Chapter 8: I Admit I Was Taking a Gamble

The refusal of "Moldy Guy" and the "Weak Woman" to participate left Cao Yu feeling slightly regretful.

While these two lacked combat prowess, there is a saying: when being chased by a predator, you should pray to have a teammate who runs slower than you. Of course, Cao Yu did not intend to use them as cannon fodder; he still possessed a shred of morality. His point was simply that the utility of a person is not limited to combat. However, to each their own, and Cao Yu did not force them.

Among the remaining group, Chen Ran was a given—he would certainly follow. Cao Yu turned directly to Zhou Fan and asked, "What about you?"

"I'm in!" Zhou Fan replied.

Joking aside, having an expert leading the team drastically reduced the danger. How could he pass up such a golden opportunity to rack up points? Among the graduates of the Fourth Academy this year, Cao Yu’s assessment score ranked fourth. He was an undisputed academic powerhouse with a solid character. Thus, like Chen Ran, Zhou Fan not only viewed him as an "external brain" but had also effectively surrendered all decision-making power to him.

Zhou Fan even suspected that Cao Yu was playing down his abilities—that he could have ranked first but chose to rank fourth instead. After all, the Fourth Academy was home to both commoner students and the offspring of the elite, and friction between the two groups was constant. If a commoner took the top spot and grabbed the limelight, it could easily invite trouble. It sounded abstract, but the Federation was a society of rigid social strata; the elites could act with true impunity, and their children, raised with a sense of arrogance and superiority, made up a large portion of the academy. This phenomenon had persisted since its founding.

"Then let’s move out," Cao Yu said, glancing at his player interface. The time was 12:40.

"Say, where are you guys planning to go?" Moldy Guy suddenly stepped forward. "These two side quests are confusing, without even a direction to investigate. Have you really considered..."

"Hold it right there," Cao Yu interrupted. "You’re talking too much; it’s becoming unseemly."

"..." Moldy Guy opened his mouth, but said nothing more.

...

The five of them left the funeral home, accompanied by Du Ruo’s parents. Du Ruo's father drove a seven-seater SUV, which just enough to accommodate all seven of them. To prevent accidents and protect the driver, the "Pretty Lady" sat in the passenger seat; her item was best suited for handling sudden threats coming from directly ahead. Cao Yu sat in the middle seat of the back row, with Chen Ran and Zhou Fan on either side of him. They were heading to Du Ruo’s home.

Zhou Zheng, sitting in the middle row, noticed Cao Yu’s meticulous arrangement and asked curiously, "Do you suspect we’ll encounter danger on the way?"

"Just in case," Cao Yu said. "Such a major incident occurred at the funeral home. Many people who weren't caught in the hallucinations must have called the police, yet there’s been no response. That’s a huge problem."

The Pretty Lady in the passenger seat—no, he should call her Annie—added, "I just tried calling the emergency line; the line was busy. Things outside are likely in total chaos."

"Does that mean we might be attacked by other ghosts?" Chen Ran frowned. "Are you saying our 'Single' status only grants immunity to Du Ruo?"

"This is 'Safe House Protection'; it should be able to immunize us against other ghosts as well," Cao Yu replied. "When I say 'just in case,' I mean danger from humans."

"Humans... right, humans can be dangerous too," Chen Ran realized.

If all the ghosts were surfacing, it meant the apocalypse had arrived. In a desperate and oppressive environment, many people would become unhinged. In this city of Getan, there were no shortage of people with firearm permits. The population was "robust" and "traditionally spirited"—you might even run into a shootout while out for a stroll.

Nevertheless, none of the five considered giving up on the side quests. Chen Ran, Zhou Fan, and Zhou Zheng felt that with Cao Yu leading, the danger was low and decided to take the risk. Annie, from the very beginning, had a strong desire to achieve a high instance rating. Even if others hadn't participated, she likely would have acted alone.

Cao Yu, like Annie, also craved a higher instance rating. Firstly, it would grant him a large amount of Evolution Points, allowing him to evolve and grow stronger quickly to resolve his real-world troubles as soon as possible. Secondly... his [Strongest Player 1.0] system included an [Instance Achievement] system. He theorized that the higher his rating upon clearing an instance, the more Achievement Points he would earn. The implications of this were self-evident.

Plus, he felt fairly confident.

In the car, Du Ruo’s parents overheard their conversation but trembled in fear, not daring to speak. The two of them had figured it out: these five were no police officers—they were clearly five hardcore bandits!

As the vehicle started and pulled out of the parking lot, the funeral home faded into the distance. Zhou Fan asked Cao Yu, "So, why are we going to Du Ruo’s house?"

"What do you think 'Puppet Grudge' is?" Cao Yu countered.

Zhou Fan thought for a moment and replied, "Well... Side Quest One is to investigate 'Puppet Grudge,' and two is to save the world, which makes me suspect 'Puppet Grudge' is the source of the chaos. This world didn't have ghosts before, or it would have been a mess long ago. Now that ghosts are appearing, and 'Puppet Grudge' is the source... perhaps the reason for the hauntings is 'Puppet Grudge.' So, to investigate 'Puppet Grudge,' we can start with the ghosts and work backward. We know of two ghosts: Du Ruo and his girlfriend. We already know about Du Ruo, and there are no clues there. The only breakthrough left is his girlfriend."

It was a logical guess. Of course, whether it was correct remained to be seen. Zhou Fan continued, "So, why aren't we going to check the girlfriend's house?"

"Based on the instance background, we deduced that 'After Du Ruo’s girlfriend died, she returned on the seventh day after her death and killed Du Ruo,'" Cao Yu said, not directly answering. "Yesterday was the seventh day, and Du Ruo died yesterday. The autopsy put the time of death at around nine in the evening. There is a detail worth noting here—how long does the 'seventh day' actually last? From dawn yesterday to nine last night, there was an interval of over 20 hours. Did the girlfriend appear at nine to kill him instantly, or did she appear at dawn, taunting and tormenting him all day before killing him at nine?"

"Uh... I suppose both are possible?" Zhou Fan couldn't guess.

"Let’s assume the second scenario—that the girlfriend’s haunting began at dawn," Cao Yu offered his theory. "In that case, Du Ruo would inevitably have started a detailed investigation, driven by the fear of being haunted. He was a criminal police officer; he had more experience with investigations than us. Anything we can find, he should have been able to find as well, and in more detail. It’s possible he already followed the trail and found clues about 'Puppet Grudge.' And he died in his own home..."

"You suspect Du Ruo left investigative materials at home?" Chen Ran joined the conversation.

"I admit there is an element of gambling," Cao Yu smiled and suggested, "If you don't want to gamble, you can go to the police station first, or to the girlfriend's home. You could even go check a nearby temple. If there are ghosts in this world, then what about gods? These are all things we could investigate; we can split up."

"...I've watched enough horror movies to know that splitting up never leads to a good ending!" Chen Ran shook his head violently. "Let's forget about splitting up. Even if you're wrong, it won't waste much time."

The others also refused. Zhou Zheng, sitting in the middle row, took the opportunity to ask Du Ruo’s mother about his personal effects, receiving the answer that his room had not yet been tidied up.

Just then, Du Ruo’s father slammed on the brakes, the inertia causing everyone in the car to lunge forward. Cao Yu quickly stabilized himself and looked through the windshield, seeing a dense pile of colliding vehicles ahead, stacked like trash on the road, completely blocking the path.

Cao Yu had Chen Ran open the window. The scorching summer air rushed in, accompanied by a cacophony of horns, screams, wails... and even gunshots. It was total chaos. A massive crowd squeezed through the gaps, fleeing against the flow of traffic, their faces filled with terror. Further ahead, Cao Yu saw piles of people huddled together, tearing each other apart.

Inside the car, Du Ruo’s parents both fell into hallucinations and began to claw at each other’s throats. The scene from the funeral home was repeating itself. Zhou Zheng, seeing this, knocked them both unconscious.

"It’s other ghosts!" Zhou Fan’s expression was grim, though his eyes held a hint of relief. "We aren't hallucinating; the Safe House Protection is very effective! But how did Du Ruo’s parents get hit? Didn't they already break up?"

"They are a married couple; perhaps a verbal breakup isn't enough, and they need a legal divorce?" Chen Ran guessed.

Cao Yu asked Annie, who was in the passenger seat, "Is that a hospital ahead?"

Annie was currently holding the phone she had snatched earlier, using the telephoto lens to observe the distance. She quickly responded, "It is a hospital."

When Du Ruo haunted the place, he relied on his corpse; once the corpse was destroyed, the supernatural phenomena ceased. And hospitals usually had a morgue...