A Dead End?

Was the rule about keeping their eyes closed invalid? Had the rules of the amusement rides changed after the park mutated into an S-rank instance? Looking at Hebo's corpse and the severed head in Huo Mo's lap, everyone's expressions turned exceedingly grim. As the roller coaster came to a stop, all six Spirit Realm walkers received a chime at the same time: [Time until next round begins: 00:04:40] "The next round starts in five minutes..." Great Sage Equal to Heaven, sitting in the very back row, looked at Hebo's headless corpse ahead of him, his expression tight. "If the closed-eye rule is invalid, someone else among us is going to die once the next round starts. We need to figure out the rules right away. Did any of you notice anything?" Fear still lingered on Huo Mo's face. He tossed the severed head out of the car, turned his head in irritation, and snapped, "With our eyes closed the whole time, who could possibly figure out the rules?" Ashamed to Be a Father frowned deeply. "If the closed-eye rule has changed, we need to find the new rules, or else people will keep dying in the next two rounds." Xi Shi bit her fiery-red lips. "From the moment we decided to take the roller coaster, I've been watching closely along the way. I didn't find any valuable clues or information." Having no clues or information meant they couldn't formulate a targeted plan; they could only resort to the crudest method—trial and error. Yet the cost of trial and error... Great Sage Equal to Heaven looked grim. "In an S-rank Spirit Realm, how could it give clear and straightforward information for clearing it? If it were that simple, would it still be called S-rank?" Xie Lingxi thought for a moment before voicing her thoughts as well. "I'm sorry, it's my fault. We were misled by the old walkthrough and missed our chance to look for the rules." Tears welled in her eyes, making her look pitiful and seemingly weighed down by guilt. Great Sage Equal to Heaven hurried to say, "It's fine, it's fine. There's no point talking about that now. Having no information doesn't mean there's no way forward. While we still have time, let's discuss it..." Pausing, he continued, "If the rule about keeping our eyes closed has changed, there are really only two possibilities. First, the roller coaster's rule has become that one person dies each round, and Hebo is proof. Second, keeping our eyes closed caused us to miss the chance to observe." Xi Shi's eyes brightened slightly, as if seeing him in a new light. "So we can't close our eyes next time." As Zhang Yuanqing listened to his companions' discussion, his thoughts drifted... *First, rule out supernatural elements. Although active skills are sealed, as a Night Wanderer, my perception of spirit bodies is still intact. If a spirit in the amusement park had been causing trouble, it would be impossible for me not to sense anything.* *From the looks of it, the roller coaster still runs for three rounds. Since that hasn't changed, why would the closed-eye rule change? Perhaps it isn't the rules that are killing people...* Zhang Yuanqing's heart jolted as a possibility struck him. *Could this be the work of the evildoer hiding among us? Has the killer started striking? But how did they manage it?* Just then, Ashamed to Be a Father looked at Huo Mo and asked abruptly, "When Hebo died, why didn't you speak up to warn us instead of waiting until the car stopped?" Huo Mo's eyebrows shot up. "What are you implying?!" The middle-aged man retained his simple, honest demeanor and said calmly, "I'm just curious." Huo Mo glared at him and shouted, "Of course I felt it! That head landed right in my lap! But did I dare speak? Did I dare open my eyes? What if the moment I opened my mouth to warn you, I was the next one to die?!" Ashamed to Be a Father said nothing more. Zhang Yuanqing asked, "When did he die? Or rather, when did the head drop into your lap?" Huo Mo didn't hesitate. "When we were rushing up the second hill." Zhang Yuanqing immediately looked toward Xi Shi. "You were right beside him. Did you sense anything out of the ordinary?" Xi Shi shook her head. "I... I have acrophobia. I was terrified and didn't pay attention to what was happening next to me..." Zhang Yuanqing's brow furrowed deeply. From the seating arrangement, the most likely culprits were Xi Shi, Huo Mo, and Ashamed to Be a Father. Great Sage Equal to Heaven, separated by a full row, could basically be ruled out. With the physical attributes of the Transcendent stage, it was unlikely he could undo his seatbelt, reach past Huo Mo and Ashamed to Be a Father in front of him, and kill Hebo in the second row. Not to mention how easily the two would have noticed him, the roller coaster's kinetic force alone would have flung him clear off the ride. Thinking this, he turned his gaze toward the petite girl beside him. Given her height and arm reach, if she wanted to turn around and kill someone, she would have had to unbuckle her seatbelt. So her likelihood was slim as well. Next was to verify whether Huo Mo was lying and confirm if Hebo had truly died during that window. Taking advantage of the fact that the second round had not yet begun, Zhang Yuanqing closed his eyes and visualized his father's features in his mind. If Hebo hadn't died while the roller coaster was hurtling along at high speed, the killer's strike must have taken place during the initial slow ascent, when the coaster had little momentum. And having captured the sounds, he would be able to pinpoint the killer directly. As his father's facial contours grew clearer, Zhang Yuanqing's heart thumped. His mental faculties surged, and the scene began replaying frame by frame from the moment they first entered the Spirit Realm. He processed the imagery while waiting patiently. Finally, they boarded the ride. Once the two-seater cars slowly began moving, Zhang Yuanqing could no longer see anything, because he had closed his eyes at that point. Sound, however, did not vanish. He captured the heartbeats and breathing of all seven people. Next came Xi Shi's sharp shriek as the roller coaster plummeted in a straight drop, hurtling toward the second high slope amid a roaring din. Right at that moment, a heartbeat in the row behind him vanished... "Ah, what's wrong with you...?" Xie Lingxi gasped, staring in shock at her companion as blood streamed from his nose. The other members stopped arguing as well and turned to look. "I'm fine, I'm fine!" Zhang Yuanqing waved his hand, wiped the nosebleed, and endured the throbbing ache in his brain with a laugh. "I've had a habit of getting nosebleeds ever since I was a kid, especially whenever I see pretty girls." Xie Lingxi blushed shyly at his words. Xi Shi and Huo Mo cast suspicious glances his way. The middle-aged man, Ashamed to Be a Father, merely gave him a glance, while Great Sage Equal to Heaven in the back row took the opportunity to sneak a few peeks at Xie Lingxi's face and Xi Shi's chest. Zhang Yuanqing maintained a calm facade, but in his heart, he was already cursing up a storm. The circumstances of Hebo's death proved that the evildoer possessed an extraordinary killing method! *Taking someone's head silently without making a sound is terrifying... I must find a way to stop them. One kill per round means after three rounds, only four people will be left in the team, and we still have at least one more ride to do. How are we supposed to beat this?!* If it truly came to that, it would practically be a dead end. Even if the killer wasn't the evildoer but the roller coaster's rules, the outcome would be the same. The more Zhang Yuanqing thought about it, the more anxious he grew; cold sweat was nearly beading on his forehead. *Everyone is a suspect, including Xie Lingxi beside me and Great Sage Equal to Heaven in the last row...* Zhang Yuanqing swept his gaze across the group. Xie Lingxi, lost in thought with furrowed brows; Xi Shi, looking uneasy; the silent middle-aged man; Great Sage Equal to Heaven, with panic hidden in his eyes; and Huo Mo, grumbling and cursing. For a moment, he felt every single one of them was putting on an act, each harboring their own sinister intentions. *The crisis in this instance isn't just the amusement rides, but also within the Spirit Realm walkers themselves...* Yuanshi Tianzun cursed inwardly. At the same time, another doubt flashed through his mind: *Why was Hebo the one who died?* *Did the evildoer kill at random, or was there another reason?* *Suppose I were the werewolf and had a chance to kill someone. Who would I kill?* Thinking along these lines, Zhang Yuanqing had his answer. *Kill the smartest person on the team!* *If that's the case, the next one to die is me...* Zhang Yuanqing's scalp tingled with dread.