ICTEUWMN Chapter 150.2

The guide smiled as he escorted the two guest players to the entrance, then waved goodbye.

Not far behind Ernis, the next group of players consisted of Yu Mian and Huo Ting, both wearing hats and masks.

“Shh…”

Just after passing the ticket check and verifying his identity ID, Yu Mian raised a finger to his lips and shushed the staff member in front of him, who had looked up in excitement upon recognizing him.

If they were discovered now, they might not be able to enter.

The staff member, after making eye contact with Yu Mian, couldn’t help but feel elated and surprised. His gaze unconsciously shifted to Yu Mian’s companion.

He was also wearing a black mask, and really tall…

“Thank you.”

Yu Mian took the mini golden lock light brain pendant issued after the ticket check, nodded with a smile, then pulled Huo Ting inside.

The ticket checker stood there dumbfounded, watching the two figures disappear.

‘Help! Teacher Fish Soup Noodles and his friend actually came to experience the haunted house!’

He already thought it was incredibly lucky to have just checked in a big star like Ernis.

“Was that really Teacher Fish Soup Noodles just now?”

A colleague beside him lowered his voice, unable to believe it.

“For real! And he even smiled at me!”

The staff member who had personally checked the ticket couldn’t help but hold his face, feeling as if he was about to burst with happiness.

Although he couldn’t see his facial features clearly because of the mask and the hat, when he met those smiling eyes, he inexplicably felt like his heart was being struck.

How lucky would someone have to be to experience a haunted house with Teacher Fish Soup Noodles?

Meanwhile, Yu Mian looked around the waiting area with excitement and curiosity, and was unable to stop himself from swaying Huo Ting’s hand.

After all, “I Picked Up A Traveling Light Brain” had been serialized for so long, and now that another dungeon arc had wrapped up, he finally had a day off. Of course, he was happy.

It was even rarer that both he and Huo Ting were free at the same time.

“I’ll be responsible for finding clues, and you’ll implement my deductions. We’ll do this, and then that…”

While waiting for the previous group, Ernis and his team, to finish their turn, Yu Mian seriously studied an introductory guide and began discussing their strategy with Huo Ting.

“Mm.”

Huo Ting lowered his eyes and nodded seriously.

His well-behaved response made Yu Mian subconsciously glance up at him. Noticing Yu Mian’s gaze, Huo Ting raised an eyebrow, puzzled.

“Nothing, I’m just impressed by how seriously you’re listening. Consider this a little praise.”

Yu Mian suppressed a laugh and replied in a low voice.

Ever since Huo Ting had recklessly thrown gifts in the live broadcast room and was publicly criticized by Yu Mian, the phrase “personally called out” had become a popular joke in the Fish fan community.

As a result, Huo Ting had somehow earned the title of “the most pitiful Fish fan”. After all, he was the first fan to get singled out by Fish Soup Noodles, who was usually known for his particularly good-natured personality. But in a way, wasn’t that also a special honor?

Yu Mian felt embarrassed when he read these discussions, people made it seem like he had bullied Huo Ting. But seriously, in what way was this guy pitiful?

Fine, if criticism was given before, then today, he would give praise.

“Does this praise come with a reward?”

Huo Ting chuckled softly and asked.

After all, the last time he got “criticized”, Yu Mian almost closed his account that night.

In the next moment, Yu Mian reached out and pressed his hand against Huo Ting’s face.

“No! Ahem, did you remember those key points? We’re about to enter.”

Just then, the guide signaled that the next group could proceed. Yu Mian immediately stood up and pulled Huo Ting toward the haunted house entrance.

Their two figures rushing toward the grand doorway instantly caught everyone’s attention.

Although Yu Mian was shorter than Huo Ting, his proportions were well-balanced, and the exposed section of his wrist was fair and delicate.

As for Huo Ting, there was no need to mention, his height and physique alone exuded an imposing presence.

[Fuck, why do I feel like this team has a really good chance??]

[Hahaha, don’t forget that people were saying the same thing about Ernis just before he went in…]

The moment they passed the first live broadcast checkpoint, many viewers took immediate notice of this new pair of players.

Though, their initial guesses were quickly refuted by others.

Because Ernis had already set a historic precedent for an absolute disaster.

[I’ve decided that from now on, Ernis will be known as the “King of Big Talk”. What’s it like to be so scared that you jump onto your younger brother?]

[Hahaha, even through my screen, I can sense how speechless his little brother is. This was literally the haunted house experience with the noob older brother.]

Although the “Afurong Wedding Dress” haunted house was inspired by an arc from the novel, it also incorporated many additional traditional Chinese horror elements.

For example, the classic red embroidered shoes by the bedside, the ghost baby crying at midnight, the paper men swaying eerily in the wind…

The appearance of each classic element was like a mental attack, making people feel cold all over.

The key point was that Yu Mian had even provided the Piedmont Park haunted house design team with reference materials on tomb raiding, which they cleverly integrated into the storyline about the brides buried in the backyard.

Players in the haunted house were randomly assigned different starting identities.

This was why, despite the numerous live broadcasts, there were no fully detailed guides available.

Some players received the role of a bride in a wedding sedan like Si Yao, which allowed them to follow the novel’s plot and uncover secrets.

Others, however, were assigned completely new identities, such as tomb robbers.

They would start off stumbling into a mass grave and finally grope their way to the house in the backyard and piece together the tragic fate of the brides.

Unfortunately for him, Ernis had drawn the newest identity: a tomb robber.

Just trying to navigate the various tomb traps and puzzles with his younger brother Douglas had already pushed him to the brink of a mental breakdown.

The so-called strategy guide in his hand might as well have been a horror story.

Certain places lighting up indicated safety, while in others, a sudden extinguishing of the light signified great danger. A change in the light’s color often foretold the arrival of a “ghost”…

Throughout the entire journey, Ernis’ screams never ceased, leaving countless fans in the live broadcast room stunned.

[I feel like Xiao Er has the worst luck. Out of all the player identities drawn so far, none have been as exciting as his… But at the same time, I’m shocked…Xiao Er, you’ve been pretending all this time, haven’t you?!]

[Hahaha, meanwhile, his younger brother is surprisingly brave. The contrast between the two is just too cute.]

[Fuck, a ghost appeared!]

In the pitch-black tomb chamber, Ernis and his brother Douglas had been nervously solving puzzles. When they finally discovered the escape passage and let out a heavy sigh of relief, Ernis leaned against the “person” beside him, wiping his sweat as he spoke to Douglas.

“Why do I feel like you’ve gotten shorter lately…”

“What do you mean shorter? I just found another key fragment over here.”

However, Douglas’s voice came from the dark corner on the other side of the tomb.

Ernis: …?

Then who was he leaning on?

At that moment, every muscle in Ernis’ body stiffened. His head turned mechanically, bit by bit, toward the presence beside him.

The matchmaker from the story, who had turned from a rat, was smiling at him. In the darkness, her eyes glowed with an eerie red light.

“AHHHHHHHHH!!”

A blood-curdling scream rang out so sharply that even fans waiting outside the haunted house could vaguely hear it.

“Uh, did I just hear someone screaming? Is this part of the NPC sound effects?”

Yu Mian looked up sharply.

Though he had participated in some aspects of the haunted house’s story design, he was certain that this particular haunted house scenario did not include ghosts shrieking around players.

After all, that wouldn’t quite align with the subtle aesthetics of traditional Chinese horror.

“That’s not an NPC. It’s a player, Ernis, from the previous group.”

Although he had only met Ernis a few times, Huo Ting immediately recognized his voice and looked slightly amused.

So… what exactly had he seen?

“Ernis’ voice? Now that you mention it…yeah, that really sounds like him. Do you think he’ll still be able to sing after screaming his lungs out? His manager is definitely going to scold him again.”

With Huo Ting’s reminder, Yu Mian quickly realized the voice did indeed belong to Ernis.

What should they do? Even though the situation sounded tragic, they just couldn’t help but laugh.

Compared to the previous groups of players, Yu Mian and Huo Ting’s teamwork in solving puzzles and progressing through the haunted house was undeniably eye-catching.

After watching so many groups, the viewers were seeing a duo that worked together with such seamless cooperation and clear division of roles for the first time.

The one in the light-colored jacket was clearly responsible for solving the puzzles. Every time they encountered an obstacle, he would pause, think, and swiftly uncover the key to moving forward…he was also extremely familiar with the haunted house’s storyline.

[I’m starting to suspect he has a cheat code! How does he always make the right choices QAQ]

[+1, it’s like he has a god’s perspective or something, I can’t even keep up with what’s happening!]

If Yu Mian were to explain, it was simply a matter of deconstructing the underlying logic of the haunted house.

The puzzle-solving mechanics of a Chinese horror haunted house should be approached from the perspective of the female ghosts. They were terrifying, but often, they were also tragic and deserving of sympathy.

Injustice and resentment in their lifetimes led them to become vengeful spirits after death, seeking retribution.

Thus, any direct confrontation with these female ghosts would only slow down the haunted house’s exploration.

That was precisely why many interstellar players, who excelled in other haunted houses, kept stumbling in “Afurong Wedding Dress”.

[But isn’t the other guy even more suspicious?!]

Huo Ting’s performance was indeed even more jaw-dropping.

During the segment where they assisted the officials in chasing down the “visitor”, a weasel demon, Yu Mian suddenly realized that having Huo Ting with him was basically like cheating.

This guy’s aim was too precise.

The haunted house had provided primitive bow-and-arrow crossbows so that interstellar readers could experience traditional archery in a simple way.

In the mini-game challenge, players only needed to slightly hinder the weasel demon’s escape to be considered successful and receive the next set of clues.

As a result, after trying it a few times, Huo Ting pulled the bowstring on his third attempt, aimed, and, in one fluid motion, shot an arrow that pinned the weasel demon directly to the wall.

Even Huo Ting frowned slightly in some surprise, and turned to Yu Mian as if asking, “was that okay?”.

“No, no problem. That was… beautifully done.”

Yu Mian stared at the suddenly skyrocketing progress bar, momentarily at a loss for words.

Perhaps the haunted house designers at Piedmont Amusement Park had truly forgotten to account for players with special combat skills breaking the game’s mechanics.

Because with the weasel demon’s death, a large part of the plot was skipped afterwards.

[This team is definitely breaking records, right?!]

[I checked the time, and they absolutely will! They’re already about to catch up to Ernis’ group! One is progressing too fast, while the other is way too slow.]

The live broadcast of the “Afurong Wedding Dress” haunted house already had a high number of online viewers, and now, with Yu Mian and Huo Ting’s performance, the numbers were climbing even higher.

Everyone was eager to witness the birth of a new record.

In fact, when Yu Mian finally found the last necessary prop, the opium ledger belonging to Master Liu, and handed it over to the imperial officials, the Little Sister’s ghost appeared in the haunted house’s central area as a holographic projection.

Piedmont had designed the sister, a highly popular character, with remarkable detail. However, not every haunted house player managed to reach this stage of the game.

If their exploration score was insufficient, the best outcome they could achieve would be a standard escape, without uncovering the hidden secrets of the Liu Mansion. The souls of the girls would remain trapped in agony beneath the stones.

But Yu Mian’s exploration progress was definitely high enough to trigger this scene.

[Ahhh, Little Sister has appeared!]

[Wow, the design is too stunning. Even the scars on her face are gradually fading… She’s so beautiful! I’m crying.]

[That’s it. Who could resist playing after seeing this? If I work just a little harder, does that mean I could personally save Little Sister too?!]

The appearance of this scene in the haunted house live broadcast caused an uproar.

Little Sister was already a very popular character, and now that she had been recreated in the real-life haunted house, her scars even vanishing to reveal a face unseen even in the original novel, viewers were even more captivated.

When the pain and resentment disappeared from her expression, when the burn scars on her left cheek fully healed, and when she gently reached out to embrace you, there wasn’t a single player who could refuse.

Even Yu Mian couldn’t help but gently hug the weight in his arms.

The interstellar haunted house technology was truly magical. He knew it was just a projection, but in that instant of contact, it felt as if the Little Sister had truly broken through the boundary between life and death to touch him.

“I know you’re not my real brother, but I still really like you. Will we ever meet again?”

As soon as this iconic heart-wrenching line was spoken, it successfully brought a large wave of tears and sadness to everyone in the live broadcast room. The barrage of comments filled the screen, with “Little Sister, Little sister” appearing so densely that it was almost impossible to recognize the words anymore.

“Goodbye. Live well, okay? Believe that many more people will come to embrace you in the future.”

At that moment, Yu Mian couldn’t help but wave toward the departing figure of the little sister. Behind him, Huo Ting also lifted his head to watch this climactic scene unfold.

Piedmont Park had indeed put great effort into the haunted house’s design.

But as Yu Mian and Huo Ting were escorted out of the mansion by the officials, Yu Mian’s gaze fell on the final live broadcast camera.

“Is everyone watching the live broadcast? Don’t you think the special effects of Piedmont’s haunted house are really impressive?”

Grinning mischievously, he couldn’t resist waving playfully at the camera.

For the countless fans in the live broadcast room, this sudden interactive easter egg was even more astonishing.

This was the first time a player greeted the viewers after clearing the haunted house.

[W-Wait… This tone, this voice…doesn’t it sound really familiar?]

[Teacher Fish Soup Noodles?!]

A stunned fan quickly pieced it together. Even with a mask and hat covering his face, there was no mistaking that voice!

Teacher Fish Soup Noodles had secretly come to play at the haunted house too!

As this explosive revelation spread, the number of live broadcast viewers surged dramatically.

[Wait, does this mean Teacher Fish Soup Noodles’ completion score will count toward your Central Star’s leaderboard?]

[Wuuuu, this isn’t fair! Teacher Fish Soup Noodles, you have to clear the haunted houses in our star systems too for it to be a fair competition!]

[Agreed! We want this too!]

As a wave of outer star system viewers flooded the live broadcast room after hearing the news, they watched the Central Star fans’ excitement and shock and jealousy nearly consumed the entire star network.

For the moment, they even forgot to question who the lucky friend beside Teacher Fish Soup Noodles was.