Nightmare (28)-Period

"At this point, whether I come out or not isn't that important." Yi Qing squatted down, observing Yu Xing, whose situation seemed dire, with a hint of curiosity. "What do you want to do?"

"A cage." Yu Xing endured the darkness before his eyes and the uncontrollable trembling throughout his body. He raised his hand and glanced at the eerie green ghost face pattern that he had activated. On the skin of his palm, the ghost face was ferocious and terrifying, grinning at him with an ambiguous smile.

This was something he peeled off from Han Xinyi's mask fragment. When it merged with Han Xinyi's personality, it was called [Forbidden Chair]. After merging with his Persona Mask, it was renamed [Cage]. Although its functions are similar in classification, they are completely different in actual use.

Rule-level offerings are expensive and rare; consequently, they are far more powerful than ordinary offerings.

So far in this deduction, he has already used the [Cage] ability ① and ability ② to seal the coffin and imprison the Lingren, respectively. The specific details of abilities ① and ② will not be mentioned for now. Now, only the Cage's ability ③ can solve the problem.

[Ability 3: The user imprisons themselves in a cage, bound by invisible rules. During this time, negative conditions such as near-death experiences, injuries, and curses will be completely suppressed by the cage. Conversely, the ability will also be completely suppressed, and all non-rule-level sacrifices will become ineffective. The duration is two complete simulations.]

This ability is perfectly suited to completely suppress the curse power that the Lingren has activated within Yu Xing's body!

Even disregarding the power of the curse, this ability is a life-saving artifact. Although its side effects and flaws are too great, its spread will still inspire envy, jealousy, and hatred in many, even driving some to madness.

As a ghost dwelling within the sacrificial offerings, Yi Qing was adept at peeking at Yu Xing's system notifications, let alone now that Yu Xing was actively demonstrating her abilities to him.

He immediately understood Yu Xing's thoughts.

Yu Xing wanted to use ability ③ to suppress her physical condition to the most unadorned state and temporarily suppress the power of the curse. However, in the third stage of this live broadcast mission, plus the two subsequent full-scale simulation Yugi of any form, all of Yu Xing's sacrifices would be unusable, and her physical attributes and recovery abilities would also decrease significantly.

Yi Qing paused for a moment. Although there were many drawbacks to doing this, it was not unacceptable after weighing the pros and cons.

Furthermore, having followed Yu Xing all this time, he has discovered that Yu Xing has very little dependence on sacrificial offerings. Sacrificial offerings have never been the foundation upon which Yu Xing relies for survival; at most, they are merely icing on the cake.

I just don't know if the power of resurrection will also be lost.

"Pfft--" While he was pondering, Yu Xing couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of blood. Just from this unprecedented reaction, it was clear that the power of the curse was coming on fiercely and was too dangerous. There was no longer much time for them to hesitate.

"Go ahead and use it. It's really inappropriate for the audience to see your situation. I don't like it when the people I've chosen are being played for without any chance to fight back." Sheqing Ghost quietly reached out and supported Yu Xing's arm. "I just can't wander around anymore. Do you think I care about that little bit of time?"

The black mist grew increasingly dense, beginning to entangle with and devour the surrounding blue mist.

It is becoming increasingly powerful.

Yu Xing raised her eyelids, too weak to speak. Only after receiving Yi Qing's understanding did she activate the power of the [Cage].

Even if Yi Qing disagreed, he would still do it. But since Yi Qing had just helped him, if he played the role of kicking someone after they've served their purpose too well, it wouldn't be easy to get Sheqing Ghost to help him again in the future. So he only symbolically informed Yi Qing.

[System prompt: Do you wish to use the rule-level sacrifice "Cage" ability ③ to seal the curse power?]

[WARNING: After use, the curse power will be resealed. The system will provide free suppression compensation after the simulation ends, but the side effects of using the cage will remain unchanged. The duration is two complete simulations.]

[Note: During this simulation, the effects of continuous offerings such as the Rose Mask will not diminish until the simulation ends, at which point they will enter a period of inactivity and their continuous influence will cease.]

These three prompts were not the most common textual expressions used by the system, but rather a thoughtful announcement made by issuing audio messages to address Yu Xing's drowsiness.

But no matter how Yu Xing listened, the system seemed quite pleased.

"OK." Not wanting to argue with a petty system at this moment, he gave a positive answer in his mind.

At most, it just meant the offerings couldn't be used; it wasn't a big deal for him at all.

--He knew that the stubborn, nameless sacrifice hidden within his Persona Mask was at least a rule-level sacrifice, unaffected by the [Cage].

Suddenly, he heard nothing.

Everything seemed to have been paused; whether it was black mist or blue mist, everything floated silently and motionless.

The next second, everything chaotic and frantic rushed into Yu Xing's body. He felt no pain, silently watching, while also sensing something changing within his body.

Hmm... my muscles don't seem as strong anymore.

The wound's ability to heal is also weakening...

Yi Qing disappeared without a trace immediately after he confirmed his statement, presumably being caught by the system and brought back to the Sheqing Dreamscape.

So the audience waited and waited, and finally the blue mist dissipated. The next moment, when they saw the clear scene, they all gasped in surprise.

As the fog thinned, a figure slowly emerged.

[There's only one person!]

[Kneeling, no, squatting?]

[Who is kneeling there...? Heavens, what a blessing!]

[Holy crap, is it really that bad?]

Xing was seen with her head down, her clothes stained with blood, blood seeping from her exposed skin, and blood flowing from her seven orifices on her pale face, which looked extremely pitiful.

The two lines of bloody tears in his eyes, in particular, not only demonstrated the cruelty of the battle just now, but also gave everyone a strange feeling.

It's as if Yu Xing's ghost-like appearance is quite fitting.

Although the signs of decay had healed, the blood that had seeped into her clothes during the decay process was still there, and the rampaging power of the curse had ruptured many blood vessels, making Yu Xing look like a blood-soaked person.

[I can't hold back anymore! What's wrong with you! My dear Xingzai!]

[No male mother]

[Where are the Lingren? The Lingren have disappeared?]

[The Lingren is ultimately playing the Master; if the Master is killed, it must be the shattering of his dream, right?]

In other words...

In just about three minutes, Lingren actually killed the Master playing the master!?

This realization stunned the audience, who were always terrified by the mysterious legends of the Lingren. They had thought that Xing could use the rules to complete this difficult task, and they all thought that the two would put on a wonderful battle in the next four hours. They never expected that it would really only last three minutes!

The Lingren was killed without them seeing anything?

Although... fortunately, he looks like he's not far from death now.

Yu Xing had no idea what the audience thought.

All he knew was that after the cage's power took effect, all the discomfort disappeared, leaving only a slight fatigue and soreness caused by his body being overworked.

He heard footsteps around him, and from the conversation, he realized that the battle had attracted many servants.

He has difficulty even raising his hand now; if the Faceless Man sees him, he'll be in real trouble.

Taking advantage of the last wisps of fog, Yu Xing staggered toward the lady's room.

The key and the white jade he got from the Lingren fell to the ground very close by. He picked them up and ran, used the key to open the door, and temporarily hid in the lady's room.

After carefully closing the door, he leaned against it and slowly slid down.

Hurried footsteps passed by outside the door, and the servants could be heard shouting in confusion.

"What is this?! I almost suffocated as soon as I went in that fog. And now, before I could even get Master to take a look, the fog has already dissipated. It's really strange."

"Yes, the Master isn't in the room either. I wonder where he went?"

"Let's look for the intruder elsewhere. Hey, do you think this fog might have been put there by the intruder?"

"That's very possible! Look for it quickly!"

"He tried to go into the fog to take a look, and he got injured! Quickly take him to Doctor Cui."

"Me too! My leg is injured too!"

Fortunately, these servants were clearly afraid of the lady and did not dare to barge into her room. They didn't even dare to knock on the door before rushing over.

The room was empty of the lady; although the furnishings were luxurious, it was clear that at this stage, she was still not allowed to make an appearance.

Yu Xing was breathing heavily, clutching the white jade in her hand, her fingers still trembling.

It seems that Yi Qing's green mist is really effective against ghosts. It can be said that we were fortunate to have met this surprisingly good-natured Sheqing Ghost this time.

If he encountered Lingren during a normal simulation, Yu Xing wouldn't have to worry so much. But since it was a live simulation with so many viewers waiting to gather information, he had to think about what would happen next.

So we really owe a lot to Yiqing this time.

As her thoughts gradually cleared, Yu Xing propped herself up, casually grabbed a cloth, and wiped the blood flowing from her seven orifices. A smile played on her lips as she thought to herself—

Yiqing was able to get out later, and I should thank him.

Even when the Lingren were around, Yi Qing kept subtly reminding herself to be careful of Lingren verbal traps. Although Yu Xing could see through all the traps, he could also sense Yi Qing's concern in them.

Sometimes, a ghost's affection is much simpler than a human's.

He gripped the cold white jade, only then having time to look at the system notifications that had been piling up and ignored.

[Side Quest 2: Kill the Master (Completed)]

[According to the rules, you have a total of four and a half offerings banned, including Tears of the Underworld Candle, the Weird Doll, Sheqing Dreamscape, Cage, and Rose Mask (currently not expired)]

[Your recovery rate is at 1/5 remaining]

[Your resurrection ability is unaffected]

[Your physical fitness has decreased, remaining at one-third]

There are two Side Quest in total. He has already completed one, and the conditions for completing the other are in his hands. He can end everything at any time.

The four most recent notifications show the specific ban results after using [Cage].

[The Cage] is also among those banned. Due to its unique properties, the Rose Mask's effect is delayed until after the live simulation ends, so it counts as half a ban.

His nameless offering was also affected to some extent; at least its recovery speed and physical condition were reduced.

His battle with the Lingren caused quite a commotion, and the Faceless Men must have intensified their search efforts, making the servants' quarters where Zhao Yijiu and the others were staying very dangerous.

Although he didn't think Zhao Yijiu couldn't protect Zhao Ruru and Zhou Xue, he still wanted to end it quickly.

Yu Xing looked down. The seemingly flawless white jade was actually a tool used by the "Master" to find his conspiracy targets. This contrast truly lived up to the saying, "The more beautiful something is, the dirtier it is."

He paused for a moment, thinking about this. Those words... it seemed like someone had told him that.

Who is it?

Perhaps because he hadn't fully recovered, he suddenly felt a little disoriented and couldn't remember things very clearly.

"Never mind, it's not important." Yu Xing raised her hand, steadied her arm, and slammed the white jade hard to the ground.

[Side Quest 1: Find the white jade in your dream and smash it (Completed)]

[Main Quest: Protect Zhou Xue and ensure her survival for three days (Completed ahead of schedule)]

With a few crisp, melodious cracking sounds, the white jade shattered into many small pieces that flew in all directions. One of the sharp pieces happened to hit Yu Xing between the eyebrows.

Just as he was about to dodge, he saw the shattered jade fragments dissolve into a puddle of water and fall helplessly with gravity.

"Hmm?" Yu Xing raised an eyebrow, as someone gently patted her shoulder.

He calmly turned his head away, unaware that his pale face and composed expression made him look like a blood puppet from a ghost story.

So when he saw Liang Erni standing behind him, dressed in a blue-black school uniform, it wasn't him who was stunned, but Liang Erni who was stunned.

Liang Erni looks exactly like the photo on the tombstone. She must have been older than that when she died, but in my dream, she still looks young.

She appeared out of thin air without a sound, looked at Yu Xing's face, and then asked hesitantly, "Are you really a living person, and not some strange thing passing by?"

Yu Xing had a good impression of Liang Erni, who continued to resist even after death. Hearing this question, she smiled and said, "Obviously."

"From the first moment I saw you, I thought you were a ghost." Liang Erni pinched the end of her hair a little embarrassed. "So, I was very wary of you and asked you a lot of unnecessary questions. You even helped me, and I'm so sorry."

"It's nothing, being cautious is a good thing." Yu Xing looked at her, clearly in a bad state herself, yet still managed to jokingly say, "Even if you're in the same industry, you have to be careful."

Liang Erni smiled.

She revealed her sweet dimples and handed over a vintage-looking notebook, gesturing for Yu Xing to take it. "The traces that person left here have finally disappeared, and the jade is gone too. Whether it's Liu Xue or that poor young master of Fang family, they're all in the past. I'm free now."

Yu Xing rubbed the notebook cover with her fingertips, feeling the rough texture.

Before Liang Erni could finish speaking, a hint of reluctance, but mostly relief, flickered in her eyes. "In the days to come, I will find a way to leave. I'm tired of being trapped in this world for so long."

Yu Xing's lips curled into a smile.

Are you tired of it?

And me? Am I tired of it yet?

"This matter is over for me. So much time has passed; the rest of that person has either turned to dust or is still searching for something... Unfortunately, he can no longer gather the necessary conditions." Liang Erni bowed obediently to Yu Xing. "Thank you for putting an end to this. However, the future has stopped, and the buried truth of the past still needs to be unearthed. This notebook is my diary; it might be able to help you."

"This dream is meaningless. In a little while, you and your friends will wake up in the real world."

Xu Shu: See? All the other ghosts are saying you're a ghost!

Yu Xing: Hmm, I'm actually starting to believe you're right.