Chapter 397: Jester Trickster

In the Ruins of the Sunset, players gathered under the stone monument of the World Tree, watching helplessly as the name corresponding to the 【Forbidden Scholar】 column on the Revelation Fragment changed rapidly, from 【Asakura Yuko】 to 【Veidt Hayes】, until it finally returned to a blank space.

The four words 【Forbidden Scholar】 gradually faded away as if worn down by a file, and the seventeenth line among the twenty-two Identity Card displays was now completely empty.

The spectating players exchanged glances, and for a moment, the air was filled with a flurry of discussion.

“What’s the situation? Didn’t they say that even if the holder dies, others can pick up the Identity Card and re-bind it? Why did it just disappear?”

“I’m not sure. Could there be a limit on the number of people who can bind it within a single instance? Maybe after changing holders once, it can’t be bound to anyone else for a short period?”

“Tsk, looking at it this way, this 【Forbidden Scholar】 card really is ‘forbidden.’ It’s practically a death sentence for whoever binds it. Their virtue doesn’t match the position, so they just become a piece of fat for others to prey on. How tragic.”

“Haha, I used to be envious of those with Identity Cards, but now that I think about it, we’re better off just watching from the sidelines and letting those people fight until they’re bloody.”

Being under the high pressure of the Eerie Game for a long time and daily watching livestreams filled with death and fear, a small portion of people’s psyches had become extremely twisted. Upon seeing the death of their own kind, they would always shift some of their stress into schadenfreude, discussing the abruptly ended fates of others with a certain survivor’s sense of fortune.

Soon, a new player joined the discussion. This person belonged to the theoretical school and explained solemnly, “According to the recent research by our Tingfeng Guild, after the Revelation Fragment appeared, players who have already bound an Identity Card cannot hold a new one—not even if it’s kept in their inventory without being bound.

“And combining past research cases, after a holder dies, an Identity Card will automatically choose another player in the same instance to enter their inventory, even if no one actively picks it up. Since no new holder appeared after the second holder of the 【Forbidden Scholar】 card died, it’s enough to prove that there are no players in the Holy City instance who can bind an Identity Card.

“Then there is only one possibility: all players who did not yet hold an Identity Card died in the instance. The only ones who survived are the known Identity Card holders, namely Fu Jue and Si Qi.”

As if to corroborate his words, lines of text emerged on the recording tablet diagonally opposite the Revelation Fragment.

【Holy City instance True End – “Godless Land” Unlocked】

【Unlocking Player: Fu Jue】

【The Holy City instance has been permanently closed due to force majeure】

【Last Clearing Player: Fu Jue】

The players, who had been full of interest, fell silent for a moment.

It was too unusual for only Fu Jue to clear the instance. Even Si Qi, who had recently risen to fame, died in the instance. Could Fu Jue’s shadow be behind this?

Even if Fu Jue had been frequently caught in the storm of public opinion lately, to most players, he was still an existence like a “savior” or “hope of humanity.” He was like a lighthouse in the vast, boundless sea or a bonfire in the dark—a safe harbor that could make everyone feel at ease and relaxed.

Opponents would mock and attack him for not saving everyone, while supporters would use his past contributions as evidence to defend his authority in words. Both starting points were built on the premise that he was an excellent leader who would do his best to protect everyone.

Players were accustomed to viewing being matched into the same instance as Fu Jue as a form of luck, as if seeing him meant seeing a guarantee of survival. But in the Holy City, the only instance where he didn’t start a livestream, he became the sole survivor, while not one of his twelve companions lived… Was it a mistake, or had the savior become disappointed in humanity, no longer willing to provide protection, and turned to another extreme?

The players collectively felt a chill, as if one day they learned that the sun, which they were used to casting light and heat, would no longer rise, and that the survival and continuation of human civilization for millions of years was merely an accident… That theoretical player from the Tingfeng Guild was the first to calm down, tapping his chin with a folding fan: “It seems that after entering the countdown phase for the Final Dungeon, the difficulty of other instances in the Eerie Game has also significantly increased. Even God Fu could only look out for himself.

“I suggest that everyone enter an instance as soon as possible before the Final Dungeon begins to reset the seven-day countdown, to avoid being accidentally caught up in the competition among Identity Card holders when the time comes.”

At this point, someone recognized him and called out in surprise, “Vice Guild Master Yu, why have you come to the Ruins of the Sunset as well?”

Only then did the other players notice that this young man with a common face, who looked plain and had a hair-raisingly low presence, was the Vice Guild Master of the top-three Tingfeng Guild, the famous Yu Jinsheng.

Yu Jinsheng nodded slightly to the person who pointed out his identity, lifted his wrist to habitually check a non-existent watch, and said calmly, “It is now 9:00 PM on May 3rd, twenty-seven hours before the Final Dungeon opens. Everyone should prepare early. Those who need to enter an instance to refresh their deadline should do so quickly, and those who need to buy items should buy them.

“After May 5th, everyone should try not to enter the game anymore. Leave this dangerous stage to those unlucky fellows who were chosen.”

While such an explanation still contained a warning of crisis, it at least proposed a clear solution.

The number of people in the Ruins of the Sunset suddenly decreased by more than half. Many players rushed back to the Game Space, spending points to specify familiar instances and begin matching.

Yu Jinsheng stood quietly under the World Tree from beginning to end. Once the crowd had dispersed, he cast his gaze from afar toward the Babel behind the tree, which pierced the clouds.

The black high tower stood between the dusky heaven and earth, as hideous and towering as a deliberately planned scar. The sky, which was usually of a single color, faintly glowed with a golden luster, coating the tower’s surface—which was capable of swallowing all light—with a layer of holy glaze.

The young man gazed for a long time, a touch of emotion appearing in his eyes before being immediately hidden within his deep brown pupils. He lowered his head and let out a faint sigh: “Twenty-two years, countless people following one after another, we have already lost too much… Will the dawn this time be the final victory after the storm, or a precursor to another loss?”

…Inside the office of the Frog Hospital at the Unnamed Guild base.

Lin Chen stared unblinkingly at the movements in the Ruins of the Sunset displayed on the large screen. After seeing the name shown in the column for the player who cleared the Holy City instance, he felt as if he heard a sharp ringing in his ears, and his vision went black in waves.

He had learned about the events of the Holy City instance through descriptions on the Forum. Upon receiving the news, he had hurriedly entered the game and clicked on Asakura Yuko’s livestream, originally intending to understand Fu Jue’s movements, but he had caught a glimpse of Qi Si’s figure in a passing glance.

Unexpectedly, Qi Si only appeared in the livestream for a brief moment before the entire livestream room was closed due to 【Involvement of Pollution】. All he could do afterward was wait for the livestream to resume while trying to contact Qi Si through the Soul Leaf.

However, the black screen of the livestream room never lit up again, and Qi Si did not reply to any of his messages. Lin Chen guessed that Qi Si might not want to be disturbed by others while clearing the instance. Entering the instance alone without telling him must have had its own reasons.

But he hadn’t expected that Qi Si would die in the instance, while Fu Jue became the sole survivor.

How could Qi Si die? He was so powerful; his puzzle-solving abilities and knowledge reserves were top-tier. Even back in the Novice Pool, he was able to see through the core mechanics of an instance. After becoming a formal player, he had navigated through various puzzles with ease.

Even when he became a target of public criticism in the Colosseum instance, facing the malice of all the players in the entire instance, he had survived until the end without incident.

What kind of instance was the Holy City that it could cause so many deaths even when both Qi Si and Fu Jue were present?

That’s right, this was a faction-based instance, destined for one faction to head toward failure. Fu Jue survived while everyone else died. Could it be that Fu Jue killed Qi Si?

Lin Chen stood up and walked toward the door, his heart filled with coldness.

When he first entered the Eerie Game, like many well-intentioned players, he had felt admiration and goodwill toward Fu Jue, the top player, because of various promotions on the Forum.

This bit of goodwill had gradually vanished over time and under Qi Si’s subtle influence, though it hadn’t yet solidified into concrete hostility. It was more of a rejection of an opponent in a competitive relationship.

But at this very moment, an irrational hostility had completely taken shape.

Even knowing that faction games were the arrangement of the Eerie Game and that one couldn’t blame the survivor regardless of who lived or died, Lin Chen was absolutely certain that if Fu Jue really killed Qi Si, he would want Fu Jue to die.

“Lin Chen, are you free now? I have some things to tell you next, and I hope you’ll listen carefully.” A familiar voice sounded at the base of his mind. Lin Chen froze, and the foot he had stepped over the threshold with was pulled back.

He felt as if he had just returned to the human world from a death trap. Only after realizing that person was still there did he truly know he was still alive. He stood dazed for two seconds before asking in a hoarse voice, “Brother Qi, are you okay? I saw on the recording tablet that your name wasn’t among the players who cleared it…”

“I didn’t enter the instance as a player, so how could my name be written on it?” Qi Si’s tone sounded very natural and relaxed. “Besides, it’s not the first or second time my name hasn’t appeared in the records. What’s there to be so startled about?”

Lin Chen breathed a sigh of relief: “I thought Fu Jue had…”

“What are you thinking?” Qi Si laughed. “My cooperation with him was quite pleasant. Even if it wasn’t, with his current strength and considerations, he wouldn’t dare to rashly make an enemy of me—it wouldn’t look good for others to profit from both of us being injured.”

“Uh… ah? Cooperation? Oh, I see…” Lin Chen remembered that Fu Jue had indeed mentioned going to talk to Qi Si about cooperation before. Now it sounded like the talk was successful?

He calmed down and carefully reviewed the current situation, realizing that Qi Si was right.

When two forces sit at the card table as equals, all previous grudges, conceptual disagreements, and cognitive differences can be temporarily set aside. Interests are always the first priority—there was no need for Fu Jue to move against Qi Si.

His mind settled slightly, and he belatedly realized that his back was covered in a large amount of cold sweat. At this moment, he only felt waves of weakness throughout his body, and a hint of embarrassment faintly arose in his heart: for a split second just now, he had almost really turned against Kyushu.

Qi Si continued, “Alright, I’m looking for you this time to tell you some news. The difficulty of the Final Dungeon will be higher than all past instances. If you still have any remaining points, convert as many as possible into life-saving items.

“If you can clear the Final Dungeon, achieving your wish will naturally be a given; if you can’t clear it, you won’t live to see the day you save up enough points.”

These words were harsh, but they were the truth. Lin Chen nodded and immediately entered the mall interface to scout for items. Then he heard Qi Si continue, “Additionally, you may have heard of the existence of the Progenitor God…”

…Qi Si returned to the Game Space, unilaterally cut off contact with Lin Chen, and began to review the entire Holy City instance.

The Progenitor God had revived. Even with him and Fu Jue joining forces, they couldn’t do anything to Him. In the end, they had to kill all the believers and end the instance early, leaving in what could be described as a pathetic state.

Although they hadn’t made things worse through their temporary schemes or accelerated the Progenitor God’s revival process, they hadn’t gained any benefits either, and had even almost lost their lives in the instance.

The Progenitor God’s eyes hung high in his memory, lingering like a haunting ghost, accompanied by the immersive fear of being dominated.

This was the first time since Qi Si entered the Eerie Game that he hadn’t gotten his way, and he couldn’t help but carefully consider his next plan.

Every step he would take in the future was not within the past arrangements of the Contract, but rather as a god entering the game between gods. There was no God’s-eye view; he could only test for errors step by step and… survive as much as possible.

But was living really something worth pursuing with all one’s might? If even living required all one’s might, why not just die?

Qi Si still remembered that his original intention for entering the Eerie Game was to find an interesting way to die for himself. Now, this original intention had not changed, but at the thought that his death might allow the Progenitor God to more smoothly achieve His desire, he felt it was better to live a little longer.

As for the existence of the “other him” that Lin Chen had mentioned to him before, he had already gained some clues after one instance.

After Veidt died, the 【Forbidden Scholar】 Identity Card was directly reclaimed, which basically proved that the same person could not hold multiple Identity Cards. Although the 【Jester Trickster】 card in his inventory still looked intact, the actual situation was not yet known.

Following his memory, Qi Si opened the inventory he once used to store miscellaneous items, lifted the towels and papers on the surface, and used two fingers to pinch that red-and-black card from the bottom.

On the blood-red card surface, a magician wearing a clown mask and a black dress suit with intricate patterns was bowing. Suddenly, he took off his top hat and threw the playing cards within it forward.

A long, narrow chasm emerged in the center of the image, with countless cracks spreading from it to both sides, interlocking into an irregular spiderweb, with even more tiny lines extending between the grids.

Accompanied by a “crack” at the spiritual level, the card completely crumbled into powder in Qi Si’s hand. Golden light spots dispersed in the void, falling like a pattering shower of rain.

In a passing glimpse, Qi Si seemed to see his own figure wearing a mask and a blood-stained white shirt from the Grand Performance instance. Clearly, not much time had passed, yet he only felt a sense of strangeness.

On one timeline, there was a version of him who had bound the 【Jester Trickster】 card, and from then on, another fate had branched out.

“Qi Si” was no longer unique.

“Jester Trickster, Zhou Ke?” The god in charge of the Contract uttered a name, and as if hearing some joke, he began to laugh softly.

In far-off Jiang City, a sea of roses surged to swallow all living beings and buildings, spreading the heaven and earth into a crimson stage.