“Ningning, wake up!”
Ye Li snapped her eyes open to find Tang Qi’s face brimming with youthful vigor once again, delivering her usual “line”: “Hurry and get up, school’s out!”
Sure enough, she was back again!
With her theory confirmed, Ye Li’s expression darkened slightly.
At this moment, she finally understood what this so-called “Desperate Realm” was, as well as the meaning behind the seemingly contradictory rules she had noted before!
The rules of this Desperate Realm stated that an inmate could deduct ten points of basic Sin Value for every day survived, and sentence completion was determined by the complete death of the character the inmate portrayed.
In reality, however, the Desperate Realm was set up so that the prisoner would revive over and over, trapped in an infinite one-day loop.
In other words, no matter how long she spent in this Desperate Realm, only ten points of basic Sin Value could be deducted at final settlement, because she was constantly reliving the very same day.
If the other side proved even more shameless, they might not even deduct those ten points of Sin Value—after all, the definition of “a day” could be interpreted in all sorts of ways!
Since she was resurrected every time she died, achieving “complete death” was impossible. How long she had to remain in this Desperate Realm would depend entirely on the whims of those old fogies on the Review Panel!
Subjecting her to a hundred or eighty loops would already be them in a good mood; if they were in a foul temper, putting her through tens of thousands of deaths and rebirths was entirely within reason.
After all, anyone sent to serve a sentence in the Desperate Realm was considered a villain who had committed every atrocity imaginable in the eyes of others.
When evil met suffering, not kicking someone while they were down was already generous—no one would offer sympathy or pity.
What’s more, certain people on the outside were itching to keep her trapped in the Desperate Realm forever, never to see the light of day again!
Having figured it all out, Ye Li placed a hand over her eyes and gave a helpless little laugh.
This really was a bit troublesome!
Repeating the same day over and over didn't bother her.
Enduring death and rebirth time and again was something she could accept, too.
However, if they expected her to swallow a loss in silence, that was a “blessing” she had no interest in enduring!
Relying on others was worse than relying on herself; it seemed she would have to find a way to escape and save her own skin!
“What are you spacing out for? Hurry and pack your things so we can grab a table at the cafeteria! If we’re late, we’ll have to wait forever again!”
As she was pondering, Tang Qi began urging her once more.
“Go on without me, I’m not going.” This time, Ye Li waved her hand decisively, refusing to go along.
“What’s wrong? Still half asleep?” Tang Qi asked in confusion. “The cafeteria is serving your favorite sweet and sour pork today. If we get there late, it’ll be all gone.”
“I’m really not going!” Ye Li remained firm.
Tang Qi paused her book-packing, staring wide-eyed in sheer disbelief. “That’s unbeatable, heavenly sweet and sour pork! Even that doesn’t tempt you? Did you sleep yourself stupid?”
After all, as a stressed-out high school senior grinding through twelfth grade, the greatest joy of every day was scarfing down a meal!
“I really have no appetite!”
Recalling how that seemingly delicious, enticing food had instantly turned into a pile of moldy, rancid rot, Ye Li felt her stomach churn.
Whether it was delicious or not, she didn’t know, but nausea was guaranteed!
Besides, right now she had more important matters to figure out.
“But...”
Tang Qi wanted to keep persuading her, but Ye Li interrupted, “By the way, Tang Qi, do you remember the person who jumped off a building at school not long ago?”
To escape this Desperate Realm, the first step was figuring out why this high school had turned into an infinitely looping ghost domain.
However, the original host’s memories were sealed; she couldn’t glean any useful information from them and had to find clues elsewhere.
She remembered hearing someone shout when she jumped, “Someone jumped off the building again!”
Again!
That meant someone must have jumped not long before.
A student jumping off a building was undeniably a major incident at school; perhaps there was a connection between the two!
Hearing this, Tang Qi froze, her expression shifting visibly as she stammered, “Why... why are you bringing that up out of nowhere?”
“I just had a dream about it, but I can’t remember who that person was for the life of me...” Ye Li feigned distress, spinning a plausible-sounding lie.
“Isn’t it Wen Xue from Science Class 2?”
Tang Qi lowered her voice and whispered, looking deeply superstitious about the topic. “Why on earth would you dream of her out of the blue?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I’ve just been under too much academic stress lately...”
Ye Li replied offhandedly. Just as she was about to press further for more information, a sudden commotion broke out in the classroom, instantly drawing both of their attention.
Looking up, they saw a classmate at the doorway pointing toward them, saying to a boy outside, “...There, she’s sitting right over there.”
Then the student turned to shout toward Ye Li, “Ningning, someone’s looking for you!”
The boy outside stepped into the classroom immediately and walked straight toward Ye Li.
He was quite tall, easily over 185 centimeters, with long limbs and a slender build. Clean-featured and handsome, he possessed a fresh, pristine aura—the kind of boy who effortlessly drew every eye wherever he went.
By now, the students in the class were all watching him intently, and quite a few proactively pushed the stacks of books on their desks inward so he could pass more easily.
Tang Qi was even more thrilled.
“Hey, hey, hey, it’s Le Jun... When did you two get so close?”
The fires of gossip burned brightly on her face as she tugged excitedly at Ye Li’s sleeve and whispered in agitation, having completely forgotten about heading to the cafeteria for food.
“We’re not!”
Ye Li told the truth, quietly pulling her sleeve back and crossing her arms over her chest.
Tang Qi didn’t buy it at all. Lowering her head, she muttered rapidly through clenched teeth, “If you’re not close, why would he come looking for you, and even come straight to our classroom? Spill the beans—when did you hook up with our school heartthrob?”
Ye Li ignored her; she found it strange herself!
Prior to this, the script she had received contained no mention of this person at all.
Before long, Le Jun arrived in front of their desk.
“Are you Ningning?” He looked down, fixing his gaze on Ye Li, eyes filled with scrutiny.
“Can I help you?” Ye Li remained seated without budging, casually glancing up.
His complexion was poor—facial muscles taut, brow tightly furrowed, and eyes bloodshot. He appeared visibly anxious and unsettled.
He weighed his words for a moment before hesitatingly asking, “Did you... did you have any impulses today?”
“What kind of impulse?” Ye Li asked back.
Le Jun struggled to find the right words. “Like... did you feel like doing something extreme?”
Ye Li raised an eyebrow. “Such as?”
Le Jun blurted out, “Jumping off a building!”
Ye Li’s eyes widened slightly. She didn’t answer, but a faint, knowing smile curved her lips.
Le Jun didn’t say anything further either, though his tightly clenched fingers betrayed the turmoil and unease churned up inside him.
Tang Qi, listening on the side, was the first to lose her composure.
“What jumping off a building?” She grabbed Ye Li’s arm, asking urgently, “Ningning, what are you two talking about? You’re not actually thinking of doing something foolish, are you?”
Their conversation was utterly baffling, and combined with what they had just been discussing, an unsettling dread immediately gripped her.
“It’s nothing, he’s just joking!”
Ye Li offered Tang Qi a casual word of reassurance, pulled her arm back, and stood up, gesturing toward the nearby back door to Le Jun. “Let’s step outside and talk!”
“All right.”
Le Jun nodded, looking somewhat relieved beneath his serious expression, and turned to lead the way out.
Tang Qi reluctantly stood up to let Ye Li through, still fretting under her breath: “Are you really okay, Ningning? If there’s anything wrong, you must tell me!”
“Don’t worry, I’m really fine!” Ye Li said as she walked. “Don’t wait for me—go ahead to the cafeteria.”
Passing the cleaning station near the back door, her steps paused. Her eyes scanned the area before she finally snatched up a heavy mop with a thick wooden handle, then walked out of the classroom under the bewildered gazes of everyone present.
Rate on N.U.
