Yan Wei finished asking his question and didn’t say much more, idly playing with a coin beside him, waving his hand to signal Yan Mingguang to sit down as well.
The man lowered his gaze and walked slowly to sit beside Yan Wei.
Moments later, another scream pierced the air. As time passed, although the players discovered more traces of death triggers, the appearances of Ghosts/Monsters increased as well. Like other instances, the further they progressed, the faster the deaths occurred. Yan Wei had anticipated this, mentally counting how many players were likely still left. Suddenly, He Luo spoke up beside him.
“You all know about my situation with Qian Xuanxuan, right?”
Yan Wei nodded.
In the pitch darkness, He Luo’s completely white eyes turned slightly, making his pale face appear even more terrifying.
He said, “Follow me.”
He Luo stood up, adjusted his school uniform, straightened the hem, and slowly walked forward. This time he didn’t hide it; instead of walking, he floated silently, moving without a sound.
Yan Wei and Yan Mingguang exchanged glances, remaining vigilant, and both stood up to follow He Luo.
At this moment, Yan Wei was no longer in an Undying State. Yan Mingguang walked in front, while Yan Wei followed at the back.
Before long, He Luo led them around the dormitory building to a small grove behind it.
Though it was called a small grove, the trees here were dense and tall, and it was clear that no one had cleaned it for years, with fallen leaves covering the ground, mixed with weeds and decaying leaves in the soil. The branches and leaves blocked the only moonlight, making it impossible to see one’s hand in front of them, as if stepping forward would plunge them into an unseen darkness.
Yan Wei recognized this place.
In recent days, many players had been searching all over the school, and even this small grove behind the dormitory had caught some attention. However, during the day, there was nothing unusual about this grove. When the people from Moonlight were still alive, they had brought Yan Wei here to search, but found nothing.
Now, standing in front of this small grove in the dead of night, Yan Wei felt the eerie sensation it brought.
It was as if something chilling lingered here, a sinister wind brushed against Yan Wei’s neck, as if countless icy hands were gliding over him, and it felt like countless eyes were watching from the pitch-black depths, sending shivers down his spine.
They stopped in front of the grove, and Yan Wei’s eyes narrowed slightly, focusing on the uncomfortable chill, his Perception spreading out slightly.
In an instant, the dark grove was filled with countless familiar sensations.
—It was a retrospective illusion.
In the small grove at midnight, there were countless retrospective illusions. However, the ones here lacked the murderous intent found in the ancient town of Ankang; they seemed to be merely ordinary grievances condensed, not actively drawing people in, nor leading to death without a solution.
He Luo’s cool voice came through: “After Qian Xuanxuan and I died, some strange changes occurred at Morning Light High School, and students began to die one after another. After we died, we became ghosts, and several places in the school have shown signs of abnormality.”
Both Yan Wei and Yan Mingguang were aware of this—this was the drastic change brought about by the Legendary Item in a low-level instance. The Ghost Hand Space, the archives, and even the entire campus could all be sources of energy influenced by the Moon Wheel.
“And here, it gathers the grievances of all our deceased classmates. Mine is among them. However, I am just an ordinary ghost drifting here; I cannot enter this grove, only grasp my own grievances. If you want to know, I can send you in.”
Yan Wei blinked.
【Teacher Yan, I didn’t expect the real show to be at night here, all the retrospectives of the deceased students… What do you think would happen if we crashed in?】
【Getting lost.】
【With me around, that’s not getting lost; that’s clearing a level.】
【……】
He Luo asked them, “Do you want to directly enter my grievance to see what happened?”
“Sure,” he said.
Yan Mingguang remained silent beside him, clearly following all of Yan Wei’s decisions.
He Luo had already raised his hand, and the darkness deep within the grove seemed to slowly drift toward Yan Wei and Yan Mingguang with his movement. Yan Wei suddenly said, “But I need to tell you something in advance, He Luo. My willingness to see your grievance doesn’t mean I’m not cautious of you, nor does it mean I trust you. It’s just that I’m not afraid of any tricks you might have; even if we come out and you’re not there, I have plenty of ways to drag you out again.”
As soon as he finished speaking, everything before him began to tremble. As the world spun, the pitch-black night dispersed, and sunlight flooded into Yan Wei’s eyes from all directions.
He was momentarily stunned, realizing he was in a hazy daylight scene, surrounded by several bunk beds and desks cluttered with books and snacks. The wall clock had stopped at six forty-five, and a calendar hung nearby.
This was He Luo’s retrospective illusion from when he was alive; based on the time, it should be a morning just a few days after He Luo and Qian Xuanxuan started school three years ago.
He immediately spread his Perception to search for Yan Mingguang’s presence, but it sank like a stone—this retrospective seemed to only have He Luo’s perspective; he and Yan Mingguang must have entered identical retrospectives separately.
As Yan Wei confirmed all of this, the second hand on the clock began to move slowly, as if something was manipulating Yan Wei’s current body—his identity was now He Luo, merely a spectator inhabiting this body, watching He Luo’s every move.
The retrospective illusion began.
Sounds of rustling came from the dormitory, and Yan Wei sat up. The other boys in the nearby bunks also began to wake up one by one, each putting on their school uniforms and starting their morning routines.
Since all of this had already happened, his consciousness residing in this body could just follow along without much thought, so he simply threw himself completely into the role of a spectator.
He Luo walked to one of the small desks, where textbooks and notebooks were haphazardly scattered, and his school uniform was casually draped over the back of a chair. He casually put on the uniform and walked to the washbasin. The dormitory washbasin had no mirror, only a simple rack for toiletries.
He picked up a toothbrush with his left hand, and soon his mouth was full of foam. A boy from the same dormitory came up and put his arm around his shoulder, saying, “Hey He Luo, how about we go to the cafeteria in Building Three for breakfast today? I’ve been craving it for days.”
He Luo smiled and nodded, rinsed his mouth, and said, “Sure, sure, I’m not picky. Ah, I’m so sleepy; luckily, there’s not much homework since school just started.”
The boys quickly finished washing up and half-ran, chattering loudly toward the cafeteria.
At the cafeteria, he also ran into Qian Xuanxuan, who was in line for food with her roommates. The girl had long black hair that fell down, and although her features weren’t particularly striking, she had the fresh and clean look typical of girls her age. Seeing Qian Xuanxuan made He Luo smile even more.
At the beginning of the school year, He Luo and Qian Xuanxuan seemed to get along well with their classmates.
Retrospective illusions mostly record scenes from the deceased’s life, as those moments leave the deepest impressions; earlier events usually flash by quickly.
Soon, the scenes before Yan Wei began to change rapidly, and he quickly witnessed He Luo’s brief high school life.
He Luo and Qian Xuanxuan had been adopted by Tang Yizhuo’s family since elementary school. Although they knew their treatment was certainly not as good as Tang Yizhuo’s, under the influence of Tang Yizhuo’s charitable mother, their personalities were relatively decent. The three of them attended Morning Light High School together, and friendships among young people form quickly; it didn’t take long for them to become a close-knit group.
However, He Luo was always aware that Tang Yizhuo was not as graceful as everyone perceived him to be.
On the contrary, Tang Yizhuo was a very hypocritical person. He appeared to have good relationships with all his classmates, ranked first in academics, and was the new student council president, seemingly excelling in both character and ability. But once it was just the three of them alone, Tang Yizhuo would completely reveal his true nature, constantly ordering He Luo and Qian Xuanxuan to do things for him, only to take credit for it in front of others. He Luo and Qian Xuanxuan’s poor grades were due to the time they spent secretly helping Tang Yizhuo with tasks or cleaning up after him.
Moreover, Tang Yizhuo looked down on everyone; he often insulted classmates in front of He Luo and Qian Xuanxuan.
Good family education had cultivated a fundamentally rotten person.
He Luo and Qian Xuanxuan felt grateful deep down and never complained to others, nor did they dare to speak out, always thinking that things would be better once they grew up.
Little did they expect that from the moment they entered Morning Light High School, Tang Yizhuo’s malicious nature would worsen. He began to mock other students in the class, secretly playing pranks, and then hiding to enjoy the panicked and angry reactions of those people. When things came to light, Tang Yizhuo would shift all the blame onto He Luo and Qian Xuanxuan.
Gradually, while Tang Yizhuo remained the exemplary gentleman student council president in the eyes of teachers and all students, He Luo and Qian Xuanxuan became increasingly disliked by everyone.
The hatred, under the passage of time and Tang Yizhuo’s increasingly outrageous actions, gradually morphed into bullying and exclusion.
They dared to be angry but couldn’t speak out; sometimes, they would return to the dormitory only to find their beds filled with trash.
Once, when He Luo faced criticism from both a teacher and Tang Yizhuo’s mother, he finally couldn’t hold back and said that it was all Tang Yizhuo’s doing, only to receive indifferent reactions—everyone thought he was slandering Tang Yizhuo, believing that a child like him, who had always had poor grades and lived in an orphanage for a long time, would do such a thing.
Scenes from the retrospective flashed by rapidly, and as they progressed, the sky in the images began to darken under the weight of emotions, casting a shadow over He Luo’s life.
Soon, the figures around him began to blur, and everything became unclear, except for Qian Xuanxuan, who began to retaliate against those who bullied them.
In the scenes of revenge, He Luo watched from the side. He seemed hesitant, occasionally taking a step forward, only to retreat back into the corner to watch.
Qian Xuanxuan held a cage containing a snake and secretly placed it at the corner of the stairs. Her delicate features were now clouded with darkness, and her long black hair seemed to have grown from hell.
Just as she squatted down, intending to slightly open the cage door before quickly throwing it away, He Luo suddenly stepped forward and grabbed her: “Forget it, what’s the difference between us and them? This isn’t just a simple prank anymore!”
Qian Xuanxuan shook off his hand, her face twisted with rage: “So I deserve this? Every time I return to the dormitory, my seat and bed are filled with trash from who knows where. The homework I painstakingly completed and submitted neatly comes back covered in scribbles, and the teacher scolds me for not being serious. I even have to worry that a disgusting piece of chewed gum will suddenly appear on my seat during class! When we tell the teacher, they just pretend to apologize in front of him, and nothing changes. I have nightmares every night, dreaming that someone maliciously lifts my skirt, dreaming that I’m pushed down the stairs, but what about them? No rules will make them pay the same price!!”
Gradually, the initial false accusations turned into reality, and the things they were wrongfully accused of slowly became things they actually did.
Later, the moment they received the notice of expulsion, they completely broke down.
The final scene of this retrospective illusion was on the top floor of the dormitory, where the body that Yan Wei’s consciousness inhabited had a dispute with Qian Xuanxuan. Qian Xuanxuan looked at him with great anger, saying something Yan Wei couldn’t hear—unlike typical retrospective illusions, the memories became more and more blurred as they progressed, and it was unclear whether it was because the owner of the retrospective didn’t want to remember.
At the moment when Qian Xuanxuan was pushed off the top floor, Yan Wei suddenly closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, he was back in the pitch-black grove behind the dormitory, and on the other side, He Luo, covered in blood with completely white eyes, still stood in the same place. Yan Mingguang was turning to look at him, clearly just having come out of He Luo’s retrospective illusion.
“Did you see it?” He Luo’s voice was wrapped in a layer of ethereal eeriness, “These ghosts that keep killing started with Qian Xuanxuan. She wanted to take revenge on everyone who had bullied her; she not only retaliated but ultimately killed those classmates one by one in the same way she had been bullied, even luring Tang Yizhuo to the second-floor storage room, locking him inside, and letting him starve to death.”
“That starving ghost was Tang Yizhuo?”
“Yes. And I always knew it was her who was killing, but I didn’t want to expose her; I just watched it happen over and over. In the end… I still felt it was wrong, and I told her she couldn’t continue like this, but she not only ignored my objections but also thought I was the same as everyone else, dragging me to jump off the dormitory building together.”
Yan Wei glanced at He Luo’s terrifying head.
So, all this blood and the broken skull were the result of the fall.
He blinked, his light brown eyes in the darkness resembling amber hiding a dim light, with bright emotions concealed within. Yet his gaze was ambiguous, his voice tinged with a hint of melancholy: “The killer ghost is Qian Xuanxuan? You deliberately guided us to discover the connection between Tang Yizhuo and Qian Xuanxuan, so we could deal with Qian Xuanxuan?”
“……Yes. You all saw it; now, we are trapped here day after day, repeating those torturous deaths. I don’t want to continue like this; I want it all to end, but I can’t kill her. She’s more powerful than other ghosts and can hide away; I can’t even find her. We all have grievances, and only when the grievances disappear will she disappear. This small grove hides all our grievances, and naturally, it also contains hers. The last straw that broke her was the expulsion notice, which she threw into this grove in a fit of rage. Only when the notice disappears will her resentment vanish, and everything can end.”
Yan Wei slowly walked to Yan Mingguang’s side, casually putting his hand in his pocket and leaning slightly against him.
The man’s body seemed to stiffen for a moment.
He pretended not to notice and continued, “Oh? Then why don’t you go in?”
“I can’t enter; this is the resentment of all the deceased, and I am one of them. If I enter, I will be completely absorbed by this resentment. So… I wanted to guide you to do these things. Other new students haven’t discovered as much as you, so I focused my attention on you.”
Yan Wei looked at He Luo.
After a moment, he raised an eyebrow and said slowly, “Are you done?”
“Eh?… Um. Is there anything else you want to know? I’ve told you everything I could think of.”
Yan Wei chuckled lightly: “Then it’s my turn to speak.”
“—You, are, lying.”
