Pen Spirit 11
Ying Yan lowered her eyes in thought.
Under normal circumstances, besides ranking first in each subject, there would also be distinctions for overall first and last place.
What Mang Mang said sounded more like a lie.
Except for one extreme scenario.
If there were only one student in the school, it would indeed satisfy the condition of “there is only one first place.”
Ying Yan tucked the report card into her pocket and stood quietly for a while, sorting out her thoughts before walking toward the others.
Just as she crossed the white line, she saw Apple approaching.
The short-haired girl asked with concern, “Prophet, what happened?”
Standing nearby, Mu Xiang pursed her lips, took a tissue from her pocket, and handed it to Ying Yan, reminding her, “Your finger is injured.”
Only then did Ying Yan notice the wound on her finger.
Fine cuts crisscrossed her warm, pale skin, the flesh slightly turned outward, but no fresh blood flowed.
She quickly searched her memory but couldn’t locate a matching fragment.
On the surface, however, she remained calm and collected, accepting the tissue and softly saying thanks.
Then Ying Yan selectively recounted her experience to the living people present.
In reality, due to obvious gaps in her memory, she herself was still confused about what had actually happened.
Even more puzzling, she had fallen asleep on the slide.
It was akin to resting and conserving energy for an important exam, only to fall fast asleep during the test itself.
After finishing, Ying Yan took out pen and paper from her pocket and quickly jotted down the rules she had initially received from the Pen Spirit.
Based on her experience, she amended a few points, saying:
“No matter what’s on the slide, don’t stare at it; your mind will be contaminated. Also, playing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star should be fine, but it’s best to play only the first two lines.”
She had rewound the scene from Lai Fu’s death several times and recalled the melody of the last two lines of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.
Then, combining her instinctive discomfort with “little eyes” and Lai Fu’s experience—
It was confirmed: the last two lines definitely contained a major trap.
White Rose twirled her golden hair around her fingers and casually asked, “The sky went dark for a moment, red fireworks exploded, and then the Milky Way disappeared. What exactly did you do?”
Her gaze lingered on the chicken-blood stone bracelet for a moment before moving away nonchalantly.
After hearing this, most people present looked at Ying Yan with confusion, curiosity, and a hint of excitement.
After all, the spectacle wasn’t something anyone could casually pull off.
Ying Yan paused for a moment, pressed her lips into a straight line, and honestly said, “I was asleep at the time; I don’t know the specifics.”
That was the truth, but it sounded like a clumsy excuse, and few truly believed her.
Seeing the tension, Lao Lei quickly tried to smooth things over:
“Everyone knows what kind of person our little sister is. If she says so, then that’s how it happened. Let’s focus on discussing how to play the slide.”
Most people nodded, but Lai Cai ignored him, eyes fixed on Ying Yan, saying:
“My brother risked his life to get that clue. Shouldn’t we use it?”
He had been dissatisfied with Ying Yan’s earlier explanation, but to avoid public outrage, he had stayed in the corner, keeping a low profile.
Now, with his brother dead and the clue still unattained, his resentment bubbled up, naturally venting at Ying Yan.
Lao Lei looked awkward.
Mu Xiang’s expression darkened.
Apple gave an embarrassed smile.
Others thought Lai Cai was wrong but didn’t speak up.
The middle-aged man codenamed “Teacher” pushed up his glasses and carefully spoke, “Calm down first. Your brother—”
Before he could finish, Xiao Chen, annoyed, snapped at Lai Cai:
“Don’t even talk about it. Your brother took risks and died; whose fault is that? The clue was found by the prophet; it has nothing to do with him!”
She had been planning to focus on the garden precautions and hadn’t intended to speak, but Lai Cai’s words angered her.
“You!” Lai Cai, furious at Xiao Chen’s bluntness, stepped forward.
Xiao Chen nimbly dodged behind Lao Lei, saying, “What are you talking about?! In front of everyone here, which part of what I said is wrong?!”
Teacher held back Lai Cai and said kindly, “Alright, stop arguing. The most important thing for a team is harmony. Anything else can be discussed after we leave here.”
Lai Cai reluctantly calmed down.
Ying Yan herself remained the most composed.
Having seen all kinds of people, Lai Cai’s outburst couldn’t shake her.
“I only found a report card at the bottom of the slide. Everyone, come and take a look.”
Some hadn’t seen the original note because it had been snatched away.
After Lai Fu’s death, the paper had burned to ash along with his charred body.
Having learned from the experience, Ying Yan spread the report card with both hands for everyone to see.
After ensuring everyone had seen it, she said, “Previously, I received two pieces of information from a little girl named ‘Mang Mang.’”
Her voice dropped, her speech quick: “First, ‘there is only one first place.’ Second, ‘don’t trust the stars…’ Floating Duckweed can confirm this.”
Mu Xiang responded, “Hmm. After finishing ‘Hide and Seek,’ I also saw some fragmented pieces. In short—”
She glanced at Lai Cai squeezed in front and crossed her arms, saying bluntly, “Hey, this was information I risked my life for; I don’t want to tell you!”
Lai Cai grumbled, “What’s with that? Isolating me?”
He looked around; most remained silent. Teacher’s advice was ineffective.
With Mu Xiang, Ying Yan’s words carried weight, but she had no intention to mediate.
She wasn’t one to give away her resources for free, saying simply, “I have no objection.”
If she didn’t want to tell, she wouldn’t.
The current round of clues was enough.
White Rose glanced at Ying Yan and said with a smile:
“Since Floating Duckweed said so, little brother, step back. Don’t worry, nothing will be hidden from you.”
Prolonged hesitation would only disadvantage Lai Cai.
He stepped back, quietly pricking his ears.
After venting, Mu Xiang continued:
“Mang Mang and Lulu are friends. Lulu swapped Mang Mang’s homework, leading to Mang Mang’s death.”
“And Lulu mistakenly entered the boys’ restroom and has been missing since.”
“The report also mentioned Mang Mang had a half-sister; could she be ‘Xing’?”
White Rose pondered, expressing the possibility Ying Yan had considered, adding her own interpretation:
“It seems the ‘Xing’ Mang Mang mentioned may have harmed other first-place students.”
“Perhaps,” Ying Yan didn’t deny her speculation, and shifted the topic: “The urgent task now is to finish the slide. Who wants to go next? Line up.”
Despite conflicts, Ying Yan’s competence and the accurate information she provided earned her authority among the remaining nine.
Even Lai Cai’s resentment wouldn’t prevent him from following her.
Here, survival always comes first.
“I want to try?” A nervous voice spoke up.
Ying Yan looked up and recognized it as Orange, who had barely said a word until now.
The long-haired girl lowered her head, bangs covering her eyes.
She was pretty, of the type that grew more attractive the more you looked at her. Usually quiet, she was easy to overlook.
Curious but cautious, Ying Yan didn’t ask why and simply said, “Okay, be careful. Who’s next?”
Lao Lei raised his straw-transformed hand, saying, “Little sister has no problems; I won’t take any risks either!”
Others voiced their willingness too.
Soon, a long line formed beside the white line, giving the impression of children lining up to play.
Orange stepped to the front, crossed the white line, climbed the steps, and chose a portable instrument.
She sat at the slide’s start, reviewing Ying Yan’s instructions in her mind, and carefully entered the straight slide.
Thinking of Lai Fu’s tragic fate, she was understandably nervous.
But the straight slide, inclined slide, and wave slide all passed safely, no different from childhood play.
At the end of the small S, Orange looked around, surprised.
A section of the white slide was missing, the ground covered in sticky black substance, chaotic.
She carefully avoided the black matter, walked a while, climbed the large S slide, and completed the ride smoothly.
The entire process took sixteen minutes, with no danger encountered.
Orange breathed a little easier and shared the information with the next person.
She had a premonition this had everything to do with the Prophet.
She just didn’t know how it was done—it was impressive!
Those who hadn’t slid were skeptical until Lao Lei went and returned jubilantly.
This confirmed the information as true.
Everything proceeded smoothly afterward.
Once everyone completed the slide, a door appeared on the wall facing it.
The grayish wall had a shell-like sliding door embedded.
The moment it appeared, Ying Yan’s attention was drawn.
After some tapping, she pushed the shell upward and saw the cherry blossom path outside.
Knowing this was the exit, Ying Yan explained, “Through this door, you can enter the school to obtain clues. I’ve decided to go to the garden with Lao Lei and the others; you can choose to explore other areas. But beware of the giant brown eyes.”
Xiao Chen’s eyes lit up.
She hesitated, still didn’t speak—Ying Yan had no pressing need to go.
Unexpectedly, the expert took the initiative, like hitting the jackpot.
Mu Xiang paused, then said, “I’ll go to the garden.”
White Rose held her jade bracelet, considering: “We need to gather enough information to clear this level. I plan to check the restroom. For now, as long as you go to the correct restroom, it’s fine. Anyone want to come?”
Her reasoning was sound, and a few showed interest.
Soon, the nine divided into two groups.
Ying Yan, Xiao Chen, Lao Lei, Mu Xiang, and Lai Cai went to the garden.
Lai Cai was reluctant, not wanting to face the more dangerous garden; he figured he had already offended the garden team.
But his arm’s straw transformation problem needed solving, so he had to go.
The remaining four went to the restroom.