It turned out that Zhong Xueran's nickname was Xiao Ran with the character for "burn," not "so."
Liu Jingqing stared, dumbfounded, at the Three Pure Ones Bell in Zhong Xueran's hand and stammered, "Was... was it you who helped us?"
Zhong Xueran nodded. "Yes. I sent you out to scout, so I had to take some responsibility for you."
She displayed her Three Pure Ones Bell without a care and said, "My exclusive Permanent Item, the Three Pure Ones Bell. Once per game, it lets me select up to three people for Instant Teleportation within the game's boundaries! Well? Pretty amazing, right?"
Zhong Xueran looked immensely proud, but Qin Manjiang suddenly said, "You entered this place a week before us?"
"Correction: six days." Zhong Xueran put away the Three Pure Ones Bell and gave the two of them a meaningful look. "Anyway, thanks to you, this weeklong game can end today."
"Come with me!" Zhong Xueran snapped her fingers, looking quite happy.
Qin Manjiang and Liu Jingqing followed her, listening as she explained what had happened.
"After receiving the game summons, I entered Xianyang Village the very next day. They readily accepted me as a student from out of town working for room and board," Zhong Xueran said as she walked. "This village's ghost story really did come from a legend-a black sheep that helped refugees find a place to settle and recover."
"I learned that they've been holding a festival every three years for the past twenty years. It looks like they're commemorating the Immortal Sheep that once helped them, but they're actually using some sort of ritual to make the Immortal Sheep descend into a human body. Then they use some means to control that person, and thus control the Immortal Sheep, making it grant their wishes."
She