Kaleidoscope of Death

After sleeping in the hospital for a whole day, Ruan Nanzhu finally regained consciousness the next day.

Concerned for Ruan Nanzhu’s well-being, Lin Qiushi stayed by his side this entire time and kept watch, out of fear that another accident might befall the other. Several members from the villa visited the ward where Ruan Nanzhu was resting, but they soon left after receiving news that nothing serious happened and that Ruan Nanzhu wasn’t gravely injured.

When Ruan Nanzhu woke up, Lin Qiushi was still browsing the news on his mobile phone. He didn’t know whether he was imagining things, or perhaps even overthinking, but he felt as though quite a lot of people had been met with morbidly tragic accidents within these past two days; in fact, these people had died oddly peculiar, abnormal deaths. In one of the news articles, three individuals, who had been trapped in an elevator that had suddenly malfunctioned, had died almost simultaneously; apparently, a fire broke out in the elevator as it was stuck midair, and the three, who were unable to escape, were burned alive in the end.

After reading the article, Lin Qiushi glanced up at Ruan Nanzhu, only to see that the other’s eyes were open. But although he was awake, he did not say a word or move a muscle; he merely gazed at the ceiling above his head, silent and unresponsive.

Lin Qiushi was very worried about Ruan Nanzhu’s current state. He softly exclaimed, “Nanzhu!”

Yet, Ruan Nanzhu didn’t utter a sound. His gaze slowly drifted towards Lin Qiushi. The depths of his inky eyes swirled with a deep, mysterious emotion, a look so enigmatic that Lin Qiushi simply couldn’t fathom it, no matter how long he stared into the other’s abyss-like eyes.

“Are you thirsty?” Seeing that the other’s lips were slightly dry and cracked, Lin Qiushi went over to his side and carefully supported his body so that he was sitting upright. He then reached for the glass of warm water and brought it up to the other’s mouth. “The doctor said that there aren’t any major problems with your body. You’re just extremely exhausted, and if you continue to tire yourself out, it will result in burnout. Just rest for a few days, and it should be fine.”

Ruan Nanzhu steadily gulped the water down. He closed his eyes and exhaled deeply, before saying, “I know.”

Lin Qiushi asked, “Are you hungry? I’ll bring you some congee.”

“It’s fine. I’m not hungry.” Ruan Nanzhu hoarsely responded. “You’ve been sitting by my side this entire time, which means you also know where my cell phone is, yes?”

Immediately after Lin Qiushi handed him his phone, Ruan Nanzhu dialed a number. Lin Qiushi didn’t know what the person on the other end of the line was saying, or what the two were even discussing, but after a few grunts and hums of understanding, Ruan Nanzhu hung up the phone.

“The theme for Cheng Qianli’s fifth door has appeared.” Ruan Nanzhu declared. “You will enter with him in a couple of days.”

“Alright.” Without an ounce of hesitation or reluctance, Lin Qiushi dutifully accepted Ruan Nanzhu’s arrangements.

“I’ll check out what’s going on here first, but I’ll try to join you two if I can.” Ruan Nanzhu slightly narrowed his eyes. “Though, I am not entirely certain if I will be able to join; it all depends on the situation. However, I will try my best.”

“Don’t push yourself too hard.” Lin Qiushi insisted, “I can go alone. It’ll be fine.”

Ruan Nanzhu simply shook his head without answering.

Soon after, Lin Qiushi learned that this was actually Ruan Nanzhu’s tenth door. The man who had entered with him was from another organization, and he was also on his tenth door. The relationship between the two was fairly good; in fact, they were somewhat close to one another. Unfortunately, the only one who managed to survive and escape from their shared tenth door was Ruan Nanzhu.

“Only I, and some random woman I’ve never met before, survived in the end.” Once they returned to the villa, Ruan Nanzhu briefly described what happened to him in the door world. “That woman definitely wasn’t an ordinary person.”

Someone who was capable of living through their tenth door was obviously someone who shouldn’t be taken lightly or trifled with.

“Cheng Qianli, have you received any hints on your door yet?” Ruan Nanzhu seemed rather reluctant to continue speaking about his recent door experience, so he swiftly diverted the conversation.

“Yup.” Cheng Qianli pertly replied. “I also gathered a bit of information about my next door the night you fainted.” He fished out a slip of paper from his pocket. “Here, big brother Ruan.”

Ruan Nanzhu finished reading the what was written on the piece of paper, then handed it over to Lin Qiushi, who was sitting beside him. “Take a look. This is going to be your next door, as well.”

“Oh.” Lin Qiushi took the note, only to see two words written on the slip of paper—Sister Drum¹.

“What is this?” Lin Qiushi simply could not understand what these words signified. “Is this referring to a musical instrument?”

“Nope. It’s the name of a song.” Cheng Qianli had roughly investigated the context behind these words. “The entire song basically focuses on a young girl looking everywhere for her older sister….”

“That’s all?” Ruan Nanzhu stared at Cheng Qianli.

Under the other’s intense scrutiny, Cheng Qianli lowered his eyes. “There’s probably more to it.” He scratched his head in embarrassment and grinned, “But, I mean, it was getting a bit late, and I didn’t have much time to research a lot, eheh.”

Sitting near him, Cheng Yixie languidly remarked, “Yeah, just keep taking it easy like always. No doubt you’ll still be this carefree when Death comes for you.”

Cheng Qianli: “Oh wow, you’re seriously going to be like that? How could you even say something like that to your little brother! I still have a few days left, alright?!”

Upon seeing the two brothers start quarrelling again, Ruan Nanzhu held up his hand in a stop gesture. “Go and find out the details of your door as soon as possible. As of this moment, the exact time you’ll be entering the door hasn’t been confirmed just yet; there’s still the possibility of you entering earlier than expected. Don’t make any mistakes.”

“Okay.” Cheng Qianli obediently answered.

Fortunately, it didn’t take too long to find more information. But the moment they discovered the backstory behind these lyrics, a penetrating chill ran down Lin Qiushi’s spine, stimulating every little hair on his body.

The lyrics to “Sister Drum” were, as follow²:

Mute as she had been since a little girl,

My sister left home when I was young

Since then, I’ve been thinking of her day after day

O my elder sister

Till I grew as old as she used to be

I suddenly understood her heart

Since then, I’ve been looking for her day after day

O my elder sister

An old man was sitting at Mani Ruins

Reciting the same words over again

An Ma Ni Ba Mi Hong

An Ma Ni Ba Mi Hong

At first glance, this appeared to be a touching tale of a devoted younger sister looking for her mute elder sister. But after examining the context of this song, they came to realize that the song was far from the touching story they had initially believed it to be; in actuality, it was gruesome story about a human skin drum.

Long ago, there was a religious custom where people would skin a pure maiden alive and use her skin to create a drum. According to legends, by beating the top of these human skin drums, one could connect the string of life and death and transcended the cycle of reincarnation, ultimately breaking free from this karmic chain of birth and death.

In the song, the mute older sister was said to have willingly offered herself to be made into a drum, but whether her offering was truly voluntary was a subject of debate.

“The person in charge of the ritual had to choose the skin of a young girl who never experienced love in her life. Such virginal skin was said to be the purest in form. And if she were mute, it would be better, for the mute could never lie, thus her soul could never have been tainted by blackened deceits.” Cheng Qianli read the information he found about this aloud. “Furthermore, the maiden’s skin had to be peeled as her uncorrupted heart still beat. A warm human skin drum made from a live, chaste maiden would produce a perfect timbre…” After he finished reading the passage, he shivered. “Thank God today’s society is ruled by law.”

The actions of humans were sometimes far more terrifying and viler than any ghosts.

Lin Qiushi added on, “The song’s artist said that she came across the younger sister searching for her older sister as she was travelling. Apparently, the younger sister did not know why her older sister suddenly disappeared, until she heard the six-syllabled mantra, Om Mani Padme Hum³, and the steady beating of the drums echoing from the horizon.”

Silently listening on as the others discussed what they found, Ruan Nanzhu remained noncommittal. As of this moment, his complexion was wan and the expression on his face was grave. Although the doctor said that his body hadn’t sustained any critical injuries and that he was fine, that didn’t mean that his mind hadn’t suffered; after all, damage to one’s mind and spirit was always hard to detect, even for doctors.

Sitting quietly beside him, Cheng Yixie suddenly announced, “I’ll accompany them inside this time. You still need to rest.”

Ruan Nanzhu repeated, “You’ll accompany them inside?”

Cheng Yixie nodded. Although he was the same age as Cheng Qianli, he was undoubtedly more mature and composed than Cheng Qianli; he acted nothing like the seventeen-year-old boy he was. In a way, he and Ruan Nanzhu gave off a similar vibe, resembling each other to some extent.

“I’ll consider it.” Ruan Nanzhu swept a glance at Lin Qiushi as he offhandedly responded to Cheng Yixie without directly agreeing to his proposal.

Cheng Yixie’s brows knitted slightly. He seemingly could not understand the reason for Ruan Nanzhu’s hesitation, but in the end, he did not object and simply grunted in acknowledgment.

Although Ruan Nanzhu’s current condition wasn’t looking too good, he fortunately managed to escape from that dangerous door world with his life intact.

That evening, everyone planned to hold a celebration. Lu Yanxue went to the kitchen to prepare a grand feast, and Lin Qiushi accompanied her, intending to give her a hand whenever she needed help. Soon, he found that Lu Yanxue’s cooking skills were exceptionally impressive. When he enquired about her skills, he discovered that Lu Yanxue used to be a private chef and owned her own restaurant. But after she encountered the doors, she immediately closed down her shop and began living in the villa as a member of the team.

“In all honesty, my cooking isn’t even the best.” Lu Yanxue admitted. “Zhang Jiao’s cooking is even better than mine. He isn’t here right now, but wait until he comes back. Just one bite of his cooking, and you won’t be able to forget that amazing taste in your entire life; you’ll be a slave to his delicious food forever. But, if I had to say so myself, you’re also quite skilled at cooking. Do you cook often?”

“I lived alone.” Lin Qiushi bowed his head and skillfully chopped up the vegetables on the cutting board. “So, I would always busy myself with something.”

Before long, food was served on the table, and several bottles of fine wine were opened. The atmosphere at the dining table was very lighthearted and festive; there wasn’t the slightest wisp of angst or unease floating about the room. Everyone jovially chatted and laughed amongst themselves, completely relaxed and free of any worries.

Lin Qiushi even drank two cups of wine, but he didn’t touch any more. His heart was heavy, and his mind was still occupied with countless thoughts; he was afraid that he’d get drunk and distracted.

Ruan Nanzhu, on the other hand, was quite a heavyweight. As someone who could hold his liquor very well, he downed an entire bottle of wine by himself and didn’t show any signs of intoxication.

After the satisfying meal, everyone dispersed. Lin Qiushi also returned to his room, and the first thing he did was take a hot shower. The instant he stepped out of the bathroom after washing up, he spotted Ruan Nanzhu sitting on his bed, patiently waiting for him.

“What’s the matter, Nanzhu? Is something wrong?” Lin Qiushi casually dried his hair with a towel, as he strode over to the other’s side.

“I need you.” Ruan Nanzhu solemnly uttered.

Lin Qiushi was stunned on the spot when he heard the other’s unexpected words. “What…what do you mean?”

“It’s just as I said.” Ruan Nanzhu stressed, “You can’t die.”

Such an abrupt statement truly sounded too ambiguous to Lin Qiushi’s ears, but as a straight man⁴, who was obstinately unbending, extremely forthright and rather daft at times, Lin Qiushi didn’t think much of this and just casually dismissed it. He asked, “Can you explain it to me more clearly?”

Ruan Nanzhu gave him one simple, parting sentence, “Some people are born for these doors.”

Having declared this, he stood up and walked out of the room, leaving behind an utterly baffled Lin Qiushi.

Lin Qiushi kept getting the feeling that some changes occurred within Ruan Nanzhu ever since he came out of his tenth door. But, at this very moment, he couldn’t exactly put a finger on what those changes were.

After a few days of resting and idling about, Ruan Nanzhu’s condition gradually improved.

Lin Qiushi knew that he would be facing his third door in a couple of days, so he began actively preparing himself for the perils to come.

But the active preparation for this upcoming dreadful door was, in fact, simply watching horror movies with Cheng Qianli in the middle of the night.

“Will this really help us?” Lin Qiushi felt rather skeptical.

“Oh, it’ll help. It’ll help a ton. The more we watch, the less scared we’ll be. Trust me,” assured Cheng Qianli, holding a big bag of potato chips in his arms.

“Shouldn’t we be looking for more clues…?” Filled with doubts, Lin Qiushi still thought this so-called ‘active preparation’ was quite unreliable and, truth to be told, completely useless.

“There’s no need. The door this time is pretty simple. Not to mention, we already have so many clues, so what’s the point in looking for more?” Munching loudly on his chips, Cheng Qianli stared unblinkingly at the television screen. “Woah! Look, it’s another lady ghost!”

While the two were absorbed in the film, Toast was lying belly-down on a cushion nearby the sofa, stupidly wagging its tongue and gawking at Chestnut, who was leisurely nestled in the corner of the couch, lazily swinging its tail in the air.

Yi Manman happened to pass by the two, and upon seeing Lin Qiushi join Cheng Qianli in watching the television, he merely heaved a long sigh, shook his head, and went off on his way.

Lin Qiushi began to wonder why Yi Manman sighed like that, but not even three minutes later, he got his answer—Cheng Qianli was truly the #1, unbeatable coward who would never fail to get scared when it came to ghosts.

As soon as another ghost popped up on the screen, he started screeching like a chicken that was about to be castrated. Scared utterly shitless, he tried drilling himself between the crack in the sofa, as if that would save him from the terror of ghosts.

Lin Qiushi was beyond startled by the little boy’s exaggerated reaction, “Are you that scared?”

Trembling violently in fear, Cheng Qianli retorted, “You’re saying you’re not?”

Lin Qiushi: “Well, although I am slightly afraid, I’m not afraid to that extent. Also, could you please stop squeezing my arm like that…” He felt like his arm had been cut off by Cheng Qianli; he literally could not feel anything in his strangled arm.

Cheng Qianli released his tight grip on Lin Qiushi’s numbed arm, allowing the blood to finally circulate, then instantly turned around to seize Chestnut and hug it, but Lin Qiushi quickly stopped the boy and said, “Wait, nevermind. You can continue holding onto me.”

Cheng Qianli was moved to tears, and he gratefully sniveled, “You’re such a good person, Lin Qiushi.”

Lin Qiushi: “…” It’s not that I’m a good person. I’m just afraid I’ll lose my precious cat.

They hadn’t even finished watching half of the last horror movie, when Cheng Qianli let out the most earsplitting squawk, shaking the entire house. Lin Qiushi had long grown deaf from all that blaring screeching. His very first reaction after seeing the ghost jump out on the screen wasn’t to recoil at the jump-scare but to get as far away from Cheng Qianli as possible.

The boy’s cry was so wretched and disruptive, that it drew attention from upstairs, forcing those who had already gone to bed to come downstairs and see what the commotion was all about.

“Goddammit…What the hell are you yapping for! Cheng Qianli, are you asking for a beating, huh?! One minute you’re howling like a wolf, the next minute you’re wailing like a miserable ghost. Don’t you know that it’s the middle of the night?!” Lu Yanxue furiously stomped down the stairs with a green facemask on. At the intimidating sight of her, both Cheng Qianli and Lin Qiushi nearly had a heart attack, and they sprung back in fright.

“I’m scared!” Cheng Qianli moaned.

“You’re that scared, yet you’re still watching those horror movies!” Lu Yanxue exasperatingly spat out. “Let me just tell you this. If I were a ghost, I would’ve long been frightened to death because of you!”

Cheng Qianli: “But I’m entering the door in just two days! Cut me some slack.”

Lu Yanxue sternly replied, “Wait until you enter the door. And then, you can continue screaming your head off, for all I care. In any case, no one’s ears will bleed with those godawful bird screeches anymore; go torture someone else with your cries.”

Puffing out his cheeks, Cheng Qianli stubbornly huffed, “No! I’m going to keep screaming, and you guys are going to keep hearing my screams—eeeyyaaauuugghhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!”

Lu Yanxue: “Cheng Yixie! Get down here and control this stupid, bratty little brother of yours, before he brings this whole place down!!!”

Cheng Qianli: “…”

At Lu Yanxue’s shout, Cheng Yixie sluggishly came downstairs in his pajamas. With a face void of any emotion, he shot an inscrutable glance at Cheng Qianli, and without the slightest change in tone, he chillingly directed one sentence at the other, “If I hear another word come out of your mouth tonight, I’ll throw you inside the door with my own two hands, and you’ll be going in alone.”

Cheng Qianli: “…”

Cheng Yixie then turned to face Lin Qiushi, “Good night.”

Lin Qiushi didn’t know whether to cry or laugh. “Good night.”

And so, with just one sentence from the older brother, the matter concerning the problematic screaming chicken was solved.

Before Lu Yanxue retired to her room, she told Lin Qiushi to not watch any more horror movies with Cheng Qianli next time.

Lin Qiushi vigorously bobbed his head, indicating that there would absolutely be no next time.

Poor Cheng Qianli exposed an aggrieved expression beside him, like a pitiful wife who was betrayed by her scoundrel husband.

Once Lu Yanxue left, Lin Qiushi decided to chat with Cheng Qianli a bit. However, Cheng Qianli didn’t dare open his mouth to speak. He pulled out his cellphone and began typing out what he wanted to say.

Lin Qiushi: “You’re seriously not going to talk? Wasn’t your older brother merely joking?”

Cheng Qianli typed: He never jokes.

Lin Qiushi: “…Ah, well, I’ll head off to bed now. Good night, I suppose?”

Cheng Qianli typed: Good night.

Having finally escaped that dreadful situation of “The Chicken Who Cried Ghost”, Lin Qiushi hurried back to his room to get some sleep.

The next morning, Chen Fei asked, “Now, who was the foolish individual who deemed it a splendid idea to accompany Cheng Qianli in watching a horror movie yesterday night?”

Feeling awfully embarrassed, Lin Qiushi gloomily pointed at himself.

Chen Fei was silent for about a good three seconds, before lowering his head, “Sorry about that. I forgot to mention this to you. Frankly speaking, everyone here is a bit… eccentric; that is to say, all of the members in this villa have rather peculiar quirks and hobbies. You’ll come to notice it more, the more you interact with everyone.”

Eccentric? Peculiar quirks and hobbies? Lin Qiushi’s first response was to look at Ruan Nanzhu.

In the end, his eyes betrayed his thoughts. Cheng Qianli, who was sitting right beside him, lowered his voice into a hushed whisper and sniggered, “Isn’t it a peculiar quirk to like wearing women’s clothes?”

Lin Qiushi: “…” How could he possibly refute???

Ruan Nanzhu suddenly set down his chopsticks and flatly called out, “Cheng Qianli.”

Cheng Qianli: “Eheheh, y-y-yeah? D-d-did you need something, b-big brother Ruan?”

Ruan Nanzhu said, “Nothing.” He gracefully wiped his mouth and revealed a dashing smile. “I just wanted to say your name.”

Terrified by the other’s calm smile, Cheng Qianli instantly closed his mouth, as if he’d eaten a sour lemon; he even looked as though he wished he could just sew his own mouth shut.

Lin Qiushi was amused watching them; he found the entire situation simply laughable. He’d initially thought that the atmosphere in the villa would be somewhat tense and serious, but upon arriving here and interacting with the others, he discovered that everyone acted more like a big group of friends and family. Apart from the days where he would enter the door world, every other day was stress-free and easygoing.

Time slowly trickled by, and the moment Lin Qiushi would have to enter the door was approaching.

The night before they entered the door, Ruan Nanzhu made a decision and announced that he would personally lead Lin Qiushi and Cheng Qianli inside the door world.

Cheng Yixie objected to his decision, stating that Ruan Nanzhu hadn’t recovered completely and that he was fully capable of leading them instead of Ruan Nanzhu.

“I will not feel at ease.” Resolute, Ruan Nanzhu spoke very calmly. “I know you also do not wish to see any harm come to your younger brother.”

Cheng Yixie grew still. The younger brother, Cheng Qianli, was currently sitting in the living room downstairs, merrily hugging Toast and happily kneading its fluffy bottom. This young, happy-go-lucky kid was utterly oblivious to the sorrows of the world; such an innocent boy didn’t even know the insufferable taste of agony or hopelessness. And Cheng Yixie wanted to keep it that way.

Cheng Yixie questioned, “If Lin Qiushi wasn’t here, would you still insist on leading?”

Ruan Nanzhu: “No.”

Cheng Yixie: “What’s so special about him?”

Ruan Nanzhu let out a small chuckle, “Being cute is something special, is it not?”

Cheng Yixie raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing what Ruan Nanzhu said. Having been in contact with the other for so long, he knew very well that Ruan Nanzhu wasn’t the type to easily be swayed by emotions. The other surely had his own reasons for treasuring Lin Qiushi to that extent; it’s just that, right now, he did not know nor could he come up with any plausible reasons for why Ruan Nanzhu valued Lin Qiushi so much.

But with the matter now settled, Cheng Yixie decided to withdraw and no longer continued to entangle himself with the issue.

Because they would be entering Cheng Qianli’s door this time, the three individuals stuck together like glue for the next few days. They were always by each other’s side, nearly every second of the day; in fact, if one of them wanted to go to the bathroom, the other two would have no choice but to follow.

Luckily for them, this awkward, restrictive situation did not last too long. On the afternoon of the tenth day, Lin Qiushi was leaning on the sofa, playing a game with Cheng Qianli, while Ruan Nanzhu was seated beside them, reading a book with a cat snuggled in his arms.

Cheng Qianli, who was gleefully playing with Lin Qiushi, seemed to have sensed something at that moment. He suddenly froze, ceasing all actions, and said, “It’s here.”

Ruan Nanzhu asked, “Where?”

Cheng Qianli automatically replied, “The second floor.”

“Let’s go.” Ruan Nanzhu gently set Chestnut down on the ground. Thereafter, all three stood up and headed directly for the second floor.

Upon rounding the corner at the top of the stairs, Lin Qiushi saw that the ordinary corridor had vanished, and in its place were twelve, neatly organized iron doors, four of which were sealed.

“Go ahead.” Ruan Nanzhu nodded at Cheng Qianli.

Cheng Qianli’s face was pale and his hand was quivering, but he still forced a smile. He then stepped forward and tugged hard on the door.

With a heavy groan, the bulky iron door before their eyes was easily pulled open. Lin Qiushi felt an irresistible force dragging him inside the door. A bout of dizziness struck him, his vision blurred, and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. Within mere seconds, the scenery before him had changed dramatically.

Lin Qiushi promptly took out his mobile phone and glanced at it. It was as he’d expected, there was no signal. He followed along the sole trail. With the ground beneath him crunching with every step he took, he marched onwards. He didn’t need to walk for long, before he spotted a lone young woman, squatting at the side of the road, sobbing sporadically.

The girl was curled up into a ball, and she wept until she was gasping for air, practically hyperventilating. Seeing her reaction, Lin Qiushi was struck with an odd sense of familiarity; he knew this scene from somewhere. As he pondered on it, he suddenly recalled that his first encounter with Ruan Nanzhu was just like so; in fact, these two scenarios might as well have been mirror images of each other…

Could this person possibly be Ruan Nanzhu? Lin Qiushi halted in his step. With a complicated expression marking his face, he gazed at the pitiful girl who had been bawling excessively for quite some time.

The girl continued crying for ages, and when she finally looked up, she saw Lin Qiushi looking down at her with knitted brows. Frightened by the other’s unexpected appearance, she anxiously scrambled backwards. Sheer terror and panic was written all of her face. “Who are you? What are you planning to do to me? Why—This—Where am I?”

Hearing her incoherent blubbers, Lin Qiushi breathed a sigh of relief. He was now certain that this girl was not Ruan Nanzhu. He asked, “Have you just arrived here?”

The young woman nodded her head pitifully. Her appearance was quite lovely. She wasn’t that tall and she possessed delicate features; all in all, she was like a feeble little animal whose endearing looks stirred affection and the desire to protect within other people’s hearts.

Lin Qiushi offered her a comforting smile, “Come, let’s go. It’s getting dark. We must hurry to our destination before night falls.”

Bewildered, the girl stammered, “D-destination? Where are we going? Who are you? Where is this place? I’m not at my house? What’s going on?”

Lin Qiushi’s head was swimming after having been hit by a series of questions. At long last, he realized why the people in the villa tended to treat rookies with contempt. It was because every rookie would pretty much resemble that infuriating book series, “I Wonder Why”—or practically any other godforsaken book that people simply wanted to tear up and burn to ashes.

“How about we walk and talk.” Lin Qiushi could only explain so much in a short amount of time. Seeing that Lin Qiushi gave off a gentle, kind aura and didn’t immediately attack her, the girl’s confidence and courage grew slightly. Although she still harbored some suspicions, the girl eventually followed after the friendly-looking Lin Qiushi.

The two plodded all the way down the trail. As they trudged along the path, Lin Qiushi briefly described the circumstances of the world beyond the doors. He naturally did not go into further specifics, because he reckoned that it would take more than a full day to explain every little detail. The girl also introduced herself as Xu Jin. She was originally on her way outside, so she headed downstairs to leave her house, but as soon as she walked to the staircase, she saw twelve iron doors in front of her…

Half an hour later, the two reached the end of the trail and stumbled upon the entrance to remote village located in the midst of a lush jungle.

This exotic village was brimming with an air of strange fascination and intriguing bizarreness. The buildings were almost entirely constructed out of wood. Supported by durable sticks below, the quaint houses were suspended in the air, like slightly elevated tree houses. Decorations that bore an uncanny resemblance to bones hung outside these primitive houses. The specific material that was used to create such realistic bone-like ornaments was unknown.

“You’ve finally arrived, welcome.” Not long after arriving at the entrance of the village, they were enthusiastically welcomed by someone. The one to greet them was a woman. She continued, “The others have already entered the house. They are waiting inside for you.” As she said this, she pointed towards the large wooden building at the side.

“Excuse me, but where exactly is this place?” Xu Jin raised the same question she had been asking since she got here.

The woman did not answer; she merely watched them with a smiling expression on her face. At first, Lin Qiushi thought the lady’s smile was very cordial and warm, but the more he stared at her, the more he felt that her broad smile was particularly eerie. No matter what they asked her, the woman did not respond; it was as if she was mute. She simply kept looking at them with that same creepy, wide smile pasted on her face.

Lin Qiushi suspected that this woman was not someone from outside the door, but an NPC inside the door world.

Xu Jin was also feeling unsettled by her disturbing smile; she shuffled a bit to the side to avoid the other’s line of sight. Lin Qiushi then said, “Let’s go ahead and check the situation out first.”

Xu Jin gave a slight nod.

The two climbed the stairs to enter the wooden building, but before they could even open the door and step foot inside, they heard the sounds of what seemed to be a fierce argument.

“Fuck you all! Where the hell is this place? And don’t you fucking try to lie to me! I’ll have you know I already called the police!!!” …Everything about this line was awfully familiar to a certain somebody. It certainly didn’t take Lin Qiushi long to figure out what was going on inside.

Author’s Comment:

Hahahaha, I read a comment yesterday and learned something new: 嘤雄救美

Lin Qiushi: Stop crying already.

Ruan Nanzhu: Would you rather I cry, or would you rather I make you cry instead?

Lin Qiushi: … Ah, actually, now that I think about it, your crying isn’t so bad…

Translator’s Comment:

Welp, here comes Zeng Ruguo Ver 2.0. How long do you think this guy will last?

Anywho, the author’s comment is pretty lost in translation. I tried my best to translate this into English and preserve as much of the meaning as possible, but well…word plays can’t translate perfectly…

First, 嘤雄救美 is just a funnier, more slang-like variation of英雄救美 which just means “the hero saves the beauty/damsel in distress”. This version apparently expresses an emoji and is normally used online and in games—kind of like “herosmugface.jpg”.

Now, for the short skit/mini theatre: There are two “ying” characters the author uses. 嘤嘤嘤 (yīngyīngyīng) which is cute weeping/sobbing/crying noises and 硬硬硬 (yìngyìngyìng) which means hard/swollen/bulging/erected. Basically, Ruan Nanzhu makes a play on these characters since they sound exactly the same. The literal translation of the dialogue is more so:

LQS: Stop crying (嘤嘤嘤).

RNZ: If I can’t cry (嘤嘤嘤) [like this] then I guess the only other option left for me is to get hard (硬硬硬) [and make you cry instead].

LQS: …Crying (嘤嘤嘤) [like that] actually isn’t so bad.

¹阿姐鼓—The original is “three characters”, but it would technically be two words when translated. “Sister Drum” is the title of a famous song that is based on now-prohibited, cruel cultural practices in ancient Tibet—that is, skinning a pure maiden alive and creating a drum out of her skin. Some say this ancient tradition is merely a myth, while others say that it was real; in any case, this is the only known backstory for the song.

²The author only included the first couple of verses, meaning these aren’t the full lyrics. You can find the full lyrics in the two links I provided. The first one is the only English link that I could find that somewhat discussed both the song and the context, and the second one is in Chinese, but it goes into a lot more detail: LINK to Wiki  ||  LINKto Baidu Baike

³A variation of “An Ma Ni Ba Mi Hong”. This famous Buddhist mantra has several different pronunciations, but they all hold the same meaning and chanting it aloud is said to bring one blessing, help purify one’s soul, and allow one to attain enlightenment. Here’s a LINKin Chinese explaining this. And here is one in English explaining this: LINK

⁴钢铁直男 (gāngtiě zhí nán)—Literal: Steel straight man. Internet slang that refers to a guy who is very frank, nonchalant, indelicate and oblivious, but still endearing in other people’s eyes. Apparently, this word could also refer to a man who is straight (in regard to his sexuality); however, the meaning of this word has changed so much that there isn’t just one strict definition to it now. Feel free to share a better word for this. Here’s a LINKto the Chinese explanation.