A prolonged, ethereal voice, intermingled with threads of profound lingering aftertaste, touched the human soul like an electric shock, compelling one to involuntarily focus, seek, and desire.
When Lin Ye came back to his senses, he found that he had already unconsciously walked four or five meters in the direction of the voice.
In an instant, cold sweat broke out on Lin Ye's forehead.
Even he was affected.
It had to be known that the free attribute points he currently used were all added to Mental Power. His resistance to Strange erosion effects similar to mental influence was much higher than average.
But even so, he had walked three or four meters without realizing it. If it were an ordinary person...
"Senpai..."
Only then did Lin Ye discover that Mai Sakurajima, who should have been beside him, had already walked toward the park and was six or seven meters ahead of him.
"Senpai, stop."
But Mai Sakurajima showed absolutely no sign of stopping, continuing to stride forward.
Lin Ye realized it was bad the moment he saw it. He lifted his legs and accelerated to catch up.
In a few seconds, Lin Ye blocked the girl's path. At this moment, Mai Sakurajima's eyes were a bit blurry, her pupils unfocused.
Lin Ye waved his hand in front of her, but the girl didn't react at all.
"Senpai, wake up."
He grasped Mai Sakurajima's shoulders with both hands and spoke to remind her.
But Mai Sakurajima did not wake up. Lin Ye increased the force of his shaking, and finally, he pinched the girl's cheeks with both hands and pulled them apart ruthlessly.
"Ugh."
Mai Sakurajima blinked. Her unfocused pupils converged, seeing the man clearly in front of her.
"Student Lin, you..."
Only then did she suddenly realize her position relative to Lin Ye. The tactile sensation coming from her cheeks made her realize what Lin Ye had just done to her.
She spoke with a hint of helplessness and warning, "Touching a girl's skin without her consent is very impolite behavior. If it's serious, it's harassment! I can call the police to arrest you."
"Come with me first. Let's leave here."
Lin Ye grabbed Mai Sakurajima's wrist and pulled the girl to walk in the direction away from the park.
This made Mai Sakurajima smell a strange aura. Moreover, she recalled for a moment and realized she had absolutely no memory of when Lin Ye stood in front of her or pinched her cheeks.
Something went wrong in between.
She looked at the side profile of Lin Ye leading her ahead and couldn't help but think.
Tap tap tap...
Footsteps echoed.
The streetlights on both sides released light. The road was dim, and the green shade on both sides permeated with a faint oppressive aura.
Lin Ye walked while pulling Mai Sakurajima, but he quickly detected the problem.
They couldn't walk out.
The environment changed, but they couldn't walk out, and the scene was different from when they came.
Lin Ye remembered the burning Strange entity he encountered when sending Tachibana-sensei back to her residence that day.
The space at that time was also a closed, continuous loop. Trying to leave simply by walking was almost impossible.
Lin Ye stopped his steps and began observing the surroundings. Turning around to look, he saw the entrance to the park was less than ten meters away from him.
They hadn't left at all.
The girl with long black hair also realized the problem at this moment. "Student Lin, what happened?"
"Strange event. We have been dragged into a Strange event."
Things had already happened; there was no necessity for him to hide it anymore.
"..."
Mai Sakurajima's eyes flickered with a trace of hesitation; she didn't quite believe it.
"Senpai, look at that..."
"The park entrance."
"Mn. How long did we walk just now?"
"Two minutes. Probably a hundred meters or so!"
"Correct. But we haven't moved away from this park entrance at all."
Seeing Mai Sakurajima's reaction, Lin Ye grabbed the girl's wrist once again and walked in the direction away from the park entrance.
Tap tap tap...
It was still the continuously echoing crisp sound of footsteps.
Under the night curtain,
Two connected figures walked.
One minute later,
Mai Sakurajima gazed at the unchanged park entrance, and her whole person felt unwell.
Fortunately, she had experienced her own abnormal time and had a certain capacity to accept and endure similar things. Otherwise, she would have been thrown into confusion and panic at this moment.
"%*&%...￥..."
The ethereal voice rang out once again, coming from the direction of Chiba Park.
Because he was vigilant, Lin Ye was only slightly dazed for half a second before returning to normal. He held onto the girl, and the girl with long black hair recovered a moment later under Lin Ye's reminder.
Cold sweat emerged.
Mai Sakurajima only felt a chill on her back.
So Strange.
If Lin Ye weren't by her side, she feared she would have walked in blankly, and then been finished off by some unknown monster.
"Student Lin, what should we do next?"
She couldn't help but get closer to Lin Ye. Only by Lin Ye's side did she have a higher sense of security.
"If we don't resolve it, we can't get out. The more time we delay, the deeper the influence we suffer."
By then, she feared they wouldn't even be able to maintain their current rationality.
"Senpai, I have two suggestions."
Lin Ye looked seriously at the girl with long black hair beside him.
"Speak."
"First, I go inside and resolve the Strange within as quickly as possible."
"And the second!"
"You come inside with me. I will guarantee your safety as much as possible."
Upon first hearing, the first choice was the safest for her. She didn't need to go into the dangerous park interior. But was she really safe alone outside?
If she heard that ethereal Strange voice again, would she still be able to stay outside instead of walking blankly into the park interior and heading to the park?
"I'll go in with you."
Mai Sakurajima made the decision quickly.
Acting together with Lin Ye, she would actually be safer.
Just the rationality Lin Ye displayed facing the Strange right now let her know that this wasn't Lin Ye's first time facing this kind of Strange event. Even if it really were the first time, a companion with a powerful and calm psychology could greatly increase her survival rate.
"Good. Senpai, follow me closely. Don't turn your head or turn around randomly. Just follow me."
Lin Ye gave a reminder.
"Mn."
Mai Sakurajima nodded heavily.
She was very clear about the current situation. Following close behind Lin Ye and acting with him was the best choice.
"Hoo..."
His hands were free. Mai Sakurajima grabbed the corner of his clothes and followed him toward Chiba Park.
The next step,
Lin Ye stepped across the entrance of Chiba Park.
In an instant,
He heard the familiar notification sound of the Strange Game.
[Detected player entering Strange Chiba Park.]
[Trigger mission conditions met.]
[Now issuing mission.]
[Mission Name: Park Ethereal Female Voice.]
[Mission Type: Reality Conventional Type.]
[Mission Objective: Find the main body of the female voice.]
[Accept?]
[If no answer within five seconds, default automatic refusal.]
...
The Strange Game issued a mission.
But given the current situation, could he leave if he didn't accept this mission?
Definitely not.
"Accept."
The requirement for this mission was to find the body of the voice. This was much less difficult than killing the Strange entity, or at least it felt so.
Lin Ye and Mai Sakurajima formally entered Chiba Park.
Immediately,
What greeted them was a lower temperature. The air was permeated with threads of coldness.
Mai Sakurajima couldn't help but shrink back.
"Wear my jacket."
"But..."
"Senpai, my constitution is better than yours."
This coldness, rather than temperature, was better described as low temperature caused by Strange aura.
Lin Ye was worried that if Mai Sakurajima stayed inside for a long time, she would suffer erosion from the Strange aura faster due to catching a cold, inviting infection.
He had to guard against it.
"Take this piece of chewing gum. If you feel something is wrong, eat it immediately."
Lin Ye also gave Mai Sakurajima a piece of Dazzle Chewing Gum as a precaution.
"Mn."
She looked at the item in her hand. The packaging wasn't much different from daily chewing gum, but the moment she touched it, she felt a coolness coming from it. This was a coolness like mint that made one sober, very comfortable, and completely different from the coldness of the damp and humid environment they were currently in.
Mai Sakurajima didn't ask much, even though she was full of doubts right now.
Lin Ye observed a full circle, and even used [Perspective], but didn't see any special existence. So he looked around; there were two paths, left and right.
The left was brighter, the right darker.
Generally speaking, one should choose the brighter direction to advance. Humans tend toward light. But on the basis of the Strange, it was really hard to say.
"Senpai, how is your luck?"
"It's okay, I guess!"
Mai Sakurajima recalled for a moment.
"Then you choose! Left, or right."
Mai Sakurajima went stiff.
She never expected Lin Ye would hand this heavy responsibility to her.
"Right side then!"
She made a choice.
Lin Ye then walked toward the left side.
Leaving Mai Sakurajima staring blankly.
"You are affected by me, and your presence is about to disappear. Senpai, your luck recently shouldn't be very good."
This explanation made Mai Sakurajima even more depressed.
She didn't retort, following Lin Ye to step toward the path on the left.
In the park at night, the streetlights released a pale light, adding a touch of coldness. The breeze blew against their faces, rustling, and the air was permeated with a faint fragrance of green grass, but this scent always made people feel there was a hint of something wrong.
Lin Ye and Mai Sakurajima followed the road straight ahead, walking for about two minutes.
Along the way, apart from the sound of the two's footsteps and the blowing wind, there were no other sounds.
Turning a corner, bypassing the tall and straight trees,
Lin Ye saw a figure appearing ahead.
Under the reflection of the light, he could only see a pitch-black back, but couldn't see the face clearly.
Mai Sakurajima's heart couldn't help but become more nervous.
Encountering other human figures in this Strange park... no matter how she thought about it, it couldn't be a human!
She couldn't help but grip the corner of Lin Ye's clothes tightly, waiting for Lin Ye's decision.
"Senpai, it will be fine. Come over with me."
"Mn."
After walking close,
Mai Sakurajima discovered that the body of this figure was just a doll, a life-sized humanoid guide doll.
"Scared me to death."
She thought it was that kind of humanoid monster, but the result was this kind...
At this time, Mai Sakurajima's line of sight looked forward.
Entering her eyes was a pavilion built of stone bricks, surrounded by green-white stone benches and tables.
A few leaves fell messily, lonely and desolate.
Lin Ye pulled the girl inside.
The next moment,
The scene changed.
Figures appeared one after another in the empty pavilion.
Among them, most figures were bent over. Wrinkles on their faces were obvious, but they also outlined hideous scars. Their deep eyes were permeated with a pale whiteness.
At this time,
The attention of all figures was projected onto Lin Ye and Mai Sakurajima.
Pale, cold gazes converged.
Where had Mai Sakurajima ever endured this kind of formation?
As a big star, she was used to the gazes of the audience and accustomed to the attention under the spotlight.
But now.
The ones before her eyes were not humans, but Strange entities one after another. Even as a big star, she couldn't handle it.
Her body trembled slightly, and her legs couldn't help but want to move backward. She instinctively wanted to flee.
Not screaming out loud immediately was already her limit.
Lin Ye reached out his hand.
Hands touched, heat transmitted, warming the heart.
The coldness of her body was dispelled by seventy or eighty percent in an instant. Mai Sakurajima blinked and looked at this man in front of her. That tall and straight figure seemed to block all the Strange and danger outside in front of her.
Behind him, she was safe.
Mai Sakurajima's trembling heart gradually calmed down.
It's okay, she would be okay.
The silent park had a few more sounds; there was even the chirping of birds. That was an elderly-looking Strange entity walking a bird.
"Human,"
"Human."
The parrot flapped its wings, repeating constantly.
"Good evening, grandpas."
While protecting Mai Sakurajima behind him, Lin Ye revealed a smile and greeted the Strange entities in the pavilion.
"My friend and I won't disturb you first."
He glanced at the road they came from, but the deep return path with no end made him choose to give up directly.
Walking the return path was a dead end.
Only by advancing, and advancing again, was it possible to find the owner of that 'ethereal voice'.
Lin Ye held Mai Sakurajima's hand and walked toward the group of Strange entities. The road behind the Strange entities was the way out he wanted to take.
The gazes of the whole venue focused on the two.
Every step Mai Sakurajima took consumed the not-much courage in her heart.
If not for Lin Ye holding her as she walked, she very likely wouldn't have been able to take even a single step.
A few seconds of time felt as long as a century.
Lin Ye and Mai Sakurajima arrived at the departure intersection.
Just when Mai Sakurajima breathed a sigh of relief, an exceptionally old voice came from behind.
"Young man,"
"Rare to come once,"
"Play chess with me!"
...
Could he not play?
Playing this chess definitely wouldn't have a good ending.
Lin Ye had noticed the chessboards appearing beside several elderly Strange entities not long after seeing the Strange entities appear in the pavilion.
The moment he saw them, he guessed that clearing this place was related to board games.
But if he could avoid it, Lin Ye didn't want to face it either.
And now,
He reckoned he knew he truly had no way to avoid it and could only accept it head-on.
Lin Ye turned around. He had just attempted to continue stepping away, but that icy premonition in his heart let him know that if he continued forward and left directly, he wouldn't have a good ending.
He hadn't not considered using Time Stop to run immediately, but where could he run in twenty seconds?
Perhaps a small independent space had also formed here. Before he successfully found the correct method for the Strange to leave, there was simply no way to leave.
"I play chess... very well. Average people aren't my match."
Lin Ye's single sentence made all the Strange entities stunned.
First time seeing someone so arrogant.
And that elderly person who spoke smiled.
"Young man, big talk."
"Come, endgame,"
"We play."
The long-bearded old Strange entity pointed to the endgame on the stone table.
Lin Ye took a look.
Go. In this situation, the white pieces obviously occupied the advantage, and the black pieces were at a disadvantage.
If he didn't find the solution, Black was bound to lose.
He had come into contact with Go, but couldn't even be counted as amateur level. wanting to win this game, unless he was possessed by a Go Saint, suddenly had no possibility.
How to solve it?
Normal methods definitely wouldn't work.
"Come."
Lin Ye sat opposite. He looked at Mai Sakurajima. "Senpai, stand behind me. Watch my performance."
The appearance full of momentum gave Mai Sakurajima a great boost in confidence.
She guessed Lin Ye must be a Go enthusiast, with quite good strength too. Otherwise, how would he dare to continue playing this endgame against this Strange entity who looked like a professional at a glance!
"You first."
Lin Ye observed the overall situation and placed a black piece.
Clack...
The placement was crisp.
The next moment,
The long-bearded Strange entity held a white piece and placed it.
Both sides placed pieces in turn.
Lin Ye didn't feel too big of a problem, but he absolutely didn't believe this would just go on simply.
Until four of his black pieces were eaten.
Lin Ye immediately felt severe pain in his abdomen.
His left hand subconsciously covered his abdomen. He clenched his teeth, and sweat overflowed from his forehead.
So it was like this. If chess pieces were eaten, his body would suffer feedback.
This was the rule of this chess game.
Lin Ye, knowing this influence, was relieved instead.
He didn't fear difficult rules; he feared unknown rules.
"Student Lin."
Mai Sakurajima, standing behind Lin Ye, immediately detected Lin Ye's strange reaction. She looked over and noticed Lin Ye's slightly pale cheeks and the painful appearance of his left hand covering his abdomen.
"Where is your body uncomfortable? Is there anything I..."
Lin Ye shook his head. "Senpai just watch from the side. I'm fine."
You're sweating cold sweat on your forehead, and you're still fine?
Mai Sakurajima's face was full of concern, but seeing Lin Ye's determined appearance, she could finally only endure, suppressing the worry in her heart.
At this time, besides worrying, she couldn't do anything either.
The girl with long black hair pursed her lips and watched. At the same time, she also noticed the change in expressions of the surrounding spectating Strange entities. Joy? Rejoicing? Happy?
What was in their eyes was only hostility.
If Lin Ye lost, she knew her own ending wouldn't be any better.
Student Lin,
Do your best!
For the future of the two of us.
She couldn't help but think.
Clack...
Clack...
Black pieces and white pieces fell in turn.
A few more black pieces were eaten.
Every time, Lin Ye's body trembled slightly; pain stimulated his sensitive nerves.
Mai Sakurajima finally discovered this point too, but besides worry, she didn't have any other method.
She could see that Lin Ye was currently going all out to encircle and hunt the Strange entity's Great Dragon.
But,
No, he couldn't hunt it. He simply couldn't block it to death and hunt it successfully.
The result of this game, she feared, could only usher in a losing ending.
Mai Sakurajima's mood was heavy.
No one wanted to die. She wanted to live, wanted to return to normal life. But the defeat was set; what could she do!
Since she believed in Lin Ye, she had to face this losing game together with Lin Ye.
"Young man, you are going to lose."
"No, it is I who am going to win."
Having messed around for so long without using Time Stop to cheat from the beginning, Lin Ye did it just to avoid the repair of this Strange space.
Opportunity only came once.
Now, he could use it.
"Oh!"
"Then let me see how you are going to win?"
Lin Ye smiled.
Time Stop activated.
He placed a piece, then used the Strange entity's hand to hold a white piece and place it, filling in the liberties and eyes of the largest white living group.
Orderly and sequentially,
Making the situation of the white pieces change in an instant.
The twenty seconds of time ended.
In front of the Strange entity and Mai Sakurajima, Lin Ye slowly placed a black piece.
Clack...
A black piece fell quietly.
All the Strange entities didn't react much, until a large patch of white pieces disappeared in an instant.
"Ah ah ah ah!"
The long-bearded old Strange entity howled out. The miserable scream scared the rest of the Strange entities into being tongue-tied, completely not knowing what had happened.
"You..."
"Impossible..."
"How could... dead,"
How could that patch of white pieces be dead.
However,
The rules of Go wouldn't fake it. Only when white pieces were killed would they disappear. Otherwise, it was impossible.
"You..."
The long-bearded old Strange entity stared wide-eyed, eyes full of unwillingness.
It was over.
The result of the chess game was already set.
No matter how exquisite its chess skills were, it couldn't win this game.
"Sigh!"
The long-bearded old Strange entity sighed lightly. "Old, old,"
It shook its head. "You leave!"
It waved its hand, signaling Lin Ye could leave.
Joy emerged in Mai Sakurajima's heart in an instant. Her eyes could hardly conceal the happy expression. The situation took a turn; Lin Ye actually won!
She didn't know how Lin Ye did it.
But for Mai Sakurajima, as long as Lin Ye could win, it was enough.
"Student Lin, let's go!"
She smiled and said to Lin Ye.
But Lin Ye sat in place motionless. "This chess game hasn't ended yet. I can't leave yet."
The long-bearded old Strange entity stared.
It was about to sweat.
This human, treacherous!
"Don't you say so? Grandpa. We have to finish playing this game, don't we?"
"Young man, no need. The result of this game is already out,"
"Please continue. Otherwise, I think the rules of this Go game will take some punishment measures against you!"
Sweat streamed down its back.
If lost, it would really have to die.
The long-bearded Strange entity didn't want to die yet.
"Speak! What do you want?"
It compromised; it compromised.
Not compromising wouldn't work.
"Tell me, the identity of that ethereal voice's owner?"
It shook its head immediately, and the rest of the Strange entities also avoided it one after another.
"Tell me where it is."
Subsequently, the long-bearded old Strange entity looked to one side, which was the direction of the exit. Then, it looked to the left.
Walk into the exit, follow the road to the fork, and choose to turn left?
Lin Ye understood.
But was this information true?
Lin Ye harbored suspicion, so he had to keep a card up his sleeve.
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