This bug is amazing!

Chapter 197 The Telephone
The faceless man's figure vanished in an instant; Ji Yi only caught a glimpse of him before he disappeared without a trace.

'what happened? ’

[Congratulations on encountering the Faceless One you're looking for right at the start of the game; unfortunately, he's no longer nearby.]

[This person may have made a living by deception in the past, but now, despite possessing a wealth of deception skills, he's rather clumsy in applying them, which is why he's not doing very well in this world of supernatural tales where S-rank characters are everywhere.]

The data reveals a great deal of information.

Based on the previous analysis, the reliability of this Faceless One being Ye Changtian has increased considerably. After all, even if a Faceless One has lost his identity and memories, he shouldn't be unable to use his own abilities.

The scene of Ji Yi being killed by the Faceless One in the convenience store instance is still vivid in my mind.

The opponent's skills seemed to have become muscle memory; even if the Faceless One didn't know who he was, he could still use his abilities smoothly.

This Faceless One clearly has a serious problem with his identity.

"Mr. Giba, what are you daydreaming about?"

Miss Cat's voice brought Ji Yi out of her thoughts.

"No, I'm just observing our current location. By the way, Miss Cat, you seem to have become even more powerful."

Miss Cat glanced at Ji Yi with her dead fish eyes:
"Hmm, Mr. Giba, are you praising me because you want to curry favor with me? By the way, I'm wearing white lace today."

She said expressionlessly.

Ji Yi: "?"

"He actually looks disappointed. As a pervert, Mr. Kiba should have X-ray vision on every woman, right? Could it be that Mr. Kiba actually enjoys this sneaky feeling, and he loses interest when the woman tells him directly?"

Ji Yi: "Miss Cat, I'm actually a very upright person. How could I possibly snoop on other people's privacy?"

"Okay, let's go. Let's find those two unlucky teammates who were dragged into this by Mr. Giba."

Upon hearing this, Ji Yi glanced at the queue column.

[Zhuge Light Bulb LV15: Survival]

[Hao Youqian LV16: Survival]

Hmm? They're all old acquaintances.

Ji Yi raised an eyebrow, feeling a special affinity for the two people, since they were her teammates in the first team dungeon she participated in.

I remember Zhuge Dengpao is a [Talisman Master], a character with relatively low intelligence.

In real life, Hao Youqian is a small-time business owner, but in the game, his profession is "merchant".

He was dressed in excellent gear and actually had quite a few perfect-grade items. These weren't all acquired through real-world wealth; he seemed to have some understanding of equipment trading within the game.

As for Hao Youqian's strength, there's basically no point in relying on his intelligence, and his martial arts skills are even less useful.

"The Elo system is kicking in, two prisoners carrying two vegetables. Miss Cat, will we win?"

Miss Cat didn't respond, but just glanced at the grinning Ji Yi before walking straight off in one direction.

Seeing that she remained as serious as ever, Ji Yi straightened her expression, quickly followed, and whispered something behind Miss Cat in a barely audible voice:
"You're lying! They're clearly black safety shorts."

"Dang Dang Dang!"

"Dang Dang Dang!"

"Ta-da!"

"Mr. Giba, what are you doing behind me?"

Ji Yi: "I'm playing with my hammer."

Miss Cat: "?"

Ji Yi quickly walked to Miss Cat's side and walked alongside her, then shook the [Scrapped Thor's Hammer] in her hand.

"I was using advanced repair techniques to fix it, but I didn't expect it to cause such a big commotion."

As Ji Yi spoke, he once again expended his stamina to demonstrate the [Advanced Repair Technique]. With a flash of golden light, the hammer made a "clang clang clang" sound again.

"Um"

Miss Cat let out a long groan, seemingly understanding Ji Yi's thoughts.

"Don't rush to fix it now. I need to use my psychic abilities to locate them. Mr. Giba, please be quiet."

"it is good."

Ji Yi put away the hammer and watched as Miss Cat reached for a large black tree, then closed her eyes and muttered something.

'Judging by her demeanor, if Miss Cat can't make it as a designer, she could totally become a charlatan for a second career.'

While I was internally complaining, the data eye began to report the information it had observed.

This is Yunqiu City, about 80 kilometers from Dayan City. At least here, you won't be able to see your beloved Misaki-chan for the time being.

Upon hearing this, Ji Yi also assessed his current location. He looked towards Dayan City, but his view was blocked by buildings, and he couldn't see any extra information.

[But the faceless one who flashed by just now was real. His true combat strength was only A-level, and in this place where S-level beings were as common as dogs, he could only constantly hide and flee.]

'Do you have more information?'

[From the fleeting image, all we know is that he should still be in Yunqiu City; nothing else is known.]

There's really no way around it. The data eye relies on vision, and under these circumstances, it's difficult for the "God's vision" to see things tens of kilometers away through layers of mystery.

'Perhaps I can borrow Miss Cat's power.'

Thinking about it, Ji Yi looked at Miss Cat again.

In addition to gaining several new skills, she also acquired two epic-level equipment items in her inventory, bringing her overall capabilities to a new level. This naturally includes reconnaissance abilities.

"Miss Cat, the main purpose of coming in this time should be to find the Faceless One first. Why don't you help me take another look?"

Miss Cat continued to reach out one paw and touch the tree trunk.

Upon hearing this, she slowly opened her eyes, and her eyeballs were completely black.

"alright, please wait."

With a faint nod, Miss Cat closed her eyes again.

ten minutes later.

Miss Cat opened her eyes again; she had returned to normal.

"One good news, one bad news, which do you want to hear?" Miss Cat looked at Ji Yi.

“I’m a typical pessimist, so I want to hear the bad news first,” Ji Yi replied.

"The bad news is that the Faceless One has deceived my senses, and now my psychic abilities are no longer effective against him."

Ji Yi: "."

"Then the good news?"

Miss Cat: "Zhuge Light Bulb and Hao Youqian are under Mr. Murayama's protection and are safe now. At least we don't have to worry about them for the time being."

"Murayama? I don't remember him."

Ji Yi recalled the last time she entered the forbidden area of ​​supernatural tales.

Murayama was first tormented beyond recognition by the Stitching Demon, and then he was dragged away and stitched into part of the Stitching Demon.

Now that the Stitching Demon is dead, did Murayama escape? Or even run eighty kilometers away?
'Perhaps he knew what happened afterward.'

Thinking of this, Ji Yi looked at Miss Cat: "Miss Cat, if there were a better medium, your psychic abilities would be able to do more, right?" Just as a look of confusion appeared in Miss Cat's eyes, Ji Yi took out something.

A paranormal phone.

That was one of the rewards for completing the haunted building game; it allowed you to summon ghosts at a price, and it also had all the functions of a regular mobile phone.

"This stuff is excellent."

A rare hint of longing appeared in Miss Cat's eyes.

Ji Yi: "If Miss Cat wants it..."

“No.” Miss Cat shook her head. “If I take it, I really will have no choice but to repay Mr. Giba with my body.”

Ji Yi knew her personality well: "Alright, then you can borrow this copy for now."

"Ah."

Miss Cat took the phone, and then her demeanor changed once again.

"Beep, beep, beep."

She pressed the hash button three times, then clicked dial.

"Dudu."

The phone rang rhythmically; it had actually dialed.

Just as the phone rang for the fifth time, the other party answered:

"who are you?"

A chilling, eerie aura seemed to emanate from the phone, and the terrifying supernatural power instantly sent shivers down the spines of both Ji Yi and Miss Cat.

This is the oppressive feeling brought by S-class ghost stories; even a phone call can kill someone at any time.

"Mr. Murayama, is everything alright?"

Ji Yi spoke loudly, and the stagnant air instantly lifted.

"Mr. Ji?"

The tone of his voice on the phone was one of delighted surprise, as if he were a completely different person.

"Your consciousness has recovered quite well. You sound much more normal than when we last met. I thought you would have kicked the bucket along with the stitched-up ghost. Enough with the nonsense, what exactly happened after I left that day?"

Upon hearing this, Murayama immediately chimed in, his voice filled with fear:

"That day was absolutely terrifying. Miss Misaki, she has become an SS-class ghost story and has taken over the entire Ōhiko City."

"But because she absorbed too much resentment from the ghost stories, her mental state is now extremely unstable. If she hadn't managed to stay conscious and let me escape, I'm afraid I would have really died in Dayan City."

Ji Yi frowned and continued to press, "What about the Faceless One? How did he escape?"

A questioning voice came from Murayama:
"The Faceless One? That strange-looking person? I don't know, I wouldn't notice that much in a moment like that."

That's true. If the Faceless One loses his identity, then theoretically his "past" will also disappear. In that state, Misaki will no longer target him.

Only Ji Yi, who clearly knew that he had used the [Mask of the Faceless], could deduce the course of events in reverse.

"Alright. It sounds like Misaki-chan can still be saved, that's enough. By the way, do you have Hao Youqian and Zhuge the Light Bulb?"

Murayama replied, "Yes, barring any unforeseen circumstances, I can protect them for the time being, but I cannot completely guarantee their survival. After all, although Yunqiu City does not have any top-tier supernatural beings, its numbers far exceed those of Dayan City."

It seems that Murayama has already had some understanding of players and the conditions for clearing the game after interacting with them once, so Ji Yi has naturally gained an extra helper.

"I see that your self-awareness has recovered quite well. Have you contacted any official bodies since then?" Ji Yi asked again.

Murayama sighed:
"Thanks to Ms. Misaki, I am now fully conscious. After that, I quickly tried to contact the outside world, but my signal seemed to have been intercepted by some strange force. That guy is probably stronger than me, and I am no match for him. Moreover, he may also harbor some kind of malice."

“I was worried that guy would track me down by following the signal band, so I didn’t dare to contact anyone else.”

Upon hearing this, Ji Yi understood why Murayama had reacted so strongly when he answered the phone.

Is this a similar ghost story with even greater abilities than Murayama?
What was the other party's purpose in preventing Murayama from contacting the outside world? This remains an unsolved mystery.

After asking the questions, Ji Yi gave her final instructions into her phone:
"Okay, I understand the situation. First, make sure those two are safe. If anything happens, remember to call me back."

"Also, if you have any news about the Faceless Ones, be sure to let me know immediately. That's all for now, I'm a bit busy here, so I won't chat any longer."

Murayama immediately replied, "Yes, Mr. Ji, please rest assured."

"Ah."

Ji Yi hung up the phone.

Then, suddenly, he picked up Miss Cat.

whoosh-

[Skill activated: Resonant Spin]

Ji Yi and Miss Cat vanished instantly, appearing a second later on the branches of a large black tree.

The cat in my arms seemed to want to struggle; her eyebrows were slightly furrowed, clearly indicating some anger.

Ji Yi could predict that Miss Cat would pinch her again in the next second, so she tied her hands together and gestured with her eyes towards the tree below.

Miss Cat understood immediately and tilted her head to look down at the tree.

Where they had been standing, transparent thorns had sprung up all around them. If one did not look closely, one would not be able to see these large clumps of thorns at all.

Seeing the look of confusion in Miss Cat's eyes, Ji Yi whispered in her ear:
"It detects enemies through sound and vibration, but it's not very sensitive. If you make a small noise, you won't be detected."

As he spoke, Ji Yi gently put Miss Cat down with great gentlemanly manners.

Just like a cat, Miss Cat's paws landed on the branches without making a sound. The slight tremor she caused only caused the growing thorns to react briefly, but it quickly stopped.

Seeing this, Miss Cat took out her [Demon Eye].

Ji Yi followed her gaze.

Countless transparent thorns appeared, seemingly originating from underground. Looking through them, one could see thousands of corpses beneath.

The thorns looked as if they were growing from the corpse, but their color was no longer transparent; instead, they were a dark red, like blood.

Of course, in reality, it was the blood of the corpses that stained the transparent and colorless thorns red.

【Name: Crimson Thorns】

Rating: A+++

[Danger Level: Highly Dangerous]

[Introduction: This is not an independent ghost story, but rather a product of the "S Queen." It locates enemies by sound, drags them underground, and drains their blood, storing it inside thorns.]

As for the reason for drawing blood, it's simply that this "S Queen" enjoys bathing in fresh blood; you can think of the "Crimson Thorns" as a "container for spare bathwater."

Ji Yi: "."

What the hell is this? What the hell is "Queen S"? Is it the kind of thing he understands?
The transparent thorns surrounded Ji Yi's original spot and quickly realized that no one was there.

As if possessing some kind of intelligence, they immediately spread outwards, completely encircling the area around the tree.

"Damn, does this thing even have intelligence?"

Ji Yi cursed inwardly; the mission objective of surviving for seven days was indeed not going to be so simple.

(End of this chapter)