Strangers

To distinguish between an authentic and a forgery, one must have some knowledge of the artist and understand the differences between authentic and forgery works.

The task written on this note is naturally not as simple as it seems, because as outsiders, whether they are experience testers or deducers, it is impossible for them to know any of the painters behind the paintings exhibited in the museum, so of course they cannot identify the paintings. Moreover, most people are not sensitive to art and do not have the ability to identify paintings.

Therefore, the focus of the task should be on the word "strange". The forgery is very strange, which means that when outsiders pass by the forgery painting, they may trigger some kind of dangerous mechanism, commonly known as seeing ghosts. After surviving the hands of these ghosts, they can be said to have obtained a forgery painting.

Yu Xing suddenly remembered the portrait of the old woman in the black dress he had seen in the corridor earlier. To be honest, the portrait of that woman was quite eerie. Her gaze was fixed on him, and her expression was even more ambiguous than Mona Lisa's. It didn't seem like a painting technique piled up with clumsy skills, but rather a genuine expression of emotion.

"The rules are still incomplete, but they don't affect the initial operations anymore," Yu Xing stood up and summarized. "I don't know how many outsiders bought tickets to enter according to the procedure, but there should be no fewer than five. More than five outsiders are competing for five spots to start the subsequent activities and exchanges with the painter. This shows that for them, exchanging ideas with the painter is very important, which is probably related to the lack of written instructions."

They arrived too late; finding even a portion of the rules was already quite an achievement. Some rules don't leave any trace, such as the guides leading the tour groups around the second floor. Their words are also clues; hearing them is a matter of fate, not hearing them means missing out.

"It's probably related to the auction," Zhao Yijiu said nonchalantly, tossing the paper back onto the sofa. "Wouldn't it be much easier to just grab someone and interrogate them?"

"We should talk to them, but not now. They're all with the tour group right now. Once the first three hours are over and everyone has free time, we won't be in this passive position anymore." Yu Xing gestured for Zhao Yijiu to calm down. "Right now, the two of us are abruptly appearing outside the tour group's area. If someone sees us, it'll definitely be a big problem. And the group we initially appeared in should have a fixed number of people, at least the guide leading the group knows the number, so staying there isn't safe either, but..."

He didn't continue, but his meaning was clear.

While everyone is free to search for fakes, it's hard to notice who's in the museum. Even if the plague-type NPCs in the museum feel they haven't seen them before, they'll just assume it's because they don't remember clearly. And the guides will assume they're from another tour group, assuming these plague-types and contaminants are of normal intelligence and don't have photographic memory.

As long as you buy a ticket, you should be considered qualified to enter, regardless of whether you are tall or short, a ghost or a human. At least in this instance, you should receive equal treatment.

Only outsiders would notice them, because they are conspicuous enough.

The outsiders would naturally know that they came in with several companions and that they generally knew each other. In this situation, the discovery of two new outsiders, who were from the opposing camp, would probably be their biggest threat.

"What are we doing now? It's so boring." Zhao Yijiu looked at the empty hall. The first floor seemed to be empty now, with hardly anyone around. The hall connected to the rooms that included a restaurant, banquet hall, auction hall, as well as toilets and lounges, but none of them were in use for the time being.

Yu Xing stretched and rubbed her temples to ease the lingering dizziness from seeing the white symbols in the shadows. "I'll just find somewhere to hide. I don't plan to go up to the third floor right now. I know those former museum plague creatures are having a big meeting there. Trying to scout out some information would come at a price, and I'm too lazy to pay that price for now."

"Whatever, I'm too lazy to surprise you right now. Like I said this morning, I'm a bit tired today." Zhao Yijiu waved his hand and walked straight to the side. He seemed to be familiar with the layout of the first floor for some reason. Yu Xing compared it with the map and sure enough, that was the lounge.

We can't go to the restaurant, because it needs to provide food for guests during the event, so there will definitely be staff there, at least waiters or chefs.

Apart from the restaurant, the first floor is now open to all. Yu Xing had already observed that there were no surveillance cameras in this art museum. She wondered if it was because the technology wasn't advanced enough or if there were other privacy concerns.

Yu Xing chose to rest with Zhao Yijiu, since Zhao Yijiu could use shadows to move around and was extremely mobile. Even if someone suddenly rushed over, they could deal with it calmly with Zhao Yijiu by their side.

It was unclear how much time had passed since the first three hours of the art exhibition began. Judging from the efficiency with which those ghosts viewed the paintings and the location of the two groups he had encountered, at least an hour had already gone by.

With the remaining time, Yu Xing didn't plan to go up to the second floor to look at the paintings. Searching for fakes shouldn't have been a three-hour task in the first place. For outsiders, with an interpreter leading the tour of the art exhibition, and surrounded by ghosts, the ghosts in the fakes were less likely to appear, as the level of fright would be greatly reduced. Moreover, the auras of the ghosts would also influence each other.

Now that he's up there, he won't be bothered by so many ghosts around, but in order to avoid the arrival of the viewing group at all times, he can't wholeheartedly appreciate the paintings. The whole thing is more harmful than beneficial to him, so he might as well take a good rest and talk to the experience instructor during free time. If they cooperate, they'll be friendly; if they don't, they'll be forced to be friendly.

For example, the boy holding the rabbit doll, according to Zhao Yijiu, seemed to know him. If he knew him, then this boy was very likely from Shen's side. This was quite an unexpected surprise; they had originally planned to Dead Silent Island to discuss some matters, but now they'd met again at the art museum in the middle of Dead Silent Island. Tsk tsk tsk, could this be fate?

Once you've established a connection with the experience tester, the rest is much easier.

Yu Xing was thinking about all sorts of things, so he slowed down. When he arrived at the lounge, he saw Zhao Yijiu, who had come in earlier, sitting on the sofa with her legs crossed, looking like a big shot.

Yu Xing suddenly realized that it had been a long time since she had observed this person, whom she had first met in this absurd situation, from a relatively distant perspective. Unbeknownst to her, Zhao Yijiu's hair had grown quite a bit longer than before, and he hadn't taken good care of it. Now his bangs were covering his eyes. Zhao Yijiu usually didn't like this because it would affect his vision, so he would either brush his hair to one side or get it trimmed regularly.

He also tried to copy Zhao Mou by styling his hair from the front to the back, but ultimately gave up because it was more troublesome to use hairspray and such.

But recently, Zhao Yijiu seems to have forgotten, letting his hair grow longer and, combined with his gloomy aura, making him appear even more eerie and frightening. Everyone who sees him for the first time notices this intimidating aura, thus ignoring his otherwise good looks.

Yu Xing narrowed her eyes.

He didn't see it as merely an oversight.

Now, Zhao Yijiu sat on the sofa, casually crossing his legs, a faint smile on his lips. His eyes were covered by his bangs, making it impossible to see where his gaze was. Due to his vengeful ghost nature, his gloom had faded slightly, replaced by an extremely aggressive, cynical, and unpredictable demeanor.

Ghost Wine fiddled with a small ornament he picked up from the coffee table in the lounge. The tiny art piece twirled between his long, strong fingers, somewhat like how he practiced twirling a dagger, yet not quite the same.

In that instant, Yu Xing suddenly felt that the person in front of him was vastly different from Zhao Yijiu. He was no longer someone who possessed Zhao Yijiu's memories but had a different personality; rather, he was a completely different person, or rather, a different ghost.

This is dangerous.

When exactly did Zhao Yijiu begin to allow himself to switch between these two states? Did he realize that his tolerance for the ghostly state was growing stronger, even maintaining the Ghost Wine state when it wasn't necessary...?

The vengeful spirit he assimilated and absorbed was, after all, a creature that had once escaped from the Absurdity System single-handedly. Would he really be able to control its power so easily?

Ghost Wine himself revealed that in this state he was on the Fallen Path, with such an extreme contrast in his personality. Zhao Yijiu... really hasn't been gradually assimilated by the vengeful ghosts because of these powers?

Perhaps the hidden, unabsorbed ghostly consciousness had already begun its counterattack, but Zhao Yijiu was unaware of this. This ghost was too clever; everything it did never harm anyone around Zhao Yijiu, leading everyone to believe that even in its ghostly form, it was harmless to its own people.

Even though he often showed an intention to trick Yu Xing, it was at most a harmless little prank, which made Yu Xing lower his guard. But at this moment, when he saw Zhao Yijiu from afar and found that this person was so unfamiliar, the alarm bells suddenly rang.

Is the situation really that peaceful? Are they really just going to let Ghost Wine leave their sight so easily, with Zhao Yijiu's memories and attitude as "guarantees"? Is everything really going to be foolproof?

Zhao Yijiu himself probably didn't even know what he was doing in his ghost form, even if he did it himself.

Yu Xing's lips curled up slightly, and she lifted her foot to move closer to the person sitting on the sofa.

"What is this so interesting?" His gaze fell on the small object that Zhao Yijiu was playing with. It was an ordinary crystal ornament that showcased the extravagance and excess of the old era. He just picked it up casually, nothing special, but he needed a topic to probe.

"Your hands are itching, want to play?" Zhao Yijiu looked up, his blood-red eyes peeking out from beneath his black hair. He chuckled, swept his bangs back to reveal his forehead, and stared directly at Yu Xing. "Your hair's gotten so long, why don't you find a chance to have Carlos cut it for me?"

What a coincidence.

Yu Xing, noticing the details in the hair, wondered if Zhao Yijiu had lost control over the vengeful ghost's personality, and the person in front of him brought it up.

He wouldn't think he was overthinking it; instead, he became even more attentive to these details.

So he sat down beside it, the sofa, which had been in normal condition, sinking softly into him. He then continued the conversation, as if it were any random, casual chat in real life. "Want Carlos to help you? He can cut hair?"

"Didn't you know? He dyed his own hair too. Heh... Maybe he's not as silly in front of you. He probably likes seeing my precious quality of not hitting him even when I find him noisy. He's much more unrestrained in front of me." Zhao Yijiu shifted to a more comfortable sitting position, still fiddling with the crystal ornament in her hand, as if picking up a fun toy that would bounce around in front of her. "Anyway, according to him, his hairdressing skills are pretty good."

"I see... What do you think of him as a person?" Yu Xing asked.

Zhao Yijiu paused, a dark glint in her blood-red eyes. "Why are you suddenly talking to me about other people?"

"Since there's nothing to do here anyway, I can't just sleep, so let's chat." Yu Xing looked bored and listless. Those who knew him well knew that this expression often appeared on his face, usually meaning that he needed to find something to focus his attention when he had nowhere else to go.

"If you were normal, I know you'd probably be getting used to Qu Xuanqing and Carlos in silence by now. But with your vengeful personality, I'm quite curious about your feelings towards these two teammates who are complete strangers. After all, you even tried to betray me, and you're only a little nicer to Zhao Mou. At least you'd obediently call him 'brother.'"

Yu Xing spoke, he noticed that Zhao Yijiu's face remained calm, with a slight smile that seemed to conceal more unfathomable emotions. Suddenly intrigued, he leaned closer to Zhao Yijiu, his narrow phoenix eyes gleaming upwards. "I'm curious, would you consider them people you can help?"

Zhao Yijiu noticed the sudden closeness between them, paused for a moment, then a hint of mockery appeared on her face. "If you were a woman, I could assume you were using your femininity on me, but if you're doing this... you must have something to do with it, right, Captain?"

Yu Xing raised an eyebrow, leaning back to create some distance. "Got caught? You're not so easily fooled anymore. Even your 'gay' act didn't work. Tsk, yes, I was indeed trying to get information out of you. Carlos has too many secrets I can't uncover, but I think if it's a powerful ghost of the Kreece type... there might be some special gains. So I'm very curious, what kind of person is Carlos, according to your assessment? I know you won't tell me without some special methods, because in your eyes, he's probably a major variable in our team, and might lead to a series of interesting events."

"I understand now. People who enjoy themselves never admit defeat. Besides Yiqing, you certainly wouldn't want to nip something that brings you joy in the bud. So, do I understand you well?"

"You guessed right. I never expected my dear captain to be not only good at reading people's minds, but also at reading ghosts' minds." Zhao Yijiu started playing with the crystal pendant again. "But since you've gone to so much trouble for Carlos, I won't hesitate to tell you."