Saman went backstage at the school again and began to slowly drag the list along, making sure that Ren Yifei on the other end could even memorize the students' phone numbers.
There was no doubt that he had seen through Ren Yifei's intention to gather intelligence and was certain that Ren wouldn't just send a mosquito. But Saman said nothing, simply offering his assistance in silence.
Ren Yifei decided to treat him better when he got back.
"How are you? Your neck." The little mosquito crawled onto the computer screen and huffed and puffed as it 'draws' those words.
Saman's expression softened, and he looked less gloomy: "It's expanding, but it's okay, as long as it doesn't drag on to the last day."
Saman was comforting Ren Yifei. In fact, he had a bad feeling when he first arrived at this instance, and he was at a loss as to what to do about the thing on his neck.
Ren Yifei had already realized this was a lie. He controlled the mosquito to fly to Saman's hand: Don't worry.
'Don't worry, if the Desolate Corner dares to make a move, we'll tear it apart alive.'
Theoretically speaking, Ren Yifei didn't have the ability to dismantle such a large system, but at this moment he was still willing to boast a little to reassure his lover.
Whether Saman understood these sentiments is another matter, but Saman was very happy to be able to contact Afei, even if it was in the form of a paper puppet.
He couldn't wait to share the intelligence he had obtained with Ren Yifei.
Having the advantage of being the original owner of the body, and still living in an environment where the original owner lived, as long as you look carefully, you can always find clues left by the original owner, and then deduce the original owner's personality, behavior style, hobbies, etc.
Therefore, Saman must have known more than others.
However, none of this worked, at least not for him. The marks on Saman's neck were spreading towards his other side, and if it couldn't be stopped, they would form a ring in four days.
Although he had no evidence, he had a feeling that this instance was specifically targeting him, seemingly trying to trap him there forever. No matter how many clues he found, he couldn't stop the ritual as the priest.
If things don't turn around, he's bound to die; even a miracle wouldn't help.
So being able to contact Ren Yifei now is not only another option for Saman, but also a source of psychological comfort. Even if Ren Yifei does indeed meet with misfortune this time, at least he won't leave without warning, and they can say goodbye properly.
"The original owner was an unqualified priest." Saman typed on the computer, worried that someone might be overheard.
A small mosquito landed on Saman's head and carefully looked at the words on the computer screen.
"The person who performs this highest-level sacrifice must be a female priest of the tribe. Even if the original owner did not design himself to be the sacrifice, he would still end up in a tragic end if he forced the sacrifice."
Saman's statement confirmed Ren Yifei's guess; the vice president was indeed a fanatical believer, but sadly, he lacked the necessary qualifications.
Although he could occasionally feel 'extraordinary power' (original owner's words), most of the time he could only watch others be blessed by the gods, gain inspiration from dreams, and even break through.
While there is a high probability of dying from contact with these mysterious beings, there is also a chance that one's talents will be awakened and one will become an outstanding artist.
Saman wasn't sure if this was the reason the original owner had taken such a risk. However, it was certain that the original owner had tried to drag innocent people down with her to create an opportunity for herself.
"You know, some insects in nature have the habit of eating their mates during mating season. The female insect eats to replenish her energy while mating, and once she runs out of energy, she will start eating the male, beginning with his head. So, in order to avoid death and still leave offspring, some male insects prepare enough food in advance."
"The original owner thought that the same thing happened with sacrifices. As long as there were enough offerings, he could benefit without losing his life. He was too naive."
Ren Yifei, sitting in the library, nodded almost imperceptibly: "Exactly! In this situation, you eat as much as you come, there's no order to it. At least, he never picked and chose when he ate before."
"So, his obsession is that he ultimately 'died,' and he wants to change that ending?"
A tiny mosquito struggled to crawl out a sentence on the screen, and it took Saman a while to understand what the words were.
"No, the truth is even more painful. His sacrifice wasn't entirely successful, but it did send many people to meet the mysterious being, except for him. The increase in the number of sacrifices didn't seem to have any effect on whether he would be favored."
The case is solved; the original owner lacked artistic talent, and the mysterious life form looked down on her.
If even a meeting is impossible, everything else is utter nonsense. Whatever the original owner wanted to achieve, or even to meet the 'mysterious being,' his hopes have been completely dashed.
The two were talking through the paper puppet, analyzing the vice president bit by bit, trying to find a clue. Suddenly, a cold wind came from Saman's dormitory.
"What happened?" The little mosquito was blown over and slid across the table. Samantha immediately scooped it back into his hands.
The wind picked up, and a black shadow appeared out of thin air on the wall. Ren Yifei vaguely sensed the atmosphere of impending doom. Saman didn't turn around; he simply deleted all previous conversations and chose not to save the files when closing the window.
A small mosquito landed on the back of his hand and fluttered its wings, as if asking: What happened?
"Just a player." Samantha carefully placed the mosquito in a small cover and then put it on the shelf.
Through the paper puppet's eyes, Ren Yifei looked at the Saman's enclosed space. He didn't know what skill he used, but he managed to break through the space and drag the player hidden in the shadows in.
The player was quite confused. He clearly used a ranged assassination skill, so how did he end up being dragged along as well?
"How stupid," Ren Yifei thought. "Saman's item inventory has more than ten pages, and his skill library probably has quite a few passive skills. He's not that easy to kill."
He was quite eager to take a closer look at the battle, but Saman casually grabbed a handkerchief and covered the glass dome with it.
Ren Yifei: ...
This handkerchief belonged to the vice president; it was a clean, gray-blue checkered handkerchief, faded from washing. Ren Yifei also noticed two tiny capital English letters embroidered on one corner, with an ampersand subtly placed between them.
L&Y.
"Huh? Aren't these couple's handkerchiefs? Does the vice president have a boyfriend?"
Outside, Saman and that player were locked in a fierce battle. Ren Yifei didn't know who the player was, only that they were using items and skills.
As a player who relies on disguise, Ren Yifei's biggest problem comes from NPCs, so he is unaware of how dangerous the battles between players are.
Those players who said they wanted to kill him and Saman weren't just joking; they just couldn't find him, so they didn't take action.
Through the semi-transparent handkerchief, his vision was obstructed, and his small stature made things appear distorted. Therefore, Ren Yifei had no idea what kind of life-or-death struggle the two had gone through; he only saw the final result.
The intruder was dead; his body lay on the ground, devoid of blood, suggesting he had been poisoned.
Saman, expressionless, sprayed medicine on his wounds. This medicine would form a biofilm on the wound, accelerating healing. It was a high-level and rare item.
He opened the glass cover, and a small mosquito flew out: Which one?
It eagerly 'writes' in the air.
"One yesterday, one today." Samantha had finished treating his wounds and sat down again, as if the corpses behind him didn't exist.
That's true; when a player dies at the hands of another player, their body will quickly disappear without a trace.
Behind them lay a dormitory mostly destroyed, and beneath their feet lay players who lay dead with their eyes wide open, but that didn't stop them from continuing to analyze the vice president's personality traits and guess his current identity based on the existing clues.
"Everyone knows that the vice president is a sexually fertile person."
Seeing the little mosquito tilting its head up to listen carefully, Saman continued, "Judging from the few words this person left behind, he not only has a personality disorder, but also secretly envies other girls who can openly wear skirts and have long hair."
"From his perspective, this instance allows him to choose a character, which is equivalent to giving him a chance to choose his role in life again."
Based on Saman's analysis, he believes that the vice president's current role is more likely that of a beautiful and popular woman.
Ren Yifei agreed with Saman's analysis and offered his own opinion—the woman chosen by the vice president must be someone he knows well, or even someone he meets frequently.
For no other reason than 'he envied'.
"Admiration needs a specific object; the closer you get, the greater the possibility." A mosquito flew up and landed on the embroidered letters on the handkerchief. "Does the vice president have any close female friends? Or any women pursuing him?"
The vice president's surname is Liu, L. Now he is very curious about who Y is.
"Hmm?" Saman then noticed the embroidered words on the handkerchief.
The handkerchief had been folded up, and Saman had overlooked the tiny embroidered lettering when he inspected it.
"Let me check."
Saman had already moved all of the original owner's personal files to a folder, making them easy to find now.
They quickly found some clues; the messages came from someone asking about the vice president's love life. This person jokingly asked the vice president if there was something going on between him and that girl, since they were always seen together.
The vice president, of course, vehemently denied it, saying only that they were friends and that he was not worthy of the title.
This passage doesn't explicitly name anyone, only mentioning that they are members of a club.
"It's highly likely. Always going in and out together actually says something. Perhaps this girl is the vice president's ideal type—the ideal type for girls." Samantha shook his head, looking at the handkerchief.
"But it seems that the girl misunderstood, and the vice president's feelings must be very complicated."
"You can look for it in the small group chat; 'Ghost' is in the small group chat right now," Ren Yifei affirmed.
Criminals will instinctively focus on their cases, just like 99% of people will glance at the toilet bowl after using it before flushing.
Therefore, he is very likely hiding among the victims, keeping a close eye on the situation.
The girl surnamed Y is a member of the club. She's not bad-looking and belongs to the third category on the official list.
Following this direction of investigation, the target seems quite obvious.
"There are two girls in the small group who fit the criteria, Yu Xueming and Yu Huijun. They are both good-looking, petite and charming, the type that many boys would like."
"A choice between two options? ... It's too easy. I have a bad feeling about this." Ren Yifei didn't believe in the integrity of the Desolate Corner.
"We should act quickly. Regardless of whether there are traps or not, we need to investigate first to make a judgment. I'll find an opportunity to meet with both of them." Saman already had a plan in mind.
Ren Yifei's situation is a bit more complicated, because he needs to maintain his public image and doesn't know what reason to give for meeting them.
"Is Saman going to take the lead this time?" Ren Yifei cut off his connection with the mosquito and returned to the library.
In just a short while, the library has become quite crowded. It's the end of the semester, and even if there's an epidemic, it won't stop everyone from studying hard and not failing their courses.
"Ding—" A new message popped up in the group chat, but it was one that Ren Yifei hadn't expected.
"Several people who were in a coma at the hospital have died?"
What happened? It's not even 11 o'clock yet, not the time when ghosts kill people. Besides, he has already severed their connection with the mysterious being, so it can't be interference from some mysterious force. So how could several people have died?
"A ghost, and accomplices?" Ren Yifei covered his forehead, closed his eyes, and went through all the information he had received. Suddenly, he remembered the stack of old, worn-out handkerchiefs that he still cherished and displayed on the shelf.
Was the vice president's affection for this woman merely envy? And was the handkerchief the woman gave him as a token of their love just a misunderstanding?
Their reasoning about the ghost's identity is based on the premise that the ghost, as a person with sexual dysphoria, believes himself to be female, wants to be female, and is attracted to men.
"But who says that people with sexual dysphoria must be attracted to the same sex?"