Lucky billion players, you've never seen one before / I can accumulate my own luck

“We go to the cemetery to pay our respects,” the girl answered for her father. “These days, most people go to the cemetery to do it. Setting up a display at home… uh, might scare you tourists. The mayor said tourism is one of our pillar industries, so we have to do it well. By the way…”

Changing the subject, she asked with a slightly puzzled look, "Who told you that every household has to perform ancestral rites at home?"

“There’s a house to the east of yours, about a hundred meters away,” Li Xian replied. “They have an altar in their house.”

"One hundred meters..."

The girl's expression suddenly changed, as if she had thought of something, and fear appeared on her face.

However, she quickly composed herself and said, "In our town... there are quite a few people with strange tempers. You... in short, don't easily trust others."

"It seems you know which family it is," Li Xian asked. "Is there something wrong with that family?"

"No, no..." the girl's voice became very soft: "It's just that I'm not very easy to get along with."

Seeing this, Li Xian and the others exchanged glances, their expressions turning serious.

Such a strong reaction just means she's not easy to get along with...?

Things are probably not that simple.

"Is that family in any danger?" Li Xian pressed.

"Why do you have so many questions?" the girl's father stepped forward and said, "A girl is just difficult to get along with. There's no such thing as danger."

"..."

Li Xian sensed that the other person was intentionally hiding something, so he gave up asking and changed the subject, saying, "You just said it's not safe at night, what did you mean? Is there any danger in town at night?"

"There's no danger, this girl is talking nonsense!" the middle-aged man said. "Why are you asking so many questions? If you want to stay, stay; if not, get out!"

"Just curious, Uncle, don't be angry." Fan Xiao interjected with a smile, "If there's anything you're not comfortable saying, you can give us a hint, um, just a hint, please do us a favor."

“Dad,” the girl said, “letting them know a little bit shouldn’t have much of an impact. Let’s help them out.”

"..."

The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment, then finally sighed and said, "There are some things I can't say too bluntly. I can only give you a heads-up. Don't ask why! In short, no matter which house you go to for the night, if you encounter a house with an altar for offering sacrifices... remember, leave immediately!"

"Why?" Mercury asked.

"Hmph... You came here as tourists, presumably attracted by the customs and legends of our town. Besides that, you must have heard quite a few rumors, such as..."

After a pause, the middle-aged man said, "For example, many people in our town have seen people who have died long ago and even talked to them... I can only say that some things are not fabricated or spread out of thin air, understand?"

"You mean... there really are ghosts in the world?" Mercury continued, "and... if you set up an altar at home, wouldn't it easily attract such things?"

"You said it!" The middle-aged man's eyes widened, and he hurriedly distanced himself, saying, "I didn't say that! I didn't say that!"

His anxious and serious expression suggested he was afraid of something.

A chill ran through everyone.

"Alright, alright, why are you asking so many questions!" The middle-aged man quickly calmed down and continued, "Are you going to ask us to stay or not? If not, don't waste our time!"

"Let's chat, Uncle, don't be so resistant." Fan Xiao said with a smile, "Speaking of which, this little Chi girl just mentioned that you usually go directly to the cemetery for your memorial services. Could you take us to the cemetery to have a look?"

Upon hearing this request, both father and daughter were taken aback and were somewhat unable to process it.

Go visit the cemetery... Is that a request a normal person would make?

"What are you doing at the cemetery?" the middle-aged man asked.

“Didn’t you say there are ghosts in the town? I’ll burn incense and pray for peace.” Fan Xiao said solemnly, “Anyway, it’s free. I’ll go and pray at every grave in the cemetery.”

He wasn't lying; he really did want to go and offer his prayers.

If praying can bring peace and safety, then naturally the more the better.

"Don't talk nonsense, kid! I never said there was... there was such a thing in town!" the middle-aged man said anxiously. "Don't frame me like that!"

Fan Xiao smiled and said, "Yes, I said it, not you."

Sometimes, to cover up one lie, a person will tell many lies in a row.

If the middle-aged man's extreme fear of ghosts was an act, then he would have vehemently refuted any accusations of "mentioning ghosts" against him to cover up his lie.

But people are not machines, and they are not perfect when it comes to covering up lies; often they can't react in time.

So, he wanted to use that sentence to trick the middle-aged man.

Unfortunately, they didn't manage to extract anything from him.

Either the middle-aged man wasn't lying, or... his acting was superb, and his lies were carefully designed and rehearsed.

Of course, his probing was not over yet.

Offering sacrifices at home, offering sacrifices at the cemetery—the older woman and the middle-aged man's statements contradict each other, so one of them must be lying.

If the latter is lying, go to the cemetery and check; you might find something there.

Moreover, normal people generally do not request to go to the cemetery. Considering this, the cemetery may not have been properly arranged, for example, there are no offerings, no weeds, no incense ash or other traces of the rituals that should be there.

If the middle-aged man wasn't lying...

Paying respects to the dead won't cost you anything, and it might even bring you safety.

Moreover, cemeteries... such places sound like they hold clues, so going there wouldn't be a loss.

I just don't know if there's enough time.

Chapter 345 A Utopia Where Immortality is Possible

"We usually only go to the cemetery to pay our respects on the day of the memorial service."

The girl, Xiaochi, looked at Fan Xiao and said, "Are you sure you want to go now?"

"How often is the Spirit Worship Day held?" Fan Xiao asked.

Koike replied, "Once a year."

"So, you only hold the ceremony once a year...?"

Fan Xiao seemed to be deep in thought.

If that's the case, there probably won't be any traces at the cemetery.

Is the other party trying to cover up a lie?

Or is it stating facts?

“Not quite,” Koike replied. “We have many sacrificial activities in our town. The Spirit Festival is a major festival, held only once a year. At other times, there are many smaller festivals.”

She paused, then said, "It's fine if you want to go and take a look, but we don't have a unified cemetery here. Each family chooses their own place to bury their deceased. If you want to visit all the graves... I'm afraid there won't be enough time. It'll be dark soon, and after dark..."

She didn't say the rest, but Fan Xiao and the others understood what she meant.

It's dangerous at night, so don't wander around.

As for any dangers... I'm sorry, I dare not say, please don't ask... the logic is closed, so it is.

"Hmph, they want to die. Xiao Chi, don't stop them. Going to the cemetery..."

The middle-aged man sneered, "They really don't know how to spell the word 'death'!"

Upon hearing this, Fan Xiao decided to take it seriously and give it a try.

However, the statement that there is no unified cemetery is probably true. In matters that can be directly verified, lying is easily exposed.

Considering that it would soon be dark and they needed to find lodging first, he gave up asking about the matter and instead said, "Since it's dangerous, then we won't go. By the way, may I go check the kitchen?"

"The kitchen?" Xiaochi was taken aback.

“I’m a little curious about what you usually eat here. The food in each place is a unique feature,” Fan Xiao explained. “And since we’ll be staying in town for six or seven days before the memorial day, it’s very necessary to learn about the food customs in advance.”

After saying that, he put his hands together and smiled, "Please let me have a look around, little sister Chi."

"……All right."

Xiaochi led him toward the kitchen.

Before entering the kitchen, Fan Xiao turned to his seven teammates and said, "Choose one of you to stay with me. There's no altar or portrait here, which makes us feel much more at ease than the last place."

"Ah."

Li Xian nodded and gave his teammates a look.

After pretending to discuss it for a while, Li Xian made the decision to let Mercury stay.

Then, he took the lead in surrounding the middle-aged man who remained in the living room, and took the initiative to chat about various topics to keep the other man occupied.

Meanwhile, having remained silent until Luo Hao understood, the flesh worms were quietly released in a corner unseen by the middle-aged man.

The worms infiltrated every room of the house, silently rummaging through drawers and cabinets, searching for anything.

Fan Xiao's words implied that he understood—to look around the house for items such as portraits of the deceased or sacrificial altars.

The older woman from the previous household clearly stated that every family in Jiling Town would hold a sacrificial ceremony at home.

When you ask to stay at someone's house, you can verify this as soon as you enter the living room; there's no need to lie.

So everyone was a little surprised that they were "slapped in the face" so quickly.

Without solid evidence, it is impossible to directly determine which side is at fault.

The portrait might be a breakthrough.

If Koike and the middle-aged man are lying, then there is a high probability that they are hiding portraits of deceased relatives in their home.

This must be done secretly, without letting Xiaochi and his daughter find out, lest it trigger some crisis prematurely.

As for directly attacking them to interrogate them... although the game prompts don't mention anything about what would happen if you attacked the townspeople, such malicious attacks on the natives of the instance are usually fraught with danger.

If you recklessly step on it, you'll get blown up and have nowhere to cry.

When intelligence is lacking, one must act with caution.

On the other side, Fan Xiao, who followed Xiao Chi into the kitchen, smelled an even richer aroma of food.

To Fan Xiao's surprise, there was another person in the kitchen.

The other party was a middle-aged woman who was busy preparing the meal.

Upon seeing Fan Xiao enter, the middle-aged woman cast a questioning glance at him: "Xiao Chi, is he... a new tourist?"

“Yes, Mom.” Xiao Chi nodded: “There are seven more people outside, they’re all tourists visiting our town…”

She briefly introduced the situation of Fan Xiao and others.

After listening, the middle-aged woman nodded to Fan Xiao and said, "Since you're here, stay. The food is almost ready, so please stay for a meal."

"Then I won't be polite."

Fan Xiao smiled.

If the middle-aged man and his daughter, Xiaochi, were lying, they would clearly be playing the "good cop, bad cop" role. Separating them and gathering information might uncover some clues—that was his original thought, but unexpectedly, another mother suddenly appeared.

"Hmm... your local cuisine is quite similar to ours."

Fan Xiao, quite familiar with the middle-aged woman, approached her, glanced at the food in the pot, and said regretfully, "It seems I won't be able to experience the unique cuisine of this foreign land this time."

"Almost?" the middle-aged woman said. "That's quite a coincidence. I was worried that you outsiders wouldn't be used to our food, but it seems I was overthinking it."

"By the way," Fan Xiao asked, "have you heard the legend of the Sacred Spirit Town?"

"What legend?" the middle-aged woman asked.

"It means that the deceased return on the day of the memorial service to reunite with their loved ones," Fan Xiao said. "Has this ever happened in your family?"

Upon hearing this, both mother and daughter looked tense and fearful.

"of course not!"

The middle-aged woman first retorted loudly, then looked around in slight panic.

After finding nothing amiss in her surroundings, she calmed down and continued, "Young man, some things... well, don't delve too deeply into them. Legends only romanticize things; in reality, things aren't always so rosy. Xiao Chi should have told you about the danger at night, and explained what that danger was, right?"

"More or less," Fan Xiao nodded.

"The deceased and the living are from two different worlds. Unnecessary contact may not necessarily produce pleasant memories."

The middle-aged woman said seriously, "We don't hold ancestral rites at home because we're afraid of bad things happening. And..."

She paused, a clear fear showing in her eyes, and said, "Some things... may not appear until the day of the memorial service. Do you understand what I mean?"

"Yes, I understand." Fan Xiao nodded. "Thank you for letting me know."