Chapter 2755: Two Plans

There’s no definitive conclusion about who the murder shadow is, but most players still believe it’s Mr. Wen. The most pressing issue before them isn’t this; as long as they kill the assassin, whether they succeed or fail in passing through, this instance will come to an end. Even if they can’t leave for the time being, they can cooperate to avoid risks.

Of course, this is a problem for the dungeon players of the manor, but Xu Huo’s group’s issues are much more complicated.

Firstly, they don’t know who the shadow is or how to maintain the hero’s dignity. Even if they restrict players from passing through, the shadow is brutally murdering people, making it impossible to completely avoid bloodshed.

Secondly, if the shadow is indeed Mr. Wen, how does maintaining his dignity look? At this point, it’s clearly not about stopping other players from assassinating him and protecting his identity; there’s no need for that.

Considering these two points, a dangerous conclusion can be deduced: killing this "hero" who is wreaking havoc with reckless killings in order to maintain his former dignity.

Being called a hero, he must have made significant contributions to Zone 022 in the past. He could even access some government-sensitive locations. In his old age, hiding away to massively slaughter others is indeed a potential risk.

"Is the side mission really this difficult?" The photographer thought it even surpassed the difficulty of the instance they originally had to complete.

The problem rests on Mr. Wen.

From Mrs. Ti Hui and the butler’s attitudes, it’s apparent they both know who the murderer is. They’ve even repeatedly warned players not to wander around at night, showing they’re powerless to stop this matter. Whether from a subjective or objective perspective, they somewhat bear reluctance in ignoring the atrocities happening in the manor.

Whether they sympathize with the outsider players or the murdering shadow, it’s evident they don’t wish to see these events unfold.

In reality, their attitude may to some extent represent Mr. Wen’s attitude.

As a once-hero, Mr. Wen, who always presents himself weakly, brutally murders and feasts at night in this manner; has his mental state changed?

Is he indulging in the pleasure of slaughter, or is he swinging all day between remorse and instinct?

Every person should sincerely cherish life... Is this referring to the dungeon players, or is it about himself?

The sky quickly brightened. The butler was not surprised by them crowding into the study, only notifying them to have breakfast, while also informing them that the botanist had no family, so the manor would hold a funeral for him.

Xu Huo handed over the botanist’s corpse, and the butler received it solemnly, indicating that professionals would be invited to arrange the remains, preserving the deceased’s final dignity.

After breakfast, a professional team entered the manor. Apart from the makeup artist, they were accompanied by the Law Enforcement Team, who came to confirm the cause of the botanist’s death.

These people completed a simple inspection and then went upstairs to meet Mr. Wen, staying for quite some time, and were escorted downstairs by the butler afterward.

Xu Huo sharply noticed that one of the Law Enforcement Team members glanced at him very briefly, but with that glance, the number on his head changed from 3 to 9, inclining toward a dislike color.

This person recognized him.

With just one glance, this Law Enforcement Team member left with his colleagues.

"The time spent seeing Mr. Wen was much longer than examining the body; they should have been here to see Mr. Wen," the photographer said.

"After all, he’s an important figure." The scholar finished and tentatively glanced at the others, "Do you have any clue how to carry out the side mission?"

"I have a straightforward idea," the photographer quickly replied, "which is to directly take out Mr. Wen; with the manor instance gone, our side mission would naturally disappear."

If Mr. Wen is indeed the murder shadow, they’d have a certain chance of completing the side mission.

It’s a plan, but even if they work together, they might not be a match for the murder shadow; can they expect someone else to bump into their blade?

After thinking so much, it seems they’ve hit a bottleneck now.

Mr. Wen didn’t come downstairs the whole day; it wasn’t until the funeral was held the next day that he attended briefly.

He looked even weaker than he did the night before, with dark circles noticeably severe, and upon seeing the botanist’s corpse, he even shed tears on the spot.

This behavior didn’t make the players feel he genuinely lamented the passing of life; rather, it gave off a sinister chill, as though a breeze blew on the back. Mr. Wen seldom hosted banquets, but whenever he did, the players left were numerous. If he genuinely didn’t wish to see anyone die, he could completely find a method to sabotage the instance or simply refuse to become an owner. Now, displaying such sorrow before outsiders only made him appear insincere.

And this also made Xu Huo and others realize that a fallen hero doesn’t necessarily maintain humanity.

After the funeral, Xu Huo and the others were invited to the tea room for tea. Mr. Wen drank half a cup of tea accompanied by the butler before leaving; during this time, Xu Huo and the others attempted multiple times to converse with him but were brushed off.

"The old man is quite adept at acting," the photographer said, "crying like this over a stranger’s death."

"The sorrow might be genuine, but it doesn’t surpass self-satisfaction," the scholar said, "Mr. Wen is most likely the Cannibal Player, and it’s said Cannibal Players experience psychological issues more easily than others. For Mr. Wen to have lived to this ripe age, he might have already been mentally twisted, and emotional fluctuation is very normal."

"I’ve been pondering all day; the side mission might have two ways to pass. One is to shield Mr. Wen, preventing news of his brutal murders and cannibalism from getting out. The second is to kill him, ending his life under the hero’s name," the gourmet said, "I hypothesize the Law Enforcement Team came in such numbers to check on his status, keeping him in the manor might very well be a restriction measure."

"Choosing the first method doesn’t mitigate the danger; we could also become targets of the shadow’s attacks. But the good news is there are quite a few manor instance players; they can still hold out for a couple of days."

"Choosing the second method requires some thought; otherwise, we’re not opponents at all. It’d be best to find non-game terrain simulation instruments to limit him; once his prop fails, we’ll have a chance."

"What do you think?"

This inquiry was directed at Xu Huo’s group.

The scholar and the photographer directed their gaze towards the only person who had fought with the shadow and retreated unscathed.

Xu Huo didn’t respond but instead asked, "Does Zone 022 have specific laws for Cannibal Players?"

"Of course," the scholar quickly replied, "Zone 022 once relied on Cannibal Players during its rise. Laws stipulated, Cannibal Players had special regulatory rights in daily life, meaning as long as it was under government management, they could openly kill."

"However, those to be killed had to be limited to criminals."

"Or provided with food by the government," the gourmet added, "The fearsome reputation of Zone 022’s Punishment City originated because it was initially established to provide essential food to Cannibal Players."