B U G Arc
Exam God 05
The cave was extremely quiet, with only the occasional faint crackling of the campfire.
“This is unbelievable, it’s high noon, and the sun still hasn’t come out. I knew something was amiss, but I never imagined it could be this bizarre.”
The middle-aged man who spoke earlier muttered to himself. Although his voice was not loud, in the current environment, it sounded particularly clear.
On January 1, 2030, the sun did not rise as usual.
By noon, this nightmare had engulfed all of humanity.
“I had no idea about the sun not rising; I stayed up late playing games last night, and when I finally went to sleep, I was half asleep when I woke up. I realized it was still dark and went back to sleep. Then, I heard that sound, and I started speculating about who could be behind it.”
The guy with glasses, still in his pajamas, looked helpless.
“What do you all think is going on? Some kind of god or demon thing?”
“Don’t make wild guesses. No god or demon would make you take a test like this and turn it into such a situation.”
The woman in the white cotton robe rolled her eyes, disdainful of such unreliable speculation.
“Could it be some advanced civilization, artificial intelligence?”
Yuanyuan had a wild idea.
“How could artificial intelligence achieve something like this, bringing all of us to this place? It feels like the whole world is under its control.”
The woman who had spoken earlier said, her expression serious.
“I remember it mentioned something about ‘new citizens.’ Could it be that it’s eliminating us one by one from this test, and those who pass become its subjects?”
The young man with glasses raised this speculation, causing a sinking feeling in everyone’s hearts.
It’s very likely to be the case.
“It sure has some grand ideas.”
But the structure of society can’t be successfully built through such a ruthless process of elimination.
“Let’s put that aside for now. Let’s take a look at this task first. Where is the altar? Did any of you have it written on your cards?”
Everyone shook their heads.
“I reckon once this NPC wakes up, we’ll find out.”
On the top of Guzi’s head, there was also a game ID.
The distinction between NPCs and candidates was clear.
(Originally translated on littlepandatranslations.com, let's go!)
It didn’t take long for the NPC to wake up, and he stirred slowly.
The pale-faced youth coughed and looked quite weak.
“Could you kindly help me get back to my village? It looks like the snow outside is about to stop. Once it does, if you follow the road southwest for about two kilometers, you’ll reach my village.”
The young boy sat up, appearing to be sensitive to the cold, with his hands tucked inside his sleeves, but he didn’t come closer to the campfire.
The snowstorm outside was already calming down.
The howling and fierce winds had ceased, replaced by a gentle, soothing breeze.
Yuanyuan approached, curiosity in his eyes, as he looked at the young boy.
The young boy looked puzzled, tilting his head as he gazed at him.
“Where is the altar located?”
It seemed the young boy hadn’t heard what he had asked and continued to look at him with confusion.
“Do you know what dangers you might face?”
Yuanyuan asked again.
The NPC still wore an expression of bewilderment, and his blinking frequency remained unchanged.
“Will he respond if you ask him?”
The middle-aged man chuckled, his arms crossed, with no expectations.
Xin Lan and Wan Yan, on the other hand, seemed lost in thought.
In the previous round, they hadn’t tried to interfere with the NPC, but Yuanyuan had made the first move. However, the NPC showed no reaction.
“Does it mean it’s not in the program?”
Yuanyuan didn’t feel discouraged and continued to ask questions.
“When will the snow outside stop?”
This time, the young boy answered.
It’ll stopped soon, he said.
“What’s your name?”
“You can call me Xia An.”
Xia An replied obediently.
“Where is the village?”
“Follow the road southwest for another two kilometers, and you’ll reach it.”
“Where is the altar?”
Xia An fell silent again, just looking at Yuanyuan.
“Do you know what dangers you might face?”
Xia An still didn’t respond.
Yuanyuan rubbed her chin, stood up, and stopped asking questions.
It’s unclear whether the NPC wasn’t advanced enough to respond to questions beyond the program or if there was a deliberate evasion of the program, answering only specific questions.
As Xia An had mentioned, the snow outside stopped quickly. It remained a pristine white, and the sun shining on the snow didn’t provide much warmth; instead, it was almost blinding.
The group continued southwest. Those dressed in down jackets, cotton robes, and boots were coping relatively well, but the young man with glasses, who had been in his pajamas and barefoot, was close to freezing.
Yuanyuan couldn’t bear to see this and took off his down jacket, putting it on the young man.
The young man with glasses was quite surprised and felt somewhat embarrassed.
“No worries, I’m from the northeast, you can see I’m dressed warmly. I’ve got several sweaters on; I can handle this temperature.”
Yuanyuan smiled, and there were even dimples on his face.
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After handing over the jacket, Yuanyuan dashed back to Xin Lan and Wan Yan, following the two beautiful young ladies with determination.
Xin Lan and Wan Yan had no objections to the little tail, just gazing ahead.
After walking for about two kilometers, Xin Lan and her companions spotted a stone monument.
Gu Village.
Gu Village, it seems like we’re entering a hornet’s nest.
“We’ve arrived.”
Xia An touched the cold stone monument, a hint of joy on his face.
“We’ve arrived?”
The middle-aged man was astonished. In this icy and snowy landscape, there was indeed a monument, but no matter how he looked, they were still in the snow. How had they arrived?
Xia An tiptoed and pressed down forcefully on the character ‘蟲’ in ‘蠱村’ on the monument.
Suddenly, a village appeared on the snowy ground, and the monument stood at its entrance.
“Come on in.”
Xia An led the way, and the others followed behind.
After entering, Xin Lan looked back.
Outside was no longer the snowy landscape they had just left behind; instead, it had turned into an endless darkness.
In the midst of falling snowflakes, the village they had just approached had quietly disappeared, just as it had when they first arrived.
As soon as Xin Lan entered, she heard the sound of drums and gongs.
From the sound of it, it seemed like a funeral procession.
A few paper offerings drifted over with the wind, and everyone’s expressions soured.
No matter who entered such a eerie place, encountering this situation right from the start would naturally put a damper on anyone’s mood.
As the sound of drums and gongs drew nearer, Xin Lan saw people dressed in mourning attire.
Leading the procession were two individuals scattering paper offerings, followed by the deceased’s coffin, which several people were carrying.
What caught the eye was a woman sitting atop the black coffin.
The woman, also dressed in mourning attire, had her legs hanging down, cradling a memorial portrait in her arms.
The scene was spine-chilling, sending shivers down everyone’s spine.
Some people almost couldn’t resist exclaiming in fear but quickly covered their mouths.
The woman sitting on the coffin wailed, her voice piercing, and she uttered incomprehensible, chant-like words.
Behind the coffin, there was a group of people walking. Their faces appeared somewhat wooden as they passed in front of Xin Lan and her group.
“It’s just someone who died, let’s go and find the village chief.”
After Xia An and the others had left, he spoke calmly and led the way.
Xin Lan squinted her eyes as she watched Xia An’s back.
Perhaps it was her imagination, but since they entered this Gu Village, she hadn’t felt as weak, and their walking pace had increased.
The village chief’s house wasn’t far from the village entrance, and before Xia An could knock on the door, it swung open.
The one who opened the door was an elderly woman wearing a headscarf, and she bowed respectfully to Xia An.
“Welcome, Guzi, back to the village. The village chief is already waiting for you inside.”
She spoke in Mandarin, but with a somewhat unusual and stiff accent.
“These are my friends who escorted me back, please take good care of them.”
The elderly woman nodded, and after Xia An entered, she came out and closed the door.
“Esteemed guests, please follow me.”
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At this point, nobody had a clear understanding of the situation, so they all refrained from making any hasty moves and followed the elderly woman forward.
Yuanyuan was getting ready to strike up a conversation again.
“Ma’am, your village is quite remote, isn’t it?”
“Gu Village has always been secluded, that’s how it is.”
The woman responded.
“Are Guzis highly regarded here?”
“Guzis are the lifeblood of Gu Village.”
“So why did he return from outside the village?”
The woman’s steps paused, and she turned to stare at Yuanyuan.
She appeared quite old, with a face full of wrinkles, prominent cheekbones, and a very thin frame. Her eyes were wide and looked particularly piercing.
With her gaze fixed like that, she could make anyone feel uneasy.
“Ma’am, where are we headed?”
Yuanyuan chuckled awkwardly, changing the subject.
“There are a few households in the village with spare beds for our esteemed guests. Unfortunately, we might not be able to accommodate all of you together. How you choose to stay will be up to you.”
The woman turned and continued walking.
Although she was older, she didn’t walk with the unsteady gait typical of elderly people; instead, she moved with remarkable steadiness.
She brought them to the front of a house and stopped, knocking on the door.
The door opened, revealing a girl of about eight or nine years old with a white cloth wrapped around her head standing in the doorway.
“Grandma.”
“Guzi has returned, and these guests here escorted him back. Do you have a couple of empty rooms for our guests to stay in?”
“Two rooms, enough for four people.”
The woman glanced at the people behind her and waited for them to make a choice.
The white cloth on the girl’s head immediately reminded everyone of the group of mourners they had seen at the village entrance, and for the moment, no one stepped forward.
Xin Lan decided to step forward, and naturally, Wan Yan followed suit. Yuanyuan also joined them.
The last one to step forward was the man in the white shirt.
Xin Lan had a feeling that this man was not ordinary from the moment she first saw him. He appeared exceptionally composed, standing in the snowy landscape with just a thin shirt on, seemingly unaffected by the cold.
Relying on the instincts she had honed over the years, Xin Lan believed that this man was undoubtedly a formidable character.