Chapter 97 The Singer, Oh, the Singer 30

The more Lin Xiangjun thought about it, the more she felt it was true.

Otherwise, it made no sense that everyone else was fine, yet things took a turn only when it came to her.

The question then was, which rule had she broken?

Even if Hu Zhengzheng arrived in a moment and gave her time to correct her mistake, if she didn't know where she had gone wrong or what the correct answer was, she still wouldn't be able to avoid a fatal ending.

The singing drew closer and closer, as if it had already reached the floor below her home.

Calm down, calm down, Lin Xiangjun told herself.

There is no such thing as an inescapable death.

She needed to see what she was doing differently from others.

What was she doing right now?

Lying on the bed, motionless, doing nothing.

Could it be... that one cannot lie down?

Just now, Zhang Minxian said that Hu Zhengzheng was wearing a red dress.

According to Lin Xiangjun's judgment, Hu Zhengzheng's blue dress state represented her when she was still human, while the red dress indicated her after death; in other words, she was now a member of the undead.

What was the proper etiquette when in the presence of the dead?

To stand.

Thinking of this, Lin Xiangjun immediately scrambled off the bed. To prepare for special situations like this, she had only taken off her coat when sleeping, and was still wearing black sweatpants and a black short-sleeved shirt.

After quickly smoothing things out to ensure her attire was neat, she lowered her head and stood upright and properly to one side.

"You should also stand properly, just like you're paying your respects beside the deceased... No need for a military posture, never mind, just stand like that. Where is the Songstress now?"

"She's already at the bottom of our building. She just reached out her hand as if to push the door, but now she's standing still."

Zhang Minxian's voice sounded very relieved.

"She's turning her head now and walking towards the opposite side."

Lin Xiangjun also breathed a sigh of relief.

Only Patrick Star remained standing blankly beside the bed; without an order from Lin Xiangjun, it wouldn't move, just standing there like a wooden board.

That was good—very obedient, didn't cause trouble, and was much smarter than before.

So now, she could deduce one more rule—at night, or rather, when the Songstress is singing in her red dress, one should stand to the side solemnly as if paying respects to the deceased; one cannot lie down or sit.

She mentally organized this rule.

Sure enough, the system notification sounded in her ears.

"Congratulations to player 【Perfect Chrysanthemum Thirty-Six Folds】 for deducing a rule. You will receive the full content of Rule 8.

"【8. The time when the Songstress sings is uncertain, but dancing happily while she sings is a sign of respect to her.】

"The error in Rule 8 has been corrected. You will receive the correct Rule 8.

"【8. The time when the Songstress sings is certain. Standing silently and solemnly while she sings is a sign of respect to her.】"

Rule 8 was in hand.

Lin Xiangjun barely managed to suppress the corners of her mouth from curling upward.

Now she was only missing rules 3, 5, 10, and 11; she was only four away from obtaining all the rules.

If she went to the new house tomorrow, she could get at least one more.

That would mean she'd only be missing three rules.

She also had a guess as to where the remaining rules were.

For example, in Hu Zhengzheng's home—as the BOSS of this instance, it would be reasonable for there to be a rule or two in her house, right?

As for the rest, she would have to rely on Zhang Minxian to keep digging.

Keep it up, her good employee.

Lin Xiangjun hung her head, listening to the singing fade into the distance, calculating how the next part of the mission should proceed.

Suddenly, a sharp, fearful shriek broke the silence.

That sound... it came from the direction of Building 39.

The original residents had lived here for so long that they shouldn't be in any trouble; it was most likely that a player had met with a mishap.

The scream rang out once, then paused for five or six seconds before suddenly erupting again, only this time it had become a painful wail, as if someone were being subjected to some inhuman treatment.

The singing hadn't stopped, but—whether it was her imagination or not—she felt that after the screaming started, the singing had become increasingly... resentful.

It was definitely resentment.

Lin Xiangjun frowned, trying hard to isolate the singing from the screaming. She listened intently for a long while and confirmed that the emotion was indeed resentment.

"Zhang Minxian, when you listen to the Songstress's singing, can you detect any particular emotion?"

Zhang Minxian had been standing by the window with her head bowed, reminiscing about her girlhood. She was always sleepy when she was in school; every time the class bell rang, it was like a lullaby, and she could never stay awake once class started, always getting called out by the teacher to stand in the corner as punishment.

Standing like this so abruptly brought on a strange sense of nostalgia.

Startled by Lin Xiangjun's sudden call, she snapped back to reality and also listened carefully.

"Ah! Ah, spare me, spare me, I beg you, ah, ah—let me die, just let me die!!"

The two buildings weren't that far apart to begin with, and since the night was quiet, even the slightest noise was very obvious, let alone such loud screams that sounded like someone was being subjected to inhuman torture.

Even without trying to listen, it was painfully obvious.

Hu Zhengzheng's slow, melodic singing seemed less distinct amidst the screams; one had to listen carefully to make it out.

"...The sky is dim, the earth is heavy, whose girl weeps deep in the night—"

She dragged out this line, every word sounding as if it were held in her mouth, unable to be bitten off or spat out, sticky and stringy like maltose.

Zhang Minxian frowned after listening for a few moments and asked uncertainly: "It sounds a bit... like she's gnashing her teeth? It's like those players owe her eight million."

Yes, that was exactly the feeling.

But why?

Reality doesn't follow logic, and there may be love and hate without reason, but this is an instance; how could there be unprovoked love or hate?

Could it be that Hu Zhengzheng originally wanted to get something from the players, and now that her plan had fallen through, she was resentful? But that didn't make sense either; after all, the players had only been inside for a day. What could she possibly resent? Or rather, what could the players possibly owe her?

Lin Xiangjun racked her brain.

Zhang Minxian, on the other hand, didn't have so many worries. Her job was to observe Hu Zhengzheng's movements, and seeing that the other party hadn't come over, she quietly let out a sigh of relief.

She still had to remain half-vigilant.

Otherwise, if she ended up like the players over there, screaming so miserably, she wouldn't know if she was being flayed alive, tortured, or suffering death by a thousand cuts, hanging, or dismemberment.

In any case, she had already made up her mind: as soon as the other party had any intention of torturing her, she would immediately destroy her body and go out for a stroll.

"Miss Lin."

Lin Xiangjun snapped back to reality and let out a confused "Hmm?"

"Why do you think she comes out to sing in the middle of the night?" Zhang Minxian looked down out the window, as if making idle conversation.

It was probably an occupational habit of a manicurist—liking to chat with Guests when there was nothing to do.

"I think it's because she died in the middle of the night, so she comes out at night to find the murderer, just like in those ghost stories where vengeful spirits like to show up at night to seek revenge."

Lin Xiangjun listened absentmindedly.

Even if Lin Xiangjun didn't respond, Zhang Minxian could keep talking enthusiastically on her own.