Chapter 121: [Harboring a Ghostly Secret] Going Out to Take a Look
Bai Cha wrote a line of text on the table of contents page.
Regarding this instance, is there anything you want to ask?
Xu Shengsheng was stunned. Sitting down, she scratched her head.
She picked up the pen, hesitated for a moment, and wrote: I’m just curious—does it really have something to do with bullying? But why ten years later?
If something truly happened, it shouldn’t have been during their freshman year right after starting college.
Xu Shengsheng might be careless, but that didn’t mean she was foolish.
Bai Cha wrote: Do you really think “Harboring a Ghostly Secret” refers to us harboring secrets?
Xu Shengsheng paused, her eyes filled with questioning.
She watched as Bai Cha wrote down another line.
She’s pregnant.
Xu Shengsheng’s eyes widened instantly, and she subconsciously glanced in the direction outside the room.
Bai Cha had used her skill the moment she made contact with Ji Xiaolan earlier.
At that time, she received a prompt:
[Two parasitic targets detected. Which host would you like to parasitize?]
[A. Ji Xiaolan] [B. The fetus in her belly]
Bai Cha had realized a larger issue and chose neither, temporarily waiving this parasitism attempt.
Later, she gave Ji Xiaolan another hug because hugging allowed her body to touch Ji Xiaolan’s abdomen.
Ji Xiaolan was very skinny, but her lower belly was indeed protruding—it just wasn’t very large yet, so it could easily be covered by loose clothing.
When Bai Cha asked who she was marrying, Ji Xiaolan refused to answer.
Bai Cha listed all these clues out for Xu Shengsheng.
Also, she feels very damp, and this place is very damp too. If she’s already dead, it’s very likely she died in that lake.
However, based on my understanding, the main characters in an instance usually only reach their time of death during the final stage of the instance—meaning a time rewind. Right now, we’re at a point in time where Ji Xiaolan hasn’t died yet, so where does that damp feeling on her come from?
Xu Shengsheng looked blank for a moment. She swallowed hard, realizing Bai Cha was testing her, and nervously clutched at her clothes.
“Because she’s actually already dead, and she only looks like this because the instance requires it?”
Bai Cha nodded, then shook her head.
“That’s only one possibility. Keep thinking.”
At this moment, Xu Shengsheng felt a surge of dread akin to facing the college entrance exam.
She racked her brains, looking at Bai Cha almost pleadingly.
So, Bai Cha wrote another hint for her.
The title of the instance.
Xu Shengsheng stared at it for a moment, and realization suddenly dawned on her.
“Because she’s pregnant, but this child might…”
Bai Cha sighed.
“There’s one more reason. Keep going.”
Xu Shengsheng felt on the verge of a breakdown.
She tried with all her might to think. Even though the look in Bai Cha’s eyes was exceedingly gentle, the pressure was immense.
Hesitantly, she scribbled a few words on the Five-Three workbook:
Her husband isn’t human?
Bai Cha nodded, patting her shoulder with gratification.
“There are three possibilities in total: one is herself, one is the fetus in her belly, and the other is the husband she’s marrying.”
With that, she tore out the page with the writing on it and burned it.
Watching the ashes fall, Xu Shengsheng suddenly said with a hint of dejection, “Sister, am I holding you back… I feel like such a burden, I don’t know how to do anything.”
Bai Cha looked at her, her gaze complex.
“If we go by your logic, then I’ve been a burden to your family for so many years. What about that? Besides, you most likely got dragged into this game because of me, so what should I do about that?”
Xu Shengsheng blurted out in a hurry, “That’s completely different! I don’t understand game stuff, but how were you ever a burden to us in reality? You’ve always been so well-behaved, sensible, and smart. You excel at everything! My mom loves you to bits and shows you off to everyone every day…”
Bai Cha cut her off.
“That’s because I knew very well that if I didn’t excel like that, I would become a burden.”
Xu Shengsheng froze.
“I actually hate studying. I hate it deeply,” Bai Cha said, a profound exhaustion lacing her brows.
“But I knew clearly that if I didn’t study hard, nobody would want me.”
“I skipped grades, and I originally planned to skip two more so I could graduate university at eighteen and start working. That way, I wouldn’t be a drain on your family—but my physical health didn’t allow for that.”
“All of my excellence was driven by my fear of being disliked, of being seen as a burden, so…”
Before she could finish, Xu Shengsheng stepped forward and hugged her tightly.
“Sister, you can’t say that! It’s all my fault. I’ll never call myself a burden again. I’ll study hard, so please don’t talk about yourself like that anymore. We all love you so much.”
Bai Cha paused, swallowing down the remaining words she had intended to say.
She reached out and gently patted Xu Shengsheng’s back.
“Then study hard in this instance. The difficulty level here is relatively high, so I’ll carry you as much as I can. Later on, if you enter an instance with a lower level, try attempting one by yourself. Don’t rush to chase after high performance ratings.”
The faster a player’s rating rose, the higher the corresponding instance level became, and consequently, the greater the danger.
Granted, most players craved points because points allowed them to buy items.
However, Xu Shengsheng didn’t need to worry about that—Bai Cha could simply transfer points to her.
After all, Bai Cha didn’t really use them much anyway.
Just like in the previous instance, even without using items, it wasn’t as if she couldn’t have achieved that outcome on her own.
Therefore, keeping oneself alive was what mattered most.
Assuming Xu Shengsheng’s account functioned normally, that is.
Xu Shengsheng nodded earnestly.
Bai Cha pondered for a moment, lowering her voice so only the two of them could hear.
“Do you have a second skill?”
She hadn’t heard her mention one earlier.
She had indeed seen on the game forums that a player could potentially have up to three personal character skills at maximum, though the vast majority had only one.
“I have a passive skill.”
Xu Shengsheng scratched her head awkwardly.
“Basically, after I use ‘Careless and Sloppy’ once, it passively triggers ‘Turning Danger Into Safety’ to dodge a single threat. But it comes with a side effect.”
She hesitated before confessing, “The side effect is that my brain goes completely dumb for three minutes.”
Bai Cha: “…”
“Three minutes is a bit long. Let’s see if leveling it up in the future can shorten the duration.”
Though, in a way, could this be considered a ‘fortune favors fools’ kind of skill?
“How many times can you use your skill?”
“Three times per instance.”
Bai Cha nodded. “It’s a useful skill. Learn to find the right moments to use it… or simply use it whenever you encounter danger.”
A person’s skills were tied to their personality; expecting a fundamental change was practically impossible.
Xu Shengsheng didn’t need to force herself to follow Bai Cha’s playstyle, though this instance was indeed far too dangerous for her.
At the very least, she needed to learn how to make proper judgments.
“It’s getting late. Get some sleep.”
Xu Shengsheng nodded.
However, the bedding was quite damp, making it difficult to fall asleep.
Xu Shengsheng couldn’t drift off. On top of that, today’s events had been overly stimulating for her; her mind remained in a state of high arousal, making sleep even more elusive.
Especially when she heard movement outside the door, sounding as if someone had gone out.
“Sister, are we really just going to sit here and do nothing?”
Bai Cha mused, “The others have all gone to gather clues. It really isn’t great for us to just lie around.”
She sat up and looked at Xu Shengsheng’s shining eyes.
“Then I’ll go out and take a look as well. As for you… stay right here and work on those problems. Before I get back, I want to see at least five pages completed.”
Xu Shengsheng: “…”
Bai Cha added with deep, earnest gravity, “Games are games, but reality is reality. A game can take your life, but the college entrance exam will affect your entire life. Both are equally important!”
Xu Shengsheng: “…………”
She should have just kept her big mouth shut!
