493 Luck
The woman’s body was connected to the hotel. To become the manager of this hotel, she became part of the hotel. Her shackled arms raised. As she struggled, the whole hotel shook but she couldn’t change anything. Her mouth opened but no words came out. Her tongueless mouth was like a hollow hole.
Staring at Seaglass Cat, the woman’s lips trembled as if singing the melody from her past. The Life Thread behind her bound her to the other black Life Threads. The black Life Threads coursed through her body like blood vessels before they bound around her heart. The woman was not like a ghost or a human, she was more like a trapped monster.
“Let me help you find release.” Han Fei took out Rest in Peace. When he walked to the back of the woman, what he saw made him frown. The Life Thread that grew out of the woman’s heart was connected to darkness. Her back was wrinkled as the Life Thread fed on her. “You control the Animated Regrets at the hotel through the Life Thread and then a Pure Hatred at the hospital controls you.”
The hospital zone was different from Ziggurat. The 3 Pure Hatreds didn’t have Butterfly’s special power. To ensure the safety of the hospital zone, they connected all the buildings with Life Threads. “They could coexist but they decided to put shackles on others, is it because they are afraid of being threatened?”
Raising the blade, Han Fei aimed it at the Life Thread on the woman’s back!
Before Rest in Peace could touch the Life Thread, 7 shadows crawled out from the thread. They were all in white coats. They were all plastic surgery doctors. Seaglass was their handiwork. When she saw one of the shadows, Auntie Lee stood up from the ground. Her eyes filled with shock. “It’s really him?”
The doctors were just shadows, they couldn’t stop Han Fei. The thread made from resentment, humanity, memory, and despair was cut through by light. The 7 doctors dissolved into a false but beautiful face; Seaglass’ memory morphed into a black mist that echoed with screams; Despair became an injured soul who struggled aimlessly in the black mist; the last humanity became a song. It sang one last time in the black mist before entering Rest in Peace.
After the black mist disappeared, so did the injured soul and the doctors. Rest in Peace gained a humming woman. She was very weak but she attracted the attention of the other souls inside Rest in Peace. The souls surrounded her and listened to her songs. The woman finally had her audience, both in real life and the cryptic world.
After the Life Thread was severed, the woman’s body wilted. All the pictures shattered and the humans inside the pictures faded away. The shackles fell to the ground. There was a growl in the dark. It felt like the Pure Hatreds at the hospital had sensed something. “Pure Hatreds are on the move, we need to leave.”
Han Fei could deal with Large Lingering Spirits but not Pure Hatreds. “After all, this hotel is going nowhere, one day it’ll be part of the Happiness Neighborhood.”
The neighbors agreed with Han Fei. They used the last bit of time to find Shen Luo and took away all the valuables at the hotel. Picking up the music box, Xu Qin took out her knife and pierced through the tongue. She absorbed the curse from Seaglass. Xu Qin’s body shook before she smiled. “A voice’s curse is quite beautiful.”
After removing the curse, Xu Qin placed the music box inside Weep’s urn. Since the Pure Hatreds might arrive at any moment, Han Fei’s group needed to leave. They searched from the 11th floor to the 1st floor and cleaned up everything but they couldn’t find Shen Luo.
“Where is the man?” The other players looked at each other before Yan Tang offered. “When we were trapped inside the endless loop, could he have left the hotel? After all, he was dragged into the elevator by the hair and should… reach the lobby before we do.” Yan Tang stopped himself from sharing his thoughts on the low chances of Shen Luo being alive because of his talent. Anxiety lingered in the air. Pure Hatreds were coming, they had to give up the search for Shen Luo.
“He’s so lucky, I’m sure he’ll be fine.” Han Fei picked up the urn and led the players back into the mist. When Ironman saw Han Fei lead them into the mist, he was shocked but then he soon realized the place with the mist was safe.
“Don’t wander around in the hidden maps. It’s best to stay at your spawn point.” Interesting enough, the Ziggurat was now the players’ spawn point. It had given Ziggurat a new life.
“Brother Youfu, I have a question.” Seaglass Cat suddenly spoke. “It has been 20 hours since we entered the hidden map. I purchased the cheapest gaming hub, it can only run continuously for 24 hours. If I can’t leave the hidden map willingly, then can I kill myself to leave this place?” The girl was strangely calm when she said that. “Compared to being killed by ghosts, I’d rather choose my own way to die.”
“After you die, all your data will be erased. All the connections you’ve made will be gone. The account Seaglass Cat will be gone permanently. Are you sure you want to do that?” Han Fei noticed that every player who accidentally entered the cryptic world carried some kind of pain on them. They bought Perfect Life to seek healing.
“A long time ago, I joked with my family that if I entered a supernatural world filled with ghosts, it’s better for me to kill myself than being tortured.” Seaglass Cat smiled. “Plus I have no regret now. I name myself Seaglass Cat because I adore Seaglass since I was young. I didn’t expect to meet her in-game. The 7th generation photon computer is amazing. It can even look into people’s hearts.” She took out a pair of scissors. Before she did anything, Yan Tang grabbed her wrist.
“You need to calm down, we still have a chance to leave. Your hub can still run for 4 hours.” Yan Tang never cared about others in the past. People thought he was arrogant and he thought the others were boring but he was slowly changing. He was acting on instinct when he stopped Seaglass Cat. Life and death could prove a person’s nature. Auntie Lee and Ironman also went to console Seaglass Cat.
Han Fei looked at them silently before he said, “I can tell you the way to leave but this is something me and my friend spent weeks discovering. We’ve tested this since the game’s CB. It is our guild’s biggest secret.” All 4 players turned to Han Fei. “If you want to know this method, then you’ll have to trade it with your friendship. I need you to swear that you will never leak this secret and do anything to harm my guild.” Normal vows were not binding but Han Fei had Soul Trade.
“I swear to heed your orders.” Yan Tang had already made the decision when he was at the hotel. He even wanted to join Han Fei’s guild to explore the unknown world together.
“You’ve saved us from the hotel so we’ll listen to you.” Seaglass Cat nodded.
Auntie Lee looked at the mist. After some hesitation, she walked towards Han Fei. “Child, I know I am very old and I don’t know much about gaming but I can give you money and anything else you want, can you let me join your guild?”
“What?” Han Fei was surprised by the auntie’s straightforwardness. The auntie probably didn’t know what a guild meant.
“I didn’t want to leave just like that. I’ve searched for my husband for 20 years already. I don’t care if this game is real or not, I have to see him again or I’ll never die peacefully!” Auntie Lee cried. The events at the hospital had evoked the past in her.
“I don’t need money or anything else, I only need you to keep this secret for me.” Han Fei finally turned to Ironman. “What about you? I know you are a professional player but there are different levels to players too. If you can do things others cannot, then you can join the top gaming guild too.”
“Top?” Ironman was very intrigued. “Don’t worry, I will keep this secret!”
The four players willingly followed Han Fei to the mall.
“Brother Youfu, do top players like yourself have your own circle? Then do you know Huang Yin?” After Yan Tang asked that question, Ironman walked over too. They were very curious. The god-like player had the whole world’s eyes on him.
“Huang Yin?” Han Fei switched on the masterful acting button in his mind. He sucked in a quick breath as his eyes moved up to the night sky. “There are different levels of professional players and Huang Yin occupies his own level. He is above the top, no one can reach his height. Huang Yin is like the night sky above us, he will always look down on us.” Han Fei’s words shocked Ironman and Yan Tang. Even a powerful player like Han Fei had a high admiration for Huang Yin.
Soon they arrived at Midnight Mall. They entered the storeroom and gave their vows to the altar with Mirror God watching. The four players didn’t notice that their souls were bound to the altar. The trade was the vows themselves.
“We are now friends so I will not hide anything from you.” Han Fei took out the wishing can from his inventory. “There are many ways to leave the hidden map but the method found by my guild is to look for the keys.”
“Keys?” Ironman and Yan Tang were confused.
“You need to find the keys yourself, they come with unique patterns. When you find the key, you only need to open this door to leave.” Han Fei took out a key from the can. This was a key he swiped from the shelf when he entered the mall. “I have a key I kept for myself. I can only give it to one of you. You need to decide who will have it.”
“I don’t need it, I will stay.” Auntie Lee shook her head.
“I use company gaming hub, it’s not the best but it can run for a week. Every day, there will be people who come to renew our nutrient pods and remove the excrement pods.” Ironman said. He was basically an office worker but instead of working in a company, he gained fixed paycheck gaming for his boss.
“Then we shall give it to Seaglass Cat. My gaming hub is top of the line, I don’t need to worry about these.” Yan Tang didn’t plan to leave either.
Han Fei was surprised that they came to a decision so soon. Han Fei handed the key to Seaglass Cat. Along the way, she didn’t speak. She was thinking about painful things. The horrible memory bound around her like vines similar to the life threads that shackled Seaglass. Han Fei inserted the key into the lock. He signaled for Seaglass Cat to push open the door that wasn’t even locked.
“I will keep the secret. Thank you for saving me.” Seaglass Cat said as she grabbed the doorknob.
As the girl pushed the door open, Han Fei used Resurrection on her. “Your voice is amazing, I am sure many people in the world share my opinion.”
After sending away Seaglass Cat, Han Fei walked out of the darkness. He looked at the other three. “The keys are only one of the ways to leave this world. There are many other methods but don’t try suicide because most hidden maps are deleted maps. Killing yourself here might cause damage to your brain.”
“Understood.”
After that, Han Fei took out the music box from the urn and placed it before the altar. He used the special ability, Soul Trade.
“Notification for Player 0000! Soul Trade successful! Please pick one reward from the following 4.
“Option 1: EXP
“Option 2: Heavily damaged Grade F Cursed Item—Music box
“Option 3: Minus 1 Charm
“Option 4: A random talent from this special Large Lingering Spirit!”
Han Fei was ready to pick EXP when he saw the last option. “Of course, I’ll pick the ability!”
“Notification for Player 0000! You’ve acquired, Grade F Singing Talent—The voice bound by a devil.
“The voice bound by a devil: Your voice is very melodious like a devil charming the innocent; your singing is very despairing, every note reeks of pain and despair; your song is very loud, it can break through the shackles fate has placed on you.”
After Han Fei gained this new talent, his speaking voice didn’t change too much but when he hummed some simple melody, his notes appeared to be dancing.
‘I’ve obtained Cursed Words at Ziggurat and now with this new talent, does this mean I’ll be able to heal the enemies with just words and singing?’ Han Fei was happy to have gained a new ability. He led the 3 players back into the mist.
…
At the same time, a haggard figure crawled out of Wen Hwa Beauty Hotel’s elevator shaft. “How did I survive falling from such a high spot?” Shen Luo looked at the hair that covered the elevator. He shivered. “Who controlled this hair and why aren’t they moving anymore?” Shen Luo looked out the shaft, the tables, floor, and walls were covered in blood. He looked closer and realized the blood had many children’s footprints. The footprints were everywhere. “The blood looks fresh. Are they from my teammates? Am I the only one alive?” Endless loneliness overwhelmed him. Shen Luo sat back down. “After death, everything related to the in-game character will be deleted. That appears to be the only way to leave.” He collected the black hair and rolled them into a black rope. “Is it really a good idea to hang myself using another person’s hair?”
He looked at the swaying hair. “O well, death is inevitable so why should I hurry towards it? After all, there’s nothing waiting for me in real life. The company is going bankrupt, the boss is arrested so I have plenty of time to find the way to leave.”
Shen Luo crawled out of the shaft. Looking at the bloody ground, he couldn’t imagine what had happened here. “The hidden maps are so scary.” Avoiding the blood, Shen Luo decided to leave the hotel. When he reached the hotel entrance, he noticed more children’s footprints. He looked down the distance and saw a child wearing white shoes and white clothes at the junction. The child had fair skin and his face was perfect.
“Such a cute child.” Shen Luo was amazed. When he came to his senses, the child was gone. “Now is not the time to mind others. I need to take care of myself first. My teammates are all dead, I have to face these things all on my own.” Shen Luo hesitated when he reached the junction. The left would lead him to Ziggurat, the right deeper into the city. After some hesitation, Shen Luo took out a pen. “I’ll leave it to fate.” He spun the pen on the ground. When the pen stopped, the tip pointed at the mist of Ziggurat.
“My luck tells me to head into the mist but my luck is always bad so the right path is the opposite.” Shen Luo looked into the city. “If I do everything opposite my normal way, I will become the luckiest man in the world. After all, when God closes a window, he will open a door.” He strode deeper into the city. Whenever he arrived at another junction, he’d spin the pen again. He saw more and more ads for plastic surgery.
“I haven’t met any Slayers. Looks like my decision was right. This is the correct way to play.”
