Chapter 38

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Three minutes passed quickly. As Shen Mu finished voting, he noticed that No. 1 next to him had not touched her phone, and had just sat there the entire time with her head lowered. He couldn’t help wondering if the little girl had social phobia, even as he simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief. Although it was unfair for people of different skill levels to be put onto the same battlefield, there was no way out after they had entered the battle. Even if there was a Bodhisattva* present that wanted to save them, they must at least reach out for help themselves.

*T/N: a Bodhisattva – someone dedicated to accomplishing complete Buddhahood. Also known as the deity of compassion, a Bodhisattva delays their entrance into nirvana in order to share their compassion with suffering beings.

However, many mental and bodily diseases couldn’t be overcome by simply wanting to overcome them. Their bearers would have to endure great torment, and it was difficult for healthy people to empathize. It was just… the Suspended Life Game wasn’t a one-time game. If you wanted to leave, you needed to win at least 10 games in a row. The only way to end the Suspended Life Game was to win… Other people and teammates may be able to help a few times, but it was impossible to encounter kind-hearted and reliable teammates every time. The only person who could save you… was yourself. Even if there was extreme hardship in travelling upon the tip of a knife and putting your life on the line, you must continue forward.

The phone screen suddenly changed, and the voting result appeared.

The people who voted for No. 2, Shen Mu, were No. 9, Shen Xin, and No. 10, the woman with a ponytail who was under suspicion for being a Wolf.

The people who voted No. 10 were: No. 2, Shen Mu; No. 3, Xie You; No. 4, Du Xiulin; No. 6, Yan Yuze; No. 7, Zhao Xu; No. 11, Su Yingxing; and No. 12, Tang Youchen.

The people who abstained from voting were: No. 1 and No. 8, Bai Lin;

No. 10 is eliminated!

The light in front of No. 10 dimmed immediately but did not go out completely. The light became distinctly darker, and at the same time, the colour changed to green, indicating that she would speak.

Time for her death speech.

“I…” No. 10 had only said one word, before she suddenly covered her heart, her body bending over in a bow-shaped curve. The pain on her face was clearly visible, and everyone was stunned by the sudden changes they saw happening in front of them.

The rules…!!

‘This game uses the death speech mode. The number of death speeches is equal to the number of Wolves; three in total. The first three players who are eliminated can leave their last words.’

Shen Mu suddenly remembered the rules of the game and was immediately covered in a cold sweat. The death speech could not be spoken, and must be entered into their mobile phone! It was against the rules of the game to speak without permission!

So painful… No. 10 clutched her chest tightly, lying on the table in torment. She, who was always strong and competitive, could not help but tear up at this moment. Am I dying? No, don’t want…! How can I die here?!

She had a nice name, Qu Weishuang. Qu Weishuang was the eldest daughter in her family, with two younger sisters and one younger brother. Qu Weishuang’s father was a businessman, while her mother was a guzheng teacher who had become a housewife after marriage. Her mother was demure and elegant, and her father was the main source of finance for the family. Qu Weishuang’s family condition was pretty good, and she didn’t lack any material benefits. The education she received from a young age instructed her that girls should be gentle and elegant and that they would not need to be outstanding, or even show their face in public. The important thing was to be a good wife and a good mother. Qu Weishuang respected her mother very much, but she had been uncomfortable with her parent’s old-fashioned views since she was a child. She didn’t like to play kitchen with weak girls and instead preferred to climb trees and fight with boys.

As she grew older, Qu Weishuang had been educated countless times by her parents, and she had gradually understood that society treated men and women differently. Her self-awareness had also become clearer and clearer——why did she have to be a woman? She, who had been unwilling to concede since young, had always had excellent grades, but her parents had only placed her ordinary younger brother in their eyes. The best resources were used to educate him in the hopes of furthering his future career. Of course, it wasn’t that they didn’t love Qu Weishuang. They also sent her to dance and music classes, hoping to train her into a woman as calm and mature as Mrs Qu.

But Qu Weishuang didn’t like those things. She wanted to have a career and support the family, just like her father. Qu Weishuang became increasingly unwilling to concede. Her school grades were always within the top three of the students in her major. But why did her parents continue to feel that she should end her studies early and marry a man to be a virtuous wife? Since she was young, her younger brother had beaten her, so why did her parents put all their expectations on him?

Before being selected by the Suspended Life Game, Qu Weishuang did not like to play games. She had only heard of the Werewolf game named ‘When It Is Dark, Please Close Your Eyes’ and had never played it herself. After winning the first round, Qu Weishuang had spent two days without sleeping or eating to study for The Suspended Life Game. It didn’t matter that she hadn’t played it, it was merely 10 rounds of that game! She could definitely achieve victory. Qu Weishuang had already come to realise deep down that the game was full of betrayal and manipulation. Even if there was a price, and she needed to sacrifice other people, and even if that person was her so-called teammate, she would not hesitate.

……

The burning sensation in her chest gradually weakened, and Qu Weishuang was surprised to find that she was still alive.

Perhaps just uttering a word was not really a violation. Qu Weishuang had no doubt that if she had continued to speak just then, she would have already been burned to ashes.

She just didn’t know how much of the minute was left…

Under the sympathetic, pity filled, and shocked eyes of everyone present, she picked up her mobile phone with trembling hands and typed out her last words.

It’s too late… This was Qu Weishuang’s last thought. She fell onto the table again, but this time she didn’t struggle and simply stopped breathing.

Her one minute was up.

The scene was silent for a moment and no one dared to speak.

Shen Mu picked up his phone.

‘The Wolves are 1, 4, 7’.

After another minute had passed, Bai Lin began uneasily shifting on her stool, her gaze sweeping past everyone else, as if wanting someone to break the deadlock.

“It’s okay.” Shen Mu said, “When No. 10 was voted out, the first day was over. There is no need to discuss the content of the game anymore. Go and eat something, relax or return to your room and rest, that’s all fine.”

As soon as his voice sounded, No. 1 bounced off the stool and disappeared quickly up the stairs, leaving behind only the rapid sound of her footsteps.

“Let’s all disperse, why are we still gathered here?” Yan Yuze raised his eyebrows, before suddenly leaning around Xu Zhao to speak to Bai Lin, “Go, head upstairs and eat something, aren’t you hypoglycaemic?”

“En!” Bai Lin smiled, and without speaking to anyone, the two got up and headed towards the second floor together.

“Do they know each other?” Shen Mu asked.

“I don’t think so.” It was Zhao Xu, who was shy, who spoke. He looked at Du Xiulin before saying to Shen Mu: “In the morning, you hadn’t arrived yet. No. 8’s hypoglycaemia flared up once, the hun⸺No. 6!” Zhao Xu almost made a mistake and was scared into a cold sweat. He quickly rephrased, “No. 6 happened to meet her, and they didn’t seem to recognise each other.” Having nearly said the wrong thing and with No.10’s painful experience still fresh in his mind, Zhao Xu didn’t dare to stay, leaving without a sound.

The crowd gradually dispersed, each doing their own thing. After experiencing the Preliminary Round, everyone was more skilled this time, and they were no longer as confused and helpless as they were during the preliminaries.

The first thing Shen Mu did after returning to his room was to wash his face. There was no mirror there, and he was still slightly unaccustomed to it. After exercising a little within the room, Shen Mu sat on the bed and rested for a few minutes, before preparing to go to the second floor for his meal.

Shen Mu stood up and stretched, but the action seemed to trigger something and a round item fell from the bed, landing on the ground with a “pa”. The sound was crisp.

“En?” Shen Mu reached down to pick it up, before remembering where he’d seen this red bead before.

Prior to spotting the grey building in the woods, Shen Mu had been rushing to find the game site. Along the way, he had stepped on a red ball and had picked it up to inspect it more carefully.

The red bead was about the size of his first thumb joint, and its surface was smooth and shiny. When viewed in the sun, it looked like a beautiful and delicate ruby. The bead was in a standard sphere shape, incompatible with the fallen leaves, insects and birds, as well as the surrounding vegetation and mud. It was unnatural at first glance.

Apart from its beauty, Shen Mu hadn’t obtained any clues from it, and because he was in a hurry, he had put it in his pocket and continued on. Later, he had arrived at the game venue and had changed his clothes. Before going to bed, he’d found that the red bead was still in his pocket, despite his different attire, and had realised that it had not disappeared with the rest of his old clothes. Shen Mu had felt that the bead was quite unusual, but he couldn’t really see why, so he had placed it by his pillow.

As he finished recalling these events, Shen Mu picked the red bead up again and spun it lightly on his palm. He didn’t know what material this bead was made of, but it felt lukewarm as it touched his skin. It was very comfortable.

Shen Mu studied it as it rolled across his palm, thinking that it really was very beautiful. This bead could be taken to the real world and sold for a lot of money.

If you displayed it even people who weren’t usually interested in jewellery wouldn’t be able to help but like it.

Thinking of something known only to himself, Shen Mu couldn’t help smiling. He put the bead in his pocket and headed for the restaurant on the second floor.

When he arrived at the restaurant, people were already eating at a table. When Tang Youchen saw Shen Mu, he beckoned him over immediately: “Hey buddy! I was just wondering why you left without eating. You still need to eat ah! Come, although it is leftovers, it still tastes good!”

Shen Mu walked over, and it really did look like leftovers——although in fact it wasn’t and was instead a typical pot of stew. There were four dining tables, and each pot was placed centrally upon them—along with a small bowl of rice and a kettle of water. The tables were all equipped with four stools and four sets of utensils.

Shen Mu studied the people at that table; Tang Youchen, Su Yingxing, Xie You. He looked at Su Yingxing a few times, and Su Yingxing met Shen Mu’s gaze, giving him a gentle smile. It seemed like the two of them didn’t know each other at all, as though it was merely a show of common courtesy.

“You’re here No. 2. Eat quickly, the food tastes pretty good.” Xie You’s attitude was more lively, but she also pretended not to know him.

What kind of experience was it to know each person who was there separately? Shen Mu wanted to laugh a little, and his eyes revealed a smile. He sat down and scooped a bowl of rice to eat slowly.

“Come on brothers, toast!” Tang Youchen raised the boiled water in his hand. “To celebrate that we had a chance to sit and eat together at a table, toast!”

“Puchi*.” Xie You also smiled and raised the glass in cooperation. “Cheers! Cheers!”

*T/N: Puchi – onomatopoeia, the sound of suppressed laughter

“Brother Tang, you’re in such a good state of mind today.” Infected by Tang Youchen’s atmosphere, Shen Mu’s mood also became happy and relaxed. He cooperated by filling his cup.

The three looked at Su Yingxing, who hadn’t moved yet.

Su Yingxing: …????? I’ll drink, OK?

“That’s right, don’t frown!” Tang Youchen familiarly patted Su Yingxing’s shoulder. “Just think, even in the real world, no one knows what will happen tomorrow! Maybe you will be killed by a car when you go out tomorrow, isn’t that right? So living in the moment is the most important thing. Being happy for a second counts as a second well spent! Even if you are really screwed, it’s much better being screwed over while you are happy rather than when you are depressed!”

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Translator’s Corner:Kitty: Yayy! We got comments! Thank you guys ^w^Salted Fish: Hi everyone, there are some chapters coming up that are three times the length of normal chapters …Kitty: We’ll probably split those ones – don’t kill us! We’ll try and pick a good place to cut them off!Kitty: In the meantime … I really want to know what is up with that red bead. Any guesses anyone?

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