Chapter 1

He Bo and he had both been proactive, setting the pace, analyzing, and seizing the initiative, like the team’s leaders.

Now that He Bo was dead, he was definitely the next target.

Meanwhile, Xi Shi said somewhat anxiously, "There's only one minute left. Make a decision quickly. What should we do next? Keep our eyes closed, or open them?"

Xie Lingxi raised her hand slightly and tentatively suggested, "How about we vote?"

The Fire Fiend shouted, "I choose to open my eyes. I don't want anyone else's head rolling into my lap, or having my own head inexplicably chopped off. If we open our eyes, we still have a chance. Maybe we can figure out the rules."

Xi Shi looked at Zhang Yuanqing expectantly, but seeing that he didn't speak, she had to say, "I also think it's better to open our eyes. The feeling of having them closed is just too awful."

The Bereaved Father was silent for a few seconds. "I agree..."

Xie Lingxi, "I agree too."

Seeing this, the Great Sage Equal of Heaven knew that his vote was meaningless, "Looks like I don't have a choice."

Open our eyes? It would be one thing if the roller coaster's killing rules changed, but if it's like I suspect, that there’s an evil person killing people, have you thought about the consequences of opening your eyes...? Zhang Yuanqing felt a chill in his heart.

He almost revealed the truth that there was a traitor in the team, but the Spirit Realm had given a prompt requiring them to conceal their identities.

This was both to protect the evil-doer, and to protect the team leader. After all, this wasn't some game in the real world where everyone knew there was a wolf from the start and needed to find it.

This was just a temporary team. Would everyone believe everything you said?

Concealing identities was obviously the instance's balancing mechanism. What if rashly revealing it triggered a punishment mechanism?

But he couldn't let them continue like this, because they couldn't afford to lose.

I've thought of a way, but it's very risky... Zhang Yuanqing no longer hesitated and said in a deep voice, "Is there a possibility that...if, I mean if...if the rule about keeping our eyes closed hasn't changed, have you thought about the consequences? Only He Bo died in the last round. There are still two rounds left. At worst, two more people will die. Total annihilation versus two deaths. I don't need to tell you how to choose, right?"

Everyone was silent, and the scene fell into a stalemate.

Seeing that no one was arguing, Zhang Yuanqing breathed a slight sigh of relief and immediately said, "I have another idea."

Xi Shi’s face lit up. "What idea?"

"Choose one person to stay on the platform to observe, and the others continue to close their eyes and ride the roller coaster. This way, there will be eyes watching, and the people on the ride won't have to take risks, avoiding the danger of total annihilation."

Everyone was stunned. The Fire Fiend frowned tightly and said irritably, "The instance information doesn't explicitly say that we have to experience the facilities together, but it doesn't say we can either. You should know what that means in terms of risk."

The Spirit Realm wouldn't clearly tell you all the rules and let you do things step-by-step. It's not that easy.

For example, the information given was about forming a team, but it wouldn't tell you what would happen if you didn't. Maybe nothing, or maybe leaving the team would mean death.

"I know," Zhang Yuanqing said slowly. "So I'll bear this risk. I'll stay behind."

After speaking, he stared intently at his teammates. At this time, whoever objected was the killer.

"I have no objections."

"I have no objections either."

"Little brother, we're counting on you."

"Wang Tai, be careful."

No one objected.

The killer is smarter than I thought... Zhang Yuanqing sighed helplessly in his heart when he saw this. Taking the opportunity, he unbuckled his seatbelt and stepped out of the roller coaster.

If staying behind was risky, then the killer would essentially be able to kill two people this round. With most people agreeing, choosing to go with the flow was the wise move, so the killer was very smart.

But for Zhang Yuanqing, although staying behind was risky, sitting on the ride would mean certain death.

At this moment, the countdown ended, and the roller coaster moved slowly with a "thump" from the bottom.

Zhang Yuanqing tensed up, vigilantly watching for any possible dangers around him, while his sharp eyes stared at the slowly climbing roller coaster.

Sound couldn't provide feedback, but visuals certainly could. As long as the killer dared to kill, he would immediately trigger his old ailment and expose them.

He didn't believe the killer could kill with their mind, because that wouldn't be in line with the balancing mechanism.

After the roller coaster reached the top, it suddenly plunged downwards, performing a free-fall motion, and Xi Shi on the ride let out another short scream.

"Rumble..."

Under Zhang Yuanqing's gaze, the roller coaster hurtled whistlingly along the undulating steel tracks like a dragon. Two minutes later, it slowed down and returned to the platform.

As soon as the roller coaster stopped, the team members immediately opened their eyes, their faces tense as they looked around.

"No one died, no one died this time..." Xi Shi cried out in surprise.

The others had joyful expressions, and their tense expressions relaxed.

Xie Lingxi blinked her beautiful eyes and asked with a smile, "Did you observe anything?"

The team members immediately looked at Zhang Yuanqing, their eyes full of anticipation.

As I expected, it's not the rules that are killing people, it's the killer... Zhang Yuanqing said, "I didn't see anything."

He was subtly hinting to his teammates.

Since the rule of keeping your eyes closed hasn't changed, how did He Bo die? Use your brains to think.

Hearing this, the team members suddenly fell silent, deep in thought.

In the next five minutes, the few of them were particularly silent, without communication or discussion, and then, under Zhang Yuanqing's watch, they completed the third round.

"Phew, it's over..." Xi Shi couldn't wait to unbuckle her seatbelt, taking long strides as she leaped off the roller coaster as if fleeing.

Zhang Yuanqing looked at her. After the remaining teammates left the roller coaster, he smiled happily, "It's my turn. Everyone, please wait here for a moment."

..........

The roller coaster slowed down and stopped at the rooftop platform.

Zhang Yuanqing unbuckled his seatbelt and joined the team members waiting nearby.

Stepping on the concrete ground, he suddenly felt a sense of relief and exhaustion, as if he had survived a great calamity.

He had finally completed one entertainment activity, with only one teammate dead, which was still within a controllable range. Alas, they almost suffered total annihilation. It was too difficult. S-level tasks were too difficult... Zhang Yuanqing thought wearily.

When he saw that everyone else also had a weary expression, he immediately felt more balanced.

At this moment, Zhang Yuanqing received a system notification in his mind:

[You have completed the starting task (Roller Coaster). You have successfully activated the "Heart-Pounding" task series. The entertainment facilities in this series are: Roller Coaster -- Underground Parking Lot -- Haunted House (Ghost Wedding) -- Detective Puzzle Hall. Please proceed to the second location within half an hour.]

G-Ghost... Haunted house... Hearing the notification in his mind, Zhang Yuanqing's expression instantly froze.

The smiles on the faces of Xie Lingxi, Xi Shi, the middle-aged man, the Fire Fiend, and the Great Sage Equal of Heaven also slowly disappeared.

The roller coaster was part of the Heart-Pounding series, and that series included a HAUNTED HOUSE!! Zhang Yuanqing suddenly looked at the black-haired, straight-haired girl.

At the same time, he received another notification in his mind:

[Ding, you have successfully led the team to complete a task. You have one opportunity to exercise team leader authority. Please identify the evil-doer hidden among the team members. The designated person will be eliminated!

[Failure to make a choice within thirty seconds will be considered a forfeiture of this opportunity.]