The police officer’s words befuddled everyone.
But after the shock, a deep-set horror set in.
The trainees were brazenly outsiders in every instance, except in the roleplaying mode where they had to act out defined personas. Be that as it may, whatever the mode, there were no NPCs in horror instances that would tell them ‘we know where you come from’ just as brazenly.
Instance NPCs being aware that they were NPCs in an instance could be likened to book characters being aware that they were characters in a book. It was ridiculous and utterly outlandish.
“Hold on.”
Anthony took a step forward, blocking everyone. “Should we follow you out just because you told us to? What if there is something else at play?”
Xu Su, who had subconsciously stepped forward, immediately stepped back. He cautiously looked at his uncle in front.
Faced with their caution, the sympathy in the police officer’s eyes deepened.
“We know that you are from the infinite loop. It must be unsettling to suddenly enter an instance like this, however…”
Openly distrustful, all of them even took out their special props.
First was the unorthodox plot introduction, and then came the appearance of loved ones from the real world. Then, recalling the intimate encounter that each of them experienced in the plot introduction, this series of strange happenings cast the instance, Judgement Day, under a mysterious shroud.
They were not bumbling newcomers but experienced trainees. They wouldn’t go so easily with the police officer.
Furthermore, although they didn’t have shadows, the police officer also didn’t have one. Nobody could tell if he was friend or foe.
Zong Jiu glanced towards the bespectacled Zhong Yiyuan. The latter discreetly took off his glasses, turning a pair of pitch-black eyes towards the police officer.
It was general knowledge that black eyes would normally only appear on the supernatural. When it was a living human in possession of them, they were termed Yin-Yang Eyes.
Zhong Yiyuan had just that: a pair of eyes that could see beyond the veil.
But after scanning the surroundings and finding no abnormalities, he calmly perched his glasses back on his nose, shaking his head at the white-haired Magician, indicating that he had not found anything out of place.
As Anthony had vouched for him, everyone knew that Zhong Yiyuan’s Yin-Yang Eyes were close to first-rate.
When seeing through Yin-Yang Eyes of that rank, it was virtually impossible for the supernatural to remain hidden. Even if the actual shape stayed unknown, it would definitely be unable to hide its resentment.
Standing to one side, Xu Su was truly unable to restrain his curiosity. He asked in a low voice, “Brother, how do ghosts look to you if you were to see one.”
Zhong Yiyuan also lowered his voice, seriously educating the other, “In general, their spiritual bodies look like a dense, dark cloud floating in the air with no discernible facial features.”
“I see,” Xu Su was enlightened.
“Let’s try this instead.”
The stalemate had drawn out for too long. The police officer massaged his temples.
Seeing this, nostalgia hit Xu Su like a brick.
His uncle in the real world also often did that action when on a case.
“We will issue you weapons first. Hopefully that will be enough to gain your trust.”
Weapons?
The trainees exchanged looks at one another.
Soon, someone knocked on the door again.
The person who entered this time wasn’t a uniformed police officer but regular townsfolk.
But it was not quite accurate to call them townsfolks, because they bore resemblance to people that a few trainees in their team recognised, even greeting the stunned trainees.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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Ktf qbilmf boolmfg kfca bnfg jcv ecibmxfv atf mgjaf, fzqbrlcu atf lafwr lcrlvf ecvfg atf rec.
Pa kjr j mgjaf oeii bo olgfjgwr.
Xfcelcf uecr klat rwbbat yijmx ilcfr, agluufgr ojrafcfv klat ijamtfr, fjmt rfjifv lc qijralm mjrfr atja clmfis ola j uec.
The glow emanating from them clearly set them apart as special props.
[HUH, these are B-rank props, right? And they’re giving them out just like that?]
[I can’t believe it, you actually can get so lucky even in an S-rank instance? Giving out props for free like candy? B-rank props don’t come by so easily; you can’t just pick them up from the side of the road. If they were giving E-rank props, however, I wouldn’t be so surprised.]
[Incredible. I just popped over to see Master Zhuge’s instance. They entered a deadly labyrinth… It was so scary. Two from their team fell just minutes into the instance, and they were veterans at that. And then over here, I mean. Let’s not talk about the fair weather, but they’re even distributing special props! Can there be any instance better than this?!]
It was obvious that this move threw even the trainees for a loop.
It was only after everyone was indeed issued a gun that the system notification rang out and jolted them back to their senses.
[Congratulations to the trainees for obtaining a B-rank prop: Purification Gun.]
[Prop ability: Can be used without having to reload bullets. It is an essential purification prop before Judgement Day that is super effective against evil.]
[Note: This is an exclusive prop to the S-rank instance Judgement Day. Once leaving the instance, the props will lose effect.]
Purification Guns?
Everyone exchanged bewildered looks with each other.
Right on beat, the police officer spoke, “Have you heard of Judgement Day?”
Suspicion lingered on the trainees’ faces, but they nodded in unison.
Judgement Day, from the Book of Revelation in the Bible.
The scripture said that at the end of time, Jesus Christ would conduct a final judgement on the world.
The living would receive judgement and so would the dead, who would rise from their graves and receive equal judgement.
Christ would sit on a high throne. Angels would weigh the good and evil of man on scales, making the ultimate decision whether the soul should ascend to heaven or descend to hell.
After the dealing of judgement, fire and brimstone would rain from the sky, and the earth surface would rupture and throw out molten lava.
Believers of Christ would be left unharmed, while sinners would be consumed by the fires of hell, atoning for their sins.
“That makes things easier since you already know. You should have seen the townsfolk before this and heard that Judgement Day is in seven days.”
The police officer sighed. “Now, draw your sleeve and look at your wrist.”
Everyone did as instructed. The next moment, several of them shouted in surprise.
Seven black lines uniformly appeared on their wrists.
“These seven black lines represent the seven cardinal sins on earth, namely: pride, envy, wrath, sloth, greed, gluttony, and lust.”
“The only way to peacefully get through Judgement Day is by getting rid of these seven black lines before the seven days are up.”
While speaking, the police officer headed out, opening the door.
“But if even one black line remains, on Judgement Day, you will be struck down by divine fire, consumed by molten lava beneath the ruptured earth, and Saint Michael will nail you on a red cross in the abyss of darkness to burn for all eternity.”
There it was. The kicker that everyone was waiting for.
Ever since receiving the main task, everyone was clear that Judgement Day was not something that they could easily clear. If it was that easy, it wouldn’t be called a group instance.
Zong Jiu raised a hand. “Why don’t I have anything on my arm?”
He had just glanced around and found that each of the trainees in his team had seven black lines on their hands.
Except for him.
Startled, everyone gathered around and found out that the white-haired young man’s arm was actually completely unmarred.
At the sight, the police officer slapped his thigh. “Oh, so you’re the one that Sister Mary was talking about. The child who is innately holy.”
Innately holy?
Some voiced their confusion.
“Someone who is innately holy is untouched by the seven cardinal sins. Such a person is, by their nature, able to ascend to heaven.”
The police officer patiently explained, “Our town’s most revered young pope is also innately holy. He can peacefully get through Judgement Day.”
“He can even help others absolve their sins. After all, it is not possible that a person can be without sin, am I right? So, we often visit the confessional in the cathedral and the black lines on our hands will disappear naturally.”
A method to get rid of the black lines!
The trainees looked around, forming strategies in their heads.
The ‘young pope’ that the police officer mentioned had to be a breakthrough.
Xu Su asked tentatively, “Can we meet him?”
“Of course you can.”
The police officer seemed to speak from experience. “Our town welcomes everyone, but there have been other visitors who have tried confessing to the pope in vain. You will have to absolve your sins by other methods.”
“Also, more precisely, I am the only police officer in this small town. As for why that is, you will find out when you head outside with me later. It was the pope’s idea to issue you the guns. The pope will share how you are going to absolve your sins in the next seven days in the cathedral, so don’t worry.”
At this point, it would be impolite to still insist against going out.
“Wait.”
Zong Jiu raised a hand, gesturing for the other to give him a moment.
He turned around, directly drawing a card on the spot.
The question was naturally whether or not the officer was lying about everything he’d just said.
The result: Justice, in the upright orientation.
The meaning was unimportant. What was important was that the garrulous tale the police officer had just shared was actually without a single falsehood.
It was almost preposterous.
However, all this was nothing compared to the surprise they received upon walking out of the house.
After being washed by the unknown golden light, the small town underwent a transformation, looking spick and span.
Water sprinkled tirelessly from the brick fountain in the middle of the square, creating a shimmering rainbow. A delicious aroma wafted over from a roadside stand where a bakery had baked buttered bread and salad dressing.
The weather was sunny and beautiful.
All the townsfolk were gathered around the house.
After the trainees walked out, they couldn’t contain their expressions.
Because all those gathered around were people they held dear. A huge golden retriever bounded over from afar and jumped straight into Anthony’s arms.
“Su Darling!”
“Gosh, Little Yuan, why do you look so stern.”
“Come over, granny misses you so much.”
The appearances, the mannerisms, the voices; even the memories.
They were exactly the same.
Even knowing that this was fake, no one was able to stay aloof.
“No, this is not a lie.”
The police officer at the lead seemed to sense their thoughts, looking over his shoulder. “Ever heard of the Ship of Theseus? It’s not relevant, but it does serve as a reference.”
The Ship of Theseus.
It was an extremely famous thought experiment.
When a ship voyaged through the sea, it would age, and its planks would rot and have to be replaced. Supposing the ship voyaged long enough, disregarding external conditions, there would eventually come a day that all the planks on the ship would have been replaced.
When that happened, would it still be the Ship of Theseus?
“What constitutes a person’s identity? Their thoughts, memories, appearance, voice, logical reasoning, analytical thinking, or their personality traits?”
“We have it all, including the social connections we enjoyed and our love for you. You can even head to the hospital in town and get a DNA test to determine the relationship between us. In anthropology, this is defined as kinship.”
“Bu-But this is different!” Xu Su shouted.
“How so? It is unnecessary to mentally compare us with the real world; we have all the essential elements.”
“And how can you be certain that the ‘real world’ you have experienced is not just another horror instance?”
The police officer was composed. “You should have received the main task from the system. This instance is unlike any other that you have experienced. Life is beautiful here, much better than you can imagine.”
“Furthermore, as long as you survive Judgement Day, you can stay in this instance indefinitely without fear of obliteration. Of course, if you wish to return one day, you can also choose to return to the infinite loop. The choice is in your hands. Neither we nor the system will interfere with your decision.”
“How is that possible?”
Anthony, who was crouching down and stroking his golden retriever, suddenly scoffed. “Since you guys already know so much, I’m not going to beat around the bush. I might as well say it straight.”
“Before joining the Thriller Trainee competition, the system had stated that only a hundred trainees could survive. What you’re saying now is all well and good, but what guarantee do you have that if we choose not to return in the end, that we would not be obliterated by the system the moment the instance closes?”
The officer sighed. “You can seek the answer from the system directly.”
Right after, an icy cold mechanical voice resounded through the air.
[This S-rank instance is a miniature world.]
[As long as the instance’s main task is completed, trainees can choose to stay in the instance and will not be at risk of being wiped by the system.]
Translated by 🎏
Edited by Ashen, snoflakesun
t/n. Ling is back and will be taking over next Thu~
Thank you for the chapter!
Thanks for the update!
thank you❤️❤️
Thank you!
Waiting for this pope to be a certin someone…
Or controlled by him…
If not I’ll be sad lol
Holy person is evil incarnate…perfect. lol
I didn’t even think of that, I actually thought it might be the other Zong
I didn’t even think of that, I actually thought it might be the other Zong Jiu, the og owner of the body our Zong Jiu inhabits! But he’d be in our Zong Jiu’s og body. It’s super convoluted but I thought it’d be a cool twist since we don’t know what happend to him
thank you for the chapter!
Holy Number 1,,, hahahaha! Thanks for the update 🤣❤️🤣❤️🤣
Woohoo
»Instance NPCs aware that they were NPCs in an…« It sounds strange (the part with the book characters too). Is it maybe smth like “being aware”?
That instance sounds like a big fat trap. I can’t trust anything there lol
Thx for the ch (ㅅ˘ㅂ˘)
Corrected, thanks (o)
Never forget that there’s always a catch and nothing ever comes for free. “If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
Cheering for our holy child Zong Jiu <3 Thanks for the chapter!
Thank you for the chapter!
My answer is “no”. An exact copy of my grandmother with my grandmother’s memories is still not my grandmother, just like my grandmother, who at the end of her life forgot almost everything, was still my grandmother. It is not important that this is the “same” person, but the connection between us.
Thank you very much for the translation 🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡
So what I’m getting from this is that they’re gonna have to kill their fake loved ones in order to pass judgement day. Nice, this author/system is freaking evil.
Ty! And this arc is pretty fishy ngl….
There’s probably more to it, but if Zong Jiu was actually free of all sins, it would be quite ironic since in theory he should be the least moral due to his lack of emotions. But at the same time it would make sense considering his stoic and indifferent personality. Kind of complicated but interesting to think about. Zong Jiu’s such an unique type of a protagonist from psychological perspective.
It also seems that Zhuge An sacrificed his safety so that mc could go through this instance. damn. I hope nothing bad happens to him.
I actually think it makes sense! Think about it, he has no desires of his own, just like what the nun said, he acts according to people’s expectations. All of the things he personally desires bring joy to others too, such as keeping his promises and doing his magic tricks. Objectively, he doesn’t feel any of the 7 sins because he doesn’t really ‘feel’ anything
It’s like living in your “perfect world”
I don’t think it’s that easy…
This just feels uncomfortable ヘ（。□°）ヘ I want this instance destroyed please