Volume 11: The Days of Traversing Through the Mirror
Withered
That’s not right, Ruixin was gone fifteen years ago
“I just ran into Wu Huiling,” Bai Lu quickly explained. “She killed Zhang Xiao and escaped into the mirror. I grabbed her, chased after her, and we talked for a bit.”
Peng Xiaorui asked in a small voice, “Are you the real one or a fake?”
Bai Lu took out the dagger Lou Jingmo had lent her and made a small cut on her finger. She held it up for them to see. “I’m the real one. Wu Huiling has been hunting down and killing the Zhang Xiaos of every world, but she can’t touch the one in this world. So, she asked us to kill Zhang Xiao. If we do, she can send us away.”
Shen Maomao looked at Lou Jingmo. “What do you think?”
“That should be it,” Lou Jingmo said. “But there’s one thing I can’t figure out—what exactly is this instance trying to say?”
It had been mentioned before that the egg spirit1 in the instance symbolized the anonymity of the internet. The online bullying and real-world violence they carried out against the two girls were also done in the name of “upholding justice.” From a certain perspective, this was the same as what the creators behind the game were doing.
Judging by the current method of escape, this instance was clearly on Wu Huiling and Zhan Xin’s side. It even wanted to kill Zhang Xiao, the “law enforcer.” So, were the game creators just eaten until full and then stuffed themselves more2, subtly mocking themselves here?
Shen Maomao couldn’t figure it out either. She thought of what the fake Lou Jingmo had told her. In a flash of lightning and spark from a flint3, she vaguely felt a thought flicker past but couldn’t grasp it. She could only temporarily push it aside and deal with the situation at hand.
Besides that, she was still a little suspicious. “Will it really be this simple? In this world, Zhang Xiao is probably just an ordinary human. She should be pretty easy to kill, right?”
“I don’t know,” Lou Jingmo said frankly.
Peng Xiaorui glanced at her phone. “We can’t worry about that anymore. We have less than five hours left. If we don’t go now, it’ll be too late.”
She put Number One on the ground. “If you guys can’t lower the hand4 to do this, then I’ll go. If there’s no exit afterward, you guys with the high IQs can fix it.”
Shen Maomao felt she couldn’t be outdone by a little sister like Peng Xiaorui, so she stepped forward. “I’ll do it.”
Peng Xiaorui suddenly grabbed her wrist, her tone firm. “You can’t. Only I can.”
Shen Maomao frowned. “Do you… know something?”
Peng Xiaorui smiled. “I know a lot of things. Just wait for my good news.”
“Can’t we go in with you?” Shen Maomao asked.
“Are you looking down on me?”
Shen Maomao was speechless. “…?”
Lou Jingmo gave her a deep look and pulled Shen Maomao a little closer. “Let her go. We’ll just wait.”
“Then I’ll go with you,” Bai Lu offered.
“No, no, no, nobody come,” Peng Xiaorui immediately refused. “Gan Ze, just lend me the dagger. Absolutely do not come in. Coming in means you’re looking down on me. Just leave the stuff inside to me. It’s only a few ordinary people. It’ll be quick.”
With that, she turned, kicked open the door of the neighboring dorm room, and strode inside amidst the girls’ cries of alarm. Then, she used her foot to pull the door shut from the inside.
The group waited at the door, listening to the questioning from within—
“Who are you?”
“Here to pick a fight?”
“What are you trying to do?!”
Peng Xiaorui didn’t answer. Soon, screams erupted from inside again. The main door was suddenly yanked open, and several girls with terror-stricken faces rushed out. When they saw the people outside, it was as if they had grasped the last life-saving rice straw5. They ran over, their speech without order6. “A lunatic is killing people! Call the police!”
Shen Maomao looked at them and grinned. “Sorry, we’re with her.”
The girl’s eyes widened. She trembled and took two steps back, shouting for help as she scrambled past them and fled.
The sounds in the dorm room gradually subsided. A white light penetrated the wall and shone on everyone—it was the exit. Peng Xiaorui had succeeded. Their judgment was correct, and Wu Huiling and Zhan Xin hadn’t lied.
Peng Xiaorui walked out carrying the dagger and smiled sweetly. “Let’s go! The exit is the mirror inside the room!”
But red streaks of blood were still wandering down her face, so her smile wasn’t sweet and lovely at all. Instead, it was filled with the stench of blood.
Bai Lu was the first to walk over. “You’re not hurt, are you?”
Peng Xiaorui shook her head. Maybe she felt an itch, so she casually wiped her face, smearing a large patch of blood. “I’m fine. Let’s go quickly. The monsters in the instance will go berserk soon.”
Shen Maomao was still worried about Number One. But when she turned her head, she found that Number One, whom they had thrown in the corner, had vanished at some point. “Fuck, why is that person running around?”
“Since she’s courting death7 herself, don’t worry about her,” Lou Jingmo said.
“I know, I’m not an idiot,” Shen Maomao replied. “At a time like this, it’s more practical to just run.”
Bai Lu wasn’t disgusted by the blood on Peng Xiaorui. Instead, she took her hand and entered the dorm room with her. “After we get out, remember to add me on the forum,” she said as they walked. “My forum ID is also Bai Lu. When school starts, your xuejie8 will pick you up for registration.”
“Okay!” Peng Xiaorui agreed instantly.
Bai Lu stood before the exit without moving. “What about you? What’s your ID?”
Peng Xiaorui said, embarrassed, “It’s called… Give You a Little Heart.”9
“That’s pretty cute, hahaha,” Bai Lu laughed.
Zhang Xiao’s corpse lay right beside them. Her throat had been slit open with a single cut, and fresh blood was splattered all over the floor. Her eyes were wide open, as if she couldn’t understand why she had suddenly died.
The two chattered on endlessly beside her corpse. On the other side, Gan Ze bowed to them. “Thank you for being willing to bring me along. I’ll be going first. There will be a time to meet again.”10
With that, he passed the two people in front of the exit and left the instance.
“Then let’s go too,” Bai Lu said.
“Mhm, mhm,” Peng Xiaorui agreed.
Bai Lu looked towards Lou Jingmo and Shen Maomao. “You guys are very impressive. Let’s meet again if fate allows.”
Shen Maomao waved at her.
Bai Lu pulled Peng Xiaorui towards the white light. She stepped into it first, but suddenly felt the grip on her hand loosen. She quickly turned to look, only to find that Peng Xiaorui had let go of her own accord.
She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but was quickly swallowed by the exit and vanished from their sight.
“Do you still have something to say to us?” Shen Maomao asked, puzzled.
Peng Xiaorui shook her head. “You guys go. I can’t leave anymore.”
Shen Maomao’s eyes widened in shock.
Of course, she knew who couldn’t leave—only the dead couldn’t exit an instance. So when did Peng Xiaorui die?! How did she have no memory of it at all?
She looked at Lou Jingmo, who didn’t seem surprised in the slightest. Instead, she asked, “When did you realize?”
Peng Xiaorui reached for the back of her head, her hand coming away covered in blood, which she held out for Shen Maomao to see.
The image of her touching the back of her head flashed through Shen Maomao’s mind. She finally realized—the wound on Peng Xiaorui’s head had been there for several days. It had been bleeding the entire time, with absolutely no sign of healing.
Because she was in a game world, she hadn’t thought about it conventionally, nor had she felt there was anything wrong with Peng Xiaorui bleeding continuously.
“Actually, I only just realized it myself,” Peng Xiaorui said, bending down to pick up the wooden plank that Bai Lu had dropped when she escaped.
Under the sunlight, the nail on the plank was pitch-black, as if… there was coagulated blood on it.
She continued, “I died as soon as I entered the mirror world… I met the fake xuejie then, but I thought she was real, and she clubbed me to death with one blow. After that, I don’t know why, but I woke up again and had forgotten that I was already dead… Then I met Maomao.”
“How could this happen…” Shen Maomao whispered.
They had made it all the way to the exit… Why did fate love to play such cruel tricks?
“After entering this mirror world, I remembered everything,” Peng Xiaorui said. “And I inexplicably developed an intuition that the person who killed Zhang Xiao also couldn’t leave the instance.”
Shen Maomao’s throat was a little hoarse. “So you volunteered.”
Peng Xiaorui nodded.
Refusing to believe it, Shen Maomao took a step forward, grabbed her arm, and forcefully shoved her towards the exit.
Peng Xiaorui let her, saying, “It’s useless. I can’t get out.”
It was true. She couldn’t get out.
No matter how hard Shen Maomao pushed, she couldn’t advance a single step. It was as if she were blocked by an invisible wall, forever one step away from the exit.
Lou Jingmo grabbed Shen Maomao’s wrist. “We should go.”
Faint screams and roars echoed from downstairs. The exit had appeared, and the entire instance was starting to mutate. If they lingered any longer, they might not be able to leave at all.
Shen Maomao rushed over and hugged Peng Xiaorui. “You have to be well… inside the instance,” she said, tears streaming down her face.
Peng Xiaorui patted her on the back, then gently pushed her away. “I will. You guys have to keep it up too.”
Shen Maomao sniffled hard.
This time, Lou Jingmo wasn’t jealous. Instead, she helped wipe away her tears and said softly, “It’s time to go.”
Shen Maomao gave a low sound of agreement and walked towards the exit, holding hands with Lou Jingmo.
Peng Xiaorui seemed to think of something and suddenly shouted, “I helped you guys out a lot, right?”
Shen Maomao nodded.
“Then after you get out, could I trouble you to go see my parents?” Peng Xiaorui said quickly. “My name is Li Ruixin, the ‘Li’ from ‘gift.’ I live in Zhao Family Village, X County, X City, X Province. There’s only one family with the surname Li there; you’ll find them as soon as you ask. I know this is a lot to ask, so if you have the time and means, go. But if you don’t have time, then forget it!”
“Okay! I will definitely go!” Shen Maomao promised.
“Then you guys should go quickly,” Peng Xiaorui said.
The two stepped into the exit. In the final second before leaving, Shen Maomao couldn’t help but look back. In the white light, Peng Xiaorui raised her arm above her head and waved forcefully at them.
Then they were separated by the endless white light, from then on separated by Yin and Yang11, never to meet again.
…
Sitting on the sofa at home, Shen Maomao felt an overwhelming urge to cry.
She was already this upset; she couldn’t imagine how heartbroken Bai Lu must be. Peng Xiaorui probably hadn’t told Bai Lu the truth precisely because she was afraid of that.
Before leaving, she had told Peng Xiaorui to be well, but they all knew this wasn’t a repeatable instance. There was a high probability it would disappear or be sealed away after being cleared.
She took out Simon Peter, looked at the quiet face on the puppet, and couldn’t help but sigh.
Peng Xiaorui was already dead, with no chance to even use a card. If only she had been a little stronger, she wouldn’t have been so helpless, unable to even protect a friend.
Lou Jingmo put an arm around her shoulder. “Crying for a bit is enough. Tidy up. We’ll go to her home tomorrow.”
Shen Maomao pulled out a tissue and blew her nose. “Mmm…”
“Get your emotions in order,” Lou Jingmo said. “We’re starting the debrief.”12
Shen Maomao threw the snotty tissue into the trash can. “I feel like this instance was a bit strange.”
“I have that feeling too,” Lou Jingmo agreed.
In the past, the game loved plots where bad people killed good people, and the good people became ghosts to get revenge. The characters’ personalities were if not black, then it’s white13, and the line between good and bad was crystal clear.
But this time, aside from the obvious villain Zhang Xiao, the other victims were surprisingly difficult to define as simply good or bad.
Shen Maomao remembered the imposter’s words and quickly said, “When we were acting separately, I ran into your imposter!”
Lou Jingmo narrowed her eyes. “Now that you mention it, I’d almost forgotten. What about the imposter?”
Shen Maomao swallowed. “I’m saying… she’s quite pitiful.” Once that was out, the rest of her words flowed more smoothly. “The moment I think about how they look just like you, Sister Lou, I can’t help but feel my heart ache.”
Lou Jingmo’s skin smiled but the flesh did not smile14. “That’s face-sculpting.”
“What’s wrong with face-sculpting? As long as it looks like you, it’s fine. This is what you call loving the house and extending it to the crow.”15
Lou Jingmo gave a cold snort.
“Ah sir,”16 Shen Maomao said, “we’re talking about important things right now. Can we look into this later?”
Only then did Lou Jingmo show great mercy and let her off. “Speak. What did it say to you?”
Shen Maomao roughly recounted the imposter’s words.
Lou Jingmo’s brows furrowed as she listened. After she finished, she immediately took out her phone. “I’m contacting Shang Zhou. The Confession Game seems to have its own consciousness.”
Not only did it have its own consciousness, but it had very likely developed rebellious thoughts towards its creators and was desperate for a new leader.
Shen Maomao watched her hands fly across the screen. “So you’re saying,” she couldn’t help but ask, “we can get rid of the original creators with the game’s help and become the big kings ourselves?!”
“It’s not impossible,” Lou Jingmo said while typing.
Shen Maomao immediately felt that the future can be anticipated17. “Then you guys discuss it. We’ll strive to get rid of the creators, marry the Confession Game, and walk towards the peak of life.”18
“To be honest, I don’t really want it.”
Shen Maomao went “pei.”19 “Have some shame. It’s not like it offered itself to you.”
Lou Jingmo smiled and put down her phone, probably finished talking with Shang Zhou. She returned to the previous topic. “The Zhang Xiao, Wu Huiling, and Zhan Xin in the instance probably have real-life prototypes at your school. You can browse your school’s Tieba and forums these next few days. You might find something.”
“Okay, I’ll start looking in a bit,” Shen Maomao agreed instantly.
“I ordered you a cup of milk tea. Remember to get the door for the delivery later,” Lou Jingmo said. “I’m going upstairs to handle some work. You remember to book two plane tickets.”
“Okay!” Shen Maomao, like a great roc spreading its wings20, flew over and gave her a kiss. “Love you!”
Lou Jingmo wiped her face in disgust.
…
The next morning, Shen Maomao and Lou Jingmo boarded a plane with thick clothes, preparing to visit Peng Xiaorui’s hometown.
Peng Xiaorui’s hometown was a small village in the Northeast. It wasn’t very rich, but it wasn’t impoverished either. It was a place with a slow pace of life, perfect for retirement.
The two of them were wrapped in heavy down jackets, shivering like two quails about to be put in a pot, so cold they couldn’t stop stamping their feet.
There was a supermarket at the village entrance. Shen Maomao led Lou Jingmo inside to buy a bottle of water, mooched off their heating for a while, and took the opportunity to ask about the Li family.
As soon as she said “the ‘Li’ from ‘gift’,” the supermarket owner immediately understood. “Oh, you mean Old Li. Follow the road at the entrance east, pass an alley, then walk north. The third house with the red main door is theirs. Are you relatives? What business do you have with them?”
“We’re his daughter’s friends,” Shen Maomao said.
The supermarket owner was taken aback. “Did you guys go to the wrong village?”
“Huh?” Shen Maomao was confused.
“The Old Li family hasn’t had any children for years,” the owner said. “Where would a daughter come from?”
Shen Maomao was dumbfounded. “Isn’t this Zhao Family Village?”
The owner nodded. “That’s right.”
“Then is there a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl in your village who studies art, named Li Ruixin?”
“No,” the owner said with certainty. “Our village only has so many people, and there are even fewer girls in high school. If there really was one studying art, it’s impossible for me not to know!”
Shen Maomao was completely baffled and couldn’t help but look at Lou Jingmo.
“Thank you, Da Ge21,” Lou Jingmo said. “We came from so far away. We should still go to the Li family’s house to take a look before deciding anything.”
“Alright then,” the owner said. “They have a dog in their yard. Don’t get scared.”
The two left the warm supermarket, shivering as they walked. Soon, they saw the red main door the owner had mentioned.
On both sides of the door was a wooden fence. Inside the yard was a small stone slab path, and beside it was a vegetable garden covered in snow. Behind the door, a large, unleashed wolfdog started barking wildly the moment it saw them, leaning against the fence.
Shen Maomao wasn’t afraid of dogs at all and was even in the mood to tease it. “Jiu jiu jiu~”
The house door opened. A woman in her forties shouted, “Zhao Cai!”22 The wolfdog immediately stopped barking and trotted over to its owner, wagging its tail.
The woman, wearing a cotton-padded jacket, walked to the main gate and asked through it, “Who are you looking for?”
“Excuse me,” Shen Maomao said. “Is this Li Ruixin’s home?”
The woman was clearly stunned for a moment, then opened the gate for them. “Come in and talk.”
The two followed her into the house. The large wolfdog crawled into its doghouse outside and watched them from the opening.
The family’s house wasn’t big, but all five vital organs were present23. There was no real decoration to speak of, but it was very clean. A heated kang was burning in the room, making the whole house radiate warmth. It was so hot that Shen Maomao quickly took off her down jacket.
The woman got them two pairs of slippers. “You must be frozen. Go sit on the kang for a while to warm up. I’ll get you some hot water.”
“Da Jie24, no need to trouble yourself. We have water,” Shen Maomao said, holding up the bottle of mineral water that was already starting to fog up.
The woman had something on her mind, so she didn’t insist. She sat down on the edge of the kang, used the remote to turn off the TV, and asked, “How do you know that name?”
“We’re her friends…” Shen Maomao began.
Before she could finish, the woman interrupted her. “That’s not right. Ruixin was gone fifteen years ago.”
Shen Maomao was floored. “??!!”
“If nothing had happened to her, she’d be about your age now,” the woman added.
Shen Maomao was dumbfounded.
Not only was she dumbfounded, but even Lou Jingmo was momentarily stunned, which was a rare sight. However, she quickly recovered. “I’m sorry for bringing up a painful memory…”
The woman’s face, however, showed no sadness. “It’s fine. It happened over a decade ago; it’s long past. I remember it was also winter. Her dad carried her and ran through the snow to several hospitals, but in the end, the child couldn’t be saved. She was gone the next day.”
“Then we probably have the wrong person,” Shen Maomao said. “Sorry to have disturbed you.”
The woman smiled. “It’s fine, it’s fine. Is your friend also named Li Ruixin? Which ‘Li’? The ‘Li’ with ‘wood’ and ‘child’?”
Shen Maomao went along with it. “Right, right, the ‘Li’ with ‘wood’ and ‘child’. We couldn’t contact her, so we thought we’d come to her home to see. We didn’t expect to have gotten it wrong.”
“You must not have explained it clearly before asking, hahaha. My family’s ‘Li’ isn’t that one. It’s the ‘Li’ from ‘politeness’.”
…
The woman enthusiastically invited them to stay for lunch and was even about to go to the market to buy groceries, but Shen Maomao and Lou Jingmo both refused.
The two called their rental car driver and waited at the village entrance, stamping their feet to keep warm while they talked.
Shen Maomao was completely in the clouds and fog25. Her head was full of little question marks. “What do you think is going on? How could Peng Xiaorui have died at two years old? Then who was the one clearing the instance with us? Could she be a stranded player?26 No, that’s not right. What kind of instance can you enter at two?”
“The Li home has no traces of a girl ever having lived there,” Lou Jingmo said in a low voice.
Shen Maomao circled around Lou Jingmo, stamping a row of round footprints in the snow beside her. “So is Peng Xiaorui dead or alive? Could she have gotten it wrong?”
“Probably not,” Lou Jingmo said. “Her existence seems to have been erased by someone.”
Shen Maomao couldn’t figure it out. “Is there something special about her? Why did this only happen to her?”
But Lou Jingmo replied, “Maybe it’s not just her. Maybe we just don’t know.”
Shen Maomao froze for a moment, then immediately took out her phone to call her mom. “I’m going to verify something. Wait a sec.”
The call connected quickly. The other end was exceptionally noisy; it sounded like customers were chatting.
“Wait a moment, I’ll find an empty private room…” Mother Shen said. “Okay, go ahead. What’s up? You actually remembered your mom?”
“Mom, how have my uncle and aunt been recently?”
Her mom scolded, “You little rabbit bastard! You call back and don’t ask about your dad and me, but ask about your uncle first? What, are your uncle and aunt your real parents? You little one with no conscience, I raised you for nothing!”
“Aiya, Mom, don’t mess around. I have something serious to ask. Just tell me if they’re doing well or not.”
“Nothing much,” Mother Shen said. “They’re doing quite well. A couple of days ago, your aunt even said she wanted to buy a pet, saying that young people nowadays treat cats and dogs like their own sons and daughters.”
“Then have they moved on from Shen Wenwu’s27 matter?”
“Shen Wenwu? Who’s that? A relative of ours? Why don’t I remember?”
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