Chapter 57

Before Gu Yi'an could figure it out, the infant spirits in the cabinets, upon seeing the notebook, began chattering excitedly as if they had seen their savior.
"Your Highness, this brother is so fierce."
"Your Highness, this brother bit off more than half of my body."
"Your Highness, they threatened us."
"Your Highness, do you need us to help you deal with this person who's bullying you?"
Gu Yi'an looked at the infant spirits, wondering if she had misheard.
"Are you talking about me?"
She was bullying the notebook?
How could she possibly bully the notebook?
With the notebook present, the infant spirits seemed to have found their pillar of support. They flew out of the cabinets one by one, their bodies growing larger and appearing much more menacing.
They positioned themselves protectively in front of the notebook and said to Gu Yi'an, "Don't bully His Highness."
Faced with so many dark, shadowy infants standing guard protectively in front of the notebook, Gu Yi'an fell silent.
Did they have some misunderstanding about her?
Could she really bully the notebook?
So, when she entered the villa, were they throwing handkerchiefs at her because they wanted to protect the notebook?
Could it be that her act of placing the notebook in her backpack made these infant spirits mistakenly think she had captured it?
Gu Yi'an sighed helplessly, "Lu Zize, what are you trying to do?"
What exactly was the gift the notebook mentioned earlier?
The hanged ghost and the little girl nearby had witnessed the entire scene.
They saw that the infant spirits recognized the notebook and were all bravely defending it.
The two ghosts silently slipped away, one hiding behind the backpack, the other retreating into the small coffin.
If they disrupted the notebook's plans, it would be their fault. They quickly made themselves scarce, seeking the protection of the princess.
In Gu Yi'an's line of sight, she couldn't see any movement from the notebook, as its form was completely blocked by the infant spirits.
After she asked that question, the dark infant spirits suddenly began shrinking right before Gu Yi'an's eyes.
They shrank one by one, shrinking further and further until they condensed into black round beads about five to six millimeters in diameter.
A thin silver chain, appearing out of nowhere, slithered through the beads like a snake. Then, the chain strung with the pitch-black beads automatically drifted to Gu Yi'an's wrist, wrapped around it, and fastened itself.
The black beads paired with the thin silver chain made Gu Yi'an's wrist appear even fairer.
Gu Yi'an lowered her gaze to look at the beads on the bracelet. She could feel the slight coolness they emitted.
At first glance, they were just beads, but upon closer inspection, she could make out that each one was an extremely tiny infant, hugging the thin silver chain with both hands and feet.
The sight was somewhat eerie.
Gu Yi'an blinked and found that the black beads still looked like black beads, not minuscule infants.
This gift...
No matter what, it was the thought that counted, though it was a bit peculiar.
Gu Yi'an glanced at the notebook and said earnestly, "Thank you."
Remembering that the bracelet was made of infant spirits, she asked curiously, "What does it do?"
A new line of text immediately appeared in the notebook.
"Looks nice."
Looks nice?
If she ignored the fact that the tiny beads were actually little infants and just treated them as black beads, Gu Yi'an thought the bracelet's appearance was passable.
But they were little infants.
Gu Yi'an suspected that her surroundings were turning into a ghostly amusement park.
"It does look nice," Gu Yi'an said, playing along. After all, it was the notebook's gesture of goodwill.
But this goodwill... had devoured several players.
Gu Yi'an thought of the players she had just encountered. The infant spirits were related to the game, and they referred to the notebook as "Your Highness," indicating that the notebook was also connected to the game.
This time, she should be able to call the notebook a god to its face, right?
Gu Yi'an looked at the notebook and asked, "God, is this another one of your games?"
Is everything going according to your plan?
She had come to find her brother, intended to resolve the infant spirits, and inevitably ended up meeting them.
Upon hearing Gu Yi'an's question, the notebook showed no sign of panic. A new line of text appeared.
"God? Are you talking about the Divine Eye system?"
The notebook was playing dumb.
Even now, it was still pretending.
Gu Yi'an fell silent for a moment and chose to close the notebook.
She could never wake someone who was pretending to sleep. If the notebook wanted to keep its disguise, so be it.
Gu Yi'an placed the notebook into her backpack.
The fire dragon, spotting Gu Yi'an from inside the backpack, flew out and circled around her.
Gu Yi'an said, "Fire Dragon, we're leaving now."
Since the infant spirits had been dealt with by the notebook, it was time for her to go.
The fire dragon knew it couldn't show itself in front of others and obediently flew back to the backpack, slipping inside.
Gu Yi'an glanced down the hallway.
The bloodstains on the floor bore witness to the tragedy that had occurred earlier.
And some tragedies had already been concealed by the wrongdoers, with evidence nowhere to be found.
Gu Yi'an stepped out of the villa.
She saw Gu Tianjing, Old Zheng, and the portly uncle waiting outside the villa.
They stood in the sunlight, and when they saw her emerge, their eyes lit up with relief.
Gu Tianjing hurried over and asked anxiously, "Are you hurt?"
He looked Gu Yi’an up and down. She didn't seem abnormal anywhere, not even her shoes were stained with mud.
Wait, where did this bracelet come from?
Gu Tianjing's gaze fell on the bracelet around Gu Yi’an's wrist.
Had he seen this bracelet earlier?
Where did this bracelet come from?
Suspicion flashed through Gu Tianjing's mind, but he quickly found a reasonable explanation for the bracelet's appearance, perhaps it was just a young girl's love for beauty.
Gu Yi’an noticed Gu Tianjing's suspicion about the bracelet but pretended not to notice and shook her head naturally.
She wasn't injured.
Old Zheng asked excitedly, "Little sister, are the infant spirits gone?"
They had discovered that the ghost wall that previously surrounded the villa had suddenly disappeared, which was why they had come to wait outside the villa for Gu Yi’an.
Since the ghost wall was gone, could it mean the infant spirits were gone too?
Gu Yi’an nodded and said, "Brother Zheng, you don't have to worry about strange things happening here anymore."
Upon hearing this, Old Zheng made a pained face and said, "Even without strange things, I wouldn't dare live here anymore."
Who would dare live in a house that was haunted, not to mention the fact that the bodies of those people hadn't been found yet?
This house, which was both haunted and hid human remains, was definitely not somewhere Old Zheng would dare to stay.
Gu Tianjing nudged Old Zheng with his elbow. "Stop calling her that. Who said she's your little sister?"
He was unhappy with Old Zheng's way of addressing Gu Yi’an.
"Aren't we brothers? Your little sister is my little sister."
"Get lost, wishful thinking!"
The two of them started bickering.
Gu Yi’an glanced at them, then turned her gaze to the chubby uncle.
The chubby uncle had been looking at Gu Yi’an with admiration. When he noticed her looking at him, he immediately said, "The female cultivator truly has profound cultivation."
Gu Yi’an had effortlessly resolved the infant spirits that he had struggled with for so long, proving her exceptional skill.
Thinking of the infant spirits, the chubby uncle couldn't help but glance at the bracelet on Gu Yi’an's wrist.
The bracelet looked beautiful and delicate, but the chubby uncle was no ordinary person, he was a cultivator after all. With his level of cultivation, he could tell at first glance that there was something unusual about the beads on the bracelet.
After taking a few more careful looks, he finally figured out the source of the beads' peculiarity.
These weren't beads at all, they were clearly tiny infants!
The chubby uncle gave Gu Yi’an an admiring look but said nothing.
This bracelet might be related to the cultivation techniques practiced by female cultivators. Matters concerning cultivation techniques should never be questioned recklessly, and the chubby uncle had no intention of making enemies.
Gu Yi'an noticed the chubby uncle's gaze.
She had always been curious about this bracelet.
Why did the notebook give her this bracelet, and why were the beads on it infant spirits?
Could it be that, like the hanged ghost and the little girl, they could also become her subordinates?
But there were just too many infant spirits at once.
Gu Yi'an asked, "Taoist Priest, what have you noticed?"
The chubby uncle gave a thumbs-up and praised, "Using infant spirits to stabilize one's soul, now that's a brilliant move."
Stabilize the soul?
Gu Yi'an raised an eyebrow slightly, her expression betraying no surprise.
The chubby uncle said, "I was wondering earlier why a cultivator whose soul was on the verge of leaving their body would dare to venture out. Now it seems the cultivator had already devised a solution to this problem. Good thing I didn’t say anything earlier, or I would’ve lost face."
Gu Yi'an wished the chubby uncle would say more, but unfortunately, after speaking, he looked pleased with himself for finally understanding the cultivator's methods and fell silent.
Gu Yi'an took note of the chubby uncle's words, planning to ask the notebook about it later.
She glanced behind Gu Tianjing and the other two, but the players were nowhere to be seen.
Gu Yi'an asked, "Where are those people?"
"Those people? Who knows where they went."
The first to answer was Old Zheng.
He had no desire to recall what those people looked like.
Gu Tianjing said, "I don’t know. They were here just now. When we realized the villa had returned to its true form, we came inside to wait for you. They probably left at that time."
The chubby uncle hadn’t paid much attention to those people. He remarked, "Some of their methods were quite peculiar. They didn’t seem to be self-cultivated but rather relied on tools."
He had discerned that the players were using props.
Gu Yi'an guessed that those people had likely returned to their own world.
She didn’t press further.
Gu Yi'an lent her phone to Old Zheng.
Old Zheng and the other two had left their electronic devices in the villa. Now that they had finally escaped, they didn’t dare go back inside.
Old Zheng made a call.
Not long after, his relatives sent someone to pick up all three of them.
Gu Yi'an had already discussed with Old Zheng and the others not to mention her involvement. She didn’t accompany them but instead took a taxi back to the hotel where she was staying.
Back in her hotel room, Gu Yi'an repacked her luggage.
Compared to the lively hanged ghost, fire dragon, and little girl, the tiny infants on the bracelet remained completely still, showing no signs of movement.
Gu Yi'an recalled what the chubby uncle had said earlier. She took out the notebook and asked, "Lu Zize, does this bracelet have the effect of stabilizing the soul?"
She hesitated before asking, "Has my soul left my body?"
The notebook opened on its own, and text appeared on the page.
"I will find a new body for you."
It’s not about you helping me find a body.
Why do you always answer questions with something unrelated?
Gu Yi'an felt a bit helpless, but the content of the words was the notebook expressing its goodwill.
Gu Yi'an just wanted to know the reason her soul had left her body.
"Has my natural lifespan run out?" Gu Yi'an asked.
When she first entered the pure white space, the text there had stated that it was a gift from the gods to those on the verge of death.
If she hadn't entered the game, would she already be dead?
Gu Yi'an had other speculations.
She had memories from her previous life, could this soul separation be related to that?
Gu Yi'an could no longer clearly recall her previous life.
The infant stage had worn away most of her memories of that life.
The notebook quickly gave Gu Yi'an an answer.
A line of text appeared.
"This body is not suitable for you."
Gu Yi'an saw this line.
She had lived almost nineteen years in this life, how was this body unsuitable for her?
So, had her lifespan run out?
Had she died just before entering The Game of the Gods?
Was she now merely inhabiting the body like a possession, which would explain why the chubby uncle thought she was raising ghosts, why she seemed so ghostly, and why the hanging ghost had mistaken her for a ghost?
But this speculation didn’t seem entirely right either. Later, the hanging ghost, after being reminded by the ghostly audience in the livestream, realized she was human.
So, she must be in a state where her lifespan was about to run out, Gu Yi'an guessed.
Gu Yi'an thought of the two incidents she encountered after the college entrance exam.
One was a graduation trip, the other a game of spirit writing.
Both times, she had narrowly escaped death.
If she included the later The Game of the Gods called "Malice," then she had come close to death three times in the real world.
Gu Yi'an looked at the black-beaded bracelet on her wrist. The chubby uncle had said the bracelet was used to anchor her soul.
If her soul wasn't anchored and it left her body, that would also mean death.
It was actually a very thoughtful gift. After the infant spirits turned into black beads, they never made any movements again, nor were they as talkative as the hanging ghost, just like a real bracelet.
Gu Yi'an shifted her gaze to the notebook and said, "Thank you."
It seemed that besides thank you, she didn't know what else to say to Lu Zize.
She thought of many things to say but didn't know how to voice them.
He had helped her so much, yet she had nothing to repay him with.
She didn't even know what he needed.
Gu Yi'an said, "I don't need a new body. This one is just fine."
If her body could remain in its current state, allowing her to live as an ordinary person, that would be good enough.
So, please, don't be so kind to her anymore.
The notebook seemed to miss the subtext in Gu Yi'an's words.
The text on the paper vanished completely, and new words appeared on the lines.
This time, the handwriting was heavy, as if it could pierce through the page.
"No, you can't stay with me."
Gu Yi'an felt that the notebook often said strange things.
She didn’t answer directly and instead asked, "Have you forgotten about the Hanged Ghost and the others?"
The Hanged Ghost and the little girl shouldn’t have issues with lifespan and could accompany the notebook for a long time.
The Hanged Ghost, who had been lounging on the fire dragon as it circled the room, jolted awake upon hearing its name and floated over immediately.
It only caught Gu Yi'an asking if the notebook had forgotten about the Hanged Ghost and the others, mistakenly thinking the notebook found them annoying and wanted to leave them behind at the hotel.
"Your Highness, Lord Lu, I am utterly loyal! Please, do not abandon me!"
An unpleasant voice echoed through the room.
Gu Yi'an’s vision blurred as she saw the notebook instantly leave its spot and strike the Hanged Ghost.
The Hanged Ghost was stunned by the sudden blow but immediately persisted, "Lord Lu, you cannot abandon me!"
Normally, the Hanged Ghost would have sensed the awkward atmosphere, but now, with its ability to follow the notebook at stake, it was determined to shamelessly plead its case.
The fire dragon flew over, circled Gu Yi'an once, and landed on a nearby suitcase, gleefully watching the Hanged Ghost being chased and beaten by the notebook.
Because the notebook held a grudge so tightly, the Hanged Ghost spent the next several days unable to earn its forgiveness. It could only remain as a pendant on Gu Yi'an’s backpack, not daring to wander around alone even when Gu Yi'an returned to her rented apartment.
By mid-May, it was review week followed by exam week.
The two days Gu Yi'an had taken off didn’t involve many classes, so it didn’t affect her studies.
She focused her mind and threw herself into reviewing.
The supernatural beings around her understood she was busy. The little girl and the fire dragon, for instance, mostly stayed out of sight to avoid distracting her.
As for the bracelet on her wrist, the only change was that one day, the black beads suddenly transformed into round pearls resembling actual pearls.
Other than that, there were no further changes.
The notebook, meanwhile, became a study machine with a built-in search engine, occasionally displaying explanations for practice problems without Gu Yi'an having to search online.
During her free moments, it would chat with her briefly.
Gu Yi'an, however, was fully absorbed in her studies and brushed off the notebook a few times, not paying much attention to what it said.
During her review period, Gu Yi'an received a call from Gu Tianjing.
At the start of the call, Gu Tianjing mentioned that he and Old Zheng planned to transfer some company shares and cash to Gu Yi'an as a token of gratitude for saving their lives.
Gu Yi'an had left too early that day, taking a flight that very night, leaving Old Zheng and Gu Tianjing with no way to find her to express their thanks.
Gu Yi'an didn’t want to accept, but Gu Tianjing insisted that even siblings should keep clear accounts.
He suggested that whenever Gu Yi'an had time, she could come and sign the contract. Alternatively, once they sorted out their recent affairs, they would come to her.
After discussing this, Gu Tianjing shared another piece of news.
Old Zheng had learned that the previous owner of the villa had died in an accident a couple of days earlier.
Perhaps retribution had arrived.
Old Zheng hired someone to investigate thoroughly and paid to question the chef previously employed by the former homeowner. It was from the chef that he learned about the former homeowner’s heinous deeds.
The former homeowner had kept many mistresses. If a mistress gave birth to a son, he would keep the child and give her 200,000 yuan to leave on her own. If she gave birth to a daughter, he would keep the child as well, but give her only 50,000 yuan before sending her away.
Over the years, the former homeowner had more than ten mistresses, but only ended up with two sons. However, there were over a dozen baby girls. Unwilling to raise them, he ordered the chef to cook the infant girls born to his mistresses, believing that newborn babies were highly nutritious. Not only that, he also purchased infants to eat.
If it weren’t for the chef discovering the former homeowner’s death, he would never have dared to reveal these things.
Now that the former homeowner was dead, and Old Zheng had Gu Tianjing as his powerful backer, the chef didn’t dare offend him and had no choice but to confess everything he had done as well.
Gu Tianjing and Old Zheng turned the man over to the authorities. Those involved in the buying and selling of infants are currently under investigation, but in the future, they too will not escape the punishment of the law.
After Gu Yi’an hung up the phone, she glanced at her bracelet. The beads on it had already turned pearl white.
She might have figured out the reason they had changed from black to white.
They had already sent that person to hell, so the resentment had dissipated.
Gu Yi’an reached out and gently touched the beads on her bracelet.
She said, "Your gender was not your fault. You just encountered terrible parents. If you have a next life, I hope you meet parents who will love you."
She thought about herself. In this life, her bonds with her family were also weak, but her parents were far better than the parents of those infants.
The bracelet gave no response, remaining as silent as it always was.
University exams were held on different days, with intervals of up to a week between one subject and another.
Gu Yi’an had prepared thoroughly and entered the exam hall without a hint of panic. Even when she saw questions that went beyond the scope outlined by the teacher, she answered them flawlessly.
She finished the exam early, checked it three times, and found no mistakes, so she submitted her paper ahead of time.
After she handed in her paper, the other students watched her leave with envy.
One student with ill intentions quietly took out their phone to search for answers online but found nothing.
At that moment, they realized that the exam paper contained new questions designed by the teacher specifically to prevent cheating.
The teacher who had set the exam, patrolling the hall, smiled with satisfaction at the expressions of despair on some students’ faces. These were the ones who never paid attention in class and always copied their homework. Finally, he had the chance to teach them a lesson.
After the exams, the students immediately began preparing for the next round of tests in the following days.
Gu Yi'an should have been doing the same, but now she had other matters to attend to.
She entered the pure white space.
The black text in the pure white space repeated the content Gu Yi'an had seen before.
Gu Yi'an skipped the earlier parts and looked at the end.
[This is your seventh game. God is fair and impartial. You have received no hints.]
[You can enjoy a pleasant vacation now.]
Gu Yi'an was taken aback.
The tone of the black text was clearly different from before.
Shouldn't it have been mocking the players as usual?
Why was it so gentle?
The attitude of the black text made Gu Yi'an sense something unusual.
She immediately checked her pockets.
Knowing she was about to enter a game, she had deliberately worn a vest with large pockets and stuffed items like the small coffin and gambler's cards inside.
As she felt around in her pockets, a small object brushed against her palm.
Gu Yi'an instinctively grabbed it. By touch, she realized it had some thickness and was small, unlike any of her other items.
She opened her hand to look at it.
A miniature notebook, about three to four centimeters long and two to three centimeters wide, lay in her palm.
The notebook had followed her into the game.
Suddenly, the pure white space tore apart, and a new environment appeared before Gu Yi'an, along with several people dressed in various outfits.
[Shh! God is watching you.]
The black text in the air dissipated.
Gu Yi'an had entered a new game.
The people present glanced at each other, realizing they were all players.
There were six of them in this round.
Gu Yi'an tucked the miniature notebook back into her pocket and scanned her surroundings. They seemed to be in a lavishly decorated hotel lobby.
She could see the hotel front desk not far away, where a female staff member in uniform was registering something.
"Ahem, shall we introduce ourselves?" suggested a male player who looked about twenty-five years old.
He introduced himself first, "My name is Dai Qi. This is my third game. What about you all?"
The others looked at the male player named Dai Qi, each with their own thoughts but showing nothing on their faces.
The first to respond to Dai Qi was another male player, whose face was lined with wrinkles, making him appear to be in his forties.
He said, "I'm also an experienced player, probably older than most of you by a generation or two. You can call me Uncle Wu."
Gu Yi'an spoke after Uncle Wu, saying, "My surname is Gu. You can call me Little Gu. I'm an experienced player too."
After the three of them introduced themselves, the remaining three players looked at them.
These three players, two women and one man, had cautious and bewildered looks in their eyes.
This made Uncle Wu, the oldest among the players, frown as he glanced at them. "Are you all new players?"
Hearing this, one of the female players among the three timidly said, "I'm a new player."
She cautiously looked at Gu Yi'an and the other two, afraid that the experienced players might do something they couldn't tolerate.
Following her lead, the other male and female players quickly admitted they were new players as well.
The newbie male player asked, "What is this game about? I saw our beginner prompt is something about being a 'Silent One', does that mean we have to be mute and not speak?"
Gu Yi'an heard his words and frowned slightly.
Was it "Silent One" or "Silencer" that the newbie male player mentioned?
With the newbie male player voluntarily revealing the beginner prompt, Uncle Wu and the other experienced player, Dai Qi, fell into thought.
The two newbie female players glared at the newbie male player.
They weren't stupid, they knew that only newbie players had the beginner prompt, and it might have been their bargaining chip to trade for protection from the experienced players.
Now, everything had been ruined by this newbie male player.
The newbie male player belatedly realized his mistake and scratched his head, saying, "Don't glare at me like that. It's just a game, isn't it?"
One of the newbie female players snapped angrily, "Do you think you're dreaming? Haven't you noticed this is a real world?"
Hearing the female player's angry tone, Gu Yi'an snapped out of her contemplation and said to the three newbie players, "Would you mind introducing yourselves? You can use code names."
The two female players exchanged glances.
One said, "I'm Xiao Yu."
The other said, "I'm Xiao Ling."
"I'm Death," said the newbie male player.
As soon as he spoke, he drew furious glares from the other two newbie female players.
This chuunibyou.
It was all because of this chuunibyou guy that their beginner prompt had been exposed to the experienced players.
The newbie male player looked embarrassed and added, "It's just a code name. If you're mad, just call me 'Daring Fool.' I won't mind."
His self-deprecating remark eased the anger of the two newbie female players a little. There was no need to argue with a daring fool.
The situation might not be as bad as they had imagined. The experienced players would probably offer some help to the newbies.
Their eyes swept around and quickly settled on their next target for interaction: Gu Yi'an, the only female among the three experienced players, young, beautiful, but with an inexplicably powerful aura.
Being fellow females, this female player named Little Gu should be easier to approach.
The two older male players, Dai Qi and Uncle Wu, also heard the newbie male player's remark about calling him "Daring Fool" and couldn't help but chuckle.
Dai Qi glanced at everyone and said, "Now that we've all introduced ourselves, it's time to start the game. Since we're here, we might be staying at a hotel. Why don't we go ask a staff member?"
His proposal was met with agreement from everyone.
The three new players obediently followed the lead of the experienced players.
Gu Yi'an and Uncle Wu shared the same thoughts as Dai Qi, so naturally, they didn't oppose either.
The six of them walked together to the hotel's front desk.
The female employee who had been handling registrations glanced at them, as if recognizing them, and spoke in a familiar yet disdainful tone, "Since you've made up your minds, here are the room keys. Don't you think it's a bit crowded with six of you sharing one room?"
After the brief complaint, she didn't say much more, only adding, "Let me reiterate, our hotel does not have ghosts. Everything you've heard is just rumors. There are no ghosts here."
"Alright, take the keys and head up on your own."