Chapter 350
Chapter 350
Jian Fan’s Script stated where the batteries were.
He wasted no time and headed straight for their location.
They were in a drawer. The Script clearly specified the direction and the exact workstation, so Qin Nan and Mu Xin had barely begun searching when Jian Fan took out the batteries and called, “I found them.”
Qin Nan and Mu Xin both turned toward him with stunned expressions.
Then Qin Nan muttered skeptically, “Jian Fan, you don’t happen to know what’s in the Script, do you?”
At his question, Jian Fan gave a noncommittal response. “What?”
They all knew perfectly well that everyone had a Script, but Jian Fan’s was clearly different from theirs this time. The one in his hands was very likely genuine.
Qin Nan’s question had been sincere, without any ulterior motive. Yet to his surprise, a notification that his Popularity had risen sounded in his mind once again.
“Oh my god, Qin Nan is so smart! Has he figured it out?”
“He must suspect that Jian Fan got the genuine Script.”
“That’s incredible.”
“Haven’t you realized that the director’s plan is about to fall apart?”
“Hahahaha! I can’t wait to see that happen.”
“You guys can do it! Take the director down!”
“…”
All right, then.
Qin Nan had only suspected it before, but now he was certain: Jian Fan had the genuine Script.
He was grateful for the tip from the bullet comments.
Jian Fan brought the batteries over.
Since Jian Fan had the genuine Script, Qin Nan asked, “What next?”
“Change the batteries,” Jian Fan replied.
Qin Nan fell silent.
Fine. Pretend he had never asked.
The bullet comments once again filled with laughter.
What was so funny about that?
It made no sense at all, although he had gained a little Popularity from it.
Taking apart an electronic lock was not actually difficult, as long as they had the right tools.
So besides the batteries, they also needed to find tools for dismantling the electronic lock. Naturally, the job of finding them fell to Jian Fan, who knew the contents of the Script.
Jian Fan remained reliable for the moment. After all, even if his role was to hold the group back, he could not make it too deliberate.
With both the batteries and the tools in hand, all that remained was to dismantle the electronic lock.
As the one whose role was to hold the group back, Jian Fan naturally had to declare, “I don’t know how.”
“I’ll do it.” Qin Nan could not be bothered wasting words. He took the tools and got straight to work.
He had replaced the batteries in the electronic lock at home before, so he had some experience. He might not have been particularly skilled, but at least he knew how to do it.
Jian Fan and Mu Xin held their flashlights for Qin Nan while he got to work, removing the electronic lock and replacing its batteries. The lock powered on afterward.
Qin Nan immediately entered the password.
And then…
Incorrect password.
Everyone was baffled.
Refusing to believe it, Qin Nan entered the password again. It was still wrong.
“What password do you two know?” Qin Nan asked.
Jian Fan answered, “087231.”
“Same,” Mu Xin replied.
Thinking it over, Qin Nan entered it once more.
Incorrect password.
Not only was it wrong, but the display announced that too many incorrect attempts had been made and locked the electronic lock for five minutes.
Qin Nan fell silent.
Damn it!
They had been played! The password was wrong.
As for Jian Fan… he felt as though someone had stolen his role as the one holding the group back.
This round of failed password attempts earned them another rise in Popularity.
This time, Lu Jing knew exactly why his Popularity had increased. After all, he had personally changed the password.
How could an Escape Room be that simple?
He had already given them a genuine Script. If he did not set up a few obstacles, where would the suspense be?
So the first challenge was finding the password.
Lu Jing was quite confident.
He might not be clever, but after spending so long with them, he had picked up a thing or two.
They could take their time searching for the password.
“Let’s look for the password,” Mu Xin said helplessly.
“This director is too devious,” Qin Nan complained indignantly.
Of course, he was not truly angry, but they still had to put on a good show for the variety program.
After grumbling for a moment, the group split up and began searching the company for the password.
Since the power was out, none of the computers throughout the company could be turned on, which naturally ruled them out as places to search. Most of the group focused on the drawers in the office desks instead.
But the company was genuinely rather large, and it had a great many drawers.
There was a method to choosing which drawers to search, though.
For instance, there were the drawers at reception and the drawers belonging to the other employees.
The four foolish NPCs headed straight for the work area, while Qin Nan and the other two made for reception in perfect accord.
The reception desk had plenty of drawers. Behind it stood a shelf holding a few decorations, but it also had several compartments containing various items. All of those places needed to be searched.
Even so, the area was much smaller than the company as a whole.
After searching for a while, the three of them soon found the answer.
Mu Xin discovered a printed notice in one of the drawers.
The notice stated that the password had been changed because the company had replaced its combination lock.
Qin Nan and the other two fell silent.
Devious.
Fortunately, they had successfully found the password.
After what had happened earlier–and, of course, mainly to gain more Popularity–Qin Nan volunteered, “I don’t dare try again. Mu Xin, you do it.”
Mu Xin did not decline.
She entered the new password they had found.
Correct password.
Mu Xin pretended to sigh in relief, then reached out and opened the door.
“We can get out now.”
The moment the words left her mouth, a dark shadow suddenly lunged at Mu Xin.
Fortunately, Qin Nan reacted quickly and yanked Mu Xin back. The two immediately retreated several steps, and Jian Fan swiftly withdrew farther inside as well.
Who could have expected a ghostly figure to lunge at them the instant Mu Xin opened the door?
The ghostly figure clung to the transparent glass beside the doorway and thrust its head through the open door.
His neck stretched to a completely unnatural length, and he could extend or retract it at will.
He now stretched his head farther inside, flicking his tongue through the empty air. Then he seemed to discover something and let out a strange laugh before charging straight into the company.
Qin Nan and the other two had already switched off their flashlights. They stood in the darkness, holding their breath.
Only after the ghostly figure had rushed far away did the three of them recover their senses.
“Let’s go, quickly,” Qin Nan urged. He headed for the door first, and Jian Fan and Mu Xin hurried after him.
Lu Jing, watching this scene, furrowed his brow.
This scene had not appeared in the genuine Script.
But… why was there a ghostly figure?
Moreover, somewhere Qin Nan and the other two could not see, the ghostly figure charged toward the four NPCs who still had their flashlights on. The moment he opened his mouth, his extended tongue rapidly swept all four NPCs into it. After letting out a satisfied belch, he chose a nearby door, sprawled across it, and contentedly fell asleep.
How could this have happened?
Qin Weiyi’s mind worked faster than Lu Jing’s.
The panda robot had warned them that the variety show contained danger, and this time, that danger had doubled…
In other words, perhaps the original danger needed them to trigger it somehow. They had made it safely through the first episode, possibly because they had avoided it, or perhaps because they had resolved it. But now that the difficulty had increased, the danger might come looking for them directly.