Chapter 893: Deceiving the Public

Actually, I feel a bit surprised that someone like Aries would be curious about an organization.

Since Aries mentioned that Sheep didn’t die from a gamble but from “breaking the rules,” it suggests the other party had neither premeditation nor a plan.

It’s highly possible they accidentally caused Sheep’s death, or perhaps some uncontrollable minor accident in the game led Sheep to break the rules temporarily.

After sharing my thoughts with Aries, he disagreed.

He believes Sheep wasn’t the type to be careless or easily provoked. Though Sheep’s game was set in a hidden location, that didn’t mean its difficulty was low.

After all, Sheep used this game as a stepping stone to meet Aries. If Aries, upon becoming a “Tier Earth” player, discovered Sheep had designed a simple, brainless, and obscure game, why would he trust Sheep enough to bring him into the team?

So here’s the question: a “Tier Earth” game, not only governed by the strictest rules (being a “Sheep”), but also highly difficult and hidden away—

With so many harsh conditions combined, yet someone suddenly made the referee break the rules and die… Isn’t that too strange?

Aries told me the other party was likely trying to cover their tracks.

The attacker thought killing such an obscure Zodiac wouldn’t draw attention, but they didn’t know Sheep was Aries’ person.

No matter how remote the location, someone was always watching him.

Aries had never seen Sheep’s game or its participants, yet with just a few clues, he pieced together the entire incident in mere words.

I was left in awe.

I agreed to investigate the organization and later went to Earth Snake’s place to return the “Advanced Botanical Atlas” to him, only to find him hanging again.

Speechless, I could only wait quietly for him to finish.

When the rope suddenly snapped, and Earth Snake fell to the ground, he noticed me standing there.

“Damn brat…” He coughed and explained, “Don’t think this is just another ordinary hanging…”

“Oh?” I shrugged. “What’s different this time?”

“Of course…” Earth Snake stood up proudly. “Before, I hanged myself out of sorrow, but this time—”

“This time?”

“This time, I hanged myself because I wanted to!”

After a few seconds of silence, I handed him the book and said hoarsely, “Thanks for the book. I’ll head out now.”

“Hey—wait, brat…” Seeing me turn to leave, Earth Snake quickly added, “Fine, fine… I’ll explain properly! There’s a real reason this time!”

I shook my head. “Whether you say it or not, I can guess. Probably another tragic story you couldn’t bear, so you tried to kill yourself to cope.”

“No, really!” Earth Snake waved his hands frantically. “This is so bizarre, I’m afraid you’ll think I’ve lost it!”

Good grief, with you hanging yourself daily, how else would I think of you?

“Alright… tell me,” I said.

“Hiss… It’s a supernatural event I can’t figure out. It’s been happening for two cycles now.” Earth Snake scratched his head, looking terrified. “If it’s not a hallucination, then ghosts are here.”

“How so?” I found it hard to believe the “Land of Finality” could be haunted—this place is scarier than ghosts.

Earth Snake leaned in and whispered, “Brat… Two cycles ago, I killed seven people, but Earth Dragon said I only killed five. Last cycle, I killed nine, but Earth Dragon said only four…”

“Uh…”

“What does this mean…? Where did those people go?!” Earth Snake glanced around nervously. “Either I’m hallucinating and seeing people who don’t exist… or it’s real ghosts… They weren’t human to begin with, so killing them didn’t count…”

He shuddered. “Too terrifying… Sis, I need to hang myself to ward off evil.”

Good grief, the noose hanging at your door is already eerie enough—I never thought it could also be used to repel evil.

“Uh… Maybe it’s not ghosts… but something else,” I said.

“Like what?” Earth Snake stared at me. “Do you know, sis?”

Yes, I do. But it’s hard to explain.

“Anyway, you don’t need to be scared…” I stood up awkwardly and forced a smile. “Maybe those people weren’t here for your game, but someone else’s…”

Earth Snake looked utterly baffled.

“They were in my game area… to play someone else’s game?” He blinked. “Are you okay, brat? Do you hear yourself?”

Yeah, if I hadn’t seen it myself, I wouldn’t believe it either.

Those who died in Earth Snake’s game but weren’t counted were already Aries’ kills.

They died here just to control the “lamp.”

A tiny lamp, worth a few “Tao” at least, or affecting “savings” and “lottery.”

“Ah… just forget I said anything.”

I shook my head. I didn’t want to lie to Earth Snake or betray Aries, so I left in silence.

That day, I retraced Jiang Ruoxue’s path, spending nearly five hours to reach the other side of the city. But I didn’t know her exact spawning point.

Without “Causality,” I couldn’t move as freely as Jiang Ruoxue. She always found me, but I couldn’t necessarily find her.

I only knew she was likely active in this area. Given her outgoing nature, many would recognize her—I just had to ask around.

Unfortunately, though I met many who seemed to retain memories, no one knew Jiang Ruoxue.

I took the chance to inquire about local organizations. Sure enough, as Aries said, there was a massive group called “Paradise Port” with over thirty members, all “Echo” users. Their base was an inn, led by someone named Chu Tianqiu.

If Aries was right, this Chu Tianqiu was almost certainly the one who killed Sheep.

But was he really that powerful?

By evening, I stopped a cool-looking girl on the street—dressed in leather with multiple piercings. For some reason, I felt someone like her would know Jiang Ruoxue.

“Hey… sorry, dear,” I smiled. “Mind if I ask you something?”

“Tch!” She glared. “Who’re you calling ‘dear’?”

“Uh…” She seemed off. “I just wanted to ask about someone.”

“Tch! No idea!”