Chapter 83: Pleasant Puzzle Time
When the clock chimed, Xu Huo immediately looked at the decibel meter in the corner—72.
“Don’t worry, the xenomorph won’t appear,” Wu Qiuyi said, seeing how tense he was, and let out a laugh. “Every few hours, a clock somewhere in the town chimes. The sound usually exceeds 60 decibels, but it never attracts the xenomorph.”
The two stepped onto the street, and sure enough, everything was calm outside.
Wu Qiuyi stepped onto the tracks. “Let’s catch up to the bus first. This track leads to the east gate of the town. It’ll take at least until tomorrow for it to come back. If you don’t want to spend the night here, we’d better hurry.”
After walking a few steps along the rails, Xu Huo suddenly turned back, picked up a doll from the ground, and hurled it hard at the bell hanging above the clock shop’s door.
The doll’s crying and the bell rang out simultaneously, the sound definitely exceeding 60 decibels.
“Are you crazy?!” Wu Qiuyi tried her best to keep her voice low, grabbing Xu Huo’s shoulder. “Do you want to get me killed?!”
Xu Huo pulled her hand away. “Calm down. The xenomorph didn’t show up.”
Wu Qiuyi froze. They stood on the empty street with a wide view. If a xenomorph came from any direction, they would see it—but it didn’t appear.
Xu Huo walked back past the scattered toys. Wu Qiuyi, full of confusion and doubt, hesitated for a moment before choosing to follow him.
Back inside the clock shop, Xu Huo walked up to the wall clock that had just chimed and raised his voice. “I want to answer the riddle.”
“Pleasant puzzle time, pleasant puzzle solver, pleasant acceptance clock. Please state your answer.”
“Please repeat your question once more.”
“Today’s question is: In the lifetime of the clock master who loved clocks, how many clocks did he make?”
Instead of answering, Xu Huo waited a moment and then said, “I didn’t hear clearly just now. Repeat the question again.”
“Today’s question is: In the lifetime of the clock master who loved clocks, how many clocks did he make?”
“If I can’t answer, will I be punished?”
“Pleasant puzzle time. The game rules set by Clock Master Nice do not allow any puzzle lover to be harmed.”
“If I answer wrong, will I be punished?”
“Pleasant puzzle time. The game rules set by Clock Master Nice do not allow any puzzle lover to be harmed. But please note, puzzle solver: incorrect answers cannot exceed three times.”
“If I need to step out to use the restroom and come back to solve the puzzle, can I?”
“A half-hearted puzzle solver will lose the opportunity to solve the puzzle in the clock shop.”
“If I stay in the clock shop, can I answer the riddle tomorrow?”
“Pleasant puzzle time. The game rules set by Clock Master Nice do not allow any puzzle lover to be harmed. But please note, puzzle solver: incorrect answers cannot exceed three times. Now, beginning the first attempt.”
“137 clocks.”
“Beep! Incorrect answer.”
“1 clock.”
“Beep! Incorrect answer.”
“Nice himself couldn’t count them.”
“Beep! Incorrect answer.”
Wu Qiuyi stared at Xu Huo with wide eyes, gritting her teeth. “Can you be serious for once?!”
“The pleasant answer time has ended. Unfortunately, the puzzle solver did not provide the correct answer.”
“Please do not be disheartened, puzzle solver. The pleasant clock is willing to gift you a piece of chocolate and a candy for free. Keep up the good work.”
Then, the metal base beneath the clock slowly opened, spitting out a piece of chocolate and a lollipop.
Xu Huo casually grabbed them, checked the expiration date, tore open the wrapper, broke off a piece, and handed it to Wu Qiuyi, lowering his voice. “It’s not expired. Ten-year shelf life chocolate. Who knows if it’s still edible? Want to try?”
Wu Qiuyi’s expression was complicated, but her body was honest. She swallowed her saliva, took it, and shoved it into her mouth, chewing with a look of bliss. As she chewed, tears streamed down her face. “If only we’d known earlier… they wouldn’t have had to die…”
“The answer time is over. Keep your voice down.” Xu Huo pinched the bell on the door and stepped out first.
The two ran along the tracks and caught up to the bus after more than ten minutes.
Seeing Wu Qiuyi return safely, Lin Pei and Ke Liang both breathed a sigh of relief. Wu Qiuyi was even more excited than they were. “There’s food! There’s food in the town! We found chocolate and candy!”
The eyes of everyone in the car turned green. Gu Yu, dizzy and lightheaded, had already caught the sweet smell on her breath and immediately grabbed her hand. “Give me a piece!”
“He found it,” Wu Qiuyi said, pointing at Xu Huo.
Everyone’s gaze shifted to him. Xu Huo said, “There’s enough for everyone.”
The remaining chocolate was just enough for each person to have a piece. He handed it all out to Lin Pei and the others. At that moment, Wang Chaoqing and Nian Hong’an looked at the lollipop still in his hand. “Brother, can you share a bit with us?”
Xu Huo smiled and patted both their shoulders. “You just got here. Going hungry for two days won’t hurt. If we find more food later, you’ll be safe. If not, you’re still backup rations.”
The two’s knees went weak, and tears poured down their faces. “Brother, we really were wrong. Please don’t say such terrifying things!”
“As compensation for tricking me into this instance.”
“What did you say?” Gu Yu turned her head, staring at Xu Huo. “Where did you enter the instance from?”
“A villa.”
“Was it a haunted house where someone died?” Seeing him nod, Gu Yu walked over and kicked Wang Chaoqing. “So you two are the peeping toms after all!”
“We siblings were tricked into coming too,” Shen Xin said angrily. “You’re the ones who posted that thread!”
Lin Pei and Ke Liang suddenly found the chocolate in their mouths tasteless. They had also been lured in by that thread and stepped on a landmine. But now, regret was useless. The worst off was Wu Qiuyi, who had entered the instance to find someone. She had found them, only to watch them get eaten by the xenomorph.
Wu Qiuyi’s eyes were bloodshot. She shoved Gu Yu aside and pinned Nian and Wang to the ground, beating them.
“If it weren’t for you, my boyfriend wouldn’t have been so hungry and unfocused that he accidentally hit the bell!”
“If it weren’t for you, Xiao Heng wouldn’t have starved to death!”
“If it weren’t for you, Brother Liu wouldn’t have tried to create an escape opportunity for us by ramming the town gate and getting torn apart by the xenomorph!”
“If it weren’t for you! If it weren’t for you!”
Even as she roared, she had to keep her voice down, her hoarse voice sounding as if it were bleeding.
Xu Huo glanced at the two men kneeling on the ground, their faces covered in tears and snot, and reached out to pull her back. “The people you knew might not have been tricked in by them. They probably haven’t known about this instance for long.”
Nian and Wang, beaten bloody and afraid to cry out, quickly said, “We only found out after someone disappeared in the haunted house and left behind items. We wanted to trick players into coming. The people who came before we posted the thread really had nothing to do with us!”
Ke Liang touched the scar on his face. “So I was the first one to fall for it.”
Shen Xin helped Wu Qiuyi up. “Don’t waste your energy on people like this. The bus is almost at the east gate. Save your strength to find the exit.”