Infinite spooky game

Beyond the snow-capped mountains, the entire world is melting.

Men, women, and children were all sucked into the sacrificial pit. Screams and cries rose from the dome, and after the flesh and blood dissolved, they left behind crystal-clear skeletons.

Birds and beasts have taken over the land devoid of humans, raising their heads and uttering cries that seem to proclaim their presence, and without exception, they gather from all over the world toward the snow-capped mountains.

Birds plummeted to the ground, fish were stranded on the rocky beach, and all the animals prostrated themselves at the foot of the mountain, devoutly worshipping the source of their lives.

O immortal Shangri-La, where the gods who created it sleep eternally; adorn this long dream belonging to the gods, and end its tragic fate in happiness and joy…

Just as an injured child will instinctively seek its mother's embrace, and a wanderer who has encountered storms in a foreign land will always dream of returning home, now all people and animals will head towards their most primal mother, their eternal homeland.

The snow-capped mountain, at an altitude of 8,000 meters, can almost touch the sky. As the highest point on this land, it has been given a legend by the stubborn herdsmen that it can communicate with the gods, and has also been attributed to the research results of plate compression by scientists.

In the past, it was a remote and inaccessible place, a testament to the courageous who challenged nature; now, it is the center of the world, the key to restarting time and space, and the altar that connects to the highest rules.

The mountaintop is the closest place to God, or perhaps God himself. That god, who once selflessly bestowed life upon countless beings, will now coldly and ruthlessly take it back.

The fate of one person is the fate of millions; the life and death of one thing is the life and death of all things; to the eternal heaven and earth, there is no difference, all are parasites living by relying on the mercy of the Creator.

Everything will eventually die, and the world will decline. Lush vegetation and colorful rocks are fading; man-made structures and natural landscapes, the ground and the sky—everything is losing its magnificent exterior.

A palette higher than the sky and wider than the earth was suddenly overturned, and vibrant colors flowed all over the world, converging into a colorful river that flowed backwards towards the snow-capped mountains, and then turned into distinct white at the foot of the mountains.

The scenery and objects, having lost their color, instantly became dilapidated. A fierce wind swept down from the snow-capped mountains, blowing across the surrounding area for thousands of miles, turning the ruins of everything into dust.

A group of players walked slowly through the snow, braving the wind and snow. From high above, they could see a string of tiny black dots crawling on the white earth, like an army of ants.

Dong Xiwen and Zhang Yiyu followed at the very end of the group, while Zhou Ke, wearing a thin white shirt with a Tibetan robe provided by the guide over it, walked in the middle of the group.

Lin Jue and Fu Jue led the way at the front of the group, one after the other, as towering glaciers gradually rose on the distant horizon.

Lin Jue suddenly pulled a rusty bronze pocket watch from his pocket, glanced at it, and stopped without warning. The entire procession behind him also stopped.

"Ninety hours have passed. Now, I have to tell you the worst-case scenario: we may never get out of here."

Lin Jue turned around, his gaze sweeping over everyone, his voice calm: "What we are in is not the real world, but a long dream of eternal darkness and slumber, the very dream of the gods mentioned in legends."

"Dreams have no boundaries. If we want to leave, we can only do so by waking the gods who dream; and we exist based on the dreams of the gods... Have you ever heard of Brahma's dream?"

His voice was clear and bright, and even though it was muffled by the wind and snow, everyone could hear it clearly.

The guide, Tashi, stood motionless to the side, seemingly completely unconcerned by his words. His ruddy face wore a simple, honest smile, unchanging like a mannequin.

Chu Yining held the diary and murmured, "In ancient Indian legends, time is considered a dream of Brahma, the creator god. In this dream, the universe, life, and all existence are temporary phenomena. Once Brahma awakens, everything in the world, including time and space, will disappear."

After reaching the snow-capped mountain, her process of "returning to a child" slowed down, and she was still able to calmly analyze the situation: "The legend of the mother goddess in Shangri-La is similar to the dream of Brahma. Immortality itself can only exist in dreams. With so many people from different timelines gathered here, this world itself lacks a sense of reality..."

"Old Lin, Sister Chu, things aren't settled yet, why say discouraging things and disrupt morale?" Xiao Fengchao pushed Chu Yining's wheelchair with one hand, and with the other hand took the pocket watch from Lin Jue's hand, looking it over from left to right. "Think positively, maybe the watch is broken, maybe we've been teleported to Antarctica, and we're in the middle of polar night right now..."

Lin Jue shook his head: "Feng Chao, you said before that you calculated that the fate lines of all of us break here."

"Huh? Haha..." Xiao Fengchao chuckled dryly, "The kid is just talking nonsense. I was just saying it casually, and you're just taking it casually too. I still want to go back alive and bring back my girl, so please don't be in a hurry to give up on treatment..."

Lin Jue ignored his nonsense and continued, "We know that one of the core elements of this instance is the 'mirror.' The direction we are moving in is opposite to the actual direction, which means we are a reflection in the mirror, a phantom in a dream. I believe you have all noticed that the real figures are others; they are the true players."

"I apologize for keeping an important piece of information to myself. Four days ago, I left the team alone and saw another version of myself in the mirror made of ice, belonging to the future after the final instance. He said that we in this timeline are indeed dead."

As soon as Lin Jue adopted an open and honest attitude, Dong Xiwen and Zhang Yiyu moved closer to listen attentively.

He couldn't help but think to himself, "Brother, you've got nothing better to do anyway, why don't you analyze the logic? Looking at the future outcome, Lin Jue did indeed die in this instance, but didn't your boss survive?"

"Lin Jue is exaggerating. Of course, it's also possible that different timelines have branched out into different storylines," Dong Ziwen concluded. Then, as if struck by a thought, he asked, "Brother, who is Lin Jue in the other timeline?"

"You mean... Lin Jue changed his character in this instance?" Dong Xiwen frowned slightly.

Yes, in the minds of all players in 2035, Lin Jue died on Ragnarok on January 1, 2014.

He claimed to have seen another version of himself from another timeline, who could tell him about the future—but who exactly was that "him"?
Xiao Fengchao stared at Lin Jue and said seriously, "Old Lin, based on my understanding of you, since you're telling us all this, you must have a solution, right? Stop keeping us in suspense and tell me the details!"

Lin Jue laughed, his gaze falling on Zhou Ke, who was standing loosely in the corner: "The method to pass the level has always existed. As long as you kill me, everyone else can survive."

Upon hearing this, the players reacted in various ways, but Lin Jue continued, "However, before that, I would like to talk to Fu Jue about something."

……

On the other side, it was also night, and the same snow was falling heavily.

A thick, pungent smell of blood filled the air, solidified by the cold, and poured straight into people's nostrils, sharp and terrifying like swords.

Yu Jinsheng, dressed in a red Tang suit and a sheepskin overcoat, walked alone across the snow, following the scent of blood. He already knew the ending; he knew that Lin Jue and his group from twenty-two years ago were all dead, and Xiao Fengchao from eleven years ago had not escaped either. Perhaps he still had a trace of life left, but he was trapped in the Tower of Babel, insane, and in the eyes of outsiders, he was no different from dead.

He couldn't help but wonder: if he knew the fates of others, did anyone know his? Was his destiny already predetermined in the eyes of those in the future? But... does this world truly have a future?
One by one, vibrant people rush towards death full of hope, yet even with their utmost efforts, they struggle to find a glimmer of hope. How can this not evoke a sense of sorrow?
Yu Jinsheng never actually met Xiao Fengchao; at most, they would exchange a few words from afar, separated by thick walls or heavy iron gates.

Most of the time, Xiao Fengchao's words were incomprehensible nonsense. Only occasionally would he become a little more lucid and talk about the past or make predictions about the future—those predictions were often terrible and terrifying, just as he was called a "doomsday prophet".

Yu Jinsheng entered the bizarre game very late. Before he became a formal player and accumulated a certain amount of capital, Xiao Fengchao had already disappeared for many years.

But he was very lucky; he always managed to encounter someone who could save him at the last moment before he died, and he survived. So, in one instance, he obtained the [Forbidden Scholar] identity card, which allowed him to establish a connection with Xiao Fengchao, who was trapped in the Tower of Babel.

He was self-aware, recognizing himself as just an insignificant little man, a pitiful person caught in a whirlpool of misfortune, grasping at any straw to survive. He had no ambition to become a god by stepping on the corpses of his companions, nor any ideal to save the world; he only wanted to live a peaceful and long life.

However, at Xiao Fengchao's request, he still joined the Tingfeng Guild, gradually rose to the position of vice president, and made contact with Fu Jue.

Fortunately, Yu Jinsheng's abilities were not nearly as bad as he thought.

In just a few years, he rose to fame and grew to the point where he could stand on his own. He was adept at navigating between various forces and was successful in all aspects. While Xiao Fengchao's support was certainly a factor, his success was largely due to his own efforts.

He wanted to survive. Since there was no way out, he had to carefully plan everything and try to find a place for himself in the turbulent waters.

For a long time, however, he resisted binding himself to the identity token. Passing on messages for Xiao Fengchao and assisting Fu Jue was enough; if the sky fell, these tall guys would hold it up. Why get involved in the mess of the final instance?

He successfully passed the "Forbidden Scholar" card to Asakura Yuko before the revelation fragments appeared, severing all ties. But he never expected that he would one day become one of the "tall ones" himself.

Yuko Asakura is dead. Fu Jue said that the more identity cards missing in the final instance, the more disadvantageous it is for the players. Someone must fill the gaps in the identity cards in time. As the vice president and temporary president of the Tingfeng Guild, Yu Jinsheng is the most suitable person.

No one asked him whether he was willing or not; everyone assumed he would fill Asakura Yuko's vacancy. Indeed, what could he do even if he wasn't willing? Faced with the greater good, everyone could be sacrificed, including him.

After bypassing a glacier and walking a few steps forward, the view suddenly opened up.

Thousands upon thousands of gray-black shadows lined up in a long procession, marching in one direction and outlining a black edge along the ridgeline.

The grotesque ghosts with their hideous faces had all their ferocity gone. They hung their heads as if sleepwalking, their steps slow and unsteady. A gray-white phantom, holding a scepter, stood at the front of the procession, leading the way.

The illusory figure had a young face, pale and weak. It was Lin Chen.

Yu Jinsheng had never actually met Lin Chen, just as he had never actually met Xiao Fengchao. He only knew about Lin Chen through intelligence reports.

During my early days as a new player, I was matched with Qi Si and Chang Xu in the "Rose Manor" instance. After becoming a formal player, I helped some people and wrote some guides, and had a good reputation. However, one day I suddenly disappeared without a trace until my name appeared on the Revelation Stele.

The appearance of such a person here is not strange, but it is definitely unexpected. Yu Jinsheng narrowed his eyes and looked at Lin Chen. The latter's expression was blank, and his dilated pupils were unfocused. He was obviously not a living person and lacked the desire to attack living people.

Yu Jinsheng couldn't tell what had happened to him; the situation was too bizarre. He didn't even know whether Lin Chen died from a crisis in the instance or from the mechanism of the identity card.

But no matter what, the fact that an identity card holder was eliminated so hastily and ended up in this inhuman state still gave him a sense of dread, a feeling of shared sorrow.

What exactly happened? Should he continue? What should he do?
The procession of ghosts slowly passed over the glacier. Lin Chen and Yu Jinsheng brushed past each other, but Lin Chen didn't see a single person.

Yu Jinsheng watched the strange, long line of people, seeing the gray-black shadows move deeper into the snow-capped mountains until they were completely swallowed up by the wind and snow and disappeared from sight.

The stench of blood grew stronger, and Yu Jinsheng belatedly realized that among the procession they had just passed, many of the ghosts had bits of flesh and droplets of blood on their faces, frozen into pinkish-white icicles by the cold wind.

They have just experienced a fierce battle or a feast. Who is the other side? Who are the sacrificial lambs they have devoured?

A chill ran through Yu Jinsheng's heart; he was afraid of seeing another corpse, yet also afraid of having nothing at all.

He continued onward, and before him stretched an endless lake of blood, the golden-red blood flowing through the icy ravines, as if the gods at the beginning of creation had transformed their flesh and blood into rivers, lakes and seas.

At the confluence of blood lay a crimson figure, its color unclear—whether the clothes were their natural color or the fabric itself had been stained crimson with blood. He lay motionless, his body covered in icicles, like a statue long dead, perhaps destined to remain in this world for eternity.

Yu Jinsheng walked over step by step and raised his hand to adjust his round-framed glasses.

Through the wind and snow that blurred the world into a grayish-white hue, he could see the man's face clearly: it was Qi Si!

Then he saw the young man's injuries: his long red suit was torn to shreds, his exposed skin was covered with sharp teeth marks, his flesh was pitted and bruised, and in some places the bone was visible, with tendons and fascia flowing out.

The scenes he witnessed became connected, and Yu Jinsheng instantly deduced the whole story: Qi Si was attacked by a group of ghosts and monsters, and as he was about to die, Lin Chen used some means to lure the ghosts away.

As expected... Lin Chen was indeed connected with Qi Si, and it was very likely that he was Lin Wuya himself... The previous suspicions were confirmed, but so what? The person involved was already dead beyond any doubt, and could no longer influence or interfere with this game.

Yu Jinsheng moved closer and knelt down in front of Qi Si.

Qi Si's eyes were half-closed. He seemed to be startled by the footsteps. He opened his eyes slightly and his scarlet eyes moved sluggishly as he looked at the person who came.

He paused for two seconds, then suddenly laughed: "It's you... Considering I carried you all the way, could you please carry me for a while and take me to that glacier nearby..."

"You'd better hurry, I'm about to die." (End of Chapter)