You made all the streamers on the internet kneel before you when you were asked to make a game.

Professor Chen's analysis sent chills down the spines of both Brother Long and the veteran driver.

They thought they were the audience.

After all that, they were just "actors" waiting to go on set!

Lancet's expression was also very unpleasant.

She remembered rule number five: [The audience seats must be full.]

Now, she has a new understanding.

The phrase "full house" may not necessarily mean that all the seats are occupied.

Rather, it refers to gathering a sufficient number of "actors".

"Clang!"

Just then, the sound of gongs and drums on the stage suddenly became louder and more rapid.

The suppressed drumbeats struck everyone's heart, one after another.

Here comes the main event.

On the stage, the blood-clad martial artist, transformed from a shadow ghost, began to perform under the control of those unseen "red threads."

Its every move is full of power and vigor.

But its movements were incredibly stiff, like a rusty robot.

It is filled with a strange sense of contradiction.

As it performed, the paper-mache female character dressed in blue next to it began to sing a completely new and clearer aria.

"At the Earth Immortal Temple... I seek immortality..."

"Gather stones from Yinshan Mountain to build a blood and flesh elixir furnace..."

"Guiding the rootless soul, refining the seven spirits as a guide..."

"Take the heart of a living person and combine it with the three souls to make medicine..."

"The blood moon illuminates the furnace, the gates of hell stand before... stealing the secrets of heaven..."

This lyric reveals more, and more chilling, information than the previous ones.

Earth Immortal Temple!

It's the Earth Immortal Temple again!

From Master Xuanqing's last letter in the "Guardian of the Spirits" instance to the Corpse Inn, and then to the "Yinshan Sacrifice" here, all the clues point to this mysterious yet seemingly decadent Taoist sect!

In the live broadcast room, Lu Zhixing frowned in thought.

"The Blood and Flesh Elixir Furnace... brings back human hearts..."

He murmured these words repeatedly, and suddenly a bright gold bar appeared in the live stream.

[Scientific Cult Leader: I understand! The "extermination scheme" in Fenghun Village, the "soul-guiding array" on the stage, the villagers' "human skin lanterns"—everything is a massive alchemy ritual! This village itself is a living "alchemy furnace"!]

[The leader of the Scientology Cult: Those ghostly audience members are the fuel! The shadow ghosts, these "rootless souls," are the catalyst! And we, the living... we are the main ingredient! That so-called "elixir of immortality" is simply made from the three souls and seven spirits of the living!]

Lu Zhixing's analysis connected countless clues.

On the stage, the mime performance titled "The Sacrifice at Yinshan" reached its climax.

After performing a set of stiff boxing moves, the blood-clad martial arts performer stood stiffly in the center of the stage.

From backstage, a paper effigy dressed as an executioner emerged, wielding a boning knife.

It walked up to the martial arts student and raised the sharp knife in its hand.

There was no dialogue, no struggle.

puff!

The dagger pierced the martial arts performer's chest with pinpoint accuracy.

Then, pull it horizontally.

The martial arts performer's chest was completely ripped open.

There was no blood, no internal organs.

Only clumps of grayish-black, cotton-like things burst out from its body.

That was the lingering yin energy and resentment of the Shadow Ghost after it was refined.

Immediately afterwards, the executioner's paper effigy threw away its dagger, reached its hands into the martial arts actor's chest, and began frantically digging.

It plucked out handfuls of "cotton" from the martial arts performer's body and threw them on the ground.

Soon, the martial arts performer's body was completely hollowed out, leaving only a thin "skin" made of costumes and resentment.

Then, the executioner stepped back.

A paper effigy dressed in a Taoist robe, carrying a tray, walked up from backstage.

On the tray lay a fist-sized, bright red "heart" that was still beating slightly.

That "heart" is, of course, not real either.

It was carved from some kind of unknown red crystal, and an eerie light flowed within it.

The Taoist priest carefully placed the "heart" into the hollowed-out "skin" of the martial arts performer.

"Combining the three souls into medicine..."

The lyrics sung by the female lead in Qingyi (a type of female role in Peking Opera) began softly.

The moment the "heart" enters the body.

The previously limp body of the martial arts performer suddenly trembled.

On its face painted with oil paint, two lines of bloody tears slowly streamed down its eyes, which were dotted with ink.

It seems... to have come back to life.

Or rather, its internal "heart" came back to life.

"Thump!"

"Thump!"

"Thump!"

It began to throb violently.

Every beat seemed to resonate with everyone's heartstrings.

With each thud, the martial arts performer's physical form visibly shrank a little.

All of its vital energy was being frantically absorbed by that "heart"!

Finally, there was a loud "bang".

The martial arts performer's body completely exploded, turning into ashes that filled the sky.

Only the bright red "heart" remained, silently floating in mid-air, emitting an eerie and alluring red light.

Dan is done.

Below the stage, all the ghostly audience members craned their necks, staring intently at the "elixir" with eyes filled with extreme greed.

They longed for it.

It's like a person dying of thirst in the desert seeing an oasis.

This play...

It's a performance for them.

It was also a performance for Brother Long and his "mainstays" to see.

……

Just then, the huge curved screen in front of Hao Ren split into two images.

On the left is Brother Long's main live stream room, where the "alchemy" process on the stage is clearly displayed.

On the right are countless small windows for the "Overnight in the Deep Mountains" instance, where thousands of players are experiencing all sorts of creative ways to die.

"Tsk, the thought processes of this generation of players are still so unique."

He observed that some teams, upon discovering an extra player, opted for the simplest and most brutal method—fighting each other until only one person remained.

As a result, when the survivor thought he had won the game, he found that the "extra person" was standing behind him, smiling at him.

Then, the screen went black.

[Game lost: You killed your own teammates.]

Some players also try to find the ghost that isn't breathing by holding their breath.

As a result, they both turned red in the face from holding their breath, and the ghost, imitating them, also turned red in the face from holding its breath.

It's impossible to tell the difference.

Many more players, however, are driven to despair by the unsolvable rule of "imitation."

It will do whatever action you take.

If you point at it and say it's a ghost, it will point at you and say you are a ghost.

The entire instance is filled with suspicion, betrayal, and despair.

The fear levels of countless players are continuously flowing into Hao Ren's system backend.

Meanwhile, a streamer named "Logic Cat" also found himself in a stalemate.

He is a tech-savvy streamer on the Nebula platform, known for his puzzle-solving skills and high-IQ gameplay.

At this moment, the six members of Logic Cat sat around a table, none of them daring to make any rash moves.

The atmosphere was extremely oppressive.

Logic Cat didn't get involved in his teammates' pointless arguments.

He was simply calmly analyzing the only clue he had.

It keeps mimicking your movements.

imitate……

This word is key.

Imitation implies that it lacks subjective initiative.

All of its actions are copies of the player's actions.

Therefore, as long as one action is performed that it cannot replicate, or that would be immediately exposed if replicated, it can be identified.

Logic Cat's gaze swept quickly across the cabin.

Finally, his gaze settled on a dusty dressing table in the corner.

On the dressing table, there is a small, portable makeup mirror.

Mirror!

Logic Cat's eyes lit up suddenly as he came up with a brilliant idea.

He stood up, walked to the dressing table, and picked up the mirror.

Then, he returned to his seat and addressed the other five people.

"Listen up, everyone, I have a solution."

"Now, everyone, listen to my command."

"I'll count to three, and we'll all simultaneously make a 'left hand touching right ear' gesture."

"Remember, it's 'left hand' to touch 'right ear'!"