What Was the Answer?

"Bzz-"

The phone was vibrating.

Horsehead with a Sword knew that a player had cleared the game.

Thank goodness...

Whether it was Yang or one of the six who had entered the Sick Sheep Ghost Story, it did not matter. As long as someone made it out alive, that was good news.

It was not exactly happiness for someone else. It was just... this news gave them a much-needed boost. Every report of a player clearing the game reminded them that this was not an unsolvable game. It had a hidden answer, and... more than one.

Yang Yiyi was already dead. Her cheeks were deathly pale, her eyes wide open. Though the light had gone out of them, they still seemed to stare at the others.

Yes... we killed her.

They had all banded together, trusted the people they knew, and voted for her.

If she became a ghost too, she would have every reason to hate everyone else at this game table.

Horsehead with a Sword drew a shallow breath and forced himself to calm down.

The second round was about to begin.

Their biggest problem was still their inability to communicate. The four players and four "NPCs" sat in alternating seats, and they could not speak outside their allotted turns. Even if someone thought of a way out, they had no way to discuss it with the others or convince anyone to believe them.

With their lives on the line, who would trust someone else completely?

What if following someone else's vote ended up getting them killed?

Besides, there was a ghost among them...

Speaking of which, why had those four NPCs been added at all?

Horsehead with a Sword was puzzled. They were neither humans nor ghosts. If they existed only to move the game along, were they really supposed to use them that way?

Actually, the moment those indistinct figures appeared, everyone had reached the same conclusion... the ghost was not among them.

Rather than distractions meant to mislead the players, these things seemed more like a margin for error.

With five NPCs, they only needed to vote for one of them each round to ensure they did not vote for one of their own.

But... all five look exactly alike. How can we make sure every vote goes to the same one?

Unless they did something during their turns to speak.

Second, if they could be certain these were only NPCs, voting for them in any round would necessarily be a wrong vote. In other words, another player would inevitably be killed while their eyes were closed.

The terror of knowing they might die at any moment was more than an ordinary person could bear.

But that raised another question. Was the additional player chosen for execution selected randomly, or according to some hidden rule?

That distinction was crucial.

Just then...

The second round began!

Ma Junzhe had not come up with any way out when he heard that mysterious voice.

[Round two. Begin your descriptions.]

The first light came on above Fragrant Grass at Sunset. His real name was Xu Tingfang, and he was a veteran player as well.

She had even redeemed a One-Time Item for this Challenge Mode.

Yet... his item was completely useless this time!

She clenched the One-Time Item in her hand... it was an extraordinarily lifelike eyeball.

[Wraith Pupil. Spirit Pupil requirement: twenty-one.]

[For one-third of the game's duration, gain fragments of the Vengeful Ghost's vision and sense its next target.]

This was an extremely powerful support-type One-Time Item.

If a Ghost Story Game lasted seven days, it could be used for roughly two whole days.

If the time limit was one day, it could be used for most of that day!

Moreover, gaining the Vengeful Ghost's vision—even only fragments rather than everything it saw—was already vital.

More importantly, it allowed the user to sense the Vengeful Ghost's next intended victim.

Yet all those abilities had become useless in this game.

He had already activated the Wraith Pupil, but the information it fed back was-

The Vengeful Ghost's vision was utter chaos, constantly switching between the perspectives of everyone at the table. There was no way to pin it to any one person!

This should have been the perfect ability for this ghost story. He had deliberated for ages before finally deciding to redeem this item for the challenge, yet... it had left him completely bewildered.

Not only was the Vengeful Ghost's vision shifting wildly, but its next intended victim kept changing too. One moment it was Ma Junzhe, the next Xu Qianxing, then Du Bi'an, or even himself... and those four NPCs as well.

It was simply too strange...

But... whatever the case, the second round had already begun. He had to speak.

"I'm thirty-two years old."

Once again, the information was entirely true and entirely useless.

After him, Ma Junzhe was the next to speak.

Ma Junzhe thought for a long time... then decided to observe for another round, following his lead. "I'm twenty-three years old."

Next came Thousand Miles, whose real name was Xu Qianxing.

He had considered it for a long time. If things continued like this, with two deaths every round, they would all be wiped out in no time! They could not go on like this...

Thousand Miles was also a veteran player. He, too, had redeemed a One-Time Item to protect himself, but his item was even more useless than Fragrant Grass at Sunset's.

[Single Pure Bell. Spirit Pupil requirement: seventeen.]

[Teleport to any location within the game's boundaries. Once per game.]

It was essentially a single-use version of the Three Pure Ones Bell... excellent for saving one's life, but utterly useless in this ghost story where they had to close their eyes.

Because he could not leave the game table at all!

Still, even without a life-saving item, he had ideas of his own.

They could not lie, but they needed to convey useful information. There was... only one way.

"I'm not the ghost."

Xu Qianxing finally said the words he had been considering for so long!

Yes... I'm not the ghost. If no one can lie, only someone who truly isn't the ghost would dare say that.

The other three players' eyes suddenly lit up. That was it! If they followed his lead and all said those words, they would soon find the ghost hiding among them!

They all grew excited despite themselves. Was this the way out?

Just as Du Bi'an's turn to speak was about to arrive, there came a bang-!

Xu Qianxing's head... exploded!

Blood and brain matter splattered everywhere. Xu Qianxing's headless body, alive just a moment before, remained seated in its chair as blood gushed wildly from his neck.

[Player violation. Proceeding to the voting phase.]

The eerie voice rang out again.

"Urgh..."

Horsehead with a Sword gagged. A large clump of Xu Qianxing's brain matter mixed with blood had splashed across his face.

Yet he could not even wipe it off.

What terrified him even more, however, was Xu Qianxing's fate.

Why?!

Why was Xu Qianxing judged to have broken the rules by saying he wasn't the ghost?

[Please select the seat number you wish to vote for.]

Ma Junzhe had no more time to think.

Because... Xu Qianxing's violation had cut the round short and sent them straight into the voting phase!

Whose... should I write?

His hands trembled slightly. He had no idea what to do.

This is just... too strange.

For now... I'll vote for an NPC.

He wrote down an NPC's seat number.

[Verification complete. Vote failed.]

[The game continues.]

The three surviving human players were deathly pale. No wonder the previous group had been wiped out in this Ghost Story Game.

What was the answer?

The lights flickered, and the eerie voice controlled the course of the game.

The real ghost was still among them.

The game continued...

Thanks to Old Filth, Meat Eater, Lü yeah, Shiyun, Book Friend 2022, and Roast Duck for the tips. Send some monthly votes my way, everyone. Good night!

(End of chapter)