Master of Kaidan
Chapter 576: Viewing Danger Through the Structure of Kaidan

Chapter 576: Chapter 576: Viewing Danger Through the Structure of Kaidan

"If you need anything, just call."

Leaving behind a somewhat gentle, businesslike phrase, the attendant wearing a blue cap, a red uniform, and a green skirt pushed away a large garbage bag on a cart, leaving only four dazed passengers in the room.

The clean room was free from any dust, with only a faint fishy-sweet scent lingering in the air. The ghost girl whose filthiness had been confiscated by the attendant curled up in the corner of the lower bunk across, wrapped in a blanket and shivering, while the remaining two seemed oblivious to what had happened, looking dumbfounded. Mango girl even wiped off the paper on her face and asked,

"Are we still playing?"

"Ask Lin Jiaxin," Feng Xue lifted his chin, and Mango girl immediately turned to Lin Jiaxin. Seeing her pale face, she shook her head helplessly,

"Since Lin Jiaxin isn’t feeling well, let’s not play anymore. What kind of garbage cleaner do they use on this train? Although the effect is not bad, the smell is simply disgusting!"

Listening to Mango girl’s words, Bread girl also nodded seriously. Feng Xue was putting the mahjong tiles back into the box, but his gaze kept sweeping over the three people.

First of all, those four thugs were interesting; only the boss and a henchman had interacted with the attendant, but the attendant had cleared all four of them away with the garbage, indicating that although there seemed to be four people, they were essentially one entity.

Lin Jiaxin was also interesting. Although her reactions were close to an ordinary person’s, the fact that she could break out of the rule that required a full round of mahjong to be played was telling.

As for Bread girl and Mango girl, they appeared to be ordinary people suffering from cognitive impairment, rationalizing all supernatural phenomena and forgetting the dead. They looked like pure scapegoats, but the fact that the two admission notices on them had not taken effect was enough to prove "their" composition.

Feng Xue sorted through the logic in his mind and gained a basic understanding of the ghost system on this train.

Based on what this train had already shown, there had to be at least four systems.

The first system was the train itself, which included the ride regulations in the ghost stories, the train facilities, timetable, and attendants. This system had the highest priority on this train.

The second system was probably the passenger system, as exemplified by Bread girl and Mango girl. It was still unknown whether passengers from other carriages would pop in later. They seemed like ordinary people but would inadvertently violate the rules of the first system, leading to attacks on other passengers in the carriage, relying on the first system to exist.

The third system corresponded to emergencies, like robbers boarding the train to steal and assault, passengers suddenly falling ill, or the onset of a cold wave. The third system couldn’t affect the first system but would impact the second system.

These three systems created a triangular cycle: one bested three, three bested two, and two, although incapable of besting one, could be immune to one and thereby affect three.

In Feng Xue’s view, these three systems were already enough to create a complete ghost story framework, but what baffled him was the fourth system, the "ghost," which had no significant connection with the former three.

Whether it was Lin Jiaxin, those who brought benefits at night, or the pleasing view outside the window, they seemed like derivatives of the first system, yet the odd thing was, they were not protected by the first system but could be attacked by it instead.

Besides, there were those sellers outside the station who gave Feng Xue a sense of danger. Although considering them as part of the first system was unproblematic, they themselves were not members within the ride regulations, and as the third system, their strength was too excessive and beyond the control of the first system.

"So, could it be that this seller system might actually be with the Ghost System? Or could it be considered as a fifth system?"

Feng Xue’s analysis of the bizarre systems was not baseless; he had a growing realization that merely preserving himself would probably be inadequate to complete the seven-day journey.

This wasn’t unfounded speculation but an analysis based on the four major systems.

Because he suddenly realized that the greatest threat on this train was not the first or second systems that complemented each other but the seemingly harmless third system that could be easily dealt with by the first system.

Based on his years of experience dealing with ghost stories, he felt qualified to claim some understanding, and the four major systems on this train could actually be broken down into several elements that a train possessed.

The first system was the foundational existence of this ghost story, the cornerstone, not subject to change, thus holding the highest priority.

The second system was the basic condition for the train’s operation; without passengers, there was no need for the train to depart, thus complementing the first system.

With these two systems establishing the most basic ghost story, what then did the third system imply?

The answer was simple: it signified incidents.

If the first two systems formed a static ghost story that could exist even without the train departing, then the third system brought this ghost story to life.

From the perspective of the formation of ghost stories, there first was a cursed train, then came a group of doomed passengers embarking on a journey fraught with incidents, constituting a complete ghost story.

With this line of reasoning, the incongruity of the fourth system became understandable—

Because their existence was beyond the ghost story framework.

This could be likened to a simple spooky story structure.

First, a spooky story needed a setting, like an apartment, a bus, a school.

Next, there had to be a group of sacrifices, like residents of the apartment, bus passengers, school students.

Then, these doomed sacrifices did something in that setting, leading to a tragedy.

At this point, was the spooky story resolved?

Not at all. Usually, at this stage, a mature spooky story would reveal—

Those deceased also became part of the spooky story, awaiting new victims to arrive.

In this narrative, what was the most terrifying part?

Was it the setting? Certainly scary, but one would be fine as long as they avoided the taboos.

Was it the inept companions? Obviously troublesome, but manageable as long as one could suppress them.

Or was it the lingering sacrifices within? Since they were already victims, they were naturally the weakest link.

The real challenge lay in those unpredictable emergencies.

And the emergencies a train could encounter obviously extended far beyond cold waves, robbers, and diseases.

Feng Xue took a deep breath. If he wasn’t mistaken, this train might never actually reach its final destination.

"Good thing it’s not too late to awaken. It’s only the second day, and there’s still time!"