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Bonus chapter! Thank you to JustSomeOne for the donation! ^^
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Sometimes what appears to be multiple choices is, in reality, no choice at all.
Just as Ruan Qing had firmly decided not to attend, the ship's broadcast crackled to life once more.
"All guests are required to attend the party promptly. Those who fail to arrive within the designated time will be treated as suspicious stowaways—and will bear the consequences themselves."
The staff's tone remained impeccably polite, yet the message was undeniably tyrannical, bordering on outright unreasonable.
It was also a blatant admission—they weren't even trying to hide their intentions anymore.
The other players had initially planned to follow Ruan Qing's lead and skip the event, but now, they had no choice.
If they all refused to go, they'd stand out too easily. A simple check would expose them, putting the players in an even more precarious position.
No one knew exactly what would happen if they were labeled as stowaways—but it certainly wouldn't be anything good.
The party was to be held in the third floor grand hall. To accommodate all guests, the staff had temporarily cleared the space of other furnishings, leaving the vast room completely open.
Though hastily arranged, the venue was lavishly decorated, with no trace of last-minute improvisation.
Even with ten minutes remaining before the official start, the hall was already packed with guests.
The air hummed with clinking glasses and murmured conversations beneath the warm, golden glow of chandeliers—an atmosphere thick with luxury and decadence.
Small clusters of elegantly dressed attendees exchanged quiet words, their voices never rising above the soft strains of a live violin. Every detail exuded sophistication.
The guests moved through the space in formal attire, every one the picture of success. The scene resembled a high-society gala at a five-star hotel, not a cruise ship's impromptu gathering.
The players, however, kept a low profile. Most opted for practicality over finery, skipping formalwear entirely to blend in unobtrusively.
Not all invitees were wealthy, after all—some hadn't brought evening wear either, making the players' choices less conspicuous.
As the others filed toward the party, the man in the suit hesitated, glancing at Ruan Qing, who hadn't budged. "You're really not going, boss?"
Ruan Qing didn't look up from his book. "No."
He was a stowaway—attending changed nothing.
Besides, with the staff's and Lin Zhiyan's access cards in hand, even an unlucky encounter with security wouldn't be a problem.
The man in the suit hesitated, his expression conflicted, but ultimately followed the other players to the third floor ballroom.
Soon, the library was silent except for the soft rustling of Ruan Qing turning pages.
Deep in his research on the eldritch deity, Ruan Qing was startled by a sudden noise behind him. He whirled around, his body tensed to flee, eyes sharp with wariness—
But instead of some horrific apparition, a figure emerged from the dim, neglected corner of the library.
...Xu Jinyan?
Ruan Qing's eyes narrowed slightly beneath his hat. How long had this man been here?
The library's shelves were organized systematically—that corner housed only literary works, completely irrelevant to their investigation, which was why none of the players had bothered checking it.
Even Ruan Qing had overlooked it.
If this had been another player, it wouldn’t have mattered. But Xu Jinyan wasn’t a player.
And one of the cardinal rules of the Infinite Horror Game was: Never disclose the game’s existence to NPCs.
Just how much had he overheard?
Xu Jinyan stretched lazily, as if he’d just woken from a nap, and strode past Ruan Qing without so much as a glance.
Yet just before stepping out, he paused at the doorway, tilting his head back to look at Ruan Qing.
"Xia Qing," he said casually, "skip the party, and you’ll die."
Then he was gone, leaving Ruan Qing frozen in disbelief.
He recognized him?
This was their first encounter—there was no way Xu Jinyan should have known who he was. Ruan Qing’s current appearance bore no resemblance to the original "Xia Qing." Even those closest to Xia Qing wouldn’t have been able to identify him.
The others who had recognized him had done so only because of his unique constitution, not because of his identity as Xia Qing.
Yet Xu Jinyan had called him by that name.
This didn’t make sense.
The clock was about to strike eight in the evening. After a few seconds of silent contemplation, Ruan Qing finally arrived at the third floor ballroom at the very last moment.
When Ruan Qing entered, the party was already in full swing. Elegant music filled the grand hall as guests danced a waltz at the center of the floor.
Keeping his hat pulled low, Ruan Qing stood quietly in a shadowed corner, doing everything possible to avoid drawing attention.
With so many guests in attendance, no one noticed the solitary figure in the corner - except for the other players who were also positioned around the edges of the room.
The man in the suit's eyes brightened when he spotted Ruan Qing and immediately approached. "Boss, you came after all?"
Ruan Qing responded with a quiet "Mm," offering no explanation for his presence.
The man in the suit didn't mind his reticence - top players were often like this anyway.
Time passed uneventfully. The party continued normally in every respect - except for the conspicuous absence of Lin Zhiyan.
The regular guests had already forgotten about the promised announcement, but the players grew increasingly uneasy.
If nothing was going to happen, why force everyone to gather here using such strong-arm tactics?
The players, initially scattered throughout the venue, found their anxiety growing with each passing minute. Gradually they began moving toward Ruan Qing's position, unconsciously forming a loose circle around him as if seeking guidance.
The live-stream audience watched this development silently.
[What can I say? My wife's brilliant but his combat skills are nonexistent. Why are you all acting like you've found some god-tier carry? If you drag him down I'll curse you!]
[This just proves his acting is flawless - they all believe it. At least they're smart enough to follow him, otherwise they'd still be clueless about this dungeon.]
[Seriously, why is my wife bothering with these deadweights? He could easily solo this.]
Too tense to check the chat, the players kept their eyes fixed on every corner of the ballroom, waiting for danger to appear.
Yet even after staring until their eyes grew tired, nothing seemed out of place.
The man in the suit, equally confused, turned to Ruan Qing - who stood with his head slightly bowed, eyes closed as if resting - and whispered, "Boss, what do you think?"
Ruan Qing replied softly, "It's only nine o'clock."
The players exchanged confused glances, unable to understand the meaning behind his words.
Ruan Qing spoke in a low, hoarse voice, "Do you remember when the temperature suddenly dropped last night?"
Ten o'clock.
The temperature had plummeted precisely at 10:00 PM yesterday.
And according to the invitation, this party was scheduled from 8:00 to 10:00 PM.
Something would definitely happen at ten o'clock.
The players froze as Ruan Qing's reminder sank in. They checked their watches and stiffened - only minutes remained until the fateful hour.
This didn't make sense. They'd only been at the party for about an hour, yet two hours had somehow slipped away?
Even Ruan Qing frowned. Time was moving strangely fast - nearly twice its normal pace.
As the players struggled to comprehend this discrepancy, the ballroom music abruptly cut off. An amplified voice echoed through the hall.
It was Lin Zhiyan.
"First, congratulations to all guests for winning this exclusive opportunity. It's been... delightful having you here."
His monotone delivery betrayed no actual delight, sounding more like a bored recitation. Apparently even pretending had become too tiresome, because after a pause, he gave a soft, mirthless laugh.
"However, your seven-day luxury cruise will be ending early. We'll now be transitioning to... a little survival game."
The guests stood frozen, their celebratory cheers dying in their throats.
A survival game? Was this some new entertainment?
But as they took in Lin Zhiyan's chilling smile, a dreadful realization began to dawn. The ballroom fell deathly silent, leaving only his icy voice hanging in the air.
"Please... struggle entertainingly in your final moments."
The instant he finished speaking, a massive CRASH shook the ship. The sound of something pounding against windows and hull sent guests whirling toward the glass panes, faces taut with unease.
That unease turned to pure terror within seconds. Every person in the room went rigid, eyes widening in horror.
Because pressed against the windows were rows of grotesque silhouettes.
Their long hair obscured most of their faces, but glimpses of what lay beneath were visible - faces covered entirely in eyes.
The figures maintained human shapes, but their bodies bristled with countless blinking orbs. All facial features had vanished except for mouths stretched ear-to-ear in grotesque grins. The eyeballs rolled and twitched incessantly, their sickening movements alone enough to make one's skin crawl.
At that moment, those shadowy figures were staring greedily at the guests inside the cruise ship, frantically slamming against the glass windows as if trying to break in and devour everyone alive.
"CRASH—!!!" The sound of shattering glass mingled with the explosion of chandeliers.
The entire ballroom plunged into darkness.
"Ahhh—!" Bloodcurdling screams erupted as guests finally realized what was happening. They scrambled in panic, desperately trying to flee the nightmare.
This was the cruise ship's third floor. The only escape route led upward, and the terrified crowd stampeded toward the elevators.
But when they arrived, they discovered their invitation cards no longer activated the elevators. Not just one person's—everyone's invitations had become useless pieces of plastic.
As the monsters closed in, guests dashed toward cabins, hoping the doors might offer temporary shelter. Yet their invitations failed to unlock even these rooms. The once-precious cards were now worthless.
They were trapped.
Those who moved too slowly met gruesome ends. The ghastly sounds of tearing flesh and voracious chewing echoed through the corridors.
In less than ten minutes, the luxurious third deck transformed into a blood-soaked graveyard of mangled corpses...
