37. The Outstanding Telegraph Operator

Chen Sheng's expression was heavy, his face solemn.

Because the act had almost fooled even himself.

“So then what happened?”

The only bystander—Little Ghost Girl—showed not the slightest reaction. Wasn’t it just nine ghosts escaping, pretending to be alive? What was the big deal?

In this world, were ghosts really so rare?

Especially here in Upper Three Rivers City, where eerie incidents occurred one after another.

Forget the rest of Upper Three Rivers City—even the city’s greatest shield, the Constabulary, ran into ghosts every few days!

Every month, the Constabulary had to allocate a large budget just to appease its officers and burn incense at those lonely graves and old mansions.

“These are ghosts who can pass for the living!” Chen Sheng emphasized each word.

“Oh. And then?” The Little Ghost Girl was still uncomprehending. For a ghost, passing as a living person really was nothing special.

Chen Sheng realized at once that he and this “NPC tool” were not on the same wavelength; all his earlier buildup had been wasted. He could only state things plainly: “The ghosts who escaped from here don’t want anyone to know they’re dead, so they created that deceptive one-in-ten missing persons rate. From this, a simple motive can be deduced: they don’t want people to think this old mansion is dangerous.”

“And with that, people are bound to come. There are always a few who don’t fear death, or who lack brains, or who get carried away with a bet or something. Whatever their reasons for coming, in the end, they’ll become the new scapegoats here.”

“So, master, what do you think is causing it so that those who die here, after becoming ghosts, can’t leave and must find a substitute?”

After Chen Sheng finished his careful explanation, the Little Ghost Girl suddenly understood, and then said with utmost seriousness, “I don’t know.”

If she’d known, she would have said so earlier.

She liked gossip, after all.

Chen Sheng: “…”

Why was it so hard to obtain information about the game’s plot in this so-called healing game?

Could this be another trap?

Chen Sheng grew wary at the thought. Not long ago, he’d been tricked by this healing game’s damned designers into doing a quest with no reward!

“Don’t tell me there’s nothing here either? The so-called new equipment—was that just a lie?”

This idea, once it surfaced, could not be suppressed.

The more Chen Sheng thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

If there had once been a rewardless quest, why couldn’t there also be an instance with no reward?

This healing game was detailed, but the designers were notorious for their cruelty!

Take the previous tourist bus, for example—a boy detective in black, full of promise as a potential companion, appeared. But in a blink, the boy detective was dead.

Could such a plotline exist in any other game?

With this in mind, Chen Sheng immediately decided: regardless of the truth, he had to leave the Li Family Villa at once!

“Master, you can go back yourself. I have something to do, so I’ll be leaving now.”

He displayed the art of burning bridges to perfection, tossing the Little Ghost Girl, whom he’d carried all this time, aside and walking straight out of the villa.

Thud!

The Little Ghost Girl landed on her backside, momentarily stunned. Only after a while did she realize she’d been thrown away.

“You—you—!”

Without hesitation, she instantly became an excellent telegraph operator.

Because she saw Chen Sheng was already far away.

At that distance, he couldn’t hear her voice.

“Traitor!”

“Is this how you abandon your master? At least put me down gently!”

Furious, the Little Ghost Girl bounced twice on the spot.

If she were accidentally broken, there’d be no way to repair her!

…

Chen Sheng didn’t spare her a thought—what player would trouble themselves over an in-game “NPC”?

His hands clasped behind his head, he walked and pondered, feeling somewhat frustrated. He didn’t think he’d chosen the wrong place, so why was he being tricked again and again?

Apart from a “starter item” from the “Novice Village”, he hadn’t gained any other benefits.

“Could it be that the choice of equipment in the Novice Village determines the subsequent route?”

A sudden thought struck Chen Sheng.

“The strength of the starter equipment reflects the difficulty mode chosen.”

“And judging by the quality of my starter equipment, I’ve probably chosen hell mode.”

In that instant, everything became clear.

“Yes, that must be it! Games need internal logic, and hell-mode difficulty matches the quality of my starter equipment perfectly!”

After this mental exercise, Chen Sheng’s frustration vanished like mist.

After all, life doesn’t need logic, but games do!

Otherwise, it’d be hard to keep players engaged!

Chen Sheng’s heart filled with delight. He chose to quit the game mode. Having learned from last time, he didn’t dare play too long, lest he log out and find it was already noon the next day.

A game is a game, reality is reality. As an adult, Chen Sheng was always clear-headed and self-disciplined.

As the symbol appeared, Chen Sheng left in an instant. Naturally, he did not notice that ever since he left that villa, something had been following him.

And the moment Chen Sheng disappeared, that thing revealed itself.

It was a stone platform shrouded in black mist. Upon the platform stood a golden beheading blade, its hilt shaped like a ghost’s head. Blood dripped continuously from the stone, but as each drop fell, it vanished before reaching the ground.

A terrifying aura of resentment roiled within the black mist, like countless evil spirits announcing their presence.

Faint, mournful wails echoed ceaselessly from the stone platform.

It was a guillotine.

An instrument of execution.

Yet, strangely, though the Little Ghost Girl could sense the gallows from afar, she was utterly unaware of the guillotine mere dozens of meters away—even with its unnatural manifestation.

The guillotine sat quietly in the darkness. Suddenly, the black mist enveloping it began to churn, surging outward.

At once, the wraiths trapped in the villa discovered the power binding them, preventing their escape, had vanished.

Ecstatic, they fled the villa at once.

In moments, the air around the villa was filled with chilling laughter and howls.

The Little Ghost Girl felt this change most keenly.

She could clearly sense the villa was different now. Without hesitation, she shouted, “Holy crap!” and twisted the dial of the black-and-white television, diving headfirst into the screen.

Boom!

A wild blaze swallowed the villa. In an instant, the mansion was leveled to the ground.

Strangely, none of the surrounding trees were touched by fire.

Not a single leaf showed the slightest sign of scorching.