Inference

Chapter 34: Inference

"Players can't get the traits of killed players at all." Liu Yuanyuan spoke first. "You're bluffing."

"You're a Cannibal Player. Cannibal Players don't have traits to begin with, so of course you can't get other players' traits. Everyone just got off the Preliminary Train, so I doubt any of you have many items either."

Ignoring Liu Yuanyuan's furious glare, Wang Wei's gaze locked onto Xu Huo's face. "A lone survivor can't complete the instance mission. You have five people now. Instead of adding more casualties, wouldn't it be better for us to leave each other alone and quietly wait until the fifth day?"

Huang Junjie, who weighed pros and cons, wavered. He subconsciously looked at Xu Huo.

"You don't need to test me." Xu Huo said. "Even if you kill a player, you can't get their traits. The only inheritable legacies are things like money and items."

"Being alone really can't clear the instance. The simplest method is indeed to ensure multiple players survive until the instance ends. But like you said, we just got off the train. Maybe the few players you killed didn't even have items."

He smiled. "The hardest part is over. The grand prize is right in front of us. Taking a little risk is worth it."

Wang Wei knew Xu Huo wouldn't be so easily fooled, so he looked at Yuan Yao and the other two. "You think so too?"

The three said nothing. Wang Wei sneered, then said to Liu Yuanyuan, "Killing me won't get you anything. Their next target will be you."

Liu Yuanyuan shrugged. "I don't care. The instance reward is more tempting to me."

"All this talk—are you scared?"

As soon as she finished speaking, she lunged at Wang Wei like a beast unleashed!

Wang Wei sidestepped, but three bloody scratches appeared on his face. The pain of torn flesh made his muscles twitch. After retreating a few steps to dodge her momentum, he grabbed at the air, and a black cloak swirled down to cover him!

But before he could fully hide inside the cloak, Xu Huo suddenly attacked from the side, sweeping his leg to knock the man down. "Get him!"

Abel and Yuan Yao, who were right behind, each grabbed one of his legs and forcibly dragged Wang Wei out from under the cloak!

Though his body was out, one hand still clutched the cloak tightly, creating a three-way tug-of-war!

Huang Junjie, who had been waiting for an opening, gripped his Bamboo Knife with both hands and stabbed toward Wang Wei's chest and abdomen. But just as he raised his hand, an extremely thin silver-black metal wire looped around his neck and yanked him up!

The Bamboo Knife clattered to the ground. Huang Junjie struggled, clawing at the wire, but its ends had no attachments—it seemed to grow out of thin air. As Wang Wei crossed his index and middle fingers, the wire suddenly twisted and tightened, leaving a bleeding line across Huang Junjie's neck!

Xu Huo glanced at the man whose eyes were rolling back from the chokehold, kept his foot pressed on the cloak, took out the "Arsonist's Tool," opened it, and shouted, "Burn! Burn! Burn!"

Without the black cloak's protection, three flames erupted on Wang Wei's clothes out of nowhere, and the fire spread in an instant!

The sudden blaze panicked Wang Wei. He stopped controlling the wire, kicked Abel and Yuan Yao away, and turned to strike at Xu Huo!

Though there was still some distance between them, a black stun baton appeared in Wang Wei's hand. The electric current surging from it enveloped his entire arm, the crackling light blinding to the eyes and impossible to approach.

Xu Huo squinted, hesitating whether to let go, when Liu Yuanyuan suddenly rushed in from the side. Her hands, clad in Insulated Gloves, grabbed Wang Wei's left arm and twisted it. With a "crack," the stun baton fell to the ground!

She snatched the baton and ran. Xu Huo and the just-risen Huang Junjie struck simultaneously, stabbing at Wang Wei's wrist and calf!

By now, Wang Wei was fully engulfed in flames. The fire had exceeded his tolerance. He had no choice but to abandon the black cloak, swinging the Head Chopper's axe to drive the two back, then rolled on the ground to put distance between himself and the others!

As he scrambled up, Abel charged in with the large Cross. Wang Wei barely blocked with his axe, but was smashed into the wall. After hitting the ground, he coughed up blood while frantically tearing at his clothes!

Thanks to his Evolved physique, the burns on his skin weren't life-threatening, but the melted fabric from the scorched cloth stuck to his flesh. He couldn't rip it off by force and had to let it cool.

The warehouse filled with the smell of cooked meat.

"Gulp!" Liu Yuanyuan swallowed.

"The risk was worth it." Xu Huo lifted the black cloak in his hand.

In just a few dozen seconds of combat, Head Chopper Demon Wang Wei had not only gained nothing but had lost his greatest asset—the black cloak—along with one item. Even the axe in his hand had a chipped edge from clashing with Abel's large Cross. Meanwhile, their side's losses were negligible.

Wang Wei panted heavily, glaring at Xu Huo with a venomous look that could almost turn solid. He couldn't understand. "Why were you so sure the Head Chopper Demon was a player? Hot Spring Villa has always had rumors of a Head Chopper Demon. Any normal person would think there really was one here, especially with the evidence I fabricated. What made you refuse to believe!"

"Because your cleverness backfired!" Yuan Yao couldn't wait to say. "Would a real Head Chopper Demon bother with such petty tricks?"

"Just because of that?" Wang Wei raised his voice.

Not just him, but Huang Junjie and the others didn't understand either. Huang Junjie, in particular, had only suspected that a player was impersonating the Head Chopper Demon to kill people; he never imagined the Head Chopper Demon was the player himself.

"Pay attention to the instance briefing. It says this villa has had frequent deaths over the past three years, but from the materials we found in the warehouse, the Head Chopper Demon rumors here actually date back decades." Xu Huo flicked the Lighter.

Wang Wei's eyelids twitched. "So what?"

"The key is in those materials. Not counting the earlier deaths, looking at just the last three years, the victims follow a pattern—either consecutive missing heads or consecutive missing limbs."

Xu Huo glanced at Huang Junjie. "Setting aside the theory of copycat crimes, this fits the profile of players. Most are Normal Players, a few are Cannibal Players."

"So that's why the bodies were missing limbs. If the corpses had been eaten, the Head Chopper Demon's identity would be too easy to expose, right?" Yuan Yao murmured.

"Some past records and cases can be found in the newspapers. That means the villa wasn't shut down because of the Head Chopper Demon back then—at least newspapers were still being delivered. Combined with the game saying this place was once popular with both players and non-players, it's highly likely it was an instance before. The people coming were all players, and since this is an instance, connecting the corpse patterns, it makes more sense that the Head Chopper Demon is a player."

"So this instance started decades ago?" Abel was shocked. "We're all first-timers! How is that possible!"

"It's possible," Huang Junjie said, his face turning pale as a thought struck him. "Isn't the Woodcutter a stranded player?"