At the same time, in the underground parking lot.
The door of the car in the parking space next to Tang Erda's slowly pushed open.
The three people, including Mu Sicheng, who had been guarding the back, got out of the car very quickly and walked to the elevator. They watched Tang Erda enter, and the quickly falling elevator stopped at -4.
They looked at each other. Then Liu Jiayi used Su Yang's work permit to open the elevator and pressed the button for -4.
Liu Jiayi's eyes were fixed on the red siren that kept flashing in the elevator. Mu Sicheng's expression was extremely dark, and Mu Ke was silent.
"Hey." Mu Sicheng let out the breath that had been suffocating in his chest as he listened to Tang Erda's conversation with Bai Liu just now in the car. "Can I beat up this person surnamed Tang?"
"Did he say something wrong?" Liu Jiayi asked in return in a lukewarm manner.
Mu Sicheng choked. In a sense, this person, surnamed Tang, wasn't wrong. Bai Liu was a bad guy from head to toe...
It was just... it was pretty unpleasant!
"Still, it doesn't matter if he is right or not. I am very upset." Liu Jiayi looked away from the siren. Her nose was wrinkled, and she had some childish anger on her face. "I will do my best to buy you time. Include my share when you beat him up."
Mu Sicheng was taken aback before his lips curved into a smile. "Okay."
—————————————————
Four floors underground, Bai Liu moved quickly between different passages.
Both sides of the corridor were decorated with strange shapes. The numbered metal rooms were all in the same style, and there were occasionally strange sounds coming from them. It felt like he was walking in a maze, and it was very difficult to go out on his own without a map.
The even more troubling thing was that there were patrolmen around every corner.
There were only a small number of patrolmen, but their arrangement was very scientific. This made Bai Liu unable to move smoothly. Just as he was about to enter the game, his entry was always interrupted by patrolmen about to turn the corners.
This made Bai Liu realize that the patrol layout was likely designed specifically for players.
Under the patrols of these ordinary people, it was difficult for players to easily enter the game.
Tang Erda first used Magic Space to make a small cage for Bai Liu. If Bai Liu escaped from the small cage, he would enter this patrolman's layout, which was a bigger, mobile cage.
Bai Liu stayed close to the wall and adjusted his breathing, ready to try for the last time.
Bai Liu took out the coin on the chain to enter the game. Just as he was about to summon the system, a patrolman turned the corner at the other end of the passage. Bai Liu had to put down the coin and turn into another passage.
Sure enough, the turning points were equivalent to interruption devices.
Bai Liu was chased by the patrolmen and ran hurriedly while glancing at the room numbers on the left and right. 1097, 1096...
The number of the room Bai Liu had fled from was 006. Now he had reached the 1000s, but he didn't see all the numbers throughout the process. It felt like he was taking a shortcut to a certain room.
...It wasn't an illusion that these patrolmen were deliberately driving him to a certain numbered room.
Bai Liu's footsteps stopped at a corner, his eyes on the other end of the corridor. He had been driven to a dead end.
The room number at the end of the dead end was 1087.
Tang Erda saw all of this through the surveillance. He held up the communicator and cruelly gave a command, "All patrolmen, wear a breathing mask. I will turn on the waterproof mode before opening the room door of Heretic 1087, codename Swallowing Spring Eye. It is about to enter underwater mode. Team members, please be prepared—"
"—3, 2—"
The small windows on the metal doors of the rooms on all sides closed one after another. The door of each room sank and pushed down into a tight fit, forming two smooth metal walls in the corridor. The patrolman he was facing wore a transparent breathing mask while the last countdown came from the communicator.
"—1."
The door for 1087 behind Bai Liu slowly opened.
A constant, clear stream of spring water rushed out. The surging torrent filled Bai Liu's vision as he turned back, instantly sweeping over him.
—————————————————
The elevator.
The surveillance cameras in the elevator were smashed by Mu Sicheng as soon as he entered.
Mu Sicheng was a bit tense. "This base has internal surveillance, right? Do we need to hide from the surveillance or something...?"
"It is no longer necessary after entering the base." Liu Jiayi's tone was indifferent. "Our goal is to sneak in and take Bai Liu into the game as quickly as possible. Avoiding the surveillance will just delay our speed. If they want to film us, then let them. I don't care."
Mu Ke quickly added, "I don't care either."
"...Fuck, I still want to take the final exam." Mu Sicheng was a bit depressed. "If I am wanted, can I take the test in prison? I don't want to retake the exam..."
Liu Jiayi didn't listen to Mu Sicheng's complaints and looked at the two men. "I will organize the plan again. We don't know the situation inside, and there is no map. In order to avoid being caught, we will implement the coordinate jumping mechanism. In other words, if someone tries to catch you, then you can enter the game."
"After entering the game, you will get a 12-digit coordinate number login code. The three of us will enter the game and meet. Then we will exchange the dangerous coordinates with each other, change coordinates, and go out. Then go to the original coordinates and meet. This way, we won't get separated, and we will also get a path curve."
"The three of us will go in three perpendicular directions, which are equivalent to the Z-axis, Y-axis, and X-axis of a three-dimensional coordinate system. We will determine different coordinate points in different directions and connect them with the original coordinate points. After several times, we can restore a complete path curve."
Liu Jiayi drew an example between the three of them with her hand. "The building is regular. Once we have a rough curve of the building, we can make a general map. Do you understand?"
"I understand." Mu Ke thought about it for a few seconds. "I have a good memory and can help you restore the entire map using coordinate points."
Mu Sicheng, who looked dumbfounded, "..."
What were these things? He hadn't learned about the coordinate system since the university entrance examination!
Liu Jiayi squinted at Mu Sicheng. "Do you not understand?"
Mu Sicheng lowered his head in a depressed manner and admitted it. "Yes, I don't understand."
The elevator made a 'ding' sound as it arrived.
Liu Jiayi calmly turned her head toward the elevator door. "It's fine if you don't understand. Just follow my instructions."
She looked at the elevator door as it opened and gave an order, "Prepare for an attack. There are usually people guarding the elevator."
The elevator door slowly opened, and water poured in. Liu Jiayi quickly climbed onto Mu Sicheng's shoulders to avoid being covered in water, and she frowned at the water flowing into the elevator.
The two patrolmen stationed at the elevator stuck their heads in. "Are you members of the second team urgently called in to catch Heretic 006? Remember to put on a breathing mask. We are catching him with water—"
Their eyes soon fell on Liu Jiayi, a child who clearly shouldn't be here.
"You aren't a team member—?!" The two patrolmen were surprised and raised their communicators to report it. "Reporting, intruders have sneaked into—!" the underground fourth floor!
Before he could finish speaking, the two patrolmen were strangled by Mu Sicheng and Mu Ke, who were hiding behind the doors. They neatly dragged the patrolmen inside.
Mu Sicheng took off the clothes and communicators from the two patrolmen and handed some to Mu Ke. They stood with their bodies half-submerged in water and struggled to change clothes. Finally, they put the patrolmen in their own clothes and left them in the elevator.
Mu Ke pressed the button for -1. The two knocked-out patrolmen, dressed in his and Mu Sicheng's clothing, leaned against the elevator wall in an unconscious state as the elevator ascended.
A question came from the communicator. "Hello?! What is going on with the intruders?"
Mu Ke took the communicator that Mu Sicheng handed him and made a report. "We found two unidentified intruders at the elevator entrance. We have immediately driven them out. They are taking the elevator and fleeing to floor -1!"
Then Mu Ke turned off the communicator.
Mu Sicheng was carrying Liu Jiayi. He shook his hand, covered with water, and frowned as he looked at the water that almost reached his shoulder. "What is going on with this water?"
"We have to change the plan." Liu Jiayi took off her goggles, her expression very cold. "Someone trapped Bai Liu with water. I played a game with Bai Liu, and he has a special resistance to water. I think it is likely that someone is torturing Bai Liu with water to get him to tell them something. We need to hurry."
Mu Sicheng's expression changed as he looked at Liu Jiayi on his shoulder. "How can we go quickly?"
Liu Jiayi looked around before finally focusing on the sealed doors in the airtight corridor. "Someone refitted this floor into an airtight environment and released water to drown the escaping Bai Liu. However, this has also made the corridor structure, extending in all directions, very much like a sewer."
Liu Jiayi lowered her head and looked at the water. "Bai Liu should be near the outlet of the sewer pipe. Then we can find him faster. We don't need to use the previous, more complex coordinate system method."
"I get it." Mu Ke reacted quickly. "The water flow, right?"
Liu Jiayi nodded. "Yes, the water flow."
"No..." Mu Sicheng interrupted the conversation in a humiliated manner. "Can you occasionally say something that a person with an intelligence value of 74 can understand?"
Liu Jiayi was dumbfounded. "It means we can find the location of the water outlet through the direction and sound of the water flow. Then we will be able to find Bai Liu."
"How can we judge it?" Mu Sicheng still didn't understand. "There is no way to precisely pinpoint the location, right? The water current here looks very messy, and it isn't a small stream."
Liu Jiayi handed the goggles to Mu Sicheng and interrupted him. "Help hold this for me."
Mu Sicheng took them in a confused manner. Then Liu Jiayi took a breath and plunged into the water. Seconds later, she floated up and pointed in one direction. She turned her head to 'look' in Mu Sicheng's direction with an expression of dislike. It seemed she didn't want to waste more time explaining this.
"In the water, I can judge the position of the water outlet based on the sound of the water and the direction of the water flow." Liu Jiayi made a 'follow me' gesture. "The place where you are standing has a backflow due to the water being blocked, and there will be a sound. I can also rely on this to determine if there is anyone in front of us."
Mu Ke looked at Mu Sicheng. He sympathized with Mu Sicheng, who looked dizzy, and added an explanation, "It is like how a fish uses the senses of its body to discern the direction of the water flow."
Liu Jiayi nodded. "That's pretty much what it means."
"How can you even do this?!" Mu Sicheng looked at Liu Jiayi, who was moving in the water. "Hey! This is the real world! Are you a person or a monster? This is a superpower!"
Liu Jiayi didn't answer Mu Sicheng's question. She just glanced at him before turning around and swimming in the water like a fish.
She could do this because she was innately blind. Her senses were several times more sensitive than usual.
In addition, she was used to living in the water like a fish.
As a child, Liu Jiayi was often thrown into the pond by her father to catch fish. It was only when she caught enough fish that the man would be merciful and let her go. In order to chase these cunning fish in the muddy pond, she gradually developed a fish-like perception.
She had always hated this ability, but at the moment, it was an exception.
"Whoever made the decision to release the water—" Liu Jiayi touched her face and shook off the water droplets from her hands. Her body floated in the water while her tone was calm and cold. "He is prepared to use the water to torture Bai Liu, but this has made it more convenient for me, a blind person, to find him."
—————————————————
"—148, 149, 150—Okay, drain it."
The door of Room 1087 was closed, but the walls on both sides of the corridor loosened, and water flowed through the gaps in the walls.
Bai Liu coughed and emerged from the water.
He knelt on the ground with his head lowered, coughing hard. His white shirt was wet and stuck to his trembling shoulders.
Bai Liu's skin showed an inorganic whiteness from being soaked in water. The lack of oxygen meant his fingers were purple, and his chest moved up and down violently. The experience of suffocating for three minutes left him exhausted.
Soon, Bai Liu collapsed. He opened his mouth, his eyes wide as he fell to the ground, struggling to drag the hard-earned oxygen into his lungs.
However, it felt as if oxygen could no longer enter his lungs, no matter how hard he breathed. Bai Liu seemed as though he was about to go into shock.
"How does it feel to be in the water for three minutes? Are you used to it?"
Tang Erda's voice came from the communicator of the patrolman at the end of the corridor. "It is said that the world record for holding on the longest is 13 minutes, Bai Liu (6). Do you want to try it?"
"Are you reminded of bad memories?" Tang Erda's voice was low and hoarse. "Are you thinking about how to explain the Rose Dry Leaf?"
"Death can't make you compromise. You aren't afraid of death at all. Therefore, I won't threaten you with death. Instead, I will give you two choices. Give me the solution, and I will give you a sum of money and satisfy you. If you don't go back on your word, we won't interfere with you again."
"The second option is that I lock you up with this Swallowing Spring Eye. I'll drain the water every 1.5 to 3 minutes. You won't die, but you will have to keep drowning in the water. You should be familiar with this feeling of suffocation, right?"
Tang Erda's voice carried an unclear meaning as he chuckled lightly. "After all, the dean of the private welfare home really liked to educate you like this. You are too bad. You have been bad since you were a child. She wanted to lead you back to the right path, so she often educated you like this."
"Unfortunately, no matter how harshly she educated you, nothing changed. You had no expression. It was like you were born to like torture. Bai Liu (6), you should understand that educating such children makes people feel very unfulfilled." Tang Erda's voice dragged out. He sounded peaceful, as if he were teaching a condemned prisoner.
Bai Liu put his arm over his eyes to block the dazzling white light coming from above, his breathing gradually becoming fainter.
Tang Erda continued, "Therefore, she changed many methods and finally found a way to torture you where you would struggle. It was to let you—"
Tang Erda's words were interrupted. It was the voice of the struggling Lu Yizhan. He screamed and yelled as if he wanted to overwhelm Tang Erda's voice and stop him from continuing. "Don't say it! He has forgotten! Don't make him remember it again!"
Tang Erda raised his voice and continued speaking coldly. His voice was like an incomparably sharp thorn that pierced Bai Liu's brain, which was still blank and groggy from the suffocation.
Bai Liu gave a rare frown. He instinctively rejected what Tang Erda was saying. This rejection made his head hurt even more, as if it were going to crack.
"Bai Liu (6), have you forgotten? No one pushed you into the water. It was you who kept burying your head in it!"
"It is because someone took the blame for the bad things you did. Someone accepted the punishment of the teachers in order to protect you. However, the teachers got carried away while punishing him, and he drowned to death in the pool of the welfare home while being constantly pushed under the water."
"His body sank to the bottom, and you kept burying your head to see his corpse, trying to pull him out."
Tang Erda's voice sank. "Bai Liu (6), why are you afraid of water? You aren't afraid of water at all. You are afraid of seeing his body in the water. Do you remember who he is?!"
Lu Yizhan exhausted all his strength to struggle angrily, trying to stop Tang Erda. His cries were piercing. "Don't tell him!!!"
Tang Erda's voice was low. "His original name was Xie Ta, but in this timeline, you forgot about him and regarded him as Lu Yizhan."
"Do you still remember Xie Ta's face that you saw when you were submerged? Was it accompanying you by your side or staring at you from the bottom of the water?!"
"Xie Ta died for you. Remember it!"
Xie... Ta?
In the midst of the suffocation of dying, Bai Liu saw a dazzling white light.
The white light flashed with countless memories that Bai Liu had intentionally or unintentionally avoided.
The memories turned into fragments in the white light, scattering into pieces like a torn picture book. They were black and white, or corners of colored pages on which there was the fragmented silhouette of a person he had forgotten.
Then, at Tang Erda's cold voice, these originally blurred or forgotten memory pieces were once again pieced together in Bai Liu's mind to become a complete, page-by-page picture book. Like a kaleidoscope before death, they started to play back in front of his eyes.
A person's memories could deceive them.
If they were unable to bear the intense emotions carried by the memories, the memories would carefully and automatically correct themselves, allowing the person to pretend that nothing had happened, using the fake to calm down and continue living.
In layman's terms, it was self-deception.
The memories were automatically cut into a shape acceptable to Bai Liu and stored in his brain. They didn't easily change back to their original shape until the last moment.
The honest and straightforward face of Lu Yizhan was erased in these memories, turning into another face that Bai Liu was both familiar and unfamiliar with.
This face was very beautiful, but there was long, curly hair hanging down to cover his eyes. Even so, the shape of his exposed lips was still beautiful and exquisite. He had a very eye-catching appearance.
He looked at Bai Liu from the forgotten memory and whispered his name.
'Bai Liu (6), long time no see.'