Chapter 76: Get Out of My Way

Ji Linmo stared expressionlessly at the hat in his hands.

The hat before him, covered in dust, appeared utterly ordinary—no different from those sold in the real world.

“It’s very ordinary,” Qin Feng remarked, his tone indifferent as his gaze also settled on the hat.

This was their first exchange after nearly half an hour of silence.

Ji Linmo didn’t reply, instead turning the hat over and inspecting it meticulously.

Finding such a clue amid the ruins had been completely unexpected—almost as if fortune had smiled upon him. Or perhaps it was his cautiousness that led him to this discovery. Most people wouldn’t bother searching through the rubble and would never find the hat.

Yet, for reasons unknown, a faint unease lingered in Ji Linmo’s heart.

As his fingers traced the hat, he suddenly noticed something hard within the lining.

Curious, he opened the lining and discovered a photograph sewn inside with needle and thread.

A photograph?

Ji Linmo quickly took the photo out, pulling it free from the hat.

On the photograph, a woman in a red dress smiled brightly, affectionately embracing a little girl wearing a rabbit hat.

It was the woman in red—the ghost!

Even though her demeanor was entirely different, Ji Linmo recognized her features; the woman in the photo was the red-dressed ghost.

The girl wearing the rabbit hat, hugging a fluffy little rabbit, bore a striking resemblance to the woman—seven or eight parts similar.

“There’s something written on the back,” Qin Feng pointed out, flipping the photo over.

Delicate handwriting appeared before Ji Linmo’s eyes.

—Wishing my beloved Xuanxuan a happy seventh birthday, may you always be safe.

Xuanxuan?

Ji Linmo immediately guessed that the girl in the photo was likely the daughter of the red-dressed ghost.

[Congratulations, player! Important clue “Birthday Photo” discovered. Instance progress +25%.]

[Birthday Photo]

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[Item quality: Inferior]

[Item description: Today is the happiest day of the little girl’s life, but her father will soon return. If her father discovers not only her birthday celebration but also that she has a rabbit as a pet, what will happen?]

[Task 2: Find out where the rabbit is (Clues: 2/4)]

[Current instance progress: 50/100%]

No! This is a trap!

Seeing the prompt flash before him, Ji Linmo’s expression shifted slightly.

In any sub-quest within the horror world’s instances, clues were never so easily found in quick succession.

Unless... this wasn’t a real clue but a “false clue”!

Ji Linmo had encountered such a situation before, where a “false clue” nearly cost him his life inside an instance.

Because “false clues,” far easier to obtain than genuine ones, would only mislead players, causing them to miss real clues and drive the story toward a dead end!

Ji Linmo silently tucked the hat away, his mind made up.

He would hand this hat to the red-dressed ghost!

Since she seemed to be searching for the hat, he would take the risk and see what happened if he handed over the false clue.

Noticing Qin Feng still watching him, Ji Linmo waved his hand, signaling they should head back.

But the boy didn’t move, standing where he was with a cheerful smile.

“Mr. Ji, isn’t there something you’d like to tell me?”

Ji Linmo glanced at Qin Feng in confusion, feeling somewhat baffled.

“I don’t quite understand what you mean.”

“Is that so?” Qin Feng looked at him meaningfully, his gaze drifting inch by inch until it settled on Ji Linmo’s abdomen, as if something were hidden there.

“But Mr. Ji, earlier at the dinner table, I heard you and that man called Lin Bufei having a lively conversation, talking about rabbits quite a lot.”

“So, is there nothing you need to tell me?”

Ji Linmo frowned, instinctively covering his stomach with his hand.

Earlier, in the tense standoff at dinner, he had forgotten to give Qin Feng a brief account of his kitchen adventure.

“Sorry, I forgot... Let me give you a quick summary.”

He recounted his experience in the rabbit shop on the second floor and mentioned the danger of rabbit meat, but omitted any trouble encountered after eating it.

After all, the little rabbit that had appeared in his stomach could still be suppressed with alcohol—it wasn’t a major issue.

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Moreover, Ji Linmo had no interest in sharing his predicament with a child; such a self-deprecating act would violate his pride.

“That’s all?” Qin Feng squinted at him in front of the ruins, his tone tinged with a hint of disappointment.

“That’s all… Hurry inside, we have other matters tomorrow.”

Ji Linmo nodded, ignoring the boy’s gaze and re-entered the convenience store ahead.

The day’s turmoil had exhausted him, and with the amount of alcohol consumed, he needed a good rest.

He walked slowly into the closing convenience store, stepping through the cramped doorway.

But almost as soon as he entered the corridor, noisy voices erupted from behind the old wooden door.

Expressionless, Ji Linmo pushed the door open and saw Lin Hao with slicked-back hair, He Jiale—the bespectacled boy, and Ma Dahai, who had never spoken a word, all kneeling on the floor.

The grotesque, large-headed ghost employee, Liu Datou, was shouting harshly at the other players.

“Damn it, don’t you know any rules? I took you on the late shift today—it’s exhausting. Don’t you know you ought to show your respect?”

Liu Datou, his oversized head twisted with bulging veins writhing like maggots, waved a human thigh bone menacingly through the air.

“Each of you, not a single coin on you! None of you can pay respects—where did you all come from, a pack of paupers!”

“Listen up. From tomorrow on, if you want to live peacefully in the dormitory, you’ll have to give me half your earnings. Understood?”

Ji Linmo lay back on his bed, expressionless, eyes closed for a nap.

Suddenly, a foot kicked hard at his bed.

“Hey, did I say you could sleep?”

Liu Datou’s massive head throbbed with blue veins, pulsing like worms.

“Ji, don’t think that just because you stopped the red-dressed ghost first and caught the boss’s eye, you can ignore me!”

Ji Linmo opened his eyes, calmly staring at the ferocious ghost, then shut them again.

“Damn it, what are you playing at? Are your ears stuffed with donkey hair? I told you to get down and kneel with the others!”

Ji Linmo finally opened his eyes completely, fixing his gaze on Liu Datou and speaking, word by word.

“I’m tired. Get lost.”

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