Chapter 110: Haunted Amusement Park

By all accounts, Li Zhi did not want to see her teammates die. Moreover, she had a good impression of Tang Nanshan and certainly didn’t want her to perish in this level.

But given the current situation, there was no time to think—the ten-second countdown was fleeting. The moment Li Zhi noticed the two had fallen unconscious, she immediately pulled out the Nightmare Pillow from her inventory.

This Nightmare Pillow was something she had exchanged with Li Feng after clearing the last dungeon. According to its description, as long as someone was in a state of unconsciousness, using the pillow would plunge them into a terrifying nightmare.

Li Zhi wasn’t sure if the Nightmare Pillow would work in this scenario, but among her available items, it was the only one that might have an effect. Grabbing the pillow, she leaned to the right and flung it straight into Pei Hongyu’s arms.

Just as the pillow was about to land in Pei Hongyu’s embrace, a hand snatched it mid-air.

Pei Hongyu opened his eyes, filled with a fierce, unsettling aura. Seeing that he had regained consciousness, Li Zhi immediately shouted, “Give it to Nanshan!”

In this critical moment, Pei Hongyu didn’t ask questions. He grabbed the Nightmare Pillow and hurled it toward Tang Nanshan beside him. They were now less than fifty meters from the ground. The speed of the fall was too fast—Li Zhi silently counted down in her head. Three… two… one…

The moment the drop tower hit the ground, the howling wind finally ceased. Li Zhi heard Tang Nanshan gasp like a drowning person suddenly given oxygen.

She woke up drenched in sweat, her eyes still wide with terror, her expression dazed as if she had narrowly escaped death.

“Ah Shan!”

The safety bar released with a hiss. Pei Hongyu lunged toward Tang Nanshan, gripping her ice-cold hands. Tang Nanshan’s gaze gradually focused. She glanced at him, then down at the pillow in her arms, her voice hoarse. “This is…?”

Pei Hongyu’s expression stiffened slightly. “Li Zhi gave it to you.”

Li Zhi walked over and asked gently, “Are you okay?”

Tang Nanshan shook her head. “I had a nightmare. I dreamed…” She paused, ultimately choosing not to elaborate on what she had seen. Pei Hongyu’s cold expression flickered slightly, as if he knew what her nightmare had been about.

Li Zhi retrieved the pillow. “This is the Nightmare Pillow. It forces the user into their worst nightmare.”

Tang Nanshan nodded in understanding. “No wonder. The pillow pulled me from the illusion into a nightmare. The illusion was inescapable, but a nightmare can be woken from. Li Zhi, thank you. You saved my life.”

Li Zhi smiled. “As long as you’re safe.”

Pei Hongyu helped Tang Nanshan up from her seat. At this moment, the way he looked at Li Zhi finally shifted. Though his demeanor remained cold, the previous air of superiority had vanished. “Thanks.”

The livestream chat erupted:

[Li Zhi resisted the illusion for four seconds! Pei Hongyu lasted six! Li Zhi wins!!!]
[I won the bet, hahaha! I earned so many packs of spicy strips!]
[Now who dares say Li Zhi is inferior to Pei Hongyu? Leaderboard rankings don’t define ability!]
[Li Zhi only won in terms of mental strength, but that’s not everything. A player’s strength depends on overall capability.]
[Can’t handle losing? Can’t handle losing? Can’t handle losing?]
[Starting to backtrack now. Sure, sure, you’re weak so you’re right.]
[It was only a two-second difference. What’s there to brag about?]
[Hold on, Li Zhi just saved your idol’s partner. Is this how you treat a lifesaver? Even your idol said thanks. Where are your manners?]
[The votes are catching up~ Teehee, someone’s fans must be sweating.]
……

Seeing Pei Hongyu supporting Tang Nanshan without making a move to retrieve the clue from the staff, Li Zhi understood this was his way of showing gratitude—after all, it was usually the team leader who collected the rewards.

She approached the staff member, who smiled and handed her a clue box. “Congratulations on completing the third round of Sky Plunge. Here’s your reward.”

Li Zhi took the box, and the three of them walked toward the exit. Their waiting teammates brightened upon seeing them return safely.

He Yuan noticed Tang Nanshan’s pale complexion and couldn’t help feeling smug. She doesn’t look any better than I did! Still, he feigned concern. “Shan-jie, are you alright?”

Tang Nanshan shook her head and turned to Li Zhi. “Let’s see what the third clue is.”

Li Zhi took out the clue box. The moment He Yuan saw it, his face twisted in displeasure. “Why do you have the clue? Two of our team went up—shouldn’t Hongyu-ge be the one to collect it? What right do you have?”

Pei Hongyu frowned. In the past, he had ignored He Yuan’s taunts toward other players because those people truly weren’t his equal. But Li Zhi had just saved Tang Nanshan, and her mental resilience had proven superior. He Yuan’s words now felt like a slap to his face.

Before he could reprimand He Yuan, Li Zhi smiled sweetly. “That’s right. The clue was just sitting there—so why didn’t your Hongyu-ge take it, leaving it to me? I’m curious too.” She turned to Pei Hongyu. “Why didn’t you take the clue earlier?”

Pei Hongyu: “……”

Despite being on Pei Hongyu’s side, Tang Nanshan couldn’t help but laugh at Li Zhi’s polite yet razor-sharp retort.

He Yuan’s face turned beet red. Pei Hongyu shot him a frosty glare. “Shut up!”

Chi Yi burst into laughter nearby, mimicking He Yuan’s mocking tone in a high-pitched voice. “Oh Hongyu-ge~ Why didn’t you take the clue? Was it because you didn’t want to?”

He Yuan clenched his fists. “You—!”

Chi Yi stuck out her tongue. “Nyah nyah~”

“Alright,” Li Zhi interjected, opening the box. “Let’s look at the clue.”

The two factions finally stopped bickering and focused on the clue in her hands.

The third clue was another image—this time, a single foot. Judging by its size and shape, it appeared to belong to a child.

“Night, rattle drum, a single foot…” Tang Nanshan pieced the clues together. “In the last round, I saw a ghost called a mountain specter on the Hundred Ghosts Wall in the verification room. It appears at night, resembles a child, and has only one foot. It must be that.”

She sighed. “The first two clues actually pointed more toward the Night Wailer. Good thing we got the third one, or we’d have been misled again.”

Chi Yi scoffed. “Just another one of the system’s tricks.”

Tang Nanshan chuckled. “You’re adorable.”

Chi Yi: “…Thanks.”

Pei Hongyu turned away coldly. “Back to the verification room.”

It was about time, so the group headed to the verification area without further discussion. Halfway there, red lights lit up across the park. By the time they arrived, the Perfect Match team was already waiting.

Li Zhi glanced over—still five members. No losses.

The five of them looked surprised to see Li Zhi and Pei Hongyu returning together. As they approached, Han Wenlin couldn’t resist asking, “You teamed up? What kind of challenge was so hard it required both of you?”

Pei Hongyu ignored him entirely. Li Zhi, ever polite, replied, “Yes, we teamed up for the drop tower.” She paused, then turned to Pei Hongyu. “I’d like to share the clue with them. Any objections?”

Since the clue was obtained jointly, it was only right to ask.

Pei Hongyu smirked mockingly. “If I said no, would you still tell them?”

Li Zhi smiled. “Of course. I’d still tell them.”

Pei Hongyu: “……” His smirk deepened. “Then why ask?”

Li Zhi answered earnestly, “It’s only polite to ask.”

Pei Hongyu’s eye twitched, as if he couldn’t be bothered to engage further. He turned away sharply, putting several steps between them to draw a clear line.

Only then did Li Zhi turn back to Han Wenlin, her tone serious. “The drop tower is extremely difficult. It traps players in a falling illusion—if you don’t break free before it ends, you’ll die from the impact. Each round increases the illusion’s intensity, requiring immense mental strength to resist. I strongly advise against attempting it.”

Han Wenlin paled. “It’s really that hard?”

Chi Yi chimed in, “Even Tang Nanshan almost died up there. You think you’re better than her?”

Of course they knew Tang Nanshan—Pei Hongyu’s partner. She wouldn’t be his teammate if she wasn’t skilled.

Li Zhi added, “The answer for the drop tower is the mountain specter. You can submit that directly.” She glanced at the other four members watching them from a distance and told Han Wenlin, “You can relay this to them and let them decide.”

Han Wenlin nodded. “Got it.” He turned to leave, then paused and looked back, sincerity in his voice. “Thank you. You really are as kind as they say.”

Li Zhi smiled.

Once he was gone, Chi Yi sighed quietly, her voice tinged with sorrow. “He’s not a bad person, but…”

But we can’t save him.

Han Wenlin returned and faithfully repeated Li Zhi’s words to his team. He made his stance clear first. “I think Li Zhi makes sense. We shouldn’t attempt the drop tower—we already know the answer.”

Cheng Jiayue nodded eagerly beside him. “Yeah, yeah.”

Du Jia shot her a disdainful look. “All you know is ‘yeah, yeah.’ What if she’s lying to us?”

Han Wenlin frowned, displeased. “What does she gain from lying? Li Zhi’s reputation has always been good—she has no reason to deceive us. If you think she’s lying, go try it yourself. I’m not doing it.”

Du Jia bristled, ready to argue, but Chen Tianran tugged his sleeve and spoke up. “Let’s trust Li Zhi.”

The livestream chat didn’t hold back their criticism:

[Never noticed before, but Du Jia is so petty.]
[Honestly, he’s always been like this…]
[Du Jia is the type who acts all magnanimous when he’s the most popular player in a dungeon, but the moment someone outshines him, he loses his cool.]
[Been wanting to say this! His ego’s thinner than paper! Last dungeon, when they got separated and Ran-ran teamed up with another male player to find clues, Du Jia gave her the cold shoulder for ages! Useless man! Doesn’t deserve to be paired with Ran-ran!]
……

The verification room door swung open again. Pei Hongyu strode in first. Li Zhi briefed her teammates, “We currently have three possible answers. This round, we’ll submit the Soul Snatcher—I confirmed it last time.”

She still needed to verify the clues from the go-karts and the drop tower.

Watching her exude such dependable leadership, the audience swooned.