The messy bedroom left barely enough room to stand. Clothes and all manner of books littered the floor, the coffee table was piled with various empty bottles and unfinished takeout containers, and the only thing in the entire room that could be called tidy was the computer desk.
"Fan Cong, you've been playing games for a long time. Every now and then you should get up and move around, clean the place up a little." Chen Ge carefully made his way to the computer desk and glanced at the monitor.
A line of bloody text glowed on the pitch-black screen — "You killed Xiao Bu."
"That handwriting looks like a child's." Chen Ge had seen a similar style of writing in Room 104 of Mingyang Community.
"Don't wear headphones while playing. Listen to that music too long and you'll get neurasthenia." Fan Cong spoke from experience. He clicked the screen with practiced ease, and the bloody text slowly faded. The screen flickered, and the game's visuals returned to normal. "The controls are simple — just keep clicking the mouse. Oh, want something to drink? How about a Coke?"
"Sure, thanks." Chen Ge's attention had already been captured by the monitor. The image on screen was pure moe-style girly game — pink as the dominant color, warm and cute. "Pretty impressive that you managed to clear a game like this."
"Just boredom, mindless playing." Fan Cong looked a little embarrassed. He pushed the door open and called out: "Brother! Bring in two cold Cokes."
Shortly after, Fan Dade walked in carrying a tray. "I threw together a couple of small dishes. If you two get tired of playing, you can grab a bite."
After setting the food down, Fan Dade showed no intention of leaving. He gazed curiously at the monitor as well. "Boss Chen, be careful while you play. This game throws out terrifying scenes at random intervals. Don't let the current art style fool you."
"Don't worry." Chen Ge didn't touch anything on the tray. He had a habit — after leaving the haunted house, he never ate food given to him by anyone.
Chen Ge clicked the mouse and quickly got the hang of it, guiding Xiao Bu to sit up in bed before walking out the door. With Fan Cong's explanations, he soon mapped out the game's layout. The in-game scenery was nearly identical to the real Liwan Town.
Ten-odd minutes later, Chen Ge found Xiao Bu's classmate's house. Just as he was about to open the secret passage door, he noticed that clicking on the wall with the mouse brought up a dialogue box below — "Classmate's house is huge. Want to go check out the second floor?"
The line was presumably Xiao Bu's inner monologue. Chen Ge read it and turned to look at Fan Cong. "Have you been to the second floor?"
"There's just an award certificate of Xiao Bu's classmate. I've clicked on everything — used a systematic grid-search method." Fan Cong was absolutely certain.
Chen Ge thought about it for a moment, then still had Xiao Bu go up to the second floor. Directly across from the door, in the most vivid spot on the wall, a single certificate hung all by itself.
He clicked on it with the mouse, and a dialogue box appeared once more — "Jiang Xiaohu has demonstrated outstanding performance and has been named a Merit Student. This certificate is awarded as encouragement."
"Jiang Xiaohu?! Isn't that Jiang Long's child? I saw him in that painting in Room 104 just now!" Chen Ge stared at the screen, and it took him a good while to react. "In such a big room, there's only a single award certificate hanging. What is this trying to convey?"
He couldn't figure it out, so he guided Xiao Bu back downstairs, opened the secret passage door, and ventured inside.
The bright, adorable art style turned eerie and sinister in an instant. Withered sunflower petals carpeted the ground, and in the gaps between the bricks of the tunnel, eyes seemed to open and close, one after another — as though a sweet dream had instantly become a nightmare.
"Boss Chen, from this point on you have to be extremely careful. Danger could come from anywhere, and one wrong move means death." Fan Cong had grown tense as well, gripping his Coke can, eyes locked on the screen.
Stepping out of the tunnel, Chen Ge saw the bus stop and the woman in the red raincoat. Fan Cong had already cleared the preceding plotline — all Chen Ge had to do now was make the right choices.
"You said earlier that you got stuck on the story. Where exactly did it stall?" Chen Ge had breezed through the first few checkpoints, shaken off the woman in the red raincoat, dodged Ma Fu's pursuit, and escaped the drunken artist — the whole sequence executed with fluid grace. Under his control, Xiao Bu seemed to come alive, moving with remarkable agility.