Chapter 32 The Four Seasons Train (9)
Legs said indignantly, “We can’t just sit around and wait! We need to open the engine compartment and stop the train!”
They all agreed, but what could they do? They had no idea where the red ticket was.
Wenren Tu suddenly said, “Wait, aren’t we forgetting something? When a participant dies, their train ticket should go to a ghost. They all want the tickets. So what’s the point of them having them?”
More importantly, did the ticket retain the original participant’s information after being acquired by a ghost? Or would it change… and turn red?
Yes! Perhaps the red ticket they needed was the one obtained by a ghost! This thought rekindled their hope. At least they had a new lead.
But how to find the ghost with the red ticket became their next challenge.
They had no clues, and this spring cycle was almost over.
Wenren Tu glanced back at Zhu Ming. She knew Zhu Ming held grudges and wouldn’t let things go easily… Judging by her quiet demeanor, she was definitely plotting something.
Night passed, and the fifth round of summer arrived. The corpse vanished, and the carriage returned to its pristine state.
As luck would have it, just as they discovered the clue about the red ticket, someone poked their head through the window above.
It had always been Zhu Ming traveling between carriages. This was a first. It was one of the five-person team. He asked, “Hey, friends! Anything strange happening in your carriage?”
The participants in carriage 1 exchanged glances. Wenren Tu said, “What a coincidence. Yes, there is.”
The newcomer, a young man with blond hair, looked around the carriage, his face lighting up. “Great! You must have found a solution! Can you tell us?”
Wenren Tu said, “Not a complete solution. You had a sudden death in your carriage too, right? We’ve figured out that this train steals a year of the participants’ lifespans for every cycle of four seasons. That’s why that person died. The red train ticket might be able to stop the train, but it’s probably in a ghost’s possession. We haven’t figured out how to find it yet.”
The blond man was stunned, then said, “A year of lifespan? Sudden death? No one died in our carriage. We have an extra person!”
It seemed the other participant had been right. The ghosts’ abilities had evolved after the first day.
According to the blond man, they had been in carriage 37 for two “day-night” cycles. But at the end of the fourth cycle’s daytime phase, as they entered the tunnel, the lights had flickered. When they could see clearly again, they were shocked.
Because one of their five members had become two!
This had caused chaos within their group. The two individuals had identical train tickets and invitations, their mannerisms, their memories, everything the same. They couldn’t tell who was the ghost and who was the human.
They had no choice but to tie them both up.
Fortunately, it hadn’t happened again the following night.
The group had tried various methods to distinguish between the two. Since one of them had entered the instance with his younger sister, they asked her to test them with information only they would know. But both brothers answered every question perfectly.
Desperate, they decided to seek help from others.
But not only did they not find a solution in carriage 1, but they also received another piece of bad news: they were losing years of their lives just by riding this train! How terrifying!
Of course, the news of the strange occurrence in the blond man’s carriage didn’t improve the mood in carriage 1.
Zhu Ming stroked her chin. “No wonder I didn’t see any dead bodies in your carriage, but the atmosphere was strange.” They had been facing away from her, and she hadn’t looked closely, so she hadn’t noticed the duplicated person.
Wenren Tu joked, “This sounds familiar. It’s like the story of the Six-Eared Macaque in Journey to the West. He transformed into Sun Wukong, and no one could tell them apart. In the end, Buddha himself had to intervene. The ghosts on this train have evolved such abilities? They’re quite ambitious.”
The blond man’s mood darkened further. He could barely manage a weak smile. They had a Six-Eared Macaque situation, but no Buddha.
Their five-person team was made up of unrelated participants who had banded together. The only actual relationship was between the siblings. Now that her brother was… duplicated, the sister wouldn’t abandon him, or rather, them.
After several cycles, their food coupons were running low. Before discovering the window trick, they had each been focused on their own survival, resulting in residual ghosts in almost every carriage.
And since they weren’t acquainted in the real world and hadn’t formed strong bonds, no one was willing to risk collecting food coupons for two people who might be ghosts.
The five-person team was on the verge of splitting up. They wanted to separate from the siblings. The blond man felt it was disloyal, but if carriage 1 had no solution, then his own survival was more important.
Everyone was silent. Even the man’s own sister couldn’t tell which one was real. What could they possibly do?
Zhu Ming, having rested enough, stood up. “I’ll go take a look.”
Some things needed to be seen firsthand.
She continued, “I’m wondering, if the ghosts have evolved such an ability, why haven’t they duplicated everyone? By the way, which carriage are you in? Was there anything unusual about the carriage before you entered?”
The blond man thought for a moment. “We’re in carriage 37. Unusual? What could be unusual about a carriage? Oh, right! I remember another participant was in carriage 37 before us. He was looking through the window, asking for help. But he was dead when the doors opened.”
If that was the case, carriage 37 might actually have the red ticket!
Zhu Ming said, “Okay, I’ll go with you.”
“Wait, take this.” Wenren Tu tossed her the blade. “I don’t need it.”
Without another word, they split up. Wenren Tu, strong with her abilities but weak in hand-to-hand combat, stayed in carriage 1. Zhu Ming, more adaptable and agile, was better suited for unpredictable situations.
Climbing out of the carriage and onto the roof, Zhu Ming felt the cool breeze against her skin in the summer heat and looked out at the vast expanse of forest. “I must have been Spider-Man in a past life,” she sighed.
Carriage 37 was towards the back of the train. They quickly made their way there, but before reaching it, someone poked their head out of a window and called out:
“Blondy! We’re here!”
The blond man looked down, surprised. “What are you doing here?”
This was carriage 33, a relatively safe carriage where they hadn’t collected many food coupons. The person calling out to him was one of the other members of their five-person team. And there were other Awakened individuals in the carriage as well.
“Even his own sister can’t tell them apart! Do you really think someone else can? We weren’t even close to those siblings to begin with. It’s better to split up. They’re family. If the sister wants to take care of two brothers, that’s her business. It has nothing to do with us. Blondy, you’re not going back, are you?”
On one hand, there was a safe, new group with no strange occurrences. On the other, there were the indistinguishable siblings. The blond man was torn. Joining carriage 33 was the safer option, but they had fought together before. Was it right to abandon them now?
An idea struck him. “I just heard something in carriage 1. This train steals a year of our lifespans for every cycle of four seasons! The other participants probably don’t know yet. Since I’m outside, I’ll go tell them.”
He turned to Zhu Ming. “My friend, carriage 37 is all yours! I’ll go warn the others who are alone!”
He hurried off, eager to escape before his former teammates could pressure him to choose a side. Hehe, he wouldn’t choose just yet. He would see if there was a way to solve the siblings’ situation first!
The blond man’s willingness to inform the others saved Zhu Ming the trouble. She knocked on the window of carriage 37. “I’m from carriage 1. I asked you about the red train ticket earlier. Remember?”
The younger sister, recognizing her, opened the window. “Of course! Did Blondy send you? Is this happening in your carriage too?”
Zhu Ming shook her head. “No, but this is a rare opportunity. I can’t miss it.”
The sister looked surprised. Zhu Ming explained about the train stealing their lifespan and their theory about the red ticket being the key to opening the engine compartment.
“The red ticket is likely in the possession of a ghost who obtained a participant’s ticket.”
Zhu Ming sat in front of the two bound brothers, observing their expressions. “But finding that ghost is the problem. Blondy said you two are identical. I’m guessing that after a ghost’s ability evolves, it might become indistinguishable from a human. If it’s impersonating a deceased participant, possessing the ability to appear human during the day, it’ll be very difficult to identify.”
The two brothers simultaneously asked, “What does that have to do with my brother becoming two people?/Why wouldn’t the ghost transform into someone else?”
Zhu Ming’s eyes curved into a smile. “Because the rules only evolved after the first day. People died during the first three cycles, and the number of participants clearly decreased. This means that even if a ghost obtained a train ticket on the first day, it couldn’t disguise itself as a human. It was still bound to its seat.
The second day is different. The new rule allows a ghost with a train ticket to appear human. You two happened to be in this carriage, and you’ve already been through several ‘nights.’
The ghost had to reveal itself on the second night. When you all realized there was a new ‘person’ who hadn’t been there before, you naturally captured it. To avoid immediate exposure, it had to disguise itself as one of you.”
The doors opened at night, giving participants the opportunity to move between carriages, but they couldn’t climb outside during the tunnel sequence to check if there were any extra people in other carriages. This made identifying the ghost difficult.
So the situation in carriage 37 was both fortunate and unfortunate. Regardless, one of these two men was a ghost, and that ghost was the most likely candidate to have the red ticket!
The sister felt a wave of dizziness. She desperately needed to identify her real brother. Now, with only the two of them in carriage 37, it would be difficult for her to survive the remaining three and a half days alone.
“But how do we tell them apart? They’re exactly the same! They answer every question identically, even their little habits are the same! I can’t just kill one of them to see if they turn into a ghost, can I?” she asked, her voice filled with anguish.
Zhu Ming leaned forward and took their train tickets. “Of course not. I encountered a ghost disguised as a human in the previous instance. They were flesh and blood, even decapitation didn’t reveal their true form. They only changed after being exposed.”
The sister looked at Zhu Ming. “Give them back their tickets. I’m worried it’s bad luck not to have it on you.”
Train tickets had been specifically emphasized in the train etiquette rules. She didn’t want to accidentally harm her real brother. So after checking them, Zhu Ming returned the tickets.
Zhu Ming fanned herself with her hand, thinking. “Let me think.”
The younger sister stared intently at her brothers, not daring to relax.
“By the way,” Zhu Ming asked, “didn’t they resist when you tied them up?”
Both brothers answered simultaneously, “I’m not stupid! What if they mistakenly attacked me?”
Zhu Ming smiled. “True, and there’s nothing we can do during the day, with the conductor watching.”
She handed them back their tickets. “I know how to tell them apart.”
The sister asked eagerly, “How?”
Zhu Ming said, “This is a world ruled by rules. Naturally, we use rules to solve the problem.”
Just as she was about to explain her method, she noticed two reflections in the window.
Zhu Ming: “…What the…？！”
She turned to see two Yin Yus looking down at them from the roof, smiling. “Hi, Mingming!”
A wave of annoyance washed over Zhu Ming. One Yin Yu was enough. Now there were two! Which ghost had such terrible taste as to copy her?
She felt a surge of nausea, though she managed to suppress it, but the look of disgust on her face was undeniable.
The two Yin Yus, seemingly oblivious, said, “I’ve encountered the same situation. My companion is quite troubled.”
The other Yin Yu added, “Does Mingming have a good solution? Tell us!”
Zhu Ming snorted. “If I tell you, won’t that make me lose face?”
Suddenly, an idea struck her. If she could lure Yin Yu inside, she wouldn’t be able to move to another carriage. No matter how long she stayed outside, she would have to return to carriage 37 for the “night.”
And Zhu Ming had just entered this carriage herself… This was the perfect opportunity to…
She coughed. “Both of you come inside. This method requires the help of other passengers.”
One Yin Yu asked, “Really? Is Mingming tricking me?”
The other Yin Yu said, “Mingming is so cunning these days. Will you try to attack me?”
Annoyed, Zhu Ming snapped, “Enough with the ‘Mingming’ already! Are you coming in or not? If not, get lost! I’m trying to find a ghost among these two. What would I gain from tricking you?!”
The two Yin Yus, one human, one ghost, seemed to be on surprisingly good terms. They smiled at each other and climbed into carriage 37, one after the other.
The five-person team had cleared out some seats earlier. The two Yin Yus sat down, one on the left, one on the right.
The Yin Yu on the left asked, “So, Mingming, how do we tell them apart?”
The Yin Yu on the right added, “Don’t even think about tying me up.”
Zhu Ming rolled her eyes. She scrutinized the two women. They were identical, from their hair to their shoes, even the tear she had made in their white shirt dresses was in the same spot.
Zhu Ming remained silent. The two Yin Yus were also patient. The younger sister, feeling uneasy with the strangers present, asked, “Don’t you have a method? What should I do?”
Zhu Ming waved her hand dismissively. “Take your brothers to the back. The method you used isn’t the same as theirs.”
The younger sister, confused but having no other option than to trust Zhu Ming, took her brothers and moved away.
Outside, it was midsummer, the sunlight bright and dazzling, the lush forest a sea of green, rippling in the wind.
The woman in the white dress was a cloud against the green backdrop, her eyes smiling at Zhu Ming, seemingly without suspicion. The window behind them was open, the wind blowing from where Yin Yu sat, ruffling Zhu Ming’s hair.
Zhu Ming’s hand slowly moved to the blade at her waist. She looked at the two Yin Yus and said slowly, “I do have a way to distinguish between human and ghost, but there’s no need for such complications with you two. Because I already knew who the ghost was before you entered carriage 37.”
The Yin Yu on the left asked, “Oh?”
Zhu Ming’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. “Actually, it doesn’t matter which one of you is the ghost. I can just kill both of you. But… since we’re all participants, we can’t let ghosts interfere in our affairs. So, Yin Yu, let’s kill the imposter first, then we can settle our score.”
The Yin Yu on the right asked, “Then tell us, which one of us is the ghost?”
Zhu Ming abruptly drew her blade, its dark surface gleaming menacingly, and pointed it at the Yin Yu on the left. “No matter how good the disguise, it’s not the original. It’s obvious which one of you is the ghost.”
The left Yin Yu smiled wryly. “I knew this would happen.”
The right Yin Yu smiled sweetly. “Well, if Mingming is willing to cooperate with me, I’m happy to oblige.”
The moment she finished speaking, all three of them moved simultaneously.
The two Yin Yus were identical, even their abilities were the same. If they fought each other, it would likely be a stalemate. But with Zhu Ming joining the fight, the left Yin Yu was quickly overpowered.
Of course, fighting in the carriage during the day would be punished. The invisible conductor, ever vigilant, swung its baton indiscriminately at all three unruly passengers.
They instinctively climbed out the window and continued fighting on the roof of the train. It was easy to confuse the two identical figures, but Zhu Ming, her eyes locked on the left Yin Yu, never made a mistake.
Yin Yu was a difficult opponent. Being chased by a copy of herself and Zhu Ming, when she couldn’t win, she shamelessly ran away, even in the limited space on the roof, making them chase her breathlessly.
So persistent! Zhu Ming squatted down, catching her breath, then resumed the chase, running, then resting, then running again…
Time passed. Zhu Ming looked ahead and her face paled. The tunnel! They were approaching the tunnel!
She sprinted towards carriage 37, leaving the two Yin Yus behind. Understanding instantly, they stopped fighting and rushed back. They knew Zhu Ming intended to trap them outside and kill them both!
During the chase, the right Yin Yu had mostly been observing, participating minimally, while the left Yin Yu had borne the brunt of their combined attacks. So the right Yin Yu reached the carriage first and climbed back in, Zhu Ming close behind.
The right Yin Yu didn’t close the window to prevent Zhu Ming from entering. After all, the younger sister was still inside, and she wouldn’t listen to a stranger, especially one who might be a ghost.
But just because she entered the carriage didn’t mean the fight was over. The moment she regained her footing, Zhu Ming turned and grabbed the left Yin Yu as she was sliding through the window, trapping her.
Yin Yu’s momentum was stopped, her upper body falling backward, out of the carriage.
Zhu Ming leaned out the window, one knee on the windowsill, pinning Yin Yu down, her left hand gripping the window frame, her right hand tightly clutching Yin Yu’s collar.
The window was too narrow for the right Yin Yu to intervene. She stepped back to watch.
The train whistled as it approached the tunnel, the green mountains and the bright sunlight rapidly receding.
Yin Yu’s body and legs dangled outside the train. She looked up at Zhu Ming, her hair whipping wildly around her face like a black flag. She smiled. “Oh dear, I’m about to fall. Are you going to push me into the tunnel, Mingming?”
Only Zhu Ming’s grip on her collar and her own precarious hold on the window frame prevented her from falling. If Zhu Ming let go, she would plummet into the darkness.
And they were about to enter the tunnel.
Yin Yu knew what Zhu Ming was thinking. She wanted the darkness to consume her, to dissolve her into nothingness.
Zhu Ming stared into her eyes. “What are you?”
Yin Yu smiled, her hands gently caressing Zhu Ming’s hand on her collar. It was a warm, strong hand, its knuckles white. She didn’t answer the question, instead saying,
“Are you really going to do this? If I die, no one will open the window to carriage 60 for you. I know you’re a clever girl, even though they call you slow and stupid. I knew the moment I saw you, you were just a misunderstood, trapped child.
Come on, Mingming. Make your choice. My life… or the possibility of the truth.”
With that, Yin Yu let go of Zhu Ming’s hand. She spread her arms wide, her long hair swirling around her like a dark cloud, her white skirt billowing like mist, her body falling backward, Zhu Ming’s hand the only thing between her and the abyss.
Zhu Ming stared at her, her eyes unwavering. Yin Yu showed no fear, offering no resistance, not even trying to persuade her. She simply looked at Zhu Ming with those knowing, dark eyes, a faint smile playing on her lips.
Zhu Ming’s grip on her collar tightened.
Rip.
A button popped off Yin Yu’s shirt dress, smooth skin brushing against Zhu Ming’s fingertips, as Yin Yu fell a little further.
The right Yin Yu, having watched enough, said, “What are you waiting for, Mingming? Don’t tell me you’re being swayed by a ghost’s words? Since we’re working together, I’ll naturally have someone open the window to carriage 60 for you.”
The falling Yin Yu echoed her words, unclear whether she was agreeing with her counterpart or simply asking Zhu Ming, “Will you cooperate with Yin Yu, Mingming?”
Zhu Ming didn’t answer, didn’t move.
The tunnel loomed closer, the darkness swallowing carriages 33, 34… They were about to reach carriage 37.
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