Chapter 272: Wraith (19) Ghosts Cover the Living

“That’s right.” Qi Si nodded, the smile on his lips looking sinister under the lamplight. “Straw is highly flammable, and so are wooden buildings. All it takes is a spark and a strong wind to easily burn down the entire Yanghua Town.

“General Meng truly practiced this once back then, and it proved effective. Why shouldn’t we pay tribute to the style of our predecessors? The letters that seemed unrelated to the dungeon theme are giving us a very clear hint, aren’t they?

“If the dungeon didn’t require us to set the town on fire, why would it tell us that information?”

Lin Chen listened with vague admiration, deep in thought.

Dungeons never provide useless clues. The fact that the soldiers setting fires was repeatedly emphasized likely points to a viable path to clear the dungeon.

Since this is a team dungeon, players, even those from different factions, must have the possibility of cooperation.

The hostility between the “Wraiths” and “Humans” is based on the players being enemies with the Tiger Demon.

As long as Yanghua Town is burned down, the “Human” faction players and the Tiger Demon will stay out of each other’s way, and the Wraiths will have no reason to harm the “Humans” who are also players.

If they are lucky… the players might be able to finish the dungeon with everyone surviving.

Tang Yu picked up a Qingming rice ball and raised an eyebrow at Qi Si: “So, once we confirm that the townspeople are scarecrows, we can actually end the dungeon?

“We just need to abandon the main quest, burn down Yanghua Town, invalidate the main quest’s premise, and then clear the dungeon via the NE Route?”

He paused, raising a point of doubt: “According to you, everything could end today. But the dungeon process isn’t even halfway complete, and we haven’t even met the core NPC, the Tiger Demon. Clearing the dungeon directly like this is simply unheard of.

“I’ve read many forum posts; even Fu Jue hasn’t pulled off something like this. Would the Eerie Game really let us off so easily?”

Qi Si gave an “Ahem,” his smile undiminished: “That’s why I didn’t set the fire immediately, but shared the idea with you.”

Tang Yu’s expression grew strange: “In other words, if there hadn’t been a risk, you would have considered setting the fire directly without consultation, right?”

Qi Si smiled at him and continued his unhurried analysis: “In my opinion, there are three uncertainties regarding this matter:

“First, we cannot be sure that the main quest’s motivation aligns with public morals, nor can we confirm that protecting the townspeople is the logical starting point of the mission.

“The only person who explicitly stated they want us to kill the Tiger Demon from start to finish is Meng Fang. We cannot determine whether his request is based on protecting the interests of the townspeople or driven by his own selfish desires.

“Second, we cannot confirm that all the townspeople are transformed scarecrows, and we have yet to figure out the reason and mechanism behind their identity swapping. This could contain huge variables, enough to push us into a dead end.

“What is done cannot be undone. If we fail to wipe out all the townspeople overnight, our situation will become difficult. The te clearance and the main quest will vanish, and we will be forced to trigger the minimum death count mechanism.

“Third, we cannot be sure that we ourselves won’t be harmed by the fire as it spreads.

“Admittedly, I tried yesterday, and as a spiritual entity, I cannot touch flames. But the experience of Teacher Luo and the others is right before us. Until we clarify what they went through last night, the outcome of setting a fire is completely unknown.”

Lin Chen understood the stakes, nodded, and asked, “So Brother Lin, what exactly should we do?”

“What should we do…” Qi Si rested his elbows on the table, interlaced his fingers, and supported his chin. “First, we need to be clear about one thing: before we have absolute certainty, we cannot directly abandon the main quest and block the path to te clearance.

“The plan for tomorrow remains unchanged. We will first go to the mountain forest behind the Residence to meet the so-called ‘Mountain God’ Tiger Demon and test the waters. If we can kill it once and for all, that’s best. Even if we can’t defeat it, we have enough items stored to escape.”

Tang Yu nodded in agreement: “What you said makes sense; that’s what I planned too. Also, I think those three uncertainties you just brought up cannot be ignored. If we can resolve them, it would be best, allowing us to advance or retreat freely.”

“This brings me to the second point I wanted to make.”

Qi Si lowered his head to look at his left hand and reached out to remove the Pocket Watch of Fate from his wrist: “Meng Fang’s motivation is related to the world view, and it should naturally be revealed as the dungeon progresses to the later stages.

“As for the experience of Teacher Luo and the others, we can go upstairs and look at their messages later, and we should know most of what happened.

“The tricky part is how to confirm that the townspeople’s true forms are all scarecrows, and at the same time, clarify the mechanism of their identity swapping. However, I have come up with a verification method.”

Lin Chen asked, “What method?”

Qi Si pulled down his sleeves and lowered his eyes: “You should have had a similar experience last night. The moment the time reaches Zi Hour, regardless of whether you are awake or tired, you will uncontrollably fall into a deep sleep.

“All NPCs firmly believe they must return to their houses before Zi Hour, or they will die by the hands of Wraiths. In other words, theoretically, at the time of Zi Hour, neither players nor NPCs can see each other.

“This opens up a lot of room for maneuver. I have reason to suspect that something unseen happens after Zi Hour, or that some unknown secret is hidden.

“The key point for the townspeople swapping identities is likely Zi Hour.”

“You want to go out tonight during Zi Hour to observe the changes in the townspeople?” Tang Yu nearly crushed the Qingming rice ball. “That’s not right—

“At that time, we will all be asleep due to the dungeon mechanism. Setting aside whether we could see anything useful, even if we managed to glance at something before collapsing into sleep on a street filled with a Night Parade of Ghosts, we wouldn’t survive until tomorrow, would we?”

Qi Si said calmly: “I remember you have an item that opens a door that only spiritual entities can enter. You went inside once last night and avoided harm from the Ghosts.

“I speculate that item can circumvent the influence of the dungeon mechanism, and the spiritual entity standing inside the door won’t fall into a deep sleep, even when Zi Hour arrives. Is that correct?”

Hearing this, Tang Yu took out a long scroll painted with Ink-wash Landscapes from his inventory and tossed it to Qi Si.

【Name: Ink Soul Scroll】

【Type: Item】

【Effect: Opens a door that only spiritual entities can enter for 60 seconds, suspected to lead to an unknown Heterogeneous Space (Cooldown: 24 hours)】

【Note: An unknown poet used his soul to write a poem. He did not know that the creation that consumed his life was a Ritual, and the work itself was pollution.】

He looked at Qi Si and said: “My item can only last for one minute. It’s fine for solving an immediate crisis, but guaranteeing safety for an entire night is completely fantastical.

“Even if I could activate the effect while my consciousness is fading and enter the scroll, once the time is up, I would either be trapped inside forever or exposed outside again, left to the mercy of the Ghosts.”

“One minute is enough.” Qi Si placed the 【Ink Soul Scroll】 on the table, lifted the Pocket Watch of Fate, and shook it. “I remember I said that my item can rewind time by one minute. I just need to ensure that the minute I spend gathering information is undisturbed.

“Once I’ve learned everything I need to know, I will immediately rewind time and return to the Residence.”

Tang Yu pondered for a moment and shook his head: “This plan is only viable if you can rush from the Residence to the townspeople’s residential area within one minute. Otherwise, no matter how much you rewind, you’ll only rewind to the middle of the street.”

Qi Si turned his head to look at Lin Chen: “Lin Ya, you haven’t used your 【Umbrella Filled with Pain】 yet, right?”

Lin Chen had been sitting quietly on the side, listening obediently to the big shots discussing their strategy.

Suddenly called upon, he quickly took out the black umbrella and handed it to Qi Si: “Yep, I haven’t used it yet!”

Qi Si took the black umbrella, placed it on the table, and gestured for Tang Yu to look.

Tang Yu touched the umbrella surface with his fingertip and successfully saw the refreshed item notification.

【Name: Umbrella Filled with Pain】

【Type: Item】

【Effect: Summons the Shadow Ghost “Person in the Umbrella” for 60 seconds. Each summoning requires the killing of one existing entity (Cooldown: 24 hours);

Provides shelter from wind and rain (opening the umbrella on a clear day has a 1% chance of rain);

If you wish, you can use it to stab someone.】

【Note: Every time he felt pain, he wrote a curse on black paper with a black pen. On a dark rainy day, he made a black umbrella out of black paper, imagined it was a parachute, and jumped… Now, he is black too.】

After being used in the Frog Hospital dungeon, the item’s effect was upgraded, increasing the summoning duration from the original 30 seconds to 60 seconds, which is just enough.

“An item that can summon a Shadow Ghost?” Tang Yu couldn’t help but glance at Lin Chen several times.

Summoning-type items in the Eerie Game are inherently rare, and because their effects are diverse and greatly enhance player strength, many people flock to them.

Among the many demons and Ghosts that can be summoned, the Shadow Ghost, as a vengeful spirit second only to the Red-Clothed Ghost, has combat power comparable to many ranked players. Even if it can only be summoned for one minute, it should not be underestimated.

Anyone equipped with such a powerful item is either extremely lucky or extremely wealthy.

Who would have thought that this Lin Ya, who keeps a low profile, has such impressive item reserves? His foolish-looking exterior might just be a disguise, and he could actually be the one who holds the real power… Lin Chen had no idea that Tang Yu had already labeled him “unfathomable.”

He figured out Qi Si’s plan in two seconds, and his eyes lit up: “The Shadow Ghost’s movement speed is very fast; ten seconds is enough to get from the Residence to the center of the town.

“We just need to have the Shadow Ghost carry the Ink Soul Scroll and fly around over the town. Brother Lin can then sit behind the door generated by the scroll and see the full picture of Yanghua Town.”

This plan is theoretically feasible and not complicated; it only requires each player to contribute one item.

Tang Yu put down the Qingming rice ball and wiped his hands on his sleeve: “Lin Wen, judging by what you’re saying, you intend to take the field yourself and implement this plan tonight?

“Don’t you know that no one can say for sure what happens at night? If you don’t have Fu Jue’s strength, you’re just joking with your own life.”

Qi Si smiled: “I know, but some things must be done by someone, or neither the main quest nor the NE Route can be advanced.”

Tang Yu’s gaze narrowed slightly, and he opened his mouth to say something, but then he heard Qi Si say in a matter-of-fact tone: “No matter how you look at it, Lin Ya’s item and mine are more valuable than your scroll. I wouldn’t trust them in your hands.”

Tang Yu: Thanks for nothing, I was touched for a moment.

Lin Chen hesitated for a moment, then spoke to Brother Qi through the Soul Leaf: “Brother Qi, if it’s really that dangerous, can I go instead? You are much stronger than me. If something happens to you, what will happen to the subsequent puzzle-solving?”

“Nothing will happen,” Qi Si said listlessly. “If I go, there’s a high probability that no one will have to die. If you go, you will truly die.”

Lin Chen listened to Qi Si’s tone, which clearly lacked the patience to explain, and although confused, he wisely kept silent.

The hour hand of the Pocket Watch of Fate slowly swept past the Roman numeral eight; it was eight o’clock in the evening.

Qi Si put the watch back on his wrist. Without being polite, he casually put both the 【Ink Soul Scroll】 and the 【Umbrella Filled with Pain】 into his inventory.

After confirming the person who would go out to explore at night, there was no longer any disagreement about dividing the rooms.

Qi Si took a room alone, and Tang Yu and Lin Chen shared one. This ensured mutual non-interference and minimized losses even if something went wrong.

However, there was one more thing to do before returning to their respective rooms.

The three of them went up to the second floor, gathered in Luo Haihua and her husband’s room, and headed straight for the bedside table piled high with paper.

As soon as night fell, the light inside the room dimmed, making the writing on the paper illegible.

The three of them took the pages from the bedside table out of the room, spread them on the floor of the second-floor corridor, and illuminated them with a lantern.

They saw that the pages were densely covered with answers to the questions Qi Si had posed.

【1. Inform us of the names and specific dates of the dungeons you cleared in the Eerie Game’s Official Pool (sharing your item reserves would be even better), so we may formulate a plan for the survival of all members.】

Luo Haihua: 【Lao Luo and I only started teaming up recently. The dungeons we cleared before were “Willow Shade Village,” “Kingdom of Immortality,” “Soul Container,” and “Eris’s Curse”… The specific dates were March 19, March 26, April 2, and April 9, 2035. This time is April 16.】

【We have an item called the “Abyss Ring.” If the gem on it turns black, it means our choice will lead to a certain death situation; red indicates danger but also opportunity; blue indicates no danger and no critical clues.】

【We also have a few “Photographic Negatives” brought out from the last dungeon. They can record images and sometimes capture things invisible to the naked eye.】

【2. Review your experience last night, which may help us understand the cause of Nothingness’s formation.】

Luo Haihua: 【Last night, my lantern was knocked over by something invisible, and the flame inside escaped and burned the bedsheet. I was startled at first, but after seeing the “Abyss Ring” on my hand turn red, I felt that things might not be so bad.

【At that time, I seemed to be situated at the seam between two spaces. My left eye could see Lao Luo, but my right eye saw many strange and messy things. I spoke to Lao Luo, but he couldn’t hear my voice, and the connection of our Team Ring was also severed.

【A voice told me that I could choose to enter the world of Nothingness and travel to the future of Yanghua Town. I realized there might be important clues, so I agreed. Unexpectedly, Lao Luo later saw me disappear before his eyes, knocked over his own lantern, and came looking for me.】

【3. Describe the world you saw. We suspect that it may contain critical clues.】

【Most of the area on the West side of the town was black Nothingness, with only a few bedside tables and some dilapidated wooden boards floating in the darkness, looking like a video game that had partially loaded and frozen. The bedside tables and wooden boards all bore traces of being scorched by a large fire, seemingly having gone through a fire disaster.

【Lao Luo and I later tried walking east for a while and passed through a gigantic mirror. The surroundings finally ceased to be darkness. Behind the mirror was also a Yanghua Town, which was a mirror image of the Yanghua Town we first saw. There was also a Residence on the far east side. We went up to the second floor of that Residence and saw that it was exactly the same as the Residence on the West side of the town!

【Moreover, there were many people in this Yanghua Town, including not only deceased townspeople but also players who had died in this dungeon before. They all retained their memories from when they were alive, living their lives as if they were still alive, except that they lacked physical bodies…】