Erotic Survival Game - Chapter 314

Chapter 314: Living Coffin (3)

Normally, a room's interior layout follows its depth, meaning the coffins would be placed lengthwise. But the interior of this coffin hall was a horizontal rectangle, and the coffins had been arranged in four lengthwise rows. As a result, the space inside the room itself resembled a coffin laid on its side.

The coffin lids were higher on the left and lower on the right. A person lying inside would have their head to the left, giving the impression of a display laid out for something—or someone—to choose from.

The three of them turned to look at the coffins as Ji Ning had suggested. Nearby, some players suddenly broke into an argument.

"Get out! Don't try to steal it from me!"

"You picked one that fast, so you've gotta be sure. Nobody said two can't share one. What's wrong with letting me join you?"

It turned out someone had already chosen a coffin and lain down inside it. Another player, assuming the first had confidence in his choice, demanded to share the same coffin.

A person standing near Ji Ning and her group muttered quietly, "If they picked the wrong one, they'll just both die together."

Hearing that, the three exchanged glances, weighing the possibility of doubling up in a single coffin if they couldn't secure enough of the correct spots.

Whether or not they could claim the right ones, the first priority was to figure out which ones were right.

Yan Qiao turned and stood in front of the table, staring fixedly at the few available props.

Ji Ning noticed that quite a few players were glancing at Yan Qiao from time to time, tracking his movements. It was obvious they knew he was smart and were hoping to glean clues from his reactions.

This was a four-star instance. Ji Ning had no doubt that once they found the answer, things could escalate into a scramble, brawls, or even outright murder.

A bit worried, she walked over and stood shoulder to shoulder with him. Lowering her voice so only the two of them could hear, she said, "We need to keep a low profile."

Yan Qiao gave a soft grunt of acknowledgment, then tilted his chin toward the props and said, "Key."

If he couldn't tear his attention away, there had to be a reason. Ji Ning looked at the items on the table, letting her gaze pass over them slowly before finally stopping on the Eight Trigrams disc.

Ji Ning knew the Eight Trigrams were Qian, Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li, Gen, and Dui. Each trigram was composed of three lines representing yin and yang.

Qian was three yang lines: three solid, unbroken lines. Kun was three yin lines: six broken short lines.

Looking at the shape of Kun, a sudden flash lit up in Ji Ning's mind! As if without thinking, she glanced back at the coffins. Weren't the three rows and four columns of coffins arranged just like two "Kun" trigrams side by side?

Ji Ning already had a lead on solving the puzzle. Afraid someone would notice she was onto something, she took Yan Qiao and Sheng Churan by the arm and pulled them aside, away from anyone who might drift over to check the table props and overhear their discussion.

The sky outside was already overcast, and it only grew darker as time passed. They had no idea when exactly the "unsettled nights" A-Guang had mentioned would begin, nor what would happen after dark. But it was best to get inside the correct coffin as quickly as possible.

Without wasting any more time, Ji Ning shared her discovery with the two men.

"If it's tied to the trigram patterns, then there's the other hint: 'fears thunder, fears fire.' What connection do thunder and fire have to the Eight Trigrams?" Yan Qiao's brow was deeply furrowed. He knew absolutely nothing about this sort of thing. No matter how clever his mind was, it was useless here.

Ji Ning picked up where he left off. "I've got it! I remember that each of the Eight Trigrams has a correspondence. Qian is heaven, Kun is earth. But what thunder and fire correspond to… I don't know."

"Thunder is Zhen. Fire is Li." Sheng Churan's voice rang out like divine music. "Check the trigram patterns for Zhen and Li, and we'll have our answer."

Ji Ning and Yan Qiao both turned to look at him. One stared as if she were looking at a national treasure; the other, as if he were looking at a freak.

That the Big Star Sheng Churan actually understood something like this was genuinely unexpected.

Then, by referencing the Eight Trigrams disc, the three worked out that Zhen consisted of two yin lines and one yang line—four short lines in total—and Li consisted of two yang lines with a single yin line sandwiched between them—two short lines. The two trigram patterns contained six short lines altogether, matching exactly six safe coffin positions.

The catch was…

Which pattern came first, and which came second? Were they supposed to read it from the inside looking out, or standing by the door looking in? If they got the order backward, people would still die.

Yan Qiao made a swift decision. "No matter which direction is correct, the four coffins in the middle will always be fixed positions. Right now, only two of the middle ones are unclaimed. We need to move fast."

"Ning-Ning, who are you sharing a coffin with?" Sheng Churan looked at Ji Ning and asked.

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