Paintings of Terror

"I'm afraid it really depends on luck..." It was Gu Qingqing who spoke, pushing his glasses on the bridge of his nose, and said like an endorsement, "Willows generally only grow in the temperate zone of the northern hemisphere, slightly less in the frigid zone, subtropical and There are fewer tropical areas, and we don’t know where we are in the southern hemisphere or the northern hemisphere, but looking at the vegetation in this forest, it looks a bit like a subtropical or tropical area.”

"Even if you are lucky, you have to try your best." Qin bestowed the doctor's parental heart, and treating patients is almost an instinct that has been integrated into the flesh and blood.

"Well, let's continue to divide the work," Shao Ling said, "Dr. Qin took Xiao Kai, Tian Yang and a few girls back to the residential area first, and Dr. Qin can see if there is any medical equipment that can be used in the clinic.

"Girls, please help prepare some daily necessities, and dispose of the moss, vines, and bird eggs you just collected. In addition, choose a house for us to hide at night, clean it up a bit, and if possible, go to the house again." Go to the edge of the forest to gather some dry wood for the fire.

"The rest of us, stay in the forest to look for willow trees, and we will definitely rush back before dark, and if you can't, you don't have to wait for us, close the doors and windows, and protect yourself."

There was no objection to this arrangement, and they immediately set off and split up.

This time, the people staying in the forest paid special attention to the types of trees, and found that there were hundreds of species of trees that could be named and those that could not be named, which seemed like a treasure house of natural resources.

In the process of searching for willows, everyone still did not forget to collect moss, long vines and edible things. Ke Xun even dug out a few nests of bird eggs until Zhu Haowen told him to stop.

"Don't forget, our most important task is to find clues related to the signature," Zhu Haowen has always been rational and calm, almost cold, "Although Xiao Kai's safety is also very important, it is not long before the night, and the night is uncertain How many people will be recruited, and we have no idea so far."

However, Shao Ling seemed to be thinking about clues all the time. Seeing Zhu Haowen mentioning this, he said, "In the previous paintings, we never seemed to face the dilemma of drinking water, especially in the previous painting. In this painting, even the biological needs of sleep and convenience did not appear, but this painting seems to be a little different, it seems to pay more attention to somatosensory feelings, such as heat, thirst, hunger, and even illness. I suspect that this may That’s what the level mission for this painting is.”

"Hot, thirsty, hungry, sick, why does it sound a bit like surviving in the wild?" Luo Wei said, "My brothers who have money at home, don't have to go to work, and have hair on their butts all day long, love it if they have nothing to do." Find some excitement to pass the time. Those people formed a club, which is dedicated to survival in the wild. They often set a time. Everyone organizes and runs around the world. They find the wild no-man’s land and bring some basic equipment. Go in, and sometimes even stay there for a month or two. But I was too timid to go to places that were too dangerous, so I was taken by them to two or three places that were safer and simpler. Brother Shao just now These points mentioned are quite similar to the difficulties that are often encountered when surviving in the wild."

"According to this, is it possible that this painting tests our survival in the wild?" Wei Dong said.

"It's not unreasonable to say that," Shao Ling said. "In this painting, we have lost all ready-made available resources, and we have to earn our own way to get water and medicine. It feels like we are in a predicament, and we are A primitive dilemma requires a relatively primitive means to solve our most primitive needs."

"I think your thinking is wrong, Mr. Shao," Ke Xun said, "The so-called primitive dilemma we are facing now may indeed be a clue, but I think it is just an auxiliary clue, and the important clue is still in the residential area. The blood-stained houses and the causes of this strange event.

"What makes me feel strange is that this unsolved thread of blood in the residential area seems to have nothing in common with the original dilemma we are facing now. It's like two parallel lines going their own way without intersecting. Like two separate events.

"I feel that if we can find the intersection of these two clues, we can take a big step forward in solving the puzzle."

Ke Xun's words caused everyone to think about it, and the work at hand did not stop until they were very lucky to find an old willow tree in a depression.

According to Qin Ci's request, everyone managed to get a lot of bark down, collected a lot of willow leaves, and then quickly returned to the residential area.

Several girls have already cleaned out the middle hall of a house and used it as a temporary place to stay.

It seems that these houses are basically covered with those horrible and disgusting bloodstains. It is better to stay outside than to stay in the house. However, the temperature outside is very high at the moment, which is very easy to cause heat stroke, and there are no tall plants in the residential area to cover them. It was overcast, and there were fears of poisonous insects and snakes at the edge of the forest, so I had to find a relatively clean central hall.

The dust on the floor was wiped clean, and the sofa cover with a thick layer of dust was removed, and replaced with a spare sofa cover that was found in the cupboard, which was fairly clean. The leaves of the hydrating plants wipe clean bowls that hold the water squeezed from the moss and vines.

"We've already drank it, so hurry up and drink some to quench your thirst." Wu You said to Ke Xunji who stepped into the door, "The taste is okay, with a little plant smell."

The few people were not polite, and after putting down the things in their hands, they each stepped forward and took a bowl of Gudong Gudong and poured it down.

"Where are Brother Qin and Xiao Kai?" Ke Xun didn't find them in the middle hall.

"In the living room next to it," Wu You said, "Brother Qin was afraid that Xiao Kai would infect us, so he moved him there alone."

Ke Xun walked over, pushed open the door of the living room and looked in, and saw that it had been cleaned, and in the dim light, he saw Xiao Kai lying on the sofa, not sure if he was asleep, breathing rapidly and heavily, looking Very uncomfortable.

Qin Ci, wearing a mask on his face, was sitting beside him looking for a box full of medicines.

"How is he doing?" Ke Xun only poked his head into the door and asked.

"It's not good," Qin Ci's voice was blocked by the mask, and he seemed very heavy. "His temperature is very high. Fortunately, I found some alcohol in the clinic just now, so I can physically cool him down first. But these medicines are probably not effective. It can't be used anymore, although the production date can't be clearly seen, but judging from the newness of the outer packaging, it should have passed the expiration date."

The clinic was even more horrific than the interior of these houses. The blood of countless people and some strange things that could not be seen covered the walls, floors and roofs. It was like a human slaughterhouse, which made Ke Xun once I remembered the scene I experienced in the painting "Animal World".

It's hard for Qin Ci to find so many things that might be useful in such an environment—of course, unfortunately, the only things that can be used are medical masks and alcohol.

"Do you need my help?" Ke Xun asked.

Qin Ci said: "Help me wipe his body with alcohol."

Ke Xun paused, and said: "I'm not suitable for this job, I'll introduce you to an assistant." Then he turned and called to the person sitting in the corner of the central hall, "Tian Yang, come here. "

Qin Ci looked up at him strangely: "Is there any reason?"

"They're a couple, didn't you see?" Ke Xun raised the corner of his mouth with a strange expression.

Qin Ci: "..." I really didn't see it.How did you see it?Is your group able to determine each other's sexual orientation just by smell?

As if seeing through Qin Ci's doubts, Ke Xun gave him a weird smile before leaving: "Because Tian Yang is my ex-boyfriend."

Qin Ci was stunned for a while.

Ke Xun left the living room and saw Luo Kuo coming out of the kitchen with a big pot, Wei Dong folded the dry branches he picked up and threw them into the pot, then Luo Kuo took out the lighter and lit the fire.

After the fire was lit, a small pot was placed on it to boil the moss and the juice squeezed out of the vines, and then the willow leaves and willow bark were cleaned and put into the pot to cook.

It was already past four o'clock in the afternoon, and there was not much time before dark, but the clues to solve the puzzle about the painting that everyone had collected were pitifully few.

Everyone sat on the sofa and brainstormed.

"I still haven't seen any connection between all these things and the title of the painting 'Restart'." Weidong gestured at the house and everything outside the window with his hand, "Some houses have computers, but there is nothing to do without electricity. what."

"What's wrong with the computer?" Luo Wei didn't understand.

"The computer has a restart function," Wei Dong said, "Maybe you can get clues by turning on the computer and restarting it."

"Your thinking is too simple and rude." Ke Xun said, "According to what you said, we have to smash our hands before pressing the reset button to make it work."

"That's okay. My mind is full of bits and pieces. I don't know if they are clues. It feels like a jigsaw puzzle with only a few pieces that are not next to each other. Without these Those fragments that are connected together." Wei Dong spread his hands.

"In this case..." Gu Qingqing raised his hand, "It can be written down with a pen, which can help us summarize and summarize the thoughts in our minds in a more organized and clear way."

"That's right," Shao Ling nodded, "I don't think it's better than this. Each of us first write down the clues and ideas we think of, and then put them together. Sometimes thinking independently can think of things that others can't think of. As long as If you feel suspicious, you can write about it, no matter how ordinary or inconspicuous it looks, don’t let go of any clues.”

"Okay, who has a pen and paper?" Ke Xun asked.

Gu Qingqing raised her hand again, took out a notebook and a few pens from her bag, then tore off the pages of the notebook one by one, and distributed them to everyone.

"I can understand that you carry a notebook, but why do you carry so many pens with you?" Luo Wei expressed curiosity.

"These pens are of different colors," Gu Qingqing explained, "I bring them with me every time I go to the library to make various notes, and I also have spare ones in case the pen oil runs out in the middle of use."

He really loves to learn... The scumbag thought to himself shamelessly.