Chapter 12

After his cousin finished drinking the porridge and went to work, Zhang Yuanqing returned to his room to catch up on some sleep.

When he woke up, the room was filled with dynamic sound effects. He opened his eyes to see the glow of the TV screen flickering in the room, with the ceiling light off.

He sat up and looked towards the window. His aunt was sitting cross-legged in front of the TV, playing his PS5. Her sleeves were rolled up, revealing her two white, tender forearms, and her petite body swayed from side to side as she operated the controller.

Zhang Yuanqing yawned, got up, turned on the light, and came to stand behind his aunt to watch her play the game.

She was playing a horror game with a dark and eerie atmosphere, featuring a grotesque protagonist wielding a bloody axe, cutting through enemies and leaving a trail of blood and gore.

The TV glow reflected in her clear, autumn-water-like eyes, and her round, oval face was bright with excitement.

"This game is pretty good, perfect for playing at night. It's quite therapeutic," his aunt said without turning her head.

His aunt had three major hobbies: shopping in malls, watching horror movies, and playing horror games.

"You must be depressed, you perverted woman," Zhang Yuanqing said insincerely. "It's quite interesting."

His aunt turned her head and gave him a glare. "Why are you being so formal with me?"

She turned back to the game and continued, "Actually, this is a therapeutic game. The monsters in the game are the fantasies of a young boy. He is a mental patient who struggles to avoid being consumed by his inner demons. He fights his way through, and in the end, he sees the light. The ending is very touching."

As she spoke, Zhang Yuanqing had already poured himself a glass of water and responded while drinking, "The concept is good..."

His aunt hummed in agreement and continued, "Each boss has a specific pattern. As long as you pay attention, even a young boy can defeat the terrifying demons. But the scary visuals and music often make people feel fear and lose their calm judgment."

"Why don't you try it?"

Zhang Yuanqing wasn't in the mood to play games with his aunt. He had been away from the spirit realm for about 20 hours, and in another ten hours, the spirit realm would open again, possibly leading to his death.

He might as well think about what to do in the last ten hours of his life to avoid any regrets.

Should he call his mother and yell at her? Hug his aunt and cry? Sing, dance, and rap with his uncle one last time?

He suddenly realized he didn't have any particular regrets or unfulfilled wishes. As a college student from a relatively well-off family, his life had been relatively free of worries.

Only those who have experienced much can have many regrets.

"Come on, play with me!" His aunt twisted her waist and pouted.

Looking at her beautiful back, Zhang Yuanqing's eyes softened. He sat down next to her and took the controller from her.

If he only had ten hours left, playing one more game with her wouldn't be bad.

Under his aunt's guidance, munching on chips and chattering, Zhang Yuanqing completed the game. Checking the time, he realized it was already 11 PM.

"Not bad, not bad, you have a talent for this."

His aunt sucked on her white, tender fingers, patted his shoulder in praise, and wiped her saliva on him.

"Gross, that's so dirty." Zhang Yuanqing looked disgusted.

"Ugh, this is nectar, don't be ungrateful," Jiang Yubei said shamelessly.

"Nectar? How much does it cost per pound?" Zhang Yuanqing sneered.

"No amount of money can buy it, but Aunt can give you a few sips." Jiang Yubei pouted, as if she was about to smear her saliva on him.

Zhang Yuanqing leaned back to avoid her.

Click!

The doorknob turned, and his grandmother stood at the door, frowning at the two of them.

Zhang Yuanqing and Jiang Yubei immediately sat up straight.

"Are you going to eat or not?" his grandmother scolded. "You sleep all day and play games all night. You want to be a god, but you're still on the ground."

Zhang Yuanqing put down the controller. "I know, I know, I'll eat right away."

His grandmother gave her daughter a cold look, and his aunt slunk back to her room.

Dinner had been kept warm, and his grandmother reheated the cold dishes. Zhang Yuanqing ate hastily, then returned to his room and summoned the item list to check if the corpse-sealing talisman was still there.

He then reviewed his attribute panel.

Next, he prayed that Li Dongze would have good news and began to reflect on his experiences in the mountain god temple.

While playing the game with his aunt, he had a new insight.

Since the spirit realm is also a game, are there any patterns? If he could find the patterns, even a weak boy like him might be able to pass through smoothly.

As he was lost in thought, a shrill ringtone startled him, making his heart skip a beat.

He grabbed his phone from the bedside table. The caller ID showed an unknown number, and he answered.

"Hello, is this Zhang Yuanqing?"

The speaker emitted a sexy voice, and Zhang Yuanqing's face lit up with surprise. He quickly asked, "Did you get the information about She Ling Tunnel?"

Guan Ya hummed in response, "The squad leader got more detailed information for you. He asked me to send it to your email. I know young people never check their emails, so I'm calling to let you know."

No wonder he joined the organization; it was the right choice. Zhang Yuanqing's mood brightened instantly. He resisted the urge to rush to his computer and check his email and said sincerely, "Thank the squad leader and Guan Ya for me. I'll treat you to a meal when I complete the trial mission successfully."

Guan Ya sighed inwardly, hesitated, and then her voice softened, "Okay, I'll wait for you."

She had already read the information from Taiyi Sect. After reading it, she felt only despair and hopelessness, which explained why the squad leader had been gloomy all day.

In Li Dongze's mind, this newly recruited night wanderer would likely not survive the trial mission.

After the call, Zhang Yuanqing pulled out his ergonomic chair and eagerly turned on his laptop to log into his email.

He found Guan Ya's email among the unread messages and downloaded the attachment.

[She Ling Tunnel, Spirit Realm Code 0079, Difficulty Level: S, Type: Single (Death)]

[Main Mission 1: Survive for three hours.]

[Main Mission 2: Explore Spirit Realm 0079.]

The same as my trial mission, Zhang Yuanqing's spirits lifted. This was a good sign; the closer the content matched his mission, the better.

[The scene of Spirit Realm 0079 is not She Ling Tunnel but an ancient temple from the Ming Dynasty called San Dao Shan Nainai Temple.

[I speculate that this Nainai is a highly ranked night wanderer, or perhaps she can no longer be called a night wanderer. It's unclear if there was such a beautiful Nainai in the Ming Dynasty, or if it is a fabrication of the spirit realm.]

Then there was a long description of the deeds of San Dao Shan Nainai, which matched what Zhang Yuanqing had seen in the temple.

Continuing to read:

[The task to survive for three hours is relatively simple. Initially, after watching the notes, I encountered a vengeful spirit. Its characteristic is to continuously drain the yang energy of living beings until they die.

[Night wanderers have a natural suppression over spirits, so I didn't spend much effort to drive it away. However, when I tried to devour it, I faced significant resistance. This might be the spirit realm's protection of the vengeful spirit.

[Anyone who reads the notes will be cursed and pursued by the vengeful spirit relentlessly. Any method to remove the curse is temporary, and removing the curse once grants about 15 minutes of safety.

[Notably, the overall layout of the mountain god temple consists of a main hall and two adjacent backyards. The candle in the main hall is an extremely powerful item with the ability to suppress evil and purify. As long as you stay in the main hall, you are safe. The downside is that the candle eliminates fear, and prolonged exposure to its light can make you fearless, which is fatal in such a dangerous spirit realm. Additionally, it cannot be moved or taken out of the spirit realm.

[After staying in the main hall for half an hour, I suddenly heard a cry for help from the backyards, accompanied by bone-chilling roars that were not from living beings. After some hesitation, I decided to explore the backyards.]

The main hall is indeed a safe house, which I verified personally, but I didn't expect the source to be the candle. I thought it was the beautiful mountain goddess.

The cry for help came from the large banyan tree, and I didn't hear the roars. The eastern yard is indeed terrifying, Zhang Yuanqing thought, feeling a chill.

He took a deep breath and focused on reading the rest. The information that followed was crucial. If he could know the situation in the other yard in advance, he could avoid danger during his exploration.

[The large banyan tree is very dangerous. Do not look back, do not look back.]

[This banyan tree seems to have consciousness, but why does it cry for help? As for the terrifying roars, I didn't find the source because its appearance interrupted my exploration. It was a pair of red dancing shoes.]

[It didn't attack me immediately but invited me to dance. Out of curiosity, I agreed to its invitation.]

[I couldn't remember its dance steps, which were too chaotic and complex. For someone without dance experience like me, it was an impossible task. Even for someone with dance experience, it would be impossible to remember those steps. I failed, and the red dancing shoes began to chase me.]

[I successfully escaped back to the main hall, but it broke two of my ribs. I think I understood its true nature. It is an extremely terrifying item. Its pursuit ignores terrain and obstacles, and it won't stop until it achieves its goal. I initially speculated that it is a rule-based item.]

[It's unbelievable that a trial spirit realm has a rule-based item. I finally understood why Qian Shou, who had an item, still died in the mountain god temple and why no one has ever completed this spirit realm. What a joke. Those who can enter She Ling Tunnel are either early-level 1 night wanderers or ordinary people. How could they possibly complete it?]

[The reason for the decline of the mountain god temple is unknown, as is the secret that concerns a thousand years of prosperity. I hope to successfully complete the second main mission and bring the truth back to the organization.]

The information ended there, with no further details.

Zhang Yuanqing knew that this night wanderer had likely died during the second main mission.