Chapter 10: The Bride of the Enigmatic King (10)

At the same time, a pile of items fell to the ground.

[Worn Bamboo Umbrella (F)]: An old bamboo umbrella, weathered by the passage of years. Open it, and perhaps it can rebound several attacks from the waters of the River of Forgetfulness.

[Bloody Scissors (F)]: Can kill F-level specters, and inflict a certain degree of harm on E-level ones.

[Butterfly Whistle (F)]: Summons the Underworld Butterfly.

[Paper Bride (F)]: Attach this paper talisman to another object to redirect a specter’s attack toward that item.

There were four people present.

So, four items dropped.

Earlier, when they killed the headless ghost chef, only Tang Mu and Xue Fen were there, so just two items had fallen.

It seemed the more people there were when a monster was killed, the more items would drop.

“The specter was killed by Sister Tang Mu, so she should distribute the items,” someone suggested.

Tang Mu did not stand on ceremony. “I’ll take the bamboo umbrella. Zhou Qianqian gets the Paper Bride. As for the scissors and the whistle…”

Joser spoke up at once, “I’ll take the butterfly whistle.”

The Red Bridal Paper Doll and the Paper Bride were two different tools—one for offense, one for defense.

He already possessed a formidable offensive item; if he took the scissors as well, Tang Mu might well expel him from the team.

So in the end, the scissors went to Ke Yongfeng. Ke Yongfeng let out a sigh of relief.

Between him and Zhou Qianqian, one had an offensive tool, the other a defensive one—they should be able to survive.

“Have you had dinner yet? I’m a bit hungry,” Zhou Qianqian said suddenly. “Ke Yongfeng and I haven’t eaten. But the food in the vending machines is inedible.”

“On this whole ship, probably only the things in Granny Ghost’s kitchen can be eaten,” Tang Mu replied. “If you want to go, you’ll have to do it yourself.”

Zhou Qianqian suddenly burst into tears. “You’re so strong, can’t you take us with you? I’m scared…”

“Sorry,” Tang Mu refused coolly, “You’re not my teammate. Saving you does me no good.”

She had already given Zhou Qianqian and Ke Yongfeng two items.

She had done more than enough.

What more did they want?

Unexpectedly, Zhou Qianqian bore a grudge.

She snatched the scissors from her teammate and lunged at Tang Mu.

She knew Tang Mu held the worn bamboo umbrella, which could fend off the waters of the River of Forgetfulness. So the scissors—surely they could hurt Tang Mu…

But—

Someone had already stuck the Red Bridal Paper Doll on Zhou Qianqian’s back.

She turned to Joser in terror.

She could feel the presence of death closing in on her.

A cackling, sinister laughter rang out.

Suddenly, over a hundred ghostly hands appeared on the ship, exactly like those at the mouth of the River of Forgetfulness.

The ghostly hands bound Zhou Qianqian and dragged her off the ship.

All the while, Zhou Qianqian screamed and raved.

“Save me, please save me…”

“I hate you all!”

“Even in death, I won’t let you go…”

Screams echoed, fading as she was dragged away.

At the same time, Ke Yongfeng met his end.

He too was dragged by ghost hands into the sewer.

It was a gruesome scene, but their F-grade forbidden items were left behind.

“Looks like luck’s on our side,” Joser said, picking up the dropped items. “A pair of bloody scissors (F) and the Paper Bride (F). I’ll take the scissors. As for the Paper Bride…”

He glanced from Tang Mu to Xue Fen. “Miss Tang, why don’t you take it?”

Tang Mu did not hesitate.

“Looks like it’s time for us to part ways,” she said, pointing at the items in Joser’s hand. “You’re a seasoned enough player now. Time to explore on your own.”

As expected.

Joser pulled a wounded face. “Hey, I did just use my item to save your life. Kicking me aside now is a bit heartless, don’t you think?”

“As if you didn’t want the scissors all along.”

Tang Mu ignored him, dragging Xue Fen away.

She hadn’t expected, though, that Granny Ghost would suddenly appear in the cargo hold below.

Her eyes were clouded and chilling, fixed on Tang Mu and the others as if she were staring at corpses.

Xue Fen immediately doused her with water.

But Granny Ghost was completely unfazed.

A D-level specter.

Utterly unafraid of F-grade items.

Were they doomed to die here?

But Granny Ghost did not immediately attack.

She only said, “I can’t find the headless ghost chef. Can one of you go to the kitchen and tell him to bring me a glass of blood?”

No one knew why Granny Ghost was so insistent on sending players to the kitchen.

Even a fool could tell something was wrong.

Tang Mu secretly gripped the Paper Bride in her hand.

“What if I refuse?”

“If you refuse, I’ll drink your blood instead!” The system had finally given her permission to kill—a moment Granny Ghost relished.

Seeing her about to attack, Tang Mu spoke quickly. “Your granddaughter is in the hands of the Ghost King, isn’t she?”

Granny Ghost’s movements froze.

“Rather than killing people here, why not work with us? We’ll help you sneak into the Ghost Palace and rescue your granddaughter Yaya. But you have to guarantee our safety.”

Granny Ghost sneered, full of contempt. “You?”

“You may not believe it, but we’re the only ones who can get close to the Ghost King,” Tang Mu said, arms folded and smiling. “Isn’t that so?”

For a moment, Granny Ghost’s expression twisted and hardened.

She didn’t want to admit it.

But it was true.

After a long inner struggle, she finally said, “Come with me.”

Joser, seeing Tang Mu and Xue Fen follow Granny Ghost, hurried after them.

But Tang Mu turned and fixed him with a stare.

Joser immediately caved. “Alright, how about I let you hold onto the scissors for now?”

He was just being polite.

To his surprise, Tang Mu nodded.

“Give them here.”

Joser: “…”

Only after securing the scissors did Tang Mu let him tag along.

As for Xue Fen, his look toward Joser was anything but friendly.

This bothersome nuisance.

Once they cleared this dungeon, he’d tweak the matchmaking system so Joser could never be matched with Tang Mu again!

They followed Granny Ghost to the kitchen.

Inside, everything was a deep, blood-red hue.

Who knew how many people had died here?

Every glass was filled to the brim.

The stench of blood was overwhelming.

And standing in the kitchen was another headless ghost chef.

Tang Mu frowned. Hadn’t she already killed him?

“The one here and the one you killed on the upper deck are twins,” Granny Ghost explained. “They’re connected, so this one knows you killed his brother.”

Then why had Granny Ghost sent Tang Mu to fetch a glass from the kitchen?

Wasn’t that sending her to her death?

“D-level specters can’t kill people directly in this dungeon. We need F-level specters to do it for us,” Granny Ghost said, glancing at Tang Mu. “If you’d listened and come to the kitchen, you’d have been the fifth victim of the headless chef’s brother.”

As expected.

Tang Mu’s eyes grew cold and dark.