When Chu Changge and Fatty stepped into the dark mall, the first thing they saw was a corpse, its eyes wide open, refusing to close in death.
Fatty stared at the corpse on the floor, its eyes starkly open. "It's Mingyue..."
Fatty wasn't surprised by Mingyue's death. He always felt that she was a bit sly but couldn't articulate exactly why.
Chu Changge shone his flashlight on the corpse's wound. "The wound doesn't seem to be caused by a sharp weapon. She must have bled to death after being stabbed and lived for quite a while. And it appears she was dragged here from sowhere else."
What a pitiful death, Fatty thought, looking at the trail of blood. "This couldn't have been done by a ghost, right?"
Would a ghost have the leisure to murder soone and then drag them to the doorway? Of course not.
Fatty followed the blood trail and saw a figure in the darkness. It was Xiao Qiao.
She was slowly walking towards them, erging from the darkness, illuminated by the flashlight in Chu Changge's hand.
"Xiao Qiao?" Fatty looked up at her. "This body..."
Just as Fatty hesitated, the person in front of him began to speak, as if reciting sothing she had heard: "Moral character doesn't determine success or failure in this world. Sounds reasonable."
"Huh?" Fatty was sowhat confused; he didn't really understand what Xiao Qiao was talking about.
Chu Changge moved on with his flashlight, saying, "She's probably started rambling because she heard so nonsense again. Ignore her."
Seeing Chu Changge walk away, Fatty hurriedly followed.
「At this point, Gu Mian was still with the ghost in the corner.」
This gave Gu Mian a strange feeling. His forr roommate had once had a cat, and perhaps due to Gu Mian's own unlucky constitution, their dorm was frequently visited by rodents.
Gu Mian often saw the cat cornering a trembling mouse, teasing it with a paw.
It felt oddly similar to the current situation.
Gu Mian considered himself a proper person who never teased others.
While pondering this, he looked back at the ghost. "When? When exactly did you see there?"
People who et in crematoriums generally don't develop any kind of 'love at first sight' relationship. After all, it's mostly encounters between the living and the dead there, and most living people don't harbor particular feelings for corpses. Yet, the ghost claid to have seen Gu Mian in such a place. Despite his many trials and tribulations growing up, Gu Mian had never once set foot in a crematorium.
"One day a year ago." The ghost in the corner tilted its head slightly, as if recalling sothing.
A year ago, this global ga hadn't started yet, and Gu Mian spent most of his ti in the hospital. He certainly couldn't have entered a crematorium in any instance. So, what exactly had it seen? A version of himself that existed in an instance?
Gu Mian saw a strange light in its eyes. This was a ghost with a surprisingly wide range of facial expressions. For a mont, Gu Mian detected doubt, inquiry, and fear on its face.
It was hard to imagine these three emotions appearing on a ghost.
Before Gu Mian could speak again, the voice continued from the corner, "I died on that day. After seeing you, I died.
"Later, I beca a ghost, but thankfully, one with self-awareness. I was trapped, killing intruders day after day. Then I began to realize this world might not be as real as I thought.
"It seems we're in a ga. Outside our world, there's another, much vaster world, and they call us NPCs.
"So, I tried my hardest to escape. Strangely, I actually managed it. I wandered from city to city, attempting to break free from this world's control—until I t you."
As the ghost spoke, Gu Mian noticed an overwhelming fear in its voice.
It was looking at him as if he were a massive monster.
Gu Mian suddenly realized the ghost's fear of him didn't seem to stem from the title "Instance Destructor." Instead, it appeared rooted in the terror he had instilled in it on the day of its death.
Why so scared? Gu Mian furrowed his brows. Even if what it saw in the crematorium was "Gu Mian's" corpse, it shouldn't show such terror upon seeing the living Gu Mian. Besides, it died imdiately after seeing "Gu Mian" back then.
At this thought, Gu Mian frowned. "What exactly did you see?"
"Do you know why this instance is nad 'Image of Death'?" The ghost suddenly shrank back, its answer seemingly unrelated to his question.
'Image of Death' refers to one's appearance at the mont of death, but that doesn't seem to have anything to do with this instance.
"Before I broke free from control, this instance was indeed related to 'Image of Death.' In this instance, the bodies of dead players would remain in the exact state they were in at the mont of death.
"You know I can take on the appearance of others and hide among players and human NPCs. Back then, the objective of this instance was to 'find the ghost,' and the 'Image of Death' was the key to solving it."
Gu Mian imdiately understood.
Previously, the objective of this instance was to 'find the ghost.' Since players remained in their state at the mont of death, the reflection in a dead player's eyes wouldn't change! The last reflection in a dead player's eyes would be the ghost's appearance. By looking into a corpse's eyes, one could find the ghost hidden among players and NPCs!
But what use is this information now? Gu Mian thought, then looked down at the ghost in the corner. "Could it be that your current state is also... from the mont of death?"
He frowned, his words trailing off as a realization struck him.
If this ghost's body is indeed fixed at its state from the mont of death... then the reflection in its eyes must be the last thing it saw before dying! The very last scene it witnessed in the crematorium!
Gu Mian leaned slightly closer to its face. What could it have seen in that crematorium to cause its imdiate death, and to make it show such terror when facing him now? What on earth had it seen?
Gu Mian aid his flashlight into its dark eyes. Just then, he felt a subtle vibration from the ground—a precursor to the instance collapsing.
Ignoring it, Gu Mian continued to stare intently into the ghost's eyes.
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