Chapter Twenty-One: Rose Manor (Twenty) Time Paradox

The moment Qi Si plunged the blade into Chang Xu’s neck, Zou Yan’s eyes widened. Her expression froze in that very instant.

Or rather, in that entire space, the behavior, development, and demeanor of every person, event, and object were frozen in this moment in time.

Blood that had splattered onto a shirt seeped out from between the fibers, turning into droplets that flew back into the wound on the corpse's neck. The trickles of blood on the stairs flowed upward, shrinking into a small puddle before surging back into the veins. The corpse, which had collapsed to the ground, stood up in an awkward posture and retreated step by step along the path it had previously taken, much like a film played in reverse.

Qi Si watched as the pale complexion of the blood-drained Chang Xu regained the color of the living. The tall, thin figure, like a walking corpse, trod back up the steps one by one and vanished around the corner of the staircase. The vines that had been clawing and gnashing in the hallway twisted and retracted toward the walls on either side, snaking like insects and serpents back into the shadows of the stone crevices.

The sound of rain ceased at a certain point, leaving the air thick with the scent of dampness and flowers. Qi Si found himself unable to move; only his thoughts were free to drift and churn in his mind. He saw that Zou Yan, before him, was similarly immobilized, save for her right hand, which was wrapped in vines and still twitching with reluctance.

"Because the transformation into a ghost wasn't complete, only the hand belonging to the anomaly can move?" Qi Si filed this discovery away in his mind.

After concluding that the standard answer was hidden in the seventh rule—"Only ghosts can kill humans; please firmly believe you are human"—he had begun to wonder what would happen if a human killed another human. It was known that once Zou Yan had obtained the quatrain clue from Chang Xu, she immediately conducted an experiment to verify it, triggering a reversal of time. This implied that the conditions for triggering time reversal were not stringent; they were, in fact, easily accessible.

Furthermore, from the background story of the instance, it was clear that Annie had killed the man who loved Anna deeply and made a deal with a god, initiating a three-day time loop. By analogy, the switch for triggering time reversal was highly likely related to "murder." If a human killed a human, time would reverse to one hour prior, resurrecting the deceased; only by letting a player die at the hands of an anomaly would the time-reversal mechanism be avoided.

Therefore, "only ghosts can kill humans."

Regardless of whether this was true, Qi Si intended to kill someone to test it; after all, he was a man of great practical ability and experimental spirit. Ever since he entered the old woman's room and learned the clue that "ghosts are not affected by time reversal," Chang Xu had been a dead man in his eyes. It was precisely because of this that he had told Chang Xu part of the truth, almost like a self-destructing confession—a final decryption before death.

"As it stands, the victim and unrelated passersby do not possess memories of the time reversal; otherwise, my lack of impression regarding the first round of the game would be inexplicable."

"Aside from ghosts, the only ones who can retain their memories during a time reversal are the triggers of the reversal—the murderers."

"To clear the level, one must utilize the property that ghosts can kill humans, yet one must also maintain the identity of a human, thus necessitating the use of the time-reversal mechanism... What an interesting design!"

A complete plan gradually crystallized in the depths of his mind. Qi Si watched the dust motes drifting and rising slowly in the gloom. Unable to make any significant movements, he could only curve the corners of his lips slightly, waiting for the conclusion of this time reversal he had initiated.

The light around him dimmed inch by inch, and his consciousness began to sink along with the extinguishing of the light. In the pitch-black darkness, the sound of rain rang in his ears once more.

It was a torrential downpour. Through the thick stone walls, only a faint, rushing sound reached his ears.

In an instant, the world had light.

Qi Si found himself leaning against a wall, facing a double bed scattered with a pile of bone fragments. They looked familiar; he remembered this pile of bones had originally belonged to two skeletons. Beside him, Chang Xu was attempting to crush the bone fragments into even smaller pieces. The victim, who had just died once, straightened his back and looked at Qi Si, saying, "You were trapped in a nightmare just now. I surmised the key lay in the skeletons, so I smashed them."

Qi Si was dazed for only a split second before reconciling the cause and effect with his memories. He remembered: this was the first room on the third floor. He had found the note under the pillow, been trapped in a nightmare, and witnessed Annie’s past.

Time had indeed reversed, and Chang Xu indeed remembered nothing...

Qi Si smiled, a bright, clear smile.

He asked naturally, "Brother Chang, what time is it now?"

Chang Xu, not understanding the reason, still looked down at the pocket watch in his hand and replied, "One-oh-five."

At this time, Zou Yan should not yet have had the chance to wait by the stairs to ambush them. Even if she had, it didn't matter; he would just let Chang Xu die again.

Qi Si made his decision. He gave a soft "Hmm," turned, and walked out of the room. "I’ve already figured out how to clear the level. I won't be going to the next two rooms."

He paused for two seconds, looked back at Chang Xu, and said, "Of course, Brother Chang, if you are interested in puzzle-solving, you can go sightseeing yourself; if you are interested in Miss Anna, you can go directly to room number three."

Chang Xu: ...Not interested in either, thanks.

Even so, after Qi Si made a show of walking down the stairs, Chang Xu hesitated. At the end of the day, the two had only known each other for a short time; it was impossible for him to believe everything Qi Si said just because he opened his mouth. The third floor, after all, clearly held important clues.

Qi Si saw through Chang Xu’s psychology with perfect clarity. His tone was unhurried. "Considering we’ve worked together, I suggest you go downstairs early. You should also be aware that our clues have been spied upon by Zou Yan. She has grasped most of the secrets of this instance and could be lying in ambush at the stairwell at any time to kill one of us, triggering the 'minimum death toll' mechanism."

Chang Xu caught the flaw in Qi Si’s words. From the known information, one could only infer that the holder of the [Eye of Hermes] was either Zou Yan or Ye Zi. Yet Qi Si was so certain that it was Zou Yan spying on them...

Chang Xu realized the key to the problem. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "You triggered the time-reversal mechanism?"

Then, he saw the young man before him pause quite obviously, offering a helpless, bitter smile. "You guessed right. I came back from an hour in the future. So, I suggest you take the advice of someone who has been through it and retreat early."

People tend to believe the "facts" they have deduced themselves. Qi Si was well-versed in this, which was why he deliberately left loopholes in his speech.

Chang Xu took the bait without realizing it, instinctively following up, "How did you trigger the time reversal?"

"Ah, it’s actually quite simple..." Qi Si tucked his hands into his pockets and looked up at the ceiling. "Unfortunately, I don't intend to tell you."

Chang Xu: His fists clenched.

He didn't know if it was an illusion, but he always felt a trace of malice mixed into Qi Si’s smile, which made the back of his neck feel inexplicably cold. A warning of danger, cultivated since childhood, made him give up on pursuing the question further.

In a few seconds, Qi Si had already hurried down to the corner of the stairs. He stopped and looked back from afar. "Brother Chang, your room is likely no longer safe. Once you go downstairs, go to my room. Help me keep an eye on Lin Chen so he doesn't get tricked by Zou Yan and slaughtered."

"I would like to borrow your Destiny Pocket Watch—of course, it doesn't matter if you don't agree; at worst, no one will be able to clear the level." He delivered a light, nonchalant threat, lowered his eyes, and added, "I’ll go verify my line of thought first. If I fail, you all can think of another way."

Chang Xu asked, "What line of thought?"

Qi Si looked up at him, slowly placed a finger to his lips, smiled, and spat out two words: "Guess."