At exactly 9 o’clock, an announcement echoed through the theater.
Their session was ready to begin seating.
Lin Ran placed the stuffed toy he won for Sheng Qingxi at the counter. He hadn’t managed to grab the little tiger she wanted. He missed it. There was no way he could have won that toy under those conditions.
Xie Zhen had bought popcorn and cola for everyone.
The group, holding their popcorn buckets, entered the theater and immediately attracted attention.
Song Shiman thought they had just happened to book the same session. But when Lin Ran and the others started taking their seats, she realized Lin Ran was sitting right next to Sheng Qingxi.
Thus, their seating arrangement for the seven of them became like this:
Xie Zhen, He Mo, Lin Yanyan, Lin Ran, Sheng Qingxi, Song Shiman, and Gu Mingji.
The theater was practically empty, yet for some reason, when they bought tickets, these four people had ended up sitting together with them.
Song Shiman had every reason to suspect Lin Ran did it on purpose.
It was a Saturday, and usually, every theater should have been packed. But for some reason, theirs had very few people, with only a few scattered individuals, all sitting alone.
The reason was obvious—Song Shiman and the others were watching a niche thriller film, one with virtually no promotion.
Xie Zhen and the rest weren’t aware of this unfortunate fact just yet. They thought it was some kind of comedic film about surviving on an island. As they settled in, they started to feel something was off.
There were just too few people in the theater.
Xie Zhen felt a bit uneasy, so he hurriedly stuffed a handful of popcorn into his mouth to calm his nerves.
With five minutes left before the movie started, the lights hadn’t dimmed yet. Lin Ran could clearly see Sheng Qingxi’s actions. She was eating popcorn as if it were candy, carefully placing each piece into her mouth one by one.
Lin Ran glanced over at Lin Yanyan. The little girl was doing the same.
Meanwhile, Xie Zhen and He Mo were far more boisterous.
Xie Zhen knew Lin Ran didn’t like popcorn, so he hadn’t bought him any. Among the seven of them, only Lin Ran sat empty-handed. He turned to look at Sheng Qingxi. She was munching on the soft popcorn, cheeks puffed out, seemingly enjoying it.
Lin Ran had seen how picky Sheng Qingxi could be about food. After eating breakfast with her for several days, he had noticed she rarely ate meat. Whether it was fish or the meat in the steamed buns, she would always discreetly toss it aside, afraid Sheng Lan might catch her.
No wonder she was so thin—she didn’t like meat.
Just as Lin Ran was lost in thought, the lights in the theater suddenly dimmed, and the entire room was swallowed by darkness. Gradually, the screen began to light up.
A series of distorted and abstract English words appeared on the screen, and the subtitle below read: Island Sacrifice.
Lin Ran wasn’t sure what kind of movies girls liked, but he never would have guessed they’d pick something so drenched in horror. Who had chosen this movie, anyway?
It was Song Shiman.
Song Shiman never had the courage to watch this kind of film alone. When she went with others, she always tried to save face, refusing to show any fear. Yet, when she was around Sheng Qingxi, those emotions seemed to come more naturally.
However, she hadn’t expected that in the end, all seven of them would end up sitting in a row together.
Song Shiman’s score for Lin Ran was updated once again: -199.
The movie started playing.
The opening scene featured a group of young men and women stranded on a deserted island. Coincidentally, the group consisted of exactly seven people.
The sky was overcast, and the waves crashed violently.
After a few days of survival on the island, the once glamorous youths no longer looked the same. Each of them was disheveled, their clothes in tatters, revealing faint scratches on their skin beneath.
A chubby man asked, “Where do you think A went? He’s been gone since last night. I told you not to mention it, but you insisted. Now, who knows if he’ll even come back.”
A tall, slender woman sneered, “Where else could he go if not back here? We’ve searched nearly the entire island. Besides the cave we’re staying in, where else could someone spend the night?”
A frail man with glasses expressed his concern: “But he didn’t take any fire with him when he left. Could something have happened to him?”
A blonde man, speaking broken Chinese, added, “A didn’t know, didn’t know a few days ago, the weather on the sea would be this… harsh. He meant well, trying to bring…”
Before he could finish, he was cut off by a buzz-cut muscular man with a fierce expression. “Shipwreck site? In this day and age, there’s no way there’s still treasure out there.”
The girl with pigtails quietly muttered, “Yet you came here anyway, didn’t you?”
Meanwhile, the pale woman sitting at the edge of the group couldn’t hide her anxiety. She bit her nails and looked around nervously, mumbling, “A isn’t coming back. He won’t come back.”
By now, they were used to her neurotic behavior.
At first, it wasn’t just the seven of them stranded on the island—there was an eighth person, A.
The eight of them had met over six months ago during a murder mystery role-playing game. Though they had different jobs, they shared a love for adventure and extreme sports.
Before being stranded on the island, their relationships appeared harmonious. But as their survival dragged on, hidden tensions began to surface.
Everyone had their own agenda.
Last night, those pent-up tensions finally erupted.
They had gone out in a group to search for food and a way off the island. Their boat had been swallowed by the waves, and there was no signal, no sign of rescue.
It was as if they had been forgotten by the world.
Fortunately, the island had fresh water and some unknown wild fruits.
The day passed quickly.
As dusk fell and they lined up to return to the cave, they found A’s body at the cave’s entrance. He looked exactly as he had when he left, except his heart was missing from his chest.
“Ah—”
Three simultaneous screams filled the theater—one from the movie’s sound effects, the second from Song Shiman, and the third from Xie Zhen.
Sheng Qingxi had just turned to look at Song Shiman when she screamed and lunged at her, hugging her tightly and crying, “It’s so scary! I don’t want to watch anymore!”
On the other side, Xie Zhen screamed, “Ahh, Mozi, I’m blind! I can’t watch this anymore. I feel like that chubby guy is me! My flesh is soft and tender, bad guys would definitely like me, ahhhh.”
Everyone else: “……”
Sheng Qingxi gently patted Song Shiman’s shoulder. After calming down a bit, Song Shiman covered her eyes and returned to her seat.
Once that scene was over, Song Shiman discreetly peeked at the movie through her fingers.
That night, the people in the cave were all silent. The neurotic woman huddled in the corner, trembling, her pale face still streaked with tears. “I’m next. I’m next.”
The chubby man began distributing the food.
Tonight’s meal was a roasted rabbit.
The slender woman didn’t look too good, but she took the rabbit meat and immediately began gnawing on it. They had been living off wild fruits for days, and everyone was on the verge of a breakdown.
The man with glasses shook his head. “I’m not hungry. You go ahead, I know you’re still hungry.”
The chubby man hesitated. “But…”
The man smiled slightly. “Really, I’m not hungry. I ate a lot of leftovers at lunch.”
Only then did the chubby man place the man’s share onto his own plate.
He continued distributing the food, and when he reached the girl with pigtails, she smiled sweetly at him, “Thank you, brother.”
As night fell, everyone drifted into a deep sleep.
The next morning, the chubby man was dead. Unlike A’s death, his was gruesome. His body was mutilated, and like A, his heart was missing.
Was it a wild animal? A savage? Or a person?
The survivors, already shrouded in gloom, grew even more silent. Their companions were dying one by one.
A week passed.
Of the original eight, only two remained.
The frail man with glasses and the girl with pigtails.
Song Shiman timidly asked, “Xiao Xi, who will die next?”
Sheng Qingxi softly replied, “No one else will die.”
Lin Ran, sitting beside Sheng Qingxi, turned to glance at her. This little girl wasn’t just smart and diligent in her studies—her reasoning skills were sharp, too.
The final scene of the movie showed the frail man gently patting the girl’s head as he asked in a low voice, “Are you full?”
The girl nodded and smiled sweetly. “I love this birthday present.”
The screen froze on the curve of the girl’s lips. They stood side by side on the rocks, the previously tumultuous sea now calm. The boat that had been swept away by the waves mysteriously appeared in front of them.
The theater lights flickered on, signaling the movie’s end.
He Mo looked utterly baffled, Xie Zhen had his eyes covered the whole time, and Song Shiman was completely confused.
Those who understood the film found it rather dull because the story had moved beyond the realm of human understanding.
As they were leaving, Song Shiman clung to Sheng Qingxi and asked, “Xiao Xi, what was the final scene about? What did the girl mean by ‘birthday present’? Why was the grandmother so confused?”
Sheng Qingxi explained, “The movie is about them being trapped on the island trying to find a way out, but people kept dying. The man and the girl weren’t human—they were higher beings. The whole thing was actually a birthday present from the man to the girl, a grand hunting feast. The prey was those people.”
He Mo: ???
Xie Zhen: Huh?
Song Shiman: “……”
“What kind of twisted and nerve-wracking movie was that?”
Song Shiman felt every hair on her body stand on end. She had a bad feeling she would definitely have nightmares tonight.
Walking behind, Lin Ran asked Lin Yanyan, “Were you scared?”
Lin Yanyan lifted her face, her bright eyes shining as she looked up at Lin Ran. “Brother, when are we going to an island? I want to go and have a barbecue there with you all.”
Lin Ran: ?
Something felt off. Had this little girl somehow found something fun in that creepy movie?
Sheng Qingxi walked to the front counter and retrieved the large stuffed toy Lin Ran had won for her. She hugged the pile of stuffed animals and, along with Song Shiman, took the escalator down. Embarrassed by the sheer number of toys she was holding, she didn’t want to take the elevator.
Naturally, the others followed them down the escalator.
When they reached the entrance of the mall, Gu Mingji was the first to leave, getting into his family’s car. However, Song Shiman’s family driver hadn’t arrived yet. When she called, the driver informed her there had been an accident on the road, and he was stuck in traffic with no estimate of when he would arrive.
If Song Shiman had been alone, she would have just hailed a cab. But she didn’t want Sheng Qingxi to go home by herself.
Standing a few steps behind at the entrance, Lin Ran and the others noticed Sheng Qingxi and Song Shiman still waiting, so they sent Lin Yanyan over to ask what was going on. Lin Yanyan ran back to relay the situation to Lin Ran.
Lin Ran glanced at the three motorcycles parked by the entrance. He leaned down and asked Lin Yanyan, “Yanyan, you go back to the garage with He Mo and the others. I’ll drop off your Sister Sheng and come right back, okay?”
Lin Yanyan nodded. “Okay.”
Xie Zhen immediately raised his hand. “Brother Ran, can you grab some crawfish from the food street on the west side while you’re there?”
Lin Ran gave a quick “got it” and then walked over to the two girls.
Sheng Qingxi was talking to Song Shiman. “Shiman, just take a cab home. I’ll be fine taking the bus. It’s only a 40-minute ride. Don’t worry, I’ll text you when I get home.”
Song Shiman hesitated. If Sheng Qingxi were to take a cab, she’d feel more at ease. But Sheng Qingxi was used to being frugal, and Song Shiman knew she’d insist on taking the bus. She couldn’t bring herself to offer to pay for a cab.
Just as Sheng Qingxi finished speaking, Lin Ran chimed in, “I’ll take you home. I’m headed to the west side anyway.”
Both Sheng Qingxi and Song Shiman turned to look at him.
Song Shiman, suspicious, asked, “What are you going to the west side for?”
Lin Ran noticed her skeptical look and couldn’t help but marvel at how much she had changed. Before Sheng Qingxi came along, she’d blush and avoid eye contact every time she talked to him. Now that she was friends with Sheng Qingxi, she acted like a protective mother hen.
Lin Ran casually replied, “Picking up some crawfish for them.”
The crawfish from the food street on the west side were famous, and many people drove out there late at night just to eat them. Hearing this, Song Shiman didn’t question it further. She trusted Lin Ran to take Sheng Qingxi home, as to her, Lin Ran symbolized absolute safety.
After agreeing on the plan, Song Shiman called a cab and headed home.
As Lin Ran helped Sheng Qingxi onto the bike, he suddenly realized he didn’t have a spare helmet.
He grabbed his own helmet and tried to place it on Sheng Qingxi’s head, but she tilted her head to avoid it.
Lin Ran raised an eyebrow. “Don’t dodge.”
Sheng Qingxi pressed her lips together. “I don’t want to wear it. You wear it.”
Lin Ran clicked his tongue lightly. “Just put it on, it’s not a big deal.”
Lin Ran knew well that Sheng Qingxi had always listened to him. No matter how unreasonable his requests were, she would always accommodate him with such gentle understanding, as if she had no boundaries.
But this time was different.