I, the screenwriter, have experienced a resurgence of inspiration.

Outside the mourning tent, it was as if someone had spilled a layer of ink, the darkness of the night so thick that it was impossible to dispel it.

The white banners fluttered in the wind.

The leaves of the old locust tree rustled, and from a distance, they looked like countless pale hands grabbing wildly in mid-air.

Suya and the other three huddled in a corner of the mourning hall, their backs against the cold altar.

Everyone held their breath very low, but it still couldn't drown out the chilling sounds coming from outside the shed.

"Click...click..."

It was the crisp sound of bones being crushed, mixed with the satisfied purring of a feline as it ate.

One at a time.

It penetrated into my ear so clearly.

Occasionally, a few faint cries for help would be heard, thin and faint, like a mouse being choked.

"Help me... squeak... help..."

"No...it hurts..."

But the sound quickly stopped, leaving only the sticky chewing sound.

The cat is eating the mouse.

It's only natural for cats to eat mice.

Su Ya's face was deathly pale as she tightly shielded Yang Asha behind her, both of their palms sweating profusely.

Yang Hexuan's legs cramped, and tears were already welling up in his eyes.

Lin Jianguo, on the other hand, wasn't in much better shape.

Outside the tent, the old woman with the cat-like face cast a long shadow.

[Announcement: The vigil mission has failed.]

[Reason for determination: The blood of the second mirrored rat entered the coffin, triggering the corpse transformation.]

The cat-faced old woman has awakened; the entire current instance has entered hunting mode.

[Global Announcement: All surviving rat-like players in the three mirror maps have been targeted for elimination by the Cat-Faced Granny.]

……

……

Four announcements were issued, and all four people were so angry that they started cursing.

"...The second mirror image..."

Lin Jianguo's throat tightened, and he lowered his voice: "Our mission didn't fail, it was the other players—"

Can the three mirror sites communicate with each other?

Su Ya's fingertips were icy cold as she stared at the cat and mouse shadows swaying outside the mourning hall, feeling a chill run down her spine.

"The second mirror image must have also accepted the vigil mission..."

But what she didn't expect was that the failure of one image task would also affect other images.

Is it because it's a birthday banquet today?

"That's it! Why?!"

Yang Hexuan almost jumped up, then quickly covered his mouth:

"The announcement mentioned a 'nationwide manhunt'? Are the people in the second mirror image useless?!"

Didn't the rules say that mice and cats are not allowed near the coffin?

What kind of stupid person would drip rat blood on a coffin?!

"This instance is full of traps."

Su Ya gave a bitter smile, her voice weak and feeble:

"They lied to us once on the seventh day after our death, and they lied to us again at the birthday banquet."

We thought it was the end, but it might just be gathering all the mirrored mice together to serve as a birthday feast for the cat-faced old lady.

The group felt a sinking feeling, filled with despair.

They worked themselves to the bone to complete missions and choose factions, finally making it to the birthday banquet, only to be dragged down by other teams in the end.

What can a bunch of rats do if they go to a cat's birthday party?

At most, we'll give the old lady an extra dish.

"The designer of the ************ copy..."

Lin Jianguo cursed under his breath, the veins on his forehead throbbing: "It's all traps, one trap after another. They've never had any good intentions, they're all just trying to kill us."

Yang Asha didn't speak, but only gripped the door latch tighter. "We're mice, is killing the cat all we need to do?"

"That's how it is in theory."

Su Ya took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down, and looked up at the other three:

"Don't panic. Although the [Guardian of the Spirit] quest failed, the dungeon doesn't say you have to die."

The announcement said "hunt," not "kill."

"If we can just get through tonight and endure until the birthday banquet ends, the rules allow us to leave."

"But... there are cats everywhere outside..."

Yang Hexuan's voice trembled, and he seemed on the verge of collapse.

The rooftops, walls, and haystacks around the threshing ground were teeming with wild cats of different colors.

The green eyes merged into one.

Sharp, piercing meows rose and fell, accompanied by the sound of chewing, which was only separated by a tent.

Cats eat mice, and mice are afraid of cats.

These "ratmen" faction players are the fattest prey.

"Can we make it through tonight...?"

Lin Jianguo spoke in despair, his tone full of uncertainty.

If he had to do it again, he would never make a wish in that awful livestream room.

Just as despair was spreading, the sounds of cats meowing, mice squeaking, and chewing that had been rising and falling outside the tent suddenly stopped without warning.

It's like a TV series that's playing and someone suddenly presses the mute button.

The wind stopped, and the white banners fell down.

The four of them exchanged a glance and saw the fear in each other's eyes.

What happened?

Has the cat-faced old lady passed away?

Or... are they preparing an even bigger move?

The deathly silence lasted for about half a minute.

Suddenly, the sound of suona horns exploded outside the tent, no longer a mournful funeral song, but a lively and almost jarring "Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix".

The cheerful and festive tune, accompanied by the sounds of gongs and drums, floated up into the sky in a lively and cheerful atmosphere.

At this time, however, festive music can be more chilling than funeral music.

"Shhh."

Suya pointed to the tent and whispered, "Let's go."

The shadow on the tent had vanished at some point, leaving only a stain of blood.

"What's going on?" Yang Hexuan was bewildered. "The birthday banquet has started?"

Su Ya's heart skipped a beat. She lowered her pace and walked over, gently lifting a corner of the curtain:

The once lifeless Wenshan Village has been transformed in the blink of an eye.

The white lanterns at the door of every household have been replaced with round lanterns made of red paper.

The red paper was a dark color, like congealed blood.

The wall was covered with many crooked "longevity" characters, but the edges of the red paper were grayish-white, as if they had been peeled off a grave.

Red ribbons were hung on both sides of the street, rustling loudly in the wind.

Strangely, white cloth strips were hanging down from the silk.

The interplay of red and white inexplicably sends chills down one's spine.

……

……

……

The village was full of people.

The villagers of Wenshan Village, dressed in red mourning clothes, joyfully and enthusiastically participated in the birthday banquet.

At the continuous feast in the threshing ground, some people were serving dishes, some were cutting meat, some were moving tables, and some were playing the suona (a traditional Chinese wind instrument).

The bustling atmosphere almost gave one the illusion that "this is the human world."

The entire threshing ground was set up with a continuous feast.

Steam rose from the dishes, carrying a strong, sweet and pungent smell that permeated the entire street.

"Is this a birthday banquet?"

Yang Asha pursed her lips. "My grandmother said that celebrating one's birthday at night... is very unlucky."

Red represents joy, white represents sorrow.

Mixing joy and sorrow together is incongruous and absurd enough to make one's scalp crawl.

Among the crowd, Huang Facai, dressed in a dark red funeral robe and wearing a melon-shaped hat, greeted the guests.

"Welcome, welcome."

Congratulations!

He wore an exaggerated smile, bowed and exchanged pleasantries with the air, and kept muttering to himself, as if he were greeting an unseen guest.

Upon spotting the four people at the mourning tent, he immediately waved and walked over with a smile:

"Oh, my four guests, thank you for your hard work. We've finally found you. The birthday banquet is about to begin. Come on, come and take your seats with me."

He was overly enthusiastic, reaching out to grab Suya's arm, and then other villagers squeezed in, surrounding the four of them and pushing them inside.

Su Ya instinctively dodged away, feeling completely bewildered.

Not right.

Something's really wrong.

Where is the cat-faced old lady?

"I think it's the animation before the BOSS appears." Yang Hexuan said with a mournful face as he was pushed forward by the villagers. "We're doomed."

But now that things have come to this, there's no escaping it.

The mourning hall is no longer safe; attending the birthday banquet might offer a glimmer of hope.

The four exchanged glances and followed Huang Facai toward the threshing ground in the center of the village.

Along the way, the banquet halls on both sides were already filled with many "guests":

There is a paper figure.

A half-person-high white paper figure, with a red face and black eyebrows, sits upright on a stool with its hands flat on the table.

When someone passes by, they raise their arms and slap twice, the paper palms making a rustling sound, as if they have seen some exciting show.

And cats.

Cats of all sizes squatted on the bench like people, their front paws resting on the edge of the table, their bright green eyes staring intently at the empty plate.

There wasn't a single living guest in the room, nor were there any villagers at the tables.

It's all paper people and cats.

……

……

Huang Facai led the four to a table near the front and greeted them warmly:

"Please sit down, four distinguished guests. The dishes will be served shortly, and my mother will be out in a bit!"

After he finished speaking, he hurriedly ran off to greet the other "guests".

In reality, he was bowing and scraping to thin air and those paper figures, which was both comical and terrifying.

The four of them hesitated before sitting down.

The stool was ice cold and hurt my bottom.

On the table were an empty porcelain plate, a rough porcelain bowl, and a pair of bamboo chopsticks.

The tips of the chopsticks were black; I don't know what they had been used to pick up.

The paper figures at the next table clapped their hands with a "whoosh" sound, and slowly turned their heads towards them.

The cat on the next table also turned its head, its green eyes staring straight at them, drool dripping down its face.

"They...are all watching us."

Yang Hexuan said in a low voice, his back pressed tightly against the table, his whole body stiff: "A mouse offering birthday wishes to a cat, isn't it obvious what the birthday gift is? We're just throwing our lives away!"

"Running away now will only provoke these cats."

Su Ya touched the shovel head she had hidden in her bosom, exchanged a glance with Yang Asha next to her, and the other woman also had one hidden in her bosom.

There were far more cats than they had imagined; there were at least several hundred.

If a fight really breaks out—

Su Ya pursed her lips nervously, trying to cheer herself up.

Suddenly, a loud gong rang out.

"The food's served!"

A villager called out in a drawn-out, high-pitched voice.

A dozen or so villagers dressed in red mourning clothes filed in and served dishes to the tables.

The plate was covered with a red cloth and was steaming hot.

The fishy-sweet smell became even stronger.

The woman who came to their table was a middle-aged woman. She was expressionless, slammed the plate on the table, and lifted the red cloth.

A fishy smell wafted over.

All four of them gasped simultaneously.

There are three human-headed rats on the plate.

They weren't big, arranged in a circle like roast chickens, with their heads facing outwards and their faces directly towards them.

The human-faced rat's face still retained human features, with its eyes tightly closed, but the corners of its mouth were strangely upturned.

Its fur had been plucked clean, and its skin was shiny with oil, as if it had been steamed or braised, and was still steaming.

One of them had a round face and a mole on its chin.

Su Ya's heart sank.

Yang Asha vomited on the spot, and Yang Hexuan suddenly jolted and dry heaved under the table.

"Ugh—ugh—"

It's Xiao Ding and his group.

The teammate who was alive yesterday was turned into a dish and served at a birthday banquet today.

"Ugh..." Su Ya's face turned deathly pale, her stomach churning violently.

"This is... the food for the birthday banquet. They turned the players... people, into dishes?"

"We are rats now too."

Lin Jianguo's voice trembled:

"It's only natural for cats to eat mice. We've sided with the villagers. We're half-human, half-rat. In the eyes of a cat, we're just food."

"At this birthday banquet, we are all just meat on the table."

He finally realized that by choosing the rat camp, he had to help suppress the cat-faced old woman.

Otherwise, if the mission fails, all the players in the ratman faction will have to "eat at the table".

As for how it's served, that's none of your business.

"They, they're all dead..."

Su Ya gripped her chopsticks tightly, forcing herself to look away and scan the other tables.

Each table had a plate with a human-headed rat on it.

Some were big, some were small, some had familiar faces, and some didn't.

Some were not quite dead yet; their bodies twitched slightly, and their mouths opened and closed, making faint squeaking sounds.

The stray cats stared at the plate, purring softly, as if waiting for the person at the head of the table to start eating.

The paper figures remained clapping, their paper hands rustling as if cheering for the grand feast.

Absurd, cruel, and bizarre.