Chapter 18: Yes or No
The nine people were now swaying back and forth, like chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, all suspended by a single rope.
Lin Qin looked down, and her heart sank.
Below them was a cavern about ten meters deep.
If they hadn’t caught the rope, they would surely have fallen to their deaths by now.
“Hey, writer, hold on tight!” Qiao Jiajin noticed that Han Yimo was slowly slipping downward, and he felt a surge of panic. “Why are you losing your grip at a crucial moment like this?”
“I...” Han Yimo’s face was strained with effort, but his left hand was still loosening its hold.
Qiao Jiajin was close to Han Yimo. He immediately let go of one hand, grabbed Han Yimo’s rope, and wrapped it around his waist. But with only one hand, he couldn’t secure it tightly.
Officer Li saw this and reached out to help. The two of them, each using one hand, tied the end of Han Yimo’s rope around his waist.
Just as everyone was about to breathe a sigh of relief, they heard a muffled groan.
Turning their heads, Tiantian couldn’t help but cry out. Only then did they remember that her hand was also injured.
But the girl seemed to have incredible endurance. She hadn’t made a sound until her blood soaked the rope.
Her right hand let go, leaving her to grip the rope with only her left. But a woman’s strength is naturally limited, and supporting her entire body weight with one hand was nearly impossible. She began to slide downward rapidly.
Qi Xia’s expression changed. He immediately reached out and grabbed her injured wrist.
In that brief touch, he felt that Tiantian’s thin body was trembling slightly, and her wrist was ice-cold.
“Oh, conman, you’re not so bad after all,” Qiao Jiajin remarked.
Qi Xia sighed helplessly and said, “I just don’t want to see any more corpses. Don’t read too much into it.”
Time ticked by, second after second. Everyone’s arms began to ache.
Hanging for an extended period was no easy feat for anyone. Even Officer Li’s forehead was beaded with sweat.
“How long do we have to hang here?” Lin Qin asked Qi Xia, who was beside her.
“I don’t know,” Qi Xia replied in a low voice.
He knew that there were no more hints for the “next game,” yet the group still saw no hope.
If the organizers were ruthless enough to just let them hang there, their deaths would only be a matter of time.
But...
Was there really no hint for the next game?
Qi Xia’s heart was uneasy.
Could there be some unknown hint hidden somewhere invisible?
He looked down at the ground below. If there were any hint, it would have to be somewhere down there.
“Hmm?”
He swept his gaze across the area. Due to the collapse of the floor, new walls had been exposed. In the farthest corner at the bottom, there seemed to be a door.
But that door was far out of reach for everyone.
They were still about ten meters above the floor. Jumping from this height would not be safe.
Lin Qin followed Qi Xia’s gaze for a moment and also noticed the problem.
“A door?”
Hearing this, everyone looked down and indeed saw an old wooden door at the bottom.
Just as they were staring in despair, the door slowly creaked open.
A black figure walked in from the shadows. Qi Xia looked closely and saw that the person was also wearing a black suit, but his mask was completely different from the Goat Man’s.
He was wearing a huge, dark green snake head.
“Long time no see, everyone. I am the ‘Snake Man,’” he said slowly.
“Snake your mother!” Qiao Jiajin roared. “Goat, dog, and now snake? Do you believe I’ll come down there and kill you right now?”
“Please don’t get agitated,” the Snake Man said calmly. He looked up at the group and continued, “You are now undergoing your final trial. Beside me is a lever. If I pull it, you will descend slowly, and no one will get hurt.”
Everyone followed his gaze and saw that there was indeed an inconspicuous lever next to the wooden door. They hadn’t noticed it earlier because the lighting was dim.
“Then... can you pull it now?” Xiao Ran asked timidly.
“I...” The Snake Man gave an almost imperceptible smile and said, “I’ll play a game with you. Whether you live or die depends on your own performance.”
“Another game...” Dr. Zhao’s hair was disheveled, and he gritted his teeth fiercely, as if he wanted to devour someone.
“Listen carefully, everyone. This game is called ‘Yes or No.’” The Snake Man stepped forward slightly and spoke to the swaying, suspended group. “All of you can ask me a total of three questions. My answers will only be ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ And note that I will not lie. After three questions, if I agree to save you, I will pull the lever. If I don’t agree, I will lock this door and leave you to your own fates.”
Qi Xia frowned.
Three questions?
Only ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers?
This game was far too tricky.
In any case, everyone’s goal was to get this snake-headed man to lower them down, so they had to ask questions centered on that topic. But would he agree?
While everyone was thinking, the kindergarten teacher Xiao Ran seized the moment and blurted out, “Hey, can you let us down?!”
“No!” Qi Xia was startled and quickly reached out to cover Xiao Ran’s mouth, but the girl was quick to speak, and the question had already clearly reached the Snake Man’s ears.
The Snake Man gave a cold laugh and said, “No.”
“Hey! Miss?!” Qiao Jiajin shouted. “We only have three questions! Don’t mess this up!”
“I...”
Xiao Ran lowered her head in distress, her expression very sad.
“Two questions left,” the Snake Man said impassively, stepping back a little to get closer to the wooden door.
It seemed he had already given up on them.
Xiao Ran’s careless question had turned this game into hell difficulty.
Of course, the Snake Man wouldn’t let them down so easily.
If he had any intention of saving them, why set up this game?
But then again, if he didn’t want to save them, how could they make him agree to pull the lever?
Even if they changed the question to “Won’t you let us down?” his answer would only be “Yes.”
“Conman, do you have a way?” Qiao Jiajin turned to look at Qi Xia.
Qi Xia closed his eyes slightly, his mind in turmoil.
A way. A way.
As a human being, how many ways did he have?
Every step since entering this room had required Qi Xia to come up with a solution. How could he bear the weight of so many lives?
But then he felt a pang of despair.
If he gave up, would there be any way for them to survive?
“I can’t die here...” A faint glimmer of light returned to Qi Xia’s eyes. “She’s still waiting for me...”
A gentle female voice echoed in his mind: “Xia, do you know? There are many paths in this world, and everyone has their own.”
He slowly opened his eyes, and the thoughts in his mind became much clearer.
He was right. His mistake was in completely following the path set by the other party.
“Snake Man,” Qi Xia called out in a low voice.
Officer Li was startled and turned around to ask, “Hey, what are you going to ask? Let’s coordinate in advance to avoid another situation like just now.”
“It’s fine. I’ve already figured out a way to survive,” Qi Xia said confidently, looking down at the Snake Man. “Don’t say anything. This will all be over soon.”
“Do you really have a way?” Zhang Chenze asked.
“I should,” Qi Xia said, taking a deep breath and carefully considering the next two questions.
No, to be precise—one question.
Just one question would be enough to end this game.
From the very beginning, this game shouldn’t have been about how to get the other party to pull the lever. All they had to consider was the logic of “yes” and “no.”
The Snake Man seemed quite interested in Qi Xia. His eyes were peering through the hollows of the snake-skin mask.
Qi Xia paused and then asked, “Snake Man, if my next question were ‘Will you pull the lever?’ would your answer be the same as the one you just gave?”