Die Now Episode 2 Recap
> Die Now Recap
Xia Chi and another person arrived at a coffee shop within a strange, disappearing space. Xia Chi asked the waitress if she had seen Qing Zhi, but was told he needed a membership card to get information. When he confirmed he had no card, the waitress immediately stated she hadn't seen the girl. Xia Chi then noticed the space had disappeared; the coffee shop, which felt large from the outside, was three meters shorter inside.
He inquired where the space went, and the waitress smiled, pressed a bell, and a door opened where the space had seemingly vanished, revealing another realm. The two entered this door to find a spiraling staircase. A woman stood by a circular platform in the middle, identical to the coffee shop waitress but with short hair and a short skirt. Her eyes flashed with mechanical numbers as she welcomed them to "End of Consciousness."
She asked if they needed membership cards, as they didn't have any, and Xia Chi nodded. As it was their first time entering the game, the woman explained its nature: End of Consciousness is a real-person interactive combat game where players' thoughts are interconnected and they compete through a system. Games are presented as single rounds, with corresponding rewards for winners. The game content and rules are extensive and introduced before each round.
However, two crucial points were highlighted: no task can be completed solely by brute force, and as a brain-interconnection game, real-world time is not a reference, meaning game time can be very short or very long. With a few gestures, the woman conjured a glowing orb in the air, from which Xia Chi retrieved a card. He realized it was identical to Ji Lu's card, leading him and his companion to deduce that Qing Zhi had been there.
They decided to wait. Suddenly, another player named Bo Bian appeared, teasing Xia Chi as "little cutie" and warning him that it was dangerous for new players to use old cards. Suspecting Qing Zhi was in danger, Xia Chi gripped the card firmly, resolved to enter the game, while Meng Qin waited for him at the exit. A voice announced, "Welcome to End of Consciousness, game importing!" Xia Chi found himself in a secret room with a stone table.
Two other players stood there: Liu Yiya, a female student from Songjiang University, and Shi Kuan, a male graduate of Songjiang University. Xia Chi realized there must be multiple entrances, as he hadn't seen these players outside. A system voice, claiming to be the Game Manager (GM), then appeared. The GM was "poor in speech," addressed Xia Chi as "Xia Chi baby," and could read his thoughts, with their conversations being inaudible to others.
The GM introduced the rules for the first level: a large rectangle composed of 49 small rectangles needed to be divided into a maximum of six pieces, then recombined to form one large rectangle with 48 small rectangles inside. The task hint was: "Think carefully before acting. Failure to complete or not finishing within 20 minutes will result in the elimination of all players."
A paper then appeared on the stone table, which Xia Chi recognized as a puzzle paper Xue Xin had received, designed by Ji Lu. His two companions deemed the task impossible and made a cut, causing the space to be instantly bisected by weapon-grade infrared lines. In their panic, when they pulled the paper, a strip accidentally tore, and the space was cut again from above, forcing everyone to bend over.
The GM explained that every five minutes, the infrared lines would double, eliminating half their remaining space. If the next cut was horizontal again, they would have to crawl, leading to certain death after several such cuts. Xia Chi carefully picked up the answer sheet. He realized that the "48" constraint had paralyzed their thinking, as 48 small rectangles could form a 7x7 large rectangle. Shi Kuan, however, shouted that Xia Chi's answer was definitely wrong and snatched the paper.
At that moment, the space shrunk by half again. The reckless Shi Kuan, in fear, made another cut, further shrinking the space. Xia Chi urged everyone to trust him, explaining that the game's key was diagonal cutting. Through one diagonal cut and four straight cuts, he divided the rectangle into five pieces, allocating the middle square to the second row and recombining them.
Following Xia Chi's cuts, the rectangle truly became 49 pieces, and all red lines vanished, much to the players' joy. The gate to the next level opened, revealing a prison. The task stated: "Hit the bullseye to open the door. 15-minute limit, or all eliminated." Shi Kuan, a professional gun enthusiast, quickly assembled all the parts, aimed, and fired a shot that hit the bullseye, opening the door. The third level's task was: "Find the pass code.
10-minute limit, or all eliminated." This was another math problem. Liu Yiya, using the C major tonic as a reference, sang out the numbers, successfully passing all three levels. However, the game had only just begun. A new task appeared on the screen: "Only one person can pass through this door. Decide on the candidate in 20 minutes, or all eliminated." The task hint added: "Daggers are available on the table." Three daggers were visible inside three glass bottles on the table. Before anyone could react, Shi Kuan held a gun on the other two players, ordering them not to move.
