Chapter 200: Red Maple Boarding School (End) “How will you choose?”

【main quest completed】

The cold system prompt sounded, sealing Ms. Medina’s death.

The outwardly fierce but inwardly timid woman in black fell backward. The moment a spark ignited her fur, it spread into a raging inferno, wantonly sweeping over the corpse, greedily licking every inch of flesh, leaving behind charred black remains. The rendered fat dripped to the ground, splashing up white smoke, and the crackling sound of burning bones gradually faded into the wind.

Three generations of hatred and curses ended here, culminating in a man-made blaze.

Zhang Yiyu looked around in a daze, watching the flames surge in all directions, realizing it was not safe to stay.

Although she didn’t know why the instance clear prompt hadn’t appeared yet, she clearly knew that being burned by fire was not a pleasant experience, and most likely fatal.

The fire started in the kitchen, spread through vines and mushrooms, and eventually reached the four-story concrete building. On the cold, clean concrete floor, the spread of the fire slowed down, so the path from the front door of the concrete building to the Graveyard had not yet been engulfed by the sea of flames.

Zhang Yiyu no longer hesitated, and ran towards the Graveyard… Memorial Hall for Indigenous Victims, in the abandoned Isolation Room.

The players waited for half a minute, but still didn’t receive the instance clear prompt.

Shuomeng darted in front of Qi Si, shaking his shoulders hard: “Si Qi, what’s going on? Why is it stuck again?”

Qi Si sighed: “I’m not a madman who wants to see the world in chaos; don’t assume everything that goes wrong is my doing…”

Under their suspicious gazes, he stroked his chin and guessed: “Perhaps part of the world view hasn’t been deciphered yet, or perhaps this instance still has some plot it wants to show us, who knows?”

After two seconds of silence, Shuomeng nodded thoughtfully: “You have a point. Old Jiang is still at the Red Maple Boarding School. Based on past experience, these dual-line instances always give all players a chance to meet up at the end.”

Chang Xu chimed in: “Zhang Yiyu is also over there.”

Qi Si’s smile became strange, indistinct in the dim light, making it unclear if he was even smiling.

He ultimately did not voice his ill-timed humor, only saying faintly: “Later, I’m afraid I’ll have to trouble you two to carry me.”

…【main quest completed】

Red Maple Boarding School, Jiang Junjue was startled by the system prompt and belatedly smelled smoke.

He pushed open the door and saw thick black smoke filling the corridor. Combining this with the system prompt, he immediately deduced: someone had found the correct path to clear the instance, acted before him, and started a fire for it.

Jiang Junjue rushed towards the stairwell, but was forced back by the towering flames. The only escape route was blocked, and he was clearly trapped in the third-floor corridor.

It seemed like a dead end, but Jiang Junjue had always been one to not shed tears until he saw the Coffin. In the past ten years, he had idled through simple instances and diligently cleared new ones, encountering countless dangerous situations, and had long cultivated an extraordinary calmness.

Players of his caliber had plenty of life-saving items; one item was one life, and it wasn’t easy to meet death before using them all up.

Jiang Junjue took out a blanket from his snakeskin bag and wrapped himself in it to prevent being splashed by sparks, while simultaneously sifting through possible avenues of survival in his mind.

He remembered that one dormitory seemed to have a window… Memorial Hall for Indigenous Victims, at the entrance of the Isolation Room, Chang Xu stood in front, holding a Fate Poker, with Shuomeng following behind, carrying the armless and legless Qi Si.

The Maple Forest, covered in fallen leaves, had caught fire at some unknown time. The roaring flames, carrying swathes of red maple leaves, stopped at the damp earth.

Twisted figures writhed in the great fire, bouncing and circling, singing a strange tune.

“Good children who don’t want to eat can only eat dirt,

Bad Kids are covered in poisonous mushrooms.

Gods grow in rotten vegetables,

Yellow flower buds bloom at the head of the deceased’s bed.

After the day the Yellow Butterfly flew in,

Everyone died and was buried in the ground.

No grass grows on the children’s graves,

All of this is the witch’s curse.”

Amidst the singing, golden butterflies fluttered and danced over the flames, then scattered into specks of karmic fire. Red-clad figures grew in the firelight, exploding into orange-red flowing flames and petals in mid-air. God turned its head, and Qi Si saw his own face, both similar and dissimilar.

The air rippled with flickering waves around the scorching flames, and the intense firelight cast an orange-yellow, forged glow on the faces of the three.

Shuomeng stared at the fire, muttering to himself: “It was fine when we arrived, why did it suddenly catch fire?”

No one answered him, and he stopped asking, taking the cigarette tucked behind his ear and putting it in his mouth, extending it towards the flames half a meter away.

It didn’t light up immediately, so he took another step forward, extending the cigarette even closer.

Qi Si, lying on Shuomeng’s back, felt the heat radiating onto him, and silently pulled a lighter from his pocket, holding it up to Shuomeng’s face.

“Thanks, brother!” Shuomeng lit his cigarette, put the lighter in his pocket, and let out a long, satisfied puff of smoke.

“Sigh, next time I must remember to carry fire with me. The lighter is usually with Old Jiang, who knew this instance would separate me from him…”

…Red Maple Boarding School, Jiang Junjue successfully landed before the fire engulfed the entire building, drew his Bixie Sword, and narrowed his eyes, observing his surroundings.

The entire world was like a painting engulfed in fire, twisting and deforming from the edges; scorched yellow colors spread across the heavens and earth, casting an old photograph filter over all sights.

The air was stiflingly hot, and the wandering specters on the ground dissipated against the orange-yellow backdrop, leaving only the path to the Graveyard untouched by flames.

The cracked concrete building, scorched and unable to bear the weight, collapsed behind him with a roar. The unwilling smoke and dust condensed into spectral arms, baring fangs and claws to grasp at the ankles of passing souls.

Jiang Junjue held the Bixie Sword in one hand and the White Blade, which he had recently found on Chen Lidong, in the other, unceremoniously chopping through all the ghostly hands reaching for him.

Stepping over scattered rubble, he raced towards the Graveyard, crushing the bodies of flowers and butterflies underfoot, passing through a sea of flowers golden with firelight.

Hundreds of pale tombstones stood silently, but beside one freshly dug grave mound, a green-clad girl’s figure was squatting—it was Zhang Yiyu!

The girl had already stepped one foot into the Coffin, seemingly preparing to lie down.

Even without key clues, Jiang Junjue understood some things.

Action preceded thought; he raised his longsword and thrust it towards Zhang Yiyu’s back… Memorial Hall for Indigenous Victims, the great fire had burned away all the maple leaves on the ground, extinguishing sparsely, leaving only a scorched earth.

Chang Xu took a few steps forward, holding the playing cards, and squatted before a depression. He dug away the loose soil, revealing a silver-white iron box.

The iron box was gleaming all over, completely untouched by fire, lying quietly amidst the devastation, reflecting the lingering firelight and faintly mirroring the sky.

Shuomeng also walked over, carrying Qi Si on his back, and leaned down to examine it: “This seems to contain something extraordinary, Brother Chang, why don’t you open it and take a look?”

Without his reminder, Chang Xu had already grasped the bottom and lid of the box with both hands and pulled hard in opposite directions.

It didn’t open immediately, so he condensed a faint blue light between his fingers, about to strike the box.

A narration sounded at the opportune moment, hoarse and deep, with condescending pity.

【You are merely transients on this land; no matter what method you use, you cannot open this box.】

【Only those who experienced it, those who suffered, and those who repented are qualified to open the box and unveil that long-buried history.】

【I believe you have already guessed that this box contains the evidence of the crimes of the Red Maple Boarding School and the Indigenous Peoples Charity Foundation. The truth is far more terrifying than you know, and its poison lingers to this day.】

【Once these contents are made public, they will undoubtedly cause an uproar in the world, perhaps saving those indigenous people who are still being bullied and oppressed from dire straits, or perhaps leading to unnecessary chaos and more casualties, who knows?】

【So, will you send the box to the Graveyard to publicize these crimes; or will you bury the box back in the ground, whitewashing a false peace?】

【Now, you have the right to choose, and ample time to ponder the answer.】

Qi Si finally understood why the main quest was completed but the instance had not ended.

—It’s probably like the murder mystery games on the market, trying to create a formalistic ending where players choose their own outcome.

Should they reveal the truth, or cover up the peace?

This seemed like a non-issue. Exposing evil, punishing the guilty, and upholding delayed justice—this is how all artistic works promoting universal values are portrayed.

Chang Xu picked up the box and started walking toward the Graveyard.

“Wait!” Shuomeng jumped in surprise and quickly reached out to stop him, nearly shaking Qi Si off his back. “I have a feeling things aren’t that simple. The game clearly stated that choosing to reveal the truth might lead to chaos and casualties… I suspect this choice is related to the ‘Door’.”

Ignoring Qi Si’s presence, he analyzed rapidly: “According to our Guild Leader’s calculations, the ‘Door’ will open this year, or perhaps it already has. Any instance could invade reality using us as a medium when we least expect it. It is best to be careful, no matter what.”

Combining the context, Qi Si guessed that what Shuomeng said was related to his ability to bring game items and Eerie Game events into reality, and it was likely a secret mostly known within large guilds, even though it was censored on forums… He remained motionless, continuing to play dead, while resolving to find a way to place some “eyes” within the major guilds once they left.

Chang Xu was silent for a moment, then asked, “How certain are you that this choice will lead to an eerie invasion?”

“I have no certainty,” Shuomeng admitted frankly, his eyes shining. “Maybe there’s a 99% chance it won’t happen, but even with just a 1% probability, if it does, it will be a disaster nobody wants to face. Instead of taking the risk of making things worse, we should maintain the status quo.”

Chang Xu looked into his eyes and stated calmly: “I know the Foundation has continued to exist until now, wantonly seizing the interests of common people under the Federation’s endorsement, and doing dirty work in the gray areas for the upper class. Chaos is inevitable if those criminal pieces of evidence are made public.”

Shuomeng had closed his live stream before smashing the glass cabinet, yet he couldn’t help but exclaim, “Brother Chang, did you turn off your live stream? Is this something you should say in public?”

Chang Xu said, “The live stream automatically shut down after I dug up the iron box.”

Qi Si knew that the Eerie Game automatically closing the live stream was intended to let players make the choice that best reflected their true thoughts without any moral burden.

This seemingly indulgent act toward the players was actually an ill-intentioned, malicious interrogation:

Are you truly as righteous as you believe?

In the depths of your heart, how much weight does the fate of others truly carry, and is it worth bearing potentially greater blame just to save unrelated people?

Chang Xu lowered his eyes and continued: “The impact of revealing those criminal pieces of evidence might just be chaos and murder during a change of power, but it could change the status quo and potentially save more people. I’m not sure what the future holds, I only know that the current world is not good…”

A simple view of good and evil, guided by short-sighted instinct—such an answer was not surprising.

Qi Si suddenly wanted to laugh, and he did.

He looked up at the sky, stained orange by the embers, and suggested with a smile, “Since we can’t decide, why don’t the three of us settle it by vote?”

…Red Maple Boarding School.

The massive fire had already reached the outer perimeter of the Graveyard, engulfing swathes of flower fields in flames, while charred debris drifted away with the rising heat.

Rolling thick smoke obscured the sky, molten resin dripped from the charcoal-black tree trunks, and the choking smell of burning wood wormed its way into their noses.

There was no time left to consider other options; they could only gamble that hiding in a Coffin was the path to survival in this instance.

Jiang Junjue dragged Zhang Yiyu’s corpse to the side, sat sideways into the Coffin, clumsily lay down, and reached out to pull the lid shut.

A bloody wind blew toward him, and his danger warning flashed wildly. He stared, seeing the girl with a bloody hole in her chest, who had somehow crawled out of the mud and was now kneeling over the Coffin on all fours.

The girl’s scarlet eyes lacked pupils, saliva continuously dripped from the corners of her mouth, and the palpable aura of terror clearly indicated she was not alive.

It was a Ghosts! Zhang Yiyu had become a Ghosts!

Even though Jiang Junjue had many life-saving items, he was startled, subconsciously drawing the White Blade from his inventory to block.

He was ultimately a step too slow. The moment the White Blade sliced the girl’s abdomen, her sharp teeth had already pierced his throat.

This is unfair.

Jiang Junjue thought that no clue had ever told him that players would turn into Ghostss after death. To fall like this was truly unjust… 【Name: Azure Corpse Skin】

【Type: Item】

【Effect:…】

A faint glow flashed in the inventory, and Jiang Junjue’s skin turned a vivid, paint-like green, as if he were stranded in putrid stagnant water and slowly covered in moss.

Zhang Yiyu was already an undead Ghosts. Stimulated by the scent of blood, she lay on Jiang Junjue, biting and devouring the man’s flesh ravenously, swallowing without thought.

The dazzling, sun-like firelight shone upon the corpse and the Ghosts, coating the bloody scene with the glaze of an oil painting, as if the God of Death from Hell was solemnly conferring a crown.

Jiang Junjue made no sound; his soul and five senses had been stripped away the moment death occurred.

In a haze, a faded image was regurgitated in his memory.

The Guild Leader, who had left long ago, once told him in a chuunibyou manner: “Little Jiang, heaven and earth are a chessboard, and you and I are pieces. My departure is just a test to see if I can overturn this board of the gods.”

At the time, he had only felt speechless, but now, reflecting on it, he felt much emotion, helplessness, and irony… Memorial Hall for Indigenous Victims, inside the Graveyard.

Chang Xu gently placed the iron box in front of tombstone number 47, symbolizing the public revelation of the criminal evidence.

Shuomeng tossed Qi Si next to the tombstone and muttered softly to the side: “I cast the dissenting vote, I was only forced to go along with you two because of your tyranny… If anything goes wrong later, don’t come looking for me.”

Yes, Qi Si, who feared nothing more than peace, naturally wanted the criminal evidence revealed so he could watch the Federation make a fool of itself.

Thus, with two votes against one, the players’ choice was without suspense.

【All Rules and Worldview Decrypted】

【Congratulations to the Players for Clearing the Team instance, Red Maple Boarding School】

The notification sound rang out, accompanied by the explosion of fireworks, and all sin and judgment settled into place.

Shuomeng was still grumbling discontentedly, voicing his pessimistic concerns; Chang Xu stood silently with his hands down, seemingly lost in thought.

Qi Si stared at the back of Chang Xu’s neck, which appeared devout and solemn, and said casually, “Brother Chang, I suddenly thought of a question: Suppose a lunatic wants to compete with you in killing people. Within a limited time, whoever kills more wins. If you win, nothing happens; if you lose, he destroys the world. What would you choose?”

Chang Xu snapped back to reality, tilted his head to look at Qi Si, and said seriously, “Someone once told me that if anyone asks me a question like that again, I should slap the person who posed the question twice and see if they go crazy.”

Qi Si: “…”

Suddenly, a series of “thump-thump-thump” sounds came from the grave mound behind the tombstone, as if someone trapped inside was struggling fiercely.

It must be the player from the Red Maple Boarding School timeline—who could it be?

Chang Xu and Shuomeng instinctively grabbed their tools and, harboring an inexplicable hope, diligently began digging up the dirt.

Shovelfuls of dirt were tossed up, forming small mounds on both sides. In less than ten minutes, the Coffin was completely exposed.

The two men each grabbed a corner of the Coffin lid and lifted it forcefully.

With a “clang,” the Coffin lid fell to the ground.

Zhang Yiyu, covered in blood, sprang up into a sitting position, her face pale and swollen like a bloated corpse submerged in water for too long.

After seeing the three people in front of her, she burst into loud sobs, like someone who had been deprived of daylight for ages and was finally rescued.

Chang Xu stepped forward to help up his teammate and handed her tissues taken from his backpack.

Shuomeng, upon seeing Zhang Yiyu, froze instantly. He only recovered two seconds later, retreating several steps in dejection, as if his bones had been removed.

Not long after, the system notification sounded again.

【Red Maple Boarding School True End – “Language, Witchcraft, and Sin” has been recorded】

【Automatic teleportation out of the instance in three minutes】