Chapter 714: Underground Horror Story Room
"Why is this place called the Wax Museum?" Xie Ling asked from the bottom of her heart once more. "If they renamed it a haunted house, they could scare people openly and legitimately."
"Just wait and see," Long Aotian said deliberately. "These wax figures might sit up later."
Xie Ling stopped hovering near the coffins and urged the others, "Let's hurry up and leave."
Xu Huo and the others, however, didn't rush off. Sticking their heads into the coffins to look clearly wasn't very smart, so he, Xu Ruosi, and Bai Wenxian simultaneously pulled out long props and stabbed through the wax figures inside the coffins.
They went through every coffin in the room, poking each one, before finally stopping. Just as they were about to leave, several wax figures in the coffins suddenly sat upright, twisting their heads slowly to face their direction.
"Take this!" Long Aotian threw a miniature basketball. The ball flew out, first knocking off one wax figure's head, then, as if it had eyes, flew to the next, taking out the heads of several sitting wax figures in a row. The ball then turned around and flew back—straight toward Xu Ruosi.
Long Aotian stepped in front of Xu Ruosi first, retrieved the prop, and said with a smile, "This prop of mine has that one problem—it doesn't distinguish friend from foe."
Xu Ruosi snorted and tucked the prop she had already pulled out back into her sleeve. "Then you'd better be more careful next time."
"The arrangement of wax figures in these rooms seems to tell a complete story," Bai Wenxian said. "The wax figures in the first room were clearly tourists. In the second room, they appeared to be under attack. The third room was a funeral hall, meaning they had died."
"I'm curious what the fourth room will be."
"Why not go see?" Long Aotian was the first to enter the next room and exclaimed in surprise, "It's actually a funeral parlor, complete with a crematorium!"
This room was larger than the previous ones and felt more spacious. Besides a few wax figures representing staff, there was only one wax figure lying on the movable platform of the cremation furnace.
Xu Huo bent down to look inside the furnace, then pushed the movable platform, turning to Bai Wenxian, who was approaching from the other side of the room. "What's behind you?"
"Just a funeral parlor—a farewell room and such. A group of wax figures is bidding farewell to a body." Bai Wenxian glanced at the movable platform and added, "This should be the last room, I think. Nothing suspicious here. Let's head to the Horror Story Room. We can get there from the side of the funeral parlor."
Xu Huo had no objections and called the others to follow.
They passed through a corridor beside the farewell room, crossed a medium-sized lounge, and found themselves facing the Horror Story Room venue.
The entrance to the Horror Story Room wasn't connected to the main gate of the entire venue. The door was a red brick wall, with two smaller doors on either side, spaced about ten meters apart.
"This place is built like a public restroom," Long Aotian said, looking left and right with a grin. "How about we follow the rule of 'men left, women right'?"
Xu Ruosi acted as if she hadn't heard him and chose the left door to enter.
Bai Wenxian, walking behind, adjusted his glasses. "Women hold grudges more than men. Aren't you afraid she'll stab you in the back?"
Long Aotian snorted. "Call it petty if you want, don't drag gender into it. If someone curses me, I'll remember it for eight hundred years!"
Bai Wenxian paused his expression and said no more.
Xie Ling, lagging behind, looked at the two of them thoughtfully.
The Horror Story Room was only the size of one of the previous wax museum rooms. In the center was a long wooden table with chairs around it. Except for two chairs occupied by wax figures, the rest were empty.
Xu Ruosi first checked the walls of the room. Aside from the two doors they had entered through and an air vent, there were no windows or other exits.
"There's a letter on the table." Xie Ling picked up the dusty envelope, opened it, and read the text aloud: "Please have every guest entering the Horror Story Room tell a qualified ghost story."
"Upon completion, there is a fifty percent chance of receiving a clue about the secret of the Museum City."
"Only one story is allowed per session, and only one guest may leave. Violating the rules will result in forfeiting the reward for completing the story."
"To begin the Horror Story session, please take your seats."
After reading, she looked up at the others. "The secret of the Museum City?"
"Could it be related to the missing people?" Long Aotian perked up and immediately urged everyone to sit down.
"Not necessarily," Xu Ruosi said. "This is an amusement park. The Horror Story Room is just one part of it. The clue mentioned in the letter might be about how to play other venues. Don't forget, the Museum City also has areas like the puzzle room."
"It could still be a real clue," Bai Wenxian said after a moment's thought. "Since it's a hidden clue, it should be a special path. It might help us think outside the box."
"Maybe there's even a secret passage!" Long Aotian slammed the table, sending dust flying everywhere. Xie Ling stepped aside.
"Let's play along then." Xu Huo sat down next to a wax figure.
The other three had no objections. They wiped the dust off their chairs and sat down.
As soon as they were seated, the entire room shook violently, then descended like an elevator, dropping about ten meters before stopping.
"We're underground," Bai Wenxian said.
"The owner of the Sun Museum City really knows how to play," Long Aotian remarked with admiration.
With a "click," the lights suddenly went out. Then two flames ignited from the edge of the table, shooting up a few inches before slowly lowering. When the light stabilized, the heads of the wax figures beside the table had begun to melt.
"So they're just two big candles," Xie Ling let out a soft breath. "That makes sense. This atmosphere is better for telling stories."
Xu Huo first put on his "Oxygen Supply."
Bai Wenxian beside him took out a testing prop and checked the air, the flames, and the wax figures. "All clear. No poison and no hallucinogens. Probably just for atmosphere."
Xu Huo showed no embarrassment and said frankly, "I'm afraid of dying. You all do as you please."
Xie Ling, Xu Ruosi, and Long Aotian looked at each other. Except for Xu Ruosi, who was already wearing a mask, the other two brought out their own defensive props. Xie Ling's was a toy doll that blew bubbles, which began purifying the air as soon as she placed it on her shoulder. Long Aotian, in a more straightforward manner, encased his upper body in a transparent barrel-shaped protective shield, then gestured for the others to proceed.
Bai Wenxian, trusting his own judgment, took no protective measures.
"Who goes first?" Long Aotian asked in a muffled voice.
"I'll go," Xu Ruosi spoke up first. "Let me be clear upfront: after I finish my story and leave, please don't try to cut in line. Breaking the rules won't benefit anyone."
"Go ahead," Long Aotian said, assuring her he would absolutely follow the rules.
After receiving nods from the others, Xu Ruosi began, "With everyone as witness, I'll start now."
"The story I'm going to tell today is a personal experience from my grandfather's youth."