Chapter 55: Public Warning: Beware of Chang Xu |
On March 14th, Qi Si spent the entire day scouring the game forums for any information related to "God-tier NPCs," "Main Gods," and "Evil Gods." By the end, he was filled with a profound regret for having wasted his precious time.
Thirty-six years had passed, yet players' understanding of the Weird Game was still riddled with massive gaps. Some claimed God-tier NPCs were avatars of the Main God, others that they were evolved from regular NPCs, and still others insisted they were just game bugs...
The theories about the "Main God" were even more outrageous. Some said the Main God was the rules of the game itself; some said it was a God-tier NPC that had ascended; and others argued there was no Main God at all—that all the gods in the game's lore were long dead...
As expected, trying to find useful information on a public forum was like hoping to find a bar of gold in a cesspool. Even if you somehow succeeded, your hands would be covered in filth, leaving a taste in your mouth as foul as swallowing a fly...
Qi Si stroked his chin, muttering to himself, "But I have a feeling that once certain things become clear, everything will spiral out of control..."
Six years ago, after his parents died, his uncle had him transferred to a middle school in the countryside.
By then, he had already learned to feign normality. Upon arriving in the new environment, he remained on the fringes of social circles but managed to avoid showing any strange behavior.
He just wanted to lie low until he came of age so he could sever all those messy relationships. Unfortunately, things didn't go as he wished.
Perhaps it was because the dangerous aura of an outcast had seeped into his very bones, or perhaps it was because human groups often need to single out a black sheep to collectively slaughter. Malice continued to find him, taking the form of inexplicable hostility, mind-numbingly dull pranks, and... a botched murder attempt.
Among them was his first homeroom teacher, Yao Cheng, a young man fresh out of teachers' college, full of passion and goodwill.
Yao Cheng died during a class meeting. He was halfway through a lecture when, without warning, his entire body began to convulse and he collapsed to the floor. It was clear that, just like the pawns before him, he didn't have long to live.
Qi Si moved closer, inwardly sighing that he would have to find a new protector, while his face showed a facade of false worry and panic.
The young teacher's eyes were brimming with terror, as if he had just witnessed something horrifying. His lips trembled, but he only managed to utter two words.
At the time, Qi Si didn't hear him clearly, but thinking back now, those two words were unmistakably "Weird Game"!
...
On the morning of March 15th, police officers came knocking.
It wasn't because he'd been found out, just a routine welfare check.
Qi Si's file was a tragic read. In the year after his parents' death, all his relatives had died off one by one, and he was a person of interest in nearly every one of those tragic deaths. As a result, the relevant authorities had long ago placed him on a list of individuals whose psychological state required close monitoring.
Officials would call periodically to check on his situation. This was the first time they had visited him in person, but it wasn't particularly surprising.
After sending the officers on their way, Qi Si finally felt a wave of exhaustion. He returned to his bedroom and lay down on the bed for a brief rest.
Unable to fall asleep, he logged back into the game forums, idly scrolling through the jumble of miscellaneous posts.
First, he confirmed what Zhang Licai had said: items from the game couldn't normally be brought into the real world, unless one used the "wish fulfillment" system, which required spending an enormous amount of points to redeem items related to that wish.
Likewise, bringing anything from reality into the game—aside from clothing—was pure fantasy. Currently, only the Sila Guild possessed that technology.
It seemed that if he wanted to truly understand the matter of his bracelet, he would have to make contact with the Sila Guild after becoming an official player. In other words, he'd have to grab a member of the Sila Guild and... have a little chat.
Qi Si then searched for the keyword "Identity Card."
There was very little useful information—or more accurately, very few players had unlocked an "Identity Card."
It seemed more like a scrapped feature from the game's early design, something they couldn't completely remove so they just left it in—useless, but a shame to discard.
Qi Si learned that these cards came in sets. His "Humanoid Evil" card was a main card, and each player could only bind to one. Below the main cards were many smaller, miscellaneous ones that appeared in instances with identity and faction mechanics, which could be bound without limit.
The infuriating part was that only official players could choose whether to bind a main card. If a new player obtained one, they were immediately roped into it, just like he had been...
Fortunately, the effects of [Humanoid Evil] were decent enough that he wasn't tempted to kill himself and start over out of sheer perfectionism.
Finally, Qi Si focused his research on the new features that would unlock upon becoming an official player.
What interested him most was the player plaza, officially known as the "Sunset Ruins," where hidden quests were said to spawn randomly. The descriptions made it sound like a typical game lobby, complete with all sorts of entertainment facilities—including those not permitted by law in the real world.
But reason told Qi Si that until he had sufficient means to protect himself, it was better to avoid such crowded, conspicuous places and refrain from initiating contact with other players.
Still with nothing better to do, Qi Si casually typed "Chang Xu" into the search bar. As expected, he found a call-out post.
#Chang Xu of the Sila Guild! Vicious, Black-Hearted, and Utterly Inhuman!#
The post was probably from Zhao Feng. The thought of the guy using his brief time for a final message to call someone out struck Qi Si as amusing.
"Looks like he really hated my guts..."
No, wait. He hated Chang Xu. What did that have to do with Qi Si?
Qi Si thought with a flicker of dark humor, though he couldn't quite bring himself to smile.
He hoped that the real Chang Xu, who was presumably still alive, didn't have a habit of searching for his own name online. Otherwise... his actions would definitely have been exposed by now.
[1F: My name is Zhao Feng. I just ran into that bastard Chang Xu in 'Flesh Eating'. There were nine others with us, Yang Yundong, Allen, Zhu Ling... That scumbag looks all prim and proper, not like the type who'd hurt anyone. I thought it was a team instance, so I didn't watch my back. Who knew he was a complete psycho and a sociopath! Right from the start, I had the worst luck and got targeted by a monster, triggering a death flag. Three people died on the first night. I was terrified I'd be next, and that's when Chang Xu came over, tricking me by saying he knew the solution! He made me cut flesh from the corpses, and then he made me cut my own flesh. He said he was from the Sila Guild. I didn't believe him at first, but then he showed me proof, so I did. I thought a major guild like that wouldn't lie to me, so I fell for his bullshit! He used my flesh to trade with the monster for an important clue, then lied and told me everyone else had ganged up to kill me. I was so scared. He forced me to kill someone, and then he killed me!]
In the post, Zhao Feng had intentionally hidden parts of the truth, pinning all the evil deeds on Qi Si, who was using the alias "Chang Xu."
The beginning of the post was recounted in painstaking detail, but the end was abrupt, as if the writer couldn't hold on any longer and had to finish hastily. For some reason, an image formed in Qi Si's mind: Zhao Feng, mouth full of blood, spitting it out as he glared with furious eyes, his trembling hand hitting the post button...
The image was so absurdly comical that Qi Si's lips finally curled into a faint smile, and he let out a soft chuckle.
He continued to read.
[2F: Took me forever to figure out what the OP was trying to say. Work on your writing skills, lol. RIP, lighting a candle for you. Remember to study hard and watch out for bad guys in your next life. ;)]
[3F: Dude, a name is useless. Who knows if it's real or fake? Post a picture!]
[4F reply to 3F: OP's dead. Also, since when can you bring a camera into the Weird Game?]
[5F: No offense, but the guy told you he was from the Sila Guild and you still trusted him? Has the Listening Wind Guild not done a good enough job spreading basic common sense?]
[6F: Poor OP. From the description, that Chang Xu guy sounds like a complete monster with no humanity. Can't believe society produces people like that.]
[7F: That's Sila for you. We're in the Weird Game, who cares about humanity? Main problem is the OP was just too stupid.]
[8F: The attitudes of some of you people are blowing my mind. The OP was murdered, and you're here making snide remarks. I hope I never run into any of you in real life.]
[9F reply to 8F: Go away, bleeding heart. lmao.]
[10F: Hahahaha, am I the only one who thinks this Chang Xu guy is a total badass? Sounds like he tricked a ton of people all by himself!]
[11F: You're not alone! I'm gonna try that in my next instance, see if I can trick some idiots too.]
[12F: What is wrong with you people? You all think you're the one pulling the strings? If you met someone like that in an instance, every last one of you would end up as cannon fodder!]
It was just as Qi Si had expected. The comments were split into two camps: those expressing sympathy and those who were mocking. The topic inevitably devolved into a grand debate on morality, which would probably rage on for dozens more posts.
Qi Si held his phone, staring intently at the screen, tapping the refresh button from time to time to see if any new replies had appeared.
He could be bored to an appalling degree sometimes. Much like a deranged serial killer returning to the scene of the crime to admire his handiwork, he enjoyed savoring the wicked deeds he had committed.
After pouring his heart and soul into choreographing and starring in such an absurd comedy, he needed a larger audience and more applause to feel the performance had been worthwhile.
Zhao Feng's final words were undoubtedly the perfect conclusion to the whole farce, pleasing him greatly. The only fly in the ointment was...
Chang Xu was still alive.
Of course, one person alone could hardly stir up any waves against the tide of public opinion. The name "Chang Xu" was now irrevocably linked with the Sila Guild and killer players. No matter how he tried to explain himself, no one would believe him. He would have no choice but to swallow this bitter pill in silence.
As long as they didn't run into each other in an instance anytime soon, there wouldn't be a problem.
Qi Si read through the post several more times, then casually tapped the "like" button on the original post, only for a prompt to appear requiring registration and real-name verification.
Real-name verification was out of the question. Leaving a trace of himself in a place like this was practically asking for a swift death.
He closed the prompt with a tap and refreshed the page a few more times. New replies had appeared.
[13F: According to the grapevine, this Chang Xu is most likely the same guy who got the True End clear for 'Rose Manor'. If he makes it into the official player pool, he's 100% getting on the overall power rankings!]
[14F: Just came from the player plaza and searched the keyword to find this thread. First, sorry for your loss, OP. You became a stepping stone for a rising star. Second, Chang Xu is so cool, I'm officially a fan now. Last, a shout-out to Chang Xu: Become an official player already! I'll be betting on you from now on!]
[15F: If Chang Xu really cleared two instances in a row with a True End, I think he has the potential to be the next Fu Jue. The Savior versus the World-Destroyer... just thinking about it is exciting! ;)]
[16F reply to 15F: Blocked. God Fu has saved too many people, lowering the death rate so much that you've all lost your sense of crisis. If you have nothing better to do, go into an instance. Would it kill you not to leech off God Fu's name?]
[17F: Reply to the clown who blocked me: I don't need your 'God Fu' to save me, thanks. (lol) I've got more than enough points. Haven't had to enter a new instance in three years! :P]
Qi Si knew that after an instance ending was cleared for the first time, an announcement would be broadcast in the Sunset Ruins—the player plaza.
Unfortunately, since he wasn't an official player, he couldn't enter the Sunset Ruins and had no way of knowing the specific details of the announcements related to him.
Still, it seemed the Weird Game had some integrity after all; it hadn't exposed his real name.
Qi Si finished reading all the related posts and exited the forum, still feeling not quite satisfied.
His fingertips slid idly across the screen. When he came back to his senses, he found he had stopped on the contacts page.
Then, he belatedly realized that nearly everyone on the list was dead. The few who remained weren't good candidates for sharing amusing anecdotes with.
Qi Si was long past the age of believing in eternal friendship. He let out a soft breath and instead tapped on a folder labeled "Games."
The folder was filled with simple, single-player games—the most childish ones, at that.
He scrolled through them for a moment before finally tapping on a cheerful-looking match-three game and began to play, his expression completely blank.
He played until drowsiness finally overtook him.
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