"What should I do?"

Xiaomi lowered her gaze, helplessly holding the black Ema in her hand. She nervously tore off the barbs under her fingernails, "It's not my fault either..."

Her voice gradually dropped, and she couldn't say the words "I didn't mean it" at this moment.

Qi Jiu: “I think that ‘returning’ the wish I had at that time can end all this.”

Xiaomi was stunned: "'Return' back?"

Qi Jiu nodded and deduced: "In today's world, tomorrow night is New Year's Eve, which is the time when you made a wish with the black Ema."

"It can be understood that in your world, the New Year's wish has already happened, but in the player's world it is December 31st now, and we are about to enter this point in time, so there is still a chance to 'regret'." Qi Zhu continued.

explain.

If we simply compare Xiaomi's world and the player's world to the "inner and outer worlds", the outer world is the cause of the inner world, and the inner world is the effect of the outer world. The cause can affect the effect, but in turn the effect can also affect the cause.

, the key point lies in the time point when cause and effect overlap - the moment of making a New Year's wish.

Xiaomi's eyes shrouded in fog gradually became clear: "In other words, as long as I go to the shrine again to return the wish when the same time comes, can I prevent the disaster that has already happened in the "outer world"?"

"I'm not sure whether the disaster that has occurred can be offset..." Qi Qiu paused and said solemnly, "But what I am sure of is that this can prevent the "other world" from making the same mistakes again, and can also end the endless cycle of you and your wife.

The death cycle curse.”

Qi Jiu will not paint a pie for the other party and give the other party a promise that he is not sure of.

He didn't know whether the disaster that had happened in Xiaomi's reality could happen again, but in the player's world, Xiaomi's decision at this point in time was crucial.

After all, Xiaomi is the "key" to the entire dungeon plot.

At the important node where the time between the outer and inner worlds intersects, "repay" the wishes made in the "outer world", just like rewinding time, the "inner world" will not repeat the accidents of the "outer world".

Xiao Mi pursed her lips into a straight line, and after a long moment of silence, she nodded: "But before making a decision, I will consult my mother for her opinion. I hope you can...understand."

She doesn't want to fall into the swamp of an endless death cycle, but she also doesn't want to lose her mother.

"I understand." Qi Jiu said.

At this moment, the lady had returned with a large plate full of desserts. She smiled softly and said, "I hope I didn't disturb you."

Qi Jiu: "We've finished talking."

"Ah, really, why did you eat ice cream all over your hands?" Madam hurriedly took out a handkerchief to wipe Xiaomi's face. Although her tone was slightly complaining, she didn't sound mean at all.

Xiaomi stretched out her hand and let the lady do her work. She looked at the mumbling lady sadly and nostalgically: "Mom, do you want to end this hot spring trip?"

The lady's figure trembled slightly, she stopped what she was doing, and after a long time, she looked at Xiao Mi again gently: "Mom hopes you can start a real new life, and doesn't want you to stay where you are."

Mother and daughter looked at each other in silence for a long time, and finally laughed in unison.

"You kid, you always get people into trouble." Madam smiled, lowered her head, and continued to carefully and gently wipe off the ice cream stains on Xiao Mi's hands.

Xiaomi also smiled: "I'm really sorry."

Thinking of everything she had chosen to forget because of guilt, her time began to flow again, and her feelings gradually recovered.

"Mom, I miss you so much." Xiaomi said softly.

"Mom too."

*

While all the surviving players were there during the meal time, Xiaomi synchronized his plans for tomorrow night to all the players.

Everyone was stunned as they listened to this "fake player" reveal his identity and tell the truth about the plot, and they were immediately in awe.

It is too bizarre for a hidden NPC to stand up and directly inform the core plot and turning points of the dungeon...

After a heated discussion, all the players suddenly felt chills running down their spines.

If Xiaomi hadn't "taken the initiative" to tell all this, they would never have guessed that Xiaomi was also one of the accident ghosts. Their original plan to transcend all the accident ghosts could only end in failure.

The hidden reversal of this copy is set up too cunningly.

At present, their action goal has changed from rescuing all the ghosts of the accident to helping Xiaomi and her daughter go to the shrine to "return" their wishes on New Year's Eve.

But Xiao Mi did not intentionally expose Qi Ku's identity. She only said that she remembered all this.

Players with simple minds and little experience thought that someone accidentally or intentionally triggered the "Xiao Mi Line" clue, and did not delve into the reason. They just breathed a sigh of relief and chose to believe and accept the new action plan.

But the witch, and the three girls from 114 were not so easy to fool. They had long noticed that Xiaomi and the masseur wearing a neng mask had been talking during the meal, and the masseur also handed over a prop.

Xiaomi.

After the meal, the witch stood in front of Qi Jiu and Qin Rang, her eyes flickering on their faces: "Are you really hotel staff? Or players?"

The witch asked straight to the point.

Qin Rang immediately tensed his shoulders, while Qi Jiu nodded slightly naturally: "These two identities are not contradictory."

He kind of acquiesced to the witch's speculation. At this point, he no longer had the need to continue playing the role of NPC.

The witch narrowed her eyes slightly to look at him, shook her head and said, "But why? I don't understand... Your connection with the copy is closer than any NPC."

Qi Jiu raised the corners of his lips and smiled apologetically: "I'm sorry for charging you such a big tip."

The witch shrugged nonchalantly: "You also provided me with corresponding services."

"Actually, I have always had a question," Qi Jiu suddenly asked the witch, "You have powerful psychic abilities and can see the energy connection between the character and the dungeon. Why didn't you notice the connection between Xiaomi's mother and daughter and the dungeon?"

The witch frowned slightly and was silent for a moment before speaking: "This is the cunning point of the system. It deliberately selected psychics when it brought players into the hot spring street dungeon. Because of the existence of psychics, the system deliberately obscured Xiaomi.

The energy field on his body can even be said that from the perspective of us psychics, Xiaomi’s energy field is no different from that of ordinary players.”

It turns out that the system has already made a plan. In order to increase the difficulty of the copy and prevent players with psychic abilities from overwhelming victory, it deliberately obscured Xiao Mi's spiritual field, so it was impossible to accurately determine Xiao Mi's identity through psychic abilities alone.

Inferring the truth requires players to have keen observation skills and a certain degree of plot exploration.

The witch took a deep look at Qi Gu again: "You are the only one, not like the player."

Qi Jiuxiao: "Thank you for your compliment on my acting skills."

The witch shook her head noncommittally and handed the two spirit-guiding stones to Qi Qiu and Qin Rang respectively: "Although I have now figured out the identities of Xiaomi's mother and daughter, and have a way to crack the copy, I plan to put the original plan into practice

As a preliminary plan, once Xiaomi's plan to return the wish fails, I will directly forcefully clean up the resentful spirits."

The spirit attracting stone is similar to the vengeful spirit magnet. As long as the user's energy is sufficient, it can attract the vengeful spirits in the energy field in a very short time.

"I will allocate spiritual stones to all players in case of emergencies." The witch explained.

Qin Rang hesitated for a moment, while Qi Chu readily accepted the spirit stone handed over by the witch: "Thank you."

The witch looked Qi Kui over again: "Who are you looking for, right?"

Qi Jiu was slightly stunned and said calmly: "Yes."

"Can I find the other person?" Qi Jiu asked, knowing that the witch felt the relevant energy from him.

He is looking for the male courtesan who bewitched people.

The witch nodded: "I can feel that the other party is waiting for you."

Qi Jiu smiled and bowed slightly: "Thank you."

The witch also smiled: "You're welcome, this is a thank you gift for the help you have given me these days."

At this moment, Qi Qiu's system sounded a notification sound——

[Dear traveler, since you have unearthed hidden clues and characters in the dungeon, and your behavioral choices have had a significant impact on the plot of the dungeon, based on the above results, the system has updated the main action tasks for all players——]

[Currently, the flexible main line has been changed. Please all players go to the shrine on New Year’s Eve to celebrate the New Year]

[The system wishes everyone a Happy New Year in advance]

The last two system prompts have been received by all players. Everyone, look at me, I look at you, and instantly understand that someone has triggered an important main line clue. After discovering the truth about Xiaomi's line, their mission mode will follow.

changed.

The shrine's New Year's Eve activities coincided with their plans. It seemed that they were taking the right direction this time.

The last night of the dungeon was unusually peaceful. The ghosts that were originally active in the hotel disappeared this night. Only the night fog flowed outside the window, and occasionally the sound of falling snow breaking dead branches in the yard could be heard.

Other than that, there was no sound. The resentful spirits seemed to be dormant the night before the storm, quietly waiting for the final moment of disaster to come.

Until Dawn, no player died unexpectedly.

It's already December 31st, and New Year's Eve is tonight. According to the clues obtained from the radio, the explosion and fire accident in the hot spring street that killed everyone will also happen tonight.

Early in the morning, the proprietress changed into a beaming yukata and appeared in front of everyone: "Good morning, everyone, it seems that everyone had a good rest last night, and things are looking good."

"Tomorrow is the new year. Every year on the evening of December 31st, the shrines in the hot spring streets will hold New Year's blessing activities, so tonight's curfew is lifted. You can go to the shrine next to "Yunoyu" to pray for the new year.

Make wishes and pray for blessings in the new year." The boss lady began to publish the newly unlocked player tasks.

"Please don't miss this rare event. This shrine on the hot spring street has a long history and is very spiritual. Young men and women who came to the hot springs in the past liked to seek marriage in the shrine, but in fact, everything they pray for is efficacious." The proprietress giggled.

said with a smile.

Players have already understood Xiaomi's story, and now they have mixed emotions about this "very spiritual" shrine.

After two days of repairs, the witch who had wasted a lot of energy has basically recovered.

She used her spirit pendulum to build an energy field that could absorb a large number of vengeful spirits, and also assigned spirit-guiding stones to all players to attract vengeful spirits. Once the plan of "Xiao Mi's wish" failed, she immediately activated the energy field and forcibly converted all players.
To be continued...