Chapter 86.2 Crimson Sunset Expedition
Big Eye only sensed that Wen Shi had fallen into an infinite state of loneliness. However, lacking a brain or a heart, it didn’t possess the necessary conditions to generate such an emotion.
“……”
However, upon hearing his words, the scarecrow flew to the window, looked up at the sunset for a moment, and manipulated the mechanical cat to speak. “I need to go find that knockoff version of myself, see if I can dig some brain.”
Relying solely on basic reflexes derived from consciousness, without a brain, proved to be an unsustainable short-term solution.
Wen Shi frowned slightly. “Where do you plan to find your shadow?”
“Give me some money, I’ll consult the turtlekin.”
“……”
After a two-second silence, Wen Shi didn’t hesitate and stuffed the scarecrow into his luggage, holding onto the handle tightly. “Grandma, keep an eye on it for me.”
The scarecrow tried to struggle.
Wen Shi said coldly, “With no brain of your own, what’s the success rate of you digging out a brain from others?”
The scarecrow pondered seriously before saying, “I’ll know once I consult the turtlekin.”
Wen Shi took a deep breath. Luckily, the old lady steadied him.
Experiencing what the tour guide felt like, Wen Shi felt both angry and amused, every word squeezed out between his teeth, “What if the turtlekin aren’t reliable?”
“Find a few more, cross-reference the answers.”
Just before her grandson got worked up enough to have a heart attack, the old lady walked out of the suitcase. “I’ll take it for a stroll.”
Wen Shi was surprised.
“Isn’t there some kind of evolution system here? The specialty is creating something out of nothing.”
The reattachment of the newbies’ severed limbs and tongues after resurrection was the best example. The old lady spoke more words than usual in one breath. “First evolve into another species, gain some brainpower, and then go find the shadow.”
The scarecrow definitely couldn’t push the luggage. Wen Shi confirmed once again, “Are you willing to walk out and take a look?”
The old lady nodded. “I used to enjoy moving around freely when I was young.”
Her willingness to help Big Eye stemmed from observations along the way. The scarecrow’s loyalty to her dear grandson was unwavering. Furthermore, she was more tolerant towards simple-minded non-humans than humans. Plus, this one was a little fool, so showing more understanding was only natural.
Before leaving, the old lady thought for a moment, then turned her head to Wen Shi and said, “Don’t forget the reminder I gave you.”
It wasn’t until the old lady left with Big Eye that Wen Shi recalled everything she had said along the way. He couldn’t filter out any directed statements from her words.
He paced around the room. The old lady had definitely discovered something, but she was restricted from stating it clearly. She could only convey it as discreetly as possible.
At eight o’clock, the tour guide knocked on the doors of each room in turn to announce dinner.
When Wen Shi went downstairs, there were already several people sitting at the dining table in the lobby. He spotted Yu Xingzhou and walked over to that table to sit down.
Shadow Yu Xingzhou still had bruises on his wrists from being bound by the bedsheet. It was easy to distinguish between the original and the shadow.
In less than five minutes, everyone had gathered.
Players and their shadows had significant differences in behavior, but their intelligence was more or less the same. The check-in process eliminated a total of four people: two players and their shadows.
The numbers were balanced.
Thirty-six people, divided into four large round tables.
Newbie Song Yan tended to be talkative. “Where’s your little scarecrow? And your grandmother?”
Wen Shi remained unfazed. “She went out to find some turtlekin.”
“Cough, cough…”
People at more than one table choked on their food.
The girl couldn’t believe he would be so brainless. She looked at Wen Shi skeptically. “She’s willing to leave you and go play with turtles?”
Wen Shi’s chopstick-holding movement faltered for a moment, then quickly resumed. He smoothly changed the subject, “Could it be that some people treat their grandchild as a giant baby?”
The girl immediately looked at the teenager, and nodded in agreement. “A momentary lapse could lead to irreversible consequences.”
If it hadn’t been for Wen Shi speaking just now, she would have snapped the chopsticks in half with a single finger. The fragile appearance could hold up for a few more seconds.
The teenager calmly took a bite of vegetables, remaining silent throughout.
The girl stood up to pour water, an unusual act without her usual emphasis on not listening to outsiders’ provocations. Her wandering gaze seemed to be pondering other matters.
What was ingrained in one’s nature was difficult to change. The difference lay in whether it was suppressed or not. She understood her original self well enough. She wouldn’t intervene in Wen Shi’s relationships, but she also wouldn’t act rashly on her own. The mini scarecrow disappeared along with her. That small thing alone wouldn’t be enough to make her original self make such a decision.
As she was lost in thought, Wen Shi already had an answer: Try not to rely on external forces.
When the monster appeared, the old lady dealt with it decisively. During the rest of the journey, apart from rescuing people according to her intentions, she mainly remained on the sidelines.
So, did relying on inner strength help with completing the level?
“Have you noticed something interesting?” Li Nan, sitting on the right, suddenly spoke. “Our skills are still locked.”
In the background notes of the story, it was mentioned that players’ skills were locked until they reached their travel destination. However, they had already arrived at the Sunset Station, and skills were still grayed out and unusable.
Wen Shi nodded. “Perhaps we have to wait until we reach the first tourist attraction.”
After dinner, Wen Shi went back to his room and took a hot shower. At 10:30 PM, everyone gathered at the entrance of the inn.
The House of Screams wasn’t too far from here, about a fifteen-minute walk. They took another road, and as they walked straight, they could see it by the roadside.
Covered by soft green vines that wound through every gap in the iron window railings, the building’s shape was no longer discernible. Even from a distance, it exuded a suffocating feeling. The tightly entwined green vine structure left only a small door for entry and exit. The tour guide spoke as she led them in that direction. “Do you all remember the original intention of this trip?”
“To rediscover our original selves,” someone instinctively responded.
The tour guide shook their head. “More than that.”
Li Nan calmly added, “Humility.”
The background of the story mentioned that they had lost the spirit of humility.
The tour guide laughed. “Exactly, I believe you’ll gradually learn this from the points of interest you visit.”
Amid the conversation, they arrived at the House of Screams.
The tour guide was the first to enter through the small door. On the first floor was the ticket counter, where the ticket seller wore a false professional smile, her mouth never losing its upward curve. The rigid smile seemed quite unnatural.
Like all entertainment venues, there were dedicated play reminders posted here. It should have been the first thing everyone paid attention to, but at this moment, they all simultaneously looked at the cabinet against the wall. It resembled a traditional Chinese medicine cabinet in appearance, but more compact. It had hundreds of small drawers, each with a different label on the outside: werewolves, dungeon worms, crawling blood corpses… The price for each variety differed.
Next to the cabinet was a low table with plastic baskets and tweezers, resembling a buffet-style selection.
There were no scales. Eerything here was simply priced according to the type.
“During the long journey, you should have gotten to know each other somewhat. Our travel agency only caters to successful individuals with special abilities,” the tour guide said with particular joy. “Please anonymously select someone you think is the most conceited and self-assured. In the following itinerary, we will seal off their abilities. As for the sealing method, we will all work together.”
She further explained, “The House of Screams will simulate various scenarios based on the arrogance of that individual. As long as everyone successfully clears the scenario, we can revert them to their original state.”
The tour guide took the ballot box handed over by the ticket seller, and with a meaningful glance in Wen Shi’s direction, she jiggled it and said, “If you are very curious about the reason for someone’s success, you may also choose him.”
The tour guide’s implication was quite clear. The teenager suddenly spoke up, “Don’t pick…”
Burnt Player sneered, as if knowing what he was about to say, “The skills of the shadow are the same as the original self’s. Of course, you wouldn’t want others to know about your skills.”
In that moment, the teenager knew that the idiots were about to start acting recklessly.
Throughout the journey, it was Wen Shi who stood out the most. The shadows would undoubtedly cast their entire vote for the original Wen Shi, and on the players’ side, there were too many who were curious about Wen Shi’s skill. Coupled with the individual presences harboring dissatisfaction from the start, it was obvious who would be selected in the end.
The one who should be most curious, Yu Xingzhou, spoke in a low voice at this moment, “Choose someone from the shadow side, but not Pei Wenwei’s shadow.”
In an instance where two waves of players were already wiped out, it would be foolish to choose the path with the greatest variability just to explore someone else’s secrets.
The responding players were few. Curiosity was secondary. After all, how many underground organizations were currently offering high prices for information about Pei Wenwei? Especially the Puppet Guild, which considered Pei Wenwei as a mortal enemy. If they could grasp even a sliver of the opponent’s secrets, they would not only gain a significant number of points but also use the opportunity to rise within the major guilds.
Xiao Hua smiled mischievously, “It seems like everyone doesn’t quite agree with Guild Leader Yu’s decision.”
She smiled, but her gaze was chilling.
A player immediately said, “I definitely support Guild Leader Yu’s decision.”
After all, it was anonymous voting, so no one would know if they said one thing and did another.
Xiao Hua’s eyes darkened completely. She should have found a way to eliminate a few people while they were at the inn.
Her line of thought was correct. The setup in the early stages of the game was all to lay the groundwork for turning against each other later on. Eliminating potential threats was more important than the number of people in the team.
Wen Shi didn’t say anything throughout because whatever he said wouldn’t be taken seriously.
Crew Cut Guy asked the tour guide, “Will we be able to use our individual skills once we go inside?”
“Of course,” the tour guide enthusiastically explained, “and you all enter together. At least inside the House of Screams, you function as a unit.”
With that sentence, everyone’s thoughts became even more active. In other words, they could ride on the coattails of the big shots.
The wall clock reached ten fifty. The tour guide couldn’t wait and said, “Hurry up and cast your votes. Remember, no abstentions.” To prevent anyone from forgetting each other’s names, the tour guide introduced everyone again. Everyone was introduced quickly, but when it came to Wen Shi, she introduced slowly, one word at a time, “Aa…ron.”
After a pause, she smiled and added, “I almost forgot to mention that, as your tour guide, I also have the right to vote.”
There were paper and pens on the table, and everyone stepped forward in turn.
Wen Shi didn’t feel nervous at all. He was confident he would win by a wide margin.
The number of shadows was greater than that of the four players. Except for the teenager, everyone else would choose him. Furthermore, Burnt Player held strong animosity towards him, and considering the tour guide’s vote… Wen Shi self-deprecatingly muttered, “Steady, steady.”
One by one, small pieces of paper were stuffed into the ballot box. Half a minute later, the ticket seller began to tally the votes. Soon, she raised her voice to announce the result, “Aaron.”
After reading the result, she asked Wen Shi to sit opposite her and surprisingly began to feel his pulse. The ticket seller half-closed her eyes, and the process took quite some time.
The tour guide’s joyful smile froze. It hadn’t lasted this long before.
Finally, the ticket seller withdrew her hand, stood up, and started selecting a type from a small cabinet, accompanied by muttering to herself, “The Corpse Crawler can mimic speed, and for sharp weapons, the Absurd Monstrosity can achieve…”
Swiftly, she pulled out concentrated fossils from a small drawer and tossed them into the plastic basket. In the blink of an eye, most of the cabinets in the front three rows were emptied.
The tour guide couldn’t contain her surprise any longer, “Did you make a mistake? Usually, five or six concentrated living fossils are enough.”
People started to understand a bit. These fossils were likely alive and could mimic a player’s skills.
Typically, a player had only one skill.
Someone said, “Different tiers.”
Wen Shi caught onto the term and curiously asked, “What are different tiers?”
Xiao Hua answered him, “Skills have different levels. For the majority of skills, leveling up results in enhanced abilities and is referred to as same tier. Different tier means that each level of the same skill has a different effect.”
Wen Shi raised an eyebrow. His main summoning skill had companion skills, and these companion skills were divided into three levels: advanced, intermediate, beginner, each with different effects. For example, the cat transformation and feigned corpse skills under seduction skill.
The tour guide had said they possessed special abilities, possibly not limited to just skills. His 2B luck value and ability to go around with a bit of remaining HP could be counted as well.
Wen Shi thought for a moment and asked, “And what about war general?”
One player blurted out, “You have a war general too?”
Wen Shi nodded candidly. “Yes, and it also has a skill.”
The skill was called ‘Heavenly Melody.’
At the same time, the ticket seller finally gathered enough concentrated fossils. Some single fossils couldn’t mimic specific skills, so she had to take a few more to ensure a good match.
Without computers, relying entirely on calculations, the human-voiced audio playback confirmed whether there were extra recordings. The pronunciation was quite clear, “Zero, one two three plus one zero eight plus five six plus…”
The tour guide’s eyes went dark as she listened. The admission to the House of Screams was covered by the travel agency, and with all the other tour expenses, she wouldn’t even be able to cover the inn’s stay.
The expressions of the players and their shadows weren’t great either. The tour guide’s statement that “usually, five or six are enough” indicated that five or six were sufficient to activate the effects of dual skills.
And a basket filled with concentrated fossils… that was a deadly amount!
She repeated the calculation once more to confirm there were no mistakes. The ticket seller stood up, snapped the signboard leading to the second-floor House of Screams from “Class A Scenic Spot” to “5A,” and handed the bill to the tour guide.
The tour guide covered one eye and cautiously started reading from the end of the bill. When she finally saw how many digits it contained, she thought dizzily, “It’s over, I’ll have to stay in town washing dishes to cover the bill.”
The players were even more troubled than her. They took a deep breath.
Meanwhile, Wen Shi and the teenager were actually getting along quite well. They were reading the instructions for entering the House of Screams and unsurprisingly found a sentence: “The chosen one and their shadow do not need to enter.”
The House of Screams imitated a player’s skills, so naturally, they wouldn’t have them enter against the same skills they possessed. Moreover, to prevent skills from being sealed, the chosen one might deliberately cause chaos, making it difficult for others to escape the House of Screams. This rule was, in fact, meant to protect the voters.
After confirming they didn’t need to enter, Wen Shi and the teenager exchanged a glance and gave a triumphant high-five, as if celebrating their escape from a disaster. “Yes!”
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