Chapter 11

The nerves were stretched so tightly that even the slightest movement or sound would raise suspicion.

Last night, it had been announced that there was a traitor in the white side, so the white side lost one player, and the black side gained one.

If He Yingqi was from the white side, then the black side would have three more players.

If He Yingqi was from the black side, then the black side would have one more player.

But now, two bodies were lying side by side, so everyone’s minds were filled with unshakable doubt.

The most unsettled, Tong Leshan, stood up with difficulty, his face pale, and nervously asked, “How are you still alive?”

Huasheng, who was in pain and nearly broken, looked up in anger at the voice.

Tong Leshan gathered his courage and pressed forward aggressively, “Yingqi is dead, and then another traitor from the white side appeared in the middle of the night. The black side should have lost three people!”

Huasheng surveyed the surviving players around him, then sneered, “So you think I should be dead?”

Even Tong Leshan, with his thick skin, couldn’t say that.

“Why do you think He Yingqi was from the white side? If he was from the black side, only one person should have died in the balance! Clearly, one more person has died!” Huasheng said with some agitation, supporting Yao Chenna’s body, speaking with grief, “Nana’s death was much more brutal than Zhu Ge’s. I think someone intentionally killed her!”

Luo Xi, who was wiping the blood off nearby, sensed the gazes of the crowd and raised an eyebrow, asking, “What are you looking at me for? I didn’t kill her.”

Huasheng stood up, agitated, “Really? What evidence do you have?!”

“Suspicion should be proven by the one who doubts, bro.” Luo Xi stared intently at his face, “You should know best whether Yao Chenna was killed by the warrior’s soul. She was your girlfriend. Why didn’t you protect her?”

“None of us could see anyone at that time. We scattered, and I hid in the garden—” Huasheng began to explain himself.

“Enough! The snake is the guardian beast of the black side. He Yingqi was torn apart by the snake, and the camp is obvious.” Sun Xiuya suddenly said softly, “Did everyone forget? The game rules said every general has a chance to save their teammate... maybe the black general helped someone be revived.”

“Right, right.” Tang Yanyan snapped back to reality and nodded in agreement.

Fang Hao, feeling a headache, said, “Now everyone has secrets. Stop arguing and let’s bury the bodies first.”

“Nana... Nana...” Huasheng sobbed and lowered his head. His passionate grief earned him some sympathy from the others.

But Luo Xi remained cold, observing from the side, and left without a word.There were still nine people left, especially with Huasheng remaining, who could verify identities—this was very bad news.

After helping bury the bodies, Xiyu was filled with worries, immediately avoiding the crowd and quietly calling for the spirit cat in the garden. He crouched down and softly asked, "Where is the White Prince's passive skill card?"

"Ah, finally remembered yourself," the spirit cat yawned. "The flower card was originally in the medical hall, first discovered by the player Zhu Ge, and now it's in Luo Xi's hands."

Xiyu: "..."

The spirit cat stared at him with emotionless eyes. "Your situation is a bit bad, I’m going to lay low for now."

With that, it slipped into a pile of rocks.

Xiyu thought about how Zhu Ge had been so aggressive during breakfast and how he couldn’t handle Luo Xi for now. Aside from avoiding him, he really had no other solution.

However... the balance today had come so suddenly. Could there be more events happening in the game?

Remembering how Luo Xi had advised him to learn more about the story background the previous night, Xiyu went straight to the most secluded and inconspicuous library to look through ancient books.

Unlike the flower card written in Chinese characters, the books hidden in the general’s mansion were all in Japanese. The paper and ink were incredibly realistic, and holding them felt as though they might crumble at any moment.

For some unknown reason, Xiyu could read this foreign language, and with an extraordinary speed, he flipped through the books, finally confirming the terrifying fact in the historian’s records: The White General and Black General were originally brothers, and the wives they married were actually the same woman, named Mirror. Lady Mirror was extraordinarily beautiful and had once been deeply in love with the White General. However, it was later discovered that she had an affair with the White General’s brother, who became the Black General, and was abandoned by the White General. Although the Black General married her forcibly and treated her well, Lady Mirror still passed away in bitterness.

The spirit cat had mentioned the lady’s identity before. According to the content presented in the ink paintings, the lady’s ghost, who crawled out of the grave, was the one who triggered the curse.

So... the female ghost Xiyu saw every midnight... was Lady Mirror?

What was she doing near his bedroom? Why was she injured last night?

As Xiyu was lost in thought, a shadow suddenly lunged at him!

He snapped back to his senses and, without thinking, grabbed the figure, nearly breaking their arm.

"Ahhh!!! It hurts!!!" Wu Zhi screamed. "Bro, it’s me!"

Xiyu sighed in relief, letting him go. "What were you sneaking around for?"

"Didn't you tell me to keep a low profile?" Wu Zhi complained. "How come you're so skilled? What exactly are you up to?"

Xiyu regarded him like a child and comforted him. "I don't remember. Are you alright?"Wu Zhi rubbed his arm and shook his head, getting excited. "Let's go, let's check out the shrine and investigate the cause of Zhu Ge and Yao Chenna's deaths. Maybe there will be some unexpected surprises."

Xiyu nodded, hesitated for a moment while holding the book, then put it back in its place and softly said, "I thought you would be really affected seeing more and more people die."

"Originally, yes, but didn’t you say that life and death in front of us might not be real?" Wu Zhi waved his arm. "As long as our general is alive, we have a chance of winning!"

Xiyu smiled wryly.

Wu Zhi yawned. "Actually, I’d rather the White General be Luo Xi... You saw what he did last night, he could definitely win."

"That’s not possible. If he were the general, why would he be so aggressive and noticeable?" Xiyu rubbed Wu Zhi’s head.

Wu Zhi replied, "True, and he got hurt during the balance incident. A general wouldn’t get hurt... Luo Xi is definitely our enemy now..."

This suddenly made Xiyu realize something. He glanced at Wu Zhi, then took a step forward.

Before they could even get close to the shrine, the two of them smelled an even stronger scent of blood.

Wu Zhi covered his nose and said, "What kind of century-old war happened here?"

Xiyu shook his head and suddenly stopped his steps.

The next moment, Luo Xi jumped down from the withered black tree, sizing them up. "What are you two doing here?"

Wu Zhi was so scared that he immediately hid behind Xiyu.

Seeing that Luo Xi didn't seem to be planning to attack, Xiyu acted calm and unbothered. "Someone died here, what’s wrong with coming to investigate?"

Luo Xi replied, "I’m afraid you two kind-hearted people will get more confused the more you investigate."

Xiyu glanced at Wu Zhi and said, "You wait for me inside. I have something to say to him."

Wu Zhi received the signal from Xiyu and quickly wrapped himself in black silk and ran towards the shrine’s approach.

Xiyu gathered his courage, gestured for Luo Xi to follow him to a corner, and whispered, "Which side are you really on? Why do you always teach me?"

Luo Xi responded with a question, "What have I taught you?"

Xiyu looked at the hastily bandaged wound on Luo Xi’s abdomen, then suddenly reached out to touch it. "How did you get hurt?"Luo Xi instantly grabbed his wrist: "Mind your own business."

Xiyu felt as if his slender arm was caught in an iron clamp. It took a lot of effort to awkwardly break free, then changed the subject. "I was just trying to be kind... I just read the historian's records from the General's Mansion, and thank you for the reminder. I saw the story of Lady Mirror."

Luo Xi showed an expression of "so what?"

Xiyu continued, "So I thought about it, the identities of the players and the rules of this game all come from Lady Mirror's perspective. In my opinion, Lady Mirror wasn't necessarily promiscuous. The so-called affair scandal was probably a setup. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have ended up dying in depression after being forced to marry the Black General. Lady Mirror hated the White General for abandoning her, hated the Black General for possessing her, and even arranged for her children to personally kill her husband—"

Luo Xi clapped his hands, interrupting, "Nice story. Are you trying to keep me here so your little buddy can do something?"

Xiyu was slightly stunned, then said, "I wanted to analyze it with you. Since Lady Mirror caused this curse, she should have been the one controlling the cursed blade, right?"

Luo Xi raised an eyebrow, sizing him up for a few seconds, then smiled. "Alright, I believe your sincerity. After all, you can't lie."

These words shattered the small hope Xiyu had inside. It seemed that Lingmao’s information was 100% correct—White Lord's skill flower card was indeed in Luo Xi’s hands, and Luo Xi had already correctly guessed his identity.

Now… could he bet on Luo Xi’s identity?

In just two days, everything seemed to flash in Xiyu's mind like a revolving lantern.

At this moment, Wu Zhi had completed his public duties and nervously approached.

Xiyu snapped back to his senses, then stubbornly said, "I don’t like lying."

After saying that, he turned and grabbed Wu Zhi, hurriedly leading him across the blood lake.

Wu Zhi, confused, carefully stepped over the floating corpses and asked, "Brother, what did you two talk about? Why do you look so nervous?"

Xiyu glanced back at Luo Xi in the distance, softly saying, "Nothing. I used to think he was probably an enemy, but now I don't think so anymore."

Wu Zhi was shocked. "Are you saying Luo Xi is also on the White side? No way!"

There was no one else in the center of the blood lake, so Xiyu slowed down. "Let’s not talk about him for now. By the way, what did you find out about the cause of death?"

"Ugh, I got goosebumps!" Wu Zhi suddenly remembered something important. "The corpse of the Yin-Yang master told me that the souls of Huasheng, Yao Chenna, and Zhu Ge were all killed by warrior spirits, but Huasheng is clearly still alive!"

Xiyu responded, "That’s probably because the Black General used a resurrection skill on him. To me, Huasheng must be the Black Princess. This person must not be left alive."

Wu Zhi's eyes widened. "Bro, are you going to kill him?"Xiyu frowned. "Let’s observe some more. Huasheng and Yao Chenna were involved in an incident at the shrine, so today they must have finished the verification. It’s always the same. Now, the number of people on the black and white sides isn't equal, and logically speaking, there should still be a balance event tomorrow."

Wu Zhi frowned. "Hey, we’re not the type to make quick, harsh decisions. Why don’t we play a little dirty?"

Xiyu didn’t trust his intelligence or emotional intelligence, so he immediately stopped him. "Stay low."

"Don’t reject so quickly!" Wu Zhi questioned. "Just tell me if you agree that Tong Le Shan is the Black Prince? I think he is, and I plan to disguise myself as the Black Princess to get him to talk!"

Xiyu: "And then? If he’s already recognized Huasheng, will he immediately release a snake to bite you to death?"

Wu Zhi: "…………"

Xiyu: "Skills are relative. I can use a cat, and the Black Prince can naturally use a snake. You need to listen to me. The most important thing now is self-preservation. Once I find the cursed blade, we can act."

Wu Zhi nodded dejectedly, probably a bit unwilling, but he didn’t want to go against Xiyu's wishes.

Xiyu couldn’t think of anyone he could trust, and he was filled with worry about the imminent situation. He instructed, "If you really have no other choice, disguising yourself as someone from the black side is a last-ditch effort, but it's not necessary right now. Also, those two little girls, you must stay far away from them."

"Tang Yanyan and Sun Xiuyan?" Wu Zhi waved his hand indifferently. "Just some scared little girls, nothing to fear."

"Not necessarily scared, but they leave no room for error." Xiyu's handsome face looked serious in the mist. After a moment, he smiled at him. "I’m not afraid of a real fight, I just worry that someone will pretend to be a pig to eat a tiger."

Wu Zhi: "Why?"

"Because those people are like poisonous bugs in the gutter, and since they’re not strong enough, they can only hide in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to strike and kill with one blow. They won't give you a chance to resist." Xiyu said softly, "I should... have suffered a similar loss."

Wu Zhi scratched his head, understanding only about 30-40% of what was said. Then he flashed a bright smile. "Brother, it’s fine, let’s just do our best! Worst case, in twenty years, we'll be fine again."

Xiyu smiled bitterly. "Did you forget the consequences of our agreement? The loser will no longer exist."

Wu Zhi looked at him with confusion.

Xiyu stepped over a decaying corpse, jumped to the other shore, and turned back seriously. "I’m not afraid of dying, but I don’t want to lose. Because my brain tells me that there’s something I must accomplish. That’s why I’m here."

Wu Zhi was shocked by Xiyu’s rare seriousness. "What is it? To overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming?"

Xiyu chuckled, shaking his head helplessly, gazing at the dark mist ahead. He thought to himself: First, survive. I’ll remember what it is later.