# Chapter 18: Headchopper
"What will happen?" The two men's teeth chattered as they spoke, but they couldn't help pressing for an answer.
Those who survived the initial trial train did so either through strength or luck, but as long as they were surviving players, none dared to take missing an instance lightly.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Xu Huo flicked his cigarette ash and grinned. "I don't know either."
The two players pretending to be station attendants finally realized they'd been played. Enraged, they lunged at him. "We were going to let you live, but you're asking for death!"
"Ding!"
The brass lighter remained lit as Xu Huo quickly stepped back several paces, raised his hand, and shouted twice, "Burn!"
Almost as soon as he spoke, blue flames sprang up on the corners of the two players' clothes. Ordinary fabric was engulfed in flames as quickly as paper. The two men, who had been baring their fangs just moments ago, immediately screamed and tore at their burning clothes!
The other three players who had been waiting for an opportunity were frightened by this move and instinctively stepped back!
"He's using a game item!" The tall, thin man threw off his clothes, staring at Xu Huo with both anger and fear. When he saw the lighter in Xu Huo's hand, greed flickered in his eyes. He shouted to the other three, "You idiots, hurry up and help! He definitely has more than one ticket on him. If we grab the tickets, we can go to the next instance. Otherwise, you'll starve to death here!"
But before the three players could react, a series of "Burn!" rang out through the hall. The players' clothes caught fire one after another, including the two fake station attendants who had just stripped off their tops.
A group of people rolled on the ground wailing. Xu Huo stood to the side, watching this impromptu strip-for-survival show with little emotion, roughly figuring out what objects the "Arsonist's Tool" could ignite, as well as the flame size and burning speed.
It could only ignite clothes worn on a person's body, not clothes lying separately on the ground. The intensity of the flames was the same as normal fire—nothing unextinguishable or capable of melting metal.
There were two more necessary conditions for ignition: first, there could be no obstacles between the lighter and the target—simply put, it had to be a straight line, so holding the lighter behind one's back wouldn't work; second, the target had to be able to hear him shout "Burn"—just mouthing the word silently wouldn't work either.
Of course, if an Evolver had enhanced hearing, the controllable distance would be much greater.
Satisfied, he nodded, checked the time on his phone, and disappeared from the station hall.
---
The train sped through a forest thick with fog. The light outside was visibly dimming. Xu Huo compared the time on his phone again and found that after the train had changed scenery three times in a row, the timeline had become completely chaotic. It looked like night had fallen, but in reality, he had only been on the train for two hours.
There was no fixed time difference between the game and the outside world.
Just as he put down his phone, the game screen suddenly popped up:
[Player Passerby A has entered the Hot Spring Mountain area and is defaulted to participate in E-level Instance "Headchopper." Please note that this instance is low-level, and players cannot carry non-game items.]
[Background Introduction: The Hot Spring Villa, famous for its natural hot springs, was once popular among both players and non-players. However, over the past three years, guests who came to relax here would mysteriously lose their heads, with no traces left by the perpetrator at the scene. After several private detectives and police personnel went missing, the owner of the Hot Spring Villa had to put out a high bounty to solve this bizarre death case, but so far, there have been no results.]
[To this day, the Hot Spring Villa has become a gathering place for detectives, journalists, and horror story enthusiasts. Before midnight tonight, another batch of guests will arrive at the villa...]
[Instance Task: Protect Your Head. (Note: Keep an eye on your head, or it might run away on its own!)]
[Instance Duration: Five Days.]
[Players must check into the Hot Spring Villa before midnight game time, complete the instance task. Failure to clear the instance will result in not receiving a return ticket.]
[Countdown begins: 10, 9, 8, 7...]
After the countdown ended, Xu Huo stood on a small path shrouded in thick fog.
The dense forest was soaked in heavy mist. Visibility was basically zero beyond five meters. A sign stood under a dim yellow streetlamp, reading "Hot Spring Mountain Station" and "Hot Spring Villa, 500 meters straight ahead."
He took a few steps to the side, but his field of vision didn't open up as it would in normal fog. The thick mist blocked his sight, revealing nothing but blackness beyond.
It seemed that aside from what the instance required, other areas were locked to players. If he failed to clear the instance and didn't have spare tickets, he might very well be trapped here.
"Hey, beautiful... wait!" Just as he was about to move forward, someone suddenly called out from behind.
Xu Huo turned around with one hand on his waist and saw a thin, bespectacled man crawling out from the bushes. The man scrambled to his feet but seemed startled by Xu Huo instead.
That was unavoidable—who would expect a figure with waist-length hair from behind to turn around and reveal a six-foot-tall man?
"Hello... you're a player too, right?" The bespectacled man scratched his head awkwardly. "It was too dark earlier, I couldn't see clearly."
Xu Huo touched the hair at the back of his head. He had already cut it once on the road, and it had grown back.
Since it would all fall off on its own in a week anyway, he wasn't too concerned.
"Heading to the Hot Spring Villa?" He handed over a cigarette.
The bespectacled man quickly took it. "Yes, yes. Big brother, what should I call you? How about we go together?"
Xu Huo nodded, and the two of them set off toward the villa, maintaining a certain distance between them.
On the way, the bespectacled man briefly introduced himself. His name was Yuan Yao, a programmer. By chance, he had survived the initial trial and had dragged things out until the last day of his deadline before being forced onto the train.
He had arrived here early in the morning and had been hiding in the roadside bushes. Eight players had already gone ahead of him. Seeing that time was running out, he guessed Xu Huo was the last one and quickly came out to partner up with him.
After listening, Xu Huo asked thoughtfully, "Do players arrive at different times?"
Yuan Yao patted his chest and said, "Brother Xu, don't worry. I know all about playing games. The notice says midnight, so the instance definitely won't start until after that time. Maybe the people who went ahead couldn't even get through the door!"
That wasn't what Xu Huo was thinking about, but he didn't say it out loud.
This Yuan Yao had been hiding just three meters away, yet Xu Huo hadn't sensed him at all. He also hadn't noticed the eight players who had gone ahead.
His gaze shifted to the other man, and a smile slowly spread across his face.
"Hey, we're here!" Yuan Yao pointed ahead.