VAP - Chapter 169
Chapter 169: The Ruler in the Endless Deep Darkness (2)
In just a few moments, the newcomers had all finished reading the information on the app. They looked up, their expressions a mixture of daze and disbelief.
The scholarly-looking man said seriously, “Since you’ve all finished reading, let’s start with introductions. My name is Kong Wenbin, and I’ve already participated in three of these game instances. These two are my teammates.” He pointed to the man and woman standing on either side of him.
The woman on his left, dressed in a suit skirt like an urban professional, nodded in greeting. “Bi Yan.”
The young man in a short-sleeved shirt on his right had a troubled expression. “Just call me Xiao Wang.”
Kong Wenbin continued, “As a veteran player, I must tell you that this game is extremely dangerous. Please don’t treat it like a joke, and don’t be reckless and drag everyone down. If the mission fails, no one will be safe.”
The chubby young man, who was also a newcomer, stammered, “I know… I-I’ve seen this kind of thing before. You have to enter instances one after another, and if you d-die here, you’re really dead, right?”
Kong Wenbin said, “The first part is mostly correct. As for the matter of death, I can only say that no one has ever seen a player who died in the game. Whether they’re truly dead or not, who knows. After all, the players don’t live in the same world.”
When she heard the first half of his sentence, Yue Du was still recalling what Ah Jiu had said earlier—“You won’t die, you’ll be revived to continue the game”—and was doubting the system’s honesty. But the second half of the sentence made her eyes widen in shock.
The players weren’t from the same world?
“That’s right. For example, have you ever heard of Jindu?” Kong Wenbin asked the chubby young man.
“N-No, I haven’t.”
“Jindu is the capital of the country in our world.” Kong Wenbin shrugged. “So you understand now, right? We’re just a bunch of unlucky souls pulled from various worlds by the game. If we want to go back, we have to play by its rules.”
“There’s one more thing, and it’s quite important… have you heard of the Deep Darkness Pantheon?”
The girl from the couple and the chubby young man hesitated before speaking one after the other.
“I’ve heard of it…”
“M-My classmate told me about it.”
Yue Du remained silent, giving a slight nod to avoid standing out.
In truth, she had never heard of it.
The boyfriend in the couple looked bewildered. “What’s that?”
His girlfriend whispered, “You know that tentacle monster in the mobile game you play all the time? Its prototype is an evil god from the Deep Darkness Pantheon.”
Kong Wenbin glanced around the group. “It’s normal not to know. Not many people in my world have heard of this mythological system either. Its prevalence probably varies from world to world. Before I came to this game, I also…”
“Wenbin, keep it short,” the professional woman reminded him, checking the time on her phone.
“Oh, sorry, sorry. In short, the Deep Darkness Pantheon is the only known commonality among the players’ original worlds, and the game instances are all centered around this mythological system.”
“Take this instance, for example. Based on the game’s hint, the troublemakers are definitely believers of the Deep Darkness…”
“That’s the basic situation. Any other questions?”
The newcomers hesitated, none of them speaking.
Yue Du seized the opportunity to ask, “Do these believers have any supernatural abilities?”
Kong Wenbin replied, “It depends. Some are just ordinary people, while others have received so-called divine gifts and will have undergone a certain degree of mutation.”
He paused, muttering to himself thoughtfully, “It’s hard to say with this instance. The cruise ship is large, there are a lot of people, and we’re at sea with no escape. If those believers are mutants, the difficulty of this instance would be far too high.”
Yue Du nodded and said no more.
Perhaps feeling encouraged, the girl from the couple asked with a trembling voice, “It said people will die… people might die, and maybe everyone on the ship will die. Can we call the police? If we call now, the ship hasn’t left yet, we should have time…”
This time, before Kong Wenbin could speak, Xiao Wang sneered, “You can try calling the police. See if the call even goes through. Or you could try talking to the locals here. Tell them what’s going on and see if they pay you any mind.”
The girl bit her lip and actually took out her phone. The moment she dialed the three digits, her face turned deathly pale. It was unclear what she saw, but she began to tremble and leaned against her boyfriend.
Her reaction spoke for itself.
No one had any more questions.
After that, the other players also exchanged names.
There were four veteran players. Besides Kong Wenbin’s trio, there was a solo female player. She had delicate features and a tall, slender build, looking even taller than Kong Wenbin, probably around 180-something centimeters.
She had been standing quietly to the side during the previous conversation, and even now, she simply said, “My surname is Gao.”
The chubby young man was named Pang Bei. The girl in the couple hadn’t recovered yet, so her boyfriend spoke for both of them. The man was Chen Xi, and the woman was Chi Mu.
It sounded fine on the surface, but a moment’s thought suggested they were fake names, perhaps even their matching online handles.
Yue Du, on the other hand, gave her real name.
Given that the players were from different worlds, making up a fake name on the spot was pointless and could create inconsistencies—their real names were printed on their IDs and cruise tickets.
There was a fanatical believer among the teammates, which meant not only did they have to be wary of that dangerous, unidentified person, but they also had to avoid being mistaken for a believer themselves.
Among the players, there was a team of three and a couple. In comparison, the three solo players were indeed more suspicious…
Yue Du could feel the veteran players subtly sizing everyone up from the very beginning. Their gazes were filled with vigilance and assessment, and they were holding back certain details about the game’s rules.
Even their initial decision not to explain the game directly, but to have them read the app instead, might have been a test.
So far, she hadn’t drawn any extra attention to herself… Yue Du mused, continuing to project the image of a naturally calm newcomer who was trying her best to stay composed but still subconsciously revealing a hint of helplessness.
After a few more words, Kong Wenbin looked down at his watch. “It’s getting late. Everyone should go back to their rooms to settle in, then we’ll meet back down here.”
He had naturally assumed leadership of the group.
As everyone turned to leave, Kong Wenbin added, “By the way, try not to go against what that female tour guide says. She’s a game NPC and generally won’t try to screw players over.”
Chen Xi held his girlfriend’s hand tightly. “Then what we did earlier…”
“She didn’t do anything then, so it’s probably fine,” Kong Wenbin said, adjusting his glasses. “Just don’t do it again.”
The couple meekly agreed.
Yue Du had already followed Ms. Gao out the door.
Her room was on the eleventh floor, so she had to take the elevator. Although elevators are hotspots for horror events in scary movies, this instance didn’t seem to have a supernatural bent, so there was probably no need to avoid it.
Ah Jiu, who had been quietly obedient while the players were talking, became active again, asking in Yue Du’s mind, “You’re not going to believe what that man said more, are you?”
She actually sounded quite aggrieved.
Yue Du didn’t answer directly. “At least he’s a person.”
“You really do prefer humans,” the system sighed softly.
Her tone was a little strange, as if she had known her before. Yue Du began to wonder what she had experienced during that vague period of lost memory.
Then, she said calmly, “Factually speaking, a system that no one else has is indeed very suspicious. If you were to tell me the system is my cheat, that I can redeem divine artifacts, have my own storage space, and that you’ll save my life at critical moments… that would sound great, but I’m long past the age of believing I’m the protagonist.”
With a ding, the elevator doors opened, and Yue Du walked in with Ms. Gao.
At the same time, Ah Jiu said, “I understand your concerns, but it’s okay… just relax and play, Xiao Du.”
This time, her tone held none of its previous grievance. The first half of the sentence was serious enough, but the second half was laced with an indulgent smile, making Yue Du suspect the system had a split personality.
And what did she mean by ‘relax and play’? Relax in a horror game? Was this system trying to get her to lower her guard so she would die in the game?
Despite these thoughts, Yue Du found herself momentarily captivated by that voice, as if she had heard it somewhere before, and she felt a subconscious sense of reassurance.
Then she snapped back to reality, silently chiding herself for her weak resolve and warning herself not to be bewitched by the system with the siren’s voice.
The elevator stopped on the tenth floor. Before the doors had fully opened, Ms. Gao left without a backward glance, leaving Yue Du with a view of her tall back.
That back reminded her of Yue Hao. There weren’t many girls over 180 centimeters tall.
Yue Du lowered her eyes.
Whatever the truth of the game was, she had to go back. Hao Hao was still in college, and also…
A blurry figure leaning against her shoulder suddenly appeared in Yue Du’s mind.
Someone else was waiting for her, too.
Who was it?
The mechanical chime of the elevator’s arrival interrupted Yue Du’s thoughts.
She stepped out of the elevator, carefully burying her questions deep in her heart.
The cabins on the 11th floor were probably a class above those below. As soon as she stepped out of the elevator, a steward wearing a silver-gray bow tie approached, smiling as he asked for her room number.
After seeing the unchanging smile of the NPC tour guide, this kind of professional smile was somewhat creepy. Yue Du politely declined the steward’s offer to lead the way, found her room, and cautiously swiped her card to open the door.
A cool sea breeze greeted her, gently rustling the loose strands of her hair.
It was a cabin with a balcony. The double bed was covered with a striped blanket that had an exotic flair, and a landscape painting in a wooden frame hung above the headboard. The balcony was furnished with a lounge chair and a matching set of a small table and chairs, lacking neither a homey atmosphere nor an artistic touch.
If she weren’t in a horror game, Yue Du would have been very satisfied with such a room and would have thrown herself wholeheartedly into a leisurely vacation.
Yue Du first did a thorough sweep of the room, checking for any illogical furnishings or surveillance devices, but everything was normal.
She also checked the suitcase by the bed. It contained a change of clothes, toiletries, and other travel essentials. It was likely the luggage of that “Yue Du,” which had been checked in advance and delivered to the room by the staff.
Finding nothing unusual, Yue Du checked the time—4:15 PM.
There was still plenty of time before they had to meet.
Yue Du sat down on the sofa and discovered that her phone, quite unscientifically, had an internet connection. After a brief hesitation, she sent a meaningless cat sticker to Yue Hao on WeChat—as expected, it failed to send.
It would be truly frightening if it had gone through. Yue Du sighed and tentatively searched for the Deep Darkness Pantheon in her browser.
The first result was an encyclopedia entry.
The Deep Darkness Pantheon is a mythological system of unknown origin. Its place of origin is unknown, and the time of its formation is unknown, but vague records of this sect appear in the histories of countries all over the world.
It didn’t specify what those records were.
Below, it stated that this pantheon had only seven main gods. They resided outside the universe, outside of time and space, incomprehensible and inscrutable.
It didn’t specify who those gods were, either.
Below the main gods were mysterious cosmic races, all of whom were the kin of the seven main gods. The records of these kin were relatively detailed, but still sparse, merely describing the race’s name, some of their partial features, and where they had appeared before.
There was nothing else.
The contents of this encyclopedia entry only left Yue Du more confused. With so little information, how did this mythological system even get passed down?
But from the other players’ tones earlier, some of them seemed quite knowledgeable about the Deep Darkness Pantheon. In the couple’s world, a monster from this pantheon had even been used as a prototype for a game character.
Was it because their worlds were different?
On the other hand, Yue Du was certain she had never heard of the Deep Darkness Pantheon before, not even similar descriptions or anything about cosmic kin.
Yue Du’s circle included literary and artistic creators, people who could dig up all sorts of interesting settings. If a similar mythological system existed, there was no reason she wouldn’t remember it at all, unless the system was truly obscure.
Or perhaps, the legend of this pantheon simply didn’t exist in her world…
Yue Du exited the page and clicked on the next search result, trying to find more information.
But just then, Ah Jiu suddenly spoke up. “You won’t find anything by searching here. I can be your encyclopedia. You can ask me anything.”
Yue Du asked, “Why can’t I find anything?”
Ah Jiu answered patiently, “Because of this small world’s peculiarity. Although those powerful beings that humans collectively call evil gods aren’t entirely inside this small world, but rather wander outside of it, this small world is being watched more closely… The more you know, the more likely you are to be noticed by them.”
Yue Du: “…”
Yue Du cut straight to the point. “The more you know, the easier it is to be noticed, and yet you’re telling me to ask you?”
That didn’t sound well-intentioned.
After a long, suffocating silence, Yue Du heard a low, teeth-gritting chuckle, as if the system on the other end was amused by her defiance.
“Most of the time, I find your caution and rationality very cute,” Ah Jiu said, a hint of helplessness in her voice. “But in some situations, they are just so infuriating.”
“If you don’t want to listen, I won’t speak. You can go ask those human players. If you still want to know more after hearing their explanation, or if you want to know the truth, then you can come ask me.”
“I will never say no to you.”
Her voice softened, like she was soothing a stray fawn with its ears pricked up in alarm.
Having said that much, Yue Du was actually starting to believe that listening to Ah Jiu’s explanation would be harmless. After all, if the system wanted to speak, it could, without needing her consent. It wasn’t like she could cover her ears and chant, “I’m not listening, I’m not listening.”
Even if she covered her ears, she couldn’t stop the voice from sounding directly in her mind.
However, to be safe, Yue Du still wanted to ask the veteran players first. They were all in the same boat; there was no need to lie about the basic setting.
As for this system’s attitude…
Even if she were dense, she could feel the intimacy, the indulgence, the permissiveness. And if she wasn’t overthinking it, there was even a hint of affection…
Yue Du shivered.
Unable to describe the feeling in her heart, she leaned back against the sofa to compose herself. Only then did she gently press her temples and begin to ponder the game’s hint on her own.
After thinking through the game’s hint and confirming there was nothing more to dig into, she started flipping through the promotional brochure for The Pilgrim that she had received upon boarding. She continued until the wall clock ticked to 4:40 PM, at which point she stood up, ready to go down and meet the others.
When Yue Du arrived at the elevator, the red number on the display next to it showed that it was stopped on the thirteenth floor. She pressed the down button and waited for it to descend.
A moment later, the elevator doors slid open silently. Yue Du was about to step inside when she looked up and paused imperceptibly.
There was only one person in the elevator.
It was a young woman with an outstanding presence. She was tall and slender, her skin a cold white with the texture of fine porcelain or jade. A simple, sleeveless black sheath dress perfectly outlined her curves, and she wore a short, sheer shawl of the same color over her upper body. Her long, wavy hair was swept to one side, casually tied with a silk ribbon.
Yue Du’s gaze uncontrollably drifted upward, taking in the side of her face, past the sharp line of her jaw, her straight nose, and her slightly lowered eyes.
It was a beauty that could make one’s mind go blank, unable to think of anything at all.
As if her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the elevator doors opening, those dark lashes lifted.
She turned her head.
Yue Du immediately averted her gaze and continued her motion of entering and turning around, as if nothing had happened.
The elevator doors were mirrored. Yue Du faced them, pretending to fix her hair while subtly observing the person behind her. This time, she got a clear look at the woman’s face.
Just like her perfect profile, she was an impeccably beautiful woman from the front, possessing both the deep-set features of a Westerner and the delicate refinement of an Easterner. Yet, she was expressionless, her eyes pure black, like a finely carved doll.
Very beautiful, but something was wrong. It was too dangerous.
Whether it was a premonition of some fatal danger or a normal reaction to such a stunningly beautiful face, Yue Du’s heart began to beat erratically. She had to focus a small part of her attention on keeping her breathing steady.
She lowered her hand, pretended to look at her watch, then glanced around as if bored before turning her gaze back.
Just one look, and Yue Du nearly lost her composure on the spot.
Those deep black eyes, at some point, had fixed on her. They were staring at her through the mirrored surface Yue Du was using to observe the person behind her.
Under normal circumstances, Yue Du wouldn’t have thought much of it, at most pondering what a sensation such top-tier looks would cause in her circle, and how she would manage her. But this was a horror game with unknown rules. In an elevator with just the two of them, the person behind her was dressed all in black with pale skin, staring at you without a sound… anyone else in this situation would probably have screamed.
Yue Du’s startled reaction was already impossible to hide, so she didn’t even try. She acted as if she had accidentally met the other’s gaze and been stunned by her beauty, offering a polite smile and a nod to the woman in the mirror.
The other person didn’t react.
It was the system in her head that made a sound first. Ah Jiu seemed to mutter something in displeasure, and the next moment, the woman’s face in the mirror was suddenly covered by a mosaic.
Yue Du: “…”
One shock had barely passed when another arrived.
Wasn’t a sudden mosaic even more terrifying than being stared at by pitch-black eyes?
Yue Du was speechless. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
Ah Jiu offered a completely insincere consolation, “It’s okay. She’s so scary, let’s not look at her.”
“I was already done being scared. You’re the one who just scared me again,” Yue Du pointed out calmly.
The system chose to selectively ignore that statement.
While this internal exchange was happening, the elevator reached the first floor. Yue Du didn’t look again at the beautiful woman, whom she couldn’t quite believe was an irrelevant bystander, and calmly stepped out.
Behind her, the woman tilted her head slightly, the corners of her crimson lips curling up as she followed her out.
However, unlike Yue Du, who went to the meeting point to greet her teammates, she turned and headed in another direction. Her slender figure quickly disappeared from view.
The trio and the chubby young man were already at the meeting point. Their expressions when they saw the woman behind her were just as exaggerated, and that included the lady named Bi Yan.
This made Yue Du breathe a sigh of relief, feeling that her own reaction hadn’t been too out of line.
Xiao Wang reluctantly tore his eyes away, then suddenly shivered and rubbed his arms. “That woman is seriously creepy.”
Kong Wenbin said, “She might be a key character. In games, people with exceptionally striking looks usually aren’t just passersby.” Of course, there were exceptions.
Bi Yan joined the discussion. “She might be an ordinary person with high Spirituality. We’ve had characters like that before. But we definitely need to be careful. If an ordinary person breaks down too quickly, it could cause trouble.”
The chubby young man opened his mouth nervously but said nothing.
Yue Du stood quietly among the players.
A few minutes later, the young couple arrived, supporting each other. They seemed much calmer, likely having adjusted their mindsets during the short time it took to return to their rooms.
At 4:55 PM, Ms. Gao arrived, having changed into sportswear that allowed for easy movement.
At 4:59 PM, a long, monotonous horn blast suddenly echoed across the cruise ship.
At 5:00 PM sharp, with a rumbling sound, the behemoth carrying 3,112 tourists and 1,333 crew members, “The Pilgrim,” smoothly cut through the water.
It was about to cross a narrow strait and enter the open ocean, embarking on a 13-day, 12-night voyage to a foreign continent on the other side of the ocean—if all went well.
At the same moment, the female tour guide standing by the vase in the corner came to life again.
She walked toward the players with stiff steps and a standard smile, saying enthusiastically, “Excellent, everyone is on time! The Pilgrim has set sail, and the vast ocean lies before us. Let’s enjoy the journey ahead! Are you all ready?”
The players forced their lips into smiles and responded with pale, weak voices, “Ready.”
“Not enough enthusiasm! How can you be so listless at the start of the trip?”
“Ready!”
This time, the synchronized response was too loud, drawing surprised looks from passing tourists.
The tour guide was finally satisfied. She turned to walk in another direction, not forgetting to say, “Keep up with me, now.”
A group of adults, trying their best to look relaxed, followed behind the tour guide in a single file line like elementary school students, thus beginning their pleasant journey aboard The Pilgrim.
The grand tour group, ready to enjoy life, moved off into the distance.
On the other side of the elevator, the young woman with pure black eyes emerged.
She gazed in the direction of the players, then suddenly tapped her chin with her index fingertip and said with a faint smile, “Well, this is certainly…”
As if dancing at a ball, she spun in place with light, elegant grace. As she moved, countless extremely fine black threads extended from the hem of her long skirt. They twisted and intertwined with great speed, connecting and coalescing. The threads seemed endless, yet no matter how many were drawn out, the hem of her black skirt showed no sign of shortening.
The threads gradually “wove” a small human figure, that of a young girl. They casually changed color and texture, from head to toe, from bone to flesh.
Cold white, crimson red, pure black. And the pink of muscle tissue.
Hard, soft, slightly firm but easily broken.
Solid, liquid, solid.
In just a few seconds, a little girl of about five or six years old, also dressed in a black dress with black hair and black eyes, stood in the same spot.
The difference was that her dress was a tiered cake skirt, with each layer adorned with white lace.
The young woman looked down, her eyes curving into a smile at the girl. The little girl looked up and smiled back at her, the curve of her smile a perfect replica, without a single difference.
There was no verbal communication, yet they understood each other naturally.
Bystanders were completely unaware of all this. They only saw a little girl suddenly run off with light steps from the side of a young woman who looked similar to her—her older sister, perhaps.
As if chasing something, she scurried through the crowd on her short legs and vanished in the blink of an eye.
The young woman, meanwhile, adjusted the decorative sash hanging at her waist, turned around with a smile on her lips, and walked in the complete opposite direction.
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