Chapter 19: Night Stroll in Yin Village 17

Chapter 19: Night Stroll in Yin Village 17

"Countdown to Pursuit: 1 minute, 00 seconds, 00!"

Without any prior warning, the ground in the burial ground rumbled fiercely on the live stream.

Some zombies lost their balance and toppled over.

An earthquake?

Players, the boss, and the spectators alike were all momentarily stunned.

In the center of the encirclement, the blood-soaked young man seized this opportunity to stand up once more, trembling. Lin Ye hurriedly supported his shoulder.

The detrimental effects of low health were still lingering, and Qin Fei was on the verge of collapsing again.

Xiao Xiao gazed at the two individuals enveloped by the boss with an indescribable expression on his face.

Qin Fei's condition was far from ideal. With only one minute left, the odds seemed grim for survival.

Are you willing to watch Qin Fei die right before your eyes?

The image of the young man nodding and smiling at him on the bus, softly reminding him about the rules in the auditorium, and recently, rushing fearlessly towards Lin Ye for his sake – all these scenes merged into a coherent montage within Xiao Xiao's mind.

With a resolute heart, he gritted his teeth, pulled out a light-pink glass vial from his chest pocket, and threw it towards Qin Fei and Lin Ye's position.

"Catch it!"

"Basic Shared Health Potion: Instantly replenishes 5% of maximum health (Maximum number affected: 3)"

"Item description: What, do you think 5% is too little? Don't forget you're just an F-rated Streamer. How could you expect to get anything powerful?"

Sun Shouyi's gaze flickered upon witnessing this scene.

Basic Shared Health Potions were one of the most common items among F-rated Streamers, but they were certainly not something everyone was willing to share.

One must know that players entering a world instance could only carry up to five storage slots, and items within those slots couldn't be stacked.

Thus, every item brought into an instance was crucial for a player.

A vial of blood might mean the difference between life and death.

— Just like now.

None could fathom the turmoil that Sun Shouyi was experiencing in those few brief seconds.

Finally, he took a deep breath and mimicked the action, tossing a blood vial outwards. "Xiao Qin, catch!"

Sun Shouyi's unprecedented act of generosity was influenced by Xiao Xiao on one hand, and on the other, due to the fact that,

The nearby ghouls were lured away by Qin Fei and his companion, inadvertently providing a momentary respite for him and Xiao Xiao.

Should those two fall victim to the ghouls, there would be no escape for him or Xiao Xiao either!

Every second counted at this very moment!

"Countdown to Pursuit: 48 seconds and 91 milliseconds!"

The tiny glass bottle hit the ground with a "pat," shattering into dust. A faint red smoke rose slowly from the ground before dissipating.

With the addition of this 10% health bar boost, Qin Fei's lifeline was pulled back from the brink of danger. The incessant disruptive noises in his ears faded away, and his vision, which had been tinted crimson, gradually returned to normal.

Saved.

Qin Fei was in a half-kneeling position on the ground.

The youth lifted his face, his clear eyes revealing not the slightest hint of fear. Instead, they shimmered with an captivating radiance that ensnared one's soul. It was as if there was a fire burning within those eyes, symbolizing that no matter how despairing his situation became, he would never be defeated and could always rise again.

Though the slight trembling of the ground didn't last long, it indeed bought Qin Fei an invaluable window of time to escape. Even in those crucial seconds when death seemed imminent, his mind refused to cease its rapid calculations.

Reflecting on their frantic escape, Qin Fei realized something.

The ghouls seemed to exhibit a certain degree of wariness when they encountered the stone monuments.

Perhaps... those stone monuments were their homes, or at least the meeting point for their kind. Even while pursuing prey, they couldn't afford to destroy their own dwellings?

In any case, the ghouls didn't resort to forceful destruction upon encountering the monuments; instead, they chose to circumvent them.

Though the ghouls possessed formidable offensive power and were swift in movement, their actions might have been hindered by the presence of the withered bones and rotten flesh adorning their bodies, rendering them less agile.

Qin Fei sprang to his feet and instantly mapped out the most viable escape route. Seizing the moment before the pursuers on the ground could react, he yanked Lin Ye along and dashed headlong into the area with the densest concentration of gravestones within the burial ground!

The duo weaved their way through the stone monuments, successfully creating a small buffer between themselves and the ghouls.

In the live broadcast, viewers were in an uproar.

"Wow, so strong! Too strong! Someone can actually analyze the situation calmly in such a desperate moment?"

"Is this really something a new player in their first live stream can accomplish?!"

"I'm adding him to my favorites list!"

"Speaking of which, it's surprising that the other two teammates were willing to part with such precious items."

"I'm getting a tiny thrill from this!"

The spirits all sang praises.

In the center of the screen, two blood-soaked figures continued their stumbling run.

With only a few dozen seconds left on the countdown, victory seemed almost within reach.

Yet, countless ghouls continued to howl and chase after them. Their comrades watched from a short distance away, filled with tension, pain, and helplessness.

This scene brimming with excitement, danger, death, and despair would be a spectacular sight even in E or D-class worlds, let alone an F-class world!

In just ten minutes, people had repeatedly danced on the edge of life and death within this graveyard.

Each time, it seemed that they were about to grasp the hope of survival, only to plummet back into the abyss of death every single time!

Qin Fei was gasping for air in large gulps.

The excessive physical exertion had swollen his lungs and each breath felt like a sharp, piercing pain as if someone had torn open his throat.

Ten seconds left!

"I can't go on."

"There's no way we'll escape this time."

"Surrounded by ghouls again! Well, you can't blame the host; there are just too many of them here..."

"They truly are unfortunate."

The spectators watched the screen, some excited, some sympathetic.

Death hung above them like a glinting dagger, ready to strike at any moment.

With a gust of wind carrying the stench of blood and flesh rushing towards them, Lin Ye had already closed his eyes, resigned to his fate.

Qin Fei, however, frowned, his scrutinizing gaze landing on the ground not far away.

The ground trembled once more.

This time, even more fiercely than before.

In the next instant, the entire graveyard was rocked by an earthquake!

The violent shaking caused the stone tablets to shatter, spiderweb-like cracks spreading across the earth's surface.

"What's going on?!" Lin Ye was thrown off balance and opened his eyes in astonishment.

Qin Fei held onto the stone pillar in front of him, barely managing to keep his balance as he looked up at the sky. "The countdown has stopped."

The countdown in the sky, just one second away from its end, froze abruptly.

The pale fluorescent digits, resembling shattered glass, dissipated into particles against the abyss-like sky, vanishing without a trace.

The zombies on the ground disappeared along with them. The barren graveyard was empty except for rolling pebbles scattered across the ground.

Even sitting in place, Qin Fei and Lin Ye couldn't maintain their balance. Xiao Xiao and Sun Shouyi stumbled towards them.

The tremor lasted for a full three minutes. When it finally subsided, the four of them stood together, looking at each other in bewilderment.

"What just happened?"

Sun Shouyi glanced at Qin Fei, uncertainty etched on his face. "...Should we still look for the willow branch?"

He hadn't forgotten the true purpose of their journey.

According to the countdown given by the instance just now, it should already be past midnight.

Yet, they hadn't completed the mission, nor had they died.

The flow of time in the burial ground was too chaotic for Sun Shouyi to grasp.

Qin Fei shook his head. "Did you notice that something seems different here compared to before?"

The young man's remark pointed out the anomaly around them.

Xiao Xiao exchanged glances with Sun Shouyi, both hesitantly nodding in agreement.

They had also sensed the strangeness.

The wilderness remained the same wilderness.

The wild graves were still those wild graves.

However, the night seemed darker than before, with a thick sense of confusion overwhelming their senses. It felt as if invisible twisted vortexes lurked in the air, continuously funneling darkness into this world.

Sun Shouyi scanned the surroundings, a hint of fear flickering in his eyes. "Where are the others?"

During the Night Parade of One Hundred Ghosts, all players had gathered at the cemetery. Now that the ghosts had dispersed, even if some had scattered or died, they shouldn't have vanished so completely.

Xiao Xiao's expression was grim. "We've probably entered some sort of special dimension."

Although this place initially appeared identical to the previous cemetery, upon closer inspection, the arrangement of the gravestones, the weathering of the inscriptions on the stones, and even the thickness and shape of the old willow tree beside them were all distinct.

This was a newer, more desolate, and uninhabited space.

And the culprit who had led them here was likely—

Xiao Xiao swallowed, casting a glance at Qin Fei beside him.

...

Qin Fei suddenly realized that since a certain moment, the expressions of the three people around him had been gradually worsening.

Three pairs of eyes were focused on his back. Not far in front of him, Lin Ye's lips trembled, his eyes filled with terror.

What's happening?

"The young man asked softly, his brow furrowing in concern, yet his composure remained unshaken.

Lin Ye didn't respond. He tried to speak several times but failed to utter a sound. Eventually, he lifted his finger slowly, pointing behind Qin Fei.

The gesture seemed to suggest that there was a ghost standing right behind him.

... Perhaps "seemed" could be omitted in this context.

There was a ninety percent chance that there really was a ghost standing behind him.

Rugged hills littered with boulders, overgrown graves, a blood-soaked companion, and a suddenly vanished demon – all these elements made for a scene straight out of a horror movie.

Against this terrifying backdrop, Lin Ye's sudden action packed a powerful punch.

Qin Fei suddenly felt a sense of relief.

Thankfully, he wasn't one to be easily frightened. Otherwise, even without understanding the situation, the mere sight of Lin Ye pointing would have been enough to scare a regular person to death.

The soil beneath him was stained a dark crimson from the blood, while a thin, ragged young man sat upright, his breathing steady and unhurried as he turned his head slowly.

What entered his sight was a small creature, no more than fifty to sixty centimeters tall, that at first glance might be mistaken for a ball of flesh.

Upon closer inspection, however, it revealed a structure resembling that of a human being.

It had a slender neck, short limbs, and an abnormally large head perched atop its tiny body, as if it might topple over at any moment.

The creature's body lacked skin; its crimson muscles were wrapped in a pale yellow layer of fat, resembling a newborn infant freshly skinned alive.

Attached to its indistinct face was a bright yellow talisman with red cinnabar inscriptions that seemed like scribbles, which Qin Fei couldn't decipher in the slightest.

"Ghost Baby from Many Years Ago: Affection 1%"

Qin Fei blinked.

So this can be charmed.

He recalled meeting the guide for the first time, with the same 1% affection rating, followed by a remark: The guide doesn't like you and is even considering giving you a harsh lesson.

Compared to the guide, this unappealing creature surprisingly turned out to be quite friendly.

From the corner of his eye, Qin Fei noticed Xiao Xiao's lips moving as he silently mouthed a phrase. Judging from the shape of his lips, it seemed to be...

"F*cking hell!"

At that very moment, everyone present was itching to swear.

However, not a single one of them dared to voice their curses out loud.

The ghost infant stood on Qin Fei's shoulder, its tiny claws perilously close to Qin Fei's temple and the major artery in his neck. With just a gentle touch, this player who had barely escaped death might instantly meet his end.

"What on earth is that?" Xiao Xiao whispered, his voice almost a breath, afraid of disturbing the ghost infant in the slightest.

Lin Ye swallowed hard, beads of sweat rolling down his pale face. "I might know. Last night... I saw it last night."

At these words, Qin Fei suddenly turned his head, a swift movement that startled the other three, fearing that it might upset the ghost infant.

"Be careful..." Xiao Xiao was on the verge of tears.

Qin Fei, however, smiled, his gaze burning intently on Lin Ye.

With a steely resolve, Lin Ye spoke, "Last night, I came alone to this graveyard in search of a willow tree. When I couldn't find it, I wandered around aimlessly, and not long after, I encountered him."

This ghost infant had a horrifying appearance, and upon encountering it, Lin Ye was thoroughly frightened, letting out a sharp scream as he repeatedly retreated.

No matter where he ran, the ghost infant would abruptly reappear by his side, as if it had set its sights on him and refused to let go, relentlessly closing in on Lin Ye.

Xiao Xiao posed the question that everyone was currently most concerned about: "Did it harm you in any way?"

A blush tinged Lin Ye's pale cheeks as he lowered his head, highly embarrassed. "N-No, I didn't."

The ghost infant hadn't attacked him at all, but he had been so terrified that he had fainted shortly after its appearance.

He had only woken up when the other players appeared today.

Xiao Xiao's lips twitched in exasperation. For a child to be scared like this by something that wouldn't attack, he had quite a talent for it.

Sun Shouyi frowned and asked, "You didn't hit yourself with a branch?"

Lin Ye shook his head again. "No."

Are they all unconscious, slapping themselves in their dreams?

Upon hearing Lin Ye's words, Qin Fei's eyebrows lifted slightly.

Not using a branch to strike himself yet not meeting death implies that Lin Ye has violated the rules of the copy world without suffering any consequences.

"Is it enough just to have been here? That act of beating yourself with a branch was merely a pretense," Lin Ye speculated.

In the instance worlds, there was a chance for fake rules to emerge, so what Lin Ye said wasn't entirely impossible. However, Sun Shouyi believed that the more plausible scenario was—

"I think this might be a space uniquely belonging to this ghost infant."

This space was isolated from the outside world, and within this small world, the ghost infant could even transcend the instance's rules.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Xiao expressed his approval. "The Black Feather Union recently released an internal player's experience summary, which classified the spaces within rule-based worlds into three categories:

Surface World, Inner World, and Ghost Realm."

"The Surface World is the shallowest layer we enter when stepping into a scenario, strictly governed by rules. Generally, players won't face death threats as long as they abide by these rules in this world."

"The Inner World encompasses all kinds of anomalous spaces, such as illusions, dreamscapes, and mirror worlds that often appear in scenarios. It's far more perilous than the Surface World, with bosses that actively attack players."

"The Ghost Realm is the most unique type among the Inner Worlds, to some extent independent from the main scenario. It's autonomously generated by high-level scenario bosses. In the Ghost Realm, the lord creates their own unique rules, even transcending the primary rules of the scenario."

Upon hearing this, Qin Fei couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. It seemed that this Ghost Baby had quite a background.

This little creature was conquerable.

Being conquerable meant it was possible to communicate with it.

The young man's eyebrows curved slightly, his voice sweet like honey. With a gentle smile that bordered on seductive, like a child predator deliberately luring a youngster, he asked,

"Sweetheart, why are you here alone? Where are your mom and dad?"