Kaleidoscope of Death

Chapter 119: Real Life

There were a total of eight chests in the kitchen. Xiao Ji had opened three, and Xiao Mei had opened three. There were two left.

Lin Qiushi went and gave these two chests a listen, confirming that one chest had something inside and the other was empty.

After the contents of the chests were confirmed, things got a lot easier. Lin Qiushi opened the empty chest and made sure the tunnel wasn't inside. Then beside him, Ruan Nanzhu used the wooden stake in his hands on the other chest. He stabbed the stake straight through the top of the chest and then used a dining room stool as a hammer, pounding the stake in inch by inch.

Following the stake's puncturing, an awful scream came from inside the chest. Large quantities of bright red blood seeped forth from the top, soaking the black wood through.

This was a cry they'd heard many times before—the cry of the Hako Onna. It was just that this time, her crying felt somewhat more wretched. Those standing around the chest listened on, silent and numb.

They were already used to death. Facing the Hako Onna once more, their senses of fright had already been sanded down flat. Luck was too large a component of this game; had they not been able to find the wooden stake, or had they not met the self-sacrificing Xiao Mei, this matter likely would've involved a lot more twists and turns, as well as several more victims.

Compared to when they first came in, there was more exhaustion on everybody's faces.

Ruan Nanzhu held Lin Qiushi's hand and stood in front of the wooden chest, listening as the cries inside got weaker and weaker.

"Who's opening it?" Sun Yuanzhou's companion asked once the crying died down.

"I'll do it," Sun Yuanzhou said. "We've been under your care these past few days."

He obviously had some lifesaver item as well. Had Ruan Nanzhu not expended the Hako Onna's power cards, more people likely would've died.

He took a step forward and grabbed hold of the chest. With a light application of force, he lifted the lid.

When he did so everybody held their breaths, but it was about as they expected—the Hako Onna inside the chest had disappeared, leaving behind only a puddle of blood. Behind the blood was a dark cavity, and at the bottom of that cavity there was a long set of stairs leading off into the distance.

The group entered the tunnel and followed the stairs all the way down.

Finally, at the end of the stairs, they saw a black metal door.

Ruan Nanzhu brought out the key, stepped forward, and opened the door. After it opened, he picked up the fallen hint slip.

And so the tenth door ended just like that. Both Ruan Nanzhu and Lin Qiushi got out safely and took the tenth door's hint slip with them.

Before taking off, Sun Yuanzhou tactfully expressed to Ruan Nanzhu a desire to work with them again.

Ruan Nanzhu was noncommittal and only took down his contact information. After that, he and Lin Qiushi followed that glowing tunnel into the real world.

Coming back to reality and getting to breathe this air again, Lin Qiushi once again felt the beauty of being alive. He rushed up the stairs, only to find Ruan Nanzhu standing at the other end like he'd just been ready to come down.

Then the two wordlessly caught each other in a hug, taking in the heat that emanated from each other's bodies. Only this way could they be certain that they'd survived the door.

Cheng Qianli just happened to be passing by, and when he saw the two wrapped around each other, he could only swallow the dog food and mutter about how it was the middle of the day, and he was a minor, could you guys please check yourselves.