Chapter 243: Frog Hospital (34) Changes

Cheng Ping left holding the Sea-God Scepter, while Qi Si remained pinned to the wall by the surgical knife.

After exceeding the usage limit, the 【Soul Contract】 skill entered a locked state and could not be used.

In other words, the transaction between Qi Si and the Dean was based entirely on a verbal agreement, which could be torn up by either party at any time.

It is conceivable that when there is no strong binding force and the benefits are considerable, breach of Contract is an inevitable outcome.

After Qi Si gave Lin Chen the instruction to bring the Statue of the Holy Child to Blue Frog Hospital, he continued to slump against the wall, utterly resigned.

Cheng Xiaoyu squatted nearby, glaring fiercely and voluntarily taking on the duty of a guard.

Time passed minute by minute, and Cheng Xiaoyu grew noticeably anxious, feeling as if something terrible was about to happen, though he didn’t know how it would arrive.

The “tap-tap” of footsteps came from the dense fog outside the main gate, clear and ethereal, like high heels striking tile.

A hazy figure outlined itself in the fog, drawing closer and closer.

Cheng Xiaoyu suddenly let out a shriek, dissolving into wisps of faint black smoke that drilled into the wall cracks, allowing Qi Si’s vision to connect unobstructed with the figure behind the iron gate.

It was a woman in a black suit, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, with a pair of striking light gray eyes.

She stepped over the threshold, stopped in front of Qi Si, and nodded slightly: “Long time no see, Qi Si.”

…At Green Frog Hospital, Lin Chen stood by the pond, but did not see the Female Teacher’s corpse.

A slight ominous feeling arose in him, and just as he was about to tell Qi Si, he received the instruction to go to Blue Frog Hospital.

Comparing the two, the mission was more important; as long as he completed the main quest, he would clear the level, and for the following three minutes, he would be immune to damage from the instance.

Lin Chen held the infant stone statue, stepped into the pond, waded through the cold water, and walked step by step toward the central vortex.

The moment his front foot stepped into the vortex’s range, a feeling of dizziness rushed over him like a tide, the entire world crumpled before his eyes, then stretched and flipped again.

His vision quickly settled again; the surrounding environment was almost exactly the same as what he had seen before the dizziness.

The only difference was that on the empty, pure white stone platform before him, sat a Statue of the Virgin, equally white.

The beautiful-faced statue gazed at Lin Chen calmly and solemnly, as if seeing all things in the world through him, granting all creation love and care without discrimination.

Lin Chen felt himself immersed in a warm sensation, and a great attraction pulled him forward step by step.

He stopped in front of the Statue of the Virgin, his outstretched hands devoutly supporting the Statue of the Holy Child, gently placing it in the Virgin’s empty embrace.

The bead of blood at the corner of the Virgin’s eye transformed into a single tear, dropping onto the pond water with a soft “tap,” and instantly, wisps of blood spread out like an explosion.

【main quest Completed】

【Congratulations Player Cleared…】

The subsequent characters were abruptly cut off. After a two-second lag, large patches of blood-red garbled code furiously refreshed, invading the space of the system interface.

Two masses of black smoke converged overhead, tearing apart the illusion of peace and tranquility. The sky was smeared a uniform black, rolling with noisy, grating, fearful, and despairing ravings.

Blood-red rain poured down, splashing up wisps of blood mist on the ground.

Lin Chen reflexively summoned the 【Umbrella Filled with Pain】, opening it in one second to shield his head.

The black umbrella, currently on cooldown, functioned as a simple rain gear, sheltering him from the elements. Upon contact with the blood rain, the canopy and the handle began to tremble uncontrollably.

His arm was pulled into resonance. Lin Chen, as if waking from a dream, took a small step back and stepped into the vortex.

When he opened his eyes again, he was back at Green Frog Hospital, with only an empty stone platform before him.

The situation remained grim; the sky above Green Frog Hospital was also pitch black.

Within the steaming, swirling forest fog, black shadows were closing in step by step. It was impossible to distinguish whether they were Ghosts or NPCs… 【main quest Completed】

At Blue Frog Hospital, Qi Si looked up at the woman with a half-smile: “You’re not dead? I thought the effect of Lin Chen’s item was comparable to a Causality Weapon.”

“I am already dead, or rather, I have never been alive.” The woman showed patience. “But in the Eerie Game, viewing life and death as singular states is narrow-minded, just as you, right now, cannot determine whether you are alive or dead.”

“Quantum Superposition?” Qi Si asked.

The woman shook her head then nodded: “Individual mobility and status are often separate. I think having experienced the Rose Manor instance, you can understand this.”

“My entry into the Eerie Game has something to do with Sera, right?”

“I know more about you than you imagine. But you can rest assured that the Gods, watched by rule, will guarantee the fairness of the gamble to the greatest extent possible.”

Qi Si laughed: “I don’t think there’s any fairness to be found in this kind of gamble.”

“They require fairness on the macro level.” The woman pulled out the surgical knife pinned to Qi Si’s right shoulder and stabbed it into his right palm with a backhand motion.

“I can hurt you, but if I kill you, you won’t truly die. Because I am a dead person right now, and the ability to act as a dead person comes from an instance of cheating by a certain God.

“They will not intervene unless the fate of the ‘pieces’ is affected. But once I use the ability gained from cheating to sweep a ‘piece’ off the board, They will pick the ‘piece’ up again and place it back in its original position.”

This was undoubtedly a set of game rules that superseded the Eerie Game, always present, but it was only now that Qi Si clarified the details and linked his past doubts.

No wonder, in the Hopeless Sea instance, the Puppeteer didn’t deliver a killing blow after discovering he had broken free of control, knowing it would be useless except to expose his hand.

Lu Li, Hans, and Ye Linsheng—three puppets—were already scrapped. Other methods were likely outside the scope permitted by the game; even if they could temporarily kill Qi Si, they couldn’t stop the Gods from placing Qi Si back on the board.

No wonder Chang Xu didn’t die despite being stabbed so many times by the Sea-God Scepter, because his death was a butterfly effect triggered by cheating.

If Qi had not given the 【Evil God Finger Bone】 to Qi Si beforehand, Qi Si would not have escaped the Puppeteer’s control, nor would he have had the chance to kill Chang Xu; as for the Puppeteer himself, he would likely have kept Chang Xu for other purposes… Qi Si tilted his head and pondered for a moment, then asked: “Why are you telling me these things?”

The woman said: “The Puppeteer hopes to cooperate with you.”

“Given the current comparison of strength, is it cooperation, or one-sided utilization?”

“Sera’s definition of cooperation is mutual utilization.”

…Cheng Ping walked to the side of the pond, raising the Sea-God Scepter high in his right hand.

The black smoke filling the sky seemed to have finally found its destination, surging toward Cheng Ping, and being absorbed by the pristine white Scepter in his hand when it was close enough.

Black strokes resembling Evil God tentacles began to outline themselves on the top of the Scepter, stroke by stroke. The widespread sin solidified into ink used to paint patterns, adorning the dilapidated Scepter with its former majesty.

The black clouds overhead thinned at a visible speed, and within seconds, they were cleansed until the sky was as blue as if freshly washed, without a trace of haze remaining.

All the sin was consumed by the Sea-God Scepter, which finally inscribed ten full strokes on its top, drawing the outline of surging waves.

【sin… The Sea-God Scepter has absorbed sin… Sufficient sin…】

Cheng Ping heard satisfied murmurs, like pleasurable moans after a full meal.

He also felt genuine joy.

This thing really worked. The sin that he originally found incredibly difficult to deal with was resolved so easily. In the future, he could be much bolder in his actions, and wouldn’t have to be so constrained as he was when preparing for this Ritual.

Yes, Cheng Ping never intended to return the Sea-God Scepter to Qi Si.

There was no mandatory constraint, and the owner was already controlled and incapable of resisting. In this situation, anyone who returned the item would be a fool!

Cheng Ping tightly gripped the Sea-God Scepter, feeling a life-like pulse beneath his palm, as ecstasy split his face into a massive grin stretching to his ears.

In a trance, he seemed to see the phantom of a giant golden eye casting its gaze upon him through yellow clouds and a gilded ocean, peacefully merging with his soul.

Is this a God? Is he… about to become a God?

The phantom of a tentacle unexpectedly extended from the Sea-God Scepter, wrapping around Cheng Ping’s arm and neck, piercing his blood vessels without resistance, and crawling through his meridians and passages.

Intense pain shattered the beautiful dream, stirring up biological instincts of fear and despair.

It was Body Snatching!

Cheng Ping finally realized the danger, but it was already too late.

His body was largely occupied by the irrational Evil God, and his human soul turned to dust the moment they collided.

【Rules… Contamination… Sacrifice…】

【Sin… Feeding… Nightmare…】

The Sea God, having regained a body, instinctively let out a crazy whisper that would drive ordinary beings mad. The legs of the human form melted away, and countless tentacles stretched out in all directions like blooming flowers, timidly touching and exploring the unfamiliar environment.

One tentacle touched the now complete Statue of the Virgin Holding the Infant in the center of the pond, recoiled slightly as if shocked, and then tentatively wrapped around it, greeting and sensing it with uncertainty.

It received a response; memories from the source would not misjudge.

Like a child finally seeing its mother, every tentacle and suction cup conveyed the joy of a long-awaited reunion.

“Mother God… Ancestral God…” It murmured deliriously, seeming to hear the response of the Primal Existence in a trance, as if saying, “My most loyal child, welcome back.”

It kowtowed, reciting the divine names sealed away for billions of years:

【Lord of Life, Incarnation of the World Tree’s Origin】

【Death Sovereign Who Commands Creation and Annihilation】

【The Holy Existence Who Nurtures Sea, Land, Sky, Wind, and Rain】

…”Did you see or hear anything?” The woman’s light gray eyes calmly watched Qi Si.

“I saw a strange set of three divine names,” Qi Si said. “Do you need me to repeat them to you?”

“No need.” The woman shook her head. “It is about to be truly annihilated.”

…By the pond, a figure in black clothes and black hair silently descended into the shadows of the woods. Golden eyes scanned the already shapeless Cheng Ping, finally resting on the Statue of the Virgin Holding the Infant in the center of the pond.

Blood rain falling from the sky dyed the pond water red, and the curtain-like rain lines draped a veil over the statue.

Countless milky-white arms sprouted from the back of the statue, waving irregularly like sea anemones, sprinkling drops of pure white water around.

The water droplets that landed quickly grew into various bizarre monsters, some being tangled masses of tentacles, others being spheres covered in fine, dense teeth.

“Li.”

The echoing wind between heaven and earth calmly called out the newcomer’s name.

Li ignored it, walked expressionlessly toward Cheng Ping, raised his left hand and grabbed forward, forcibly pulling a phantom out of Cheng Ping’s body.

The phantom’s upper body had three fish heads, and its lower body was covered in dense tentacles—it was clearly the Sea God depicted in the statue within the Hopeless Sea instance!

“I planted an anchor on your spiritual body, and you were indeed summoned here by It.” Li extended his right hand, gripped the Sea-God Scepter, and walked toward the Statue of the Virgin Holding the Infant in the center of the pond.

The Sea God, restrained by Li’s single hand, twisted its body unwillingly, its tentacles wildly whipping and coiling around Li, yet all attacks seemed to land in empty space, causing no damage and failing to even impede Li’s steps.

Li stepped into the pond, his toes resting steadily on the bloody water surface.

The Evil God residing in the stone statue seemed to finally notice Its arrival. Countless fissures cracked open on Its forehead, and pure black and pure white eyes were interspersed, staring intently at the unexpected visitor.

The blood rain continued to fall. The newly born monsters at the statue’s feet rushed toward Li, but were swept to the ground by an invisible force a few steps away.

The pure white arms followed closely, wrapping toward Li’s neck with greater flexibility than ribbons, but stopped a few centimeters short.

In the void near the statue, millions of beings cried out in unison, full of resentment.

It realized the inadequacy of Its power after resurrection. It wasn’t an issue of the number of sacrifices, but that the quality of the sacrificial offerings was flawed, making the source of Its divine power impure.

It began investigating the one thousand and one corpses thrown into the pond.

Female corpse, female corpse, pregnant female corpse symbolizing both life and death… male corpse… Yes, among the one thousand and one corpses, there were actually three male corpses, and they had died just in the last few days!

The stone statue erupted in a beast-like roar, angrily cursing the person who tampered with the sacrifices.

Li had already walked up to It, raising the Sea-God Scepter high with one hand and plunging it straight into Its abdomen.

Cracks like gnarled roots extended from the wound, spreading across the entire statue in seconds, enveloping it like a net, and shattering the moment they connected.

The shattered stone fragments fell into the bloody pond, making successive “thump thump” sounds.

The Sea God’s phantom wept silently. In the distant Hopeless Sea, a golden rain suddenly fell without warning.

Amidst the continuous sounds, Li softly said, “Ancestral God, rest in peace.”

In an instant, all the corpses in the pond dissolved into a blood mist, and the minced flesh settled to the bottom like rustling snowflakes.

As the flesh sank, it became finer and more fragmented, eventually turning into dust, becoming part of the invisible plankton.

No one noticed that a strange left hand did not perish along with the corpses, but lay quietly in the pond’s mud, scattering a faint crimson glow… “It’s dead,” the woman said, listening to the wind. “It only has a wisp of instinct-driven consciousness left, and Its death is not peaceful. Both you and I are targets of Its wrath.”

Qi Si’s consciousness hovered above the Hall of Thought, watching the three lines of text he had just learned in his memory fragment into strokes, becoming unrecognizable.

He seemed to hear sorrowful weeping. The sadness lingering at the bottom of the tide of thought was so infectious that it made him feel depressed for a while too.

“Is it because we both tampered with Its offerings?” Qi Si asked knowingly.

Thinking about it, the only thing he and the woman did in common was replacing the corpses used as sacrifices.

While trapped in the morgue, he casually swapped the bracelets between an unnamed male corpse and a pregnant female corpse.

As for the woman, she mixed Yu Kun’s corpse into the line of pregnant female corpses.

“You seem to know a lot.” Qi Si watched the woman and smiled. “I have reason to suspect that this instance involves something more fundamental to the Eerie Game, and isn’t as simple as it appears on the surface.”

The woman also smiled, a smile devoid of warmth. “Knowledge concerning the level of the Gods—when you need to access it, the existence who placed a bet on you will let you know. The information I’ve given you is already enough for you to gain value.”

Qi Si continued calmly, “Speaking of which, I’m a little curious. Who exactly are the players and pieces in this so-called Gods Gamble? And which existence placed a bet on you?”

“I am not on the board,” the woman shook her head.

A black and white card appeared between her fingers. A figure in white clothes and black eyes was nailed upside down on a black cross, their cuffs and hem infected by black mist from an unknown source.

【Fallen Savior】, another Identity Card.

“I enjoy cooperating with existences of various stances and levels.” The woman put away the Identity Card and fell straight backward.

Her body instantly burst into green flames. Translucent tongues of fire greedily chewed through flesh and bone, leaving behind only a pile of human-shaped ash and a floating sentence.

“If you intend to cooperate, you can tell the ‘Puppet’ anytime, anywhere, and I will know.”

In the vast, boundless space, in hundreds of instances, and in every corner of the Ruins of the Sunset, men, women, elderly people, and children wearing gold-rimmed glasses occasionally walked by.

Their steps paused simultaneously, and a flash of glittering silver-gray light instantly swam in their eyes.