As the sacrificial day approached, the red moon above became brighter, casting a vivid crimson glow over Moon-sinking Village.
After midnight tonight, the fervor in Yan Xiu’s eyes faded in an instant. His silver-gray eyes turned ice-cold, lightly scanning the people present.
Shen Lin was eating an apple, sitting across from Yan Xiu. He waved his long fingers in front of Yan Xiu and asked, “Recovered?”
Yan Xiu remained silent.
Shen Lin took a bite of the apple and asked, “What’s our relationship?”
Yan Xiu replied, “…”
Shen Lin made a nasal sound, “Hmm?”
Yan Xiu admitted, “I have a crush on you.”
Shen Lin almost choked on his apple, coughing repeatedly. Yan Xiu raised an eyebrow and walked over to pat Shen Lin’s back gently, helping him regain his breath.
“Fool,” Yan Xiu whispered.
Shen Lin stiffened, furrowing his brow. “Do you know everything I do during my temporary madness?”
Yan Xiu nodded.
Shen Lin sighed, “Boring.” He then asked, “Aren’t you embarrassed?”
Yan Xiu countered, “Aren’t you?”
Shen Lin nonchalantly said, “I’m not easily embarrassed.”
“I’ve kissed you many times,” Yan Xiu said meaningfully. “You’ve kissed me, and you even used enchantment on me.”
“Oh,” Shen Lin muttered, internally cursing, maintaining a calm expression.
Bai Er, who overheard their conversation, looked at Yan Xiu with a complicated expression. “You disappoint me,” he said.
Yan Xiu questioned, “?”
Bai Er replied, “You can’t handle this.”
Shen Lin added, “…”
Yan Xiu chuckled, “Next time, for sure.”
Shen Lin rolled his eyes. Next time? Is this person planning to go crazy again?
The next day, Shen Lin went to Lisa’s house. The door was sealed, and he couldn’t find Lisa. Mrs. Annie’s body lay on a low bed inside, surrounded by white lilies.
The streets were deserted.
He returned to join the others, preparing for the night’s sacrificial day.
In the evening, the town lit up with the remaining lights. Benson utilized the resources of the sanctuary, making the sacrificial day exceptionally bright.
Holding a stone tablet with divine marks, Benson led the members of the cult towards the Moon-sinking Bay. Clad in white and chanting incomprehensible ancient Moon-sinking dialect, he led them in prayer.
This sacrificial day was different from previous years. As outsiders didn’t arrive for the ritual, the townspeople, eager to witness the miracle, participated. Benson gathered those willing to submit to him to surround Moon-sinking Bay.
Under the crimson moon, the lake remained clear, reflecting the moon’s outline. Ripples spread outward like a giant eye opening.
Shen Lin and the others blended into the crowd, quietly awaiting developments.
Benson performed the ritual, and six people emerged, naked and blindfolded, standing stiffly as if manipulated.
After chanting, moonlight gathered on the lake, converging into a bright beam. The calm lake began to churn, as if something resonated with Benson from the depths.
The red glow from the lake bottom complemented the moon’s brilliance. Two beams gradually merged into a radiant red gem rising in the light.
The bizarre scene astonished the onlookers.
Keeper: “You can’t comprehend what’s happening. Sanity check. Pass, deduct 1; fail, deduct 1d6.”
Everyone checked; Bai Er failed and lost 4 sanity points.
“Damn, that scared me. If I go crazy, our plan is ruined.”
Kp: “Listen again.”
This time, everyone failed the check except Shen Lin.
Shen Lin heard a low chant from the lake, causing his head to ache, and his consciousness seemed to split in half.
Keeper: “You hear the ancient god’s chant. Sanity check. Pass, deduct 1d6; fail, deduct 1d10.”
Shen Lin: “…”
Others exclaimed, “What the heck?! Isn’t this a high chance of going insane?”
kp remained silent for a while, then said, “Well, take a luck roll.”
Shen Lin rolled and succeeded.
Kp: “Listen again.”
Shen Lin succeeded once more.
Kp: “Alright.”
Afterward, Shen Lin heard a woman’s voice, “Mike, you shouldn’t be here. Leave, leave quickly.” This voice pulled him out of the illusion, restoring his clarity.
“Come with us,” Shen Lin, unable to hear the voice anymore, whispered. “Let’s go back together. No Haino family, no Moon-sinking Village. We can live together, sister.”
That voice dispersed into the wind, leaving Shen Lin unable to find any traces, but he knew Lisa was here, waiting for something.
The ruby rose from the water, slowly falling into Benson’s hands. He gazed at the sacred object connecting him to the divine, and his features gradually contorted.
At this moment, gunshots suddenly rang out. Intense pain swept over Benson, and he couldn’t believe it as he stared wide-eyed. He still tightly held onto the ruby, while the other hand pressed against the gunshot wound on his chest.
The first bullet missed, clearly indicating the shooter’s lack of familiarity with firearms. However, it didn’t matter. The second and third shots followed closely, piercing Benson’s chest, until the last bullet was fired off due to the shooter being unable to handle the recoil. The people reacted, rushing to check Benson’s condition.
The red-eyed woman who had fired the shots had a clean face as she sat on the ground. Her eyes seemed to be filled with the radiance of the crimson moon. No one knew why she suddenly fired, not even herself.
Lilia stared blankly at everything that unfolded before her, her fingers trembling.
“It’s okay,” a gentle female voice sounded in her ear. Someone embraced Lilia from behind, holding her hands. “You did well, my good girl. You’ve helped me obtain the sacred object. Don’t worry about your sins. I am also guilty, but we will cleanse ourselves of our sins.”
Lisa, with radiant golden hair, almost concealed Lilia’s shocked face in her voluminous locks. She held Lilia tightly, saying, “Thank you for helping me acquire the relic. You don’t need to burden yourself with guilt. I have my own sins, but together, we’ll cleanse them.”
A clergy member approached Benson, took the ruby from his hands, and respectfully handed it to Lisa.
Holding the ruby, Lisa walked slowly towards the lake. She seemed like a breeze and yet like an ethereal elf, walking on the lake’s surface until she stopped at the center, where the pupil of the eye was.
Kp: “Take a luck roll.”
“Wait!” Shen Lin interrupted kp’s rhythm. “Just now, during the chaos, we were preparing to stealthily hide.”
Kp: “Well, except for Olok, everyone else can make a stealth roll.”
“Why not Olok?”
“Lisa has been keeping an eye on him. It’s the ‘benefit’ of having high NPC favorability.”
Everyone: “…”
“No problem,” Shen Lin said calmly. “You all make the rolls.”
Everyone successfully rolled for stealth.
A few individuals emerged from the crowd, standing behind Shen Lin. The sense of coercion followed closely.
“Goodnight, Mike.” Lisa, under the moonlight, curtsied to Shen Lin like a pure lily. “I know your friends are here too. They hid, but it’s okay. The divine will find their presence.”
Everyone: “Fuck!”
Lisa smiled and said, “I’ve been waiting for today. The sacrificial ritual, once every ten years, was too slow in coming. The divine craves fresh blood, so we may need to trouble your friends.”
Ripples appeared again in the waters of Moon-sinking Bay. Something peculiar crawled onto the shore, with countless hard legs, a dark back resembling a beetle’s shell, and an eye at the top.
A noise came from the forest, and the strange bat they had encountered in the basement flew towards them.
Shen Lin quickly realized they were surrounded.
Kp: “Combat round. Those who stealthed can attack first, but I want to remind you, once you attack, your stealth is automatically broken. Lisa will detect you, and these monsters will attack you.”
Everyone fell silent.
If this were just a game, they would undoubtedly step forward to help Shen Lin in the battle without hesitation. However, this was a life-and-death situation. If they were “carded” to death like Hugo, would their real selves behind the game also truly die?!
The fear of death could always momentarily dispel the heroic and bold ambitions in one’s mind. But before they could figure it out, Yan Xiu’s cold and unwavering voice sounded, “Shoot the monster closest to Olorc.”
Kp laughed, “Make a shooting roll.”
Yan Xiu, with a 90/2, critically succeeded.
Kp: “!!!”
Yan Xiu said coldly, “Consider a headshot with the next shot?”
“No,” the Kp said. “Let’s do this. You can fire three shots without allowing the monsters to dodge, dealing direct damage. How many dice? Damage is 1d10 plus a bonus of 1d6. You roll three times.”
Yan Xiu rolled a 16 for the first shot.
Kp: “………… Don’t bother rolling again. The creature’s head was blown off with one shot. Next, choose a different target for the next shot.”
Yan Xiu: “The one second closest.”
The second shot was a 14, and the third shot was another 16.
Everyone: “Wow! Headshots every time!”
Kp, unfazed: “No fucks given.”
Yan Xiu cleared three monsters in three shots, temporarily placing Shen Lin in a safe position.
“I’ll attack too!” Nana said. “I brought a Molotov cocktail. I want to attack the monsters coming from the forest.”
“Make a throwing roll.”
“Wait, are you sure you want to roll? What happens if you fail?”
“This is a musician who can withstand a piano being thrown at her. Of course, I chose to roll. If she fails… the Molotov will land at her feet, causing her damage.”
Everyone: “…”
“No problem,” Nana said firmly. “I’m going to make the throw. I want to save Olok. He has been leading us all the way. Without him, we wouldn’t have made it this far. I must save him.”
Shen Lin’s eyes flickered. “…”
Nana made the throwing check, 70/21.
She forcefully tossed the Molotov cocktail towards the monsters coming from the forest. The flames erupted, instantly dispersing them. The creatures attempting to get closer were burnt by the fierce fire, leaving only one still combat-capable within the inner circle.
Now, there was only one bat-like creature and one lake monster left, which posed no immediate threat to them.
Following that, Freud and Bai’er chose to attack. With their combined advantage in the initial attacks, by the time it reached Shen Lin, there was only one bat-like creature and one lake monster remaining.
