Divine Punishment

"Hmm, the real liar in the group is 'Green Grass by the River'."

"The first Con artist hint I got was that someone among the six players lied about their profession."

"That person's Path of the Gods ID is 'Green Grass by the River', but there isn't actually anyone by that name in the group."

The next moment, Qin Shang's face was grim as he said coldly;

"At first, I suspected the Sheriff and the Elder Priest, but the Elder Priest used his professional skills and even used items openly in front of me, so he's definitely a player."

"If the Sheriff were the liar, then the Elder Priest would most likely be dead. The liar must be an Accomplice, but an Accomplice has no reason not to stab a player."

The identities of these two as good citizens are thus proven.

"Finally, after eliminating the suspicion on the cross-dresser, the Elder Priest, and the Sheriff, I thought of the Thug."

"The Elder Priest and the Sheriff have been getting along fine, which means the liar didn't not want to stab players, but couldn't..."

"Because he himself was already a corpse."

Xiao Fen heard this and narrowed her beautiful, large eyes.

"As expected of a Con artist, a profession perfectly suited for clearing dungeons!"

Qin Shang didn't accept this compliment.

In fact, if it weren't for his good luck, and the fact that he later forcibly broke up the team and parted ways with the Sheriff and the others, he would probably be a corpse too.

Two out of the seven people died at the start. After Qin Shang pretended to break up the team and separated from the main group, 'Grandpa Niu' could no longer make a move on him.

If Qin Shang died, everyone in the second round would definitely be able to prioritize locking onto 'Grandpa Niu's' identity.

"You must have suspected my profession back then, which is why you wanted to follow me, right?"

Hearing this, Xiao Fen nodded;

"Yes, the most clues in this round of the dungeon were concentrated on the players with the Teacher profession, so it was crucial not to let a Teacher survive the first round. But you insisted on staying to explore."

"At that time, I wondered if there was a second player with the Teacher profession in the group."

"But then I thought, considering the special nature of the Con artist profession, with the [Inheritance] skill, a Con artist could also inherit the clues from a Teacher player. Someone who would actively stay behind to continue exploring the dungeon."

"Besides a Teacher, it would likely be a Con artist. Either one is a threat."

"Although I couldn't make a move, I could keep an eye on you to prevent you from regrouping with them and exchanging information."

"In the second round on Train No. 3, there's a rule restriction against speaking. As long as you didn't communicate with them in the first round, I would basically have won in the second round."

The reason why 'Green Grass by the River', who was the Thug, had their corpse disappear was becoming clear.

It was still the Hypnotist's skill.

Perhaps I was under a hallucination when I entered Carriage No. 1 and then returned to Carriage No. 2.

So when I looked back, I found that both corpses were gone.

Qin Shang heard this and his brow furrowed slightly.

"Then why did you stay with me for so long in the second round and not make a move?"

This was the second biggest question in Qin Shang's mind.

Unable to speak, unable to move, they stayed in the bedroom for so long.

The reason she didn't kill him in the first round was that she needed Qin Shang to live to the second round to clear his name.

But once the second round began, she could have killed him instantly and blamed it on the 'El' monster.

After all, anyone who has explored the Death Train knows this.

The real danger in the first round was only the God Slayer hidden among the players.

The second round was the real crisis. As long as I could survive to the second round, she could clear her name.

Other players who saw my corpse would also suspect... that Qin Shang wasn't killed by the Little Loli!

"Because you saved me... twice!"

Xiao Fen was not as cold as before now, her expression indescribably complex;

"Although, the NPCs in this dungeon don't attack each other, so even if I spoke, it wouldn't attract 'monsters'."

"But when you figured out the rules, your first instinct wasn't to protect yourself, but to jump out and cover my mouth..."

"At that moment, I felt a pang of compassion... I was once a player, a person, and I remembered my brother."

Speaking of which, the little girl's expression turned strange, and tears suddenly welled up in her eyes. She pursed her lips and said, "When my brother played games with me, he would instinctively protect me. In reality, if other classmates bullied me, my brother would protect me by pushing my head into his chest, letting the bullies beat him, and he would still shield me tightly."

"Even if it was stormy outside, as long as I was in my brother's arms, I felt very safe. I..."

"I couldn't bear it anymore!"

As soon as she said this, the Sheriff and the Elder Priest next to them looked as if they had seen a ghost.

This guy was amazing, running around with an NPC, and he actually survived until the end!

Especially the Sheriff, his expression was as abstract as it could get.

This was the first time he'd seen such a move since becoming a Path of the Gods player.

And he was able to survive and pass this instance, relying on this guy who ran around with the big boss, the God Slayer.

Did that even make sense?

Running around with an NPC, and the NPC shows kindness to the player?

Qin Shang's eyes deepened.

For a moment, he didn't know whether to thank the little girl for sparing his life...

He could only frantically praise his own good luck.

However, Qin Shang himself had had doubts in the second round.

He suspected that 'Grandpa Niu' was the God Slayer!

But when he saw the little girl speak, the instinct of compassion still drove him to jump out.

"You don't need to thank me, phew! Just consider it repaying a favor. You won't be so lucky to meet an NPC as kind as me next time."

"Thanks to you, I've figured out my incomplete main quest now..."

Incomplete main quest?

Qin Shang was stunned.

So... even the NPCs didn't know the main quest?

Did she only know that a Teacher with deciphering abilities could get the most clues in the first round, which is why she had to kill the Teacher in the first round?

The next moment, Qin Shang felt a slight release.

It made sense, NPC quests were different from player quests.

The NPC's goal was to eliminate players and prevent their exploration. The Path of the Gods game didn't need to tell NPCs the content of the main quest.

Moreover, the God Slayers were a special group.

They were transformed from former players and retained their subjective consciousness as humans.

Who knew if they would be merciful and tell the players all the main quest content? That would be messed up.

An S-rank instance of exploration, cleared by players without any losses.

This indirectly destroyed the balance mechanism of the Path of the Gods...

Although Qin Shang had only been in one instance, he could already clearly sense that the Path of the Gods was constantly enforcing a rule.

That rule was balance.

Just then, Qin Shang suddenly noticed that the Little Loli's expression had become a bit sad. She tilted her head forty-five degrees upwards, looking at the moon outside.

"The moon is beautiful!"

"The game is over. You will stay in this space until the countdown ends. My mission failed, and I can finally go see my brother."

Hearing this, Qin Shang froze;

"Wh... what do you mean?"

Why did he feel a sense of relief and like she was leaving a last will and testament from the Little Loli's muttering?

"Divine Punishment! If a God Slayer fails their mission, and the Con artist clears the game, they will be erased by the Path of the Gods!"

Little Pink said calmly, looking at Qin Shang, then broke into a radiant smile;

"Can I ask you for one thing?"

Divine Punishment!

This was the first time Qin Shang had encountered this term.

If a God Slayer failed their mission, they would be annihilated by the Path of the Gods?

The next moment, Qin Shang's heart leaped into his throat. He recalled the mechanism he had deduced the first time he entered the game and received the Inheritance.

Balance!

The Path of the Gods had been strictly adhering to this rule.

All actions taken by players and NPCs, as long as they were within the rules, were being guided to unconsciously follow the game's balance.

And an NPC with self-awareness, their actions were not controlled by the Path of the Gods.

So, if in the future, another player entered, the Little Loli, who knew all the main quest content and side quests, could directly tell the next batch of players the mysteries.

Wouldn't that allow them to easily clear it without any losses!?

The Path of the Gods was worried about this disruption of balance, which was why they purged God Slayers who failed their missions?

God Slayers were NPCs who only appeared in Con artist instances.

And the failure of a God Slayer's mission meant that the Con artist had cleared the game.

The little girl didn't seem to have any intention of explaining further. Her beautiful big eyes looked at Qin Shang with a hint of depth.

Qin Shang's mind jolted for a moment, and a faint, almost inaudible girlish voice entered his ear;

"'Lick the cockroach's jade feet,' you need to be careful of those two guys."

"You're a con artist. If other classes eliminate the con artist within the instance, they'll receive an astronomical amount of points as a reward."

"So, the con artist is the public enemy of all players, because a con artist represents tempting, walking profit."

"If you can make it out alive, I hope you'll go to Xiangya Linshu in Yanjing to meet someone..."

"His Path of the Gods ID is 'Red-robed Cult Master.' Have her relay a message to my brother."

"Tell him that I've committed heinous crimes and fled the country."

"Tell him not to think about finding me anymore and to live his own life. If my brother is too sad, please have 'Red-robed Cult Master' help erase his memories so he forgets he ever had a sister..."

The next moment, before the Little Loli could say more, a powerful rainbow light suddenly descended from the sky.

That's right, it came from the sky.

The rainbow light pierced the edge of the train car's wall, and under Qin Shang's furious gaze, it directly penetrated the Little Loli's skull.

Then, visibly, the spark of intelligence and clarity in the Girl in the pink dress's eyes gradually disappeared.

Her body rapidly turned into charcoal, as if ignited from within.

"Brother, we can finally meet..."

Her final whisper fell.

Instantly, she collapsed to the ground with a 'thud.'

Her pink dress swayed, her pretty face deathly still.

All life had vanished!

[Ding! Congratulations on completing the side quest; please identify the sole Team Leader among the six players and follow them. As an Assistant, you must help the leader clear this round of the game and preserve the lives of the passengers as much as possible. You need to protect the Team Leader, otherwise, it will be considered mission failure (This mission comes from the Teacher, and in this round of the game, you will gain this player's class skills).]

[Ding! Congratulations on completing the side quest; please identify the Accomplice in the team. If the Accomplice has already died, please still find the Accomplice in the team (This mission comes from the Doctor, and in this round of the game, you will gain this player's class skills).]

[Ding! Congratulations on completing the Con artist hidden class quest; please find the God Slayer in the team!]

[Ding! Congratulations on completing the main quest; investigate the mystery of the disappearing passengers on the Death Train.]

[All quests for this instance have been completed.]

No rewards...

Qin Shang didn't pay attention to this because his mind was filled with the Little Loli's final reminder and request before she died.

At the same time, his vision rippled like water, and a bright white light enveloped his body. The surrounding scenery gradually changed. After an unknown amount of time, the tidal glow receded.

He hadn't been teleported back to his bedroom. Glancing around, the space was still cramped, dark, and damp.

A stench of decay...

Qin Shang steadied himself. It was still the environment of the train car, but the light was much stronger than in Car No. 3.

It seemed he had been teleported back to Car No. 1 by the Path of the Gods.

The next moment, Qin Shang's gaze immediately fell on the Sheriff and the Elder Priest nearby, whom he had brought along to victory earlier.

They had also returned to Car No. 1. It looked like their exploration mission was over, and they just needed to wait in Car No. 1 now.

Those two hadn't heard Little Pink's dying words.

Perhaps the little girl had used a special skill belonging to the Hypnotist at the brink of death to block them.

However, Qin Shang's eyes showed no hint of the relief and joy of clearing the instance. Instead, a hint of vigilance had appeared.

He hadn't even had time to grieve for the loss of a life...

Because at this moment, he noticed that the way the two of them looked at him was not quite right.

Qin Shang was a person with keen intuition and excellent observational skills.

At this moment, he could clearly feel the gazes of the 'Eagle of Justice' and 'Buddha Saves the Predestined' conveying a sense of relief at having survived.

And also...

A greed akin to that of a hunter spotting prey in a primeval forest.