chapter 35

Luo Jia Bai was incredulous. “The Remote Control and the coffee table have completely opposite styles! Are they really in the same house?”

Lu Li picked up the Remote Control, turning it over to examine it.

The dust cover was spotless, with pink lace trim, suggesting the owner had girlish sensibilities and took care in keeping her home.

But the coffee table looked more like a trash can splayed open, with everything jumbled together in chaos.

“There are even two pieces of clothing stuffed in here!” Luo Jia Bai frowned as he rummaged through the coffee table for useful clues, tossing the clothes aside and making a gagging motion. “They’re soaked and have gone bad. Who is weird enough to just dump wet laundry on a coffee table? That’s absurd!”

Zhu Yue remarked, “The Mouse probably likes staying in the living room.”

Lu Li pointed the Remote Control at the two Televisions on the ceiling, still looping mechanically.

He pressed the pause button.

Both the sound and picture cut out.

Luo Jia Bai was curious. “Do the other buttons work too?”

“How do you use the others?” Lu Li, a bit unfamiliar, searched for buttons.

Luo Jia Bai stood beside him, explaining, “Right, the up, down, left, and right buttons all change channels. The number keys switch channels, and plus or minus adjusts the volume.”

Speaking of volume, he suddenly let out a heavy sigh.

“If only the Remote Control worked on monsters outside the Television, inside the Instance. Ever since I entered the Instance, I haven’t slept well for two nights! Every night, it’s the same woman crying! She doesn’t even stop to breathe-she can really wail!”

Luo Jia Bai’s frustration was, “Not sleeping well at night seriously affects my performance during the day. Otherwise, I’d definitely be even smarter.”

“I heard it too.” Zhu Yue tried hard to join in with the two of them. When Lu Li glanced over, she quickly offered a fawning smile and called out respectfully, “Brother Lu.”

Lu Li thought for a moment. “Don’t call me ‘Brother.’ I’m twenty.”

“Twenty! You’re still in school?” Zhu Yue was shocked. She thought Lu Li’s bearing and way of handling things were nothing like an innocent, simple student-instead, he had a leader’s charisma that made people instinctively trust and feel at ease.

It felt as if, no matter how difficult or confusing the problem, if Lu Li said he could solve it, then it would surely be solved.

Once again, she regretted it inwardly.

If, when she had just entered the game, she hadn’t chosen to stick with Qi Mingda but had followed Lu Li instead, would everything be different now?

“He doesn’t go to school!” Luo Jia Bai had asked the same question before, and now answered ahead of time. He waved mysteriously at the bewildered Zhu Yue. “You wouldn’t get the world of the rich.”

“Just call me by my name.”

Lu Li was still figuring out how to use the Remote Control. He switched the channel forward, and the Television screen flickered, producing a new image.

It was still the same female host standing on the right side of the screen, but now she wore formal attire.

The voice synced in:

“Hello everyone, today is February 22nd. Welcome.”

Lu Li switched the channel back.

The host’s position and appearance remained unchanged; only her clothing and the broadcast content were different.

“Hello everyone, today is November 25th.”

“…today is December 9th.”

Luo Jia Bai craned his neck until it was sore. “They’re all weather forecasts.”

Going forward shows the past; going backward shows the future. These two Televisions seemed only able to display the ‘weather forecast’ Nuo Nuo mentioned.

After the December 9th weather forecast, Lu Li switched one more channel back, and the screen suddenly went black.

“Did you hit the Power Off Button?” Luo Jia Bai noticed Lu Li was lacking in some basic life skills and pointed out, “You didn’t press this red one just now, right?”

Lu Li shook his head.

There was still no image for a long while, but suddenly a sharp, eerie wailing came through.

It was the voice of an adult woman.

The wail was piercing and terrified, as if she were suffering inhuman torture, accompanied by a repeated thumping sound.
Again and again, the sound continued without pause.

“That’s the sound! Did you hear it?” Luo Jia Bai’s ears perked up, a chill running down his spine. “It’s not Game Night yet, so why is she crying again?”

Lu Li listened carefully.

He had heard about it many times from others, but this was the first time he actually heard the sound himself.

He picked up the remote control and turned up the volume.

The woman’s wailing grew louder, making their eardrums vibrate.

“Stop, stop, stop!” Luo Jia Bai couldn’t take it anymore, grimacing as he clutched his head. “Turn it down, my heart can’t take it.”

Lu Li lowered the volume and switched back to the previous channel, returning to the weather forecast for December 9th. The crying disappeared along with it.

Now he was sure. “The sound is coming from the television.”

“Since it appears every night, it must be an important clue that hasn’t been fully triggered yet.”

Luo Jia Bai had learned the method from Lu Li’s previous experience clearing the game. He tried to deduce, “Let’s map out the timeline. The woman’s crying happens after December 9th. If we encounter any questions related to her later, we can trace it back to this, right?”

Lu Li, for once, gave him an approving look. “Smart.”

Luo Jia Bai was very pleased with himself, floating a little. “Low profile, low profile. This is only half of my normal intelligence.”

“Another television just turned on!” Zhu Yue’s shout interrupted them.

On the wall directly in front of the three, more than a dozen previously dark televisions lit up two in the center.

The two televisions sat closely together, as if symbiotic or split apart.

Lu Li paused the two weather forecast televisions. The new televisions had already started playing content.

On the screen stood two identical faceless women, each carrying a plastic bag filled with scallions and vegetables in the crook of her arm, looking as if she had just returned from a walk and grocery shopping.

A microphone with a media logo was extended in front of the faceless woman.

The women on both sides spoke roughly the same words:

“You’re asking about my impression of that family? It’s quite deep! Especially the male host/female host of that family. I see him/her all the time. I live right next door to them, and the noises from their home carry over to mine every day.”

The woman paused for breath, and when she spoke again, the content diverged sharply. The left screen talked about the male host, while the right screen talked about the female host.

Lu Li paused the left side: “The male host is honest and kind! I heard he has a PhD, so it’s easy for him to find a good job. He leaves early and comes home late every day to earn money for the family. He has a good personality and is always willing to help others. Sometimes when I buy too many groceries, or when it’s raining and I have to carry an umbrella, it’s hard to press the elevator button, and he’ll lend a hand.

Something like this couldn’t possibly have anything to do with him! At home, I always hear his wife screaming and going crazy. I suspect the female host isn’t mentally well.”

The interview on the right finished, and the faceless woman started speaking a second time.

Lu Li paused it and began listening to the right side: “The female host is sloppy and doesn’t care about her appearance, always with a gloomy face! But then again, she’s a mother now, not alone, so she can’t be selfish. For the sake of her child and her family, it’s only right to use less makeup.

She doesn’t even have a job, just stays at home as a housewife. No matter how nice the weather is outside, it has nothing to do with her, and putting on makeup is a waste.

When something like this happens, she’s the first one I suspect! There’s something wrong with her head! She gets up at five every morning to clean, cook, and do laundry. Their washing machine even leaks! Last time I went to her place, we had a fight. Just to save a little money, she refuses to buy a new washing machine and would rather wash clothes by hand! She’s really a weirdo!”

The faceless woman on the right seemed to have a lot of complaints about the female host.

Luo Jia Bai was fully focused, arms crossed, and after a brainstorm, looked at Lu Li eagerly.

“Which one is wrong? I can’t tell.”