Sacrificial Lamb (13)
The dim room was lit only by a few slivers of moonlight, casting a faint glow.
The prosthetic limbs before him were stained with blood. They looked and felt disturbingly real. After mentally preparing himself for most of the day, Chen Li finally reached out to pick them up. A few smears of fake blood streaked his face.
One particular smear, intentional or not, brushed lightly past the corner of his eye, lending his already delicate features an even more fragile allure.
He stood in front of the mirror for a full ten minutes, clearly very pleased with how he looked: [System, don’t I look terrifying like this?]
System 001 replied stiffly in a monotone: [Yes, very scary. It’s like Kayako’s1 been reincarnated.]
At this rate, he’d be eaten alive the moment he stepped outside, so naive and unaware.
In the mirror, another tall figure appeared behind him. The man wrapped his arms around Chen Li from behind, his voice low and deep: “You look fierce. Very scary. Remember to use the method I taught you to scare them.”
His gaze softened slightly, and unlike the system, his words sounded far more sincere.
That was enough to make the little lamb’s heart flutter—his invisible tail practically wagged with joy.
Taking the opportunity, Fu Moyang gave his waist a gentle squeeze while teasing: “Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?”
Chen Li nodded firmly: “Didn’t you already give me a protective charm?”
As he remembered it, he pulled it out again to double-check. Holding the red cloth in his hand, his face turned slightly red as he asked suspiciously: “Why did it have to be a bridal veil?”
Fu Moyang answered with a straight face: “The more festive something is, the more ghosts fear it. And you have to keep it on you at all times.”
“Oh.” Chen Li stopped questioning it and trustingly tucked the red cloth back into his shirt, patting it as if to confirm it was safe.
Watching this man shamelessly and emotionlessly trick his host—especially now that System 001 knew Fu Moyang was the one who created it in the first place—System 001 could hardly bear to watch.
There wasn’t anything special about the cloth. Just a bit of ghost energy attached to it. Honestly, even if Chen Li carried nothing, no ghost would dare come near.
After all, the host now reeked of the Ghost King’s aura, inside and out.
. . . . .
It was already night by the time Chen Li descended from the temple. The paper figures dutifully carried his sedan chair to the edge of town. At some point, clouds had crept in and covered the crescent moon.
Feeling uneasy, Chen Li tugged at his collar to hide a conspicuous bite mark.
He was supposed to head down after lunch, but Fu Moyang had “teased” him again, and before he realized it, the sky had darkened.
The bridal veil tucked against his chest, warm against his skin, brought him some comfort. After stepping carefully out of the sedan chair, he bowed his head slightly and thanked the paper figures.
The paper figures covered their faces shyly, giggling and twirling in little circles before scurrying off.
Chen Li’s eyes curved into a soft smile before he turned to face the town.
The streets were completely empty—so quiet, even the wind didn’t stir.
To keep himself brave, Chen Li chatted with System 001 while walking deeper into the town. Even though he’d already seen the area during the day, it looked far more eerie at night.
“Shh, shh, don’t cry, be good.”
Suddenly, a ragged woman appeared from around the corner, cradling a baby and softly cooing at it. When she saw Chen Li, she looked up and smiled: “Isn’t my baby cute?”
Someone showing up like this at a time like that—there was no way it was normal.
Chen Li trembled and shone his lantern forward. But aside from his own shadow, there was nothing on the ground.
The woman’s smile stretched wider and wider, until her lips nearly reached her ears: “My child… what are you doing here?”
With that, she tossed the baby in her arms. The bundle rolled across the ground, unraveling to reveal a small, pale skull.
There were visible bite marks on the bone—clearly made by wild beasts.
System 001 dutifully explained: [That’s a ghost that’s been wandering for over ten years. Her child was the sacrifice. After the child was chosen and sent up the mountain, she went mad. She snuck up the mountain while no one was looking but only found her child’s small, mangled corpse. Then she killed herself.]
System 001 couldn’t help spitting in disgust: [The High Priest claimed the sacrifices were chosen by the gods, but in truth, they always picked the weakest in town. Everyone here is both a victim… and an accomplice.]
Chen Li’s body went stiff: [Something’s wrong. Why is she calling me her child…?]
System 001 thought for a moment: [Maybe you look too much like a little cub. She mistook you for her baby.]
Chen Li: […You do know I’m an adult, right?]
But seeing the ghost inch closer and closer, he turned and ran without another word.
The female ghost let out a heart-wrenching wail: “My child! My baby! Don’t take my child away!”
Even so, she didn’t dare come any closer.
There was an aura around Chen Li that terrified her to the core—an instinctive, primal fear that kept her at bay. If not for her already twisted maternal love, she wouldn’t have approached at all. Like a rat scurrying through a sewer, her long black hair covering her eyes, she slowly retreated into the shadows.
Chen Li was gasping for breath as he ran: [Is she gone?]
System 001 hesitated for a moment: [Yes, she’s gone.]
Still shaken, Chen Li glanced back. Sure enough, nothing was there. When he looked up, he realized he’d somehow run all the way to the High Priest’s residence. The lanterns hanging by the gate flickered inexplicably.
[Is the High Priest inside?]
System 001 scanned the area: [No, but the players are.]
Wiping away tears that had nearly spilled from fear, Chen Li firmly pulled a prosthetic limb out of his system inventory: [Lead the way!]
Compared to pretending to be a ghost to scare others, he now looked more like someone who had been bullied.
System 001 didn’t dare say that out loud and instead focused on giving directions:
[They’re on the second floor.]
The mansion had a second floor, but Chen Li had never been up there, even when he lived here as the Holy Son. Without hesitation, he stepped onto the wooden staircase. The old planks creaked under his feet, the rotting sound exposing his location instantly.
Inside the room, the terrified players exchanged anxious glances like startled quails. One particularly skittish female player clutched her ears and whispered a scream: “A ghost! It’s a ghost!”
“Shut up!” snapped the floral shirt man shooting her a glare.
“We should’ve just offered you up as a sacrifice from the start.”
They had been chased all day by vengeful ghosts that attacked indiscriminately across the town. They’d just barely managed to hide here, and any semblance of civility had long since crumbled. One male player who was too slow had already been torn to pieces.
Exhausted, they had no choice but to keep running. The room had no windows, and the only exit was through the door.
Ignoring the woman’s desperate struggle, the floral shirt man grabbed her and threw her outside. When no screams followed—just a dull thud—he finally felt safe enough to step out.
Though disgusted by his actions, the others followed. The woman, now sprawled on the ground and trembling, scrambled to her feet: “Wait! Don’t leave me!”
Unfortunately for them, they had no idea Chen Li had a cheat-like system on his side. No matter where they ran, he could find them. Eventually, he caught up with them at a corner.
The moment they saw his face, the players froze.
They instantly recognized him—he was that unlucky Holy Son they’d sacrificed earlier. The fear in the air abruptly stalled.
They had thought they were being chased by a ferocious tiger… but it turned out to be a puffed-up kitten.
Chen Li tilted his head, recalling how Fu Moyang had taught him on the bed to act scary. He mimicked the motion, waving his severed limb: “Rawr!”
Super Fierce.jpg!!!
But the system remained silent—no increase in fear level.
Chen Li looked disappointed, “menacingly” glaring at the humans before him.
Was my voice too soft just now?
Unable to help himself, he waved the prop again, genuinely confused: “You’re not scared of me?”
“You’re just a weak NPC who got played,” the floral shirt man sneered, his face now twisted with contempt.
“Even if you’ve come back as a ghost for revenge, so what?”
His expression grew even more menacing. If he could kill this NPC once, he could do it again.
The other players looked at him in disbelief.
Who was the one just now running for his life alongside them?!
Before the man could continue, footsteps echoed from the end of the dark corridor—
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Heavy, deliberate steps weighed with crushing pressure, as if invisible hands were wrapping around their throats. Panic surged, clawing at their hearts.
Except for one person—Chen Li.
Without even turning around, he knew who it was. Feeling aggrieved without realizing it, he said softly: “They’re not scared of me.”
Fu Moyang approached slowly, a faint, amused smile on his lips: “Oh?”
His silver-grey eyes glinted with murderous intent.
He reached out to ruffle Chen Li’s hair: “They’re definitely scared. You’re so fierce—how could they not be?”
As the last word fell, an invisible wave of pressure spread out. The players dropped to their knees, trembling uncontrollably.
Fu Moyang said sincerely: “See? They were just putting on a brave face.”
Suddenly, a sharp stench filled the air.
Chen Li looked at the floral shirt man in surprise. A suspicious wet patch was spreading from his crotch.
“Ew,” Chen Li muttered, turning away in disgust.
He hadn’t expected his act to be that scary—he’d actually scared someone into wetting themselves.
System 001: [Fear level +10 +10 +10…]
The other players were equally stunned. No one had imagined the usually arrogant, experienced floral shirt man would end up humiliated like this. They quietly edged away from him.
His once-contemptuous expression froze, then twisted into shame and fear.
Someone in the dark finally recognized Fu Moyang’s face. The system’s announcement of increasing fear level sped up noticeably.
It was the first time Chen Li had ever received such a surge of points all at once. Overwhelmed, he looked toward the man for guidance.
Fu Moyang thought to himself: Too cute.
After watching the little guy rely on him for a moment, Fu Moyang finally looked at the players, his voice cold and dismissive: “Still not leaving?”
The suffocating pressure on their hearts eased. They didn’t even have time to wonder why the top-ranked player was colluding with an NPC—they just turned and fled for their lives.
It wasn’t until they’d run far enough that the others were out of sight that the floral shirt man finally stopped to catch his breath, his face dark as the bottom of a pot: “That lunatic… Who touched my shoulder?! Do you have a death wish?!”
The player who had been running in the same direction turned back and stared at his shoulder in horror: “B-but… none of us were behind you.”
The floral shirt man’s anger immediately froze. A chill shot up from the soles of his feet straight to his brain.
A smiling face appeared beside his ear, and the female ghost whispered in an eerie tone: “Have you seen my child?”
Author’s Note:
Half-recycled the plot summary.
- Kayako Saeki is a fictional character and the main antagonist of the Ju-On and The Grudge horror franchises film. (not attaching the picture, cause I’m scared -Taw) ↩︎
Have you seen my boyfriend, my boyfriend, my boyfriend 🥺