Global University Entrance Exam CH.2

 Invigilator

Yu Hao kicked over an aluminum pot filled with charcoal in the corner, and Old Yu cautiously lit the fire, bringing an orange-red glow to the hearth.

Yu Wen crouched near the flames, tossing in bits of wood with a defeated air. The flickering light reflected on his downcast face as he stared into the fire. After a long silence, he decided it might be worth talking to someone before he died.

He glanced up, catching sight of his older brother standing nearby, his hands stretched toward the flames for warmth. Yu Hao’s expression was indifferent, his entire demeanor disinterested.

Yu Wen considered speaking for about two seconds, then abandoned the idea. Better to die quietly.

---

“Hey, what’s up with you?” Old Yu suddenly called out, breaking the silence.

Yu Hao glanced over.

“I don’t know what to call you,” Old Yu muttered, patting the shoulder of the heavily pregnant woman seated next to him. “What are you just sitting there for? Why not come over and warm up? Don’t just let yourself freeze here. We don’t need both of you getting hurt, you hear?”

The woman looked stunned for a moment, then tears welled up in her eyes.

Old Yu recoiled slightly. “What’s this about? Why are you crying?”

She sniffled, her voice shaky. “I’m not even sure if I’ll make it out alive…”

But despite her words, she moved her chair closer to the fire.

After crying softly for a while, the woman finally introduced herself: “Just call me Yu Yao.”

Old Yu managed an awkward chuckle. “Didn’t expect to meet another Yu. I’d say you and my—”

Old Yu’s eyes flicked toward Yu Hao, who was watching him with a faintly sharp gaze. He stumbled over his words, then corrected himself. “I mean, you and my son here must be close in age. It must be fate. Once we get out of this cursed place, we’ll celebrate properly. I’ll even give you a big red envelope for good luck—mother and child safe and sound.”

The tattooed man sneered darkly. “It’s a damn joke, sitting around talking about celebrations while we’re stuck in this mess.”

Hearing that, everyone stiffened and scattered to search the room, some looking for answers, others just trying to make sense of their predicament.

The tattooed man, however, was not looking for answers. Instead, he rummaged through the scattered hunting gear, collecting items that might serve as weapons.

Yu Hao stayed where he was. He warmed his hands by the fire, then turned to examine the wall where the test question was displayed. After briefly glancing at the cryptic instructions, he knelt beside the hearth and began sorting through the items strewn across it.

There were old bottles, a handful of blackened coins, a few oddly shaped stones, scattered chicken feathers, and even a moldy pacifier whose origin was anyone’s guess.

Yu Wen stayed nearby, neither daring to leave nor daring to make a sound.

He remembered his teacher’s advice before the college entrance exams: when you’re stuck, reread the question. So, he stood in front of the wall, muttering the problem aloud over and over.

“A group of travelers arrives at a snowy mountain…”

“Travelers…”

“Snowy mountain…”

“Huh…”

When he stopped, he realized the entire room had gone silent. Everyone was staring at him, waiting with bated breath.

Yu Wen flushed. “I was just saying it out loud. I didn’t figure anything out.”

Old Yu, like many parents in front of others, couldn’t resist putting his child on the spot. “What? You thought of something? Tell us!”

Yu Wen rolled his eyes. “Nope.”

Everyone’s shoulders slumped in disappointment, and they resumed their futile searching.

But the tattooed man wasn’t giving up. He fixed Yu Wen with a suspicious glare. “Really? You didn’t think of anything? Not hiding some clue, are you?”

Yu Wen frowned. “Why would I hide something?”

The tattooed man stared hard at him for a long moment, making Yu Wen feel uncomfortable. Finally, he muttered, “Fine. Better not be lying.”

With that, he returned to rummaging through the hunting gear.

Yu Wen silently flipped him off behind his back, thinking to himself: What an idiot.

This kind of tension—verging on farce—made Yu Wen feel both annoyed and resigned. He had just turned eighteen before the college entrance exams, and in his youthful arrogance, he saw most people around him as fools. Even his father wasn’t spared that judgment. The only person who seemed exempt was Yu Hao.

In truth, Yu Wen hadn’t known Yu Hao very long. Old Yu had once explained that Yu Hao had spent several years abroad for medical reasons and only occasionally returned home for brief visits. Over time, those visits added up to only a few days.

Still, during those limited interactions, Yu Wen had picked up a few things. For one, Yu Hao’s memory seemed to have some gaps—there were entire years and significant events he seemed to have no recollection of. That was, supposedly, why he had gone abroad in the first place.

And for another, the elders in their family all seemed oddly uneasy around Yu Hao.

When Yu Wen had asked about it, Old Yu waved him off, saying he was reading too much into things.

Eventually, Yu Wen accepted it as normal. After all, even the tattooed thug seemed wary of Yu Hao.

Yu Wen had been considering antagonizing the tattooed man just to amuse himself, but when he looked around, Yu Hao was nowhere to be found.

“Where’d my brother go?” Yu Wen asked aloud.

Yu Yao, seated near the hearth, turned her head slightly. “Your brother? I think he went that way.” She gestured toward the far side of the room.

Yu Wen followed her gaze toward the far side of the room. This place, although dim and cluttered, was surprisingly large. The first floor had three closed rooms in addition to the main living area, and in one shadowy corner stood a rickety wooden ladder that led up to a small attic.

The doors to the ground-floor bedrooms were locked, and their rusty locks looked ancient. Even stranger, one door had a rooster tied to it, and another door had a hen.

The birds were completely drained of blood, yet their feathers were neatly arranged, as if someone had taken great care in preparing them. Their heads hung at an eerie angle, facing the same direction. Just the sight of them made Yu Wen’s skin crawl.

And then he saw him. Yu Hao was standing in the shadows by one of the locked doors, holding something in his hand.

“Brother, what are you doing over there?” Yu Wen called hesitantly.

Yu Hao turned slightly, the faint orange glow from the hearth casting sharp shadows across his face. He was holding a small axe, the kind you’d use for chopping firewood. The blade gleamed dully in the dim light.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Yu Hao replied lazily. “It’s an axe.”

“Yeah, I can see that. What I mean is… why do you have it?”

Yu Hao didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he casually ran his thumb along the blade’s edge. “I was looking around. Trying to figure something out.”

“Figure what out?” Yu Wen asked, more confused than before.

Yu Hao gave him a look. He was taller than Yu Wen and always looked down on him, both literally and figuratively. His light brown eyes seemed to lack any warmth, and his neutral expression made him difficult to read.

“Like… what kind of clues might be related to a snowy mountain,” Yu Hao said finally.

Yu Wen blinked. “Uh… I have no idea.”

“Did you not pay attention in school?”

“I did! But what am I supposed to—” Yu Wen started to protest, then sighed. “I don’t know what you’re getting at. Can you give me an example?”

Yu Hao raised an eyebrow. “Ever heard of questions about snowy mountains in your physics classes?”

“Not really…”

“Did you skip class?”

“No! I mean, I… barely passed physics, okay? I only remember stuff like choosing the longest answer if the others are short, or picking the one that stands out. You know—test-taking tricks. None of that really applies here!”

Yu Hao just stared at him for a moment, then quietly said, “Go away.”

Yu Wen got the distinct feeling that if he kept talking, Yu Hao might actually throw the axe at him. So, he reluctantly shut his mouth and backed off a few steps.

For a while, Yu Hao stood there silently, apparently deep in thought. Then, with a slight sigh of annoyance, he tossed the small axe into a nearby bucket.

Yu Wen frowned. “Wait—what were you doing with that axe anyway?”

“Looking for a pen,” Yu Hao said flatly.

“…What?”

“You heard me. A pen.”

Yu Wen stared at him, half-expecting his brother to explain further. But Yu Hao said nothing more and started climbing the wooden ladder to the attic.

---

Time seemed to pass faster than anyone expected. The red-painted numbers on the wall gradually ticked down from six to five, then to four. The first scheduled checkpoint was rapidly approaching, and the tension in the room grew thicker with each passing moment.

With no clear answers, the group was growing more desperate. The question on the wall offered no clues, and everyone was painfully aware of the countdown looming over them. It was a pressure unlike anything Yu Wen had ever felt, not even during the college entrance exams.

Under that pressure, some of them started to make rash decisions.

When Yu Hao descended from the attic, Yu Yao, the pregnant woman, was standing near the answer wall. She had a small black bottle in her hand, and she was dipping her fingers into it, preparing to write something.

A sharp, sour smell wafted from the bottle—like long-spoiled ink, though its color seemed slightly off. Under the dim light, it looked more like a rusty brown than a true black.

“Is it okay for me to write like this…?” Yu Yao asked hesitantly. Her voice quivered, and she glanced around as if seeking approval. “I mean… it’s not really related to physics, is it?”

“There’s nothing to go on,” muttered a bald man with a sour expression. “Who knows what will actually score points? I bet there isn’t even a right answer! If we leave it blank for six hours, someone’s going to die for sure. I say we take our chances and write something!”

He shot a glare at Yu Yao. “You’ve got the guts to start writing—so go ahead!”

Yu Yao hesitated, then pressed her finger against the wall. But as she began to write, the marks vanished almost instantly. The moisture from her fingertips didn’t leave a trace. Instead, the strokes seemed to melt into the surface of the wall, disappearing completely.

A faint, almost inaudible sound accompanied the disappearance—like water being absorbed into something.

“I… I can’t write anything,” Yu Yao stammered.

“What? That’s impossible! Maybe there’s not enough ink,” the bald man snapped. He stomped over, dipped a whole finger into the bottle, and scrawled forcefully against the wall.

The result was exactly the same. The marks vanished as soon as they appeared.

That faint sound came again, making everyone’s skin crawl.

The bald man stood there, stunned for a moment, then suddenly lost his temper. “Why can’t I write on it?! There must not be enough ink. That’s it—there’s not enough ink!” He reached for the bottle, about to splash it all over the wall.

But before he could, a firm hand grabbed his wrist.

Yu Hao stood beside him, looking down with a calm but impatient expression. “Don’t lose it. Something’s not right with that wall.”

The bald man struggled, his face turning red as he tried to wrench his arm free.

“Yu Wen,” Yu Hao said coolly. “Hand me that rope near the wall.”

“What? Why?” Yu Wen asked, confused.

Yu Hao didn’t bother explaining. With surprising efficiency, he used the rope to tie the bald man’s arms and hands together. Then he pushed him back onto the broken sofa, his movements smooth and practiced.

Yu Wen stared at him, bewildered. “Uh… have you done this before?”

Yu Hao gave him a look that shut him up instantly.

The room was silent as Yu Hao tightened the cap on the ink bottle. But the moment it closed, a soft sigh seemed to echo through the room.

Everyone froze.

“Who was that?!”

All eyes turned to the answer wall. A new line of text had appeared below the original instructions:

Violation warning: Improper test stationery used. The proctor has been notified.

Proctors: 001, 154, 922.

At that moment, the rooster hanging on one of the doors let out a sudden, sharp crow.

Yu Wen nearly jumped out of his skin. Grabbing his brother’s sleeve, he pointed a trembling finger at the door.

The rooster’s neck had twisted at an unnatural angle, and its lifeless eyes seemed to be staring straight at them.

Yu Hao didn’t react to the rooster’s sudden cry, but the room had gone utterly still. Every sound felt amplified—the faint creak of old floorboards, the muffled hiss of the wind outside. Even the fire in the hearth seemed to burn more quietly.

Yu Hao let out a soft breath and walked toward the door, as if he had already decided what to do. Yu Wen, still clutching his brother’s sleeve, tried to pull him back. “Hey, wait—don’t just—”

But Yu Hao shook him off effortlessly, moving forward with calm, deliberate steps. The others watched, too afraid to interfere but too frightened to look away.

Beyond the door, in the swirling snow and wind, three figures approached. Their shapes were blurry at first, obscured by the blizzard, but as they came closer, their outlines grew clearer. Leading them was a tall, lean man in a long coat. His black hair was cut short, and his posture was straight and imposing. Even through the storm, his stride was steady and purposeful.

When the man reached the door, a gust of wind swept through, momentarily blinding everyone. Snowflakes whirled around him, clinging to his eyebrows and lashes. As he blinked the snow away, his dark eyes locked onto Yu Hao, who stood framed by the doorway’s faint orange light.

For a moment, the two of them simply stared at each other. The tall man’s gaze was cold and unreadable, while Yu Hao’s remained indifferent and detached.

Yu Wen leaned closer to his brother, whispering as softly as he could, “Do you… know him?”

Yu Hao’s lips twitched slightly—not quite a frown, not quite a smile. “Forgot,” he murmured, more to himself than to Yu Wen.