Chapter 16

No one answered Xishi's question, except for a small girl named Xie Lingxi, who hesitated to speak.

There wasn't enough trust yet. Was she unwilling to reveal her official status, or were there no other official backgrounds among the Travelers present besides himself? Zhang Yuanqing was pondering whether to give a hint when he heard the He Bo in the black hoodie say indifferently,

"We've been in the Spirit Realm for a few minutes, and it hasn't given us any prompts. This means that to clear the level, we have to rely on ourselves. If you know anything, it's best not to hide it. We're all in the same boat."

Xie Lingxi raised her hand slightly and said in a low voice,

"I know some information about the old version of the dungeon. The Spirit Realm's introduction has changed."

*She's* from an official organization? Zhang Yuanqing scrutinized the little girl.

He Bo frowned upon hearing this,

"The Spirit Realm's introduction has changed... I think I understand. The reason for the difficulty change in Jinshui Amusement Park lies in the Spirit Realm's introduction. Does everyone remember the content of the introduction?"

"I forgot..." The red-haired Firestarter scratched his head.

Xishi glanced at him, quietly distancing herself, and said with a gentle smile,

"An indescribable being has come here. She changed the difficulty level of Jinshui Amusement Park. She told the spirits in the amusement park to help her find a person. That person's name has four characters. Who could it be?"

'Unworthy Father' couldn't help but say,

"I don't think who it is matters. This person should just be part of the background story. What matters is the 'spirit' in the amusement park. Is it possible that Jinshui Amusement Park's difficulty was raised to S-level because the 'spirit' received the blessing of that being and became especially powerful?"

The Qitian Dasheng (Great Sage Equal to Heaven), in his sneakers and skinny pants paired with a suit jacket, perked up: "I think that makes sense. Uncle, you're really smart."

He Bo nodded slightly, agreeing with the middle-aged man's statement, and said,

"Then, as long as we avoid projects with horror elements and choose some simple facilities to experience, we should be able to reduce the risk."

He turned to Xie Lingxi and asked, "Do you know the detailed strategy for the old version?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yuanqing planned to throw out the old version information before the girl could, to avoid losing the right to speak. But just then, a "ding" sounded in his mind, the Spirit Realm's prompt:

[Due to your excellent performance just now, you have triggered a hidden mission. You have been appointed as the team leader. Note that there is an evil person hidden in the team. Please ensure that the number of team members is greater than or equal to 3, otherwise you will be punished, and your current level experience will be reset.

[Note: Please hide your role identity well.]

There's actually a hidden mission?! The word "fuck" flashed through Zhang Yuanqing's mind. On the surface, he remained calm, but his heart suddenly sank.

The facilities in the dungeon were fraught with danger, and a werewolf had infiltrated the team. The difficulty had risen sharply.

"My hidden mission is to ensure that the number of members is no less than 3. From this, it can be inferred that the evil person's mission is to reduce the number of team members to less than 3, or even wipe us all out."

"If I want to ensure the clearance rate, the best choice is to ferret out the evildoer and eliminate them in advance, but I can't prove my identity, and there's not enough trust between team members. It's very likely that I'll end up shooting myself in the foot and be framed as the wolf instead."

For a moment, Zhang Yuanqing felt that no one was trustworthy. Even the sweet girl named Xie Lingxi seemed to have turned into a wolf in human skin.

Wait! Jinshui Amusement Park is a multiplayer Spirit Realm, open to all professions. Could there be evil professions among the team members?

And based on the opposition between camps, the evil profession must be the evildoer... A ruthless idea flashed through Zhang Yuanqing's mind: use the red shoes to force out the team members' abilities. Who is the evil profession would be clear at a glance.

"No, that's too reckless. It would make things irretrievable. And is it really that simple? What if I guessed wrong?" He silently exhaled and gave up the idea of summoning the red shoes.

If there were no evil professions on the team, his actions would be tantamount to directly turning against the team members, and there would be no point in continuing.

"In other words, I have to lead the team to complete the projects while finding the evildoer? It really is an S-level multiplayer Spirit Realm, as difficult as the Mountain God Temple, difficult in a different sense."

The dungeon hadn't even started yet, and Zhang Yuanqing's heart was already heavy.

"I know the old version strategy, but I don't remember all of it..." Xie Lingxi said.

"Oh, little sister, you're great. You're a member of an official organization, right? Do you mind if I walk with you, sister?" Xishi said.

One is overly simple, and the other has ulterior motives... Zhang Yuanqing scrutinized the two women without showing any emotion.

At this time, He Bo, wearing a black hoodie, glanced at Zhang Yuanqing indifferently and said,

"What are your thoughts?"

Zhang Yuanqing pondered for a moment and said,

"Based on a preliminary judgment, the difficulty has been increased for facilities with supernatural elements. Then other projects may not have changed much. So, we can choose a project with a very low difficulty based on the old version strategy."

A hint of appreciation appeared in He Bo's gloomy expression, and he nodded, "That's what I meant. No wonder you're a high-level player who has experienced multiple Spirit Realms."

He then looked at everyone and said, "Does anyone have any objections?"

Everyone nodded in unison, as if they had no opinions of their own.

He Bo said, "Little girl, which facility do you think we should choose to experience?"

Xie Lingxi pursed her lips, her bright eyes darting around, and pointed to the steel tracks that undulated like a dragon, saying,

"That one is the simplest."

Seeing the roller coaster, everyone's eyes twitched. Xishi's smile was forced: "Why?"

"The old version's clearance method is very simple. Get on the car, close your eyes the whole time, and the roller coaster will complete three laps, and it will be over."

"This..." Qitian Dasheng, the young man from society, looked up at the tall steel tracks and was a little daunted. He pointed to the carousel not far away and asked,

"What about that one? I think that one is pretty safe too."

Xie Lingxi shook her head and said with a serious expression, "Only children can ride the carousel. Adults who go up will never come down, although there won't be any real danger... but it will keep spinning."

Going up there means a team wipe? Qitian Dasheng silently took a step back and stopped talking.

"If no one has any objections, let's choose the roller coaster," He Bo said lightly. He suddenly chuckled:

"Being matched into Jinshui Amusement Park, I can't guarantee how smart you are, but none of you are idiots, right?"

He Bo is intentionally or unintentionally competing with me for the right to speak. Xie Lingxi seems very simple at first glance, but can someone simple be matched into an S-level? Xishi has been testing other people's identities from beginning to end. Her flirtatious appearance may not be genuine...

'Unworthy Father' looks simple and honest, but he can keenly analyze that "supernatural elements" are the key danger, indicating that his heart is not as simple as it seems.

Qitian Dasheng is a bit timid and a bit horny, with no bright spots, but he's not a troublemaker... I think the safest person among this group is Firestarter, if I can confirm that he is a Fire Manipulator. Conversely, this person is the most dangerous.

Zhang Yuanqing analyzed the characteristics of his companions, raised his hand, and echoed, "I have no objection, let's go with the roller coaster."

Unconsciously, he slightly loosened some of his initiative, no longer taking the initiative in everything, but maintaining a certain degree of activity.

He had read the strategy and knew that Xie Lingxi was not lying. The roller coaster seemed dangerous, but the gameplay was actually the simplest.

Of course, whether the roller coaster's gameplay still remains the same is unknown, but wouldn't other facilities also have changes?

"I have no objection."

"I have no objection either."

"Alright, it's all the same anyway."

After making a decision, the group headed to the roller coaster. Following the signs, they passed through the tunnel and entered the building below the tracks.

This was a small hall. To the left of the entrance were lockers, and to the right was a ticket window. As the group walked into the hall, the Spirit Realm's prompt sounded in their ears:

[Ding, you have obtained a roller coaster experience ticket. Please arrive on the upper level within five minutes.]

[Ding, all your extra items have been sealed. Please return to the lockers to collect them after the project is over.]

Extra items... Zhang Yuanqing subconsciously reached for the blue pill in his pocket and found that it was still there. He was about to breathe a sigh of relief when he heard Firestarter exclaim,

"I can't open my inventory."

Everyone was shocked and immediately tried to summon their inventories, but found that this function seemed to not exist.

Qitian Dasheng said in a trembling voice, "I, I can't use my skills either. What about you?"

!!! Zhang Yuanqing's heart sank sharply. He instinctively tried to use Night Wander, but the power of the Taiyin was firmly sealed within his body.

The others each tried, and sure enough, they had lost their skills.

This phenomenon made the Spirit Realm Travelers feel extremely heavy. Without skills, what was the difference between them and ordinary people?

At this time, 'Unworthy Father' said,

"Active skills can't be used, but passive abilities are still there, and our physical qualities haven't changed either."

"We're already here, let's go up," Zhang Yuanqing said and took the lead in climbing the stairs.

The group climbed the stairs with heavy hearts and arrived at the top of the building. The top was a platform with two tracks laid out. On the tracks were roller coaster cars with two seats each, quietly displayed.

The team members looked at the roller coaster and were silent for a moment. No one spoke.

Alas, this is when I, the Chinese captain, need to set an example. This is in line with the persona I initially displayed... Zhang Yuanqing smiled:

"The last time I rode a roller coaster was in my student days. My favorite thing was to sit in the front row."

Under everyone's gaze, he boarded the seat in the first row and fastened his seatbelt.

The others breathed a slight sigh of relief and also boarded the car.

"I have a fear of heights..." Xishi acted pitifully, hesitating between Zhang Yuanqing and He Bo.

With this hesitation, Xie Lingxi with her long black hair snatched the seat next to Zhang Yuanqing, and Xishi could only helplessly choose He Bo.

Zhang Yuanqing glanced at her, and she returned a sweet smile.

After everyone fastened their seatbelts, He Bo in the second row said indifferently,

"Remember to close your eyes and don't open them no matter what happens. Of course, if any of you want to use your lives to verify the rules, I welcome it."

"You're really unpleasant to talk to," Firestarter pouted.

Zhang Yuanqing looked back at the team members behind him. In the second row sat He Bo and Xishi, and in the third row were 'Unworthy Father' and Firestarter.

The somewhat timid Qitian Dasheng seemed to have been ostracized and sat alone in the fourth row.

At this time, the track was energized, and there was a "dong" sound from the bottom of the car. The roller coaster slowly started moving.

Before Zhang Yuanqing retracted his gaze, he saw that everyone had closed their eyes.

He closed his eyes, feeling the car crawling on the tracks. At first, it was very slow, as if climbing a steep slope. When the roller coaster reached the top, it stopped.

The next moment, a strong sense of weightlessness came, and there was a strong wind in his ears, as well as Xishi's small exclamation.

Zhang Yuanqing tensed his body, listening to the sounds around him, and silently counted the time.

About two minutes later, the speeding roller coaster slowed down and then stopped.

Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes and saw that the roller coaster had returned to the platform on top of the building. Nothing had happened.

Huff... He silently exhaled, when he suddenly heard an exclamation from behind.

His heart tensed, and he turned his head to look, his pupils suddenly contracted violently.

He Bo, sitting in the second row, had an empty space where his neck should be, having lost his head.

Firestarter in the third row was covered in blood. He tremblingly held up the head in his arms, his voice trembling:

"It, it's useless...

"Closing your eyes is useless..."

He Bo had his eyes tightly closed, with a peaceful expression, as if he hadn't felt any pain.

A chill rose from the bottom of everyone's hearts.