The name “Serg Slaggy1赛尔格·斯拉基” was one they had never heard before, and even the pronunciation was quite tricky. As Shen Lin memorized the words translated by Mrs. Annie one by one and selected them, a strange feeling suddenly surged into his mind, as if something beneath the abyss had formed a connection. This made Shen Lin’s head throb inexplicably.
Before his eyes, a world covered in black mud appeared, but unlike the eerie and oppressive atmosphere of the deep sea before, this time, the sensation was as if he were in an endless, dark space, with air rushing past his ears.
KP: “Sanity check, success reduces by 1d3, failure reduces by 1d10.”
Shen Lin: “…”
Shen Lin rolled the dice, succeeded, and breathed a sigh of relief. Annie rolled the dice for sanity and lost 3 points.
The oppressive feeling pushed at him from all directions. In front of him, a massive figure emerged, falling from high above, landing on the ground, turning into a gigantic egg. As the egg matured, the shell cracked, giving birth to a monstrous creature with spider-like legs, eight tentacle-like appendages, and crocodile-like compound eyes. The eggshell was connected to many tiny particles, and some of these particles gradually evolved into human-like forms.
The hard shell of the egg merged with the earth, and the god from another star hatched here, giving birth to a batch of anomalies. They had the appearance of humans but completely different internal structures. Gradually, the gods fell into slumber, forgetting their initial appearance, gradually assimilated by humans.
“Serg Slaggy… This is a god from outer space, representing rebirth, fertility, and reproduction. Moon Sinking Town is formed from the meteorite possessed by it, and Moon Sinking Lake flows with its bodily fluid… The red gem is some kind of secretion from it. Through these substances, a certain communication can be established, allowing it to fulfill its desires related to life, reproduction, and fertility.”
Shen Lin concluded and also got a complete incantation.
“The stars have reached a specific position, Serg Slaggy is about to reappear in the mortal world.”
So, reviewing the sacrifices of the Haino family and Princess Louise, it wasn’t difficult to guess. The hexagram formation was the foundation, sacrificing different offerings according to different desires to activate the array. The crucial link for the sacrifice was the red gem.
It was also the key to closely connecting outsiders and Benson.
To activate the array, that red gem was definitely needed. Shen Lin had to figure out a way to contact Benson, even if it meant taking risks.
After organizing the clues here, Shen Lin and Yan Xiu left to meet up with Freud and the others. They first went to the temporary base – a house that was almost completely destroyed. Shen Lin still found the marks left by Freud among the rubble.
Following the marked route, they found Freud and the others at a run-down wooden house near the town’s edge.
However, when they first saw them, Freud didn’t dare to recognize them.
Bai’er stared in amazement, his eyes burning as he looked at Shen Lin in a dress. “Who are you, beautiful lady?!”
Shen Lin gave him a glare, took off the dress, and both Freud and Bai’er subconsciously turned their backs, their ears turning red. Yan Xiu stared at Shen Lin without blinking.
Shen Lin, with a relieved sigh, said to Freud and the others, “Do you know that Xiu Wen has been eliminated? He was kicked out of the game.”
“Yeah, we do,” Freud pushed up his glasses with trembling fingers, “We went to the church to inquire and got some information. He was captured by Benson’s people the night he left the cabin. When they found out he was an outsider, they treated him very kindly at first, thinking he was the second messenger sent by the Haino family to negotiate. But when they realized he wasn’t, they quickly changed their attitude…”
“Benson wanted to gain the ability to leave this place, so he used Xiu Wen as a sacrifice. Thinking he didn’t know how to operate it, he ended up operating it himself.”
Bai’er asked fearfully, “Does being eliminated mean… turning into that pile of execution stuff? Does it mean… death?”
“I don’t know,” Shen Lin said coldly, “I don’t want to know. I’ve said it before; this is a cooperative game. Solo players won’t survive. He didn’t listen. He should have drowned himself in the water.”
Bai’er hugged Shen Lin’s arm, “Big brother, take care of little brother. Fortunately, we have you, or I would have operated myself.”
Shen Lin pushed him away, saying, “What else did you find out there?”
They exchanged their findings, and Freud and the others were shocked to learn about the high probability of Lisa being the lost sacrifice.
Shen Lin said, “I found a basement in their house that needs a locksmith.”
“I, I, I! I can do it!” Baier said eagerly, “I know locksmithing. Olok, I’ll do anything you ask; I want to stay alive!”
“Just this bit of backbone?” Shen Lin glared at him, “Not just staying alive; we need to find Dorena and leave this place.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah! We must leave this hellhole!”
Taking advantage of the chaos, they sneaked back into Lisa’s house. Mrs. Annie was asleep, snoring loudly.
Baier covered his ears and said, “Mrs. Annie’s snoring is louder than mine.”
They moved into the kitchen. Bai’er successfully picked the lock. The heavy door was opened, revealing a deep path leading to the basement.
They looked at each other, hesitating to be the first to go in.
Just as Shen Lin was about to step in, Yan Xiu stopped him, lit a candle, and walked in front. Shen Lin followed, then Nana, Freud, and Bai’er guarded the rear.
Squeaking sounds came from the front, like mice.
At that moment, a black shadow rushed towards them.
KP: “Combat round, Felton fights at the front.”
The black shadow was extremely fast, and in the blink of an eye, it reached Felton.
KP: “Dodge.”
“No dodge,” Felton said.
“…What kind of operation is ‘no dodge’?”
Steadily, Felton said, “Dodging would hurt him.”
Everyone sighed, “It’s true love.”
Shen Lin: “…”
Shen Lin asked KP, “How long has he been crazy?”
“Two days.”
“Will it be lifted tomorrow?”
“Yes.”
Shen Lin licked his lips, looking calmly at Felton, “What should we do? I’m kind of looking forward to his reaction after he recovers.”
“Are you sure you won’t dodge?” KP asked.
“No dodge,” Yan Xiu insisted, “I want to use the candle to get through.”
“Then, your agility.”
Yan Xiu rolled the dice and succeeded.
He raised the candle, waved it in front of the dark figure, which quickly retreated in fear of the fire. However, the swiftly brought wind extinguished the already faint candle, plunging the corridor into darkness.
KP: “Second attack, everyone rolls for luck.”
All five rolled in sequence, with only Felton missing.
Everyone: “…” Moment of silence.
The dark figure, angered by the candle disturbance, seemed to target Felton and attacked again.
“No dodge,” Felton persisted.
Shen Lin: “…”
In the darkness, he couldn’t see Yan Xiu’s specific appearance, only a tall man standing in front of him. He had always been silent, yet he always played the role of a protector to the fullest.
He heard a muffled grunt as Yan Xiu was hit by the monster. Suddenly, a white light flashed before him – it was Yan Xiu swinging a dagger and hitting the dark figure.
“I have a gun!” Freud suddenly said, “Can I shoot the dark figure?”
KP: “Sure, but you all have to line up, and everyone in front of you has to roll for luck first.”
Freud: “…” He seemed to have foreseen Yan Xiu getting shot and killed, unable to be killed by enemies’ weapons, but succumbing to friendly fire.
With Yan Xiu’s luck, it wasn’t impossible.
Shen Lin: “Give me the gun.”
Freud handed it over.
Shen Lin said, “I can see Felton’s silhouette. I’m going to rest my wrist on his shoulder and participate in the fight by shooting.”
“A shooting check.”
Shooting was a required course at the noble academy, and everyone started with 30 points in the attribute.
Shooting check succeeded. Shen Lin rolled a 1d10 for damage with the left-handed revolver, and together with Yan Xiu’s dagger, they killed the dark figure.
They clearly saw the black shadow fall, but the surroundings were pitch black, and no one knew what that thing was.
“I brought matches,” Nana said, “Let’s light the candles again.”
“What about the dark figure? Is it still there? I dare not look. Should we take a few steps forward before lighting up again?” Bai’Er suggested, showing his cowardice.
Freud said, “You’re afraid of the monster, but not afraid to walk two steps toward the monster’s lair?”
“What kind of basement does the Lisa’s family have… What does this little girl usually do?” Nana lit the matches, rekindling the candles. “Is it some kind of altar down there?”
“Piled with bodies kind?”
“…Is Lisa such a gloomy character?”
As the candlelight flickered, illuminating the narrow space, they noticed several radial bloodstains on the walls. The blood color was dark, almost blending into the old, moldy walls – remnants of the monster shot by a gun.
“What’s on the ground?” Bai’er said, “I’m covering my eyes, I can’t see anything.”
On the ground was a bat, not much different from an ordinary bat, but it had a dozen compound eyes growing under its wings. Even in death, those eyes were full and wide open.
“Damn.”
KP: “Sanity check for seeing the bat-like creature, success reduces by 1, failure reduces by 1d3.” He paused and said, “Felton doesn’t need to check due to temporary insanity.”
“…Insanity is great; I also want to go crazy.”
“KP, Bai’Er applies for a failure, reduce by 1d10.”
“No, no, no, no, I need to stay sane. I can’t go crazy.”
The group took turns making checks.
Shen Lin asked, “Did anyone invest in medical skills?”
Bail said sadly, “The graveyard of medical skills is three meters high.”
Shen Lin asked Yan Xiu, “How much stamina do you have left?”
Yan Xiu: “Nine points.”
“Not bad.” Shen Lin pondered; the health should be enough to last, but he wondered what was ahead.
The underground passage was not long, and they reached the end after a few steps.
“A listening check,” KP said.
Nana had the highest listening skill, and she succeeded in her roll.
Weak moans came from a dark corner. Yan Xiu took the candle from Nana and steadily held it up, illuminating the person in front of them.
In the faint light, they saw a person slumped in the corner, with empty plates and clean water in front of him. They quickly recognized him from his iconic blonde hair and blue eyes –
He was Dorena Haino.
