Chapter 49 Snowy Mountain Specter 19

Chapter 49 Snowy Mountain Specter 19

Pei Yi immediately straightened his back, feeling quite pleased with himself.

Look at that. As soon as he breaks his record, this guy comes looking for him. But a good horse doesn't eat the grass behind it. Pei Yi decided that no matter what this guy says, he won't be swayed.

"Is this what you're eating?" Lu Zai Chuan asked. "You must have expended a lot of energy over the past seven days, especially with the group stage coming up."

"You're treating, I'm broke." He had barely earned 100 points. He's now deep in debt and needs to save money.

"Alright. What would you like to eat?"

Pei Yi glanced at him, unsure if he was serious, and deliberately said, "Western food, the fanciest kind."

Lu Zai Chuan chuckled, "Dressed like that, you won't be able to enjoy the best Western food. Let's go somewhere slightly less fancy." He pressed his wristband, grabbed Pei Yi's arm, and in the blink of an eye, they were inside a high-end Western restaurant.

To call it slightly less fancy was an understatement. The restaurant's ceiling was high, offering a broad view, with pine forests outside and light snow falling. The scenery outside was only separated by huge transparent floor-to-ceiling windows, making it feel as though they were in the midst of the forest.

The restaurant wasn't crowded at the moment, and the two found a seat by the window.

Lu Zai Chuan fiddled with his wristband for a while, probably ordering.

Pei Yi looked around the restaurant and couldn't help but pick at his exposed toes, thinking if only he had dressed more formally... Seeing several people looking at him, then looking at Lu Zai Chuan, sharply dressed, indeed the type to eat Western food.

After ordering, he took off his suit, leaving just a white shirt.

Pei Yi coughed and glanced at Lu Zai Chuan, deliberately saying, "Aren't you going to ask what I want to eat? Is this how you treat someone? What if I don't eat what you've ordered?"

"Oh?" Lu Zai Chuan sent the menu directly to Pei Yi, who opened it only to close it silently. What the hell, the fancy restaurant doing the foreign thing? All in English, huh? So, Lu Zai Chuan also knew his English wasn't up to par?

How embarrassing... Damn it.

"'Why did you invite me to dinner? What are you up to?' A change of heart, an invitation to join the team. That requires some thought."

"'Let's discuss the Snow Mountain malevolent spirit instance.'"

"'Didn’t you watch my live stream?'"

"'I didn’t watch the live stream; I watched the replay. Due to the perspective, there are always some omissions.'"

"'Ask away.'"

"'Aren’t you hungry? Let’s eat first,' said Lu Zai Chuan."

"Eating is a joyous affair, and Pei Yi happily indulged. Lu Zai Chuan, as if afraid he wouldn’t have enough, ordered plenty."

"After eating, once everything was cleared away, they began discussing the instance in earnest. Lu Zai Chuan started with the post by Bean Pod Bro that Pei Yi read yesterday."

"'Is he still relevant to this?'"

"'Hmm. You should see his follow-up.'"

"Pei Yi nodded. Below was Bean Pod Bro’s post about 'Why It communicates through a medium.'"

"Note: 'Purely speculative. Do not take it seriously.'"

"'The analysis of It by Pei Yi, I believe, is the most bizarre aspect of the entire instance."

"First, let's consider what energy is. Energy is related to mass. Einstein's famous mass-energy equation: E=MC². E stands for energy, M for mass, and C is the speed of light. Let’s be clear, energy is conserved (this sentence is bolded)."

"Humans themselves are a form of energy. When a person dies, their mass disappears, transforming into another type of energy. Why is this so? Remember, the law of conservation of energy states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed from one form to another, while the total amount of energy remains constant."

"Returning to the instance, the one hundred deceased tourists, due to some reason, harbored immense resentment, creating a vast energy field. The snow mountain and its antennas, cables – these are just some of the manifestations."

"This explains why It can control the snow mountain, manipulating the wind energy, electromagnetic energy, light energy, and so forth on the mountain."

"Such paranormal phenomena require a sufficient number of people; with fewer people, intense resentment, like that of Sadako from Japan, can generate enormous energy."

"This is an addition to Pei Yi's explanation. Note: Energy transformation between different forms is necessary; some cannot be directly transmitted. Pei Yi's approach uses a sound transmitter. I think the Ouija board operates on a similar principle. But let’s not delve into that."

"Feel free to join the discussion."

Pei Yi: "…So scientific, yet so feudal. When ghosts are explained scientifically, it adds a touch of science fiction."

"Do you believe it?" asked Lu Zai Chuan.

"I do."

"Oh? Let's hear your thoughts."

"Humans are a form of energy; that's accurate. Einstein came into play, hard to argue with that."

Lu Zai Chuan chuckled, "Matter is a form of energy, the Earth is an energy field. So, is the JC world we're in also an energy field?"

"What are you saying?"

"Nothing," said Lu Zai Chuan. "Did you experience any hallucinations while in the instance?"

"You too? But shouldn't that be impossible? Aren’t you the god, Lu?"

Lu Zai Chuan said, "I’m not really any god. The Snow Mountain instance has a very high mortality rate. I've played it countless times, but each time I enter, I see the same person."

"Who?"

"I want to ask if you did too?"

"No," replied Pei Yi. "Why did you act like you were sacrificing yourself when you first cleared it? Did you already know that accepting It was the only way It might spare you?"

"I acted as if I were sacrificing myself? Is that so?" Lu Zai Chuan said. "I've forgotten. That was four or five years ago," he remarked, looking out the window.

Pei Yi: "…Just to ask if I had any hallucinations, you treated me to a meal. Really generous."

Lu Zai Chuan turned to him, "Another question, how did you figure out it was a hallucination at the end? I guess the clock was one clue, and the injured foot another. Anything else?"

"'Anything else?' Pei Yi pointed to the amulet around his neck. 'It's this.'"

"'May I have a look?'"

"Pei Yi frowned, 'I can't take it off without cutting it.' He walked over to his seat, bent forward, and leaned in close to Lu Zai Chuan."

"This movement brought them very close together, and Lu Zai Chuan, not expecting it, moved back slightly, grabbing Pei Yi's dice."

"'Take a look. Are you just interested in this? Ask around on the street, they're only two or three yuan each, plenty of them.'"

"Lu Zai Chuan picked it up and examined it closely. The dice had seven lucky sides and one unlucky, made of metal, not even real gold, and quite poor in quality."

"He examined it for a full five minutes, then glanced back at Pei Yi, who wore earrings, three of them."

"'Okay.'"

"Pei Yi straightened up, 'That's all then. By the way, why is your record always 98 points?'"

"'I don't know. Like you, I found the pieces and lasted till the seventh day. I solved your mystery too. But I just can't get a perfect score. I’m also looking for the reason.'"

"'Did you communicate through a radio?'"

"'I did.'"

"Yes, he did. He did everything that was needed."

"'Maybe you just had bad luck, or there was a system error.'"

"'How could the system make an error?'"

"'Why couldn’t the system make an error?' Pei Yi said with a light laugh."

"Lu Zai Chuan didn’t respond."

"'Like you said. If humans are a form of energy, then why isn't the entire JC world a kind of energy? Electrical, electromagnetic, or some more mysterious energy controlling this JC world; since the universe remains unexplored, anything is possible.'"

"Lu Zai Chuan sighed softly, 'You’re right. But it’s too early to discuss this now. It’s getting late. There’s a competition tomorrow. You should rest too, see you tomorrow.'"

"After speaking, they went their separate ways. So, he had no regrets after all. Pei Yi chuckled and shook his head, considering himself overly sentimental."

"Lu Zai Chuan returned to Glory, where he introduced a new member, Red Nine, during the evening team meeting."

"The castle team currently had four people: a blond with a copper kettle and another named Jiu Jiu, already in a retiring state."

"Copper Kettle hesitated, not understanding the leader’s intention."

"In terms of speed instances, Pei Yi might be a bit arrogant; but in the haunted instance, his demeanor was enough to impress everyone."

"Only those who have played the haunted instance know how challenging it is."

"For veteran players like them, they wouldn’t easily join an instance with a mortality rate over 70% without full confidence. Thus, Copper Kettle hadn’t yet succeeded in the haunted instance."

"In the haunted instance, not to mention scoring full points, even surviving is nearly impossible. The ghosts in it are omnipotent beings. This instance was also the finale of the S1 competition, and naturally, the officials made it as hard as possible to prevent players from winning the final prize."

"But Pei Yi succeeded. His calm demeanor in this instance, as Bean Pod Bro on the forum put it — 'surviving against all odds.' Such ability is not common. Some JC instances are too bizarre, bizarre beyond normal explanation."

"So, after the meeting, Copper Kettle eagerly asked Lu Zai Chuan, 'Boss, did you find someone?'"

"Lu Zai Chuan glanced at him, 'I've asked around.'"

"'Asked? About your doubts? Did he have any answers?'"

"Lu Zai Chuan shook his head: 'No. I guess maybe there really was a system error. He said he didn’t see anyone; his way of breaking the illusion was relying on that dice.'"

"'Wow. Where can I buy that dice? Maybe I can also get through the haunted instance with it; that instance is terrifying.'"

"Lu Zai Chuan gave Copper Kettle a look of disbelief, silently conveying that it wasn't the dice, but strength that mattered."

"'What will be the first instance in the group stage? Any news?' Copper Kettle asked, 'It would be great to be in the same group as Pei Yi.'"

"Lu Zai Chuan: 'You seem to be quite taken with him.'"

"'Oh my. K, be honest with yourself. Could you be that composed the first time you encountered the haunted instance? That's a four-star horror level instance!!'"

"Lu Zai Chuan smiled lightly: 'But I heard the first match of S1 will be a five-star horror level.'"

"Copper Kettle: '...!!!'"