Trembling in the Skies

Chapter 27: The Long, Dark Night

There was a countdown inside the helicopter cabin. A five-minute countdown. Clearly, these five minutes were meant for Li Teng to climb back up the rope ladder to the top of the stone pillar. If he hadn’t made it down by then, there was only one possible outcome. He would be sent back to the film studio. And if he returned to the film studio at that point, there would be only one outcome. He would be wax-sealed on the spot to become a handsome wax figure. Li Teng had no choice but to keep encouraging himself inwardly, forcing himself to overcome his fear and despair, and then carefully climb down the wobbly rope ladder beneath the helicopter toward the top of the stone pillar. Finally, Li Teng’s feet touched his bed once more. A bed covered in about half a meter of snow. After completing its transport mission, the helicopter swiftly flew off into the distance and vanished. Li Teng was left alone, standing all by himself at the top of the stone pillar. Earlier at the film studio, although there was a risk of dying during filming, at least it still bore some resemblance to the real world. But being back here felt like a nightmare. I really didn’t want to come back! A bone-chilling cold. Lifting his head to gaze at the gloomy sky, Li Teng let out a long, piercing howl. What does it mean for life to be as lonely as snow? This is it. Although the snow had now let up, it had been falling all day, leaving a thick layer piled up on the bed; even the space beneath it was packed full of snow blown in by the wind. Needless to say, the quilts, mattresses, and other bedding beneath the snow were surely all soaked through and frozen solid. It’s impossible to even lie down and sleep. Is the heavens trying to ruin me? How am I supposed to get through the next few days?! I don’t even have a place to sleep and shelter from the wind—will I even make it through tomorrow morning, or will I just keel over? When I went to buy clothes at the costume shop in the film studio, I never imagined I’d end up back here. If I’d known, I should’ve bought some thick clothes to keep me warm back then. I have too few points—it’s really not enough. Oh well, what’s done is done—no use dwelling on it. I’d better focus on figuring out how to stay warm and survive tonight’s bitter cold until I can get back into the film studio next time. A cold wind blew by, carrying a few scattered snowflakes that drifted down Li Teng’s neck. It also carried away the precious body heat from within him. He didn’t have much time left; he had to act quickly. The wooden bed was partially broken, with only three legs remaining. This, however, left Li Teng with a small platform at the top of the stone pillar. After clearing the snow from this small platform, Li Teng stood there and urinated at the base of the stone pillar. After pondering for a moment, he crouched down and began carefully digging beneath the bed slats. The space beneath the bed was filled entirely with snow. If he could clear the snow from the gap between the underside of the bed and the top of the stone pillar, he could carve out a snow cave large enough to shelter him. Although it was cold inside the snow cave, at least it offered shelter from the wind. After half an hour, Li Teng finally dug out a snow cave large enough to shelter him beneath the bed slats. He then pushed the snow toward the edges, packed it down as tightly as possible, and built four snow walls between the bed frame and the stone pillar, leaving only a small ventilation hole on the leeward side to create a snow den for himself. Once he had taken shelter inside this snow den, although it was still very cold, the fact that the biting wind was no longer blowing directly on him made it much more bearable. Looking out through the opening, he saw that it was already completely dark outside. A long, dark night was about to begin. Recalling everything that had happened that day, it all seemed like a dream. Although the character he was playing in the film could die at any moment—and he, too, would turn into a wax figure as a result Still, Li Teng would much rather stay at the film studio shooting than return to the top of this stone pillar. Although he could look forward to using his points to lower the height of the stone pillar in the future, the hardship he was facing right now made it incredibly difficult to persevere. Li Teng seriously doubted whether he could hold out until the day the stone pillar was lowered. Despair. Anger. Weren’t that old woman, that young girl, that office worker, and Gao Fei and the others going through the exact same ordeal as him? Those women all managed to hang in there—why can’t he, a grown man, grit his teeth and stick it out? Never mind, stop overthinking it. I’d better conserve my energy so I can survive a little longer. Resting his head on a pillow made of a pile of snow, Li Teng recalled the events of the day, his mind gradually drifting into a daze. Even after drinking so much coffee, he couldn’t fight off the drowsiness. Perhaps coffee didn’t actually have a stimulating effect on Li Teng. He didn’t know how much time had passed. After drinking too much coffee, Li Teng really had to pee. He found himself on a street in the film studio. The streets were pitch-black; it seemed to be nighttime. He was about to wet his pants. He hurried into a restroom on the side of the street, unzipped his pants, and let it all out. For some reason, he just couldn’t seem to finish—it felt as if his stomach were full of water. After a while, Li Teng heard footsteps coming from outside. He forced himself to stop, walked to the restroom door, and peeked out onto the street. A large crowd was standing outside the restroom door, all staring at Li Teng—who had just emerged—with eerie grins on their faces. However, they all stood completely still. In the crowd, Li Teng also spotted Guo Zhipeng. He wasn’t smiling; instead, his face was twisted with malice. “Here we go again! Who are you trying to scare?” Li Teng cursed. He turned to go back into the restroom to finish his business, but unexpectedly, the crowd of wax figures behind him all came to life. Led by Guo Zhipeng, they charged at him—some grabbing his arms, others his legs—and forcibly dragged Li Teng into the wax museum across the way. “Let me go!” Li Teng struggled fiercely. But in doing so, he jolted himself awake. It was pitch black all around him. This was clearly not the film studio. Where was he? A moment later, Li Teng realized what was happening. He was on top of a stone pillar! It was the snow den he’d dug for himself in the snowdrift beneath the bed frame! The urge to pee was real. He’d been dreaming—dreaming that he’d run to the restroom at the film studio to take a leak. Now he’d really been woken up by the urge to pee. He had to figure out a way to crawl out of the snow den to take a leak. But Li Teng soon realized there was a serious problem. He simply couldn’t get up! He had absolutely no control over his body! Vaguely, he sensed his body moving, crawling out of the snow cave, and even standing on the very edge of the stone pillar to pee. But in the blink of an eye, he found himself still lying there, not having moved a muscle. It was just like being pinned down by a ghost. He knew perfectly well that he was awake, knew where he was, and knew what he wanted to do—but he just couldn’t get up! Why was this happening? Well, maybe I’ll just go back to sleep. No, I really have to pee! I can’t just pee in my pants, can I? Was his body frozen and beyond his control? After another bout of hallucinations and wild thoughts, Li Teng suddenly realized the gravity of the situation. Could it be that the snow had fallen heavily again during the night and blocked the hole he was using to breathe? Was his current state of sleep paralysis caused by severe oxygen deprivation? If that were the case, the moment he fell asleep again, he’d never wake up! “Wake up! “You can’t go back to sleep!” “Wake up! An increasingly urgent urge to urinate finally jolted Li Teng fully awake. His arm twitched for a split second, and then his entire body came back to consciousness. Although he had regained consciousness, his entire body felt weak, as if he’d suffered carbon monoxide poisoning. Reaching out to feel around, Li Teng discovered that the ventilation hole had indeed been blocked! There wasn’t much oxygen left in the snow cave, and every breath felt unbearably stifling! Had he dug his own grave?