In the stifling silence, Gu Jiu’s voice echoed clearly in everyone’s ears.
“If I’m not mistaken, the mountain ghost should be this willow tree.”
Everyone instinctively looked toward the willow tree at the village entrance. In the darkness, they could only vaguely make out the tall outline of the tree and its branches swaying in the night wind.
Perhaps due to Gu Jiu’s blunt revelation, the gentle, rain-like willow branches suddenly whipped violently through the air, accompanied by sharp sounds cutting through the silence.
The ghost dolls howled in fury, glaring at the willow with expressions like wrathful demons.
Wang Peiping and the others felt chills run down their spines at this sudden turn of events. Seeing the wildly thrashing branches and the wary ghost dolls, they felt a wave of despair.
“Why…why would a willow tree be the mountain ghost?” Lin Dandan stammered in horror. “Could there be some mistake?”
“Exactly! It should just be a plant,” Wang Peiping said, clinging to hope.
“Maybe it actually became a spirit?” Fatty muttered, tightly clutching his brother’s hand, voice trembling. “After all, if there are ghosts, spirits wouldn’t be so unusual.”
Wu Yang scrutinized the willow tree briefly, then turned to ask Gu Jiu, “Miss Gu, how did you deduce this?”
Leaning on a rolling pin as if exhausted, Miss Gu answered, “Didn’t Lin Dandan mention earlier that there were bloodstains under the willow tree at the village entrance, and they were human? It’s said that willow trees are traditionally protective in the countryside. So why would there be human blood? I figured those bloodstains must have come from past players who entered this cursed village game instance to complete missions…”
The cursed village instance is a D-level game zone. D-level zones are known to contain cyclical rules: unless a player completes the instance by defeating the root cause of everything—the boss—the game will endlessly repeat.
Before they entered the cursed village instance, many players had already been there.
Those players must have encountered this “mountain ghost” willow tree at the village entrance just as they had, and most likely became its food, leaving traces of human blood on its roots.
Though they couldn’t be sure Gu Jiu’s deduction was entirely accurate, the willow’s reaction strongly suggested it was indeed the boss.
Gu Jiu concluded, “I don’t think it became a spirit; rather, some force turned it into a ghost—a ghost willow.”
Spirits are not uncommon, but a plant turning into a ghost was unheard of. It was likely that, as a ghost willow, it possessed a dark curse, which is why it cursed the entire village.
“It didn’t become a spirit but a ghost?” Fatty was incredulous, but he quickly offered a theory. “So, in the past, Qingshan Village was a peaceful place. Then, one day, the willow tree at the village entrance became a ghost for some unknown reason. It transformed into the mountain ghost, taking the souls of the children. Luckily, the villagers found a grass demon core to heal the affected children. Enraged, the mountain ghost took all the villagers’ souls and cursed them, trapping them in an endless cycle of reincarnation…”
The theory sounded plausible.
Unfortunately, the villagers in the instance had all turned into ghosts, and the ghost dolls couldn’t communicate with them, leaving them without a clear understanding of how events had unfolded.
“What do we do now?” Skinny asked.
Wu Yang took out a blood talisman. “We push forward.”
As long as they could leave Qingshan Village, they could clear the stage. Even if the ghost willow was the boss, they had no choice but to keep moving.
Wu Yang observed the ghost willow for a moment before addressing the others. “I can’t say how strong this ghost willow is. We’ll each have to rely on our abilities.”
Though he hoped everyone would survive the game, he knew his limitations and couldn’t protect everyone in danger.
The ghost willow felt extremely dangerous to him. He couldn’t guarantee his own survival, let alone that of others.
His words caused Lin Dandan, Wang Peiping, and Fatty to pale, yet they knew he was right. If the ghost willow attacked, everyone would be too busy fending for themselves to rely on help from others.
Wu Yang looked at the six people present, giving them a slight nod. “I’ll go first. I hope to meet you again in the game world someday.”
This was the best blessing: to meet again would mean they had all been lucky enough to survive.
Wu Yang placed his oil lamp on the ground, preparing to walk toward the village exit when Gu Jiu called out to him.
“Brother Wu, wait a moment.”
Wu Yang paused, turning to look at her with a hint of anticipation in his eyes.
Though Gu Jiu was new to this round, her abilities were undeniable. If Wu Yang had to bet on anyone in their group successfully clearing the game, it would be Gu Jiu, without question.
Gu Jiu said, “Brother Wu, the game world won’t set us up for a guaranteed death. The mountain ghost may be too powerful for players to handle alone, but we can use items.”
“Items?” Wu Yang glanced at the blood talisman in his hand, looking somewhat regretful. “The blood talisman is a one-use item, and I’m not sure if it will work against the ghost willow.”
Gu Jiu shook her head. “Not your item—one provided by Qingshan Village.” She pointed to the oil lamps in their hands.
“We can use the oil lamps to burn it. The willow is still a plant, even if it’s become a ghost. It should still fear fire.”
Everyone looked down at their oil lamps.
“These oil lamps were given to us by the game. They’re probably meant for more than just light, right? While there’s still some oil left, we can gather it and set the mountain ghost on fire.”
Her words were ruthless, enraging the boss. The ghost willow’s branches stretched out and lashed toward them with a sharp cracking sound.
“Look out!” Wu Yang shouted.
Everyone quickly retreated. Before Gu Jiu could move, a hand reached out and pulled her back.
She turned to see that it was Lu Ji holding her arm, keeping a steady grip on her while balancing her own oil lamp. The dim light cast shadows over Lu Ji’s pale face and calm expression, every movement stable and controlled.
Gu Jiu suddenly smirked. “Thanks, Ah Ji.”
Lu Ji glanced at her, thinking that this woman’s way of addressing her had shifted yet again from “Sister Lu” to “Ah Ji.”
She sure knew how to push boundaries.
As the ghost willow rampaged, the ghost dolls finally began attacking it as well.
They swiftly grabbed onto the whipping branches, swinging mid-air, trying to tear the branches off, using ghost claws or fangs, sparing no effort.
Seeing this, Wu Yang made a quick decision. “Let’s go, too.”
Each oil lamp could only last another twenty minutes, and once they went out, who knew what would happen? It was better to follow Gu Jiu’s plan and take a gamble.
Wu Yang poured the oil from the other three lamps into one.
The combined oil wasn’t much, and Fatty looked on, worried. “This little bit of oil…is it really going to be enough to burn it?”
“Don’t use real-world logic to guess at the game world’s mechanics,” Gu Jiu replied with a smile.
Everyone looked at her. How was it that, despite being a newcomer, she seemed to understand the game better than anyone?
Despite their murmurs, they all recognized that Gu Jiu was more capable than most beginners. Even seasoned players like themselves couldn’t compare. If she avoided falling in the game world, she’d likely become a legend in the high-level instances of the multiverse games.
Wu Yang lifted the single lit oil lamp and said, “Act when you see the chance.”
Everyone nodded, tense with anticipation.
Wu Yang took a deep breath, his face growing calm and solemn. With a short sprint for momentum, he dashed in the direction of the ghost willow.
A thick willow branch lashed out toward him.
Wu Yang reacted swiftly, dodging the branch that brushed past his shoulder. Though the willow branch was soft, it sliced like a sharp weapon, tearing his clothes and leaving a long, bloody gash on his shoulder.
The scent of blood permeated the darkness, further enticing the mountain ghost’s greed.
With all his strength, Wu Yang threw the oil lamp toward the roots of the ghost willow.
As he hurled the lamp, a branch struck him, sending him flying backward. He landed hard on the ground, spitting out a mouthful of blood—clearly seriously injured.
The oil lamp shattered upon hitting the ghost willow’s roots. Oil spilled out, and the still-burning wick ignited the fuel, causing a weak flame to flare up with a loud roar.
The fire spread at an incredible speed, illuminating the village entrance.
Lin Dandan and the others stood in shock.
Could this really work?
Wu Yang struggled to his feet, shouting, “While it’s on fire, let’s go!” Clutching his aching chest, he led the charge forward.
Wang Peiping and Lin Dandan hurried after him.
Fatty grabbed his brother, then turned back to pull Gu Jiu along. “Come on, sister! Time is short, let’s move!”
He urged, fearing Gu Jiu’s refined nature would slow her down and get her caught by the ghost willow.
With such a capable newcomer, a promising ally, he didn’t want to see her perish in the game world just because of a slight hesitation.
Gu Jiu stumbled as he pulled her, but managed to stay on her feet with Lu Ji’s support from behind.
Lu Ji truly was a kind girl.
Together, the group rushed toward the village exit.
The fire at the roots of the ghost willow inflicted serious harm, causing its branches to lash wildly. The willow’s tendrils thrashed in every direction, forcing the group to dodge with great difficulty. Even as they were battered and on the verge of collapse, they didn’t dare to pause, fearing that even a moment’s hesitation would mean being permanently ensnared by the ghost willow.
The seven of them dashed through the flailing branches, racing toward the village boundary.
As the ghost willow burned, the ghost dolls quickly fled to the village entrance. They grinned with delight, jumping and clapping as they watched the flames consume the tree. They cheered at the sight, their joy unmistakable.
Gu Jiu glanced back at them, waving a silent farewell.
As they exited Qingshan Village, Gu Jiu turned to Lu Ji, who was the last in line, and said, “See you in the next game, Ah Ji.”
Lu Ji glanced at her but said nothing.
As they broke free from Qingshan Village, each member vanished one by one, until only Lu Ji remained.
She stayed behind, quietly watching the ghost willow burn.
The towering flames illuminated her pale face. The usually quiet girl suddenly smiled as she walked toward the burning ghost willow, ignoring the eerie blue flames that licked its branches. She reached out, her hand passing through the branches, and extracted a gray fragment…