Chapter 145

Chapter 145

At the same time, Luo Xi had already successfully arrived at the bottom of the well at midnight.

Like all artificial humans, his life experience was limited—but fortunately, most of that limited experience had to do with horror and extreme gaming environments.

So even when facing pitch darkness where he couldn’t see his own hand and the possibility of vengeful spirits appearing at any moment, Luo Xi’s heartbeat remained as steady as ever.

Time ticked by, second after second, and nothing happened around him.

If he hadn’t been certain that Xu Tu wouldn’t waste such a valuable opportunity, he would’ve already lost patience.

After waiting a bit longer, Luo Xi cleared his throat and asked, using the forced female voice he had been given, “Hey, Miss Midnight, are you here or not? I came to help you get revenge, you know. If you don’t speak up now, you’ll miss your chance.”

The echo in the bottom of the well was unusually eerie.

About three seconds later, a chill brushed the back of Luo Xi’s neck.

Still unmoving, Luo Xi even let out a snort: “Time is precious. If you’ve got time to scare me, you might as well tell me the plot points.”

As his words fell, a girl finally answered softly, “You’re quite brave. Brave people don’t have it easy in Yin Bridge Village.”

Luo Xi looked toward the darkness, following her voice: “Because they can’t see the paper dolls and can’t get any information?”

The girl let out a light laugh: “Exactly. Without information, dying comes a bit faster.”

Luo Xi raised an eyebrow: “But everyone’s going to die anyway, right?”

After a brief pause, the girl replied again: “Yes. This is a world that feeds on ‘evil’—whether fear, hatred, jealousy, or murderous intent, they’re all delicious food for those three monsters around the Matchmaker. There never was a mountain god. It’s all just their lies…”

Luo Xi had no interest in the backstory and pretended to suddenly understand: “So you didn’t commit suicide?”

The girl let out a cold laugh: “Whether I did or didn’t, it doesn’t matter anymore—”

Having experienced too many game instances, Luo Xi immediately cut in: “What matters is putting an end to this tragedy?”

The girl added, “Exactly. And the way to end it is to get rid of those three monsters!”

“You’re really Ziye?” Luo Xi didn’t drop his guard. “Why hide in the dark to talk to me? You do know I’m the only candidate who found you.”

The girl answered, “I was afraid I’d scare you.”

Luo Xi replied, “You think I’d be afraid?”

Finally, a faint green ghostly flame lit up in the darkness.

The light revealed a pale, swollen face with bloody hollows where the eyes should be. Most terrifying of all, the girl wore red and had lost her right hand—she looked exactly like the corpse whose finger bones Luo Xi had broken earlier.

It was indeed Ziye.

Luo Xi felt a little guilty and took a step back, explaining, “Damaging your body was just for the mission. It’s not easy for anyone out here—don’t take it personally.”

Ziye raised her arm to look at it, then sneered coldly: “I no longer have a life. This body will decay sooner or later. But before I fade away completely, please destroy this world.”

After saying these routine words, Luo Xi felt a bit tired. He shifted his stance and crossed his arms: “Fine, but those three aren’t easy to deal with. Especially that steel blade in A’Gu’s hand—I might not be a match either.”

Ziye nodded: “That’s right. They’re not human, and you can’t fight them as if they are.”Luo Xi: “So what’s your plan exactly?”

Ziye was silent for a moment, then said, “Let’s deal with Xi Po first. Her weakness is obvious—she’s terrified of crow’s blood.”

Luo Xi blinked. “Crows? There’s no living creature in this village.”

Ziye explained, “True, but I know how to attract crows—bring the corpse under the Yin-Yang tree at dawn. The crows will be drawn there. But whether or not you can catch them depends on your skills.”

Just then, a clear broadcast sound rang out, confirming the little ghost girl's words.

[Hidden Mission Accepted — Kill Xi Po]

[Mission Reward: One Final Key]

First, Luo Xi hadn’t expected a reward at all. Second—what the heck was a final key?

After thinking for a moment, he decided to go with the flow. He’d just focus on clearing this dungeon with Xi Yu for now. He gave Ziye a nod and then, gripping the dark vines, climbed out of the well swiftly.

Meanwhile, Xi Yu had only managed to get a pair of embroidered shoes. With nothing else to do, he headed to the decrepit house as planned and waited anxiously—until he finally saw Luo Xi’s familiar figure.

Luo Xi was still as calm and relaxed as ever. Upon seeing Xi Yu, he gave him a hug first and then asked, “Everything go smoothly?”

Xi Yu didn’t look happy. “Not really. If you hadn’t shown up, the NPC would’ve stopped giving me the mission items. But... we can steal Mu Yuan’s instead.”

“Now that’s what I like to hear.” Luo Xi chuckled. “So today’s mission is embroidered shoes? Then the materials should be easy to guess.”

Xi Yu nodded. “That’s right. The only thing on the human body that can be used for embroidery is hair.”

As he spoke, he toyed with his soft, silver hair, but looked uneasy. “But the missions are getting harder each night. There’s no way today’s is easier than yesterday’s. There must be something else required besides hair.”

Luo Xi wasn’t exactly great at remembering women’s accessories. After a while, he just shrugged. “No worries. Let’s go check a corpse and see.”

“Wait—you asked about my progress, but what about yours?” Xi Yu grabbed his arm, still feeling uneasy.

Only then did Luo Xi remember the hidden mission. He leaned close and quickly whispered the details in Xi Yu’s ear, then draped an arm over his shoulder. “Don’t worry. Everything’s under control. Su Ziyan didn’t make it out of this game. Mu Yuan won’t either… showing mercy to them now would only be cruel to ourselves.”

Xi Yu nodded and murmured, “I was too soft before. Let’s go.”

With that, he took the lead and began walking.

Luo Xi hurried to catch up, thinking to himself: You weren’t exactly soft before… now that you’re saying harsh things all of a sudden, what are you planning to do to Mu Yuan?

Xi Yu wasn’t the kind of person whose actions could be predicted or guessed. At this moment, Luo Xi couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for that guy Mu Yuan. He might not even be able to die in peace.

Holding Ziye’s corpse gave Luo Xi a clear edge over the others. For now, all he needed to do was check what a proper embroidered shoe actually looked like.

But he and Xi Yu had barely walked ten meters down the dim street before he sharply sensed someone tailing them.

Xi Yu wasn’t careless either. The moment Luo Xi nudged his arm, he realized they weren’t in a safe situation.

He tightened his grip on the self-defense flashlight he’d been holding, already calculating that even if Mu Yuan and Ying Zhixing attacked together, they might still have a fighting chance.

Footsteps echoed loud and clear in the night.Luo Xi slowed down more and more. The moment he noticed the shadow approaching, he suddenly stopped and turned around, swinging his arm into a punch.

Who would have thought that the one who clumsily fell to the ground was actually Zhi Shan, that girl.

Zhi Shan, who was almost punched in the face, nervously whispered, "I-I’m not here to hurt you! I’m here to cooperate!"

Luo Xi found her persistence somewhat amusing and snorted, "What do you have to offer to cooperate with us?"

Zhi Shan replied, "I-I’m willing to act as bait to help you get a pair of shoes! You just need to let me take one look at the embroidery pattern on Ziye’s shoes, I’ll figure out the materials myself."

Xi Yu’s delicate face remained cold as he flexed his slender, pale fingers. "I’m afraid all the remaining streamers know by now that embroidered shoes require hair. That material is easily obtained by everyone."

Zhi Shan, however, was clear-headed: "I’m sure there’s something else as well. The system wouldn’t let us pass so easily! But no matter what the materials are, I won’t trouble you for them!"

The night was long; they still had six hours left to complete the task.

Xi Yu thought it over and surprisingly agreed to her request: "Alright, I’ll give you one chance—help us lure Wang Lou or Mu Yuan. If we get the shoes, I’ll give you the correct embroidery pattern."

Upon hearing this, Zhi Shan grew a little nervous: "But they’re dangerous. Can’t I lure Yan Ruyu instead?"

Luo Xi and Xi Yu didn’t show much interest in ganging up on a female streamer and silently stared at Zhi Shan.

In the end, Zhi Shan nodded: "Fine, I’ll go look for Mu Yuan. Just don’t stay too far from me."

At this time, most streamers were searching for clues about the embroidered shoes within the village. Whether it was the tailor’s shop or general store, they had all been thoroughly searched by now thanks to the players' growing familiarity with the map.

Since Mu Yuan and Wang Lou had lost Zhao Zhusheng as a helper, the atmosphere between them was somewhat gloomy.

After finishing their search of a clothing store’s counter, Mu Yuan finally said impatiently, "There’s no embroidered shoes anywhere. Looks like we’ll have to wait for information from an NPC."

Wang Lou couldn’t help but remind him, "That Luo Xi hasn’t been around during the last two mission releases. It’s obvious he went corpse diving."

Mu Yuan replied, "I know. Otherwise, how do you think they completed yesterday’s task with bones?"

Wang Lou cracked his knuckles: "So if we team up with Ying Zhixing and snatch Ziye, then take those two out of the game, wouldn’t we be able to clear this instance smoothly?"

Mu Yuan was at least self-aware about his popularity and shot back, "What makes you think Ying Zhixing would cooperate with us? And what makes you think you can beat Luo Xi?"

Wang Lou shrugged, "Didn’t expect you to be such a rule-follower now. Fine, then let’s wait for the NPC's message and do the task by the book. I just think that with three people already dead, we’re only one step away from clearing this instance."

After taking blow after blow and having no team friends left, Mu Yuan gloomily replied, "One step away... maybe we’ll just become someone else’s stepping stone."

Just as they were arguing a bit, a familiar-looking girl suddenly dashed past the shop entrance with a da-da-da sound.

Wang Lou immediately chased after her and saw it was Zhi Shan. He called out, "Hey! Stop! Why are you running around alone?"

Zhi Shan seemed startled. As she stopped and turned back, a pair of embroidered shoes fell out of her arms.

Those shoes were indeed blood-stained, but different from the ones given by Xi Po.

As if she had been caught seeing something she shouldn’t have, she quickly picked up the shoes and ran off even faster, disappearing from sight.

Wang Lou’s eyes widened in surprise. He returned to the shop excitedly and said, "Hey, guess what I just saw?"

Mu Yuan looked up in confusion.