Chapter 3

Currently, Ye Xiang's primary concern was to get as far away from the area where the plot unfolds as quickly as possible. Of course, he didn't expect to get too far. His total pay was only 200 death redemption coupons, and if he were to completely leave the plot area, the total number of death redemption coupons required would likely be insufficient. If he couldn't afford the death redemption coupons, his fate would be death!

So, his plan was to consider how far to go based on the specific deduction standards of the death redemption coupons when the time came. Of course, he couldn't escape alone; he needed to find a few people to leave with him. Otherwise, going alone would be terrifying, as many horror movies show characters being killed when they are alone.

He observed the expressions of the actors on the bus to determine who were the new actors and who were the experienced ones. Although he intended to leave the bus, he was still a new actor and wanted to see how the experienced actors would handle the situation. They were more experienced and had more death redemption coupons, so they would likely have better strategies. If possible, it would be best to follow a few experienced actors.

Moreover, in this real-life horror movie, there was no such thing as a "main character's invincibility," as the main character was not absolute. The actor playing the main character could also die prematurely due to changes in the plot. Therefore, hoping to avoid disaster by staying close to the main character was clearly unrealistic.

"What's wrong with the bus?"

"We're still on the mountain!"

"I'm going to complain to your travel agency! What a lousy bus!"

The actors on the bus started chattering, and many of them spoke with accents from Sichuan, Shaanxi, and other regions, indicating that the film company had randomly recruited people from all over the country. They must have all picked up the poster and ended up in this real-life horror movie.

At this moment, the main character, Luo Haosheng, frowned and turned around to look at Ye Xiang and Zhang Nianzhou. "Xiaoyun, Nianzhou, do you have the travel map?"

"Um." Zhang Nianzhou seemed to have finally recovered and started speaking his lines, but his tone was still fearful, and he spoke very slowly, afraid of making a mistake. "Yes, I have it here."

He paused after almost every word. His face was flushed, covered in sweat, his legs were trembling, and his pupils were constricting. Ye Xiang was even more convinced that he was a new actor.

After taking the map, Luo Haosheng looked at it and sighed. "It's a long way down the mountain, and it's so late. This place is so remote; there won't be any vehicles passing by."

At this point, the actor playing the driver had already gotten out of the bus. To be honest, Ye Xiang admired the actor playing the driver. He was supposed to die last, and the script didn't even specify how he would die, yet he remained calm, communicating with the actors according to the script and then getting out to check the bus. The actress playing the tour guide was also excellent, constantly comforting everyone and explaining the situation. After a while, the noise in the bus gradually subsided.

Ye Xiang took a deep breath and made up his mind. After observing, he had completely given up on the idea of Zhang Nianzhou as a companion. Judging by his state, even if they traveled together, he would likely be too scared to be of any help. As for Du Yan and Jiang Youlin, Du Yan's face was pale, and he kept looking out the window, clearly thinking about how to escape.

"Xiaoyun!" Zhang Nianzhou suddenly grabbed Ye Xiang's hand. He was no longer speaking his lines. "We... we should walk down the mountain! Okay? Let's go! And Haosheng, come with us!"

Luo Haosheng waved his hand, not even saying much. He probably didn't want to say anything outside the script. Luo Xueyan also waved her hand, indicating she wouldn't go.

Seeing Zhang Nianzhou's pitiful look, Ye Xiang felt a bit of sympathy. After all, they were all in the same boat. He couldn't bear to see him like this, so he said, "Alright... let's go down the mountain together."

As soon as he said this, the death redemption coupons in his mind started to deduct. They went from 200 to 197. Because it was an important line, it directly deducted three coupons. This made Ye Xiang a bit regretful. Would nodding have deducted fewer coupons?

"I, I, I'll go with you too!" At this moment, Du Yan rushed over, grabbing Zhang Nianzhou and Ye Xiang's hands, tears in his eyes. "Let's go! Let's go quickly!"

His appearance clearly showed his eagerness to escape. If not for the lack of companions, he would have already fled the bus.

Luo Haosheng, Luo Xueyan, and Jiang Youlin, however, didn't say much and seemed to be letting them go. They remained seated, their faces solemn, with no intention of leaving the bus. This made Ye Xiang a bit bewildered. Could staying be the right choice? But then he thought, these were experienced actors, and they might know some survival tips. As new actors, they couldn't just stay here and wait to die!

"Everyone!" Ye Xiang raised his voice. "Who wants to go down the mountain with us? We can go together and have company on the way! What do you think?"

Ye Xiang was quite anxious and also looked at the driver, wondering what he thought.

"Alright, we'll go with you."

At this moment, a few more people stood up from the back seats. One of them, a man with a Sichuan accent, picked up a large bag and said, "Let's go! Down the mountain!"

Ye Xiang looked and saw that four actors had stood up. They were all extras, so he didn't even know their character names. The four were the Sichuan man, a couple, and a young man wearing a baseball cap.

Ye Xiang felt sympathy for them. Extras had very few lines and scenes, and they could easily die in large numbers. The remaining people looked at each other, seemingly wanting to say something but ultimately not speaking.

Ye Xiang, of course, didn't need to bring any luggage, as Luo Haosheng and the others could take it to the hotel at the foot of the mountain. So, he, Zhang Nianzhou, Du Yan, and the four extras got off the bus.

According to the script, the driver was supposed to die at midnight, but it was still early. However, leaving early was better, as no one wanted to stay in the haunted bus. The seven of them quickly left the bus.

As soon as they got off, the death redemption coupons dropped again, this time to 177! That meant getting off the bus deducted 20 coupons! Ye Xiang knew that as they moved further, the coupons would increase like a taxi meter. So, they couldn't go too far.

Given this, the direction didn't matter. The others seemed to have noticed the deduction of coupons, so their initial quick steps slowed down, and they didn't dare to walk too fast.

At this moment, everyone was silent. The coupons were too valuable, and no one knew if speaking extra lines would deduct more coupons, so they were being very careful with their words. Ye Xiang observed the others. The Sichuan man was relatively calm, while the couple clung to each other, the husband trembling. The young man with the baseball cap kept pulling down his cap, but his face was still pale.

The mountain was very remote, with no signs of human habitation, and the ground was covered with dead branches and fallen trees. They wandered for a while, and the bus was far behind. Finally, Ye Xiang stopped.

At this point, the coupons had dropped to 147! They couldn't go any further, as they didn't know what would happen next and needed to conserve their coupons. Of course, if they could exceed the main character's actions in the plot, such as finding a survival method, they could earn more coupons. But for now, they needed to save their coupons, or the consequences at the end of the movie would be dire.

"Let's stop here," Ye Xiang said.

The other six people nodded, and it was clear that their coupons had also dropped significantly. Ye Xiang thought that the extras' total coupons probably didn't exceed 100, and this rate of deduction was unsustainable. The Sichuan man took out some old newspapers from his bag, laid them on the ground, and everyone sat down.

Sitting on the old newspapers, Ye Xiang looked down at them. The newspapers were from 2013, consistent with the real world. According to the information in his mind, this horror movie world was definitely not the real world, but it was almost parallel. The news on the newspapers was also consistent with reality. They were just actors and passersby in this world.

After sitting down, everyone looked at each other, unsure what to say. Looking around, they were in a vast mountainous area, likely in the interior of China. By midnight, the bus would be haunted, and the first act would end. What would happen next was unknown. But Ye Xiang guessed that since someone would die, the plot would likely have everyone fleeing the bus. However, what would happen after they escaped was uncertain.

Ye Xiang was also very uneasy, unsure if leaving was the right choice. Although they were seven people, if ghosts really appeared, would this be enough? To be honest, he was a complete atheist and didn't believe in ghosts. He was usually calm when walking at night and could watch horror movies without flinching. But now, being in a real horror movie, he couldn't remain calm.

"Um..." Suddenly, the Sichuan man spoke. "We... should just stay here?"

(There are limited drafts, so I can only update once a day. I hope for your understanding. Writing horror novels is mentally taxing and not easy to complete quickly. This is a new book, and I hope that after reading, you can give it some recommendations and add it to your bookshelf. It is very important for a new book!)