Chapter 238: Frog Hospital (29) Gambling Life and Praying for Fortune

Half a day?

But I’m about to be controlled and forced into the pond. I won’t even last half a minute… Lin Chen felt bitterness in his heart and silently thought, “Brother Qi, I’ve been parasitized by Puppet Threads…”

He briefly recounted what happened after the consciousness connection was severed, like a drowning person grabbing a frayed rope dangling from the shore.

Qi Si stood askew at the stairwell entrance, listening quietly and patiently.

After hearing Lin Chen’s description, he had already suspected that the Female Teacher’s identity and background were not simple.

Therefore, before the third phone call, he deliberately laid a trap in the prepared statement.

He taught Lin Chen to say, “A Red Frog suddenly jumped out from the bottom of the pond,” instead of honestly describing the method of peeling off the frog skin. An attentive person could easily spot this lie as redundant, unless it was meant to conceal something else.

For an egoist, a small suspicion is enough to trigger a lethal attack.

Qi Si was happy to let Lin Chen and the Female Teacher fall into a life-or-death situation. Whether the Female Teacher killed Lin Chen or Lin Chen killed the Female Teacher, it would solve a major problem for him.

If it were the former, although it would be a shame for a useful tool to die, at least there would be one less person in the world who knew his real name, mitigating the risk of exposure.

If it were the latter, by having Lin Chen, who had never killed before, stain his hands with blood, Qi Si was confident he could shatter his inner defenses and make him fall into self-loathing. Even if that failed, it would still serve as leverage to drag the person into the mire.

Of course, it now seemed the situation had exceeded expectations.

The Female Teacher was Sera’s puppet. If Lin Chen couldn’t get rid of the Puppet Threads before leaving the instance, he would also become a puppet.

Qi Si knew that Lin Chen was currently in a desperate situation and could only turn to him for help, making it easier for him to control everything about Lin Chen.

But the prerequisite was that he had to find a way to seize control of Lin Chen from the Puppeteer.

Records of the Puppeteer in the forums were scarce, and most were useless information like “puppets spotted in xx instance” or “the Puppeteer is suspected of obtaining xx item.” There was no information explicitly stating how to break free from his control… Qi Si did see someone write a far-fetched short essay based on his own experience of breaking free from the Puppeteer’s control, largely speculating that his skill and the Puppeteer’s were of the same origin—both being behind-the-scenes control types—but his was of a higher priority and level, thus allowing room for maneuver.

But Qi Si knew that this was not the case; it was simply because the Puppet Threads had wrapped around the Evil God Finger Bone.

However, if they were truly comparing skill priority, which level was higher: Soul Contract or Puppet Threads?

Soul Contract is the manifestation of the Evil God Qi’s authority, while Puppet Threads is a perfected skill with a 100% success rate after countless evolutions… It’s really hard to say.

“Your current thoughts and consciousness are still under your own control, correct?” Qi Si asked.

Lin Chen said somewhat uncertainly, “I think… so. She doesn’t seem to know we can communicate, as she hasn’t stopped me yet. But I always suspect she might have Mind Reading abilities…”

Not stopping him might just be a form of entrapment, but considering this possibility was useless, so it was better ignored.

Qi Si calmly said, “Lin Chen, don’t panic. Calm down and listen to me.

“Based on my understanding and experience, the Puppeteer can only fully control a puppet’s thoughts and read their memories after the newly parasitized puppet leaves the instance and completes deep parasitism.

“The fact that she seems to be able to read your thoughts right now is just a psychological ability, displayed deliberately to intimidate you. This precisely indicates that her control over you is weak, otherwise, there would be no need for this extra step.”

After hearing Qi Si’s analysis, Lin Chen gradually calmed down. The waves surging in his Sea of Consciousness slowly subsided, allowing for rational deliberation and thought.

If memory and thought could be read and controlled in a single glance, that would already be the ability of a god. If the Puppeteer were truly that terrifying, how could Sera still be suppressed by Jiuzhou and Tingfeng?

Qi Si continued, “I don’t know the method for dispelling Puppet Threads. But I can tell you that in the Hopeless Sea instance, I was parasitized by Puppet Threads once, and later, by coincidence, I broke free from the control.”

Lin Chen remembered a piece of gossip he had heard before, and his heart skipped a beat. He asked, “Brother… Brother Qi, is that ‘Si Qi’ mentioned on the forums you?”

Qi Si did not deny it: “I found that the conditions for Puppet Threads to work are stricter than many people on the forums believe, and the Puppeteer himself is not as invincible as imagined.

“Regarding how to break free from the Puppeteer’s control, I have a potentially effective plan, but I’m not certain it will succeed. If it fails, what awaits you might be true death.

“I remember you told me that you are your parents’ only child, and you wish to survive. So, are you willing to gamble your life this time?”

Lin Chen nodded frantically in the Consciousness Space: “No problem! If I have to harm people as a puppet in the future, my parents would definitely be very disappointed. I’d rather die here…”

He had expected Qi Si to immediately state the solution, but the latter sighed faintly: “The plan I’m about to tell you, even if successful, won’t grant you true freedom. It will merely replace the Puppeteer with me as the one controlling you.

“Your soul will fall under my control, your experiences will be known to me, and your actions will be watched by me. Although I may not have the inclination to do so, if I wish, a single thought can decide your life or death.

“Do you accept such a future?”

Lin Chen fell silent.

No one would willingly hand over everything about themselves to another person’s control, even if that person had saved their life.

Even if Qi Si promised not to use the control authority, this still felt like a Sword of Damocles hanging over his head.

The feeling of not controlling one’s own life or death is unpleasant, but what about compared to being controlled by the Puppeteer?

Of two evils, choose the lesser. If he truly had to be controlled by someone, Lin Chen would rather choose Qi Si.

After all, although Qi Si loved telling Dark Jokes, loved scaring people, and would plan murders, he still had a conscience. He would save people with a simple gesture, and his killings were only when forced by circumstance or necessity.

He was certainly more benevolent than the Slaughter Stream maniacs of the Sera Guild.

The thought process took less than half a second in the Consciousness Space. Lin Chen said, “I accept.”

Qi Si said flatly, “I am not a good person. Perhaps I could even be called ‘Scum.’ I have caused the deaths of many people and have killed with my own hands. Are you sure you want to hand over your soul to me?”

The straightforward words made people subconsciously believe the speaker’s sincerity.

Lin Chen had already made his decision and said without hesitation, “I am sure.”

Qi Si smiled, one corner of his lip slightly curling up, showing a hint of pity: “I remember you have an item called 【Honor Student’s Note】. Can you use it now?”

【Name: Honor Student’s Note】

【Effect: Sincerely ask it a question, and the correct answer might be written on it~ (Usable once per instance, 50% success rate)】

Lin Chen glanced at his inventory: “Yes, my items haven’t been locked by the Puppeteer yet, but it seems the effect can only be activated while in the inventory. Once taken out, it won’t be under my control anymore.”

“That’s enough,” Qi Si said. “Now ask it: What are the three lines of Divine Names for praying to Qi Si and what is your name?”

Lin Chen widened his eyes: “Divine Names? Brother Qi, what is your current situation? Also… can I really ask two questions at once?”

“First, there is only one question mark; it’s the same question.” Qi Si skipped the previous topic and patiently explained, “Also, it didn’t say you couldn’t ask for two answers, did it?”

…Alright.

Although he didn’t understand what Qi Si was doing, Lin Chen still recited silently in his heart with some doubt: “Activate the effect of 【Honor Student’s Note】, asking: What are the three lines of Divine Names for praying to Qi Si and what is my name?”

The note in the inventory trembled violently, like a Slug struggling fiercely under the restraint of some invisible entity.

But no matter how much it struggled, black handwriting was drawn stroke by stroke onto the snow-white paper, like a Cursed Seal.

【The Scarlet Lord who travels alone through infinite time and space.】

【The Master of Soul who wields the authority of Contract and transaction.】

【The Sole Existence who traverses reality and illusion.】

【Lin Chen】

The two answers combined were like a hastily signed Contract between two parties.

Fully reciting the Divine Names inherently implied trading one’s soul and believing in an Evil God, and the black-and-white text further solidified the bond and connection.

Lin Chen saw a cluster of Blood-Red Vines descend from the high heavens, pulling at the edge of his soul and causing a wave-like resonance.

Angry text flashed rapidly across the system interface like a glitch display.

【The Unspeakable Great Existence glanced at you. Your item “Honor Student’s Note” has changed.】

【Name: Honor Student’s Note】

【Effect: You can ask it one question per instance, with a 50% chance of receiving a correct answer! (Note: You can only receive one answer)】

Qi Si said with a smile, “It seems your luck is good. The first step of the 50% probability has succeeded.”

Scarlet light flowed in his eyes, and two golden Ten-Sided Dice were thrown from the void before him: “Next, we have to gamble on a 26% success rate. Is your skill 【Pilgrims Blessing】 still available?”

“It is,” Lin Chen said. “I haven’t used it yet.”

【Name: Pilgrims Blessing】

【Type: Skill】

【Passive Effect: Possessing devout faith, you are slightly luckier than ordinary people. You have a fifty percent chance of guessing correctly in a four-choice scenario, and a chance to turn danger into safety when facing a fatal crisis.】

【Active Effect: Bless any existence in the instance, slightly increasing their luck within that instance (Usable once per instance)】

Qi Si said, “Lin Chen, bless me.”

Any small increase in probability could be the final weight to tip the scales. At the moment of victory, the difference is only between 100% and 0%.

When the tiger fights the rabbit, it uses its full strength. This was something the Puppeteer had said in Hopeless Sea, and Qi Si deeply agreed.

Even if the extremely low initial luck, after a slight boost, might still be insufficient, so what?

Anyway, this was the only path available, and they had done everything they could.

Milky white light filtered into the dark space, surrounding Qi Si like fireflies in summer, pure white like clouds, light like wind, swirling around him in wisps and merging into his body surface.

The white light and red light intertwined, merging into a faint crimson. Two golden-yellow afterimages spun rapidly before his eyes and, at a certain moment, fell to the ground, emitting a phantom “ding-a-ling” sound.

In an instant, the light extinguished. In the pitch black, only the numbers on the Golden Dice Faces could be seen.

Two nines, 99, greater than 74. Success!

“As far as I know, you have entered the Jiuzhou Guild’s line of sight. Within a month, they will extend an Olive Branch to you.”

By the pond at Green Frog Hospital, the Female Teacher, her light gray eyes viewing Lin Chen through Gold-Rimmed Glasses, watched him dispassionately: “Because of the Fu Jue incident, they will experience considerable internal chaos and large-scale personnel changes. During this time, newcomers will find it easier to receive resource prioritization and promotion qualifications.”

So, you wouldn’t happen to want me to join the Jiuzhou Guild as an undercover agent, would you?

Lin Chen made wild guesses internally, while on the surface, he remained silent with pursed lips, like a corpse.

The Female Teacher suddenly smiled, a hint of serious scrutiny entering her eyes: “Lin Chen, I find you very interesting. You prioritize survival, yet you always give up the choices with the highest probability of survival for various inexplicable reasons.

“Actually, you don’t need to resist becoming my puppet so much. I don’t have the energy to control the thoughts and behavioral choices of every single puppet. As a human being in the biological sense, processing too much information simultaneously would drive me insane.

“As long as you are willing to obey my orders at certain key moments and do nothing to harm Sera’s interests, I can promise you maximum freedom. You can still save people, and you can even execute some useless trash to satisfy your Heroic Sense of Justice.”

The Female Teacher bent down slightly, leaning closer to Lin Chen. The cold smile on her face gained a hint of sweetness and seduction: “I will not interfere with your actions. Whenever my gaze is not upon you, you can be yourself. I have many puppets; you are dispensable. After we part today, I might never control you even once again.”

Why seek my consent? Haven’t you already controlled me?

While Lin Chen sought help from Qi Si through his consciousness, he was utterly bewildered. Suddenly, a sentence Qi Si had said popped into his mind: ‘The Puppeteer himself is not as invincible as imagined.’

All the clues lined up before him, and suddenly everything became clear.

That’s right, the Puppeteer had fought Qi Si and knew Qi Si had a method to break free from his control.

Qi Si hadn’t changed his voice during the phone call, so the Puppeteer knew Qi Si was also in this instance and suspected that Lin Chen and Qi Si had another way to communicate.

Therefore, the Puppeteer was worried about him breaking free from control on one hand, and hoped to win him over through Rhetoric on the other… In the face of absolute power, no one would waste words. Since she chose to use Rhetoric, it meant her power was not yet sufficient to obtain everything she desired.

Lin Chen felt calmer than ever before.

In the Consciousness Space, the golden dice jingled.

On the system interface, a line of Silver-White Text refreshed.

【Soul Contract has been signed. This Contract is guaranteed by World Rules, and no existence may violate it.】

The skill of the same origin won the game of probability comparison, replacing the original skill’s position with higher authority.

The threads wrapped around his body instantly collapsed. Lin Chen summoned the 【Umbrella Filled with Pain】 from his inventory, and after a swipe, it stood between him and the Female Teacher.

The shadow growing beneath the opened black umbrella surface transformed into a behemoth in one second, wrapping Lin Chen tightly like an airtight curtain.

【Effect One: Summon Shadow Ghost “Person in the Umbrella” for 30 seconds. Each summon must kill one existence (Cooldown: 24 hours)】

Countless Tentacles grew from the black shadow, surging overwhelmingly toward the Female Teacher…