Players, Please Board the Train

”Not necessarily,” Xu Huo said. ”At the very least, I’m a good person.”

Jiangjiang suddenly burst out laughing. At first it was a muffled chuckle, then it grew into full-blown laughter, and finally she was doubled over, rocking back and forth. After a moment, she wiped away her tears and said, ”Thank you. That’s the funniest joke I’ve heard all year.”

For some reason, Xu Huo laughed too. He said, ”When I was a child, I was treated at a psychiatric hospital. At the time, there should have been a doctor who treated me.”

”The reason I say ’should have been’ is because that doctor doesn’t exist in my normal memories. I only discovered him through medication-induced stimulation.”

”I lost a portion of my memories. That wouldn’t normally be a big problem. A person doesn’t have to remember every single thing or figure out every question to live, but within that missing portion of memory lies my brother’s death. To this day, I still don’t know why he died or how he died. The original memories in my head have also become somewhat blurred because of that doctor’s appearance, but there’s one thing I’m absolutely certain of: he died because of me.”

”So I have to get to the bottom of what happened to him.”

”Shang Shuming... or rather, the person who might be playing the role of Shang Shuming may not necessarily be that original doctor, but he’s my only lead.” Xu Huo gripped the ”Eye of the Dead,” his gaze ice-cold. ”You seem like a decent person. I hope you can tell me the truth.”

Jiangjiang glanced at the two players behind her who were spinning in place with vacant expressions, while Song Xu and the other who had gone after the Ghostly Shadow still hadn’t returned. She said, ”It seems you’ve already taken control of the others. No matter how I explain things, you won’t believe me, will you?”

Xu Huo gestured with his chin toward the paintbrush in her hand. ”What do you think?”

”Since we’re trapped here, I doubt either of us is getting out anytime soon.” Jiangjiang said. ”Too bad I’m someone who can’t even truss a chicken. I’m certainly no match for you. But I can find other things to play with you in my place...”Before she even finished speaking, Xu Huo had already launched a fierce attack. However, Jiangjiang was no slowpoke either. Her entire body floated backward as lightly as a sheet of paper while she raised her paintbrush and swept it through the air.

The Haunted House’s layout vanished in an instant, replaced by long, winding corridors of an art gallery, as if folded space had been unfolded again. The paintings hanging on the walls also spread open at any moment, and one after another, evolved savage beasts leaped out from the canvases, maniacally attacking every living thing in sight!

The two players trailing behind hadn’t managed to snap out of it in time before they were torn to shreds by claws. Perhaps the pain was too intense a stimulus, or perhaps Xu Huo’s mental influence had weakened, but they quickly regained consciousness. The moment they saw Xu Huo attacking Jiangjiang with his sword, rage instantly overwhelmed every other feeling, and they charged at him with their items!

Xu Huo dealt with the two of them in passing, but when he turned back around, Jiangjiang was already gone. In her place stood a monster with fur so thick and fluffy that it completely covered its head and limbs. The beast made a show of lunging at him before turning tail and fleeing.

An air barrier rose vertically to block several attacks from behind. He swept his gaze across the long, narrow gallery on either side, then lifted his foot to chase after the shaggy beast.

Meanwhile, even more evolved savage beasts were bursting out of the picture frames. Their massive frames made the slender gallery feel extremely cramped, and they effortlessly blocked the two pursuing players behind!

Already wounded, the two had no chance to escape under the successive attacks. Watching Xu Huo carve a path straight through the monsters and leave, the two shouted frantically: ”Jiangjiang, don’t be afraid! We’re coming to save you!”

But accompanied by the sound of flesh tearing, the two gradually fell silent.

They never left even in death, and those savage beasts weren’t feeding either. After mauling them to death, they quickly switched targets.

Xu Huo knew the two were dead. He didn’t need to look to know their deaths hadn’t been pretty. He raised his voice: ”I thought you’d at least have some pity for people who protected you with everything they had. Seems I misjudged you.”

”Didn’t you guess what kind of person I was the moment you first laid eyes on me?” Jiangjiang’s voice echoed through the gallery. ”Otherwise, you wouldn’t have dodged my offers to paint you again and again. You’re really clever, neither accepting nor refusing. Even a single rejection from you would have been nice.”

Xu Huo was pinpointing her location. ”It wasn’t that I guessed. You gave me the hint yourself. You were worried I wouldn’t take the bait, so you used a special perfume before knocking on my door. The implication was that obvious. If I hadn’t picked up on it, I’d be the one lacking social awareness.”

Jiangjiang laughed. ”The first time I met you, I felt you were different from the rest.”

Xu Huo kicked away a beast that pounced at him and casually lopped off its head. ”When you say different, you’re not referring to birds of a feather flocking together, are you?”

”Isn’t it?”

More beasts poured out from the picture frames, seemingly about to flood the entire gallery space.

Xu Huo picked a spot and stopped, casually opening a door in the wall. But even after walking through, he was still within the gallery’s bounds. This space was at least much larger than the range his mental power could project.

He opened several more doors in succession, passing through every corridor, until he finally found the shaggy beast.

Flash-stepping to the creature’s side, Xu Huo swung his sword without hesitation. ”Since you’re so different, the hiding spot you chose should be equally different, right?”

The beast slammed on the brakes and abruptly retracted its head, dodging the strike. However, a good chunk of its fur was shaved off, revealing a Van Gogh-style patchwork face beneath, one that didn’t look like a living creature at all.

But Xu Huo definitely heard a heartbeat that wasn’t human... The thought flashed through his mind as he forcibly slammed Shelter 101 into the corridor, blocking off the shaggy beast’s escape route. He activated ”Extreme Fatigue” and ”Important Call,” while simultaneously throwing out the kite string!

The beast, running on all fours, suddenly lifted one leg mid-stride to press against its own head. With its speed reduced, the kite string struck true. But as he yanked it, the entire hide was ripped off. Jiangjiang lunged out from the front, spinning mid-air to look back at Xu Huo. In that instant, Xu Huo had already closed the distance to her, driving the ”Eye of the Dead” toward her chest.

Jiangjiang was startled at first, then smiled. The moment the blade pierced her, her body dispersed like ink dissolving in water. Xu Huo’s eyes darkened. He quickly opened a door beside him, then two more in rapid succession before intercepting the one who had slipped away in another corridor of the gallery.

”You won’t be able to grind me down inside an item space.” He grabbed her arm with his diamond gloves.

Jiangjiang showed no panic. Instead, she said: ”I never intended to kill you. You’re different from the others. It wouldn’t have been a pity at all for them to die, but you can’t die.”

Xu Huo had no mood to ponder the deeper meaning behind her words. He only said: ”Then tell me everything you know!”

Jiangjiang smiled sweetly. Her arm began to dissolve in his grip once more. As she vanished, the gallery also began to collapse, and faint sounds of noisy voices from outside could be heard, people who had come looking for her. Quite a few players.

Xu Huo had no intention of just leaving. But just as he was about to use the Fifty-Fifty Air Window, a searing pain shot through his palm first, followed by his left arm and the left side of his upper body going numb and stiff. He heard Jiangjiang say: ”A little keepsake. You have to come back and find me, okay?”