Chapter 243: The Plot
...a novel?
A story?
Suddenly I had a brilliant idea... write a novel!
Back in the day, I casually made up a story and it caused such a huge stir—this means I have talent!
So I started slowly researching materials and brainstorming a lot of ideas.
I had high hopes for my work, because not only could it let me use my talent, it could also prove that I had once existed in this world. It was evidence of my being.
At first, I designed an incredibly vast world. I planned to write a time-travel novel, with the protagonist constantly traveling through history to complete missions.
But I was wrong. This was beyond my ability.
I only had a day and a half, and this book would need at least a million words to finish.
Could a normal person, without eating, drinking, or sleeping, type a million words in a day and a half?
I tried many times, but no matter what I did, I couldn't reach the ending.
The closest I came was when I heavily compressed the story. I was only one chapter away from finishing, but for some inexplicable reason, I wanted to proofread it one more time before the earthquake hit. And that very proofreading cost me the chance to finish.
A day and a half was simply too short.
I no longer had the courage to rewrite it from scratch.
My typing speed was only a little over four thousand words per hour. How could I possibly finish a novel in one day?
So I came up with a second idea. I created a character named "Chu Qi," who wielded a "Seven Black Sword" and punished evildoers in the martial world.
The estimated word count for this novel was only two hundred thousand words. If I worked hard, I was confident I could finish it in a day and a half.
But then, a turning point came in my life.
How many cycles had it been before I met that person?
I calculated—about two hundred and sixty cycles.
That day, I finished the entire "Seven Black Sword." I was in a great mood.
It was the seventh time I had finished "Seven Black Sword" within one day.
I seemed to be getting more and more familiar with the plot of this novel, and this job had become second nature.
I grabbed a can of beer, just like usual, drinking at home while waiting for the earthquake to come.
Today I was feeling good, so I planned to go into the room and immediately start trash-talking Chen Junnan.
When I opened my eyes in the room, everyone around me was shocked. I knew they were stuck, so I didn't pay it any mind.
But a few seconds later, I was shocked too.
There was an extra person in this room!!
What the hell?!
I had woken up in a room of eight people for two hundred and sixty consecutive times. Why were there nine this time?!
Just two minutes later, I calmed down.
The extra person was also a young guy, good-looking too. Based on my experience, good-looking people were usually dumb.
Just like Chen Junnan.
I took the chance to glance at Chen Junnan. That glance startled me big time.
Chen Junnan was smiling with tears streaming down his face, his expression incredibly complicated. He was staring intently at the extra person.
He seemed to want to say something but couldn't get the words out. In the end, he twisted his face into a completely distorted smile.
What's going on?
Do they know each other?
I had never seen Chen Junnan make that face before. He looked like he had gone crazy!
"But... crazy is fine too," I thought to myself. That way, wouldn't he follow my instructions and vote?
When everyone had finished their stories, before I could guide them to vote, the newcomer suddenly picked up paper and pen and started calculating.
What the hell... what was he calculating?
After a short while, he stated his deduction.
That deduction left me dumbfounded.
Oxygen? Oxygen levels?!
Oh my god... so the squares on the wall were for calculating area?!
The central clock was for calculating time?!
I take back what I said... this guy didn't seem stupid.
He said his name was Qi Xia.
He was way too smart. He probably wasn't here to cause trouble...
He was like a character from one of my novels... he was a "savior"!!
That's right, why hadn't I thought of that? This person had come specifically to save me!!
But then, something I never expected happened. Even if all of us voted for the Goatman, the game wouldn't end.
This damn place had a second round!
Called "Bamboo Shoots After Rain"!
I had never seen such a scene before... I was terrified!
Even with the "savior" by my side, I couldn't suppress my fear.
I got hit by a harpoon right through the throat, died on the spot!
Damn it!
Damn it!!
What rotten luck was this?!
But at least I had hope now.
It seemed writing novels was really a wise move. Gradually, I could explain my situation using the plot of a novel.
This thing was called "infinite rebirth." Since I was the protagonist, I had to suffer some setbacks at the start. Chen Junnan was my setback.
He would suppress the protagonist's cultivation or keep creating difficulties for him. These were all signs of gradual accumulation and a writing technique of "first suppress, then uplift."
After experiencing some setbacks, my "savior" would appear, and that person was Qi Xia.
As long as I followed him, he would lead me through missions, and I would slowly find a way out, maybe even become invincible under heaven.
This was exactly like a novel.
I was starting to look forward to the next earthquake!!
Haha! Savior! Here I come!!
But when I opened my eyes in the room again, I was thrown off again.
There were ten people in the room now...
I really didn't know what to make of this. What did it mean?
Another woman had joined?
Did they think this place was some kind of free-for-all?
There was no such plot in the novel!
What shocked me even more was that Chen Junnan was killed by the Goat Head less than a minute after waking up!
I was both happy and worried... Chen Junnan was dead, which meant no one would cause trouble anymore. But why was he killed?
Was I next?
But... it didn't matter anyway.
Qi Xia was still as smart as ever. Whatever choices he made in the following games, I would believe in him unconditionally.
Not only had I read novels, I had written them too. Couldn't I understand such a basic rule?
The protagonist absolutely shouldn't be stupid. He had to obediently follow the footsteps of a powerful senior to reach the best ending.
But those harpoons were really terrifying. Since I had been hit in the throat by one before, this time I started trembling in advance. I really couldn't control it. Even with the "savior" by my side, I couldn't control it.
I kept chanting in my head, "Don't hit me," but I still got hit.
But this time I didn't die—just got hit in the shoulder.
I understood... this was the setback the protagonist had to face.
Even though I was injured, I would soon have a fortuitous encounter... If the protagonist got hurt, a beautiful female doctor would probably appear, pull out some miraculous medicine, and I just had to take one pill and...
Damn it, I can't keep making this up. My shoulder really hurt.
The protagonist in novels never complains about pain. Now that I think about it, that seems too fake... Next time I'll revise the plot.
When it hurts, you should say it hurts. Let him be a protagonist with flesh and blood.
I have to give credit to Qi Xia. He was indeed impressive. If he hadn't shown up, I would never have known that this room contained four games.
Sheep, dog, snake, whatever.
Even if a whole zoo came, I wouldn't be scared, because I had the "savior" with me. What could they do to me?
He came specifically to save me, clearing obstacles for me along the way.
Clearly, this was going to be my plot of rising from the ashes and becoming a god.