No 88

 "Real NPCs haven't been announced either," Jian Hou said, furrowing his brows.

He was a bit worried.

He and Jiang Yan entered the game at the same time, but now he couldn’t see Jiang Yan anywhere.

Real NPCs were different from players. They had to follow the storyline and character paths in the instance, with little freedom.

In fact, Jiang Yan had told him that their current scores and rankings weren’t enough, so they couldn’t choose the instance on their own and had to rely on the main system’s random distribution.

Could it be that the main system had assigned him and Jiang Yan to two different instances?

Teacher Jian’s lips tightened.

He was lucky to run into Tao Shi and Cao Youfeng.

But what about Jiang Yan?

Although his connected system kept emphasizing Jiang Yan’s uniqueness in the game, it was exactly this uniqueness that made him more worried.

"The main quest and the real NPCs in the instance aren’t always announced at the start. Sometimes there’s a delay, just like now. Don’t worry, Teacher Jian. Stick with me and Xiao Feng!" Tao Shi explained, trying to reassure him.

Jian Hou raised an eyebrow. "This task isn’t going to end with something strange like the wedding conditions requiring the male bride to get pregnant, is it?"

Tao Shi laughed and responded, "Don’t worry! Where would they find so many male brides?"

Jian Hou scoffed, "You can’t be sure of that! By the way, why is the main system so obsessed with holding weddings in the instances? Why doesn’t it just quit this horror game and start a wedding planning company instead?"

Tao Shi: "..."

He really wanted to know too!

It felt like the main system had been focusing on "wedding-themed" instances a little too much lately.

Given how dangerous the situation was, why would the main system still be organizing wedding-themed instances?

Is this a funeral or a celebration?

At this moment, the middle-aged man with square glasses cautiously asked, “So, does that mean once we complete the wedding, the task will be finished? And once the task is done, we can leave, right?”

Tao Shi was about to speak, but the colorful-braided boy next to him impatiently interrupted, "Are you an idiot?! It can’t be that simple! Do you know what ‘Jian’ means? This is a horror game!"

Everyone fell silent.

Tao Shi raised an eyebrow, looking at the colorful-braided boy in front of him, who had an arrogant, domineering expression.

If Tao Shi remembered correctly, this boy and the middle-aged man with square glasses were father and son. He had just heard the middle-aged man call the boy "son."

The man with square glasses didn’t get angry; instead, he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck, giving an embarrassed smile. He said to the colorful-braided boy, “Dad’s getting old! I don’t understand these things you young people are into! How long is this game going to last? I still have work!”

The boy with colorful braids impatiently replied, “How long? Can’t you ask your personal system? So annoying! Don’t talk to me!”

The others thought, “... This kid must be in his rebellious phase.”

In the game, unless someone had enough power, being too rebellious could result in the main system punishing you!

[Sigh! He doesn’t realize the consequences of speaking to his dad like that. This might be the last time they’ll talk]

[The poor working father]

[Not necessarily. The poor person might have some faults. Look at how he treats his dad! He’s clearly spoiled him!]

[What are they talking about? Did the main content of this game turn into parent-child education and adolescent mental health counseling?]

The man with square glasses dared not provoke his son again and turned to Tao Shi, asking, “Young man, when does this game end? I still have to work!”

Tao Shi explained, “I don’t know. It ends when the task is completed, but the task hasn’t been announced yet.”

The square-glasses man continued, “I just heard you all talking about participating in a wedding?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a sweet female voice came from not far away:"Yes! Welcome everyone to our little prince's wedding!"

Everyone turned to look.

A beautiful female elf, wearing a gorgeous red dress with blue shimmering butterfly wings and golden hair shining like sunlight, flew toward them, followed by a group of elf maidens.

Upon seeing her, all the other elves kneeled and bowed: "Your Majesty!"

When the Elf Queen flew in front of them, Jian Hou's eyes instantly widened. He turned to Tao Shi and whispered, "Hey! This queen... she looks like that girl from the last instance."

"Don't doubt it, it's her." Tao Shi explained.

Ding!

[Congratulations to the players for unlocking a real NPC—The Elf Queen.]

[Elf Queen—Portrayed by Cang Rou.]

"Wow!" Jian Hou exclaimed to Cang Rou, "Your hair dye is really great!"

Cang Rou didn’t respond, as she was fully immersed in portraying the role of the Elf Queen.

With a divine and dignified smile on her face, Cang Rou addressed the ten players in front of her.

"For our elven wedding, before the little prince weds, he must first undergo a sacred ritual beneath the Mother Tree, and then be escorted to the Giant's Castle to complete the wedding ceremony!"

"The ritual is about to begin! Please follow me to witness the ceremony!" Cang Rou said with a gentle smile.

As soon as she finished speaking, the group of elves parted to the sides, and the Elf Queen, followed by her attendants, led the way.

The players, surrounded by elves, passed through a mushroom gate made of golden ivy, walking along a path covered with a flower-filled grassy carpet.

Inside the elven manor, all the mushroom houses were built from gold, adorned with sparkling gemstones and vibrant flowers. On both sides of the path, there were various shaped trees and oaks, their branches intertwined with beautiful ribbons of different colors.

A group of unknown glowing insects flitted between the branches, scattering bits of phosphorescent powder.

The dreamlike scene in front of Jian Hou left him in a daze.

"It looks like this wedding is actually quite normal and quite magical," Jian Hou remarked.

Thinking about the eerie and terrifying scene they saw when they entered Qingshi Town during the last dungeon, compared to that, this Elf Manor looked as beautiful as a fairytale! They didn’t seem to be in a horror game; it was more like they had entered the Garden of Eden!

After hearing the words from behind, Tao Shì coldly commented, "A warm dream? Look down at your feet."

Jian Hou, not understanding, lowered his head.

At his feet was a carpet of grass covered with fresh flowers, and at first glance, there seemed to be nothing... wait?!

Beneath the green carpet, something black-and-white seemed to be moving.

Those things looked about the size of a thumb, densely overlapping under the carpet. Since black occupied most of it, it seemed like black soil hidden under the flowers and grass. But if you stared at the ground for more than five seconds, you would notice that those black spots were moving, revealing white eyeballs...

Jian Hou's eyes instantly widened!

Beneath the beautiful flowers and green carpet was a huge rug made of human eyes—densely sticking together, hidden beneath the carpet, watching the guests attending the wedding.

Tao Shì sucked in a cold breath, just about to scream, but was immediately silenced by Tao Shì, who covered his mouth.

"Shut up."

At that moment, a small, crisp popping sound came from behind them.

The man with the flat-top haircut, who was walking at the back of the group, carefully moved his foot. Everyone curiously looked down at his feet.

Red liquid mixed with black and white juice exploded like the tapioca pearls in milk tea, and the thin membrane connecting the eyeball to the rest of the body pitifully extended beyond the carpet, gently swaying in the wind.

It turned out that one of the eyeballs had been accidentally crushed when the flat-top man stepped on it.

After seeing what was under his feet, the man’s eyes bulged wide, and a horrible scream escaped from his throat.

"Ah!!!!!"

"Hey—!"

In an instant, the thin membrane that was originally fluttering in the wind, detached from the exploded eyeball, suddenly swelled up! It grew to the size of a tree trunk, and from its tip, a blood-red mouth opened wide, swallowing the flat-top man in one gulp. The scream abruptly stopped.

"Ding!"

【Player Zhu Ming: Eliminated】【Dungeon: "The Bloody Bride of the Giant Clan," Dungeon Progress: 1%】

【Total number of players: 10, Current number of survivors: 9】

【Number of real NPCs: 3, Number not yet corrupted: 31】

"..."

After swallowing Zhu Ming, this thing did not retract. It stood still, as if digesting.

On the dreamlike grassy field, covered with blooming flowers, this blood-red fleshy pillar looked ugly and out of place.

The new players were too frightened to move, their eyes wide with fear.

[What???]

[What the hell is going on?]

[No way... the main quest has a player eliminated immediately upon entry?]

[This is intense!! Not only does the main quest start with such a twist, but even the real NPCs are involved.]

Only one NPC, Cang Rou, appeared. The system prompt mentioned there were three NPCs in total, and the other two hadn't appeared yet.

[Silently praying for the new players, to think they ended up in such a thrilling dungeon right after starting the game.]

After a pause, Yuan Cun nervously pointed at the grotesque blood-red pillar: "It... it..."

Before he could finish, he was interrupted by Cang Rou, the Elf Queen: "I forgot to tell everyone, in Elf Manor, open flames are prohibited, and loud noise is forbidden."

Tao Shì slowly released his hand from covering Jian Hou's mouth and raised an eyebrow at him.

Jian Hou, still shaken, felt goosebumps rise on his back.

What’s going on?

Just entering the game, not even knowing what the main quest was, and a player was eliminated already?

Play, play this big?

At this moment, the dreamlike scenery around him took on an eerie tint in his eyes.

Cang Rou continued with a sweet and charming voice: "If any of you violate the rules of the manor, you will be punished by the manor."

After saying that, she led the group of elves, flying ahead on their own.

The remaining players followed closely behind, each step making a "gudong" sound underfoot. Now, the players realized that the sound came from the densely packed human eyes hidden beneath the grass carpet.

"Gudi, gudi..."

"Gudi... gudi..."

The sound came one after another, representing the bloodshed and death beneath the illusion.

The players couldn’t help but tread more lightly, afraid of stepping on another eye and meeting the same fate as Zhu Ming. But they didn’t dare slow down—no one knew what would happen if they fell behind, so they had no choice but to press on, following the group with bated breath.

At this point, every player felt like a little mermaid exchanging her legs for sound, every step feeling like walking on the edge of a knife.

By the time they reached the Elf Queen's tree, which shone with holy light, all the players' clothes were already soaked with sweat.

Under the guidance of the elves, when they stepped onto the white jade stones by the pool filled with flowers, all the players breathed a sigh of relief!

Finally... no more stepping on eyeballs!

Cang Rou’s sweet voice rang out again: "Dear distinguished guests! This is our Elf Manor's most sacred Hundred Flowers Pool. Our little prince is being baptized here. According to our elven customs, every member of the royal family must undergo a baptism before marriage..."

The players observed the white jade pool in front of them, filled with blooming flowers. The surface of the pool was still and calm, showing no signs of any living creatures. Above the pool, two small, bright elves continuously sprinkled petals into the water.

Seeing this, Jian Hou muttered, "This little prince won’t be drowned in flower petals, will he?"

"It shouldn’t be," Tao Shì stroked his chin and speculated. "It doesn’t make sense for the wedding to not have begun, and yet the bride dies first."

"By the way, why is the little prince getting married? Shouldn’t he be marrying a princess?" Jian Hou asked curiously.

"Didn’t you hear the main system say it’s the wedding of the little prince of the Elf Kingdom and the King of the Giant Clan? Of course, the little prince is the one getting married," Cao Yufeng said.

Yu Jia, with an unlit cigarette in his mouth, sneered and said, "I have a feeling this little prince might be someone I know!"

[Someone you know? Could it be Sang Luan?!]

[It seems very likely!]

[This dungeon is also S-rank, but it’s clearly more difficult than an ordinary S-rank!]

At this moment, the two small elves flying in midair, scattering flower petals into the pool, announced:

"The baptism is complete!"

With that, all the elves began to move.

The elves surrounded the pool in several circles, leaving a small space under the Elf Queen’s tree. They used flowers to encircle this space, and a few elves in red robes spread a high-quality red velvet carpet on it.

The two elves who had been pouring flowers from baskets into the pool casually threw the baskets aside, then flapped their wings and dove headfirst into the flower pool.

The petals instantly flew into the air.

Everyone held their breath, waiting. The elves were waiting for their little prince, while the players were filled with curiosity about this little prince.

"Such thick flowers didn’t suffocate him, so he must be someone important," Jian Hou commented.

As soon as his words fell, the two elves flew back, supporting a young boy, and before the crowd could see him clearly, the elves wrapped him up in the expensive red velvet carpet.

The small, naked little prince half-lay on the ground, his skin, like white cheese, was set off by the blood-red velvet carpet. Transparent golden wings sprouted from his pure white butterfly-like bones, trembling gently with his breaths, scattering fine golden powder.

"Cough, cough, cough..."

He coughed out the remaining flower petals from his throat, scooped up the red velvet carpet on his body, and covered himself. His black hair softly and obediently clung to his forehead, and his eyes, a mix of red and blue, were filled with moisture, looking incredibly pitiable.

After seeing the little prince, the players reacted differently:

"Wow..." A player with colorful braids exclaimed in amazement.

"Wow!" Tao Shì and Cao Yufeng admired the scene, their tone tinged with a hint of schadenfreude.

"Wow... what?!" Jian Hou's eyes nearly popped out of his head, his face full of disbelief.

"Heh, I told you it’s someone I know," Yu Jia sneered.

The game forum went quiet for a moment, then began to flood with messages:

[Jiang Yan?! It’s really him?!!]

[Ahhhh, it’s really him!!!]

[Hahahaha, how is it him again?!]

[Someone familiar! It really is someone familiar, Yu Jia’s prediction was spot on!]

[Does the system have a secret crush on him? It must have a crush on him!! Otherwise, why is he the bride again?!"]

[Maybe he has a widow’s look? His face and these eyes are just too hot]

"Ding!"

【Congratulations to all players for unlocking the real NPC—Elf Prince】

【Elf Prince—Played by Jiang Yan】

Jiang Yan spat out the last flower petal from his mouth, angrily wiped his lips, and a trace of cold malice briefly flashed in his eyes.

This stupid system! It’s clearly playing with me on purpose!

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