“Grab the seats!
Hold on tight!” Chen Yexun’s roar erupted the instant the cabin tilted violently, drowning out the frantic clamor and the wail of tearing metal.
Survival instinct overrode everything.
Li Chengyu and Chu Yao executed the command almost by pure reflex.
Clinging to the cold metal seat frames like drowning men grabbing at straws, the three of them curled up as tightly as possible.
The next second, a feeling of absolute weightlessness seized them!
Chen Yexun felt his internal organs lurch upward.
The world around him—the shattered windows, the blood-stained walls, even the mist rushing past outside—was floating frantically “upward.” His entire body floated weightlessly, connected to this falling cage only by the grip on his wrist, which pulled so hard it felt as though his fingernails were being torn off.
Right at that moment— *SCREECH—CLANG!!!* A sickening, scalp-numbing burst of noise shattered the air as metal was violently torn and twisted!
Chen Yexun felt a colossal force yank him downward—no, sideways!
He slammed heavily against the cabin wall!
A sharp, intense pain flared in his ribs!
Fortunately, one of his hands was still desperately clutching the support bar beneath the bench.
The tremendous impact prevented him from being thrown directly out of the glassless window in the center!
“Ugh!” Painful groans and gasps echoed beside him from Li Chengyu and Chu Yao.
Both of them had been thrown against the wall as well, but fortunately, they had held onto something and avoided being launched out of the cabin.
Shaken to his core, Chen Yexun panted heavily and glanced around.
The world had flipped.
The side wall from a moment ago had become the “floor” beneath them.
The three of them lay—or rather, crouched—in awkward postures on this blood-stained “floor,” while the original seats now hung above their heads.
Looking up through the broken hole that used to be a side window, now pointing at the sky, Chen Yexun saw the maniacs who had been clinging to the cable and the roof falling like dumplings dropping into boiling water, their mad laughter swallowed by the wind.
The entire cabin was swinging back and forth like a massive, ruined pendulum in midair, emitting creaking, heart-stopping groans.
*Why haven’t we fallen?* The moment the thought flashed through Chen Yexun’s mind, he jerked his head up to look through the window now situated directly above them.
Several meters up, a massive support tower loomed in full view!
A severed, jagged steel cable hung dangling from the tower’s pulley assembly, while the other section of the cable remained stubbornly attached to their cabin!
The structure of the support tower had caught the plummeting cable car at the ultimate, razor-thin margin!
However, before their relief could last even a second— *Creak…
Crack…* An excruciating screech of metal tearing continuously resounded from the junction between the cabin and the cable.
Under the pull of gravity, the cabin began a slow, irreversible tilt!
Chen Yexun understood instantly what was happening!
The connection was about to snap completely!
“Hold on tight!
It’s gonna drop!” he roared hoarsely.
Sitting up at maximum speed, he wrapped his arms like iron bands around the thickest metal support bar nearby, closing his eyes to face the final judgment.
Li Chengyu and Chu Yao reacted the same way, desperately hugging whatever was nearby that could anchor their bodies.
The moment his words left his mouth— *BANG!!!!* An even crispier snap—like death’s final verdict—sounded clearly in their ears.
The connection severed completely.
This time, there was nothing left to catch them.
True freefall.
The weightlessness struck once more, but this time it was purer, more hopeless.
The wind roared in his ears, scraping against his face with painful force.
Chen Yexun kept his eyes squeezed shut, his mind an utter blank, leaving only his body’s most primal terror of falling.
He could feel Li Chengyu beside him unleashing a scream that was ripped apart by the wind.
*So the time before death can be stretched out this long.* Immediately after, a dense, terrifying series of impacts crashed against the bottom of the cabin!
*CRASH!
BANG!
THUD!* It sounded as if they were snapping through countless tree branches, followed by a solid, heavy impact!
A massive shockwave surged through the cabin walls, slamming into the three of them in an instant!
Chen Yexun felt as though he had been hit head-on by a speeding truck.
Violent, tearing pain surged through his arms holding the support bar, and his internal organs felt as if they had been jarred out of place.
His head slammed forward, and everything went black.
All consciousness, like a light switched off at the breaker, abruptly died out.
…
Darkness.
A warm, soft darkness.
“Little brother?
Little brother?” A soft, slightly worried female voice called out gently, like a ray of light cutting through mist.
Chen Yexun slowly opened his eyes.
The afternoon sunlight was a bit glaring.
He found himself standing before a familiar villa.
This was…
his home.
In his pocket, the “hunting list” left by his parents before they went out felt as if it were still burning hot.
He turned his head and saw a young woman in a pale yellow dress crouching in front of him, a gentle, anxious smile on her face.
“Little guy, why are you daydreaming?
Is this your home?” The woman pointed at the villa behind him, her voice very soft, as if afraid of scaring him.
Young Chen Yexun froze for a second.
Then, a practiced, innocent smile bloomed instantly across his little face like a mask.
He nodded forcefully, his voice crisp: “Yes, Sister!
This is my house!” The woman clearly let out a sigh of relief, lightly patting his head.
“Make sure to stay close to your parents next time, don’t wander off again.
It’s very dangerous outside.” Saying this, she stood up, seemingly preparing to leave.
“Sister!” Young Chen Yexun immediately reached out and grabbed the hem of her skirt.
He tilted his small face up, a layer of moisture instantly welling in his big eyes, making him look utterly pitiful.
“Sister, won’t you come inside and sit for a bit?
My mom and dad…
they’re very gentle.
When they find out you brought me home, they’ll be so grateful…” A conflicted look appeared on the woman’s face, and she laughed, waving it off.
“No, no, Sister has things to do.
Next time, okay?
Definitely next time.” “Waaah…” Young Chen Yexun pouted, his eye sockets turning red in an instant as tears welled up and spun around inside.
His voice hitched with a sob.
“Does Sister dislike me…?
I just wanted to thank you…
Mom and Dad said we have to be grateful when people help us…” Seeing this, the woman panicked completely.
She was worst at dealing with crying children, especially ones so cute and handsome.
She quickly gestured with her hands.
“Oh, no, no!
Sister was just joking!
Okay, okay, Sister will come in and sit for a bit—just a little bit, okay?” Young Chen Yexun’s face immediately turned from overcast to sunny.
He broke into a smile through his tears, as if those tears from a moment ago had been an illusion.
He took the woman’s hand happily.
“Sister is the best!” Then, he skillfully opened the door with his key.
He pulled the slightly uneasy woman to sit on the living room sofa, while he acted like a little adult, babbling away to chat with her—talking about fun things at school, the math class he hated, and the little goldfish he kept.
Amused by his chatter, the woman chuckled from time to time and relaxed her guard, unable to resist touching his soft hair again.
This child really was too adorable.
“Sister, sit for a bit.
My parents should be back soon.
I’ll go make tea for you!” Young Chen Yexun said, hopping off the sofa and skipping into the kitchen.
Before the woman could say there was no need to trouble himself, his figure had already disappeared past the kitchen doorway.
Inside the kitchen.
Young Chen Yexun stepped onto a small wooden stool and opened the cabinet.
Hidden in the deepest part of the cabinet were the “tools” left for him by his father.
His hands were trembling.
But he knew that if he failed to complete the tasks on the list, what awaited him tonight would be something far more terrifying than death.
In the living room, the woman seemed to hear a faint sound, like the soft clinking of metal.
“Little boy?” she called out tentatively.
There was no answer.
A few seconds later, Young Chen Yexun walked out, the same sweet smile still plastered on his face.
Just as the woman reached out her hands to take it, her smile froze instantly on her face.
There was no tea in the cup.
And what he held in his hand wasn’t the handle of a cup, either.
…
Who knew how much time had passed.
Only a single, frail, tiny silhouette remained in the room, standing amidst a glaring expanse of red, trembling slightly.
Chen Yexun’s chest heaved violently.
He disliked this feeling.
His throat tasted sweet, yet metallic and bloody.
However, he looked at the “trouble” on the floor that had ceased to move, thinking to himself silently: Only this way could he avoid becoming the next name written on the list.
Home had become a little cleaner once again.