Chapter 5: Killing the Male Protagonist for a Better Shot at the Female Protagonist
“What exactly is a ghost?”
This thought drifted into Bai Yu’s mind, taking the place of Zhao Mingyue’s shadow. It felt quite bizarre, an experience she had never encountered before.
Transforming into a ghost left her feeling awfully peculiar; her body felt both present and absent. It was light, almost as if she were a puff of air. Yet, strands of something wafted about in her being, threads that anchored her empty form and prevented her from vanishing entirely.
It was as if her physical body had morphed into a substance somewhere between liquid and gas, bound together by countless red threads that had somehow sculpted her current ghostly form.
The skills a ghost possesses—like controlling bl**d threads and dark mist, possessing shadows, floating, and teleporting over short distances—were instinctively learned once she became a vengeful spirit.
Before Zhao Mingyue called her forth, she existed in a bl**d-red world devoid of direction, distance, or time. She wandered aimlessly, unsure if she was standing still or moving, until Zhao Mingyue’s summon finally illuminated her path to the real world.
That being said, being a ghost is not exactly a fun experience. Every sense has been drastically muted—her sense of smell was faint at best, taste had completely disappeared, and the sensation of touch? Everything felt cold.
And let’s talk about that cold. It wasn’t the kind where you’re thrown out n*ked into a winter wonderland; no, it felt like she was wrapped in heavy winter clothing but couldn’t keep warm. Chilling wisps of air seeped into her body through every pore, as if ice needles were prickling her insides.
The difference? With the first scenario, you could feel the immediate risk of freezing to d*ath, and before that happens, there’s this absurd heat from fearing d*ath.
The second is a slow d*ath. You don’t feel like you’re going to freeze immediately, but the icy sensation never lets up, gnawing at you like a persistent little parasite until you feel like your very soul is locked in a freezer.
Using that metaphor doesn’t quite cut it, really, since it’s more apt for the living.
At least for the latter case, if you’re bundled up in those heavy winter layers, you must be a living, breathing human with body temperature. The cold from the outside only creeps inward.
But she wasn’t alive—no body heat whatsoever. The desolation left her feeling cold from within.
The outside world was bright and warm, yet she couldn’t touch it.
It wasn’t a matter of fear; it was a matter of impossibility. For her, on the brink of having her very soul freeze over, the warmth of the outside world posed a lethal threat. Even if she were to freeze to d*ath and end up under the sun, there would be no warmth—only rapid demise.
If you wanted another metaphor, living people bask in the warmth of sunlight, while ghosts freeze in the shadows.
Bai Yu finally figured out why ghosts often seem insane and irrational.
It’s not that they lose their humanity after d*ath; in fact, it’s quite the opposite. The clearer their minds, the less rational they become. After all, not everyone has the willpower to withstand that kind of cold. Sure, they might manage a day or a week, maybe even a month or a year, but eventually, everyone has their breaking point.
To make matters worse, ghosts must not only endure the pain of the cold but also bear their own grudges.
Those who commit s*icide might only need to close their eyes to relive the agony of their demise repeatedly. As for murderers, they see the vengeful spirits of those they’ve killed whispering their names, hissing malicious words in their ears.
This is why most people who d*e naturally don’t linger as ghosts. Even if they do, they tend to fade away quickly. Whereas those who’ve died unjustly or unfulfilled in their obsessions… they tend to stick around, morphing into vengeful spirits.
“They can’t withstand the cold, nor their own resentment and grudges; it’s no wonder they turn into crazed, mindless ghosts.” Bai Yu’s thoughts broke off as visions of various vengeful spirits filled her mind—some bloody-faced, others headless or bisected.
These “missing limbs” ghosts were all players she had dispatched in games, and she had a knack for using a kn*fe. The wounds on these spirits were the results of her handiwork.
These obsessions haunt her thoughts constantly, calling her name and cursing her with the most venomous words. It felt like a swarm of pesky flies buzzing around her ears.
“Shut up!”
With a burst of frustration, silence fell around Bai Yu. She needed to think about her future plans—peace and quiet were essential.
Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Zhao Mingyue seemed to sense something, abruptly opening her eyes.
The room was pitch black; nothing but Miss Rabbit, head down and quietly seated on the bedside table, accompanied by a black phone and a rabbit-shaped phone sporting two prominent cracks across the screen.
A snowy white arm peeked out from under the covers, delicate fingers wrapping around the charging phone on the nightstand, illuminating the screen. The dim glow revealed Zhao Mingyue’s somewhat haggard face.
Her eyes, once bright, now bore the traces of sleepless nights, bloodshot and weary, while her delicate lips were nearly as pale as her skin.
“It’s 4:30 AM… ugh, the agony, I have to go to work in the morning. What do I do?” She buried her head under the covers, truly distressed.
Sleep was elusive; every time she closed her eyes, she saw the grotesque, swollen face of her upstairs neighbor.
Her first encounter with a “ghost” had left a lasting impression.
Her thoughts were a tangled mess. She hadn’t found her sister and had apparently opened a doorway to another world. After all, within her shadow, she harbored a vengeful spirit!
As she pondered Bai Yu, the ghost did the same.
“My target is Zhao Mingyue. Her unique identity ensures that no other participants will compete with me. However, that doesn’t mean the people in this world aren’t a problem. The mission is to gain the favor of the designated character. What if someone else from this world gets to her first?”
Recalling various details, Bai Yu squinted her eyes.
“Looks like I have to be cautious, not only around game participants but also the male protagonist. It would be natural for the female protagonist’s original partner to be the male lead.”
“Therefore, I must find a way to k*ll him. Those lunatics will likely have the same idea as me.”
“There are only five characters they can target, meaning a maximum of five winners. With the surrounding competitors out of the picture, Zhao Mingyue becomes their primary target.”
“After all, it takes killing the female protagonist to have a better shot at the male protagonist.”
