Author: 颜凉雨 / Yan Liang Yu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 176: Best Actor

“Xu Wang?” A flash of panic crossed Wu Sheng’s eyes, barely noticeable but not escaping Fu Wenqing’s observation. His call also made the rest of the teammates look around.

Kuang Jinxin incredulously called out as well, “Captain?”

Qian Ai swallowed hard. “Don’t scare us, okay…”

Chi Yingxue remained silent, but his beautiful eyebrows were already furrowed.

Fu Wenqing assessed the situation, which was too sudden for him to make an immediate judgment.

Was the person really gone? Or was it a trap?—he exchanged glances with his teammates as if asking.

He Lanshan shook his head slightly—not sure. 

Wu Yanchao rolled his eyes—definitely a trap. They used their stationery, their person is gone, isn’t it obvious!

Qin Rui looked conflicted—but their reactions seemed genuinely emotional…

Zhao Muchen’s lips were tightly pressed—perhaps he even deceived his teammates. What exactly he plans, only he knows.

The woman opened her red lips and softly began to sing. Her voice rose in the post-storm living room. The ancient language of a different race carried a bewitching magic.

But what was more lethal were her eyes—beautiful like glass—like dew on the tips of grass, like an intoxicating whiff in the night.

No one could look away, as if their souls were being sucked into those enchanting eyes.

The same stiffness as yesterday began to spread among everyone.

Kuang Jinxin seized the last chance to click on a defense stationery.

[Owl: Someone used [(Defense) A Single Leaf Blocks the Eyes] on you~~]

Only the woman could hear this prompt. A narrow green leaf, carried by the night wind, placed itself over the woman’s eyes. The woman reached to grab it, but the leaf clung tightly to her eyes, its veins glowing faintly as if alive.

The curse-like stiffness disappeared.

Kuang Jinxin exhaled deeply, turned his head, and looked admiringly. “Sheng Ge, you were right. It was the eyes.”

During the daytime strategy deployment, he was somewhat unsure whether his [A Single Leaf Blocks the Eyes] could interrupt this ghost’s “Stiffness Enchantment”—the name was given by the captain, saying it sounded cooler and more respectful to the ghost. At that time, the advisor didn’t explain much and just said that even if it failed, he had a backup plan.

Now, Kuang Jinxin felt foolish for doubting the advisor’s deduction.

Wu Sheng patted Qian Ai, who was still looking around worriedly.

Qian Ai turned back, his worry evident. “Xu Wang…”

“We’ll look for him later,” Wu Sheng said firmly, his brows furrowed but his tone steady. “First, capture the ghost.”

Qian Ai glanced at the woman, indeed. [A Single Leaf Blocks the Eyes] was about to give way.

Focusing, he proceeded to activate as planned—[(Offense) Threads of a Ghost’s Despair].

The woman finally tore the leaf apart, not having time to tidy her increasingly disheveled hair, when a bundle of glowing ribbons gently floated down, wrapping her from head to toe.

The woman’s pupils darkened. The strange words that spilled out of her mouth once more no longer held their previous grace but had a hurried and hoarse tone, as if she was cursing.

A black shadow rose behind her, taking on a human shape, and then hurled itself at the ribbons on the woman.

The ribbons emitted a holy light. Upon collision, the shadow emitted a burning black smoke accompanied by a distant, wailing scream as if it came from hell.

“Most of us would be reluctant to use this stationery on ordinary ghosts, so just be content.” Qian Ai stood tall and proud, his heart stirring.

There was no need for physical confrontation, no self-harm; the user experience was tear jerkingly good. What kind of divine stationery was this?!

The woman was completely immobilized by [Ghost’s Despair].

Wu Sheng glanced at Chi Yingxue.

Chi Yingxue didn’t look at him; he was already dashing out as planned.

His speed was extreme; in a blink, he was in front of the woman, and with not a moment’s hesitation or pause, he thrust the cross towards her heart.

The earth shook.

Chi Yingxue staggered, causing the cross to miss its mark and piercing the woman’s shoulder instead.

He quickly withdrew the cross for a second strike, but a large slab of stone fell from nowhere, hitting his back. Unable to withstand it, he kneeled on one knee.

It was Qin Rui, who had approached unnoticed, who took over and stabbed the cross into the woman’s heart.

Only then did Chi Yingxue hear the belated prompt—

[Owl: Someone used [(Offense) Earthquake] on you~~]

The previously saved [(Defense) Iron Slab] came in handy as Qian Ai pulled the advisor and Kuang Jinxin closer while anxiously shouting, “Xiao Xue!”

Wu Sheng looked towards Fu Wenqing’s team. The tumultuous ground and falling debris made the view fragmented.

Wu Sheng: “I thought you’d wait until we caught the ghost before acting.”

Fu Wenqing, feigning seriousness, shook his head. “That would be unscrupulous.”

Wu Sheng raised an eyebrow. “So confident?”

Fu Wenqing scoffed. “Hiding someone isn’t a trump card. If I were you, I’d prefer a fair fight. At least there’s a chance to win.”

[Owl: Someone used [(Illusory) Returning to the Fields*] on you~~]

*Demobilized and return to the fields (解甲归田) Idiom referring to taking off one’s military uniform (retire) and returning home to farm.

Only Qian Ai could hear this prompt, and he immediately felt the connection to [Stingy] and [Iron Slab] disappear, or more precisely, the stationery themselves vanished.

…This illusory stationery could remove the stationery he was using!

Realizing this, Qian Ai abruptly looked up. In the corner where the four ghosts stood quietly, indeed, there was one more person from the opposing team!

The cross was raised and then plunged.

In just a moment, he watched as the ownership of their team’s ghost shifted to their peers.

Overwhelmed, he quickly raised his hand to use an offense stationery, but before his fingertips could touch the icon, his body froze.

He struggled to glance sideways at Wu Sheng and Kuang Jinxin beside him. Like him, his companions were immobilized.

And under the slab, so was Chi Yingxue.

Soon, all four friends heard the notification—

[Owl: Someone used [(Illusory) Dumbstruck*] on you~~]

*Dumb as a wooden chicken/piece of wood (呆若木鸡) Idiom referring a person in a daze due to fear or surprise.

“Bang—”

In the midst of the earthquake, a pickup truck broke through the wall. Through the windshield, one could see the infuriating face of [Mr. Thirteen of the Middle Ring]. The truck was bigger, higher, and sturdier than yesterday’s SUV.

“Thump—”

A deer charged into the breach following the pickup. Though unharmed, the truck trembled heavily.

However, Fu Wenqing remained composed and even sighed with a bit of “you’ve disappointed me”. “We’ve upgraded our vehicle, yet you’re still stuck in the same place?”

The deer shook its head, ignoring Fu Wenqing’s words. It backed up a few steps and charged at the truck again with force.

An elevator, with its doors open, fell from the sky without warning, landing on the rear of the pickup.

The deer, unable to stop in time, rushed into the elevator and disappeared.

“[(Offense) Thousand-Mile Elevator],” the user of the stationery, Wu Yanchao, kindly explained. “Your deer demon is probably thousands of miles away now.”

The five agilely boarded the rear half of the truck.

The four ghosts in the corner, along with the woman in the living room, like spirits, floated onto the truck.

As the earthquake subsided, the truck sped away.

……

Under the moonlight, the pickup truck raced through the wind.

“Why didn’t we just send them back home since we had them immobilized?” Wu Yanchao was still bothered by not having completely subdued the enemy.

Fu Wenqing’s expression was grave. “If we can strike quickly and escape, let’s not get entangled with them.”

Zhao Muchen nodded. “Yeah, I always feel like they have something up their sleeve.”

“Anyone who’s made it this far is no easy opponent.” He Lanshan reflected on the recent fierce battle, still somewhat exhilarated. He rarely gets excited, but when he does, he needs a couple of puffs to calm down, or it affects his judgment and action.

After blowing a couple of smoke rings, he passed the half-pack to Qin Rui.

Qin Rui pushed it back.

He Lanshan was surprised. “You don’t smoke?”

Qin Rui scratched his grape-purple dyed hair and looked around with a hint of unease. “Don’t you think it went too smoothly?”

“This was smooth?” Wu Yanchao almost rolled his eyes. “When have we ever thrown stationery like it’s buy one get ten free?”

“I agree with Qin Rui,” Zhao Muchen said calmly. “That missing captain of theirs is too suspicious.”

Fu Wenqing was silent for a while until all four pairs of eyes turned to him.

“I have two guesses.” Fu Wenqing shared his thoughts. “One, he’s hiding in that house, ready to strike at a crucial moment; two, he’s already at the church waiting in ambush, so even if we capture all five ghosts, they still have hope for a turnaround.”

Zhao Muchen: “Now the first one’s out.”

Fu Wenqing looked towards the end of the road, where the church was faintly visible. “Mm.”

The truck stopped in front of the church. Under the moonlight, the church was quiet and solemn. The priest stood at the entrance, as if he had been waiting there for a long time.

“My children, you have finally arrived.” His kind voice couldn’t hide his excitement, which was filled with a heavy sense of expectation.

The exorcism ceremony was set up in the church’s hall, with five human-shaped grooves dug into the ground, forming a circle around a central pool of holy water.

“Once the five evil spirits lie in the grooves, the holy water will wash away their sins…”

The priest droned on while Fu Wenqing’s team listened with more interest in the missing “enemy captain” than in the procedures, fearing a missed detail might let the enemy slip through and ruin everything.

But now, standing before the exorcism formation, there was still no sign of any movement.

The priest stopped and gazed at the exorcism formation as if offering a final prayer.

Finally, he turned around and walked to the five neatly lined-up ghosts. “Go…”

The five ghosts stood firm, unmoving.

The priest quietly observed them and, after a moment, turned to Fu Wenqing’s team. “One is missing.”

Fu Wenqing was taken aback. “Impossible.”

The priest slowly shook his head. “One is missing.”

Fu Wenqing turned to his teammates and met four equally bewildered faces.

Could there be a sixth ghost? But there are clearly only five grooves on the ground!

[Owl: Someone used [(Defense) Love Each Other as Family] on you~~]

The sudden prompt was like a hammer blow, shattering the precarious “stability” Fu Wenqing’s team had been balancing on.

The five “popped” together, arm in arm, huddled into a group, like soccer players celebrating a goal. The only difference was that players would separate and continue the game, while Fu Wenqing and his four teammates remained stuck together.

No, Fu Wenqing struggled to push away He Lanshan’s chin, lifting his head. One, two, three, four… not five—only four fucking people were huddled together!

“Captain, just hold on for five more seconds—no, four seconds—” “Qin Rui”, who had approached the priest, flashed a coquettish smile at “his teammates”, magically producing crosses from his arms, and “puff, puff, puff, puff,” stabbed them into the hearts of the doll, ghost figure, Nail Guy, and Gloomy Youth.

The beautiful woman wasn’t stabbed a second time—in the black plastic house, she was the one “Qin Rui” had stabbed in the heart.

“Father, it’s your turn,” “Qin Rui” urged.

The priest cooperated, looking at the five ghosts in the same line. “Go.”

This time, the ghosts moved, obediently heading towards their grooves.

“Qin Rui” watched the backs of the five ghosts calmly, inwardly frantic, wishing he could kick them to hurry and lie down faster.

Even the slowest among them realized the truth from the chill of that coquettish smile—this fucker wasn’t their teammate at all!

Fu Wenqing was furious, but breaking free from the defense stationery was useless now. The only way was to send the “source of disaster” back home. The crosses were all placed by him; as long as he was sent back, everything could be restarted.

[Owl: Someone used [(Defense) Love Each Other as Family] on you~~]

The repeated prompt sound completely locked Fu Wenqing’s team into a “dead knot”, making even using their chins to activate stationery impossible, let alone counterattack.

The only thing left to move was their mouths.

Wu Yanchao: “How many fucking [Love Each Other as Family] do you guys have?!”

Wu Sheng, Chi Yingxue, and Kuang Jinxin walked into the hall.

They stepped through the night breeze and starlight, gracefully making their entrance as if walking up a stairway.

“This is about team spirit.” Wu Sheng kindly offered an explanation. “Perhaps inspired by our harmonious atmosphere, we keep getting such stationery at a high rate. It bothers us too…”

All five ghosts lay in their grooves, and the holy water pool gently stirred. The water flowed towards the ghosts.

Chi Yingxue exhaled softly, releasing the stationery.

“Qin Rui” reverted from grape-purple hair back to Captain Xu.

“I’m exhausted!” Acting was physically demanding. Xu Wang was sweaty but still considerately advised He Lanshan, “Don’t smoke too much. It’s bad for your health.”

“……” He Lanshan didn’t seem interested in smoking anymore; he looked like he wanted to eat someone.

With the situation resolved, Fu Wenqing finally calmed down. His expression was grave, and his voice became menacing. “Where is Qin Rui?”

Xu Wang: “A very safe place. Don’t worry, no one was hurt.”

Fu Wenqing: “What stationery?”

Eager to let their opponent die knowing the reason has always been Classmate Wangwang’s principle. “[(Illusory) Who Am I]. It belongs to our Xiao Xue’s.”

Fu Wenqing: “This stationery allows you to become anyone?”

Xu Wang: “Correct.”

Fu Wenqing: “When did it start?”

Xu Wang: “During [Raging Storm].”

Fu Wenqing: “And after that, you’ve been acting with us the whole time? Including rushing to stab that woman?”

Xu Wang: “Stabbing that woman didn’t matter, but I had to find an excuse to get close to Xiao Xue to grab his cross. You have no idea how uncomfortable it is to carry four crosses, and the truck’s bouncing almost blew my cover…”

Fu Wenqing didn’t want to hear another word from him—not a single one!

His gaze coldly fell on the remaining three. “Did you all know?”

Wu Sheng, Kuang Jinxin, and Chi Yingxue nodded together.

“Have you all been cooperating with his act?!” Fu Wenqing was finding it increasingly difficult to keep his tone steady and deep.

Zhao Muchen, Wu Yanchao, and He Lanshan were near breaking point.

What “Captain?”, what “Don’t scare us, okay…”, what “Where’s the captain?”, what “We’ll look for him later. First, catch the ghost…” Is this trying to complete the level or performing a drama?!

“It’s not exactly cooperation.” Wu Sheng felt Fu Wenqing’s summary wasn’t accurate. “Each of us has a different acting style, so it’s more about improvisation, adapting in real combat…”

Fu Wenqing’s team collectively shouted, “Shut up!”

……

The house was entirely stripped of all its black plastic. Even the kitchen was bathed in the gentle moonlight.

Qian Ai squatted in front of the tightly bound Qin Rui and was even gentler than the moonlight. “No need to admire me. I’m just a newbie. When it comes to acting, it still belongs to our captain, especially the last level. That was our captain’s most splendid moment—the Oscar of the Republic era; the Little Golden Man in troubled times!”

Qin Rui: “……”

Qian Ai scratched his head. He wasn’t used to playing the villain, lacking in experience, so he turned to rummage through the fridge. “Hey, do you want to eat sandwiches?”

Qin Rui: “Fuck off.”

Qian Ai: “Bacon?”

Qin Rui: “Fuck off.”

Qian Ai: “Chocolate?”

Qin Rui: “Fuck off.”

Qian Ai: “Beer?”

Qin Rui: “I’ll take a sip.”

Qian Ai: “Cereal?”

Qin Rui: “……”

Qian Ai belatedly turned around. “Eh? What did you just say?”

[Owl: Congratulations on passing the 12/23 test and handing in your papers! See you tomorrow~~]

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The author has something to say:

Qin Rui’s experience tells us not to dye our hair too eye-catching colors; it makes you a target for drama kings (╰_╯).

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