Chapter 16: Let's Play a Game

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Xia Tianqiong stared at the eerie mirror image that looked exactly like himself. “You’re so short-sighted. How much gold can I possibly carry? At most, just a few dozen taels. If you made a contract with me, you’d have endless underworld currency to spend. Can’t you even calculate that?”

“I am free and unrestrained. Why would I bind myself to a frail human for a mere handful of underworld coins? You might as well give up!” The mirror double sneered coldly, contempt etched across his face.

“Refusing a toast and opting for a punitive drink—soon, you won’t even get a chance to sign an equal contract.”

Xia Tianqiong was about to forcibly subdue the mirror double when suddenly, there came a knock at the door.

“Knock, knock, knock!”

Both man and mirror double turned toward the mirror.

The sound came from the outside, from the real world.

Outside Xia Tianqiong’s room, two policemen and a hotel employee were knocking on the door.

Last night, a guest had died in this budget hotel, initially thought to be an isolated incident. But by midday, several guests had failed to check out on time.

The staff went to investigate, only to find more dead bodies—each death gruesome.

The police suspected more victims might be hidden in the building, so they began a thorough inspection, room by room, floor by floor.

“Stop knocking and just open the door!”

The hotel worker knocked a few more times without response. A young policeman urged her to use the key card to open the door.

“Is anyone inside? I’m opening the door now!”

The hotel employee knew the room was occupied, so she called out before opening, as protocol demanded.

She swiped the key card, and with a beep, the door unlocked.

The room was small. Upon opening, the three outside immediately spotted a pile of gleaming golden objects on the bedhead, catching their full attention.

The young policeman, eager, stepped forward first, followed by a stout senior officer, then the hotel employee.

The bathroom was right beside the door. The two policemen glanced inside, saw no one, and didn’t bother to check further.

The hotel employee, however, leaned in for a peek.

In that instant, she caught sight of someone in the mirror—two identical figures!

“Mirror! In the mirror… ah!”

Before she could finish, a force surged out and pulled her into the mirror.

The two policemen, originally about to examine the gold on the bed, heard the scream, drew their guns, and rushed toward the bathroom.

But the same thing happened: a glance into the mirror, and they too were pulled inside.

“Who… who are you?” The hotel worker’s face was pale with terror as she saw someone identical to herself beside her.

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When the two policemen entered, identical doubles of themselves appeared as well.

This was the hallmark of the mirror double: for every person who entered, a mirror image would be conjured.

These doubles not only copied appearances but synchronized movements, expressions, and speech.

For instance, now, the two policemen had become four—each holding guns and pointing at others.

“Captain Zhang, don’t point your gun at me!”

The young policeman had been aiming at his double but suddenly saw the senior officer pointing his gun right at him.

“I can’t tell which one is you!” the older policeman said, a hint of frustration.

He was sharper and realized that whenever he pointed his gun at someone, the identical double beside him did the exact same thing.

Their actions and expressions mirrored each other perfectly, like looking into a mirror.

Seeing these three enter, Xia Tianqiong’s heart sank.

The mirror double used different deadly rules when facing one person versus multiple opponents.

Before, when he was alone, breaking the mirror meant escape. Now, the rules had changed.

The cramped mirror space expanded as more people entered.

Two policemen, one hotel employee, and Xia Tianqiong—four people—plus their four mirror doubles meant eight in total, yet the space felt uncrowded.

Meanwhile, the mirror double beside Xia Tianqiong changed as well, perfectly mimicking his movements and expressions but no longer speaking to him.

He understood the new death rules had taken effect.

“There’s writing on the mirror!” the hotel employee screamed.

Everyone looked as bloody words gradually appeared on the glass.

It was as if someone was using a bloody finger to write one character after another.

[So many people, huh? Let’s play a game!]

The young policeman swung his gun toward the mirror but looked at Xia Tianqiong as he asked, “What’s going on? What is this?”

He figured Xia Tianqiong, who had entered first, might know more.

“I don’t know either,” Xia Tianqiong shook his head. “Look, there’s more writing below.”

It was as if an invisible hand was writing on the mirror stroke by stroke.

[This game is called ‘Find the True Self.’]

[Rule One: Each round, one person is randomly chosen to find the true self among the others. Correct choice allows survival to the next round and grants a mirror shard.]

[Rule Two: After the game starts, every minute, each person gains an additional mirror double.]

[Rule Three: Each person has three minutes to make their choice.]

The rules seemed simple, but Xia Tianqiong sensed hidden crucial details.

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As the mirror double explained the rules, someone else in the real world broke into Xia Tianqiong’s room.

The policemen had left the door open when they entered earlier.

A middle-aged couple, having just finished a dispute and ready to check out, passed by the door. The man casually glanced inside and spotted the gleaming gold.

“Looks like gold!”

Liu Wangcai’s eyes widened. Standing in the doorway, he was tempted to enter.

“Don’t go in. Even if it’s gold, it belongs to someone else. Let’s just leave,” Luo Ying tried to stop him, but Liu Wangcai ignored her and called inside, “Is anyone here?”

No response came. He glanced around and then quietly stepped inside.

Luo Ying tried to pull him back but failed.

Liu Wangcai passed the bathroom door and peeked inside—if someone was there, he could retreat.

The bathroom was empty, but the mirror bore lines of bloody writing that were still being inscribed automatically. He also saw the figures inside the mirror.

“What the hell is this?” Liu Wangcai froze, nearly losing his wits.

Before he could react, the mirror sucked him in.

Luo Ying, confused, rushed into the bathroom and met the same fate.

But that was not all. The cleaning lady, who had come to tidy the floor, saw the couple sneak into the room and heard their screams. She hurried over and was also pulled in.

Now things were really lively!

Inside the mirror were seven living people and their seven mirror doubles. The space had expanded again and was still not cramped.

“I... I just came to look, not to steal,” Liu Wangcai said, suddenly spotting the four policemen, all armed and serious, and nearly confessed out of fear.

But he quickly recovered and cautiously asked, “Who are you? What’s going on here?”

Captain Zhang Zhihu, narrowing his eyes, studied Liu Wangcai. Years of experience told him this middle-aged man was no ordinary person.

His expression turned cold and he snorted, “Shut up and look at the mirror yourself.”

Liu Wangcai, Luo Ying, and the cleaning lady all turned to face the mirror.

Below the game rules, new words appeared.

[Ha ha, more people make it interesting! Let’s start the game!]

As the last exclamation mark was written, all the bloody words flickered several times and then vanished instantly.

In their place appeared images of the seven people on the mirror, one by one, then disappearing one by one.

It was like a roulette spin—whoever appeared would be the first to make a choice in the game’s first round.