Infinite: Dawn Game

Chapter 937 Jingyin Station

In the dim, flickering light, the woman in the floral dress, her long black hair wet and disheveled, sat side by side with Lin Hai—no, with the passenger next to Lin Hai whose head was bowed and whose face was obscured.

Yu Shijiu could even see that some of her wet black hair was stuck to the body of the passenger whose face she couldn't see, looking like thin, winding black snakes from a distance.

"..."

Lin Hai seemed to finally notice that there was another person next to him.

Under Yu Shijiu's gaze, he tilted his head slightly and moved his lips very barely in the direction of the woman in the floral dress.

The two were seated quite far apart, and the car was dimly lit, so Yu Shijiu couldn't hear what Lin Hai was saying at all. But the very next second after Lin Hai finished speaking—

The remaining contamination in his left arm felt as if he had been suddenly and severely pricked by some invisible "needle".

"……Well."

A powerful emotion, a mixture of disgust and vigilance, suddenly exploded deep within his mind.

Yu Shijiu lowered his eyes and looked at his left arm, and an unlikely guess gradually took shape in his mind.

Lin Hai... used his innate skill?

Use it right at the start?

Yu Shijiu found it somewhat unbelievable.

"The woman next to Shi Jiu...she...is gone."

He Lingling's dark pupils contracted slightly at the edges, and she spoke in a dry voice.

“I see the source of the black mist… all converging towards the forest. I suspect it’s ‘guiding’ or ‘absorbing’ it.”

"It's not just about guidance."

Anjie's voice in the front seat was somewhat cold:

“He might still be testing us, using these ‘things’ to gauge our reactions, especially the reaction on Shi Jiu’s arm… Be alert, if our guess is right, then real trouble might be on its way.”

As if to confirm Anjie's words, the bus, which had been driving smoothly, suddenly began to slow down. The heavy tires rolled heavily over the puddles, making a splashing sound. The bus tilted slightly as it turned, carrying the passengers onto a narrower and bumpier side road.

In the distance, a blurry, yellowish halo pierced through the hazy rain, vaguely outlining the silhouette of a simple bus stop sign.

"Next stop..."

The driver's hoarse, deep voice rang out for the first time, its drawn-out tone echoing softly amidst the wind and rain, "...Jingyin Station."

Jingyin Station?

Yu Shijiu's gaze fell on the car window.

That tiny, pitifully small halo of light came from a dilapidated old street lamp next to a distant bus stop sign.

The streetlights were damaged, and the light peeking through the cracks in the broken covers was dim and yellowish, only illuminating a small patch of wet cement next to the sign and the dense locust grove behind it, which looked like a crouching giant beast.

Is it Jingyin Station?

Yu Shijiu silently repeated the stop name the driver had just announced, his eyes slightly narrowed.

His gaze fell on the platform as he quietly surveyed the outside world.

The dilapidated bus stop sign creaked in the cold wind and rain. The red characters on it were faded and peeling off, making them a little hard to read, but if you looked closely, you could still vaguely make out the three characters "Jingyin Station".

The bus stopped.

The car door made a hissing sound, like air leaking out, and slowly opened inward.

Instantly, the cold, damp wind outside the car, carrying raindrops and the smell of mud and rotting leaves, rushed into the car, diluting the musty smell that had been lingering in the air for a long time.

Yu Shijiu stared at the open car door on the right, her heart pounding even faster.

Not right.

He had arrived at his destination... but a strange unease crept into his heart.

The unease was even greater than when the woman in the floral dress had just disappeared.

The platform at Jingyin Station was deserted.

Only the elongated, distorted shadows cast by the dilapidated streetlights swayed with the flickering light.

The carriage was deathly silent.

All five men stared intently at the open car door, their expressions grave.

Xu Han shrank even closer to Chen Yi, shivering.

So cold.

It's so cold...

Xu Han started to feel like someone was watching him again. Who was it?

Who is watching me?

Xu Han felt even colder. After shivering, she snuggled against Chen Yi's warm arm to keep warm.

Brother Chen is really good at handling things. Is it because people get fatter and then they don't feel cold anymore?

Xu Han furtively glanced up at Chen Yi's thick chin, which had at least three layers, then lowered his head guiltily, not daring to speak.

Chen Yi didn't notice Xu Han's subtle movements; his attention was entirely focused on the wide-open car door and the empty platform.

Is there no one on the platform?

Why doesn't the driver drive if there's no one else around?

Knowing that the bus was full of passengers "eager to get home," the driver shouldn't have left the bus at the empty station for so long...

Before Chen Yi could finish his thought, footsteps suddenly sounded inside the carriage.

It wasn't just one person, but a cacophony of footsteps.

Sluggish, heavy... Two passengers who had been looking down stood up and busily picked up their belongings, as if they had instantly come back to life from their previous half-dead state.

"We've arrived at our destination."

A hoarse voice from a hunched middle-aged man rang out, "Hurry up, the car's about to leave."

Yu Shijiu's gaze fell on the middle-aged man who was the first to stand up and speak.

The woman who stood up next to him looked quite old, with gray hair and wrinkled skin. She was dragging a large brown bag that looked even heavier than herself, following behind the middle-aged man.

“Coming, coming,” the woman replied wearily. “I don’t know when the next bus will arrive…and it’s raining outside…”

"Let's get off first," the middle-aged man said, carrying two large bags and a heavy suitcase on his back that made it difficult for him to lift his head. "The rain isn't so heavy anymore. Let's wait a bit, the bus will arrive soon..."

"……it is good."

The middle-aged couple, who looked like they were being worn down by life, carried their luggage toward the open car door.

The driver's urging voice rang out as the two approached the driver's seat:

"Hurry up, hurry up! Those getting off the bus, hurry up! There are others who need to get on! Don't waste time!"

Yu Shijiu and the others' eyelids twitched.

Anyone else want to get on the train? But the platform wasn't empty—

At the dilapidated "Jingyin Station" platform, several figures, who had appeared out of nowhere, were crowded together, looking up at the bus.

Among them were four familiar faces who looked wary.

It was the four players from "Echo" who weren't in the car.

Three men and one woman, all dressed in the same style of purple clothing for easy movement, would occasionally glance up at the bus in front of them, then huddle together and talk in hushed tones.

Yu Shijiu narrowed his eyes, somewhat puzzled.

When exactly did these people appear? Five seconds ago? Or a dozen seconds ago?

He was certain that no more than thirty seconds had passed since he last looked at the platform, and that thirty seconds before, there was nothing at all on the platform of Jingyin Station.

Not to mention such a large group of people.

At the car door, the middle-aged couple hurriedly got off the bus with their luggage, urged on by the driver.

Meanwhile, the figures on the platform outside also looked up, their eyes falling on the middle-aged couple getting off the train.

"Ma'am," someone said, pulling the middle-aged woman aside, "is this bus crowded?"

"Not many, not many," the middle-aged woman smiled and shook her head, "There aren't many people, you'll all have seats when you go up—"

"This station only allows four people."

The driver's voice abruptly interrupted the middle-aged woman, "Hurry up! Everyone who wants to get on the bus, get on now! I've been delayed for too long at this stop, so those of you who want to get on, get on now!"

"..."

As soon as the driver finished speaking, the chattering crowd on the platform fell silent.

At the same time, Lin Hai, who was sitting at the back of the carriage, looked at the four people in the crowd and silently made eye contact with them through the glass.

The four people in the crowd instantly caught his gaze, and before the surrounding NPCs could react, the four began to frantically push their way forward through the crowd.

In an instant, the people on the platform were jostled and cried out in pain, all their eyes fixed on the backs of the four people walking forward.

"How rude! Don't you know you're crowding the elderly and children?"

"Yeah! What are you all doing squeezing in? I already said only four people can get on! And you're still pushing!"

"Wait, the driver just said four people..." Someone in the crowd realized what was happening and shouted, "Oh my god! Only four people can get on! Only four people can get on!!!"

"..."

The crowd on the platform instantly erupted in chaos, and everyone frantically began to push forward—but it was too late.

The four people dressed in the same clothes had already boarded the bus quickly, and the door closed mercilessly as the last person got on.

Yu Shijiu, looking down from the car window, was slightly taken aback.

—As the car door closed, an elderly man who reached out to grab it almost got his hand caught in the door.

Fortunately, someone behind him pulled him back.

The old man's sallow face, wrinkled like tree bark, was filled with fear. He stared blankly at the closed car door in front of him, and when he realized that someone was watching him, he slowly looked up.

This time, Yu Shijiu saw his entire face.

Unlike the figures behind and around the elderly man whose faces were obscured, the elderly man's face was clearly illuminated by the streetlights.

Whether it was his distorted, fearful pupils, the scattered brown age spots, or his hunched, thin body... looking through the hazy, dirty glass, Yu Shijiu could only sense a hint of sadness in his eyes.

The old man's eyes held only a deep-seated sorrow and helplessness.

Yu Shijiu lowered her eyelids slightly and withdrew her gaze.

The car door slammed shut again, shutting out most of the noise from the wind and rain outside.

The remaining four members of "Echo" quickly got into the car, and the driver shouted to them:

"It's fifty yuan per person for the fare, don't even think about skipping it!"

The four people: "..."

The three male players instinctively looked at the only female player, Mulanzhi.

Mulanzhi: "...Wait for me a moment."

As she spoke, she looked down and took out a worn pink wallet from her handbag, counting out a large stack of change under the cold, menacing gaze of the driver peeking out from under his red hat.

A little over three minutes later, Mulanzhi handed the driver the two hundred yuan fare she had counted out.

"Master, please count. I just received my wages, and it's all small change. Please don't mind it."

Mulanzhi is very pretty, just like her name. She is slender with fair and delicate skin, and her smile gives people a gentle and quiet feeling.

"fine."

The driver didn't mind. He took the money from Mulanzhi with his calloused hands and gestured towards the back of the car with his chin.

"There are still seats inside. You four can sit a bit further back. We'll be at the next stop when it's almost dawn."

The bus restarted, swaying as it drove away from the station and into the deeper darkness ahead.

Inside the carriage, nothing seemed to have changed.

The four of them walked through the narrow passageway, their gazes lingering on the passengers with their heads down for a few seconds.

The three male players who crossed the Magnolia Tree walked silently to the back of the carriage and met up with Lin Hai.

As they passed by, Yu Shijiu could feel three gazes lingering on him briefly, especially on his left arm. Those three gazes were cold and probing, carrying an undisguised sense of assessment.

Yu Shijiu felt a little uncomfortable, but when he looked up, the three male players from "Echo" had already walked away.

As Mulanzhi deliberately slowed her pace, she paused almost imperceptibly as she passed Anjie.

The gentle smile on her lips deepened slightly, and she nodded at Anjie with a kind look in her eyes.

Anjie's expression remained unchanged after being greeted, but the fingers resting on her knees curled slightly.

The five of them quickly took their seats in the back row, squeezing into the last two rows with Lin Hai and the two "passengers" with their heads down—the woman in the floral dress and another "passenger" whose face they couldn't see clearly.

Yu Shijiu and the others could only vaguely hear them talking in hushed tones. Their voices were so low that they were completely swallowed up by the sound of the bus engine starting and the rain. They couldn't hear anything at all.

The carriage fell silent again, the only sounds being the wheels rolling over puddles and the increasingly frequent patter of raindrops against the windows.

But the invisible pressure that had been lingering around everyone was several times heavier than before.

—They hadn't thought that much about it when they saw the dense crowd on the platform.

So many people... and there's only one bus, and there are so many stops to go... how many more passengers can this bus carry?

"They...are all together."

Xu Han's voice trembled uncontrollably as he shrank even smaller, almost disappearing into the gap between the seat and Chen Yi.

"Brother Chen, what... what should I do? I still feel like so many eyes are watching me... eyes are everywhere..."

Xu Han was on the verge of a breakdown. He felt that this guild competition dungeon was definitely targeting him, otherwise why would he be the only one so scared?!

This is absolutely not normal! It's discrimination! This is blatant differential treatment! Everyone else clearly doesn't seem to be being spied on!!!

Chen Yi also realized that Xu Han was likely being targeted, so he put his arm around Xu Han's shoulder and pressed it firmly, his voice steady and solemn.

"Don't be afraid, Xiaohan. The stares you feel are probably due to the effects of mental pollution... Sister An just said that Lin Hai's innate skill is spreading throughout the carriage. Just focus on not getting dragged in and you'll be fine."

Xu Han was on the verge of tears: "I... I want to too... but... why can't I concentrate?"

Chen Yi: "..."

Chen Yi thought for a moment, and finally took out a "candy" wrapped in silver foil from his system backpack.