"Perhaps it's an illusion. We should attack his weaknesses," Mu Anqi analyzed. "Although it's wrong to judge a book by its cover, he had very dark circles under his eyes and was extremely thin. Of course, it could also be that he was addicted to games and stayed up too late before he died, or that he worked too hard and worked too much overtime… However, judging from the manner of his death, there is also the possibility of excessive indulgence."
"That's true. If someone tried to seduce me with a female ghost, I definitely wouldn't be tempted," the chubby boy muttered. "But with food, it's a different story."
"This is just my guess, I don't know the specifics. And…" Mu Anqi pointed to the left, "whether it's an illusion or the seven tenants on the left who never appeared, there's no conclusion yet."
"Everyone be careful tonight. Remember you're in a survival game before you go to sleep," Chu Zhongfei said earnestly. "Although I don't know what kind of randomness it uses, Ren Chaohang, you really need to be careful tonight."
"Oh, I'll eat a big meal tonight," Ren Chaohang said. "To be honest, my superpower is somewhat related to eating. I become even stronger after eating what I love. As for Ghosts … even if a ghost tries to tempt me with delicious food in the middle of the night, I definitely won't fall for it. I brought plenty of food with me. Don't worry, I can protect myself."
Mu Anqi couldn't help but glance at Chu Zhongfei again. She didn't know what ability he had drawn, but judging from his personality and... her inexplicable feeling about his attitude, it was probably some kind of "good guy aura" ability? Otherwise, why did she feel that Chu Zhongfei was friendly the first time she saw him? Just like how the other players were willing to exchange names with him because of his enthusiasm, and how the chubby guy even replied to Chu Zhongfei that he had the ability to protect himself. Mu Anqi recalled her first game, in which she really didn't interact with any of the other players at all.
The only question is whether Chu Zhongfei is genuinely kind or just pretending.
However, even if you're just pretending to be kind, it wouldn't be bad if you could keep up the act from the beginning to the end of the game.
Each player carefully observed the room. Even Shen Bufan, who showed extreme disgust, forced himself to enter the room and even reached out to pinch a clean corner of the blanket to examine the traces and the corpse.
Seven nights, seven nights. On the first night, male player 407 died from... excessive indulgence.
Huh? Mu Anqi silently counted the number "seven," and through association, combined with the male player's... cause of death, she suddenly thought of "lust," lust, lewdness... This was still an escape world, the kind of element that most often appears in games...
The Seven Deadly Sins?
Mu Anqi paused for a moment, then quickly scanned the other five players. Ren Chaohang … Gluttony? Shen Bufan, Pride.
But what about the other players? What crimes did Zhao Guogu and Wu Sansheng commit? And what crime did she commit? Mu Anqi fell into deep thought. What else was left? Pride, envy, wrath, sloth, gluttony, lust, greed …
She's lazy? But she's not exactly lazy. Anger? That's even less likely; none of the remaining players are irrational lunatics. As for jealousy and Greed …
I don't know, I'm not familiar with, and I can't tell.
Mu Anqi sighed. It seemed they would have to wait until the next night. Actually, it didn't matter if they didn't dwell on the cause of death; the game was obvious—they just needed to survive seven nights and play the role of the inn's "lucky guests." As long as they survived to the last day, they would know everything.
Of course, this is all predicated on surviving to the very last day.
Mu Anqi returned to her room and carefully searched it again. The layout and furnishings of her room were the same as those of the deceased player. After visiting other players' rooms, she returned to her own but found nothing different or unusual.
So, is it Ghost? Perhaps we should... check the room on the left.
As soon as Mu Anqi stepped out, he saw that some players were already waiting in the room on the left. Mu Anqi paused for a moment, then quickly walked over.
"You're here too." It was Zhao Guogu who knocked on the door, and standing next to her was Wu Sansheng, who had a blank expression.
"Hmm, I think... the cause of death is probably still this." Mu Anqi nodded, then asked curiously, "Did you know each other before?"
"No, it's just that I ran into her when I went out, and she wanted to come see me too, so we came together," Zhao Guogu said with a smile. "We're both girls, so we're helping each other out."
"Maybe we'll have to wait until tonight," Wu Sansheng speculated, looking at the closed door.
"It could also be because the person knocking on the door was different," Zhao Guogu suddenly interjected. After saying this, she herself looked a little surprised. She bit her lip, looked at Mu Anqi and Wu Sansheng who were staring at her because of her words, and stammered, "I'm sorry… I just suddenly had this thought. My ability is rather… passive, it's more like luck."
Mu Anqi was taken aback. Speaking of luck, she couldn't help but mention the fortune teller she met when she was eight years old… never mind, let's not talk about it. Listening to Zhao Guogu's words, this girl didn't seem to be lying, so… what did she mean? "You mean, each Ghost corresponds to one person? The player in a407 died, so maybe the corresponding Ghost is in b407?"
"…I don't know either." Zhao Guogu rubbed his temples and said helplessly.
This door is... B401. Mu Anqi lives in A404. Mu Anqi went up and knocked, but there was no response. Seeing this, Wu Sansheng also went up and knocked on the door three times, but still there was no response.
Mu Anqi looked at b402, but did not take a step. "If what you said is true, then... as long as you knock on all seven doors, there will always be a Ghost door that corresponds to you that will open."
"But, after knocking on Ghost … will I be hunted down? Will I die prematurely, or can I obtain information?" Mu Anqi looked at Zhao Guogu, somewhat puzzled. "You're really bold to knock on the door directly."
"I've always been very lucky," Zhao Guogu said. "If knocking on a door would be life-threatening, I'd have a feeling about it." Zhao Guogu started walking slowly past the doors. The corridor lights flickered, and she stood solemnly at the second-to-last door. "I don't understand, what's the basis for this correspondence?"
" How much do you know about the Shattered Mirror Continent?" Mu Anqi asked.
"This is my third time playing the game, and I know absolutely nothing about this continent." Zhao Guogu said with a wry smile. "I originally thought Nirvana Space was like the main god space in an infinite flow game, leading to various worlds and dungeons."
"This is the second game," Wu Sansheng said calmly. "Demons and ghosts coexist, feeding on negative human emotions and souls. They intend to elicit negative emotions from players, such as intimidation, despair, madness, and killing. The currency of Shattered Mirror Continent is guansi, which I speculate is the player's soul energy."
"With each game, players grow stronger. The possibility of generating negative energy weakens, but the energy becomes purer. As for their souls, they are also stronger than newcomers. Newcomers cannot be resurrected after death. Players can be resurrected by spending points. I guess... at the moment of death, a portion of their soul is separated and devoured by the Ghost."
"As for the meaning and specific structure of the Shattered Mirror Continent, we'll need to play more games to find out." After Wu Sansheng finished her conjecture, she noticed Mu Anqi and Zhao Guogu staring at her as if she were a ghost. She touched her face, a rare hint of doubt appearing on her usually expressionless face. "Is there something on my face, or is there something sinister behind me?"
"...No," Mu Anqi said with difficulty, "It's just that I think you're really amazing." What is the currency in the Ghost world? What is a guansi? Why do Ghosts crave guansi? —Oh, so they are the souls of the players. The invisible threads that emerge from the bodies of those players after they die... rising like wisps of smoke, ultimately being wantonly snatched and devoured by the Ghosts, are actually souls.
Mu Anqi touched her backpack, wondering how many "guansi" ( virtual currency) were equivalent to the souls of a new player. And what she carried in her bag represented how many lives? This Ghost world's currency… truly fits the survival game setting.
"This is just my personal, superficial guess, and it's not entirely accurate," Wu Sansheng replied calmly. She looked at Ghost's door and said, "Perhaps we'll know the killer's intent in this game tomorrow. But we won't be able to confirm it until the day after tomorrow."
"Because A406 is Ren Chaohang?" Mu Anqi asked.
"Hmm." Wu Sansheng said calmly, "I don't know much. Combining the supernatural, the number seven, and the cause of death of A407, I can only think of the seven deadly sins, which are the simplest."
"..." Mu Anqi opened his mouth, finding it hard to believe how simple it was. "I... think so too, but I don't know what I correspond to. If the one in a407 corresponds to lust, then the one in a406 corresponds to gluttony. According to the order of the seven deadly sins, the third to last is Greed. And Greed... I don't know. But I think the one in a401 corresponds to pride, but if that's the case, then he's the last one."
"Yes." Wu Sansheng nodded and said, "It can indeed be triggered by human crimes, but it can also be triggered by Ghost's mentality."
"Wait, wait a minute! What have you two been talking about since the beginning? Did you enter another dimension?" Zhao Guogu suddenly waved his hand between the two, looking incredulous. "You two started chatting?"
"Hmm." Wu Sansheng nodded. "The Seven Deadly Sins."
"…I know." Zhao Guogu was speechless for a moment. She sighed, "But I don't fit the description, do I? If I were to say I am lazy, I would be lazy? But I'm not lazy to the point of being guilty."
"…What a coincidence, I also think I'm lazy." Mu Anqi looked embarrassed and exchanged a glance with Zhao Guogu. The two of them gave each other a silent and awkward smile.
They didn't knock on the door again, and since it was almost noon, they decided to go to a buffet together.
Halfway through the meal, the other male players gradually arrived to dine. Chu Zhongfei came with Ren Chaohang. Shen Bufan, however, remained aloof, refusing to sit with the other players and dining elegantly, as if he were in a high-end restaurant rather than a survival game.