Chapter 122 Paper Town
The elevator went down steadily. Just like when we left, there was a cold red and blue light band above our heads. In the metal reflector, Xiao Ni was gently pulling Qiao Song's sleeve: "Sister Qiao Song, wake up, Sister Qiao Song?"
Qiao Song looked up a little late, and in a daze, she saw her current appearance.
A complete human appearance, hair, skin, facial features, all restored.
Fortunately, I had put on clothes in advance to avoid exposing my internal organs, so the outer clothes that were originally worn on my bones now just covered my body.
Her rationality gradually returned, and she turned to look at Fan Heng: "What did you say?"
"I say, when you go back, don't use the shrine for the time being. The power of the shrine is accumulated."
Qiao Song understood that it would be consumed after one use, so he had to be cautious.
Fan Heng carefully explained the other precautions word by word, all of which were about the shrine. At the end, his eyes were quite complicated: "Now that you have the shrine and have restored your human form, you can leave this instance at any time."
The requirements for passing the Paper-Zha Town are very casual. In theory, any mistake encountered along the way will force the player to leave the copy early. The most difficult part is the bonfire party on the last day, and the game benefits are equal to the difficulty.
This is a copy where players can get more benefits if they stay here for one more day, but Qiao Song has already obtained all the benefits.
Even if she participated in the bonfire party and continued to stay here, it would only be a waste of time to stay for another round like other players.
After so many years, Fan Heng remembered that ever since he and Fan Xi started being NPCs here, no matter how much easiness they gave to the players or how many games and rules they set to benefit them, they had never encountered such players.
The game time was only halfway through, and the soul had already reached the upper limit that the copy could provide.
"This instance can no longer bring you more power. Your shrine has already taken shape, and Zootopia is already trying to capture you. As soon as you step out of this instance, you will receive an invitation from Zootopia. My suggestion is that you go somewhere else first."
The elevator door was already open, but Fan Heng did not walk out. Even the two little boys and girls and everyone else did not move. They just stayed where they were, trying to guess Second Uncle's expression, like two curious little animals.
"You have seen the passage at the bottom of the lake before. If you want to go to the next instance, you can go directly through the passage. Of course, if you want to continue driving, you can also look for the instance on the map in the fog."
Fan Heng stared at her, and Qiao Song quickly understood: "The 12th Committee copy can only be reached through the shrine passage?"
"Not entirely, but basically there are only a few copies of the 12 committee members that appear in certain maps. The difficulty of finding those maps is no less difficult than obtaining the shrine."
For example, the map of the Hell community.
Qiao Song rubbed her solar plexus. She didn't have a headache now, but her mind was unusually clear, as if peppermint oil was constantly stimulating her nerves.
She hummed, but still didn't plan to leave early: "I want to see the bonfire meeting before making a decision."
This copy gave her a very strange feeling, allowing players to learn how to make paper beasts, as well as different types of paper beasts that attacked the village, and ghosts that could wear paper beasts as clothes.
"What is the purpose of the existence of Paper Town? I feel like you guys are being a little too nice to the players."
Let alone players like her who can absorb the power of the shrine, even other people, after passing through the paper-folding town, although from the outside their strength did not seem to be greatly enhanced, their souls were different.
Qiao Song could feel that since her body returned, she was now like a complete body with flesh and soul tightly bonded together, and her soul was completely sealed in a can.
In other words, she felt that she would be extremely difficult to kill. Even if her body died, her soul would not be destroyed. At the same time, she still had a shrine...
She glanced at her palm. Of course, there was nothing in it now. The wooden box that held hatred had been successfully put into her toolbox, but...
Qiao Song remembered a lot of things about the functions of the shrine, which suddenly appeared in his mind just now.
She suddenly turned around and looked at Fan Heng, who was still in the elevator without moving.
"Aren't NPCs allowed to reveal too much information to players? Is it okay for you to tell me so much?"
Fan Heng nodded: "We can only talk about it in the elevator. Besides, you already have a shrine. You will know some things sooner or later."
Qiao Song noticed Fan Heng's hidden meaning: "You want to..."
Fan Heng patted the two children who were leaning against him and said, "Go to the study room and continue practicing. The bonfire party will be held in a few days. Don't be lazy."
The boy and girl made a muffled "oh" sound and ran very fast as if there was a dog chasing them.
The smell of that human had changed again, and they were now a little afraid of Qiao Song.
Seeing Qiao Song looking down at Xiao Ni, Fan Heng said apologetically: "He'd better not listen. Without the shrine to isolate his soul, he will also be monitored by the system."
Xiao Ni immediately waved his hand sensibly and said, "I'm going to practice too." Then he left the elevator and chased the boys and girls.
There were only two of them left in the elevator.
Fan Heng closed the elevator door, pressed the button on the wall, and went to the second underground floor.
This time, after the elevator door opened, it disappeared directly into the crack in the wall, leaving no gap at all, as if, apart from this door, the elevator and this space were originally one.
If it wasn't in a copy, Qiao Song would have thought this was a studio with an elevator entrance.
The white metal is interlaced with wood grain, like a colorful ancient atmosphere, a fusion of the cyber age, and various strange paper-cut works are pasted with skins of different materials.
Some are made of metal, some are made of cloth, and some are simulated human leather, the latter of which feels and looks almost the same as real leather.
"In the days when there was only Zhazhi Village in Zhazhi Town, this was where Fan Xi and I originally worked."
Fan Heng led Qiao Song inside and soon saw a chess game hanging on the wall.
She knew a little about Go and could tell that this was an endgame, with the black and white pieces completely deadlocked in a delicate situation.
Just after she watched for a few seconds, the chess piece suddenly moved on its own. Soon the endgame was solved, all the black and white pieces disappeared, and then new pieces slowly fell on the board.
"Is this the girl's uncle playing chess?"
When Qiao Song heard Fan Heng say that if he wanted to discuss this matter, he had to take her to see Fan Xi, he seemed to understand something.
"In her current state, she can only be nurtured on the chessboard. You may also know the person she is playing against. His number is D803, the original administrator of Cyberworld."
Cyber world?
Qiao Song has never been to this copy.
Wait, D803…how does it relate to D833?
"Relatives of Baidandan?"
She remembered that D833 was the big white egg from George's family in the Hell Community.
A cheerful electronic voice soon sounded from the other end of the chessboard:
"We are different AI personalities of the same system. The one in Hell Community is the stupid No. 833! I am the lively, cute and smart No. 803!"
Qiao Song was a little confused about the situation in front of him: "You ran here from the Hell Community?"
"Yes, it took a long time. Bai Dandan only knew how to play with the mice all day long, so I had to do this task."
Another emoticon suddenly appeared on the wall of the hanging chessboard.
"QAQ, I played chess with Fan Xixi for two or three days, and I lost miserably."
A woman's laughter reappeared in the air: "You have won a few times, too."
"I used the host's computing power to win..." D803 felt a little aggrieved.
Its main body is in the cyber world. If the main brain knew that it used computing power to play chess, it would be laughed at by other AIs.
A three-dimensional figure gradually emerged on the electronic curtain, and then a figure named Fan Xi, wearing a white robe and with black hair tied behind her back with a wooden hairpin, appeared in front of the screen. She looked at Qiao Song.
"You came earlier than I expected." Fan Xi looked a little tired, but mentally he was quite satisfied. It was probably because having an AI to play chess with him while he was recuperating made it much easier than taking care of the children upstairs before.
Fan Heng, who has been taking care of the two naughty kids these past two days, is hesitant to speak...
Fan Xi held two chess pieces, one black and one white, and said straight to the point: "We want to make a deal with you."
Qiao Song recalled his experiences dealing with these NPCs and soon realized the extra bargaining chips he had.
"Because I have a shrine?"
Fan Xi nodded.
Qiao Song frowned: "Then Aunt Huo..."
The latter's shrine appeared even earlier than hers.
"This is different. We trade with you because your shrine is still empty."
Fan Xi smiled like a parent who is worried about school district housing for his child and said, "We want you to leave two places for sacrificial offerings in the shrine and take the boy and girl out."
Qiao Song was silent.
She thought for a few seconds, not quite understanding the point of doing this.
"Haven't they driven out of the dungeon before, and even participated in a hearse entertainment competition? Why do they need to leave in this way?"
Obviously, you can just drive a hearse and leave, and in the paper-making town, making a hearse should be a very simple matter.
"No, they have to stay with the shrine of the living to change their alignment."
Change camp?
Changing sides...
"From NPC to player camp!?"
Is this actually possible?
"They are not from NPC to player. They do not belong to the NPC camp. They are just two independent souls. Your shrine may be able to take them away."
In Qiao Song’s mind, he also thought of the usage of the shrine that had appeared before.
1. Stabilize the soul. After encountering a fatal attack, you will have a chance to escape. You can put your soul into the shrine to be nurtured, find a suitable body, and revive.
2. Collect incense and use the love and emotions of others to enhance your own abilities. When you reach a certain level, you can give back.
3. Space box. It can be used to transport or collect other people's souls. Remember, it can only collect spirits and souls.
Qiao Song was thinking about the meaning of Article 3 before.
Spirit and soul should be two different things. The little white clam that lived in the shrine before should not be considered a soul, so it can be considered an object with spiritual intelligence.
Another thing, combined with the first point about the shrine, is that the owner of the shrine has the ability to receive the souls of other people.
The point is, it’s not about collecting ghosts, but the souls of living people.
"Are those two children alive?"
How could a living person grow up in a copy from childhood? Qiao Song clearly remembered that Xiao Ni had brought back some information about boys and girls over the past two days. Many things showed that the two children had almost grown up in the paper-folding copy since childhood, but their growth rate was relatively slow.
Fan Xi nodded: "You should be able to find a pattern. Among the players of Infinite Highway, there are few elderly people and children, but there are some."
"Under certain special conditions, some special life will appear here."
For example, the shells that are part of the system will also be nourished by the power and develop intelligence. Another example is the mud ghost on the game disc in the Hell Community, which can even become a spirit-like existence and now helps Qiao Song manage her car.
But how can the soul of a living person be raised by an NPC?
"When my sister entered the game, her children were not yet full-term, and she gave birth to them in the game."
It is difficult for the system to determine what kind of life experiences two unborn babies will have and what skills they can learn. The two children are caught in the gap and are raised like illegal immigrants.
"The game wasn't as difficult as it is now. Those guys with animal heads in Zootopia didn't leave their territory. There were almost no managers with alien heads in the game. It wasn't until they found that the way home had disappeared that the players gradually went crazy."
Once there is no hope for the future, it doesn't matter if we destroy the present of others. Many humans who think this way have built a new world in the game.
"My sister and brother-in-law died in the new game started by players. Fan Heng and I used some methods to transform from players to NPCs and saved the two children."
If Tong Yao and Tong Nan stay with NPCs for a long time, their souls will become more and more unstable, so Fan Xi and Fan Heng find a way to fix them in paper figures.
Fortunately, after becoming game managers, their skills have undergone earth-shaking changes. Fan Heng gave the children bodies that can grow up like ordinary children, and Fan Xi used his ability to lock their souls. Like other dungeon NPC creatures, they can go to the dungeon to play and make friends, even if those friends are ghosts.
"We can't hide them for much longer. They should grow up in a more real and peaceful environment, like in the real world, and receive a more orthodox education. Look, how are we going to teach our children in this kind of hellhole? Should we send them to those hellhole schools?"
In the schools in the gaming world, let alone teaching children textbook knowledge, the games are full of all kinds of weird content such as bloody sacrifices, school violence, and the advent of evil gods.
Fan Heng sighed, "They were very close to the kids from the Coffin Village. For a while, they even asked me to make coffin beds for them to sleep on."
If her sister were still alive, she would know that her child was only 10 years old and still didn't understand addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, but had already started to act like a spoiled child with his uncles and bought all kinds of sinister human head balloons, nanmu coffin beds and other strange things. He would be scolded to death by his sister.
It is true that they have turned into ghosts, but the children are not.
"So I hope you can take them with you, if you can return to the real world one day..."
"etc--"
Qiao Song suddenly discovered a key point.
"So the paper figures of the boy and girl are fake?"
"Yes, it is used to isolate the system from detection and the prying eyes of other ghosts."
Qiao Song finally understood why these two people were so strict about their studies and were determined to make sure their children learned how to make paper-cut papers.
Those things are used to protect their identities.
"Why are you so sure that I can find a way back? Isn't it said that the way home has been closed for many years, and everyone is wandering around in the dungeon."
Fan Xi smiled: "Don't try to trick me. I can tell you directly that the main system cannot hear the conversations here."
D803, who had been silent the whole time, also chimed in, saying with a chuckle, "This is a cooperation method we have been preparing for many years. Don't worry about that guy in the main system."
In the game, even if an NPC tries to reveal information outside the dungeon, such as the secrets of certain shrines, or key information that the player cannot currently access, they will be warned by the system, and the information will be blocked from the source.
But there are still many NPCs who pretend to obey but actually disobey.
If one ability is not enough, then combine multiple ones.
This way of cross-dungeon collaboration among dungeon managers reminded Qiao Song of Hearse Entertainment and Hell Community.
These two copies are also the only ones where she gets information related to the real world, and both contain some special AI.
The former had actually had players leave, and the latter allowed players to see the door of reality.
Fan Heng and Fan Xi have been waiting for many years, looking for the right opportunity to let the two children leave, and now they have finally waited for it.
"We are willing to offer a sufficient reward, and we can also help you postpone the invitation to Zootopia by one more instance, as long as you let those two children enter the shrine."
Qiao Song was worried that there was no mascot in the shrine, so it was not impossible to put a boy and a girl in there. The two children would be locked up in there by himself, and he could educate them well on behalf of their elders. Fan Xi and Fan Heng seemed very strict on the surface, but they doted on them too much. After all, they were their sister's children, and they had raised them with great difficulty.
No matter how strict the schoolwork is, I can't help but make the best hearse for them and put the most useful talismans on them to avoid being exposed in front of other ghost classmates and players.
Qiao Song agreed to the shrine, provided that Fan Xi paid enough.
"Of course, you need to mention soul coins, but we can't give you more related props. However, we can give you this."
It was a card with a Blind Box Paradise voucher written on the cover.
A whole box, visually there are quite a few.
"Paper Town has cooperated with the Blind Box Mall. You can draw a blind box for free. After you go in, we will also use other methods to pass on the information of some S-level props to you."
If you give it directly, the system is not a fool. If there is an obvious gift of items between NPCs and players that disrupts the balance, everyone will know that they are having a private transaction.
Qiao Song had heard of the blind box mall more than once. She thought it was some kind of comprehensive shopping mall that sold mattresses, food, and props.
"You can't buy it directly, you have to draw a blind box for everything there." D803 muttered, "Sometimes it depends on luck and character. I want to give myself a black screen, but I can't broadcast anything black screen."
Fan Heng couldn't help but complain: "If a guy like you with data management skills goes in, the whole mall will call the police."
Otherwise, it will definitely be purchased for zero yuan, so it is better to notify the main system directly.
D803 hummed a few words and then continued the introduction:
"There are indeed all the daily necessities and props you can think of, and there are quite a few S-level suits. Oh, yes, the so-called S-level suit is a complete set of props. If used together, it is equivalent to directly creating a new profession for the player."
"Like the circus series, the fruit forest series, and so on."
circus.
Qiao Song quickly matched it with some of the information he had obtained previously.
"magician……"
No wonder You Yitong looked like a thief when we first met him, but he mainly used magician-related skills. His magician suit should be from the blind box mall.
This is a lifesaver for some players whose skills are not outstanding.
"Our transaction can be completed after that. I will deposit the soul coins, which are the living expenses for the two children, directly into your account through sacrifice."
Qiao Song was still thinking about the problem of the blind box mall, and was shocked when he heard this.
"Burn the money for me?"
It sounds unlucky.
Fan Xi reported a number, and Qiao Song instantly felt it was very auspicious.
But what she didn't expect was that the shrine could actually be charged.
"This is a special prop of time and space. Not everyone has the opportunity to obtain it. To be honest, Fan Heng and I have seen no more than ten players who own a shrine over the years. You are the only one who has an empty shrine among us."
Qiao Song was puzzled, but he quickly speculated on a possibility: "Other people's shrines have not been empty since their birth? In other words, they have their own mascots or sacrificial objects?"
Fan Xi nodded: "The birth of the shrine requires clear faith coordinates, or emotional coordinates."
So Aunt Huo’s cats can build a shrine for her, and some players who develop large guilds will have the same opportunity later, which is equivalent to having a second life.
"When the shrine is created, a soul is needed to help it take shape and live inside it like a glue."
Aunt Huo’s cat is a natural guardian spirit.
Qiao Song: "Then why is my shrine empty?"
Fan Xi doesn’t know either.
Fan Heng, who had taken Qiao Song to learn Painted Skin and participated in a game, was silent: "Your shrine, um, the way it was created is a bit strange."
Qiao Song summoned the wooden box from the toolbox. Compared to the empty props before, it now felt heavy and the texture was much higher level.
It was as if I had just played a game and my belly was round after eating all the scraps.
The basic functions are the same as others, and can even be said to be more powerful. There is only one mascot in the shrines seen underwater, but Qiao Song feels that it should not be a problem to stuff three or four into his own.
But her shrines are produced from a toolbox like commodities.
Currently, the items produced by her toolbox are all repeatable. For example, the nails, hammers and chainsaws that are refreshed every day can be re-produced even if they are broken or lost.
But there are only two things that are unique:
One is a shrine, and the other is a strange sculpture that was created long ago under the influence of other players' abilities.
Sculptures are so useful that Boss Cai, who had his screen cracked when Qiao Song was weak, should be able to relate to this.
And the shrine, if used properly, can become the player's second life.
Qiao Song, who agreed to cooperate, kept the box of coupons from the blind box mall. It was said that she could draw a blind box for free, which was equivalent to changing the way of sending some high-end props to her.
"I have temporarily intercepted the invitation letter from Zootopia for you. You'd better make more preparations before going there. Players' skills are unlikely to be effective there. Prepare as many props as possible."
"But once you enter the Blind Box Mall, you should receive an invitation from Zootopia, and once you clear the mall, the invitation will automatically take effect."
In other words, the two days before the Paper-Zha Dungeon Bonfire Festival are Qiao Song’s last rest time.
Qiao Song didn't care about this, she was concerned about something else.
"I really don't want to leave your place. By the way, can I have the incense you ordered today..."
Fan Xi shook his head: "That's ghost incense. It's useless for living people to hold it. It has to be ordered by others. I can give some to Xiao Ni. Tong Yao and Tong Nan also need these to assist in their practice."
Although the two children are the souls of living people, they are mostly cultivating the superficial skin. If they leave their uncles, there will be no one to help them maintain and repair the outer layer of paper, so they have to learn how to paint their own skin and repair themselves.
Qiao Song knew that this was almost an act of entrusting an orphan to someone else's care.
Fan Heng, Fan Xi, and even D803 did not respond to this. Instead, they smiled and said, "There may be many players on this road who are no longer human, but as long as you win in the end, you can return."
You, not us.
Qiao Song finished muttering these words silently in his mind, and followed the elevator out of the small room on the second underground floor. When he looked back, Fan Xi continued to integrate into the chessboard. It was said that it was a critical moment and he had to strengthen his control over the copy.
"In fact, before the other three copies were invaded by foreign forces, there was only one copy of Zhazhi Village in the Zhazhi Town copy, and you two are the managers."
Fan Heng nodded: "This is a necessary compromise. The other three villages are competing with each other and are always trying to nibble away at Zhazhi Village's territory bit by bit. This allows us to do what we want."
Turn this copy into a special transit station, allowing every player to learn a very special skill here, and let them understand that souls can also wear clothes.
Let them get in touch with the shrine and know the relevant news about the shrine. I hope that among the living players, there will be more and more special people who can touch the top.
"Those of us who are already in the Yellow Spring water must find a way to explore the way under the water. There is no hope for the dead, but there is for the living."
With a ding, the elevator door opened.
This is the floor where the study is located.
Qiao Song heard the noise of the little nun and the boys and girls from afar.
"You draw so beautifully, it's amazing. I'm faster than you!"
"But speed is not the most important thing. Teacher Fan said that the strokes must be drawn correctly, and the quality of the paper and the structure must be better."
"That's my uncle. Who allowed you to call him teacher?"
"Both teachers Fan told me to call them that, but they have been teaching you for so long, haven't you ever called them teachers?"
This guy Xiao Ni's method of making people angry in a serious manner is simply natural.
Fortunately, although the two children had bad tempers, at least they did not attack other children. They just pounded the table and swore that they would use their works to humiliate Xiao Ni today.
"Those are my eldest and second uncles! Don't even think about getting them to praise you!"
These childish words made Fan Heng, who had already walked to the door, laugh.
Qiao Song saw him push the door open, gave each of the two little ones a crispy shell, and then began to educate them, telling them not to make so much noise in the study and to study seriously.
Tong Yao asked where her uncle had gone and whether he was feeling unwell. Fan Heng only said that he had arrived at a dungeon mission and could not get away at the critical moment.
The two children held their heads, their eyes watering with tears in their eyes as they were taught. In the end, perhaps because they thought about how hard it was for their uncle to work in the dungeon, they pinched their noses and attended the class seriously with Xiao Ni.
No wonder Fan Heng always said that they both deserved a beating and were pitiful.
Somehow, Qiao Song suddenly thought of the last words Fan Heng said before leaving the elevator.
"I'll leave them to you. It doesn't matter even if Fan Xi and I stay in the dungeon in the future."
“It’s all about winning the final game.”
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