The Weird Entity Behind It All

"That makes sense. Let's finish this sooner and go back to rest," Qin Rang said with a smile. "We've basically figured out what's so strange about this Casino."

"The eerie things we see in Casinos at night fall into two categories. One is the eerie Rules, where we are only punished when the Rules are triggered; there are ghostly hands, spirits behind us, and moving Fama."

Sheng Qingqiao chimed in, "That moving Fama and ghost hand are actually a monster. Someone I met at the amusement park said that once the ghost hand crawls out of a body, as long as you place exactly one Fama on each of its hands, it can survive."

They were sorting out their thoughts, and also speaking to people outside the live stream.

Qin Rang continued, "Therefore, this Ghost Hand and the Fama should have a fitting name: [Gambling Ghost]. In their previous lives, their hands were severed, and after becoming ghosts, only their hands remained. Their obsession is the Fama."

"And that small, shadowy spirit that likes to appear in the dark and perch on your shoulder is a child who died here [Child Ghost]. They are a vulnerable group, only daring to appear in the dark to ambush."

"The bizarre sight of Playing Cards appearing inside the bodies of people who died while participating in Card Box activities in the Gambling House at night is a sign of death."

"[Hearts] is a female victim in the Gambling House, forced to use her body to serve men."

"[Spades] may represent a male victim, a former leader, or a customer who became a debtor."

"[Diamonds] represent Security Guards or other professionals who have some power, but not much."

"[Clubs] represents other victims who died tragically here; they may have been trafficked, or guests who failed to repay debts, etc."

"During the day, the streets are filled with eerie, charred remains, all inextricably linked to the fire that raged here. The Security Guards are hostile to Outsiders, but in truth, they themselves are Outsiders."

Tao Yuan continued, "Actually, many people here are trapped. They wanted to leave when they were alive, but they couldn't. The administrators here certainly wouldn't let them leave safely and spread rumors outside, so they created this street for them to live on."

"But as long as you live here, you'll always be lured into Casinos by all sorts of temptations, and once you're addicted, you can never leave."

"Logically speaking, they shouldn't hate us, who are also Outsiders, unless they're already part of this Gambling House den."

[So that's how it is. There are just too many strange things about this Gambling House; I'm completely overwhelmed.]

[In other words, the former victims and perpetrators of this Casino have all become monsters, abandoning their past hatred and living happily together, harming us, the living, together?]

[That makes some sense]

[Suddenly I understood]

[These people were quite pitiful in life, being used as Card Box... It's utterly heartbreaking to hear about.]

[Hmph, as someone who's been there, let me tell you, reality is only crueler. They didn't dare to be so reckless before, but now that they have power, how many people are doing the same thing?]

[Qin Rang, the little fox, is so cool with his hard work analyzing!]

[Poor Bai Yang HHH, I thought he was going to be a big shot, but he's just a cute little Doll Master.]

[Delicate and frail, but a formidable fighter?]

[That Little Bear on his shoulder must be his new Weird Object creation. I didn't get a good look at it in the Tailor Shop. Wow, that's amazing, one punch and he knocked out a monster!]

[Hmph, if Moonlit Night were here, none of these monsters would be enough to kill! It's a pity I don't know where he went. I miss him, I miss him, I miss him.]

[Should we just leave that Flower Language with its strange symbolism outside like this?]

After listening, Bai Yang felt his thoughts clearer. He sat up, resting his chin on his hand, and asked, "So, regarding this strange situation, do you think it's a victim, or a perpetrator controlling the Casino?"

Sheng Qingqiao and An Ying looked at Tao Yuan and Qin Rang, exchanged a glance, and said in unison, "Neither."

"This Instance evokes a strong sense of revulsion, both towards us humans and towards the local supernatural entities."

Hearing Qin Rang's words, Sheng Qingqiao suddenly slapped Qin Rang's thigh beside her. "Oh right! I knew it! The monsters here are pretty miserable too. Not only do they get killed to retrieve the tokens, but they also keep chasing us, only to be killed by us in return. They're completely different from the aloof and manipulative monsters we encountered before."

"Even when we went to a D-Rank Weird Instance before, the eerie creatures inside wouldn't easily show themselves and would tease us for a long time. There was never a mechanism like this that forced us to kill the eerie creatures."

Qin Rang pulled his hand off his thigh and slapped him on the head in an annoyed manner.

"Aww!"

Tao Yuan had been observing Bai Yang's expression and, noticing that he only showed curiosity rather than surprise at what they were saying, asked, "Did you already know this?"

Bai Yang chuckled and pointed to his head, "I didn't know much earlier than you, nor am I as clever as you. Not long ago, after Moonlit Night left, the Fortune Teller sent me a telepathic message. He did a simple calculation and told me about the strange identity here."

A person can roam freely outside, but their identity depends entirely on their words.

Bai Yang felt no guilt whatsoever.

The men didn't show it on their faces, but they were all inwardly shocked.

"Are Fortune Tellers also part of your organization?" Sheng Qingqiao asked bluntly.

Bai Yang grinned, but remained silent. Sheng Qingqiao understood and quickly said with a smile, "Ah, Sister Tao, Captain, tell me quickly, what's the strange thing behind this?"

Tao Yuan didn't speak. She was a team member, and sometimes only the captain could say certain things, especially in front of the camera during the live stream.

Qin Rang said, "It's something that was once manipulated by others, but now it's manipulating the entire Gambling House, and it's inextricably linked to this place."

As he spoke, he pointed to the sky.

"Is it the sun?" Sheng Qingqiao asked.

An Ying thought of the Little Joker Playing Card that Moonlit Night had given him, and suddenly a thought flashed through her mind, "The moon is Little Joker Playing Card, the sun is Playing Card King, so this strange thing is—a complete Playing Cards?"

[Huh? So all this weirdness is just a deck of Playing Cards? Where are the philanthropists?]

Is it possible that only those with deep-seated obsessions can become so bizarre? Are the people behind this Casino as obsessed as these victims?

[That's true. Gambling House dens operate every day and have witnessed too many things—isn't that the essence of the Casino itself? Playing Cards are the most common and popular items in Casinos. After becoming something sinister, they manipulate the Casino, transforming from the manipulated into the manipulated.]

I always thought the strange thing behind it all was those philanthropists.

[Me too...]

[Are you sure? Aren't Playing Cards only visible at night?]

Qin Rang finished speaking, he looked at Bai Yang Bai Yang, who nodded with a smile, confirming his guess.

Behind all these events lies a deck of Playing Cards, specifically a Playing Card dominated by the Little Jokers.