Night’s Nomenclature

“Fuck!” Liu Dezhu was scared out of his mind, nearly knocking over the bookshelf in his retreat.

In the dark and gloomy atmosphere deep into the night, he saw a strange mask the moment he turned around.

This kind of feeling was terribly frightening.

It was like having a firsthand experience inside a horror movie.

Soon, Ye Wan and Lin Xiaoxiao walked out from the shadow of the bookshelf.

Liu Dezhu was struck with a realization – these three teamed up and suddenly released him in the middle of the night just to toy with him?

He bitterly cried out, “You guys are too ruthless!”

“Stop babbling, you’re only useful for things like this,” Lin Xiaoxiao dragged Liu Dezhu back to the confinement room.

Ye Wan told Qing Chen, “You’ve made a lot of progress in the details, but our training is too rushed. The whole operation isn’t really well done.”

Qing Chen carefully listened.

“The most important thing about a sneak attack is not to be discovered. There was a slight change in the air and sound inside the corridor because you were too hasty when you made your first approach. Liu Dezhu couldn't detect it by himself, but his body would alert him,” continued Ye Wan.

“And then when he picked up his pace, your breathing and footsteps were not well controlled. Those sounds were like drumbeats to my ears, and even Liu Dezhu could sense it. If you replaced him with a well-trained soldier, you’d already be dead now.”

“Okay, I'll keep on training hard,” Qing Chen walked on the floor with his bare feet.

The biggest secret to walking noiselessly lied in knowing how to control the force of your footsteps. However, his shoes were cheaply made; the rubber on the soles was too stiff and wouldn’t make a difference no matter how well he could control his steps.

Ye Wan advised him, “You’ve just learned it, so you can only walk silently. Remember, don't run, you’re not yet able to eliminate your footsteps when you run.”

“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind” Qing Chen replied.

Ye Wan glanced at the soles of his feet, “According to what you said, you’ll be in a mountain when you return. If you’ve never hiked barefoot before, I'm afraid your feet will be mangled bloody after the night.”

Qing Chen shook his head, “It's no worry. The wounds will heal sooner or later.”

“It’s good that you’re able to be hard on yourself, but after everything is dealt with, you should still buy a pair of proper shoes as soon as possible,” said Ye Wan, “Is there anything else you want to ask?”

“For this battle, the most crucial lesson for me is actually the sneak attack, why was it only taught at the end?” Qing Chen was curious.

“Sneak attack is not some easy mode in virtual games, where the enemies just stupidly stand there waiting to be killed like NPCs until you’re finished with all of them. Once you kill the second person, there’s a high probability of getting discovered," Ye Wan explained.

“The remaining three will know of your existence, and they’ll use all kinds of means to take you down. You have no choice but to fight head-on. That, will be the most dangerous moment for you.”

“It’s easy to kill the first two people by sneak attack when the enemies are not yet aware of you, so I allocated the shortest time to teach you to conceal your tracks. Using most of the time to teach you close combat is because you are in most danger after their comrades find you.”

“But,” Qing Chen suddenly spoke, “I don't plan on risking my life for other people's sake. If it's too dangerous, perhaps I'll give up.”

“I support you on this point,” Ye Wan said, "In this world, your own life is the most important. If you just want to save your underling and tablemate, betting your life is not worth it. But you have to understand, if hot-bloodedness is something you can control, it will no longer be called as such. Sometimes, only after directly facing the matter will you finally understand your own choice.”

Ye Wan continued, “The boss said you have hot blood running through your bones – just like how you dared to play chess against him the first day you came here – it’s something that you possess, neither can it be forgotten, nor can it be erased. Do you remember that game of chess you played with the boss? It’s not that the pawns who crossed the river didn't want to turn back, but they just simply couldn't.”

Qing Chen sank into thought.

Meanwhile, Ye Wan moved a chair from the reading area and put it in front of Qing Chen. Curiously, Qing Chen asked, “What is this for?”

Ye Wan pondered and said, “Soon, you will… no, you'll understand it in two days.”

Ye Wan told him, “There's one more thing the boss didn't say, so I'll take the liberty to say it in his stead.”

“What is it?” wondered Qing Chen.

Ye Wan smiled, “Come back alive.”

…

Countdown 00:05:00.

The last five minutes.

Qing Chen stood in front of Liu Dezhu and questioned him, “Repeat the two things I told you.”

Liu Dezhu recited nervously, “First, let all the students escape after returning. Second, if there’s no way to escape, find out who was the first to be taken alone by the thugs.”

“Right, did you recall any detail in these past two days? For example, who kept checking their phone and sending texts, or who went to the toilet in the middle of the way,” asked Qing Chen.

In a weak voice, Liu Dezhu answered, “They’ve all been to the toilet, and everyone checked their phones quite often… Boss, I was only focused on playing games at that time, I really didn't pay attention to other things.”

Qing Chen sighed. If it weren’t because he had no better choice, he would have never taken this guy as an underling.

“Remember, the thugs definitely want to know about your secret. But you’ve got to know that the moment they figure it out will be the moment you die.”

Qing Chen coldly continued, “This time you’ve made an inexcusable mistake. The next time you come back, I’ll help you get reacquainted with the cruelty of this world. Of course, that is if you can survive.”

After speaking, he glanced at the time on his arm.

Countdown, 00:00:01.

Return.

Within the darkness were the sounds of drumbeats and merry laughter.

The time that was isolated and suspended in the Outer World finally began to tick again.

The previous second, he was inside the dark confinement room. The next second, the world had been dyed an orange red color by the bonfire, its light and shadow rapidly oscillating.

Liu Dezhu opened his eyes widely. He looked at the bonfire in front of him, then at the jubilant crowd around him, and found it rather difficult to adapt.

Darkness was separated from the light; suspense was separated from joy.

Even Liu Dezhu himself seemed to be separated from these smiling classmates.

It was as if someone in his brain was reminding him: Danger!

He remembered what Qing Chen had said, stood up immediately, and roared, “Run! Everyone, run! We’re in danger!”

However, the scenario he envisioned did not come true; instead of running amok in all directions to escape, everyone just stared at him blankly.

They couldn't understand why Liu Dezhu, who was chatting and laughing just a moment ago, suddenly had panic and fear written all over his face.

Only Hu Xiaoniu reacted swiftly, because for the other students, their time was continuous and consistent.

But for the time travelers, they have already spent two days in the Inner World.

Therefore, Liu Dezhu did not warn them out of nowhere, but had gone through some particular circumstances in the Inner World!

Hu Xiaoniu got up and asked, “Brother Liu, what happened?”

Liu Dezhu squeezed out his way from the students around him as he spoke, “If you don't leave now, it’ll be too late. The thugs are going to surround this place. Forget it, if you guys won't leave, I’ll leave!”

But even after he explained it clearly, the other students were still perplexed.

Hu Xiaoniu's expression changed. He signaled Zhang Tianzhen with a wink and quickly followed after Liu Dezhu.

However, just as they reached the gate, two middle-aged men in police uniforms asked, “Students, where are you going to looking all frightened like that?”

Liu Dezhu grew ecstatic upon seeing the police uniforms, “Officers, there are thugs around here!”

The two uniform clad men looked at each other, and then took out guns from their waistbands, respectively stepping forward and pressing the muzzle against Liu Dezhu and Hu Xiaoniu's chests. One of them softly chuckled, “Is that so, why don’t I see them?”

The other coldly stared down Hu Xiaoniu, “Ask for help and you’ll get shot to death, go back!”

Terrified, Hu Xiaoniu looked down at the gun aimed on his chest.

It had a silencer!