PTYS Chapter 12

Xiao Muyu saw everyone starting to act separately and reminded them, “Time is limited. We should return before the sun sets. Also, human skins are bloodthirsty. Make sure not to injure yourselves, and check if you have any wounds. If the smell of blood attracts them, it will be troublesome.”

Chen Xi, who had always been wary of her and disliked her secret conversations with Shen Qingqiu, sneered, “Those human skins can’t come out during the day. What Miss Xiao said is meaningless. She should say something useful to help everyone.”

When Xiao Muyu saw that everyone had stopped checking for wounds and looked down for a moment, she turned and walked towards the forest.

“She really thinks she’s a deity,” Chen Dong spat.

Cui Xiaoxuan, however, was thoughtful. Although Xiao Muyu’s words seemed meaningless, it was true that human skins are bloodthirsty. How did she know about the smell of blood? Blood? That’s it!

Cui Xiaoxuan couldn’t help but look up at Liu Wei, who also looked at her with a sudden realization. They smiled at each other, their eyes lighting up.

Xu Ran, a clever guy, immediately understood the meaning behind Xiao Muyu’s words. He pinched his chin, thinking about checking wounds and the bloodthirsty nature of human skins.

“I got it!” he suddenly shouted, then dashed off, making Liu Wei laugh.

Their group had discussed that since human skins couldn’t come out during the day, they must be hiding in a dark place, coming out only after sunset. This meant they were likely in a cave.

The area around the house was mostly flat grassland and forest. Unless there was an underground cave, it was almost impossible to find them. So, their primary target was the forests.

“Do you think we can find it?” Shen Qingqiu asked leisurely as she watched Xiao Muyu inspecting the surroundings.

“We won’t find it if we don’t search,” Xiao Muyu replied concisely.

“We’re thinking too simply. This inescapable city is much larger than we imagined,” Shen Qingqiu said with a gloomy look in her eyes.

“This method is too straightforward. It doesn’t take much brains and probably isn’t the way to pass. The problem is likely still in that house. Tell me, who would keep something that wants to kill them in the only place that shelters them?” Xiao Muyu said, looking towards the chaotic land on the other side of the mountain.

“So, let’s go back. There’s no need to come here anymore. The sun is setting.”

Xiao Muyu glanced at the west. It was almost sunset.

“Didn’t you say you were cold-blooded? So why bother reminding those people? Chen Dong and Chen Xi aren’t good people,” Shen Qingqiu asked, recalling what had happened earlier.

Xiao Muyu replied calmly, “This is a game. What’s the fun in playing alone?”

If they survived, she wouldn’t lose anything. If they died, it would be their fate.

Why did she remind them? Perhaps it was because they had reached out to her yesterday. She didn’t want to owe anyone anything or have too many emotions.

She glanced at Shen Qingqiu again, feeling irritated. Why did so many people pay attention to her?

When Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu returned to the house, no one else was back yet. It seemed everyone still had hope and didn’t want to give up early.

As the sun slanted westward, the scene from yesterday afternoon seemed to be repeating. Shadows of people running in the sunset appeared.

In less than ten minutes, everyone had returned. Yesterday’s scene was too memorable for anyone to linger.

“How about it? Any clues?” Liu Wei, sweating, asked. They had run all the way back.

Unfortunately, the four teams had found nothing.

“This place is too big. It’s impossible to find anything,” Liu Wei said dejectedly. He checked the task panel, which showed only thirty minutes left for the side mission.

“Let’s go back.”

The sun was now half-set, its last rays like the sun scrutinizing the mundane world, withdrawing ruthlessly.

“The wind’s picking up,” Xiao Muyu said as the others walked into the house.

Not far away, shadows surged like a tide, rushing like a ghostly army.

“They’re coming,” Shen Qingqiu said quietly, her deep eyes fixed on the shadows, her right hand pressing against her waist.

Xiao Muyu glanced at her hand, then smiled for the first time since entering this world, a faint smile like the last glow of the sunset.

“They’re coming. Shall we meet them?”

Shen Qingqiu looked at the smile on Xiao Muyu’s lips and felt that this faint smile was even more dazzling than the morning sun.

Xiao Muyu’s features were delicate and well-defined, originally as gentle as jade. But her whole demeanor was like soft ice, exuding a coldness that kept people at a distance despite her attractiveness.

But that smile had strangely softened the sense of alienation, making Shen Qingqiu feel a bit odd.

She also smiled, but much more sincerely, and said briskly, “Just what I wanted.”

“Miss Shen, Miss Xiao, get inside quickly! The human skins are coming!” Liu Wei shouted from inside the house when he saw the two still outside.

Just as he finished, the last glow of the sunset vanished, and the piercing screams of the human skins reached their ears.

Xiao Muyu slowly retreated, and Shen Qingqiu moved a few steps back, standing behind Xiao Muyu, just a step away.

The human skins surged forward like lightning in Xiao Muyu’s view, growing larger. They were here!

“Xiao Muyu, Shen Qingqiu, are you crazy?!” Liu Wei yelled as the human skins approached, unable to contain himself.

“Miss Xiao, Miss Shen, come back quickly!” Cui Xiaoxuan’s face turned pale. Despite their odd personalities, Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu were their benefactors and partners. She didn’t want them to get hurt.

“Are you ready?” Shen Qingqiu tightened her grip.

Xiao Muyu said nothing. When the first excitedly screaming human skin reached out to grab her arm, Shen Qingqiu immediately pulled her back, swinging her right hand in the dim light, colliding with the human skin’s hand.

The human skin was incredibly tough. Despite being as thin as a layer of skin, Shen Qingqiu’s knife, which could cut through iron, couldn’t sever it, even holding it off for a moment.

The human skin roared, trying to envelop them. Shen Qingqiu’s eyes flashed with a fierce light. She gritted her teeth and, with a low shout, rolled to the ground with Xiao Muyu. Her knife slashed again, cutting deeply. The human skin, in pain, tried to let go but was too late. Shen Qingqiu forcefully severed its hand. A pungent, fishy smell filled the air. Xiao Muyu frowned and held her breath, but she knew they had succeeded.

More human skins rushed forward. Despite new wounds on her arm, Xiao Muyu quickly got up after hitting the ground.

Shen Qingqiu moved with incredible speed, like an agile leopard, dragging Xiao Muyu a few steps forward. She then gave her a hard push on the back, and they both rolled into the house just in time.

The human skins, having learned from yesterday, didn’t dare to rush in. They screamed and surrounded the house.

Inside, the eight people watched their reckless actions, their scalps tingling. Xu Ran’s legs went weak, and he murmured, “You’re really reckless, crazy.”

“Do you still want to lure the human skins in again? You’re so determined, even with such high scores. Is it necessary to be so desperate?” Leopard, both frightened and jealous, said a few words sarcastically.

Today, he had gone out with Chen Dong and Chen Xi. Throughout the journey, Chen Dong and Chen Xi had subtly hinted that Shen Qingqiu had played this game before, making him more convinced that Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu had hidden clues. Otherwise, how could they be so exceptional in the first round?

Shen Qingqiu suddenly looked at him, saying nothing. But her gaze was terrifying, not an act of intimidation, but truly bloodthirsty, as if she had been soaked in a sea of blood. Leopard, a grown man, felt a chill in his heart and didn’t dare to say another word.

Everyone else saw her gaze and fell silent, not daring to speak.

Who was this woman? Such a gaze could only come from someone who had truly been tempered in blood and iron.

“Did we succeed?” Xiao Muyu asked, pale-faced. The human skin had left a fresh wound on her arm, and in the rush, Shen Qingqiu hadn’t been gentle, leaving her with several abrasions, which hurt a lot.

Shen Qingqiu looked at her knife, sticky with a milky white liquid, disgusted. She wiped it off and nodded.

At that moment, the old crone silently descended the stairs as she had the previous night. She glanced outside and smiled eerily with her cloudy eyes. “It’s dark now, hehe.”

Everyone’s hearts tightened. It was dark, so the human skins could move again. Tonight, they had no talisman to protect them. According to the old crone, tonight…

Shen Qingqiu glanced at the old crone and said coldly, “It seems you don’t feel tortured. You seem quite happy when they kill people.”

The old crone was taken aback by Shen Qingqiu’s sudden retort, then her face turned sinister. “Young lady, watch your words. Disrespecting the elderly brings retribution.”

The old woman was visibly furious. Shen Qingqiu ignored her, looking instead at Xiao Muyu’s arm. She then pulled her along, saying, “Let’s go upstairs.”

Watching them leave, the old woman laughed sinisterly, “Ignorant fools, you won’t survive much longer.”

“That… that was their disrespect, not ours. Please don’t be angry, ma’am. Don’t hold it against us,” someone else pleaded.

Cui Xiaoxuan frowned. Though Shen Qingqiu was unlikable, she was still better than the sarcastic and spiteful men, Chen Dong and Chen Xi.

Was this old woman the type to show pity? As Shen Qingqiu had said, she seemed to be merely watching the show.

“Only fifteen minutes left. Let’s think about what to do,” she said before heading upstairs.

The others fell silent, their expressions changing drastically.

In the same hall as the previous day, there was one less chair, but tonight there was one extra.

Seeing the empty seat, Cui Xiaoxuan and the others felt a growing sense of dread. After tonight, who would be missing?

Leopard rubbed his hands anxiously. He hadn’t found any human skins and had no significant discoveries. He had no idea how to answer the question.

The tension grew, and in the hall without a clock, it seemed they could hear the ticking of an invisible one. Tick-tock, tick-tock… Ding!

The sudden sound jolted everyone from their thoughts. They quickly looked down: the countdown had ended!

“Task time is over. Everyone, begin answering the question. You have three minutes. Follow the rules, or you will be disqualified and expelled from the exam room! Time starts now!”

This was like being back in a high-stakes exam. Except for Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu, everyone sat up straight, tense and focused. This might determine their fate!

After the system finished speaking, everyone saw a box on their task panel.

“Please answer and explain where the murderous human skins are hiding? (This question is worth 20 points)”