Threatening Letter Before the Art Exhibition

The person in charge then shut up.

It wasn't that the person in charge was intimidated by Zhao Yijiu's gaze, but rather that they sensed Zhao Yijiu's unwavering determination in his eyes and felt there was no need to continue trying to persuade him, since it would be fruitless anyway.

The red crystal ball reflected the person in charge's face, and in Zhao Yijiu's eyes, the person in charge's expression clearly conveyed two words: "Boring."

Over there, Yu Xing finally waited until the painters had finished their enthusiastic viewing of the oil painting and received a positive result.

"It's definitely a fake, it's all Crodir's fault, haha, forgive me for laughing so heartlessly."

"This is truly embarrassing. In fact, I think this painting is no worse than Crodir's own work."

"Actually, this painting is already very good. If this is the reason why Crodir didn't realize from the beginning that it wasn't his own work, then it's understandable."

The painters chatted amongst themselves, some mercilessly mocking their colleagues, while others seemed to be speaking up for them, but in reality, it had little effect.

Yu Xing stood by, smiling, silently observing these mediocre painters who were just as bad as they were, until finally the person in charge spoke up.

"The result is already obvious. Congratulations, guest, you've secured a spot to stay at the art museum after the exhibition ends." The person in charge stood up, walked to Yu Xing's side, and looked down at Yu Xing from a height of over two meters. Then he extended a hand, as if to shake hands.

His figure became even more indistinct after leaving the light of the red crystal ball. Yu Xing squinted and could only see a dark, blurry shadow. The person in charge had no living aura, let alone breathing. If you didn't look at him, you might not even be able to feel his presence beside you.

Yu Xing reached out her hand, but just before she could grasp it, she was prompted by Spiritual Sense.

He silently withdrew his hand and smiled, "I injured my hand while authenticating the forgery earlier. It hurts a lot. Please forgive my rudeness, sir."

The person in charge paused for a moment, then gracefully withdrew his hand and said calmly, "Of course."

The painters at the round table were still engaged in a heated discussion about the paintings when the person in charge turned around. His voice was low and gentle, yet carried an undeniable authority. "Quiet down, ladies and gentlemen. We should give our guests who have helped us a reward."

The painters suddenly fell silent. Yu Xing watched this scene with great interest. It seemed that although the painters were chatting on equal terms with the fat man sitting at the lower end of the table, and were also laughing and joking with the museum staff on either side of the person in charge, they were still inferior to the person in charge. Although they seemed to have different personalities, at this moment, they all exhibited a kind of obedient behavior.

For the painters, the museum director brought them more than just collaborative relationships for exhibitions; it seemed there was also some unknown element of... oppression? Control?

He wasn't sure, but he found the phenomenon very interesting, and perhaps he would learn some inside information later.

"Please have your companion wait outside and stay out of the way. We will use this time to tell you everything you need to know." The person in charge pointed at Zhao Yijiu. His gaze towards Zhao Yijiu was no longer as gentle as before; it was as if he were looking at an object that had no further use.

Zhao Yijiu almost let out a cold laugh.

He looked at Yu Xing: "Then I'll go outside and wait for you."

Yu Xing waved to him. "Okay, I'll tell you everything as soon as I get out. I don't hold back at all, you know~"

Zhao Yijiu was somewhat surprised. He felt that if Yu Xing had said this to him, it would have seemed strange and unnecessary.

That must have been what Yu Xing said to the others in the room. Why? To prove to these beings, who were neither human nor ghost, that they were trusted companions? But what was the purpose of doing that?

He turned around, opened the red wooden door, and just as he was about to step out of the room, he suddenly wondered if Yu Xing had reallyn't heard what the person in charge said to him during the discussion with the painters.

Although they were all stripped of their abilities and sacrifices, Zhao Yijiu never believed he understood Yu Xing's strength before entering the Absurd Deduction Game. What if he had previously been able to hear the hidden voices of the ghosts through some principle...?

Doesn't that mean Yu Xing overheard all the manipulator's attempts to mislead him? Yu Xing's reaction now becomes understandable. He responded to the man with "Get lost!" Yu Xing wanted to use this method to antagonize the self-righteous man. After all, Yu Xing is petty and vengeful, especially towards those who do dirty tricks behind his back.

Zhao Yijiu felt he had discovered the truth. He found it somewhat amusing and offered his condolences to the person in charge, for Yu Xing Jing's malicious behavior was definitely on Yu Xing's list of grudges.

He walked out the door with light steps, leaving it slightly ajar instead of closing it completely.

He obviously couldn't hear the sounds inside, but Yu Xing wanted to run out, it would save him the time of turning the handle.

Seeing the person leave, Yu Xing turned her gaze away from their retreating figure and looked at the person in charge. "Is it my turn to ask questions now?"

"If you'd like to understand this matter through questions, of course you can." The person in charge always seemed so approachable. He walked to the sofa and invited Yu Xing to sit down and discuss the matter in detail.

Yu Xing didn't want to stand by the round table any longer, so he happily went to the sofa, plopped down, and felt much more comfortable. The others were still sitting at the round table, but it was much quieter than before.

After he sat down, he asked his first question, "What I really want to know right now is what this spot is for? In other words, are there any activities for those who stay after the exhibition ends?"

He actually had some suspicions. After all, when he was on the first floor, he overheard the fat staff member and Ms. Linda talking about the auction. He asked this question to test whether the auction storyline belonged to the art gallery instance or to some other building, such as the possible auction house.

In fact, during the time he was authenticating the painting, he had figured it out. The auction would most likely be a storyline for another building. If the art museum storyline included so many other elements, it would be too cumbersome. There were only five slots for counterfeit items. If the final auction storyline only served five people and was even more important, it would be a waste of such a large venue.

"There aren't any other activities, which is related to what I'm about to explain to you about why forgeries sometimes get mixed into art exhibitions," the person in charge said calmly. "With this spot, you'll receive assistance from the museum and have the opportunity to visit the museum's third-floor collection room. That collection room is not usually open to the public; we only allow guests to enter under very special circumstances."

"But what meaning does such an opportunity mean to me?" Yu Xing asked.

"That collection room houses many rare items discovered on the island. Some of them we don't consider worthy of our collection, so we can only keep them safe. If you can find your item there..." the person in charge smiled, "If you're really that lucky, then you can take it with you."

The words were strange, but Yu Xing quickly realized what they meant: were they referring to sacrificial offerings?

Could it be that the art museum's collection holds offerings from these outsiders? How interesting. Just how much do these plague-infested and polluted beings on the island know about the outsiders...? After they arrived on the island, their offerings were scattered throughout the Dead Silent Island. Was there some time lag involved?

Long before their bodies, the offerings had been on the island for "quite some time," some of which were collected by people in the art gallery.

Yu Xing's eyes flashed, and she suddenly felt as if she had touched the tail end of the chaotic time on Dead Silent Island.

"I'm really looking forward to the experience of entering the collection room. But aside from that question, I still have to ask: why are forgeries mixed into the art exhibition?"

"This involves some of the shady rats on our island." The person in charge seemed calm, but there was an undisguised contempt when he mentioned the so-called rats. "We've been preparing for this exhibition for a long time. We invited the nine painters early on, and after communicating with them, they agreed to do a joint exhibition. For this, each of them spent a considerable amount of time preparing new paintings and also sent some old paintings that they still had."

"Hmm, and then?" Yu Xing chimed in, trying to be a good straight man.

"Before the exhibition even started, our museum received a threatening letter saying that someone would sneak five fake paintings into the exhibition, paintings so real that even the painters themselves wouldn't be able to tell the difference. The letter said that the fakes would be revealed to the public near the end of the exhibition, causing us to lose face and making those five painters a laughing stock."

The person in charge said, "The letter also claimed that these five paintings are inhabited by evil spirits that will bring misfortune to viewers. When they are unveiled, it will be the moment when those evil spirits emerge from the paintings and attack the invited artists. The person who wrote the letter wants to turn this exhibition into a disastrous farce, not only to embarrass our museum, but also to kill the artists."

"That's right, the letter even said that if we didn't come because we were afraid, it would be publicized so everyone would know what a bunch of cowardly wretches we are." Crodir, whose painting had already been confirmed to contain a forgery, was in a very bad mood and was the most anxious. He leaned over and eagerly told Yu Xing, "So we came. Each of us checked the paintings again before the exhibition started, and without exception, we found no trace of forgery. We even thought it was a cruel joke..."

"But it turns out it wasn't a joke," the person in charge continued. "Just before the opening today, a painting appeared in our lounge. It was a very famous painting by an artist who wasn't participating in this exhibition. But we all know that the painting is kept in a private collector's villa. How did it end up in the lounge?"

"So we examined it, and everyone agreed that it was genuine. Then my colleague found the word 'surprise' on the back of the painting. The ink used for that word was the same as the paint used for the painting, as if the person who delivered the painting knew we couldn't tell the difference between a real and a fake painting and deliberately drew a mark on the back."

After saying this, the person in charge shook his head. "They're just trying to prove to us that those people are capable of making forgeries that are exactly the same as the originals. So what they said in the letter could very well be true. Therefore, just in case, we plan to have you, who are capable of making the forgeries obvious, help us authenticate the paintings."

Yu Xing thought that with the poor skills of these painters, they probably couldn't tell the difference between their own paintings and those that were forged by others. They probably didn't even know what problems they had with their painting skills.

For example, Crodir's painting of the Water Ghost should have looked roughly the same as his own paintings before the changes occurred, but he failed to notice the lines hidden in the river within the painting; he was simply blind.

He inwardly scoffed, but outwardly asked politely, "How did you determine that we can do things that even professional painters can't?"

"The letter says those terrifying, evil spirits are deeply hidden, and there's no special way to find them," the person in charge said. "That reminds me that you outsiders always manage to surprise us, don't you?"

Yu Xing roughly understood.

They knew that outsiders' methods were very different from those of the islanders, so they brought them over as free labor—no, the outsiders even paid for their tickets.

That's really heartless... I'd rather hang it on a street lamp.

"So you plan to have outsiders find all five forgeries before the exhibition ends, so you can avoid all the losses later, and the purpose of the person who sent the message or those people will be thwarted," Yu Xing summarized. Seeing the person in charge nod slightly, he straightened his cuffs. "So how do you plan to deal with the person who sent the message? They've caused you so much trouble, I'm sure you won't let them off easily, right?"

The person in charge smiled and said, "Of course, but that's our job. It won't cause any trouble for our esteemed guests."

The implication was that what happened next was not Yu Xing's concern.

The person in charge stood up, gesturing for the guests to leave. "We've said everything we needed to say, and we hope you understand any inconvenience this exhibition may have caused. By the way, the quota of five paintings isn't limited to one painting per person. If you can find more, we welcome you to bring in forgeries. That way, you might find even more to enjoy in the collection room."

Yu Xing then stood up as well, smiled and nodded to the person in charge, "I'm also looking forward to it. Well then, I'll take my leave now."

He sensed that the person in charge and the other painters wanted him to leave quickly, so he waved in agreement and walked towards the door.

Zhao Yijiu was waiting for her outside the door. She breathed a slight sigh of relief when she saw him come out.

"Is there anything inside?"

Yu Xing pulled Zhao Yijiu back, and only after they passed a corridor did he answer, "It's nothing. Judging from the rewards later on, the questioning session is just a supplement to the plot; there's not much danger or benefit."

Do you want to know what they told me?

"I suspect that the forgeries in this exhibition were sent by a special force."