The Truth

In an instant, the man's waist buckled like a shrimp!

Although Zhou You had never practiced any combat techniques, he was at least young and strong. Not to mention, this punch had landed on the most vulnerable part of the human body—the abdomen—and the opponent was so paralyzed by fear that he hadn't even thought to resist!

The man's complexion shifted from red to purple in a flash. As his throat convulsed, a wave of stomach acid spilled out, but Zhou You didn't give him a moment to react. He shoved him to the ground, grabbed a length of plastic cord from a nearby table, twisted the man's arms behind his back, pinned his wrists, and tied a professional-grade knot.

Then, he grabbed the man by the collar and hauled him up, smiling.

"Long time no see, boss. How have you been lately?"

The subdued man coughed violently a few times, then lifted his head, looking at Zhou You with hazy eyes.

"Are you... that new patrolman? Wait, wait, don't kill me! I didn't kill you, really, believe me!"

Why is this guy still talking like I'm dead?

Zhou You looked up at the clock and realized he still had about ten minutes to "have a heart-to-heart" with this security captain. He simply pulled over a chair, sat down right in front of the man, and said.

"Relax, relax. I'm not going to kill you, but I have a few things I want to ask. Can you give me some answers?"

The man nodded frantically.

"First one, then." Under the influence of his "Basic Acting" skill, Zhou You's expression was incredibly amiable. "First point: what do you mean when you keep saying I'm dead?"

The security captain looked at Zhou You and said cautiously, "Um, please don't be angry if I speak the truth. I found your corpse by the river earlier. The way you died was extremely strange, and yet here you are appearing tonight—this clearly means you've returned as a ghost! Really, I wasn't the one who killed you, please let me go!"

Zhou You clicked his tongue and continued to ask.

"You said my corpse looked strange. May I ask, exactly how strange was it?"

To his surprise, the man glanced at him timidly before trembling as he spoke.

"It was... exactly how you look right now."

I look like this right now?

Zhou You froze, then suddenly remembered something.

He seemed to have... never seen a mirror in this script.

Likewise, he had never seen his own reflection.

...So, what exactly do I look like?

Zhou You looked around, finding nothing that could serve as a mirror—this godforsaken place didn't even have windows, just pitch-black voids—but that didn't stump him. He hauled the security captain up and forced the man to look directly into his eyes.

Within those terrified pupils, Zhou You saw his own face.

It was a grayish-blue visage, devoid of any blood color that a living person should have. A piece of his skull was missing at the top, revealing the shriveled gray matter beneath.

"I was wondering why my head kept feeling cold lately; turns out a piece of my skull is gone..." Zhou You was silent for a moment, then suddenly started to laugh.

He shook his head, looked up, and addressed a spot in the room.

"Monk, you've been watching from the sidelines for a long time now. Anything you want to say?"

After a long pause, a gaunt figure stepped out from the shadows.

"Benefactor, this poor monk... offers his greetings."

Seeing the man's hesitant demeanor, Zhou You's smile became quite natural.

"Don't be like that. I'll just ask you one thing: is this guy right? And am I actually dead?"

The Old Monk looked at Zhou You with a pitiful gaze for a moment before speaking in a low voice.

"From what this poor monk can see, Benefactor is indeed dead. However, due to the influence of the night, you have not yet passed on completely. You are merely walking about in a state that is neither quite human nor quite ghost."

Zhou You didn't show a shred of sorrow; instead, he laughed again.

"Then here's the question: you didn't show any abnormality when you saw me during the day, and you even wanted me to deliver a message. Normally, you would never entrust the lives of the entire city to a ghost. So, does that mean I was still alive back then?"

"That is correct. Benefactor was undoubtedly alive during the day, but... this poor monk only realized upon entering the night that..."

The Old Monk hesitated several times but could never finish a complete sentence.

So, Zhou You finished it for him.

"Realized that the time during the day and the time at night don't match up at all, right?"

The Old Monk's words cut off abruptly, his eyes filled with disbelief, but Zhou You just continued to smile.

"Actually, I should have noticed it in the newspaper long ago; I just never thought about it from that angle."

"Before I met you, I helped a sanitation worker—that wasn't a big deal, just being kind—but that night, there was a sudden report about the improvement of the entire sanitation system. And that is the problem."

The corners of his mouth curled up, dripping with sarcasm.

"Normally, a systemic overhaul could never be completed in such a short time. Besides, a few hours isn't even enough time for typesetting and printing, let alone producing a finished newspaper."

"But this was something I finished in the afternoon, and it was on the news by night."

"So... there must be a time difference between the day and the night. There might be several days in between. That's why you saw me alive during the day, but by the time night fell, I had already met a tragic end."

Finally, having reached his conclusion, Zhou You looked up and smiled.

"Is that how it is, Monk?"

The other party simply lowered his head in silence, his actions serving as a tacit admission.

Then, Zhou You turned his head to look at the security captain who was tied up.

"As for you... how should I deal with you?"

Seeing this, the guy began to struggle frantically.

"No, no, I didn't kill you! Your death had nothing to do with me, it was those ghosts who did it! Please spare me, really, please spare me!"

"--But, you were also a mastermind, weren't you?"

The security captain's voice came to an abrupt halt.

His face was still streaming with tears and snot, but now his eyes were filled with terror.

So, Zhou You continued.

"I remember the contents of Liu Shang's diary very clearly. He had 'the security company under him hire an ignorant fool every day to serve as a sacrifice.' Given his status, it was impossible for him to do this himself; he definitely needed someone to execute it. Not to mention, the fear hidden in your eyes on the first day couldn't have been faked..."

"So, the person specifically tasked with hiring those 'fools' was you, am I right, dear captain?"

The man looked at Zhou You as if he were a complete stranger, then suddenly shrieked.

"No, no! I was forced into it too! I owed a huge gambling debt I couldn't pay, and Boss Liu came to threaten me personally... I had no choice! Besides, I suffered retribution a while ago, and all the money I earned was lost... Please spare me, spare me! Please don't kill me!"

...So, the large sum of money I found was yours.

Feeling completely at ease, Zhou You raised his head, glanced at the clock, and then spoke.

"Rest assured, I already said just now that I wouldn't kill you. I'm a man of my word; if I say I won't kill, I won't. So, there you have it."

Zhou You stood up and, with a very gentle touch, placed the man onto the chair.

At this very moment, the television turned on by itself, the pale figure appeared within it once more, and the blood on the floor began to seep out.

"Just stay here and behave yourself, Captain."

"Respected player, you have deciphered the underlying worldview of this scenario."

"Scenario completion rate has been greatly increased."

"You have obtained a purple consumable: Blood-Stained Document."

"Effect: Use this document to establish a contract. For three minutes, you will not receive damage from monsters (the gap between the monster's strength and yours must not be too great, otherwise it is ineffective)."

<It will give you everything you want, but you must pay the price--fortunately, someone has already paid it for you this time.>