Three minutes later, the person in charge picked up the receiver again and said, "The deceased's name is Xu Zhiwei, I remember, he was the victim of the fire accident at the Great World Theater, this matter was quite big at the time, many media have paid attention to the report, and it has also caused a lot of discussion in the society, and they all feel that this child who should have a bright future is a pity..."

Qi Jiu: "I would like to ask, are you sure that the deceased who was cremated with a mask at that time was really Xu Zhiwei?" ”

Perhaps Qi's question was too weird, the other party was obviously stunned for a moment, and then affirmed: "With our professional level, we won't even be unable to tell who the deceased is, and at that time, this matter was so big that it caused a sensation in the society, and we will never get the deceased's information wrong, you can absolutely trust us." ”

"Okay, I understand," Qi Yan maintained a polite tone, "So, in the end, when the deceased was cremated, didn't the staff take off this mask?" ”

Person in charge: "We have always respected the deceased and his family, and we will do our best to fulfill the last wishes of the family as much as we can. ”

"Our crematorium gave the deceased and their families an absolutely private farewell environment, the mask was put on at that time, and we didn't know that this mask was illegal at the time, if there is anything that needs to be investigated on your side, we will cooperate as soon as possible."

"Thank you, then I won't disturb your work for now, and we will contact you if you need it later." Got the information he wanted, Qi Yan hung up the phone.

If the information given by the crematorium is correct, then the ghost that appeared on the card table just now was not Xu Zhiwen as Mrs. Xu thought, but the twin brother Xu Zhiwei.

Not long after hanging up the phone, Qi Yan received a prompt sound from the system-

[Congratulations on finding the important item "The Lost Raw Horn Mask", which successfully promoted the plot development of the side quest "The Secret of the 501 Homeowner"]

[Reward: "Xu Zhiwen's Longest Day" Memory Fragment]

[Will you load this memory fragment immediately?] Yes / No]

Qi Ji did not hesitate to click [yes].

[The memory fragment is about to be played, and the playback process contains bloody and violent images, please watch it with caution for underage travelers]

Qi Jiu: When will the "......" system still have a reminder for minors to watch, it's weird and intimate.

Without waiting for Qi Zhen to praise the system teacher, the memory screen has been loaded-

It is surrounded by walls with white putty, but because of the frequent return to Nantian, the moldy spots on the walls are not mottled.

In my memory, it was also a breathless return to the south, and the walls full of moldy spots were constantly dripping with water droplets.

The surroundings were very quiet, and the rumbling sound of the motor running in the distance could be faintly heard, and the current was not very stable, and the incandescent lights in the room flashed from time to time.

The room was empty, and only the two brothers of the Xu family were left after the farewell ceremony was cleared, and they were almost inseparable in the past 14 years, no matter whether they were lively or quiet, they were never absent to share each other's lives.

At the moment too, except that one of them was standing, and the other was lying, standing next to the coffin, lying in the coffin.

Xu Zhiwei in the coffin was wrapped in costumes, and even if the most professional mortuary put on makeup, his face still exuded a dusty dead air.

This kind of Xu Zhiwei is strange to Xu Zhiwen, in his cognition, no matter when, the younger brother always has the most vivid vitality, is the most dazzling existence in the crowd, he has the talent that people can't take their eyes off, as long as he is willing, he can always easily let others be infected by his emotions, influenced, and even captured.

Such a soul is destined to be passionate, free, and dangerous.

Danger is for the outside world, and beautiful and uncontrollable existence is always dangerous for humans.

And at this moment, the younger brother who made Xu Zhiwen look up withered in front of his eyes.

He looked at the face that was exactly like his own, as if he saw his own withering.

There are two doors in the farewell room, one leading to the hall where the family members are waiting, and the family members who have important connections in their lives are sitting at this moment; Another door leads to the incinerator, through which Xu Zhiwei will be thrown into the furnace and reduced to ashes.

Xu Zhiwen can't accept such an ending, but what can he do if he doesn't accept it?

Their mother said that life is always bitter, and it is difficult to say how bitter it is, but we must learn to look forward, and if we can't learn, we must learn, otherwise we will not be able to live.

Xu Zhiwen stood here, the accident caused his disability, his physical disability made it impossible for him to continue on the stage of opera, and the departure of his younger brother left his soul a little broken.

Both of these were the most important things in his life for the past fourteen years, and now they were the most unbearable lesions for him.

As my mother said, I looked forward and cut off the lesion along with the past.

Xu Zhiwen secretly put a knife in his pocket, a very sharp knife, which he and Zhi were the only ones he bought last year.

The lights in the farewell room were white and miserable, and the shadow of Xu Zhiwen on the knife face was also lifeless.

He took the knife and carefully bowed to his body, delicately delineating his brother's face, which was exactly the same as his, with the sharpest tip of the knife.

The flesh of the deceased was stiff, the blade was not as soft as expected, and there was no warm blood flowing out, and death had solidified the life that had flowed.

But he didn't allow his knife to go wrong, so he consulted countless materials in advance to understand the distribution of muscle tissue and cutting techniques of the human face, just to say goodbye at this moment.

If someone accidentally breaks in at this moment, they will definitely accuse him of what he has done, and even see him as a hopeless pervert.

But Xu Zhiwen knew very well that he had to do this at this moment, cutting off his brother's face that was exactly the same as his own, this was his ritual of saying goodbye to the past, as if he had cleaned up his rotten body organs.

"Don't look back." The voice of his mother's advice seemed to ring in his ears, although it was a little bloody and cruel, but it seemed that only by cutting it substantially in this way could he start a new life.

And the cut skin is a souvenir left to him by his past life.

The dead flesh does not splatter blood, the knife cuts the skin and bones of the deceased, Xu Zhiwen makes it all happen quickly and silently, and the moldy and damp crematorium bids farewell to the room, and the relative successfully separates the deceased's dough from the frozen corpse.

"Goodbye, Zhiwei." After carefully sealing his brother's face, Xu Zhiwen took out the mask he had made from the troupe and covered it over the face that only had stiff red muscles.

This is the raw horn mask that belongs to him, and he takes a part of his brother's body and gives him back a part of himself.

When the younger brother is pushed into the incinerator, this part of what belongs to him and the past will also be reduced to ashes.

It's all over, and he's going to start a new life.

……

["Xu Zhiwen's Longest Day" Memory Fragment has been played, and the current completion of this branch: 60%]

[Halfway through the completion of the plot, a new side quest will be triggered: Please find your brother's peeled face]

Because the touch of cutting the deceased's face was too real, Qi Yan slowed down for a while before he came back to his senses slightly.

Xu Zhiwen and Xu Zhiwei are twin brothers, and they have the same face, so Qi Ji saw Xu Zhiwei lying lifeless in the coffin through the perspective of Xu Zhiwen in the memory fragment, and had the illusion of staring at his dead self as a bystander.

There is no doubt that the same "face" has a special meaning for the Xu brothers.

For him and 079 too, this is the most important sign of connecting with each other.

Qi Zhen began to vaguely wonder, why did this copy named "Nian" have an irreversible bug? Does that mirror-filled 501 have a deeper meaning? Beyond the background and plot of the dungeon, about the normal operation of the entire "Rules Book", about the special meaning between him and 079?

He also saw subconscious scenes in room 501, whether it was a baby soaked in a washing machine or an infinite loop of mirrored rooms, all of which were metaphors related to himself.

Could it be that the room is a special "passage"?

Qi Yan closed his eyes to dissipate the emotional impact of the memory fragments on him, and his temples beat faintly.

He had a hunch that it wouldn't be long before he could get to the heart of the "Rules Book" bug through this copy.

Chapter 225: Year (44)

However, it is imperative to solve the immediate problem.

From the "memory fragments", I learned the story that happened in the farewell room of the crematorium back then, so... Where did Xu Zhiwen hide his peeled brother's skin? What will it be used for?

Qi Zhen searched 501, but found no trace of this human skin in the room at that time.

For Xu Zhiwen, this human face is a meaningful existence, it is not only a "part" of his younger brother, but also a sign of his farewell to the past, and a souvenir of his own "lesions".

People are accustomed to putting important things on their bodies, especially those that are not visible and have special meaning.

Qi Ji speculated that just like Xu Zhiwei's ghost had been wearing a raw horn mask on his face, Xu Zhiwen might have made his brother's face into a mask and collected it, and even wore it on his face when no one was around.

What safer and more reliable way to do that than to make it a part of yourself?

Xu Zhiwen may be starting a "new" life after the accident through the pathological behavior of "changing faces", which is contrary to common sense.

This can also explain why room 501 is full of mirrors, Xu Zhiwen is not afraid of himself beyond sight behind the fire, because he can secretly cover his brother's face on his face, which is the "new" self after the accident.

He couldn't walk in the sunlight with this mask on his face, so he needed mirrors all over the wall to help him confirm and affirm his secret new life.

It seems that only by trying to make Xu Zhiwen appear can it be confirmed.

However, since it is a "freshman", why are there so many costumes in the wardrobe of 501?

Could it be that for some reason, Xu Zhiwen failed? Symbolizing the re-intrusion of the past "Xu Zhiwei" and "opera" into his life, his self-righteous farewell ceremony is actually not clean.

The elder brother is almost done here, and then Qi Yan began to try to think from the line of his younger brother.

As the younger brother who died in the accident, he returns through the mahjong game to pretend to be his brother, and clearly tells the guests that if they burn all of his brother's picture books at midnight, they can get the family identity card that players have always dreamed of.

"I can't believe the words of the play"——

The younger brother is dressed in a costume, and his words can be interpreted as a misleading item for the player, and burning the picture book will not bring any benefit to the player, on the contrary, the younger brother's ghost wants to make the guest break the hidden taboo and harvest the head.

After all, rather than letting guests get identity cards to "replace" themselves, a ghost with a character like Xu Zhiwei would be more willing to go home in person.

And judging from his brother's morbid behavior, his brother showed his determination to say goodbye to the past in the memory fragments.

Mrs. Xu also cherishes her brother's picture books very much, can it be understood as... The picture book is a product of the beginning of the elder brother's new life, and in a way symbolizes the "future" of the elder brother, once the "future" is burned, then the elder brother who prays for a new life will fall into the abyss.

On the contrary, a cabinet of dan horn costumes symbolizes the "past".

Books are the "future", costumes are the "past", the younger brother's face is a "souvenir", and the elder brother wants to say goodbye to the past and start a new life......

A dangerous thought suddenly flashed through Qi Jiu's mind.

- Perhaps, it is not the picture books that will be burned at midnight, but the costumes full of cabinets!

After all, the lesion that the 501 owner wants to cut off is in the past.

At this time, Lin Peilan also walked out of room 405, the four-hour mahjong game can neither win nor lose completely, must maintain the win or loss within the range of not violating the rules, to achieve such a balance is too draining, in order to relieve the backlog of tension, she is carrying the wind to light the cigarette in her mouth.

The female teacher player walked over and asked her to borrow the fire with the same tired expression, and the two ladies leaned on the green-painted corridor fence of the old building to exchange information.

Qi Zhen looked at the lighter flames beating in the wind...

I hope that the operation in the morning didn't wet the costume in the cabinet, otherwise it would be difficult to do it if it didn't burn...

"Brother, is there any progress on the crematorium?" Qi Xiaonian, who was still unaware, noticed Qi Yan's expression and asked with some uneasiness.

So Qi Yan synchronized the information he learned so far to Qi Xiaonian, and when Qi Xiaonian heard Xu Zhiwen cut the skin of his brother's corpse in the farewell room of the crematorium, his face instantly stiffened: "It seems that Xu Zhiwen, the owner of 501, is a very possessive and somewhat sick character, and ordinary people will not choose such an extreme and bloody way to say goodbye to their relatives no matter what." ”

Qi Jiu: "I think Xu Zhiwen said goodbye to more than just his relatives. ”

He stopped talking, and finally decided to discuss the matter first: "However, since Xu Zhiwei's ghost has emphasized that it must be burned at midnight, then the card timing point is also one of the elements to achieve the purpose of the operation. ”

Qi Xiaonian: "So, are we going to 501 at night to burn the cabinet costume?" ”

Qi Zhen nodded thoughtfully: "If you don't try it yourself, you will never get the right answer." ”

He believes that although the operation of burning the cabinets full of costumes sounds a bit dangerous, there is no mention of the prohibition of burning clothes in the copy rules and the content of the old calendar, and according to the custom, it is part of the tradition to dispose of unwanted old things in time during the New Year.

Moreover, this is not the first time that Qi Zhen has "played with fire", in the copy of the Rosefish Factory, he also successfully detonated and burned the factory canteen.