Han Fei’s heart overwhelmed with emotions, he had not felt something even remotely akin to this in such a long time and the last place he’d expect to experience this emotion was in a world filled with monsters and ghosts. “Since you’ve treated me as family, then I will also try my best to fulfil your wish, to wipe away your pain and to present you all with true salvation.” Other than Wei Youfu, the other victims still could not communicate with Han Fei. The hatred and resentment in their hearts were too strong and their residual humanity was squeezed to the corner of their souls.
All the 7 victims were still getting used to their sudden increase in power, only the 8th victim looked at Han Fei with open curiosity.
“What is your name? Or how do they normally refer to you?” Han Fei tried to communicate with the girl but she was extremely shy. Once Han Fei tried to approach her, she immediately jumped to hide behind Wei Youfu like a scary bunny. “Am I that scary?” Han Fei chuckled self-deprecatingly. He straightened himself and checked the girl’s introduction in his life blueprint.
“??? (Lingering Spirit): She is the 8th victim, she is the chosen one, she is the key.” The 8th victim had no name, the system marked her out with 3 question marks. The other thing worth noting was this was the first time the system had delineated someone as a Lingering Spirit. Based on Han Fei’s current information, the ghosts in this world appeared to be separated into different categories based on the strength of the resentment inside them. Lingering Spirit should be stronger than Animated Regret like the wandering souls in the previous manager’s memory.
“The system says that this child is a key? What kind of lock will she open? She is a tenant at this building and the building manager had a map inside his room where a spot is marked out with the word, exit. Could this girl be the key to that exit?” Han Fei had no basis for his speculation. “The 8th victim was personally chosen by the Butterfly but the child somehow ended up inside this apartment. What was the connection between the Butterfly and the previous building manager? The manager said that he wanted to destroy this world and that most likely went against the goal of this Butterfly who was using this world to cultivate something erroneous…” Even though the previous manager was dead now, it was undeniable that he must once be quite powerful. “I have inherited the old man’s stuff. I need to level up as soon as possible and expand my exploration beyond this building.”
Leaving his roommates to adapt to their new power, Han Fei exited the innermost bedroom and settled at the living room. With a glance at the clock, he realized it was almost 4 am. He opened the menu and was about to exit when he remembered something. Just for kicks, he opened the chatroom function and right at 4 am, Chatroom 444 lit up.
He entered the Chatroom immediately and sent out an anonymous message, ‘Is anyone there?’
Huang Yin (Tester Account Player 0999): ‘@_@ This unusual timing again. My friend, is that you?’
Anonymous Player: ‘Brother Huang, this is such a coincidence! Yes, we’ve met around the same time before.’
Huang Yin (Tester Account Player 0999): ‘Ha ha ha ha, I knew it was you. Why did you suddenly log off that time?’
Han Fei didn’t know how to answer so he changed the subject, one that he knew would deeply interest Huang Yin.
Anonymous Player: ‘Brother Huang, I encountered a Hidden Mission recently, it might be related to the cryptic world!’
Huang Yin (Tester Account Player 0999): ‘Shush! You shan’t type that out in the chatroom! Just keep it to yourself!’
Anonymous Player: ‘There’s no one else here anyway. By the way, Brother Huang, what is your in-game talent? Can it be updated or edited in the game?’
Huang Yin (Tester Account Player 0999): ‘My talent is Level D, Experienced Patient Makes a Doctor, which is honestly quite like my situation in real life. My physique was weak since I was young and I was often sick, it was why I picked up medicine in the first place, to save up on those medical bills. Ha ha ha ha. A fortune-teller once told me it was because I have too much Yin energy in my life chakra. Can you believe it? But enough about me, what about you? What’s your talent?’
Anonymous Player: ‘My talent is something called Resurrection. I have no idea what it does, therefore I wonder if a player’s talent can be changed in game.’
Huang Yin (Tester Account Player 0999): ‘Talents are only given to a small handful of players during character creation. To possess a talent, even the lowest level one, is already very lucky. Therefore, I believe it’s probably very hard to change one in game.’
Even though Huang Yin’s proclamation of the fact that he had too much Yin energy in his life would make him the perfect candidate for Han Fei to try out his Spirit Farer talent, Han Fei did not do so. He did not want to drag the innocent man into the dangerous cryptic world. It was already hard enough for him to survive alone, there was no need to pull Huang Yin down with him, unless he had found a way to safely send the man back to the surface word.
However, Han Fei did have other candidates that he wished to bring over to Perfect Life’s cryptic world. For now, Han Fei could not intervene with the things at the surface world but there was no reason why he could not find a medium, for example, someone like Huang Yin. ‘A player character might not be created with spiritual affinity but after they have been exposed to many supernatural events, will Yin energy collect around them? Will I be able to use my Spirit Farer talent on them then?
‘Currently the game is only in its 6th CB, and there are a limited number of players. The people I have in mind are still not in the game. But after the game goes into OB, my opportunity should spread wide open. The Chatroom 444 will get a lot more crowded than now.’
Han Fei’s goal was big. Just like what the previous manager said, Han Fei had chosen the most difficult path. To continue safely on this path, Han Fei had to master both the surface and cryptic worlds.
Huang Yin was a kind person but most importantly, Han Fei felt a bond with him. Among 999 chat rooms, the two somehow managed to meet, if that was not a bond, what was?
Huang Yin (Tester Account Player 0999): ‘Brother, are you still there? Would you like to come over? I just finished decorating! I purchased so much new furniture!’
Anonymous Player: ‘It’s getting a bit late. I should get offline and go to bed. But I’ll be sure to visit next time!’
Huang Yin (Tester Account Player 0999): ‘Okay, good night. ☺ Bye bye.’
Chatroom 444 was only available to Han Fei within the 2 minutes as night turned to dawn. To avoid the sudden disappearance like last time, Han Fei voluntarily bade farewell to Huang Yin before the time limit was up.
‘This big brother is really absorbed in the game. It will be so cruel to yank back the fairytale coating to show him the horror that is hidden underneath. Sigh, I hope he’ll be able to stomach that truth when the revelation comes…’
Exiting the chatroom, Han Fei did as he promised and left the game. Blood covered everything. He removed the gaming helmet.
‘This night should be a turning point in my gaming life. The apartment building is like the first stage meant for new players, but now it’s about time I venture forth to explore the outer world.’
