Chapter 10

As the first light of dawn arrived, the Qingming Hall had already been set with fragrant dishes, but it was temporarily empty.

Suddenly, a tall, thin girl hurriedly walked in, grabbed a table, and placed a flower card on it.

She took a deep breath, heard voices coming from outside, and immediately fled in panic.

What the girl didn't realize was that a man in black, who had been drinking since early morning, was sitting on the beam above. Seeing her leave, he swiftly jumped down and took advantage of the situation.

Xi Yu had just gotten up to go outside when Wu Zhi, with a proactive attitude, quickly stopped him.

After carefully examining him, Wu Zhi sighed in relief: "You're fine, that's good."

Xi Yu: "What could possibly happen to me?"

Wu Zhi looked gloomy: "That Sun Xiuyan got injured the night before. I was worried you might get hurt too. I don’t want to be left all alone."

Upon hearing this, Xi Yu couldn't help but make a hushing sound to stop him from saying anything further.

Wu Zhi stuck out his tongue and continued talking about random things, and together they went into Qingming Hall for breakfast.

At this moment, Luo Xi was already sitting alone, looking fierce and intimidating, which caused Wu Zhi to quickly retreat to a distant corner to avoid him.

Luo Xi glanced at Xi Yu: "I've been here for a while. The food’s fine, if you’re hungry, eat."

After saying that, he started eating the porridge in front of him.

At this time, there was no one else in Qingming Hall. Xi Yu hesitated for a moment, then got up and snatched the porridge from Luo Xi’s hand, turning his back to him and quickly eating.

Luo Xi was caught off guard, holding the spoon for two seconds in a daze before frowning: "Hey, still used to stealing? Aren’t you afraid I’ll hit you?"

Xi Yu didn’t answer or even look back. He was somewhat confident in his own skills and thought that he probably wouldn’t lose to this ruthless guy.

While they were talking, other players started entering the hall.

Ren Bo seemed to be so angry that it made him sick. His lips were covered in white sores from a fever, and he kept coughing, looking miserable and attracting most of the attention.

No one noticed that Zhu Ge had walked to the low table in the center of the hall, her face changing as she suspiciously looked around.

Of course, no one knew what she was doing.Zhu Ge had previously placed the skill flower card she found here, intending to let everyone see the weakness of a key identity. But now the card had mysteriously disappeared, which made her even angrier the more she thought about it. She had been taken advantage of for no reason.

Luo Xi raised an eyebrow and smiled wickedly, randomly shoved two pieces of sushi into his mouth, stretched lazily, and said, "Work's starting, time to get to work."

Others either didn't dare to eat, or lacked the appetite, and also wanted to leave.

At this moment, Zhu Ge lost her composure and suddenly raised her voice: "Wait a minute!"

Everyone looked at her with confused expressions.

Zhu Ge thought for a moment, then walked up to Xi Yu: "Ever since you were injured, you've been speaking very little."

Xi Yu held his bowl of porridge, looking innocent.

Wu Zhi quickly jumped up: "If your throat is injured, would you still be talking? Are you sick?"

Luo Xi once again silently chuckled at the side.

Zhu Ge cursed: "Did you take that card? You’re afraid your act will be exposed, aren’t you? Stand up and answer me!"

Xi Yu replied in a hoarse voice: "I didn’t take anything from you."

Zhu Ge froze for a moment, then her suspicious gaze shifted to Wu Zhi.

At that very moment, a heavy darkness descended upon the Qingming Hall.

A commanding voice echoed loudly above everyone's heads.

[Traitors are shameful! Today, the number of players on both sides is uneven, and the Great Guard has activated the balance skill. The Samurai’s soul will indiscriminately attack the side with the numerical advantage until the numbers are equal.]

What’s this???

Xi Yu was utterly shocked, his concerns quickly swept away as he watched the black side’s mood explode.

The so-called "Great Guard" was the honorary title of the current general's father, no wonder the rule allowed defection— it seemed the punishment was waiting right here.

Now the black side had seven members, and the white side had four. It seemed that unless three players from the black side died, the game wouldn’t be able to continue.

Thinking of this, Xi Yu felt a bit uneasy.After all, every life is innocent.

While he was lost in thought, the commanding voice sounded again.

[To protect players' identities, players will not be able to see each other for the next twenty minutes. The side with the advantage should seize the time to hide.]

With that, the black mist dissipated.

Xi Yu looked around. The warm food was still there, but there wasn't a single player in sight.

What kind of terrifying world is this?!

He frowned, not caring to dwell on it any longer. After shouting into the air twice to confirm no one was responding, he hurriedly ran out of the Qingming Hall.

Although he was on the weaker white side and wouldn't be chased by the Samurai’s soul, this was a rare opportunity to search through the players’ bedrooms! People like Wu Zhi, who had carelessly missed some skill flower cards, were bound to be more than one.

Twenty minutes isn’t too long, but it isn’t too short either.

Xi Yu first focused on Wu Zhi's shabby room. He finally managed to find the missing flower card from a gap in the ceiling. Then he ran to Tong Le Shan's room. This person had been injured out of nowhere and had also lost a classmate, who had been killed by the black heir. It was highly suspicious and lacked only a decisive piece of evidence to prove his identity.

Meanwhile, the inseparable duo, Huasheng and Yao Chenna, had no intention of abandoning each other in this crisis. They stayed focused on their goal and stumbled their way to the shrine to meet up.

The notification sound rang out once again.

[Twenty minutes have passed, and balance begins!]

Yao Chenna widened her eyes and saw her boyfriend Huasheng appear not far from the shrine. She immediately rushed over and cried, tightly grasping his hand. "What do we do now? I didn't know defection would cause such a big mess. If I'd known, I would have waited longer!"

Huasheng hugged her. "It's not your fault, don't be afraid. The two of us are better off than fighting alone. I'll protect you!"

Yao Chenna collapsed in Huasheng's arms, sobbing.

Huasheng said, "Well, we're here now. Who's identity should we verify today? Who do you care about?"

Yao Chenna wiped her face. "That Luo Xi... He was so fierce last night. What if he’s our enemy?"

"I think he’s from the black side. He’s got a strange temperament. There’s no use verifying him," Huasheng frowned and said. "Do you remember what Zhu Ge was arguing with him about before the balance notification?"

Yao Chenna nodded. "She went in front of that white-haired handsome guy and cursed him for acting, but I didn’t understand what she meant...""Zhu Ge is definitely on the black side. Her position is too obvious, both in what she says and what she doesn't say..." Huasheng placed his hand on his girlfriend's shoulder. "I'm worried that the person she cares about so much is an important role on the white side. We should verify Xi Yu. If it’s true, we’ll figure out how to deal with him today!"

Yao Chenna thought for a moment and nodded in agreement. "I trust you."

Huasheng quickly rushed over and knelt in front of the coffin, saying, "Please tell me, Xi Yu—"

Unfortunately, he didn’t even finish his sentence before a group of rotting, sword-wielding samurai burst through the door and immediately attacked the two of them!

Huasheng, in the midst of his girlfriend's scream, quickly pulled her behind him and shouted, "Nana! Run!"

The souls of the dead were merciless, and blood splattered everywhere under the blade.

The two, tragically, didn’t notice that in the dimly lit inner hall, black eyes, indifferent to the situation, were lurking.

Xi Yu had been searching for Tong Le Shan's flower card as fast as possible, but time cruelly passed, and he had found nothing.

After an unknown amount of time, the sound of a deep bell echoed through the courtyard, followed by an announcement.

[The numbers of the black and white sides are balanced, please continue the game.]

Xi Yu quickly raised his head, hurriedly placed the tatami mat back in its original position, and left the room.

The corridor and courtyard were silent.

Xi Yu thought for a moment and then headed toward the Qingming Hall.

Unexpectedly, he encountered Wu Zhi on the way, looking suspicious.

Wu Zhi grabbed him and asked, "Are you okay?"

"What could happen to me? But you—be careful." Xi Yu shoved the flower card he had just found into Wu Zhi's hand.

Wu Zhi looked down and was shocked, his eyes widening.

[Liushangyan card / White Princess passive skill: Innocence — Witnessing the death process will cause a deep sleep that lasts until the game ends.]

It seemed Xi Yu's guess was correct; the passive skills of special identities were weaknesses.

Wu Zhi clicked his tongue in surprise. "Just now, I heard Zhu Ge’s scream. She must have run into trouble! Lucky I didn’t go to check, or not only would I have lost troops, but we would have also given the white side an extra spot."Xi Yu nodded, "So, keep a low profile and don't get involved in the chaos—also, the balance thing can prove that my guess yesterday has a very high possibility—winning and losing are more important than life and death, so the game treats every player's life more recklessly than we imagined!"

Wu Zhi ripped up the card and quietly said, "I’m more and more confused by the situation in front of us. What kind of technology can do this... we can’t really have encountered ghosts, right?"

Xi Yu asked, "What day was it when you arrived here?"

Wu Zhi thought for a moment, "It was in October 2018, what day was it again..."

Xi Yu lowered his gaze, "I don’t remember."

Wu Zhi looked at him with concern.

Xi Yu curled his lips, "Not remembering may be a blessing, perhaps what you all remember is all fake."

"What are you talking about, bro?" Wu Zhi didn’t understand.

Xi Yu didn’t elaborate; he just felt that everyone was too calm: their attachment to life, their longing for family and friends, had been put down too easily, as if waking from a big dream, now focusing more on the right and wrong in front of them.

Wu Zhi scratched his head, "Hey, enough about this, I came to tell you, they’ve all gone back to Qingming Hall. They asked me to come out and find someone."

Xi Yu calmly nodded, "Mm, let’s go see."

Just as Wu Zhi was about to go with him, he was stopped.

Xi Yu looked at the torn flower card in his palm, "Burn it. Even if it's torn, it's easy to piece back together."

To Xi Yu’s surprise, Wu Zhi suddenly shoved the card into his mouth, tilted his neck, and swallowed it.

From surging waves to collapse, it was just an hour’s time.

The few survivors stood in Qingming Hall, still shocked, and of course, they couldn’t joke, shout, or argue anymore.

Xi Yu entered and saw Zhu Ge's body lying on the ground, a large bloodstain on her waist and abdomen, a wound from a sharp weapon.

Wu Zhi subconsciously covered his nose and asked, "Where are the others?"

Sun Xiuya, eyes red from crying, cuddled with Tang Yanyan, "Teacher Fang Hao and Luo Xi went to look for them. Luo Xi said he saw the ghost samurai coming out of the shrine..."

Ren Bo and Tong Le Shan were huddled nearby, looking secure. It seemed that the dead were that young couple?While Xi Yu was deep in thought, there was a noise at the door.

He turned around and saw Luo Xi, expressionless, carrying a body, while Fang Hao shakily held a head, which was the severed body of Yao Chenna!

Tang Yanyan, terrified, lost all color in her face and urgently asked, "There’s another dead person? The balance is over..."

At that moment, a sudden thunderclap echoed outside Qingming Hall!

Then, blood rain began to fall!

Luo Xi tossed Yao Chenna's body next to Zhu Ge's: "I don't know. When we got there, she was the only one."

It was then that everyone saw the torn black clothing on Luo Xi's abdomen, revealing bloodied, mangled wounds.

...Could it be that he is really from the black side? Did he survive by relying on his own strength?

Xi Yu furrowed his brow, worried.

"That guy’s name is Peanut, right? Now that the balance is over, we’re all here. By numbers, he must have died..." Sun Xiuya, her face pale with fear, said, "Let's wait for the rain to stop, and then we can search together..."

Just as she finished speaking, a figure appeared in the blood rain at the door, coming closer and closer.

It was Peanut.

The group exchanged glances, none of them daring to speak.

Peanut, wounded and disoriented, stumbled through the door and rushed straight to Yao Chenna's body, crying out, "Nana! I didn’t protect you well!"

Wu Zhi swallowed hard: "He's still alive..."

He then looked around at the other players, whispering, "So, one person is left?"