Carnivore (Ten): Clues

When Zhao Feng found A-Xi and handed over the meat still stained with traces of blood, the latter revealed teeth as fine as a shark's and giggled, "Hee hee."

The Ghost Child tilted his head and said in a crisp, childish voice, "Thank you, Brother. Let me tell you a story."

Zhao Feng's eyes lit up at these words, unable to hide his joy.

No wonder this Ghost Child couldn't be killed; he was an NPC providing clues.

The preliminary hint stated that the truth was hidden in the villagers' words, and that speaking the truth could ward off their harm. In other words, verbal clues were like life-saving talismans at critical moments.

Trading a piece of his own flesh for a life-saving talisman—it wasn't a profit, but it wasn't a loss either.

Qi Si stood silently to the side, the corners of his mouth curving upward.

Hm, Zhao Feng trading a piece of his flesh for a clue—not only was it not a loss, it was a huge profit.

A-Xi cleared his throat and began to chant in the tone of a nursery rhyme:

[Sister and brother go to Grandma's house, children's meat is tender and bones are crisp, Grandma drools with greed.]

[At night, sister hears a crunching sound, asks Grandma what she is eating, Grandma says it's dried broad beans.]

[The next day, brother is gone, sister searches and searches and searches, a pile of broken bones in the corner.]

Having recited this, A-Xi giggled, took the meat, and hopped away, leaving Zhao Feng standing there in a daze.

Zhao Feng looked left and right, seeing Qi Si standing to the side holding a tape recorder with an inscrutable expression, and subconsciously asked, "Brother Chang, what does this story have to do with our instance?"

"I don't know." Qi Si spoke the truth.

The story A-Xi told was very ordinary; at first listen, it was just an extension of a horror story related to "eating."

Qi Si had heard another version, called "White-Clad Granny."

It was said that there was a ghost called "White-Clad Granny" who would disguise herself as a grandmother, sleep with the grandchildren, and secretly eat the children.

Qi Si didn't have much of a sense of horror regarding this story; looking back now, the deepest impression he had was of the cousin who told it to him.

That girl, who was always dressed to the nines, loved to poke his eyes with her bright red nails and curse him viciously, "You jinx, you debt-collecting ghost, why haven't you been dragged away by the White-Clad Granny yet?"

A vicious and stupid girl who was servile to the malice of the outside world while venting her resentment on her cousin who was living under her roof; after being bullied by classmates, she believed in folk taboos and strange rumors, and hanged herself in a red dress... What a crude and cliché tragedy.

Faded memories became vivid for a moment; Qi Si casually pressed the switch on the tape recorder in his hand, the smile on his lips carrying a touch of gentleness.

"Sister and brother go to Grandma's house..."

The nursery rhyme, mixed with electromagnetic static, echoed in the air. Perhaps due to the distortion of the recording, the voice lacked the crispness of a child and sounded low and hoarse, chilling one to the bone.

Zhao Feng twitched the corner of his eye and asked, "Brother Chang, where did you get that recorder? What is it for?"

Qi Si restrained his smile and answered truthfully, "I swiped it from the bus. I don't know if it's useful, but it's better to take it than not."

Zhao Feng suddenly understood why Qi Si had so many items on him.

Should he say it was worthy of being someone from Sariel? He was truly "plucking a feather from every passing goose"...

In the center of the courtyard, the players had already gathered with their gear. Aside from Yang Yundong, who carried a broadsword on his back, and Zhu Ling, who had a dagger tucked into her waist, no other obvious weapons could be seen on the players.

Qi Si said indifferently, "Let's go over too. It's easy to arouse suspicion if we're late."

Zhao Feng looked inexplicably at his left arm, which was wrapped in cloth and still seeping blood.

Although he didn't know if it was due to the instance mechanics or something else, he couldn't feel much pain at the moment, but he still felt that appearing in the crowd with such a wound would easily attract the attention of other players.

Then, he heard Qi Si say in a matter-of-fact tone, "We'll go separately. Feeding meat to ghosts and such is your business; I didn't trigger that kind of task, did I?"

Zhao Feng: 6.

By the woodshed, Granny Su had brought over a wooden bucket from somewhere, hooked it with a pole, and made a move to head out.

The bucket emitted a strong, bloody stench, and the lid on top was slightly ajar, making one want to lift it to see what was inside.

Zhu Ling stepped forward and asked, "Granny Su, where are you going?"

Granny Su didn't hide it and replied, "I'm going to the Ancestral Hall to pay my respects. Someone died, so I must pay my respects at the Ancestral Hall to ward off disaster."

So you know someone died, too?

Zhu Ling coughed twice and probed, "You've worked hard hosting us. If there are no taboos, let me help you."

Granny Su's expression changed, and she shook her head repeatedly, "Forget it. You broke one of my plates yesterday; I dare not let you help anymore!"

A plate? What was this situation?

Zhu Ling's eye twitched, and she apologized with a smile, "I'll be careful. I won't do anything you don't want me to. I just want to go with you and help you carry things."

Granny Su's voice turned even colder, "No. Outsiders are not allowed in our Ancestral Hall."

The players looked at each other, seeing the calculations in each other's eyes.

The map clearly marked the "Ancestral Hall" as a location that needed to be explored, yet Granny Su explicitly forbade the players from going there.

It seemed this Ancestral Hall was a must-visit, though they would have to avoid the NPC.

After Granny Su left, Yang Yundong let out a breath and said, "Let's go to the Village Chief's House first to resolve the matter of the God Meat, then go to the Village History Museum to see if we can find the background story of this instance. We'll go to the Ancestral Hall last to avoid running into Granny Su."

As he spoke, he looked around at everyone, "Does anyone have any objections?"

The second rule requires players to "plan their own travel route," and Yang Yundong was undoubtedly taking that step.

The other players were well aware of this and voiced their agreement one after another.

"No objections!"

"We'll listen to Brother Yang!"

Without a doubt, Yang Yundong had subtly surpassed Zhu Ling to become the backbone of this eight-person team.

Having spent the entire night wandering out with a newcomer like Allen and returning alive was proof enough of his capability; coupled with his tendency to take the lead in every situation, the others were more than happy to let him lead the way and clear the path.

Zhao Feng stood beside Yang Yundong, squinting his eyes as if lost in thought. Qi Si, meanwhile, lingered on the edge of the crowd, perfectly obscured by the shadows under the eaves, avoiding any unnecessary attention.

Noticing Zhao Feng had returned to the group, Yang Yundong looked at him at the right moment: "Zhao Feng, where did you go just now? You didn't even come for breakfast."

Zhao Feng had previously felt that Yang Yundong was indifferent to his safety, so his tone was hostile: "I was obviously trying to figure out how to deal with that little ghost. We have to find meat for it today. You might not be in a hurry, but I sure as hell don't want to sit here waiting to die."

Yang Yundong furrowed his brows, his gaze landing on Zhao Feng's left arm.

Bright red stains seeped through the layers of white cloth bandages, and the faint scent of blood permeated the air; what this implied was self-evident.

Yang Yundong would have to be a fool not to understand by now. A thousand thoughts tangled into a chaotic mess, and feeling irritated, he reached into his pocket, only to find no cigarettes.

Seeing his silence, Zhao Feng sneered: "Do you and that kid need meat too? Are you planning to cut it from yourselves or from someone else?"

The air grew palpably stagnant for a heartbeat, and the players exchanged glances.

The false expectation of safety was shattered, and most of them subconsciously began to follow the logic of "cutting someone else's meat."

After all, the risks of injury and reduced mobility from cutting one's own flesh were far greater, and in the Eerie Game, reduced mobility often meant death.

Projecting one's own thoughts onto others, and then back again, the trust between people was already incredibly fragile.

Qi Si said, appearing casual: "It's only the first day, and including Brother Yang, three people have already received the task of finding meat for the ghosts. There are four days left; who knows how much more meat will be needed..."

He lowered his eyes, revealing a perfectly measured hesitation: "If everyone cuts their own meat, everyone's mobility will inevitably decline, which would certainly be a loss that outweighs the gain. Just as we all rely on Brother Yang, we cannot let him exhaust his condition in such a place under any circumstances. The best solution is probably..."

He did not finish his sentence.

The players here had been immersed in a society governed by law for decades, and conventional universal values were deeply ingrained in their bones; they would not be completely extinguished overnight.

Their concepts remained curled up in the comfort zone defined by morality, struggling to glimpse the options in the blind spots—those that were not advocated, yet were practically feasible.

And all it would take was a catalyst for them to gain a new perspective, a brand-new way of looking at the problem.

The players thought of the "best solution" Qi Si had alluded to in unison.

It was nothing more than choosing a few people as sacrifices so that the others could maintain their peak condition to break the game.

But who would be willing to be the sacrifice?

Yang Yundong took a deep look at Qi Si, his weary eyes slowly sweeping over the other players: "There are always some things that cannot be done. One must know that while man acts, Heaven watches."

Such cliché principles inevitably seemed pale in the face of the life-or-death stakes of the Eerie Game.

A few players showed expressions of disdain, but in the end, none dared to speak out in rebuttal.

Qi Si smiled apologetically: "It was my slip of the tongue. Thank you for the guidance, Brother Yang."

A profound light reflected in Yang Yundong's weary eyes, but he ultimately said nothing more, only stating flatly: "Let's go. To the Village Chief's House first."