The night was deep, and they hadn’t noticed just how high the roller coaster was when they were below. The most thrilling rides they’d experienced before in amusement parks were about fifty meters high at most.
Now, as the roller coaster began its steep ascent, the players in the carriages were instinctively pulled backward by inertia. Already tense, they suddenly heard Li Zhi’s reminder, and everyone instinctively widened their eyes.
Don’t close your eyes!
In moments of extreme fear during weightlessness, humans instinctively close their eyes as a self-defense mechanism. To avoid closing your eyes, you must maintain full control over your emotions throughout the entire ride, with intense concentration and mental focus to resist this automatic response.
But could they really manage to keep their eyes open throughout this high-speed, plummeting roller coaster experience?
The roller coaster continued its climb. Chi Yi gripped the safety bar in front of her tightly. “How high is this thing? Why haven’t we reached the top yet?”
The higher they climbed, the colder it became. The roller coaster kept ascending along the track, and when they looked down, the entire amusement park lay beneath them. From this height, eerie green and dim red lights formed a massive cross over the park, a sight both bizarre and unsettling.
From the back, they could barely hear You Jingmeng’s voice, carried by the wind, “This is high enough for bungee jumping, isn’t it?”
This game level was extremely unfriendly to players with a fear of heights. Fortunately, none of the six on the roller coaster had that phobia, but as the carriage climbed higher, they couldn’t help feeling uneasy. Owen Dong, sitting in the last row, asked Zheng Qi beside him in a trembling voice, “Blinking doesn’t count as closing your eyes, right?”
Zheng Qi thought for a moment. “Blinking and closing your eyes are different. It shouldn’t count.”
Owen Dong’s voice trembled even more. “Then why is it that every time I blink, the figure in the empty seat in front of me gets clearer?”
Zheng Qi hadn’t noticed before, but now that Owen mentioned it, he too saw that in the previously empty row in front of them, two faintly transparent figures had appeared. They hadn’t solidified yet, only showing as blurry outlines of two men’s backs.
Zheng Qi panicked and quickly turned to look around while the roller coaster was still climbing.
The previously empty seats were now filled with vague, shadowy figures, as if the entire carriage had been packed with people from the beginning. It was only after they blinked, each blink accumulating more time with their eyes closed, that these figures began to appear more clearly.
It was impossible for people not to blink. The six in the carriage had all blinked at least once, and those sitting in the front two rows had also noticed the change.
Qi Yongyi shouted against the wind, “All the empty seats are filling up! The longer we close our eyes, the faster they appear! Try not to blink! Don’t let them fully materialize!”
Li Zhi also saw the figures in the front row, their shapes seemingly condensed from mist. The headlights from the front of the carriage passed through the blurry outlines, creating a strange refracted light.
The longer they kept their eyes closed, the clearer these figures became. Even a blink lasting 0.1 seconds could, over time, allow the ghosts to materialize and attack.
Clank, clank, clank—
After what felt like an eternity of climbing, the roller coaster finally reached its peak.
Chi Yi glanced down and gasped, her breath caught in her throat. “It must be at least a hundred meters high!”
Li Zhi quickly reminded, “Squint to reduce wind resistance.”
Chi Yi immediately looked away and followed the advice, scrunching her nose and eyes together. Just as she squinted slightly, the carriage suddenly plunged downward, the howling wind tearing through the air as the terrifying sensation of freefall hit them like a storm. Screams erupted from everyone in the carriage.
The height was immense, and the speed wasn’t slow either. As they reached the lowest point, the carriage didn’t stop, making a sharp 90-degree turn before roaring toward the next terrifying drop.
Li Zhi heard You Jingmeng screaming from the back rows, “Ahhh! The person in front of me turned around!!”
With each rush and drop, they blinked more frequently, and the figures in the carriage became clearer and clearer.
Li Zhi could now see the backs of two women in the front row. They wore white dresses, their long hair cascading down their backs. Their posture was eerily perfect, and no matter how the roller coaster twisted and turned, their hair remained perfectly still, untouched by the wind.
Owen Dong’s scream pierced the air, even more frantic than You Jingmeng’s, “He’s standing up! He’s standing up!”
The figure of the man standing in the front carriage reflected in Owen Dong’s terrified eyes. Even in the midst of the roller coaster’s extreme twists and turns, the man seemed to be standing on solid ground. Every time Owen blinked, the man turned a little more toward him.
Owen Dong could no longer control his eyes. The cold wind whipped against his face, making his eyes water uncontrollably. After who knew how many times he had blinked, the man in the front seat finally turned around completely.
He looked at Owen Dong in the back row, his face bathed in a ghastly green light, deathly pale and terrifying. Slowly, the corners of his mouth twisted into a grin. As Owen blinked uncontrollably, the man jerkily reached out, gripping the backrest and began crawling toward them.
“Ahhhhhhhh—!”
Owen Dong was terrified out of his mind.
Zheng Qi, sitting beside him, shouted a warning, “Squint! Squint your eyes! We’re almost there! Stop blinking!”
Tears streaming down his face, Owen Dong tried to squint, forcing himself to resist the urge to blink. Once he managed to control his blinking, the man’s movements slowed significantly. The man’s deathly pale face twisted with resentment as he stared at Owen, who was desperately fighting to keep his eyes open.
Time dragged on, feeling like an eternity. Finally, the roller coaster, which had been speeding along, began to slow down.
After one final drop, the carriage leveled out and started gliding slowly back toward the station where they had boarded.
Li Zhi noticed that the two figures in front of her were still semi-transparent. She turned to look behind her, and all the previously empty seats were now filled with these translucent figures.
This was a phantom carriage, filled with the dead.
Those seats were never empty; they just hadn’t been visible before the roller coaster started moving.
The transparent figures she saw were fully visible to other players who had blinked too many times. In their eyes, those ghosts were already solid, tangible people.
As the roller coaster came to a complete stop, the man in front of Owen Dong had crawled halfway over the seat. But as the ride halted, his crawling body froze entirely. Frustrated, the man glanced back at Owen Dong before slowly retreating to his seat.
If Li Zhi hadn’t figured out the death rules before the ride started, they would have all instinctively closed their eyes during the ride. By then, it would’ve been too late, and they would’ve only noticed the ghosts when they were face-to-face.
Owen Dong hastily wiped away the tears, not sure if they were from the wind or from sheer terror. He glanced at the dead figures sitting silently in the carriage. As soon as the safety bar lifted, he jumped out immediately, not daring to stay even a second longer.
The others also got off one after another. Once all the players had left the roller coaster, the ghosts in the car disappeared, becoming transparent again, and the now empty roller coaster clattered away.
The nearby staff member smiled and said, “Congratulations on completing the first round of the Sky Dragon Challenge. Here’s your reward.”
He handed over a small black box. Li Zhi opened it and found a card inside.
Still recovering from the terror, the others quickly gathered around to check out the clue they had earned.
The card contained only a single sentence: It likes to find replacements.
Owen Dong, after surviving such a dangerous and intense challenge, felt a little crushed by the simplicity of the clue. “What kind of clue is this?”
“Replacements?” Chi Yi thought for a moment. “Water ghosts and hanged ghosts tend to look for replacements.”
Qi Yongyi nodded. “Yes, in folklore, water ghosts and hanged ghosts are the ones most likely to seek replacements. One clue might not point to the exact ghost, but at least it narrows down the possibilities.”
You Jingmeng sighed, “We don’t even know how the validation process for identifying ghosts works. Is there a handbook or something about different types of ghosts? There are so many ghost types, and I’m sure we haven’t heard of all of them. What if there are others that also look for replacements besides water and hanged ghosts?”
Li Zhi tucked the clue card away. “Let’s ride it again.”
The first clue was too vague, the range of possibilities too broad. They would need at least a second clue to figure it out.
Having just survived one nerve-wracking, heart-pounding adventure, Owen Dong and Zheng Qi immediately showed expressions of refusal upon hearing this.
The first round had been so perilous—who knew how much more dangerous the second round would be? Especially Owen Dong, whose legs were still shaking and whose eyelids kept twitching. He knew that if he rode again, he wouldn’t be able to control his blinking.
Seeing his state, Li Zhi offered, “Four of us can go this time. You stay here and wait for us.”
Torn between his sense of pride and the terror of nearly dying on the roller coaster, Owen Dong gritted his teeth before finally nodding, “Alright, you guys go.”
He figured he could try harder to perform in the other challenges. Not all the attractions could be as terrifying as the roller coaster, right? Like that Ferris wheel… yes, he decided that would be his next stop, the Ferris wheel.
Li Zhi turned to Zheng Qi and asked, “What about you?”
Zheng Qi hesitated for a moment but then made up his mind. “I’ll go with you.”
Li Zhi nodded, then turned to the staff member and said, “We want to take the second round of the challenge.”
The staff member smiled. “Alright.”
Soon enough, another carriage, seemingly appearing out of nowhere, rolled into the station.
This time, with five people, one person would inevitably have to sit alone. Zheng Qi, being a grown man, felt too embarrassed to tell Li Zhi that he didn’t want to sit by himself, so he gritted his teeth and sat in a row alone. The rest of them took their usual spots, just like in the first round, minus Owen Dong.
This time, the conditions of death were made clear by the station’s announcement. Everyone waited intently. Sure enough, just before departure, the station’s broadcast chimed: “The Sky Dragon is about to depart. We wish you a pleasant journey. Please enjoy the scenery in silence.”
Before Li Zhi could even remind them, everyone understood the rule.
In the second round, not only could they not close their eyes, but they also couldn’t make any noise—not even screams like in the first round.
It was obvious that any noise would invite the dead in the carriage to crawl over immediately.
For those with a tendency to get easily startled, this rule was like having a knife hanging over their heads. You Jingmeng, being one of those sensitive types, immediately pressed her lips together tightly to prevent herself from screaming out.
But, having survived the first round, this new rule—no sound—didn’t seem too bad. Everyone felt more composed than they had during the last round.
The roller coaster rolled out of the station and started climbing another steep slope. This time, the height was even greater than before—at least 200 meters. You Jingmeng took a deep breath, clamped her lips shut, and covered her mouth, bracing herself for the inevitable drop.
Suddenly, someone tapped her shoulder.
You Jingmeng froze, instinctively turning to glance at Qi Yongyi sitting beside her.
Both of Qi Yongyi’s hands were firmly gripping the safety bar in front of him.
The ones sitting behind them were…
You Jingmeng began trembling with terror. A giggle echoed from behind her, and it felt like a head was leaning toward her, its breath cold against her ear.
Just then, the carriage plummeted downward, and the double impact overwhelmed You Jingmeng, who finally let out a scream. But her scream lasted only a second before Qi Yongyi quickly covered her mouth with his hand.
Tears streamed from her eyes as the wind whipped past her face. An icy, boneless arm wrapped around her neck from behind, as if trying to drag her backward.
But since her scream had been cut short, the cold arms just remained wrapped around her without taking the next step.
You Jingmeng didn’t dare move. Her eyes wide with terror, she glanced forward and saw, two rows ahead, Li Zhi slap a head that had twisted 90 degrees toward her, sending it back into place.
You Jingmeng: “!!”
Holy crap! No wonder Li Zhi was the boss! Suddenly, the cold, boneless arms around her neck didn’t seem so terrifying anymore!