Chapter 17: Formulating the Plan

The others, upon hearing Zhu Chen recount Xia Wulei’s quick-witted move, admired her greatly but were also deeply concerned about her returning alone.

Yu Huaiyu said, “Sister, it’s not worth risking yourself over two fish. Really, it’s not worth it.”

Xia Wulei: ...I’m not you!

Yet Xia Wulei found it difficult to explain the situation and could only give a vague reply.

The newly planted crops had been harvested, and Xia Wulei exchanged most of the produce for points, earning nearly six hundred.

On primary land, ten poultry restore 1% of fertility daily, while on tertiary land, it takes a hundred poultry to restore the same 1%.

Before she could even savor the freshly earned points, Xia Wulei spent them all quickly.

Her land had lost its fertility and could only be restored through fallow periods and poultry.

However, with all necessary crops planted, Xia Wulei was in no hurry.

She filled a basin with water to keep the fish alive and called out to Aunt Wang as she passed by.

“Aunt Wang, has anyone in this village ever accidentally fallen into water?”

Aunt Wang paused, furrowing her brows in thought.

“I think... a few years ago, I heard that Er Mazi at the village entrance drank too much and fell into the water, died. That pond is quite a distance from here. No one knows how he got there.”

“People searched for several days but never found Er Mazi’s body. So, no one is sure if he actually drowned.”

Hearing this, Xia Wulei understood—the story was likely the origin of the water ghost.

Yet the system gave no hint of discovering any clues, meaning the water ghost wouldn’t be hunting them on the seventh day and thus wasn’t considered a clue.

Indeed, the water ghost couldn’t leave its territory, but if they ventured near the lake, all bets were off.

This copy of the game was indeed rather sinister.

Curious, Aunt Wang asked, “Why do you want to know?”

“Nothing much, just wanted you to help me kill two fish.” Xia Wulei pointed to the basin.

Aunt Wang: Are these two matters connected?

But she didn’t press further and took the basin to handle the fish.

On the fourth day of the copy, the system displayed a clue panel showing their progress in gathering information.

They were delighted to see the progress had reached one hundred percent, meaning they had found all the ghosts. Now, they only needed to devise a plan to avoid them based on their weaknesses.

“The seventh day at noon marks the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons. We just need to survive for six hours. Once the sun rises, it means we’ve successfully cleared this copy,” Hong Qi rallied the group, boosting their morale.

“Next, we just have to formulate plans using the ghosts’ weaknesses to evade their attacks.”

On the final day, the atmosphere was essentially a blend of a battle royale and a game of tag with ghosts.

Though terrifying, the ghosts’ weaknesses could be uncovered through gathered information.

Still, even with clues, death hung over the players like a guillotine, ready to fall at any moment.

Six hours was an eternity; once a ghost latched onto a player, life and death could be decided in an instant.

From Hong Qi’s experience, most players would choose either to scatter or to gather in a hiding spot on the last day.

Scattering meant hoping the ghosts would seek others and not find oneself; gathering allowed players with powerful skills to cooperate.

“So far, we’ve confirmed the ghosts are the Nine Infants and the Millennium Zombie. Zhu Chen mentioned the water ghost but no clues indicate it will hunt us on the last day, though be wary near the lake.”

Hong Qi expertly summarized their situation, quickly ruling out the outskirts as a place to hide thanks to Zhu Chen’s information.

“The outskirts are too open—fields and shrubs—with only a sparse little grove. So I think hiding within the village is better. Zombies can’t climb, so we can take refuge in high places, but the Nine Infants are trickier.”

Mentioning this ancient beast caused Hong Qi some distress.

“The Nine Infants rank nineteenth among ancient beasts—water and fire monsters whose cries sound like infants. They have nine heads, hence the name.”

“Legend says the Nine Infants transformed from nine babies: five boys and four girls. The boys command water, the girls command fire, so they can spew water and fire, making them extremely difficult to handle.”

Yu Huaiyu suddenly spoke, surprising everyone with her detailed knowledge.

Blushing, she explained, “After finishing the beginner’s copy, I was tricked into buying an ancient beast encyclopedia in the Realm Beyond, spent nearly half my points on it. Didn’t expect it to come in handy.”

Xia Wulei was speechless—typical Yu Huaiyu.

Ancient beasts were bosses only high-ranking players encountered; Yu Huaiyu, a newbie, knew nothing and bought the book just in case.

Yet, by some stroke of luck, the knowledge was useful.

“So the Nine Infants’ abilities include water, fire, and sonic attacks,” Hong Qi quickly mapped out their strategy. “The administrator suppresses most of the Nine Infants’ power. We also have talismans for protection, but we still need to be cautious.”

Xia Wulei wondered if such caution was truly necessary.

She had faced ghosts several times and only needed a hoe to deal with them.

She voiced her doubts, and Hong Qi explained.

“Ghosts appearing in the early stages of the game are limited by the copy’s rules and pose little threat. But as time passes, their strength increases, and the last day is when they are at their most powerful.”

Xia Wulei understood—there was such a rule.

“Also, items obtained in the game vary in their suppressive effect on ghosts. For example, Zhu Chen’s sword, a system-issued weapon, has the strongest deterrent power. Weapons we craft ourselves have almost no suppressive effect and rely solely on player skills to repel ghosts.”

Zhu Chen proudly puffed out his chest, earning admiring glances.

Xia Wulei couldn’t help but think of her hoe—who knew it had such significance? No wonder number 8 said it was a special favor requested for her.

A win.

“Three days left. Everyone search the village for suitable hiding places, then...”

Hong Qi’s words were cut off by a sudden, urgent knock.

“Wang Sister-in-law, are you there? Please open the door!”

The voice was unmistakably the village chief’s!

Xia Wulei got up to open the door. Outside stood the village chief with a wrinkled face, followed by several villagers.

“Village chief looking for Aunt Wang? She’s in the kitchen. I’ll call her for you.”

Just as Xia Wulei turned, the village chief stopped her.

“No need. I’m here to see all of you. Are you all here?”

Curious, the group nodded as the chief grinned, revealing a mouth of yellowed teeth and brimming with enthusiasm.

“Tomorrow our village will hold a feast to honor the mountain god. You all should come. The mountain god will surely accept you and bless you!”

The villagers chimed in enthusiastically.

“Yes! The mountain god will definitely accept you!”

“You must come!”