fang Fei asked.
"It's fine, I've already drunk several cups. I have to thank Director Hua, he found the water dispenser." Luo Cheng said.
Suddenly, a voice came from not far away in the hall: "Is anyone there?"
"It's Dr. Qin!" Luo Yu hurriedly replied, "We're here!"
"Where are you?" Qin Ci asked again, followed by what sounded like Zhu Haowen's voice—"Nobody here, Lao Qin, you must have misheard."
Soon, a girl's voice came from another direction: "Ke Xun! Ke Xun! Are you there?!"
The group simply split up and went to look for the other members.
Only Ke Xun and Mu Yiran remained in the same spot.
"Drink some water, close your eyes and rest. Even Dongzi and Luobo have come out, no, judging from the voices, everyone should have come out." Ke Xun wet his hands and wiped the blood off Mu Yiran's hair.
"You still have one more thing to say." Mu Yiran slightly opened her eyes and looked at Ke Xun.
Ke Xun thought for a moment before solemnly saying, "Yiran, Happy New Year."
...
After a while, everyone returned one after another, their faces showing relief at surviving the ordeal, exchanging meaningful New Year's greetings.
"It's so good that we're all still alive on the first day of the Lunar New Year!" Luo Yu exclaimed.
Everyone else also remarked on how lucky they were.
Qin Ci examined Mu Yiran's injuries and concluded that Mu Yiran's body had suffered extremely severe injuries. Fortunately, he hadn't stayed in that world for too long, and his injuries had lessened several times over after coming out, which saved his life.
"Brother-in-law, if you had come out an hour later, you might have been in mortal danger!" Luo Yu said.
"Luo Bo, is your world difficult? Who are you paired with?" Wei Dong asked.
"Brother Dong, I'm a little unaccustomed to you suddenly not calling me 'Laba' anymore." Luo Yu laughed. "I'm quite lucky. Fortunately, I'm with Director Hua. Otherwise, someone like me who knows nothing about the customs of Hua Jiu would definitely have been doomed."
Zhu Haowen said, "These things aren't absolute. If you lack some relevant knowledge, you might take some detours, but it shouldn't be a dead end."
"Brother Wen is right. In our world, if you don't understand the knowledge of Hua Jiu, you need to have very strong logical reasoning abilities to thoroughly understand those cases, right, Director Hua?" Luo Yu said, looking at Hua Jiqiu. "Director Hua, Uncle Hua, what are you thinking about?"
"Why hasn't Li Xiaochun come back?" Hua Jiqiu only realized after the initial surprise that he hadn't seen Li Xiaochun.
"That's right," Luo Yu looked at the group again, "and President Shao! President Shao isn't here either!"
Everyone panicked for a moment, then their expression turned somber.
"Who said everyone was here?" Wu You asked.
"It seems to be this lady." Gu Qingqing looked at Yue Cen, who was sitting in a wheelchair.
Yue Cen: "Everyone is indeed here. I saw those two gentlemen drinking water at the water dispenser just now, they seemed very thirsty."
Everyone: "…"
A moment later, Shao Ling and Li Xiaochun walked over, looking radiant.
"Being well-hydrated makes a difference… haha." Wei Dong said.
Shao Ling: Is there something on my face? Why is everyone staring at me with such strange looks…
After everyone had arrived, each group took out the hard-won fragments of New Year's woodblock prints.
Some fragments were half-old, some were broken, and one was completely stained red with blood.
Ke Xun frowned and carefully looked at Mu Yiran's bright red fragment, but couldn't make out the character on it.
"It's 'Nian' (年, meaning New Year)." Mu Yiran said calmly.
When the seven fragments of the wooden tablet were placed together, these seemingly unrelated fragments miraculously coalesced into a single piece of broken wood. On this piece of wood appeared a name: Si Nian.
This name seemed to mark the end of this complex world. Soon, the familiar picture frame appeared before them.
No one had ever walked out of the painting so calmly before. Except for Mu Yiran, who needed to be carried by Ke Xun, the others looked as if they had just returned from New Year's Day.
"Are you always this peaceful when you leave the painting?" Hua Jiqiu asked.
"No, because every time some companions get stuck inside. This is the first time; thirteen people went in, and thirteen people came out. No regrets," Qin Ci replied.
Hua Jiqiu remained silent for a moment, gazing at the familiar exhibition hall before her, as if what she had just experienced was merely a chaotic dream.
Qin Ci helped support Mu Yiran on Ke Xun's back: "There's no time to lose, he needs to go to the hospital immediately for a blood transfusion."
Fang Fei and Wei Dong also rushed over to help, but then they heard a voice say, "Excuse me, I didn't mean to interrupt, but there's something we all need to confirm here."
The speaker was Yue Cen, who continued, "According to your previous experiences, after leaving the painting, you should have a ticket for the next entry into the painting in your pocket. But I've searched all my pockets, and there's nothing there."
Hearing her words, everyone simultaneously checked their pockets, only to find them empty.
This emptiness gave them a sense of sudden, overwhelming surprise. But after the surprise, a terrifying feeling of being adrift followed.
"Without a ticket, does that mean... we don't need to enter the painting again?" Wu You asked softly.
No one could answer this question.
"I think it's best to figure out the bone structure patterns of the three new participants first," Zhu Haowen said.
Everyone agreed that this made sense. Although the painting guide hadn't given any further instructions this time, it was clear that this event wasn't truly over.
This unanswered silence seemed like a brewing process, as if it were moving towards a deeper level of the situation.
"I'll take Yiran to the hospital first. Everyone go back to the hotel. We can discuss anything else there," Ke Xun said, then carried Mu Yiran away.
Wei Dong and Qin Ci followed Ke Xun to the hospital to help.
Wei Dong couldn't help but ask, "What exactly happened to Boss Mu? How did he get so badly injured?"
Qin Ci was also very curious.
Ke Xun didn't say anything. Mu Yiran's mention of the Nian beast and his lack of other choices in that world, only able to engage in physical combat…
Ke Xun didn't believe it. These actions and choices weren't typical of Mu Yiran's behavior. Furthermore, from what he understood, the other worlds were primarily about collecting resources to progress, while the world Mu Yiran experienced was so different. What
he told himself was probably a white lie.
No one knew what Mu Yiran had experienced in that world.
As for why he was hiding it from Ke Xun, it wasn't that he didn't want to tell, but rather that he couldn't.
Ke Xun stayed by the hospital bedside, watching Mu Yiran sleep soundly. Gradually, he also became sleepy due to exhaustion, and simply lay down and fell asleep by the hospital bed.