516 Lucky Star

 

The blood sea rippled. Han Fei looked through the gate of hell and focused on Bai Xian’s appearance. The Soul Bell chimed and the paper dolls opened their eyes. The ripple grew larger, there was a large shadow coming to the surface! The ghost faces in the air scampered away in fear. Han Fei’s finger that pointed towards the gate was cut with wounds. “No, this is not Bai Xian!”

The giant shadow was emerging through the blood sea. Han Fei swung his bloody arms and stopped. Holding the Soul Bell, the blood on the menu rapidly retreated and the gate of hell closed. Han Fei staggered back a few steps. He leaned on the wall and studied his bleeding hand. “What was that?”

This was the first time Han Fei had failed with his Spirit-farer talent. He almost summoned something living under the blood sea. His heart raced as he thought back to the presence of the shadow. “I only have 30 stamina, if I try to summon the thing under the blood sea, before it even came out, I would have died from the pressure.” Han Fei took out a piece of meat from his inventory and gorged on it. When his Life Points recovered, he opened his menu again. “After Spirit-farer leveled up, I can use it twice per night so I have another chance.”

Han Fei contemplated on his failure. Perhaps it was because Bai Xian hadn’t encountered that many supernatural things. “2 instances of Spirit-farer used on the same person, even Brother Huang doesn’t get this VIP treatment.”

Taking a deep breath, Han Fei used his talent again, “Bai Xian had been out with me twice already. For the first time, we were at the abandoned plastic surgery hospital, the place is heavy with Yin energy; the second time was earlier. He was in the presence of the painter and the white shoes so technically, he has encountered ghosts before.”

Blood crawled over the menu. The gate of hell opened again. Han Fei stared at the blood sea and shook Butterfly’s Soul Bell lightly.

“Bai Xian!” After Bai Xian’s face appeared in his mind, a giant red ghost face floating in the air submerged underwater. Its jaw bit on something inside the red sea. When the ghost face reappeared, there was a white snake in its mouth. The moment the ghost face left the blood sea, it combined with the white snake. The white snake became a blurry soul as it was dragged through the gate of hell.

The gate of hell slowly closed. He succeeded this time!

Sitting on the ground, Han Fei sighed in relief. Using Soul Mist, he grasped Bai Xian’s general location. “He’s too close to Big Sin, I should go help him.” Putting on the Beast Mask, Han Fei changed into a clean patrol guard uniform and walked downstairs.

…

In room 4403, Bai Xian who was casually dressed sat on the ground. His lips were half-open and his eyes were wide. He forgot how to breathe. “What is going on?” He put down ‘study of an actor’ he was reading as he climbed up from the ground. He looked at the paper money that scattered the ground and the walls crawling with strange plants. “I was only trying to switch on the television, what happened to my home?”

With uncertainty, Bai Xian touched the wall, it felt so real that it didn’t feel like he was playing a game. “Have I triggered some kind of hidden mission? This room feels so eerie.” Bai Xian tried to make himself calm down. “I saw online that Perfect Life is filled with easter eggs. If you look hard enough, you’ll have a different gaming experience. Is that what’s happening to me?”

His fingers pinched the plant on the wall. Bai Xian was trying to identify the plant when he heard footsteps. “Is the owner coming?” Bai Xian opened the door and looked out. There was no one out on the corridor. “Is anyone there?” Bai Xian slowly moved his steps. He didn’t understand why such a scene existed in an Iyashikei game.

“There is paper money on the ground, this should be a sad story.” Bai Xian moved a few steps forward when he saw someone. “Is it the mission NPC?” Bai Xian rushed down the corridor when he noticed something was wrong.

Normally, an adult scattering paper money on the corridor was understandable, perhaps there was a death in the family, but this was the first time Bai Xian saw an adult male picking up the paper money from the ground!

He was sure that his eyes were right. The man in the corridor collected the paper money and hugged them close to his chest. ‘What is going on? Is he recycling paper money? Or paper money is the currency here?’ Bai Xian thought he had run into a madman. In this environment, he didn’t want to interact with the man. Bai Xian stopped but the man slowly moved towards Bai Xian as he picked up the paper money on the ground. After some thought, Bai Xian turned to run down the opposite direction. ‘What is going on? A mission to help the mentally challenged?’ Bai Xian thought about many questions so he didn’t notice the steps he took. He tripped on something. He lowered his head to look and it was a ceremonial urn.

“I’m so sorry.” Bai Xian apology to the urn. He bent over to right the toppled-over urn. But when his hand was about to touch the urn, his eyes saw an extra pair of shoes on the urn. He looked up and a tall man radiating misfortune was squatting on the urn.

“You make me feel annoyed. Disgusting.” The man’s tone was filled with disdain.

“I wanted to apologize to you but since you’ve said that, then don’t blame me for…” Bai Xian took out an old bandage from his inventory and bound it around his finger. He lifted his head and noticed he could only see the man’s chest. Bai Xian continued to look up. When his neck was raised 120 degrees, he finally saw the man’s face which was close to the ceiling.

“What the…” The bandage fell to the ground, Bai Xian even forgot to run.

“Don’t blame you for what?” The head near the ceiling lowered. Lee Zai leaned towards Bai Xian. His body was twisted at an impossible angle. Bai Xian’s mind was blank. He remembered Perfect Life was supposed to be a casual relaxing game!

Blood slid down Lee Zai’s neck. The skin on his chest slowly tore open. Bai Xian’s eyes were pulled there. He just opened a mystery box with Han Fei a few days ago and he was going to experience another one!

The human skin on Lee Zai’s chest tore apart and another human face appeared from inside his body!

“I can’t control my brother anymore. The stink on you has awakened him!” Lee Zai screamed. Two arms made from resentment reached out of his chest. Lee Zai’s brother crawled out from his chest. Throughout the whole process, Bai Xian stood there dazed. He was dumbfounded.

At the critical moment, a slender arm reached over to pull Bai Xian to run down the corridor. Lee Zai’s brother chased them. He screamed like a beast out of control. After being dragged for a distance, Bai Xian finally snapped out of it. He started to run for his life. His hand was pulled along by the girl. Bai Xian followed the girl and ran up a few floors. They only stopped when the growls faded away.

Bai Xian looked at the person who saved him. It was a very cute girl in a cute dress. “Thank you for saving me, it was so dangerous earlier!” Bai Xian wiped at the cold sweat on his forehead. His lips were trembling. The girl didn’t say anything but continued to drag him upstairs. At first, Bai Xian didn’t resist but slowly he noticed things were not right. The girl was at most 8 years old but she was impossibly fast. Earlier he was running at full speed and he still couldn’t catch up to the girl. As an actor, Bai Xian was very stern on himself, his physique was better than most.

“Erm… Little girl, can you stop for a moment?” Bai Xian whispered. The girl was very obedient. She stopped and turned around to look at Bai Xian. When Bai Xian saw the girl’s face, he sighed in relief because the girl was very cute. It was not a ghost face he imagined. But he soon frowned. The girl’s eyes were blindfolded so how did she see the path?

“Girl, can you see with your eyes blindfolded?” After saying that, the girl tilted her head at Bai Xian as if confused by Bai Xian’s question. The kind girl slowly raised her hands to answer Bai Xian’s question. Eyes opened on the walls and ceiling. The dark eyes stared at Bai Xian.

Bai Xian’s legs weakened and his skull numbed. He had no idea how he fell from the stairs. He only knew that when he landed, every cell in his body told him to run. Using both his legs and arms, Bai Xian crawled into the corridor. “Help, help!” The screams echoed through Ziggurat. Bai Xian finally broke the shackles. The despair he showed at this moment was far more intense than the acting in Thriller Novelist. “Help me!”

A light mist floated on the corridor. Bai Xian had no idea where he should go but he didn’t dare to stop. A barely noticeable crying echoed in his ears. Watching eyes peered out from behind the doors. Bai Xian had never cried so hard in his life before. “This game and its false advertisement.” Bai Xian then remembered something. “Wait, this is still a game.” His eyes darted about. “When I quit this game, I’ll lodge a complaint…” Before he finished, Bai Xian scrolled down to the end of the menu. His lips hung open. “Wait, isn’t something missing?” He looked through it again and again. When he checked for the 5th time, Bai Xian was confident that his eyes were right. The exit button on his menu was gone!

“What the fuck!” Bai Xian cursed. “Where’s my exit button?!” The cold sweat fell. Now he understood why the game had all good reviews because those who wanted to give bad reviews couldn’t find the exit button!

Standing there, Bai Xian felt like he was abandoned by the world. The crying grew louder. A figure was walking through the mist, it was coming towards him. Listening to the wailing and watching the approaching figure, Bai Xian saw death waving at him. He didn’t know where to run and he turned to look at the door behind him. He gritted his teeth and entered the room. Bai Xian was still a top actor, he hid in the darkness of the room and adjusted his breathing. He leaned against the door and closed his mouth and nose with his hands. ‘I can’t make any noise!’

Holding his breath, Bai Xian’s heartbeat synchronized with the footsteps outside. He gritted his teeth. He was completely submerged in the horror. Only by escaping the ghost outside that he could think about what to do next. Bai Xian didn’t make any noise but he did hear a strange noise coming from behind him. At this crucial moment, any noise could expose him. Bai Xian frowned deeply as he turned to look behind him. Bai Xian turned around and saw inside the living room, there was a black demon about 5 meters tall!

The disgust and ugliness couldn’t be described in words. It was hidden in darkness, it was more terrifying than darkness. Bai Xian lost his breath and his life flashed before his eyes. “I still haven’t won the best male actor…”

The large and terrifying creature trampled forward and the door behind Bai Xian was pulled open. The light shone on Bai Xian’s face. He saw a man wearing a mask. The man’s figure looked familiar.

“Don’t stay in this room.” The familiar voice said. The man was about to remove his mask when the large creature suddenly picked up speed to charge into the masked man!

The blood splattered on Bai Xian’s face. He saw the man who was slammed through the air by the creature and he lost it. Bai Xian’s scream traveled through the mist. His emotions were unleashed at that moment as he cried for help. Despair was perfectly displayed on him. There was no acting involved, it was all authentic.

“Quick! Stop him!” Han Fei climbed up from the ground. He didn’t expect Big Sin to be so excited. It charged over when it heard Han Fei’s voice. No wonder its loyalty point was 90. Han Fei took out a pig’s heart Xu Qin had prepared from his inventory. Han Fei recovered his Life Points as he ran towards Bai Xian. “Brother Bai!”

“Don’t come near me!”

“It’s me, you need to stop!”

“Don’t come any closer!” Bai Xian reached the end of the corridor. There was a window and he looked out at the city shrouded in darkness. Bai Xian had shed the shackles years of acting had put on him. He found his most authentic self and he made his final choice. “I still fail to…” before he finished, he saw a woman fall down the window. The woman had a strange expression. When she ‘passed by’ Bai Xian, she pushed him away from the window. “Wait, was I just saved by a woman falling down the building?” These complicated emotions shut down Bai Xian’s mind again. He looked out the window numbly. Then the woman reappeared as she continued to fall down the building. His mind was at its limit and he fainted.

“Brother Bai!” Han Fei finished Xu Qin’s food. He thanked Zhuang Wen outside the window and then picked up Bai Xian. “This is bad, I doubt he’ll be waking up any time soon.”

Feng Ziyu and the guards ran over. They were holding all sorts of items but they didn’t have the chance to use them.

“Looks like we need to lower the difficulty of the entertainment we prepare for the players.” When Han Fei touched Bai Xian, he saw Bai Xian’s status and he understood why Lee Zai hated Bai Xian that much. Bai Xian had a luck point of 10. His initial luck was 8. He married an NPC who could raise his luck in the game. Through a status called Blessing of Love, he gained 1 extra luck. Then Bai Xian found an extremely rare Grade E ring—Nameless Hero. The item would give the wearer 1 extra luck but the wearer wouldn’t gain any reputation.

Bai Xian was a casual player, he only played when he was free but even so, he still managed to reach level 13. If Ironman found out, he would be so angry. Other than the high luck point, Bai Xian’s other attributes were very normal but he had 2 talents.

The first talent was called Dramatics, Grade D, it will help the owner gain exceptional acting skills.

The second talent was called Lucky Star, Grade B. The owner would run into lucky things.

Han Fei was envious of the ring on Bai Xian’s finger. Han Fei and his neighbors came to study the Lucky Star. “Luck is the hardest attribute to level up and he has 10? No wonder even with the Soul Bell, I had to use two instances of Spirit-farer to get him here. For the second time, a ghost face basically had to drag him out of the blood-red sea.” Compared to the environment of the Ziggurat, Bai Xian didn’t fit in. The combined luck of the 5 players Han Fei saw earlier was still lower than Bai Xian.

“What’s the point of having such a high luck point? He’s still lying there on the ground. He’s even unluckier than the few characters we saw earlier!” Lee Zai despised Bai Xian. The aura on Bai Xian annoyed Lee Zai.

“He does look more unlucky than the others…” Han Fei scratched his chin. “Is it possible that he has exhausted all of his luck after he ran into me?”

Laughing walked over and laughed nonchalantly, “We should send him to somewhere safe first. The Pure Hatreds from the hospital might come at any moment and this building will be their first target.”

Han Fei wanted to get offline but to do that he had to complete a mission and stay for 3 hours in-game first. There was still time to the 3 hours limit. Han Fei decided to bring Bai Xian to Happiness Neighborhood. Han Fei called over Ying Yue and Weep as he carried Bai Xian out of Ziggurat.

“When Huang Yin first arrived, he had Meng Si’s porridge too. Her house has that calming effect on people.” Han Fei was wondering how he was going to explain everything to Bai Xian. He had planned everything but Bai Xian ran too fast and even charged into Big Sin’s room. There were so many rooms at Ziggurat but the player with 10 luck had managed to encounter every single neighbor. Was this a sign from the God of Luck? He wanted Bai Xian to meet his future friends first?

Han Fei hadn’t returned to Happiness Neighborhood for a long time already. When he saw the lights were still on at Building 1, Han Fei felt warmed. Carrying Bai Xian, Han Fei knocked on Meng Si’s door. The granny was still the same, she was waiting for her son to come home. The previous manager had manipulated Meng Si’s memory so that she would forget all the pain. Everyone at Happiness Neighborhood had chosen to face the darkness, to search for light in the darkness. Only Meng Si and her grandson chose to stay and guard the last light in the neighborhood. Actually, this was not that bad. It meant that no matter how far Han Fei and his neighbors traveled, there would always be a light waiting for them back at Happiness Neighborhood.

“Granny, this man’s name is Bai Xian. Can you help me look after him? Just take care of him like how you took care of Huang Yin.” From Bai Xian’s performance at Ziggurat, he had broken through his shackles. With some guidance, his acting skill would reach new heights. “Even though the process was rushed, I have helped Brother Bai with his wish, I need to ask him for his opinion after he wakes up.”

Meng Si went into the kitchen to cook porridge while her grandson set the table. The environment was peaceful, even the light was warm.

Someone knocked on the door. After he knew Han Fei was back, Wei Youfu came to visit with Little Eight. The injury on the victims of the human jigsaw case had healed. Little Eight was more cheerful than before. She held many small flower pots, they were her treasure.

“You’re back.” Wei Youfu smiled at Han Fei. It was like a family reuniting during the holiday, it was very natural.