??55: Chapter 55: Conditions for Leaving (Please Favorite, Follow, and Vote)
55: Chapter 55: Conditions for Leaving (Please Favorite, Follow, and Vote)
The interior structure of the room was very simple, with the left and right sides opened up to form a huge, elongated space.
The walls of the entire room were lined with closely arranged display cases, on which items were densely and neatly arranged.
In the middle of the room, display cases were also scattered in rows, and dim kerosene lamps were placed between them for lighting.
This room didn’t feel like a space ant for living; it was more akin to a dollar store in a shopping mall, cramd with various small commodities.
“Shall we go in?”
Liu Nan looked at the scene and felt a bit weird; combined with the dim light from the kerosene lamps and the dense fog outside, it seed sowhat terrifying and bizarre.
“Mhm, just don’t go too far from .”
He Ao nodded, letting go of Liu Nan’s wrist, and stepped into the room first.
He had been holding on to Liu Nan all this ti because it was easy to get lost once they let go of each other in the fog that hindered their vision; though the room was odd, it had basic lighting and their sight wouldn’t be obstructed, so there was no need to keep holding on, as it would also affect their combat abilities.
Liu Nan looked down at her left wrist.
He Ao hadn’t been mindful of his strength when grabbing her wrist and squeezed it rather tightly; her originally fair wrist was now faintly red and there was a slight pain.
She pinched her sleeve and pulled it down to cover her wrist before quickly catching up with He Ao.
“What’s wrong?”
He Ao paused in front of the display case near the door and asked softly while looking at the items in the case.
“Nothing,” Liu Nan rolled up her sleeve to show He Ao the reddened area where he had gripped her wrist.
She did not hide it; hiding things from each other in a crisis was stupid and could destroy their mutual trust, “I just don’t have the best constitution, I’ve been pampered all my life.”
Then she paused and added quietly, “Thank you for protecting
just now.”
As she spoke, her heartbeat quickened sowhat.
Just now, when He Ao detected danger, he pulled her out of the door instantly; anwhile, in the fog, he kept holding onto her.
If He Ao had released her at that ti, with that visibility, she might have gotten lost in the fog.
In such a strange environnt, she had no idea what she might encounter.
“Oh, it’s okay,” He Ao replied, without looking up, “You owe
two als now.
I didn’t bring a notebook, I’ll note it down later when we get back.”
······
Liu Nan felt her heartbeat gradually returning to normal.
Suspension bridge effect, suspension bridge effect…
She sighed, providing herself with an explanation for the quickened heartbeat she’d just experienced.
When a person is in a dangerous situation, like crossing a suspension bridge, their heart rate will involuntarily increase; if at this ti, they happen to et a person of the opposite sex, they might mistakenly attribute this heightened heartbeat to being in love—this is known as the suspension bridge effect.
Unlike Liu Nan’s emotional ups and downs, He Ao’s deanor was consistently calm; he was carefully observing the items in the display cases.
“These look like collectibles.”
Liu Nan stood beside He Ao, no longer thinking about those strange things, and started observing the items as well.
In front of He Ao was a ceramic display case, which housed various ceramic objects like vases, dishes, bowls.
And in front of each exhibit, there was a small note detailing the na and a brief introduction of the item.
For instance, the blue and white porcelain bowl in front of He Ao had a note underneath it stating:
[Blue and white porcelain bowl – 200 years old]
And Liu Nan was looking at a different display case next to the ceramic one, which was filled with ancient-looking bronzeware.
Right now, she was examining an antique bronze tripod that seed to be at least a few thousand years old, and below it was written,
[Four-footed bronze tripod – Modern craft]
“Let’s look further inside.”
He Ao stood up, motioning for Liu Nan to continue inward.
Zhang Ansha’s provided information ntioned this courtyard would attract people passing by to move their antiques or special items over here, and it appears those things are displayed here.
So, what is this courtyard’s purpose for trapping them here?
As they delved deeper, the display cases began to exhibit a variety of odd items—dolls, lollipops, old-fashioned shotguns, and even a pair of pink handcuffs.
······
He Ao walked over, stretched out a hand, and tugged at the handcuffs, which loosened, seeming not very sturdy.
Then, he disdainfully put the handcuffs back where they were.
It was at this mont that he once again felt the sensation of being watched.
He looked up towards the depths of the room, and the feeling of being watched slowly dissipated.
He continued to walk forward with Liu Nan.
When they crossed a certain line, the items on display suddenly changed.
Exquisite amber pieces encapsulating insect remains appeared, followed by well-crafted insect specins.
The further they walked, the remains of living creatures gradually replaced non-living objects.
“Ah!!!”
Just then, Liu Nan suddenly cried out in alarm, trembling as she looked ahead, “That cat.”
He Ao followed her gaze and in the dim light of the kerosene lamp, saw a black cat squatting on a display shelf, staring intensely at the two of them walking past.
It appeared sowhat fierce and terrifying.
“It’s a specin.”
He Ao stepped forward, examining the cat with a label stating below,
[Black Cat Specin – Hunting Mont].
He Ao reached out and touched the cat’s fur; it was soft and smooth, but it no longer retained any body heat.
It seed the cat had been turned into a specin at the crucial mont of hunting, looking lifelike and even conveying the ferocity of its hunt.
Next to it was a mouse in the midst of stealthily eating rice, equally lifelike.
“He Ao, look.”
Liu Nan had already co up to his side, trembling as she tapped on He Ao’s shoulder, signaling for him to look ahead.
He Ao looked up to see the display shelves in front of them transford into larger showcases, which housed all sorts of ‘biological specins.’
There were young calves, piglets, grown pigs, adult cows, chickens, ducks, fish, and sheep.
He Ao moved past these ‘specins’ and walked towards the rear of the room, where there were two circular stands about ten centiters high against the wall.
On the left stand, a person was already in place.
It was a youth with closed eyes, wearing tattered clothes, his body rigid, standing upright on the stand.
He Ao naturally recognized this person.
Bull.
There was also a paper slip on the stand beneath the youth.
He Ao crouched down to read the detailed information on it, which read,
[Bull]
He Ao was taken aback.
Why was it Bull?
All the labels here marked general categories, such as ‘pig’ for pigs, ‘cat’ for cats, at most with added descriptors for a bit of specificity, like ‘black cat’ or ‘small pig.’
For this youth in front of him, according to this marking system, it should be ‘human’ or ‘man.’
Why was it Bull?
Could it be that ‘Bull’ wasn’t just a codena?
He Ao stood up, looking at the young man standing before him.
He placed his hand lightly on the young man’s chest, where there was a slight fluctuation; the young man was still alive.
anwhile, Liu Nan’s gaze was drawn to a small printer in the corner behind He Ao.
As her gaze shifted to the printer, the compact device suddenly sprung to life and a slip of paper slowly erged.
Liu Nan instinctively looked at the paper, and a realization suddenly dawned on her,
‘Sacrifice the item listed on the paper to leave.’
It was as if whispered by the Devil.
Her eyes fixated on the paper, reading the words inscribed,
[Man]
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