Xiao Tuwan rode a shared bike alone, heading west on the main road. The farther west she went, the fewer people she saw. Outside the city center, the surrounding ring was all suburbs.
The sun had gradually set. Seeing the sunset ahead, she felt a little nervous.
Riding a bicycle alone at night in a horror instance is genuinely frightening.
She pedaled furiously, trying to get as far away as possible before the sun set completely and night fell.
Joyful monts are always fleeting, and so is the ti to escape.
Before she could get far, the last rays of the sun dipped below the mountains. She watched the sky darken and the surrounding light fade.
The streetlights above flickered on, illuminating the road ahead.
Xiao Tuwan looked ahead. There was hardly anyone left on this road. If she kept going, it would likely beco a highway or sothing similar, and there appeared to be no buildings around.
For a mont, she considered finding a hotel for the night, but quickly dismissed the idea.
Just keep moving forward. The farther I run, the less likely the ghost will catch . With this thought, she resignedly pedaled her bicycle again.
After pedaling for what felt like an age, the sky had completely darkened. The moon was only faintly visible. Xiao Tuwan rode alone on the wide road, a knot of fear in her stomach.
The ghost will kill the other six people first, and those six must not be all dead yet. The ghost can’t possibly co after us now, she muttered, trying to console herself.
Just then, bright car headlights suddenly illuminated her from behind.
Several cars had already passed her, so Xiao Tuwan didn’t turn her head and kept pedaling forward.
Unexpectedly, the car approaching from behind pulled up beside her and honked.
Xiao Tuwan turned her head in surprise and saw a familiar face through the car window. "Mingyue?"
"It’s ," Mingyue said from the driver’s seat. "Caoyuan went east. I originally planned to go south, but there was road construction, so after a few detours, I ended up here. You’d better hurry; the ghost will definitely kill those at the very back first."
"Mm..." Just as Xiao Tuwan nodded, she saw Mingyue start to close her window, apparently about to leave. She imdiately cried out, "Wait!"
Mingyue, her window half-closed, turned to look at Xiao Tuwan outside. "What is it?"
Xiao Tuwan hesitated for a mont before asking, "Could you give a ride for a bit? I’m too slow on this bike. I’ll get out after a short distance and walk."
Mingyue was silent for a mont as if considering it. A few seconds later, she nodded.
Xiao Tuwan imdiately put her shared bike into the trunk of Mingyue’s car, then got into the back seat.
Gu Mian and the others had already reached Tongying Street. At 7:30 in the evening, the street was indeed deserted. The six of them sat in a row on the curb beside the road, an old van parked nearby. The dim streetlight shone down from above. Despite the eerie atmosphere, not a single ghost was in sight, creating a strangely harmonious scene.
Brother took advantage of Chu Changge’s montary distraction to dart out and crouch by Gu Mian’s side, almost scaring the nearby Fortune-teller into abandoning the van and running away.
"Th-th-this... is this the hand from earlier?" the Fortune-teller stamred, his voice filled with bewildernt.
Gu Mian nodded honestly. "It’s a ghost, but it has one flaw: it loves to randomly claim kinship, calling everyone ’sister’. If it calls ’sister’ later, don’t be scared."
Just then, Fatty asked Chu Changge, "Brother Chu, are we just going to wait here for the two days to pass?"
It was now 7:30 in the evening. Nineteen hours of the forty-eight had already passed, and so far, they were still quite safe.
"No," Chu Changge shook his head, "we’re going back tomorrow, back to where we started."
"Back?" Fatty craned his neck, puzzled.
Gu Mian turned to Chu Changge. "When I was on the road, I was thinking back through the contents of *The Second World* again. I don’t rember ever seeing the words ’Visage of Death,’ but you all said that’s where you found the na of this instance."
He paused for a few seconds before continuing, "Actually, you didn’t find the na in the book, did you?"
The Fortune-teller listened to Gu Mian, a look of dawning comprehension on his face. "What are you talking about?"
But nobody answered his question.
Chu Changge adjusted his glasses under the streetlight. "You’re right. I didn’t get the na of this instance from the book."
Fatty began, confused, "Then you..." but Chu Changge cut him off before he could finish. "The reason we entered this instance before the event started is because the ghost in this instance seems to have changed, just like in the Fairy Tale City instance."
Before Fatty could fully process how Chu Changge knew all this, his eyes widened as he blurted out, "In this instance, if you die, do you really die?"
Chu Changge shook his head slightly. "No. It’s just that the ghost, which was originally an NPC, has gained self-awareness. You all know there are two types of NPCs in instances. One type, like Mr. Green and Coach Che, are fully aware they’re NPCs in a ga. The others are completely unaware they’re in an instance world, and this latter type is usually hard to control."
"The ghost in this instance originally belonged to the latter category. However, it discovered the truth of the world, realized it was in a ga, and has begun to resist."
"Such a ghost is a highly unstable factor, but the instance itself can’t eliminate this ghost, so it could only ask for your help."
While speaking, Chu Changge looked at Gu Mian.
Gu Mian stroked his chin. "So, how did you know all this?"
Xiao Qiao, who was sitting next to Gu Mian, quietly raised her hand. "Actually, I told him."
The Fortune-teller was struggling to understand, as if listening to gibberish.
Gu Mian continued his question, "And how did you know?"
Xiao Qiao replied, "Mr. Green told ."
Upon hearing this, Gu Mian felt a slight headache. "How do you all know each other?"
Chu Changge spoke up again, "The ghost in this instance has discovered so secrets, which is why I chose this instance. As long as we capture it alive, we can question it about the world’s secrets."
Is this sothing a human would say? The Fortune-teller was frozen to the spot.
"Of course, once you’ve questioned it for secrets, whether you kill it or cut it up is up to you," Chu Changge said, adjusting his glasses. "The ghost in this instance is extrely cunning. After realizing it was in a ga, it began a series of serial murders. Often, after killing multiple people, it chooses the most suitable corpse to wear..."
"Wear?" Fatty suddenly interjected.
"Yes," Chu Changge said, "to use as a cover for itself, attempting to evade the instance’s notice. Due to the ghost’s particular nature, it can wear one corpse for several months."
"The ghost has been committing cris as it moves from place to place. Since the instances can accurately teleport us to the ghost’s location, it ans that even though the ghost is constantly hiding, it hasn’t escaped the instance’s surveillance," Gu Mian interjected.
"Mm," Chu Changge nodded, "but there’s a small problem."
Gu Mian rembered... The goddess in the last instance had said sothing similar when she was giving her brother away...
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