Chapter 210: Ghost Infant

The military-clad man switched to his left hand to adjust his glasses and nodded to indicate:

"You should be glad that the ghost infant you encountered is merely a basic-level supernatural incident."

"If it were a high-difficulty supernatural incident, they would complete the cleanup steps in an instant."

"The system deliberately shaped them into terrifying, unknown entities in human perception to prevent players from having the courage to oppose them."

"The purpose is to restrict human thinking so they dare not face them."

"That's also why such supernatural incidents usually appear in an extremely terrifying form."

"When humans face fear, if they cannot maintain rationality, then they..."

"... cannot withstand a single blow."

After the man finished speaking, he stopped narrating and turned his head to look at the ghost infant in Zhang Tie's hand.

Lin An's eyes flickered; much information was revealed in the man's words.

The eerie man before them seemed to hide many secrets.

However, the urgent priority is still to resolve the supernatural incident first.

Lin An tentatively voiced his new solution, although the military-clad man likely used the same method.

"So, the method to resolve the ghost infant incident is very simple."

"Actually, the idea is quite close to what I initially thought; I just didn't think it through deeply."

"What I initially thought was:"

"As long as we see the missing persons, the killing loop can be broken."

"But back then I thought the missing persons were all dead; seeing their corpses, even if the loop were broken, it wouldn't mean much."

"Solving the problem after everyone is dead is meaningless."

"I discarded that line of thought."

"But now it's different."

"Putting the head back on the ghost infant let everyone come back alive. Although the ghost infant isn't resolved, essentially it no longer affects us."

"I have already released my companions, and they have not disappeared so far."

"So, essentially, have we already severed the disappearance process?"

"In other words, the ghost infant no longer poses a threat to us."

"At worst, I won't remove its head, letting it stay in this state."

"Doing so actually amounts to trapping its killing ability."

"Are you stationed here because you're worried someone might sabotage it, or that the ghost infant might escape on its own?"

The military-clad man in the corner remained silent, stiffly repairing his arm, as if in acquiescence.

Lin An let out a breath, feeling somewhat helpless.

The man did not rebut himself, indicating that the solution really is just that.

After all this fuss, it turns out the matter is really that simple.

As a low-level supernatural incident, the ghost infant's killing method is mechanical and rigid.

It must throw the missing persons into the "stomach space" to complete the first stage of disappearance, then thoroughly kill the player character within that stomach space.

But as long as we put its head back on, it will think there is still a place to store the missing persons.

Once a person is released, they will not die.

Thus its killing process is interrupted...

In short, as long as the head is reattached, the problem can be thoroughly resolved.

The remaining difficulty is how to protect the ghost infant so its head won't fall off.

It's like a primed mine: if you don't let go, it won't explode.

So the military-clad man only restrained himself when he was reenacting childbirth.

Afterward, he never cared about the time, nor worried about the ghost infant's problem.

Because the ghost infant's problem has already been solved.

Lin An also realized this, so he didn't explain anything to the others.

However, there are still a few details Lin An can't help but want to clarify:

"I want to know, why didn't you bring the ghost infant to evacuate to a safe location?"

"Also, how did you survive when the zombies attacked the camp?"

"Why is black paper pasted on this classroom?"

"What is the purpose of the paper money on the ground?"

"Why is the ghost infant's head in the woman's throat? Why did you reopen the head again?"

"Who are you, then?"

Six consecutive questions, each full of doubts.

Although the military-clad man showed no hostility, Lin An never let down his guard.

After hearing this, the man slowly raised his head, ceasing to repair his arm:

"I will answer all your questions."

"But."

"My earlier silence was not an endorsement of your statement being correct."

"But rather, I was waiting for it to return..."

Upon hearing this, Lin An's heart jolted; the people who had been relaxing instantly straightened up.

Could it still be wrong!?

Who are you waiting for to come back!?

The soldier in uniform staggered to his feet, looking toward the window:

"The ghost infant case was indeed handled this way from the start—we've always done it like that."

"But it's not like that anymore."

"It has mutated..."

"Wa!!!!"

As the man's words fell, the ghost infant in Zhang Tie's hand suddenly let out a sharp cry.

The soldier in uniform in the corner slowly turned his head, looking behind Wen Ya.

"Lin An, you seem to have forgotten something."

"You should have... seen the second ghost infant."

"It has no head."

"And it was born..."

An eerie atmosphere spread.

Bone-chilling cold.

Lin An's pupils suddenly contracted.

He remembered.

Mo Ling had once given me a headless infant!

And he threw that headless ghost infant out of the vehicle!

A chill ran through them, and everyone inside realized this at once.

Lin An forced himself to calm, his eyes locked on the man in the darkness:

"How could you know I've seen it!"

"Who are you waiting for!?"

"And if that one is truly also a ghost infant, why does fixing this one's head lift the disappearance!?"

The man fell silent for a moment, then mechanically raised his arm, pointing toward the window:

"It's here."

"Bang!"

The window shattered, glass shards flying and reflecting in the dim light Wen Ya's disbelieving eyes.

Outside the window, below, the school gate.

In the heavy rain.

The girl in a blue coat slowly lifted her gaze to the third floor.

It is!?

In the instant everyone saw the girl clearly, the man in the corner suddenly turned and pointed at Wen Ya:

"Kill her, cut off her head."

The voice was icy, devoid of any emotion.

Lin An strained to turn his head, looking at the girl asleep behind Wen Ya.

Lightning flashed from the dark clouds, briefly lighting up the room.

It also illuminated Mo Ling's blue denim jacket...