The Benevolent Automaton, Yan Wei, looked at Xu Miaomiao’s colorful expression. On the surface, he appeared calm and disdainful with a hint of tension, but his mind was already calculating the next steps. Xu Miaomiao, having been verbally cornered by him and with the Manjusaka’s energy draining, had little attention to spare for the Benevolent Automaton Yan Wei. She simply stood up and said, “You’re really something.”
Afterward, one of Xu Miaomiao’s counterparts stayed behind to keep an eye on Yan Wei, while the other left, presumably to find other Manjusaka players.
The Benevolent Automaton Yan Wei pretended to be exhausted, leaning back on the sofa with his eyes closed, but his mind was racing.
At this point in the situation, he and his True Self could no longer continue their deductions because everything from here on out was unknown.
All he could do was try to stabilize the situation.
In simple terms, he needed to ensure that Xu Miaomiao’s attention remained entirely on him.
His True Self, Yan Wei, must have followed the Man in Black Robe by now and was likely unable to handle any other unexpected events. Therefore, he needed to ensure that no other surprises occurred. His task was both difficult and simple. He needed to delay Xu Miaomiao as much as possible to prevent her from noticing any issues with the Blocker or the map while his True Self was preoccupied with the Man in Black Robe.
But he had a significant advantage—he knew he was the Benevolent Automaton.
He had no regard for life or death.
In Lou’s instances, the most dangerous players were not the cautious ones, but those who were reckless—only those without fear would dare to gamble.
So, just like earlier, he could deliberately provoke Xu Miaomiao to keep her emotionally unstable, engaging in this back-and-forth psychological game. He could also later throw himself into danger to trap the Manjusaka.
None of them wanted to accumulate Points by shedding players’ blood, but they weren’t merciful enough to completely give up on the crucial first place. Delaying Xu Miaomiao and Xue Wan’s progress while finding another path was the best option they had. Even though the demands for deduction and adaptability were harsh to the point of being abnormal, both the Benevolent Automaton Yan Wei and his True Self were willing to take the risk.
The Benevolent Automaton Yan Wei—or rather, his True Self—had always defined himself as a selfish individual who prioritized personal gain over emotion. Until today, he never thought he would be the type to sacrifice for the greater good.
It seemed that ever since he started climbing the tower, he had always defined himself as selfish, concerned only with the final outcome. This wasn’t a long-standing personality trait, but rather a self-loathing yet irresistible thought that arose whenever he considered a situation: he would always choose the outcome most beneficial to himself, not to everyone.
This mindset persisted until the moment he acted in front of Xu Miaomiao.
The Benevolent Automaton Yan Wei suddenly realized that, ever since they began their meticulous planning over the past few days, every choice he made completely contradicted this self-perception.
His True Self must have realized this too.
He laughed mockingly in his heart.
Stupid kindness.
Yan Wei followed behind, watching as the Man in Black Robe stumbled into a room surrounded by black glass.
The entire third floor was filled with various glass chambers, each stocked with gruesome tools for making Puppets, the air thick with the pungent stench of blood. Some of the glass was transparent, some black, creating a bizarre and eerie pattern in the intersecting corridors.
The fading light of the setting sun filtered through the windows, refracting endlessly within the glass, casting blurred shadows that made the place even more unnaturally eerie.
Yu Feizhou whispered, “Should we still go in? It’s getting dark.”
In Lou’s instances, whether it was the bizarre and grotesque Ghosts or the indistinguishable Puppets, most followed the rules of those unclean things. Nighttime weakened players’ vision and mobility, but for these entities, it was a feast.
And as for the room the Man in Black Robe had entered, none of them knew what was inside…
But the Man in Black Robe, having just driven a large number of Malevolent Automatons, was so exhausted that he could barely walk, yet he still passed through so many glass chambers and rooms to reach this place. This room was clearly different from the others. They had spent two days setting up this situation; if they left now out of fear, who knew if they would end up empty-handed after a night’s delay?
Yan Wei frowned for a moment but quickly relaxed, decisively saying, “We’ll go in, but not all of us. My Benevolent Automaton is with Xu Miaomiao, and I trust myself. As for the Man in Black Robe… Yan Mingguang and I, plus one more, will go in. The other two will head to the Stargazing Platform.”
“Xue Wan isn’t stupid. By now, she must have realized how important the Stargazing Platform is. No matter how much we players compete, the top floor is essential for us to leave. The Morning Star will defend the Stargazing Platform fiercely, so to ensure we aren’t blocked by them later, we’ll leave two people to deal with them. No direct confrontation—just keep harassing and exhausting them, depleting their skills and Items, and figuring out their strategies until I finish here.”
Yu Feizhou’s eyes lit up. “No direct fighting. We’re flexible, while they’re stationary. We can use various methods to wear them down. A little exhaustion won’t show immediately, but over time, it will weaken them while making them lower their guard.”
Yan Wei nodded.
Knowing time was short, he glanced at Yu Feizhou and Lin Zhen and said without hesitation, “Yu Feizhou, you go to the Stargazing Platform. Your strengths and skills are perfect for this kind of drawn-out attrition battle. Don’t engage them directly—harass them for a while, then retreat, and come back again. The two of you can coordinate well. Lin Zhen, you’re coming with us.”
Lin Zhen immediately protested, “Why does Yu Feizhou get to fight while I have to deal with the puzzle??”
“Because if you go, you’ll just start fighting with Xue Wan right away.”
“…”
Yan Wei waved his hand. “Let’s go in.”
It was completely dark now.
The castle, already without power, plunged into darkness once more, with only the faint moonlight filtering through the windows. Outside, crows circled and cawed, while inside, the corridors echoed with the mechanical footsteps of Malevolent Automatons, occasionally punctuated by mad screams.
The Dream Realm, blending truth and illusion, had become much more severe than the previous night. Even though no players had scored today due to the disappearance of the Man in Black Robe, some still died in the confusion of what was real and what wasn’t, their Benevolent Automatons turning into Malevolent ones.
This was the effect of those multi-layered dreams.
Even if players didn’t kill each other, the dreams would still find ways to take lives.
The Malevolent Automatons were increasing.
Yan Mingguang stood in front of Yan Wei, with Lin Zhen behind. Yan Wei wrapped the Moon Wheel’s light in his coat, creating a small barrier that enveloped all three of them.
Before entering, Yan Wei had prepared for the worst—that they would immediately encounter the Man in Black Robe or some unknown danger upon entering, forcing them to fight. It was risky, but worth a try.
But once inside, they were met with darkness and silence.
Yet Yan Wei felt a chilling sense of unease.
[No good, I can’t see anything,] he said, pulling Yan Mingguang and stopping Lin Zhen behind him, signaling them to halt. [My perception is blocked up ahead. It feels like… the path isn’t clear.]
[Then just take out a flashlight. Worst case, we fight.]
Yan Wei thought for a moment and said, [The flashlight’s light is too strong. I’ll take out the Moon Wheel instead.]
He pulled the Moon Wheel out from his coat and held it in his palm, the soft white light illuminating the space ahead. All three of them paused.
Ahead was a wall with a door that blended seamlessly into its surface, like a hidden mechanism within the glass chamber. Players on the 40th floor were no pushovers; they must have explored every corner of the castle. This door must be hard to open or only accessible to the Man in Black Robe.
The door was slightly ajar, clearly left open in the Man in Black Robe’s haste.
This time, they had stumbled upon a stroke of luck.
Yan Wei suddenly had a thought.
[This game… lasts seven days, right?]
Yan Mingguang: [Yes.]
[But from the way things are progressing now, it won’t take seven days for the scores to widen and high-ranking players to start killing each other. This instance is speeding up. So why give us seven days?]
Lin Zhen scratched his head, while Yan Mingguang calmly said, [We might have stumbled upon something.]
Yan Wei nodded.
Three days were enough to determine the rankings. What was the extra time for?
It was for breaking the instance.
This hidden door in the glass chamber hadn’t been discovered by any players in the past two days, clearly indicating it was difficult to find. Even if discovered, opening it would likely be a complicated process.
This was probably a stage that would take a lot of time, possibly two or three days for the players who found it. But through this series of maneuvers, Yan Wei had accidentally—or perhaps not so accidentally—stumbled upon this place.
Yan Wei, using the faint light, exchanged a glance with Yan Mingguang. Then, Yan Mingguang took the lead, and the two of them approached the slightly open door.
Yan Mingguang reached out, making no sound, and slowly pulled the door open.
The door had been slightly ajar before, and Yan Wei could only vaguely see a spacious interior. Now, with the door fully open, he looked ahead and froze.
—It was a massive Stairway.
But they were already on the third floor.
Based on the castle’s layout they had deduced during their exploration, the first floor was the largest, the second and third floors were the same size, and the fourth floor was exceptionally small, housing only the Stargazing Platform with the Meat Grinder. When they were in the Jungle Maze, crows filled the sky, and the castle’s black walls made it hard to see the structure. After entering, Yan Wei had figured out the layout and always thought the castle was a trapezoid, shrinking in size as it went up.
But here they were on the third floor, and inside this glass chamber was an upward Stairway, not leading to the Stargazing Platform…
Yan Wei’s eyes sparkled, his amber eyes like shining stars under the Moon Wheel’s pale light.
He whispered, “We’ve hit the jackpot this time… So the fourth floor isn’t just the Stargazing Platform.”
