Who invited the witch into the eerie game?

Chapter 136 The Bizarre Game: The Free City of Linus

The news report mentioned that several ancient Roman gladiators suddenly appeared inside the Colosseum in Rome, Italy, and clashed with tourists, resulting in multiple injuries and deaths.

Also in Rome, someone witnessed Caesar's assassination at the site of the Senate and was so terrified that he went insane.

"Really?"

Su Xiaoshuang was watching the video while eating melon seeds, and she was very curious about it.

Unfortunately, these videos are a bit blurry, making it difficult to tell whether they are real or fake.

Furthermore, if the eerie games can indeed interfere with time, does that mean they can interfere with Earth's past, causing Earth to begin becoming eerie from the past?

Thinking of this, Su Xiaoshuang immediately turned on her computer and searched, only to find that no strange events had occurred in the past.

She suddenly thought of a special theory about time.

A person travels from timeline A to the past and makes some changes to history. It seems that he changed the future, but in reality, he created a time branch line A1 on the original timeline A.

The original timeline A will continue to develop as before; nothing has truly changed.

Su Xiaoshuang was confused.

In this situation, was the past actually affected by the eerie game?

she does not know.

If I can't figure it out, I'll stop thinking about it.

She opened the leaderboard, but the list hadn't changed much.

However, this does not mean that the chat channels are not lively. Her name is frequently mentioned in both the world channel and the Shanghai channel.

[Shanghai][GRCX]: Another day has passed, happy.

[Shanghai][True初墨]: Princess Celia is level 25. I'm sure this is an SSS-rank clear.

[Shanghai][Bloodline is the only bloodline]: Back in the day, it took me 8 months to go from level 19 to level 25.

[Shanghai][Genesis Cat God]: At 8 months old, he can already be called a prodigy.

[Shanghai][The Road to Truth]: Really or not?

[Shanghai][dvdsjie]: I'm curious about which dungeon Princess Celia went to. I wonder if there's a walkthrough or if I can find it.

[Shanghai][tfgchfchb2]: I guess even if there are guides, they might not be suitable for us.

[Shanghai][Sister Complex Saves the World]: No walkthrough required, just understanding the rules is fine too.

[Shanghai][AhlalalaL]: Actually, this is unnecessary. There are too many dungeons in the eerie game, and we may not encounter them.

[Shanghai][Calamity and the Lament of All Things]: If only the dungeon difficulty were similar to that of the Magic Tower, all the rules would be laid out in front of you, and as long as you follow the rules, you won't die.

[Shanghai][BADJOKER]: Speaking of which, it seems like the difficulty of Magic Tower has increased, and there are more strange bosses inside.

[Shanghai][Takamatsu Akari no Tomoko Komeiji Koi]: With so many people in the world, has no one ever encountered Princess Celia in a bizarre game?

[Shanghai][Chongxiao Zhaoxi]: I met a guy in a weird game a while ago. He said that the director of the Qingshan Hospital in the high-difficulty weird game was named Celia Xavier. I don't know if there is any connection. It's a pity that the guy died soon after.

[Shanghai][Night Raven]: It's just a case of the same name, and besides, the names on the leaderboard are all nicknames, unless you go online with your real name.

[Shanghai][DaCapa]: Speaking of which, will those people targeting Princess Celia continue their actions?

"No way, those people are coming after me again?"

Su Xiaoshuang closed the chat channel and took a deep breath.

Since these people are coming anyway, let's just keep grinding experience and leveling up in the weird game.

I believe my younger sister Su Feng meant the same thing, which is why he arranged for her to play a strange game dungeon where she could level up by simply leaving the game running.

Once her level is higher, these people should no longer covet the level 0 monsters in her possession and come looking for her.

As someone with social anxiety, nothing is more stressful than discovering that many strangers are looking for her.

This is terrifying.

"Let's go here this time."

Su Xiaoshuang took out the [Invitation to the Free City of Linus] and used it to enter the bizarre game.

"Entry into the bizarre game city of Linus has been detected."

"Special permissions detected —"

"To ensure you have a better gaming experience, you can choose to join the game as a special guest or an NPC. These methods will not take up your regular player slots."

Note: The special guest is a player.

"We've detected that you're more of a player. We've prepared a special guest character for you, which you can customize."

"...

""

The next second, Su Xiaoshuang found that her consciousness had entered a special space enveloped in gray mist.

Everything here is arranged very similarly to the space where you create a character in a holographic game; the initial character image is what she looks like now.

The side displays various outfits stored in the game terminal, which can be directly replaced.

In addition, there are outfits available in the free city of Linus.

It's clear that a lot of effort was put into the game.

Su Xiaoshuang was very satisfied with her image in the witch's robe.

When encountering a living person, she can simply pull down the witch's hat without even looking at their face.

With this advantage, she can minimize the impact of social anxiety.

"identity."

Su Xiaoshuang looked at the instructions provided on the side, which included various options such as tourist, celebrity, lawyer, white-collar worker, writer, singer, painter, etc.

With so many professions to choose from, Su Xiaoshuang simply opted to become a tourist.

"By choosing the tourist option, you will become the most distinguished tourist in the city of Lynas."

"You have been issued a Lynas highest-level travel card. You can use this card to enter most areas of Lynas City and also for various purchases in Lynas City."

Have a wonderful holiday in Lynas.

'

In the blink of an eye, the scene before her eyes changed, and Su Xiaoshuang had already appeared at the intersection outside the station in Linus City.

On the left is a glass-walled building with the neon sign of "Lucky Goddess Casino" flashing.

To the right is a dilapidated apartment with peeling paint and wooden planks nailed to the windows. The air conditioner unit hangs crookedly, as if it might fall down and hit someone at any moment.

Bizarre graffiti covered every empty wall. Some were gang flame symbols, some were obscene swear words, some were skulls painted with red spray paint, and some were twisting and deforming on the wall, not knowing what they wanted to become.

This scene greatly shocked Su Xiaoshuang, as if she had entered a cyberpunk wasteland world.

Su Xiaoshuang walked along the street, looking at the scenery on both sides.

A gang member with snake tattoos leaned against the wall, smoking a cigarette between his fingers until it burned out without flicking the ash.

A heavily made-up prostitute stands on a street corner, wearing a miniskirt and a crop top, posing seductively for passersby and uttering provocative words.

A vendor with a robotic arm pushing a food cart loudly calls out his wares, the food sizzling in the oil pan, steam and fumes rising into the air.

Some people were dancing a strange dance around a bonfire on the ground, as if they were performing a ritual of an evil god.

Law enforcement drones fly by from time to time, but they turn a blind eye to the crimes committed below.

"Gundam discovered, Gundam recovered."

Suddenly, a stiff electronic voice came from not far away, instantly attracting Su Xiaoshuang's attention.

She has never seen a real Gundam.

only----

When Su Xiaoshuang actually looked over, she was speechless.

The Gundam that the patrol robot was talking about wasn't the Gundam she understood; it was a corpse on the street.

Linus is not a free city at all, but a city of sin.

Su Xiaoshuang quickly left the area.

A moment later, she found a relatively clean-looking 24-hour coffee shop and went inside, intending to first take a look at the rules of Linus City.

The café is called Full Moon Café. Inside, there is a middle-aged waiter and a customer.

This is a girl with beautiful long gray hair, and she is also wearing a witch's robe.

The only difference is the style, which is different from Su Xiaoshuang's.

"Sir, what would you like to drink?"

"That's what the middle-aged waiter said."

It was only then that Su Xiaoshuang realized that the waiter was a robot; no wonder this coffee shop was open 24 hours a day.

Cappuccino.

Su Xiaoshuang took out her travel card.

Upon noticing the tourist card, the waiter became very respectful: "Please wait a moment, sir."

Transaction successful.

The waiter returned the tourist card with both hands.

Su Xiaoshuang put the card away and began to read the Lynas introduction displayed on the game terminal.

Linus is a city that is always at night, where neon lights never go out.

The city is ruled by seven towers, each representing a different kind of freedom: desire, madness, betrayal, oblivion, pain, deception, and despair.

Upon entering the game, players will be randomly assigned an identity: street performer, homeless person, bartender, nightclub security guard, pawn shop owner, etc. Your identity determines your initial resources and way of survival.

The way to identify Lynas locals is by whether they are wearing elaborate silver masks.

Do not remove their masks, for beneath them are empty eye sockets.

They long for you to take off their masks.

whee.

[Basic Rules]

-

1. In Linus, everything follows the law of absolute freedom.

You have the freedom to do whatever you want, but every choice comes at a price.

When you exercise your freedom, a number will appear on your left wrist, representing the number of freedom points you have remaining.

You start with 100 points. Each free action consumes between 1 and 100 points. When your free points reach zero, you will be taken back by the city, forced to wear a mask, and become one of the local residents, forever losing your self-awareness.

2. Lynas's universal currency is Fear Crystallization.

Fear crystals come in three types:

Light blue (mild fear): Worth 1 point, can be obtained by startling passersby.

Deep Red (Intense Fear): Value 10 points, requires the target to experience a near-death experience.

Dark purple (extreme fear): Value 100 points, requires completely destroying the target's mind.

Fear Crystals can be used to purchase survival supplies, extend stay time, buy escape clues, or exchange for help from others.

3. All the masked residents long for you to remove their masks.

If you are stared at by three or more masked residents for more than 30 seconds, you will be forced to wear the silver mask and become one of them.

4. The free exchange at the bottom of the seven towers is a safe zone, where any form of violence and deception is prohibited.

5. In Lynas, you must have three meals every 24 hours.

Breakfast: Find a special location before sunrise and drink a cup of Memory Coffee, otherwise you will begin to forget your identity. Note: Linus is always at night; there is no daytime.

Lunch: You must eat food that contains the fear of others, such as noodles seasoned with fear crystals or wine brewed with fear.

Dinner: You must offer a strong emotion to the city—happiness, sadness, or anger are all acceptable; otherwise, your emotions will be drained, and you will become a walking corpse.

6. Each tower has a 1-square-meter absolute safety zone at the bottom, but each stay is limited to no more than 10 minutes.

7. Every night from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m., the whole city enters a time of free revelry. All rules are temporarily invalidated. Masked residents will take off their masks to reveal their true forms, and they will try to trick you into wearing a mask.

8. The identity you acquire will become corrupted over time.

Example:

Street performers: They must perform every night, or they will be swallowed up if the audience is dissatisfied.

Homeless person: Must collect 10 discarded items from passersby or be evicted from the city.

Bartender: I must create cocktails that instill fear in my guests —

When your identity is 100% corrupted, your identity will awaken and transform into a bizarre monster form associated with that profession.

9. All the mirrors in the city reflect the scenes that players fear most, but if you stare at a mirror for more than 1 minute, you can see the true identity of the masked residents.

10. The flashing frequency of neon lights at night is the language of the city; deciphering it will unlock a hidden quest.

11. When you truly understand the meaning of freedom, the city will grant you a special ability, but at the same time, it will punish your next mistake twice as severely.

12. Do not trust anyone who offers help; they may be the embodiment of the tower's guardians.

13. During times of free revelry, the best survival strategy is to find a room with a mirror and smile at yourself.

14. In Linus, the most dangerous thing is not the monsters, but your own inner yearning for freedom.

【Punishment Rules】

Minor violations, such as using violence in the safe zone, will result in the deduction of 50 Free Points, and a warning message in blood will appear on the left hand.

For moderate violations, such as refusing to complete three meals, the player's identity corruption level increases by 30%, and a memory is randomly lost.

Serious violations, such as attempting to destroy the tower, will result in the player being marked by the city's will, and all masked residents will prioritize hunting you down, deducting 1 Free Point per second.

[Customs Clearance Method]

1. Collect 1000 Fear Crystals and exchange them for an exit ticket at the Central Plaza. However, the ticket must be used during the Free Carnival period and must be used by a person alone.

2. Find your real name and say it aloud.

After entering the game, the player's name will be hidden in the city, and they need to complete specific tasks to obtain clues.

Help a masked resident regain their memories and earn their gratitude; there's a 1% chance they'll reveal your real name.

3. Before your free points reach zero, surrender to any tower guard to retain your memories and leave, but you will forever lose an emotion.

Warning: "The game has a 97.8% mortality rate, and the average survival time is 3 days. Welcome to the free city of Linus, may your fears be delicious enough."

Warning: "In Linus, the greatest danger is not the power of the eerie demigods, but the freedom of choice they offer. Every seemingly benevolent act of help could be a trap set by another eerie demigod. Remember, true freedom is never free."

The following content introduces the bizarre creatures, strange bosses, and various NPCs of Linus.

Because this is a city, there are too many strange things involved, and the introduction has been expanded to an unknown amount. It would probably take a long time to read it all.

"Hello, my name is Feng Xiaoshi. Are you a player too?"

"The pretty girl drinking coffee next to me asked."

?

Su Xiaoshuang blinked.

According to the rules, once players enter the game, their names will be hidden by the city. Players need to complete specific tasks to obtain clues and try to find them.

Is this beautiful girl named Feng Xiaoshi not bound by this rule?

"Hello, I'm Su Xiaoshuang."

'

"7

Feng Xiaoshi tilted her head and looked at Su Xiaoshuang with the same gaze.

The air in the coffee shop fell silent for a moment.

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