Chapter 1020: The Owner of the Villa
"Then what does this mean?" Chi Minghong asked with slight confusion. "The clearance task is to obtain a slip of paper. If each number corresponds to one slip, regardless of whether the killings follow the drawings on the slips, there are extra slips... This makes clearance too easy. Could the clearance task have another meaning?"
"The only thing that might affect clearance is the pattern on the slips," the lip-piercing player said, looking at the two slips on the table. "What's wrong with the content?"
The others also glanced over. The glasses-wearing man said, "If I had to point out a problem, it would be the quality of the drawings. They're too ugly, not like something an adult would draw."
Chi Minghong, Zhou Yuanzhu, and the local zone player nearby all took out paper and pens without a word, immediately demonstrating what it meant to have no artistic talent.
The glasses-wearing man gave a fake smile. "Well, my drawing skills aren't great either."
Xu Huo glanced at the three "drawings" that resembled kindergarten scribbles, then thought of something else.
"Haven't you considered another possibility?" the freckled player suddenly said. "The instance says there are slips of paper, but the ones we found might not be real! What if one of us drew them to make us kill each other?"
This speculation fundamentally negated all the players' efforts so far.
"I mean, what if the slips that appeared after midnight last night were already taken, and the person who took them, in order to clear the instance quickly, made fake slips to reduce the number of people? We'd have no way to tell," he said, deliberately glancing at Xu Huo.
Xu Huo's recent series of actions could indeed be seen as instigating conflict, but the others weren't fools. If it were him, he wouldn't have needed to step forward to collect the slips and expose Liang Zong and Ding Xiang's group.
"It's simple to find out if the slips are real," Xu Huo said. "If we're lucky, a slip will appear soon. If not, one should appear after midnight every night. From now on, everyone acts together, including at night. That way, even if the first slip we find isn't real, the second one most likely will be. By comparing them, we can determine the authenticity of the slips."
"Wouldn't staying out of our rooms violate the rules?" the glasses-wearing man hesitated. "What if it affects the instance rating?"
Xu Huo ignored him and said directly, "Let's vote."
"I agree," Chi Minghong was the first to respond. "Whether the slips are real or not, we should act together. Separating hasn't gotten us anywhere."
"I agree too," the lip-piercing player said darkly. "Since the instance time is still long, we can have some fun."
The muscular man, Liang Zong, and Ding Xiang also agreed, including the one who had ambushed Xu Huo. Compared to the others, he was the most eager to know the truth about the slips. "If I find out who wrote the fake slips, I'll skin them alive!"
The majority ruled, and the others had no choice but to agree.
"What do we do with this guy?" Chi Minghong pointed at Teacher Fan. "Logically, he was the first to get a slip, so he's the most likely to have faked it. Maybe we can find the real slip on him."
The item's time had expired, and Teacher Fan could now speak. He glared at Chi Minghong. "I only got that one slip. Believe it or not, if you want to kill me, just say so. But don't think my items alone are enough for all of you to split!"
"Still talking tough. What if we do kill you?" the lip-piercing player sneered.
Seeing that no one else in the room spoke up, Teacher Fan didn't dare to provoke further and lowered his head obediently.
Liang Zong and Ding Xiang were also ostracized. Although they weren't bound by items like Teacher Fan, they were under the surveillance of the other players.
After spending two hours in this room, Xu Huo suggested checking the rooms.
Everyone moved together. In each room, one player was responsible for searching while the others kept a full watch.
However, after searching the entire area, they didn't find a fourth slip in any room.
"Find a room to wait in," Xu Huo said. "Teacher Fan has already taken a slip, so his room is ruled out first."
"Go to my room," the local zone player pointed diagonally across.
This room had been tidied up. All cabinets and drawers were open, the bed and desk were neat and clean, without a single piece of clutter. Even the few books placed in the room were suspended by an item rope. At a glance, there was no place to hide anything in this room.
"Did you really find your slips on the table?" Chi Minghong asked Teacher Fan and the other male player.
"I turned around, and it was just there on the table," the male player said. "No need to search at all."
Everyone looked at each other. The glasses-wearing man said, "Maybe it's because there are too many people now, so the slips won't appear."
"That shouldn't be the case," Zhou Yuanzhu said. "If the slip's content is meant to make us kill each other, wouldn't it be better to appear in front of multiple people at once? That way, at least two people would definitely die."
The logic made sense, but no one knew the specific rules for the slips' appearance, so they could only test them one by one.
And the players who had obtained slips so far were all alone at the time.
"Maybe we should talk about the instance's background introduction," the glasses-wearing man suggested again. "Perhaps the clue is in there. I've read it many times but can't find any other meaning. Do you have any ideas?"
"The background is very ordinary. It just mentions that the owner of this villa liked to communicate with others by passing notes. What's so special about that?" Chi Minghong said directly. "I didn't see anything."
"The only special thing should be that the background introduction used the word 'strange' to describe the owner. Before I came, I checked the five owners of the Snow White Villa, including the builder. They were all ordinary people, except for the second-to-last heir, Jin Li, who had a congenital leg disability. Everything else was normal," the local zone player said. "But Jin Li was the only surviving blood descendant of the Snow White Villa's builder. After Jin Li died, the villa was inherited by her adopted son. After that couple died, the villa was transferred to their son, but he never came to manage it."
"Five owners, so the builder was Jin Li's grandfather?" Zhou Yuanzhu thought for a moment and said, "Is this 'strange' villa owner referring to her?"
"You're wrong there," the local zone player said. "She had a congenital disability, but she could walk—just not stand for long periods. Moreover, when she was a child, Zone 002 had already successfully treated congenital disabilities. Her condition wasn't severe. After several surgeries, she recovered to 80% of a normal person's ability. Additionally, she was passionate about charity, published some early childhood education books, and had two marriages. But because her body wasn't suitable for pregnancy, she had no children."
"I brought the books with me," he said, pulling out several picture books.
(Chapter End)