San's Post-Removal Aftereffects

The path leading to the island was very dark and narrow, barely wide enough for five people to walk side by side. The twenty deducers, in a state of vigilance and trepidation, made their way towards the island at a steady pace.

The familiar strategists whispered about the potential dangers of the path, some checking each other's injuries and others probing each other's identities. The group maintained a certain level of quiet, yet there were always low murmurs of discussion, like mosquitoes buzzing around them.

Zeng Lai proactively asked Yu Xing, "Do you want me to carry it?"

Yu Xing felt the hardness of the ground under his feet and found that it was actually quite comfortable to walk on, without any pain. In addition, he was only a little tired and not that delicate, so he smiled and declined, "No need, I'm just a patient, not a porcelain doll."

"You guys have such a good relationship," Carlos remarked, seemingly puzzled. "I still haven't found a regular team, and it's too tiring to play alone. If you don't mind, could you help me out in this simulation?"

"I also want to ask, why are you called Yu Xing?" Zeng Lai was also curious. He had watched Yu Xing's Rookie Tournament, and because Carlos called Yu Xing that, he immediately knew that the two of them knew each other before the Rookie Tournament.

"We went through a simulation together before, and in that simulation, he used this as his alias. I thought it was a cool name, and I've gotten used to it." Carlos's fingers twitched habitually. "And you? How did you meet him?"

"Similar to you, I also got to know Yu Xing through a special simulation. I discovered that this guy is not only handsome, but also smarter than me. He helped me a lot during that simulation."

In fact, the intelligence -Broken Mirror Squad was very clear about this. Zhao Mou had already thoroughly investigated the interpersonal relationships of all of them in the Absurdity System, and had conducted in-depth analysis on which people approached them with an attitude of exploitation and which people genuinely wanted to befriend them.

Zeng Lai had sent messages of support in the live chat during Yu Xing's several live-streamed deductions, showing his sincerity. He is also a player on the Righteous Path, and in Zhao Mou's mind, Zeng Lai is someone who can be trusted and can be cooperated with when necessary.

They encountered no other strange occurrences along the way, suggesting that the outer perimeter of Dead Silent Island was indeed not very dangerous, as if it had provided these recommenders with a temporary safe buffer. The more this was the case, the more uneasy the predictors became.

They hadn't even seen the different kinds of ghosts on the island; the unknown is always the most terrifying.

Of course, as they walked along the path, some of the researchers also ran to check the low bushes on both sides, afraid of missing any clues. But this was destined to be a futile effort, because apart from them, there seemed to be no living person or corpse on this path. After the low bushes grew taller and taller and eventually replaced by tall, leafless trees, they still found nothing.

They walked for about twenty minutes in this seemingly peaceful manner. Just when some people were wondering if they had entered a maze of ghosts, they saw the silhouette of a town in the distance from another high ground.

The place where the researchers were standing was the location where they had reached the top after having a feeling of climbing upwards for several minutes.

From the island's interior, their location was as high as a cliff, overlooking the basin below. They could clearly see a vast city, lifeless, oppressive, and silent.

The black tower in the city center seemed very far away, its spire piercing the sky and disappearing into the oppressive gray clouds.

Scattered around the tower are other tall buildings, their purpose not yet apparent. The style of these buildings resembles that of the mid-to-late centuries, and most of them are even older than the style of the clothing they wear. They are dark, heavy, and ornate, so ornate that they are bloated, like orphans of a bygone era.

This is a town with a strong 14th or 15th century European style, but it's not perfect. Those with slightly better eyesight can see that the buildings nearby are full of holes and rust, as if they have been corroded and abandoned. Even if the exterior still retains its former appearance, who can know what the interior of these buildings is like?

Several trickling rivers meandered through the town from places unseen by them, forming a winding pattern within the town and adding a touch of vitality to the otherwise lifeless community.

It's really strange that there's a town that looks so large on such an island?

"It looks like an ancient ruin, covering an area of over 700 square kilometers, larger than some modern cities." Wen Qinghuai frowned as he looked around. "No wonder there are schools and hospitals on this kind of island, but what's with the subway...?"

This place doesn't look like a product of that era, like a subway.

His usual deduction style involves cleverly using various ineffective sacrifices to achieve synergistic effects, and then using his own intellect to deduce the results. Like Zhao Mou, he can be considered a very typical intellectual type.

His words made the others fall into deep thought.

"Perhaps this is the secret we're meant to uncover. But, here's some bad news~" Huang Bai's tone didn't sound like she was about to deliver bad news at all, but her lively voice did present a stark reality to everyone. "The town is so big, how are we supposed to find out where the ghost notice is?"

Near their starting point, considering that it only took them about 20 minutes to get here from the coast, the edge of the town in the basin below was indeed still considered near their starting point for them.

But there are too many buildings on the outskirts of town. Searching them one by one would take forever. And unlike the safety of the coast, these buildings are sure to contain the ghosts of the Dead Silent Island.

"We need to go down first, then see what's going on inside those buildings, and then we can figure out where the laptops are." Wen Qinghuai rubbed Huang Bai's head and pulled her back a little from where she was very close to the edge of the cliff. "Be careful not to fall."

Huang Bai clung to Wen Qinghuai's arm and obediently replied, "Okay, Boss Qinghuai~"

A suspicious blush appeared on Wen Qinghuai's face.

Yu Xing, watching from behind, felt a chill run down her spine.

Good grief, they clearly met at the same time, how did these two end up together? And they're even showing off their love here!

And he's still an older single man.

How infuriating!

"We should be on a diagonal from where the experience testers are. See? The Black Tower is located in the very center of the city. We can use its position to judge how far we are from the experience testers." Fei Jing gazed into the distance. The city was too big; she couldn't see the other side of the basin at all.

"Now we should be thinking about how to get down, right? It's too steep here. Are we going to have to rock climb?" Bai Xiaobing touched her arm and subconsciously glanced down. Below the cliff face they were on were very sharp rock formations covered with weeds. Due to the humid climate, although there was no sunlight, the weeds still grew very lushly, and they were all species she couldn't name.

Some of the rocks had tentacles growing in the crevices, which didn't look like anything you should touch.

"We were all washed ashore on the island without any supplies. It's impossible to get down here without ropes, so I suspect there might be a downward passage or a relatively gentle path leading down nearby. You can look for it." Cui Hui of few words, and it was very rare for him to offer such advice.

Everyone sprang into action. Cui Hui's suspicions were shared by most people. No one could directly cross the cliff to reach the bottom, not even Qu Xuanqing. Although she was skilled, the unknown plants on the cliff posed a significant threat.

Yu Xing also turned around and looked at the ground, bypassing the huge leafless trees.

The soil here has a strange, eerie green hue, and looks very unhealthy. The trees that take root and draw nutrients from this soil also grow in a way that seems like a joke. Not only are they bared and twisted, but most of them are crooked and twisted in all directions, pressing down on you like a dying person who is about to fall but cannot.

Zhao Yijiu was responsible for protecting the frail and sickly man, while Qu Xuanqing went to protect Zhao Mou. The four of them briefly separated to search for clues, while Carlos leisurely observed and kept an eye on the two groups from a distance.

"If we can't find a passage here, we might have to split up and search further afield. Everyone, be mindful of the time; we must be back in half an hour, no matter what!" Fei Jing frowned and raised her voice slightly.

This was because the group had spread out quite a bit, and normal speaking volume couldn't reach everyone's ears. However, after hearing Fei Jing level, Yu Xing suddenly had a very bad premonition and stopped in her tracks.

"What's wrong?" Zhao Yijiu asked immediately.

Yu Xing glanced at Fei Jing's retreating figure, her eyes flashing. "Dead Silent Island... Do you really think it's okay to speak so loudly?"

"Will this attract monsters?" Zhao Yijiu became wary.

"I don't know if it will attract monsters. I just have a bad feeling. Since this place is called Dead Silent Island, there should be some restrictions on sound. What I'm wondering is, even though Fei Jing has a bad temper, she shouldn't be unaware of this. Didn't you notice that no one answered her in the same high-pitched voice after she shouted?" Yu Xing's eyes revealed a hint of doubt.

After he said that, for some reason, he suddenly felt a chilly sensation coming from under his feet, as if someone was blowing cold air next to his ankles.

Zhao Yijiu was silent for two seconds, then lowered her eyes and said in a low voice, "I have a stronger feeling about these things. That fish just now had an effect on people's minds."

Yu Xing was slightly taken aback, then noticed the fleeting red light in Zhao Yijiu's eyes. Suddenly, he remembered that the vengeful ghost inside Zhao Yijiu seemed to have abilities similar to those of the element that counters it. If they hadn't noticed the fish's problem, then this vengeful ghost should have been able to sense something amiss.

Zhao Yijiu was unusually talkative. "It's not just that Fei Jing shouldn't have spoken loudly. Wen Qinghuai and Huang Bai don't usually do anything intimate in public. Bai Xiaobing was the last person who should have contradicted Fei Jing. Cui Hui wouldn't have offered his opinion just now. My brother shouldn't have been so proactive in Group One with Qu Xuanqing. Usually, he would choose to Group One with me and Qu Xuanqing with you. That's the most harmonious pairing."

"I'll add one more thing. You're not usually this talkative." Yu Xing laughed, "You're very observant, Brother Jiu. You've improved a lot."

"Yes, I was affected too, but not by the fish, but by... him. The familiar aura stirred his consciousness."

Zhao Yijiu remembered that Yu Xing seemed to be guarding against someone eavesdropping, so he didn't directly mention the chatterbox's existence, but instead used "he" instead, since both Yu Xing and he knew what they were talking about.

Yu Xing looked closely at Zhao Yijiu and could see that the activity of the vengeful spirit within her body had somewhat diminished Zhao Yijiu's gloomy aura, making her look somewhat like the smiling person she had seen in the Fear Hospital.

She's talking more and her thinking is clearer and more accurate than usual, but overall, Zhao Yijiu's consciousness still holds an absolute advantage; the talkative genius isn't so well-behaved.

Having figured this out, Yu Xing temporarily relieved and suddenly asked, "What about me?"

Zhao Yijiu: "What?"

"Everyone has been affected, just to varying degrees. So, what exactly has affected me?" Yu Xing narrowed her eyes. "I think it's best to find out what's wrong with me first. I'm a rather dangerous person; if I do something, it'll be too late."

"You... you must be a little slow on the uptake?" Zhao Yijiu said uncertainly. "Normally, I shouldn't have been the one to say those things. You probably should have realized they were influenced when they made those choices, but you only thought of it when Fei Jing's voice got too loud."

"Hiss... This effect also includes intellectual impairment?" Yu Xing thought about it and realized that made sense. He endured the physical pain while listening to other people's conversations. He wasn't as sharp as before. Sometimes, as he walked, that giant white face would appear in front of him again, with the clear black and white eyes of a baby staring straight at him.

That won't do. He can die, he can be maimed, he can be disfigured, but his intelligence can't be lowered!

"How do we solve this?" he asked Zhao Yijiu directly, because based on his experience, when a person has the ability to perceive the source of an anomaly that others cannot detect, he will generally also have a way to resolve the anomaly.

"... There's no other way to solve this right now. The only way is to get close to me." Zhao Yijiu's expression turned slightly cold. "If you stay by my side, the influence of that giant face will be diluted and will disappear completely after a while. I just found out about this. I'm going to find my brother."

His behavior clearly indicated that the vengeful spirit within him had given him this answer after Yu Xing had asked him for a solution. As expected of a vengeful spirit, he always managed to both help and harm people unintentionally.

Yu Xing followed Zhao Yijiu toward Qu Xuanqing and Zhao Mou's location. Since Zhao Yijiu could mitigate the impact, he wanted to ensure that his team remained absolutely clear-headed.

Besides, what did Zhao Yijiu just say?

After being influenced, Zhao Mou took the initiative to be separated from Qu Xuanqing, a decision that Zhao Mou would not normally make.

So what is Zhao Mou trying to do?

With a strange feeling in his heart, Yu Xing stared at Zhao Mou's figure as he drew closer and closer to Qu Xuanqing.