"Wow, that move is pretty intense."
"The last player I saw this fierce was in a place called Golden Valley Civilization."
"Oh, that one. I've heard of it, they're all about forbidden arts and high-tech there."
The players in that civilization,
After the initial panic, they could immediately use the resources in the ghost building to craft all sorts of metal weapons.
Everyone, young and old, knew a little.
Their practical skills were very strong.
"Players from that world are indeed formidable. They blazed through the challenges and almost broke the record for clearing the ghost building in three months."
"How long do you think players from this world will last?"
In the sky, a group of onlookers discussed leisurely.
They were even more fitting of the title "melon-eating crowds" than the viewers in the live stream.
...
"So it was you guys talking behind my back."
Jiang Lin looked at the little figures scattered on the ground.
Often, the more inconspicuous something was, the more deadly it could be.
In the underworld archives,
Many intern ghost officers had met their end because of such unnoticeable things.
He controlled the large black hand,
About to lift that little guy over,
To get a closer look.
But as the giant hand flew back, the semi-transparent little fellow dissipated into the air like the wind.
The feeling wasn't like he had accidentally crushed it.
It was more like its time was up, and it naturally dissipated.
Jiang Lin turned to look at the pool.
A large patch of white mist gathered on the surface of the pool again, making it impossible to see clearly.
Whether it was Jiang Lin's illusion or not,
He felt that the difficulty of this stage, and the strength of the ghosts, were much greater than those on Christmas Eve.
Was the difficulty progressing incrementally?
Or was it specifically targeting the strength he possessed?
After all the little ones had disappeared,
Jiang Lin quickly circled the mountaintop. Finding no other information,
He took out a mineral water bottle and collected some pool water.
Just as he was about to leave,
He remembered Uncle Feng's words.
Only one person could go up the mountain at a time, and the mountain spirit would be displeased if he took too much water.
Jiang Lin paused, thinking about his recent encounter, "Can I really only take one bottle of water?"
Was the mountain spirit the same as those little guys from just now?
After a moment of thought, Jiang Lin turned and took out a wooden bucket.
Using his ghost energy, he manipulated it into the pool to draw a bucket of water.
Splash—
The pool stirred with waves.
But apart from that, nothing else strange happened.
...
"Strange, could Uncle Feng have been lying through his teeth?"
The viewers in the live stream clearly recalled Uncle Feng's words.
"It wasn't stated that NPCs can't lie... though this difficulty is quite high."
"Another possibility is that the mountain spirits were too scared just now and didn't dare to come out again."
...
Jiang Lin, with a mineral water bottle in one hand and a wooden bucket in the other,
Descended the mountain unimpeded.
This display stunned the four people waiting at the foot of the mountain (ΩДΩ).
Good heavens, didn't they say only one bottle of water per person?
It was like everyone went to get rice with bowls, but you brought a basin.
And not only did you bring a basin, but you actually came back with a basin of rice!
Even Qi Liu, who was quick-witted, took a while to snap back to reality.
He held up two thumbs in front of him and grinned,
"As expected of the streamer!"
So fierce!
Liu Yao was still a bit worried, as this clearly went against the rules Uncle Feng mentioned.
"Streamer, were you alright when you came down?"
The woman in the red dress beside them also looked over.
She had stood up upon seeing Jiang Lin return.
When it came to matters of their own lives, no one dared to be careless.
Jiang Lin's expression was calm, "I'm fine, you guys just don't copy me."
Qi Liu waved his hands repeatedly, "Of course not, we can't learn that, we can't learn that."
Jiang Lin's gaze swept over the three of them and he suddenly asked, "Do you have anyone you particularly dislike or hate?"
The three of them didn't rush to answer.
They lowered their eyelids, furrowed their brows, and thought carefully.
Social relationships in modern society were often very complex.
Sometimes you argued with people around you, sometimes you debated with netizens online, or perhaps you couldn't stand the behavior of a certain brat...
It was truly difficult to pinpoint the most disliked person in a short time.
After letting them think for a while, Jiang Lin continued,
"Whether you do or not, remember, never generate killing intent or evil thoughts."
Could this be related to what would happen on Yingying Mountain later?
Seeing the streamer's serious expression, the three of them became nervous and nodded earnestly.
You could ignore what anyone else said, but you had to listen to the streamer.
Otherwise... you'd just wait for the streamer to collect your soul.
Afterward,
The three of them went up Yingying Mountain one after another and returned with a bottle of pool water.
However, their complexions were not good when they came down.
Their lips were pale, and their eyes were bloodshot.
Similar to the elite man before.
Jiang Lin didn't ask them what they encountered; he had seen it clearly through the live stream camera.
Qi Liu saw his middle school homeroom teacher.
Liu Yao saw the client.
The woman in the red dress, Susan Shan, saw her own father.
What the three encountered was similar to what Jiang Lin had expected.
They were all "backstage spirits."
In the comment section,
The viewers were extremely excited.
Many people could relate.
"One of my high school teachers was truly a nightmare of my student days."
"Wuwuwu... it was the client, I understand, I understand."
"Sigh, after the mother passed away, the father could accidentally become a stepfather."
...
After successfully obtaining the item—the water from Yingying Mountain,
The group of four returned to the previous mountain and watered the sapling.
Then, as Uncle Feng instructed,
They went to the foot of the mountain to find villagers and check in before dark.
Going up and down the mountain several times within a day,
Among the group, except for Jiang Lin, who remained as elegant as ever, the others were all sore and tired, unable to stand up straight.
If Jiang Lin hadn't gotten them something to eat midway, they probably would have collapsed by now.
When people are extremely exhausted, let alone thinking and analyzing clues,
They would probably have to think hard even to recite the multiplication table... was it "nine nines return one" or "nine nines eighty-one"?
"I suspect... this is simply a stamina game! Huhu~"
Qi Liu leaned against the fence at the village entrance, panting, his eyelids almost closing.
The other two were in even worse condition than him.
Jiang Lin looked at the almost collapsed figures and said calmly, "I'll go in and take a look first. You guys wait here for me."
...
"Woof woof—!"
As soon as Jiang Lin entered the village, a small black dog ran out from somewhere and barked at him.
Its dark, shiny eyes flickered with curiosity.
Its head-tilted gaze was like a walking emoji.
Jiang Lin glanced at it and continued to walk forward.
"Meow?" A calico cat and a white rabbit stood at the corner of the house, watching him.
As Jiang Lin walked further into the village, he encountered many small animals along the way.
Little hamsters, little hedgehogs, little kangaroos...
This seemed to be a village that particularly loved raising small animals.
...
"Ah, so cute! It's great to be next to the mountains, it's practically a small animal paradise!"
"I want to raise cats too, but my family is allergic to cat hair."
At first, the viewers didn't think anything was wrong.
Small animals, who doesn't like them when they're cute?
Raising small animals also shows a compassionate heart.
But gradually, some viewers who paid attention to details started to feel their scalps tingle more and more.
The more they looked, the more chills ran down their spines, making them want to burrow into a blanket.
"Don't you guys think... the expressions of these small animals are too human-like?"
Their faces,
Were not like emojis,
But were actual expressions!
Confusion, curiosity, watching the excitement...
Do animals have such rich emotions?
If only one was like this, it might still be considered rare.
But if the entire village was like this... it was a bit too bizarre.
...