Deceitful Game

Chapter 105 The Clever Mastermind

Master Wang's kneeling left Mingpo and Ai Shiping somewhat speechless.

...But upon closer reflection, it makes quite a bit of sense.

Now that he has exhausted all his means, and Mingpo has seen through his trump cards, and he is certain that he can't beat Mingpo... then all he can do is either turn around and run away, or kneel down when he sees her.

It wasn't that he was particularly calm or rational.

The main problem is that we really have no other options.

This is probably why people from the Realm of Slaughter are prohibited from joining this game.

In retrospect, the restrictions have indeed taken effect, but only to a limited extent.

At least the one who came in was the detective Minpah, whose power and madness were suppressed... rather than the werewolf Minpah who had completely unleashed his true nature.

"Are you the mastermind behind this?"

As Ai Shiping spoke, he pointed his phone's camera at the master: "Did you kill these people at the Water Mirror Resort?"

"It shouldn't be one."

Before the master could answer, Mingpo casually replied.

As he spoke, he raised his phone and pointed the WeChat window at Ai Shiping beside him.

From there, Ai Shiping saw a familiar face.

He must have used other avatars before. But now, this avatar is that of a serious-looking master.

The woman's portrait is on the right.

The earliest local record that can be found above starts rather abruptly.

-2015年1月3日，16：30：31

This is the earliest timestamp.

"Things are a bit more complicated than expected. Mom won't be coming home tonight."

"There are some cornbread and corn in the refrigerator, could you steam some?"

The person on the other end replied, "Okay."

"Then I'll eat instant noodles."

The woman replied, "You're not allowed to eat instant noodles; they're not nutritious."

"Eat some whole grains first, Mom will bring you something nice to eat when you get back."

Four hours later, a voice message arrived.

Because the phone had never been turned on, the information inside was not cleared as cache.

After clicking, you can hear a woman's somewhat urgent voice:

"This is a bit strange. Hurry up and tell your Third Master Guo. Tell him the demon has already descended and that he should quickly add incense to Second Master Huang's altar!" The person on the other end looked completely bewildered.

"what?"

"Now? It's already eight o'clock..."

"Are you really in such a hurry, Mom?"

"Okay, I'll go."

Then, another twenty minutes passed.

I only saw the last sentence:

"Mom doesn't seem to be able to hold on much longer."

Next came a long, densely packed string of messages from Master Wang.

But no more words came from the right side.

Clearly, she was already in the bathtub.

"Ghosts and ghosts."

Mingpo slowly uttered the word: "I've heard this name before."

The ritual Zhang Leyao received was a "ritual to sacrifice herself, summon demons, and carry out revenge."

She was clearly hallucinating at that point, and even the ritual itself seemed problematic. She thought it was some kind of magical art... If she had any rationality, she should have been wary upon seeing the ritual itself.

It's unknown who passed on this ritual to her, but judging from the similar symptoms, it should be very similar to the situation at the Water Mirror Resort. Everything is starting to connect.

"Phantoms and Ghosts" seems to be a world where "evil spirits are at work".

Judging from the twilight glow emitted when the talisman was burned, this must be a world invaded by the power of the Slaughter Domain.

Whether it's a ghost, a spirit, or this outlandish wish-granting machine, they are definitely things that don't exist in the material world. This is probably why "phantoms" deviate from the material world.

This deviation should be the difference between these adventurous worldviews and the material world—and these differences come from the pollution and invasion of the world itself by these out-of-control forces.

That being the case...

So what is the stance of these charlatans?

Their task was to "complete the live stream" and "keep the audience satisfied."

no doubt.

Their goal was to "make this matter as big as possible."

What would happen if they completed the task perfectly?

The situation will escalate, more and more people will die here, and then someone will come to deal with it. In effect, this will only speed up the resolution of the matter.

Rather than helping these people...

Rather than saying it's helping the world, it's more accurate to say it's helping the world.

"I really didn't mean to, brother..."

Seeing Mingpo fall silent, Guo Wangqiongxiao slammed his head heavily on the tiles, sobbing uncontrollably. He was a far cry from the arrogant figure he had been before entering the resort: "Brother! Six years... I can hear the sound of water in the bathroom every night..."

"I'm scared! I'm scared that thing is still there... I'm scared that thing will come looking for me..."

"Please forgive me, since I came out on my own... I didn't do any of those things..."

"I know you didn't do what happened before."

Mingpo glanced at him.

He suddenly squatted down, looking him in the eye.

This young "master" may look mature, but he is actually not that old.

He's only in his early twenties now, looking like a recent college graduate. 2015 was at least six or seven years ago... he might even have been in high school back then.

Back in 15, the Water Mirror Resort must have realized something was wrong, so they hired someone to exorcise the evil spirits. Judging from this incident, the strange occurrences that likely happened were more than just those mentioned in the newspapers at the entrance.

Unexpectedly, the "master" who came to exorcise the evil spirit couldn't even last a day before cutting his wrists.

The family member who "strongly suspected a blind spot in the surveillance" is very likely Guo Wang Qiongxiao.

"But you killed Xiao Li."

Mingpo slowly said, "You were also the one who put those news reports first. Saying you're the mastermind isn't unfair to you, is it?" Hearing Mingpo's judgment, the master broke out in a cold sweat.

"I... I knew it..."

He felt a bitter taste in his mouth: "If only I had known... I would have..."

Actually, Master Wang had already sensed something was wrong when he got out of the car.

Because the two people's accents changed, and their eyes suddenly changed as well.

Although I didn't have much contact with "Fox" and his cameraman... their accents were still quite clear. It was just a simple local accent.

But right after they got off the bus, their accents suddenly switched to Mandarin, and even their eyes looked strange.

Even this ridiculously skilled cameraman, who was completely unafraid of ghosts, couldn't even use a camera—this sent chills down Master Wang's spine. What the hell is possessing him?!

Faced with these "two immortals," he could only tell the truth.

"I actually just... wanted to make a big deal out of it."

The master's smile was so bitter, like that of a student who had been called to the teacher's office after getting into a fight with a classmate.

But now her face has been clearly captured by two cameras...

He no longer cares.

The phrase "to throw caution to the wind" means exactly this.