In Virtual Reality 101 ☆ The Hydrangea Park (25/33)

[TN: This pause was longer than I expected; I apologize for that. My summer was filled with garden work and other activities. On a positive note, I am back and have finished Part 1 of this novel, so feel free to read it until the end! :D]

With hardly a moment to react, the Red Dress Demon lunged, a furious crimson blur with claws like a nightmare. The confrontation ended in an instant, leaving Xu Jin Yi staring at the lifeless 'corpse,' a numbness creeping over her.

Suddenly, a sharp meow broke the silence.

From the garden, a black cat, roused from its slumber on the Flower Sea Garden Ghost, followed Xu Jin Yi. In its mouth, it carried a white hydrangea flower.

On the other side, the Red Dress Demon withdrew her dripping hand, floating silently with an empty expression that contrasted starkly with her usual touchy and spiteful demeanor. It was then that Xu Jin Yi smacked her forehead, remembering the true purpose of their meeting.

Crouching down, she cooed at the small black cat, "Meow~ Meow meow, give me the flower."

Casting a cautious glance at the Red Dress Demon, the cat hopped over to Xu Jin Yi, presenting the hydrangea flower with a contented purr.

With the vital prop in her grasp, Xu Jin Yi looked up at the Red Dress Ghost, who hovered nearby, cloaked in an eerie silence. Oddly, no fear gnawed at her. Xu Jin Yi had specifically instructed the modeller to create an entity of supreme horror, complete with a fitting environment. Yet, beneath the terrifying facade was Liu Lili – the girl who had met a tragic end in the well after fleeing the village.

To Xu Jin Yi, the true horror lay in human hearts rather than in monstrous appearances.

With a cautious, deliberate motion, she extended her right hand, presenting the white hydrangea flower cradled in her palm. "This flower belongs to you, doesn't it?" Her words were soothing, a deliberate effort to avoid startling the figure before her.

On her way, she paused briefly by the 'corpse' of Wang Jin Long, then retrieved a thick book from the ground. Gently inserting the flower stem between the book's pages, she closed it, allowing only the delicate petals to peek out.

This time, no unexpected twists awaited her. Carefully arranged, Xu Jin Yi offered the items to the Red Dress Demon. "For now, I'll leave these with you," she said, her smile unwavering as she took a step back. The gaze of the Red Dress Demon shifted from the flower to Xu Jin Yi. "You should take a moment to rest. Your turn hasn't arrived just yet."

Though Wang Jin Long's 'demise' had been abrupt, he hadn't managed to uncover Xu Jin Yi's true identity. Nevertheless, her objective had been fulfilled – exposing his true form to all present. Now, the time had come for the true showdown.

【You have lifted the fog skill.】

Xu Jin Yi's ears pricked at the subtle chime of a system notification, a sound meant solely for her. The park's thick, enshrouding fog began its slow retreat, allowing a semblance of normality to creep back in. Even the half-moon seemed to cast a brighter glow.

This time around, her use of the fog skill had devoured a substantial chunk of game time.

Her gaze shifted to the sea of hydrangeas nearby, and a wry smile curved her lips. The iron gate, firmly sealed and adorned with menacing thorns, which the Garden Ghost couldn't even slashed open, posed no threat to her. It appeared the owner was resolute in preventing anyone's entry.

But that was acceptable. Above, the blue moon bathed the scene in its radiance, nearly rivaling the brilliance of the daytime sun.

Beneath this surreal starry sky, the game's vitality surged anew.

【Lone Wolf of the Apocalypse】 was the first to rouse, breaking free from the clutches of a nightmarish slumber with a howl that resonated like the release of a captive spirit. His searching gaze swept over the surroundings, his expression a canvas of bewilderment.

"Did we actually reset...?"

Asmodeus's words rang with truth; he hadn't deceived them.

As the initial shock ebbed away, Lone Wolf confirmed his position. It struck him that just a few hundred meters ahead lay the crossroads, the very spot where he had logged into the game and glanced at his virtual identity card. Little had he foreseen that Excelsior would ensnare them all in their agility mist, starting from that very juncture.

【Yay, a chance for a fresh start!】

【I was terrified! When the screen went black, I thought he had been eliminated.】

【I check the streamer's location... Will they come across Asmodeus and his gang right at the beginning?】

【Oh oh oh oh! Is it some genius hacker prodigy?!】

【You all are excited for the comeback, but I just want is to put a knife to Wang Jin Long's throat.】

【Me too! Will the streamer show mercy this time?】

"Mercy's for suckers," Lone Wolf spat, his eyes locked on the barrage of comments. "If someone stabs you, should you just lick their face and say it's all good?"

His fingers twitched, nails transforming into gleaming daggers as he slowly raised his right hand, an unsettling glint in his eyes.

His creed remained unwavering: 'Bullies will pay tenfold.' With an unshakable resolve, Lone Wolf took a resolute step forward.

His foremost goal: linking up with players who shared his mission.

The next to rouse from the haze was another player eliminated in the mist during the previous round.

【Asmodeus】 settled onto the grass, one hand cradling his throbbing temple while the other massaged his brow. An odd fog obscured his thoughts, and he struggled to regain his bearings.

Had he pushed the holographic sync rate too far?

Still rubbing his forehead, Asmodeus caught the sound of clumsy footsteps drawing nearer from the opposite direction. Before he could raise his gaze to discern the approaching figure, he witnessed a stumble and tumble right before him.

【Fox Snap】's vision dimmed into darkness, her lips losing their color, but her determination remained resolute: "You're Asmodeus, right?"

Emerging from the mist, the initial pair of figures coincidentally became the first duo to cross paths.

Asmodeus grunted, his voice weak and barely audible to his own ears, reluctant to acknowledge that the sound belonged to him.

Fox Snap paid it no mind, shutting her eyes and extending her hand toward Asmodeus. "Big brother! I'm sticking with you from now on, big brother!"

Asmodeus: "..."

The relentless pounding in his head surged, the pain growing more intense with each beat. He couldn't help but let out a sigh, his tone tinged with a sense of helplessness as he muttered, "You're a werewolf, aren't you? You want to follow me? A civilian?"

Tears welled up in Fox Snap's eyes, her voice quivering as she lamented, "My precious Death Note is gone!" She had watched with exhilaration as Wang Jin Long met his end in the fog. But her elation had swiftly transformed into disbelief when Excelsior snatched the Death Note and handed it over to the NPC. The shock had left her utterly dumbfounded.

After regaining her composure, she hurriedly inspected her arms – unsurprisingly, the Death Note was nowhere to be found. What kind of werewolf was she without the power to eliminate? Even her allies would view her as a burden. Determined to rectify this, she stopped just short of making a solemn oath to the heavens, declaring, "I promise, I won't betray you again!"

Asmodeus finally snapped out of his daze, his annoyance evident as he retorted, "Your presence or absence doesn't concern me."

"Huh?" Fox Snap replied, still bewildered.

Brushing the grass off his body, he rose to his feet. "Although everyone has been revived and sent back to the starting point, it's not a clean slate anymore." Taking a moment to gaze at the ominous blue moon above, his brows furrowed. "Time is running out."

"What... What do you mean?" Fox Snap's voice trembled, her expression now blank.

He turned to face her, gesturing for Fox Snap to follow him. His words carried urgency as he declared, "This game, it's more than just a game now. It's become a vendetta against Wang Jin Long, with everyone united against him."

Initially, they hadn't harbored any strong feelings towards Wang Jin Long. He was just an NPC, someone inconsequential to their own interests. But now, a profound sense of humiliation washed over them – they had been manipulated by a mere NPC.

Had there been no live broadcast, events might have unfolded differently. Now regret clung to them, but altering the course of events seemed futile. Anger coursed through the streamers, and the barrage of comments on the screen resembled a horde of venfill ghosts.

【Kill kill kill! Wang Jin Long must die!】

【This victory is for Excelsior, mainly because Wang Jin Long is too annoying!】

【How can anyone tolerate this? If you keep putting up with it, won't you become a doormat?!】

The customers were always right. And not to mention, those bullet screens really bring in the traffic and money.

After reaching a consensus, they met up with the people they had encountered earlier. It was just a few hundred meters away from the crossroads.

【Lone Wolf of the Apocalypse】, 【Madam】… Even 【Righteous BGM】, who hadn’t joined them at first, hurried over from the corner of the park.

In a shadowy huddle of five, they stood united against the looming threat of Wang Jin Long. Tension hung thick in the air, their gazes darting nervously between one another.

Suppressing her simmering anger, Madam Stargazer curled her lip into a sneer. "Should we embark on a joint mission to track him down?"

BGM scratched his head, his uncertainty palpable. "But when we split up? How do we stop him from deceiving us again?"

Asmodeus let out a weary sigh, addressing the group's inexperience with a hint of resignation. "Considering the limitations of both the civilian and judge roles, and the fact that none of you have tackled any tasks yet..." He let his words trail off, underscoring the unlikelihood of relying on other NPCs in the eerie park to eliminate Wang Jin Long.

"But don't we have a werewolf among us?"

All eyes swung immediately towards Fox Snap, causing her to involuntarily shudder. She hastily waved her hands, stammering, "Don't look at me, don't look at me. My killing skills came from that book, but as you saw, Excelsior gave it away to someone else."

With a resigned gesture, she displayed her empty waist and arms.

Lone Wolf hesitated, then ventured a suggestion. "So, should we try to locate Excelsior first?" He added, "If we happen upon Wang Jin Long on our way, I'll restrain him. I may not be able to eliminate him, but I can certainly keep him from moving, right?"

Madam Stargazer crackled with electric sparks in her hands as she spoke. "I can offer some free electrotherapy."

BGM pondered for a moment. "And I'm always up for singing and playing the Great Compassion Mantra rock."

The collective gaze of the group settled on Fox Snap and Asmodeus, who stood in contemplative silence.

Asmodeus: “…”

No, don't even entertain the thought; he wasn't as childish as them.

Flipping sides once more, Fox Snap eagerly joined in on the punishment, declaring with excitement, "My talent will enchant him, rendering him immobile!"

As the victims assembled and engaged in lively discussions, Asmodeus simply longed to sigh.

Gazing at the sky with remorse, his countenance turned grave.

Excelsior, did you anticipate that they were such imbeciles?

**

Wang Jin Long's mind churned with a tumultuous sea of emotions, crashing upon him like relentless waves. Pain, fear, and terror surged through him, each one more overwhelming than the last. Before him, the faint red hue deepened, plunging him into a shroud of complete darkness.

As he plummeted, it felt as if his body descended into an unfathomable abyss, a void without end, devoid of any glimmer of hope.

Over the years, Wang Jin Long had never doubted that failure would come for him someday. Yet, he always believed it would be at the hands of a fellow human being—a rival like Ye Cheng Jing, or perhaps Cao Du.

But he could never have imagined that his doom would unfold in Spirit Shenanigans, where neither his past nor his future were known to anyone.

This was his destiny, a mirror reflecting the enigma of human nature itself.

There had been moments when he'd exercised caution and precision, but now, in this critical juncture, Wang Jin Long yearned for the world to bear witness to his extraordinary accomplishments.

He hadn't fallen to a mere mortal; instead, he had succumbed to a monster—a creature devoid of comprehension, justice or pride, driven solely by the primal urge to kill.

Was this the inexorable conclusion that fate had spun for him?

In his thoughts, Wang Jin Long fixated on the face that had once been his own, now own by the lady in black robe. His contemplations grew heavier, a weight not just upon his mind but upon his very being.

In the end, he was devoured by the suffocating embrace of death, drawn into its inexorable current, and drowned in its merciless depths.

"Huff...huff...huff..."

A dense, intertwined white light swallowed Wang Jin Long's vision. Bewildered, he found himself on a gravel path, disoriented and shaken to his core. His chest throbbed with pain, prompting his trembling hand to clutch at it.

No blood stained his clothes, no fatal wound marred his flesh. Perplexed, he turned his attention to his face. The disfigurement from Madam Stargazer's spell had vanished, leaving his skin unblemished. What was this?

His body stood unharmed, yet his mind insisted he'd tasted death's embrace. Seated on the ground, he listened to the wind's rustling dance through the dense forest. The urge to rise surged within him, but his weakened body betrayed him, sending him crashing to the ground, knees meeting rough terrain.

Pain coursed through him, but it was a welcome reminder—he was alive. A fervent flame ignited within him. So long as he drew breath, possibilities remained endless.

"Ah, there you are," an unfamiliar voice emerged beside him. Wang Jin Long turned, facing a young man in a yellow, clutching a long peach wood sword with an unnerving glint in his eyes.

"You, the scoundrel!" the Yellow-robed Youth seethed, his teeth clenched. "You killed me!"

Wang Jin Long blinked in confusion. "..?"

In the previous round of Misty Fog, 【Master in Tribulation Crossing】 had just happily finished a task at the laundry shop when Fox Snap chose his number, killing him callously. At that time, Celestial Master's piercing gaze terrified even the barrage of comments on the screen.

"Come, you cur!!!" Rage surged through him as he brandished his peach wood sword and charged forward.

——— Translator's Notes ———

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