Chapter 161

A young girl pushed open the door and stepped out, her blonde hair bleached in uneven patches, wearing a plain white dress typical of the Temple.

This scene was so surreal that the dormitory, which had been buzzing with noise moments before, fell abruptly silent.

"Your food." Lin Tu handed over the instant noodles with a composed expression, as if she hadn't noticed anything unusual at all.

"Thanks." What was even stranger was that the girl across from her also took the noodles naturally, found a seat a little away from the others, pulled out some snacks from her backpack onto the communal table, and began to eat politely.

"Guan Sui..." Kou Lin hesitated for a moment, about to call her name.

"Not calling me Sister Yue anymore?" Guan Suixing looked up with amusement. "Don't you recognize me?"

"Sister... Sister Yue?" Kou Lin quickly corrected herself, as if that would matter. She probed carefully, "Then what about your younger sister, Guan Suixing?"

"Guan Suixing?" Now it was Guan Suixing's turn to look puzzled. "Who's that? Sounds like my name, but I don't have a sister."

Guan Suixing's state was clearly off, and everyone kept their heads buried in their bowls, not daring to say another word, for fear of triggering her.

"Then eat more," Lin Tu stood up and placed her own portion of cake and watermelon on Guan Suixing's table. "Stop being so stingy with yourself. It's no good for you." Lin Tu remembered how last time she'd sent over the cured meat sauce, Guan Suiyue had clearly wanted it but pretended not to care.

"I won't anymore." Guan Suixing accepted the extra snacks and ate quietly, head lowered.

Meanwhile... everyone else exchanged bewildered glances. Who was stingy with themselves? Guan Suixing? Impossible! And thinking about her sister, the answer was obvious.

—Damn it! Another one's gone mad!

But in the face of survival, even the most heartbreaking emotions had to take a back seat.

The night that followed was especially grueling. They took turns keeping watch, wary of red-name intruders. Given the danger, only one person could rest at a time, and each person got just two hours of sleep.

During that time, Lin Tu received several friend requests and countless messages. The most widely forwarded one read—

"Unite! Resist the Captain together!"

"Based on my observation of the revived teammate, she didn't suddenly become a red-name. I believe even if she turned red, she wouldn't choose to hurt me to clear the game, so I suspect she's not herself! She's some kind of humanoid monster! Unfortunately, we've been deceived by the rules of [Who's the Spy] and fallen into a huge disadvantage. Actually, red-name and green-name aren't the way to divide factions; they're just a way to clear the game. The true spies are those selfish people."

"So I think we still have a chance to win! As long as everyone willing to sacrifice for their companions unites! The Scientist isn't dead yet! If we hold on, those who left can still come back!"

"Because of professions like Shapeshifter and Thief, the best way to cooperate is to cooperate without cooperating. Please, when fighting red-names, shout out all the details—including the red-name's location, the skill you're about to use, and the red-name's current status. You can also listen to others' battle updates and join in. But only stay with teammates you trust. If you notice anything off about anyone, leave immediately and warn others! Don't trust anyone!"

This message had no author, but Lin Tu received several versions of it, edited by different people, before it converged into this final one—clearly the work of many.

The notes that followed included a compilation of confirmed red-name numbers gathered by everyone.

Lin Tu also added a bug she'd discovered—that crawling into a sleeping bag instantly resisted the cold—and appended it at the end of the message as a remark.

Finally, dawn arrived. The red-names, having lost their attack ability, retreated resentfully. The others, harassed and attacked all night, had barely slept, staring with tired, heavy-bagged eyes as if they were about to be wheeled into a cremation furnace.

Yi Ying had already brewed a few cups of instant coffee with milk on the charcoal stove. The wood charcoal, fully burning, released a vanilla-scented lignin, making the instant coffee smell especially fragrant.

Everyone held their cups and sipped slowly. Then they heard noises from outside the door.

"Room 301 has people—suspected red-names!"

"If you're not monsters, say something right now! Otherwise, we'll attack!"

"We're about to break down the door!"

Even though a door and a wall separated them from the outside, the words painted a vivid picture of what was happening in the corridor.

"We should get moving too."

Lin Tu rummaged through her backpack and pulled out a megaphone. Then everyone hurriedly grabbed their sleeping bags and other bug-exploiting gear, heading for the top deck.

They didn't go after lone red-names, because Lin Tu had thought of a perfect way to eliminate No. 42.

Didn't No. 42 want to kill the Doctor? Then just tell it where the Doctor was, wait by the trap, and let No. 42 come to them.

As for the Doctor herself being a little unstable mentally? Easy. Lin Tu only needed one sentence—

"Guan Suiyue is actually a kind person. She was willing to protect civilians in the Place of Exile before. Now she'll be willing to act as bait to get rid of the one who's causing all this disaster."

Hearing that, Guan Suixing nodded immediately—yes, Guan Suiyue was exactly that kind of person.

Everyone: "..." Only Lin Tu could make a mentally unstable person so easy to deal with.

And so, whether players were fighting red-names elsewhere on the ship or hiding in safe spots as support, they all heard the megaphone's looped announcement, blaring from the second floor all the way to the top deck—

"I'm No. 37! My doctor friend is moving to the captain's quarters on the top deck! All friends in need, come to the top deck to find us!"

A player on the second floor thought: They said shout out the battle situation, but did you have to use a megaphone so the whole ship could hear? Is this some kind of exhibitionism?!

That said, No. 37's doctor friend was well-known and trustworthy. So her making a public show of it was also for everyone's convenience to find the Doctor. Although he silently mocked her flashy move, he actually appreciated it more and more.

Just as he was thinking that, he suddenly noticed the red-name in front of him also moved—dashing upstairs quickly.

Not just the one in front of him. He heard shouts from all directions, and his communicator vibrated—it was the Mechanic reporting: the humanoid monsters were gathering on the top deck!

The player didn't hesitate. He tucked away his communicator and followed the red-names up the stairs.

While monsters and players alike converged on the upper floors, Lin Tu confirmed that the captain's quarters had been vacated. She had Guan Suixing hide inside, left Kou Lin and Liu Sheng in the building, and waited outside with Kang Lina, Luo Yongzhi, and Yi Ying for No. 42.

Soon, she realized that instead of No. 42, she was dealing with a flood of revived humanoid monsters.

Luckily, many players were shouting their numbers as they followed along.

"Leave the final kills to me." Lin Tu said to Kang Lina, then charged toward the humanoid monsters.

The [Serial Killer] profession gained increased damage the more kills it accumulated. Kang Lina nodded decisively, then plunged into the fray.

A chaotic melee broke out on the scene.

Soon, many people noticed that in the middle of fighting, someone would suddenly rush over and, with impeccable timing, land the finishing blow on a monster the moment it showed an opening.

At first, they thought she was helping, but it didn't take long to sense something off—why did she seem so eager, like a maniac, to personally kill every monster?

And the [Serial Killer]'s daily quest—increasing experience based on consecutive kills—meant Lin Tu happily swooped in to steal the kills.

Who could say she wasn't doing a good deed? They should even thank her.

These humanoid monsters weren't very intelligent. In fact, if it weren't for the "risen from the dead" impression, players would have eventually noticed their differences from their teammates. The group on the deck worked together and quickly pushed the monsters back.

The Captain, lurking in the shadows, finally grew restless.

Players without blade-wielding professions couldn't kill, but they could defend themselves. Last night, the players had resisted fiercely, and the red-names had whittled down far fewer players than the Captain had expected.

These players had somehow formed some kind of cooperation, and now, during the day, everyone—blade or not—came out to help.

One misstep led to another. Today's plan should have been the red-names hunting the green-names to extinction, but instead it had turned into the green-names besieging the red-names.

"Maybe we should..." The Captain glanced tentatively at the "player" beside him and asked, "hold off? Have all these red-names hide, and strike again tonight."

At least night was their advantage.

"What are you afraid of? You only need to know one thing—listen to me," said the player, or more precisely, No. 42, casting a sidelong glance at the Captain. "No need to wait. We'll go up together."

The Captain cursed inwardly but dared not speak up, nodding in agreement.

On the deck.

As the kill count rose, the [Serial Killer]'s experience bar shot up rapidly. Lin Tu brushed past danger several times, never getting a chance to check her communicator, only vaguely feeling that the gun in her hand seemed to be gradually glowing.

When the Captain and No. 42 reached the deck, they saw Lin Tu weaving through the crowd, holding a gun that was almost turning golden.

"She's...?"

"Her skill is about to max out!" No. 42 answered the Captain's question, his expression turning grim.

Then, on the ordinary black gun, golden patterns began to extend from the muzzle like vines, winding their way along the surface, dyeing the entire weapon into a golden work of art, with a faint glow radiating from it.

"No. 42!" Lin Tu caught sight of the familiar face and called out to Kang Lina.

Kang Lina followed her gaze, glaring fiercely at No. 42.

Sensing the unusual tension among them, the Captain grew nervous too. Especially when he saw more players glaring at him with anger and hatred, he realized he wouldn't make it to night—this might be the final moment to decide victory or defeat.

"Should I use... that last move from my skill?" He leaned close to No. 42's ear and whispered.

He was too afraid of losing. Before No. 42 could answer, he activated the skill directly—[Captain's Backstab: A captain's backstab is a massive blow to the crew; all red-name damage ×2]

This was why the Captain had dared to choose the villain side—selling out for glory and profit. He picked the evil camp for the extra skill bonuses and greater rewards.

This skill also affected No. 42. She merely glanced at the Captain, mildly displeased at his taking initiative, but didn't rebuke him.

In an instant, the entire red-name faction's strength doubled, and the caught-off-guard players immediately fell onto the back foot.