Chapter 9: Night Stroll in Yin Village 07

Run.

That was the warning left behind by the Ghost Lady for Qin Fei.

Qin Fei frowned, a hint of suspicion flashing through his eyes.

So, last night, the Ghost Lady had desperately tried to open his coffin just to urge him to leave quickly?

Was there something wrong with the coffin?

No, that couldn't be right.

As the only safe haven in the dungeon, if the coffin itself was a deception, then the players would be at a significant disadvantage.

The Ghost Lady's hand might have left this message to warn Qin Fei that there was something amiss with the village and its inhabitants.

Or perhaps she meant something else entirely.

Only it knew the truth of its situation.

"Big Shot Qin! Big Shot Qin?"

Xiao Xiao's voice came from beside him, and Qin Fei turned his head to look.

"What were you thinking about? I've been calling you for ages, but you didn't respond." Xiao Xiao wore a look of resentment.

"I was just lost in thought." Qin Fei smiled gently, effortlessly brushing off the subject. "Why did you call me?"

Xiao Xiao glanced toward the other side of the yard, his expression a mix of emotions. "Actually, there's nothing much. I just wanted to tell you... Hua Qiwei is dead."

In the center of the yard lay a shattered coffin, its remains soaked in blood. Scattered bits of flesh and tattered clothing dotted the area, but no corpse was in sight. It was unclear where the monster that appeared in the middle of the night had taken it.

It was a gruesome death, to say the least.

Qin Fei nodded. Hua Qiwei's demise was expected. He then asked, "What about Lin Ye?"

Xiao Xiao replied, "I'm not sure. He hasn't returned yet."

It seemed highly unlikely that they would return.

If Lin Ye were to die, half of the blame would fall on Hua Qiwei, his incompetent teammate who had dragged him down.

"Speaking of which," Xiao Xiao said, "you were right. The coffin can actually restore a player's Sanity Points."

After spending a night in the coffin, Xiao Xiao woke up this morning to find that his Sanity Points had increased by five points.

Unfortunately, five points were barely a drop in the bucket. Just yesterday, in the funeral parlor, Xiao Xiao's Sanity Points had dropped by eight points.

That was even without being affected by any of the instance's illusions or succumbing to the food on the table. Novice players with lower mental immunity than him would have lost even more Sanity Points.

Xiao Xiao asked Qin Fei, "Expert, how much Sanity Points did you recover?"

He wanted to know if the coffin had the same effect on everyone, but after asking around in the morning, he found that few were willing to share their information.

Xiao Xiao didn't take it personally and simply smiled as he looked for his next target.

How could Qin Fei possibly know how many Sanity Points he had recovered?

The entire day before, Qin Fei's Sanity Points hadn't dropped at all. Furthermore, when the Ghost Hand appeared in the middle of the night, due to the influx of new viewers in the live stream, the system had granted Qin Fei another reward, which directly pushed his Sanity Points past the 120 threshold.

As such, the coffin's supposed boost to Sanity Points didn't seem to have any effect on Qin Fei.

Qin Fei evaded the question. "Same as you."

Xiao Xiao didn't doubt him and instead turned to inquire other players nearby.

Soon, at 7:30 in the morning, the guide arrived punctually and opened the door to the mortuary.

Affected by last night's banquet, the players were on high alert for breakfast this morning. Unlike yesterday, however, the guide didn't lead them anywhere else. Instead, he entered the mortuary with two bamboo baskets filled with food.

The contents of the bamboo baskets were ordinary – egg and ham sandwiches wrapped in crude oil paper, along with milk. They were neatly arranged within.

Despite this, the players remained cautious.

Once again, Qin Fei took the initiative. After thanking the guide, he picked up a sandwich from the basket at random.

The sandwich was still warm, its taste no different from those sold in bakeries.

Watching Qin Fei enjoy his meal, the players finally mustered the courage to approach.

After an entire day without food yesterday, they pounced on the bamboo basket like starving wolves. Some eagerly reached out to snatch food, while others gazed at the basket with solemn expressions, seemingly lost in thought. A few still lingered timidly at the back of the crowd.

Three minutes later, the guide looked up at the half-filled basket, his face contorted with disdain. His gaze swept across the players' faces like razor-sharp blades.

Only when he saw Qin Fei did he manage a faint, barely recognizable smile, his ashen cheeks stretching slightly.

Though the gesture was minute, it sufficed to bring a sense of comfort to Qin Fei's mind and body.

Beside him, a player biting into a sandwich suddenly exclaimed, "My sanity value has recovered by one point!"

"I did too!"

"Me too."

This revelation left the players who hadn't taken breakfast in a state of stunned disbelief. Though they were all newcomers, they had come to understand the crucial role of their sanity values in the past day and night. Missing an opportunity to replenish it could very well mean taking a giant leap closer to death.

Someone ventured forward again, only to be deterred by the tour guide's withering glance.

Among those who had grabbed breakfast, some had indeed guessed the potential effect of the food on restoring their sanity points, but most were merely driven by hunger and peer pressure.

If not for Qin Fei's initial attempt, they would never have dared to act recklessly.

Several grateful gazes fell upon Qin Fei. Standing still, he pursed his lips into a subtle smile, exuding an air of hidden accomplishments and anonymity.

The slender and elegant young man stood tall, his skin fair. He resembled a willow in the breeze, appearing both approachable and dependable.

His attire was impeccable and serene, exuding an air of nonchalance amidst the eerie ambiance of the dungeon. Unaffected by the gloom and peculiarity that plagued the surroundings, he stood out starkly among the group of disheveled players, like a ray of light in a world of shadows.

The guide glanced at the others and then at Qin Fei. The favorability bar above his head reluctantly moved forward a tiny bit once more.

Though it's only a slight amount, its significance absolutely cannot be underestimated.

For Qin Fei, this was nothing short of a historic moment, as at this very instant, the Tour Guide's favorability towards him had finally surpassed the significant milestone of 20.

"Travel Lodge Guide": Affinity: 20 (The guide has a positive impression of you and is willing to continue communicating.)

Qin Fei's spirits lifted.

The guide's "continued interaction" was clearly much more useful than the ghost girl's.

After collecting all the milk bottles, the guide whispered, "You're free to roam around the village at will now, but don't leave. Please return to the mortuary by 11:30."

With that, the guide turned to leave.

Qin Fei swiftly stepped forward and blocked the guide's path at the entrance of the mortuary. "Sir Guide, aren't you coming with us?"

True to his expectations, the guide replied to Qin Fei. He shook his head and spoke in fragmented sentences, "I have... other matters to attend to."

Qin Fei slightly furrowed his brow, his delicate face displaying disappointment. "Is that so? That's really too bad."

He lowered his gaze, his amber eyes filled with loss. "I was looking forward to exploring the beauty of Western Hunan with you, Sir Guide."

His pitiful appearance tugged at one's heartstrings.

Upon finishing his words, the guide's favorability towards Qin Fei increased by 1 point.

Qin Fei silently gave himself a mental thumbs up.

In the live stream's audience section,

"Damn, he's seriously too shameless. I've never seen someone so skilled at bootlicking."

"But why does he keep trying to please the guide?"

"It's not just the guide, he didn't even spare a single hand last night."

"It must have something to do with his innate skill."

Players who had activated their innate skills had differently colored attribute panels from those who hadn't, making it easy for viewers to tell at a glance.

The specifics of an innate skill were considered private information and were protected by the system, so viewers couldn't directly see them.

However, the system wouldn't miss any chance to make money. A wealthy viewer immediately purchased a Decryption Mirror from the system store, a tool that could somewhat decipher a player's innate skill content.

But soon, that viewer was left dumbfounded, "What's going on? Why can't I see anything? The system shows that his anti-peeping level is the highest S+ class."

In F-rated streams and above, viewers could interact with players in real-time through bullet screens. To ensure fairness in the game, the system restricted spectators from sharing Host A's personal information with Host B.

However, systems were rigid, while viewers were resourceful.

With determination, one could always find creative ways to skirt around the rules and leak information.

Detailed revelations might be impossible, but sometimes, even the tiniest bits of information could significantly impact the dynamics within a dungeon instance.

As a result, some high-level players, mindful of their privacy, would purchase counter-surveillance items in Central City.

Such items would only appear on those gods among players whose innate abilities have evolved time and again, and who have accumulated an impressive score to a significant level.

For an inexperienced player like Qin Fei, who didn't even have a comprehensive understanding of the live broadcast system and audience, how could he possibly possess such an item?

This was his very first instance; he hadn't even had the chance to access the system's marketplace yet.

"Is it a bug?"

"This time, it has to be a bug, right!"

The live streaming hall erupted into another round of feverish excitement.

Unfortunately,

The system's mechanical female voice, as cold as ever, announced a fact that the audience found hard to believe.

"All is in compliance, no loopholes detected. Please view the stream in an orderly manner."

What on earth was going on?

The viewers exchanged bewildered glances.

Qin Fei's online viewer count skyrocketed, and upon hearing the continuous system notifications in this area, spectators from neighboring zones flocked over.

Speculations about Qin Fei's peculiarities abounded, but the most discussed topic remained his innate skill.

Some sharp-eyed viewers were close to unraveling the truth, "The system mentioned that the guide's unusual attitude toward him is related to his talent. So, his flattery must be due to a requirement of his skill, right?"

"Flattery is used to win favor from others, from NPCs... Could it be that his innate skill is to charm NPCs? If they have a high affinity for him, they might assist him."

This conjecture could be said to have precisely nailed the truth; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it prophetic.

However, just a second later, someone immediately refuted it.

"Do you even know anything about live streaming?"

"Exactly, how could that be? There are only a limited number of fixed types for innate abilities. They keep reappearing. You made up the strategy-based ability yourself?"

The audience engaged in heated discussions.

Eventually, they finally reached a conclusion:

Qin Fei's unusual behavior must be related to his innate ability. Courting NPCs might bring him some advantage. Perhaps his ability was charm-based, or he was a mental-type thief who could steal information from NPCs.

But the theory that "innate ability equals NPC strategy" couldn't hold water.

Everyone had watched so many live streams, and they had never seen a streamer successfully court an NPC. NPCs in the rule-bound worlds were naturally hostile towards players. Even the most gentle and harmless NPCs didn't have any affection for these outsiders.

Even the rarest charm-type innate abilities were no exception; they could only work for a very short period while the skill was active.

The ability to romance non-playable characters is truly heaven-defying.

Absolutely.

It's absolutely impossible.

...

On the other side of the screen, Qin Fei, who had been deemed "impossible," was thriving in his pursuit of the guide character.

The guide attempted to leave, but Qin Fei clung to him like a piece of sticky candy: "Guide, what tasks do you have? Is there anything I can assist you with?"

The young man's expression was earnest, his clear and gentle eyes shimmering with unwavering determination. It was as if he was the most trustworthy and caring guide in the world: "Since we're already in the village, it would be ideal if we could help alleviate some of your work burden while enjoying our visit."

Guide: "..."

The guide had never encountered such an enthusiastic tourist and was momentarily taken aback.

Moments later, the guide regained their composure.

Perhaps it was because Qin Fei's demeanor appeared overly dependable that the guide hesitated for a few seconds before actually retrieving a box from the massive backpack on his back. "This is collaborative material between the travel agency and Shadow Village. Can you deliver it to the village chief?"

Qin Fei readily agreed. "No problem."

The other players watching from behind were left with their jaws hanging in astonishment.

Did this guy really just get a new mission like that?

In fact, this wasn't the first time. Whenever the player named Qin Fei conversed with the guide, he always received a response, as if the guide would fulfill any request.

Was it possible that the guide's menacing appearance, as if he'd lop off someone's head at the slightest provocation, was just an act, and that he was actually quite approachable in reality?

Some players began to entertain such thoughts. Their gazes met in the air, and soon they huddled together, whispering conspiratorially.

Qin Fei glanced over and noticed the group of ruffians led by the one with the scar.

These individuals had been clustering together since they were on the bus. No one knew what they discussed, but after a while, a young man with yellow hair named Tan Yong was pushed forward.

He strode confidently up to the guide.

"Hey! Guide." Clearly, Tan Yong was attempting to emulate Qin Fei's demeanor, forcing a relatively innocent smile for the guide.

Unfortunately, his facial features worked against him, and the attempt at duplicating Qin Fei's gentle and composed aura fell flat, bordering on sleazy instead.

The guide's face darkened, and he remained silent.

Tan Yong felt the guide's impatience like a cold breeze, leaving him stammering, unable to utter a word.

Something was off. Why was the situation different for him? When Qin Fei approached, the guide seemed to relax, his expression softening. But with Tan Yong, the guide's brows knitted together as if he wished to crush him on the spot.

Tan Yong was nervous, and his nerves only worsened his performance.

The guide soon lost his patience. He disliked the ugly, blond youth lingering before his eyes and shot him a menacing glare, "Spit it out if you have something to say."

Tan Yong's face flushed a deep shade of purple.

The guide ignored him and turned his attention back to Qin Fei, beginning to give him directions.

Inside Qin Fei's box were a few sheets of paper and a booklet, its cover adorned with flashy landscape photographs, reminiscent of local travel guides found in real-world travel agencies or long-distance bus rides.

"The village chief is at the ancestral hall. You can deliver the items there. The ancestral hall is over—" The guide raised a hand, pointing in a direction. "That way."

Qin Fei followed the direction indicated by the tour guide.

The mist in the village was even denser today than it was yesterday, which was peculiar; it was as if this place were entirely devoid of sunlight.

A pallid mist draped everything within sight, imbuing it with a desolate and lifeless hue.

It was daytime now, and the stone deities lining the village pathways had been retrieved by the villagers. Similarly, the villagers themselves had vanished, leaving the entire village shrouded in an eerie silence.

At the end of the dense fog that obscured the view, a building stood silently in place.

Strangely enough, despite the low visibility, the outline of the shrine appeared unusually distinct. Its dark entrance seemed to be facing the direction of the mortuary, almost glowing with an eerie crimson hue in the haze. Upon closer inspection, however, there was nothing but emptiness.

It resembled a black vortex, ready to devour all living creatures within its reach.