The 19th level of Hell - Chapter 13
Listening to Gao Xuan's endless chatter, Chunyu felt increasingly embarrassed. Normally, she was always open to others' opinions. But facing this man, Chunyu was a completely different person, nervously replying, "I'm sorry, I've already given you the book. Can I leave now?" "Of course—" Gao Xuan scratched the back of his head and said, "Maybe I talked too much. I'm really sorry. Maybe I'm too absorbed in oil painting. Whenever I see a girl, I picture her sitting in front of an easel, and the way you were looking at the painting just now was practically a masterpiece of oil painting itself."
"Thank you. No one has ever complimented me like that before."
Chunyu smiled slightly, then turned and walked out of the hall.
Gao Xuan followed behind her and asked, "Excuse me, I don't know your name yet." "My name is Chunyu."
She didn't turn around as she spoke, continuing to walk forward. "Is it the gentle spring drizzle?"
Gao Xuan's words sent a slight shiver down Chunyu's spine. He spoke a girl's name with such poetic beauty; it was impossible not to be moved. But she kept her head down and jogged out of the art department building. Just then, two pretty young girls entered the building and ran into Gao Xuan. They immediately greeted him excitedly, "Hello, Professor Gao!"
Gao Xuan simply smiled and nodded. The two young girls looked at him sweetly, but his expression returned to seriousness, making them feel awkward as they walked away. Chunyu witnessed the whole scene. She had initially thought Gao Xuan was a graduate student, but it turned out he was an art professor, perhaps even an academic painter.
Chunyu thought back to the day she went to the haunted building with Qingyou. Xu Wenya and Nan Xiaoqin said they were going to the art department to see handsome guys. The handsome guy they were talking about, "Teacher Gao," must be Gao Xuan in front of her.
No wonder he's so popular with women.
What time is it now? Why am I still thinking like this? Chunyu chuckled to herself. Before it got dark, she jogged away from the art department.
night.
Chunyu sat alone in her dorm room, staring blankly at the beds on either side. With Qingyou and Xu Wenya gone, both lower bunks were empty. Chunyu suddenly thought of Nan Xiaoqin. Where was she now? Just then, the dorm door opened, and a tall, slender girl appeared before her. "Nan Xiaoqin?"
Chunyu was quite surprised when she saw her just as she was thinking of her. But with so much happening today, she didn't know what to say. Nan Xiaoqin walked in with a grave expression, looked at the bed that should have belonged to Xu Wenya, and said, "I already know that something happened to Xu Wenya."
“I’m sorry, I…” “Don’t explain. No one can explain this. Perhaps it will always be a mystery, just like the haunted building.” Nan Xiaoqin looked into Chunyu’s eyes and her gaze finally softened. “Chunyu, move out of this dormitory. I can feel that this room is unclean. There must be some ghost hiding here.”
University girls always circulated all sorts of ghost stories, and Nan Xiaoqin had always firmly believed them. But Chunyu, who had experienced the desolate village, shook her head: "No, I can't leave here. For Qingyou and Xu Wenya, I must find out that secret." "What secret?" "What is the 19th level of hell?"
Nan Xiaoqin's expression froze instantly. She also remembered what Qingyou had said after pacing around the dormitory that night. She looked at Qingyou's lower bunk and said, "You mean—this question is related to Qingyou's death?" "Yes. I've been thinking about this for days. What exactly is the 19th level of hell?" "We usually talk about the eighteen levels of hell, but we've never heard of a nineteenth level."
"If you absolutely need an answer, you'll have to go to hell yourself." "Didn't Qingyou already go there?" "Don't talk nonsense." Nan Xiaoqin interrupted her, then climbed onto her upper bunk and said, "I came back to pack some things. I'm planning to take a few days off and move back home; it's very close to school anyway. If I continue living here, I'll eventually become mentally ill like Xu Wenya."
Nan Xiaoqin quickly climbed down from the top bunk, carrying a large bag. She walked to the dormitory door and said, "Please don't call my cell phone. I'm scared when I see your numbers."
Chunyu wanted to say something more to her, but Nan Xiaoqin left without turning back, leaving only a cold wind blowing in. "They're all gone..."
Sitting alone in her dormitory, Chunyu buried her head in her hands and sobbed softly, like an orphan abandoned by everyone. At that moment, she longed for someone to talk to; loneliness was her greatest enemy in the long night. Suddenly, she thought of Gao Xuan's eyes.
No, Chunyu shook her head violently. She wanted to forget those eyes, go to sleep, and stop overthinking.
After topping up her phone, Chunyu quickly turned off the light and went to sleep. Perhaps she was just too tired today, because she fell asleep in no time.
She didn't know how much time had passed when a sudden, urgent cell phone ring woke her up from her sleep.
Slowly opening her blurry eyes, Chunyu saw only darkness on the ceiling. She felt a wave of dizziness. Picking up her phone, she saw it was indeed the same number—741111. It was midnight. Looking at this mysterious number, Chunyu sighed in despair. Was it really a nightmare, haunting her?
So, her thumb froze. Should she read the text message or delete it immediately? After hesitating for a while, Chunyu's thumb answered for her, opening the text message—"You have entered the 4th level of hell. You have successfully passed the Abandoned Village Scholar's Pass. You will choose from: 1. Dracula's Castle; 2. Lanruo Temple; 3. Jamaica Inn; 4. Ghost Inn."
Looking at this text message, Chunyu really didn't expect that the once terrifying Jinshi examination in the desolate village would be passed so smoothly.
However, the four places she was about to face were likely to be even more terrifying than the deserted village. But she had nowhere to retreat, and after much hesitation, she chose "3: Jamaica Hotel".
Just like a few days ago, Chunyu quickly received a text message reply, which led her to an inn near a desolate coast in southern England in the early 19th century. The area was filled with gloomy, barren mountains, terrifying swamps, ancient stone ruins, and ruthless pirates.
Guided by the back-and-forth text messages, Chunyu took the place of the novel's protagonist—Mary Yellen, a twenty-three-year-old English girl—who arrived alone at the Jamaican Hotel to stay with her aunt. Now, as if transported through a time tunnel, Chunyu traversed a terrifying wasteland alone, and at midnight, knocked on the door of the Jamaican Hotel. —The Jamaican Hotel had opened in hell.
Tonight, Spring Rain checked into a hotel in Jamaica...
Half an hour later, when Chunyu's thumb was sore and aching, she finally received the last text message—"You have passed through the 4th level of hell and entered the 5th level of hell."
Date added: 2005-02-18 12:37:30
Ye Xiao looked out the window at the tall buildings, their lights flickering in the pre-dawn darkness, like will-o'-the-wisps occasionally emanating from a medieval forest.
Having not slept all night, most men would light a cigarette at a time like this, but Ye Xiao brewed himself a very strong cup of tea.
The tea, bitter and astringent, lingered on his tongue and throat, sustaining his nerves, which were exhausted to the extreme.
There was a silver cell phone on the table. Although its small and exquisite design was inexpensive, it was very popular with girls.
The owner of this phone was Su Lan, a once-popular female college student, who hanged herself in her dormitory early the day before yesterday. No one could explain why she wanted to die, but since it was confirmed as suicide, it was no longer the police's concern. However, Officer Ye Xiao discovered the deceased's phone at the suicide scene, and a text message on this phone led him into the most unbelievable and suspenseful area.
Now, Ye Xiao picked up the phone again, tapped a few keys with his thumb, and opened the last text message—he had been staring at this phrase for a long time. As a child, he also enjoyed playing video games; whenever he lost a game, a capital "☐" would appear on the screen, indicating that the game was over and he had to start over.
The text message in front of me was received at exactly 2 a.m., and the owner of this phone may have hanged himself during that time.
Does receiving such a text message at the moment of death signify a death knell from hell?
Ye Xiao instantly came up with a formula: Death == Game Over. Could it be that the suicide of the phone's owner, Su Lan, was actually the end of a game?
Ye Xiao recalled playing video games when he was a child. His avatar would bravely cross levels, only to be shot to death by enemies in the game, and a message would immediately appear on the screen.
But games are virtual, after all; whether on a computer or a mobile phone, there is no real death. How terrifying would it be if there were a mysterious game that could actually kill its players?
Relying on the keen sense that only a police officer could have, Ye Xiao realized that Su Lan's death was not just a simple suicide.
Moreover, Ye Xiao saw Chunyu at the suicide scene that day. This girl, who had left a deep impression on him half a year ago, actually lived in the dormitory next to the deceased and was the first person to discover the body. Besides marveling at how small the world was, Ye Xiao couldn't help but wonder if Chunyu, a girl with such a special past, would continue to encounter similar mysterious events.
That's why Ye Xiao spent an entire night thinking about the strange things, especially the cell phone left behind by Su Lan.
He had carefully checked all the text message records on the phone. But except for the last message, the rest were gone.
The sender of this text message is a very strange number—741111. The first five digits of this number seem to have no meaning, but the last six digits give people a strange feeling. The last four consecutive "1"s are of unknown significance.