Shao Ci was momentarily startled and then remembered that this was just a game so it shouldn't matter...
Afterward, Kevin walked step by step towards the second floor, with bloodstains on his body. However, he seemed completely indifferent, still wearing a faint smile.
Shao Ci and Xu Xue subconsciously took a few steps back, both wondering if coming back here was a mistake.
But the key was still in Kevin's hands!
As Kevin approached Shao Ci, he looked at him and softly said, "You seem quite frightened..."
Shao Ci: "..."
Kevin wiped the blood off his face, looking somewhat apologetic, "Ah, I must have scared you just now."
"...!" Shao Ci.
"But now I've dealt with that person, so there's no more danger. Don't worry," Kevin smiled.
Shao Ci: "..." Clearly, you're the more dangerous one!
Xu Xue quickly calmed down. After all, this game had all kinds of people, as long as the person wasn't possessed. He directly said, "Since Alan is dead, there's nothing we can do. Now, we should find where the secret room is."
Shao Ci couldn't help but admire Xu Xue's calmness.
"Well..." Kevin took out a piece of paper from his pocket and said, "Take a look."
On this paper was the map of the second floor, with a particular room circled in red, appearing to be a study.
The secret room in the study is quite a conventional setup...
"Where did you get this?" Xu Xue asked with suspicion.
"I got it from the ground where the statue was standing after solving it." Kevin's tone was particularly casual.
Shao Ci: "What about the statue..." Wasn't it challenging to deal with? And before, it seemed useless to shoot at it. Why does it now seem much easier?
Xu Xue clearly shared this doubt, and Kevin explained, "That's because we hadn't found the weak point of the statue back then. It's quite easy to solve once you attack its eyes."
After his explanation, the two of them felt relieved. In general games, it's rare to encounter monsters that are too difficult to deal with. Kevin's words made sense.
Then, the trio proceeded towards the study. It was quiet along the way, given what had happened earlier. Having a casual chat now would be quite strange.
Xu Xue had some doubts. Kevin was able to kill Alan, showing considerable strength. How could such a person have not appeared before?
No, it's not that there was no impression... Xu Xue looked at Kevin's back and suddenly remembered something.
It was several years ago. At that time, there was an extremely powerful young man—excellent appearance, strong psychic abilities, and apparently, an excellent background.
Such a perfect person naturally gained high popularity, comparable to Eut at that time.
However, this outstanding individual quickly met a tragic accident.
He died in a game level.
Yes, while this game could enhance one's psychic abilities, it came with associated risks. Some people would suddenly die during the game, and no one could figure out the reasons for their deaths. Even the cause of death had no relation to the intensity of the game level. They just died suddenly.
However, compared to the growth of psychic abilities, this threat was negligible. Moreover, such incidents were extremely rare, with a probability equivalent to one in a hundred million people. Naturally, this wouldn't lead to the closure of the game for this reason.
Yet, because that person was highly popular, the incident caused quite a sensation at the time. Later, for some unknown reason, all information about it was suppressed, and people were forbidden to discuss it further. The matter of that person was eventually forgotten.
Xu Xue was also curious about why the cause of that person's death was concealed. At that time, his interest was not in this area, and he only casually glanced at the initial news. He felt a bit regretful in his heart, and that was all.
Because of this, he only realized it now.
The person in front of him, Kevin, had no difference from that player in every aspect except for the name, even using the same weapon. Xu Xue believed that there couldn't be two people so similar in the world.
What was going on? That person had indeed died, and there was no chance for a resurrection. Or could it be that this game saved the data of some players and randomly generated them in the levels?
This was obviously against certain laws, but it couldn't be ruled out that the player's family had signed some agreement.
In any case, no matter what, this person couldn't be a real player. Xu Xue recalled how he had killed Alan earlier and felt a sudden alertness.
In some levels, monsters would disguise themselves as players' companions, and their high intelligence made them difficult to distinguish. Generally, encountering such levels would result in a large number of deaths and injuries. Could it be that the current situation was similar?
Xu Xue became vigilant, looking at Kevin. He saw Kevin walking naturally in this dim corridor, as if he was very familiar with it, and even when a monster emerged, Kevin effortlessly killed it, with a slight smile on his face.
In ordinary times, Xu Xue would only think that Kevin was very powerful. However, now he found Kevin suspicious no matter how he looked at him.
And the ‘little prince with the spicy strips’¹ on the side also looked very nervous, evidently noticing something unusual.
Xu Xue thought that dealing with this cunning opponent alone would be difficult. Only by teaming up with the ‘Spicy Stick Prince’ would there be hope of clearing the level. If they had recognized the person earlier, the four of them joining forces would have made things much easier.
But thinking about this now seems meaningless.
At this moment, the three of them are getting closer to the study.
Xu Xue doesn't believe that the person disguised as a monster will really lead them to the right room. However, given the opponent's formidable strength, any reckless actions could lead to a total wipeout.
After turning a corner, a few more monsters appeared. Kevin immediately took action, displaying a graceful movement as he drew his bow and arrows, determined to ignore the creatures approaching.
The fresh blood stained the surroundings.
In that moment, Xu Xue suddenly approached Shao Ci, grabbing his arm.
"Eh?" Shao Ci hadn't reacted yet.
Kevin in front turned around, his eyes suddenly becoming icy.
Xu Xue pulled Shao Ci back several steps, then quickly took out a book, silently reciting something. The space around them immediately distorted.
Shao Ci: "! Teleportation skill?!"
Suddenly, black mist surrounded them. Xu Xue gritted his teeth, calmly continuing the incantation. The two figures disappeared into the void.
---------------------
When their surroundings lit up again, they found themselves in a dungeon. Although it looked very similar to other dungeons, Shao Ci was certain he had never been here.
"What happened?" Shao Ci turned to look back, recalling the events that had just transpired, a not-so-good premonition creeping in.
Xu Xue directly put away the book, his most powerful lifesaving method. It could only be used once in a dungeon, and he wouldn't have used it if the situation hadn't been so urgent.
"The situation is critical now," Xu Xue said with a serious expression, "Actually..."
Before he could finish his words, his expression suddenly twisted. He reached for his own neck, feeling as if someone was strangling him.
Xu Xue, almost unable to react, saw his health points rapidly decreasing. He fell to the ground, feeling weak. He could clearly see a formidable negative status affecting him.
"Damn it," Xu Xue gritted his teeth. Despite using such a tactic, he was still being attacked at this distance.
"Are you okay?" Shao Ci was startled, quickly supporting him. He didn't have anything useful but resorted to pouring his bottle of holy water into Xu Xue's mouth.
Fortunately, the holy water worked. After coughing up some black blood, Xu Xue's complexion improved. With Shao Ci's help, he stood up, drank a few potions, and regained a normal appearance. "Thanks a lot," Xu Xue said. In that state, he couldn't even muster the strength to use potions.
Shao Ci replied, "It's okay. I'm just glad you're okay." If Xu Xue had been left alone here, things would have gone south.
"Let's talk while we walk," Xu Xue surveyed the surroundings. "Maybe we can find a way to deal with that person."
The dungeon was empty except for the two of them, but traces of monsters being held in cells were evident.
"I realized just now that person isn't a player," Xu Xue spoke up.
Shao Ci was surprised, "Wait, I thought he was just possessed..." So, there was a strange person disguised among them from the beginning?
Thinking back, Kevin's behavior had many suspicious points. The first encounter with the statue seemed like he was misleading others, making them believe it was difficult to deal with. Alan's character naturally led him to give up on rescuing people.
If they had taken action back then, they might have found out the statue was manageable, and they wouldn't have lost a teammate at the beginning.
"More or less," Xu Xue said. "Anyway, he's our enemy now."
Shao Ci's expression turned grim, "Although I had this idea for a while... Kevin's combat power is definitely beyond what we can handle."
"The dungeon is not supposed to be like this, the difficulty is too high. There must be a reason and a solution," Xu Xue frowned. "We have to find it quickly before that person comes."
The two searched through the cells, but found nothing until they entered one room and were surprised to find two corpses.
"In a horror-themed dungeon, finding corpses is normal, but here, both monsters and players usually turn into light points upon death. These bodies seem out of place," Shao Ci commented.
"This is probably the corpses of the other two sacrifices," Xu Xue remarked.
The resurrection ritual required six participants, and with only four players, the system had likely assigned two NPCs. However, ordinary NPCs wouldn't last long and weren't significant enough for players to care about their fate.
Xu Xue pushed the door open and walked in, with Shao Ci following.
At this point, it was apparent that there was little chance of a turnaround in Kevin's situation.
"What is this..." Shao Ci reluctantly approached the bodies. To avoid presenting players with explicit content, the system displayed helpful text.
【Corpse: This is a corpse that died within the last 12 hours. The cause of death is a stab to a vital area with a knife. The owner of the corpse is an ordinary human with nothing special on their person.】
The introduction for the other body was similar, indicating that there was nothing useful on them.
Standing there, Shao Ci suddenly remembered the book he had obtained earlier. The system had mentioned a force preventing him from opening it, and Kevin happened to be nearby at the time. Now, considering the situation, it seemed Kevin was preventing him from opening the book.
But it was Kevin who led him into that study in the first place. Could the book really be opened?
Considering the current circumstances, Shao Ci felt he had no other choice. Nervously, he took the book from his pocket, opened it, and a faded black-and-white photo fell out.
It was an old photo, showing a handsome young man in noble attire. Although the person looked like a stranger, the familiarity of his aura struck Shao Ci.
Shao Ci muttered, "So, the antagonist boss is Kevin!"
The plot seemed clichéd and melodramatic, but Shao Ci had only gone through his second dungeon, and initially trusting Kevin made it challenging to discover his true nature from the start.
The plot does seem overly dramatic and clichéd, but Shao Ci has only experienced his second dungeon. Given the initial friendliness of Kevin, it was indeed challenging for him to detect any issues from the start.
"Sigh," Shao Ci sighed and flipped through the book in his hands, revealing it to be a diary.
However, this wasn't an ordinary diary; it documented how the owner of the diary used forbidden techniques to refine their own body.
Ordinary people couldn't live for such extended periods, but this person, in order to live long enough to resurrect their loved one, resorted to replacing their organs one by one using forbidden arts. They even used organs from summoned monsters to achieve their prolonged lifespan.
Shao Ci muttered, "This is really pushing the limits!"
The owner of this castle not only showed cruelty to others but was also extremely brutal to themselves. Even when it came to their own body, they spared no extremes.
Who could this person's loved one be? What kind of person would be loved by such a lunatic? Is it fortunate or unfortunate?
Shao Ci hastily flipped through the diary from start to finish. He didn't want to seriously read such a terrifying diary; it made him uneasy. Clearly, the book didn't reveal the antagonist boss's weaknesses but instead made them seem more difficult to deal with.
...There must be other ways to handle this.
Xu Xue took the diary and read it, furrowing his brows slightly. It seemed that even he was taken aback by the content.
The two continued walking forward in silence, finally discovering a room at the end of the corridor.
This room had a metal door, surprising Shao Ci. He didn't expect to find a metal door here; he thought the entire castle would be filled with those dilapidated wooden doors. This place must be the secret chamber mentioned in the mission!
Kevin wanted to lead them here. Who knows what kind of place it would be; opening the door might lead to a total wipeout.
Shao Ci felt a bit uneasy.
As for why Kevin didn't kill them on the first floor, Shao Ci believed it was some kind of restriction in the plot, forcing him to kill indirectly. As for Alan, maybe he brought it upon himself.
Shao Ci pushed the iron door, realizing it wouldn't open. On a nearby shelf was a small box.
"No way..." Shao Ci approached, took out the golden key obtained earlier, and directly opened the box.
Inside the box was another metal key, clearly meant for this large door.
"Really..." Shao Ci hadn't expected things to be so simple. It seemed he didn't need to use his brain at all.
Thinking this, Shao Ci reached out and opened the iron door.
【The door to the secret chamber has been opened.】
【Current mission: Kill the owner of the castle.】
Shao Ci: "! Wait, wasn't the main objective just to escape? How did it suddenly turn into such a terrifying mission? How are they supposed to kill Kevin!"
After expressing his frustration, Shao Ci looked up, and the sight before him momentarily stiffened his body.
The secret chamber was enormous, pitch-black, with only a part illuminated by light from the entrance.
In the illuminated areas stood figures. No... these could no longer be called people. They resembled puppets, standing devoid of consciousness, expressionless, with dull and lifeless eyes.
The appearance of these puppets varied, but the only consistent aspect was that they all had attractive faces.
"What is this..." Shao Ci felt like he was missing something. Wasn't it just a plot about a lunatic wanting to resurrect his loved one? Why were there so many puppets in the secret chamber?
"These..." Xu Xue closed the diary and walked in. He spoke, "From the details in this diary, it's evident that the antagonist boss here is no longer human, and his appearance is probably far from attractive."
Shao Ci: "True..." Although the photo showed a handsome man, after so many years and exchanging numerous terrifying organs, it was impossible to imagine his current appearance.
"And the person he wants to resurrect is his lover. Naturally, he wouldn't want his beloved to see that ugly side of him," Xu Xue said. "So, he turned others into these puppets, using their bodies when necessary..."
"Wow!" Shao Ci was a bit shocked. So, Kevin's body is just a puppet...
But seriously, with so many attractive puppet figures, he could change his appearance every day. It's even more enjoyable than the male protagonists in harem anime. If the resurrection plan succeeds, the antagonist boss's lover will have quite a good time.
Wait! Why is he thinking about this at a time like this? The focus should be on how to thwart the antagonist boss's plan!
Shao Ci cleared his mind of those random thoughts, looked at the puppets in the secret chamber again, and felt as if they were all looking at him. He felt uneasy, subconsciously took a few steps back, and then bumped into someone.
Shao Ci was scared stiff, quickly turned around, and saw Kevin. He froze, stammering, "Y-y-you..."
"So, you found your way here." Kevin's expression was surprisingly calm. He smiled faintly and said softly, "It seems you already know a lot about my situation."
"I still have so many unanswered questions!" Shao Ci understood that the more he knew, the quicker his demise. There was no way he could admit to knowing so much.
"Oh, really?" Kevin sighed. "It seems I have to personally clarify things for you."
As he said this, he slowly approached Shao Ci. Shao Ci kept retreating, feeling immense pressure, almost having the urge to forcefully back away.
Despite Kevin appearing gentle, he was the antagonist boss capable of dissecting others with a smile!
"By the way, do you remember that note?" Kevin spoke softly.
The note?
Shao Ci had almost forgotten about it, but Kevin mentioning it jogged his memory.
'Don't turn around when he's looking at you.' The note said those two lines.
Behind him was...
Now, wait... No way... An uneasy thought suddenly emerged in Shao Ci's mind.
And the next moment, a pair of cool hands rested on his shoulders.
Shao Ci: "?!?”
E/n: Maybe Shao Ci's UN here is still Prince LATIAO!