Bai Ci was so hot she couldn't even be bothered to complain about the absurdity of the host's words anymore.
How could a volcano suddenly appear in a place that looked completely landlocked? Even if there was one, it shouldn't be introduced in such an abrupt transition.
The temperature inside the car rose degree by degree. Bai Ci felt like she was about to shut down from the heat, and her consciousness was on the verge of fading. She only managed to maintain a sliver of clarity thanks to the cool temperature of her ring.
It wasn't until a certain critical point was reached that the temperature slowly began to drop back down. By the time she realized it, the temperature had returned to its initial comfortable state, and the sticky feeling on her skin had eased.
However, her dress was ruined. It was drenched in sweat, and she didn't have any spare clothes to change into.
At this moment, Bai Ci couldn't help but think of Lin Wenyu. He probably had quite a few clothes, right? Moreover, each piece of clothing had some kind of skill attached to it.
She suddenly felt a bit envious.
The vehicle continued to cruise smoothly on autopilot, its performance seemingly unaffected in the slightest by the recent heat wave.
Bai Ci leaned back against her seat and closed her eyes to rest. Although the heat had passed, she needed to reboot herself.
The road ahead was quiet for a while, with no ghostly wailing or temperature fluctuations.
Bai Ci tried to keep track of time by counting her heartbeats, but as the numbers grew, it became somewhat hypnotic.
Just as she was about to drift off, a crisp electronic chime suddenly rang out from the center console. It wasn't the gentle, flat tone of the host, Beiguan, but a cold, mechanical navigation prompt.
“Arriving at the Yefu No. 1 Expressway Service Area Gas Station in one kilometer. Please confirm whether to enter. Repeating: please confirm whether to enter the gas station.”
Bai Ci instantly snapped awake and sat up straight.
She had finally reached the first gas station. This was the first step to completing the stamp-collecting task, and the only thing she could do at the moment.
Moreover, looking at the fuel gauge, which showed only half a tank left, she tapped the confirmation button that popped up on the center console.
No matter what, she had to stop at this gas station.
The vehicle automatically adjusted its course, slowly steering toward the roadside gas station. The speed gradually decreased until it came to a smooth stop in the self-service fueling area.
The gas station stood out as the only source of light along the pitch-black road, yet this failed to bring any sense of security.
Bai Ci unbuckled her seatbelt and looked down at her dress.
Because of the sweat from earlier, it had become rather crumpled. Furthermore, the dress lacked pockets, leaving her with nowhere to put her Stamp Book and wallet.
Remembering the long black trench coat on the passenger seat, she quickly reached over, grabbed it, and slipped it on.
The trench coat was slightly too large for her, hanging loosely on her frame. However, the pockets were deep, allowing her to easily tuck the Stamp Book and wallet inside.
It didn't look like the skimpy, fabric-pinching designs typically found in women's clothing.
A men's coat?
Did it belong to her deceased husband?
Bai Ci got out of the car. Just as she was about to close the door, the voice of the host, Beiguan, crackled from the car radio once again.
“Dear tourists, a friendly reminder: when leaving your vehicle, please remember to take your car keys and lock the doors to avoid giving any criminals an opportunity.”
“There is no need to worry that locking the car will interfere with refueling. The gas station's automated system is designed specifically for this scenario.”
It was still that flat, friendly advisory tone, but the timing was impeccable.
Bai Ci paused. She instinctively glanced back at the center console inside the car and, on some bizarre whim, asked the speaker, “Can you see what I'm doing?”
There was no response from the radio.
As expected. Even if they could see her, they probably wouldn't admit to it.
Her brain must have stalled for a moment to ask such a pointless question.
Taking the key with her, Bai Ci turned and closed the door. She checked the car's trunk first, and only after confirming it was completely empty did she head toward the gas station's stamp station.
A corpse hidden in the trunk was a classic trope in movies and TV shows, especially crime dramas, which was why she went to check.
But she found nothing.
In fact, it was rather strange. There was absolutely nothing inside, yet the car didn't exactly look brand new either.
The gas station was massive and the facilities looked quite new, but there were no staff members in sight, nor were there any other vehicles.
Only a few dim streetlights illuminated the central stamp area.
The sign for the stamp station was very conspicuous—a large LED board displaying the words “Stamp Station” in red characters.
Just as Bai Ci was about to walk over, she caught sight of a figure standing in the corner of the gas station out of the corner of her eye.
She instinctively stopped in her tracks and directed her gaze toward the figure.
It was a thin, disheveled man wearing a tattered coat. His hair was a messy nest, and he stood with his back to her, seemingly observing something.
The moment Bai Ci spotted him, the man happened to turn around, his gaze landing on her.
His eyes were cloudy, and a look of cautious testing crossed his face. He took two steps toward Bai Ci and said, “You're a tourist too, right?”
Seeing that Bai Ci remained silent, he shifted his body to the side to stop blocking her view and pointed toward the area behind him.
His voice carried a hint of panic, mixed with a deliberate attempt to curry favor. “Look over there. Someone's dead.”
“Just to be clear, I definitely didn't kill him. I just got here, and his body was already mummified. I really haven't touched him.”
Bai Ci looked in the direction he pointed. Sure enough, a corpse lay in the corner of the gas station, covered in a thin layer of dust and wearing a thick down jacket.
By the look of it, the person had indeed been dead for a very long time. The flesh had turned the color of jerky, making it impossible to discern their features.
She didn't speak, nor did she step forward. She simply stood quietly where she was, her eyes fixed on the disheveled man, waiting to hear what else he had to say.
On one hand, she needed to gather more information.
On the other hand, she didn't dare rashly do anything that contradicted the rules the host had mentioned.
The host had specifically warned them not to trust anyone posing as a tourist.
The man wasn't angry that Bai Ci didn't respond. Instead, he drew closer and said, “I heard that a section of the road ahead is extremely cold, and the temperature drops really low.”
“Without thick clothes, you'll definitely freeze to death.” With that, under Bai Ci's watchful eyes, he turned back toward the corpse, squatted down, and reached out to strip the down jacket off the body.
“Don't think I'm disrespecting the dead,” he said, looking back at Bai Ci as he peeled off the down jacket, his tone a mix of self-encouragement, justification, and instigation.
“In a bizarre place like this, surviving is the most important thing. Besides, if this person knew that their clothes could help someone else survive after they died, they wouldn't blame us, right?”
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