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Chapter 219

China, Beijing, the National Museum.

Ruan Wangshu's injuries were extremely heavy. After Li Miaomiao transferred some wounds to herself, Ruan Wangshu slowly woke up but his body was still weak. Fu Wensheng quickly took out the prepared mineral water and helped Chen Shanshan and the other Tian Xuan members with looking after his injuries.

A few hours later, Li Miaomiao returned to normal while Ruan Wangshu was still pale. He struggled to get up and asked which players had already dropped out of the game or failed.

Ruan Wangshu left the game and learnt that their tower attack game was being broadcasted live around the world by the black tower.

It wasn't truly live. The black tower only informed them about the situation of the players in the game and didn't disclose what game they were playing. Chen Shanshan heard from Ruan Wangshu that they had to face six black tower monsters on the level of the circus leader and finally understood why so many advanced players died in the game or quit.

Chen Shanshan said, "While you were unconscious, the black tower announced that out of 16 players in the main game, two are dead and there are 14 left."

Ruan Wangshu frowned. "So many." The difficulty of this game was beyond his imagination. "Tian Xuan has only one gold coin. After I used it, Yuzheng can't come out. Perhaps I should've let her go in alone with the king's gold coin from the beginning."

Fu Wensheng said, "Are you exaggerating? I remember that Sister Yuzheng is very strong. Sister Shanshan praised her, saying that she isn't worse than Brother Tang just based on combat ability."

Ruan Wangshu was preparing to speak when the clear child's voice was heard again. This voice spread all over the world and the players had long been accustomed to it. It was because they heard the black tower report this type of thing several times today.

"Ding dong! China District 1 official player Bai Ruoyao has failed to pass the instance."

An abandoned shopping mall in Chaoyang, Beijing.

Ning Zheng was struggling to use the mineral water to heal himself. He suddenly heard this and stopped pouring water. After a while, he sighed.

Nanjing Road, Shanghai.

Luo Fengcheng looked at Jack with surprise and Jack was confused. "No, Bai Ruoyao, that psychopath? If he failed the instance… he is dead?"

The moment he heard this, Ruan Wangshu's widened with astonishment and he turned to star at the black tower. Fu Wensheng and Chen Shanshan were even more shocked.

Ruan Wangshu's understanding of Bai Ruoyao was actually very limited. He liked pestering Tang Mo and Fu Wenduo and wasn't interested in Tian Xuan. Of the 16 players in the game, none of the Chinese players had died. Now that one suddenly died, many players in China felt cold.

Only Chen Shanshan and Fu Wensheng knew how deep the strength of the baby-faced youth was and that he was unfathomable.

After the brief shock, Chen Shanshan calmed down and started analyzing it, "Bai Ruoyao is a very careful person. I guessed with Brother Tang and Major Fu that he should have many life-saving props on him. The fact that he died in the game means it is possible the main mission forbids the use of props." The implication was that Lian Yuzheng couldn't use the king's gold coin even if she had it.

Ruan Wangshu was silent for a moment before saying, "If he is dead then Lian Yuzheng's situation is dangerous."

They were outside the game and couldn't help the people inside. Chen Shanshan twisted the cap of the mineral water. She turned her head and found that Fu Wensheng was looking down, his mouth slightly open and his expression dull.

Chen Shanshan asked lightly, "Xiao Sheng?"

Fu Wensheng's spirit immediately returned. "Ah, Sister Shanshan."

"What's wrong?"

Fu Wensheng was silent as he held two bottles of mineral water. Then he said, "Nothing, I just feel strange. I hate that person. When he was pestering me, Brother Tang and Big Brother, I really wanted him to go far away from me and for him to die. Now that he's really dead…"

The child remembered the hot pot store and the song that filled it. The hotpot store was nearby but Bai Ruoyao was dead.

The child murmured, "…I'm not happy."

The sixth layer of the black tower, Noah's ark.

The 12 remaining players came out of the room and saw the body on the stairs. There was no surprise as they went to check the body. Every player was mentally prepared.

Tang Mo concluded, "It is much better than the two bodies yesterday. This time is isn't much damage. The fatal injury is the knife to the heart and there aren't many wounds in other places, in line with the death method in the song."

Mu Huixue went down the stairs and found the arm that fell near the table.  "The arm is here. The incision is very smooth, like it was cut off by a weapon at a very fast speed."

Tang Mo looked at the rest of the players. "Do you have any thoughts?"

The East Asian player Yamamoto, who had never spoke before, suddenly opened his mouth. "He is your companion?"

 Fu Wenduo looked at him. "Yes."

Yamamoto asked, "Did you know he left the room last night? The last three people who died were all alone in their room. Only this…" He thought for a moment. "This Bai Ruoyao shared a room with you."

Tang Mo opened his mouth. "The black tower said that teammates won't discover it when a player leaves the room at night. We didn't know he was gone."

Yamamato quickly looked at Tang Mo and said, "I have no problems."

Tang Mo said, "Then let's go to the attic."

Tang Mo bent down as he spoke, wanting to take Bai Ruoyao's body to the attic. He had just leaned down when Fu Wenduo picked up the body. Tang Mo moved to his side while Mu Huixue followed with the arm.

Mu Huixue walked beside Tang Mo and said quietly, "I can't say what I am feeling after seeing that Fox is dead."

Tang Mo was silent before replying, "Me too."

Tang Mo looked at Fu Wenduo and the corpse of Bai Ruoyao.

He knew this person and so did Fu Wenduo. The baby-faced youth saved the lives of Fu Wenduo and his comrades. Once they let him go, Tang Mo knew they wouldn't kill each other. No one imagined that Bai Ruoyao would die and it would be in a black tower game.

Fu Wenduo opened the door of the attic and looked inside, the light in his eyes flashing. He placed Bai Ruoyao's body on the ground and Mu Huixue placed the arm next to it. The rest of the players entered the attic in turn and Lian Yuzheng frowned. "Sure enough."

Yes, the two bodies placed here were gone.

If the black woman who died on the first day still had the possibility of being alive, the bodies which had been burned or cut to pieces were absolutely dead and couldn't recover. Yet their bodies were missing.

Li Xia stared warily at every player in the attic.

“Who stole the body? Is it the monster?"

No one answered her question.

Everyone left the attic with their own thoughts. Putting Bai Ruoyao's body in the attic meant it would be stolen this evening. However, no matter where it is placed, it would surely be stolen. As Tang Mo walked past his room, he discovered that the Bai Ruoyao engraved on the door had been cut through with a sharp tool.

Every room in the castle could only be accessed by the owner of the room.

Tang Mo and Fu Wenduo couldn't put the body back in their room even if they wanted to.

The 13 people walked to the long table and pulled up the seven or eight chairs that had fallen.

In the dimly lit castle, pieces of glass were on the ground and some chairs had fallen over. The table, staircase and pillars all showed signs of fighting. It was clear that there was a fierce battle last night that ended in Bai Ruoyao's death.

Bai Ruoyao's name on the back of the chair had been crossed off and his small puppet fallen on the ground. Tang Mo wanted to sit on the chair but Fu Wenduo stepped up first. Tang Mo was startled while Fu Wenduo glanced at him with a certain expression.

Tang Mo didn't speak.

Once everyone was seated, the old man opened his head. "It is clear that the man's death last night is different from the other three. This time, there are many traces of fighting. They must've had a fierce battle. There are two possibilities. First, the player who killed the first three people isn't the same as the killer last night. The latter's strength isn't as strong as the former, causing this type of struggle. There is a second possibility…" The old man looked at Fu Wenduo in the chair. "Your companion, is he very strong?"

Fu Wenduo joined his hands together. "He is very strong."

The old man said, "Then it should be the second possibility. Due to his strength, the castle became like this when he fought the killer."

The Southeast Asian player Abdullah's cold voice was heard. "Since the two sides have fought a fierce battle, perhaps there are still injuries on the killer's body."

The group was surprised.

Abdullah's dark eyes swept over everyone. "I propose that everyone be checked for wounds."

"I agree."

"I also agree."

Most people agreed with the proposal but the European Lena Jophos sneered. "Do you want us to take off out clothes to be checked? I don't agree. If you want to look then I will dig out your eyes and let you look slowly.

Mu Huixue suggested, "There are four female players here. I don't mind if we go to the second floor and check each other."

The four female players in the castle were Mu Huixue, Lian Yuzheng, Li Xia and Lena.

Lena folded her arms and leaned back in the chair. She said to Mu Huixue, "All three of you are Chinese. How do I know you won't join hands to deal with me?"

Li Xia frowned. She wanted to say that she didn't know Mu Huixue or Lian Yuzheng and it was impossible for them to join hands. Mu Huixue smiled and cupped her chin. "Deal with you? Say you have a wound on your body but nobody else sees it. Will they believe the three of us and think you are the killer?"

Lena gritted her teeth. "I agree."

The European player was eccentric. From the beginning, she said that she wanted to kill Mu Huixue and she didn't want her body to be checked. However, if she didn't agree then she would seem suspicious.

The male players checked each other for wounds on the first floor while the female players went to the second floor.

Five minutes later, the group returned to the long table.

The old man opened his mouth. "It seems that no one is injured."

Andrei nodded. "It isn't surprising since we are all senior players. We might not be able to use players but we must be carrying simple medicines. Coupled with a strong self-healing ability, an hour is enough to recover as long as it isn't a serious injury. Once everyone agreed to check for wounds, it was already impossible to find the murderer."

Things suddenly fell into a deadlock.

Mu Huixue's fingers tapped the table. "There has been no mention of it until now but I think everyone should've thought of it. It is the fourth day and four people have died.  There are two days and three nights left before Noah arrives. If we don't give him barbeque then he will eat us and we will fail the sixth floor."

The blond American player, David Anders asked, "What do you want to say?"

Mu Huixue explained. "Nothing, I just have a question. Everyone here are players who have cleared the fifth floor and are strong. Now there are only two days and three nights left, which is 10 hours… Everybody, have you thought of a way to clear this instance?”

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Chapter 220

Two days and three nights. The accelerated time flow meant that players only had 10 hours left.

The long table was silent after Mu Huixue spoke.

The 12 players in the room were advanced players who had experienced countless black tower games and faced life and death tests. The old man George might seem weak but he had cleared the black tower's fifth floor.

This powerful strength made it possible for players to find the monster hidden among the players more accurately, but it also caused players to hide and remain on guard against each other. Even now, Tang Mo didn't dare say that he knew the strength of everyone here.  It was because everyone hid too well, which also made this game more difficult.

The more the hid, the less they exposed.

The same was true for the black tower monster.

The East Asian player Yamamoto Takao opened his mouth. "I haven't thought of a instance clearance method now."

Lian Yuzheng stared at him. "You mean, you haven't through of it now but you will think about it later."

Yamamoto Takao stared at her deeply. Then he lowered his eyes and spoke in a calm voice. "The method, I think every player in the room knows it."

Lena Jophos let out mocking laughter while her companion Don smiled and looked at Yamamoto Takao. The Southeast Asian player Abdullah crossed his arms and didn't participate in the discussion. The old man and two American players frowned, seemingly dissatisfied with Yamamoto Takao's words.

They hadn't opened their mouths yet when Mu Huixue smiled. "There is one thing I think we should consider. It is what Fu Wenduo said previously." She glanced at Fu Wenduo.

Mu Huixue smiled and continued, "The two players who died the second day, their bodies were seriously destroyed. It is impossible to confirm if they had a fierce battle with the murderer before their deaths. Bai Ruoyao, who died yesterday, his body told us that there was a struggle. Only Lena who died on day one…." She paused and added, "I'm talking about Lena Jokel."

Lian Yuzheng said, "Lena Jokel showed no signs of a struggle."

Mu Huixue nodded. "That's why Fu Wenduo said there were two possibilities and I think he is correct. First, the murderer is too strong and Lena couldn't resist at all before she was killed. Second, the other person is familiar with Lena and she at least knows them. Thus, she didn't take precautions and was killed by the other person."

Every player agreed to spend daytime at the long table so that every word would be heard by everyone.  However, players would definitely find a chance to talk in private. For example, Tang Mo's group of six had simple communications. Mu Huixue knew Fu Wenduo's speculation and Tang Mo also know that in the past three days, none of the other five people had a chance to go out at night.

Yamamoto Takao nodded gently. "I agree with this speculation."

Mu Huixue kept talking. "If I only base it on Lena Jokel's death, I can't guess which one is more likely. However, two people died the next day and one of them was also an American player, David Anders."

The blond American player squinted. "What are you saying?"

Mu Huixue stared at him. "I'm just saying that an American player also died the next day."

Bell Fauske sneered. "Returnee Mu Huixue, you don't have to act. I think everyone here knows what you are trying to say. You want to tell us that Lena, who died on the first day, was either beaten by a powerful player and couldn't resist or she met someone she knew.  The two people who died the second day, they are two people whose strengths are very high.. If someone wants to kill both of them at the same time, how difficult would it be? The most likely method is that two people joined hands to kill one person and then they killed their companion."

Andrei spoke casually, "Bell Fauske, you said on the third day that you know David Anders."

Bell hit the table angrily. "Fuck! I just said that I heard of him and I gained intelligence about him from others. Do you people in China never collect intelligence on other people. Don't you know each other? You are in a cooperative relationship. I saw you and Mu Huixue pull those three players up onto Noah's ark."

Mu Huixue looked up. "Then you are admitting that you really know David Anders, not just heard about him?"

Bell was extremely furious. "You…!"

“Enough, stop here. Mu Huixue, what do you want to say?" Bell's companion, John Brooks interrupted. "We know David. We aren't teammates but we aren't enemies. We really didn't kill him. As for Lena, we've heard of her. She was in the western United States while we are in the East. She is too far away and we never had contact."

Mu Huixue slowly got up. "Did you kill Bai Ruoyao?"

John frowned. "I said that we didn't."

“In fact, I hate that guy but I actually knew him for years. As companions in the same organization, there were a few meetings. In any case…" Mu Huixue looked up while a black weapon shot through the air at John. "He is my companion!"

John dodged the hidden weapon. He looked back and saw it hit a fragment of the small puppet.

Snap.

There was the sound of the red whip.

The black tower prohibited the use of props so the players' weapons couldn't show the original prop effect. Still, this didn't affect the use. John hadn't expected Mu Huixue to suddenly act. He evaded the whip but wasn't fast enough. The back of his hand was struck.

Bell immediately pulled out a gun and fired at Mu Huixue.

The blond man and brown-haired man had a tacit understanding and joined together to attack Mu Huixue. The rest of the players remained sitting and watched the battle. The battle started suddenly but didn't last long. There were only two round of exchanges before the whip that returned to Mu Huixue was caught by Andrei.

“It is pointless." Andrei's dull voice was heard. "They might not be the ones who killed Bai."

Mu Huixue looked at her companion before putting away the whip.

Since entering the castle, Mu Huixue had always been friendly. She didn't become angry even when facing Lena Jophos' provocation. Everyone forgot that she was actually a returnee and a returnee with 260,000 minutes of rest time.

In the world of the returnees, killing players in the same game was the most common thing.

Returnees were different from Earth survivors.

A light shone in Lena Jophos' eyes when she saw Mu Huixue's performance.

After sitting down, Mu Huixue's expression changed as she smiled. "Sorry, I was making a joke. Everyone, have you thought of a way to clear the instance?"

It was a simple action that deterred the other players. Everyone could see that Bell and John combined couldn't kill Mu Huixue. The strength of this woman was extremely terrifying.

At this time, a laugh was heard. "I now understand. You didn't fight just now to avenge your so-called companion. You want to tell us that even if we meet you in the evening, it is impossible to kill you. Or to say… you want to threaten us to not move against you lightly?"

It was the European player, Don Savik.

Mu Huixue leaned back in her chair and smiled at the other person. "You guess."

Don's smile became more brilliant.

The day passed and they dispersed.

Before leaving, Tang Mo stood behind Fu Wenduo and said quietly, "I don't think it is meaningful but I still have to ask. Will any player admit they had a chance to go outside last night and ran into my companion?"

There was silence in the castle. After a long time, Lena Jophos laughed and said, "Stupid." Then she got up and left. Players left the lobby and headed to their second floor rooms.

Tang Mo's sentence was meaningless.

From the start of the game to the present, and even in the future, there wouldn't be any players who admitted they left their room at night. It was because as long as a player died, they would unconditionally be suspected. Even if they weren't the black tower monster, they might be attacked by other players and killed.

Tang Mo and Fu Wenduo headed back to their rooms. Before they separated, they whispered a few words to Mu Huixue's group of three. Based on the overall strength of the five people, Fu Wenduo said, "LIan Yuzheng, if you are selected at night, don't go out. The others can try and go out.'

As Bai Ruoyao guessed the day before, the player who was voted on to have his ability removed was Andrei, not Tang Mo. In other words, Tang Mo could still use his ability.

Lian Yuzheng thought about it before asking, "If I don't go out, will it affect the plan?"

Tang Mo replied, "We have five people here. The probability of one of us not being selected is only 0.008%. The probability is so low that if it happens, the five of us must have very bad luck. It is too unfair if the black tower doesn't let us go out. If I calculated correctly, one of us must go out tonight and tomorrow."

Night fell, the clock in the castle rang and there was a loud noise.

A child's voice was suddenly heard in Tang Mo's ears. "Ding dong! You have obtained a chance to go outside."

Tang Mo's heart was stunned and he reflexively looked at Fu Wenduo on the opposite bed. He could hear that Fu Wenduo was still talking to him and then he heard his own voice. The tone of speech, the words he habitually used and even his way of thinking, this 'Tang Mo' was exactly the same as the real Tang Mo. He talked with Fu Wenduo for three minutes and Fu Wenduo didn't find any abnormalities.

Tang Mo had a deeper understanding of the black tower. He was now an invisible person. He opened the quilt and walked towards the door. Then… he passed straight through the door.

The moment he passed through the door, the conversation in the room disappeared.

In the silent and dark hallway, only the sound of the clock ticking was heard. Tang Mo stood quietly in the middle of the corridor. He calmly observed the surroundings and didn't see a person.  He thought for a moment before turning to the attic.

He took the stairs towards the third floor attic.

He had just stepped on the top step when he suddenly pulled out a gun, his movements smooth as the gun's cold muzzle pointed to the side of the attic staircase.

In the dimly lit staircase, the black-haired youth stared into the darkness. He couldn't see anything but he knew someone was there. After a few seconds, a white-haired figure emerged from the darkness.

George Ansoni didn't panic and calmly said, "The person who came out is you."

Tang Mo didn't put away the gun. "When did you come and why did you come here?'

The old man replied, "My room is closest to the attic and I was only one step ahead of you."

The two of them hadn't finished when there were light footsteps on the stairs. Tang Mo and George turned to look at the person. From a corner of the narrow staircase, cold eyes emerged from the darkness and stared at Tang Mo and George Ansoni standing at the doorway to the attic.

The three people watched each other. A moment later, George said, "It seems that the three people here came out tonight. Me, Tang Mo and… Abdullah."

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