Futile Devices Scans

“Mr. Driver, I have a question.”

Without warning, Lin Wen Jing suddenly spoke in a soft voice.

The driver, his eyes bloodred, slowly turned his head when he heard her. His gravelly voice was low. “What is it, young lady?”

“Where is this bus’s final stop?”

She wore a white dress, her long black hair cascading down her back. Her voice was as gentle as water, and when she tilted her head to look at the driver, her eyes were clear and innocent. She looked every inch the sheltered, obedient girl.

The increasingly oppressive atmosphere inside the bus abruptly eased.

Lin Wen Jing’s sudden interruption seemed to help the driver recover his assigned role as well.

At the very least, he stopped staring fixedly at Xie Chun Ye through the rearview mirror while speeding along the road.

“The final stop is Tianhai Airport, Terminal 4. If you don’t want to enter the airport, remember to get off at Tianhai Road. There are taxis and unlicensed motorcycle taxis there.”

For once, the driver dutifully explained everything.

Understanding dawned on Lin Wen Jing’s face, and she replied with a smile, “I understand. Thank you.”

Her voice was so quiet that it was almost completely drowned out by Jiang Ming Yue’s shrieking.

The driver lit a cigarette with one hand and grunted around the filter. Then, without warning, he erupted into another vulgar curse. “Fuck! So damn noisy, screaming all day long!”

The instant he finished speaking, the piercing female voice abruptly vanished, as though someone had seized her throat and strangled her vocal cords shut.

Soon, the only sounds remaining inside the bus were the engine and the rattling of sheet metal.

The night was like a viscous, lightless abyss, gradually swallowing the bus whole.

Xie Chun Ye did not interfere with Lin Wen Jing’s probing. His expression remained calm as he simply continued comforting the sobbing Ning Si Si.

Meanwhile, Song Zang remained curled up in his small corner, secretly observing everything.

He realized that the players dragged into this game world might not be as simple as they appeared, even though all of them were novices.

At the very least, they were all quite brave. Not a single one had been frightened to tears by the bizarre situation. Except… for him.

Song Zang felt that he ought to cry. His thick black lashes therefore trembled slightly, and tears immediately began rolling down his cheeks like a broken string of pearls.

He cried very quietly, his soft sobs completely drowned out by Ning Si Si’s. Only Qiu Shuang, who was eagerly looking around, happened to be the first to notice something was wrong.

Qiu Shuang blinked and waved in Song Zang’s direction.

Song Zang raised his misty eyes and met her gaze with a pitiful, frightened expression.

Qiu Shuang could no longer hold back. Conveniently, she also wanted to confirm whether they could speak and interact freely on the bus, so she gathered her courage and asked Song Zang quietly, “Little brother, are you all right?”

Song Zang did not dare make a sound. His eyes reddened as he shook his head.

At this sight, all three women were somewhat speechless.

They had not even cried yet, so why was Song Zang, a grown man, already in tears…?

Fortunately, he was slender and extraordinarily beautiful, like an exquisitely carved luxury doll. Even his worthless tears seemed precious.

Qiu Shuang glanced around, avoiding the driver’s line of sight as she secretly slipped the emergency hammer into the pocket of her short skirt. She then quickly walked over and sat beside Song Zang.

Song Zang instinctively shifted closer to the window, appearing awkward and afraid of physical contact.

“Oh, it’s all right, little brother. This is only a game. We players can move around freely, so don’t be scared.”

“Mm.” Song Zang responded softly. The faint redness at the tip of his nose made him look even more pitiful.

He wore an ill-fitting white shirt that looked simple and clean. Frail and helpless, with soft black hair obediently hanging over his forehead, he resembled a beautiful cat soaked by a fine drizzle.

He was exceptionally capable of awakening certain people’s maternal instincts.

At least Qiu Shuang could not resist.

“Relax. I’ve already tested it—the ordinary people here are all NPCs. As long as we don’t deliberately speak to them and only talk among ourselves, they won’t pay attention,” Qiu Shuang whispered, cautioning him. “Oh, right, little brother. I noticed earlier that the windows can’t be opened. If anything happens later, I’ll use the hammer to smash one!”

“S-Smash it…” Song Zang widened his eyes at precisely the right moment.

Qiu Shuang laughed boldly. “Exactly. Be brave and jump straight out! Remember to protect your head when you land.”

“Mm…”

Seeing Song Zang’s hesitant expression, Qiu Shuang began speaking like a rapid-fire cannon. “After we get off, follow me and run. If you can’t find me, cling to Brother Xie for protection, understand? He doesn’t look like a bad person.”

“All right, but…” Song Zang stammered for a long moment before finally finding an opportunity to speak. “But Big Sister, the window beside me can be opened.”

“Huh? Really?”

“I pushed it open a crack earlier.”

Song Zang pointed toward the drafty window beside him, looking thoroughly confused and innocent.

It was as though this were an entirely ordinary and simple matter.

While Xie Chun Ye’s phone had been screaming hysterically beyond his control, no one had paid any attention to Song Zang.

Even the noise he made while violently forcing the window open had been swallowed by the endless commotion.

Of course, according to the instance’s setting, the bus windows were actually sealed completely shut. In principle, they could only be broken using the item known as the 【Emergency Hammer】.

Other than Song Zang, no one could overturn the game’s established rules.

The strips of tape that appeared to have been casually applied possessed an unimaginably terrifying adhesive strength.

But as long as Song Zang said nothing, who could possibly tell?

Qiu Shuang certainly never suspected him. The innocent-looking young man was far too deceptive.

She believed Song Zang without hesitation and smiled, visibly relieved. “No wonder you were assigned a seat at the back. This must be a concealed emergency exit.”

“Mm-hmm. Big Sister is right.” Song Zang continued acting obediently.

“Then we have more options. We can open the rear window and escape directly!” She patted Song Zang’s slender shoulder. “After all, the emergency hammer is a rare item, and it can also be used as a weapon. It would be troublesome if it were single-use… We should save it whenever possible, right?”

Qiu Shuang muttered to herself for a few more moments and once again reminded Song Zang to relax. Then she returned to Lin Wen Jing’s side, wrapped herself around her arm, and yawned while swaying against her.

Although she also wanted to take care of Song Zang, the front and back rows were too far apart. They could not all squeeze into the rear. Qiu Shuang cared more about her friends and also needed to ensure that they could support her actions.

Lin Wen Jing said nothing. She merely gave Song Zang an inscrutable glance, then smiled and stroked Qiu Shuang’s head.

Song Zang did not dare meet their eyes any longer. He obediently remained in his seat, very satisfied with Qiu Shuang’s current attitude.

—There was not a trace of suspicion or speculation. It was pure maternal affection.

The situation temporarily stabilized, leaving the players time to think.

Everyone had already guessed that Ning Si Si’s mother, Jiang Ming Yue, was probably no longer alive.

Otherwise, the piercing female voice that had penetrated every corner of the bus would be difficult to explain.

As for why she had been so frantic and hysterical… the answer could only be found through Ning Si Si.

Xie Chun Ye had already become familiar with the little girl. He leisurely braided her hair while calming himself down at the same time.

For now, he had no intention of calling Ning Feng’s number, lest another uncontrollable disturbance occur.

That was right. During his earlier conversation with Jiang Ming Yue, he had experienced a rare sensation of being unable to control himself.

Not only had he been unwilling to end the call, he had inexplicably become addicted to listening. It was as though an invisible force had pinned down his right hand, compelling him to repeatedly endure those sharp, grating cries, forcing the driver to become increasingly irritable, and driving the situation into continuous escalation…

Fortunately, Lin Wen Jing had been brave and composed enough to interrupt the deadlock between him and that invisible force.

Xie Chun Ye admitted that he had underestimated the situation, but this was not remotely the difficulty level of an ordinary novice instance.

Either a ghost was secretly interfering, or the bus itself was a supernatural object, which was why it had so quickly triggered such bizarre phenomena.

However, judging by the current circumstances, although the bus driver was irritable, he did not appear to be a completely evil antagonist.

He possessed the absolute ability to suppress every abnormality that occurred inside the bus.

Controlling the steering wheel, accelerator, and brakes was equivalent to controlling the entire situation.

—As long as they kept the driver emotionally stable, this stretch of the journey would pass without incident.

After reaching this conclusion, Xie Chun Ye relaxed slightly. He pushed his glasses higher and swept an assessing gaze across his teammates.

The difficulty of a game instance was, to a certain degree, tied to the players’ overall strength. In that case, someone among these novices must possess attributes exceeding the average.

All three women were possible candidates. Song Zang was a strange man who looked exceptionally weak, while Wang Shu…

Wang Shu had remained silent the entire time, possessing no sense of presence whatsoever.

Xie Chun Ye focused on him and realized that Wang Shu had not changed his posture from beginning to end. Despite the repeated bizarre disturbances on the bus, he had neither spoken nor moved.

He looked as though he had been frightened senseless—or more like a rigid corpse.

At that thought, Xie Chun Ye frowned slightly and stared directly at Wang Shu for five minutes.

The rise and fall of the man’s breathing was extremely faint and shallow. Perhaps Xie Chun Ye was the only person capable of noticing it.

He was not dead. For some inexplicable reason, he was pretending to be.

They were still some distance from Tianhai Road. After confirming that the driver would not suddenly lose control again, Xie Chun Ye directly called Wang Shu’s name as a test.

He did not respond.

Xie Chun Ye therefore ignored him. Rising and gripping the handrail, he gathered everyone together to discuss their next move.

Only after Song Zang hesitantly walked over as well did Xie Chun Ye lower his voice and say, “There are three possible routes ahead: motorcycle, airplane, or taxi. Should we split up or remain together? I won’t interfere. We can decide by vote.”

The mortality rate in novice instances was very low. Although there was still a risk of total annihilation, there were countless experienced players who abandoned every newcomer and forced their way to the ending alone.

At worst, he would simply earn fewer points. Xie Chun Ye did not particularly care. An inexplicable thread of unease wound through his heart, and he only wanted this game to end as quickly as possible.

Splitting up was the greatest taboo in horror movies, but in the brutal reality of this Infinite Game, Xie Chun Ye would rather clear the ending by himself.

There was nothing wrong with selfishness when one’s life was at stake.

Everyone fell silent for a moment before Qiu Shuang spoke first. “Brother Xie, um… what exactly is wrong with Wang Shu? He’s acting kind of frightening. Are there ghosts in this instance?”

“Perhaps.” Xie Chun Ye glanced at him, neither confirming nor denying it. “I’ll examine him in a moment. Your attributes are all too low, so don’t act rashly.”

“All right!” Qiu Shuang raised her arms and draped them over Xiao Li Li and Lin Wen Jing’s shoulders. “Sisters, airport or Tianhai Road?”

Xiao Li Li looked thoughtful. “If we can confirm that there are no ghosts on the mountain road, we should get off at Tianhai Road.”

“Mm. Taking a plane would be too dangerous.” Lin Wen Jing smiled in agreement.

Seeing the women begin discussing the matter in low voices, Song Zang bit his lower lip and thought for a moment. Finally gathering his courage, he interrupted in a soft voice. “Brother Xie, can I keep following you? I’m scared.”

Xie Chun Ye froze under his pitiful gaze. He lowered his eyes and adjusted his glasses. Although his attitude remained cold, he did not refuse. “Mm.”

Song Zang’s eyes lit up, and a faint smile finally appeared on his beautiful face, which had previously been filled with fear.

He was very satisfied. Although Qiu Shuang and the others were quite interesting, he currently preferred to follow someone who knew how to play the game.

Besides… the number beside his special title had not changed in quite some time.

That meant Xie Chun Ye still had not believed that Song Zang was a helpless weakling.

His acting skills still needed improvement. He would have to work harder in the future.

After they had roughly decided on their subsequent route, everyone fell silent again, waiting for Xie Chun Ye to investigate Wang Shu.

Ning Si Si could not understand what the adults were discussing and had already fallen sound asleep with her head tilted to one side. Xie Chun Ye rubbed her head and quietly admired the braid he had personally woven. Only then did he leisurely adjust his glasses and rise silently—before very conspicuously sitting beside Wang Shu.

He suddenly smelled a faint, concealed stench of blood and urine slowly spreading from the dim shadows.

Xie Chun Ye paused. His gaze swiftly passed over Wang Shu himself and landed upon the advertisement board concealed behind the man’s heavy body. His expression immediately tightened.

【Wealthy Tianhai Businessman Seeks Heir—Generous Compensation.

Applicant Requirements: Adult male, healthy, and good-looking.

Compensation: A bonus of two hundred thousand upon confirmed pregnancy. Five million for giving birth to a son and three million for a daughter.

For further details, please meet with Assistant Ning. Telephone: 130xxxx4444.】

This so-called Assistant Ning was clearly Ning Si Si’s father, Ning Feng. The phone numbers were identical.

Was it a coincidence? Xie Chun Ye seriously doubted it.

Although every detail of the advertisement was strange, this fraudulent notice pasted onto the board was not what had frightened Wang Shu into wetting himself.

—The advertisement board itself had undergone a mutation no one could possibly have imagined.

A flat yet impossibly deep, bloodred maw lay abruptly across the center of the board, having nearly swallowed Wang Shu’s entire left arm.

Yet from beginning to end, Wang Shu had not uttered so much as a cry of pain. Instead, he had remained rigidly seated and pretended to be dead, struggling to conceal the hideous mouth behind his heavy body…

Xie Chun Ye did not think any further. Without hesitation, he grabbed Wang Shu’s right arm and attempted to pull him away with all his strength. Wang Shu, however, remained utterly motionless, as though welded to the seat. It seemed the freezing fangs inside the bloody mouth had pinned him firmly in place, making escape impossible.

Sensing that Xie Chun Ye was attempting to rescue him, Wang Shu finally seemed to recover his awareness. His eyes slowly shifted, followed by his head, until he was staring at Xie Chun Ye. Then he shook his head.

“Why?”

The eyes behind Xie Chun Ye’s glasses narrowed. Without the slightest fear, he leaned closer and spoke in an extremely low voice.

“It hasn’t finished eating yet.” Wang Shu let out a dry laugh.

Hearing this, Qiu Shuang instinctively hugged Lin Wen Jing’s arm tightly. “W-What does that mean?”

Wang Shu did not even look at her. He merely continued staring provocatively at Xie Chun Ye, licking his dry, cracked lips. Drawing out each syllable at a snail’s pace, he began counting. “Ten… nine… eight… seven…”

“Wang Shu, shut up!”

“What are you afraid of? It’s simple—very simple. Either lose a hand or die without an intact corpse. Choose one…” Wang Shu struggled to stretch his lips into a grin. “It’s nearly finished eating! Next, every one of you will have to offer it a hand. Understand? If you don’t, the bus will overturn immediately, and everyone here will become food for this great lord!”

The instant he finished speaking, a series of crunching, chewing sounds came from beside him.

Sharp teeth ground and gnawed against bone, producing a greedy noise tinged with dissatisfaction and irritability. It was remarkably appropriate to the situation.

Xie Chun Ye’s expression instantly turned cold. His voice remained even. “You should have told us sooner. That cannot possibly be the only solution.”

Old Wang laughed, his expression contorted. “I don’t trust you. If you had learned about it beforehand and interrupted its meal, we would all have died. I don’t want to die. Do you understand, little boy?”

Xie Chun Ye paused, his tone remaining calm. He looked at Wang Shu as though observing an agitated clown and delivered an indifferent, formulaic assessment. “Your Resistance is below one hundred. Your sanity is being influenced by the monster. Understandable.”

After speaking, he suddenly raised his eyes toward the rearview mirror, which reflected the driver’s dark, shadowed eyes.

Xie Chun Ye calmly met the driver’s gaze for several seconds. Then, as though considering something, he raised his head a few inches higher. His eyes traced the edge of the mirror and swept across Song Zang, who was trembling in the rear corner.

Song Zang did not know why Xie Chun Ye had suddenly looked at him. Perhaps those who survived longer in the Infinite Game developed something resembling an animal’s intuition.

His face pale, Song Zang lightly bit his lower lip and tightly clutched the hem of his shirt as though terrified out of his wits, pretending not to notice the meaningful gaze.

The bus became silent. Lin Wen Jing rested a hand lightly on Qiu Shuang’s shoulder and murmured something in an extremely low voice. Meanwhile, Xiao Li Li stared unblinkingly at Wang Shu and the faint chewing noises concealed in the shadows.

The driver seemed entirely unconcerned by the scene. Expressionlessly controlling the steering wheel, he kept the bus traveling smoothly along the mountain road.

Then Wang Shu suddenly moved. Without warning, he abruptly rose to his feet and released an eerie snicker from deep within his chest.

His left arm was completely exposed beneath the cold white light. The entire forearm had become slender and hollow, leaving behind nothing but ghastly white bone. As his body swayed, the bones knocked and scraped against one another, barely remaining connected.

It produced an unnatural sound that no ordinary person could ever expect to experience in their lifetime.

Everyone’s expression turned grim. Yet for reasons none of them could explain, they could not stop themselves from being drawn to the bizarre sight.

They stared fixedly at Wang Shu’s twisted smile, their hearts pounding faster like drums, unable to tear their eyes away.

What happened next quickly confirmed the “rules” Wang Shu had previously described.

The bloodred maw embedded in the advertisement board suddenly belched.

In the next instant, it began writhing violently. Wet, gurgling sounds came from deep within, like flesh being corroded and digested by stomach acid.

As though responding to it, the bus began shaking violently. Even the windows that had been sealed tightly shut trembled frantically with the movement.

The three women’s expressions changed slightly. They gripped one another’s hands and vigilantly watched their surroundings, while Xie Chun Ye instinctively raised his head and stared at the faintly reflective rearview mirror.

He lightly adjusted his glasses, apparently paying no attention to the abnormality beside him and focusing solely on the driver’s expression in the mirror.

The driver frowned and tightened his grip on the steering wheel, keeping the bus moving steadily along the mountain road. His eyes were slightly red, and deep furrows appeared across his forehead from irritation, but the corner of his mouth carried a faintly amused smile.

Xie Chun Ye withdrew his gaze thoughtfully, looked toward everyone, and said calmly, “It isn’t serious. Don’t panic yet—”

“No! It has already tasted flesh and blood. You have no other choice!”

Wang Shu interrupted Xie Chun Ye without hesitation. The flesh on his face trembled with excitement. “Hurry and send the next person to feed it! If you don’t, everyone will die!”

Before anyone could react, he suddenly spun around and stared fixedly toward the rear of the bus. His gaze coiled around Song Zang like a venomous snake.

“Kid, get over here if you don’t want to die.”

Wang Shu’s voice abruptly dropped, overflowing with menace. His shout made Song Zang’s entire body tremble.

Under everyone’s varying gazes, Song Zang rose unsteadily with tears in his eyes and his face deathly pale. He obediently walked toward Wang Shu, not daring to resist in the slightest.

“Hey, what the fuck is wrong with you?!” Before Xie Chun Ye could speak, Qiu Shuang became furious at Wang Shu’s attitude. She stepped forward and blocked Song Zang’s path. “What gives you the right to force him to sacrifice himself for everyone?”

“Ridiculous. What use is keeping a whiny little bitch who does nothing but cry? He’ll only drag us down.” Wang Shu sneered and raised his skeletal arm. The bones clicked against one another as his precariously attached index finger pointed mockingly at Qiu Shuang. “Young lady, have you gone soft? Since you’re speaking so nobly… why don’t you offer yourself to that great lord first?”

Qiu Shuang showed no fear and even imitated his sneer. “What ‘great lord’? It’s just a shitty mouth growing out of an advertisement board. Wang Shu, have you completely lost your fucking mind?”

“I’ve lost my mind? Hahahaha! Young lady, do you really think we’re playing a game?” The flesh on Wang Shu’s face quivered, made even more frightening by his ferocious expression. He was clearly on the verge of losing his sanity. He seized Song Zang’s slender arm. “Why should I be the only one to suffer? Get the fuck over here!”

Song Zang cried out in alarm, his eyes filled with terror. Like a weightless doll, he was casually manhandled by Wang Shu, powerless to resist the cruel fate awaiting him.

“Wang Shu, go fuck yourself… Jing Jing?” Qiu Shuang hurriedly tried to rush forward, but Lin Wen Jing suddenly caught her arm.

Lin Wen Jing said nothing. She merely held Qiu Shuang back and gently shook her head.

Qiu Shuang had never been able to refuse her. She therefore immediately turned to Xie Chun Ye for help, but Xie Chun Ye had also fallen strangely silent. He watched Wang Shu break down and descend into madness without continuing to stop him.

Xie Chun Ye wanted to test whether the bus truly required human flesh to remain stable, as Old Wang had claimed.

Although the thought was immoral, judging by Song Zang’s performance so far, he truly was the person most worth sacrificing.

During that brief, subtle stalemate, Old Wang had already dragged the sobbing Song Zang in front of the advertisement board and “forced” his slender, pale arm into the swirling bloodred maw.

Bang—!

A tremendous crash immediately followed, accompanied by Song Zang’s shattered cry of pain.

Some indescribable suction seemed to exist within the bloodred mouth as it snapped shut, frantically dragging Song Zang deeper inside.

His frail body slammed heavily into the advertisement board. A pitiful red swelling appeared on his forehead, while the tears pooled in his eyes streamed down like broken pearls.

“It hurts… It hurts so much…”

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