Ch. 29 - The Hidden Room in the Sewer

With that, and while Su Yuening was still in a daze, she was dragged onto the bed.

Whoosh!

“W-Wait… I…” Before she could even brace herself, her body was sucked straight into the pipe—headfirst and upside down.

She shot through the pipeline at high speed, picking up momentum by the second. As she slid, she cried out:

“Wait, wait a sec!!!”

“I don’t even dare ride roller coasters at amusement parks!!”

“Aaahhhh!!!”

Her normally pristine, white hair was now a chaotic mess. It wasn’t until she’d been sliding for over ten seconds that she finally reached the end.

Pale-faced and trembling, Su Yuening scrambled up off the floor, feeling like her heart was about to explode.

“Wh-Where is this?”

She was completely bewildered. Where the hell did that hole in the bed come from?

“Come on, you’ll see.” Bai Wan smiled and climbed out of the pipe.

Su Yuening hesitated for a moment, then followed him out—only to be utterly stunned by what she saw.

Suspended bricks floated in the air, and countless gold coins shimmered overhead. The sight made her question her sanity.

This… this is Mario?!

She’d played it as a kid and remembered the setting vividly.

“What kind of character skill do you have?!” Su Yuening’s curiosity was completely off the charts now.

This was absurd. First it was summoning plants from Plants vs. Zombies—now they were in Mario?! This skill was absolute madness.

“Help me knock down some coins, will you? We’ve only got limited time down here.” Bai Wan called out as he walked under a brick block and jumped.

Thud!

Su Yuening stared, dumbfounded, as Bai Wan headbutted a brick and actually popped out a coin. Her jaw dropped. Her expression went blank—exactly like that vacant-faced giant walnut earlier.

This actually works??

“What are you spacing out for? Come knock coins with me.”

“Wh— Me too?”

“Of course. You’re my best friend.”

“Ah… right.” Su Yuening walked over, hesitant. Internally, she wondered if maybe it was time to break off this friendship. Hanging around him really couldn’t end well.

She walked under a brick block and gave it a tentative jump.

Thunk.

Luckily, it didn’t hurt that much. A gold coin popped out with a soft ping.

It was kind of… satisfying.

After knocking a few more, the two of them had cleaned out all the coins from the reachable blocks.

Next, Bai Wan set his sights on the higher-up coins.

“Want to climb on me and jump up?” he suggested, since the next batch was out of reach.

“Alright, I’ll give it a try.” Su Yuening nodded.

Bai Wan bent over slightly, back facing her.

She carefully stepped onto his shoulders—wearing white sneakers—and took a deep breath. Then she kicked off forcefully, soaring up toward the platform above.

BANG!

Suddenly, she slammed back down to the floor.

“Ugh!” She crashed straight into Bai Wan, and the two toppled over together.

They both looked up, confused. What had she hit?

Just then, a hidden brick appeared midair where she’d bumped into it, and above that was a large door.

“A hidden room?” Bai Wan’s eyes lit up. He hadn’t expected his coin room to be hiding something like this—but then again, Mario games were known for hiding secrets everywhere.

“Should we go see what’s inside?” Su Yuening was curious too.

Now that the hidden block had materialized, they could use it to reach the upper level. The two climbed up and pushed open the door.

Bai Wan went in first. Su Yuening followed behind, but the moment she touched the doorway, she passed right through the space like it wasn’t even there.

Apparently, the hidden area was restricted to Bai Wan alone.

She waited outside while he entered.

Inside, Bai Wan found himself surrounded by pitch-black night, the sky above glittering with stars.

Brick steps led upward, one after another, climbing from the ground into the stars like a cosmic stairway. At various points along the way, floating platforms hovered in midair—each one glowing with a radiant orb of starlight.

The nearest platform was about ten meters above him. Within the blue glow, he could make out a beautiful blue hammer suspended inside.

Bai Wan’s eyes sparkled. 

So each glowing platform housed some kind of treasure.

Due to the distance, he could only clearly see the closest one. The rest were too hazy to identify.

He was just about to climb up when a system message chimed in:

[Your Mario Sewer level is too low. Requires Level 3 to enter the special reward area: Starlight Room.]

With a sigh, Bai Wan stepped back.

His sewer level was currently only Level 2. Once this dungeon was over and he reached Level 3, then he’d finally get access to this treasure-laden hidden area.

When he emerged, Su Yuening didn’t ask what he saw inside. She figured it must be part of his trump card or secret, and chose not to pry.

Seeing how respectful she was, Bai Wan decided that when he eventually earned something good in there, he’d give her one as a gift.

After all, she was his best friend.

“Come on, let’s get back. The ghost should be gone by now.” Bai Wan helped Su Yuening crawl back up to her room, and sure enough—the ghost was nowhere to be seen.

“Your ability is insane,” Su Yuening said enviously as she returned to her room.

The freedom to dive into a sewer for safety? That was a dream skill for most players—and that wasn’t even counting the coins or the hidden areas inside. She didn’t even know what the coins could do yet, but her gut told her: this ability was no joke.

Su Yuening went back to her room. Bai Wan returned to his.

The ghost had vanished. It had already shown up several times tonight, so chances were slim it would reappear.

Sure enough, the rest of the night was peaceful.

……

Morning came, and the group gathered again, looking a bit worse for wear.

After all, no one had dared to sleep last night—not with that ghost entity lurking. 

Wang Jian looked especially pale, having nearly died. He shared what had happened with the group, leaving them all chilled to the bone.

A ghost pretending to be human, knocking at your door in the dead of night… The thought alone was terrifying.

But as Bai Wan listened, he frowned.

Something about it felt… off. Before he could ponder further, however—

There was a knock at the door, followed by the soft thump of something hitting the ground.

Knock knock knock!

Thud.

Everyone tensed instantly, eyes locked on the front door.

The deceased wife’s reply had arrived.

Would she buy the lie they’d written in yesterday’s letter…?

Hoo…

Sun Qian opened the door with trembling hands, picked up the letter outside, and carefully tore it open.

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