Chapter 104: Ghost Amusement Park

This time, as they entered the passage again, Li Zhi and Chi Yi both slowed their pace.

The photo wall arranged in heart shapes hadn’t changed much. Among the colorful photos, a few black-and-white ones were mixed in. Due to the lighting effects, it created a strange sense of visual harmony.

Even walking slower only gave them a few more seconds. Soon enough, they passed by in a blur, and up ahead, the pink cabin had already rotated down to ground level.

But a few seconds was all Li Zhi needed to confirm something.

The staff member silently watched them enter the cabin, smiling politely as she closed the door behind them.

Chi Yi instinctively grabbed Li Zhi’s arm, afraid she’d get flung out again like last time.

But this time, the Ferris wheel’s speed remained steady. Sitting on the cold metal bench, Li Zhi was now sure of her suspicion.

Having been tempered by several dungeons, Chi Yi’s observation and reasoning skills had improved significantly. She even took the initiative to analyze, “Zhi Zhi, did you notice that the backgrounds of the black-and-white photos and the color photos on that wall are different?”

When the Ferris wheel reached its highest point, they could clearly see another attraction in the distance—a drop tower ride. The ghost that had taken their photo before had also come from that direction. They had been facing the drop tower when the pictures were taken, with the night sky and Ferris wheel’s support beams behind them.

But Chi Yi noticed that the backgrounds of the black-and-white photos included the drop tower.

Since they were black-and-white, the colorful lights weren’t visible, making the ride almost indistinguishable against the night sky unless you looked carefully.

So those black-and-white photos were taken facing away from the drop tower.

Someone had appeared on the other side of the cabin to take those black-and-white photos.

One set of photos was taken facing the drop tower in color; the other, facing away in black-and-white. What did these two sets of photos signify?

The Ferris wheel’s death condition was clearly hidden in the photography. The second round had already involved dangerous high-speed spinning, so for the third round to suddenly return to normal speed? That didn’t make sense. It meant the death condition this time was concealed even deeper.

Since the solution to the first and second rounds involved photography, would players refuse when someone tried to take another photo at the top during this third round? When players were unsure which choice—posing or refusing—would get them killed, and with only two or three seconds to react, it would be nearly impossible to make the right decision in time.

Li Zhi looked at the rapidly approaching apex. “We can’t be photographed this time.”

Chi Yi nodded fervently. “I think so too!”

The Ferris wheel ascended slowly. The glowing drop tower stood out in the night, and soon the cabin reached the highest point, giving a slight jolt before coming to a stop.

No one knocked, but the door creaked open automatically.

It was the same middle-aged ghost from the previous rounds, floating outside with his camera. Smiling, he said, “Time for another photo.”

But as his gaze landed inside the cabin, his smiling expression drooped. Slowly lowering his camera, his eyes filled with resentment as he stared at the two girls curled up, heads buried between their knees, refusing to cooperate. His voice dropped into a sinister tone: “Love can only last forever if it’s captured at its most beautiful. Without a photo, you’ll never be happy.”

Neither of them responded.

Chi Yi thought, Go to hell. You and that damn camera can go be happy on your own.

The ghost hovered for a while, eyes glinting with unwilling malice. Eventually, the cabin door shut quietly, and the Ferris wheel resumed turning.

Chi Yi exhaled in relief, just about to sit up, when Li Zhi’s muffled voice came from opposite her, “Don’t move yet. If he’s still there, we could still get caught in the photo from this angle.”

Chi Yi quickly pressed herself flat again.

Li Zhi mentally counted the seconds. When the cabin was about to reach the ground, she finally sat up. “It’s fine now.”

Chi Yi gulped in fresh air, patting her chest. “These death traps are endless. The system’s playing mind games with us. Lucky for us—I’m better at those games.”

Li Zhi chuckled softly.

The cabin reached the ground. The door swung open, and the two of them leaped out. The staff nearby had lost their fake sweet smiles entirely.

Chi Yi swaggered over. “Alright, hand over our reward.”

The staff member passed them a pink box. “Congratulations on completing the Ferris Wheel’s third-round challenge. This is your reward.”

Though her mouth said congratulations, her face remained dark, staring at them as if they owed her millions. Chi Yi took the clue box, then happily linked arms with Li Zhi, smiling sweetly. “Thank you! We’ll be happy forever. Bye!”

Staff member: “……”

Once they left the ride area, the rest of their teammates rushed over. Owen Dong couldn’t help but gush, “I knew you two would clear it! That was amazing!”

No wonder everyone liked sticking with the pros—besides the popularity factor, the sheer sense of security was unbeatable.

Chi Yi opened the box in her hands. The clues from all three rounds turned out to be images. This time, the card showed a thin red thread.

“It’s the red thread!” You Jingmeng said excitedly. “It’s the Birth Ghost! I remember on the Ghost Wall, its description mentioned that it has a red thread around its neck called the Blood Bait—it uses that thread to crawl into pregnant women’s bellies!”

This third clue allowed them to rule out the Blood Ghost entirely.

Owen Dong was pumped. “Which attraction are we doing next?”

He couldn’t wait.

Li Zhi, watching as the card in her hand crumbled into ash, said, “It’s almost time for the second voting round. Let’s head back to the Verification Area first.” After thinking it over, she added, “For this round, we’ll vote for the Birth Ghost. As for the carousel, I’ll go in myself to confirm the correct answer.”

At that, everyone’s cheerful mood dimmed slightly.

When they met Han Wenlin and Wei Xiao again, they weren’t sure how to face them.

The five of them headed toward the Verification Area. You Jingmeng whispered, “Zhi, how are we going to tell Cheng Jiayue the right answer without the other two finding out?”

Li Zhi said, “If Han Wenlin asks, just say we haven’t ridden the carousel yet. We can tell them the Birth Ghost answer first.”

Everyone nodded.

They retraced their steps. Since they’d set out early, they arrived at the square near the Verification Area before the others. The place looked quite lively now, stripped of its sinister haunted atmosphere and full of cheerful carnival vibes.

An NPC on a unicycle juggled oranges while circling a small crowd, earning applause from Chi Yi and You Jingmeng before leaving in satisfaction. Several mascot characters waddled around the square, and an NPC was even performing fire-breathing tricks.

Li Zhi watched with a faint smile for a while until a koala mascot began clumsily waddling toward her.

In his hand, the mascot held a large bunch of colorful balloons, hovering overhead like a bouquet of floating candy.

Li Zhi shifted her gaze away from the fire performer, watching the wobbling koala approach. The costume was heavy, making its movements slow and endearingly clumsy.

As he neared her, the furry paw extended halfway, and from the bunch of balloons, he carefully selected one shaped like a flower, gently holding it out by its string.

The pink flower balloon floated weightlessly in the air. In his right hand, he held the colorful bunch, and with his left, he shyly offered her this single, delicate gift.

Looking down, Li Zhi could see the plush paw covering a slender, knuckled hand. The thin balloon string was grasped between those fingers.

She couldn’t help but laugh, raising her eyes with a teasing grin. “For me?”

The koala mascot nodded and stretched his paw forward a little more.

As if saying: Take it.

Li Zhi reached out and gently took the balloon from his hand.

The koala tightened his grip on the remaining balloons, then turned to leave. Just as he did, Li Zhi called softly, “Li Jianxi.”

The mascot froze, his head half-turned as he stared at her, clearly stunned that she had recognized him.

Li Zhi’s eyes curved into crescents. “Why aren’t you dressed as a ghost anymore?”

After a beat, a muffled voice came from inside the costume, “They thought I wasn’t convincing, so they gave me a new job.”

Li Zhi nearly burst out laughing.

He was already tall, and the mascot suit made him look even larger. Li Zhi had to tilt her head to look up at him. With a grin, she lifted her hand. The fuzzy koala hesitated for a second before slowly bowing his head, pressing the furry head beneath her palm, allowing her to give him a playful pat.

It was indeed soft and pleasant to the touch.

Suddenly, the entire amusement park was flooded in red light. The cheerful carnival vibe evaporated instantly. The koala disappeared before her eyes.

All the mascots and performers in the square vanished at the same time.

Li Zhi’s outstretched hand trembled slightly, barely noticeable.

There was no clearer moment than now for her to realize that Li Jianxi was, indeed, an NPC within this dungeon.

Night wind slipped through her empty fingers. Slowly, she lowered her hand and looked at the balloon floating gently by her side. The string was still wrapped around her fingers, still tangible. Her expression softened again.

With the red lights flashing, players began returning to the Verification Area one after another.

Noticing the balloon in Li Zhi’s hand, several players gave curious glances.

Owen Dong, always eager for drama, smirked. “Didn’t expect that, huh? Looks like our Zhi has a thing going on in this dungeon.”

Chi Yi kicked him.

When Pei Hongyu’s group returned, Li Zhi noticed that what had been five players earlier was now down to four. Another teammate dead. The Perfect Couple team, however, still had their full five.

As the players gathered, the black gates of the Verification Area opened once again. This time, Li Zhi was the first to step inside.

She wrapped the balloon string around her wrist, pressing it close to her shoulder to keep it from snagging. After crossing a short hallway, she found herself back before the Ghost Wall.

First, she located the Birth Ghost. Just as You Jingmeng had said, its description matched their three clues perfectly—it had to be the correct answer.

With time to spare, she kept searching the wall.

As for the carousel’s three clues—travel in pairs, soul capture, purple—the first two clearly pointed to Black and White Impermanence, but that final clue completely ruled them out.

Finally, Li Zhi found the corresponding answer on the Ghost Wall: the Soul-Capturing Ghosts.

They often worked in pairs, preferred wearing purple, and like Black and White Impermanence, could capture souls from the mortal realm. The only difference was that Black and White Impermanence were officials of the underworld, while Soul-Capturing Ghosts were unemployed freeloaders competing for the same business.

Han Wenlin and Wei Xiao had been killed by those unemployed freeloaders.