Tokyo: The Player Behind the Scenes

"Since you're so sure this is a ritual, considering the illogical bone age of Muto's remains and the iron seat, the only explanation you can think of is body swapping."

"He chose a secret room at the school instead of his home for the ceremony, which most likely means that his adopted son was the backup, and Nobita was the main choice."

"Given the location of the two skeletons, one of the smaller ones was very close to the iron seat. It's unreasonable to assume that he was alive until he suffocated or dehydrated to death. Human instinct is to stay away from corpses, even if it's due to hunger. After that, people would choose to stay away."

"So he was probably killed as well. On the contrary, although the other skeleton is missing, the traces left behind indicate that he was curled up in the corner furthest from the two of them, which is consistent with the instinct of fearing corpses. So he was alive after the two of them died."

"Based on this information, I was able to arrive at the reasoning I just made."

"Isn't this science?"

Kurosaki, biting the pen cap, spread his hands: "Okay, okay, it's quite scientific. But some things, while logical, aren't very scientific. For example, you didn't mention why the old wooden school building caught fire, which means there aren't enough clues, and the logical chain doesn't make sense."

Ping Shenglong admitted that his reasoning did indeed have a fatal flaw.

There's no way to explain why Muto became the "Calm Teacher" or why the old school building caught fire.

"First of all, you need to understand one thing: possession-type spells, regardless of the system, are all evil arts! People who practice this kind of spell are absolutely selfish; they would not care about sacrificing an entire city just to survive."

“I studied here, and I’ve always had a question: why are there so many eyewitnesses to ghost stories at our school? Is it simply because there was a fire? The school buildings that burned down were even demolished and rebuilt, so why are there still so many cases?”

"In addition, some seniors who attended school in those wooden school buildings during the Showa era, whom I contacted, said that they were particularly tired when they went to school back then for some reason, and it was easy to lose energy. This was not an isolated phenomenon, but a common one. It wasn't until they went to university or started working that they realized that the kind of tiredness was somewhat abnormal."

"What comes to mind when you combine these ideas?"

Ping Shenglong stroked his chin and slowly uttered two words: "Barrier".

"No, it's an array!" Kurosaki pointed outside. "The school is a place with abundant yang energy during the day, and yang energy has the effect of prolonging life in many cultivation systems. Why would Muto become a teacher? I'm afraid that in addition to finding a suitable body to possess, he also intends to plunder the yang energy of the students here as much as possible to extend his own lifespan."

“I don’t know how the fire started, but it must be related to Muto’s ritual. Perhaps it was the backlash from the failed ritual? And then, in this backlash, Muto and his adopted son became earthbound spirits, replacing the library that was originally the core of the array.”

Ping Shenglong stared at the search results for information about formations on his phone: "The old school buildings were all burned down, so why can the formation still continue?"

Kurosaki chuckled and wagged his index finger: "Have you noticed the trees near the old school building?"

Ping Shenglong recalled carefully: "It was mainly cherry blossoms, mixed with some other trees."

“Locust trees.” Kurosaki nodded. “I just discovered that there are some locust trees scattered around the school. For an array, these trees and the array’s core are key. Since the trees are fine, and Mutou has become the new array core, why can’t the array continue?”

"Of course, such a formation is bound to be incomplete, and it is quite difficult to operate."

"But that's enough. Some students who are already lacking in yang energy will be sucked in and frightened. Whether it's real or a hallucination, they will easily see all sorts of strange things. That's why there are so many campus legends."

"Originally, this was a formation that plundered yang energy, but coincidentally, because of the large quantity of plundered yang energy, it was able to suppress Muteng, this earthbound spirit."

"But later this place was abandoned, and the yang energy could not be collected. Since the locust tree is yin, it gradually turned into a place that gathers yin energy. Don't you feel that it is abnormally cold here?"

"Nourishment of Yin energy for Mutou, this earthbound spirit, he remembers that he is a teacher, he also remembers that great fire, and a few days ago, he heard the students’ legend about the charred teacher. At the same time, he also drank the blood of a young man. Thus, he slowly awakened as the charred teacher."

"That concludes my—Strange Path's—reasoning!"

Chapter 40: Who is guilty?

"Never underestimate anyone in this world!"

Dongshan Shen sighed deeply.

He originally thought he knew enough and wasn't very interested in finding out how Muto became Charcoal Teacher, why he only woke up at this time, or whether it was related to his game.

Now, following this guy who calls himself "Strange Path" through a series of metaphysical deductions, the fog suddenly cleared and the truth was revealed, completely filling in the gaps in his knowledge.

Higashiyama Shin felt that one day he would see him on the player list.

“I saw it all.”

Higashiyama's chopsticks caught Chiba Shion's chopsticks and stopped in front of his own bento box. On the chopsticks was a piece of sweet pepper.

Today's main dish is diced chicken with bell peppers.

Chiba casually put away his chopsticks, put the bell pepper slice in his mouth, chewed and swallowed with difficulty, and asked with a sigh.

"Were you thinking about something while you were so engrossed?"

"I'm thinking about whether I should go to the video game club later. I haven't been since school started, and I'm afraid someone will block my door if I don't go soon."

What Dongshan said is true.

He was an elite member of the video game club. The club still has a legend about how he defeated a group of arrogant students from another school who came to challenge him in a Street Fighter match when he was in the first year of junior high school.

This is exactly what gamers want.

This has led to the fact that video game clubs hold Street Fighter tournaments every month, but Higashiyama only won a few consecutive tournaments before stopping, leaving behind only an increasingly legendary tale.

After he graduates, he'll probably evolve into someone who performs a ballet-like dance with his feet, successfully defeating ten players with Vega!

"I read books at the literary society after school."

"Okay, I'll call you when I leave."

"Ah."

Higashiyama Shin glanced at Nobi. Nobi had only eaten a rice ball from a convenience store for lunch. He was slumped in his seat, deep in thought, with a cell phone next to him, as if he was chatting with someone.

As for those two delinquents, they looked miserable and clearly hadn't slept well; they probably dreamt about Koizumi.

They definitely don't have time to cause trouble for Nobi, because after exposing a classmate who had a grudge against Koizumi yesterday, the other party's family received a call from the police for no reason and was definitely scolded. They held a grudge against these two and planned to find an opportunity to teach them a lesson after the storm had passed.

Believe it or not, after the criminal police stationed there for the past two days, the already few delinquents, who had suffered both death and injury, became as docile as quails, and the 80 incidents in the corner almost disappeared.

The principal even personally led the patrol team to prevent any unnecessary trouble.

[Joker: So, do you have any clues?]

[Hero: I'm not good at puzzle games, but since it's a game, there must be a solution. The key is whether you can connect on the same wavelength.]

[joker: Because I only have one beta test qualification, and the number of deaths per day is limited, I can't use deaths to test for mistakes; otherwise, it wouldn't be so troublesome.]

[The Brave One: Interesting, so it's a scarcity marketing strategy? Hold on, I'll take another look tonight; maybe I'll get some inspiration.]

[joker: Okay!]

Nobi wasn't too disappointed, after all, he knew that Fujimoto liked action games, and as for the puzzle part, he would skip it if he could.

There's a classic quote: "The purpose of the plot is to be skipped."

They belong to the typical audience of those who enjoy "battle! Fun!"

He typed a few words, wanting to talk about the game console, but didn't have the courage to send them.

While he hesitated, someone sent him a message, which he clicked on.

[Kryptonite: You all need to come today! The club is recruiting tomorrow, so everyone gather here today to be assigned tasks.]

Nobita was about to refuse, but then he suddenly remembered that there seemed to be a member in the club who was particularly fond of puzzle games. He should be a second-year student now. The two had chatted briefly, and Nobita had never heard of any of the games that the member liked. He only knew that they were puzzle games, such as Rusty Lake, The Room, and Babel Anthem.

If everyone were to gather today, he would probably be there too.

[joker: Okay, I'll be there after school.]

[Kryptonite: OK!]

Nobi put down his phone and continued to ponder and recall the details of last night's game, searching for a way to break the deadlock.

I'll also start a new page and gamify yesterday's experiences and events so I can ask people about them during club activities.

Lunch break is over.

The two people in the secret room also climbed out.

"The murderer is quite obvious; it's definitely Teacher Jiao Tan. How about that? With my cooperation, your case was solved in just two days. Now, everyone can go home."

Kurosaki took off his suit, clapped his hands, and looked like he was about to run away.

"You want to investigate Muto's adopted son's identity and the mysterious presence that appeared that night on your own?" Taira no Ryu directly exposed his plan, his tone completely devoid of any doubt.

Kurosaki paused for a moment, then quickly recovered: "Now that we have a clue to a real ghost story, if I let it go, wouldn't I be betraying my reputation as a ghost sage?"

Ping Shenglong pulled out a small stool, sat down, and placed another one next to him. Then he took out a cigarette, lit it, and took a deep drag.

"Tell me, if I were to report directly that this heinous case, which resulted in three deaths and four injuries, was caused by a ghost story called 'Teacher Charcoal,' would the minister smash the ashtray on the table right over my head?"

Kurosaki took a cigarette but didn't light it. He tossed it into his mouth, bit the filter, and sat down on the stool. "This has nothing to do with me now. My task was to help you find out the true identity of Mr. Charcoal and figure out his motives for killing. Now everything is clear. It's just that those students were incredibly unlucky. They were easy to deal with, but they had to do it themselves. Even a god couldn't save them."

"If we go a step further, we can cut down those locust trees, but I doubt it will be of any use. Wu Teng must have played a role similar to the core of the formation. Now that he's gone, the formation will be completely broken."

Ping Shenglong slowly exhaled smoke: "The purpose of my seeking you out was to find out from different perspectives who used and disguised themselves as the 'Charcoal Teacher' ghost story to commit murder. But the result we have now is not the result I wanted, nor is it the result my superiors or the public wanted."

"The news here will be impossible to suppress tonight, and the pressure from superiors and the public will only increase. No one but you and me will be satisfied with the 'real culprit'."

Kurosaki felt a little uncomfortable after hearing this: "That means someone has to take the blame."

"What if Muto's awakening was deliberately orchestrated?" Tatsumi Hiramori stared at the plastic curtain, looking at the hazy outside world, his thoughts wandering.

“It’s not impossible, but I suggest you don’t mess with people who can do that. They’re not people you can afford to mess with.” Kurosaki shook his head.

Ping Shenglong remained silent, simply finishing the cigarette, stubbed it out, and put the butt back in his pocket.

"If you want to investigate Muto's adopted son's identity and that mysterious person, it will be much easier with the help of the police system."

Kurosaki raised an eyebrow: "You want to get involved?"

"I think you're quite interesting. I have an unused spot as an unofficial consultant. It comes with police benefits and access to certain information. Would you like to join?"

Are working hours mandatory?

"I need to be present when I need a consultation."

"make a deal."

Thank you Ye Tiantenghua for the donation.

Chapter 41: Clarifying the Thoughts (4K)

"In March 1954, due to the impact of America's Operation Castle experiment at Bikini Atoll, the Japanese fishing vessel [Dai-go Fukuryu Maru] was contaminated with radioactive fallout, and the catch, mainly tuna, was found to have excessive radiation levels."

"On March 15, this batch of fish was delivered to Tsukiji Market, causing chaos in the market as no one was willing to auction off a large amount of seafood with excessive radiation levels."

"Following official orders, all contaminated seafood was buried at the site, and a monument to the Atomic Bomb Tuna was erected at the burial site to warn the world of the threat that radiation posed to marine ecology and food safety."

"In 2006, the stone monument was moved to the Yumenoshima Fifth Fukuryu Maru Exhibition Hall due to market renovations. The commemorative plaque is still hanging on the exterior wall of the market now."

"No, that's all. That's all the information recorded on the Atomic Bomb Tuna Monument, Mr. Iwasaki."

nursing home.

It was raining today, so Iwasaki wasn't taken outside to sunbathe; instead, he stayed in his room.

The caregiver, Goto, squatted down next to him with her phone in hand and read the search results to Kosuke Iwasaki.

Iwasaki, sitting in his wheelchair, listened quietly before letting out a soft chuckle of unknown meaning.

"Ha, don't you find the statement 'to warn the world of the threat that radiation poses to marine ecology and food safety' ironic?"

"Huh? I...I don't know, Mr. Iwasaki, what do you mean?" Goto asked weakly, looking puzzled.

"Oh, it's nothing." Iwasaki gazed at the rain outside the window and murmured softly, "Later generations lament but fail to learn from their mistakes."

Goto pursed his lips, lowered his head, and pretended not to hear.

Iwasaki finally understood why the place was cold and damp, and also understood why the strange fish had such evil intentions.

So, what I need to do is eliminate the other person's bad intentions?

Let's be more decisive and just eliminate the opponent.

"Goto, could you please help me look up the details of the 95 sarin gas attack?"

"Ah good!"

"Uh, let me see. This incident happened on March 20th and involved multiple lines."

Inside the messy room of the beautiful girl.

Underwear, coats, comics, and magazines are scattered everywhere.

“Tsukiji Station and Kamiyacho Station are both stations where the riots broke out. Since it can stop at Tsukiji Station, it is not impossible that it will go to Kamiyacho Station next, after all, both of them are the stations on the Hibiya Line that were most severely affected by the sarin gas attack.”

Uesugi Hitsuki sat cross-legged on the chair, constantly typing on the keyboard, producing the crisp sound of blue switches, while lines of data provided by the AI ​​were reflected in her glasses.

As his gaze swept over the concise text, Uesugi connected it with the game's content and began to let his thoughts wander.

In this day and age, if she doesn't know how to use tools, she can't even become a live streamer in a suit.

She also tried including known conditions to let AI help her pass the level.