Players, Please Board the Train

Chapter 434: The Purpose of Dr. Deng's Group

Seeing it was Wan Yunrong who came out, the anger on Gan Qing's face subsided a bit. "What are you doing here?"

Wan Yunrong turned on the light. "Why can't I be here?"

"There's dust on your hair. Want me to wipe it off for you?" Xu Huo spoke up.

Chu Yuan couldn't help but glance at him. Unaware of the situation, Wan Yunrong brushed her own hair and cautiously said, "No need..."

Before she could finish, Xu Huo suddenly attacked, reaching out to grab her throat.

Wan Yunrong reacted quickly, immediately stepping back, but in the next second, she was hoisted up by a wire. Before she could break free, Xu Huo swiftly grabbed her arm, then retracted the piano wire and retreated.

At the same time, Gan Qing, who had also made a move, was teleported ten meters away by Chu Yuan's "Relationship Ruptured."

Both sides distanced themselves, warily watching each other.

"Don't be nervous. I just wanted to test if catching the ghost could clear the stage," Xu Huo said, relaxing his posture.

His words made Wan Yunrong even more tense. She looked at Gan Qing. "I'm the ghost?""Just now, we both saw a ghostly shadow on you," Gan Qing explained.

Wan Yunrong's face darkened, and she turned to run.

"Wait!" Gan Qing hurriedly called out to her. "We don't plan to attack you!"

"Since catching a player who has become a ghost also can't clear the stage, killing you is pointless."

However, Wan Yunrong paid no heed. Her figure suddenly split into three, each running towards a different branching corridor.

The layout of the western half of the laboratory wasn't as standardized as the eastern half; the corridor distribution was more flexible. Coincidentally, they were at an intersection. With three of her running out at once, each looking equally real, Gan Qing was momentarily at a loss.

Xu Huo then swung his sword at one of them. The cutting plane of the sword energy skimmed right over Wan Yunrong's head, severing a decorative piece placed in the corridor ahead.

Wan Yunrong didn't stop because of the warning. With a wave of her hand, she threw a charged metal ball behind her. The crackling current connected to the surrounding walls, forming an electric net that protected her back. By the time Gan Qing knocked the electric ball down, she was already gone.

"Ran pretty fast," Xu Huo remarked.

"If you didn't want to kill her, why attack?" Gan Qing turned back and asked. "It seems she really didn't know she was a ghost."

Xu Huo nodded. The appearance of the ghostly shadow on Wan Yunrong meant Gan Qing wasn't lying; he must have seen the ghostly shadow on Zhu Rumin.

On the first night, Chang Chengyong drew the ghost lot, so he knew he had become the "ghost." On the second night, it was Zhu Rumin. Tonight, Wan Yunrong was added, leaving one spot remaining.

If the one who killed Chang Chengyong was Zhu Rumin, then the currently existing "ghosts" are two people: Wan Yunrong and another player whose identity is not yet clear.

If it was Qiu Xiangdong, then these two would also include Zhu Rumin.

From the current situation, it seems players who become ghosts are unaware of it themselves. The only way to judge is whether a ghostly shadow appears on a person, and the ghostly shadow randomly appears on players who have become "ghosts" and can move freely.

Catching a player who has become a "ghost" does not clear the stage, a point Xu Huo verified again with Wan Yunrong. If the ghostly shadow can only attach to players, then to catch it, one must confirm that among the remaining players, there is only one "ghost."

"If ghosts don't know they've become ghosts, does that mean we could also become ghosts?" Chu Yuan asked.

"Very likely," Gan Qing said. "If we don't kill all the ghosts today, by tomorrow night, four more people will be added."

He Chunsheng, Chang Chengyong, and Mao Wei are already dead. Nine people remain. With a baseline of two "ghosts," adding four more tomorrow makes at least six "ghosts."

"Ghosts" killing "ghosts" can restore human identity. Although winning the game isn't necessarily required, the dungeon task of catching the ghost is probably somewhat linked to it. Before finding a way to clear the stage, maintaining a "human" identity is the safest bet.

"No wonder Wan Yunrong insisted on running no matter what," Chu Yuan also realized. Once the number of "ghosts" surges sharply, to ensure they turn back into humans, players will definitely start killing each other. There might even be a "ghost" among the three of them, which is why Wan Yunrong didn't want to take the risk.

The "Humans Catch Ghosts" game was designed from the start to make players kill each other. However, even if they kill until only one "ghost" remains, the ghostly shadow might not necessarily stay fixed on a player.

In Xu Huo's view, mutual slaughter isn't very meaningful.

"Have you run into anyone else?" Xu Huo asked Gan Qing. "Ge Pan and Wu Xiaonan."

"Only you two," Gan Qing said, hesitating slightly. "And I bumped into a player from Dr. Deng's side."

"Looks like these guys really want to kill us all," Chu Yuan said angrily.

"What do you mean? Those people with Dr. Deng are targeting train ticket players?" Gan Qing pressed. "What else do you know? Were you just fighting with a player from Dr. Deng's side?"

"Those people charged up trying to kill us. If we weren't clever and ran fast, we'd definitely be dead by now," Chu Yuan said. "Who knows what's gotten into them!"

Gan Qing's eyes flickered, clearly having sensed something as well. After two seconds, he said, "Let's go together. It's safer. Besides them, we also need to guard against the ghostly shadow."

Xu Huo and the other had no objections, so the three of them proceeded together.

The night wasn't over yet. Using lights in the pitch-black environment was like waving a bright target, so all players tacitly chose to move forward in the dark.

On the third underground level, the Kong siblings sat on either side of Dr. Deng, watching him sort through some inconspicuous containers found in the lab.

"Are these it?" Kong Cheng asked.

Dr. Deng shook his head regretfully. "No, these potions were all phased out a couple of years ago."

"You're not lying to us, are you?" said the player who had used the vacuum device earlier.

Kong Cheng gave him a warning look. "Zhao Bi, you can't talk to Dr. Deng like that."

Zhao Bi shrugged. "I'm just telling the truth. We've found all the potions we could. The eastern half of the lab is practically empty. If these aren't it either, then we're completely out of luck."

Dr. Deng's expression wasn't great, but he didn't argue.

Of the six players the Kong siblings brought, only three were here now. The other three had followed the train ticket players upstairs. It didn't take a genius to guess what they were planning. Dr. Deng couldn't help but say, "Maybe what the Bolun Family is looking for has been gone from here for a long time."

"Absolutely impossible," Kong Cheng stated firmly. "From the moment the Deep Blue Laboratory dungeon was created, this island has been under the Bolun Family's control. Nothing could come in or out without them knowing."

"Couldn't it have been taken away by other players?" Dr. Deng said, holding back his frustration.

The Kong siblings both looked at him. Kong Hui said, "Up to now, no train ticket player has ever left Deep Blue Laboratory alive."

Dr. Deng had nothing to say. Zhao Bi, however, smiled and said, "I'm going to the restroom."

"Don't wander off," Kong Cheng reminded. "Lou Fu and the others aren't back yet."

Zhao Bi waved a hand dismissively. "Don't worry."