“What the hell is this crap?”
Li Ran was completely dumbfounded. Was this seriously supposed to be a mission prompt? Was he… actually killing someone?
But Li Ran didn’t have time to think about it. He rushed forward, knife in hand, and stabbed the man in the thigh. Blood gushed out instantly.
The man screamed in pain, and Li Ran quickly clamped a hand over his mouth.
The man shouted and used his shoulder to shove Li Ran aside, then crawled along the floor trying to escape.
Li Ran immediately gave chase—one stab to the waist, then another right into the man’s back.
The man let out another pained scream but still struggled to crawl toward the kitchen. His right hand trembled in the air for several seconds, then his head slumped to the side. Life faded from his body.
“What the hell am I doing?” Li Ran stood there in shock.
Even though he hadn’t felt much resistance while killing the middle-aged man—it was obvious the guy had been hamming it up with exaggerated death throes—this kind of immersive killing scenario still messed with his head.
“Ahhh!!”
Just then, the mother in the kitchen heard the noise. She rushed out, and when she saw the horror scene in the living room, she immediately let out a piercing scream.
“Husband! Son!” she cried in terror.
Shit. It wasn’t over yet?
Was this a third battle with the White Bone Spirit?
(Prompt: Kill her!)
(Prompt: She will block the door to her daughter’s room and stab a dagger into her throat!)
(Prompt: If you don’t do it, you’ll die. They’re all actors.)
Seeing that last line, Li Ran felt slightly relieved.
Otherwise, he really might’ve had a breakdown.
The woman ran to the daughter’s room and threw herself against the door, blocking it with her body. She shook her head, crying bitterly, begging, “No… please don’t, I’m begging you!”
Li Ran slowly walked toward her, face expressionless, and drove the dagger into her throat.
Blood poured out. The woman stared at him in horror as her body slowly slid from the doorframe to the ground.
(Push the door open and enter!)
Li Ran followed the prompt and pushed the door.
Right at that moment, the mother, driven by a monstrous surge of maternal instinct, clung desperately to Li Ran’s right leg—even as blood spurted from her neck like a fountain.
Seeing this, Li Ran was genuinely touched.
Even in her final moments, she was still trying to protect whoever was inside.
(Prompt: Finish her with a stab to the back!)
Li Ran drove the dagger into her back.
The woman let out a muffled grunt. Her arms suddenly lost strength, and she collapsed to the floor, instantly lifeless.
“Damn good acting,” Li Ran muttered, stunned.
Then, he pushed the door and entered.
The room was empty.
But beneath one of the beds, Li Ran saw a small foot peeking out.
He walked slowly to the side of the bed.
Inside the eavesdropping room on the second floor:
Police Captain: “Why is there no more audio?”
“Seems like the bug is malfunctioning?”
“You bunch of useless idiots! What the hell are you doing?”
“Hurry, go in and save the hostage!”
A swarm of police officers charged into Room 104.
In the living room—
Li Ran, arm bleeding, was walking toward Zhao Yingzhi. She huddled in a corner, hair disheveled, eyes full of ferocity, clutching a blood-stained dagger.
In that instant, every police gun was aimed straight at Li Ran.
“Stop right there!”
(Prompt: The bullets are blanks.)
(Prompt: Take the shot, play dead, and escape—the mission will be complete.)
Seeing the prompts, Li Ran didn’t stop. Instead, he twisted his face into a look of twisted cruelty, raising the dagger high as if to kill the girl.
Bang!
A deafening gunshot rang out. Li Ran felt a sharp pain in his chest and crashed into the study. The bookshelf collapsed, burying him in a pile of books.
“Save the girl!”
A group of officers rushed forward to rescue Zhao Yingzhi.
---
Building 5, temporary interrogation room:
“That killer was way more professional than the woman. He got in, did the job, and got out—clean and efficient. Hidden merit and fame, just like the wind. Whose man is he?”
“Wasn’t he one of yours?”
“He... he was one of mine?”
“Forget it. Don’t worry about him. Let’s pry open her mouth first.”
“You gave her the truth serum, right?”
“Yes, Boss. What if it still doesn’t work?”
“What else can we do? Let her go.”
---
Residential complex, park meetup spot:
“Damn it, that little girl’s vicious as hell.”
Li Ran sat on a stone bench, tending to the wound on his left arm. Luckily, it wasn’t too deep.
He’d gotten injured when Zhao Yingzhi ambushed him in the bedroom. Even though he’d been on guard, she still managed to hurt him. Clearly, this girl wasn’t simple.
After bandaging the wound, Li Ran checked the time.
“It’s been over three hours. It should be wrapping up by now.” He glanced toward Building 5.
Just then, he saw the little hellion walking toward him.
“Were you waiting for me?”
Zhao Yingzhi had changed into a clean outfit: a tight red leather jacket, skinny jeans that showed off her long legs, and her hair tied into two high ponytails. The wine-red hair gave her a playful vibe. With her freshly washed doll-like face, full of collagen and chubby cheeks, it made you want to reach out and pinch her.
But her expression didn’t match her cute face at all—her gaze was sharp and icy, lips curled in a faint, uncontrollable smile. In her right hand, she casually held a gleaming dagger, trimming the nails of her left hand.
“You okay?” Li Ran asked.
Seeing her show up, Li Ran knew—she’d completed her mission.
Zhao Yingzhi lightly hopped onto the stone table, strutting lazily in circles while trimming her nails.
Li Ran was seriously afraid she’d fall off.
Suddenly, she leaned down, staring at him with curious eyes. “Why’d you come to save me?”
Li Ran was caught off guard. Staring at that roguish doll face, he said, “Would you believe me if I said I was just doing the mission and saved you along the way?”
He wasn’t lying. Before the food delivery task, he really hadn’t known Zhao Yingzhi was inside—and had been trapped for six days.
“Delivery mission? Pretend-to-be-a-killer mission? Or was it a rescue mission?” Zhao Yingzhi locked eyes with him, trying to read any cracks in his expression.
“I know who you are.” Li Ran didn’t flinch under her stare.
“Oh?” Zhao Yingzhi hopped off the table and sat down, swinging her long legs nonchalantly. “No one at Azure Isle Academy doesn’t know me.”
She spoke as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.
Zhao Yingzhi—Azure Isle Academy’s baby-faced genius goddess.
She now looked at Li Ran with an interrogator’s gaze and questioned, “I’ve never had contact with any players before. But you—you replicated the killer’s movements perfectly. You knew exactly how to destroy the bugs. You even gave me a mental suppression potion ahead of time?”
“After that, when the police gave me the truth serum, it had no effect. That’s one of the rules, right?”
“And you, after just one glance through a window, unlocked god-mode—knew the full plot, every police setup?”
(End of Chapter)