Six-Faced Monster

Again?

Yang Qizhou felt an inexplicable familiarity with this plot; wasn't this exactly the same cry for help he heard on his way to Fire-Stealing Village when he first entered the game?

As it turned out, the person calling for help, Aliceina, was an unknown horror wandering the wilderness, suspected to be a follower of an Old God who worshipped the Lord of the Dark Night. In a previous timeline, she had deceived the game character's trust, followed him into the village, and wiped everyone out.

Now, she was playing this trick again.

Yang Qizhou pondered for a moment and made his decision.

Go in and take a look...

What if this cry for help was the "key" to triggering the plot? If he chose to ignore it, wouldn't he miss out?

Besides, relying on the existence of the Doom-Bringing Raven, even if this cry for help was a trap—a means for an unknown horror to lure prey—he could always reload to this moment of choice and escape the danger.

Yang Qizhou gave himself a thumbs-up for his powerful analytical skills; if he lived in a Ke-style World, he would surely be a master detective.

Having made up his mind, Yang Qizhou chose "One."

The game text continued to refresh.

"You believe this cry for help is far too pitiful, filled with despair, pain, and unwillingness. As a righteous Traveler, you cannot simply stand by and ignore such a thing."

"Of course, you won't admit that the reason you are willing to offer help is to see if you can fish for any benefits from the person calling for help."

"Relying on the effect of the Garment of the Hidden World, you bypassed many distorted Dark Fog Town residents."

"You entered the temple."

"This is a magnificent temple. The walls are gilded and sparkling, the glass is made of glazed gemstones, exuding dreamy, colorful light. On the altar of the temple, six holy icons are enshrined. On one of the icons, you see a holy emblem of a burning flame. You feel it looks very familiar; isn't this the symbol of the Ancient Fire-Stealing God?"

"You only swept a quick glance over the scenery before fixing your gaze ahead, unable to look away for a long time."

"Because you were stunned by the sight before you."

"It is a monster like a giant meatball, covered in pustules, dripping with pus and blood. It has six faces, and its limbs are shaped in ways that defy description, gathering everything ugly, filthy, twisted, and terrifying—all these disgusting elements."

"The voice calling for help came from this monster."

"Due to the effect of the Garment of the Hidden World, the monster did not discover your presence and continued to call for help in a sharp, hoarse, and nauseating voice."

"You force yourself to suppress the urge to turn and leave."

"You have too many mysteries in your heart: what kind of disaster did Dark Fog Town suffer? Why did the villagers all twist and distort into monsters? Yet this monster clearly still has a sliver of sanity and can communicate. Perhaps you can get all the answers from it."

"Of course, having had the experience of being torn apart by the residents of Dark Fog Town before, you are already prepared to die once more."

Although it was an indisputable fact that he had gained experience through death, could they please not phrase it in such a nonchalant way?

Yang Qizhou gritted his teeth at the sarcasm leaking between the lines of the game text.

Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do.

After all, you can never hit an enemy that doesn't exist.

The game continued.

"You deactivated the effect of the Garment of the Hidden World and waved your hand to greet the giant monster before you."

"You have already prepared yourself for death."

"You did not expect that your appearance would actually startle the monster."

"You greeted it, stating that you are a Traveler from the wilderness, entrusted by Lena, the Night Watcher captain of Fire-Stealing Village, to come to Dark Fog Town to seek resources. You heard the cry for help while wandering and rushed here, harboring no malice."

"You see the five faces on the monster turn in unison to look at the face of a kind-looking, blue-eyed old man, as if asking him about the credibility of your words."

"That face seems to be enduring unimaginable pain; its features are twisted, and its eyes flicker between clarity and madness. Only occasionally can it maintain clarity, revealing a kind expression. It nods and says in a voice of slight surprise that this young man is not lying."

"You see the other five faces reveal surprise, and one even lets out a laugh, but because the pain they are enduring is too intense, their expressions quickly become twisted again."

"The monster believed your words so easily; that shouldn't be right. You fall into deep thought."

"A face resembling a middle-aged man notices your confusion and, suppressing the pain, explains in a slightly awkward tone..."

"It turns out that the kind-looking old man's face is Arian, the leader of the Star-Color Cult, who worships the Ancient Star-Color God, the deity who holds the power over the subconscious ocean. He is a light in the sea of the soul, and having received the grace of the god, he possesses the ability to discern lies."

"This old man's face is actually the leader of the Ancient God cult in Dark Fog Town?"

"You think of something, and your expression becomes one of great horror."

"Because you think of a question."

"Then who are the other faces, and how did they become this monster?"

For a dignified leader of an Ancient God cult to end up in such a state—this is just too miserable.

Yang Qizhou didn't even need to refresh the next text to guess the truth. Dark Fog Town was the superior town to the dozen or so villages in the wilderness. It wasn't just home to the Fire-Stealing Cult, but also followers of other Ancient God cults. The previous text had already described that there were six holy icons and emblems in the temple, representing six Ancient Gods, and the monster had six faces, one of which was the leader of the Star-Color Cult. The identities of the others were self-evident.

These six faces.

They were the leaders of the six major Ancient God cults of Dark Fog Town.

"Dark Fog Town is, after all, the superior town to Fire-Stealing Village. With six major Ancient God cults entrenched there and countless big shots, its status is far higher than that of Night Watchers like Lena. Yet, before anything even happened to Fire-Stealing Village, Dark Fog Town had already turned into this ghost of a place."

"Fine,"

"This is very Ancient Earth."

Yang Qizhou muttered, secretly thinking to himself that merely reading the textual description of Ancient Earth was enough to make one tremble with fear; it was hard to imagine just how dire the living conditions in that world must be.

Anyway, it had nothing to do with him, so he continued the game, just continued the game...

"The six faces on the monster's body perceive your confusion and proceed to introduce themselves one by one. It turns out that, aside from Arian, the leader of the Star-Color Cult, the remaining five are Petev, leader of the Fire-Stealing Cult; Liezuowen, leader of the Fate-Commanding Cult; Nalin, leader of the Dulu Cult; Evans, leader of the Judgment Cult; and Tulage, leader of the Frost Cult."

"You ask them again what exactly happened to Dark Fog Town and how it ended up in such a state."

"The six faces on the monster's body reveal expressions of palpable terror."

"With trembling voices, they provide their answer!"