“…”
“Are you not going to speak? It doesn’t matter. I don’t care which side you’re on; your true objective is that legendary ‘thing’ said to grant all wishes, isn’t it?”
” ‘Quite clever, aren’t you, kid? If that’s the case, I see no reason to hide any longer.’ ” The Server’s voice suddenly turned sharp and hoarse. A sense of foreboding rose within Luo Tianchen, prompting him to shout at Bingying, “Get away from them!”
It was already too late. Bingying stumbled backward, reeling from a sudden kick. Seizing the opportunity, the Server performed a swift carp-like roll, springing to her feet, and then clamped a hand around Bingying’s neck. ” ‘Don’t move, or I’ll snap this girl’s neck.’ ”
” ‘A miscalculation,’ ” Luo Tianchen sighed. ” ‘I never expected you were a woman.’ ”
If it had been a man, no amount of strength would have allowed them to escape Bingying’s grip; Luo Tianchen knew this from experience. However, women were different, especially those who practiced yoga, who could easily twist their joints to break free.
” ‘What? Do you look down on women? In our line of work, women are far more dangerous than men, you know.’ ” The Server removed her hat, letting a cascade of beautiful hair fall, then pulled a pistol from within and aimed it at Luo Tianchen. ” ‘Checkmate.’ ”
” ‘Hey, hey, hey, how about we talk about a deal?’ ” Luo Tianchen raised his hands, attempting to engage her. ” ‘That masculine face of yours is just makeup, isn’t it? Why don’t you wipe it off first? It feels strange talking to someone with a man’s face but a woman’s voice.’ ”
” ‘No thanks. I don’t enjoy killing, and if you cooperate, I’ll eventually let you go. But if you glimpse my true face, I won’t spare anyone, not even a child.’ ”
” ‘Okay, okay, I understand. In that case, how about you release the girl? We’ll leave immediately, return to our room, and whatever you plan to do won’t be our concern.’ ”
The Server scoffed. ” ‘Are you playing dumb? I went through a lot of trouble to lure that man away, precisely so you could explore freely. Though I didn’t have high hopes initially, it seems the so-called ‘lucky guest’ is indeed quite ‘lucky.’ I’ve been lurking here for so long and couldn’t find a thing, yet you two discovered a clue the moment you arrived.’ ”
” ‘It seems you won’t be letting us go, then. In that case, please release her. You still have your pistol, after all. Besides, without her help, I might not be able to solve the next riddle.’ ”
” ‘Huh? These two are completely useless, aren’t they? Aren’t you the only one truly solving the puzzle? To me, their only value is as hostages.’ ” The Server gestured with the gun in her hand, then glanced at her watch. ” ‘The boss will be back in thirteen minutes. Please find the treasure within that time, or you might have to say goodbye to your beloved girl.’ ”
” ‘Run! Luo Tianchen! Don’t worry about me!’ ” Bingying cried out, struggling in vain to pry away the arm clamped around her neck.
” ‘You have twelve minutes left,’ ” the Server stated calmly, her gaze fixed on Luo Tianchen.
” ‘Idiot, if I wanted to abandon you and run, I wouldn’t have even shown up at the banquet,’ ” Luo Tianchen chuckled helplessly. ” ‘I accept this challenge.’ ”
” ‘Very well, then. The next clue is in that floor tile you found; open it quickly. Hey, you,’ ” she said, gesturing with the gun towards the utterly stunned An Yueyin. Under the oppressive threat of fear, An Yueyin instinctively moved closer to Luo Tianchen.
” ‘It’s all my fault,’ ” An Yueyin murmured, biting her lip in regret. ” ‘If I hadn’t insisted on going treasure hunting, none of this would have happened…’ ”
” ‘Hey, hey, don’t be so gloomy,’ ” Luo Tianchen said, feigning nonchalance. ” ‘Didn’t that woman say she doesn’t like killing? As long as we help her find the treasure, she’ll let us go.’ ”
That was, of course, assuming she would keep her word.
For now, they could only take things one step at a time.
They opened the floor tile and indeed found a small note hidden beneath it. ” ‘The password is: floor clock and clockwise.’ ”
‘Floor clock and… clockwise?’
Did it mean to turn the floor clock clockwise once? Luo Tianchen carefully examined the clock, noticing its time was fixed at 12:00, seemingly broken. Though he saw the mechanism for adjusting the time, the pin was missing, rendering it impossible to turn.
What did “password” refer to? Was there a place to input a password anywhere?
” ‘Floor hand and clockwise… So the clue is indeed on the floor clock? But there’s no way to adjust it…’ ” An Yueyin tried to push it. ” ‘It’s no use, it won’t budge.’ ”
” ‘Of course not. These ancient floor clocks weigh dozens of kilograms, and some are even nailed to the ground. How could you possibly move it by yourself?’ ” Luo Tianchen replied, his mind deep in thought.
‘However, if it’s fixed… floor clock and clockwise…’
Luo Tianchen stood before the floor clock, scanning the room in a clockwise direction.
He understood.
‘If that’s the case, the password must be…’
” ‘An Yueyin, go turn on the computer!’ ”
” ‘Huh? But…’ ”
” ‘Just open it!’ ” Luo Tianchen commanded, his tone leaving no room for argument.
” ‘O-okay!’ ” Startled by Luo Tianchen’s forceful demeanor, An Yueyin scurried to the computer desk and pressed the power button. However…
” ‘It’s no good! It needs a password, or it won’t open!’ ”
” ‘The password is 37810. Just enter it.’ ”
” ‘Huh? Let me try… Ah, it opened!’ ”
Excellent. With that, the third puzzle was solved.
” ‘Hey… how did you know that password?’ ” the Server asked, her eyebrows raised in curiosity as she looked at Luo Tianchen.
” ‘Huh? Didn’t the answer already tell us?’ ” Luo Tianchen replied, a playful glint in his eyes.
The Server said nothing, merely pressing the pistol against Bingying’s temple.
” ‘Alright, alright, I’ll tell you! Just move the gun away, what if it misfires?! Honestly, you have no sense of humor… The key is the floor clock, plus clockwise.’ ”
” ‘So what?’ ”
” ‘Well, if you consider the floor clock as a fixed point, and then, moving clockwise, connect the central round table as one point to the floor clock and the other objects individually…’ ”
” ‘…Ah!’ ”
” ‘The computer desk is 3 o’clock, the sofa is 7 o’clock, the coffee table is 8 o’clock, and finally, the window is 10 o’clock. Arranged clockwise, that’s 37810. As for where to enter the password, there’s no safe here, so the computer is the only logical place, right?’ ”
” ‘…I see. I certainly didn’t misjudge you.’ ”
” ‘Don’t make it sound like you’re choosing an heir… Anyway, An Yueyin, have you found any hints for the next puzzle?’ ”
” ‘Um… it doesn’t seem like it.’ ”
‘Nothing… How could that be?’
” ‘Seriously, come see for yourself.’ ”
Luo Tianchen rushed over. Indeed, the desktop was as pristine as if the computer had just come from the factory; no software was installed, nor were there any TXT or DOC files saved.
‘No, there must be something I’m overlooking.’
” ‘What does this mean?’ ” The Server frowned. ” ‘Hey, kid, are you sure you haven’t made a mistake?’ ”
‘Impossible. The clue must be on this computer; otherwise, the password would be meaningless, wouldn’t it?’
Time ticked by relentlessly. Luo Tianchen had scoured every folder, yet still found no clue. While there weren’t many folders on a brand-new computer, the search still consumed a significant amount of his time, bringing them closer to the thirteen-minute deadline.
” ‘Hey, Luo Tianchen, if you really can’t find it, just run by yourself. I’ll buy you some time.’ ” Bingying, who had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke up.
” ‘Shut up!’ ” The Server’s mood grew increasingly agitated as the deadline loomed. She harshly struck Bingying’s head with the gun’s butt. ” ‘One more word, and I’ll kill you first!’ ”
” ‘If you dare to touch her again, you’ll never find what you’re looking for,’ ” Luo Tianchen stated, his voice chilling.
” ‘Kid, you need to understand, I’m in control here. Even if you fail, I’ll just have to put in a little more effort; I’ll find it eventually. But for you two, that opportunity will be gone forever.’ ” The Server returned his icy gaze with a cold smile of her own.
Though unwilling to admit it, she was right. In this exchange, they were at a complete disadvantage.
Failure meant death.
” ‘So if you’ve found anything, speak up quickly, or time will run out.’ ”
‘ …Huh?’ A flash of white light streaked across Luo Tianchen’s mind.
” ‘What did you just say?’ ” Luo Tianchen turned back to ask her.
” ‘Are you playing games with me?’ ” The Server grew somewhat annoyed, slightly increasing the pressure of her arm, making it difficult for Bingying to breathe.
” ‘No, it’s for the puzzle! What did you just say?’ ”
” ‘…I said time is running out.’ ”
‘That’s it, time!’
Luo Tianchen glanced at the time in the bottom right corner of the screen. He had felt something was off earlier. The date, May 5, 2016, was correct, but the time displayed was 09:06. If this wasn’t an error, then this time had to be the password for the next clue. Accounting for the time he had spent searching through folders earlier, it would be… 09:00.
On closer inspection, the hint from the wall clock was meant to be here! Someone without good luck would never have noticed it, but fortunately, his luck had always been quite good.
” ‘But where do we input this 03:00? Into the floor clock? But without the pin, it can’t be turned at all…’ ” An Yueyin pondered, her brows furrowed.
” ‘No, it won’t be that complicated,’ ” Luo Tianchen said.
If asked why, it was because he had already found it: another “clock” existing within the room.