"But it might also keep turning others into ghosts."
"In short, ghosts can come in, to avenge and retaliate, as long as we can uncover the truth."
This statement made everyone bow their heads, as if each harbored secrets.
Even the recluse, Ah Fei, shivered in fear at these words.
Only Xiaoya seemed relieved.
Meanwhile, Doctor Chen Ming flashed a strange smile.
Wen Xishu looked at Zhang Qiang.
Suddenly Zhang Qiang sneered:
"What nonsense, can't these ghosts just act on their whim? I'm a cop, I won't do anything bad! Stop guessing blindly."
"Why should I tell you about my past? Who the hell are you?"
Wen Xishu knew Zhang Qiang wouldn't speak easily.
And he knew...
That Zhang Qiang might not be easily frightened; Zhang Qiang might not end up in a panic like Li Wei did at the bar.
Zhang Qiang also held a gun, Wen Xishu felt confident he could subdue him...
Yet he felt it hadn't come to that, it was all just speculation.
Despite that, Wen Xishu's words quickly put Zhang Qiang at odds with everyone else. Even Old Zhou, after vomiting, couldn't help but say:
"Officer Zhang... Mr. Zhang, maybe you should speak up, it's every man for himself, don't drag others down."
Old Zhou's words ignited Zhang Qiang's anger:
"Want me to shoot you and turn you into a ghost?"
In truth, everyone could see that Zhang Qiang didn't quite seem like a cop, the Water Ghost was telling the truth.
But Zhang Qiang had a gun.
And—
Soon there was a knocking at the door again.
Wen Xishu glanced at Xiaoya, and she forced a smile:
"I can hold on a bit longer."
The wronged soul at the bar said:
"It's coming, you can't stop it!"
No one paid attention.
Wen Xishu merely glanced over and noted the words. For now, he was taking it step by step.
"Not sure which character the next ghost relates to."
Chen Ming? Ah Fei? Old Zhou?
The knocking appeared.
Thud, thud thud.
The first knock was light, the second and third weren't too loud, like testing the waters.
"Is anyone there... Can I come in to hide? It's too dangerous outside."
It was a girl's voice.
Compared to the previous voices full of bitterness, this sounded extremely calm.
Everyone quickly gathered around to look at Ah Fei's computer.
Not watching was better, because once they saw it, everyone was startled.
For outside, aside from the voice sounding human, nothing looked human.
It was a centipede with countless heads tied together. Roughly seventeen heads, exuding black aura all over.
The sight sent chills down everyone's spine.
If not for the camera...
The voice alone would be enough to deceive people.
Even Wen Xishu, hearing only the voice, wondered if it could still be a person this time.
So far, assuming Xiaoya hadn't lied... had not been affected by the Water Ghost, nearly all who knocked, except Xiaoya once, were human.
"Can you open the door... it's really dangerous outside!"
Yet now, thanks to Ah Fei's skills, everyone saw the scene outside.
Wen Xishu was merely curious...
"It's indeed not human, but its body comprises many human heads, some facing upward, wouldn't it see the camera?"
"Or does it think the camera is non-functional?"
Zhang Qiang said:
"Can I drink this time?"
His hand was already on the red wine glass.
Even in this situation, thanks to Wen Xishu's last speech, everyone was cautious and wary.
Aside from Zhang Qiang, no one else drank.
This time the target was obvious, definitely a ghost, so Wen Xishu finally said:
"Raise your hand if you think the other side isn't human."
Yes, though it was superfluous, to ensure no one rushed to drink later, Wen Xishu decided to set a procedure.
Everyone raised their hand, only Zhang Qiang snorted coldly: "Pointless actions."
Wen Xishu said:
"Then drink the red wine."
Everyone voted ghost. This round went without much resistance, with everyone thinking they could breathe easily before the next knock.
But just as voting concluded, Ah Fei suddenly fell from his chair, dropping his laptop to the ground.
Ah Fei's mouth was agape in shock, eyes wide:
"Look… look!!"
The others were scared by Ah Fei's reaction, then paused as they looked at the screen.
Wen Xishu's heart skipped a beat.
Were they deceived?
The head centipede outside had somehow turned into a panicked girl, who was pounding the door:
"Please let me in!"
Yes, she was no longer a ghost but seemed human.
"She... she is a ghost, right? Just disguised as a human!" Ah Fei said.
Everyone hoped for that.
But Wen Xishu sensed it... the ghost's tactics had evolved.
Recalling those words from the wronged soul at the bar, "It's coming, you can't stop it!", Wen Xishu already had the answer in mind.
His heart sank.
Dynamic difficulty adjustment.
In simple terms, some lazy developers would dynamically adjust game difficulty over time to continuously pressure the player.
The game's difficulty had escalated, or rather...
The ghost's tactics had upgraded.
Was it because there were fewer people?
Suddenly, Wen Xishu thought of this.
The fewer the living people, the more cunning the ghosts' tactics, making survival harder, thus ghosts potentially growing stronger...
Forming a vicious cycle.
Li Wei's death lowered the bar's "life force."
This was speculation, but Wen Xishu had always trusted his instincts.
"I want~ to forget you~" the phonograph's voice chimed in again.
"Regrettably, you've wrongly killed the second person; sometimes, you shouldn't rely on sight, but think with your heart. As you're nearing extinction..."
"Here's a new rule: once the number of wronged souls reaches four... everyone dies, but don't think nothing will happen when it's just three."
"Good luck."
Soon, the Harbor Bar would transform from a human refuge to a haunt of ghosts.
Everyone faced the terror of death.
At this moment, in the spotlight of the bar's center, appeared a spiteful, red-clad girl's face:
"You will all die! You will all die!"
"Guess, will the next knock be human or ghost?"
"You always trust your technology, have you considered it might betray you?"
These final words were aimed at Ah Fei by the red-clad girl. Ah Fei seemed struck by them, staying near the wronged soul's region, entered into a hallucination.
Past mistakes brought tears streaming down his face.
"No! It's not my fault! It's not my fault!"
He began rambling incoherently.
Wen Xishu swiftly took a step and charged into the region of the wronged souls. The red-clad girl was positioned before the bar, meaning there were fewer corners for the living to escape.
The red-clad girl's face, alongside the original wronged soul's face from the bar, both stared at Wen Xishu, their eerie twisted faces filled with malice:
"You think there's no story for you today?"
"Guess who will knock next!"
Ignoring them, Wen Xishu pulled Ah Fei out.
Everyone squeezed towards the door, reached the corner, and finally shook off the clamorous whispers in their minds.
Ah Fei gasped heavily:
"Sorry... I trusted the images on my computer too much, didn't expect she wasn't a ghost, but human!"
Wen Xishu sighed:
"It's not your fault, or anyone's. The decision was made collectively."
"I underestimated the game's changing difficulty. But it won't happen again."
Finding a standard for judging ghosts was a must.
Once identified, survival wouldn't be such an issue.
If it's not addressed, delving deeper to uncover everyone's secrets is impossible.
Then Xiaoya's mouth let out another cold laugh:
"Zhang Qiang, you are close to death."
The chill ran down everyone's spine, the second wrongful murder left them in a dire situation.
On the fourth time, they were bound to be wiped out; this rule was confirmed by the phonograph.
Yet as Wen Xishu said, the situation would likely worsen with a third wronged soul's appearance.
Wen Xishu forced himself to remain calm:
"We're not at life and death yet, just can't make mistakes... stay calm."
He consoled himself internally, trying to quickly ponder a breakthrough.
But at this very moment, came another damned knock on the door!