Late at night, just as Su Ran returned to his bedroom and was about to go to bed, he bumped into Lu Huanjin inside the room. He frowned suspiciously and walked out to check the room number. After confirming it was correct, he looked at Lu Huanjin confusedly and asked, “What are you doing in my room?”
Lu Huanjin gave him a speechless look. “To talk in private, obviously. Have you even thought about how to complete tomorrow’s mission?”
“What’s the rush? Don’t we still have great-grandfather?” Su Ran waved his hand indifferently. “I just finished talking with him. I even gave him my item, the Ghoul’s Key. Now I’m just waiting for him to carry me.”
Lu Huanjin’s face darkened with fury as he finished listening. He gritted his teeth and said, “You gave him the item and still want to win?”
“He asked me for it. He said he’d carry me, so I gave it to him. What’s the problem?” Su Ran even tried to reassure him. “Don’t worry, I thought it through. Great-grandfather drew a good guy’s role card—he’s trustworthy.”
Lu Huanjin: “He has a good guy card, but have you thought about what cards we have? We drew the bad guys’ roles.”
“…Huh?” Su Ran was stunned for a moment before it suddenly hit him. “Shit, right! He’s the Ghost Hunter, I’m the Ghoul—we’re on opposing teams! How’s he supposed to carry me?”
He turned helplessly to look at Lu Huanjin, who stared back at him expressionlessly, as if he wanted nothing more than to strangle him on the spot.
Su Ran: “…”
He gave an awkward, dry laugh, scratched his head, then quietly walked over and patted Lu Huanjin on the shoulder, speaking gently and coaxingly: “Don’t be mad. Once great-grandfather wins, maybe he’ll let us live—good enough, right?”
Lu Huanjin: “Your mission is to assist me.”
“…Right.”
Lu Huanjin: “My mission is to kill Grant and become the Ghost King myself.”
“…Mhm.”
Lu Huanjin let out a cold laugh and said to him, “You don’t even have your item anymore. How exactly are you going to assist me?”
Su Ran braced himself, thought for a moment, and said, “I remember the booklet said that items can be obtained repeatedly through mini-games. Why don’t we try grinding them tomorrow and see if we can get it back?”
“That’s our only option.” Lu Huanjin, still visibly annoyed, stood up and headed for the door. Just before stepping out, he looked back at Su Ran, who had just begun to relax, instantly making the top star tense up again. Only then did Lu Huanjin add calmly, “Remember to wake up early.”
“Got it, got it!”
As soon as Lu Huanjin left, Su Ran quickly locked the door and finally let out a long breath of relief.
Scratching his head, he still felt a bit puzzled. “It’s just an item, right? You can farm it again… So why do I feel so guilty just because he tricked me into giving it away?”
【Ran-bao is a little slow】
【Wuwuwu our poor baby Ran, three years old and already getting played by great-grandfather again】
【Damn, I saw it, I saw it! Lu Huanjin wasn’t even angry; he was pretending! Arghhh, that guy started smiling the moment he walked out—Ran-bao, he’s playing you!】
【Damn these two have such suspiciously fruity vibes】
The bedroom surveillance feed was mercilessly cut off—the top star was asleep.
The players all slept soundly. In the blink of an eye, it was the next day.
After a night for things to sink in, with the arrival of today’s new level, even the dullest players were beginning to realize their missions might be in conflict with one another. This was the time to start forming factions and stirring the pot.
When Su Weisheng came downstairs after getting dressed, he scanned the surroundings. Wen Ye and Su Ning were having a private conversation outside. Su Anyao and Li Lang were nowhere to be seen. Only You Sui waved at him, his fox-like eyes curving into a smile as he signaled for him to come over.
The two of them walked to a small sitting room in one corner of the old castle. There was a silver tabby Maine Coon cat sleeping on the sofa. The moment it noticed someone approaching, it leapt up in fright and dove under the sofa, so timid it was hard to watch.
Su Weisheng didn’t pay it much attention and casually sat down on the edge of the sofa, asking, “Where are Zhaocai and Lu Huanjin? Still not up yet?”
You Sui played with the cross necklace in his hand, amused by Su Weisheng’s puzzled expression, and said teasingly, “You conned that deranged great-grandson out of his item—where else could he be? Of course, Lu Huanjin dragged him to the back of the mountain to grind for items.”
Su Weisheng shrugged slightly, replying with a calm face, “Then isn’t that perfect? Let him grind a few more items and bring them back as tribute to great-grandfather.”
The bullet comments went wild:
【Su the Skinner, is that you?!】
【Are you searching for: capitalist? 】
【Poor Lu and Su, the street duo, still stuck in the back mountain, picking fruit under NPC supervision. 】
【Great-grandfather, does your conscience not hurt even a little?】
Clearly, Su Weisheng didn’t have a conscience—such a useless thing. Not only did he feel no shame at all, but instead, he focused his attention on the cross in You Sui’s hand. “What does your item do?”
“It can pin a Ghoul to the cross and prohibit them from taking any actions this round.” You Sui smiled as he looked at Su Weisheng.
Su Weisheng remained composed as he evaluated, “Lu Huanjin’s already been sent off to deal with Zhaocai. Both Ghouls are out of the picture, so your item’s useless today.”
“It can still be used next round.” You Sui asked meaningfully, “Don’t tell me yours can’t?”
Su Weisheng didn’t have a damn item.
Not only did he have a blank character profile, but he was also a total whiteboard with no items whatsoever. His life in this game was pure acting—gathering information depended entirely on performance. With the fickleness of fate and no tools at hand, all he could do was take what he could along the way.
But Great-grandfather had an excellent mindset. From the moment he got the script, he was confident he could bluff his way through the entire game. The only tricky one was You Sui. He was bound to notice something off and test him immediately. That was expected.
Faced with this suspicion, Su Weisheng didn’t flinch at all and calmly countered, “Which item are you asking about?”
“You have more than one?” You Sui narrowed his eyes in doubt.
“Including my own? Two or three, I guess.” Su Weisheng spread his hands indifferently. “Haven’t decided which one to use today.”
It was becoming clear. Su Ran wasn’t the only pitiful player scammed out of their item by the great-grandfather.
You Sui chuckled and didn’t press the item topic any further. Instead, he suggested, “Since we’re both Ghost Hunters, why don’t we team up?”
Su Weisheng asked him, “What’s your mission?”
“To eliminate the remnants of the previous Ghoul King and to kill the current Ghost King, Grant. What about you?” You Sui gave a straightforward answer as a show of sincerity.
Su Weisheng let out a casual “Mm” and replied without a hint of concern, “Then our missions don’t conflict.” With that, he took out paper and pen and began analyzing the current situation for You Sui, as his own gesture of sincerity.
At present, the widely accepted information among players is that the factions were split into three sides: Humans, Ghouls, and Ghost Hunters.
Among them, Humans and Ghost Hunters could form alliances, while Ghouls were enemies of both. However, since the Ghouls were on home turf, they had the advantage of being able to repeatedly farm items.
Based on the information everyone had shared so far, Wen Ye, Su Anyao, Li Lang, and Su Ning were all Humans. Su Weisheng and You Sui were Ghost Hunters, and Lu Huanjin and Su Ran were Ghouls.
Through yesterday’s round of light probing, Su Weisheng had more or less figured out everyone’s situation.
He said, “Su Anyao’s mission is to find the Ghoul who killed her brother. Li Lang’s mission is definitely to find the Ghoul who killed his fiancée. Wen Ye came to the castle because of Su Ning—their missions should be interconnected. Also, the fact that Su Ning was captured and locked up in the castle instead of being killed outright proves he’s not just an ordinary human. At the very least, to the Ghouls, he still has value.”
You Sui suddenly added, “Lu Huanjin is a picky eater.”
Su Weisheng lifted his eyes to look at him, then offered a piece of information in return: “Su Ran has a circular hollow mark on his wrist.”
Information exchange.
The two of them glanced at each other and smiled in perfect sync.
Online comments:
【What kind of riddles are they speaking in? I’m literally watching this with God-level omniscience, and I still don’t get it.】
【What do Su Ran’s mark and Lu Huanjin’s picky eating mean?? Damn it, my scalp itches. I think I’m about to grow a brain…】
【Holy hell, the only two people with brains in the entire game just teamed up. Do the others even have a chance now?】
【Damn, is this what they call a strong × strong CP? Only you understand the meaning in my words, and only I share that tacit understanding with you. God, I love this dynamic!】
【Hahaha, this script actually isn’t that hard. The clues are very straightforward. It’s just that people who haven’t played murder-mystery games might not catch the logic.】
【+1. The moment those two started talking, I got it.】
【??? Wait, if you got it, explain it to the rest of us??】
But no one offered to solve the riddle for the clueless viewers. After the wordplay ended, You Sui stood up and left to carry out his task. Su Weisheng remained alone on the sofa, staring thoughtfully at his departing figure.
The Maine Coon under the sofa only cautiously poked its head out once the sound of human voices had disappeared. Its amber eyes blinked as it looked toward Su Weisheng. Its pink nose twitched as it sniffed the human’s scent. Detecting no danger, its curiosity got the better of it, and it tentatively rubbed itself against the human’s leg.
There was no rejection, so it rubbed again.
The human glanced down and reached out, intending to pet its head. The Maine Coon was startled and quickly backed away a few steps, staring at him warily.
Su Weisheng was a little speechless.
This Maine Coon was nearly a meter long, its long, silvery-white fur draping in soft waves. With its tall ears, round eyes, and big mouth, it looked like a majestic little lion, but its personality was comically timid, hard to put into words.
“Come here,” he beckoned.
The Maine Coon hesitated for a moment, but its curiosity toward this human ultimately prevailed. With its long paws, it carefully tiptoed forward again and again until it finally nudged its fluffy cheek against Su Weisheng’s leg. It immediately squinted its eyes in contentment and let out a soft “meow~.”
The entire day, the players were all quite busy.
Lu Huanjin and Su Ning were in the back hills gathering fruit and grinding for items. The remaining humans were running all over the castle trying to find clues. You Sui was elusive and difficult to find. But Su Weisheng was clearly the most idle player in this round of the game. He casually chatted with a few people and made no effort to search for clues or complete any tasks. He spent the whole time in the lounge petting the cat.
Since it was a high-freedom live-action game, his refusal to participate was something the game officials couldn’t do much about.
Li Lang initially thought about teaming up with Su Weisheng to complete his mission, but the moment the great-grandfather opened his mouth, he asked for Li Lang’s item as the condition. Li Lang couldn’t bear to part with it, so the cooperation fell through, and he ended up running around on his own, looking for clues.
In contrast, Su Ning was clearly slacking off.
Wen Ye had been chasing the “princess”, persistently asking what his wish was. Su Ning brushed him off perfunctorily and slipped away, only to loop around to the lounge to find Great-grandfather. As soon as he stepped in, he saw Su Weisheng lounging lazily on the sofa flipping through the game script, with a Maine Coon that looked like a little lion sprawled across his lap, acting all affectionate.
“Why is there a cat in the castle?” he asked.
Su Weisheng replied, “I heard it belongs to the owner.”
Su Ning didn’t think much of it. He casually sat down across from Su Weisheng and asked with great interest, “Great-grandfather, have you completed your mission?”
“Not yet,” Su Weisheng replied calmly. “Why? Are you planning to ally with me?”
Su Ning answered as if it were only natural, “Of course. A delicate princess who can only be rescued obviously needs a strong ghost hunter to protect him.” As he spoke, he very naturally tossed his item over, smiling sweetly with curved eyes. “Here, I’ve paid the protection fee. Great-grandfather, you better not sell me out to someone else.”
Honestly, Ningning really was the most thoughtful and lovable. Without needing Su Weisheng to make a move, he willingly handed over benefits on his own.
Su Weisheng accepted the item and put it away. Glancing toward the lively activity outside, he said meaningfully, “There’s a clear difference between those who pay and those who don’t. When necessary, I’ll cover for you and help you pass.”
Su Ning blinked. “So there are still people who haven’t paid yet? Then I’m relieved.”
Just as they were chatting, the noise outside grew louder. When they stepped out, they saw Su Ran and Lu Huanjin striding in with impressive bearing. Judging by the top star’s filthy clothes and sparkling eyes, it was clear they’d had a fruitful harvest.
As they walked, Su Ran was still complaining, “I’m telling you, there were monkeys in the back hills throwing fruit at us. So rude! We got so mad we chased them for three whole paths with sticks…”
As he spoke, he suddenly turned and saw Su Weisheng. His first instinct was to lift the item he’d just earned, but Lu Huanjin immediately pressed his hand down. Only then did Su Ran remember they weren’t on the same team, and he had to back down in frustration.
Grant also stepped out. Still the picture of a gentleman, his peach blossom eyes behind his glasses blinked, and with a smiling tone, he began hosting the game: “It looks like everyone already has their own conclusions in mind. In that case, why don’t we head back to the study now and talk about what each of you has found?”
It was time to begin the summary for the second round.
The players naturally had no objections. They followed Grant into the study and sat in two rows. Before sitting down, Su Ran excitedly leaned over to Su Weisheng and whispered, “Great-grandfather, don’t worry. Even though we’re not on the same team, as long as you need it, I’ll definitely have your back!”
Su Weisheng gave a faint glance at the silly fool and nodded in encouragement. “Good luck.”
Lu Huanjin, face dark, pressed him back into his seat. “Take a good look at the mission written in your booklet.”
President Lu was truly worn out from worry.
Once everyone was seated, Grant cleared his throat to cue the progression. He first asked Wen Ye, “You came here to rescue the princess. Has she agreed to elope with you?”
Having failed to persuade Su Ning, Wen Ye looked utterly hopeless. “…No.”
Mission failed.
Grant turned to Li Lang and asked, “Have you found the one who killed your fiancée? You only get one chance.”
Li Lang: “…”
Director Li hadn’t found any useful information. He could only look down at the item in his hand, hesitating over whether to take a gamble. But his item could only eliminate one wrong answer—it didn’t guarantee he’d find the right one.
Su Weisheng, watching with interest, offered him a tempting proposal: “If you give me your item, I can give you the correct answer.”
Su Ran, who was basically Su Weisheng’s number-one fan, immediately chimed in with confident persuasion: “You won’t figure it out on your own. But Great-grandfather’s script is so thick, he definitely knows everything. You might as well give him the item and trade for a completed mission—that’s better than playing blind and hoping to get lucky.”
“You have a point.” Li Lang nodded at Su Ran, then handed his item over to Su Weisheng.
Everyone turned to Su Weisheng, some curious, some skeptical. He’d spent the entire time in the lounge resting and petting a cat. Did he really know everything?
Su Weisheng calmly put away the item and answered in an indifferent tone: “Your fiancée was killed by Su Ran.”
“Oh… huh?” Su Ran had originally intended to chime in in agreement, but suddenly realized what was said. He froze on the spot, utterly stunned. “I killed her? I didn’t! I don’t even know his girlfriend!”
Never in a million years did he expect the boomerang to come flying back and hit him.
Su Weisheng reminded him, “Look at your wrist. What’s on it?”
Su Ran turned his palm upward. Everyone looked over and saw a bluish-purple circular hollow mark on it.
“What does that mean?” Su Anyao asked, confused.
You Sui chuckled lightly and explained on Su Weisheng’s behalf: “Ghouls eat human flesh and absorb it into their own bodies. Li Lang said his fiancée was eaten so thoroughly that not a trace was left—only a pool of blood. And since she was his fiancée, it’s perfectly normal that she wore a ring on her hand.”
Su Anyao suddenly understood. “So when he was eating, he didn’t pay attention and didn’t bite through the ring. For some reason, it got left behind and is now embedded in his body. That circular imprint must be the ring!”
Since ghouls have different physiology from humans, that explanation made sense.
Su Weisheng then reminded Su Ran, “Check your character booklet. There should be a related record.”
Prompted by that, Su Ran flipped through his character script and found, in a small, easily overlooked line in the corner, a note saying that on a certain month and year, he casually ate a woman wearing a ring, who happened to be an engaged bride.
“…” So it really was him.
Damn. Not only did he not realize it, but he even sold himself out.
Once that realization hit, the whole room burst into laughter.
Once the laughter died down, Grant moved on to the next question. He turned to Su Anyao and asked, “Did you find the ghoul who killed your brother?”
Before Su Anyao could say a word, Lu Huanjin immediately pulled out an item and launched an attack: “I have the Ghoul’s Key. I activate the item—she is silenced for one round.”
Everyone turned to look at Lu Huanjin—he was clearly the revealed wolf among them now.
But since he used the item, even if Su Anyao knew who the killer was, she wouldn’t be able to say it. The mission would thus fail. Lu Huanjin was truly cunning.
Su Anyao beat her chest in frustration, furiously pointing at him—shameless, absolutely shameless!
Seeing this, Su Ran was full of regret. “If I had known I was the killer, I would’ve used my skill earlier, too!”
Online comments:
【So that’s what the two of them were talking about this morning. The circular mark represented Su Ran having eaten the fiancée, while the ‘picky eating’ hinted that Su Anyao’s brother had his organs removed, but his limbs were left behind.】
【Damn, how many items does great-grandfather have now?】
【Four. Right now, only he and You Sui have any items left. But You Sui has only one—he has four.】
【OP—Is he here to play the game or to run an arms dealership?】
【Here we go, here we go! The final showdown is starting!】
Grant then asked You Sui, “Did you find out who the surviving descendant of the former Ghoul King is?”
Su Weisheng immediately took out the Ghoul’s Key. “I activate the item—silence…”
But at the exact same time, You Sui pulled out his own cross. He sat with legs crossed in his chair, leisurely watching Su Weisheng, and smiled: “Shengsheng, my item has a higher priority than yours. I activate the Cross to block all your actions this round.”
The Cross had the power to completely block a ghoul’s actions for an entire day, but You Sui hadn’t used it earlier. He had saved it until now, because he was still trying to determine who exactly was the descendant of the former Ghoul King.
And now, he had found them.
Su Weisheng met his gaze coldly. “You’re sure you want to use it on me?”
You Sui’s fox-like eyes curved as he smiled gently. “You said it yourself—there are no fathers and sons on the battlefield. In a game, only one person can win, right?”
The two locked eyes—one clear and sharp as ice, the other calm and smiling. But both were equally determined to win this game.
At some point, the atmosphere had turned tense. Everyone exchanged glances, feeling an inexplicable sense of pressure. The affectionate couple showed no mercy in this deadly game, so who would be the final winner?
You Sui pointed directly at Su Weisheng. “The descendant left behind by the former Ghoul King… is you.”
Su Weisheng let out a soft chuckle. “Wrong.”
Then Su Ning spoke up right after: “It’s me.”
Everyone turned to look at Su Ning in shock. No one had expected that he would be involved in this, too. “Aren’t you human? Wen Ye can confirm that!”
Su Ning spread his hands and explained, “The former Ghoul King was killed by the current Ghoul King. His descendant fled to the human world disguised as a human. Later, she was captured and interrogated by the current Ghoul King. Meanwhile, her little simp on Earth thought his goddess was human and came all the way to the castle to rescue her. Isn’t that totally plausible?”
It was indeed very plausible.
But You Sui was still staring at Su Weisheng, utterly puzzled. “If you weren’t a ghoul, the Cross wouldn’t have worked on you. The only explanation… is that you are a ghoul—just not the descendant of the former Ghoul King.”
Su Weisheng smiled lightly. “Maybe so.”
Su Ran was puzzled. “But great-grandfather, if you weren’t the descendant, why did you use your item in that round?”
You Sui sighed. “Obviously because he and Su Ning had already teamed up and deliberately used it to throw me off.” From the moment the outcome was revealed and his plan had fallen just one move short, he quickly realized what had happened.
In truth, Su Weisheng wasn’t certain whether he was a ghoul or not—he had only been guessing. Fortunately, his guess turned out to be correct, and he was able to shield Su Ning from danger.
This round, Great-grandfather had won thoroughly, gaining everything he could.
Just then, Great-grandfather turned and asked the two ghouls, “How many Ghoul Keys did you draw? Do you have any left?”
Su Ran patted his pocket. “Still have three…”
“Perfect.” Su Weisheng placed his three items on the table. “Want to trade?”
Lu Huanjin asked curiously, “You want three Ghoul Keys?”
“Mhm.”
The two little ghouls exchanged a glance. This time, even Lu Huanjin found it a good deal. “Deal!”
You Sui looked at his wife’s move and suddenly had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, the next second, Su Weisheng took out the three Ghoul Keys and said, very pointedly to him, “Starting tomorrow, no matter what you do, I will mute you every single round.”
You Sui: “…”
Some people seek revenge when there’s a chance. His wife, however, seeks revenge from dawn till dusk without missing a beat.
The second round of the game ended. Tomorrow, the final battle begins.
After Grant announced the meeting was adjourned, everyone stretched lazily and began to busy themselves with their own tasks. Once everyone had left, You Sui slowly padded over to Su Weisheng’s side, ready to start coaxing his wife.
Su Weisheng suddenly furrowed his brow. He counted on his fingers and asked You Sui, “Did you feel that?”
“What?” You Sui answered matter-of-factly, “I’m just a mortal; of course, I wouldn’t feel anything. What did you sense?”
Su Weisheng’s expression grew serious. He said, “The calamity of fortune has arrived.”
You Sui’s expression also turned grave. “Is it dangerous?”
“I can vaguely sense it… There will be bloodshed.”
The two exchanged a glance, both slightly tense.
The live chat was flooded with question marks.
【What do they mean? What calamity could the top star be facing?】
【So mysterious, probably just making things up.】
【No way. Great-grandfather is really something; if he predicted it, it must be true!】
【Why are those two staring at each other? Shouldn’t they be telling Su Ran? Are they actually biological great-grandfather and great-grandson?】
【Those two seem way too in sync, not like ordinary friends…】
【Now’s not the time to ship them! Think about Su Ran. Won’t something really happen to him?】
【Help! Bloodshed sounds terrifying. Is the top star going to die?】
Just as the fans’ worries were syncing up and their imaginations began spinning dark scenarios of a bloody incident, a loud, sharp shout suddenly came from outside the study: “Holy crap, someone come quick! Something’s happened, something’s happened!”
“Lu Huanjin got attacked by a monkey!”
Netizens: …?
Su Weisheng: …ah.
The door of a guest room on the second floor stood wide open. A group of people circled inside, clueless and restless. Su Weisheng walked closer and saw that Lu Huanjin, caught off guard by the sudden attack, had already fallen out of the second-floor window. Only one hand was gripping the window ledge tightly, barely keeping him from falling.
The monkey that had climbed up the vines to the second floor was clearly out for revenge. It stood on the windowsill, chattering wildly, baring its claws and forbidding anyone to come close. Its black eyes gleamed with excited, venomous intent, clearly determined to push Lu Huanjin down.
Grant tried to step forward to chase the monkey away but was scratched on the arm by its sharp claws, causing blood to splatter. He couldn’t get close at all.
Everyone was terrified and at a loss.
Lu Huanjin’s hand clung tightly to the window frame, veins bulging on the back of his hand from the effort. Cold sweat dripped steadily from his forehead. Despite this, he remained relatively calm, his hoarse voice commanding the chaotic crowd to fetch tools…
Su Weisheng’s eyes narrowed slightly, ready at any moment to rush in and rescue him.
At that moment, Su Ran downstairs heard the commotion above. Running forward with a carefree laugh, he said, “What? Lu Huanjin got attacked by a monkey? I have to see such an embarrassing scene…”
He cheerfully pushed through the crowd and entered, only to witness the monkey trying to push Lu Huanjin out the window.
Su Ran’s face changed instantly. There was no time for a smile to freeze; his expression turned into a furious rage, as if his territory had been invaded. “You damn monkey, how dare you lay a claw on my man—”
A staff member rushed in holding a stick, but the next second, the stick was snatched away by the top star.
Su Ran didn’t even think it through. His body instinctively grabbed a weapon and executed a fierce sword flourish. The monkey, which had just been taunting a moment ago, was thrown flying out the window and crashed straight onto the ground.
But the top star didn’t even glance at the monkey. Half of his body lunged out the window to grab hold of Lu Huanjin’s wrist.
Everyone was stunned.
The netizens were stunned, too.
Su Ran, half hanging outside, had eyes bloodshot with rage. But Lu Huanjin, dangling outside the window, tilted his head back with bright eyes. The two locked gazes. At this moment, all barriers between them vanished in the face of danger.
Lu Huanjin’s face was pale from pain, but he faintly smiled and said, “I feel like I’ve gone back to that year again. I was mocked in the group for being bad at business, and you, like a little firecracker, would explode at the slightest thing. Even though you were two years younger than me, you desperately protected me, saying you would keep me safe.”
“Ranran, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left back then.”
“my man” aaaaaaaaa