Chapter 148: Grand Performance (Part 11) Intermission – “Blackjack”

Charlie did not answer.

Qi Si continued on his own: “A beam of light shone into the dark iron tower, exposing the filth and sin within, and so this beam of light became sinful.

“If sin is judged by whether one kills or not, then the crimes we committed are buried in the past. When the dust has settled, you insist on digging up rotten, withered graves, bringing the stench and foulness to the surface, and calling it justice—don’t you think you’re ridiculous?”

“That’s right, I’m guilty!” Charlie burst out laughing. “Every one of us is guilty, and I’m no exception! This is a carnival of sin, what a wonderful theme!”

Qi Si stared at his mask and sneered: “But unfortunately, you are not the dawn that pierces the darkness, but a stage for grandstanding. You designed this play to judge sinners, seeking nothing more than to attract the audience’s attention—so, may I ask, have you designed your own death?”

Charlie straightened up, his voice a few degrees colder: “Sir, you seem to have forgotten, this is my home turf! How ridiculous of you to imagine judging the organizer on their own turf!”

“Oh?” Qi Si cast his gaze towards the empty No. 2 seat. “Then may I ask, why did you keep the No. 2 seat and place three Chips on it?”

The players recalled, as if by prior agreement, that before the “Catch the Fox” game began, Charlie had placed Chips in front of every seat, including the seat of the deceased Hansen.

They had thought at the time that this was a lazy design by the Eerie Game instance, as it didn’t know who would die in the first act, so it simply treated all stages equally.

Looking back, this was completely absurd: the Eerie Game instances were always thorough, how could they be so crude?

“Even I was almost led astray, truly viewing this instance as a stage play, which made me subconsciously consider it from the perspective of simplifying the process…” Dong Xiwen thought with lingering fear, and a flash of lightning suddenly crossed his mind.

He had a hunch that he might know something, but he couldn’t grasp the specific idea, as if separated by a thick layer of paper, unable to break through.

His heart tightened and ached, as if countless little people were jumping on it, scratching at it… He seemed to have forgotten something important, but what could it be?

Qi Si silently made a “please” gesture to Charlie: “It seems my guess was correct, so please, Player No. 2, take your seat.”

Charlie twisted his head, a rattling tremor escaping his throat, and his body trembled violently, like an ant trying to shake a tree under immense pressure.

In a few seconds, he was pulled by invisible strings like a true puppet, walking stiffly and wobblingly towards the empty seat, and then stiffly sat down.

At the same time, lines of text refreshed on every player’s system interface.

【The second game, Crazy Blackjack, rules are as follows:】

【1. Each player initially receives two cards, one face-up and one face-down. Players can choose which card to reveal.】

【2. In each round of drawing cards, starting from Player No. 1, choose between ‘Hit’ and’Stand’. Once you choose to Stand, you cannot take any further actions. The game ends when everyone has Stood.】

【3. K, Q, J, and 10 cards all count as 10 points. An Ace card can count as either 11 points or 1 point. If an Ace counts as 11 and the total score exceeds 21, it counts as 1.】

【4. If a player’s hand total exceeds 21 points, it’s a ‘Bust’, and they lose. If the total is exactly 21 points, it’s a ‘Blackjack’, and all players except the one with Blackjack are deemed to have lost.】

【5. During the game, each player has one opportunity to exchange cards or pass cards. Exchanging cards means swapping your face-down card with another player’s face-down card. Passing cards means handing your hand over to another player. Both exchanging and passing cards are considered’Stand’. Cards that have been replaced or passed cannot be acted upon again.】

Perhaps because Charlie transitioned from organizer to player, for fairness, the game rules were directly displayed by the system interface this time.

The white text on a black background was clear, and the authenticity of the rules was beyond doubt.

Dong Xiwen was the first to analyze: “I think I understand. First, we need to ensure our points are as low as possible, not to Bust; then, we need to find a way to make others’ points exceed 21; if someone gets 21 points, to prevent everyone else from losing, we’ll have to break up their 21 points.”

“Exactly.” Cynthia had already recovered from her previous embarrassment, regaining her composure as a superior. “We are all players, and our positions are consistent. After the game starts, we can all pass cards to Charlie, making him Bust.”

As soon as she finished speaking, two playing cards appeared out of thin air in front of each player.

Immediately after, the system voice announced coldly:

【Round One begins】

The game seemed to be nearing its end. In this scene, the players had a decisive victory and would soon be able to put the organizer, who had been leading them by the nose, to death. Even if they wanted to remain calm, it was difficult to hide their eagerness.

Without much hesitation, in just two seconds, everyone had seen their cards and revealed their face-up cards.

【Please draw cards starting from Player No. 1】

Qi Si drew a card, and without even looking, casually tossed it to Charlie beside him, seamlessly going from “passing card” to “stand”.

Charlie calmly took the card Qi Si threw over, then drew another card and neatly placed it in front of him.

The other players followed suit, drawing cards, comparing their values, and then throwing their larger cards to Charlie.

After one round, everyone except Charlie had Stood.

Charlie chuckled hoarsely, his masked face turning to Qi Si, then lowering again to look at the face-up card ‘8’ in front of him: “Mr. No. 1, you are a character I like very much. I hope your other card is less than 4.”

The players almost immediately understood what Charlie was going to do, and their expressions all changed.

Qi Si asked indifferently: “You have a 10 in your hand?”

Charlie remained silent, flipping over a face-down card in front of him, which was clearly a ‘K’.

—According to the game rules, it counts as 10 points!

Charlie flicked the ‘K’ card towards Qi Si, who caught it with two fingers and placed it in his own card pile.

【Round One ends】

All cards were revealed with a snap.

Qi Si’s cards were 【K】【2】【8】, totaling 20 points, narrowly avoiding a Bust and not a Blackjack.

Charlie’s cards were 【3】【7】【9】【10】【J】【Q】, totaling 49 points, undoubtedly a Bust.

Despite this, he laughed unrestrainedly.

Amidst the hoarse laughter, his limbs cracked piece by piece, scattering on the ground. A pile of hard wooden blocks rolled around, accompanied by his unceasing laughter, making it particularly eerie.

A minute later, one of the Chips in front of seat No. 2 turned into blood and seeped into the tabletop, and the wooden blocks on the ground flew up one after another, reassembling into Charlie’s form.

The NPC seemed to feel no pain, turning his head to face Qi Si: “Mr. No. 1, it seems you’re lucky! But good luck is rare, and you can’t guarantee constant victory.”

Qi Si said “Oh,” with a rising inflection: “So, you want to die together with me?”

“No, no, no.” Charlie shook his head. “I’m not intentionally targeting you, it’s just that your Chips are fewer than theirs because of someone. Of course, I’d rather you be willing to have a win-win with me—you know what I mean!”

Is it really okay for you to conspire openly like this? Dong Xiwen clicked his tongue, but also realized a serious problem.

In the first round, four people against Charlie, the players had an overwhelming advantage. But if Charlie convinced Qi Si, it would be three against two. Although the numbers would still be in their favor, given Qi Si’s strength, it was hard to say who would win.

And Qi Si had every reason to cooperate with Charlie.

If he stood with the players, and Charlie was determined to target him, he would have no choice but to die; with his personality, he would never sacrifice himself for others… Cynthia looked at Qi Si, coaxing him: “Zhou Ke, think carefully. If you stand with Charlie, we will definitely target you first and eliminate you. Death is inevitable. Instead of shamefully colluding with ghosts, it’s better to always stand with humanity.”

With blatant moral blackmail and empty promises, Qi Si looked at her with a half-smile, saying nothing.

He Hui suddenly looked up and said softly, “Zhou Ke, in the next round, don’t pass cards first. Wait until Charlie stands, then pass cards to me and make me Bust. That way, our Chips will be the same.”

Qi Si remained noncommittal, but the Eerie Game didn’t give players much time to prepare.

【Round Two begins】

With a system sound, new cards appeared in front of the players.

Qi Si flipped a 【6】 face-up and looked around at everyone: “In this round, if anyone passes a card to me, I will keep drawing cards until I draw a sufficiently large card and pass it back.”

A simple and crude threat, but exceptionally effective.

Although Qi Si had the fewest Chips and would be eliminated first no matter what, who knew if the Chips in hand would still be useful in the third act? No one was willing to sacrifice themselves and expend resources in this situation.

【Please draw cards starting from Player No. 1】

Qi Si drew a card, glanced at it, and then put it away.

Charlie drew a card, also taking no action.

—The opportunity to pass or exchange cards held in hand constitutes the greatest threat.

After drawing a card, He Hui hesitantly passed it to Charlie.

Even though Qi Si had clearly sided with the ghosts, she still couldn’t bring herself to intentionally harm someone. Even if the other party was guilty, they shouldn’t be judged here.

Cynthia also drew a card, and after seeing its face, she narrowed her eyes.

It was a 【10】. She already had a face-up 【7】 and a face-down 【5】. Keeping this card would make her Bust.

—She had to pass the card.

If she passed it to Charlie, it would undoubtedly make Charlie Bust, but that was too uneconomical.

In the first round, Charlie’s score was 49 points. If the excess 27 points were distributed among other players, it might consume several people’s Chips.

Charlie busting was inevitable, so why not take this opportunity to eliminate “Zhou Ke” as well?

“Zhou Ke” could only pass a card once, and might casually pass her a 【9】, which would give her a “Blackjack.” Even if “Zhou Ke” stubbornly flipped a 【10】 and passed it to her, she wouldn’t lose out.

Anyway, she still had three Chips… Thinking this, Cynthia pushed the 【10】 card towards Qi Si with two fingers.

A mocking smile curled at the corner of Qi Si’s lips beneath his mask, and he said teasingly, “Are you sure you want to pass this card to me? I guarantee you’ll regret it.”

Cynthia merely took Qi Si’s words as a bluff and said unhurriedly, “I am certainly sure. Choosing to collude with ghosts at a critical moment of life and death, people like you shouldn’t exist in this world.”

She spoke with grand righteousness, making Dong Xiwen look constipated. He quickly drew a card and threw it to Charlie.

【Please start a new round of drawing cards from Player No. 1】

At this point, neither Qi Si nor Charlie had Stood.

Qi Si drew a card from the deck and threw it to Cynthia.

It was a 【3】. Cynthia was somewhat confused, then realized a possibility, her breath catching… It couldn’t be that coincidental, could it? It couldn’t be that unlucky, could it?

Charlie also drew a card, then carefully selected a 【Q】 from his deck and passed it to He Hui.

【Round Two ends, congratulations to Player No. 1 for ‘Blackjack’】

The system sound blared coldly, mixed with a burst of cheap firework explosion sound effects, making it sound particularly comical.

At the same time, everyone saw the cards in front of Qi Si—

【2】【6】【3】【10】. Based on his initial hand, it was precisely because of the 【10】 Cynthia passed that he achieved 21 points!

Cynthia immediately understood everything, gritting her teeth: “Zhou Ke, you deliberately said all that to trick me into passing you the 10 points?”

“I wasn’t sure if any of you had a 10, nor was I sure if the 10 was in your hand.” Qi Si’s tone was very casual, as if saying “just for fun.” “However, if all four card faces 【10】【J】【Q】【K】 count as 10, the probability isn’t small, it’s worth a gamble. Now it seems my luck isn’t as bad as I thought.”

He paused, his tone sincere: “Ms. Cynthia, you should be glad that I got ‘Blackjack’. Now my Chips will be more than Charlie’s. Otherwise, I would have had to cooperate with Charlie.”

Charlie understood and clapped excitedly: “Excellent drama! A brilliant twist! I believe the audience will love it!”

Cynthia had a thousand words she wanted to say, but in the end, only one came out: “You lunatic…”

“How so?” Qi Si innocently raised a hand to touch his cold mask. “I merely want more people to live. In your words, am I not a great humanitarian?”

However, no one had the leisure to answer him at this moment.

One person achieved “Blackjack,” and everyone else was deemed to have failed.

As the punishment for failure fell, Charlie once again scattered into a pile of wooden blocks.

Cynthia, on the other hand, was flattened as if pressed, turning into a layer of flesh paste smeared on the seat, leaving behind a shattered skeleton.

Dong Xiwen’s head fell off, leaving only a bowl-sized bloody gash, and bullet holes successively pierced his body, adorning him as a blood-soaked man.

He Hui’s face was bruised purple, her tongue lolling out, as if an invisible rope had tightened around her neck, and her entire body was suspended high in the air.

Groans and wails rose and fell, creating an exceptionally lively scene.

Qi Si quietly observed the players’ various death methods, feeling quite pleased.

The Crazy Blackjack game progressed quickly, taking less than a minute to complete a round.

He had originally prepared that if he couldn’t achieve “Blackjack” in the second round, he would activate the effect of the Pocket Watch of Fate to return to before the game started, and together with Charlie, ruthlessly target Cynthia.

Failing that, he could also pass cards to He Hui or Dong Xiwen, at least to equalize the Chip gap among players.

Unexpectedly, his luck was better than he imagined. The opportunity to use the Pocket Watch of Fate was saved, and he successfully reduced everyone’s Chips by one, regaining the advantage.

At this moment, all players had 2 Chips, and Charlie had 1. The outcome was clear.

A minute passed, and the players returned to their original state, with only their unpleasant expressions and sweat-soaked clothes revealing their recent ordeal.

Amidst painful gasps, the emotionless system prompt sounded:

【Round Three begins】