Xiao Jin locked the door from the inside and quickly checked the room.

The space under the bed was empty, but there were several fresh scratch marks carved into the wooden board.

A faded garment hung in the wardrobe, with dark brown stains on the cuffs. The upper shelf was broken and had fallen to the bottom of the wardrobe.

The windows were also nailed shut, but through the yellowed glass, Xiao Jin could clearly see the mountains and forests behind the village.

She then slowly approached the bed. Fortunately, the bedding wasn't too bad; the blankets looked freshly washed and smelled strongly of detergent.

The pillows and quilts should have been aired out beforehand, so they're all soft and fluffy.

But soon, Xiao Jin's gaze was drawn to something on the wall.

"mask……?"

The entire house was extremely dilapidated, but the walls were clean, with seven or eight wooden masks neatly hanging on the snow-white walls.

Each piece is carved with lifelike detail, yet it exudes an indescribable eeriness.

Some had mouths stretched to their ears, revealing gleaming white teeth. Others had empty eyes, sunken eye sockets, as if their eyeballs had been gouged out. Still others had expressionless faces, yet gave the illusion that "it's staring at you."

Xiao Jin took a few steps closer and looked into one of the masks.

"Buzz—"

Gradually, Xiao Jin's eyes glazed over, and a faint buzzing sound suddenly rang in her ears, like some kind of whisper, or like countless people talking quietly in the distance.

"Something's not right..." After realizing this, Xiao Jin quickly looked away, and the discomfort gradually subsided.

She frowned and stopped staring at the masks. Instead, she quickly took out a coat from her spatial storage and covered all the masks on the wall.

[Comment 1: Why is the streamer such a coward? Why is he blocking it?]

[Comment 2: Exactly! Offer a 1000-point reward so the streamer will take off their clothes tonight before going to sleep.]

[Comment 3: Wow, you can play it like that? I suddenly thought of some fun 'mini-games'.]

[Comment 4: Upstairs, your 'mini-game' better be serious! (doge.jpg)]

[Comment 5: Hehe!]

Suddenly, Xiao Jin felt a blur before his eyes, and then a panel popped up automatically, displaying a line of small text.

[Ding—Congratulations to the player for triggering a viewer's donation: Remove the clothing from the mask. (Reward: 1000 points)]

"Heh~" Xiao Jin laughed.

1000 points? That's like giving money to a beggar!

Xiao Jinli ignored the bounty mission and went straight to bed to rest.

Sunlight filtered through the sparse clouds, casting dappled patterns on the old wooden planks inside the house, signaling the approaching midday.

Soon after, the village chief knocked on all the players' doors.

"Dear guests, lunch is ready. Please proceed to the restaurant on the first floor for your meal!"

"Okay," Xiao Jin replied, and then went out the door.

Yunye on the opposite side was also about to go down.

After glancing at the other person, Xiao Jin asked, "Together?"

Yunye seemed surprised to receive Xiao Jin's invitation. After a moment of hesitation, he nodded.

Then, the two of them slowly walked down the stairs, one after the other.

The moment Xiao Jin stepped into the hall, the scene before her surprised her.

Inside the restaurant, a long table stretched across the center of the room, its table laden with a dazzling array of dishes that gleamed invitingly.

This doesn't quite match the conditions in the guesthouse room!

Xiao Jin had expected to see a simple, bland meal, but to her surprise, the other party had prepared a table full of delicious food.

Braised pork belly, braised duck, stewed bones, steamed sea bass... and even a bottle of baijiu (Chinese liquor).

Ah, this...

The other players who came were also stunned for a moment. They stood still until the village chief urged them to walk to the table and sit down.

But the moment Xiao Jin sat down, the exquisite meal in front of her changed completely.

The braised pork belly was covered with a strange, dark brown color, while the steamed sea bass had cloudy, grayish-white eyes that were fixed on the player in front of it.

The duck's hollowed-out abdomen was completely exposed, but Xiao Jin seemed to see something else hidden inside.

As for those seemingly ordinary wild vegetables, there were actually a few black things mixed in, with strange shapes, looking just like long fingernails.

Upon seeing this, the players' lips twitched, and they exchanged subtle glances, an unspoken tension filling the air.

"Eat up, don't be shy! This is a special lunch prepared for everyone by the village." The village chief's voice suddenly rang out, interrupting everyone's thoughts.

With a beaming smile and overflowing enthusiasm, he picked up a trembling piece of braised pork and, under the watchful eyes of all the players, placed it without hesitation into the bowl of a small player.

At that moment, everyone's eyes were focused on that piece of meat.

The moment the piece of meat gently touched the rim of the bowl, Xiao Jin's pupils suddenly dilated, because she clearly saw something wriggling slightly under the skin.

She wasn't sure if the smaller player had seen it, but she had.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the lobby plummeted to freezing point, everyone's breathing became unusually heavy, and many people secretly glanced at the short player.

Should he eat it or not?

Holy crap, the meat is moving!

[She's truly a feast for the eyes!]

[1500 points reward offered, please let the streamer accept it!]

So all the players present could see that the short player, who had been hesitant to speak, suddenly turned pale.

Many people had received bounty missions from viewers in the live stream, so they immediately understood why the short player looked so grim.

Everyone held their breath and stared intently at the small player.

His hands trembled slightly, and his forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat.

The short player swallowed hard, making a gurgling sound in his throat, as if even swallowing had become extremely difficult.

Looking at the village chief's smiling face and the strangely colored braised pork in his bowl, the short player opened his mouth, then closed it again, as if searching for a suitable excuse.

Finally, he mustered his courage, his voice trembling slightly, but he tried his best to remain calm as he said, "I...I'm a vegetarian."

The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere around them instantly became awkward.

Some players looked incredulous, while others chuckled.

This answer, while somewhat borderline, isn't entirely unacceptable; it just depends on whether the NPC is willing to believe it.

The village chief's smile froze as soon as he finished speaking.

The entire restaurant suddenly became eerily quiet. The villagers who were serving dishes and cooking in the kitchen stopped what they were doing and stared intently at the small player.

"Vegetarian?" The village chief's voice became deep and heavy.

While remaining vigilant, the players secretly clutched their items in their hands, ready to react immediately if any NPC acted strangely.

Short player: "Yes, yes, I'm a vegetarian."

"Oh, that's perfect." The village chief stared with dead fish eyes: "The wild vegetables in our mountains are also very fresh, you can eat those two plates of wild vegetables."