Xie Fei listened to Ge Congze's words, her expression darkening slightly. It was only the second night, and two people had already died. There were still five nights to go, and who knew she might be next. "If someone saw the scene of her death, perhaps they could analyze some patterns in the killings."
Qianjing Youhui's gaze darkened slightly, her expression elegant and gentle. She said with a hint of regret, "It's a pity Su Qing is dead. We didn't discover any pattern in her killings. We wasted a life in vain. I hope she can rest in peace."
Her school uniform stood out in this setting. She clasped her hands together in front of her and murmured something, as if she were praying for the deceased Su Qing.
After finishing, Qianjing Youhui released her grip and looked at everyone again. "We can't remain so passive. Although doing less means fewer mistakes, it's not beneficial to keep letting the demons hold the initiative. Now, with two people dead, we've only discovered one pattern in their killings; the effort and reward are completely disproportionate."
Qianjing Youhui's tone paused slightly, then became extremely serious. She said, word by word, "We must take the initiative and make sure everyone else is awake when we probe. That way, even if we die, we can teach others a rule of killing, giving them a better chance of clearing the dungeon. There are still such great calamities to come; we can't all be wiped out in the dungeon! We must at least make some contribution to humanity."
Hearing Qianjing Youhui, Si Yehan's expression remained indifferent, but he felt that things were becoming slightly tricky. If things were going to turn out this way, it would be really difficult to make a move against Su Wei. He would see if he could find an opportunity, and if not, he would wait until daylight to kill her.
Xia Yuanhou's cold and stern expression remained unchanged as he looked at Qianjing Youhui and said, "Your approach is fine, but we still need to focus on the present. As long as there are four people awake, we can take turns to ensure everyone gets enough sleep and doesn't become overly fatigued, otherwise, unexpected incidents could easily occur."
Qianjing Youhui nodded in agreement.
Ge Congze switched back to a female voice, rubbed his hair, and said, "The problem we're facing now is how to probe them? There are still two ghosts left, and we know absolutely nothing about them. We don't have a single point of attack. It's really difficult."
Su Wei hesitated for a moment, then spoke up in the darkness, "I think the old man in black's killing pattern might be related to his eyes. I can try to make eye contact with him for a while, but someone needs to be with me. They need to keep an eye on the candle's movement and my own condition. If they notice anything amiss, they need to wake me up immediately. After all, this ghost has too many peculiarities, so we have to be careful."
Ge Congze narrowed his eyes, as if trying to see the expression on Su Wei's face through the darkness of the night. He didn't agree directly, but instead advised, "You should think it over carefully. After all, this action could cost you your life. It's not too late to back out now."
Su Wei took a deep breath, then exhaled and said, "I've made up my mind. Two people have already died. I don't want to stay here any longer. Sitting here waiting to die is too torturous. If I have to survive in this dungeon forever, I'd rather die quickly. My only hope is that the pain of dying will be less."
Ge Congze looked around and said, "Who among you will go with Su Wei to test the waters? If not, I'll go with her."
In the darkness, Si Yehan leaned against the wall and said, "I'll go with Su Wei. You guys just observe from the shadows. We'll try to keep a distance that's neither too far nor too close."
I was still hesitant to make a move, but Su Wei has already taken the initiative to court death. When I test her later, there's not much risk in killing this woman.
Ge Congze hearing Si Yehan's response, Ge Congze's handsome face took on a strange expression. He said, "I didn't expect you to be so kind. I thought you were the kind of cold, selfish, and taciturn person. It seems I misunderstood you before."
Upon hearing this, Si Yehan felt that Ge Congze had lost his mind and was already looking for an opportunity to kill him the next day. With two acquaintances dying tragically one after another, he wondered if Xia Yuanhou would completely collapse, but perhaps Xia Yuanhou die first.
His expression was indifferent, and he replied coldly, "I'm just not used to sitting idly by and waiting to die; it has nothing to do with kindness."
Ge Congze Si Yehan was simply unaccustomed to being spoken to like that, so he didn't say anything more, instead showing some concern by saying, "You two be very careful."
"Okay, thank you." Su Wei got up and walked into the darkness. She moved cautiously, tiptoeing, and her behavior didn't reflect the fearlessness she had sounded like. Making the decision was easy, but when it came to actually doing it, she realized how difficult it was.
Si Yehan got up and followed. He moved calmly, strolling behind Su Wei as if in a leisurely garden. His hands were in the pockets of his trench coat. He watched her back, rubbing his fingers together, as if he was thinking about how to kill her.
The others behind were all watching this spot. Taking direct action was obviously out of the question, so they decided to try making her look into their eyes first. After all, they had previously felt that the old man's eyes were strange; who knew if it was a murder pattern!
If so, then let Su Wei be; if not, then secretly retaliate.
I wonder if, while those two Vengeful Ghosts were lying in the ice coffins, someone triggered the killing pattern and they came out to move around?
If they knew how, they would have more room to maneuver. They could try it out on this woman. Seeing that they had walked to a spot partially illuminated by the moonlight, Si Yehan called out to Su Wei, "Here it is. Not too far, not too close, just right."
Behind them was the shadow of night, and from behind, one could not see Si Yehan's movements at all; one would only assume that he was carefully observing Su Wei's condition.
Su Wei glanced around, then looked behind her. Through the shadows of the night, she could only see the blurry figures of four people in the distance. She then looked at Si Yehan behind her and calmed down. She hadn't expected this person to be so cold on the outside but warm on the inside. She didn't care that he hadn't acknowledged her when she greeted him at the restaurant earlier.
After calming her mind, Su Wei stood still, staring intently at the old man in black, meeting his dark, lifeless eyes. The thoughts surging within her slowly subsided and ceased to surface in her mind.
Si Yehan crossed his arms and leaned against a pillar, watching Su Wei's figure. He didn't raise his eyebrows to meet the black-clad old man's gaze. He took out his baton and weighed it in his hand, only to find that it was far less useful than a blade. He decided to search this godforsaken place again later. If he could find something, he would be able to slaughter people more easily.
P. S.: I've been adjusting my writing rhythm lately. I wasn't really in the zone for a while, so I kept putting off updating. I only managed to update a few chapters intermittently. I'll try to keep updating gradually and start writing again. I'll take it one step at a time. The outline and plot are pretty much complete, and I've refined them a bit more.
I plan to write more climaxes because I've read reviews from many readers who felt the story was a bit bland and boring. I think this is mainly because I incorporated the darkness into everyday life, and because my writing was somewhat concise, failing to capture the comfortable feeling and the emotional outbursts.
The portrayal of torture and murder doesn't quite capture the emotions very well. If you find it bland, try reading it a few more times; you might find it quite enjoyable and gradually get into the mood.
There are still five more chapters related to "Calming the Sheng," and there have been quite a few other readers' requests for bonus chapters as well. The backlog is actually increasing my workload dramatically. Readers who have read this far can give me a five-star review and a free gift to support me. Earning some extra pocket money and seeing good data will keep me more interested. Please post more comments to express your opinions; more interaction will make it less boring for me. Positive feedback is quite enjoyable.