“Every card is unique. It is the key to unlocking the fog of fate, the overdraft to crown you with death, a revelation, a metaphor, and yourself.”
Only those chosen can obtain the cards.
For some reason, Lu Shi's mind experienced a huge fluctuation. The mysterious card floated before his eyes, enticing him to reach out.
Large beads of sweat dripped from Lu Shi's forehead, and he realized that his sanity had dropped by 30 points.
But he still reached out and grasped the card that belonged to him, a gift from that person.
The front of the card depicts a blindfolded child. The hairy hands embracing the child clearly do not belong to humans. This is a child being embraced by a monster.
Lu Shi frowned and silently flipped the card over to the back.
It was a row of densely packed small characters:
[The innocent yet wicked child's self-righteous happiness is an illusion bestowed upon him by a monster. He dares not open his eyes, simply because he knows how ugly the truth is.]
[The self-bound holy child: Whether you indulge in beautiful fantasies or perish tragically in the harsh reality depends on you.]
[See Through: Consumes 10 points of irrecoverable stamina to see the truth.]
"Each card comes with a unique ability."
"You have a very special card!"
The card had already merged into Lu Shi's body. He clearly realized that he could use this ability as long as he had a thought, just like casting a spell.
"Is this physical strength something that can never be recovered?" Lu Shi was very concerned about this.
"Of course not. It cannot be restored inside the instance; potions and healing skills are ineffective. However, it can be restored once you leave the instance."
Lu Shi, who understood everything, nodded and began to examine his other reward.
That bronze gift pack.
Upon opening the gift pack, he received 500 points and an item.
[The cunning banana peel: Whoever steps on it will fall ten meters away! Remaining uses: 5.]
Lu Shi smiled. This bunch of banana peels was quite interesting; if used properly, it could have amazing effects.
He now had 1600 points. Feeling rich, Lu Shi couldn't wait to open the points shop.
The dazzling array of goods almost made Lu Shi's eyes glaze over.
A potion that can restore stamina costs 10,000 points for a small bottle. Unfortunately, it's not very useful for Lu Shi.
Tools that can be used to drill through walls only cost 300 points. If you open the in-game store first, jailbreaking will be much easier.
Through the shop, Lu Shi saw many new items. He even wondered if he would be transported to a new world after clearing the dungeon.
Besides the mall, Lu Shi also saw a section called the "Black Market".
When Lu Shi opened the box, he was almost startled. He even saw the bronze treasure chest that he had just opened.
Of course, there are also "invisibility cloaks with only one use left," and "assassination daggers with a 30% success rate"...
He even discovered that he could put the bunch of banana peels on it, with a consignment price of 3,000 next to it.
"What is the black market?" Lu Shi asked the system like a curious child.
"All players participating in the Infinite Wish game can sell items they obtained from the dungeon here. We only take a 15% cut! Of course, you can also buy many amazing items here!"
Lu Shi pursed his lips. Even in the cultivation world, he knew how outrageous this commission was; it was too greedy!
However, the items on the black market do seem to be much more useful, the only downside being their high price. A bronze treasure chest costs a whopping 6000 points.
In the end, Lu Shi only spent 200 points to buy a bottle of insect repellent spray.
Yes, Lu Shi really hates these things.
After making thorough preparations, Lu Shi finally began to experience his new instance.
"The live stream is now officially open. The streamer has one opportunity to change their name. Do you want to change your name?"
Name?
Lu Shi glanced at the string of numbers in the live stream and nodded decisively: "Then let's go with the Supreme Demon Lord!"
This was the title given to him by the group of people who attacked him when he was in the cultivation world, and Lu Shi thought it was quite suitable to use here.
Soon, he saw that 135 viewers had entered the Supreme Demon Lord's live stream.
"What is this, Supreme Demon Lord? Did I come to the wrong place?"
"Look at that handsome face, I didn't come to the wrong place! Wow, the streamer is as chuunibyou as ever, this name is so unique!"
"Am I the only one who feels sad for the streamer? New players are given a 15-day safety period after clearing the dungeon. Yet he went back into the dungeon, and it was a B-rank difficulty dungeon at that!"
"Whose fault is that? If the streamer hadn't triggered the mysterious dungeon himself, he would have already been out! It's a B-level difficulty dungeon. Unless he got a top-tier item from the newbie gift pack, he would have been dead for sure!"
"The A-grade gift pack contains character cards, right? Then the streamer still has a chance, although I really want to see him die!"
"Don't even mention cards, they're something I could never get in my entire life! I just want to be a couch potato, and be able to carry a teammate through dungeons every time!"
Lu Shi glanced at the comments and, finding nothing of value, immediately turned them off.
"Since the streamer entered the new instance, his stamina and sanity have immediately been restored to full!"
Lu Shi was quite happy to see that his 30 sanity points had returned to normal.
Standing at the bottom of the stairs, Lu Shi did not rush upstairs. Instead, he turned around and looked at the long corridor behind him.
It was still pitch black there, so the wronged souls must not have left yet.
He stood there, motionless, seemingly deep in thought.
...
The boy chewing gum had already run to the Silver Hall, where there were more televisions, and the picture quality was much clearer. The featured shows were all familiar faces.
It took him a lot of effort to find Lu Shi.
There weren't many viewers in front of his television, and the location was quite secluded.
However, as soon as the boy arrived, he heard several veteran players mocking Lu Shi.
"What is he doing? Standing still, isn't he wasting his time?"
"He must know that each instance has a time limit, right? If the time is exceeded, you'll never be able to get out!"
"Did anyone send a gift to remind the streamer? Items that don't affect the dungeon can be sent!"
"Why remind him? It'll be great if the new inmates get to see a handsome prison guard."
The boy popped another bubble gum and muttered to himself, "This guy never learns his lesson; he always gets slapped in the face!"
He raised his head, and slowly a look of confusion appeared on his face.
Because Lu Shi actually walked into that corridor again.
This hidden dungeon is not the first one to be triggered, so many players know the conditions for clearing it.
Obviously, this condition is not on the first floor.
"Master?" The boy suddenly covered his ears, his tone becoming much more obedient: "I, I'll be right back!"
A note from the author:
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 8
☪ True Plague Prison
The familiar corridor, the familiar recipe.
An unsettling darkness, constant whispers, and lingering, vengeful spirits.
The ghosts stared intently at Lu Shi, their venomous eyes seemingly wishing him to go to hell immediately.
They couldn't understand how this man had the nerve to come back!
Lu Shi didn't care how much these people thought of him. He calmly looked at them and slowly walked down the corridor.
"Should I use my ability?" Lu Shi stroked his chin, somewhat conflicted.
He didn't actually understand what the "seeing the truth" described on the card meant.
Is it seeing a person's true nature, weaknesses, or some clues that cannot be found?
However, Lu Shi knew very well that such an ability with such obvious side effects must be used wisely.
These ghosts are likely the victims and their families; they don't have many secrets.
All Lu Shi could see from them was endless hatred and anger.
"Why are you back?"
Finally, the person Lu Shi was waiting for reappeared in front of him.
Lu Shi touched the drop of blood on his cheek, trying to soften his tone.
He thought there was a misunderstanding between him and this woman.
Are you sure I killed you?
The woman's face, which had just been pieced together, immediately cracked open again. It glared menacingly at Lu Shi, as if ready to leap from the ceiling and strangle the man at any moment.
"Of course! I have absolutely no reason to lie to you! Do you think I'm framing you?"
“No, no, no,” Lu Shi could feel that the other ghosts were looking at him even more strangely. “It’s strange, when I try hard to remember, I can indeed recall the things we experienced in the past.”
He spoke slowly, using gestures to calm the woman's emotions and prevent her from going completely mad.
"But I really can't remember anything about me killing you. It's like memories you forcibly implanted in me."
"Nonsense!" The woman's hands had already climbed to Lu Shi's chest. If they could have done more harm to Lu Shi, they probably would have strangled him to death.
"You mean you didn't kill me at all, and it was just wishful thinking on my part?"
"This is just a guess." Lu Shi sighed. It seemed that it was unrealistic to expect to have a calm discussion with Ghost.
He actually believed in these ghosts, but in their descriptions, Lu Shi always had the illusion that he was overlooking something.
What could it be?