Chapter 25 – матрёшка 25 (End Instance)
Everything went smoothly the next few days. Under the guidance of the arrow, the two quickly found four other dolls. During this period, the rabbit still visited them once every night. On the first night he was dumbfounded and asked them where all the others had gone. After that he only came to ask in a perfunctory manner, “Still looking right? Then I’ll be going okay.”
Then he really left.
It seems that the rabbit was quite helpless. If it weren’t for the two of them still wandering here, it is estimated that the rabbit would have knocked off work early.
After the tenth doll was found, the arrow disappeared. It seems that there were no more dolls. When they gave all the dolls to the rabbit, the rabbit was really happy and even thanked them sincerely. He very readily took out a small gift box tied with a butterfly ribbon, saying that it was an extra award.
Lian Qiao took the gift box and was surprised: “You’re giving it to us so easily? I thought you would make things difficult for us again for the sake of it..”
The rabbit looked at him contemptuously: “Make things difficult for you? Why would I do that? I want to go get rid of you as soon as possible and go home to sleep. You two troublemakers, I can’t kill you and you won’t leave either. It’s really annoying!”
As a dog in the finance industry who often has to work overtime, Xu RenDong can say that he understands the rabbit very well.
Lian Qiao opened the gift and couldn’t help being surprised: “This is… a key?”
Xu RenDong was taken aback, watching him lift a brass key from the gift box. The key is simple in shape and had no decoration on it, except that there are two words engraved on the handle:
Lian Qiao.
Lian Qiao saw that there was his own name on it and couldn’t help being shocked: “Fuck, does this thing bind on pick up!”
Xu RenDong: “What’s bind on pickup?”
Lian Qiao explained it to him. This is a saying in online games that when the player picks up an item, the system automatically binds the item to the player. Unless it is unbound by other means, the item cannot be traded or given to others.
Xu RenDong nodded. Lian Qiao turned his head and asked the rabbit: “Is this key used to open a treasure chest?”
Rabbit: “I don’t know. It’s useless to me anyway.” Lian Qiao said thoughtfully, “So, does this mean this is a prop that can be used in future instances?”
The rabbit spread his hands as if saying: Don’t ask me, this is beyond my scope of cognition.
It seems that it really doesn’t know and it was useless to ask more questions. When Xu RenDong came back to his senses, the rabbit had already hopped away. That back figure is really lively, vividly expressing the euphoria of the working dog finally ushering in the weekend.
Although there were still puzzles left to be solved, they can finally leave.
The two went to the elevator and until the elevator door closed, Xu RenDong still had a sense of unreality. He can’t remember how long he has been in this ghost world and it took him a while to remember where and what he was doing before he came in.
The silver-white metal elevator reflected icy light, which was a scene he would see again every time he died. He almost has a delusion: that in here was the reality and the outside world was the illusion.
—He had really been trapped for too long, so long that mental problems had begun to appear. It was probably best to see a psychiatrist after going out but what could he tell them? Say that he saw ghosts and died miserably so many times that it left a shadow in his heart?
If he couldn’t tell the truth, how could he talk about it? The knot in his heart would never be able to be unraveled and his mental condition will only get worse and worse.
Xu RenDong thought this and then Lian Qiao, beside him, suddenly said: “Brother RenDong, after we go out, can we still…”
Xu RenDong’s heart trembled when he heard the long-lost name. He was about to speak when he suddenly heard a strange voice.
“…is…you want…”
Who was talking? Was there someone else in the elevator?!
Xu RenDong straightened his body instinctively and looked around but he couldn’t find anything unusual. The voice was low and hoarse, like yellow sand whimpering in the desert, it was intermittent and could only be heard sometimes.
Xu RenDong frowned. Seeing the wary look on his face, Lian Qiao immediately misunderstood. He swallowed what he wanted to say.
Xu RenDong didn’t have time to think about where his little emotions were coming from. He just asked anxiously: “Did you hear it?”
Lian Qiao: “…Huh?”
Lian Qiao couldn’t hear it? Could it be this voice was talking directly into his head?
At the same time, the voice continued: “You will experience countless tortures, but this is not…, it is…, when you reach…, you will understand…”
Experience countless deaths and tortures?
…Sure enough, it was a message for him.
For some reason, Xu RenDong intuitively believed that the voice was not malicious. It seemed as though it was forcibly restraining a certain strong emotion. It was depressed, choked, desperate but hopeful, and the last sentence it said was:
“… live on.”
Then it stopped abruptly.
Obviously, the voice wanted to tell him something, but it was blocked by something like a static.
Xu RenDong quickly sorted it out inwardly: *** is ***, you want ***. You will experience countless tortures, but this is not ***, it is ***. When you reach ***, you will understand ***. *** live on.
Except for the phrase “you will experience countless torture”, all other keywords had been deliberately erased.
This information must be very important. But Xu RenDong cannot draw any conclusions for the time being. He just secretly wrote down these words in his head, intending to puzzle it over after leaving the ghost world.
When he recovered, Lian Qiao was looking at him in an aggrieved manner. Xu RenDong then recalled that Lian Qiao had said something just now and was about to ask him about it but then he heard a “ding”. The elevator door opened.
The two looked out the door at the same time, only to see a soft and warm white light, nothing else could be seen. The white light made people feel extremely at ease, as if they had returned to the embrace of their mother and all dangers were gone.
It was finally over…
No, it’s not totally over but only temporary.
Xu RenDong looked at the bright light and was full of emotion in his heart. After thinking about it, he took out his mobile phone from his pocket: “Let’s add each other on WeChat.”
Lian Qiao was taken aback and then opened his mouth in surprise. He looked like a hamster had dropped the nut in its mouth in surprise. Xu RenDong didn’t understand why he reacted so strongly, so he explained: “This matter is not over yet. You are smart, capable and adaptable, however I— ”
It’s a pity, even if he was only thinking about the matter of his reincarnations, his tongue became stiff and numb. Xu RenDong was accustomed to this and had to dispel the idea of confessing the truth.
So he could only tell a lie: “…You are a very good newcomer, I admire you. I hope you can cooperate with me in the future.”
Lian Qiao looked at him blankly and a trace of disappointment flashed in his eyes. But he quickly took out his mobile phone and added him as a WeChat friend.
Xu RenDong said: “I live in City A, how about you?”
Lian Qiao: “I’m in City B. I’ll come to find you.”
Xu RenDong nodded and sent him the location of his home. After Lian Qiao confirmed the position, he curved his eyes and smiled again: “Then, Brother RenDong, I’ll come to find you.”
Xu RenDong heard that familiar name again and a warm current surged in his heart. There was also something else, an unspeakable emotion lingering in his chest. He suddenly felt a little uncomfortable and avoiding Lian Qiao’s gaze, he turned his head and said, “Let’s go out together.”
Lian Qiao said, “Okay.”
Xu RenDong took a deep breath and then walked into the elevator side by side with Lian Qiao.
The warm white light instantly surrounded the two of them and the light was so bright that it caused a momentary dizziness. After the dizziness passed, Xu RenDong opened his eyes and found that the light had faded. The elevator and Lian Qiao had both vanished. He was standing on the street at night.
Across the road are two panicked girls. Behind them, an old man was walking a puppy and his raised left foot landed steadily on the ground. In the supermarket across the road, the clerk had just taken the customer’s money and a few coins slipped from his fingers and fell onto the glass counter.
… He really was back. Back to the moment he left.
But soon, a strong sense of crisis hit him!
The nerves of Xu RenDong’s whole body straightened almost instantly. He turned his head instinctively and saw a large truck barrelling towards him! The headlights of the truck were so bright that he couldn’t open his eyes. His adrenaline surged, his heartbeat suddenly accelerated and his heart was pounding and painful. He wanted to evade it but his muscles seemed to be filled with cement and he couldn’t move an inch. He was like a frightened chicken, standing rigidly in place, unable to make any movements.
Seeing that the truck was about to hit him, Xu RenDong felt cold in his limbs and the blood in his body was losing temperature.
Time seems to be stretched out very long. He heard the screams of girls, the brakes of tires rubbing against the ground and the barking of dogs. He raised his head amidst the noisy commotion and met the eyes of the driver of the truck.
At that moment, both of their faces showed an expression of horror at the same time.
It’s you?!
The truck driver, as if waking up from a dream, turned the steering wheel vigorously. Xu RenDong was still frozen by unknown forces and was unable to move the slightest. He only felt a hot wind blowing from his side, followed by a loud noise.
“Boom!”
The source of the sound was not far from him, and at the same time he realized that he was able to move, so he immediately turned around. After seeing the sight in front of him clearly, his pupils suddenly shrank and the huge shock made him feel cold and his hair stand up straight. The horror turned into an entity, impacting his heart, causing his heart to tremble with his body.
—The big truck had lost its balance while making a sharp turn, and the whole truck crashed into the shop by the side of the road! The lights in the shop were all off and it was pitch black. Only black smoke was seen from the front of the smashed truck. The driver’s fate was uncertain!
The scene of the driver’s eyes facing each other resurfaced. Xu RenDong’s legs softened and he fell directly to the ground. People around him took out their mobile phones, took pictures and dialled 120. Xu RenDong suppressed his fear and forced himself to get up from the ground and stagger towards the truck.
“Don’t go there! Danger!”A kind passer-by stepped forward and pulled him but Xu RenDong pushed him away and stubbornly ran to the front of the car. He saw that the front of the car had collapsed and the door was deformed into a twisted shape. It couldn’t be opened no matter how much it was pulled. The truck cab was too high and Xu RenDong was standing on the ground, unable to see what was inside. At this time, the truck engine was full of smoke, the nose was full of gasoline and there was even a faint sparkle. Xu RenDong ignored the danger and climbed onto the front of the car with his hands and feet.
This was something he must confirm! It was very important!
“It’s going to explode! Run!” The kind-hearted man rushed forward again and forcibly pulled him down. But between the sparks and fire, Xu RenDong had already seen what he needed to see clearly.
—Blue clothing, a familiar face. Bloodstained and unconscious.
That was the young man whose body was torn apart by rabbits on the first night! That was the person he wanted to save but failed to save!
Xu RenDong only felt that his brain was blank and he was dragged to a safe place. Then a ball of fire suddenly appeared in front of him! The huge explosion shook him back to his senses. Only then did he feel the heat rushing over his face. The truck had been swallowed by the raging fire and the driver in the truck was definitely dead.
All the way until 119, 120, and 110 all arrived and the police pulled him aside to question him, Xu RenDong couldn’t fully recover. He only felt that everything had happened too suddenly and it was too strange. His brain simply refused to accept it, let alone be able to analyze it. He couldn’t respond to any of the police officer’s questions at all.
The police thought he was in shock and left after getting his contact information. The medical staff bandaged Xu RenDong’s wound and told him that he only had a bruise and no broken bones. However, whether the internal organs have been affected by the shockwave of the explosion still needed to be checked to make sure. Xu RenDong sat in the ambulance, listening to the sound of police sirens and suddenly felt that all this was unreal.
Was he really back in reality? Or was this a new ghost world?
Xu RenDong suddenly felt extremely tired. Really too tired, he has no strength to struggle anymore. So, under the surprised eyes of the medical staff, he lay down on the stretcher, curled up and hugged himself helplessly, then fell asleep.
***
Chapter 25 – матрёшка 25 (End Instance)
Everything went smoothly the next few days. Under the guidance of the arrow, the two quickly found four other dolls. During this period, the rabbit still visited them once every night. On the first night he was dumbfounded and asked them where all the others had gone. After that he only came to ask in a perfunctory manner, “Still looking right? Then I’ll be going okay.”
Then he really left.
It seems that the rabbit was quite helpless. If it weren’t for the two of them still wandering here, it is estimated that the rabbit would have knocked off work early.
After the tenth doll was found, the arrow disappeared. It seems that there were no more dolls. When they gave all the dolls to the rabbit, the rabbit was really happy and even thanked them sincerely. He very readily took out a small gift box tied with a butterfly ribbon, saying that it was an extra award.
Lian Qiao took the gift box and was surprised: “You’re giving it to us so easily? I thought you would make things difficult for us again for the sake of it..”
The rabbit looked at him contemptuously: “Make things difficult for you? Why would I do that? I want to go get rid of you as soon as possible and go home to sleep. You two troublemakers, I can’t kill you and you won’t leave either. It’s really annoying!”
As a dog in the finance industry who often has to work overtime, Xu RenDong can say that he understands the rabbit very well.
Lian Qiao opened the gift and couldn’t help being surprised: “This is… a key?”
Xu RenDong was taken aback, watching him lift a brass key from the gift box. The key is simple in shape and had no decoration on it, except that there are two words engraved on the handle:
Lian Qiao.
Lian Qiao saw that there was his own name on it and couldn’t help being shocked: “Fuck, does this thing bind on pick up!”
Xu RenDong: “What’s bind on pickup?”
Lian Qiao explained it to him. This is a saying in online games that when the player picks up an item, the system automatically binds the item to the player. Unless it is unbound by other means, the item cannot be traded or given to others.
Xu RenDong nodded. Lian Qiao turned his head and asked the rabbit: “Is this key used to open a treasure chest?”
Rabbit: “I don’t know. It’s useless to me anyway.” Lian Qiao said thoughtfully, “So, does this mean this is a prop that can be used in future instances?”
The rabbit spread his hands as if saying: Don’t ask me, this is beyond my scope of cognition.
It seems that it really doesn’t know and it was useless to ask more questions. When Xu RenDong came back to his senses, the rabbit had already hopped away. That back figure is really lively, vividly expressing the euphoria of the working dog finally ushering in the weekend.
Although there were still puzzles left to be solved, they can finally leave.
The two went to the elevator and until the elevator door closed, Xu RenDong still had a sense of unreality. He can’t remember how long he has been in this ghost world and it took him a while to remember where and what he was doing before he came in.
The silver-white metal elevator reflected icy light, which was a scene he would see again every time he died. He almost has a delusion: that in here was the reality and the outside world was the illusion.
—He had really been trapped for too long, so long that mental problems had begun to appear. It was probably best to see a psychiatrist after going out but what could he tell them? Say that he saw ghosts and died miserably so many times that it left a shadow in his heart?
If he couldn’t tell the truth, how could he talk about it? The knot in his heart would never be able to be unraveled and his mental condition will only get worse and worse.
Xu RenDong thought this and then Lian Qiao, beside him, suddenly said: “Brother RenDong, after we go out, can we still…”
Xu RenDong’s heart trembled when he heard the long-lost name. He was about to speak when he suddenly heard a strange voice.
“…is…you want…”
Who was talking? Was there someone else in the elevator?!
Xu RenDong straightened his body instinctively and looked around but he couldn’t find anything unusual. The voice was low and hoarse, like yellow sand whimpering in the desert, it was intermittent and could only be heard sometimes.
Xu RenDong frowned. Seeing the wary look on his face, Lian Qiao immediately misunderstood. He swallowed what he wanted to say.
Xu RenDong didn’t have time to think about where his little emotions were coming from. He just asked anxiously: “Did you hear it?”
Lian Qiao: “…Huh?”
Lian Qiao couldn’t hear it? Could it be this voice was talking directly into his head?
At the same time, the voice continued: “You will experience countless tortures, but this is not…, it is…, when you reach…, you will understand…”
Experience countless deaths and tortures?
…Sure enough, it was a message for him.
For some reason, Xu RenDong intuitively believed that the voice was not malicious. It seemed as though it was forcibly restraining a certain strong emotion. It was depressed, choked, desperate but hopeful, and the last sentence it said was:
“… live on.”
Then it stopped abruptly.
Obviously, the voice wanted to tell him something, but it was blocked by something like a static.
Xu RenDong quickly sorted it out inwardly: *** is ***, you want ***. You will experience countless tortures, but this is not ***, it is ***. When you reach ***, you will understand ***. *** live on.
Except for the phrase “you will experience countless torture”, all other keywords had been deliberately erased.
This information must be very important. But Xu RenDong cannot draw any conclusions for the time being. He just secretly wrote down these words in his head, intending to puzzle it over after leaving the ghost world.
When he recovered, Lian Qiao was looking at him in an aggrieved manner. Xu RenDong then recalled that Lian Qiao had said something just now and was about to ask him about it but then he heard a “ding”. The elevator door opened.
The two looked out the door at the same time, only to see a soft and warm white light, nothing else could be seen. The white light made people feel extremely at ease, as if they had returned to the embrace of their mother and all dangers were gone.
It was finally over…
No, it’s not totally over but only temporary.
Xu RenDong looked at the bright light and was full of emotion in his heart. After thinking about it, he took out his mobile phone from his pocket: “Let’s add each other on WeChat.”
Lian Qiao was taken aback and then opened his mouth in surprise. He looked like a hamster had dropped the nut in its mouth in surprise. Xu RenDong didn’t understand why he reacted so strongly, so he explained: “This matter is not over yet. You are smart, capable and adaptable, however I— ”
It’s a pity, even if he was only thinking about the matter of his reincarnations, his tongue became stiff and numb. Xu RenDong was accustomed to this and had to dispel the idea of confessing the truth.
So he could only tell a lie: “…You are a very good newcomer, I admire you. I hope you can cooperate with me in the future.”
Lian Qiao looked at him blankly and a trace of disappointment flashed in his eyes. But he quickly took out his mobile phone and added him as a WeChat friend.
Xu RenDong said: “I live in City A, how about you?”
Lian Qiao: “I’m in City B. I’ll come to find you.”
Xu RenDong nodded and sent him the location of his home. After Lian Qiao confirmed the position, he curved his eyes and smiled again: “Then, Brother RenDong, I’ll come to find you.”
Xu RenDong heard that familiar name again and a warm current surged in his heart. There was also something else, an unspeakable emotion lingering in his chest. He suddenly felt a little uncomfortable and avoiding Lian Qiao’s gaze, he turned his head and said, “Let’s go out together.”
Lian Qiao said, “Okay.”
Xu RenDong took a deep breath and then walked into the elevator side by side with Lian Qiao.
The warm white light instantly surrounded the two of them and the light was so bright that it caused a momentary dizziness. After the dizziness passed, Xu RenDong opened his eyes and found that the light had faded. The elevator and Lian Qiao had both vanished. He was standing on the street at night.
Across the road are two panicked girls. Behind them, an old man was walking a puppy and his raised left foot landed steadily on the ground. In the supermarket across the road, the clerk had just taken the customer’s money and a few coins slipped from his fingers and fell onto the glass counter.
… He really was back. Back to the moment he left.
But soon, a strong sense of crisis hit him!
The nerves of Xu RenDong’s whole body straightened almost instantly. He turned his head instinctively and saw a large truck barrelling towards him! The headlights of the truck were so bright that he couldn’t open his eyes. His adrenaline surged, his heartbeat suddenly accelerated and his heart was pounding and painful. He wanted to evade it but his muscles seemed to be filled with cement and he couldn’t move an inch. He was like a frightened chicken, standing rigidly in place, unable to make any movements.
Seeing that the truck was about to hit him, Xu RenDong felt cold in his limbs and the blood in his body was losing temperature.
Time seems to be stretched out very long. He heard the screams of girls, the brakes of tires rubbing against the ground and the barking of dogs. He raised his head amidst the noisy commotion and met the eyes of the driver of the truck.
At that moment, both of their faces showed an expression of horror at the same time.
It’s you?!
The truck driver, as if waking up from a dream, turned the steering wheel vigorously. Xu RenDong was still frozen by unknown forces and was unable to move the slightest. He only felt a hot wind blowing from his side, followed by a loud noise.
“Boom!”
The source of the sound was not far from him, and at the same time he realized that he was able to move, so he immediately turned around. After seeing the sight in front of him clearly, his pupils suddenly shrank and the huge shock made him feel cold and his hair stand up straight. The horror turned into an entity, impacting his heart, causing his heart to tremble with his body.
—The big truck had lost its balance while making a sharp turn, and the whole truck crashed into the shop by the side of the road! The lights in the shop were all off and it was pitch black. Only black smoke was seen from the front of the smashed truck. The driver’s fate was uncertain!
The scene of the driver’s eyes facing each other resurfaced. Xu RenDong’s legs softened and he fell directly to the ground. People around him took out their mobile phones, took pictures and dialled 120. Xu RenDong suppressed his fear and forced himself to get up from the ground and stagger towards the truck.
“Don’t go there! Danger!”A kind passer-by stepped forward and pulled him but Xu RenDong pushed him away and stubbornly ran to the front of the car. He saw that the front of the car had collapsed and the door was deformed into a twisted shape. It couldn’t be opened no matter how much it was pulled. The truck cab was too high and Xu RenDong was standing on the ground, unable to see what was inside. At this time, the truck engine was full of smoke, the nose was full of gasoline and there was even a faint sparkle. Xu RenDong ignored the danger and climbed onto the front of the car with his hands and feet.
This was something he must confirm! It was very important!
“It’s going to explode! Run!” The kind-hearted man rushed forward again and forcibly pulled him down. But between the sparks and fire, Xu RenDong had already seen what he needed to see clearly.
—Blue clothing, a familiar face. Bloodstained and unconscious.
That was the young man whose body was torn apart by rabbits on the first night! That was the person he wanted to save but failed to save!
Xu RenDong only felt that his brain was blank and he was dragged to a safe place. Then a ball of fire suddenly appeared in front of him! The huge explosion shook him back to his senses. Only then did he feel the heat rushing over his face. The truck had been swallowed by the raging fire and the driver in the truck was definitely dead.
All the way until 119, 120, and 110 all arrived and the police pulled him aside to question him, Xu RenDong couldn’t fully recover. He only felt that everything had happened too suddenly and it was too strange. His brain simply refused to accept it, let alone be able to analyze it. He couldn’t respond to any of the police officer’s questions at all.
The police thought he was in shock and left after getting his contact information. The medical staff bandaged Xu RenDong’s wound and told him that he only had a bruise and no broken bones. However, whether the internal organs have been affected by the shockwave of the explosion still needed to be checked to make sure. Xu RenDong sat in the ambulance, listening to the sound of police sirens and suddenly felt that all this was unreal.
Was he really back in reality? Or was this a new ghost world?
Xu RenDong suddenly felt extremely tired. Really too tired, he has no strength to struggle anymore. So, under the surprised eyes of the medical staff, he lay down on the stretcher, curled up and hugged himself helplessly, then fell asleep.
***
