# Chapter 30: Disappearance
"Why!" Yuan Yao blurted out. "If the Headchopper is among the players, then as long as we all stick together for these five days, they won't have a chance to strike!"
"Then all of us can clear the instance smoothly!"
"You're too naive." Huang Junjie shook his head. "Striking first gives you the advantage. Of course it's better to seize the initiative yourself. Besides, since the Headchopper is a player like us, they can be killed. Killing the Headchopper will definitely give extra rewards."
"Just for that?"
"Just for that?"
Yuan Yao and the college student asked simultaneously. The former sounded dejected, while the latter seemed somewhat lost and dispirited.
Seeing his unusual expression, Huang Junjie exchanged a glance with Xu Huo. This guy's mental fortitude was too weak—who knew how he'd even survived the preliminary examination train. If he went around repeating what he'd heard, the players might start killing each other ahead of schedule.
Although the college student wasn't in a good state, his eyes were sharp. Catching the silent exchange between Huang Junjie and Xu Huo, he immediately scrambled to his feet and hurriedly backed away, saying, "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone what I heard!"
"You..." Yuan Yao moved to stop him, but Xu Huo called out, "Let him go. Whether the other players know or not doesn't matter."
"Killing all the other players to clear the instance... there's no way it's that easy."
The ambiguous laughter sent chills down both Yuan Yao's and Huang Junjie's spines.
"Let's get out of here quickly," Huang Junjie said. "Staying here isn't a good idea."
Just as the three of them returned to the main hall, the lights in the villa came on. The college student had already curled up in a corner of the sofa, while the other players had deliberately avoided him and sat on other sofas.
The axe and the confiscated short knife were placed on the coffee table. The players sat around it, none of them speaking.
Xu Huo glanced at the sky outside, then sat down and closed his eyes to rest.
When dawn finally broke, all the players felt a sense of relief.
"Let's find something to eat first." Huang Junjie looked much better than yesterday. "After eating, we'll go look for Du Lanlan and Xia Guo's heads."
Liu Yuanyuan, arm in arm with the rich second-generation, walked up to them. "I'd advise you to be careful. You two touched the Headchopper statue. Xia Guo is already dead—you're the next targets."
She then winked at Yuan Yao, flashing a row of white teeth. "Little brother, aren't you scared? If you're scared, you can stick with us. My husband's got your back!"
Yuan Yao stood firmly beside Xu Huo without saying a word. Only after they'd walked away did he mutter, "Yesterday it was 'brother,' today it's 'husband'..."
Xu Huo glanced at the two of them, then turned to Huang Junjie. "Be careful later."
The players arrived at the dining room one after another.
The freezer and refrigerator in the dining room had already been searched yesterday—there was nothing edible. So today, everyone went to the supermarket to grab some convenience food.
"Brother Xu, Brother Huang, there's instant noodles. Let's have instant noodles." Yuan Yao carried over several cups of instant noodles and bottles of water, along with an electric kettle.
The other players gradually returned to the dining room. Abel came over with a box of instant vermicelli, asking for hot water. As they were waiting for the water to boil, the college student suddenly burst out of the supermarket entrance, bread and drinks scattering everywhere. He didn't even look back to see who had kicked him; instead, he scrambled to quickly shove the fallen items into a plastic bag.
Zhang Xiong stood behind him, his face dark. "There's plenty of food in the supermarket. Why are you grabbing so much at once? Are you plotting something nasty?"
The college student clutched his plastic bag, casting a wary glance at everyone in the dining room. He threw out a curt "Can't I just be hungry?" and hurriedly ran off.
"What's wrong with him?" Wan Zhikang slipped on a drink bottle by the door, cursing in annoyance.
"Who knows?" Wang Wei stared in the direction the college student had disappeared, answering absentmindedly.
After a makeshift breakfast, the players prepared to split up. Xu Huo was going to look for Du and Xia's heads, while Wang Wei and his group headed toward the wooden cabin.
"What about the axe and the knife?" Abel asked worriedly.
Neither weapon was something anyone felt comfortable keeping, but they also couldn't bring themselves to destroy them outright.
"It doesn't matter who takes them. I don't want them." The rich second-generation crossed his arms, leisurely watching the others.
"Since we're splitting into two groups, having a weapon is good for self-defense." Huang Junjie reached for the dagger.
Xu Huo and Yuan Yao had no objections, so Zhang Xiong naturally picked up the axe.
The three groups parted ways. Leaving the dining room and returning to the lodging area, Zhang Xiong, Wan Zhikang, and Wang Wei left the villa and headed toward the wooden cabin. The rich second-generation and Liu Yuanyuan went straight back to their room. Abel stood there alone.
"Aren't you going with Zhang Xiong and the others?" Xu Huo looked at him.
"I want to perform a funeral rite for those two girls." Abel hesitated. "You're looking for their heads. Can I come with you?"
He seemed well-intentioned.
"Do you really believe in Buddhism?" Xu Huo asked curiously. "Isn't there a conflict between different faiths?"
"Of course there is." Abel pulled a necklace out from his collar. "But I'm a universalist. I hold respect for all beliefs."
Yuan Yao held back for a moment. "You believe in every god. Aren't you afraid they'll pass the buck when trouble comes?"
Abel smiled tolerantly. "If gods truly exist, then they must be supreme. How could a supreme god hold a grudge against its own follower?"
Xu Huo chuckled at that and stopped engaging with this atheist. He walked into the room where the bodies were stored.
Yesterday, they had already searched every room in the villa. There were no hidden passages or secret rooms. But today, they searched more thoroughly, even moving all the beds and cabinets. Finding nothing, they then went to search the woods outside.
After a full sweep with no results, they had no choice but to return to the villa.
Xu Huo washed the plums he'd brought back yesterday, arranged them on a plate, and sat in the main hall eating them.
"Brother, you still dare to eat those?" Yuan Yao swallowed hard. "Aren't you afraid there are corpses buried under that tree?"
Xu Huo lifted his eyelids. "Did you see any freshly turned soil just now?"
"No." Yuan Yao answered quickly. "If we'd found freshly turned soil, wouldn't we have found the heads too? Who knows where that Headchopper hid them."
Xu Huo stared absently at the round wooden decorative piece on the wall behind the counter. "Not outside... then inside..."
Just then, Huang Junjie came out from the corridor. "Have you guys seen that college student, Jia Xuyang?"
"He's not here?" Xu Huo sat up straight, immediately asking, "Did he take the food he grabbed back to his room?"
"No, nowhere." Huang Junjie had specifically gone looking for Jia Xuyang. They hadn't seen him when searching the rooms earlier, but they hadn't thought much of it, assuming he'd gone out.
"A person can't just vanish into thin air," Yuan Yao said.
Xu Huo quickly replayed the events since arriving at the villa in his mind. Recalling the college student's strange behavior this morning, he suddenly said, "There must be a secret room in this villa. Search the main hall!"