WTNL Chapter 237

(2/3)

Changsheng Building
Chapter 237: Game Changer

The originally peaceful shop was now filled with terrifying danger.

The young girl stood straight in the distance. Because she was far from the oil lamp, her figure was shrouded in shadow, making her appear stiff and blurry.

Her arm maintained a strange posture, as if she were embracing something in the void, invisible to the naked eye. Only the mechanical and malicious wailing echoed through the shop, releasing a deadly curse.

As if controlled by some invisible force, she stepped forward one step at a time. Her white dress appeared particularly eerie, resembling a ghostly figure from traditional horror movies.

Meanwhile.

In another area.

“Drip, drip.”

In the dimly lit shop, the sound of blood dripping was clearly audible, becoming more urgent with each passing second. In just a few seconds, a small puddle of blood had formed on the floor.

The surface of the blood rippled, and the stench of rotting blood became more intense.

A completely different, yet equally deadly, death curse was being released from that puddle of blood.

Under the dual curses, the oil lamp burned fiercely, its flame swelling several times larger, making a hissing sound, but it was suppressed by the surrounding darkness, barely illuminating a small area within the counter.

Wu Ya, Wei Cheng, and Mu Sen stood in the area covered by the light, staring intently at the area not far away, observing the actions of the young girl.

“……”

In the midst of the deathly silence, all three of them were pale, their expressions grave. Under the intense pressure, beads of sweat appeared on their foreheads and noses.

It’s bad, really bad.

The situation couldn’t get any worse!

“Damn it…” Wu Ya gritted his teeth and whispered, “I’m afraid the worst-case scenario has happened.”

The two anchors  taken by Orange Candy were both offensive members of the team. The purpose was to concentrate the team’s elite forces to quickly resolve the situation and avoid simultaneous attacks from both curses.

This was a very correct decision, but it also carried a huge risk.

This was an extremely dangerous and crazy gamble.

If they won the gamble, everything would be fine.

This move was equivalent to breaking down the overlapping crisis into individual attacks, greatly reducing the dangers faced on this floor, and successfully dispersing the risk.

However, if they lost the gamble and the third curse erupted before the second one was resolved…

At this point, with the team members scattered, only four people remained in the shop to face such terrifying double attacks.

Among the four, one was a main force member who had just been attacked and had not fully recovered; one was a medium who could foresee death but couldn’t actively trigger it; one was a prophet with a broken arm and ulterior motives; and the last one was an anchor from the enemy team with unknown strength.

A slight mistake could result in a brutal team wipe.

And without the prophet and support, the remaining people would find it very difficult to survive this instance.

“What should we do?” Wei Cheng stared at the scene in front of him, afraid to blink and fearing he would miss the moment of crisis, and asked in a low voice.

“We can only buy time.”

Wu Ya, with a pale face, took a deep breath. In just a few seconds, his palms were already covered in cold sweat. “As long as we can hold out until the captain obtains the item from the second painting, one of the curses will disappear, and the pressure here will be greatly reduced.”

“In short, use every means possible to buy time and stay alive!”

Although the words sounded easy, the difficulty of implementation made their hearts sink, gradually giving rise to a lingering sense of despair.

Earlier, it was already difficult to handle a single curse attack, and now they faced two overlapping curses…

One of which came from the dangerous third painting.

Faced with such a desperate situation, could they survive and hold out until Orange Candy’s return?

While they were discussing, blood began seeping from multiple spots on the ceiling, dripping down and forming puddles of various sizes on the floor.

Starting from the first spot, each subsequent puddle appeared closer to the counter.

“Drip, drip.”

Just a few steps away from the counter’s entrance, the cracks in the ceiling turned crimson and damp, then began to drip blood at an increasing pace. In just a few seconds, a small puddle appeared before them.

In the weak light, the viscous blood resembled a mirror, reflecting a small part of the shop’s interior.

Wu Ya’s pupils shrank.

He saw, in the reflection of the blood puddle, a pair of feet.

The feet were wearing blood-red embroidered shoes, standing rigidly in place, unmoving on the blood puddle. However, in the real world above the puddle, there was nothing.

Wu Ya’s hair stood on end, and he whispered urgently:

“Be careful, back away!”

As he spoke, he cautiously pulled the other two back, his eyes fixed on the gradually expanding blood puddle.

Although he didn’t yet understand the form or killing method of the third curse, staying away and avoiding contact was always a safe bet.

“Drip.”

Unnoticed by anyone, a drop of viscous, foul-smelling blood fell behind him, landing on the counter.

Just one drop.

That crimson, semi-circular blood bead silently invaded the area covered by the oil lamp’s light.

“Hiss!” The oil lamp burned wildly, releasing a murky, foul smell of corpse oil that mingled with the bloody stench, creating an almost suffocating sensation.

The semi-circular surface of the blood bead, under the tension of the liquid, acted like a lens.

If anyone observed closely, they would see a blurry figure reflected on the blood drop, standing at the counter, facing away from the three people, slowly reaching out with pale, stiff hands—

Suddenly, Wei Cheng’s pupils dilated, his spine tingled, and he screamed:

“Quick! Get down!!”

As he shouted, he lunged forward. Wu Ya dove to the ground, pulling him under the counter.

“……!!”

Caught off guard, Wu Ya was knocked down, falling backward unprepared.

Soon, he realized what was happening. Wei Cheng’s talent was passive death sense, which meant… he had just narrowly escaped death.

Realizing this, Wu Ya broke out in a cold sweat.

“Hey, Wei Cheng, what did you just sense?”

Wei Cheng, panting and still in his position, looked up at the counter, still shaken: “I sensed, just now, a pair of hands in the blood drop’s reflection… grabbing your reflection when you had your back turned.”

Listening to Wei Cheng’s description, Wu Ya felt his scalp tingling.

At this moment, the pool of blood a few steps away from the counter expanded again. The feet in embroidered shoes took a step forward and then stopped again, seemingly waiting for something.

Having experienced multiple instances, Wu Ya, a seasoned anchor, had summarized some patterns of the third curse after this nerve-wracking attack.

He steadied himself and slowly said, “It seems that these bloodstains are the way the curse from the third painting invades the real world, able to kill through touching your reflection in the blood pool.”

For the three of them, this was both good news and bad news.

The good news was that this curse no longer invaded through any streamer, meaning the remaining three would not risk becoming another mindless puppet.

After Wen Jianyan, if another person became an immobile curse spreader, the remaining two would have no chance of survival.

And the bad news… was equally terrifying.

His previous guess was correct; the third wave of curses was the deadliest among the three paintings. The other two waves only eroded their life and could be blocked by the oil lamp, but this wave of curses could directly invade the counter area covered by the oil lamp… and it was instant death!

As long as the reflection in the blood pool was touched, one would undoubtedly die.

This was too terrifying.

If it were only this curse, it wouldn’t be so bad. Although the blood pool was expanding, it would still take some time to completely cover the entire shop. As long as they changed positions in time, they could avoid their reflections appearing in the blood pool.

However…

The scary thing was the simultaneous existence of the baby crying curse.

Leaving the counter area would result in an attack.

The combination of the two was almost an unsolvable dead end.

Mu Sen stood aside, pale-faced, constantly biting his remaining fingers, his eyes bloodshot, almost looking a bit neurotic.

He knew his tarot reading had come true.

As a seasoned anchor, he understood how terrifying the current situation was… While the other two still hoped for Orange Candy to finish the second painting in time, Mu Sen had completely given up hope.

According to the reading, this was a death trap that would kill everyone, leaving no survivors.

Orange Candy was likely facing similar dangers in the second painting. Even if she didn’t die, she would be delayed and unable to retrieve the item in time and return to the shop.

What to do… what to do?!

Mu Sen knew he was temporarily safe, but only temporarily.

Just now, his reflection also appeared in the blood drop, but he wasn’t attacked. It wasn’t due to luck, but because Mu Sen carried an item that lowered his priority for being attacked.

However…

If he were the last one left alive in the shop, this item would become useless.

Did he have to actively break the three tarot cards to solve the current situation?

But if he did that, his own future would be predictable.

Mu Sen gritted his teeth, his expression twisted in struggle and pain.

In extreme despair, he looked up at Wen Jianyan, not far away.

The one who was originally thought to be the key to breaking the situation, the anchor from the opposing team, had directly become the medium for the second curse during the attack. Though he wouldn’t die before the curse fully invaded the real world, he was in a state of unconsciousness and inaction—completely unreliable!

Mu Sen’s eyes widened in despair, almost biting through his bandaged finger.

Not far away, the girl maintained her stiff posture, her arms embracing something in the void, walking forward step by step, seemingly already a corpse…

Drip, drip.

Blood dripped not far in front of Wen Jianyan, gradually forming a small pool.

Suddenly, Mu Sen froze, looking at Wen Jianyan again.

Was it his illusion? It seemed like the other had paused imperceptibly, but when he looked again, Wen Jianyan still maintained the same posture, walking stiffly like a puppet on strings.

Wait! Something’s wrong!

The girl was still walking forward, but… her direction had changed.

She had been walking towards the counter, but after that brief pause, Wen Jianyan’s path subtly shifted towards a certain direction in the shop.

Moreover, the eerie part was…

With each step she took, her hair color faded.

Starting from the tips, it rapidly turned white.

In just a few dozen seconds, her originally black hair turned snow-white, blending almost seamlessly with her dress.

Three minutes earlier.

Although Wen Jianyan’s body was out of control, unlike Wu Ya before, his mind was extremely clear. He could not only see everything happening around him but also hear the conversation between the three, who were not far away.

Blood pools, human figures, the attack method of the third curse…

And more.

Wen Jianyan lowered his head silently, listening quietly and quickly thinking of corresponding strategies.

With each stiff step, his gaze inadvertently fell on the approaching blood pool.

In the blood pool’s reflection, a pair of red embroidered shoes stood motionless.

…Embroidered shoes?

Wen Jianyan paused.

He suddenly recalled the red-clothed corpse he encountered on the second floor, which wore a pair of red embroidered shoes.

When the third customer visited earlier, he was sitting with his back against the counter, so he didn’t see the hand exposed when the third customer put down the ghost money. But seeing these embroidered shoes and remembering Wei Cheng’s mention of “human figures,” Wen Jianyan immediately linked the third wave of attacks with the red-clothed corpse released from the second floor.

In that instant, Wen Jianyan had a flash of insight.

…He knew.

He knew which painting the third wave of curses was released from!

Earlier, Wen Jianyan had thoroughly examined every painting in the shop.

Each painting was eerie and disturbing, and each could release a curse. Without any clues, even Wen Jianyan couldn’t definitively determine which painting the third customer had visited.

After linking the third wave of curses to the red-clothed corpse on the second floor, Wen Jianyan almost instantly pinpointed the location of the third painting—

Near the counter, the second one on the right.

The scene in the painting resembled a bridal chamber, with a figure dressed in a wedding gown sitting stiffly on a wooden bed, its face covered by a red veil, appearing eerie and rigid.

If the third wave of curses was indeed related to the red-clothed corpse on the second floor, then it must have originated from this painting!

【Holy Infant Remains: Awakened, please choose the activation form】

【Mother of the World Form 30s (detected that the anchor is already wearing the related title; this form’s effect can be enhanced to some extent)】

【Summon a Ghost Infant for 5 minutes (detected that the anchor is already wearing the related title; this form’s effect can be enhanced to some extent)】

Form two.

Wen Jianyan responded in his mind.

Soon, a ghost infant with a dark greenish-black body appeared in front of him, clinging to Wen Jianyan’s arm, raising its large, deformed head, and looking at him with pitch-black eyes without any whites. It let out a giggle:

“Mommy, mommy!”

Seeing that familiar little figure, Wen Jianyan almost felt a sense of relief.

Maybe he had stayed in the Nightmare Live Room for too long and his sense of aesthetics had somewhat twisted, as he felt that… compared to the faceless child corpse in his arms, the ghost infant looked much cuter!

“Who is it?” The ghost infant looked at the corpse in Wen Jianyan’s arms, its expression twisting with jealousy: “Mommy, why are you holding this?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Wen Jianyan said, “First, change my walking path, head in that direction.”

As a summoned item, the ghost infant was likely not terrifying enough to suppress this corpse. Moreover, the corpse in Wen Jianyan’s arms was just a manifestation of the curse. Without obtaining the key item from the second painting, the curse couldn’t be eliminated. The ghost infant’s summoned time was too short and too precious to waste here.

More importantly…

Wen Jianyan had other plans.

The ghost infant reluctantly let go of its jealousy, climbing down Wen Jianyan’s arm, using its small, dark greenish-black hands to forcefully push his legs, changing his walking direction.

Inside the counter, the other two, besides Mu Sen, also noticed something unusual.

The three of them stood in a place where their reflections wouldn’t appear in the blood pool, watching Wen Jianyan not far away with horror.

He moved stiffly, walking step by step. His hair color completely changed to a cold, pure silver, which seemed to faintly glow in the dim light, bringing a strange, eerie beauty.

Wu Ya whispered: “What’s happening? Has the method of the curse changed?”

“I don’t know.”

Wei Cheng shook his head blankly, showing the same puzzled expression.

They saw Wen Jianyan walking towards a corner of the shop where a scarlet wooden bed was placed.

The next second, they watched as Wen Jianyan’s knees bent under some invisible force, then he stiffly sat in the middle of the bed.

“!!”

Wei Cheng was shocked: “Wait, when you were possessed by the curse, were you conscious?”

Wu Ya shook his head again, equally shocked and puzzled: “Not at all; it felt like entering a false death state, couldn’t hear anything, see anything, or feel anything.”

Suddenly, Mu Sen heard a sound, subtle yet clear, almost unnoticeable unless listened to carefully, but very familiar.

“Crack… crack.”

He paused, seemingly realizing something, hurriedly lowering his head, opening a pouch at his waist, and taking out a wooden plaque.

Fine, spiderweb-like cracks spread across the wooden plaque, gradually breaking apart, making the subtle “crack, crack” sound.

Just like before.

But seeing this identical scene, Mu Sen wasn’t angry this time, only feeling ecstatic!

A passive breakthrough; he only needed to sacrifice one wooden plaque, no longer needing to actively break three plaques and waste an entire deck!

Simultaneously, as the wooden plaque gradually shattered, the previously deduced death trap loosened, and Mu Sen’s intuition finally cleared up again, quickly deducing the current situation.

“She just walked over several blood pools, but the curse in the blood pool didn’t attack her.”

Mu Sen spoke.

Wu Ya and Wei Cheng paused, instinctively looking at the path Wen Jianyan had walked.

Indeed, there were several large and small blood pools on the path she walked, and whether she stepped over or directly stepped on them, she wasn’t attacked by the curse.

“I get it!”

Wu Ya suddenly paused, seemingly realizing something:

“When I was possessed by the curse earlier, didn’t I fall into a false death state?”

The other two nodded.

Wu Ya slowly said, “Now, she should be in the same state, and in this state, the instance regards her as a medium for spreading the curse, meaning a corpse, not a human.”

“…Ah,” Wei Cheng was stunned: “That’s why the curse in the blood pool didn’t attack her! Because to the third wave of curses, she is already a corpse!”

“Using this state, she can even resist the certain death darkness in “Chansheng Building” … because a dead person can’t die again.” Wu Ya took a deep breath, his voice floating, slowly saying.

In the “Integrity First” live broadcast room:

[…Amazing.]

[…Amazing.]

[…Amazing!!!!]

[What a bug-exploiting genius?!!!]

[Yes.]

Wu Ya nodded, staring intently at the figure of the girl not far away, his eyes flashing with a strange light, saying word by word:

“Although I don’t know how she did it, she definitely found a way to maintain her sanity in this state and plans to use this state to enter the third painting and find the source of the curse!”

“And as soon as she enters the third painting, the terrifying crying will leave with her, allowing us to move freely.”

Wu Ya’s breathing quickened slightly, his face flushing with excitement.

In other words, that terrifying and desperate death trap was thus broken by someone he thought had lost the ability to act and had become a mindless puppet, in a way he couldn’t have imagined…

Realizing this, the two of them stared blankly at the place where Wen Jianyan had disappeared, their minds filled with identical thoughts of shock.

So strong.

She’s so strong.

Whether it’s the backup items to reverse the situation, the ability to find loopholes, or the unconventional methods to break the trap…

Is this something an ordinary anchor can achieve?

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