Chapter 57: The three factions should not trust the staff in red.

Half a cloud, blown by the wind, obscured the sun, like a harbinger of an impending storm, and the space was instantly shrouded in gloom.

Gu Keke was clearly taken aback when she heard what the other person said.

She did not show the ticket to the staff member in yellow, so her shock at this moment is understandable.

"How did you know the tickets were...?"

She was speaking halfway through her sentence when sparks of light flashed into her eyes.

The blue-green seal on the back of her hand was particularly conspicuous. Gu Keke's expression froze on her face, and she helplessly let go of her hand.

Upon seeing this, the staff member in the yellow uniform did not make any unusual move, but instead smiled stiffly, which was quite unsettling.

"Please do not buy tickets from the staff in red." He moved like a soulless puppet, constantly repeating the same sentence, "Please do not buy tickets from the staff in red."

Whether from fright or something was wrong with her body, Gu Keke's legs went weak and she staggered backward a few steps.

"careful."

Luo Chuange, who was standing next to her, quickly stepped forward and supported her arm with his free right hand. "Are you alright?"

Seeing that something was wrong, Liang Jun shielded the two of them behind her.

She tried to speak to the staff member in yellow, but their gaze remained fixed on Gu Keke. The dark, gaping holes seemed to want to suck her in.

Without thinking twice, Liang Jun stretched out her hands and forcefully turned the head of the yellow-clad staff member back.

The yellow-clad staff member, whose attention had been forcibly diverted, blinked, his tone full of confusion.

"Excuse me, what are you doing?"

"I have something to ask you."

The best way to deal with this situation is to be even uglier than the other person. Liang Jun completely ignored the gloomy face of the yellow-clad staff member, her lips curling down even more sharply than his.

"I'm asking you, why can't we buy tickets from the staff in red? What does the different colors of the staff's uniforms signify?"

Seeing that the staff member in the yellow shirt didn't seem inclined to answer, Liang Jun grabbed his collar. The man looked quite young, and Liang Jun's sudden tug almost made him stumble.

She gave her companion a look, and Luo Chuange immediately understood and pulled Gu Keke back. Old Ren, on the other hand, moved a large rock from somewhere, carried it with one hand, and walked forward.

If someone were to pass by at this moment, they would probably think this was some kind of double-cross.

Old Ren weighed the heavy stone in his hand back and forth, as if he were toying with a brick.

"You'd better tell us the truth, or we can't guarantee what we'll do to you."

Wang Jianping and Qi Zhixia, who were at a disadvantage, had their view blocked by the other four people, and the staff in yellow could hardly see their presence either.

They thought they could use this method to "force a confession," but to their surprise, the smiles on the faces of the staff members in yellow did not diminish at all; in fact, their smiles widened even more dramatically.

He, who was originally powerless, was able to break free from Liang Yun's restraints with just a little effort in his shoulders.

He didn't seem to care about the "weapon" in Lao Ren's hand. After simply straightening the wrinkles in his work clothes, he prepared to leave as if nothing had happened.

He didn't seem to see Wang Jianping and Qi Zhixia at all, not even glancing at them for a moment.

"you……"

Old Ren was immediately deflated. He didn't know whether to pick up the stone in his hand or throw it away. He felt that the atmosphere he had worked so hard to create had been easily broken.

Gu Keke had just come to her senses when she turned around and encountered this situation. Like a volatile and explosive little cannon, she wanted to chase after them without saying a word.

"Don't go." Liang Jun suddenly grabbed her. "It's foggy."

Suddenly, the group noticed that a thick fog had drifted in from somewhere, obscuring most of the view from the previously well-visible barren mountain.

The dampness of the water vapor seeps through the pores of the skin, reaching the root of every fine hair, and the damp sensation makes one uneasy.

All six of them instinctively became wary and huddled together cautiously.

The staff member in yellow walked into the thick fog on his own, not forgetting to leave a final message before his figure completely disappeared—

"Please do not purchase tickets offered by the staff member in red..."

After saying that, the suddenly condensed mist dissipated along with his figure at the end of the desolate mountain.

Once their vision cleared again, the close-knit group gradually separated.

There were just too many unexpected incidents. The unusual, almost fleeing behavior of the staff member in green, the repeated warnings from the staff member in yellow, and the staff member in red who seemed to be marked with a "danger" signal.

A look of worry clouded everyone's faces. The information was disorganized and they had no idea where to begin.

Seeing Liang Yun leaning alone against the railing, Lao Ren, who was at his wit's end, was about to go over to discuss something when someone pulled him back from behind.

Luo Chuange and Gu Keke each took charge of one side, and Gu Keke even gestured for Lao Ren to be quiet.

"Don't disturb Sister Jun, she's thinking."

Liang Xuan was indeed thinking.

Although the yellow-clad staff member seemed like a wind-up puppet in a music box, only repeating the same phrase over and over, Liang Jun did not think it was an insignificant clue.

On the contrary, she felt that the other person was reminding them—

Do not trust the staff in red.

If we follow this line of reasoning, then everything seems to make sense.

Because the red-clad staff are the "villains" in the amusement park, the tickets they sell, as well as the fluorescent blue-green stamps, symbolize the "dangerous" aspect. Perhaps this is why the "innocent" green-clad staff flee in panic upon noticing these elements; the yellow-clad staff can only use their actions to remind everyone to stay away from the bad side.

but……

Liang Jun fell silent once again, feeling as if she were trapped in some kind of vicious cycle.

The above reasoning is based on the idea that "what the staff in yellow shirts say is correct." But the question is, why should we unconditionally believe them?

If the yellow-clad and green-clad individuals have always been on the same side, then the real purpose of their alliance is to put players into a self-hypnotic state that the "red-clad faction is in danger."

If they wait until then to fully understand this point, it will probably be too late.

Liang Jun's brows furrowed slightly.

Based on her previous reasoning and analysis, she gradually realized that the different colors of the work clothes were actually a way to distinguish between NPC factions.

She had always thought that this was just a simple job classification system at the amusement park, so she didn't take it to heart.

That feeling of unease rose in her heart again.

Liang Jun felt that this game level seemed quite different from the previous ones.

Previously, there were two distinct factions: players and NPCs. Now, in addition to the players forming their own independent teams, even the NPCs, who are directly under the system's control, are divided into different factions.

Everything seems to be developing in an unexpected direction...

Thinking of this, Liang Jun's heart clenched. She quickly left the railing and rushed to Wang Jianping's side.

The others were startled by her sudden action and hurriedly crowded around her.

Without saying a word, Liang Jun grabbed Wang Jianping's forearm.

The two blue-green stamps were still visible on his arm, like two tattoos that would never disappear.

"Do you feel anything is wrong?"

Liang Jun asked anxiously, "Dizziness? Nausea? Weakness?"

Her behavior was quite unusual, and even the usually calm Qi Zhixia sensed something was amiss.

"Liang Jun, what are you thinking about?"

Liang Jun shared all the clues she had deduced with everyone, and then turned her gaze back to Wang Jianping's arm.

“If we can’t trust the staff in red and the stamp really is problematic, then each of us will react somewhat abnormally.” Liang Xun calmed herself down. “Director Wang is the only one among us who has stamped two stamps, so logically speaking, his reaction should be stronger than ours.”

She once again threw the question at Wang Jianping, "How are you?"

Listening to Liang Xun's reasoning, his expression wasn't too pleasant.

Wang Jianping silently pulled his arm back and let it hang at his side.

“I am a doctor, and you can completely trust my judgment.”

His tone was calm and normal. "I haven't noticed any discomfort yet. If I do, I will let you know in time."

Luo Chuange stared at the seal in his hand for a long time.

"So what do we do now?" His gaze fell on Liang Xun. "We know that the tickets we have might not be valid. Should we continue trying to play the bumper cars, or should we head up the mountain to find other rides?"

"Isn't it inappropriate to go up the mountain now?"

Old Ren chimed in quietly, "After all, we've already wasted so much time here... and it's almost dark. Even if we go up the mountain, we don't know how long it will take before we encounter the next project."

Gu Keke nodded in agreement, saying, "I agree with what Lao Ren said. I feel like there will be even more eerie things in this amusement park at night. Let's try to finish all the rides before sunset, otherwise we'll waste the first day like this."

Seeing that everyone was ready to continue experiencing the bumper cars, they unanimously decided to search for other ticket booths as soon as possible.

Before taking action, Liang Jun specifically instructed, "This time, stay as far away from the red-clad staff as possible. Although we don't yet know their specific affiliations, the bumper car ticket checkers are from the green-clad faction. Perhaps if we find tickets from the same faction, nothing unusual will happen."

After giving their instructions, everyone split up again to carry out their tasks.

This time, Liang Jun and Gu Keke went to the open space to the west of the bumper cars.

Previously, this was a place that Wang Jianping and Qi Zhixia had jointly investigated.

They thought they would return empty-handed again, but just as they stepped into the western district, an extremely simple tin shack appeared before them.

Inside sat a staff member in a green uniform, her expression indifferent as she looked up.

Do you need to buy a ticket?

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Author's Note: Another race against time to meet a deadline—