Spirit Realm Wanderer

Chapter 48: S-Rank Difficulty

No one answered Xi Shi’s question; only a young girl named Xie Lingxi hesitated, as if she wanted to speak but held back. There still isn’t enough trust here. Is it that they’re reluctant to reveal their official identities, or is it that, aside from me, none of the adventurers present have an official background? Just as Zhang Yuanqing was pondering whether to offer a hint, He Bo—the man in the black hoodie—spoke in a cold tone “We’ve been in the Spirit Realm for a few minutes now, and it hasn’t given us any hints. This means that to clear the stage, we’ll have to rely entirely on ourselves. If any of you have information, it’s best not to keep it to yourselves—we’re all in this together.” Xie Lingxi raised her hand slightly and whispered “I know a little about the old version of this dungeon—the description in the Spirit Realm has changed.” Is she part of the official organization? Zhang Yuanqing scrutinized the young girl. Upon hearing this, He Bo furrowed his brow “The Spirit Realm description has changed... I think I understand now. The reason for the difficulty change at Jinshui Amusement Park is right there in the Spirit Realm description. Does anyone remember what it said?” “I forgot…” The red-haired Fire Demon scratched his head. Xi Shi glanced at him, quietly put some distance between them, and smiled softly “An indescribable being has arrived here. She’s the one who altered the difficulty level of Jinshui Amusement Park. She instructed the spirits within the park to help her find a certain person—someone with a four-character name. Who could it be?” “Ashamed to Be a Father” couldn’t help but say “I don’t think it matters who that person is—they’re probably just part of the backstory. What’s important are the ‘spirits’ in the amusement park. Could it be that Jinshui Amusement Park’s difficulty was raised to S-rank because the ‘spirits’ received that entity’s blessing and became exceptionally powerful?” The Monkey King—wearing bean-shaped shoes, tight pants, and a little blazer—lit up: “That makes sense. Uncle, you’re really smart.” He Bo nodded slightly, agreeing with the middle-aged man’s assessment, and said “In that case, as long as we avoid the rides with horror elements and choose some simple attractions to experience, we should be able to minimize the risk.” He turned to ask Xie Lingxi, “Do you know the detailed guide for the old version?” Upon hearing this, Zhang Yuanqing intended to beat the girl to the punch by sharing the information from the old version, lest he lose the upper hand. But just then, a “ding” sounded in his mind, reminding him of the Spirit Realm’s notification [Due to your outstanding performance just now, you have triggered a hidden quest. You have been appointed as the squad leader. Note: There is a villain hiding within the squad. Please ensure the number of squad members is greater than or equal to 3; otherwise, you will be penalized, and your current level and experience will be reset to zero. [Note: Please keep your character’s identity hidden. ] A hidden quest, of all things?! The word “Damn” flashed through Zhang Yuanqing’s mind. He kept his composure on the surface, but his heart sank suddenly. The dungeon’s facilities were fraught with danger, and with a werewolf infiltrating the team, the difficulty skyrocketed. “My hidden quest is to ensure the party has at least three members. By extension, the villain’s quest must be to reduce the party size to fewer than three—or even wipe them out entirely.” “If I want to ensure we clear the dungeon, the best option would be to expose and eliminate the villain early on. But I can’t prove my innocence, and there isn’t enough trust among the team members. I might end up shooting myself in the foot—accused of being the werewolf instead.” For a moment, Zhang Yuanqing felt he couldn’t trust a single person—even that sweet-looking girl named Xie Lingxi seemed to have turned into a wolf in human form. Wait a minute! Jinshui Amusement Park is a multiplayer spiritual realm open to all classes—could there be an evil class among the team members? And given the conflict between the factions, an evil class must surely be the villain… A ruthless thought flashed through Zhang Yuanqing’s mind: use the Red Dancing Shoes to force the team members to reveal their true colors—then it would be crystal clear who the evil class was. “No, that’s too reckless. It would leave no room for maneuver. Besides, is it really that simple? What if I’m wrong?” He exhaled silently and abandoned the idea of summoning the Red Dancing Shoes. If there were no evil classes in the party, this move would be tantamount to turning against his teammates outright—and the game would be over right then and there. “So, I have to lead the team to complete the mission while also identifying the traitor? This truly lives up to its reputation as an S-rank multiplayer Spirit Realm—it’s just as difficult as the Mountain God’s Temple, though in a different way.” The dungeon hadn’t even started yet, but Zhang Yuanqing’s heart was already sinking. “I know the old guides, but I don’t remember every single one…” Xie Lingxi said. “Oh my, little sister, you’re amazing. You must be a member of the official organization, right? Do you mind if your big sister tags along with you?” Xi Shi One was overly innocent, the other had ulterior motives... Zhang Yuanqing surveyed the two women without giving anything away. He Bo, wearing a black hoodie, cast a cold glance at Zhang Yuanqing at that moment and said “What are you thinking?” Zhang Yuanqing paused for a moment, then said “Based on my initial assessment, the difficulty has increased for attractions with supernatural elements. The others probably haven’t changed much, so we can use the old guide to pick an attraction with very low difficulty.” A hint of approval flashed across He Bo’s grim expression as he nodded. “That’s exactly what I meant. You truly live up to your reputation as a veteran who’s experienced multiple Spirit Realms.” He then turned to the group: “Does anyone have any objections?” Everyone nodded in unison, as if they had no opinions of their own. He Bo said, “Young lady, which attraction do you think we should try?” Xie Lingxi pursed her lips, her dark, lustrous eyes darting around before she pointed to the steel track that undulated like a dragon and said “That one’s the easiest.” At the sight of the roller coaster, the group’s eyes twitched sharply, and Xi Shi forced a smile: “Why?” “The old way to clear the level is simple: get on the ride, keep your eyes closed the whole time, and once the roller coaster completes three laps around the track, it’s over.” “Well…” Qi Tiandasheng, the street-smart youngster, looked up at the towering steel track with a hint of trepidation. Pointing to the carousel not far away, he asked “What about this one? I think this looks pretty safe, too.” Xie Lingxi shook her head and said earnestly, “The carousel is only for kids. If an adult gets on, they’ll never get off—though there’s no real danger… it’ll just keep spinning forever.” A total wipeout just for getting on? The Monkey King silently took a step back and said nothing more. “Well, if everyone’s okay with it, let’s go with the roller coaster,” He Bo said casually. Suddenly, he snorted “I can’t guarantee how smart everyone is to have been matched into Jinshui Amusement Park, but surely none of you are idiots.” That River God guy—whether intentionally or not—was vying with me for the upper hand. Xie Lingxi seemed innocent at first glance, but could anyone matched into an S-class park really be that simple? Xi Shi had been probing everyone’s identities from start to finish; her flirty demeanor might very well be an act... As for the man who calls himself a father—he appears simple and honest on the surface, but his ability to cut straight to the heart of the matter and identify “supernatural elements” as the key danger shows that his inner self isn’t as unassuming as his exterior suggests. The Monkey King is a bit of a coward, a bit of a womanizer—nothing particularly noteworthy, but he’s not a troublemaker either... Among this group, I think the Fire Demon is the safest bet—if we can confirm he’s a Fire Master. Otherwise, he’s the most dangerous one. Zhang Yuanqing analyzed his companions’ traits, raised his hand, and agreed, “I have no objections—let’s go on the roller coaster.” Without realizing it, he had slightly relinquished some of his initiative, no longer taking the lead in everything, yet still maintaining a certain level of engagement. He’d read the guide and knew Xie Lingxi wasn’t lying—the roller coaster might look thrilling, but it’s actually the simplest ride to navigate. Of course, it was unknown whether the roller coaster still operated the same way—but surely other rides might have changed as well? “I’m fine with that.” “I’m fine with that, too.” “Fine, whatever we do is just for fun anyway.” After making their decision, the group headed toward the roller coaster. Following the signs, they walked through a passageway and entered the building beneath the tracks. It was a small lobby with lockers on the left and a ticket window on the right. As they stepped inside, Lingjing’s notification sounded in their ears [Ding! You have received a roller coaster ride ticket. Please proceed to the upper level within five minutes. ] [Ding! Your excess items have been stored. Please return to the lockers to retrieve them after the ride. ] “Extra items...” Zhang Yuanqing instinctively reached into his pocket for the little blue pill and found it was still there. Just as he was about to breathe a sigh of relief, he heard Huomo cry out in alarm “I can’t open my inventory!” The group was horrified. They immediately tried to summon their inventories, only to find that the function seemed to have vanished. The Great Sage’s voice trembled: “I—I can’t use my skills either. What about you guys?” Zhang Yuanqing’s heart sank suddenly. He instinctively tried to cast “Night Wander,” but the Power of the Dark Moon was firmly sealed within his body. The others each tried in turn and, sure enough, found they had lost their abilities. This phenomenon weighed heavily on the hearts of the Spirit Realm practitioners. Without their skills, how were they any different from ordinary people? Just then, “Ashamed Father” spoke “Active skills are unusable, but our passive abilities remain intact, and our physical prowess hasn’t changed either.” “Since we’re already here, let’s go up.” Zhang Yuanqing led the way up the stairs. With heavy hearts, the group made their way up the steps to the roof of the building. The roof was a platform with two sets of tracks laid out, on which a two-seater roller coaster sat quietly on display. The team members stared at the roller coaster, falling into a moment of silence; no one spoke up. Sigh, this is exactly when I, as the Chinese team captain, need to lead by example—it fits the persona I’ve projected from the start... Zhang Yuanqing smiled and said “The last time I rode a roller coaster was back in my school days, and my favorite spot was always the front row.” Under everyone’s gaze, he climbed into the front-row seat and fastened his seatbelt. The others let out a slight sigh of relief and climbed aboard one by one. “I’m afraid of heights…” Xi Shi put on a pitiful expression and hesitated for a moment between Zhang Yuanqing and He Bo. In that brief moment of hesitation, Xie Lingxi—with her long, straight black hair—snatched the seat next to Zhang Yuanqing, leaving Xi Shi with no choice but to sit next to He Bo. Zhang Yuanqing glanced at her, and she returned his gaze with a sweet smile. Once everyone had fastened their seatbelts, He Bo, sitting in the second row, said calmly “Remember to close your eyes. No matter what happens, don’t open them. Of course, if any of you want to test the rules with your lives, I’d be more than happy to oblige.” “You really have a sharp tongue,” Fire Demon pouted. Zhang Yuanqing turned his head and glanced at the team members behind him. He Bo and Xi Shi were seated in the second row, while “Ashamed to Be a Father” and Fire Demon occupied the third row. The somewhat timid Monkey King seemed to have been left out, sitting alone in the fourth row. Just then, power surged through the tracks, and a “thud” sounded from beneath the car as the roller coaster began to move slowly. Just before Zhang Yuanqing looked away, he saw that everyone had closed their eyes. He closed his eyes, feeling the car crawl along the tracks. At first, it moved very slowly, as if climbing a steep incline; when the roller coaster reached the top, it came to a stop. The next moment, a intense sensation of weightlessness washed over him, accompanied by the roar of the wind and Xi Shi’s tiny gasp. Zhang Yuanqing tensed up, listening intently to the sounds around him and silently counting the time. About two minutes later, the speeding roller coaster slowed down and then came to a stop. Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes and saw that the roller coaster had returned to the platform on top of the building—as if nothing had happened. Phew... He silently exhaled, only to suddenly hear a gasp behind him. His heart sank; he turned his head and his pupils contracted violently. He Bo, who had been sHe Bo, who had been sitting in the second row, had been killed instantly. The Fire Demon in the third row, his face streaked with blood, trembled beside him and said in a quivering voice, “It’s... no use... It’s no use with my eyes closed....” He Bo’s expression remained serene, as if he had felt no pain at all.in at all. A chill crept up everyone’s spines.