Paintings of Terror

Chapter 192: Captain Ke Xun

Everyone moved the crossbows from the lower deck to the upper deck, studied how to use it, and then tried to shoot. In order not to waste arrows, they all shot the arrows at a designated cabin door.

As a result, it turned out that there was a gap between having only seen a pig run and actually eating pork. A group of people held their crossbows to aim, but the arrows they shot flew out wildly.

The only two surprises came from the man-man couple, Ke Xun and Mu Yiran. Both of them have both strength and motor skills, and the arrows they shoot could basically nail the door. This is particularly true for Ke Xun, who was very good at anything physical. After practicing with more than a dozen arrows, his accuracy was already quite high and could nearly shoot all arrows into one single spot.

Everyone continued to practice hard. After four to five in the afternoon, Fang Fei and Chen Xinai came over and told their boyfriends to go to the dining area for food.

The dining area was actually a large room between two cabins. It only had a low table because the practice in the Qin Dynasty was to eat sitting on the floor.

Everyone followed them into the dining area and saw that Xue Ge was already sitting there and eating. Chen Xinai said, “We don’t know how to use the cookware of this era so we made something relatively simple. You’ll have to make do. The food is in the kitchen.”

The three girls only served meals for themselves and their boyfriends, but the others didn’t mind. After all, they weren’t obliged to serve everyone.

The rest of the people went to the kitchen and saw that there was a bronze cauldron steaming with firewood underneath. They leaned over and saw that it was a pot of porridge with rice and vegetables mixed together. It had been simmered into a soft lump, looking completely unappetizing.

“Sobsobsob, I can’t even eat meat before I die. I feel so pitiful.” Luo Bu wiped away nonexistent tears from his face.

“Learn to be content with your lot, okay? What’s with the sobsob, so strange. If you want to eat something else, then make it yourself,” Wei Dong said.

“If I can cook by myself, Aunty Liu would be unemployed,” Luo Bu said.

Wei Dong asked, “Aunty Liu is?”

Luo Bu said, “My servant who specializes in cooking.”

“…Oh, I forgot that you’re a young master,” Wei Dong said.

“If you’re not too hungry, just wait.” Ke Xun suddenly rolled up his sleeves and walked towards the cauldron. “I think this isn’t enough for us to eat. I’ll make a little more. If you’re hungry, I’ll serve you the porridge first to pad your stomach.”

“Huh? Brother, do you know how to cook?!” Luo Bu looked at him in surprise. “You’re such girlfriend material!”

“Even when you’re about to die, you can’t stop yakking so much.” Ke Xun looked at the firewood underneath the cauldron and saw that the fire had gone out. He raised his gaze and told Luo Bu, “Go find me some flint.”

“What kind of flint? I have a lighter here.” Luo Bu fished something out from his chest pocket, only to discover that it was just two flints and a tinder. “–Fuck! My Zippo! My 230,000 yuan lighter has turned into two broken stones?!”

Wei Dong asked, “…Dare I ask if your family still lacks a servant who specializes in maintaining the lighter for you, the kind who is honest and has artistic expertise?”

Ke Xun lit the firewood and began to look for ingredients in the kitchen. When everyone saw this, they all exited the door to continue to practice shooting arrows. Only Mu Yiran remained.

Ke Xun once again moved the cooking cauldron and fed more firewood underneath it. Then he cut the meat into small pieces, skewered them, and grilled them on the cauldron.

“It’s a pity that there are no cumin and peppers.” Ke Xun searched the kitchen for seasoning, but only found salt and pepper. He couldn’t help but sighed, “It’s like cooking without rice.”

“Use cornel to substitute for pepper.” Mu Yiran pointed it out to him.

Ke Xun went over to get the cornel and when he passed by Mu Yiran, he kissed him on the cheek.

“Do you think that Shao Ling’s plan of shooting the sea monster with arrows would work?” Ke Xun asked his boyfriend as he grilled the kebabs.

Mu Yiran stood leaning against the door, like a slanted bamboo. His eyes fell on Ke Xun’s hands skillfully handing the ingredients. There was a softness in his voice as he said, “At present, there’s nothing wrong with his thinking. But as to whether shooting the sea monster with arrows would be successful, this can only be verified by tonight.”

“Yes.” Ke Xun’s face was calm. “With how cruel the painting is, we can only get more clues through constant death. I don’t know who will be selected tonight…It’s better to eat more meat before death comes.”

When Ke Xun called the others to come in to eat, Luo Bu was shocked. “I can’t believe I’m actually gonna have Qin Dynasty kebabs…Aiyo, it’s so good! Brother, can I eat more kebabs? You’re so awesome! Brother, can I marry you? Although I’m straight, I’m willing to bend for you!”

“Shut up and eat.” With a speechless face, Ke Xun grabbed a handful of kebabs, took his boyfriend’s hand, and went to the corner.

“What the…My big brother is his boyfriend?” Luo Bu asked Wei Dong as he looked at them.

Wei Dong: “….”

This guy really wasn’t shy with strangers.

But…those two really did seem straight.

“That’s your brother-in-law,” Wei Dong said.

“So domineering and powerful.” Luo Bu lowered his head to eat his meat.

Wei Dong found that Luo Bu’s hands were trembling slightly.

Luo Bu must be very afraid. He must be very afraid of death.

It was just that he had been using nonsensical talks to cover up his inner fear, so that the nerves that supported him would not collapse.

Wei Dong silently lowered his head to eat, but a deep sourness surged in his heart, gathering under his eyes and at the tip of his nose.

In order to be strong enough to kill the monster tonight, everyone ate to their fill. Ke Xun not only made more kebabs, but also cooked a pot of meat porridge. He smashed the fish into puree, cut lambs into thin slices, and cooked them together in the porridge. Then he sprinkled a little salt, tossed in some chopped green onions, wild vegetables, and sugar and ginger.

“This is more delicious than Aunty Liu’s.” Luo Bu clutched his swollen belly. He had eaten the most, as if using the feeling of fullness to combat his fear.

“It’s getting dark soon.” No one was in the mood to pay attention to him. Li Yi looked at the sky outside. “Should we also take defensive measures?”

After saying this, he looked at Shao Ling.

Shao Ling nodded. “Yes. We can’t just attack without considering our defenses. Ladies can hide in the lower deck since it’s probably safer than above.”

“I want to stay,” Xue Ge said. “I don’t like the feeling of being kept in the dark.”

“I want to be with my boyfriend,” Fang Fei also said, and she walked over to the crossbows and bent over to pick one up.

“Me too.” Chen Xenai followed her and picked up a crossbow.

Wei Dong: “…The girls in this session are so fierce, I like it!”

“In that case,” Shao Ling said, not wanting to obstruct their wishes, “then we should use the central hall where we ate just now as our base. If the situation isn’t right, everyone will hide there. We’d better strengthen the doors and windows.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” said Zhu Haowen, raising objections with a calm expression. “It’s an enclosed space, and the only exits are through windows and the one door. If we encounter danger, we will all be caught in one net.”

“So you’re saying everyone should scatter?” Liu Yanlei looked at him carefully.

“Yes,” Zhu Haowen answered without hesitation.

“I don’t know how many American horror or disaster films you’d seen,” Liu Yanlei stared at Zhu Haowen with slight sarcasm, “but the supporting role often becomes cannon fodder who dies when the plan is to ‘act separately.’”

Liu Yanlei probably worked in a job similar to a salesman in the real world, because he seemed quite eloquent. “Amercans have a strong heroism complex, so most of the people who survive in the end are the protagonists. Isn’t this warning enough for you? The more dangerous and unpredictable the situation is, the more we should unite and gather all our forces. What about the saying ‘unity of will is an impregnable stronghold’? The best defense is not with walls or weapons but the concerted efforts of all!”

Zhu Haowen looked at the slightly agitated Liu Yanlei, and his tone was still calm but now had a slight coldness when he said, “The power of the painting cannot be resisted. Whether it is one person or a hundred people, you will die when it wants you to die. Here, the best defense is not manpower, but the most unreliable ‘luck’, strength of mind, and finding the seal.”

“Then I ask you.” Liu Yanlei did not back down. Instead, he took a half step forward and stared at Zhu Howen. “In the previous paintings, were you all ever taken out all at once?”

“No.” Zhu Haowen looked back at him expressionlessly.

“Isn’t that it?” Liu Yanlei sneered. “That means there’s no such thing as a painting rule where everyone is taken out all at once. Otherwise, everyone who entered the painting will die right away and there won’t be anyone left. Since you say that survival depends on luck, then why does it matter whether we all stay together or are alone. If we’re lucky, we can live and if we’re unlucky, we’ll die. If that’s the case, why not increase our strength by working together and seeking more possibilities for survival, and even counterattack?”

“I think Liu Yanlei makes sense,” Li Yi said in a deep voice.

“I think so too.” Yu Long also nodded.

The eyes of the newcomers all fell to Shao Ling, as if his attitude would confirm everything.

Shao Ling’s gaze swept across Mu Yiran’s face and then landed on Zhu Haowen. “If we’re on land right now, then I would agree that it wouldn’t be a good idea for everyone to hide in an enclosed room.”

“But, in fact, we’re now on a ship in the middle of the vast ocean. This ship is already a closed space, because we can’t go everywhere except on this ship.”

“Since we’re already in a closed space, it’s better to have shelter than to go without one. We don’t know whether the sea monster would have the ability to penetrate through walls, but even if there is only one in ten thousand possibilities that this is the case, then we still have to try to take some measure of self-protection, right?”

“What’s more, we don’t know what the death condition, as you call it, in this painting is. Since everything is possible, what if the rules this time require us to help each other to survive?”

“So, I also agree with Liu Yanlei. With more people comes more strength. What’s more, one person may be short, but three people are long. But of course, we won’t force anyone to share our opinion.”

As he spoke, his questioning gaze swept across the people who hadn’t made a statement one by one. The newcomers standing next to him or behind him also stared at Zhu Haowen, as if he was a brainless character in a horror or disaster film, creating division and turning people into cannon fodders.

When Shao Ling’s eyes met Ke Xun’s, he saw him raise his lips and smile. Then Ke Xun stretched out his arm and put it around Zhu Haowen’s shoulders, as if surrounding him within his protective walls, blocking all the unfriendly sights that were cast onto him.

“That makes sense.” Ke Xun looked at Shao Ling with a faint smile. “Thinking with one heart and moving in one direction is a necessary condition to successful teamwork. I appreciate your cooperative spirit. But so what? I have engaged in teamwork for many years, and I want to share with you my experience.”

Zhu Haowen slightly tilted his face to look at him.

This guy, who was always showing a sloppy and casual look in front of strangers, for the first time today, revealed the controlling and dominating power of a team leader.

“Thinking with one heart doesn’t mean that there is only one solution to a problem. Moving in one direction doesn’t mean that everyone must always stay together.” Ke Xun stood with his head held high and tall, looking down at the newcomers in front of him. “In my opinion, thinking with one heart doesn’t mean solving problems in a unified way, but to ensure that everyone has a common goal, no matter what happens. No matter the emergency, our firm belief will never waver. As long as everyone can guarantee that they will not waver, will not shrank, will not give up, and will not separate, then all roads lead to Rome, so what does it matter if different ideas and methods are used to achieve the goal?”

Zhu Haowen listened quietly, and suddenly, he could imagine how this guy led his team to invincibility in battlefield-like games when he was a student. He must be a particularly good captain, an excellent captain.

“As far as effort is concerned, holding a group of people to keep warm is only the initial stage.” Ke Xun’s voice is determined and calm, as if he’d said it many times before. “The best team action is not neatly dividing life and death together, but putting forth a comprehensive, multi-angled, layered, flexible, diversifying, and seamless cooperation, which can trigger more possibilities and potential for each member, to ultimately achieve our common goal.”

After saying this, Ke Xun smiled. “So, compared to a single collective action, I am more inclined to exploring the several paths. I stand by Haowen’er.”

Zhu Haowen stared down at the deck under his feet, silently feeling the warm and powerful breath of the person beside him.

Suddenly, he felt that, even if he died in this painting, he would have no regrets.

Xida:?Hmmm…seems like the author is setting up for a power struggle between the newcomer team and the veteran team (plus Luo Bu). Go Team Veteran!