TEFSCBSS Chapter 78

Chapter 78: No Way, Again?!

Wang Bokao fanned himself with a folding fan, striking the perfect image of a charming nobleman. He boasted about his three-hundred-round battle with the female ghost, who ultimately knelt and begged for mercy, revealing the true method to break free from the village.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. The ghosts around here are weak—they can’t even last a quarter of an hour against me.”

“If I hadn’t given them a chance to put up a fight, we’d have been out of this script ages ago.”

“Come on now, all of you, call me ‘big bro.’ Say it once, and from now on, I’ll have your backs!”

Zhao Wen was highly skeptical. “Seriously? You managed to defeat a ghost?”

“Heh. Come on, let’s spar right now—I’ll make sure you’re convinced!” Wang Bokao immediately perked up. To maintain his dominance over his “little brothers,” he swiftly tucked his fan into his bundle, rolled up his sleeves, and got ready to take on Zhao Wen.

Gu Qing sighed helplessly. “Alright, since you claim to know the solution, let’s get moving.”

With that, he prepared to lead this thoroughly unreliable group back to the gravesite to find the ghost’s remains.

But the moment he turned around, he was met with a large crowd.

“Go? And just where do you think you’re going?”

Surrounding them were monks led by Wu Zhen and Wu Fei, along with the village chief and his people.

“A villager just reported that instead of resting, you were sneaking around. And now, we find you here.” The village chief’s face was cold as he motioned for his people to bring out ropes. Without further ado, the players were tied up and tossed aside.

“The village’s grand ritual is about to begin. As our guests, you will observe from the sidelines.”

With a perfunctory clasp of his hands, the village chief turned away and began directing the villagers to set up the ceremony.

Everything proceeded exactly as before. The ritual was carried out as usual, the chanting filled their ears, and the sky grew darker by the minute.

Then—

“Aaahhh!”

A piercing scream shattered the mist, followed by eerie, chilling laughter hidden within the fog. Wu Zhen was dead—again.

This time, his fate was even more gruesome. A long arrow was lodged in his chest, staining his robes a deep red.

“Senior Brother!”

Wu Fei launched into another dramatic display of grief, demanding to know who had killed his senior brother and insisting that the culprit be found immediately.

Wang Bokao, watching Wu Fei—the second-ranked player on the Heaven’s Leaderboard—couldn’t help but marvel.

“As expected, anyone who racks up that many points on the leaderboard is not simple. Just look at that acting… impressive, truly impressive.”

He was feeling quite relaxed, even a little amused. After all, they were all tied up. This time, there was no way they could be suspected of murder, right? Heh, let the two groups turn on each other for once.

But reality proved him wrong—he had celebrated too soon.

“Master! We are all hoping for true liberation! Why would we ruin the ritual with murder?”

“That’s right! No one from our village would do such a thing!”

“I bet it was those outsiders!”

“Yeah, definitely them!”

The villagers all chimed in agreement with the chief, and Wu Fei soon turned his fiery gaze toward the players.

“Speak! Who killed my senior brother?”

Wang Bokao was dumbfounded. “Are you people insane? Look at us! We’re tied up! How the hell could we have killed him?”

The village chief shook his head in disappointment. “It’s you.”

“Just because we live in an isolated village doesn’t mean we’re ignorant. We’ve heard of mechanical contraptions and hidden weapons. Who’s to say you didn’t set up a trap beforehand and wait for the right moment to strike?”

What?!

“No, seriously, it wasn’t us!”

But no matter how much Wang Bokao and the others protested, Wu Fei and the village chief remained unconvinced.

In the end, everything played out exactly like the last round—they were left behind to watch the “script” unfold, then suddenly chased down by Wu Fei, fled to the ancestral hall, and were ultimately locked up, only to witness a raging fire blaze into the sky.

Wang Bokao was exhausted.

Lying where the villagers had tossed him, he shut his eyes in frustration. Whatever. He was done.

After some time, a wave of dizziness overtook them. When they came to, they found themselves back in the all-too-familiar setting, in the same positions, with the same companions—except this time, Jiang Liang wasn’t shouting in alarm.

Jiang Liang was curled up in the corner of the abandoned temple, his face deathly pale.

Silence filled the abandoned temple as everyone lay sprawled in various undignified positions.

Zhao Wen looked around, his expression unreadable. Were they going through this all over again? Then what was the point of all that suffering last time—eating dirt, gnawing on bones—was it all for nothing?

Everyone looked exhausted. For a brief moment, it felt as if they had been trapped in this murder-mystery game for years.

Eventually, it was the ever-reliable Li Tiechui who spoke first. “Let’s check the script again. Maybe there’s something new this time.”

At his words, the group reluctantly pulled out their small bundles. The same script. The same blank paper and pen. The same dirty but still-warm steamed bun.

Wait… something felt off.

Zhao Wen abruptly lifted his head and glanced at the calm-faced Li Tiechui. Then he lowered his gaze to the script in his hands.

[Unfortunately, this is your third reset today.]

[Round One: You attempted a soul swap but were interrupted.]

[Round Two: You successfully swapped souls but failed to escape the village, leading to another reset.]

[Now, you are in Round Three.]

[Remember: At this moment, you are a villager. Only villagers who have undergone a soul swap can retain their memories after a reset.]

[Your task remains the same—seek immortality, take the treasure, and escape the village!]

[But be warned: your time is running out.]

[Resets are the ghost’s way of tormenting you.]

[The people of Shanshi Village can never truly disappear. Instead, they are forced to relive the agony of their deaths over and over again with each sunset.]

[This is why everyone is desperate to swap souls and leave the village.]

[Because only through a successful soul swap can one gain temporary relief, a brief escape from the ghost’s torment.]

[But you are a villager of Shanshi Village, and you know this—if you do not complete the mission and leave the village soon, you will continue to suffer and eventually lose this body as well.]

[Time is of the essence, young man!]

[Do not tell anyone—especially outsiders—about your story.]

Zhao Wen stared at the script in shock, unable to believe that this was his assigned role for this round. His mind reeled. He was just about to turn to Li Tiechui and ask what was going on when—

Thud.

Wang Bokao tossed his script aside. “I’ve practically memorized this damn thing already. It’s the same as last time, not a single word different. What’s the point in reading it again?”

Zhao Wen hesitated.

So… only those who had undergone a soul swap received a new script. That explained why Li Tiechui had willingly climbed back into the coffin last round—he must have been following instructions.

Quietly, Zhao Wen sat back down, deep in thought about how to navigate this round.

On the other side of the room, Gu Qing had been observing him. Absentmindedly, he toyed with the coin in his hand. Something about Zhao Wen seemed… off. Maybe he should cast a divination?

But before he could begin, the all-too-familiar sound of heavy footsteps echoed outside the temple.

“Hmm. Good, good. Everyone’s here. Not one missing.”

Oh. Zhao Si again.

But this time, there was something different about him. His stance was wide-legged, his entire aura exuding an air of arrogant indifference. Though his words were the same, his tone was lively, his expression animated—his eyes constantly shifting from one person to the next, gleaming like a low-level gangster who had just struck it rich, weighing his options on who to invite to watch the stars and moon with him tonight.