Chapter 43: Life-or-Death Gamble

Sheng Wen kicked the Ghost Gu further away in disgust.
Even without the choking fishy stench, his complexion didn’t improve much.

By now, Zhuo Zhai was no longer as deserted as it had been earlier that morning.
There were sounds coming from the stilt houses, and from time to time, gazes were cast toward Sheng Wen from the window railings.

Sheng Wen disliked this feeling of being watched.

He raised his eyes and looked at them one by one—what was peeking from behind the windows were weasels.

He stopped and asked, “Where is the village chief?”

The weasels began chattering, “kaka, kaka.”
A few of them pointed Sheng Wen in a direction.

As he walked where they pointed, they gathered in groups of three to five, their gazes falling on the Ghost Gu.
“Kaka kaka,” they cried out excitedly, their eyes filled with fear, curiosity, and greed, drool dripping from their mouths.

The Ghost Gu, sensing it was being watched, turned its blood-red eyes to glare back.
The weasels scattered in fright.

Sheng Wen soon found the stilt house where the village chief resided.
The old man was already waiting at the entrance.

Like Fang Lei and Granny Chen, a twisted red line stretched from the back of the village chief’s neck.
He made no effort to hide it and happily invited Sheng Wen inside.

Good tea and water were already prepared.

The village chief stared at the Ghost Gu, rubbing his hands together excitedly. “I’ve already heard. This is great. Our world can finally be free from oppression.”

Sheng Wen caught the keyword oppression and, after pondering for two seconds, asked, “The barrier at the entrance of the stockade—is it because of oppression?”

The village chief’s expression instantly turned resentful. “Damn bone people!”

It was the second time Sheng Wen had heard that term today.

He didn’t respond immediately, a storm brewing in his mind.

The blind old woman at the entrance had once warned that if they didn’t enter Zhuo Zhai, they’d be dragged away by weasels.
Yet, once he and Lin Kuo entered, they found the stockade full of weasels.

Sheng Wen still remembered the old woman’s tone—
When she spoke of the weasels, her rage was so intense she seemed ready to tear them to pieces.

And now, the village chief spoke of the bone people in exactly the same tone.

Sheng Wen slouched lazily into a chair and glanced at the village chief, who was still ranting. “Old beast, the ‘bone people’ you’re talking about—is it the blind old woman at the entrance of Zhuo Zhai? Now shut up and let me think about what’s going on…”

The chief was mid-rant and didn’t stop right away.

It wasn’t until Sheng Wen shot him a cold warning glance that he immediately clamped his hands over his mouth, eyes wide with fear.

No wonder he was chosen by the Ghost Gu, the village chief thought, trembling. His gaze is like the fangs of a poisonous snake… terrifying…

Once the village chief finally shut up, the indifference in Sheng Wen’s brow faded slightly.

The Lord God system had dulled his cognitive abilities, so he needed to think seriously about everything that had happened over the past day and night.

It now seemed clear the blind old woman and the village chief were from opposing sides.

The old woman was eager for people to enter the stockade, yet the stockade was full of the weasels she had used as a threat.

That contradiction made no sense unless…

Sheng Wen scoffed softly. “Two worlds.”

Having reached that conclusion, he turned to the village chief, his eyes cold and probing.

Under his stare, the village chief broke out in a cold sweat and let out an involuntary weasel cry—“kaka…”
But he quickly caught himself and fell silent again, recalling Sheng Wen’s earlier command.

In Sheng Wen’s understanding, the Gu battle arena had always been a contest between Gu-raisers.

The weasels raised Gu too, but they had actively pointed him toward Granny Chen to find Gu seeds.

He had originally assumed they were just beasts who didn’t understand competitive boundaries.
But now he realized—the Gu battle arena was likely split between two factions: one led by the weasels, and one by the bone people.

That explained why the blind old woman was so eager to bring outsiders in, and also why Fang Lei had no intent to harm them.

It also cast new light on the weasel footprints on the huge rock outside.

The Gu that the weasels stole belonged to the other world.
And the people they killed were also from the other world.

“Now, answer my questions,” Sheng Wen said.

The village chief nodded timidly.

“I can’t leave here now because of this ghost thing?” Sheng Wen asked, glancing at the Ghost Gu, which was inching closer to him. He kicked it away again, irritated.

The village chief looked at the Gu with pity. “Yes… outsiders who have raised a Gu cannot leave.”

Sheng Wen frowned. “Then people who raise Gu from the other world… they can’t leave that world either?”

At this, the village chief grew angry again. “The treacherous bone people! They’ve won many Gu battles through disgusting methods. Of course they can move around freely—just not enter our world through the Great Immortal Stone! They all deserve to die! Every single one of those bone people deserves to die!”

“Disgusting methods?” Sheng Wen raised an eyebrow.

The village chief’s face contorted with fury. “They feed their Gu with human flesh! They take the skulls of those eaten by the Gu and hang them from the eaves of their stilt houses—flaunting their victories, mocking us! Damn, disgusting bone people!”

Sheng Wen gave him a cool look. “So your world is clean?”

The village chief understood the sarcasm in Sheng Wen’s voice and shrank his neck.
“…At least we treat outsiders who can raise Gu as honored guests! We won’t kill each other. The feed we find for the Gu is basically just leftovers from the bone people. We can’t capture living ones—only dead bone people can enter our world. And even if we’re lucky enough to drag over one who still has a breath left, there’s no way to make them voluntarily offer themselves to the Gu. So it’s difficult for us to win in the Gu battle arena!”

After speaking, the village chief glanced carefully at the Ghost Gu.
“…All the weasels will work hard for it. We’ll work together to find a way to raise the Ghost Gu.”

Sheng Wen turned a deaf ear to this so-called goodwill and muttered to himself, “Voluntarily…?”

The village chief grew even angrier. “Human flesh is the most delicious! The bone people always use vile and low—voluntarily offer themselves to the Gu!”

Sheng Wen’s frown deepened.
A strange unease crept into his heart.

The message should’ve reached him… so why hasn’t there been any response?
Why is it silent on Lin Kuo’s end?

He suddenly asked, “The two worlds can’t communicate?”

The village chief nodded. “Only on the day of the Gu battle can the two worlds overlap.”

Sheng Wen let out an oh-ho under his breath.

That’s it… Lin Kuo has already been chosen by the Gu of the other world.

His expression darkened. A trace of hostility stirred faintly in his brow.

He took out his phone and quickly typed a message to Guan Miao:

[Sheng Wen]: A one-star instance?

Guan Miao, now Lin Kuo’s room manager, had been closely monitoring the stream.
He quickly replied:

[Guan Miao]: …
[Guan Miao]: It is indeed one-star.
[Guan Miao]: The lower the star level, the more sensitive the instance is to strength. This one-star instance was originally intended for Lower City C and newcomers. Occasionally, it gets “rolled” by residents of Lower City A and B. Because those residents don’t match the instance level, the system tries to force them out to maintain entertainment balance—like activating the Ghost Gu and Fetal Gu.
[Guan Miao]: It’s just that… you and Lin Kuo activated the “most powerful Gu” at the same time, so… it became a battle royale.

[Sheng Wen]: Hahahaha.

[Guan Miao]: Don’t be like that… I can request the Lord God system to re-evaluate the instance’s star level.

[Sheng Wen]: What’s the point?

[Guan Miao]: …I just thought it might make you feel a little better.

[Sheng Wen]: Thanks.

Annoyed, Sheng Wen tossed his phone aside and stared at the village chief.
“You just said you can go to the other world to steal scraps?”

The village chief nodded. “We can also steal Gu.”

Sheng Wen pressed down the irritation rising in his throat.
“Let’s make a pact. I’ll raise this ghost thing. You go find Lin Kuo in the other world.”

The village chief’s eyes lit up. “Alright! We will definitely bring Lin Kuo to offer to the Gu!”

Sheng Wen sneered. “You try it.”

The village chief’s heart instantly tightened.
He stammered, “…Then, what… what do you need us to do?”

Sheng Wen sighed, frustrated. “Just pass a message to him. Just say—”

Meanwhile, in the other world…

Granny Chen once again pushed the Fetal Gu in front of Lin Kuo.

Lifting her wrinkled eyelids, she said slowly, “Outsider, I believe I’ve made myself clear. Either raise a Gu… or feed a Gu. The people of Zhuo Zhai value voluntariness. You can choose for yourself. I won’t force you.”

Lin Kuo’s expression was as dark as the bottom of a well.

Sheng Wen definitely wants me to live.

At that thought, he stopped hesitating.
He picked up the Gu and turned to leave.

Behind him, Granny Chen’s voice followed.
“Outsider, go find the village chief. He’ll tell you how to raise the Gu—and arrange your food and lodging.”

Lin Kuo didn’t respond.
He pulled open the door and walked out.

A-Yun, who had been standing outside, glanced at Lin Kuo, then looked back at Granny Chen.
He stepped inside and said in Miao language, “Granny, this outsider’s heart is not with us.”

Granny Chen lowered her head in silence.

A-Yun pressed her, “Granny Chen!”

“I know, I know.” Her voice was old but sharp. “Even if the Fetal Gu has taken a liking to him, I haven’t treated him as a true Gu raiser.”

Then she let out a long sigh.

“I just don’t understand… why the Fetal Gu chose an outsider…”

—

The moment Lin Kuo stepped out of the stilt house, the other three participants surrounded him.

A-Qi’s eyes landed on the Gu bell in Lin Kuo’s hand.

As the one with the highest district level among the participants, he had already deduced some of the Gu Battle rules.
“The NPC called you in alone—don’t tell me it gave you the best Gu? Then how are we supposed to play?”

Lin Kuo ignored him.

A-Qi gave an awkward laugh. “Just kidding.”

At that moment, A-Yun opened the door again and allowed the other participants in to choose their Gu.

Lin Kuo didn’t plan on waiting.

He headed toward the huge rock at the spot corresponding to the weasel world.

Along the way, the villagers all stared at him, murmuring in Miao language he couldn’t understand.
Some even pointed at the Gu bell in his hand.

He ignored them all.

Upon reaching the location, he found exactly what he expected—the huge rock was gone.

Even the low earthen platform had risen to a towering height.

He didn’t stay long.
Turning around, he walked toward the entrance of Zhuo Zhai to test whether he could still leave.

As he neared the gate, he bumped into the other three participants, who had just finished choosing their Gu.

A-Qi called out, “Lin Kuo, the village chief’s residence is this way. Where are you going?”

He even ran up to him. “The village chief is waiting for us. Granny Chen said he has something to tell us. If you have something to do, just wait a bit.”

Lin Kuo stopped.

He wasn’t in a rush right now, so he followed the three participants toward the village chief’s house.

If Sheng Wen had been here, he would’ve noticed immediately that the village chief in this world looked exactly the same as the one in the weasel world—
Just like Granny Chen looked exactly the same in both worlds.
The only difference: the twisted red line running down their backs.

But Lin Kuo had never met the village chief in the weasel world.
So he didn’t notice.

Compared to the weasel-world version, this village chief was far less enthusiastic.
He looked over the group of outsiders and said coldly, “Although a Gu can eat anything, the best nourishment is still human flesh.”

Lin Kuo had expected that. His expression didn’t change.
But the other three reacted with horror.

The girl among them—He Yuting—trembled and asked, “Human flesh? You mean… actual human flesh?”

The village chief didn’t confirm or deny it.

He studied their reactions with disinterest before saying with disdain, “We advocate voluntariness. Only the flesh of those who voluntarily offer themselves to the Gu is considered the most delicious.”

A-Qi muttered, skeptical, “Is this instance related to a cult?”

Lin Kuo: “…”

Surprisingly, A-Qi’s words echoed Lin Kuo’s own thoughts.
He replied blandly, “Maybe it’s more like a pyramid scheme.”

A-Qi chuckled, half-relieved. “Lin Kuo, I’ve seen your livestream. When you act like this, it really puts me at ease.”

Lin Kuo: “Oh.”

A-Qi let out a sigh of relief. “That’s much better.”

The village chief didn’t seem amused.
He looked at them coldly. “So, who among you will be the first to voluntarily offer themselves to the Gu?”

Everyone’s heart skipped a beat.

Lin Kuo frowned.
A terrible realization dawned on him—
But before he could piece it together, the village chief stood up and threw open the door.

Outside, a crowd from the stockade had already gathered.

Their murmured Miao conversations drifted in on the wind.

Then the village chief pointed at He Yuting.
“Let’s give this honor to this outsider girl.”

He Yuting’s face turned pale in an instant.

She had only recently been dragged into the Walled City.
If not for a lack of points, she wouldn’t even have entered this instance.

She didn’t understand the rules—barely understood anything—and now she was being offered?

The villagers seized her and dragged her out of the stilt house.

Lin Kuo immediately stood and followed.
A-Qi and the other participant trailed behind.

They were dragged to the side of the drum tower in the center of the village.

He Yuting’s eyes darted to the others, wide with panic. “Save me! I don’t want to die! I don’t want to be offered to the Gu!”

The villagers ignored her cries and pulled her into the drum tower.

Inside, Granny Chen sat calmly—waiting.

A-Qi, trembling slightly, still mustered the courage to step forward and protest.
“Didn’t you say it had to be voluntary? She clearly doesn’t want this!”

The village chief replied, voice steady and absolute: “She is willing.”

A-Qi stared at him, speechless.

He had seen Lin Kuo’s previous performances—in Intruder, in Death’s Cipher.
And now, sensing the danger pressing in, he quietly sidled over to Lin Kuo and whispered, “We have to do something. Otherwise, we’ll be next.”

Lin Kuo didn’t answer immediately.
His eyes were already scanning the inside of the drum tower.

Only then did he notice—
Hanging from the curved, upturned eaves of the tower… were human skulls.

His expression darkened.

While he assessed the scene, Granny Chen reached out and touched He Yuting’s cheek.
Her smile was gentle—almost reverent.

“Beautiful outsider,” she said softly, “your flesh must be very delicious. The Gu that consumes you will surely perform outstandingly in the Gu Battle Arena. But here in Zhuo Zhai, we believe in voluntariness. The flesh of one who chooses to offer themselves… helps the Gu grow stronger.”

She looked toward the crowd.

“All of us are willing to dedicate our flesh to the Gu. This opportunity… is not something everyone gets.”

He Yuting couldn’t speak.
Whether it was fear, shock, or disbelief, she only shook her head furiously, lips trembling.

Granny Chen’s smile didn’t fade.

Her gaze shifted. She pointed to a Miao girl in the crowd.
The girl hesitated, her face pale—but amidst the cheers of the villagers, she steeled herself and stepped forward into the drum tower.

A-Yun handed Granny Chen a deck of cards.

Lin Kuo noticed immediately—the cards were made of human bone.

Granny Chen shuffled them slowly, then held them face-down in her hands.
“The two ladies may draw a card,” she said.

A-Qi blinked. “What does that mean?”

“Gambling with life,” Lin Kuo said coldly.

This was exactly what Granny Chen had done to him before—using the excuse of voluntariness to force a binary choice.

Sure enough, just as Lin Kuo finished speaking, Granny Chen announced:
“The bone cards are numbered one through nine. ‘Nine’ is the highest.
Whichever of you draws a ‘nine’—or a number closer to it—will receive the honor of voluntarily offering themselves to the Gu.”

A-Qi finally understood.

He turned pale, his voice hollow.
“No wonder the village chief was so sure she’d be ‘willing’…”

Because if you want to live,
you can only choose to gamble.

And if you lose—

You voluntarily become the Gu’s next meal.

Once you drew a ‘9’—or even a number close to it—it meant you’d lost the gamble.

And you had to use your own life to feed the Gu.

A-Qi stood silent, uncertain what to say.

After a long pause, he finally muttered, “All instances in the Walled City have traps. Even one-star ones aren’t safe.”

Raising a Gu. Fighting a Gu.
If the rules were that simple, how could this instance attract viewers to the stream?

A-Qi pulled out his phone and opened his livestream.
The number of bullet comments had increased noticeably ever since the bone-card gamble began.

Lin Kuo also checked his phone.

The comment feed flooded his screen:

[Oh my god, I was about to doze off, now it’s getting good.]
[But seriously, where’s Like a Sweet Breeze?]
[You upstairs are dumb. That NPC hag said there are two worlds. Like a Sweet Breeze is in the other one.]
[No, you’re the dumb one. I was asking about his livestream. I checked all the lower-district rooms. He’s not there.]
[Then open your eyes next time.]
[Enough arguing! I’m here for the gamble of life, not your family feud.]

Lin Kuo let out a quiet exhale and put his phone away.
His gaze landed on He Yuting and the Miao girl.

Granny Chen smiled. “Who draws first?”

The Miao girl hesitated for a second. “I am willing to offer myself to the Gu. I’ll go first.”

Granny Chen shook her head gently.
“The people of Zhuo Zhai are always warm and welcoming. Let the outsider girl go first.”

With that, every gaze locked on He Yuting.

She clenched her fists. Closed her eyes.

These people will never let me go.

If she wanted a chance at life, she had to draw.
That was the only path forward.

She reached out with trembling fingers… and drew a card.

She flipped it over. Her eyes widened—
Then her shoulders slumped in relief.

A-Qi let out a long breath too. “Looks like He Yuting got a small number.”

Lin Kuo didn’t respond.
Something didn’t sit right.
His eyes narrowed, watching every detail.

Now it was the Miao girl’s turn.

She had noticed He Yuting’s relaxed expression, which only made her more anxious.

As she reached out, she hesitated.

Granny Chen’s eyes darkened. Her smile tightened.
That alone was enough to make the Miao girl’s fingers twitch—she quickly grabbed a card.

But her hand trembled.

The bone card slipped from her fingers and hit the floor with a sharp clack.

The number on it was clearly visible: 7.

The Miao girl’s face turned ashen.

All heads turned toward He Yuting, waiting—wanting—to see her card.

He Yuting, emboldened by hope, raised her hand and showed the card:1.
The crowd erupted in cheers.

Granny Chen gently took the two bone cards and glanced down.
Then she looked at the Miao girl with regret.

Before she could say a word, Lin Kuo said coldly, “Oh no.”

In the Materialized Stories instance, Lin Kuo had rolled a ‘13’—
Lin Zhi had rolled a ‘1’.
The result? Their numbers connected.

And the number closest to the attacker’s number became the target.

Here, it was the same.

Numbers didn’t move linearly. They looped.
1 and 9 were adjacent.

He Yuting’s card—1—was closer to 9 than the Miao girl’s 7.

Granny Chen smiled. Her voice was warm, reverent.

“Congratulations, beautiful outsider girl, on receiving the honor of offering yourself to the Gu.”

He Yuting froze.
The blood drained from her face.

“No—no, I drew a ‘1’! She drew a ‘7’! There’s still 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 between me and 9! She’s closer—she should be the one!”

Granny Chen shook her head, already anticipating this.

“The cards are numbered 1 to 9. Between 1 and 9 are seven numbers—but between 9 and 1? There are none. They are next to each other.”

He Yuting opened her mouth… and found she had nothing to say.

She stood there, utterly still.

The villagers were clearly practiced at this.

They moved forward and lifted He Yuting without hesitation, speaking to each other in Miao.

The village chief, standing beside Lin Kuo and A-Qi, could hardly contain his glee.
“Wonderful. My Gu has been hungry for three days. Now, finally, it has something to eat.”

A-Qi stared, stunned.
“They never said before that the numbers were connected like that…”

Lin Kuo’s voice was quiet. Blank.
“If they’d swapped cards, He Yuting would still have lost.”

It took A-Qi a moment to process what Lin Kuo meant.

His eyes widened.

Granny Chen had rigged it.
If the Miao girl had drawn a ‘1’, the rule about number looping wouldn’t have been mentioned at all.

Lin Kuo watched as He Yuting was dragged away, his thoughts spinning.

Fang Lei had said: A Gu can eat anything, but if it hasn’t eaten human flesh, it can’t be raised properly. It’ll lose in the arena.

But then why did Granny Chen emphasize voluntariness so much?

Could it be that flesh taken by force… didn’t count as human flesh?

Lin Kuo’s brow furrowed.

He remembered what the hunter had said.

Granny Chen was a holy maiden in the Miao region. Lies… would tarnish the soul.

He lowered his gaze to the Gu bell in his hand.

And suddenly—
Something clicked.

Flesh taken by force brings resentment.
But flesh offered willingly… leaves the soul clean.
And Gu insects raised with clean souls become more deadly in the battle arena.

That’s why.

That’s what all this ceremony, this ritual, this “voluntariness” was really about.

The train of thought had begun.

And Lin Kuo—finally—understood.

Lin Kuo divided human flesh into two types:

One was the flesh of a person killed against their will.

The other—willing flesh. Someone who offered themselves to die.

These two types were like the difference between a pig’s most tender tenderloin, and its lymph nodes.

In the real world, a jin of tenderloin cost 28 yuan.
Lymph nodes?
They were waste. Removed and discarded.
Worse—eating them could weaken your immune system.

So this explanation made sense.

But one thing still didn’t sit right with Lin Kuo.

Granny Chen had said that everyone in Zhuo Zhai voluntarily offered themselves to the Gu.

That meant this village had a steady supply of “tenderloin,” right?

So why go through all the trouble to manipulate outsiders—‘lymph nodes’—into appearing like voluntary tenderloin?

The moment that question surfaced, Lin Kuo found the answer.

It was a lie.
The people of Zhuo Zhai didn’t offer themselves voluntarily at all.

But Gu had to feed on human flesh—especially flesh from those who offered themselves willingly.

Everyone in Zhuo Zhai raised Gu.
Too many Gu.
Too little food.

Lin Kuo put himself in Granny Chen’s shoes.

If he were her, what would matter more—getting outsiders to help raise Gu for the Gu battle arena, or…

Getting enough meat to raise those Gu?

Exactly.

Granny Chen didn’t lack Gu raisers.

What she lacked—was feed.

At this thought, Lin Kuo immediately tossed away the Fetal Gu.

The Gu inside the bell whimpered faintly, sensing rejection. A low, hurt sound—like a small animal abandoned in the cold.

But Lin Kuo didn’t waver.

Beside him, A-Qi was still reeling from Lin Kuo’s earlier remark.

He rubbed his chin, muttering, “Hold on. That’s… that’s a lot to process…”

He looked up, eyes wide. “So in their eyes, we’re just feed? And to make it count as ‘voluntary flesh,’ they use this life-or-death card game?”

He scratched his head. “Is this really a one-star instance? Because if you look at it this way… this is basically a casino.”

Lin Kuo gave a quiet hum of agreement.

He thought about the rules of the instance.

The instance rule was: victory in the arena.

What did an arena exist for?

To determine a winner and a loser.

Just like gambling.

So gambling—was another form of arena.

Lin Kuo had been wondering all along—why was this small village split into two worlds?

Then he saw Granny Chen pull out the bone cards—and understood.

The two worlds weren’t for the villagers.

They were for the participants.

The Gu battle arena was a competition between worlds.

So whether a participant chose the right world—that was the first gamble.

In this instance, any method that produced a winner and a loser was a type of arena.

In Zhuo Zhai, everyone raised Gu.
In the weasel world, only weasels wearing human skin could raise Gu.

It was clear which side had the advantage.

Lin Kuo didn’t yet know what it would take to win in the weasel-world arena.

But he had chosen Zhuo Zhai.

The world more likely to win.

And so the Lord God system, trying to maintain balance, would naturally increase the difficulty for those who chose Zhuo Zhai.

Which meant…

Surviving wasn’t as simple as raising a Gu and showing up at the arena.

The real danger was becoming tenderloin.

The cheers from the drum tower still echoed.

Lin Kuo looked up at Granny Chen and said, calmly:
“There is a ‘0’ before ‘1.’”

The cheering stopped immediately.

He Yuting, who was still being held aloft by villagers, suddenly regained her senses.
She began to struggle frantically.

“Yes! There’s a ‘0’ before ‘1’! I didn’t lose—this was a draw!”

The people of Zhuo Zhai turned their glares on Lin Kuo.

Granny Chen’s smile twisted.

“There is no ‘0’ in the bone cards,” she said coldly.

Lin Kuo didn’t flinch. “You also didn’t say the numbers were connected before.”

He paused, then drove the blade in deep.

“Not clarifying the rules—violates the principle of ‘accepting defeat in a gamble.’”

He Yuting looked at Lin Kuo as though he’d just thrown her a lifeline.

A-Qi jumped in next. “Yeah! You’re cheating! No gambling spirit at all! Even if the Gu eats He Yuting, it won’t be satisfied!”

The other participant caught on quickly and echoed their protests.

Their words hit home.

The Zhuo Zhai villagers buzzed with unrest.

Granny Chen’s fingers tightened around the bone cards.
Her eyes darkened.

After a long, heavy silence, she finally sighed.

“Very well,” she said stiffly. “It’s my fault. This round can be considered a draw.”

She began shuffling the bone cards once more.
“Then… let’s try again.”

The villagers carrying He Yuting were visibly upset, their expressions unwilling.

But Granny Chen had spoken.
They could only obey.

They put He Yuting down.

She glanced at Lin Kuo, eyes full of gratitude, then staggered toward the drum tower, legs trembling.

A-Qi’s heart was still pounding.
He whispered, “Lin Kuo… I just realized something terrifying.”

Lin Kuo looked over.

A-Qi leaned in. “What if Granny Chen starts making us gamble against each other?”

Lin Kuo shook his head.

“No.”

A-Qi blinked. “Why not?”

At that moment, Lin Kuo really missed Sheng Wen.

If Sheng Wen were here, he wouldn’t ask that question.
Hell—Sheng Wen might’ve figured this out before Lin Kuo did.

A-Qi didn’t notice the silence that followed, or the brief flicker of disdain in Lin Kuo’s expression.

He kept talking.

Lin Kuo, annoyed, finally cut him off with a single sentence:

“It’s just a one-star instance.”

The higher the instance’s star rating, the greater the death rate.

If participants were forced to gamble against each other, the death rate would instantly spike to 50% or higher.

At that point, this would be a three-star instance.

A-Qi’s jaw dropped. “…Damn. That makes sense.”

Lin Kuo said nothing.

But his thoughts never stopped moving.

His gaze fell back on the drum tower.
Everyone in Zhuo Zhai wore ugly expressions, brows furrowed in anger.
Some even pointed at Lin Kuo.

Although he couldn’t understand the Miao language, their faces made it clear—they looked like they wanted to strangle him.

Granny Chen was clearly displeased as she shuffled the cards.
The village chief turned to Lin Kuo and said, “Outsider, offering to the Gu is an honor. You will regret your words just now.”

Lin Kuo replied flatly, “Then why don’t you go offer yourself to the Gu?”

The village chief froze for a moment, then snapped, “I can’t reason with you! You outsiders simply can’t understand what the Gu battle arena means!”

Lin Kuo ignored him.
His attention returned to Granny Chen’s subtle movements as she shuffled the bone cards.

She had other cards hidden up her sleeve.
When she shuffled, the original cards slipped back into her sleeve, and the hidden ones took their place.
He Yuting hadn’t noticed.

This time, Granny Chen didn’t bother with any flowery speech.
She gave the Miao girl a glance.

The girl stepped forward and drew a card.
Then Granny Chen looked at He Yuting. “It’s your turn, outsider!”

He Yuting’s hand trembled as she reached out to draw a card.
She forced herself to swallow, glanced at the number, and her mind went buzz.

Granny Chen smirked coldly, as if she had already known the result.
She waved her hand and said, “Then, ladies, please show everyone your bone cards.”

The Miao girl revealed her card first—1.
Then, in Mandarin Lin Kuo and the others could understand, she said, “I don’t know what number the outsider girl has. As long as she didn’t draw a ‘9,’ then the honor of offering to the Gu is mine.”

A-Qi muttered, “If her hand weren’t shaking just now, I might’ve actually believed her.”

Lin Kuo was focused on the drum tower.
The people gathered around it let out a collective whoa, cheering and urging He Yuting to show her bone card.

But He Yuting’s mind had gone blank.

How could this happen?

She had just survived a near-death experience. Her luck shouldn’t be this bad again.
There’s even a saying: ‘If you survive a great catastrophe, good fortune follows.’

“No… it can’t be,” she whispered.

Her eyes turned red. She clawed at her hair helplessly. “How could this be… how could this be!”

Granny Chen showed no sympathy.
“Outsider! It’s your turn! Everyone is waiting to see your bone card!”

“No!!” He Yuting roared.

Her outburst stirred up the villagers’ emotions.

Someone shouted in broken Mandarin, “What’s going on! Why won’t you show your bone card!”

Granny Chen sneered and goaded her further.
“Outsider, offering to the Gu is a sacred law passed down by the Gu God! If you delay any longer, I’ll consider you contemptuous of the Gu God. And those who are contemptuous will be thrown to feed the most ferocious Gu. They will gnaw your skin, drill into your blood vessels, drink your blood, and then slowly devour your flesh. When nothing remains, we will hang your skull in the drum tower—as a warning!”

Just as she finished speaking, a gust of wind blew past.
The bones hanging from the eaves of the drum tower clattered together, filling the stockade with a sinister rhythm.

He Yuting collapsed in fright.
Granny Chen glanced at her, sneering inwardly.

This outsider girl still doesn’t know…
In the weasel world, weasels call the people of Zhuo Zhai—bone people.

“This outsider dares to scorn the Gu God,” Granny Chen declared coldly. “Since that’s the case, throw her to feed—”

She didn’t finish.

Lin Kuo stepped in front of her.
He plucked the card from He Yuting’s trembling hand.

“This bone card is mine,” he said calmly. “If the card is close to ‘9,’ I’ll offer myself to the Gu.”

Granny Chen froze.
She hadn’t planned to use the person chosen by the Fetal Gu to feed the Gu—not yet.

But then again… if Lin Kuo offered himself willingly, the ritual could empower many Gu at once.

After all, the Fetal Gu was hard to raise.
Even Lin Kuo might not survive long enough to bring it to the Gu battle arena.

Granny Chen reconsidered, then said coldly, “Very well. Then, outsider—if you are truly offering yourself to the Gu, please show everyone your domino.”

Without another word, Lin Kuo flipped the bone card over.